4.5

It was just before 5:00 P.M. on the eleventh day. I had barely made it in time for the last designated zone, J10, when my eyes caught the amazing sight in front of me.

Although it was also important to collect points and items from the events, I also had to keep my score under control. It was unexpectedly hard to stay near the eleventh place for an extended period. I had to pay extra attention to two things: avoid being penalized for missing the designated area and match the tenth-place score to gain points. Yesterday on the tenth day, the third designated zone was a random move from F4 to B9, so I opted out early. Then I wasn't able to reach the fourth designated zone either, so I had missed the designated area twice in a row. Just as I managed to catch this morning's zone in C8 to avoid another score penalty, there was another random move to area H9, which of course, I missed again. Then I spent the rest of the day working towards reaching I9.

Once you receive an area that is long-distance, the areas after it will be equal if not more distance from where you currently stand. I realized once again the main reason why my overall score was not increasing.

As I reached the end of the steep and rocky road in the J10 area, I heard the faint sounds of people talking. Maybe it's just the wind blowing, but because the voices sound vaguely familiar, I decided to take a look. The voices were coming from the west side, which is the direction of the sea.

There, I met three girls from Class B from the second year, consisting of Isoyama Nagisa, Morofuji Rika, and Shiina Hiyori.

There were also three more from another group of second-years. I haven't seen them since the first day of the special exam.

It was Ishizaki Daichi, Takeko Nishino, and Hitomi Tsutsube.

I'm sure our tables are different, but perhaps the designated areas are now overlapping?

"My, my if it isn't Ayanokōji-kun." Hiyori said with a cheerful smile.

The other five were still talking when Hiyori noticed my arrival. As soon as she saw me, she waved her hand at me.

"You seem to be more energetic than I thought you would be." I tell her as I approach.

"Because we're all working hard, we've expanded to a group of six people."

So that's why Ishizaki and the others were here.

To be perfectly honest, many of the students lack ability, but Hiyori can bring a lot in terms of brains. She most likely acts as the pillar of support.

However, her physical capability isn't all that high. Considering the other group members, I would say that they more or less function in a balanced way.

"Did you decide to rendezvous with Ishizaki and the others from the very beginning?"

"That's about right. I had several candidate groups, and they were one of them."

She affirmed my words, and as far as I could see, they seemed to be getting along quite well. They talked and laughed while watching the sun quietly set, which must have been curing their fatigue.

They most likely get along well with each other since they're basically a group made up of second-year Class B. The only one from a different class, Tsutsube, seems to be fitting in with them as well.

"What about you, are you feeling well Ayanokōji-kun?" Hiyori asked with a concerned tone.

Even though we're supposed to be enemies, both in this exam and because of different classes, Hiyori has always treated me as a friend.

That's just who she is.

"Yes, so far, so good."

"Although I don't think I need to worry about you, please be careful.

After all, one injury and you might be out."

"I know."

She motioned for me to sit next to her.

"Only three days left." She told me.

"Indeed."

I don't think she had any deep meaning when she said that. We sat in silence and quietly looked at the ocean to refresh ourselves.

In most cases, when I meet a friend or someone close to a friend, they ask me how I am doing. As it's a battle for survival, curiosity cannot be avoided.

That said, Hiyori showed no intention of asking me what my score was.

It's not so much that she isn't interested, but that she thinks it's impossible for me to get expelled.

"Yo! Ayanokōji!" Ishizaki yelled out to me.

I'm not sure if he finally noticed my presence or not, but for some reason, Ishizaki smiled at me in a thrilled way. The rest of the group seemed to notice immediately and grabbed Ishizaki by the shoulders as he tried to approach us.

"What the hell? What are you doing?"

"Don't disturb them, idiot!"

"Huh? Ayanokōji doesn't dislike me though..." Ishizaki replies, confused.

"That's not it..."

"I guess that's one of the better things about Ishizaki."

"It's his inability to see the atmosphere."

"That's undeniably true."

Nishino and Tsutsube have become good friends with each other. This would be a common sight for many groups in a prolonged battle on an uninhabited island. If they work together as much as they can to avoid being kicked out, they can easily overcome the hardest challenges.

That's also why it's so cruel.

After this special exam is over, the class war will resume again, and we'll return to trying to getting each other expelled.

At that time, students who are unable to make correct judgments anymore will definitely appear.

"Sorry to disturb you." I said while standing up.

I didn't think they would appreciate someone from Class D hanging out with their group.

I was about to leave when Ishizaki came running up and grabbed my shoulder.

"I'm sorry I embarrassed you Ayanokōji, stay here for a bit!"

"Stay here?"

"Today's exam is over, and you were planning on camping near I9

right?"

My designated area, J10, wasn't suitable for pitching a tent due to the strong wind and rocky ground. In that sense, I would try and set up camp by the seashore, as Ishizaki said, and I would go by I9.

"What a wonderful idea!" Hiyori said as she clapped her hands.

These two, however, were relatively close to me, so they wouldn't have many problems to begin with. I'm not too sure what the others think.

"It's all good, Ayanokōji-kun looks harmless."

"Yeah I think it's a great idea."

No one seems to have any objections.

It seemed like they had forgotten about the special exam that was going on, and we were hanging out like friends on an average day.

Most of the groups with this kind of atmosphere are in Ichinose's class, but it seems that Ryūen's class is slowly changing.