The classroom was already tense, but when Hikigaya finally spoke up, the atmosphere turned ice-cold. No one had expected him to launch into a direct tirade, least of all Shinohara, who had been riding high on her assumed moral superiority.
With Hirata on her side, she believed the boys wouldn't dare oppose her. And for a while, reality seemed to support her arrogance—until she hit an immovable wall.
"Who are you calling ugly?" Shinohara's face flushed with anger or perhaps embarrassment. "Maybe you should take a look in the mirror, you dead-eyed freak! You're probably the underwear thief!"
"Yeah, I'm the dead-eyed freak," Hikigaya replied, ignoring her accusation about the underwear. Instead, he zeroed in on her biggest insecurity.
"But what does that have to do with you being ugly? If you don't believe me, let's hold a secret vote right now and see how many people think you're the ugliest girl in class."
Shinohara's mouth dropped open, and the boys erupted in laughter. The other girls looked around uncomfortably, but no one dared to challenge Hikigaya.
"Come on, Hikigaya, isn't that a bit too much?" one of the boys snickered.
"Shinohara is just being a nuisance," another chimed in.
The boys, already angry from being unfairly accused of theft and having their belongings searched, were quick to rally behind Hikigaya. The girls, unwilling to back down, immediately voiced their support for Shinohara, and within seconds, the Class D camp had devolved into chaos.
Heated words flew back and forth, and it seemed like only a matter of time before the argument escalated into something much worse.
"Everyone, please, calm down!"
It was Hirata who finally stepped in, his voice cutting through the noise and bringing a brief lull to the uproar. Taking advantage of the momentary silence, Hirata turned to Shinohara.
"Shinohara, the boys have already complied with your request and had their bags searched. The ones you were suspicious of, like Ayanokouji, have been proven innocent. Isn't that enough?"
Hirata knew trying to persuade Hikigaya was a lost cause, so he directed his efforts towards Shinohara, hoping she might relent. After all, while it was understandable that the girls were upset over the stolen underwear, their demands had crossed the line, and it was only natural that the boys would start pushing back.
"No way! I don't care if Hirata-kun is speaking for them, I'm not backing down!"
Shinohara snapped. This time, however, it was clear she was more concerned about losing face than anything else.
"This matter needs to be resolved today! Otherwise, all the boys will remain under suspicion!"
Her words earned her a round of glares from the boys, and Hikigaya was quick to respond.
"Fine, if that's how you want to play it. The boys have already had their belongings searched, so now it's the girls' turn."
"This has nothing to do with us!" Shinohara retorted, frustration creeping into her voice. "And besides, we've already checked our bags multiple times. It's obvious the thief is one of the boys!"
"Your logic is flawed," Hikigaya shot back. "Why are you so certain none of the girls made a mistake?"
"We've checked over and over again!" Shinohara insisted.
"Looks like you're still in denial." Hikigaya's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Someone like you probably can't help but take out their frustrations on others. You know, saying nasty things behind their backs, throwing their indoor shoes in the trash—things like that. Who's to say something like that didn't happen here?"
His words sparked a murmur among the students. It was a possibility they couldn't completely dismiss. Even with the school's strict surveillance, petty bullying still occurred behind closed doors.
Hikigaya had heard Matsushita mention that at least six group chats existed among the girls in her group alone.
"In this situation, most of the girls have shown restraint," Hikigaya continued, pressing his advantage. "But you've been making a big scene this whole time. It's hard not to suspect you're trying to confuse everyone."
"What?!" Shinohara looked like she was about to faint from the sheer absurdity of the accusation. "Are you saying I stole it? How could I do that to my friend, Karuizawa?"
"Did I mention your name? Why are you so defensive?"
Hikigaya wasn't done yet. "But now that we're on this deserted island, things would be pretty convenient for you, wouldn't they? All the luggage is out in the open—easy pickings if someone wanted to steal something."
Shinohara's earlier bravado was crumbling. She could see the doubt creeping into the eyes of those around her, and in a panic, she turned to Hirata for help.
"Hikigaya-kun, I think that's enough," Hirata interjected, still trying to play the peacemaker despite Shinohara's earlier stubbornness.
"I truly believe there's no bullying going on in our class."
"Oh?" Hikigaya's tone was filled with disdain. "So you're saying that because you're sure there's no bullying among the girls, it must be one of us boys who stole the underwear? Since you're not under suspicion, it doesn't matter how we feel, right?"
"No, that's not it at all!" Hirata stammered, struggling to find a way to argue back.
"I just don't think Karuizawa has any reason to be targeted," Hirata said, trying to steer the conversation back on track.
"And why wouldn't she be?" Hikigaya was relentless.
