"Hmmm." I let out as I woke up and Kiyotaka moved my hair out of my face to look down at me.
My head is in his lap, and I saw we were in the lounge with Yukimura and Hirata meaning I slept through the whole meeting. "How long? A whole month again hopefully?" I asked.
"A month of sleep!" Yukimura yelled.
"Not by choice." I turned onto my side, and I saw Hirata smiling at me then an ass went by my vision. "Hey, Koenji."
"You can recognise him by that?" Yukimura gagged.
"So, Koenji." Hirata grinned at him nervously.
"You will have to excuse me, Hirata, my boy." Koenji started to do his stretches again, and I wanted to copy, but Kiyotaka was making sure I don't do anything strenuous. "I'm currently occupied in the pursuit of the perfect body."
"Unavoidable, I suppose." Hirata sighed, and I went over to Koenji as Hirata walked by me towards Yukimura and Kiyotaka who were sitting on the couch.
Koenji smiled at me as I just watched him. "Are you going to finish early?" I asked him as I was sitting on the floor.
"Yes." He laughed. "What about you, fire girl?"
"I can't." I whined as I rolled onto my back. "Annoying!"
"You do act like a baby sometimes." Ike laughed as him and Sudo were standing above me.
"Life is short, and mine is an inch long, so boring things are double boring for me than for you." I pointed out.
"It will be over soon." Sudo helped me up and patted my head.
I went to sit on the couch, but just fell onto it instead and I heard some sounds of panic. Kiyo patted my head as Hirata laughed seeing I'm fine just tired of everything.
"To be honest, someone in Class D contacted me to say they were a Vip." Hirata informed us and I didn't react so I don't give him a hint that I know it's Kei, he will just get in the way this time.
"Really?! Who was it?!" Yukimura exclaimed as I rolled onto my side again.
Hirata went on his phone then typed it out and showed us it is Kushida. It seems he either wants to keep Kei safe or maybe she doesn't trust Hirata enough to tell him.
He would get her to work with us, and she doesn't want to do that.
Hirata cares more about the class overall than her it seems.
"I see." Kiyotaka mumbled.
"If the Vips are evenly distributed, there should be one more Class D Vip." Yukimura pointed out.
"Keeping up this test nonsense for two days more is such a nuisance." Koenji spoke up.
"Hmm!" I let out loudly with a pout on my face then we all got an email saying that Koenji's group has finished.
"Did you do this, Koenji?!" Yukimura yelled at him.
"Adieu! Good luck, fire girl!" Koenji waved as he walked off. "I'm off to work up a sweat."
"Rekka, are you okay?" Hirata asked me. "You seem more irritated than normal."
"I'm waiting for someone to do something. He's being super lazy." I complained as I glared at Kiyotaka confusing them. "Remember, there are only two outlets for me, Kiyo." I reminded him.
"I know." He nodded.
For the rest of our time, we mostly stayed in our room to make sure my body was fine since my temperature didn't want to go down, but the nurse said I should be fine.
She did notice some bruises on me when she did our daily check-up. "Ayanokoji, I said before with her low moods she can be more destructive with her own body and care even less. She would let out her annoyance by just punching anything meaning her body will get injured, have you not given her ice cream?"
"That's not enough anymore." Kiyotaka explained as he patted my head confusing her.
"Then what? No medi-" She went to say.
"I will take care of it, we have done this before, don't worry." Kiyotaka reassured her.
We went off back to our room and Kiyotaka was getting very short messages from Suzune like before. She was mainly complaining about Koenji and asking us why we didn't stop him.
"An utterly impossible demand." Kiyotaka mumbled.
"A waste of energy." I added.
"You would have done the same thing as him." Kiyotaka commented.
"I was going to, then you know who the Vip is, right?" I asked him.
"Yeah since you didn't act and I saw your obvious disinterest in Sotomura and Yukimura during the first meeting meaning it's Kei." He nodded.
"Think more about her." I sighed since he stopped there and he rolled over on his bed to stare at me. "My actions were enough of a hint, cake for another hint."
We met up with Suzune at some bar at night, and it was probably cold, so I was having a warm drink, I think.
"The next time I see him. I will tear into him myself." Suzune declared.
"You can't." I informed her. "He will throw you like he throws me into the pool."
"He does?!" She screeched like it was a problem.
"Yeah, I wanted to fly." I explained and she sighed.
"It would be pointless to try to, you should ignore outside distractions and focus on your own group." Kiyotaka added.
"I'm not going to lose this." Suzune sighed.
"I will leave it to you." Kiyotaka informed her.
He was looking off again probably thinking that he needs connections to win this entire test, but that's impossible now, and not what I want.
"I want information on Karuizawa." Kiyotaka spoke up.
"Where did that come from?" Suzune questioned him while I grinned that he was getting closer.
"I can figure things out with Yukimura and the Professor, but I don't know where to start with Karuizawa." He admitted.
