July 30
(18/18)
Angel:
Task complete
Gold Card:
Bear Grylls Survival Manual (Mastery)
Details:
"After use, gain mastery of basic Bear Grylls survival knowledge."
Yi Chen felt incredibly lucky:
"Whoa, I had no idea how to handle this exam. This came at just the right time."
"This is really great."
Angel made a heart gesture toward Yi Chen, then disappeared.
After Yi Chen used it, all sorts of knowledge inexplicably flooded into his mind.
Yi Chen tidied up at home, then accompanied Ichinose back to school that afternoon.
At the school gate, he handed over his own phone for the school to keep.
The school also gave Yi Chen and Ichinose the S System phones they had received at the start.
Looking at the S System phone, Yi Chen felt a pang of emotion.
The school was full of students now.
Yi Chen helped Ichinose with her luggage, and they returned to the dormitory.
That evening, Ken Sudō brought Yamauchi and a few others, along with Ayanokoji, to Yi Chen's room to catch up.
Yi Chen's mind had settled back into its usual calm.
Watching them chat, Yi Chen thought:
I'd had such a great time with everyone during the break.
So why had I become so calm again after just two days?
Was I just someone who got excited about things for a little while?
No matter what I did, I always lost interest after a few days.
What would happen next?
Still, this break really had been a great experience.
July 31
The class gathered first thing in the morning. After the class meeting,
Chabashira told everyone to bring their belongings,
then led the whole class to gather in a plaza.
Students from Classes A, B, and C had arrived there too.
Manabu Horikita watched Yi Chen and Ayanokoji with a cold expression.
Sakayanagi stood off to the side with her eyes closed, looking composed.
From the way Class A stood and the expressions on their faces, it was easy to tell they weren't united.
In Class B were Ichinose, Suzuki, and Anna.
When they saw Class D arrive, they greeted Yi Chen warmly.
Class B was different; they had a strong sense of unity.
Ryuen of Class C, on the other hand, looked at Class D with disdain.
Before long, the school buses began pulling up one after another.
Yi Chen had planned to sit somewhere near the front, but Ken Sudō forcibly dragged him to the very last row.
Yi Chen, Ken Sudō, Yamauchi, Osamu, and Ayanokoji.
There were five of them. Yi Chen sat by the window on the left.
Ayanokoji sat by the window on the right.
Oda, Airi, Horikita, and a few others sat in the row in front of them.
The whole way there, Ken Sudō and the others chatted excitedly.
They were all thrilled.
Airi kept glancing at Yi Chen from time to time.
Yi Chen quietly watched the scenery outside, occasionally putting on a show of being sociable.
Soon the buses reached a large harbor.
The boundless sea stretched out before them.
The deep blue ocean rolled in wave after wave.
The enormous vessel out at sea was the focus of this trip.
A cruise ship.
Several buses pulled up nearby.
After the students got off,
many of them stared in amazement and exclaimed at the sight.
Then, one after another, the excited students boarded the cruise ship.
The boarding area was noisy and crowded. Airi stayed beside Yi Chen, chatting with him the whole way.
But for some reason, Yi Chen seemed to have become less talkative.
"Why are people like this?"
"Sometimes they can talk a lot."
"Other times, even speaking feels exhausting."
Yi Chen listened quietly to Airi's chatter as they went.
Chabashira gave them a casual tour of the cruise ship.
There were swimming pools, restaurants, cabins, spas—everything they could want.
Once Chabashira had finished showing them around and settled everyone in,
they were given free time.
The students split into groups to explore the ship.
Ichinose messaged Yi Chen to say their homeroom teacher needed to speak with her.
So Yi Chen decided to explore the cruise ship on his own.
But Ken Sudō came over and dragged Yi Chen along, and the two of them frantically explored the ship.
They went from the pool on the deck to the spacious, brightly lit restaurant,
then found the recreation room, which was full of pool tables, arcade machines, and other facilities.
The students on the cruise ship were exploring too.
The two of them continued down the hallway,
then reached the cabins. There wasn't much to see; they were all pretty luxurious.
Looking out the windows, they could see the vast sea, its surface sparkling in the sunlight.
Then they arrived at the spa area, where a faint aroma of incense hung in the air.
Ken Sudō wanted to try it out.
Yi Chen refused, saying he couldn't stand having another guy touch his skin.
So Ken Sudō had no choice but to leave with Yi Chen.
But quite a few students were heading to the spa one after another.
Ken Sudō finally couldn't resist. After apologizing to Yi Chen, he went to the spa on his own.
Yi Chen went out onto the cruise ship's deck to get some fresh air.
Something about it all felt strange to him:
"This school is clearly pretty good, so why is it that ever since I set foot here..."
"It feels like there's a huge mountain pressing down on me."
Before Yi Chen could think it over, he heard footsteps behind him.
He turned around and stared blankly at the newcomers.
Ryuen's group of four.
Yi Chen thought for a moment:
The Uninhabited Island Exam. Ryuen, huh?
Ryuen taunted him:
"Long time no see, Yi Chen."
"The cruise ship's destination is where the next exam will take place."
"How exactly did you know that?"
Yi Chen said nothing. Ryuen scoffed:
"Tch. Fine, don't tell me."
"I wonder how you weaklings in Class D will manage to earn points next."
Yi Chen replied calmly:
"Oh, that? I was just making it up. I was messing with you."
Ryuen glared at him:
"What!"
"Angela Yi Chen, you're really something."
"Whatever. I hope you manage to graduate."
With that, Ryuen led the others away.
Yi Chen watched Ryuen's retreating figure.
