Chapter: 6.5

"Why was I doing this? Why was I doing all this until now?" "Hey, Hirata! What are you doing?!" Ike shouted.

It wasn't clear if Hirata heard him at all. I gently placed my hand on his shoulder. He looked surprised, but slowly turned around.

"Ike's calling for you," I said. "Huh?"

Hirata's face was drained of life. He was pale. The second time Ike

called, Hirata slowly started to regain his sanity. He finally noticed that it had begun raining.

"Rain…"

"It'd be good for you to help Ike and the others. We have to keep our stuff dry."

"Y-yeah. We need to take care of everything quickly." "Ayanokouji. Is Hirata okay?" Sudou asked.

"Looks like he's in shock. I suppose it's probably because of all these

things going wrong one after the other."

"You know, in junior high there was this rich kid honor student. He had a lot of really heavy responsibilities, y'know? Anyway, he took so much on himself that one day, he ended up having a breakdown. After that, his class became a complete mess."

"You think there are signs of that with Hirata?"

"Well, saying he's gonna have a breakdown would be an exaggeration, but I think there's danger there."

I wondered if this was just Sudou's wild imagination at work, but it seemed surprisingly accurate. Since this special test had started, Hirata has taken on a lot of responsibilities. These issues made the troubles we'd faced at school seem easy. Hirata's carefully maintained environment had definitely begun to change. The theft of Karuizawa's underwear and the uproar over the fire had turned Hirata as unhinged and stormy as the weather.

"For the time being, let's take care of the luggage."

We joined up and helped the students put things away. Thankfully,

everything got secured pretty fast.

"Okay. All of the preparations are made."

It didn't surprise me that Ibuki disappeared, but Horikita had vanished as well. By my calculations, the possibility had been fifty-fifty, but it seemed things were progressing favorably. I fixed my eyes on the road that led straight to the beach, and stepped onto the path.

6.8

I forced my heavy, sluggish body to chase after Ibuki-san while the hard rain fell. The sky was covered with rain clouds that blocked out the sun, so visibility was poor. Even though I couldn't see Ibuki-san, she'd left footprints in the muddy ground. If I just followed them, they'd lead me right to her.

She'd walked about a hundred meters from the base camp, sometimes veering off to the right or left. Rather unexpectedly, I found her waiting, as if expecting me. I instinctively hid myself, though there probably wasn't any point.

"What are you doing, Horikita?"

Ibuki spoke without even turning around. Her calm voice cut right through the sounds of the falling rain.

"I noticed you following me. Why don't you just come on out?" "When did you notice me?" I asked.

"Right from the start."

Her short answer felt ominous. My impression of her as being quiet and taciturn didn't change, but something was different.

"Why were you following me?" "Do you really not know?" "No, I don't know."

It was almost like I was the villain here.

"You clearly know why I was following you, don't you?" "I really have no idea what you're talking about."

Ibuki-san faced me, looking me straight in the eye. I saw no deception in her eyes whatsoever. It almost made me want to apologize. After all, I had no proof. I only had my intuition.

"Why should I lie?" she pressed further, as if she noticed my hesitation. "I'd at least like to hear why you followed me, from your own lips."

D."

that."

"The underwear theft and the fire. Misfortune continues to befall Class

"So what?"

"Do you realize that some people suspect you?"

"Ah. I suppose since I'm an outsider, there's not much I can do about

"That's what I'm talking about."

"You're saying I'm the culprit? Do you have any proof?" "Unfortunately, I don't have a single shred of evidence related to the

underwear theft. But I think it was you."

"That's a pretty terrible thing to say. You don't have any evidence, yet you suspect me?"

I had to admit, I was impressed by how she was handling this. She'd laid low until day five, and she'd kept her distance from Class D. Contrary to normal expectations, she wasn't suspected.

"I suspect you because of today. You don't need me to explain that, do

you?"

I wanted to hear it from Ibuki-san herself. If I explained all of the

reasons for my doubts, that would almost be the same as admitting my identity as the leader. Even if I was 99% confident, so long as there was a 1% chance of her being innocent, I needed to avoid being direct.

"Let me cut to the chase. I want you to return something you took from me," I said to Ibuki-san, while I stood and stared her in the eye.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

After giving that short answer, she walked away quickly. I followed, matching her speed. Ibuki-san changed course and headed toward the center of the forest.

