There is something wrong with Hikigaya’s classroom of the Elite, as expected

Chapter 7: The Rational Monster

“That was really close!”

Having successfully escaped from the Demon King and returned to the student dormitory, Hikigaya still felt lingering fear. One bad thing after another had been happening since the morning, leaving him utterly exhausted.

He received a key card labeled 407 and a student dormitory manual from the administrator. Each student had a private dorm room.

The space was about four tatami mats in size—more than enough for a single room. Despite its compactness, the room was fully equipped with new bedding, a water heater, air conditioning, a washing machine, and even a small kitchen!

Even though he had mentally prepared himself, Hikigaya couldn’t help but sigh—this school was filthy rich.

Lying on the brand-new sheets, his tension gradually eased. His thoughts involuntarily drifted to the familiar figure he had encountered earlier. A memory he had locked away resurfaced once more.

This was Hikigaya’s third year in this world. He had spent the last two years in middle school and now attended this highly selective high school in Tokyo—his life had completely deviated from what he once knew as “Hikigaya Hachiman’s trajectory.”

After being diagnosed with Adolescence Syndrome, he had given up struggling and worked hard to seal away those memories.

Even though Yukinoshita Haruno had existed at Soubu Middle School, he had never dared to approach her… or rather, he was always afraid that this Haruno was not the Haruno he once knew. Today’s unexpected encounter had confirmed that suspicion.

However, this worldline’s Haruno—aside from lacking that particular memory—was almost identical in every other way.

They say that when you retrieve a forgotten past, memories surge back like a tidal wave.

In this unfamiliar environment, meeting Haruno again had reawakened Hikigaya’s past and the painful experiences that came with it. He had tried, struggled, and even resorted to praying to the gods, fantasizing about an impossible outcome, only to realize in the end that it was nothing more than wishful thinking.

The cruel reality told him—there was no going back.

Was Hikigaya so persistent simply because of regret and unwillingness?

Yes. And no.

That night, on the bridge, when Shizuka-sensei had comforted him, in that moment, Hikigaya had sincerely felt grateful—for joining the Service Club, for meeting Yukinoshita Yukino, Yuigahama Yui, Sai-chan the angel, oh, and of course, Isshiki Iroha. All the things they had experienced together—it was such a precious time, the most valuable bond he had ever had.

But due to the inexplicable Adolescence Syndrome, that fortune was now beyond his reach. Along with his regrets and the honesty he never got the chance to express, everything was buried deep in his heart.

“Hikigaya, have you forgotten what happened before? Maybe you were just deluding yourself, thinking that meeting them was your good fortune.”

Lying in bed, he stared at the pure white ceiling and let out a self-deprecating laugh.

“Maybe… the greatest fortune for them was never having met me at all.”

Connecting with me was their greatest misfortune.

Perhaps this outcome was the best arrangement—this way, they would never have to deal with a troublesome guy like me again.

Not to mention… I was even diagnosed as a mentally ill outcast.

“…But still… I’m really glad I got to see Haruno again.” Hikigaya’s unfocused eyes gazed into the void as he murmured to himself.

Lone Wolf’s Rule #5:
A true lone wolf doesn’t need friends—having a little sister is enough!

…

Snapping out of his thoughts, Hikigaya slowly reached out his hand.

“System.”

…

Huh? No response?

He tried again. “System!”

A few seconds passed. Nothing happened.

Wait… were those “System” cheats in web novels and light novels all just fiction? What about the cheat ability that every transmigrator was supposed to have? Where was the wise old man in the ring? Or an old lady would be fine too, honestly.

“SY! STEM!”

One second… two seconds… still nothing.

“This is stupid.”

Hikigaya finally couldn’t hold it in and laughed. Having a bit of a chuunibyou fantasy wasn’t bad for stress relief. As for whether he had actually hoped for such a thing… even he wasn’t sure.

“If Komachi or Shizuka-sensei saw me doing this, they’d probably have me committed again.” He covered his face and sighed.

After calming himself down, Hikigaya casually picked up the dormitory manual and flipped through it. It contained the usual rules—garbage disposal schedules, curfew times, and of course, no boys allowed in the girls’ dormitory.

