Chapter 3
After the interview, one of Mister Rich's friends asked him,
"Are you really putting that little kid in?"
Another man laughed like the idea was absurd.
"Sure, she's a cute little shorty. But this is deserted-island content. Even healthy grown men can barely tough it out, so her..."
Mister Rich didn't answer.
His friends thought to themselves.
'Ah, he's completely fixated on Reels.'
Mister Rich had good instincts.
The people around him knew that better than anyone.
After all, he was the one who'd turned a YouTube channel into the biggest in the country.
Whatever caught his interest became a smash hit.
Whether it was a person or a piece of content.
Leaning back in his chair, Mister Rich lifted his phone.
He hadn't even uploaded the video yet, and the community response was already explosive.
Sensational content always landed well with today's dopamine-starved masses.
The corners of Mister Rich's mouth slowly curled up.
Just then, the man beside him asked,
"But will that kid be okay?"
Mister Rich gave an easy shrug.
"No idea."
"...What?"
"It just seems fun on stream."
"Damn. You evil bastard."
The whole room filled with laughter.
As if he'd just remembered something, Mister Rich snapped his fingers.
"Ah."
"What?"
"Add one more notice for the participants."
"What is it?"
Mister Rich flashed a grin.
"As for what they can bring to the deserted island."
Then he raised a single finger.
"Only one item."
"...."
"No matter what it is, they're allowed to carry exactly one thing."
The interview room fell silent.
Mister Rich giggled and went on.
"They can buy whatever else they need through the on-site system anyway."
"You mean the donation system?"
"Yeah."
For every 1 million won in donations, they could buy 10,000 won worth of supplies.
Exchange rate: 100:1.
If a streamer didn't spend the donations, the money would be paid out to them after taxes.
What would a person choose in that situation?
Would they give up the money?
Would they abandon their humanity?
Or would they give up on the content itself?
He couldn't wait to see.
Mister Rich was that kind of person.
And he was certain.
The most popular participant in this project
wouldn't be a famous streamer.
Wouldn't be a musclebound gym rat.
Wouldn't be some big-name girl streamer, either.
"...Reels."
That tiny girl
was going to make this project explode.
@
"Hmm...."
I had one more thing to worry about.
Lying facedown on my bed, I stared at my phone screen.
"Baby, what should I bring?"
※ Participants may carry only one personal item.
I propped my chin on my hand with a grave expression.
One personal item.
Only one.
Which meant
I had to cover every survival need with that single item.
"Mmm...."
Honestly, for sheer versatility, a knife was the best.
You could whittle wood with it and hunt with it.
You could process food with it too.
In real survival, a knife was practically a lifeline.
But.
"Firesteel is insanely important too."
Fire.
The most important element in survival.
Boiling water, maintaining body temperature, cooking.
Even a bit of bug control.
It even helped keep your morale up.
Without a firesteel, who knew how many hours it would take to start a fire.
I rolled back and forth on top of the blanket.
"Haaah."
This was a tough choice.
Baby slowly crawled up onto my stomach.
Heavy.
When did he get this fat?
He looked like he weighed a good eight kilos.
With a blank expression, I stroked his back.
"...Baby."
Those yellow eyes stared right at me.
"What do you think you'd bring?"
Of course, there was no answer.
He just flicked his tongue.
"...A knife?"
Flick.
"Firesteel?"
Flick.
"Both?"
Flick.
"That's cheating."
I sighed and looked up at the ceiling.
Honestly,
I had felt totally at ease right up until the interview.
I'd acted all cool, talking about going empty-handed and all that, but now that it was actually becoming real, the worry was starting to creep in.
Could I really do this well?
Maybe theory and reality were different.
Could I even pull it off in this body to begin with?
Those kinds of worries.
Still, shouldn't a knife and a firesteel count as a set?
"...Wait."
Slowly, I turned my head and looked at Baby sprawled across my stomach.
A savannah monitor.
A solid, hefty body.
Yellow eyes.
That limp posture.
Even the valiant little tongue flicks.
"...."
Carefully, I reread the notice on my phone.
【Participants may carry only one personal item.】
It didn't say living creatures were forbidden.
"...Huh?"
My heartbeat quickened a little.
I shot upright.
"Baby."
I held his head with a serious expression.
"You."
Flick.
"Want to go to a deserted island with me?"
Baby only stuck his tongue out lazily.
Now that I thought about it, lizards were surprisingly useful.
He could eat any bugs that came near and take care of them.
He could even serve as a lookout.
And emotionally, he'd keep me steady too.
If I went to a deserted island alone, I might get lonely.
If Baby was with me, I wouldn't be as bored.
"...."
And most importantly of all,
he was cute.
"This could work."
A knife?
Firesteel?
Of course those were both extremely important in survival.
But.
