Aoyama opened his eyes as the first rays of morning light pierced through the canopy.
The fire had mostly burned out, with only a few dark red embers glowing faintly in the ashes, radiating their last remnants of warmth.
Kasumigaoka Utaha was still asleep.
She lay on her side, her black hair scattered disheveledly over the straw.
One hand was curled beside her cheek, her lips slightly parted, and her breathing steady and long.
The collar of her school uniform shirt had opened a bit due to her sleeping posture, revealing the delicate lines of her collarbone, which glowed with a soft skin tone in the morning light.
“…” Aoyama withdrew his gaze and stood up quietly.
He took two pieces of smoked crocodile meat from a leaf bundle hanging from a branch, then checked the three water containers to make sure they hadn’t leaked.
The two condom-water bags and the thermos flask from yesterday had all been preserved intact.
The amount of water was sufficient to last them through the day.
“Time to wake up.” He didn’t consciously lower his voice.
Utaha’s eyelashes flickered twice, then she slowly opened her eyes.
Her red pupils appeared exceptionally vivid in the morning light, tinged with the characteristic haziness and laziness of someone who had just woken up.
“…Morning,” she said, her voice raspy and nasal.
“Morning,” Aoyama replied, holding a piece of crocodile meat out to her.
“Eat this, finish the water, and then we’ll set out.” Kasumigaoka Utaha sat up, took the piece of dried meat, and took a small bite.
After a night of air-drying and smoking over the dying embers, the meat had become firmer and chewier, yet its savory aroma was even more concentrated.
She chewed slowly, her gaze fixed on Aoyama’s back.
He was tidying up the straw they had spread the previous night, restoring the camp under the stone eaves to a relatively neat state.
Seen from the side, the lines of his shoulders and back were smooth and powerful.
His shirt was damp with sweat in some places, faintly outlining the contours of his muscles.
“Hmph.” Kasumigaoka Utaha’s cheek puffed out slightly as she took a sip of water, swallowing the soft grunt.
Fifteen minutes later, the two left the Stone Eaves Shelter.
Aoyama walked ahead, still using the rebar to clear the path, hacking through vines and shrubs that blocked their way.
His pace was noticeably lighter than yesterday’s.
This was partly due to the replenished water and protein.
And partly…
He looked down at his palm, gently clenching his fist to feel the surging power.
The physical boost from the cheat system made any physical exertion feel completely insignificant.
Kasumigaoka Utaha followed behind, her focus noticeably sharper today than it had been yesterday.
She held a sharpened branch as a walking stick, using it to probe the soft ground and avoid stepping into holes hidden by decaying leaves.
“Aoyama-kun, which way are we heading?” “First, we’ll return to the crash site, then head up the mountain,” Aoyama said, pushing aside a low shrub without looking back.
“The bus tumbled down from above.
If we follow the ridge, we’re bound to find the road.” “I hope so,” Kasumigaoka Utaha replied, her tone flat, yet Aoyama could detect a hint of tension beneath the surface.
They followed the stream upstream for about forty minutes before finally returning to the area where they had awakened the previous day.
The bus wreckage still lay silently there, its twisted metal frame glinting coldly in the morning light.
Aoyama didn’t spare a second glance for the bodies, walking straight through the scattered debris and looking up at the mountain slope.
The cliff was steeper than he had imagined, at an angle of about sixty or seventy degrees.
Its surface was covered in dense vines and plants, with almost no bare rock visible.
But upon closer inspection, one could find protruding roots and rocky edges that could serve as footholds for climbing.
“Can we get up there?” Kasumigaoka Utaha asked, standing behind him and gazing up at the nearly vertical slope.
“We can,” Aoyama said, sliding the rebar into his backpack’s side strap to free his hands.
“Follow my path.
Make sure your footing is secure before moving up.” “But I’m wearing a skirt.” Kasumigaoka Utaha glanced down at her school uniform’s hem, her expression turning subtle.
“…I’ll close my eyes when we’re halfway up.” “How touching, a true gentleman,” she scoffed softly, yet stepped forward.
Aoyama began the ascent.
He gripped a thick vine with his right hand, planted his left foot on a protruding root, and with a light spring, propelled himself nearly a meter upward.
The soil here was damp and slippery, but his finger strength was incomparable to yesterday.
The soft mud offered him almost no challenge.
“Come on.” Kasumigaoka Utaha took a deep breath, grasped the vine Aoyama had just held, and began to climb.
Her stamina was far below his, and her movements were noticeably less agile.
She had to carefully scout every foothold, inching upward step by step.
Occasionally, a loose root would give way beneath her foot, sending her slipping and causing her entire body to tense in fright.
Yet, Kasumigaoka Utaha’s willpower far exceeded Aoyama’s expectations.
She never complained of exhaustion or asked for a break.
When they reached a height of about fifteen meters, the slope steepened further.
