The Snow Flower (6)
The level test for Labyrinth Exploration NaN on TV had concluded. All ninety-six explorers had returned from the Linear Labyrinth, and the mentors had appeared.
The martial artist DK, the warrior Kim Yoon-jun, the spellcaster Yu Yul, and the archer Kim Ji-an. Except for Yu Yul, they were all high-rankers familiar to the general public.
—We will now announce the rankings.
The ranking announcement based on the level test, followed by feedback from the mentors.
The real-time chat room floated and swirled in response to their comments.
Lee Si-ah felt strangely depressed. Perhaps it was because no matter how long she waited, the name she was waiting for never came up.
Just as the ranking announcement for the level test was coming to an end.
—96th place. Seol Ha-woon.
As feared, his name was at the very bottom.
“...96th place. Seol Ha-woon?”
It was an absurd ranking. Even if he was fifty minutes behind 95th place, his performance had been perfect.
—Yu Yul: Mr. Seol Ha-woon.
Then, the mentor Yu Yul spoke to Seol Ha-woon.
—Yu Yul: How did you catch the last trap?
Lee Si-ah focused again.
—Seol Ha-woon: I just saw it.
A simple statement that he saw it. There was no change in his expression.
He didn't brag, he didn't act arrogant; he just spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
A brief silence settled over the set. The reactions of other participants and the smirking expressions of the mentors cut in between. It felt like they were mocking him.
—Yu Yul: Ah. I see. Got it.
That was the end of Seol Ha-woon's feedback.
Lee Si-ah checked the real-time chat.
—Yu Ji-in: Now, everyone, please take your seats according to your rankings.
The seats on the set were rearranged based on the level test results.
From the 'Wannabe' rankings to the 'Comparative Evaluation' rankings.
—Yu Ji-in: Before the full-scale start of Labyrinth Exploration NaN, your rankings have been decided. However, don't be too disappointed, and don't be too happy. These rankings are clearly fake. The true rankings will ultimately be decided by the votes of the citizens.
After Yu Ji-in's comment, the camera panned down from the top.
1st place Lee Jun-ho, 2nd place Ryu Yeon-hwa, 3rd place Seo Ji-woo, 4th place Kang Hyun, 5th place Jo Woon, 6th place Kate...
96th place Seol Ha-woon. At the very bottom, at the very edge.
“...Sigh.”
Lee Si-ah let out a sigh without realizing it.
Sometimes this happens when you pick the wrong 'main' to support. Should she give up now before she gets any more invested?
Click, click, click, click. All the lights on the set went out. While the other explorers all stood up and moved, one man remained sitting alone in the darkness.
It was Seol Ha-woon.
His eyes, slightly tilted upward, flashed with a blue light.
What is it? Is there something else?
Just as Lee Si-ah swallowed hard.
Screen transition.
[ 1st place Lee Jun-ho ]
[ 2nd place Ryu Yeon-hwa ] [ 3rd place Seo Ji-woo ]
[ 4th place Kang Hyun ] [ 5th place Jo Woon ] [ 6th place Kate ]...
A panel showing the current rankings appeared.
The first episode was already over.
“...Ah.”
The broadcast that started at 7:00 PM was already 10:00 PM. Three hours felt like thirty minutes.
Lee Si-ah trembled and felt certain.
This season is going to be a hit.
She quickly logged onto the internet. As expected, not only the communities but all social media platforms were already exploding.
Everything was about Labyrinth Exploration. All sorts of people were talking about the same program.
Lee Si-ah also uploaded a post.
[ Labyrinth Exploration NaN Episode 1 Rankings ]
These are the fake rankings decided by the level test. They can change at any time.
Comments poured in immediately.
Judging by the speed of the comments, the volume of comments, and the speed at which derivative posts were spreading...
Since Lee Si-ah had buried her bones in the internet world, this was easily in the top five for engagement.
Awareness Level Up!
Awareness Level: 7
30 days of time have been added.
Tap, tap. The warmth of the burning fireplace. I opened my eyes to an even more pleasant notification. I smiled while lying in bed.
