The fact that it was essentially 'everyone' naturally implied that there were still some who were not prepared to accept such a reality.
Seeing that everyone in the class had arrived, Suzune Horikita stood up.
"While everyone is here right now, I would like to ask you all to be quiet for a moment."
Looking at Year 1, Class D, which seemed to have completely accepted the reality that it would be difficult to earn personal points in the future and had already begun to show signs of 'rotting' and giving up, Horikita spoke with a certain seriousness: "There are some things I want to say to everyone here."
"It concerns some of our class's upcoming plans."
As she spoke, Horikita cast a subtle, traceless glance at Subaru beside her.
Ever since she felt she couldn't make any effective progress with Subaru, Horikita had temporarily given up on his side and turned to contact Kikyo Kushida instead.
Although Kikyo Kushida had harbored a baffling attitude toward her from the very beginning, in the current Year 1, Class D—with Yosuke Hirata having given up—Kushida, who was gradually taking over Hirata's position, had indeed become an unavoidable link in the path Horikita wanted to take to lead the class to Class A.
Moreover, Horikita also had deeper contact with Kushida to explore the reason why a guy like Subaru, who had no interest in many things, would waste time on someone like her.
In the end, this led to the present moment, where Horikita was prepared to speak while everyone in the class was present.
'Oh?'
Subaru sensed Horikita's gaze and looked at her with interest.
"I believe that after these two months of enrollment, everyone has a fairly clear and thorough understanding of some of this academy's rules."
"This academy is a complete and utter survival-of-the-fittest arena. The four classes in each grade will engage in a slaughter for three years, and in the end, only the strongest class will be able to receive the treatment originally promised by the school."
Seeing the classroom gradually quiet down, Horikita withdrew her attention from Subaru and stated plainly, "We cannot continue to do nothing like this."
"Even if we have only been enrolled for two months."
As Horikita's voice fell, the classroom first remained quiet for a moment, and then became somewhat noisy.
"Horikita-san, saying this is like saying nothing at all."
Sitting not far from Horikita's other side, Kanji Ike was somewhat speechless as he said, "Of course we know we can't go on like this. It's been two months since enrollment; one step slow, every step slow."
"But, what exactly should we do next?"
"Even if Hirata..."
Kanji Ike glanced at the front row seat where Yosuke Hirata, who hadn't spoken much from start to finish, was sitting. He wanted to say something.
But after hesitating for a moment, he didn't say it.
"Horikita, can you stop talking nonsense here?"
Compared to the slightly polite Kanji Ike, Ken Sudo was somewhat irritable. "Who doesn't know that we can't continue like this?"
Sudo was impatient.
Horikita suddenly making a grand speech full of nonsense was just the fuse; the main reason for Sudo's impatience was Yosuke Hirata. Sudo was worried about him.
Although during the period before the midterm exams, he had a huge conflict with Hirata and was even pinned to the ground by him, Sudo was truly grateful for Hirata's care.
If not for Hirata's supervision, he definitely would have failed the exams.
So, seeing Hirata in such low spirits ever since Haruki Yamauchi dropped out, Sudo couldn't help but run to find Hirata yesterday.
The final result was no result at all.
"Horikita-san, everyone is very clear about the things you mentioned."
At the desk next to Kanji Ike, a girl with a somewhat heroic appearance—Airi Sakura's new good friend, Haruka Hasebe—looked at Horikita, whose expression remained calm from beginning to end, and asked, "Is there some follow-up plan that requires everyone's cooperation?"
"Since the average score of the midterm exams can increase class points, then the next opportunity to increase class points should be the final exams, right? There should still be a long time before the finals."
Speaking of this, Haruka Hasebe's expression became somewhat hesitant.
Because Year 1, Class D's current class points were simply too low. Even Year 1, Class C had over five hundred class points, not to mention the Class A and Class B in first and second place.
Year 1, Class A's class points had directly broken into four digits, reaching 1011.
Although Year 1, Class B's class points had not reached four digits, they were biting tight on Class A's heels, reaching the figure of 985. The gap had narrowed from the initial 30 to 26.
As for Year 1, Class D, even with the past exam papers and the ability to memorize answers in advance last time, it merely allowed the average score to reach 94. Even if they could do this every time for the next three years, adding ten or twenty class points each time, it wouldn't be nearly enough to overtake anyone. They wouldn't even have much of a chance against Year 1, Class C.
One year has three terms. There are six exams with opportunities to increase class points. Three years means eighteen times.
Even if they increased their class points by twenty each time, it would only narrow the gap by less than four hundred points.
And right now, the gap with Class C alone was over five hundred.
Not to mention, it was basically impossible to have the answers for future exams.
Regarding the future of Year 1, Class D, although she didn't want to admit it, Haruka Hasebe was actually somewhat pessimistic.
"Hasebe-san, there is no problem with what you said."
Horikita did not show the slightest emotion regarding the interruptions and doubts from Kanji Ike and Ken Sudo. Instead, she nodded slightly; these reactions were all within her expectations.
"Following normal problem-solving ideas and conventional paths..."
"If we try to catch up based on the final scores in exams that can increase class points, the probability of us catching up is extremely small. Even if the other classes' points never grow again, it's unlikely."
"However, you have all overlooked a very critical matter."
"That is, our Year 1, Class D's current class points are 'zero'!"
Horikita specifically emphasized the word 'zero' at the end, fearing that the group of mediocrities in Year 1, Class D wouldn't understand the meaning she wanted to express.
"Zero?"
Hearing Horikita's statement, Haruka Hasebe was stunned for a moment, but then she immediately reacted.
