In the early morning, Mori Shinra woke up early.
It wasn't that his sleep schedule was particularly healthy, but rather that he was a light sleeper in unfamiliar beds.
Also, after returning last night, he hadn't forgotten to send a message to comfort Yumiko.
After all, she is his subordinate's daughter. He has to show some concern.
He hadn't expected her to be so chatty.
They talked late into the night, and she still seemed to want more.
It made Mori Shinra wonder if Miura Yumiko was just playing him and Yukinoshita.
After a simple wash, Mori Shinra went to the dining hall.
When he arrived, the elementary schoolers were already enjoying their breakfast, chirping away noisily.
Among the high school group, Mori Shinra only saw Kawasaki Saki and Ebina.
Ebina had probably been woken up by Kawasaki Saki; she looked half-asleep.
Kawasaki Saki, on the other hand, looked to be in good spirits.
You could tell at a glance she was someone with a healthy routine.
Ever since quitting her job at the "Angel's Ladder" bar, Kawasaki Saki's mental state had been consistently good.
She was rarely seen spacing out or yawning in class.
Her grades had also improved a lot, almost catching up to the top tier of their year.
"Good morning," Mori Shinra greeted them.
"Good morning." When Kawasaki Saki saw it was Mori Shinra, a faint smile appeared on her face as she replied.
Ebina yawned, and after a long delay, she lethargically followed up with a "Good morning."
Seeing this, Kawasaki Saki couldn't help but say, "Why don't you go back to sleep for a while?"
"It's fine... yawn... I just stayed up a little late reading BL. I'll be fine after breakfast," Ebina replied, yawning again.
"Mori-kun, there's an empty seat here. Sit wherever. Don't mind me."
The glasses-wearing fujoshi waved her hand, signaling him not to worry about her.
It was the breakfast rush, and the camp's dining hall wasn't very large, so finding a seat was quite difficult.
Mori Shinra didn't stand on ceremony.
He placed his breakfast tray at the empty seat opposite the two and sat down.
After sitting, Mori Shinra looked around and asked, "Is it just you two? Where is everyone else?"
"They're probably all still sleeping," Kawasaki Saki replied.
"The girls' side was up pretty late last night. They're probably all still asleep right now," Ebina added.
"A girls' night?"
"We wanted to, but it didn't happen. Anyway, a lot of things happened, and it got late." Ebina glossed over what happened in the girls' dorm last night, not going into detail.
After all, it involved Miura Yumiko, and Ebina wasn't the type to gossip behind people's backs.
"But you seem to know a lot, even about girls' nights," Ebina looked at Mori Shinra playfully. "On the other hand, Saki-Saki here doesn't know much about it."
"I told you, that nickname is weird. Just call me Saki," Kawasaki Saki said, a little helplessly.
"Isn't it pretty much the same for guys and girls? If you're staying overnight somewhere, it's normal to gather in a room and chat at night."
"Does that mean you guys did that last night too?" Hearing this, Ebina's spirits immediately lifted.
Her sleepiness vanished in an instant, and her eyes glinted behind her glasses.
"...I don't know. I was in a room by myself," Mori Shinra said truthfully.
"You were in a room by yourself... Doesn't that mean Hikigaya-kun slept with Totsuka-kun last night?"
"They are indeed in the same room."
"Guhehe..."
Seeing the increasingly morbid smile on the glasses-wearing girl's face, Mori Shinra quickly changed the subject, asking Kawasaki Saki, "Where's Ms. Hiratsuka? Is she still sleeping too?"
Kawasaki Saki thought for a moment and replied, "She should be awake. I saw her smoking on the balcony when I came over."
Smoking first thing in the morning... Is she that stressed?
She probably dreamed about her failed blind date last night.
The breakfast provided by the camp was quite sumptuous.
It was a typical Japanese-style breakfast, consisting of rice, miso soup, grilled fish, salad, natto, nori, a rolled omelet, and pickled radish.
They also gave an orange as an after-meal fruit.
The variety was quite rich.
But if he had the choice, Mori Shinra would have preferred congee, or maybe buns and fried dough sticks.
Mori Shinra quickly finished his bowl of rice with the refreshing pickled radish and grilled fish.
As for the natto, he didn't touch it.
"Need another bowl?" Kawasaki Saki asked.
"No, I'm good," Mori Shinra replied.
"This feels like a conversation between an old married couple," Ebina said.
...
The air was silent for a moment.
Kawasaki Saki visibly blushed, stammering in a fluster, "Wh-what are you talking about, Ebina-san! Wh-what ma-ma-ma..."
In the end, Kawasaki Saki seemed to have jammed like an old cassette player, unable to get the full word "married" out.
Saki is so easy to read, Ebina mused.
