The True Elites

Chapter 3-7: Finale On A Desert Island

Ayanokōji's POV

Early in the morning, around 6 am, I did my round-trip of all of Class D's spots. It was much harder than usual, because the weather had taken a turn for the worse.

It was overcast outside, the skies cloudy and grey. It must have rained last night, because puddles and patches of mud were here and there on the ground. It looked like it was going to start raining hard, probably in the early afternoon. Of course the weather got stormy right at the end of the test. Just a light rain would have been fine, but there might be heavy rain and strong winds.

I dragged by sluggish body forward, inch by inch. It'd now been three whole days since I last slept, and it was starting to catch up to me. All humans would take a hit to their performance if they don't sleep – sleep is an essential factor for humans, after all.

However, I chose to go without it nevertheless. It made life harder, sure, but I still judged it to be the easiest and convenient way to do this. That was because of the conclusion I'd come to right at the start:

To win this exam, I don't even need to be anywhere near my best.

My pace was slowed down because I had to make sure to avoid losing my footing as I traversed the muddy and slippery ground. The shrubbery was wet, too, which caused me to garner wet patches on my clothes as I pushed my way through the wilderness.

It would be dangerous for any normal person to travel the island under these harsh conditions. I supposed that's what our wristwatches were for.

As I was on my way back, I stumbled upon an extremely interesting grouping. Ichinose, Kushida, Horikita, Yamauchi Haruki and Sakura Airi. I'd heard from Lelouch that, when he went to use his 'advanced negotiation techniques,' he'd discovered that Class B and E were now camping together. It was no wonder that they were out here together too.

Near them, not strictly part of their group but definitely travelling around in their company, were Katsuragi Kōhei and Yahiko Totsuka, of Class 1-A. I hadn't seen Class A in a while, as they seemed to have moved their base camp somewhere secretive.

These two groups must've stumbled across each other while searching for food.

"Hm? Ayanokōji-kun?"

Ichinose noticed my presence and waved to me.

"Tch. This guy." Horikita scowled at me.

"Now, now, Horikita, that's not a very nice thing to say when you see your friend." I said jokingly.

"You were never my friend!" She shot back coldly.

"You wound my heart."

Ichinose, Yamauchi and Kushida began giggling as I said that in a completely monotone voice.

"Hey man, I don't think we've met," Yamauchi said to me in greeting. "I'm Yamauchi Haruki, the gem of Class E! Nice to meet you."

"Uh, right. I'm Ayanokōji Kiyotaka..."

I responded to his introduction awkwardly. To put it nicely, Yamauchi was very... energetic.

"So, what are you doing all the way out here, Ayanokōji-kun?" Kushida asked.

"Isn't it obvious?"

I took out the key card from my pocket and waved it at them briefly before returning it to my pocket.

"I still can't believe that you're being so careless with your leader's identity." Katsuragi stated, baffled.

"Me neither," Horikita narrowed her eyes at me. "Did you miss the rule that clearly states 'having your leader guessed nullifies all bonus points earned from spot occupation?' This strategy of yours makes no sense."