"Where are you going?" I asked. "Who knows?"

It was difficult to walk straight. I'd realized this over the past several

days. That was even truer in this weather, which impaired visibility.

However, Ibuki-san didn't seem to care. I couldn't pull back, though, not after coming this far to find the truth. Since I'd made the mistake, I had to take responsibility and solve the problem.

I have to make up for my mistake. I have to make up for my mistake. I repeated those same words over and over again in my head. I couldn't fail here. Besides, I also needed to take responsibility for my mistakes with Karuizawa-san, with whom I had been really aggressive. My heart beat fast. I was breathless. Little by little, I closed the distance between Ibuki-san and myself. Depending on the situation, I might need to retrieve the keycard by force. Considering my considerable skills, I could handle it well. I can handle it well. I can do it. I can do it.

I understood all too well that I wasn't calm, but I had to do something.

I didn't have anyone else to rely on. I'd handled things on my own up until this point, and I could continue just the same. The rain and winds were a bit easier to deal with in the middle of the forest than on an open road. But the visibility had become that much worse, and the footing even more terrible. Also, as I went right and then left, I lost my sense of direction.

But my biggest problem was my physical condition. With every second that passed, I grew worse. Up until now I'd only had a slight fever, but as the rain came down I reached my limits. My sickness grew steadily worse.

Ibuki-san stopped, and then unexpectedly looked up at a tree. She gazed at a single handkerchief, wet from the rain and tied to the tree.

"How long are you going to follow me? Don't you think enough is enough?"

"Once you return what you stole from me."

"Why don't you calm down and try thinking? If I stole the keycard, would I have held onto it? If someone saw me with it, that would mean immediate disqualification. I'd only end up losing points myself, right?"

I had only asked she return what she stole. I never once said anything about a keycard. Ibuki-san had just confessed. As I was about to press her on that point, Ibuki-san gave a thin smile that showed her white teeth.

"You thought I confessed to something, didn't you? You're wrong." "What do you mean?"

"I'm tired of talking with you."

Ibuki-san crouched, and started digging in the ground using both hands. "Ah, agh…"

Wracked by intense dizziness and nausea, I leaned my back against a

nearby tree.

"Your condition has gotten a lot worse, hasn't it?"

Ibuki-san turned to look at me. However, she quickly returned to work. "Ah… Ah… Ugh…"

Although I was trying to manage my breathing, I couldn't anymore.

My jersey, soaked from the downpour, leached my body heat away. I'd tried to resist wanting to lie down and rest, but I could no longer hold my head up.

As I thought about my physical strength, I had no choice but to fight. "Ibuki-san. I'm going to investigate you with everything I've got. You

don't mind?"

Ibuki-san stopped digging, stood up, and approached me.

"With everything you've got? Could you be a bit more specific? You mean you're going to resort to violence?"

"This is your last warning. Return it…"

I'd wanted to avoid coercive methods, but there was no other way. I didn't want to show this side of myself to anyone…

I remembered the incident before, with Sudou-kun, where he'd punched some students from Class C. It had led to a trial, with the school getting involved. Back then I'd condemned Sudou, who had dealt with many unexpected difficulties. I'd abandoned him then, and was getting my just desserts now. That I would consider solving things with violence was ridiculously funny.

"My last warning, huh? Oh, I get it. I get it. Why don't you get your wish?"

She dropped the bag to the ground and raised her arms in the air, posing as if surrendering. She was obedient, but I saw no resignation in her face. Still, I couldn't let this opportunity pass. I reached to check the bag.

Instantly, Ibuki-san's slender leg went right toward my face. What little alertness I had left saved me. I flew backwards, avoiding her kick. Mud splashed me, and I struck a defensive posture with both arms raised.

"Oh, you're good," she said.

"An act of violence means immediate disqualification…" "Someone might see us here, you mean? Weren't you willing to use

violence, too?"

While I wondered why she had such a sly grin on her face, she suddenly grabbed my shoulders and threw me down. I wasn't able to react in the face of such an unexpected action, and collapsed onto the muddy ground.

"Would you like a moment to rest?" she asked.

As I was on the ground, already wounded, she sneered at me from above. Her face looked all blurry. Ibuki-san grabbed my collar and yanked me up. If she hit me, I would definitely lose consciousness. I slipped out of her grip and rolled, escaping from her. I desperately tried to raise myself out of the mud. That was the first time I was really thankful that I practiced martial arts.

