Chapter 80

After the school trip, the midterm exams will follow.

With many excellent external students joining, I need to put in even more effort to study for the exams.

Actually, I haven't joined any cram schools for high school yet, so I only have a private tutor. I decided to increase the number of sessions before the exams.

"Rika, it seems you're still a bit weak in math. If you keep practicing with the problem sets, you can overcome your weaknesses. Try your best!"

"Okay."

I just can't keep practicing, though. Because I hate it...

But if I don't, I might be called for remedial classes again. I absolutely don't want to go back to those lonely days. And I really don't want to give up the current situation where I'm praised as 'Sure enough, it's Rika-sama' just because I'm a commoner!

For this ridiculous pride, I will diligently battle with the incomprehensible formulas once again today.

This time, I decided to try a nutritional drink. I usually get sleepy and wobbly if I sleep less than the usual 7 hours a day.

However, I'm too scared to try the expensive ones that cost over 1,000 yen per bottle. It feels like my last resort.

So, I bought a popular 3-pack.

Ah, this taste is familiar. I used to drink it sometimes in my previous life.

I'm not sure if it's working or not, but I kind of like the idea of drinking a nutritional drink and studying hard for the exams.

When my mother saw me throwing away the nutritional drink bottle, she worriedly said, "You don't have to work so hard, dear." But then she gave me a lot of incredibly expensive beauty drinks, which I also drank.

Come on, bring it on! Midterm exams!

After drinking the nutritional drink and working hard, the midterm exams were, well, as expected, it's me...

After the exams, my mother took me to a spa and a hair salon. My mother really cares about my appearance. She must have a clear image of what a young lady should be like. I'm glad it's not Gothic Lolita.

And the sudden appearance of white hair is now back to its original black. To prevent such a tragedy from happening again, I've been getting thorough head spas ever since.

A few days after such spa and treatments, my skin and hair were shining. Then, the results of the midterm exams were posted.

In the high school division, only the top 30 ranks are posted. Out of about 300 people, the top 30 is definitely impossible for me.

...Even though I say it's impossible, why do I still have a glimmer of hope deep down?

With a face that says "I'm not good enough," I go to check the bulletin board.

I look up nervously, but yeah, as expected, it's not there.

However, there are many unfamiliar names. These must be the external students. They are impressive.

Among them, the one that stands out is

1st place: Hayate Kagemi

2nd place: Shuji Enjo

They are amazing. Their total scores are almost perfect. What kind of brains do they have? I'm envious. In our grade, the 1st and 2nd places have always been from the middle school. The rankings between these two often change.

And while 1st and 2nd places were Kagemi and Enjo, 3rd place was actually Wakaba! And her scores were very close to theirs. Could she possibly take the top spot in the next final exams?!

Wakaba was looking at the bulletin board as usual, with her hair slightly flipped up. She doesn't look very smart... Wakaba, close your mouth! You look silly!

Other students were also gossiping about who Wakaba is, and when they saw her, they were surprised. Wakaba embodies the saying "A capable hawk hides its claws."

In the ranking table, which is mostly filled with external students, Atemaya is in 5th place. Amazing! I'm proud as a fellow Atemaya!

Wakaba looked relieved when she found her name. For a scholarship student, grades are a matter of life and death. Congratulations.

Then, Kagemi and Enjo arrived. They usually don't pay much attention to the ranking table, but they seem to be interested in the first ranking after entering the school.

When they came, the students who were gathered around the bulletin board immediately parted to the sides.

Kagemi, who only looked at the top ranks where their names should be, muttered,

"Who is Wakaba from the High School?"

The students around Kagemi heard this and reported, "It seems to be that girl."

Kagemi glanced at Wakaba and then left the bulletin board with Enjo. Enjo, on the other hand, looked a bit interested.

Then, the students started to buzz in a different way. There was a slightly uneasy atmosphere. And the word I heard was "arrogant"...

While no one openly attacks Wakaba, some students seem to be unhappy that she threatened Kagemi and Enjo's rankings. Moreover, since she is a commoner, which is not typical for Seiran, it irritates them even more.

But that's not the case. Since Wakaba is a scholarship student, she has to achieve results. And if we're talking about threatening their rankings, what about Atemaya, who has always been 3rd in the middle school?

When I mentioned this to my friends, they all said, "Suzaki-kun is fine." Why? Is it because of his face?

Not only that, but Atemaya has a charm that attracts people, regardless of gender. He even became the student council president.

So, don't put your own lack of intelligence on the shelf and target the smart external students.

"Since the external students have passed the tough entrance exams, it's natural that they are smart. But what's impressive is that Kagemi-sama and Enjo-sama are still at the top despite the competition from these external students."

"Indeed! They are amazing, Emperor and Enjo-sama!"

In front of the girls, just mentioning those two names is almost always a safe bet. The atmosphere suddenly became cheerful and excited.

My rank on the individual grade sheets is 73rd. Hmm, is this a rank to be happy about?

Recently, my stress reliever has been needle felting.

Poking wool with a special needle is strangely fun. The first thing I made while following a book was a snowman. I just made white spheres of different sizes and added eyes.

But I have to be careful not to concentrate too much, as it can hurt my eyes. Eyes, eyes!

I usually do it in my room, but sometimes I do it in the living room.

What I'm making now is a soft taro. I keep poking the brown felt with the needle... and poking... and poking...

When my older brother came home late at night and saw me, he asked, "Who are you making this for?"

It's not a voodoo doll...

Ah, I want someone to understand this feeling. I want to join the handicraft club... Should I push it without reading the room?

But if I do, I'll end up alone in the club room again. Uh, these tears are from concentrating on needle felting.