But that didn't mean the matter would end so simply. When the search of their luggage turned up nothing, Shinohara and the others raised a new demand.
"Search their bodies. We demand a pat-down. The person who stole the underwear is a pervert, and who knows where a pervert might hide something?"
Faced with the girls' aggressive accusations, Ike was the first to lose his temper. He immediately stood up and retorted, "Don't push your luck!"
But his protest only aroused the other girls' suspicions.
"Don't you think Ike's been acting weird from the start?"
"Yeah, yeah. He does seem suspicious."
"There's a pretty good chance he's the pervert."
The girls began whispering among themselves, all suspecting that Ike had stolen Karuizawa's underwear.
Faced with their accusations, Ike, who hadn't stolen anything, naturally turned out all his pockets without hesitation.
As support for the pat-down grew stronger, Chiba Yu couldn't help thinking, If I hadn't prepared in advance last night, I'd probably be on the verge of getting into trouble right now.
"I think Ike's a likely suspect. He's been acting sneaky from the start."
"I think Sotomura's a possibility too. I heard he bought a whole cabinet full of figurines. Just imagining him secretly taking them out to admire in the dorm every time... Could he be..."
"Exactly, and there's also..."
"If you ask me, Chiba could be a possibility too. He seems harmless enough, but who knows if he's actually a closet pervert?"
"..."
For a moment, all the girls fell oddly silent, casting suspicious glances at Inogashira, who had said this.
"W-what? Was there something wrong with what I said?" Seeing everyone turn to look at her, Inogashira asked in confusion.
"No, it's nothing. We just think that if we had to pick the boy in our class least likely to do something like this, besides Hirata, Chiba would probably be the only one."
"Yeah, yeah. It's Chiba, after all. Even if you suspected him, he'd probably look completely innocent and say something like, 'Huh? Why would I do something like that? Whoever wants to deal with that kind of hassle can do it themselves.'"
Matsushita, Shinohara, and the others agreed with Mori Nene, nodding in unison.
"W-well, all right. I guess I was overthinking it."
After all, Inogashira wasn't part of the same clique as Karuizawa and the others. There were plenty of rumors about the two of them in class, but since Inogashira had never looked into them closely, it wasn't surprising that she might say something like that.
With the conflict continuing to spread, Hirata had no choice but to agree to the girls' body searches to prove the boys hadn't done it.
As he waited in line, Chiba Yu casually glanced toward the girls' tent.
If he listened closely, he could still hear Karuizawa sobbing inside.
No wonder she could lead the girls in the class. She put just as much effort into acting. Chiba Yu wasn't the least bit jealous of how she maintained her queen-bee image in the class.
"Chiba, you're next."
Hearing Hirata call his name, Chiba Yu walked over slowly and spread his arms, letting him search.
After patting down Chiba Yu's clothes and pockets, Hirata finally let out a rare sigh of relief once he'd confirmed there was nothing suspicious on him either.
"That clears the boys in our class, right?" Hirata said, looking tired but still managing a smile. Chiba Yu could see the worry in his eyes, but chose not to mention it.
After the results were reported to the girls, the matter was temporarily dropped. The girls still had plenty of objections, but they couldn't use them as an excuse to stop the exam from continuing.
The day passed in a subdued, oppressive atmosphere. It wasn't until evening that Chiba Yu saw Karuizawa come out of the tent.
Looking at her swollen eyes and the faint traces of tears still lingering around them, Chiba Yu felt a pang of guilt for some reason.
Karuizawa sat by herself, leaning dejectedly against a tree with her arms wrapped around her knees, her gaze downcast. Chiba Yu sighed and slowly walked over.
Mori Nene, who had been about to go comfort Karuizawa, immediately turned and went to meet Chiba Yu when she saw him approach.
"Karuizawa's still feeling awful. If you can, Chiba, please help her out. At least try to comfort her, or she might not be able to take it."
Mori Nene seemed to know Chiba Yu well. Worried he might not be able to say anything helpful and might upset Karuizawa even more, she tactfully offered him a few words of advice.
"...I understand." Chiba Yu nodded and continued toward Karuizawa.
When he reached her, Chiba Yu didn't say anything. He simply sat down beside her.
"You've worked hard."
Chiba Yu gazed at the boys sitting by the campfire. As he watched them, he spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear.
Karuizawa slowly raised her head and glanced around. After making sure no one else was nearby, she lowered her voice and said,
"Honestly, I'm exhausted. When we get back, you'd better make it up to me."
Karuizawa's voice was unusually low and a little hoarse. Chiba Yu guessed that crying for so long had affected it.
"Mm," Chiba Yu replied briefly.
The two of them sat there quietly, gazing at the bright moon in the night sky without continuing the conversation.
After a long while, once she seemed to have recovered her composure, Karuizawa finally spoke again, slowly. "After everything that happened today, I finally understand what you meant last night."
"Hmm?"
"It's really scary. If you hadn't figured everything out ahead of time, I might not have been acting today." As Karuizawa spoke, she felt a lingering sense of fear.
She stared blankly at Shinohara, still trading barbs with several boys in the distance, then at Mori Nene, who kept speaking up for her, and finally at the boys on the other side, who continued to argue back. The whole scheme seemed unbearably underhanded to her.
"That's what this school believes in. You have to do whatever it takes to win, to reach the heights everyone else can only look up to. Ryuen just figured that out before the rest of us."
"...What about you? Will you become like that too?"
"Me? Don't be ridiculous. All I think about all day is how to slack off. All I do is eat and sleep. What could you possibly expect from me?"
But when he turned around, he saw Karuizawa looking at him quietly, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
As he laughed, Chiba Yu gradually quieted down and looked up at the moon.
"Who knows..."