"Well then, in that case, I can hand down a punishment, if you would like."
Ichinose-san seemed to be intimidated by the scowl I was wearing, but she
still gave a small nod.
"Yes," she said. "I think that would make me feel better about this."
"Fu fu, you certainly are a strange one. Well then, in that case… Please sit
down, right here." I urged Ichinose-san to step forward and take a seat.
Ichinose-san was as timid as a little lost lamb. I asked the wait staff to get a
menu for her.
"Go on. Please order whatever you like," I told her.
"Um, excuse me, but…what about my punishment?" she asked.
"You are to sit down for about thirty minutes, starting now, to accompany me
for afternoon tea," I replied.
"Huh? Th-that's my punishment?" she stammered.
"Yes, it is. I am taking up thirty minutes of Ichinose-san's valuable time.
Clearly this is nothing other than a punishment."
"I-I'm not sure about all that…but, if you say so Sakayanagi-san, I'll obey your
order," said Ichinose-san.
Although Ichinose-san didn't seem to understand what was going on, she
nevertheless followed my instructions and ordered a drink.
"You really are quite honest, Ichinose-san," I remarked. "You were humiliated
by me in the past, and yet you don't seem to be showing the slightest hint of it
now. You're even willing to accompany me like this."
"I don't think that you humiliated me, though. Besides…the truth of the
matter is that I did make a mistake in the past, after all."
"At the very least, though, I'm sure that you would want to hide an incident
that you felt guilty about, as something that you wouldn't want others to know.
Even if it is true as you say it is, Ichinose-san."
Thus far, in my life, I had seen many outstanding people up close, ranging
from children to adults. While still knowing that I, of course, was the best, there
were many whom I recognized for their talents.
On the other hand, I had probably seen dozens of people who were
completely useless and incompetent. Yet, regardless of excellence or
incompetence, I had never known a single person that could be called purely
good. That was the same for even my own father, my mother, and Ayanokoujikun.
"You are quite a difficult one to qualify," I said. "Perhaps that's why you seem
so very terrifying to me at times."
"I'm…terrifying?" Ichinose-san asked.
I was sure that no one had ever said something like that to her in her entire
life. However, I was also certain that one or two people had been afraid of the
person known as Ichinose Honami.
"All people who live in this world have some evil in them to some degree, but
I don't sense any evil in you whatsoever. You're like a bundle of goodness."
"You're really overestimating me though," she replied, sadly. "I have done
bad things, just like that time in junior high…"
Her shameful past, something that she could by no means be proud of,
remained an indelible reality, even now.
"The goodness that I'm speaking of has nothing to do with such things," I said.
"Besides, even if you did engage in some temporary wrongdoing at that time,
there was still an irreplaceable familial love behind it in the first place."
Even if what she had done then was deemed as wrong in the eyes of the law,
it could still be interpreted as good in other ways, depending on your
perspective.
"That goodness of yours is both your strength and your weakness," I warned
her. "Please be careful not to let others take advantage of it."
"Do you mean Ryuuen-kun?" she asked.
"Yes, but not just him. I myself, as well as Horikita-san, would also use your
goodness for the sake of winning."
I took a deep breath, and then continued, adding the most important part.
"And that includes Ayanokouji-kun too."
It applied to all of the class leaders, including Ryuuen-kun, who she had
mentioned herself. However, the sudden mention of Ayanokouji-kun's name
seemed to have resonated with Ichinose-san, and she appeared shaken.
"Most likely, it was thanks to your efforts that Ayanokouji-kun was saved on
the final day of the uninhabited island exam," I added.
"W-wait a minute, what? Um, what does that…?" she stammered, trailing off.
"This is nothing more than my own speculation. There are honestly many
things which I do not understand myself, so please simply regard what I said as
me thinking aloud, to myself."
I could easily imagine that if I pursued the matter further, Ichinose-san might
shed some light on the more unclear parts of what happened, but it would be
less fun to go about asking that way.
"Looking at you, I can more or less infer that your feelings for Ayanokouji-kun
are different from those you have for other students," I remarked.
"H-huh?!" she wailed. "W-wait, I, um, well, that's, um…!"
"Well, that's a good thing, though. After all, it's only human instinct to have
special feelings for a particular someone of the opposite sex. However,
excessive devotion may result in painful repercussions. Especially so if the
person in question is Ayanokouji-kun," I added.
"I don't really understand what you mean by that, Sakayanagi-san," said
Ichinose-san.
Today was just a warning. I was not going to delve into the matter any further
at this time.
"Let's leave it at that for the time being," I replied. "It's time for afternoon
tea."
Right now, Ichinose-san likely wouldn't even be able to enjoy the taste of the
black tea she brought to her lips all that well. I was sure that the words I had
uttered would be stuck in her head, leaving her unable to forget them.
That was a slight maliciousness on my part, my pity, and my strategy.
4.3
SAKAYANAGI FINISHED telling me about the exchange she had with Ichinose. I
had finished eating and had also just finished drinking my 200 milliliters of tea.
"To be able to win the heart of Ichinose-san, one of the most popular
students in our entire grade? My, you are quite the sinful person, aren't you?"
said Sakayanagi.
It might have sounded like a flirtatious remark, but I couldn't take her
comment in a positive way, not even in the slightest.
"Harsh, Sakayanagi," I replied.
"Fu fu fu, it's my nature, after all."
Sakayanagi was acting like she was trying to protect Ichinose, as if she was
preparing for something in advance. At the same time, she was setting things
up so that she could use Ichinose herself.
"And if I do anything to hurt Ichinose, she'll trust you more," I replied.
"If I can gain her trust, then it will be easier for me to take action in the
future," she said.
Though Sakayanagi was partially my ally, at the same time, in a way, she had
another side to her that was my enemy. Just like how a coin has two sides, she
was making use of the relationship we had.
"Why tell me all of this?" I asked.
"What I just told you was about Ichinose-san, but that's not important right
now. The number of people who know about you at this school is gradually
increasing, Ayanokouji-kun. And those people seem to have a strong interest in
you."
It was certainly true that if Ichinose and I only had a tenuous relationship
during the uninhabited island exam, then she wouldn't have rushed over to my
side at the risk of causing trouble for her allies.
"In addition to that, the third-year students are giving you odd looks, aren't
they?"
I see. Sakayanagi had said she chased after me because she wanted to chat,
but by the sound of it, that must've been the main topic she wanted to get to.
In only a short span of time, Sakayanagi likely noticed that I was being
monitored by the third-year students. I expected no less from her.
"Has there been some kind of trouble with the third-years?" she asked.
"Well, I guess 'trouble' is certainly one way of putting it," I replied. "Seems
like I made an enemy out of a particularly worrisome foe."
"A worrisome foe… The student council president, then?"
Nagumo was probably the only person who would come to mind among the
upperclassmen who might be a difficult opponent.
"I had a little incident with the student council president on the final day of
the uninhabited island exam," I told her. "That was the reason he missed out on
getting first place, and now he sees me as his enemy."
"He had the rug pulled out from under him while he was attempting to stage
a dramatic victory, didn't he?" said Sakayanagi.
"You picked up on all of that?" I asked.
"I'm sure that the majority of those participating in the uninhabited island
exam held the opinion that Kouenji-kun was an unparalleled lone warrior
without peer," said Sakayanagi. "However, I discovered early on that the
student council president was intentionally suppressing his own score. If he led
the way by too wide of a margin, it would have made it blatantly obvious that
the entirety of the third-year grade was working together to make a particular
group win. I noticed it when I saw the cards in his possession, which enabled me
to deduce his strategy."
I had thought that I was already fully aware of Sakayanagi's abilities, but she
exceeded my expectations. That was proof that she had a perfect grasp on
everything that happened during the uninhabited island exam and on the
sequence of events.
"Is there anything that I can do to help?" she asked.
"No, it's all right," I replied. "Nagumo can't make any dramatic moves so
easily. Besides, I'm already quite indebted to you for what you did for me
during the exam. I can't rely on you anymore than I already have."
"Oh, no, you don't need to worry yourself about that," said Sakayanagi. "I was
quite glad that you relied on me, and besides, I took full advantage of your
proposal."
"Took advantage?" I repeated. "Meaning what?"
She giggled softly and looked out at the ocean with narrowed eyes.
"As we neared the final stages of the uninhabited island exam, I determined
that it would be difficult for me to take first or second place," she said. "That
was because the pace at which Kouenji-kun and the student council president's
group were scoring points far exceeded the maximum that my own group could
have collected."
Well, that was because those two groups were fighting on a completely
different level.
"I was intending to get third place, but one of my rivals during the final stages
of the exam was actually Ryuuen-kun. Though he was in a small group
comprising only two people, the other being Katsuragi-kun, their group still
showed incredible tenancy. That was why I decided to appeal to him for help,
and had him clash with Housen-kun," Sakayanagi explained.
"I see, so that's what you meant," I remarked.
"No matter how or why, drawing Ryuuen-kun away from the core focus of the
exam would slow his efforts to score points. In the end, he was eliminated,
which was the best possible result for us."
