“It seems you’ve come to your senses. I’m glad you like my embrace, Kim Deok-Sung.”
Rin giggles while fixing the somehow loosened strings of her bikini.
What a surprise.
Did I just mistake Rin’s embrace for my mother’s?
How insane.
I want to crawl into a mouse hole right about now.
[Oh, don’t be shy, partner. You enjoyed it too, didn’t you?]
I brush off the Black Prince’s nonsense.
Enjoyed it? Who liked it?
Come to think of it, something feels off down below.
I look down.
There it is, my hefty and robust self making a grand appearance.
Why on earth am I naked?
“Ah, well, that was a necessary choice to warm your body with my body heat. I swear there’s absolutely no ulterior motive… Here, dry swimsuit and top.”
Rin hands me a completely dry swimsuit and top without a hint of water.
I hurriedly put on the swimsuit she handed me.
“I’ll help you with the top, Kim Deok-Sung.”
Rin kindly dresses me in a beach hoodie.
My mind is blank.
I need to escape from here right now…
Swipe.
Rin places her hand on my forehead.
Her cool touch against my hot forehead clears my mind.
“You still have a fever, Kim Deok-Sung.”
Rin speaks with a worried tone.
She gently strokes my head with her soft hand.
“You need to rest a bit more.”
I couldn’t respond to her words.
What she said and did reminded me of my mother on that day I caught a cold.
My mom would’ve told me to rest more when my fever wasn’t fully down.
“Y-Yeah…”
Squeeze.
Rin sweetly pulls me into a hug.
Involuntarily, my face gets buried in her chest.
A soft female form envelops me.
“Don’t get sick, Kim Deok-Sung…”
Rin’s embrace is so warm and cozy.
Her words sound so much like my mom’s that I couldn’t talk back as usual.
“And I’m sorry… for making you sick because of me…”
With her face buried in my shoulder, Rin speaks in a trembling voice.
Her body shakes. I can feel her sobbing.
Her words weren’t entirely wrong.
I caught a cold because I carried Rin when she twisted her ankle and we got caught in the rain.
I never imagined I’d catch a cold, not even as the hero.
Thanks to the cold, my head hurts.
[Partner, now’s the time to comfort the lady. Hurry up and console her.]
The Black Prince’s voice rings in my head.
Even without the Black Prince’s advice, I didn’t exactly want to blame Rin for anything.
If there’s a problem, it’s this damn light novel world that can make even a superhuman like Rin sprain her ankle.
And for some reason, right now, I didn’t want to say anything to her at all.
I didn’t want to lose the warmth and coziness I was feeling after such a long time.
“There’s no need to apologize… Just don’t worry about it.”
“Still… I’m sorry…”
“There’s no need for that.”
At that moment, as I cut her off, my stomach let out a thunderous rumble.
Since arriving on the deserted island, we had done a lot of work—setting up base camp, digging drainage ditches, and foraging for food.
It was only natural that I was getting hungry since I hadn’t eaten anything.
“Um, are you… possibly hungry, Kim Deok-Sung…?”
Hearing the stomach alarm, Rin looked at me in surprise.
I nodded.
Maybe it was because I was sick, but I had no appetite; however, I definitely needed something to satisfy my empty stomach.
“Wait a moment. I’ll make you some porridge.”
As Rin said this, she gently pulled me away from her embrace.
Is the certified cooking master Rin really going to make porridge?
Sure, the rice balls I had before weren’t terrible, but I was still worried; cooking skills don’t just disappear.
“Wait a second…”
“I will definitely make you delicious porridge with my own hands, Kim Deok-Sung!”
Just as I was about to stop her, Rin clenched her fists.
Her navy blue eyes were blazing brightly.
That only made me more anxious.
What kind of poison was she planning to cook up?
[Partner, how about you just let it slide this once? That lady was nursing you, holding you close to maintain your body heat, you know.]
The Black Prince said.
Hearing that softened my heart a bit.
Anyway, she wouldn’t listen no matter how much I tried to stop her.
It was better to just give up.
“Fine, do as you wish.”
“Got it! Kim Deok-Sung! I’ll make you look forward to it!”
