Date: April 17, 2026 (Friday)
Time: 8:20 AM
Location: Classroom 1-4
Zenith Academy was proving to be more than just a prestigious prep school; it was an intense, data-driven environment. The school operated on a "Transparency Model," aggressively collecting performance metrics to maintain a highly competitive, open-hierarchy system.
Five minutes before class started, the classroom was sparsely occupied. Leo had stepped out for the bathroom, and Maya was gone to get water. Albert noted there were only 10 boys and 2 girls present, including himself.
Albert sat in his seat, Row 8 Column 4, spinning his pen. To his front, the morning silence was broken by two students from the Basketball Club who were huddled over a smartphone, looking annoyed.
"Man, afternoon practice can't come soon enough," the taller boy groaned, tossing a crumpled paper ball. "I just want to touch the ball. Tryouts were brutal."
"Tell me about it," his friend laughed. "But did you see the manager's face yesterday? It was hilarious. She was freaking out over some rumor about the Federation changing the Regional Protocols."
"Really?"
"Yeah. She kept saying it's going to be a 'hassle' and complaining about the schedule. And the Inter-High hasn't even started yet."
"Who cares?" The tall boy scoffed. "Managers always overreact. As long as we get to the court, it's fine. Paperwork is their job, not ours. It's insignificant."
The labor class complains about the management class. A tale as old as time. It has nothing to do with me.
Albert tuned them out, categorizing the conversation as 'Jock Noise,' and refocused on his notebook.
Suddenly, a louder conversation erupted two rows ahead of him.
"What are you writing?" a boy almost shouted.
"It's nothing, just my list. The top 3 most beautiful girls on campus," the other boy replied.
"Let me see. Who's your number one?"
The boy lowered his voice and glanced at Maya's empty seat. "Tachibana-san."
"Yeah! I totally agree. She's definitely number 1. Who's your number 2?"
"Akane Hino-senpai, a 2nd Year."
"Who? I don't know her."
Almost two weeks have passed, and I've utterly failed to make a new friend. Just listen to them. It must be great to have a 'boy's talk'—discussing games, girls, and making top-three lists. I'm genuinely envious. Leo is a good friend, but he's not the type to talk about video games anymore; he's changed since he used to play with me. And he definitely won't talk about girls. He's a girl killer, and he's already got Maya.
Albert sighed after this last thought. He refocused on the classmates chatting—whose names he didn't even know. They hadn't spoken once. He knew their faces and behavioral patterns but he hadn't paid any attention to their names during the first-day introductions.
"Who is your top 3?" the first classmate asked.
"Tsukishiro Shiina," the second one answered.
"The blonde? Oh man, the guys from the other classes are all talking about her. They say she is a genius. I haven't even seen her yet."
"I received a tip. My source told me that Tsukishiro Shiina consistently goes to the Cafeteria daily, arriving precisely at 1:10 PM and departing at exactly 1:25 PM, with a margin of error of only three minutes. If you time your lunch right, you can probably grab the table right next to hers."
"Your informant is incredible! That level of detail is impressive."
"Wait, hold on."
A third boy leaned over the back of his chair, interrupting them. He pushed up his glasses with a smirk.
In terms of physical stats, those three are the obvious choices. They are S-Tier," the third boy said. "But you guys are amateurs. You're missing the hidden gem. My personal Top 4... no, actually, she's my Number 1 if we're talking about 'Character Design' and not just looks."
"Character design?" The first boy frowned. "This isn't a game."
"There is a girl," the third boy whispered, lowering his voice conspiratorially. "She goes to the Academy Plaza every single day. From 5:40 PM until 8:00 PM. She just stands there."
"What does she look like?"
"She wears an eyepatch," the third boy said with reverence. "And she holds a long black umbrella like a sword. She is really pretty and cute, exactly like a heroine in an anime. She's a total 'Chuunibyou' character come to life."
"An eyepatch?" The second boy looked skeptical. "How did you even get this intel? Who hangs out at the plaza at 6:00 PM?"
"I go through there sometimes for... reasons," the third boy grinned, making a gesture with his hands near his chest. "Trust me. You should go see her. Her uniform is modified, and let's just say... she's got a really big size."
"Big size? You mean—"
"You perverts!"
A girl's voice cut through the air like a whip. A female classmate sitting nearby slammed her book shut, glaring at the group of boys with absolute disgust.
"Can you stop talking about girls' sizes? It's gross!"
