"...So in the end, am I still just a bargaining chip?" Chen Yao thought helplessly.
Soon, Sakayanagi Arisu and Horikita Suzune began their game of chess. Horikita Suzune was confident at first, but after playing for over ten minutes, she quickly noticed that Sakayanagi Arisu's chess skills were extremely formidable; her own position seemed to have already fallen into a passive state.
"Don't be nervous, I won't let you lose."
Sakayanagi Arisu spoke to her in a very low voice.
"What?"
Upon hearing this, Horikita Suzune's elegant brows furrowed slightly, not understanding her meaning.
"Let's make a deal. I will have this game end in a draw after one hour, with no winner or loser. Such a result is good for both of us, but you must transfer Mr. Chen Yao to me for three days. I need to use Mr. Chen Yao's strength to get some things done. Do you agree?"
Sakayanagi Arisu asked in a low voice while contemplating the board.
It felt as if an enemy army was pressing down on her borders, forcing Horikita Suzune to reach an agreement before they would withdraw. Horikita Suzune's expression became very angry, and she glared fiercely at Sakayanagi Arisu, while Sakayanagi Arisu, holding a chess piece, looked back at her with a dark smile.
"Aren't you being a bit too arrogant..."
Horikita Suzune's gaze turned fierce as she asked.
"I knew you wouldn't agree easily. Ever since I saw your new emotional progress with Mr. Chen Yao yesterday, I knew you wouldn't give in easily. Mr. Chen Yao is quite delicious, isn't he? He's like a vintage wine hidden in a forgotten corner of a manor—unobtrusive at first, but the more you taste it, the more you fear finishing it..."
Sakayanagi Arisu made another move, her voice low and somber.
"..."
Horikita Suzune looked at the board; the opponent had actually taken her knight, as if implying she would take away her 'knight'.
"If I defeat you, all your conditions will be moot, won't they?"
Horikita Suzune began to focus, playing seriously; she did not accept this trade.
"That's fine, then play to your heart's content. I look forward to your performance."
Sakayanagi Arisu seemed indifferent, smiling as she watched Horikita Suzune's serious moves.
The two began to play with intense concentration. Most of the onlookers were not as skilled as they were and could hardly follow the reasoning behind their moves.
Sakayanagi Arisu rested her chin on her hand, observing Horikita Suzune closely. She found that the other girl's current tension was even stronger than imagined. She thought to herself: "It seems there's been even more emotional progress today. My, my, Senior Woodchuck is truly a dangerous creature..."
Sakayanagi Arisu really wanted to win this match, but she also understood that Chen Yao would not be happy. She could not cross Chen Yao's bottom line.
As a result, the watching Classmates saw Horikita Suzune attacking aggressively, and many of Sakayanagi Arisu's pieces were taken. However, just when Horikita Suzune thought her game had successfully suppressed Sakayanagi Arisu, in the final minutes before the end, she calculated the piece scores and suddenly discovered that her score was almost exactly equal to Sakayanagi Arisu's!
In other words, Sakayanagi Arisu was not just playing against her, but was also delicately engineering a draw with equal scores by the time limit. Sweat broke out on Horikita Suzune's forehead in shock; Sakayanagi Arisu had controlled the entire game from start to finish.
After Sakayanagi Arisu moved her last piece, the teacher shouted, "Time's up!"
Looking at the board, Sakayanagi Arisu had few pieces left, while Horikita Suzune had more. However, when converted to points, it was an unexpected 15:15.
"Since there is no winner, Class D retains its resources," the presiding teacher announced.
"Since there is no winner, Class D retains its resources."
Katsuragi Kohei's expression was slightly sour. He knew Sakayanagi Arisu had done this on purpose—she neither helped him nor lost her prestige within the class. Even he had to admire her thinking and calculation abilities. He led some of the Class A students back to their base.
Horikita Suzune sat in her chair. Having suffered two consecutive setbacks, her hands tightly gripped her skirt, unable to accept this outcome.
Sakayanagi Arisu, leading the other half of Class A, stepped forward to claim Chen Yao. She asked, "The game is over. So, are you willing to fulfill the offer and commitment?"
The people of Class D were confused, while only Ayanokouji Kiyotaka remained silent. Of course, they could refuse to fulfill it, and he could potentially beat Sakayanagi Arisu later, but it would be disadvantageous in terms of morality and future cooperation... however, the decision rested on Chen Yao's opinion.
In the end, Chen Yao looked at Horikita Suzune sitting in front of the chessboard and asked, "Junior Horikita, did you find the game interesting this time?"
"..."
Hearing these words and being reminded of their conversation yesterday, Horikita Suzune's state of mind gradually calmed down, and she finally nodded.
Chen Yao smiled and said, "Then that's fine. For the next few days, hold onto this feeling and enjoy the exam. You'll be fine."
