Escape From a Deserted Island With Enemy Female Soldiers

6 – Sleeping with the Enemy (3)

It was a chilly night for the tropics. The wind howled, making it feel even colder.

I gathered some broad leaves, carefully trimmed them, and then warmed them over the fire. I draped the now-warm leaves over Valkyrie’s shoulders, on top of her clothes. This would be much warmer than just sleeping in her clothes.

“Where are these mosquitos….”

The weather was bad enough, but now bloodsucking insects were swarming. These things were a breeding ground for disease. I sat perched on the side of the lifeboat, swatting away the uninvited guests trying to bite Valkyrie.

“Gurgle.”

“Oh, you’re here?”

And then there were the occasional monsters that came around, those I had to deal with too.

It’s like I’m single-handedly doing everything – playing the drums and the trumpet, the whole damn show. I’m drained.

If my dead comrades could see me like this, they’d be shooting me, for sure. I apologized to them in my mind.

And so I survived the lonely night, and as the sky began to brighten…

“Ah.”

I felt like I’d reached a state of half-enlightened resignation.

“I’m gonna die.”

Two nights on sentry duty had me feeling like death warmed over.

But I can’t just sleep now. I need to get more water and find something to eat. There was still so much to do.

As the sun rose, the monsters disappeared. I got to my feet. From now on, as long as I didn’t go too far, I could move around on my own.

Before the Valkyrie woke, I searched the sea and the thicket. It wasn’t hard to find oysters and seaweed along the shore, and a few herbs I recognized in the undergrowth.

It wouldn’t fill our bellies.

But they’d be a great help against a feverish cold.

[“Hollow out.”]

I picked up a decent-sized stone and carved it. Made three bowls that way, then dried them well with dehydration magic. After that, I put a stone slab over the fire and set the bowls on top.

I was just filling them with fresh water and adding the ingredients to boil when the Valkyrie, who’d been lying down, groaned and sat up.

“Ughhh.”

“You’re awake?”

“What the hell, is the sun already up?”

Her voice sounds a bit rough.

The Valkyrie’s gaze dropped. She frowned. The leaves and military jacket I’d laid over her slid off her shoulders and down.

The Valkyrie shoved my clothes aside and opened her mouth.

“I told you to wake me in three hours. What were you doing? Did you fall asleep, by any chance?”

“You’re sick.”

I made a show of coughing. Then, pointed right at the Valkyrie. Her expression instantly hardened.

“Looks like you’ve got a fever, or am I wrong?”

“What are you staring at? I’m fine.”

“Fine my ass. You were burning up all night.”

“Don’t pretend to be concerned. I’m really fine…cough! Cough!”

A sudden cough made the Valkyrie cover her mouth. Her eyes went wide.

The cough, once started, spread like wildfire. Trying to stop it seemed futile. It was too late to pretend, to feign being okay.

I waited for her to calm down.

“Huu, heuu.”

“See?”

Valkyrie squeezed her eyes shut.

Her shoulders were heaving, her face flushed crimson. Her lips trembled, her eyes hollow.

Anyone could see she needed care.

“Cough, cough!”

“What a mess. Here, drink this.”

I poured the steeped tea into a small bowl and held it out. But Valkyrie didn’t immediately take it. She seemed suspicious of the tea leaves’ origin.

“You don’t think I used poisonous herbs, do you?”

“…….”

“Hey.”

This was a bit much. Last night went off without a hitch, and we even made a truce. Even if she can’t open her heart, shouldn’t she at least recognize a kindness?

“Sigh.”

I took a sip of the water myself to show her there was nothing suspicious.

That wasn’t enough, so I even took out the herbs in the bowl to show her.

“It’s Feredi leaf. You should see a lot of it in your country, right?”

Only then did Valkyrie take the stone bowl.

At first, she only sipped hesitantly, but soon she nodded, and began to slowly drink the rest. A few droplets of water trickled down her jawline.

“Such a mess. Here, eat this too.”

He fished an oyster from the boiling water. He’d shucked it himself, extracting the plump, cooked meat, and he stabbed it with his knife, offering it to Valkyrie.

But Valkyrie refused it again.

“What is it *now*?”

Ugh, I went through the trouble of gathering these because oysters are supposed to be good for your immune system. And she’s turning them down? What kind of poison would be in an oyster?

Or wait, maybe she thinks I’m giving her something bad?

“My arm’s gonna fall off. What’s wrong this time— Hey?”

Her eyes were half-closed. Her head was swaying back and forth.

The girl was completely out of it.

Wow, really? Am I gonna have to feed her, too?

I pushed the oyster closer. Valkyrie opened her mouth a tiny bit.

Munch, munch.

Seeing her accept it, she must really be feeling bad.

“…”

I rubbed the back of my neck. This is going to drive me insane.

From my view, she’s been sick since yesterday. She was probably hiding it, not wanting to show her weakness.

“Get better soon. It’ll make my life a little less hellish.”

Whether she understood or not, Valkyrie nodded her head. I sighed in frustration and took out David, rolling it around in my hand.

“David. When am I going to get rescued?”

[‘I am not sure.’]

