Hello! Antarctica!
They say there are five stages of grief.
Stage One: Denial.
"Skree…."
Haha… I'm just so cold I'm having a weird dream.
There's no way I'm a penguin, right?
It was a dream.
Definitely a dream.
Something this absurd—a person turning into a penguin—could never happen in real life. And the scenery unfolding before my eyes was far too unreal for anything else.
An endless expanse of pure white snow. A cutting wind that seemed to slice right through flesh. Air so cold it felt like my lungs were freezing with every breath.
Right… it's this vivid because it's a dream.
I squeezed my eyes shut, desperately denying reality. Then I opened them again.
Nothing had changed. Still a world of pure white.
…No. One more time.
I closed and opened my eyes again and again. I even spun in place. I tried to pinch my stomach—and froze.
…I don't have hands to pinch my stomach with.
Only then did reality begin to sink in, slowly.
Stage Two: Anger.
"Skree-skree!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Don't you dare mess with me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I screamed at the top of my lungs toward the sky. But all that came back was the fierce wind.
"Kyaaaaak!!!!"
Does this make any sense?!
If a person dies, you send them to heaven or hell!
Why a penguin, of all things!
And Antarctica, no less!
No amount of rage changed a single thing. Only cold wind rushed into my open beak.
Stage Three: Bargaining.
"Gwak…."
Almighty God, Allah, Buddha.
Anyone, please—just help me this once.
I'll never buy lottery tickets again.
I'll cut back on drinking.
I'll live a good life.
So please, just turn me back into a human.
I closed my eyes and waited.
…
Nothing happened. The wind only blew a little harder.
…You could at least answer.
Stage Four: Depression.
"Kyek-gyak.."
Hahaha…
If it hadn't gone that way, I would have been dead anyway. So is being alive the lucky part…?
Still, if you were going to reincarnate me… you could have at least made me a busty silver-haired beauty or something. At the very least, a human.
I stared blankly up at the sky. Ash-gray clouds drifted slowly past. Snowflakes settled one by one onto my face.
I couldn't even cry at this point. I didn't know how to cry with a penguin face anyway.
Stage Five: Acceptance.
"Gwak."
Well…
I always did like Adélie penguins… so maybe it won't be that bad…?
Adélie penguin.
The gangsters of Antarctica. Fearless, foul-tempered. Mad birds that charge without hesitation at animals far larger than themselves.
…Maybe it suits me surprisingly well.
Of course.
"Gwak-gwak!!!!!!!"
…
Ah.
Wait a second.
"Gwak-gwak!!!!!!!!"
Son of a…!!!!!!
Why! Did! I! Have! To! Fall! In! There!!!
No matter how I looked at it, it was the unluckiest moment of my entire life.
Somehow… after six years of never even hitting fifth prize, my lottery ticket suddenly lands second place—and that was a death flag?
I sighed and looked down at the snow-covered ground.
Pitch-black feet. Short legs. A chubby body. And… even fluttering wings.
Cute, though.
Wait.
No, I can't get used to this… Thinking it's cute doesn't change reality.
"Gwak…"
Suddenly I noticed how unnervingly quiet the surroundings were.
The Adélie penguin colonies I'd seen in documentaries were always much noisier. Hundreds, thousands of them crying out without end. The stench of droppings thick in the air. A completely chaotic atmosphere.
But now, only the sound of the wind.
…But why aren't there any other penguins?
I slowly looked around. No matter how hard I searched, I couldn't see another penguin. No nests of piled stones. No droppings. Not even footprints. The snow was impossibly clean—as if no one had ever passed through this place. There wasn't a single trace.
Don't tell me… I'm the only Adélie penguin around here?
If that were true, it wasn't just dangerous.
Even if Adélie penguins were called the gangsters of Antarctica, it didn't mean they had no natural enemies. In the sea there were orcas and leopard seals, the predators of all penguins, and in the sky there were south polar skuas that targeted eggs and chicks.
But something even more fatal existed.
Being alone.
Penguins are animals that live in colonies. Being separated from the flock meant death. Finding food was harder. There was no one to warn you of predators. And in the brutal cold, you couldn't huddle together to share body heat.
Ah… no.
I already died once, but…
I at least want to live out an average penguin lifespan before I go!
Anxiety coiled around my entire body. I instinctively began scanning my surroundings.
Left. Right. Behind. And front again. I whipped my head around nonstop, checking every direction.
That was when it happened.
Crunch.
"…!"
The sound of snow being stepped on came from behind me.
Once. And again.
Crunch. Crunch.
At a steady interval. Someone was walking slowly this way.
What is that…?
My heart plummeted.
A predator?
Before the thought finished, my body moved first.
Run!!
I kicked off the snowfield with everything I had and started running.
I can't die again here!!
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
My short legs churned madly. My chubby body swayed side to side, snow spraying in every direction. I was much faster than I'd expected.
Oh? Wait…!
I'm actually pretty fast?!
