"I am Awa Subaru from Kawasaki. Please take care of me from now on."
The idol-like beautiful girl bowed halfway to the students below the podium.
The 2-D Class classroom immediately erupted in intense discussion and cheers.
Ever since the legendary transfer student "Amamiya Ren" parachuted in as first in the grade, the students in the neighboring Class D had been acting smug every day.
Every lunchtime, you could hear those guys from Class D swaggering around the school, using Kurusu Akira's name to throw their weight around—
Sakamoto Ryuji and Mishima Yuki were especially egregious, posting on the campus forum day and night, boasting about how talented and brilliant the other was. Even playing Valorant at an internet cafe after school could be fabricated into something as grand and dramatic as a rural boy awakening his heroic power overnight to go slay a dragon... They were probably just enjoying the exasperated and helpless expressions of those who were once "honor students."
Even if Kurusu Akira was handsome to the point that everyone, regardless of gender or age, would be astonished at first sight, his grades were unparalleled at the top of the entire grade, and he carried a tragic family past, perfectly fitting the popular "beautiful, strong, and tragic" persona on the internet... Does this mean that you, a group of mediocre individuals with an average score of 260+, can "bask in his glory"?
They really could.
After all, the difficulty of this entrance exam was completely off the charts, with the average score for the grade barely reaching the 250 mark.
And out of a total score of seven hundred, with the average score for the entire grade not even reaching three hundred, Kurusu Akira, as a member of the 2-D Class, only lost eleven points in total.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he single-handedly raised the average score of the entire class.
A month after the results of the entrance examination were announced, the students of Class D practically hogged the limelight for that legendary transfer student who often skipped classes and school.
Meanwhile, the other classes, besides enduring it silently during this period, could only blindly hope for a transfer student no less impressive than Kurusu Akira to descend upon their classroom... and then they got the "Ishihara Disappearance Case" in Class A.
Now there was absolutely no hope left; they continued to endure it silently, until numbness and despair set in.
The otherworldly hero who once pulled out the holy sword in an internet cafe, representing the grade in defeating the evil exam created by the "Demon Ito" with the combined strength of the entire teaching and research group, had ultimately fallen into depravity.
Not only did he neglect his studies, but he also frequently missed various lectures and activities arranged by the school.
However, when he occasionally appeared in class, he handled the instructor's almost challenging questions with ease. The even greater confidence and composure he exuded in his every move indicated that this wicked path of skipping school and classes seemed to have further boosted his academic ability.
Such instances truly caused great panic among Shujin's top students.
If it is said that "the dragon-slaying hero eventually becomes a wicked dragon."
Then, from where would they, who couldn't even touch the academic realm of "five hundred points," find a new hero to crusade against this black dragon that had already entrenched itself above Shujin?
Should they pin their hopes on the second in the grade, who lagged a full two hundred points behind Kurusu Akira and whose resolve was shattered?
Facing the "First Monthly Test" jointly organized by Shibuya and Setagaya Ward high schools in mid-May, the addition of the score difference system would undoubtedly unleash a massive catastrophe at Shujin.
The top students who once stood at the academic pinnacle of this high school were thus helpless and lost. They could only watch as the evil demon soldiers under the black dragon ran rampant on campus, yet they were powerless to take any effective measures to extinguish their arrogant flames.
At the moment the darkest April of Shujin's second year was about to end, the appearance of Awa Subaru, this transfer student, shone like a beam of light, bringing warm hope upon everyone.
Also a transfer student, also with looks no less impressive than an idol...
Great, a new hero! We are saved!
The moment Awa Subaru walked into the classroom and introduced herself, everyone looked at her with hope, and also at the empty seat by the window in the second to last row, which had been unused for a long time.
In an atmosphere as lively as a queen's coronation, Awa Subaru, with all eyes on her, slowly walked towards the long-vacant throne.
Outside the window, the sky was clear and azure after the storm, and a gentle warm breeze lifted the curtains, letting a ray of golden sunlight through the gap to fall on the clean desk. Suddenly, it felt as if it were a sacred sword, only waiting for this girl, reborn from another world, to give a command, and it would loosen its millennium-long seal on its own, releasing boundless sharpness to follow her will and slay the evil dragon lurking deep within this school.
