"Senpaku, I am Sakamoto. What brings you here?"

Under everyone's gaze, Sakamoto

He stood up calmly.

Bow slightly.

"I am flattered by your praise, but I am unworthy of it. I have only done my duty as a student."

His tone was calm, and his posture elegant.

It seems as if they have achieved such an astonishing result.

To him, it was really just a trivial matter.

Ms. Mashima nodded, gesturing for him to sit down.

This kid... might really become one of the most outstanding students in the history of this school.

At the beginning of the semester, I thought he was just a pretty face, but now it seems I was wrong.

-

Class B for the first year.

When homeroom teacher Kazuma Sakagami posted the report cards on the bulletin board,

The students below were clearly much more nervous than those in Class A.

After a brief whisper,

Once you see your score and ranking

Most people wore expressions of relief.

The overall impression of the report card

It naturally cannot compare to the uniformly high scores of Class A.

Very few are outstanding.

Most people's scores are densely distributed in the upper-middle range.

But the key is -

List of those who failed: empty.

No one dropped out of school.

This is undoubtedly a huge victory for Class C, which was previously in a weaker position, and Class B, which had a relatively weak foundation.

Back row of the classroom

Long Yuanxiang glanced at the report card and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.

Bet right.

Although the school changed the exam questions at the last minute, his strategy of "strengthening the foundation" and "refining the key points" worked.

These good-for-nothings finally didn't disappoint him.

He could sense that many students in the class were looking at him with...

Besides the fear of the past,

There was a greater sense of genuine conviction and even gratitude.

An invisible force of cohesion known as "personality cult"

It is quietly taking root in this class.

The teacher on the podium observed the students' reactions below.

He glanced again at the composed Long Yuan in the back row.

A barely perceptible hint of satisfaction appeared on his face.

-

Class C for one year.

"Everyone—you were fantastic!"

Looking at the report card, homeroom teacher Hoshinomiya Chie's face beamed with undisguised joy and pride.

She announced in a sweet voice,

"Everyone passed! And the average score is extremely high! At this rate, overtaking the classes ahead will be just around the corner!"

Below the podium,

The students in Class C also radiated confidence and fighting spirit.

Their grades were generally excellent.

This is the result of their strict management and joint efforts.

Honami Ichinose, who was standing in the front row, turned around at the right moment to face the whole class.

A warm and infectious smile on his face:

"Everyone, this is the result of our joint efforts! Keep it up! Our goal is not just to avoid dropping out, but to go even higher! Keep it up!"

"oh--!"

A rousing response erupted from the audience.

The fighting spirit burned intensely in the classroom.

-

Class D, first year.

When Chabashira Sae walked into the classroom with her report card...

The expression on his face was rare, something that even the students in Class 1-D had never seen before—

A faint sense of relief.

She pasted the report card up.

His gaze swept over the tense faces of the audience.

"The midterm exam results are out."

"Congratulations. Everyone passed, and no one dropped out."

"Wow——!"

moment,

A huge cheer and a sigh of relief echoed throughout the D classroom.

Especially the "three idiots" sitting in the back row.

I was so excited I almost jumped out of my seat.

Survived!

however,

Tea Pillar then changed the subject.

His gaze sharpened.

It was accurately thrown in a certain direction.

"But don't be too happy yet."

“Some students barely pass and get by. If you don’t take it seriously next time, there’s always a chance for you to be expelled.”

Everyone knew exactly where her gaze was directed.

At the very bottom of the report card, those names and scores were extremely conspicuous.

Especially English,

The notes section below clearly states:

The passing score is 40 points.

And the score for Takeru Sudo is:

41 points.

Takeru Sudo looked at his score.

A cold sweat broke out on my back.

Only he himself knows how lucky he was.

English was his most dreaded subject.

He did not review English the night before the exam.

He placed almost all his hopes on the past exam papers that Kushida had given him.

In the examination room,

He was almost in despair when he discovered that the questions had completely changed.

It was entirely due to the little bit of residual knowledge that Horikita had forcibly crammed into his head during the study session.

I had to guess and work through the exam, but I managed to finish it.

41 points.

More waste, less collapse.

This is less about luck,

Rather, it was Horikita Suzune's study session that saved his life.

Chi's results were also about average.

It flew low overhead, but at least it was safe.

On the contrary, Haruki Yamauchi,

This time, he actually managed to squeeze into the middle of the class.

Surprisingly.

After the bell rang,

Teacher Chazhu left the classroom.

The trio of idiots exchanged glances again and, without prior arrangement, walked toward Horikita Suzune, who was organizing her notes by herself.

"Hey, Horikita..."

Chi Kanji scratched his head, his tone awkward.

"Thank you so much this time."

Haruki Yamauchi was unusually free of his usual playful demeanor.

"Thanks to you for getting us to study... otherwise we would have been really doomed this time."

Kenya Sudo added in a low voice:

"...Thanks."

Horikita Suzune raised her head.

She looked at the three guys who were awkwardly thanking her, her gaze lingering on their faces for a moment.

The tension that had been building in her heart finally eased a little.

An indescribable sense of accomplishment quietly grew within me.

My own efforts...

It seems that it really wasn't a waste of time.

They really have changed.

"It's good that it passed."

She suppressed her emotions.