Classroom of the Elite (Light Novel) Vol. 2

ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ [Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e] (Novel) #2

by Syougo Kinugasa, Tomoseshunsaku (Illustrations)

THE RELUCTANT WITNESS

Class D has conquered the midterms, but their celebration is cut short when three Class C students falsely accuse Sudou of assaulting them! With their friend facing expulsion, and the class’s points on the line, Ayanokoji, Horikita, and Kikyou must team up to gather evidence to prove his innocence.

Genres: Light Novel, Fiction, Manga, School, Slice Of Life, Drama, Young Adult

383 pages, Paperback

First published September 25, 2015

About the author

Associated Names:
* Syougo Kinugasa / Shōgo Kinugasa (English)
* 衣笠彰梧 (Japanese)

Reviews

[Amar · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is only one drawback for these light novels. The dialogues are written in such a way that sometimes I am not able to understand who said it. Otherwise it's great.

[Buo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rating:1.5stars
Initially, I was going to give this one star MAXIMUM

Why do LN authors love dragging out silly stories for so many pages? I swear, I felt my intelligence decreasing as I read this
Also, this particular author is a sleaze bag, the way he writes his male students is so disgusting.
The first volume was fun and witty, but I'm honestly just so mad that this whole damn volume was about some dumb ass case.
The half star I added was for the character development at the end, Sudou's and Horikita's.
I'm excited about the little hint at Ayanokoji's past, but that's overshadowed by my anger at the time I wasted.

I plan on continuing the series because a friend recommended so strongly, but I'll probably take a break from it for now

[library ghost (farheen) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The world isn’t entirely beautiful. Everyone knows this, but in their hearts they still wish for that perfect, idyllic place. A bit of a contradiction."

this volume was mainly a courtroom drama but we get the glimpse of the high intelligence play that would take pretty much the centre stage later on and also some good old manipulation.

[A_ bookbound _soul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love these novels!! I enjoyed reading it right from page one. Heck, I even enjoyed reading the acknowledgements section.
Ayanokyoji-kun is as mysterious as always. The last chapter made me extremely hungry for some even a tiny bit of knowledge about his past (I'm trying really hard to restrain myself from googling spoilers). I suppose I just have to keep reading...
Now I'm off to re-watch the episodes adapted from this volume.

[Mika (Hiatus) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume was once again mainly about one major thing, just that I didn't think that it would actually take 200+ pages to resolve itself. I think that this book series is probably in general rather medium-paced which I don't find to be bothersome, just a bit surprised as the anime definitely was skipping some parts in the light novel which I wouldn't have known until I read it now, (glad I did).

Once again a secret is revealed. Also, at the end of this book another secret is hinted on (it might seem like the real question behind it got answered, but I'm sure there is more to it).

This volume seemed to be way more funny than the last one, though I think this isn't intentioned and probably just a me thing, but the way Ayanokouji sometimes acted (especially towards Horikita) is just too hilarious. The funny scenes weren't that many, but enough to put me off guard and make funny commentary to the scenes. For example when Ayanokouji remembered something and even though he was in the middle of a conversation with Ichinose he just started running away. Even funnier, Ichinose decided to just run with him, though she didn't know what was going on.

“Oh, yeah, that reminds me. There was one thing I wanted to tell you, Ayanokouji-kun.”
Before Ichinose could say anything, though, I was already running away. Whatever she wanted to tell me, it was going to have to wait.
“Huh?! W-wait a minute!”
Even though she couldn’t understand what was happening, for some reason Ichinose followed me.

Back to the relationship of Ichinose and Ayanokouji: They just in this volume and they didn't have mutual trust but that changed quickly and I do believe that their development went pretty fast, but it was still a good development which also made sense. The way Ayanokouji refused to be called a certain name for a lie and then changing roles and being the one to accept it later on without Ichinose pressuring him into it, showed how much his perspective about Ichinose changed. Once again, I see potential in them becoming allies. Definitely looking forward to seeing more of them.

