Starting in class C: not completely defective.

Arc 3 chapter 1: a wild Kouenji appeared.

It turned out I was sharing a cabin with a member of the Kushida gang: Kanzaki Ryuuji. The moment I entered the cabin, we locked eyes. We agreed silently to call a truce, as Hirata was also here. It seemed I may have to sleep with one eye open.

It'd been two days since the end of the special test on the island. No other exciting event had occurred aboard the luxurious cruise ship that ANHS had provided for us, and we were enjoying the respite.
It went without saying that time spent on a deserted island bad caused a bunch of young, rambunctious students like us to lose our minds. We, the guys, we're basically beasts-sex-starved carnivores. It'd been more than a week since I'd seen Fuka, and even I was starting to feel the pain now. While we watched the girls chattering and dilly-dallying like herbivores, the boys waited for an opening like the predators we are.

(A/N taken straight from the ln. Author-san did not make this up, except for the queen Fuka part. This is an incredibly creepy paragraph.)

This luxury cruise ship, equipped with everything, felt like a dream come true. This trip let us forget everything unpleasant. It wouldn't have been strange for two people to fall in love here. Rumour had it that many couples had come together on this trip.

I just wish I could improve my relationship with Fuka 😞.

Despite everyone's outward calm, we maintained a sense of readiness. People who know how to relax can be effective.
"Hmm? You haven't been in the room all this time, have you?"
Hirata Yousuke, one of my cabin roommates, and a member of class 1-D, shook me from my reverie while I gazed at the sea. "I don't really have any reason to go out." I said
"That's not true, though. I mean, you have your friends in class C, right?"
He was right, I had Ryuuen, Shiina and Ibuki. But I just didn't feel like going out.
"You might make more friends if you were a little more proactive, Ayanokouji-kun. Though I suppose it's none of my business."
Hirata was very popular and admired by many students. All the girls adored him, and he had a girlfriend named Karuizawa. A man with so much happiness probably couldn't understand the pangs of loneliness.
"You're a solid guy, Ayanokouji-kun. I think you might just need the right opportunity."
Jeez man, I do have friends, you know. I didn't need such kind-hearted yet cruel words. I got up and left the cabin. I was going to hang out with Ryuuen.

Many of our classmates appeared to be enjoying summer vacation to its fullest. Both guys and girls could be seen in the pool in their bathing suits, boldly frisking around. The heavy, fraught mood that weighed on us during the test had lifted.
This display of wanton indulgence came from the students' liberated desires, which had been suppressed back on the island. We didn't need to use points for any of the facilities on the ship, or for food and drinks. Everything was free of charge. No one had to restrain themselves. You needed to borrow things like swimsuits and other equipment, but that was about it. It was heaven.
By the time I reached the restaurant where Ryuuen said he was, over half the seats had already been taken. Ryuuen saw me, and waved me over. I slipped past the crowd and sat in the empty seat the group saved for me. We all said our greetings.
"Right, down to business then. How are your roommates?" Ryuuen asked. He was teamed up with both Kitou and Kouenji in his group, both of whom were members of Kushida's group.
"Kanzaki hasn't done anything yet." I answered. Aside from Hirata, my only other roommate was Katsuragi, who was amicable enough.
"Hashimoto doesn't seem to have been ordered to do anything by Sakayanagi.." Kaneda said. Hashimoto was dangerous. You never knew where his loyalties lied.
"Nothing to report." Albert confirmed. He was bunked up with Sudou from class D. Although he wasn't officially part of their group, Kushida could still manipulate him.
"Same here." Ibuki said alongside Albert. That was surprising. Ibuki was in the same room as Masumi Kamuro, Ichinose Honami, and Horikita, who were 3 figures involved in the interclass struggle. Masumi was Sakayanagi's lacky, but Ichinose and Horikita hadn't picked a side. Both of them were adverse to the violence between the groups.
"Kushida hasn't said anything to me yet, but I think I caught her looking at me once." Shiina said. She had the most dangerous roommate possible: Kikyou Kushida, the devil herself. We had a system in place in case Kushida attacked Shiina. At all times, at least one of us was on call with her. Shiina was at more risk than the rest of us in a physical fight, and Kushida was the most likely to try and go for the kill. Well, Kaneda was just as at risk, but he didn't really matter. Besides, he didn't really have anyone dangerous in his room, unlike Shiina.
"Good. Anyway, let's eat." Ryuuen praised our findings.

