With weather like this, Class D was growing restless.
"Ugh, I thought it was going to pour, but it looks like the rain's coming earlier than expected."
Ike said, holding a fishing net and gazing at the dark clouds slowly approaching on the horizon.
"Yeah... We should hurry up and get some food, or we won't be able to go out and gather any once the rain starts."
Kiyotaka said, looking at the empty bucket.
"Then hurry up and do your part. Why are you standing around? Ike's already in the water."
Horikita replied coolly, unconcerned.
"Don't forget, all three of us are supposed to be working."
Kiyotaka couldn't help retorting irritably as he looked at Horikita, who was acting like none of this concerned her.
"Of course I know."
Horikita said that, but she didn't move.
Kiyotaka shook his head, then went into the water and started setting the net with Ike.
Meanwhile, Yamauchi had been assigned to the fruit-picking group. He watched Horikita and Kiyotaka chatting and laughing, his expression full of meaning.
"Those two have definitely got something going on. Heh heh."
Yamauchi, who seemed to be missing a screw, walked over to Horikita, muttering to himself.
"Hey, Horikita, when did you and Kiyotaka get together? Why didn't you tell us?"
As he spoke, Yamauchi picked up a lump of mud from the ground and smeared it on Horikita's head.
"Ha ha! Is this where the boyfriend's supposed to step in?"
Everyone present was stunned by Yamauchi's unexpected stunt. A deathly silence fell over the group.
"Ow, that hurts."
Horikita suddenly turned around, grabbed Yamauchi's wrist, and swiftly threw him over her shoulder toward the rocks beside the stream.
Seeing what was about to happen, Kiyotaka discreetly positioned himself as a cushion and caught Yamauchi.
"Ow, ow, ow!"
Yamauchi landed flat on his back and kept shouting.
Just then, Kikyo came over and said to Horikita,
"Suzune, your hair... Go wash it, okay?"
"Yeah, it's all sticky. I should wash it."
With that, she headed toward a deeper part of the stream.
As she passed Kiyotaka, he murmured,
"You really wanted him dead, huh? If I hadn't cushioned his fall, his skull would've been smashed to pieces at the very least."
Horikita merely gave him a cold look and walked away without saying a word.
A while later, Ike and Kiyotaka hauled in the net.
"Oh man, only two fish. What are we supposed to do?"
After Ike said that, he spotted Yamauchi walking by and exclaimed in surprise,
"Huh? Yamauchi, you're actually still alive?"
"Could you not say something so terrifying?"
Yamauchi shuddered as he replied.
"I mean it as a compliment. You were brave. Why'd you go and provoke Horikita for no reason?"
Ike thought Yamauchi was beyond help. What kind of person would smear a bunch of mud on someone else for no reason?
Just then, Kiyotaka spotted Ibuki among the fruit-picking group. He listened quietly to Ike and Yamauchi's conversation as he packed up the fishing gear by himself.
Once he had finished, Kiyotaka went to the camp and started a fire. Before long, Horikita approached him with a strange expression.
"Kiyotaka, could you come with me? There's something I need to tell you."
Kiyotaka was puzzled, but he silently followed Horikita away.
They had been away from camp for a while when Horikita finally stopped. She shivered slightly as she spoke to Kiyotaka.
"I know I was careless, and that's why I brought you out here. I want you to help me."
"What is it?"
"I lost something."
Kiyotaka was taken aback and asked,
"What? Did you lose your underwear too?"
Horikita wasn't in the mood for jokes. She shook her head and said,
"No. It's something ten thousand times more important than that. I lost the key..."
Kiyotaka's pupils widened slightly before he quickly composed himself.
"Any idea who took it?"
"I have two suspects. One is Karuizawa, and the other is Ibuki."
"Is your conflict with Karuizawa really that bad?"
"Just because you don't see it doesn't mean it isn't there."
"Fair enough. But I don't think Karuizawa is very suspicious. She was in my sight the whole time you were washing up."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course."
"Then that leaves Ibuki."
"Let's find a chance to ask her directly. If she's taken the card, that would be the worst-case scenario."
Horikita's expression filled with self-reproach.
