"So? You've come back without anything in hand?".
The water bottle woman glared at me, but it couldn't be helped since there was nothing I could have done.
"I wanted to bring some from my room but I've already used up all my water".
This too, cannot be explained as anything other than a tragedy brought forth from this current of misfortune.
"So what do we do?".
"If you're fine with it, we could ask Ike or Sudou to share some water with us?".
"I'll pass".
I had already expected this kind of answer so I had written it off before even asking, but as expected.
"If you're uncomfortable with borrowing from them, I can lie and tell them that I'm the one in need" I said.
"That's not it. I'm opposed to using the water they have at hand, there's no telling what they put in there.....".
She's treating them almost as if they're bacteria. That's definitely not the case...is what I'd like to say but I don't have the confidence to make that statement. Those guys, they have a habit of leaving drinking water or tea as it is.
If Horikita asks them to hand it over they would probably give the cleanest water they have but if I tell them I wanted the water, depending on the situation, they might hand me back something of that kind. There's nothing more terrifying than malevolence without ill intent.
"Then do you want to challenge it again?".
"Yes. Please continue even if it hurts for me".
Horikita offered me her right arm as though she had prepared her resolve. It seems she wishes to escape from this as soon as possible. I could see slight sweat forming on her arm.
"Alright, then I'll be putting my back into it for a bit".
I would also like to free Horikita as quickly as possible and return to my room. Thinking to endure the ridiculous posture for a moment, I pulled on the water bottle. I then used twice as much power as before to pull the bottle off but it only resulted in Horikita making an expression of agony. Despite that, Horikita did not raise any complaints and endured the pain. However, the water bottle, as though sucking on her arm, did not come off.
"This is really, as I thought, going to need some water".
I'll need to make it slippery first before pulling it out. If it still won't come off after that, it might become necessary to call emergency services.
"You're telling me to wait until 12 o'clock? In this state?".
"If there's still someone we can rely on from among my contacts, the remaining male would be Hirata" I told her.
"If it's him there's no doubt as to the quality of the water but......I'd rather not be in his debt".
"Even if you say debt, on the front I'll be the one needing the water. There should be no problem for you".
"...that is indeed true".
She still seemed to be dissatisfied somewhat but she seems to have accepted that a sacrifice needs to be made to escape this urgent situation and accepted my plan.
"Then I'll contact him promptly".
I attempt to call Hirata. However, even now, misfortune seems to overlap. No matter how many times I called, Hirata showed no signs of picking up. On top of that, even when I tried sending him a message, it was not read.
"He's not noticing, maybe he's asleep. In any case, there's no response".
"I see. Feelings of joy and sadness are both mixing together confusingly and making it complicated for me" Horikita said.
"Then next is, no other choice but to rely on Kushida or Sakura".
"Please ask Sakura-san then".
As if to say Kushida is absolutely out of the question, she replied to me with that immediately.
"Are you still on bad terms with Kushida?" I asked her.
"There's no need for us to get along. And besides, there are many actions of hers I still don't understand".
"What do you mean you don't understand?".
".....the exam on the cruise ship. She abandoned victory from the start and instead aimed for a draw".
Remembering the special exam from a while back, Horikita crossed her arms together. Unfortunately the water bottle stuck on her arm made her look uncool and hence the intensity of her statement was lacking.
"She's a pacifist by nature. She'll probably choose the outcome where everybody's happy".
"I have no intention of denying outcome 1 entirely. However if one is the "target" themselves that it's out of the question".
She begins to speak sharply.
The exam that took place on the ship separated students into 12 groups in a game to find the "target". There were four possible outcomes and among them, outcome 1 is the hardest outcome to achieve wherein the identity of the "target" is known to everyone yet is cleared without anyone betraying the group. In exchange, the reward itself is considerable where the entire group receives 1,000,000 points without it being divided up. The only drawback to this outcome is, the class to which the "target" belongs does not earn any points. Since the other classes equally gain valuation, the difference between them does not change. She did not take advantage of the privileged position of the "target". That is what Horikita is dissatisfied with.