I also noticed that the author must be liking Fyodor Dostoevsky as he mentioned again one of his works and it's only volume two.
Volume 1 mentioned: Crime and Punishment
Volume 2 mentioned: Demons
For the second time Horikita read it herself and if I remember correctly in the first volume it was just referenced for something else. Ayanokouji apparently also approves of the author as he thought to himself that what Horikita was reading was a ‘good choice’. For myself, I do approve of what Horikita was reading as well, as Fyodor Dostoevsky is indeed a great author.

And of course I shouldn't forgot the teaming up between Ayanokouji and Horikita, which already started in the last volume but is still interesting to observe. He even took a step further by tickling her which was just like in the anime funny.

I resigned myself to the fact that I might be killed later for doing this, but I got up slowly from my folding chair and stood behind Horikita. I stretched my arms out and grasped her sides as hard as I could.
“Hyah?!” Horikita cried out in an abnormally girlish voice.

Ayanokouji is again more human than he could ever be in the anime, specially in the manga which altered his personality completely, though he is way more robotic in the anime. It's sad to see that only the light novel made him appear to be human and have moments that some people could relate to. I honestly also see myself relating to him more than I could have ever in his anime version (though of course I don't relate to everything).

I was experiencing a strange phenomenon: I had friends, yet I was still on my own. It was an uncomfortable experience.

“I’m glad. When I was a kid, I used to cry in front of people all the time.”
“I had no idea that you were like that, Ayanokouji-kun. That’s completely unlike the image I have of you.”
“Yeah, I cried a lot. Maybe 10 or 20 times in front of other people.”

Also, can we please discuss about Sakagami-sensei, the homeroom teacher for Class C? He is such a bad person. I get that he of course is on the side of his own class he also represents, but his comments towards students that aren't his? Bad, way too bad. I'm glad that class D didn't met him before that incident 'cause I surely wouldn't want to meet him any time soon again after what he said. He is not just the gaslighting type, but in general seems to be mean to those that aren't his responsibility which is something I wouldn't expect from a teacher.

Another thing that I didn't like, which in this case might actually influence my rating, unless the one above as there are always bad characters in a story is that once again someone was sexually harassed, this time I didn't even remember that scene from the anime, which made me feel towards this scene even more uncomfortable. Though once again, it wasn't anything unnecessary but necessary for a major character development (I know this sounds crazy, but if you read this volume you will understand), so I won't reduce my rating like I did last time (last time it were two different ones though, with only one contributing to the story and the other one being unnecessary).

Based on enjoyment, I did prefer the first volume (excluding the ending of the 2nd volume which was really tense). I also think that more stuff happened in the first volume, if I compare both. Therefore I once again give this book a 3 star rating.
(This doesn't mean that I didn't like it, it just means that I see, but also know since I watched the anime, that there is more to come).

—————————————————

StoryGraph review

[Isbat Bin Hossain · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book was a bit dull compared to the first one... I feel like there wasn't much of a progression in terms of plot but some interesting new characters were introduced. And stage for future conflict is set. Looking forward to next volume

[Aida · Rating 4 out of 5]

End. 1401/11/14

[omar ☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 {★★★☆☆}


Esta parte se me hizo medio aburrida.
Me gustó que aquí vemos un poco más de Ichinose pero todo lo que pasó aquí se pudo resumir.

[kii · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 out of 5 stars

Not a big fan of the arc, honestly. I felt like it dragged on too much for a light novel with 217 pages. This was longer than Volume 1 yet I felt like nothing much happened. Perhaps the notable things are Sudou’s and Sakura’s character development and the mystery behind Ayanokouji.

I am excited to see how the story further progresses from here on out.

[Wilson Tun · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ll be honest. This was a boring and a drag to read. However, we can’t just skip Volume 2 to head straight for Volume 3.

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars.

nothing too good or bad. i found myself in a bit of a slump with this book because it is kind of slow and i didn’t really find an urge to finish it but i pushed through because i’m awaiting to see the real ayanokoji reveal himself. that’s all!

[Luluka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it and extremely excited to read the next one!

