6:15 p.m. I took a seat on the central sofa of a karaoke room large enough to accommodate ten people and waited for the five students whose points were on the line. There were still close to fifteen minutes until the appointed time, so I ordered an iced coffee to quench my thirst.

Then, five minutes later, at 6:20, my phone rang and I answered.

“Miyake here. All five of them have gathered in front of the karaoke place.”

“Good. Have them come into Room 106.”

A few minutes later, the door opened and they began entering one by one. Since they usually came in small groups, it seemed to be their first time reserving such a large room and the atmosphere was tense.

However, two unexpected guests came along in addition to the five.

“Well, I expected you’d show up, Hirata. Did you abandon your usual study group?”

“I asked Yukimura to handle it just for today. I wanted to hear about Ayanokōji’s study method too. I mean… I doubt it’ll happen, but you’re not going to hit anyone, right?”

Karaoke rooms are the only facilities without CCTV, so that kind of suspicion is only natural. But there was no need to worry. I had no intention of using any violence this time.

“Relax. I’m not that merciless of a person. Although… it looks like that reputation is about to shatter. What exactly did you come here for?”

The other person was the most incompetent human in Class D.

Horikita Suzune.

“Given your personality, I thought there might be something wrong with your study method. I came here intending to step in if you were doing something inhumane.”

“That’s laughable. For the most incompetent person in the class to talk about sanctioning me.”

“What did you just say?”

“From what I heard, you borrowed Kushida’s help after school today and opened a study session with three students guaranteed to fail, only for it to collapse within minutes, right?”

At those words, Horikita bit her lip in frustration and glared at me.

“...How do you know that?”

“Who knows? Maybe I had a friend in the library.”

That information came from Hiyori, who had been studying in the library until just before this. Horikita mocked Sudō for not properly understanding math formulas, saying he’d be disastrous in society. Offended, Sudō stormed out. Ike and Yamauchi, who were there as well, got fed up and left too.

After hearing all of that, I clicked my tongue once more at Horikita’s incompetence.

Being good at studying and being good at teaching are fundamentally different talents. Horikita likely assumed that because she was good at studying, she would also be good at teaching—but as expected, her inherent incompetence dragged her down.

“I don’t care if one more person listens in or not, but this content is top secret even within Class D. If you try spreading it around anywhere, I won’t let it slide.”

“Fine. Start already. Let’s hear about this study method of yours that supposedly guarantees 100 points in every subject.”

“Alright. All five of you, sit down and take this.”

I handed out the printed exam papers covering all subjects to the five students.

“This is… an exam paper? You want us to solve it?”

“These are last year’s questions. First-year midterms.”

“Wait a second—this already has all the answers and explanations written on it.”

“So you’re not telling us to solve it… then what are we supposed to do?”

“Ayanokōji-san, I think you might have brought the wrong thing…”

As expected, everyone looked confused. But I smiled brighter than ever.

“Alright, listen carefully. This exam paper is—”

* * *

Over the next five minutes, I explained the truth behind these exam papers in meticulous detail. Everyone who heard it wore expressions of shock like never before. Sato Maya and Wang Mei-Yu were so stunned they actually dropped their papers.

“…Got it? From now on, what you need to do is perfectly memorize every answer and explanation on this paper within the remaining time. There’s no way anyone here won’t manage that before the midterms, so make sure you score 100 in every subject. From now on, we’ll take the exact same test every day at this time, so memorize it thoroughly. Since all you’re doing is memorizing provided answers, the base study time is one hour, but anyone who gets 100 quickly can leave that much earlier. Simple, right?”

The moment I finished speaking, Horikita jumped to her feet, furious.

“You! Do you even understand what you’re saying right now?”

“What do you mean? This is a way to avoid failing this exam and even pass with 100 points in every subject. What else could it be?”

“I can’t believe this… You bought upperclassmen’s exam papers with points? That’s basically an answer sheet! That’s criminal behavior! Do you really think something like this will be forgiven?”

I had expected this reaction. As expected, that incompetent woman trapped in academic elitism was completely incompatible with this meritocratic school.

“I’ve acted entirely within the school rules. Chabashira-sensei clearly said on the first day that anything ‘within the school’ can be bought with points. I simply paid a fair price to purchase ‘exam papers from second and third-year students’ that exist within the school.”

“Exams are supposed to be taken fairly and honorably by all students! What you did violates that basic principle! You’re a coward! Did you really make that bet with Class A relying on this? If this gets out, your bet will be void!”

Fairness? Cowardice? What empty words.

“Our ways of thinking are completely different. I was convinced the moment I saw the reactions of the upperclassmen who sold me the papers. Trading past exam questions among students isn’t rare. If the school truly disallowed it, they would have explained so and refused from the start.”

“What?”

“They weren’t particularly surprised by my proposal and accepted my existence far faster than expected. That means this wasn’t their first time. They even kept quizzes taken immediately after enrollment alongside first-year midterm answers. That alone makes it obvious, doesn’t it?”

“E-even so, doing something like this—”

“Haah. You’re impossible to talk to.”

Crash!

“Kyaa!”

I threw the glass cup I was holding toward Horikita. It hit the distant wall without injuring anyone, but it shattered completely, scattering sharp fragments and ice across the floor. Everyone was stunned by my sudden violence and Sato and Wang looked on the verge of tears.