"Are you thinking she might be the Vip?" Suzune asked him.
"That's part of it. Something about how she's acting just doesn't seem natural." Kiyotaka admitted.
"There's never any logic behind her actions." Suzune huffed showing her dislike for Kei.
"Every action has logic. Every action has a goal behind it." I retorted. "If you can read those then you can help them and yourself, while if you can't then it's interesting to try and find out their logic or goal."
"People first learn about others based on their appearance. Impressive, attractive, or neither of those things. It's what we think of as a first impression." Kiyotaka explained.
"Like the boring guy that might steal your dog." I pointed at Kiyotaka and Suzune kind of shook her head showing he does look like that. "Then me eccentric, lively, child and then you Suzune...cold fridge bitch."
Suzune looked at me offended but didn't retort since it's the truth. It's a front she's gotten so comfortable with that she's stuck with it, so she still has no friends.
"Next, they infer personality based on behaviour. Gregarious, belligerent, passive." Kiyotaka informed her.
"Kiyo is lazy, boring, stalkerish. Suzune, cold, stubborn, still a bitch. Then me, dumbass, lively, naive." I added.
"But as with appearance, this is all merely superficial. I put up a similar false front while Rekka just naturally acts like what people think children are like." Kiyotaka explained. "She's always been like this."
"And you believe Karuisawa is the same way as you?" Suzune asked him.
"Just as you are, Horkitia." Kiyotaka pointed out.
"Yeah, there's a little girl inside you crying for her big brother to-" Suzune covered my mouth and I just grinned at her.
"Karuizawa's first impression." Kiyotaka looked to me to answer.
"Self-centered, uncooperative, pretty much a bitch to." I hummed.
"Yet she has a uniquely powerful sense of presence, relative to Class D." Kiyotaka pointed out then we got delivered some food confusing Suzune.
It was cake and Kiyotaka slid it to me. "She's controlling, Hirata is what gives her power since people respect him she will get the same respect." I explained.
"True, she may hold the key to take the initiative." Suzune mumbled.
"Yet she's shown no sign of wanting to do that during this test." Kiyotaka informed her while I was happily eating the cake.
"I think I see what you are getting at." Suzune commented. "But what do you plan to do? Bring Karuizawa into the fold?"
"I think I need more cake first." He looked at me.
"Later, let me finish the cake." I complained. "Man, you're impatient."
"...." Suzune was just staring at me in pure shock.
"Hey, Suzune. Out for a date? Here, of all places?" Ryuen appeared.
"Having a date with Albert?" I asked making him pause.
"Wanna join?" He asked me.
"Death is more appetizing." I admitted. "Go after Suz's hair."
"Come up with a way to sniff out the Vip yet?" Ryuen actually sniffed her hair as soon as I demanded him to and Suzune slapped his hand away.
"I'd never tell you either way." Suzune glared at him.
"I was hoping to ask your opinion..." Ryuen smirked. "But it sounds like you haven't narrowed down the suspects at all."
"What interesting phrasing." Suzune commented.
"I'm on track to identity the Vip, would you believe me if I said that?" Ryuen laughed.
"You have got enemies on all sides." Suzune reminded him. "I would doubt your ability to acquire reliable information."
"One's personal standing is unrelated to one's ability to acquire information." Ryuen sat down next to me for some reason. "I'm going to grab this test by the root. Class C may even seize itself a sweeping vic-"
Ryuen flinched away when my fork came down near his hand he had just moved away in time. "My cake." I glared at him. "Go eat your own hair."
He just stared at me as I got my fork out of the table. It left quite a dent in the table, and I was happily eating my cake again.
"Once I know who in my class are Vips, I can extrapolate that to test at large." Ryuen explained, and he probably will since even if they don't Kushida would likely speak up and confirm his theory is right then every group will be in big trouble.
This is the perfect opportunity for Kushida to attack Suzune without other people from our class knowing what's transpiring. Hirata is also too trusting of her to think she would purposely let out that she's the Vip.
"I guess my plan is set, let's go with that." I hummed happily as I ate my food and looked forward to the future scenes I will have play out.
"You really think they will share that information with you? Perhaps, rather than revealing themselves to a tyrant like you, they will seek the 500,000 points for themselves." Suzune retorted.
He should be fine since he seems happy to get violent, so that would force them all to go along with his plan. "I just need a situation that removes lies from the equation." Ryuen explained. "I have forced everyone in Class C to hand over their cellphones. Now I just need to check their emails."
"Are you mad?" Suzune questioned him. "If this gets out, you will be expe-"
"Sorry to disappoint, but it won't be getting out. It won't become an issue." Ryuen reassured us then tapped the table we are at and Albert started to make him a drink. "That's why I'm here."
Albert gave him a drink. "Well?" Ryuen held it out to Suzune.
"I refuse." She answered immediately.
