Never Trust Others Too Much

Thanks to Kushida, Chiba Yu successfully escaped the miserable fate of becoming the class leader.

After everyone finished their discussion, Hirata contacted Chabashira.

"One final warning: the identity of the class leader is of the utmost importance. Unless there is an exceptional reason, you are not permitted to change leaders at will. Are you certain you have reached a decision?"

Chabashira's repeated reminders only served to make Chiba Yu more determined about the focus of this exam.

"Yes, we have decided, Chabashira-sensei."

"...I understand. Then tell me who you have chosen." Chabashira fell silent for a moment before nodding expressionlessly.

After carefully informing Chabashira of Horikita's name and receiving instructions that she would deliver the registered card to them shortly, she left with the leader card.

About half an hour later, Chabashira returned to the Class D campsite and handed over the leader card bearing Horikita's name.

"Beep!"

After everyone gathered around her, Horikita successfully claimed the base, signaling that this spot had officially become the base for Class D.

With the base secured, the next step was to set up tents and arrange the necessary camping equipment.

Chiba Yu gathered large stones he had picked up from the woods and arranged them in a circle, leaving an empty space in the middle for a fire.

Although he didn't want to move at all, if he started slacking off completely now, he would surely become the center of attention, which would create significant obstacles for his future attempts to conserve energy.

Hirata was helping everyone set up tents nearby, while Karuizawa was directing and delegating tasks among the girls; it looked like a thriving scene.

But Chiba Yu knew that this was only the beginning.

When the interests of the individual and the group conflict, that is the moment a collective begins to fall apart.

He only hoped that no trouble would arise later on.

While everyone was busy, Hirata found Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who was holding a pile of weeds.

"Ayanokoji-kun, could I bother you for a moment?"

Ayanokoji stopped in his tracks. "I would like you to go pick up some firewood for the fire before it gets dark."

Ayanokoji agreed, adding that he would pick some up while he was at it.

While Hirata warned him that it was dangerous to go alone and promised to find someone to accompany him, Chiba Yu heard every word of the conversation clearly.

Especially when he heard Ayanokoji say he would find someone to go with, a sense of foreboding washed over him like a tide.

In an instant, Chiba Yu's gaze met Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's.

"Crunch! Crunch!"

As his feet sank into the damp soil of the jungle, Chiba Yu bent down to pick up discarded branches from the ground and let out a deep sigh.

In short, because Horikita had rejected Ayanokoji's invitation to gather firewood, Ayanokoji had been forced to find a new teammate.

Perhaps it was fate, but two "kindred spirits" who were both slacking off happened to lock eyes.

Adhering to the philosophy that slacking off is slacking off no matter where you do it, Chiba Yu gave up on resisting.

To his surprise, Yamauchi, who should have been at the campsite helping out, had followed them here as well.

Chiba Yu still remembered that Sakura Airi, who had originally wanted to come along, had given up because Yamauchi was tagging along.

This forced Chiba Yu to look at him with a sidelong glance.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka really is a man of many sins.

Sensing an inexplicable gaze, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked up abruptly and met Chiba Yu's eyes.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds before tacitly looking away.

Just as the two were silently picking up branches, Yamauchi suddenly and without warning draped his arms around the necks of both Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Chiba Yu, saying with a sleazy grin:

"Ayanokoji, Chiba, I'm planning to go after Sakura. Girls like Kushida are way out of my league, don't you think?"

Chiba Yu and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."

"So you went through all the trouble of following us just to have us help you come up with a strategy?" Chiba Yu asked back with dead fish eyes.

"Hehe, I just figured Ayanokoji was closer to Sakura, so I wanted him to help me out."

Chiba Yu: ...So I'm just an afterthought?

"For a girl like Sakura, I just need to play the part of a man who can gently take care of her, and I'll be able to win her over, right?"

Heh, keep dreaming. If chasing girls were that easy, there wouldn't be so many people staying single, not to mention that the girl you're pursuing doesn't like you at all.

Even he knew that a "simp" ends up with nothing in the end, so he had never thought about pursuing a girl, let alone falling in love.

The three of them walked back while clutching branches. On the way, Yamauchi continued to voice his thoughts and kept asking Ayanokoji for advice. He really couldn't understand why someone who had never been in a relationship would dare to ask for advice from someone else who had also never been in one—and that person happened to be Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

Listening to Yamauchi's incessant chatter, Chiba Yu found it unbearable. Just as he was about to tell him to be quiet, he felt the other two stop in their tracks.

Confused, Chiba Yu also stopped and looked in the direction they were staring.

There, under a large tree in front of them, a petite girl with blue hair wearing a tracksuit was sitting huddled on the ground, weak and covered in bruises, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees.

Seeing this strange scene, the oblivious Yamauchi immediately bypassed Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and ran toward the girl. "Hey, what's wrong with you—thud! What are you doing?!"

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka lowered his head and grabbed Yamauchi by the shoulder.

Stung by the pain, Yamauchi immediately spun around to glare at Ayanokoji. Seeing this, Ayanokoji realized something and promptly let go, saying, "It's nothing."

With no one else around to interfere, Yamauchi rushed forward, asking with concern, "Are you alright?"

Unexpectedly, the girl responded with a cold, unwelcoming expression, "It's none of your business. Leave me alone."

As the conversation unfolded, Chiba Yu noticed that something felt off.

It was too deliberate. Whether it was the conspicuous wounds on the girl or the exact location where she appeared, everything felt just a little too perfect—as if she had been intentionally placed there to act this way.

Furthermore, Chiba Yu sensed another irregularity, his gaze drifting downward of its own accord.

Forget it, why bother thinking about such troublesome things? I should just worry about myself.

While Chiba Yu was lost in thought, the conversation on Yamauchi's end began to draw to a close.

Chiba Yu managed to glean some new information.

The girl was from Class C. Word had it that she was dissatisfied with Ryuen's orders, leading to a physical altercation between the two. She had lost the fight and was subsequently kicked out of the class by Ryuen.

Watching Yamauchi take it upon himself to bring the girl back to their base, Chiba Yu recalled a famous saying: one must always be on guard against others.