For the first time in Hikigaya's life, he found himself face-to-face with a wild boar. Naturally, he was a little nervous.
But what made him even more anxious was the fact that Ayanokoji was standing right next to him.
That guy was far more dangerous than the boar.
"Oink, oink—"
The boar, sensing a threat, twitched its long snout and let out a deep growl.
"Both of you, step back a little," Ishikura instructed without even turning around.
Hikigaya immediately took two steps to the side—away from Ayanokoji.
Getting hit by a boar would be unfortunate but understandable. After all, it was just an animal acting on instinct.
But if Ayanokoji decided to use him as a human shield, that was something he absolutely could not accept.
Fortunately, his worries were unnecessary. The board, perhaps intimidated by the number of people or simply having vented enough of its frustration, snorted twice before suddenly turning tail and bolting into the forest.
So it just bullies the weak and fears the strong, huh…
Hikigaya glanced at Ayanokoji. Throughout the entire ordeal, the guy maintained an expressionless face, calmly observing the situation without the slightest hint of fear or concern.
He didn't look like someone who had just been chased by a boar at all… It was probably his trap in the first place.
"You two, are you okay?"
Now that the boar had fled, Ishikura hurried over to Gokyou and Tonegawa to check on their injuries.
Both of them were in a miserable state, their clothes torn and tattered. They looked utterly disheveled, though at least there were no visible signs of bleeding.
"Can you stand?"
Ishikura reached out to help Gokyou up, but the moment he moved, the latter let out a painful yelp.
"Looks like you twisted your ankle. Here, lean on my shoulder." Ishikura turned to Hikigaya and Ayanokoji. "Can you two help with the other one? We need to find a way to get them back."
"Alright."
With that, the three of them worked together to bring the injured pair back to the forest school.
On the way, Ishikura asked the two why they had entered the forest in the first place, but they only gave vague, evasive answers.
They couldn't exactly admit that they were tailing Ayanokoji, could they? That was a loss they had no choice but to swallow.
Since they had been attacked by a wild boar, the incident immediately caught the attention of the teachers upon their return.
While Gokyou and Tonegawa were receiving treatment in the infirmary, Hikigaya, and the others were called in for questioning by Mashima-sensei.
However, his primary focus was on Ayanokoji.
After all, the other two only happened to stumble upon the situation and decided to help, whereas he was the first one to be chased by the wild boar.
"You're saying the boar suddenly went berserk and started chasing you?" Mashima-sensei asked, furrowing his brows.
Logically speaking, wild animals shouldn't actively attack humans.
But then again, nothing was certain. It could have been in mating season, or perhaps its territory had been encroached upon.
"Yes." Ayanokoji nodded. "I originally planned to bring back a student who had run into the forest, but I unexpectedly ran into a wild boar. For some unknown reason, it charged at me, so I had no choice but to run."
"And who was the one who ran into the forest?"
"Kouenji."
Hearing this name, Mashima-sensei was instantly at a loss for words.
Any teacher who had ever dealt with the first-years knew just how eccentric and unpredictable that guy was.
Chabashira-sensei, standing to the side, added, "Now that you mention it, during yesterday's roll call, I remember you mentioning something about Kouenji. Something about him… playing with a wild boar?"
"To be precise, wrestling with it," Ayanokoji corrected with a straight face.
"Uh..."
That completely threw off everyone present.
As absurd as it sounded, the moment they realized it was Kouenji, it somehow made perfect sense.
Even Hikigaya didn't think Ayanokoji was lying—this was likely something that happened.
After all, they could just ask Kouenji directly, and with his personality, he wouldn't even bother denying it. Instead, he would probably take pride in it.
He might even smugly say something like, "My beautiful self was simply bonding with the little creatures of nature." [T/N: I can't stop laughing at this line! Hahaha!]
However, just because Ayanokoji wasn't lying didn't mean he wasn't steering the conversation in a certain direction.
"A situation like this happened, huh?" Mashima-sensei sighed, rubbing his forehead in exasperation. "So what you're saying is that Kouenji provoked the wild boar, causing it to have a stress reaction, and then Ayanokoji happened to get too close, which led to him getting chased… Haa, can you guys stop causing trouble? This is the first time something like this has happened at this school."
Yep, he had successfully pinned the blame on Kouenji.
Though he hadn't outright stated it, he was guiding everyone toward that conclusion.
As Hikigaya marveled at Ayanokoji's shamelessness, he also wondered what kind of developments this would lead to.
Especially with the final exam coming up in two days… There might be something interesting to watch.
Meanwhile, Mashima-sensei continued questioning, "Then what about Gokyou and Tonegawa? Were they with you?"
"No," Ayanokoji replied, effortlessly slipping into his usual act of feigned ignorance. "I went to look for Kouenji alone, but after the boar started chasing me, I was only focused on running away. It wasn't until I got out of the forest that I heard someone calling for help. That's when I happened to run into Hikigaya and Ishikura-senpai, and we worked together to drive the boar away."
"I see."
Mashima-sensei carefully observed Ayanokoji's expression but found nothing suspicious.
