Chapter 86 - Vol. 3: Chapter 11 - Ryuuen's Game

"How are you feeling?" I asked."What's the point of asking that when we're already in the middle of the forest?" Horikita answered with a sigh."Oh, you're right... My bad."Well, I guess that's it for my attempt at a conversation.Even if we knew where we were going, it still took us a little over thirty minutes to reach the southern beach."Huh? There's no one here," said Onodera."So Komiya and Kondou were just spouting a bunch of bullcrap?" added Okitani.When we reached the main beach, the only thing that greeted us was the wide area of sand. We could also see the special tent with a lot of computers by the edge, near the dock. This is certainly strange, but Komiya and Kondou didn't seem like they were lying."Let's go to the other beach. They're probably there," I suggested.The five of them nodded in agreement. We headed towards the nearest beach, which was west of this place. We didn't even need to reach the edge of the forest before hearing the excited howls of many students."Woohoo!" The first person that captured our attention was a student riding a jet ski without a care in the world."Hyah-!""Woah!" Meanwhile, other students were happily playing beach volleyball.Toilets and shower rooms were installed without a problem. They also had a big tarp to block an area against the sunlight. Inside that area were things like barbecue stands, chairs, a parasol, snacks, and drinks. And of course, there were jet skis that whizzed along the shoreline and the volleyball that everyone was using. Cooking, laughter, friendly chats, and fun activities could be seen everywhere. The Class D students were wearing their swimwear while enjoying their time on the beach.Of course, there were more things to count, but they didn't really matter.Now, this is a vacation.Everyone in Class D was having a good time. And of course, my classmates' reactions were to be expected."Ehhh...?" Onodera's mouth gaped open."What... the heck is this...?" Meanwhile, Makida squinted his eyes in confusion."Look at all that stuff... Just how much should these cost them...?" Matsushita surveyed the place while murmuring her calculations."Their points are toast..." Okitani shook his head.Horikita, who was behind us, tugged my shirt lightly."Ayanokouji-kun... This is ridiculous..." she said."Yeah, it is," I replied."All this stuff... Is it even possible? Do you think they're up to something?" asked Horikita."Not sure, but we can clearly see how much they're enjoying themselves." I shrugged in response.I took the lead and headed out towards the beach. Of course, a lot of Class D students noticed our sudden arrival, but they didn't really pay us any mind. One familiar student, Ishizaki Daichi, approached us with a non-hostile expression. I could also see Komiya run in a certain direction after seeing us.There's a very low chance that Ishizaki intends to harm us in any way. Regardless, my classmates were still on guard."Ryuuen-san requests your presence," he said with a stern expression."What do you guys think?" I asked."I'm interested in learning his intentions," Horikita replied quickly."I'm alright with whatever Ayanokouji decides to do," shrugged Makida."I don't really know much about Ryuuen, so I'm also quite curious," said Matsushita.Okitani and Onodera nodded in agreement. With that, the six of us headed towards Ryuuen's place while being guided by Ishizaki."Do I still need to keep up the leader act like last time?" Horikita whispered softly, with enough volume so that I could hear her voice with a small lean. Her breath was still very warm but not as warm as before, back when we were still on the ship."Nah. You can talk to him if you want, but I'll take the lead this time. I don't really care if he thinks I'm Class B's true leader or anything like that.""I see."The smell of deliciously cooked meat wafted by our noses. As we tread across the sand and approach the ocean, our group finally reached the man in command of this hedonistic paradise, Ryuuen Kakeru."Such a big entourage," he commented upon seeing us."You seem to be enjoying yourself, Ryuuen.""Ayanokouji? Why's Suzune behind you? Is she that shy to see me in my swimwear? I didn't expect her to have such a pure and adorable side." Ryuuen verbally provoked Horikita in an instant."I don't allow incompetent people to call me by my first name. It would be great if you could stop, Ryuuen-kun," she replied.Sensing the pressure, the other four chose to stay silent."You can scout around the place if you want. Just don't wander off too far or you might get lost.""Alright, Ayanokouji. We'll check out the rest of the forest and take note of any interesting areas," replied Okitani.The four of them headed towards the direction of the forest. Matsushita turned to me with a worried expression before looking back ahead."Ohoh? You could've let your friends enjoy themselves out here. We're ready to share the fun, you know?" Ryuuen said before eyeing me with a sharp gaze. "And would you look at that? It seems like you're