Hideout in Another World: I Tried Building a Secret Base in the Middle of Nowhere

Chapter 2: Wilderness

How much time has passed since then?

What happened, where am I, and what should I do from now on?

Despite having various questions, I was so dumbfounded that I couldn’t think of anything anymore.

The sun is rising. Is it morning now?

The ground I’m sitting on feels cool, but the sunlight is intense.

It’s very quiet here.

Other than the sound of the wind, I can hardly hear anything.

Occasionally, I can hear the cries of birds resembling pheasants from a distance.

For a while, I gazed blankly at the wastefully grand wilderness spread out before me and saw the distant terrain undulating like waves.

I squinted my eyes and observed for a while.

Ah… that’s probably… a snake.

Since it’s quite far away and there’s nothing to compare its size with, I can’t grasp the scale very well.

However, even with a conservative estimate, it’s probably about a meter in diameter and 20 meters long.

It’s so large that every time the snake moves, it looks like the ground is undulating.

And it has eight eyes on one side.

At first glance, it looks like an eight-eyed eel, but it seems like all of them have eyeballs and are moving.

It’s creepy.

I even doubt if it’s really a snake anymore.

However, if that thing comes here, I probably think I’ll die.

“I still don’t want to die after all…”

Until now, I hadn’t even had the energy to consider my situation, but suddenly my mind switched to practical thinking.

It seems that I can’t switch on unless I’m pushed to the brink even in this situation.

As I stood up, I realized I was sweating profusely.

The sun has risen considerably without me realizing it.

It seems like I’ve been daydreaming for a long time.

First, I hurriedly took off my jacket and stuffed it into my bag, which was still hanging on my shoulder.

Anyway, I need to find a place to hide.

The only things in this wilderness that seem like they could conceal me are… rocks or plants.

However, there are only a few plants like cacti or olives scattered around, and they seem unreliable for hiding.

There are hardly any places nearby where I could hide except in the direction where there are no pseudo-snakes.

The only place I can see in the distance is a tiny rocky area.

The vast wilderness confuses the sense of scale.

It’s difficult to judge how far away it is and how big it is, making me feel anxious.

I’m uncertain about both water and food.

There’s only a little tea left in my water bottle… and some snacks.

Sooner or later, I might die anyway.

But at least it’s better than staying here like this.

What should I do with this damn heavy bag?

I’m torn about whether to take it with me.

Even if I have construction drawings for a water treatment plant with me now, I don’t think it would make sense.

However, I doubt I’ll ever get my hands on them again if I throw them away now.

Thinking like that, I can’t help but feel regret.

Because I really don’t have anything now.

“I don’t have anything else to take in its place… As long as I have the strength, I’ll take it with me.”

“Painful…”

I’ve been walking for about three hours, and it’s just painful.

To begin with, I’m not confident in my physical strength.

I take care of my health because I’m of a certain age.

I consciously walk a fair amount every day and go to the gym twice a week.

Thanks to that, my belly has shrunk.

However, my body is fundamentally only used to desk work.

I quickly became exhausted.

In addition to being extremely hot, it’s also dry.

The sunlight is harsh, but this is the first time I’ve experienced such dry air.

My body is suffering from this dryness.

I should be sweating a lot, but it evaporates instantly.

My skin and throat are stinging.

The tea in the water bottle ran out quite a while ago.

Maybe I should look for water rather than a hiding place at this rate.

At this rate, I might die of heatstroke or dehydration first.

Above all, no matter how much I walk, I don’t feel like I’m getting any closer to the rocky area at all.

“I’m anxious…”

Is it really okay to continue like this?

I try hanging my jacket over my head to use as shade.

“Huh… What’s this? Surprisingly cool…”

It was something I should have realized three hours ago.

Just by blocking the sunlight, the heat seems to have improved considerably.

With this, I might still be able to proceed somehow.

“I’ll hang in there a little longer…”

I think I walked for another hour.

Yet that small rocky area doesn’t seem to be getting any closer at all.

“What the hell is going on… This isn’t right…”

I aimed for a small rocky area that was supposed to be a little further away.

But in reality, it seems to have been a considerably distant large rocky area.

If this is the case, I might have been better off being eaten by a snake or something.

I’m on the verge of breaking down and crying out dangerously.

The calm part of me that is barely left manages to hold it back.

Panicking here will lead to death.

And standing still here will definitely lead to death.

The only thing I can do now is just keep moving my feet.

