Fourth Secret Strategy Meeting
"Okay everyone, let's begin the fourth secret strategy meeting!"
Tsugumi's unusually cheerful voice echoed across the deck. It was 11 p.m., and after finishing the last discussion of the second day, the three of us—Horikita, Tsugumi, and I—had gathered to hold a strategy meeting.
"…We aren't being followed, are we?"
"Nope. I made sure to check."
C Class wouldn't be watching us around the clock, and we'd shifted our meeting time, so there was no way Ryūen would find out about this. Even if someone were to come, it was an open deck with a great view, so it would be nearly impossible for anyone to eavesdrop.
Seeing this, Horikita, who had been on high alert, breathed a sigh of relief and moved to stand next to Tsugumi, who was leaning against the railing.
"In that case, let's get this over with. Ayanokōji-kun, please tell me the details of the story from earlier."
…She's a little too close, isn't she? Not just her shoulder, but her arm is pressed against mine. She's even leaning on me a bit, and Tsugumi is giving a wry smile.
But I decided it would be uncouth to point it out and got straight to the point.
"…All right. Regarding Karuizawa—"
I recounted the following: that she had been having trouble with the C Class girls for a while, and it had almost escalated into a physical fight; and that Yukimura and I had intervened, which prevented the situation from getting worse.
—And I also told them about Karuizawa's reaction at the time.
"Hmm… so it's a pretty deep-seated problem. Now, what should we do?"
After listening to the story, Tsugumi crossed his arms and sighed.
"Can't Karuizawa-san just apologize and resolve the issue?"
"It's not that simple."
Tsugumi said this as a preface to Horikita, who didn't quite grasp the situation, and then continued.
"First and foremost, the three of us don't have a close relationship with Karuizawa-san. Given her personality, I don't think she would listen to anything we have to say."
"So that rules out going through Hirata-kun…"
"Exactly. That's why Yōsuke-kun came to Kiyotaka-kun for advice."
In reality, Hirata must have told Karuizawa to change her attitude several times. However, perhaps because of the uninhabited island exam, Karuizawa didn't take it to heart.
That's when he sought my help. The reason he didn't go to Tsugumi or Horikita directly was probably because he felt ashamed for not being able to unite the class after the panty thief incident, and for not being able to stop Karuizawa's rampage.
"This is frustrating… I wonder what Karuizawa-san will do now."
"She'll probably go to Hirata first for advice. Honestly, I don't know what method she'll use to get Manabe and the others to back off."
"From the way she acts, she might even ask him to accompany her when she goes to apologize… No, probably not."
Tsugumi said that, but honestly, I couldn't imagine it. If she could do that, the problem wouldn't have gotten this big, and Hirata wouldn't be struggling so much.
"…It seems we'll just have to wait and see what they do. What will we do if Karuizawa-san wants to use forceful methods?"
When Horikita asked this, Tsugumi groaned for a few seconds before giving a wry smile and saying,
"We'll just have to solve it with a slightly forceful method ourselves."
"…Tsugumi?"
"Hmm… Oh, don't worry. It's not about solving things with violence. I would never lay a hand on a girl."
I wondered if he'd stick to that policy even if the victim were Sakayanagi. I shuddered, remembering the fist that had almost killed Ryūen in the rain.
Tsugumi quickly denied it, but I had learned firsthand during the last exam how terrifying he could be when angered. I hoped the girls involved would be careful not to trigger him.
"Well, just watch. There's a reason this problem hasn't surfaced until now. For now, let's think about what we're going to do."
After consulting for about ten minutes, we all returned to our rooms.
---------
It was past 2 a.m. Kiyotaka-kun had contacted me, so I was heading to the rest area on the second basement floor.
The hallway was bright, but the surroundings were unnervingly quiet. I knew full well that my planned solution was far from ideal, but I couldn't help it when considering Karuizawa-san's future.
Mumbling an excuse to myself—I didn't know who I was trying to justify it to—I walked slowly, making sure not to make any noise.
"Please, help me… You'll protect me, won't you, Hirata-kun?"
Because the hallway was directly connected to the rest area, I could hear Karuizawa-san's pained voice.
Peeking in, I saw Kiyotaka-kun, Yōsuke-kun, and Karuizawa-san standing a few meters away.
"Of course, I'll protect you. But I can't hurt Manabe-san and the others for no reason. Violence is completely out of the question. I'll try to get them to talk and come to a conclusion that everyone can agree on."
I thought things would be fine since Yōsuke-kun was there, but the conversation seemed to be getting quite complicated.
Yōsuke-kun usually gives in and compromises with the other person, but he seemed to have a strong aversion to solving things with violence, and he was reprimanding Karuizawa-san in a very stern tone.
"I told you it's impossible! If I could do that, I wouldn't be asking for help!"
It was an absurd argument, but I understood Karuizawa-san's point.
For someone who had almost been mob lynched by other girls, Yōsuke-kun's response was far too gentle. If they had tried to do that to Arisu-chan, they wouldn't have seen the sun rise the next day… Not that we were dating or anything.
"No matter the reason, I can't meet that expectation. To me, you are a valuable classmate. If you're in trouble, I'll help and protect you. But I can't hurt anyone else for that. Not even a C Class student."
Even in the face of Karuizawa-san's desperate cry, Yōsuke-kun didn't change his attitude. …He's amazing. Are high schoolers this determined these days?