“Even if I do all this for this woman, will it actually help *my* survival?”

[‘It will.’]

“If the Holy Spirit Nation discovers this island first, that’s another problem entirely. We’re investing… yeah, investing in case that happens. Even if they’re mages, they’d at least treat a prisoner humanely, right?”

[‘With this much effort, you won’t die. You might be held captive for life, though.’]

“Ah.”

A prisoner for life? I’d rather die than that.

“Anyway, David. Is rain coming soon?”

[‘It’s about that time.’]

I looked up at the sky. The color of the clouds was unsettling. The weather was gloomier than it had been at this time yesterday. This wasn’t something to just ignore.

“Reinforcing our shelter would be the right thing to do, right?”

David agreed that it was, and I nodded. Valkyrie was still staring at me with a sulky look.

“What, never seen someone talk to rocks before?”

*Hmph*, Valkyrie looked away. Her face was slightly flushed. That was the signal that her fever was starting to rise properly.

For the time being, my tasks were set. First, find food, and then, gather materials to repair the shelter.

I collected the remaining blue chalcedony and stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“The forest.”

“Where?”

“I’m going over there. Don’t go wandering off and stay put.”

I had scouted the forest yesterday, so I knew the way in and out. I moved slowly, wary of any monsters that might be lurking.

“David. What kind of food is good for body aches?”

[‘Warm tea. Or maybe some protein-rich meat would be good.’]

*Scrape.*

Just then, I saw a squirrel darting through the bushes.

Even on this small island, there are small animals.

No, wait. Considering there’s a fish monster, a squirrel is probably normal, right?

I flicked a pebble and chanted a phrase.

[“Impale.”]

The squirrel, sensing my movement, quickly escaped. My first attack barely missed, hitting the tree. It was too small to aim at accurately.

After several tries, I finally managed to hunt it. The squirrel, pierced by a heat ray emanating from the azurite, fell with a *squeak*.

“Hoo.”

It would’ve been so much harder without magic.

It’s so convenient, I don’t know why the Holy Spirit Kingdom prohibits it.

I tucked the prey and some branches under my arm and started walking. I also had a few raw gemstones in my pocket that I’d picked up along the way.

I returned to our shelter, but for some reason…

Valkyrie was nowhere to be seen.

“…Where’d she go?”

She wasn’t in the lifeboat, and she wasn’t behind the rocks either.

Where did she really go?

This feels ominous. Could she have been attacked by a monster while I was gone and dragged away? No, but there’s no sign of a fight.

“Wizard.”

The voice came then.

I turned to see Valkyrie there. She was walking slowly up the gentle slope of the hill. In one hand, she held a spear with a fish skewered on it, and in the other, a basket woven from twigs and twine.

“Where’ve you been?”

Valkyrie pointed towards the coast.

“The beach? In that condition?”

“See? I told you I was fine. So, *cough*, don’t look at me like that.”

Valkyrie’s face flushed red as she coughed. She swayed, looking like she was about to fall, so I quickly sat her down and fed the fire with more logs.

“Ugh.”

“If you’re feeling sick, come closer. You need to warm up by the fire to get better, right?”

No matter how much I reasoned, Valkyrie tried to keep her distance from the fire.

In the end, all the cooking fell to me. Not that I’d have her do it, the sick one.

*Crack*, *crackle*.

I roasted the skinned meat with herbs. I don’t know a surefire way to get rid of the gamey smell. This is the best I can do for now.

While the meat cooked, I stared into the fire.

Suddenly, something Admiral Deetz used to say popped into my head.

He’d said that I was especially sentimental.

“Haaah.”

What kind of sentimental is this? I’m just being a pushover, tending to her every need.

“It’s done. You can eat it.”

“……”

“Hey.”

I portioned out some meat into a bowl and brought it over.

“Should I feed you myself like before? Huh?”

Valkyrie started picking at her food, slowly moving it to her mouth. I ate the fish she had caught, grilled up.

Right after the meal, we started on the shelter repairs as exercise. Making a roof to block the rain was the most urgent thing.

After moving the lifeboat closer to the rocks, I used the branches we had collected as supports to build a frame. I created a cross-shaped skeleton for the roof, and then used strips of bark twisted into rope to bind each intersection.

Last, we’d lay broad leaves tightly on top and that’s it.

“Huuu.”

My post-bashing skills from my soldier days hadn’t gone anywhere.

I handed a cup of Ferredi tea to Valkyrie and said,

“Don’t get any ideas, drink this and then lie down to sleep.”

“But…”

“Don’t make me say things twice.”

Hesitantly, Valkyrie took the tea, drank it, and then got into the lifeboat. She glanced over here before lying down.

I took off my military uniform and threw it into the lifeboat. But then she was huffing and trying to return it?

Valkyrie threw my clothes. I dove to catch them before they hit the ground. Then, I threw them back into the lifeboat.

“Ah!”

“Three-pointer.”

A historic moment where Madoc Kingdom supplies smacked a Holy Kingdom Dragon Knight in the head.

“Cover up and sleep.”

“……”

There was no reply. Just the rustling sound of movement.

And this time, no clothes were returned either.