Night Raid

At 2:30 AM, the faint scent of a campfire still lingered over the camp beneath the highlands.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka stood at the edge of the ruins, looking at the supplies they had managed to salvage: three bags of compressed biscuits, five bottles of water, one first-aid kit, and two usable entrenching tools. This was all they had left.

"That bastard Ryuen..." Ken Sudo gritted his teeth, his fists clenching until they cracked. "I'm going to beat him to a pulp!"

"Calm down," Suzune Horikita's voice was cold. "Anger won't solve anything."

Yosuke Hirata finished counting the survivors and let out a sigh of relief. "Thankfully, no one is seriously injured, just minor scrapes."

Ayanokoji didn't speak; he was contemplating the three choices provided by the system.

Abandon the highlands? Impossible. Class D had worked too hard to get this far; giving up now would mean all their efforts had been in vain.

Negotiate with Class A? Katsuragi wouldn't be that kind, and even if he agreed to a trade, he would surely demand an unacceptable price.

There was only one path left—hold the highlands and search for alternative resources.

But the question was how? It was pitch black, and the island was crawling with dangers...

Wait.

Ayanokoji suddenly remembered something. The Small Waterfall he and Horikita had discovered yesterday afternoon—that hidden water source.

The system had warned that it might become a focal point for conflict, but now, it might be their lifeline.

"I have a plan," Ayanokoji looked up. "Sudo, Horikita, come with me. Hirata, you take the rest of the group and hold this position. Reinforce the defenses and don't let Class C find another opening."

"Where are you going?" Hirata asked.

"To find something that will keep us alive."

The deep-night jungle was dangerous and silent.

Ayanokoji, Sudo, and Horikita moved quickly through the woods, their flashlights cutting through the dark. Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the canopy, barely illuminating the path ahead.

"Where exactly are we going?" Sudo couldn't help but ask.

"The waterfall," Ayanokoji replied curtly. "There's a clean water source there, and there might be food in the surrounding area."

"Going now? What if we run into wild beasts..."

"It's better than dying of thirst or hunger."

The three fell silent, focusing on the trek.

It had taken over half an hour to find the waterfall the previous night, but this time they moved quickly, reaching their destination in twenty minutes.

Just as they were about a hundred meters from the waterfall, Ayanokoji suddenly stopped.

"Wait."

"What is it?"

"Someone's there." Ayanokoji clicked off his flashlight and signaled for the other two to crouch down.

They hid behind the bushes and observed carefully. There was indeed firelight near the waterfall, along with the sound of voices.

It was Class C.

"Damn, this water is freezing," a male voice said.

"Quit whining and fill the bottles," another voice replied. "Ryuen said the Class D camp is pretty much burned to the ground; they won't last long. Once it's light, we'll go back and take the highlands."

Sure enough, Class C was also eyeing this water source.

Ayanokoji counted four people, all armed. A head-on fight would be three against four; even with his [Combat Mastery], he couldn't be sure Sudo and Horikita could handle it.

They needed to use strategy.

"Sudo, go to the east side and make some noise to draw their attention," Ayanokoji whispered his instructions. "Horikita, circle around to the west. Once they're distracted, ambush them from the flank. I'll break through the front."

"Understood."

Sudo nodded and quietly moved toward the east. A few minutes later, a "snap" echoed through the eastern woods, like a branch breaking.

"Who's there?!" The Class C members were instantly alert.

"Go check it out." Two of them grabbed their flashlights and headed east.

The opportunity had arrived.

Once the two were far enough away, Ayanokoji gave a signal. Horikita suddenly charged from the west, her wooden staff aiming straight for one of the two remaining guards.

The man didn't react in time, taking a blow to the shoulder and collapsing with a cry of pain.

The other man turned immediately, but Ayanokoji was already in front of him.

Without any flashy moves, he used a simple grapple to disarm the man's machete, followed by a kick to the side of his knee. The man screamed and fell to his knees.

The entire process took less than five seconds.

The two on the east side heard the commotion and rushed back, but Sudo had already blocked their path.

"You..." one of them recognized Sudo. "Class D?"

"Bingo," Sudo grinned and charged straight at them.

It was two-on-one, but Sudo's physical strength and power were clearly superior. With the narrow terrain preventing the others from maneuvering, they were quickly overwhelmed.

Ayanokoji did not go to help, knowing that Sudo could handle it. He walked over to the Class C student he had subdued and crouched down.

"How many of you came?"

"...Four people, just the four of us." The man clutched his knee, grimacing in pain.

"Where is Ryuen?"

"The, the camp... He said he wanted to personally command the assault after dawn."

It seemed Ryuen valued this water source, but not enough to come himself.

At this moment, Sudo finished his fight as well. Two Class C students lay on the ground; one was being pinned by Sudo, while the other had already passed out.

"What now?" Sudo asked.

"Tie them up." Ayanokoji took a rope from their supplies. "Bind them to the trees and deal with them tomorrow morning."

The four were quickly tied up, their mouths stuffed with cloth, leaving them unable to move.

With the threat resolved, the three of them could finally collect water in peace.

The pool beneath the waterfall was crystal clear and abundant. They filled all their water bags and discovered some wild fruits and mushrooms by the water's edge—Horikita confirmed they were edible.

"That's enough." Ayanokoji looked at the collected food and water. "This will last us until dawn. We'll send people to get more once the sun is up."

"But Ryuen won't let this go," Horikita reminded him. "He will definitely send more people."

"I know." Ayanokoji stood up. "That's why we're going to give him a surprise."

Four o'clock in the morning, Class C camp.

Ryuen sat by the campfire, his expression grim.

The four people he had sent to fetch water had been gone for nearly an hour and had yet to return.

"Ishizaki, take two people and go check." He ordered.

Daichi Ishizaki nodded, but just as he was about to stand, a commotion erupted outside the camp.

"We're under attack!"

As soon as the shout went up, several torches flew in from the woods, landing on the tents and supply piles.

"Put it out! Put the fire out!"

The Class C camp fell into immediate chaos. Some rushed to extinguish the flames, while others grabbed weapons to prepare for an enemy, creating a scene of disorder.

But the attackers did not reveal themselves. Once the torches were thrown, the woods returned to silence, as if nothing had happened.

"It's Class D!" Ishizaki shouted. "It has to be them!"

Ryuen's expression darkened further. He had not expected Class D to dare a counterattack after their own supplies had been destroyed.

"Assess the losses," he said through gritted teeth.

The damage was minimal, just two tents and some miscellaneous items burned. But the blow to morale was immense—Class C had actually been ambushed by the weakest class, Class D?

"Ryuen, look at this." Mio Ibuki picked up a note from the ground, on which was written in charcoal:

"A gift in return. —Class D"

On the back of the note was another line of small text: "If you want your people back, bring supplies to trade."

"They captured our people?" Ishizaki was stunned.

Ryuen took the note, glanced at it, and then crushed it into a ball.

"Good, very good..." A dangerous light flickered in his eyes. "Ayanokoji Kiyotaka... you have thoroughly angered me."