COTE: A Gathering of Geniuses

Chapter 1 Class 1-A

Class-A 900

The current top of the food chain. The class that all other classes wanted to be.

What did it mean to be in this top class? While other classes were still reeling back from the reveal of their CP and re-organizing themselves on how to catch up to Class A, the top students were more concerned on who would lead the class from within.

Currently, there were two frontrunners.

On one side, Katsuragi Kohei. A bald young man who exuded the composed, calm aura one would expect from a Class A student. While initially intimidating, he held a serious and honorable personality that had gained the respect of many of his peers. He was the perfect example of an upright moral compass that people wished were the ones in power.

On the other side, Sakayanagi Arisu. If Kohei was large and imposing, Arisu was cute and petite, a girl with shoulder length lilac hair topped by a black beret. The cane by her side she used to help her walk added a sense of fragility to the young girl. However, what laid behind a playful personality and weak body was a depth of cold intelligence that stood above the rest of her excellent classmates.

If Kohei drew followers from the results of his hard work and cautious stability, Arisu reeled in supporters drawn in by her overwhelming natural abilities and charisma.

If Kohei showed respect to even those outside of the class, Arisu treated even her own inner circle as the disposable pieces they were.

If Kohei wanted to play referee, to make sure all was played fairly, then Arisu was the Chess master, the only one truly playing the game.

In a sense, it was a single boy who relied on friendship and honesty against a girl who utilized her genius and ruthlessness to control all before her.

Hope vs Despair.

...or it should have been.

Sadly, for a student with long dark hair that reached up to his knees the truth was just far more...boring.

"Tsumaranai." muttered the red-eyed Kamukura Izuru as he watched the scene of the two sides go at it. Not a single other person in the class gave him notice even with his wild unruly hair but that was expected.

Right now, it was just the lackeys of the two who were arguing on who should lead the class. The two leaders, for their part, were just sitting silently with Katsuragi Kohei sitting silently with crossed arms compared to the unbothered playful smile on Arisu's lips.

The whole exchange was none of his concern.

Within this school were only talentless nobodies. Even those who could be called genius, without any talent, were still useless in contributing to society for what limits did they push?

At least at Hope's Peak, each student had a talent they were strong at to the point they were given a title of Ultimate. For example, the Ultimate Baseball Player who would always hit home runs. Or an Ultimate Lucky student, picked out of every middle school in Japan.

And, Kamukura Izuru? He stood above all other Ultimates.

He already knew how things would go: The Sakayanagi faction would allow the Katsuragi faction to take center stage while both sabotaging them behind the scenes or allowing the other classes to take them out. Then they could simply swoop in to establish dominance.

It was boring how simple it was.

Katsuragi Kohei was closer to a Moral Compass than Hope. While he certainly led through example, that did not make him a true leader. Naegi Makoto would be able to stand on his own feet when isolated and backed into a corner. Katsuragi Kohei would simply crumble once his followers left him.