Houtarou Oreki Classroom of the Elite

Twenty minutes later, Manabu accompanied Houtarou to the Chairman's office.

The Chairman's office occupied a three-story standalone building. The first floor contained the main office area, the second floor served as a reception hall, and the third floor housed a rest area where he would stay during busy periods.

Houtarou revised his impression of the Chairman — he was clearly a diligent person.

He had come to see Manabu today for one purpose only: to exchange his Points for cash.

This was a bonus reward from the main quest.

〖 Main Task: 20 Million Points Big Mission! 〗

〖 Task Requirement: Gather 20 million Points within three months! 〗

〖 Task Reward: Superhuman Physique — Major Physical Enhancement 〗

〖 Task Progress: Quest completed with surplus! 〗

〖 Private Account Points: 20,327,500 Points 〗

〖 Note: All Points earned by the host can be entrusted to Manabu Horikita, who is about to graduate from the third year, and can be guaranteed to be exchanged for cash! 〗

"Are you sure you want to convert your points to cash now?" Manabu asked, "You still need to stay at this school for three years. Having enough points makes things more comfortable. When you graduate, you can exchange points for cash without any fees."

He was referring to how Points could be used flexibly to avoid penalties or win people over. With Houtarou's amount of Points, likely no one in the school could refuse him.

It was quite a powerful card to hold.

"I don't like waiting that long. Better to secure it now." Houtarou said, "As long as the Chairman approves my application, President Horikita can also join in. Get the cash first."

"Me—" Manabu paused.

According to school rules, the school would buy back graduating students' Points at a set ratio upon graduation.

This policy prevented senior students from transferring points to lower grades, which would let them gain benefits without effort or cause chaos.

This was a school rule — one only revealed to third-year students.

But just as homeroom teachers tell their students that anything can be bought with Points, these standard rules could also be changed using Points.

So while Points could normally only be exchanged for money at graduation, early exchanges were possible by spending additional Points. This demonstrated a practical understanding and application of school rules.

Although there was no precedent, Manabu believed the Chairman would agree, albeit at a cost.

They could transfer the Points to Houtarou first and exchange them for money to secure them. This way, exchanging two people's Points would only require one fee.

But Manabu shook his head.

"I'll wait." He said, "It's less than a year until graduation anyway."

Oh. Then good luck.

Houtarou remained calm.

Manabu was diligent and fair. Though he had savings, his refusal to exchange them for money showed that if his class needed Points, he would likely sacrifice all his savings.

To him, Third-year Class A and his companions were paramount. This revealed his sentimental nature.

When he discovered his sister's placement in Class D and wanted her to withdraw, it was likely out of concern that the school's rules would harm her.

The fact that Manabu wouldn't risk exchanging even his modest savings in advance was telling.

This reveals his weakness — he lacks absolute confidence in the final stretch.

Isn't this also an admission that he doubts his classmates can maintain Class A's position?

Therefore, if Miyabi isn't expelled before graduation, this will become a vulnerability he can exploit.

Houtarou thought to himself.

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Creak—

As they approached the office, the door opened from within.

It was Chairman Narumori Sakayanagi himself. With his silver-white hair and black-rimmed glasses, he cut a tall, refined figure in his well-tailored suit and tie, one hand still resting on the door.

He wasn't alone. A petite girl with straight silver hair emerged — Arisu Sakayanagi, Houtarou's desk neighbor.

She walked with some difficulty, supporting herself with a cane, her white stockings with straps visible beneath her uniform.

The Chairman had clearly opened the door to assist his daughter with her physical limitations.

The two parties found themselves face to face.

"..." Arisu.

"..." Houtarou.

Their eyes met unflinchingly.

Arisu gripped her cane and departed without a word, while Houtarou made no move to acknowledge her.

"Chairman, Oreki has a request for you." Manabu said, keeping his gaze forward.

As Student Council President, Manabu knew well that the Chairman's daughter had enrolled in Class A this year. His frequent visits to the board had led to several encounters with Arisu.

Yet him, ever fair-minded, didn't suspect favoritism in her Class A placement. Despite her poor athletic abilities, her acceptance into Class A suggested the school recognized other valuable qualities.

This was further evidenced by her performance in the work permission system. When Houtarou confronted Miyabi, Manabu had appointed Arisu as Student Council Accountant based purely on merit, not connections.

Still, something seemed off. Despite being classmates, Houtarou and Arisu appeared distant.

