Chapter 5
False Teamwork
When I was in deep sleep, I heard the girls' voices coming from outside, all in a bad mood.
"Hey boys, will you gather up?"
She didn't even finish talking that everyone got up promptly and came out in rage. I went to sleep at dawn so I woke up slowly while rubbing the sleep out of my drowsy eyes.
"What the hell… I'm so fucking tired."
An irritated Sudou came out from the tent looking at the others around him.
"What's wrong?"
"Uhm Hirata-kun… Sorry but can you wake up all the boys here? It's serious."
Shinohara notified Hirata looking apologetic. Whether she was confused or angry, Shinohara's appearance was not the problem regardless. A little far away, the girls were glowering at our side.
"Understood. I think they'll soon come out as I give them a shout."
Then, in a couple of minutes the boys came out of their tent rubbing their sleepy eyes. When they began looking at the girls gathered outside the tent, the half-asleep boys sensed an alarming situation.
The girls' eyes, that stared at us boys, were all unusually scared.
"What's wrong, so early in the morning?"
"Sorry Hirata-kun. It's something that doesn't concern you, Hirata-kun but...We've gathered here because there's something I have to check at any cost."
Shinohara gave everyone, except Hirata, a look of contempt and then she spoke.
"This morning, well… Karuizawa-san's underwear was missing. Do you know what that means?"
"EH… UNDERWEAR?"
Even Hirata, who was always calm, appeared shaken and upset at the completely unexpected situation. Which reminded me, I couldn't see neither Karuizawa nor the other girls.
"Now Karuizawa-san is inside the tent, crying. Kushida-san and others are comforting her but…"
Saying so, Shinohara looked to the girls' tent.
"Eh? Ehhhhh? What, Why are you glaring at us knowing that the underwear is missing?"
"We decided that someone, in the middle of the night, went through the bag and stole it. The luggage had been put outside so if someone thought of stealing all of it, they could have done so after all."
The boys, still dominated by drowsiness, looked at each other simultaneously.
"NONONONONONONONO!? EH? EHH?"
Ike looked alternatively to the boys and girls in total panic. A boy, looking at the situation, coughed out in a calm voice.
"Come to think of it Ike, you yesterday… You went to the toilet quite late. You took a long time."
"No no no! I was struggling because it was dark!"
"It's true. You're the one who stole Karuizawa's underwear."
"Well, you're wrong! Don't do that!"
The boys begun putting the blame on each other for the nasty and offensive crime.
"Anyway. I guess this is really a big problem? But it's impossible to live camping in the same place as those underwear thieves."
Shinohara, who looked like she was about to lose her temper, offered a monish with her arms crossed.
"So Hirata-kun. You can manage to find the culprit somehow, right?"
"That's... But there's no evidence that the boys have stolen it. There's a possibility that Karuizawa-san has lost it."
"That's right! We have nothing to do with this!!"
All the boys shouted at the top of their lungs from behind Hirata, proclaiming their innocence.
"I don't want to think that there's a culprit here."
It seemed vile to doubt our classmates and not to shield them.
"I know that Hirata-kun is not the culprit… But, for the time being, let me check the other boys' luggage."
Apparently it seemed like the girls didn't change their idea, and they perpetuated the idea of the culprit who is on the boys' side. Well, it's impossible not to think such a thing in this kind of context.
"EH? Stop saying bullshit. You don't need to do such a thing. Hirata, just say no."
"For now, we will gather and talk with all the boys. We may have a little time, right."
"...…If you say so, Hirata-kun......… Ok I understand. I will talk to Karuizawa-san as well. But if the culprit can't be found, we have an idea as well on who is on it."
After saying this, the gathering dissolved. Hirata quickly gathered all the boys again to have a talk in front of the tent.
"Let's just ignore what the girls said. You'll feel bad if you're suspected. I will fight!"
On the first day, I thought Ike obtained a certain degree of trust from the girls but it seems like it was pretension after all. It's obvious that even the suspected boys will get uncomfortable if they are falsely suspected.
"Exactly. There's no way that one of us has stolen Karuizawa's underwear."
Yamauchi, following the rest of the boys, looked at each of them. It's not that Karuizawa isn't pretty. But since Karuizawa is Hirata's girlfriend, it's more convenient for guys to chase after Kushida or Sakura.
"I'm not going to doubt you, guys. But I think this problem won't ever be resolved like this…"
The girls, who were talking and conspiring together over there, were now nearly jumping towards us.
"To prove your innocence, it's better for you to respond to your luggage inspection in a confident and dignified way."
Having said that, Hirata himself brought out his bag.
"As miserable as I am, I still responded to the girls' request, that's why you guys have to keep up by doing the same. Are we good?"
"B… But..."
"Of course, I can open it first."
To mobilize someone, although I thought we had no choice but to start acting by ourselves, there would be no one who thought that Hirata was actually the culprit, including boys, not just girls. To say that he stole his girlfriend's underwear, in the first place, is a bit of a contradiction. However, if the first one disclosed his luggage this way, we couldn't help but follow the example. It was inevitable that the students who didn't show the content of their bags were going to be suspected. Hirata's bag, naturally, was bound to not to have any underwear.
"There's no other choice…"
Influenced by Hirata's actions, all the boys began pulling out their bags from the tent, one after another.
Ike and Yamauchi have been disliking this the whole time but they couldn't go against the flow of things. Including me, us 3 became the last to go. So I guess I was finally going to the tent. I was following the other two.
"Shit, I'm mad. Men are suspected unconditionally and irrevocably. It's too unreasonable."
"Well, let's prove our innocence in a confident way and triumph over them."
Ike started to stand up while grabbing the bag but suddenly he stopped and stood still.
"What's wrong?"
"Ahh, Nothing…"
Abruptly, he turned his back to Hirata and the others and sat down. Checking the inside of his bag, he closed the zipper like he was confused.
"Kanji?"
Ike was rigid with a pale face. He was unmovable like he was having a temporary feeling of paralysis.
"Come on, let's go?"
Yamauchi was watching Ike, whose appearance became suddenly strange, and he said half-jokingly:
"Maybe you stole it"
"What..?!! You're… You're wrong!"
Ike hastily denied it, shaking his head while holding the bag in his hands. What a blatant reaction. We haven't become that dull as if we don't have any emotions, after all.
"You… Don't tell me…"
"What? Are you suspecting me?!"
"No, that's not it… Just… The bag… Show me what's inside."
"Ah! Wait…"
Yamauchi grabbed the bag as he was really going to examine it. There it is…
White underwear that men absolutely do not wear. It was curled up and well hidden.
"Eh! That's not mine! Somehow this was put in my bag!"
"Hey now, give me a better excuse."
As Ike was in panic, Yamauchi's look towards him was one of pity.
"I am telling you, I do not know! Seriously! Why there is… u… underwear in my bag?!"
"This is shameful. Anyway, let's explain the rest to Hirata and the others."
"Huh? If I do that, then it would mean that I confess that I am the culprit!"
"And the culprit was no one… Right?"
Yamauchi asked for his consent, but what does this mean? It is obvious that Karuizawa's underwear came out of Ike's bag. So, is Ike the culprit? The case is not that simple as to come to such an easy conclusion.
When and how did he steal the underwear? Also, I don't think that the thief would hide casually the underwear in his own bag. He should know that his act would soon cause an uproar and that we would start searching for the culprit as soon as possible. He sure failed to keep his composure. However, the moment we talked about opening his bag to search his belongings I thought he would panic. In Ike's case that didn't happen until after we found what we were searching for.
The conclusion drawn from this, is that the culprit is someone else and they put the underwear in Ike's bag.
Well, there was a small possibility that the thief was really Ike if only he wasn't so simple-minded and foolish. However… That's not true, is it?
"Hey, Ayanokouji, you do believe me right? Because I haven't stolen it."
"Judging from the situation, there is no concrete evidence that Ike is the culprit."
"Ayanokouji!"
"However, I cannot deny that there is a high possibility that he is the culprit. If he is the culprit though, then he is too stupid."
