The New Reality

Hikigaya's Route to Senior High Is Not Normal, As I Expected

"People, who can't throw something important away, can never hope to change anything." — Armin Arlert (Shingeki no Kyojin / Attack on Titan)"

…

Hachiman's POV

…

The new reality was hitting everyone in Class 1-D hard. A lot harder than anyone expected, especially since someone in their class seemed to have known and just accepted it to happen.

As soon as Kei mentioned that it seemed that many in the class had already made their irrational opinions.

Sure, Sudou had mentioned it before, but his actions and words were overshadowed by Hachiman's retort to the camera recording Sudou's brief strike onto Hachiman.

But Kei, who had a large influence on the girls of the class, speaking on this, made the girls rally around her, as they all began to shout at Hachiman the same seniment Kei had stated just now.

Hachiman hated that.  "Girls. Rallying around someone once again, using sheer numbers to intimidate me… Honestly, I preferred Sudou trying to sock a punch into my liver than this."

"And also, you are thinking just one person will be able to make a change is stupid. Unless one rules with authority and an iron fist, not one person can change and entire group of people." Hachiman explained outright.

Regardless, Kei had quite an impact on the girls of the class. She was after all dating the most popular boy in the eyes of the girls.

Therefore, she had a lot of influence.

So regardless of what was going on, Hachiman knew it was somewhat pointless. Simply put he was one person over someone influential in the class.

All the while this occurred, Hachiman looked towards Sae, who was in the meantime taking everything in, clearly having a bit of some twisted sense of glee.

Suzune girl seemed to be quietly writing something down, as if trying to calculate everything being told.

"Regardless of questions and confusions, I'm sure everyone remembers the rules of elementary school, how you are not supposed to be late or talk in class? Was this not taught throughout your previous school years?" Sae asked, somewhat demeaning the entire class of their poor performance.

The entire class continued to listen as Sae continued. "I'm sure that nine years ago you learned everything about the rules in class. You mean to tell me you don't nor cannot understand this because I haven't mentioned anything about it?" Sae asked, "If you think the rules of a school only apply when we say, could you say the rules of a road are only cemented when a police officer comes and punishes you?" Sae gave an example of this.

Nobody could really refute what she said, bad behaviour didn't pay.

Hachiman sighed, "We wouldn't receive the private points for free…"

"Exactly. No string attached." Sae cemented that argument. "This school is established by the Japanese government for the expresses purposes of training gifted people?"

Kouenji chuckled, "Of course not. We blew our private points as a bad behaviour, and we will suffer by not receiving any."

Yousuke looked deflated, as Hachiman looked on. Kei looked at the saddened look on Yousuke before she turned back to Hachiman, her stare at Hachiman saying it all.

This was a sentiment shared by most of the girls in his class. Clearly, they held some hatred for Hachiman, blaming him for their apparent situation.

Kei was once again the won to stand up and blame Hachiman.

"It's all your fault!" Kei exclaimed, directing it right at Hachiman, who seemed unbothered.

"Excuse me? You are blaming me for your attitude and behaviour which contributed to the entire class losing the ability to receive private points per month?" Hachiman asked Kei, clearly not willing to entertain this in the meantime.

All the while this occurred, Hachiman eyed Kei with a clear disappointed look, whilst also glaring at Kei clearly not admitting to fault whatsoever.

Because it wasn't.

Hachiman could tell that Kei clearly might have done something to contribute, and thus wants to contribute and place the blame onto Hachiman.

He knew this. The worst part was that it likely were to work due to Kei's own significance in the class.

Hachiman then turned to Kei, not caring about giving her any space. "Don't act like you or anyone in this class has done anything wrong. All those poor examples of behaviours have been your own doing and your own fault. And instead of acknowledging your own faults and defects, you decided to place the blame on someone else. Instead of accepting humility, you want to maintain your influence and image, acting like the top and tough individual, by placing down others."

Kei looked surprised as Hachiman seemed to be grilling her without any sense of hesitation. Her eyes widened as she was being attacked. This eventually sparked some of the girls to get involved.

A girl with upper-back length brown hair with bangs got up, and poked her finger towards Hachiman, "Are you also contributed likely! Don't act like you also weren't causing problems and behaving badly like the rest of us. The difference is that you knew of the consequences, none of us did!" If the girl with the blond ponytail was named Kei Karuizawa, the bangs girl was named Maya Sato.

Hachiman rolled his eyes, "Actually, you did. You all just covered it with the façade of vacation and freedom. You all thought you could be free and rowdy. And you really think I made any problems?"

That was when another girl stood up. This one had neck-length blue hair with a hair clip in the middle. This girl, from what Hachiman remembered was named Shinohara Satsuki.