"You're right. Go back first. I'll take a moment to myself before I return."
Kiyotaka understood that after causing such a big mess, it was only natural that she wanted some time alone. He didn't say anything and returned to camp by himself.
Back at camp, Kiyotaka saw Ibuki quietly curled up in a corner, eating.
He said nothing and left without drawing attention to himself.
A while later, even Horikita, who was some distance away, could smell the strong stench of something burning.
Horikita stood up in disbelief and immediately ran back.
The camp was already ablaze, and Sudo, Hirata, and several others were struggling to put out the fire.
"It must've been her!"
The first person Horikita suspected was Ibuki. But then she noticed Ibuki staring at the fire as it was slowly being extinguished, a look of surprise on her face.
That made Horikita hesitate again.
They finally put out the fire. As smoke rose into the air after the flames died down, Shinohara Satsuki erupted.
"First someone's stealing underwear, now someone's setting fires! Who did this? Is there a traitor in our class?"
"What are you talking about? Stealing underwear and setting the camp on fire are two completely different things! Why are you lumping them together?"
"What kind of pervert steals underwear? Who knows what else they'd do? Maybe the same person did both!"
"Can't you all stop arguing?"
Seeing the argument grow more heated, Hirata stepped in to mediate. But this time, no one listened to him, and the argument continued.
Hirata lowered his head and fell silent.
"Wait, where's Ibuki?"
Sudo, who had suspected Ibuki of being the traitor all along, was the first to notice she was gone.
Karuizawa covered her mouth in surprise.
"Ibuki was right here just a moment ago. Could she really be the traitor?"
"Damn it! That bastard got away!"
Sudo punched a tree in anger and cursed.
The rain began to fall, growing heavier by the minute. The argument between the boys and girls died down after Ibuki's disappearance.
"It's raining. What should we do, Hirata? Hirata...?"
Karuizawa called out to Hirata, but he seemed completely dazed, muttering to himself.
"Why did this happen? I didn't do anything wrong, so why did so many things go wrong...?"
Kiyotaka had been watching all of this coldly. He patted Hirata on the shoulder and said,
"Hirata, it's raining. You should go help. Our things are still outside."
Kiyotaka's pat brought Hirata back to his senses.
"Right, we still have things to put away. Girls, gather the clothes. Boys, cover the firewood. Let's get moving!"
At Hirata's command, everyone got to work.
Kiyotaka looked up at the pouring rain and murmured,
"Time to wrap things up."
With that, he slowly disappeared into the woods.
Meanwhile, Horikita was running through the forest at full speed.
"She can't have gotten far. She must be nearby. Damn it, my head feels so heavy... I can barely move!"
Sure enough, it wasn't long before Ibuki appeared in front of Horikita.
"Finally made it, huh? You're a little slow."
Ibuki chuckled as she spoke to Horikita.
"First, someone steals underwear, and now there's a fire. Class D sure has had a rough time of it."
Horikita walked up to her, staring sternly at Ibuki's back.
"So what?"
"You know a lot of people in our class suspect you, right?"
"So you're saying I did it? Where's your proof?"
Seeing that Ibuki had no intention of admitting anything, Horikita asked her outright,
"I'll get straight to the point. Give back what you stole from me."
Ibuki shrugged, unconcerned.
"I could tell you I didn't steal anything, but you wouldn't believe me. Why don't you check for yourself?"
With a smack, Ibuki tossed the bag she was carrying onto the ground, inviting Horikita to search it.
Horikita stepped forward without hesitation, preparing to pick it up.
Suddenly, Ibuki raised her leg and kicked toward Horikita's face. Horikita had been expecting it, so she blocked the kick with her arm and retreated two steps.
"Oh? You're not bad."
"Using violence during an exam will get you expelled. Don't you know that?"
Ibuki looked at Horikita as if she were naive and sneered.
"Who'd find out here? And don't tell me you weren't planning to use force either."
Horikita shivered more and more in the downpour. Her body felt hot inside, yet she was also cold. She knew she was nearing her limit, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to keep going.
"So you're the one who stole my Ghost Card? You even set the fire to draw everyone's attention and make it easier to escape. That's cold."
Before you continue