Part 1.
8:30 am.
After Shizuku told me in particular who she had in mind and what she intended to do, classroom began moments later. Noticeably, her deal was demanding but she kept on insisting on how sure she was that I was going to love what the book has to offer.
Ever since she has been repeating the exact same four words, otherwise known as: "You will love it!", I've been thinking of ways of killing her should the result be beyond mediocre. However, I don't believe Shizuku to be someone who would say those words in vain. Especially after she is aware that the culprit is a boy.
That's right. She knows about you. With that in mind, it does help me relax but counting out the possibility of Shizuku being someone who has manipulative intentions is out of the equation. Perhaps I'm simply undermining what sort of information she could have in store. It's not that I enjoy underestimating something or someone; I simply heavily dislike overestimating something/someone. It's like being a baby inside a cradle waiting for your father/mother to come and get you, but at the sight of one mistake, even profanities, you get abandoned.
"Good morning girls! Waaah, it feels refreshing seeing no boy at sight, doesn't it?!"
Striding towards the podium and ultimately her desk, our teacher, Yuka, greeted us while simultaneously addressing the reality in a playful manner.
Before classes ended yesterday, Yuka-sensei made sure to tell every single one of us that we could enter the classroom as soon as it was 8 am. Originally, my plan was to be around block F before 8 am, however, Shizuku kept me busy with her deal until 8:15 am or so. Henceforth, I could really only enter the classroom at 8:25 am. Furthermore, although we are all in our classroom, we are not in our groups of yesterday. Proof being; no one is grouped up and instead, in their own seats.
"Eh? Was my joke that bad? Why the silence...?"
Wondering why she got absolutely no response, Yuka-sensei scratched her hair slightly in the back of her head. Nonetheless, certain individuals were sure to clear the misunderstanding. At least for them.
"No such thing! It's truly a refreshing sight, sensei."
Erasing any sort of doubt, Akimiyashika was quick to speak her mind.
"It's just something we aren't used to it yet, I feel like, so we are adapting, I guess?"
In addition to Akimiyashika, Kanawari adjoined her own opinion.
"Does it really make that much of a difference anyway? It's only until the end of the month... No wait, that's only if they don't clear their exam... right?"
Indifferent from the obvious absence of the male gender in this classroom, Tateyana switched the topic briefly. There were a couple of reasons as to why I didn't bother to speak in the first place. First of all, what Yuka-sensei said, in the beginning, would only invite more and more rubbish talk. I have never been a fan of pointless talk, so I would, one way or another, make sure that this pointless talk would get decimated.
The second reason being; not all girls here support the male gender absence. I just had to look around every single one of my female classmates to see if, in their facial expressions, there was the same number of equal expressions. Most of them didn't care. However, some did. Predictable as it may seem, Arkalee was having trouble holding herself back.
So, what changed?
Tateyana's question. Yuka-sensei only explained yesterday that they were on an island. Absolutely nothing else. It is imperial that I know more about your exam.
"Ah, so it wasn't bad!"
Bombarding disappointment struck me as soon as Yuka-sensei went to the point of only acknowledging that her "joke" got acknowledged and she even ignored Tateyana's question. As for Tateyana herself, she simply looked towards Akimiyashika and Kanawari hoping for an answer.
Seeing this made my own eyes irregularly flinch profoundly which subsequently made me relentless about the question that was being avoided.
"Excuse me, um, Yuka-sensei? Tateyana asked you a question..."
Despite my minimal effort of making a somewhat polite stance, I got glanced at immediately by all my classmates.
Why are they all looking at me like that? Was this a setup? Did they all make themselves look dumb just for the sake of making me jump towards the conclusion that no one was truly interested? Well, if that's the case the--
"Oh, you are right! Tateyana, I'm sorry sweetie! I was still sleepy. Give me a few seconds, I just need to take out a few things."
Glances switched their targets from me to Yuka-sensei briefly. Even though Yuka-sensei said a few seconds, she was taking too long and even went as far as yawning in the middle of it.
My index finger alongside its scarlet red nail made sure my table's surface was suffering a one-way gate to hell by furiously tapping it continuously without stopping.
Tateyana was only staring at Yuka-sensei waiting for an answer yet I was this close to insisting, if Yuka-sensei wasn't the one who finally decided to speak out to us, as soon as she was done taking out files from her portable bag.
"Normally, I wouldn't be able to tell any of you contents regarding their exams, but the truth is... There is no way for any of you to contact them, so there is little to no point in hiding it, correct?"
Under the assumption that they truly can't receive calls or messages from the outside, then, it is useless. If they limited themselves to average cellphones, that is. For example, a satellite cellphone would work despite the fact that they are on a deserted island. Provided that such cellphones didn't get confiscated or something like that. I don't know what sort of process they went through.
Still, arguing about the possibilities was utterly dumb and I'm thankful no one did that because this made Yuka-sensei believe that none of us had any idea of such possibilities, thus she continued delivering the unknown details which are perhaps unknown to the other boys.
"And as many of you know, cellphones can be charged at 100% battery and they will go down eventually. In one week or so, none of them will have the technology to work with. Nonetheless, they were delivered a certain type of cellphone that only has one function!"
Yuka-sensei's excitement made Arkalee burst with enthusiasm, as she surely must've thought that it was a way for Hyunda to contact her.
I bet she failed to even think that just because they have a one-function type of cellphone that it would escape the lack of connection in the first place. Unless it just does. But she didn't think about that. Not that quickly, I am sure. This was simply a way for Arkalee to search for some sort of emotional closure.
Yet, her hope was quickly shattered by Yuka-sensei's upcoming words.
"The function being; they are free to press the call button and call your homeroom teacher, Basara, and as soon as someone does that, that person has failed the exam!"
Honesty is one surefire way to hell to people like Arkalee.
With that said... There is just one question and I made sure to speak my mind as soon as I witnessed an interval in Yuka-sensei's speech momentum.
