Thankfully, we made it out alright and went back to the bonfire area where, two hours later, all the groups would assemble. It went without saying that the drastic increase in numbers made the whole thing incredibly hard to manage, so I proposed something beforehand to Rokoro.

That being: in order to explain our plan, the ten chosen leaders would stand in one land at the border of the fountain's water while the rest of the students would quietly watch from afar. Arguably closer to 500 students were within the parameters as they watched from various sides what was about to happen.

Having already been told the current plan, as I stood in the center of the horizontal line, on my right side the male leaders stood: Karlos, Daimian, Rokoro, and Yoh. Likewise, to my left side, the female leaders were as well lined up: Musi, Rena, Zwette, Youjo, and Yasuda. Through my suggestion that the top leader should be the one who got the highest scores in the IQ tests, they all agreed. But they remarked that I should've been the leader not due to the results but due to the fact that Percy Phoenix had died and I was already doing a good job at uniting everyone.

Ultimately, the three criminals were being shacked by Karlos and Damian, heavily, which opened the window of opportunity for me to begin my speech through an extremely loud and clear tone.

"Attention, all of you! As some of you may or may not know, our previous leader, Percy Phoenix, has, unfortunately passed away!"

There was a quantity of remorse towards his death but in the end, Percy Phoenix had not done much to all of us except motivate us through rewards, which just goes to show why only so little people were truly hung up on his death. On the other hand, they were more hung up on what I would uncover next with my words.

"Since he was our way out of this island, we must adapt quickly and we've come to the quick conclusion that our only way out of this island is to help these criminals who are under an exam on their own."

Discontent came forth but I didn't hesitate to dispel their doubts, as some already knew that Ryousuke Kawwahara's words were in fact true.

"All criminals in this island came from our school to here, but through a different way and that's where we should take a moment to capitalize on something. If they got here, they surely have a way out of here and that way out of here is for them to pass their exam. On behalf of our necessity for survival and in order to not create unnecessary fatalies in our numbers, I ask you to put your humble faith on the ten of us as we surely will guide you to a place out of this island."

"But how are we getting out of this island?!"

A common question amongst the crowd to which, Rokoro took little to no chances in giving an appropriate answer to. His voice, just like mine, was loud and clear, firmly constrating his usual weak meek tone.

"The answer to that is simple! Kawahara-dono and the other criminals have to undertake an exam that revolves around 10 sections as a whole and once the last section is complete, they will pass the exam!"

Damian then, spoke in addition. Damian had a remarkable influence on all students here as they respected his well-driven character throughout all the years in school. As a matter of fact, now that Percy Phoenix was gone, Damian would surely be our upcoming class representative.

Needless to say, but his vigorous attitude attracted the numerosity of students right away.

"For that to happen, we will rely on Ryousuke Kawahara's information about this island in order to get to the ten sections! We already have uncovered one; so statically speaking, we are 10% ahead of the curve!"

This was true and it was something that I had told Akari to confirm with the rest in Rokoro's group. Furthermore, as the numbers slowly came to this area, we were in charge of relaying the information of what had just happened, so the majority was already well-aware that there was a password-entry system within the hidden locations that Ryousuke Kawahara provided us with.

He is not lying, therefore.

"And as such, we have come to the conclusion that instead of wasting all of our numbers into going one section at a time, we will create groups with ten leaders! In other words, ten groups! The objective is simple: Ryousuke Kawahara will give us the locations of the hidden spots in this island and we will then allow their exam to be concluded through our research."

The ever so simple objective that everyone could understood, but what remained was one simple factor; how should we distribute this gigantic number of students in ten? To this, Musi spoke to the students after Damian was done.

Her voice, so childish yet understanding quickly grabbed their attention instantly as her enthusiasm was by far her most alluring particular quality.

"Everyone!! There is no need to be picky-picky when choosing who you want as your leader!! The objective is the same!!"

Although what Musi just said is simple to understand, Yoh took a further step as he watched indecisiveness grow.

"....The locations match with Ryousuke Kawahara's previous information of where the criminals are, so direct to Ryousuke Kawahara with a map as he will point out the locations. For the record, if anyone wants to follow me, I am going northeast side... Just saying..."

"I am going close there, more to the north side than the east side..."

Since Yoh and Zwette already had groups on their own, I made a suggestion to the remaining students.

"Prior to this, there were already group formations with leaders. I suggest that we keep those groups and that the remaining students adjoin to who they particularly like the most. I believe the less time we lose on this, the better."

Then, a question came from the crowd as someone questioned the rationality behind the existence of ten groups when there were only nine other sections remaining to be discovered.

"Why create ten groups when there are only nine other sections? Why not have the other solo group join another one?"

I answered.

"A good question. That would be my group, but my group won't be dedicated into finding the remaining sections. It will instead be dedicated to being around Ryousuke Kawahara in order to strategize better information. Also, because it's quite obvious that someone needs to keep an eye on him and the other two. With that said, if there are brave individuals out there who want to share my burden, by all means, step up."

Admitedly, I didn't expect anyone to come forth, but clearly, a few students did so and as I saw that, I took charge of the direction of this event.

