We decided to look for a new place to move.
Once the breakfast dishes were cleared, everyone headed outside.
“For now, let’s head up to the top of this cliff.”
Normally, you’d have to find an accessible path or attempt a sheer climb.
But we had a reliable companion in our corner.
“It takes no time at all if you ride Mikuron!”
And Shouko was right.
Mikuron noticed my approach and flew over, wrapping her long body around me.
“Good girl. Can you take me up there?”
I stroked her head as I asked, and she nodded affirmatively.
“But what about Mashiro-kun? Surely Mikuron-chan can’t carry him.”
“Mmm. I’ll keep looking for a way up on my own!”
If he found one, it would be valuable information for us too. “The chickens are coming along,” she said. “Yeah, Chiyu. I’ll help out.”
They intend to carry them off in a cage, just as they did when catching them.
With ten hens now aboard, I move away from Mikuron and lend a hand to Senru.
Once that’s done, we’ll pack away every single component of the base.
“Creed’s abilities really are amazing…”
As everything vanished smoothly from before her eyes, Fukami murmured.
“Creed! Mashiro pulled the fence out for us!”
Since burying it in the ground would register as “connected to the earth” and prevent storage, I was thinking we could just leave the fence behind.
Mashiro placed the fence, which he had been carrying in his mouth, right in front of me.
“Thanks a lot, Mashiro. Digging it back up by hand would have been a real hassle, so I appreciate it.”
I gave him a pat on the head.
After that, Senru and I slung the cages containing the hens onto our backs, and everyone mounted Mikuron’s spine.
“Everyone, hold on tight!”
“You’re safe as long as you’re holding onto Mikuron!”
Mikuron began to ascend slowly into the air.
I wasn’t really paying attention during the event, but as my altitude gradually increased, I felt a thrill similar to what I’d experienced on my first plane ride.
”……We’re flying.”
“W-wah! It was surprising with Mashiro too, but t-this is amazing…”
”……………………”
“Mironin, are you okay? You’re trembling all over.”
Perhaps Mifon was just bad with heights.
“My apologies, Mikuron. Once we reach the top of the cliff, please fly close to the ground.”
Before long, the top of the cliff came into view.
That said, it wasn’t much different from before; the forest simply stretched out ahead.
No, there was a difference.
“Apples. Found.”
Chiya murmured.
Trees laden with red apples had suddenly appeared in our line of sight.
“Whoa, so these are placed here every day?”
“There are lots of trees! All-you-can-eat apples?!”
Shiin and Shouko were also jumping around excitedly.
It was obvious that the environment on this desert island was being manipulated by the mysterious blackboard.
Over the previous five days, we had discovered a certain rule.
That rule was the “recovery” of the environment. Or perhaps, its “regeneration.”
On the very first day of my transfer, out of a misguided sense of environmental responsibility, I didn’t gather all the mushrooms and fruits I found; instead, I left some behind.
But this island was entirely at the mercy of that mysterious blackboard’s will. Such consideration was unnecessary.
The clearest evidence was the tree I had chopped down.
I had left the roots and the stump behind, but I was shocked when I passed through that spot on a different day.
There was no stump anywhere to be seen. A tree was growing there instead.
Just like in games, where destroyed objects regenerate over time.
It seems this island has a mechanic where environmental changes caused by humans revert to their original state.
This applied equally to the materials I had harvested.
Of course, areas that became targets of new environmental changes—such as the ‘fruit’ incident or the ‘water source’ from before—are exceptions.
If a spot where mushrooms used to grow turned into a ‘water source,’ you could never harvest mushrooms there again.
But apart from such exceptions, simply utilizing this mechanic was enough to avoid starving to death.
Once you knew where the edible mushrooms grew, you just had to harvest them every time they regenerated.
That said, whether one could notice this mechanic and decide to exploit it in a situation where they’d been suddenly transported into a forest is another story entirely…
「Finding a new place to live is the priority, but we might as well pick up a few while we’re here.’
Mikuron thoughtfully pressed his body against the tree so I wouldn’t fall, allowing us to grab one apple each.
I wiped them lightly on my uniform before taking a bite.
With a crisp crunch, juicy pulp spread through my mouth.
“Mmm, delicious.”
“Yum!”
“They’re really sweet. They taste great as they are, but making jam or an apple pie would be nice too.”
“We’ll come back to pick more later.”
“Right. If we put them in Sousuke-san’s ‘Inventory,’ they won’t rot.”
