Chapter 311: The Wild Boar Incident and Exam Results
Morishita Ai: "..."
"The way you're taking them off... it feels a bit lewd."
Morishita Ai's cheeks flushed slightly; she was more than a little embarrassed. Hikigaya looked down and focused. She was wearing hip-hugging black tights, and since both legs were connected at the waist, she couldn't just take off one side.
"Then let's just tear a hole starting from the sole of the foot," Hikigaya suggested.
"...."
"Isn't that even more lewd?" Morishita Ai covered her mouth with her palm, a look of shock on her face. "Are you for real?!"
"Do you want me to treat the wound or not?" Hikigaya asked irritably.
"I do. I don't want the rest of the class to see me looking so pathetic."
Morishita Ai nodded solemnly, then reached down to try and tear them herself. She struggled for a good while but couldn't make a dent. "As expected of the ATSUGI series—the defense and durability are top-tier!"
"Stop dawdling, let me do it."
Hikigaya reached in and gave it a tug, easily ripping a hole. Her fair, delicate sole was revealed. There was a sharp puncture wound at the arch of her foot, still seeping blood, but it was just a flesh wound that hadn't hit the bone.
"My Atsugis were breached in a single second...
Hikigaya Hachiman, your 'proficiency level' is terrifyingly high!" Morishita Ai instinctively pulled her foot back slightly, looking at him with a strange expression.
"What nonsense are you talking about?
Do you really think I don't know quality when I see it?
Compared to Aristoc, Wolford, or Levante, your Atsugis are basically roadside trash!" Hikigaya retorted with a straight face.
Of course, the "top-tier" stuff was the Balenciaga tights Chabashira-sensei wore—those cost tens of thousands and were the crown jewels of hosiery.
Morishita Ai: "…"
Morishita Ai was momentarily speechless, but then her eyes changed.
"Wait a minute?
Why does a guy like you know various brands of stockings like the back of his hand?
Hikigaya Hachiman, you really are a foot fetishist!!"
Hikigaya refused to admit it: "I just happen to know a little bit about everything."
Morishita Ai's mouth twitched. "Nice to meet you, Stocking Master."
"Stocking Master sounds terrible. At least call me Foot Master?"
While trading quips with her, Hikigaya pulled alcohol spray and gauze from his pocket. He cleaned the debris around the wound and carefully bandaged it. As for why he had these items in his pocket, the reason was simple. Having experienced the Uninhabited Island Exam, Hikigaya predicted that this forest exam would inevitably involve various accidents. He had prepared in advance.
"Oh ho!"
Morishita Ai lifted her bandaged left foot, looking at the neat dressing. He had even tied it with a bow.
Her eyes lit up. "Kawaii!
It seems you, Master, actually have some skills!" Morishita Ai praised him.
It couldn't be helped; thanks to a certain someone constantly getting bumped and bruised during club training, he had developed expert wound-treatment skills. He could even make bandages look fancy.
"Alright, can you walk?" Hikigaya asked.
"It's a minor issue."
Morishita Ai was hopping on one foot. Hikigaya looked at her speechlessly. If he let her hop down the mountain, she'd probably break the other leg!
"Fine, for the sake of that meal you treated me to last time." Hikigaya crouched down.
"Mhm, I'll treat you to dinner at my dorm next time."
Morishita Ai didn't act coy; she flatly climbed onto his back. Touching Hikigaya's solid muscles, she felt him lift her with ease.
A strange light flashed in her eyes.
.
.
.
By the time Hikigaya carried her down the mountain, the mountain climbing relay was over. He didn't care much about the results, but when he returned Morishita Ai to her group, he was—predictably—met with scrutinizing stares and gasps from the girls.
"Eeeeh—!"
"There's a story here!"
Her classmate and friend Yamamura Miki stepped forward immediately.
"Morishita-san, are you okay?"
"My foot got punctured. Thanks to Hikigaya Hachiman's help, it's no longer a big deal."
Morishita Ai brushed her hair back, looking relaxed and cool.
"Hachiman-kun, to be able to pick up an injured maiden during an exam... you truly are cursed with 'Peach Blossom Luck' (excessive female attention)." Sakayanagi Arisu teased him with interest.