"And yet the commotion you got involved with regarding Sudou?" Shinohara commented. It was clear to Hachiman that they were all sticking up for her friend, who was especially feeling attacked by Hachiman.

But he didn't yield. "Geez, I wonder who is more at fault for this. The person who stuck to themselves, and chose to work on his own, and likely did better on the mock test than the three people antagonizing them. Or the very same three people who likely were on their phones making noises in class, spending their private points on unimportant stuff in the grand scheme of things."

This seemed to piss off the three girls he was arguing with.

But it wasn't just the girls who clearly were mad at Hachiman. Ike and Yamauchi seemed mad, because in their mind, if Hachiman had warned them of the consequences, they would be able to buy more things.

The other boys did not seem to hold a high opinion of Hachiman either. Some of the boys including Akito, Ken, Hideo, and Teruhiko all seemed a bit upset Hachiman hadn't confided in any of them.

Alas, it wasn't as bad as Ike, Yamauchi, Satsuki, Maya, and Kei.

Regardless, Hachiman could tell the five of them all seemed pissed at him, intent on blaming him for all their problems.

"Whatever, if they want to unite to place me as an enemy, then so be it." Hachiman concluded.

Just as Ike was about to likely make a witty comment at Hachiman, Chabashira decided to intervene right now to end the strife that was already occurring.

"Regardless, we've spent too much time speaking and making arguments. Regardless of the gist everything has been revealed, let's switch to the main topic at hand." Chabashira explained, pulling out the poster in her hand, clipping them with magnets to show the students.

Hachiman who had gone back to his seat without Chabashira's opinion relaxed when she didn't call for him to come back up.

Instead, he could feel the angered stares of some in the class, as he knew he had likely ruined the chance to make connections with them.

"Oh well, it wasn't like I was popular or well known before… Guess I'll be infamous then." Hachiman thought to himself.

"Are these the results for each class?" The black girl, Suzune spoke after a bit, looking at the poster alongside the rest of the class, their attention on Hachiman placed away for what Chabashira was showing them now.

Classes A to Class D were listed. The row besides them showed a number that went to a maximum of four digits.

From the top, was Class A, with a total of 940 points. Class B, by contrast, has 650 points, and Class C has 490 points.

But Class D…

Had zero points.

None.

It was like Hachiman had predicted.

His worse case prediction was right. The worst-case scenario based on these classes' merits was complete and a flat zero.

And somehow, Class D had achieved that.

Zero points.

Hachiman hummed as he got the answer he had long been looking for: How in the world did the school afford to give millions of yen to students within a month? That was their answer, they didn't.

Every class had lost points and yen.

What this told Hachiman was that behaving good did not redeem yourself or give a higher number of points.

Bad behaviour lowered the points for the class but behaving good prevented that.

Basically, they wouldn't be able to restore it back to 1000 points.

"Something is odd…" Someone mumbled.

Sae explained to the class. "You've all been doing whatever you pleased this past month. The school has no intention of preventing you from doing what you want. Your actions of being late or talking during class only affect the points you receive. The same goes for how you use your points. How you choose to spend it is entirely y pro you. We have not put any restrictions on point usage."

"But that isn't fair, though! We can't enjoy our student lives like this!" Ike proclaimed in wallow, as Yamauchi wailed as he had clearly used up all his points.

Sae clearly looked annoyed all the while Hachiman lamented the hypocrisy Ike and Yamauchi had shown. They continued to wail and cry, even blaming himself in their minds just to make them feel justified in their minds.

"Why is there such a difference in our point values…" Yousuke mumbled, clearly seeing that perhaps the numbers were too even and tidy.

Hachiman sighed, clearly knowing the answer. Sae noticed this, "Hikigaya what do you think? Why is there such a difference between classes?" Sae once again looked at Hachiman clearly wanting him to explain.

"Wait, aren't classes just normally distributed randomly?" Someone asked clearly confused at the entire ordeal.

Hachiman looked on before sighing once again. "It's simple. Our entrance exams showed our defects and excellence, which determined which class we are placed in. Class A is the class for excellence. The smartest students in the entrance exam go to Class A. However, those who perform the worst are placed in Class D, the worst of the worst in this school. In essence, we are the defects of the school."

This seemed to cause, once again, another uproar.

The credit that everyone was basically the worst performers in the entire school weighed heavily on them. Some began to question why they were even placed then if they had capabilities elsewhere.

Hachiman knew this. After all he spotted how those in Class D were called defective by those in a higher class.

"It would make sense, in the higher years, the higher classes, even Class C would make fun of those in Class D for being defective and beneath them. Now it makes sense. It's typical for humans to not care or make fun of those who are below them." Hachiman reflected.

