I Suddenly Miss You So Much

"And Ayanokoji even found out?"

After a sumptuous dinner, while the others were clearing away the dishes and washing the utensils, Kitagawa Ryo casually made an excuse to walk into the nearby woods. Under a tree, he met Ryuen Kakeru and listened to what the other had to say with a frown.

"He used communications to pinpoint my location."

Ryuen Kakeru pointed to his watch and grinned:

"But it also reminded me that next time I want to do something, I should get this thing down beforehand."

Although you can't participate in any projects and score points once you take off your watch, points are completely unimportant to Ryuen Kakeru, who is consistently ranked last and holds the [Resurrection] card. He basically exchanges all the points he earns each day for supplies and gives them to Class A.

"You haven't had dinner yet, have you?"

Kitagawa Ryo, looking at Ryuen Kakeru, suddenly remembered something and pulled out a long baguette from his pocket. This was Ichinose Honami's [Supply] card. Since their group had become richer and started cooking for themselves, this thing had hardly been touched.

"Too hard... but it's not bad either."

Ryuen Kakeru took it without a care in the world, took a big bite, and mumbled his evaluation while chewing.

He was quite tough, fishing and surviving alone on Uninhabited Island without asking his classmates for any food, as if he was afraid that if they didn't have a bite from him, they would fall to the bottom of the class.

However, he didn't hesitate at all when it came to eating Kitagawa Ryo dishes.

Watching the disheveled Ryuen Kakeru wolfing down his Matoba, Kitagawa Ryo suddenly recalled the Uninhabited Island during Karuizawa Kei's second simulation. He seemed to have promised to deliver food to Ryuen Kakeru, who was lurking on the island, back then, although he didn't manage to do so in the end due to various factors.

Feeling Kitagawa Ryo's gaze soften suddenly, Ryuen Kakeru felt a little uncomfortable and rolled his eyes at him.

"What?"

"Are you worried you'll choke?"

Kitagawa Ryo also rolled his eyes at Ryuen Kakeru and tossed him the half-empty bottle of mineral water he was holding. Ryuen Sho didn't stand on ceremony and finished his dinner with bread in one hand and water in the other.

After finishing what he was holding, Ryuen Kakeru let out a long breath, leaned against the tree, picked his teeth with his little finger, and said:

"Ayanokoji has his eye on me, so don't expect me to give you any upgrade opportunities in the next couple of days."

Then, almost casually, he said:

"As for Shiina, didn't you say you wanted her group to get into the top three? Ayanokoji has noticed her too, so keep an eye on her."

"I know that."

Kitagawa Ryo nodded. He had been inside the White Room before, and he was very familiar with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's modus operandi. Moreover, judging from the last time on the Uninhabited Island, when the other party wanted to physically force Karuizawa Kei to withdraw from the exam in order to replace the Leader, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka himself was quite dangerous.

Although the watch can monitor the movements of each student, Ryuen Kakeru's words just now reminded him that if the watch is forcibly damaged, it can become a blind spot in the surveillance for a short period of time.

"I will take good care of Hiyori."

Chapter 174: Suddenly I Miss You So Much

As darkness fell, night quickly enveloped the entire Uninhabited Island. Most of the school staff returned to the school's designated camp at the starting point for rest, using various means of transportation. Occasionally, one could see some students among the coming and going crowds; these were third-year students temporarily conscripted to fill the manpower shortage.

Tachibana Akane, a member of Class 3-A and the Student Council secretary, politely thanked the support staff and carefully carried the two bento boxes she had received back to a corner.

"Xue, I've brought dinner."

Horikita Manabu, who was writing and drawing in his notebook, looked up, adjusted his glasses, nodded, and said:

"You eat first, I'm not in a hurry, I'll eat later."

"It'll get cold soon."

Despite Horikita Manabu's suggestion, Tachibana Akane stubbornly handed him the bento box, raising her voice slightly.

Perhaps because she learned about Horikita Manabu's attitude towards her from Horikita Suzune, or perhaps because graduation is not far away, Tachibana Akane has been acting a little bolder in her recent interactions with Horikita Manabu.

Seeing that Tachibana Akane was pouting and determined to stick to her guns, Horikita Manabu had no choice but to shake his head, put down his pen, take the bento box in front of him, open it, break off the chopsticks, and gesture for Tachibana Akane to sit down next to him and eat together.

Because these lunchboxes were intended for large-scale supply to school staff, they were mostly mass-produced semi-finished products. Apart from being hot and filling, they weren't particularly delicious. However, neither of them cared much about that and ate them with relish.

I saw Suzune and her group today.

After swallowing a mouthful of rice, Tachibana Akane tried hard to find a topic to talk about:

"In the [Two-Person Cavalry Battle] event, Suzune did not participate; the combination of Kitagawa and Sakayanagi won first place."

"Among the First Year, no one can rival Kitagawa in physical fitness."

