Chapter 173 - Operation: Undo

Jay-Jay's POV

The bonfire we made was burning strong. It's a good thing I'm not drunk right now, or I might accidentally summon something.

As usual!

I shook my head, pushing that thought away. Wake up! I'd look like a fool, and there's even a video. I hope I never do that again.

So embarrassing!

"Still nothing?" David asked.

We looked at the lookouts, but they just shook their heads. A sign that our suspicions were correct—they still hadn't shown up.

We were almost certain we had been robbed. To confirm it, we decided to send spies to the other sections. I initially wanted to check Section B first since one of them owned the handkerchief we found, but Keifer suggested sending someone else instead.

Spying!

"That's it! That's it!" Mayo suddenly shouted.

We immediately turned our attention forward. Rory and Edrix were the first to arrive from Section A. After them, Kit and Eren came from Section B. Finally, Blaster and Drew arrived from Section D. We were still waiting for our last two from Section C.

"Why aren't they here yet?" Eman asked worriedly.

Even I was getting anxious. Maybe they got caught. We sent two people to each section. Not that we suspect Rakki's section, but we needed to be sure.

"I see them!" Mayo shouted as Ci-N and Felix finally appeared.

"Is everyone here?" David asked.

"Present!"

"Complete! No one's missing!"

"Alright!"

Everyone gathered around the bonfire. It felt like we were having an important meeting. Well, it was important—it was about our food!

"Rory and Edrix! Did you see anything?" Keifer asked.

"There's something!" Rory confirmed. "...They have our cooler!"

"Shit!"

"Why them?!"

"What about us?!"

Yuri silenced everyone with a hand gesture. Once they quieted down, Rory continued.

"...It's bad. They put alcohol in the cooler. We can't report this to the organizers anymore." He took a deep breath. "...They might just assume the same about us."

Most of us agreed. We couldn't say anything about Section A. If we did, they'd just turn it against us.

"What about you, Kit and Eren?" Keifer asked again.

"There's something," Kit answered. "...They have our rice."

"They're dividing up our food?!" David asked, clearly irritated.

Even I was annoyed. Why did they have to rob us? We didn't do anything to them…

Or did we?

"Our canned goods and noodles are in Section D. All six boxes we brought," Blaster groaned.

"Section C is clean!" Ci-N said, raising his hand. "...Because my dear Rakki is kind. He wouldn't do that to us."

Oh… that's a relief.

That's what I thought too. Rakki wouldn't do that to us. So, our food was only in three sections.

But… what about my Snorlax?

"Confirmed. They have it," Yuri said as he paced around, deep in thought. "...But how do we get it back?"

Great question! But no answers!

"We can't report to the organizers anymore," Rory reminded.

"What if we confront them?" I suggested.

"They might report us instead and turn the situation against us," Edrix replied.

Good point!

Ci-N suddenly raised his hand, bouncing excitedly. "What if we blow up their tents, take our stuff back, eliminate the fighters, and enslave the women?! Bwahahahaha!" He laughed maniacally.

We all stared at him, disturbed. Was I the only one noticing how brutal he was getting? Did he even have food at his condo?

"Did you have breakfast?" Drew asked him.

Ci scratched the back of his neck, nodded, then looked at us.

"And your medicine?" Eren asked.

"Medicine? What medicine?" Ci-N replied innocently.

"For your brain! Because your thoughts are messed up!" I snapped at him.

He just laughed at us. That guy definitely wasn't getting enough sleep.

Must be rabies!

"We don't have time for jokes! We need to figure out a way to get our food back," Keifer said seriously.

And he was right. It was still early for dinner, but I was already starving. If our stomachs started growling, that would be a big problem.

By the way… has anyone seen my Snorlax?

Each of us had our own suggestions, and all of them were possible. While Ci-N was deep in thought, grumbling about how we were going to execute the plan, something suddenly fell behind him.

He turned to look at it, and before we could even ask what it was, his expression changed dramatically—he suddenly looked like a terrified woman.

"Snake! Snake! Snake!" he screamed.

Panic broke out instantly. The Ulupongs scattered in all directions, running for their lives. Some even tripped and fell. I wanted to get up, but the pain in my body and thigh made it difficult to move.

I could see the snake's head shifting around, as if searching for its next victim.

"We're doomed!"

"Aaaahhhh!"

"I don't want to die!"

I struggled to stand, hoping I'd get lucky. But before I could even move, Ci-N suddenly jumped onto my back, screaming.

"Jay-Jay's best friend! We're gonna get stabbed!"

Best friend?!

Since when did I have a snake for a best friend? This guy is not normal!

With my aching body and Ci-N's weight pressing down on me, I couldn't move at all.

"Ci-N! Get off me!" I yelled.

"Get your best friend away from here!"

What the hell?!

My body couldn't take it anymore. We collapsed to the ground. I just shut my eyes tightly.

"Ouch!" I screamed as I hit the ground.

Mud. Just great. As if my body didn't hurt enough already, now I had to deal with this mess. First, I got beaten up. Then Ci-N jumped on me. And now we were lying in the dirt.

"No one move!" someone suddenly shouted.

I opened my eyes—shit. Face-to-face with my "bestie." No wonder someone yelled for us to stay still.

I was staring directly into the snake's eyes. Its tongue flicked out, tasting the air as it looked straight at me.

I was its target. I was going to die.

"I said no one move!" the voice shouted again.

I saw Yuri carefully picking up a tree branch, but before he could do anything, the snake lifted its head even higher—a clear sign it was ready to strike.

Nobody moved. If I could have held my breath, I would have. I didn't even blink.

Then we heard it—a twig snapping somewhere behind us.

The snake's mouth opened wide, ready to strike me.

But before it could sink its fangs into me, something yanked its tail away.

Keifer!