"Oh? You can really move, surprisingly. You practice or something?"

Ibuki-san, without panicking whatsoever, seemed genuinely impressed as she sized me up. She'd perceived my knowledge of martial arts, and probably wasn't an average practitioner herself. How could I respond without telling her that I was in the worst condition?

"I've…been nothing but a complete and utter failure in this test."

I hadn't contributed a single thing to Class D. If anything, I was probably a hindrance. The rest of them, all trying their hardest, were held back because of my poor physical condition. I wished I'd told them from the start. I could have requested that another person become the leader since I wasn't feeling well. It would have been fine had I just refused. But my pride got the better of me, which was unforgivable.

I mocked people. I hated useless things, labeling them incompetent, while I was useless myself. Ha ha… I laughed dryly in my mind. Was I really still making excuses for myself?

"It was you, wasn't it? You stole the keycard."

Ibuki-san stopped moving. I shortened the distance between us. She pretended like she was going to strike with her right arm, only to instead go with a high, fast kick. I avoided her attack, and then stretched out my arm as a counterattack. Ibuki-san was aware of the danger and avoided my strike.

She then switched into her next attack, a dizzying back-and-forth of offense and defense.

The footing around here was bad, but she wasn't worried about her footwork. Clearly she had a degree of skill. In addition, she showed no hesitation in hurting people. Ibuki-san smiled, flashing her white teeth as if she were enjoying this. I never thought I'd see such a big smile on her face.

Because I'd been moving around so much, I was wracked by intense cold and nausea. I was barely able to stand.

"You've been trying really hard until now. I'll tell you the truth, as a reward. I stole the card."

Ibuki-san thrust her hand into her pocket and slowly took the card out.

She showed me the side with my name engraved upon it. "You gave up the truth pretty easily."

"It doesn't matter if I admit it or not now. There's no evidence I used violence against you. It's not as though the school can make a judgment here. Isn't that right?"

Ibuki-san had the right read of the situation. Nothing could conclusively make the school perceive this as it really was. Even if I was the only one who got hurt, Ibuki-san could say whatever she liked to get out of it. Even if I complained, we'd both be punished. And Class D had points to lose.

But if I managed to get the keycard back, we might be saved. If we got our hands on such reliable evidence, Class C would be forced to admit what they'd done.

Her fingerprints were on the card. Maybe we could assert that it was legitimately stolen. If we brought the truth to light, the school might investigate the matter thoroughly. I couldn't abandon that hope. However, I couldn't get the keycard back unless I bested Ibuki-san. But I doubted she was stupid enough to make bold actions.

If she got away, the card probably wouldn't ever be found. If that

happened, we couldn't prove it had been stolen. I didn't have enough energy to run after her any longer. On top of that, I lacked the strength to even clench my fists. But I had to make use of all the strength I had left.

I wasn't sure if Ibuki-san had a reason to hurry or if she was underestimating me, but she rushed over and attacked, a hunter enjoying an easy kill. Her eyes glanced at my feet, but it was a fake-out. While she was concentrating on the lower half of my body, she instantly swung at my face. I narrowly avoided getting hit, but it got so incredibly close that it grazed my hair.

I took advantage of her momentum and applied a little force. Ibuki-san lost her balance, but not enough to make her fall over. I tried to grab onto her arm, but she understood what was going on and slipped through my grasp.

She probably realized I was trying to use her power and speed against her. I mustered up the last of my strength and drove my left fist into her solar plexus.

"Ah!"

Ibuki-san couldn't breathe, and fell to her knees in apparent agony. At the same time, my physical strength had reached its limits, and my field of vision grew distorted. I couldn't chase after her, so I kept her pinned down.

"This is the worst… I'm already… At my limit…"

My condition was bad before, but pushing myself so intensely had made things hopeless. But I couldn't collapse here. My attack was superficial, not enough to knock her down.

"I don't understand… I thought you were involved." Ibuki-san stood, wiping mud off her face. "Involved? In what?" I asked.

Ibuki-san seemed to hesitate, but then muttered, "I didn't burn the manual."

"You intend to keep lying even now?"

"What would I gain by burning it? It was inevitable that people would begin searching for the criminal after the uproar. Besides, people would suspect me rather strongly. There was nothing to gain and a lot to lose."