"I'm currently entering endgame, Suzune." Ryuen took a swig of the drink then it was placed by me. "That's for last time, Rekka. Now Suzune, I have a proposal."
I tried the drink then poured it out onto the floor making Ryuen stare at what I'm doing. "Not good?" Kiyotaka asked me.
"I'm sure its what hair tastes like." I explained as I went back to my cake.
Ryuen went over to Suzune, and he whispered in her ear, but I could hear his proposal of having all classes but A, pool information on all of their Vips and figure out the underlying logic of the test and crush Class A.
"A ridiculous proposal." Suzune rolled her eyes. "You're wasting your breath."
"I thought it was a rather good-" Ryuen paused again when my head smashed against the table and he just left with Albert.
"Rekka, do that slowly." Kiyotaka pulled my head up a little to check if I got any injuries.
"You have been more reckless lately." Suzune added seeing I did it on purpose.
"It's faster, and I needed to keep up with watching the bird that flew by." I explained while I also really wanted Ryuen to leave since all he does is speak about what I already know he will do.
"It also speeds up your death." She informed me.
"And your heart beating does to." I shrugged. "Everything can kill you. You die eventually, so I can headbang all I want! Cool death."
Suzune made me keep my head up making me whine then Kiyotaka fed me some of my cake and I stopped struggling.
"You are a child." Suzune patted my head, and I went back to eating my cake.
I don't know why we were still here, and I was getting bored. "How long are you just going to sit there?" Suzune spoke up as she read her book. "I'd prefer that we not be mistaken for a couple and Rekka looks very impatient with you."
"You're the one who called-" Kiyotaka went to retort.
"Our discussion is finished." Suzune reminded him.
"So is my cake." I stood up and twirled my umbrella around on my shoulder. "And you want that hint, you need it so I can have fun these next few days."
Suzune looked over interested as Kiyotaka got up. "The hint is cake!" I exclaimed making Suzune sigh as I ran off.
I noticed there were many couples for some reason. "This is an awkward walk for us." Kiyotaka commented when he caught up to me.
"Who cares? You won't let me jump off the ship and swim to get to our rooms." I pouted.
"Yeah because it will bring attention to you, Ryuen might try and sniff your hair as you are drowning." Kiyotaka informed me and I gagged. "So what is the real hint?"
"Bullying!" I exclaimed making us get looks.
He was thinking for 2 straight minutes as we walked. "What kind of pain is Kei in?" Kiyotaka asked me.
I clapped. "Man, you are slow with women." I hummed. "I get a kind of Suzune vibe, not the boring cold part. There's a fake persona then there's a little girl inside who cries easily when provoked like she had been shattered before. She's been bullied before and even used a girl with a condition as a shield showing she's very desperate for it to not happen ever again."
"So you like her for taking advantage of the weak?" He asked me.
"She has a will strong enough to do that, so seeing her fall apart is gonna be beautiful." I explained.
"And she would be a good pawn." Kiyotaka mumbled, and we both decided on what we needed to happen that will benefit us both and it will benefit her in the end to.
"Oh, a crab with a fork!" I ran after it.
"There's one on board." Kiyotaka mumbled as he walked after me.
I then ran into Kushida who looked nervous. "You out here alone? Is this your crab?" I asked as it ran around her and she started to freak out until I picked it up.
"Oh, what? Ayanokoji to?" Kushida commented. "Is it just you two?"
"Yes." Kiyotaka nodded.
"Well, it's just me!" She exclaimed as I was happily playing with the crab, it keeps trying to snap at my fingers.
I noticed a weird shake in Kushida's voice, but the crab is cuter than her.
"Mrs Crabs!" I exclaimed as I held it up.
"Well...goodnight, then." Kiyotaka told Kushida as I was already walking off since the crab is more interesting than her.
"Yeah, see you tomorrow!" Kushida grinned as we went past. "Wait!"
We turned and she grabbed onto Kiyotaka and it was silent then I heard a door open. I looked to see something that made me grin and laugh a little. "I'm sorry, I..." Kushida looked up then saw my expression and got scared showing my prediction was dead on.
"I'm sorry, there are couples all over the deck, I just felt...lonely." Kushida lied and Kiyotaka just looked confused.
I walked over and Kushida backed up, but I got as close as I could to her face. "Are you having fun with this test?" I asked. "Do you know? I think we are tied."
"What are you talking about?" She asked me nervously and I sighed and then turned away.
"Mrs Crabs, you are the only interesting thing here." I went off with him. "And you lead me to more fun things! Oh wow, now it's leading me to ice cream!"
"Rekka." Kiyotaka mumbled then followed me and he did get me ice cream in the end, but the crab attacked my ice cream it making all go onto the floor and I glared at the crab.
Kiyotaka just took it off me and put it on the floor, and it ran for its life.
"How can someone be violent against food?" I mumbled confused while pouting.