I have a life simulator.

Yukimura Teruhiko of Sudo Ken's group couldn't help but sigh.

Delicious food can make people feel happy, and the other girls nodded in agreement.

Including the Kitagawa Ryo group and the Amasawa Ichika group that were already here, there are now five groups of seventeen people from Class D gathered here, which is almost half of the entire Class D.

After grilling the last batch of skewers, Kitagawa Ryo went over to try the stew. Finding that it would take a little longer, he also took the time to fry some tempura. Although he was busy by himself the whole time, he managed to keep the dishes on the table running non-stop.

After placing the enormous pot of pork and beef stew on the table, Kitagawa Ryo finally found a seat, took the rice that Ichinose Honami had saved for him, and began to eat.

"Everyone has been exhausted these past few days, and that's when you realize that having a good meal is more important than anything else."

"Yes, this is the first time I've had such a sumptuous meal since arriving on the island."

Matsushita Chiaki nodded, and the others echoed her sentiments, all complaining about this special exam on the deserted island.

A student life without criticizing the school and teachers together is not a complete student life. Shared topics and food quickly brought the students together.

"Six months ago, I really wouldn't have imagined that my high school exams would be on a deserted island."

Yukimura Teruhiko took a sip of soup and said.

"Back then, I thought that all I had to do here was study hard, just like I did in junior high school, but it seems that's not the case."

Miyake Akito took over Yukimura's speech, shook his head, and said:

"But without Yukimura, our team wouldn't have achieved such good results by now."

Albert Yamada and Kenya Sudo nodded in agreement. Due to Ryo Kitagawa's group's decline, their group is now the best performing group in Class D, and they have risen to fifth place in the rankings.

"Actually, when I first found out that I was assigned to Class D, I couldn't help but get angry at myself, but I gradually accepted it after the midterm exams."

Yukimura Teruhiko gave a wry smile:

"Moreover, Mr. Majima, the homeroom teacher, also talked to me. He is a very good person."

"really."

Matsushita Chiaki nodded in affirmation:

"Although it's a bit apologetic to say this, after several students dropped out of school during the midterm exams, I could feel that the atmosphere in the class had improved."

"The final exams went smoothly, and no one dropped out."

"I hope the test on the deserted island will be the same."

Honami Ichinose also chimed in at the opportune moment:

"Certainly possible."

"After all, everyone is working hard, not just Sudo's team, but also Matsushita and Hasebe's team."

Actually, the boys and girls in Class 1D have never really gotten along. This was evident from the group assignments on the deserted island. Apart from Kitagawa Ryo's group, the other groups were either all boys or all girls.

Even if they meet during an exam, they generally won't have a meal together or go camping together.

But Kitagawa Ryo's group is the perfect glue. Kitagawa Ryo himself gets along well with Sudo Yamada among the boys, and Ichinose Honami is the core among the girls.

Therefore, this seemingly simple gathering was actually quite unusual; if it weren't for the Kitagawa Ryo group, the students here would probably find it difficult to get together like this for a meal and a chat.

"When the activity area shrinks further and it's easier for people to gather, I'll invite the rest of the class for a bigger get-together. Hmm, how about we invite Mr. Majima too?"

Kitagawa Ryo offered his suggestion with a smile.

He's really not worried about not getting enough points now.

Kitagawa Ryo's original [Discount] card was at level six, but it suddenly leveled up two levels just now. One level came from Amasawa Ichika, and the other level, if Kitagawa Ryo guessed correctly, should come from Ryuen Sho.

After all, he had just met Karuizawa Megumi that morning, and if Shiina Hiyori got an upgrade opportunity, she would definitely call him. This clean and efficient transfer was exactly Ryuen's style, and it was also in line with the contract they reached last night.

Thinking about it this way, the holders of the four special cards in this special exam on the deserted island were actually all working for him.

Kitagawa Ryo's words were unanimously approved by the students present, after all, having tasted his cooking, they were already looking forward to their next meal.

"Speaking of which, Mr. Majima's lunch today might not have been better than ours."

Someone said that, which drew another burst of laughter.

