I Was Stranded on a Deserted Island with a Beautiful Classmate - Chapter 34

The temporary reservoir was located a little distance from the cave.

It was about the size of a standard bathtub. We were in the process of reinforcing it further.

“Alright, first, make a mound of sand. Then form it into a circle…Once that’s done, pour in the seawater. After that, mix it up to make mud.”

I gave instructions to everyone.

Gradually, the mud started to form, and I scooped it up with my hands. I began smearing the mud onto the walls.

“Oh, so that’s how you do it,” said Mana Amane.

“Is this your first time doing something like this, Amane?” I asked.

“Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever done this kind of work before,” she replied.

“No way. Didn’t you play in the mud as a kid? You know, making mud balls or building sandcastles at school or in parks?”

“Both my dad and mom were overly protective. Even now, actually. So, I didn’t do those kinds of things,” she said.

I had forgotten.

Amane was an idol. She must have been trained from a young age, walking a different path from us ordinary folks.

“Anyway, using this mud will add a bit of strength to the walls.”

If we had cement, that would be ideal, but unfortunately, we didn’t have any. However, the ground near the cave was clay-like, so it hardened easily with water. I spread the mud generously over the walls, using wooden sticks to smooth it out.

Right now, I felt like a professional plasterer.

“Wow, it’s really starting to look the part!” said Kitakami Kizuna.

“Keep bringing more mud,” I called out.

“Got it!”

Chitose and Momose kept making mud while Amane transported it. I continued receiving the mud and spreading it on the walls.

After an hour of repeating this process, we finally finished.

“We’re done! Working on both the reservoir and the bath walls was tough.”

“I-I’m exhausted…” muttered Chitose, completely covered in mud and looking worn out. Momose seemed just as drained, like her soul had left her body. It was definitely heavy labor for the girls, but it would have taken me three days alone.

I was really glad they helped.

“Thank you, everyone. Now, we just have to wait for it to dry.”

I was exhausted too. There was nothing more we could do today, so we’d continue tomorrow.

* * *

After that, we all ended up napping, including me.

It couldn’t be helped. The weather was hot, and we couldn’t stay outside for long. The cave, on the other hand, was cool, like a natural air conditioner.

While lying on my back, completely drained, I sensed several people approaching from outside.

It seemed one of the teams had returned.

“We’re back,” said a voice.

“Kitakami, welcome back! How did the weapons and traps go?” I asked.

“For now, we’re thinking of using logs to make a ‘spear fence.’ We’ll create a wall around this area,” she replied.

“A spear fence in front of the cave, huh?” I mused.

“It’s the best way to protect ourselves from animals or dangerous individuals.”

Strengthening our defenses was a solid plan.

Especially since animals were prone to appear on this island. Wild boars, snakes, and who knows what else could suddenly show up.

“Got it. I’ll leave the spear fence to you.”

“Yes, leave it to me…By the way, everyone seems exhausted.”

“We’ve been carrying seawater and slathering mud, so it’s been hard work.”

“Oh, the reservoir, right?”

“Yeah. It’s drying now, so it should be finished by tomorrow.”

“That’s great. If we can use water, it’ll make life much easier.”

“And we’re also making a bathtub, so look forward to it.”

“Speaking of which, Hoshubana found a ‘drum barrel.’ They’re rolling it over here now.”

“A-a drum barrel!?”

Where on earth did that come from? And once again, it was Hoshubana—Hokkii. She always seemed to find stuff. Maybe she had a knack for it.

“It’s not damaged, so with some cleaning, we could turn it into a drum bath,” Kitakami suggested.

“That’s awesome! Wait, doesn’t that make my homemade bath pointless?”

“Not at all. With so many people here now, we could use both baths,” she reassured me.

Kitakami’s words were comforting. That was true—there were now thirteen of us. Just one bath would be a bit much. Right now, we were managing with seawater, but surely everyone wanted to soak in a warm bath. In that case, one bath wouldn’t be enough.

“Alright, we’ll set up the drum bath next to my homemade one.”

“I agree. You can never have too many baths.”

While we were discussing this, the drum barrel came rolling out of the forest. It seemed Yaegashi Mao and the others had managed to bring it here.

“Finally, we made it. That was tough,” Yaegashi said, collapsing from exhaustion.

“Good job, Yaegashi. Hokkii, Riko.”

All three of them were drenched in sweat and looked completely wiped out.

“Hayasaka, how’s the drum barrel? Hokkii found it,” Yaegashi said.

“Yeah, Kitakami just told me. It’s rusty in places, but there are no holes, so it should work fine. We can use it as a drum bath.”

When I made that suggestion, their eyes lit up.

“The bath!”

“Ah, a drum bath! If we surround it with big stones and set it up, it’ll be ready by tonight.”

Excited, Yaegashi shouted, “A hot bath, finally!” Next to her, Hokkii screamed, “Yesss!!” Even Riko, who was completely exhausted, joined in with, “Riko wants a bath toooo!” practically in tears.

Up until now, we had only used seawater. It left you feeling sticky with salt, and it wasn’t very refreshing. Everyone wanted a proper, hot bath.

Alright, let’s make this drum bath happen tonight.

With newfound energy, I began placing stones. There were plenty scattered around the cave, so I picked out the right-sized ones to support the drum barrel.

Luckily, there were even some large stones like concrete blocks, so I used those to create a furnace-like structure. I set the drum barrel on top of the stones. It was sturdy and wouldn’t topple over.

I gathered firewood under the drum, and with just a bit of seawater, the bath would be complete.

“Okay, everyone, the bath is ready—huh?”

I turned around to find a tense atmosphere. Everyone was glaring at each other, ready to clash at any moment. What the heck was going on!?

“Amane, what’s going on!?”

“We need to decide who gets to go in the bath first,” Amane said in an intimidating voice, despite being exhausted earlier. Why was she suddenly so confrontational!?

“Wait, Amane, Hayasaka made the drum bath. He should go first…I mean, I could join him for a test run,” Kitakami suggested.

Her remark was met with a chorus of boos.

“That’s not fair! I wouldn’t mind joining him too!” Chitose declared.

“Hold on! I want to take a bath with Hayasaka too!” Yaegashi chimed in.

“Me too, if it’s with Hayasaka…” Hokkii said quietly.

“W-wait! Riko was promised first place!” Riko exclaimed.

Oh, right. I had promised her that.

“W-well, I can’t lose! I’ll go in with you, Hayasaka!” Momose added.

Wait a second. Was it already decided that I was going in with someone?

W-what’s going to happen now…?