I separated from Kikyou not much later and made my way back to my room to pack for the island trip. The school had informed us to pack our phones and luggage, leaving everything else behind. This was just another piece of suspicious evidence on the mountain the school had provided. Why would we need to bring our luggage, and why would we need to leave anything personal behind? There was no logic to bringing our luggage, if we were staying on the boat at night, and there was no need to not bring our personal items if we were staying on an island resort, of which there obviously wasn't one.
After changing into my jersey, I made my way back to the deck to disembark, standing to the side watching all the other students mingling around like sheep.
I wasn't particularly paying attention to them, however, as there were five students in particular I was focusing on, and trying to determine just what they were thinking or had reasoned out.
Ryuuen was standing alone for once, all his cronies pushing towards the front in order to try and get off first, sans Albert, who was standing beside a silver-haired girl, Shiina Hiyori. I wondered at the nature of that friendship, as they didn't seem remotely similar, but for now it wasn't important.
Ryuuen had his usual vicious grin plastered across his face, probably amused at the chaos caused by 160 students all pushing towards the front, but his eyes were narrowed, darting across both the island, and the teachers. Clearly, he was trying to figure something out, finding the hints at least suspicious, but whether he had pieced any more together I couldn't tell.
Katsuragi, much like Ryuuen, had taken a place towards the back of the crowd. Unlike Ryuuen, however, he had a calm confident look on his face. I wasn't much surprised at this, given that he had extra information over everyone else, and I had seen him take note of the announcement earlier. Katsurai was expecting the unexpected, and whatever happened, he seemed to feel ready.
Kanzaki too stood to the back, although he had a few friends around him. They were all discussing exciting ideas from what I could hear, given how close to them I was, but the leader was silent, hand on his chin and head tilted down, the model picture of contemplation. I was pleased to see he found the entire situation too good to be true. I had high hopes for Kanzaki and would have been disappointed if he had simply accepted the holiday at face value.
Ichinose was the biggest disappointment, outwardly. In actuality, I was impressed by her behaviour. I knew she had been suspicious of this trip for the last month or so, but she showed no sign of it now. Whether it was an act to rise in her classes respect, or she genuinely was this way I wasn't sure, but she was bouncing around between every student, class member or no, with a positive and energetic attitude, getting everyone she talked to excited for the island. An interesting strategy of hers, I wonder if it could make up for the loss of face she suffered with the exams.
And lastly, Horikita was...
Great. Horikita was sick. I could see her leaning on a railing, face pale and legs wobbling slightly. She had clearly just woken up, probably trying to rest and combat her illness, but this was no good. How was I supposed to live up to my promise if she broke at a slight breeze? She really looked unhealthy.
Fabulous.
"We will disembark now, beginning with the students from Class A. Cell phones are prohibited on the island. Please hand your phone to your homeroom teacher as you leave."
Following the loudspeaker's command, the students went down the stairs in an orderly fashion.
"Come on. Hurry up! Even though we're wearing thin clothes, we're all sweating!"
There was no place to hide from the sun on the ship's deck. No surprise that people were complaining. The Class D students waited on standby in the heat.
More surprising was having to hand our phones over. What could we possibly be doing on an island that required us to not have phones? Plenty of students would want to use them for pictures at least. The only reasoning I could come up with was that they didn't want us to transfer points, but even that seemed unreasonable, as it was a perfectly valid method of winning a competition; bribery is an effective tool, so it wouldn't make sense for a school that expected fights to stop that from happening.
Once everyone had finally made their way off the boat, each class was separated, and Chabashira took our roll.
"I will now start roll call for Class D. When you hear your name, please respond loud and clear."
Our homeroom teacher started taking attendance, clipboard in hand, while simultaneously instructing us to form a line. Chabashira wore the same kind of jersey as her students. This atmosphere was more akin to training camp than summer vacation. Still, not many of the students seemed tense at all.
"Oh, come on! I want my free time already! The sea is right in front of me!" Ike muttered, standing directly behind me."
Despite every single unusual occurrence, it seemed most students in my class, if not the grade still expected this to be a vacation. Perhaps they were just naïve, yet to have their eyes opened to the cruelty of this school, but I thought it was more likely they were dumb.