[Namtarn Chawanrat · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unpopular opinion from me: กุฝืนมากกก ไม่สนุก ไม่อิน นี่พยายามแล้วเพราะเขาบอกว่ามันจะสนุกเล่ม 3 เลยว่าจะยื้อต่อ แต่อ่านไปครึ่งเล่ม เหม่อค่ะ เขียนยืดเยื้อ จำตลค.ไม่ได้ ห้องเดียวก็แย่แล้ว มีห้องอื่นด้วย 😭 คิดว่าพลอตเบาไป ขอมันส์ๆกว่านี้

ที่ไม่อิน อาจจะเพราะโตเกิน genre ไปแล้ว อ่านแล้วแบบ อ่า ลำบากเหรอ? เคย 200 บาทอยู่ถึงสิ้นเดือนมะอ้ะ เพื่อนโดนออกแล้วไง เพื่อนโดนไทร์ หรือโดนไล่ออกต่อหน้าต่อตาก็เคยมีมาแล้ว ไม่เห็นจำเป็นต้องไปช่วยแบกเลย

คือมัน play safe ไ���่พลอตทวิต ไม่เครียด เดาได้ ไม่เห็นมีอะไรเลย อ่านแล้วก็แค่วัยรุ่นช่วยๆกันแก้ปัญหา แค่นี้เลย

[Jabbejab · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heat

Pretty good Volume... I like especially how it portrays how Chabashira Sensei has been plotting on making Ayanokuji work for the class and that apparently she was the one who wanted to push Horikita to try to understand him which really wasn't touched on in the anime... Also Ayanokuji uses Horikita as a tool pretty sneakily which also wasn't shown in the anime... Overall great read

[lauti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Primera lectura: 3 estrellas
Relectura: 3.5 estrellas

Aunque esta novela se centre solamente en UN tema, fue muy entretenido de leer por cómo se desenlazan los hechos.
Además, vamos conociendo a más personajes (como a Ichinose, tkm) y poco a poco conocemos qué tipo de persona son los demás. También se nos desvela muuuuuuy de a poco que nuestro protagonista no es alguien "estándar".

[rodolfo · Rating 4 out of 5]

### Análisis de "Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e" (Bienvenido a la Clase de la Supremacía de las Capacidades) de Kinugasa Shougo, Volumen 2

**Género y Características**
El segundo volumen de "Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e" sigue profundizando en el género de thriller psicológico, manteniendo su enfoque en el drama y el misterio escolar. Continúa con la exploración de las dinámicas sociales y académicas en un entorno altamente competitivo, ampliando los dilemas éticos y morales presentados en el primer volumen.

**Sinopsis de la trama**
En este volumen, la historia se intensifica con la introducción de pruebas más complejas y manipulativas diseñadas para desafiar a los estudiantes de formas nuevas y más severas. Ayanokoji y sus compañeros de la Clase D se enfrentan a un examen particularmente difícil que pone a prueba no solo su inteligencia sino también su lealtad y ética. A medida que se desarrollan las alianzas y rivalidades, Ayanokoji utiliza su enigmática habilidad para manipular los resultados a favor de su clase, revelando poco a poco su estrategia y objetivos a largo plazo. Este volumen también explora más sobre las relaciones entre los personajes y cómo estas afectan su rendimiento y estrategias en los exámenes.

**Aspectos Positivos y Negativos**
Un punto fuerte de este volumen es cómo profundiza en la psicología de sus personajes, explorando sus miedos, motivaciones y resiliencia de manera más detallada. Esto enriquece la narrativa y hace que los personajes sean más tridimensionales y relacionables. Sin embargo, algunos lectores podrían encontrar que el ritmo de la novela es desigual en ocasiones, alternando entre momentos de acción intensa y desarrollo de personajes más lento, lo que podría afectar la cohesión del relato.

**Contexto Histórico y Cultural**
El autor sigue comentando sobre la cultura educativa de alto rendimiento, algo muy presente en sociedades contemporáneas, no solo en Japón sino globalmente. La presión para sobresalir y las consecuencias de la competencia extrema se presentan como un microcosmos de problemas sociales más amplios.