Class C, huh? If I crush them, what will happen to Tangben Yishan?
I should've known better than to mess with him.
But only one of our four classes can be Class A. The rest will have to settle for lower ranks.
Tangben Yishan, you're just unlucky.
After all, even if your class moves up, the others will crush you too.
By noon, Ichinose had managed to get away and have lunch with Yi Chen.
Afterward, she went off to take care of her own business.
Seeing Yi Chen alone, Airi went over and invited him to watch a movie.
Airi took Yi Chen to the cruise ship's movie theater.
They bought a bucket of popcorn and two colas.
A few students were scattered around the theater.
They chose seats in the middle, where a classic film was playing on the big screen.
"Yesterday is history."
"Tomorrow is a mystery."
"But today is a gift."
"Treasure it like the gift it is."
Airi had seen this movie before, but watching it again felt different.
Yi Chen, however, was a little distracted.
He knew the cruise ship would reach the Uninhabited Island soon.
He wondered whether he'd be able to handle the exam.
Watching the movie's protagonist throw punches and yell, Yi Chen felt as if he could take on anything again.
Airi looked at Yi Chen shyly.
She felt guilty:
Did this count as a date?
Would I be betraying Ichinose?
At the thought, Airi shook her head vigorously:
Yi Chen only thinks of me as a friend, right? We're just friends.
There's nothing wrong with friends watching a movie together.
When she finished that thought, her heart gave a little pang.
Yi Chen glanced at Airi, who was acting strangely.
"Is the cola too cold?"
Airi probably won't be much use in this exam. Whatever.
After the movie ended, the two of them left the theater.
Many students were walking through the hallway outside. Some were holding tickets for the next showing, while others were discussing the movie excitedly.
Just then, Ichinose called Yi Chen and arranged to meet him on an upper deck of the cruise ship.
Yi Chen explained the reason to Airi, and she reluctantly parted ways with him.
Airi took off her glasses, her expression changing.
"Yi Chen, you were never mine to begin with."
Yi Chen took the cruise ship elevator to the place Ichinose had specified.
The elevator doors opened.
Yi Chen explored farther ahead, reached a large door, and pushed it open.
This was actually the venue for theatrical performances.
It was empty, and the lights inside weren't very bright.
Ichinose came over from the audience seats, looking a little embarrassed.
"Sorry, Yi Chen. I got carried away talking with the teachers."
"I'd planned to come out and meet you, but I didn't expect you to find your way here first."
Yi Chen said:
"It's fine."
Ichinose said shyly:
"Come with me. My teacher wants to meet my boyfriend."
Yi Chen asked in a puzzled whisper:
"Is this something you can share with your teacher?"
Ichinose smiled.
"Hoshinomiya-sensei is really good to me. We're more like friends than teacher and student."
Although Yi Chen was a little confused, he didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
Yi Chen went to the front row of seats.
Besides Hoshinomiya, he also saw Chabashira.
Yi Chen greeted the two teachers with an awkward look.
Hoshinomiya looked at Yi Chen with a beaming smile, a hint of scrutiny in her eyes.
She said:
"Yi Chen, there's no need to be so formal. Chabashira-sensei and I were classmates."
"You don't need to be nervous."
Yi Chen put on a professional smile.
"Haha, Hoshinomiya-sensei from Class B? I know you. You're super impressive."
Hoshinomiya covered her mouth and smiled.
"Really, Yi Chen? Then how do I compare to Chabashira-sensei?"
Yi Chen smiled awkwardly.
"Hahaha, you each have your strengths. You're both equally impressive."
Seeing Chabashira's expression, Hoshinomiya decided to stop teasing Yi Chen.
Hoshinomiya smiled.
"Yi Chen, let's get down to business. How did you find out about this exam?"
Chabashira looked at Yi Chen with a cold expression, then closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat.
Yi Chen said calmly:
"I don't know what you mean. Hahahaha, Hoshinomiya-sensei, you must have misunderstood something I said offhandedly, too."
Hoshinomiya looked unconvinced.
"Oh, I know, I know. Ichinose told me you were just making things up."
"I just wanted to hear you say it yourself."
Hoshinomiya looked at Yi Chen with a beaming smile.
Then she spoke again.
"Yi Chen, what do you think of my Ichinose?"
At that, Yi Chen's expression stiffened with embarrassment.
"...Hoshinomiya-sensei, do you know that we're dating?"
Hoshinomiya smiled at Yi Chen.
"Doesn't the whole school know?"
Hoshinomiya wrapped her arms around Chabashira's arm beside her.
She said coyly:
"Chabashira, surely one of your students wouldn't be irresponsible and just walk away after sleeping with someone?"
Chabashira replied irritably:
"That's enough, Hoshinomiya."
Hoshinomiya looked at Yi Chen and said calmly:
"Then I'll leave Ichinose in your care during the Uninhabited Island Exam."
As soon as she finished speaking, Hoshinomiya clapped a hand over her mouth.
Ichinose stared at the three of them in shock.
Chabashira opened her eyes.
Hoshinomiya and Chabashira stared intently at Yi Chen's expression.
Yi Chen's face remained expressionless.
Then Chabashira said calmly:
"It doesn't matter. You'll find out tomorrow anyway."
"You two can go back now, but I still hope you'll act as if nothing just happened."
Yi Chen smiled awkwardly at the two teachers.
"Haha, I'll pretend I never saw you today."
Ichinose nodded as well.
Then the two of them hurriedly left.
"Did you figure anything out?"
"No."
"Hehe, is there ever a time when you can't figure someone out, Chabashira?"
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