Seeing this level of incompetence every single day had made me wonder why the White Room was so harsh. I, and everyone else in my generation, even the failures, were worlds beyond these students. This school was supposed to take the elite students of the population, so if these were the best, then the nation was in a sorry state.
"Most of the students wanted to run off onto the sandy beach. Soon enough, a tall teacher stepped onto a prepared white platform. It was Mashima, Class A's homeroom teacher. He normally taught English, and was well-known for having a stubborn disposition.
At first glance, he could easily be mistaken for one of those bodybuilder types. He was built like a professional wrestler, but was actually quite intelligent. He'd even taught special courses in the past.
"First, I would like to say that I'm happy you've arrived safely. However, it's unfortunate that one of you was unable to participate due to illness."
"Oh wow, someone couldn't come on the trip because he was sick? Poor guy," said Ike quietly, so the teachers wouldn't hear."
Ike, you and everyone else should be counting your lucky stars that Sakayanagi was unable to attend. If she had come along, whatever the teachers have prepared would already be over.
While Mashima surveyed the students in silence, I could see that adults in uniform had started setting up some kind of special tent nearby. I also saw a computer and other equipment on a long table. This increasingly business-like setup didn't match the natural splendor around us at all, and many of the students looked perplexed.
Mashima uttered a few cruel words, as if waiting for the atmosphere to change. "Well then. We shall commence the current academic year's first special test."
There it is. Finally, something fun.
"Huh?" "Special test?" "What do you mean?"
"The test commences now and lasts for one week, concluding on August 7th at the year's end. This test will determine if you can live on a deserted island together as a group. In addition, I should warn you that this special test is both practical and realistic, designed based on real-world corporate training."
"Living on a deserted island. Does that mean we're not staying on the boat, but the island?"
Some students from Class B and C voiced their obvious concerns.
"You are correct. During the test, you will not be allowed to board the ship without a suitably justifiable reason. It will be necessary for you to fend for yourselves on this island while you are here, from creating a place to sleep to preparing food to eat. Once the test starts, each class will receive two tents, and two flashlights. You will be provided with one box of matches. There is no limit to the amount of sunscreen you can have. Each student will be provided with one toothbrush. As a special case, girls will be allowed to have as many feminine sanitary products as they'd like, without any restrictions. Please ask your respective homeroom teachers for those. That is all."
With that, the teachers began distributing the items. So, this was the test. No wonder Sakayanagi hadn't been allowed to come along. Someone with her condition would be at a high risk out here, especially since it seemed like the next week was completely up to the autonomy of the students. I doubted the teachers would interfere except in the case of serious danger, so they wouldn't want Mashima to have to hover around Sakayanagi the entire time.
While I was thinking, the entirety of Class D had collapsed into chaos once again. They really were the most defective people in the grade and putting them all together just made their faults amplified.
It was impressive how little rationality they possessed. It seemed their entire lives were governed by their Id, with little self-control or logical reasoning. This just made my job of winning all the more challenging, and in the end, rewarding.
Mashima gave no sign that this was some kind of joke. If anything, he appeared surprised by what Ike had said.
"You may say this is unbelievable, but that's because you've lived a short, superficial life. There is an actual, prominent company that holds training sessions on uninhabited islands."
"Huh? B-but this...this isn't special at all. Is it? Isn't it too much to ask for us to start living on a deserted island with no warning? No way! This is unreal!"
"Keeping on like that would be shameful, Ike, so stop talking. What Mashima just said is only part of it. There are many companies in the world with many different training activities. There are workplaces where there aren't any chairs in the office, and companies that decide salaries with dice rolls. The world is wider and deeper than you even know."
Chabashira, as if unable to overlook Ike running his mouth, chided him. She continued, "In other words, you are ill-equipped to distinguish between what is reality and what isn't."
Even so, I felt this was an extreme reason for the exam. It was true that some corporations had island getaways, but they didn't gamble their jobs on them, nor were they moronic teenagers. More likely, the reasoning for the exam was garbage, and it was just an effective method of seeing how we react to stressful situations.
Many of the students appeared unconvinced and wore dissatisfied looks.
"But, teacher, isn't this supposed to be our summer vacation? We were brought here under the pretext of going on a relaxing trip. Don't you think that bringing us here and then springing this corporate training on us could be considered unfair?"
