Chapter 50: Their advantage

The third day of the Wilderness Survival Examination began. The morning was filled with uncertainty.

Kael had barely finished his breakfast when Mira looked toward him.

"Kael, what are we doing today?"

Elias and Darius also turned their attention toward him.

Kael paused.

The three of them were actually waiting for his decision.

A faint smile appeared on Kael’s face. It seemed that everyone was finally starting to depend on him.

For some reason, that felt strangely refreshing.

In his previous life, whether as the original Kael or as his former self from Earth, he had always considered himself insignificant. He had spent most of his life standing on the sidelines, watching other people move forward while convincing himself that staying out of the way was the safer choice.

Back then, he had plenty of regrets.

One regret stood above all the others. He had never found the courage to do something that could have changed his future.

Kael still remembered what he had thought back then.

’I’m just a nobody.’

’Why would someone like her ever choose someone like me?’

He had treated himself like a background character in someone else’s story.

Then came the day he attended the wake of his former classmate.

She had been the kind of girl who could have easily been the main character of a romance story. Beautiful, talented, kind, and surrounded by people who naturally gravitated toward her. She had also been the girl Kael secretly liked back in high school.

He had never confessed. Not because he didn’t like her enough. If anything, it was the opposite. He had convinced himself that someone like him had no business standing beside someone like her.

’She’s out of my league.’

’Even if I confess, what am I expecting to happen?’

So he buried those feelings and moved on. At least, that was what he told himself. Then, after her death, Kael happened to read her diary. He had almost smashed his head against the wall after reading it.

’Seriously?’

If he had known earlier...

If he had simply gathered enough courage to say something...

Their future might have been completely different.

He had spent years putting her on some unreachable pedestal, treating her like the heroine of a story while viewing himself as nothing more than an extra.

But the truth was much simpler. She had just been another person. A person with fears, insecurities, hopes, and feelings. And, just like him, she had been hopelessly in love with someone who didn’t return those feelings.

The realization came far too late. That was when regret began to follow Kael everywhere. He kept thinking about all the things he could have done differently. All the words he could have said. And all the opportunities he had thrown away simply because he was afraid of making the wrong move.

’If I ever get another chance at life...’

’I’ll do things differently.’

’I’ll stop acting like my life is already written.’

Unfortunately, regret was always good at arriving after the damage had already been done. She was dead. A truck had hit her while she was crossing a pedestrian crossing.

And Kael had been left behind with nothing but memories and questions that could no longer be answered.

His biggest mistake had not been failing. It had been being content with remaining insignificant.

He had spent his life believing there were two kinds of people. The main characters and everyone else.

But the real world didn’t work that way. There was no narrator deciding who mattered. No author assigning people their roles. No invisible system telling someone, You’re just an extra, so stay in the background.

People decided their own paths. Anyone could become the main character of their own life. And anyone could choose to remain an extra.

The difference wasn’t talent.

It wasn’t luck.

Sometimes, it was simply the courage to step forward.

Those who had the courage to reach for something could change their lives.

Those who were constantly trapped by uncertainty could spend their entire lives watching from the sidelines.

Kael had been the latter.

And by the time he realized it, there was nothing he could do about it anymore. After that, the only place where he could escape those regrets was Eclipse Hearts.

Inside the game, he could be anyone he wanted.

He could become stronger. He could explore places he had never seen. And he could make choices without constantly worrying about whether he was important enough to make them.

It had been easier to live through a fictional character than to actually live his own life.

Now, however, he had been given another chance.

A second life.

A chance to rebuild his youth from the ground up.

And this time, Kael didn’t want to spend it hiding in the background. He wanted to become someone significant. Not because he needed everyone to admire him. Not because he wanted to steal someone else’s spotlight. He simply wanted to be able to look back one day and know that he had actually tried.

That was why this moment felt so different.

At first, everyone in Team 37 had been cautious around him. They had followed his suggestions because they didn’t have any better alternatives.