"That's…"

I certainly agreed with what Ibuki-san said. She'd stolen the keycard before the fire broke out. There wasn't enough time for her to deliberately burn the manual and fan the flames. But then, who did? What did burning the manual mean?

"I talked to you in a roundabout way to confirm something. You seem different. But I suppose this is probably really hard for you to swallow. Do you think he's in Class D? There's a guy who figured me out before you did."

Ibuki-san sighed as if exasperated. "So. You can't mean…"

Right after I conjured the image of that person, I noticed that Ibuki-san

had disappeared. In the next instant, a blunt instrument slammed me in the head, knocking me down hard.

"This conversation is over."

I had to get up, so I started to push myself. Ibuki-san lightly swept my hand with her right foot, causing me to fall back down. Ibuki-san grabbed my bangs and yanked me up.

"L-Let me go…"

"Sorry. I've got a lot to do."

She lightly slapped my cheek with her right hand. My mind and body were at their limit, my movements clumsy, and it was impossible for me to stop her. I shook off the hand grasping my bangs. I tried to stand and close the distance between us. But my feet got all tangled up and my strength was exhausted, causing me to collapse again.

"Do you think they'll permit such coercive methods?" I muttered. "Come on, now. I don't feel like answering that."

When I drew nearer, she raised her leg high and kicked me in the face.

How many times would I repeat this same sentence? I…made a huge mistake. By attempting to fix that mistake myself, I ended up turning it into a situation that couldn't be fixed.

6.9

I let out A deep breath while I stood over Horikita, who was unconscious. It had been a long since I'd gone up against such a tough opponent. Had she been in better health, the match could've gone either way. She really was that strong. I resumed my work, and soon I'd dug up a flashlight and a wireless transceiver wrapped in vinyl. I would have rather gotten by without using them if I could, though.

"What?"

Right after I took those two items out of the hole, I was overcome by some mysterious sensation. I didn't know the cause of it. Somehow, the items seemed slightly different from when I had buried them.

"Is it because of the rain?"

I decided that I was probably just overthinking things, and used the transceiver. I reported my current location to the man who'd been waiting to hear about my whereabouts, and sat down to rest. About half an hour or so passed before I saw the gleam of a flashlight. It blinked twice, then three times. It was just like Morse code.

I responded with the same signal, using the flashlight that had been near my feet. The guiding light had gotten stronger, as if both lights were resonating with each other. Then I saw an irritating face that I didn't want to see. Ryuuen appeared.

"Yo. Excellent work, Ibuki. You did well." "Naturally, yes?"

"Naturally? If you hadn't made any mistakes until now, I wouldn't have had to risk coming over here."

"That couldn't be helped. I hadn't planned for the digital camera to break."

If only the digital camera hadn't broken, I would have taken a picture of the keycard and that would have been the end of it. I would have had my definitive proof. I wouldn't have even needed to call Ryuuen using the transceiver. But instead, I'd had to take a huge risk and hold onto the card,

which led to Horikita discovering me. "So, where's the card?"

"It's here."

I took it from my pocket and handed it over. Ryuuen shined his flashlight on the card and confirmed that the name "Horikita Suzune" was clearly engraved upon it.

"You come over here and confirm it, too. That was your condition, remember? Relax, it's dark out, and this weather is horrible. There shouldn't be anyone here. It's great to be cautious, but don't waste time."

A man appeared from the shadows. Katsuragi, from Class A. He was definitely the calm and dependable type, the complete opposite of our leader. I pretended to be calm, but in my mind I couldn't help but be reminded again of Ryuuen's awfulness. Immediately after the test had started, Ryuuen told me that he would coax Class A into helping us. Apparently he'd done it. But how in the world?

Katsuragi took Horikita's card from Ryuuen and looked it over it carefully. You couldn't have made a fake or anything on this uninhabited island.

"It looks like the real thing," he said. "Are you convinced now?"

Although he'd been shown definitive proof, Katsuragi's stern expression didn't change. I'd heard he was a cautious man, but to be this paranoid seemed like a unique kind of illness.

"You managed to infiltrate Class D quite well. Weren't you suspected?"

"Under normal circumstances, I would have been. But as for my methods, that's a trade secret."

