While others seek survival, I engage in flirtation Chapter 3: Another Beauty

From that noise, it was pretty clear there was a bear around, and a big one at that. I had to be super careful as I made my way deeper into the thicket, trying to find the herbs I needed as quickly as possible.

I stumbled forward, feeling around on the ground, and soon enough, I found what I was looking for.

It was a small Moonshadow Herb. Pretty common in most places, but despite that, it was a great hemostatic agent.

All you had to do was crush it and slap it on a wound, and it would stop the bleeding and reduce inflammation.

I carefully picked the Moonshadow Herb and headed back to Margaret.

"What are you doing?" she asked, looking a bit surprised at the herbs in my hand.

"This is Moonshadow Herb. It helps with inflammation and stops bleeding," I explained, spreading out the leaves I had just picked. Then, I popped the herb into my mouth and chewed it until it turned into a pulp, which I spat onto the leaves.

And just like that, I had a Moonshadow Herb poultice.

"Hold still, this might sting a bit," I said, pressing on Margaret's knee. I used the little fresh water we had to clean her wound, which was full of sand and gravel. She winced in pain but stayed still.

Seeing her expression, I could tell how much it hurt. But to save her leg, I had to do this.

After cleaning the wound, I applied the leaf with the herb pulp to it. She cried out in pain a couple of times and gently gripped my arm.

I let her hold the leaf on her wound and tore my own clothes into strips to bandage it.

"Alright, that should do it," I said, helping Margaret stand up.

"Wow! How do you know so much?" she asked, feeling better and able to walk slowly.

I told her about my uncle's farm and how I used to play there. Behind the farm was a big mountain, and since I loved adventures, my uncle often took me camping there and, along the way, taught me about these wild herbs.

Margaret walked a few steps, holding onto a tree to make sure the bandage was secure, then nodded at me.

I was about to find a spot to set up a campfire for the night when we heard howling from the thicket again. Both Margaret and I knew it was dangerous to stay here, so we quickly sped up to leave.

But things got complicated. After the beast's howling, we heard a woman's scream.

It sounded terrified and intermittent. I wanted to leave, but I couldn't just ignore it.

"Margaret, wait here for a moment. I'll go check," I said, exchanging a glance with her. She looked nervous too, clearly worried about the person in trouble.

I had her sit down and ventured into the thicket again. I figured the roar was from that bear. Using a stick to push aside the branches, I went deeper and saw a bear squatting under a tree, with a woman hanging from it.

Her clothes were tangled in the branches, making it impossible for her to come down. She was covering her mouth, not making any noise, which kept the bear from noticing her.

I recognized the woman; she was my classmate, Aimee Davis. We didn't interact much, but she was pretty and had a lively personality.

I carefully scoped out the situation, trying to figure out a way to save her. Bears don't have great eyesight, so as long as she stayed quiet, the bear wouldn't notice her, giving me some time to come up with a plan.

"Carl! Save me!" She saw me and suddenly cried out, her voice trembling with fear.

I cursed under my breath, 'Damn it! What is she doing? Her voice is definitely going to attract the bear!'

'Bears can climb trees! If it gets angry, even being up there won't keep her safe! Is she trying to get herself killed?'

I motioned for her to be quiet, then rummaged through my bag and pulled out some jerky.

Honestly, this was one of the few bits of food I had left, and I wasn't thrilled about giving it to the bear.

But desperate times call for desperate measures, and to save Aimee, I had to do it.

I used the jerky to tap on a rock, making some noise, and shouted at the bear. Sure enough, the bear turned! My hand was shaking as I held the jerky, but I managed to throw the pieces to the side of the bear.

The bear, drawn by the smell, went for the jerky, and I took the chance to climb up the tree from the other side.

Aimee was terrified, and when she saw me, she lunged at me. But her clothes were caught in the branches, keeping her stuck.

"What do we do now?" Aimee asked anxiously, glancing down at the bear.

I shook my head and whispered in her ear that we had to wait for the bear to leave. Since we were both up in the tree, I naturally got close to her.

Her body was pressed against mine, her chest against me. After hearing what I said, Aimee looked at our position, her cheeks flushed, and she raised her fist to hit me.

In my current state, these girls were no match for me. Even though I still looked skinny, my strength was on a whole different level.

I grabbed her wrist, stopping her from moving, and pressed her against the tree trunk, whispering, "We've got to stay quiet until the bear leaves, or it will tear us apart!"

Her clothes were already in tatters, her skin exposed, and her legs straddling the tree trunk, making for a very sexy scene.

Anyone would take a second look, and I was no exception.

Aimee might have been scared by me; her body suddenly tensed up, and she nodded stiffly.

After finishing the jerky, the bear didn't find any more food and soon wandered off.

When it was time to get Aimee down from the tree, I realized a problem. Her clothes were caught in the branches, so she had to leave them behind to get back on the ground.

I told her to take off her clothes, but she immediately got angry and demanded to know why.

"Take a good look at your clothes; they're tangled in the branches and won't come down." I tugged at the fabric, making the leaves rustle, "This is a deserted island; no one cares what you're wearing. Surviving is the most important thing."

Aimee thought for a moment and agreed with me. But she was still embarrassed and insisted I turn around before she took off her outer clothes.

Finally, I helped her down from the tree, only to be slapped in the face by Aimee!