“If you hate my method that much, then leave. You’re the only one opposing it anyway. More importantly, this doesn’t concern a third party like you. On the other hand, Hirata—you agreed with my opinion, didn’t you?”

“……”

Hirata’s biggest objective for this midterm was to prevent expulsions from the class. And the method I proposed suited that goal perfectly. Even if it felt unpleasant, he couldn’t outright reject it.

“The five directly involved don’t seem opposed, so for the next two weeks, memorize this like your lives depend on it. I only used force just now because of Horikita, but if you follow this sincerely, I’ll never use violence again. Depending on your effort, I might even offer proper rewards.”

At the word ‘reward,’ everyone focused on my mouth. Then I named what Class D wanted most right now.

“As you all know, if I win my bet, I receive nearly 100,000 points monthly from Katsuragi and Totsuka. I’ll use half of that. Assuming I win the bet, anyone among you who scores 100 in every subject on the midterms will receive 10,000 points every month until graduation, with no limit on recipients.”

At my radical proposal, everyone’s eyes widened as they stared at the exam papers. In a situation where future point income was uncertain, guaranteeing 10,000 points monthly was an extraordinary offer.

Well, the outcome was already decided.

“W-what are you all staring at?! Are you really planning to follow that woman’s words? Snap out of it! This is basically cooperating with cheating! It’s not normal!”

The first person to speak after Horikita’s desperate outcry was Sato.

“No, Ayanokōji isn’t wrong at all… Honestly, if an opportunity like this falls into your lap and you don’t take it, you’re the idiot. I’m a failure candidate. I don’t want to get expelled! And I have zero points. There’s no reason not to do it. No matter what, I’m getting 100 in every subject!”

With that, Sato immediately began memorizing like a madwoman. Okitani and Hondo followed suit, opening their papers and joining her.

Wang and Miyake hesitated for a long time, but as members of Class D with few points and uncertain futures, they eventually opened their papers and began memorizing as well.

“You’re all… all insane…”

“They’re just accurately recognizing the reality they’re in. Let me give you some advice—figure out your own position properly. Now then, you two with no further business, leave. Don’t ruin the study atmosphere we finally built.”

Horikita stood up as if fed up and headed for the door. Just in case, I issued a warning.

“Just so you know, I’m enforcing strict confidentiality here. Even if a loner like you screams about it, none of the actual participants will testify. If you want to tell Class A out of spite, go ahead. From that moment on, you’ll go from loner to traitor.”

Horikita trembled with rage and left. Just as I said, no matter how much she shouted, her voice would never reach the class. They would all deny her claims. That was the result of her failure to build friendships or demonstrate ability.

Meanwhile, Hirata remained seated, looking serious.

“You should go help the others study too. And let me be clear—don’t mention anything you heard here.”

Hirata finally spoke.

“Yeah… In this situation, I agree with you. But at least… couldn’t you let everyone study the same exam paper? I won’t say a word about its secret. At least let them study…”

I had expected this request the moment Hirata showed up.

“I knew you’d say that. I’ll share the exam papers. But only the day before the midterm, after homeroom ends.”

“Why?”

“Because Class D is burning with motivation to avoid failing. If they learn this is the answer now, that tension will disappear. We’ll reveal it at peak tension—the day before the exam—so they can memorize it at the last moment. I’ll give you more detailed instructions when the time comes.”

Grateful even for that, Hirata bowed deeply.

“Thank you, Ayanokōji. Thanks to you, we can avoid expulsions this time. I’ll try persuading Horikita.”

“Do whatever you want with that incompetent woman. Just remember—if anyone still fails and gets expelled after I’ve set things up this thoroughly, I won’t concern myself with that trash.”

There was no way anyone would fail after being given past exam questions.

“Your job now is to keep Class D’s motivation and tension at their peak. The higher they are, the stronger concentration and memory become. Go manage them.”

“Got it. I’ll remember.”

After that, Hirata left as well.

“Oh, one more thing. According to the upperclassmen, the exam range always changes exactly one week before the midterms. The range we’re studying now is fake. I’ll email you the real one now. Ask Chabashira-sensei just in case—she might not tell you out of spite.”

With that, I began supervising the five. Miyake and Wang would eventually adapt to memorization, Okitani and Hondo would gradually speed up and Sato—desperate and motivated—was already guaranteed 100 points.

So for the next two weeks, I’d just kill time playing supervisor.

* * *

Time passed quickly. I tested them daily, forcing relentless memorization until 100 points became guaranteed.

Sato and Wang achieved perfect scores in under five days. Miyake followed soon after. Hondo and Okitani were slower but eventually succeeded as well.

The rest of Class D improved steadily. Horikita tried again sincerely. Everything was fine.

When the exam papers were finally distributed the day before the midterm, not a single student let their guard down.

The midterms arrived. Class D completed them flawlessly.

Afterward, gratitude poured in.

“…Thank you.”

“…Really, thank you.”

They bowed sincerely.

They were merely incompetent people beneath me. An incompetent person thanking the capable is only natural.

Still, I gave them one final piece of advice.

“This was a trick. It won’t work forever. But you learned how to memorize, how to concentrate and how to survive in this meritocratic school. That alone has value.”

With that, I left the classroom.

I will win against Class A. That is enough.

Those who are useless beyond this point are none of my concern.