I unconsciously rubbed my cheek. When we began our spy operation in Class D, Ryuuen slapped me to turn a lie into the truth. But the pain and the hatred I felt toward him were all quite real. Naturally, the students in Class D misunderstood, and thought I'd been beaten and chased out of my class.

Maybe if I hadn't been injured, they wouldn't have swallowed the lie so smoothly.

"Don't sit there and think about it forever. The situation is black-and- white, so make your decision. You're already halfway there. Don't do something as stupid as pulling out here."

"You're right."

Despite that, it didn't seem like Katsuragi had given his consent.

Ryuuen noticed this, but rather than get annoyed, he smiled. As if he were getting ready to attack his prey, he whispered, "If this wasn't an honorable deed, then what are you going to do? Did you know that Sakayanagi's faction has dominated ever since rumors spread that you failed to get on the student council despite your best efforts? This might be your chance, right?"

"You bastard. Why are you telling me this?"

"Class A maintains its position by forming alliances. If you can form those, even those who have double-crossed you will return under your wing, won't they? Or you could make me your enemy, I suppose? If you do, I wonder what would happen?"

Katsuragi hadn't signed a contract with the devil, but this was much more than a simple negotiation. Well, perhaps that line of thinking was naïve. Once you discussed terms with the devil, you ended up making a contract one way or another.

"Sakayanagi is absent. It's impossible for someone indecisive to rule Class A."

"We've established negotiations, as promised. I accept your proposal."

With that, Katsuragi stretched out his hand to Ryuuen, who smiled audaciously.

"That's good. You've exercised sound judgment." "Wait, what negotiation? Would you explain?" I asked.

They were free to do whatever they wanted, but I had a right to know the details. When I aimed for Class A, I had to decide if being close to Ryuuen was the right thing to do.

"To form an alliance. With Class A."

"I'll be heading back now. I don't want to risk things by lingering for too long." Katsuragi returned the card to me, and disappeared into the

darkness.

"What about the negotiation? What was discussed? What are we getting in return?"

A flash of white lightning crackled through the air. Thunder came crashing down immediately afterward, a roaring sound coming from the sea. Ryuuen didn't even twitch an eyebrow. He told me the details of the contract with a creepy smile on his face. The details weren't really complex, but they weren't simple, either.

Even with our problems piling up one after the other, making it really difficult to achieve anything, there was the promise of a huge return.

Everything was going according to Ryuuen's plan, including the fact that most of our students had retired. None of us had imagined this situation before the test had begun, when we were enjoying our holiday on the boat. I hated him so much that I wanted to die, but I supposed he was probably the man with abilities closest to those of Class A, after all. I had to acknowledge it.

"But…is there any guarantee Katsuragi will keep his promise? He might renege."

"I have that covered, of course. He will have no choice but to honor his promise."

I walked toward Horikita and, after carefully wiping my fingerprints from the keycard, stuck it back in her hand. There was nothing this girl could have done. All she could do now was endure and keep silent until the end of the test, all while knowing that Class C had discovered she was the leader.

This girl didn't trust anyone. Even after she knew the keycard had been stolen, she hadn't reported it to her classmates. Even though she'd opened up her heart to Ayanokouji alone, he was a loner, too. If we factored in her current incompetence, she wasn't any threat.

Besides, if she had the keycard, then her mistake might not have been leaked to Class D yet. I understood her nature, to a certain extent. She was patient and stubborn, the type of person who didn't listen to other people's opinions. In other words, no matter how painful something was, she would endure it silently.

"Use your smarts to protect yourself."

Then we disappeared quietly into the dark woods.

6.10

I kicked off from the wet ground and chased Ibuki. The weather was a bothersome problem. If it got much worse, I might get stuck or have an accident. Also, the fact that the sun was going down earlier than I'd anticipated made it difficult to push forward without a flashlight. The passing showers grew even stronger, and the winds started to howl more violently.

The weather was just negative all around, no favorable points at all.

I could only see a few meters ahead because of the pouring rain. Also, if I wandered onto any of the side roads, I'd probably get lost. Thankfully, two pairs of footprints remained in the muddy ground and made it easy for me to follow after them. The footprints just suddenly stopped, though. No, on second glance, they didn't stop; they continued deeper into the forest.

The fact that the footprints suddenly took a sharp turn meant they hadn't gotten lost, but rather that they'd intentionally ventured deeper into the forest. When I pointed my flashlight toward the depths of the forest, I saw the two pairs of footprints going deeper and deeper. There was no reason for them to intentionally enter such a dangerous place.

