As a result of our deliberation, we decided to explore the cliffside area that had once served as our base.
The Mashiro team would take charge of exploring the upper areas beyond the cliffs.
While there were spots where one could climb up and down the rock face, it would still be a long detour even with Mashiro’s agility. Therefore, it was decided that Mikron, who could fly to cut across obstacles, would handle this leg of the mission.
“Um…! W-well, this is quite an uncanny sensation…”
Roa spoke up while perched on Mikron’s back as they soared through the air.
Her tone suggested she was impressed by the experience, though she also seemed slightly terrified.
“Hehe, I know, right? Don’t worry, Mikron-chan won’t drop us.”
I was in the lead position on Mikron’s back, with Shion directly behind me and Roa at the very rear.
Shion’s chest pressed against my back through her uniform. It had been seven days since we started this, and my heart still raced at the contact.
Soaking in that sensation from behind, Mikron swam through the sky for a while.
“Ah…! Mikron-chan, over there!”
Shion pointed to a specific spot.
Below us lay an open expanse resembling farmland.
However, the dominant hue was brown.
「Oh my, are they drying out…?」
「It’s just the leaves. The soybeans themselves look to be in perfect condition, if you ask me」
According to Shioto, harvesting the beans while the leaves are still green turns them into edamame.
Conveniently enough, this desert island places all its harvests and gathering spots in an optimal state for collection, so it’s likely that the soybeans have been arranged this way on purpose.
If that’s the case, as a lover of edamame, I’d certainly like a field with green leaves too… provided one is actually available.
I stepped onto the ground and watched as Shioto ran toward the field that had turned brown.
Faintly, a rustling sound came from the vegetation.
It seems the sound was soybeans rattling inside the pods.
“Looks like I nailed it…”
“Alright. Let’s start the harvest.”
「What is the proper method for doing so?」
“It’s fine to cut the root base or even pull it up by the roots, as long as you can harvest the soybean part.”
Shion answered Roa’s question.
Just to be safe, I handed both of them stone sickles and a harvest backpack basket.
I tried both methods for myself… personally, pulling them out seemed to require less effort.
Though that might just be because I’m a guy.
“Considering what’s to come, we should pick up as many as we can.”
“Yeah!”
“Understood.”
Shion carefully harvested the soybeans one by one using a stone sickle.
Mikron mimicked my actions and helped me pull the plants out of the ground.
The technique involved biting down on the roots with his mouth and lifting his head to yank them free.
But the shocking part was Roa.
Buuuuuup!
With a rapid, rhythmic motion that almost seemed to produce that very sound, soybeans were being tossed into the basket in succession.
By the time we managed to reach halfway down our row, she had already finished clearing her second row.
—Fast…! Way too fast…!
“W-Wow… Roa-chan is amazing.
I knew you were efficient when helping with cooking and cleaning, but…”
“It is a maid’s habit.” …Wait, what was a maid again?
When I thought about it properly, she had managed to survive alone for several days and even escaped after encountering beasts near the water source; her survival instincts were undoubtedly high.
If things were ideal, maybe it wasn’t unreasonable that she could do this… No, on second thought, it really was a bit off.
Perhaps we had gained a partner who was a superhuman by the name of Maid.
On an island like this, the utility of someone who can boost gathering efficiency goes without saying.
That said, I couldn’t just leave it all to her, so Shion, Mikuron, and I continued harvesting at our own pace.
“Master. I apologize, but my basket is full, so may I please store what I have?” “Ah, yes.
Of course.”
“Thank you.”
“No, thank you. Loa, you’re amazing.”
“I flatter myself too easily to say that. It is only because of Master’s abilities that the ingredients retain their luster, and only thanks to Head Chef Shion’s skill that they are transformed into such a magnificent meal. My own efforts are still lacking in comparison…”
Even as she said that, Loa seemed pleased.
“Without the raw materials first, we couldn’t do anything, so being able to gather them is quite an achievement.”
”…Ah, thank you. Then, I will go clear up the rest as quickly as possible.”
When I handed Loa the empty basket, she returned to gathering once again.
In the end, the soybean field we discovered vanished in less than an hour.
“Pff… th-that was exhausting…”
Shion let out a wry smile as she pressed her hand against her lower back.
