Survive in Azure Files

"Thank you very much!" Hifumi breathed a sigh of relief. "It feels like a very ordinary score, but it's great! So, next..."

I flipped to the next one and my eye twitched slightly: "Hanako... 69 points. Passed."

On the surface, this seems to be just an ordinary score like Hifumi's.

However, if you combine Hanako's true level with her own words...

"Hehe~" the pink-haired girl laughed mischievously, "Thanks to the teacher's careful guidance~"

This guy! There's something else behind his words!

What does it mean to be in contrast with what I teach?

I would like to teach, could you please reveal your power quickly so that I can have the chance to teach?

And what happened to Xiaochun? Why did she blush? Why did her pupils shrink into vertical lines?

Xiaochun yelled, "What are you talking about? It's unclean! Death penalty!"

"Ah~ What is Koharu-chan talking about?" Hanako pretended to be amazed, "Why don't I understand?"

"Woo..."

At the suspicious looks given by Hifumi and Azusa, Koharu cried out in pain and said no more.

I felt inexplicably sad and angry, and felt that my reputation had been seriously damaged invisibly.

No, one day, I have to do something that is consistent with the subtext of Hanako, the culprit who deliberately controls the scores.

There is also Xiaochun who has wild thoughts in his mind and slanders my great image!

"Great!" Hifumi smiled even more. "This way, half of the people will pass the exam! Teacher, please continue!"

It seemed that she was happy, perhaps a little too early.

Then I turned to the next paper and saw the score. I couldn't help but say with some regret:

"Azusa, 37 points. Failed."

Zi's ​​efforts are obvious to all. But unfortunately, her foundation is too weak. No matter how hard she works during this period of time, she can only improve to this level.

I don't think it's her fault. Compared to her previous score, Zi has made a big leap. Since she did her best, she deserves praise.

But...I was thinking.

Is there a slight deviation in Zi's perception of himself?

Hifumi's smile suddenly froze: "...What!?"

Upon learning about his results, Zi curled his lips and said, "Tsk, it's just a piece of paper."

"...Please, please wait a moment!" Hifumi retorted in panic, "This isn't just a score that's only a fraction of a second, right? It's still a long way off, right?!"

And from the specific scores of the previous three pictures, I have roughly guessed the pattern of arrangement.

But when I actually saw the score on the last test paper, I couldn't help but sigh:

"Xiaochun, 15 points. Failed."

The person who claimed to be an elite uttered an "ah" and blushed again.

"Koharu-chan——!?"

Hifumi was so shocked that her voice almost broke. She trembled and said, "Didn't you say you hid your strength? You used the first-year test paper this time, right? Could it be that you used the second-year test paper... No, that score, did you use the third-year test paper? "

Obviously, she had fallen into confusion due to the severe impact.

But even at this moment, Xiaochun still insisted: "No, that...! This, this is still quite difficult..."

"It's very simple huh? Like a quiz?"

Xiaochun hesitated, shrank his neck, and dared not speak anymore.

I was reflecting on this. This kid always has wild thoughts. Could it be that such a handsome me appears in front of her every day, causing her to be distracted and only get this score...

At this time, Hifumi tried to calm down and forced a smile: "Wow... In other words, Hanako-chan and I are the only ones who passed... In that case, we have to take the test a second time..."

Although it may seem a bit unkind when others are feeling down, I still silently add to it in my heart.

And the exciting training session I had with the beautiful girls...

Finally, it’s time to begin!

Chapter 31 The Truth about the Tutoring Department

Due to the huge gap between the actual result of the first make-up exam and her imagination, Hifumi was obviously in a low mood.

Fortunately, Hanako successfully passed the make-up exam by controlling her scores accurately, which gave her some psychological comfort.

But I think, with Hifumi's personality, even if Hanako is still pretending to be a poor student, she will be able to recover from the blow quickly and continue to move forward.

In short, Hifumi briefly informed everyone of the upcoming training camp, and asked everyone to make preparations in the next two days and wait for the notification of the tea party.

Then today's activities were temporarily declared over.

Mainly, Hifumi, the department director, and Koharu, who has the worst performance and is the most stubborn, both need to go back and calm down.

Soon, the night fell. In order to fully enjoy the snacks made by Nagisa, I only bought a piece of bread to fill my stomach, and then I wandered around the quaint Trinity campus alone for a while until the agreed time approached, and then I went to the tea party.

Led by the guards, I once again came to the venue of the tea party.

The tea party host, who had already taken his seat in the main seat and was unhurried, placed a piece on the chessboard in front of him.

Then, she paused the game, showed me an impeccable and elegant smile, and spoke in a gentle tone:

"Ah, teacher. Thank you for your hard work. How is the cram school going?"

Before I could reply, Nagisa said as if talking to herself:

"...But I've heard about it. It seems that the first test didn't go well. But there are still two chances..."

"Even so, we can't let our guard down." I sighed, and then asked, "By the way, Nagisa, where were you just now?"

"Oh, this? Chess is my hobby. I haven't told the teacher about this yet."

