Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test

Vol. 3: Chapter 8.1.2 - Holding On To You

2nd Day, 9:00 PM.

I was assigned on night watch, along with some classmates. We'll be monitoring the camp until 12:30 AM. After that, we can go ahead and sleep with the rest of the class.

Four of our night watchers hung out with other students around the bonfire. I sat near the boys' tent using a much smaller campfire as a light source. I continued reading the manual and my map.

"Good work today, Kiyotaka-kun." The voice of Kikyou rang through my ears. "Our classmates are really happy right now. Even though Kouenji-kun's retirement tipped us off for a bit, everyone recovered their morale after seeing you work hard as the class's all-rounder."

Since there was only one tree branch to sit on, Kikyou decided to sit beside me. Because of the branch's modest size, her shoulders consistently touched mine.

"Good work today, Kikyou. The fruits that you and your friends were providing us really helped a lot in saving up points."

"It's nothing much. All of us are happy to help. And besides this entire exam is a really refreshing experience, even if it wasn't the summer vacation that we initially expected."

"That's true."

Kikyou subtly leaned her weight against me.

"You know, Kiyotaka-kun. When Mashima-sensei announced the exam, I imagine a scenario where you weren't there to lead us."

That's an interesting thought.

"Hm? What happened in that scenario?"

"Hirata-kun would still probably try his best to lead the class, but he doesn't have the same amount of decisiveness that you have. Horikita-san won't be able to relay her thoughts properly because you're not there as her bridge to communicate with the class..." she sighed. "No matter how much I try to look at it in a positive light, the only outcome I can see is a severe lack in coordination."

Kikyou was probably right. Even I can recognize the unshakeable position that I've established for myself.

"Have you ever imagined a situation where I didn't buy the explanation for the S-System?" I asked.

This was one of the many topics that Matsushita and I have talked about before.

"Oh, that's interesting." Kikyou pondered excitedly.

Her expression turned darker and darker until it became grim.

"It'll be seriously bad, I think." She replied with a slightly quivering voice. "You and I have been close with our classmates. If you were going to be extremely honest, how many points do you think will we have left after the first month, given their attitudes?"

"0 points," I answered instantly.

"So fast! Have you thought about this before?"

"I've talked about that topic a couple of times with Matsushita and Nishimura. At first, we estimated the remaining points to be somewhere around 50 or 100 points, but after diving into the details of our classmates' early behaviors, 0 points seemed like the most probable result."

Ike and Yamauchi's misbehavior and Sudou's violence were just the tip of the iceberg. If it weren't for the S-System, our classmates would most certainly slack off and their fundamentals in academics wouldn't be as good as now. Consequently, they wouldn't even bother observing proper conduct during class. If that's how everything went for the first month... I can only imagine the deductions.

"That's a scarily convincing theory... I don't really know what to say next, but uh, thank you, I guess, Kiyotaka-kun."

It's funny how those two said the same thing.

"Well, there's no need to think too much about it. We're pretty close to Class A. If we keep doing our best, we'll have a lot of winning chances."

"Yep! Everyone's doing their part, no matter how small."

I kept the manual and map inside my bag. Kikyou and I continued staring at the campfire with our classmates' laughter as background noise-- our backs facing them.

"We haven't hung out much, Kiyotaka-kun."

"Yeah..."

"And you're getting really close with Matsushita-san and Ryuuko-chan."

"I don't know about that..."

"Ichinose-san, too."

Wait, what's with this topic? Well, no matter. I'll just go with the flow.

"Are you jealous?" I asked jokingly.

"Yes... I am."

Surprised, I turned my head to look at Kikyou.

"As a friend, of course. Don't get your hopes up, idiot~."

"I wasn't. There wasn't any hope, to begin with."

Kikyou chuckled cutely, but her chuckle felt oddly self-deprecating.

"You're right... It's quite... unfortunate."

Kikyou's feelings for me have most likely shifted in that direction, and she's not even trying to hide it anymore. If she was willing, I'd probably have no reason to reject her. But both of us know that it can't happen unless she lets go of her undying obsession-- her way of life.

While walking on this tightrope, Kikyou is trying to keep me tied in, fearing that I might get taken by someone else. That should be the reason why she stopped being subtle about everything. If I was conscious of her, then it'd be hard for me to develop feelings for another girl.

And right now, Kikyou was under the impression that I value her highly. While I do value her to some degree, she's probably thinking that I'll put her above anyone else apart from myself. I can use that mindset to keep her on my side. Her social connections are too strong. The current Kikyou is formidable enough to be considered dangerous.

Huh? It's been a minute or two since silence broke out in the camp. Why did our classmates' noise stop so suddenly?

Thinking about the same thing, Kikyou and I turned around in unison.

"Uh, what are you guys looking at?" I asked.

"Ehehe... Well, you and Kushida-san just looked so cute together. We can't help but watch!" chuckled Mori.

"Kuuu-- Lucky you, Ayanokouji!" Onizuka gave me a stiff thumbs-up.

"G-Guys, calm down. Kiyotaka-kun and I were just sitting together." Kikyou waved her hands in denial.

"Oh, it's cold, after all. Sidling up towards each other is a must, too. It's alright, Kikyou-chan. I understand," teased Onodera.

"Kayano-chan!" cried Kikyou.

In the end, Kikyou and I decided to join the rest of them. Everyone gossiped, joked, told stories, and asked weird questions. As the silent guy, I was often the one who gets interrogated. Hanging out with friends around a campfire wasn't something I've experienced before. It was really fun, to say the least. We continued to hang out until everyone got tired and decided to hit the sack.

After taking care of everything, I went ahead and entered one of the boys' tents.