Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test

May 26th, Wednesday.

It's been two weeks since my confrontation with Kushida. I was currently holding the memorandum that was prepared for that night, rereading the details of each condition I put in. I would've taken this out if she still decided to doubt me in the end.

"I'm surprised Kushida didn't ask for something like this. Her mind must've been too occupied with worry and anxiety at that time..."

Kushida has been coming to my room every other day or every two days to vent her feelings. I just sit there and quietly listen to her. Of course, whenever she asks for my opinion, I just give a neutral answer.

Kushida and I have been acting the same as usual, and yet, I can't help but feel like we've become a bit closer since that night.

I sighed in reminiscence, folding the contract and putting it inside the drawer. I checked the group chats to see how everyone was doing.

"Hmm... The exam will be on Friday, the day after tomorrow. Based on Hirata's report, everyone's pretty much ready to take on the exam," I muttered. "I'm glad we made it in time."

But regarding Ken, it would be great if his score could hit the 60s. Well, because his foundation was so bad, I guess this much was expected.

I've been thinking about it for a few days now. Why would they suddenly change the topics for our exam when there are only two weeks left? The only reason I can come up with was to prevent some sort of foul play like cheating... which begs the question. How can we even cheat on the exam?

On the surface, it seemed like they wanted to discourage cheating... but something felt odd.

That mock test is surely a clue.

Until now, everyone still found that test bizarre for a few reasons. Chabashira-sensei implied that the test was used as a reference for our class points in May. However, that reason in itself was already kind of out of place. They could just give us a surprise quiz covering all of the lessons for the first three weeks. Instead, the questions were mostly on the junior high level, combined with those difficult higher-level questions at the end of the test.

"Hmm... What if those questions were the clues themselves?" I murmured before sitting up from my bed.

I'll look into this tomorrow. If my hunch is right, we can achieve the highest class average in the entire year. I'd want someone to accompany me, but who do I choose? Hirata and Kushida would stand out, so I guess it'll be Horikita.

I decided to sleep after sending Horikita a text.

On the next day, I prepared to head out after finishing my morning exercise routine.

When the elevator opened...

"Oh, Ayanokouji-kun!" Ichinose Honami was inside.

"Good morning, Ichinose," I greeted. "You're early."

"Ahaha, you're usually a bit earlier than me though. I see you walking ahead of me almost every morning," she said.

That's true. But of course, there are one or two days a week when I don't come to school as early.

"The midterm exams are right around the corner, huh?" she said.

"Yeah, how's your class doing?"

"We're doing great! Everyone's really diligent with their studies. Class C has worked pretty hard these past few weeks," Ichinose replied with a smile.

"Class B's the same. There are more students in our class who're lower when it comes to their innate academic abilities, but through Hirata and Kushida's leadership, everyone came together and studied rigorously," I narrated.

"So Hirata-kun and Kushida-san are the ones leading the class, huh?" Ichinose mused with a curious expression.

"Yeah, they're amazing."

"How about you, Ayanokouji-kun? Do you struggle in academics?"

"Not really. I'm not as clever as Hirata, Kushida, or as studious as our top students like Horikita and Yukimura, but I can score highly on tests," I replied. "You can call me book-smart or intelligent, I guess."

"Oh? So you're not only athletic, but you're also bright?" She praised me, putting her hands together with a clap.

"Nah, you give me too much credit. You were assigned to Class B after our admission, right? Surely, you're smarter than I am."

"I wonder about that~," she said, looking at me with a meaningful smile.

The two of us chatted on our way to the main building. The moment we drew near, Ichinose was instantly surrounded by other students. Apparently, they're her classmates.

"Honami-chan!"

"Honami-chan, good morning!"

"Good morning, everyone!" Ichinose gave them a warm greeting in return.

After buying a copy of a list containing the names and faces of every student in our year, I managed to memorize every single one of them. Chabashira-sensei said that as long as what I was trying to purchase contained nothing but names and faces, she'd allow me to buy it. I could probably coax her into giving me something with more information, but given her personality, it'll come at a very hefty price. So, I just bought a simple list for 15,000 points.

Right now, the three girls talking to Ichinose are Amikura Mako, Minamikata Kozue, and Andou Sayo.

"Oh, if it isn't Ayanokouji-kun!" Andou said, noticing me.

"Ayanokouji-kun, this is Amikura Mako-chan, this is Andou Sayo-chan, and this is Minamikata Kozue-chan." Ichinose introduced them to me.

"Good morning," I greeted.

"Heyo~!"

The three of them greeted me back with lively attitudes.

This is weird, though. Andou called my name out, and based on the other two's reactions, they also seemed to know who I was. How? Did Ichinose tell them about the swimming class?

"Honami-chan, are you and Ayanokouji-kun close?" Minamikata asked with a smirk.

"Well, we've talked a bunch of times. The two of us met up in the elevator by coincidence earlier, so we just decided to walk to school together," Ichinose smoothly narrated.

"I see. I thought something else was going on. Yume-chan and Hitomi-chan would panic, you know?" said Amikura.

"Eh...?" Ichinose smiled bitterly.

This is getting awkward. I should probably get out of here.

"Then, I guess I'll tread ahead."

"Hmm~? Are you not curious, Ayanokouji-kun? I'm sure you already get it, but some girls in our class have a huge crush on you." Amikura addressed me before I could escape.

