The First Day

"Out in the wilderness, finding a source of fire meant securing the necessities of life. Knowing how to make a fire was a basic survival skill.

First, find a thick piece of hardwood to use as a spindle and a flat piece of softwood to serve as a fireboard. Then, use a flexible branch and vines to make a bow. Finally, whittle a pointed stick, drill a shallow hole in the fireboard, and cut a notch beside it.

,

Insert the spindle into the hole. Hold the pointed stick in both hands and press it against the top of the spindle, then move the bow back and forth to spin the spindle rapidly while keeping the pointed stick steady and applying pressure. Once sparks appear in the notch, immediately cover them with tinder and blow gently to fan the flames.

That was how you obtained the most precious source of fire."

Ying held up the fire he had just made using the bow-drill method with one hand and rested the other on his forehead, striking a pose.

"Ying, want a bowl of the fruit and vegetable soup we just made?" Hamaguchi asked, holding out a steaming bowl.

Ying looked up and saw that Kanzaki and the others had somehow managed to start a campfire.

"Impossible! How did you get a fire going so quickly!? The soup's pretty good, though." Ying took a sip and demanded an explanation.

"We just found a lighter in a village out in the wild." Hamaguchi held up a lighter, which had a picture of a gyaru on it.

"You broke the rules!"

They called it a village, but it was really just two or three run-down houses with almost nothing inside. The only useful thing they had found was probably the lighter.

"Byakuya, I heard you went to summer camp before. The girls aren't very good at putting up tents. Could you come help us?" Ichinose walked over and asked Ying.

"What? Who said I went to summer camp? That's just a baseless rumor! I took part in a hardcore survival challenge in Minecraft and lasted 10,086 days. Putting up a tent is easy." After saying that, Ying pantomimed rolling up his sleeves and headed toward the girls' tents.

As a survival expert, Ying had no trouble helping the girls put up their tents. Feeling pleased with himself, he returned to the boys' tents.

"Tetsuya, which tent am I sleeping in?" Ying asked.

"You can sleep over there." Hamaguchi pointed to a tree beside the boys' tents.

"What's that supposed to mean? Just tell me which tent I'm sleeping in." Ying pressed him.

"Ying, there are four tents for the boys in Class B, and each one sleeps five people. But there are twenty-one boys in Class B. You get what I'm saying, right?" Hamaguchi said with a mischievous grin.

Ying's pupils shrank. What!? How could this happen!?

"W-What!? I-I have to sleep with the girls!?" Ying cried out.

"What are you talking about? I meant you have to sleep outside!" Hamaguchi corrected him, exasperated.

"Here's my order: pick one boy to sleep with the girls. Everyone else, come over here and settle it with rock-paper-scissors." Ying declared.

"Don't try to weasel out of it. There's no room for you." Hamaguchi sighed.

"Tch... Tetsuya, where are you sleeping?" Ying put an arm around Hamaguchi and asked.

"W-What are you doing?" Hamaguchi had already guessed what Ying was thinking, so he tried to change the subject.

"So it's the first tent?"

"Huh? How did you know?"

"OK, I'm taking your spot." Ying said, then went straight into the first tent.

Hamaguchi realized he'd been tricked and wanted to slap himself twice.

Hamaguchi had only meant to joke around with Ying. In the end, Ying still squeezed into the first tent and slept there with everyone else.

"Okay, we've got the basic living arrangements taken care of. Next, let's split into groups and explore this Uninhabited Island!" Seeing that everyone in Class B had put up their tents and settled in, Ichinose made the suggestion.

"Sure! We'll do whatever Honami says!"

"I want to be in Ichinose's group!"

"Me too!"

Seeing everyone's enthusiasm, Ichinose smiled bashfully. In the end, she split Class B into ten groups of four.

"Byakuya, I'd like your group to scout out the other classes. Would that be all right?" After Ying and his best buddies had formed a group, Ichinose gave them their assignment.

As a qualified White Room assassin, Ying considered himself very familiar with gathering intelligence, so he agreed without a second thought.

"Ying, do you know where the other classes are?" Shibata asked, seeing how confident Ying looked.

"Of course." Ying folded his arms and replied as if it were obvious.

"Then where are they?" Shibata continued.

"Class A is in a cave, Class C is on the beach, and Class D is beside a stream." Ying answered.

"Uh... where exactly?" Beppu asked.

"Well..." Ying started to answer, but realized he didn't actually know. His memories of his previous life told him what the areas around each class's base looked like, but not where they were on the island.

"Let's go. All roads lead to Rome." Ying said, then continued walking.

Everyone: ...

"Ying, look! There's someone up ahead." Hamaguchi noticed something and quietly alerted Ying.

The group crouched down and moved silently, all looking toward the place Hamaguchi had pointed out. It turned out to be Class D's camp. They hadn't expected to find it so quickly.

"Don't make a sound. Our job is to scout, and we can't let them know we're here." Ying whispered to the group.

"Byakuya, what are you doing here?" Ying and the others looked up in surprise. The two who had come over were Sakura and Ayanokoji, returning from their own exploration.

"This oak has a trunk about two meters in diameter. Its bark is rough, so it must be at least several decades old. Kouiku really does have a rich history." Ying praised the oak in front of him.

The students from Class B were stunned for a moment, then caught on and began praising the school's scenery too.

"Is that so? Class D's base is just ahead. B-Byakuya, would you like to come take a look?" Sakura asked, as if she'd worked up all her courage to invite him.

Ying: What luck! Someone was actually inviting a scout to their headquarters?

"Sure!" Ying agreed without a moment's hesitation.

"You bastard, Ying! Trying to sneak off without us!" Hamaguchi jabbed Ying hard in the side and pointed at him accusingly.

"Come clean! When did you start hitting on girls from Class D?" Beppu came over too and put Ying in a headlock.

"Ugh, cough... I don't know... what you're talking about." Ying struggled to reply.

"You've got it wrong. M-My name is Sakura Airi, and Byakuya and I are just ordinary friends!" Sakura blushed and hurried to deny it.

After that, the students from Class B toured Class D's camp. Their most immediate impression was that it was shabby.

In exchange for getting to see Class D's camp, Ying and the others also shared the location of Class B's headquarters.

"It's getting late. We should head back." Hamaguchi glanced at the sky and made the suggestion.

"Yeah, let's head south. Back to base." After saying that, Ying set off east.

"Base is actually to the west," Hamaguchi reminded him.

"Haha, I knew that all along. I was just testing you." Then Ying headed north.

"I told you, it's this way..." Hamaguchi grabbed Ying by the collar and dragged him toward camp.

"Wait, Tetsuya, there's someone up ahead!" Shibata called out to Hamaguchi, who was hurrying back to base, and pointed to a tree in front of them.

A male student, covered in injuries, lay beneath the tree. Ying walked toward him with trembling steps and cried out:

"He's dead!"

"I'm not dead!" the student replied.

"He's come back to life!!!"