Chen Yao and Horikita Suzune were stunned for a moment and looked over. They saw Sakayanagi Arisu, who had already taken off her sports jacket and was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, watching them from not far away.
Horikita Suzune frowned and asked, "Sakayanagi Arisu of Class A, what are you doing here?"
"Horikita-san, please don't be nervous. I have no ill will. I came here this time to chat with Gopher-kun."
Sakayanagi Arisu replied with a slight smile.
Horikita Suzune had only met Sakayanagi Arisu a few times at school, but she understood Sakayanagi Arisu's danger. No one knew what she was thinking, but she was adept at casually engaging in power struggles and schemes. However, she had indeed collaborated with Chen Yao in the stage play, so the two knew each other.
At this moment, Horikita Suzune looked at Sakayanagi Arisu warily, while Sakayanagi Arisu also looked at her silently. For some reason, Chen Yao, who had felt hot earlier, suddenly felt a chill all over... "Sakayanagi-san, is there something you need from me?"
Chen Yao turned back and asked cautiously.
"Nothing in particular, but can't I come find you even if there's nothing?"
Sakayanagi Arisu looked at him and asked with a smile.
"But aren't our two classes still in competition? I'm afraid others will call me a spy..."
Chen Yao said with concern; he didn't want to be seen as a traitor by Class D.
"In that case... wouldn't it be fine if Horikita-san stayed here? That way, no one would suspect anything, right?"
Sakayanagi Arisu glanced at Horikita Suzune, appearing poised and proper as she asked.
"...Sigh, no need. I have to try and catch a fish in a bit, so I can't stay long. Senior, please be on your guard against her. I'll tell the Classmates that you won't leak any information."
Horikita Suzune was naturally uneasy about Senior Chen interacting with Sakayanagi Arisu. If Chen Yao were a spy, the two wouldn't meet so openly, nor would there be a need to.
After Chen Yao nodded, Horikita Suzune went back to the seaside to try and catch high-quality ingredients for the competition.
"Hmm, I expected Horikita-san to stick close to you. Your ideas are no fewer than Classmate Ayanokoji's."
Sakayanagi Arisu walked forward with her cane, looking at Chen Yao with a relaxed expression.
Chen Yao glanced at Sakayanagi Arisu and asked, "Although I shouldn't ask, why did you participate in this trip? Isn't your body quite weak?"
"If I said I just came to see you, would you believe it?"
Sakayanagi Arisu walked to his side, crouched down, rested her chin in her hands, turned her head to look at him, and asked.
She had said the same thing back at the gas station. Chen Yao was stunned for a moment and said, "You're teasing me like that again."
"Hehe, is it teasing..."
Sakayanagi Arisu said with a smile, touching her finger to her lips.
The quiet sea breeze blew her short white hair. She just stayed by the boy's side and quietly closed her eyes, as if at this moment, her soul was at peace.
There was no reason; perhaps just being by his side was the reason she had wandered over, as pure and vast as the sky.
It was very quiet, so quiet that Chen Yao looked curiously at the girl crouching beside him, eyes closed in the sea breeze. Her cheeks looked so exquisite and pale in the sunlight, as if she were asleep, making him afraid to disturb her.
"Hehe~~ Were you looking at me just now?"
Sakayanagi Arisu asked suddenly, eyes still closed.
"...How did you know? That's impressive," Chen Yao had to admit, asking in confusion.
The girl brushed by the sea breeze remained silent for a moment, then slightly opened her eyes and said, "Perhaps I've always been curious about you, so I can sense it keenly. Chen Yao... in the days since I've known you, I've been trying to understand you, yet you are like this ocean—clearly visible, yet completely unfathomable. It's as if you're like the Class C chess endgame, the Xianglin Endgame, where one can hardly touch the opponent..."
Chen Yao was silent for a moment and said, "Am I that hard to understand?"
"Yes, you're just immersed in your own world and don't realize it."
Under the clear, vast sky, Sakayanagi Arisu glanced at him and spoke with a smile.
She was quiet for a moment, then asked, "We don't have many chances to interact. Chen Yao, if possible, could you tell me something about yourself?"
"Like what?" Chen Yao was stunned and asked.
"..."
Sakayanagi Arisu let the wind blow her bangs, her gaze always silently fixed on Chen Yao's eyes. She really wanted to ask about the sad past hidden in his heart, about Karura, and about himself. But once she recalled the gloom he had once shown, she found herself unable to ask for a long time.
"Oh! You've got a bite on your line."
Suddenly, Sakayanagi Arisu pointed at his fishing rod to remind him.
Chen Yao was startled and looked back, finding the rod indeed twitching. He immediately began to pull. The fish had quite a bit of strength, but after some effort, he reeled in a wild Large Yellow Croaker weighing seven or eight pounds!
"..."
Sakayanagi Arisu watched Chen Yao reeling in the line, but with a bit of gloom, she gradually backed away.