**Desarrollo de Personajes**
El desarrollo de personajes en este volumen es notable, especialmente el de Ayanokoji, cuyas acciones y decisiones empiezan a revelar más sobre su carácter complejo y a veces contradictorio. Personajes como Horikita y Kushida también reciben más atención, proporcionando una visión más completa de sus conflictos internos y su crecimiento.

**Estilo del Autor y Mensaje**
Shougo Kinugasa mantiene un estilo narrativo que balancea el diálogo inteligente con descripciones detalladas de las maniobras estratégicas. El mensaje del autor parece profundizar en la crítica al utilitarismo y al individualismo extremo, explorando sus impactos psicológicos y morales en los individuos.

**Crítica y Temas Explorados**
La crítica a los sistemas educativos y a la meritocracia se intensifica en este volumen. Los temas de justicia, equidad y sacrificio son explorados con mayor profundidad, proporcionando una rica tela de fondo para la reflexión ética y moral.

**Simbolismo**
El simbolismo en este volumen se ve en cómo las pruebas representan barreras sociales y económicas en la vida real, y cómo las personas manipulan o son manipuladas dentro de estos sistemas para avanzar o sobrevivir.

**Valoración General**
Este segundo volumen recibe una valoración de 4.5 de 5 estrellas por su profunda exploración de los temas y su desarrollo efectivo de personajes. Es altamente recomendable para aquellos que disfrutaron del primer volumen y buscan una continuación que profundice en los dilemas éticos y las estrategias complejas.

**Recomendaciones de Lectura**
Si te gustó este volumen, podrías estar interesado en "1984" de George Orwell, por su exploración de la vigilancia, el control social y los temas distópicos. Otro libro recomendable es "El señor de las moscas" de William Golding, que explora la naturaleza humana y la civilización frente a la barbarie en un entorno aislado y competitivo.

[Donte McNeal · Rating 5 out of 5]

So with the drama of the midterms officially over, Ayanokouji, Horikita, Kushida, and the rest of Class D encounter a new hurdle to overcome:

Sudou, a promising basketball player, and well-known hothead is accused of luring three students to a rarely used building and physically assaulting them to the point they sustained serious injuries. Of course, Sudou says he was lured there and his violence was merely self-defense. So with a classic he said-they said scenario, and the viable proof of Sudou beating them up, Ayanokouji and Class D has to find a way to prove Sudou’s innocence. That’s easier said than done, especially with Sudou’s proven short temper and violent history. He’s known as a good fighter, who isn’t one to back down after being provoked in even the slightest of ways.

The story that follows is a mad dash to find a possible witness to the altercation, a mystery that’s revealed to the reader in the first chapter, but left to be discovered by the class throughout the course of the novel. We get to see things through the eyes of a new-ish character: Sakura Airi. Sakura is an extremely shy student, with an air of mystery about her. We know so little about her initially, but the more the story progresses, the more we learn. Her interactions with Ayanokouji reveal quite a bit about her and our usual MC. It’s always fascinating to see how Ayanokouji interacts with the others in his class (and those at the school).

Little by little, more of his backstory is revealed and you get to peek past his superficial teenage boy thoughts. What’s revealed is a history of loneliness, sadness and the like. But, that’s all I’ll say on that front. This story seems to be an ensemble, with a lot of the same characters getting attention as Ayanokouji tries to close the distance between himself and others to become real friends with them. With that said, it’s clear he doesn’t know how to interact socially with others, which makes truly connecting with his classmates that much more difficult. That, in turn, causes creating friendships an uphill task for him.

Still, watching him tackle the problems of those around him, despite wanting to “avoid trouble” is always interesting. I’m curious to see what comes next for Class D after this altercation is cleared up. I enjoyed the ride with this one.

[Courtney Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was all about Sudou's trial because Class C students wanted to ambush him and get him kicked off the basketball team because he was going to be a first year starter and they didn't like it. Ayanokouji is really smart but he doesn't want people to know that he is and he just wants to exist in peace but the class won't seem to let him. I like him and Horikita together and I wish that Kikyou would really just leave them alone because she's not very nice and wants to keep him as a servant because he caught her freaking out and ranting about hating Horikita. He helps out Sakura and he's a good person with good advice about people talking about their feelings and not running away from it because they are scared of hurting other peoples feelings. They work with Class B to find a witness to what happened with Sudou.