Above them lay a nearly three-meter section of smooth rock wall, its surface offering almost no handholds.
Below the wall was only a narrow, protruding ledge, barely enough space for a single person to stand.
Aoyama stepped onto the ledge first.
After finding his footing, he looked down.
Kasumigaoka Utaha was just about a meter below him, one hand gripping a nearby vine and the other jammed into a crevice in the rock.
She was staring at the smooth wall with a frown.
“…I can’t get up,” she said, biting her lip.
“It’s too high.
I can’t reach.” Aoyama assessed the distance.
“Come up here first.
Stand right by my feet.” “Grab me.” Aoyama crouched down, extending his right hand.
Kasumigaoka Utaha glanced at him and then released the hand wedged in the crevice.
Aoyama caught her wrist with precision.
With a slight exertion of strength, he hauled her up.
In that moment, her body was pulled flush against his side.
Her chest brushed past his shoulder and arm, and the warm scent of faint perspiration wafted over him.
“…” They both fell silent for a heartbeat.
Without overthinking, Aoyama quickly adjusted his posture, his hands now steadying her by the sides of her waist.
Then, he gave a gentle nudge—just the right amount of force—to help her step onto the final ledge.
“Get your footing first.” As Kasumigaoka Utaha stepped onto the ledge, her foot slipped.
Her body lurched backward, nearly sending her tumbling back down.
Aoyama instinctively reached out to steady her, his palm landing squarely on her rear.
“Uh…” Aoyama’s fingertips tightened slightly in a subconscious reflex before he loosened his grip.
Kasumigaoka Utaha froze for about two seconds.
The tips of her ears flushed red—a change visible to the naked eye—yet her face remained a mask of composure.
“…Your hand,” she said, her voice steady, though the end of her sentence trembled ever so slightly.
“Isn’t it in the wrong place?” “It’s not,” Aoyama replied, his expression unchanged.
He kept his hand there until she was completely steady before finally letting go.
“Unless you’d prefer to slip again.” Kasumigaoka Utaha stood on the ledge, her hands gripping the rock wall as she turned her head to look at him.
The morning light, shining from behind her, illuminated the reddened tips of her ears and her face, which still strained to maintain its usual poise.
“What an…
airtight excuse.” “Let’s keep climbing.” Aoyama turned away, grabbing a thick root embedded in the rock above and steadily moving forward on the steep slope.
Below him, Kasumigaoka Utaha watched his back and let out a soft sigh.
“…” She glanced down at her skirt, then raised a hand to touch the spot where he had just held her.
Her face flushed a deeper shade of red.
“Are you crazy?” she muttered under her breath, before continuing her climb.
The rest of the journey went relatively smoothly.
After they had cleared that initial hurdle, the steep slope leveled out considerably.
They kept moving, pausing occasionally to catch their breath.
After over an hour, they finally reached the ridgeline.
Standing halfway up the mountain, their field of vision suddenly opened up.
Aoyama scanned their surroundings.
The slope beneath them stretched downward, its surface completely hidden by a dense canopy of trees.
He turned his gaze in the opposite direction.
Where the road should have been, there was only an endless expanse of forest, the treetops undulating like a green sea in the morning breeze.
“…There’s no road,” Kasumigaoka Utaha said, standing beside him.
Her chest heaved with exertion, and her school blouse was soaked through with sweat.
The damp fabric clung to her body, outlining the full curve of her breasts and the slender line of her waist.
A bead of sweat traced a path down her jawline, pooled in the hollow of her collarbone, and then rolled down her pale skin and disappeared into her collar.
Aoyama’s gaze lingered on her for less than half a second before he looked away.
“Let’s keep going up,” he said, his voice a fraction lower than usual.
“The view from the summit will be better.
Maybe the road is on the other side of the mountain.” Kasumigaoka Utaha didn’t speak.
She simply nodded, but Aoyama noticed her mood seemed subdued.
The two of them continued to climb upward along the ridgeline.
The higher they went, the thinner the vegetation became.
Vines and ferns gradually gave way to low shrubs, and the ground beneath their feet turned into scree and bare rock.
Sweat steadily dripped from Aoyama’s brow, evaporating instantly upon hitting the scorching stone.
Kasumigaoka Utaha’s breathing grew heavier.
Her pace slowed noticeably.
Her school uniform was now completely soaked through, the fabric clinging tightly to her skin and revealing the full contours of her body.
From the side, her full chest heaved with each breath, and her slender waist gave way to the much wider curve of her hips.
The hem of her skirt, damp with sweat, clung to the insides of her thighs, accentuating the voluptuous yet firm contours of her legs.
“Let’s take a break,” Aoyama said.
“No need,” Kasumigaoka replied, her voice strained with a slight wheeze but her tone still stubborn.
“We’re almost there.” Aoyama didn’t press the issue.
He slowed his pace, letting Kasumigaoka Utaha follow more easily.