Just to be sure, I tried shining the flashlight on the route that led to the beach, but there weren't any footprints. The ground was clear. I wiped away the rain dripping from my bangs, and followed the footprints deeper into the forest. Naturally, my visibility got even worse. It was like night had already fallen. The atmosphere was creepy and dark, but I pushed forward, relying only on the footprints.

I continued forward for about thirty meters. Suddenly, a bright light entered my field of vision. I immediately turned the flashlight off and held my breath. Looking in the direction of the light, I saw it shine once, then twice more. A flashlight. It was almost as if someone were sending a signal. Was it Ibuki and Horikita? No, that wasn't it.

Neither Ibuki nor Horikita should have had a light source on them. I quietly turned in the direction of the light and drew closer to the source. I heard people's voices, muffled by the rain, and hid myself. Their conversation sounded trivial. So as long as they didn't find me, getting a grasp on the situation was secondary.

Soon, the light moved further away. It was over, apparently. Just to be sure, I approached cautiously.

Near a large tree lay a muddy Horikita. She'd collapsed, unconscious. A single keycard lay on the ground near her hand. On her injured body were traces of excavated soil. After examining the situation, I confirmed that more people than Ibuki had discovered Horikita's position as leader. After picking up the keycard, I lifted Horikita into my arms.

open.

"Ngh…"

Horikita let out a small sound. Slowly but surely, her eyes fluttered

"Are you awake?" I asked. "Ayano…kouji-kun?"

She sounded dazed, as if she couldn't understand the situation. "Agh… My head…hurts…"

"You have a high fever. Don't push yourself." "I see… I-Ibuki-san… But, why are you here?"

Even if I told her to sleep, Horikita wouldn't listen, all while her fever

grew worse. She started to understand the situation little by little. "I knew it…Ibuki-san stole my card."

"I see."

"I can't be dumber than Sudou-kun and the others."

She chastised herself and closed her eyes, as if lamenting a situation in which she was powerless.

"This isn't a test where you can just hide for twenty-four hours a day, right? No matter what you do, you can be open to attack."

I'd intended to keep going, but it seemed like anything more would just make the heartbroken Horikita even more depressed.

"I could've avoided this if I knew how to rely on someone…"

To seriously protect the leader's identity, it was necessary to depend on allies that you trusted from the bottom of your heart. If you did that, you could protect the card twenty-four hours a day. However, Horikita hadn't made a single friend.

She kept muttering, "I'm so pathetic" to herself quietly over and over. "When I was losing consciousness, I felt like I could hear Ryuuen's

voice… It's strange, I thought he'd already retired…"

"You were losing consciousness. Maybe you had a dream?" "If it was a dream, it was a nightmare…"

I wondered if she really had heard Ryuuen's voice. Even if she were asleep or losing consciousness, her brain had probably heard something. It wouldn't have been strange if she picked up Ryuuen's voice when unconscious.

"I'm sorry…"

While I was silently lost in thought, Horikita apologized. "Why are you apologizing to me?" I asked.

"There's no one I can apologize to except for you…" Hmm. That made me think pretty hard.

"If you think things are bad, then make some reliable friends. Start there first."

"That's difficult advice… No one would want to be with me."

It sounded like she'd resigned herself to unhappiness. Perhaps there was a trace of masochism in her. I laughed.

"It's unpleasant to be made fun of, though…"

"No, no, that's not it," I said. "It's just that you've started to sound like you need allies."

"Nobody would say that…"

Normally, Horikita would have been insulting me, but right now her words carried a different weight. She was blaming herself, or she wouldn't have said something like that. Still, it wasn't going to be easy. Horikita's hollow eyes seemed to look through rather than at me.

"I should have understood this a long time ago…"

You can't live alone in the world. School and society are composed of a great many people.

"Don't talk. You're sick."

I tried to convince her to be quiet, but Horikita didn't stop. For Horikita, there had never been any choice but to rely on herself. She could have chosen no other option.

"I'm going to try to get up to Class A using my own abilities. I'll definitely recover from this failure…" Horikita weakly grabbed my sleeve as

she appealed to me. "I'm prepared to be hated by everyone else… This was all my mistake."

