Chapter 47

Chapter 47

I stepped out if the dense shrubbery into an open alcove of sorts. Ishihara-sensei followed behind me, holding a branch to the side as she stepped through the trees.

This small clearing was vitally important. If we didn't gain dominion over this section of the island, we would be at an even bigger disadvantage than we already were.

I look turned my eyes towards the tall rock surface, which had water spilling down it. Offset to the side of that waterfall was a dark cave entrance. In all likelihood, my classmates were already in there.

I walked out fully into the clearing and began making my way over to the cave as the blistering sun roasted my skin from above. In this heat, camping in an open area was practically impossible.

I reached the cave entrance and peered in, where I found a most peculiar sight. A fire.

"Oh, hey, Ayanokōji. Took your time, didn't you?" Lelouch called out to me.

"Why have you built a fire here?" I asked in confusion.

"For fun. And so we can roast things. And in case it gets cold at night." Kururugi said.

"I see... And where is the spot machine thing?"

"It's that apparatus there." Sora stepped out of one of the two tents that had been pitched at the far side of the cave, and pointed at machine which stood against the wall.

"Tents?" I murmured aloud.

"The one that Nii just came out of has the toilet in, and the other one is a changing room." Shiro said, twirling her hair around her finger.

"I see... So you're planning to build beds on the floor here?"

"We thought we'd collect leaves and such to use as cushioning. It should do just fine." Light said, leaning against the cave wall opposite the spot machine.

I nodded to him, and then turned my attention to the apparatus. I walked over to it and took out the leader key card. I turned it face-down and held it against the scanner. After a second, the display changed to show that Class D now occupied the spot, and showed a timer that began to count down from eight hours.

"The spot system seems to work just fine," I commented as I returned the key card to my pocket.

Sora, Light and Lelouch came over and huddled around the apparatus. After a few seconds, they dissipated with satisfied expressions.

"Can we get some logs or something to use as seats? Standing will be tiring." Ryuzaki, who was crouched on the floor, suggested.

"I agree. We should go and search for things to use as furniture while we search for leaves." Sora replied, slumping himself down on the hard ground.

He beckoned Shiro over with his hand, and she sat happily in his lap with a gentle smile.

"At least someone gets a comfortable chair..." Lelouch muttered as he watched.

"We're going to be quite busy today. We need to find some food, some leaves and some chairs. That's a lot of searching." Light remarked with slight exasperation.

"That's true. Well, we might as well start now." Ryuzaki stood up and began walking towards the cave exit. "I'm going to hunt for food. Feel free to join me."

"I'll come, I suppose. You want to come too, Ayanokōji? We could use your physical abilities too." Kururugi said.

"No. I still need to go to the other two spots." I replied.

"Other two spots? What do you mean? And that reminds me, how did you know that we'd be here?"

"Well, after we got shown all of the spots, I just assumed that you all would also decide that this is by far the best one."

"After we got shown all of the spots?" Kururugi echoed, apparently more perplexed than before.

"What leader-kun means is that the 'significant scenery' we were shown when the ship circled the island wasn't for mere sightseeing. They were hinting at the locations of the spots." Lelouch explained as he gave me get another nickname.

"So you noticed this spot as we passed around the island and assumed that someone else would've spotted it as well, and that's how you knew to come here?"

"That's right." I said as I walked towards the mouth of the cave.

"It would hurt my brain if I observed and thought about everything that closely." Kururugi sighed in defeat.

"And that's why you're an idiot." Sora chimed in mercilessly.

"Now that was uncalled for," Kururugi responded with a smile. Even though he was out of his depth here when it came to intellect, Kururugi still appeared to enjoy our company.

"Well. We'd better get going. Light, Lelouch and Sora, it's your duty to get the sleeping arrangements sorted, okay?" Ryuzaki said over his shoulder.

"Just leave it to us, Ryuzaki." Light gave him a thumbs up.