"That situation absolutely favored Class D. That means in other words, the identity of the "target" absolutely needed to remain hidden, and should have remained hidden. However, everyone ended up knowing that Kushida-san was the "target". I think in regards to that, she herself was involved".
In other words, Horikita is trying to say that Kushida, by doing something, ended up causing outcome 1.
"That's just your speculation, right?".
"That's right. But the possibility of that is overwhelmingly high. I'm assuming her guilt".
Horikita added more force to her words. It's not like I don't understand how she feels but the water bottle stuck to her arm simply makes it look uncool.
It's just, I'll need to correct Horikita's idea a little here. She's still at a premature stage.
"I can understand how you feel but that's no good, right?".
"Do you mean saying this without any evidence that she's betrayed us?".
"That's not it. I'm saying it's all your responsibility. I'll just assume Kushida did betray us in fact, if we assume that to be true then the fault lies with you for allowing her to betray us. Adding on, even if Kushida did betray you, you had to win at all costs. Am I wrong?" I asked her.
She understood it clearly, yet in response to this difficult demand she clashes against it with her own correct answer. Horikita, against this unreasonable attack, makes her objection.
"Don't be unreasonable. Do you understand just how unrealistic that is?".
"Unrealistic? I don't think so. Let me repeat myself, if Kushida did indeed betray us and guided the group to outcome 1 that is an amazing thing. This is an area you cannot succeed in half-heartedly. In other words, in the previous exam, you were completely outsmarted in regards to Kushida, with a difference in between your capabilities and hers".
Of course my statement had assumed Kushida had indeed betrayed us, in the case that this is not true, that statement won't hold true. Ryuuen or Katsuragi, I don't know which but with a more powerful force, an outcome to force everyone of the (Dragon) group to bow down had been taken. Even in that case, the fact that Horikita had been outsmarted does not change.
"You had the "target" in your class. And so you were so confident of your victory that you did not take any further actions. If so, the responsibility for that lies with the people on the same team. If you're aiming for Class A, you need to be able to manage at least that" I told Horikita.
".....you're saying some difficult things".
"I understand your feelings of frustration. But even so, this is the path you chose. And besides, you've matured even more than before. Even if I said the same thing to you when we first met you absolutely wouldn't have even heard me out" I continued.
That's right. Slowly but steadily, Horikita's mindset is slowly beginning to develop into that of an adult.
Unlike when we first met, she's becoming a girl who does not reject everything.
"I get it already. I'll accept the results of the exam. I confess I was thinking too optimistically. But right now the important thing, in any case, is to get this arm free".
That's correct, this seems like a situation where some professor somewhere would say that while nodding.
"I'll try relying on Sakura a bit" I said.
Since it's getting late, rather than calling her I decided to use the chat to call out to her.
"Sakura, I think you're also aware of the water outage problem. But I'm out of drinking water in my room and I'm in a bit of a bind. The vending machine's also all sold out, if you're fine with it would you share some water with me?".
I waited a while after having sent the message but there were no signs of it being read.
"This is no good. Maybe she's asleep but it doesn't seem like she's noticed".
"Honestly, we're completely out of luck today...".
"You want to take it off right now don't you?".
"If I wanted to wait another day in this state I wouldn't have even called you".
I suppose that's true. She probably wants to get it off as quickly as possible.
"If so, that means you also have no choice but to take suitable risks too".
".....suitable?".
While on guard, she asks that. Horikita too, most likely, also understands this in her head.
"We'll leave this room and go to Keyaki Mall where we can utilize water. There's no other way" I said.
"So it's going to be like that in the end.....".
She put her hands on her forehead, but it doesn't matter which gesture she makes right now, it ends up looking ridiculous.
"Right now this period is mostly used for eating meals, taking a bath and other various things so it's our chance".
