Stranded on a Deserted Island with the School’s Number One Beauty, So I’ll Give It My Best Shot.

Was it a miracle or destiny? To our astonishment, we easily found what had been dropped. It had landed on the ground in the eastern forest without getting caught in any trees.

“This is…” I was dumbfounded.

“No way…” Iori covered her mouth with both hands and took a few steps back. Her face contorted in a way that made it seem like she might cry at any moment.

Her reaction was entirely understandable. What the plane had dropped was not an object but a person.

A person, bound hand and foot, with a blindfold covering their eyes. Judging by the atmosphere, it was likely a man.

“Are you okay… though it’s kind of pointless to ask,” I remark.

The man was unquestionably dead. His head seemed to have taken a severe blow during the fall, causing it to split open, with blood streaming out.

“Masato-kun, what… what’s going on here?” Iori asked, her voice trembling.

“I don’t know. But I can say one thing for sure,” I replied, looking up at the sky.

“The people on that plane from earlier were no ordinary criminals.”

This was a blatant case of corpse disposal, and not just any kind. Whoever was responsible for this gruesome act was undoubtedly involved in some serious and criminal activities, perhaps with ties to organized crime or other shady elements.

“At least let’s see if there’s anything we can find,” I said as I crouched down next to the body and patted the pockets of his shorts.

“Maybe a wallet?” I wondered aloud as I pulled something out.

To my surprise, it was a smartphone. Luckily, it appeared undamaged, and the battery was still functional. However, it had no signal, and it was locked.

“How about trying to unlock it?” I suggested.

I had no way of knowing the passcode, but I was willing to give facial recognition a shot.

“I’m sorry for this, even though you’re gone,” I muttered as I removed the blindfold.

“No use, it’s not responding,” I said after a few attempts.

“It won’t work like this; facial recognition needs his eyes open,” I explained.

“Okay, then I’ll try to open his eyes while you work on the phone,” said Iori, her hands trembling.

“Let’s do it,” I agreed.

I gently opened the man’s eyes with my right index and middle fingers and used my left hand to support his chin to keep it from moving.

“How’s it going? Did you manage to unlock it?” I asked.

Iori turned the smartphone towards me, her fingers tapping on the screen.

“No, it didn’t work. Damn it, it would have been much easier if it had a fingerprint sensor!” she exclaimed in frustration.

“Let’s try it,” I suggested.

I placed the man’s right thumb on the smartphone’s display. A rotating icon indicating authentication appeared on the screen.

“Now, let’s see what happens…” I said with bated breath.

We watched as the rotating icon disappeared. It seemed that the authentication was successful.

“It worked!” I exclaimed. “We’re in.”

The phone’s home screen appeared, and we were able to access its contents.

“Now, let’s find out who this guy is and what he was doing here,” I said, scrolling through the phone’s apps and messages.

“Okay!” We successfully unlocked the phone.

“For now, let’s change the security settings and remove the authentication,” I suggested.

“I’ll take care of that. While I do, you continue searching,” she said.

Without hesitation, I began searching the other pockets. Surprisingly, I felt no guilt or remorse, likely because we were in an extraordinary situation where this was necessary.

“Hey, I found a portable charger!” I exclaimed.

However, there was no cable to connect it to the smartphone.

“It must be a wireless charger,” I remarked, amazed at the discovery.

“There’s nothing else in the pockets,” I reported.

The absence of a wallet felt unnatural. Even in an era dominated by cashless payments, people still carried wallets. Those who had abandoned this person had probably taken it beforehand.

“I’d feel hesitant about stripping clothes from someone who isn’t just bones,” I mused, but I didn’t want to pass up anything we could use.

As I attempted to undress the corpse, suddenly, a chorus of wolf howls echoed all around us. The intent behind these howls was unclear, but my instincts were alerting me to danger.

“Let’s leave the clothes and head back,” I suggested.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“Yeah, I think we should. I have a bad feeling about this, and it’s getting dark. Let’s not stay out here any longer than necessary.”

