CHAPTER 68: PURPLE SEA

"This planet’s ecosystem really is different..." she murmured, admiring the wall’s texture.

She continued until the fence surrounded her hut in a neat oval. It wasn’t very high, just up to her chest, but strong enough to deter small beasts. She even left a small section near the front for a makeshift gate. Using leftover bamboo poles, she built a simple frame tied together with fiber ropes. She fitted it with a latch made from curved branches.

When she stepped back to look at her handiwork, she smiled faintly. The once-bare clearing was now a small homestead, tidy and secure. For the first time since she arrived on Planet Rhino, she felt something close to peace.

That evening, she lit a small fire in her stone pit and sat cross-legged beside it, roasting the remaining vegetables she had gathered earlier. Her bamboo hut glowed softly under the starlit sky, casting dancing shadows through the gaps in the fence.

The drone that followed her hovered quietly above, recording everything. Millions across the galaxy watched in fascination as the lone girl built civilization from scratch. Many of them had never seen anyone live so efficiently, so naturally, on a hostile planet like Rhino. Some began calling her "the Wild Architect" on Starnet forums. Others joked that she was building a second Earth.

Ahce, of course, knew none of this. She was too focused on surviving the next week.

A week later, with her home fully completed, Ahce decided to expand her resources. Her small stockpile of meat and vegetables was running low, and she needed more variety in her diet.

Ever since she arrived, she had heard faint roaring sounds at night from the east, the direction where the wind smelled faintly of salt. She suspected that the sea wasn’t too far. The idea of fresh fish made her mouth water.

"I need protein. And salt," she muttered, tightening her belt as she prepared to leave.

She tied her long hair into a bun, slung her saber across her back, and packed a simple set of tools, a sharp stone knife, her bamboo spear, and a woven basket. Then she took a few long bamboo poles from her hut’s wall corner.

"If I can’t find fish, I’ll at least find crabs or shellfish."

The drone followed as she walked through the forest. The terrain sloped downward, the air becoming thicker and more humid with every step. The trees gradually thinned until she could see sunlight reflecting off what looked like a glittering sheet of glass.

When she reached the coast, her breath caught.

The sea stretched endlessly before her, vast and iridescent. But unlike the blue seas she remembered on Earth, this one shimmered in shifting hues, violet, silver, and faint green, as if infused with luminescent minerals. The waves made no crashing sound. Instead, they hummed with a faint resonance that vibrated in her chest.

Ahce crouched near the shoreline, touching the water with her fingers. It was cold, cleaner than any she’d seen before. She noticed translucent creatures drifting beneath the surface, fish-like beings with crystalline fins and glowing patterns on their bodies. Some looked harmless, but others emitted faint sparks of light, suggesting electrical energy.

She smiled softly. "So this is the sea of Planet Rhino..."

The viewers on Starnet erupted with comments.

[She finally found the sea!]

[What’s she doing with the bamboo poles?]

[Wait, is she gonna fish?]

Unaware of the live chatter, Ahce began working efficiently. She tied the bamboo poles together using fiber rope and crafted a simple fishing spear with a sharpened tip. Then, using small vines and a few worms she had dug up near the shore, she made a makeshift fishing rod.

Her first attempts failed. Fish here were faster than those on Earth, darting away in blurs of light. But after several tries, she adapted her rhythm, predicting their movement patterns. Her patience paid off when a medium-sized silvery fish jumped straight into her spear’s reach. With one swift strike, she skewered it cleanly.

It wriggled and shimmered like liquid mercury, its scales reflecting the sunlight.

"Well, dinner is settled," she said with a grin.

She continued along the rocky edge of the shore, occasionally spotting crab-like creatures scuttling between tide pools. They were far larger than Earth crabs, each the size of a melon, but surprisingly docile. She caught three and placed them carefully in her basket.

The drone zoomed in as she crouched beside the water, cleaning the fish and crabs with swift, practiced motions. Her hands were steady, her eyes sharp. To the audience, she looked like a character out of an old survival epic, graceful, composed, yet undeniably human.

As the sun began to dip toward the horizon, Ahce decided to head back. The sea wind tugged at her hair, carrying the faint scent of salt and something sweet. She paused once to watch the moon rise over the water, faintly red. For a moment, she thought of Earth again, the blue skies, the familiar waves, and a quiet ache filled her chest.

But she shook it off. There was no going back.

When she returned to her camp, she set up a small stone pit and began preparing the meal. She used one of the bamboo poles as a grill and started roasting the fish over a slow flame. The crabs, she steamed using a makeshift clay pot she’d crafted days ago. The aroma soon filled the air, smoky, salty, rich.

Far above, the drone transmitted not just the visuals but the sound and even the scent profile through sensory simulators. Across the galaxy, people tuned in just to experience the smell of her cooking.

[Is that a real fish? Where did she get it?]

[I can smell it! This is insane!]

[The Wild Architect is now a Chef too!]

Ahce, completely unaware of her rising stardom, hummed softly as she ate under the stars. The roasted fish melted in her mouth, sweet and tender, with just a hint of smokiness. The crabs were delicious too, their shells easy to crack. She leaned back against the fence she had built, looking up at the moon again.

"This place is strange," she whispered to herself. "But... it feels alive."

And somewhere far away, on the other end of the galaxy, Eros Arthur Yin, her unknown fiancé, sat in silence in front of his holographic screen, watching the same view she admired. He didn’t realize he’d been watching her for hours.

But when she smiled faintly, illuminated by the firelight and starlight alike, something in his chest shifted ever so slightly, an unfamiliar warmth beneath the cold armor of duty. The broadcast ended for the night, but Ahce’s legend was only beginning.