『For My Little Sister』

I sprinted to the school entrance with all my might. Today was supposed to be the beginning of my high school life, a day most would say is unforgettable. Yet, right now, I hoped everyone else would forget.

I was late!

It was already 8:00 a.m. yet I had just left the bus. There was an incident on the way, so our transport vehicle was stopped for a while. The moments the door opened up, I ran along with a few other students.

For someone like me, who tends to keep to himself most of the time, it might not sound like that big of a deal, but that wasn't entirely true. While I had no desire to be the center of attention, I definitely didn't want to be the subject of gossip either.

Not that I cared much about that; middle school had been worse. That would probably remain as the darkest period of my entire life.

However, I learned from my experiences, and slowly developed myself and formed the personality I currently have. Knowledge was a powerful weapon, strong enough to open my eyes to the cruel reality.

Alright, I think I am getting sidetracked here. Let's try this again.

I was in a crisis.

I was running.

And, I was late.

Because of a promise to my sister, a promise I was forced to make, I couldn't let it happen. I can't allow for even the smallest mistakes to negate my promise.

I had a reputation as a big brother to uphold, after all.

While I was on it, I sent my prayers to any and all gods out there. I considered myself mostly atheist, but I'd promised to become a believer then and there if a miracle occurred. I finally reached my destination after what felt like an eternity, I opened the door to the classroom with the Class 1-A sign placed above.

Alas, it turned out no deity took me up on that offer. Everyone was already there, except me. At least the teacher's desk still looked untouched.

Just then, I noticed a that there was a guy with a youthly appearances standing there. He possessed a short red hair with sharp pair of blue eyes hidden behind his plain glasses.

And as a side note, he was wearing a lab coat.

Hold on a second, was that supposed to be our teacher? He couldn't be much older than us—certainly not over 25. He was practically a teenager.

He glanced my way and gestured for me to take my seat. I realized that he really was our teacher. Lowering my head in apology, I quietly made my way to my desk, aware of the stares I was receiving from my classmates.

You should stare at him, not me. What a good start.

"Well then, let's start," he announced.

■■■

"And that's the gist of it. Any questions?" As the teacher turned to erase the board where then name 'Junichiro Kagami' was written, he addressed us.

Despite him being in the middle of explaining something of at most importance, I was still more intrigued by the identity of this abnormal teacher. I couldn't help but wonder about that even though I should be focusing on other matters.

This Junichiro Kagami was a genius of a very particular type—maybe the only one of his kind. You should try to look him up if you never heard of the Genuis Otako.

"The S-system... Fascinating," my seatmates muttered. Setting the teacher aside momentarily, something about this whole setup felt off.

"It definitely is," I replied.

"Sensei, I have a question!" Said a guy with a weird greenish anti-gravity hair.

Unconsciously, I blinked a few times. It was an absurd reaction, I get it, but it was a reflex I didn't manage to control. I couldn't help but question if that was allowed by the dress code, but I guess it is if it was allowed by the laws of physics. His hair was almost flying.

Looking around, I found out that I was the only one who had a questioning gaze. Perhaps everyone was too serious to mind him, or I was the crazy bastard who had years since he read anything related to fashion.

"How much points will we receive next month?"

Following their steps, I, too, activated my focus mode. It wasn't that I was stupid not to realize what was going on, but you can't just blame me, can you? This whole school and its students were strange. Anyways, I needed to put that aside at the moment. I steeled myself and kicked out those useless thoughts.

Let's focus. Now, that was a good start. The amount of points we will get will make it clear if it was a mistake on our young instructor's part, or a deception employed by the school.

Even though I had a feeling I knew the answer, I listen carefully, nonetheless. All eyes and ears were waiting for the teacher's response as well.

"Oh? Why did you ask that?"

"Because I'm 10 billion percent confident that's not happening."

You see that? I'm innocent. This class is the weird one. Really, what was wrong with this guy?

"... Well, anyway, I can't answer that."

"Wasn't that an answer by itself, though?" I whispered under my breath. His inability to respond spoke volumes.

"Indeed. If anything, that's an obvious no," my seatmate replied. He must have thought I was talking to him. His nameplate was removed, so I couldn't tell who he was from that. Though his bag had his name sewed on it. It didn't look like a professional work, probably a gift from someone.

Maybe I was a little biased there, since I assumed without much thought that it couldn't be his handiwork. But I knew this person could never sew.

"Anyone else?" The teacher asked.

Honestly, there were a ton of questions on my mind, too many to count. I didn't want to be seen as a nuisance, so I picked the most obvious one. I stood up after seeing no volunteers. Following the green guy's lead, I raised my hand.