"With how arrogant she acts, it's no wonder she's resented. Has she even paid back the points she borrowed?"
"Well, that…"
"Plus, Karuizawa's been using the whole 'we're friends, so it's okay' line to get what she wants. That's manipulative. Add in the unpaid debts, and you've got someone who's practically asking to be hated. It's her fault if she's being targeted."
Although many of the girls in Karuizawa's group glared daggers at Hikigaya, none of them could outright deny his claims. Even Shinohara was at a loss for words. After all, everything Hikigaya said was the truth, and everyone in the class knew it.
The tension in the air was palpable. Originally, Karuizawa had been the perfect victim in this scenario, and Shinohara had used the moral high ground to stomp all over the boys. But now, Hikigaya's cutting words had turned the tables. If one of the girls was the culprit, then not only were the boys wrongfully accused, but Karuizawa might have brought this on herself.
"You jerk! No one wants to listen to your nonsense! You're the one who stole it, aren't you?"
Shinohara, realizing she couldn't win the argument, resorted to her usual tactics—brashly accusing others without any evidence.
But this time, only a few girls nodded in agreement. The rest looked confused, their earlier united front starting to crumble.
"Give it a rest, Shinohara," Yukimura, one of the class's top students, finally spoke up, his voice laced with irritation.
"You've done nothing but stir up trouble, acting like you're better than everyone else. You don't even have the right to talk down to Hikigaya."
"What's that supposed to mean? He's useless too!" Shinohara shot back.
"Stop saying stupid things. He's got much better grades than you, and unlike you, he's contributing something right now. Just shut up."
Yukimura had overheard Kouenji's earlier comment, but he knew better than to spread it. For now, he kept his annoyance to himself.
"You're all so annoying! You underwear thief!" Shinohara screamed, completely losing her temper.
"Seriously, women can be such a pain…" Yukimura muttered, making no effort to hide his disdain.
In truth, Hikigaya had heard Kushida complain about how much Yukimura disliked most of the girls in the class. He was frequently at odds with them, much like a male version of Horikita. Though his athletic abilities weren't quite on par with Horikita's, his academic performance was slightly better.
If you didn't count Ayanokouji, Yukimura was probably second only to Sakayanagi in the entire first year.
"Alright, alright, sorry to interrupt your little debate."
Just then, Chabashira-sensei clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"It's time for roll call. You can continue this later if you must," she said, her tone indifferent as though the whole affair was just a minor inconvenience to her.
But Chabashira-sensei's intervention was enough to bring the argument to an abrupt end, at least for now. Yet, there was no doubt that a thorn had lodged itself deep within the hearts of everyone in Class D.
An invisible wall seemed to have sprung up, not just between the boys and the girls, but even among the girls themselves.
"Ah, finally done with that," Hikigaya muttered to himself, dismissing the tension around him. He couldn't care less about the drama that had unfolded—as long as no one discovered his hidden camera, everything was fine.
Though he had to admit, seeing Shinohara and the other troublesome girls get a taste of their own medicine brought him a small sense of satisfaction. But all that talking had left his mouth dry, and he had already spent way too much energy this early in the morning.
If it were up to him, Hikigaya would prefer to just watch the chaos unfold from a distance next time, without getting personally involved. It was simply too exhausting.
But, come to think of it... why had Ayanokoji been staring at him so intently? This whole mess was his fault, to begin with!
Hikigaya was convinced that the missing underwear was tucked away in Ayanokoji's pocket, though he doubted Ayanokoji was the real culprit. There was likely some kind of misunderstanding at play.
But that wasn't the main issue here. Ayanokoji, the so-called "masterpiece," had somehow let things escalate to the point where he was being subjected to a body search. If it weren't for idiots like Hirata covering for him, Hikigaya was certain Ayanokoji would have had a much harder time explaining himself.
Hikigaya decided he couldn't be bothered to figure out what Ayanokoji was thinking. After roll call, he headed out, intent on exploring.
He had promised to meet Hashimoto near the campsite for some intel, but the last thing he wanted was to stick around here any longer. The atmosphere in the Class D camp felt like a wake, with Shinohara and her friends still seething with anger, shouting about how it was impossible to share a camp with the boys.
These girls were starting to make him sick.
However, just as Hachiman was about to leave the campsite, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
…Someone's there?
He felt a gaze on him from the nearby bushes, as if someone was watching.
Could it be Hashimoto? Did that guy really have time to play hide-and-seek?
Hachiman was already in a foul mood, and now Hashimoto was adding fuel to the fire. There was no way he was going to let this go without some payback.
He picked up a small stone from the ground and casually tossed it in the direction of the bushes.
"Ouch!"
A familiar female voice cried out from the foliage.
…Wait, a girl?