Target, Cabin

The rustle of fireflies' wings was like the buzz of annoying mosquitoes,

their ugly black heads sniffed about while several legs crawled over her sleeve. Even through the fabric, she could feel the insect's weight,

and its flickering tail light revealed the fine goosebumps covering Sakura Airi's neck.

Sakura: ">_<"

Too frightened of bugs to move, Sakura could only look to Sakamoto Junichi for help,

Sakamoto: \o/

Some people were born afraid of insects. They could not accept their strange appearances; even touching one made their bodies tremble and stiffen. Those tiny creatures gave them the creeps, their bizarre shapes and movements inspiring fear.

With no brains at all, they either kept crashing into glass or stayed completely still before suddenly flying straight at someone's face,

and in either case, the disgust toward insects was impossible to ignore.

But even harder to ignore was the pleading look in Airi's eyes.

"Actually, firefly larvae eat snails... and adult fireflies only drink nectar. They don't have sharp mouthparts."

Sakamoto suppressed his own nervousness and did his best to explain firefly habits in a relaxed tone,

"We can use their slight attraction to light."

Shining his smartphone's flashlight on the firefly

would draw its attention and make it leave Sakura's sleeve.

Sakamoto slowly raised his left hand at a tortoise's pace. His wrist traced a stiff arc through the air as the smartphone's light carefully approached the firefly.

He stopped at arm's length.

The firefly did not move at all.

Sakamoto's heart sank as he slowly extended his arm.

Five centimeters, ten centimeters...

No reaction...

A little closer. Slowly closer, slowly...

Whoosh! Whoosh! The firefly suddenly beat its wings and shot into the air, darting wildly in a random direction.

Both of them leaned back at the same time, narrowly avoiding the firefly,

then fell to the ground from moving too wildly.

When Airi came back to herself, she saw the boy trying to straighten the glasses that had slipped down to the tip of his nose.

"Pff... Cough..."

Suppressed laughter spilled from between their fingers almost simultaneously, but a string of bell-like tremors escaped. Sakura hurriedly covered her mouth, and it caught in her throat, turning into a strange breathy sound.

"That's exactly why I hate these stupid creatures that are completely impossible to predict."

Once the world before his eyes became clear again, Sakamoto helplessly pressed a hand to his forehead, holding his hands slightly apart to hide his embarrassment.

"Pff."

Yet in Airi's eyes, a tomato leaf was stuck in the boy's usually neat black hair, and tangled vines hung from his collar.

Airi could not hold back her laughter. Tears appeared at the corners of her eyes, and since she truly could not stop, she simply lowered her hand and revealed a bright, sincere smile.

Half a spoonful of moonlight seemed to pool in her dimples, and the curve of her lips was softer than the first snow of spring. Her sweat-dampened bangs clung to her forehead, trembling along with her laughter.

Noticing Sakamoto's gaze, Airi instinctively bit her lower lip lightly with her canine tooth, trying to stop herself from laughing, but a kitten-like hum still escaped. The dimples on her cheeks deepened and faded with her smile like honey swirled by the wind, and that lively expression brimmed with youthful energy.

Sakamoto was initially taken aback, but his gaze was completely drawn to this sight, one he would rarely ever see from her. He laughed as well.

They laughed for a full three minutes before gradually calming down.

After getting up and brushing the leaves and vines from themselves, they held hands, crossed the farmland, and entered the valley.

A layer of mud clung to their soles as the outline of a cabin finally emerged from behind the trees.

"What a beautiful cabin, Junichi. Is this the private space you mentioned?"

"Ah, pardon me. Let's go in together."

The boy stepped onto the bluestone slabs before the door and pushed open the wooden door. The motion woke the old bronze wind chime by the entrance, making it creak.

The cabin's outer room came into view.

On the wall to the right hung the backpack Sakamoto had left behind when he first came here.

She crouched down and looked at the empty old wooden cabinet in the corner. An orange-red fishing float was caught in a crack in its door.

"There's nothing here."

"What's this..." Sakura's gaze moved toward the corner. A bamboo drying rack leaned against the base of the wall, with a pile of fishing line nearby and traces that some things had once been there. There was something on the wall as well, and it looked like quite a lot had been taken away.

"They were left behind by the former owner of this place."

There was a stove at the front, with a neat stack of charcoal beneath it. Using those things, he quickly lit a fire, and the room became much warmer.

"Come warm your hands." Sakamoto handed her a steaming can of black tea. His backpack held enough supplies for three days.

The road from the Class D camp to here was not short, and the temperature had dropped so low it was nearly frosty. Their body temperatures had already fallen.

Besides, Class D most likely had no grilled fish to eat, so Airi was both tired and hungry.

"Thank you~"

Sakura Airi accepted the canned black tea and took small sips. Her complexion gradually turned rosy, gaining a little more vitality.

"Taking in some sugar helps maintain body temperature." Sakamoto unwrapped a milk candy with a white wrapper and handed it to Sakura.

Sakura put the candy in her mouth, her tongue pressing against the caramel layer as it slowly melted. She narrowed her eyes, enjoying the sweetness.

Then curiosity took hold.

"Why do you carry milk candies with you, Junichi?" Summoning her courage, she poked the bulge in his coat pocket.

"This?" Sakamoto put on a deliberately mysterious expression. "It's a bad habit I picked up in Hawaii. Keeping one in my mouth while diving makes equalizing ear pressure more comfortable."

Sakura nodded and fell quiet.

The two of them comfortably drank their black tea.

"Want to hear a ghost story?" Sakamoto suddenly became interested.

"A ghost story?"

"It's about a ghost wandering through Europe. Europeans are very afraid of this ghost."

"What kind of person is this ghost, then?"

"Well, he has been forgotten in Europe, but his story is widely known elsewhere."

"It sounds like a very grand story."

"It is."

They talked quietly until they had finished their black tea.

Sakamoto raised his left hand and checked the time.

"It's already one o'clock. Looks like we should find a place to rest."

Sakamoto approached the wooden door leading to the cabin's inner room. This door showed almost no signs of decay.

"Let's take a look inside. Maybe there's treasure in there."

He pushed open the inner door, revealing an even narrower, airtight bedroom.

It was very bare, with only a bedside table and a folding bed.

Sakura Airi suddenly let out a small "Ah."

Three unopened cans of tuna were neatly lined up on the wire springs of the folding bed in the corner. Their production date was three days before the exam began.

Sakamoto brushed his fingers over the wax seal around a can's edge, then suddenly laughed softly. "It seems the school's 'abandoned cabin' arrangement has a better sense of humor than Katsuragi's schedule."

They had unexpectedly found extra food, so naturally they had to keep it. Not a bit of food could be wasted.

As they picked up the three cans of tuna, an unusual creak came from the wooden floor.

"Something's... underneath..."

Target, Cabin