15 Chapter 6.2: Part 2

There was a rock field next to the border of I2 and I3, with knee high bushes nearby.

"So it's somewhere here?"

I was carrying a heavy backpack.

As long as I didn't know what awaits me, carrying the backpack would only get in my way. I decided to put everything, including the tablet, into the backpack. If I walked along the coastline, I wouldn't get lost and would be able to get back to this rock field.

Ichinose said that this was the place where Tsukishiro prepared to bury me.

Groups that had the same schedule as I was probably assigned a completely different designated area. I would have liked to confirm this, but I also wanted to avoid losing one point from using the GPS search.

Since I knew that Ichinose was involved in the matter, I had to go. If I decided not to, Tsukishiro would mercilessly attack her class. I couldn't imagine what kind of punishment he would inflict on her.

After those preparations, I began to walk towards I2.

"Ayanokouji, what a coincidence."

Nagumo, holding the tablet, looked over with interest.

Given my situation, it was unnatural for anyone to be in the area.

Was this guy also involved with Tsukishiro apart from the matter of the bounty?

No, the title of the student council probably didn't mean much to Tsukishiro.

It didn't seem necessary to connect his appearance here with the matter, but I still kept wary.

"President Nagumo, why are you here?"

I looked around slightly but didn't see any of Nagumo's group members.

"Don't worry. We are the only ones here."

Maybe he had used GPS search, as he wanted to remove the wariness within me.

"There aren't any events nearby. Why are you here?"

Nagumo approached from the southeast direction.

"I was having fun on the beach at I4. Life on this uninhabited island is coming to an end, after all."

On the last day, while almost all the students focused on collecting points, he was playing on the beach.

"Is this the so-called calmness of a king?"

Nagumo laughed and did not answer the question.

"But I'll ask you the same thing, Ayanokouji. This place is not a designated area and doesn't have an event, so why did you come here? Did you meet up with Honami?"

It's not surprising that her name popped up. Even if he didn't see Ichinose directly, it would be obvious that she was nearby if he had done a GPS search.

"Is there a problem with that?"

"No. If you two are still together now, you would have spoken about quite a bit. But you are here by yourself, so it means you have a different objective. What's there at I2?" I decided to ignore the question. Nagumo changed the topic and continued.

"The uninhabited island exam is coming to an end, right? I just wanted to talk to you once, as there aren't many situations at school where you and I, the student council president, can talk to each other."

"That's true."

I was just an inconspicuous student.

On the other end was the student council president that could make a child cry without even uttering a single word. This was not an appropriate match up.

However, I didn't think he had come all the way over here just to engage in small talk.

"You seem to be aware of the attack on me by the 1st years."

"Your critical thinking ain't bad."

It was about the bounty. The person who got me expelled would be awarded 20 million points.

Although Tsukishiro was the one in control, it was true that Nagumo was also involved.

If it were a man like Nagumo, it was not surprising for him to observe my situation through GPS at any time.

From looking at the movements of the first years and me, it was obvious that I had been attacked.

Nagumo saw the big picture of this special exam on the same level as I did. No, even more so than me.

It was also because he had a grasp of my movements that he was able to show himself so easily here.

"Don't blame me for the bounty. It wasn't my proposal in the first place."

"It was Acting Director Tsukishiro's."

"Since you know this much, I'll be blunt. The money's all from the Acting Director. I just lent the name of the Student Council president to him."

It didn't matter whether he wanted it or not; as long as it was an order from the Acting Director, Nagumo couldn't disobey.

"It's an order from the Acting Director, so you had to accept it. But if it's the Student Council President I know, I think you would have refused such a proposal, right?"

"If it's about the matter of the bounty, I wouldn't have accepted it, if it were a student other than you. But the one which he named was none other but you, the only man that Horikita-senpai trusted."

So Nagumo did indeed see me as one of Horikita Manabu's people.

"Answer me, Ayanokouji. What do you plan to do next?"

[Don't concern yourself with such an insignificant existence like me] It would be easy to say this.

But Nagumo wouldn't take that for an answer.

Since I didn't know what awaited me ahead, it's all the more important to cherish the time I had now.

"This has nothing to do with you, President Nagumo. Shouldn't you be concentrating on the end of the exam? The score difference between you and Koenji should be small. If you don't go back, you won't get the arrival points, you won't be able to participate in some events, and that situation will stay the same."

That was, he left open the possibility of him being overtaken.

"Don't worry about it. On this last day, I have completely overwhelmed Koenji." Saying this, Nagumo took out a transceiver from his back pocket.

Even if he was separated from his group, it would be enough to give instructions.

