漂亮妈妈韩国

Volume 15.5, Chapter 2 Intro - THE BEGINNING OF THE SHORT-LIVED VACATION

For many students, each day of the uninhabited island exam seemed to drag on for a long time.

In contrast, a day spent on a luxury cruise ship is just like a flash of light; gone in an instant.

Why is it that the flow is so different for the same period of time?

The main reason is probably because we don’t spend most of the day thinking about time. During daily school life and special exams, students are often thinking about time. On the other hand, when you’re on vacation, we aren’t thinking about the flow of time, so the difference is noticeable.

Today was the second day of our holiday.

The exhaustion many students had been feeling had finally worn off, so they were starting to enjoy their summer vacation in earnest. As a result, the number of students passing each other in the ship’s corridors had increased dramatically.

And so I, who had spent most of my time quietly on my own, received an email inviting me to meet up.

It was from 3rd year Class B student, Vice President Kiriyama. He had invited me to the pool, perhaps to have an elegant chat alongside the water or play beach volleyball to deepen our friendship.

I’ll throw out the possibility of any of those ridiculous predictions.

Although he called me over to the pool, it should be a far from playful time.

Of course, I could refuse. Or I could choose to ignore it. But I’m going to end up hearing it at some point anyway. Depending on the situation, it’s not impossible that I could be called out to a more unpleasant place than the one right now.

I sent a curt yes in reply and promised to be there at the specified time. I decided that it would be less damaging for me to be called out now, when I was by myself.

Besides, there was a good chance that I could solve the mystery of the persistent stares I had been receiving from the third year students since yesterday.

“Kiriyama…”

Right now, I’m in the resting area by the fitness gym. I was in front of the monitor where the results of the special exam were posted.

Perhaps most of the students had already checked their exam results, as I was the only one here.

The number of teachers keeping an eye on the test results had also been reduced to just one.

I memorized the results of the test, and slid the results back to the top groups again, focusing on Kiriyama’s group.

The top three had already been announced in front of the entire student body, with Kouenji Rokusuke’s solo group in first place, Nagumo’s group in second place and Sakayanagi’s group in third place. In fourth place was Kiriyama’s group with 255 points, leaving a difference of only 6 points. In other words, Sakayanagi stole the last spot on the podium from his group.

The difference between third and fourth place was more than just the difference in their ranking.

“Naturally, for a 3rd year student, these results would be seen as a disappointment.”

Nagumo missed the top spot and Kiriyama didn’t even make it into the top three.

In addition, all the expulsions were from the 3rd year, which was a highly unusual situation.

Since I still had about 20 minutes until the appointed time, I decided to head over to the pool first. It was also to confirm that the gazes being directed at me wasn’t just me being self-conscious, but a plan that had been put in motion.

The answer was immediately apparent, without the need for close examination.

No more than a dozen seconds after showing myself at the pool, I noticed I was being subjected to stares from a large number of 3rd year students spread all over the place.

Students engrossed in conversation, students who were swimming in the pool, all the 3rd year students began to observe me closely after noticing my presence.

The gaze I felt yesterday was not just a coincidence.

“I came to find proof of my suspicions, but this is too fast.”

It was such a strange feeling that I wanted to complain to the contrary.

I was supposed to be a background character in the shadows, but here I was standing out more than anyone.

Even without thinking about it, it is obvious what is going on.

There is a probably 90% chance that they are acting under the instructions of Nagumo, but exactly what the contents of his orders are is completely unknown at this point in time. Although many students were sending obvious stares my way, I continued to pretend not to notice anything.

It’s easy to play the role of a fool, however, I can easily imagine what Nagumo will think if I showed I’m aware of the stares. It would not be surprising if he was enjoying seeing me as the target of this attention.

At any rate, the best thing to do for now was pretend I don’t know what they are all looking at.

I looked around the pool, wondering who else was here besides the third year students, and saw Ichinose with some of her classmates. It just so happened that Ichinose was the first one to notice my presence, and our eyes met.

Her shoulders jerked once and she quickly hid behind her classmates, looking for an escape. Seeing the sudden strange movement, her classmates were asking what was wrong with her.