"Well, that's true… But… Then… What happened? You mean somebody put it in Kanji's bag?"
"That is what I must figure it out."
"Hey! Hurry up!" A boyish voice flew from Hirata's companions.
"Wh… Wh… What am I going to do? I am in serious trouble"
If the stolen thing was found here, no matter what the boys said, the girls would declare that Ike is the culprit.
"Anyway, we have no choice but to hide it. For now."
"Hide it? Where? There is no place to hide it!"
It's true that given our situation, we couldn't hide it at the moment. If we went to the toilets or the tents, the girls watching over this place would be suspicious of our movements and maybe would demand to search us. Above all we are spending too much time here. We may already be suspected.
"No other way. Put it in your pocket."
That was all the advice I could give him. There was no time to hide it in my underwear or my socks and we should draw no further attention to any suspicious activity.
"I… I can't do it… I am already in a panic."
Still, I believed, now, we had no choice but to hide it.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Ayanokouji."
Ike took out the curled up underwear from his bag and pressed it swiftly in my hands.
"What…?"
"If you think that it is better to hide it, then do it, right?"
"No!"
"Hurry up!"
"I am leaving, now."
With an "I am leaving the rest to you" Ike tries to run away. Unwilling to be involved further, Yamauchi, too follows suit.
"Hey, hey! Are you serious…?"
I felt a little sweaty from the pressure. Nonetheless, until the end, the situation will only get worse. If I hid it, I'd want to make it difficult to find it, but I don't have any spare time for this. Without having time to think, while holding my bag I squeezed it in my back pocket and headed towards Hirata's group.
"My bad, sorry. My bag got a bit dirty, so I was cleaning it with my hands."
By making this excuse, Ike handed over his bag.
"If you want to search it, then search it. Because I am innocent. Right? Yamauchi?"
"Oh! Yes!"
The two of them put down proudly their bags. Hirata at first declined the offer to do the inspection, but eventually he did it. I also put my bag down softly, and then I left the scene. After finishing inspecting everyone's belongings Ike called out to Shinohara who was waiting with her arms folded.
"We searched everyone. But we found nothing."
"Really?"
"Yup. We are sure now. None of the boys is the culprit."
"Wait a minute."
As Shinohara approached us, she began looking inside the tent. It looked like she was suspicious and thought we kept something hidden in here. But of course, nothing came out. After inspecting the two tents, Shinohara went back to the girls and whispered to them.
"You know, that Hirata. Maybe he hid it in his pocket or something? I am curious as Ike, Yamauchi and Ayanokouji were talking to each other in whispers."
Of course we were, after all the girls demanded to search all over the place carefully.
"That's enough!"
All the girls, including Shinohara began attacking Ike.
"Wasn't Ike acting suspicious from a little while ago? Maybe he is hiding something after all!"
"What!? I'm… I'm hiding nothing! If you want to search me, then search!"
Spreading his arms and pleading his innocence. Hey, now… If he keeps talking like that…
"Well, let's search. Hirata, could you do it please?"
"All right. However, you girls must understand one thing. If we find nothing here, then from now on I would like you to stop investigating the boys constantly."
This was the worst outcome. Under the supervision of the girls began a physical examination of Ike, Yamauchi and me. Of course the underwear won't be found on Ike and Yamauchi. They didn't move against Hirata's careful examination and he was able to inspect every corner. And finally my turn came. It was too late to escape from this. I guess it was me that put myself in this situation after all. I wish I could turn back and redo things.
No… Not really. There was no turning back now. So, I should bet on the possibility that Hirata might overlook even by 1%. I decided to stay still like a dead fish and be examined by Hirata as he was slowly checking my upper body.
And then, Hirata put his arm inside the back pocket where I put the underwear.
——— Has he finished?
Resignation started. Without a doubt, Hirata's arm was transmitting the sensation of feeling the underwear. Although I wasn't sure if that was really the underwear and not just the sensation, it was enough suspicious that a rolled-up piece of cloth was in the pocket. Hirata, whose body stiffed for a moment, looked into my eyes. But after our gaze entangled in a moment in which even one second didn't pass, Hirata, examining my jersey without taking the underwear out, turned his head to the girl.
"Ayanokouji doesn't have it either."
Saying this, he started walking towards Shinohara. Ike and Yamauchi surprisingly exchanged looks.
"These guys didn't have it."
"That's strange… I thought it would be someone from those three. But if Hirata-kun says so…"
If Hirata who's overflown with sense of justice isn't telling a lie, Shinohara had no choice but to believe it.
"It should be fine once I tidy up the luggage. We can discuss if from then on."
After all the inspection ended, I hurriedly returned inside the tent. Soon after Hirata came along.
"Hirata… Why didn't you tell them?" I honestly asked.
"It is the underwear that you were having in your pocket, right?"
"Uh-huh."
"Karuizawa's underwear… Did you take them, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"No, that's wrong." How will this good young man take my short denial?
"I trust you. You're not that kind of person. But why having them in the pocket?"
There was no way I couldn't answer that after he told he believed me without hesitation. I told him honestly about them being in Ike's bag. Hirata showed his brooding gesture for a moment.
"Is that so? Then it wasn't you for sure. But I don't think Ike-kun and Yamauchi-kun did either. If it's a culprit in the first place I wonder if they couldn't put it in their own bag. I have a theory they hid it in another place."
Without telling some difficult explanation, Hirata saved me with his usual quick-wittedness.
"I can take care of the underwear, if you'd like."
"Sounds good… But is it okay?"
Having this is similar to holding the joker card – something that is hard to process.
"Even if I turn out to be the worst culprit, it will have minimal damage on me. They'll think I'm pretty much her boyfriend."
With saying this, Hirata put the underwear inside the plastic bag used for the toilet. I wonder if Karuizawa would be happy knowing he touched her underwear with bare hands.
"However… With this we've found out one bad news. Knowing the underwear was in Ike-kun's bag, high chances are there's a culprit in the class."
"I see…" No matter what, if other class' students were wandering around then someone must have seen them for sure.
After leaving the tent, I looked around the surroundings. Our bags were wrapped in plastic one by one and put casually in front of the tent. A few meters away there was a tent where Karuizawa and the others were sleeping. Until the incident happened, the girls' bags were piled up unprotectedly as well. You could easily steal something if you wanted to. I easily searched through Ibuki's bag on the first day.
The question is – when it was stolen. It wasn't for sure until we had a shower, so crime was conducted between yesterday around 8 PM until early morning around 7 AM. If that's the case, anyone in the class could have done it. However, I didn't think the crime happened in the middle of the night. Someone would have carried a flashlight in the pitch-black surroundings and would have been caught by its light if they had snooped around the bags. If so, the sunrise around 5 o'clock in the early morning was highly possible to be the time.
Well, even if we narrowed down the time of crime, it would be hard to narrow down the culprit from there.
What if… We change the perspective a little bit? The reason why Karuizawa would be the one stealing her underwear is to hide them inside Ike's bag. But what did she want to achieve with that?
"I believe you're not a culprit. That's why I saved you."
"O-oh. Thank you."
"But that's not all… I want you to find the culprit." Hirata requsted earnestly while taking my hand.
"Me, to find?"
"It will be uneasy if the culprit isn't found, boy or girl regardless. Truth to be told, it would be the best if I find them, but it looks difficult to devote time to put everyone together…"
Well, there are behavior restriction tagged along to the class' center person such as Hirata.
"Person involved in the crime is certainly worried about the culprit. I don't think a person who would do things like hiding the underwear in Ike's bag can be easily found."
Were we fully aware of that thing? Even Hirata was supposed to know that finding the culprit is hard.
"… Well, I'll do as much as I can for the time being. Don't have excessive expectations."
"Thank you! Thank you, Ayanokouji-kun!" While saying thanks with embracing spirit, Hirata deeply and thankfully lowered his head. It's not that I didn't understand Hirata's grateful feelings, but his response seemed a little over-excessive. The theft of this underwear was probably an extremely troublesome case to Hirata. It would be an evidence of him as a leader taking seriously a crisis that had come to the class in order.