Horikita and Ayanokouji trick the Class C students to coming to a building and acting like they have video evidence of the incident and tell them to withdraw the complaint against Sudou and then no one can be punished if the event didn't happen because the council is just testing them to see what they would do in this type of situation. This works and they withdraw the complaint and it seems that someone hates Class D and wants them to stay at the bottom of the totem pole.

Ayanokouji thinks that he's a defective, flawed and horrible human being and I can't wait to find out what it is. I can't wait to read more books in the series.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok light novels do count as novels because this took me like 4 hours to read

4 stars because I don't care that much about Sudo, although I liked the development of Ayanokoji.

I remember watching the anime when it first came out in 2017. It was so hyped up I decided to watch it and forced myself to like it because it was popular. I think I understand why I was so confused now. The anime omits >50% of Ayanokoji's inner monologue that explain details that your average middle school child wouldn't notice in the fast-paced animation. For example it felt kind of dumb that Class C decided to withdraw their accusation because some security cameras (that they knew didn't exist before) popped up. But it made sense that Ayanokoji used the heat to their advantage to interfere with their thinking, and therefore they forfeited the hearing.

I don't remember that sexual assault scene of Sakura at all. I'm glad my mind never remembered it but also mad that know I am reminded of its existence. Not necessary at all. The LN doesn't even go that far if I recall correctly.

The anime had a scene where Ayanokoji saw the points on Ichinose's phone but it didn't happen in the LN?

Also maybe I should stop rewatching the anime alongside the LN because the anime changes the sequence of events and switches around characters for that extra drama. It's kind of getting confusing trying to remember the plot.

Again, I HATE THE FAN SERVICE

3:03am
-Alicia

[Jewels · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 4/5 stars. (Also, there are 383 pgs. to the paperback copy, at least the one I have if you include the author's postscript)
This was a good detective arc for the series. There was some light back-and-forth action that kept me interested, even as I began recalling the plot details from the earlier anime. And that ending! Man, it makes me more anxious to learn more about each individual character (especially Sakura, who I want to root for to get better at socializing!).
That being said, seriously Sudou? This character in particular better shape up. I definitely agree with some other readers that this hot-head needs to cool it. I've yet to see any help he brings to the plot or his classmates. He is literally hanging by a thread here...
Well, other than a few grammatical errors besides Sudou, this was an entertaining read, and still recommend this series. Here's to the next novel!

[Nathanael Rath · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 Honestly very disappointed compared to the first novel, I think it was dragging for way to long, nothing captivating. The fist novel ended with a cliffhanger in my opinion but it didn't live up to the expectations. Don't really have nothing to say honestly, it was mostly interactions between students, which I liked but it definitely missing something. Even tho I didn't enjoy most of it, I still wanted to finish it because maybe the ending would be good, and for that i'm happy. The ending was very good in my opinions, we had a mini trials against the other class, I was grasping my book during those chapters, and the ending we got the mini intense dialogue. The ending was very good and that is why I will keep on reading this series, because even tho this one wasn't interesting, I want to know more about Ayanokoji and Horikita my two favorites characters as of right now !!!!

[mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was actually thinking to give it a 3/5, because I slightly took a break on it (I got a little bored). But when I look back the chapters I remember how much I was actually excited reading it and how much I wanted to finish it.

Even though this captures the next three episodes(4-6) in the first season, and I've already seen then, I'm still surprised how different and how much it changed during the adaptation. Seriously, the "reveal" of the main character, Ayanokouji, in this novel gave me more chills than the anime.

And the fact that Ayanokouji was interacting with Ichinose more in the novel was shocking to me. Because in the anime it showed more that Ayanokouji was with Horikita 24/7. Well... Almost.