With that, I departed from the cave. I walked with Kururugi and Ryuzaki for a short while, before splitting off from them to head towards the spots instead.

Already knowing exactly where I was headed, I walked in a line and made for the coast. I pushed through the trees at an upward slant and, eventually, came out atop a cliff edge. I gazed down the cliffside, and spotted several facilities which were located not all that far from our cave.

There didn't appear to be a detour route, but as I walked along the cliff, I noticed a ladder set up in a blind spot. Anyone would've missed it upon first glance. I grabbed the ladder with all my strength. It seemed sturdy, so I used it to climb down to the bottom of the cliff.

Shortly after touching ground, I found the first of my two objectives – a small hut. Near the entrance was a device – proof that those was a spot. When I peered through the window, I saw fishing tackles. In other words, occupation of this spot meant you would be able to catch fish without having to borrow equipment from the school.

As expected, nobody had yet occupied the spot. The hut was located right under the cliff which meant that you didn't have to worry about anyone seeing you. Additionally, it was pretty much only possible to find this spot if you noticed it on the ship. Just to be safe, though, I still took a scan of the area. Detecting nobody, I discreetly pulled out my key card and used it to swiftly capture the spot.

I took out the map supplied in the manual. I wrote a quick note about the approximate position of the hut – measuring it accurately would take way too long – and returned the map to my pocket as I turned my attention back to the clifftop. There was nothing else here, so I climbed the ladder back up.

"When we circled around the island, I saw a tower over there..."

While looking over the area, I relied on memory. I shifted my gaze toward the ground, where there was a fresh set of tracks leading in the direction of the tower. Then I continued into the forest, following the path. Eventually, I reached higher ground, where the tower was located.

When I arrived, I happened upon a most interesting trio. They were apparently discussing the tower. They were probably thinking that it was possible to see over the whole beach by going up the installed ladder, but that it also meant you'd easily be spotted. Although the tower was located well in the backwoods, it was rather large itself, which meant that there was a good chance it'd be spotted and monitored.

"Hm? Ayanokōji-kun?" Horikita Suzune of Class 1-E noticed me.

The two people she was with turned their heads to gaze at me, who had just came out at the top of the high ground. Those people were Kushida Kikyō and Kōenji Rokusuke, both also in Class 1-E. A most curious combination.

"Yo," I raised my hand in greeting as I made my way over to them.

Horikita seemed slightly confused by my use of the word 'Yo,' but didn't say anything. Instead, she asked me a different question. "What are you doing here, Ayanokōji-kun?"

"Same as you. Just happened to spot this tower while aimlessly wandering." I lied.

"My, my, Ayanokōji-boy. If you want to lie, then you shouldn't go into unnecessary detail like that. Tsk tsk." Kōenji mocked me with a haughty laugh.

I suppose he was right, though. If there was one thing that I wasn't experienced in at all, it was lying to other people. Most my life had been spent completely transparently, after all.

"Hm? What do you mean?" I decided to play dumb.

"You saw this tower from the boat, didn't you?" Kōenji seemed to see right through me.

I briefly wondered why Kōenji was placed in Class D. Out of everyone outside of my class that I'd seen, Kōenji was probably the most talented individual. Was he placed in Class D because of his excessive narcissism, perhaps?

"So you noticed that hint too, Kōenji." I responded, indirectly answering his question.

"Hint?" Kushida asked in confusion, speaking up for the first time since I arrived. She probably hadn't expected to encounter me, which is why she'd taken a moment to compose herself.

"There was a hint?" Horikita queried, in a similar state.

"Of course there was, Horikita-girl. Although I can't blame a flawed person such as yourself for not noticing it." Kōenji replied arrogantly, running his hand through his hair.

"But you're saying Ayanokōji-kun noticed it?"

"Are you seriously still doing that?" I butted in with a sigh. "Why can't you just accept that I'm better than you?"

