"Yes."
To Karuizawa Kei's question, Kitagawa Ryo answered without hesitation.
His firm, decisive tone gave Kei a momentary illusion—as if Ryo were standing at the altar of a grand cathedral, facing the priest and God, solemnly uttering the words "I do."
Ryo recalled a line from Sakamoto Yuji's drama "Quartet":
[The first step to seduction is to abandon one's humanity. There are essentially three strategies: Become a cat, become a tiger, or become a rain-soaked puppy.]
These three routes correspond to mystery, dominance, and sympathy.
Kei, from the beginning, was neither a cat nor capable of becoming a tiger. She could only choose the role of the drenched puppy. Even when there was no rain, she had to pretend to be pitifully wet. It was a role she played for a long time.
That's why Ryo was willing to witness her growth.
In the beginning, Karuizawa Kei lacked Ichinose Honami's natural friendliness, Horikita Suzune's discipline, and Sakayanagi Arisu's intellect and privileged background.
"The Kei standing before me now is a girl I can be proud of."
Ryo repeated his answer. He didn't say anything about whether Kei herself was satisfied with who she had become—because that wasn't the point. This wasn't a moment of uncertainty or inner conflict.
From the earlier reference to Camus, it was clear:
This was a confession.
Perhaps it was circuitous, perhaps slightly ambiguous, but it was undoubtedly a confession.
So Ryo gave his most sincere response. He nodded and smiled:
"I'm really glad I got to meet this version of Kei."
The Life Simulator was his simulator, yes—but in some sense, it belonged to everyone here. All of them had experienced one, two, even three alternate versions of their lives. In a way, they had all run simulations.
Now, they were all given the opportunity to restart.
And the one who seized that opportunity earliest, and most successfully, was Karuizawa Kei.
Ryo never believed that just being reborn with past memories would make someone better. Take Sotomura Hideo from Class 1-D, for example—he frequently spoke of wanting to reincarnate into another world, dreaming of becoming a hero by training and learning swordsmanship. But he couldn't even lose weight.
Everyone knows that studying hard raises grades, and working out improves health. If someone can't change in this life, why would they suddenly change in another?
So, in many stories, reincarnation brings not discipline, but information—next year's trends, hot products, winning lottery numbers, even the World Cup score.
Kei, on the other hand, had only one piece of future knowledge:
If you don't change, you will regret it.
This, too, didn't require rebirth to understand. Just like Sotomura knew that if he didn't lose weight, he'd continue to struggle in P.E.
And yet, Kei kept walking forward.
Compared to everything she'd accomplished, her transformation from a former bully victim to someone who now protects others was perhaps the least remarkable part.
Whether one changes for others or for oneself, at this stage, the reason doesn't matter. People only see the results.
And they acknowledge them. Just like Ryo did.
Kei's eyes reddened as she prepared to respond, but Ryo added another sentence:
"I'm glad I got to meet everyone here too."
That pulled Kei back to reality.
She suddenly realized the other three had already set down their utensils and were quietly looking at them.
Ichinose Honami, Sakayanagi Arisu, and Horikita Suzune all visibly relaxed at Ryo's last words. Like children passing a shop window every day, even if they knew the clothes on display weren't theirs, just seeing them there was enough to feel content.
Realizing this, Kei lowered her head, lips pressed together. She felt a swirl of emotions: warmth, gratitude, and a bit of dissatisfaction. She had received the answer she wanted—even if it was just a fraction.
With that slightly awkward question from Kei, the hearty dinner came to an end. The group cleaned up together, set up the school's free emergency toilet and shower units, then extinguished the fire and returned to their tents.
It was already past 8 PM. While early for high schoolers to sleep, wandering the forest at night was unwise—mosquitoes and insects were out in full force.
So naturally, conversation through the tent walls began.
Ryo and Kei shared single-person tents on one side, while Honami, Arisu, and Suzune had a large three-person tent opposite them. The forest was quiet enough that they could all hear each other clearly.
Perhaps because of what Ryo said earlier, the girls began reminiscing about personal moments—stories only they and Ryo would understand.
"Ryo, remember that no-brand ice pop we used to buy? The super cheap one that sometimes had a winning stick? I looked for it at the Keyaki Mall convenience store when it got hot the other day, but even the cheapest ones are over 100 yen now. And no more 'try again' marks."
"Even without a winner stick, we can afford two now. If you want one, Honami, I'll buy you one, and you buy me one. That way, it's like we both won."
"Director Izaki just released high-res stage photos from our last play, The Human Chair. Did you see the comments, Ryo? People are guessing if we're dating, especially after that blurry tabloid photo of us entering the hotel together. Honestly, the lighting was bad, but we took a better one under the streetlight, remember?"
