For Survival
For Survival
'W, what is this.'
Actually, when I first regained consciousness—that is, the day I woke up in this other world, whether it was a past life or a reincarnation, I don't know.
'D, don't tell me I didn't die...?'
I thought I hadn't died.
'Why am I so fine?'
Because there was no physical pain.
Rather, as I started to feel more energetic and vibrant than I did in my 20s, I began to get suspicious.
No matter what, I was hit by a truck speeding at that insane velocity in the countryside, yet my body is fine?
Ah.
It's a dream.
It couldn't be anything else if it wasn't a dream.
My skin is white without a single blemish, and my voice is an ambiguous, androgynous tone that makes it hard to tell if I'm a man or a woman—
'What is this place.'
To begin with, the surroundings are a wasteland with nothing in sight.
Truly, it was a wasteland.
I was lying in the middle of a place that looked like a desert on a planet covered in sand, the kind you'd only see in some Hollywood sci-fi fantasy movie.
'......I wish it were a dream.'
The thought that crossed my mind then was that I'd rather it be a dream.
If this were reality and not a dream, as unbelievable as it is, if this were the truth, I would be in a situation where the words of a scientist stranded on Mars would naturally come to mind.
He said:
-I'm f*cked.
'Fck, I'm really fcked.'
My situation is even worse than that.
At least he had a way to survive in the space base on Mars, but what is this?
All I have is my naked body, with nothing on.
And it's a woman's—
'It's gone.'
...There's nothing down there.
My chest definitely has something that's beyond soft, something squishy and bouncy, but I feel nothing down below.
It's just like a mannequin.
I don't know if I should be thankful for that.
'......Still, it's too bad to be told to survive in this situation with just that.'
If I'm told to live in this wasteland with nothing but my naked body, how on earth am I supposed to survive?
And with these two ears that are different from human ears, ears that even feel somewhat pointed.
In the first place, do people even live in this wasteland?
···Are there people here?
If I were given a chance to live a second life, and I was told to survive naked in a wasteland like this?
'My life, seriously, hah.'
It was a situation that naturally made me want to curse, but cursing wouldn't change anything.
I need to find a place to live.
I could die of thirst, so I need to find water first.
Others get reincarnated into another world and become the youngest son of a Count or something, but what kind of state is this?
"......."
Perhaps.
If I shout that—
"...Status Window?"
[ SYSTEM: C.V.8 OS Initializing... ]
[ Model Name: ]
C.V.8. Mk.XIII.
[ Status: ]
Data loss 98.7% / Ego algorithm activated
[ Notice: ]
Your goal is to establish a survival base for organic life forms and reconstruct the devastated environment.
"......?"
Wait, this is real?
A blue window, like a hologram, floated in front of me, and text appeared rapidly in Korean.
The fact that the voice was androgynous and clearer than I thought wasn't the important thing.
"...Seriously, a Status Window?"
A hologram window that felt somewhat familiar, yet so bizarre.
I waved my hand through it without thinking, but it scattered like light ripples in water, only to reappear immediately.
[ Visual Module: Scanning surrounding environment... ]
[ Scan Result: ]
Lifeform reaction: 0.00%
Terrain condition: Extremely dry and nutrient-deficient (Development Grade: Low)
Weather condition: Intense UV exposure (Android frame maintenance required)
[ Warning: ]
Basic resources for organic civilization reconstruction have not been secured.
Currently, you have the highest probability of being the first thing to disappear in this wasteland.
"......."
Is this some kind of game?
The content pouring out was enough to make me dizzy just by looking at it, but at least one thing was clear.
If I stay still, I die.
No matter what that Status Window says, if I just stay still, I'll die anyway—whether it's from starvation, dehydration, or burning to death.
"...How do I survive?"
Is it even right to ask the Status Window?
Can it even recognize the words I'm speaking?
** [ MANDATORY MISSION: Secure Water Resources ]**
[ Mission Details: ]
Secure 'H2O', an essential element for maintaining organic life.
Planting life in soil without moisture is a waste of system resources.
[ Reward: ]
A.D.O.L.F. operation authority and basic food generator unlocked.
[ System Message: ]
"Leader-nim, please stop staring at your chest and find some water first. The system is on the verge of burning out."
"...This little sh*t?"
A mission was given.
Okay, so far so good.
A reward was given.
I don't know what this Adolf thing is, and I don't really know what a basic food generator is, but if I just find water, I can find a way to eat and live.
The problem is the system message this damn Status Window is sending me.
"...Do you think water will come out if I just keep looking at the ground? Fine, alright."
I lightly tap the ground with my foot.
Even though I'm barefoot, fortunately, it doesn't sting or hurt even if I stomp on the ground hard once.
"Fine, alright. I'll find it. Water."