"Wow, Senior Chen, you caught such a big yellow croaker!"
"With one this big, we'll definitely win tonight's judging competition!"
The Class D students stepped forward one after another, praising him happily.
When Horikita Suzune heard that Chen Yao had finally caught a plump sea fish, she returned to his side out of curiosity. At a glance, she determined it was a Golden Large Yellow Croaker, quite rare in Japan. Both the texture and nutritional value were top-tier for seafood. If this fish were made into Japanese cuisine, first place tonight would surely be theirs.
"As expected of Senior Chen..."
Horikita Suzune finally believed his claims about how temperature, current, and depth could affect the catch rate.
"Sakayanagi, look, I caught such a big..."
In his excitement, Chen Yao intended to show the fish to Sakayanagi Arisu, but when he turned around, she had already vanished at some point.
For some reason, Chen Yao felt a strange sense of emptiness in his heart.
In truth, he had always felt that Sakayanagi Arisu was like a high-born princess, and she wouldn't have much interaction with an ordinary person like him.
However, Class D's joy didn't last long. At two o'clock in the afternoon, Class D received news that Class B had officially launched a [Challenge] against Class D. The resource they were targeting was precisely that eight-pound wild Large Yellow Croaker Chen Yao had caught.
It was like two countries; when one finds oil, the neighbor immediately starts a war. The students of the two classes began to gather on the beach, and Class B challenged Class D with a [Sports] event.
"Hmph, is Class B really this shameless? Our class just spent a whole day catching one golden yellow croaker, and you come to snatch it immediately."
Horikita Suzune couldn't help but curse, and the people of Class D on the left were all very angry.
"Horikita-san, don't be so angry. After all, this is part of the exam. If our class loses, you can also claim a resource from us. It's still very fair."
Kanzaki Ryuuji and Ichinose Honami led Class B on the right. Kanzaki Ryuuji shrugged and said.
In the crowd, Chen Yao saw Classmate Yukinoshita standing beside Ichinose Honami. Her expression was calm and focused, and she also glanced his way.
"Oh no, could they be planning to have Classmate Yukinoshita compete?"
Chen Yao thought in shock.
In sports, Yukinoshita Yukino's level was not weak, especially in water competitions where she performed exceptionally well. But in this [Sports] challenge, 70% of the events were related to swimming.
And his swimming ability was his weakest; he happened to be no match for Yukinoshita Yukino in this category.
As it turned out, the teacher's screen began to cycle through the required events, and the one that popped up was: [200m Freestyle].
"Excellent, we choose our assistant Classmate Yukinoshita Yukino as the representative for Class B."
Kanzaki Ryuuji immediately became happy and nominated Yukinoshita Yukino for the race.
"Senior Chen, I'd like to ask... what is Senior Yukinoshita Yukino's 200m Freestyle record?" Ayanokouji Kiyotaka asked.
"I remember it's 2 minutes and 23 seconds," Chen Yao said.
Hearing this record, the faces of the Class D swimming experts, including Horikita Suzune, all changed. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka remembered that this standard was already enough to qualify as a national second-level athlete.
"Can you beat Yukinoshita Yukino, Senior?" Ayanokouji Kiyotaka asked.
Chen Yao shook his head helplessly and replied, "No, swimming is the only event I've never beaten her in. My fastest is only 2 minutes and 35 seconds."
Ayanokouji Kiyotaka fell silent. He began to feel that Sobu High School was also a school full of talented people.
At this moment, Yukinoshita Yukino had undoubtedly become the strongest enemy facing Class D. Her gaze remained locked on Chen Yao; she always believed he intentionally held back in swimming, not realizing the logic that an Undead is not good at swimming or high jumping.
"..."
Horikita Suzune looked at Yukinoshita Yukino with concern, only to find her constantly focused on Chen Yao. For some reason, Horikita Suzune felt a persistent sense of irritation. Finally, she said, "I'll be the one to compete."
As a result, the students of both Class B and Class D were stunned. Yukinoshita Yukino was also somewhat surprised, but when she looked at Horikita Suzune, she found that Horikita Suzune's gaze seemed to carry a certain sense of hostility. She seemed to be able to read that emotion from that look... Chapter 51: Good Luck, Horikita Suzune.
In the sun-drenched mountain forest, there was a river of moderate depth. Sunlight filtered through the emerald leaves, and the water was so clear that the pebbles at the bottom were visible.
Yukinoshita Yukino and Horikita Suzune were doing warm-up exercises on the riverbank. It had to be said that they had many similarities: both had exquisite features, long silky black hair, excellent grades, and proud, cold personalities. The biggest difference was that while they were otherwise quite similar, Horikita Suzune's figure was impeccable.
"..."
Yukinoshita Yukino glanced at Horikita Suzune, feeling that this girl was very outstanding and seemed to be the leader of Class D. Moreover, she had seen her with Chen Yao at Koudo Ikusei High School last time, and now they seemed even more familiar with each other.
