Chapter 36. Surviving the Harsh Winter (2)

Yuri ran quickly out of the forest, recalling the words of the one-eyed man.

"Survive for a month. Only those who stubbornly survive will shed their ‘provisional’ label and become the 50th batch."

Yuri focused on the words 'survive' and 'survive.'

'Surviving means the environment we will be in is going to be the worst possible.'

Moreover, the one-eyed man referred to this place as a 'sieve that filters out the dregs.'

Necessary items for survival, such as food, water, and others.

Would they provide all these things while filtering out people?

A snort of derision escaped her.

Furthermore, among the provisional batches, there would be no one who couldn't harness mana.

Mana itself was a miraculous power that could multiply one's survival ability several times over.

Endurance that didn't easily tire.

Resistance to hunger and cold.

Furthermore, physical abilities several times greater than those of ordinary people.

The utility of mana in extreme situations was boundless.

'With mana, one could survive a month with just ten days' worth of food and water.'

Providing survival items to people with such potential?

Could it really be called 'surviving'?

'What kind of survival is this? It's like telling us to play in the forest.'

Yuri sneered.

When she was about seven years old.

Yuri survived for years wandering the continent with nothing but her bare hands.

Spring, summer, autumn, winter. With each change of season, the heat and cold, strong sunlight, heavy rain, and snow.

Thirst, hunger, and threats from wild beasts and venomous insects.

Furthermore, the bandits lurking in every corner.

In this damned world that Yuri had experienced firsthand, 'survival' was a word used only when thrown into an extreme environment.

Providing everything needed and treating it as a camping exercise was a luxury that didn't deserve the grand word 'survival.'

'Well, if this academy was a place where young masters who had never gotten their hands dirty would attend, they might attach the word 'survival' to such trivial tasks.'

But was the Cradle really such a place?

The ones who locked the city gates without any explanation, only giving a rough outline of the rules before throwing everyone into the field?

Those unhelpful people?

Therefore, Yuri was certain that there would be no survival tools prepared by the Cradle anywhere in this forest.

Of course, there was a slim chance that the Cradle's nature might differ from her expectations.

'There's a chance, however slim, that the Cradle, which intimidates people upfront but treats them softly behind the scenes, might provide the necessary items for survival.'

But this was highly uncertain.

Therefore, Yuri had no intention of searching for survival items that might or might not exist, relying on such an uncertain probability.

Instead, she planned to provide for herself what she needed to survive.

'Survivable resources in a winter forest are limited.'

That's why Yuri entered the forest as quickly as anyone.

A winter forest waiting for spring doesn't readily give up what it has.

Even those who know the forest well can barely obtain anything with great effort.

Moreover, the amount is not abundant.

'If 500 people scour the forest at once... it will run out quickly.'

Therefore, she needed to move faster and more diligently than others to gather what she needed.

Huff.

Yuri, who was quickly traversing the forest, stopped for a moment.

Exhaling a white breath, she briefly looked back.

'I need to increase my speed.'

She needed to find a perfect hiding place to protect her from rain, snow, and wind, and stockpile food before the 500 people left behind started competing with her.

Swoosh.

Yuri took a deep breath.

Thud.

Her figure, which shot forward quickly, soon disappeared deep into the forest.

At this moment, Yuri made one mistake.

She overestimated the provisional batches.

What water to drink in the forest.

What to eat selectively.

Even how to start a fire, etc.

The so-called 'privileged kids' among the provisional batches did not have the knowledge needed for the current situation in their higher education.

Even if they had learned it, the accumulated practical experience to apply it effectively was something they couldn't gain, having lived within the confines of their families and leaving menial tasks to servants and maids.

'Still, since they made it into the Cradle, they must be different from the kids I know.'

...Yuri's thought from the beginning was a huge error.

* * *

Ten days since entering the forest.

Snow that started four days ago had turned the world completely white.

After four days of relentless blizzard, it finally stopped.

A girl was staggering through the snow, which was almost knee-deep.

Crunch, crunch.

Creak, creak.