He threw the snake against a tree.

But that wasn't enough to stop my "bestie"—wait, huh?!

The snake quickly slithered back toward Keifer, ready to strike again. Keifer dodged just in time, sprinting away.

Jay-Jay is really unlucky!

"Jay! Get out of there!"

"Jay-Jay!"

I was still the target! I tried to stand up, but before I could, the snake lunged at me again.

I thought that was it. I thought my life would end right there.

Then—a Swiss knife flew straight into the snake's head.

We all let out a collective sigh of relief. Yuri rushed over and helped me up. I clung to him for a second.

"Sorry... I couldn't help you sooner," he whispered before letting go.

"I-it's okay... I survived," I said, still catching my breath.

Keifer ran straight to me. Without thinking, I hugged him tightly.

"Shit! I didn't realize I was still behind you!" he said.

I glanced at Yuri for a moment. I could see the hurt in his eyes before he quickly turned away and walked off.

"Jay-Jay's best friend is dead," Ci-N announced, sounding like a radio news anchor.

That gave me an idea!

"There was a snake here! Why did the organizers even put us in this place?!" Mayo complained angrily.

He had a point! Why were we still here? My suspicions were confirmed when I noticed the tall grass not far away.

David pulled the Swiss knife from the snake's head, wiped it clean, then put it back in his pocket.

"David!" I called. He turned toward me. "...Thank you!"

"Anytime," he replied with a small smile.

Ci-N approached the snake, poking it with a small branch to check if it was still alive. It twitched slightly, writhing like a worm covered in salt.

Suddenly, Ci-N grinned widely. We all turned to look at him.

"I know how we can get our food back," he declared.

I had a very strong feeling this kid was about to suggest something crazy. But we had to hear him out.

He pulled us all closer and explained his plan.

"Are you sure about this, Ci?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course! Trust me!" he said, looking annoyed that I even questioned him. So, I let him continue.

After hearing his explanation, everyone agreed. We split into groups—one team for Section A, one for Section B, and another for Section D. The rest stayed behind to guard our campsite.

Drew went to gather the supplies we needed. David made sure the snake was truly dead, though at this point, there wasn't much else we could do with it.

"Has anyone seen my Snorlax?" I asked the group.

Everyone looked at each other, trying to think. But no one had an answer.

"I'm not sure..." Edrix finally spoke up, making us turn to him. "...Ella was holding a stuffed toy, but I didn't get a good look at it."

"Fine."

Yes!

No one else would bring a stuffed toy here—except me. That must be it! My Snorlax!

"Here it is! Here it is!" Drew shouted, running toward us with a fishing rod.

David immediately secured the snake, tying it tightly to the fishing rod. They made sure the knot was strong and secure.

Once they were done, they got ready to leave. Their first stop was Section D, where they planned to reclaim our stolen canned goods and noodles.

That left me, Keifer, Yuri, Josh, Mayo, and Denzel behind. They were trying to fix the damaged tents, though some of us would still have to share.

"Do you think Ci-N's plan will work?" I asked.

"It'll work... It's Ci-N," Denzel replied confidently.

I wasn't so sure. If they got caught, things could turn ugly fast. We were already at odds with Section D.

For a while, we sat there in silence. I glanced at Keifer and Yuri. They weren't saying much—just exchanging a few short words now and then.

Why me?

If I weren't the only girl in Section E, would they still like me? Maybe one of them would have liked someone else instead.

Ugh... this is so frustrating. I felt guilty about the whole situation. This was my fault.

"Jay..." Mayo called my name and sat down next to me. "...How are you feeling?"

"It still hurts when I move," I admitted.

"Josh has a pain reliever over there. Do you want some?" he offered.

I quickly shook my head. "No... The pain will go away on its own."

"You're strong... Are you really going to endure it?"

"Of course... It's not like I haven't fought through worse before."

He just nodded, accepting my answer. We sat in silence for a moment. But I could tell there was something on his mind—something he wanted to say.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

He forced a small smile. "It's about Kit..."

"What about him?"

He took a deep breath. "He really doesn't want this anymore. Should I give up?"

He actually asked me that.

"I-I don't know… Your situation is really complicated," I admitted.

He sighed deeply again. I could feel his sadness, like it was radiating off him. It felt fitting that we were sitting in the corner together.

Why are they both guys? Why do I always fall for best friends?

"Maybe..." He hesitated. "...I should stop chasing him." He smiled weakly and looked away. "...That's probably the right thing to do."

I don't know why, but his words felt heavy. He didn't need to cry in front of me for me to know how much pain he was in.

Suddenly, we heard a commotion. Mayo and I immediately stood up.

The others had returned, carrying boxes full of our canned goods and noodles.

They were laughing and teasing each other, clearly proud of their success. They placed the boxes in front of Keifer and opened them to check if anything was missing.

"It's not all here… Looks like they took some," Yuri observed.

"That's fine. At least we got most of it back," David said.

"Next stop, Section B!" Ci-N cheered.

He must be thrilled that his plan was working.

The others left again, carrying the fishing rod with the snake still hanging from it.

Poor 'bestie.'

This time, Kit and Eren stayed behind to organize the boxes. They also used the broken tents as makeshift covers.

I glanced at Mayo, who was staring at Kit. I could tell he wanted to talk to him—the person he loved.

I was startled when I saw a single tear fall from his eye. He quickly wiped it away.

"I-I'll go check on him," he muttered, before walking off to follow Ci-N.

I turned back toward Kit and saw Mayo watching gim, his eyes full of longing. Eren gave him a reassuring pat on the arm, bringing him back to the task at hand.

Did he see Mayo crying?

I felt sorry for both of them. I hoped they could talk things out properly.

As much as I wanted to interfere, I couldn't.

I had my own problems.

And right now, they were staring straight at me.