"That's good. What's going to happen now is the following: Direct yourselves to Ryousuke Kawahara with a map and he will tell you where to find the other remaining sections. Essentially pick one and then inform me about it. As you do that, I will tell you which leader is assigned to your desired location and you will be aligned with the respective leader therefore. Also, do not be worried about Ryousuke Kawahara lying to you about the location as there are only nine others and I will be watching him should he lie about any location that does goes beyond the other nine locations. In addition to that, if he lies here, his credibility falls."

This was all extremely standard and Kawahara knows that he's being tested. But, in Ryousuke Kawahara's defense, Akari and the students from earlier stepped up and spoke to everyone; particularly Akari, who is showing a perhaps unnecessary degree of emotion towards Ryousuke Kawahara as of lately.

"Everyone, we should trust him! I know this sounds wrong and illogical but he was speaking the truth earlier!"

"....Should we really...?"

"I don't know..."

This is arguably the most pointless thing to do as making about 500 people trust Ryousuke Kawahara is impossible. This, does not mean, however, that we can't reduce the suspicion and if reducing the suspicion makes him more approachable, then all the better.

"Now, everyone! Line up and go towards Ryousuke Kawahara with your map! Denko will be watching over you and him, so when you are done, make sure to tell her!"

Arguably speaking, it was hard to deny a guy like Damian. He doesn't mean any ill-intended thoughts nor portrays such a way of thinking; as such, going against him will only make you look like someone who can't trust someone else. That's why multiple students began to slowly come to Ryousuke Kawahara, as I came closer to him.

As he witnessed the amount of attention he was getting, he made a particular arrogant comment...

"I never thought I would have this many girls on my cock, honestly."

Some... overheard what he just said while some didn't, but to erase skepticism, I slapped him across the face quite lightly out of impulse which brought his vocal rampage to a swift end. Furthermore, Karlos vibrated his chains which made him straighten up.

"Shut up! Your obligation is to give them the correct locations!"

"Karlos is correct here. The more you step out of the line, the worse for you."

Agreeing with Karlos, I relayed an addition message to the students who were hesitant on coming forward.

"Now, come on! The faster we do this, the better! Don't pay any attention to his side comments. He is a stupid and vulgar person."

Kawahara made a snarky smile as he heard this but he didn't make any side comments as the students kept on coming forth.

By the end of everything, which took about an hour to end on, which was additionally tiring for no reason, the groups were decided. Firstly, starting with Damian, who was in charge of uncovering the center location of the island and the hidden spot there, around 125 students joined him. Needless to say, but that is a brutal number and it just went to show how much they trusted Damian.

As for Karlos, only about 30 people went with him and that's just because they are all boys who are his "fans". Anyhow, Rokoro, on the other hand, had his previous group with him, though not entirely, which revolved around 60 people. Yoh's group had a solid of 35 people with him. With four male leaders, they each contained a total of 250 students with them, which would leave the female leaders.

Yasuda had a total of 75 people with her. Youjo took a small portion of Rokoro's group as they were a group previously; so she only took about 20 people. Rena only had a grand total of 15 people with her. Zwette, on the other hand, surprisingly, managed to earn 55 people to her side. Ultimately, Musi was left with 60 people to her side as most people here felt the need to look out for a junior like her.

It would then be all left to me, who got a total of 30 or so students around here.

Nonetheless, as I paid attention to every detail that Ryousuke Kawahara would give every student, he always put out nine locations except for the one we already had discovered and motivated the others to check with Akari, should they doubt about this, which many did, honestly.

He in addition told Akari to not let anyone insert the password. As everything then looked to be done and the number of students was arguably less scattered since they were all with their leaders, I said one final thing to all of them.

"This is very important but do NOT insert any password! First of all, secure in learning about the location and once you confirm that there is in fact a location, report to me! Only Ryousuke Kawahara should insert the password and we have the password scanner as it is with me! Damian's walkie-talkies will be distributed with me and him, since there are only two of them! Remember to utilize the map well and look out for places that wouldn't usually attract the attention of many!"

The fact that they already had confirmed with Akari the crucial information and made sure that we weren't just casually lying to them made them more confident about this as they knew for a fact that this was going to work out.

Damian, ultimately, let out a war cry in order to raise the morality and the remaining leaders said their sentences as well.

"Everyone, follow me!"

Naturally, he was followed with many agreements. Despite almost being around 4 am, the sun would rise in about two hours. Moreso, in order to create light, Rokoro suggested that since the lanterns are not working, that each student should grab thick woodsticks and take a portion of the fire with the stick to create a torch. Many followed that idea, so the dark shroud of the night isn't as problematic as it initially sounded.

Being left with a walkie-talkie in hand and the responsibility of keeping an eye on the three criminals, I firstly engaged with the remaining students.

"Take a seat, if you want. I'm sorry but I don't know any of you, so if you want to make an introduction or state why you stayed with me, then I'll allow it, of course."

I was seated on top of a giant wood bracket horizontally split near the bonfire which was still going strong. We had plenty of food resources here because we all had previously left with the intention of hunting down other criminals but we knew that the course would be long, so we naturally took food with us.

