After Amane brought up the crucial topic, the cheerful discussions in the class abruptly ceased.
Yes, gathering fifty thousand points was only the first problem they faced.
Only by completing all challenges could they truly be considered to have overcome this difficulty.
The atmosphere in the classroom became tense for a moment.
Sakura Airi and Ichihashi Ruri, the two protagonists at the center of the incident, were also feeling uneasy at this time.
After all, both of them had the same score, just one point away from being expelled, so they both seemed a bit nervous when faced with the final choice.
Hirata didn't say much at this point.
Because in his opinion, two classmates were equal, and if he had to choose, he would inevitably choose to replace the student who was about to be expelled.
Amane and the others had considered this point, which is why they forbade Hirata from participating in the discussion of this issue; he could, as a D-Class student, cast a vote of confidence for the person he supported.
But he could not actively discuss related topics, to prevent Hirata from taking extreme measures or using his influence to affect everyone's true final choice.
"Now, through everyone's efforts, the 50,000 private points have been gathered, and the next step is the final discussion phase, which is for everyone to choose which classmate stays.
I have brought the two students who are about to be expelled here, so let's hear what they have to say."
Hirata kept his promise and did not express his personal opinion, thus preventing others from being influenced.
The first to walk onto the podium was Ichihashi Ruri.
As a member of Kushida's group, she was quite active socially, having good relationships with many people in the class, and she had always presented herself as an athletic girl, with her slightly tanned skin allowing her to blend into the class's 'gyaru' style cliques.
It could be said that she shone brightly outside of academics, and it seemed that those who supported Ichihashi-san staying might have an overwhelming advantage.
"Suzune, who do you think will stay?"
Amane turned her body and asked Horikita, who was behind her.
Horikita recalled their performance in class and unhesitatingly chose Ichihashi.
"Although what I'm about to say might be a bit cruel to Sakura-san, Sakura-san has no chance of winning.
Unless something happens that can reverse the current situation, it's hard to imagine Sakura-san being able to compete with the popular Ichihashi-san."
Horikita's words were very fair.
Amane thought so too.
Just as the two were whispering to each other, Ichihashi Ruri walked onto the podium with a smile.
One might have thought she was coming up to deliver an acceptance speech.
"Hello everyone, I am Ichihashi Ruri, a member of the expulsion group who failed this exam."
Ichihashi immediately admitted that she was part of the expulsion group who failed the exam.
This courage alone was far better than those like Yamauchi and Sudo who were unwilling to accept reality; at least she dared to face her shortcomings.
"In this exam, my performance was a bit off, leading to a low score, but this was not a result of me not studying.
I am a member of the baseball club, and recently I've been training overtime to prepare for upcoming competitions, which diverted my energy from studying and led to this unexpected incident..."
Ichihashi Ruri finished speaking and glanced at the atmosphere in the classroom.
Many people showed expressions of understanding.
After all, a sports club is usually quite busy during high school, and it's understandable if one's academic performance is slightly less than ideal.
So, after Ichihashi's brief introduction, many people cast their vote of support for her.
"But I didn't intentionally fail; there were indeed a few subjects I didn't have time to review, which led to the overall low score."
As Ichihashi spoke, she took out her report card.
More than half of her subjects received scores around sixty points.
The remaining two subjects only got twenty-something points each.
This unfortunately led to her failing the second grade review and becoming an expelled student.
Overall, it was understandable; there was nothing particularly outstanding, but for an average student, Ichihashi Ruri could already be considered a relatively excellent student.
"The results of this exam were a complete surprise to me.
I really like this place, I like living here with everyone, working hard for the class together, and finally graduating from this school together.
I'm truly reluctant to leave here, please help me.
I promise I will turn over a new leaf, study hard, and no longer cause trouble for anyone."
After speaking, Ichihashi bowed deeply to the audience.
Her sincere actions moved many who were still hesitating.
Kushida Kikyo, as the leader of her clique, immediately stood up and started applauding; this action immediately caused a chain reaction, and even if some people felt Ichihashi's words were too formulaic, they could only follow suit and applaud.
However, what Ichihashi said was indeed quite impressive.
Even Amane gave encouraging applause.
Ichihashi walked off the stage with a satisfied expression and returned to her seat.
Hirata's gaze turned to another D-Class student, Sakura Airi.
To be honest, Hirata had almost already concluded in his heart that Sakura Airi would undoubtedly lose this competition.
Leaving aside academics, in terms of physical fitness, Ichihashi Ruri almost completely overwhelmed Sakura Airi.
Just looking at her recent performance, Ichihashi first admitted she was a failure, then explained why she would be expelled from this midterm exam, while emphasizing that this was just an accident, and finally asked everyone to give her a chance to graduate with them.
Such a speech, in Hirata's opinion, was entirely Ichihashi Ruri's extraordinary performance under the pressure of expulsion, where she maximized her abilities and social strengths.
Now, without a doubt, the pressure of expulsion was on Sakura Airi.
What kind of performance would this girl, whom the entire class usually unconsciously ignored whenever they saw her, bring to everyone?
Sakura Airi cautiously walked onto the podium.
Facing countless gazes, Sakura Airi took a deep breath and then opened her mouth.
But she found that she didn't know what to say at all.
Sakura Airi started to get nervous.
Her tightly clenched hands were also nervously sweating quite a bit from her palms.
But no matter how much she thought, she couldn't come up with the eloquent words Ichihashi Ruri had just spoken.
"Hello everyone... I, I'm Sakura Airi..."
Just stating her name, Sakura Airi had already used up all her courage.
Looking at Sakura Airi standing silently on the podium, many people started whispering among themselves.
"When did we have a classmate named Sakura in our class?"
"I don't know either... I always feel like I haven't noticed her before; it seems she's the type with a weak presence."
Sakura Airi on the stage lowered her head deeply.
She had nothing to refute.
The description 'weak presence' outwardly means having a low sense of presence, but its actual meaning is not fitting in.
As the discussions grew louder, Sakura Airi tightly closed her eyes.
If possible... ending it like this might not be so bad.
---------------------------------
If you'd like to read the next 40 chapters in advance, you can support me on Patreon.
I regularly post chapter previews there, so you'll always be up-to-date and won't have to wait too long.
patreon.com/SolyuraMT
And if you enjoy the story, don't forget to give me a Power Stone. Your support really motivates me to continue translating!