From the narrator system, it was clear that the story likely took place in the future.
So having a new chairman at Advanced Nurturing High School eventually made sense.
But their names sounded totally different, which meant the new chairman fifteen years later was probably a woman.
The narrator continued:
[Fifteen years later, a new chairman took over Advanced Nurturing High School. Unlike the old one, who stuck to tradition and just observed,
she wanted the students to grow explosively.]
[So while she was in charge, students entered the school already knowing how it worked.]
[Because of that, they understood where their living expenses came from and why the 20 million points were so important.]
[Some students came to take shortcuts, and some came just to make money. That's right—at this school, you can earn points. Like what Ryuen is trying to do now with charging protection fees.]
[Some students from poor or average families even saw the school as an ATM. The most famous case was a student named Hikigaya Hachiman, who walked away with 200 million points.]
[By then, the school had become a training ground for all kinds of self-proclaimed elites. It was a lot more chaotic and lively.]
"..."
Shirogane couldn't help but feel that this chairman's personality and way of doing things reminded him of someone he knew.
A vague image popped up in his mind.
A small, delicate girl with silver-white hair, pale and flawless skin, and perfectly shaped features—so cute it almost felt unfair.
Her name was Sakayanagi Arisu, a girl who seemed like she came from another world.
She held a black cane in her left hand, clearly in poor health. She looked fragile, the kind of person who made others want to protect her.
Hmm.
Now wasn't the best time to be thinking of Sakayanagi.
But this chairman from fifteen years in the future definitely had a personality like hers—someone completely different from normal and always stirring things up.
With those thoughts, Shirogane kept walking forward.
But then—
[Huh?]
[This moment in time…]
The narrator voice in Shirogane's head suddenly spoke again.
"What's so special about this time of day?"
[Most students have gone back to their dorms, so there aren't many people around you.]
[You feel calm, but also a little curious.]
[If you go left, you'll head back to the dorms. But if you go right, you'll find a quiet vending machine area.]
[There, you'll witness the student council president and his little sister in a not-so-friendly sibling moment.]
[I think you should go take a look.]
Shirogane felt like the narration system was suddenly reading off a script at this exact moment.
Still, the fact that this thing could communicate with him at all was already beyond normal—like something from a different world entirely.
Maybe it had its own limits too. Was it suggesting this scene because it needed to complete some mission?
Shirogane didn't really mind the narration system, so he figured he might as well help it hit its targets.
So Shirogane walked to the right, toward the quieter area. Sure enough, before long, he heard voices.
This vending machine spot wasn't very popular.
Looked like this was the place.
Based on what the narration said, he should be seeing the moment Horikita the older and Horikita Suzune finally met as siblings.
Speaking of siblings, Shirogane felt a little concerned as her older brother.
He wondered whether, without him around to make her lunch, their dad's cooking was something Suzune could actually get used to—or if Kei was the one cooking for her now.
They probably weren't in a situation where eating out all the time was even an option.
"…" He felt a bit of pressure.
But also a bit more motivated.
From what the narration system said earlier, in the school 15 years from now, some poor or ambitious students treated Advanced Nurturing High School like an ATM.
Gold coins would come spilling out.
So what about the current school? Even if the chairman had changed, there were still ways to earn points.
That meant he might need to ask the student council president a few more things.
Just then—
"A little sister assigned to Class D…" A somewhat familiar male voice interrupted Shirogane's thoughts.
Thanks to his memory, which had become absurdly good from constant practice, Shirogane quickly traced the voice back to its source and remembered the name.
Horikita Manabu.
The student council president.
He was in the right place after all.
And sure enough, he saw Horikita Manabu with his little sister.
"Suzune, so you really followed me here," Horikita Manabu said, adjusting his glasses. His voice was calm, even a bit cold.
"I… I'm not the useless person you used to know." Suzune's expression was different. She looked down, a bit unsure of herself, but trying to stay strong. "I came here because I wanted to catch up to you."
"To catch up to me?"
"You've been here for two months now, and it was only yesterday that you found out what this school is really about."
"And now you're stuck in the only class in the school's history to lose all its class points in the first month."
Horikita Manabu turned slightly and glanced over with cold eyes. "You still haven't realized your own weakness. Choosing this school was your mistake."
"I'm going to move up to Class A soon."
Horikita Suzune wasn't very composed. It was like she was rushing to prove herself.
But she's in Class D right now. To say you'll reach Class A from there—how much courage does that take?
With a class score of zero? Or by relying on the written test this month that only gives a maximum of 100 points?
Of course, she's good at written tests. She'll pass the exam herself—no doubt about that.
Manabu knows this very well.
But—
He also knows that his sister has no idea how hard it really is to move up.
Manabu is a third-year student. He's seen all kinds of things. What he understands is totally different from what his sister sees.
And she doesn't seem to care about her classmates at all. There's no sense of teamwork.
That's her biggest flaw.
In a class like D—full of underperformers—it's nearly impossible to get an average score of 70 or above in every subject. So even the top students need to help the ones who might fail. Because of that, Suzune won't be able to stand out in this exam.
And if she can't even show her real strength, there's no way she'll earn the position of class leader.
So to say she'll lead Class D to Class A—seriously?
"..." Horikita Manabu stayed silent.
A few seconds passed before he spoke again.
"You can't do it," he said. "You can't. So drop out, Suzune."
Then he repeated it again.
"No, brother." But this time, his sister—who just a moment ago looked weak—suddenly showed rare determination.
"It's true that I only learned what this school is really about yesterday. And I also found out Class D is at the bottom."
"But in the end, only students who graduate from Class A in third year will get the school's promised reward."
"So every lower class has three years to climb up."
"And I…" Horikita Suzune pulled out a folder she carried with her. "I've already made up my mind to climb."
"You only have one year left at this school. I might not be able to reach Class A in that time, but I think I can get us to Class B." Suzune said.
"..." Horikita Manabu quietly watched how his sister had changed.
You could say that everything in this conversation so far—and even her reaction to seeing him—matched what he remembered about her.
Which meant that even after entering this school, she hadn't changed at all. That much was clear from the shocking result her class had earned: a class score of zero.
1,000 points. The starting score is 1,000. And they lost it all in one month.
That's beyond reckless.
But this is Class D, the worst class, the one people call trash.
From the beginning, it's nearly impossible for Class D to rise. Part of it is poor setup, and part of it is because if those students actually knew how to work together, they wouldn't have been placed in Class D to begin with.
So if you want to lead a class like that to move up and prove yourself, then you need to make them listen.
And the way to make them listen is—
"So what, you're going to push Class D to the edge just to force them to grow stronger?" Manabu asked, as a thought came to him.
Since the students in Class D are hard to unite, the idea is to force them to come together. Only by working as a team can they improve and start earning living expenses again.
Otherwise, life is going to stay hard for them.
That's why their class score was reset to zero in the first month—to push all of them into a tough situation. At times like this, there's no need for extra motivation or pep talks; just surviving is enough to make them behave for now.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Horikita Suzune asked, clearly confused.
"..." Horikita Manabu stayed quiet.
Horikita's older brother fell silent, shifting his gaze to the folder Suzune was holding.