As a matter of fact, before I came to this room, before I went down to the cafeteria, I did not encounter a single classmate of ours. If she cannot hold on until 12 o'clock there's no other choice but to take this much risk at least.
"I can't take this risk. Can't you ask your friends?".
"Unfortunately that's impossible today, it seems they've promised to go out together to the karaoke. They're not here".
"Honestly. I don't mean to repeat myself any more than this, but what a day...".
"Let's go now so we can end this in a poof".
"W-wait. I really can't go outside like this".
"Then do you want to hide your hand with something? It's already hidden by a water bottle though".
"That kind of joke is unnecessary".
"I-I get it. I'll apologize so put down that hand you're raising".
Since she moved to hit me again, I panicked and quickly took my distance.
"Do you have anything like a cloth?".
"Cloth....? If it's a handkerchief". Saying that, Horikita brought out a white handkerchief from a shelf.
As I took it from her, I covered it from above Horikita's water bottle.
"...putting it bluntly this is suspicious. More than that, I feel the length of it isn't enough". Although most of it is covered, it's still meaningless if the tip of the bottle is peeking out.
"Do you have anything bigger?".
"If it has to be something bigger, it'll have to be a bath towel......". This time she brings out a bath towel. I placed it on the arm with the water bottle.
"Well if it's this it should be.....". It's just, it'll be a mystery as to why she's walking outside with a bath towel in hand.
In a sense, it would be a lot more conspicuous than simply having an arm trapped inside a water bottle.
"It's a little unstable, if I walk the bath towel will fall off".
"Shouldn't it be fine if you hold it down with the other hand?".
Having folded the bath towel, she gave off an image as though she were about to enter the bath. If it's like this, yeah, it looks a lot better.
"If a third party were to see my situation, what kind of impression would they have?".
"Let's see...".
Firstly as a premise, nobody would walk around in the dormitories with a bath towel nor would they go outside. Naturally one would wonder. And then if I were to stand beside her, it would be an even greater mystery.
"Depending on the situation.....I wonder. For instance, maybe they might think you borrowing the bathtub in my room".
That might be too much of a leap but since I myself saw it that way, I said that.
"Rejected". She removes the bath towel and refuses. I too don't want to be caught up with that kind of suspicious doubt.
"How about walking while putting your hands inside your bag?".
"I don't even want to imagine that. Rejected. Can you think of a slightly better idea?"
Even though we're in a pinch she's still first-class when it comes to complaining.
"If that's the case let's just go like this? It'll be light and there won't be anything to fall off like a towel or a handkerchief".
".....let's see". Rather than wasting time thinking up this and that it's better to simply act.
Dragging along a slightly hesitant Horikita with me, I stepped out into the corridor.
"Ok, there aren't any signs of people around. Let's go".
"W-wait a minute. I haven't put on my shoes properly yet". Since she could only use one hand that's taking up a lot of time as well. After having spent some time, the two of us head into the corridor.
"There's a faucet on the road to school, isn't there? If we can make it there it should be alright".
If we walk at a normal pace, we should arrive there in 5 minutes.
Since the situation is the situation, it may take twice as long as that but as long as we can leave the dormitory, under the cover of darkness it would be fine. We made it to the front of the elevator. Since both elevators weren't moving, it would be impossible to get on them as well.
"It's useless, Ayanokouji-kun. We can't use the elevator".
"What?".
"There's a surveillance monitor in the lobby on the 1st floor right? I don't know who's seeing it".
Indeed on the 1st floor, the footage captured by the surveillance camera inside the elevator is being displayed on a monitor. Horikita is concerned about being seen on it.
Even if she can poorly hide her arm in front of the camera, she won't be able to avoid giving them a mysterious footage.
"Then do you want to use the stairs?".
If we're to descend from this point, it would take quite a bit of time. And the fact that one of her hands is unusable makes it a little dangerous.
"Rather than letting anyone see this clumsy figure of mine, I'd rather choose the stairs" Horikita said.