Whether winning or losing, the attitude in handling it was most important. This time, Horikita Suzune did not show obvious dejection. She stood up and said to Sakayanagi Arisu, "I've done my best. Since it is the Senior's wish, I agree to reach a resource exchange cooperation with you. But in three days, you must absolutely return Senior Chen to us."
Only then did the class realize that Horikita Suzune seemed to have some sort of cooperation with Sakayanagi Arisu's half of Class A, which calmed the students down. At the same time, Horikita Suzune looked at Chen Yao, bowed slightly, and said, "Senior, please take care of yourself these next few days."
"Yeah, you all take care too."
After Chen Yao nodded to them, according to the exam rules, there were no explicit regulations against borrowing or exchanging resources. Sakayanagi Arisu had successfully borrowed the assistant Chen Yao from Class D. This news would likely spread through the entire grade in less than half a day. (Class C also had instances of sending spies to Class D.)
Under the watchful eyes of Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and Horikita Suzune, Chen Yao followed Sakayanagi Arisu towards the Class A base.
On the way back, Sakayanagi Arisu walked at the very front, but she would occasionally turn back to glance at Chen Yao, making him feel extremely awkward.
"I say... Sakayanagi-san, is something the matter?"
Chen Yao asked helplessly.
"No, nothing is the matter. I'm just admiring my spoils of war."
Sakayanagi Arisu turned her head, showing a cryptic smile, and replied nonchalantly.
This made Chen Yao even more embarrassed, as if he were a possession she had plundered with an army... "Senior Chen Yao, actually, Class A urgently needs your assistance. We truly need you to break a deadlock."
While on the road, Sakayanagi Arisu told him the truth.
"Break a deadlock? What kind of deadlock does your Class A need to break?"
Chen Yao was slightly stunned. He didn't know what kind of help the powerful Class A would need from him.
"However, those matters will have to wait until tomorrow. Since today's class challenge attempts have already been used, let's arrange Senior Chen Yao's accommodation first... I'll have it set up right next to my tent."
Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly stopped talking about Class A's predicament and instead smilingly announced an arrangement that seemed normal yet felt slightly off... Chapter 53: Class C's Ibuki Mio was made to vomit.
The Class A base was situated in a meadow with seven large tents, one of which was exclusively for Sakayanagi Arisu.
The class camp was clearly divided into two parts: one belonging to the Katsuragi faction and the other to the Sakayanagi faction. Upon returning to the camp, Sakayanagi Arisu seemed very happy as she introduced their camp to Chen Yao.
"Although my body is weak, my Classmates take good care of me, so they gave me a private tent to live in. However, the other tents are already full, so I specifically spent my S-points to buy a single tent for Senior Chen Yao and had my Classmates help me set it up before we left... Ah, here it is."
As Sakayanagi Arisu walked with Chen Yao, she pointed to a tiny tent set up next to a large three-person tent and introduced it with a smile.
For some reason, although it was a normal tent, compared to the large tent beside it, it looked like a dog house, making Chen Yao immediately squint his eyes.
"Um, Sakayanagi-san, how about I move my tent a bit further inside? It might look more normal that way..."
Chen Yao, carrying his backpack, suggested.
"That won't do. Because the tent doesn't have an independent frame, it has to be tied to the trees. The tent can only be set up like this. Besides, you are my knight now; you must stay by my side to protect me at all times."
Sakayanagi Arisu pointed to the guy-lines above and said with a smile.
There was really no way around it now. Chen Yao had no choice but to brace himself and put his luggage into the tent, feeling that staying for a few days shouldn't be a problem.
"..."
The four Class A students who had been following Sakayanagi Arisu all saw that she seemed to be in a very good mood right now. They glanced at each other, the reason being self-evident.
"Alright, everything's put away. Sakayanagi-san, what are we going to do now?"
Chen Yao crawled out of the tent and asked.
Sakayanagi Arisu looked at him and said, "Actually, half of our Class A has been trying to secure a suitable food foraging spot. Katsuragi-kun's side was responsible for the cooking yesterday, and today it's our turn. Thanks to Hashimoto-kun and Kitou-kun's searching, we actually found some good river food in the pond over the back hill. Unfortunately, we lost that occupied area in a class duel with Class C yesterday."
"You had a class duel with Class C?"
Chen Yao was stunned and asked in confusion.
"Yes, a bit later than Class D. And our luck wasn't great; the challenged subject was 'Combat', though not the official kind."
Sakayanagi Arisu explained, specifically noting it was "unofficial."
Chen Yao understood instantly. He realized that Class A and Class C had secretly engaged in a private fight over the resources of that pond. This was clearly forbidden in the island exam, but unlike sea territory divisions, river resources themselves were more likely to cause brawls among occupiers because they were relatively fixed. Since the rules stated they were common property, it wasn't surprising they fought privately.
"So you plan to..."