Horikita Manabu paused his chopsticks, and unsurprisingly began to speak:

"Even that Ayanokoji won't do."

"Speaking of which, Suzune and Kitagawa's group has already climbed to second place, and they're even doing so as a group from Class D."

While chewing on the vegetables in her bento box, Tachibana Akane said with great interest:

"I've met their group twice, and they were first in both times. The first time was for the [Piano Performance]. Although only Kitagawa and another boy came, if we're really comparing, there probably aren't many students in the grade whose piano skills are better than his."

"Beichuan is indeed an outstanding talent, or perhaps 'genius' would be a more accurate description."

In Tachibana Akane's memory, this was the first time Horikita Manabu had so directly praised another person so highly; even the aggressive second-year student Miyabi Nagumo, had never received such recognition.

"So why didn't the school let him join the Student Council in the first place?"

Thinking of Miyabi Nagumo, Tachibana Akane, who naturally thought of the current state of the Student Council, also asked curiously.

"Because he never intended to join the Student Council in the first place."

Horikita Manabu ate very quickly, and by this time she had already finished her bento box. She put the disposable chopsticks back into the box, closed it, and threw it into the nearby trash can before turning back to explain:

"However, Kitagawa also chose to have Suzune join the Student Council, while simultaneously creating his own club. From the day he enrolled, he had been consciously making his own plans."

"Besides, it's fine even if he doesn't join the Student Council, because he'll run into Nagumo sooner or later anyway, because of Suzune."

At this point, Horikita Manabu, who was usually stern and unsmiling, surprisingly raised the corners of his mouth slightly. He picked up the notebook that he had previously put aside and took it out of his hand. Tachibana Akane glanced at it and saw that it was covered with incomprehensible lines and squares, densely intertwined and somewhat nonsensical.

Just as Tachibana Akane was about to ask a question, two First Year homeroom teachers walked by. They looked like they had just finished eating and were walking side by side talking.

"Hello, Chabashira Hoshinomiya class advisors."

Tachibana Akane and Horikita Manabu immediately stood up and politely greeted the two of them.

"Oh, you're third-year Student Council members. You've worked so hard these past few days."

With a lazy yawn, Hoshinomiya Chie of Class 1-B, waved her hand again.

"We still have work to do, so we won't chat with you any longer. Take care of your health, and just report any difficulties to the school."

Meanwhile, Chabashira Sae seemed to be in a bad mood. She pulled Hoshinomiya Chie, who seemed to want to chat with the students more, away and into a tent in the center of the camp.

The tent is equipped with a considerable number of electronic devices and instruments, with a large screen at the center displaying the real-time location of every student on the island and recording their movements.

Unlike the previous days, today's display shows a large number of coordinates concentrated in a single square, standing there very conspicuously.

"What happened at E5 today? Why are so many groups camped here?"

Chabashira Sae and Hoshinomiya Chie immediately noticed this unusual sight. The latter blinked and asked with great curiosity.

She and Chabashira Sae were assigned to logistics work today, so they weren't really sure what was going on on the island.

The other teacher in the tent scratched the back of his head, unsure how to begin. After all, it was precisely because their respective classes Class A and Class B, had a falling out, and considering that Chabashira Sae and Hoshinomiya Chie had always acted like sisters, he didn't know what to say.

Moreover, the regulations for this Special Exam specifically stipulated that class advisors must not engage in any behavior that helps their own class or interferes with other classes. After much thought, not a single teacher stepped forward to answer this question.

Seeing that the others remained silent, Hoshinomiya Chie shrugged, feeling awkward. However, she and Chabashira Sae realized a possibility and didn't press the matter further, each finding a place to sit down.

After the two women entered, the two teachers who were originally there also said goodbye and left. Chabashira Sae and Hoshinomiya Chie were on the night shift tonight. Since Ryuen Kakeru's accident, the school has increased the number of people monitoring the situation in real time, so as to receive distress signals and take action as soon as possible in the event of a possible accident.

However, the only exception to the Uninhabited Island Exam so far was Ryuen Kakeru. Hoshinomiya Chie and Chabashira Sae just chatted casually to pass the long night.

Over the years, Chabashira Sae had noticed the twisted emotions hidden beneath Hoshinomiya Chie's mask, but she had indeed made a foolish mistake back then, implicating Hoshinomiya Chie. Therefore, she hadn't thought of exposing their fake sisterly relationship all these years.

However, this does not mean that Chabashira Sae completely ignored the threat posed by Hoshinomiya Chie. Rather, after becoming the homeroom teacher of Class 1-A, this alone was enough to make the two of them direct competitors.

"Sae, this should be your last Special Exam as the homeroom teacher of Class A, so cherish it."

Hoshinomiya Chie said with a smile that wasn't funny at all:

"I told you a long time ago that you're not allowed to disobey your superiors, right?"

The Class Points of Class A and Class B are very close, and the changes in Class Points involved in this Uninhabited Island Special Exam are quite significant, so such a change is indeed possible.