"Wouldn't that mean that they wouldn't press the button anyhow? Don't get me wrong, I do understand that not all of them are one exam away from failing, but flat out telling them that they are able to fail the exam like that? Isn't that counterproductive?"
Now, now. I do understand that I could've just waited out until she had spoken everything, but I couldn't resist it.
"Well said, Yukishiro. But, you see, your homeroom teacher most likely simply told them that the button was an S.O.S button. Naturally, they don't know that it's not only a sure way to their failure and... Depending on their performance, they might get more than just a loss."
"W-What do you mean by that...?!"
Shaking her legs and showing barely any physical stability at all, Arkalee expressed her worries right away.
No one really was worried about Arkalee's state of being, even though Ikkiri was the one who looked at her the longest before going back to looking in Yuka-sensei's direction.
"Aw, calm down, Arkalee, sweetheart. By performance, I mean, their exam's content. Hypothetically speaking, should a boy press the S.O.S button without performing absolutely nothing that the content of the exam revolves around, then that boy is out of the exam."
Likewise to her worrying behavior, Arkalee turned pale.
Hinagiku spoke not in her turn but said something interesting shortly after.
"Eh... But isn't the result the same, really? I mean, think about it for a second... If, such boy is one exam away from failing, then what is the point of pressing the S.O.S button?"
"You are saying that if a boy is one exam away from failing they will die anyway and that there is no point in pressing the S.O.S button?"
"Hmm."
Hinagiku hummed as Kanawari asked that question from afar.
"Yeah okay, but wouldn't such a boy be extra pressured?"
"But they technically don't know that the S.O.S button means failing, do they? They could be stupid enough to press it and expect a rescue. The S.O.S button is far more deadly if the individual does none of the exam's contents. So, Yukishiro's question does make sense."
By contrast to that praise, Hinagiku's words invited yet another question.
Just what are their exam's contents?
"Umu, those are some good words, most impressive. The content of their exam is slightly complicated. There are three stages to their exam. Hence why they have until the end of April. The same doesn't apply to us. Just think about it a little, you are all in the same classroom and school. The circumstance hasn't really changed, has it? It's their own circumstance that has."
That still doesn't answer anything...
Then again, Yuka-sensei added words with a more astonishing value to them as soon as she was done addressing her own take on the current circumstances.
"Not even I know their three stages. All I know about such stages is that they all have one thing in common. They revolve around the same essence."
This time around, Yuka-sensei got up from her chair and went to the podium speaking louder and far more succinct to us.
"An island is a place that is, well, far different from the rest of the places you are used to, right? Now, take in the equation, a deserted one."
To give an illustration, she grabbed a piece of white chalk and began to draw the diagram of a deserted island without any of us interrupting her as Yuka-sensei did so.
"I preassume that none of you will interrupt me with arguments such as: "That is against human rights!" and "This is completely unethical!", right?"
More like there was absolutely no point in the first place. The moment someone tried to say that, they would just get destroyed as soon as Yuka-sensei mentioned their own jail sentence. Plus, as far as I'm concerned, this is an explanation about the boys' exam. Not ours. It makes little to no sense to care what they are going through.
Unless we were all copies of Arkalee, but even she is aware that arguing here is not an option.
Upon witnessing silence which implied consent, Yuka-sensei continued.
"A deserted island's conditions are horrible. Not only is it savage territory, but it abundantly contrasts the environment that most are common with. Therefore, it is a really good place to put them under pressure as their lives are at stake, should they not cooperate together. Of course, in odd cases, there could be the occurrence of occasions of independence, but what is clear is that a deserted island's conditions are not desirable."
In light of this, it was laid down why a deserted island was the selected place. The lack of human conditions.
How does that connect exactly though?
"Now that I've explained the reason behind the selection, I will explain how it intertwines with the exam's essence."
Just like the deserted island's diagram, Yuka-sensei drew yet another segment, but of something else completely.
"A human brain?"
Unable to hide her surprise, Sana silently spoke out. I cast a single rapid-fire glance but returned to my usual frontal vision position just to make sure Sana wouldn't notice.
"In order to test their mental resistance, there will be trials of confession... Yet, I have no literal idea what that means. The essence is that the culprit behind the recent unfortunate event will be put under pressure."
Yet how? This essence was already common knowledge. She mentioned three stages already. This explanation is leaving more questions than answers...
"How is that even possible? Trials of confession, what...?"
Tateyana was having a hard time figuring it out, but the truth is, it was an impossible task in the first place.
"Well, it's actually way more simple than you'd think! Remember how I said that they are on a deserted island?"
"Yes."
"It's a land without technology and among them, there will be a spy to extract information."
Interesting... Though that is slightly ambiguous and several questions were brought right to the table.
"...Who?"
Iris asked that question silently, but as predictable as it was, the question that was surely everyone's question was answered almost vaguely.
Yes, almost...
"I'm not telling who it is. However, here is some information to fiddle your minds... It is a boy from this classroom!"
!
"What?!"
Multiple shocked opinions came forth as I was certainly shocked too.
So shocked that I just had to ask a question first before anyone else could. It had to be a question that would grab everyone's interest because as the situation was dictating, it could become a question meltdown soon enough.
"Hold on, you said that the spy is a boy, but what if the spy is the one behind what happened to Yulia? Wouldn't that just be utterly counterproductive?"
And just as envisioned, they all got absorbed by my question and quickly engulfed Yuka-sensei with their glares.
She, confidently, answered back rapidly, which I was not expecting.
"He is monitored by surveillance and within the time gap of the last month, he was not involved with Yulia. I've got no evidence that I am able to show, so you'll just have to believe me here. Don't worry, I wouldn't lie to any of you, and here is why..."
Fastly, Yuka-sensei wrote down on the board the reason why the spy wouldn't assumably be the one behind all of this.
