"Leave the food to me," The curly-haired man patted his chest and said, "Just send one or two people with me to forage by the sea. We'll walk along the shore and see if we can find any seafood washed up. Even if that's not enough, I can go into the water to catch some."
"I'll go with you!" The chubby guy raised his hand, looking quite excited. "I've always watched other people forage by the sea, but I've never tried it myself. I'll go help you."
Fumiya Jin looked at the numbers above The curly-haired man's head...
A little over twenty-nine thousand seconds.
A bit more than Nijika's, but it looked like he would only last until this evening. Also extremely dangerous.
Moreover, it was worth noting that among all the teammates, The curly-haired man could be considered the most contributive so far. Whether it was starting the fire, providing common knowledge about the seaside, or actively looking for food, he was putting in a lot of effort. If he could be saved, he should be.
"Haji, I suggest you try not to go into the water," Fumiya Jin said, looking at The curly-haired man. "This is the Samsara Game, after all. Even if it looks like an ordinary ocean, who knows what dangerous things might be underwater."
Hearing this, The curly-haired man just laughed and patted Fumiya Jin's shoulder. "Little brother, I appreciate your concern, but I'm fully confident in my ability to operate underwater. Besides... now that we're all teammates, I won't hide it from you anymore—my game class is Fisherman, and my class trait is related to underwater activities. Plus, I have a trump card for survival, so there won't be any danger."
Everyone was a little surprised to hear this.
You see, everyone who joined this game had basically gone through the novice trial. Since they all passed, everyone had received some kind of reward, more or less, be it an item or an ability. But until now, unless it was absolutely necessary to use them... no one had voluntarily mentioned what abilities they had, nor had they directly asked about others' abilities.
Of course, it wasn't that they forgot.
It was just that everyone had a tacit understanding.
Or rather, they were all wary of each other. After all, they were all strangers, just temporary teammates.
Under non-essential circumstances, no one was willing to reveal their trump cards to others. So naturally, no one would proactively bring up the topic.
But now, in order to express his confidence, The curly-haired man had actually taken the initiative to reveal his class ability and the existence of a trump card. This was truly unexpected.
On one hand, his actions made everyone feel his sincerity, and they developed a better impression of him. On the other hand, it also made everyone feel that he truly was very confident about operating underwater.
Since he'd put it that way, most people quickly felt relieved and agreed to let him go into the sea—after all, it was his area of expertise.
But Fumiya Jin was an exception.
He was still not at ease.
However, looking at the confidence written all over The curly-haired man's face, he knew that trying to persuade him would be useless.
Besides, the countdown predicted the man's death would be in the evening, which wasn't necessarily related to foraging in the sea. So he didn't say anything more.
"Alright, let's settle the food issue for now," Fumiya Jin nodded. "But besides that, we have a more pressing problem—fresh water."
He pointed to the sky above. "Under this cloudless, blazing sun, the beach will soon turn into an oven. The forest is filled with countless venomous snakes, making it unsafe to go in to escape the heat. If we stay on the beach, even if we risk hiding under the trees at the very edge of the forest... in thirty to forty-degree temperatures, we'll lose water quickly and easily get heatstroke. What's more, this is the Samsara Game. I don't believe the danger in this game is limited to just deserted island survival. In the next two days, more terrifying threats will likely appear, and we must maintain peak physical condition to have a chance of survival."
Everyone was, in fact, already sweating, and their lips were a bit dry. The feeling of thirst was even more intense than their hunger. So they all knew Fumiya Jin wasn't just fearmongering.
"Isn't there seawater?" The black man with dreadlocks stroked his chin and asked, "I've seen those people in deserted island survival shows... it seems like they do something to the seawater to make it drinkable... boil it?"
"Boiling won't work," The curly-haired man shook his head. "It'll still be saltwater after boiling, and drinking it will only dehydrate you faster. To make it drinkable, you'd need a pot. You'd heat the water with a fire underneath, then use a large, cool leaf above it to catch the steam. When the steam condenses into water, that's what you can drink. But... the prerequisite is having a pot."
A pot...
The group looked at each other. They had nothing in their hands, let alone a pot.
"Actually, you can also drink the sap that flows out after cutting tree bark," The curly-haired man glanced at the distant forest. "But that stuff isn't very thirst-quenching, and there's not much of it. It's only for emergencies. Besides, there are snakes in the forest..."
The moment the black man heard the word "snake," he remembered the sight of all those venomous snakes from yesterday. He couldn't help but shiver, his face scrunching up. "What are we supposed to do? Just wait to die?"
"We still have to explore the forest," Fumiya Jin concluded after a few seconds of thought. "Finding high-moisture foods like berries or leaves, or finding coconut shells, discarded pottery or metal cans left by other humans, or even finding a stream or pond... these are the only ways to completely solve the fresh water problem."
Everyone's expression changed.