"Why do I feel like it's a 'trouble-magnet' debuff?
I thought I might pick up a certain frail, scrap-tier loli instead," Hikigaya countered.
"What a shame; I ran the first leg."
"Even though it was only 2.5 meters?"
"No, it was 2.72 meters."
"Is there a difference?"
"There's a huge difference. That's close to the height of a Tyrannosaurus Rex."
"Hey!!!"
Hikigaya's face darkened. He noticed the surrounding girls giggling and stealing peeks at him.
"Hachiman-kun!*3"
Karuizawa, Matsushita, and Sato approached him, leaning on each other for support.
"Kei, Chiaki, Maya—what happened to you guys?" Hikigaya asked in surprise.
"Hachiman-kun, don't you know?"
"The wild boar attack incident just now," Karuizawa said.
"Wild boars?!"
Hikigaya was startled at first, then his brow furrowed. The forest exam handbook did indeed note signs of wild boar activity.
Koenji Rokusuke had been chasing small animals in the mountains lately—did he actually go and challenge a wild boar?
"Yes, yes!"
"I saw it from a distance. A pack of boars suddenly charged out from the mountain and scattered several groups in front of us!" Sato Maya clutched her chest, looking like she still had lingering fears.
"Actually, the boars on this mountain are supposed to be semi-domesticated.
Normally, they should be used to humans and wouldn't get stressed so easily.
Why did they suddenly go berserk?" Matsushita Chiaki wondered aloud.
'No way. Would someone really go that far just for an exam?'
Hikigaya immediately thought of Koenji Rokusuke. He was the prime suspect, but after a moment, Hikigaya ruled him out. While Koenji's behavior was abstract, he wasn't insane enough to intentionally harm others.
'Is it you? Ayanokouji Kiyotaka!'
.
.
.
Final Exam Results
The final results of the Forest Exam were released. The top three large groups were as follows:
Horikita Manabu + Hikigaya Hachiman Nagumo Miyabi + Yukimura Teruhiko (controlled by Ayanokouji behind the scenes) Kiryuin Fuuka + Sakayanagi Arisu
There was no need to look further down; according to the rules, only the top three large groups received extra rewards.
The bottom three large groups were:
Last Place: Tokito Hiroya + Kawada Michihito (Class 2-C, withdrew after several members were injured by boars) Second to Last: Watanabe Norihito + Tojo Suguru (Class 3-B, withdrew after injuries) Third to Last: Shiina Hiyori + Ikari Momoko (Ikari intentionally sabotaged the score)
The leader of the last-place group faced expulsion.
Tokito Hiroya of Class C was extremely unlucky. No, to be precise, he had been set up by someone! The other group members would also have their private points deducted. Those who couldn't pay the fine within the time limit would also be expelled. This special exam was as cruel as ever...
Class Points:
Class A: +32 Class B: -48 Class D: +108 Class C: -90
The leaders of the top three received 1 million, 500,000, and 300,000 private points respectively, while group members received 30,000, 20,000, and 10,000.
Regarding taking first place, Hikigaya felt both surprised and that it made sense. The people in the "Elite Group" were self-motivated and hardworking; he didn't need to manage them at all. Plus, being in a group with Horikita Manabu was flawless.
The fact that Nagumo Miyabi took second place showed that his comprehensive ability was indeed inferior to Horikita Manabu's.
Perhaps knowing this, Nagumo never sought to defeat Horikita head-on from the start, but instead targeted Tachibana Akane.
However, with Hikigaya's intervention, that plan failed to launch.
-
-
-
"Tokito! What the hell happened with you?!"
In Class C, which suffered the most, everyone pointed their fingers at the group leader, Tokito Hiroya.
"I—I don't know!
Those boars suddenly charged down the mountain!
What was I supposed to do?" Tokito cried out in protest.
"Boars? Are you kidding me..."
"Why didn't they charge anyone else? Why specifically your group?"
"Hmph, stop shouting!"
Ryuen Kakeru stepped in to cut off the questioning. "There are no such coincidences. This was clearly someone messing around behind the scenes."
