Wild Boars-Beware! (4.5k)

"My name is Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. In junior high, everyone usually called me Kiyotaka, so I hope you can just call me by my name. I'm interested in all kinds of sports, but I'm probably best at running. However, I also enjoy public speaking. I look forward to working with you in the future."

"Not bad, sit down. Your lyrics are good, but your voice is a bit too harsh. Pay more attention to that during class later."

Watching Oki Masashi quickly return to his seat with a calm expression after being put through a show by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Kitagawa Ryo wasn't too surprised. After all, people aren't static beings. Nearly a year had passed since he enrolled, and even his own mindset had undergone several changes, so naturally, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was no exception.

Before long, it was his turn to introduce himself. Kitagawa Ryo, who was already very familiar with this part, stood up and launched into a fluent monologue:

"Hello everyone, I'm Kitagawa Ryo from Class 1-B. I'm currently the acting head of the school's Drama Club, and I achieved [a certain result] in club activities and competitions over the past year, including the 18th Tokyo..."

After reciting every single award the Drama Club had won since its inception with perfect intonation and rhythm, Kitagawa Ryo finally stopped talking. He completely ignored the whispers of the upperclassmen behind him and even smiled and gestured to those around him.

"Are high school Drama Club students this good now?"

After listening to Kitagawa Ryo's self-introduction, Oki Masashi adjusted his reading glasses, nodded, and made his judgment:

"However, I really don't have much to teach you in terms of vocal techniques and presentation demeanor. From now on, just focus on working on the content of your speech. As long as you don't make any major mistakes, you'll definitely get a good result in the end."

Thank you, teacher.

Before the course even started, the teacher had already identified him as a high-scoring student. As soon as Kitagawa Ryo sat down, he could feel many eyes on him and behind him. However, because he had just suffered a loss in the meditation class, even the most boisterous Ishizaki Daichi did not dare to bump into him and whisper to him. Instead, he tensed up and solemnly completed his self-introduction.

After all the students from all three grades had finished their self-introductions, Oki Masashi officially began his lesson for the day. However, perhaps due to his advanced age, he couldn't fully express the emotions he wanted to convey or demonstrate the tone of voice. In the end, he simply called Kitagawa Ryo from his seat to the podium to act as a teaching assistant. The school staff who were evaluating students' grades through the monitors were a bit dumbfounded. In the end, they could only give Kitagawa Ryo a big 100 points for his performance in this class.

In their school staff's grading booklet, each course, starting with breakfast preparation, has a specific set of percentage-based grading criteria. These scores are automatically calculated into a total score at the end of each day, and this total score is used to allocate the number of card draws each student receives after each day's course.

However, the most bizarre situation is that, even though the first day's classes are not even halfway through, Kitagawa Ryo has already secured the maximum number of three card draws by virtue of his perfect scores in the three courses of breakfast preparation, meditation, and public speaking. This involuntarily reminds this school staff member of the days when he was dominated by the other party on Uninhabited Island and had to work overtime all night to revise the rules and details.

However, Kitagawa Ryo, who was teaching at the time, had no idea that his actions were triggering PTSD in a certain office worker. He was currently focused on being a classroom assistant for Oki Masashi, personally helping the students in the Third Large Group learn various skills related to public speaking.

When the break time arrived, Oki Masashi first thanked Kitagawa Ryo, then slowly took out his phone, fiddled with it for a while, and then looked at it with some surprise to compare it with his.

"Wow, so you were already a famous theatrical Actor before you even enrolled here. No wonder. I mean, high school clubs these days shouldn't be this exaggerated. To debut as a child star, that's not easy."

After pondering slowly for a while, as if he couldn't think of a way to thank him for helping with the class as a teaching assistant, Oki Masashi continued with a slightly troubled expression:

"Actually, I think you're perfectly capable of passing the Final Exam on the last day without needing to continue your regular studies here. However, the grading criteria for this Special Exam are based on both regular coursework and the Final Exam, with the former carrying a slightly higher weight. So, it will be a bit more work for you. I will definitely give you a perfect score on the Final Exam."

"Thank you for your kind words, teacher."

"It's alright, young people are so lucky, look at their posture and back."

