Chapter 8 : Deserted Island Test

The clear sea, expansive blue sky, and shining sun. Right now, we are aboard a luxurious cruise ship headed towards an island owned by the school, or rather, the country.

Only our grade is on this cruise ship, supposedly as a reward for passing the tests, according to the teachers. Upon hearing those words, our class was very excited, and indeed, everyone seems to be enjoying the current situation.

As for me, I was invited by Shiina to explore the ship. Since it's my first time on a ship, I was looking forward to it, but unexpectedly, I've fallen victim to seasickness.

"Sorry, Shiina. I didn't expect to get seasick since it's my first time on a ship."

Currently, I'm resting outside the ship, sitting on a bench with Shiina.

"No, it's okay. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I took some motion sickness medicine earlier, so I should start feeling better soon."

Shiina asked with concern. I never expected it to be this tough; it's my first time experiencing seasickness, so I'm not used to it. I might need to lie down for a bit.

"Sorry, Shiina. I think I'll lie down in my room for a bit. I might feel better after a short nap."

"Oh! Sure, Hikigaya-kun!"

As I said that, Shiina suddenly grabbed my head, pulled me towards her, and moved my head onto her lap.

Hmm?

This sudden action, combined with my slowed awareness due to seasickness, made me realize what was happening a bit late.

W-Wait, is this what they call a lap pillow!?

"U-Um, Shiina...?"

"Yes?"

In this perplexing position of having my head on her lap, I looked up and saw Shiina's face, surprisingly smiling warmly at me. Feeling the soft sensation under my head, I asked her.

"Um, what exactly is going on here?"

"Well, I thought you might feel better this way, without your head hurting."

"I-I see, but this..."

Now I understand her reasoning, but this posture...

Of course, we're on a bench equipped on the ship. It's not secluded; it's in a corridor where students pass by. Naturally, this is drawing attention.

Glancing around, indeed, we're attracting quite a bit of notice. Some girls are blushing, some are looking at us enviously. As for the boys, they're shooting jealous glares our way. As three guys including Ishizaki passed by, they stopped upon seeing us, stared intensely, and muttered something like a curse before hurrying away.

...I really should decline this.

Honestly, it's not that unpleasant; in fact, having something soft under my head feels rather nice. But attracting more attention would complicate things.

Thinking this, Shiina looked at me with worried eyes.

"Could it be that you don't like it...?"

Uh! Please don't make that expression. I might end up unable to refuse!

"No, it's not that I don't like it, but..."

"...?"

"Um..."

"...?"

"...Could you do this for just ten more minutes?"

"Yes!"

I lose...

I'm weak...

Well, ten minutes should be fine. Shiina's smile returned, and even if we attract some attention, it should be okay. Since I'm feeling a bit queasy from seasickness, I resign myself to being pillowed by Shiina.

...

After a while, I can't just keep staring to the side, so I look up and see Shiina's beautiful silver hair and well-featured face.

...Am I really getting a lap pillow from this beautiful girl?

Thinking that, it seemed Shiina was also looking at me, and we both ended up a bit embarrassed, gazing into each other's eyes.

"I-I'm feeling better now. Thanks, Shiina."

Feeling bashful, I've already started to feel much better, so I gently move away from Shiina's lap.

"O-Okay. Shall we go ?"

Shiina, perhaps embarrassed by what just happened, her face flushed, stands up energetically and walks away briskly. Following her lead, I leave the bench behind.

As Shiina and I explored the ship, we suddenly realized it was already past noon.

"Should we go eat lunch soon?"

"Yes, it's already late. What do you feel like having?"

"Let's see... hmm?"

While pondering our choices, I noticed Ibuki sitting by the railing, seemingly idle.

"Shiina, should we invite her too?"

"Oh! Ibuki-san, right. Of course, let's invite her!"

Pointing in Ibuki's direction, Shiina's eyes lit up as she noticed her, clearly eager to invite her along.

As we approached Ibuki, she glanced over at us but had a somewhat inscrutable expression on her face.

"Hey, Ibuki. What's with that look?"

"What's wrong?"

"...Don't you guys really know anything?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Curious about Ibuki's expression, I asked, and she pulled out her phone, tapping a few times before showing it to us.

Looking closer, it was the class group chat. And as we scrolled down...

"T-This is...!"

Shiina seemed to realize something and blushed for some reason. I hadn't seen everything yet, so I looked again and there it was.

A photo of me being pillowed on Shiina's lap was posted.

"Why were we photographed...?"

"Apparently, some classmates saw what you two did this morning and snapped a picture on a whim."

"Even so, they shouldn't have sent it without permission."

Checking the class chat on my phone, sure enough, there was a picture of us. Shiina and I were exploring the ship and completely unaware.

Reading through the conversation, it seemed they were teasing us, but thankfully, it hadn't spread beyond our class, which was a relief.

"Sigh, whatever. Ibuki, are you free? Wanna go grab some food?"

"Wow, jumping straight to that without even greeting me properly. Well, I was free anyway, so sure."

"Alright then, let's go. We'll decide where to eat as we walk."