"Although I do care what you're going to do, if you won't answer, then I'll change my question. Let me see if you, who hold the expectations of Horikita-senpai, have the strength worthy of my expectations, which of course means that you'll have to get serious."

So this was the biggest reason for him to come here.

"Does it mean that I have to fight with the Student Council President right here?"

"I don't hate brawling, but I prefer a serious fight. Even if this uninhabited island exam is over, there'll still be a lot of inter-year battles afterwards, and I want you to be my opponent."

The student council president directly called me out.

"Isn't the winner between us already decided from this uninhabited island exam?"

Nagumo had steadily maintained 1st or 2nd place in the exam up to now.

Although the fierce Koenji still had a chance of reversing it, this was undoubtedly a tough battle.

"You are one person, and I've got 7 people. It's a strange way to have a match like this, right?"

"Wouldn't Koenji be a better fit? Although he's a weirdo, he's a powerhouse. On the other hand, I haven't been in the top ten even once."

If you wanted a strong opponent, go to Koenji. I urged him like this.

"Well, he certainly exceeded my expectations, as he was the only one who made me take an offensive move in the exam. "

Admitting that about Kouenji, he shrugged his shoulders as if he was amazed.

This offensive move was referring to the transceiver he's using right now.

"Managing the entire third year to take all the arrival bonus points and the events. This is something only the student council president can do."

Unlike the first-years and second-years, almost all the third-years were under Nagumo's control.

If he wanted to completely block off Kouenji, he would surely be able to do so by mobilizing all the third-years.

No matter how much physical strength he had, it was useless if he couldn't complete events over a long period of time.

All the other years that show off by being in the top 3 ranks will be erased.

As a result, Kouenji could only get arrival points.

Meanwhile, Nagumo's groups will widen the point gap by continuously gaining points.

"So you indeed see through this much. When did you notice?"

"I've felt suspicious ever since the beach flags event. The vacant space Vice President Kiriyama left intentionally open was reserved for you."

However, since I arrived first, they had to register with a vacant space.

Nagumo was playing leisurely while waiting for Kiriyama and others to finish the event.

"I thought you and Vice President Kiriyama were rivals, but it seems different."

"That guy teamed up with me, even though he hates me, just to get into Class A."

"Let's put aside Koenji, who's a special case, for now. I wouldn't want to do anything to your average student."

Upon hearing my response, Nagumo seemed to think something was funny and laughed.

"Did you really just call me that? You don't think I am strong at all."

"That's not—"

I wanted to deny it, but Nagumo interrupted.

"Maybe you thought I won by just mobilizing all the third-years, but that's not the case. I will show you my superpower now."

"Superpower?"

"Let me guess your group's ranking at the end of the 12th day."

Only the rankings of the top 10 and bottom 10 groups were public. Excluding those 20 groups from the 157 groups in total, there were 137 groups. Of course, I was the only one who knew my exact ranking.

At the final moment before the date changed, I was ranked 16th.

"You're ranked...11th, right?"

Nagumo said so confidently, but he was slightly off.

However, I couldn't just point that out with a smile. On Day 12th, as a response to the attacks of the 1st years, I repeatedly used GPS search. It was plausible that I would be 11th without using those points.

But it was part of the rules. He couldn't know the rankings of all the groups.

Essentially, there's a basis for what Nagumo said.

"A little off? Then you're ranked around 15th or 16th right?"

"Yeah. Truly admirable of you."

If I admitted this straightforwardly, Nagumo would just calmly accept it.

"I joked around with that superpower stuff. I just guessed, assuming that you really have hidden your strength."

It seems like this man Nagumo was much better than I thought.

"In order not to attract attention, your ranking is a bit lower than 10th, but still, you've maintained an upper-ranking position. If I lose the battle against Koenji, then you'd have a chance to make a comeback.

In order not to attract attention, I would lurk around this rank before Day 12.

As fatigue settled in for everyone, the upper ranks would lose momentum. Depending on the circumstances, you could build up your points, and in a flash, aim for the top 3. Unfortunately, I had planned to stay at my current ranking.

"Have you noticed? From the very start, this wasn't possible."

The strategy we developed was rendered useless by Nagumo from the very start.

"Kurona from third-year has been keeping the 10th place, right? I had him maintain that rank to block those who had been secretly saving points and aiming to make a comeback."

Although there was quite a point gap between the 9th and 10th place, it became harder for me to aim for the top places day by day.

This was all according to Nagumo's plan.

Forcefully eliminating those invisible enemies, he limited his gaze to those visible to his eyes.

"I've always doubted whether you were strong enough, but now I understand. You've been granted the right to be crushed by me, so rejoice."

"Was it part of your plan? Your command of the attack on Koenji on the last day?"