Kael had understood that. They weren’t exactly trusting him. They were just taking a gamble.

But now...

They were asking him what they should do. They were relying on his judgment. They were looking toward him when they needed a decision.

Kael’s smile grew slightly.

’So this is what it feels like.’

For the first time, he wasn’t standing at the edge of someone else’s story. He was actually part of it. And this time, he had no intention of wasting the opportunity.

It was strangely satisfying.

Kael cleared his throat.

"We don’t need to do anything today."

Silence followed.

Mira blinked, Elias stared at him, and Darius slowly frowned.

"What?"

Kael calmly repeated himself.

"We’re not going anywhere today."

Elias looked toward the forest.

"Uh... Kael, this is already the third day," he reminded him.

"I know," Kael replied.

"The examination lasts five days and we haven’t gathered anything valuable."

Kael smiled. "I know that too."

Elias stared at him for several seconds.

"Then why are you telling us not to go anywhere?"

Kael continued smiling.

"Because that’s exactly what we’re going to do."

Darius crossed his arms.

"That doesn’t make any sense," he said.

"It will," Kael said then pointed toward the ground beneath them. "This area has an unusually high concentration of spiritual energy. Haven’t you noticed?"

Mira looked around. Her expression gradually changed.

"Now that you mention it..."

She closed her eyes and concentrated.

A faint flow of spiritual energy moved through the surrounding air. It was subtle enough that someone unfamiliar with meditation might not notice it, but anyone who had awakened their Hero Core could feel the difference.

"The spiritual energy really is denser here," Mira said.

Elias also tried sensing it. His eyes widened slightly.

"She’s right."

Darius closed his eyes for a moment before nodding.

"I noticed it yesterday, but I thought it was because we had entered the deeper region."

"That’s part of it," Kael said. "But this place is particularly rich in spiritual energy. We should take advantage of it."

Mira understood immediately.

"You want us to cultivate our cores."

"Exactly."

The three exchanged glances.

It made sense.

They had spent most of the previous two days moving through the forest, fighting magical beasts, avoiding dangerous areas, and worrying about almost everything. Their bodies were tired even if none of them had suffered serious injuries.

Cultivating here would allow them to recover while strengthening themselves at the same time. Yet something still bothered them.

Elias scratched the back of his head.

"I understand the logic, but..."

He glanced toward Kael.

"It’s the third day, just to remind you."

Kael nodded.

"Don’t worry, I didn’t forget that," he said.

Elias looked at him and said, "While we are staying here, the other teams are gathering resources. When the examination ends, we’re probably going to be dead last."

"I know," Kael replied.

Elias frowned.

"Why do you keep saying you know?"

"Because I already considered all of that."

Darius stepped forward.

"Then you’re serious about staying here?"

"Completely serious."

Mira hesitated. She believed in him and even trusted him, but Elias was also right.

"Kael... aren’t you worried?" She said in a small voice.

"About what?" Kael asked calmly.

"That we’ll become the laughing stock of the entire first year once the examination ended."

Kael smiled.

"That won’t happen."

Elias sighed.

"You say that with way too much confidence," he said.

"Because I’m confident," Kael replied with no trace of joking.

He leaned back against one of the ancient stone pillars.

Then he continued saying, "We’re not going to waste the entire day doing nothing. We’re going to recover, cultivate, eat properly, and prepare ourselves."

Darius stared at him.

"And after that?" He asked.

Kael touched his chin.

"Hm. We’ll see."

"That isn’t much of an explanation," Darius said with an awkward mile.

"It’s enough for now."

Elias sighed.

"All right. I think you’re a weird noble, but at least you tell us about your plan."

Kael almost laughed. This guy truly deserved to be his frenemy in the group.

"Frienemy?"

Elias immediately repeated the strange word.

Kael blinked.

Had he said that aloud?

Elias narrowed his eyes.

"See? That’s a strange way to put it. I’d rather call myself your personal critic."

Kael laughed wryly.