"I can't say no to Baby."
The most important thing in survival was your mental state.
And for morale, nothing beat a cute lizard.
I immediately grabbed my phone.
Then I typed a message into the participant inquiry chat.
—By any chance, do living animals also count as personal items?
A little later,
a reply came.
—...Pardon? Uh, I suppose so? One moment... We've never gotten a question like this before.
"Yup."
—There is no problem under the rules.
"...Whoa."
My heart started pounding.
It was really possible?
I immediately scooped Baby up.
"Baby."
Flick.
"We're going to a deserted island! You're excited too, right?"
Baby still looked like he had no idea what was going on.
But that didn't matter.
If his owner was going, what could he do about it?
When I said go, he went.
I'd already made up my mind.
No knife.
No firesteel.
Just my bare hands.
And one pet lizard.
@
Mister Rich.
30 million YouTube subscribers.
An average of 5 million views per video.
A walking conglomerate.
A livestream went up on that channel.
【14-Day Deserted Island Survival Project】
Only ten minutes after the broadcast began,
the live viewer count had already blown past 100,000.
The chat was flying by like mad.
-He's here lol
-Who's gonna cry this time
-Fourteen days is gonna be brutal
-Can't wait to see the girl streamers have mental breakdowns
-That sadistic bastard Mister Rich is at it again lol
-The contestant lineup looked good though
A little later,
a familiar face appeared on screen.
Mister Rich stepped onscreen in a crisp shirt.
Wearing his trademark friendly smile, he greeted the viewers.
"Hello, everyone."
The chat sped up even more.
-Kyaaaaah
-Hyung!!!!
-You came to work people to the bone again today
-Look at that smile, demon bastard lol
-But this one actually has me hyped
Mister Rich smoothly kept talking, still smiling.
"Today, we'll be revealing the personal items the contestants will be taking to the deserted island. As you all know, for this project."
He raised one finger.
"Only one personal item is allowed."
-Lmao, that's basically telling them to go die
-They can't even pack underwear
-What a sadist
-What if this turns into an actual documentary lol
-I'd bring a lighter
-It's obviously a knife, morons
The first contestant was revealed.
A musclebound gym-streamer.
He held up a large survival knife.
"A knife is the foundation of survival. It's essential for hunting and for cutting vines too."
-Oh
-Knife makes sense
-It really is essential for survival
-Boring
-Dipshit, quit calling it boring, they have to last two weeks
Next contestant.
A camping-specialist streamer.
"I'm bringing firesteel. The most important thing in survival is fire."
He continued in a serious tone.
"A deserted island will have big temperature swings between day and night, so maintaining body temperature will matter."
-That makes sense too
-Without fire you're in for hell
-Boring
-Kick the idiots spamming boring
-Honestly, isn't it knife vs. fire?
-I'd probably bring a water filter
Everything revealed so far had been within expectations.
Knives.
Firesteel.
Water filters.
Fishing rods.
All of them were items the viewers had expected.
Then,
Mister Rich smiled meaningfully.
"But the next contestant is a bit unusual."
-Oh?
-What is it
-New face?
-Heart's pounding
-Who is it?
Mister Rich went on with a grin.
"She's the youngest participant this time. She's only twenty."
-Oh
-That is pretty young
-Twenty isn't that young though
-By Mister Rich standards, that's a baby
-Who is it, show us already
Mister Rich let out a small snort of laughter.
"But if you see her in person, you'll be even more surprised."
The moment he finished speaking, the shot changed, and a gray hoodie filled the screen.
Drooping sleeves.
Huge Crocs dragging across the floor.
And then,
a tiny frame buried inside the hoodie.
-...?
-What's with that little kid
-Lmao
-A whole-ass child just showed up
-You're sending that to a deserted island?
-Mister Rich finally crossed the line. Messing with a minor now? Hope you get canceled lol
The camera slowly rose to her face.
Gentle, drooping eyes.
Soft-looking white skin.
A dazed expression.
Onscreen was a young girl who would make anyone's protective instincts kick in.
-Holy shit, she looks crazy young
-She really does look super young
-That girl's supposed to survive on a deserted island?
-She looks so babyyyy
-But damn, she is cute as hell. I want a daughter like that
And then,
something wriggled at the girl's feet.
A giant savannah monitor.
-?????
-Oh, shit
-What's with the lizard lol
-That's creepy as hell;;
-What the hell is that lol
Holding back laughter, Mister Rich asked,
"What item will Reels-nim be bringing?"
The girl called Reels grabbed the lizard crawling on the floor in one small hand and lifted it up.
Then she brought it closer to the camera.
The lizard's smooth scales filled the camera lens.
"Baby."
"Baby, as in...?"
"That's the name of my pet lizard."
The rapidly scrolling chat froze for a moment.
And then,
the chat exploded.