After weighing struggles and danger on a scale against her pride. Horikita chose pride.
There are two emergency staircases, each one located equidistantly from the elevator. No matter which one we use, we'll have to go past the doors of the student rooms again, it can't be helped.
Bringing along a Horikita who seemed to be hiding behind my back while walking, we headed towards the staircase. Along the way, if I had to borrow Horikita's words "what a day". In other words, it's an unlucky day. I heard the doors to the room of an unknown student opening. About three rooms back from where we were standing.
"T-this is bad. That's Maezono-san's room".
Maezono of Class D, huh? No doubt one of the people Horikita does not wish to encounter right now. But there's no room for escape.
But from the door that was slowly opening, it wasn't Maezono that came out, but her friend Kushida. I wondered if this was yet another unexpected incident for Horikita.
"Thank you Kushida-san. I'll repay the favor next time".
"No, it's ok. Don't mind it. Good night Maezono-san".
It seems she came to play in Maezono's room. Perhaps Maezono meant to see her off from inside, but I couldn't see her face. As the door closed, Kushida, without realizing the presence of me and Horikita, headed towards the elevator.
"That was dangerous..."
"Right".
If she had only looked back, Kushida would have noticed our presence. Uncomfortable sweat starts to form. In any case, this place is too conspicuous. We have to head out through the emergency exits as quickly as possible.
But as we took the next step, Maezono's room's door opened again.
"Kushida-san. You forgot something, you forgot something!".
Saying that Maezono came outside. Naturally, Kushida turned around.
"Hmm, Ayanokouji-kun and Horikita-san. Good evening".
"Y, yeah".
There was a brief exchange of words but it seems firstly she'll be checking what she forgot. Kushida heads towards Maezono.
And of course, Maezono also inevitably notices us. Horikita turns rigid. Receiving both Kushida and Maezono's gaze, she becomes unable to move.
"You forgot your phone".
"Ahh, sorry. Thank you. That saved me---".
"Let's go Ayanokouji-kun. There's no need to stay here for long".
Saying that now while Kushida's attention is focused on her forgotten belonging, this is the chance, she uses the tip of the water bottle to push my back. I suppose if this form of hers is seen, Horikita's pride would be torn to shreds.
While being pushed, I reached the emergency exit and attempt to open the door.
However---
"It won't open.....".
"It's a joke, right? There's no way an emergency exit won't open".
"No, it seriously won't open".
Locking an emergency exit is normally prohibited so this is probably---
"Where are the two of you going?".
Perhaps she was curious about the two of us attempting to leave through the emergency exit, Kushida, having finished her business with Maezono, approached us.
"That's, no. We were just thinking about going down using the stairs".
That was a reason I didn't understand well, but there was nothing else I could have answered with except that.
"If I remember, the east staircase's power is cut right now so you won't be able to use it. It would be dangerous in the dark. I think the west one would be usuable?".
"I see. So that's how it is". Horikita, without attempting to call out to Kushida, was simply hiding behind my back.
"Horikita-san feels different than usual, did something happen?".
Kushida called out to her like that. On top of that it was past her own room. It seems she's intending to come all the way in front of us. Perhaps Kushida's actions were also conveyed to Horikita, she answered with a slightly loud voice.
"There's nothing wrong in particular".
Those words of Horikita included a wish to make her stop coming. Perhaps they were conveyed, but Kushida stopped.
"I see. If there's anything troubling you, please tell me. Earlier, Maezono-san also seemed to be troubled because of the water outage and so she wasn't able to use the water. I have more than enough water".
Right now it seems the Kushida in front of us has something Horikita wants more than anything.
If she chooses to ask now, she would be able to get her hands on it easily but---
Using the tip of the water bottle like the muzzle of a gun, she presses it against my back.
By that, she probably means she wouldn't forgive me if I relied on Kushida.
"Then Horikita-san, Ayanokouji-kun. Good night, both of you".
"Ohh, good night".
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