Faced with this man who seemed capable of seeing straight through her, the only thing Horikita Suzune could do was press down the waves of dizziness crashing over her and try to keep her expression as impenetrable as it always was.
She sincerely hoped Shikime Natsu had not noticed she was running a fever.
When it came to concealing her physical condition, Horikita Suzune considered herself reasonably capable — at least, up to this point, most of Class D had not noticed anything was wrong. Even Sakura Airi and Mei-Yu Wang, who had each picked up on faint signs that something was off, had been put off with a thin excuse.
Both of them did genuinely care about her — enough to notice the subtle wrongness in her body. But fortunately, Horikita Suzune's ability to keep up appearances was a cut above theirs. In their minds, she had probably come down with nothing more than a minor cold, and besides — for the sake of the class, a little cold was something she could absolutely push through.
Dealing with Class D was manageable. But when it came to Shikime Natsu, Horikita Suzune could not summon even a sliver of confidence.
This man's powers of observation were simply terrifying. Whenever those pale golden eyes swept over her, she always had the unsettling illusion that everything about her was laid completely bare — that no matter how hard she tried to conceal herself, there was nothing left to hide.
Shikime Natsu stood a few paces away, watching the girl whose frame swayed ever so slightly yet still forced herself to stand straight, and let a faint curve pull at the corner of his mouth as he spoke.
"It seems… the medicine from the cruise ship didn't do much good after all, Horikita-san."
At those words, the dark brows that were already slightly hazy from fever furrowed sharply, and a flash of poorly concealed shock passed through Horikita Suzune's wine-red eyes.
She had clearly not expected that this guy had already noticed she was sick — back on the cruise ship, of all times.
As expected… his observation skills were as frightening as ever.
They had only crossed paths briefly on the cruise ship, exchanged barely a handful of words, and her condition then had been incomparably better than it was now. And yet he had seen through her in a single glance?
Although Shikime Natsu had nominally become her "friend," the wariness inside Horikita Suzune had never diminished by even a fraction. If anything, the unease of being seen through so completely made her even more guarded.
After all, beneath the thin surface of their so-called friendship lay an unbridgeable gulf. Shikime Natsu was a member of Class A — its leader. And she was a member of Class D. Even without holding any official position as Class D's leader, she harbored the ambition of leading Class D forward toward Class A's standing.
In Horikita Suzune's eyes, that made them rivals — every last one of them. Especially here on the deserted island. She had a feeling this exam would tear open a vast gap between the classes, and it was also Class D's chance to close the distance in class points. If they could close that gap, they would have the foundation to surpass Class A in the time that followed and claim that ranking for themselves.
"Shikime-san is mistaken. I simply didn't sleep well last night," Horikita Suzune said, drawing a slow breath and reaching for another excuse.
"Besides… I've already taken medicine. The climate on this island is relatively mild. I think a couple of days' rest should be enough for my body to recover on its own."
Even as she said it, Horikita Suzune found it hard to believe her own words.
The conditions on the deserted island were grueling for an ordinary person, let alone for someone in the grip of a high fever.
Even if the weather cooperated, just finding water and food in a place like this consumed enormous amounts of energy with every task.
If Horikita Suzune were Class D's leader, she would not be responsible for sourcing food or water — observing the enemy's base camp and identifying their leader would be more than sufficient. But she was not Class D's leader, which meant finding water and food was also part of her duties.
Food and water were not scarce on this island, but they were not exactly a few easy steps away, either.
Class D's current leader was Kushida Kikyou — and Horikita Suzune's feelings toward that woman could be described as unfavorable, to put it mildly. Even all the goodwill Kushida Kikyou had built up within Class D did nothing to change that.
Still, it was fortunate that both Kushida Kikyou and Hirata Yousuke were at the helm. So far, Class D's progress had been reasonably orderly.
Of course, there were still idiots making idiotic suggestions — like the person who, upon learning that Shikime Natsu could construct shelters, actually proposed asking him to build one for Class D too, in exchange for a handful of wild berries.
That was so monumentally stupid that Horikita Suzune had had no patience to even listen to the end of it. So she had slipped away, intent on supplementing Class D's food supply — only to walk straight into Shikime Natsu of all people, in what felt like the universe conspiring against her.
Of course, she had already mentally braced herself for a prolonged battle of wills with him. In her experience, once Shikime Natsu had someone in his sights, he was an exceptionally persistent and difficult creature to shake off.
And yet… the fact that Shikime Natsu was the first person to notice her condition stirred something faint and complicated deep inside her.
In all the years of her life up to now, whenever she fell ill, she had always endured it alone — white-knuckling her way through it without a word.
Even in front of her brother Horikita Manabu, whom she had always chased after and looked up to, she had never shown even a fragment of vulnerability.
