A New Masterpiece (COTE x OC)

Chapter 27 - The Beginning

(Sudo Ken, POV)

I don't know if I can consider myself a proper human.

When I was young, I always strived to be strong and independent. Especially when my mother left my family.

I strived for the strength to carry myself through life without having to need anyone.

I never liked my father either. He was a weak and small man; who let anyone step over him.

I didn't want to live that old life anymore.

One where I relied on others and a life of weakness.

So, I sought out the only way to live my life the way I wanted to.

Through sports.

I gave up all hope in academics and completely put my all into my athletics.

I was already a gifted individual when it came to athleticism, but the training I did put my head and shoulders above the rest.

With the skill I had, I could live the life I wanted without having to look back at where I came from.

My basketball skills propelled me to the top and even got me a recommendation at one of the top high schools in the nation.

I believed that the life I wanted was within arm's length.

But... My own stupidity and failure as a person took that opportunity away from me. My problematic attitude and low grades took that chance away from me.

Maybe I was destined to be scum born from bad parents.

I can't blame that shortcoming, though, because, in the end, I was the one to blame. I was the one who turned my vision away from those aspects of life.

But another opportunity presented itself to me.

Advanced Nurturing High School.

A place that could give me the future I wanted. The future I needed.

A place that could guarantee my future: even for someone like me.

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(Fukumoto Akio, POV)

"So that's how they decided upon the VIP..." I muttered.

Currently, a rather unusual group of individuals occupied a table at the famous Pallet Cafe before classes started.

Ayanokouji, Horikita, Hirata, Kei, and I had all decided to meet up just before the first class of the second semester to discuss the more troublesome exam from our summer vacation.

"Let's take the Rabbit Group, for example," Horikita continued the explanation. "Based upon the position the Rabbit sign is in the zodiac, which is fourth. Using the last names of all the group members in alphabetical order it would go, Ayanokouji-kun, Ibuki-san, Ichinose-san, then you, Karuizawa-san. Making you the VIP."

Karuizawa sat there for a moment, trying to sift through this explanation.

Everyone else at the table understood it, but she was struggling for a bit.

"So that's how I was chosen as VIP?" Kei asked.

"Precisely," Horikita replied. "All the other groups functioned similarly. By using the position of their zodiac sign and list of surnames in alphabetical order, you could determine the VIP of any group."

"Isn't that almost too simple of a way to select the VIP," Hirata questioned.

"It most definitely is," Horikita swiftly replied. "But, only at first glance. Now that we are over with the exam, we could consciously and thoroughly analyze the results and conditions of the exam. That's what let us find this solution. But considering the conditions we were under in the exam, it made it extremely difficult for us to deduce this, as we were more preoccupied with the exam."