"Boys, could you gather around for a moment?"
It was early in the morning on the fifth day. As I was in a deep sleep, I heard the disgruntled voices of the girls from outside the tent. The words didn't stop there. They were treating us like we were criminals holding someone hostage, telling us to wake up and get out. I figured something was wrong, so I rubbed my sleepy eyes and went outside the tent.
"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
Yōsuke-kun also came out of the tent next to me. Upon seeing our faces, Shinohara-san, who had been scowling like a demon, looked a little more at ease.
"You two... I'm sorry, but could you wake up all the boys? It's a disaster."
However, her strong tone didn't change.
"Okay, Yōsuke-kun, you take care of that side."
"Got it. I'll go call them now, so wait a moment."
About a minute or two after we called out, the boys came out of their tents, rubbing their sleepy eyes. The groggy boys finally realized something was amiss when they saw the girls gathered outside the tents.
"What's the matter so early in the morning?"
"I think this is a bit too intense for a wake-up call."
My jokes didn't make the girls' expressions soften.
"I'm sorry, you two. This has nothing to do with Hirata-kun and Saitō-kun... but I have something I absolutely need to confirm, which is why I gathered everyone."
Shinohara-san spoke with a look of contempt toward everyone except Yōsuke-kun and me.
"This morning... Karuizawa-san's underwear went missing. Do you know what that means?"
Oh, wow. Seriously?
"Huh... underwear...?"
The impact must have been too big, as even the usually calm Yōsuke-kun was speechless.
Now that I thought about it, Karuizawa-san and some of the other girls weren't here.
"Karuizawa-san is crying in the tent right now. Kushida-san and the others are trying to comfort her, but..."
Shinohara-san said that, looking at the girls' tent.
"Huh? Huh? Why are you glaring at us just because her underwear went missing?"
"It's obvious, isn't it? One of you guys went through her bag and stole it last night. The bags were left outside, so it would have been easy to steal!"
The girls' words caused tension to run through the boys. They all looked at each other and then started to murmur in protest.
"No, no, no, no!? Huh?! Huh?!"
Ike-kun looked back and forth between the boys and girls in a panic. A boy who was calmer than the others mumbled.
"Come to think of it, Ike, you went to the toilet late last night, didn't you? It took you a while."
"No, no, no! It was just... it was dark, so it was hard!"
"Is that true? You didn't steal Karuizawa's underwear, did you?"
"N-No! I didn't do that!"
It seemed his everyday actions were coming back to haunt him, and Ike-kun was the first to be suspected. ...Well, this is a pain. How am I going to resolve this?
"Anyway. I think this is a huge problem, don't you? It's impossible to camp in the same place as an underwear thief."
Shinohara-san had a point.
"By the way, is it possible that she just lost it... I guess not. You guys already looked for it, right?"
"Yeah. So, I was hoping you could find the culprit somehow? ...I think one of the boys stole it. But not all the boys are bad, and I want to do my best for the remaining two days with the people who are innocent."
Most of her emotion was anger, but I could also see sadness and shock in her eyes. After working together as a team, they were betrayed with just two days left. The mental shock to Karuizawa-san and the other girls must have been immense.
"But—there's no evidence that a boy stole it... I don't want to believe that the culprit is among us."
"That's right! We have nothing to do with this!"
The innocent ones would feel like they were getting caught in the crossfire. However, their reaction only increased the girls' distrust.
"Then let us check your bags. If you didn't steal it, there shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"Alright. Then I'll go get mine first."
At her words, I went to where my bag was to prove my innocence. My bag was outside the tent, so even if I had stolen the underwear and put it in there, I wouldn't be able to hide it. That was one of the reasons I did this. Above all, if they trusted me, I had to meet their expectations.
"Hey! Don't do it, Saitō!"
"In this situation, it's only natural for us to be suspected. If you can proudly say you didn't steal it, I think it's best to cooperate without being secretive."
I didn't give in to Ike-kun's angry shouts and talked back to him. When I reached my bag, I felt everyone's eyes on my back as I took out my bag... Tch, I see. He really went all out to make things difficult for me.
"Here it is. Alright, Shinohara-san. Everyone's watching, so I can't hide anything. Let's just get this over with and prove my innocence."
"Okay! I never suspected you in the first place, anyway."
I imagined the worst-case scenario that was about to unfold and mentally rehearsed the act I was about to put on.
"Okay, I'm opening it! Honestly, because of you guys, Saitō-kun has to go through this... ...Huh?"
...Yeah, I knew it. Shinohara-san opened my bag while mumbling complaints. But something completely different from what she expected must have happened. She was frozen, staring into the bag.
"Huh? What's wrong, Shinohara-sa—"
"W-What does this mean, Saitō-kun?"
"Huh?"
Okay... calm down. The events that are about to unfold are already set in stone. First, I have to act surprised. Think about the time you cheated in your past life... You managed to get out of it by blaming it on a stalker when you found an unknown girl's hair in your room. This is much easier compared to that.
Shinohara-san took out a pair of cute women's underwear from my bag with a trembling hand. It was pink. She has good taste.
"Huh...?"
"—Why is Karuizawa-san's underwear coming out of Saitō-kun's bag!?"
This must be Ryūen-kun's doing. I can easily imagine him smirking behind the scenes... I should seriously punch him once. Shinohara-san yelled at the boys behind me, not at me, for some reason.