She then clasped her hands together and said in a joking tone, "Sorry, sorry. Your conversation just now really sounded like the daily chat between an old married couple in a prime-time family drama! Don't you think, Mori-kun?"
"I don't really watch family dramas."
"Oh? Then what do you usually watch?"
"I don't really watch TV dramas much..."
Seeing the topic straying further and further, Kawasaki Saki also gradually calmed down.
Perhaps it was because she felt her reaction earlier was too big, or perhaps for some other reason, but Kawasaki Saki rarely participated in the conversation after that.
She just sat there, listening to Mori Shinra and Ebina talk about this and that.
Her gaze would occasionally land on Mori Shinra, but she would quickly look away, lost in her own thoughts.
Soon, the elementary schoolers finished their breakfast one by one and left the dining hall.
Hiratsuka Shizuka arrived just in time, and the high schoolers finally deigned to crawl out of their warm beds.
On the girls' side, Yukinoshita, Komachi, and Yuigahama arrived at the dining hall.
After seeing Mori Shinra and the others, they sat down nearby.
It was worth noting that Miura Yumiko's makeup was a bit heavier today than yesterday, probably to cover her slightly red and swollen eyes.
It was clear she had been quite upset by Yukinoshita yesterday.
Although they sat at the same table, they sat at opposite corners.
The distance between them was no different than if they had sat at separate tables.
Yuigahama, ever-perceptive, ran over and sat next to Ebina, clearly not intending to get involved in the clash of ice and fire.
On the boys' side, Hayama and Tobe arrived first, followed by Hikigaya and Totsuka, who were late.
Once everyone had finished eating, Hiratsuka Shizuka repeated the itinerary she had mentioned last night.
"Today is the students' free activity time all day. Tonight, there's a test of courage and a bonfire. Your job is to prepare for tonight's activities."
Mhm. The elementary schoolers just get to have free time. The volunteers have to do all the thinking.
"I get the bonfire, but a test of courage... Don't tell me we have to dress up as ghosts?"
"Exactly. But the route has already been planned, and the costumes and props are all ready. You just need to put them on before it starts. The main work is still the bonfire. Now, come with me, I'll tell you what you need to do."
With that, Hiratsuka Shizuka led the group to an open field, surrounded by trees.
In the corner was a warehouse, probably for storing supplies.
The only thing that needed to be prepared for the bonfire was firewood.
Their main job was to cut down the specially planted, fast-growing trees, chop them into long strips, and then stack them into a giant, log-cabin-style pyre.
Simplified, it was three steps: chop, stack, assemble.
Simple, but exhausting.
Because it was heavy physical labor, the task fell to the boys.
The girls were assigned to prepare some of the smaller, less tiring tasks, such as drawing a large circle on the open ground, learning the guiding script for the bonfire...
Mori Shinra was assigned the job of cutting down trees.
With the buff of 12 points in Strength, he could basically fell a bowl-sized tree in two or three chops.
It was then handed over to Totsuka and Tobe for cutting and transport.
With everyone working together and rushing, it took about half the morning to finally complete the preparations before the sun showed its full power.
"Finally done. By the way, Mori Shinra, you're super strong. And your stamina is insane. I feel tired just watching you swing that axe," Tobe said, wiping the sweat from his face, his tone exaggerated.
"Yeah. Mori-kun barely even broke a sweat," Totsuka Saika added, nodding.
"It's not that exaggerated. Just normal high schooler level," Mori Shinra said with a wave of his hand.
He then asked, "What's next?"
"When we were coming back, Ms. Hiratsuka told me that we have free time until the test of courage this evening," Totsuka Saika replied.
Tobe also chimed in with a timely suggestion, "It's so hot. Why don't we go play in the water later?"
There was a small stream near the camp.
It wasn't deep, and it flowed down from the surrounding mountains.
The water was clean, and you could even see fish and shrimp in it.
They had discovered this stream during the orienteering yesterday, and someone had suggested going to play in it.
In fact, before they came, Hiratsuka Shizuka had mentioned the nearby stream in the group chat.
Therefore, almost everyone who came had brought swimwear.
Mori Shinra was no exception.
"I'm fine with it." Mori Shinra gave an OK sign.
Speaking of summer, you can't skip the swimsuit episode.
If the guys are going to play in the water, the girls will definitely follow.
"How about you, Totsuka?" Tobe looked at Totsuka Saika.
"I'm fine with it too."
"Alright! Then I'll see you at the stream later."
Tobe waved and went to notify the others.
He soon disappeared from Mori Shinra's and Totsuka Saika's sight.
Mori Shinra turned his head to Saika. "Should we go back and change into our swimsuits now?"
"Mhm. Should we let Hikigaya know?"
"I already sent him a message. He hasn't replied, though."
"Maybe he's still busy?"
"We can ask him on the way back."