Before setting foot on the island, Schiller had observed it from afar. This mid-sized island near Mexico was nowhere near as large as the surrounding major islands.
But it had one very notable feature: it was far from every other island, at least too far for any human to swim to.
It was truly an isolated island in the sea. Like other tropical islands, it had white beaches, coconut trees, seabirds circling overhead, and, most importantly, the scorching sunlight that seemed to be everywhere.
The tropics barely had distinct seasons, so even though it was only April, the vicious sun already hung high overhead, bringing excessive heat to every living thing. After crossing the beach and entering the Rainforest, Arthur looked somewhat enviously at Schiller, who carried a black umbrella.
Now he understood what the professor's umbrella was for. It could keep off not only rain, but sunlight as well.
But Schiller's umbrella was clearly meant for one person. Even if Schiller were willing to let Arthur stand beneath it, it would not cover both of them. Arthur stopped walking and said, "Professor, wait a moment. I'll make an umbrella."
Schiller stopped, unable to figure out what he intended to do. Arthur jogged over to a nearby tree.
The tree looked strange. It was not tall, but its base was quite thick, and it had many fan-shaped leaves. Its overall shape was round, and every leaf consisted of many green strips. As Arthur climbed, he said, "This should be some kind of palm tree, but I don't know the exact species."
He climbed up, picked several leaves, straightened the green strips, and began weaving.
Arthur looked tall and powerfully built, but his weaving skills were remarkably fine. In just a few motions, he wove three fan leaves together into a