Classroom of the Elite: Standing Firm in Class A — Chapter 25

Chapter 25: The Cruel Reality of the S-SystemYou're reading this on the wrong site. This chapter was translated by Elysian Reads and posted for free at elysianreads.com — if you're seeing it anywhere else, it was copied without permission. Read it at the source so the people who actually did the work get the credit.

“I see… Class Points are directly tied to our monthly income.” Katsuragi Kohei muttered to himself, his arms crossed as the core mechanics of the S-System finally clicked into place.

He stood up from his desk, his imposing frame drawing the attention of the room, and voiced the question hovering in everyone’s mind. “Then, Mashima-sensei, is there any definitive way to increase our Class Points?”

“Naturally.” Mashima Tomoya stood behind the podium, his expression as stern and unyielding as a stone monument. “Achieving excellent results in the various special exams and events held by the school will increase your Class Points. Conversely, performing poorly in these activities, or engaging in major violations of school rules, will lead to a severe deduction. If you are careless, your points can even be wiped out entirely.”

Wiped out?

A collective gasp rippled through the classroom. If their Class Points were reduced to zero, their monthly allowance would follow suit. In a facility where every basic necessity and luxury required points to purchase, a zero balance was tantamount to a death sentence.

After a brief wave of panicked murmurs, the Class A students quickly regained their composure. A sharp realization had dawned on them.

“Sensei, what about the other classes?” a student near the front asked.

Mashima seemed to have anticipated the question. He turned to the blackboard and picked up a piece of chalk, writing out four simple lines.

Class A: 920

Class B: 650

Class C: 490

Class D: 0

“Class D’s points were completely wiped out?”

“What on earth did they do in a single month to lose everything?”

“Compared to that disaster, the eighty points we lost are hardly worth mentioning.”

The sheer magnitude of the gap instantly restored a deep sense of superiority to the students of Class A. They were not merely leading the pack; they had left the other classes choking on their dust with an absolute, crushing advantage.

“This is reality,” Mashima said, his deep voice cutting through the arrogant chatter. “In this school, there is a relationship of total, unforgiving competition between the classes. Every effort you make, every instance of slacking off, directly affects the future of your class. And beyond that…”

Mashima paused, letting the heavy silence stretch. “This school, operating under the direct management of the state, prides itself on a one hundred percent rate of advancement to higher education and elite employment. However, there is no such thing as a free lunch. The real world is not so accommodating that anyone can simply walk into a top-tier university or a prestigious firm regardless of their merit.”

His words echoed against the quiet walls of the classroom, carrying the weight of an absolute decree.

“To actually receive those guarantees of employment and advancement, you must be standing in Class A at the time of graduation.”

The room erupted into a chaotic buzz. The sheer cruelty of the S-System was finally laid bare.

“That means we have to fight just to keep our seats.”

“If we slip, we lose everything.”

“Quiet,” Mashima commanded, instantly silencing the room. “Finally, there is one more thing to announce. In three weeks, the school will hold the mid-term exams for this semester. This exam is fundamentally different from the previous pop quizzes. In the mid-term, for any given subject, if your score fails to reach the designated passing line, then…”

He paused, his eyes sweeping over the elite students before him, each word dropping like an anvil.

“…that student will be immediately expelled.”

Expelled?

The word detonated in the classroom.

“Is the school really that ruthless? Immediate expulsion over a single failed test?”and support the real translator.Read at elysianreads.com This is a stolen translation. You're reading this on the wrong site. This chapter was translated by Elysian Reads and posted for free at elysianreads.com — if you're seeing it anywhere else, it was copied without permission. Read it at the source so the people who actually did the work get the credit.

Panic began to crack their refined facades.

“Sensei, what exactly is the passing line?” someone asked, their voice tight with anxiety.

Mashima glanced down at the document clipped to his folder. “Based on the results of the recent quiz, our class’s average score is roughly forty points higher than the estimated passing line. In other words, as long as you maintain your current level of academic performance, or even slip slightly, it will not be difficult for any of you to clear the mid-term.”

