Yarai had noticed the entire exchange.
He heard their hushed voices and saw the wary glances they kept directing toward him.
He didn’t comment on it.
There was no point.
He already knew what people thought of him, and trying to argue against it would change nothing.
If anything, it would only reinforce their impression of him.
It’ll change on its own… eventually.
Rion stopped a short distance from him.
“Yarai-kun… what did you want to talk about?”
Yarai glanced at her briefly, then gestured toward the rock.
“Sit.”
Rion sat down, leaving a small space between them.
Yarai remained silent as he gathered his thoughts.
“…Before everything happened, did you notice anything unusual during the turbulence?” He asked.
Rion hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“…I saw something, but I’m not sure if it was real.”
Yarai’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“What did you see?” he asked.
“Whether it makes sense or not doesn’t matter.”
Rion looked away, seeming slightly embarrassed.
“…It looked like a beak,” she said.
“A large one… like a bird’s.”
Yarai’s expression didn’t change, but his attention sharpened.
“Tell me everything. Don’t leave anything out.”
Rion looked up at him, caught off guard by the seriousness in his voice, but she nodded.
“When the turbulence started and the sky turned black, I was thrown into the aisle,” she said slowly.
“Akira-kun ran toward me, but right before that…”
“I saw this large beak… coming through the wall.”
Yarai stared at her.
“…What do you mean, it came through the wall?” he asked.
Rion’s fingers tightened around each other.
“It didn’t break anything,” she said.
“It was strange… almost transparent. I could see through it, and it just passed through the wall.”
“I know it sounds stupid, but I’m not lying.”
“I’m not saying you are,” Yarai replied.
So she saw it too… and the flight attendant reported something similar.
The person closest to it disappeared.
This isn’t just unusual.
Even calling it supernatural doesn’t feel wrong.
Rion watched him closely..
“…Are you saying it’s real?” she asked quietly.
Her question pulled him back.
“I’m saying I don’t know,” Yarai replied.
“I didn’t see it myself.”
Rion lowered her gaze as her thoughts returned to Akira.
Yarai studied her briefly.
“You’ll find him,” he said.
“He’s not the only one missing. If anything… they’re probably together.”
Rion wiped her eyes quickly and stood up.
“…Thank you. I’ll see you later, Yarai-kun.”
Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked back.
Yarai remained where he was for a moment, letting out a slow breath.
There’s no point spreading this right now.
They’re already unstable, and if something like this causes panic, it won’t end well.
…I’m tired.
I should head back to the plane and check the wall while I’m there.
He stood up and began walking.
“Big news! Big news!”
The sudden shout cut through the air, making Yarai turn toward the crowd.
“Arita-kun?” someone called.
Arita stood among the crowd, his face lit with excitement.
“They got the radio working!” he shouted.
“We’re going home!”
Excited voices spread through the group.
At the front, Tsuchiya raised a megaphone.
“I repeat, there is no need for concern,” he announced.
“We have successfully established radio contact, and we should be able to return to Japan shortly.”
Cheers broke out.
People embraced one another as relief spread through the crowd.
The tension that had weighed on them began to fade, replaced by smiles and laughter.
Nearby, several passengers gathered dry branches and built a large fire.
Its flames rose into the darkening sky as people began talking excitedly about going home.
Yarai, however, didn’t smile.
He looked toward the aircraft, his expression turned thoughtful.
That damaged section on the control panel… Did I misunderstand what I saw?
Or is something else going on?
If contact was really established, then this place is reachable.
Which means I could come back here later… but where exactly is this island?
There’s nothing like this along the Pacific route.
He let out a breath.
…Doesn’t matter right now.
I need rest.
Yarai started walking toward the plane, but after taking a few steps, he stopped.
I should at least inform sensei.
Otherwise, she’ll probably come looking for me.
He changed direction and walked toward the faculty group.
“Sensei,” he called.
“I’m going to rest in the plane.”
The surrounding teachers stopped talking as their attention shifted toward him.
Only Kurusu responded.
