Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Factions
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The original plan had been to take just Kim Yeonju and my homeroom teacher and set up a separate camp.
But somehow, it looked like two more tagalongs were coming along.
'Whatever, it doesn't really matter.'
Kim Yeonju would feel more at ease with fellow crew around anyway.
And more people meant they could share the workload.
'I was hoping to leave Science under those kids to get tormented even more.'
No helping it. I'd just have to keep her close and torment her myself.
Science flinched under my gaze. She kept her head down, rolling an empty water bottle back and forth in her hands.
Both Park Soyoung and Science had chugged every last drop of the water I'd given them right there on the spot. And they'd drained it clean.
It was a clear sign of just how much thirst they'd been suffering.
'As long as the water's in my hands, they won't rebel against me.'
The brutal heat and the island's harsh conditions were etching the true value of water into everyone's bones.
And I was the one who could supply it endlessly. That made me the absolute ruler here.
'Even if they find out this is another world, that they can awaken abilities, and that I have the shop power—they still couldn't touch me.'
If anything, once they learned about my abilities, they'd cooperate even more eagerly.
They'd never have settled for never tasting civilization again—not after gorging on it just days ago.
To them, I was already irreplaceable.
'I'll recreate exactly what the rich back on Earth did here. No, I'll let them enjoy it even more than those guys.'
As I steeled my resolve, lantern light approached from one side.
I figured it was Math, and sure enough, it was. But there was someone else behind him too.
"Huh? Senior Lee Jaehun?"
Park Soyoung spotted him and called out his name.
He was the male flight attendant who'd vanished last night.
Confirming he was crew, Park Soyoung shot up from her seat and rushed over, mercilessly smacking his arm.
"Where the hell have you been?! Showing up now?! Do you have any idea how hard we've been working to cover for you?!"
"Ow! W-wait, Soyoung. Stop hitting me! That's not the important part!"
"Then what is?! Huh?!"
Even after pounding his arms and back with her palm for a good while, she kept going until Lee Jaehun dodged her glaring eyes, scrambling away as he spoke.
"L-listen. I found drinking water."
"What? What did you say?"
"There's a water source on this island!"
"!!"
Everyone's eyes widened as they turned to him.
The news was so shocking that a heavy silence hung in the air for a long stretch.
"I-is that for real?"
"Of course!"
He'd set out aimlessly along the coast yesterday afternoon, convinced he couldn't survive like this any longer. Soon, he'd reached the base of a massive rocky cliff—and that's where he'd seen water trickling down, he said.
"You sure you didn't hallucinate it, Senior?"
"You don't believe me?"
"You've been getting beat up a lot lately, and you even fainted from shock. You're not exactly stable mentally."
The others nodded in agreement.
Nothing was riskier in the wild than following the judgment of someone whose mind was frayed.
But Lee Jaehun spoke with total confidence.
"Come with me. I'll show you myself."
We followed him half in doubt, half in hope. He led us along the coast.
"Senior, you sure this is the right way?"
"I told you, yes."
"But this is the path we searched on the first day."
It was the opposite direction from where I'd searched. Everyone else voiced doubts about Lee Jaehun's guidance, as if they'd all been there before—except me.
"We only searched for two hours back then before turning back. You have to go way farther."
"How far?"
"About five more hours from here?"
I halted in my tracks.
"You all go ahead then."
"Huh? Woojin? Where are you going?"
Park Soyoung asked on behalf of the group, and everyone looked puzzled.
"Why not just come with us? I know Senior Lee Jaehun's story sounds shaky, but if it's true, this is our chance!"
"Shaky?! Argh, I can't even prove it!"
Frustrated, Lee Jaehun spat out his anger alone. Then his eyes lit up as something occurred to him.
He pulled something from his pocket. A smartphone.
"Here, look. See? There's real water, I swear."
First photos. Then videos.
The screen showed a rocky cliff towering there for real.
Not as high as the one I'd seen on day one, but still dizzyingly tall. Like a seven- or eight-story apartment.
And from that rock, a tiny stream of water was cascading down.
Thin rivulets trickled down through cracks between boulders, following the bedrock.
"W-whoa, that's actual water? Safe to drink, Senior?"
"I already drank some yesterday. No issues so far."
At that, faces lit up like fireworks.
"Whoaaa!"
People hugged and cheered wildly, jumping around.
They were dancing up a storm.
Maybe it hit harder because of all the humiliations they'd endured over water lately.
"Oh my. This is wonderful!"
My homeroom teacher clapped along, beaming like a kid at the sight of everyone bouncing with joy.
'Not weird for there to be some freshwater somewhere on the island.'
Truth be told, I'd been certain there'd be drinkable water around here somewhere.
The main quest had popped up with a task to procure water, after all.
The system had subtly tipped us off that potable water was nearby.
'Of course, we'd have to verify if that's the water in question.'
