Dinner, the Cabin's Treasure

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

"This road stretches on and on."

Following the stream they had discovered earlier, they found a place with obvious signs of human activity.

Sakamoto stood at the highest spot nearby and carefully recorded every feature of the terrain.

Ahead lay a vast stretch of farmland, growing tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and other starch-rich foods.

There was also a lush green cornfield, its ripe, plump kernels wrapped within huge leaves.

"Excellent." Sakamoto marked the location and drew a simple map, detailing the terrain and resources around Class A's camp—this level of drawing was effortless for him.

If they gathered these foods successfully, they would be more than enough to feed Class A for seven days. It would be a considerable help to Katsuragi and save them a chunk of point expenses.

And there was that river, which could provide the protein they needed most—fish, shrimp, crabs, and other aquatic fare.

With meat and vegetables combined, they could ensure balanced nutrition. It was perfect.

Most importantly, he had noticed quite a few cabins on the island. They were probably houses once used by personnel stationed on Uninhabited Island—far more convenient and comfortable than tents.

This place was close to the sea and had an obvious landmark—the farmland. If people had farmed for themselves, they usually would not have planted too far from where they lived, so there should be cabins belonging to island personnel nearby.

Sure enough, Sakamoto found a well-maintained wooden building in a lowland between two peaks.

Open the door! Come and go as you please!

Sakamoto kicked open the creaking wooden door—

"Ta-da!"

Kamuro held up a rice ball wrapped in banana leaves as if presenting a treasure. "A special deluxe seaweed-flake set meal. What do you think?"

Kamuro's eyes sparkled as she watched Sakamoto return. She had spotted him while he was still some distance away from camp.

Sakamoto stared at the crude rice ball wrapped in green leaves. A few stubborn grains of rice even poked out through the gaps in the leaves.

Although... well... as a refined young gentleman, he could not hurt someone else's feelings.

"Amazing, amazing. Your handiwork is really impressive."

This girl—why was she becoming more and more like a child?

Sakamoto praised her in the tone one would use to coax a child.

"Right? I even specially shaped it!" Kamuro proudly twisted her wrist, only for the pickled plum on top of the rice ball to suddenly roll off and carve a sorrowful trail across the sand.

Kamuro's face fell, and she started complaining to the rice ball again.

"I didn't expect the school to be this heartless. They made us eat rice balls and only gave us such a tiny amount of ingredients."

Sakamoto smiled and pulled out a string of fish tied together with vines from behind his back.

"Whoa! What are these?"

"I caught them in that river on the way back."

He had learned how to fish in Hawaii, and it just happened to come in handy.

"This river is basically a seafood buffet!" She swallowed as she stared at the skewered fish, as though she could already see grilled fish dancing before her eyes.

"But without seasonings, they probably won't taste nearly as good," Kamuro said regretfully.

Sakamoto said nothing and pulled out a large pile of seasonings from his backpack: cumin, chili powder, and even several bunches of scallions.

Excuse me, were you here for a picnic?

Kamuro looked utterly baffled.

Kids should not ask questions they should not be asking. If you ask, the answer is that the favor can never be repaid!

He had stuffed all these things into waterproof bags when disembarking, then hidden them underwater and brought them over.

If no one noticed, then he had not brought them. But aside from the seasonings, he had also brought other daily necessities. If everyone questioned every single item, it would be exhausting. For the sake of convenience—

"I found these in a cabin in the valley," Sakamoto explained.

The cabin's former owner had probably been a fishing enthusiast. Sakamoto had found many fishing rods, landing nets, shrimp traps, pots and pans, and all kinds of seasonings in the room. Thus, adhering to the principle of making full use of everything and wasting nothing, he had taken it all with him.

After setting up the fire, he laid two fish over it, skewered them with resin, and grilled them evenly on both sides. Before long, an enticing aroma wafted from the tender flesh of the fish.

Kamuro immediately darted over holding up her grilled fish. "I want insanely spicy!"

Sakamoto produced a special chili powder as though by magic.

"You really have that?" Kamuro asked in surprise.

"I found this in the cabin too."

"It smells so good."

Hashimoto, who had been eating rice balls outside, followed the scent of meat to the meal spot beyond the camp. He saw Kamuro cautiously eating her insanely spicy grilled fish, then gulping down a huge mouthful of water, her face flushed red from the heat as she fiercely looked around for anyone laughing at her.

Hashimoto clutched his stomach and squatted nearby, trying to hold back his laughter until he choked and began coughing violently. Sakamoto desperately kept his expression from changing.

"Stop laughing already! Seriously!"

Sakamoto quickly changed the subject.

"It would be nice to have a bowl of fresh fish soup."

Hashimoto: !(Agreed, agreed.)

Before long,

Hashimoto held a steaming bowl of fish soup in his hands, his face brimming with satisfied happiness.

However, he was a little confused.

Where had this pot come from? And these seasonings? And this bottle of soy sauce, and this chicken bouillon.

Sakamoto: The cabin, the cabin.

"Boss, these rice balls were bought from the school with Katsuragi's points. They cost six points.

"If Katsuragi saw what we were eating now, he'd probably stop wanting rice balls too. Haha..."

Hashimoto reported the information he had learned that day to Sakamoto while drinking his fish soup.

Today was only the first day on the island, and students from every class were still adjusting to the wilderness.

Many people had never lived in the wild before and could not adapt. But Class A's discipline was beyond question. They could be laughing and joking one second, then immediately sit upright and stare at the blackboard the next. So Class A had not run into any trouble.

Class B was relatively close to Class A and was just as quiet. Sakamoto nodded; that was hardly surprising. With Ichinose leading them, Class B's cohesion was beyond doubt.

In contrast, although they were still fairly stable, they lacked wilderness survival experience. On the first day, they had failed to find much edible food and could only spend points to buy hard rice balls to chew on.

"Boss, listen to this—Ryuen's Class C was actually throwing a party this afternoon! Damn it, they even brought a DJ booth. I have no idea what they're thinking. I bet they spent at least a hundred points today!"

Hashimoto sounded less judgmental than envious. He had been running around all day and could only eat rice balls, then saw others having seafood, grilled meat, sunshine, and beaches. His mindset immediately collapsed.

Hashimoto shook his head as he looked at the fish soup in his hands. "No need to compare, no need to compare. I have delicious fish soup to drink."

"Grrrroooowl~~"

The sound of a rebellious stomach suddenly came from behind the bushes.

All three turned their heads at once and stared at the bushes.

"Who's there?"