The fact that Class 1-D has managed to stay together until now is largely due to the significant role played by Tomoya Mashima, whose dedication is evident to everyone.

The meal quickly came to an end amidst everyone's satisfaction and praise, but the students, full and content, remained seated or lying down, gazing at the azure sky and chatting idly.

"If I didn't have to look for research topics this afternoon, I would really think I was on vacation."

Under the sunlight, Ken Sudo rubbed his belly and spat out the grass he had been holding in his mouth.

"Then let's treat this as a vacation."

Kitagawa Ryo gestured with his lips towards the sea:

"I was riding a jet ski there this morning."

"Brilliant."

Takeshi Sudo's words were concise and to the point.

"Qicheng, how are you? How's your physical strength?"

"It's alright, after all, we can't keep holding others back."

Yukimura Teruhiko also rested quietly to recover his strength.

Why is the name Qicheng?

Kitagawa Ryo noticed this detail and asked with great interest.

"It's not something that can't be said."

Yukimura Teruhiko shook his head and repeated what he had said to the other members of Sudo's group in the tent the night before last:

“My current name was given to me by my mother, but she abandoned our family and left when I was very young, so I prefer the name my father gave me, ‘Qicheng’.”

"I see."

Kitagawa Ryo nodded, his attitude somewhat indifferent.

However, Yukimura Teruhiko didn't think there was anything wrong with it, because Kitagawa Ryo's family situation had been edited into the encyclopedia from the beginning, and he had also read the entry for this former famous theater actor in his class.

"So, is Qicheng's love of learning also due to his family's influence?"

But Kitagawa Ryo suddenly asked another question.

"Hmm? You could say that."

Yukimura Teruhiko paused for a moment before answering:

"I'm not good at sports; I always come in last place in any sport."

"So my family hoped that I could play to my strengths and avoid my weaknesses, but after I got here I realized that I seem to be only good at studying. Even without mentioning sports, I have difficulty with basic social skills and I don't know how to speak in a pleasing way."

"But it's okay, we can take it slow."

Yukimura Teruhiko pursed his lips and said:

"After I graduate from here and become an adult, I will officially change my name to Qicheng, the name my father originally intended to give me, and then become a teacher or something like that."

He also possessed a familiar stubbornness.

"I wish you success."

Kitagawa Ryo patted Yukimura on the shoulder.

He couldn't glean more specific details about the other person's family from their few words, so he refrained from making any unfounded comments.

"Ha, me too."

Upon hearing this, Sudo Ken lowered his eyes and spoke.

“My mom left a long time ago, and my dad raised me. I used to hate him because he always acted like he didn’t care about anything, because he never really cared about me except for the most basic things.”

"So at that time I always thought, if you don't intend to raise me properly, you shouldn't have given birth to me in the first place. So I started hoping to get rid of this family and practiced basketball desperately. But because of my temper, I got into trouble, and the sports recommendation I received because of basketball was canceled."

"But by then, he didn't show any sign of being angry."

“It’s like my affairs have nothing to do with him.”

"What I care about, what I suffer from, what I yearn for, has never been seen."

For the students assigned to Class D, a significant number of them had some issues related to their families of origin. After Sudo Ken finished speaking, the girls also began to talk about their own experiences.

Only Chiaki Matsushita seemed somewhat confused.

Kitagawa Ryo listened quietly to everyone's story.

He finally understood a little about Honami Ichinose's personality.

If I had to summarize it in one sentence, it would be:

Most parents mean well for their children, but the word "well" is misused.

It was also defined by them.

Chapter 160: The Most Joyful Topic

Happy times are always short-lived. After a meal and chat that resembled a spring outing, the five groups in Class 1D still had to face the reality of a special exam that afternoon.

With a touch of reluctance, they bid each other farewell, and the five groups dispersed again, each plunging into the surrounding dense jungle.

A new round of challenges began to refresh on the map, and the class and group rankings were changing every moment, either in numbers or in rank. Unlike the group rankings, which fluctuated wildly with each update, the class rankings had remained unchanged since the first day on the island.