It’s just after Ichinose confessed her love to me on the uninhabited island after all.

It’s no wonder that just looking at each other from this distance might make things awkward.

It’s one thing if it was just Ichinose, but her classmates are also there, so I’ll keep my distance for now.

Even if I leave it alone, I’ve already made an appointment to see her the evening after tomorrow.

I saw a few classmates here and there, but unfortunately I couldn’t find any students who were particularly close to me.

“Things have started to get serious, Ayanokouji.”

When I turned diagonally in front of me, in the direction of the voice that had called out, I found Kiryuuin resting on a beach chair on the deck.

“What are you referring to?”

“The third years. It’s not like you haven’t noticed, right?”

“I don’t really understand.”

I tried to play it off, but Kiryuui didn’t even snicker, and just kept going nonchalantly.

“Even though I’m not involved, I’m still a third year student. The information has already reached my ears.”

“By any chance are you referring to the gaze that is currently being focused on me?”

“You’re well aware of what I’m talking about.”

“It’s not a big problem. I’m being watched, that is all.”

“That is all, huh.”

Even though I mentioned that I didn’t care, Kiryuuin didn’t seem to think that was the case.

“It looks like quite the frightening strategy to me. I’m sure it’s especially troublesome for someone with your personality.”

While chilling, Kiryuuin’s point is not wrong.

“As expected of the student council president. He’s played a bizarre, yet effective card against this flawless person in front of me.”

“Flawless? I think you are overestimating me.”

“Don’t be modest. We’re friends that have been through the line of fire together, so I know that your abilities are limitless, right?”

The gaze lurking beneath the sunglasses pierced me sharply.

Even if I were to deny it, there were many students around, so I would have to be careful so as not to be overheard.

Of course, Kiryuuin would have taken the surrounding environment into consideration.

“I understand, I’ll admit it for now.”

“Fufu, that’s fine. Now back to the topic at hand, did something happen with Nagumo during the final stages of the test? No orders were issued to the third years before the end of the uninhabited island exam.”

“There may have been something that would cause him to resent me…It’s frustrating that I can’t say that it’s not the case.”

Kiryuuin, who had been lying back comfortably, sat up slightly.

“In terms of individual strength, Nagumo Miyabi’s ability is top class among the school. Academic Ability A, Physical Ability A, Adaptability A+ and Social Contribution A+. He cannot be faulted.”

“I know. As far as the OAA is concerned, his overall ability is overwhelming at the top of the school.”

There are a few students, like Sudou and Kiryuuin, who have an A+ rating in one or two abilities.

However, Nagumo is the only student with all A’s or higher, and the number of students with two A+ grades is extremely limited.

“With his high academic and physical abilities, his charisma and ability to organize the school year, and his accomplishments as the president of the student council, Nagumo has never faced a worthy opponent in his year group. The only person in the school who he recognised as his equal, Horikita Manabu, has graduated, and is thus no longer here.”

Kiryuuin exhaled and picked up the glass on the table next to her.

“To Nagumo, you should have been nothing more than a toy. However, something happened during the uninhabited island exam that has caused him to take you seriously.”

“It’d be best to leave someone like me alone.”

“If that’s the case, then you made a bad choice somewhere along the line.”

Kiryuuin spoke harshly, showing no mercy.

“There are probably only a handful of people that can defeat you one-on-one. I’m pretty confident in my ability, but if there’s one type I’m not good with, it would be someone like you, Ayanokouji. But in Nagumo’s case, it is completely different. I can tell that he’s the type of person you are no good at dealing with. Am I right?”

“I can’t deny that possibility anymore. I misjudged his true character. ”

They are only looking at me, but I didn’t realise how stressful and disgusting it would make me feel. There were always eyes watching in the White Room, but this is completely different.

In other words, I was forced to live in an environment I had never experienced before in my life. Moreover, the only way to escape is to hide indoors, which is not a practical solution at all.

“That’s about right. Nagumo tends to prefer flashy moves and one-on-ones, but when it comes to ensuring his victory, he will use any strategy to win. Even if it means mobilizing the entire third year. He will prioritise winning, no matter what it takes.”

