The second day of the Deserted Island Exam, early morning.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka returned to the boys' tent with one hand soaking wet, waking Hirata Yousuke.
But when Hirata saw that Ayanokoji had only gone to the bathroom, he didn't give it another thought and went right back to starting his new day of leading and directing Class D.
"Hirata, look over there. Is that...?"
Hirata followed Ayanokoji's gaze and spotted unfamiliar figures watching the Class D Base Camp from outside. Their intentions were obvious.
There seemed to be three of them, and they didn't look like they belonged to the same group.
Hirata and Ayanokoji approached them without making a fuss.
Kanzaki Ryuji of Class B froze in surprise, then emerged from his hiding place with his classmate Hamaguchi Tetsuya.
"Sorry. We thought we'd arrived early enough... I came to scout out information on Class D," Kanzaki admitted frankly.
Hirata replied just as openly, "It's fine. I don't consider Class B our enemy. You could've just come to visit our Base Camp openly."
Kanzaki had been caught spying, and Hirata's words only made him more embarrassed.
This, too, had all been part of Ayanokoji's plan.
He had gotten up early to take care of some personal business, then noticed the other classes keeping an eye on them. So he deliberately led Hirata over to gather information.
Just then, the only person present from a third class spoke up. "So does that mean Class C is your enemy, Hirata?"
All four of them turned to look as a huge banana leaf, large enough to hide half a person, lifted up. Tennoji Kaede stepped out.
"He's Tennoji Kaede from Class C," Ayanokoji said, introducing him.
"I see."
Kaede hadn't planned to hide very far in the first place, and Hirata remained unruffled.
"You're mistaken, Tennoji. Even if Class C is led by Ryuen, we don't consider every ordinary student in Class C our enemy."
He continued, "...Actually, we took in a girl from Class C yesterday. Her name is Ibuki Mio. Do you know her?"
Kaede bowed at a slight angle. "I came here for her. Ibuki's a good friend of mine. I'm very grateful that Class D was willing to take her in."
"I understand. I'll arrange for you two to meet shortly."
Hirata smiled. Friendship was what he valued most. It seemed Class C wasn't entirely under the tyrant Ryuen's thumb, after all.
Kaede replied solemnly, "Thank you."
Ayanokoji remained expressionless. "Kanzaki, would you tell us where Class B's camp is?"
"Of course. Walk back to the beach and head southwest. There's a huge fallen tree. Enter the forest in that direction, and you'll find a path that Class B deliberately widened by trampling it down. Follow it to the end, and you'll reach our camp."
Kaede also told them where Class C's beach headquarters was and passed on Ryuen's invitation.
"Does he want Horikita to bring people over?" Hirata asked, hesitating. Ayanokoji gave him a subtle sign that he could go.
Afterward, the two Class B students left, while Kaede entered the Class D Base Camp.
Ayanokoji was temporarily assigned to keep an eye on him. Hirata still had the basic instinct to stay cautious.
"Since that time at the school gate near the start of the year, this is the first time we've had a private conversation like this, just the two of us... right, Ayanokoji?" Kaede turned to him with a harmless smile.
"Right. But the contract you made with Horikita last time—the one with the rules you were selling—has made her daily life quite difficult."
Was Ayanokoji mocking him? Or did he mean something else?
"I understand. I'm grateful that Class D took Ibuki in this time. How about I shorten the contract I made with Horikita from twelve months to six as thanks?"
"In other words, next time, in September, will be the last exchange of points."
There wasn't much point in siphoning off Horikita's points anymore. After this Deserted Island Exam, Kaede would have a new and substantial source of income.
Ayanokoji was slightly surprised. "So you're saying the contract is yours to control, Tennoji?"
Kaede nodded. "I was the one who suggested to Ryuen that he try selling some of the school's Hidden Rules he'd discovered. And my name is on the contract as the first party, so you can rest assured."
"Ryuen doesn't care about sums this small at all."
Was that true? Ayanokoji replied that he'd discuss it with Horikita later.
No one knew what he really thought. Kaede merely nodded, unconcerned.
Several Class D girls came out of the tent. "Huh? Who's that handsome guy?"
Kushida's eyes narrowed. "I think that's Tennoji Kaede from Class C."
"Really? The guy who's first on the Handsome Ranking? Why is he visiting our class?"
Sakura replied, "He's probably here for Ibuki."
The girls nodded as if it all made sense.
Kaede stepped forward. "Hello, everyone in Class D. I'm Tennoji Kaede from Class C. I came here today for Ibuki. Thank you for looking after her."
He took off his shoulder bag and opened it. "I hope you'll accept these snacks as a small personal token of my gratitude."
"Wow, chocolate! And so much of it?"
The Class D girls crowded around him, chattering like a flock of sparrows. Kaede handed out the snacks while handling their questions with ease.
"Our class is pretty casual about spending points on food... I brought enough for everyone to have one. Anyway, thank you all."
"You're too kind! You really value friendship!"
"Now I'm kind of jealous of Ibuki!"
After handing the snacks to Karuizawa Kei, the girls' representative, Kaede took Ibuki to an empty corner.
Ayanokoji went to fetch Horikita, who was hiding in the tent, so they could discuss the contract.
"Why did you come here and make such a big deal of it? What am I supposed to do now?" Ibuki rolled her eyes at Kaede. Now she felt too embarrassed to pull anything.
Once they were alone, Kaede said, "I never planned for you to come in the first place. You insisted on coming yourself, didn't you? Anyway, you don't need to do much here. Just watch out for yourself."
Then Kaede discreetly handed her something.
"What's this? Why are you giving me this? I..."
Kaede put a finger to his lips. "Hide it somewhere safe. If you find a chance to use it later, then do so."
"But..."
Someone was coming. Ibuki quickly hid the item and fell silent.
Horikita Suzune and Ayanokoji walked over.
"I agree to your proposal. We'll cut the contract term in half!"
Horikita spoke impatiently. The contract she'd signed at the start of the school year had caused her no end of trouble.
"I understand, Horikita. If you want, you can also ask your homeroom teacher to help and transfer the 30,000 Private Points for next month right away. Then we can cancel the contract outright."
During the exam, students didn't have their Student Terminals with them, but asking their homeroom teacher to help sign a contract and take care of related matters was perfectly normal.
"To be honest, those three rules were a pretty good deal for 180,000 points. You didn't really lose out, Horikita."
Kaede brought it up again, and Horikita's brows twitched furiously with anger.
She ignored him. "Fine. I'll find a way to transfer the points to you shortly. After the exam, I'll also ask Teacher Chabashira to confirm that the contract is void. I hope you'll keep your word."
Kaede agreed, and Horikita went straight back to the tent.
"...Ayanokoji, Horikita seems like she might not be feeling well."
"...I'm not sure. Thanks for letting me know. I'll ask her about it later."
"Right. Well, there's nothing else to do. I should head back to Class C's Base Camp. Make sure Horikita comes over today, or I won't be able to report back to Ryuen."
"Besides, this may be your last chance to scout out information on Class C..."
Ayanokoji remained expressionless, but Kaede's words seemed to give him something to think about.
He promised to pass the message on to Horikita, though no one could tell what was really on his mind...
Before you continue