Seeing that, I really can't wait to read the next volume and see how different this novel is to the anime. I'm so looking forward the special test on the dessert island!

[Sarwar · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this one was shorter and the story was far less interesting. But damn if the characters didn’t overcompensate in every single way.

The main character, Ayanokouji, remains as intriguing as ever and you can only guess at why he does the things he does. I can say he is singlehandedly carrying the series so far, but that would be an understatement.

Being 200 pages, this felt like a novella. A little incident that main resolution was to finally hint that our MC was more than he let on. Set-up upon set-up and I feel more to come. But I sense it will be worth it. On to the next, which I hear is the where the fun truly hits high gear.

4 stars, because I don’t consider this to be more than a side story.

[HardLight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I decided to write all these on the 5th of November at 1 am while angrily annoyed at something that I'll cover when we get past vol 16(y2 v5) but the introduction of characters I absolutely love is in this volume and they are somewhat less developed people than I know in the anime, let's take the scene with Sakura being assaulted, it's far more graphic in the anime than the LN and I was shocked at this with what's coming on Vol 4, but this story contains only major developments for Kiyotaka, Kushida and Horikita and maybe a little bit with Sudo, outside of them it's just a snorefest of development.
These stories are building blocks upon each other, as I personally think you're meant to understand them as a single whole rather than individual stories .

[Cress · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Sakura—she’s such a sweetheart! 💜 tho this volume isnt my favorite thing overall, but that ending was everything! That conversation between Chabashira-sensei and Horikita? Chef’s kiss. “Well, Horikita. Let’s try to learn as much as we possibly can about the boy called Ayanokouji, without delay, shall we? Otherwise, it’ll be too late. You already seem to have fallen into Ayanokouji’s trap.”Ahhh, Horikita always thinks she’s the shit, but girl—you’re just a pawn, and you don’t even know it! 😂
And then him saying: “I knew more about me than anyone else. I knew just how defective, just how foolish I was. I was a horrible human being.”
Like… talk about ominous. I cannot wait for the next volume!

[Da · Rating 3 out of 5]

Watched the anime first made me always think that book's Ayanokouji is out of character. He's not as stoic as him in the anime it somewhat doesn't feels right.

The plot felt really slow in this book that I have to say the anime really done a great job cutting and changing the plot, though it still cut too much part. And I still hate the way the boys describe girls. Like... why... is it really necessary?

I've got to see some of Ayanokouji’s 'work' in this book. Even though I would say that I might won't be able to notice if Horikita didn't point it out and if I haven't watched the anime yet, but I watched it and man that's kinda mindblowing.
And... our mc really out there stealing the girls attention.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it, and it was a quick, fast read. But I can't give it 5-stars because as easy and quick as it was, it spent far too much time on one aspect of the story. I enjoyed the introduction of some new characters and getting to know Class D a bit better as well. It is very obvious that there is a set up for further drama in Classroom of the Elite. All in all it was a fun volume. I am hoping the next one (few) are at least as entertaining as this one if not more.

Verdict: Worth looking up. Haven't seen the anime, but the light novels are pretty fun and interesting.

[AP · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25

Managed to give the 2. volume a read/listen as well before the free option ran out on audible. I do really enjoy the premise of Classroom of the Elite and the intrigue. The LN are okay, but they are just middle of the road for me personally. I was a bit more into the manga volumes I managed to read from my library minus the fanservice. If I had had access to the series from my library aside 6 manga volumes I would probably have continued the series every now and then as it's not bad, but not something I would rush to finish either.

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, to learn that your class is full of defectives...

well, that ain't no surprise.

But to strive to shore up their faults, pull them out of the fire, and draw them out of their shells... well, that's just good YA drama.

It's pretty classic and entertaining.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

Arctunn.com

[Md. Ismail Hossen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I have predicted, the main hero is the one with cunning personality. However, this book was quite slow compared to the first one. A single event covered the whole story made it look way longer than it was anticipated. On top of that, nothing that interesting happened during this whole book. It is just a introduction of a new surreal character nothing more. If it goes on by this quality, It will become difficult to continue reading forward.