"12 months free of supply exams! What a dream, right? Or rather, free of its consequences. On paper, it might sound like he is dangerous, but the truth is, he is not."
This is mind-blowing. Never have I felt the necessity to ask something as fast as I would within the next parsec.
"Has he been a spy since from the beginning? When did this start?"
I was honestly expecting the truth, but as it turns out...
"You see... Not even I know. I haven't been your teacher since from the beginning, remember?"
"True..."
"Then..."
As they slowly arrived at the conclusion that they already have, some girls said the exact same sentence simultaneously.
"Wait, doesn't that mean that Basara-sensei knows who the spy is?"
This question caused Yuka-sensei to shiver slightly.
"W-Well... He doesn't trust me! Honestly!"
In other words, this information that we had just received had its credibility turned from something interesting to questionable. Though, my intuition tells me that she is not lying. The problem is Basara-sensei. It's obvious that's who she got this information from. Knowing him, he probably was aware that she would spill the beans.
If so, why...?
"I don't think Basara-sensei would lie though. Plus, if the deserted island truly is a place without any sort of technological advancements or any technology at all, then having a spy infiltrated makes a lot of sense. The boys aren't aware of this whatsoever. However... can you really afford to tell us this, Yuka-sensei? What if by the end of the exam we simply started to spread rumors about this spy to cause turmoil and bad blood among them?"
Admittedly, it sucks to admit, but Akimiyashika does bring a good point. This sort of information is deadly to them.
With such being the case, what is the countermeasure here?
"You are free to do that. But you have no evidence behind your words. Just like I have no evidence behind mine."
The countermeasure is that there is no countermeasure, essentially. Alternatively speaking, this spy thing is something Akimiyashika could've used in the beginning, should she had thought of the idea in the first place. And besides, something tells me that the boys wouldn't really care that much. Their anti-social behaviors already tell me so much.
Akimiyashika simply took that, as she simply wanted a confirmation, which allowed Yuka-sensei to progress.
"His job is to infiltrate and extract information that concerns the recent event. Though I know not much about this spy deal thing, I do know one thing and that is if he doesn't manage to extract information regarding this event, his 12-month deal is over. Now, remember how I said each of them was given a cellphone that would have only one function? Well, what if I were to tell you that the spy's cellphone is actually on a constant recording mode which makes him able to extract information? True enough, you can't trust a human being completely, but technology speaks differently, correct?"
"I see..."
"Sure enough, that makes sense..."
In comparison to their initial skeptical behavior, most of the girls gladly took this information as evidence that the spy was under the task of extracting as much information as possible.
And now, Yuka-sensei would finally admit the reason as to why she went through the trouble of delivering all of this information to us.
"You see, in reality, all it takes is for the three stages to be clear and the students who have done so, will return back to school, as helicopters will come to their aid as soon as the exam is clear. Naturally, those who failed to complete the three stages will get a failing mark, but the point here is that they don't have to ultimately stay on that island until the end of April to pass the exam. As far as we are concerned, they could be arriving right now and ready to resume classes with all of you!"
Then again, the likelihood of that happening is extremely low.
My lack of knowledge regarding the three stages is massive, but even then, I could conclude something immediately.
Unless the spy has crucial information regarding Yulia's suicide, there is absolutely no point for him to rush the exam. What does this mean? The spy will attempt to delay the winning outcome as much as possible. In order to make sure such a scenario comes to life, he has to infiltrate and massively delay progress. Yet, it's not as simple as it sounds. Here is why...
A deserted island's condition is not something desirable in the first place. Someone delaying your way out of it means that you will have to do something about this. Therefore, being obvious about delaying the progress won't work. The boys are borderline savage, as far as their methods and elements adjoined to their personalities go.
This infiltration has to be done masterfully.
"As some of you might've already noticed, this sort of outcome does not benefit the spy at all. The spy is under an invisible veil of protection, so he can afford to drag out the exam until the end of April just to extract information. Nothing bad will happen to him, only to those around him. Furthermore, I'll remind you all again, the spy's deal is done for if he can't extract information regarding the event that took place not long ago. So, to finally answer your question, Tateyana, they could come back at any time, it all just depends on their performance."
"Ah... Thank you for the answer."
Honestly, a "Thank you", here isn't enough. Yuka-sensei could've just answered us that their time of arrival depends on how they perform, but she went an extra mile to maximize their circumstance and just so we could understand the circumstance better and better.
I'm excited.
"Oh my goodness! 9 am already?! What am I doing?!"
Our idiot teacher finally realized she had spent 30 minutes explaining to us the boys' exam's circumstances.
Ultimately, Yuka-sensei rushed back to her desk, lightly placing the chalk piece on the frame of the board.
There, she grabbed a specific file and glanced upon us, once more.
"Here, are the results from yesterday's group activity!"
She said that, but she was holding back on exposing them, which I thought she immediately would. Notably, she did not and instead posed a question of importance to the rest of us.
"But here is a question first: Personally, do you think that the culprit is a boy or a girl?"
"A boy!"
Loud and clear, we practically voiced our "hot" take immediately.
"Alright, but why is that?"
Some of us turned to each other as if to ask: "Is this even a question?"
As for me, I glanced upon Sana, who didn't voice her take at all when Yuka-sensei asked her question. By practically, I was referring to how at first glance it would appear that every single one of us would just say the same opinion.
Sana, Sana, Sana.
Come on now...
This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
"Huh... W-Well, I don't think any of us had anything to harm Yulia for..."
"Yeah... And besides, isn't their exam way rougher than ours? I mean, we don't even know the true contents of our exam yet, but being put on a deserted island? It's as if it all indicates that Basara-sensei truly believes that the culprit is a boy. Otherwise, wouldn't it make sense to put us in a situation or a scenario where we would be pressured? This current scenery is calm and relaxing..."