Something very obvious is that we would quickly run out of food resources. This was something I pointed out with the nine other leaders and they acknowledged the urgent necessity of getting out of this island. Without Percy Phoenix constantly giving us food to our mouths, we would be near extinction soon.

With that said, I was eating a pear and the remaining students looked a bit skeptical in approaching me.

"Shiori---loosen up, will you? You're being too robotic. Remember what I said?"

Without looking at me and being glued to the bonfire, Ryousuke Kawahara, remarked that, so I attempted to follow his suggestion.

"Erm... Mhm, why not try and talk with them then, Ryousuke? I doubt you'll be successful anyway..."

Seeing that they are all afraid of walking up to him, I confidently made that statement as I knew that they wouldn't approach him that easily, but Ryousuke Kawahara didn't exactly falter.

"Are you sure?"

"I am, I am. Show me how good your charisma is in front of individuals who don't trust y---"

He didn't let me finish my sentence and instead directed his words to the students who were across the bonfire.

"Hey, you all wanna play a game? It's called "How good do you know Denko"."

"W-Wha... What are you doing?!"

Nervous, I asked, but he didn't explain what he meant and went forward to explaining the content of the game while the remaining students were drawn into his charismatic smile.

"The game is simple. Each of you will face me once and Shiori over here will launch a question that is about her. That question will have to contain three options and me and my opponent will pick our answer according to those three options. Here are the rewards for the winner of the first round: Whoever wins the first round gets a kiss in the cheek by Shiori!"

"What the hell?! This is outrageous! No one will agree with you, you do realize that, right?!"

Yet some of them didn't completely reject this idea, for whatever reason. Taking advantage of my nervous reaction and his overwhelming confidence towards this entire situation, Ryousuke Kawahara continued, much to my displease.

"This will be a demonstration round. Now, imagine! Getting a cheek kiss from the highly popular Shiori Denko! Admit it, does that thought not sound pleasing to you?"

Curiously, I took a look around caught a male student who upheld an abornmal interest towards this. He firstly came to the other side of the bonfire and introduced himself.

"My name is Brionac! Unlike all of them, I am not afraid of you, Ryousuke Kawahara! Denko-senpai! Do I have your permission?"

"...My permission? For what exactly? Don't agree with him!"

"Oh, come on, Shiori, don't be like that. This is your fault because you suggested that I should get to know them better and since we will be waiting around for the others to return with information, this is a good way to pass the time. Don't ruin the fun like that."

I understood what Kawahara meant to say and I wasn't particularly in disagreement with him, but the reward, so I elevated the tone of my voice as I explained that.

"I don't mind the game, but the reward is stupid. Why a kiss?"

"Hey, it's just a cheek kiss. No mouth-to-mouth, Shiori. Aren't you overreacting?"

"You always claim that I'm overreacting but I'm just doing it for my privacy."

He rolled his eyes and then spoke his mind as everyone else was quite drawn into this conversation, suddenly, as they saw my genuine mad reactions towards the engaging Ryousuke Kawahara.

"I see... Sorry, everyone, but, she's too much of a private person to share a physical reward such as a kiss in the cheek. Shall we wait in silence for hours to come because she isn't feeling secure about herself?"

!?

"I am secure about myself! God, that's different! I just find the reward unnecessary."

"But the game revolves around you, so the rewards have to be given by you. Hey, everyone greatly respects you, don't they? Well, you all do, right?"

The majority of the students then each agreed with Kawahara as they genuinely had a degree of respect for me.

"We do..."

"Yeah, I respect her, she's always at the top grades of school, so who wouldn't?"

This was something that I already knew since our school revolves around a meritocracy system and since I am always on the top scores, I earn a lot of attention. Though, in a sense, not many people know what I actually am, so in order to get respect, I completely distance myself from most social interactions and focus on my studies. With that said, this is a new experience for me.

"See, Shiori? Have some confidence."

"I am confident about myself..."

"Then let's go with this game already. You get to choose the question and if no one gets it right, there won't be a winner. Plus, it's a three option question. A 33% chance of winning and not a fifty-fifty. Meaning; if you make it extra hard for both of us, the odds of us winning aren't too bright. Ain't that right, Brionac?"

In agreement, Brionac spoke his mind about this from the other side. He wasn't nervous whatsoever, which was surprising. Perhaps seeing how much of a natural talker Ryousuke Kawahara can be has dispelled all of his fears.

"I hate to admit, but you're right. All she has to do is pick some sort of question we have no legit idea about and we will have to choose one of the three options. In a sense, this could be a game of luck."

"...."

This then got me thinking for a bit. Since not many know anything about me on a personal level, this could be a chance for them to get to know me. I'm usually far too anti-social and am only acknowledged for my academic accomplishments but if I can make others acknowledge me for what I actually am on the inside, then maybe I could create some memories.

"Eh, alright."

"Woah, really?"

Surprised, Brionac remarked that and that gave some hope to the other students who were quietly taking a more safe place behind Brionac.

"Watch out, my dude. She's gonna ask us what species she is and she's not going to listen the human species as an option."

"Wait, I thought that this would be under the realistic bounds..."

Since Brionac was being fooled by Kawahara, I intervined as I didn't want him to get the wrong idea.