Oki Masashi chuckled kindly twice, then reached out and patted Kitagawa Ryo, which remained straight as a pine tree even when standing still. He seemed quite satisfied with Kitagawa's demeanor.

And so, after finishing two lessons on public speaking as a temporary teaching assistant, around noon, just when Kitagawa Ryo thought all the morning's lessons were over and it was almost lunchtime, Onodera, the Onodera teacher of Class 3-B, led all of them to the large playground in front of the Forest School.

Kitagawa Ryo could almost see Yukimura Teruhiko's face turn pale instantly. After all, for a good student like him with excellent grades, sports was a painful topic that could never be overcome. Although it was expected, many students still lowered their heads heavily when they actually heard the word "long-distance running" from Onodera's homeroom teacher.

"The first three days of long-distance running will all take place on the track, while the last three days will move to nearby roads in the countryside. Please be aware of this."

After saying this remark that didn't attract much attention, Onodera, the homeroom teacher, gave the order to run. Everyone had to complete a three-kilometer training run, which meant running seven and a half laps around the 400-meter track.

As the all-time leading scorer in all events at the Sports Festival, a feat unlikely to be repeated, Kitagawa Ryo could easily have overtaken all the other students present. However, he didn't do so immediately. Instead, he slowed down and stayed with Yukimura Teruhiko, who was in last place in his group. He began to instruct Yukimura on some simple but energy-saving running tips regarding breathing and pace. Then, he picked up speed and quickly pulled away from the students who were ahead of him until he was alongside Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who was in first place, before slowing down again.

Neither of them intended to overtake the other, and the two of them maintained a tie for first place from the first lap all the way to the last half lap. Then, as soon as the timer held by their homeroom teacher Onodera rang, they crossed the finish line, walked a few steps quickly, stopped, and stepped back off the track to wait for the other students.

Here's some water.

When Ayanokoji Kiyotaka tossed him an unopened bottle of mineral water, Kitagawa Ryo didn't refuse it like he had with Ishikura's playing cards the day before. Instead, he readily unscrewed the cap and sipped it to replenish his fluids.

At the beginning of the school year, he might have been wary of the other person's tricks, but before the Cultural Festival, their relationship had reached a point where they could eat and drink whatever the other person offered without any reservations.

To be honest, Kitagawa Ryo even thought that the girls around him were more likely to put some strange little things in his food and water. After all, Sakayanagi Arisu had suspected Ichinose Honami, who handed him water, of doing such a thing during the Sports Festival, although Honami just wanted to show off the name tag that he had given her and which was now stuck on her water cup.

"Although our group has a very good composition, there are indeed some students who are not good at this aspect."

After finishing his water, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka indifferently turned his gaze to the other students still running on the field and took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Kitagawa Ryo.

"Yes, Sotomura and Yukimura are indeed physically weak."

Kitagawa Ryo certainly knew that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was referring to those two. After all, their listless and miserable appearance on the track, as if they were about to faint at any moment, was indeed too conspicuous. The three-kilometer run was indeed too difficult for these two tech geeks and good students. Even the student who was third from the bottom had already lapped them a whole time.

"It will be even more difficult when we get to the wilderness."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka made a calm judgment.

"Whether considering the terrain or road conditions..."

"As the teacher just mentioned, the long-distance running in the last three days will be conducted outdoors. This means that the training in the first three days was just preparation. Therefore, the final Final Exam and long-distance running-related content on the last day will definitely take place outdoors as well."

Kitagawa Ryo was equally helpless in the face of Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's statement:

"But physical strength isn't something you can build up in a day or two. And if they really train like this for six days, they'll be more exhausted than they are when they take the Final Exam on the seventh day. They might even get injured in the first six days, which could affect the last day."

Then, Kitagawa Ryo offered his own speculation:

"The main problem is that we still don't know what the final exam format will be. But if it's a long-distance shuttle run, I think the school will use a relay race format. In that case, the two of us might still have a chance."

"Um."

It has to be said that taking the Special Exam with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka as a teammate was a novel experience for Kitagawa Ryo. Kiyotaka seemed to treat him as someone to practice communication and exchange, and no longer kept silent as before. The two chatted idly for a while until the entire Third Group of students finished their three-kilometer training run.

