Monsters Among Elites - Act One: Blank

Chapter 4 - The Final Days of Paradise

Class 1-D, Advanced Nurturing High School, April 30, 2020 (Morning)

"Ha ha ha ha! God, you're so dumb!"

Ike chatted loudly with Yamauchi during second-period, math class. It'd been over three weeks since we'd entered this school, in that time the relationships between the students had formed with Ike, Yamauchi and Sudou collectively being known as "The Idiot Trio."

"Hey, hey, do you want to go do karaoke after this class?"

"Yeah let's go!"

A group of girls up front were making plans, along with the other students. With the exception of a select few diligent students, it didn't seem as though many were paying attention to the class.

"It appears as though I've underestimated you Ayanokouji-kun,"

Suddenly, I'd gotten called out to by one of these diligent students, Horikita. The black-haired cold beauty meticulously jotted down notes without once removing her eyes from the board.

With my face relaxing comfortably on my fist, I spoke. "Why do you say so?"

"You've made quite a few friends during this month, I didn't expect such a thing from you."

Despite the backhanded compliment I wasn't particularly offended. I'd come to learn during this month, that this was just how Horikita was.

"Well yeah, what about you?"

Horikita didn't answer as she continued jotting down notes.

I sighed at her obvious attempt at avoiding the question. Seriously this girl only hears what she likes doesn't she?

Suddenly a loud crash was heard from the back of the class as the last member of the infamous "Idiot Trio" arrived.

"Sup?"

With little regard for the ruckus he'd caused, Sudo sat himself lazily, yawning,  before putting his legs on the desk.

"Oh, hey, Sudo! Wanna get lunch later?"

Across the room, Ike called out to Sudo who shouted back in affirmative.

The math teacher hadn't made any attempts to punish such blatantly disrespectful behavior, none of the teachers in this school had, not even our homeroom teacher, Chabashira-sensei.

At first, the class was reserved and shy, not exactly paying attention but still having the decency to remain quiet and somewhat respectful during lessons. However, their behavior took a complete 180 the moment they'd learnt of just how lax the teachers were; never once offering any form of punishment, or reprimanding them. If this behavior kept up, Sora's prediction might just have been a prophecy.

"Whoa. Seriously, he has a girlfriend? Awesome..." Ike muttered in envy, glaring at the pretty boy, Hirata.

From what I gathered, Hirata was dating Karuizawa, the blonde-haired gyaru. It didn't surprise me; after all, attractive people often ended up together. It's an unspoken rule in society—beautiful people should date each other, get married, and have equally attractive children. Those who deviate from the norm fell under society's ruthless scrutiny.

As I watched the blonde couple interact, I couldn't help but think of society's unspoken social norms of categorizing people based on their appearance. Attractive individuals are often given a head start, positioned higher on the social hierarchy. It's a kind of talent. An attractive person who puts in effort will generally surpass someone less fortunate who puts in the same, if not more, effort. Just look at the idol scene—how many idols don't fit the conventional definition of attractiveness?