Horikita Suzune

Ike had just been about to hit him when Eito slapped him aside.

But Ike didn't give up and tried to take another swing.

Just then, Yukimura spoke up from nearby:

"Could you two keep it down? I'm trying to sleep."

His tone was stern, like a homeroom teacher addressing a class.

Ike pouted and lay back down.

Eito smiled and fell silent, too.

And so, they endured the night until morning.

During roll call that morning, Chabashira explained that the two missing students had returned to the ship.

It was a heavy blow to the students in Class D.

After all, it meant their class had lost 60 points for nothing on the very first day.

Leaving Koenji aside, Karuizawa actually stepped forward over Airi's absence and demanded:

"Wasn't Sakura with Takeda yesterday? Why did she get sick? Is it because Takeda didn't take good care of her?"

Airi's reason for being absent was that she wasn't feeling well. There was more to it than that, but Chabashira accepted the explanation and repeated it to the class.

With everyone's eyes now on him, Eito bowed slightly.

"This was my fault. I'm sorry, everyone."

His classmates just wanted someone to vent their frustration at. There was no point in making excuses, especially since he really was responsible for the lost points.

Seeing this, Shinohara quickly jumped in.

"It's okay. You can't control getting sick. Maybe Sakura was just in poor health to begin with. It couldn't be helped that she was affected."

Sato added:

"I don't think it had anything to do with Eito... Takeda. He's usually pretty gentle. He wouldn't do anything to hurt Sakura."

The others chimed in as well.

"Takeda-kun even picked up my pen for me once. He's so nice."

"Maybe Sakura just wasn't feeling well herself."

"..."

Hirata stepped forward, too. "I trust Takeda."

"Fine." Karuizawa shot Hirata a glare. "I was just saying. I wasn't trying to accuse him, either. Whatever. Don't mind me."

Her unusually hostile attitude made Eito start to wonder.

It was clear that Karuizawa was targeting him. But why?

Although she was ostensibly the leader of the girls, she often left the decision-making to others. It wasn't just that she lacked the ability; she also lacked the nerve.

In truth, her position was built on Hirata's support.

She had already been one of the most prominent people in class. Then, by becoming Hirata's girlfriend, she'd risen even higher among the girls, surpassing Kikyo to become their undisputed number one.

Considering what Eito knew about her, there was probably only one reason.

He was getting close to threatening her position.

And the way he was doing it was through Hirata.

His actions had undoubtedly earned him a better reputation among the girls.

He wasn't about to surpass Hirata, but he was starting to look like a threat.

If things continued this way, the method she relied on to maintain her standing—Hirata—would be worthless.

The more influence he gained, the less influence she had.

So that was it.

Of course, this was only a guess. He never drew conclusions before he was absolutely certain.

Still, he estimated there was more than a 90 percent chance he was right.

To make up for his mistake, he decided to give his classmates a little present—and use the opportunity to test his theory.

With that, he took out the map he'd drawn.

"This is a map of the island's terrain. Take a look."

The moment his classmates saw it, their faces filled with surprise.

It wasn't just a terrain map. It also marked a number of places where they could gather food, as well as the locations of a base and a river.

In other words, with this map, they wouldn't have to waste time searching for food. They'd already made it halfway through the Island Exam.

"Wow, Takeda-kun, you're amazing!"

"Had Takeda been observing the island while we were on the ship? I was busy looking at the scenery. I can't believe I didn't think of that."

"Now we won't starve to death."

This time, even the boys looked at him with admiration, not just the girls.

He said:

"Actually, I owe it all to Sakura. If she hadn't taken those photos earlier, I couldn't have done this."

"That's still amazing. You two did all that yesterday? I misunderstood you earlier. I'm sorry."

"Me too. I'm really sorry!"

Sakura's reputation hadn't suffered at all—in fact, it had improved.

He noticed that Karuizawa was glaring at him even more fiercely, which only made him more certain of his theory.

What a pain.

But he didn't feel like dealing with Karuizawa right now.

Besides, he still had preparations to make.

He'd already started putting them in place. Once the time was right, getting Karuizawa to submit would be very simple.

After seeing his map, the gloom that had hung over his classmates vanished without a trace. To gather food before anyone else discovered it, more than half of them had already headed out.

Most of those who remained were girls.

He followed behind the group of boys.

Chapter 44: Horikita Suzune

"Hey, Horikita."

Elsewhere, he found Suzune traveling alone.

Suzune didn't even look at him.

"What do you want now? Aren't you going to hang out with Kushida?"

"I just wanted to check in on my dear friend. Horikita, I'll come with you. By the way, where are you headed?"

"To scout the terrain and see if there's anything hidden." As she spoke, Suzune glanced at him.

"Horikita, you're getting clever. Unfortunately, there's no treasure hidden on this island. There's no chance of finding something like a point card you can dig up."

The rules had already made it clear: damaging the island's natural environment would cost them points.

How stingy.

He continued, "How about we go see how the other classes are doing?"

"What are you plotting now?" His recent behavior had made Suzune wary of him. "You're not planning to lure me somewhere deserted and do something weird, are you?"

"Something weird?" He tilted his head.

"Why are you pretending to be clueless? Forget it." Suzune snorted and quickened her pace, as if trying to leave him behind.

He followed.

Suzune came to a stop, then actually started running.

Interesting.

He ran after her.

Thirty minutes later.

Suzune was crouched on the ground, exhausted. Sweat ran down her face and arms, dripping onto the dry earth.

He was a little out of breath, too. He walked over to her and patted her head.

"Giving up already?"

Suzune slapped his hand away. "You really aren't an ordinary person, are you?"

"Oh?"

She hadn't even eaten a proper breakfast, yet he'd managed to run for that long without looking particularly tired. Back when they used to go jogging in the mornings, he'd deliberately slowed down to keep pace with her. Now she felt like a complete fool.

Suzune continued, "We've known each other for almost half a year. Did you think I wouldn't notice anything?"

"Has it really been half a year already?"

Time had flown. Back then, Suzune had been a fresh-faced girl who looked at him as if he were a piece of filth. She didn't look at him that way anymore, but her contempt for him hadn't lessened in the slightest.

If someone hated another person enough, could they end up falling for them?

It was possible.

At the extreme, hate became love. All it took was a small change to turn things around.

But that couldn't happen with Suzune.

Never mind how long it would take to make Suzune hate him that much. She'd leave him out of disgust before they ever got halfway there.

That was why theory was only theory. It depended on the person.

He said:

"It's been a while, but Suzune, I feel like you haven't improved much."

"Who do you think you are? Why should I listen to you?"

Even so, she had changed. For example, her face had become a little prettier than before.

Just a little.

If he hadn't watched her closely every day, he might not have noticed.

"How about I help you?"

"Help me?" Suzune looked unconvinced. "If you wanted to help, you would've done it already. Do you really think I'll believe you now?"

"No, no, you've misunderstood. I don't mean I'll do things for you or become your tool. I mean I'll help you change," Eito said.

"I don't need to change."

As expected of the Suzune he'd had his eye on. Her answer was exactly what he'd thought it would be.

I don't need to change. The world does.