"It seems you have realized it, Hasebe-san."
"Class points being zero means that we have nothing left to lose."
"Haruki Yamauchi-kun dropping out would have deducted three hundred class points, but in the end, it only deducted the mere ninety-four class points we had. What does this symbolize?"
Horikita's tone unconsciously carried a trace of excitement.
"Our Class D has nothing left to lose, but Classes A, B, and C do not!"
"They possess massive 'assets' of three or even four digits. This is undoubtedly an advantage, but it is also the key point for our desperate comeback!"
This was the plan Horikita had derived after detailed discussions with Kikyo Kushida and Kiyotaka Ayanokoji.
Strictly speaking, the rules of this academy are not simply a competition of 'adding points.' In reality, there is also the item of 'deducting points,' or to be more precise and accurate, causing 'losses' to other competing classes.
'When class points are zero, as long as they don't become negative, no matter how much is deducted, it will still be zero.'
'However, the fact that our class no longer fears any point-deducting behavior does not mean the other classes are the same.'
'For other classes possessing massive assets, every violation, conflict, or instance of being caught by the handle can cause their precious class points to suffer losses. Year 1, Class D, on the other hand, has nothing left to lose.'
'Year 1, Class D's class points have become its strongest weapon, a weapon that could even directly change the entire landscape of the first year.'
Kiyotaka Ayanokoji watched Horikita speaking freely on the podium, thinking aimlessly.
Therefore, if Year 1, Class D truly wants to turn the tables in this desperate situation, they can no longer focus on the point-adding competition. They must fully utilize the deduction rules to weaken their opponents as much as possible while strengthening themselves.
Actively and strategically dragging other opponents into a bottomless quagmire to sink together.
It's just that Ayanokoji didn't think the school officials would watch things collapse further like this.
If the school were truly turned directly into a 'race to the bottom' environment by Year 1, Class D, then this academy wouldn't last much longer. Before things could rot further, the school officials would definitely intervene.
All Year 1, Class D needed to do was to bite off a juicy chunk of meat from the other three classes in the first year as much as possible before the school officials stepped in, filling their own backward emptiness.
He who is barefoot is not afraid of those who wear shoes.
It was a principle simple to the extreme.
'A bit interesting.'
'The fearlessness of the proletariat, and attempting to turn this fearlessness into a weapon unique to oneself?'
Horikita has grown a little... or is it...
Subaru propped up his head, looking at Horikita on the podium, and then placed his gaze on Kiyotaka Ayanokoji, who was in front of him, wearing a surprised expression just like the ordinary classmates around him, acting as if he knew nothing.
If Horikita hadn't grown, then the mastermind behind the scenes was naturally Ayanokoji.
Horikita fundamentally cared about face.
If it were just her alone, it would be difficult for Horikita to come up with such a direct, shameless, and scoundrel-like method.
As Horikita continued to state her plan, the classroom once again became somewhat quiet.
Everyone looked at Horikita with great shock.
After all, they were still young people, full of youthful vigor. Almost no one would have thought of relying on their own class's zero points to directly chase after the other three classes to blackmail and 'bait penalties' out of them.
However, shock was one thing; the temptation was truly tempting. Because everyone in Year 1, Class D, after pondering it slightly, pleasantly discovered that this plan was completely feasible.
As long as they worked a little hard, they could rely on the method of frantic 'penalty baiting' to drag the class points of the other three classes down to the same level as their own.
When that time came, it would become a competition from a completely new angle.
"Everyone, I think Horikita-san's idea is very good."
"With zero class points, we already have nothing left to lose. In that case..."
At this moment, Kikyo Kushida also stood up. As the popularity queen of Year 1, Class D, Kushida was the first to respond to Horikita's call. "We might as well muddy the waters as much as possible."
"If we do that, maybe we can create a chance for a comeback against the wind!"
This was all part of the plan Horikita had discussed with Kushida.
Kushida's public persona was placed right there. The plan Horikita just proposed truly somewhat violated Kushida's persona of a harmless, innocent angel.
Therefore, this plan could only be proposed by Horikita, who was usually somewhat cold and sharp-tongued.
And as the little angel with the highest popularity and strongest appeal in Class D, Kushida only needed to stand up at the critical moment to issue a slight call to action, and everything would follow logically.
Anyway, she was already eating the mountain vegetable set meal every day.
She had already gotten somewhat used to the originally unpalatable mountain vegetable set meal, so why not let all the classes in the first year come and eat the mountain vegetable set meal together?
No matter how you look at it, the mountain vegetable set meal is very rich in nutrition, isn't it?
Everyone should eat more mountain vegetable set meals; it's good for the body.
"This idea seems a bit interesting."
Satsuki Shinohara, having listened to Horikita's idea, was somewhat interested and said excitedly to Kei Karuizawa and Maya Sato not far away, "Kei, Maya, although there doesn't seem to be much hope for overtaking by adding points..."
"However, if we reduce the scores of the other three classes down, it seems like a pretty good choice."
In this way, Shinohara believed that Year 1, Class D was not truly without opportunity.
Facing the other three classes, they might not necessarily lack the power to fight.
"It indeed sounds like there's no problem."
"But, Satsuki, don't you think that if we really do this, our lives going forward will be miserable?"
Compared to Satsuki Shinohara's somewhat eager expression, Maya Sato had a somewhat bitter look on her face.
Because one thing was very simple: having zero class points was indeed a weapon that possessed the possibility of a comeback against the wind, but by the same token, it was also a double-edged sword.
If they really wanted to act like this, then Year 1, Class D would need to maintain zero class points year-round.
____
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