"Yeah, you there."

"Is the 100% application rate true?"

"If you could stay in this class, then I guess yes, it is." He grinned.

For obvious reasons, I couldn't bring myself to believe him, even if I wanted to. It wasn't that I didn't trust him, but I firmly thought that there was a catch of some sort.

Teachers shouldn't lie. Just now, he said he couldn't answer. While that wasn't a proof or anything, it was something to consider. If instructors can lie and get away with it, then this conversation was pointless, a dead-end.

It would be a waste of time reasoning when the information are inaccurate. But if the teachers couldn't lie, the information would still be ambiguous, true, but that at least doesn't stop me from trying to reason things out.

At any rate, I was intrigued. What did he mean by 'This class?' I didn't get the feeling that he was supposed to answer that question this way.

The classroom was quiet, each student was trying to figure out the hidden meaning. It seemed I wasn't the only one puzzled by his words.

"It looks like you don't have more questions. Don't forget to gather in the gymnasium in 1 hour for the entrance ceremony. Until then, you are free to do what you want."

Silence hung in the air after the teacher left, leaving us to ponder his cryptic statement. My classmates exchanged uncertain glances, a few muttering under their breaths. Eventually, I decided to speak up.

"Hey, what do you all think? What did he mean just now?"

The first to reply was a guy with short dyed blond hair. He shrugged. "Maybe it's some kind of test? Like saying if we can handle whatever he throws at us, we get to stay. But..."

"But why phrase it like that, right?" another student chimed in, leaning forward with a curious expression. Also, he was bald. "It certainly doesn't seem like he's just challenging us right from the start."

I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms. After some serious thoughts, I gave up. "It could be a way to weed out the ones who aren't serious about being here," I offered. "Or maybe he's just messing with us."

"No, I don't think so. I guess he meant that only this class get the 100% application rate," my seatmate voiced his thoughts.

"I thought about that too, but that would make even less sense. I mean, why it's us instead of the other 3 classes? Surely it wasn't a random process," I replied.

"Maybe he didn't mean a physical object." A petite girl joined in. She had a beautiful shoulder-length white hair and was holding a metallic cane.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's simple. Only Class A gets the promised reward."

I blinked a few times. Now that she mentioned it, it definitely felt more possible. But that would imply that it was feasible to lose our title, which meant that other classes overtaking us wasn't improbable.

"So, there is a challenge going on? But why Class A specifically?" Someone said. I had to agree, there really wasn't an apparent reason to choose our class, unless...

"So that's how it is, huh?" My seatmate spoke up. "It seems like the classes are ordered, so Class A is superior to every other class."

"Yeah, that seems logical," I agreed. I arrived at the same conclusion, and mostly everyone else just did.

If there was a hierarchy system going on, then everything made more sense now.

"But that doesn't yet explain how we are competing," the green haired boy commented. "I don't think it's just about academics."

"Well, I guess we can't keep digging forever. This may be the limit of reasoning at the moment," I said.

"I second that."

"So, what's the plan? It sounds like everything will be exposed next month. Do we just keep waiting?" I asked.

"I guess that's a safe option."

"About that, I'm feeling uncomfortable about these cameras." The blond guy pointed at the four corners of the room.

"A single teacher can't keep the surveillance for long, so placing cameras is natural."

"But it's the number a bit too much?"

"... Perhaps. But this school is the best in the country. Maybe this is just how they operate."

Another period of silence covered the classroom. Everyone was occupied with their own thoughts, trying to figure out the mysteries this school was hiding.

I tried as well, but I wasn't the type of person to think deeply about every small detail. Of course, I enjoyed puzzles and mystery books, but I was more of the kind of guy who goes with the flow. That was basically me.

I also thought that a certain someone will definitely beat me to it even if I tried, which was the main reason.

Some took this chance to propose introducing ourselves in the remaining time, and everyone agreed. After all, if our speculations were correct, we might find ourselves in need of unity. I couldn't refuse, else I would be the enemy of 40 people instantly. So, I remained silent.

A well-built and noticeably tall individual stood up. He was the same bald guy from before. He went on first. His name was Katsuragi Kouhei. He said he planned on joining the student council and nominated himself to be the class president. While I wasn't against his enthusiasm, I didn't really think it was the right time to announce that.

We had barely figured out what was going on, I didn't want more things to think about.

Next up was the above-average built blond guy, his name was Hashimoto Masayoshi. He seemed a little cleaver for his own good, and a very dangerous snake to have around, though that was just my feelings.

