COTE: A Mute Guy

Vol. 3 Chp. 9: A Break

When I turned on the mobile phone, the electronic tone repeatedly rang, and I had incoming messages from Horikita.

Then, an angry Horikita joined me a few minutes later, releasing silent pressure upon me.

"You didn't have to bail on me."

'Sorry.'

Horikita ordered drinks from the barman who was standing right in front of us.

"Was it necessary to hit me with mud?" She glared at me.

'In my defense, I didn't think Yamauchi's aim wouldn't be that horrible.'

"How did you figure out that Katsuragi wasn't the leader?"

'It was by chance as I was exploring.'

I explained the situation of Katsuragi standing at the entrance, carrying the key card, as Yahiko, who came out of the cave, joined him and left.

"So, by looking at this sight, wouldn't it be natural to mistake Katsuragi as the leader?"

'Yes, but Katsuragi was calm, composed, and extremely cautious. It was Yahiko's greed. Katsuragi wouldn't occupy it immediately, but Yahiko had mistakenly taken it. He thought nobody was watching, yet he insured himself just in case. By holding the key card in his hands, he thought he could mislead any possible witnesses that he was the leader.'

"Class A had two spots except for their base, but I didn't know exactly how many spots they occupied at the end of the test. Even though you guessed their leader, they were disqualified."

"What gave away that Ibuki was a spy?"

'She had dirt underneath her fingernails. I woke up early and checked the spot where we found her. I found a digital camera and broke it.'

"How did you know that Ryuuen was still on the island?"

'The transceiver carelessly lying on the table beside Ryuuen gave him away.'

"There you are, Silent-kun," Kouenji had a grin.

I already knew what he wanted as I pulled out my phone, transferring 500,000 private points to him.

"Fu. Fu. Fu. I'm glad you kept your word, Silent-kun," Kouenji walked away.

"How much?"

'500k.'

Kagurazaka's private points: 619,410-500,000=119,410

Sakayanagi's POV

"Isn't he amazing, Masumi-san?" I expressed my amazement over the phone after receiving the reports of the island exam.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" I heard Kamuro ask.

"I'm afraid you don't know what happened, right?"

"Yeah, I don't. Do you know why?" Kamuro asked.

"How am I supposed to know if I'm not there? I do know who did it, though," a smile spread crossed my face.

"I guess it won't hurt to tell you something. Please keep an eye on Kagurazaka Norogumi."

Kamuro turned silent when I said his name.

"Masumi-san, do you know him?" I asked.

"I ran into him once. What about him?" Kamuro asked.

Oh, this is interesting. I should talk to Norogumi about it.

"Fufufu. That guy is the most dangerous out of everyone here."

"Are you serious...?"

"I am."