With our preparations complete, I stepped outside to find the chicken coop’s population had doubled from five to ten birds.
I stashed the five eggs Senju had secured into my ‘Inventory.’
“…Ah. So if we can get eggs, that means—can’t we make mayonnaise?”
At my words, everyone froze.
“It’s starting to feel like an isekai story.”
I gave a wry smile at Chiyu’s remark.
It was certainly a classic trope.
“Since the main ingredients are oil, vinegar, and eggs, it does seem doable.
We’d just need salt and spices,” Mifumi said, and I nodded along in agreement.
I decided to put the making for later, but in the meantime, I’d ask a few more details.
“I’m getting a craving for tuna-mayo onigiri… and takoyaki and okonomiyaki too.”
“So you guys eat that kind of stuff too?”
Seeing my surprised look, Moyoko puffed out her cheeks.
“We do! What do you take us for, some shallow girls or something?”
“I was assuming you only consume the flashy stuff that would get a reaction on social media.”
“I’ve got more life on the side that isn’t posted to SNS, actually.”
Well, that’s just how it is.
“On Earth, I couldn’t imagine letting go of my smartphone, but now that it’s gone, I’m surprisingly okay with it.”
Maybe prompted by the association with social media, Shiine said this.
“I get it, I totally get it. I do miss keeping in touch with certain friends, though…”
Since Momeko had a lot of friends, there were certainly people she’d be worried about checking in on.
”…I suppose I’m not suffering much either. If I had to name one thing, though, it would be study materials.”
“Aha, very much like you, Fukunomi. Hmm, we can make paper, and pens… maybe a quill? And for ink, well, as long as it’s black, couldn’t we just use soot?”
Fukunomi’s eyes lit up with excitement.
“O-Oh, may I please have them?! …I’ll explain the manufacturing methods later…!”
Watching her press close against him, I was impressed to realize how badly she really wanted to study.
“Of course you can. I just can’t exactly whip up textbooks or reference books for you.”
“That’s more than enough. Thank you, Soosuke-san.”
But upon reflecting on it a bit more, studying might actually be an acceptable thing to do.
When we return, we’re told we’ll be sent back to the timeline before the teleportation.
Since we were summoned in our dreams while sleeping, I suppose we’ll wake up on the morning of the next day.
Either way, time doesn’t pass in reality, but we still gain experience.
There are conditions for retaining memories, but that’s exactly what we’re aiming for.
In other words, considering things like entrance exams, the longer we survive on this island, the more we can study.
It might not be schoolwork per se, but the knowledge gained here could prove useful in the future.
It was shocking to be suddenly dropped onto a desert island, but as long as life stabilizes, it’s not all bad.
Of course, this assumes that the mysterious blackboard actually sends us back.
“Let’s head out soon, shall we? Ah, by the way, I want to ask Chiiru for an enhancement.”
“Vitality enhancement?”
“I mean physical strength! …I know you were just messing with me.”
“Childhood friend joke.”
Well, very much like Chiiru.
“I want to test how strong the enhancement is, so I plan to ride on Mashiro’s back while she runs, and I’ll chase after her on foot.”
“Volunteering yourself as a guinea pig… truly dedicated, Sou-kun.”
After the girls mounted Mashiro, Chiyu placed an enhancement on me.
White light enveloped me, but unlike with Basic Healing, it coated my body like a membrane and remained without fading away.
”…While I’m glowing, that means I’m enhanced, right? I see, it’s easy to understand.”
Physically speaking, I didn’t feel any noticeable change so far, but…
“Alright, let’s go, Mashiro!”
At Shiko’s rallying cry, Mashiro took off.
I followed right behind.
It was only after we started running that I realized the sheer power of the enhancement magic.
I was keeping pace with Mashiro.
I was surprised at my own speed.
“Eh!? Sōsuke, you’re fast…”
“W-wow. To match the speed of a phantom beast like Mashiro-san…”
“It’s amazing, but I can’t let you beat me! Mashiro, show me more speed!”
I want to know my own limits, so it’s fine…
If Moshuro gave it her all, I definitely wouldn’t be able to keep up.
There was one more issue, though.
”…Sousaku, are you okay? 【Intermediate Heal】”
Moshuro came back to where I had stopped.
Chia quickly cast a healing spell on me.
As expected for a high-tier magic, the fatigue seemed to fade faster than with a basic spell.
The amount of damage recovered must have increased as well.
