Escape From a Deserted Island With Enemy Female Soldiers

44 – Let’s Build It (6)

Day 4 on the island.

The engineer and I went mad gathering materials. We hauled a cart into the bamboo forest, collecting bamboo like crazy, and picked up rocks wherever we found them.

Day 5.

Continued gathering materials. From morning till early evening.

Completely exhausted, I collapsed on the bed as soon as we got back and passed out. When I came to, Valkyrie and the saintess were already back.

I took the night watch with the saintess. She kept staring at me, and when I asked if something was wrong, she didn’t answer. Her eyes flickered between orange and pink. The atmosphere made it impossible to ask more.

Day 6.

The end of material gathering is in sight. Packed extra, just in case.

In the evening, we did a final check of the blueprints. During dinner, I overheard Valkyrie and the saintess whining about wanting to bathe. There wasn’t a stream big enough to soak in nearby. Or maybe we just hadn’t found it.

I’m looking forward to seeing their reactions when what I’m making is finished.

Day 7.

Full-scale production began. Because it was going to be a surprise for Valkyrie and the saintess, I assembled it in sections, so it wouldn’t be obvious.

Day 8.

Still assembling. All the bamboo work is done.

We failed at hunting and had to fill our bellies with only berries and greens. Valkyrie looked sorry, so I reassured her that it was okay.

That night, Valkyrie said she wasn’t feeling well and went to bed early. Is she weak? Even though she’s an enemy, she gets sick often, so I feel a little concern as a fellow human. Not that I’m worried.

Day 9.

I replaced Valkyrie and the saintess’s water canteens with bamboo ones. They’ll be much lighter and more comfortable than the old stone ones.

They seemed pleased. The Saintess’s eyes had a yellow tint to them. Seeing their good reaction made the effort worth it.

And then, the long-awaited Day 10.

Most of the assembly was done. All that was left was connecting the pieces.

The engineer put down the bamboo and let out a satisfied, “whew,” of breath.

“I got all hot from working out!”

She tossed off her shirt.

An off-shoulder tank top.

White in color, and the design looked like bandages.

I took my shirt off too, and laid it on the bed. From here on out, the work was going to be strenuous, so sweating was inevitable.

“Hand that over.”

I took two bamboo stalks from the engineer. We planned to connect these and create one very long pipe.

The supplies were bamboo, vines, sap, and clay.

Using a tool, we bored holes in the ends of the two bamboo pieces. Then, we threaded tough vines through and around these holes, lashing them together firmly. Of course, this left gaps, not just in the holes but also in the joints, which we filled using sap and clay.

We connected the bamboo this way to form a siphon structure.

“It’s done! And the seawater’s coming up well!”

I thought it wouldn’t be as efficient as a flexible rubber hose, but after the engineer worked her magic, the water was indeed flowing.

If we’ve made it this far, we’re 70% of the way there.

All that’s left now is to attach the pre-made water filter and the faucet.

That’s right. The water filter and faucet.

What the engineer and I were making was a desalination system.

[‘Making a faucet on this barren, deserted island. Man, the tap’s getting downright majestic.’]

[‘Senior.’]

I racked my brain making these two contraptions.

Especially the water purifier. I put the most effort into it, aiming for water usable for both drinking and washing. That made the structure complex as hell. I used every natural material I could get my hands on – purifying stones, sand, gravel, charcoal, the whole shebang.

“Hoo.”

Almost there.

Now all I gotta do is set up the supports, then fit the purifier and the faucet.

Looking up at the sky, it was already late afternoon.

“Ain’t the other group due back soon?”

“Let’s get this done quick.”

I grabbed the supports, and Gong-byeong lifted the device.

But, this.

“Huh? It ain’t going in right?”

Did I mess up the design a bit?

*

For the past few days, Tiria had been bothered.

So bothered she couldn’t stand it.

That strange vibe between the Mage and Sergeant Liyo, just what the hell was it?

Even if they have the same interests, still, not being apart for even a single moment in ten days… I never would’ve dreamed.

“…Could it be?”

Tiria’s mind, once a connoisseur of erotic novels, spun taut.

Once started, the delusion branched out relentlessly, like oak limbs, paralyzing her thought circuits. Her head and pupils both, stained a blush pink.

This tingling feeling, all at once.

Imagining Liyo and the mage getting down and dirty, her heart hammered and her head felt like it was being bleached.

Tiria called out to Rachel, urging her on.

“Major, I think we should go back earlier than usual today.”

“Why is that?”

“The mage and the captain said they were making a surprise present. I think it might be done by now, aren’t you curious?”