The boys scrambled to apologize, turning red.
Clack.
The classroom door slid open. Kuzumi-sensei walked in, carrying a heavy stack of test papers. The conversation died instantly.
Albert stared at the back of the boys' heads.
Must be nice. They got scolded, but they were laughing about it. They have a shared a joke. Meanwhile, I'm just listening from the back of the classroom.
Kuzumi-sensei ignored the boys talking. He dropped the heavy stacks onto the front desks. A dull thud echoed in the quiet room. He didn't look sleepy today. He looked like a bored bank teller.
"Clear your desks," Kuzumi-sensei said flatly. "The first Data Harvest begins now."
A murmur of confusion rippled through the room.
"Sir?" Leo raised his hand. "Is this a pop quiz? We've barely finished the introductory chapters."
"Zenith doesn't do 'pop quizzes,' Sterling," Kuzumi-sensei replied, dropping the heavy stacks onto the front desks with a dull thud. "And we don't do 'midterms' or 'finals' either. We do Standardized Data Collection. Every two weeks, all 4,000 first-year students across all 100 sections take the exact same test at the exact same time."
---
He turned to the whiteboard and wrote in a dry, scrawling hand:
Assessment Protocol
Duration: 90 Minutes per subject.
Scope: Five Core Academics
*Japanese
*Social Studies (Geography, History, & Civics)
*Science
*English
*Mathematics
Passing Score: 50/100.
---
"Ninety minutes?" Maya whispered, looking at the clock. "That's... almost a full day of testing."
"It is," Kuzumi-sensei said, checking his watch. "Unlike standard schools, we don't waste time on weekly mini-quizzes. We consolidate the evaluation into bi-weekly blocks. This maximizes your instructional time in between."
"Sir," a student in the front row asked nervously, raising a hand.
"Will our scores be... private? Isn't there a privacy law against posting names?"
Kuzumi-sensei paused. He looked at the student with a mix of boredom and pity.
"You're referring to the "Act on the Protection of Personal Information.", " Kuzumi-sensei said.
"A common misconception. You think the law is a shield. In this school, it is merely a contract clause," He leaned against the podium, crossing his arms.
"You really didn't read the enrollment fine print, did you? Page 4, Section C: The 'Joint Usage' Agreement."
The class stared at him blankly. "Let me give you a history lesson instead of a legal one," Kuzumi-sensei continued, his voice dry. "Five years ago, parents at a prep school in Tokyo sued the administration for posting class rankings. They claimed it caused 'psychological distress' and violated their children's privacy rights. It was a big case. The Kanto Private School Data Litigation."
He scanned the room, making eye contact with the nervous student. "Do you know who won?" The student shook his head. "The school did," Kuzumi-sensei said simply.
"The Supreme Court ruled that in a private institution where 'competitive excellence' is the stated educational goal, academic data is not 'private property.' It is classified as an **'Internal Environmental Metric.'**" He pointed toward the window, in the direction of the courtyard. "Basically, the moment both you and your guardian signed that contract, you agreed that your grades are no more private than your uniform size or your height. You entered a research zone. By Monday, the raw scores and ranking of every single student—from 1 to 4,000—will be displayed on the digital Score Bulletin Board. If you are at the top, you get the glory. If you are at the bottom, you get the shame. That is the system you paid to enter."
The room went deadly silent. The weight of the waiver they had blindly signed suddenly felt very heavy. The "Kanto Litigation" story made it final—there was no suing their way out of this.
"Digital copies of your test papers will be stored in the school's database and made publicly accessible. For your awareness, even your daily lunch selections at the cafeteria are logged, though only the school can view that data."
This revelation stunned the entire class, but they had no time to dwell on it as the first test was about to begin.
"Now," Kuzumi-sensei said, checking his watch. " You have 90 minutes on each subject. Begin."
---
Endnote of Chapter 22
Zenith Academy is a research facility for data gathering to formulate experimental teaching methods.
---
Logic Engine Log of Chapter 22
Constants:
*Federation (AJHSAF) enacting changes to the Inter-High Regional Protocols.
*Tsukishiro Shiina (月城至奈) is present at the Cafeteria between 1:10 PM and 1:25 PM on all school days.
*Unidentified female student who wears an eye patch. She carries a long black umbrella, gripping it like a sword. She occupies the Academy Plaza every single day from 5:40 PM to 8:00 PM.