Uninhabited Island Exam

"Building a sandcastle? You bastard, you still have such a childish side?" Ryuen looked at Sawahara, who was making a sand sculpture on the beach, his mouth twitching. "Even elementary school kids don't play with this anymore."

"Do they? I think it's actually quite interesting." Sawahara was enjoying himself, watching the fine sand pile up and change shape in his hands, feeling a subtle sensation in his heart.

"Do you want to come and try it?" Sawahara invited Ryuen, only to receive an eye roll in return.

"Ha, do you think I'm as childish as you?" Ryuen turned to leave, but stopped in his tracks when he heard the words coming from behind him.

"So, Ryuen, you're not good at this?"

"Hah, when I was a kid..." In the end, Ryuen cursed under his breath and squatted down.

"What the hell kind of stupid thing am I doing?" Ryuen held his forehead, wondering why he was so easily provoked by this bastard.

He would never admit that he actually wanted to play too; wouldn't that ruin his entire image?

The rising and falling tide washed away the artwork they had created on the beach, leaving not a single trace behind.

"Tch, let's go, the meat is already grilled." Annoyed to see the sandcastle he had made washed away by the seawater, he called out to Sawahara, who was lost in thought, as the class banquet was about to begin.

"Is this Class C's strategy? Giving up on the exam to maximize the acquisition of Private Points."

The students were either excited or serious about facing the exam, while the teachers here were just chatting; there was nothing else for them to do.

Because they had to monitor the health status of the students fed back from the computers to avoid accidents, the teachers could not intervene in the exam otherwise, and just staring at the computers was incredibly boring.

At least for Hoshinomiya, it was truly too boring, so she found a topic to discuss.

"I wouldn't know about that. I have always believed that letting students exert their own abilities is enough," Sakagami responded indifferently.

"It looks like Class D has absolutely no chance in this exam. Most of the students in that class have already returned to the ship." Thinking of this, the smile on Hoshinomiya's face became even brighter. "Hey, hey, how is Chabashira feeling right now? Are you very sad? Do you want to go for a drink together after the exam ends?"

"Don't call me that. I don't care; anyway, our class has no intention of promoting," Chabashira Sae replied coldly. Since this was her usual attitude, it didn't seem strange.

"Is that so? That's for the best, after all, only Chabashira doesn't have the qualifications..." Hoshinomiya stared at Chabashira with a smile; she absolutely would not allow Class D to rise to Class A.

Class B's camp.

The students in their class were still working hard. Even with sufficient supplies, they did not slack off. After exploring the island for an afternoon, they discovered a stronghold with a cornfield and subsequently picked a lot to bring back.

"A new stronghold. Let's go and occupy it together later," Kanzaki said, pausing to look at a spot in the camp.

"Is this really okay? Just to be safe, I think..."

"Yeah, it's fine." Ichinose knew what Kanzaki meant and waved her hand to signal him not to continue. "As long as we are a bit more careful."

"Alright..." Although he was still worried, Kanzaki didn't say anything more. Just as Ichinose said, they just needed to be careful.

Class A camp.

"Is this what you call leading us to victory? Katsuragi! We've suffered such huge losses on the first day of the exam, and the opponent is those guys from Class C."

The Sakayanagi Faction directly attacked Katsuragi over this mistake. Of course, it couldn't exactly be called a mistake; one could say Katsuragi had handled it as well as possible.

However, it was meaningless. If someone wanted to find fault, they would always find it.

"What are you guys talking about!" Totsuka shouted directly. "It was clearly..."

"Enough, Yahiko." Katsuragi spoke up, interrupting whatever Totsuka was about to say. Escalating the conflict would do no good for their Class A.

"This was indeed my mistake. I didn't expect Class C and Class D to deal with the exam in this way." Katsuragi didn't defend himself and took full responsibility.

"However, the situation in Class B is no better. They also spent a large amount of Private Points to purchase Special Exam Points. In this regard, we, who have more Class Points, are actually the ones with the advantage. Now that the conditions for both sides have leveled out again, I believe that with the ability of our Class A, the final victory will still belong to us."

Katsuragi's speech calmed the restlessness in the class.