Walking is the only thing that keeps alive the possibility of survival.

And somehow, the situation seems so unbearable that it’s starting to make me laugh.

I feel a bit lighter now.

“I can’t go any further…”

I’ve finally reached the point where I can’t walk anymore.

Of course, I’ve long since reached my physical limit.

Still, I’ve been moving forward like a zombie.

However, what’s currently the problem isn’t physical.

In front of me appeared a circular depression about two kilometers in diameter.

It’s more than 30 meters deep and surrounded by sheer rock walls.

Because of this huge crater-like terrain, I can’t go any further.

Inside the crater, unlike the scenery I’ve seen so far, plants are lushly growing.

I can hear various bird and animal noises.

And most importantly, there was a water source in the center of the crater.

Although trees are obstructing the view and I can’t accurately gauge the size or condition, I can clearly see the water surface reflecting the sunlight.

“Ugh… Ahh…”

I almost screamed, but my throat is so dry that I can’t speak properly.

“Ah, it’s good that I walked… I’m saved… Thank you, God, somehow…”

Even though I shouldn’t have any faith, such feelings overwhelm me.

I cried a little for the first time in a while.

…It’s a waste of water.

Now, I’ve managed to find a water source.

However, if I can’t descend, I’ll still be in trouble.

Should I look for a place where I can descend quickly?

Should I go clockwise or counterclockwise?

Calculating, it’s probably about six kilometers around, so either way is fine.

“Alright, let’s go clockwise!”

The correct answer was counterclockwise.

From the initial arrival point, there was a crack in the rock wall on the left side, about less than a meter wide.

The crack, although narrow, was deep, and had a shape that seemed easy to penetrate.

Using the rough rock surface as a handhold, I slowly descended with my hands and feet braced against the rock wall inside the crack.

It’s about as high as a ten-story building, so looking down makes me dizzy.

However, there are many handholds and footholds, making it easy to descend.

Urged on by thirst, I surprisingly easily reached the bottom of the crater.

“Climbing back up might be a bit tough.”

By the way, I searched for a place where I could descend, and I almost circled the crater, but it wasn’t in vain.

That’s because the water source seems to be a popular spot around here, and I saw various creatures.

However, the creatures I saw were so huge and completely different from the animals I know.

There was a creature covered in jet-black fur like a tapir, and a muscular, red deer-like creature, butting heads and competing for the water source.

Every time the two bus-sized creatures butt heads, a loud impact echoes through the wilderness.

After butting heads, the deer-like creature breathes fire from its nose and acts aggressively.

The two creatures had a skirmish while drinking water for a while, but ultimately, the tapir-like creature was dragged into the water by a crocodile-like creature that seemed to be about 20 meters long, and the fight ended.

…Will I really be able to get water?

After arriving at the bottom of the crater, I hide in the shade of the plants and head towards the lake.

I managed to sneak my way to the nearest bushes from the lake.

But it seems the lake is still a popular spot.

A large orange hippo is arguing with the crocodile-like creature from earlier.

How did the hippo manage to get into the crater?

After a while of intimidation, the hippo seemed to give up.

It flapped its wings and flew away.

I thought there was something slimy like a piece of fish cake stuck on its back, but were those wings?

“I want water…”

Even my skin and lips are getting parched.

Somehow, my hands have been shaking non-stop since a while ago.

This might already be serious dehydration.

Still, despite glaring at the lake, I don’t step out of the bushes.

Basically, there always seems to be some giant creature at the lake.

Every one of them is spreading hostility around, just raging relentlessly.

It’s too dangerous.

Despite the water being right in front of me, I can’t go drink it.

The sun is gradually setting.

“I guess that’s it.”

I’m starting to feel like I could almost befriend the oryx-like creature drinking water.

Oryxes are herbivores.

Maybe even if I approached, it would just mind its own business and keep drinking water.

If it works out, maybe a friendship could sprout between me and this giant creature.

It seems quite intelligent at first glance.

If so, maybe I could ride on its back and move around easily.

“Should I leave already?”

As I consider this with a careless attitude, the oryx-like creature suddenly turns its head towards me.

It starts snorting fire from its nose and sniffing.

It’s no good… I still can’t be friendly with these creatures.

At least from its eyes, I can only feel madness.

It seems to have noticed me and is on alert, so I’d better move away.

Approaching it would only result in getting headbutted to death.

After waiting this long, I’ve come this far, I’ll just… wait until nightfall.