I smirked as I watched the group crowd around the phone, going nuts over the trickling stream.
'But this is gonna make things interesting.'
And sure enough, Park Soyoung shouted.
"Let's not go back! Let's ditch 'em! Let those kids fend for themselves with whatever water they've got left—we'll set up camp there!"
Just as I'd figured.
I'd thought as long as the class kids had water, the teachers and crew would stay under their thumb.
The slaves slaving away while the kids lorded over them—that system would drag on.
But the vibe now? It was crumbling right before my eyes.
'That settles it. The group's definitely splitting. At least into three pieces.'
As Park Soyoung pushed to bail, voices chimed in from all over, backing her up.
"Yeah! Let's live separately from the kids!"
"Great idea. I wanted to bolt from there anyway. Those boys were gearing up to make us do all the work."
The group quickly reached a consensus.
"Woojin. What do you think?"
My homeroom teacher asked me—meaning, basically, why not stick with them here?
All eyes turned my way.
"Hey. Come with us."
I thought it over for a split second, then shook my head.
"No. I'll be moving separately."
Going with them wouldn't be the worst.
Like I'd said earlier, more people meant dividing labor and handling surprises easier.
Especially in this Stone Age setup with no civilization—numbers equaled power.
But I shook my head anyway.
'I have to protect what's mine.'
There were already two guys over there. One a young, fit flight attendant.
They wouldn't just sit by while I hooked up with the women. Trouble was inevitable.
'One man in our group—me—is plenty.'
"Student, are you in your right mind? How do you plan to survive out here without water?"
Water, huh. I gave a sly smile.
"I'll manage. If fate brings us together again later, we can meet up then."
"Teacher Lee Sujung. At least you come."
Science reached out to my homeroom teacher, beckoning. But she gripped my hand tight.
Sure enough, homeroom was on my side.
I clasped her hand back and glanced at the other two women. Park Soyoung and Science wavered between options.
In the end, Science went with them. Not much of a surprise—I'd half-expected it.
'If she stuck with me after all that, she'd have issues.'
Our eyes naturally shifted to the last one.
Park Soyoung glanced back and forth before choosing. The result caught me off guard a bit.
'She's going with them too.'
I'd thought she'd pick us after showing some goodwill midway. Nope.
Only once those two had committed did it hit me.
'People move on desire, but cold calculation's always in the mix too.'
In other words, easier to just drink freely than bend over daily, service me with her tongue, and beg for water.
A perfectly rational call, so I nodded, respecting their choice.
"Sorry, Woojin."
Park Soyoung apologized, and I shook my head.
Whatever math she'd done, the choice was hers.
And losing those two wasn't pure loss for me.
'Gives me some breathing room.'
Assuming two liters per person per day, five women tagging along would've meant 10,000 cache daily for our group of six.
Even on sale now at 1,000 each, prices could spike post-sale.
Bottom line: upkeep costs were insane.
'Them bailing on their own? Solves my headache.'
I bowed happily.
"Take care, everyone."
As I looked up, regret flashed across Park Soyoung and Science's faces.
Maybe they'd hoped I'd stop them from leaving.
Or offer lighter terms for water, better treatment, some negotiation.
Whatever it was, what was done was done. I turned on my heel without hesitation.
My homeroom teacher stuck right by my side, no second thoughts.
"Ah..."
A faint sigh brushed my ear, and I hurried back toward the class kids' spot.
Less time than I'd thought.
"What time is it now?"
I asked, staring at the still-dark sky. My homeroom teacher panted beside me as she answered.
"3:47 a.m."
Time was tight. We'd be late at this rate.
The original plan had buffer, but I'd burned time deflowering the backup bride and giving Science a proper mouth lesson.
Plus, chasing that male attendant's water lead had wasted more, even after looping back midway.
"Teacher. Think you can run?"
I started to ask, then shut my mouth.
She was drenched in sweat, barely keeping up with my brisk pace.
'She's at her limit.'
Even in top shape, my homeroom teacher couldn't run—that much I knew.
You know those women who look like they've never run a day in their life? All clumsy at it.
She was that type.
'Dawn's light will chase the dark soon.'
Walking back was cutting it way too close.
I made the call.
"Wait here, Teacher. I'll go alone and come back."
"Hah... huff... A-alone?"
"Yeah. I'll handle it solo. You can hold out here till then, right?"
She nodded.
"Yeah, I'll wait. Go ahead, don't worry about me."
"I'll definitely return, so hide in the brush. Not too deep, though—snakes."
I watched her sit to catch her breath, then kicked off, sprinting ahead.
Luckily, I made it without being late.
Cooo~
The kids were lost in deep sleep.
To avoid any early risers, I waded into shallow water, belly-crawled toward the plane bit by bit.
Then rapped gently on the door.
Knock knock.
"Who's there?"
"Your master."