That member of the Sakayanagi Faction wanted to say something else, but was held back by Hashimoto Masayoshi. Too much is as bad as too little; continuing would only lower others' evaluation of the Sakayanagi Faction. Besides, the seeds of dissatisfaction had already been sown. If Class A won after the exam, it wouldn't matter, but if they lost...

Hashimoto Masayoshi looked at Katsuragi, a smile appearing on his face.

Class A still has an advantage? Words like that were just to stabilize the morale of the troops. Katsuragi certainly knew that the situation of this special exam was unfavorable for them.

Because they were short-handed from the beginning, their points were already lacking, and they had already used a portion of them; the class only had 250 points left now.

Even if both sides had enough supplies, Class B already had a 50-point advantage.

As for that guy named Sawahara in Class C, even if he signed a contract, his credibility was still a question mark.

But fortunately, the exam had just begun, and everything still had a chance.

Ending the argument, Katsuragi closed his eyes to think about the next countermeasure.

"Have all the people in the class returned to the ship?" Ryuen asked Sawahara.

"You're the only one who hasn't gone back yet." Sawahara nodded and then looked at Ryuen.

Ryuen laughed when he heard this. "Aren't you the same, you bastard?"

He knew that Sawahara would never end this exam just like this. This guy was full of bad intentions, and this small amount of points wouldn't satisfy his appetite.

"Don't think about acting alone. Such an interesting thing, I don't plan on going back just like that."

Looking at the excitement in Ryuen's eyes, Sawahara took a small step back.

"Sorry, Ryuen, I don't have any interest in that."

Hearing Sawahara's words, Ryuen's face darkened instantly. He didn't have any interest in that kind of thing either, alright!

"What kind of stupid act are you putting on, you bastard?"

"Just a joke, wasn't it funny?" Sawahara asked with a puzzled look.

"..." Ryuen's mouth twitched. Why would you think the protagonist of a joke would find their own joke funny? "Don't ever tell a joke again as long as you live."

"That was a good joke." Sawahara smiled. "Since Ryuen is willing to help, that's great."

"There's actually a place like this on this island?" Ryuen looked at the wooden cabin in front of him with some surprise.

"Isn't that obvious?" Sawahara scanned his Leader Card to confirm the occupation of the base. "Even though they call this an uninhabited island, it can't truly be 'uninhabited.' That's common sense, Ryuen."

Regardless of anything else, this island was state property, so it was naturally maintained. It wasn't a deserted island, so the existence of a wooden cabin was nothing to be surprised about.

"Heh, what kind of common sense is that?" Ryuen didn't think it was common sense, but after Sawahara's reminder, he quickly sorted out the logic behind it.

"It's common sense, of course. It's the same principle as how there's no 'instant' in instant noodles or no 'wife' in wife cakes; an uninhabited island won't be truly 'uninhabited,' Ryuen." Sawahara said as he began to tidy up the bed.

"That's not the same thing at all. And I've wanted to say this for a while, what's with that way of addressing me? It feels disgusting." Ryuen looked at Sawahara with a look of revulsion. Hearing the honorific added to his name made his skin crawl with discomfort.

"Isn't that how you address someone when you're on good terms?" Sawahara replied. After Shiina changed how she addressed him, he had started using it on Ryuen once he understood the meaning.

"...Who is on good terms with you, you bastard." Ryuen felt a throbbing pain in his forehead. Where did you get such a high opinion of yourself? "If you want to change how you address me, just call me Ryuen."

"Alright, Ryuen."

"Don't call me that!"

The wooden cabin was a bit noisy tonight.

"You guys arrived much later than I thought." Sawahara narrowed his eyes at the newcomers.

Hearing this, a wry smile appeared on Hashimoto's face. "It couldn't be helped."

Because Class A was currently facing a point deficit, if they couldn't achieve a major victory in guessing the leaders, they would have to rely on the reward points from occupying bases to win. Therefore, Class A's exploration tasks were quite heavy. At the same time, the core members of the Sakayanagi Faction were always followed by members of the Katsuragi Faction.

This time, it was only because Kamuro helped lure people away that he had the opportunity to come over.