Exhausted and unable to straighten their backs, Yukimura Teruhiko and Sotomura Hideo could only bend over with their hands on their knees, panting heavily. They undoubtedly came in last place. However, seeing each other in this state, the other students in the Third Group did not have any complaints. Instead, some handed them water, some offered encouragement, and some even went up to each other to support their arms and shoulders, helping them walk back to the dormitory.

The long-distance running training times for each group are staggered. Their current task is to return to their dormitories to rest and wait for lunch.

Seeing the harmonious group in front of him, Kitagawa Ryo felt somewhat gratified, but his thoughts had already drifted to the student cafeteria.

It must be said that the school's design for this Special Exam, which allowed male and female students to meet only twice a day—at lunch and dinner—was quite interesting.

Although Kitagawa Ryo understood that the school's intention was to deliberately separate male and female students into two different environments to test their social and communication skills in different situations, for the couples on campus, it actually created a subtle atmosphere of "absence makes the heart grow fonder," and the one-hour time limit gave people the feeling of the annual Qixi Festival, when the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet on the Magpie Bridge.

In Kitagawa Ryo's opinion, the relationship between most student couples might actually grow stronger because of this Special Exam. It's only after being temporarily separated that they realize how precious it is to have each other by their side.

However, a problem arises.

How many bowls of rice will he need for lunch today?

Chapter 403: Beware of Wild Boars (4k5)

Unlike yesterday, today Ichinose Honami's group, the Second Group of girls, did not eat together. Instead, they were clearly divided into their own small groups and ate in different corners and locations. Although it is unknown whether this was intentional on Honami and Megumi's part, it was certainly more beneficial for Kitagawa Ryo's side to get closer to them.

He quickly seized the opportunity, carrying a plate containing three dishes and a soup, and nimbly made his way through the crowd to the vicinity of Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei. Another student from Class B, Shiranami Chihiro, was also nearby, but as soon as she saw Kitagawa Ryo coming over, she wisely went to find other familiar Class B students to share a table, seemingly not wanting to disturb the three of them's romantic time.

Although the idea of a "three-person couple's time" sounds just as strange as KFC's three-person bucket for Qixi Festival.

Because time was indeed tight, as soon as Kitagawa Ryo sat down, Ichinose Honami explained the current situation to him.

"Our group is in pretty much the state you see right now. This isn't Matoba specially prepared for a private conversation with you; our group is genuinely in a state of disarray right now."

"So fast? I remember your group was fine at this time yesterday, right?"

"One night and one morning is enough time for the girls to argue more than three times. I would even say that none of the six groups of First Year girls have a particularly good atmosphere, and the same goes for Kushida's Fourth Group."

Karuizawa Kei picked up the conversation, then pointed to Kitagawa Ryo and said that Kushida Kikyo was sitting on the other side of the cafeteria, seemingly trying to maintain a smile as she listened to the argument between two girls from another class.

"She's become a mediator, but mediation means she has to side with one side and offend the other, which doesn't suit her personality. So she's currently trying her best to smooth things over, and it feels like her mental state will break down again in a few days. Liang could make Ichika go out in the middle of the night again."

The story of Amasawa Ichika capturing Kushida on an Uninhabited Island at midnight wasn't exactly a secret among the girls in their circle who were related to Kitagawa Ryo, so Karuizawa Kei just casually made a joke about it.

"Interpersonal relationships are inherently complicated. If I hadn't changed the persona I present to the outside world, I'd probably still be stuck in that situation."

Ichinose Honami nodded in agreement, imagining that if she had been placed in the current Mixed Training Camp environment, she would probably have been a hundred times more mentally exhausted than she is now.

"But then again, it's precisely because Honami's style of doing things has changed that our group has become like this."

In response to Karuizawa Kei's complaint, Ichinose Honami simply smiled and turned her gaze toward Kitagawa Ryo, feigning helplessness as she spoke:

"There's nothing I can do. Someone said I'm not some omnipotent archangel, and that as long as I can smile, I can cry, get angry, throw a tantrum, or be willful, and it's all okay if it bothers him."

"Oh, I actually said that."