“Hmm?”

One particular rule caught his eye: ‘Romantic relationships inappropriate for high school students are strictly prohibited.’

His expression turned strange as he recalled the convenience stores he had visited earlier that day. The checkout counters had condom displayed near them… and some of them were clearly missing.

“Isn’t this just self-deception?”

He understood that the school was trying to be proactive in its measures. But if you thought about it… wasn’t this a bit of an indirect encouragement?

This also reminded him of something odd he had noticed when he first arrived at the school—there were surveillance cameras everywhere.

At first, he hadn’t thought much of it. But later, while wandering around campus searching for a vending machine that sold MAX Coffee, he discovered something curious.

Some areas had noticeably fewer cameras.

Special teaching buildings… secluded areas… some places had only a few cameras, or none at all.

This raised his suspicions. If the reason was budget constraints, he wasn’t buying it.

The school’s motivation for installing so many surveillance cameras was obvious. Just like the modern surveillance networks in cities, the goal was to prevent rule-breaking behavior and ensure student safety. It also served as a deterrent.

But if you looked at it from another angle…

Doesn’t this suggest that there are some unstable or unsafe factors within the school, which is why so many surveillance cameras are set up?

On the other hand, could it be understood that the areas without surveillance cameras are… deliberately left that way by the school, even implying something quite subtle?

Otherwise, it’s hard to explain this contradictory situation!

“How disgusting!”

Hachiman showed a look of disdain, much like those politicians who only manipulate power. The rules in the open are just a cover-up for them, while secretly they have a whole different way of operating behind closed doors.

They’re treating people like fools!

Not just the issue of the surveillance cameras, but the so-called personal points are the same. The school generously gives 100,000 personal points to each student every month, but then why set up [free supplies and food]?

Furthermore, based on Hachiman’s observations, some senior students are indeed using the [free supplies] and [vegetable sets]. This means that it’s clear that some students lack [sufficient personal points]!

At the same time, there are many students choosing high-consumption packages, which suggests that there are significant [wealth gaps] between students.

Now the question arises: if every student receives 100,000 personal points from the school, why are there such extreme disparities?

Even if someone’s financial management skills were poor at first, it wouldn’t make sense for them to still be struggling after a whole year at this school, right?

If we exclude that factor, the largest potential source of the [wealth gap] between students likely comes from the school itself!

This means that the personal points different students receive could vary, not the [fair] treatment of 100,000 points a month as initially claimed by the teacher, Chabashira?!

And… are there ways to increase or decrease personal points?!

Hachiman couldn’t help but shudder. He vaguely realized the true nature of the school or rather the hidden [truth] that had been concealed at the beginning!

Every existence must have a reason for its existence.

It seemed like Hachiman had thought of something and quickly took out something from his backpack — a student handbook that every student was issued. This was clearly provided as a piece of student information, but ironically, not many students paid attention to it, and there were probably very few who read it fully.

At the time, Hachiman casually flipped through it, and the content that briefly flashed by was passively imprinted in his mind. Usually, only when he actively recalled it would these imprints come to mind.

This was even more powerful than memory bread or quantum reading!

Maybe it was fate compensating Hachiman.

He precisely flipped to a page: each class has an initial class point of 1000 points…

It was an unremarkable sentence, almost a bit nonsensical.

“Why go to the trouble of setting up something like class points? Is it used to measure class performance?”

It was like when he was in elementary and middle school, where each week or month they would assess things like a [civilized class]. Is this school the same?

At the same time, Hachiman also remembered the conflict that had happened outside the convenience store at noon. From the words of those upperclassmen, it was vaguely hinted that there was a hierarchy of contempt between classes.

So this suggests a fact: classes with higher class points are recognized by the school and hold a certain privileged status? This is why there’s a sense of superiority among students?

In general, the formation of a subtly shifting atmosphere or culture can only be top-down, from a higher level permeating downward.

Suddenly, a flash of insight passed through Hachiman’s mind.