Chen Yao looked at Sakayanagi Arisu, guessing her purpose for borrowing him.
"Exactly. I hope you will represent our side in a private fight against Class C. Hashimoto-kun and Kitou-kun are both very strong at fighting, but they ultimately lost. But you are different. When you took action at the arcade before, you injured Ryuuen-kun. Everyone believes you are the best choice."
Sakayanagi Arisu specifically mentioned the incident a month ago when he blocked Ryuuen Kakeru's kick, which resulted in Ryuuen Kakeru's leg taking half a month to recover. Chen Yao's fighting ability was obvious.
"Then you've really found the right person. Fighting is indeed what I'm best at."
Chen Yao felt that Sakayanagi had a good eye; seeking him out was indeed the right move.
"That's wonderful. Then tomorrow..."
Sakayanagi Arisu clapped her hands together, smiling as she was about to say something, but was interrupted by Chen Yao.
"Wait, aren't you supposed to use high-quality ingredients for the evaluation today? There's no time to lose; let's head out now and secretly take back the rights to the pond."
Chen Yao looked at Sakayanagi Arisu in confusion. Since it was their side's turn to handle the competition today, why was Sakayanagi Arisu pushing it to tomorrow?
"...Are you willing to go into battle today?"
Sakayanagi Arisu was stunned for a moment, then asked with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm fine with it."
Chen Yao nodded and replied.
"..."
Sakayanagi Arisu just kept smiling and said nothing more, but her smile seemed to carry genuine emotion.
"Good. In that case, I'll be counting on Senior Chen Yao. Everyone else, keep this confidential. We're going to take back the resources from Class C."
Without another word, Sakayanagi Arisu quickly deployed an action plan, preparing to take back Class A's resources today.
In the class, Kamuro Masumi, Kito Hayato, Hashimoto Masayoshi, and others began to whisper. Sakayanagi Arisu paused and asked, "What are you all talking about?"
"No, no, nothing at all."
The girls started shaking their heads first as they replied.
Sakayanagi Arisu seemed to know what they were talking about, but after a moment of silence, she didn't say much more.
Three Class A students plus one assisting student began to climb the mountain path. Although the journey wasn't extremely long, gradually, Sakayanagi Arisu, holding her cane, began to pant. She clearly couldn't handle such strenuous exercise.
"Sakayanagi, are you okay? How about you go back first with this female student? The three of us will be enough."
Chen Yao turned back to look at Sakayanagi Arisu, whose complexion was a bit poor, and asked.
"That won't do. I need to see the situation on-site. After all, I still have to negotiate with Ryuuen Kakeru..."
Sakayanagi Arisu was starting to sound a bit weak as she spoke. As the leader, even for a private fight, she needed to be present to negotiate terms and handle Ryuuen Kakeru before taking action.
"How about this, Senior Chen Yao? I heard you were the ace of the baseball team. Could you carry Miss Sakayanagi up?"
At that moment, Kito Hayato spoke up and suggested.
!!
Hearing this, Sakayanagi Arisu was rarely surprised. She turned to look at them; they had actually made such a suggestion behind her back.
As it turned out, Chen Yao thought it made sense. He simply turned his back to Sakayanagi Arisu and crouched down, saying, "That's true. Sakayanagi, come on up. We'll be up the mountain in no time."
"Um..."
Sakayanagi Arisu was silent for a moment. Finally, her pale cheeks flushed a bit, and she chose to lean against his back.
When her hands rested on Chen Yao's shoulders, Sakayanagi Arisu felt that although Chen Yao looked a bit thin, his shoulders were unexpectedly broad, making her realize that boys were indeed different.
As she had expected, Chen Yao held her legs with his hands, and his speed uphill was not affected at all. It was clear that Chen Yao's physical strength was also very high.
Sakayanagi Arisu could feel a very warm aura from Chen Yao. Unlike Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, who was born in the White Room, this international student's aura was as warm as fire. His pace was steady, giving her a great sense of security, as if he really were a knight.
Eventually, the group arrived at the deep pond and saw Class C students using nets to catch freshwater fish hidden in the water.
The Class C students saw the Class A people returning. Not only had Sakayanagi Arisu come this time, but the most eye-catching thing was the assistant Chen Yao, who was carrying Sakayanagi Arisu on his back.
"Why is Class A back again? Are they planning to go back on their word?"
"They seem quite reluctant to part with the resources of this river."
The Class C students gathered around, confronting the "invaders" from Class A.
"Dragon Boy, I heard you seem to have violated the exam rules by using force against my Classmates and then forcibly occupying the fish resources of this river. Is that true?"
Sakayanagi Arisu got down from Chen Yao's back. From Class C, Ryuuen Kakeru walked over, accompanied by a tall, burly black student and a girl with short hair. When Ryuuen Kakeru saw that Chen Yao had also come, his face immediately darkened.