"Huh? Why are you glaring at us just because your panties are missing?"
In this situation, the other guys knew better than to speak up first, knowing they'd become the target. But Ike, being the fool he was, blurted out the obvious.
As expected, Shinohara turned her fierce gaze toward him.
"Isn't it obvious? One of you must have stolen them in the middle of the night! Our luggage was just outside, easy to take if someone wanted to."
"N-no, no, no! There's no way! Right, guys?"
Ike stammered, looking anxiously at the others, completely unaware of how suspicious he looked.
One of the guys spoke up calmly, "Ike, I remember you went to the bathroom late last night and took a while."
"N-no, that's just because it was dark, and I had trouble seeing!"
"Really? You weren't the one who stole Karuizawa's panties?"
"Idiot… of course not! I'd never do something like that!"
Watching them start to turn on each other, Hikigaya felt relieved that he wasn't friends with any of them. Logically, if they were falsely accused by the girls, shouldn't the guys stick together and defend themselves? But in reality, they were only concerned with throwing each other under the bus to protect themselves.
It was pitiful to watch.
And Shinohara wasn't much better. Even if she wanted to find the culprit, accusing all the boys indiscriminately wasn't the way to do it.
It was mindless and infuriating.
"In any case, this is a serious issue. There's no way we girls are spending the rest of this camping trip with an underwear thief."
Shinohara crossed her arms, looking like she was ready to explode at any moment.
She had no real authority, yet she dared to boss others around as if she were someone important.
"So, Hirata-kun, could you help us find the culprit?"
At Shinohara's request, Hirata looked troubled.
"But there's no evidence that a boy did it. It's also possible that Karuizawa-san misplaced them herself."
Hirata was trying to be diplomatic, not wanting to escalate the situation.
But, of course, Shinohara and the others weren't satisfied with that.
"I know you're not the culprit, Hirata-kun… but can we check the boys' backpacks?"
"What?! Are you kidding me? Why should we let you do that?"
"Yeah, why should we listen to you?"
The boys were instantly up in arms, but Hirata quickly calmed them down.
"Everyone, let's not get too worked up. Let's come together and discuss this."
Then, he turned to Shinohara.
"Sorry, but could you give us a little time?"
"Since Hirata-kun is asking… fine. I'll talk to Karuizawa-san, but if you don't find the culprit, we'll have our ideas."
Shinohara still acted like she was in charge, with confidence that was baffling. After that, the group temporarily dispersed. Hirata immediately gathered all the boys again to discuss the situation in front of the tent.
"Don't mind them. Why are we being accused without any evidence?!"
"Yeah, it sucks being suspected."
"And seriously, who'd want to steal Karuizawa's panties?"
That last comment resonated with the boys. While Karuizawa was attractive, she had a boyfriend, so… yeah, they all knew what that meant.
Besides, there were other cute girls in the class.
Given the choice, the boys preferred the pure and sweet Kushida.
"I'm not accusing you guys either, but I don't think this will solve the problem," Hirata said, shaking his head slowly. "To prove our innocence, it might be better to just let them check our bags."
As he spoke, he took out his bag.
"I'll be the first to comply with their request, and then you'll have no choice but to follow. How does that sound?"
"But, but…"
You had to hand it to Hirata; he was willing to sacrifice his pride for the sake of the class's stability. Just like when he said he'd kneel to get the others to sign the contract—he meant it.
Even Hikigaya and the rest of the boys had no choice but to comply, given how far Hirata was willing to go. They couldn't protest after that, so they all resigned themselves to the situation.
With sighs of resignation, they searched through the pile of luggage in front of the tent for their bags.
Hikigaya, on the other hand, returned to the hammock area. He had used his backpack as a pillow, so it wasn't with the others.
Fortunately, that meant he didn't have to worry about being framed.
Yes, this wasn't just a simple case of underwear theft.
While there was no direct evidence, Hikigaya found it hard to believe anyone would be stupid enough to steal a girl's panties in a group setting like this, where the risk of getting caught was high.
Unfortunately, as a guy, objecting now would only make him look more suspicious, so he decided to just go along with it.
Hikigaya grabbed his backpack and headed over to Hirata, falling in line with the others for the inspection.
Soon, one by one, the boys passed the check, until only Ike, Yamauchi, and Ayanokōji were left.
Those three were lingering around the tent, acting suspicious.
"Hurry up, you guys."
Someone impatiently shouted at them, and Shinohara and the other girls also began to look suspicious.
Could it be…
Hikigaya suddenly thought there might be some entertainment in this after all.
"Sorry, sorry, my bag was dirty, so I was just brushing off some dirt."
Not only did the three of them arrive late, but Ike also came up with a lame excuse, making them even more suspicious.
However, nothing was found in the end.
After the inspection, Hirata told Shinohara, "I checked, and nothing was found."
"Really?"
"Yes, it turns out the boys aren't the culprits."
"…Wait a minute."
Shinohara wasn't satisfied with the result and started inspecting the boys' tent.
It seemed she suspected the panties might be hidden inside, but she found nothing and returned to discuss it with the other girls.
