Houtarou Oreki Classroom of the Elite

And so.

Tap Tap Tap—

Suzune walked out of the library in her student shoes.

Houtarou sat in silence, examining the different physics textbooks from the past decade that she had specifically borrowed from the shelves.

The school conducts special exams monthly, with diverse content often drawing from past questions. Students typically need to purchase and memorize old test papers to prepare.

This meant three years of such demanding academic requirements lay ahead.

"..."

Having not joined any clubs, he had ample free time after school to pursue his interests.

Usually, his afternoons at home consisted of simply petting his large ten-pound cat.

But today would be different — time to study.

He walked to the shelves and gathered all editions of the five required subjects: Physics, Chemistry, English, Math, and Biology.

While most students worried about focusing solely on test papers, Houtarou reasoned that mastering all textbook versions would prepare him for any examination.

Once you truly understand something, it becomes part of you. No need for rote memorization.

It was May 19th, and the study days flew by.

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As Houtarou continued his daily library sessions, May 24th arrived — the day of the school-wide written exams.

All students received open-book tests.

Success, however, depended on each student's ability to retain information and potentially achieve a perfect score of 100 Points.

The school offered Points freely — it was up to the students to earn them through their efforts.

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"Oreki seems to have been very busy lately."

Houtarou sat at his desk, gently resting his chin on his hand as a sweet girl's voice came from beside him.

It was Arisu, who sat next to him.

"I've been studying a bit — just reading lately." He said.

"Oh." She gave a slight nod.

The air around them seemed to grow tense as their classmates turned to stare at him with surprised expressions.

Was it really that dramatic? He had just been reading some books.

He wasn't aware that since getting a perfect score during Kōhei's study group, everyone had come to regard him as an effortless genius.

And now this genius was actually studying?

"What books are you reading?" Masumi, who sat behind Arisu, joined the conversation, "If it's literary classics—"

"I'm just reading different versions of first-year textbooks from the past decade." Houtarou said, "I don't really like memorizing test papers."

"But textbooks have so many pages and concepts to understand. Isn't it more convenient to just memorize test papers?" She couldn't comprehend it.

"Memorizing test papers means not understanding the solutions or the meaning behind the problems." Arisu said, "If even a single number changes, those who only memorized won't be able to solve it. Do you understand, Kamuro-san?"

"..."

Did she understand?

Arisu was essentially calling her a poor student — suggesting that real learning required effort rather than shortcuts.

Masumi regretted joining their conversation.

"I see you're quite interested." Arisu said, "I'll occasionally read some books too."

Was that a hint of competitiveness?

Houtarou had no desire to compete with this little girl, so he took out his phone and opened his student ID.

"It seems you've been bothered by troublesome people." Arisu remarked.

The phrase felt familiar.

It reminded him of when he'd received that mysterious 1 million Point transfer and asked about it. Back then, not knowing the sender's identity or purpose had been concerning. He'd even planned to return the points if any demands were made.

That matter had seemed settled — until now. Arisu's comment came as she noticed him viewing another notification: a 2 million Point transfer from the same mysterious sender.

『Note: The money I give you, spend it however you like.』

Such a message and transfer could certainly raise eyebrows.

"Indeed a troublesome person." Houtarou said, "And this time I'm almost imagining them as a charming woman."

After all, receiving 2 million Points with complete freedom to spend them was quite generous.

This mysterious patron's actions left him feeling touched.

"So what kind of patron do you imagine?" Arisu asked, curiosity in her voice.

"Hmm... probably a tall person with a good figure — maybe a gentle senior student." He said, "Or perhaps someone tall with an average build but good character, like a staff member. Either way, hopefully not the clingy type."

"Oh." Arisu nodded, falling silent.

The conversation ended as homeroom teacher Tomonari entered through the front door.

"Now then, let's begin this month's special exam. Everyone turn off your phones and put away your textbooks." He announced, "The exam will last 3 days, and I'll be supervising the English section."

He wrote "9:00-11:00" on the blackboard.

And so began the school-wide open-book exam.

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May 26th.

The fifth exam ended.

The test results would be announced in three days, and the school granted everyone a holiday for the afternoon.

Houtarou stretched lazily.

Though the exam hadn't been difficult, he had dedicated the week to studying various textbook editions — reading, self-studying, and mentally integrating everything. Even without taking notes, absorbing and organizing all that information had drained his energy.

After Teacher Tomonari announced the holiday, he left the classroom.

"You seem to be in a bad mood." Said Masumi, who sat behind the desk next to Houtarou's.

"Not at all." Arisu said, "Though Kamuro-san, you'll probably be quite busy today. We'll need you to borrow books again."

"..."

This left Masumi speechless.

Ever since Houtarou mentioned reading different textbook versions, Arisu had made her borrow books every evening — four versions from the past decade for each subject.

She was clearly following through on her words: "I'll rarely read some books too."

She'd even had Masumi check the library's computer to see what books Houtarou was reading, then borrowed them subject by subject.

In other words, she had to read everything he read — not one book less, not one book more.

Had Arisu developed a competitive spirit against Houtarou?

Masumi wondered to herself.

Though she was also curious — in a battle between geniuses, who would win?

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After being labeled a genius by Masumi, Houtarou returned to his dorm and immediately used Teleportation.

He was the type who absorbed everything during class and rarely did homework unless absolutely necessary. Reading and digesting twenty books across five subjects in less than a week had been quite draining.

So when he got back at noon, he collapsed straight into sleep.

When he woke up, the room was dark — evening had fallen.

"Mmm—" Houtarou stretched and glanced at the clock on his desk.

7:02 PM.

At this hour he didn't feel like cooking, so he decided to use some points to eat at school.

He brought up the system directly.

〖 Do you want to use Teleportation? 〗

Yes!

Back to school. He knew several places without cameras, and though the cafeteria probably wasn't serving food at this hour, the spot by the lake railings was closest to the shopping district.

Whoosh.

Houtarou felt the scenery around him change.

He was back at school. He quickly retrieved his phone from the dorm.

〖 Do you want to use Teleportation? 〗

Yes!

This time to the railings by the lake. Once again, the scenery shifted.

However.

"I like you!"

The moment Houtarou appeared, he heard these startling words.

Turning toward the voice, he saw a familiar face — someone recently added to his contacts. A remarkably cute girl.

Lively, energetic, with a strong sense of justice and representative-level observation and reaction skills that rivaled Kikyō's... Honami.

Honami Ichinose.

However, he realized he had arrived at a very unfortunate moment.

Because there, in his line of sight—

"I like you, Ichinose-san!"

A girl was confessing to Honami, her voice trembling with determination.

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