"Do we still have information on Class B's leader? Do you need it?"
Ryuen Kakeru smiled as he looked at Katsuragi Kohei. The spy he had planted in Class B had also obtained information about their class leader—though they had yet to acquire concrete evidence.
"If there's no solid evidence, then it's unnecessary. After the exam, go back and take a good bath."
Katsuragi Kohei shook his head and then turned to leave the area.
"In that case, my mission is also over."
Ibuki Mio, while speaking, walked toward the shore. Her mission was complete, and there was no need for her to stay here any longer.
...
Soon, it was noon on August 7th, and the deserted island exam officially came to an end.
After the class leaders wrote down their guesses about the other leaders' identities and handed them over to their homeroom teachers, all the students from the classes on the island gathered at the shore.
"It's finally over."
Almost every student's face showed a hint of exhaustion. After all, surviving in such an environment as high school students was no easy feat.
At this moment, Ryuen Kakeru emerged slowly from the forest, using a tree branch as a cane.
"What? Ryuen?"
"Didn't he withdraw?"
"Could it be... Ryuen was alone on the island this whole time?"
Except for Katsuragi Kohei, almost everyone's face showed a look of surprise.
Ryuen Kakeru, on the other hand, maintained a meaningful smile. He believed that his class was the biggest winner of this exam.
He had struck a deal with Class A, purchasing 200 class points worth of supplies for them and providing information about the other classes' leaders.
In return, each member of Class A would transfer 20,000 personal points to Ryuen every month.
It could be said that Ryuen's main goal was to secure these personal points.
However, if they could also earn some class points from this exam, it would be a good thing for Class D.
Although the initial 300 class points had been squandered, Ryuen could still earn points by guessing the identities of the other classes' leaders.
[Using my spies, I already know the leaders of Class B and Class C, and I also know the leader of Class A.]
Ryuen narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Katsuragi Kohei.
Class A was divided into two factions—one led by Katsuragi Kohei, and the other by Sakayanagi Arisu, whom Ryuen considered the most formidable opponent among the new students.
With the cooperation of Sakayanagi's faction, Ryuen had learned the identity of Class A's leader and had deliberately misled Class A into occupying the wrong base, resulting in point deductions.
[No one would expect me to still be on the island. By guessing the other classes' leaders, I can earn 150 points.]
Ryuen now believed that he was the biggest winner of this exam. Smiling, he walked up to the members of Class C.
However, his gaze focused on Horikita Suzune's face.
"Yo, Horikita."
Ryuen's eyes were filled with disdain and contempt.
"Surprised to see me, huh~"
"Ibuki was indeed the spy you sent, wasn't she?"
Horikita Suzune's sharp gaze met Ryuen's.
"Yep, but I didn't expect Class C to have so many pushovers. You fell for it so easily~ I actually wrote down your class leader's name."
Ryuen narrowed his eyes slightly, his face full of confidence.
"Is that so?"
Horikita Suzune responded with a mocking smile.
"Oh?"
Seeing her confident expression, Ryuen's eyebrows twitched slightly.
[Is she bluffing? Whatever, victory will still be mine.]
"Now, let's announce the scores for each class."
At this moment, Mashima Tomonari, Class A's homeroom teacher, stepped onto the makeshift stage with a megaphone to announce the results of the exam.
However, upon seeing the score sheet, Mashima seemed momentarily stunned.
"Fourth place, Class D, 0 points."
"What?!"
Ryuen's eyes widened in shock.
[0 points? Why zero points?!]
[Wait, wait... You get 50 points for guessing a leader correctly, lose 50 points for guessing wrong, and lose 50 points if your leader is guessed... Does that mean all three classes guessed that I was the leader?!]
[No, that's impossible... Especially since Class B adopted an absolute defense strategy. They wouldn't risk guessing other leaders... Then there's only one possibility: I guessed a class leader wrong, and my leader was also guessed by someone else... Who was it?!]
"Third place, Class B, 90 points."
"Huh?"
Ichinose Honami's face showed confusion, and beside her, her vice-leader, Kanzaki Ryuji, also wore a look of disbelief.
"That's impossible. I calculated our class's points. We should have 190 points..."
Ichinose Honami found it hard to believe this result. Class B had adopted a conservative, absolute defense strategy, avoiding risky guesses about other classes' leaders and not occupying too many bases to prevent their leader's identity from being exposed.
But even so... their class had lost 100 points.
"Could it be... the spy from Class D, Kaneda... But that would only cost us 50 points... Why 100... Did another class guess our leader? Did they collaborate with Class D? Or was it something else..."
Ichinose Honami couldn't find the answer to this question right away.
Meanwhile, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka turned his head slightly and looked toward the ship.
"Second place, Class A, 120 points."
Although they were in second place, Katsuragi Kohei's expression was extremely grim, as this result was completely different from his calculations.
"First place, Class C, 300 points!"
"What?"
"We got 300 points?!"
"We're actually in first place! Our score is higher than the other three classes combined!"
Upon hearing Mashima's announcement, the entire Class C erupted in excitement.
Horikita Suzune, however, turned her head seriously and looked at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka beside her.
