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Kim Guk-min couldn’t hide his flustered expression when his signature move, the [Bow Drill], failed.

Han Seo-jin, Winter, and Yuna, who had been gasping in admiration beside him, gradually grew darker in expression as time passed, and the atmosphere suddenly turned icy.

“…Are you sure you’re doing it right?”

They even began to question Kim Guk-min’s [Bow Drill].

“I can’t do this anymore, I’m exhausted… Seo-jin, you try it.”

“Yes, oppa.”

Attempting to refresh the mood by passing the baton to Han Seo-jin, she too only fumbled around for 30 minutes, making the situation even worse.

“Ugh, this is so hard! My forearms and biceps are completely fried, I can’t go on…”

“What do we do now? If we make the slower ones try, we’ll just be wasting stamina…”

“We have to keep going until it works. It’s too early to give up, right? Hey, why don’t you guys go gather some dry wood nearby? We’ll need firewood to keep the fire going once we start it.”

A comment clearly made with the camera in mind.

The mask on their faces showed a tiny, almost imperceptible crack, but Han Seo-jin’s mouth was still moving normally.

‘Do these kids not move unless told to? Is this their first time living in a community? Kids these days, seriously…’

The fact that the thoughts in his head didn’t spill out showed that the filter in his brain was still functioning properly.

“Alright, I’ll go gather some dry branches and pick any fruit I see. Yuna, come with me.”

“Sure. It’s better to stick together until we get a proper grasp of the surroundings.”

When Winter reached out her hand to Yuna, Yuna took off her jacket and followed.

“…Why are you taking off your clothes all of a sudden?”

Yuna, who had a more sensual figure compared to Winter, took off her jacket, prompting a slightly annoyed question.

Of course, it was done subtly so the cameras and audio wouldn’t pick it up.

“I thought if we find a lot, we could wrap them in the jacket and carry them like a bundle.”

“Our Yuna is so smart. You’re definitely the best at quick thinking among the members.”

Using the kind of girl-talk that implies she’s lacking in everything except quick thinking, the two headed into the forest.

“Ugh! I really can’t do this.”

“When I learned it, I succeeded in 10 minutes… Why is this happening?”

“I’d understand if there wasn’t even smoke, but there’s smoke and no fire, it’s driving me crazy.”

The fire-starting team, exhausted from their efforts and only burning through their stamina, paused for a moment.

“…Is Winter still over there?”

Yuna and Winter had gone to gather dry wood and fruit, so why were you just standing there? The unspoken pressure was palpable.

“Let me try that.”

As Kim Guk-min and Han Seo-jin pressured Jeong Gyeoul with their gazes.

Instead of following the gathering team, she jumped into the fire-starting.

Upon hearing Jeong Gyeoul’s words, Kim Guk-min and Han Seo-jin wore expressions that doubted she could do any better.

Of course, the cameras and audio would portray them as caring oppas worried about Jeong Gyeoul.

‘I was just trying to stay in the middle… Is it for real that they’re already tired after just a few minutes?’

Even Han Seo-jin, who had worked hard on her physique and was considered quite fit by entertainment industry standards, couldn’t meet Jeong Gyeoul’s standards.

The baby owls Jeong Gyeoul raised could do hundreds of squats while carrying weights over twice their body weight. Even while being crushed by telekinesis, they continued their PT routines.

The bow drill was just a toy to them; they could spin it for two or three hours without breaking a sweat.

Having trained individuals with incomparable stamina like children, it was no wonder Kim Guk-min and Han Seo-jin seemed frustrating.

Of course, it was a variety show, and they were ordinary people, so it was understandable…

But if they couldn’t start a fire, no matter what ingredients they gathered, they’d have to eat them raw.

Jeong Gyeoul, who had no intention of skipping lunch, had no choice but to step up, regardless of how troublesome it might get.

“Are you sure? This is harder than it looks.”

“Yeah, even if you’re a hero, isn’t it a bit too much for someone as young as you?”

Though it was clearly a dismissive comment.

Jeong Gyeoul didn’t even bat an eye.

“I don’t want to skip lunch.”

The moment Jeong Gyeoul grabbed the bow drill, it took less than five seconds for the two men’s expressions to change.

