It was the eleventh day, a little after 6:30 A.M. The Kiriyama group followed by the six Free Groups, had succeeded in successfully surrounding Kōenji.
"What's the situation?"
"There doesn't seem to be any movement in the tent yet. He's sleeping soundly. It would be so much easier for us if he got sick and stayed in bed all day."
Mikitani turned around and faced the members of the Free Groups.
"Hey, why don't we circle him and block him before he leaves the tent?
If we make it impossible for him to leave this area, Kōenji won't be able to go anywhere."
The members of the Free Groups agreed with Mikitani's suggestion.
"It's true that if we prevent him from packing up and leaving, it will slow down his pace to the designated area. But how will we explain if a third party sees us? We can't adopt a strategy that can be seen by others at a glance."
Even if you're breaking the rules, you should eliminate the risks as much as possible.
"Just use a GPS scan to see if anyone's coming. We have points to spare."
"Our tablets don't tell us where the teachers are. Don't forget that the search isn't absolute either. As originally planned, we'll be moving in when Kōenji clears the tent and starts moving. If you come across a freshman or sophomore, or an adult on your way to set a task, immediately open a distance of at least two meters from Kōenji."
"Do not under any circumstance, get to the point where you're in reaching distance." Kiriyama adds with a stern tone.
It was close to seven o'clock when the situation began to change.
"Kōenji's moving!"
He had no idea that we were watching him. He hummed as he began to take down his tent. At the pace he was moving, he would depart well before seven o'clock.
"Go." Kiriyama instructed.
Kiriyama, who judged this was the time to move out, began to walk towards Kōenji. Mikitani and the other members of the Free Group followed close behind.
Even if he realized that Kiriyama and the others were approaching him, Kōenji didn't look up from his tablet. After being surrounded by eighteen people, Kōenji continued to act as if he was oblivious to their presence.
"Do you have a moment, Kōenji?"
Although they called Kōenji's name, his gaze remained on his tablet.
"Do you want something from me?" Kōenji replied absentmindedly.
Although this was no way to address a senior, Kiriyama didn't care and continued on.
"We didn't expect that you could be active to this extent in a special exam. If you had such strength, why didn't you ever use it before?"
"Is this something we should talk about right now? It's almost seven in the morning. Shouldn't you hurry up and get ready to go to the designated area." Kōenji replied.
"I'm sure you understand what I mean Kōenji. You've gained too many points."
Although he looked like he didn't know anything, Kiriyama assumed he was just playing dumb.
"I want you to stay here all day."
"Does that mean you don't want me to gather any points...?"
"That's right."
Of course, Kōenji would never nod and say yes to Kiriyama's proposal.
"Although I don't know who you are, I only need to think a little to understand that this request you've made is completely unreasonable. But even so, the fact you brought so many friends means you intend to interfere with my plans if I ignore your wishes, correct?"
"Even if you continue with the special examination at this pace, it's impossible to get the first place. Nagumo's group in second, has seven people, and we had six people in third place, while you're only one person. I acknowledge that you have made great progress so far, but your results will most likely drop in the second half of the exam as you get tired."
"If that's the case, why worry about me?"
"It's a matter of precaution. Furthermore, if we continue to compete with one person, we'll lose face as third-years. Of course, if you're ready to listen to us sincerely, we won't treat you badly. If you become friends with President Nagumo, your school life will also be more pleasant, right?"
There's two options here for Kōenji; he can be held back by force, or he can obey and side with Nagumo.
The time is now exactly 7:00 A.M., and the first designated zone of the eleventh day appears on the tablet.
Kōenji confirms the location and puts the tablet back into his backpack.
The tension in the atmosphere rises as Kiriyama and the others silently wait to see what Kōenji will do.
"If you'll excuse me, I must hurry."
As soon as Kōenji's words of rejection were spoken, he took off with immense speed and rushed towards the edge of the encirclement.
"He-Hey!"
Although they had surrounded him, there were still gaps big enough for Kōenji to run through. It would be a lie to say that everyone, including Kiriyama, hadn't been caught off guard; they had underestimated the likelihood that he would ignore the orders of the third-year students and flee.
"I'm going after him!" Mikitani yel ed as Kōenji found an opening and disappeared into the depths of the forest.
"Don't panic, you'll only hurt yourself if you try and match Kōenji's rhythm."
"We can't take it easy right now, he got away!"
"He may be able to achieve the placement reward, but that's about it. If Kōenji chooses to flee, he won't be able to take his time to participate in the tasks. On the other hand, if he chooses to take part in the tasks, we can chase after him then."
Kiriyama knew that it would be dangerous to determine which area Kōenji was heading to based solely on the direction in which he fled, but he also knew that it would be impossible to hide from a GPS search.
Even so, Mikitani started to run after Kōenji.