Nijika opened her eyes, looking at Fumiya Jin in confusion. "Sleep?"
Fumiya Jin nodded. "Didn't I tell you? Meditation is just a technique to boost your spirit and focus. It can give your body a brief moment of relaxation and recovery, but it can never replace sleep.
And right now, you're mentally exhausted—you barely slept last night, you've been under intense pressure all day, and you've been constantly using your ability...
At this rate, if you don't get some proper sleep, I feel like you might just suddenly pass out once we're in the forest."
Nijika scratched her head.
Truthfully, she knew just how bad her condition was.
She had just been forcing herself to keep going without saying anything.
When they came out of the forest earlier, her legs had given out, and she'd almost collapsed to her knees.
Now, she was only holding back the overwhelming exhaustion through the conviction that "someone is dying, we have to find freshwater to save them."
"But we don't have time, do we?" Nijika sighed. "Sleeping... that would take at least a few hours. If we don't find freshwater soon, won't Haji just..."
Hearing this, Fumiya Jin came over, crouched down beside her, and asked, "Let me ask you this, then. In your current state, what do you think the most likely outcome is if the two of us go into the forest?"
Nijika froze for a moment.
She thought about it.
There was no way to be optimistic.
"We'd die, wouldn't we?"
"Then let me ask you another question," Fumiya Jin said. "If you had to choose between two paths, which would you pick? Path one: there's a 50% chance we both die, and Haji dies too, and a 50% chance all three of us live. Path two: we're guaranteed to survive, but Haji only has a 20% chance of living."
Nijika didn't hesitate for long. She scratched her chin, a little embarrassed, and said, "I'd choose the second path..."
"You don't need to feel bad about that," Fumiya Jin said, raising a hand to gently pinch Nijika's soft cheek. "You're supposed to choose the second path. A stranger you just met and a teammate you trust are on completely different levels of importance. So we have to prioritize our own safety, which is why you need to get some proper sleep now. Besides... to be a bit blunt, you don't really think an injury of that severity can be significantly affected just by cleaning the wound with freshwater, do you?"
"Uh... you mean..."
Fumiya Jin shook his head with some regret. "Although Haji is a pretty decent teammate and I'd like to save him too, with the state of his injuries, freshwater alone won't change anything. He definitely won't last until the instance is over. What's more... his wound is especially strange. I don't know what that black liquid is, but it's making his infection spread far faster than a normal injury. So... he's basically guaranteed to die. We're just doing what we can."
"Is that so... How awful..." Nijika bit her lip and sighed.
"So, get some rest. We still have to fight to survive," Fumiya Jin said. "Don't overthink it, just sleep. I'll keep track of the time. I'll wake you up in about two hours, and then we'll head into the forest again."
Nijika took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay."
Then she closed her eyes and began to rest.
But after about two minutes...
She opened her eyes again and looked at Fumiya Jin helplessly.
"I can't sleep... There are too many chaotic thoughts in my head, and the more I think, the worse I feel... but I can't stop."
"Well, is there anything you need me to do?" Fumiya Jin asked.
Nijika thought for a moment. "How about... you... you tell me another story? It might help if I have a distraction..."
"Oh, sure," Fumiya Jin mulled it over. "Alright, I'll tell you the fairy tale of how the Big Bad Wolf bedded... oh, no, I mean outsmarted Little Red Riding Hood."
"Hey... is that really a fairy tale? And I think you just said a really messed-up word, didn't you! You totally said it!!"
...
...
Evening.
The sun slowly sank below the horizon.
It left only the orange-yellow afterglow in the sky, which was also gradually dimming with time.
Nightfall would soon be upon them.
Fortunately, a bonfire was already blazing on the beach.
The fire burned brightly, with several aluminum cans placed beside it.
The cans held somewhat murky water that bubbled vigorously when boiled, but no one was picky about such minor issues anymore.
To the south of the fire, Fumiya Jin sat on the ground while Nijika lay beside him, her head pillowed on his lap, fast asleep.
That's right, a lap pillow.
But this time, it was Fumiya Jin giving Nijika the lap pillow.
About two hours earlier, when the two of them emerged from the forest for the second time, Nijika had been on the verge of collapsing, completely unable to walk.
So after handing the freshwater over to the others, Fumiya Jin had carried Nijika to the bonfire, letting her get some proper sleep and forbidding anyone from disturbing her.
She was too tired.
Using her ability so much had truly taken a massive toll on her stamina.
So even after sleeping for two hours, the girl showed no signs of waking. A deep weariness still clung to her features, and her face was a little pale, making one's heart ache just looking at her.
Fumiya Jin lowered his head, quietly watching the girl's face.
He raised a hand and gently stroked her golden hair.
A wave of emotion suddenly washed over him.
On the surface, it seemed like he was the one carrying her through both the trial game and this instance. A classic case of carrying a girl.
But in truth, if it weren't for this girl's ability and her desperate, grit-your-teeth persistence... he might not have been able to clear them successfully himself.
As a player, Nijika wasn't strong, and she needed him to help her grow.
But he wasn't so strong that he could just carry her to an effortless victory, either.
So... he still needed to get stronger.
"Pawa" (Power).
He needed more "Pawa".
And as things stood, the way to get stronger, besides passively waiting for his superpower to update, was... to participate in more instances and earn more rewards.
Fumiya Jin suddenly thought of Yuki Suou.
Her proposal was starting to seem like something he really needed to consider.
"Hey, Haji, hang in there... Don't stop breathing..."
"No, don't you actually die! Hey! Hey!! Can you hear me?"
Suddenly, a commotion erupted on the other side of the bonfire.
Fumiya Jin froze for a second, then lifted his head to look...
To the north of the fire, beside the unconscious Haji, the four other players clamored for a few seconds...
Then they fell silent, their expressions turning ugly or filling with pity.
At the same time, Fumiya Jin saw the number above Haji's head hit zero and then disappear completely...
He was dead.
____
Hello! Walnut here! Or... Miku Dayo in this case heheh...
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