Sakayanagi was able to successfully crush her rival Ryuuen while helping me
at the same time. Even after hearing all of that, though, there were some things
that I still didn't understand. Ryuuen had been working tirelessly for a whole
two weeks to try and get into a top spot, and yet he had readily cooperated
with Sakayanagi. And he had to have anticipated that he wouldn't come out of a
clash with Housen unscathed. The only thing that was clear to me was that they
had made some kind of promise, but… If Ryuuen had to give up on the
possibility of taking third place in the exam as part of the deal, then I was sure
whatever was in it for him couldn't have been something minor.
"Appropriate compensation…" I mused. "Did he possibly ask you to pay out a
hefty number of Private Points or something?"
If Sakayanagi had made clever use of the Bonus card that one of her
classmates had, then she should have taken in quite a sum of points. It would
make sense if she had made an offer of that to Ryuuen, as he was trying to
collect an enormous number of Private Points.
"I have not paid out a single point, nor do I plan to pay anything in the
future," she answered.
"Meaning it wasn't money?"
At our school, the exchange of Private Points was the standard form of doing
business.
"It might sound like a riddle, but I'm afraid I can't tell even you about it right
now, Ayanokouji-kun. That's the promise that he and I made. Or at least until I
am told to carry out my end of the deal in near future, that is," said Sakayanagi.
Sakayanagi had said, "That wish of his might end up strangling him in the near
future." Thinking about it further, I supposed I could understand why she hadn't
repaid him in the form of money, like Private Points.
"At any rate," said Sakayanagi, "please do be careful, Ayanokouji-kun. You
may have solved one problem, but the issue of the White Room student still
remains, and now there's the problem of the third-years, as well."
"It's definitely been one hassle after another, but I'll try to be careful," I
replied.
I heard a ringtone coming from somewhere on Sakayanagi's person.
Sakayanagi gently signaled to me to excuse her for a moment, and then she
took the call.
"…I see. I will head there straight away," she said into the phone.
Without even speaking for five seconds, Sakayanagi ended the call and moved
away from the railing.
"I'm afraid I have an engagement to meet with someone," she said. "So, if
you'll please excuse me."
"Ah, okay. See you," I replied.
"It was quite fun speaking with you. Well then, 'til we meet again."
After I watched Sakayanagi slowly walk away, I decided to gaze out at the
ocean for a little while longer.
4.4
THAT SAME DAY, Amasawa was walking around the ship aimlessly, all by
herself. Though some of her classmates tried to speak to her at times, she'd just
flash them an amicable smile and that would be that. She never once did
anything like hang out with a group of friends.
"I wanna see Ayanokouji-senpai," she muttered listlessly, stepping out onto
the deck.
Her voice was so faint that what she said was drowned out by the wind.
Amasawa was someone who had no interest in other students at all; Ayanokouji
was the only person who stirred her heart, and she considered the times she
spent with him the only instances where she felt bliss. However, due to the
position she had been put in, she had to intentionally refrain from contact with
him at the moment.
"Ughhh," she whined. "I'm sooo bored, I feel like I'm gonna die…"
"Good day to you, Amasawa Ichika-san."
The person who approached Amasawa as she gazed out at the ocean on the
deck alone was none other than Sakayanagi Arisu from Class 2-A. Amasawa, not
particularly surprised by this, didn't even turn her head. She simply directed her
gaze at her visitor.
"And you are?" She cocked her head to the side in apparent curiosity, as
though she had never seen Sakayanagi before today.
"My name is Sakayanagi Arisu, of Class 2-A. It is a pleasure to make your
acquaintance," said Sakayanagi respectfully.
"Sakayanagi…senpai? What do you want from me?" asked Amasawa.
"Fu fu," Sakayanagi chuckled. "There's no need for such a farce. You are a
White Room student, aren't you, Amasawa-san? Surely you already know who I
am as well, I assume?"
Once Amasawa had heard the words White Room student from Sakayanagi's
lips, she immediately understood what was going on. There was no way she
wouldn't understand.
"Hmm, I see, I see. So, you're the chairman's daughter, the person that
Ayanokouji-senpai relied on recently. Well, seems like you know at least a little
about the White Room, so I guess this might be inevitable. So?" Amasawa was
unsurprised. She just wanted to know what business Sakayanagi had with her.
"Well, it's only natural that I would wish to find out what this White Room
student that he's concerned about is capable of, you understand," said
Sakayanagi.
"Well, it's nice that you're so willing and motivated, but does this mean that
you have Ayanokouji-senpai's permission?"
"Permission?" said Sakayanagi. "Oh, no, I don't need a thing such as that. I'm
here of my own volition."
"Wow, you've got such great confidence in yourself, don't you, Arisu-senpai?"
teased Amasawa.
"I am proud to say that I at least have that degree of competency," remarked
Sakayanagi.
"Wow, so cooool!"
Though Amasawa was complimenting and applauding Sakayanagi, she
seemed somewhat aloof and absent-minded.
"But hey, sorry, but like, I'm feeling kinda sentimental right now. So can we do
this another time?" asked Amasawa.
"Of course, I don't mind at all. I simply wanted to come see you today, faceto-face. That was all," said Sakayanagi.
Sakayanagi, satisfied after having introduced herself, politely bowed and then
turned to leave.
"Oh, hey," said Amasawa, "while I've got you here, Arisu-senpai, do you think
you can knock off the surveillance you've got me under now?"
Sakayanagi had been constantly monitoring Amasawa's location using the
students of Class A and had waited to approach her until she had found
Amasawa alone.
"I instructed them not to be detected, yet you noticed them anyway. Right?"
"A ha ha ha! Oh, wait, they were supposed to be hiding? That's so cute."
"My sincere apologies for any discomfort I may have caused you," Sakayanagi
said. "However, as you can see for yourself, I am disabled, and thus it is not
easy for me to locate and come see you otherwise. Please pardon my
rudeness."
"Oh, actually, there is one thing I wanna ask you. I'm the kind of girl who can
smack a disabled person without hesitation. Is that okay?" asked Amasawa.
"Violence certainly is a strong card to play," said Sakayanagi, "however, it is
not necessarily the strongest there is."
She then lightly tapped her cane against the deck a couple times, with a quiet
tok tok. That must have been some kind of signal, because her classmate
Kamuro appeared somewhere in the distance, as if on cue.
"Oh, that's the senpai that's been following me around," said Amasawa. "Are
you suggesting that she might be able to compete with me?"
"No, that's not what I'm implying. This means that uncivilized acts can be
quickly detected."
"So, what, you want to engage in a battle of wits with me? Don't make me
laugh."
"You are rather hasty, aren't you? Please don't arbitrarily jump to
conclusions. After all, though you may be a White Room student, aside from
Ayanokouji-kun, you're all failures, no? I don't expect too much from you."
For the first time during their conversation, Amasawa's eyes sharpened as she
glared at Sakayanagi.
"What I mean to say is that no matter the stage, I will show you who's the
clear winner and the loser," added Sakayanagi.
"Heh. So that does even include what we talked about before? Violence?"
Amasawa licked her thumb, just now becoming interested in Sakayanagi for
the first time.
"Yes, of course," said Sakayanagi amicably. "Please use whatever means you
like."
"I'll remember you, senpai," said Amasawa.
"It would be my pleasure to be etched into your hippocampus. Well then,
good day to you."
Sakayanagi slowly walked away, and Amasawa took a deep breath, standing
on the now empty deck.
"I might be able to have a little bit of fun, even without Ayanokouji-senpai,"
she mused. "Do I torture Kushida-senpai and have my fun with her? Or would
looking at Arisu-senpai's crying face be better? Normally, I would probably be
feeling really excited, but…"
As she placed a hand gently on her aching abdomen, she thought about what
was to come.
"…I guess I'll just sit tight and watch carefully, for the time being."
It would take a little time before she was fully recovered. Besides, Amasawa
couldn't make a move until she saw how things were going on the other side.
As for Sakayanagi, she left with Kamuro in tow and returned to the passage.
"That first-year seems like bad news," said Kamuro.
"Oh, my, how you can tell?" Sakayanagi responded.
"Just a feeling, more or less. Maybe after hanging around you for so long, I've
developed a bit of a strange intuition. To be honest, I don't want to get involved
with her any further."
"Please cherish that sense you've developed. Nevertheless, she should be
monitored to a certain extent."
Though Amasawa had warned Sakayanagi not to monitor her anymore,
Sakayanagi had no intention of complying, not in the least. If Amasawa knew
that she was being relentlessly followed, she wouldn't be able to ignore
Sakayanagi. And if that was the case, it was possible that Sakayanagi could
provoke Amasawa into making a move.
"She noticed that I was following her though, didn't she?" said Kamuro. "Are
you going to use Hashimoto?"
"If I use him, I suppose he might be able to skillfully talk his way out of things
even if he is discovered, but…"
Engaging clumsily with a student of the White Room could possibly prove
detrimental in the future.
"At any rate," said Sakayanagi, "thank you for your efforts, Masumi-san."
Having finished her part, Kamuro quickly left. Afterward, Sakayanagi took out
her phone and made a phone call.
