Multiple updates today.

Here is the second chapter.

The "Gun That Can Fire Infinitely" would normally be considered a cheat ability.

Especially on an island like this, devoid of other people.

Naturally, it gives you the upper hand in fights against other humans. And if you trained hard enough to make the most of the infinite ammo, you could hold the advantage even in battles against beasts.

But among the transported ones, there were others who had acquired magic or special abilities as well.

"Hah...? Wh-what is...!?"

It seemed the shooter had spotted Mashirot in his line of sight, and he was struck with sheer shock.

With a face twisted in panic, he aimed the gun barrel at Mashirot.

Perhaps he had mistaken them for one of those demonic beasts released onto the desert island... "Fukami...!" "Wha—! 'Water Wall'!"

The gun fired in rapid succession, but Fukami, thanks to his training, deployed thick walls of water multiple times over in a split second.

The bullets failed to penetrate the barriers.

"What the hell...!?"

While the male student was frozen with wide eyes, I moved behind him.

"Hey."

"...!?"

As if he'd been called out to by a ghost, the boy flinched and hastily tried to turn around to face me.

Syncing with that movement, I swung my spear like a stick.

"Guh...!"

It connected perfectly with the barrel, knocking the gun from his grip.

The dislodged pistol tumbled through the air and clattered onto the ground.

Worst case scenario, intentionally wounding him might cost me 100 points, but I couldn't just leave things as they were.

I targeted the split second where he was checking the direction of his blown-away gun and dropped Stone Cage.

"What the h—"

Successfully encased him in Stone Cage.

It felt like I could hear muffled sounds, but the details were unclear, and I had no need to know them anyway.

I quickly picked up the deflected pistol and activated Itemize.

The odds had been fifty-fifty, but it was safely stored in my Inventory.

What he wanted wasn't the "ability to generate and control a gun," but rather "the gun itself."

Features like ignoring ammo limits must have functioned as ancillary attributes of that specific firearm.

In other words, if I took the gun, he was just as powerless as anyone else.

I wouldn't have resorted to such a confiscatory stunt if it were just for hunting, but this guy's methods were far too dangerous.

"Well then—"

Since I'd already neutralized the hazards threatening our stay on the island, I hurried to rejoin my companions.

The sounds of striking and kicking against a stone wall echoed from behind as I chased after Mashiro.

—That's weird.

Between those who fled from Mashiro and those I had incapacitated, they didn't even make up half the class.

More than that, the number of girls was unusually low.

——The daily vote remained at twenty-one every day, a majority in their favor. That means there shouldn't have been any deaths.

Are they just failing to catch up with the light sphere, or observing from a distance? Or are they simply not intending to control this event in the first place?

Whatever the reason, if they're not interfering, I'll leave them be.

On our end too, there's no desire to trap my classmates.

"Sougo! It's bad! They've started flying!"

Before Mashiro could catch up, some of the students had apparently thrown stones at the light sphere, which seemed to have reacted by moving to a high vantage point out of range of their projectiles.

"Can Mashiro reach that height...!?"

"Sorry, but I 'can't'!"

I quickly scanned the surroundings.

The stone-throwers were also scattering after seeing Mashiro.

Currently, there's no one else around us here. Then—
"Sumiko! It's a new companion!"

"Yosh...! Come forth—Mr. Fluffy!"

The next summon beast she had been racking her brains over.

A product of imagery lacking a definite original text.

What appeared was—a black-furred, fluffy Eastern dragon.

"Mikuron...! I'm counting on you!"

Obeying his master's command, the black dragon Mikuron came to my side.

I leaped onto Mikuron's back.

"Take me to that light orb over there!"

The dragon soared through the sky with ease, as if a fish were swimming in the sea.

—Just a little more, just a little more until we're within deployment range...!

"Now's the time..."

Did that shout reach the ground?

There was something we had decided in advance.

This operation is built on three premises.

The light orb is—

・It has a field of vision and moves to evade the trackers.

・The light orb is always in a position visible to at least one participant.

・It does not reach altitudes that no participant can attain by any means, nor does it dive underwater.

――In short, it intends to be captured.

The light orb is an object that observes and calculates; it adheres to the rule that it must always be seen by someone, and we assume it selects its escape route with full knowledge of every player's abilities.

And now, the light orb's movement has jerked to a halt, as if in utter bewilderment.

I have already briefed my companions that this is a possible development in the situation.

And simultaneously with the signal――we had shared an instruction to close our eyes.

The light orb wants to escape from me.

But if it slips out of my line of sight, it must enter someone else's.

