Thanks to Kaneda's perfect explanation, Hikigaya was given a free day to himself.
After borrowing a camera from Ichinose and rejecting her suggestion to have someone accompany him, Hikigaya left the camp.
After all, the island wasn't large enough to get lost.
"Amazing."
"It's incredible that the school owns an entire island. How much did this cost the taxpayers?"
"Is it really okay to spend so much money on just a few students?"
"Well, at least I can show this off to Komachi. She'll be so jealous."
Hikigaya clicked the camera's shutter repeatedly.
Though he usually stayed in the background during group activities, being alone gave him a certain thrill.
As he wandered, a stream came into view. Several boys were in the water, their pants rolled up as they tried to catch fish. Nearby, four tents stood with students laughing and playing—clearly another class's camp.
From what Ichinose had told him, Class C had abandoned the exam, and Class A was hiding in a cave. That meant this camp belonged to Class D.
Not wanting to get involved, Hikigaya turned to leave. He'd rather enjoy his summer vacation alone than interact with other classes.
Just as he was about to walk away—
"Stop right there!"
A sharp voice called out.
In seconds, three boys surrounded him. The one in front, a red-haired guy with a fierce expression, blocked his path.
"Never seen you before."
A blond boy named Huko tilted his head. "Who are you?"
"Come on, Huko, do you really need to ask?"
A plain-looking boy rubbed his chin and confidently declared, "Obviously, he's a spy from another class. He's here to gather intel so his class can win!"
Wait. What?
That wouldn't even happen until the last day.
Were these guys serious?
Before Hikigaya could respond, Huko groaned, "Yamauchi, you're an idiot. If he were really spying, wouldn't it be too late for that?"
Well, at least someone in Class D had a brain.
"Hah?"
"Come on, Huko, you don't believe me?" Yamauchi scoffed. "I helped the police solve international cases in middle school! My reasoning is top-tier."
He pointed at Hikigaya's camera. "See? He has a camera. No normal class would waste points on that—he's clearly a spy!"
Well… Normal classes might not.
But Ichinose and her group had deliberately bought one to capture memories.
Hikigaya sighed, realizing that if he didn't explain himself, things could get annoying fast.
"Wait, wait. I'm from Class B."
"Hah?"
"So what if you are?"
The red-haired guy scowled. "Are you looking down on us, Class D? Hand over the camera."
Before Hikigaya could react, the red-haired guy reached out and yanked the camera from his hands.
What the—?!
He was strong. Really strong.
For someone like Hikigaya, who avoided physical confrontation, this was bad.
What was this guy, a gorilla?
He had already explained that he was from Class B. Didn't these idiots know that Class B and Class D were in a cooperative relationship?
What were Ichinose and Horikita Suzune even doing?
And more importantly, how dare they take his camera?
"Sudo, let me see too."
"Hey, wait—"
Hikigaya tried to stop them, but the three had already huddled around Sudo, scrolling through the pictures.
"Damn, he really was taking photos of our camp. He's definitely a spy!"
"Huko, go back and tell everyone—we caught a spy from Class B!"
Yamauchi shouted, and Huko sprinted toward the camp, yelling, "Everyone! We caught a spy!"
What the hell?
How had this escalated so quickly?
They weren't even giving him a chance to explain.
Also—how dare they touch his camera?!
Before long, a crowd gathered. Even Sae Chabashira had followed them.
"What's going on?"
A different blond guy, seemingly the leader, arrived. This one had a much more pleasant aura—Hirata.
Girls flocked around him. Among them, Hikigaya spotted Horikita Suzune and Menlai, the green tea snake.
Great.
Horikita didn't seem to notice him, meaning she still hadn't realized he deleted her contact.
Menlai, on the other hand, definitely knew.
How was he supposed to explain? "Oops, I deleted it by accident"? "I dropped my phone in the toilet and got a new one"?
Yeah, that sounded believable.
"Hirata, Kushida, check this out!" Yamauchi bragged. "We caught a spy."
"Uh, no, we caught him together," Huko corrected.
"What?" Hirata frowned. "How did this happen?"
"Look!"
Sudo raised the camera. "He was taking secret photos of our camp—he must be a spy."
"Sudo-kun."
Hirata shook his head. "Just taking pictures of the camp doesn't reveal anything."
Finally, someone with a brain.
But wait—didn't they already know Class B's leader?
Had Horikita not shared that information?
Even if she didn't like her classmates, she should've at least told them this.
What was up with Class D?
And why was he even being accused of spying?
More importantly—how dare they take his camera?!
"This is a misunderstanding," Horikita Suzune finally spoke. She stepped forward, cold as ever.
"I know him. Hikigaya Hachiman from Class B. He's not a spy. Sudo, return the camera."
"Uh… right."
Sudo awkwardly handed it back. "Sorry."
Hikigaya stared at it in silence.
So, Horikita hadn't shared information with Class D. But Sudo still listened to her.
Did he… like her?
Not surprising. Even Hikigaya had to admit that Horikita Suzune was top-tier in looks.
Still, these three idiots didn't even know about the cooperation between Class B and Class D.
What was going on?
This situation was way more complicated than he thought.
"Any other problems?" Horikita asked.
"…Yeah."
Hikigaya looked at her seriously. "They stole my camera."
"Excuse me."
Hirata quickly smiled. "If you're upset, I can apologize on their behalf. The camera isn't damaged, so let's just drop it, okay?"
"Huh? We just borrowed it. Why should we apologize?" Sudo scoffed.
"Yeah!" Huko added. "Besides, this guy entered our camp without permission."
Hikigaya rubbed his temples.
He hadn't entered their camp. He had taken two pictures from a distance and was leaving.
These guys were impossible.
"Everyone, calm down," Hirata said, trying to diffuse the tension.
Then—
A high-ponytailed girl among the girls scoffed, "Why should we care about this creep? His eyes are disgusting. Who knows what gross things he's thinking?"
Huh?
Hikigaya glanced up, meeting a group of girls giving him disgusted looks.
Wow.
His first real insult at this school.
So this was Class D.
No wonder Ichinose's Class B was filled with decent people.
Whatever.
"I'm telling the teacher," Hikigaya said. "You tried to steal my camera."
"Hahaha!" Yamauchi burst out laughing. "What are you, a grade-schooler?"
Huko smirked. "Go ahead, see if we care."
Sudo scoffed, arms crossed. "Tch. Just take your camera and leave."
Wow.
Brainless morons, indeed.
Hikigaya sighed, turning to Horikita. "I want MAX Coffee."
Horikita pinched her nose bridge. "…Fine. Let's go back to camp and get it."
At least one person here was sane.
And so, Hikigaya followed her back, wondering how much dumber this school could get.