Soon, everyone had gathered on the deck, and each student had been given an electronic wristwatch. The teachers from every class stood nearby, counting heads.
The cruise ship had already docked. Looking into the distance, they could make out numerous figures on the island ahead, setting up tents and all sorts of electronic equipment.
"What are they doing?"
"Who knows? Don't tell me we're supposed to live here?"
Looking at the verdant island before them, the students were no longer in the mood to admire the scenery. With every tent that went up, their unease grew.
A man stood in front of them. Once he learned everyone had arrived, he picked up a megaphone and spoke loudly.
"Next, we'll begin this year's first Special Exam!
"For the next week, you'll live on this uninhabited island as a team representing your class!"
The Special Exam on the Uninhabited Island
"What? We have to live on an uninhabited island for a week? We can't even go back to the cruise ship?"
As soon as Ike heard that the Special Exam required them to live on an uninhabited island, he broke down and shouted.
"Quiet! Listen carefully."
Chabashira sternly cut off Ike's shouting, then folded her arms and closed her eyes again.
"For this Special Exam, each class will receive two tents, a fire-starting kit, enough toiletries for every student, and unlimited sunscreen. Feminine hygiene products will also be provided in unlimited quantities. Other necessities, such as drinking water and food, are up to you to obtain."
The teacher onstage ignored the commotion below and continued explaining the rules.
"Teacher, how will we be scored in this Special Exam?"
Honami Ichinose raised her hand and asked.
The teacher glanced at her, then continued.
"Each class will start with 500 points to distribute. For any reason whatsoever, anyone who leaves the island will cost their class 20 points.
"These points can also be used to obtain anything you need for daily life. You can check how many points each item costs on your wristwatch."
At this, an odd smile appeared on the teacher's face.
"Here's the final rule. Each class will receive a Ghost Card, and you can decide who will keep it. Once you've chosen the cardholder, you can't change your decision unless that person has no choice but to withdraw from the exam.
"Only the student holding the Ghost Card can claim the territories set up around the island. A class will earn 1 point for each hour it holds a territory and checks in there. Each claim lasts eight hours.
"When the week is over, each class can guess who holds the Ghost Cards for the other classes. A correct guess earns 50 points; an incorrect guess costs 50. Abstaining neither adds nor deducts points.
"If another class correctly guesses your cardholder, your class will lose 50 points, and all bonus points will be forfeited."
Once the teacher finished explaining the rules, the students below didn't erupt into chatter again. The sheer volume of rules and point deductions had left them all stunned.
The teachers didn't care whether the students understood. As soon as the rules had been announced, they began lining the students up to disembark in class order.
But Kiyotaka's thoughts were elsewhere. His eyes were fixed on Horikita, whose cheeks were flushed with an almost sickly redness. As they were getting off the ship, he took the opportunity to approach her.
"Are you sick? Is it because we were out in the wind talking on deck last night?"
Horikita paused, then shook her head.
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."
Kiyotaka furrowed his brow. He knew she was sick, but with her personality, she wouldn't leave now and cost the class points.
I hope she can hold out. If not, I'll have to do something...
Before long, all the students had made their way onto the island.
"The Uninhabited Island Special Exam begins now!"
Hirata gathered Class D together. He had a fair amount of authority in the class.
"Everyone, this is the situation, and the supplies we have are everything you see here.
"This exam may be difficult, but I hope you'll all see it through. This might be our chance to make a comeback as Class D."
At first, encouraged by Hirata, everyone set out with confidence.
But less than two hours later, some of the girls with less stamina were already starting to complain, though things were still under control.
Then the fragile calm was quietly shattered.
"Hirata, we trusted you to lead us, but we're out in the middle of nowhere. Are you saying we girls can't even take care of basic hygiene?"
"What's wrong with being a girl? Are you really that fussy? Just squat somewhere if you need to go to the bathroom, and find a pool of water if you want to wash."
"Who are you calling fussy?"
Before Hirata could say anything, the hot-tempered boys and girls had already started trading insults.
Put simply, they had been pampered for so long that they had no wilderness survival skills whatsoever. Their fear and unease had boiled over into an emotional outburst.
Kiyotaka watched coolly from the sidelines. Apart from keeping an eye on Horikita, a few people had surprised him.
One was Koenji. Usually so eccentric, he showed impressive athleticism and survival skills in the wilderness. Like Kiyotaka, he kept completely to himself, lounging lazily in a tree for a nap.
The other was Ike. He clearly knew more about the outdoors than the others, and had more or less single-handedly rescued everyone from being unable to get by.
For instance, they had time to argue now because Ike had used his judgment to find Class D a campsite near a water source.
"Let's stop arguing. Points are important, but making sure we can live comfortably matters too. Let's vote on which supplies to get, then decide who'll hold the Ghost Card. Does that sound good?"
Seeing things get worse, Hirata Yosuke could only try to resolve the situation with a compromise.
"Well, if that's what you say, Yosuke, I guess I'll agree."
Kei Karuizawa flicked her hair back as she spoke.
"I agree."
In the end, everyone voted to spend 20 points on a simple portable toilet and 30 points on two tents. Only then did the commotion finally die down.
"Everyone, now we need to discuss who should hold the Ghost Card."
Hirata Yosuke clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.
"Since you're making the decisions, why don't you hold on to the card?" As Hirata's girlfriend, Kei Karuizawa supported him as usual.
