Chapter 6: A jacket for a girl's school uniform
"Yukinoshita-san, we don't have anything useful, so I've decided to go to the plane wreckage to see if there's any equipment we can use..."
"You still want to go there? Isn't that way too risky?"
Yukino seemed a little scared of the ruins lying several kilometers away.
"Swimming back and forth in the sea for that long... that takes some serious physical strength."
"It's OK, we still have this flotation board."
Jun pointed at the board in his hand. He wasn't sure which part of the plane it came from, but it was enough to help him stay afloat easily.
"And I trust my physical strength..."
When he was in the ocean, Jun only had faith in his own abilities.
"Okay then... take these extra coconuts with you."
Yukino took off her school uniform jacket and carefully used the sleeves to tie together the two green coconuts Jun had picked the day before.
She also knew that coconuts could float on water.
This could help make Jun more buoyant.
"No, I'm doing well. That's not necessary, and you'll..."
Jun tried to refuse, but Yukino's serious face made it clear she wasn't going to take "no" for an answer.
"No. If something happens to you, I'll just end up dying on this deserted island sooner or later. Even if I can't climb trees, I'll find a way to pick more coconuts. Leave the search for clean water to me."
Yukino carefully handed the uniform jacket with the coconuts tied to it to Jun.
Her expression made it clear what she was thinking.
Jun looked into her determined eyes and accepted the school uniform jacket, which still had a faint feminine scent.
"I'll be back soon. Don't worry about clean water. There are still many coconut trees here. Don't go too deep into the forest. Watch out for dangerous snakes and wild animals."
Jun gave the girl in front of him clear instructions.
"Yes, I understand. Katō-san, go and come back quickly."
Yukino's usual indifferent look had disappeared. Though her expression hadn't changed much, Jun could still see the concern in her eyes.
"Don't worry. If I sense any danger, I'll swim back immediately."
Jun gave her a quick smile and then grabbed the flotation board. He put the school uniform jacket with coconuts over his shoulder and slowly walked toward the ocean.
He left his school uniform jacket on the beach.
"I'll be waiting for you to come back."
Her firm voice came from behind him. Jun waved his hand without looking back and swam toward the wreckage.
When she could no longer tell the difference between Jun and the waves, Yukino finally looked away from the sea. She picked up the boy's school jacket from the beach and walked towards the coconut grove, looking determined.
All she could do now was pray for Jun's safe return.
The wind from the ocean blew toward the land around noon, so Jun was once again swimming against the wind.
Luckily, he was still strong.
With a stamina level of 150, a flotation board, and two coconuts that made him more buoyant, he reached the area between the beach and the wreckage in a single breath.
Since the skill he had could only be used once, Jun chose not to use it yet.
He checked his current status in blue text.
The text is too long.
_ _ _
[Name: Kato Jun]
Hunger: 100/150 (full)
Health: 150/150
Stamina: 90/150
Sanity: 139/150]
---
He had already lost 20 points of stamina.
After struggling to the wreckage, a red status panel appeared, and Jun was struggling to breathe.
As he swam toward the wreckage, he was getting weaker and weaker, and he was really, really hungry.
His stamina dropped below 50%, and his hunger bar started to fall much faster.
Jun climbed onto the wreckage using his hands and feet to get to the two coconuts Yukino had prepared.
"Yukinoshita-san is way more thoughtful than I am..."
Jun opened one of the coconuts that had been plugged with small sticks.
The refreshing coconut water soothed his thirst and tired muscles.
Coconut water is full of potassium, which is lost through sweat. This makes it a great drink for people who are active.
Jun felt his energy and appetite come back quickly.
It was all thanks to that girl. If not, I would have had to use my skill and spend time searching here.
After resting for a bit, he drank the rest of the coconut water.
He plugged the stick back in, put the coconut down with the flotation board, and looked at the calm sea.
Jun took a deep breath and dove underwater again. This time, he needed to enter the cabin to search for useful items.
The plane that had burned and shattered in his memory was now nothing more than broken glass and metal doors.
The wings were badly burned.
Jun carefully swam into the damaged cabin door.
Because of how the plane was built, it hadn't sunk all the way—it was still floating on top of the water.
"This is the economy section. To the front of the plane are the business seats, followed by the first-class seats. After that, you'll find the crew's quarters and the cockpit."
Jun arrived at the economy section.
"It was different from what I imagined, even though there were burn marks, the seat shapes were still easy to recognize. It wasn't as ruined as I thought."
The empty cabin, half-flooded with water, didn't give him much hope of finding anything useful.
The overhead compartments were scorched black, and all the smaller belongings inside were gone.
"Wait! There's light!"
"Glass?"
When he saw a faint glint, Jun felt better. Even a glass bottle could help him start a fire.
He swam quickly toward the shiny thing.
"Glasses? And even... reading glasses!"
"That's amazing! Thank you, Kami-sama!"
Jun was happy and shouted. He was holding a pair of reading glasses that were half broken.
One of the lenses was still intact—enough to start a fire with sunlight.
Even better, you can use it over and over again to start fires!
"Amazing!"
Jun carefully wrapped the intact lens in foam from the airplane seat and held it tightly.
I found one thing on the trip that made it worthwhile.
But since I've come this far,
The text is too long.
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In this context, "stamina" and "physical" mean the same thing. This is because when "physical" is translated, it becomes "stamina."
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Hi everyone! I'm a bit unsure—should I start a Patreon?
If I do, would any of you like to subscribe?
And if so, how does $4 sound? Or is that too much?
Maybe $3? I don't know what's fair.
Whatever works for you is fine.