His gathering of the crowd was just the beginning.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t help you with this one.”

Saying that, she put on the sunglasses which had been resting on her forehead.

“I never once said that I wanted to rely on you.”

As if trying to get ahead of me, Kiryuuin refused to cooperate.

“For three years I’ve been free to do as I please, but…I do have a few regrets regarding my school life. If there were a retention system at this school, I might have considered it.”

Retention, in other words repeating a grade without advancing.

To put it bluntly, she wants to stay.

“So you were here, Ayanokouji.”

As I was talking to Kiryuuin, Vice President Kiriyama showed up. It seems Kiriyama, who was wearing a serious expression, had arrived much earlier than promised. After taking a glance at the lounging Kiryuuin beside me, he turned to look back in my direction.

“We’ve still got a few minutes until the scheduled time, but you don’t mind if we get started, do you? This isn’t the best place for it, let’s move.”

“‘This isn’t for you to hear’, is what you’re trying to say, right Kiriyama?”

Even though she said couldn’t help me, it seems she was interested in what he wanted to talk about.

She lifted the sunglasses she had just put on back to her forehead.

“It’s just that we would attract too much attention here. If we can, I’d like to speak in a quiet place.”

Because the poolside was so popular, a large number of students were hanging around here.

Well, for some reason, only the seat next to Kiryuuin was empty, but I don’t think I need to look too deeply into that.

“That’s funny, saying that you don\'t want to attract too much attention. That’s a contradiction, Kiriyama.”

“What?”

“If you wanted to talk in a quiet place, to choose the pool where so many people are gathered is nonsense. Shall we go?”

“So you would have preferred if I told you from the start that I don\'t want to be around you, so I want to move?”

Kiriyama spat out after Kiryuuin interrupted him. The expression on his face was completely dead, devoid of any emotion.

The fact that Kiryuuin had been a pain for him to deal with so far was obvious.

“I see, you’re saying I make you feel uncomfortable.”

Whenever a conversation starts, it revolves around Kiryuuin.

Kiriyama didn’t want to deal with that, so he made a move to escape, but on the contrary, it provided the opportunity for Kiryuuin to bulldoze in.

“Anyway, how about you let me listen in on what you were going to talk about?”

“I refuse. It’s got nothing to do with you.”

“Nothing to do with me? I don’t know about that.”

“Why is that?”

“Ayanokouji and I are in a romantic relationship. If that’s the case, how can it be irrelevant?”

Huh?

Before his reaction leaked out, Kiriyama looked between me and Kiryuuin alternately with a flabbergasted expression on his face.

“Fufu, it’s a joke Kiriyama. You’re a real boring guy, but if I consider just your reactions, you can be amusing at times.”

When Kiriyama saw Kiryuuin laughing merrily, he looked extremely angry.

He started walking without saying another word.

‘Leave that woman and come with me quickly’ seems to be what he’s getting at.

“I can’t ignore this, so I’ll take my leave, Kiryuuin-senpai.”

“Give my regards to Kiriyama.”

I’d rather not. Even if she’s not there in person, he probably wouldn’t want to hear Kiryuuin’s name being uttered.

Following Kiriyama, who walked ahead of me, we arrived on the deck one floor above, which was overlooking the pool.

It was a relatively quiet area, with many students napping or sunbathing.

Even so, there were a decent number of students, so our conversation could be overheard.

However, there was not a single 3rd year student present. Kiriyama must have paid them off.

In that sense, 1st and 2nd years shouldn’t care about the conversation between Kiriyama and I. The other saving grace was that there was nobody waiting for us, allowing me to have a one-on-one conversation with Kiriyama.

“So, why did you want to bring me all the way out here?”

“I won’t beat around the bush. What did you do to Nagumo on the last day of the uninhabited island exam, Ayanokouji?”

“What do you mean?”

“Quit messing around. It’s obvious you had something to do with the results of the exam.”

On the last day of the exam, when Nagumo and I met, I overheard from the transceiver that they were enacting a strategy to suppress Kouenji. It’s no surprise that Kiriyama was aware of it.