"Can you please continue?" asked Sakayanagi, speaking to the person on the
other end of the line.
She was asking the person on the other end to keep monitoring Amasawa.
After making her request, she had added one final comment.
"After all, you seem to be the only one in class I can count on, Yamamurasan."
Chapter 5:
Everyone's Growth
THE DAYS SPENT on the luxury cruise ship for our summer vacation continued
to prove to be a valuable experience, and our trip had already passed the
halfway mark. As the students enjoyed their remaining time on the ship to the
absolute fullest, they might have loosened their purse strings much more than
ever before. While this might have all sounded shocking to those students who
were planning to move up in the class hierarchy, it wasn't like splurging a little
during a period of rest and relaxation was a totally bad thing by any means. It
relieved the fatigue that had built up within us, and at the same time, provided
a sense of euphoria and happiness.
Still, that was a very charitable way of putting it, and I supposed it might have
sounded like I was just making excuses I was using my meager Private Points
too.
I changed into my swimsuit. Once I opened the door leading out of the
changing room, an expansive pool stretched out before my eyes. This luxury
cruise ship had a large pool which was open to anyone, but, in addition, there
was another pool on board as well. That one was called the private pool, and, as
the name suggested, you could reserve it for private use.
The reservation fee wasn't cheap, at 20,000 yen for sixty minutes. But the
time spent with close friends was more than worth the money. Moreover, up to
a maximum of forty people could use that pool at a time. If you were to rent
out the pool as a whole class, then it would only come to 500 points per person.
The private pool was unexpectedly popular with the students and was almost
always fully booked during its operating hours, which ran from eight in the
morning to eight in the evening.
Also, it was difficult to swim freely in the large pool as it was often packed
with lots of people. On the other hand, the private pool offered plenty of space,
enough that you could enjoy yourself without any inconveniences.
"Whoa, it's huge, isn't it?" marveled Akito, having arrived at the pool slightly
after I did.
This pool was roughly the same size as the large pool that could be used
freely, without reservations, but it looked so big now that it felt like the scale of
its size changed once you reserved it for yourself.
"Where's Keisei?" I asked.
"He said he'll come after he finishes using the bathroom. The girls are still
getting ready, unsurprisingly enough."
I didn't need to bother asking to confirm that the girls didn't change into their
swimsuits in as short a time as guys did. Akito reached over and picked up a
menu that had been left beside some pool chairs.
"Dang… It's more expensive than the other place," he remarked.
The prices of the drinks at the private pool were considerably higher than at
the free pool. Almost double the cost, actually. That might not have been
entirely surprising, considering the number of orders there compared to the
number of people staffed to prepare them, but it was still rough. This was yet
another example of the relentless exploitation we were suffering under. The
fact that we were prohibited from bringing our own food and beverages was
another indicator that they had thought this out very well.
Just then, the door to the changing rooms cracked open. Akito and I turned to
look at almost the exact same time, but we still couldn't see any signs of anyone
physically coming through yet. Instead, we heard a number of voices.
"Come on Airi, what the heck are you doing? Hurry up!"
"B-b-b-b-b-but! But! Th-this is so embarrassing, Haruka-chan!"
"What's embarrassing about it? You've posted all kinds of embarrassing
pictures online, so this is totally fine, isn't it?"
"B-but it's not like people were looking at me directly!"
"Well, if you ask me, those pictures are way worse. Come on, let's go."
"Ah! Wait, hold on!"
Haruka and Airi were going back and forth in an indescribable conversation.
"Wow, dude. It's like, sometimes not seeing is pretty great too, huh," said
Akito.
That was a rather unexpected remark from him.
"What?" he asked, turning to me.
"I was just thinking, wow, you think about that stuff too, Akito."
"Hey, listen man… It's normal for guys, right?" he said. "I mean, it's not like I
casually say stuff like that on a daily basis, like Ike and those kinda guys. You're
the same way, right?"
Akito was looking at me with a somewhat dumbfounded expression in his
eyes, and at the same time, there was this feeling in the air like he wasn't going
to allow me to deny it. It wasn't as though I was explicitly trying to read
between the lines here. But I did understand that Akito summoned courage to
say what he did. Since I knew it wouldn't be a good idea to bluntly deny it, I
admitted it, openly.
"Well, yeah," I said.
Akito chuckled a bit, as if he were relieved. "If the girls heard us, they'd
probably call us idiots or somethin'."
Akito was usually quite calm and composed with somewhat of a poker face,
but it was obvious from how much he was talking right now that he was feeling
anxious. However, it sounded like Haruka and Airi were still going back and
forth, and they weren't quite coming out yet.
"But it's so embarrassing!"
"Hey, listen here! I feel the same way, you know!"
"Um, H-H-Haruka-chan… This is a very daring outfit though, isn't it?"
"You promised me that you'd show it to everyone if you wore it!"
"Eek!"
Waiting for the girls, Akito and I were left in a state of limbo.
"Daring, she says," remarked Akito.
"Sounds like it," I replied.
Anticipation filled the air, accompanied by a feeling of embarrassment. Where
should we look and what should we say to the girls when they come out?
"No, no, I can't do this! A-at least let me go borrow something to put on over
it!"
"Absolutely not! Come on, you are not running away!"
"Ughhh, but this kind of swimsuit is just so embarrassing, Haruka-chan!"
"Well, it's embarrassing for me too, okay? Besides, I have no choice but to do
this along with you!"
"I never asked you to do that!"
We were eagerly, impatiently awaiting their arrival, but from the sounds of
things, Haruka's attempts to wrangle Airi were going to continue for a little
while longer yet.
"Hey, Ayanokouji," Akito said. "What do you think about Airi?"
Akito had been looking in the direction of the girls earlier, but I realized now
that he was looking over at me. I knew he wasn't just asking me some random,
off-the-cuff question.
"In what way?" I immediately understood what he was trying to get at, but I
deliberately decided to play dumb.
"I mean, mixed-gender groups can be a little complicated, right?" he said. "I
mean, someone could end up getting a crush on somebody else or something.
That wouldn't be so weird."
It was becoming more difficult for me to respond to that question.
"What about you?" I asked, turning the question around. When I did so, Akito
had a somewhat conflicted look on his face.
"Ah, I see," he replied.
After a brief period of silence, Akito spoke once more. "I'd probably be lying if
I said I didn't have any feelings at all." With that answer, he didn't deny there
was someone. He admitted it. "But if it might break this group apart, I don't
think I'd push it."
That meant that he was going to leave those feelings to smolder deep down
in his heart of hearts. I couldn't determine right now if he was talking about
Haruka or Airi, but… I wondered what the right thing was for me to say. Unlike
with math, it wasn't like you could find a clear, quantifiable answer for
something like this.
"Kiyotaka, you—"
"Kyaaaah!"
Just as Akito was about to say something, the half-opened door swung wide
with great force. Airi came rushing out, like she had been falling forward. Akito
and I exchanged looks once again as we heard loud shouting coming from their
direction.
"H-hey! That was so mean, Haruka-chan, pushing me like that!"
"Well, that's because you weren't getting out here fast enough!"
After saying that, Haruka stepped out of the changing room, appearing after
Airi.
"H-hey, hey…"
Akito stared, dumbstruck. It went without saying that I was similarly
astonished. How should I put this? Both of them were wearing incredibly daring
swimsuits. If this were not a private pool, I'm sure they would have attracted
many stares from men and women alike. Haruka immediately raised her gaze,
looking over at us. Somehow, I got the feeling like it was somewhat criminal for
us to stare at them like we were, and Akito and I both averted our eyes at the
exact same time. We both randomly turned to look in another direction.
However, something else must have caught Akito's curiosity, because he said
something to me as we kept our gazes fixed elsewhere.
"Airi really makes a different impression, huh?" he remarked.
I had really wished that he wouldn't talk to me about that right here, but I
figured that Akito must have been in a painful situation too.
"Yeah. She has this sense of purity," I replied.
"Yeah, that's it," he agreed.
As Akito and I were expressing our thoughts about Airi, Haruka had a clearly
disappointed look on her face.
"And I'm common? Ordinary?" she huffed.
"Don't say that," I said. "It's just…I'm too surprised to say anything."
I would have really loved it if Haruka caught on to the part where my
vocabulary was rapidly declining.
"I'm…gonna swim for a bit," announced Akito.
Perhaps the two girls were too stimulating for him because Akito quickly
turned his back to us and jumped into the pool without even doing any warmup stretches or anything. Splashing around, he swam through the pool, all
alone. I knew how it felt to be overcome with the feeling of wanting to escape.
It was precisely because of the environment we were in, a private pool, which
we rarely got to experience, that when faced with the overwhelming
destructive power of these two in front of us, it became impossible for us to
escape.
Running away like he did by diving into the pool and swimming away so that
he could rid himself of his various worldly desires had been the correct choice.
That being said, if two men suddenly poured all their energy into swimming, the
vibe would obviously become awkward. I had no other choice but to continue
facing them, acting as a shield.