Creeeak—the cockpit opened, and Kim Yeonju emerged chopsticks in hand. Spotting me, she leaped into my arms.
"Master!"
"No trouble last night?"
"Trouble? You told me to lock up and hunker down, and they actually came right up here causing a racket before leaving."
Figures. Those greedy kids wouldn't satisfy themselves with just one woman.
"What's with the metal chopsticks?"
"For self-defense? Weapon to guard my purity?"
...That's brutal.
"Good work."
"Really? Then can I suck your dick?"
I shoved off Kim Yeonju, who clung to my crotch, and entered the cockpit. I quickly checked the kids' positions and status.
'All asleep, huh.'
But then someone bolted upright.
Kang Hye-rin.
She stretched suddenly, glanced around, then stepped to face the woods, plopping down cross-legged.
'No way... Hah. Is she waiting for me right now?'
Devotion like that gave me chills.
What kind of girl does this?
And that's when I spotted Park Jimin too.
Park Jimin peeked at where Kang Hye-rin had slept, confirmed she was gone, and got up herself.
She scanned around Kang Hye-rin.
Poking around. Pouting—
Shoulders slumping, she shuffled back to her spot and lay down.
Then she tossed and turned like sleep wouldn't come.
"......"
Park Jimin.
The princess of the K-pop entertainment empire.
What was I to her now? Was she really seeing me as husband material, like she'd hinted?
Her fidgeting and peeking at Kang Hye-rin nagged at me—maybe time to snag her now? But spotting Kim Taehun glaring her way, I backed off.
'Not yet. Not yet.'
I wanted to grab her, but not now.
Too much risk.
'Just wait a bit longer, Jimin. I'll come back for you.'
"So who's in your group, Master?"
Kim Yeonju asked as we trudged the beach. I felt the morning sun rising and quickened my pace.
"You'll see when we get there."
"Tell me now. Please? I love getting straight answers after waiting my whole life."
Her personality had flipped.
No more pure, quiet, innocent Kim Yeonju. Just a chatty, noisy chatterbox.
"It's our homeroom teacher."
"Huh? Homeroom? Oh, that super sweet-looking pretty one! She's your girl? The one you said would spread her pussy anytime?"
"......"
"Master, you listening?"
"Ask her yourself when we get there."
"How much farther?"
"We're almost there."
"You've said that eighteen times."
"For real this time. Right there. Where we agreed to mee...
"Meet?"
Kim Yeonju leaned into my view, tilting her head at my trailing off.
I brushed her face aside and ran to my homeroom teacher.
"Teacher?"
"Oh? You're here, Woojin?"
"Y-yeah. But those kids..."
I stared at her lap.
There, like mirror images, were two identical girls using her thighs as pillows.
Shin Yuri and Shin Yejin.
'Where the hell did these two pop from?'
No, that wasn't the point.
I asked my homeroom teacher.
"Can you get up without waking them?"
"Mhm. They're out cold—no issue."
Sure enough, even when she lifted their heads, the twins kept snoring peacefully.
Kim Yeonju sidled up, marveling.
"Whoa, look how cute they are sleeping. Master, I wanna have kids like the younger one."
Like I'd said before, these girls were mixed-race stunners. Face-wise, they could rival Yoo Hana for goddess status.
"But why are they here?"
"Well..."
Homeroom explained.
After we split, she'd been resting alone on the beach when they suddenly appeared behind her out of nowhere.
"Looks like they tailed us all night."
"All night?"
"Yeah. Ring any bells? They said they've been following you all day 'cause yummy food and fun when they're with you."
"......"
So that's why they'd hovered around me?
For strawberries and playtime?
I pressed a hand to my forehead.
'Thought they were distracted by the ball. Turns out they were distracted by me.'
Total misjudgment.
How'd I miss something that obvious?
Guess the heat had melted my brain. Or too much action scrambled it.
"Woojin. They want you to take them too."
"Just ditch 'em here."
Take them? They'd turn me into their servant.
Playing games, fetching food—pure point sink, time-waster disasters.
"B-but if we don't, they say they'll blab to Jaejun."
"......"
I clenched my fists, trembling.
God, I wanted to flick these brats' foreheads so bad.
Sure, they were pretty, shy, cute—but to me, not purely adorable.
Three years of grudges, known or not, piled up.
'No real alternatives, though. Guess we're stuck.'
Look on the bright side.
I'd eat them eventually anyway, and having them would cover for the Park Jimin thing awhile.
"Sigh. No choice. We'll take 'em."
I hoisted one twin onto my back.
She was so deep asleep, she just snored on without waking.
'Man, they really are pretty. Sleeping, maybe even prettier than Yoo Hana.'
"Ah, I'll carry the other one, Master!"
Kim Yeonju, with homeroom's help, piggybacked the remaining twin.
And so we headed toward the island's heart.
In search of new ground.
A place to build our fresh start.