"And then, if you find the culprit… At that time I want you to tell me first. Certainly don't tell it to anyone else."
His ability to convey strong emotions with appealing eyes is strongly assertive. It was eerie that they looked too dignified.
"If it becomes public, this class will again sustain a big damage. I want to avoid this. That's why I want to think of a method of getting a peaceful settlement through talking with the culprit. And if they reflect, we could be done with this story because of me."
"In other words, you'll hide the truth?"
"Hide, huh… It's a bad wording, but even if it's taken that way it cannot be helped. Even if someone from the guys is the culprit, I think the truth should be hidden."
He fixed his pupils on me intensively. It looks like he's saying he's willing to protect the perpetrator.
"I understand. So I'll report to you first. Is that alright?"
"Thank you. …So, I'll go back to work."
Coming outside the tent, Hirata soon called out other students as if starting something. Multiple silhouettes I'd seen from the seat were becoming distant.
"Yousuke Hirata. Are you D class' hero?"
I felt one contradiction in Hirata's story. He said the truth should be hidden even if the perpetrator is a boy right after he said he saved me because he trusted me. In other words, even if someone had the underwear, the truth will be hidden from girls. Hirata didn't have full trust in me. Let alone that, he probably highly supposed there was a chance that I was the perpetrator. That's a natural thing, of course. From outsider's perspective I, who had the underwear, am saying that Ike is the culprit. That's why Hirata by giving me, who might be the culprit, the role of the detective spilt the thread of salvation and gave a warning not to cause second offence at the same time. While thinking this way, I could grasp the story. The only thing certain is to forget the incident.
I also had thoughts of Hirata being the culprit, but… Well, it would soon come to light.
1
"Could you please gather the others?"
When I got out of the tent, Hirata's meeting had already started to take place. It was not long before the whole class gathered together.
"Men are not to be trusted. It is absolutely impossible to stay in the same place with them!"
"But there seems to be a bit of a problem for guys and girl to live apart now, don't you think?… The exam is almost over. Because we are friends, we must believe in each other and cooperate."
"That may be right. But we cannot stay in a place with underwear thieves!"
Karuizawa is swinging her head to the side dismissing this idea as absolutely impossible.
Well, if the victim says so, then Hirata cannot say anything more.
Adding to this, Shinohara brings a branch of a tree and pulls out a line, in a patronizing manner.
"We believe that the culprit is a boy. So, we draw a line here and divide the area between girls and boys. Boys entering our area is absolutely prohibited."
Shinohara finally proposed to officially divide our common living space.
"What's this?! You treat us like criminals, without proper proof. Didn't we let you check our baggage and also do a physical examination?"
"You may not have necessarily hidden it into your bag, right? Men are perverts. Anyway, please do not enter the girls' territory until we find the culprit. So go over there."
After saying that, they demanded the boys move the tents. As expected, the boys did not seem satisfied with this and booing ensued.
"If you do not believe us, then move your tent away or whatever. We will not move our tent and we will not help you move yours either."
"Ah! I see, then fine. You cannot stand the burden of getting caught, while pretending to help."
"And do not use the shower anymore, ok? It is not a joke to let a man who might have been a perverted thief use it."
It seems that the unity that we had so far has completely broken down.
"Heck. Can you even stamp your tent?"
Feeling that the situation became rather dangerous, Shinohara asked Hirata for help.
"Hey Hirata, could you please help us? For Karuizawa's sake?"
"Ok, I'll help you. It may take some time, is that okay?"
"Thank you, Hirata! Good for us, Karuizawa!"
"Yup. Only Hirata is to be trusted."
Being a little bit happy and a little bit embarrassed, she made Karuizawa's cheeks blush.
"Hmm… Although, Hirata could be the culprit."
"What?! Hirata is not the culprit! What a stupid thing to say! Get lost!"
"Don't make a fool of yourself Karuizawa. Just because he is your boyfriend does not mean that he cannot be the culprit!"
Naturally the boys' complaints were rising, but in this situation their words weren't taken into consideration. Everyone except Hirata was suspected to be the thief, so it couldn't be helped. The discussion where Karuizawa and Shinohara seized the initiative was rapidly approaching the conclusion.
"Wait a minute. Can I raise my objection against all of you? Especially to you, Karuizawa?"
In the midst of such a cold atmosphere Horikita calmly but also firmly faced Karuizawa.
"What is it Horikita? Do you have any objections against our present plan?"
"I do not mind dividing the living area between men and women. As long as the culprit hasn't been found, it is prudent to keep ourselves at a distance from the boys, since there is a high possibility that the culprit is a guy. However, I do not trust Hirata, I mean I cannot rule out the possibility that he is the thief and I'm not convinced as to why he must be excluded from the rules and let him enter the girls' area."
"Hirata would never do such thing. Can you understand that, at least?"
"That's your own personal belief. Do not force the same idea on me as well."
Karuizawa was clearly not satisfied with Horikita's attitude and took a step closer to her.
"Hirata is definitely not the criminal. You don't even have friends, let alone a boyfriend, so you may not understand."
"Do not make me say the same thing over and over again. You cannot convince me about him." Horikita did not bend even when she was provoked.
"Well, then let me ask you something. I guess there are not any other boys that can be trusted except Hirata. Or are there?"
"I won't speak without thinking. Simply put, you can increase the number by another one. If you do that then we'll have two guys. It's very effective when guys want to watch each other's backs."
"This is not a joke! Did I steal your underwear? No! You've been humiliated by a guy. Do you even understand? Do you know what is going to happen if you pull the culprit in?"
"Don't you think this is happening because of your insufficient crisis management? While we were wasting time, maybe they were making up their reason of how they did not know the underwear were being stolen?"
"Oh! What crisis management?! They let us search their bags! What's insufficient in this!"
"It does not matter if your underwear is stolen. It happens often in everyday life, people fall victims of robbery. However, here it seems that there is a guy that has a grudge against you."
In other words Horikita considered the possibility that the culprit did not steal the underwear with an ulterior motive, but rather it was an act of randomness against Karuizawa specifically.
Maybe there was someone who was trying to get rid of their old grudge against Karuizawa and who deliberately decided to humiliate her. I can imagine the culprit following such a route. But is it appropriate for Horikita to express that idea against Karuizawa in public? She is smart, but she has difficulty in interpersonal relationships and this is exactly Horikita's weak point. If Karuizawa is stirred up in front of a large crowd, then she will get even more hurt and irritated. And this rage will not only be headed towards the boys, but to Horikita too.
"You…"
Karuizawa was on the verge of bursting out with rage when Hirata barged in and stood beside her gallantly.
"Karuizawa. It would be of great help for me if you chose to save another boy. Can we do that?"
She followed up to his mediation.
"Bu.. But.. How can I trust anyone else apart from you, Hirata?"
"Well, then choose me!" Ike slowly raised his hand.
To think that he was fighting with Shinohara just a little while ago…
"Wait! If it's about physical work. It's me!" Sudou was waving his hand.
"Wait! It's me who has shown the most skillfulness, here!" Yamauchi also continued.
No matter how many times we had disputes with the girls, we couldn't help but wanting to be close to them.
"Stop joking! This is serious! We are not trying to find a way to bring a pervert here. It's no wonder that one of you is the thief. Or Horikita, do you think these guys are good enough?"
"Well, this is what I believe. These 3 people are completely unreliable, considering their daily behavior. So I thought this over carefully and I intend to choose the person who does not give me the impression of a thief."
"Who is it? Someone other than Hirata, then?"
I look towards the boys. Is there a guy who can feel at ease when compared to Hirata?
Who could it be?…
"It's you Ayanokouji!"
…What? Why me? How is it me?… Unintentionally, my mouth hung open, unable to speak a word.
"Hahaha! Do not make me laugh! If you think about it, isn't he the only friend you have? You can't trust such a quiet, sullen looking guy?"
Not that it matters to me, but my existence in this school seems to be something between "that guy" and "sulky fellow". Is this the pitiful fate of a man who could not build satisfactory interpersonal relationships in the first semester?