Shizuku followed Iris' short explanation far better. The reasoning here is that our current circumstance does not compare at all. Almost, if not implying that we are not worthy of inspection.
True enough though, it wouldn't be a blunder to assume so.
"I see. Well, did you know? Yulia wrote a note before committing suicide."
Seriously? I was baffled upon hearing this. And most surely was Sana, whose eyes widened to the extreme, contrasting vastly her precocious monochrome expression that she has been wearing lately.
To further exhibit a willingness of showing evidence, Yuka-sensei turned the multi-projector on with the remote controller.
Once done doing that, she quickly opened an image file and showed to every single one of us, what Yulia had written down.
What we witnessed was a ravaged paper that had this message written on it, with pure black ink: "Please be aware of --------------- he's dangerous and he's a threat to everyone and... and... even when I'm gone I want everyone to know that ---------------- is the evilest person on this planet!" There were two parts that got purposely ripped apart.
Knowing that saliva started to drip from the corners of my lips as I had to hide my flushed face on the surface of the table swiftly.
"Oh no..."
This is troublesome. I'm squirting. Too much, rather.
What can I say though, every time something like this happens, it's the equivalent of someone singing lovable lullabies to me.
On the other hand, despite being ecstatically happy about this, I quickly regained my posture and attempted to make a normal face, which I am not sure whether I was successful or not.
"Is this true, sensei...?"
"Why, yes, Kanawari. As you can see in these images, the calligraphy is the exact same. There is no mistake that it was Yulia."
Oh, come on! Why is nobody impressed at this!? Can't you see that my Omega deliberately allowed this message to even exist in the first place?! The fact that it wasn't completely ravaged and that he just went as far as ripping out his own name means that he's willing to play the guessing game! Because...
"And it all indicates that it was a boy, because of the multiple "he" in her written message."
See! This is what I'm talking about...
"Hold it. Couldn't one of the boys just have replicated this? Replicating someone's calligraphy with the knowledge of how Yulia's calligraphy was like is possible, after all."
Akimiyashika should just die.
She doesn't understand the depth of this message. He clearly had the power to simply make this evidence not evidence, but the fact that he went out of his way to make sure that this evidence exists literally means that he's toying with his audience! It pisses me off how aggressive and hostile Akimiyashika is towards this...
Midst this, unknowingly, I was bitting my thumb madly along with smashing my pencil's end over and over while sharpening it just to do it again.
"That's a possibility, however, I'm not going to ignore the evidence. I hope you understand, Aki."
"..."
Well, she didn't argue this time, but a soft silence was invoked transiently.
"Um... If we know that the suspect is a boy, then... What is the point of... you know, we even trying something here? Shouldn't we just let their exam progress and hope that the spy figures out who did it so the culprit can face the consequences?"
Probably faced with no choice but to accept what the current reality offered us, Ikkiri opened her mouth and said her thoughts.
She does not speak as often as she used to.
Compelling question regardless.
"First of all, what is essential while attempting to find a culprit?"
"Eyewitnesses? But none of us saw it, so how... And even if such was the case and if someone here was working with the culprit, there would be no way for us to know whether or not that person is telling the truth."
"You're exactly right, Kanawari!"
Said Yuka-sensei with a bubbling enthusiasm which further puzzled Kanawari and the rest of us.
In view of that, Yuka-sensei with haste erased the doubt here.
"If we rely on ourselves as the only eyewitnesses, that is."
"Meaning...?"
Perhaps we were all tired of doing absolutely nothing for almost an hour, so even a silent individual like Iris started to press the fast-forward button.
"Meaning, the true exam begins now!"
Leaving little to no knowledge about this task preemptively, Yuka-sensei slammed us with that annunciation.
Part 2.
10 am.
Outside of our classroom, partial to block F, which stands at the edge of our school, north-west, significantly isolated from the rest of the other blocks, the rain started to fall down and darkened the ground.
Before attempting to enter the territory of the cold pelting rain, I extended the palm of my right hand to feel the rain's frequency. It wasn't eternal nor torrential so far, but it was glacial and continuous. Is it even raining there, right now?
"Do you need an umbrella?"
Reversing my position, I turned to look around towards the one who was extending me an umbrella. Her hands were seemingly warm and not cold like my right hand, currently.
In accordance with the fact that I hate rain, I took her offer very generously by taking ahold of the umbrella she had taken from the bracket of umbrellas near the pantry of block F.
"Thank you, Shizuku."
Like a vortex, the umbrella's wings spread like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon, thus shielding me from the rain as we both stepped out of the block.
"What a surprise though! I seriously thought we were going to waste time and time procuring the culprit among us. But... It turned out that she knew all along, eh?"
Nobody was to be witnessed as we all had taken different paths.
"I'll admit that I took our teacher for someone who would be stupid enough to waste many days to come on something as pointless as that."
That doesn't mean that I took everything Yuka-sensei did for granted, however. Primarily because it never really made any sense to go out for the culprit's blood like this.
Nonetheless, it was explained why we went through the process of yesterday's event.
"However, it's crystal clear why yesterday we were put into groups."
"So you've figured out why we are paired?"
She's not implying that she doesn't know. She's just making me believe that she is implying such, even though that only strongly gives birth to the urge to spill out the truth. So, instead...
"No, you?"
"Weird, you said that it's crystal clear why we were put into groups. So, it's not associated?"
"Maybe."
The blocks all differ in size, which is something amusing, actually. Undoubtedly, this school operates under a system similar to a modern monarchy. Unbeknownst to us, since we are partial to this system, we were given the right to have classes inside block F. To illustrate, block A that stands near the school entrance, ergo, south-east direction, holds a grand total of 16 floors, for reasons unknown.
Reasons unknown is one thing, but through sheer observance alone it became obvious why this school's system is similar to a modern monarchy. Block B has a total of 12 floors. Block C has 8 floors. Block D has 6 floors. Block E has 4 floors. Lastly, block F, our block has 2 floors.
