(Narrator)
"Damn it…"
Ibuki muttered as she moved between the short bushes inside the forest surrounding Class D's camp.
After the sun rose on the fourth day of the island exam, Ibuki headed toward Class D's campsite according to Ryūen's plan.
Her goal now was to observe them during the occupation period and wait for any slip-up that might reveal their leader.
As soon as she approached the edge of the camp, she began hearing the students' noisy voices. She was shocked by how quickly they had moved on from what happened yesterday.
Also, shouldn't they be angry at her by now and searching everywhere for her?
"Tch…"
Ibuki stopped at a distance so nobody would find her and quietly began observing them.
She was careful not to make even the slightest sound that could expose her location.
Class D's students had only just woken up, so they were eating breakfast.
Her eyes moved from one student to another until she spotted the boy she needed to be wary of.
She silently watched Hikigaya while thinking about Ryūen's words, which she still didn't fully understand.
She saw Hikigaya standing alone away from the group, yawning while staring at the tree beside him as if he were talking to it.
Maybe Ryūen had been fooled, but she definitely wouldn't be deceived by someone like him.
She began observing the others, looking for any unusual behavior among them.
Most of them—if not all—were acting completely normal.
She searched for their leader but couldn't find her.
Maybe she was absent.
Another girl with long hair standing suspiciously alone at the side caught her attention.
She had seen her and Yukinoshita talking several times before.
Ibuki quietly moved through the bushes until she got behind her, but contrary to her expectations, the girl was simply standing there alone doing almost nothing.
"She's just another idiot…" Ibuki muttered.
She moved away again, searching for a place where she could observe as many people as possible.
But the sound of approaching footsteps made her freeze in place and turn around.
Hikigaya was approaching Horikita with his hands in his pockets.
"What's going on here…"
Why would the two of them separate from the others? That was suspicious.
After reaching her, Hikigaya kicked a pebble with his foot. Horikita looked at the pebble carefully before nodding.
Hikigaya crouched down, picked up a small stick from the ground, and started drawing random circles in the dirt.
"I still don't understand. This breaks the rules," Horikita said while crossing her arms.
"Haven't I already explained this yesterday? I read the rulebook. There's no rule saying the real leader has to carry the card the entire time."
"Hah…"
Ibuki froze after hearing that.
Were they talking about the exam?
She held her breath, as if even breathing might stop her from hearing what they were saying.
"Even if I'm the leader, you can carry the card the whole time. The only condition is that I personally occupy the base."
Ibuki's eyes widened in shock.
Was he the leader?
She couldn't process it. Had she just discovered their leader by pure chance?
Without realizing it, she started inching closer so she could hear more clearly.
"Can't you protect it yourself? Why do I have to hide it for you?" Horikita asked while kicking the ground.
Ibuki hadn't liked this girl from the beginning. She looked like nothing more than an arrogant snob.
"If they see it with you, they'll think you're the leader," Hikigaya declared without hesitation.
Ibuki placed a hand on her forehead, unable to believe what she was hearing.
Maybe this idiot had a point. If she saw the card with Horikita, she would naturally assume Horikita was the leader.
"Who's even going to see us? We just need to hide it properly."
"Ibuki…"
Ibuki trembled after hearing her name.
Why were they talking about her?
"Our goal is to trap Ibuki. She sleeps in the girls' tent and spends most of her time around you girls. If she sees it, she'll fall right into the trap. She's just a stupid idiot," Hikigaya said with a mocking smile.
Ibuki clenched her fists tightly, trying to restrain herself.
If she could, she would come out right now and punch him in the face without hesitation.
She had to endure it for now.
But she swore she'd make him pay once this was all over.
"Ibuki-san… didn't she leave yesterday?" Horikita asked while raising an eyebrow.
"Yes. But she'll come back," Hikigaya replied as if completely certain.
Ibuki couldn't help but wonder how he knew that.
"What makes you so sure? Besides, didn't her class withdraw? There's no point in her discovering who our leader is anymore."
Tch…
Ibuki had forgotten for a moment that, in everyone else's eyes, Class C had already withdrawn.
She'd completely overlooked that detail.
"How naïve… If the entire class withdraws but Ibuki remains behind alone as the leader and manages to trick us into revealing our leader, that would be a crushing victory for them," Hikigaya explained while drawing a large X over the circles in the dirt.
"Ibuki-san is the leader…" Horikita muttered, her eyes widening from Hikigaya's deduction.
"Exactly."
Their conversation was moving faster than Ibuki could fully process, but what she did understand was that Ryūen's plan had succeeded.
They thought she was the leader…
A victorious laugh nearly escaped her lips, but she quickly covered her mouth tightly to suppress it.
"Time's almost up…" Hikigaya said while extending his fingers toward her.
"O-Okay…"
Horikita pulled a green card out of her pocket and handed it to him. He caught it with just his fingers before slipping it into his pants pocket.
Ibuki could only see the back of the card.
Still, learning the identity of their leader alone was more than enough for her.
The two returned toward the camp, and Yukinoshita emerged from the girls' tent. The three of them then headed toward the occupation terminal to register the base.
Ibuki watched eagerly as the three stood in front of the machine while Hikigaya prepared to swipe the card.
But the scene was suddenly blocked by a huge human wall.
A blond-haired boy with a muscular build completely obstructed her view.
She couldn't see what was happening behind him.
A moment later he moved aside, revealing Hikigaya putting the card back into his pocket before walking away from the group after occupying the base.
Yukinoshita returned to the tent she came from while Hikigaya moved off alone and returned to the same place where he had first met Horikita.
He sat there watching ants crawling beneath his feet while muttering in boredom,
"They're so annoying…"
Ibuki frowned while quietly retreating through the bushes.
She needed to tell Ryūen what she had seen.
It seemed this idiot had finally reached his end.