I was in about the same boat.
「If Chi-Iyu were here, she could cast『Basic Healing」 on me」
Even so, my physical conditioning had improved significantly since before the transfer, and a brief rest should allow me to keep going.
Roa, true to form, stood with immaculate posture despite visibly sweating.
I pulled a canteen from my Inventory and handed it to the two of them.
“Thanks, Sousuke-kun.”
「…To create such intricate details within this medium is possible. Only Master could achieve such precision」
It was a flask with a lid mechanism that rotated by engaging with fine grooves.
Stroking Micro in appreciation of its hard work, I also drank some water.
Since it stored water chilled in the refrigerator, it was cold and refreshing against my throat.
I handed handkerchiefs to everyone, and we wiped the sweat from each other.
「Good job, everyone. Let’s take a short break, then resume exploration」
We paused briefly to steady our ragged breathing before remounting Micro’s back.
And so, we were attempting to venture into an area not marked on the map.
It froze in mid-air.
“What’s wrong, Micron? Did you find something?”
Micron tilted her head, then jerked it forward and back.
For an instant, her head collided with the space itself, sending ripples spreading outward through the air.
Just like a stone dropped into a lake surface…
“What was that?”
After Micron repeated this motion several times, I managed to grasp the situation.
There was some kind of invisible wall there, preventing her from advancing any further.
――Are the Mysterious Blackboard side setting up a no-entry area…?
――No, if that were the case, there should be an announcement.
“Does that mean it’s an ability?”
I was recalling my dream before the teleportation.
Besides, I had been sharing information among the team members.
I had compiled all the data I remembered regarding who had given which answers.
“Is it an ability that creates an invisible wall?”
I had Mikuron fly around for a while, avoiding touching the wall, but it seemed the invisible barrier enclosed a specific range in a rectangular prism shape.
“I wonder if any other kid claimed to have such an ability… Oh no, d-don’t tell me…”
Shion seemed to realize something.
“Ahh, this is probably a Barrier Ability.”
After Takanoko joined our conversation with Chiyu and me.
It briefly turned into a joke contest about abilities, but one girl described it like this:
―“An ability to set up a barrier that prevents bugs, beasts, or other people from entering.”
We landed on the ground for a moment and knocked on what appeared to be the boundary.
It felt like a transparent wall had been erected.
And it was pretty hard, too.
Yet, no sound came out when we knocked.
The landscape on the other side looked continuous with ours, but we couldn’t step into it.
It was just like a game.
You could see the scenery spreading out, but it wasn’t made for players to enter or anything.
It was incredibly frustrating.
“Well, we’ve got a rough idea of the scale. Let’s continue our search while avoiding this barrier.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
“Do either of you happen to know who is inside?”
“I’m not exactly close with him, but wasn’t he part of Sayoko’s or Shion’s group?”
“Hmm… more like Sayoko was the one actively trying to talk to him. He doesn’t seem like the type who enjoys socializing.”
“I see. Putting aside whether we can speak through the wall, if it were possible to communicate, should we bring Sayoko along?”
We didn’t even know how many people were inside, but Sayoko would surely be happy to find a friend.
Besides, considering this ability, it could be incredibly useful for monster defense if used correctly.
If we could make a deal where she erects a barrier around our base in exchange for us providing food, clothing, or other supplies, that would be a great help.
“Given Sayoko-sama’s communication skills, that might just be possible.”
As the three of us chatted about these things and tried to climb back onto Mikuron’s back—
A thin arm stretched out from behind the invisible wall and grabbed my hand.
“Wha…!”
Caught off guard, I couldn’t put up much resistance, and was pulled through the invisible barrier with a wet, squelching motion.
And standing there was the beautiful girl who owned those hands.
”……It’s you, Kuno, right? We were just talking about Shouko, weren’t we?”
A navy-blue downward bob, a sharp gaze, taller than Chiyu but still petite in stature, and large-breasted.
She radiated a lone-wolf vibe; she was the girl herself who had coveted barrier abilities.
A new heroine…?!
Somesuke continues to expand his circle of companions, embodying the subtitle:
‘Seems I’ll be living a slow life with beautiful girls.’
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