How a Magician Survives on a Deserted Island
Only the person leading the way had changed. That was it. Nothing about the situation felt like it would suddenly get better. The jungle was no joke. Even now, that fragrant fruit scent was definitely coming from right here. Should I compliment the assistant manager on her chest while saying something like that? Fuck, as if that would fly. I'd get an earful for a solid thirty minutes while standing at attention. Maybe if I made her walk a little farther to tire her out, it would at least dull the function of her mouth and tongue.
The desire to avoid another lecture sharpened my senses. The real problem was that I'd been trying to find things the way a normal person would. I wasn't normal anymore. I was a magician. I needed to search for what only I could sense—what no one else could feel.
"Why did you suddenly stop?"
"Shh."
I closed my eyes and focused. Ever since we'd arrived, the island's air had felt strangely alive. To be precise, it wasn't exactly air. If I had to give it a name, I'd call it Mana.
I concentrated on how the mana flowed through the South Forest. The current that slipped between leaves, across sand, carrying the scent of damp earth as it curled deeper into the jungle. Instinct told me I shouldn't disrupt that flow. I simply needed to rest my awareness on it lightly.
Then, lines etched themselves into the darkness.
"!"
I could see it. Even with my eyes closed, I could see everything. I knew which way each blade of grass was leaning. I could distinguish the texture of trampled leaves from those still alive. Delicate roots spread beneath the moist soil like the lines on a palm, while ant trails connected like delicate threads. Cracks in tree bark. Water droplets clinging to leaf tips. The clean cut of a broken branch. The exact boundary where sand met earth.
All of it flooded into my mind at once.
It's like scanning—no, maybe I should call it detection magic?
No matter how complex the map, a scan function changed everything. It felt like playing an open-world game where every interaction marker glowed brightly. I could tell exactly where to go and what I might find there.
Food.
I didn't know where this magic had come from, but... maybe it could locate something nutritious?
I mentally rotated the three-dimensional map, searching for spots where mana gathered most densely.
Found it.
Something with a particularly rich concentration of mana waited in a specific tree. This felt like the right answer.
"Hey! Say something! You've just been standing there with your eyes closed..."
"Assistant Manager! Over here!"
"Ah...!"
I grabbed her hand and pulled her along. Just a few dozen steps away stood a tree heavy with plump, red fruit.
"No way... there really were fruits."
"Did you think I was lying?"
"No, I didn't."
Seoyun turned her gaze away, looking embarrassed.
"Well... you're actually pretty useful when it counts, Woojin."
"Haha."
Whew. I'd survived. That primal urge to avoid getting nagged had pushed me forward as a magician. Thank you, Assistant Manager.
"It doesn't look spoiled, but is it really safe to eat?"
It should be fine. Both the tree and its fruit were safe. If I had to explain, I'd say pure mana circulated through them, but that probably wouldn't sound convincing to anyone else. Still, I could tell instinctively. Nothing about this tree or its fruit clashed with my own energy. These fruits were perfectly ripe.
Crunch.
The moment I casually plucked one and bit into it, Seoyun's eyes widened in alarm. She shook me frantically.
"Are you insane? You can't just eat whatever you find! What if it makes you sick?"
Munch, munch... I chewed silently. Seoyun stared, mesmerized by the motion of my jaw.
Since the crash, we hadn't eaten a proper meal even once. All we'd had were snacks and energy bars meant for quick sugar fixes. Despite her warnings, her body leaned toward me. She clearly wanted some. She didn't even seem to notice how much cleavage she was showing. Those eyes, that slightly parted mouth—her entire body was screaming, Give me some of that.
The sweet aroma and explosive juice must have been impossible to resist.
It was delicious. The perfect balance of rich sweetness and refreshing tartness reminded me of a truly premium apple.
Haaa... Simply chewing with my teeth felt incredibly satisfying. Energy flooded my body instantly, mixing with muscle, flesh, and mana before spreading evenly throughout.
One bite had been magnificent.