“Are you saying we should go ahead and see it?”

Tiria nodded fiercely.

“They said they were making something pleasant. I am curious, too.”

“Right? Right?”

“But if we go too early, they might not like it, right? The meaning of the surprise might be tainted for no reason. Instead of peeking, it’d be better to leave on time…”

Tiria barely managed to stop herself from slapping her forehead. How could she be so dense?

Was there no choice but to say it more blatantly?

“The thing is, the mage and the captain are incredibly close, right? I want to know what they do when we’re not around.”

“Ah.”

Only then did Rachel understand Tiria’s intention.

A heavy relationship.

Perhaps the captain had already built a heavy relationship with the mage, that’s what Tiria was saying.

If a superior got tangled up with a mage? The odds of her prioritizing a mage’s orders, one of the enemy, over those of her own superiors, like Rachel or Tyria, would skyrocket.

An ally could become a foe.

Definitely not a good situation.

Tyria suggested a ‘recon’ mission to check if the two were in a deep relationship. All for military purposes, of course.

“I’m sorry. My thinking was short-sighted.”

“Let’s go quickly. Let’s approach stealthily, so we don’t get caught.”

And so, the two returned to the base early.

“Stand it up properly!”

A strange voice could be heard from behind a rock.

“Can’t you stand it straight? Is this all the strength a male can muster?”

“I’m doing my best. Haa, but can we take a short break? My stamina is almost at its limit.”

“What, tired? No way. The Colonel and Major will be here soon.”

“I’ve been working out since this morning, after the two of them left, and my whole body is aching. Especially my lower back, it feels like it’s going to fall off.”

Tyria’s pupils trembled.

“Ugh, let’s change positions. I’ll set it up for you. Hmm, hmm, hmmm. There, is it good now?”

“Stay still. I’m going in?”

“Yeah, hurry up.”

“Wow, this is really stiff. It’s not going in well.”

Rachel, unable to hear the mage’s lines, could only tilt her head in confusion. She instead deduced the overall situation by observing Tyria’s expression.

It must be very serious.

But, I don’t know why.

“You need to push it in deeper. Sigh, you’re good with stones, but hopeless in this area?”

“It won’t go in any further here?”

“I’ll help you. Like this…like this…”

Then, a struggling sound echoed wildly in Tyria’s ears. The grunts, *huh*, *huh*, muddied her mind. What am I even hearing? Her head was such a mess, rational thought was impossible.

Suddenly, Tyria’s gaze drifted. Towards the stone bed.

Riyo’s sergeant’s uniform and the mage’s shirt were tossed haphazardly there.

Seeing them, she was sure.

She wanted, with all her heart, to bolt outside. To go out there immediately and firmly reprimand them, ‘What do you think you’re doing!’

But she couldn’t find the courage to peek over the rock. That, that, the human and the beastman’s, that, that…

While Tyria hesitated, Rachel peeked out.

The sergeant and the mage were hammering a huge wooden structure into the ground.

“Hm?”

Rachel’s eyes met the man’s.

“Ah.”

“Ah.”

Tyria, who had been focused on the sounds from beyond the rock, also heard those short exclamations and, hands on her cheeks, slowly raised her head.

“…Ah.”

A heavy silence descended.

*

“I haven’t finished it yet…”

The engineer drooped her ears and tail. She was the one who originally planned this surprise. The thought of being caught before it was done seemed to make her sullen.

“So, you were making a water purification system?”

“Yes. Please, just wait a little longer.”

Even so, what needed to be done had to be done. Since it was just the finishing touches, it wouldn’t take long.

About two hours passed, and they managed to install the purifier and even a faucet.

*Click, click.*

Turning the wooden faucet, water slowly began to emerge from the end.

Freshwater, filtered through purification stones and an eco-friendly filter.

“Ooh!”

Valkyrie took a sip of the water and let out a gasp of amazement.

“So, we can now wash and drink as much as we want from here?”

“That’s right!”

“This is… this is really amazing.”

Valkyrie smiled with the pure innocence of a child. The engineer and I looked at each other and chuckled.

Yeah, when I think about it, this is what I truly wanted.

I didn’t want to kill people with magic stones.

I wanted to use them to make people’s lives easier.

Turning the faucet further, cool water gushed out. Since it was purifying seawater on the spot, it didn’t matter how much we wasted.

With this, the water problem was solved. Solved, but…

“Crazy b*tch, crazy b*tch, crazy b*tch……”

Thump, thump, thump.

I don’t know why the Saint is acting like this.