Thus, under everyone's watchful eyes, Awa Subaru pulled out the chair and sat down as serenely and gracefully as a princess of a great nation... And then, the bell rang for class, and as the boring and tedious content of the first civic class of the morning proceeded, facing a textbook with no notes and the teacher's long, undulating speech that was almost like chanting scriptures, she only lasted less than ten minutes before involuntarily collapsing onto her desk and falling into a remarkably peaceful sleep.
The shape of a light saber intersected and overlapped on her hair and forehead, seeming to completely seal her ability to think. No matter how the teacher at the podium cast scrutinizing glances, she showed no signs of waking up.
The top students of 2-C Class felt their hearts sink instantly upon seeing this scene.
How could this be?
Awa, the hero, is your academic ability not enough to break through the "boring" seal of this civics class?
You must know, that infamous "Black Dragon of Shujin," before completely falling into depravity, also shone brightly in the classrooms of various subjects!
The rustling chalk dust, the writing that moved across the blackboard like a sword or knife, the confident and generous explanations—all of it was the "Proof of the Hero" that no one ever dared to forget!
But at this moment, the top students couldn't help but hope—perhaps, Awa, the hero, was just too tired from staying up late cultivating? Once she awakens, she will surely astonish everyone!
Then, Awa Subaru simply slept through most of the class.
When there were ten minutes left before the bell rang.
The civics teacher, who had been observing her from the podium for a long time, finally lost her patience.
"Over here, new student Awa, please wake up." A piece of chalk flew out of nowhere and hit Awa Subaru on the head.
The girl woke up as if from a deep dream, opening her eyes groggily.
She looked at the broken piece of chalk that rolled off her head and inwardly cried out, "Oh no."
Awa Subaru was accustomed to the overly relaxed basic cultural courses at her art school, and suddenly being thrown into this low-pressure classroom, which felt like being surrounded by Sanskrit chants 360 degrees without dead angles, coupled with staying up until 2 AM playing games last night, she simply couldn't withstand the double fatigue of both mind and body that surged upon her this early morning, and just collapsed into sleep.
With a blink of an eye, she looked at the clock on the classroom wall, and it was a close call that a different teacher was about to take over the podium.
At this moment, the old woman on the podium showed a very serious expression.
"Awa, since you're awake, please answer this question... From which knowledge point in the textbook does the freedom of speech, publication, assembly, association, procession, and demonstration originate?"
Awa Subaru immediately broke out in a cold sweat, nervously and awkwardly fumbling through the clean textbook in front of her, trying to find a solution to her predicament from the fluttering pages.
Is this an elite high school?
What a terrifying sense of pressure.
On the clock above the classroom, the hands fell second by second.
The gazes in the class directed towards her gradually took on a hint of tragic disappointment and pity.
Awa Subaru was full of embarrassment, and just as she was about to give what she thought was the correct answer with trepidation.
She saw the old woman on the podium wave her hand, indicating that she didn't need her answer.
Awa Subaru secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Little did she know, the civics teacher in the classroom had completely put away her vigilance and worry, which had been heightened because of Kurusu Akira, and her tone was no longer as serious, "Awa, the question just now came from the introduction section on page 53 of the textbook. Now, please listen carefully in class, and remember to get more rest at night in the future, don't sleep in class anymore."
The old teacher, over fifty years old, had a somewhat complex mood.
She regretted that there wasn't a second Amamiya Ren at Shujin, but also rejoiced that there wouldn't be a second Amamiya Ren in her class.
A monster-level student who was so defiant that he completely disregarded your classroom rules was already a headache to deal with, and one was enough.
She clearly remembered that once, when she accidentally mixed up a knowledge point that was supposed to be taught next semester, Kurusu Akira, who came up to answer the question, immediately corrected her loudly in front of the entire class, pinpointing the exact page number, paragraph, and even the precise word in the horizontal and vertical columns—
This was a unique aspect of that transfer student's school life.
He needed to use such details in his school life to show the subject teachers and the school administration that "although he enjoys privileges, his academic ability has not diminished at all, and has even improved."
