The gale slashed like a knife, and the rain poured down in torrents. Tang Yu carried the unconscious Horikita Suzune on his back, struggling through the floodwaters, which reached his knees.
Every step felt like fighting against the weight of the entire ocean. The icy rain poured down his collar, draining his precious body heat.
"Hang on... We're almost there..." Tang Yu gritted his teeth, speaking both to himself and to Horikita on his back.
[Adrenaline Burst remaining: 3 minutes]
The system's warning hung over him like a sword poised to fall. His temporarily enhanced strength was fading, and the camp was still at least five hundred meters away. The floodwaters kept rising, and branches and rocks drifting in the water slammed into his shins like hidden weapons.
Horikita's body was growing heavier. Her breathing was weak but steady. Tang Yu adjusted his hold to keep her head above the water.
A bolt of lightning split the night, briefly illuminating the terrain ahead. Tang Yu squinted—a new stretch of rapids had appeared directly in front of him, cutting off the way back to camp.
"Damn it!" He had to turn left and look for another route. The detour would add at least two hundred meters, and his strength was rapidly draining away.
[Temporary Strength +2 effect ending soon] [Temporary Agility +2 effect ending soon]
Tang Yu's muscles began to tremble, and every breath burned in his lungs. He stared fixedly at the faint camp lights in the distance. They were his only hope.
"Leave... me..." Horikita's faint voice sounded by his ear.
"Shut up and save your strength," Tang Yu snapped, his voice swallowed by the wind and rain.
A sudden stab of pain shot through his right leg—a sharp branch had pierced his pant leg and cut him. The rain immediately washed away the warm blood, but the pain made him stumble.
"System! What else can I use?" he roared inwardly.
[Emotion Points can be exchanged for "Emergency Sprint"] [Spend 1,000 Emotion Points to gain 30 seconds of maximum speed]
"Exchange!"
A surge of fresh energy flooded his legs, and Tang Yu shot toward the final stretch like an arrow loosed from its bow. The flood seemed to offer less resistance. The sound of the wind and rain became white noise in his ears, and the world narrowed to the wavering camp lantern ahead.
Thirty seconds later, his strength ebbed like the tide. Tang Yu's legs gave way, and he fell to his knees at the edge of camp. But he had made it—the Medical Tent was right in front of him.
"Someone! Get over here!" he shouted with the last of his strength.
A few seconds later, several figures rushed out of the tent. Hirata Yosuke reached him first and took Horikita from him, while Ayanokoji Kiyotaka supported Tang Yu, who was nearly spent.
"Her ankle's injured, possibly broken... Severe hypothermia..." Tang Yu managed to report, his words coming in fragments. Then his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.
Warmth. That was the first thing Tang Yu felt when he regained consciousness. He was lying in a dry sleeping bag. The storm still raged outside the tent, but now it was only a distant background sound.
"You're awake?" Ayanokoji's voice came from beside him.
Tang Yu turned his head and saw Ayanokoji sitting beside a makeshift medical kit, a book in his hand. Three other students were asleep in the tent, including Horikita, who was still unconscious.
"How long?" Tang Yu's voice was hoarse.
"Four hours and seventeen minutes." Ayanokoji closed his book. "You overexerted yourself, but you're not seriously hurt. Horikita's in worse shape—a fracture in her right ankle and mild hypothermia. But the school doctor said she wouldn't have any lasting effects."
Tang Yu tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness sent him slumping back down. Ayanokoji handed him a cup of warm water. "Take it slowly. You've exhausted yourself."
After drinking the water, Tang Yu felt much better. He looked at Horikita. Her face was pale, but her breathing was steady, and her right foot was secured in a makeshift splint.
"How's the storm?"
"It's still going. It might last until tomorrow noon." Ayanokoji's tone was calm. "The Class A and Class B camps have both suffered damage. We don't know how Class C is doing."
Tang Yu nodded, then suddenly remembered something. "What about Koenji?"
"He's in his own tent, refusing to take part in any group effort." Ayanokoji's mouth twitched. "He said, 'This degree of wind and rain isn't enough to disturb my meditation.'"
Typical. Tang Yu almost laughed, but a stab of pain in his chest made him cough.
"You may have a cracked rib." Ayanokoji handed him two pills. "Painkillers."
Tang Yu swallowed the pills and lay back down. The only sounds in the tent were the wind and rain beating against the canvas and the even breathing of the other students. Ayanokoji went back to reading, as though their conversation had never happened.
