Laying a Trap for Ryuen: Luring the Snake from Its Hole

The darkness before dawn was the hardest to endure.

Days of surviving on the deserted island had long since worn away what little excitement Class D's students had left.

Monotonous food.

Sticky sea breezes.

Mosquitoes everywhere.

And... uncertainty about the future.

A stifling atmosphere hung over the camp like an invisible net, shrouding everyone within it.

"Seriously... how much longer are we supposed to stay here?"

Ike Kanji poked weakly at the fire, his voice full of resentment.

"Every day, it's gathering firewood, finding water, digging up wild vegetables... how is this any different from being cavemen?"

"Exactly."

Yamauchi Haruki sprawled nearby, rolling his eyes.

"What the hell are Natsume and Ayanokoji doing anyway? All I've seen is those two wandering around from start to finish, not doing anything useful. I thought they had some brilliant plan!"

The complaints were not loud, but everyone heard them clearly.

Many said nothing, yet the expressions on their faces said it all.

They agreed.

Or rather, their pent-up dissatisfaction had finally found an outlet.

Horikita Suzune's brows drew tightly together as she snapped coldly, "Shut up. What can you do besides complain? If you have that much energy, go find something useful."

"Tch..."

Ike Kanji curled his lip. He did not dare confront Horikita head-on and could only mutter under his breath.

"You make it sound so easy. You're not any different yourself..."

Suddenly, a girl came stumbling out of the woods, her face filled with panic and fury.

It was Shinohara Satsuki.

She was part of the water-fetching team.

"Shinohara? What happened?"

Hirata Yosuke hurried over to support her.

Shinohara Satsuki was trembling with rage, her eyes reddened.

"Class C! Those Class C bastards!"

She pointed toward the woods, her voice cracking.

"They... they not only took the new water source we found, they kicked over all our water buckets too!"

"They even said... said that Class D is nothing but a bunch of trash, only fit to drink muddy water!"

"What?!"

Sudo Ken shot to his feet, his fists cracking.

"Those bastards! I'm going to kill them!"

"Calm down, Sudo!"

Hirata held him back with all his strength, though his own expression was terrible.

Class D's camp instantly erupted.

Their territory had been taken, and they had been humiliated to their faces.

This was no longer simple competition.

This was blatant provocation and suppression.

The string that had been stretched taut for so long finally snapped.

Panic and anger spread like a virus.

Class D's morale plummeted in an instant.

In a corner.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked toward Natsume Yu beside him, his eyes questioning.

Natsume Yu's expression did not change. He merely tossed a branch into the campfire and watched as the flames slowly consumed it.

"Faster than I expected."

He spoke softly.

"Ryuen can't wait to reap the harvest."

Night.

Inside a makeshift meeting shelter.

There were only three people.

Natsume Yu, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, and the cold-faced Horikita Suzune.

"This is your plan? Watching us get bullied right under our noses and doing nothing?"

Horikita Suzune struck first, her tone sharp.

"The whole class is in a panic now. At this rate, we'll collapse before the exam even ends!"

Natsume Yu slowly drew a crude map on the ground.

"Collapse? No, this is destruction before rebirth."

He raised his head and looked at Horikita.

"If they do not feel pain down to their bones, they will never learn what real battle is."

"I don't care about your grand theories!"

Horikita slammed a fist against the wooden stake beside her.

"All I know is that we have to fight back now! Ryuen Kakeru has already brought the flames of war to our doorstep!"

"Fight back? Of course we will."

Natsume Yu smiled.

"But not now, and not in the way you have in mind."

He circled a location on the map with his branch.

"Ryuen is arrogant, conceited, and likes to crush his opponents with absolute strength. Right now, he must think Class D is a scattered mess, completely helpless."

"So?"

Horikita pressed.

"So we need to look even weaker."

Natsume Yu's tone was calm, but what he said left Horikita in disbelief.

"Starting tomorrow, we'll shrink our range of activity, abandon all the outlying resource points, and put on an act of passive defense and barely clinging to life."

"What?!"

Horikita could hardly believe what she had heard.

"You want us to... surrender?"

This was practically trampling on her pride.

"Horikita."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had remained silent until then, spoke.

"Let him finish."

Natsume Yu gave Ayanokoji an approving glance.

