"Transfer?"
"Wait a second...he's a transfer student? No wonder I had no memory of him."
"You've got to be kidding me. A transfer student in Class A? What is the school thinking?"
"No wonder he pulled something so outrageous. Of course he's from outside..."
The moment Asagiri casually mentioned he was a transfer student, the atmosphere in the classroom shifted again. While no one said anything aloud, their expressions and murmured thoughts betrayed them—curiosity, doubt, even a hint of disdain.
At Shuchiin Academy, the most prestigious high school in all of Sakura Province, such reactions were anything but unusual. For all its elite reputation, the school had long suffered from an unspoken divide—"pure students" who had attended since primary or middle school, and transfer students who entered later, often seen as outsiders regardless of their abilities.
Asagiri's eccentric behavior made much more sense now, at least to them.
Pure students refer to students like Kaguya, who have been promoted directly from the Shuchiin Academy Elementary School.
Transfer students are students like Asagiri, who didn't attend Shuchiin Academy for middle school and only entered Shuchiin Academy for high school.
Although the school officially claimed to treat pure and transfer students equally, in practice, a quiet but persistent sense of exclusivity lingered among the student body. It was an unspoken rule, woven into the culture of Shuchiin Academy.
In the school's long and storied history, only two transfer students had ever risen to the position of Student Council President.
One of them didn't even last a full semester—he was removed shortly after taking office, his downfall attributed to nothing more than the fact that he was a transfer student.
So when Asagiri mentioned his status, the mood in the classroom subtly shifted. The curious stares took on a sharper edge—less intrigue, more judgment.
But Asagiri, standing calmly under that scrutiny, didn't seem to mind in the slightest. In fact, he even smiled.
Kaguya had thought that was the end of his self-introduction.
She was wrong.
That was merely the wind-up—Asagiri was just getting ready to activate his skill.
"Judging by your expressions, it seems some of you hold pretty strong prejudices against transfer students?"
Leaning back casually in his chair, Asagiri swept his gaze across the classroom, his tone light, almost amused.
"I get it, really. Your feelings make sense."
He gestured loosely with one hand as if explaining something obvious.
"After all, Shuchiin Academy only has so many seats. Every time someone like me transfers in from outside, it means a junior high student gets bumped. I'm guessing some of you have friends who didn't make it in, right?"
A few students visibly shifted in their seats, faces tightening.
But before anyone could respond, Asagiri's tone turned colder, measured, yet sharp.
"But at the end of the day..."
He paused deliberately, letting the silence build.
"...wasn't it simply because those people just weren't good enough?"
The classroom tensed.
"You—what did you just say...?"
One student muttered under their breath, fists clenched beneath the desk, while others glared in stunned silence.
Asagiri smiled, unfazed, like someone who had just dropped a match into a room full of dry straw and was now watching to see how fast it would catch.
"What? Am I wrong?" Asagiri asked calmly, his tone still light but his words sharp enough to cut.
"Of course you're wrong!"
A male student shot back, his voice rising with emotion.
"If it weren't for people like you—outsiders—how could—"
"Hmm?" Asagiri interrupted smoothly, tilting his head with a mock look of confusion.
"Isn't Shuchiin's junior high supposed to be the best?"
He didn't wait for an answer.
"They had access to top-tier resources, the best teachers, a perfect academic environment—and the added advantage of a built-in junior high record."
His voice remained casual, but there was a razor edge beneath the surface.
"And even with all of that, they still couldn't meet the admission criteria for Shuchiin High."
He leaned forward slightly, locking eyes with the flustered student.
"Doesn't that prove it was their own lack of ability? That despite every possible advantage, they simply weren't good enough? Rotten wood can't be carved, after all—that's why they were eliminated."
"This..."
Seeing the male student unable to refute, Asagiri continued to add insult to injury.
"Or perhaps, you don't think the junior high school of Shuchiin Academy is the best? Oh, I see. So you're criticizing Shuchiin Academy."
The male student quickly denied it upon hearing this.
"I...I didn't mean that at all!"
"Then what do you mean? What are your intentions? Are you a spy sent by Hogwarts? Hmm?"
"I..."
Seeing that the male student's psychological defense had been completely shattered, Asagiri directly switched from a single-target attack to a large-scale AOE attack.
"Ultimately, the so-called transfer student and pure student thing is simply childish and ridiculous. People who hold this kind of thinking are just clowns who are useless themselves but want to gain a sense of superiority, so they huddle together for warmth."
"Still talking about mixed blood and pure blood? What are you, Death Eaters?"
"Transfer student, pure student, I think you need to get your brains checked and get admitted to a hospital sooner."
Hearing Asagiri's highly aggressive words, the classroom fell silent. And Kaguya, who was also a pure student, deeply agreed with Asagiri's words after hearing them.
Her idea was simple.
It is because they are excellent that they can become pure students, not the other way around.
If they are not excellent enough and do not meet the requirements, then it is only natural for them to be eliminated by Shuchiin Academy. Blaming it on transfer students taking up the admission spots is simply utterly childish and utterly foolish.
Only...
Although what Asagiri said made sense, he used such highly aggressive language.
He is a very arrogant person, and his ability to achieve the top score in the entrance exam as a transfer student is enough to prove that his ability matches his arrogance. However, his recent remarks are bound to cause resentment and even disgust, among many pure students.
The school rules of Shuchiin Academy are very strict, and there is generally no fighting or brawling, but there are many ways to bully someone.
......
The morning classes quickly ended. Speaking of classes, it was actually just for the students to introduce themselves and then vote for class committee members and the like. After all, it was the first day of school, and the focus was on adaptation. There were no classes scheduled for the afternoon; it was free activity time.
New students could take advantage of today's free time to check out clubs they were interested in. Of course, it was also fine not to join a club. Shuchiin Academy didn't have strict requirements in this regard. Classes started at nine in the morning and ended at three in the afternoon, with an hour-long lunch break in between. It was even more relaxed than most high schools, but in reality, this was just because Shuchiin Academy's educational philosophy was different.
Students who wanted to study seriously could use the time after school to take elective courses they were interested in.
And students with special talents could participate in club activities and strive to win prizes in national competitions.
Although it's called a high school, the curriculum of Shuchiin Academy is actually similar to that of a university.
As the students gradually filed out of the classroom one by one, Kaguya rose to leave as well. But then her eyes caught sight of a male student lingering by the back door, clutching a water cup with its lid removed, wide open.
His behavior was unusual; he stood there quietly, as if waiting for someone to step out.
So that's what's going on...
Kaguya glanced toward Asagiri Utsunomiya, who was already gathering his satchel and preparing to leave. It was clear someone intended to teach this arrogant transfer student a lesson.
Honestly, Kaguya didn't want to get involved in petty schoolyard conflicts. But...Asagiri was the one who had beaten her in the entrance exam.
She couldn't let him get pushed out by bullying before the spring exam. If that happened, she'd lose her chance for redemption—the chance to erase the sting of her previous defeat.
With that thought, Kaguya made up her mind. She would step outside first, determined to prevent Asagiri from being "accidentally" doused with water.
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