Still blushing, Shiina followed Ibuki as she led us, and we set off to find a place to eat. Eventually, we spotted an upscale restaurant.

After peeking inside with Ibuki, we heard what sounded like shouting from within.

"Trash like you suits junk food. Go eat a hamburger."

"What!?!"

It seemed there was a dispute between a student from Class A and one from Class D, and one of them was Sudo, the guy we'd tangled with before. I thought he'd learned his lesson after that incident; if he keeps this up, it'll just be more of the same.

"Don't you dare insult me with 'hamburger idiot'!"

Seriously? Sudo was saying that while grabbing someone by the collar, trying to intimidate him. But really, making such a big deal out of a hamburger?

"Cut out the pointless provocation, Yahiko."

"...Katsuragi-san."

Ah, it's Katsuragi. One of the leaders of Class A's two factions. Right now, Class A is divided between Katsuragi, the defensive leader, and Sakayanagi, the aggressive one, due to their differing approaches.

With Katsuragi's intervention, the guy called Yahiko backed down.

"Let's leave it at that."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Definitely."

Feeling tired of the situation, I spoke up, and both of them responded immediately, apparently thinking the same thing.

….

After finding another promising restaurant and having a meal to rest, a broadcast sounded throughout the ship:

"Attention all students, we will now be landing on the uninhabited island owned by our school. Please change into your tracksuits, confirm your belongings, and gather on deck with your mobile phones in 30 minutes."

"Well, time to get ready."

"Yeah, see you later."

"Indeed."

We said our goodbyes and went to our respective rooms to prepare.

Undoubtedly, something is about to happen. This school isn't lenient enough to do something like this out of goodwill alone. It's also a good opportunity to see how much Ryuen has grown.

It's still uncertain if Ayanokoji will show up, but with Ryuen as he is now, he might not win but could certainly hold his ground. It's unfortunate for this exam, especially since it seems Sakayanagi couldn't participate.

I'm curious to see how it all turns out.

…..

Preparations complete, all classes disembarked and lined up on the uninhabited island, the ship's destination. Almost all students still seemed to think of this as a vacation, with no sense of tension whatsoever.

After a short wait, Mashima, the A-Class homeroom teacher, stepped up onto a central platform.

"Firstly, I am pleased that we have safely arrived at this location today. It is unfortunate that one student could not join us."

He must be referring to Sakayanagi. Well, this time around, it couldn't be helped. It would be too late to wait for something to happen to Sakayanagi if something happened.

After finishing his report, the teacher took a little break, and his expression turned determined.

"From now on, we will begin the special exam for this academic year."

When the teacher said this, almost all the classes heard a noisy commotion.

It seems like they still don't understand the situation. There's no way this school would just end a holiday. Part of me might have realized it.

from understand. I can see that a group of students have already realized that. By the way, when I looked at Ryuen who was nearby for some reason he looked genuinely happy.

From there, the teacher began to explain the exam.

The main points are as follows:

- Spend a week living on an uninhabited island.

- Receive 300 points, which can be used to purchase necessary items from the manual. Points remaining after the exam will be added to CP.

- Choose a leader, occupy spots, and correctly identify leaders from other classes to earn points.

- Acts of violence and similar behaviors will result in severe penalties.

That's about it. After the teacher finished speaking, various protests could be heard from different places, especially from Class D. Despite this, everyone seemed satisfied with the explanations given.

Following this, each class began to act independently, and the exam officially started.

Just as I was about to move, I happened to make eye contact with Ayanokoji. He seemed very out of place in his class, which left a strong impression on me.

….

"Ryuen, what strategy are you going with this time?"

As the classes split up, Kaneda questioned Ryuen, catching the surrounding conversation.

"I'll explain that later. Kaneda, take command and rally everyone until I get back."

"Where are you off to?"

"Just something I need to handle. I'll explain when I return. Just wait until then."

Kaneda agreed to Ryuen's instructions and began organizing the group as directed. Ryuen, after observing the class for a moment, walked off towards the forest and gradually disappeared from view. Initially, he wouldn't have been followed so obediently, but Ryuen's charisma was undeniable.

Following Kaneda's orders, the class remained in the shade and waited until Ryuen returned. From there, everyone seemed to engage in their own activities without much incident.

As for me...

"Hikigaya! Did you just sneak away?"

"Weren't we supposed to be comrades walking the same path?"

"When did you change like this?"

I was being cornered by the usual three: Ishizaki, Komiya, and Kondo. It was probably because of what happened on the ship—them witnessing Shina resting her head on me. It was even posted on Class Line...

"Well, you see..."

"Did you forget our promise to report it if you got a girlfriend!?"

I don't recall making such a promise.

They weren't listening to my words and were vigorously shaking me by the shoulders. Glances of jealousy from many students around us, though not as aggressive as Ishizaki and the others, were also directed at me. Some girls seemed to be going directly to Shina for answers.

Shina, visibly embarrassed, was fidgeting and responding to their questions, which elicited cheers from the girls around her with each answer.

What is this situation...

While trying to respond bit by bit to Ishizaki and the others shaking my shoulders, I silently hoped for this situation to resolve itself and waited for Ryuen's return.

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