Just as everyone thought it was finally over, Shinohara spoke again, "Hey, Hirata-kun, what if the culprit hid the panties in their pocket? And Ike-kun, Yamauchi-kun, and Ayanokōji-kun were acting suspiciously earlier. That's concerning."
Wait, did she just say… they want to frisk us?!
…This could be bad.
Although Hikigaya wasn't the thief, he didn't want to be frisked either.
He was carrying the digital camera he had stolen from Kaneda on him.
If it were found, not only would it be a hassle to explain, but it could also jeopardize his plans.
But arguing against it would only make things worse.
Maybe Hirata could convince them to—
"Hey, you're crossing the line!"
Ike, as expected, was too simple-minded and hastily objected, which only drew more fire from the girls.
"Ike-kun, you've been acting weird since earlier. You're not hiding the panties, are you?"
"What! No way! Fine, search me if you want!" Ike spread his arms wide, trying to prove his innocence.
Wow, calling him an idiot would be too kind—he fell for the oldest trick in the book.
"Then let us check, Hirata-kun. Can you help us?"
Shinohara was pushing her luck, or rather, this was her plan all along.
Reluctantly, Hirata agreed but insisted that after checking Ike and the other two, the girls should stop suspecting the rest of the boys.
This was perfect for Hikigaya.
As annoying as these girls were, as long as they didn't search him, he had no reason to complain.
But then again… something about Ayanokōji seemed off.
Even though he appeared calm as usual, Hikigaya sensed a slight tension in him.
…No way.
Could it be that in his quest to become the masterpiece, Ayanokōji had developed some kind of psychological issue, leading him to steal girls' underwear?
Or was he just a closet pervert?
While Hikigaya was lost in thought, Ike and Yamauchi had already been searched, leaving only Ayanokōji.
Ayanokōji stood motionless, like a dead fish, silently accepting Hirata's inspection.
It was as if he had given up entirely.
Hikigaya's unease grew, but there wasn't much to see from Ayanokōji, so he focused on Hirata instead.
Hirata was conducting the check normally, but when he reached into Ayanokōji's back pocket, he suddenly froze.
Then, just as quickly, he continued as if nothing had happened.
It was only a brief moment, not even a second, but Hikigaya was sure he hadn't imagined it.
Hirata had found something.
He must be covering for Ayanokōji, pretending he hadn't seen anything.
—What a loyal friend!
Hikigaya suddenly found the situation amusing. Karuizawa had probably started dating Hirata to have someone protect her, but it turned out her protector was looking out for more than just her.
"Ayanokōji-kun didn't have anything either."
"Even Ayanokōji-kun didn't take it."
At Hirata's words, Ike and Yamauchi exchanged glances, looking utterly shocked.
Wait... even these two idiots knew?
As Hachiman realized this, he suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for Ayanokōji. What does it mean to have useless teammates? This is exactly it! Ike knew perfectly well that the underwear was with Ayanokōji, yet he still agreed to the girls' demands. Luckily, it was Hirata who was searching. If it had been anyone else, Ayanokōji would have been in for a humiliating experience.
Although Ike might not have done it intentionally, his actions were undoubtedly a betrayal. No matter how you look at it, it's a scummy move.
"Strange... I was sure it was those three guys."
Shinohara muttered in frustration, but since the righteous Hirata had already spoken, she probably couldn't argue anymore.
However, she suddenly turned her gaze toward Hachiman.
"Wait, there's still Hikigaya-kun! He should be checked too!"
"...Huh?"
Hikigaya was dumbfounded. He just wanted to watch the drama unfold, not become the center of it.
"Shinohara-san, this isn't right." Hirata quickly intervened. "You promised me that after checking Ayanokōji-kun and the other two, this would end and no one else would be involved."
"But his bag wasn't with the other boys, so I have every reason to suspect him," Shinohara insisted confidently.
"Hey, enough is enough, you guys!"
Suddenly, Sudō spoke up, clearly annoyed. "I went to bed late last night, and Hikigaya was lying in his hammock the whole time. There's no way he's the culprit. You girls need to stop accusing people without reason!"
Hikigaya was a bit surprised; he hadn't expected Sudō to defend him.
But Shinohara ignored him completely, keeping her eyes locked on Hikigaya. "If you're not the culprit, then there's no harm in being checked, right? Hirata-kun, please."
With that, she decided on her own.
This ugly girl, taking advantage of the other boys' reluctance to resist, was becoming more and more outrageous.
—Sigh, what a pain.
Normally, the hassle-averse Hikigaya might have just let them search him; after all, they wouldn't find anything anyway. He found this ugly squabble incredibly tedious and just wanted it to end quickly.
But this time, he absolutely couldn't let it slide.
...Looks like there's no other choice.
"I'm sorry, Hikigaya-kun, I promise it'll be quick."
Hirata's voice was filled with apology as he approached Hachiman.
As the leader of Class D, he indeed had his difficulties, and his actions weren't entirely unreasonable. Unfortunately, this time things wouldn't go as he hoped.
Smack!
Hachiman swatted Hirata's hand away and then looked at Shinohara with a blank expression.
"Ugly girl, don't you ever know when to stop?"