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When you close your eyes and let your mind wander, there are moments when a breathtakingly beautiful beach you once dreamed of visiting unfolds before you.

The pristine white sandy beach stretches out before your eyes. As you dip your feet into the soft, fine sand, you feel the cool, refreshing sensation against your skin.

Turning your head to gaze at the sea, a vivid panorama of blue hues unfolds, the most vibrant you’ve ever seen.

The water is so clear that you can see schools of colorful fish darting among the coral reefs just below the surface.

Watching the gentle waves rhythmically lap the shore, your heart feels at ease.

Along the beach, clusters of trees sway softly in the sea breeze, their leaves rustling gently. The trees provide welcome shade from the sun and serve as a sanctuary for countless exotic birds and insects.

This island, a paradise on earth, is so stunningly beautiful that it takes your breath away.

Every moment spent here feels like a moment of pure happiness.

Occasionally, that beach that existed only in my imagination unfolds before my very eyes.

“It’s insane… What kind of vibe is this? After decades in variety shows, I’ve never seen a place like this before.”

“I’ve been traveling for nothing, who knew a place like this existed?”

“Wow, it’s such a shame our members can’t see this with us.”

“…We’re filming a survival show here? Can’t we just make it a healing program instead?”

The cast’s excitement is entirely understandable.

After a while of being mesmerized by the island’s scenery, a sound snaps the cast back to reality.

“Standby, please.”

The production team announces that all cameras and equipment are set up, and filming is ready to begin.

Of course, the sub-cameras have been rolling since we got off the plane, with VJs following each cast member, so filming never really stopped.

But the moment the main cameras roll, it’s the real deal.

“You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the view for the next month. Let’s get started, shall we?”

“PD Choi, you’re really… Why not film in some remote place we’d want to escape from? How did you even find a place like this?”

“A beautiful island that anyone would fall in love with, and a survival show set there. The contrast between those two sentences is the essence of our program.”

PD Choi continues to explain the program.

The format and synopsis of the show. We’ve only heard brief snippets before, so now we need to focus on PD Choi’s explanation.

“This white sandy beach is the production team’s base camp. Everything will be controlled from here, and you’ll start your survival journey from the dense forest inland.”

“What? So we can’t enjoy the sea then?”

Han Seo-jin, an actress seemingly aiming for the title of this era’s romantic, interrupts PD Choi.

It wasn’t a question to help understand the game’s rules.

Does interrupting the PD’s explanation really help her image?

She seems meticulous but not quite.

Her goofy, scatterbrained persona seems to fit.

‘She probably improved through social interactions, but her true colors will show eventually.’

PD Choi answers Han Seo-jin’s question and smoothly adjusts the order of his explanation.

“Of course not. You’re free to go anywhere on the island. This white sandy beach with the base camp is no exception. However, we won’t be providing drinking water or snacks except during events. You can’t enter the base camp. Events here refer to special incidents we’ll announce via walkie-talkie. Rewards could include drinking water, food, or tools necessary for survival. Pass out the walkie-talkies, please.”

An assistant director steps forward to hand out walkie-talkies to each cast member, and PD Choi continues.

“First, let’s unpack, shall we?”

As Han Seo-jin mentioned on the plane, the baggage inspection begins.

Everything except necessary medications and underwear is confiscated.

“Ugh… I brought a book to read when I’m bored.”

“Do you really think you’ll have time to be bored?”

“…What do you mean? You’re not going to interfere, are you?”

“There will be no direct interference from the production team. That would ruin the show.”

Why does that sound like they won’t interfere directly but will use everything on the island to mess with us?

My guess seems somewhat accurate, as PD Choi flashes a sly smile again.

“Where exactly are we starting?”

“Good question. We put in some effort. We mapped out the island’s latitude and longitude and created a coordinate generator.”

“…Is that really necessary? Can’t you just point on a map?”

“This coordinate generator will also be used for events, so it needs to be precise.”

Thanks to Geum Yu-na’s pointless remark, we got some useful information.

They use latitude and longitude for events too.

They wouldn’t have gone through all that trouble just for convenience. If they wanted it easy, they would’ve just pointed on a map, as Geum Yu-na said.

So, it must be necessary…

‘We’ll probably get a map for the first event or for scavenging on the island.’