Gulp.
Seoyun grabbed my sleeve and shook it like a child throwing a tantrum.
"Is it good?"
"After testing it myself, it seems perfectly safe. It's edible."
"Me too... Woojin, I want some too!"
Her honest begging was surprisingly cute. The closer she came, the stronger her scent grew.
"I found it, so..."
Couldn't I enjoy this moment just a little? When I teased her by pretending to hesitate—as if nothing in life was free—she swallowed hard.
"Thank you. Thank you for finding them. So please let me have a taste too!"
Such a huge reaction from a single fruit. If a girlfriend like Assistant Manager Kang acted this clingy, I'd happily buy her a hundred bowls of mala tang.
"Woojin~!"
"Fine, fine. Here."
I handed the fruit to the coquettish Seoyun. She took it carefully, bit into it, and then began devouring it with wild abandon. She sucked down every drop of sweet juice, melting with happiness.
"Haup, hoo-hoop, hoo-up...!"
Watching her, I finally understood how to survive this island.
Who cared if I lacked survival knowledge? I had magic.
"Hoom... uum."
Even after polishing off the entire fruit, Seoyun still looked regretful. If I hadn't been there, she probably would have licked her own palms. Once her rampaging appetite finally calmed and reason returned, embarrassment hit her like a truck. Her face flushed bright red. Did the fruit have some kind of facial blush effect? Haha.
"Was it good?"
"I'm sorry for eating it all myself...!!"
Seoyun didn't know what to do with herself. This was exactly the kind of behavior the old social Kang Seoyun would have despised most, so her shame made sense. She looked ready to grab my hands and beg for forgiveness.
"It's fine. You must have been really hungry."
It was more fun to play the magnanimous guy in moments like this. After all, I could find as many as I wanted.
"Uuu..."
Seoyun hung her head, reflecting on her immature behavior.
"I got to see a new side of Assistant Manager Kang Seoyun today."
"Aah, I'm truly sorry... Really! Next time we find any, I'll give them all to you, Woojin!"
With that, Seoyun tried to take the lead again.
Wrong direction. Watching her flustered retreat was entertaining, but before she could go too far, I caught her arm.
"It's this way."
Cheeks still burning, Seoyun hurried after me with quick steps. Soon enough, I located another tree brimming with concentrated mana. This was magic. This was map-hacking.
The range wasn't wide enough to scan the entire South Forest, but finding food had become effortless. Seoyun immediately picked some fruit, wiped it thoroughly with a clean cloth from her bag, and offered it to me.
"Here."
Gurgle.
Right on cue, Seoyun's stomach rumbled again, demanding more.
"Hak—ah, seriously—"
She stomped her feet in mortification. Surviving in the wild really wasn't easy. The polished image and social dignity Seoyun had maintained all this time had completely crumbled. Once unleashed, her stomach kept demanding food, and no amount of willpower could silence those physical signals.
"No need to feel embarrassed. It's a natural bodily function."
"But it was so loud..."
Seoyun stroked her traitorous stomach, chewing and swallowing her shame.
"Eat that one too."
"Woojin, I do have a conscience, you know."
"That's not what I mean. There are more behind it. I think I have more than enough for my share."
Seoyun finally noticed the five fruits hanging higher up. She let out a delighted little hop.
"Kyak!"
"We can bring some back for the manager too."
"Let's pick them quickly! Before anyone sees!"
She stretched and grunted, but her height wasn't enough to reach.
"I'll lift you. Think you can grab them?"
"Leave it to me!"
I knelt on one knee and created a platform with my palms. She hesitated for a second before climbing on... but then—
Huuuup.
The thick, warm, incredibly soft thighs of the assistant manager, wrapped in coffee-colored stockings that had aged three days, clamped around my neck!! An overwhelmingly powerful scent flooded my brain. Haaaa!! Pure bliss!
"Don't smell anything...!"
"Why would I sniff your stinky scent, Assistant Manager?"