Yet, the students who fled in fear of Mashirol are far away, the students trapped in the "Stone Cage" cannot see the orb, and my companions have their eyes closed.

It might still be able to escape by leveraging the speed of light.

However...

――Just who could possibly catch a light orb that moves like that?

If this were an event where actually catching it was intended, they wouldn't have set things up this way.

As a result, the light orb stopped for a brief instant, as if calculating its destination.

It then entered the range where I could place units, courtesy of the Black Dragon Mikron.

The deployed Giant Net Woven of Vines enveloped the orb of light.

"Good..."

In an instant, the field of vision burst into blinding white.

◆

I was sent flying into a space of pure white.

It was a space containing only a mysterious blackboard, desks, and chairs.

The only difference from usual was that I was the only one here.

[Due to the appearance of the Light Orb acquirer, this event will now end.]

[The acquirer of the Light Orb is granted the 'Right of Return' and bonus points.]

The details of the points were not disclosed, but if there was any surplus after subtracting penalty points from the added points, I believe one could obtain perks upon returning using those points.

Well, it’s nothing to lose out on either way.

"You wish to exercise your 'Right of Return'?"

"Ah... I see what you mean."

Calling out only the one who acquired the light orb was a deliberate choice. By granting me alone a solitary moment free from the need to consider my comrades, I could be pressed to reveal my true intentions.

No matter what kind of entity that mysterious blackboard is, even if it can read our lives and our minds, it will not produce a reaction unless we stimulate it first.

Take, for example, asking a good-natured person, "What would you do if you won the big lottery?"

Before winning, they might answer, "Repaying my parents for their kindness, traveling with friends, and donating to helpful organizations."

That is a wonderful answer. That person may have meant every word from the bottom of their heart.

But what if—actually—if you won the jackpot?

Could you truly embody your ideal self, exactly as you imagined when you had nothing to lose?

Perhaps such people exist, but humans are creatures easily swallowed by their desires.

In reality, there are countless stories of lottery winners who squandered their fortunes and ruined themselves.

The allure of great wealth has the power to warp a person's mind.

The "Right of Return" is no different.

That mysterious blackboard is likely testing me to see if my judgment will waver.

"Not right now. I'm only going to use it once everyone on the team has accumulated their full share of rights."

I gave him that answer immediately, thinking to myself: Damn, I must have asked all the wrong people.

To begin with, I actually quite like my current lifestyle.

It's only natural that someone in a desperate situation would give a different answer.

"Regarding your intent to defer the use of your 'Return Right,' confirmation received. Unlocking the 'Bonus Area' for participant 'Kuno Sōsuke.' Note: Party members are permitted to accompany you into the 'Bonus Area.'" "Huh?

Wait, what the hell is that?"

"Ending event."

This guy really does only say what he wants to hear... even more than usual!

And once again, my vision was washed out in white—

◇

"Sō-kun." "Sōsuke!" "Sōsuke-kun...?" "Sōsuke-san..."

The voices of my companions snapped me back to reality.

Before I knew it, I had been teleported back to the base camp area under the cliff.

All four of my teammates were there, along with Mashiro and Mikuron.

But every single one of them wore a face etched with anxiety.

"What's going on?"

"Sō-kun was just spacing out."

"We were worried something must have happened to you...!"

Shuko’s eyes were welling up with tears.

――Did that mysterious blackboard shift the timing of my regaining consciousness just a bit?

"Are you okay? Does anywhere hurt?"

Shion stroked my back in a soothing manner.

"Ahh, I'm fine. More than that... while everyone was there, I was the only one called into a white void."

"...Were you asked whether to exercise your 'Right to Return'?"

The sharp-witted Fukami seemed to have caught on quickly.

She probably thought it was the kind of thing that mysterious blackboard, which seemed eager to observe us, would do.

"Soun-kun wouldn't abandon us and run away."

"Yeah...! Don't underestimate Sousei-sensei."

"Mm. I didn't doubt that for a single moment." / "I believed in you too."

The words of my companions, woven with certainty, made me feel happy.

"Thank you, everyone. Let's keep going until we can bring back the rights for all of us, along with our memories and abilities."

Everyone nodded in return.

Looking up at the sky, it was still early morning.

I suddenly remembered something.

"Hey... you might be tired from the event, but—want to go get some wheat?"

At my words, everyone's eyes lit up.

"Let's do it. And let's hold a bread festival."

"Hehe, sounds good."

"I want to eat pancakes..." "W-well, I'm thinking udon, maybe?" "Good idea. Let's just eat everything."

I smiled too and immediately split the group between Mashiro and Mikron.

Our life on this desert island was still far from over.