"According to this school's system, if you fight by yourself, you won't reach Class A. We need to cooperate with our classmates. It's unavoidable."

Horikita closed her eyes, as if lacking the strength to keep them open.

Her grasp might have been weak, but I still felt it.

"I can't accept that. No matter how hard it is, I'm still…alone." "Ah, shut up already! Stop talking. Right now, you won't be able to

convince anyone."

I embraced Horikita tightly.

"You can't bear every responsibility. You're not that strong, unfortunately."

"So you're telling me to give up? I have a dream to reach Class A, a dream for my brother to acknowledge me."

"No one said you have to give up."

I looked down at Horikita, who lightly groaned against my chest. "If you can't fight by yourself, it's better to fight with a partner. I'll

lend you a hand."

"Why? You're not the kind of person who would say such things…" "Well, why then? I wonder."

Shortly afterward, her energy was spent, and Horikita lost

consciousness again. I had to carry her without anyone noticing. It would be easy to have her retire, but I didn't know which button on the wristwatch was for emergencies. Besides, if the helicopter were suddenly dispatched, the sound would reverberate in the area.

"Hmm… Did I pick the wrong path? Oh no, oh no!"

My route had ended in a steep, sheer slope. If I took one step further, I would fall. I tried shining a light below to see what it looked like about ten meters down. Unfortunately, I'd been walking in the wrong direction. Should I go back to the original route?

I tried to change direction slowly, so as not to burden Horikita, but then

right after…

The soil underneath me collapsed, and I lost my balance. Alone, I could have braced my legs and grasped the tree, but unfortunately, both of my hands were occupied. I couldn't avoid falling. I curled up into a ball so I could protect Horikita as we went tumbling down the slope. For several seconds, it was like flying. I don't remember very clearly what happened afterward.

At least Horikita hadn't been hurt, somehow. I looked up the slope, but with the way things were now, it didn't seem like I could crawl back up while carrying Horikita.

"Well, I sure messed up."

However, this wasn't the time to accept defeat and die. Carrying the unconscious Horikita on my back, I ventured into the pitch-dark forest with a single flashlight. The rain poured down on us, mercilessly robbing me of my physical strength. More than anything else, the heat radiating from Horikita wasn't normal. If she were exposed to the rain for any longer, it would become dangerous.

However, we were deep in the forest. There were no caves or man- made shelters. We had no choice but to rely on the power of nature.

Fortunately, the trees were lush and overgrown, and their branches might keep our bodies relatively dry. I looked around the area, found a remarkably big tree, and moved right under it. Of course, it didn't block the rain completely, but the overgrown leaves did stop a lot of the rainfall.

I gently laid Horikita down. Her jersey was probably going to get dirty, but we had bigger problems now. I sat there, with Horikita's head in my lap. If only the area were cool… But the temperature was so high, hot and humid. Horikita occasionally trembled, like she was trying to curl into a ball.

Trying to lessen her burden even a little, I held Horikita close to my chest. After some time had passed, Horikita woke up, sputtering out ragged breaths. Still in a daze, Horikita wasn't able to understand our situation.

"Why are you? I…?"

She didn't seem to remember what had happened. I explained the whole sequence of events. I had some doubts about whether she understood everything.

"I see… I remember." "That's good."

"I remember my mistake, so it's probably awful."

Well, if she was able to crack self-deprecating jokes, then I could probably relax.

"It's already almost six o'clock, Horikita. You might think this will sound harsh, but you should retire. Your body is probably at its limit."

She had made it this far by pretending to be okay, but it wasn't possible for her to carry on.

"I can't do that. We can't afford to lose thirty points because of me… I was the one who confronted Karuizawa-san and the others about using points, right? It would make me look like such an idiot…"

The penalty for poor physical condition was severe. In points alone, it was more than what Karuizawa had used herself. Horikita covered her eyes with her arm, probably to hide her tears.

"Not just that… The keycard was stolen from me, too. You understand what that means?"

"Class D will lose another fifty points."

Horikita gave a slight nod. Class D would only be left with a few points.

"Just leave me here and head back. If you do, I'll be the only one absent from roll call."

"What are you planning to do?"

"By tomorrow morning, I'll…try to return by myself, somehow. If I can deal with my poor health during roll call, then I'll do something about retirement."

That way, we would be left with a five-point loss.