"Is it true that you're the only one left from your class on the island?" Hashimoto looked around the wooden cabin. Was there really a base like this on the island?

"Yeah, I'm the only one left. How about it? Do you want to report this information? If you do, Class A's chances of winning this exam will increase significantly." Sawahara showed his Leader Card without any hesitation, his tone laced with temptation.

"..." Hashimoto Masayoshi fell silent. He hadn't expected Sawahara to do this. "That won't do. If Katsuragi wins, I'll be in trouble."

Hashimoto had already understood Sawahara's intention: to let Katsuragi win this exam and keep Class A in a state of division to cause even greater internal friction. What a formidable character...

"Katsuragi-kun is truly pitiful." Sawahara sighed before returning to the main topic. "So, may I ask who exactly is the leader of Class A?"

"Totsuka Yahiko." Hashimoto gave the answer directly.

And just like that, the information on the leader of Class A was obtained.

"Oh, has your cold recovered? As expected of Ichinose."

A day later, Horikita Suzune arrived in front of the wooden cabin, staring at Sawahara with a complex expression.

After the deal with Class B ended that day, Sawahara had sought out Horikita Suzune and made a trade with her.

"Go to Class B and help me scout for leader information, how about that? As long as you cooperate with my plan, I think your class can also gain some Class Points."

Unable to give up her obsession with moving up a class, Horikita Suzune gritted her teeth and agreed.

The process of joining the Class B team was much smoother than she had imagined. Ichinose agreed without hesitation, and the students of Class B quickly accepted her.

Facing the warmth of Class B, Horikita Suzune's heart had been filled with guilt from time to time during this period. She had thought about whether to give up being a spy, however...

"The leader of Class B is Shiranami Chihiro."

Even if the means were despicable, even if she had to bear the infamy, she had to move up to Class A. Having realized her own heart, there was no longer any hesitation in her answer.

"What about the leader of Class D?"

Horikita Suzune was silent for a moment, but she still gave the answer.

"This is the Leader Card for Class D. Take a look, Katsuragi-kun."

On the second to last night before the end of the Uninhabited Island Exam, Sawahara provided the final part of the contract to Katsuragi.

"The leader of Class B is Shiranami Chihiro. Of course, there won't be any evidence for this one." A smile played on Sawahara's face.

Katsuragi carefully looked at the Leader Card in his hand, then handed it back.

"The contract is now complete... The leader of Class C is you, right?"

"Yes, that's right." Sawahara nodded, and at the same time, he took out his own Leader Card and waved it. "You can go ahead and write my name down too."

"...I understand." Katsuragi took a deep look at Sawahara, turned around, and left directly.

"The exam results are currently being tallied, so please wait a moment, students."

After the exam concluded, the students remaining on the Uninhabited Island gathered on the beach once more, waiting for Mashima to announce the results.

The headcount for Class A and Class B remained unchanged, while in the spot for Class C, Ryuen stood all by himself, his clothes visibly disheveled; it was clear that the past week had been quite grueling for him.

As expected. Katsuragi was not surprised by this scene; he had known that the reason Sawahara exposed his own Leader Card so recklessly must have been because he had a backup plan, and it appeared to be him.

Class D also had only one student present, though it was not Horikita Suzune, but Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

Did Class D also swap their leader? Katsuragi felt a sense of relief in his heart.

Soon, Mashima finished the tally and began to announce the results.

"The fourth place for this special exam is Class D, with 69 points."

On the Cruise Ship, Sawahara frowned upon hearing this score; it did not match the amount he had anticipated.

"Third place is Class A, with 130 points." Upon hearing this result, Katsuragi closed his eyes in pain; he had already guessed the reason for this score.

The students of Class A clearly could not accept this outcome.

"What on earth is going on, Katsuragi!"

"Second place is Class C, with 160 points." The students of Class C on the Cruise Ship erupted into wild cheers; after all, they had achieved this result despite only playing for a single day.

"You're amazing, Sawahara-kun."

"First place is Class B, with 195 points.

This special exam concludes here. That is all."

Even though they had secured first place, Class B could not get excited at all; had they truly won with this result?

With that, the Uninhabited Island Exam officially came to an end.