Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Solace

Vol. 5: Chapter 10.1 - Time for an Answer

September 28th, 12:02 PM.

"Heya~, Horikita-san! I'm here!"

"I'm sorry for intruding."

"Thank you for coming, Ichinose-san, Kanzaki-kun. Sorry for the sudden notice."

"It's fine, it's fine. I get to have lunch with you, after all. I can't possibly pass this chance up," she said.

A lot of our classmates were staring curiously. It's understandable with Ichinose-san's popularity. All things considered, it must've been interesting to see someone like her eat lunch inside our classroom.

"I'm sorry if I can't find a more suitable location."

"To be honest, it's a nice refresher. Your classroom looks really clean."

"I'm sure your classroom looks just as nice, Ichinose-san." Hirata-kun, my co-leader, open his packed lunch beside me.

"Ehh, is that really the case? I haven't been to Class C's room that much so I didn't notice," Karuizawa followed up.

"You should come by and hang out sometimes, Karuizawa-san."

"For sure! I'm friends with some of the girls in your class. They're pretty energetic."

"Right? Aren't they adorable?"

With four tables clumped together, our group of five finally began eating lunch.

"I assume you wanted to talk about something of importance, Horikita-san." Kanzaki-kun started the discussion.

"Yes. It's regarding the sports festival."

"Ah, I thought so~!" said Ichinose-san. "Mm, these are great."

"I'm just curious. Does your class have any strategy in mind or anything of that sort?"

"Wait, Horikita. Before we respond to that question, why don't you give us your answer to it first?" said Kanzaki-kun.

"Of course. You see, our class doesn't have anything unique in mind. After considering the abilities of each and every one of my classmates, I've concluded that we'd still have a high chance of winning if we just tackled the sports festival head-on."

Ichinose-san gave Kanzaki-kun a smile. She seemed to have expected my answer.

"I knew Horikita-san would be the same as us."

"With Shibata-kun and the others, it makes sense that Class C is confident," Hirata-kun said. 

"But of course! My class can hold their own, you know?"

"Like, I've watched some of Yousuke-kun's practice games, and I guess Shibata-kun from your class is quite athletic."

"Not just him. We've got many students who had joined other sports clubs," Ichinose-san explained. "Well... Even if that was the case, I still honestly don't think we could brute-force our way to the top, though."

"Ehh, what do you mean?" Karuizawa-san tilted her head.

"Considering the type of competitions we'll have, the class with the most number of physically gifted students would most likely have the easiest time. That class belongs to Ryuuen-kun. Class B and Class C would usually come next with Horikita-san's Class A coming in last, but unfortunately for us, anomalies also exist."

"Anomalies, huh? You're talking about Sudou-kun and Ayanokouji-kun, aren't you? Those two are just super athletic-- like, an absurd level of athletic." Karuizawa-san smirked before munching on some rolled eggs.

"You said it. Those two would probably win any competition they're in, so a lot of points are guaranteed for your class, especially for the Recommended-Participant events. I'm confident that our classes can still take you guys on, but it won't be that easy," Ichinose-san shrugged before munching on some of her own rolled eggs.