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

Chapter 41: The End of Daily Life

It has been three weeks since school started, and today is Monday of the fourth week. There is only one week left until next month.

As usual, the daily life in Class D remains dreadful—late arrivals, leaving early, sleeping in class, distractions, and playing on phones have become the norm. Of course, there are also various small groups, such as the girls’ group led by the blonde girl, Karuizawa, who spends their time either talking about beauty products and celebrities or discussing gossip. On the other side, the “foolish duo” contribute their ridiculous remarks every day, which earn them nothing but scorn and eye rolls from the girls.

It seems that the students of Class D are completely oblivious to the subtle changes in the atmosphere within the grade.

Additionally, there is another piece of bad news: the class’s “charismatic” handsome boy, Hirata, is actually dating Karuizawa!

This has undeniably fueled the arrogance of the “blonde girl” group, but it seems that Hikigaya doesn’t have the right to criticize, since after all, love is free.

“Hey, Ayanokouji, let’s go to the cafeteria for lunch!”

Yamauchi shouted towards Ayanokouji, and immediately after, he, along with Ike, Sudo, and others, laughed and left the classroom. Ayanokouji, called by his name, hurriedly stood up and followed them at a pace that resembled a “younger brother” being called by his “older brother.”

Hikigaya watched the scene and felt an inexplicable sense of unease.

If there is anyone in this class who Hikigaya is most wary of or finds hard to read, it is probably this “expressionless guy,” Ayanokouji.

Ayanokouji is a person with almost no presence in Class D. He is quiet and has a face as expressionless as a “mask,” showing no emotional fluctuations. He doesn’t have any friends and is surprisingly disciplined in class, being the kind of student who neither makes mistakes nor contributes—essentially a “transparent student.” Doesn’t that make him an outsider, just like Hikigaya and Horikita?

But there’s one difference between him and Hikigaya or Horikita—he actively tries to “make friends.”

The “friends” he is making, of course, are Ike and Yamauchi, the two fools. But it’s less about “making friends” and more about him actively sticking to them. It seems Ayanokouji desperately wants to become part of the male group led by these fools.

As a result, the fool duo not only walk around proudly but also act as though they are “generously allowing Ayanokouji to join” with a patronizing attitude. Yet, Ayanokouji does not seem upset at all, and instead, he appears satisfied with the outcome?

Then… he becomes the “errand boy” for the fool duo or just a source of happiness for the group?

This is very strange, isn’t it?

This isn’t just a matter of being wronged; it seems like Ayanokouji is degrading himself. Yet, Ayanokouji doesn’t have any complaints and seems genuinely content with this outcome?

Even Hikigaya, and his deskmate Horikita, cannot understand this. A major reason for being an outsider in the class, aside from one’s own personality, is the unwillingness to compromise or cater to others, like Hikigaya and Horikita do.

Of course, it’s also possible that Ayanokouji wants to change and not be an outcast, so he decides to compromise and join a small group, trying to fit in. Such people do exist.

But for some reason, Hikigaya still feels an overwhelming sense of unease. Ayanokouji clearly has the ability to be a “predator,” but instead, he chooses to be a lower-tier “producer” or an outsider?

It’s a contradiction.

Did Hikigaya misjudge Ayanokouji? Or is Ayanokouji pretending to be weak while actually hiding his true strength? Or is there some other reason?

This is the source of Hikigaya’s confusion.

After school in the afternoon, Hikigaya received an email from the student council. The content was simple: congratulations, Hikigaya, you are now officially a member of the student council.

For some reason, Hikigaya’s expression was neither excited nor happy like one would expect after being accepted, nor was it frustrated or dejected like after being rejected. Instead, Hikigaya was very calm, as though he had just read a completely ordinary email.

Regarding his joining the student council, it felt like something as normal as drinking a glass of water.

This wasn’t Hikigaya trying to act cool; it was the most honest feeling at the moment. He was even surprised by how indifferent he felt.

Was it because he was confident about the result of the interview?

Hikigaya didn’t think so. He didn’t feel sure about it himself. It seemed more like a shift in his mentality, a subtle change and elevation.

In the midst of great changes, one neither rejoices nor fears. One does what must be done without overthinking.

This was probably the state of Hikigaya’s heart at the moment.

But unfortunately, this sense of detachment and transcendence didn’t last long for Hikigaya. It came as quickly as a sudden flash of inspiration or an epiphany, and then disappeared just as quickly.

For Hikigaya, who had now become a member of the student council, his daily life didn’t change much. Apart from needing to go to the student council office after school for duty and work, everything else remained the same.

Not even his joining the student council was known to anyone in the class. Or, if they did know, the most they would say was “Tch, so the student council is that easy to join? I should’ve joined too.”

Until… the last Friday of the week.

The third period on Friday was Social Studies, taught by the class’s homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae. Even so, the students in Class D still didn’t change their behavior. Usually, Chabashira would ignore the students and begin her lesson, finishing right on time and leaving without a care.

But today was a little different.

“Today, there’s something you all need to pay attention to, so shut up and sit down quietly!”

Anyone could tell that Chabashira’s tone carried seriousness and warning, yet many of the students in Class D still didn’t notice the difference. Some were even teasing her with “Sae-chan” from the back.

“Since it’s the last weekend of the month, there will be a small test.”

As she spoke, Chabashira started handing out the test papers, ignoring the complaints and cries of the fools in the back. She continued, “This end-of-month test is just for reference, so it won’t be reflected on your grades. Even though it’s just for reference, any cheating is absolutely forbidden!”

Hikigaya quickly scanned the test paper and found the questions surprisingly simple. Most of them were not even related to high school-level material, and someone with middle school knowledge could easily pass.

However, Hikigaya quickly noticed something was off. While the majority of the questions were easy, the last three questions were unexpectedly advanced, and the difficulty was like heaven and earth compared to the earlier ones!

Especially the last math question—it was as if he could understand each individual character, but when they were put together, it felt like reading an ancient text.

“So hard! Sae-chan, can we have an open-book test?”

“Yeah, it’s just for reference. Can’t we just fill in random answers?”

The “foolish duo” and some other students complained, thinking that the teacher would let things slide as usual, just like before.

“Shut up! Start the test right now!”

Chabashira furrowed her brows and scolded them sternly.