"Hmm... According to the manual, there are several bases on the island. Every time we occupy one, we'll earn reward points."
"But we can't use these reward points during the exam. They'll be added to our Class Points after the exam ends."
"Really? Then we can work hard to occupy as many bases as possible and earn more Class Points." After Ichinose finished speaking, Shiranami suddenly walked over and said this.
"No, we need to think carefully about that." Ichinose shook her head, her expression turning serious.
Then she opened the manual in her hands so Kitahara and Kanzaki could see it too.
"Look. There's a requirement for occupying a base: only the leader can occupy one in person."
"The leader?"
Hearing this unfamiliar term, Shiranami and Kanzaki asked with puzzled expressions, while Kitahara, who already knew everything, thought about what to do next.
Seeing their confused expressions, Ichinose hurriedly explained, "Only the leader can occupy a base, and they have to be carrying the Key Card."
"And..."
"Wait..."
Just as Ichinose was about to continue, Kitahara interrupted her.
"What is it, Kitahara?" Ichinose asked, looking at him.
"Uh... Look here. It says the homeroom teacher is supposed to hand the Key Card directly to the leader, but our homeroom teacher just left..." Kitahara pointed to the manual.
After Kitahara explained, everyone looked over and saw that he was right.
"..."
For a moment, everyone was at a loss for words. They'd gained a whole new appreciation for just how irresponsible Hoshinomiya-sensei could be.
"Hoshinomiya-sensei... She even forgot to give us the most important item..." Ichinose sighed, pressing a hand to her forehead as her pink hair swayed gently with the shake of her head.
Just as Kitahara and the others were at a loss about what to do, Hoshinomiya hurried over from a distance and said, "Sorry, sorry! Class B, I forgot to tell you one more thing."
When Hoshinomiya reached Kitahara and the others, the only response she got was the four of them wearing the same weary expression: "Here we go again."
Hoshinomiya stuck out her tongue sheepishly, then pulled a metallic-looking card from her pocket. "I almost forgot to give this to you. Luckily, I saw Little Chabashira explaining things just now. Otherwise, I might really have forgotten."
Hoshinomiya-sensei gave a playful wink and handed the Key Card to Ichinose. "Did you look through the manual just now? Do you know how the bases work?"
At Hoshinomiya-sensei's question, Ichinose quickly composed herself and explained what they had just been discussing.
"Okay, got it. I'll fill you in on the rest." Realizing she still had something useful to contribute, Hoshinomiya spoke with renewed confidence.
"The card I just gave Ichinose is the Key Card. Only the leader can use it to occupy a base, and each base can only be occupied for eight hours at a time."
"Also, on the final day of the seven-day exam, when attendance is taken, any class that correctly identifies another class's leader will earn 50 bonus points."
"The class whose leader is identified will lose those 50 points."
"And if you guess wrong, you'll lose 50 points as well."
After Hoshinomiya-sensei explained the rules, everyone realized just how important the leader was.
Kanzaki replied, "Looks like this exam is high-risk, high-reward."
"..."
"Sensei, do we choose the leader ourselves?" Ichinose asked.
"That's right. Once you've decided who the leader is, they'll be given the Key Card to keep."
After Hoshinomiya explained, everyone turned to look at Ichinose, Kanzaki, and Kitahara.
Kitahara aside, Ichinose and Kanzaki had been at the heart of the class ever since the start of the school year. They had earned everyone's trust with their abilities.
As for Kitahara, although he'd transferred from Class D, everything he'd done last term had shown his exceptional ability. He was also the one who had noticed this first.
So the leader would surely be one of those three.
"..."
"Everyone, please step away for a moment." In the quiet, Kitahara suddenly spoke to the Class B students behind him.
After hearing Kitahara, everyone realized he must have thought of something, so they silently moved away.
Once they had gone, Kitahara spoke again:
"Hoshinomiya-sensei, I've decided who I want to be the leader."
"Hmm? So soon? Aren't you going to discuss it with the two people beside you? Once the decision is made, the leader can't be changed without a special reason."
Hearing Kitahara, Hoshinomiya carefully cautioned him, afraid that his success last term might have made him overconfident and lead to a poor result in this exam.
Kitahara didn't answer. He simply looked at Ichinose and Kanzaki and asked, "Are you willing to trust me?"
Seeing Kitahara's serious expression, Ichinose and Kanzaki exchanged a glance, then nodded at the same time, showing they trusted his decision.
"Okay. Let me explain what I'm thinking. Ideally, Ichinose would be the best choice for leader, since she has the strongest organizational skills."
"But that's also the riskiest choice. So, are you willing to take a gamble with me?"
"Take a gamble?" Ichinose and Kanzaki looked at Kitahara in confusion.
"That's right. Take a gamble."
"We all saw it just now. In the eyes of the Class B students, the three of us are all candidates for leader, so the final choice will definitely be one of us."
"But that means the other classes, which already know about us, will be keeping a close eye on us. That greatly increases the risk of our leader being discovered."
After hearing Kitahara's explanation, Ichinose and Kanzaki agreed, then continued:
"Then you're choosing someone other than the three of us."
"No... I have two choices." Kitahara looked at them and spoke slowly.
"Hmm? What do you mean?" Ichinose and Kanzaki were once again baffled by Kitahara's strange words.
Kitahara's lips curled into a meaningful smile as he looked at Hoshinomiya.