"Whatever. Just trust me again this time."

"I trusted you, Kael," Mira said.

Her voice was low.

Kael looked at her and she quickly lowered her gaze. A faint smile appeared on Kael’s face.

"Thanks, Mira."

Darius remained silent. He stared directly into Kael’s eyes.

"Kael, I just wanted to ask you a question."

His expression was unusually serious.

"Sure. What is it?"

"Do we have a chance to place at least around twentieth in this examination?"

Mira and Elias immediately looked at Kael. They wanted to hear the answer too.

Deep down, all three of them knew their current position. Team 37 was one of the weakest teams out there. They had not collected any resources yet. They had spent most of the second day simply traveling deeper into the forest. If the examination was judged purely by resources, they had already fallen far behind. Still, each of them wanted to achieve something. Even placing somewhere below twenty would be enough to prove that they weren’t completely useless.

Kael let out a humming sound. "Hm..." He thought for a moment. "It’s not something I can answer with certainty."

The three became tense.

"But..."

Kael smiled.

"If everything goes according to plan, we can get around the top ten."

"..."

Nobody spoke.

Kael’s answer was ridiculous. With their current strength, reaching the top ten was practically like punching water. Yet there was something about the way Kael said it.

He wasn’t joking.

Darius’s expression slowly changed. A grin appeared on his face.

"All right."

He clenched his fist.

"I’ll do as you say. Just tell me what to do."

Kael nodded.

"Good."

Darius looked satisfied.

Kael then looked at the three of them.

"Before I explain, do you know the term ’law of the jungle’?"

"Of course I do!"

Elias immediately raised his voice.

"It’s an expression used to describe the ruthless way of surviving."

Mira nodded and Darius followed, "That’s right."

Kael folded his arms. "That’s basically our current situation." He looked toward the forest. "The examination isn’t simply about entering the forest and gathering resources. The objective is survival."

His expression became slightly more serious.

"And we’re now entering the most dangerous part of the examination."

Elias’s smile disappeared.

"Why?" He asked.

"Because it’s the third day,"Kael answered.

He continued. "The first day was about preparation. Everyone had enough supplies, enough stamina, and enough confidence to explore."

He raised one finger.

"The second day was when teams began going deeper and collecting valuable resources."

A second finger.

"But today is different."

His gaze swept across the three.

"Food is being consumed. Supplies are decreasing. Medical supplies are being used. Everyone has spent two days fighting magical beasts and traveling through the forest."

Darius’s expression hardened.

Kael continued.

"At this point, some teams will realize that gathering resources from the forest is becoming more difficult than taking resources from another team."

Mira’s eyes widened.

"You mean..."

"There’s a good chance teams will start targeting each other."

Silence settled over the campsite.

Kael nodded.

"Think about it. If another team has food, medicine, magical beast materials, and other valuable resources, why would they risk fighting a dangerous beast to obtain the same things?"

Elias’s expression became grim.

"They could just take it from another team."

"Exactly."

Darius touched his chin.

"I see."

His eyes narrowed.

"So this is no longer a simple examination."

Kael nodded.

"It’s becoming survival of the fittest."

Mira hesitantly asked, "So if we go out gathering resources now, another team might find us and target us?"

"That’s one possibility."

Kael didn’t tell them the real reason he wanted to stay. There was much more to it than avoiding other teams. But his teammates didn’t need to know everything yet. Knowing too much would only make them ask questions he couldn’t answer. Instead, Kael gave them a simpler explanation.

"Right now, we have something many teams are starting to lose."

Elias raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Energy."

He pointed at the three.

"We’re relatively well rested. We’ve eaten properly. None of us have suffered major injuries. Our supplies are still sufficient."

Kael smiled.

"Why throw that advantage away?"

Darius nodded slowly.

"That makes sense."

Mira also seemed to relax.

Elias sighed.

"All right. I admit it. Your plan makes sense."

Kael smiled.

"Good. Then cultivate."

The three began preparing themselves.