"I think that Ayanokouji could be the culprit. In the morning he was acting a bit weird sneaking around, wasn't he?"
When I found the stolen underwear in Ike's bag, I had no choice but to talk nonsense in order to get out of this situation. Well, it is a fact that I had Karuizawa's underwear in my hands at that time, which made me look rather suspicious.
"It might be possible… Certainly, he was in front of the bonfire yesterday until late night, Ayanokouji-kun…"
It seemed like the girls' scepticism had become evident when they chose me as their next target. Suspicious persons began to pop out among the boys. Ike and Yamauchi were in complete ignorance. Regardless of us being silent or clarifying things out, we stayed silent since it was a disadvantageable situation. No matter how much the girls doubted, Hirata was holding the evidence and it wasn't ruled out that we could turn to be the culprit against our will.
However, to be suspected as a culprit wasn't a good feeling, regardless of false accusation.
"Ayanokouji-kun really is the underwear thief, right? He makes no excuses. He fixedly stared at Karuizawa-san with an eye of a pervert before."
A suspicious voice could be heard among the girls. I couldn't recall looking at her in such a manner, but what can you do if my brain decided to forget it for my convenience. False accusations happen in such a way.
"Um… Ah, I think Ayanokouji-kun doesn't do such things…"
Because all the girls showed doubt with all their might, I thought no one would take my side, but words of protection came from unexpected person. Arching her back from behind, Sakura defended me in a hesitant way. I didn't expect such an action from a girl who's bad at getting attention from others more than anyone.
"Huh? What are you saying, why would you say such a thing?" Karuizawa turned her head in a displeasure to Sakura, who was siding with a potential culprit. From the viewpoint of a girl full of high spirits, timid Sakura is a reasonable target. It's easier to confront her than Horikita. She changed her prey in an instant and as in predation attacked with words:
"Huh, why? How do you get that Ayanokouji isn't the culprit?"
"That's… That… It's because he isn't a person who… would do that…"
Being strongly pushed, she desperately squeezed out her voice in fear.
"Huh? I don't get it. That isn't an answer." After folding her hands, Karuizawa laughed ruthlessly at Sakura's continuous mysterious support.
"Eh? Does Sakura-san like plain, ordinary Ayanokouji-kun maybe?"
Rather than just making fun of her, Karuizawa said this with proper reason. It would be fine if such a statement without basis was turned aside without hesitation, but Sakura took it straightforwardly.
"N-no!?"
Startled in surprise, Sakura's cheeks turned red and became restless.
"Wow. What's this elementary-schooler like blunt response. It's so obvious."
The other girls joined Karuizawa in laughter.
"That's…! Ah, um… Uuum…!"
"Ha, isn't it good? There is no other person who likes him that much. What can you tell us here? Hey hey, I can even help you out."
"Uh!!"
As if she couldn't handle the atmosphere of having too many eyes on her, Sakura ran off into the woods. Kushida left us behind running after her. She had a good observation that being alone in the woods might be dangerous.
"What was that? I was just teasing her a bit. That's why she can't make any friends."
Watching over Karuizawa's public execution from beginning until the end without saying anything, Horikita let a sigh while combing her hair as if she was watching something uninteresting.
"I wonder if it's okay to continue with the discussion soon. It's a waste of time to watch charade after all."
"You know, Horikita-san. Such speech comes off as if you're being annoyed."
As if losing interest in runaway Sakura, Karuizawa once again targeted Horikita.
"Hey, Horikita-san. Why do you treat me coldly? Did something happen?"
"Something? There is something."
"Well, isn't Hirata-kun cool? He's also smart. And he's even nice to someone like you, I think every ordinary girl falls for him."
While giggling, Karuizawa took Hirata's arm and pulled him with pride.
"I'll tell you, Ayanokouji-kun is… Well. His physical appearance is good compared to the other guys, but isn't everything else awful? I was wondering if you're jealous of me. These are my thoughts."
"You're very naïve, Karuizawa-san."
"Aah— So bad, it's shameful to be jealous!"
I often hear that collective behavior carves a person's role, personality and psychological state. Things that could not be seen in school life seemed to come to the surface one after another. Especially for Horikita who was always by herself, being picked by the girls in her class awfully bad, and yet she would let things go past as something out of her concern. Since this was a community life, both parties couldn't help but be affected inevitably.
"Surely Ayanokouji-kun have many parts that aren't being praised."
Oi… I thought she would back me up, but it was the opposite.
"However, can Hirata-kun trust him is another question. It was essential for you to pressure Hirata-kun without reason. In reality, there is no factor to trust Ayanokouji. Besides, I'm absolutely not going to get across personal affection. As a result of extinguished past, he became the guy you can trust the most in the class. Or is there a guy you can say is better than him? If there is I want you to tell me."
Saying this, Karuizawa glanced at boys in evaluation and let a sigh.
"… Well it looks there's no one significant among guys. They're always in the background."
I had no choice but to agree with that point. The girls' perception is too harsh.
"Oh well, isn't that great? I have doubts, however. I'll put up with it if Hirata-kun is okay."
It looked like I was the one chosen from Karuizawa and the girls in the end, but I wasn't satisfied. Of course, I didn't reveal such a thing. There would only be another dispute.
As the talk was coming to an end, dispersement began and simultaneously with it the class' solidarity collapsed.
"I understand what everyone wants to say, but… I disagree with suspecting a classmate without basis. There is no person in our class who would do awful things." Said Hirata as he couldn't stay silent about this deterioration.
"You're too kind. Are you saying someone else stole it?"
"I don't know that… But, I don't want to suspect a classmate."
The guys as well were thinking of the culprit feeling bad about being suspected by the girls all the time.
"Hey… Maybe —— Is it Ibuki?"
One person murmured while secretly looking at Ibuki who sat at the end of the campbase.
In that moment, a spearhead of doubt turned toward Ibuki as if a group set an eye on one prey.
"Ibuki-chan from C class, right. It wouldn't be ridiculous if she pretends to be D class' hindrance… Using tricks to make us look suspicious."
"Stop with the nonsense, guys. You are without a doubt the most suspicious."
Shinohara is very suspicious of the boys. She was keeping her distance from the boys, gesturing with her hand for them to back off.
"Until we figured out who's the culprit, we surely can't trust guys. Right, Karuizawa-san."
"Right. The culprit is surely someone from the guys."
Because of this incident, it had been decided to continue with our activities with the guys and girls being separated individually in the end.
2
I will repeat myself over and over again, but a guy named Yousuke Hirata was a cool guy. Not because of his outstanding looks, but because of his ideals of how actions ought to be. An ordinary human being takes the initiative to be responsible for troublesome, unpleasant matters while responding uppermost to the others. Cooperating with the girls, he was setting up 2 tents to keep them at a distance from the boys.
I, who was on the other side, had a fixed role of hammering pegs of carrying tents to the ground. At the beginning I immediately struggled to be completely omitted, but as soon as I got the hang of it, I had a fixed position in the first tent. It was unexpectedly easy. Right now I was nailing the peg of the second tent with a hammer while wiping my sweat. Our link Hirata assisted me with spreading the rope and hammering the peg.
"Sorry for giving you a hard time."
The other boys were playing outside or trying to store some food with fishing.
"Oh – no, you don't have to apologize. It would be bad leaving it to you."
"It's not bad. I'm doing it as much as I like."
The existence of his refreshing smile was a big factor in the coolness of this guy.
"It might come off as weird, but why are you working so hard?"
"Working hard? I don't tend to work hard. I'm only doing what has to be done."
Without meaning to sound boastful, he wiped dripping sweat with a towel that was hanging on his neck.
"I think this special trial isn't a battle, but an important opportunity for everyone to become closer. That's why I want to cherish this very moment. I will gladly work if that's necessary for it."
I wonder if an ordinary person can be full of good intentions as much as Hirata without being two-faced. Wanting to be liked by people, wanting to attract attention – it's normal to have such a mindset. But I couldn't get such an impression from Hirata. I had strong feelings that he just wanted to be good to everyone.
"Alright, about half is left. Let's end this quickly."
