Chapter 13: A Brief Escape (1)
TL: Hanguk
My father said he had a proposal for me, but insisted that two experiments needed to be conducted before revealing his plan.
"Experiments?"
[The first one is to fly a drone to check if there are any flying monsters on the island.]
I immediately launched the drone.
As a result.
-Kieeak!
"There are some!"
Three monsters that looked like miniature dragons, fiercely screeched and chased after the drone.
The flying monsters were found in the northern part of Wolgwang Island, a place I hadn't yet explored.
I made the drone flee desperately, dropping it near the safe zone so I could retrieve it later.
It was fortunate to have confirmed the existence of flying monsters early.
If my father hadn't asked me to scout ahead of time, I might have encountered an unexpected situation.
The creatures I named Wyverns flew back to their territory once the drone quieted down.
[The second experiment I'd like you to do is to see if you can set up a safety tent on a moving raft.]
Is my father a genius?
Setting up a safety tent on a moving object?
It's a pretty innovative idea.
If that's possible, it could be used in a variety of ways.
[The safety tent can only be installed in a fixed location.]
"It's a failure..."
But not everything goes as planned.
Unfortunately, the experiment failed.
[Well, it can't be helped.]
But my father didn't seem too disappointed.
Perhaps he had more than one plan.
After a brief break to gather his thoughts.
My father made a serious proposal.
[How about moving to Inhabited Island for now?]
"Inhabited Island?"
An unexpected proposal.
Instead of being isolated alone, he meant to join others.
But is there an inhabited island nearby?
I tilted my head in confusion.
[Do you know Gauido Island?]
"Yes, it's a fairly large island located near Taean, right? And it's quite close to the mainland."
It's unknown who named it, but it's an island known as the 'Hawaii of the West Sea.'
The population isn't large, but it has two ports and a fair number of accommodations. It's a popular destination for tourists and fishermen, with ferries coming and going daily.
The reason I know about Gauido, albeit roughly, is because Wolgwang Island and the famous Gyeongnyeolbiyeoldo Island are part of 'Gauido-ri'.
[It has been confirmed that there are safe zones and waypoints on that Island.]
An island with waypoints where residents live.
Certainly, it feels more stable than here.
But there's a problem...
The distance from Wolgwang Island to Gauido is more than 10km.
"But how can I get there? I don't have a boat."
If my father sends a boat, I can go straight to Taean instead of Gauido.
There must be a reason for this proposal.
[Both ships and aircraft are hard to use because of the attacks from flying monsters.]
Ah, there's no rule saying that flying monsters only attack planes.
My father spoke in a heavy tone.
[So, you have to walk to Gauido Island.]
But contrary to his serious tone, the following statement was so absurd that I had to make a dumbfounded expression.
"What?"
Did I hear it wrong?
Walk to an island more than 10km away?
Does he think I can walk on water like in martial arts novels since I've leveled up?
In response to my question, my father chuckled and continued his explanation.
[There are two islands, Ungdo and Dando, between Wolgwang Island and Gauido.]
"Yes, I know."
[But when the tide goes out, those two islands connect to Gauido Island by land.]
I understood what my father was trying to say. In other words, once I reach the islands in between, I can walk to Gauido at low tide.
But was there an event where the sea route opened to Gauido?
'Well, Wolgwang Island has gotten several times bigger, so a little sea route could've appeared.'
With so many strange terrains, a path opening at low tide seemed trivial.
But there's still a problem with my father's argument.
"But Ungdo, which is closer to Wolgwang island, must be more than 5km away?"
5km might be a distance one could consider swimming.
In my case, my body has been greatly enhanced, and my swimming skills are fairly good.
However, just because it seems possible, doesn't mean it's safe to try.
If you lose your direction while swimming in the sea, you can easily get lost.
[There's another island closer than Ungdo.]
-Ding.
A text message arrived from my father at that moment.
I opened it out of curiosity and it contained a satellite photo.
It was not a photo of my immediate surroundings, but of Chungcheongnam-do, and there was tiny Wolgwang Island poking its head out in the corner.
"Huh?"
As I looked at the picture without much thought, my eyes widened.
Between Gauido and Wolgwangdo are the islands of Ungdo and Dando. The two islands are close to Gauido, so they're some distance from Wolgwang Island.
But.
"Could it be an anomaly?"
[That's right, it appears that the long sea route to Gauido opens due to that anomalous terrain.]
The map showed not two, but three islands between Gauido and Wolgwangdo.
That means a new island has appeared.
[Once you reach that unknown island, you can walk to Gauido, which is an inhabited island. The distance between the island and Wolgwang island is 1.5km.]
The distance has shortened considerably.
With this distance, I can see the island from the sea and swim towards it.
"There aren't any monsters in the sea, right?"
[The navy is continually checking with sonar, but no sea monsters have been found yet.]
Just because there are no underwater monsters now doesn't mean there won't be any in the future.
