Multiple updates today.
This is chapter two.
“Mashiro, could you go check if everyone’s back?”
“Sure!”
Just as Mashiro turned toward the genkan, someone came out from inside.
It was Chiyu, my childhood friend with silver hair and blue eyes. “Welcome home.
First-Rank Healing.”
White light enveloped us.
The fatigue faded away, which was a great relief.
However, thanks to this, my stamina had clearly recovered as well.
“I’m home, Chiyu-chan. Thanks for the ‘First-Rank Healing.’”
“I’m home. Looks like you guys got back faster than us.”
“Mm. Since you two are back, could Shio-chan start grilling some steaks? Is that okay?”
“Yatta!”
“I’ll head over as soon as I finish making Mashi-ro’s house.”
Chiyu nodded and went back inside the house.
“Ah, since I met Chiyu-chan, can I just watch here?”
“Yeah.”
Since Fenrir’s den offered a better view from Shouko’s room, they moved it slightly.
They generated the house and placed it down.
Suddenly, a structure of stone with a wooden roof appeared before their eyes.
The entrance was wide open, fitting for a doghouse, but at first glance, the edifice looked more like a sturdy warehouse.
“Oh~. It’s different from our house, isn’t it?”
“It is built without using a foundation, just like ours. But if we had made it using our house’s method, Masiro’s weight might have caused the floor to collapse, right?”
“That’s true!”
The stone walls stood on their own, and the wooden roof was simply placed on top of them.
“I hope Masiro likes it…”
“Masirou! The house is ready~!”
Called by Shouko, Masiro came over.
The blinding white fur of the illusory giant wolf glinted in the light.
He walked straight into Fenril’s den and dropped down with a thud, barking contentedly.
“I like it!”
“That’s great.”
As they laughed together— a delicious scent drifted through the air.
“Sniff, sniff. This is—the scent of meat!”
I had left the meat in the prep area before we set off this morning, so they must have cooked it without waiting for me to step in.
“Smells great.”
Shoubi and I head inside the house.
When we got to the living room, dinner was already laid out on the dining table.
“Oh, welcome back! Lunch is steak, just as promised~”
Shion, her hair tied up, greeted us while carrying plates.
By the way, I had gifted them an apron made of amabush cloth, and she was wearing it over her uniform.
Chiyu and Fupou were also helping with serving.
“Welcome home. Has Mashiro’s house been completed?”
Fupou greeted us as she set the table.
It seemed Chiyu had let them know about Mashiro’s house situation.
“Yeah, he was really happy with it.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“I’m starving! It looks delicious~! Let’s eat, let’s eat!”
Everyone took their seats, said “itadakimasu,” and began eating.
For lunch, I served a wild boar steak accompanied by mushroom and herb soup.
We ate using stone knives and forks.
“How delicious…”
The satisfying chewiness of the thick meat paired with its bursting juices was exquisite. “So good! Tastes amazing!”
“Heh, thank you. However, to make anything more complex than this, we’d need other ingredients, wouldn’t we?”
It tasted great with just salt, but I could certainly see wanting to eat it with some kind of sauce.
“Hmm. We need seasonings. For now, let’s focus on the rest of the Sashi-Su-So-So.”
Sashi-Su-So-So… umm, that would be sugar, salt, vinegar, soy sauce, and miso.
Hmm, now that you mention it, I’d like those too.
“After that, we need vegetables and staple foods. We explored the surrounding area as well, but we couldn’t find any of the vegetables typically used in Japanese cooking. It would be nice if we could find rice or wheat, but…”
“Myousuko and I talked a bit, but don’t you think that items we frequently use in daily life, or things everyone knows about, aren’t placed on the island by design?”
In response to my words, Fukan nodded.
“In the dreams, we were forced to choose between two options, and one of them would be added as an ‘Update.’ So, just as Kono-kun says, things we know well and can easily utilize—essentially things we’d want on this desert island—were likely excluded from the initial placement to serve as the second option in those choices.”
“It feels like they’re constantly testing us. Like that question about what to bring to a desert island—even though there were Ability-type options available, they didn’t tell us about them.”