This isn't something I can just tell by looking at the outer appearances of the blocks, because each block is shaped differently as they have irregular shapes if not a completely abnormal architecture carved onto it. Why such is the case, I have no idea. Nonetheless, the core idea to establish here is that it's clear as a day that being part of the block that has the least floors, will not create a good image in this class, at all.
Up until a few weeks ago, this knowledge was restricted to us because we could not interact with others, but it's a completely different story now. Upon entering an unexplored territory, any curious human being would strive to know more.
"Do you have an anti-social behavior or a dissociative social disorder, Yukishiro?"
"What the hell is wrong with you? I was just thinking."
I hate it when people assume that I am anti-social just because I opt to not say a single word to them.
Normally, however, I would say what I just said to Shizuku, who is happily toggling her umbrella in the rain, with a deeper and darker intensity, but I just said my words lightly since Shizuku doesn't piss me off.
"Oh, sorry. I thought that for a second we had entered the mood where it gets all silent and awkward. What were you thinking? Something dark?"
Out of the majority of the occasions, I wouldn't tell what I am truly thinking, but, it concerns our upcoming actions since we are a pair, therefore, I'll just say what's on my mind.
"Well, stop for a second and look towards it."
"Kinda hard when I'm already in front of it."
"I was just making sure your eyesight wouldn't be elsewhere."
Checking my cellphone, I realized that it was 10:07 am. Deep colossal rain strong enough to penetrate these abrasive umbrella's wings threatened us from above.
Not yet inside, we stood almost at its entrance, in-between.
"Have you wondered why this block has twice the layers, or rather, floors, than ours?"
My eyesight remained locked on block E in front of us. Students were watching us from their own windows yet that sort of view was only blessed to those close to the windows in the first place. Judging from their eyesight, they were heavily surprised.
"Probably to demonstrate the difference, no? If block A has more floors than block B and so on, then it's to demonstrate the difference in their standings, is it not?"
No use in acting surprised or remarking that Shizuku is aware of this, so I'll just hurry to the point.
"This isn't going to be easy because our task--- everyone's task involves getting eyewitnesses who can cooperate with us in the first place."
If normal circumstances applied, there would be no need to have this conversation, but since Shizuku is my partner this time, I will need her to perform at a considerable level. Plus, this means that I am no different, as I will need to apply different methods of persuasion, given that our image is ruined already.
"Aren't we lucky though? Out of all the blocks, we got assigned to block E. Can you imagine what Lus and Kanawari will have to go through? Block A literally looks like a fortress!"
Shizuku's words are a referential point towards how this all started.
"Mhm, it's simple, isn't it? Yesterday was an event made for the exact purpose of grouping pairs. Like, do you remember when Yuka-sensei said that the exam had already started?"
"Yeah."
I had already my own reasoning for this, I just wanted to see if Shizuku's matched mine.
Alternatively, we closed our umbrellas since we were in a sheltered area, one meter or so away from the entrance. A cold glare coming from the entrance door met us as we kept on talking to each other.
"Isn't it related to those who have chosen the same target? We both choose Akimiyashika, right? Isn't that why we are paired up?"
"If so, then why aren't we paired up with Arkalee, Sana, Tateyana, and Iris?"
Of course, I knew the answer to this, but there is just some unknown adrenaline in watching Shizuku think of my questions deeply when they are obvious.
"True, true. Well, you can't pair six people at once... Wait... The pairs are Arkalee and Sana, Tateyana and Iris, you and me... Doesn't this mean that our teacher paired us up because our groups had the same target yesterday? If two targets intertwine, then maybe Yuka-sensei thought that our pairing would then make a lot more sense!"
I can't get enough!
"Yukishiro? What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. I just thought of a really good joke, and I was laughing on the inside. It happens from time to time!"
"...So you didn't hear what I just said...?"
"No, no, I did."
Exhibiting that I really did, I shook my head thrice with the yes signature move.
Furthermore, I continued, but this time I actually went down to the real deal.
"Your reasoning is almost fully correct. But, think about it, we were just four groups. There are five blocks, excluding ours. Furthermore, even though this is the work of a pair, there is a group of three that strictly differs from being a pair. We as a pair, make one, consisting of you and me, assigned to block E. Assigned to block D are Arkalee and Sana. Following that up, to block C, you have Tateyana and Iris. Block B is being handled by Akimiyashika, Hinagiku, and Ikkiri. Alas, tasked to the almighty block A, Lus and Kanawari will have their shot."
What exactly does this mean? Such expression could be read from Shizuku's puzzled face.
I waved the edges of my skirt in a small vortex motion.
"Your group and my group chose Akimiyashika and their target. Is the order a coincidence here? I don't think so... Look, we got tasked to block E, then following that up, tasked to the upcoming block, was a pair from the group that chose the same target as us. Same with the upcoming block pair. How much you want to bet that this case does not apply to the other pair and group?"
"Are you saying that Akimiyashika, Hinagiku, and Ikkiri, alongside Lus and Kanawari, chose the same target?"
Off the mark.
Lack of blood circulation altered me to move my wrists minimally.
"Precisely the opposite. If I'm honest, the group of three little harlots chose me as their target. I am not quite sure what target Lus and Kanawari would choose, but whatever their choice might've been, they have been awarded the task of gathering eyewitnesses from block A."
That's right, this whole task of gathering eyewitnesses was split into four pairs and one group. There couldn't be full pairs since we are eleven as a whole and in no way in hell would our teacher cooperate with us just to eliminate that irregularity.
"Then, wasn't it just dumb luck that made this possible? What if we had all voted for you?"
"If everyone chose you, Shizuku, it wouldn't be dumb luck, trust me."
Bitch.
"Ouch, ouch, okay, I'm sorry, I was just using you as an example to portray my point!"
"Use someone else, don't use me."
