The winter sun always has a deceptive brightness, and it has a slight warmth when it shines on the body through the car window glass. But once you look out the window, the withered yellow grass and trees and a little snow in the distance silently tell the cold outside.
This is a fleet of multiple large buses speeding along a winding road.
Outside the car window, the city that could still be seen had long been left behind, replaced by rolling mountains.
This is not an act by first-year students alone.
In this huge motorcade, there are not only the young faces of the first grade, but also the second grade and Third-year Senior seniors.
The bus First Year Class A is on is located at the front of the convoy.
All are wearing uniform school designation Sports Uniform.
The air in the carriage is not as chilling as outside the window, but is filled with a relaxed atmosphere called "calmness".
"Hey, where do you think we are going this time?"
"Who knows, it's definitely not going on vacation anyway."
"But there's nothing to worry about, right? The current Points in our class is far ahead. Even if there is a small accident, it won't hurt the bones."
Several boys gathered in the back row, holding snacks in their hands, chatting away.
Hashimoto Masayoshi still looked at ease, leaning on the back of the chair, talking to Kitou Hayato next to him, occasionally letting out a burst of indifferent laughter.
Although everyone received suggestive instructions such as "put on Sports Uniform" and "prepare multiple sets of changes of underwear," this did not cause much panic.
After all, after two semesters of baptism, coupled with the current Points advantage of Class A which can almost be said to be Crushing Level, this level of unknown will only make them more interested.
At the beginning of this Third Semester full of unknowns, Advanced Nurturing High School once again revealed its not gentle side to the students.
Kazehara Tetsu is sitting in the front row of the bus, which is the seat that usually belongs to the on-board teacher or Tour Guide.
This is not his assigned seat.
But when he was sitting here, no one felt out of place.
In this class, Kazehara Tetsu's existence itself is already a privilege.
Even the First Year Class A class teacher next to him, Majima Tomoya, who was always known for his strictness, showed no intention of driving her away.
Kazehara Tetsu turned his head sideways and lowered his voice so low that only two people could hear it.
His eyes were not looking at Majima, but looking through the front windshield at the taillights of the bus ahead.
"A move of this scale, coupled with the mixed deployment of the whole school..."
Majima Tomoya folded his hands on his chest, frowned at the moment, and glanced at the students beside him with complicated eyes.
"Kagihara, there are some things that are not good for you to know too early."
"Besides, you should also be aware of the school's rules. As a teacher, I cannot reveal the specific content of the exam."
"Even if your current contribution is great, this is not a reason why you can go beyond the rules."
"I didn't ask about the test content."
Kazehara Tetsu chuckled lightly and tapped his fingers lightly on his thigh.
"I was just chatting about some trivial matters..."
At this moment, the bus entered the depths of a long tunnel.
The surrounding light dimmed instantly, leaving only the lights at the top of the tunnel flashing rhythmically, and the chatter in the carriage seemed to become quieter due to the depressing environment.
This is a journey without any scenery, and it is also a time when people have to face the darkness in their hearts.
Kazehara Tetsu stopped talking and closed his eyes.
A few minutes later.
A blinding white light appeared in front of him.
"Buzz..."
With the roar of the engine, the bus rushed out of the tunnel.
Suddenly enlightened.
The originally dim vision was instantly occupied by overwhelming white.
Majima Tomoya glanced at the scenery outside the window and slowly stood up.
He did not speak immediately, but glanced around the car with his eyes.
The students who were still whispering quickly fell silent under his gaze, and all eyes focused on the head teacher.
Class A's students are of extremely high quality, and they are keenly aware that... that moment has arrived.
"Go back to your seat, Kagihara."
His tone returned to that businesslike coldness.
"There is no need to chat for the rest of the journey."
Kazehara Tetsu raised his eyebrows, knowing that this was already an eviction order.
"As you command, teacher."
Kazehara Tetsu stood up and walked steadily back to his seat in the somewhat swaying carriage.
Majima picked up the microphone hanging next to the driver's seat and turned on the switch.
"Zi..."
There is a soft sound of electric current.
"Next, we will officially begin to explain the content of this Special Exam."
The voice of Majima clearly spreads to every corner through the car-mounted Sound System.
"I think everyone should not be surprised by this sudden situation."
"After all, you have already experienced Uninhabited Island Exam in the summer, and the nature of Favored One Exam. This School on the ship. You should know better than anyone else."
Hearing the word "Uninhabited Island", the car remained calm.
Majima paused, raised his hand and pointed to the desolate mountains outside the window.
"Our next destination is Forest School, a school located deep in the mountains."
"According to the current speed, I'm afraid we will arrive in less than an hour."
One hour.
Majima The shorter the time used to explain, the more time is left for students to digest the information and formulate strategies.
This itself is part of the exam.
But no one asked Class A, and no one complained.
Everyone just adjusted their sitting postures and prepared to record every next word.
"Very good."
Majima applauded the reaction and then dropped a bombshell.
"Usually, you should have relatively few opportunities to come into contact with senior second- and third-year students. Except for the occasional encounter between Club Activity and Cafeteria, you are basically in a state of 'no contact until death.'"
"But..."
"In this Forest School, this barrier will be forcibly broken."
"You will cross the gap of 'grade' and launch a group action lasting eight days and seven nights."
"The Special Exam being performed is named 'Mixed Training Camp'."
As soon as the word "mixed" came out, the air in the car visibly solidified.
Across grade levels.
That means they're no longer facing familiar opponents -- no longer first-year foes.
They will face those Senpai who have gone through several more rounds of brutal elimination than them.
"Just verbal explanations may make you feel uneasy or cause unnecessary misunderstandings."
Majima Tomoya didn't give the students much time to think. He took out a thick stack of information from his Briefcase and started passing it on.
"I will distribute information to you next. Take one copy per person. Don't take more, and don't lose it."
Information is passed along the aisle, row after row.
The sound of paper rubbing against each other was particularly clear in the quiet carriage.
When the information was passed to Kazehara Tetsu, he weighed it.
Very heavy.
It's not a perfunctory two- or three-page notice, but a booklet that's twenty pages thick.
"Twenty pages..."
Kazehara Tetsu narrowed his eyes.
Such a huge amount of information means that the rules are extremely complex.
The more complex the rules are, the greater the loopholes and room for maneuver... are.
Since Majima did not specifically point out "no advance reading", a uniform sound of turning pages immediately sounded in the carriage.
Kazehara Tetsu Open the first page.
What caught my eye were several clear color photos.
It was a huge building complex surrounded by the Mountains.
It's not the dilapidated wooden hut you imagined.