"W-Wait a minute! This is totally weird! If Saitō stole it, why would he cooperate with a bag check without even trying to hide it!?"
"You're right. Even an idiot like me wouldn't put it in a place where it could be found right away."
Ike-kun yelled and waved his hands, and Sudō-kun backed him up. Oh, crap... It would have been easier to be the culprit, but their trust is too warm.
"Huh? If it came out of Saitō's bag, then Saitō is the culprit, isn't he? He's a womanizer, so it's not weird."
Yamauchi-kun was a complete contrast to them. You... I'll remember this later, seriously.
"You shut up! Hey, this is definitely weird. Did you frame Saitō-kun!?"
"Huh!? Why would I be the culprit!? It came out of Saitō's bag, so Saitō should be the culprit!"
See? I knew it. His way of thinking is too shortsighted. As the argument between the boys and girls escalated, Horikita-san was the one who stopped the commotion.
"May I have a word? I don't think Saitō-kun is the underwear thief."
"Then what are you guys arguing about?"
"Arguing? You're being emotional and insulting each other. How is that a discussion?"
...Her tone is back to how it was when she first enrolled. This... she's angry. For sure.
"First, why do you think Yamauchi-kun is the culprit? Please tell me the reason."
"The reason is... isn't it normal for the culprit's bag to have the stolen item in it?"
The person she turned to was Yamauchi-kun, who was so sure I was the culprit. He said it as if it was obvious, but Horikita-san didn't think so.
"It's easy to imagine that the boys' bags would be searched after the underwear was stolen. If Saitō-kun had stolen it, he wouldn't be stupid enough to just leave it in his bag."
"I-I don't know that! It's possible that Saitō couldn't control his lust and became an idiot!"
...I know why this guy suspects me so much. He's definitely jealous of how popular I am and wants to bring me down, right? I heard him say something similar to Ayanokōji-kun before. But I think that's a terrible move. See? Horikita-san is seriously pissed off now.
"...This is getting nowhere. I personally think that, as Shinohara-san said, someone else stole it and framed Saitō-kun."
"Right! One of the other boys did it!"
"That's not necessarily true, Shinohara-san. We can't deny the possibility that another class did this in the middle of the night to cause a distraction for Class D."
That brings the discussion back to square one. Talking about it any longer would only make things worse, so I'll be the scapegoat for now. Since I had been silent for a while, some of them looked at me with concern. I gave them a wry smile, then stood in front of the arguing group and spoke.
"Everyone, I have a proposal."
"...What is it, Saitō-kun?"
Horikita-san looked at me with uneasy eyes. I gently patted her head and continued to speak while trying to act weak.
"First, I swear I didn't do it. But the underwear that could be used as evidence came out of my bag, and it's probably impossible to identify the real culprit by just talking about it."
"Then... what are you going to do?"
It was Shinohara-san who asked me that.
"For now, for the next two days. I know this is a cruel thing to ask, but I want everyone to continue the exam as is. —In return, I promise not to go near this campsite at all for today and tomorrow, except for roll call."
"...That's completely wrong. What does it solve to kick out someone who isn't even the culprit?"
"That's why I said 'for now.' We can investigate as much as we want after the exam is over, and I'm sure the people who think I'm the culprit will be satisfied with that, right?"
As Horikita-san said, it doesn't solve anything. However, the guilt of "kicking out an innocent person" will prevent them from arguing for a while. ...It's a terrible plan, but it's only two more days. I don't want to see our efforts go to waste.
—Besides, if I, the most wary person, am gone, I can leave Ryūen-kun to Ayanokōji-kun, who will be off his guard.
"But..."
"It's fine. I'm good at survival, so I won't retire. Well, I'd better start getting ready. It would be a huge help if you could share some food with me... Is that okay?"
Pushing past their objections, I left the scene.
---------
"—I'm counting on you, Yōsuke-kun."
After handing over what I was doing, I placed my hand on Yōsuke-kun's shoulder, who was looking down. This would be a burden for him, but I couldn't help it.
"...This is still wrong. I'll go and talk to them and see if they'll let you off... "Yōsuke-kun." ..."
I was a little annoyed at Yōsuke-kun, who was stopping me with a lingering attitude, so I cut him off.
"Don't be so naive. Do you want to make Karuizawa-san, the victim, stay in the same place as me, who is suspected of being an underwear thief?"
It was an impossible situation, and it would be cruel to make Karuizawa-san agree to it. I didn't hate his policy of fairness, but I wanted him to think about what to prioritize.
"But..."
Yōsuke-kun still didn't agree... I guess I have no choice. I didn't want to say this, but... I whispered into his ear so no one else could hear.
"Ibuki-san is a spy from Class C. And she's trying to steal Class D's leader information."
"What...?"
He was about to cry out in surprise, so I covered his mouth with my hand.
"The culprit of the underwear theft is almost certainly her. Her goal is probably to undermine my influence, since I'm the one they should be most wary of."
"Then all the more reason to—"
"It's fine. Just trust me."
"...Can I trust you?"
"Yes. And please don't let anyone else find out."
After a few seconds of contemplation, Yōsuke-kun gave a small nod.
"That's a good answer. Well, I'm counting on you."
I left Class D's base camp with a little bit of flair.
---------
"—So, can you share some food with me, Kamuro-san?"
"..."
—Well. I'm not going to stop leeching off of girls. I'm a good-for-nothing, after all.
============
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