She agreed, and we quickly gathered the smartphone and portable charger, then left the area.

◇

Back at our home, we immediately examined the smartphone.

“Still no signal,” I remarked.

Even on deserted islands nowadays, there were often areas with reception. Unfortunately, it seemed this island was an exception.

“Did you find anything that might be used for a rescue request?” I asked.

I directed the question at Iori, who was hunched over the table, rapidly tapping away at the smartphone. Her expression was tense as she worked at a breakneck pace.

“No, nothing!” she replied, frustration evident in her voice. “The only thing I’ve figured out is that the owner of this phone is probably connected to the yakuza!”

“So, it was the yakuza after all.”

“Most likely. Look here, they’re talking about something related to the yakuza’s money,” she said, showing me a chat conversation on the app. The exchange did indeed appear to involve some yakuza-like activities.

They seemed to be discussing plans for escape, and it appeared that their theft of the organization’s money had been discovered.

“It looks like their plan was exposed, and they faced retribution,” I concluded.

“It’s the reality of that world,” Iori agreed.

“It’s a world I’d rather not be involved with until I die,” I added.

“Agreed.”

We decided to conserve the smartphone’s battery until we had a clearer plan for its use.

◇

The next day, on the eighth day of our deserted island life, we gathered around the table for a meeting. As usual, both of us were shirtless, as our clothes from the previous day had yet to dry.

“Construction of the paddles is complete, and we’ve secured our food,” I began, tapping the table with my fingers. On the table, there were paper and a pencil.

“With that said, the only thing left is a boat – essentially, a means of transportation,” I continued. “What do you think, Iori? Do you think I might have overlooked something?”

The escape day was drawing near, so it was crucial to double-check that we hadn’t missed anything important.

“I think it’s just the boat too!” Iori replied with a serious expression. She picked up the pencil and started drawing on the paper. The deformed, cute little figures she drew depicted us riding on a raft and heading out to sea.

Observing her drawing, I thought aloud, “Considering we have quite a bit of cargo, maybe a raft would be a better option.”

“Huh? Isn’t a raft a type of boat?” Iori inquired.

“I was thinking of a dugout canoe,” I replied.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a small boat made by hollowing out a log.”

“Oh, I think I get it now! Like that?”

“I’m not sure if that’s exactly it, but probably something like that,” I replied, and Iori chuckled.

“The choice between a dugout canoe and a raft is a tough one,” I continued. “With a dugout canoe, our cargo capacity is quite limited, and we, as amateurs, might risk capsizing. However, it has better durability. On the other hand, a raft has the disadvantage of lower durability. If the logs or the ropes connecting them break, it could easily fall apart. I’m not sure if it can withstand a long-distance journey of around 50 kilometers.”

“I’ll follow your judgment, Masato-kun,” Iori said.

After some contemplation, I made my decision. “Then… let’s go with the raft.”

Rather than the dugout canoe I had been considering for a long time, I had decided on a raft.

“Why the change of heart!?” Iori asked.

“I still think we need a lot of supplies,” I explained. “All those water bottles and dried fruits we made yesterday. If we’re taking all of that with us, a raft would be more suitable.”

“If that’s what you think, then let’s go with the raft! Alright, today’s the day we make the raft! Let’s head to the sea right away through the northern forest!”

Iori stood up energetically. In response, I shook my head with a smile.

“We’ll make the raft tomorrow.”

“Huh? Wasn’t our plan to make the boat today!?”

“That was the plan, but I realized I forgot something.”

“What could you have forgotten? We have paddles, water bottles, and food, right? So all we need now is the raft, isn’t it? I just checked it a moment ago!”

“Yeah, you’re right, the only thing we need for the voyage is the raft.”

“So!?”

“But there’s something else we need, aside from the voyage,” I said, pointing to the four clay pots lined up in the house. They were filled to the brim with the bamboo water bottles we made yesterday.

“Huh, what’s that?” Iori still seemed puzzled about what I was getting at.