"Kei was all teary-eyed asking if I was leaving. And then, two years ago when I wanted to quit the troupe, Kei was the one pushing me not to. Because she knew I'd follow her out anyway. Right, Kei?"
"That goldfish Ryo brought me last time—I'm still taking care of it! It doesn't fight like the internet says. They get along fine. I remembered Tokyo's fireworks festival is coming up, and I wanted to show you my goldfish scooping skills… but I can't sneak out of school like you can."
"Speaking of which, I don't really believe in the saying 'third time's the charm' when it comes to Suzune's goldfish scooping skills. Wait… you're not secretly practicing on your dorm fish, are you??"
"I don't know much about heart conditions, but I often look through that USB drive. I wonder what kind of mindset you had, Ryo, when you organized all that. Maybe it's like Descartes drawing a heart-shaped function for a princess. People only ever see the heart itself, not the math behind it."
"It's not really about mindset. I just thought—for a girl like Alice, if she didn't have a strong heart, she wouldn't have had the courage to jump down the rabbit hole."
The girls continued their stories, and Ryo responded to each one with sincerity, bringing up shared memories and gently returning their feelings.
The conversation lasted nearly two hours. Even as they lay down, none of them wanted to stop.
But they had to. Tomorrow demanded energy, and eventually, each person forced themselves to close their eyes.
Even Horikita Suzune, usually composed, had to admit something:
Their three-person tent was spacious enough for three boys. Yet, with just the three girls inside, it somehow felt crowded.
The shared breaths, the stillness, the lack of movement—all made each inhalation loud and clear.
-------------------------------------
The second day of the deserted island exam began without any of Kitagawa Ryo's group trying to sleep in. After waking up, they went through their usual morning routine, though the facilities were admittedly primitive.
Breakfast consisted of bread and canned food. Ryo added some vegetables to make a salad, trying to balance the nutrients at least a little.
"I won't be joining you all today. If fate allows, maybe we'll meet again tonight."
Since she was in a solo group, Karuizawa Kei packed up much faster than Ryo's group. With her backpack slung on, she waved at him before heading off.
While the exam didn't forbid groups from teaming up, most avoided doing so. Even the simplest issue—like what to do when only one group can register for a task—could become a major headache. Not to mention all the other complications of daily life.
Furthermore, Kei's Class B was technically a rival to Ryo's Class D. As the leader of Class B, her traveling alongside Ryo could easily be seen as an alliance between their classes, something that could raise eyebrows.
So no one in Ryo's group was surprised by her decision. The girls, however, were slightly sensitive to Kei's parting words—"if fate allows, we'll meet again"—and grew a little wary. They decided to camp tonight somewhere hard to find or big enough for only one group.
After saying goodbye to Kei, it took Ryo's group a bit more time to pack everything. At the girls' insistence, they deliberately chose a route completely opposite from Kei's.
Though the island's shrinking zone wouldn't begin until day three, many students were already migrating toward the island's center. A few contrarians, however, were scouring the outskirts while they still had the chance, looking to complete edge-located tasks.
Some tasks only required being in the top three to earn a reward. Fewer teams meant higher chances of winning, so several groups opted to remain on the outer edges for now.
Around 8 a.m., the first round of the day's tasks was refreshed. Since Ryo's team had moved near the coast, the first challenge they spotted was: [Beach Flag Showdown (Boys vs. Girls)].
Beach flag competitions involve contestants lying face down with hands under their chins, backs to the flag. At the signal, they sprint twenty meters to grab it. Originally designed to train lifeguards in reaction time and explosiveness.
[Category: Sports]
[Task: Beach Flag Showdown]
[Separate boys and girls divisions. Unlimited number of participants per group. Registration closes when 20 participants per division are reached. Starts immediately.]
[1st Place (per division): 800 points, 2L drinking water]
[2nd Place: 600 points, 1.5L drinking water]
[3rd Place: 400 points, 1L drinking water]
[Participation Prize: 500ml drinking water]
The rewards were extremely generous. Even just showing up guaranteed 500ml of drinking water. Since there were no restrictions on group size, a full four-member team could net 2L of water just for joining. That alone was worth 400 points.
Nearby teams would undoubtedly be rushing to join.
"Let's go too!" "Agreed!" "Absolutely!" "Hurry up, Ryo, or we might miss the sign-up!"
Before Ryo could even respond, the other three had already made the decision.
He chuckled. Of course he understood what they were thinking.
And of course, none of them were in it for the beach flags.
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