Suzune, You Set Me Up! / I Love Watching Girls Fight (4k6)

If you memorize all the roads and terrain between these areas, even if you don't see it with your own eyes, the entire Uninhabited Island will appear in your mind in three dimensions. As long as you know who's destination, you can realistically simulate how they will move forward and which route they are most likely to take. Besides himself, Kitagawa Ryo only thinks that Sakayanagi Arisu can do this kind of ability, which is like having a full map view cheat.

"I see."

Having truly felt her importance in Kitagawa Ryo's heart and her responsibility in the final task, Sakayanagi Arisu felt all her negative emotions swept away, and even her tired body seemed to become lighter out of nowhere. However, her arms were still wrapped around the other's neck, her heart and words contradicting each other as if she were being spoiled and pleading:

"However, I don't feel very familiar with these areas around here. Liang, let's go for a walk together after dinner."

"... Can Arisu really go for a walk in this condition? I'm worried you won't be able to get out of bed tomorrow morning."

"Then carry me on your back, like in the previous Cavalry Battle exercise, or even in a princess carry!"

As she spoke, Sakayanagi Arisu gritted her teeth in resentment and raised her delicate chin at Kitagawa Ryo with a vengeful air:

"Anyway, Liang always says I'm too thin and too light, doesn't she?"

Whether it was because the reason of preparing for the final project was indeed too legitimate, or because the three of them might have reached some kind of wonderful tacit understanding and agreement without his knowledge, after dinner, when Kitagawa Ryo suggested going for a walk with Sakayanagi Arisu, Horikita Suzune and Ichinose Honami didn't react much, only reminding him to be careful and come back early.

As it turned out, Sakayanagi Arisu's two sentences in the tent earlier were not a joke. The moment the two moved a little away from the camp and into the woods, the other party smiled and opened his arms wide, as if he was about to jump on his back at any moment.

Seeing this, Kitagawa Ryo had no choice but to squat down slightly. Then he felt a slight weight on his back as Sakayanagi Arisu's hands rested on his shoulders. His own hands, which were behind his back, gently supported the other's thighs and buttocks, his palms feeling a soft, cool touch.

To be honest, in all his past and present lives, excluding his daily life involving Cavalry Battle, the only time he had ever carried his younger sister Hotaru was on his back. As he slowly strolled along the Uninhabited Island with Sakayanagi Arisu on his back, he was vaguely reminded of the time he carried Hotaru to the temple Matoba.

Because there are many mosquitoes on the Uninhabited Island at night, the two of them sprayed themselves with plenty of floral water before going out. Soon, Kitagawa Ryo's nose was filled with the fragrance of this floral water distributed by the school, but there was also a little bit of other more subtle scent mixed in, which added a touch of romance to the atmosphere between the two of them.

A gentle breeze picked up, and the surrounding leaves rustled. The shadows cast on the ground by the moonlight looked enormous and menacing, but neither of them showed any fear. The warmth generated by their skin touching each other was exchanged through their skin. Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu walked towards the nearby beach, chatting as they looked at the night sky.

There aren't many stars tonight.

Sakayanagi Arisu tilted her small face up, her tone sounding somewhat regretful.

"That's why the moon is so bright tonight, with only a few stars and a clear sky."

Why not say the moonlight is beautiful tonight?

"I like Arisu's words; they're straightforward and don't beat around the bush."

Sakayanagi Arisu smiled upon hearing this, then looked at the sea surface that was already faintly visible in the distance:

"The sea in summer is indeed different from the sea in winter."

Upon hearing the other person mention the sea in winter, Kitagawa Ryo knew that Arisu was thinking about the variety show called "Daily Life of Geniuses" that the two of them had recorded on the beach in winter during their second simulation. Thinking about it now, that variety show, which now only exists in their memories, seemed quite similar to the format of this Uninhabited Island Special Exam. They had to complete the tasks set by the program team to obtain food and other supplies and spend some time together on the island.

"But it's still Liang who's next to me."

"Yes, it will be like this in the future."

At Sakayanagi Arisu's request, Kitagawa Ryo gently put her down from his back, and the two sat together on the beach, watching the waves roar and rush back and forth at their feet. The sound of the waves sometimes seemed distant and empty, and sometimes suddenly very close.

Night fell, the Milky Way shone brightly, and only a few lights could be seen floating far away on the dark sea, probably the school's cruise ship anchored there.