To be honest, I was dragging out this chit-chat just to see if the person in front of the block would go as far as ask us a question, but, against all unfathomable odds, he did not and imperially stood guarding the entrance like a watcher.
Regardless of that, I really hate being used as a reference point for an argument. There are seven billion people in the world, pick a less relevant life and proceed with your argument.
It doesn't have to be me.
"No, but seriously... What would've happened if the selection was towards one person alone?"
"Don't think about it too much, Shizuku, there's no point. After all, it was just a method of selection. A little thinking will only further confirm that yesterday's event was too dumb to make any sense at all."
"Yeah, but my plan is ruined now! I thought that we would really, really, follow through with this nonsensical agenda!"
Usually, I would agree that her plan is ruined, but given that the reward for the success of her plan is massive to me, in theory, I will comfort her, just in case she's having an escapist type of thoughts regarding our deal.
"That's not true. We just need to change our approach. The aim can stay the same."
"Damn, you really want to know what I have for you, don't you?"
Bothered not by her previously tantrum, Shizuku teased her content even beyond before.
It's true. I want every content that will lead me closer to you.
"That's obvious, isn't it? That aside, let's resume our task, just so we are on the same line of thought."
All in all, as I waited for Shizuku to resume, I recalled my pleasant discontent with this pairing. It's not as if I have anything against Shizuku, but I would rather much be paired with Sana.
The very fact that I could be extracting some valuable information out of her regarding you is blatantly unacceptable... Her paranoia and chain of reactions are by far the most entertaining thing out of her. She tries, really, but, really, haaard. And I mean, HARD, to make sure that her cracks don't show. Poor girl.
She doesn't realize she's a whole crackdown.
"Let's see, we have to get eyewitnesses who saw Yulia during the festival?"
"That is the main goal."
"How though? Do we just walk up to the person and ask if they saw Yulia?"
In response to Shizuku's words, the guard finally broke his monochromatic stance and slowly advanced to us with a smile. Though smiling, it wasn't very friendly, or rather, more concretely said, fake.
His appearance was that of a middle-aged man whose hair length was medium. Slender to the naked core. His movements looked abrupt as he clearly moved faster with his left leg than his right leg. In addition to that, despite being in a cold atmosphere, he was wearing a short-sleeved white shirt. Ultimately, he greeted us.
"Good morning, you two ladies. Do you have some business around here?"
Our previous conversation was unable to progress as we were forced to engage in a new one. To his greeting, I didn't reply back and advertised my gaze as much as possible. Not twice, but thrice, within the time gap of four seconds, his eyes have been directed to my chest.
I swear to God, if he looks at me like that on more time, I'm gonna puke on this cold floor.
"Good morning, sir! We were just discussing something, is that a problem?"
"No, not at all. Continue."
I want to talk, but I'm getting paranoid over the possibility of him looking at my chest again. Even though he already retreated to his initial position, as the gate watcher.
"Shizuku, let's go in already."
"Yesh!"
Not a simple "Yeah", but a "Yesh", that was new.
And it didn't take us a single two mere steps to get stop by the guard who had previously greeted us.
Unsurprisingly, his fake smile was replaced with a dark stern rigid facial expression.
"You can't come in."
"And why not?"
I asked. I was hiding behind Shizuku slightly just so he wouldn't be able to fucking stare at my boobs for once. I'm gonna lose it I swear.
"Well, as you may or probably don't know, only students whose class is attached to the block letter may enter and as someone who has been a guard of this block for 5 years, this is the first time I've seen you both here. I know for a fact that you are both F block students, correct?"
What the hell is this creepy robotic formality? Who even enjoys this shitty treatment?
However, I had a way to counter his argument, but I left that to Shizuku and she got what I meant with just a single glance. Truly, if it wasn't for something that Yuka-sensei had given us earlier, this whole task would've been impossible due to the sheer restriction that these blocks have.
"While we may be, with this, we have the right to enter this block."
From her skirt's pocket, Shizuku pulled out a golden card with a signature in it.
"A temporary block entry card...?! How the hell did you---"
Witnessing the cracks in his behavior strangely gave me a boost in my confidence and I just couldn't resist coming out of Shizuku's back just to address the situation more deeply with a malicious grin on my face.
"Don't you know, block E guard? That's a temporary block entry card! Meaning what?! We get to enter as we please~"
"Y-Yukishiro, calm down a bit..."
"...Please wait a few moments. The card, if you may."
As Shizuku was about to handle the card to the guard, I grabbed her wrist transiently and let go at the finalization of my words.
"I'm watching you. If you think of anything funny that involves the card such as breaking it or drowning it down in a toilet, I will report you to my teacher and the principal. You will be fired and perhaps a whole lot more... I really am watching you..--"
"Yukishiro, I think he gets the point already."
Simply showing cheeks quaking and eyes twitching with a combo of heavy inhale isn't a necessary guarantee, so...
"You've stared at my chest six times now, you pedophile. Are you a rapist or something like that?!"
I said that out loud in order to attract the attention of the students who were near the entrance and near the entrance are two classrooms. Those near the windows should have no problem hearing that.
"Stop, stop! I really won't do anything! And I haven't stared at your chest nor am I a pedophile!"
Yet he was doing nothing. He was just holding the card and showing a defensive stance.
I need him to give his consent so we can enter the block... It's pretty clear that he is up to something. The fact that he said that he--- no, that he demanded the card like that, reeks of set up. Our image as criminals is not good in the first place.
So...
"Shizuku... I need to vomit, this fucking pervert is a lying hypocrite who enjoys abusing the authority that he has and can't even allow us to enter a damn block when we have the permission entry card?! I'm calling it, he's exploiting us!"
"Wh---"
It took her a second and a half to realize my strategy.
We can't rely on this guard as our passage, so we'll force our way through. If he doesn't allow us through, then someone else will.
Someone will have to respond to this amount of yelling at one point.