Sudou seemed to be having a recollection, remembering the time he was bullied and taunted for being a Class D student at the convenient store.

And furthermore, many of the students now began to worry about the stigma they would receive, they would be seen as defective and stupid.

For some people like Kei, it was horror, and Hachiman sneered at her. "So much for protecting yourself." He chuckled silently, causing Kei to glare at him. Maya and Satsuki were not liking this, and even another friend of Kei's, Chiaka Matsushita looked at Hachiman clearly in a negative light.

At this point, he didn't care. The truth was out, he would make it hit them all as hard as possible for them to accept the reality.

"Is there any way we can gain points?!" One of the students asked, clearly panicking. Hachiman eyed Sae.

"What do you think, anybody?" Sae asked, grinning as she stared at Hachiman who sighed and answered.

"I'm assuming any assessment that tests our merits, like the mock test we had a week ago?" Hachiman asked.

Sae nodded, "Correct. The mock test was a test of your merits. If you perform well on an assessment, you can gain some of your private points back. But this also shows that performing poorly will result in a loss of merit, hence private points."

"So, these class points determine how many private points we receive monthly?" Kouenji chuckled clearly understanding it, "And these class points are determined by our merits in assignments or assessments."

"Exactly." Chabashira nodded. "But there is another crucial detail regarding class points and your class."

Hachiman knew this. He remembered the conversation he had with Manabu about shuffling class ranks. "Does it have something to do with class ranks? Meaning depending on these class points, we can rise and fall down classes?"

Chabashira knew Hachiman was on the right track and just referred to him. "It is what Kouenji and Hikigaya have said. Class points determined both your class rank compared to the other class, and the number of private points you get monthly."

"Because you got 0 class points, you get no private points monthly, and you are at the bottom of the class rank. The defective rank." Chabashira emphasized to the class, "However, if you can surprass and get more than 490 class points, assuming Class C's class points remain the same, you can become Class C, and those originally in Class C will fall to Class D."

I gave a small glimpse of hope to that of everyone in Sae's class. They had a chance to rise the ranks. Hachiman saw that, but he didn't really care. He had his own way of making private points, and even then, he had plans if necessary. Backup plans.

He called it Hachiman's three sacred emergency plans if he had to use it for dire circumstances, one strictly benefiting the class, a mix and risk, and one that only benefitted Hachiman himself.

But he wouldn't nor have the capabilities to use it now. For that, he had to store a lot of private points. And he means in the millions.

But this entire system began to sound like a company performance review. Hachiman was mostly right on everything, except the concept of class points. Sure, he had drawn the conclusion that the class would be impacted by their students' behaviour, but not a whole new different point system.

He must think outside the box for this school.

"Alas, there is one more thing I must share with the class." Sae explained seriously, as she pulled up another list and sheet of paper on the board.

Hachiman could see it was the scores everyone in the class received for their mock test.

"Judging by these scores, I can see there are a lot of idiots in this class. Come on you all, what were you taught before?" Sae sneered at her class.

There were a few high scores, but mostly everyone scored below and around sixty. The average was sixty-five.

And that was not counting some people who fell below a red line Sae had drawn.

"If this was an actual test, a decent amount of you would have to drop out." Sae commented, causing some faces to pale.

"D-Drop out…?" Yamauchi panicked, as Ike exclaimed, "W-What?!" Others who failed also expressed their worry.

Thirty-one points and below was a failing grade, enough to establish an expulsion for any student. Some within the class continued to think this was a joke, but Sae shook her head.

"Frankly, I'm also at a loss. However, these are the school rules, and you should prepare for the worst." Sae explained, as the reality hit everyone.

This was not a vacation; this was the fight of their lives.

"The final topic I want to talk about is the prospect of how the school boasts the highest rate of advancement in the whole country." Sae started as everyone continued listening as if their hopes weren't already being crushed. "Nothing comes easy in this world; I hope you know that. You cannot be mediocre or worse than that. You must be the best of the best, you hear me?" Sae emphasized her wording here, confusing some.

"So, we have to, at a minimum, surpass Class C?" Yousuke asked.

Sae shook her head, "No, you must overtake Class A. Only those ranked in Class A will achieve such a luxury, the others, will only be comparable to other high schools at the best-case scenario, and at a worse case scenario, let's just say you will be lucky if you can sustain yourself with the options you will have in the future." Sae oddly seemed a bit upset with that last part, clearly confusing Hachiman at the softer tone she had.

However, with the urgency of the situation, nobody really paid attention.

All they cared about was that they could get expelled, and that only reaching Class A was their chance to get a good life. That was, if they could learn they were seen as scum in school.

