Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Kiro
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Chapter 76
“Okay, this should be fine.”
I put up the two posters in my classroom. Honami’s cute smile shone there.
I didn’t feel like putting it in my room, but leaving it to collect dust also felt wrong. Since this class was the colony of Class A, I thought this would be the most convenient way to deal with the posters.
Above all, putting up the posters was something that Class A also did, so if anyone criticized it, they wouldn’t be able to avoid the heretic inquisition. Nobody would complain.
The classroom door opened with a noise. Mashima-sensei came for the homeroom that would be held from now on. After being startled by Honami’s posters, he sighed and began to talk.
“…Today, I would like to explain about the event that will be held at the end of this month. This was planned mainly by the student council, but the school is also cooperating in terms of remuneration.”
As expected, it seemed to be the thing that Nagumo mentioned.
The students raised their voices of doubt at the light tone of the word “event.”
“Is it different from a special exam?”
“It’s different. Of course, since it will be held in this school, the participants will be ranked according to their results… but the big difference is that participation is voluntary. If anyone isn’t convinced after hearing the rules, they have the right to refuse to participate.”
This was exactly what I had heard, so neither Arisu-chan nor I was surprised.
After confirming that the classroom had become quiet, Mashima-sensei handed out a booklet containing the rules of the event. It was probably the finished version of what Nagumo had at that time.
After receiving one, I read the content.
[New Year’s Gift Event]
- Each student is entitled to 3 praise votes and 1 criticism vote.
- Students who are willing to participate in the event must fill in the name of each student they wish to vote for on the prescribed ballot and submit it to their homeroom teacher by January 31st.
- You cannot vote for the same person more than once and you cannot use another person’s ballot.
- You cannot vote for students in your class, be it praise votes or criticism votes.
- All votes directed towards non-participants will be void.
Basically, just point out 3 students you like and 1 student you hate.
And on the back of the booklet was the most important point… the reward for the event was depicted.
- 100,000 private points would be rewarded for each praise vote received.
…This was amazing. Would the points be awarded regardless of the number of criticism votes? With this rule, a student could definitely receive at least 100,000 if they teamed up with a student from another class, and the reward would steadily increase the more students they could attract. As an extreme example, if every student from Class A to D cast their votes evenly by making 4-person teams each, everyone would receive 300,000 points. It was a fitting name for a New Year’s Gift Event.
That alone would make the event interesting enough, but the main reward this time was different.
- In addition, the following rewards would be given according to the numerical value obtained by the number of praise votes subtracted by criticism votes (hereafter, the value would be referred to as “score”.)
- 10 students with the highest “score” of each grade will be given an additional 200,000 private points.
- A student with the highest “score” of each grade will be granted a class transfer ticket.
The class transfer ticket that Nagumo had talked about before caught my eye. So it was included as a reward after all.
The explanation regarding the ticket was written on another page, but the content was the same as the printout I saw that day. It seemed nothing had changed.
Everything was as expected until this point, but Nagumo wasn’t a person who would plan a simple and sweet event.
The problem was what was written on the last page.
- The student with the lowest score of their grade would lose 20 million private points.
The penalty was written in a single line. It was a simple yet extremely heavy punishment imposed on the most hated person. How they perceive that would have a great deal to do with their willingness to participate in the event.
The number of students who finished reading the booklet increased and the voices of chatting grew louder. When Mashima saw that, he clapped his hands once to attract attention.
“Have you read through it? There is some important supplementary information, so please pay attention even if you haven’t finished reading it.”
This was an event that could earn them a huge amount of points in some cases, so the interest was high even in Class B. Unusually, they listened attentively to Mashima-sensei.
“The result of this event will not affect class points or individual student evaluations. Obviously, no penalty would be given for non-participation, and even if the result of the event isn’t good, nothing beyond what is written in that booklet would occur. From now on, I will distribute one ballot paper for each person, but please do not hesitate to discard it if you decide to not participate in the event.”
He made the school’s stance clear. It was the stance where everything was left to each student’s personal decision.
“What will happen if the student with the lowest score fails to pay 20 million points?”
“That will be left to the organizer’s discretion… the student council president will probably have the decision-making power.”
Katsuragi’s question was immediately answered by Mashima-sensei.
…Nagumo had a way of thinking that those who lacked ability should leave this school. The student with the lowest score would most likely become a “sacrifice” to let that thought known.
In other words, even though the possibility was low, they might get expelled. Regardless of how many students understood that, it had a strong impact on me.
After all, it was interesting. There was no way I would interrupt this kind of enjoyable event.
I felt sorry for Horikita’s brother, but I would pretend I never heard anything from him the other day.
I put my ballot in my bag and left my seat.
We immediately went to Honami’s room and decided to hold a strategy meeting.
“For the time being, I intended to participate.”
“It’s an event that only benefits most students after all. What should I do?”
Although Honami would probably get a lot of praise votes, she was also a student who would likely be targeted by organized criticism votes. Because in the unlikely chance they manage to expel her, the situation would really turn around.
…Since she already used 20 million points back in the Mixed Training Camp, there was no way she could pay the penalty for the lowest rank. That should be how the students of other classes would see it.
“If you are going to participate, it would be better to use the Class B students to collect praise votes for Honami-san herself. In addition, it is essential work to prevent collusion between Class C and Class D.”
Arisu-chan also seemed to have the same opinion as me.
“…I also am known as an ‘idol killer’ after all, so I might have earned a grudge without knowing it. Maybe I could unexpectedly get expelled.”
“I definitely won’t let that happen, so it’s okay.”
I was half joking, but Honami reacted seriously. She gave off pressure and it was a little scary.
“O-oh.”
“I’ll have everyone in our class vote for Haruto-kun and Arisu-chan. I have already decided.”
In that case, 41 praise votes were already guaranteed. Even if I was truly hated, I doubt I would be hated by that many people… it seemed there was nothing to worry about.
In addition, I would earn 4,100,000 points. Donating 1 million points seems cheap now.
“Then the question would be who to vote for… it seems. Personally, I would like the criticism votes to be focused on one student of Class D or Class C. Since the combined number of students of Class A and Class B is 80 people, it means there is an extremely high chance of driving a student into the last rank.”
“It’s on the premise that that student participates in the event though,” added Arisu-chan.
That strategy would also lead to the protection of the combined group of Class A and B. Certainly, if the criticism votes of two classes were concentrated on one person, the possibility of me ending up in last place was practically gone.
“I see… but choosing who that student would be seems hard. I don’t think someone like Ryuuen-kun, who clearly has a bad reputation, would participate in this event, right?”
“You’re right. Perhaps the important point is to check who will participate by the deadline.”
Participation in this event was voluntary. That also served as the gameplay.
Even though it was risky, the reward was too extraordinary for the effort involved and it was attractive to everyone. This was especially the case for the students in lower classes.
I was curious about the strategy Class C would take. I guess I will ask Kiyotaka about it after tomorrow.
Even so, it surely looked like an enjoyable event. My favorability towards Nagumo increased slightly.
…That said, I have no intention of joining the student council, though.
Want early access to Cannon Fodder, Melancholy of the Demon Army Officer, and I Was a Man Before Reincarnating, So I Refuse a Reverse Harem? Support the translator on Patreon!
