Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Deserted Island Survival
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"Whew, all done."
Kwon Na-ye dusted off her hands with a satisfied expression.
Clap clap!
What she was looking at so contentedly while brushing off her hands was the cabin she'd learned to build before entering this Trials' Arena.
Having finished the cabin, Kwon Na-ye recalled what Hae-jin had told her.
『You'll probably need to secure drinking water like Manager Kim did, Na-ye. It'd be good to learn how to do that too.』
"Shelter first, then water, right?"
With that, Kwon Na-ye set out in earnest to find drinking water.
Along the way, she began scouting around.
"Hmm, let's lay down those leaves for now."
As she headed toward the forest, Kwon Na-ye spotted what looked like banana tree leaves. She ripped a piece from the makeshift clothes she'd been forced to wear, fashioned it into a sling, and accurately struck a sharp stone to knock them down.
Thud thud thud.
After gathering the leaves, she spread them out near the cabin she'd just built.
This was one of the methods Manager Kim had taught her for securing drinking water.
As she did, Kwon Na-ye thought to herself.
'Man, we're doing all sorts of stuff. Surviving on a deserted island...' It reminded her of the comic books her parents had read when they were kids. Kwon Na-ye ventured deeper into the forest, looking around as she muttered.
"Hmm, coconuts or a freshwater spring would be ideal..."
Muttering to herself, she scoured the island. She had no choice. Just as she'd said, Manager Kim had told her that. If she couldn't find coconuts or a usable spring, she'd have to survive on the dew collecting on those leaves she'd laid out. Of course, as a Player, Na-ye could survive on minimal water. 'Still, better to drink my fill than just dew.' With that in mind, Kwon Na-ye wandered around until she finally spotted something.
"Ah! Water!"
She saw water glinting in the sunlight at the edge. Rushing over, her face fell with disappointment upon arrival.
"Damn!"
[The water is stagnant and full of impurities.]
The water was in poor condition.
It was obviously filthy with contaminants.
Seeing it, Kwon Na-ye said.
"I can purify it like Manager Kim taught me... but it's not urgent, so maybe I'll look around a bit more?"
If she couldn't find a better source after searching more, she'd use this one, she figured. Kwon Na-ye kept moving, marking the area with traces so she wouldn't forget where it was.
How long had she been walking?
Her expression brightened as she glanced around.
"Perfect! That'll do!"
Kwon Na-ye eyed a cluster of green coconuts.
Recalling Manager Kim's words, she thought.
『If you find green coconuts, no need for purification. Just use them as your drinking water.』
Her water worries were solved.
Kwon Na-ye harvested all the visible green coconuts and returned to her cabin.
Back at the cabin, she started a fire just as Manager Kim had shown her.
"Now I can focus on survival for real."
Kwon Na-ye smiled happily, pleased with her preparations for solitary island life.
A day passed like that.
The next day, before dawn, as Kwon Na-ye lay in her cabin, her ears perked up.
Rustle.
She heard someone stepping through the underbrush.
At the sound, Kwon Na-ye opened her eyes, grabbing her makeshift sling in one hand and stone dagger in the other.
She pressed herself against the cabin entrance, peering toward where the noise had come from.
And there she saw.
'A goblin?' The creature rustling the bushes. It was a goblin, the kind you'd see in the early stages of the Trials' Arena. Though she'd lost all her gear so far, Kwon Na-ye still had her stats and skills intact. So she thought. 'Just one goblin? One slingshot shot should do it.' A sling is what they call a slingshot in English, and firing it is slingshotting. Kwon Na-ye figured that and was about to fire at the goblin that had revealed itself when something occurred to her. 'Wait! Use the Experience 2x Scroll first!' She pulled the 'Experience 2x Scroll' from her inventory right away. Originally, Hae-jin had told the party to pick whatever they wanted, but everyone was eager to grow stronger, so they'd all chosen the 'Experience 2x Scroll' from the previous hidden trial rewards.
[Item! You have used the 'Experience 2x Scroll.']
[Experience gained in this Trials' Arena will now be doubled.]
Tearing the scroll with a rip, Kwon Na-ye confirmed the effect and immediately aimed her slingshot at the goblin.
Whoosh!
Thwack!
"Kieek!"
The goblin shrieked and collapsed from Kwon Na-ye's slingshot.
Seeing it, she thought.
'One shot. Now for the drops... Wait, no. Goblins travel in packs, right?' Kwon Na-ye knew the traits of monsters from her experience. So she hesitated to approach the fallen goblin's body, fearing an ambush from others. Thus, she didn't rush to pick up the items from the goblin that had vanished. No other goblins appeared anywhere. Still, she couldn't let her guard down. 'They're sneaky bastards.' Closing her eyes, Kwon Na-ye activated a skill. 'Eagle's Eye.'
[Skill! 'Eagle's Eye' activated.]
[Caster's vision sharpens.]
Opening her eyes after using Eagle's Eye, the dim surroundings came into sharper, wider view.
But nothing caught her eye.
Or so she thought.
'There!' Stuck to the cabin door, scanning intently with Eagle's Eye, Kwon Na-ye spotted it late. Not the goblin itself, but a shadow nearby. It was barely peeking out, poised for a perfect ambush. That was enough for her to know. 'As expected. It was waiting to strike.' A goblin ambush. Kwon Na-ye pondered. 'It's still just a goblin. Ambush or not, I can take it.' If it were the other party members, they wouldn't hesitate. Why? Hae-jin could just slash it with his aura. Lee Sang, Raffaello, and Anna could handle it from range with magic—blast the whole tree it's hiding in. Manager Kim? He was a close-combat veteran. But Kwon Na-ye was an archer. She'd made a sling as a substitute, but it wasn't like using a bow. With a real bow, she'd charge in without a second thought. Even without Player abilities, she could nock and fire arrows swiftly up close, and she'd mastered firing single shots freely while carrying multiples through the Trials' Arena. But with a sling, close combat was tricky, and she couldn't blast trees like the mages. So Kwon Na-ye decided. 'Use what Manager Kim taught me. First, divert their attention.' She fired her sling far off to the side. Pop! Crack! The stone flew far, smashing into and embedding in a tree. Then she saw it. The goblin's shadow, waiting to ambush, shifted slightly toward the noise. 'Good. Time to move. 'Wind Step!''
[Skill! 'Wind Step' activated.]
[Caster's steps become one with the wind.]
Wind Step.
True to its name, it let her move like the wind.
Not perfect stealth like an assassin, but it allowed swift, quiet movement with minimized presence.
As soon as the ambushing goblin's attention turned, Kwon Na-ye dashed out with Wind Step.
Not straight at it.
There might be more than one.
She circled around and went into hiding herself.
Slipping quietly into the bushes, she saw.
'Yeah, not just one.' Goblins lurked behind trees here and there. Gripping her stone dagger tight, Kwon Na-ye steeled herself. 'Let's go.' She burst out swiftly. Targeting the nearest goblin, she clamped its mouth shut and stabbed wildly at its throat with the stone dagger. Stab stab stab!
"Mmph!"
The goblin couldn't make a sound and collapsed. Then Kwon Na-ye saw. A dagger dropped where the goblin had vanished. 'Yes!' A goblin dagger was better than her crude stone one. She snatched it up, discarding the stone dagger. Now armed with the goblin dagger, Kwon Na-ye swiftly eliminated the rest. Clearing the goblin pack, she flashed a refreshed smile.
"Heh, got 'em all?"
No traces remained even after checking the area. Picking up the dropped items, Na-ye said.
"Thanks to these drops, I've got some basics covered at least."
Upgrading from stone dagger was great, but luckily, she could ditch the sling too. Among the ambushers were goblin archers, who'd dropped bows and arrows. With a bow, Kwon Na-ye feared nothing. Equipping the goblin bow, she said.
"Alright, time to make arrows and hunt the island's master."
Hunt the island's master. That was the hidden trial in this Trials' Arena. Hae-jin had said there was an island master in the central cave. Not a person, obviously, on a deserted island. The island's master was. 'That thing, right?' Recalling Hae-jin's words, Kwon Na-ye moved. To complete the hidden trial. And she thought. 'Gotta make sure my name's first again.' She'd been proud in the previous Trials' Arena. Why? Her name had come before Anna's. Kwon Na-ye vowed the same this time.