Stealing Spree

Having traversed the same path twice already, I didn’t have any difficulties going through it anymore. After a few minutes of walking, I emerged from the straight path through the woods. Upon making sure that no one was around, I turned to the direction where Shiina should be waiting.

No surprises were waiting for me there. As I passed the curve that would lead me straight to their cabin area, the figure of the young woman waiting there appeared in my vision almost instantly.

Likewise, she also spotted me without any difficulty. She’s probably staking out here for me.

Shiina waved excitedly as she waited for me to close our distance. She’s still wearing the same attire as earlier. There’s nothing sexy about it but her posture suggested otherwise. I don’t know if that’s intentional or not. Maybe this is her way of welcoming me?

Uh. Let’s not assume that.

“It’s great seeing you, young man. Did you bring it with you?”

Sporting a wide, pleasant grin on her lips, the woman hollered me over before she edged closer to whisper that last part.

It sounded shady, didn't it?

“... Sure. Here it is. But that sounds like we’re trading something illegal.” I pulled the pouch from my pocket and placed it on her opened palm.

“Pfft. No worries. This isn’t something illegal.”

She clutched it firmly before giddily returning to her previous spot. With her eyes showing a glint of her satisfaction and thorough amusement, she lifted the pouch, opened it, and pulled out a folded piece of paper in it. It was folded multiple times despite the size of the pouch, I couldn’t feel it because of the cushion.

I honored Sawano’s reminder not to look inside it so... my eyes were peeled to sate my curiosity.

“What do you think this is? Care to guess, Onoda-kun?” Shiina asked as she started unraveling the folded paper.

I played along with her and put out my wildest guess using a sarcastic tone and monotonous voice

“Did he seriously write a love letter to you, Shiina-san? Wow.”

“Yeah. Right. I’m that cruel to ask him to deliver his love letter using you as the courier...” Shiina said, holding back her laughter, “... Of course not! Geez. Onoda-kun, I told you to guess, not to exaggerate it. Here. I’m sure you’re curious about this.”

After reading its content only once, she handed the paper to me to check it out.

I naturally didn’t act reserved and looked at it properly. It was clearly handwritten and the structure of the sentences felt more like an actual report of a subordinate to his superior. So, that’s really their relationship, huh?

Well, that’s not enough to prove it. Besides, asking this woman would be more reliable.

“Wait. What’s this for?” I asked after handing it back to her. I’ve also only needed to read it once to properly understand it. It’s just Sawano talking about our activities. He pointed out those excelling in it and those who were a little problematic. It probably covers a wide range of criteria to be put on that problematic list and they’re all based on Sawano’s judgement.

I even saw my name listed in it with a small note saying, ‘A peculiar boy. His group seems disconcerted. They’re cooperating but there’s no camaraderie being built between them. They’re going separate ways as soon as they finish their tasks.’

Looks like he’s diligent in observing us as it’s quite accurate. Fukuda was also listed on it, after all. He noted that the guy was always going off on his own and only returning before the next task.

As for those excelling in this camp, Kobayashi, Shirai, and even Sakuma were listed in it.

Well, I couldn’t care less if I was deemed problematic. It’s not going to be used to evaluate us anyway. Otherwise, he would’ve sent it to the Dean or the professors instead of Shiina.

But then again, this is Shiina we are talking about. I cannot deny her influence in this camp. Her identity should truly be special or at least, she’s not just an ordinary camp manager like the others.

“You’re curious, huh? Don’t worry. It’s not going to matter even if you’re listed in it. I asked him to take note of the boys’ behavior. Later, I’ll also have you deliver a list to him. You see, we’re both appointed to lead this camp. Tomorrow there’s going to be a joint activity between boys and girls so... we’re going to pair one group with another. Instead of drawing randomly, we’ll pair you based on our judgement.” Shiina explained.

I tried deconstructing her words to check if there’s any falsehood in it but she’s possibly telling me the truth.

Then are we wrong with our assumption? No. I cannot rule that out yet. I mean, they can have a meeting to discuss this thing, right? Why use a roundabout method like this?

It doesn’t make any sense.

“Your forehead was becoming creased, Onoda-kun. Not convinced yet? What if I told you that there’s no reason for us to do this at all? I just thought I could use this to bring you to me.”

“Is that the case? Is there no other meaning behind this?”

Well, she could choose not to answer that question and I also didn’t think it was that important anymore. She’s just being resourceful, isn’t she? Or in this case, this woman was kind of putting this much effort into getting my interest.

“No. There isn’t any other meaning other than what I’ve told you. Its purpose is to bring you here. And it’s a legitimate report to prepare for tomorrow. The thing is... we can make do without doing this... I simply exploited my position and Sawano’s unconditional compliance.” Shiina’s smile deepened as she closed our distance again, “Onoda-kun, does this change your opinion of me?”

Alright. So, he’s that obedient to her, huh? It’s unconditional. Is he a simp? No. Maybe he owed her a favor? I don’t know.

“Not really, Shiina-san. Maybe I’m just overthinking this but should I take this that you’re this dedicated to getting to know me personally?”

“Yes. I’m this dedicated. Is it that bad? Are you not into assertive women?”

“No. This isn’t about being assertive or not, Shiina-san. How should I say it? This is our second meeting. You found out that I lied about my identity back then. Not to mention, you’ve become aware of my closeness to a lot of girls... I can understand being curious but shouldn’t your first reaction be something close to being repulsed? I may have shown you a gentlemanly side before for carrying Sara-san but that shouldn’t be the only reason for you to be this interested in me.”

Shiina’s expression didn’t change that much as she listened to everything said. In fact, she probably became more interested upon hearing all of that.

Most likely, she wasn’t expecting me to act like this. Or rather, she’s probably expecting someone who’s involved with a lot of girls to not question her interest in me.

Because she had no idea how we’re maintaining the complexity of our relationship, she’s possibly using the other playboys as a reference. Those guys will not question a girl that shows interest in them. As long as they fit right in their strike zone, they’ll swing their bat without hesitation.

After a few seconds of contemplation, Shiina clapped her hands once as her pleasant smile returned to her face.

Then, she closed in on me and unhesitatingly hugged my arm.

“Oh. I get it, Onoda-kun. You’re also curious about me. I like that. Allow me to answer some of your doubts... Why am I still interested in you in spite of everything I found out about you? It’s simple... Because you’re one of a kind. That’s all there is to it.”

One of a kind, huh? I can’t deny that. I’m vastly different from any other guy.

“Come on, you can ask me more questions later. But Onoda-

kun, aren’t you going to accompany me?”

Taking my silence as still being in doubt about her, Shiina pressed herself further on me before starting to drag me away from their cabin area.

I could still hear the activity from afar but since she’s out here, she probably left her post to someone else. Maybe to Sara.

They should be doing an easy task that doesn't really need that much supervision. They’re being taught survival skills like creating fire using a flint and tying knots.

“Alright. Let’s get to know each other better, Shiina-san. Please lead the way.”

“Pfft. I expected you to say that. I promise. This will be worth your time.”

With that as our last exchange there, Shiina elatedly hummed as she continued on her steps with our destination set to their cabin.