Some people only glanced at each other slightly and immediately understood, ready to join hands.
However, Seoryeong was ignored as if she were **invisible**.
Even though she sent pleading gazes, everyone passed by as if nothing had happened—or even deliberately avoided her eyes. The wet clothes began to draw away body heat, making her body colder with each passing second.
What was supposed to be just a regular exercise had become a **crucial moment** where every second counted.
Until finally, a team member fainted.
The instructors, who were standing by, immediately carried the unconscious person to an emergency cot.
"People like that should be expelled."
Lee Wooshin said it coldly, tapping his neck with the megaphone.
"Failure in diving, hypothermia, fractures due to exhaustion, internal illness, panic—all of those are reasons for expulsion."
"……!"
"Anyone who can't endure and quits halfway, we consider **useless**. We are not gradually training soldiers. We are selecting people who are ready for immediate use."
The team members looked at each other for a moment before focusing back on their ties.
Seoryeong, who seemed to have no place, finally started helping a confused teammate.
"Not there—move down two centimeters more!"
Although this unexpected advice made them furrow their brows, due to the urgent situation, they obeyed without much question.
"Insert it between the wrists, pull all the way through!"
"Ah… this one? In this gap?"
"That's right! Pull harder—**harder!**"
Finally, the person who managed to untie themselves quickly helped their partner. They used their freed hands to untie their ankle restraints and stood up.
Seoryeong watched them with relief.
"Well, after you're helped, help untie me too…"
"S-sorry…"
"What?"
"It's so cold…" The teammate's voice trembled violently. "It feels like I'm going to **die**…"
"……"
"Just go back. Staying here could really kill you."
They ran back to the rooms with pale faces.
Seoryeong could only stare at them in despair.
_Not asking them to worry about going back—just asking them to untie my hands!_
Seoryeong bit her lip so hard it almost broke. Her hands, red from the cold, ached as if her skin would tear, yet sometimes she felt **nothing at all**. She could no longer distinguish whether she felt cold or pain, or if her body was still alright.
While the other team members who had untied themselves shouted in difficulty as they ran back to the rooms, only a few people remained on the beach.
"Only the first four survivors. The rest are out."
Lee Wooshin, who seemed to have been observing what Seoryeong was doing from the beginning, smiled smugly.
_He must be crazy!_
The bad thing was that the number of people was odd, making her the **only one** left behind.
Seoryeong stared at the dark night sky with only the stars visible. Although cold vapor kept coming out of her mouth, seeing the stars made her feel a little better.
_All this suffering was to reach those stars._
Seoryeong didn't feel disappointed or angry at being left behind. She knew this was a problem she had to solve **herself**.
She took a deep breath, then moved her hands behind her as far as possible.
Anyone who saw it might have thought it was a special demonstration of ability, but this was a movement she had practiced when she was a gymnast—to do something forbidden.
Looking at the rope that bound her, fortunately there was enough slack.
She slowly opened her elbows as wide as possible and raised her hands above her head. At a certain point, she had to rotate her shoulders.
"——!"
Someone looked at her with a surprised expression.
Although there was a loud **cracking sound** from her shoulder, fortunately nothing came loose. It seemed that increasing age made muscles and ligaments less flexible than before.
Nevertheless, rotating her tied hands behind her body 180 degrees wasn't difficult.
A terrifying creaking sound was heard around her, but she had no time to pay attention.
Now, Seoryeong slowly pulled the rope with her teeth, as if using a spoon to sip soup, while observing the others who were untying themselves.
_This wasn't that difficult._
"Ha…"
Finally, Seoryeong managed to untie her hands and feet. She propped herself up to stand with a slight wobble.
_If I had known it could be this easy, I wouldn't have wasted time on such useless things…!_
The wind that had previously felt like vicious claws now felt **refreshing** for the first time. Taking one step amidst everyone made her feel very good—especially when she passed the pale-faced Lee Wooshin.
"She…"
It seemed he wanted to say something, but Seoryeong was more focused on her trembling body.
---
## — The Bathroom —
She ran toward the bathroom in a hurry, but upon arriving, she found that her team had already taken off their clothes and were claiming spots under the showers with hot water flowing strongly.
