Chapter 70: Individual Thoughts
Today is the third day of the deserted island exam. I woke up in the shelter I built to the sound of chirping birds.
I set up an A-frame shelter, using two supporting branches to hold up a long pole as the "ridgepole," with the other end of the ridgepole secured to the ground.
Then, I simply had to lay the branches that formed the sides of the shelter over the ridgepole, weave them together with vines, and reinforce the structure with dirt and leaves. Although very primitive, it could, at least, block the scorching sun and wind.
Pushing aside the camouflage cloth covering me, I hit my stiff, aching back with my hands and slowly stood up.
Stepping outside the shelter, the fire was already extinguished.
A few embers lingered on the black charcoal and ash, and a wisp of smoke curled up before being scattered by the wind. Because I had surrounded the fire with stones and dug an isolation trench around it beforehand, the flame wouldn't spread to the area around the shelter, even though I had put a large amount of wood into the fire to keep it burning all night.
I tossed a piece of charcoal I picked from the fire into my mouth, chewed it to clean my mouth, rinsed in the nearby stream, and splashed the cool stream water onto my face.
After clearing my head completely, I took out a walkie-talkie from my pocket, set the frequency, and pressed the talk button.
"BOSS."
"Is that Albert... Where's Kaneda?"
Silence from the walkie-talkie for a few seconds, then a voice came through again: "It's Kaneda. Ryuen-kun, what are your orders?"
"Report the situation over the past two days to me, without omission."
"Yes! Shiina-san successfully got Class B to sign the contract, and Albert-kun occupied the base seven times over the past two days.
However, someone from Class A came to scout yesterday, but Shiina-san handled them and then withdrew from the exam."
"Class A, huh... Do you know who they were?"
"Yes, two people from Class A came: one was Yukinoshita-san, who often acts with Sakayanagi-san, and the other was a guy with dead fish eyes and no motivation."
"Hmm? So Katsuragi didn't personally go scouting? Never mind... Kaneda, listen carefully to the next strategy, and don't make any mistakes. If you mess up my plans, you'll answer to me."
"Please rest assured, Ryuen-kun."
"Kaneda, except for you, Ishizaki, and Ibuki, have the rest of the class go back to the cruise ship. Then gather the remaining supplies, and the few of you will hold out on the deserted island until the exam ends. As for Albert, let him continue to occupy the base.
When I contact you again, have him withdraw from the exam and hand over the leader's key card to me. Understood?"
"Copy that. I will relay the message to the classmates."
"What's the situation with Class B?"
"Ishizaki-kun has already set up the path. If nothing goes wrong, Class B should find the resource-rich base this morning."
"Good work."
I turned off the walkie-talkie, filled my plastic bottle with water in the stream, draped the camouflage cloth over myself, and after confirming I had the necessary supplies, looked up toward the direction of the Class B campsite.
I had secretly checked the situation at the Class B campsite last night. If things proceed smoothly, I'll be able to complete the request from the second-year Nagumo.
'Hmph, going so far as to spend two million points to ask others to crush the class of a girl he is pursuing?'
"What scum..."
'Though, I'm no better for accepting this request.'
.
.
.
The mountain forest in the early morning was covered with a faint, light mist that hadn't completely dispersed.
Looking from afar, it was vague and indistinct, like the light veil of a dancing fairy. Soft sunlight spilled into the mountain forest, giving the lush leaves varying shades of green.
The slopes were covered with emerald grass, and clusters of unknown wildflowers bathed in the sun.
The dew on the petals shimmered in the morning light, clear and bright, like pearls sparkling in the sun. Leaves swayed gently in the breeze, and birds sang happily on the branches. The tranquil mountain forest was infused with vibrant life.
Two days have passed since the special exam on the deserted island began. Everyone in Class B is steadily completing their tasks.
'Surviving on a deserted island—even though no one had experienced it before, no one seemed panicked at all. When the exam was announced, I thought the class would surely fall into chaos, but to my surprise, everyone in the class pulled themselves together well and calmed down.'
Thanks to everyone, I've also been able to utilize my usual strengths and contribute to the class.
"Yay. Hmm, that's done!"
I bundled the firewood collected by my classmates with vines and stacked it near the fire pit. After doing all this, I stood up with satisfaction, nodding at the pile of firewood in front of me.
Chihiro, who witnessed the finished labor nearby, also looked happy, lightly saying with a smile: "Just as expected of Honami-chan!"
"It's just a small thing, no big deal... If you have any trouble, Chihiro, you can call me anytime."
Hearing me say that, Chihiro gave a carefree smile and gently linked her arm through mine.
'Chihiro is truly as cute as my little sister... Thanks to Hikigaya-kun from Class A, I successfully avoided Chihiro's confession, and our relationship remains harmonious as always. I also took the opportunity to open up and talk to her as usual.'
"Honami-chan is good at everything. Is there anything you find difficult? Aside from sports."
'Ah—ha—. I know she means no harm, but don't just casually add that last part!'
"Don't you think finding sports difficult is already surprisingly fatal?"
Besides, difficult... rather than difficult, it's just a matter of not being good at it.
I'm confident my running speed is relatively fast, but conversely, my ability to maintain balance—the part called athletic reflex—has a weak side. I've messed up throwing and kicking balls many times and have been teased by my classmates for it.
"That's not true. I'd say that part is actually a cuteness boost for Honami-chan."
'Something that makes me embarrassed is something Chihiro seems happy about.'
Just then, the classmates who went out exploring began returning one after another. Beppu-kun walked up to me and said he had found a very large cornfield on the deserted island, and the entire class needed to go to bring it all back.
Since Beppu-kun went out exploring with Kanzaki-kun, Kanzaki-kun told him to come back and report first, and Kanzaki-kun would wait for us there. The classmates were very happy to hear this news; this meant we wouldn't have to look for food every day. What luck!
"Alright, everyone let's go together! But we need to leave at least one person behind to start a fire and boil some water."
"I'll do it. After all, it's not very convenient for me to walk around..." Chihiro volunteered, raising her hand.
'Hmm, Chihiro is our class leader. Aside from occupying a base, it's true that it's better not to have her walk around too much. It would be bad if the key card were accidentally lost.'
"Chihiro, we're heading out."
"Okay, please be careful."
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