Assassins and Spies

"Kaneda, are you saying that Ryuen from Class C kicked you out?" Inside the Class B base camp, Shibata asked Kaneda, who was covered in injuries.

"Yes. Because I didn't really agree with Ryuen's methods, I ended up being ostracized in Class C, and now I've been kicked out," Kaneda said with a look of resentment.

"With injuries this severe, why didn't you just go back to the cruise ship to recover? Do you need us to take you?" Hamaguchi asked, looking at Kaneda's swollen face.

"I'm used to these kinds of injuries; it's nothing major. Besides, Ryuen said that if I returned to the ship, I wouldn't be able to stay in Class C anymore..." Kaneda said sadly.

"That guy Ryuen, how could he!" Shibata said angrily.

"Kaneda, why don't you just stay here with Class B! Everyone in Class B will accept you!" Ichinose said, feeling a sense of indignation after hearing this.

"Yes, all of us in Class B will accept you!" Hamaguchi echoed.

"Ying, say something too," Shibata said, turning to look at Ying, who had remained silent the entire time.

"Uh... oh... I have no objections," Ying replied indifferently.

"Wait, what's wrong with you? Aren't you usually the most proactive person when it comes to things like this?" Hamaguchi asked, looking surprised.

"What? Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about whether Kaneda should sleep in Tetsuya's bunk," Ying denied.

Others might not know, but how could he not? Kaneda was actually a spy sent by Class C. The people in Class B were too kind; it was unlikely anyone would even consider that possibility.

If the people in Class C guessed who the leader of Class B was, the reward points that Class B had worked so hard to earn would be gone. He had to make the people in Class B realize it! Ying thought to himself.

Afterward, Kaneda moved into the Class B camp. Now that the sky was growing dark, the people of Class B began preparing dinner.

"Ying, come over and give us a hand!" Hamaguchi, who was cooking soup, shouted to Ying.

"Can't you see I'm busy!?" Ying lifted his arms, which were full of firewood, and continued walking toward the campfire.

"I'll help!" Kaneda said, joining Hamaguchi to cook the fruit and vegetable soup.

Ying watched the scene from afar, squinting his eyes... Let's see when you finally slip up!

"Byakuya, are you very concerned about Kaneda?" Kanzaki asked, having noticed Ying's behavior.

"Yes. Have you noticed anything strange?" Ying felt that if it were Kanzaki, he should have some suspicions.

"Are you suspecting... that Kaneda is a spy from Class C?" Kanzaki pondered for a moment before speaking.

"Exactly! I knew it, if it were you, you would definitely have noticed!" Ying said excitedly.

"But so far, Kaneda hasn't done anything suspicious. He has even provided Class B with a large amount of information about Class C," Kanzaki analyzed calmly.

"What!? You can't be fooled by appearances! If the leader of Class B is exposed, all our reward points will be for nothing! Damn it, if only we could change the leader!" Ying suddenly became agitated, shaking Kanzaki by the shoulders.

"Byakuya, calm down. You can't just change a leader whenever you want. Besides, Kaneda isn't necessarily a spy. We all know Ryuen's style, and his injuries are real," Kanzaki said, pushing Byakuya away with a speechless expression.

"Damn it! You believe Kaneda too? If he's so badly injured, why didn't he go back to the cruise ship? Doesn't being sick or injured mean you can't participate in the exam?" Ying complained, holding his head, and walked toward Hamaguchi to eat.

Kanzaki stood there, lost in thought. He couldn't help but feel that there was more to what Ying was saying...

"Kaneda's cooking is actually quite good. A lot of people in Class B have been complimenting you!" Ichinose said, holding a bowl of the fruit and vegetable soup Kaneda had made.

"Not at all, it's just that I used to cook for myself at home often," Kaneda said modestly.

"Tch," Ying scoffed.

"Byakuya-kun's cooking is definitely the best, though... hahaha..." Ichinose said with a helpless smile.

