Even though this school is hard, the entrance ceremony is the same here as it is at any other school.

After a speech of thanks from some principal or other director, the ceremony ended.

And then it was noon. After we got an explanation of all the buildings and facilities on campus, the group split up.

70, 80% of the students started heading for the dorms. The rest of the students formed small groups and walked towards the cafes and the karaoke rooms. The whole crowd soon disappeared.

On my way to the dorms, I decided to go to the convenience store, which was on the way. Of course I was alone. I knew no one else.

What an unpleasant coincidence.

Once I entered the convenience store, I immediately ran into Horikita again.

Dont be so hostile. Rather, did you also have stuff to buy?

Yea, just a bit. I came to buy some necessities.

Horikita talked while examining shampoo that she took from the shelf.

Dormitory life starts from today, you need much more than just a bit Girls also need various products.

She quickly put the shampoo and other daily necessities into her basket. I thought she would go for good quality items, but she only went for the cheapest one available.

I thought girls paid more attention to what kind of shampoo they used.

That depends on the type person, no? The type of person who who doesnt know where they should be spending their money.

She sent me a cold gaze that said, Could you not look at other peoples stuff without permission?

Also, I didnt expect you to stay in the classroom for self-introductions. You dont look like the type of person to be in that group of classmates.

Im trying to be in that group quietly precisely because I try to avoid trouble. Why didnt you participate in the self-introductions? Its only a short greeting. You could get along with the others and get the chance to make friends.

Also, a lot of the students exchanged contact address with each other.

If Horikita had participated, she probably wouldve been popular in the class. What a waste.

There are a lot of reasons I could give you, but should I give a simple explanation? Even if I introduced myself, its not guaranteed that I would get along with everyone. Rather, it wouldve probably created problems instead. If I dont do the introduction, none of these problems occur. Right?

But theres still a high probability that you would get along with everyone

Whered you get that probability from? I say that, but we would endless argue over it if we tried to debate that, so lets just say that the probability is high. So, did you get along with anyone?

Uu

She looked at me while talking.

I see. Surprisingly, shes right.

Actually, I was unable to exchange contacts with anybody.

It couldnt be used as evidence to prove that there was a high probability of getting along if she did introduce herself. I averted my gaze at Horikitas words.

In other words, you have no proof that self-introductions make finding friends easy.

Horikita continued.

To begin with, I never intended to make friends. So, theres no need for me to introduce myself, and no need for me to listen to anyone elses introduction. Are you convinced now?

She did reject me the first time I tried to introduce myself

It mightve been a miracle to have gotten her name in the first place.

When I asked if I shouldnt have introduce myself, she shook her head though.

People have various different ways of thinking; its impossible to deny that.

Horikita is a much more isolated, no, aloof, type of person than I thought.

We didnt even look at each other as we wandered about in the convenience store.

Even though her personality is a bit uptight, it didnt feel uncomfortable walking together.

Wow~. They even have all the different kinds of cup noodles, this schools really convenient~

In front of the instant food section, two boys were being noisy. After throwing a bunch of cup noodles into their basket, the two of them went to the register. They also had lots of snacks and drinks that filled up the whole basket. Since there are a lot of points that may be left over, its only natural that they try to spend it somehow.

Cup noodles so they had that kind of section too, huh.

Learning this kind of stuff was one of my goals in going to the convenience store.

So boys really do like this kind of stuff? I dont think its really good for the body though.

Eh, I was just considering if I should buy it.

I picked up a cup noodles bowl and looked at the price.

It said it was 156 yen, but I wasnt sure whether that was high or low for a bowl of cup noodles.

Even though the school calls it points, the prices are all written in yen.

Hey, what do you think of these prices? Do they look cheap or expensive?

Hmm I cant really tell, but did you find something with a strange price?

No, thats not what I meant. I just wanted to ask.

The prices on the goods in the store seemed to be about right.

Also, it really does seem like 1 point is equal to 1 yen.

Given that the average high school students allowance is about 5,000 yen, our monthly allowance is 20 times bigger.

Sensing my suspicious behavior, Horikita looked at me strangely.

I took the closest bowl of cup noodles to throw off her suspicions.

Wow, this is really big. Its a G cup!

It looks like it stands for giga cup, but for some reason it makes me feel full just looking at it.

On an unrelated note, Horikitas breasts arent small, but arent large either. They are just the perfect size.

Ayanokouji-kun. Did you just think of something inappropriate?

No, of course not.

You were acting strangely though

With just a glance, she was able to tell that I was thinking of strange things. Shes sharp.

I was thinking about what I should buy. Which one looks better?

If its just that, then its fine. You should stop buying those unhealthy foods. The school has a lot of better food options, so dont make a habit out it.

As she said, theres no need to stick to instant fast food.