"Tell me, what is the easiest way for a hunter to catch a wild boar charging around wildly?"

Without waiting for Horikita to answer, he continued.

"Not by competing with it in strength, but by digging a trap, covering it with the food it likes best, and waiting for it to fall in on its own."

Horikita Suzune froze.

"Ryuen is that wild boar."

Natsume Yu's eyes shone astonishingly bright in the darkness.

"And all we need to do is dig the trap. The more he thinks we are weak and easy to bully, the more careless he will become, the faster he will charge in, and then... the harder he will fall."

He pointed to the circled area on the map.

"This is the grave I chose for him."

Horikita Suzune stared fixedly at the map, her breathing growing slightly rapid.

She did not understand this plan.

It was too risky.

It was like dancing on a blade's edge.

Yet as she looked into Natsume Yu's unfathomable eyes, the doubts in her heart wavered for some inexplicable reason.

This man possessed an irresistible force.

The confidence of someone who held everything in his grasp.

"Fine..."

After a long time, she forced out a single word through clenched teeth.

"I'll trust you for now. But if the plan fails..."

"There is no if."

Natsume Yu cut her off, his tone brooking no argument.

"Do as I say."

The next day.

Kushida Kikyo moved between the camps of the various classes as usual, maintaining her angelic image with her signature sweet smile.

While chatting with several girls from Class B, she sighed "casually."

"Sigh, things in our class are really terrible right now..."

Her face was full of worry.

"Because of Class C's harassment, we don't even dare go too far from camp anymore. We can only stay around this small area nearby, and our supplies are getting scarcer by the day."

As if remembering something, she lowered her voice so that only a few people could hear.

"Especially that temporary storage area west of our camp. We had some food stored there, but no one dares guard it anymore. Everyone says we should just abandon it. What a waste..."

The speaker had "no intention," but the listeners did.

These scattered fragments of information quickly made their way through various channels, piecing together a complete report on Class D's internal situation and landing before Ryuen Kakeru.

Class C's camp.

Ryuen Kakeru looked at the intelligence in his hand and let out a low laugh.

"Heh... so Class D's trash has given up resisting."

Ishizaki Daichi, standing beside him, smiled ingratiatingly. "Of course! Once Boss Ryuen makes a move, wouldn't those Class D losers piss themselves in terror?"

Ryuen Kakeru snorted disdainfully and crushed an ant beneath his shoe.

"Trash? No, they're toys."

There was a sick thrill in his voice.

"And what I enjoy most is breaking my toys one by one with my own hands."

He stood and looked over the Class C students under his command, all eager for action.

"Pass down the order."

"Everyone, prepare to receive Class D's 'inheritance.'"

"I'll make them crawl off this island in tears of despair!"

Meanwhile, the oppressive atmosphere in Class D's camp reached its peak.

Class C's harassment became increasingly severe.

They were no longer satisfied with stealing supplies. Like a swarm of flies, they began buzzing around the outskirts of Class D's camp.

They did not attack directly, but used every underhanded method possible to torment them mentally.

Every so often, they let out strange cries.

Or they threw stones at the wooden buckets Class D's students used to fetch water.

Those naked looks of mockery and contempt were more humiliating and terrifying than direct violence.

Sakura Airi was on the verge of collapse.

She had always been timid and poor at interacting with others.

Now, the aggressive stares from the boys of Class C made her feel as though she had thorns in her back.

She did not dare leave camp even a single step. She did not even dare raise her head to look at anyone. Like a frightened rabbit, she could only curl up in the corner of her tent, trembling.

"Natsume..."

When Natsume Yu appeared in front of her tent, Sakura Airi practically threw herself toward him through tears. She clutched tightly at the hem of his clothes as though grasping her last lifeline.

"I... I'm so scared..."

Her body shook violently, and tears welled in her eyes.

Natsume Yu lowered his gaze to her.

The girl's fear was real and fragile.

He did not offer any words of comfort. He simply reached out and gently patted her head.

The motion was light, carrying a calming strength.

Sakura Airi's entire body stiffened.

The warm touch atop her head instantly blanked out her chaotic thoughts.

It was a feeling she had never experienced before.

Warmth.

Reliability.

And, as if by a miracle, her anxious heart gradually calmed down.

Fear and helplessness seemed to vanish beneath those gentle pats.

