Chapter 106 ↦ Leaders and Territories

Meanwhile in Class D.

"I want the first wristband." Rokusuke declared as soon as Sae finished announcing the wristband rules after disembarking.

Everyone smiled, unaware of his true combat capabilities.

"Kōenji—you're running so fast—"

After receiving his protective device and leader card, Rokusuke sprinted straight into the forest.

The Class D students understood his plan. They had information about 40 locations — though they'd traded 5 to Class A, they still knew about 35 spots. Now was the time to claim them.

Concerned for Rokusuke's safety and the leader card's protection, Yōsuke assigned Kiyotaka and Ken to follow him.

Yōsuke himself stayed behind to maintain order among the remaining Class D students — a role he'd been fulfilling since their enrollment two months ago.

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In the distance, Rokusuke moved at an incredible pace, leaving his classmates far behind.

"Why are you running so fast, Kōenji—" Despite Ken's naturally strong athletic ability, which had been above average since childhood...

He couldn't keep up at all!

Was Rokusuke some kind of wild man? While he and Kiyotaka ran on the ground, Rokusuke was leaping through the trees like Tarzan.

His speed was truly extraordinary.

"Of course I'm taking care of business. I explored this forest last night, so I know it well. Do whatever you want." Rokusuke called back, "Following me would just slow me down."

"Damn... Why would you say that?" Ken snapped, "Besides, you're being unusually proactive this time — you must have gotten some advice, right?"

He was recalling how Rokusuke had previously collaborated with Houtarou to take points from Kakeru.

Was he being left out this time?

"Too bad, red-haired boy, I won't be sharing any points with you." Rokusuke said, "I have my own plans. I need to gather 20 million points — or rather, you should gather that much yourself."

"Huh?" Ken was bewildered.

"There's no future in Class D." Rokusuke continued cheerfully, "I'm acting on Oreki's advice. As a Class A student, he can calmly let our Class D gain 600 points. Which means no matter how many Class Points we gain, it's meaningless. The school will definitely intervene. That's why he's so relaxed about it."

"..."

"..."

Following behind Ken, Kiyotaka remained quiet.

Class D had no chance of moving up — this was the conclusion Suzune had gotten from asking Sae. Yet Rokusuke had reached the same conclusion through his own deductions.

He was quite extraordinary.

Indeed, this man was a natural genius. His observational skills, reasoning ability, judgment, athletic ability, and intelligence were all frighteningly strong.

However, what kind of person was Houtarou Oreki?

Kiyotaka found himself interested.

From Sae, he knew that man (his father) had already visited the school. He wouldn't give up.

Why was he so fixated on him? Because he was that man's most successful test subject.

Now he wanted to compete with Rokusuke and Houtarou.

If he lost, it would be that man's loss too. That man's obsession with him would become meaningless — it would prove he was also a failure.

But if he really lost, he would regret it. After all, this was how he was raised.

Victory was everything.

"And I have my own countermeasures in place." Rokusuke said, unaware that one of his classmates was having an awakening, "So you don't need to worry about my leader status being discovered."

With those words, he vanished in a flash.

"Hah... hah—That wild man Kōenji—" Even Ken, with his exceptional athletic ability, couldn't keep up.

He quickly pressed one hand against a tree branch to rest. Then, catching his breath, he spoke.

"What was that guy talking about? I couldn't understand any of it."

No. Rokusuke must have thought of a way to protect the Bonus Points. Kiyotaka knew this.

He was referring to how leaders couldn't be changed without proper justification. In other words, that guy was quite ruthless too.

"Hey, Ayanokōji-san, I'm exhausted, but you don't seem affected at all?" Ken turned around while supporting himself against the tree, looking at his classmate who hadn't even broken a sweat.

"Oh... I'm very tired too, I can barely breathe—" Kiyotaka quickly said, "Also, I have less body hair, so my pores are blocked, making it hard to sweat."

"Oh, I see—"

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Meanwhile in Class A.

The Oreki-Kōhei team had already secured five locations.

They were positioned in a white tower — the only elevated point at the center of the island. Standing atop it provided an extraordinarily wide field of view.

This tower was one of the five locations Rokusuke had revealed to them. From their vantage point, they could see the other four locations he'd disclosed, allowing them to secure those spots in succession.

Very convenient.

"Should we say Kōenji is actually a good person?" Masumi asked, who was accompanying Houtarou.

Kōhei and Yahiko had left to inform their classmates about the secured locations.

Of their five locations, four were suitable for living, offering multiple options. They planned to show their classmates around to decide where to set up camp.

They also needed to arrange guards for these locations to prevent other classes from occupying them once the eight-hour period expired.

The final location — this tower — was only suitable for patrol and observation, not for living. It certainly couldn't accommodate thirty-nine students.

Now only Masumi, Houtarou, and Masayoshi remained there.

Masayoshi had tactfully positioned himself to guard the tower entrance on the first floor.

Meanwhile, Houtarou maintained his relaxed demeanor.

Masumi seemed overly optimistic. She wondered if Rokusuke's willingness to share such a valuable observation post, despite having information on thirty-five locations, meant he was genuinely kindhearted.

Indeed, securing this tower allowed them to gather intelligence about many other locations.

These locations needed to be suitable for human survival — places with adequate camping grounds, water sources, or food supplies.

One of the locations Kōhei had secured was a cornfield.

A normal island wouldn't have corn — this was clearly a specially managed, artificial island.

However, Houtarou saw only one reason why Rokusuke would give Class A this tower location.

He no longer needed it. Having already explored the entire island, he had gathered all the information he required, and could now move freely.

After all, 200 Class Points would bring him 800,000 Private Points per month — that's 9.6 million in a year and nearly 20 million in two years.

In other words, Rokusuke had found the 20-million-point solution he'd been seeking.

While buying points from graduating upperclassmen with money was one option, now he could earn them through his own efforts.

Driven by such an absolute temptation, Rokusuke must be rushing forward with all his might, prepared to sacrifice everything.

Houtarou observed as the teacher announced the rules while Masumi diligently recorded everything word for word.

She was likely following Arisu's instructions to document the exam contents.

Her notes read:

[Find the leader, create a leader card, must use leader card to occupy locations.]

[Points will be deducted for lingering without reason or using occupied territory, and non-leaders attempting to use key cards.]

[Points will also be deducted for physical illness or serious injury, obvious environmental pollution, absence from morning and evening roll calls, violence against other classes or destruction of property.]

[Roll call at the island gathering point at 8 AM and 8 PM daily, 3 points deducted per absent person. If the leader is correctly guessed on the morning of the seventh day, all points gained from occupying locations with key cards will be nullified.]

[Leaders cannot be changed without proper justification. So choosing a leader must be done carefully and seriously.]

The last point warranted special attention — leaders cannot be changed without proper justification.

In other words, withdrawal would only be unavoidable with proper justification, such as illness or force majeure.

And so this situation arose...

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