But Hirata shook his head.
"After the week of survival, we'll have to guess who holds the Ghost Cards. If they figure out who has ours, we'll be giving away points. Choosing the right cardholder is important if we want to open up a big lead in this exam."
"...I'll take it."
Horikita spoke up, her voice sounding perfectly normal.
"Horikita, are you willing to help us?"
Hirata asked, looking at her with delight.
Horikita simply nodded. She was willing to do anything that might give Class D a chance to move up.
In the end, Horikita was chosen to hold Class D's Ghost Card. With the others covering for her, the area near the water source officially became Class D's territory.
Once they'd made their decision, everyone began preparing for the days ahead. They clumsily set up the tents and organized groups to catch fish, gather firewood, and so on.
Ike was quite experienced with all of it, so for a while, everyone managed to work in an orderly fashion.
After finishing the task he'd been assigned—gathering firewood—Kiyotaka quietly disappeared from sight.
Then Why Were You Rubbing It?!
"Kiyotaka, what are you doing?"
Kiyotaka had been silently observing from within a dense patch of grass when a voice suddenly came from behind him, startling him.
His reflexes nearly sent the person behind him sprawling, but at the last moment he realized it was Kikyo. With no other choice, he turned his fist into a flick and gave Kikyo a sharp tap on the forehead.
"Ow! What was that for? That really hurt."
Kiyotaka ignored Kikyo. At the check-in point near the camp, he had spotted Katsuragi from Class A.
Katsuragi and another person cautiously watched the check-in point for a while. Then Katsuragi took out something resembling a Ghost Card and swiped it against the scanner.
"We got lucky, Katsuragi. We've only been on the island a little while, and we've already claimed a spot."
"Lucky? I'd already scouted things out before we landed. What do you think the cruise ship circled the island for? It was giving us a hint."
"A hint?"
"While we circled the island, we could clearly see paths leading into the forest. And Yahiko, watch what you say. There might be someone nearby listening."
"Yes, sorry, Katsuragi."
"Fine. As the cardholder, it's my responsibility to keep looking for new spots. Let's go."
"Kiyotaka, is Katsuragi the one holding Class A's Ghost Card?" After Katsuragi and Yahiko left, Kikyo poked her curious little head out and asked him.
"Who knows? I just happened to spot them while I was wandering around."
"Oh~ If you're that bored, why don't we do something fun?"
Kikyo's eyes immediately lit up.
Kiyotaka smiled faintly and said, "Sure. How about I take you into the woods and let you experience what it's like to get bitten by a snake on the butt?"
"You're awful!"
Frightened, Kikyo hurriedly covered her backside, then followed Kiyotaka back.
When Kiyotaka and Kikyo returned to camp, Hirata spotted them and came over.
"Kiyotaka, did you find anything?"
At Hirata's question, Kiyotaka shook his head, looking unconcerned. But inwardly, he felt a flicker of wariness.
He could understand Kikyo keeping an eye on him, but he hadn't expected Hirata to watch his every move too. That was a little strange.
Hirata didn't seem surprised by Kiyotaka's answer. He murmured to himself, "I see. Ike, Sudo, Yamauchi, and the others have already gone out to look for more spots. The more we find, the greater our advantage in this exam."
Hirata had a point. There were three main things they needed to do to win this exam.
First, thanks to Ike, they had found a good territory and saved a lot of points on water and food. From then on, they only needed to make sure everyone stayed healthy. If anyone withdrew because they got sick or injured, it would cost the class 20 points. That was far too high a price. Kiyotaka couldn't help glancing toward Horikita.
Second, they needed to claim as many spots as possible. Each one earned eight points over the eight hours it remained active. Claiming more and more spots over time would turn a quantitative advantage into a qualitative one.
Third, they needed to protect the identity of their Ghost Card holder or guess who held the other classes' cards. A correct guess earned 50 points; guessing all three classes' cardholders would bring a huge 150-point bonus. But getting all three wrong would cost them 150 points. This high-risk, high-reward challenge would be an important factor in the final rankings.
Thinking about it, Kiyotaka couldn't help shaking his head. What a hassle.
After talking with Hirata for a while, Kiyotaka led Horikita to an empty corner.
"Are you okay? You're looking really pale."
Horikita stubbornly shook her head.
"I haven't contributed anything from the start of this exam until now. The only thing I can do is make sure I don't drag the class down."
Kiyotaka gently stroked Horikita's slightly haggard cheek, looking a little concerned, but said nothing more.
Horikita felt his concern and leaned against him, giving him a faint smile.
"Kiyotaka, things really are just as you said. This school doesn't measure ability based solely on academics. This exam has shown me how many shortcomings I have. At the very least, I couldn't go out and search for spots on my own like Sudo and the others."
"Ah... is that so? Well, everyone has their own strengths."
Horikita wasn't convinced by Kiyotaka's perfunctory reply. She rolled her eyes at him.
"What about you? You act like you have no motivation to do anything, but didn't you come to this school so you could choose any job you wanted in the future?"
"Me? I came here for you. Getting into this school means I can finally have my way with you, Suzune. What could be better?"
As he spoke, Kiyotaka let his large hand wander over Horikita, making her shiver despite her sensitivity.
"You smooth talker!"
Horikita knocked away his misbehaving hand, then headed back toward camp.
Before you continue