“It’s tough…”

The sun has completely set.

I was worried about what would happen if nocturnal creatures gathered in large numbers, but it’s been over 30 minutes since the last creature appeared.

So far, there’s no sign of anything appearing.

My throat is just sore now, and I’m not sure if I’m thirsty anymore.

“…Alright, let’s go.”

My head hurts and my body feels heavy.

Various parts of my body feel strange due to the limit of exhaustion.

Still, my trembling legs start running towards the lake on their own.

The more unsteady I become, the more my body is drawn towards the lake.

I’m tempted to just jump into the lake, but I manage to hold back at the last moment.

I cautiously reach out and scoop up some water.

I’m not sure if the water is clean since it’s dark, but I put it in my mouth.

It doesn’t taste like anything special.

I swallow it down.

“Ugh…”

Suddenly, my body feels like it’s coming back to life.

The world, which had been black and white until now, regained its colors, and I noticed that it was getting colder outside.

I want to gulp down more water like this, but quietly, as quietly as possible, I scoop up and drink the water several times with my trembling hands.

For now, feeling somewhat relieved, I decide to return to where I was before.

When I return to the bushes where I was before and look back at the lake, I see that the water surface I drank from earlier is slightly shaking.

It seems that it’s not unconditionally safe even at night.

Maybe I was just lucky earlier.

It seems like it’s just right to be overly cautious here.

Although I felt a sense of accomplishment from drinking water, I regained my composure.

The motivation for my actions up to this point may have been quite careless, but in terms of behavior, I think I was quite cautious.

It’s because of my easygoing and cowardly nature, but I feel like I was saved by it today.

But still, there were just too many things happening today.

I haven’t been able to sort out a single situation.

My body is exhausted to the limit, but my head feels clearer than during the day.

“Well, it’s probably just an illusion…”

Even though I’ve managed to calm down a bit, there have been too many shocking events, so my brain is probably still excited.

Still, thanks to drinking water, I’m starting to feel a bit more relaxed.

If I can’t relax to some extent, my fatigue won’t recover, and I’ll make more mistakes in judgment.

Right now, anyway, it’s important to rest my mind and body even just a little.

As a change of pace, I look up at the night sky, and what an incredible starry sky I see.

There’s no light on the ground, and there are no clouds, moon, or anything else obstructing the light in the sky.

Maybe that’s why the number of visible stars is completely different.

I was impressed by the starry sky I saw when I climbed a mountain in the past, but the night sky I’m seeing now feels incomparably more beautiful.

But I don’t recognize a single constellation.

“After all… this isn’t the universe I know.”

What on earth happened at that pedestrian crossing at that time?

Did I fall into another world?

Or did the world change in that split second?

If so, my current self should be different, but my memories are continuous.

Perhaps, I’ve already become another me, including the memories I think are continuous.

Well, there’s no end to that kind of talk.

So, well, in the end, all I can do is just accept the situation as usual.

Rather, the premonition I’ve had since I was a child has finally come true, giving me a strange sense of satisfaction.

Even in this situation, I can’t help but think, “See, I knew it.”

“But even so, …what should I do from now on?”

For a while, I rested my body like that and lay down, looking up at the night sky.

The nights in this world are truly quiet.

I can only hear the sound of the wind flowing.

With so many plants, there should normally be a lot of diverse insects as well.

However, I can’t hear any insect calls at all.

But it seems that small animals are active.

I can see several small rabbit-like creatures hopping near the lake.

It’s been about 3 hours since the sun set.

I wonder if small creatures become more active at night.

Anyway, unlike during the day, it’s getting much colder.

Camping in this environment would be really bad.

The night wind is steadily taking away the heat from my body.

Anyway, I should find a place where I can shelter from the wind, even just the wind.

However, I have no idea what’s lurking where.

There are too many possible risks, which is discouraging.

For now, I should go back to the crack I first came down from and, worst-case scenario, sleep wedged between the rocks.

Returning to the rock wall and examining it, I found a suitable hollow in the crack.

It’s surprisingly high up.

It seems like I might get injured if I fall, but I’m unlikely to be bothered by insects or small animals.

Entering it, the ceiling is low, but the depth is unexpectedly wide.

Maybe because it’s surrounded on three sides, I somehow feel calm.

No, I can’t resist the urge to sleep when lying down, should I sleep?

Before falling asleep, with a fuzzy head, I think about random things.

Come to think of it, what was my name again?

…Well, whatever.