“Hah… hah… Phew. Experiments are important. It’s like that, huh? You’d think it would be obvious if you thought about it――but my stamina doesn’t actually increase.”
Everyone made faces that looked like “Ah…”
Expressions that conveyed a sense of “Oh, I see, now that you mention it.”
“If that’s the case, we should assume we gain no benefit in terms of durability or endurance either.”
Fukaho was probably right.
“Does it mean your ‘Attack Power’ and ‘Speed’ go up, but your ‘HP’ and ‘Defense’ stay the same?”
Mushiko’s gaming analogy seemed to hit the mark.
“Is it unusable?”
Chiyu said, looking a bit apologetic.
“No, it’s usable. I just need to figure out where to use it. I don’t really want to think about it, but even if some girl gets attacked by another guy, this would let her shake him off and escape, right? Considering the future, it’s a reliable power to have.”
“That’s true. I don’t have any fighting skills myself, and meeting guys other than Sousuke is a little scary, so having Chiyu-chan near me makes me feel safe.”
“The light hasn’t faded yet… Ah, it just vanished. So the duration is about five minutes?”
In game terms, it was like a buff spell that lasted for a few turns.
Just being able to use it expanded the range of combat options.
“It won’t happen overnight learning how to move your body when you’re enhanced, but it’s a wonderful magic.”
Indeed, time would be needed to get used to it.
“I guess so. I don’t know if I’ll be able to use it tomorrow, but I want to get as familiar with it as possible. Chiyu, can you alternate between healing and enhancement to keep my buff active?”
“Mm, understood.”
“Let’s have Mashiro go find us some prey for now. It’s good practice for the deep magic techniques. Besides, I want meat other than boar, too.”
“Thanks a lot, Mashiro~”
“I’ll do my best to show you the fruits of our magic training, Sōsuke-san.”
After that, we managed to bag two deer and a bear.
Of course, having Mashiro there gave us a sense of security, but Fuhō’s magic was also a lifesaver.
She calmly positioned the wand I had given her, carefully observed the prey’s movements, and focused solely on ‘hitting’ them—casting spells ahead to predicted landing spots or timing them for moments of deceleration like sudden turns or stops.
True to her nature as a diligent hard worker. She learned from past failures, put her training into practice, and devised the necessary strategies to achieve her goals.
“That’s amazing! You’re already a formidable force in battle.”
When I honestly praised her, Fuhō broke into a smile like a child whose perfect answer sheet had just been graded.
“Thank you…! It’s all because Sōsuke-san kept me company during practice.”
That smile was so charming that I couldn’t help but get lost staring at her.
“You look the part of a wizard, Minoryn. Cool as hell, actually. Hmm, I wonder what would happen if you fought Mashiro?”
“A-Actually, I think that’s quite unlikely. Aside from not wanting to attack Sōsuke-san, I don’t even know if my beginner-level magic would affect him.”
“Huh? What’s wrong, Mashiro? He said ‘Minoryn is too kind, but honestly, it wouldn’t hit anyway.’”
Mashiro also seems to possess a certain pride befitting his nature as a Fenrir.
“I see… Considering Mashiro is an ally, that’s fine. But thinking about hostile entities like phantom beasts appearing in the future, we’ll need not just improved skill level, but an increase in raw power as well…”
Fuminori began to think deeply and seriously about the matter.
“Now that I’ve got some venison… I could probably make a pseudo-wine sauce using yamabudo wine and pour it over a roast… What should I use for sides? Hmm, I really want some sweet potatoes or wheat…”
Shion, acting as the head chef, seemed to be in the process of devising the menu.
With my ability, any meat we hunt won’t rot, so even if I hunt nonstop for a day, none of it goes to waste.
“After testing it out a little more, shall we head back to the base and make it our lunch?”
The operation to secure the light orbs using the [Placement] function could go smoothly if combined with Chiyu’s enhancements.
Besides, [Placement] has uses beyond just securing light orbs; there are other conceivable applications.
If possible, I’d prefer not to have to use it…
To our dear readers, a request:
If reading this work has moved you even slightly
“It was fun!”
“I can’t wait for the next part!” or “KEEP WRITING!!!!”, please add a bookmark.
・The “Please support the author by giving points” section at the bottom of the page.
If you could change the ☆☆☆☆☆ buttons to ★★★★★ to show your support,
It would be a huge encouragement for future updates!!!!
Please!!!!