Harem Survival System: Stranded On An Island With Beautiful Women
Chapter 42: Nina’s Perspective

Chapter 42: Nina’s Perspective

The rock had lightly tapped against her leg, not hard enough to hurt, but enough to catch her attention.

She looked down at it, then up at him.

Her expression was unreadable at first. But then, something strange happened.

She smiled.

Not the usual smirk she wore when she was teasing him, nor the smug, knowing look she had when she thought she was one step ahead.

No, this was different. Softer. Almost... warm.

Lucas’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

What the hell?

Of all people, why was Nina smiling at him like that?

He barely had time to process before a more alarming thought crossed his mind. Her system stats.

His gaze flickered slightly above her head, and sure enough, the floating numbers were there.

[Affection: 50]

[Trust: 63]

[Lust: 40]

His chest tightened slightly. That... wasn’t normal.

The last time he had checked, Nina’s Affection bar had been nowhere near that high.

Her Trust? Even lower.

And her Lust? It wasn’t much, but 40 was still a lot for someone like her.

What the fuck had happened?

Had he missed something?

Nina tilted her head slightly. "You’re staring."

Lucas snapped out of his daze, quickly schooling his features into something more neutral. "You were in the way."

She let out a quiet chuckle. "Oh? My bad, then."

That was weird.

Before he could think too hard about it, Nina gestured toward a large rock nearby.

"Come sit," she said. "I wanna talk."

Lucas hesitated for only a second before sighing and doing as she asked.

He sat down on the rock, resting his arms on his knees as he glanced up at her.

She didn’t sit beside him. Instead, she stood in front of him, looking down at his hands.

And then, to his surprise, she reached out and took them into her own.

Her fingers were gentle as they traced over his palms, her brows furrowing slightly.

Lucas tensed. "What are you doing?"

"You should be more careful," she muttered.

Lucas looked down at his own hands and finally understood what she meant. His palms were rough, creased with marks from gripping the axe for hours.

There were even a few dried cuts from where the wood had splintered against his skin.

They hurt, but he hadn’t really noticed until now.

Nina sighed softly. "Idiot."

Lucas raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"You could’ve wrapped them up," she said, ignoring his tone. "Or at least washed them properly after working."

Lucas shrugged. "Didn’t think about it."

"That’s the problem." She shook her head, still holding his hands. "You don’t think about these things. You just keep pushing forward until you break."

There was something in her voice that made Lucas pause.

Something... genuine.

Nina wasn’t usually the type to act like this. She was sarcastic, blunt, sometimes outright rude.

But right now, she wasn’t teasing him, wasn’t making some backhanded comment just to get a reaction.

She was just... worried.

Lucas swallowed, unsure of what to say. He wasn’t used to people looking at him like that.

"...It’s not a big deal," he muttered after a moment.

Nina gave him a pointed look. "You say that now, but if your hands get worse, you’re gonna regret it."

Lucas rolled his eyes, pulling his hands back. "Alright, mom."

Nina smirked at that, but there was still something soft in her gaze. "Someone has to be."

Lucas blinked.

He hadn’t expected that answer.

For a moment, there was silence.

Then, before things could get too weird, Nina took a step back and crossed her arms.

"Anyway," she said, her usual confidence returning. "I was actually gonna talk to you about something else, but we got sidetracked."

Lucas tilted his head. "What is it?"

There weren’t any others nearby, so Nina sat down beside him, close enough that he could faintly catch her scent.

It was... floral? He wasn’t sure. It wasn’t overpowering like perfume, just natural.

Something subtle that reminded him of fresh air after rainfall or the lingering fragrance of wildflowers.

He shook the thought out of his head as Nina turned to him with a serious expression.

"I wanted to talk to you about the rafts," she started.

Lucas kept his face neutral.

He already knew what had happened — Mia had told him about the figures she saw in the night, the muffled voices, and the moment she’d been spotted before running back to her tent.

But he wasn’t about to reveal that.

"What about them?" he asked, keeping his tone casual.

Nina’s gaze sharpened slightly. "There’s no way it was an animal."

Lucas feigned mild interest, raising an eyebrow. "Oh?"

She nodded. "I know that’s what some people are saying, but it doesn’t make sense. No animal would destroy them that cleanly, and then go back to the forest,"

She made air quotes while saying the last part.

Lucas hummed in thought. "And you think someone did it on purpose?"

"I don’t just think," Nina said, lowering her voice. "I know."

He let her continue.

"At first, I wasn’t sure who it could’ve been. But after thinking about it, there’s only one person that makes sense..." She glanced around as if making sure no one else was eavesdropping before leaning in slightly. "Brian."

Lucas kept his expression controlled. "The guy staying with the teachers?"

She nodded. "Think about it. He’s the only one who hasn’t really been with us. He’s always near the teachers, and he never does any of the work. And the way he acts... it’s like he doesn’t really care about what happens to the rest of us."

Lucas had to admit, she made some good points.

Brian was an odd case — one of the students, yet not quite a part of their group ever since he came back from the forest.

Always hanging around the teachers, but not in a way that seemed natural. He didn’t talk much, didn’t participate in any of the labor, and was almost too comfortable in the situation they were all stuck in.

Well one couldn’t blame him after everything he had been through, but still though, that wasn’t an excuse for not cutting down wood!