In the stillness of the night, one can often feel the immeasurable vastness of the sea. Kitagawa Ryo suddenly reached out to his left as if sensing something, only to bump into Sakayanagi Arisu's right hand, which was reaching out to him. It was like a sudden encounter on a deserted island adrift at sea.

"Look there, the stars that Arisu wants to see."

In this tranquil atmosphere, as if suddenly discovering something, Kitagawa Ryo pointed to a nearby beach.

Sakayanagi Arisu followed suit and looked in that direction. As a large, heavy wave receded, faint, scattered lights suddenly appeared on the beach.

With the aid of his Hawkeye, Kitagawa Ryo could easily see that they were many small creatures such as sea snails and scintillans washed ashore, but from a distance, they looked like a real starry sky that had fallen from the heavens.

"Does Liang mean that anything that shines is a star?"

Although Sakayanagi Arisu couldn't see them very clearly, she could roughly guess that they were just marine animals emitting tiny specks of light, so she couldn't help but shake her head with a smile.

"Pretty much -- after all, the Ancient Greece Hipparchus divided starlight into six levels according to its brightness, and modern astronomy has adopted this classification, calling these six levels apparent magnitude."

Kitagawa Ryo chuckled and offered this sophistry, then glanced at the faintly glowing beach and curled his lip.

"Of course, if we classify them according to this level, that area would at most be a sixth-magnitude star, the lowest brightness level."

As he spoke, he stood up and brushed the sand off his hands and legs:

"It's getting late, time to head back to camp, otherwise I really won't be able to get up tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day the restricted area is refreshed, so I need to get up early to prepare."

Before Sakayanagi Arisu react, Kitagawa Ryo crouched down slightly, but instead of exposing his back to her as before, he faced her, slipped one hand under her armpit, and supported her knees with the other. With a little effort, he lifted Sakayanagi Arisu into his arms in a princess carry.

In the bright moonlight, he saw the other person's bright purple pupils, which began to waver in a moment of panic and shyness, almost as if they were sparkling.

This is the brightest first-magnitude star to him.

Chapter 227: Suzune, you tricked me!

The eleventh day of the Uninhabited Island Special Exam arrived as scheduled. In the early morning, the school promptly sent the newly defined restricted area to the wristwatches of every student still taking the exam on the Uninhabited Island via text message.

[The fifth round of restricted areas on the Uninhabited Island has been established. Teams still in the restricted area must leave the area before noon today. Teams still in or entering the restricted area after noon will be eliminated, and their scores will be fixed.]

[The specific restricted areas on the fifth round of Uninhabited Island are as follows: A2, A3, A4, B2, E2, I2, E6, F6, G6, H6, H7, H8, B8, G7, C10]

As this message arrived, the electronic map displayed on Kitagawa Ryo's wristwatch quickly filled with another fifteen black squares. However, unlike the previous rounds of restricted areas, although there were also fifteen squares this time, many of these areas were actually quite remote, surrounded by other restricted areas, and were places that students would not have been able to reach in the first place.

For the dozens of students still active on the Uninhabited Island, the most noteworthy restricted areas are only a handful: E6, F6, G6, H6, H7, and H8.

If you check the electronic map, you'll find that they are all located in the middle and on the right side of the longest mountain range that stretches across the Uninhabited Island. The school's intention is self-evident: after this penultimate round of restricted area demarcation, the students' activity area is restricted to the left side of the mountain range, which is all low-lying jungle and a few beaches.

On the group leaderboard, with all members of the group eliminated, the scores of more than half of the groups have been fixed. There are now only sixty people left on the entire Uninhabited Island, and the total number of students in Class D accounts for more than one-third of the total. Apart from the four students who were deliberately eliminated to boost Hiyori's score, there are still twenty-three people alive.

After all, only he, Sudo, and Amasawa were participating in the project. Their individual strengths ensured that they wouldn't easily fall to the bottom of the rankings and lose members. All the other teams that knew they weren't strong enough to be eliminated were arranged by him to go fishing and chat together, treating it as a budget version of a desert island vacation. Naturally, no one from these teams would be eliminated.

Class C, whose numbers haven't changed much, remains a staunch group of ten: Ryuen Kakeru, who's been lounging around the school headquarters waiting for the exams to finish; Shiina Hiyori and Ibuki Mio, who's been getting help to boost their scores; and the other six, hired by Class B under Ishizaki Daichi's leadership, who are frequently harassing Class A.

Therefore, the largest number of casualties were all from Class A and Class B, which were the two most competitive classes in the class rankings. With Class C and Class D completely "giving up", most of the tasks on the Uninhabited Island on the tenth day were between Class A groups and Class B groups, and they fought each other to the death.

