A Means to Connect Everything

"Hey, your sister is here."

Hearing Chiba Yu say this, Horikita glared at him fiercely. "That's not because of me."

"I know, but if you hadn't insisted on standing up and saying Hirata couldn't be trusted, I wouldn't have been dragged into this mess," Chiba Yu retorted, equally annoyed.

"In my view, Hirata isn't entirely trustworthy. It was just an extra precaution."

Realizing that talking to this woman was a form of torture, Chiba Yu shrugged. After tossing the last piece of firewood into the pile, he left the area alone. After all, he and Horikita weren't exactly close, and staying here was just asking for trouble.

Patting Ayanokoji on the shoulder, Chiba Yu silently walked away, leaving Ayanokoji and Horikita behind.

"Hey..." Ayanokoji watched Chiba Yu's retreating back, suddenly feeling like he'd been sold out.

"Forget it. He wouldn't have been much use staying here anyway. Let him go." Horikita hugged her knees and sat down one spot away from Ayanokoji.

"Horikita, do you still think he's just an ordinary student?" Ayanokoji asked calmly, reacting to her indifferent response to Chiba Yu's departure.

"I don't know why you keep thinking there's something wrong with that guy, but in my eyes, he's just someone with decent grades. He's really not worth paying that much attention to."

Ayanokoji sighed softly. He realized that Horikita didn't take Chiba Yu seriously at all; she considered him dispensable, or at the very least, inferior to herself.

But Horikita, that is precisely your most fatal flaw. If you don't change that, I'm afraid your brother will never acknowledge you.

Ayanokoji didn't say these words aloud, though even if he had, Horikita likely wouldn't have believed him.

Chiba Yu didn't know what the two of them talked about afterward; he only knew that the situation ahead likely wouldn't be very optimistic.

Glancing at the dark clouds drifting toward them in the distance, Chiba Yu predicted a heavy downpour, most likely arriving in the middle of the night.

For now, under Hirata's leadership, the group prepared to search for food to help them survive the sixth day.

Walking through the dark, eerie forest, Chiba Yu couldn't help but glance in Ibuki's direction.

Ibuki had originally planned to leave after their conversation, but Kushida had persuaded her to stay, citing the potential for heavy rain tonight. It had to be said, she was truly a student of Class D—even when she wasn't sure she could protect herself, she was still thinking of others.

Chiba Yu stretched, shaking out his elbows to try and dispel the creeping drowsiness.

"Sorry, Chiba. I dumped all the work of moving the tents on you and Ayanokoji. I..."

Chiba Yu shook his head, cutting off Hirata's apology. "It's fine. I didn't have anything to do anyway. If anything, if it weren't for you, I might have been dragged into doing something even more troublesome."

"Is that so? I see. When we get back, I'll treat you to a meal."

Chiba Yu didn't really understand why Hirata wanted to treat him to a meal after he'd already thanked him, but since Hirata had offered, it wouldn't be polite to refuse, so he agreed.

Even if it might waste his already limited summer vacation time.

Chiba Yu's assigned task was to help pick fruit, while Ayanokoji and the others were responsible for fishing in the water.

Although everyone was trying their best to contribute to the exam, they just couldn't find anything. By the time they finished, the amount of fruit they had gathered was pathetic.

As for Ayanokoji's group, Chiba Yu heard that Yamauchi had done something stupid, dumping a pile of mud on Horikita's head, which immediately earned him a shoulder throw from her. According to Yamauchi himself, that move nearly cost him his life.

Horikita was currently showering at a nearby waterfall, but remembering how sickly she looked, Chiba Yu couldn't help but wonder if she would just collapse once she finished.

Seeing Ayanokoji being called away by a freshly showered Horikita, Chiba Yu once again found himself with nothing to do...

(Ibuki Mio's Perspective)

Just as Ryuen said, these Class D students are all a bunch of brainless idiots.

She just sat there, putting on a pitiful expression, and they easily brought her back to their camp.

Whether it was that red-headed ape called Sudo or that idiot called Yamauchi, they were all hopeless.

In this class, I don't see a single thing worth being wary of.

They handed over their precious food and water to me without a second thought. Although I felt a momentary hesitation when I took it, it wouldn't cause any real trouble in the end.

Since arriving in this class, I've been observing them, trying to find the "leader" hiding among them.

The one who caught my attention most was that girl, Horikita Suzune. For some reason, the moment I saw her, a sense of irritation welled up inside me.

Even though Ryuen told me to keep an eye on her, I didn't take it to heart. In my opinion, Horikita is just an arrogant woman, and her leadership in the class isn't even as good as that boy, Hirata.

As for that guy Ayanokoji, who is always by Horikita's side, I initially thought of him as nothing more than a tag-along who wouldn't amount to anything. But during that conversation this afternoon, something inside me suddenly shifted. Was it just an illusion?

Besides stealing the key card, Ryuen also told me to keep an eye on a few other people in Class D. Aside from Horikita Suzune, there was that boy named Chiba Yu and Karuizawa Kei.

Thinking of this, Ibuki couldn't help but question Ryuen's leadership. To think he would focus on that parasite who does nothing but eat and sleep all day—in her eyes, that guy Chiba Yu is a total non-entity.

He has no outstanding abilities, nor has he made any significant contribution to the class. He's a complete freeloader, practically useless. Ibuki really didn't see why anyone would need to be on guard against such a person.

As for Karuizawa Kei, even though she is a leader among the girls in Class D, Ibuki only saw her as spoiled and arrogant. She didn't see anything else; in her view, she was just average.

The rain began to fall harder. Ibuki shouldered her backpack and ran quickly along the muddy path.

The moment she heard movement behind her, her footsteps faltered and she stopped. A faint smile curled her lips as she slowly turned to look at the person who had been chasing her the entire way.

"You're really slow..."