"Freaking psychopath!! We are not just tools for your own personal satisfaction! Hurry up and let us in!"
"It's no use, Shizuku... The fact that he hasn't conceived yet should obviously mean that he has no intention of letting us in... I bet he just wanted to look at our bodies while he gave us this damn sensation of false hope!"
"Listen to me, I--"
Every time he would try to speak, we would speak louder and would accuse him of false actions.
At first, it started with students opening their side windows to take a peek.
"So that's why he wouldn't move when we first arrived...!! He just wanted to stare... Gyaaaaaa!"
Instead of being a shy shout, it was more dramatic on her part, but Shizuku did bring a fair point with that phrase of hers.
He could've just very well been there to exhort that sort of behavior.
"What?! I am supposed to gua--"
"He looked at my boobs again! This is sexual harassment!!"
I backed again slightly, showing panic in my reactions and even going as far as causing a degree of physical weakness in my legs, to the point of falling on the ground with my bare knees.
Following the act up, Shizuku continued my motion with her own.
"Do you think this is alright with you?! Oh, what, just because you aren't touching them that it doesn't count as sexual harassment?! I will report you to the police as well and you will go to jail for all of your li--"
"What's all this noise?!"
Coming from the most distant door in the right direction, a teacher who looked quite old, with barely any hair on his head, just a few white hair strands, hurried to the scene as fast as he could.
The first string has entered the fray.
Seeing that, I asked Shizuku if she could help me get up, as I hid my face under my palms.
"S-Shizuku, could you help me get up...?"
"A-Absolutely!"
By extending her right hand, she pulled me closer to her left shoulder, and with my back against the guard and the teacher, I spoke to Shizuku's ear with maximum caution alongside a minimal voice tone.
"Exxagerate."
I kept on trembling as I let Shizuku take the charge.
"Nothing is going on, they are talking nons-"
"This man is a sexual harasser! We have a temporary entry card and he claimed that he could only let us through if we followed him through the bathroom and gave him a blowjob!"
"WH-"
"Goodness gracious, are you out of your mind?!"
I was ready to play the victim, but holding back laughing this hard is demanding as hell.
"NO, I swe-"
No use. You'll just get interrupted every time, idiot...
And I think the cracks on my smile started to unravel. This is fun. I like tricking people.
"Look at his hand, he has our card and only said that he would give it back if we did give him--"
She even went as far as repeating the same sentence out loud, and, oddly enough, through my side vision, many students were coming out of their classrooms.
Seeing with no choice and his odds stacked against him, cowardly, the guard dropped the card on the ground and fleed.
Pfft.
Haha!
"He ran? So, he really... What's going on? Is your friend alright?"
What a stupid question. Is someone who is LITERALLY trembling in front of you, who took indirect sexual harassment, ALRIGHT TO YOU?!
What is the fucking point of this nonsensical question!? What's wrong with the people in this world, every single one of you! If someone isn't CLEARLY alright, don't ask if that person is!
MY GOD.
"Yukishiro, that hurts, just saying... My left arm isn't pain-immune..."
..........
"Sorry... I-I..."
Shaking still, I deliberately gave a very vague answer, as I slowly turned around in the teacher's direction.
"Please come inside. You have clearly a temporary entry card, there is nothing to worry about. My office is this way."
Hearing that, I detached myself from Shizuku and she went to grab the lost card on the floor, thus giving it to the teacher, who was approaching me.
Looking closer to his senile appearance, the strong urge to vomit struck me like a barrage.
"Oh God, I need to throw up!"
"Wait, Yukishiro!"
Running in the front hall, I looked as quickly as possible for a bathroom, caring not if it was a man's bathroom, yet the first one I found was a girl's bathroom at the left side of the entrance hall's edge.
At the sight of a toilet, I got on my knees and threw up.
"Bleergh!"
Small tears erupted from the corners of my eyes in sequence to my dislike.
My blonde hair strands were all over the place; beyond my control.
"Guuh... My body is not your plaything, opportunist..."
"So you really weren't fine with it..."
Shizuku had arrived just a few seconds ago and she was kneeling down with me while supporting my back through a soft massage.
The wave of vomit wasn't as strong as the initial one, but it wasn't easy to speak back to her. This wasn't a sight that I wanted to be witnessed.
"There's no way I would be fine with it, but I knew I had no choice... We don't have a strong image and our passage could very well be denied."
Another wave, this time slightly stronger than the previous one. As I recalled their lecherous gaze on my body, I grew exhausted and my face started to feel like hell.
"You could've said so!"
"Shut up... You don't know what it's like to be me..."
Yet another.
"Of course, I don't, but... I thought you were fine with it, even if you were never supposed to be fine with it."
Desperately, I tried to inhale and lushed out a feisty breath towards the water below.
"I swear to God, if that guy looks at me, just one more time! One time alone! I will go on a killing spree! I swear this isn't a scene Shizuku, I really will show them that it's not fine to do this! It's my body, my property! NOT YOURS. Fuck off!"
Switching from just a massage to a hug from behind my back, Shizuku offered me some words of comfort.
"I'm so sorry. I had no idea you felt this way! I wish there was something to make you feel better..."
"If there was, I wouldn't be in this sorry state... I fucking hate this. I hate it! I don't look at them like that, do I?!"
"No! You don't! That sort of look should only be reserved for the one you held most dear..."
The one I hold... most dear?
Suddenly, my urge to vomit decreased.
"Shizuku, go on..."
"You don't deserve them to look at you like th-"
"No, not that! The one I hold most dear!"
It's coming back up.
"Fast!"
"Eh...? Uh, ah, well, unless it's the one you love, it makes no sense, it's just not the same! You said you were in love or something like that, right? Aren't you looking for this culprit for that reason...?"
"It is! It is! I love him! He's my greatest inspiration to break out of this cycle of hatred and hypocrisy!"