Although Class C joined the battle to assist Class B starting yesterday afternoon, the difference in the overall quality of the students in the two classes and their different team formation strategies was still evident in the project. Class B did manage to retain its first place in the class rankings, but it suffered more casualties than Class A, and now only twelve scattered members remain.

Of course, Class A wasn't much better off. Even though there were still fifteen students left, apart from the group led by class Leader Katsuragi Kohei, almost all the other groups were struggling to maintain full strength. After Hashimoto Masayoshi was injured, Kito Hayato, who was left to fend for himself, was caught off guard by the Sudo Group and the Shibata and Kanzaki group from Class B after carefully selecting a round of questions to participate in. They joined forces to send him out of the exam. As the student in Class A with the strongest physical abilities besides Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Kitagawa Ryo really didn't want any tricky variables to appear in the final question.

The Sanada Group, which had previously performed exceptionally well, was repeatedly targeted by the Kitagawa Group. In one of the afternoon's rounds of challenges, they unfortunately ran into the Amasawa group, which happened to be passing by. They were sandwiched between the two groups from Class D and fell to last place in that round, forcing them to eliminate Yamamura Miki from their group.

Then, in the final round of refreshed challenges, the Kitagawa Group, who thought they had already left, had just registered for the last round before the deadline. As a result, they were ambushed by the long-awaited Kitagawa Ryo. With only two teams participating, even though the Sanada Group tearfully took second place, they were still forced to send Rinaka Satoshi back to the cruise ship due to the mechanism that the last place would eliminate one person. The entire team was then scattered to only Sanada Kō and Morishita Ai.

In fact, there are very few groups still at full strength on the Uninhabited Island right now. On the one hand, the competition is so intense that it's easy to lose points when other classes deliberately set traps and ambushes you. On the other hand, in many team projects where ranking is based on average score, sometimes having more people and being dragged down by bad teammates doesn't necessarily mean you can compete with groups that are single or in pairs.

In many people's eyes, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka Class A was able to climb so high on the group leaderboard largely because of his advantage in acting alone. After considering this, quite a few groups actually chose to 'voluntarily reduce the burden', letting students who might drag the group down voluntarily withdraw from the exam in order to improve scoring efficiency and reduce expenses.

Actually, this is As You Like It situation. After all, it's not a matter of optimization. The fact that the school was able to use the rest area on the seventh day to trick so many students shows that unless they truly have a strong sense of class honor and initiative, most students would just be after a decent ranking rather than doing open-book exams on Uninhabited Island. Besides, elimination isn't the same as expulsion. Since the group doesn't need me, I'll just have to reluctantly go back to the cruise ship to rest. Keep up the good work, guys.

It must be said that Kitagawa Ryo quite appreciates the school's decision to specifically divide the Uninhabited Island Exam into two different tracks: group ranking and class ranking. This allows lower-ranked classes to form elite groups to compete for points on the group leaderboard, while also ensuring that ordinary students in higher-ranked classes receive positive feedback on their class rankings at all times. This naturally fosters a sense of accomplishment, where students feel they have contributed to the group and that the group's success is also their contribution. Otherwise, the numerous groups in Class B that had no chance of competing for the top three but also wouldn't have fallen to the bottom wouldn't have been able to compete to this extent, seemingly oblivious to the competition.

Indeed, anyone in both classes who wasn't stupid could see that Class D, who almost overnight chose not to participate in the project, must have some ulterior motive. However, they had been vying for the top spot in the class rankings since day seven, and with a difference of only a few thousand or tens of thousands of points, neither side could easily give up. Moreover, Class A had previously openly targeted Karuizawa Kei. Therefore, both in terms of appearances and public image, Class B, who always presented themselves as a kind Tian figure, was also truly determined to compete with their class, showing a stubbornness that threatened to make things difficult for everyone else.

Katsuragi Kohei genuinely couldn't persuade the students in his class, while Karuizawa Kei simply didn't intend to. Firstly, she felt that having the students of Class B compete with Class A in this way wouldn't be harmful to the present or the future. Secondly, in a sense, she was also cooperating with Kitagawa Ryo's plan, forcibly pulling Class A into a vortex of mutual attrition and exchanging of cards.

While pondering the current situation regarding this Special Exam, Kitagawa Ryo skillfully fried eggs for breakfast in a pan. It must be said that the kitchenware set that Horikita Suzune bought when she first arrived on the island was definitely worth more than its price. It not only significantly improved their group's quality of life so far, but also served other students many times.