Upon hearing Ichinose Honami suddenly mention the sentence from the birthday letter he wrote to her during their first mock exam, Kitagawa Ryo raised his hand nodding in agreement, saying that he had always felt that the letter and all the wishes within it were among the most precious memories between him and Ichinose Honami. He even considered asking Hotaru if he could take it out as a keepsake after the Special Exam, the kind that would fit perfectly into a wedding speech.

"Let's put this topic aside for now. We only have so much time at noon, so Honami and Hui should quickly tell me about this Special Exam and some specific details about the group."

"... I don't think it's necessary to explain this to Ryo in detail. I guess Ryo probably doesn't want to hear about these little things between girls, since everyone thinks differently. But there are definitely some upperclassmen stirring things up."

Seemingly not wanting to recall it herself, Karuizawa Kei gave a brief explanation while resting her chin on her hand before burying herself in her food. Ichinose Honami Ishikura had encountered yesterday with Kitagawa Ryo. She was attacked in her dorm by second and third-year upperclassmen, the discussion about breakfast turned into a very unpleasant one, and then there were a series of accidents while making breakfast this morning, which ultimately led to the collapse of the atmosphere in the entire group.

"But Liang doesn't need to feel that she's the reason we're being dragged into this again. In fact, even without the interference of those senior students, it would have been only a matter of time before our group fell apart or started fighting amongst ourselves."

Having said that, Ichinose Honami concluded her judgment in the same manner.

After all, this Special Exam follows the same expulsion rules as the midterm and Final Exam: only students who fail to meet the passing grade in the lowest-ranked group will be expelled.

While the school's intention may have been to prevent groups or large groups from collectively throwing the game and dragging down a particular student, this expulsion rule actually fostered a lone wolf mentality among most students, who didn't care about the size of their groups as long as they scored high enough. It was actually the minority in the group that Kitagawa Ryo's Third Group was able to stick together so closely.

"As for the courses, in addition to making breakfast and cleaning, we also had meditation and public speaking classes in the morning, and a long run before coming to the cafeteria."

"Yeah, it's the same for us. It seems there's no difference in the course arrangements between boys and girls. I guess the only difference might be the final running distance. It's three kilometers for us boys."

"The distance to the girls' side is 2.4 kilometers."

After quickly sharing information about the morning's classes with the girls, Kitagawa Ryo immediately shared his own predictions about the Final Exam.

"Although we've only had half a day of classes so far, it's almost certain that public speaking and long-distance running will be among the topics for the final exam. Meditation is also very likely, since we'll have to do it sooner or later anyway, and the school won't let students practice it for nothing."

"Yes, and the long-distance running will take place in the wild. Our teachers here have also mentioned this. Sending students out for training in such remote mountainous areas, the school is really quite bold."

"It's alright. Wasn't it similar on the Uninhabited Island? We even encountered a torrential downpour back then. Luckily, nothing serious happened. It seems only Ryuen got a little injured, and it was his own fault."

Just as Kitagawa Ryo and Karuizawa Kei were exchanging information with each other, Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly appeared out of nowhere and joined them, turning the KFC Tanabata three-person bucket into a four-person serving.

"That's still different."

"Why did Arisu come here?"

"Because I waited and waited but Ryo didn't come to find me, I had no choice but to come here by myself. Ryo could actually say, 'You came at just the right time.'"

"... All right."

After casually uttering a rather suggestive remark, Sakayanagi Arisu then took the initiative to explain her previous statement.

"The Uninhabited Island we went to during the summer vacation was more like an artificial Uninhabited Island than an uninhabited one. The entire ecosystem on the island was under the control of the school, which is why there were no poisonous snakes, insects, or large animals on such a large tropical island. But it's different here at the Forest School."

"Although this place can't be described as a deep mountain forest, the natural ecology is more primitive compared to the Uninhabited Island. Simply put, there are some large animals such as wild boars here."

After all, she had undergone more than half a year of arduous training. Even though she had just run 2.4 kilometers before coming to eat, Sakayanagi Arisu still looked perfectly fine, without even being out of breath. She was nothing like Yukimura Teruhiko and Sotomura Hideo, who were still resting on their chairs and hadn't even eaten a few bites.

"Wild boar?"

"There are wild boars too?"

