Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818622172789075625/episodes/16818622175680525341
As the school festival approached, I froze, holding the printout in front of me.
The class, which I usually listen to intently so as not to miss a thing, had become nothing more than a background noise of despair.
I was completely unable to comprehend the content.
The reason for this was the printout.
I had just looked at the answers to the recent English quiz and felt completely deflated.
“This time, the average score was pretty high, so I had to reevaluate it. There were more than ten people who scored over 90 points, which is rare. Oh, and the only person who got a perfect score was Takagi from Class 3 ! Hahaha !”
Almost all the information went in one ear and out the other, but for some reason, the part that really hurt me was the one I couldn’t help but hear.
The fact that the test was generally well-done was already stressful, and on top of that, the fact that Takagi got a perfect score made it even worse.
Since this English teacher is the homeroom teacher for Class 3, he says it proudly, which makes it stick in my mind.
And as for my score on such a test…91 points.
Personally, it was a pretty painful score.
Of course, it’s still in the top tier of the grade, but if I can’t even get a perfect score on a small test, what will happen on the regular exam?
Just thinking about it is terrifying.
However, I knew this beforehand.
I wasn’t consistently at the top of the class in all subjects.
I could only consistently aim for a perfect score in math, which is my specialty, and Japanese was my worst subject.
Honestly, even maintaining an 80% score was difficult.
That’s why I knew it deep down.
But still, it’s frustrating.
Damn it, I was too focused on math.
With my string of perfect scores, I may have become too fixated on getting perfect scores in math and neglected other subjects.
This is clearly my mistake.
The classroom is buzzing with excitement, but I just can’t get into the mood.
At the same time, I found it strange that I was feeling so down.
After all, failing to get a perfect score on a quiz was, until recently, the norm for me.
Especially since English isn’t exactly my strong suit, I honestly didn’t think I had to always be at the top of the class even in a small test.
It’s only natural that I dropped to the 50s in the class rankings, but that was the extent of my mindset toward small tests until recently.
When did I start fixating so much on being at the top?
I can’t help but see Takagi’s unpleasant smile flashing through my mind.
I’m already so conscious of it that there’s nothing I can do about it.
“Haa…”
From now on, I’ll focus on studying English.
Not everything will go smoothly.
There will be days when I get good grades, and days when I get bad grades.
The important thing is to move on and not repeat the same mistakes in the next test.
As I took notes and tried to listen to the lesson, I remembered something unpleasant.
Speaking of which, he mentioned that only one person got a perfect score on this quiz.
The results will almost certainly be returned to the entire class today, and I’m sure the average score and the number of perfect scores will be discussed in every class.
Of course, that includes Takagi himself.
So what will happen?
What kind of action will he take?
…It’s too easy to imagine, and I can’t help but smile wryly.
Sigh, I’m sure he’ll provoke me the moment we see each other.
He’s the kind of person who comes to show off for no reason.
In this situation where he knows he’s definitely going to win, there’s no way he won’t make fun of me.
In that regard, I can trust him completely.
Putting the quiz aside, I’m already feeling down thinking about what comes next.
This incident has made me realize something.
No matter what the reason, I can’t lose to Takagi.
If I don’t want to give him any satisfaction, I have no choice but to keep winning.
“Haa…..”
I sighed, ruffling my hair.
He’s such a troublesome genius.
He’s genuinely intelligent, which is precisely why he’s so troublesome.
I can’t understand why a genius would act like a bully.
◇
It was around noon that day.
My concerns quickly became reality in an amusing way.
During break time, as I was walking down the hallway after leaving the restroom, I happened to run into Takagi.
As soon as he saw me, he gave me a smug, malicious smile, which made me feel terrible.
Just looking at his face, I could tell he was thinking, “I got a perfect score, but what about you? Hmm?”
This isn’t paranoia.
It’s caution based on past experiences.
Since I had no particular reason to stop, I tried to walk past him, but he placed his hand on my shoulder.
“Hey, isn’t that Edano, the current top student in our grade? Long time no see !”
“…It’s not like it’s been that long.”
It’s only been half a month since you picked a fight with me during the mock exam.
I pushed his hand off my shoulder because it was annoying, and the boys surrounding Takagi murmured.
Perhaps intrigued by the conversation between the current top student and Takagi, who had always been the undisputed leader, many others began to watch the situation unfold.
There were a lot of onlookers today.
As I silently looked at Takagi, he began speaking with a loud laugh.
“Speaking of which, the English quiz results were returned today ! It seemed a bit too easy for our school, but what do you think?”
“The average score was apparently high.”
In fact, the overall difficulty level was on the easier side.
However, it feels odd for me to say that since I didn’t get a perfect score.
So I gave a neutral response, but Takagi doesn’t seem satisfied.
He puts his hand on his chin and gives me a pensive look.
“That’s right. Of course, I got a perfect score, but honestly, there were no mistakes to be made on that test, and it was harder to lose points than to get them, right?”
He’s such a roundabout talker.
He’s slowly closing in from the outside, leaving me no room to escape.
He’s obviously trying to make fun of me, but he doesn’t seem to have any intention of getting to the point.
The corners of his mouth are twitching, but he’s trying to hold back. It’s almost like he’s laughing.
Am I really that entertaining right now?
“Oh, but the teacher said something strange. He said I was the only one who got a perfect score on such an easy test…”
“So?”
“Ahem, don’t you get it? There should be someone with better grades than me, but for some reason, I was the only one who got a perfect score… That’s weird, right? But then I realized, there’s no way Edano Tsukushi would miss a perfect score ! So this must be a mistake in the teacher’s grading or a forgotten note !”
“……”
He’s already figured out the answer, but he wants me to say it myself.
It’s rare to find someone with such a rotten core.
Takagi said with a smirk he couldn’t hide.
“Come on, Edano, tell me your score ! You got a perfect score too, right !?”
Since I’m losing, I have no words to retort.
It’s all my fault for giving him an opening.
As Takagi breathlessly pressed me, I could only sigh.
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