Starting the day after the midterm exams ended, our graded tests began trickling back to us one by one. By Saturday, every single subject had been returned. There was joy and there was sorrow—everyone reacted differently. All across the school, countless little dramas regarding the results were playing out.
And we were right in the middle of our own.
"Yuji... how did it go for you?"
"Not bad, I guess. The study sessions definitely worked. I had one subject fall below the average, but the rest were above it. How about you, Daiki?"
"Pretty decent, I suppose. I managed to stay above the average in every subject."
Yuji and I shared our results, both of us feeling a wave of relief at the favorable outcome. Since these were the first periodic exams of our second year, getting them back had been quite the nerve-wracking experience.
"Must be nice. Being able to talk about such rosy results..."
Hm?
While I was chatting with Yuji at my desk, a resentful voice drifted over from nearby. When I turned toward the sound, I saw Shigemori slumped powerlessly over his desk. Without lifting his torso, he tilted only his head toward us, fixing us with eyes that were hollow and devoid of any light.
"...What's with you, Shigemori? Your eyes are dead."
"Yeah, you look like a dead fish."
"...Heh."
Seeing Shigemori in such a miserable state, Yuji and I spoke to him even as our own faces twitched. In response, Shigemori let out a long, self-deprecating sigh.
"Yeah, exactly. I’m just a tiny fish washed up on the shore, waiting for the end anyway."
Whoa, seriously, what happened? Shigemori was far more crushed and despairing than I had imagined. Yuji and I looked at each other, our expressions twitching even more as we struggled to find the right words.
"Wait... don't tell me it was the test results?"
"...Heh."
Apparently, I had hit the mark.
"Must be nice for you guys. Talking about being 'above average' or 'below average.' As for me... I didn't get above average in a single subject, you know?"
"...Yikes."
"R-Really?"
"..."
At our reaction, the last bit of light vanished from Shigemori's eyes, leaving them completely vacant.
Wait, this is bad!
"Hey, Shigemori! Snap out of it!"
I hurriedly shook Shigemori’s shoulder, trying to bring him back to his senses. It seemed to work, as the spark of life slowly returned to his gaze.
Phew, thank goodness.
Yuji and I waited until Shigemori regained some composure before asking for the details.
"...Sorry. I lost it there for a second."
"No, that's fine, but... were the results really bad enough to make you lose your mind?"
"I managed to avoid red marks, at least... but the results were so disastrous it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I was wiped out."
With that, Shigemori sat up, pulled a clear file from his desk, and placed it in front of us.
"...See for yourself."
"Don't mind if I do..."
I opened the file, took out the test papers, and gave them a quick scan.
Oof, this is rough... Most of Shigemori's scores were in the low 50s, with a few 40s mixed in. Yuji and I looked at Shigemori, our gazes essentially asking, What the hell were you doing?
"Don't look at me like that... I bet everything on certain topics for this test, and every single one of them missed the mark. I never thought it would turn out like this..."
Having said his piece, Shigemori slumped powerlessly back onto his desk.
Ah, I see. So Shigemori is the type to gamble on specific topics. It’s true that the payoff is huge if you’re right, but if you’re wrong... This time, the luck swung the wrong way for him.
"Damn it, if my guesses had been right, I would've comfortably hit eighty or ninety percent..."
This guy is a total gambler. Eighty or ninety percent? Just how much of the material was he ignoring to bet that heavily...? Has he survived every exam up until now just by playing the odds?
"...Well, look. You just had bad luck this time."
"Exactly. And look on the bright side—at least you avoided red marks. If you work hard for the next one, you can make up for it."
"..."
Yuji and I put the test papers back into the clear file, slid them under Shigemori's arm as he lay there, and gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. While the results were disappointing, they were already set in stone, so there was nothing else to be done. Since he didn't actually fail anything, all we could really say was "try harder next time."
After school. Before heading to our respective training grounds, the five of us gathered in the cafeteria for lunch. Today’s menu was a unanimous choice: curry.
"Huh, so that really happened."
"Yeah, I honestly didn't know how to react."
While picking at my curry, I filled Mika and the other girls in on Shigemori's failed gamble. It was a good conversation starter... although I wouldn't dream of saying it if he were anywhere nearby.
"So, how were your results, Mika? Yuji and I did all right, partly thanks to the study group."
I asked the main question while casually mentioning our own performance. Mika and the others paused, their spoons hovering in midair as they looked at each other. Hiiragi-san was the first to speak.
"My results were fine as well. I didn't have any subjects below the average."
"Me too. I was above average across the board."
Hiiragi-san spoke as if her success was only natural, and Saori-chan followed suit with a look of expected satisfaction. I had figured I didn't need to worry much about those two based on how the study sessions went, so that was no surprise.
The problem was...
"How about your results, Mika?"
"Uhm, well, you see..."
Mika hesitated, clearly finding it difficult to answer. Seeing her like that, I guessed the outcome.
"Mika?"
"Well... I got over eighty percent in my humanities subjects, but for the science ones, uhm, well..."
"Did you get a red mark?"
"No! No red marks. It's just... I was quite a bit below the average..."
When I asked for the details, it turned out her science scores were in the low 50s. Since Mika is weak in science, I wasn't sure if I should praise her for not failing or lecture her to study harder.
"But Onii-chan, even if I was below average, I avoided failing, so I can still take the exam tomorrow, right?"
"Well, our deal was that we'd stop if you got a red mark... You might get a lecture from Mother, but you should be okay."
"Yay! But... a lecture, huh."
Mika rejoiced for a moment at my answer, then immediately slumped again.