Thanks to this, every subject teacher in the 2-D Class had to be on high alert and diligently prepare their blackboard notes whenever he was present in class.
Otherwise, they would risk losing face in front of the students.
As expected, not every transfer student who received special treatment from the school was an absolute monster like Kurusu Akira.
The civics teacher, who knew a little of the inside story, finally felt some relief.
However, the disappointment in the hearts of the top students beneath the podium reached its peak.
So that's how it is, "Demon General Sakamoto" and "Demon General Mishima" certainly didn't lie.
Kurusu Akira was the only hero reincarnated from another world.
And the hero who once crushed "Demon Ito's" lifelong efforts has now become the most terrifying evil dragon in this school, constantly using his terrifying talent and gifts to strike at the pride and self-confidence of all students who consider themselves "excellent."
What, you're saying you want to hold a "revenge study session," conduct targeted special training every day, and try to overtake Kurusu Akira in the upcoming monthly exam?
In response, the second in the grade, who was trailing by a full two hundred points, could lean back in her chair with a bleak and disheartened smile, then count on her fingers as if recounting treasured possessions:
You're right, but this is Kurusu Akira, scoring full marks in all subjects except for a super-model test in 68 world history. He has a super memory, countless ways to solve problems, and by his second year of high school, his academic ability is already on par with top universities. He sleeps and plays on his phone in class, but he remembers every single detail of the class content without missing a beat. He can even do difficult math problems without scratch paper, just with a dozen seconds of mental calculation. Then, after turning in his paper faster than copying answers, he'll deliberately make a loud noise at the front of the classroom to remind the flustered test-takers to pay attention to the remaining time, and finally leave the exam room satisfied...
When the dismissal bell rang, a figure appeared at the door of Class 2-C that was enough to make all students ranked in the top 20 of the grade stand on end.
The evil hero who conquered "Devil Ito" and the Number Crunchers, the great general who commanded "Demon General" Mishima and Sakamoto, holding dozens of elite soldiers from Class D, constantly skipping classes, playing on his phone, and reading comics in class, spreading unhealthy trends—the "Black Dragon of Shujin Empire"—
Kurusu Akira (Amamiya Ren)!
"What... what are you doing here?!" The "Second in the Grade," wearing thick-lensed glasses, sitting in the first row of the classroom, immediately stood up and asked the young man in front of her with a show of bravado.
Kurusu Akira's gaze actually bypassed her and landed on the second to last row by the window.
"Awa, Ito-sensei wants you to come to the office."
Awa Subaru was still replaying the embarrassment she had experienced in class just now when she suddenly felt the surrounding atmosphere become tense. She quickly got up, walked out of her seat, and then left the Class C classroom with Kurusu Akira.
The "Second in the Grade," who had been ignored the entire time, stood rooted to the spot for a while before sitting back down dejectedly.
She hadn't even been regarded as a "challenger" by him.
----------------
After walking some distance out of the classroom with Kurusu Akira, Awa Subaru noticed that fewer and fewer students were walking around...
This was the skywalk leading to the club building, where a petite, cute girl was in the center of the skywalk, leaning on the railing and looking out at the sunny playground in the distance.
"This doesn't seem to be the way to the faculty office, does it?" Awa Subaru suddenly felt a little nervous.
"Of course not," Kurusu Akira said frankly. "I'm taking you to the Phantom Thieves' secret base."
Awa Subaru's eyes widened instantly, and images of Batman's "Batcave," Iron Man's seaside villa, and the Incredibles' underground garage flashed through her mind one by one...
Until Kurusu Akira pushed open a metal door and led her into the empty music classroom.
Clang. The door closed instantly.
The girl who had been looking at the scenery in the skywalk had followed them in at some point, then skillfully locked the classroom door.
"Alright, this is the first official meeting of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. Everyone find a chair and sit down."
Kurusu Akira clapped his hands and said to Awa Subaru in front of him.
"I am the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. Two other members cannot be here due to special reasons, but they will communicate with us through special means."
Awa Subaru looked at Iseri Nina beside her. "You said there are four people in the Phantom Thieves now. So this is..."
"The mascot."
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