Chapter 58: Uninhabited Island Survival Training (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 58: Uninhabited Island Survival Training (5)
A young man and woman roamed Avalon Island together. Speed Weapon and Saki Ryozo.
Step, step.
Ryozo, walking in the lead, moved forward while idly waving a snapped twig. She turned her head halfway to glare at Weapon, who was trailing behind, and clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"Tsk, of all the people to run into on this island, it just had to be you, Speed Weapon... Ugh, what did I do to deserve this?"
Ryozo shrugged and let out a deep sigh. At this, a vein began to throb aggressively on Weapon's temple, and he bellowed,
"Hey! You think I wanted to run into you either? I thought I'd finally get a break from seeing your face, but the only person I've run into all the way out here is you, Saki! Do you have any idea how I feeeeel?!"
"Then who told you to have such a terrible sense of direction? You're the one who got lost and stumbled into me, and now you're complaining? Pfft."
"……."
Unable to refute Saki's spot-on retort, Weapon could only twist his lips in frustration.
Before arriving on Avalon Island, he was the one who had challenged Saki Ryozo to a competition to find the most orbs...
But after completely losing his sense of direction and wandering in circles, she was the one who found him and let him tag along.
If he hadn't run into her, searching for orbs would have been the least of his worries; he would have spent the entire training period sucking his thumb on an empty stomach.
Seeing Weapon merely twitching his lips in silence, Saki paid him no mind and kept walking forward.
Weapon's gaze fell on Saki's back. Strangely enough, whenever she pushed through the dense forest, a clear path seemed to magically appear.
Though he would rather die than admit it, Saki was incredibly multi-talented.
Despite spending all day sleeping and slacking off with a lazy expression, her grades were always at the top. Her combat prowess was also easily within the top five of their year. She was, in every sense of the word, a genius possessing both brains and brawn.
At least, that was until they met Kang Geomma. Unlike Saki, whom he felt he could somehow surpass if he just kept putting in the effort, Kang Geomma's talent was so overwhelming that it didn't even spark jealousy.
When faced with an insurmountable wall, one naturally feels awe rather than petty, worldly emotions.
Furthermore, Kang Geomma's fiercely independent nature, relying on no one but himself, struck a chord in Weapon's heart as a fellow man.
'...I wonder where Geomma is and what he's doing right now.'
As they walked in silence for a long while, a sudden question popped into Weapon's mind. He quickened his pace slightly and spoke to Saki, who was marching ahead.
"Hey, Saki. I've got a question."
"What is it?"
Saki replied dismissively without even looking back. Although irritation flared up inside him, Weapon suppressed it with superhuman patience to satisfy his curiosity.
"What do you think of Kang Geomma?"
"What do you mean...?"
"I mean, think about it. Just a month ago, you did nothing but sleep all day at the archery range. But whenever you're around Kang Geomma, you get uncharacteristically active. And you usually hate doing things like network hacking because it's too much trouble, right? Yet you've been doing all that stuff without anyone even asking. It's just weird. Don't tell me... you have feelings for Geomma or something?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Saki froze in her tracks like a stone statue. Caught off guard by his own momentum, Weapon's nose slammed right into the back of her head.
"Ow! Damn it, hey! Why did you stop so suddenly?!"
"……."
Startled, Weapon stumbled backward, clutching his nose. But Saki just stood there, completely motionless.
Whoooooosh.
A bizarre silence hung between them. As the atmosphere turned ice-cold, Weapon swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing heavily.
Then, with an unnervingly slow, mechanical movement, Ryozo turned her head toward Weapon. Despite it being the middle of summer, the air around them felt freezing cold.
'I've seen this somewhere before.'
It clicked. A Japanese horror movie where a ghost with long, disheveled hair crawls out of a well. That grotesque image perfectly overlapped with Saki's current appearance.
Weapon tried to scurry backward, pushing off the ground with his arms. Saki's face was cast in deep shadow, sending goosebumps down his spine.
He didn't think he had said anything particularly wrong, but he had never seen Saki react like this before.
He quickly replayed his words in his head, but they didn't seem out of line given the context.
'Damn it! Why is she acting like this?!'
As Weapon slowly backed away, Saki closed the distance with slow, deliberate steps. Forcing a strained smile onto his face, Weapon quickly spoke up.
"Hey, calm down. Why the sudden serious face?"
"…Hey, Weapon."
Her voice was chillingly cold. Saki squatted down right in front of Weapon, locking eyes with him. Glaring at him with a gaze full of intense, murderous intent, she whispered softly,
"Is it that obvious?"
"…What?"
Dumbfounded by her unexpected reaction, Weapon stared at Saki blankly. Her cheeks had flushed a bright, rosy pink. Gone was her usual tomboyish demeanor; instead, she was twirling a lock of her side hair around her index finger as she asked again.
"I asked if it's that obvious."
To Weapon, this sight was far more terrifying than her previous coldness. Had she been possessed by a ghost? Or was she under the influence of some mind-controlling Majin?
As Weapon sat there, utterly horrified and lost in a flurry of wild thoughts, Saki frowned and stood up. She began marching forward again, then suddenly turned her head back with a haughty pout to deliver a warning.
"If you breathe a word of this to anyone else, I'll turn you into a pincushion. Got it?"
Saki shrugged the shoulder where her bow was slung. Weapon could only nod his head in frantic agreement.
She let out a short sigh and gestured for him to hurry up.
"Whatever. We need to find some orbs and hunt something for dinner before it gets dark, so get up. Unless you want to starve."
