Classroom of the Elite: Free Will

V9: Chapter 7 - Shadows of the Past

Horikita Suzune POV

It was the day before the vote, and class had ended for the day. Tomorrow, each class would be deciding who would get expelled, and that person's seat would be empty. Even though everyone was anxious, deep down, there was a sense of relief, since they believed that they would be okay.

That was right. Because someone had been chosen to be the sacrifice.

Many of my classmates were probably feeling some degree of guilt about it right now, but that guilt was a small price to pay if it meant saving themselves. Those feelings would fade over time. A year from now, they'd only remember that there once had been another student in their class.

So, these past few days I have been doing a lot of thinking. Who should remain? Who should be expelled? How should we arrive at our answer? And today, I was able to come to a clear decision.

Ever since we've been informed of this test, I've had some significant concerns. Even though we should be evaluating the students in our class and using the results of our discussion to determine who will be getting expelled, the school hasn't even left us time to do so. That means this is just going to turn into a battle where people will form groups to try and control the vote. As a result, there's a danger that excellent students who should remain in our class may be expelled. This can't even be called an 'exam,' really.

The ideal scenario would have been to have a discussion and narrow down the list of candidates for expulsion. But realistically speaking, that would be quite difficult to do.

So, I had decided to meet with someone today after classes here in one of the rest areas. To my annoyance, however, it had been fifteen minutes already and that person wasn't still here. And I had been pacing back and forth for the past ten minutes.

Maybe he thought it was better if we didn't meet? He must've changed his mind. I should leave.

"You're still here, huh?" said a voice behind me.

I quickly turned around and snapped at him as he leaned against the vending machine. "Fifteen minutes late! Have you ever considered being punctual?"

"Relax, Horikita," he said airily. "I've been here the whole time." I raised an eyebrow. "I simply was testing you. I honestly thought you'd leave after the first three minutes."

"I'm not that petty, Karma-kun." I crossed my arms. Seriously, I can be patient.

"Of course, of course. I believe you," he shrugged. "So? Why are we here?"

"There's something I need to talk to you about, regarding tomorrow's special exam."

"Yeah, I figured as much," he snorted. "What exactly do you need? I already told Hirata I won't give you twenty million private points."

"Hirata-kun approached you?" I couldn't hide my surprise. On the way here, I saw him sitting on a bench and talked to him for a bit. It was obvious that this supplementary exam was really difficult for him. Still, I didn't think he would go as far as to seek help from other classes... he didn't even say anything about it.

He cocked his head slightly to the side. "Now, Horikita, you're one of the leaders. Shouldn't you be aware of these types of things?"

"I'm not a tyrant that wants to know what my classmates are doing 24/7, Karma-kun."

"Good," he smiled. "Neither am I. Now, how 'bout you tell me what you want. If it's not money, then what?" he turned to face the vending machine and began studying its contents. "Hmm... let's see... What do I want?"