[Emotion Points: 14250/20000] [New ability: "Emotional Link" (briefly establish a deep emotional connection with another person)]
The new ability made Tang Yu's heart race. Unlike his previous abilities, which only let him passively sense emotions or briefly resonate with someone, "Emotional Link" seemed to allow a much deeper interaction. He looked at the unconscious Horikita, unsure whether to try it.
"Can't sleep?" Ayanokoji asked suddenly.
"Yeah." Tang Yu gave a vague reply. "You should get some rest. I'll watch Horikita."
Ayanokoji gave him a meaningful look, then finally nodded and left. Only Tang Yu, three sleeping students, and Horikita, who was still only half-conscious, remained in the tent.
Tang Yu carefully moved closer to Horikita. After a moment's hesitation, he activated the new ability.
[Establishing Emotional Link: Target—Horikita Suzune] [Duration: 3 minutes]
In an instant, Tang Yu's consciousness seemed to be dragged into a whirlpool. A flood of images and fragments of emotion swept toward him—a tall man's silhouette, seen from behind (Horikita Manabu?).
An empty dining table, mountains of reference books, the lonely track around the schoolyard... All of it was steeped in a complex mix of emotions: a longing to be acknowledged, stubborn pride, and profound loneliness...
The strongest fragment was a memory: a little Horikita stood in an empty Gymnasium, gazing at her brother's photo on the wall. In a soft voice, she said, "I'll surpass you one day..."
The link abruptly broke. Tang Yu gasped for breath, as though he had just surfaced from the depths of the sea. Three minutes had felt both impossibly long and impossibly short. He looked at Horikita and saw that her eyes were open. She was quietly watching him.
"How... are you feeling?" Tang Yu asked softly, unsure whether she had sensed anything.
Horikita's lips were dry and pale. "Why did you risk your life to save me?" Her voice was faint, but unusually clear.
Tang Yu remembered everything he had seen through the Emotional Link, and a new understanding stirred within him. "Because Class D needs you."
"Liar." Horikita looked away. "Class D would be fine with just you."
The storm howled outside, but inside the tent, it felt as though they were in a small space cut off from the rest of the world. Tang Yu carefully chose his words. "I do have abilities of my own... But you've seen it too: this school is about much more than academic performance.
"For Class D to rise, everyone's strength is needed—especially someone with potential like you."
Horikita was silent for a long time, so long that Tang Yu thought she had fallen asleep again.
"My brother..." she began suddenly, her voice barely audible. "Horikita Manabu, the Student Council President. All my life, I've lived in his shadow. I came to this school for the chance to prove myself..."
Tang Yu listened quietly without interrupting. The medicine was starting to take effect, and his eyelids were growing heavy, but Horikita's words were like a thread keeping his consciousness from sinking into darkness.
"I want to prove I can succeed without relying on my brother's name... So I've refused all help... including yours." Horikita struggled to turn her head and look Tang Yu straight in the eyes. "But tonight... thank you."
Those three simple words seemed to take all the strength she had. Horikita closed her eyes, and her breathing steadied. Tang Yu knew that, to this proud girl, that expression of gratitude meant more than any trophy.
[Horikita Suzune's trust has increased significantly] [Special achievement unlocked: "Crack in the Ice Wall"]
Tang Yu smiled and closed his eyes, letting the medicine carry him into a dream. Just before his consciousness faded, he thought he heard a system notification, but he was already too exhausted to check...
The next day at noon, Tang Yu woke to the sunlight. The tent was empty, and beside his sleeping bag sat a simple breakfast and three pills. The storm had stopped, replaced by birdsong and the sound of students bustling about and talking.
He swallowed the pills and slowly walked out of the tent. The camp was in disarray, but the central area remained intact. The Class D students had split into groups: some were repairing tents, others drying supplies, and the rest preparing lunch.
"Student Tang Yu!" Hirata Yosuke was the first to spot him and hurried over. "How are you feeling? The school doctor said you need more rest."
"Much better." Tang Yu rolled his shoulder. It only ached faintly. "How's Horikita?"
"She's over there." Hirata pointed toward the Medical Tent. "Chabashira-sensei contacted the School Administration by Satellite Phone. They'll send a boat this afternoon to take her for treatment. The exam has been suspended for the day."
Before you continue