Thinking about it carefully, it seems that apart from their group, no one else on the entire island really puts a lot of effort into cooking. After all, everyone is thinking about saving every penny. The baguettes that the [Supply] cards give out every day may not taste good, but they are free and filling, making them the king of cost-effectiveness.

A short while later, the first to emerge from the tent was Horikita Suzune, who, despite having to forgo her morning exercise, was still the earliest riser among the three girls every day. She was still sleepy, slightly covering her mouth as she yawned. Her hair, still a little messy from just waking up, was sticking up unsteadily. Unconsciously, she followed the scent to Kitagawa Ryo's side, and as if she hadn't slept enough, gently rested her head against his back, her voice so soft it seemed it would drift away on the wind:

Good morning, Liang.

Good morning, Suzune.

After putting in a little effort and skill to fry a perfect heart-shaped egg, Kitagawa Ryo had just placed it on a plate when he heard Horikita Suzune's dreamlike murmur:

"... Last night I dreamt that I became the Student Council President of Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School."

"Hmm, and then? Did they arrest me and make me your secretary, Suzune?"

"Yes, but not the Party Secretary; he has a personal chef."

"The first thing the new Student Council President does upon taking office is hire a private chef... Is this some kind of TV drama called 'Yes! Prime Minister,' or rather, 'Yes! President'?"

"Don't interrupt when it's cool--"

Horikita Suzune gave a slightly dissatisfied hum, as if awakened a bit by the morning breeze, her voice becoming a little louder, and continued talking about her dream:

"Then I took Ryo around to inspect the other clubs. We went to the Tea Ceremony Club, the Light Music Club, the cooking and baking clubs, and even Ryo's Drama Club. Hmm, Ryo should thank me for being 'merciful' enough not to shut down your slacking-off club in my dream. Then, I think I did some of these club activities with Ryo in front of the other students..."

Just like the saying "what you think about during the day, you dream about at night," Horikita Suzune realized the reason for her strange dream the moment she woke up. The trigger was definitely the Student Council topic she had discussed with Kitagawa Ryo the day before, but as for how the story unfolded...

Because it can participate in school decision-making to a certain extent and also possesses many other powers, the Student Council of Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School has always been a student organization that is absolutely superior to all other clubs. This has led to a basic principle for recruiting members of the Student Council: they cannot participate in any clubs other than the Student Council.

As the only First Year student who actually works in the Student Council this year, Horikita Suzune sometimes feels a little envious when she is actually helping Kitagawa Ryo's club, which is called the Drama Club but is actually a club for slacking off, to check the eligibility of the club for competitions outside of school.

After all, compared to being able to happily chat and drink tea with Kitagawa Ryo in the clubroom after class every day, and occasionally go out of school for a trip with Ichinose Honami, Sakura Airi, Amasawa Ichika, who are not in her class, Karuizawa Kei Horikita Suzune has to plunge into Student Council affairs every day after class, and also has to get along with Nagumo, a second-year student, because of her predetermined position.

Because of the Student Council's naturally special status at Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School, Kitagawa Ryo couldn't usually go to the Student Council to see her. Horikita Suzune knew that Kitagawa Ryo did have the time, since it wasn't a secret at school that Shiina Hiyori Kitagawa Ryo would often go to the Tea Ceremony Club after school to spend leisurely time with Shiina Hiyori. To be honest, the upperclassmen in the Tea Ceremony Club were won over even faster than the girls in Class C. After all, the tea and snacks that Kitagawa Ryo occasionally brought were comparable to the most upscale ones in the Keyaki Mall. It's true that you can't be too polite to those who give you gifts.

Occasionally, when Horikita Suzune returned to her dorm after finishing her work at the Student Council, she would imagine that if she hadn't joined the Student Council, but instead joined the Drama Club, the Tea Ceremony Club, or some other club like piano, cooking, or something else with Kitagawa Ryo, things might have been very different.

Is there a way to have the best of both worlds?

Through this sudden dream, Horikita Suzune seemed to have truly discovered an answer: she should just become the president of the entire Student Council.

In fact, Miyabi Nagumo, a second-year student, is the best example. In the previous semester, when he was the vice president and almost secured the position of the next Student Council, he often went to the Soccer Club or Swimming Club for no reason, under the pretext of giving guidance, to organize various competitions and training sessions, and he always showed off his skills.

"So, it would be great if I could become the Student Council President."

