I have a life simulator.

Watching the group of people howling and screaming as they boarded the jet skis, Kitagawa Ryo shook his head and smiled slightly. Shiina Hiyori went to the shower room to take a bath, while Ibuki Mio and Sudo Ken rode the jet skis together. Only Karuizawa Megumi was with them, and the two of them walked together toward the school's tent.

Because area D9 is the school's main base, the number and size of the tents are much larger than those of a typical supply exchange point. The two of them searched left and right but couldn't find the watch repair shop. In the end, they had to ask a passing teacher to find the place.

"Ah...isn't this Megumi and Ryo?"

When the two arrived at their destination, they discovered that the teacher in charge, who was dozing off at the front desk, was Hoshinomiya Chie, the homeroom teacher of Class 1-B. Upon seeing Kitagawa Ryo and Karuizawa Megumi, she suddenly perked up and stood up abruptly.

"Hoshinomiya-sensei... Okay."

Karuizawa Kei, seeing Hoshinomiya Chie's chest bulging as a result of her vigorous movements, instinctively stood in front of Kitagawa Ryo.

Why didn't I run into that uncle from Class D? Class C would have been fine too.

Although she was inwardly full of complaints, Karuizawa Megumi still outwardly displayed great respect:

"My watch is damaged because it got wet. Do you repair it here?"

"That's so formal—didn't I tell Hui to call me Chie-chan on the first day of school?"

Hoshinomiya Chie quickly adopted a tearful expression, and Karuizawa Megumi's lips twitched at her act of pretending to be young.

"But there's nothing we can do about a broken watch. Just hand me your hand."

Like a sudden change of expression, Hoshinomiya Chie immediately returned to her normal demeanor and beckoned to Kitagawa Ryo.

"What is this for?"

Karuizawa Megumi is on high alert.

"Of course, we should use professional tools to remove the watch first."

Hoshinomiya Chie rolled her eyes at her class president, feeling that when the other girl stood next to Kitagawa Ryo, she was like she was under a debuff, turning into a simple-minded idiot.

Kitagawa Ryo smiled upon hearing this, stepped forward, and offered his right arm:

"Then I'm sorry to trouble you."

"That's nothing. Speaking of which, even after being exposed to wind and rain on the island for so many days, Liang is still as handsome as ever."

Hoshinomiya Chie took out a screwdriver-like tool from the toolbox in front of her and started tinkering with Kitagawa Ryo's watch while making a teasing remark.

“It’s not that exaggerated.”

Kitagawa Ryoya really didn't want to get involved with Hoshinomiya Chie any more. This woman's obsession was no less than that of Chabashira Sae. He just laughed it off.

Seemingly because there were other teachers nearby, Hoshinomiya Chie didn't say anything more outrageous after that. After taking Kitagawa Ryo's watch off, she waved her hand.

"Come pick it up in an hour."

"Thank you for your hard work."

After exchanging a few polite words, Kitagawa Ryo was pulled away by Karuizawa Megumi, who knew a lot about her homeroom teacher's private life.

"We still have an hour... Shall we go take a shower?"

Kitagawa Ryo found Karuizawa Megumi's pouty, jealous look rather amusing, so he let her pull him along and casually offered a suggestion.

Whether it was this slightly ambiguous remark that triggered some imagination in Karuizawa Kei's mind or not, Kitagawa Ryo immediately noticed that half of Karuizawa Kei's ears had turned red, her head was tilted, and her eyes kept glancing at her toes, revealing a profile that was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Finally found you."

Just as Kitagawa Ryo was about to make a few more jokes, Shiina Hiyori, who had just come out of the shower, jogged over. She was a little weak, and after having a great time riding the jet ski, Kitagawa Ryo had urged her to take a shower and change her clothes.

"Huh? Where's the cold watch?"

Upon noticing Kitagawa Ryo's bald right wrist, Shiina Hiyori also curiously leaned over to ask.

"It's broken and is being repaired now."

Kitagawa Ryo stretched and rubbed his right wrist, saying:

"You know what, after wearing it for so long, it feels a little strange to suddenly take it off."

"The repair will take an hour. I'm planning to take a shower first. What about you guys?"

"...I'm going to take a shower too."

