"…An uninhabited island?"
Looking at today's diary, Sakayanagi Arisu blinked, momentarily stunned.
Huh?
An uninhabited island special exam?
And Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyo had already figured it out?
Wait—
They figured it out before me?
…Them?
Sakayanagi's head buzzed slightly.
Today's diary had genuinely caught her off guard.
The confession part didn't matter. As someone who had personally witnessed it, she understood the situation between those three far better than the diary ever could.
So that part—
Was probably just filler to patch up earlier nonsense.
Heh.
That sneaky bastard still wants people to like him?
Meaning, the confession wasn't important.
The "advanced lessons" that followed? Even less so.
The more she read those parts, the clearer it became—
This guy had no girlfriend.
Pure imagination. Acting. Pretending.
What he actually wanted to write—
Was the part about the special exam.
The so-called "leak."
…He even wrote out the rules and point system in detail?
Wasn't he afraid of being wrong again, like with the previous confession incident?
…No.
Of course he wasn't.
Making things up was his specialty.
So—should she believe it?
That there would be an uninhabited island exam during summer?
"…."
She had no choice but to believe it.
Because there were clues.
Her homeroom teacher had indeed mentioned a "vacation" before.
She had simply ignored it.
After all, with the school's funding, a trip wasn't unusual.
And more importantly—
An island trip had nothing to do with her.
With her condition, she couldn't participate in anything physically demanding anyway.
So she dismissed it.
Besides—
Back then, she had been busy spreading rumors about Chabashira Sae's past.
Yes.
That's why.
But excuses were excuses.
Facts were facts.
She couldn't find a reason to deny the island exam.
The exact rules might differ—
But the destination?
Almost certainly an uninhabited island.
…Should she report this as an exam information leak?
That was her first instinct.
Report it.
Using rules to manipulate outcomes—
That was her specialty.
Rules, public opinion, psychology, momentum—
A true strategist controlled them all.
But after thinking it through—
She gave up on the idea.
If everything was already prepared, exposing it now would only cause trouble for her father.
Heh.
Better to use this opportunity to reclaim Class A's position.
Shut those fools up.
Even if she couldn't participate directly—
Knowing the rules in advance was more than enough.
…Assuming they were accurate.
"…."
As for the final "public information"—
Koenji Rokusuke.
A student from Class D.
No matter how powerful or capable—
A defective product was still a defective product.
Not worth attention.
What caught her interest instead—
Was another line.
"Looks like the little sister and the little angel already figured it out."
Horikita and Kushida had started training about twenty days ago.
She had heard about it.
If that meant they realized the nature of the exam before the diary revealed it—
Then in terms of perception—
She had lost to them.
Sakayanagi bit her lip.
She didn't like that.
Even if it didn't mean defeat overall—
The fact that someone like Horikita could surpass her in any aspect…
Was irritating.
This time, fine.
There were reasons.
But next time—
She would not lose.
Not to someone like her.
...
"Haa… haa… haa…"
Breathing heavily, Horikita bent forward.
Sweat slid down her neck, soaking her clothes.
Even as night approached—
She was still on the track.
Extra training.
She wiped herself down, rested briefly, then glanced at the diary flipping open nearby.
She didn't pick it up immediately.
Instead, she headed back to the dorm.
She needed to take notes anyway.
Originally, this extra session wasn't necessary.
Training with Kushida during the day was enough.
But with so many people joining—
She realized something.
If she only followed the group—
She wouldn't stand out.
Wouldn't improve beyond the rest.
…Even if her original goal was just survival.
Training was never wrong.
The body didn't lie.
A strong physique was always useful.
Her brother would agree.
"…."
Back in her room—
Water ran into the bath.
She sat down, opened her notebook, and flipped open the diary.
"…100 days already."
A quiet realization.
She wouldn't have imagined this version of herself before entering the school.
…She hadn't changed.
And yet—
She had changed completely.
At least—
Her obsession with her brother had faded.
Probably.
"…Focus."
She continued reading.
And paused.
Shiranami Chihiro confessed—
But not to Ichinose.
To Asakusa Toru?
Well, he had the looks.
Not surprising.
But turning someone's orientation…
That was impressive.
They started dating.
So next…
They'd probably—
"…No. How degenerate."
She snapped herself out of it.
Wasting time on romance instead of self-improvement?
Pathetic.
She shook her head.
Then focused again.
"Uninhabited island…"
August 1 to August 7.
Seven days.
Rules. Points. Strategy.
All clearly written.
Just like before.
She didn't doubt it.
If he wrote it—
It was real.
Still…
She felt something was missing.
Like last time.
"…Even so."
Even if something was hidden—
Knowing the exam 23 days in advance was invaluable.
She had time.
Preparation.
Planning.
Saving points.
Maybe even borrowing to secure key supplies.
Then—
Her gaze shifted to the final entry.
Koenji Rokusuke.
Wealth. Ability. Strength.
Better than her in many ways.
And yet—
Still in Class D.
Because of one flaw.
Lack of cooperation.
No friends.
…She felt oddly relieved.
Even someone like him ended up in D.
The system really was flawed.
The rest of the information—
Was mostly obvious.
Nothing like the detailed previous entries.
Which made sense.
The writer clearly preferred women.
Men barely appeared in the diary.
Except…
A sudden thought crossed her mind.
"…Could it be Yamauchi?"
She froze.
…No.
Ridiculous.
Blushing slightly, she shut the diary.
"Reading points +1."
Total: 99.
Remaining messages: 3.
She said nothing.
But she knew—
At 100 points—
Something would change.
...
And indeed—
It did.
Shiina Hiyori already knew the answer.
No new features.
No new sections.
Instead—
A new diary holder.
One more.
Randomly assigned.
So originally—
There were only four.
One per class.
Would the fifth break the balance?
She didn't know.
Maybe a senior.
Maybe a teacher.
But whoever it was—
They wouldn't reveal themselves easily.
So rather than dwell on that—
She focused on today's entry.
The confession.
The exam leak.
The Koenji profile.
The tone of the confession section—
Light. Playful.
But underneath—
Something else.
Not jealousy.
Not quite.
More like—
Awkwardness.
A reluctance to write it.
"Hehe…"
She smiled softly.
As for the exam—
It was crucial.
Class points determined everything.
Future. Present. Status.
With advance knowledge—
The possibilities multiplied.
Preparation. Strategy. Advantage.
Just like the diary said—
Some had already begun training.
And finally—
Koenji.
A distant figure.
Irrelevant.
Not worth concern.
Instead—
She thought about something else.
How to pass this information…
To Ryuuen Kakeru.
If they could truly unite all classes before the exam—
Just like the diary suggested—
Wouldn't that be…
The most interesting outcome of all?
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