READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 7
Iori’s sudden embrace snapped me awake, my heart racing and my mind veering into inappropriate territory.
Her hands weren’t on the Kantou-i but were directly touching my skin. They pressed against my sweaty and unimpressive chest.
“Iori…?”
“Sorry, is it okay if we stay like this for a bit?”
Her voice trembled, and I could tell she was on the verge of tears even without looking at her. She might have even been crying already. Hearing her voice like that dispelled any unsavory thoughts. The sexual urges that were beginning to stir within me quickly subsided.
“What’s wrong?”
“I get really anxious when it gets quiet…”
“Ah, so you started overthinking, huh?”
“Yeah…”
I understood how she felt. If it hadn’t been for Iori being by my side, I would have succumbed to similar thoughts. It was her presence that had allowed fantasies to creep in before the anxiety.
“In the end, today passed without any rescue, and if tomorrow doesn’t bring any help…”
“In that case, we’ll have to put our hopes on the day after tomorrow.”
“And if the day after tomorrow fails too, then the day after the day after tomorrow?”
“No, at that point, we should consider trying to escape on our own.”
Iori seemed surprised.
“It’s said that the time limit for rescue is 72 hours. After that, the chances of survival drop drastically. It’s known as the ‘Golden 72 Hours.'”
“Calling it ‘known’ might be a stretch; this is the first time I’ve heard of it.”
I felt Iori’s laughter against my back.
“Anyway, 72 hours is the time limit, so if that passes, it’s likely that the search efforts will be scaled down significantly.”
“72 hours… so, three days?”
“Strictly speaking, by the day after tomorrow, it won’t be a full 72 hours yet. But if we reach that point without any progress, it’s probably best not to get our hopes up.”
“I see.”
After a brief pause, Iori spoke up again.
“If we were to escape the island on our own, do you think it’s possible?”
“Of course… it would sound cool to say it’s possible, but in reality, I can’t say for sure.”-
That was the truth.
I had no experience crossing roughly 50 kilometers of open sea with a makeshift craft. The chances of success weren’t likely to be high.
“Well then, we’ll have to pray for rescue to come.”
“Yeah.”
I felt Iori’s grip loosen as I shifted my position to lie on my back.
“While I can’t guarantee success, I’ll do my best to handle things as best as I can. So, let’s get some rest and prepare for tomorrow.”
I gently stroked Iori’s head, hoping it would provide some comfort.
“Thank you, Masato-kun. Sorry for venting my frustrations.”
“Hey, it’s okay. We’re in this together, right?”
We lay there, side by side, in the darkening small cabin. The sounds of the wilderness outside accompanied us as we drifted off to sleep, each with our own thoughts and hopes for what the next day would bring.
Iori said, “Goodnight for real this time,” and snuggled up, wrapping her arms around mine.
“I don’t think I can sleep unless I’m like this.”
Before I could ask, she answered.
“Well, if that helps you sleep, you can use my arm as a pillow as much as you want.”
“Yeah!”
Iori’s grip tightened. A few dozen seconds later, she was breathing steadily, already asleep. It seemed that holding onto someone really did provide a sense of comfort.
(At least she’s able to sleep peacefully, but…)
I glanced down at my lower body. The night provided enough visibility to see faintly. The bedding had formed quite an impressive tent.
(――Looks like it might be a struggle for me to sleep this time…)
Relieved that Iori hadn’t noticed, I tried to calm my thoughts. However, it wasn’t easy to settle down while being held so closely.
◇
The next day.
When I woke up, I found Iori still sleeping. She was still snuggled up against my arm, sleeping soundly and looking incredibly comfortable
“Hey, it’s morning already.”
“Just a little longer…”
Iori murmured with a soft smile. She was too adorable, and I felt like I was going to die from the cuteness.
(I wonder if she’ll notice now…!)
I innocently poked Iori’s cheek with my finger. It felt soft and squishy, and it was enjoyable.
But…
“What are you doing?”
Iori’s eyes suddenly opened wide. She was looking at me with a sly smile.
“N-nothing, it’s just… well, you know.”
“What?”
“It’s that thing! You should understand!”
