"There are... many types of monsters in this world.

Monsters who will not show themselves and who cause trouble; monsters who abduct children; monsters who devour dreams; monsters who suck blood,

and... monsters who always tell lies. Lying monsters are a real nuisance. They are much more cunning than other monsters.

They pose as humans even though they have no understanding of the human heart. They eat even though they've never experienced hunger. They study even though they have no interest in academics. They seek friendship even though they do not know how to love.

If were to encounter such a monster, I would most likely be eaten by it.

Because in truth,

I am that monster."

-L Lawliet

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Katsuragi Kohei's POV

When I opened the classroom door, practically everyone was there. Contrary to my expectations, everyone appeared to be cheerful and eager rather than afraid. Why wouldn't they be?

We'd just received 98,000 private points on our phones, after all. We were only 2,000 points short of our original target.

Despite the fact that I disagree with Sakayanagi's ideology and leadership style, I must applaud her brains and logical reasoning abilities. We in class A could have received fewer points if it wasn't for her.

We had all worked out some of the truths about the S-system. I knew this institution was different compared to any other ordinary school, but I was still stunned when I discovered what kind of structure and system that this school had in place for its students.

"My oh my, you seem to be very deep in thought Katsuragi-Kun~" A feminine voice called out to me, jolting me awake from my reverie.

The person who had just approached me was none other than Sakayanagi Arisu. A petite teenage girl with lilac-colored hair and violet eyes. She also wears a black beret on her head with a gray ribbon connected to it and wears the standard school uniform.

She uses a cane to walk due to her health issue, and she is fairly short for her age when compared to my other classmates, but this is primarily due to her congenital heart ailment. Many students at the school think she's cute, but they're hesitant to approach her because of the power and dominion she wields.

Both of us are frequently viewed as representatives of our class. This is accurate to some extent. As a result, the student body outside of our class assumes that we get along swimmingly.

I am usually seen addressing and reporting to Sakayanagi when asking for her ideas and actions on problems concerning other classes, so it appeared that she was the genuine leader of the class from the start. The class perceives me as more of an advisor who acts as her right-hand man in all matters pertaining to our class.

Despite our strong partnership, I have a lot of disputes with her about how to operate things effectively. Our personalities are also very different, with Sakayanagi being the more playful kind and me being the more serious type. It isn't technically incorrect.

Simply put, two individuals in my class have sought to take on leadership responsibilities, and the class is evenly split into two factions. One was led by me, and the other was headed by Sakayanagi Arisu. The Sakayanagi camp favors a more aggressive and liberal leadership style, whereas I prefer a more defensive and conservative approach.

To be honest, I had no idea what Sakayanagi was trying to achieve by being confrontational. Why should we strive to attack other classes when we're already miles ahead of them? Why should we let our guards down and risk exposing ourselves to be vulnerable when we can just endeavor to maintain and protect our current position?

I'll never understand just how that brain of her works.

"Good morning to you too, Sakayanagi." I returned her greeting in a friendly manner.

Even though we are rivals, there is no reason for us to be unnecessarily unfriendly to one another when there are no class issues at hand. As of right now, We're currently only conversing as people. Not leaders.

"Today's going to be quite the special day, isn't it, Katsuragi-Kun."

"...Sure."

Ah, that's right. The 1st of May has arrived. The day when each student's private points are assigned. That is, at least, what the school would like you to believe. In reality, we will not receive the full 100,000 private points. Of course, this is contingent on each class's behavior and disposition throughout their first month at school.

With our class at the top of the hierarchy and Class D at the bottom, I wouldn't be surprised if they received the fewest amount of points compared to the other classes.

"Do you need something from me, Sakayanagi? You don't usually talk to me unless we're arguing or if it's about class matters." I asked.

"There's no need to be so cautious. I'm only here to issue a simple cautionary statement." She responded.

"Cautionary statement? What exactly does that imply? Are you perhaps threatening me?" I tried to intimidate her by glaring at her, but it was in vain; she merely laughed haughtily at my attempt to fear her.

"Fufu~ you don't have to be so hostile, Katsuragi-Kun. I'm not attempting to scare you or anything of the sort." She refuted my allegations. "I'm just dropping by to let you know about something else."

"And what is this other thing you're talking about?"

"What trying to communicate is..." She motioned for me to get a bit closer to her, which I did. "When you check the results for each class, don't get too fired up. You may be in for a pleasant surprise." She spoke in hushed tones into my ears.

A pleasant surprise? What exactly is that supposed to mean? She took a step back and gave me a smug smile. I was going to interrogate her further but it was interrupted as Mashima-Sensei entered the classroom calmly, holding a rolled-up poster in his arms. I and Sakayanagi swiftly signaled for everyone to return to their seats and act appropriately, to which they complied immediately.

"Okay, your morning homeroom class is about to begin. Do you have any queries before we begin? I'm sure you have some questions for me, so feel free to speak up."