"Liar! You said you'd protect me!"
"Liar? I intend to maintain the same attitude I've had from the beginning."
Yōsuke-kun continued with a shocking statement.
"I told you from the start, didn't I? We're not a real couple. It's fine to pretend to be dating, but I will never take sides with you alone."
…You're kidding me. I was rooting for them as a cute, slightly awkward couple… And he actually said that. Surely Kiyotaka-kun is surprised, right?
"…"
He wasn't surprised at all. What's with this guy? I know you're getting all cozy with Sakura-san!
"So… it's okay for me to get beaten up?"
…Oh, crap. I was so surprised that I wasn't listening to the conversation at all. I was too relaxed because I was sure I could help her. I need to reflect on that.
"I'm not saying that. I will do my best to help you. In the morning, I'm going to talk to Manabe and the others. I'll tell them to stop bothering Karuizawa-san. I don't care if you're not happy about it, but I'll even tell them you were trying to apologize."
"I don't want to!"
Karuizawa-san shouted louder than she had all day. She must have been so flustered that she didn't care about the risk of being overheard.
"If that's the case, there's nothing I can do to help. I'm sorry. Ayanokōji-kun, do you have any solution—"
"I've had enough! If you won't grant my wish, then I don't need you!"
Interrupting Yōsuke-kun, Karuizawa-san threw the canned drink she was holding onto the floor.
"Our relationship is over. It's over!"
Karuizawa-san ran away, but Hirata-kun didn't chase after her. …Well, the rest is up to you, Kiyotaka-kun.
As I was thinking that, Kiyotaka-kun gave me a deadpan thumbs-up. It was kind of funny.
"…Now, she must have gone this way."
You might think it's impossible to chase her when she's out of sight. However, a girl who acts like a tough leader in front of others would never return to her room while crying. Given the ship's layout, there were only a few places she could be heading.
—While I was thinking about that, I saw a crouching student in the corner of my eye.
"Huh? Is that Karuizawa-san?"
I held a warm can of cocoa I had bought from the vending machine and approached her, pretending it was a coincidence. She was in the rest area on the opposite side of the same floor, sitting in a corner with little foot traffic.
"…Leave me alone."
Logically, she wouldn't have come all the way down to the basement just to buy a drink. However, Karuizawa-san didn't have the composure to think about that.
She glared at me with tear-filled eyes as she sobbed.
"I don't know what happened, but there's no way I can just leave you alone, right? Oh, want some cocoa?"
Karuizawa-san had probably worked up a sweat from running after getting so upset. The air conditioning in the rest area was annoyingly high in the middle of summer.
"…Okay."
Her chilled body must have subconsciously wanted it. Karuizawa-san's white hands wrapped around the warm can of cocoa.
I sat down next to her. Usually, she would have a sharp comment, but this time, there was nothing.
"Did you have a fight with Yōsuke-kun?"
"…!"
I said it as a joke, but her reaction was so honest that I chuckled.
"Really? With Yōsuke-kun?"
"…It's none of your business."
"You're right."
After those words, silence fell between us. Karuizawa-san took a sip of cocoa out of awkwardness, but she didn't tell me to leave.
The drink was free, but perhaps the feeling of being indebted to me made her feel guilty about chasing me away. It was all going according to plan.
"…Isn't this awkward? I said all those things to you before."
"About the panty thief incident? But you were the victim, weren't you? You're the one who should apologize, but there's no reason for me to be angry."
"…Right. Thank you."
I hadn't said anything to warrant thanks, but she, who had been feeling guilty, thanked me.
"And don't you think the school is a bit sadistic with these exams? After a survival test on an uninhabited island, they throw us into a mixed-class exam."
"Well… that's true."
"You must be having a tough time, Karuizawa-san, right? Your group is full of weirdos, isn't it? There's Utomura-kun, who only says 'gozaru,' the overly serious Yukimura-kun, and then there's the socially awkward Kiyotaka-kun."
I'm sorry, Kiyotaka-kun. Please be a sacrifice for Karuizawa-san. What I'm saying isn't a lie.
"Haha, that's mean. I thought you were close with Ayanokōji-kun?"
"But it's the truth, isn't it? He'd never be able to look a cute girl like you in the eye and talk to her, right? I'm sure of it."
I'm sorry, Kiyotaka-kun. I'm going to embellish a little. You're a good-looking guy, so you should probably get a girlfriend soon.
"Hmm. You're friends with Horikita-san and some of the A Class students, but you're still saying that to me?"
"Eh, no… It's not like we're dating or anything."
"…! Oh, really…"
I was surprised before, but if Karuizawa-san had been dating Yōsuke-kun to maintain her "status within the class," this statement should be pretty critical.
I was just as popular as Yōsuke-kun. The reason she chose to date someone who could easily make enemies was probably because of the rumors that I was close with Suzune-chan and Arisu-chan.
So now that she knows I'm single and that reconciling with Yōsuke-kun is difficult…
"…Saitō-kun, are you going to sleep now?"
"Hmm. I took a nap, so I'm not tired at all. Tomorrow is a day off, so I feel like staying up late."
"I see. Well… I have something I'd like to talk to you about…"
—See? She took the bait. My "What's up? Want to talk?" strategy is going smoothly.
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