In her logic, being sick meant having a weakness, and weakness proved she was not strong enough — that she did not deserve her brother's acknowledgment.
Shikime Natsu, naturally, had no idea about the slightly warped reasoning running through Horikita Suzune's head. He simply watched her with unhurried ease and continued peeling back the curtain.
"I don't think that expression on Horikita-san's face is from lack of sleep. The fever's gotten worse, hasn't it? You look quite pale right now. And if you'd taken medicine this morning — I doubt Class D would have spent class points on fever reducers for one person, would they?"
At that pointed counter, Horikita Suzune's body went slightly still. The pallor of her face stiffened further.
Shikime Natsu's tone was one of certainty. Evidently, he knew Class D had not exchanged any medicine. The source of that information was… probably Sakura Airi.
Then again, part of that was her own fault — she had concealed her condition deliberately, and had specifically asked Sakura Airi and Mei-Yu Wang to keep it to themselves. Which naturally meant there had been no medicine exchange to speak of.
"Does Horikita-san really intend to tough out the rest of this exam in that state?"
The subtle shifts crossing Horikita Suzune's face were perfectly legible to Shikime Natsu. Though even without them, he already knew that was exactly what she planned to do.
After all, the two of them had known each other for no small amount of time. He had long since developed a thorough understanding of Horikita Suzune and her stubbornly contrary nature. His influence had smoothed some of her rough edges over time, but overhauling a person's fundamental character was never a quick process.
Catching sight of that particularly unpleasant grin spreading across Shikime Natsu's face, Horikita Suzune felt a sinking feeling inside. This guy — he had gotten another hold over her.
Before, he had leveraged her brother to keep her in line. Now, her weakness was exposed to him again. Was she truly incapable of escaping this insufferable man's grasp?
She knew the upper hand had passed entirely to his side.
"About my illness… how many personal points do you want to keep it quiet?"
At this point, Horikita Suzune felt that spinning more hollow lies was pointless. Better to put a price on his silence outright. In her estimation, Shikime Natsu was the textbook definition of someone who only moved when there was something in it for him — a man who calibrated every action against profit and loss.
Personal points were probably the only thing capable of shutting this man up right now.
Ever since she had enrolled in this school, her personal points had rarely accumulated to any meaningful amount. They had first gone to purchasing information from Shikime Natsu, then drained away through Class D's long stretch of zero-point misery. When she had finally scraped together some class points during the midterms, she had barely had a few months to let them grow before the deserted island exam arrived — and here she was, face to face with Shikime Natsu again. Her personal points, she knew, were about to take another hit.
But then… Shikime Natsu said something she had not expected. This man, holding her illness over her head, made no move to extort more points from her.
"Horikita-san, are you made of money? Always jumping straight to buying people off with personal points? Relax — aren't we friends? Between friends, keeping a small secret is completely normal. Something like that doesn't need to be measured in personal points. Besides, Horikita-san probably doesn't even have a hundred thousand points on her right now, does she?"
That last remark was entirely unnecessary as far as Horikita Suzune was concerned. It was true — she did not have a hundred thousand points. And worse, the way Shikime Natsu said it, he seemed to find that amount almost laughably small. To put it in perspective, at Class D's current rate, gathering a hundred thousand personal points would take at least ten months.
Of course, things would look very different after this deserted island exam.
That said, Shikime Natsu's manner right now was noticeably more human than it used to be. He was not immediately lunging for every opening to press his advantage like he once had.
Even though the two of them were nominally friends now, the mental scorecard inside Horikita Suzune's head still had Shikime Natsu firmly labeled "Extremely Unpleasant."
At the very least, the constant, drawn-tight tension of being around him was nothing like the easy comfort she felt with Sakura Airi or Mei-Yu Wang.
After a brief pause, Horikita Suzune dropped her gaze in an almost stiff motion and murmured quietly.
"…Thank you."
Since Shikime Natsu was not going to use this as leverage, and did not intend to drag it out further, that was — for Horikita Suzune in her current state — the best possible outcome.
With those words said, Horikita Suzune turned and walked toward him, moving to pass by his side and continue on her way.
Hearing that quiet "thank you," Shikime Natsu found himself quietly moved. All that time he had invested in shaping Horikita Suzune had clearly paid off — she had grown into a perfectly well-mannered, polite young lady. Horikita Manabu ought to be gratified. A million personal points had been a genuinely good investment, all things considered — Horikita Manabu had spent so much longer with her and had never managed to smooth out her character, yet here Shikime Natsu had done it. Though, admittedly… she still had a ways to go.
"I did say I'd keep Horikita-san's secret — but does she really plan to just white-knuckle her way through this entire island exam? There are still a full seven days left."
Horikita Suzune stopped walking.
