By the time the sun had set on the tenth day, and around nine o'clock at night, two flickering lights could be seen moving outside the tent.

Moving at this hour? I wondered. But it was entirely conceivable that someone might be aiming for a designated area they couldn't reach during the night. Deciding to follow the lights, it seemed as if someone was desperately searching for something.

"Where did Chihiro-chan go?"

"Kobashi doesn't need to worry; it's everyone's responsibility."

I heard a faint and anxious voice of a man and a woman coming from that direction. Honestly, I didn't know whose voice it was, but I understood that Chihiro-chan referred to Chihiro Shiranami, a student in the Ichinose class, and Kobashi was probably Yume Kobashi.

I could have ignored it, but I couldn't just leave them outside the tent like that.

Soon, I stepped out of the tent and turned on the light attached to the tablet's functionality. Perhaps they noticed our light because I could hear footsteps running towards us.

"Chihiro-chan!?"

"We were worried!"

They exclaimed in a panicked manner as the bright light shone, and slowly, two figures became visible.

"It's not Chihiro-chan..."

"Ah...Horagasaki-kun?"

"Is that Horagasaki!"

Which Horagasaki? I wondered. But I was probably the only one in this school with that surname, so it made sense. The other person was Takemoto, also from the same class. We hadn't spoken before, but both of them seemed somewhat relieved.

"What happened?"

"Well...we got separated from Chihiro-chan."

But this was also quite troublesome. If Shiranami was also looking for us, there might be a chance of misfortune through a missed encounter.

"How long has it been since you got separated?"

"About 15 minutes, I guess..."

It didn't seem like they were terribly far apart, but if they couldn't hear each other's voices, there was no doubt they were lost.

"What should we do..."

It would be prudent to wait, but there might be a possibility of not finding each other. Both of them seemed physically fit, so if we were to act, it should be now.

"Can you walk?"

"Huh?"

"To search? Since we don't know the location."

"We could figure it out with GPS, let's go."

They looked at me in surprise.

"You'll help us?"

"Because this time it's sorted by grade, not class."

"But still, going as far as using GPS..."

To me, it wasn't much of a burden, but there was no point mentioning our current standings. So, I gave a reasonable explanation.

"Well, because it's from the Ichinose class..."

As I answered, the two looked at each other and chuckled.

"Could it be that Horagasaki-kun is with Honami-chan..."

"No, there's nothing like that."

Anyway, as I began the GPS search for Shiranami, it seemed like our signals overlapped, two of them?

"There she is! Chihiro-chan!"

As soon as a faint light appeared, Kobashi and Takemoto dashed through the dark gaps of the forest. They must have been searching using GPS, just like us. As I slowly approached, I realized Shiranami was with Kiyotaka.

So, that's what the overlapping GPS signals meant.

"Thank you, Horagasaki-kun, and Ayanokoji-kun, for helping Chihiro."

"No, I think we would've eventually found her, so it wasn't unnecessary."

"There was nothing unnecessary about it. Really, thank you."

"I'd feel relieved if Jin were here. Right. Do you have a walkie-talkie?"

At this point, Kiyotaka brought up the topic to Takemoto. It seemed he wanted to talk to Sakayanagi, and despite both of them seeming reluctant, they quickly handed the walkie-talkie to Kiyotaka without showing any signs of reluctance. Kiyotaka then proceeded to communicate with Sakayanagi over the walkie-talkie a little further away.

"I'm sorry and thank you."

"I should be thanking you, right?"

"Yeah, thank you, Aynoakoji-kun, for helping us."

"Horagasaki-kun, you really saved us, but are you okay with the points deduction?"

"I'm fine."

I said as I exchanged glances with Kiyotaka and decided to have a quiet conversation.

"Hey, are you okay with everything?"

"Yeah, I asked Sakayanagi to handle it for me, so she should handle it well."

"I see."

That should put my mind at ease. Sakayanagi could manipulate various students for the benefit of the big group. Even if Kiyotaka were targeted by first-year students during this test, Sakayanagi would somehow thwart them with GPS.

We were thanked again by the students from Class C, and the five of us spent the night together. Listening to stories about Class A and Class C that I wouldn't usually hear, I drifted off to sleep.

.....

On the twelfth day, just before five o'clock in the afternoon, I finally reached the last designated area, I8. As I walked around the vicinity for a while, I unexpectedly encountered Horikita, whom I hadn't seen since the beginning.

"Horagasaki-kun?"

"Horikita, long time no see."

"Yeah, it's been 12 days."

"Are you passing through too?"

"My designated area was I6. What about you?"

"I'm at I8. I'm about to set up my tent."

"It's a good time indeed. With the tasks over, all that's left is finding a place to set up."

Each task was only until 5:00 PM, and there wasn't much else to do today. All that remained was to find a sleeping spot and set up the tent to shield from the sunlight.

"By the way, have you heard about Shinohara-san's group?"

"What about them?"

That's when I first heard from Horikita that Shinohara's group members, Komiyama and Kinoshita, had retired. There seemed to be a possibility of an incident, as Shinohara had mentioned that Komiya was pushed off a cliff.

"Their group suddenly dropped in rankings. But they managed to avoid Shinohara-san's expulsion as there was a group to merge with."

Honestly, I didn't care much, but as long as my classmates were safe, it was good.

"By the way, how many points did you earn?"

"Well, I can say I'm not in the bottom 10 groups."

"I already know that. But if you had to choose between top or bottom, which one?"

Horikita sighed exasperatedly as she asked.