What should I do…? I casually glanced over at the two of them and noticed
that Airi seemed fidgety and nervous. She was blushing. Upon seeing this,
Haruka merrily went around behind Airi, and grabbed both of her shoulders
tight.
"Eep!" she squeaked.
"Sooo? Come on Kiyopon, whaddaya think of the new-and-improved Airi?"
she asked.
With that, Haruka suddenly shoved Airi forward, launching her toward me.
Airi and I were now at so close a distance that if we weren't careful, we'd touch,
skin-to-skin. Actually, then again, it wasn't just like we were that close. We
really were touching. I backed off just enough that she wouldn't notice me
retreating, putting myself at a good distance.
"Ah, um…"
Since both Haruka and Airi's swimsuits were showing a lot of skin, coming in
contact with them thoughtlessly would've been problematic. Airi, unable to
bear the situation any longer, opened her mouth to speak, seeming like she
wanted to run away.
"I-I'm going to jump in the pool too!" she shouted.
"Hey, Airi, hol—"
Haruka reached out to grab hold of Airi, but she failed to take hold of her in
time. Then, she jumped into the pool, diving right in…
Well, actually, that's what I thought she was going to do, but instead, she
slowly lowered herself into the water while firmly holding onto the stainlesssteel rails, which was a very Airi-like thing to do.
"Ugh, come on. And it was super embarrassing for me too…" muttered
Haruka.
That certainly made sense. The swimsuits they wore greatly accentuated their
breasts, but what was more embarrassing was the fact that the lower part of
the swimsuit had much less coverage. Even though the bottom half of the
swimsuit was linked with string, they both must have been anxious that
something might happen.
"So, just for your information," said Haruka, "it was actually Airi who chose
that ridiculous swimsuit, okay?"
"I wasn't planning to just ask you about it, but what's the story behind all
this?" I said.
Haruka wasn't normally the kind of student who liked to show skin in public.
Seeing her like this, drawing so much attention to her chest and the lower part
of her body, was definitely out of the ordinary.
"What's the story, huh? What's the story…" she repeated.
For a moment, she had an anxious look on her face. But then, choosing her
words carefully, she started giving me an explanation.
"I'm not really sure how to say this, but I guess it's like, I'm trying to go along
with Airi?"
"What does that mean?" I asked.
She had chosen her words too carefully. I couldn't even begin to understand
what she was saying.
"I mean, she's trying desperately hard to change," she said. "And I am too. I'm
not sure if this is right for me to say, but… I know there are things about me
that stand out, more than for other girls. Y'know?"
She said it in a deliberately roundabout way, but she was, without a doubt,
referring to parts of her that I was having trouble looking away from.
"I know I shouldn't care, but it's like, their stares do make me
uncomfortable," she added.
I could understand her concerns, but it was extremely difficult to ignore her,
considering typical male psychology. It was unavoidable that their eyes would
be drawn to her.
"I picked out a daring swimsuit for myself too to try and encourage her, and
she said that she'd wear hers if I wore mine."
That was a good response on Airi's part. I could easily imagine Haruka refusing
to wear such a flashy swimsuit. If Haruka didn't wear her swimsuit, then Airi
could reply that she wouldn't wear hers then either.
"I'm not going to stumble during the first phase of the Airi Remodeling
Project," Haruka said. "I've got the willpower."
I supposed now that Haruka had accepted the conditions that Airi had set, Airi
herself couldn't run away either.
"Besides, neither of us would be able to wear something like this over in the
open pool over there, but here, that's different," said Haruka.
It sounded like it was because the three guys here were good friends that
they managed to make it happen. Still, even from a guy's perspective, it was
easy to imagine that the girls would be feeling considerably shy about it.
"Did…you look?" she asked, sounding more like she was trying to hide feelings
of revulsion rather than embarrassment.
"Well, to be honest," I admitted, "it's a little difficult even if you tell me not to
look."
There was no helping it, especially since they were right there in my line of
sight when we were talking in the first place. The only way to avoid looking
would be to look directly above or directly below, or by turning my back to her.
"I see," said Haruka. "I think I get the differences between men and women,
but I don't understand psychology."
The differences in curiosity regarding breasts, hips, and the abdomen was not
something that men and women could understand about each other. Well, no,
actually, it wasn't just men or women. It was impossible to know because every
individual person had their own interests.
"Hey, come to think of it, where's Yukimuu?" asked Haruka.
"Sounds like he'll be a minute," I replied.
I wasn't sure if it was because his stomachache was still bothering him, but I
didn't see any sign of him yet.
"Hmm?" she hummed. She was looking far away in the other direction as she
did so, as if to confirm that she wasn't interested.
Our conversation stopped there for the time being, and there was a brief
moment of silence.
"Ugh… It's no use," Haruka said. "I can't stop thinking about it."
"Sorry. I'm trying to be careful not to look."
I couldn't help the fact that her body was in my field of vision because I was
looking at her face while we were chatting.
"No, no, it's not like that," she said. "It's not like you did anything wrong,
Kiyopon. I know I'm way too self-conscious anyway to begin with. And I know
you're not looking because you like it."
Well, no, not exactly… It wasn't like I didn't like what I saw. But I figured I'd
keep that part to myself.
"If something stands out, people's eyes are drawn to it. I know that's how it
goes, it's just like anything else. It's just…when I think about how it's just me, I
can't help but feel, well, not good."
In Haruka's case, it wasn't just the male gaze that bothered her. She didn't
welcome attention drawn to her breasts period, not even in a hypothetical
same-sex gathering.
"Sorry, I think it's going to take me a little more time to calm down, mentally,"
said Haruka.
"It's no problem, really," I assured her. "If you feel like you can't deal with it
though, you could just head back and change."
"No, I can't do that. As long as Airi is doing her best, then I don't want to back
down either."
If I recalled, she had called it the "Airi Remodeling Project." I could tell that
she was thinking about it.
"Let's change the subject," she decided. "I know it's kind of late to mention
this now, but seriously, Kiyopon, it seems like you just barely made it out okay
in the exam, huh?"
Haruka had been late to bring the subject up because the Ayanokouji Group
hadn't been able to get together for the past few days. Even though the exam
was a completely unrelated topic to what we were talking about before, that
fact might have made now a suitable time to bring it up.
"Well, I guess I can't really laugh about it," she added, "since it was the same
for our group."
"To be honest, it was pretty rough, yeah. I did my best, and well, you saw the
results. That's all I managed to get. Sorry."
"No, no, you don't need to apologize at all. Actually, if anything, I wanna say
I'm a little relieved."
She took a short breath, and then looked over at Airi awkwardly trying to
swim.
"Relieved?" I asked. "Even though I got miserable results?"
"Well, there were all those rumors going around that you were, like, this
super incredible person because of the whole math test incident, Kiyopon. But
now, I think things will calm down a little. Don't you? I'm sure you don't want to
be feeling all that weird pressure from people."
Apparently, Haruka was thinking about my future.
"You know, you're much more like a saint than the other guys, Kiyopon," she
said.
"What about me makes you think that?" I asked, doubtful.
I thought she was thinking way, way too highly of me. I had just as much
libido and interest in the opposite sex as the average person.
"I guess maybe it's the expression on your face, or the way you look at me. I
don't really feel as bothered by you as I do by other guys."
Well, I wasn't sure what to say about that. It seemed like she was certainly
attracting all sorts of expressions from people here. I was grateful that another
guy was handling the role of the flustered person. I wondered if we had some
kind of synergy.
"Whoa…" said Keisei, astonished, finally arriving at the pool after being late to
get changed.
That word just slipped out of Keisei's mouth. It was clear that his reaction
wasn't exactly in response to seeing the private pool that we rented. Instead, it
was likely because he saw Haruka standing next to me wearing a bold outfit.
"Yo, 'sup, my dude?" said Haruka.
Perhaps she was playing the fool with a silly look on her face and greeting
Keisei in such a funny way to retain a sense of normalcy.
"H-hey…" he replied, dumbly.
He pushed up his glasses, which looked like they were about to slip and fall off
his face, and then looked in another direction. I supposed this meant that Keisei
was also a fine young man, even though he usually spent all his time studying.
The fact that both guys had reacted in a uniform way and had tried to escape in
a similar fashion showed the character of this group of friends. If he was a
person like Ryuuen or Kouenji, I was sure his reaction would have been
completely different.
"Well, uh… I think I'm gonna go for a little swim too," said Keisei. And with
that, he leaped into the pool to escape, joining Akito, who was still swimming
with vigorous intensity.
Keisei had escaped in much the same fashion Akito did. Airi, on the other
hand, couldn't swim very well, and had her feet touching the bottom of the
pool. She waved over to Haruka.
"Haruka-chan, come on in!" she called. "The water feels great!"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming. Hold your horses a minute."
Haruka stood beside me and started doing warm-up exercises with a "well,
guess we're doing this" type of air about her.
"Seems like you two have gotten to be even better friends since you tackled
the exam together," I remarked.
"Well, yeah, of course, y'know?" said Haruka. "We shared all sorts of stuff,
from top to bottom."
"Wah! Hey, don't say it like that, it's a little embarrassing!" squeaked Airi,
splashing about in panic where she was waiting at the edge of the pool.