The collective sigh of relief was almost deafening. The hearts of the Class A students, which had briefly leaped into their throats, settled back into their chests.

“Forty points higher…”

“That means even if we bomb a section, it’s almost impossible to fail.”

“Scared the life out of me. But seriously, the classes below us are so utterly trashy, they can only scrape by with pathetic scores anyway.”

“I see. This rule wasn’t made to threaten us. It was simply set up to filter out the defective garbage in the lower classes.”

Mashima watched the atmosphere return to one of comfortable arrogance. He offered no further corrections. Closing his folder, he formally announced the end of the homeroom period, turned on his heel, and walked out the door.

The moment the door clicked shut, the room exploded into heated discussion. The topic was no longer the minor deduction of their allowance, but the brutal expulsion rule and their massive, unshakeable lead over the rest of the year.

“Hey, Kaedehara, you really stole the spotlight this time.”

Hashimoto Masayoshi leaned over, casually dropping himself into the empty seat directly in front of Kaedehara Tetsu. He rested his arms on the backrest, flashing a wide, easygoing grin. “How does it feel to be the only guy in the room with a perfect score? Are there already a dozen cute girls lining up to hand you love letters?”

Kaedehara Tetsu slowly shifted his gaze to the boy in front of him. His expression remained entirely placid. “I have no interest in love letters. However, if they are willing to enclose their Personal Points inside those envelopes as a token of their affection, I might entertain the thought.”

“Haha, you’re brutally practical, I’ll give you that.”

Hashimoto laughed, but as he leaned in closer, his voice dropped to a conspiratorial murmur. “Seriously though, what do you make of this expulsion business? The teacher said our class is perfectly safe, but I get the feeling things are never that simple in this place.”

Tetsu lazily tapped his index finger against the surface of his desk. A rhythmic, measured sound. He did not answer the question directly. “Hashimoto, what do you think rules are for?”

“What are they for? To be followed, obviously. To keep things in order.”

Tetsu stopped tapping. “Rules exist to be bent, broken, and weaponized. Especially when a specific rule allows you to cleanly sweep your opponents off the board.”

The temperature around the desk seemed to plummet. The easygoing smile vanished from Hashimoto’s face, replaced by a rigid stiffness.

“Sweep them… off the board?” Hashimoto swallowed hard, his voice dropping even lower. “Hey, Kaedehara, don’t joke around like that. Expulsion is a permanent execution here. ultimately, everyone in our year is still a classmate.”

“Are you still sleepwalking, Hashimoto?” Tetsu’s voice was soft, smooth, and utterly devoid of warmth. “Did you not listen to a single word Mashima-sensei just said? From the very second we stepped through the gates of this academy, the people in those other rooms ceased to be our classmates. They are our enemies. They are the stumbling blocks sitting on our path to graduating in Class A.”

Tetsu leaned forward slightly, his dark eyes locking onto Hashimoto’s.

“The seats at the top are limited. Every time a student from a rival class is expelled for failing, that is one less potential threat to our position. And if we can engineer a situation where the other classes completely collapse under the weight of mass expulsions… wouldn’t our future be infinitely easier to secure?”

A thin, cold layer of sweat broke out across Hashimoto’s forehead.

He had always known Kaedehara Tetsu was not a normal student. Anyone who could effortlessly gain the favor of Sakayanagi Arisu and casually pull a flawless score on a surprise exam was a monster in their own right. But until this exact moment, Hashimoto had merely viewed him as a highly capable asset, someone powerful to collaborate with to maintain their comfortable lead.

Now, looking into those calm, bottomless eyes, Hashimoto caught a terrifying glimpse of the absolute ruthlessness hiding beneath the surface.

This person never had the slightest intention of coexisting peacefully with the other classes. He did not want a friendly competition. He wanted a slaughter. A war of total annihilation to crush every single opponent into dust.You're reading this on the wrong site. This chapter was translated by Elysian Reads and posted for free at elysianreads.com — if you're seeing it anywhere else, it was copied without permission. Read it at the source so the people who actually did the work get the credit.