Wander

Lie touched my left shoulder. "Don't we have a place to stay?"

I put my finger to my chin. "Probably not. If the system wanted to place us somewhere, it would've directed us itself. But since we arrived at this village market, nothing's been said except about the phones. That means they haven't arranged a place for us. Looks like we're spending tonight in the forest."

Lie pouted and glanced around. "What, no room? Couldn't we ask someone for money?"

"No need. I developed survival skills during the island game. We can live in the forest for a while."

"That's right. You still haven't told me about that."

"There are other things we need to focus on."

"Fine, whatever you say." Lie turned her face away, acting sulky.

I began observing the people around us. "Not everyone here seems to be a prisoner. Or at least, they didn't arrive the same way we did. Maybe they came from somewhere else, or maybe they've been here from the start."

Lie nodded. "Look, there are elderly people too. The prisoners might be mixed in, or maybe we're the only prisoners here."

"You're right. There don't seem to be many people like us."

I pulled out my phone and opened the map. "The right side is labeled the Dark Forest, the left side the Bright Forest. Let's head left first."

"I agree. The dark side is definitely more dangerous."

We made our decision and began walking down the path to the left. I turned my face toward an old man selling fruit by the roadside.

"How much for this apple?"

"Ten game coins."

"I see. Good business."

Lie was watching me. When I kept walking, she quickened her pace and caught up beside me.

"Rei, what about renting a room? They're using game coins as money here."

"My game coins were wiped out because I reported what Itsuki did. How much do you have?"

Lie checked her phone. "I only have a hundred. That won't be enough, I think."

"No, it won't be enough."

"Why did you get punished anyway?"

"I made a secret deal with Itsuki. He was sending me money. Then he turned against me. I reported his illegal activity and got his authority over the dungeon revoked. But since I also benefited from what he did and I reported it late, I received punishment too."

Lie was slightly surprised. She looked at me with curious eyes. "How did you pull that off with just a report?"

"During the deal, I deliberately had him send the money in separate installments using excuses. That way, it looked like he was regularly sending game coins. I used the records as proof. The game coin transfers are automatically logged in the system."

"I see. So you took precautions in advance?"

"Yes, that's what I did."

"I learned from you and bluffed my opponent too."

"What bluff?"

"My opponent was under stress. I told him I could read his thoughts through his body language. I was actually bluffing, but he started getting even more scared."

"I see. I'm glad something you learned from me was useful."

"Yes. I want to learn more from you, Rei-kun." A faint blush appeared on Lie's face.

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"We've arrived."

On the right side of the forest entrance stood a wooden sign. It read "Bright Forest." The wood looked old.

"This place wasn't built recently."

"How can you tell?"

"Look at the sign."

Lie examined it. "Yeah, it looks old. This place might have been here for a while. Good eye, Rei."

The moment she noticed my attention to detail, her face shifted to a more serious tone. She understood she needed to pull herself together.

"Let's head a little deeper into the forest."

"Alright."

For about fifteen or twenty minutes, we explored the forest, moving deeper inside. Birds chirped around us. It was still early afternoon.

Lie noticed a sound among the bushes. She parted them. A rabbit. The moment it saw her, it hopped away.

"Rei, look! A rabbit running away! So cute!"

I remained indifferent. "Yeah."

"You've been so emotionless lately."

I heard strange giggling sounds from the left side of the forest. They were getting closer. I immediately pushed Lie into the tall grass and threw myself in as well. She understood the situation and stayed silent.

We watched the path ahead of us. Two tall goblins were walking along the right side, making strange noises. It sounded like they were speaking in their own language. After a while, they disappeared from sight. We emerged from the grass.

"Rei, did you see that? Those were goblins! It's like we're in an RPG."

"So there are interesting creatures in this area. But how is that even possible?"

"I don't know. It's like we're in another universe."

"You're right."

A notification sound came from my phone. I pulled it out and checked. It was a message notification with the title "Quest." It said our main mission was to escape from this capsule.

Lie began reasoning. "This must be the ultimate goal. They wouldn't want us to escape from such a huge area right away."

"Yes, you're right."

"Should we have followed those goblins?"

"No. That would have been dangerous. Besides, they were probably heading to their own home. There could be dangerous creatures around. Let's head back."

"Alright. We'll buy food with your game coins, then find somewhere to sleep."

We made our decision and turned back along the forest path. Just as we entered the village again, we suddenly ran into Haru.

"Haru? When did you get here?"

Haru seemed surprised to see me. "Senpai, hey."

Lie cut in. "Rei, do you know him?"

"Yes. He's dangerous."

"Senpai, don't say that. What do you mean, dangerous?" Haru was smiling sweetly.

I realized that despite everything that had happened, he still wanted to maintain his mask. I didn't want to push it.

"Haru, have you gathered any information about this place?"

"Not much, senpai. But game coins are valid here, and one of the ways to earn money is by playing games with people, I think. When I turned right from the center and then left, I saw a guide building."

"I saw that game coins work here too, but I didn't know about the other thing you mentioned. Thanks."

I didn't fully want to believe Haru's information, but what he said made sense, and he seemed honest. Was he trying to look good in front of Lie?

"Anyway, senpai. I rented a room, so I'm heading there."

"See you."

"See you, senpai." Haru quickly disappeared from sight.

Lie watched him as he walked away. "He looks like an innocent kid. Are you sure he's dangerous?"

"Yes. He wanted to blow up the entire island."

"That kid?"

"Yes. I don't really know why he plays so dirty, but don't be fooled by those sweet manners. If he tries to talk to you, let me know, okay? We need to be careful around him."

"Alright. I'll tell you."

One hour earlier, in another village where Akari was.

Haru hurled the stone in his hand to the ground in anger. "Akari, are you stupid? Why did you help Rei?"

Akari thought for a moment, then answered. "Yes, I hated him. But even after everything I did to him, he still saw me as a person. I think that softened me. Because of what I went through in the past, I always thought he would look down on me. But he never treated me that way. That's why I helped him—it was in my own interest too."

Akari was struggling to find the words as she poured out her feelings. It was clear she had difficulty finishing the sentence.

"But I haven't fully softened. I just helped him."

"What, you believed a couple of lies?"

"They weren't completely lies. I knew he wanted to use me to some extent. But I also knew they weren't entirely lies."

"How did you know?"

"After our first conversation, I found three exploded areas some time later. The explosion sites were connected to each other. That's how I understood someone had dismantled them deliberately rather than triggering them. You didn't try to blow up the island back then. The only person besides you who would think of that is Rei. After that conversation, I realized Rei had given up on what he was planning to do. That's how I knew his words weren't completely lies."

"What? Rei was planning to blow up the island?"

"That's what it looked like. After our conversation, he gave up on it."

"I see. So we weren't the only wolves after all." Haru turned around and started walking toward the forest. "Anyway, since you're his half-ally now, I'll move forward on my own path."

"Haru, where are you going?"

"To the village where Rei is."

"How do you know Rei is there?"

"I just know. Don't push it. I won't be convinced."

"Why are you going near him?"

"I'm not afraid of him, okay? I don't need to stay away from him."

Akari let out a deep sigh. She turned around and started walking back toward her village. "Do whatever you want."