Episode 39 – Miracle on the Frontier (9)
I wanted to tell you how you know that and whether you really are the archangel of that world, but it was impossible. Because in that world, I was just a character.
All he could do was use his emotional expression to raise his thumb and reassure Riena, who seemed surprised to hear his words.
“So, do you want to ride?”
Regner pressed for an answer. If you refuse, you won’t be able to proceed with the game, so there really is no choice. I wasn’t sure how it would work, but I pressed the accept button.
Soon, a question came up asking if I wanted to board the carriage, and I boarded the carriage using the interaction key. Then, Riena also noticed and slowly got on board.
‘What will happen?’
Only in the game does a loading window appear and the space changes in an instant, but the NPC says something meaningful as if he knows who I am as a player, so it is a situation that is outside the scope of the game, at least within it.
The destination is in another province quite far from here, but is it really necessary to travel there directly? I don’t know how many days it will take to ride a carriage like this.
“ah.”
But my worries were unfounded. This is because the moment the carriage departed, the loading window appeared and the screen skipped over.
The loading itself didn’t take that long, and in less than 30 seconds, the screen came back on in a completely different place.
My character and Riena had already gotten off the carriage.
“–, —.”
I don’t think much of it since it’s in a game, but Riena there will feel as if she’s moved through space.
Thinking of that, I looked back at her and saw that Riena was calmer than expected and smiled awkwardly. Well, considering what she’s experienced so far, space movement might not be a big deal.
“Evil enemies are trying to devour this world in their own way. If we want to save this world where countless foolish people such as blind powerful people, crowds who cannot overcome their desires, and corrupt priests run rampant, hunters like you must step forward. “I’m just a peddler of no particular significance, but I hope to see you again someday.”
Regner, who was still riding in the carriage, said something meaningful. Those were the words originally spoken by his ambassador. And then he moved the carriage and went away.
‘Is the purpose the same anyway?’
The same face as in the strategy video. But there was something different about Regner’s face when I saw it. There was something about it that made it difficult to view it as a simple chunk of graphics.
Of course, the boss monster, the demon lord Deus, also became an existing being and was punished for spouting all sorts of bullsh*t, so it wasn’t something to be wary of now that it was strange.
Above all, his purpose as a helper and ours are the same in the end, which is to defeat the demon lords and clear the game.
‘First of all, I need to get the equipment right.’
I put aside complicated thoughts and turned my character’s body back to look at the scene unfolding before my eyes. The setting of Chapter 2 is not a ruined country estate, but a rather prosperous city.
This is where the real game begins after Chapter 1, which was an extension of the tutorial, ends. From here, you can not only simply proceed with the story, but also begin full-scale training by evolving or combining the character’s skill tree and farming special equipment.
The idea was to use them to strengthen Riena and other residents. Since I wasn’t sure when I would be able to defeat the boss of Chapter 2, I planned to do that first and then attack the nests that I couldn’t conquer.
‘Come on, let’s go.’
Having already made a plan by referring to the strategy video, I took Riena with me and headed toward the city center that stretched out beyond the castle walls. Jumping and rolling forward like a habit.
From the player’s perspective, jumping is a basic action when entering, but it certainly looks like sh*t to others. The gaze of NPCs, who would normally be fine, stings.
***
“You can trust him because he is special.”
“…Are you saying this to me just now?”
“And we believe in you too.”
The moment the carriage departed. At that moment, only a loading window appeared on his monitor.
Liena, who carefully climbed into the carriage she had never ridden in her life and sat down uncomfortably, flinched at Regnor’s unexpected words while holding the reins.
“It’s true.”
Seeing her reaction, Regner burst into laughter and at the same time, the carriage that was moving smoothly shook. Riena, who was looking at the back of Regner’s head as he turned his head and was also looking at the scenery outside, was startled.
The location changed in just an instant, and she went from sitting in the carriage to standing outside before she knew it.
Regner said goodbye calmly in such a situation, and as he watched, he showed no reaction as if it was natural.
‘It’s okay… it’s okay.’
Riena calmed down her surprise after seeing his carefree behavior. He thought Riena was less surprised because she had gone through all the hardships, but in fact, she was very surprised.
I just suppressed it, thinking this was normal based on my strong bond with him. This bond was not just a simple bond, but a strong trust that developed while fighting together and protecting each other’s lives.
“What is that deal with?”
“You seem to be a person with unnecessary strength. “What is the woman next to her?”
“…”
Even though he drew the attention of people around him by rolling forward and jumping like he usually did, Riena tried to ignore it calmly.
Because there hasn’t been a single wrong thing he’s done so far. Moreover, Riena, who had just been expelled from the bug nest after feeling the limits of her power, was impatient with the thought that she needed to grow further.