Top? Bottom? Those were frequently used words, but in this situation, they
apparently meant something profound.
"I mean, you know, Airi's basically helpless, so I can't just leave her all alone,"
Haruka said. "She's, like, both my best friend and my little sister. Know what I
mean?"
It would've been unthinkable to say that kind of thing when we first met. And
it wasn't limited to just Haruka, either. The same was true with Keisei, and even
though there weren't any major changes with Akito, it was true for him as well.
5.1
WE ALL TOOK TURNS playing around in the pool as a group of friends and
enjoyed ourselves to the fullest. After a round of two-on-one volleyball, we
were now in the middle of some one-on-one matches, with the first to five
points being the winner. The first game was between Keisei and Airi and Keisei
won, five-to-two. Then, Akito and I played a game and Akito won, five-to-three.
Airi's stamina wasn't great, so she was probably worn out after just one game. I
decided to call out to her when she sat down poolside to rest.
"You looked like you were having a lot of fun," I remarked.
"Oh, Kiyotaka-kun. Yes, it was really, really fun. I'm not much of an opponent,
of course, but…"
I wasn't sure why, but for some reason, she tried to stand back up. Instead, I
motioned for her to stop, and decided to sit down next to her.
"To be honest, I'm surprised," I said. "That you had the courage to do
something like this, I mean."
"That's…yeah. I thought I'd try and take the plunge… But I'm still super
embarrassed, even now."
"Why did you decide to summon the strength to do this anyway?"
I didn't imagine that she had done it simply on a whim.
"Well, during the uninhabited island exam, we were basically together with
our groups twenty-four hours a day, right?" she said. "So, Haruka-chan and I
talked about all sorts of things together. We talked about when we were little,
we talked about junior high, and so on. And we talked about how we came to
this school later, and how we all got to be friends with each other."
If you were with someone for a long duration, small talk wasn't going to be
enough to fill time. It wasn't any surprise that their conversations had moved
on to deeper topics. Perhaps through that rich, meaningful time they had
shared, they had both come to understand one another, as if they had been
best friends for a long time.
"I thought to myself, I can change now, I think I can do it… And I thought, it's
now or never…"
"Change? You don't mean just physically, in terms of outside appearance
alone, right?"
"Yeah. I can't say anything for certain yet, but…I've been starting to think, 'I
need to change, I have to change.' I can't just be 'me,' someone who struggles
both academically and physically."
Despite the fact she was blushing and feeling embarrassed, Airi expressed her
determination to see things through.
"I guess your physical appearance is the starting point then?" I asked.
"Haruka-chan told me that it's not okay to deliberately keep yourself from
standing out, to hide away," said Airi. "She got angry me with about it."
Airi had always been reluctant to stick out because of her personality. That
was why she had a modest hairstyle, and she wore eyeglasses that she didn't
actually need when she went about her everyday life. In terms of her posture,
she often hunched her back and tended to keep her face down. She wouldn't
be able to magically see results for academics or sports overnight, but she could
certainly start by improving her appearance.
When Airi looked over at the pool, she saw that there was a new match going
on. The ball struck the surface of the water, and Akito had just gotten one more
point against Haruka. Now, Akito had taken the lead in their game, making it
three-to-one.
"I wonder…if it's too late," she muttered.
She looked up at me, a look of anxiety on her face.
"No, it's not too late at all," I replied. I honestly wanted to commend her for
making this decision. "I'm rooting for you," I told her.
"Th-thank you, Kiyotaka-kun. I… I'll do my best."
Haruka stopped just as she was about to serve and turned to us. "Oh, yeah,
that reminds me," she started. "I forget to tell you. Airi's makeover is still just
between us. We're going to unveil it to everyone once the second semester
starts."
I figured it would be better to do something like that in the classroom when
everyone was present. If she was going to be nervous about it in any case, then
the fewer times she had to go through it, the better.
"Anyway, what do you think, Yukimuu?" Haruka turned to Keisei, who had
also been watching the game. "Did you take a look at Airi?"
"D-don't ask me that," he replied.
"We won't know unless we ask though, will we?" said Haruka. "Come on, let's
hear your unreserved opinion."
When Keisei heard that, he turned to look at Airi, examining her from top to
bottom. Airi naturally must have felt embarrassed by this, so she tried to move
away.
"You can't run away, Airi," said Haruka.
Airi was whimpering and cowering, her arms and legs restlessly fidgeting as
Haruka tried to order her to stay put. Once Keisei had finished making his
observations, his evaluation was…
"Well…uh, it's not, um, bad?" he stammered shyly. "I mean, no, she looks
totally fine, but…"
Keisei normally showed no interest in girls.
"Oh! Well, if it gets that kind of reaction out of Yukimuu, then it must be
perfect!" exclaimed Haruka, overjoyed, jumping high in the air. Then, she
served the ball, slamming it into Akito. He was still looking over at Airi, since she
had caught his attention.
"Ugh!"
"That's one point for me! Now it's two-three!" shouted Haruka.
"Hey, no fair, Haruka!" he shot back.
"Hey, it's your fault for gawking at girls, Miyacchi," she teased. "You know
what they say, carelessness is the great enemy!"
"Don't be ridiculous. Anyway, though…how is it possible for a girl to change
that much just by taking off her glasses and doing her hair a little differently?"
he said, mystified.
"It's because she was already outstanding to begin with," said Haruka. "Don't
you understand that much?"
"Come on, even if you say that it's… Y'know?" said Akito.
Akito and Keisei looked at each other and nodded in unison.
"Oh, good grief. Well, I guess it's because you guys are like this that I feel
comfortable hanging out with you," said Haruka.
Akito shook off his worldly desires and focused on his serve. As the match
resumed, though, Airi quietly muttered something to herself.
"I wonder how I can improve in my studies? Or, like, I wonder how I can make
myself smarter…"
Although Airi and the other students were studying for tests on a habitual
basis, they generally weren't holding regular study group sessions the way
Horikita and Sudou did. That would be essential in raising her low level of
academic performance.
Overhearing Airi mention something related to studying, Keisei quickly
launched into an explanation. "Just start by figuring out what you can do and
what you can't, right?" he said. "We all start from the same place in first grade
in primary school, with everyone progressing side by side. But after that, people
gradually start to show strengths and weaknesses in their studies. Do you know
why that is?"
"Um…" stammered Airi.
"There are individual differences in learning ability and the ability to absorb
information, as well as in the ability to concentrate," Keisei explained. "Some
students can't even concentrate for a minute, while others are able to control
their powers of concentration as needed and get through an entire hour of
class. That alone can start to make a difference in learning ability. But how
much you study outside of class is another key factor."
"That's true, that's a good point," said Airi, nodding her head in agreement.
What Keisei was saying was clear as day to her. "I remember that the kids who
went to cram school were really smart."
"Oraah!" shouted Akito.
Haruka tried to bounce the ball back, but it flew the other way, resulting in
Akito getting a fifth point. As a result, he won the game, five-to-two.
"All right! That means I win," he said.
"Ugh, dang it. But you know, the reason I lost is because I was kinda
interested in their conversation, so I wasn't able to concentrate," said Haruka,
offering both an analysis of why she lost and an excuse for it.
She then came over to the side of the pool. "Why don't you tutor her,
Kiyopon?" she suggested, jumping into our conversation.
"Sorry, but I'm not good at tutoring people," I replied. "Besides, don't we
have a specialist tutor nearby?"
I looked over at Keisei, trying to urge the girls to look away from me and focus
their attention on him.
"Well… I suppose if Airi says it's okay, then I don't mind doing it," Keisei said.
"Wait, hold on, Yukimuu," Haruka cut in. "I was thinking of having you help
me and Akito from now on, actually. Wouldn't it be tough to tutor us and Airi,
since she's at a different level?"
"Um, does that I mean I really am an idiot…?" said Airi sadly. "Sniff…"
"Oh, no, no, that's not it!" said Haruka. "That's not what I meant!"
Akito found himself unable to cover for her. "Well, you know, that's pretty
much the only way to interpret what you just said, Haruka," he muttered under
his breath.
"No, I was just, you see, I… Oh, jeez, I'm so sorry! I went way too far!" Haruka
wailed.
Haruka bowed deeply to Airi, apologizing. And at the same time, those two
massive mounds on…
No, no, let's not look there. If I did, my concentration would be totally broken,
and I'd be focused entirely on that. Just then, everyone started laughing, and
the atmosphere became more relaxed.
"Okay, now it's time we have a rematch between Airi and Keisei," said Akito.
"Huh? Wait, but I won't win no matter how many times I try!" wailed Airi.
"Then I'll join in, as a helper," Akito said. "You don't have to worry."
"W-wait, hold on, Akito. If you do that, I'll be at an overwhelming
disadvantage!" complained Keisei. But he still went back into the pool, despite
his protests. He was profoundly serious about these things. "But I'll do my best
still, so bring it on!"
Airi, who now had a dependable partner in Akito, pumped her fist, striking a
small pose. Haruka and I watched this novel two-on-one battle from the side of
the pool.