Anyway, I've managed to write up to the first part I wanted to get down.

One of my motivations for creating is the desire "to write something that many people will read," and

This work is my first submission on Nocturne, yet it has been read by so many people.

Thank you very much indeed.

If there are any readers who haven't yet bookmarked or rated the story,

If you can support us at this timing, it will serve as a great motivation for Part 2.

Thank you very much in advance.

Also, if you could give any of our reviews a push or feature them, that would be incredibly encouraging.

Even if we do make a Part 2, I probably can't maintain this same pace, but

I’ve been thinking about plot developments with the existing heroines and introducing new ones.

It would mean a lot if you could continue to support us.

Multiple updates today, this is the second one.

The gun that can fire endlessly is also a cheat, especially on an desert island like this.

Not only would it give an advantage in human combat, but if one trained with unlimited ammo, it would also give an edge in battles with beasts.

However, there are others among the transplanted individuals who have acquired magic or special abilities.

"Ah...? W-What...!?"

The gunman must have spotted Mashiro and was shocked.

He aimed his gun at Mashiro with a panicked expression.

Perhaps he mistook her for a monster that had been released on the desert island... "Deep..." "Eh...! 'Water Wall'!"

The gunshots rang out, but Deep, who had trained, instantly deployed several thick walls of water.

The bullets couldn't penetrate the walls and ended up falling short. "What...!?"

While the male student was still wide-eyed, I circled behind him. "Hey" "......!?"

The male student jumped as if a ghost had spoken to him and quickly turned to face me.

I swing my spear like a stick in time with my movements. "Gah...!"

It hits the barrel just right, and the gun flies out of his hand.

The gun flies through the air and lands on the ground.

--At worst, I might lose a hundred points for intentionally injuring him, but I can't just leave it.

I drop the 'Stone Cage' on him as he looks in the direction of the gun. "What the--"

I successfully trap him in the 'Stone Cage'.

I think I can hear muffled sounds, but I don't need to know the details.

I quickly pick up the gun and 'Itemize' it.

There was a fifty-fifty chance, but it successfully goes into my Inventory.

What he wanted wasn't the ability to create and control guns, but the guns themselves.

As a feature of the gun, it probably ignored the limit on the number of bullets.

In other words, by taking the gun, I've rendered him powerless.

If I was just going to use it for hunting, I wouldn't have gone to such lengths to take it, but its usage was too dangerous. "Well then."

Now that I've removed the danger factor for living on the island, I need to hurry and meet up with my friends.

While listening to the sounds of people hitting and kicking the stone wall behind me, I chase after Mashiro. ---That's strange.

Even after adding up the people who ran away from Mashiro and those I immobilized, it's less than half the class.

Actually, there are an unusually small number of girls.

---Every day, the majority of votes is still twenty-one. That means no one has died.

Are they just not catching up to the light ball, or are they just watching from a distance? Or do they not even want to control this event?

Whatever the reason, as long as they're not getting in the way, I'll leave them alone.

I don't want to trap my classmates either.

"Souma! It's bad! It's flying!"

Before Mashiro could catch up, some students had been throwing stones at the light ball, but it seems to have moved to a place out of reach of the stones. "Can Mashiro reach it...!?" "Sorry, it's 'impossible'!" I quickly look around.

The people who were throwing stones have also scattered after seeing Mashiro.

Right now, it's just us around here. Then— "Miko! New friend!"

"Alright…! Come forth—fluffy!"

The next summoning beast she had been struggling with.

A product of an image without a definite source.

What appeared was a black-furred, fluffy Oriental dragon.

"Micron…! I'm counting on you!"

Following her master's command, the black dragon Micron came to me.

I jumped onto Micron's back.

"Take me to that glowing orb!"

The dragon glided through the sky like a fish swimming in the sea.

—Just a little more, just a little more and we'll be within the range…! "Now…!"

Did that call reach the ground? We had decided on something beforehand.

This is an operation built on three premises. The light sphere is--.

・It will move to avoid the pursuers while maintaining its field of vision.

・The light sphere will always be in a position visible to at least one participant.

・It will not reach a height that all participants cannot reach by any means, nor will it dive underwater.

--In other words, it wants to be caught.

The light sphere is an object to be seen and thought about, and it can be assumed to choose its hiding spots while adhering to the rule of always being visible to someone's eyes, and taking into account all the players' abilities.

And now, the light sphere's movement suddenly stops, as if confused.

I've already informed my teammates that this situation is a possible development.

And at the same time as the shout, we all closed our eyes. The light sphere wants to escape from me.

But if it leaves my line of sight, it must enter someone else's.