Some of the students in our class began to protest along these lines.
"I see. I suppose that you're not wrong about that. I can understand why you would be discontented."
Mashima's response showed that he recognized the soundness of such an argument, unlike Ike's complaints. There were students who were dissatisfied with the current situation, and those who were dissatisfied with the process as a whole.
"However, please do not worry. It would make sense for you to have complaints if you were being forced into a harsh situation. However, even though we're calling it a special test, there's no need to think about it in such unhappy terms. In the coming week, you can go swimming, or hold a barbecue. It wouldn't be a bad time for you to occasionally have a campfire and chat with friends, either. The theme of this special exam is 'freedom', after all."
This was certainly a strange theme. I wondered how it would apply to the exam.
"Huh? Huh? The theme is freedom? We can have a barbecue? Hmm? And this is still called a test? I'm so confused..."
Even though this was a test, we were free to play. The contradiction confused the students, and our doubts only increased.
"As a major part of this special test, we've decided to distribute 300 points to each class. By using your points well, you might be able to enjoy this week's special test just as you would a normal trip. We've also prepared a manual just for that purpose."
Mashima received a booklet that looked to be a few dozen pages thick from another teacher.
"This manual lists all of the ways you can obtain points. It also explains where to get drinking water and food, as well as essential necessities. If you wanted to have a barbecue, it explains how to prepare the equipment and ingredients. We also have numerous tools for you to be able to enjoy playing in the ocean to the fullest."
Gradually, the students' grim expressions grew calmer.
"So, we can do whatever we want with the 300 points?"
It can't be that simple. But I could tell from the reactions of everyone around me that they were completely caught on the idea of living a fun party life on the beach.
"That's right. It's possible to arrange for anything using your points. Of course, it's necessary for you to use them in a systematic way, but with a solid plan, you can spend your week without any difficulties."
So, what was the catch?
"When this special test period is over, each class' remaining points will be added to their total class points. Your point totals will reflect this change once summer vacation is over."
Oh.
This was going to be extremely difficult. There was no way to win this exam with the classmates I had if that was the entire exam.
An even bigger problem was the already massive gap in class points. Currently we were 517 points behind Class C, meaning that 300 class points would be a huge amount for us to receive. The only problem was that other classes could also get this many, and if there was one class that would not be able to restrain themselves from using points, it was mine.
Great.
"So if we can endure this for one week, then starting next month we could see a huge increase in our allowance?!" Ike asked.
Imagine that. Ike is the one with his priorities in order. But I suspected he would try and force that attitude on our class way too hard.
"Each class will receive one copy of the manual. If the manual is lost, you may have another copy. However, it will consume points, so please be very careful. Also, the student who was marked absent from this trip was from Class A. According to the rules of this special test, should any student have to leave due to illness, there will be a thirty-point penalty to the class as a whole. Therefore, Class A will be starting with 270 points."
Now there was a strategy. I could go around on the first night and damage the other 119 students in the grade badly enough that they had to retire. It was possible, I was certainly capable of it. The only problem was doing it without arousing any suspicion. We would win the exam for sure, but it really was a foolish idea.
Now that Mashima had finished giving out the information on the exam, the classes separated once again, and we were subjected to the icy-cold attitude of Chabashira once more.
"Thirty thousand points next month, thirty thousand points next month, thirty thousand points next month. Let's do it!"
Ike and the others struck victorious poses. The girls happily discussed what things they would buy. There seemed to be a clear divide in the class, with every single boy planning on going without food apparently for the next seven days so that we received all 300 points, while the girls seemed intent on using them all up.
"I will now hand out wristwatches to every one of you. You are not to take them off until the end of the test. If you remove your wristwatch without permission, you will be punished. This watch doesn't just tell time. Its sensors also check your body temperature, your pulse, and even your movements. It's equipped with a GPS. Also, in the off chance something bad does happen, this watch comes equipped with the means to notify the school. If you find yourself in an emergency situation, please do not hesitate to push that button."
Was the school expecting things to go wrong? It was fair to assume this was a method of monitoring all the students in the exam, but it seemed far to excessive for just potential accidents.