The two of us went to the opposite side of the tent in order to hammer the remaining pegs.
"Hirata-kuun! Come here for a moment!" Karuizawa and the other girls were calling Hirata. In a flash they surrounded Hirata and were pulling his arms forcefully.
"C'mon, c'mon, come here!"
"Ah, I still have things to do…"
"Can't you leave it to Ayanokouji-kun? Can't you?" They said while pulling him with all strength.
Looking at Hirata and his worried face, I answered while thinking they're a bother: "… I'll do this, go."
"But, it's hard to do it alone ——–"
"It's alright, only a few things left."
"So-sorry. Thank you. I'll be right back."
It was rather an imprudent request that seemed profitable to the girls, but as if my words didn't reach them, they continued pulling him in the direction of the woods. Maybe they'll come back soon.
I took the hammer once again, as I was dejectedly watching Hirata leaving the flag behind. I continued with the work and finally completed everything by myself before Hirata returned.
"It took me more time than I thought, being alone…"
I had to pay attention to the direction of the tent and pegs while stretching the rope many times.
It was after 10 o'clock. What should I do now? I couldn't make a mistake in the process now when it started moving. But before that I restored my physical strength. Working under the blazing sun was too exhausting.
"May I have a word with you?"
Since I completed the first stage I thought I'd rest for a while when Ibuki called.
"The discussion about the underwear thief this morning looked very serious. I mean, D class isn't monolithic."
"Hmm, could be. We can't stand various hardships."
"Whatever the reason, as a woman stealing the girls' underwear is unforgivable."
That's right. But why was she telling me this? It wasn't me who was protecting Ibuki but Yamauchi as he was looking after Kushida's group. Since we had a discussion there shouldn't be any special entwined concern…
"Are you doubting me?"
It looked like Ibuki saw my treatment of being a culprit from Shinohara and the others this morning from far away as well.
"Are you the culprit?"
"No, that's not the case."
"Then it's fine. Well, it's not like I have specific proof. It looked like some girls trust you and that boy Hirata. I think the chance of you being the culprit is low."
She had such a conclusion after hearing the argument between Karuizawa and Horikita.
"You have no clue about the culprit?"
"Right now, not at all. I don't want to doubt the guys as much as possible."
"So, who do you think is the culprit?"
Her inquiry was as if she was testing me. I was side glancing Ibuki who was standing right beside me, but she was waiting for the response without facing me. Even so, she continued without an answer:
"If the guys aren't the culprit as you're saying, then the next one who is suspicious is me, a stranger. Someone is certainly doubting me. I might be pretending as if the guys have stolen the underwear. Am I right?"
She said so in self-mockery as if being fully aware that she herself is a suspect. I replied to her in a moment full of feelings:
"I wonder if you at least trust me. I don't think you're the culprit."
I answered this to Ibuki without hesitation. She looked at me a bit surprised as if wanting to make sure that this is true. When my eyes matched hers, she looked away.
"… Thank you. I didn't think you'd be so kind."
"It's just an honest answer."
The reason I could answer so honestly is because I trusted her only by looking at her sincere eyes.
Therefore, I thoughtlessly made a conclusion. The culprit who stole the underwear from Karuizawa and hid them in Ike's bag was Ibuki.
3
So, on the 5th night of the special examination trial, D class was feeling depressed. It was like we were keeping vigil all night over a dead body. After all, no one knew who the culprit was and no one wanted to talk about it. A whole day passed without a moment of doubts and suspicions.
Within this situation, today, I was responsible for keeping the fire burning. I was just looking at the fire, throwing some branches occasionally… a very monotonous and easy task.
The problem, though, laid elsewhere.
"Hey, Ayanokouji! I told you to move the tent properly, didn't I?"
"Move it more to the left. Because it's too close to the boys."
"… All right."
They just gave me an unreasonable order and I accepted it reluctantly. The girls left with indignation.
"It's hard when you are forced to do miscellaneous routine duties."
"… Look who's talking. I would have been alright if it wasn't for your unnecessary recommendation."
"There was no other way. Hirata is not to be trusted. Insurance is necessary."
"You are the only one in class who doesn't trust Hirata. It's better not to think that all people live by being two-faced."
"That's true. In fact, I am not two-faced."
Indeed. Horikita lives, by being true to herself.
She ended up dodging this rather skilfully.
"However, most people use their real intentions quite differently from their principles. Just like you do. Moreover, I don't trust any of them because charity and hypocrisy are two sides of the same coin."
It seemed that her trust issues weren't limited only to Hirata. They applied to Kushida as well.
"Still, I trust Hirata very much."
"Ah! At least, I can count on you. You are really reliable."
"Rely on me? Can you at least say that I have a good influence on the class because of him?"
Horikita must have had something on her mind since she came back at me with a counterattack. It probably seemed to her that I was holding information that she didn't know and, on top of that, I kept answering her with an unfriendly smile.
"Well, Hirata is not perfect. There are times that we cannot organise things properly when boys and girls are gathering together. But don't you think he is doing his best as a coordinator? He can do what other students can't."
"That's for sure. It's true that his act of taking on a big role without making a sour face is impressive, but this must come together with a good result. However, it's not possible anymore. The situation looks dire already. Do you know that the points that we D Class own now are very few?"
"It seems that there was an excessive amount of spending. I can't estimate exactly."
"Just as I thought — Hirata, whom you trust so much, keeps his lips sealed."
"What do you mean?"
"Please, follow me."
I wonder what it is that I should see so much that we left the fire unattended.
Where are we going?
In front of the girls' tents.
Horikita opened the cloth on the main panel and showed the inside of the tent.
"That's…"
Unlike the empty boys' tent, the girls' tent had a completely different view because there was no space to sleep.
On the floor, there was a floor mat to soften the hardness of the ground, and several pillows seemed to have been inflated with air. Furthermore, they installed a battery-powered cordless electric fan.
"The exact same things are also placed on the other tent too. A total of 12 points."
"I used to think that the girls endured the heat with patience and without complaints. So, this is how you do it."
It's not like they were patient from the beginning. They just purchased all the necessary items.
"Karuizawa and the others applied for these."
It seemed that they indulged themselves quite well in the shadows.
"When I realized it, it was only after they had placed the order and everything was ready. It's difficult to do anything when we made a rule that anyone can use points if they apply for it."
Just like with the case of Kouenji that withdrew early from the exams, there was no way to stop using points.
"It seems that Karuizawa reported this to Hirata, so he definitely knows. But you didn't know it. It's a fact that no one told you or informed the others. However, I think that this kind of information must absolutely be shared with everyone else."
Horikita explained the situation with her arms folded. Her words made sense, but it didn't seem that Hirata kept his mouth shut because he actually had malicious intentions. Maybe, he just wanted to avoid unnecessary confusion.
Even Karuizawa was evaluated when she reported to Hirata.
"I understand what you mean, but I don't have anything in particular to say. Points that have been used cannot be returned, and there aren't many days left for the test to end. So, Karuizawa probably won't use any more points carelessly."
I thought I was getting angry with the cold way she responded back but it seemed like this was an already expected reply from Horikita. So I ignored her completely.
"If nothing continues to happen, this time we should probably remain quiet and obedient. But it's very risky that the stolen underwear case remains unresolved. If the culprit is still nearby, from now on we should probably hold him back from achieving other successes. That's why I want to catch the culprit as soon as possible."
"So, do you want me to collaborate with you?"
"Yeah. Now that cracks started to appear on the male side, there are many things which I can't do alone."
Boys and girls were now in the middle of a cold war. Information from both parts had been cut off and it was hard to find them out even if we went out to explore.
"Understood. I don't know if it'll help but I'll cooperate."
When I replied so frankly, on the contrary, Horikita had a doubtful face.
"…I can understand things a bit… Do you have any other aim?"
"It's better for you to accept other people's favours amenably. As a man, I'm quite dissatisfied with the fact that other men have been treated like thieves. My motive to collaborate is enough."
Earlier before, Hirata asked me to be responsible for the situation but it shouldn't change anything.
"Well, let it go. It's settled then."