As he answered, Nagisa picked up a chess piece of a different color from the previous one, made a move, and introduced it to me:

"I'm afraid this is a type you haven't seen before. The black side has a king and queen, and the rest are all soldiers. The white side has a king, a castle, a chariot, and three or four knights... This type of formation must be rare."

This situation is indeed quite rare, and the forces of both sides do not seem to be balanced.

Rather than a game... it's more like a metaphor or deduction?

I had a vague guess in my mind, but on the surface I remained calm and asked, "Are you alone now?"

"Yes, I'm alone now. The noisy Mika-san isn't here either."

Nagisa said with a hint of meaning, and then smiled and said, "Today, I have something to tell the teacher... But before that, the teacher seems to have something to say to me."

Judging from the current atmosphere, it seems that what Nagisa wants to say to me is not going to be to comfort me in an intimate way, or to confess to me directly.

I felt a little regretful, nodded, and went straight to the point:

"What would happen if, for example, someone failed the make-up exam three times in a row?"

Sure enough, after hearing this question, Nagisa was silent for a short time. This reaction seemed to confirm my guess.

The elegant girl put away her business-like smile and stared at me calmly with her gray-gold eyes: "Did you hear about it by chance? Was it from... Hifumi-san? Or... Sakurako-san from the Sisterhood?"

Apparently, the Tea Party knew my whereabouts within Trinity, which wasn't surprising.

However, from Nagisa's tone that made people feel a little uncomfortable...

Did she find out by accident, or was she observing me deliberately?

If it's the latter, it can't be explained by just saying he has a crush on me.

Suddenly, I inexplicably thought of Sakurako's words, which, in my opinion at the time, were just inappropriate words.

Quickly dispelling my unfounded suspicion, I answered truthfully, "It was just that Hifumi let it slip by accident."

"I see. That's very much her style. But that's also Hifumi's strength..."

After sighing, Nagisa said to me calmly: "Then, the answer to the question is very simple. We have been failing the exams, unable to avoid repeating a grade, and unable to help each other..."

In the increasingly heavy atmosphere, I couldn't help but hold my breath and stare at the girl's beautiful face with an indifferent expression.

The current Filius faction leader, who was known for his deep thoughts, said in a tone that did not change, the fate that the cram school would face in that situation, and said it lightly:

"In that case, we can only ask them to drop out of school together."

Just a few words, the voice was not loud, but it was as shocking as thunder out of the blue.

"…Are you serious about what you said?"

I tried my best to suppress my emotions, but I was still filled with disbelief.

After living in the school city of Kivotos for several months, I have already understood the significance of school to students, and naturally I also know what dropping out means.

If you are not recognized by your original school, you will lose your original legal identity and corresponding rights, and it will be difficult for you to be accepted by other schools...

It was basically doomed. If no other way out was found in advance, from now on, I would have to hang around in the black market and bid farewell to my previous life completely.

The simplest example is that even serious offenders like the seven prisoners who were sent to the Correctional Service to serve their sentences were only given suspension from school.

It's just that the grades are poor, is it really necessary to go to this extent?

"of course."

Nagisa patiently introduced to me: "Trinity already has procedures related to repeating a grade, suspension, and expulsion. However, the procedures are complicated and lengthy, and require a lot of confirmation and discussion. Because unlike Gehenna, we attach great importance to procedures."

"So," I looked at Nagisa coldly, "you need to use some means to bypass the procedure, right?"

"I'm deeply sorry about that part."

No matter what, Nagisa didn't show any trace of guilt in her expression, and her face was calm: "As you said, the temporary tutoring club was adjusted to ignore such school rules. Because Xia Lai's authority was slightly added, this measure became possible."

In other words.

I really was taken advantage of.

When I realized this fact, I was surprised that I didn't get very angry.

What occupies more of my mind is pure doubt:

"why?"

"The reason for this question is very simple. After all, the cram school is..."

Nagisa paused for a moment, and the last bit of smile that she maintained instinctively finally faded away completely at this moment.

"A club set up to get students to drop out of school."

Chapter 32 The Current State of the Holy Trinity

Is the cram school a club set up to get students to drop out of school?

As he silently recited the information Nagisa had told him, a myriad of complicated thoughts emerged, the clearest of which was the sudden realization after the key issue was pointed out.

If the purpose of the tea party was not to help problem students as I thought from the beginning, then some of the problems I encountered before would have more reasonable answers.

But this brings up a more critical issue.

"So," I said solemnly, "why do this?"

I think I have some understanding of Nagisa's character.

She was not the kind of person who would plan to get students from the same school expelled simply because of their poor grades.

What's more, if this is true, the first make-up exam paper only needs to be made so difficult that no one can pass it, and there is no need to entrust me to be a consultant for the cram school.

Therefore, there must be a deeper reason behind Nagisa's behavior, which I cannot understand for the time being.

"It's time for you to know."

Nagisa's tone has become as solemn as her current expression: "Because among them, there is a traitor to the Holy Trinity."

My expression changed slightly: "...Traitor?"

"That's right." Nagisa paused, "The traitor's goal is to prevent the conclusion of the Eden Treaty."