The next day, in order to confirm whether Kaneda's information was accurate, Class B formed a Class C reconnaissance team to head to the Class C base for investigation.

"I heard Class C is on the beach where we started," said Hamaguchi, who was part of the reconnaissance team.

"That's not all. Ryuen even spent all their points on having fun. He doesn't care about the class at all!" said Kaneda, who was leading the group, with anger in his voice.

Ying just followed silently at the back. Ryuen's "zero-point" strategy was interesting, but it had still lost to Ayanokoji.

"Ying, walk faster, we're almost there," urged Hamaguchi, who was walking in front. "Once we get there, we'll know if Kaneda was lying or not."

"Yeah, yeah..." Ying replied perfunctorily, picking up his pace slightly.

"This is really..." Upon arriving at the Class C base, Hamaguchi looked at the Class C students eating, drinking, and having fun, and sighed.

Class C really had come here for a vacation—beach volleyball, surfing, open-air barbecues... Ying's eyes were practically popping out of his head.

"Hey! Class B, this is the Class C camp. What do you think you're doing?" Ishizaki asked, walking over to warn them after seeing Ying and the others.

"We're here to discuss something with Ryuen regarding Kaneda," replied Kanzaki, who had come in place of Ichinose.

"You're Kanzaki Ryuji? Boss Ryuen is waiting for you over there," Ishizaki said, pointing to Ryuen, who was lying under a parasol in the distance wearing sunglasses.

"Kanzaki? What are you doing coming to the Class C camp? Interfering with other classes will result in class point deductions, you know," Ryuen asked, noticing the arrival of the Class B group.

"The Kaneda from your class is currently at our camp," Kanzaki said.

"So?" Ryuen said dismissively.

"So, our class needs your class to take care of one student as well. I nominate myself," Ying suddenly spoke up. Life in Class C was just too comfortable.

"What did you say?" Ryuen didn't quite understand what Ying was talking about.

"Nothing. We just came to see if what Kaneda said was true. Since Class C clearly doesn't want Kaneda, Class B doesn't mind taking care of him for you. I just hope that, as a class leader, you'll think more about your classmates," Kanzaki said before leading everyone away. As they left, Ying still felt a lingering attachment to the heavenly life in Class C.

Back at the Class B camp, Kaneda quickly integrated completely into the class. Everyone in Class B treated Kaneda as one of their own—everyone, that is, except for Ying.

"Kaneda, you should know what you're doing, right?" At night, while Ying and Kaneda were keeping watch outside together, Ying asked.

"Byakuya, what do you mean by that?" Kaneda was puzzled, not understanding why Ying had suddenly asked him such a question.

"You're actually a spy for Class C, aren't you? Aren't you afraid of being exposed?" Ying asked coldly.

"Byakuya, that's really not the case. I only came here because I was ostracized by Class C. I will stay in Class B until the exam ends; you don't need to worry about me leaking any secrets." Kaneda denied it.

Ying frowned slightly, his eyes fixed on Kaneda, trying to find a flaw in his expression. However, Kaneda was disguised very well; although various micro-expressions suggested that Kaneda was indeed a spy, no decisive evidence could be found.

At this moment, Ying's gaze fell upon the school bag that Kaneda kept with him at all times, never letting anyone touch it...

"You're from Class A? What business do you have with our Class C?" Ryuen said impatiently.

"Hahaha, I've long heard the rumors about the tyrant of Class C. I am Hashimoto Masayoshi from Class A. Looking at the Class C campsite, it certainly reflects the spirit of the vacation better than the other classes," Hashimoto laughed.

"You're from the Sakayanagi Faction, right? With Sakayanagi absent for this exam, Katsuragi is the one in command now. What could you possibly bring to me?" Ryuen provoked him.

"The princess, let me tell you..." Hashimoto relayed the task Sakayanagi had entrusted to him to Ryuen.

"Interesting, hahaha!" Ryuen stood up, laughing loudly, and then began walking in the direction of the Class A campsite.