A, B, C, D.

As if to verify how reasonable the school's class division was, the total scores of the four classes were ranked in a straight line according to the class rankings. However, upon closer inspection, it can be found that the four classes were roughly divided into three levels.

Class A is in the first tier, Classes B and C are in the second tier, and Class D is in the last tier.

There is a significant difference in scores between AB and CD, which is due to both the overall abilities of the students in the class and the inherent disadvantages of class D.

While elite teams can compete with top-ranked classes in group rankings, Class D, with six fewer members, has never been able to compete with the other three classes in class rankings from the start. After all, apart from Long Yuanxiang, who is an anomaly with zero points, even the second-to-last group can provide their class with over a thousand points.

However, reducing the number of students also has its advantages. In fact, apart from Long Yuanxiang firmly occupying the last place, among the three groups that will deduct class points from the second to the fourth to last place, Class D only occupies one spot, while the other two are groups from Class C. The lower limit of the class has been visibly raised.

However, with Kitagawa Ryo's group putting up such a strong play and spending points inexplicably, Class D's ceiling can only be temporarily held up by Sudo's group, which is currently in fifth place. But if they can't get into the top three, there's no difference between fourth, fifth, or even eleventh place, as they won't get any class points bonus at all.

Given that class rankings are unlikely to change significantly in the short term, the point rewards for the top three classes in each group naturally become the primary target for classes in the lower ranks.

Kitagawa Ryo didn't think it would be difficult for his group to get into the top three, but he also promised Ryuen Sho that he would help Shiina Hiyori's group get into the top three. This was the basic condition of his contract with Ryuen Sho, and it was also the most difficult step in this exam.

Whether it's Katsuragi Kohei's group from Class A or Karuizawa Megumi's group from Class B who have the "Reinforcement" card, they are both strong contenders for the top three spots, not to mention Ayanokoji Kiyotaka who is acting alone.

Kitagawa Ryo squinted and opened the group ranking list again. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's group was ranked fifteenth, a ranking that didn't seem particularly high.

However, he was in a solo team after all, and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's group ranking had actually been rising steadily since the deserted island exam.

Kitagawa Ryo paid close attention to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's ranking changes, so he remembered them quite clearly.

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji ranked 29th in his group on the first day, 21st on the second day, 18th on the third day, and now it's noon on the fourth day, and he has moved up to 15th.

Most importantly, Kitagawa Ryo still doesn't know which card Ayanokouji Kiyotaka received, or whether it's the same "discount" card as him.

This is definitely the card among the four common cards that has the greatest potential to change the entire exam situation. Although, by analogy with the [Discount] card, the [Supply] card would also be quite good if its level increased, the [Discount] card is several levels more versatile than a simple food supply card.

I wish I could witness Ayanokoji Kiyotaka exchanging supplies in person.

Kitagawa Ryo had already memorized the prices of all the items in the exchange manual. When the time came, he only needed to see the items that Ayanokouji Kiyotaka exchanged, and combined with the instantaneous change in the other party's score, he could deduce whether there was a discount based on how much the price dropped, and if so, how much the discount was.

Just as Kitagawa Ryo was thinking about whether he could bump into Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly spoke up with some interest:

"This topic looks quite interesting."

Horikita Suzune and the others also curiously gathered around, and Ichinose Honami read out the topic word by word.

[Type: Other]

[Topic: Brain Teasers and Riddles]

There is no limit to the number of participants in each group. Registration will close one hour after the number of participants reaches twenty or a new topic is announced.

The project consists of two rounds. In the first round, all participating students will answer ten riddles provided by the school. Those who answer all the riddles correctly within the allotted time will advance to the second round.

In the second round, the school will pair up the participating students by drawing lots. Each student will receive ten brain teasers and must choose one that they believe their partner cannot answer. If both students answer all the questions correctly or both fail, the process will be repeated until a winner is determined and the top three will be selected.

[First Place: 1600 points, 2L of drinking water]

[Second Place: 1200 points, 1.5L of drinking water]

Third place: 800 points, 1L of drinking water