Karuizawa Megumi blushed slightly and quietly echoed her sentiment.

"Then I'll wait for you outside, and let my hair dry in the meantime."

Hiyori Shiina nodded, her right hand holding her still slightly damp hair as she spoke.

So, after agreeing on a meeting place, the three of them went their separate ways.

Just as Shiina Hiyori was about to find a place to sit and kill time, she hadn't taken two steps when she saw a third-year senior, whom she had seen that morning and who seemed to be the student council secretary, waving at her from a corner.

As Shiina Hiyori approached with some doubt, another figure suddenly flashed in from the other side. It was none other than Horikita Manabu, who was hailed as the strongest student council president in the history of Tokyo Advanced Educational High School and who had intimidated all the new students with his imposing presence at the club recruitment fair at the beginning of the school year.

"May I ask you a question?"

A remarkably composed statement.

For a fleeting moment, Shiina Hiyori recalled the backstabbing and power struggles within the student council that Kitagawa Ryo had told her. Could it be that she, like the detectives in the story, had been drawn into an urgent incident?

"Where's Lingyin? What's she doing?"

I don’t know if it was just my imagination, but I could actually hear a hint of heartbreak in Shiina Hiyori’s voice.

Chapter 186: This is Foresight

When Horikita asked her that question, Shiina Hiyori suddenly remembered that the third-year student opposite her was not only the student council president, but also Horikita Suzune's biological older brother.

Thinking about how good the relationship between the brother and sister was, Shiina Hiyori organized the information she knew and said lightly:

"The last time I saw Horikita was on the third day of the special exam. She's in much better physical condition than me and adapted to the deserted island environment very well. There's absolutely nothing to worry about."

Horikita Manabu twitched the corner of his mouth; that wasn't what he had originally planned to ask.

Just as Horikita Manabu was about to press Kitagawa Ryo about why he had left his original group and was now acting with them, another teacher walked over from the other side, noticed the situation, and frowned, saying sternly:

"Horikita-kun, third-year students who have been temporarily recruited are also under the jurisdiction of the school in this exam, and are not allowed to talk to first-year students about topics unrelated to their work."

"Sorry, I'll pay attention."

Thinking he could avoid being seen in the corner, Horikita Manabu lowered his head, immediately apologized, then glanced at Shiina Hiyori before quickly leaving with Tachibana Akane.

In truth, this is a happiness that Lingyin should have grasped herself.

Turning his back, Horikita Manabu sighed quietly and shook his head slightly.

He knew his younger sister well; since childhood, Rin had been a child who was prone to getting stuck on things or trying to do everything perfectly.

If Lingyin is truly determined, she will never give up easily; she won't turn back even if she hits a brick wall.

As Horikita felt the salty sea breeze on his face, a sense of melancholy inexplicably crept over him.

He didn't have much time left at the school, and he didn't know if he would be able to see the two of them officially confirm their relationship before graduation.

-------------------------------------

"Should we play it again?"

"It seems like less than three minutes have passed since the last time."

After Kitagawa Ryo went missing for thirty-six minutes and made thirteen phone calls to no avail, Horikita Suzune, Ichinose Honami, and Sakayanagi Arisu decided to stop walking and set up camp in the C8 area.

She had been hoping that Kitagawa Ryo would come back and cook the ingredients she had received from the "Pictionary" project, but under these circumstances, Horikita Suzune put on an apron anyway.

Although Ichinose Honami can cook, considering her mental state, Horikita Suzune had already pictured a rather horrific scene in her mind, and ultimately made the strong decision to cook alone.

"After thinking about it carefully, the only possible reason for this loss of contact is that Liang's watch is broken."

While removing the shrimp veins from the prawns, Horikita Suzune calmly offered her opinion.

"Yes, if something really happened, the school wouldn't have waited until now to issue an emergency notice."

Sakayanagi Arisu took small sips of mineral water to replenish her energy, licked her lips, and then said:

"This morning, someone got sick from drinking untreated water, and we issued an emergency notification."

"So don't worry too much, maybe Ryo is enjoying a vacation with other girls right now."

At this point, Sakayanagi Arisu also curled her lip:

"How come you all seem to have suddenly forgotten that Liang also cost our group nine thousand points?"

