章節 42: New exam?!

As Yuto watched Nagumo leave, he chuckled to himself. "What a nice senpai! Totally scammed him, too."

Just then, a deep voice cut through the air. "Kazuki."

Yuto immediately froze, recognizing the unmistakable tone. Turning around, he found Manabu Horikita standing there, his usual stoic demeanor in place. "Onii-chan!" Yuto grinned, completely unbothered. "Congrats on your resignation! You're a free man now!"

Tachibana, standing beside Manabu, choked on her own breath at Yuto's audacious use of "Onii-chan." She covered her mouth, coughing violently, trying to regain her composure.

Manabu, the so-called Onii-chan, adjusted his glasses, giving Yuto that familiar piercing, yet, soft stare. "Did something happen?"

Yuto waved it off with a laugh. "Nothing that would interest you—"

"Kazuki." Manabu's voice sharpened, cutting through Yuto's words like a knife. "If it's personal, we can leave it at that. But don't think me a fool who can't see through your facade."

Yuto's grin faltered for a second. He quickly looked down, his usual snappy retorts suddenly stuck in his throat.

Manabu paused, observing Yuto's sudden silence. "I'll take that as your answer." Without another word, he turned and began to walk away, leaving Yuto standing there with his head still hung low.

The air grew heavy. Yuto stared at the ground, clenching his fists. "Fucking hell..." he muttered under his breath. His foot found a small rock, and he kicked it down the path, watching as it skidded away. "Is this what having a brother feels like?"

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"Sae-chan-sensei! Why am I forced to be here?" Yuto groaned as Sae ruthlessly dragged him back to Class D. She let him go as they entered, walking up to the front of the room. Yuto slouched into his usual seat, avoiding any eye contact with Horikita or Ayanokoji. The class fell silent, eyes darting toward Yuto with various expressions—some relieved to see him back, others disgusted by his temporary absence, and a few visibly irritated.

Yuto ignored them all, staring ahead as Sae spoke up. "Now, I will reveal the midterm exam results."

The room buzzed with tension. Yamauchi immediately shouted, "Damn, I was this close to being expelled!" He stared at his score: 45. The failure cutoff? 44.

Yukimura was in shock, standing up abruptly. "How?!" He couldn't believe his eyes.

Yuto, meanwhile, smiled faintly at his own score. Another perfect 100. The class was stunned, some visibly flabbergasted. Last time, Yuto had brushed it off, claiming he'd just memorized the sheet Kushida gave him. But this time… there was no excuse.

He muttered under his breath, "So much for laying low…" But honestly, after his performance in the sports festival, laying low would've just raised more questions.

"Hey Kazuki! A little more and I would've been expelled, man!" Yamauchi hollered from across the room. Yuto shot him a side-eye and frowned. "And?"

Before Yamauchi could babble on, Yuto stood up to leave. But Sae, quick as always, grabbed his collar. "Sensei! Am I not allowed to leave now? Why are you still holding me?" Yuto grumbled.

Sae's voice was sharp. "Kazuki, we still need to discuss the upcoming special exam."

The classroom buzzed as students whispered about what it could be. Sae gestured to Yuto to sit at the podium, much to his annoyance. Clicking his tongue, Yuto reluctantly complied as Sae announced, "Paper shuffle."

As Sae droned on, explaining the rules, Yuto zoned in on the essentials:

Pairings would be determined by a mock exam before the final. The quiz would consist of 100 questions, and partners would need to balance each other out.Failing was possible in two ways: if the pair's grade on any subject was below 60 or if their combined score fell below the standard.The kicker? Each class would write their own final exam questions. The goal was to attack other classes while defending against theirs. Winning class? 50 Class Points from the loser.

Yuto processed all this information and immediately felt the urge to break something. He was now forced to pair up with someone from this class. Worse, he'd have to spend less time in Class B due to their planning sessions. He respected their privacy, so his only option was to be stuck here in Class D.

"Fuck." He muttered under his breath, feeling Horikita's gaze burning into him. Their eyes met briefly before she quickly looked away. Then, awkwardly, she turned back and tried to smile at him.

Yuto's glare said it all: "Stop." Her smile wasn't going to fix this mess.

As soon as Sae finished her lecture, Yuto bolted out of the classroom, not bothering to stick around for idle chatter. He walked through the campus, making a beeline for a nearby Chinese tea shop. Once inside, he scanned the shelves and zeroed in on a ceramic mug. Without even blinking, he approached the cashier.

"How much for this?" he asked, holding up the plain mug.

The cashier glanced at the price tag. "3500 points."

"I'll take it," Yuto said, completely deadpan, handing over the points without a second thought.

He didn't even bother to get a bag, ripping open the packaging as soon as he stepped out of the shop. The cashier, curious about his urgency, peeked out from behind the counter, watching him intently.

Yuto stood in front of a perfectly innocent wall, holding the mug like it had just insulted his entire bloodline. Then, with no warning, he hurled it at the wall with a force that could've shattered a window. The mug exploded into pieces, and Yuto glared at the debris like it had personally wronged him.

"How shameless can that bitch be?!" he yelled, grabbing one of the larger shards. He threw it at the wall again, as if smashing it twice would help. "After trying to control me, she has the nerve to give me that devilish smile! It's worse than that damned lolli!"

He kicked the wall, as if the building itself were conspiring against him. The cashier, who had been watching this outburst unfold, gulped nervously. She muttered under her breath, "Do all high schoolers spend 3500 points(25$) just to ease their frustration... or is it just this psycho?"

Yuto, completely oblivious to the stares he was attracting, stormed off, leaving the shattered mug and his rage in the dust.

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[A/N: Guys, this will probably be the last chapter for few weeks as my break from broading school will come to an end with today, maybe if I have time I'll write an other chapter but... STICK AROUND!

And also, I was wondering if Yuto's feelings are clear to you all? If yes, I should probably work on my writing.

And is my beautiful writing still funny?

I need feedback on these kind of stuff so when I return back, I write better cuz let's all be honest, these past few chapters are way better than the ones before the sports fest in terms of writing quality..

Anyway! Author-chan out!]