"What?"
Horikita noticed that Hikigaya Hachiman had been staring at her since just now.
"Nothing." Hachiman immediately shook his head.
He had just felt that Horikita's image was particularly tall.
Generally speaking, boys like to conquer, but he found that strong girls also seemed pretty good.
Hachiman realized he might have a bit of an M gene.
It's just that if he admired strength and was then asked to work, he might even obediently go to work.
So, would he become a laborer?
Perhaps this idea was too terrifying, so he quickly eliminated this dreadful gene.
Thus.
Because they found grass snakes, most students improvised and found small tree trunks to use for hitting.
Actually, Hachiman wanted to say that if they hit like that, snakes would be more likely to come out.
But it didn't matter if he didn't say anything, because Horikita was by his side, and even if more snakes rushed out, it would be fine; Horikita's reliability was off the charts.
Perhaps he discovered Horikita's strengths, so Hachiman paid more attention to her.
He found that he had been having strange dreams these days.
He could even dream up horror stories about marrying Kushida.
So, was it possible to dream of Horikita Suzune?
However.
"Hikigaya, can you explain why there's another woman's lipstick on your shirt?"
"Also, you skipped work today. That's not a good attitude."
"You need to know that you're supporting our family now, so you need to work harder."
Hmm.
However, as soon as Hachiman imagined such a future, he gave up.
...
Because a total of 9 people were dispatched.
Although there was a snake incident, the forest's resources were abundant, and they collected a lot of wood.
Naturally.
Considering Horikita's physical condition, Hachiman took responsibility for carrying her share of firewood back to the camp.
However, as soon as they returned, a problem arose.
That is.
"Ah! This fire just won't start!"
"Exactly! This wood won't light at all!"
Seeing that the fire wouldn't light no matter what, Sudo's irritable temper instantly flared up, and he kicked all the wood on the ground, scattering it everywhere.
The splashing dirt hit the nearby girls, making them shriek in alarm.
"Eek!"
"Hey, Sudo, what are you doing!"
Shinohara Satsuki glared at Sudo in displeasure. She was Karuizawa's friend, a member of the gyaru group, and had a strong presence.
Karuizawa seemed to have gone out to pick fruit with Kushida, so she wasn't there.
But Shinohara's presence remained undiminished. Even when facing the irritable Sudo, she did not back down.
"What do you mean, what am I doing? This fire just won't start!"
"What do you mean it won't start? You're just useless!"
"What did you say! Are you trying to pick a fight?"
Sudo was provoked again and flared up at Shinohara Satsuki, who was a girl.
Even after the fight and being provoked by Class A on the ship, he had said he would change, but now it seemed that change was far from enough.
"Now, now, everyone, don't argue."
Hirata, the peacemaker, quickly stepped forward, standing in the middle, and hurriedly stopped the two groups. "Starting a fire takes time; you can't rush it."
"Tch."
Shinohara Satsuki turned her head away in displeasure, pulled aside by Hasebe.
"Hmph, Hirata, you do it yourself!"
And Sudo also snorted coldly, not actually making a move, but forcefully shoving the lighter into Hirata's hand. Then he took the exchanged fishing net from the side and walked towards the river.
He couldn't start a fire, but he had been mocked.
He wanted to win back his pride elsewhere!
"So, where's Ike?" Hachiman was looking for someone.
The people with camping knowledge were him, Horikita, and Kushida, who had recently been reading related books.
And Ike Kanji, who himself had camping experience.
He didn't see Kushida, but starting a fire shouldn't be difficult for Ike.
"Ike and Kushida went to get fruit together."
"The resources around here are plentiful, and some students wanted to try other fruits. Someone said they saw blueberries. Blueberries at the supermarket are super expensive! If we can eat them, it's a huge win."
Is that so?
Even though they had exchanged for a large amount of supplies, even including bread that could be preserved, the students were already enjoying this exam as if it were a real camping trip.
Now they even wanted to eat something different.
Hachiman glanced at Horikita.
Just now, Sudo had argued about starting the fire, and now, there were still over twenty students in the camp.
Although the number of people wasn't large enough, it could allow Horikita to show off a bit.
Especially with her physical condition, who knew when she might have to withdraw from the exam.
He had already resolved the concerning matter of being penalized for withdrawing, but since withdrawing was a possibility, now was a good time for her to make her presence known.
"I'll do it."
Horikita met Hachiman's gaze, then walked over somewhat slowly.
However, she came to the campfire, then looked at the neatly stacked pile of wood on the ground. One piece of wood seemed to have been scorched, but it hadn't caught fire. As she observed the scene, Horikita said nothing.
"Is this how you start a fire?"
Horikita stared at Hirata, asking expressionlessly.
"Well, how should it be?"
Hirata nodded awkwardly. Modern society was so convenient, who would still be skilled in using these primitive methods?
