Karuizawa, holding Amane's arm, arrived on the deck.
Even in the sweltering summer, students could fully enjoy the coolness brought by the night sea breeze, all thanks to the school's cruise vacation arrangements.
Although Amane hadn't enjoyed many days of peaceful vacation life since getting on this cruise ship, it still didn't diminish the fact that this cruise vacation was the only time most of the students present would ever experience a luxurious cruise trip in their lives.
This vacation trip would also become one of the most profound memories for many.
Under the night sky, Amane and Karuizawa deliberately avoided the crowds, finally arriving at the deck at the stern of the cruise ship.
By this time, it was already late, and with the first discussion scheduled for tomorrow morning, the deck, which usually bustled until dawn, was now incredibly quiet. Amane and Karuizawa miraculously didn't encounter a single person on their way.
Now that she thought about it, perhaps those like Amane, who received information on the eve of the special exam but weren't in a hurry to go back and share and discuss it with classmates, were probably the strangest ones.
As for Karuizawa? She wasn't counted because she didn't realize how important the recently concluded discussion was for the upcoming special exam.
Karuizawa cautiously checked her surroundings, and only after confirming there were no students from other classes did she release Amane's arm.
But the moment she let go, Amane pulled her back again.
Just as Karuizawa was somewhat resistant, Amane slowly spoke.
"Kei, is there something you want to tell me?"
Karuizawa, who had been struggling, calmed down upon hearing this.
She knew Amane was doing this on purpose, but at the moment, she had a favor to ask. If she made Amane unhappy now, her last sliver of hope would also be shattered.
Hirata couldn't come back, and her relationship with the other boys and girls in the class wasn't exactly great. At this moment, the only one she could rely on was Amane... Seeing Karuizawa in her arms become docile, Amane pressed a bit closer, somewhat overstepping. With the railing behind her, Karuizawa was suddenly forced to a point where she had no retreat.
Perhaps because Karuizawa was particularly concerned about her personal hygiene, there was a strong floral scent of shower gel on her.
If she didn't clean her body multiple times a day, it might be due to using inferior shower gel, which resulted in an overly strong scent that lingered even after being rinsed with water.
Although the luxury cruise offered free showers, toiletries still needed to be purchased from the disposable shower sets specifically provided on the cruise.
Expensive shower sets cost tens of thousands of points, while cheap ones only cost a hundred points, a truly vast difference.
Most people generally chose mid-range sets costing around five hundred to a thousand points.
Very few people would choose sets made with extremely inferior materials, one would think.
Just as Amane was still lost in thought, Karuizawa suddenly sighed softly.
"Amane-san, I do have something I need your help with…"
Karuizawa approached Amane as if she had compromised.
"Tell me about it."
"It's like this… um, this afternoon, at the No. 2 buffet restaurant… I, I had a conflict with two girls who seemed to be from Class C. They said they'd give me a piece of their mind next time they saw me… I, I'm a bit, ah… I'm a bit worried. Yosuke isn't here right now, so there's no way for him to protect me. The only one who can protect me is you, Amane. For the sake of us all being classmates and good friends, please help me this one time."
Karuizawa tried her best to suppress the strange sensation in her body; the burning, stinging pain like a furnace made Karuizawa aware of the shameful expression she wore in front of Amane right now.
But even so, she had to temporarily hide under Amane's wing to get through this difficult situation.
"Did you start the conflict?"
Amane stopped her movements and asked seriously.
Karuizawa hesitated for a moment but still nodded.
"I accidentally stepped on one of the girls' shoes. I immediately apologized to her, but she couldn't accept it and insisted I bow to apologize, which eventually led to an argument. One of the girls from her class stood up to speak for her. Luckily, I ran into Shinohara, Maezono, and Nishimura-san, which made them less arrogant, but in the end, they said they'd find someone to give me a piece of their mind. It seemed like they were just saying tough words, but I'm still worried..."
"Worried they'll actually retaliate, right?"
Amane placed her hand on Karuizawa's flushed cheek, gently caressing it.
This sudden movement made Karuizawa's body, which had been like a mollusk, stiffen slightly.
Karuizawa's words were mostly untrustworthy.
Or rather, they couldn't be entirely believed.
If there were no major discrepancies, it was highly probable that Karuizawa's apology at the time was too arrogant and casual, leading to the verbal dispute with the other party.
However, Karuizawa's luck was truly good.
She actually ran into Shinohara, Maezono, and Nishimura.
If Amane were to evaluate these three girls, she could sum them up with just one word: distinctive.
In the entire Class D, perhaps only Kouenji was more distinctive than them.
Whether it was confronting people, mocking, or arguing, these three were truly experts.
Amane could already imagine the girls from Class C being so cornered they couldn't speak, unable to curse in public, and finally having to leave in embarrassment after uttering a face-saving remark.
But it was undeniable that Karuizawa's worries were valid. If it were other classes, perhaps it would indeed just be a face-saving remark, but in Class C, known for its delinquents...
This would likely be a genuine threat.
So, should she help Karuizawa?
Amane looked at Karuizawa, who was watching her with anticipation.
Currently, Karuizawa had nothing to offer to pay this price. For Karuizawa to be hostile towards Class C led by Shiina, especially when Amane had already established good relationships with a considerable portion of Class C, was it truly worth it to let everything before go to waste for one person?
Seeing Amane hesitate to agree, Karuizawa became a bit uneasy.
"With Amane-san, those people from Class C wouldn't dare to do anything to me, right?"
Karuizawa asked tentatively.
It was precisely this question that gave Amane inspiration.
Since now wasn't the time to directly confront Class C led by Shiina, why not just avoid the confrontation?
"Of course, if they bother you again next time, just call me. I'll take care of the rest. However, the incident started with you, and the other party hasn't taken any retaliatory actions yet, so I can't use a verbal dispute as a reason to resort to violence against Class C. Can you understand that?"
A verbal dispute itself was a minor matter; there was no need to get into a big fight with Class C over it.
Furthermore, the other party hadn't done anything out of line yet, so forcibly using a verbal dispute as an excuse to fight would be too far-fetched.
Karuizawa nodded. She was a little unwilling that Amane only gave such a guarantee, but at the moment, she wasn't in a position to demand anything more from Amane.
Seeing Karuizawa nod, the serious and solemn expression on Amane's face vanished, replaced by an expression like a cat that had stolen a dried fish.
"I promise to stop those people from Class C for you, Kei, and resolve this matter for you. So, how do you plan to… repay me?"
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