"That being said, it's not like everyone in the last-place group will be expelled. If that were the case, around forty students would be expelled at once. Whether or not someone gets expelled depends on whether the group's average score falls below the school's prepared threshold. If it's below the passing standard, the group's leader will be expelled."
Chabashira Sae's face carried a meaningful smile.
"How will the leader be decided?"
Hirata Yosuke asked.
"Your group will decide that among yourselves."
Chabashira Sae replied.
[The leader is at risk of being expelled. Who would want to be that?]
[What if someone deliberately sabotages the group… What if people in the group intentionally lower their scores…]
[I don't want to be the leader…]
'Yare yare, almost everyone is avoiding this position.'
Saiki could clearly hear their thoughts.
"But of course, there are benefits. Students from the same class as the leader will receive double the rewards."
Chabashira Sae added.
In an instant, the thoughts of everyone in the class shifted.
They hoped someone else from their class would become the leader—preferably not themselves.
"There's another important matter. If a student is expelled, the class will face corresponding penalties. The penalties will vary depending on the exam, but if someone is expelled during this special exam, the class points will be reduced by 100 points per expelled student. If the class points are insufficient, the deduction will be calculated during future point additions, but the points will always remain at zero."
Chabashira Sae continued.
[As expected, if someone is expelled, it will affect the entire class's points. It's a good thing no one has been expelled from our class so far.]
Horikita Suzune thought to herself.
"Then… is there any way to prevent someone from being expelled?"
Hirata Yosuke asked.
"Of course, as a last resort, you can use personal points to cancel an expulsion. However, the cost is quite high. In principle, to cancel a student's expulsion, you need to pay 20 million personal points. Additionally, you must also pay 300 class points—this is just a rescue measure. The penalties for expulsion won't disappear. Of course, if either side doesn't have enough points, it's impossible to execute."
Chabashira Sae narrowed her eyes slightly.
'Yare yare, it takes 20 million to rise to Class A, and it also takes 20 million to save someone from expulsion. For an individual, this is indeed a difficult amount to achieve, but it seems the entire class could share the burden… That would depend on whether the class is willing to pay for the expelled student.'
Saiki pondered.
At the same time, he could hear Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts.
[The worst-case scenario for this special exam is that many students from Class B are expelled. To move the class forward, we need to identify which students are essential and must be protected. For this class to advance, Hirata and Horikita are indispensable. Considering Kushida's current situation, perhaps she should also be kept.]
Saiki just sighed, hoping nothing too strange would happen during this special exam.
"Well, let's discuss the group assignments!"
Hirata Yosuke said to the others. Saiki had no intention of getting involved.
...
Soon, the bus arrived at its destination, and everyone got off. They were separated by gender and then gathered in front of their respective dormitories.
Saiki looked up at the building in front of him. It was a very retro-looking wooden structure, but it wasn't old or dilapidated—it seemed to have been meticulously maintained.
Soon, students from other grades also got off the bus and headed to the gymnasium in the special exam area to discuss group assignments.
Saiki didn't participate much in the group discussions. Although he didn't like interacting with others, at this point, it didn't matter which group he was assigned to, as long as it wasn't too outrageous.
The group assignments were soon announced.
Class B: Koenji Rokusuke, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Yukimura Teruhiko, and Saiki.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka aside, at least Yukimura Teruhiko was a relatively normal person, and there would be no issues interacting with him.
The only potential problem… was Koenji Rokusuke.
However, after some observation, although Saiki didn't have much fondness for Koenji Rokusuke, he realized that in some ways, Koenji Rokusuke was actually quite compatible with him.
Koenji Rokusuke spent most of his time in his own world and rarely interacted with others, which meant he wouldn't cause much trouble for Saiki.
Moreover, Koenji Rokusuke was the type of person who easily drew attention. Having him around would further reduce the chances of Saiki being noticed.
Of course, all of this was contingent on Koenji Rokusuke not suddenly doing something outrageous.
Class C: Makoto Sumida, Katsumi Tokito, and another boy named Tokito. Saiki didn't have much of an impression of them, but since they were from the generally well-meaning Class C, there shouldn't be any issues.
Class A: Totsuka Yahiko and Hashimoto Masayoshi.
[Damn it, I have to be in a group with this guy… He's probably here to keep an eye on me…]
Hashimoto Masayoshi, on the other hand, looked at Totsuka Yahiko with indifference, not taking him seriously at all.
[Sakayanagi told me to keep an eye on Ayanokoji, but according to what Ryuen said earlier, there's someone in Class B pulling the strings behind the scenes… Who is it? Maybe I can find some clues during this exam.]
'Yare yare, Sakayanagi? But it sounds like… she's more interested in Ayanokoji? That's good news for me.'
Saiki thought to himself.
As for Class D, it was Albert Yamada and Ishizaki Daichi.
These two were old acquaintances for Saiki.
They already knew about one percent of Saiki's strength and shouldn't cause him any trouble.
Saiki and the others soon joined up with the rest of their group. The moment they saw Saiki, Albert Yamada and Ishizaki Daichi's expressions turned serious.