“I have no problem answering, but before that, could you answer my question first?”

“A question?”

Yes. There was one thing I wanted to check out when he called me out like this.

As Kiriyama looked at me suspiciously, I continued.

“It’s a question I’ve had since I first met you, Vice President Kiriyama. Initially, it looked like you were working to take down Nagumo. At what point did you stop fighting…? Did you give up?”

If Kiriyama is still hoping for Nagumo’s downfall, it should have been a welcome development.

“Give up? I don’t know what you mean. My personal fight is still going on.”

“Is that so? It doesn’t look like that to me.”

After denying it, Kiriyama seemed to immediately understand my aim.

“You seem to think that I’m on Nagumo’s side, but that is incorrect. Now that Nagumo’s plan has changed, the others and I have started to see the adverse effects. I believe I told you before the uninhabited island exam, not to get in my way.”

That one remark was a rather ordinary denial from Kiriyama.

However, human beings are prone to little gaffes like that.

“That’s a broad interpretation. I was simply talking about whether or not you’ve given up the fight, but Kiriyama-senpai, you seem to be very conscious of whether you come across as being on the Student Council President’s side.”

“…Aren’t those the same thing?”

“Admitting defeat and changing sides are not even close to being the same thing. They are completely different. If it’s that much, even the Vice President should understand, right?”

Proud people who categorize themselves as superior think they will never make a mistake. That’s why, if they preemptively say to themselves ‘I’m so great, there’s no way I could be wrong, right?’, it makes it even more difficult to admit they made a mistake.

“What are you trying to say?”

Neither admitting nor denying it, Kiriyama tried to continue the conversation.

Right now, out of the choices available to him, the easiest way is to go through.

“I simply wanted to ask you where you stand. You’ve given up fighting, but the fact you oppose Nagumo hasn’t changed? Or are you under Nagumo’s thumb? After all, this was a case that Horikita Manabu entrusted to me.”

Hearing Manabu’s name for the first time in a while, Kiriyama’s face hardened.

“…That was the case, wasn’t it…?”

Maybe he’s remembering the first time he and I met.

“Thinking back, this relationship between you, me, Nagumo and Horikita-senpai, the whole point was that you had no interest in the student council whatsoever. In that sense, it wasn’t right to involve you in all this.”

He placed his left hand on the railing and gripped it tightly.

“It’s true that I wanted to take down Nagumo. If we don’t beat him, it will be impossible for our class to rise back up to Class A. However, that spirit gradually faded away by the time we reached the middle of our second year.”

The current 3rd years have allowed Class A to run unchallenged far more than our year.

At the moment, the difference between the 3rd year Class A and 3rd year Class B is more than 900 class points. Even at the midpoint of last year, they should have been over 700 points ahead.

They allowed Nagumo to run off with the lead early on and it has now reached a point where they can’t catch up.

“We 3rd years shifted to an individual competition early on. Class points and school rules were of secondary importance, and we started playing according to the original rules proposed by Nagumo.”

This is a big reason behind his running away with the competition.

Once that happened, it would have been too high of a hurdle for Kiriyama to face alone.

“I struggled to break out of it, but as soon as I became a 3rd year, I was swept up in that wave.”

Regret? Resignation? Kiriyama showed an indescribable profile.

“What happened after you were swallowed up by the waves?”

“Well…It seems you won’t be satisfied unless you hear it clearly from my own mouth.”

“It’s very important to me after all.”

“Nagumo handed me a ticket to graduate from Class A, so I decided to follow the rules that he made up…That’s what you wanted to hear, right?”

In other words, the position you’re in means that not only are you no longer hostile towards him, but you’ve become one of Nagumo’s allies.

That’s just how important it is for ordinary students to graduate from Class A.

It’s proof of just how much value and appeal 20 million points has.

“Whether or not you take advantage of this school’s greatest privilege will have an enormous effect on the rest of your life. Regardless of how my classmates may end up feeling about me, graduating from Class A is most important. These three years of high school are a blink of an eye compared to the decades of your life that come after.”