It's gone! Utterly gone!
Ahhh, I really want to taste your content and offer you consumption. Just a single thought is enough to ease my psyche cleanly.
Eager, I got up and went to wash my face. There, I erased any traces of vomit and tried my hardest to smile without faking it. Supremely wide, I smiled and smiled.
"You must really love this guy... But, you don't even know who he is... Like, how can you go so far for someone who you don't even know who he really is? I'm not trying to question your resolve, I'm just baffled, that's all... In a good way! I swear!"
"It's alright, Shizuku. I know you mean no harm. But it's precisely because I don't know who he is that I can go this far."
"Doesn't this mean that... your passion will extinguish once you know who he is? What then..."
That, I didn't like.
I turned in Shizuku's direction. My frontal hair was getting in my vision a bit and my eyes flared a depth incredibly heavy to lift up. I commenced shouting my cracking my right fist onto the mirror that I was in front of just a few seconds ago.
"That's impossible, stop saying lies! I haven't felt like this before, this isn't a passion that can just be extinguished and I know! He's not someone to get caught easily... He is aware of what I'm trying to do every time! Every time that I think that I am ahead, he IS ahead!"
"G-Geez, okay, you win, I get it, you love him, the whole world got the point!"
"Do you... have any more questions...? Maybe, regarding my passion and such? Doubts? I will clear them, just saying."
In a cold voice, I said that but Shizuku wasn't the one in the line of speech next, instead, it was...
"Is everything alright in there?!"
That voice was from the teacher.
I needed to take advantage of this situation as fast as possible.
"Ah, yes! Everything is better now!"
"Really?"
"Yes, really! Just a moment, please!"
After Shizuku confirmed that everything was fine, I spoke to her while calming my breath and adjusting my hair. My face was clean again and I wasn't disturbed. It's all thanks to you.
Soon after, we met up with the teacher who had his class on hold and followed him towards his office.
It was a nice office with a warm atmosphere to it. It had a toaster oven and a coffee machine, even. Most surely for personal use. There, we sat in the two chairs that were in front of his desk. Aesthetically speaking, it also had, in addition to the pleasing white color of the ceiling, exquisite borders of art that added flavor to the scene.
"I'm sorry... You are putting your class on hold..."
"It is not a problem. My class' representative can just take over for me. After all, a class representative holds equal power to a teacher, in some ways."
........?
In what world is that--- No, that's not important. I need to play the victim.
Thankfully, Shizuku was one step ahead of me and didn't hesitate to portray such an act.
"I really am sorry for all of this, it's just..."
"You don't need to justify yourselves if you don't want to. I understand. I just--- In all my years of working here, I never saw Simon stepping out of the line like that. I knew he was getting old, but to think it got to him... Loneliness is a terrifying thing."
What a joke. Loneliness? He just had no qualms about looking at my body for his own self-satisfaction. But, suddenly, he "steps" out of the line, and boom, how mind-blowing!
"Are you going to report him to the principal?"
Well, this was just an act, but even then, I kept my head down. With a low voice, a feeble attitude, I spoke.
"No... It's alright... He was probably just having a bad day... Even if he... threatened us with blo... blow..."
"Yukishiro, stop, you don't have to!"
A mixed feeling came creeping in, as I couldn't tell if I stopped my sentence due to the possibility of bursting from pure laughter or if it was on the possibility of me throwing up again, as creating an image of such a scenario would surely throw me off.
Nevertheless, it was enough to provoke a reaction.
"My God, this school is falling apart, I swear. Not too long ago, a guard got fired and now another guard messes up!? What the hell is going on..."
There was such a case? Oh right, I just didn't care at all, back then. It's surprisingly convenient, I must say.
Congratulations, previous guard. Your life isn't worthless!
"I'll report him for you two, so you two don't have to get involved into trouble. Sexual harassment should not be tolerated in any shape or form."
"Thank you for understanding..."
I really meant that.
From the bottom of my heart.
Still, this wasn't enough. He is a modest man. Someone who thrives on modesty. Fairly just from the looks of it.
It would be extremely dumb to not take advantage of this for our own gain.
"But still, you don't have to. It's fine, I... forgive him."
"No way, I will report him. You said your name was Yukishiro, right? Listen here, you shouldn't give in to this sort of circumstance. Truth be told, the block's guard's job is security and in order to do that, he needs to make sure your card is valid through a scanner that only the guards have. Otherwise, he would not admit your entries here."
Not enough.
"Please don't report him, teacher. I don't want him to get fired! I'm sure the students here love him, right?!"
And now... With a simple glance in her direction...
Shizuku, if you may.
"We'll be taking our leave. I'm sorry for disturbing you. We need some time to recover. Excuse us."
We both got up from our seats and bowed down.
This would be where we would really leave, but we got closer to each other, almost glued up, like true victims in order to provoke a modest reaction.
"Wait just a second. I will report him regardless of what you two say, but why did you come to this block? Surely you had something to do here? I may not be able to fix your situation, since it already happened, but if you had any business here around this block, then I can surely help."
I had to look at Shizuku to tell her in a silent manner, through a powerful glare, to hold her laughter back.
"You too!" I imagined that she said that to me through her valor glare.
"That would be too demanding, teacher. It's really fine--"
Since he saw that we were already at the door, he had to interrupt us, in a somewhat brute, unpolite, yet just way.
"It's not demanding at all. I will do it, no matter what it is."
"...Really? I'm not sure who to trust right now... Can I trust your word, teacher...?"
I still couldn't let him think that we had manipulated him, even if it was a minimal chance, honestly. Therefore, I reverted my position and portrayed puppy eyes clinging to security.
Modesty is a sure way to get trashed in modern society. Valiant times are long gone yet not for fools like him.
"Yes! Yes, you can."
"...Alright..."
Happily, he flashed a smile to represent his success in securing our emotional happiness.
The string had been acquired and now ready to command.