Startled by a certain word in Sakayanagi Arisu's words, Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei exclaimed in unison. However, they did not doubt the meaning behind Sakayanagi Arisu's words. After all, she was the biological daughter of the former Chairman of ANHS, and the Forest School and the Uninhabited Island mentioned earlier were all her family's businesses. In terms of understanding, she was definitely more knowledgeable than they were.

"Oh yeah, I reckon when you guys go out for training exercises in a couple of days, you'll see warning signs like 'Wild boar sighting, be careful' by the roadside."

"Is it really that exaggerated? The school really has a lot of nerve."

For most students who have lived in big cities all their lives, wild boars are indeed a novel but dangerous thing. However, Kitagawa Ryo is not afraid at all. In fact, he is even eager to find the other one to test his physical strength, which has been enhanced by multiple talents and continuous training. Maybe he can add a snack to the daily breakfast. The school should not have any objections to the ingredients that he personally hunted from the wild.

"There's no need to worry too much. The school should be able to ensure the safety of its students. After all, if word gets out, it would be a disaster for their reputation."

"Really."

Kitagawa Ryo nodded in agreement. Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School has always placed great importance on student safety and its reputation. When Sakura Airi was able to extort ten million Private Points from the school at the beginning of the semester, she seized on these two weaknesses. After all, if such a supposedly perfect closed management model cannot even guarantee the safety of students on campus, then it will be nailed to the pillar of shame by the entire education industry tomorrow.

However, if he were to actually run into one, he could use it again, just like he did with Airi that time. Of course, the prerequisite would be that he could subdue or restrain that Schrödinger's boar with his bare hands.

After finishing talking about the wild boar, Karuizawa Kei casually inquired about the situation of the First Group that Sakayanagi Arisu belonged to.

"We'll just have to make do. At least with the rules about dropping out in place, it's less likely that we'll see students who are just throwing the game like they did at last year's Sports Festival."

Although his face showed the same helpless expression as Karuizawa Kei's earlier, and he even sighed a few times while speaking, Kitagawa Ryo had no intention of believing Sakayanagi Arisu. After all, based on his understanding of Arisu, the fact that she dared to directly challenge Suzune to a duel meant that she must already have considerable confidence.

Even though at first glance, Sakayanagi Arisu's First Group didn't have her perfect partner Matsushita Chiaki, the presence of Shiina Hiyori completely made up for this deficiency.

After Hiyori, Sakayanagi Arisu herself has the same reputation and ability to unite the girls in Class D as he does. The legacy from the Uninhabited Island Special Exam still carries considerable weight today. In addition, most of the girls in Class A, who are in the same class as Sakayanagi Arisu, will choose between her and Suzune. Arisu can control nearly half of the members in the First Group.

This is definitely a good start for Arisu herself, so taking control of the whole group shouldn't be too difficult. Don't be fooled by her current nonchalant attitude; she might have already taken over the entire First Group. After all, most of the strong girls from other classes didn't get into the First Group; instead, they all flocked to the Second Group, where Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei are.

"Keep going, it's only a week, just get through it."

Without intending to point out Sakayanagi Arisu intentions, Kitagawa Ryo gave a rather perfunctory, universally accepted word of encouragement before decisively implementing a rice-adding and diversion tactic. Just as he finished adding rice and was about to look for Horikita Suzune, he suddenly saw Asahina Nazuna waving at him, and sitting next to her was none other than Suzune, whom he was looking for.

Even though I know these two people are in the same group, their relationship is progressing a little too fast.

After silently making this subtle comment in his mind, Kitagawa Ryo raised his hand in response, then quickly walked over and sat down opposite Horikita Suzune and Asahina Nazuna, greeting them in a lighthearted tone:

"Suzune, and senior, good afternoon!"

Unlike him, who was always serving rice, the two girls had already finished their portions and were chatting with their empty plates stacked to the side. So after returning the greeting, Asahina Nazuna looked at Kitagawa Ryo's full plate with some surprise.

"Does she have such a big appetite for cold food?"

"It's alright, considering I used up quite a bit of energy this morning."

"Indeed... but the food here is a bit too ordinary. If it were tastier, I might ask for more. This training camp has been quite tiring."