"Is it Koenji?"
"Right! It must be him!"
"Someone saw him chasing boars earlier!"
Tokito, as if grasping at a lifeline, pointed at Koenji Rokusuke resting nearby.
"It's all his fault!"
"How could the beautiful me ever make a mistake?
Slicked-back-hair boy, you should reflect on yourself~"
Koenji's eyes were filled with contempt.
"If it's not you, then who?!
Just you wait, I'm telling Sensei!"
Tokito was panicking, but Ryuen kicked him over.
"You idiotic failure!
Shut your mouth!"
Ryuen glared at him, then looked at Class C's brain, Shiina Hiyori.
"Shiina, what do you think?"
"Tokito-kun, did you personally see Koenji-kun driving the boars at the scene?" Hiyori asked.
"...."
Tokito answered in the negative. While he wanted to frame him, he realized that if Koenji had an alibi, a false accusation would make his situation even worse. "I don't believe Koenji-kun has any reason to do such a thing," Shiina analyzed.
"Smart girl. Finally someone with a brain.
In this school, the number of people who interest me can be counted on one hand.
And they aren't in Class C."
Koenji was in full mockery mode. Simply put, he didn't care about anyone in Class C, Ryuen included.
"Hmph! What an arrogant guy!" Ryuen's face was grim.
However, people with such flamboyant personalities were the type who wouldn't lie—they disdained it!
"It's not Koenji, and it's not Dead-Fish-Eyes (Hikigaya).
It seems there's only him left...
Very well! It seems you can not only fight, but your methods for stabbing people in the back are quite impressive too!"
Ryuen quickly locked onto his target, staring straight at Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, who was pretending to be a bystander in the crowd.
"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, am I right?"
"Sorry, I don't know what you're talking about."
Ayanokouji was expressionless, sticking to his usual act of playing dumb. Ryuen's eyes widened, and without a word, he lunged forward with a kick!
Bam! Facing the sudden sneak attack, Ayanokouji raised his arm and parried it effortlessly.
"What happened?"
The Class D students didn't understand why Ryuen had suddenly attacked. Unfortunately, Ayanokouji's social standing was so poor that no one spoke up for him.
"Fighting is bad.
Ryuen, I suggest you calm down."
Ayanokouji spoke while maintaining his "poker face."
"Tsk! Dead-Fish-Eyes was right; you're a complete 'fake person'!"
Ryuen cursed under his breath. "But don't get too ahead of yourself!"
"When a leader is expelled, they can unconditionally designate one group member to take joint responsibility and be expelled with them!
I can designate someone from your Class D!"
As soon as he said this, several Class D boys in Tokito's group panicked instantly, terrified of being dragged down as collateral! Most notable among them was Hirata Yosuke, one of Class D's core figures.
"Tokito! Designate Hirata later and drag him to hell with you!"
Ryuen openly declared his revenge.
"What?!"
"Hirata is going to be expelled?"
"No way!"
Most of Class D panicked, especially the girls, who were practically jumping in shock.
"If expulsion is my result, I will accept it," Hirata Yosuke said, surprisingly calm.
"What did you say?"
This actually made Ryuen feel like his punch landed on cotton—he got nothing but frustration.
"Rules are rules, but if I were you, I wouldn't recommend doing that," Ayanokouji said. "Designating Hirata for expulsion can indeed crush Class D. But does doing that truly have meaning?
Class C's competitors should be Class A and Class B.
By entangling yourselves with Class D, you gain nothing."
If Hirata Yosuke were designated for expulsion, Class D definitely wouldn't be able to scrape together the 20 million points for the protection fee. They would have to watch Hirata leave the school.
Perhaps for Hirata himself, it wouldn't even be a bad thing to escape this abstract school, class, and students...
That was the logic. But according to Ayanokouji's plan, if he wanted to climb up in the future, he had to utilize people like Hirata.
"The most correct move would be to designate a member of Class A or Class B.
And use that as a negotiation chip to blackmail both classes."
To divert Ryuen's target, Ayanokouji offered him a scheme.
Read ahead (160 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting