Far From Ordinary

The morning of their second day stranded.

Fortunately, they had managed to avoid the worst.

"Hwaaam…."

Thanks to spending the night warming herself by the campfire, Choi Yuri was in far better shape than the day before. She was still tired, still hungry — but at least the fogginess in her head and the trembling in her limbs had all but disappeared.

"You okay?"

"Yes. Much better than yesterday."

Kang Taeseong nodded.

"Then let's take a look around today."

Waiting for rescue was important, but they couldn't just sit in the cave knowing nothing about their surroundings. Whether there were any paths people used. Which way the water flowed. Whether there was a place from which they could signal for help. There was no shortage of things to check.

The weather was brilliantly clear, but they couldn't afford to let their guard down. They needed to move before the rain returned.

"Alright."

Choi Yuri picked up the clothes she had hung near the campfire. Thanks to the fire's warmth through the night, they had dried completely. It was time to put them back on — Kang Taeseong's hiking jacket, with its generous sleeves and loose fit. The clothes that had wrapped her body through the night now had to be returned.

She looked at the jacket for a moment. Strangely, she felt a little reluctant to give it back.

"Thank you, sir. It really helped."

She carefully held it out. Kang Taeseong took it, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠began returning to his original appearance. The upper body that had been fully exposed while he'd lent her the jacket — the solidly set shoulders and arms, the broad back, the well-defined abs — all of it disappeared back inside the hiking clothes.

"Ah…."

Choi Yuri found herself staring without meaning to. Yesterday had been chaos in every direction. She'd been freezing, and the fact that they were stranded had sent her into a panic. But now was different. With a little room to breathe, a new impression settled over her.

He's actually huge…

She'd never paid close enough attention to notice before. Now she understood why people talked about Kang Taeseong's build. She'd heard he worked out consistently, but seeing it in person was something else entirely. He was far more solid and massive than she'd imagined.

It was all hidden under the clothes…

She couldn't tear her eyes away from his body for a long moment. And then—

"Uh, Yuri?"

"…"

"Aren't you staring a little hard?"

"…!"

Choi Yuri's eyes went wide. Only then did she realize how long she'd been looking at him.

"Ah, no!"

She whipped her gaze away.

"That's not—"

She couldn't finish the sentence. Her face flushed red. Kang Taeseong awkwardly looked elsewhere himself, clearing his throat as if he were a little embarrassed too.

"No, I mean… you just kept staring, so."

"I'm sorry."

Choi Yuri said it quietly.

"I just… more than I expected…"

She couldn't bring herself to finish. No matter what words she attached, the sheer mortification of it wouldn't change. Kang Taeseong nodded with a composed expression.

"Guess all that training paid off."

That casual composure only made Choi Yuri more embarrassed. She muttered under her breath.

"…You don't seem bothered at all, sir."

"About what?"

"…Never mind!"

She'd even worked up the courage to call him Oppa — and yet he didn't seem particularly conscious of what had happened last night. He'd dropped the formal speech with her, so it wasn't as though she'd gotten nothing out of it… but she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed all the same.

…Am I the only one thinking about this?

Something tickled in a corner of her chest. Choi Yuri stuck out her lower lip. She knew perfectly well that Kang Taeseong hadn't meant anything special by it. But the fact that he was so completely fine — while she alone seemed hung up on last night — was, in more ways than one, a blow to her pride.

…Tch.

If he'd been even a little flustered or awkward, she could have laughed it off comfortably herself. But with him acting like nothing had changed, she just felt like an idiot.

Hmph.

It was simply unfair. Why was she the only one who had to be so conscious of him?

Choi Yuri's eyes shifted slightly.

Your turn, sir.

Making him look away every time he saw her face. Making him just a little awkward when he tried to treat her like usual. Making him think about her without meaning to. That much should be doable, shouldn't it?

In that moment, Choi Yuri's new goal was set.

"Hmm."

What should I do from here?

Being stranded in the mountains was a first for me too. Of course it was. How often does an ordinary modern person get lost in the wilderness? My phone was dead. No GPS, no internet. I found myself missing the map apps I used to open every time I went somewhere unfamiliar. All the conveniences of civilization I'd taken for granted were useless out here.

"…Sir."

Behind me, Choi Yuri was watching only me.

"Hah…."

As her boss and her senior — and more than anything, as a man — a strange sense of responsibility pressed down on my shoulders.

I have to figure this out somehow.

A primary objective had formed: survive in these mountains with the delicate, fragile Choi Yuri. I knew almost nothing about the wilderness myself. But one thing I understood with absolute clarity ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was that we had to move. Because if we just sat here, we were going to starve.

For now, let's head back toward where I gathered branches yesterday.

I needed to find some kind of lead. The moment I was about to take that first step—

"…?"

For an instant, the world in front of me wavered. The landscape blurred as if I were wearing the wrong prescription lenses — then snapped back into sharp focus. And slowly, things began to appear.

"…!"

Broken twigs. Flattened grass. Animal tracks worn by repeated passage. The dampness blowing up from a valley stream. Every piece of information connected into a single picture in my mind. Traces an ordinary person would have walked right past. Signals of the mountain that only seasoned woodsmen could read were flowing into me as naturally as breathing.

I couldn't see any of this yesterday…

Last night, after Choi Yuri had fallen asleep, I'd scouted the area hoping something might be useful — with the skill whose name suggested it would help with reconnaissance, Observer's Eye, already purchased. But yesterday I'd seen nothing. Rain had been pouring like mad, and everything was pitch-black darkness. An environment where even a few meters ahead was hard to make out. All I'd been able to see were trees and rocks.

But now was different. Information the mountain had been withholding was starting to enter my eyes as if it had been there all along. Had the conditions simply been too harsh yesterday?

"…"

Following the skill's guidance, I slowly surveyed the surroundings. And then I was certain.

That way.

The mountain was showing me the path. As if entranced, I started walking.

"S-sir! Wait for me!"

Choi Yuri scrambled after me in a fluster. A short while later—

"…There."

A single tree came into view. Plump red berries hung in clusters from every branch.

"B-berries!"

Choi Yuri's eyes sparkled. She was staring at them with her mouth hanging open, looking ready to start drooling at any second. She must have been seriously hungry. Last night she'd burned through all her energy just staying warm, and she hadn't eaten anything proper since morning.

"…But."

She swallowed hard and asked carefully.

"Are these safe to eat?"

"Good question."

I was thinking the same thing. If they happened to be poisonous, that would be a much bigger problem than going hungry.

Wait.

Could I use it here too? The skill that had guided me this far — Observer's Eye. I looked at the berries and quietly activated the skill. A translucent window appeared at once.

"…Wild raspberries. They're edible."

I let out a breath of relief.

"Really?!"

Choi Yuri's face lit up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in an instant. She looked ready to dive in right then and there.

"Still, just in case."

I reached out and picked one.

"I'll try it first."

Crunch. The tiny beads burst, and a sweet-tart juice spread through my mouth.

Oh.

So this was what wild raspberries tasted like. Hunger really was the best seasoning. Eating them on an empty stomach, even the unfamiliar flavor came across as pretty delicious. I waited a moment, but nothing felt wrong.

"They're fine."

I handed the remaining raspberries to Choi Yuri.

"Go ahead and eat."

"…!"

Her eyes sparkled.

"Thank you!"

As if she'd been waiting for permission, she popped a raspberry into her mouth. Crunch. One, two, three, four…. Wow. She was really putting them away. She must have been starving. Choi Yuri was stuffing raspberries into her mouth with both cheeks puffed out like a hamster's.

"Mm, mmm…."

And yet somehow it didn't look greedy at all. If anything…

Cute.

Maybe it was because she was pretty to begin with. Even looking like a complete mess, she just seemed adorable.

A few minutes passed like that.

"…Ah."

Only after demolishing every last raspberry did Choi Yuri look down at her hands. Her palms were stained red with fruit pulp. Realizing the carnage she'd just committed, her face flushed just as red.

"S-sir… I-I'm so sorry! I ate them all by myse—"

Head bowed, completely at a loss for what to do. The sight of her was so cute I couldn't help a small laugh.

"It's fine."

I'd expected her to be hungry from the start. Right now, something else was occupying more of my attention.

Keeping the skill active, I surveyed the area. The direction the leaves were swaying. A cold current mixed into the air. The faint sound of running water.

"…"

There.

"Yuri."

"Yes?"

"I think there's water nearby."

"Really?"

Choi Yuri's eyes went wide in a completely different way from before. She looked even more delighted than when we'd found the raspberries. And she had every right to be.

Water is critical.

Food mattered, but in a survival situation the most important thing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was ultimately drinking water. A person could go days without eating, but without water the limit came fast. There was also the matter of washing up. After getting soaked in the rain and rolling around on the dirt, both of us looked like absolute wrecks. Even just being able to rinse our hands and faces would let us live a little more like human beings.

Water was the most vital survival resource we had right now.

"Let's go."

I slowly started walking in the direction Observer's Eye indicated.

Shhhhhh.

Pushing through the trees, a clear mountain stream came into view.

"W-water!"

Choi Yuri let out a cheer at the sight of the stream. The water glittered in the sunlight, looking clean enough to drink on the spot. Still, just to be sure, I used the skill one more time.

"…We're good."

I clenched my fist without thinking. Drinking water secured. One of the biggest hurdles in survival, cleared.

But what surprised me more than finding the water was something else entirely.

This skill… is way more broken than I thought?

It was basically like having a guide walking right next to me. The system's skills were far more extraordinary than I had expected.