"Please don't listen to this fool. My question will be under the realistic bounds. Shall we get started then?"

As I said that, Ryousuke Kawahara took a step forward and officially started this mini-event as we waited for any sort of information from Damian.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"I declare the first round officially started! The winner will get a kiss in the cheek by Shiori Denko! By the way, I'm not going easy on you, Brionac."

Matching his level of confidence, the red-haired individual with medium-spiked hair, didn't falter.

"Don't get too cocky now, Ryousuke Kawahara. As far as I know, you've only come into contact with her a few days ago..."

While that is true, I don't like what he's implying. He's implying things a stalker would normally imply. Do I attract creeps or something? Please stop.

Anyhow, their eyes were on me and I went with a question that looked simple yet difficult.

"What is my favourite fruit? Option 1: Pear. Option 2: Apple. Option 3: Watermelon. Now, go for it!"

This one, they won't guess it correctly and here is why. First of all, I am eating a pear which would imply that pear is my favourite fruit since I took it out of so many fruits. Secondly, there are apples in the fruit basket as there are watermelons, so they can't use the cheap excuse of asking what sort of fruits there are to tell which one is missing as the missing piece would most likely be my favourite. Ultimalely, I never show any sort of liking towards fruits as I like them all collectively, but deep down, I enjoy one of those three a tad bit more.

Brionac was the first one to picture a guess.

"A pear? You are eating it, so..."

And then, Ryousuke Kawahara made his guess, however, he made one particular question first.

"Is the watermelon hot? Assuming there is one?"

"Why do you wanna know that?"

Brionac asked to him, but I didn't say anything.

Truth to be told, there is a hidden gimmick here which is quite unfair for them. My favorite fruit refers to what fruit I enjoy the most at the moment. Meaning, it's not related to a fruit that I hail as the holy grail because I like them all collectively.

In other words, the current one that I am eating, is a well subject for such an occasion.

"Well, it's simple... Shiori's a tricky woman so she always has something up on her sleeve. She probably thinks that the fruit she enjoys the most at the current moment is the only valid fruit that qualifies as the one she would, hypothetically like at this current moment."

".......Wh..."

How did he know that?! I don't recall ever making an implication of such thing!

Even when I'm trying my best to conceal my emotions, it's seriously hard to do so because this just doesn't make any sense.

A student from the back then went to the fruit basket and told the state of the watermelon.

"Surprisngly, it's quite fresh! It must be from the night."

"I see. I'll go with watermelon then."

Just like that, the result had come to a swift conclusion. All eyes were on me as an answer was demanded the most from Brionac and Kawahara.

Firstly though, I confirmed something with Kawahara.

"Brionac explained his reasoning but what about yours? Is it because the watermelon is in a cool state?"

"Precisiely. You'd like it more than the others because a fresh watermelon is better than an apple and a pear in a cool state."

"....."

Keeping my silence, I sighed and came to terms with the victory here, as I didn't want to be unconditionally stubborn. I place my eyes on Brionac and gave him the disappointing answer.

"Sorry, Brionac, but you lost. I like pears as much as I like apples, the only difference is that to eat a watermelon, I would have to dirty myself to eat it, that's why I didn't go for it."

Mad at losing, Brionac threw a small tantrum as he hadn't foreseen the hidden gimmick of this question.

"Ah, damn it! I shoulve' given it more thought!"

Ryousuke Kawahara then consoled Brionac for losing.

"Hey man! It's alright. She's a cold woman and to beings like her, you don't look at it through an emotional point of view. Their likings are most likely linked by what they think not by what they are open about."

"Damn, really? I never had seen it like that..."

"She's a top student, isn't she? You should've foreseen that, but it's all good. You can come back later in another round, if you want."

Happy at the thought of having a potential rematch, Brionac got up from the ground and scratched the back of his head.

"Got it, got it... Well, sucks, I really wanted that kiss, even if it was only a cheek kiss. You got it, Ryousuke Kawahara."

Many wouldn't expect this from Ryousuke Kawahara, but through the bonfire's low height, as he erupted his posture, Kawahara extended a hand-shake to Brionac, who had a visible difficulty in accepting what was happening.

"That was an interesting one."

"...Yeah, thanks..."

Hesitant at first but slowly less skeptical as the seconds went on, Brionac shook Kawahara's hand and just like that, a moment of sportsmanship was witnessed. As that was over, all eyes were on me, particular Kawahara's.

"What are you waiting for?"

"...Do I really have to do it? Can't I give the rewards later?"

"That's not good, Shiori. People like to get rewards fast, not the other way around. Kiss me like one of your french boys."

"Wh---- ....Alright, seat down then."

My plan was to take the moment where he would take a seat on the ground to sneak a cheek kiss on his left side of the face while dodging everyone's attention, but an outrageous circle began to form as everyone was curious about this particular interaction.

It was then I noticed that everyone was not afraid of Ryousuke Kawahara and the other two criminals who were basking in this scenario as well. Our side of the bonfire was occupied with a chant as they saw my sudden reluctance.

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"

Exactly like kids from elementary school, a kiss chant had just begun, which I found stupid and revolting. Their postures as they drew closer to us really made me think that they no longer were afraid and were instead completely invested in seeing this particular interaction happen.