Moreover, there were no contradictions in his words, making it unlikely that he was lying.
Not even Gokyou and Tonegawa themselves would have suspected they had been caught in a trap. They simply believed they were unlucky.
Just then, the two students, who had finished receiving medical treatment, walked out of the infirmary.
"How are they?" Mashima-sensei asked.
The school nurse responded, "They took a pretty bad hit from the boar, suffering multiple bruises on their thighs and waist. As for their feet, they likely twisted them while trying to escape. Fortunately, there are no bite marks, just a few scrapes that have already been disinfected. They should be fine after some rest."
"Good to hear." Mashima-sensei let out a sigh of relief before adopting a stern tone. "But the exam is in two days. I don't need to spell out what that means for you."
"Yes, sir…"
Gokyou and Tonegawa looked bitter. They knew full well that the school wouldn't make exceptions for them.
Though not all events would be impossible to participate in, they were undoubtedly disqualified from the relay marathon, and their performance in the meditation assessment would take a major hit.
Any student unable to participate due to injury or illness on exam day would receive a zero.
This was the school's way of preventing loopholes.
For example, in the relay marathon, weaker students might feign injury to have stronger ones run in their place. Unfortunately, that avenue had been blocked from the start.
"For now, go back and get some rest."
It seemed Mashima-sensei intended to treat this as a simple accident, and at this stage, that was likely the only option.
Just then, Nagumo and Kiriyama arrived after hearing the news.
"Gokyou, Tonegawa, are you alright?"
Seeing the two struggling to walk, Nagumo immediately realized the situation was bad.
Kiriyama, looking anxious, asked, "Will you be recovered by the day of the exam?"
"Uh…"
The two looked troubled, lowering their heads without an answer.
The school nurse spoke up. "Their condition isn't hopeless, but it's also not ideal. It's best if they don't push themselves."
"But—"
"Forget it. There's nothing we can do."
Nagumo interrupted Kiriyama, forcing a bitter smile.
"It's not their fault that this happened… Let's go back and discuss how to handle this."
As they turned to leave, Nagumo briefly glanced at Ayanokoji before quickly looking away.
That look made his thoughts obvious.
Even without evidence, he had already concluded that Ayanokoji was the mastermind behind this.
And… he wasn't wrong.
More importantly, this was likely the exact reaction Ayanokoji had wanted.
For the longest time, he had concealed his true nature, maintaining the image of a harmless, ordinary student while secretly orchestrating all kinds of ruthless schemes.
But now, with his cover effectively blown, there was no longer any reason to keep up the act.
So, he was reshaping his image—turning himself into someone not to be messed with, like a porcupine or a skunk.
That way, Nagumo would have to think twice before making a move against him.
Honestly, Hikigaya thought this approach wasn't entirely wrong.
Some people only feared power, not virtue.
Perhaps Ayanokoji believed that Nagumo had become so arrogant because Horikita Manubu had been too lenient—choosing to endure provocation instead of fighting back.
If that was the case, then the only way to deal with him was through force.
Well, it seemed the dog-eat-dog battle was already showing results.
Hikigaya felt a bit sorry for Gokyou and Tonegawa, who were essentially collateral damage.
But then again, that was the risk of being Nagumo's lapdogs.
There were benefits to being a lapdog, but eventually, every lapdog gets beaten.
That was an unchanging truth, no matter the time or place.
"Alright, it's almost dinnertime. You two should head back as well," Ishikura said before turning to leave.
But Hikigaya quickly caught up to him.
"Ishikura-senpai, let's continue our previous conversation."
"I don't have the patience for this right now," Ishikura said coldly.
"Come on, don't say that. What I'm about to tell you is very important." Hikigaya ignored his attitude and continued, "From what I gather, you seem to have already given up on facing Horikita-senpai head-on in this exam. Is that correct?"
"How you interpret it is up to you."
"Then I'll take it as a yes."
Hikigaya suddenly lowered his voice and spoke conspiratorially. "But aren't you interested in a golden opportunity? A chance to defeat Horikita-senpai? Or are you just going to rely entirely on Nagumo-senpai?"
"...What opportunity?" Ishikura asked, unable to hide his frustration.
"Come on, it just happened, and you've already forgotten?" Hikigaya chuckled.
"Wait… are you talking about those two?" Ishikura frowned. "But they're in Nagumo's group. It has nothing to do with me or Horikita—"
"Ah, senpai, let's think a little more critically, shall we?"
Hikigaya believed that his hint was already obvious enough— even Ishikura himself knew that those two were in the same group as Nagumo.
As the captain of the basketball team, shouldn't his vision be better than most?
"I can only say this... If two people in your group were unable to participate in the exam due to injuries, what would you do?"
"Of course, I'd push the remaining members to achieve better results, and I'd do my best to contribute as well," Ishikura answered without hesitation.
"That's right, that's the correct way to think about it." Hikigaya nodded slightly. "But even so, can you guarantee with 100% certainty that your group's average score will meet the school's passing line?"
"That... I can't."
After hesitating for a long moment, Ishikura shook his head.