The good feeling lasted only a moment. The footsteps behind me weren't falling behind at all.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
If anything, they seemed to be getting a little closer.
What the hell! Why is it so fast!
Is it a seal?
No!
Those hunt in the water!
Then what is it!
Terror blanked my mind white. I just moved my legs on the single thought of staying alive.
How long did I run? It felt like I'd been sprinting flat-out for more than ten minutes.
But then—at some point—the footsteps behind me vanished completely.
I didn't stop right away. It might have been a trick, after all. Only after running a long while longer did I gradually slow down.
Huff. Huff.
White breath billowed out every time I opened my beak. My heart was hammering like crazy. I carefully strained my ears.
"…"
No sound at all. Only the wind brushing over the snow.
…Did I make it?
I waited a little longer. Still nothing.
I… I made it…
A sigh of relief slipped out on its own. Tension drained away in an instant, and strength left my legs. I flopped onto my belly right there on the snowfield. The cold snow chilled my stomach, but I didn't even have the energy to care.
"Gwak… gya… gya…"
It was because of the sudden all-out sprint. My breath was up to my throat, and my heart was still pounding.
Ha… thought I was going to die…
While catching my breath, I suddenly lowered my head at a sound from my stomach.
Gurgle.
"…"
Ah.
I'm hungry.
Only then did the practical problem hit me.
Adélie penguins… eat krill and small fish.
Which meant there was only one answer.
I need to find water.
But the landscape before me was hopeless. Snow. Ice. And more snow. That was all there was to see.
To find food, I'll have to go to the sea eventually.
I slowly looked around. Beyond the flat snowfield, low ice hills stretched on.
If I climb somewhere high, I might be able to see the ocean.
There was no other way. I started waddling toward the nearest ice hill.
Even walking wasn't easy. My short legs had a completely different stride from when I'd been human, and the ice was far more slippery than expected.
"Gwak!"
I finally misstepped and pitched forward.
Splat. My face buried itself straight into the snow.
"…"
I lay there for a moment.
…This is embarrassing.
Luckily no one's watching.
I shook myself off as if nothing had happened and stood up again. Then I began climbing the hill in silence.
How long did I walk? At last I stood on the crest of the ice hill, panting, and looked into the distance.
And—
"…!"
Far away, a blue light caught my eye. An endless horizon glittering under the sunlight.
The sea.
It looked quite far, but at least I'd found the direction.
If I want to live… I have to go there.
I set off again.
Pad. Pad. Pad.
One step at a time on short legs. I walked on in silence, facing the fierce wind head-on.
At first I thought I'd arrive soon. But it was much farther than expected. The snowfield stretched on endlessly, and no matter how far I walked, the sea barely seemed to get closer.
Why isn't it getting any nearer…
This isn't a mirage, is it?
I looked up again and again to check. Thankfully, the sea was drawing closer little by little, steadily and surely.
Just a little more… just a little…
My stomach kept gurgling. My stamina was draining bit by bit. But I couldn't stop. I knew instinctively that the moment I stopped, it was over.
How much farther did I walk? Around the time it felt like forty minutes had passed.
Splash. Splash.
The sound of waves began to reach me from afar. My steps naturally quickened.
And at last—
"Skree!"
I made it!
Before me stretched the endless Antarctic sea. A cold sea breeze brushed across my face. Waves pushed ice fragments along as they gently struck the shore.
Haa…
That was really hard…
I plopped down right there and caught my breath. Just getting this far felt like it had burned more than half my stamina.
But the relief didn't last long.
…No.
This is only the starting line.
Reaching the sea wasn't the end. The real survival started now. If I couldn't find food, I'd starve. If I couldn't endure the cold, I'd freeze. If I met a predator, I'd be eaten.
In the end… I have to go into the water.
I looked at the calm surface.
Swimming… I can do that, right?
A documentary I'd seen long ago floated up in my mind.
It wasn't paddling with your arms like a human.
Penguins… propel themselves underwater by flapping both wings constantly.
They put a little more force into one wing only when changing direction. Normally both wings move almost symmetrically.
So…
Flap. Flap-flap.
I tried moving both wings a few times in place. It felt awkward. My body wouldn't follow the way I wanted.
Flap. Flap.
I repeated it again and again.
…Was it like this?
I practiced for a good ten minutes, but still couldn't feel sure.
Well… my body will remember, right?
I slowly walked to the water's edge.
Lapping. A cold wave brushed my toes. My body flinched for a moment.
Ah, right. Waterproofing.
As if my body remembered, I naturally rubbed near my tail with my beak. I spread the oil that came off onto my chest. Onto my back as well. Carefully over my wings and flanks too.
…Weird.
I didn't even think about it, but my body moved on its own.
Finished oiling myself, I looked at the sea again.
For now… don't go far.
First confirm that I can float.
I took a deep breath. Cold air sank deep into my lungs.
Three… two… one….
Here goes!
I squeezed my eyes shut and threw myself forward.
Splash!