Shortly after the match started, Haruka turned to look at me. "Hey, can I ask
you a question?"
"Hm?"
"This might just be my imagination, but aren't you being a little cold to Airi,
Kiyopon?"
"I'm not trying to be," I replied.
"But, I mean, you could've tutored her one-on-one, that would've been
great," she said. "You could manage doing at least that much, couldn't you?"
If the question was whether I could or couldn't do it, then the answer would
be yes, I could. I would be able to do it without any problems.
"It just feels kind of unfair, I mean. To Airi," said Haruka.
"I'm fair to everyone," I replied.
"Really?" she asked.
"I haven't ever really shown favoritism to any one particular person, except
just for show."
"…Does that mean you'd be just as fair with your best friends as your
girlfriend?" Haruka pressed. "That you'd treat them the same?"
"Yeah."
"But then, this is all kinda weird, isn't it? It's like, you're keeping us at too far a
distance. I'm just going to come out and say it. Kiyopon, you've just been
looking at us from far off for a long while now, haven't you?"
It seemed like Haruka had picked up on that as well, then.
"I haven't even seen you smile once, or anything like that," she added,
reaching over with her right arm to pinch my left cheek. She played with my
cheek, tugging on it with a little bit of force.
"I wish that we could make you smile at least, Kiyopon," she said.
"It's not that I'm intentionally keeping myself from smiling or anything," I
replied.
She pulled her hand away from my face and crossed her arms in apparent
displeasure.
"There are other reasons that I can't tell you about directly," I went on.
"Actually, Airi and I might have been too close from the start."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't think it's me that's helping her develop as a person. I think it's her
surrounding environment."
"The environment?" she asked.
"She has you, Haruka, and Akito, and Keisei too," I said. "Being surrounded by
her best friends is the most crucial factor in Airi's development as a person. In
fact, right now, she's making a huge change thanks to you, Haruka."
"I think that the most important person to Airi is you though, Kiyopon."
"If she were the type of person who grew through romantic entanglements,
then yes, I suppose that might be true."
"You know, I've heard before that you've actually noticed Airi's feelings for
you, Kiyopon. But it's like, what you said just now, the way you said it was a bit
harsh…"
She turned to me with a conflicted look in her eyes, like she didn't know how
best to express herself.
"Airi's had major feelings for me since we were first-years," I acknowledged.
"I'm happy about that. It's just…"
Haruka looked at me with anxious eyes, like she was a girl waiting for a
response after telling someone that she had romantic feelings for them. Airi's
love. It was an undeniable fact that as her best friend, Haruka was praying for
Airi to find success in that regard.
"What Airi needs now are friends that she can trust," I added.
"B-but, hey, you know what? It would be okay if there's a romantic element
too, wouldn't it? Maybe she'd be able to work even harder then," argued
Haruka.
"It's true, there might be a synergistic effect," I conceded.
But the trouble was, love basically couldn't be happening multiple times in
parallel. Essentially, you could only have one person fill that role at a time. If
you wanted to bring in a second person, you would have to cut things off with
the first. Of course, it wasn't totally impossible to have a relationship with two
or three people at the same time if you played your cards right. But a closed,
insular environment like at this school wasn't suitable for such a thing, and the
risks would be far greater if you were found out.
"Airi is going to be in for a bit of an emotional shock in the days to come," I
said. "When that time comes, it's you, more than anyone else, who should be
by her side to encourage her and cheer her up, Haruka."
"Wait, hold on, what is that supposed to mean?" she asked.
"Sorry, but I can't answer that right now," I replied.
Airi was the least valuable person in our class. That was because of her
academic ability, along with her physical ability, and some other factors. Viewed
overall, we had no choice but to judge her that way. That wasn't just based on
the OAA—it was my own personal opinion on the matter as well. However, Airi
was trying to change herself right now. So, depending on what she did, she
would slowly grow. Maybe in six months, or in a year from now, she'd be able
to break free from being dead last in our class.
5.2
OUR TIME AT THE PRIVATE POOL came and went in the blink of an eye, and we
started getting changed. Reservation times were fixed as employees needed
time to clean and such before the next group came in. As a result, the system
did not allow for extensions. The three guys quickly showered and changed out
of our swimsuits and left the private pool area. Unlike the guys though, the girls
needed more time to change, so we didn't see them quite yet.
"Guess the girls are still getting changed."
We hadn't discussed what to do after this, so we simply decided to wait for
the girls to come out.
"Ayanokouji-senpai!"
"Hm?"
I suddenly felt like someone was looking at me, and lo and behold, Nanase
appeared. We had set another record today. I had bumped into Nanase every
single day on the ship.
"I asked Nanase to help me find a partner for that written exam before," I
said, explaining who she was to Akito and Keisei. "She helped me out on the
uninhabited island more than a few times too."
"That so?" Akito nodded, impressed. "She must be a pretty amazing girl
then."
He casually raised his hand, offering Nanase a greeting. Keisei followed suit.
Perhaps Nanase was part of the next party who reserved the private pool?
That's what I had thought, but…
"I had just so happened to be passing by here," said Nanase, as if to deny my
suspicions. Her being here was really nothing more than a coincidence?
"I see," I replied.
"I don't mean to intrude though, so I'll be going," she said.
The private pool was the only place in this part of the ship where students
could really play around. The truth of the matter was, as Nanase was walking
away, I couldn't see why she would have shown up here. Well, actually…
perhaps it would be too simple to dismiss this as just another coincidence.
Nanase seemed to have some understanding of my actions, and she was
checking up on me every step of the way.
However, I didn't sense any kind of ill intent behind what she was doing. In
that case, what was she after?
Just then, Nakaizumi and Suzuki walked past the three of us. Even though
Akito and Keisei saw this too, they didn't seem to notice anything unusual.
"What's wrong, Ayanokouji? Something up with those two?" asked Akito.
"No… I was just wondering where they're going," I replied.
"Ah, yeah, you've got a point there," Akito said. "There's nothing up ahead
that way. Maybe they're lost?"
It was true that there were no special facilities beyond this point. Of course, it
wasn't unthinkable that someone could get lost on board. People didn't visit
this level of the ship for anything other than the private pool anyway. Like
Nanase, they were walking around in a place where it was a bit unusual for
them to be. Come to think of it, I had seen Nanase, Nakaizumi, and Suzuki near
the bow of the step yesterday as well…
"Man, Airi's sure got it rough," Akito muttered from behind me. "Seems like
she's got lots of tough opponents."
"What's that?" asked Keisei, quite suddenly.
"Nah, it's nothing," said Akito.
Not long after Nanase left, the two girls came out of the changing room.
"That was fun, wasn't it, Haruka-chan?" said Airi.
"Yeah, I guess it was. Playing in the pool isn't so bad if it's with close friends,"
said Haruka.
The two girls seemed very satisfied, still smiling from ear to ear even after
they finished changing. Haruka was probably still concerned about what I said
to her a little while ago, but she wasn't showing it.
"Oh…"
Just as our full group had gathered and we were about to leave the private
pool area, another group, probably the next reservation, showed up.
"Oh, so you're next, huh, Ike?" asked Akito.
"Y-yeah, man, looks that way. This is the only time I could reserve," said Ike.
"You're not swimming alone though, are you? Where are Sudou and the other
guys?" said Akito, puzzled. He looked behind Ike but didn't see any sign of
anyone else.
"Oh, well, uh, about that…" Ike stammered.
Ike was fumbling his words and seemed fidgety about something. Just then,
something caught our attention, out of the corner of our eyes.
"Sorry to make you wait!" exclaimed Shinohara.
"Huh, now isn't that unusual, Ike, seeing you spend time together with
Shinohara," said Akito. "Where's everyone else?"
Neither Akito nor Keisei were in anyway suspicious of anything. Akito had
asked that question in a very indifferent, casual manner. Of course, Haruka and
Airi immediately seemed to sense what was going on, and though they were
surprised, they started shoving the boys out of the way from behind.
"Okay, okay, let's not worry about that now," Haruka said. "Let's just be on
our way."
"Huh? What's the hurry?" asked Akito.
"C-come on, let's go, Satsuki," said Ike.
"Okay," Shinohara replied.
Ike took her hand and rushed toward the receptionist area of the private pool
like they were trying to make an escape. I supposed they didn't have time to
dawdle, since the reservation times were fixed.
"'Satsuki'?" repeated Akito.
He finally noticed something strange about Ike and Shinohara after Ike called
Shinohara by her first name, and again when they disappeared into the
changing rooms, hand-in-hand, all friendly.
"Wait, so he… Huh?" Akito said. "When did that happen?"
"What are you talking about?" asked Keisei.
He still didn't understand what was going on, but Haruka cut in with an
extremely straightforward explanation.
"They started dating," she said.
"What are you saying? Ike and Shinohara are like oil and water. Why would
those two date?" said Keisei with a serious look on his face, certain that people
who didn't like each other would never date.
"Yukimuu," said Haruka, "you might be smart, but… You're an idiot."
Perhaps girls were more adept at picking up on stuff like this when it came
romance because Airi nodded, signaling that she understood.
