NOTICE: Please read "Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test" before reading this.
Picking up on where Self-Test left off, Kiyotaka and his classmates finally reached Class A. However, because of this, Kiyotaka decided to permanently step down a...
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Summer... This should be the part where I reminisce some of my childhood summer memories, but unfortunately, I don't have anything like that.
It's now the 15th of August and all of the freshmen students just got back from their luxurious two-week cruise ship vacation. Of course, everyone knows how that went for us...
I was currently relaxing on my bed inside Room 401 of the 1st-year dormitory building. We disembarked very early in the morning so most students, including me, wanted to tidy up and rest up.
"Once again, I'm free..." I muttered.
I, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, value freedom more than anything. I want nothing more than to have a normal life in this school. Exceptional students wouldn't usually have that luxury given the class competitions and their responsibilities to lead their classmates. However, I'm also aware that I'm the strange one.
Katsuragi is the leader of Class A, but he chose to be in that position because he's been the type of guy to lead since he was younger. Ichinose is the leader of Class C because she wants to do her best for her friends and her dreams. Ryuuen is the leader of Class D because he wanted to have fun beating the other leaders in the class competitions. And lastly, Horikita accepted my suggestion of her leading the class because she wanted to prove something. She wanted the recognition of her amazing brother.
Each one of them wouldn't have any doubts about being the leader of their own respective classes. Unfortunately, I'm not the same. The only reason why I led the class for the first four months was my desire to test myself. Now that we're in Class A, I have no more reason to participate in the upcoming battles. I just want to live as a regular student who isn't bothered by the pressures and expectations of performing exceptionally.
"What are you guys up to when we get back?" As we lined up to exit the ship, Ike asked the boys about their plans.
"Sleep," said Ueno.
Most of them mirrored his answer, which was understandable given everything that we just went through.
"Are you doing the same, Kiyotaka-kun?" The girl beside me asked with a smile.
"Probably," I shrugged. "How about you, Ryuuko? Do you have any plans?"
"I wanna rest too, of course... But I might go out in the afternoon."
I didn't really ask my friends about their plans for the day and neither did they-- mainly because almost all of us were just thinking about resting.
I grabbed my phone and turned off all notifications. For now, I would like to have some peace of mind. Once September comes, we'll be labeled as the top class in our year. We'll also be rewarded with a large number of private points from our monthly allowance and previous special exam.
"Class A, huh...?"
Before putting my phone away, I noticed that I received some texts from some of my classmates. Based on the few words that I could read from the lock screen preview, they must've been asking about my decision to retire as the class's leader. I already asked Hirata and Kikyou to take care of the explanations. I'm sure it'll be fine.
From this day forth, I'm just Ayanokouji Kiyotaka-- a regular member of Class 1-A. Some amount of spotlight still shone on me given my academic performances, but I'll slowly tone everything down with time.
For now... I just want to sleep the day away. That's probably how I would want to start my very first summer in school.
