He growled and snatched the sunscreen from my hand.
"Pwehehehehe… hehehehe."
"You're dead after this."
"Well too bad, I'm already dead inside."
I stood up and looked toward the horizon over the sea.
Kenth noticed what I was doing and followed my gaze. His eyes shifted into snake-like pupils.
He stood up and hopped onto the tree we had been using for shade, trying to get a better view.
After a while, he climbed back down.
"There are no islands nearby."
I figured as much. In the original story, they had been desperate enough to send him, the most physically built character, swimming nearly two kilometers just to scout for anything that could help Azalea's condition.
I pulled out a giant straw hat from storage and handed it to him before stepping out of the shade.
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"What else? We're on an island with no food. The next step should be obvious."
"Fishing…"
"Correct."
He stepped out of the shade as well and glanced toward the trees behind us.
"Then I'll get wood sturdy enough for a spear," he said.
"Oh, spear fishing. Yeah, that's not exactly what I had in mind, though it works too."
"Then I'll get going. Just stay here and keep watch on the portal. I won't be long."
"Sure, sure. Take care. And gather wood for one more spear."
I sat down on the shore and spat onto the sand.
Sure enough, a small ripple appeared where the spit landed.
Laedingr.
My trusty loom glove coated my hand.
I thrust my hand into the sand and dug the creature out.
…
…
…
Kenth returned, still sharpening the edges of the thin logs he had gathered using the edge of his loom. He stopped when he saw me spitting at the sand at intervals and plunging my hands into it.
He walked closer.
"What are you doing?"
"Oh, catching bloodworms. They make good bait for fishing."
I handed him a bottle filled with wriggling bloodworms. Some even escaped and landed on his feet.
"Ugh. Disgusting. I thought we were going spear fishing."
"Well, we can throw the fishing rod out with bait first. While we wait for something to bite, we can spear fish in the shallow water."
"Well, that makes sense. But how are we even supposed to get a fishing rod here?"
I pulled out three fishing rods and handed him one.
"Huh? Why do you have—"
" Camping in the wilderness is my hobby."
"So the sunscreen earlier…"
"Yeah. I even have tents and cooking gear. I just couldn't bring food or water. I don't know why the hell they let us bring our looms but not food, water, or weapons."
"That's because the academy can track looms that are registered with it,"
"Any loom outside the registry isn't allowed inside. The weapon restriction is obvious. As for food and water… that's just one of the academy's old traditions."
"Is that so. Anyway, let's start. I'll take one of these spears, alright?"
"Yeah. Though I was wondering what the extra spear is for. You can just coat the spear with basic enhancement and it would be as sturdy as steel."
"We need all the manpower we can get. So I'll have this guy working too."
The remaining spear suddenly floated in the air.
A faint figure slowly faded into view.
"No problem. I don't plan on being a hindrance anyway."
"UWAAAAAG!"
"Since when were you here?!"
Cwal was already in full swimming mode and wearing blue swimming shorts and a hand band to neatly tie up his hair.
"Like… ten minutes ago?"
"So you were with us the whole time?!"
"Naturally. We all got teleported at the same time after all."
"That's not— hah… you know what, never mind. It's too hot to argue about small things like this."
All three of us threaded the bloodworms onto the hooks and cast the lines far into the sea.
The lines whistled through the air before splashing into the water.
I stuck the rod into the sand and packed the base around it with rocks and wood so it would not get dragged away. The other two followed suit.
The three rods now leaned toward the ocean, their lines stretching into the glittering ocean.
"Well, now we wait," I said while stretching my shoulders.
"Or, we don't," Cwal said, lifting one of the spears Kenth had made
He stepped into the shallow water without hesitation.
Kenth followed him with another spear.
I sighed and grabbed the last one.
The water was warm. The sand soft beneath my feet as the waves gently pushed in and out.
Small shadows darted beneath the surface.
Cwal struck first.
His spear flashed down.
Splash.
He pulled it back up with a fish already impaled on the tip.
"What the hell?" I muttered.
Not even ten seconds later he struck again.
Another fish.
Then another.
Meanwhile I was standing there squinting at the water like an idiot.
I finally saw something move and thrust the spear down.
Splash.
Missed.
I tried again.
Missed.
On the fourth try I finally caught something small and wriggly.
I lifted it up proudly.
"Yes!"
It was barely bigger than my hand.
Behind me, Cwal had already stacked five.
Kenth, meanwhile, had none.
Not a single one.
He stabbed the water again.
Miss.
He stabbed again.
Miss.
"..."
After another failed stab, he glanced at me.
"For someone who loves outdoor camping, you sure suck at this," he said while still staring into the water
"Hey! Just because someone does something often doesn't mean they're a master at it," I replied defensively.