Could their relationship have soured? He'd believed they were on good terms.

Had Kikyō's information been incorrect?

"..."

Narumori watched his daughter leave before turning to Houtarou.

"What brings you here today, Oreki?"

"I want to exchange my points for cash in advance. In other words, I want money." Houtarou said, "And I want it in cash!"

"..."

Narumori pursed his lips.

"You always manage to surprise me." He said.

Like father, like daughter — his words echoed Arisu's. Both shared that keen interest in others.

While the little girl had the demeanor of an aggressive T-Rex, her father was much gentler.

"Normally, points can only be exchanged at graduation. All other situations are prohibited." Narumori said, "However, since you're here, I can make an exception. As this is the first such request, you can obtain this privilege for 300,000 points."

As Chairman, Narumori monitored students' private accounts through the school's system. Though Point Cards made these accounts not entirely accurate, significant patterns could still be observed.

And Houtarou hadn't used Point Cards — his private account had reached 20 million.

No student had ever amassed 20 million Points alone. Such an amount carried immense power — it could exempt one from expulsion and enable direct transfer to any desired class.

In other words, a student from a lower class could use 20 million Points to transfer straight to Class A, essentially buying their way to success.

But what if you were already in an upper class?

Then transfers became pointless — you were already in Class A with nowhere higher to go.

Could you transfer to the third year's graduating Class A?

That morning, Narumori had discussed with the board how Houtarou might use his 20 million Points.

Someone had raised the question: if he proposed using the Points to transfer into Manabu's graduating Class A, should they allow it?

But Houtarou surprised them all with a different request — he wanted cash.

Graduating from Advanced Nurturing High School's Class A offered prestigious benefits: exam exemptions, guaranteed university admission, and even preferred job placement for those entering the workforce.

It was essentially a guaranteed path to success.

His choice of money over these privileges seemed almost dismissive of the school.

Yet this wasn't quite accurate — as a Class A student, he'd still enjoy all benefits if his class maintained its standing until graduation.

This was more like insurance.

Staying at this school wasn't free — there would be various tests and challenges. Points might not prove useful in the end.

The school exchanged graduating students' Points at a rate of 0.8, meaning Houtarou's 20 million Points would convert to 16 million in cash.

This gave him a safety net — whether he graduated from Class A or withdrew early, he had secured 16 million in cash.

That amount could buy a house outside or provide substantial living expenses for quite some time.

It wasn't a bad strategy at all.

"Are you sure about this decision?" Narumori led him to the first-floor workroom, where exchange staff waited.

"Yes." Houtarou nodded, glancing at Manabu.

But Manabu shook his head, choosing to wait honestly until graduation to exchange his Points.

He believed he would still have Points at graduation, and even if they dropped to zero by then, he could accept that as long as everyone graduated from Class A.

Beep!

Houtarou submitted his phone, and his private account displayed the update.

『Houtarou Oreki』

『Student ID: 1008610010』

『Class: First Year, Class A』

『Personal Account: ¤ 27,500 Pts』

"What a sight." Narumori said, "Twenty million gone just like that. Do you feel regret? You must have worked hard to accumulate those Points."

Indeed, there was some regret. Over twenty million reduced to less than 100,000 — it felt like sudden poverty.

However, before Houtarou stood 1,600 ten-thousand yen bills. He saw no point in hoarding Points anymore.

After all, this school had many rules — even Manabu hadn't fully grasped them all. There was always the possibility of unexpected failure.

Moreover, Points were only useful within the school. Money could be used anywhere.

The choice was obvious to everyone.

As for becoming poor—

"What if I propose buying the right to exchange Points?" Houtarou said, "The school holds special exams every month, and students end up withdrawing. According to you, Chairman, when facing expulsion, the withdrawing students' Points are directly taken by the school, right?"

"But what if they transfer their Points beforehand? They could transfer them to me, and with my early exchange privileges, I could convert their Points to cash. Then take a 30-50% commission. Of course, they could refuse — but then they'd get nothing at all."

"Chairman, would you consider this a business proposition?"

He was somewhat curious.

"..." Narumori.

Are you asking if this is business? You're asking if you can challenge school rules!

Very well.

Narumori confirmed that Class A with Arisu wouldn't be boring. Houtarou was someone who brought fresh perspectives.

So he refunded the 300,000 Points spent for the early Point exchange, to keep Houtarou's private account from looking too depleted.

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