The wind stopped, and the spotlight's beam flickered on the ground a few times before slowly settling down. Chen Hao was still leaning against the rock, the biscuit crumbs in his hand falling onto his trouser leg, but he didn't take a picture.

Carl rolled over, the bandage on his ankle loosening slightly. He reached out to tug, but the bandage clenched in pain. Susan's eyes were closed, her breathing deeper than before, as if she were asleep.

Nana sat in the corner, the outer shell of the machine emitting a slight hum. Her eyes were bright, but her body remained still, with only her fingers occasionally tapping the terminal screen.

"The temperature is 6.9," she said.

Chen Hao looked up. "It's alright."

“The cooling module is operating at 83 percent load,” she added. “I recommend minimizing movement.”

"I'll just walk slower tomorrow," he said, looking down at his shoes. There was a tear in the toe, revealing the yellowed top of his socks.

No one responded.

After a while, Carl sat up and took out the remaining compressed biscuits from his backpack. The bag was deformed from being crushed. He tore open a corner, smelled it, and frowned.

"This doesn't taste right." He broke the biscuit open; the inside was black, and the edges were covered in white mold.

"Let me see." Susan opened her eyes and tried to get up.

"Don't move." Chen Hao pressed down on her shoulder. "Lie down."

He took the cookie, squeezed it, and the crumbs crumbled into powder. "It's ruined."

Carl rummaged through another bag and pulled out a bag of dehydrated meals. The seal was broken, and the rice inside had clumped together; it crumbled at the slightest touch.

"This bag is ruined too." He threw it on the ground.

Nana slid over to them, extended her scanning arm, and aimed it at the two packages. "Mold spore activity was detected at 12 times the standard; consumption is not recommended."

"What about the others?" Chen Hao asked.

She continued scanning. The third package, the fourth package... out of the seven packages of food, three were intact, and four were damp or damaged.

"The edible portion contains approximately 12,000 calories," she said. "Based on the basal metabolic rate of four people, that's enough to sustain them for 36 hours."

"How long will it take us to get back to base?" Carl asked.

“Normally it takes 48 hours,” she said. “But if there are terrain obstacles, it could take up to 60 hours.”

"So, if we eat this, we'll be hungry halfway through the journey?" Karl raised his voice.

“From the 36th hour onwards, the probability of cognitive decline rises to 71%,” she said.

Chen Hao stared at her. "Speak like a human being."

“You’ll start making stupid mistakes,” she said.

Carl chuckled. "Isn't that just like usual?"

No one laughed along.

He looked down at the moldy biscuit in his hand, slowly stuffed it into the empty tin can, closed the lid, and set it aside.

Susan said, "Could we eat less? Eat less and walk more."

Nana pulled up the data, "If a rationing system is implemented, the daily intake per person will be reduced to 1,200 calories, which can be extended to 42 hours."

"Six hours?" Chen Hao shook his head. "What's the use of saving six hours if you can't walk anymore?"

“Then we’ll just have to speed things up,” Carl said. “Let’s set off earlier and get on the road.”

"How long can your legs hold up?" Chen Hao glanced at him.

"I can endure it."

“You walk with a limp and need someone to help you,” Chen Hao said. “When you’re actually on the road, you’re the one who’s holding us back.”

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Karl raised his voice again.

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t care.” Chen Hao leaned back against the rock. “But it’s dark now, and we can’t see anything outside. We can only wait tonight.”

"Wait?" Karl sneered. "Wait for the food to grow on its own?"

“Shut up,” Susan suddenly said.

Both of them were stunned.

She closed her eyes, her hand resting on her neck brace. "Arguing won't help. If something's broken, it's broken. Arguing won't make the food any more abundant."

Carl opened his mouth, but in the end he threw his backpack aside and turned his back to lie down.

The camp fell silent.

Nana returned to her original position, her indicator lights dimly lit. She brought up the nutrition consumption model and marked "food shortage" as a level two risk in the database.

Chen Hao stared at the pile of edible food on the ground—two packs of compressed biscuits, a bag of beef jerky, and half a bottle of vitamin tablets. He reached for a bottle of water, shook it, and took a sip.

"Was there any trace of plants or animals in this place before?" he suddenly asked.

Nana looked up. "What?"

"I said, have any animals walked around here? Or trees, grass, or anything like that?"

“Yes,” she said. “Monitoring records show that small rodent activity and moss growth areas were detected three days ago.”

“That means there are living things,” Chen Hao said.

“Theoretically, it could be used as a food source,” she said, “but without testing, there is a risk of poisoning.”

“I know,” Chen Hao said. “Let’s not talk about that now.”

"Then why are you asking?" a voice came from behind Karl.

"Just thinking about it." Chen Hao put the water bottle back. "We'll talk about tomorrow's problems tomorrow."

Carl didn't say anything more.

Susan had her eyes closed and was breathing steadily, as if she were asleep. Chen Hao looked at her for a while, then looked at Nana.

How much electricity do you have left?

“Forty-five percent,” she said. “Low power mode lasts for ten hours.”

“That should be enough,” he said. “Can you lead the way tomorrow morning?”

