Chapter 58 – It’s impossible for a student to have such acting skills

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"Damn Yukio! Unfair! Narrow-minded, jerk! Annoying!" Ibuki grumbled, walking through the dense jungle, taking out her frustration on the unsuspecting flora.

Any plant in her way was either uprooted by Ibuki or trampled underfoot, crushed back into the earth, suffering unjustly.

After feeling aggrieved, anger followed. Ibuki, after all, was not a little girl who would cry in distress. She strongly converted her sense of grievance into fury, lashing out at the plants, showing no mercy.

It was as if she saw these weeds as a representation of Yukio's despicable bias. After venting her anger, she came back to her senses with a growling stomach.

Her feelings of injustice resurfaced. She couldn't be bothered to walk anymore, so she just found a tree to lean against and slumped down weakly.

Having played all morning, she was already hungry, and after eating only one skewer at lunch before storming off due to Yukio, she hadn't had her fill.

Now, Ibuki somewhat regretted her impulsiveness. She should have eaten properly before leaving, especially since the food was exchanged by Yukio. Not eating more was truly a loss!

She should have indulged to her heart's content before leaving! Better yet, eaten so much that Yukio had none! Let him experience the pains of hunger too!

Unfortunately, all she could do now was wish, and the more she thought about it, the hungrier she got.

She didn't know how long had passed, but the light had dimmed when she awoke to calls of "classmate, classmate". Had she fallen asleep without realizing it?

What time was it now? And who was calling her? Had Yukio come out to look for her? That would show he had some conscience, so she wouldn't scold him.

As her blurry vision cleared, she realized it was Ichinose Honami with a concerned expression, accompanied by a girl and Ryuji Kanzaki, the vice-class representative of Class B.

Now fully alert, Ibuki immediately became defensive: "Stay away from me!" she said, getting up and adopting a fighting stance.

Ichinose, however, didn't seem to take her hostility to heart, instead showing more concern: "Don't worry, we mean no harm. I'm Honami Ichinose from Class B. Why are you sleeping here?"

"Though the uninhabited island chosen by the school shouldn't have any large dangerous animals, it's still risky to sleep here alone, especially as it's getting dark."

"Mind your own business!" Ibuki still cautiously maintained her distance. Ichinose's innocent and friendly demeanor did not reassure her.

As Ibuki herself had said, she had a deep mistrust of those who appeared overly kind on the surface. The more benevolent someone seemed, the more suspicious she was of their ulterior motives.

Ichinose didn't understand Ibuki's thoughts and thought maybe their presence had frightened her. She quickly stepped back, creating a friendly distance, to show there was no ill intent: "Don't misunderstand, classmate."

"We just wanted to wake you up, nothing more. Please go back to your class's base. It's really dangerous to be alone and get lost on this island."

"I'm not going back!" Ibuki became even more irritated upon hearing Ichinose's advice. She really didn't want to return and see Yukio's biased and disgusting face!

Kanzaki, who was listening, seemed to understand the situation: "Were you driven out of your class? That's why you're alone here."

"How could that be? That's too much!" Another Class B girl gasped in disbelief, seemingly disapproving of such behavior of driving away a classmate. This was something unimaginable in their Class B.

"Which class are you from, classmate?" Ichinose was also moved by a sense of duty, feeling unable to ignore such a situation: "What if something happens? Your class is too…"

But Ichinose couldn't bring herself to say anything harsh.

"Huh." Ibuki nonchalantly revealed her class: "Class C, what about it!"

"Class C?!" Kanzaki, who hadn't paid much attention initially, suddenly became serious: "Ichinose, think carefully."

Class C was recognized as the most cunning class among the first years, with Yukio's infamous mid-term coup against Class D still fresh in memory. No one dared to underestimate them!

If it were any other class, Kanzaki would have followed Ichinose's idea to help, as that's just the kind of person Ichinose is. And it's precisely for this reason that Class B is so united around her.

But hearing that Ibuki was from Class C, Kanzaki immediately became suspicious. Was she harboring ulterior motives? Was her story of being expelled from the class true? Could this be part of Yukio's scheme against Class B?!

It was a matter concerning the special exam and class points! Kanzaki couldn't afford to be careless at this moment! Even if Ichinose wanted to help, Kanzaki would advise caution, not to be easily deceived.

Ichinose was a bit puzzled; she was kind, but not naive. She maintained a level of skepticism, though she wouldn't voice it outright, only trying to infer indirectly: "But, Yukio-kun doesn't seem like that kind of person."

"Don't mention his name to me!" Ibuki exploded upon hearing this, like a cat whose snack was stolen: "That jerk, that jerk!"

"You don't know anything! He's a complete and utter bastard! Not like that kind of person? You've been fooled! He's just disgusting, makes me want to hit him!"

Whenever Ibuki brought up Yukio, she brimmed with uncontrollable rage, her expressions as if harboring a deep grudge against him.

Such intense vehemence immediately stunned both Ichinose and Kanzaki, leaving them momentarily speechless. Ichinose, who had a favorable impression of Yukio, and the highly suspicious Kanzaki, were both caught off guard.

Ichinose was a bit confused, unable to determine whether Yukio had done something wrong or if this classmate was deliberately slandering him.

Kanzaki, however, relaxed a bit: "With such genuine anger, it doesn't seem like an act. A regular high school girl without a background in acting couldn't possibly have such skills; otherwise, she'd be winning awards in film at such a young age."

This implied that Ibuki probably wasn't part of a scheme by Class C. Her hatred for Yukio seemed genuine, so it's unlikely that this was a ploy from Class C. She must have truly been driven out.

With this, Ichinose felt more at ease to help Ibuki: "Then how about this? Why don't you come back with us for now? It's better than staying alone in the woods."

"There will be some support at least."

Ibuki kept her composure, but internally, she was bewildered. What's going on? Just like that? Class B just trusts her now? Saying it can't be an act?

That outburst, which truly came from the heart, wasn't an act but genuine irritation thinking about Yukio!

Could it be that gaining Class B's trust was this easy?

Could this also have been part of Yukio's plan?!

Right, it must be! That sounded like something he would do!

The more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. In Ibuki's eyes, Yukio was never the low EQ type, so it was unlikely he would blatantly show favoritism towards Shiina in front of her.

That means! Everything was intentional by Yukio! He purposely said those things in front of her, maintaining her anger towards him to deceive Class B!

She had cracked the case! It wasn't Yukio being biased but a ploy to deceive Class B by first fooling her!

With this realization, her mood did a complete turnaround.

The more aggrieved she had felt before, the more delighted she was now. Her mood soared as if it had wings, and her anger vanished into thin air.

Really! Why couldn't he have just told her earlier? She was actually quite capable of acting; if he had told her, she could have played the part!

If it weren't for Ichinose and the others still watching her, Ibuki felt she might have burst into laughter.

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