Chabashira Sae didn't reply, but Hoshinomiya Chie's words were still etched into her mind:

Class A's biggest competitor is always Class B, whether from the perspective of the class or the individual class teacher.

But if you hold this kind of mindset, you will subconsciously ignore many things.

Hoshinomiya Chie crossed her arms and looked down at her right fingernails.

From beginning to end, what she hoped for was not to make her Class A.

As long as Chabashira Sae isn't in Class A, it's fine.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked at the blazing campfire in front of him. Class A and Class B, who were gathered in the E5 grid facing each other, took this opportunity to start their own joint camping trip. Five or six groups from Class A built a huge campfire together and gathered around it, laughing and talking about topics related to the upcoming exam.

However, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was clearly not used to this lively atmosphere. If it weren't for Katsuragi Kohei insisting that he come back, he would probably already be searching for Shiina Hiyori's camp in the dark.

In fact, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka knew why Katsuragi Kohei had called him back. Just as he was pondering when this scene should begin, a sudden clap of hands interrupted the noise. Katsuragi Kohei stood up, and the students of Class A quickly quieted down, focusing all their attention on him.

"Since we've all gathered here today, I'd like to take this opportunity to clarify some things."

Having said that, Katsuragi Kohei walked up to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and bowed, saying:

"I'm very sorry that I didn't notice some of Totsuka- san's mistakes because of my own personal issues!"

As if it had been pre-arranged, Totsuka Yahiko, also without a word, walked up to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka with his head down and shouted loudly:

"I am very sorry for making baseless accusations against Ayanokoji. Please forgive me!"

"... I didn't take it to heart."

Thank you for your understanding!

After Totsuka Yahiko finished speaking, led by Katsuragi Kohei, all the students in Class A spontaneously applauded, witnessing this touching scene of camaraderie among classmates.

Katsuragi Kohei hadn't given up on Totsuka Yahiko after all. With Kushida Kikyo's reminder, he realized that Totsuka Yahiko's feelings for him, or rather, his value to him, were real, which led to this somewhat awkward reconciliation scene.

He did need Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, and he did need Totsuka Yahiko. So when he saw that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was able to cooperate in forgiving Totsuka Yahiko, Katsuragi Kohei was extremely happy and patted the two of them on the shoulder, wishing he could just say, "With such a dragon and a phoenix, Class A will be prosperous."

While Class A was enjoying themselves, not far away in Class B, seven or eight groups of Class B students, who had come with almost half of their class out of concern for Karuizawa Kei, were also having a meal together, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

After reporting everything that had happened that afternoon regarding the [Two-Person Cavalry Battle] project to Karuizawa Kei, Kanzaki Ryuji was about to leave when Karuizawa Kei called him back again:

"Kanzaki, I heard from Mako that you're a fan of the pairing of me and Ryo?"

Caught red-handed Kanzaki Ryuji was completely devoid of the passionate enthusiasm he had shown in the tent on that the Tempest night. Somewhat embarrassed, he scratched the back of his head and said:

"I just really like your performance alongside Kitagawa... cough cough, I'm a drama fan, a drama fan."

"There's nothing shameful about it. I search for this tag myself all the time."

Karuizawa Kei rested her face in her hands, her eyes full of smiles.

"That netizen [K&K] who edited my Wikipedia page, is that you too? You filled it out in great detail, you're definitely a long-time fan."

"Ahem... It was just something I did casually, just something I did casually."

Kanzaki Ryuji was so surprised that even his online name had been exposed. He didn't know what to do with his hands and just waved them around haphazardly.

"Don't be so nervous, it's not a big deal, and there really isn't anything wrong with it."

While encyclopedia content can be uploaded and edited at will, content that is too outrageous or distorts reality will be reported and taken down. The reason why Kanzaki Ryuji's version has survived to this day is thanks to his frequent updates and detailed descriptions, which leave no room for criticism.

Although the [Interpersonal Relationships] and [Anecdotes] columns are filled with a lot of personal touches that everyone enjoys.

Seeing that Karuizawa Kei herself didn't seem to have any resistance, Kanzaki Ryuji breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed completely.

As a seasoned CP (couple pairing) leader, what he fears most is the actual person denying it, which would destroy this niche community from its very foundation.

"Speaking of which, when did Kanzaki notice me and Ryo?"

Karuizawa Kei pressed on with great interest.

"From the very first performance you two did together, but back then I was only impressed by Kitagawa's acting skills; to be honest, I didn't even notice the class monitor."

Kanzaki Ryuji answered somewhat shyly, but he quickly added:

"But around the second game, I saw the class monitor."

"And it was from that time that a lot of negative comments started circulating online. I don't know why, but because of that, I actually hope you can prove them wrong."

"I might be... well, I don't like getting involved in troublesome things, which is also related to the principle that a wise person doesn't stand under a dangerous wall when taught by my father since I was a child."