"Horikita, I know you're also an excellent swimmer, but Yukinoshita has remained undefeated in swimming events so far. Do you have any winning strategy?"
Chen Yao approached Horikita Suzune, who was warming up, and asked in a low voice.
"No, it's just a direct confrontation. I'll defeat all opponents through my day-after-day hard work."
Horikita Suzune said to Chen Yao while still stretching.
Chen Yao felt a bit helpless. After all, relying solely on this spirit wasn't enough to defeat that Yukinoshita Yukino... But as he stood with his hands on his hips, still thinking of a strategy, he suddenly felt a jolt like an electric current. Turning his head, he saw Yukinoshita Yukino, wearing a relatively conservative swimsuit, looking at him with a cold gaze.
Chen Yao felt an unbearable chill, as if he had been hit by a Freezing Enchantment. In short, it felt very uncomfortable. Although he wasn't quite sure why Yukinoshita Yukino was looking at him like that, the teacher in charge of the competition had already begun to clear the spectators. He also returned to the spectator area to watch the two girls' race.
"Then both students, please get ready at the starting point."
The teacher said to the two of them.
"Classmate Yukinoshita, please take care of me."
Horikita Suzune crouched down, assuming a diving posture, and spoke coolly.
"...Yes, please take care of me, Horikita-san."
Yukinoshita Yukino was stunned for a moment, then responded calmly.
As the teacher took out the starting pistol and fired a shot into the air with a "bang," the two girls' movements were both standard and agile as they dove into the river and began swimming hard toward the artificial embankment on the opposite side.
This river had been completely modified according to the standards of a 200m Freestyle, including the embankment that seemed to be for intercepting dead branches and a temporary platform. It was clear that this deserted island was frequently used by Koudo Ikusei High School. Both banks were filled with students from different classes, all cheering loudly for their respective candidates.
But less than thirty seconds into the race, Yukinoshita Yukino had already pulled ahead of Horikita Suzune by a full two meters. While Horikita Suzune's freestyle speed was already excellent among ordinary students, she too saw herself falling further and further behind that girl.
"I can't give up, I absolutely cannot give up!"
Horikita Suzune kept encouraging herself in her heart, her legs kicking faster in hopes of closing the gap.
Watching from the shore, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka couldn't help but think, "Sobu High is unexpectedly outstanding. If Classmate Yukinoshita were to enter Koudo Ikusei High School, barring any accidents, there's a high probability she'd be in Class A. However, she still wouldn't be able to compete with the likes of Katsuragi Kohei and Sakayanagi Arisu."
His gaze fell on Chen Yao beside him, thinking, "But you are different, aren't you? Senior Chen..."
The battle was intense. Because it was the first class duel on the deserted island, Ryuuen Kakeru and Hachiman Hikigaya of Class C, as well as Katsuragi Kohei and Sakayanagi Arisu of Class A, also arrived to watch. They witnessed the strength of the Sobu High student and the battle of pride for the Class D president's sister.
The cold river water rapidly depleted Horikita Suzune's stamina. She gradually felt her strength failing. After trying her best to compete with Yukinoshita Yukino, she checked the distance again and found the gap had reached five meters. Immediately, a sense of powerlessness swept through her entire body.
After all, from childhood until now, she had always been first in her class. Aside from always losing to her brother, she had never lost to anyone in exams or sports. Even at Koudo Ikusei High School, her grades were her pride. But now, she suddenly felt that the center of the world wasn't her, but someone else... The cold river water kept washing over her face. In the churning water, she even choked a bit, but she still used all her strength to swim toward the finish line... Her all-around excellent brother Horikita Manabu, the deeply hidden companion Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, and the unconstrained Senior Chen who always succeeded... It was as if in the distance, their figures were always ahead, and she couldn't catch up no matter how hard she tried... "The race is over! The first to reach the finish line is the Class B representative, Yukinoshita Yukino!"
With a whistle, Yukinoshita Yukino's hand was the first to touch the finish line. The teacher immediately announced the results.
"..."
Horikita Suzune, who touched the finish line afterward, heard those words and, soaked in the river water, felt a bone-chilling cold and couldn't help but lower her head.
"Ohhhhhhh!!"
The students of Class B cheered and celebrated enthusiastically, while the people of Class D were silent as a whole, looking at Class B with resentment. Horikita Suzune had achieved the second-best result, but she still couldn't defeat Yukinoshita Yukino.
"We must use the backup plan as soon as possible, or our class might end up at the bottom in tonight's judging."
The Class D students were buzzing with discussion, starting to worry.
"I think it's too late. It's almost four o'clock now, and the judging is at five-thirty. Let's try to pick the best parts from all the ingredients to make sashimi and use the shells for seafood soup. We need to improve the presentation and taste evaluation as much as possible."
Ayanokouji Kiyotaka proposed a different opinion. After all, cooking takes time. It's normal to have gains and losses today. First, he had to ensure that the class's confidence didn't waver.