1.3
At lunchtime, I went out with Kei, which had been my routine as of late. However, there were some guests this time, Yōsuke and Satō.
“It's kind of like a double date, isn't it, Ayanokōji-kun?”
Saying so, Satō, standing nearby, mumbled this.
“Hey, hey, hey, Maya-chan. That's not something you should be saying to Kiyotaka.”
The girls were walking around, talking to each other, however, I couldn’t tell whether they were in a fight or on good terms.
“It's my first time going to Hokkaido. Have you ever been there, Kiyotaka?”
“No, I haven't.”
For me, who had been in the White Room, most of this was new territory for me. I had visited various places as part of the curriculum, but I had never been to Hokkaido. I only knew of Hokkaido as a cold region with a vast expanse of land, and the rest of the world I knew only through television and textbooks.
The main topic of conversation was the school excursion.
“I mean, are high school excursions really this lax? Isn't it too much freedom?”
“I was surprised too. I thought they would only give you an hour or two of free time a day.”
“I don't mind having a lot of free time. I think it's a lot better than having to stand around and listen to the museum guide and local people talk for a long time.”
Yōsuke laughed at this response, and Satō nodded her head in agreement.
As far as I was concerned… That kind of orthodox schedule wasn't so bad. The more freedom you have, the more it deviates from the original form of a school trip.
“I guess I'm a little concerned about the group aspect. I welcome trying to get along with other classes, but I can't help but feel that there's something beyond that.”
“Beyond getting along?”
Yōsuke nodded and looked at me as though seeking the answer.
“Since we're all competing to be Class A, feeling mercy is going to slow us down.”
“I guess that's what you're thinking, isn't it?”
It must be complicated for Yōsuke, who already felt strongly regarding it.
While he wants to get along with other classes, the downside of getting too close to them is also present.
“I'm a little scared. Someone in the other classes might need to graduate from Class A at all costs, and the idea of finding out what's going on with them or getting too close is unsettling.”
“Hmm... I see. I think I kinda get what you're saying, Hirata. It’s sympathy.”
Satō, too, was somewhat convinced after imagining it herself.
“I don't really think of it that way, though, because it's more important for me to get up to Class A… Am I cold?”
Kei flatly denied the sentiment.
It wasn't cold, but rather a perfectly honest and genuine feeling; one shared by a majority of the students.
“No one can see the true nature of people's feelings. But if I were to share my personal view, I would say that people are creatures who can easily show kindness on the surface, but only during that moment. And they don't want others to see that they harbor animosity.”
This love and loathing was very troubling.
“Suppose there’s a student in another class who has to graduate from Class A, as Yōsuke said. If that student cannot be in Class A, he or she may later take their life.”
“What? That's a bit of an overstatement...”
“Of course it's an exaggeration. But it's also true that it's not completely impossible.”
No one knew where others’ emotional limits lay, except for the people in question themselves.
“Suppose there’s a class and they have over 20 million private points on hand. However, they must use those private points to protect their own class. They may be able to fight without them, but they are an important insurance policy. What if someone in our class, someone like Yōsuke, was in a situation where he wanted to save the students whose lives are on the line?”
“Eh… that's…”
“What if the class is in a situation where they say they are willing to save those students but are actually against it on the inside? I think there's a possibility that some students might show a facade of being willing to lend a hand on the surface.”
If you disagree, they will look at you with disdain, saying that you take other people's lives lightly.
In reality, I don't know what the people I’m with are thinking in their hearts.
“I've continued to exaggerate a bit, but knowing your enemy is not purely a merit.”
“Then why does the school try to make us get along…”
Kei's words stopped as she came to this point.
“Is there a reason for this that might be… related to special exams, for example…?”
“I don't think we can deny that possibility.”
At least, with how we are now, most of us don't care who gets expelled from the other classes. The more of us that are gone, excluding those closest to us, the better off we are when reaching Class A.
“If that chart and the school trip are just one of the set pieces, then maybe the real event is the final exams at the end of the school year.”
“If that's the case, it could get nasty… I'm genuinely scared.”
“I agree. It's kind of a bad feeling.”
Both Yōsuke and Satō began to understand the anxiety regarding the future through our conversation.
At this stage, they had no idea if there would be any expulsions involved, but it seemed certain that it would be more difficult compared to last year.
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