Yet, the students who ran away in fear of Mashiro are far away, the students trapped in the 'Stone Cage' can't see the light sphere, and my teammates have closed their eyes.

It might still be able to escape at the speed of light, but--.

――Who in the world could catch a light sphere like that?

If this was meant to be an event where someone could capture it, they wouldn't use such a method.

As a result, the light sphere briefly stopped as if calculating its next move.

It then entered the range I could set traps in thanks to the Black Dragon Mikuron.

The giant net I set out, woven from vines, wrapped around the light sphere. "Alright...!" Instantly, my vision exploded into white. ◇

I was sent flying into a white space.

It was a space with only a mysterious blackboard, a desk, and a chair.

The only thing different was that I was the only one there.

"The event has ended due to the appearance of the light sphere's captor."

"The light sphere's captor will receive a 'return right' and bonus points."

The details of the points weren't revealed, but if there were any points left after adding the points I received and subtracting the penalty points, I would get a benefit when I returned, right?

Well, it couldn't hurt to get them.

『Do you want to exercise your “right of return”?』 "Ah... so that’s what you mean." ###

The reason why only the light sphere recipients were summoned is that, by giving them a moment alone, they could be questioned about their true intentions. ###

Even if the mystery blackboard is an entity that can read our lives and minds, it will not give a response unless it is stimulated. ###

For example, if you ask a kind person, "What would you do if you won the lottery?" ###

Before winning, they might answer, "I would repay my parents, go on a trip with friends, and donate to a charity that helps people." ###

That’s a wonderful answer. They may have truly meant it. ###

But—what if they actually won? ###

Would they be able to embody their ideal self as they had imagined when they didn’t have the money? ###

Perhaps there are people who would, but it’s human nature to be consumed by desire. ###

In fact, there are countless stories of people who went bankrupt after winning the lottery. ###

The allure of large sums of money has the power to corrupt people. The “right of return” is the same. ###

The mystery blackboard is probably testing whether my judgment wavers.

"I won't use it now. I'll use it when I've accumulated enough rights for everyone."

I immediately answered, but I thought I shouldn't have asked the wrong person.

To begin with, I actually like my current life.

It's only natural that someone who's cornered would give a different answer.

"About the suspension of the exercise of the 'Return Right,' the participant 'Sousuke Kouno' will be granted access to the 'Bonus Area.' Additionally, party members can accompany you in the 'Bonus Area.'" "Huh? No, what's that?" 'The event will end.'

He really only says what he wants to say, more than ever...!

And once again, my vision turned white--. ◇

"Sousuke!" "Sousuke!" "Sousuke-kun...?" "Sousuke-san...?" I was startled by my friends' voices.

I found myself transferred to the area around the cliff that had been our base.

My four friends and even Mashiro and Mikuron were all there.

But everyone looked worried. "What's wrong?" "Sousuke, you were spacing out."

"I was worried that something had happened to you...!" The summoner was on the verge of tears.

――Did that mysterious blackboard mess with my timing when bringing me back to consciousness?

"Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"

Shion patted my back as if to comfort me.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I mean, I was the only one called to the white space."

"…They asked you to exercise your 'right of return,' didn't they?"

Smart Shinko immediately seemed to understand.

She might have thought that was something the mysterious blackboard would do while observing us.

"Sora-kun wouldn't abandon us and run away."

"That's right…! Don't underestimate Sora-kun."

"Yeah. I never doubted that." "I believed in you too."

I felt happy hearing the words of my teammates, spoken with certainty.

"Thanks, everyone. Let's work hard until we can bring back everyone's rights, memories, and abilities." Everyone nodded in response.

Looking up, it was still early morning.

I suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, even though you might be tired from the event—do you want to go get some wheat?"

At those words, everyone's eyes shone.

"Let's go and have a bread festival." "Hehe, sounds good."

"I want to eat pancakes..." "I, um, want to eat udon." "Sounds nice. Let's eat everything."

I smiled and we all got into Mashiro and Mikuron right away.

Our life on the desert island was still far from over.

I was able to write up to the point I wanted to write first.

One of my motivations for writing is to "write something that many people will read,"

and this is my first work on Nocturne and has been read by many people. Thank you very much.

If there are any of you who haven't bookmarked or rated it yet,

If you could give it to me at this timing, it will serve as motivation for the second part.

Thank you very much in advance.

Also, if you could leave a review or recommendation, it would be a great encouragement.

Even if we do a second part, we probably can't maintain this pace, but

I do have ideas for progressing with each heroine and introducing new ones.

I would be grateful if you continue to support us.