"Are you all kids or something...?! It's just a kiss!"

"Do it, Shiori. I'm still a virgin when it comes to cheek kisses. Not even my mother once kissed me in my cheek."

Rayazaki felt like making a side comment that was fastly engulfed by the kiss chant.

"That's fucked up but I'll pretend to not have listened to that."

Everything was on me and I couldn't exactly deny his reward since I had agreed to it and disagreeing at this very moment would make me look like a sore loser. My only regret was that I could not erase my red blushed face as I performed the transient kiss on his right side of the face.

[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/466312922864549890/872069657107005490/Gradient_2.png]

"Woah, she really did it!"

"Kyaaa, Shiori-senpai likes Kawahara~~"

"This is so dreamy, a total out of the picture couple!"

The remaining girls, were, for some reason, romancizing this whole event, but I called them out by coming closer to them, unknowingly shouting in their direction.

"That's wrong! That's wrong! Who would like this criminal loser anyways?!"

"......"

Shocked at my sudden burst of emotions, I had stunned them. Their wide open eyes were most likely a demonstration of their fear and I had caused that unfortunately, so I quickly began to apologize.

"...Uh... I didn't meant to---"

"This is the first time I've seen you act so emotional before..."

"I always thought that you were so focused on studies that you didn't have time for jokes like this but I was wrong..."

"...."

In the end, it was me who was stunned at their positive reactions as they all began to smile as they saw this new side of me.

Then, from my back Ryousuke Kawahara spoke.

"Ice melts quickly in front of fire, don't you know?"

"....."

Silent again, I thought of how none of this so far would be possible without Ryousuke Kawahara.

"Now then! It's time for round two! Do we have volunteers?!"

I retook my seat and I watched three students fighting for a chance to get in.

"I want to!"

"Please let me!"

"No, me!"

Those three girls in specific that I was interacting with, closely began to decrease their distance from Ryousuke Kawahara and I felt the need to warn them as I pushed them back from him.

"Don't get too close to him! He's dangerous!"

Acknowledging that, they took a few steps back, but Ryousuke Kawahara, for some reason, suggested something stupid.

"Girls, please, she's just jealous."

"Ridiculous. Please decide which one of them is getting in."

"Yeah, alright. Well, choose one, Shiori. There is no particular order here."

Ultimately the choice was on me again as everyone was on this side of the bonfire without anyone else in the other side of the bonfire. The majority was already seated on the rocky ground as I was seated in the massive wooden bracket. Kawahara and the other three are on the ground as well.

"Well, which one of you got the highest score in the exams?"

In order for this to not be utterly biased, I suggested that the highest score student would be the one to partake this.

The student, finally stating her name came forth confidently.

"It will be me! I'm Minami Chika, but without the utility of formalities, just call me by Chika!"

A semi-tall, almost as tall as me, girl with dark blue short hair which reached her shoulders at maximum with hazzle eyes took the initiative as the other two didn't disagree, so I took it as saying that she was the top student out of the other two.

Instead of me, Ryousuke Kawahara spoke.

"Chika, before anything, go to the other side of the bonfire, like Brionac before."

"...?"

"It's because this is a good way to have matches. You are facing me and I am facing you."

"Symbolism, ok, ok. Alright then."

Obediently, Chika went to the other side, eager as ever. Maybe the sudden contrast in Kawahara's attitude managed to destroy so many self-made assumptions that she couldn't help but be happy. Kawahara was happy as well.

As I've previously came to a conclusion, the man known as Ryousuke Kawahara will have times where he genuinely likes to interact with others and won't use anything for his self-gain. This is one of those moments.

"Alright, everyone. Just like before, I'll list the reward now. I'm sorry to say, but it's not a kiss this time, but instead, the winner gets a meal from Shiori Denko!"

"....Aren't you doing this to satisfy yourself now...?"

I blurted that as it is. Shameless, Kawahara acknowledged that.

"Shiori, I haven't eaten anything in forever... The average human being would be on the verge of collapse right now..."

"Denko-senpai, I don't see why this is a problem... It's been proven multiple times that they are powerless. Plus, they are shackled. And.... I don't know---I want to see whether or not we can truly trust him for real. Good people are forced to make bad decisions constantly. It could be the case, you know?"

She's very optimistic about this, to which Kawahara took immediate advantage of.

"Chika, you're so bright that the sun doesn't need to rise up."

"......."

I seriously can't believe that flirt worked. Chika was transiently so stunned as she absorbed that complement along with his charismatic smile.

"...Since there's a mutual agreement, I don't see why this should be a problem then..."

"Great. Want to get started, Chika?"

Instead of demanding this event to start, he asked her whether or not it was fine, which went to show that he does care about her opinion. To this, Chika appropriately replied; now on the other side of the bonfire.

"Thank you! And yeah, let's get it started!"

All eyes on me once again.

For the second time, I thought of a question and I went with something that they had no remote clue about; my music tastes, well, a bit.

"Okay, okay! Which of these three singers I listen the most: Option 1: Eve. Option 2: Reol. Option 3: Daoko. Make your guesses!"