“Yes,” she said. “The route has been redesigned to avoid the landslide area.”

"Okay." He nodded, then reached out and rubbed his thigh, his muscles aching terribly.

Nana suddenly said, "The fatigue index of your right leg's third muscle group is too high. I suggest you lie flat and rest for at least four hours."

“I know,” he said, “but I’m more comfortable sitting here.”

"This isn't a matter of comfort."

“That’s my problem,” Chen Hao grinned. “You’re a machine, you’re arithmetic. I’m a person, I can sit however I want.”

Nana didn't say anything more.

The wind blew again, and the lamplight flickered. Chen Hao looked down and saw that his fingernails were full of mud, and his cuff was torn.

He remembered how, back at the base, he could take a hot shower and change into clean clothes after every mission. Now, he had to be careful even with his water.

"You mean..." He looked up at Nana, "that we can really go back this time?"

Nana looked at him, her eyes unchanged.

“Yes,” she said.

"What if we can't get back?"

"Then let's keep going until we can't go any further."

Chen Hao chuckled, "You're saying the same thing as me."

"I'm just stating the facts."

"Okay." He leaned back and closed his eyes.

A few minutes later, he heard Carl whisper, "I'm hungry."

No one responded.

Susan was asleep, her breathing even. Nana's data panel glowed green in the dark, the temperature monitoring line jumping steadily.

Chen Hao opened his eyes and stared at the crack at the top of the rock wall. A sliver of moonlight shone in, reflecting off the metal support and casting a thin, bright line.

He sat up straight and pulled a flat metal box from the bottom of his backpack. He opened it; inside was the last piece of chocolate, the wrapper crumpled but not torn.

He looked at Susan, then at Carl, and finally broke it into four small pieces.

He kept one for himself and handed over the remaining three.

Nana shook her head. "I don't need it."

"Here you go," he said. "It's not for you to eat. It's for you to keep for me. I'm afraid I'll sneak a bite in the middle of the night."

Nana paused for two seconds, took the chocolate, and put it into the storage slot on the side of her arm.

Carl took a piece, but didn't eat it right away; he held it in his hand. Susan woke up, took it from him, and softly said thank you.

Chen Hao put the piece in his mouth and chewed it slowly. It was very mildly sweet and a little damp, but when he swallowed it, he felt a warm sensation in his stomach.

"The first thing to do tomorrow morning," he said, "is to inventory all the backpacks, pick out all the broken ones, and sort the usable ones."

"And then?" Carl asked.

“Then we’ll see how it goes,” he said. “If it’s really not enough, we’ll have to find a way to get more supplies.”

"Where should we look?" Carl asked.

"I don't know," Chen Hao said. "But since there are rats here, there must be other things to eat."

"You don't want to catch mice, do you?" Karl glared.

"If there's really no other way, I'll eat roasted rats," Chen Hao said. "It's better than starving to death."

“Weren’t you always terrified of mice?” Susan asked, her eyes wide.

"I'm more afraid of being hungry now," Chen Hao said. "I'm much more afraid of being hungry than of rats."

Nana suddenly said, "According to historical records, you once refused to eat in the cafeteria for three days because a cockroach crawled on your plate."

“That was a hygiene issue,” Chen Hao said. “Now it’s a survival issue. It’s different.”

“The logic holds true,” she said.

Carl sighed. "You guys talk, I'm going to sleep."

He rolled over and lay face down, still holding the chocolate in his hand, without eating it.

Susan closed her eyes and gently touched the edge of the neck brace with her fingers.

Chen Hao remained seated. He looked at Nana. "You just said there was moss?"

“Yes,” she said, “in the rock crevice on the east side, in the area with higher humidity.”

"If things can grow there, does that mean there are some nutrients in the soil?"

“It’s possible,” she said, “but we can’t confirm whether it’s suitable for human consumption.”

"Make a note of this," he said. "If there really is no way out, we'll have to give it a try."

Nana nodded, "The item has been entered into the database."

Chen Hao finally lay down and rolled his coat into a pillow. He closed his eyes and listened to the wind outside the camp.

After some time, he heard Nana whisper, "The temperature has risen to seven degrees."

He didn't open his eyes, and said, "I understand."

"The load on the cooling module has increased."

Be careful on the road tomorrow.

"clear."

He couldn't sleep again.

My mind was completely consumed by thoughts of food. How long would a biscuit last? How should we share a sip of water? If we really ran out of food, who should stop first?

He opened his eyes and saw that Nana was still in the same spot, her eyes shining like two inextinguishable little lamps.

"Have you always been like this?" he asked.

"What?"

"It doesn't sleep, it just keeps watching us."

"I am monitoring the environment and vital signs," she said.

Aren't you tired?

"I don't need to rest."

“That’s great,” he said. “No hunger, no pain, no fear.”

“But I remember you were afraid,” she said. “And I remember you were hungry.”

Chen Hao was stunned for a moment.

He wanted to laugh, but couldn't.

The distant mountain shadows were dark, and only the dim light of the lamps illuminated the campsite. He watched as the chocolate wrapper swayed gently in the wind and stuck to the edge of Karl's shoe.