Whether this is hope for me or a hallucination appearing amidst hardship, I'll know soon enough.
[ System Update: Search Mode Activated ]
[ SYSTEM Notification ]
[ Mode Switch: ] Search Mode → ON
[ Target Setting: ] H2O
[ Search Range: ] 5.0km radius
[ System Message: ]
"Leader-nim, your great journey begins. The closest water source found by the system is 2.4km northeast of your current location. Please optimize movement efficiency."
For now.
I walk.
If hell exists, it probably has this color.
Not the purgatory Dante speaks of, but a place where not even a single blade of grass exists.
A yellowish-brown land with all saturation drained out stretches endlessly beyond the horizon, and above the horizon, only the clear sky-blue extends into the world.
It is truly bizarre.
I raise my hand and hold it horizontally in front of my eyes; above is a clear sky where the vitality of nature can be felt, but the ground is desolate beyond compare.
If one were to paint this on a single canvas, what kind of evaluation would critics give?
Those who paint still lifes would inwardly comment, "The color palette is f*cked," and modern art experts would tilt their heads, asking, "Is this a perfect collaboration between nature and destruction?"
Why am I not evaluating it?
Isn't it obvious?
If that painting were said to be an unreleased work by Cézanne, the tears of art history graduate students would form a river, and if it were a Banksy, it would be auctioned off with all sorts of meanings attached to it.
And if it were the work of Kang Jinhyeok (37 years old), who failed the art school entrance exam... well, they would refuse to evaluate it at all.
"Damn it."
It's useless to worry about it.
Every time the sandstorm blew, the pain of the sand dust seeping into my mouth made me want to forget reality for a moment, but even if I closed my mouth, the pain was rising from the ground.
Pasasak.
The dry sand dust wedges between my toes.
The sharp sand not only scrapes my skin but also carries intense heat, grazing my skin with the intent to cook my entire foot well-done.
"Haa, haa."
My lips are cracking.
Even if I want to swallow, the only moisture left in my mouth is the sticky, sand-mixed foreign substance.
"...Ptooey."
Even spitting is not easy.
This environment was more than a disaster movie to me, who used to clutch a mouse in that air-conditioned office in Seoul.
No.
Even the protagonists of disaster movies have at least an undershirt or sneakers.
Even when people get dropped somewhere penniless, they usually drop with at least the clothes they were wearing, but I don't even have clothes to speak of.
It's hard.
It's really hard.
They said the water source was 2.4km away, but moving that short distance is so agonizing.
Hwi-iiiing-
The sandstorm blows roughly.
The intensity of the wind was like a typhoon passing through, and I could even feel the stinging pain of it whipping my whole body.
But if there is one thing that torments me the most—
[ SYSTEM: Warning ]
[ Current body moisture content: ]
68.2% (Danger level)
[ Notification: ]
Leader-nim's moisture loss rate is 14% faster than the amount of tears you shed when you received your notice of forced resignation.
[ Suggestion: ]
Increase walking speed by 15% to shorten the time to reach the destination.
The warning from this thing called the system right here.
Unlike the previous blue and clean color, the Status Window floating in front of me is glowing bright red, informing me that I am in 'danger'.
I cannot judge what this thing is.
For one thing, since it calls me Leader-nim and uses honorifics, I know it's an entity supporting me.
However.
"I didn't cry during my forced resignation."
First, there is one thing I need to address regarding my current situation.
"You, how do you know about me?"
This thing, it knows about me.
"Who am I in the first place, and where is this? What on earth are you?"
I throw the question.
Whether it's the mindset of buying a lottery ticket and hoping 'just one hits', anything is fine if I get an answer.
But.
"...Damn it."
No answer comes back.
No matter how long I wait, there is no response.
But if I foolishly stay still, it keeps popping up warning windows, urging me to move forward.
[ SYSTEM: Answer ]
[ Notification: ]
This system is optimized for the efficient management of organic life forms.
[ Warning: ]
As Leader-nim's walking speed is delayed, the possibility of system hardware overheating increases.
In case of overheating, the authority to forcibly broadcast your 'Past Life Browser search history' across this entire world will be activated as an emergency measure.
"...What?"
Broadcast what?
"Are you a crazy bastard?"
It's not like I've visited any shameful places.
But the fact that this thing knows that 'exposing computer search history' can cause a certain amount of shame for a modern person just makes my skin crawl.
[ SYSTEM: Data Analysis ]
[ Notification: ]
Even if records are deleted, traces remain in the cloud.
[ Notice: ]
Remaining distance 1.8km.
Do not lose hope.
Your shame is the system's power source.
Hmm.
Yeah.
Internet search history being exposed vs. just walking.
"If I get heated, I lose."
I have to survive for now.
It's absolutely not because the last video I watched was that kind of video.
...Absolutely not.