No matter how I look at it, they have nothing to work with here. Never in front of anyone have I openly played my playlist to. There is logically no way to not make this a luck-based game.

As a matter of fact, the two of them couldn't make immediate guesses and were focused on a deep train of thought with their looks facedown.

Once again, it wasn't Ryousuke Kawahara who made the first but the other person; Minami Chika.

"Mhm... Denko-senpai, you very much look like a Daoko fan! Yup, that will be my guess. What about you?"

"Hm..."

Still in deep thought, Kawahara couldn't exactly draw out a conclusion, but he then asked me something that I found highly puzzling.

"Is blonde your natural hair-color?"

This was such a stupid question that I showed no mercy in replying to him.

"Are you stupid? No Japanese girl is born blonde... Black is my hair's natural color."

Chika then made a side comment about this.

"Wah, I had no idea! Your hair is different from your natural one too?! Then we both got our hairs painted with a different color! Mine was previously black too!"

Genuinely happy, I didn't expect someone to have undergone the same experience, which made me realize that perhaps I distance myself from others a bit too much.

"Seriously?! I didn't expect that! What made you change into dark blue, Chika?"

"My favorite idol at the time went for a dark blue hair color change, so I decided to try it. I liked it a lot!"

"That's actually the same as me!"

Midst our conversation, Kawahara made one particular remark to me.

"I don't recall Reol ever going through a blonde hair color change."

"But she did once, that's why I-----"

Realizing my mistake as soon as my vision met his overconfident smile and sardonic eyeglare, I shut my own mouth as fast as I could, but then Ryousuke Kawahara made the decisive move.

He looked towards Chika and decided the outcome of this event.

"Sorry, Chika. I'll go with Reol."

"Eh, why?"

"Well, why doesn't Shiori answer that for you?"

Suddenly, all eyes were on me again, and I was forced to, once again give the rightful answer, but this time I didn't mind it as much as I did previously.

I sighed briefly and laid out the truth.

"Reol is the one I listen the most, yes."

"I don't think that's what everyone wants to hear, Shiori. They want to know the connection between Reol and your hair change."

"That's right, that's right!"

A collective agreement came forth as the multitude of students were undoubtedly curious to know more about me and before I knew it, I wasn't thinking twice about rejecting their approach anymore.

"She changes her hair color a lot so I got tempted into doing so, but the truth is that the one who painted my hair didn't have the exact color I wanted at the time and said that I should try blonde instead. I didn't think I would look good in it, but what would you know, right? I actually liked it. I would encourage more people to try this, but I understand it's not for everyone, so..."

I wanted to change my hair color to pure white and I thought that at the time that white color was by far the most requested hair color when it comes to the whole thing, but they were out of white paint, which I found sad and absurd at the time. However, after three whole years, I haven't changed my hair color, surprisingly.

At the time I did so, however, I thought of telling others to do the same, but I didn't feel secure enough and many people would often assume that I am a foreigner when I am in fact a Japanese girl to the core.

Nonetheless, my words sparked an interest on the other female students who drew closer and spoke their minds about it.

"I want to try it too but I never had the confidence to do so... I always thought that others would ridicule me for it!"

"I've wanted to bleach my hair green but I never had the confidence to ask someone what their thoughts were on it!"

Seeing that they underwent through that experience, I began to encourage them.

"You two should do exactly that! Who cares what others will say about it?! You're doing it for yourself and someone else who doesn't even have the courage of going through it doesn't have the right to talk shit about it!"

I think that was the first time in my whole life that I've cursed in front of so many people. Surely, for a second, I thought that I would be seen as a vulgar person for doing so, but I actually managed to get my thoughts across faster.

"Really...? Alright then! When I get to school, I will do it! I haven't introduced myself yet but my name is Rumiko Sachiko!"

As I acknowledged her name, I told her my genuine opinion about this.

"Sachiko... You have twin-tails, so maybe you should go for a black and white approach? I imagined you with one full side of black color and the other with white, which would make sense since you have twin-tails!"

Like the yin-yang symbol, essentially. Thankfully, Sachiko seemed happy and embraced both of my hands up high as I did the same as she expressed her thanks towards my willingness to give my opinion.

"I never thought of that! Now that you've said it, Denko-senpai... I would like to try it! No, I will try it! In school, we should all go together and get our hairs changed!"

The other student, who had yet to introduce herself, agreed with Sachiko.

"We should totally all go, a girls only! Ah, my name is Ringo! Senpai, what do you think I should go for?!"

I analyzed her hair structure and then gave my answer.

"Since you have a ponytail hairstyle, maybe go with light pink? Also, Ringo, since your hair is silky, a really light spark pink would look beautiful on you! You gotta try it!"

"Ok, I will! Thank you so much!"

As we looked to further converse with each other, Ryousuke Kawahara rightfully interrupted as I was taking too much time here.

"I'm not saying you can't talk with each other, but can I get my reward. Shiori-sama, please treat me kindly~"

Sarcastically, he demanded his reward by giving a bow with his knees.

In a happy mood, I didn't hesitate to comply, but Chika, Sachiko, and Ringo offered their unity to me as they drew closer.

