'Shiina... she's been quite helpful.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself. With the novel Shiina Hiyori had given him, he finally had a way to pass the time, since he couldn't constantly use his teleportation to go elsewhere.
Although Shiina's thoughts had already spoiled most of the novel's plot the moment he took the book, having something was still better than nothing.
"Oh, by the way, Saiki, there's one more thing... Do you know about the recording incident from before?"
Shiina Hiyori asked curiously. She had promised Ryuen Kakeru to assist in the investigation, but after confirming there were no traitors in her class, even Shiina couldn't find any more clues.
"If it's inconvenient to talk about, that's fine!"
Shiina simply wanted to know the answer to the mystery. Her thirst for knowledge was insatiable.
"Sorry, I don't know much about that either."
Saiki Kusuo shook his head.
"Alright, no problem."
Shiina Hiyori smiled at Saiki Kusuo again, her expression as bright as spring sunlight.
[Even Saiki-kun doesn't know? How was that recording made? To obtain such a recording without anyone noticing, it would probably take someone with superpowers! How did that person do it? It's really impressive.]
Hearing Shiina's thoughts, Saiki Kusuo's heart skipped a beat. Shiina's joking assumption was actually the correct answer to the mystery.
[Also, this exam is like a puzzle too. Guessing the leaders of each class... Generally, the higher someone's status in the class, the less likely they are to be the leader in this exam because they're too noticeable.]
'I suspect you might have superpowers too.'
"It's getting late, I should head back! I'll see you on the ship."
Shiina Hiyori glanced at her watch, then said to Saiki Kusuo before quickly leaving.
'Was Shiina hinting at Ibuki's purpose? But it's better if I pretend not to know.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself, shifting his attention back to his fishing rod. Just then, Sakura Airi, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up.
"Saiki-kun... who was that person just now?"
As she asked, her gaze drifted in the direction Shiina Hiyori had left.
"She's from Class D, her name is Shiina Hiyori. We met by chance in the library, so we got to know each other."
Saiki Kusuo explained.
Perhaps because the atmosphere had been too awkward earlier, both Shiina Hiyori and Sakura Airi had forgotten to introduce themselves to each other.
At that moment, Saiki could still hear Shiina's thoughts from not too far away.
[That girl next to Saiki-kun just now... who was she? I was talking to Saiki-kun the whole time and forgot to greet her... Did I leave a bad impression...?]
"I see."
Sakura Airi nodded, her gaze involuntarily falling on the book in Saiki Kusuo's hands.
'So... Saiki-kun likes reading too?'
...
Several hours had passed. Saiki Kusuo checked the number of fish in his bucket. Although it was probably fewer than Ike Kanji's catch, for him, this was the perfect amount.
Sakura Airi hadn't been much help, as Saiki Kusuo had mostly used his powers to make the fish jump into the net.
The river had a variety of fish, and Saiki Kusuo had randomly used his powers to catch a few. Although he didn't know much about fish, since they were on this island, they were likely all edible.
[I... I hope I was able to help Saiki-kun...]
Saiki Kusuo could clearly hear Sakura Airi's thoughts, but he didn't point it out.
After tidying up the tools, Saiki Kusuo and Sakura Airi returned to the campsite, where Ike Kanji and the others had also returned from fishing.
"You went fishing too? Tch, not bad, Saiki, but your catch is way less than Ike's!"
Yamauchi Haruki, who had done almost nothing all day, laughed and mocked Saiki Kusuo as he looked at the bucket of fish.
"No, no, no!"
However, when Ike Kanji saw the fish Saiki Kusuo had brought back, his expression changed dramatically.
"?"
Saiki Kusuo felt a sense of foreboding.
"You actually caught XX fish?! That species is incredibly hard to catch! They have very specific requirements for depth, distance from the shore, and even the bait. Plus, they're really strong, and the fishing gear the school provided can barely handle them... But you caught several, Saiki?! You're amazing! I had no idea you were such a fishing expert!"
For the first time, Ike Kanji looked at Saiki Kusuo with genuine admiration.
'???'
Saiki Kusuo looked down at the fish in his bucket, and the fish seemed to stare back at him with resentful eyes.
He had just randomly caught these fish with his powers and hadn't expected things to turn out this way.
"Really? Saiki is that good?"
Hearing Ike's words, the others also gathered around.
[So... Saiki-kun is really good at fishing too? He looked so relaxed while fishing earlier.]
Sakura Airi, standing nearby, also widened her eyes, her gaze fixed on Saiki Kusuo.
'Damn it, now I've become too noticeable in the class... I never expected things to turn out like this. I definitely can't choose fishing tomorrow...'
Saiki Kusuo made up his mind, and at that moment, Hirata Yosuke walked over.
"Thanks to you, Saiki-kun! You and Ike will be in charge of fishing for the next few days."
"Long live Saiki!"
"Saiki is amazing!"
Surrounded by everyone, Saiki Kusuo could only stand there dumbfounded, unable to refuse.
...
As the sky gradually darkened, after enjoying a hearty grilled fish dinner, everyone began their free time again.