“…Alright. Get some rest, Yarai-kun.”
Yarai gave a small nod before turning away.
As he left, the teachers began speaking among themselves.
“That delinquent… he didn’t even greet us,” Fujimoto muttered.
“He didn’t even acknowledge us,” Kawai nodded.
“I was already uneasy about being stuck here with him,” the principal whispered.
Kurusu’s expression hardened.
“That’s not something teachers should be saying.”
“Calm down, Kurusu-sensei,” Ugen Kokonoe said from the side.
“If they keep everything to themselves, they’ll only become more frustrated later. He already caused so much trouble in Guam.”
“There has to be a reason for what he did,” Kurusu insisted.
“He may look intimidating, but he’s not a bad person.”
The others remained silent, but their expressions showed that they were unconvinced.
Ugen sighed lightly.
“…Still, I hope Akira and Mariya are safe,” he said.
A faint vein showed on his temple.
“Even if that troublemaker does cause problems… I suppose.”
Kurusu let out an awkward laugh.
“They’re just… energetic students.”
“Forget about that one,” the principal muttered.
“Mariya-kun is the important. He’s a prodigy, we can’t afford to lose someone like him.”
The conversation continued, moving from one concern to another, while Kurusu remained firm in her defense of Yarai.
Meanwhile, Yarai searched through the aircraft once more.
He checked the cabin carefully but found nothing that explained what had happened.
The cockpit door was locked again.
He stopped in front of it for a moment, wondering who had closed it, but there was no way to know.
After searching the remaining sections without finding anything useful, Yarai returned to one of the window seats and fell asleep.
October 5th, Day 2
Yarai woke briefly several times during the morning, each time hearing voices and movement around the aircraft before exhaustion pulled him back to sleep.
When he finally opened his eyes again, the light outside had changed, showing that afternoon was approaching.
He had slept longer than intended.
He stood and stepped outside.
The passengers were still gathered around the clearing.
Yarai had already examined the area near the aircraft, but there was still much he did not understand.
So, he decided to take another look.
Rather than entering the jungle, Yarai walked along the edge of the clearing.
His attention moved between the ground and the trees as he observed the area more carefully.
After walking a short distance, he noticed several disturbances in the soil.
He stopped and crouched beside them.
The marks were too wide and deep to have been made by a person.
Something heavy had passed through the area not long ago.
He brushed his fingers across the surface.
The soil was pressed down in irregular patterns that he could not clearly identify, but one thing was certain whatever had left them was large.
Yarai straightened and looked toward the jungle.
For a moment, he considered following the trail.
However, it led deeper into the vegetation, and he had no idea what might be waiting inside.
He remained still for a few seconds before turning away.
Exploring the jungle alone would be too risky.
He stepped back and walked toward the clearing.
Behind him, the jungle remained quiet.
Yarai returned to his seat and looked outside.
From there, he could see the passengers gathered in small groups, with several large fires burning between them.
As evening passed, the light slowly faded, darkness spread across the clearing.
Yarai continued watching from the aircraft.
At first, nothing stood out.
Then he noticed something off.
The change wasn’t sudden.
It began as a break in rhythm, subtle enough to ignore if he hadn’t been paying attention.
The constant hum of insects faltered briefly before returning.
The birds above had grown unusually quiet.
Yarai frowned.
He stood and moved toward the door for a clearer view.
As he looked toward the tree line, a faint sense of unease began to build.
Something wasn’t right.
At first, it was only movement between the trees.
A large shape forced its way forward, bending branches as it passed.
Yarai’s gaze sharpened when he saw the creature’s massive size.
It was heavily built, with thick muscles beneath its hide.
Its head was large, and its jaws were long and thick, giving it a shape that felt wrong the moment Yarai saw it.
It didn’t move like anything he recognized.
For a brief second, his mind tried to make sense of it, but then more shapes appeared behind it and moved through the darkness.
There was more than one.
Several creatures were coming out of the forest.
Yarai’s expression hardened instantly.
“Everybody, run!” he shouted, his voice cutting through the clearing.