"I think that while they might have disliked each other at first, they gradually
grew closer over time," she said. "Lately, I've been getting the feeling that
they've been thinking about each other a lot."
"Yeah, I suppose. But still, wow, I never imagined that. I'm shocked that they
actually started dating," said Haruka.
"…I-is that so?" said Keisei. "Ike and Shinohara? No, I really don't get it after
all…"
Having gotten a grasp on the situation, Keisei stood there, aghast, searching
for Ike and Shinohara, who had already disappeared from view.
5.3
NOT TOO LONG AFTER I finished hanging out with my friends and returned to
my room, I heard Miyamoto mumbling.
"Man, dude, that is scary…"
"Did something happen?" I asked.
"Well, kinda, I guess, but not to me," said Miyamoto. "It's just…that Tokitou
dude was grabbing Katsuragi by the collar in the restroom nearby. Tokitou is
really quick to start a fight though, for real. They were havin' a pretty serious
disagreement."
"Hey man, you didn't stop them?" said Akito. "Hiroya can be pretty terrifying
when he loses his temper, y'know?"
Miyamoto looked somewhat offended by Akito's comment, like Akito had
forsaken him.
"I couldn't stop them," he protested. "It's none of my business, and it
would've been a huge deal if I got involved."
Katsuragi and Tokitou Hiroya were both students in Ryuuen's class.
"Katsuragi just transferred over there from Class A," Akito said. "They were
enemies until just a little while ago, so it makes sense that they'd get into a
scuffle or two. Right, Kiyotaka?"
"You might be right about that," I answered.
"I'm a little worried. Why don't we go check it out?" said Akito.
"Just leave it alone, Miyake," said Miyamoto. "Besides, if an enemy class is
fighting, that works out in our favor, right? Katsuragi was originally from Class A,
so it's not strange that that they aren't getting along."
"But…we're all second-years, aren't we?" countered Akito.
"If we carelessly stick our necks in it, we might end up getting pulled into it
ourselves, couldn't we?" Miyamoto insisted. "And what do we do if we catch
Ryuuen's attention?"
Akito seemed dissatisfied with Miyamoto's argument, but he listened for the
time being. It was conceivable that the situation could take a turn for the worse
if Akito went and got involved. After listening to the two of them go back and
forth, I silently stood up.
"Just leave it alone," warned Miyamoto.
"Oh, no, I agree that just quietly observing is the correct choice in this whole
Katsuragi situation," I assured him. "I'm just heading to the kiosk because I'm
thirsty, that's all."
With that, I left our cabin. If I recalled correctly, Miyamoto had mentioned
that the two of them had been arguing in a nearby restroom. If it was just a
trivial dispute, then the best thing to do would just be to leave it alone as
Miyamoto said. But…
When I heard the name Tokitou, the first person who came to my mind was
Tokitou Katsumi, a classmate of Ichinose's. That Tokitou was in the same group
as me during the mixed training camp exam last year. But the person involved
in this dispute right now was a different person, Tokitou Hiroya. I remembered
being surprised to hear that it wasn't just a coincidence that they shared the
relatively rare surname Tokitou. They were actually distant relatives. Although I
hadn't exactly had a close relationship with Tokitou Katsumi since the mixed
training camp, we had been friendly at that time and shared food, clothing, and
shelter together.
I may not have known much about Tokitou Hiroya, but I figured that if it was
all right for an outsider like me to step in, I'd like to try reaching out and talking.
That's what I thought anyway when I decided to come out here. However,
when I got close to the restroom, I still couldn't see Katsuragi and Tokitou.
There had presumably been some small trouble, but it might have already been
resolved.
Just as I was about to take a look around the area, Hiyori approached me.
"Ayanokouji-kun," she said.
"Have you seen Katsuragi?" I asked.
"So, other people saw them after all. I heard that Katsuragi-kun and Tokitoukun were having a dispute, so I came here too. That's why I asked them to go
somewhere else."
That made sense. They couldn't help but draw attention if they were near the
restrooms. I followed Hiyori's lead as she guided me to where they were now.
As I followed her, I began to hear faint voices coming from a place where there
weren't many people around. Hiyori instructed me to peek out from the
shadows and quietly listen for the sources of the voices. As Miyamoto reported
earlier, the two people in question were there, both Katsuragi and Tokitou. But
it also seemed like a female student, Okabe, was there as well.
"Katsuragi, are you really working for Ryuuen?" asked Tokitou.
"I feel like we're talking in circles," said Katsuragi. "This is the third time
you've asked me that same question, though you've changed the wording
somewhat."
"Because you haven't given me an answer," said Tokitou.
"Because I can't give you one. Again, what do you mean exactly when you say,
'working for'?"
It sounded as if Katsuragi was handling the situation calmly, but Tokitou's
emotions were getting the better of him.
"I'm asking you if you're his dog," Tokitou snapped. "If you'll follow any
command he gives you."
"I don't remember ever becoming a dog, nor do I intend to follow his
commands."
"Sorry, but I don't think so. If that was the case, then why'd you work with
him on the island, huh?"
"I'm struggling to understand what that is supposed to mean. I did it so that
our class would win, obviously," said Katsuragi matter-of-factly, as though there
could be no other reason.
"And yet you couldn't even manage to get into third place?" said Tokitou.
"Things certainly didn't seem to go as planned," Katsuragi admitted.
"However, the end results weren't all that bad."
"The hell is that supposed to mean?" huffed Tokitou. "It makes no difference
what place you got, fourth place and below are all the same. And on top of that,
the Trials and Tribulations card ended up bein' totally pointless."
"It means that Ryuuen has more on his mind that you think," said Katsuragi.
"You say that, even though yer an outsider. Okay then, tell me. What is he
thinkin' about?"
"We are not yet at the stage where I can talk about that. Sorry, but I just
can't."
"Okay, what gives? It's probably nothing, isn't it? Pfft, well, whatever, I hate
Ryuuen's guts anyway."
They were just arguing in circles, a verbal tug-of-war. The exchange seemed
to drag on and on. One thing was for certain, though, and that was that Tokitou
deeply disliked Ryuuen.
Katsuragi nodded in agreement on that point. "If you were to ask me if
Ryuuen is someone who could be looked upon favorably, then I couldn't
honestly say yes to that question," he said.
He wasn't refuting Tokitou's point of view, but it seemed that even that
attitude wasn't to Tokitou's liking.
"But despite that, you still partnered up with Ryuuen on the island, and you
were all buddy-buddy with him eating together today, weren't you?" he
demanded.
"We are talking in circles. Apparently, there seems to be a misunderstanding
—"
"Hmph, after all that hostility, you got bought so easily, huh. I thought you
had more backbone than that," said Tokitou, aggressively cutting Katsuragi off
just as he was about to deny it.
"Regardless of the question of friend or foe, I've clashed with Ryuuen on
more than one occasion. However, now, as a member of this class, I'm fulfilling
my rule as Ryuuen's classmate. And if this class is centered around Ryuuen,
then it makes sense to follow his lead," argued Katsuragi.
"I can't believe that's something a guy who went up against Sakayanagi would
say," said Tokitou.
"The process was different," Katsuragi said. "When we started at this school
last year, we had not yet decided upon the matter of our leader. And because
there was a conflict between my opinions and Sakayanagi's, when she stepped
forward as a candidate, I elected to come forward as well to oppose her.
However, as for the class I am in now, Ryuuen has already been selected as
leader. He is the one steering the ship, so to speak. Besides, would you even
recognize me as a leader of this class in the first place, as someone who
transferred into it?"
"That's…"
"On top of that, Sakayanagi and Ryuuen are different types of people,"
Katsuragi continued. "The feel of their respective classes is also vastly
different."
Though Katsuragi had countered with a sound argument, Tokitou hardly
seemed convinced at all.
Okabe had been quietly watching the conversation up until this point, but
now she spoke up. "I told you so, Tokitou. I told you Katsuragi-kun wasn't going
to listen."
She tapped Tokitou on the shoulder, telling him that it was pointless to try
and press any further.
"In the end, I'm sure you were happy Ryuuen picked you up, Katsuragi-kun,
since you didn't have any place in Class A," said Okabe. "Weren't you? That
means that, in other words, you are his dog."
"Even if I try and deny anything, I don't think you two would understand,"
said Katsuragi.
I see. I could now start to understand the root of this argument, although only
roughly. Hiyori lightly tapped me on the shoulder with her finger, and I pulled
my head back in and turned to look at her.
"This isn't the first time that some of our classmates have been voicing their
complaints," she said.
"I can imagine," I replied. "I'm sure they've had a lot of resentment building
all this time."
Ryuuen's dictatorship naturally gave rise to strong opposition. He had been
forcefully suppressing it until now, but I guessed that lately, it was finally
beginning to spring back up.
"And what about Ryuuen?" I asked. "He wouldn't have shown any mercy in
the face of an uprising before."
"Before, yes," agreed Hiyori.
"Then the fact he no longer does that is the reason behind incidents like
this?"
Hiyori gave a small nod.
