There was a large crowd of students packed into the hall at the designated venue.
I was wondering how many people would participate, but it was roughly half the student body. I imagined there would be a few more, but students who weren't interested in treasure hunting might've seen this as a chance to enjoy themselves to the fullest at a less crowded pool. Since the event was free for anyone to participate in, the students were at liberty to decide how they wanted to spend the day.
Not long after the deadline, the stage in front us started to get noisy. The details of the game were to be explained by Takatō-sensei, the homeroom teacher for third-year Class A.
Almost all of the teachers seemed to be present, but I couldn't see Acting Director Tsukishiro or Shiba, the homeroom teacher for first-year Class D. If Shiba had also been hired by that man, it wouldn't be surprising if he stepped aside after what happened on the island. In fact, Mashima-sensei and Chabashira had seen him, so his role had become known.
"Good morning everybody. As it's now 10am, we will close the application process for all students who are not already here at the present time."
The other teacher standing at the entrance slowly closed the door. Despite the fact that participation in the game was voluntary, rules were rules. Even if it was only one second over, they wouldn't allow any late comers to participate.
"Before I start explaining the details, I will describe how we came up with this treasure hunt game. This treasure hunt game was inspired by a suggestion from Nagumo-kun, the Student Council President, that we should have an interesting and fun recreational activity to deepen our friendships after each year group competed against each other while living on the harsh uninhabited island. Nagumo-kun, please say hello."
Nagumo stood in front of the participants after Takatō-sensei called out his name.
"With the full cooperation of the school, the bonus game is now open. The idea for this project came from the student council's daily commitment to enriching and improving school life. During the uninhabited island exam, all years often competed against each other, but in this treasure hunt, it's possible to make partners across year groups. We hope you take advantage of the merits and participate."
He concluded his brief speech with a statement that was typical of a serious Student Council President.
I was reminded of the Nagumo who showed up in front of us the day before.
As Ichinose was a member of the student council, she was sat beside members of the faculty and listened to his speech. From what I could see, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary…
I remembered the tears that Ichinose had unexpectedly shed yesterday. The wound she suffered in her heart surely wasn't light. She was acting naturally now, but it should take a certain amount of time for her to heal. At that time, any love she might've had for me would disappear, or may even turn into hostility. I wondered what kind of changes she would undergo, and I was certain that this would be a major turning point for her in the future.
After Nagumo's speech, the microphone was handed back over to Takatō-sensei.
"Student council members will not be able to participate in this treasure hunt as they will be in charge of administration. They will be working on paperwork during their holiday, so please treat them kindly."
Horikita, Ichinose and some other student council members were gathered to Nagumo's side.
"Well then, let me give you an outline of the treasure hunt game. There are no complicated rules, so it's very simple."
Takotō-sensei raised his right hand, holding a square piece of paper between his thumb and forefinger. Its dimensions were roughly five centimetres square, with a QR code printed on it.
"A total of 100 stickers with these QR codes printed on them have been placed all over the ship. The participants will be tasked with finding these stickers during the treasure hunt game. The game works by scanning the data with a special app, which then rewards the user with private points. However, the number of times you can scan the data with your phone is limited to just once. The results will be reflected and you will be paid immediately upon accessing the site, so please be careful. Of course, if you try to scan a QR code that has already been used by another phone, it will be invalid and you will not receive the reward. Also, should anyone remove the sticker without permission or use a pen to make it unreadable, the culprit will be punished severely, even if it is a game, so please avoid this at all costs."
I see, it was a very simple game where luck was essential.
"The lowest number of private points you can earn is 5,000 points. There are 50, exactly half of the total, of these stickers available. And then, the second most common is 30 stickers with 10,000 points as a reward."
Unfortunately, that meant that half of the 100 stickers would result in losing money. Even if you could find one of the 30% with 10,000 points as a reward, you would only break even, gaining nothing.
"The remaining 20 stickers consist of 10 for 50,000 points, 5 for 100,000 points, and 3 for 300,000 points, with the last two stickers giving 500,000 and 1,000,000 points. It's safe to assume that the more difficult it is to find the hidden QR code, the more private points you will receive."
There were about 200 participants, which meant that half the participants would receive nothing. However, if you could find the sticker with the most difficult to detect QR code, you would get a million points. This wasn't an amount that would be easy to come by even from a special exam. If it was like that, it wasn't a surprise that people felt it was worth taking the risk, even if half of us would lose money…
"In contrast to the over 200 students participating, there are only 100 QR codes. It is inevitable that there will be some students who won't receive any rewards. However, we do have a way to avoid that risk. Participants of any year can pair up, and if one member of the pair uses their mobile phone to scan the QR code, the reward for that QR code, if it is 30,000 points, will be 30,000 points for both members of the pair."