However, I had an irrepressible urge to buy a few more, so I took a regular sized instant noodle bowl (it said FOO Yakisoba on it) and put it in my basket.

Horikita drew her attention away from the food section and started to look at the necessities section of the store.

Now I could finally score some points with Horikita by telling some witty jokes.

Wow, this razor has five blades! Seems like it would shave super cleanly. (T/N not sure what the joke is here, probably some pun I dont understand)

The hell, what would I shave with that?

I held the razor blade, feeling proud of my joke, but the reaction was different than I expected. I thought she would smile, but she was looking at me like I was disgusting.

You know, theres nothing to shave on my chin or even under my armpits.

That hurt my heart. I guess my joke doesnt work on females.

Im envious of your courage to say that to someone you randomly met.

Youve also been saying shit to someone you just met too.

Really? I was only saying the facts. Unlike you.

She returned my words calmly and shut me up. Granted, I was saying some stupid stuff. The smooth Horikita, though, showed no signs of saying crude things.

Horikita once again chose the cheapest facial cleanser. I think girls should pay more attention to themselves.

I think this one looks better, doesnt it?

I grabbed a facial cleanser that was a bit more expensive and looked creamier.

Not necessary.

I was refused.

No, but

I already said I didnt need it, didnt I?

Yea

I gently returned the cleanser back on the shelf as she glared at me.

I thought I could make conversation without getting her mad, but I failed.

Youre not very good at socializing. You suck at coming up with things to talk about.

Even coming from you I guess its pretty true.

Of course. I have a pretty good eye for people. Normally, I wouldnt want to hear you speak twice, but I will put in the painful effort to listen to you.

For some reason I tried to make friends with her, but my expectations were completely off.

With that, our conversation grinded to a halt. As two girls entered the store and started shopping, I realized something new.

Horikitas really cute.

Hey. What are these for?

As I looked for things to talk about, I saw something unusual.

In the corner of the convenience store, I saw individual portions of food and supplies.

At first glance, they looked the same as everything else, but with one major difference.

Free ?

Also feeling interested, Horikita picked up one of the items.

Daily necessities such as toothbrushes and bandages were put in a bin labeled free of charge. The bin also had the words, 3 items per month written on it, and it was obvious that these were different from the other goods.

I wonder if this is emergency relief for those who have used up all their points. What a surprisingly lenient school.

I wonder if theyre only thorough with these kind of services, though.

Hey, just wait a bit! Im looking for it now!

Interrupting the peaceful background music was a loud voice from the middle of the store.

Hurry up! Everyones waiting!

Oh, really!? Tell them to complain directly to me!

It sounded like there was trouble.. Two boys were glaring at each other as they started to quarrel. The one with a disgruntled face was the all too familiar red hair guy. He was clutching cup noodles in one of his hands.

Whats happening here?

Oh? Whore you?

I meant to talk amicably, but red hair mistook me for another enemy and shot me a glare.

Im Ayanokouji from the same class. I spoke up because I thought there was trouble here.

After explaining, red hair lowered his voice after understanding the situation.

Oh I remember you. I forgot my student card. Forgot that that thing is practically money from now on.

After seeing his empty hands, he started to head for the dorms. He probably forgot it there.

To be honest, it didnt fully sink in yet that the cards were needed for every payment.

If its fine with you, I can pay for it now. Itd be troublesome to go back to get itI dont mind if you use my points.

Thats true. Its annoying. Good thing youre here, thanks.

The distance to the dorm isnt a big deal. But by the time he wouldve gotten back, the line would probably get long since itd be lunch time.

Im Sudou. I owe you one.

Nice to meet you, Sudou.

I took the cup noodles from Sudou then walked over to the hot water dispenser. Horikita was amazed after seeing that short exchange.

Youre a pushover even from the first meeting. Are you going to be his obedient servant? Or is this how youre trying to make friends?

Rather than making friends, I was just trying to help. Nothing else.

You dont seem to be scared at his appearance either.

Scared? Why would I be scared? Because he looks like a delinquent?

A normal person would probably stay away from that kind of person.

Nah, he doesnt even look like a bad person anyway. Also, you dont look scared either.

Only people without any method of protecting themselves stay away from those types. If he seemed violent, Id repel him away from me. Thats why Im not really afraid.

Whenever Horikita says something, its always something unusual. First of all, when she says repel, what does she mean? Is she carrying around some kind of anti-molester spray?

Lets finish shopping. Itd bother other students if we loitered around too long.

We finished up our shopping. After presenting the student ID card to the machine, the transaction was quickly completed. It was even faster because there was no small change involved.

Its really usable as money

The receipt showed the prices of each good and the leftover amount of points. The payment went off without a hitch. While waiting for Horikita, I put hot water into the cup noodles. I thought itd be more difficult to open the lid and pour in the hot water, but it was surprisingly easy. (T/N is this guy an idiot?)