“Personal points are automatically transferred on the first of every month. This school measures students based on their abilities. By enrolling, you already have corresponding value and potential…”

These were the exact words from Chabashira-sensei. If combined, could it be understood that the school’s measurement of students’ abilities is not based on individual factors, but rather on [class points]?

The 100,000 personal points distributed by the school are not just an evaluation of the student themselves but are also based on the class evaluation?

1000 class points, 100,000 personal points.

“Tsk, such symmetrical numbers! It’s as if they were deliberately waiting for us to notice the hidden tricks!”

Hachiman sneered. “So, [class points] can change? Even drastically? That’s the real face of the [S System]!”

Using class points as a standard to assess the strength of each class, and personal points as the [reward] for the evaluation.

Now all those contradictions make sense.

To be honest, Hachiman didn’t mind this method of evaluation. From the beginning, he had prepared himself mentally. Whether the three-year closed high school would implement a semi-militarized management system, it was inevitable that such evaluation methods would be involved.

However, this didn’t mean Hachiman could accept the school’s deliberate deceit. They were clearly trying to create fierce conflicts among the students!

It was obvious that the senior students already knew the true nature of the [S System], while the freshmen were still being deceived. Those two fools in his class had probably already been spending extravagantly!

But what was the school’s goal?

“Competition!”

From beginning to end, Hachiman had realized one key fact: the school encourages [competition], a harsh and brutal form of [survival of the fittest]!

The winners hold the power and enjoy a rich material life; the losers become the stepping stones at the bottom, living a life that is “free” in name but actually “begging” in essence.

Even the benefits promoted by the school from the beginning, like advancement to higher education, employment, and exemptions from fees, were probably… no, they would only be enjoyed by the victors. As for the others, ha… who would even remember the losers?

“It’s often said that school is a microcosm of society, a miniature version of society. This school? It’s simply taken the rules from society, put them in a [skin], and placed them on the students, letting them experience the pressure and cruelty of social competition early on to cultivate the best talents? Or is it some sort of experimental educational policy pilot?”

Hachiman sighed. There really is no such thing as a free lunch. With a 100% graduation rate, employment rate, and unbelievable benefits like the exemption from three years of fees, there’s naturally a corresponding price to pay.

“This is probably what Chabashira-sensei meant when she said… we need to demonstrate corresponding value and potential? Yeah, only students with value can get these [benefits] that anyone would covet!”

Hachiman felt no joy at all after uncovering this [truth]. Instead, he was filled with a deep sense of exhaustion.

He, Hachiman Hikigaya, just wanted to get through these three years safely. Clearly, given the school’s emphasis on [competition], it seemed almost impossible to make it through these three years peacefully.

Should he tell others about this?

The thought flashed by and was immediately rejected. What a joke. Someone who had been labeled an [outcast] on the first day had already lost his voice in the class.

Perhaps people would even say things like, “You already knew about this?” or “Ha? You just found out?” or “Tsk, you think you’re too clever?”

Don’t think of yourself as too smart, don’t think of others as too foolish.

And the sixth rule of being a lone wolf:

Absolute avoidance of trouble!

After figuring out the truth about the school, for Hachiman, who just wanted to be a househusband in the future, he felt uncomfortable and even more resistant.

“Should I run away?”

The next second, Hachiman immediately dismissed the idea. He had promised Komachi this morning that he would do well in school. If he ran home on the first day of school, their sibling relationship in Chiba would surely be shattered!

He couldn’t go back on his promise, especially the one between siblings!

This is the love between the Chiba siblings!

On Hachiman’s palm lay a small red amulet. It was the only thing his family member, Komachi, had given him this morning before he left.

“This is the amulet Komachi personally went to Inage Asama Shrine to get for her big brother! It’s filled with Komachi’s blessing for her brother! ‘Komachi’ will be by her big brother’s side for the next three years, so you don’t have to worry about not making new friends and crying alone in your room!”

“Hehe, just now, for Komachi’s score, it’s pretty high!”

Hachiman recalled Komachi’s cute little tiger teeth, and after being recharged with his sister’s energy, his sense of despondency was somewhat alleviated. Of course, it would have been better if Komachi remembered to tear off the price tag of 250 yen from the amulet next time.