NOVEL NEXT Chapter 134: Survival Of Two People
‘Everything seems to be going according to plan.’
As he moved towards the base camp previously set up with his sister Minami, Akagi Shinjiro thought to himself.
In fact, all of this was his plan.
Project S.U.V.
It was a strategy designed to surely bring the young lady and Kim Yuseong together this summer.
Everything, from taking a yacht to the open sea, the timely running out of fuel, and even finding the right island, all originated from his mind.
Wasn’t it natural for a grown man and woman to grow closer if they survived together on a deserted island?
It was the perfect drastic measure for the young lady, who, despite meeting earlier than others, still hadn’t confessed.
He told Kim Yu-seong that he rented the boat because the young lady couldn’t enjoy much the day before, but in reality, the yacht was prepared from the beginning, and the reason was just a pretext.
For reference, the island they landed on had already been scouted, with exactly one day’s worth of food prepared in a cave on the mountainside.
“Brother, can we put down that transmitter bag now? It’s just for deception anyway.”
At Minami’s question, Shinjiro shook his head.
“What’s inside is actually not a transmitter.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s a much more valuable treasure.”
He opened the bag himself to reveal its contents.
Though he told Kim Yu-seong it was a transmitter, the bag actually contained two portable gaming consoles, a large-capacity power bank for charging them, and snacks and drinks to enjoy while playing.
However, Minami’s expression hardened.
“Did you bring us all the way here to play games?”
Then, Shinjiro pushed up his glasses with his middle finger and said confidently,
“There’s nothing much to do in the cave anyway. And I brought yours too, so don’t be mad.”
Shinjiro handed one of the gaming consoles to Minami as he spoke.
“…You’ve got Tetris and Puyo Puyo, too, right?”
“Of course, I got them. What do you take me for?”
“Fine. I’ll let it slide this time.”
The two siblings, who almost had a falling out, quickly made up.
Left at the shore with the President, I looked around to find a temporary place to stay, as requested by the two.
Honestly, this was my first time trying to survive on a deserted island like this.
At most, I had only camped outdoors, never having to create something from scratch.
Even in the military, they provided tents and food.
But since I couldn’t just sit around doing nothing, I opened the toolbox we had brought from the yacht.
Inside the box were a portable hand axe, a shovel, a knife, and flares.
The flares should be kept for emergencies, and as it would surely get cold at night, we needed to start a fire first.
Thankfully, the long summer days were a small silver lining in our situation.
“President, could you please gather some dry branches from around here?”
The President, eager to be helpful, rolled up her sleeves with a look of enthusiasm and replied,
“Of course!”
“Then I’ll start building a shelter.”
Having divided our tasks, we both started to work.
The President walked along the beach, collecting branches, while I used an axe to cut down nearby trees to create a frame for the shelter.
After constructing the frame, we needed something for the roof. Finding nothing suitable, we used a waterproof sheet from the yacht.
Fortunately, the yacht was well-equipped with almost everything we needed, so the work went smoothly.
It was baffling that we were so thoroughly prepared and yet failed to check the fuel.
“Yu-seong! I’ve gathered all the branches!”
Meanwhile, the President, having gathered the dry branches as I requested, looked at me with a hopeful expression for praise.
Her expression reminded me of a wagging puppy, making me laugh without realizing it.
“Why? Why are you laughing?”
“No, it’s just that you look so cute.”
“Wha–!”
The President puffed her cheeks, looking slightly annoyed, but even that looked cute. Did that make me strange?
Anyway, with the President returning at just the right time, I stacked the branches in the pit I had dug earlier.
Then, I built a wall around the pit with large stones and lit the fire with matches brought from the yacht.
Long live modern civilization. Long live matches.
“With this, we’ve secured our temporary shelter and fire.”
The President, standing beside me, spoke with an excited expression.
“This is my first time doing something like this, and it’s so thrilling.”
“You’re excited?”
“Is it strange?”
“No, thinking about it, it’s quite understandable.”
The President, having been raised in a well-to-do household, surely never had an experience like this.
As for me, I’ve had plenty of such experiences in the military.
Anyway, after moving around for a while and feeling thirsty, I was about to drink the bottled water we brought but then hesitated.
“President, have you ever had coconut?”
Caught off guard by the sudden question, the President tilted her head and answered,
“Once, when I went to Hawaii.”
“Is it good?”
“I personally found it quite nice.”
I hesitated, remembering a drink I had long ago, but wanting to fully embrace our deserted island survival, I decided to try a coconut and put down the water bottle.
“I’ll be back in a moment.”
Startled, the President asked,
“You’re not going to pick a coconut, are you?”
“With limited drinking water, isn’t it better to conserve what we can?”
And personally, I wanted to try it at least once.
Fresh coconut juice.
“Let’s go together!”
Worried about me, the President hastily followed.
Holding an axe in my left hand and a knife in my right, I headed toward a nearby coconut tree.
The coconut tree was enormous up close.
It seemed to be about 5 or 6 meters tall, at a rough estimate.
“How are coconuts usually harvested?”
The President, folding her arms, replied,
“When I was in Hawaii, I saw locals using long poles to pick them.”
“I see.”
But we didn’t have a long pole.
And there were no suitable places to grip for climbing the tree barehanded.
Eventually, the only option was to cut down the tree, but it seemed like it would take forever with the hand axe we had.
I spoke to the President, who was curiously observing the coconut crabs nearby,
“President, could you please step back for a moment?”
“Yes? What are you going to do?”
“It’s nothing dangerous.”
Saying so, I positioned my legs at a suitable distance apart.
“Suuuuu!!”
Deep breaths spread positive energy throughout my body.
Since learning the technique from Mei ling on Mount Fuji, this was the first time I’d used such a significant amount of energy.
The energy circulated through my body, concentrated in my arms and legs, and I took a big step forward, punching straight ahead in a horse stance.
Bang!!
The Core of the Eight Trigram Palms.
Though a fundamental technique, the powerful thrust combined with true intent was enough to impact the thick coconut tree.
The tree, half torn apart by the punch, couldn’t withstand its own weight and slowly toppled to the opposite side.
Thud!
“Awawawawa.”
The President, seemingly perplexed by the sudden event, made a strange noise from behind.
I shook the wooden chips off my fist and asked,
“Are you alright, President?”
“Yes? Y-Yes…”
Then, the President belatedly answered and nodded.
After ensuring the President was alright, I began to collect the coconuts that had fallen to the ground.
The coconut harvest was a success.
We gathered enough coconuts for both of us, justifying the effort of cutting down the whole tree.
It seemed enough to share, even if the Vice President and Minami were to join us.
Additionally, some coconut crabs near the tree, unable to escape in time, were crushed by the tree, providing us with free food.
It seemed we could settle dinner with these tonight.
Returning to the shelter with our spoils, the sun was beginning to set.
I pulled out my smartphone to check the time; it was already past 7 p.m.
Coconuts were great, but it seemed necessary to prepare dinner before it got any later.
“President, please have this for now.”
I chopped off the top of a coconut with the axe, inserted a straw into the flesh, and handed it to the President.
“What about you, Yu-seong?”
“I’ll eat after finishing this. We need to have dinner.”
While saying this and showing the dead coconut crab in one hand, the President hesitated for a moment, then pushed the coconut back towards me.
“Take a sip first. You worked hard to get it.”
“What? I’m fine…”
“Please!”
Unable to refuse the President’s insistence any longer, I took a brief sip.
After returning the coconut, the President hesitated with the straw at her lips.
“Should I replace the straw with a new one?”
Startled, the President turned to me.
“No! I’ll just drink with this one! Why waste on a deserted island?!”
She hurriedly sucked the coconut juice through the straw.
I glanced at her drinking and began to prepare the coconut crabs in earnest.