Before they knew it, the second deserted-island special exam had reached day six. Per school rules, they could now use tablets to check live rankings for the top ten and bottom ten teams.
Everyone was shocked to see the top five slots all taken by members of Yukio's class—completely monopolized. The bottom ten were mostly first-year teams.
Students had already noticed an off-fuel SUV still racing around the island, so they knew the fuel issue had been solved.
They couldn't stop Yukio's class from racking up points. All they could do was try to stand in front of the SUV to slow it down.
But Yukio's class had plenty of lunatics—most were the "you try to block me and I'll just ram you" type—so eventually nobody wanted to keep getting in the way.
After checking the tablet rankings and feeling satisfied, Yukio was about to drive to the next movement zone when a little spray splattered across the windshield.
Looking up, he saw dark clouds blotting the sky. It looked like a heavy storm was coming—no surprise. Rain over the sea was normal.
As time passed the island seemed draped under an endless black curtain. Morning light vanished into gloom; wind howled and the atmosphere felt charged.
At that moment Yukio's tablet beeped. He glanced down and saw a school announcement.
[Due to weather conditions, this special exam location is affected by an incoming cloud mass. A red heavy-rain warning is issued. Expected precipitation may exceed 100 mm. All students should take precautions and avoid moving in the rain. All remaining movement commands for today are canceled. If the rain stops by 6 PM, random task points may still appear—check the tablet. If the rain continues, today's tasks will be canceled.]
The school had contingencies: single heavy downpours stop the exam and tell students to take precautions. So it seemed there would be no more activities today.
Yukio, thinking about how advantageous it was to have a vehicle on this island, felt fortunate. Even with a storm you don't have to hunt for a cave—just sit in the car and you're fine.
"Hmm?" He noticed Horikita sprinting straight for him for some reason.
"Well, the female knight isn't coming here to avoid the rain, is she?" Yukio muttered, slid the SUV to the side, and stopped the passenger door in front of her.
Horikita didn't hesitate—she opened the door and climbed in. "Phew. Good thing I found your SUV. I couldn't find anywhere to shelter, and I didn't have time to set up a tent."
That was Horikita—efficient and to the point. Yukio looked at her with amusement and a teasing tone. "So the cute female knight voluntarily threw herself into our net? Voluntarily captured to avoid the rain?"
"Huh? What are you—"
Boom!
Rumble!
Before Horikita could reply, thunder cracked like the heavens themselves shouting. What had been a few scattered drops became a torrent in seconds, the windshield laced with dense splashes.
The sudden downpour filled the world with the sound of rain. Horikita flinched—not from the thunder so much as from relief that she'd found Yukio's SUV.
If she'd ended up in some other full vehicle, it wouldn't have helped; in this weather getting soaked could lead to severe hypothermia and force her to withdraw from the exam. Horikita, like Yukio, was a single-person team: if she had to quit, her ranking would plummet and she could even face expulsion.
Relieved by the thought, Horikita relaxed and looked at Yukio more kindly. She still wanted to compete with him and make him see her differently—she wouldn't be defeated here.
Seeing Horikita's expression change, Yukio found it amusing. "Not arguing anymore? So you really did surrender. Too bad I didn't bring those handcuffs this time."
Horikita's cheek twitched as she blushed, probably recalling her two cosplay experiences. "Lowbrow hobby."
Yukio wasn't satisfied. He reached out and pinched Horikita's cheek, making her flustered. She'd never had a boy pinch her cheek before.
Seeing Horikita's cute panic, Yukio didn't want to let go. "You can call me despicable, but you can't say my hobbies are lowbrow."
"N-no, you're—" With her face held, Horikita's pronunciation grew crooked. Not wanting to lose, she tried to fight back and grabbed Yukio's face in return.
Too bad he dodged with the side of his head. "Tsk tsk, captured and still thinking about resisting?"
Horikita rolled her eyes. She was being pinched and too annoyed to argue—wasn't Yukio stating the obvious? Who wouldn't want to resist when captured? Keep trying!
Yukio dodged again, but the compartment was cramped and Horikita kept coming at him. He couldn't dodge forever. "You pushed me into this."
Then the hand that had been pinching Horikita's cheek moved down and found the weak spot. He'd completely captured this female knight—she dared not move.
She froze for a long moment, then, like a thunderclap, her face flushed scarlet. Her usual cold expression melted into the bashful look of a young woman. "Y-you—y-you bastard! Let go!"
Yukio wasn't about to listen. Now was the time to press the advantage. "I'll let go. But you should understand—captives don't resist, right? So every time you resist, I'll grab you."
"!" Horikita's face kept reddening. What kind of rule was that?! So if she stubbornly retaliated once, Yukio would win once? If she kept striking back it'd make it look like she was trying to get him to succeed...
Could she agree? She was furious, but could she refuse while Yukio still had his hand on her?
Whether it was psychological or the effect of his grip, Horikita felt weird in her chest—trapped, conflicted.
Her usual icy, proud expression had crumbled into a helpless little face, and Yukio couldn't help but laugh.
Maybe his smile brought her back a bit. "D-don't be so smug. You think you've secured the practical exam this time, huh?" she spat.
"Our class put out their trump card for this exam too!"
"?" Yukio blinked. Wait—you're not worried about whether I'll let go? You're focused on the exam? Could it be... you want me to keep holding on a little longer?