"Uesugi, why did you stop?"
"Taking it easy."
After checking in at the little river, Uesugi Hara went over to the bank.
He took off one shoe and pulled a fishhook and some fishing line from beneath the insole.
Clearly, he was planning to go fishing.
Kamuro Masumi obviously didn't get it. "Didn't we come out here to check in and gather information?"
"Just tell me—did we do those things or not?"
As he answered, Uesugi Hara looked around for a suitable stick. He planned to make a simple fishing rod.
Once Kamuro Masumi understood what was going on, she gave up, too.
She squatted beside Uesugi Hara and watched him fiddle with his gear. "How did you think to bring all this?"
Uesugi Hara countered, "Why do you think the school didn't just dock right away, but first notified the students and then chose to circle the island before stopping?"
"Didn't the announcement tell us to come out and enjoy the view?"
"So you only saw the scenery, while I saw something much deeper."
"Then what did you see?!" Kamuro Masumi asked, unconvinced.
"I saw nothing at all, which means I saw everything."
Kamuro Masumi: ?
Would it kill him to speak plainly?
Her brain couldn't keep up. How could seeing nothing mean he saw everything?
"Oh, I see."
Uesugi Hara looked at her in surprise. You understood?
Kamuro Masumi didn't understand at all, but she met his doubtful gaze with a glare. "Aren't you worried you'll get caught carrying all this?"
Uesugi Hara looked away and replied calmly, "The island's huge. It's perfectly reasonable for me to pick up a few things, right?"
He'd originally planned to come here and enjoy himself. Now he'd have to settle for less.
"I guess? Then where's your bait?"
Uesugi Hara said