At any rate, this is a really weird school.

What kind of merit does each individual student have that warrants that big of an allowance?

Since my grade has about 160 people in it, by simple calculation, the high school should have about 480 people total. Even in a month thats already 48 million yen. In an year, 560 million.

Even if its backed by the country, it still seems like overkill.

I wonder what benefit it would bring to the school. 100,000 yen is a lot to give someone.

Well There seem to be way too many facilities for the number of students, and it doesnt seem necessary to give the students that much money. The students may neglect their studies because they have so much money.

Im not sure if this is our reward for passing the test.

By talking about money, the students might be motivated to work harder.

But, without any conditions attached, 100,000 yen was handed out to everyone.

Its not something I can really tell you to do, but its probably better to save your money. Bad habits are difficult to fix. Once humans get used to a comfortable life, its hard to let it go. The mental shock would certainly be pretty big.

Ill take that to heart.

I never intended to throw away my money on random expenses originally, but she made a valid point.

After finishing the transaction, Sudou was waiting in front of the convenience store.

Seeing me come out, Sudou waved his hand at me. When I also waved to return his feeling, I felt a bit embarrassed yet happy at the same time.

Are you actually trying to eat here?

Of course I am. Its common sense, where else would I eat?

When Sudou answered like that, I was surprised and Horikita let out an exasperated sigh.

Im going to go home. It feels like my dignity is slowly degrading away here.

What dignity are you talking about? Youre just a normal high school student. Or are you some kind of ojousama?

Even though Sudou snapped at Horikita, she didnt even bat an eye.

Feeling irritated, Sudou put down his cup noodles and stood up.

Ah? Listen to people when they speak. Hey!

Whats up with him? Suddenly getting angry.

Horikita continued to ignore Sudou and talked to me.

Having being pushed over the edge, Sudou shouted in anger.

Come over here! Ill beat you up!

Ill admit Horikitas attitude was bad. But your behavior isnt very good either.

Sudous patience seems to have run out.

So? Her attitudes way too cheeky for a woman!

For a woman? That kind of thinking is outdated. Dont be friends with someone like him.

With that, Horikita turned around, ignoring Sudou to the very end.

Hey wait! Damn woman!

Calm down.

I held back Sudou who was trying to reach for Horikita.

Without even looking back, Horikita headed back for the dorms.

What kind of person acts like that? Dammit!

There are many different types of people, you know.

Hmph. I hate that kind of person.

He was watching me cautiously. Sudou grabbed the cup noodles, tore off the cover and started eating.

A little while ago, he also fought at the registerit seems like he has a low boiling point for his anger.

Hey, are you a first year? Thats our spot.

As I watched Sudou slurp up his noodles, a group of three boys walked out of the convenience store carrying similar bowls.

Who are you guys? Were using this spot right now. Youre blocking the way. Fuck off.

Didnt you hear him? Scram. Some cheeky first year brat.

The three laughed at Sudou. Sudou stood up and threw his cup noodles on the ground. Soup and noodles splattered onto the ground.

The first years trying to fight, ha what!?

Thats not it. Sudou has a low tolerance for anger. Hes the type of person to try to intimidate the other party.

These second years are saying some bullshit things. Were already sitting here.

The second year senpais put down their stuff right there too. And then they began to laugh.

Yup, were here too. So scram, this is our spot.

You guys have some nerve, you shits.

Sudou didnt falter from the difference in numbers. Looks like a fistfight will start anytime soon now. I, of course, didnt count myself in those numbers.

Wow so scary. What class are you guys in. Oh wait, never mind. Let me guess youre in class D right?

So what!?

After Sudou said that, all the upperclassmen looked at each other, and laughed at the same time.

Did you hear? Hes in the D class! It was really obvious!

Oh? What do you mean by that, huh?

As Sudou was getting heated, the boys took a step back.

Because you guys are so pitiful Ill let you stay there for today. Lets go.

You guys running away!?

The dogs barking! Anyway, you guys will face hell soon enough anyway.

Face hell?

They clearly looked calm and composed. I wonder what they meant by face hell.

I thought that this school was for those fancy obocchans or ojousamas, but there are quite a few people like Sudou or that group of three earlier.

Dammit, if it were girls or nice second-years it wouldve been fine, but we got that stupid bunch.

Sudou shoved his hands in his pockets and headed back without even cleaning up the noodles.

I looked at the outside of the convenience store. Two surveillance cameras had been placed there.

Therell probably be problems later, huh.

Reluctantly, I reached down and starting cleaning up the mess.

As soon as the second-years knew Sudou was class D, their opinions changed instantly.

Although I felt anxious about it, there was no way for me to understand why.