Survival Exam (14)

Nine o'clock at night.

Dinner was over, and an awkward stretch of time still lingered before anyone could reasonably turn in. Elise had withdrawn to a corner to swing her sword, drilling herself through the leftover hours, while Lucy, Rumi, and I sat around the campfire talking.

"So you've been with Elise for three days, then?"

"Yeah. Pretty much."

"I see..."

Lucy didn't even try to hide the envy that flickered across her face at the news I'd spent three days with Elise. It wasn't the food she was jealous of. She just wanted to be the one sitting next to me.

"How many teams did you run into during the exam, Hoyeon?"

"Four or so, I think."

"Wow... We got lucky. We only ran into one."

"And you beat them, by the look of it. That's impressive."

"Yes... Hehe."

That's my Rumi. Her growth was more obvious by the day. All those hours I'd spent looking after her were finally paying off.

"..."

Lucy watched the two of us laughing together, hovering on the edge of the conversation, trying to figure out when she could slip back in.

She's turning more and more like Rumi by the day.

She'd be fine one moment, then wilt the second I got close with another girl. Especially when the three of us were together — that side of her always peeked out.

I do still need to win Lucy over... Think I can manage it during the festival?

Too many incidents I couldn't plan for had been piling up lately, and Lucy's route had stalled out in this awkward limbo. In the original story, just living a normal life after resolving the Felix incident would've been enough for her affection to climb on its own. But right now I couldn't keep spending time with Lucy or Rumi.

If I could handle Lucy and Rumi at the same time... then I could fold the hours I'd set aside for Rumi over both of them.

I'd think about it more once the survival exam was over.

I checked the point rankings.

The rankings hadn't shifted. Nam Da-eun sat in an overwhelming first, then me in second, Elise in third, and Kim Young-han in fourth. But Kim Young-han was steadily closing the gap with Elise, climbing fast.

"Could get overtaken as soon as tomorrow..."

With this few points, we'd have no choice but to fight on the last day. If survival were the goal, it wouldn't matter. But our goal was first place.

"Can I have some water?"

"Oh. Yeah, here. You're really going at it, huh?"

Gulp, gulp. Elise finished her sword drills and drank the water sitting next to Lucy. Was she about to turn in?

"Let's set the night watch first. Lucy and Rumi haven't been able to sleep properly, so they must be exhausted. Mind if I put them on the easier shifts?"

I looked at Elise for permission. Lucy and Rumi hadn't been eating proper meals the way we had, and they definitely hadn't been sleeping somewhere comfortable.

"Do whatever you want."

Thankfully, Elise gave the okay.

"Then Rumi first, me second, Elise third, and Lucy last. Sound good?"

"Thank you, Hoyeon..."

"What... thanks."

Lucy and Rumi looked at me with touched eyes, but I had a plan. I'd finish what we hadn't been able to earlier when I swapped with Rumi, then give Elise a mana massage when I swapped with her. A brilliant plan.

"Well then... shall we get some sleep?"

Day five, afternoon.

THUD—!

A massive grizzly bear slammed into the earth with a grotesque, wet sound. A huge gash split open its belly, and standing over the carcass was Nam Da-eun, flicking the blood from her blade.

She'd already taken down more than ten monsters, but she didn't stop. She charged the next one and swung. The monsters couldn't keep up with her speed. They were carved apart helplessly by the cutting power of her sword.

"Whoa... Forget the grizzly. Isn't she the monster?"

"That's a person you're talking about, you idiot."

Kim Young-han smacked the cadet standing next to him with his mouth hanging open, never taking his eyes off Nam Da-eun.

But yeah. She really is a monster.

He just didn't advertise it like the idiot beside him.

"Good work."

"Here are the points."

"Yeah. I'll transfer the contact ticket."

Nam Da-eun barely spoke. Once a hunt was over, she'd come collect her share of the points, take a contact ticket, and vanish somewhere.

"The person she's calling has to be a boyfriend, right? Working that hard."

"I dunno... I really couldn't say."

"A girl that pretty? No way she doesn't have a boyfriend."

"Drop it. Mind your own business and do your job."

"Yes, yes. Captain Killjoy."

"..."

Kim Young-han scratched his head as he watched Nam Da-eun's retreating back.

The plan had been perfect. Use Lee Ho-yeon as bait to gather cadets, step up as the representative, and even rake in the points. Kim Young-han's team had already surpassed seventy people. Even cadets who hadn't wanted to join had no choice once the numbers got that big.

The only wild card was Nam Da-eun.

She was operating with the team, but she didn't take any food rations, didn't talk to the other cadets, and just hunted monsters and hid somewhere to make the same phone call over and over. Kim Young-han still had no idea what she was thinking, and it was starting to make him uneasy.

Meanwhile, having put some distance between herself and Kim Young-han's team, Nam Da-eun used one of the contact tickets she'd been stockpiling.

Beep—

Nam Da-eun operated her smartwatch with practiced ease and waited for the connection.

"Hey. Have you been well, my Daehee?"

"That's a relief. You haven't been too bored?"

"...That sounds nice."

Uncle Min-gyu. Guildmaster of the Buyer Guild — the man who held her little sister as leverage. She'd known him since she was small, and even now the words "Uncle Min-gyu" wouldn't come off her tongue. Nam Da-eun had never once sworn at anyone to their face. She wouldn't have known how.