[We're in a group with Saiki…]
[Monster…]
A hint of fear arose in their hearts. The memory of being taken down by Saiki in one move was still fresh in their minds—though they didn't actually know what had happened at the time, it was mostly their imagination.
[This guy… even Ryuen is afraid of him…]
'Yare yare, it seems I went a bit overboard that day…'
Saiki turned his gaze toward the Class D area, where Ryuen Kakeru's eyes met his—Ryuen quickly looked away, avoiding eye contact.
"It's you guys again?"
Totsuka Yahiko looked at Saiki and the others with disdain. Even though they had already risen to Class B, Totsuka Yahiko's face was still filled with arrogance.
"How can you still act so arrogantly? The guy you relied on, Katsuragi, has already given up on the power struggle. Why are you still acting so high and mighty?"
Hashimoto Masayoshi said with a slightly sly smile, then turned to Saiki and the others:
"Although I'm not friends with him, as a fellow Class A student, I feel the need to apologize. After all, he's tarnishing our class's reputation."
"Hashimoto? What are you talking about?!"
Totsuka Yahiko was clearly angry, but Hashimoto Masayoshi didn't care:
"Although we probably already know each other's names, some of us are meeting for the first time. Let me introduce myself. I'm Hashimoto Masayoshi. Nice to meet you."
"I'm Yukimura Teruhiko. So, we're choosing a leader now, right?"
At this point, Yukimura Teruhiko pushed up his glasses and asked,
"Any thoughts?"
"Not really…"
The others quickly replied, while Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's gaze subtly shifted toward Saiki.
'The leader? This shouldn't have anything to do with me. For now, it seems like just a title, and the leader doesn't actually have to do anything. But the person chosen for this position…'
"I think Saiki would be perfect for this role."
Yukimura Teruhiko immediately said.
'?'
"Saiki from our class is a very responsible person. I think it's best to give him the leader position. He can handle the group's affairs from now on."
Yukimura Teruhiko said very seriously.
'Hey, hey, why are you suddenly bringing up my name? I didn't agree to this!'
Just as Saiki was about to object, the two from Class D nodded vigorously:
"Yes, yes! We agree!"
[We absolutely can't oppose Saiki…]
'Hey, hey…'
Saiki felt a bit helpless.
"I agree too."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka also raised his hand.
Although the others didn't voice their opinions, they didn't object either, which meant they tacitly accepted the decision.
'Hey, hey, can someone please object?!'
"Then our group leader will be you."
"..."
Saiki was utterly helpless, but for now, he had no choice but to accept the decision. After all, he didn't actually have to do anything.
Just as the first-year students finished forming their groups, a blond upperclassman walked up to them.
Nagumo Miyabi.
"I thought we'd have more time, but you guys are really quick."
Nagumo Miyabi said with a smile.
His face carried a friendly smile, making him seem very approachable.
But Saiki could clearly hear his thoughts.
[How many first-year students can I get expelled during this exam? This should be fun.]
'Yare yare, he's definitely trouble.'
Saiki looked around. It seemed that almost all the second and third-year groups had been formed.
"I have a proposal for you first-years. How about we form the large groups right now?"
Nagumo Miyabi continued.
"Nagumo-senpai, isn't that supposed to happen tonight?"
A first-year student asked.
"That's because the school didn't expect us to finish forming groups so quickly. Since all the grades have finished forming groups, it's more efficient to proceed now."
Nagumo Miyabi wasn't wrong. The school's staff hadn't anticipated the students' quick actions and were now scrambling to adjust.
"Is that okay, Horikita-senpai?"
Nagumo Miyabi turned his gaze to a man standing nearby—Horikita Manabu.
"Yes. It's more convenient for us too."
Horikita Manabu nodded.
"Then how should we proceed? Using something like a voting system wouldn't be very fun. How about each first-year group sends a representative to play rock-paper-scissors? The winners will get to choose second and third-year groups in order, forming the large groups. It's fair and can be decided quickly."
"The first-years don't have much information. It doesn't seem fair."
"Fairness is impossible since everyone has different levels of information."
Nagumo Miyabi and Horikita Manabu were discussing, and the underclassmen couldn't get a word in.
"First-years, what do you think? If you have any objections, speak up."
Nagumo Miyabi turned to the first-year students.
"We have no objections."
A student from Class A said.
"Alright, then let's get started."
Nagumo Miyabi smiled again and directed everyone to begin.
The leaders of the six first-year groups were now gathered to discuss—Saiki had no choice but to participate.
'Rock-paper-scissors?'
Saiki couldn't help but recall his childhood, when he used his telepathy to win every game of rock-paper-scissors in kindergarten, even driving one of the teachers to quit. The few times he didn't win were intentional, and the incident even got him featured in the newspaper.
After that, Saiki realized he couldn't use his powers too frequently or draw too much attention.
'What place should I aim for…'
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
The game suddenly started, and Saiki quickly made his move.
Because it was so sudden, Saiki didn't have time to control what he threw and instinctively won.
"Saiki, you go first."
Horikita Manabu said calmly.