Of course, this caused a commotion, with students mainly trying to point out their strong points, justifying and questioning the school's system of why they were placed down in Class D.

Some of the smartest students questioned their nature within the school.

But Hachiman didn't. He knew he was a problem for society. Not that he cared, but more that he accepted me was different.

That was it.

Hachiman watched on, as Chabashira finished her essay on the true meaning of everything in the school system.

Hachiman reflected, realizing that he was mostly right, and even the stuff he was vague with had some merit and backing.

Besides the concept of class points, he knew not all these points were given for free. He simply understood that the world wasn't so nice and free. Everything came at a price.

And he questioned when it seemed to be.

That was it. He wasn't smart or anything, just critical with the facts until he got every hole sealed possible.

In the end, however, Hachiman walked out of that class being hated and see negatively, as some still saw him as a traitor for not informing them of the consequences of their actions.

"Yes, it's not my fault they want to be idiots." Hachiman mumbled, as Kei, Maya, and Satsuki all looked at Hachiman with hatred, clearly using him as a scapegoat.

And he was perfectly fine with that. He didn't care. If anything, if it led them to be stronger and better, then he encouraged it.

"You bastard! Why did you let this class fall so much?! It's all your fault!" Kei yelled at Hachiman, deciding to turn the tides to blame one person, to save face for her own issues regarding her contribution towards their descent to zero points.

Hachiman looked at Kei, astounded by how far she was willing to take it.

But through it all did he remember the betrayed and angered looks of those in Junior High, yelling the same thing.

"I guess some things never change…" Hachiman mumbled, as the images of two girls, one, his sister, and the other, someone he cared deeply for romantically, engulfed his mind, as guilt began to enshroud him.

"It is my fault… they knew it… But this girl…" Hachiman stared at Kei, "This girl knows shit."

…

Well, quite the commotion. I will explain in the next chapter each character's opinion on Hachiman, to give an idea since this marks the kind of notice Hachiman is receiving. I'll explain everything, but simply put he's on a few minds but not unanimously known.

Question of the day, which of the girls do you think would hate Hachiman the most? Personally, I'd say Satsuki Shinohara, because she is hostile to strangers and loyal to her friend, aka Kei.

Mock Test Scores: Average was a 70, five higher than a 65, but Chabashira had to curve it by 5.

Name / English / Modern Grammar / Chemistry / Civis / Mathematics / Total out of 100

Airi Sakura: 12 + 14 + 13 + 16 + 12 = 67/100

Akito Miyake: 11 + 12 + 17 + 16 + 15 = 71/100

Chiaki Matsushita: 17 + 14 + 13 + 20 + 16 = 80/100

Hachiman Hikigaya: 20 + 20 + 18 + 20 + 14 = 92/100

Haruka Hasebe: 12 + 13 + 16 + 13 + 16 = 70/100

Haruki Yamauchi: 3 + 4 + 7 + 2 + 2 = 18/100

Hideo Sotomura: 16 + 15 + 14 + 16 + 15 = 76/100

Kanji Ike: 4 + 4 + 2 + 2 + 3 = 15/100

Kayano Onodera: 16 + 18 + 12 + 14 + 15 = 75/100

Kei Karuizawa: 13 + 12 + 14 + 10 + 14 = 63/100

Ken Sudou: 0 + 1 + 5 + 4 + 4 = 14/100

Kikyou Kushida: 18 + 20 + 16 + 15 + 18 = 87/100

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji: 12 + 13 + 15 + 15 + 12 = 67/100

Kokoro Inogashira: 15 + 14 + 10 + 15 + 11 = 65/100

Kyosuke Okiya: 15 + 15 + 12 + 14 + 14 = 70/100

Maya Sato: 14 + 15 + 16 + 12 + 12 = 69/100

Mei-Yu Wan: 20 + 20 + 18 + 12 + 16 = 86/100

Nene Mori: 13 + 14 + 16 + 13 + 15 = 71/100

Rokusuke Kouenji: 19 + 19 + 18 + 20 + 20 = 96/100

Ryotaro Hondo: 14 + 15 + 13 + 7 + 13 = 62/100

Satsuki Shinohara: 12 + 14 + 14 + 11 + 14 = 65/100

Soshi Miyamoto: 18 + 17 + 12 + 17 + 16 = 80/100

Suzune Horikita: 18 + 18 + 19 + 20 + 19 = 94/100

Teruhiko Yukimura: 19 + 20 + 19 + 20 + 20 = 98/100

Wataru Ijuin = 12 + 12 + 14 + 15 + 20 = 73/100

Yousuke Hirata: 18 + 19 + 15 + 20 + 20 = 92/100