Comic strip: Survival on a deserted island, surrounded by heroines

"It's morning," Kato said calmly.

"Just five more minutes..."

"We're going to collect supplies today."

"Three more minutes..."

"Michiru."

"Ugh... I know, I know!"

Michiru finally opened her eyes, her short, dark purple hair sticking up in a mess, and her orange-red pupils still showing the confusion of just waking up.

She sat up, looked around, and then suddenly remembered something, her expression changing.

"Those dinosaurs probably won't come over, right?"

"Wash up first."

Kato Megumi had already stood up and patted the grass clippings off her skirt.

"Let's go check out the waterfall area today and see if there's anything else we can eat."

Michiru looked at Kato Megumi's calm profile and couldn't help but sigh:

"Hui, is this really your first time surviving on a desert island?"

"How come you seem to be adapting better than me?"

"It's just doing things according to priorities."

Kato Megumi picked up the bamboo water cup.

"Water, food, shelter, and fire have all been secured. The next step is tools and long-term storage."

"Wow...so well planned!" Michiru exclaimed with admiration.

After washing up briefly by the stream, Kato Megumi reheated the leftover rootlets from the previous night and they shared them.

"Hui, what's the plan for today?"

Michiru asked while munching on a stem.

“I discovered the bamboo forest yesterday.”

"Bamboo can be used to make containers, traps, and spear shafts."

"Then find a suitable stone and make a real stone knife."

"A stone knife?!"

Michiru's eyes lit up.

"Is it one of those knives you see in survival shows, the one they make by smashing it with stones?"

"Ah."

Kato Megumi nodded.

"The stone blade we used to cut bamboo yesterday was too rough. If we had a better stone knife, we would have been much more efficient."

"Then I'll help too!"

Michiru stood up and patted her chest.

"You can leave the physical labor to me!"

"it is good."

Kato Megumi glanced at her.

"Then you'll be responsible for moving the bamboo."

"no problem!"

The two walked upstream along the stream, with Kato Megumi leading the way, occasionally pointing out marks on the trees for Michi to see.

“These are the marks I made yesterday. If I follow the stream, I won’t get lost.”

"Hui, you're so thoughtful!"

Michiru walked along, looking around, her expression shifting from fear the night before to curiosity.

"Speaking of which, how big is this island? Will someone come to rescue us?"

"do not know."

Kato Keihei answered calmly.

"But rather than waiting for someone else to rescue you, it's better to make sure you survive first."

"...Too."

Michiru scratched her head.

"But Hui, what's the deal with those dinosaurs?"

"Shouldn't Triceratops have been extinct by now?"

Kato Megumi said, "This place might not even be Earth anymore."

"Not Earth?!"

"It could also be a parallel world, or a spacetime distortion."

Kato Megumi spoke in a flat tone.

"No matter which one it is, we can't go back for now."

"How can you analyze something like this so calmly!" Michiru couldn't help but complain.

"Because being afraid is useless."

Kato Megumi tilted her head slightly.

"Besides, it's much better with you here than being alone yesterday."

Michiru paused for a moment, then grinned and said, "Hehe, I love hearing that!"

As they talked, they soon arrived at the waterfall pool that Kato Megumi had discovered the day before.

The water roared, and white spray fell from above, refracting into tiny rainbows in the sunlight.

"Wow--!"

Michiru's eyes widened.

"so beautiful!"

Instead of admiring the scenery, Kato Megumi went straight to the bamboo grove and began selecting suitable bamboo.

"Michiru, help me hold this up."

"it is good!"

The two of them worked together to cut down the bamboo using the stone slabs that Kato Megumi had made the day before.

Meizhi stayed by her side, handing out tools and moving bamboo, working enthusiastically.

"Hui! Is this thick enough?"

"can."

"What about this one?"

"It's too curved; it can't be used as a container."

"Then this one is straight!"

"Hmm, not bad."

Sweat beaded on Michiru's forehead, but her smile never faded.

"Hui, was it very hard for you to cut bamboo all by yourself yesterday?"

"It's not bad."

Kato Megumi used a stone slab to carve bamboo joints.

"I just got a few blisters on my hands."

"Let me see!"

Michiru came over, grabbed Kato Megumi's hand, and opened it to see that several blisters had burst, revealing tender red flesh.

"You call this 'okay'?!"

"It doesn't hurt."

"You're lying! It's like this and you still don't feel pain!"

Michiru frowned and tore a strip of cloth from her clothes.

"Here, let me wrap it up for you."

Seeing her serious expression, Kato Megumi did not refuse.

"Thank you."

While bandaging her wound, Michiru muttered, "You're the kind of person who always keeps everything bottled up inside."

“He gave me all the hay last night and slept on the hard ground himself, but today he’s acting like nothing happened.”

How did you know?

“I woke up once in the middle of the night and saw you curled up there shivering.”

Michiru kept her head down, her voice muffled.

"Idiot Megumi."

"..."

"If you do that again, I'll switch seats with you!"

Michiru tied a knot in the cloth strip.

"Okay, all wrapped up!"

Kato Megumi looked at the crooked strip of cloth in her hand and her lips curled slightly.

"Ah."

The two continued collecting bamboo. Kato Megumi cut down seven or eight bamboo stalks of varying thicknesses, while Michiru was responsible for dragging the bamboo poles to the open space by the pond...

"Next up is the stone knife."

Kato Megumi squatted by the stream and began selecting stones.

What kind of stone is suitable for making knives?

Michiru also squatted down and searched like Kato Megumi.

"It's easy to create sharp edges."

Kato Megumi picked up a grayish-black stone and weighed it in her hand.

"This kind of flint is acceptable."

She placed the stone on a large rock and tapped the edge with another stone; a piece of stone peeled off, revealing a sharp break.

"Wow!"

Michiru came over to take a look.

"It's really become sharper!"

Kato Megumi continued to hammer, gradually reshaping the stone slab.

"The blade should be flat, the edges should be thin, and the tip should be sharp."

"Megumi, how come you even know how to do this?" Michiru asked incredulously.

"I learned it from watching TV programs with Aoyama-kun."

"You can achieve this level of skill just by watching the show?!"

"I mastered it after a few tries."