Chapter 1: Nice to meet you, Teacher!

Being the smartest person in the room isn't always fun. Everyone is asking you questions, and you know the answer. Everyone expects that you know every single thing in this world. Expectations that you get when people realize that you are the smartest aren't easy to meet. In the end, they will soon refer to you as a "genius."

I, Keisuke Takahashi, am one of those people that they call "genius." Sadly, I'm not. I always say to people, "Simply read books and you'll be able to do the same." The replies I always get are, "I can't be like you," "I do that, but I cannot reach your level," and "you have a talent that none of us do." I believe that all of those answers were just excuses. I work twice as hard as everyone else. Being the only one who does that feels lonely...

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"Kei! Food's ready!" said my mom.

The voice of my mom can reach my room, located on the second floor of our home, which I'm in. I'm currently looking in my mirror and checking if my clothes look okay. I fixed my tie lightly, and I widely opened my arms.

"The school's uniform really looks cool," I said.

I picked up my bag and went downstairs, where our kitchen is. Mom is placing the plates on the table. The foods are all prepared, so I already took a seat.

"Where's dad?" I asked.

"He went out early today," said my mom.

"Got it," I said.

With just those exchanges of words, I proceeded to eat my food.

"You know, there's a new teacher today that's rather interesting," my mom said.

"If she has a strict way of grading, then it's not a problem for me," I said.

"Hehe, is that so?" giggled my mom.

"What's with that 'hehe'?" I asked.

"Oh, I'm not going to spoil the mood for you, hehe," my mom said.

I didn't talk, and I finished eating. My mom works as a teacher at my current school, Eien Academy. Where elites gather when it comes to academics and sports, I ride my mom's car on her way to school to avoid travel expenses. Today is the first day of school, so I did my best to look good.

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"Have a great first day," said my mom.

"I will," I said.

I closed the door of our car, and my mom drove away. I placed my bag behind me and gave the school a look. It's huge, and the building is freshly painted. You can also notice that the place is kept clean. There is no sign of trash, and the air feels refreshing. The sakura trees also add beauty to the school.

"Excuse me, are you a first-year student?" A girl engaged in a conversation with me.

"Yes! Yes, I am," I said nervously.

The girl who engaged in a conversation with me is a young woman who's the same age as me. She has pink hair and glasses. But for some reason, she's wearing a formal business suit that's similar to that of a teacher.

"Excuse me, are you cosplaying?" I asked.

"Oh, no, I'm actually a new teacher here," said the girl.

"You're kidding," I said.

The girl blinks twice and places her black notebook on her lips.

"No, I'm not," said the girl.

"Sorry, but I don't have time for this. I have to get ready for my speech," I said.

"No, I just—"

Before she finished her sentence, I interrupted her.

"I scored the highest in the entrance exam, so as the best student, I have a reputation to protect. So try other students to mess with," I said.

"Hey! That's not nice!" She replied.

I turned to her before I walked away. I gave her an intimidating look, and I can tell that she's intimidated.

"That suit doesn't suit you," I said.

With that exchange of words, I walked away.

The students made their way to the gymnasium, where the ceremony would begin. I also headed there and took my seat, which is located in the front. The principal came in and stood on the podium. He began his speech, and I listened quietly. In the corner of my eye, I noticed that my mom was yawning. I can't believe her...

The speech of the principal came to an end, and the next speech will be called.

"Ai Shimizu, who got the highest score in the entrance exam, please make your way to the stage."

"Huh?!" I shouted.

I stood up, and the crowd looked my way. I quickly sat down and clenched my fist. I'm so embarrassed! The school sent me a letter saying that I'm the one who got the highest score, so what happened?!

I slightly looked in the direction of my mom, and I could see her trying to maintain her laughter. She didn't tell me on purpose! I looked at the teaching staff, and I could see the girl with pink hair also looking in my direction. We made eye contact, and she put her hand in her mouth.

She's definitely making fun of me!

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The ceremony was over, and we headed to our respective classrooms. I just stood in my chair with both of my hands in my head. I am trying to process everything that has happened so far this day.

"Hey, you alright?" asked a guy who seemed to be one of my classmates. He's sitting next to me.

I turned to him and flipped up my switch. I smiled and engaged in a conversation.

"Yes, I'm quite fine. I'm Keisuke Takahashi; you are?" I asked.

"I'm Yuto Tanaka; nice to meet you," said Tanaka.

I took a look at the room, and I noticed that Ai Shimizu is in the same class as me. Of course she is; this room is the star section. A lot of girls tried to have a conversation with her, but it seems she lacks the skill to socialize. A smart girl with a problem communicating.

"You like Shimizu?" asked Tanaka.

"No, she's just having trouble fitting in the room," I said.

"It looks like it," said Tanaka.

"I'll go talk to her," I said.

I stood up and slowly walked towards Ai Shimizu. As I got closer to her, the door of our classroom opened up, and the girl with pink hair entered the room. She locked eyes with me and smirked.

"Number 2, please take a seat," said the pink-haired girl.

This girl... She wants to embarrass me every chance she gets. My classmates looked in our direction and gave us their attention. Doing as she said, I went back to my seat.

"She's young," said Tanaka.

I didn't reply and just looked in front. My seat is located in the last row of the room, and the third seat is close to the door. The door is on our right side.

The pink-haired girl started writing on the chalkboard; the characters she wrote are mei (famous), sei (pure), and mizu (water).

"My name is Mei Shimizu; I'll be your homeroom teacher for the next three years. I hope to get along with all of you," said the pink-haired girl.

"Sensei, how old are you?" asked one of the students in front.

"I'll be 16 this year," said the pink-haired girl.

"That means..." muttered the student.

"You're 15 years old!" screamed the other student.

"EH?!!!" screamed the whole class.

"That's how it is, hehe," said the pink-haired girl.

I couldn't take it anymore, so I stood up in my seat. The class looked in my direction, and all of them had a confused look.

"Hey, what are you doing?" asked Tanaka.

I went to the front and confronted the pink-haired girl who was claiming that she was a teacher. I coldly looked into her eyes and proceeded to the chalkboard. I picked up one of the chalks and wrote a math problem.

I gave the chalk to the pink-haired girl, and she looked at me with confused eyes.

"You're a teacher, right? This should be easy to solve for you," I said.

The pink-haired girl didn't give me a reply and just looked at the equation on the chalkboard. The class had a confused look on their faces and tried to solve the problem themselves.

"A P versus NP problem," muttered the pink-haired girl.

"Correct," I said.

"You're quite knowledgeable; this is a college-level problem," said the pink-haired girl.

"A college-level?" muttered one of the students.

"He already has knowledge about topics in college," muttered another student.

"Was this too hard?" I asked.

The pink-haired girl proceeded to the chalkboard and wrote the correct answer to the question. She threw the chalk back onto the chalkboard.

"Quite the opposite; it's too easy," said the pink-haired girl.

"Tsk," I muttered.

"There is no specific equation for the P versus NP problem because it is a question about the relationship between two classes of problems. This question is not framed in terms of a mathematical equation but rather in terms of complexity theory and computational algorithms," said the pink-haired girl.

"That's indeed correct," I said.

"You thought I was going to solve this with a self-made equation like a fool, weren't you?" she teased.

I couldn't reply at all and just stayed silent.

"Now go back to your seat and refer to me as a teacher from now on," said the pink-haired girl.

I quietly returned to my chair, and I heard my classmates laughing behind my back. The teacher humiliated me just like how I humiliated her earlier. I sat down in my chair and looked straight at the board.

"Huh? Why are you smiling?" asked Tanaka.

"Well, this year seems to be the most interesting year in my life."