She raised her head and looked at Natsume Yu through tear-filled eyes.

This boy, who always wore an indifferent expression, now seemed to her like a mountain that could shield her from wind and rain.

A feeling called dependence quietly sprouted in her heart, quickly taking root and growing into a deeper attachment.

After seeing Sakura off, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka emerged from behind a tree.

"It's all taken care of."

His voice was as calm as ever.

"I've figured out Class C's manpower distribution and attack route. Ryuen has gathered most of his main force to our west, planning to swallow the 'supply point' you deliberately exposed in one bite."

"Well done."

Natsume Yu nodded.

"The prey is in position. Next comes setting the trap."

He led Ayanokoji Kiyotaka to the marked area on the map.

It was a natural depression, surrounded on three sides by steep rock walls and dense bushes, with only a narrow entrance.

It was practically a natural pocket formation.

"This place..."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked around and immediately understood Natsume Yu's intentions.

"Easy to defend, hard to attack."

"Exactly."

Natsume Yu pointed at a relatively flat clearing in the center of the depression.

"Place those supply crates we deliberately 'abandoned' there, then disguise them to make it look like we fled in a panic and didn't have time to take them."

A playful smile tugged at his lips.

"When Ryuen sees them, he'll be even more convinced that we're at the end of our rope. He'll charge in without hesitation."

Following Natsume Yu's instructions, Horikita Suzune led several core members of Class D in carrying the half-empty supply crates to their designated spots.

Her face was full of confusion and worry.

"Natsume, are you sure this will work?"

She asked in a low voice.

"It looks like... we're just handing our things over to them."

This strategy of "showing weakness" completely went against her usual principles.

"Horikita."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked over and explained.

"Sometimes, taking a step back is meant to let you move forward better. You only need to trust him."

Ayanokoji's words were simple, yet they carried an undeniable persuasiveness.

Horikita Suzune looked at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's calm profile, then at Natsume Yu directing the preparations in the distance.

These two most mysterious men in Class D both possessed a depth she could not see through.

In the end, she took a deep breath and suppressed the doubts in her heart.

"I understand."

She chose to trust him for now.

In her heart, her assessment of Natsume Yu had gradually changed from "a little clever" into an indescribable sense of awe.

Night fell once more.

Everything was silent.

Under the pretense of inspecting the camp, Natsume Yu once again arrived outside Sakura Airi's tent.

Listening to the steady breathing inside, he knew the girl was fast asleep.

He took a thin branch he had picked up earlier from his pocket, charred black by fire.

Then, he carefully pulled open a small gap in the tent.

By the faint moonlight, he saw Sakura Airi's peaceful sleeping face.

The corners of her lips were slightly upturned, as if she were having a pleasant dream.

A mischievous smile appeared on Natsume Yu's face.

He reached out and used the tip of the charcoal stick to lightly draw several playful little cat whiskers on Sakura Airi's fair cheeks.

Three on the left.

Three on the right.

Perfectly symmetrical.

After doing all that, he silently withdrew as though nothing had happened.

The next morning.

When Sakura Airi rubbed her sleepy eyes and saw her reflection in the stream.

After a short cry of surprise, her entire face instantly flushed bright red, steam practically rising from the top of her head.

She instinctively wanted to wipe it off, but when her fingertips touched the black lines on her cheeks, her movement stopped.

Natsume Yu's calm face involuntarily surfaced in her mind.

It was him... it had to be him!

Shyness, embarrassment, and a trace of sweetness that even she had not noticed mixed together.

She realized she could not truly get angry.

Instead, she felt that... this side of Natsume Yu was rather interesting.

That sudden sense of intimacy made her heart skip a beat.

On a distant hillside.

Ryuen Kakeru led Class C's main force triumphantly toward Class D's "abandoned" supply point.

In his eyes, this boring exam had already entered garbage time.

Class D was merely an insignificant stepping stone before he ascended to Class A's throne.

He had no idea that what he was about to step into was a "welcome ceremony" carefully prepared for him.

Higher up.

Natsume Yu stood atop a massive boulder, overlooking everything below.

Ryuen Kakeru's arrogant figure was nothing more than prey about to fall into a trap in his eyes.

The curve of his lips grew colder and colder.

"The prey has taken the bait."