After that, I decided to return to my room. I took the stairs rather than the elevator, and returned to my room on the third deck. When I got there, I noticed some wet blotches scattered about the hallway floor. The blotches appeared to head towards the room across the hall from mine, which was Ryuuen's room. When I followed the trail, I discovered a wild Kouenji striding through the corridor, nude from the waist up, wearing nothing but a bathing suit.
"S-sir! Please don't walk through the hallway while you're still dripping wet!"
A young bellhop hurried towards Kouenji, apparently eager to control this emergency situation. The bellhop was already holding out a towel, overly prepared, like he always walked around with a strategic towel.
"Ha ha ha! It appears you've found me, eh?" Kouenji said.
"Yes, I've found you. This is the fourth time. I've already told you, please dry yourself off after you leave the pool. If you don't, you'll disturb the other passengers."
Apparently, this man was a repeat offender. That explained the bellhop's prepared towels.
"Disturb? But I've no memory of disturbing anyone. I don't dry myself off with a towel on principle ever since reaching the age of reason. Haven't I already said? 'A fine man, dripping with water,' hmm?"
He slicked back his wet hair, scattering droplets of water. The bellhop hurriedly used the towel to dry the spots on the carpet and wall. Kouenji stopped. I wondered if he found the bellhop's flustered behaviour amusing.
"Do you have a pen and paper on hand?" He asked.
"Huh? A, uh, oh...due to the nature of my job, I do walk around with a notepad and pen, but..." the bellhop, clearly unsure where the conversation was headed, fearfully took out a ballpoint pen.
"Did you know that a prominent celebrity's signature can accrue an unexpectedly premium value over time? Aboard, some autographs are valued in the millions to even the tens of millions."
"And...what of it?"
After Kouenji had finished scribbling something on the notepad, he thrust it back at the bellhop. It was far away, but I was able to make out the name "Kouenji Rokusuke."
"Wh-what is this?"
"Isn't it obvious. A signature. Even though it's written on such a cheap notepad, it will certainly hold tremendous value in the future. I'm presenting this to you as a token for your troubles. Please receive it gratefully and safeguard it."
Apparently Kouenji believed the bellhop would receive this with gratitude, or perhaps a sense of awe-inspired devotion. But no one in their right mind would want this. If anything, his ballpoint pen and notepad were worth more.
"Please don't look so suspicious. I am the man who will carry Japan's future on his back. At that point, I intend to vacation upon a significantly larger ship, but I'm prepared to wait until then. Of course, it will be a luxury liner of significantly higher quality than the common ship upon which we are now riding."
Well, a luxury liner was still a luxury liner. Personally, I'd be satisfied as long as it wasn't fated to sink like the Titanic. Kouenji guffawed, seemingly satisfied. The bellhop, completely dumbstruck, continued staring at the wet spots on the floor. He had completely lost the will to keep trying to stop this man.
Such a shame. Kouenji was almost a match for me, yet he was still ever so flawed.

Unknown pov
I sat in my room.
It's funny, you know? How bored someone can be, even though they have so many 'friends'.
Just then, my roommate came in.
"Oh, hello Shiina-san." I said, putting on my false exterior.
"A-ah, hello Kushida-san. I was just about to go to sleep, I hope I didn't wake you?" She asked. God, she was so fucking nice. I hated that.
"Oh, no don't worry, it won't be some time till I fall asleep myself, if I'm honest." I said.
"O-oh, that's good then. Anyway, goodnight, Kushida." She laid down on her bed.
"Yes, goodnight, Shiina-san." I stepped towards her. I let the cheery façade drop.
"Sleep tight, Shiina-san." I placed my hand on her cheek and loomed over her.
"Don't let the class D girl bite, Shiina-san." I said. I could see myself reflected in her eyes, my face only a few centimetres away from hers. God, I looked almost exactly like Ayanokouji.
I could see tears forming in Shiina's eyes, out of pure fright and terror.
"BOO." I suddenly jumped. Shiina spasmed, and then I think she must have fainted.
Aww, poor thing.
Just then, I saw a text come from the group chat. It simply said "tonight".
I smiled. Now, it was time to have some fun.

Authors notes
1648 words
Eek, poor Shiina 😖😱😥.
This chapter was mainly dominated by Kouenji, and it was just a refresher on who was teamed up with who in the cabins.
Not much else to say really
Hope you're all doing well and I hope you enjoyed.