"Let us help you! Shouldn't we feed the rest too?!"

To this suggestion, Saitou Rayazaki and Takeshi Kuzan voiced their hearts out loud.

"Mother of God, someone with a heart and soul at last!"

"No more endless starvation! I will do anything you say, I swear!"

They sounded extremely desperate as they should and as such, I accepted their unity and went forward to the section near the water where there were multiple food resources in a lot of wooden baskets. I picked mainly fruits for them as they contained the strongest nutrients. Meanwhile, Chika picked some chocolate cookie packs along with canned juices for them. In addition to that, Sachiko offered them potato chips packs alongside some sushi plastic containers. Lastly, Ringo went for some sour gummies. All in all, although this is arguably an odd meal to give, it's way better than anything. Plus, it's not as if they would disagree or anything.

As we offered them everything, Rayazaki and Kuzan attempted to savagely take it from us, but as soon as their movements started to spring, Kawahara stopped both of their shoulders as he saw that we were getting scared.

"Wait, you damn idiots. Thank them! They are being kind to the point of feeding us when they don't have the obligation to do so. Are you going to make a mockery out of their trust by upholding vulgar manners?!"

Smacking them with a brutal strength on the back of their heads, they were forced to reflect on that... which was surprising for all of us. We all expected them to act savagely, but then Takeshi Kuzan was the first to apologize.

He gave a clean bow while apologizing.

"Er... Thank you so much for your kindness! I am unsure of whether or not I would make it because no one trusts our words due to our status but the truth is that I would never lay a hand on other people! I know this might scare you, but I only steal from people and I can't do that with my chains... What I'm saying is that I'll never hurt you but only be tempted to steal it from you! OK, I'M SORRY! And thank you for the food!"

Subsequently after, in a more denial-type of speech, Saitou Rayazaki spoke while also giving us a bow.

"I shouldn't really have to thank any of you because I would feed someone else on the verge of death too, so I am honestly a bit mad... But I'm aware that the circumstance and what I've just said don't really align so... I'm sorry and thank you for your hospitality. I'll never forget this..."

Our silence would be reserved until Ryousuke Kawahara would simply say two words and bow far too deeply.

"....Thank you..."

From my understanding, as I am not sure what the others who watched this felt like, Kawahara didn't need to say any more words because his subordinates had spoken for him. Or maybe he couldn't find the words to express his gratitude due to the fact of being doubted all of his life.

Slowly, I reached out to him and touched his hair softly.

"That's not like you... You're prideful and arrogant to an absurd extend. Being humble makes you look weird."

"I know right? But still, to see the humble side of a criminal is a rare thing."

Brionac agreed with me right away which further incentivized the others to act.

Ringo went out to Rayazaki's side and touched the top of his head as she comforted him.

"Come on, eat up! I understand your point, I also wouldn't let someone starve when they are on the verge of death... So doing this was a bit strange to me."

"You..."

Looking up with hopeful eyes, Rayazaki traded glances with Ringo as he tried his best to not look weak. That's when he made an offer to her, which was a sight to see.

"Uh... Do you... wanna eat with me....? I'll share a bi-bit..."

No longer crooked up, Saitou Rayazaki sat on the ground as Ringo took his right side and answered positively, much to his liking.

"Okay! Maybe I could get to know you better?"

"Uh... I am not sure if you'll like what I'll tell, I don't want to creep you out."

For a second, Ringo was a bit skeptical, but she dismissed that worry as her interest in Rayazaki was bigger than her skepticism.

"I want to find out what sort of person you are, so I can fix you. Is that... alright?"

"......Sure..."

Thus, they began to talk with each other. The others began to approach Takeshi Kuzan as he was kind enough to offer his food to share with everyone.

"Everyone, let's be friends! I have a huge stomach but this is too much for me, so let's have a collective meal!"

"Nice!"

"Alright!"

In the end, the multitude of students was more towards Kuzan's side as he charismatically drew them all in, quickly befriending them through his positive eager attitude. Ringo and Rayazaki were talking more towards the edge of the water so they could have an intimate time together.

Closer to the bonfire, he remained, silently eating, very focused and I approached him.

I took a seat next to him quietly.

"Is this all a facade?"

I asked.

"Not really. Actually, it isn't, which is surprising, given that this is the perfect opportunity. Kuzan and Rayazaki are both misunderstood individuals. They aren't truly evil. If I may say it, they don't deserve the rude treatment that Phoenix gave them."

"What about you, Ryousuke? Are you evil?"

"Probably. However, I've always wanted to start over and a thing in common with people who want to start over and move on from the past is that they always wait for an opportunity to start over to come to them. I daresay I've come across one. This is probably it. Actually, on second thought, I won't make it a probability. I am tired of being the person that I am. Always so reliant on manipulation. I want to be weak more consistently. Maybe this way she'll see me for what I am?"

..............

"...Are you referring to the girl you love? Who is she?"

"Mhm, she's from my class, but she doesn't remember me."

"...What? Does she have amnesia or something?"

Genuinely confused, I couldn't help but wonder about this. I wanted to know who she is though, so later in school I can see what he saw in her and then use that information to my advantage.