Having returned close to the ground, Fukaichi regained her composure and stated this.
Indeed, my ability meshes well with how this island works.
No matter how much the resources regenerate, edible items are still subject to spoilage.
However, since time doesn’t pass inside my ‘Inventory,’ I can gather as much as I want.
In other words, I am likely the only one who can stockpile unlimited amounts of food and materials.
Things are calm for now, but there’s no guarantee the weather on the island won’t change in the future.
In a situation where a sudden blizzard persists, if I use my ability to stockpile food, my companions won’t have to starve.
“Wow, adding fruit sounds great. I’m actually really into melons. Do we have any?”
As Miron swam through the forest, Shouko continued to express her amazement at the apples.
“I’ve heard that melons and watermelons are considered vegetables, but is that really true?”
“It seems to vary by country. Botanically speaking, tomatoes and cucumbers would count as fruits, but I doubt many people in Japan classify them that way.”
“The Mysterious Blackboard seems to be setting rules based on our common sense for now, so it’s probably following Japanese standards? Though I can’t tell if those are household standards, seller standards, or shipping standards.”
Even if something is shipped as a vegetable according to national standards, there are cases where it ends up in the fruit section at the supermarket.
It’s not uncommon for snack foods to be placed in the confectionery aisle; similarly, store discretion often changes where items are shelved.
“Actually finding them and verifying would be best.”
Chiyu’s words were quite reasonable.
We moved away from the apple tree, and soon—found a river.
“River, discovered.”
“Oh, I’m starting to feel like eating fish now.”
“Fish sounds good too.”
“Meat was chosen by vote, so aren’t they not on this island?”
「Do the ones who weren’t chosen get re-picked for a binary choice later on, I wonder?»
I’m curious about it too, but until they actually show up, there’s no way to know.
No wait, there’s still the option of asking the Mystery Blackboard.
“The fish are one thing, but it’s a handy spot to secure water.”
I nodded at Chiya’s words.
“Exactly. Micron, see if you can find an open area around here.”
“In the worst case scenario, I could use my magic to fell them.”
“Mashiro might be able to help dig out the roots.”
Fuka and Moko’s ideas were viable, but I was a little wary of the environmental recovery.
It would be disastrous if we placed our house on land where trees had been dug up and the regrown trees burst through it.
We headed upstream to the river we had discovered earlier. After Micron walked for a while, the view opened up.
“…It’s a grassland.”
A vast expanse of meadow, like a nature park.
The wind was refreshing, and there was nothing obstructing the view.
It had the vibe of a place where you could just go ahead and open up a ranch. “Isn’t this spot perfect?” “Mm. Great sunlight.”
“It’s close to the river, too, so if fish end up being added to the mix, we’ll be able to head fishing immediately.”
“The sightlines are clear, so it looks like we’d spot any beasts or people approaching right away.”
Everyone seemed to have a good impression of it.
After having Micron level the ground, I searched for a good spot to place the house.
“Mm. Somewhere around here, I guess. Then it just needs to be flattened by Mashiro…”
Come to think of it, they also leveled the land below the cliff, but in that case, no ‘Regeneration’ occurred.
So it’s not that everything and anything reverts to its original environment…?
Thinking about it logically, if life on this island was meant to be long-term, say, when we decided to create a farm, the environmental regeneration could actually get in the way.
If that’s the case, it makes sense that the land itself wouldn’t undergo regeneration.
However, if trees regenerated, it would mean we couldn’t clear-cut forests to build villages under current conditions.
Since there are already open areas like this grassland provided, I guess I just need to find spots like those.
“Mashiro-kun, you’re taking your time, aren’t you?”
At Shion’s words, Moeys face twisted with unease.
“Hmm. Knowing Mashiro, I guess he’s probably fine, but…”
And then, from the boundary where the forest met the grassland, a massive white body slithered out.
“Moeys, Mashiro’s back!”
“I knew it! Oh great, Mashiro! …Wait, what is that?”
“Looks like he’s carrying something in his mouth.”
“Could it be… a person?”
Looking closely, the thing clamped in Mashiro’s jaws was a female student with long, fluffy cream-colored hair.
Judging by her tattered uniform, she was one of their classmates.
“M-Mashiro brought someone back!”
They were shocked, but it would be impossible to tell him to leave the girl wherever he found her.
Since she appeared unconscious, they had no choice but to tend to her first.
Good sunlight. Sorusuke and the others secured a grassy area near the river.
That’s when Mashiro picked up a new heroine……!?
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