With a resolute expression and a serious voice, Rin exclaimed.
Is she going off to war or something?
Rin carefully laid me down on the ground, wrapped my body snugly in a blanket like a cocoon, and then stood up to rummage through the survival backpack.
Rustle, rustle.
After searching through the backpack, Rin pulled out rice, a pot, bottled water, and a pack of flavored seaweed.
“First, let’s soak the rice in water…”
Muttering to herself about the porridge recipe, Rin filled the pot with water to soak the rice, drained it, and then added more water before placing the pot on the solid fuel lamp.
Bubble, bubble.
The sound of porridge boiling filled the air.
She better have the water ratio right.
What if she ends up cooking Han River porridge?
Watching Rin cook with a hint of anxiety, I wondered if she realized my gaze. Regardless, she was fully focused on the porridge, carefully stirring the white porridge in the pot with a spoon.
“If you just eat it, it’ll be bland, so a little salt…”
She sprinkled in some salt.
Water adjustment followed by seasoning adjustment.
I couldn’t shake my anxiety.
Honestly, I wanted to cook myself, but with my current condition, I couldn’t.
Would I end up eating unevenly seasoned porridge from the Han River?
“Since it’s starting to boil, I’ll lower the heat a bit…”
Rin decreased the flame of the solid fuel burner.
No matter how many times I looked at her earnestly preparing porridge, my anxiety didn’t fade.
‘It should at least be something edible, right?’
[Partner, that kind of remark is rude.]
Just thinking about the purple kimchi stew she made back at Imgan School still gives me chills.
There were no purple ingredients in kimchi stew, so where did that purple color even come from?
While it’s true that in animations poison dishes are often shown in green or purple, seeing it in reality was terrifying.
Thankfully, the porridge’s color looked just fine—pure white.
But I couldn’t let my guard down yet.
“…It’s ready.”
Rin wiped the sweat beads on her forehead.
Rin wipes the beads of sweat off her forehead.
She scoops up a spoonful of steaming white porridge.
Puff.
Then Rin tears open a pack of delicious kimchi and places a piece of it on the porridge.
“Hehe······.”
Rin blows on the porridge to cool it down.
Her gaze shifts toward me.
Rin’s face turns a shade of pink.
“It’s ready. It shouldn’t be hot anymore······. Ah······. Here. I, um, will feed you······.”
Normally, I would refuse, saying I could eat by myself.
But this time, I couldn’t.
When I was little.
I remembered my mom feeding me white porridge with kimchi while I was bedridden with a fever, blowing on it to cool it down.
That day, my mom, worried as she took care of me, seemed to overlap with Rin’s image.
I just couldn’t say no.
Without a word, I accepted her porridge.
The slightly bland white porridge mixed with the delicious kimchi tasted quite good.
Just like that day.
It felt like I was tasting the porridge my mom made.
My heart warmed.
Wait, did I just say it tasted good?
Food made by Rin, not Olivia or Eri?
That’s a bit surprising.
“How does it taste······? H-ha, I heard Koreans love kimchi······. So I specially prepared kimchi!”
Rin fidgets nervously, thrusting the kimchi pack towards me and squeezing her eyes shut.
Her face turns bright red.
She’s feeling insecure about her cooking skills.
Thanks to Yuji complimenting her dish as delicious, she had managed to skip any failures up to now, unlike the original version where she never made a proper dish until the end.
It’s a change I brought about.
How much has she worked to improve her cooking skills, given that her guidebook mentioned she couldn’t cook at all and had no room for improvement?
It’s surprising to see Rin, who often acted clumsy and goofy, looking different now.
“It’s okay······. It’s tasty.”
“I’m glad it suits your taste······. The Shinozaki-style bride class must be effective······. Hehe. I’ll strive harder from now on! As your future perfect housewife······.”
With that, Rin places her hand on my forehead.
“And if you need it······. I’ll be your family as much as you want······. So when you’re tired and in need, whenever you miss having a family······. You can rely on me anytime.”
She gently ruffles my hair.
A faint smile graces Rin’s lips.