"Everyone is changing," she said. "I didn't really have strong feelings about
the class in the beginning either. I hardly spoke up about anything, and it was
fine as long as I could spend my three years here surrounded by books."
That was true. If you asked me if Hiyori had a strong presence at the start, I'd
have to say no. In fact, I previously never even really paid attention to her
presence.
"Tokitou-kun has always hated Ryuuen-kun's way of doing things," she went
on. "Well, actually, it's not just Tokitou-kun. Okabe-san, who was just with him
now, is the same."
"So you're saying that they want to embrace Katsuragi and raise the banner
of revolution against Ryuuen?"
"Maybe, yes."
In terms of ability, Katsuragi would be a good enough substitute as leader.
And it was precisely because he was a student who had just transferred into the
class that he could press back against Ryuuen without hesitation.
"Still, Tokitou Hiroya, huh," I mused. "Seems like Ryuuen has made yet
another troublesome enemy."
Though similar things had been said about Akito, Tokitou Hiroya was known
for his unyielding personality, his coarse way of speaking, and his persistent
tenacity.
"You think so too, Ayanokouji-kun?" asked Hiyori.
Just as Hiyori feared, this situation benefited nobody.
"It's certainly true that our class is doing quite well right now," she said. "I
think it's because of how much Ryuuen-kun has grown now that he's returned
to the front lines after withdrawing previously."
Compared to the beginning of our first year, Ryuuen, along with those around
him like Ishizaki, had indeed demonstrated significant growth.
"However, whether our steady progress will continue indefinitely is another
matter. I suppose the same might be true of any class if they were to lose their
leader, but I think that for us, if Ryuuen-kun were to be expelled, our class
would immediately fall apart."
"The way that Ryuuen fights is always fraught with danger, I suppose," I
agreed.
It was likely that he'd continue trying to win big by taking major risks in the
future. I was also intensely curious about that promise that he had made with
Sakayanagi.
"If that time comes, then it's absolutely essential that there be someone who
can contain things," said Hiyori.
She meant a candidate to step forward as leader in the event of an
unforeseen situation. Hiyori turned to look at me, smiling.
"When that time comes, Ayanokouji-kun… Won't you come to our class?"
asked Hiyori.
Despite appearances, Hiyori wasn't taking an optimistic view. She was
strategizing how her class could take the win.
"Again? That's a really bold suggestion," I replied.
"I know that we invited you to come to our class before," she said, "but I was
half-joking then, playing along with Ishizaki-kun. But the invitation I'm giving
you now is different."
In other words, she was being serious.
"I do not think that our class is weak by any means," she added. "But it is also
true that we lack someone to guide us in the event of an emergency. What do
you think?"
So, I'd be fighting with Hiyori, Katsuragi, and Kaneda backing me up as my
council…
"But this development isn't necessarily going to lead to Ryuuen's expulsion.
Right?" I said.
"Of course. It would be best if that didn't happen."
Still, I felt like this was a somewhat outlandish, spur-of-the-moment invitation
for Hiyori to extend to me. Even if she had been thinking about this deep down,
I had my doubts that she would just come out and say something like that now
without having some reason.
I decided to come straight out with it. "Did you hear something worrisome?" I
asked her resolutely.
However, Hiyori just smiled a little, and didn't give me an answer.
While I was talking with her, the discussion between Katsuragi and Tokitou
continued, the two of them still arguing back and forth. Katsuragi's rigidity had
finally loosened, and Tokitou was still displeased with every answer that he
gave.
"…This is a waste of time," said Tokitou. "I thought you'd get it, so I came to
talk to you. I guess I was wrong."
"It seems you understand now," said Katsuragi.
"I ain't gonna ask you to keep quiet about our conversation. Go ahead and
report it to Ryuuen. Do whatever you want."
"I do not plan on reporting anything."
"You sure? I said it because I'm bein' serious. You don't know what'll happen
if you let it go."
"Do not misunderstand me, Tokitou," Katsuragi said. "There are many things
wrong with Ryuuen's way of doing things. I do not think it's wrong to have
complaints about it, as you do. However, I am not impressed with your
overzealous behavior."
It was obvious that Tokitou had something on his mind, and there was no
doubt that it was his intention to eliminate Ryuuen.
"Shut the hell up," he snapped back.
With that, Tokitou left, leaving Katsuragi behind. Hiyori and I hid ourselves so
we wouldn't be noticed, and we watched Tokitou and Okabe walk away. After
that, I planned on just quietly walking away myself, but…Hiyori proceeded to
tug on my arm, pulling me out in front of Katsuragi.
"What do you want, Ayanokouji?" asked Katsuragi.
It would've been strange for me to just run away at this point, so I went with
the flow and walked up to him.
"It's just, I was thinking you have lots of issues in this class too, Katsuragi," I
said.
"It's the same for any class," said Katsuragi. "And it's something that I would
prefer not to be overheard, if possible."
He briefly shot a glance over at Hiyori next to me.
"I am not impressed, Shiina. You seem to trust Ayanokouji, but I cannot say
that dragging your personal feelings into class affairs is the correct decision."
What Katsuragi said sounded harsh, but he was right. If you let the enemy in
on unnecessary information, it could prove to be fatal.
"That might be true," Hiyori said, "but who can we talk about this amongst
our own classmates? Ryuuen-kun is one of the parties involved in this matter. If
he catches wind of it, then he won't leave Tokitou-kun or the others alone. And
the same goes for the rest of the students too. Some students might even try to
score points by selling out friends who have betrayed Ryuuen-kun."
"This is not something that can be solved by letting Ayanokouji know," said
Katsuragi.
"Don't you think this a good opportunity for you to organize your thoughts on
what you're going to do, Katsuragi-kun?" she asked.
"What?" he blinked.
"Why don't you come out and say what you're thinking right now so that you
can settle on a course of action?" said Hiyori.
Guess she was a schemer, huh. Hiyori was trying to use me as a positive
influence on Katsuragi. It wasn't easy for Katsuragi, a solitary thinker, to open
up to other people. He must have noticed what Hiyori was trying to do because
he agreed with her request, albeit with some dismay.
"You seem to be thinking of the class more than I expected, Shiina," said
Katsuragi.
"Of course," she replied. "It's because I intend to graduate from Class A
together with all my classmates."
As if he were spurred on by what she said, Katsuragi began to put his
thoughts into words.
"Speaking as the only second-year student so far who has been in two
different classes, I feel that there is a definite difference between Sakayanagi's
class and Ryuuen's. In both cases, the leaders seem to cause frustration
amongst the students easily, but despite that, there is still a certain
cohesiveness to Sakayanagi's class. On the other hand, there are many students
in Ryuuen's class who remain unsatisfied with him and are increasingly
displeased."
That was precisely the case with students such as Tokitou and Okabe, who
had been hounding Katsuragi moments earlier.
"That frustration has continued to build even while the class was on the
upswing, but the students seemed to have been able to keep it in check. Yet…"
"You're afraid of the next time things start going downhill," I added, finishing
his thought.
"Yes. Depending on how the situation plays out, a single mistake could
destroy half the class. I can't imagine that he wouldn't have foreseen something
like that, but…I also can't imagine that he'll change his current system either."
"That's what you've read from this situation though, right, Katsuragi? I'm sure
that Ryuuen understands that too," I told him.
"But if he does understand, then he should do something about Tokitou and
the others."
"Still, I guess it's inevitable that Ryuuen's methods will generate opposition," I
conceded.
Apparently, Katsuragi thought Ryuuen should be the one to solve this
problem.
"I wonder, didn't Ryuuen pull you out of A Class because he anticipated this?"
I asked.
"…Me?" he blinked.
"If something were to happen to Ryuuen, you could step in and take his place
when the time came," I pointed out. "I think that's why he pulled you into his
class."
Katsuragi was exactly the kind of leader candidate that Hiyori was looking for.
"I find that hard to believe," he said.
Of course, this was all just my own personal interpretation.
"For Ryuuen, as someone who takes a high-risk, high-reward approach, it's
entirely possible that he could graduate from Class A," I reasoned. "But it's also
possible that things could end all too soon with him getting expelled as a result
of some exam along the way. That is exactly why he needs insurance, just in
case."
It was also quite conceivable that Ryuuen's administration could collapse due
to the betrayal of just one person.
"If that's the case, then…I don't like it," said Katsuragi.
I'd been thinking that Ryuuen had done this because he held Katsuragi in such
high esteem, but Katsuragi made no attempt to hide his dissatisfaction with the
idea.
"Ryuuen and I oppose one another because of our difference in values," he
said. "That has not changed, not even now that we have become classmates.
However, I think that since we are allies now, our minimum goal is to graduate
from Class A without either of us getting lost along the way."
I figured that Ryuuen, knowing that Katsuragi was the kind of person that he
was, wouldn't have told him anything directly. When looking at Ryuuen's
individual development, his progress was remarkable, but his classmates might
not have been able to keep up with his momentum.
"By the way, about what happened earlier," I said. "You made the right
decision to not let Ryuuen hear about Tokitou."
"It would be nice if we could leave rebel elements alone, but if they are
eliminated, it would lead to a bigger problem," said Katsuragi.