I had gained 30 more days of lifespan.
It wasn't an even-numbered level-up, so there were no tech points, but I planned to save my tech points from now on. I didn't know what might happen in the future.
I sat up.
“Oh. You’re up?”
Seo Ji-woo handed me coffee as if she had been waiting.
“...You’re up early?”
“I have to earn my keep. I even finished all the cleaning.”
I looked around the inside of the cabin. It was quite spotless. Had she specialized in cleaning magic or something?
“Let’s eat.”
“Yay.”
I took some venison out of the cabin’s refrigerator. A fair amount. I sprinkled it with salt and pepper and tossed it into the fireplace.
Seo Ji-woo tilted her head.
“Isn’t that too much?”
“No. You’re going to keep getting hungry.”
In a survival labyrinth like this, just being inside accelerates calorie consumption. Without realizing it, our bodies are 'enduring' the labyrinth.
Sizzle.
When the meat was perfectly cooked, I cut it and served it to her.
“Thank you~”
Seo Ji-woo put her hands together with a grin. She quickly picked up the meat, and I hesitated for a moment.
“...”
I watched Seo Ji-woo eat in silence. I watched her subconsciously.
Her table manners were identical.
From her quite unique way of holding chopsticks to the way her lips chewed, and even the way she nodded her head while eating when something was delicious.
Is it because family mimics family? Is it because bloodlines resemble each other?
Seo Ji-woo glanced at me sideways, as if she felt my gaze.
“...Why?”
I pretended not to notice and ate my meat. It felt awkward for no reason.
We finished our breakfast in silence.
“Let’s go. To hunt.”
We needed a little more food. If we caught about two or three adult deer, we’d be in the safe zone.
“Yep. Hey, you, stay here and guard the house, okay?”
Seo Ji-woo said to the wolf. The wolf was busy gnawing on deer bones.
Somehow, I had even ended up with a guard dog.
* * *
We hunted with our eyes on fire for nearly half a day, but we only caught one deer. As expected, the population of beasts had decreased drastically.
“...Your eyes are pretty, you know.”
Seo Ji-woo murmured with a sense of appreciation while looking at the deer lying on the snowy field. I placed leaves over the deer’s eyes. Then, I cut its throat in that state.
Seo Ji-woo squeezed her eyes shut.
I butchered the deer and buried it in the ground.
“Why are you burying that?”
“Just in case. I’ll take it when we go back.”
I could just bury it like treasure and come back for it later. My memory was good enough for that.
“...Oh! Over there!”
Suddenly, a voice rang out from afar. One man and two women were waving their hands and running toward us.
They didn't seem to have any hostility, but caution was essential.
“Excuse me, could you please help us?!”
“Oh? Jin Ho-seung?”
Seo Ji-woo recognized one of them. It was the A-tier explorer Jin Ho-seung.
“Ah, Ms. Ji-woo! Thank goodness. We needed a spellcaster. One of our team members is seriously injured right now.”
“We have to go right away!”
Seo Ji-woo dashed off immediately.
“Hey!”
I tried to stop her but hesitated.
If I let her go like this, I wouldn't necessarily have to be with her. I wouldn't have to catch more food, and I wouldn't have to think about Seo Ji-hyuk for no reason.
“...Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue in silence. I let out a deep sigh. My head was a mess.
I had been making excuses for why I was with Seo Ji-woo—broadcast time, protection, awareness, whatever. But that was all bullshit; in the end, it was because of him.
The guy who still hadn't been completely buried in my heart.
Seo Ji-hyuk.
Because that girl is your younger sister. Because she resembles you more than anyone else. Because she’s the one you were worried about even while you were dying...
“Haa.”
I followed after Seo Ji-woo. My cane sank deep into the snowy field.
* * *
Jin Ho-seung’s team’s hideout was a ruin that had undergone repairs. It was a space made by attaching wooden planks to the existing ruins to create a shelter.
“Please, come in.”
One person was lying on a cot inside. It was a patient with a severely slashed shoulder, and sitting next to them was a very familiar face, eyes closed.
“Huh?”