But his answer was a bit too creepy...

"Nope. I changed the way I looked far too much. I changed everything about me, actually. My whole name included."

"...You're kidding... So, your current name is..."

"Yeah, technically a fake one. But, if I'm honest with you, I like this one better than the previous one. We were super close in middle school, but... well, things changed. It's something that I can't even bring myself to confront about. When I started to even think about it, my mind unconsciously refrains from thinking about it, it's unreal."

I then, asked him something a bit personal.

"...Maybe you could tell me one day? If you feel like you can't confront it yourself, then maybe someone else could do the trick? And, I doubt you'll be able to confront her, so why not talk to me instead, Ryousuke?"

Admitedly, I was using this as an opportunity to get more into contact with him in the future, but I believe he has realized this as well.

"You have a point, Shiori. You really do. I don't know how I should confront her... I---killed her brother."

"............"

I looked down and then back to him as I gave my honest answer.

"That's a horrible thing to do. She's never going to forgive you if she knows you're the one who has killed her brother. What were you thinking... Aren't you smarter than that?"

"Well, I wasn't this smart at the time. Anyhow--- yeah, I'll tell you one day. But don't always think about that opportunity as I don't know when I'll be in the mood. Maybe it'll be a day when I'll feel like utter shit and I'll use you as my venting deposit."

"....That's a rude thing to do."

"Yeah, no kidding. But, you know? If you did the same thing to me, I wouldn't mind one bit."

".....Really?"

Again, I looked down and then I proceed to say it.

"Ryousuke, I want you in my class. Would you accept that offer?"

"Can you even do that?"

To this, I was unsure whether or not it would be possible, but I knew the possibility was there.

"Although I'm not a student council member, I am determined to become one and one of the rights that they have it to give another student a class transfer. I was thinking that after that I could give it to you. I think that the longer you interact with more criminals the more you'll be tempted to retract to such a nature. Environments change people and you are not in a healthy environment back there. If you want to truly change, then accept my offer... You know what I'm saying is correct, right?"

He then took three bites out of a green apple and placed his eyes on me as he wanted to give his answer.

Unfortunately, our time of conversation was greatly interrupted by an upcoming call from Damian. A loud sound from the walkie-talkie in my left skirt's pocket could be heard succinctly throughout the area and no one missed his words subsequently.

"Denko! I've found it! I repeat, I've found it! We are near an aqueduct and there is a way down! We have confirmed the existence of a computer that is requesting a password!"

An aqueduct...?! Did I just heard that right? How could there be an aqueduct in an island; that's just...

"Shiori, can I answer it if you don't mind?"

I didn't think twice and gave the walkie-talkie to Kawahara as I knew that he had more specific instructions at hand.

"Damian?"

"Ryousuke Kawahara? Where is Denko...?"

I answered quickly to dispel his worries.

"I am here! I gave the walkie-talkie to Kawahara as he has something urgent to say, I think."

"I see..."

Now, it was Kawahara's turn to say the words.

"Get back here as soon as possible and don't attempt anything there. Is there a door within the vicinity meters away from the computer?"

"There is! You weren't lying earlier, I see. However, isn't that door the one that opens once the correct password is inserted?"

"Yeah, but stay away from it as the ultimate idea is to not go near the sections inside. Please keep any curious individuals at bay."

"...I understand. I will be there as soon as possible! Denko, everyone, wait for us!"

He hung up afterwards as he looked to be in a rush to get here. Since I could only give Rokoro's device to one person, I didn't find the logic in giving it to one person, so we are instead going to wait for the group leader who found a specific location to get here and then, we will take Ryousuke Kawahara there to insert the password as I will use the device on the computer to get the right password.

It's a flawless plan, if I do say so myself.

To all of us, Ryousuke Kawahara gave the great news.

"Whew! After this is done, we are officially one step closer to the end! Man, I can't wait until I get out of this island!"

He splashed his entire body onto the ground carelessly as we all released our worries as this was starting to become enjoyable. Unlike Percy, Kawahara's approach made this far more entertaining and in the end, we are getting to know each other better.

"Yay! Although I'm liking the time here, I want to get back to school soon because we can't be here for too long..."

Ringo spoke and then Rayazaki agreed with her.

"No kidding, huh? If it wasn't for all this food, we would all die in no time..."

"Good thing we were smart enough to take all of this with us."

In symphony, they compelled each other quite beautifully.

Then, Takeshi Kuzan spoke something to all of us out loud.

"Hey, when we get back to our school, wanna take a huge lunch together? They got those fancy restaurants, but it'll be cool if we all can make it, won't it?!"

Nobody in their right mind would deny what Kuzan had just said as we all unitedly agreed without a second thought.

"Oh hell yeah! Lunch's on me!"

"Wah, you said it, Brionac! You can't take those words back when you are in front of the reception!"

"Don't make me laugh, hah! Bring it on, order as much as you can!"

We all laughed at Brionac's overconfident and cocky attitude, him included. Never before have my laughs been this loud before as I'm sure I sounded fairly awkward through my giggles and all that.

However, this one night in specific truly made me dedicated into clearing the dilemma of this island so we can all return to our school; our home and create happy memories there.