"Things aren't that easy. You're feeling really weak now, and our teacher isn't kind enough to let you act your way past her. It will be impossible for you to get back to camp on your own."

"Still, there's nothing else I can do… This is so Class D will have some

points left."

Putting aside the keycard incident, we might retain some points for roll call and retirement. That certainly wasn't a small number.

"Go."

Although Horikita was weak, I felt her indomitable will behind her words. She could bear whatever burden she placed on herself, but couldn't seem to bear involving others. I rose, and rested her head against the tree. She wanted me to leave her.

"Well then, I'll leave. But if things continue like this, our classmates will blame you."

"Yes. That's the correct decision. Everything was my responsibility."

Horikita praised my cold, calculating decision. She was ashamed of herself for being weak. Trembling, she forced herself to endure the cold. This was the kind of hardship that solitary people faced. The weather was still stormy, with no signs that the rains and winds would stop.

"Can you really make it back alone by tomorrow morning?" "Yeah… I'll be fine."

"Horikita. Do you really think that not retiring is the right decision?" I couldn't help blurting those words out.

"Of course I do. Retiring isn't an option for me."

She was free to exercise her indomitable will as much as she liked, but it didn't mean anything if she lost in the end.

"Hey. Why do you think that we've been backed into such a corner?" I asked.

"I failed due to my negligence. That's all." "You're wrong. You're completely wrong."

Horikita Suzune had fought as hard as she could, and had tried to get to the end of the test without making mistakes.

"Go… Because I think of you as my friend, please listen to my request…"

After Horikita said that, she covered her mouth in surprise.

"I'm going to make this right… As if it didn't happen at all." "No, this is the wrong choice."

"It's fine. I can… By myself… Ugh…"

Horikita suddenly stood, but the burden was too much. She closed her eyes in pain.

"Go, please…"

She lost consciousness again. I gently took Horikita into my arms and shifted my position to make her a little more comfortable. Standing, I looked up at the boundless darkness and let out a sigh.

"It would have been easier if you'd just retired of your own free will."

The stubborn princess didn't seem like she was going to throw in the towel. Wonderful. Yes, I thought it was wonderful. You were almost right. But unfortunately, Horikita, you were wrong about one thing. Right now, just for this moment, I'll tell you.

I have never thought of you as my friend. I've never cared about you as a classmate. In this world, winning is everything. Your methods don't matter. I don't care what I have to sacrifice. As long as I have my victory in the end, I'll be fine.

You, Hirata—no, all other people are nothing more than tools. I was complicit in what drove you to this. So, don't blame yourself, Horikita. You were useful to me.

I walked down the muddy road, shining my flashlight on the path. My shoes were already covered in mud and filled with water. But I didn't care about that. First, I needed to get an understanding of the location.

When I went down the slope, I'd undoubtedly gotten further away from Class D's base camp. But I was sure that if I turned the other way, the beach would be near. I could press on and walk through the woods for several days, relying on the map in my head.

"It was close, after all."

Eventually, I arrived at the beach. The ship was floating in the water, and the lights were on. It took a few minutes, but I returned to the place I'd left. Horikita had collapsed. She remained unconscious as I picked her up in my arms. Her beautiful face was splashed with mud.

I started walking toward the beach, rather than our base camp.

Somehow, I had managed to make it on time. It was just around seven o'clock in the evening. The teachers' tents had been taken down to avoid being blown away by the wind.

I went up the ramp to the pier and reached the ship's deck. One of the teachers noticed and raced up to me.

"You're prohibited from entering here. You'll be disqualified." "This is an emergency. She's got a high fever and has lost

consciousness. Please let her rest right away."

Once I explained the situation, the teacher skipped the instructions and brought out a stretcher. I laid Horikita down.

"Is she okay with retiring?"

"Without question. However, allow me to confirm one thing. Because it isn't eight o'clock yet, this shouldn't have any effect on roll call, correct?"

It was 7:58. I was cutting it close, but we should be safe. I needed to get the teacher's promise, though.

"You are certainly right. It is quite close. However, you're out." "I understand. Oh, one more thing. I'd like to return this keycard." I took the keycard from my pocket and handed it over.

"Well then, I'll be heading back."

I couldn't stay any longer, so I went back to the beach while the rain was still falling. With this, Class D would lose thirty points due to Horikita's retirement, and an additional five points due to my absence during roll call.