This meant that should everyone pair up and scan the 100 QR codes, then 200 people would receive rewards. This would greatly reduce the possibility of losing money without getting a single point. The only disadvantage was that if you found multiple QR codes, you might have trouble deciding which code to scan. This disadvantage would require some adjustment, but the advantages of pairing up seemed to be high.
"Also, the area where the QR codes are posted is within a predetermined range."
Even if he said they were placed all over the ship, there were of course many places throughout the ship that were considered off-limits. Using a screen to assist, Takatō-sensei explained.
To summarize briefly, toilets and guest cabins naturally weren't covered with QR code stickers, and employee-only floors and rooms were also excluded. There also weren't any stickers hidden in the levels that students were forbidden to enter. It was emphasized that it was limited to only public places and areas where students were allowed to move.
"In addition…we will provide this."
As soon as he said that, all the teachers started handing out papers at once. Not long after, I received a folded piece of paper. The map of the ship had been slightly modified, and the areas with stickers had been filled in with colours. Also, there was some unfamiliar text and shapes listed on it.
"Basically, this game is mostly about luck. However, there is a small element of ability mixed in."
Perhaps he was referring to the text and shapes on the maps that were handed out.
"There are three riddles written here. If you can solve these riddles, you will be able to find a total of three hidden QR codes. You should assume that you won't be able to find these three unless you solve the riddles."
So, out of a total of 100 stickers, there were three specially prepared QR codes. I skimmed through the three riddles and then put the paper in my pocket.
"Registration will open for 30 minutes starting now. Please indicate whether you will participate or not from your mobile phone. If anyone is unable to turn on the power due to their battery running out, please contact the nearest teacher immediately."
One after another, students pulled out their phones and started to check in. A few students left the room, but it was safe to assume that almost everyone in the room would be participating. The treasure hunt game would end at 5pm, and we would have to scan the QR code by that time.
I, like many others, took out my phone and decided to participate.
However, with so many people here, the number of stares focused on me was the highest it'd been in days, and when it was on such a large scale, the fact that they were looking at me would be noticed by other year groups. I wondered if they were working together, or if they had been instructed to do so beforehand, but as soon as the other years started to follow their gazes, the stares at me temporarily diminished and scattered.
It seemed like they didn't intend to make it known that they were watching me at this point in time, and were instead saving it for a more effective or damaging situation. As long as I didn't know what their ultimate goal was, I needed to conduct myself properly.
I spotted Kei, my girlfriend, among the participants, but we didn't even look at each other. This was because we refrained from making blatant eye contact as long as our relationship remained unannounced. Of course, even though we were told we could pair up, we wouldn't. It was unthinkable for Ayanokōji Kiyotaka and Karuizawa Kei to pair up in a place like this.
At this point, Horikita appeared in front of the students with a microphone.
"I am Horikita from the student council. I have a request for all students who will be participating. In order to prevent fraud, participants will be asked to pay 10,000 points when they leave the room, and at the same time, they will be asked to fill their names on the register by year group. Asking others to write it for you is not permitted. This is a measure to prevent unauthorized participation using a third party's phone, so please fill it in. After you receive your reward, please return here to report it by the time the test ends. If you disregard this, there is a possibility the reward may become invalid."
There was no way to connect the phone to the student for a simple mobile payment, which meant that it would be possible to use another phone to participate. Regardless of how much of a problem that was in and of itself, it was certainly a departure from the original intent of the game, which was to participate by following the rules. However, by forcing the user to fill out a list that included identification at the time of payment, the phone could be tied to the user. Even if I got paid with someone else's phone, they'd be able to spot the rule violation at the last check, and if I sent the owner of the phone, they wouldn't be recognized because their name wouldn't be on the list. It was also possible that people who didn't pay for the event might secretly download the app.
The student council and the teachers worked together to set up a special long desk at the entrance. There, we would pay the fee with our phones and write our name by year group before leaving the room. Those who finished installing the app would leave this place first.
In the midst of the chaos, I got in line and eventually found my way in front of Horikita at the reception desk.
"Put your name here. Once you are done, I will collect the 10,000 points."
She spoke to me in a clerical manner, and I entered my name on the list. I then put my phone on the payment terminal and paid 10,000 points. With that I had officially joined the treasure hunt game.
"Next person."
I didn't have anything special to talk about with Horikita, so I just went with the flow and left the room.