Some went to sleep in the tents, while others went for walks nearby. Although it was summer and the sky wasn't completely dark yet, everyone mostly stayed close to the campsite.
Ike Kanji spent over twenty minutes asking Saiki Kusuo about fishing techniques. Even though Saiki kept saying it was just luck, Ike didn't believe him.
After twenty minutes of pestering, Saiki Kusuo finally managed to get rid of Ike. Just as he thought he could finally rest, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka approached him.
"I didn't expect you to be so good at fishing."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka praised Saiki Kusuo expressionlessly.
"It was just luck."
Saiki Kusuo replied helplessly. Earlier in the day, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had gone out with Horikita Suzune to investigate the other classes.
"Saiki, what do you think about Ibuki's presence?"
Ayanokoji suddenly changed the topic, looking toward Ibuki Mio.
Saiki Kusuo shifted his gaze to Ibuki Mio, who had gotten slightly closer to some of the girls in the class.
[I haven't been able to figure out the leader of Class C during this time. I can't just ask directly, as it would make my intentions too obvious.]
Saiki Kusuo could clearly hear Ibuki Mio's thoughts.
'Ibuki is actually a spy sent by Class D, but I can't reveal that directly. After all, she's still useful to me.'
As Saiki Kusuo thought this, he prepared to pretend he knew nothing and respond accordingly.
But just as he was about to speak, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka spoke first.
"You must have noticed it too. Ibuki is probably a spy sent by Class D—when I investigated the other classes today, I found that Class B also received a student from Class D. I don't believe it's a coincidence, so I think it's most likely that both of them are spies, aiming to find out the leaders of the other classes."
[Ibuki Mio appearing near our class was already suspicious. After learning that Class B had a similar situation, I became certain of it.]
[Saiki must have noticed this too, but he hasn't said anything. Is he planning to use Ibuki to his advantage?]
[It seems Saiki's thinking is almost identical to mine. Our thought processes are the same.]
'You jerk...'
Saiki Kusuo looked at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. In a way, their thoughts were indeed similar—both intentionally keeping a spy around.
However, Ayanokoji wanted to use the spy to achieve better results, while Saiki Kusuo wanted the opposite. He just wanted to use Ibuki Mio to control the class's score...
But now, Saiki Kusuo's plan had completely fallen apart.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had outright told him that Ibuki Mio was a spy. If Ibuki later discovered his identity as the leader, it would definitely raise suspicions!
If Ayanokoji hadn't said anything, Saiki Kusuo could have played dumb. But now, he didn't even have that option.
'Damn it, Ayanokoji, what are you trying to do?'
Saiki Kusuo's mind raced as he searched for a way to respond.
'Do I have to force myself to play dumb? Pretend like...'
[If it were Saiki's usual personality, he would definitely pretend he knows nothing. But the more he hides, the more it reveals his true abilities.]
'You jerk!'
Saiki Kusuo clenched his fists, then slowly spoke.
"I do have some suspicions about her."
"When did you first notice?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka continued to ask.
"From... the beginning."
Saiki Kusuo wasn't lying. From the start, he had heard her thoughts.
"Exactly. Did you notice the dirt under Ibuki's fingernails?"
'?'
Saiki Kusuo hadn't noticed that at all, but he could only nod.
[Saiki's observational skills are indeed impressive, not inferior to mine, and possibly even better.]
[There was dirt under Ibuki's fingernails, and when I checked the spot where Yamauchi found her earlier, the soil had been disturbed. There was a radio hidden there, and I saw a similar one with Ryuen earlier.]
[Even though Saiki saw through her identity as a spy, he still brought Ibuki back. He must be planning to use her as a tool. His thought process is very similar to mine.]
'...I didn't think that far ahead...'
Saiki Kusuo didn't know how to respond.
[Indeed, Saiki and I are the same kind of person.]
'Sorry, I'm a psychic. I'm not like you.'
After a few seconds of silence, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka spoke thoughtfully.
"Saiki, between rising to Class A and living a peaceful high school life, which would you choose?"
"Definitely the latter."
Saiki Kusuo didn't hesitate and answered immediately.
"Rising to Class A would make me too noticeable. I just want a peaceful life."
"It seems we have a lot in common."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka nodded at Saiki Kusuo.
[If I can tell that Saiki is hiding his abilities, then he must have noticed what I'm hiding too. He's not a product of the White Room, but he's so similar to me. Maybe he's from another experimental facility like the White Room.]
'Although I do know, please don't tell me anything. I don't want to get involved in any trouble. And I was born into an ordinary family, so please don't randomly assign me a background.'
"Although I'm not interested in rising to Class A either, due to some special circumstances, I need to accomplish this for now."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said this, not hiding his identity as much as he usually did in front of Saiki Kusuo.
"Mm..."
Saiki Kusuo could only nod.
"So for this exam, I hope to achieve a higher score. If needed, I can assist you. You don't probe into my past, and I won't probe into yours."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked up to Saiki Kusuo and extended his hand.
"Saiki, let's cooperate."