Compared to Horikita Manabu Miyabi Nagumo, this is probably the most abstract reason for wanting to run for Student Council President.

"Will Liang support me when the time comes?"

But this is indeed Horikita Suzune's true thought.

Kitagawa Ryo didn't think much of it; just like in the previous simulations, he subconsciously affirmed her courage and determination.

"Yes, of course I'll support Suzune."

So Horikita Suzune left satisfied and went to the river to begin her morning washing routine.

Kitagawa Ryo's good mood only lasted until Sakayanagi Arisu rubbed her sleepy eyes and walked out of the tent.

Oh no, I forgot that Arisu is officially joining the Student Council next semester!

In that instant, Kitagawa Ryo suddenly and inexplicably recalled that during the first round of assignments yesterday afternoon, the school official they had encountered was Horikita Manabu.

Chapter 228: I love watching girls fight (4k6)

However, thinking that even if Horikita Suzune and Sakayanagi Arisu really did come to compete for the Student Council President, it would be almost a year later in their second year, Kitagawa Ryo's heart was at ease again.

Pessimist: One of Suzune and Arisu will inevitably be eliminated.

Optimist: One of Suzune and Arisu will definitely be elected.

The "I Want It All" Addict: Hehehehe, why don't I just become the Student Council President myself and appoint Arisu and Suzune as assistants and secretary?

Kitagawa Ryo shook his head, banishing the jumbled thoughts that had suddenly flooded his mind. It was better to focus on the Uninhabited Island Special Exam. Although Suzune hadn't told him, Kitagawa Ryo was aware of another unspoken requirement for the position of Student Council President at Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School: every Student Council president must graduate with Class A diploma. A large part of the reason why Miyabi Nagumo was able to secure the next president's position early this year was because he had led his Class B to Class A in his First Year.

In other words, if Class D remains Class D, then the pressure on Horikita Suzune and Sakayanagi Arisu to run for Student Council President will increase significantly. Therefore, it would be better for them to focus on completing this Special Exam and advancing their class in rank.

After the brief encounter with Horikita Suzune in the early morning, Kitagawa Ryo's group quickly finished breakfast, packed their luggage, and began waiting for the first round of questions on the eleventh day of the Uninhabited Island Special Exam.

"It feels like there are more people now."

After walking for a short while, Kitagawa Ryo heard Ichinose Honami subconsciously remark this. It had only been five minutes since they set off, and they had already passed by two other teams from different classes. In the distance, they could also see other students from time to time.

"Because that's all the space left for the activity."

Upon hearing this, Kitagawa Ryo glanced at the electronic map on his wristwatch. After the fifth round of restricted areas were updated this morning, there were only about six or seven areas left for students to move around in. There were still sixty students on the island, so the chances of them bumping into each other were indeed much greater than when they first arrived on the island.

"Conversely, starting today, the competition for this research topic is also nearing its peak."

When the Uninhabited Island Special Exam first started, students were free to move around the entire island, so it was common for a topic to not be filled, or even for only one group to sign up by the end, resulting in automatic fill-ins. However, with the activity area now compressed to its current size, and given that those who have survived on the Uninhabited Island are all elites in their classes, it is almost foreseeable that the groups will be fiercely competing for topics and points today.

"Kitagawa-kun."

Just as Kitagawa Ryo finished speaking, he heard someone calling his name from not far away. Looking up, he saw Kanzaki Ryuji from Class B, with Amikura Mako from the same group standing next to him. However, he didn't see any other students from Class B nearby, as if they had been eliminated in the previous days' assignments.

"Long time no see, Kanzaki."

Kitagawa Ryo waved his hand and greeted the other party quite familiarly. The last time he met Kanzaki Ryuji was when they were discussing the topic of [Two-Person Cavalry Battle], so it had indeed been a few days since they last met.

"How is Class B doing now?"

Upon hearing Kitagawa Ryo's question, Kanzaki Ryuji shook his head, replying with a sense of doing his best and leaving the rest to fate:

"Everyone has worked very hard, and we are very grateful for the help from the students in Class C. Although we don't know if we can maintain this lead until the end of the Special Exam, all of us students who are still on the island will persevere to the very end."

Despite saying that, Kitagawa Ryo could still keenly sense that the vice class leader of Class B wasn't as pessimistic as he claimed.

"It seems Kanzaki is quite satisfied with your Class B's current performance."

"Um."

After Kitagawa Ryo sensed his true feelings, Kanzaki Ryuji simply nodded in agreement, a rare smile appearing on his usually serious and even rigid face, as he added: