We ran into a cliff.

We were standing at the bottom, looking up at it.

“Doesn’t look climbable,” Chiyu murmured.

“Yeah.”

The cliff wasn’t perfectly vertical—it slanted. And if you tucked yourself in down here, anyone above wouldn’t be able to see you.

“So-kun?”

I’d been staring ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) at it, and Chiyu called out.

“Yeah. I was thinking we should make this a base candidate.”

Chiyu slowly looked around.

There weren’t any trees growing around the base of the cliff, and the space was a bit open.

Perfect for placing a hut and making a campfire.

“Yeah... it would be hard for people to find us, right?”

“Exactly. You don’t hate it, do you?”

She shook her head.

“I don’t hate it. Then this is a love-nest candidate.”

“Love nest, seriously...?”

This childhood friend of mine said things like that with a straight face, and it was a problem.

“If So-kun turns into a beast, I’ll be powerless...”

Chiyu hugged her own shoulders and swayed her body left and right.

“I’m not going to pounce on you when you don’t want it.”

“As expected of you, So-kun. A gentleman.”

“Thanks.”

Chiyu looked up at me like she was testing me, and said—

“...Then what if I didn’t hate it?”

My heart jumped.

“N-No, I mean...”

I could feel my cheeks heating.

Seeing that, Chiyu nodded in satisfaction.

“Confirmed. You’re interested.”

“I don’t even know what face I’m supposed to make...”

I already knew I couldn’t beat this childhood friend when she got serious.

Chiyu was important to me—my childhood friend, my best friend, and a really attractive girl.

If we could get closer than we were now, I’d be genuinely happy. That part was true.

“For now—”

Chiyu’s stomach growled loudly.

“I want you to roast the mushrooms.”

Honestly, I was grateful for the mood shift.

I gave a wry smile and started getting ready.

“Yeah, let’s do that. Help me out.”

“Of course.”

First, I used the Crafting Ability to create a String-Drill Fire Starter.

And along the way I’d been storing stones and rocks in my Inventory, so I used those to craft a huge stone-paved platform.

I placed a stone floor about the size of six tatami mats.

Then I placed the fire starter on top.

To work properly, you had to sit down on the ground—but in a place like this you’d end up covered in dirt.

That was why I wanted a clean floor.

Chiyu and I climbed onto the stone platform.

“So-kun, this is the fire starter?”

“Yeah. This one’s meant for two people.”

The parts were: a piece of wood with a notch, a wooden stick, a cord, and a stone with a notch.

“Interesting.”

We sat down.

The stone was cool to the touch and refreshing, but maybe it would be nice to craft a woven grass mat too.

But first—fire.

I set the notched wood on the ground, pressed the stick into it, and supported the top with the notched stone.

Then I wrapped the vine cord around the stick and pulled it left and right to make it spin.

While doing that, you fixed the wood in place with your foot.

“For now, I’ll try being the one who pulls the cord.”

“Please.”

Chiyu followed my instructions and pinned the wood with her foot.

Since she was wearing a skirt, not only were her nicely-fleshed thighs visible—her white underwear underneath was too.

She didn’t seem bothered at all.

I tried hard not to focus on it while I pulled the cord, spinning the stick left and right.

At first the cord slipped, the stick popped out, and it was a mess—but I got the hang of it in under ten minutes.

Soon smoke rose from the wood, so I removed the stick and tucked the ember into some fibrous wood-cotton I’d crafted.

I crafted a thin wooden board as a makeshift fan and wafted air—

—and the fire caught!

“Oh!”

A flame that would light in one second on a kitchen stove felt unbelievably precious on this deserted island.

“As expected of you, So-kun...!”

Even Chiyu was unusually hyped.

I crafted firewood and carefully fed the flame.

It came together pretty fast, but for some reason I was exhausted.

“Good work. Healing Magic — Basic Heal.”

White light wrapped around me, and the fatigue and pain in my hands faded away.

“As expected of you, Chiyu.”

“I’m not letting you hog all the spotlight, So-kun.”

Her face was blank, but there was a crisp, determined edge to it.

“Haha. I’m counting on you.”

Honestly, Chiyu was pretty broken too.

“But seriously, amazing. It was worth letting you see my panties.”

My childhood friend said that, her cheeks faintly pink, and I choked on my words.

“So you noticed...”

“Girls are sensitive to where you’re looking.”

“Sorry.”

“I forgive you.”

I skewered mushrooms on crafted sticks, sprinkled salt over them, and held them over the fire.

Moisture bubbled up, evaporated, and the smell spreading out into the air was exactly the kind that made your stomach scream.

We waited impatiently for them to finish roasting—and then, when they looked ready, we popped them into our mouths.

“Haf, haf—”

They were a little hot for Chiyu.

“This is insane. Mushrooms were this good?”

“Salt is the strongest. So-kun, let’s eat more.”

“Yeah. Let’s.”

Nuts and mushrooms.

In modern Japan it would be beyond “simple.”

But on this deserted island, it was real food.

And to fill our stomachs, we roasted another round of mushrooms.