"It was exhausting..."
I let out a tired sigh as I stepped out of the theater hall. Dealing with that type of adult was difficult. At the very least, they should act their age.
I wondered what she was like during classes. Attending her lessons had to be irritating as well.
I walked through the corridor on the second deck, heading back toward my room. Ayanokouji was walking a step behind me. I didn't know whether we were heading to the same destination or not.
Still, I preferred avoiding walking with him.
It was time to reset things.
I quickened my pace to leave the deck as fast as possible and put some distance between us.
However, he seemed to have other plans.
He started trying to catch up, eventually matching my pace.
"Class B's teacher is strange... don't you think?" Ayanokouji asked as he walked beside me.
"Hmm... yeah," I replied flatly.
There he was again, trying to probe for a reaction to determine whether I had heard something or seen something when I arrived.
He knew that being seen in that situation wasn't exactly acceptable.
But I had already decided that I would pretend I hadn't seen anything.
"She's different from Chabashira-sensei..."
"Hmm..."
Through years of solitude, I had learned that vague and indifferent responses often caused the other person to back off out of boredom or because they felt disrespected.
However, Ayanokouji ignored all of that and continued.
"The matter Chabashira-sensei brought up was suspicious..."
"Maybe."
I didn't know why she had raised a topic like that back then, but fortunately, Hoshinomiya had interrupted us.
Still, I was certain she hadn't said it without reason.
Especially when it came to Ayanokouji.
"She trusts your abilities. But I don't know why she summoned me as well," Ayanokouji said with a helpless sigh.
"Really..."
By the time I responded, we had reached the railing overlooking the sea at the front of the ship.
Leaning against it, I stared at Ayanokouji with a blank expression.
"Yeah. You've proven your capabilities before. She probably already knows that," Ayanokouji said while leaning against the opposite wall and closing his eyes.
"Ayanokouji..."
"Hmm?"
He raised his head to look at me.
"It's one thing if you think I'm intelligent or attribute me with qualities I don't particularly appreciate. But after that, pretending to be incompetent only makes me look like the fool."
I tapped my fingers against the ship's railing.
"But... I'm not pretending..."
Ayanokouji started trying to deny my accusation once again, but I raised my hand to stop him.
"Let's stop wasting each other's time with this. No matter what you say, you don't seem genuine to me."
His air of being an ordinary person.
The way he always positioned himself as an observer.
His habit of testing reactions and extracting information.
And above all, the way he concealed himself.
All of it made my instincts scream.
I didn't know why, but I felt that he was dangerous.
Neither Sudou nor even Ryuen gave me this particular feeling.
Ayanokouji continued staring at me as if he didn't understand my words, or perhaps hadn't fully processed them yet.
I turned away to leave.
I had finished saying what I wanted to say.
There was no reason to waste any more time here.
I had just begun walking away when I heard him call out to me again.
"Hikigaya..."
I stopped without turning around, waiting for him to say whatever it was he wanted before I left.
"Then... what does it mean to be genuine?"
I turned around immediately, surprised by his question.
I had expected him to continue pretending or deny my claim.
Instead, he had suddenly asked that.
I shifted my gaze toward the sea, searching for an answer among the waves.
Yet the thought was swallowed by its depths.
"I don't know..."
Perhaps if I truly knew the answer to that question, my life would have been much easier.
Maybe I wouldn't have become who I am now.
Ayanokouji stared directly into my eyes as though searching for the answer to his question.
It was a question that sounded as though he was asking it for the first time.
He let out a slow sigh after silence lingered between us for several moments before finally deciding to break it.
"Fine... I hide my abilities and don't want to participate in class activities. How would you respond to that?" he asked with an indifferent expression, waiting to record even the slightest reaction from me.
Perhaps he had decided to stop pretending in front of me.
I exhaled slowly and shrugged without much concern.
"No one will ask anything of you."
I wasn't interested in knowing what his abilities were, why he hid them, or why he did any of this.
All I wanted was to stay away from trouble.
And remaining by his side felt like the greatest source of trouble imaginable.
At least, that's what I felt.
Silence settled between us once more as we stared at each other, as though we were competing to see who would avert their gaze first.
"Attention, students. The island will soon come into view. We hope you will take this opportunity to appreciate this important sight."
The announcement echoed throughout the ship through the loudspeakers.
An island...?
An important sight?
What was that supposed to mean?
Since we were already standing at the front of the ship, there was no need to move elsewhere.
I turned toward the horizon.
At first, there was nothing distinct—only a faint silhouette in the distance.
Perhaps that was the island.
The wind grew stronger, tousling my hair as I tried to peer ahead more carefully, waiting for the image to become clearer.
Soon enough, the island came into focus.
It appeared deserted.
There were no buildings to be seen—only trees and untamed vegetation.
What were we supposed to do there...?
I tried to ignore my thoughts until the very last moment.
I didn't want to believe that what I suspected might actually be true.
As the ship continued to advance, the island's features became increasingly distinct.
A variety of trees covered its perimeter, accompanied by several elevated areas that, while noticeable, weren't particularly steep.
Contrary to my expectations, the ship didn't head directly toward the shore.
Instead, it began circling around the island, as though allowing us to observe it more thoroughly.
Much like meeting someone for the first time—
you memorize their outward appearance before getting to know them better.
I glanced at Ayanokouji.
He, too, was observing the scenery with interest.
I couldn't help but fear what awaited us once we set foot on land.