I Was Stranded on a Deserted Island with a Beautiful Classmate - Chapter 47

“――――!!”

A bullet grazed my cheek.

“Whoa, don’t move, Hayasaka. I only have one question for you. After hearing your answer, I’ll send you to the afterlife.”

“…A question for me?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Do you know where the treasure hidden on this Treasure Island is?”

…W-Why would he ask me that? There’s no way I would know. I don’t have that kind of knowledge. But, this could be my chance.

It might be the only way out of this dire situation.

I don’t know how much my words will influence Tachikawa, but I’ll give it a shot.

“You couldn’t find it, huh?”

“…Yeah, there was no treasure anywhere. Was the map we won at the auction a fake…or maybe it’s encrypted. Tell me, Hayasaka.”

“Well, I can’t say anything unless you show me that map.”

“I’m glad I let you live after all.”

“What did you say?”

“Your random knowledge. It must have been passed down from your grandfather.”

“You knew the old man?”

“Yeah, I was in the same class as your grandfather. He told me about this island and Captain Kidd’s treasure. In other words, you must have some kind of information. Now, if you value your life, speak.”

You’re going to kill me anyway.

But this can buy me some time.

“Fine. Let me take a look at the map. Otherwise, I won’t know anything.”

“…Alright. But if you try anything suspicious, I’ll shoot the women immediately. Got it?”

“Yeah, I’ll decipher it properly.”

Tachikawa kept his gun aimed at me while he pulled out the map from his pocket.

It was an old map.

It was probably an authentic one, hundreds of years old. The map depicted an island that looked exactly like ‘Treasure Island.’…Wow, this is a pirate’s map? This is the first time I’ve seen something like this.

“So, what do you think? Can you figure something out?”

“You can’t expect me to know right away. Uh, this cave is our current location, right?”

Maps like these usually have an ‘X’ or some sort of marking, but it doesn’t seem that simple. Maybe it’s encrypted so it can’t be found easily.

If it were that simple, treasure hunters from overseas would’ve already come to this island and taken the treasure. That would’ve made global headlines.

If that’s the case…

“Hayasaka-kun, there’s a lot of writing on this map, isn’t there? Is it in English?”

Amane peeked over my shoulder.

“Of course. I’m trying to find anything that stands out, but…hmm, not sure if there’s any real connection.”

The written text is hard to understand. I remember there was a lot of buzz around an undeciphered manuscript like this a while back. That was the ‘Voynich Manuscript.’ If this is the same kind of thing, decoding it would be extremely difficult.

But no, it shouldn’t be necessary to make the treasure that hard to find.

While I was thinking, Kitakami whispered to me.

“Kei-kun, there’s a curious word here. It simply says ‘fire焚火.’”

“Yeah, you’re right. But maybe the pirates just camped there?”

“But in a place like this?”

It wasn’t outside the cave, nor did it seem related to the forest. But I thought maybe they were just camping there.

“So, have you figured anything out?”

“Don’t rush me, teacher. Sorry, but these things take time.”

“…Hmm. Unfortunately, we’re in a bit of a hurry, you see. Look, a storm is coming. I’d like to escape the island before it hits. I’ll give you three minutes.”

T-Three minutes!?

You expect me to solve this in three minutes? That’s ridiculous!!

Damn, I guess I have no choice but to solve it. Even if I do, I’ll probably be killed afterward anyway.

For now, I’ll have to rack my brain.

Fire焚火…焚火, a bonfire.

Could it be related?

Kitakami is right. Something is strange. A ‘bonfire’ mark in an irrelevant forest like this seems unnatural. Besides, what’s the point of writing that on a map?

“Achoo.”

At that moment, Amane let out a cute sneeze. Now that I think about it, this cave is pretty cold.

“Amane, are you cold?”

“Yeah, it’s a little chilly. I’d love to sit by a bonfire.”

“…!! Wait a minute, Amane.”

“Huh?”

“What did you just say?”

“I said it’s chilly.”

“After that.”

“I’d love to sit by a bonfire?”

“That’s it!!!”

“What!?”

I get it now. I understand the meaning of the bonfire symbol.

“The riddle is solved.”

“Really, Hayasaka?”

“Yeah. We need to light a fire.”

“…Tch. I guess I have no choice. Use my lighter.”

He handed me a lighter.

So, Tachikawa smokes. I flipped open the lid and lit it with a click. …Seriously, this thing lights up with just a single switch?

And it’s a twin-turbo. He’s using something nice.

I held the map over the flame.

“This is the meaning of ‘fire焚火.'”

Then, the precise location appeared on the map.

“Whoa…!! Hayasaka-kun, amazing!”

“You really are a trivia king.”

Amane and Kitakami are praising me, but now’s not the time for that.

“Ah, I see. So there was a trick like that…who would’ve thought…that it was hidden by heat. Hayasaka, I’ve witnessed your final work. Now, return the map.”

“Are you going to kill us!?”

“Of course. Dead men tell no tales…you’ll all disappear.”

He aimed his gun at me. This is the end for me. It’s over. I won’t be able to protect Amane, Kitakami, or anyone else.

This…is the end of our life on this deserted island.

At that moment.

Bang, bang—gunshots echoed.

…Ah, I’m dead.

That’s what I thought— but then.

“――――Gah!”

Suddenly, Tachikawa collapsed, bleeding. W-What!? I didn’t shoot him.

“K-Kei-kun! There’s someone behind Tachikawa!!”

“What!?”

From deeper in the cave…No way.

I couldn’t believe my eyes.

I saw a dead man.

Because that guy— I should’ve killed him.

“Haa…haa…Tachikawaaaaaa, you traitorrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!”

It was Kurashima, eyes bloodshot, screaming in a frenzy. He’s alive!?

“…K-Kurashima…You bastard, you shot me!!”

“Of course I did. You betrayed me, you betrayed me, you betrayed meeee!!! I almost died after being shot by Hayasaka!!!”

“…Tch, I thought you were dead.”

“You old man!! I wasn’t going to die! I was wearing a bulletproof vest!! Thanks to that, all I got was bruises and passed out.”

So that’s what it was. The reason Kurashima didn’t seem dead when he went down was because of that.

“Damn it, Kurashima…I should’ve finished you off.”

“Shut up, you old geezer!! Die, die!!”

Enraged, Kurashima stomped on Tachikawa repeatedly.

Once Tachikawa stopped moving, Kurashima turned his eyes toward us.

“You…!”

“Hayasaka! I’ve been waiting to see you!!”

“Stop this already. Let’s escape the island, and that’ll be enough.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!! The treasure. I’ll at least take the treasure!! I don’t care about the women anymore. I’ll kill them all and make the treasure mine—Guhhhhhh!!”

Kurashima screamed, but in the next moment, he was shot. Who could’ve done it?