"But even if it were Horikita, I think he would—"
"You idiot! What does this have to do with Horikita?!"
Hikigaya couldn't help but yell— this guy was unbelievably dense.
Weird. Isn't basketball supposed to be a sport that requires brainpower?
No wonder the basketball team had never won any awards and kept losing in external competitions…
"Anyway, that's all I have to say. Think it over carefully, senpai."
Nagumo's plan to frame Tachibana Akane by colluding with Ishikura and Igari? That wasn't going to work.
But Hikigaya wasn't against the plan itself— what disgusted him was that Nagumo had taken advantage of Horikita Manabu's trust. That was what truly made him sick.
As for the third-year class battles? Hikigaya didn't care who won or lost.
So, as a… well, not exactly compensation, Hikigaya had pointed out to Ishikura that there was a chance for a comeback right in front of him.
Whether or not he could seize that opportunity would depend on him.
"Eh— something like that happened?"
During dinner, Hikigaya met with Matsushita and Horikita and told them about what had happened that afternoon.
Meanwhile, Kushida was still sticking to Igari, preventing her from making any unexpected moves.
"With two students missing, that group will most likely end up in last place," Matsushita pointed out immediately. "But since it's Nagumo-senpai's group, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. He only needs to order the other second-year groups to throw the game, and the passing line will drop."
"...You're a lot smarter than Ishikura-senpai," Hikigaya muttered, feeling somewhat speechless.
"Ishikura-senpai?"
"Forget it, it's nothing."
It just went to show that people couldn't be judged by the same standards. Some people, when faced with extreme anger…
Uh, he was getting off track.
"Let's set that aside for now, Hikigaya-kun. There's something important I need to tell you."
With that, Horikita informed Hikigaya about what Igari had revealed regarding their group's situation, as well as the matter concerning Manabe.
"Oh, I already had a plan for that. I was originally going to have Tachibana-senpai handle it."
"Tachibana-senpai?" Horikita looked puzzled.
"Yeah." Hikigaya nodded. "After all, the third-year Class C and Class D students are just a bunch of fence-sitters. If Igari, the mastermind, loses her will to fight, then Tachibana-senpai could use your brother's name to scare them into backing off. But now that I think about it, her intimidation factor might not be strong enough."
After all, Tachibana Akane was a soft-spoken, gentle girl.
"So what do you plan to do?"
"I was originally going to ask you to back her up, but now I have a more suitable candidate."
"Who… wait a second?"
Horikita suddenly sensed something was off and narrowed her eyes. "Hikigaya-kun, are you implying that I look scary?"
"...Before you say that, why don't you go take a look in a mirror first?"
As Hikigaya replied, he instinctively hid behind Matsushita.
"Aha, you two, cut it out." Matsushita chuckled helplessly. "But, Hachiman-kun, the more suitable candidate you're referring to... is it Manabe?"
"Yeah, after all, that girl is a textbook delinquent."
Although Hikigaya had only met Manabe once, her tough attitude had left a strong impression on him.
Not to mention… the sensation on his arm.
"Wait a minute, isn't this a bit reckless? I think she'll just end up making things worse." Horikita frowned in disapproval.
Her impression of Manabe wasn't great—mainly because she saw her as someone who lacked intelligence and spent most of her time hanging around in cliques.
But sometimes, a lack of intelligence could actually be useful.
"It's fine. Haven't you heard the saying, 'Even a petty thief has their use'? Or would you rather be the one playing the role of the intimidator?"
For someone like Horikita, who had been raised as an honor student, it was difficult to challenge authority and openly defy upperclassmen.
That kind of mindset was ingrained from a young age—it wouldn't change overnight.
Matsushita and Kushida probably couldn't do it either. But someone like Manabe, a delinquent type, thrived on the power of backing from someone stronger.
As long as she had the right support behind her, she wouldn't even bat an eye at some third-year D-Class rejects.
"I get what you're saying, Hachiman-kun." Matsushita didn't object, though she still had some concerns. "But how are we supposed to get Manabe to help? Didn't you say she's sided with President Nagumo? If she leaks anything, it'll be a huge problem."
"I've already thought about that. After dinner, help me arrange a meeting with her. I have a way to handle it."
As the three of them were discussing, an argument broke out nearby.
A moment later, over a dozen male students suddenly stood up. They were clearly split into two groups, facing off against each other.
…What's going on now?
"Looks like it's guys from Class A and Class B," Matsushita observed curiously.
"Are they first-years?" Horikita sighed. "The exam is coming up soon, and they're fighting now? Can't they just endure for a couple more days?"
"Maybe it's something they can't just endure…"
Hikigaya had a vague sense of what was happening. He glanced around the area but didn't see Ichinose anywhere.
Normally, she'd be the first to step in and stop something like this… Had she already gone back to the dorm?
As for the other class leader, Sakayanagi, there was no way she'd intervene.
Because this whole conflict was likely part of the strategy to take down Class A.
When someone with a strong reputation was slandered, the damage wasn't just limited to them—their followers would also be deeply affected.
Sometimes, their followers were even more agitated than the person being targeted.
Seriously, this exam is way too much trouble.