[Saiki-kun has always been quiet in class and looks quite frail, like someone who could easily be bullied. Could he have gone through something in the past? Is he worried about something?]
'Sorry, I just don't feel like talking.'
[Even though Saiki-kun helped us a lot when we bought the exam questions, it seems like the class has overlooked his contributions. Maybe that's why he hasn't been able to integrate into the class.]
'No, that's actually a good thing for me.'
[I need to find a way to help Saiki-kun integrate with the others!]
'Things are fine as they are.'
Saiki Kusuo answered in his mind but didn't say it out loud.
'Yare yare, even though Horikita and Sudo have already refused, most of the class will probably attend. If I refuse too, I'll likely be seen as a troublemaker like them, which would cause unnecessary trouble. Being too disliked would draw more attention, and that's not good. I'll just agree for now.'
Thinking this, Saiki Kusuo nodded and agreed to Hirata Yosuke's request.
"Great, thank you so much, Saiki-kun! Let's all do our best together!"
Hirata Yosuke nodded earnestly, then turned his attention to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"Ayanokoji-kun..."
He repeated almost the same lines, perhaps believing that addressing each person individually would make him seem more sincere.
[I was going to refuse, but since someone like Saiki stayed, I'll stick around for now.]
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka nodded.
...
After a day of classes, most of the students stayed in the classroom, while Horikita Suzune, Sudo Ken, and a few others who refused to attend the meeting left directly.
[Honestly, these people just love being different, trying to stand out.]
[I don't know what they're trying to prove.]
[Horikita Suzune acts all high and mighty just because she's pretty and gets good grades, and Sudo Ken is just an idiot.]
After these people left, the remaining students mostly gossiped about them behind their backs.
Especially Kushida Kikyo, who had already cursed Horikita Suzune in her mind. Her hostility toward Horikita Suzune hadn't diminished in the slightest.
Hirata Yosuke talked about forming study groups and other plans. Saiki Kusuo didn't really care and just wanted the meeting to end so he could move on to other things.
Just then, the classroom intercom suddenly rang:
"Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from Class 1-C, your homeroom teacher, Chabashira-sensei, would like to see you. Please come to the faculty office."
"Oh."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka muttered to himself, as if responding to the intercom, then packed up his things and left the classroom.
'Chabashira-sensei wants to see Ayanokoji? He's a bit of a special student, like me, inserted into this class temporarily. Chabashira-sensei probably knows something about his background from the principal. Calling him in might be related to that, but it's none of my business. If she didn't call me, maybe she's no longer suspicious of me.'
Even as he thought this, Saiki Kusuo's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he felt a little curious.
'No, no, with that teacher's personality, it's probably not that simple. I feel like calling Ayanokoji in isn't going to lead to anything good.'
Thinking this, Saiki Kusuo estimated the time it would take for Ayanokoji Kiyotaka to reach the faculty office, then raised his hand and signaled to Hirata Yosuke that he needed to use the restroom. He left the classroom and entered a stall.
At the same time, he activated his Clairvoyance!
By crossing his eyes, he could remotely observe distant objects. Unlike X-ray vision, Clairvoyance could automatically lock onto targets he had seen before, adjust the angle and perspective, and even hear their conversations.
The side effect was that prolonged use would dry out his eyes—and it made him look a bit silly.
That's why Saiki Kusuo went to the restroom stall, so no one would notice his actions.
The scene in Saiki Kusuo's eyes changed, and he soon gained a view of the faculty office.
Chabashira Sae had already met with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka but didn't say much. She simply asked him to sit in the break room next to the office and stay quiet.
Because of the distance, Saiki Kusuo could only observe with Clairvoyance and couldn't use his telepathy to read their thoughts.
Just then, a familiar figure appeared at the office door.
Horikita Suzune.
"Come in, Horikita. What brings you here?"
Chabashira Sae smiled, as if she had anticipated Horikita's visit.
"I'll get straight to the point. Why was I placed in Class D?"
"Straight to the point indeed."
"You said the class assignments were based on student ability. I'm confident I solved almost all the entrance exam questions, and I don't recall making any major mistakes in the interview. At the very least, I can't imagine being placed in Class D, even if we've now risen to Class C."
Horikita Suzune's expression was serious. Ever since she confirmed the class ranking criteria this morning, she had been deeply dissatisfied.
"As you said, in this year's entrance exam, you tied for third place in the entire grade, with scores almost as high as the top two. Your interview performance was also excellent, earning high praise from the school."
"Thank you, but why was I placed in Class D?"
Horikita Suzune grew even more confused after hearing Chabashira Sae's words.
"Why are you so upset about being placed in Class D?"
"No one would be happy about not being evaluated correctly."
"Correct evaluation? You think highly of yourself, don't you?"
Chabashira Sae smiled.
"Besides, it's too early to make a judgment. Some people might think not being evaluated correctly is a good thing."
At that moment, even Saiki Kusuo, who was observing all this with Clairvoyance, felt his nose itch.