*Swoosh swoosh swoosh—*

As Jeong Gyeoul began pushing and pulling the bowstring, thick smoke started to rise almost instantly.

“What speed!”

“…!”

Within seconds, the wood beneath was pierced.

*Crack—*

The bow drill she had made broke, and at the same time, flames erupted.

*Whoosh—*

The dry leaves prepared to catch the embers didn’t even get a chance to be used.

“Done. Now, please keep this fire going.”

“…Uh, yeah. We’ll keep it going.”

“I’ll go look for something we can eat for lunch.”

“Okay, come back soon…”

Kim Guk-min and Han Seo-jin, their mouths agape, could only respond as their consciousness flowed.

Jeong Gyeoul, who had gone to find lunch, disappeared into the forest.

Only then did they snap out of it.

“…Heroes are heroes.”

“I know a few heroes, but I’ve never seen anyone move that fast.”

“Same here. She must be specialized in speed, a physical-type hero.”

Though she had clearly stated her base was psychic abilities, they arbitrarily decided she was a speed-specialized physical-type.

She had inherited Jeong Ha-yul’s blood, leading to a quick awakening and an A-Class rating.

Given her reputation as a broadcast-type hero trying to break into the entertainment industry through connections, they weren’t quick to acknowledge her.

But having seen what they saw, they had no choice but to rationalize that she was specialized in speed.

The image of Jeong Gyeoul in their minds was slowly changing.

About twenty minutes after Jeong Gyeoul started the fire and headed into the forest, Winter and Yuna returned.

Yuna had gathered a bundle of fruits.

Winter was carrying an armful of branches.

Spotting the fire from a distance, their faces lit up.

“Wow, amazing. You already started the fire?”

“With you two here, we really don’t have to worry about anything.”

“…You gathered a lot?”

They couldn’t bring themselves to say that Jeong Gyeoul had finished in 10 seconds and casually left while they were exhausted.

They had no choice but to steer the conversation with what Winter and Yuna had brought from the forest.

“Since it’s an untouched area, there are a lot of fruits and stuff.”

“We were looking around with fire in our eyes, hoping to catch some animals if we found any… but we didn’t see anything.”

“Wild animals on an island probably aren’t that easy to spot.”

They had permission for all activities on the island, including hunting.

Originally, filming wasn’t even allowed in this area, but…

The British Foreign Office immediately approved once they confirmed Jeong Gyeoul’s name. (Of course, the production team didn’t know this.)

Thanks to that, the cast had been informed they could hunt and gather in all directions.

Yuna and Winter had tried to find wild animals but didn’t spot a single one.

“It’s good there are so many fruits. We can manage lunch with this. Good job.”

“It would’ve been nice to find something more calorie-dense though… Sorry.”

“No, there’s nothing to apologize for. What you’ve gathered is already impressive.”

“Let’s just get used to things today and try hunting or fishing tomorrow.”

Just as a warm atmosphere was forming.

A rustling sound came from the bushes.

“What, what’s that? Who’s there? Is that you, Gyeoul?”

“The bushes are shaking too much for it to be Gyeoul… Is it a wild animal?”

Everyone stared at the bushes with frightened eyes.

Meanwhile, the two men picked up thicker branches and rocks, anything that could serve as a weapon.

“It’s me, don’t worry.”

“Ah, you scared me… Why don’t you walk where we can see you?”

“This path was faster… Should I clear the bushes later?”

As Jeong Gyeoul walked towards them, something massive followed behind her.

“Gasp! Hey! Behind you!”

“Ahhh!”

“…?”

When Jeong Gyeoul turned around, the massive thing turned with her.

“Eek! It’s following you! It’s stuck right behind you!”

“…?”

This time, she spun around, but there was nothing behind her.

“Ah… are you talking about this?”

When she raised her right hand, it became clear that the massive thing following her was now held in her grasp.

“What, what is that?”

“I’ve never seen anything like that… What is that? Is that a bird?”

“There’s something that looks like a monkey too… Ugh…”

“I caught some wild animals, but they were too small to feed everyone. So I caught a few more and tied them together. I didn’t use any magic power.”

A bundle of tails tied to heads or legs, strung together like sausages.

A grotesque sight that could almost be mistaken for a chimera.

Over a dozen wild animals tied together and dragged along—it was a sight none of them had ever seen before.

 

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