"Why would they?" I asked, glancing back at Ichinose.

"Eh? I didn't tell them anything, Ayanokouji-kun. I swear!" She waved her hands in a panic.

"Ohh? What might you be talking about, Honami-chan?" Minamikata asked, inching closer to Ichinose.

"That's..." Ichinose looked back at me.

Sigh... At the very least, Ichinose didn't blabber about the swimming class. She really is an honest girl.

"It's fine, Ichinose. It's not something that would damage my dignity or whatever," I shrugged.

When I gave her the go signal, Ichinose turned to her confused classmates with a grin.

"Do you remember way back in April, when we had that swimming class?" She started with a question.

"Oh, the one where Shibata-kun and Kanzaki-kun went head-to-head?" Andou asked.

Shibata Sou and... Kanzaki Ryuuji, huh?

"Yeah! But didn't the teacher tell us something even more shocking? There was a student in Class B who almost beat the world record!" Ichinose narrated with a smile.

At that time, we were still Class D.

"Oh, I remember!" Minamikata replied, with Andou and Amikura nodding beside her.

"Well, that was actually Ayanokouji-kun," she chortled.

"Ehh?! Really?! Ayanokouji-kun is more athletic than Shibata-kun?! That's amazing!" said Andou.

"He's not just good-looking, huh?" Minamikata smirked at me while rubbing her chin. She was also nodding her head repeatedly, much like how a grandparent checks his or her grandchild's growth.

"Nah, Shibata-kun's in the soccer club, right? I may swim faster, but that doesn't mean I'm more athletic than him," I replied, denying their praises.

"Look, Ayanokouji-kun's terribly humble, too," Ichinose chuckled, whispering those words aloud.

"Isn't this bad for Yume-chan and Hitomi-chan, though? Once the girls from other classes know about this they'll have even more rivals!"

"Then don't spread it..." I said.

"Heh~? Well, if you forbid us from doing it, then we won't," she said.

"Then, I forbid you from telling anyone about my identity as Class B's mermaid or something," I joked.

"If you say so~!"

Thankfully, they easily agreed while laughing at my joke. I don't know if I'm getting better at jokes, but I sure hope so.

"I would've liked to go now, but my question remains unanswered. If Ichinose-san didn't tell you anything, how did you guys even know who I am?" I asked.

"Hahaha! Are you that scared of having people know about you, Ayanokouji-kun?" asked Andou.

This is bad. I might've pushed the question too hard.

"Not really. I'm just curious," I explained. "If it's someone like Hirata or Kushida, then I'd understand. But if the name of a nobody like me gets passed around, I immediately assume that it's brought on by some distasteful rumors..."

"Oh, I see! That would certainly make me uneasy," commented Amikura.

"But there's one thing you're wrong about, Ayanokouji-kun. You're not a nobody at all! Most of the girls in our year had their eyes on you for a long time now." Minamikata pointed at me.

"You're kidding, right?" I narrowed my eyes.

"Ahaha! Of course not~! Look!" Minamikata brought the screen of her phone in front of my face.

"Ranking charts?"

"That's right! You're a trend here, placing fourth in the hot guy rankings!" Minamikata announced as she zoomed in on my name.

What the hell is this...? For a second, I saw things like 'rich guy rankings', 'creeper rankings', and 'boys who should die'...

I glanced at Ichinose and saw her smiling wryly, watching everything unfold. Her expression looked a bit apologetic.

"As you can see, Satonaka-kun from Class A holds the first place, and Hirata-kun, your classmate, is in second place, with Hashimoto-kun, also from Class A, sitting in third place," she elaborated.

The fifth placer is also from Class A.

But dear lord... If I knew this thing existed, I should've just asked Kushida about it. My precious 15,000 points...

"I see. At the very least, I'm not known for some weird rumors," I said, heaving a sigh of relief.

"Hmm~? Be honest, Ayanokouji-kun. You're happy about what you've seen, right? After all, now you know that you're quite popular with the girls." Minamikata teased me with a smug smile.

"I think any guy in the top ten or top twenty would be happy," I said.

"Fufun~, don't dodge the question now." Minamikata poked me with her elbow.

"Fine. I'm so happy that I feel like bragging about this to all of my guy friends as soon as I enter the classroom," I said in the most monotone voice I could ever pull off in my entire life."

"Hahaha! What the heck?"

"You sounded far from being happy!"

They laughed, including Ichinose.

Since the five of us walked together as we chatted, it was inevitable that we'd grab some attention. I saw a bunch of students staring curiously at our strange little group. Surely, Ichinose was a well-known figure in our year, and since Amikura, Andou, and Minamikata are her classmates, they should share that popularity to some degree.

On the other hand, while I'm popular with the girls. A lot of the guys would start wondering what the hell I was doing, walking with four cute girls, including Ichinose Honami, and chatting with them like a close friend. After all, I'm still pretty much a nobody hailing from a different class.

"Well, this has been fun, but I'll go ahead now. Goodbye." I waved after we reached a certain hallway.

"See you later, Ayanokouji-kun~! Give us your contact info next time!"

She must've gotten really comfortable with me in the short time that we chatted.

Ichinose and the other two also said their goodbyes.

What a peculiar morning. It was fun, but peculiar nonetheless.