-November 15
The day was blessed with clear skies and not a cloud in sight.
We finally embarked on our journey.
After breakfast, I explained the operation at the hideout.
「 As mentioned before, we’ll go with these three people 」
The three are Yoshiokada, Muscle, and me.
I will be giving commands, Muscle will be propelling the boat and rowing the oars
Yoshiokada will use this opportunity to experience the rough seas firsthand and will design the new vessel.
Yes, we’re expecting to fail today.
I’d be happy if we could get to the other island safely, but if we can’t, then it doesn’t matter.
It will be after winter is over before we could cross the ocean.
「 Karin, take care of this place 」
「 Yes, I’ll take care of it 」
Karin will be the leader in the hideout while we attempt this trip.
She’s second to me when it comes to knowledge, and I feel comfortable with her knowledge in all things general.
「 You better come back today! 」
Arisa looks somewhat anxious,. but she’s acting cheerful.
Her dark ponytail danced from side to side with her movement.
「 I won’t do the impossible 」
We do plan on coming back today.
It’s just a guess, but, the distance of that island isn’t too far.
If the boat sails smoothly even with no wind, it’ll only take half a day to make a round trip
「 Are we ready? 」
I boarded the fishing boat and check on Muscle and Yoshiokada.
「 It’s okay, Muscle! 」
Muscle nodded, showing his white teeth as he holds the oar.
「 I’m ready anytime, over 」
Yoshiokada’s ready too.
「 Then, let’s depart 」
Our boat departed from the hideout while everyone cheered at our back.
◇
After leaving the hideout, I lowered the sails.
The long horizontal rectangular sails open and catch the wind.
Using that force, the boat automatically proceeded towards the other island.
「 Muscle, you can rest now 」
「 Roger that! 」
Muscle’s our key to manual travel.
We need him to conserve as much strength as possible, while we can use the wind.
「 Yoshiokada, are you feeling seasick? 」
「 No problem, over 」
「 That’s great 」
Yoshiokada’s prone to seasickness from the start.
Seasickness is something that everyone goes through but this one’s particularly bad
However, he overcame his seasickness after accompanying us on a lot of fishing trips.
A fisherman once spoke on television about seasickness.
According to that fisherman, people who do not get seasick from the start are very rare.
「 I didn’t get seasick at all 」
Even those who boast that they get sick once they experience the tremendous rocking of a fishing boat.
That said, we could overcome this if we repeatedly board the boat.
However, some can’t ever get over it.
I’m worried that Yoshiokada might be one of them but I’m relieved to see that he’s able to overcome that problem.
「 It’s still peaceful 」
「 That’s right, Muscle 」
We sit cross-legged on the boat and rehydrate ourselves.
The bamboo water bottles made by the handicrafts group are very useful here.
Since it’s a long game, we brought a lot of provisions.
Especially drinking water. I mean, it’s mostly drinking water.
After all, you can handle it as long as you’re hydrated.
「 Speaking of which, Muscle, do you study? 」
「 Study? 」
「 Yes 」
We’re currently in the studying boom.
To be precise, reading our textbooks.
Our books are one of the few pieces of entertainment we have.
They’re studying nearly every day.
When there’s a break, or while waiting for their turn in the bath, or after dinner.
They read textbooks, pretend that they’re in a class, and accumulate knowledge.
When at school, it’s rare for anyone to like studying.
I was like that, I did hate studying.
But now, it’s one of the best breathers we have.
It’s fun to study when you take the initiative after all
However, only Muscle shows no interest in studying.
He participates in card games, but he doesn’t study.
That said, his grades weren’t bad.
Rather, he could be classified as one of the bright students.
His brain isn’t just made of muscles.
「 I don’t study 」
「 Why? 」
「 It’s purely uninteresting to me. If I have time to study, I’d rather do push-ups 」
「 That’s an easy-to-understand reason. But still, Muscle’s quite smart 」
「 That’s because my girlfriend is persistent 」
「 I see. Oh right, who’s your girlfriend 」
「 That’s a secret 」
Everyone occasionally asks about Muscle’s girlfriend.
However, he doesn’t want to tell us.
I wonder what they look like, how old they are…their identity remains unknown.
What we know is that she’s at least a woman.
「 Well then 」
I looked up at the sky.
Then, Yoshiokada and Muscle did the same
「 It’s here 」
The clear skies from earlier started turning dark