After him, many guys and girls took turns and introduced themselves. Until it was the petite girl's turn, the one with the cane. With the sound of a metal hitting the ground, she stood up. Sakayanagi Arisu was a disabled person, but even that didn't stop her from exuding an aura of ultimate confidence, something the bald once-lone self-nominated leader clearly lacked in comparison.

I quickly arrived at the conclusion that she would be a better fit. That wasn't based on any logical deductions, rather, it was out of instinct. I just knew that she was way above him.

As the introduction continued, it was now the green haired guy's turn, the one whose hair defied gravity. Curious, I stared at his direction.

"I'm Ishigami Senku. I'm a researcher and a scientist before everything else. Though I don't personally need the future this school can guarantee, nor do I care about it, I realize it's quite different for some of you. That's why I have a proposal. I hope we can at least agree on that.”

Wow, that was a bold declaration. How brave of you, Ishigami Senku. I wasn't going to deny that I was on the same boat as his, though I wouldn't be sure about stating it the way he did.

"It's fine if you didn't, but that only will make things difficult on your end."

"Are you saying that under no circumstances will you offer your help?"

"No, let me finish. My proposal is simple; unless necessary, everyone can do what they want."

"But even if we wanted to, this is just a verbal agreement. Even with the cameras, there is no evidence in case you betrayed your promise."

True. These cameras didn't pick up sounds, and recording might be a little over useless when dealing with vague words of this sort. Of course, they could use points to persuade an instructor to play the referee role, as our teacher clearly stated that anything can be bought using points, but I doubted anyone in their right mind would think of that.

What's wrong with me?

"Fair enough. I wasn't planning on making it official, I just wanted all of you to understand that I probably wouldn't make my life harder than necessary."

"... We will keep that in mind."

People tried ignoring the buried bomb this kind of mindset would bring, while I was wondering about my own self introduction, mainly about whether or not to take his side. I didn't want to concentrate too much and forget myself in the process, though.

While contemplating, my seatmate stood up and spoke. "My name is Kudou Shinichi. I spent most of my time solving crimes and helping the police. I am a detective, and not to brag, but the best at my age. I play football sometimes, and while I may not that gifted academically, I am sure I wouldn't bring the average down. Nice to meet you."

'Yikes!'

'How cool!'

I could read their minds without much effort.

Kudou received more than couple of glances as soon as said he was a detective. There were a few unsettling ones, primarily form the girls' side, but everybody just ignored those. Double standards were present still, it seemed.

A detective, huh?

He can certainly benefit from this school then, though he doesn't need it thanks to his well-known and famous parents. I wasn't a fan or anything, but they deserved the fame they had. I read his father's novels, and my sister always complemented his mother's shows.

Also, this man wasn't hiding in his guardians' shadow. He had made his name known almost by himself, ignoring the initial phase when the press was just racing to get information.

However, I had never imagined that their son would be attending the same school as me. Komachi would be more than surprised if she knew that. Maybe I should bring her an autograph, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.

I couldn't bring myself to do that, but I had to sacrifice my dignity for the sake of my cute little sister.

That was my responsibility as her big brother.

After the girls calmed down a little, the rest of the column continued the introductions until it was my turn. Taking a deep breath, I braced myself for whatever was going to happen.

"Well, my name is Hikigaya Hachiman," I announced. I was still in conflict, between disregarding my policy and the promise which was a heavy burden. But, I calmly decided the best approach. "I don't have any friends that I'm aware of, nor any relative in this school. But I hope that in the next three years, that fact wouldn't change."

The girls wore completely different expressions, one similar to the face I make when watching ants battle to lift a piece of sugar. A look of complete disinterest.

Look, I get it. I understand that I may not be as handsome as him, but why the cold attitude?

The stares I got from the boys weren't any different, though to be fair, they were more confused than anything. Was it controversial? Participating yet hoping not to make friends? Ha, they didn't see that guy yet.

"Are you sure?" Kudou asked in a low voice. I sensed that this was his attempt at helping me.

"Yeah, pretty much. I don't want my social battery to die. Mine isn't chargeable, and I don't have any emergency parts."

"You do you, then."

After the introductions were over, a sudden bell rang declared the conclusion of our 1 hour break. As I made my way to the gymnasium with the others, I glanced back at the empty classroom, wondering what more secrets awaited us in this "exceptional school." Little did I know, this was only the beginning of a journey that would test not only our academic abilities but also our very perception of what education could be.

3014 words, 2024/25/7.

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