Inside the bathroom, filled with steam from the hot water spreading throughout the room, Seoryeong paused for a moment at the door.
"Are you going to stand there freezing to death?"
"……!"
Suddenly, a thick blanket was thrown over her head.
"Team member Han Seoryeong, follow me."
"What?"
"Otherwise, you'll have to wait until the others finish showering, with that pale face of yours."
"……"
Seoryeong bit her lip and tried to stop herself from trembling.
"Are you hesitating, or are you peeking at them?"
"That's **not** what I meant."
Because her nose kept running, Seoryeong finally followed him.
After walking to the next building, she found a private room different from the team's shared quarters. Lee Wooshin opened the door naturally and guided Seoryeong through the living room and kitchen, then pushed her into the bathroom.
"From now on, use this bathroom."
"Where is this?"
"My private room."
"……"
Seoryeong paused for a moment, thinking she might have entered the wrong place.
Lee Wooshin asked with a shameless face.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't want to talk to someone who asks 'what's wrong?'"
"Then what **do** you want to do with me?"
"I want to work under your command."
Suddenly, hot water poured out without warning.
She shrugged from the cold. Lee Wooshin adjusted the water temperature to be warmer, but because her body was too cold, even the warm water felt like an **attack**. The pain from the hot water felt like ice breaking off her body.
As Seoryeong stood still under the water, Lee Wooshin began to massage her hands.
"……!"
When Seoryeong tried to pull her hand away, he instead increased the pressure even more.
"Relax your body. Your body is already too cold."
"That has nothing to do with the instructor."
"If you keep standing like that, you'll be soaking wet all night and will feel uncomfortable."
"……!"
"Or do you want to sleep here?"
Although slightly annoyed, the words were true.
Seoryeong finally gave in and offered her hand, even though she was displeased. Lee Wooshin massaged the tired spots as if he knew **exactly** where they were.
The warm steam spreading throughout her cold body slowly dispelled the chill.
Lee Wooshin's hands, massaging from her arms to her shoulders, examined her veins very carefully. Although Seoryeong was skilled in massage, Lee Wooshin's ability was still **outstanding**.
As the tense muscles were skillfully released, the previously cold skin slowly warmed up. She sighed lightly in comfort, and her eyes slowly began to close.
After closing her eyes, she suddenly remembered her husband.
When she and Kim Hyeon went to the market together, people often praised: _"Your husband looks very trustworthy!"_
However, for Lee Wooshin—he looked arrogant, like someone who didn't care about others, even making those around him feel **pressured**. The word "handsome" for him was just a brief and ordinary description.
Although their appearances were very different, why did it feel like they had met before?
"Wake up. Open your eyes."
"……!"
A cold voice cut through her thoughts immediately.
"When in front of the instructor, you are **not allowed** to close your eyes."
Suddenly, Seoryeong woke up again.
The sound of water falling from the shower like a waterfall was heard again.
_Did I fall asleep?_
Seoryeong immediately washed her face.
"Sorry… I'm sorry."
The water falling on her neck and chest made her skin feel hot. She shook her head vigorously, as if trying to shake off the drowsiness, and swept her long hair up.
Because he reprimanded her just in time, her wandering thoughts stopped.
_Before my thoughts become stranger, I have to finish this shower quickly._
Seoryeong spoke in a clear tone to make him leave.
"Instructor, I want to finish showering soon. Are you going to stand here any longer?"
However, he replied in an unexpected way.
"How much are you hiding from your husband?"
"…Why are you talking about that **now**?"
Seoryeong looked at him with a wary gaze.
Suddenly, Lee Wooshin turned off the shower calmly.
_What is this…?_
Seoryeong coughed lightly and looked at him in surprise, but Lee Wooshin still kept his hand on the shower control knob, his expression unreadable.
The steam swirled around them, thick and heavy.
Water dripped from Seoryeong's hair, trailing down her face like tears she refused to shed.
And in the sudden silence—broken only by the faint echo of drops hitting tile—the air between them grew **dangerously still**.