But the culprit wasn't stupid. First of all, under the situation of being suspected by all the members of the class, he wouldn't give himself away or show his true colours. Horikita may still think it'll all be okay even in the worst situations. When we've already been disturbed on this trial more than this, it had an effect on the points too.
However, about the culprit… Ibuki will probably have to take action once again. No, it has to happen for sure. Because she didn't achieve her goal yet.
"Such a serious face. Treating someone like a criminal like that is not to your liking?"
"Because of this incident, the class is a mess. It's a pity, despite the fact that we did everything very skillfully until today."
"It's unexpected that we managed to cooperate until now. Because usually there's no teamwork in D class. The final effect has been poor though, especially now that there's a crack in between the boys' side and the girls' side. Of course, it would have been better to bring everything until the end of the exam"
"Besides, whoever is the culprit, I wonder what is really his aim. Was the purpose of stealing Karuizawa's underwear just putting into disorder our teamwork? I feel there's another hidden purpose."
At the keyword "purpose", Horikita crossed her arms but, after considering it for a while, she shook her head.
"Let's not think too much…Sorry, but I'm going back to the tent."
Horikita, while breathing bit by bit, brushed her hair up and turned her face away from me.
"Hey Horikita, how about confessing quietly?"
"Confessing? What in the world are you saying?"
Although she pretended to be calm, Horikita had a slight perspiration on her forehead. I decided to be reasonable with her.
"From when the exam started, you've become increasingly sick."
There may have been signs of her poor physical condition even before travelling but it was still light. Due to Horikita's personality, the possibility that she would have been absent in a travel where there was excessive playing around was very high.
"It's normal."
"You're lying."
I caught Horikita in the lie she continued to tell and then I extended the hand towards her forehead. As expected, when I came in contact with her forehead, it felt hot. She tried to escape but her movements were really slow.
"Since when…did you notice it?"
"That time when we met on the deck. I wanted to hear what were you doing at that time."
"Yes. I told you I was reading a book in my room."
"It was really tough on you so you stayed in your room sleeping, right?"
"What's the basis of that?"
"When you joined the others, your forelocks were disheveled. In other words, that was the evidence you were laying down just before. Moreover, on the anchor deck, it was so damn hot but it seemed like you were cold. Even now, you're wearing long sleeves with the zipper raised to the top. If you observe your situation until today from an external point of view, even elementary students will understand where my conclusion came from."
Horikita, who usually would strike back, this time lost the words to retort back and sunk into silence for a while.
"If you could offer all that sharpness towards A class, you'd be able to get a little more recognition."
"No. There's no turning back. Are you not going to keep silent about my condition anymore?"
Touching with my hand, it was clear that there was a flu close to 38 degrees. Still, she was hiding it. That was for some simple reasons. If you reported your bad physical condition, the class would end up receiving a bad evaluation and getting a bigger penalty. Her luck ran out since the exam started.
"Be patient for another 5 days, it'll all be in vain if you give up here. Good night."
She's going to survive until the end. Her will seems to be solid.
4
I felt a strange warmth and stiffness on my cheek.
Having a bad feeling about this warmth already, I tried to move away by stretching my neck a little. However, I could not move. I felt something like an arm being fixed tightly around my neck.
"W… What?…"
Waking up with a sense of discomfort. I immediately realised that I was in a scary situation. Sudou was sleeping across my face, with both his legs around my thighs.
"Suzune… I…cannot hold it, anymore…"
"Arghhh"
I screamed, startling even myself and I escaped from Sudou's headlock.
"Shut up… What is it Ayanokouji?.. . Don't wake me up… Hmph"
He was trying to force something terrifying upon me, this fellow
Even if I think that I was mistaken as someone else. Still, this is not a thing to reveal in a crowd of men in the middle of the night.
The time on the wristwatch was still before 6 in the morning, but as soon as I felt the hot, humid air, my drowsiness vanished in an instant.
I exit the tent in order to get out of the steamed atmosphere. The moment I step outside, I realize that the scenery is completely different from yesterday.
"… Just my luck, isn't it?"
It seemed that the curtain on the 6th day of the special examination test opened, early in the morning with trouble.
There are signs that it will begin to rain soon. Most probably around noon.
The weather was rough, towards the end of the exam.
There is no need to worry if it rains a little bit, but in some cases it rains heavily and strong winds are possible.
Then, we may have to act thinking the worst case scenario.
It seems that we will have a lot to do. Like checking the tent pegs and thinking what to do with the baggage.
In other words, that means that we are going to be busy and that will cause unnecessary attention.
Eventually, when everyone gets up, we will combine the food we gathered with the emergency food we've got in store, by using our points and make it into a pot, so we can eat.
In our everyday life here, there are naturally complaints here and there that gradually increase, but in the last couple of days, everyone showed their willingness to survive this test.
"Excellent. We have no incident, for days."
Surely. This would not have been the case if there had been an incident today where underwear was stolen.
Now, In front of the boys' tent, the guys who were guarding up until the morning were passed out like being drunk.
This is a deterrent that was devised to prevent the recurrence of underwear theft.
Hirata was gathering already a lot of students and giving them a final round of encouragement.
We should split into groups and start searching for food in order to survive today.
Once we get the food of the day. We don't have to use points.
It can be said that this is a critical moment.
We, too gather around Hirata
"Shouldn't we also come with you?"
Already standing on the riverbank with the fishing rod in one hand, Ike turned over his shoulder to ask.
"No. Ike and Sudou, I want you next to go fishing. From now on try to teach instructions about fishing to the other students. We have no time."
As soon as the policy is decided, Hirata goes and gathers the group as many raise their hands.
Of course, I will not be able to raise my hand, but I will participate as a remainder this time.
The members chosen are Horikita, Sakura, Yamauchi and surprisingly, Kushida.
Horikita's physical condition seems to be still bad, but she is struggling to look well so as her situation is not to be perceived by the people around.
"How did this happen and you are left behind? Where is your usual group of friends?"
Come to think of it, I can't see any of the girls who were working with Kushida in this exam.
"Ah, yes. Well…"
Kushida whispered in Horikita's ear, as if he was worried about the boys' presence.
"The truth is, Mi-chan today is a girl's day, right? … You look pretty sluggish, too and you look sick all the time. So, my other friends may attend you at the tent"
Standing close to Horikita and Kushida, I heard their conversation.
"I am safe from the effects of the menstrual phenomenon even if you say that I seem to be in a poor physical condition. It's only natural, after all. But why bother with this group? I am sure there are many other options"
The only reason why Horikita goes on a fool's errand is because she hates Kushida.
Basically, Horikita hates humans in general, but among them, it is Kushida the one that she particularly dislikes the most.
Why does she hate her so much?. The reason for this seems to be simple, it is because Kushida seems to hate Horikita, too.
However, whenever I think about the relationship between these two, I feel like there has always been a strange sense of discomfort between them.
Kushida Kikyou has a hidden side, especially towards girls. There is one side of her that changes suddenly so as to abuse a person calmly.
However, this is a fact that I happened to know by chance, and the usual Kushida is basically a bright and caring cute girl who is kind to everyone.
I don't think there are any students who dislike her except for reasons such as jealousy, but I think I understand well that Horikita is not the kind of person who would be jealous of Kushida's character.
There are some things that make even the philosophers suffer.
Such as the question "Which comes first, the chicken or the egg".
A chicken is a creature born literally from an egg, but also a creature that lays eggs. So which came first, the egg or the chicken? That kind of story.
So, I do not know which one between these two was the first to dislike the other, Horikita or Kushida, or when did this started.
"I thought that it would be good to talk to you Horikita, since a lot has happened. You know, we haven't talked that much during this trip. As soon as it gets dark, let's go to sleep, together"
Kushida understands that she is hated and tries to make friends with her even though she hates her, too. Well, if her goal is to be friends with all her classmates, being friends with Horikita is a road that cannot be avoided.
There are a lot of complicated and confusing questions about the relationship between these two.
"I do not have free time to accompany you for unecessary things"
"You are so mean Horikita. Even though your sleeping face is so cute"
Horikita seemed a little annoyed, as Kushida said those things to make fun of her.