“Run toward the plane! Something’s coming out of the forest!”
On the ground, where the passengers had gathered, Eiken moved around with his camera, recording his friends as they laughed, talked, and tried to hold onto a sense of normalcy.
He turned the camera toward Rion.
“I wonder where Akira-kun is…” she muttered quietly, wiping at her tears.
She turned and froze when she saw the camera pointed at her.
“Eiken-kun, how dare you record this!” she snapped, lightly hitting him on the head.
“Ow…” Eiken winced and rubbed the spot.
“You have no manners,” Rion said as she turned away.
“N-no, I’m just making sure there’s a record…”
“You keep saying that, but for what?”
“…For someone,” Eiken muttered under his breath.
“Huh? What?”
“F-for someone who isn’t here!” he said suddenly, his voice breaking.
Rion froze before smiling faintly, though sadness still lingered in her eyes.
“I see… to show it to someone else. You’re right.”
“Hey, let me try filming too,” she reached for the camera
“N-no, this is expensive!” Eiken said as he quickly pulled it back.
At that moment, Yarai’s voice reached them.
“Everybody, run toward the plane! Something’s coming out of the forest!”
They froze as a scream cut through the clearing.
“Aieeeeeee!”
Rion turned.
Miyazaki was already in the creature’s jaws.
The creature snapped its head upward and lifted him off the ground.
Blood spilled over its teeth as his body jerked violently.
His hands clawed at nothing before going limp.
A roar tore through the clearing.
Two more creatures burst out from the tree line and rushed forward with heavy steps.
Panic erupted as people ran in different directions, some toward the plane, others straight into the darkness of the forest, their movements uncoordinated and desperate.
A group rushed toward the emergency chute, pushing and climbing over one another in panic.
The chute could not hold them.
One of the creatures lunged forward and climbed onto it.
Its jaws snapped shut around a student’s legs.
“Ahhh! Run!”
“Move! Go, go!”
“No….my leg! Please, help me!”
Yarai saw everything unfold at once, but there was no time to hesitate.
His attention locked onto Kurusu.
He ran toward the overwing exit, climbed onto the wing, and jumped down toward her group.
One of the creature suddenly lunged toward the group ,moving fast enough to throw them into immediate panic.
“Rion, run!”
“Arita, move! Let’s get to the plane!”
“Are you an idiot?! Didn’t you see what’s happening there?!”
“Students, get behind me!” Kurusu shouted as she tried to keep them together.
“I don’t want to die here!” the principal cried as he turned to run.
He didn’t get far.
A massive shape rushed past him, and its jaws closed around his torso.
“Aahhhh… save me!”
His scream ended with a sickening crack.
Another creature emerged from the opposite side and blocked their escape.
A foul, rotting stench filled the air as it moved closer.
Kurusu was too frightened to move.
“Kurusu-sensei!”
“No!” students screamed.
Yarai reached them in time.
He grabbed Kurusu around the waist and pulled her back, putting some distance between her and the predator.
The creature paused and shifted its gaze toward him.
Yarai met it for a brief second.
Its size, heavy build, and the shape of its head seemed familiar.
Yarai studied it for a moment, trying to remember where he had seen something like it before.
“…That’s not possible,” he muttered under his breath.
He did not stop moving.
Yarai set Kurusu down, but her legs gave way immediately.
Her body was shaking too violently for her to stand.
He turned toward Rion and the others.
“Support her and get to the plane,” he said.
“Don’t use the chute. It makes you an easy target. Go through the trees and use the overwing exit on the other side.”
They remained frozen.
“GO, NOW!”
His shout finally broke through their fear.
Tsuchiya immediately understood.
“Everyone, follow me!” he shouted.
“Stay together and move through the trees toward the overwing exit!”
“Y-yes…!”
“What about you, Eiji-kun?”
“I’ll stay at the back. Go!”
Rion, Eiken, Arita, and the others finally moved.
They pushed through the vegetation toward the other side of the aircraft, their movements desperate as the screams behind them continued.