I Realized It Was an Academy Game After 10 Years

Do you know the three most important things on a deserted island?

It’s water, food, and shelter.

Without these three, whether you’re an old person who can’t walk on their own or a tough guy who can punch a bear with bare hands, you’ll face the same grim fate.

You’ll die of dehydration in three days without water.
Without food, you’ll kick the bucket in a month.
And with no shelter, you’re gonna get sick because of exposure to rain and tropical heat.

So, in the life of a deserted island, these three are crucial.

If these three aren’t met, you’ll have a countdown timer on your life. That’s why I always put in a lot of effort to secure them reliably.

I crafted a shelter with my skills, set traps and walls to keep monsters out, and I even prepared a hideout just in case. I caught fish from the beach and rabbits from the forest to secure food, and I even pick some caterpillars to supplement my nutrition.

And as for water…

I was relying on a well I dug a few years ago.

After a long search through the forest to find a spot with groundwater, I finally made the well. Finding groundwater is trickier than you think; sometimes you’ve got to dig deep. But hey, at least I found it.

Before I made the well, I used to boil seawater to get both salt and water. Naturally, I didn’t wash properly back then. Water is too precious to waste on washing! Sometimes it felt better just to rinse with seawater. I mean, I’m not a cabbage to be pickled in saltwater!

Anyway, I was on my way to draw water from the well early this morning.

But guess what?

Why the hell is the water in the well purple?!
It’s not brown, it’s not yellow, it’s purple? It looks like something that’ll poof you out if you drink it?!

“Damn those little shits…”

What the hell is this? Who the hell poisoned the well? I threw the corpse of the two-headed snake that got caught in the basket on the ground. I’m seriously furious.

So, is this how it’s gonna end?!

Poisoning my well?
Is the hydra really declaring a war on me?

I swear, soon I’m turning every snake I see into jerky. Once Renny is healed from her injuries by the bears, let’s see what happens. I’ll tie those little snakes up and cook the jerky right in front of them!

“…Phew, I need to calm down for now. I have to secure some water again.”

First things first, I need to get drinking water. I roughly placed a plank over the well and grabbed the shovel leaning against the entrance. It looks like it’s time to revert to traditional hydration methods. But first, I better inform Renny.

I opened the door and looked at Renny lying unconscious on the bed and Karina nursing her.

“The snakes poisoned the well.”

“Pardon? Poison?”

Karina’s round eyes from surprise are cute…but this is not the time. I tried to stay composed as I continued.

“The well is unusable for a while, so don’t go near it.”

“What about water…?”

“I’ll fetch some. We should conserve water for a while, so it’s better not to wash.”

“Got it. Please, be careful.”

Receiving Karina’s worried gaze, I left the house. Grabbing a suitable basket before leaving, I walked towards the beach. Even if the snakes poisoned the well, it’ll neutralize over time. In the meantime, I need to distill seawater for drinking water.

What a ridiculously troublesome method.

But this is one of the most reliable ways to find drinking water on this island. If I dislike this process, I could dig another well, but… I can’t guard it 24/7. If they poison that one too, it would all be in vain.

“I can’t believe I’m doing this again…”

I have no clue how long it’s gonna take to distill the seawater. Not just one but for three people! I’ll have to scoop seawater four or five times just to get enough for three. Renny hasn’t even opened her eyes yet, so her water needs are low…but still, more water is always better. To maintain basic hygiene, I need water.

“There are no shipwrecks…”

The beach is clean. The wreckage of a ship that used to be wedged in one corner had been washed away by the waves like always. Normally it’d just stay buried for a thousand years until completely removed, but this is how it is on this island. I don’t know the exact reason.

Since this is a game world, there’s probably a game-like explanation for it. Maybe it eats up resources and disappears after a while. Like some limited event they usually have. There are multiple possibilities, but with no evidence, it’s all just speculation.

But knowing that doesn’t change anything.

If I can’t find water now, we might all perish from dehydration.

“If only all this was drinkable water…”

It’s so blue and clear, yet drinking it would probably kill me. It’s just cruel to have so much water but be unable to drink it.

…Thinking back, during the early days of drifting, I almost died after gulping down seawater to quench my thirst. If I hadn’t stumbled upon those juicy fruits packed with moisture, I would’ve been toast from dehydration. I think we learned about some osmosis thingy in science class. Oh well, something about how it drains moisture instead? It’s scary how memories from science class come flooding back right before a life-or-death moment.

Phew, enough thinking. I gotta move quickly. Time’s not on my side.

Distilling seawater to make drinkable water is going to take a considerable amount of time. Starting now, it will take a few hours at least. And even then, the amount of water I can actually get is disappointing. But since the well is poisoned, this is the fastest way to get drinking water.

I created another container using nearby trees and filled it with seawater. The clear water shines a brownish hue. Ah, I’m so thirsty. I want to drink it right now. But I know drinking it would lead to that osmosis whatever that’d poof me. Must resist.

Holding the water container in both hands, I reached my house first to make a small stove. Just a simple stove to boil a pot. I stacked bricks to make the stove and constructed a stand about 50cm away.

This is the base for the distiller I’m about to make.

“Johann, what are you doing?”

“Purifying.”

“Purifying…?

As I began to create the seawater purification device, Karina asked me with curious eyes. I guess you rarely see this kind of thing in society. After all, there’s no need to go through this hassle to get water. There are infinite ways to secure water on the mainland, and unless you’re in a desert, it’s unlikely you’d struggle like here.

Still, I feel a bit uneasy with someone watching me from behind.

It feels awkward doing something in front of someone. It’s like that feeling when a teacher calls you up for a presentation back in school. All the kids are staring, and you have to present while worrying about your performance score. What a faded memory now.

I finished the mini-stove and went inside to grab a large pot I wasn’t using and filled it with water, covering it with a lid that had a hole in the middle.

Why’s there a hole, you ask? It’s a vent for steam. Since I’m thinking of obtaining water by distillation, I need to create an exit for the steam. But I’ll seal off other areas so none can escape.

“Crafting.”

I shaped the planks into a long tube and placed it right in front of the hole; the other side rests on a stand. Using good-quality clay, I filled in gaps around the tube meticulously. This way, the steam should stay trapped inside.

Next, I needed to use my skill again.

“Crafting.”

A glowing water container forms on the stand. The design allows the tube to pass through it.

The basic setup is done.

I took a new container and set it right below the end of the tube.

It’s been forever since I’ve done something like this. I poured the remaining seawater into the container on the stand and lit the fire in the stove.

Wow. My skills haven’t diminished yet. I went through a lot of trial and error to make this. Thinking back, I could tear up. Not because I’m a wuss, but I remember struggling to stay alive, drinking dew from leaves while coming up with the distillation method without knowing how to do it.

But a few years later, I figured out how to build a well and just cleared everything away.

“How fascinating…”

“If you wait a few hours, we’ll get water in this container.”

It won’t be a lot, but the water in the pot will boil, turning into steam that travels through the tube and cools by the cold seawater at the stand before dripping back down as liquid. It’s a similar principle to making distilled liquor. However, in the wild, it’s not something that’s easy to come by unless you’ve got skills like mine.

Making everything from the pot to the container from scratch isn’t a simple task.

And the efficiency is pretty lackluster too.

No matter how cold the water is, half of the water in the pot will evaporate away. Ultimately, boiling a whole pot will yield only about two cups at best.

In other words, this is merely a stopgap.

So I guess it’s time to execute the next plan, huh?

“Karina. Stay on guard.”

“Pardon?”

“I have to go somewhere.”

Snakes, if you ruin my water, then I’ll ruin yours too.

Let’s see who comes out on top, you little turds.

It’s war!

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