Calculating distances between coordinates is basic knowledge for modern people.

But… honestly, I can sense everything happening on this island by spreading my magic power for detection.

Surely they know about magic detection? They must’ve done some research if they’re including heroes in the cast…

Should I mention it or not? While I was pondering, PD Choi solved my dilemma.

“By the way, heroes, you can’t use magic. We’ll have a magic power detector at the base camp. You can only use magic for a limited time with coupons obtained from events.”

“Ah… Got it.”

Of course, a variety show veteran like him wouldn’t be that clueless.

The fact that he said ‘heroes’ means there’s definitely a hero on the opposing team too.

If you need coupons to use magic, then the events to obtain those coupons will be the fiercest battles.

Once a hero can use magic, food won’t be an issue. You can hunt animals on the island, and if there are none, just hit the sea with a bang, and stunned fish will float up.

‘Of course, I can even manage drinking water.’

If the opposing hero isn’t from the magic category, the competition won’t be balanced.

Even if they get coupons, their efficiency will be much lower than mine.

PD Choi doesn’t know I can handle all three categories.

Actually, I told him, but he didn’t believe me.

‘Whatever, I told him.’

I just hope they’ve thought of a way to handle such variables.

The explanation of the game continued.

At first, the cast seemed interested, but their focus gradually waned.

“Details are all in this booklet. You can tear it up and use it as kindling. It’s not important anyway. You don’t need to read it. Just survive well for a month.”

That’s more like it.

The booklet probably contains explanations about the game, events, and competing teams.

That’s what PD Choi has been drilling into us.

But… that’s something only the powerless would rely on.

After all, this program is about surviving on a deserted island for a month.

If your body can’t handle it, your mind will suffer.

I’ve decided to give up on using my brain.

***

“Wow… The atmosphere is completely different now that we’re inland.”

“I regret what I said earlier. I said we should film in some remote place we’d want to escape from, right? This is really a place you’d want to escape from.”

“Ugh! There are so many bugs…”

“At least we won’t run out of protein.”

“…What? You’re not suggesting we eat bugs, are you?”

It’s hard to tell if I’m serious or joking, as Winter and Yuna’s eyes dart around.

Eye darting isn’t just common in the hero industry; it’s widespread in the entertainment world too.

On the other hand, Kim Guk-min, given his age, has probably eaten fried grasshoppers and frog legs before. He doesn’t react much.

Han Seo-jin… doesn’t seem to have any thoughts.

That guy is the real problem.

I can’t tell if he’s genuinely clueless or just pretending.

“This is as far as we go. We’ll head back now.”

The assistant director in charge of guiding us leaves.

Only the cast and VJs remain.

“It’s really starting now! What should we do first, bro?”

“First, let’s start a fire. I learned a technique from a variety show before.”

“Wow! As expected! I knew I could count on you!”

“First… we need a shell for the socket, which I picked up from the white sandy beach earlier. We need a flat piece of wood for the board, a thin, long piece of wood for the drill, and a curved piece of wood for the bow.”

After searching around, we quickly gathered the materials.

‘A bow drill… It’s useful when you have nothing, but… where do we get the bowstring?’

The technique Kim Guk-min is trying to use involves a bow drill, where a curved piece of wood is connected with a string, and a thin, long piece of wood is inserted between the string. Friction is used to start a fire.

If you saw the bow back and forth, the string rotates the wood, turning it into a drill…

But without a string, it’s pointless.

How will he get a string?

I thought he might pull out some tree bark or vines, but…

Surprisingly, Kim Guk-min pulls out his shoelaces.

“Wow! Bro, I never would’ve thought of that. Shoelaces, really.”

“Amazing! With an uncle like you, surviving a month is no problem!”

That’s really clever.

Kim Guk-min seems fully qualified to be the leader of this group.

Luckily, it seems I won’t need to step up.

I’d appreciate it if you could minimize the hassle for me.

‘I’ll take care of the food.’

After all, if I’m getting food, I might as well bring a bit extra.

Kim Guk-min, having pulled out his shoelaces to everyone’s amazement, confidently assembles the bow drill.

An hour later, he still hasn’t started a fire.

“…Why isn’t this working?”

 

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