"So, now..."

Lynsandra whipped her hand out, revealing her claws. She stood in the middle of the forest pathway, the corners of her mouth hooked into a smirk until her eyes squinted.

In the blink of an eye, she disappeared from her spot, and slashes appeared across the trees in her path. The next second, countless trees tipped over with clean cuts through their trunks.

Meanwhile, Severin, who was somewhere along the shore, paused and turned toward the commotion deep in the forest. He blinked as birds scattered into the sky and the tops of trees began to fall.

"..."

Last night was a failure.

So now, they were going to make her a boat.

Lynsandra briefly watched him gather the wood he had cut and carry an axe with him. After it took him a few minutes to bring down just one tree, she told him she would bring the wood instead.

Minutes later, Lynsandra returned carrying an entire load of timber tied together with rope. Being a werewolf, hauling something ten times larger than both of them combined was no surprise. She tossed the bundle to the side, dusted off her hands, then beamed at him with her teeth fully displayed.

"Heh." Her eyes glinted proudly. "What else do we need?"

He didn’t answer immediately, noticing how utterly motivated she was to finish the job as quickly as possible.

"That is all..." he whispered, glancing at the nails and other materials. "...I think."

"You think?" Lynsandra scoffed and crossed her arms. "Hey, do you have a book on how to make boats?"

"No."

"But you know how to, right?"

"I know what they look like."

She gasped, rendered speechless. "Then how do you leave this place?"

"I don’t."

"How do you eat? I mean, where do you drink blood?" She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "The pig’s emergency food, isn’t it? ...Wait, vampires don’t like animal blood, do they?"

This time, Severin didn’t answer and had already turned his back on her.

"I’ll start with this," he said. "I already drew the model boat. You don’t have to help me."

She frowned as he picked up the materials and the first batch of wood already prepared.

"Tsk. As if I can just let you do that," she huffed, then skipped over to him. "Let me see the blueprint! I’ll help!"

Severin didn’t want her help or her company, but he sensed she wouldn’t stop bothering him if he refused. Without resistance, he handed her the drawing and began working.

It was true he didn’t have much knowledge, but during his time, he had joined a few expeditions. So he had a rough idea of how to build a ship. A boat was all she needed, and that would require less work.

Before he fully began, he glanced in her direction and caught her studying the drawing intently.

"You really can draw, huh?" she mumbled, eyes still fixed on the page. "This one’s really good."

From her perspective, this was more than just a sketch. It was a legitimate rough blueprint of what they needed to build.

Severin watched her for a moment and looked away just as she turned toward him. He began working, thinking it had been a while since he’d drawn something he didn’t immediately scratch out or crumple up.

Living alone for decades without encountering anything new, he had stopped wondering about the world. Because of that, he no longer had anything to draw. Nor did he have the energy for it.

So this was the first time in a decade he had drawn something with purpose.

*

*

*

Days later...

"Let’s go!" Lynsandra stood in the small boat they had put together while Severin stood by the shore.

She pretended to set sail as they watched a large wave roll in. If the boat could withstand that wave, she could leave the next day.

But alas...

"Go, boat, let— ack!"

As the wave hit, the boat lurched backward. Lynsandra stumbled, nearly falling, but managed to sit and hold on—only for the entire structure to collapse, its pieces swept away by the tide.

Amid the wreckage, Severin merely furrowed his brows and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"How strange," he muttered, ignoring the drowning Lynsandra. "I’m certain I applied all the fundamentals in creating a small boat like that."

It was why it had taken them days to finish it.

"Help—!"

Still ignoring her, he picked up the drawing and studied it. He had already figured out all its sides and proportions—how it was meant to look. As he examined it again, he realized he had missed a crucial part.

By then, Lynsandra had managed to drag herself onto the shore. She coughed up water, lying flat on the sand with her arms spread wide.

"..." She glared in his direction, clicking her tongue. But the man had already walked away to retrieve a pen and add something to the sketch.

Her face soured. "I’m... starting to dislike him."

Even if they weren’t close and he didn’t talk much, they had been working together. A little concern for a drowning acquaintance wouldn’t hurt.

She sighed heavily, staring up at the clear sky. "I don’t think I’m going home anytime soon," she whispered. "Should I just try swimming out of here?"

The thought lingered the entire day.

So, when the next morning rolled in, while Severin worked on yet another version of their boat, Lynsandra bid him farewell and announced she would attempt to swim off the island.

After all, she had arrived by swimming—or perhaps floating on a piece of driftwood. If she had made it here that way, surely she could leave the same way.

She left early in the morning and Severin merely nodded.

He remained by the shore, working on the boat from dawn until nightfall. When he lit a bonfire to continue, his attention drifted to the dark ocean ahead.

Turning his head, he spotted someone floating in the distance, clinging to a piece of wood.

"..."

He tilted his head, watching her drift closer, utterly exhausted. She wasn’t even swimming anymore—just floating, letting the waves carry her back to shore... if they felt generous.

Severin bit his tongue, but before he knew it, a chuckle slipped out.

Pushing himself to his feet, he waded into the water until it reached his stomach. He grabbed the wood she clung to and pulled it—and her—back to shore.

Lynsandra didn’t resist. She simply watched his back.

"Gosh..." she whimpered, shutting her eyes as she remembered how she had nearly died that day, only to end up right back where she started. A part of her hated being dragged back, but she understood now.

She couldn’t swim away from this place.

And before either of them realized it, a month had passed—filled with nothing but trial and error, Severin creating newer models for the boat... and watching Lynsandra drown a hundred times.