Sakayanagi Arisu shook the mineral water bottle in her hand:

"Nine thousand points... If we exchange them for two automatic water purifiers, we'll be able to drink one bottle of water and then throw the other away."

"Liang must have his reasons for doing this."

Honami Ichinose rested her chin on her hand, as if trying to comfort herself.

"This line feels so familiar."

Sakayanagi Arisu originally thought that Ichinose Honami's emotional problems had been resolved after the truth or dare game that day, but unexpectedly, a "Pictionary" assignment this morning and the news of Kitagawa Ryo's disappearance at noon directly plunged Ichinose Honami back into a state of unease.

"Don't think too much about it, let's try it first and see how it tastes."

Horikita Suzune was very efficient. In no time, she made three dishes and a soup using the ingredients she had. After a long morning of work, she was too tired to divide the food into portions, so she simply put everything on the table, took off her apron and hung it aside, and invited the two of them to come and have lunch.

"I still acknowledge Lingyin's cooking skills."

Sakayanagi Arisu clasped her hands together and winked playfully at Horikita Suzune:

"I'm gonna start now."

"Hmm... I'll start eating too."

Not wanting to continue playing the role of someone with a low mood, Ichinose Honami took a few deep breaths, turned her head to look at Horikita Suzune, and said:

"If Liang isn't here next time, I can help with the cooking too."

"Although the taste may not be as good as Lingyin and Liang's cooking skills, they probably won't make any weird or strange food."

What are "strange and unusual foods"?

Horikita Suzune picked up a large shrimp for herself, carefully peeled it, and casually asked Ichinose Honami a question.

"I guess I mistook salt for sugar, and then I frantically searched online for ways to fix it. The online answer suggested that I could add vinegar to neutralize it."

"Then a minute later I started searching for how to fix it if I mistook soy sauce for vinegar."

Amused by the funny little story told by Ichinose Honami, Horikita Suzune and Sakayanagi Arisu both burst out laughing.

"If the rest of the class knew that Fanbo used to be such a kitchen killer, I think they would find it hard to believe."

Horikita Suzune chuckled and made a joke.

"I'm not some perfect superman to begin with."

Honami Ichinose chewed her food slowly and deliberately.

"It's terrible to have expectations and then be disappointed without them."

"Indeed, lowering your expectations might lead to a pleasant surprise."

Sakayanagi Arisu shoveled a mouthful of rice into her mouth. She was exhausted this morning, and her appetite was much larger than when she first arrived on the island.

"Just like Class D now, although it seems hopeless, there might be a turning point."

"Compared to the beginning of the semester, Class D has indeed made a lot of progress."

Horikita Suzune nodded. She was the kind of person who didn't interact much with the specific students in the class, but she wouldn't neglect any class-related matters. She was in charge of reviewing the key points of knowledge before the midterm and final exams.

"However, if we don't get good results in this special exam, the spirit that Class D has finally managed to unite will fall apart."

Honami Ichinose sighed. She was one of the most popular students in the class and even the grade among the three, so she saw things more clearly.

Compared to Class D at the beginning of the school year, although six students dropped out, the atmosphere and cohesion of the class have unexpectedly improved. However, this is also thanks to the presence of the homeroom teacher, Tomoya Mashima. According to information that Honami Ichinose found out, many students in the class have received personal points from Tomoya Mashima under the guise of 'scholarships'.

In fact, there was no such setting in the school at all; all those points were sponsored by Majima Tomoya with his own salary.

The class score at midnight for Class D has always been a nightmare that plagues the entire class.

Homeroom teacher Tomoya Mashima can't keep supporting the students like this for three years. If the situation doesn't improve in the short term, the momentum that the homeroom teacher's efforts have built up will soon dissipate.

"Actually, Class D's results so far haven't been bad, but they do have an inherent disadvantage."

Even Honami Ichinose herself couldn't help but complain at this point:

"At the start of the exam, Class D had five fewer students than the other classes, which is equivalent to a fully-equipped four-person group plus a single-person group."

Unlike other special exams, the special exam for the deserted island is simply a matter of having more students in a class. Eliminating more than one group not only means losing five points, but also indirectly reduces the competitive pressure on other classes.