The real reason was something else entirely.
Truth be told, I barely went camping.
I just knew these things because when I was younger, we used to visit my grandmother's province. Fishing and hiking were practically the only things people did there because there was no electricity or gadgets.
So I picked up the basics.
Still.
Knowing something and actually being good at it were two very different things.
I kept that thought to myself.
Then suddenly—
"RING!"
The bell tied to one of the fishing rods started rattling loudly.
I turned toward the shore.
"Kenth! Your pole!"
"On it!"
He dashed out of the water and grabbed the rod.
The line was tight.
Really tight.
Something huge was pulling it.
Even from the distance we could see the water thrashing.
"Whoa, that's big," I muttered.
Kenth leaned back, gripping the rod with both hands.
"It's strong!"
"Reel it! Reel it!" I encouraged him.
"I AM REELING IT!"
"Not like that! Angle the rod! No— no the other way!"
"What other way?!"
"Pull first then reel!"
"I am pulling!"
"No you're not pulling right!"
"Then show me how!"
"How am I supposed to do that now? Just— wait— no don't let the line slack!"
"Oh shut up, moron!"
The rod bent dangerously as the fish thrashed in the water.
Slowly, though, Kenth managed to drag it closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Then the creature burst out of the water.
And my brain stopped.
"What the hell is THAT?!"
The thing was massive.
At least five meters long and a meter wide.
Its body was covered in shimmering blue scales that looked almost metallic. Fins like blades flared out from its sides and its mouth was filled with rows of needle sharp teeth.
The fish hit the sand and immediately started bouncing toward us like a possessed torpedo.
Its jaws snapped open.
"IT'S COMING THIS WAY!"
"WHY THE HELL WOULD THIS BIG GUY EVEN NEED TO BITE A BLOODWORM?!"
The creature lunged.
Before either of us could react—
Cwal moved.
He leapt forward.
Landing directly on top of the thrashing monster.
His loom daggers flashed.
"THUNK..."
Both blades plunged straight into the fish's skull.
The creature convulsed violently.
Then went still.
Cwal stood there calmly, one foot planted on the fish's head.
"…Lunch."
Kenth and I stared at the thing.
Then at him.
I think I underestimated the creatures in this fantasy world, I inadvertently thought.
Kenth stepped closer and crouched beside the fish, inspecting its scales.
"This thing could probably feed all of us for three or four days straight."
Then an enthusiastic voice suddenly grabbed all of our attention.
"Whoa! A Silverfin! You guys actually caught a Silverfin!"
Nagi ran over and nearly tripped in excitement as she stopped beside the massive fish, staring down at it like it was treasure.
Waffel and the rest of the group soon approached as well.
Azalea looked impressed.
Finster looked confused.
Emma immediately crouched down beside the fish like she was trying to figure out where to start cutting it.
"What about the forest?" I asked. "Did you manage to find a safe spot?"
Waffel swung her head side to side.
"The forest is too rocky, and it's infested with toxic spores from Blightcap. Our safest bet is to set up base near the shore, though far away from the portal."
I nodded.
That matched what I remembered.
I opened my storage and started pulling things out.
First came four folded tents, neatly packed and tied.
Then thick ropes.
After that I added a small bundle of metal stakes, a collapsible shovel, a compact hatchet, and a roll of waterproof tarp.
I placed everything down in front of Waffel.
"These should help."
Waffel blinked.
"…Why do you have all of this?"
"This guy apparently likes to go camping," Kenth said while pointing at me.
Waffel stared at the pile again.
"But why didn't you say so earlier? It could have saved us tons of time gathering logs and trying to build the shelter."
I shook my head.
"No. Those logs will still be useful."
I picked up one of the tents and held it up.
"These tents are only temporary shelters. Shoreline winds get extremely strong when it rains."
I pointed toward the trees.
"Please continue building a proper base. Something sturdy enough to survive a storm."
Waffel's expression shifted slightly.
She nodded.
"…Good thinking."
Emma crossed her arms and gave me a look.
"So you just had a whole survival kit this entire time?"
"Well, I didn't think we'd actually need it this soon."
Finster crouched beside the pile of gear and poked the folded tent.
"So this is a portable house?"
"Temporary house," I corrected.
"Oh!"
He looked genuinely amazed.
Meanwhile, Nagi was still staring at the fish like a child who had just discovered gold.
"We seriously caught a Silverfin…" she muttered.
"What do you mean by we? You mean I caught a Silverfin," Kenth grumbled.
Azalea crossed her arms.
"Is that rare?"
"Rare?" Nagi said, spinning toward her.
"This is one of the best coastal fish you can find! The meat is clean, high in nutrients, and it doesn't spoil easily!"
She pointed dramatically at the fish.
"We are eating like royalty tonight!"