"Go in? People will die, right?" The chubby guy trembled. "With so many venomous snakes, who would dare to go?"
Fumiya Jin scanned the group. Not a single person dared to step forward. Even the pink-haired madam, who had been relatively calm, was silent now.
After all, a scene filled with venomous snakes wasn't something you could handle just by being worldly and mature.
"I can go," Fumiya Jin said.
Everyone was startled.
"Don't, little brother! With so many venomous snakes, you'll really die!" The curly-haired man quickly tried to dissuade him. "Even if you're really strong, two fists can't fight four hands... let alone thousands upon thousands of venomous snakes."
Fumiya Jin didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked up at his countdown.
As expected.
The countdown hadn't changed.
In other words, in the original timeline, his death lay on this very path into the jungle.
After all, in the current situation, the only hope of finding enough fresh water for seven people was to enter the forest. With no one else daring to go in, and since he wasn't one to sit and wait for death, he would probably have tried to enter the forest.
But with the power he currently possessed, while his close-quarters combat was formidable, he definitely couldn't maintain an impenetrable defense. If he really walked into a dense swarm of venomous snakes, one careless bite and it would all be over.
So, from that perspective, now that he had foreseen all this, the best choice was obviously to give up.
However...
Rather than giving up directly, Fumiya Jin had other plans.
"You have a point," Fumiya Jin nodded at The curly-haired man, then looked at the others. "It is indeed a bit too dangerous for me to go alone. So... I'll take someone with me."
He glanced around, and his eyes landed on the black man with dreadlocks.
The black man with dreadlocks' eyes went wide, and he secretly shook his head frantically at Fumiya Jin.
But Fumiya Jin still raised his hand and pointed at him.
After all, this guy had already demonstrated superhuman speed and coordination, and he had the most robust physique of the group.
"You'll go with me," Fumiya Jin said with a smile.
"No!!" The black man had a look of terror on his face. "Doctor... Big Bro... Dad! I really can't! I can fight people, but I really can't handle snakes!"
The fleshy-faced woman breathed a sigh of relief when she heard she wasn't chosen. Then she shot the black man a contemptuous look. "What are you afraid of? Are you even a man? If he tells you to go, you go! You're built like a tank, if you don't go, who will?"
The black man grew even more terrified and turned back to The fleshy-faced woman. "Boss lady, I really can't, I..."
"I said go, so go! Cut the crap!" The fleshy-faced woman snorted coldly. "Are you ignoring my orders now? You don't want me to carry you through this instance anymore, is that it?"
"I..." The black man was at a complete loss.
He looked at The fleshy-faced woman, then at Fumiya Jin.
The two people he could least afford to offend had now reached a consensus. What could he possibly do?
His heart sank and his face turned a little green. He walked up to Fumiya Jin. "Big Bro, let's... let's give it a try, okay? If... if it doesn't work out, we'll come back immediately. Please don't take any risks."
And just then, Fumiya Jin saw the numbers above the black man's head change...
7763... 7762... 7761...
He glanced at his own...
9231... 9230... 9229...
The good news: it had gotten longer.
The bad news: only a little bit longer.
Wasn't this just sacrificing another life for nothing?
The venomous snakes in this forest were really that dangerous.
Fumiya Jin felt a headache coming on.
Meanwhile, The chubby guy, seeing the miserable expression on the black man's face, felt a slight sense of schadenfreude. After all, the black man had chewed him out right after the game started.
"Don't be scared, Mr. Daniel. The Doctor is so strong, he'll definitely be able to protect you. It's just a few snakes, it'll be fine, it'll be fine." The chubby guy said in a comforting tone, but he could barely contain his smirk.
The black man was annoyed when he heard this, but he felt so hopeless at the moment that he didn't even have the energy to argue with the chubby guy.
Just then, however...
Fumiya Jin suddenly turned his head and clapped The chubby guy on the shoulder.
"I've... changed my mind," Fumiya Jin said lightly. "Maruyama, you go with me. Don't worry, I'll protect you."
The chubby guy froze instantly, as if struck by lightning.
"Huhhh????"
____
Hello! Walnut here! Or... Miku Dayo in this case heheh...
Unfortunately, I had 2 stories deleted from my main account, "Walnut-chan," and I decided to post them here on this other account... I'm counting on your support to recover what we've lost!
🔥 40% OFF to celebrate 2 new stories! 🔥
We've just launched 2 new stories, and we want you to join us! Take advantage of the 40% discount to become a member.
When you join, you get instant access to:
✅ Over 40 advanced chapters of ALL stories!
✅ Exclusive content and updates!
Plus, your support unlocks bonuses for the entire community. Our goals are still active:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 Bonus Chapter for everyone
🚀 55 MEMBERS = +5 extra chapters of ALL STORIES!
Secure your spot with the discount and get access to everything right now:
👻 P - Walnutchan