After she took over as the leader from Saiki Kusuo, Ayanokoji had directly told her the identities of the other three classes' leaders.
Using the information Saiki Kusuo brought back, they deduced Class A's leader.
Using the discovered radio, they identified Class D's leader.
Already aware that Ibuki Mio was a spy, they used her and the rules to change leaders, feeding Class D false information.
This made Horikita Suzune realize that the boy named Ayanokoji Kiyotaka beside her was no ordinary person.
However, she still didn't understand how Ayanokoji had guessed Class B's leader, as they had little contact with Class B, and the latter had adopted a completely defensive strategy.
"Ayanokoji, how did you know that Class B's leader was Chihiro Shiranami?"
While the others were celebrating wildly, Horikita Suzune asked Ayanokoji Kiyotaka with a serious expression.
"I don't know."
Ayanokoji answered honestly; he wasn't lying.
[Guessing the identities of the other three leaders earned us 150 points, and thanks to Saiki, our daily expenses were reduced, resulting in a final score of 300 points. That's an incredibly high number.]
[Even I could only figure out the leaders of Class A and Class D, but Saiki Kusuo managed to guess Class B's leader. How did he do it?]
"It was Saiki who guessed it."
Ayanokoji thought for a moment and then answered.
"Saiki?"
Horikita Suzune was surprised, finally realizing something.
"Was changing leaders and all that something you two planned together?"
Before Horikita Suzune could finish speaking, the other Class C students had already surrounded her.
"Amazing, Horikita! You guessed all the other classes' leaders correctly!"
"Incredible, Horikita!"
"Ayanokoji told us you had already seen through Ryuen's plan."
"Huh?"
Horikita Suzune was completely baffled.
"After the exam results were announced, the class rankings have also changed."
At this moment, Chabashira Sae approached the group with a joyful smile.
"You can celebrate a little. Congratulations, you guys have successfully moved up to Class B."
Meanwhile, on the ship, Saiki Kusuo, who had just "recovered from a serious illness," was fully enjoying his dessert, completely ignoring what was happening on the shore.
...
After the exam, the students had a few hours of free time. They could choose to swim in the sea or rest on the ship.
Sakura Airi and some other students from the class immediately went to find Saiki Kusuo—he had already returned to his room, lying on the bed as if he hadn't gone anywhere.
"Saiki, how are you feeling? I have good news! We got first place!"
"We actually have 300 points! Thanks to Horikita, she guessed all the other classes' leaders correctly!"
"Now we're in Class B! We're getting closer to Class A!"
'Yare yare, we moved up to Class B?'
Hearing their words, Saiki Kusuo wasn't particularly happy, but since everyone credited Horikita Suzune for the success, it saved him a lot of trouble.
After a brief chat, the other students left, leaving only Ayanokoji Kiyotaka behind.
"Thanks for your help."
Saiki Kusuo nodded at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had indeed been a great help this time.
"I have a question, Saiki."
At this moment, Ayanokoji looked into Saiki's eyes and asked,
"How did you figure out Class B's leader?"
'?'
Saiki was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected Ayanokoji to ask such a question.
'Shouldn't you have been able to guess the other leaders' identities too?'
[Class B adopted a completely defensive strategy. Even I couldn't gather enough information from them. If it were me, I would have given up on guessing Class B's leader. But Saiki managed to guess it. What method did he use?]
'Yare yare, so you don't know either?'
Saiki felt a bit helpless. He had always assumed that with Ayanokoji's reasoning and observational skills, he could easily guess the other classes' leaders. But it turned out that even Ayanokoji was just an ordinary person.
No matter how skilled a detective is, they can't uncover the truth from a case with no clues.
'Actually, I used telepathy and clairvoyance.'
Although Saiki answered in his mind, he couldn't say it out loud. He quickly racked his brain and came up with a fabricated reason, recalling what Shiina Hiyori had said earlier.
"Because... first of all, the more noticeable someone is, the less likely they are to be the leader... So Ichinose is out... But since Ichinose has a lot of influence in the class... she would probably choose someone she trusts the most... Others would think of Kanzaki first, but he's also quite noticeable, so he's out... So I thought it was Chihiro Shiranami."
Saiki himself found it hard to believe his own explanation.
'Oh no, Ayanokoji is definitely going to be suspicious...'
"I see."
At this moment, Ayanokoji nodded.
"Huh?"
[As expected of Saiki. His understanding of others' personalities far surpasses mine. He can predict their actions based on their personalities. He's truly a monster. It seems there are even more terrifying beings outside the White Room.]
Ayanokoji thought to himself.
'?'
[Saiki Kusuo is undoubtedly a very dangerous person. Fortunately, for now, our goals align, and we're not stepping on each other's toes.]
Saiki knew that Ayanokoji's misunderstanding of him was deepening, but there didn't seem to be a better way to resolve it.
[I hope we don't become enemies in the future. If we do...]
At this moment, there was a rapid knocking at the door.
Saiki could hear the thoughts of the person knocking from afar. He knew he was about to face another big trouble.
[You two have some explaining to do!]
The person at the door was none other than Horikita Suzune.