“Mm. Even regarding the items on this island, while there’s a decent amount of edible food, without someone with knowledge or an ability like So-kun’s, we wouldn’t even have been able to make the judgment call in the first place.”
“Man, honestly, if I hadn’t been able to meet Sōsuke, this whole thing would’ve turned into a hell of a survival nightmare.”
We traded that sort of talk while working our way through dinner.
Eventually, the conversation drifted to last night’s dream.
That said, Chiyu, Shion, and Fukuhō had apparently already discussed it during their exploration earlier.
“This is likely meant to suppress conflicts among players,” Fukuhō stated.
I nodded in agreement with her words.
Setting aside the need to watch out for the ‘Death Penalty,’ the penalty incurred for killing someone or taking one’s own life was a deduction of 1,825 points.
If you were forced to evacuate from the island while sitting at zero points, that number would be subtracted—resulting in a five-year coma upon your return.
The shock of having the rest of your youth wiped out is considerable. That alone serves as a significant deterrent.
“Furthermore, there’s surely an intention here to keep us positive about this life on the desert island.”
It wasn’t just about being able to return to our original time; the fact that they had prepared benefits made the intent clear enough.
Beyond the lifespan extension granted by the ‘Survival Bonus,’ there were bonuses tied to points earned, the ability to retain memories of this island on Earth, and the capacity to transfer abilities gained here back to Earth—a hefty package indeed.
“Mm-hm. Yeah, knowing I could take Mashiro home actually got me hyped up. Not that I was down before, mind you?”
“It’s hard to believe that story, too… If phantom beasts appeared in modern-day Japan, it would cause an utter pandemonium…”
Shinhō’s concerns were well founded.
“Umm… In stories where mysterious powers exist within modern society, it’s usually a technique or device that alters the perception of those around you.”
“A staple trope. If Fenrir is perceived as a ‘dog’ or Sōkuno’s crafting as ‘DIY,’ rewriting the surrounding people’s perceptions—wouldn’t that make maintaining abilities possible?”
Shion’s insight might be brushed off as having “excellent observational skills,” and Chiyu’s could be excused as having “knowledge of medicine.”
Shinhō’s magic seemed difficult, but… essentially, it was about adding a “rationalization function” to abilities.
It’s not unreasonable to think Go no Blackboard could do that much, but what would actually happen…?
“N-now I see. Given the teleportation to the island and these special abilities, it wouldn’t be surprising if something like this happened.”
“I’d rather keep my memories of this island, honestly. In fact, I became scared knowing that we lose them upon a normal escape…”
Shion said anxiously.
Admittedly, even if the events on this island were forgotten, the narrator and Chiyu were childhood friends, and Moeshi was originally a friend.
But it was because of this situation that he had become close with Shion.
He didn’t want to forget that either.
“I feel the same way, Shion-san. I don’t know what the ‘specific conditions’ are, but I want to escape only after fulfilling them.”
“And by the way, it’d be nice if we could all escape together, right?”
At Shouko’s words, everyone nodded in unison.
“Then, our immediate goal is ‘a joint escape for everyone.’ And we’ll aim for ‘memory retention’ and ‘ability retention’ as well,” he stated.
It was annoying how this seemed to be playing into the hands of that enigmatic blackboard’s plan, but there was nothing I could do about it.
If we had simply been dumped on a desert island, anger at the absurdity of the situation would have taken precedence.
However, once they realized their lifespans might be extended or that they could aim for other benefits, those things functioned as ‘rewards’ for the ‘hardship,’ sometimes dulling the anger.
Even if someone initially wanted to go home immediately, learning that they could bring back their abilities to Earth with enough effort might make them think, “I’ll try a bit harder.”
“Phew~. Thanks for the meal, Shion-chan.”
Everyone finished eating and said “thank you for the meal” to the chef, Shion. “Hehe, you’re welcome.
I hope it was okay.”
Cleaning up the dishes is easy since I can simply store them away to tidy up, then reposition them in the kitchen later.
Honestly, if we could just bring this one ability back to Earth, it would be incredibly convenient…
“Shinpo. We’re scheduled to practice magic in the afternoon, but before that, wouldn’t you like to compare our exploration findings?”
“Oh, yes, let’s do that.”
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