"Even if you haven't tried it, you should have learned it from books, right?"
Horikita sighed, not knowing what to say.
"No, I really haven't." Hirata was honest.
Thus.
Horikita began to make a fire.
Starting a fire requires kindling, and a lighter serves as a small kindling.
Then, use the lighter to ignite dry grass and twigs, and only when the fire becomes larger can the wood be ignited.
Horikita had nothing to say about Sudo's behavior of directly burning wood with a lighter.
Soon.
"Whoosh!"
With kindling, the wood quickly ignited.
"Horikita also has this kind of knowledge!"
"By the way, can't this fire be started?"
The camp's atmosphere was restored.
Soon.
The team that went to collect fruit returned.
Due to the abundant resources, they brought back a large variety of fruits.
And Sudo, who couldn't even start a fire, also caught two fish from the river and brought them back.
However.
"It seems one person is still missing." Because they were in the wild, Hirata was very attentive to his classmates.
He quickly noticed that one of the students who had been sent out was still missing.
"It seems Yamauchi hasn't returned yet," Hirata said.
Yamauchi was not in Hachiman and Horikita's firewood collection team.
"Yamauchi, he seemed to have discovered something, and then he told us to come back first," Ike said.
The girls found wild fruits, but lacking relevant knowledge, they hoped that Ike, who had camping knowledge, could check them. At that time, Yamauchi was with him.
"Yamauchi is back!"
A boy at the cave entrance said at this moment.
Then, the boy looked somewhat stunned.
Because.
Yamauchi didn't return alone; he brought back a girl with short blue hair who looked very sharp from the forest. At the same time, although the girl was wearing sportswear, her face had bruises, and her hands were covered in dirt, making her look a bit messy.
But the moment Horikita saw her, her eyes suddenly sharpened.
She recognized the person.
Ibuki Mio from Class D.
Earlier on the ship, Ibuki had even cooperated with Ryuen to put on a show in front of her and Hachiman. At that time, she didn't understand why Ryuen would do that.
Hikigaya, however, believed that the impact of that performance would surely be utilized at some point.
And now... it was being utilized.
This exam included a Team Leader guessing segment, so for Ibuki from another Class to come to their Class, wasn't that extremely dangerous?
She herself knew that for this exam, she, Hikigaya, and Kushida had planned for a while.
She even persisted in the exam despite being sick.
And in the worst-case scenario, the Class could still get a guaranteed 300-plus points from the base.
But once someone guessed the Team Leader's identity, it would be over.
Therefore.
Horikita's emotions were a bit agitated now.
"Calm down."
But at this moment, a hand suddenly pressed on the girl's shoulder, "Someone who can't control their emotions can't defeat Class A."
"I know."
Hearing this, Horikita tightly clenched her fists with some struggle, then slowly relaxed them after a long while, letting out a long breath.
Hachiman also sighed softly.
Although Horikita Suzune appeared to be an ice-cold beauty, cold to everyone.
In reality, however, Horikita did not hide her emotions.
Whether it was liking or disliking, it would show in her eyes.
Of course, ordinary people couldn't see anything from her face.
And to truly stand on one's own, it's not achieved by a poker face.
More importantly, it's the eyes; they must be unperturbed.
People with calm eyes and a smile are far more terrifying than those with a poker face but highly fluctuating eyes.
For example, Sakayanagi Arisu.
She always smiled when she was thinking about dangerous things.
"Ibuki is probably here to get information about our Class's Team Leader," Hachiman said. "In other words, she's a spy or something, and now, let's see how the classmates in the Class react."
"Let's see if there's anyone else who can be useful in the Class competition."
Is that so?
Then, this matter is being treated as an observation test of the Classmates' reactions.
And the Classmates did indeed show some reactions. In fact, upon seeing an outsider come over, some people would consider the safety of their own Class.
So.
"Yamauchi, what are you doing?!"
"Bringing someone from another Class back, are you an idiot?"
"This is an exam, Class D and we are in a competition!"
When Yamauchi told the other Classmates that Ibuki Mio and Ryuen were at odds, and that she was beaten and scolded by Ryuen, it didn't elicit sympathy from others. Instead, it drew many reproachful looks.
In that instant, quite a few boys had already gathered around.
"No, what are you guys worried about! She's just a weak girl!"
Yamauchi's face turned red as he stiffened his neck and argued vehemently, "Didn't you see the scars on her face? She was abused and driven out because she was dissatisfied with Class D's Ryuen's violent rule. Shouldn't we help her?"
"This... her facial injuries seem quite severe."
"The scars certainly can't be faked..."
"In that case, should we let her stay?"
Although some students in Class C were useless except for holding others back, surprisingly, many of them were overly compassionate. Upon seeing the scars on Ibuki Mio's face, they immediately felt pity.
Especially since the other party was a genuine beautiful girl.