"In my opinion, Ayanokōji-kun, you're far too arrogant. For the first month I knew you, you were just some ordinary, average guy. But then as soon as it was revealed that you are in that class, you've been acting all cocky. Don't you think you're simply letting something trivial like class allotment get to your ego?"

"The fact that you think class allotment is trivial proves that you're incompetent." I shot back with a glare.

"I refuse to accept that—"

"Can you just shut up now, Horikita-girl?" Kōenji cut her off rudely. "I'm not interested in hearing the opinion of an ugly existence like you."

Horikita's eyebrow twitched even though she tried her best not to show a reaction, and I noticed Kushida stifle a laugh too. Was this girl just a closet sadist, or did she just like to see Horikita suffer in particular?

"So, who's Class E's leader?" I asked bluntly, which caused Horikita and Kushida to stare at me in bewilderment. Kōenji just laughed.

"Why on earth do you think we'd tell you that?" Horikita asked, baffled.

"I see. You're not going to tell me. Is it safe for me too assume that you're not going to capture that spot, then?" I inquired, motioning towards the tower.

"Of course, even if one of us were the leader, we wouldn't occupy this spot now, since there's an enemy present."

She said that as if it was obvious. I guess I might as well entertain myself by going entirely against her so-called 'logic.'

"In that case, excuse me."

I made my way over to the tower and climbed up the installed ladder to the top. Once I was there, I took out the key card and approached the facilities. I took possession of the spot and returned the key card to my pocket, before descending to the ground once more.

"Did you just...?" Horikita asked with wide eyes.

"I don't know. Did I?" I gave a vague, mocking answer.

"Hahaha! Your methods are funny, Ayanokōji-boy. You might be able to deceive these defects, but you won't fool a perfect existence such as myself with mere party tricks."

Kōenji had probably figured out what I was up. Knowing him, though, it was unlikely that he'd say anything. As Kōenji laughed at me, Horikita and Kushida climbed up the tower to check the spot.

Kōenji and I watched in amusement as they returned from the top of the tower and climbed down the ladder, wearing baffled expressions.

"You actually just took that spot?!" Horikita asked, still incredulous.

"Looks like it," I said indifferently.

"Uh, Ayanokōji-kun, aren't you a bit too trusting? What makes you think that we won't guess you as the leader at the end?" Kushida asked.

"I don't think that at all."

"Huh? Then why..."

I tried dropping a small hint to see if Horikita would catch on, but she didn't show any signs of understanding at all. The only one that seemed to catch the hidden meaning in my words was the narcissistic boy wearing a smug smile.

"Well, I've done what I came here to do. Goodbye." I bid them farewell and turned to leave, but I was stopped suddenly by a hand grabbing mine.

I turned to see Horikita grasping me tightly with a stern face, staring at me. "What's your game, Ayanokōji-kun? I don't get you at all."

"I don't understand you. I don't understand you at all." Horikita said, glaring at me.

"No. You don't."

Her glare intensified as I said that. It seemed that she didn't like being talked down to. Meanwhile, Kōenji was just watching with a bemused expression while Kushida had adopted a cute, thoughtful look.

"Can you let go of my hand?" I asked politely, looking down to our connected arms.

Horikita didn't reply, and just stared at me for a few more seconds. Then, she silently released me and turned around, intending to leave.

"I think you'll come to regret doing what you just did. I've thought about it, and I can't see any merit in purposely revealing yourself as the leader." Horikita shot at me over her shoulder.

"Try looking harder then, Horikita-girl." The blond said condescendingly.

"What is that supposed to mean, Kōenji-kun? And why do you keep acting like you know everything already?" Horikita snapped.

"Hah! It's nothing. Please, forget about me." Kōenji said dismissively, before suddenly coming to an apparent epiphany. "Actually, on second thoughts, you shouldn't forget about a profoundly beautiful person like myself. Rather, just forget my words."