The moment the words left my mouth, her thighs tightened into a chokehold.
Kek kek!! Kek!! Fuck, I'm going to die happy!
"I'm not stinky, okay? Have you even smelled me?"
"Should I take a sniff somewhere?"
"Kyaaak!! Don't! Don't you dare smell me!"
Her thighs squeezed even harder.
"Okay, okay. I'll hold my breath..."
"It's not that it smells bad or anything, so don't misunderstand."
I already knew that. I was breathing it in deeply, after all.
Seoyun wrapped her thighs firmly around my neck for balance.
"Endure it even if it's uncomfortable."
"You'd better hold on tight so you don't fall, Assistant Manager."
"Of course. I'll focus. I won't drop a single one."
The assistant manager really was excellent at her job. Meticulous and focused, she collected every fruit without letting any fall. Her hands were far more delicate than mine. Truthfully, if you excluded magic, Seoyun outranked me in every ability except raw strength.
She came down with an armful of fruit.
"Let's eat them one at a time!"
"Sounds good."
We picked out a flat rock to sit on, resting our bodies while filling our stomachs.
"It's delicious. How did you find these?"
"Ah... how should I put it? I could just feel it. These fruits seem to have an especially strong scent."
"Mmm... you're right. The aroma is wonderful. I've never smelled anything quite like it. We could probably make it into a perfume..."
This woman really was a workaholic. Even on a deserted island, her mind went straight to product development.
"Come on, let's gather more before the sun sets!"
I was starting to want to head back...
"Hurry. I only trust you, Woojin."
Her energy forcefully dragged me along. Kaaak. She'd been exactly like this at the company too—constantly throwing tasks at someone with zero passion or motivation. There were times I'd found it incredibly annoying, but now... it felt like we were walking toward the same goal together.
"Are you getting tired?"
When she worried about me instead, I simply smiled.
"Not at all. Let's keep going."
We continued searching for fruit until the sun began to set, filling our travel bag to the brim. The power of magic was truly magnificent. With a bit of exaggeration, I felt like I could survive on this island forever. When we got back to Korea, what should I do with this ability? Maybe start producing bottled water?
"Woojin, did you grow up in the countryside...?"
"It's just luck."
"It doesn't seem like luck at all. The direction I was heading in earlier—I searched for hours and found nothing..."
One of the best parts of detection magic was that it also filtered out things that shouldn't be eaten.
"Ah, what about that mushroom?"
"That one's no good."
"I see..."
Watching me locate fruit after fruit, she seemed to assume I possessed specialized knowledge. She accepted it without question and moved away from the mushroom.
We finally emerged from the humid, sweltering jungle. As we left the forest, Manager Han Jia greeted us warmly.
"Assistant Kang, Woojin! Are you both all right? I was so worried when you didn't return even after dark."
"Thanks to the lipstick marks, we didn't lose our way. The red really stood out."
Back at camp, the situation with the other survivor groups looked strange.
"There seem to be fewer people?"
"It looks like more have gone into the jungle to explore. They're probably searching for food..."
Made sense. We weren't the only ones who had realized we needed to act now. Everyone was desperate to survive.
"So... did you manage to find anything?"
Heh. Seoyun and I exchanged glances and grinned.
"You'll be surprised when you see."
I flipped the bag over a clean cloth and poured out the fruits.
Rattle.
"Oh my...!"
"This should last us through tomorrow and up to three days if we're careful."
Without refrigeration, anything extra would just rot.
"Kim Woojin turned out to have a real talent for finding fruit, Manager."
"I see..."
"The assistant manager helped me pick them."
That thigh scent still lingered vividly in my memory. Kang Seoyun cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Today was good, Woojin."
Seoyun extended her hand. It seemed she wanted a handshake.
"It was nothing."
We shook hands firmly.
In this way, we'd rekindled the spark of hope while waiting for rescue. But after today's trip into the jungle, one thought kept circling in my mind.
──────Maybe this really was a deserted island where no one lived.