"Since you're in the low 50s for science despite not being an active explorer yet, it wouldn't be strange for her to think your grades will plummet once you start. If you'd at least hit the 60s, she might have let it slide without a word."
"Guh."
Mika let out a frustrated sound. Well, it'll probably just be a brief lecture, so she'll just have to bear it.
Anyway, with this, the midterms—including the results—were safely over. All that was left...
"Was the matter of how that group's test results turned out..."
"Yeah," Yuji agreed. "If any of their members got red marks, the school would probably use academic neglect as a reason to intervene in their activities."
"Right. That would be the easiest way to handle it... Mika-chan, Saori-chan, do you know anything about that?"
Our expectant and questioning gazes fell upon the first-year duo. But...
"..."
"..."
The two of them simply wore frustrated expressions in silence. Which meant...
"I'm sorry, Onii-chan, but it looks like none of them got a red mark. Right, Saori-chan?"
"Yes. I saw the leader—the Repeating Student—looking relieved after receiving reports from the members. From the looks of it, even if some were right on the edge, I don't think anyone actually failed."
"...I see. So no one failed."
"Yeah."
"No."
That was truly disappointing to the extreme.
As Yuji said, if there had been failures among the team members, the school could have used that as an opening to step in with disciplinary guidance. Missing the chance for the school to intervene now meant we had failed to contain the situation early on.
If the school had stepped in at this early stage of the new year, it would have branded them as a group under administrative scrutiny, which would have discouraged the freshmen they were targeting. Since the organization was still new, it might have been easy to dismantle it entirely.
However, now that they’ve escaped intervention, their organizational solidifying will likely proceed faster than ever. On top of that, they now have the track record of every single member in their diverse group avoiding red marks. It's a perfect selling point for recruiting students who are struggling with their grades. They appear successful, they have strength in numbers, and they offer academic support. When people are invited under those terms, some are bound to join.
"Mika, have they made a move yet?"
"Yeah. They're saying it's a celebration for finishing the tests, and they're holding a party after this."
"I think they were recruiting participants at the gate, saying they were all going to a nearby karaoke place."
They move fast... They're targeting the moment everyone’s guard is down thanks to the post-exam liberation. Since they couldn't cut loose while the tests were ongoing, I'm sure everyone was looking for an excuse to let off steam today.
"I heard a few people who didn't seem interested before say they were going to join since it's a special occasion."
"Yeah. But weren't the new participants mostly people who were depressed about their results?"
"Now that you mention it, they were definitely targeting people who were down because they'd gotten red marks..."
"I see."
Just as I thought. They’re targeting that demographic. Being depressed about grades means there's a vulnerability to exploit. If you want to persuade someone effectively, doing it while they're mentally vulnerable is a classic tactic. I don't know how many people they'll actually manage to recruit, but the organization will undoubtedly expand.
After clearing away our dishes, we left the cafeteria and headed home, passing by students busy with their club activities. We made our way toward Yuji's house, our designated meeting point for Muroi-san, while discussing tomorrow's plans with Mika and Saori.
"If the content hasn't changed since we took it, you'll have a written test with a mark-sheet after a preliminary lecture. After that, you'll have the practical exam following a thorough warm-up."
"That's right," Hiiragi-san added. "But don't worry, you can pass seventy or eighty percent of the written test just by listening to the instructor's lecture."
"As for the Practical Skills Training, if you've been training under my grandpa, it shouldn't be that difficult to clear," Yuji said.
One after another, we shared our own experiences of the Armed Exploration Permit for Special Underground Structures Issuance Exam with Mika and Saori. In truth, with their current abilities, they should be able to breeze through an exam of that level. The passing criteria for that exam are quite lenient to begin with.
"Listening to you guys, it doesn't sound very difficult at all... is that really true?" Mika asked.
"It's true. What would be the point of lying about it?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right..."
Seeing that Mika and Saori-chan were perhaps relaxing a bit too much, I decided to give them a warning.
"But don't get careless, okay? If you let your guard down, you might trip up in an unexpected place and fail."
"Okay!"
"Yes!"
The two of them answered seriously, their expressions tightening. Well, they should be fine if they stay focused...
As we continued talking about the explorer exam, we eventually arrived at Yuji's house. However, something was missing.
"Huh? Muroi-san's car isn't here."
"You're right, maybe he hasn't arrived yet?"
The car that was supposed to be waiting was nowhere to be seen in front of the house.
"The meeting time was correct, right?"
"Yeah. Let me check, wait a second."
Yuji pulled his smartphone from his pocket and called Muroi-san. After a few rings, Muroi-san answered.
"Ah, hello. This is Hirose. Yes, thank you for your help... Ah, I see. It's about the meeting. Oh, is that so? Yes, I understand. Then, excuse me."
After hanging up, Yuji reported the results of the call.
"It seems they had a bit of trouble over there, so he's going to be a little late."
"Oh, really?"
"He said he should be here in about thirty minutes. Why don't we wait inside my house until then?"
"Agreed."
And so, we decided to rest at Yuji's place until Muroi-san arrived. I initially thought about just lounging in Yuji’s room, but I realized we should greet Juzo-san first, so we headed toward the dojo. In the end, we decided to watch Mika and Saori’s training session to kill time.
"Hey, Kokonoe-kun. May I ask you something?"
"Hm? What is it?"
While watching Mika and Saori being coached on their swings by Juzo-san, Hiiragi-san spoke to me in a low voice.
"I know I was the one who opposed it before, but... do you really have no intention of using that to give Mika-chan and Saori-chan a boost?"
Hiiragi-san asked, looking me straight in the eyes.