Like an elephant raised in chains from birth that never thinks to rebel even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠after it's grown strong enough to snap them, her defenses stayed locked in place so long as no one touched her sister.

"Of course. I'll bring you lots of good food."

First place in the practical exam was all but locked in, so Uncle Min-gyu had started treating Daehee well again.

If you only looked at him like this, he really was the same Uncle Min-gyu from when we were kids... It won't last a month. It never does.

She swallowed a sigh and kept talking.

"I'm sorry. Unnie's in the middle of an exam right now."

Nam Daehee asked with those bright, wide eyes of hers.

"It is, but... Unnie has a debt she absolutely has to repay."

The special exam didn't count toward the practicals. The moment she'd realized she wouldn't be able to contact her sister, her first instinct had been to forfeit. But Lee Ho-yeon's face — the face of the boy who'd yielded first place in the practical exam to her — kept rising unbidden. And then, by sheer luck, a monster she'd taken down on the way had dropped a ticket that let her call the outside.

That was when Nam Da-eun started making a plan. A plan to hand her points over to Lee Ho-yeon and put him in first.

"...Don't use words like that."

"Hehe... I love you, Daehee."

Nam Da-eun smiled, warm and quiet, and let the call go on.

"Hoyeon... wake up, Hoyeon..."

Tap. Tap.

The soft press of a finger against my cheek pulled my eyes open.

"Ah. You're finally awake."

Rumi was waking me inside the cramped tent.

"Mm... I'll be out in a second."

"Okay."

The tent wasn't tiny, but with three people sleeping in it we were packed in tight. I pulled a bottle from my spatial pouch, killed the thirst, and eased myself up without brushing Lucy's arm where it had drifted against me. Then I slipped outside.

Rumi was already sitting in front of the crackling campfire.

"Ah, Hoyeon... mmph..."

I'd been waiting for this. I pulled the rising Rumi ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠straight into my arms and kissed her. Vulgar little breaths and the wet sound of saliva carried through the quiet forest. I'd already thrown up a Rune Barrier on my way out of the tent. To the drone hanging in the sky, I'd just look like I was sitting by the fire.

"Rumi. We're doing this once, right?"

I'd deliberately told her to wake me thirty minutes early. Checking the time, she'd followed my instructions perfectly. I'd only been asleep a little over an hour, so I was still a bit drowsy — but I could push through it.

"Y-yes... for as much as we couldn't do earlier..."

"Take it off."

I kept it short and put my hand on her chest.

"Hhn..."

My fingers traced over her body, and Rumi slowly started peeling off her cadet uniform. Getting completely naked in the forest felt like a bit much, so she stripped off her outer layer, laid it on a rock, and pushed her stockings down.

"You've been looking forward to this the whole watch, haven't you?"

"Nngh..."

Her pussy was already slick and dripping, fully ready to take my cock.

"I'm putting it in."

"Y-yesss... hhn...♡"

My cock sank into her.

"Ah, ahh... I-I... I'm...!"

Rumi clung to my chest, her whole body trembling, a thin little cry slipping out of her.

"Yeah. I'm coming too...!"

I pulled her tight against me and emptied every last drop inside her. She shuddered in my arms, that small frame shaking, and then her mouth found mine again.

"Mmm... chup... hhn."

I enjoyed the weight of her full breasts in my hands and let the kiss carry the afterglow. When she felt me start to soften, Rumi slowly stood and eased me out of her. Without a word she dropped to her knees, opened her mouth, and cleaned my cock with her tongue. I stroked her hair and, for no particular reason, looked up at the night sky.

The stars were beautiful when you were getting your dick sucked.

"Haa... chup. Slurp. Slurp..."

I glanced at my smartwatch. Ten minutes until I had to wake Elise. Rumi was losing herself, burying her face deeper and deeper between my legs, so I gently pushed her back.

"Rumi. We went way too long. It's already time for Elise to get up."

"Chup... Y-yes? It's already been two hours...?"

"Sorry. It's been so long I couldn't hold back. You go in and sleep first. I have to swap with Elise."

"Okay. Th-thank you for the meal, Hoyeon...!"

Rumi's cheeks went scarlet. She bowed like she was saying grace and bolted for the tent.

"What was that... pfft."

I think that was her idea of being cute. The doting little smile that tugged at my mouth probably meant it worked.

I poked at the dying campfire for about twenty minutes, fed it more wood until the flames stood up strong again, then ducked back into the tent to wake Elise.

"Elise... get up."

I didn't dare tap her cheek the way I had with Rumi. No telling what she'd call me. Words only.

"...I'm up."

Thankfully, she came around fast.

"Yeah. I got distracted and woke you a little late. Take your time coming out."

I still needed to give her a massage, so I'd timed it to wake her a bit late — long enough for Rumi to fall asleep. That meant I was getting up early and going to bed late, cutting into my own sleep, but there was no way around it.

If I wanted the harem to work, I'd just have to sleep less.

Even so, Elise — who'd just slept four hours straight — looked more exhausted than I did, and I hadn't even gotten two.

"You okay? You look wrecked."

"...I've always been weak in the morning."

She said it, glanced at my face, and quickly looked away.

Yeah. She really ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was the type who ran on empty in the morning.