Her back to Shikime Natsu, she argued with him silently in the depths of her mind: if not push through, then what exactly could she do?
As for spending class points to exchange for fever reducers — that was absolutely out of the question. Every point saved meant greater flexibility for Class D going forward.
It was only seven days and six nights. A full day had already passed. If she gritted her teeth, she was sure she could make it. As long as the next few days didn't bring extreme weather like a downpour, and as long as the idiots in her class didn't cause some massive disaster—
Looking at the current weather on the island… everything should be fine.
But then… why had Shikime Natsu called out to stop her? Was he saying Class A had fever reducers on hand?
It would make sense — Class A already had a shelter, so spending a modest number of exam points on supplies for contingencies was perfectly logical.
Was Shikime Natsu actually considering sharing Class A's medicine with her?
The moment that thought surfaced, she furrowed her brow — because she could think of absolutely no reason for him to do something like that.
This was an exam that would decide the future of their classes. Helping a rival class's member recover her health brought Class A no benefit whatsoever.
She would already be grateful if Shikime Natsu chose not to exploit the situation. Hoping he would proactively extend a hand was beyond anything she dared wish for.
And yet… what if?
Horikita Suzune freely admitted she could not make head or tail of this man's thought process. With him, no matter how strange the thing that happened, it was never entirely a surprise. Maybe he actually did intend to help her.
"Shikime-san, what are you trying to do?"
Shikime Natsu let out a soft laugh, spreading his hands in an easy shrug as he replied in that unhurried tone of his.
"I am a deeply benevolent soul. Naturally, I cannot stand by and watch a friend suffer on this island — struggling through what's supposed to be a survival exam while carrying a body full of illness."
Hearing him describe himself as "a deeply benevolent soul," something extraordinarily complicated flickered through Horikita Suzune's heart, and she couldn't stop the corner of her mouth from twitching.
This guy — had the audacity to call himself benevolent?
Still, she had no intention of pushing back on it right now. Shikime Natsu had already shown his hand, signaling he was willing to help. If she annoyed this unpredictable man at this juncture, it would do her absolutely no good. Better to simply accept it.
Besides — she would not need to do anything extra herself. The current Horikita Suzune had grown. Even if Shikime Natsu demanded she say something flattering that contradicted her true feelings, she could say it.
And in any case, right now she genuinely needed whatever fever reducer Shikime Natsu might provide. Though, of course — if he tried to use this to bargain for Class D's leadership position, that was a line she would never cross. A class leader's position was worth incomparably more than any medicine.
"You have fever reducers?"
She couldn't help but ask.
"Follow me, Horikita-san."
Shikime Natsu didn't answer her directly — he simply gestured for her to come along.
Horikita Suzune's personality had its thorns, no question — but regardless, Shikime Natsu did intend to bring her into his future plans. Letting her battle through a high fever during an exam was simply not something he cared to allow. And besides, Horikita Suzune already had a somewhat muddled head at the best of times — if she pushed herself through a raging fever and came out the other side even more muddled, what then?
Though full of questions, Horikita Suzune's feet moved of their own accord to follow behind Shikime Natsu.
Her mind turned it over quickly — he was probably taking her to Class A's base camp to retrieve the medicine. Thinking about it that way… this man, at certain times… was actually not such a bad person after all.
She had originally considered investigating Class A's base camp and identifying their leader as well. But given that this was on Shikime Natsu's account — she would let that go.
Shikime Natsu led Horikita Suzune to the small cabin he had constructed for himself and the others, Sakura Airi among them. Horikita Suzune followed behind him, examining the cabin with wide eyes, her heart flooded with shock. She had heard about it, of course — but seeing it in person was a different thing entirely.
Was this really not purchased by Class A with exam points?
Of course, Horikita Suzune also understood perfectly well that purchasing a structure like this with exam points would have cost every last one of them.
Shikime Natsu pushed the door open and turned back with a smile toward the girl who was still standing there staring, calling to her in an easy, casual tone.
"What are you standing there for? Come in and sit down, Horikita-san."
Horikita Suzune swept a cautious glance around the surrounding area. Only after confirming that she could not spot Sakura Airi or the others anywhere nearby did she slowly step inside.
She harbored no romantic feelings for Shikime Natsu — not in the slightest. But as a traditional young lady, there was an instinctive awareness somewhere in the back of her mind: if someone like Sakura Airi, who was a good friend, saw her privately coming and going from Shikime Natsu's quarters, it would inevitably invite unnecessary misunderstandings.
Horikita Suzune's plan was simple: grab the medicine as quickly as possible and leave. That would keep the risk to a minimum.
But… aside from a few chairs and some scattered clothing, the interior of the cabin was rather bare. There was no medicine anywhere in sight. And furthermore — this appeared to be a single-room structure. This wasn't Class A's base camp, was it?
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