For the time being, though, it seems that I will search for food with these members.
"Hey, Ibuki, why don't you come with us, too?"
Just as we are ready to go, I call Ibuki who is resting under the shade of a tree.
"I…"
"Today is the last exam. I don't want to pressure you if you don't want"
"You're right. Since I have a debt of gratitude with D class, I'll help…Ok, I'll take part in it"
Ibuki, who put her bag on her shoulder, wished to participate and Yamauchi was pleased by it.
"Ah, that's good, that's good! This feels like a harem though"
The more the girls' percentage increased, the more Yamauchi's tension increased too. But there was nothing better than having a lot of hands. With no reason to refuse, Horikita set foot into the forest without replying anything in particular.
"The dark forest is really ominous…or rather I should say are you afraid of the heat and the fact that it's damp and humid"
The sky was actually pretty cloudy, and the inside of the forest changed considerably compared to yesterday. The visibility was scarce. Yamauchi, who was sweating from his armpits, proceeded to fan his own gym tracksuit with low spirit.
"Aren't you hot, Sakura?"
Yamauchi, who wanted to talk about something, called out to Sakura. But, his eyes were fully concentrated on her breasts, and it was easy to understand that his only aim was that he wanted to see directly her tits.
"Eh? Ah, Ahhh, no. It's okay"
All of sudden, Sakura tried to lean back like she wanted to indirectly escape his gaze. It is said that girls are really sensitive to men's gaze because there's always an ulterior motive to it. In Sakura's case, this is particularly noticeable, since she already had many experience like this.
"Yesterday, Karuizawa was really terrible. You're so gentle, Sakura, so Ayanokoji decided to protect you"
"Ah, yeah......"
He had all the intentions of talking warmly but his gaze and the substance of it is a high-explosive bomb.
"Yamauchi. You might as well be mindful of the trees. It's possible that they may bear fruits. Also, in this area the trees are tall, so please hold on tight too "
"Oh, ohh. Of course"
Doing this, I'll somewhat be able to prevent that Yamauchi's gaze will turn again towards Sakura. Nevertheless, the boundless lust of a man will never run out.
"Rain clouds are approaching from south-west. The weather may be stormy sooner than we imagined"
Depending on the circumstances, it would be better to keep in mind that the rain will probably fall first thing in the afternoon. If this happens, it may be dangerous to go out looking for food for a long time. If we end up being caught up in the rain in the forest, far from being forced to a standstill, there's the fear of injuries. In this case, a large quantity of points will be spewed out all at once.
"Mmm…"
While we kept walking quietly looking for food, Kushida repeatedly assumed a brooding and pondering expression while looking alternatingly between me and Horikita. Of course, Horikita was ignoring everything.
"What's wrong Kushida-chan"
Yamauchi asked her, when he noticed her delayed actions.
"Ayanokoji-kun and Horikita-san are on good terms from the beginning, right? So, I was thinking about the reason"
"It looks like this. Why are you that close?"
Kushida opened a difficult topic as well.
"We don't really get along well though"
"You always deny it but, you still get along. Even now you're always walking next to each other"
Even if they say such a thing, I'm not really aware of it nor I particularly remember doing it.
"Ah. I may have found something that Ayanokoji-kun and Horikita-san have in common"
"What is the common point?"
"Well, look at them properly Yamauchi-kun. Do you notice anything?"
"What?"
Yamauchi drew near and observed my face centimeter by centimeter. Then, after that, he rushed to Horikita and took a closer look to her face. Ah, so stupid. He got too close.
*Slap*
And so she struck his face in the most dry way. It's just exploded a splendid slap in the face from an ashamed drama actress. Yamauchi started to hop up and down in a weird dance, first soundless from the vigor and the pain of the slap, then shouting and falling down. What is terrible is that Horikita doesn't even glance to Yamauchi nor she cared about his words.
"What, what did you do?"
"You were too close. You better remember to keep away from my personal space"
It was something similar to what happened when Ike came out and made a pass at Horikita. I think everyone would feel uncomfortable when coming face to face, and at a really short distance, with a boy you don't like to begin with.
"Ahahah…So..Sorry Yamauchi-kun. I said some unnecessary things. You okay?"
"You, you're kind Kushida…"
Yamauchi took the hand that Kushida held out, and he stood up with a red face. Ibuki kept watching the whole story from beginning to end with a slight surprised face. She probably doesn't see often this kind of stupid exchange in C class.
"Wha, What is the common feature that you noticed, Kushida?"
"You know? They both laugh very little! I mean, I think I never saw Ayanokoji-kun and Horikita-san smiling"
Kushida pointed out this unexpectedly, and she was convinced I would accept it obediently. Regarding Horikita. I saw her smiling several times like she wanted to fool the other party but that was nothing more than a smile of courtesy.
"I've never seen Horikita's smiling face. But I smile, right?"
"I've seen your bitter smile but…I've never seen you smiling from the bottom of your heart or roaring with laughter. Or you just didn't show it to me?"
I glanced to her a little displeased. Yes, this time my heart beat fast too. My pulse suddenly raced/increased.
While we're still on this desert island, a lovely scent tickled my nose. I got embarrassed and I averted my eyes.
"It seems like it's all genetic. The difference between a person who laugh often and a person who doesn't"
"Uhm…I don't like this kind of reason. Even if it's true"
Well, that's not all. There's also the possibility that the environment, in which one is mainly brought up, influenced this kind of thing.
"Should we try practicing once? How about that? Smile"
"For the time being, let's start with the center of this area"
Said Horikita.
"Eh? Laughing practice?"
"How long do you feel like travelling? We decided already that we need to find food"
Horikita put Kushida in her place with a strong tone and a flat refusal. And immediately she fired instructions to deploy the people for the search.
"Two persons should search without acting alone. Beware of that. Let's go Ayanokouji-kun."
Being called, I started walking with Horikita.
"A-… Au…"
Huh? I saw Sakura who was following us from behind dropping her shoulders.
"Let's find food together Sakura."
Yamauchi, who called behind Sakura's back, suddenly showed me thumbs up. It seemed that was the sign of using the chance of only two of us being together.
"Take care, Ibuki-san."
Ibuki and Kushida who stayed paired up. Ibuki is unsocial as well but there shouldn't be problem being with Kushida.
"Horikita, how will you handle the custom key card?"
"I check it on the sixth day of the trial, right… I always have it on me."
Saying this, she put her hands in the pocket of her jacket letting me know it's right there.
"When I improve the device, I'll slip it among the students arranged by Hirata-kun. Ibuki and the others aren't supposed to know."
Well, I wasn't worried much concerning the circumstances. Since it was the thing I had to pay the most attention to I'll do it well.
"Could you show it to me?"
"Huh? Here?"
"It's rather convenient here. It's too suspicious in the basecamp."
"… That's true, but what will you do when you see the card?"
I explained the situation to Horikita who was giving me suspicious look.
"To be honest, I was being silent until now. Since I was together with Sakura she can confirm it later, but I saw students having some kind of keycard on the first day."
I told Horikita about Katsuragi obtaining the card in front of the cave.
"However, I'm not sure if that was really the keycard. I haven't properly seen the thing. I wouldn't joke about the thrown telephone card, right?"
"… Right. If you're absolutely positive, then that's a huge accomplishment."
Being convinced of the reason, Horikita turned to alert Ibuki and secretly took out the card. I received and checked its front and back. The back side was the usual magnetic card, but as Ms Chabashira said the front side was having the proof of the leader. The name of Suzune Horikita was carved. Even when I tried touching it with hands, I understood it wasn't something to be peeled off.
"Well? Is it the same card Katsuragi-kun had?"
"No… Hmm. I thought I'd know seeing it… But it's of a different color than I remember."
"There's a possibility that the keycard is of different color depending on the class."
"Indeed. But there's a shortage of material to decide. If we make a mistake we can't recover."
When I tried to return the card, I dropped it from my hand on the ground.
"Oh!"