Seo Ji-woo blinked and called his name.
“What the. Lee Jun-ho?”
“...?”
“Are you on this team too?”
Lee Jun-ho opened his eyes. He let out a dry laugh first.
“Ha, no. I’m not on this team... Ji-woo, why are you here?”
“Why do you think? You said someone was seriously injured.”
“...Oh. Yeah, they’re hurt.”
He nodded with a heavy face.
“I accidentally slashed them. At night. I thought they were an enemy.”
“What? Are you crazy?”
“Yeah. I must have been crazy for a moment.”
Lee Jun-ho ran his hand through his hair as if that was how it happened, and Seo Ji-woo quickly checked the patient’s condition.
Lee Jun-ho looked at me.
“Are you, Mr. Seol Ha-woon?”
I nodded quietly and looked around at Jin Ho-seung’s team members.
Three men including the patient, two women. The number was too high to survive in such an extreme environment. Five people was actually a disadvantageous number.
“I’m sorry. Truly.”
Lee Jun-ho said to Jin Ho-seung again. Jin Ho-seung shook his head.
“It’s fine. Mistakes happen. There was a blizzard, too.”
Jin Ho-seung poured water into a cup. With his ‘left hand’.
His teammate received it and handed it to me. With their ‘left hand’.
“I’m not thirsty.”
I refused.
“Ah, okay.”
The teammate passed the water to another member.
That teammate drank the water instead. With their ‘left hand’.
“...For now, I’ve done first aid.”
Seo Ji-woo said, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
“The wound is a bit deep, but I’ve used a spell to hold it shut, so the bleeding has definitely stopped. This is Lee Yong-seung, right?”
I also glanced at the patient. The treatment itself was perfect. She must have learned well at the magic academy.
“Yes. It’s Yong-seung.”
“Since he’s a warrior, if you just keep the bleeding under control and maintain his body temperature, he should heal on his own, but...”
Seo Ji-woo looked at me tentatively. It was a look asking if we could move him to our cabin.
I refused without a word. Seo Ji-woo nodded. She wasn't the type to throw a tantrum in a situation like this.
“Um, do you have any matches?”
“Yes. About three.”
Jin Ho-seung’s fourth teammate handed matches to Seo Ji-woo. Again, with their ‘left hand’.
What is this, a left-hand crew?
Seo Ji-woo put the tiny matches into a bucket-like can and amplified them with a spell.
Whoosh!
The fire filled the can. The warmth flowing from within dyed the interior.
The air soon became warm, and the patient’s breathing calmed down.
“...Phew. Thank goodness. This is why they say a spellcaster is essential in a labyrinth.”
Jin Ho-seung bowed to Seo Ji-woo.
“Well, it’s not that big of a deal~”
“Move aside for a second.”
I pushed Seo Ji-woo aside. I crouched down and placed my hand on the patient’s body.
“Oh. Are you going to heal him?”
First, I checked the pulse on his left chest.
Next, I checked his right chest.
“...”
My expression hardened in an instant. With narrowed eyes, I scanned Jin Ho-seung’s team members one by one.
I see.
Now I understand.
Seo Ji-woo asked.
“How’s his condition?”
“...He’s stabilizing.”
I answered vaguely and put my hand in my pocket.
“I’m going to go smoke for a second.”
I took out a cigarette. It was something I had scavenged from the ruins. It had been a long time since I quit, but I had kept it just in case.
Lee Jun-ho’s eyes widened, and he looked delighted.
“Oh, you smoke? D-do you have any?”
“Just two.”
Lee Jun-ho was a smoker. I knew that, so I had intentionally taken it out. So that no one here would suspect us.
“Lend me one, just one!”
“Follow me.”
“Yes!”
Lee Jun-ho stood up with an eager expression. Seo Ji-woo was still checking Lee Yong-seung’s pulse as she spoke.
“Then go quickly. I’ll be here nursing him.”
I nodded.
There was no need for all three of us to leave anyway.
It was enough to let only Lee Jun-ho know the secret of this warrior party that gave me an inexplicable sense of discomfort.