"Well... more towards the top, I guess?"

"I see. Aren't you aiming for the top 3?"

"I might face interference from third-years, and it's bothersome."

In fact, when I used GPS search, I saw Koenji being interfered with by several third-year students. Well, he managed to avoid them easily, though. While having such a conversation, we found a perfect spot to set up the tent.

"Then I'll set up my tent here."

At the exact same time, we said in unison.

Although there was enough space, there was another spot where a tent could be pitched. It was towards the sunny side, and it was expected to have a significant adverse effect on the body due to direct sunlight.

After a moment of silence, Horikita spoke up.

"What should we do?"

"Well, it's sunny there, right?"

"I don't get it. Why am I being left to decide on the sunny side?"

Giving her a nod of agreement, I said, "Deciding on the sunny side, huh?" And that's when she slapped my head sharply.

"Got it. Let's sleep together."

"Huh?"

I joked, but she glared at me disapprovingly. Well, please understand my joke.

"No, it was a joke..."

"...I see."

Horikita's response seemed a bit sour, but well, that's just how she is. She seemed fine, and I felt somewhat relieved. In the end, I ended up sleeping in the sweltering heat, while Horikita slept in the shade.

At 11:00 PM, the sound of waves from the beach quieted down. It was a comfortable feeling, being enveloped by nature, as we spent the night together. But...

"...It's hot."

It was so hot that I couldn't help but voice it out. I ended up taking off my upper clothing, leaving me bare-chested. When I stepped out of the tent to head towards the cooler seaside, I noticed Horikita coming out of her tent as well.

"Eh///, what are you doing?"

"It's too hot to sleep. I thought I'd cool off a bit."

"Not that... your... muscles..."

"Ah, sorry, I'll put it on."

"No, not like that. I just thought your muscles are really well-defined."

Saying so, Horikita began to touch my muscles gently. Her touch felt indecent and ticklish beyond belief.

"Um, it tickles..."

"S-Sorry... Horagasaki-kun."

"Yeah?"

"...If you don't mind, would you... cool off in my tent for a while?"

Horikita asked, blushing, casting glances at me from the corner of her eyes. I couldn't believe she was asking such a considerate thing. I couldn't help but be impressed.

"Seriously? Thanks a lot. It was so hot."

Returning to my tent momentarily to put my upper clothing back on, I then entered Horikita's tent. It was a one-person tent, but surprisingly spacious. With Horikita being petite, there was plenty of room.

"It's so refreshing here. The location really matters."

"Yeah, I found a good spot."

Feeling extremely comfortable, I lay down inside her tent. Horikita also lay down without expressing any discomfort.

"...Huh?"

"What is it?"

I was surprised at the unusual situation. Horikita had casually laid down beside me. It was unsettling.

"No... it'd be nice if there were air conditioning in the tent."

"There's no way that'd happen. Anyway, it's been two days."

"Yeah..."

Feeling a bit sleepy, I decided to leave the place and return to my tent, but Horikita grabbed my arm.

"Wait."

"What's up?"

"...You said earlier that we should sleep together, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but that was just a joke."

"...Do you dislike being with me that much?"

"It's not that, but you know, we're a guy and a girl, so there's a bit of resistance on my part too."

"...I see. But your spot is so hot, you know?"

"I know."

"You'll die, you know?"

"I won't die."

"...Then spend the day here."

"...Huh?"

I couldn't help but voice my surprise at Horikita's suggestion. But it seemed like she wasn't joking and was serious about it, probably considering my well-being. It was reassuring to have someone dependable like her as the class leader.

"Well then, I'll take you up on that... Goodnight."

"Yeah, goodnight."

We both turned away from each other to sleep. However, despite feeling sleepy, having a girl in the same place, in the same space, was quite unsettling. Even though it was Horikita, she was too defenseless.

As I foolishly thought about this, Horikita hugged me from behind and lay down next to me. My heart was racing.

"You're sleeping... right?"

"...I'm sleeping."

"Hehe...! So cute!"

To lift the mood, I responded like that, and Horikita began to squirm and giggle. It was adorable.

"Forget everything you just did and heard!"

"Mmm, nope."

"Okay, I'm really going to sleep now."

"Alright, goodnight!"

Saying that, Horikita turned her back and assumed a sleeping position. Then, thinking it was my turn, I hugged her back and wrapped my arms around her neck.

"Eh?!"

"...Are you awake?"

"...////"

I knew she was awake, but I pretended to be asleep. I could feel her blushing even to her ears.

But surprisingly, it felt quite comfortable. Despite the sweltering summer heat, I closed my eyes, feeling the warmth from Horikita.

"Eh, Horagasaki-kun?"

"*sigh*... *snore*..."

"Are you asleep!?"

"...*snore*..."

"Hehe, even your sleeping face is handsome, Horagasaki-kun."

And so, we spent the night like that. When I woke up the next morning, I found Horikita's face right in front of mine.

"Good morning, Horagasaki-kun."

"M-Morning."

Feeling flustered by Horikita's beautiful smile from the moment she woke up, I agreed to start getting ready.

"Shall we start getting ready?"

"Yeah.."

With Horikita's words, we got up and went outside the tent. I returned to my tent, packed up, and prepared to depart.

"I was at G7."

"I'm at E3. Well then, see you later."

"Uh, yeah. Take care."

With a wave of hands, we parted ways. We continued to steadily accumulate points, and before we knew it, it was the morning of the thirteenth day of the exam.

=================================

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