Flight monsters appeared suddenly, as if updated.
If I delay and underwater monsters appear, escaping Wolgwang island will become even more difficult.
'Let's first go to Gauido, then use the waypoint to return to Wolgwang island. As long as I activate the waypoint there, I can go whenever I want.’
There's no reason to refuse my father's suggestion.
Above all, Gauido is close to the mainland. It will serve as a bridgehead for a future advance onto the mainland.
‘Maybe my father wants to send me to Gauido, closer to the mainland, for that very reason.’
Once my thoughts were organized, I nodded and said,
"I'll do it."
[Even though it's my suggestion, you really need to be careful. Always keep the worst-case scenario in mind, and make sure to take emergency items in your inventory.]
"Don't worry."
[Yeah, I think you can do it.]
Once I cross the sea, I should be able to reach Gauido without much threat.
I can feel that my father has done a lot of research for me.
Still, since he cannot guarantee 100% safety in the current reality, he felt sorry for not being able to help directly.
*
The sea route to Gauido opens twice a day due to the tide, and the walkable condition lasts for about two hours.
It was only 8 hours after my call with my father that the walkable condition arrived, so I took another turn at Mongma's dungeon.
Thus, my level is now 25.
"You're not planning not to come back, are you?"
Having fought monsters all day without proper rest, I decided to go to the safe zone to relieve fatigue.
My 'Ring of Recovery' can somewhat relieve the fatigue, but the effect of the safe zone is more powerful, and when I receive healing from Willia, I become completely refreshed.
[Favorability: 28%]
I told Willia that I would leave Wolgwang Island for a while.
She seemed surprised and anxious at my words
Somehow it felt like an act, but since my words and actions could increase or decrease her favorability, I had to say nice things.
"Don't worry. Even if I go elsewhere, I'll mark a waypoint and come back. I like Wolgwang Island. I want to continue being friends with you, Willia."
"Really? That's a relief."
I don't think I'd pay this much attention even to my girlfriend.
But, well...
Talking face-to-face with Willia is fun, maybe because she's pretty.
'Succubi are pretty too, but the vibe is different.'
If succubi give off an artificial vibe, the NPC, Willia, truly feels like interacting with a real person.
Willia smiled and suddenly stroked my head.
"Your hair is soft."
As expected, a monster.
She has a knack for enchanting people.
"I went to the bathhouse."
To be precise, the purpose of going to the bathhouse was more for hydration than washing.
But it was a good idea to clean myself nonetheless.
[Willia's favorability increased by 2%.]
[Willia's favorability has reached 30%.]
Having such bonuses is nice.
"Can't it rise 5~10% all at once? At first, it seemed to be rising well, but then..."
Rome was not built in a day.
I think time will resolve my favorability with Willia.
"Please give me a Bless."
"Alright."
Before leaving Wolgwang Island, I received a buff from Willia that increased all stats by 20% for one hour.
The usage fee was 20 coins.
"You'll be fine. This is a token of support."
-Peck.
Willia, as if to cheer me up, planted a soft kiss on my cheek.
I was taken aback.
I got a peck on the cheek at 30% favorability.
So what about 50%? 80%? 100%?
A pleasant fantasy unfolds.
"I'll be back!"
I briskly left the safe zone of Wolgwang Island.
*
Swimming in the sea is different from swimming in a regular swimming pool.
In a regular swimming pool, I move forward as much as I exert strength, but in the sea, I have to overcome waves and currents to move forward.
And even if I do move forward, I will frequently lose direction.
Because the sea will push me this way and that, interfering.
"Let's start with stretching."
But I wasn't too worried.
With the effect of Bless, I had over three times the stats of an ordinary person.
[Strength: 13(+4), Agility: 15(+3), Mana: 11(+5)]
-The effect of Bless (Stats +20%) is currently applied.
I have the Ring of Recovery and quite a few potions.
"Huff, hoo..."
Most importantly, I have the trump card called inventory.
If I find myself in danger while swimming, I'll immediately pull out the large Styrofoam insulators I bought from the store's construction materials corner.
Each of them has buoyancy equivalent to a log, which makes them perfect for resting on top.
Moreover, I didn't just buy one, I filled up an inventory slot with the maximum capacity of 100.
At this point, I could practically make a small island on the sea.
It'll be an overreaction if nothing goes wrong while moving, but I think it's better to be excessive than lacking because safety is the most important thing.
"Let's go."
A distance of 1.5km.
Coincidentally the same distance as the swim in an Olympic triathlon.
I know that the athletes usually have times in the 20-minute range, but how long will it take me?
-splash, splash.
Like the middle-aged men, I entered the sea giving myself hydromassage.
And I started swimming slowly, as if warming up.
'Let's go, towards the Gauido Island.'
Even though it's probably going to be a 'Brief Escape'.
I'm quite looking forward to it.
*****
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