COTE : There is Something Wrong With Hikigaya-Chapter 173: The Insider

Ishizaki's warning—or rather, Ryuen's warning—was a classic case of saying one thing while doing another. It was almost ridiculous, but that was just how Ryuen operated. He loved using obvious traps to deceive people.

Hikigaya was just about to respond, but Hiyori spoke first, looking annoyed as she stared at Ishizaki.

"Ishizaki, who I choose to be friends with is none of Ryuen's business. I've told you that plenty of times already!"

"Uh, well, Shiina, I..."

Ishizaki looked awkward. He was only following orders.

Unlike the other girls in class who could be easily intimidated, Hiyori was different. She was someone who would actually fight back.

He still remembered what happened during the midterms—how that night, they had cornered Hikigaya in an alley, only for Hiyori to catch them in the act. The very next day, she had stormed into class and confronted Ryuen in front of everyone.

She wasn't scared of Ryuen's threats at all and wasn't afraid to confront him head-on. She was the type of girl who wouldn't give in to force but would respond to kindness.

And when it came to things like midterms or finals study sessions, Hiyori was always the one who took the initiative to help students like Ishizaki, who struggled academically and were often looked down upon. Although many, including Ishizaki, had complained about it before, deep down, they were all grateful for her help.

At least to Ishizaki, Hiyori was just as important as Ryuen. She wasn't like those girls in class who only knew how to form cliques.

As for Hikigaya, standing in front of him—honestly, if Ryuen hadn't forced Ishizaki to come here, he would've never wanted to deal with this dead-fish-eyed guy. He was afraid he'd fall into another trap without even realizing it.

The last surveillance incident was still fresh in his memory.

"Hiyori, I just came to check things out, so I can understand Ishizaki's reaction."

Hikigaya quickly spoke to ease the tension. He didn't want Hiyori to face trouble in class because of him, and stopping other classes from gathering intel was a common tactic in this exam.

After some back-and-forth, Hiyori's anger finally eased a bit, though she still seemed a little annoyed.

"Besides, all these supplies were bought with your Class C points, so I can't just use them freely."

Hikigaya glanced meaningfully at Ryuen in the distance.

"Alright."

But Hiyori didn't seem to catch the deeper meaning behind Hikigaya's words. She simply thought he didn't want to take advantage of Class C to avoid gossip.

"Then how about we take a walk by the beach?"

She pointed toward a quieter, more secluded part of the shore. "I barely saw you at the library last month. I already finished the book we exchanged, but I never got the chance to talk to you about it."

Last month, aside from the surveillance incident, Hikigaya had been swamped with club activities. He barely had time for the library, and he often returned to the dorm late at night. It was true that he hadn't seen much of Hiyori lately.

"I'm a Class C student too, so I know what I can and can't say. Just tell Ryuen that I can handle myself. That should be enough for you, right?"

Hiyori suddenly turned to Ishizaki, as if she had thought of something. Ishizaki just grinned awkwardly, clearly unwilling to offend either side.

After that, Hikigaya and Hiyori walked toward the quiet beach, while Ishizaki reported back to Ryuen. Ryuen only snorted in response, making no other moves.

Not long after, Horikita, Ayanokouji, and the others arrived at the beach. Seeing the absurd scene in front of them, their faces were filled with shock and confusion. It wasn't just Class D—Ichinose and Kanzaki from Class B also seemed to be trailing behind, apparently investigating Class C's situation.

News of Class C's extravagant fun quickly spread across the entire grade. Class D students, in particular, couldn't help but feel envious despite their mocking remarks.

The school had called this a "tropical island vacation," but in reality, it had turned into a survival challenge. At first, everyone was struggling together, so it didn't feel unfair. But now that Class C was suddenly living it up, many students in Class D felt bitter about it.

So, when Hikigaya returned to camp, he saw Ike and Yamauchi, the two class clowns, constantly complaining and mocking Class C.

"Hikigaya-kun, a girl asked me to give this to you."

Sakura approached him and handed over a note. According to her, earlier in the morning when most people were out, only a few girls were guarding the camp. That was when a purple-haired girl from Class A had come over and given her the note, asking her to pass it to Hikigaya.

A girl from Class A? With purple hair?

A familiar face popped into Hikigaya's mind—the girl who always wore an unimpressed expression.

Kamuro?

He opened the note. It was filled with a string of numbers and symbols that made no sense at first glance. But Hikigaya immediately recognized what it was.

"A Morse code cipher?"

He recalled the decryption pattern and quickly decoded it. It was a set of coordinates and a meeting time.

What was this, some kind of secret spy rendezvous?

Hikigaya sighed but still decided to go to the meeting spot in the afternoon. The location was a hidden area near the river, surrounded by bushes. As soon as he arrived, a voice spoke from behind him.

"I was worried you wouldn't be able to crack the message."

Kamuro, dressed in sportswear, stood there with her arms crossed, looking rather pleased.

"I'll just ask—what do you want, Kamuro?"

"What do I want? Shouldn't you already know?"

Kamuro frowned and walked up to Hikigaya. "Didn't Sakayanagi tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Huh?"

Kamuro's eyes widened, and then, as if realizing something, she gritted her teeth. "Damn it! Sakayanagi must've done this on purpose!"

"Anyway, until this special exam is over, I'll be feeding you information about Katsuragi. Got it?" ƒгeewebnovёl.com

It was obvious Kamuro was venting her frustration with Sakayanagi on Hikigaya, judging by her sharp tone and attitude.

"So Sakayanagi sent you in as an informant, huh?"

Hikigaya had a strange look on his face. He didn't expect that little troublemaker Sakayanagi to be this thoughtful—sending her own subordinate to act as a mole. Was she that determined to crush Katsuragi?

Now that he thought about it, Katsuragi really was in a miserable situation. He was caught in a pincer attack—having to deal with both external threats and internal conflicts. No wonder he always had that serious expression on his face.

"Alright, from now on, this spot at this time will be our meeting place. If I can't make it, I'll leave a sign in advance."

Kamuro reminded him.

"Also, there's something important I need to tell you. Ryuen from Class C sold Katsuragi supplies worth 200 points..."

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