the one calling the shots, Ayanokouji. Those four immediately obeyed your orders... I thought Suzune was your leader. Was it all an act?"As expected, he's starting to catch on. Not that it matters."You can think whatever you want. We're just here to ask you about... this." My eyes darted around indicating my subject."Hoh? You're willing to exchange information?" Ryuuen asked with a big smile."Not really. If you want something in return, then we'll just go ahead and leave.""Hahaha! Oh, don't be like that, Ayanokouji. I'm still willing to answer your questions, you know? After all, even if you decide to say anything, they'd be useless to me. It doesn't matter whether you open your mouth or not.""Don't worry about that. I'm not interested in telling you anything. I'll gladly take a one-sided conversation.""Alright, fine," he smirked. "You wanna know about this place, right?""Yeah.""Kuku," he chuckled. "As you can see, we're having a vacation.""Oh, we can certainly see that. It's quite the high life for a summer vacation."Horikita rolled her eyes while listening to our conversation."How many points did you spend on all of this?" she asked."Hmm... Well, I got lazy, so I can't remember the exact number. It didn't really matter." Ryuuen nonchalantly answered her.Just from a quick look, this stuff would probably cost more than 150 points."It seems like you have your own ideas on how to tackle this test.""Oh, of course, I do. Are you one of them, too? Those Class C charlatans, I mean?" Ryuuen asked with a snicker.Ah, so that's why Class D wasn't too surprised about our arrival. Some Class C students were just here, I assume."Maybe we're similar, but I don't think we're the same," I answered cryptically. "Why do you ask?""Keh, they blabbered some pretty boring stuff— about how this test is about perseverance, ingenuity, and cooperation."That's probably something that Horikita would wholeheartedly agree on."I guess that's also another way to look at it," I replied."Cut the crap, Ayanokouji. My guys just visited your base. You're pretty much the same as those clowns."So they still observed the place to some degree."It's not like we have a choice. If anyone suggested a plan like yours, the class would erupt into chaos.""That just goes to show how shitty the other classes' leaders are. They can't even get everyone in line. Look at how happy my class is. They're getting the summer vacation they deserve because of my plan.""You're a fool. As Class D, you're already at the bottom. This so-called plan of yours will only hurt you in the long run," Horikita suddenly spoke out. She couldn't comprehend the utter stupidity of Ryuuen's plan."A fool, huh? Are you talking about me?" Ryuuen grabbed his bottle of water. "That's quite funny, Suzune. To me, the ones who can't even think outside the box are the fools."She didn't buy it. At least, that's what it looked like on the surface. But knowing Horikita, I'm sure Ryuuen's words cast some doubts in her mind. She purposefully acted offended by his decisions with the hopes of getting more information."Ishizaki, take this and get me some cold water," Ryuuen called out.Ishizaki, who was playing beach volleyball, instantly ran out of the court and followed Ryuuen's orders.At that moment, I noticed something strange. There wasn't anything else on top of the table, apart from the bottle. Because of the heat and the table's uneven placement, the condensed cold air would've made a straight water trail...However, before dripping off the surface, the water formed a certain shape most likely due to adhesion."Aren't you being quite laughable right now, Suzune? People are selfish by nature. Preaching me about useless crap like cooperation is stupid, to say the least. After all, everyone lies. Relationships built on trust aren't viable. You can only trust yourself," he said."That's not the kind of answer I'd expect to hear from someone who declared war on us," she replied.Ishizaki returned with a new bottle of cold water."Let me tell you something about myself then." Ryuuen opened the bottle and drank lightly. "I absolutely hate hard work. Patience? Saving? You must be joking. Boring methods aren't part of my arsenal.""Hmph, our results in this exam will heavily rely on how well each leader can bring the class together. You're not even trying.""Oh? Leader, huh? Are you Class B's leader, Suzune? Or perhaps it's Ayanokouji?""It depends on your definition of 'leader'. If it's the one who claims the rights of exclusive possession, then we'll have to keep our mouths shut," I replied."Heh, so you're at least one of the two?""Class B doesn't have a single leader, Ryuuen. I may call the shots at times, but Horikita or Hirata's roles are just as important as mine. Uniting the class is a group effort. After all, we don't have someone like Ichinose.""That girl? Pah, a pacifist like Ichinose isn't worth the talk. I can crush her anytime I want." Ryuuen relaxingly resigned to his seat with a shrug.This seems like a good time to ask about the other problem."By the