Splash...
Clatter, Clatter, clatter…
Splash...
Splash...
Clatter, Clatter, clatter
An indescribable sound echoed around me.
I could feel a cold liquid lapping against my toes.
Forcing some energy into my strangely heavy body, I opened my eyes.
The sea stretched out before me. The waves were rough, the water was cold—was this a northern sea? If this was an island survival scenario, the difficulty seemed pretty high.
I mumbled something ridiculous to myself.
First things first, I needed to get away from the water to preserve my body heat.
"Alright... here we go..."
My body felt unbearably heavy, but I pushed through with sheer willpower.
I took a moment to scan my surroundings. There were no signs of people or animals. At least I wasn't in immediate danger.
Splash...
Splash...
Clatter, Clatter, clatter
The rough waves crashed against the shore, pulling back and returning again. The sand was oddly coarse, more like a bed of rounded stones clattering against each other, creating a unique sound.
This wasn't my hometown's beach.
If anything, it reminded me of the Oyashirazu Coast in Niigata, where I once traveled.
If I really was there, maybe I could find some jade?
My thoughts were strangely carefree. Everything had happened so suddenly that the sense of urgency hadn't sunk in yet.
"I"m completely stuck, aren't i?"
I took another careful look around.
Behind me, towering cliffs stretched in three directions, sheer and vertical, with no footholds or handholds to climb.
In front of me, the sea—freezing cold, with high, powerful waves.
Judging by the position of the sun... or rather, my internal clock, it felt like evening. The sky would darken soon.
Of course, when I tasted the water before me, it was salty. No doubt about it, this was seawater.
Swimming out of here wasn't an option. The water was too cold, the waves too strong, and my body felt weak and sluggish.
"Swimming should be my last resort."
If this was high tide, then maybe I could wait for the tide to go out.
"But if this place floods completely at high tide, I'm screwed."
Crying about it wouldn't change anything, though. I needed to think logically.
As for my belongings? Nothing. No bag, no phone, no survival kit that I usually carried around. Just the clothes on my back.
Breaking rocks to make primitive tools was a fun idea in theory, but these basalt-like hard stones wouldn't be easy to crack.
Maybe if I found some quartz...
Even if I managed to make a tool, the next step would be diving into the ocean to find food—a thorny path to survival.
Then again, I wasn't even sure if I was on a survival route yet.
"I'm so tired... so sleepy..."
In the end, exhaustion won. I collapsed onto the ground.
A faint sound reached my ears, different from the crashing waves.
I opened my eyes.
It was already getting dark.
Now that I thought about it, my throat was parched.
If it was fresh water, would it be safe to drink?
My body was too sluggish for deep thinking, but I instinctively pushed aside some of the loose stones.
A small, clear spring came into view.
Water seeped from a crack in the rock, flowing gently onto the ground.
Was it safe to drink?
I scooped some up with my hand, checking for clarity and smell. No strange odor, no visible impurities.
The sight of it made my thirst unbearable.
A little should be fine.
I gave in to my thirst, cupping water in my hands and drinking.
The cool liquid seeped into my dry body. It tasted amazing.
With my thirst quenched, the exhaustion hit me again, dragging me into unconsciousness.
Hopefully, things will improve when I wake up...
With that faintly optimistic thought, I let sleep take me.
This novel has been lovingly translated by https://www.patreon.com/Jenuinez_translation