Mashima-sensei sounded confident that we would have a question for him. Nobody, however, made any attempts to ask something from him, contrary to his expectations. In fact, the majority of my classmates appeared bored and were waiting for him to continue.

"Eh? Doesn't anyone have something to say?" Mashima-sensei inquired, clearly taken aback.

"If it's about our points, sensei, we pretty much already figured out what was going on within our first two weeks here. We have no reason to ask any inquiries at this time." On behalf of Class A, Hashimoto spoke up.

Mashima-Sensei looked genuinely amazed by his abrupt revelation. He knew we were the finest of the best, but He probably couldn't have predicted how quickly we were able to deduce about the S-system.

"O-oh... I'll just get straight to the point then." Mashima-Sensei regained his usual calm and composed demeanor.

He took a white rolled-up poster from his tube and spread it around. He used magnets to attach the poster to the blackboard. All of the formerly uninterested pupils were now looking at the poster with bated breath.

"Are these... Each class' results?" Yahiko mumbled under his breath. He was probably correct. Classes A through D were listed on the poster, along with a column of numerals up to four digits.

The poster read:

Depending on the rankings, it appeared that our hypothesis about students being classified into classes A through D based on their abilities was right. This meant that the 'Class Points' system was the final piece of the puzzle. I couldn't help but conclude that the fact that our class points were published in a format termed 'Standings' means we'll be competing against other classes. However, I couldn't see how there could ever be a fair competition if Class A had all of the excellent kids and Class D had all of the 'defectives.'

"I see how things are now. Instead of the 100,000 points we earned the first month, we received 98,000 today. To put it another way, each 'Class Point' is equivalent to 100 private points." Sakayanagi quickly deducted as she always does.

?!

Wait... Something was very odd about this poster.

"Sensei, Is it possible that the school made a mistake? Isn't class D supposed to have the least amount of class points?" It was Nishikawa who posed the question.

"No. The school made no such mistake. Every class was evaluated with careful observation. Every class was judged fairly and equally." Mashima-Sensei bluntly answered.

"T-then how the hell did Class D get that many class points?!" Yahiko enquired vehemently, sounding incredibly perplexed.

The classroom was filled with confusion and befuddlement. I too was also baffled by Class D's results. if Class D was able to save up so many class points, Were we perhaps mistaken on our assumptions about this school's hierarchical system? I mean, it would make more sense for the school to divide superior students into distinct classes rather than using a hierarchical system in order to create more competitive contention amongst classes.

Murmurs could be heard all across the classroom, but it quickly shut down, leaving just a crazy and a psychotic-like chuckle from none other than Sakayanagi herself. She appeared to be sincerely enjoying the horrible circumstance in the same way that a sadist would. Is this what she meant when she mentioned a pleasant surprise? Well, it certainly doesn't seem like one.

"What's so funny, Sakayanagi?!" Yahiko questioned, his voice agitated and irritated by Sakayanagi's irrational behavior.

"Oh, Yahiko. You poor deafening moron. You can't see what's going on, can you?" Sakayanagi posed a provocative question.

"Sakayanagi," I spoke forcefully in a commanding tone of voice. "Do you have anything to do with this, or do you not? Perhaps a member of your faction leaked information about the S-system to class D?" I interrogated her.

"I made no such orders, Katsuragi." She flatly denied my accusation.

"So, what's the matter with you? You acted as if you had prepared for all of this."

"Katsuragi, don't be such a fool." She insulted. "I've already deduced how class D was able to accumulate so many class points."

"Really? Please enlighten us as to what you believe what might the cause be."

"Isn't it painfully evident this point? Someone in class D had worked out the realities about the S-system long before we had."

"What?!" My composure finally cracked as I unintentionally slammed my palms against my desk.

"That's not possible!"

"There's no way a defective could be able to solve the mystery of the school so easily!"

"Sakayanagi, y-you're kidding right?" Even Hashimoto was bewildered by Sakayanagi's statement, as he addressed her by her name rather than calling her princess as he usually does.

"Why would I be joking at a time like this? Even better, I already know the perpetrator who was able to unravel this school's secret so quickly and lead the class to jump ahead of two classes." Sakayanagi stated boldly.

"Then tell us who it is already!" Yahiko yelled at Sakayanagi, demanding an answer.

Normally, I would have chastised him for being so irritable and combative. But I'll let it slip this time because I'm also curious about the individual Sakayanagi believes could have cracked the S-system.

Obviously, once we discovered their name, they'd be a dangerous opponent that Class A will have to take more seriously in comparison to the other adversaries we'd make along the way.

"Before I reveal who the mastermind behind Class D's success is..." She paused. "Mashima-Sensei, is there anything that you would like to add? You look like you've been waiting for us to finish for quite a while."

"Ah, thank you Sakayanagi." We quickly turned our heads and turned our attention towards Mashima-Sensei.

He began by explaining the OAA app to us all. Nagumo Miyabi, the current student council vice president, issued an app called Over All Abilities that displays each student's abilities assessment. It is based on school outcomes, and any student whose total ability score falls below a particular threshold will be penalized.