A sword hung from her waist, swinging pitifully.

Finally, unable to bear even the swinging, the girl unsheathed the sword and leaned against a nearby tree, collapsing.

"Haa, haa..."

The girl, almost buried in the snow.

She blew warm breath onto her frozen hands.

A faint pain flashed in her eyes.

'If I could at least start a fire... I could warm up a little.'

No matter how she circulated mana to resist the cold, it was difficult to maintain it continuously.

Therefore, whenever her mana circulation paused, the penetrating cold made her yearn for the warmth of a fire.

But she didn't know how to start a fire.

Or rather, she didn't know it 'in depth and detail.'

In the books she had read, it was written that one could start a fire by striking stones together or using friction heat.

She recalled and tried it, but couldn't even produce a spark, let alone smoke.

It was a moment when she realized how precious the fireplace that warmed her room was.

And what she realized was not just the warmth of the fire.

Gurgle.

The sound of hunger from her stomach made her frown.

A hoarse, cracked voice escaped her lips.

"I'm hungry..."

When was the last time she had a proper meal?

She couldn't even remember.

Believing that survival items were hidden in the forest, she had wandered for ten days.

Today, she had forced herself to trudge through the white snow, hoping to find the survival items, but they were nowhere to be found.

'Have others found them, but I haven't? Is it just my bad luck?'

Is there really any survival items in this forest?

Such thoughts kept coming, making her head throb.

Gurgle.

The persistent sound of hunger made her voice irritable.

"Damn, what kind of forest is this?!"

It was truly a bizarre forest.

By definition, a forest should have an ecosystem.

Grass, insects or herbivores that eat it.

And predators that eat those insects and herbivores.

However, in this bizarre forest, there were no four-legged animals to be seen, even if she looked hard.

As if someone had deliberately eradicated the seeds of animals.

'If there were deer, I wouldn't be this hungry.'

But there were no deer, not even a rabbit.

All she could see were...

Squawk, squawk.

Strange birds making bizarre sounds.

Squawk.

The bird's cry, which sounded like a pig being slaughtered, made her nerves sharp. She grabbed a stone nearby but let it go.

'...Forget it. Don't waste energy.'

How many stones had she thrown at those annoying birds?

Each time, the birds would fly high into the sky as if mocking her.

Even if she could catch them, she couldn't cook them without a fire.

Gurgle.

This time, the longer sound of hunger made her look up at the tree she was leaning against.

The snow-covered branches looked like pastries with white cream on top.

She muttered to herself without realizing it.

"...Should I eat that?"

Thirst could be quenched with snow.

In this cold winter, the only thing she could chew and swallow was the leaves of coniferous trees.

Shaking her head at her own words, she thought.

'No, no!'

Who was she?

The proud heir of the great noble family, the Blanc family, Nelly Blanc.

And she was also a renowned gourmet, feared by the family's chefs.

To think that she, who could endure such hunger, would consider filling her stomach with leaves!

There was no greater shame.

"Haaa..."

Nelly's long sigh was filled with many emotions.

The joy of receiving the silver dragon token and passing the Cradle's test.

The excitement of leaving her family and heading to the Cradle.

The tension of finally boarding the famous Black Ship and seeing her competitors.

The thrill of imagining herself standing at the top of the Cradle, defeating her competitors.

The frustration of the reality she faced.

And above all, the pain of hunger that tormented her.

For a moment, she thought.

'...Would it be easier to give up?'

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she shook her head and straightened her face.

"What am I thinking!"

The thought of giving up because of mere hunger made her shudder.

Just because she had been hungry for ten days?

"Kuh!"

Nelly stood up.

She wasn't weak enough to give up at this level of trial.

She could still endure.

She just needed to find survival items or other food before her mana and strength ran out.

There was still plenty of hope.

"Let's move."

Crunch, crunch.

The sound of a noble lady stepping on the snow.

Gurgle.

The loud sound of hunger mixed in.

And this situation was not unique to Nelly Blanc.

In fact, Nelly Blanc and a few others were relatively