"When you say an emergency, do you mean, like, if a bear shows up?"
I wonder if anyone would believe a
"Even if that was a joke, the test has already begun. I cannot answer any questions that might possibly influence your results."
"Uh...that's a kinda freaky answer."
"I don't think there are any wild animals here. If one of the students were injured, that would be a big problem. They probably gave us these watches solely to manage our well-being. Don't you agree? We're on an uninhabited island, after all, and the school has to ensure our safety," Matsushita said.
"Before you all continue your conversations, I'd like you to read the last page of the manual where the penalties are listed. Things won't be as easy as you think it will be. This is very important information that encapsulates the difficulties of this special test. It will determine whether you live or die"
"On the last page, a line read, "These penalties will be applied to anyone who falls under the following conditions."
"Anyone deemed unable to continue the test due to significant deterioration in health or serious injury will be penalized by thirty points. That student will then retire."
"In the event a student has polluted the environment, he or she will be penalized twenty points."
"In the event students are absent during the 8 AM or 8 PM roll call, five points will be taken for each student absent."
However, the most serious punishment was detailed in the fourth entry on the list. "In the event a student is found guilty of an act of violence toward another class, robbing another class, or causing damage to another class' property, etc., the offending student's class will immediately be disqualified, and the individual will forfeit all of his or her private points."
It looked like Class A was subject to these same penalties. The fourth rule was totally reasonable, written to prevent students from engaging in harmful behaviour, while the other three rules were clearly there so individual students wouldn't behave carelessly. Because we had roll call in the morning and at night, it was impossible to sleep your time away at camp. It was also meant to suppress rather barbaric behaviour, like a student littering everywhere."
It also seemed my assassination plan was not possible.
"Finally, let me tell you all about the additional rules."
"A-additional rules? There's more?"
"Soon you will be permitted to roam about freely, but there are several designated 'spots' on the island. In these spots, there is what's referred to as right of exclusive possession, and only the class that occupies that spot may exercise those rights. The class that obtains those rights is entirely free to determine how they wish to exercise them. However, rights of exclusive possession are only valid for a period of eight hours after being invoked, after which they are automatically revoked. That means that another class can acquire those rights at that time. Also, you gain one bonus point if you occupy a spot once. However, that point is provisional, and cannot be used during the testing period. Therefore, bonus points are calculated and added to your total after the test has ended. Because the school is constantly monitoring you, there is no room for fraud. Please be aware of that fact."
That was good news. Now that there were more ways to earn points, I had an opportunity to manipulate the exam. But it still felt like there was something missing. This wasn't a competition between classes yet, rather an individual group survival. I felt there was one more rule to add on.
The last rule changed everything.
Each class had to have a leader selected. Only the leader can use the key card to claim spots, but that wasn't the point of them. On the last day, each class could name the leader of the other classes, gaining 50 points if it was right and losing 50 points if it was wrong. Additionally, if your leader was guessed, your class lost another 50 points.
It was this rule that completely changed the exam and gave me an opportunity.
Most students would focus on not spending points. In actuality that was a pipe dream, and it was inevitable that most classes would spend about 150 points to live in a relaxed style for the next week, 100 if they were careful. The real chance for victory came from the leaders.
Ryuuen would realise this. He would base his strategy around the leaders, probably not caring what happened to the 300 points. They were negligible against finding the leaders of other classes.
Katsuragi too, would realise the importance of guessing the leaders, but due to his nature, he would most likely aim for a defensive strategy, neither guessing nor exposing their leader in any way.
Class B was the most interesting one. Ichinose, and most of the class members would probably go for a pacificists strategy, playing it safe like Katsuragi. Kanzaki was the outlier. He was more ambitious, more aggressive, and in turn would be easiest to manipulate.
The class had collapsed into argument at this point. Not only had they been shown the unsanitary and disgusting toilet to use, which the girls understandably refused to use, they also couldn't decide on a leader to pick.
Kikyou had appeared next to me, eyeing the mess of voices with concern.
"They're hopeless. There's no way we can win this."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that."
"So, you have a plan, then?"
"Nope, obviously not."
"You need to start making sense soon, or I'm gonna get mad."