It was only natural that Kiriyama was feeling indignant and wanted to know all of the details, even calling me out here to explain.

“It was our mission to make sure that Nagumo took first place. But, your involvement disrupted the chain of command, leaving Kouenji to take first place while Nagumo fell to second. The result was a significant loss in both class and private points. Do you have any idea how much?”

It was confirmed on the OAA that Nagumo had a trial card as well as an additional 7 cards in his large group. The amount of money lost by not taking first place amounted to 7 million points alone.

Furthermore, if all of the third year’s 28 Free Ride cards had been designated to Nagumo’s group, they would have received an additional reward of nearly 15 million private points. However, they received approximately half that, due to Nagumo’s group falling to second place. Of course, it’s still a huge amount of money.

If you include the bonus for the class points from the trial card, the loss is even greater.

“With graduation imminent, it’s a huge loss for us 3rd year students to miss out on first place. We need to gather private points without wasting a single one.”

Considering that Kiriyama’s group had also used a “more people” card with the intention of getting second place, the third year had lost even more private points than I had just calculated.

“The fact that your group couldn’t win any additional points from placing in the top three is not irrelevant, Kiriyama-senpai.”

When I pointed that out to him, his shoulders twitched slightly.

“…Yeah. I was dispatched as backup for Nagumo’s group on short notice. The slight delay in response had repercussions on all sides in the end. We didn’t just lose to Kouenji, another group of 2nd years took third place from us too.”

If everything went to plan, the third year would have gained a massive amount of private points. Although this is just a rough estimate, it was exactly the kind of money that could save a few of Nagumo’s allies.

“It costs 20 million points for a ticket to Class A, so we are always looking for the best way to procure points. After this, you could say we’re one ticket down.”

For the uninhabited island exam, the rewards at the top end were very attractive, but when it comes to private points, the More People and Free Ride cards could have a great effect.

“Until now, Nagumo has been producing results and has therefore earned the trust of the entire year. But by coming here and clinging to you, he’s suffered a wound; losing both trust and money. Even so, if he switched his focus off of you, the problem would be minimal…but after the special exam…Nagumo took an unbelievable step.”

“The unexpected expulsion of 3rd years, yes?”

“That’s right. The original plan was for the top groups to pick up the groups that had deliberately been placed at the bottom and save them from dropping out at the end of the test.”

However, because this was not done, the 3rd year students in the lower groups were expelled en masse.

“Unable to do anything, fifteen of them had to drop out. They didn’t even have time to cry out.”

“It’s terrifying isn’t it? From the point of view of a 3rd year student that is.”

“Of course it is. A single whim and these last three years would amount to nothing. If it’s because of their own actions, they would just give up, but if it’s because of Nagumo’s unreasonable behaviour, it’s a different story.”

If all of this is really true, it could be a wake-up call for the students that have been following him blindly. Rather, it’s unusual that the 3rd year students haven’t shown any signs of disobeying Nagumo even after this incident.

“You think it’s strange? That Nagumo isn’t being accused of anything?”

“It’s a huge blunder after all. It seems the students that don’t have tickets in Class B and below are keeping quiet.”

“Even if they wanted to defy him, they couldn\'t. Nagumo and the students with a ticket to 3rd year Class A are protected by an impenetrable fortress.”

An impenetrable fortress. So a system has been set up so that the other classes cannot go against him.

In that case…This mystery can be solved by asking a single question.

“Vice President Kiriyama, you have the ticket to Class A in your possession right now, right?”

Normally, this question would be answered with a simple “yes”.

Even so, Kiriyama replied in a blink of an eye without changing his expression.

“If I had the ticket in my possession right now, I wouldn’t have any problems.”

“I see. If Nagumo was holding onto that ticket, it would certainly be a different story.”

I mean, it’s not surprising, but Nagumo had a cunning strategy. If Nagumo controls all the private points, then nobody can go against him.

Put simply, he’s promising to spend 20 million points to rescue them and bring them up to Class A.

No, it may be a bit naive to call it a promise.

If you continue to be loyal to me, I will provide you with a ticket.

It’s safe to assume that he is avoiding explicit statements by using vague expressions.