“I can’t cook well······. I lack femininity······. I’m not a charming woman, but······. I understand very well what it feels like to be alone, to long for familial love. I, too, was an orphan like you······. Not truly loved in my family.”
Rin laughs.
Her words rendered me speechless.
In this world, Kim Deok-Sung is indeed an orphan.
And unexpectedly, having been thrown into this crazy light novel world, I’ve become an outsider, no different than an orphan.
Rin, who was neglected in her past family, must have shared similar feelings as mine.
“But you saved me, an outsider who was isolated from my family. So now it’s time for me to repay that favor. If you want, you can expect anything from me. My body is always yours.”
Rin giggles, placing her hand on her bouncy chest.
Her unusually maternal expression and tone, which were so different from usual, somehow poke at a corner of my heart.
They keep reminding me of the memories from my original world.
“······Yeah.”
I couldn’t deny her words.
“It didn’t exist.”
Hearing my answer, Rin laughs.
Like a mother.
She scoops another bite of porridge, blows on it, and feeds it to me.
“Phew. Now, say ah again, Kim Deok-Sung.”
I eat the porridge.
It’s delicious.
“Seeing you eat so well makes me feel full too, Kim Deok-Sung.”
She gently strokes my head and murmurs in a low voice as if resolved.
“From now on… I’ll work harder. I will definitely become your bride. I will live as Kim Rin, not Shinozaki Rin…”
Strange words spill out of her mouth.
What?
Kim Rin?
This is absurd.
You just became my first.
“Kim Rin? What on earth…”
That’s bizarre.
I can’t even wrap my head around it.
“Of course, a decent wife should take her husband’s surname. Since your last name is Kim, it’s only logical that if we marry, I would take on the name Kim Rin. Don’t you think, Kim Deok-Sung?”
Phew.
Rin smiles lightly and places her hand on her heaving chest.
She feeds me another spoonful of porridge.
‘So, if we get married, she’s saying she’ll become Kim Rin instead of making me Shinozaki Deok-Sung?’
[Whoa, that Rin girl seems pretty determined!]
The Black Prince is impressed.
It’s another matter that the clueless Association President obsessed with the Shinozaki family would never allow that, but Kim Rin?
No matter how you look at it, that’s a strange name, right?
“In Korea, couples keep their surnames, so there’s no need to change…”
I decided to correct her misunderstanding for now.
No matter how you slice it, Kim Rin just doesn’t work.
“…Still, I want to become part of the Kim family. Not just because of my desire to be a good wife, but…”
The Kim family, huh.
Does she really know that one in five people in Korea have the last name Kim?
“I want to be part of your family.”
She gives a smile full of maternal affection.
Rin gently strokes my head.
“That is…”
I’m at a loss for words.
My head has already heated up and gone blank.
I can’t become Shinozaki Deok-Sung.
I had been rejecting it until now.
But if she hits me with something this sincere, I…
“Still, wouldn’t the Association President really dislike that?”
“It doesn’t matter with my father. This is… my choice… I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine.”
Rin says with an adult-like smile.
What am I supposed to do if she says she’s fine like that?
Moreover, the current Association President is not some cold-blooded politician but a doting uncle.
At first, he might oppose, but if Rin really pushes, the chances of him reluctantly agreeing are high.
Of course, it means I’d have to take the brunt of the Association President’s wrath.
Just thinking about the nonsense of being labeled a daughter thief sends chills down my spine.
Or am I already shivering because of a cold?
I’m trembling.
[Partner, what are you thinking?]
The Black Prince asks seriously.
He doesn’t add much else, but I know what he means.
But I still can’t take responsibility for anyone in this world.
Not yet…
I haven’t found a way to take responsibility in both worlds.
Damn it.
What did I just say? I was the one who almost smashed my monitor complaining about how frustrating it was to see a light novel protagonist acting like that, but now that I’m in that situation, it’s not easy at all.
“No matter what, deciding on such an important matter without consulting the family….”
Just as I was about to change the topic, Rin places a finger on her lips.
“You don’t need to say anymore, Deok-Sung.”
For some reason, she uses just my name.
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