way, Ibuki's part of your class, right?""Hm? Ibuki, huh? Yeah, she's in my class. Why do you ask?" Ryuuen gave me a side glance."She's been staying at our camp since last night. Her face is swollen, too. Did you do that to her?""Haha, so she wound up in your place? What a pathetic girl," he chuckled. "Listen, Ayanokouji. A ruler has no need for subordinates who disobey orders. We determined that I would use the class's points to my liking. Once I said the word, it's become an undeniable fact. Revolting against the ruler is pointless.""In other words, Ibuki-san clashed with you because she didn't want to waste points," said Horikita."Well, you could say that. That's why I gave her a light punishment." Ryuuen made a slapping gesture which confirmed how he was involved in the matter. "Another boy defied me, as well. He was driven out like Ibuki, so I initially thought they'd be eating grass and insects together. Seems like that isn't the case.""Seeing how indifferent you are to their absence, Class D's points have been entirely spent, haven't they?"My conclusion made Horikita's eyebrows twitch."You're right, I've spent all of them, down to the very last point," Ryuuen replied with a smirk.This was Ryuuen's strategy. He didn't need to look for missing classmates nor worry about the roll calls if they were already at zero points. Spending everything didn't only make their vacation convivial and extravagant— most of the test's negative elements were nullified, too."Such short-sighted thinking. You may get to have fun now, but what will you do afterward?" asked Horikita."I wonder? You're smart, aren't you, Suzune? Why don't you think of a plan for me?"Horikita ignored him with a stare."Kukuku. In the end, plain, ordinary people can only engage in plain, ordinary thinking. It's funny how desperate you lot are in trying to protect the points you've been given. Occupying spots, looking out for other classes' leaders, running around the forest for food and shelter— How worthless.""Did you even choose a leader for your class?" I asked."Oh, good question. I remember one of my classmates getting called out by Sakagami-sensei last night. 'Must've been the one who got randomly assigned," he scoffed.Horikita shook her head and turned around."Let's head back, Ayanokouji-kun. Talking to him makes me feel ill.""Well, you heard her, Ryuuen. It would be nice to chill out in this place, but we have things to do. Enjoy your zero points, I guess.""Don't sweat it, Ayanokouji. The one who orchestrated those recordings should be a fine opponent. It doesn't matter whether it's you, Suzune, Hirata, or anyone in your class. I'll crush each and every one of you all the same." Those are some aggressive words."It's a pity that the 'favor' from our contract is unusable in this exam, but having a nice card on standby feels reassuring." It's brief, but rubbing some salt on his wounds should do for now.Ryuuen's smile turned sinister. Seems like he wasn't fond of my response. After all, he was reminded of his loss.Horikita and I left the premises and waited for the others beside a marked tree.I saw the cruise ship which was slightly visible from our place. I saw the students of Class D eating and stockpiling food. They were all spending their time on recreational and fun outdoor activities."How substandard. Class D's self-destruction will only help us.""It's a pretty nice strategy, in my opinion. If future class points didn't matter to them, then spending everything should be the best course of action," I said."What do you mean? They won't last a day after this, will they?""You're right. The school knows that, too. What do you think will happen then?"The moment I asked that question, Horikita gasped after realizing something."They'll do what Kouenji-kun did..."That's right. They're not even two whole days into the exam and Class D will already retire to continue enjoying their vacation back at the ship. Ryuuen's classmates must've been happy. They didn't even need to experience a single ounce of hardship."Well, whether the school will allow them to retire all at once is unknown.""That's true, but it's not like sickness is the only reason they can give.""Yeah, physical condition, mental instability— There is a multitude of reasons to retire."I've gained more understanding of how Ryuuen thinks after that visit. He's tackling this exam with a completely different mindset. That in itself is dangerous enough... To him, it's like a..."Horikita...""What is it?""What do you think about Ryuuen's actions?""I already told you, right? It's ridiculous. He's totally treating this like a game.""You're right. I don't know how careful we should be, moving forward." I sighed lightly before continuing. "All of us this could be a part of his true plan.""True plan? Do you have any other ideas?""I hope I do, to be honest..." I shook my head apologetically.It's never too late to let one's guard down. All of us are players, too. If we make a mistake, we might just realize that we're actually playing his game— Ryuuen's game, that is.