At the same time I let my voice in panic, Horikita immediately reached out her hand to pick it up. She put the card in her jacket, but due to the noise we naturally gathered the attention of surroundings.
"What happened?"
Kushida looked over here a bit worriedly. Ibuki as well.
"No, it's nothing. There was a bug and I got surprised. Yuck."
When I looked at Horikita apologizing, she glared at me terrified.
"S-sorry…"
Horikita became extremely furious and took a distance from me.
"Did she dump you?"
Yamauchi approached grinning.
"Look, Yamauchi. I have to ask for advice so would you lend me your ear?"
"What is it, is the consultation fee for love expensive?"
"This vicinity's ground is full of mud due to rain, right? I want you to put this mud all over Horikita's hair. Can I ask you that?"
"… Huh? If I do that I'd get killed! I certainly won't do that!"
Of course, I understood I won't get an agreement. However, this was an act that was too unnatural for me to carry out. Since Yamauchi is normally good at telling lies and doing pranks, I thought he could pull off this stunt.
"You know, even if Horikita gets mad at me it's still uncool to do a revenge."
"Maybe if you do it, you'll get an opportunity to get an email address from Sakura."
"Whaa—- !?"
"How's that?"
"Huh, Sakura's email address… Hm. I, I'll do it."
Boy that lives for love quickly decides to die for it. This decisiveness is amazing.
"Are you absolutely sure? If you're lying I won't do it."
When I gave a sign, Yamauchi gathered up a lot of near-by mud with both hands and turned behind Horikita's back. If she had not been ill, she might have noticed signs, but Horikita couldn't afford to pay attention to her surroundings now. Kushida and Ibuki, noticing the bizarre behavior of Yamauchi, were watching curiously. And then, Yamauchi did it. With all one's strength he covered Horikita's beautiful black hair in mud with both hands. He filled her up all over with both hands. He didn't have to overdo it, but well…
"Ahaha! Horikita, you're full of mud! Funny!"
Like a youngster, Yamauchi laughed at the prank pointing finger.
As if she couldn't grasp the situation for a moment, Horikita didn't move for a while. However, when she understood it, she got up and without words grabbed Yamauchi's hand that was pointing at her.
In a moment of confusion Horikita threw away Yamauchi.
5
We returned to the base camp before noon with no result. Even without the sun, it was unbelievably hot in the forest during midsummer. Even Horikita, who said she didn't sweat, was slightly wet.
"You'd better wash yourself quickly, Horikita-san. You're quite muddy…"
"That's right… This situation is truly painful."
Having her hair and clothes covered in mud, Horikita was annoyed with displeasure. She wasn't excepted even with her bad physical condition.
"It's because I resent you for a lifetime. Prepare yourself."
Burbling Yamauchi hid behind my back, trembling in fear.
"I-I-I, I di-did it. Promise, keep your promise!"
"It's alright. I'll tell you after the trial."
It might have been bad for Sakura, but Yamauchi needed a compensation for his heroic act.
"Oh no, looks like it's impossible to use the shower room…"
The girls who had already returned from the search gathered in front of the shower room waiting for their turn. Ironically, Karuizawa and two other girls from her group were standing in line. Even if Horikita and the others stood in line now, it would be a long wait. But due to various reasons of her muddiness, she wasn't thinking of surrendering to Karuizawa who showed hostility towards Horikita. It looked difficult to cut in there.
"How about using the river? It's easy, right?"
"… Right. Looks like there's no other option."
"I could go swim as well. Would you come with us, Ibuki-san? I sweat a lot. If we get the approval then C class can use the river?"
Using the spot without permission was the unquestionable rule.
"I'll pass. I'll quietly wait for the shower room since I don't like swimming."
"Well, well me too…"
Taking advantage, Sakura refused as well not wanting to expose her bathing suit to boys' view. Horikita turned her back after seeing the shower room once again. The shower room with its source of hot water was the best for sure, but regardless of the cloudy sky it was quite humid. She didn't have confidence to keep on waiting with her bad condition.
I was heading towards the front of the tent together with burbling Yamauchi.
"I'll rest in the tent for a while. It hurts where I was hit…"
It looked like Yamauchi was crying entering the tent while walking unsteadily. Although a suitable person, he really did a harsh favor…
Well, let's go back to Horikita's state. She disappeared from our views having already started to change into her swimming suit. During that time the number of people waiting for the shower room gradually increased. Behind Karuizawa and the others were Sakura and Ibuki. Two other girls lined in the back.
On the other side, the number of students enjoying their time swimming in the river was big as well. A few minutes later Horikita and Kushida appeared in swimming suits as well.
I went to the luggage storehouse where the boys' bags were placed alone. Then I was walking inside the camp from one place to the other searching for a less popular place. When I returned about 5 minutes later, I saw Horikita who was washing herself in the river standing up. The cold river's water must have been a poison to Horikita's sick body, but she was satisfied with washing away the mud.
"Uh-oh, looks like you worked hard."
Seeing Ibuki at the very end of the shower room's line, I slightly nodded.
6
I was waiting 15 minutes in front of the boys' tent for Horikita to come out. She stood stock still for a while, laying her eyes down to check up her condition. She then slowly raised her head looking around. When her eyes met mine, her pupils swayed for a moment. Her figure approaching me with heavy footsteps didn't seem to be frail.
"… Ayanokouji-kun. Could you come for a moment…"
I turned around once again to check if Ibuki lined in front of the shower room.
"What's wrong? Did something happen?"
"Follow me… We can't talk here."
With only uttering this, Horikita left the camp moving towards the forest.
"What happened? Are we going to enter the forest searching for food again?"
Horikita kept on walking without answering my calls. She stopped once we couldn't see the camp anymore. Horikita turned back wanting to say something, but hesitated for a moment as if having second thoughts.
"… It was my negligence. I wanted to say to you after I realized it was a mistake. Is that alright?"
"Mistake?"
"… It is stolen."
"Y-you aren't saying you underwears were stolen, are you?"
"No. Even worse. The thing stolen is… key card. It was a complete mistake."
Falling into self-hatred, Horikita showed a facial expression I hadn't seen until now.
"I wanted to talk to you since I trust you. I couldn't consult with someone who might be a culprit. It's so embarrassing I want to die…"
I was honored to hear that, but I couldn't possibly rejoice in front of her when she was feeling down.
"Such a big mistake…"
"No, the one who stole it is to blame. Alright?"
"Even so, it's a matter of responsibility. It has nothing to do with me being in a bad physical condition or covered in mud." Said Horikita regretfully, casting her eyes down. The leakage of information could bring big damage in the trial.
"I shouldn't have let go of the card even for one second. But instead, I…"
"Don't blame yourself. Maybe it won't console you, but I think you did the best you could do."
I didn't know if she had heard me. All she did was bit her lower lip as in regret.
"We shouldn't announce this publicly for now. We should grasp the situation first."
"Yes… I think so too."
Everyone would have panicked if they had known the truth. I wanted to avoid that at least.
"I suspect two persons. Karuizawa and Ibuki."
The former one would have done it out of simple hatred. Horikita hurriedly explained she could have stolen it out of fun.
"The chances are low. Karuizawa was the whole time in front of the shower room."
"Are you sure…?"
"Yes, I can affirm. The same thing about the two girls who were receiving orders from her."
"If that's correct, the chances of Ibuki being the culprit is high. She could have known about the existence of the card in the morning and the timing was just too good. However, don't you think stealing is a very dangerous stake? Since the name of the leader is carved on the key card, only looking at it is supposed to be enough. Maybe she's mimicking crime on purpose."
As if seeking for my answer, she looked at me with suspense. I laid my hand on Horikita's shoulder and calmly said:
"We could understand that if we examine the timing and inquire Ibuki. If we're going to doubt Ibuki then we shouldn't keep our eyes off her. Her escaping away would be the worst scenario."
"That's right. But excuse me, I wonder if you could return before me to follow her immediately."
"… Is that so? I get it. I'll go back and look out for Ibuki."
She probably had the urge to be alone in order to throw up. I left Horikita by herself and returned to the base camp.
(Illustration: https://imgur.com/hczbUri)