Many boys probably felt the same as Yamauchi, harboring more or less the fantasy of being a hero who saves a beauty, and then the girl, having no way to repay him, can only offer herself.
"I'm talking to you, boys."
Kei Karuizawa, who had gone out with Kushida but had already returned, frowned and said with some displeasure, "Although Ibuki certainly looks injured, she is from Class D, isn't she? If she was beaten by Ryuen, then she should just forfeit and go back to the ship; there's a medical room there. Why does she have to come to our side?"
Although she hadn't received orders from Hachiman, Karuizawa also had her own thoughts.
To be honest, she was much more capable than most people in the Class.
"Are you suspecting Ibuki?"
Yamauchi, however, clenched his fists, his face flushed.
"That's right."
Karuizawa raised her head and said without hiding anything, "I am indeed suspecting her. She might be a spy from Class D. Don't forget, this exam has a Team Leader guessing component, and if the Team Leader's identity is guessed, all bonus points will be forfeited. You know our Class is supposed to get a guaranteed 300 points this time!"
"Kei is right."
The curly-haired gal next to Karuizawa immediately nodded.
This was Satō Maya.
After the last time, when she thought Karuizawa had stolen exam papers for her, she became Karuizawa's loyal friend.
Satō Maya stood behind Karuizawa without hesitation, "Our Class C cannot take such a risk."
And in the corner.
"Your Karuizawa seems to be doing quite well."
"If you hadn't given her instructions beforehand, then her current performance is quite good." Horikita, next to Hachiman, suddenly said. "She's loyal to her Class and also thinks about dangers."
"..." Hachiman.
Please don't use that phrasing, "your Karuizawa."
Moreover.
Hachiman also knew that when he broke through Karuizawa's inner shell, he had used Horikita's room, and after reaching an agreement with Karuizawa, whether it was joining the Student Council or dealing with old exam questions, Karuizawa had performed well.
And Horikita also knew that Karuizawa was working for him at that time.
So, although Horikita used such an ambiguous phrase, she probably didn't mean anything else.
And the argument continued.
"Don't you have any sympathy?" Yamauchi tried hard to explain.
"It's precisely because of you boys' meaningless so-called sympathy that we get held back, isn't it?" But Sato's words were cutting.
"It's not that we don't have sympathy, it's just that returning to the ship would clearly be a better choice, yet she chose to follow you back to our camp. Yamauchi, don't you think there's a problem?
Or rather, is it that you, for the first time, met a girl willing to talk to you and just stopped thinking?"
Facing Yamauchi's arguments, both Sato and Karuizawa retorted without hesitation.
It could be said that while Shinohara and Sudo's argument might draw attention, now, the tense atmosphere between the two sides only increased.
"What did you say!"
Yamauchi's neck turned red because Sato's words had escalated to personal attacks!
What did she mean, no girl was willing to talk to him!
"Everyone, please don't argue."
The good-natured Hirata quickly stepped forward to mediate, "Arguing won't solve any problems."
"No need to force it."
Ibuki Mio, who had been squatting nearby observing, also stood up with her backpack and said indifferently, "I don't want to cause you any trouble; I'll leave now."
With that, Ibuki Mio turned and left decisively, showing no reluctance.
It was as if she truly had no objective, and only came here because Yamauchi invited her.
"Ibuki..."
Yamauchi stretched out his hand, reaching out to Ibuki Mio's retreating figure, opening his mouth but ultimately saying nothing, then lowering his head in shame.
And watching this scene.
"By the way, were we too harsh?" Some girls in the Class seemed to be whispering.
"There's nothing we can do about it."
But Karuizawa was exceptionally ruthless this time, stating firmly, "This time, we finally have a chance to get a large number of points, and it absolutely cannot be ruined by anyone."
Hirata, meanwhile, was surrounded by several students, seemingly discussing something. They probably felt that just watching Ibuki leave was somewhat inhumane.
"Please wait!"
Finally, Hirata spoke up, rushing to catch up. "Ibuki, it's getting late. If you don't go back to the ship, it'll be very dangerous for you alone."
"Looks like the test is over," Horikita said.
"Mm."
Hachiman nodded.
It was indeed difficult to lead this Class to success.
Although some students were excellent, most were difficult to manage.
So.
He was thinking that if Kouenji could get over 300 base points in this exam, and then Kouenji could take 100 points, then over three years, Kouenji could have ten million points without doing anything.
This was a move to hire Kouenji.
Hachiman had no intention of dividing and eroding the Class's point value.
But now he suddenly felt... he could also be a little ruthless.
The more capable, the more work. If he could snatch enough points, then he would participate in the harvesting himself.
Treating the Class As a machine to accumulate points for himself.
Because he suddenly realized that giving too much living allowance to the Classmates was somewhat wasteful.
Some people, with that much money, didn't deserve it.