Max Easton is a total goofball—Jill Young had figured that out ages ago.
Maybe it’s from spending so long cooped up alone underground, but all that scholarly vibe—grace, poise, wisdom—was basically flushed down the drain at the dock. Now Max Easton’s just neurotic, shameless, and in a crisis he’ll run around screaming. Most of the time, he’s the king of snark.
If Max Easton wasn’t brainwashed by otaku culture, then I guess this place just breeds weirdos like him.
So now, Jill Young’s stuck sharing a tiny raft with this goofball, drifting wherever the wind takes them.
By the clock, it’s been twenty-four hours. The grasslands are totally out of sight, and there’s no sign of the new continent either.
"Max Easton, are you sure this wind is actually taking us where we want to go?" Ever since they set out, the wind hadn’t changed direction once, which Jill Young found pretty weird.
“Absolutely. I’m sure. Wind happens because of hot and cold air, right? The volcano shaft I fell out of was cold, so there must be something hot over to the east. That’s why the wind keeps blowing from west to east.”
Jill Young nodded and didn’t say anything else. She pulled out a piece of meat from her storage space, took two bites, and got back to practicing Titan Spirit Method. Before setting out, Jill Young had harvested all the beasts she’d caught lately, extracted their essence, grilled everything, and stashed it away. Max Easton’s regular jerky was his own rations, but Jill Young’s premium snacks were definitely kept in her storage space.
Max Easton was totally used to Jill Young’s weird ability to pull stuff out of thin air. Jill Young didn’t bother hiding it anymore—she just used it as she pleased. At first, Max kept pestering her with questions, which got on Jill Young’s nerves, but after a few rounds of not-so-subtle hints, Max finally learned to mind his own business.
The sea wasn’t exactly stormy, but the waves kept tossing the raft up and down. Jill Young had no trouble keeping her balance—after all, compared to Dr. Thomas Tang’s oil drum, this was nothing. What really annoyed her was the water splashing up through the cracks in the wood, getting her soaked every now and then.
A raft is definitely not a luxury cruise ship.
And after a whole day, the temperature climbed again, hitting 86 degrees Fahrenheit. It was miserable.
If it were just Jill Young out here, she’d absolutely wear as little as possible. Wrap up the important bits, let the rest breathe—refreshing and cool! Honestly, if Jill were stranded with another girl, she’d be happy to go full cavewoman.
But instead, it’s this sleazy Max Easton. That’s what really ticks Jill off. All my suffering—yeah, it’s all because of you! With that grudge in mind, Max kept feeling a chill down his spine, shivering now and then.
"How much longer is this going to take?" Jill Young frowned, sprang up, and climbed the mast in a few quick moves. Steady at the top, she scanned the horizon, but even with her sharp eyes, she couldn’t see the end of the sea.
"Your Majesty, our boat’s tiny, please don’t move around like that!" Max Easton rushed to the stern to steady the raft and said, "I did some quick math on the space and wind speed—at our pace, it’ll take about four more days to reach the other side."
"Four days?" Jill Young frowned. "So when we get there, we’ll have to find a way to survive immediately, or it’s game over for us?"
"Yep." Max Easton replied as if it were obvious, then suddenly his eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. "Oh my gosh!"
"Judging by that just-got-struck-by-lightning look, don’t tell me you only now realized?"
"Yeah! I didn’t even notice until you said it—oh my gosh, we’re running out of time!" Watching Max Easton spin around in a panic, Jill Young rolled her eyes and sighed. She was honestly speechless at this guy.
Just then, a strong gust of wind blew through. Jill Young wobbled on the mast, then steadied herself. Staring at the waves, she frowned, "The wind’s picking up."
"Of course it’s picking up, and it’ll keep getting stronger. The magma’s probably leaking from the east, so the temperature’s rising over there, and naturally, the wind gets faster. Oh!" Max Easton nodded like he’d just solved a mystery. "Faster wind means we’ll sail faster, so we’ll have more time—we’re saved!"
Jill Young had given up hope on this guy’s personality.
She leapt down from the mast—thud!—landing back on the raft. Seawater splashed up between the logs, drenching Jill Young’s face. With a giant cross popping up over her head, she snapped, "One day, I swear I’ll cruise the world on the fanciest ship ever!"
"Um..." Max Easton timidly raised his hand. "Your Majesty, could you turn your head the other way first?"
"Why?" Jill Young was still steamed, her anger flaring up.
"I..." Max Easton squirmed. "I want to..."
"If you gotta pee, just whip it out and go! It’s not like I’ve never seen the world—what’s there to be shy about?" Watching Max Easton act all bashful, Jill Young thought, Just be straightforward! I’ve seen plenty in the men’s room—nothing shocks me.
"I’ll just go in the ocean." For all his boldness when flirting, Max Easton was suddenly chicken. With a splash, he jumped into the sea, grabbing the raft with one hand and fumbling underwater with the other. He looked so sleazy, it made you want to kick him.
"Hey, peeing in the pool is bad karma, you know. Judging by your skill, you must’ve practiced a lot."
"Ha, come on, I’m a professor—I’d never do that." Max Easton was busy fumbling around, but still had the energy to ramble: "Speaking of, I remember this zoologist who went to the South American jungle and peed while swimming across a river. The smell attracted a piranha, and it chomped off half his manhood—hilarious, right?—Ah!"
Max Easton was laughing when suddenly his face twisted in panic, twitching like he’d been electrocuted, eyes full of terror. "A fish! Something’s biting me!"
No way—he talks about fish and then one actually bites him? Max Easton’s jinx level is off the charts. But Jill Young saw he wasn’t faking, so she stepped forward and yanked him back up. Waves splashed, and Max Easton landed with a thud on the raft, bringing up a fish clamped onto him!
This fish looked bizarre—its head was huge, taking up more than a third of its body. Sharp fangs stuck out of its mouth, making it super creepy. If you had to describe it, it was like a piranha gone feral.
"Quick, help me! Oh my god, it won’t let go!" Max Easton flailed desperately, totally panicked.
"Calm down, it’s only the size of one of your fingers."