After correcting himself, Kōenji swiftly exited the scene, disappearing into the trees. A moment later, Horikita also wordlessly departed, heading in the same direction. She glanced back and, once she saw that Kushida didn't intend to follow, disappeared as well. Now, only Kushida and I remained.

"I was surprised to see you with those two. I thought you hated them." I said to the silent girl who was standing a bit away from me.

She had appeared to be deep in thought, and was snapped back to earth by my remark. She looked me in the eye and took a few steps closer, closing the distance so that she could speak in a hushed voice.

"I don't really mind Kōenji-kun. Many people in my class think he's annoying, but his flippant attitude means that he's not someone I have to worry about, you know?"

"I see..."

It was sound logic. Kōenji was very frivolous, which meant that he wasn't someone that would pose a danger to Kushida and her secret. Even if he did find out about it by coincidence, then he'd probably just laugh about it and keep quiet. That was just the kind of person he was.

"Say, Kushida, why do you hate Horikita so much? Does she know about that?" I asked.

This was the first time that I'd directly asked Kushida something about her private affairs. I noticed a shift in her expression, but she didn't look particularly uncomfortable.

"I... I'm not sure. There's a possibility that she does, so I can't help but feel wary of her." Kushida said. Then, her eyes turned dark, and her voice turned cold as she spoke again, even quieter than before. "And that stuck-up, bitchy attitude of hers doesn't do her any favours as far as likeability goes."

"There's a possibility, huh. Is that why you asked me that question on the cruise ship?" I asked in a low voice.

Kushida didn't reply immediately, and instead stared sharply into my eyes. Her cold red pupils bore into me, but my face remained as blank as ever. After a while, she spoke again.

"Understand, Ayanokōji-kun. I will do anything to protect the peaceful life that I've built up here. Even if there's a chance that Horikita-san knows nothing about me, I can't take that risk."

Apparently, I wasn't the only one in this school that was just looking for a peaceful life, a place to start anew.

"Then, you're targeting me too, are you not? I know about your secret as well, after all."

"I can't do that, can I? Even if I do get you expelled, you would still release that recording publicly before dropping out just to spite me, wouldn't you?" Kushida growled.

"I know your secret, and you can do nothing to go against me. I suppose that makes me number one on your most-hated list, doesn't it?"

"I can't deny that."

"Can that be changed?"

"Sorry, but I really can't see it happening."

It was only natural to feel hatred towards someone who effectively had your life in their hands, so I didn't feel offended by Kushida's words. In fact, I was grateful for her honesty. It made communication between us much easier.

"I see. Well, I'd advise you to try to drop that hatred as much as possible. I have no intention of exposing your secret, so hating me will only be a burden to your mental state."

Kushida gave a self-deprecating, empty laugh. "That's nothing new. My mind is already full of such burdens every single day. This is just one more drop in the ocean to me."

"So that's how it is," I refrained from pressing further for now, since Kushida had decided to open up to me, even if only by a fraction. I had to respect that if I was to build trust. "You should head back to your class, before they get suspicious. I have things to do as well."

"Oh, and just one more thing. What are you trying to do by revealing yourself as the leader? What scheme are you plotting this time?" She asked me as I turned to leave.

"What makes you think that I'd tell an enemy?" I answered her with a question of my own.

"You could just order me to keep quiet about it. It's not like I can go against you, anyway."

"I already told you, didn't I? I don't intend to alter your life drastically. There's no need for me to give you commands when it's unnecessary."

Kushida's face melted into a strange mix of both satisfaction and dissatisfaction as I said that. If I had to guess, she was probably happy that I'd said that I wouldn't unnecessarily intrude on her life, while simultaneously annoyed that I'd refused to tell her anything.

Kushida said that she couldn't see her flame of hatred for me ever burning out, but I couldn't be sure if that was really the case. Even if she was fully confident in her statement, there are other ways to suffocate a flame than just letting it fade out on its own