Finally, the two reached the summit.
Their field of vision instantly expanded without limit.
“We’re here…” Standing on the highest rock, with no obstacles around them, wind rushed in from all directions, drying the sweat on their bodies and bringing a salty scent.
Aoyama stared at the scene before him, completely stunned.
No roads.
No towns.
No farmland, no villages, no cooking fires—no traces of human activity at all.
As far as the eye could see, there was only a vast expanse of primeval forest, its canopy stretching to the horizon, followed by a dazzlingly white sandy beach.
Beyond the beach lay the boundless ocean.
The deep blue water sparkled in the sunlight, extending all the way to the horizon, where it merged seamlessly with the sky.
They were on an island.
A solitary island, completely surrounded by the sea.
“…” Aoyama opened his mouth, but no words came out.
He felt as if something in his mind had just collapsed.
According to his original plan, they would follow the ridgeline, find a road, flag down a car for help, and return to civilization within three days at most.
But the ocean before him, encircling everything, crushed all his plans into dust.
He looked down at the rebar in his hand, then at the rock beneath his feet, and finally cast his gaze toward the endless blue beyond the horizon.
A thought crossed Aoyama’s mind: Could I have been transmigrated again?
Beside him, Kasumigaoka Utaha stood still, her crimson eyes fixed on the distant sea, her expression utterly blank.
Her lips moved slightly, but no words came out.
There was no fear in her beautiful eyes, no despair—not even surprise.
She simply stared at the ocean as if confirming a fact she had long suspected but had refused to believe.
The wind tossed her black hair, brushing against her cheeks.
“No wonder,” she murmured softly, “…we never heard a sound from any rescue teams, even after the bus flipped over so long ago.” Aoyama turned to look at her.
Her profile was so pale in the sunlight it was almost translucent, her eyelashes casting a faint shadow beneath her eyes.
Her shoulders trembled ever so slightly, but by the time she turned to meet Aoyama’s gaze, she had perfectly suppressed the tremor.
“Aoyama-kun,” she began, her voice so steady it sounded almost unreal.
“We’re trapped on this island, aren’t we?” Aoyama remained silent for two seconds.
“Yeah.” “…” Kasumigaoka Utaha lowered her gaze, staring at the tips of her toes in a long silence.
Aoyama didn’t rush her.
He needed time to process the truth himself.
He had always believed he’d lived eighteen years in this crossover world, mastering everything.
The school bus accident was just an unexpected setback, one he could overcome by remaining calm.
But now he realized he was no longer in that same world.
A second transmigration.
He had fallen from a mundane crossover world into a completely unknown wilderness?
“Aoyama-kun,” Kasumigaoka Utaha’s voice broke through his thoughts.
“Hmm?” She looked up, a certain light rekindling in her crimson eyes.
Not fear, but the bright spark of hope.
“Over there.” She raised her hand, pointing to the sea off the island’s northern side.
Aoyama followed her gaze.
On the water, about a hundred or two hundred meters from the beach, a massive, dark silhouette loomed faintly.
Half-submerged, the part above the surface was so heavily rusted it was barely recognizable, yet its shape was still distinct.
It was the superstructure of a ship, tilted and piercing the water like a stranded behemoth.
“A shipwreck?!” Aoyama’s pupils constricted.
“Yes.” A faint smile touched the corners of Kasumigaoka Utaha’s lips.
“I was about to cry,” she said, “but after seeing that ship, I suddenly didn’t want to anymore.” “Do you think there might be something usable inside?” Aoyama stared at the shipwreck, his mind racing.
Since the superstructure is still above water, it means the sea isn’t deep enough to fully submerge it.
If there are still supplies inside…
Canned food, tools, fuel, maybe even communication equipment.
Those would be the key resources they needed to survive on this deserted island.
“Yes,” he said, his voice steady again.
“But we need to find a way to get closer first.
We don’t know if there’s anything dangerous in the water.” “Should we head back down the mountain then?” Kasumigaoka Utaha asked.
“Yeah.” Actually, another possibility had crossed his mind.
Could it be that others besides me and Kasumigaoka Utaha were also transmigrated here?
Lost in thought, Aoyama turned to retrace their steps, but then stopped abruptly.
He glanced at Kasumigaoka Utaha.
Her school uniform was still soaked and clinging to her skin.
Fine beads of sweat covered her delicate face, and her lips were pale from dehydration.
Yet, her crimson eyes now held an emotion he couldn’t quite name.
“Kasumigaoka-san.” “Hmm?” Aoyama asked curiously, “Aren’t you scared?” “Stranded on a deserted island, no rescue in sight, the future completely unknown.” Kasumigaoka Utaha tilted her head, her crimson pupils shimmering with a clear light in the sun.
“I am.” “But being scared is useless, isn’t it?” “And…” She took a half-step forward, stopping right in front of Aoyama and looking up at him.
The distance between them suddenly closed to less than a foot.
She could see the fine beads of sweat on his jaw, and he could smell the scent of her hair mixed with sweat.
“And if I were here alone, I’d probably have broken down already,” she said, her voice so soft it was almost carried away by the wind.
“But Aoyama-kun is still here, isn’t he?” “When you smashed that crocodile’s head with a rebar yesterday, I realized that following you would at least buy me a few more days of survival.” “A few more days is good.
Even a few more hours is enough.” After saying this, she took a step back, returning to her usual languid and composed posture, as if her words had just been casual chatter.
“Let’s go, my grand adventurer,” she said, turning and walking down the mountain, her skirt gently swaying in the wind.
“Let’s check out that ship.
We might find a few cases of canned food.” Aoyama watched her back as she descended the ridge, silent for a moment before stepping forward to follow.
“By the way,” Kasumigaoka Utaha suddenly spoke again from ahead, without looking back.
“What?” “When you pushed me onto the stone platform just now…
the feeling of sinking into my buttocks…
don’t you dare forget it.” “…” Aoyama’s footsteps paused, then he continued walking forward with an expressionless face.
The wind blew from the sea, carrying a salty scent as it brushed over their heads.
Below the mountain, the endless forest surged and swelled in the wind.
And on the other side of the sea, the shipwreck lay silently tilted on the water, like a sleeping sea beast waiting to be awakened.