As Mashima-Sensei instructed, I touched on my own name. I was expecting to be met with basic information such as my date of birth, but that was not the case. Instead, data that I had never seen before was presented to me.

I see... Overall, I was pleased with the school's evaluations of me. Everything seemed logical, albeit some of my classmates might have doubts about my physical ability rating. Although I have a large body, I am not particularly athletic. I can hold my own in a pinch, but I'm no professional.

Some of us asked Mashima-Sensei a few questions here and there, and he answered them. He quickly exited the classroom after answering all of our inquiries and slipped the door shut behind him. Everyone gathered around Sakayanagi after that, eager for her to reveal Class D's genius.

"So... Who do you think it is princess?" Hashimoto asked the elephant in the room.

"Fufu, well to answer your question, why don't you take a look at everyone's test scores." Sakayanagi vaguely replied.

"What do our results have to do with class D's mastermind?" For the sake of everyone, I raised the question.

"Are you stupid Katsuragi?" she continued to hurl abusive words towards me. "I'm obviously not talking about Class A's test scores. I'm talking about the test scores of everyone in our grade."

"Eh? We can do that?" Kamura who was silent till now suddenly asked.

"Why would I suppose I'm telling you this if we couldn't even do so in the first place?"

This was the first time I'd heard of it. I promptly launched the OAA app and selected the menu option in the bottom right corner to view everyone's exam results throughout the school year. Instead of Sakayanagi being at the top of the rankings, I was greeted with...

"A-Ayanokouji Kiyotaka?!" Machida screamed, his face flushed with shock and surprise.

He was well-known among my classmates. In the history of Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, he was the first student to ace the entrance exams. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe him as a genius.

I was still muddled as to why he was assigned to Class D rather than Class A. Surely someone as educated and accomplished as him deserves to be at the top of the food chain, right? Or maybe, he could have poor physical characteristics, although I doubt it given the photo Hashimoto released of him and Koenji Rokusuke in the gym, which revealed some of his powerful physique.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is an enigmatic character. If he truly is the guy who solved the puzzle of the S-system before us, we must be extremely cautious of him.

"There's no way! I know he got perfect scores on the entrance exams, but that must've been luck. I refuse to believe that defective like him could get a 100 on our recent exams without cheating!" Yahiko pointed the finger at him.

"Oi! Don't just go around accusing someone of cheating when you don't even have any concrete evidence that he did!" Hashimoto stepped up to protect Ayanokouji. "Plus, if he really did cheat, wouldn't he have been disciplined or expelled by the school by now?" Hashimoto retorted with reason.

"He's right, Yahiko." I stepped between them. "Unbelievable as it may be, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka has proven that he's the most academically gifted student of our year."

"But, Sakayanagi, you're suspicious as well." I shifted my focus to her. "You promised me a pleasant surprise this morning. It's as though you're implying that you knew Class D would receive this many class points. It's as if you knew Ayanokouji Kiyotaka would figure out the school's strange point system for students."

"Why of course I did." She answered straightforwardly.

"B-but how?!" One of the students of my faction asked loudly.

"I am more aware than anyone else in this school of just how truly capable Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is. I knew just how terrifying and monstrous his brilliance and insight were. After all, I was his childhood pal." She dropped an unexpected bombshell on the class.

"EH?!" Her surprising revelation elicited shrieks of surprise from the rest of the class.

"However, Katsuragi-Kun." She narrated as she made eye contact with me. "Allow me to issue a straightforward cautionary statement. And don't take it the wrong way: i'm not trying to offend or threaten you in any way." Sakayanagi gave a faint grin as if she was looking forward to something.

"I am not so proud to declare that it is most likely that no students at this school, including you, hold a candle to Kiyotaka-Kun's intelligence. Therefore if we want to maintain our lead as Class A, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is the foe we must be most prepared to face." She said it outright.

This came as a complete shock. Sakayanagi was a conceited woman who always claimed to be the most superior person in our class. It's rather frightening to hear her be humble and praise someone else's abilities. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, just how truly brilliant are you that you can make the likes of Sakayanagi think so highly of you?

Hearing her accolades for Ayanokouji, everyone in the classroom looked amazed and bemused. Given the type of person she was, it was understandable.

"H-hime, are you saying that he might even be smarter than you?"

"Hmm... Who knows?" She shrugged playfully. "But one thing I am certain of is that Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is not to be taken lightly. If you even slightly underestimate him, he will make sure you will pay for it. He is a shrewd and astute individual. Even I am unaware of the entire scope of his true potential."

"T-then do we even stand a chance?" Yoshikawa muttered meekly. It didn't go unnoticed by everyone near her.

"What do you mean by that, Nishikawa?" Hashimoto seemed concerned about her.

"Surely you're not doubting our class that much, are you?" I raised the question.

"N-no... It's just that, can we even win against him if we face him directly? I mean he literally lead the class full of detectives to such a feat in just one month. Who knows what he could do in three years."