With a sharp, haughty sniff, she walked ahead with an air of aloofness. Weapon calmed his racing heart and quietly followed behind her.
* * *
Darkness falls on the island in the blink of an eye. Just like yesterday, it felt like I had barely traveled for a few hours, yet signs of dusk were already creeping in.
Referencing the rough map, I had been moving my feet diligently, practically running along the ridge, and it seemed I had finally neared my destination.
Once night fell, my vision would be severely limited, leaving me stranded. Realizing that my remaining time on Avalon Island was running short, a sense of urgency washed over me. Before it got any later, I had to at least reach 'Mimir's Lake', also known as the Spring of Life.
"Ah... I feel like I'm practically there. Where is it?"
I squinted and looked around. What had been east was now west, and south had become north. The directions were completely scrambled, without any consistency.
"Ah, damn it."
A curse slipped from my lips. It felt like I was just pacing in circles. Since I had to rely entirely on my own judgment to navigate, any lapse in decision-making slowed my progress to a crawl.
'Times like this make me miss my club members.'
Being alone made their absence feel surprisingly prominent. Not long ago, I had resolved to live as a lone wolf, yet here I was, feeling lonely. I let out a bitter chuckle and muttered to myself,
"I wonder what those guys are up to."
Well, they're all highly capable in their own right, so they're probably doing just fine. It was a pointless worry.
Just then, a gentle breeze blew past, carrying a sweet aroma to the tip of my nose.
'...What is that smell?'
I wrinkled my nose, focusing all my senses on my sense of smell.
It smelled faintly of apples, but with a thick, rich undertone of honey.
"Could it be?"
I immediately set off, following the scent.
Before coming to the island, I had researched the rocks engraved with patterns. Although their exact locations were unclear, I could piece together a rough estimate by combining various abstract clues.
One of those clues pointed to the grove of the Fruit of Life. For the record, despite its grand name, the Fruit of Life was treated as nothing more than a peculiar fruit native to Avalon Island.
According to those who had tasted it, it tasted absolutely atrocious, and even a single bite would leave you suffering from severe stomach aches and diarrhea the next day. A truly terrifying fruit.
However, its fragrance was said to be heavenly, which made it fetch a high price on the black market. From what I knew, it was used as an ingredient in the ultra-high-end perfumes of Kermes, the world's top luxury brand.
A heavenly scent, but a hellish taste.
In the sense that a single fruit could make you hover between life and death, the double meaning of the name 'Fruit of Life' actually felt quite fitting...
'I wonder if I can make some good money by selling it.'
I followed the scent for a long time. There was no proper path, so I had to climb over winding hills and push through dense, rugged undergrowth, but there was still no sign of anything appearing.
'Am I even going the right way?'
It felt like the sun was setting from east to west much faster than I could walk.
On top of that, the island's terrain was constantly shifting.
Rather than letting all my efforts go to waste in an instant, I decided to trust my instincts. Having made up my mind, I burst into a full sprint.
After running for about ten minutes, the thick undergrowth finally cleared, revealing a desolate plain.
"I've arrived."
Trees with golden leaves stood close together, forming a dense grove, and a faint, mystical fragrance drifted through the air. The scent was so incredibly fresh and intoxicating that it felt like it could cloud my mind.
I used to be a notorious heavy drinker in my past life, but perhaps because it had been so long, this kind of intoxication wasn't particularly pleasant.
Pinching my nose with one hand, I looked around the grove. Based on the clues I had gathered, the rock engraved with the pattern had to be hidden somewhere in this very area.
The plain was about the size of a soccer field. I could have found it quickly if I hurried, but the fruit trees blocked every path I tried to take.
"Tsk."
Part of me wanted to pull out my Sashimi and slice down all these trees blocking my view. But... I felt like I'd get struck by divine retribution if I did that, so I quickly folded that thought away.
Just as I was starting to get annoyed and tired of searching for the rock, something particularly eye-catching caught my attention in the distance. At first glance, it looked similar to a tree, but its texture was rough and solid—distinctly different.
Squinting my eyes, I could see it more clearly. It was a rock draped in vine-like patterns that resembled hieroglyphics.
"That's it."
In an instant, my irritation vanished, replaced by a satisfied smile.
I let go of my nose, took a deep breath, and lightly stepped toward the rock.
As I drew closer, a spherical object resting on top of the rock came into view.
"An orb?"
Judging by its substantial size, it had to be a top-tier orb. My brain immediately started spinning a web of happy fantasies, and a hum naturally escaped my lips. The fruity fragrance grew even stronger.
It felt like my luck was finally turning around. Honestly, the world had been far too stingy with me lately.
If the universe had any conscience, it owed me at least this much luck.
A subtle smirk played on my lips.
Finally, just ten steps away, I reached out my hand.
At that moment—
Whoosh—
Another figure appeared at almost the exact same speed.
Grab.
Another hand neatly overlapped with mine on top of the rock.
No matter how focused I was on the prize, it shouldn't have been easy for my fully expanded senses to miss someone so close.
'What the...?'
The thought lasted only a split second. With a stiff expression, I quickly turned my head to the side.
Meanwhile, my free hand was already reaching for my Sashimi.
"Oh, look at that. It's you, Geomma."
"……?"
A completely unexpected person stood before me.
Leon von Reinhardt. Holding a bladeless hilt, he spoke with a bright, cheerful smile.
"Shall we put that down first before we talk?"
He gestured with his eyes toward the Sashimi that had somehow already found its way into my hand.