If they were to go against him in this situation, Nagumo would violate that promise without a second thought.

“It’s also forbidden to accumulate your own private points. Individuals are free to hold up to 500,000 points. Anything beyond that is syphoned off to Nagumo.”

“Sounds tough.”

Unlike depositing cash in the bank, private points are an electronic currency that cannot be hidden. They will probably have rules so that their balances are carefully monitored.

Even if they were able to kick Nagumo out of the school by some means, he would then be expelled with his tens or even hundreds of millions of private points, and they would be left with nothing.

This also means that even if they wanted to rebel, they could never succeed.

“Now you know why the 3rd years put Nagumo on a pedestal and protect him, right?”

“I understand.”

You could say it’s the perfect dictatorship. It’s impossible for anyone in his grade to oppose Nagumo.

“That guy’s been playing around with us for three whole years. The students without tickets are made to compete against each other, then he’ll make a gesture of giving the winning guy a ticket and make him pledge his allegiance.”

He’s just playing around of course, but from the point of view of students in Class C and D who have no chance of winning in the conventional way, Nagumo would be seen as nothing but a God.

If you can be useful, you can graduate from Class A. Since that’s what they say, his support is not surprising.

However, they won’t know for sure until they actually move classes just before graduation.

“With what little school life we have left, we want to fight and compete, even if it’s for just one more ticket. That’s why your existence is just a distraction, Ayanokouji.”

Because he is focusing his attention on me, Nagumo is losing out on precious private points.

The resulting loss will mean that students who could have been saved, will no longer be savable.

So this is the situation that the 3rd years are in now.

“But, do you really think I chose to be in this situation?”

“I know.”

“So, what do you want from me?”

“Let’s go back to where we started. Tell me about what happened on the uninhabited island, and then we’ll find a solution.”

“I thought Nagumo didn’t want that? He didn’t even tell you, the Vice President, what happened, right?”

“…That may be true, but letting it go won’t solve anything.”

So you want to stop Nagumo’s reckless actions, even if it means risking losing your ticket.

No, he’s concerned that if he doesn’t stop it, something may come up that affects his own ticket.

“If you’re not going to talk to me, I want you to go meet Nagumo right now and talk to him instead. I’ll even set up the meeting if you need me to. Nobody will benefit from you and Nagumo getting into a fight in the future, right?”

“You’re absolutely right.”

“I’ll make sure to advise Nagumo to stop the current operation he is carrying out. I want you to trust me.”

The operation he is carrying out. There’s no need to ask him what that could be referring to.

“You mean the stares everyone is sending my way, yes?”

Kiriyama looked down towards the pool and nodded.

“What is its purpose, and how long will it last? There was no explanation for any of it. There is a growing sense of distress among the 3rd year students at this bizarre behaviour.”

Despite their mistrust, they had no choice but to obey Nagumo, who held all the cards.

“The Nagumo administration is rock solid, but… If we continue with this nonsense, the worst could happen.”

Kiriyama and the others who’ve been given tickets will surely continue to follow him faithfully, but the same can’t be said for the many students who don’t have one. Kiriyama can’t let something like an uprising happen.

If they knew they wouldn’t get a ticket from him, it wouldn’t be surprising if they were planning to expel Nagumo.

For Kiriyama and the others, that would be the worst case scenario.

“I don’t think the story would just end there if I said I’d agree to meet with him though.”

“Then what would you have me do? You won’t tell me the details, but you won’t see Nagumo either. As it is, this is only going to get worse.”

“Could you give me some time? I will definitely have an answer for you soon.”

It is likely that Kiriyama will receive further information not from me, but from Nagumo.

“…That’s fine. But you have to make a decision before Nagumo makes his next move.”

Kiriyama, who had been looking around the pool area, quickly noticed someone’s entrance.

Of course, it was the person who had been the focus of our conversation, Nagumo.

“I’m going. If he finds out I met you, I’ll be in a troublesome situation again.”

I think that would be wise. Kiriyama must have taken a considerable risk by making contact today.

It was worth coming here just to understand the situation of the 3rd year students.