No one had noticed our conversation to the side, caught up with their aggressive debate. Chabashira was standing to the side, looking disappointed as ever in our class, but eventually I caught her eye, and signalled to wait.
"The 300 points don't really matter. Your job is to just make sure we don't spend too much."
"So, you do have a plan."
"The entire exam revolves around the leaders, so there's no point in making plans. I'm just going to react to whatever the other classes do."
"Confident as usual, I see."
"Just do your part, and everything should be fine. And don't worry, you'll still get to toy with Horikita" She smiled cutely at the reminder of my agreement.
With that, Kikyou had her orders. I trusted her to be able to improvise enough to keep the class from spending all our points at once. If worst came to worst, I would simply spend the last points and make them all retire. It would be hard to win only with leader guessing, so keeping some would be helpful, but really it wasn't necessary.
There were far too many variables in this exam for me to make a plan. Classes with a strong leader, which happened to be every other class, was capable of doing so, but Class D was too divided to be able to rely on people following orders. If I made a plan relying on having 200 points left on the end, someone would inevitably mess it up. That was why I was just going to exploit my opponents' mistakes. If I can't raise my class up, I'll just bring everyone else down.
Now, it was time for my first move.
"Chabashira, make Horikita the leader!"
I raised my voice loud enough that everyone in the class heard, but it didn't carry beyond us. As I said that, everyone went silent, turning to face me, before starting to shout exclamations. Chabashira simply smiled, and once I nodded again, she pulled out a key card and labelled it with the name 'Horikita Suzune'.
"What are you talking about Ayanokouji! You don't get to decide this!"
"Sensei, stop, Horikita isn't our leader, Hirata is!"
"No, Kushida-chan should be, she's our leader!"
Their outburst continued for a moment, before Chabashira interrupted them. It was very handy to have her on my side. Since she knew I was working for the class, despite my dismissive and uninterested behaviour so far, she was smart enough to follow my orders.
"It's too late. I've made the key card already. Here, Horikita. You're Class D's leader from now on."
Everyone seemed to be in shock for a moment, that their entire conversation (read: argument) for the last few minutes had been for nothing. Luckily, I had a secret weapon.
"Hahaha, all of you defects are so pathetic. Demon-boy picked the perfect leader for you, and you argue back. How sad."
"Shut up, Kouenji, it's not like you're helping!"
While some people stopped and thought about what he thought, the majority of the class levelled insults something similar to that towards the beast of a man. Whether he had figured out the extent of my plan, or simply realised the benefits of Horikita, I couldn't tell. He wasn't wrong though, Horikita was objectively the best choice. She was smart and reliable yet didn't stand out enough for people to suspect her. Really, most of my classmates had blinded themselves to her value by her attitude, it was impressive.
"Now that that's sorted, how about we go on a trip, Kouenji?"
"An excellent idea, demon-boy, but where would you suggest?"
"Wait, what are you talking about?"
"You can't leave we have an exam to win!"
A few people tried to complain, but we simply ignored them and talked on.
"I was thinking of meeting Katsuragi. He seems to have a good idea of what's going on."
"Ah, so you want to play with Baldy-kun for a while? I suppose a perfect existence such as myself would come along for that."
Ignoring the cries and insults levied at us, Kouenji and I moved towards the lush jungle of the island. It seemed he had picked up on my hint that Katsuragi had paid attention to 'significant scenery' and there was one obvious spot on the island that he would head to. It was a gamble, but if we got there before him, and he did in fact go to the cave, Katsuragi was finished.
This exam, while simple, would hopefully prove interesting.
Authors Notes:
This chapter was rather boring to write, and half of it is direct rip from the light novel. Some of it has been changed, such as different character speaking as an influence of my changes in the previous chapters, and Kouenji and Ayanokouji speaking at all here is new. I figured not many people have actually read the light novels recently, and this is a good recap of the rules, because honestly they're kinda scuffed to understand. I had to spend a hot minute on the wiki page just to make sure I'd done the calculations for points correctly because it's very vague wording, probably intentionally.
I always have something else I want to mention here, but when it comes time to post a chapter i always forget it. Next time I remember I'll write it down.
This chapter is late due to me eating the forbidden ham for lunch. It was an amazing sandwich but not worth being subjugated to toilet prison.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed