The Plan Is Underway

Ike Kanji withdrew his gaze from Yamauchi's retreating back, subtly turned his head, and lightly nudged Sudo beside him with his elbow. As he gestured and spoke in a low voice, tense excitement lurked beneath his unconcerned facade.

"You saw that, right? Yamauchi made it over successfully. The excuse was clumsy, but at least it fooled everyone and diverted their attention for now."

Sudo's expression remained grim as he anxiously scanned the Class B crowd around them, afraid someone would notice the strange looks on their faces. He lowered his voice until it was nearly inaudible.

"Come on, Ike. That shouting earlier already drew plenty of attention to Yamauchi. If someone sees through us, all three of us are finished."

"There's no turning back now."

Ike Kanji narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze falling on the entrance to the boys' changing room.

"We'll stay here and keep watch, keeping an eye on the surroundings. If anyone heads toward the changing room, notify Yamauchi immediately."

He paused, a calculating smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Once he confirms there's no problem with the vent, we'll start the plan."

Sudo let out a heavy breath, his fists unconsciously clenching as resistance and wishful thinking tangled inside him. He clearly did not want to get involved in something this filthy, but he had already been dragged in and could no longer easily back out.

At this end of the corridor, inside the boys' changing room.

Yamauchi stood alone beneath the vent, his heart pounding like a drum.

He nervously looked around, repeatedly confirming that no one else was in this corner of the changing room. Then, trembling, he raised a hand and placed his fingertips on the vent grille.

With a little pressure from his fingers, he gently pried outward, opening a narrow gap in the grille.

The next second, fragmented conversation from the neighboring girls' changing room and the sound of cloth rubbing against bodies drifted clearly through the ventilation duct. Yamauchi held his breath and instinctively leaned his face toward the gap, his gaze passing through the pitch-black duct toward the space beyond the wall.

"I... I can see through."

Yamauchi's throat tightened as he murmured in a near-whisper, the blood throughout his body seeming to rush to his head all at once.

His eyes widened as he confirmed the duct's route. Fear and exhilaration mixed in his heart, making his limbs tremble uncontrollably.

After only a few seconds, he suddenly came back to his senses and hurriedly pushed the grille back into place. A layer of cold sweat had already formed across his back.

He quickly turned around, took out his phone, and sent a brief message to Ike Kanji, who was keeping watch outside: [Yes, the vent is fine.]

After sending it, Yamauchi leaned against the wall and gasped for breath, his heart still hammering wildly.

He did not dare linger. He hurried out through the side door of the boys' changing room and returned to where Ike Kanji and Sudo were waiting.

When Ike Kanji saw Yamauchi return, he immediately lowered his voice and asked, "How was it? Everything inside okay?"

Yamauchi nodded, his voice still trembling slightly. "Yeah, you can see through the vent. The duct is open."

Hearing that, Sudo's expression darkened further, his brows tightly furrowed. "Are we really going through with this? Yamauchi's excuse already attracted enough attention. If anything else goes wrong..."

"Stopping now would make all our effort pointless."

A confident smile rose on Ike Kanji's lips as he patted the bag in his pocket containing the remote-controlled car.

"Now it's our turn. Sudo, keep watch on the perimeter. Put up some barriers and warning signs. If anyone comes close, warn us immediately."

"Ahahaha! Everyone, let's play volleyball together!" Yamauchi shouted with a laugh, drawing most people's attention.

The noise instantly swelled, and many students on the beach turned to look at Yamauchi.

Taking advantage of the brief disturbance, Ike Kanji lowered his body and quietly slipped away from the rear side of the crowd with Sudo, intending to leave the beach unnoticed.

Kushida Kikyo was standing at the edge of the crowd, happily playing beach volleyball with students from Class D and Class B when she noticed Ike Kanji and Sudo preparing to leave the beach.

"Um... Ike, Sudo, aren't you going to play?"

Noticing Kushida's gaze, Ike Kanji naturally put on a relaxed smile and addressed everyone, including Kushida, in a casual tone.

"Haha. Well, we're planning to go take a shower. Sorry about that."

Kushida and the people around her looked at the two strangely, their expressions carrying surprise and a faint, hard-to-detect scrutiny.

The two headed back toward the boys' changing room.

As they walked, Sudo could no longer hold it in. He leaned close to Ike Kanji and quietly reminded him, "Won't two people going in together be too conspicuous?"

"We got covered in sand playing volleyball. It's perfectly normal to head off together for an early rinse. Just relax and don't give anything away."

Ike Kanji turned his head and warned him, "Once we're inside, talk less. We need to finish this quickly."

The two arrived at the entrance to the boys' changing room.

"Sudo, guard the entrance and watch the corridor. If anyone approaches the changing room, warn me immediately and find a way to stop them," Ike Kanji instructed in a low voice.

Sudo's face was tense, but he nodded heavily and remained at the changing room entrance to stand watch.

Ike Kanji entered the changing room and walked beneath the vent.

Ike Kanji took out a large bath towel and held it up, creating an impenetrable human barrier beneath the vent to block others' view.

Ike Kanji removed the vent grille again and carefully sent the miniature remote-controlled car equipped with a camera into the ventilation duct.

"Go."

He gently pushed the remote's control stick with his thumb, and the car silently slid into the dark duct, slowly making its way toward the ceiling area of the neighboring girls' changing room.

Ike Kanji kept his eyes fixed on the small display attached to the remote, which showed a blurry, dim image from inside the duct.

The car glided steadily forward and soon reached the other end of the duct. Its camera emerged and settled firmly on the inside of the girls' changing room.

"Success..."

Ike Kanji lowered his voice, suppressing the surging excitement in his heart.

On the screen, the empty changing room stood quietly with a row of lockers, merely waiting for the girls to arrive one after another once the volleyball match was over.

He kept listening carefully for footsteps from the corridor, and the unease in his heart continued to build.

At the entrance, Sudo's nerves were stretched to the limit.

Leaning against the wall, he fixed his eyes on the corridor entrance. His gaze swept over the sign posted on the wall—[Pool Usage Notice: Changing rooms are for swimmers and shower users only. Non-changing personnel should not remain for extended periods].

He deliberately stood beneath the sign, trying to make his presence there seem less suspicious.

Footsteps and conversation came from farther down the corridor, and Sudo's whole body stiffened.

Ryuen Kakeru approached with several Class C students, heading straight for the changing room.

Sudo forcibly steadied his expression and stepped forward halfway, blocking the entrance to the changing room.

"Sorry, they're cleaning inside. You can't go in for now." He tried to make his tone sound natural, but cold sweat had already formed in his palms.

Ryuuen Kakeru curled his lips in a mocking smile, completely unmoved by the excuse.

"Cleaning?" Ryuuen Kakeru took a step forward, his sharp gaze sizing up Sudo.

"I didn't receive any notice."

Before Sudo could continue explaining, Ryuuen Kakeru raised a hand.

Albert, standing beside him, viciously kicked the changing room door.

The door gave a dull crash and was kicked more than halfway open.

"There's no rule at this school saying we need your permission to go wherever we want. We'll go wherever we please."

Inside the changing room, Ike heard the loud crash outside and jolted, nervously looking toward the door.

His brows suddenly furrowed. His fingers pressed tightly against the remote as he held his breath and listened to the commotion outside, a chill crawling up his spine.

On the distant beach, Tonomura Hideo remained at the position they had agreed on beforehand, staring intently toward the changing room. He gripped the white flag meant for warning signals, ready to raise it at any moment.

Ike Kanji lowered his voice, panic hidden within it. "Damn it, Sudo can't stop them."

He turned to look at the screen again.

The image had gone completely black.

P.S. The author had a make-up exam yesterday and didn't have time to write. Please forgive me, dear readers. I'll keep working hard to update, and the special exam is coming soon, so I'll try to move the plot along. Thank you all for your support. Please add this to your bookshelf and send more support.