"If I want to earn points, whether that's 400 or 500 points, I can earn them. However, that's not interesting, right? Now there's hope that he might beat the second and firstyears. Besides, if he lost in the battle with me, we might be able to see his regretful expression."

Nagumo, as part of the strongest group, went through the two weeks of battle totally relaxed.

Then, on the last day, he would defeat Kouenji, becoming the first placed existence.

If Nagumo became serious, he would know the points of particular groups. From GPS searches and Nagumo's partners' eyewitnesses, he would be able to know whether arrival points were gained and the results of the events. Even today, when the exact points of the rankings was unknown, there's no doubt that Nagumo had an accurate grasp of Kouneji's points.

In other words, it was possible for him to direct a dramatic victory of winning by just one point.

"Anyway, Kouenji's matter is whatever. The last thing I will do at this school is to defeat you, Ayanokouji."

Nagumo, who had been chasing after Horikita Manabu, wanted to see his shadow on me.

He wanted to completely beat him, to decide the winner and loser, no matter the format of the battle.

"Unfortunately, the leader of Class 2-D is Horikita. Even if there's a special exam that competes with the third-years, I won't fight you."

"Then I would have to force you to appear on the front stage, which includes using the bounty."

In other words, he wouldn't hesitate to say expose my situation.

"I'm sorry, but I'm in a hurry. Let's continue with this topic next time."

"You think you can escape this easily? I won't let you go before you agree to a fight with me."

Nagumo seemed to want to follow me and caught up from behind.

If something awaited me ahead, Nagumo would be affected. Since the opponent was Tsukishiro, in the worst-case scenario, Nagumo could lose everything he had built up and be expelled under his name.

If I tried to persuade him with my words here, Nagumo wouldn't accept it no matter what.

Of course, I couldn't get away with a lie either.

I stopped walking and looked back.

"You want to fight me—"

As Nagumo misunderstood, delighted, I pushed on his chest, forcefully, without warning.

Nagumo probably didn't expect a kouhai attacking him, so he fell on his butt without any resistance.

The tablet he was holding, and the transceiver in his pocket fell to the ground.

"What—"

Nagumo looked as if he didn't comprehend what just happened to him.I'll do what I need to do before he can comprehend what happened.

"President Nagumo, although your abilities are different from President Horikita's, it still allowed you to brilliantly stand at the top of this school. You maintained a top ranking in this special exam with ease, and it's no exaggeration to say you had complete control over it. Even so, I plan to beat you." Before he calmed down or got angry, I continued.

"It's just that there are certain areas where you shouldn't step into. Please understand."

"Huh?.... Don't be ridiculous. You presume to give me orders?"

"It's because you have the status of being a senpai worthy of my respect that I am not going to be lenient here."

"Ah? What are you doing—"

I looked into Nagumo's eyes with all my killing intent.

"Urgh....!?"

"Don't you understand what I said?" Nagumo stood up powerfully as if to not admit his fear.

"Stop while you're ahead? You're the first person to underestimate me to such an extent, Ayanokouji..."

Right then, the transceiver that fell on the ground next to Nagumo received something. [Nagumo, I've gotten in the way of Koenji's event three times in a row. Please give me your next instructions.]

The cheerful voice of a certain 3rd-year student could be heard.

Their strategy to obstruct Koenji seemed to be going well. Nagumo didn't react to that voice at all and just stared at me.

[Hey, Nagumo, if you don't give instructions, your subordinates can't act. In order to drop Koenji down to 2nd, isn't it necessary to continue with the attack until the end?]

"You sure you're okay with not answering that?"

Hearing those words, it was clear that this should be important to Nagumo. Nagumo silently picked up the receiver and then switched the power off.

"What's important to me isn't Koenji."

Without even brushing the dirt off his body, Nagumo walked over.

"I will defeat you completely. This is my last job as the student council president."

Letting his emotions affect his decisions? The student council president steeled his resolve, shrugging off the pressure coming from my side.

"I...!?"

I punched Nagumo in the chest without hesitation.

"Ah, you...!!!"

In a flash, he was unable to breath, and fell to the ground, seemingly having lost his consciousness.

I caught Nagumo, and let him lean under a tree in the shade.

Since he didn't listen to my clumsy advice, this would be the only way to deal with it on this occasion.

Nagumo's watch probably detected his abnormal status, and sounded the warning alarm, which rang for 5 seconds. It shouldn't be long until he woke up. 20 or 30 minutes.

No matter what, Nagumo wouldn't get involved with what came after this. Of course, other problems would inevitably arise after this uninhabited island exam was over. But right now, this was but a trivial matter.

If I didn't solve the issue of Tsukishiro, I wouldn't be able to open a path to the road of the future.