I forcefully untangled myself from Iori’s embrace and crawled out of the blanket. I tried to stand up, but I froze in place. The morning physiological phenomenon that occurs in men had taken hold of me.
“What’s wrong, Masato-kun? You’re shivering and trembling facedown.”
“Well, you see…”
“Is something wrong? Are you feeling unwell!?”
Iori suddenly panicked.
“Don’t worry, it’s just a guy thing.”
“Hahaha! I have no idea what that means!”
I brushed it off with a vague explanation and managed to avoid the situation.
◇
After breakfast, we decided to head east from the cabin. According to the script, there was a river, and we wanted to see what it looked like. In the show, they had been fishing there.
“We should try fishing too! We could make our own fishing rods!”
“That sounds like fun.”
Side by side, we walked through the eastern woods. We remained cautious, but there were no signs of any wild animals.
“Oh, but we don’t have any fishing gear, what a shame.”
As Iori looked disappointed, I confidently said, “No problem.”
“If we need fishing gear, we can make our own.”
“Making a fishing rod might be a challenge, but what about the thread and hook?”
“The hook might be a bit tricky, but we can manage with the thread.”
“Masato-kun, can you really make thread?”
“Yeah.”
Back during my elementary school days, I used to fish in my grandparents’ countryside during summer vacation. I had used self-made fishing rods back then, so I know how to make them.
“Wow! How do you do it? Are you going to spin thread like a spider, Masato?”
I laughed. “No way.”
“You can make thread from plants?”
“Yeah.”
“No way! You can make thread from plants?”
“I’m serious.”
“Wow! How do you do it?”
“It’s simple.”
I was about to explain with a triumphant expression, but I noticed something unexpected up ahead and cut off our conversation.
It was a lake. It wasn’t small, though we couldn’t see its entire expanse.
“It’s a lake, not a river.”
“I wonder what’s going on.”
“If we go around the lake and keep heading east, we might find the river.”
The script hadn’t mentioned a lake. Maybe it was much smaller during the Bubble Era.
“It’s quite beautiful.”
The water was clear, and we could see the aquatic plants growing within it. Small fishes were swimming comfortably, and waterfowl like ducks were peacefully enjoying themselves on the water’s surface.
“Alright, I’m going to take a dip here. I can’t stand feeling all sticky anymore.”
“I’ll join you!”
Iori said without hesitation.
“But, um, you can’t look at me when I’m naked, okay?”
“I know. By the way, you can look at me naked as much as you want.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?! You’re such a pervert, Masato!”
We laughed merrily and started to bathe in the water.
“On a scorching day like this, the lake is amazing!”
I was enjoying the swim.
“Hey, it feels great! Oh, Masato-kun, you can look over here now!”
Iori gave me a signal that it was okay to peek. I turned my head toward her at the speed of light.
“Whoa!”
I was taken aback by an unexpected sight.
“Hey, that surprised me too much!”
“Well, no wonder! You probably thought I’d already put on the kantou-i.”
Iori was still naked. She covered her chest with both hands, and her groin was hidden by aquatic plants. It was quite a daring sight.
“It’s not like I mind you seeing me, Masato-kun.”
“You wouldn’t even show me your underwear until yesterday!”
“That just shows how much I’ve opened up! It’s a sign of trust!”
“It’s nice of you to say that.”
Iori grinned mischievously. “Hehehe.”
“Just so you know, this sight of me naked is a secret from everyone at school.”
“Of course. Why would I let anyone else enjoy this view?”
“You’re sounding a bit like a pervert, you know?”
Iori burst into laughter.
(I’m so incredibly happy! If I were to die now, I wouldn’t have any regrets!)
This kind of thought might have been the trigger. It was as if the heavens decided to test that sentiment by prompting a life-threatening event.
*Splash!*
Suddenly, a spray of water shot up about 10 meters ahead of us. The family of ducks that had been there just a moment ago had vanished. And the creature responsible for their disappearance was partially revealing itself on the water’s surface.
“It’s a crocodile!”
It was an alligator or a crocodile, I couldn’t tell the exact species, but it was an enormous, mega-sized predator. And…
“Uh-oh! It’s coming this way!”
The next target the crocodile chose was us.