‘Are you conscious?’
Still, his stern behavior from the moment he entered the city seemed to have heard the noise of the people around him, but became a little calmer.
“Do you have a set destination?”
In such a situation, Riena mustered up the courage to open her mouth to him first. He heard her call him and turned to look at her.
She didn’t know if he understood properly, but he still responded whenever Riena called or spoke to him.
‘Well, of course you know something. ‘Let’s not worry about how we know.’
He didn’t answer like usual, but he nodded and pointed to one side as if he roughly understood what Riena said.
Clearly he is moving with purpose. It was a kind of sub-quest before proceeding with the story, and the purpose was to perform a quest that would allow you to obtain special equipment.
“These guests are a bit unique.”
‘Armor craftsman…?’
The place he arrived at, taking Riena with him without hesitation, was a household located quite centrally in the city, which grew in size the closer it got to the castle walls.
Riena, who was busy looking at the typical medieval fantasy city and people she had never seen before, with a little bit of nervousness in her eyes, had an intuition about the job when she saw the other person’s reaction to seeing them in the store.
In fact, this craftsman was a person who took on the role of a merchant who made and sold equipment or purchased materials in the game after completing related quests.
This rough-bearded man, who was short but had a stocky physique, rough skin, and a stern look, glanced at him and Riena and grunted.
“You’re following the devil’s trail? Although it only sounds ominous at first glance, I don’t think the outfit comes from a religious sect.”
Riena couldn’t hear, but he spoke to his father-in-law through the options. The father-in-law, not paying attention to Riena’s embarrassed reaction, smiled and waved his hand without thinking.
“I have work to do, but I have no intention of immediately dealing with a mercenary I don’t know who he is.”
The father-in-law refused his offer to kill the devil according to his personality. In fact, it was a set flow in the game system. To convince him here, you must have a few more conversations and receive a quest to prove your qualifications.
“We really took over the castle and caught the monster that was sucking the souls of the villagers.”
There, Riena opened her mouth. She was just upset that he was being ignored by a mere craftsman.
“Anyone can talk.”
A variable arose there. The father-in-law turned his gaze to Riena and laughed as if it was fun.
“If you really want to know, there has to be a price. “You don’t think you can get something for free, do you?”
“What is that?”
Riena, who flinched, responded to her father-in-law’s words with a smirk as she noticed the man next to her. He just quietly turned on the situation and did not stop her actions.
“A demon appeared in the western forest, and the leather hunters I commissioned suffered. The business seems to be ruined because of this guy. “If you kill him, I’ll give you what you want.”
“Demon beast?”
The artisan naturally gave her a quest according to the flow of the conversation. Liena’s eyes were shaking, as it was her first time communicating with someone from a foreign land, having spent her entire life within the grassland tribe, which was not that long, just over ten years.
‘Are you saying it’s okay?’
Riena noticed his concern and nodded in relief when he gave her a thumbs up. I wondered if I had messed things up on my own, but the process was different and I ended up receiving the quest.
“good night. Let’s catch that demon beast.”
In the end, the quest was accomplished under Riena’s leadership. Then, as if he had been waiting, he turned around and took Liena with him, heading towards the west side of the city.
‘I have more things to tell people.’
As she crossed the city with him, Riena smiled faintly as her heart pounded. She is not the only frog in the well. The same was true for all the villagers who were small tribes in the grasslands.
To them, everything she experiences in this unique world is a refreshing stimulus and an interesting story in itself.
One of the most enjoyable things for Riena, who has been expanding her knowledge by playing the game, was telling the stories of her experiences to the children in the village.
Just as Varun accepts the Druid’s magic without any resistance, they are like a blank slate in a good sense. No matter what I saw or heard, it was possible to accept it as is.
It was their unique advantage that not only other tribes, but also the settled peoples beyond the wall who dismissed them as barbarians, could not match.
“oh.”
The map, that is, the portals in every corner of the city, was also not that surprising to her who had already experienced spatial movement.
The moment she stepped on the blue portal in the middle of the city road, she fell onto a forest road outside the city, but Riena was not particularly surprised like the locals around her.
‘Is it over there?’
Moreover, the person who guided her was someone who already knew everything about this world. Without the slightest suspicion, she ran lightly after him, who immediately started moving.
“I can hear you. “It’s not that far.”
Soon, Riena’s sensitive hearing heard the howl of an animal echoing from the forest.
Fortunately or unfortunately, they were not hunted by others before they arrived.
Although she was originally a brave warrior, Riena, who has been practicing combat and training every single day recently, drew her sword and kicked the ground as naturally as water.