Snow-white seagulls lined up and flew across the blue sky in groups. The waves, swept up by the sea breeze, repeatedly beat against the beach with tireless energy.
"Unknown seas, unknown islands," Loya sighed, panting as he weakly sat on the beach.
He had just run around the entire island, exhausted himself, and come to a conclusion: if this wasn't some elaborate prank, then he really had crossed into another world.
The half-buried cup of instant noodles under his feet was proof.
Loya was originally just a small-time clerk, a recent graduate working hard every day. During the rare May Day holiday, he'd bought bread, instant noodles, and soda, ready to spend the night gaming with his teammates. Just as he reached for the power button with his cup of noodles, he blacked out.
When he regained consciousness, he found himself standing on a golden sandy beach, the cup of ham-flavored noodles still in his hand. But instead of the hot, cramped air of his tiny rental filled with the smells of sweat, smoke, and food, a fresh, salty sea breeze blew past him.
In that moment, Loya was stunned. The sudden change left him frozen until the noodles fell from his hands, and hot water scalded his foot, snapping him back to reality.
Driven by fear and anxiety, he sprinted around the island, hoping to find someone and figure out his situation. But he was disappointed to discover this small island was truly uninhabited—not even as large as the old housing area where he rented. All he could see was an endless blue sea. This was a real, isolated island.
...
Sitting on the hot sand, Loya shifted uncomfortably and finally staggered to his feet, heading for the shade of a nearby coconut tree.
"Did I really... travel to another world?" he murmured, looking down at his old, rubber flip-flops.
He had no idea where he was, but judging by how things typically went in stories, it was definitely not his original world. All the familiar people and things from his old life were gone. The memories and regrets of the past no longer had anything to do with him.
Suddenly, he felt a pang of frustration. "You've gotta be kidding me! I had plans to raid dungeons with my friends today, 25 hours straight! My paycheck was coming in the day after tomorrow! Couldn't they have waited just a few more days?"
Just then, he paused, realizing his stomach was growling. He hadn't even eaten dinner yet. Looking up at the coconuts hanging from the tree, he swallowed hard, his eyes full of determination.
"I refuse to starve!"
Not sure what creatures might lurk in the depths of the island, he decided against exploring further. Removing his T-shirt, he stretched it out, but the fabric was still too short to reach the coconuts. After a moment of thought, he removed his pants as well, leaving himself in just his boxers. He had once seen a tree-climbing method on a survival show and decided to try it, looping his belt around the tree to help him climb.
"Alright... let's do this!" he muttered, tossing his flip-flops aside and grabbing hold of the trunk, using his legs for stability.
But as he tried to move the belt higher, he heard a loud tear. His well-worn jeans ripped from the seams, and he almost fell backward. Luckily, he managed to regain his grip just in time, but he decided that tree-climbing wasn't going to work and slid down to the ground.
Still determined, Loya noticed a few pebbles at the base of the tree. Recalling that the coconuts seemed loosely attached, he picked up two stones and took aim.
"Alright, let's do this... go, Stone Missile!"
With a hard throw, the stone hit its target. A split second later, a water-stained, green coconut shell fell from above. Loya caught it, staring at it in amazement.
"This... is a coconut?"
He looked up and saw that one of the smaller coconuts he'd been aiming at was gone. A jagged scratch on the remaining coconuts marked where his stone had hit, as if he had thrown a bullet instead.
"When did I get so strong? Or... is gravity here just weaker?" he wondered, puzzled.
Ignoring the oddity for now, he cracked open the coconut and drank its refreshing water, easing the heat and his thirst. But coconut water alone wasn't enough. Hunger gnawed at him, and he began scraping out the coconut flesh with his fingers.
Curiously, the flesh came off easily, as if it were soft cream. "Am I just super strong now... or is this some strange coconut species?" he wondered.
After devouring about a dozen coconuts, Loya leaned back against the tree, feeling full and ready for a nap. With his immediate needs met, he began to reflect on the changes in his body.
Thinking back to how he'd sprinted around the island without tiring, he realized how extraordinary it was. This was easily several kilometers—a distance he could never have managed in his old life without collapsing.
"Could this be... the 'golden finger' power that travelers get?" he mused, hiccuping from the coconuts.
Most young people these days have read online novels, and Loya was no exception. Back in school, he'd often daydreamed about crossing over to another world and acquiring a unique power—a "golden finger" like the Sharingan, a Zanpakuto, or even a Devil Fruit.
At that moment, a transparent blue panel suddenly appeared in the air before him. Loya blinked, thinking he was imagining things, but when he rubbed his eyes and looked again, the panel was still there!
"This is... my golden finger?"
All at once, his drowsiness vanished, replaced by a rush of excitement. But as he read the text at the top of the panel, his expression froze, and he murmured aloud in shock.
"Ice... Dragon Slayer... Mage!"