Episode 40-Miracle of the Frontier (10)
From Noble mtl dot com
“I think that’s enough for today. Now let’s go back quickly.”
“Ah, yes Chief.”
As time rushes into late afternoon. Varun, who was catching his breath due to the loss of stamina along with mana, made an arbitrary decision and called Shura and retreated into the secret space, which was the safety zone.
The monsters in hunting mode, which kept respawning no matter how many times they were killed, were still difficult to clean up inside the castle with just the two of them. He had already realized that it was more important than anything to think about physical strength and hit and run appropriately.
‘But both of our skills are improving rapidly.’
Varun stroked the staff in his hand. Although it is still insufficient, growth has been rapid.
According to the common sense of existing warriors, increasing the amount of mana in the body is very difficult and requires long training, but they were able to increase the amount of mana and increase combat power just by fighting monsters and gaining experience points like players do.
“The first goal is to catch that big skull without Riena’s help.”
Varun takes Shura through the portal and returns to the village, saying that his goal is to catch the Soul Eater, an elite monster that appears inside the castle.
If the two of them catch the monster that Riena succeeded in killing with his help, it will be proof that they have grown that much.
“I guess other people came too.”
Shura then pointed to other people who had returned to the village around the same time. Kuhn, Russo, and others who entered the sandbox game and collected resources soon finished their day’s work and returned to the village with the necessary resources. Riena and he were still working on Chapter 2.
‘You’ve increased a lot.’
Soon preparations for dinner began. The sight of meat being cooked with a generous pouring of grain is rather familiar.
Varun, who was watching the village, including them, chuckled.
The small group of only about 30 people when they fled has now grown into a large group of over 100 people, and they are living in greater abundance than before they fled to this nameless land.
Moreover, the time it takes to achieve all of this is short. Awakening mana was a miracle, but in fact, Varun considered this scene itself to be of greater value.
“You’re here. Thank you for your hard work.”
“You suffered more.”
At that time, Maureen, who looked haggard by all accounts, approached Varun and spoke to him.
Maureen, who first built a stone wall to build a castle, put all her stamina into building a few meters of stone wall again today.
But even though his body was tired, his expression seemed full of accomplishment.
“It’s a feeling you get when you do something. Just as Kun said that as he continued to swing the pickaxe, he was able to do it a little faster and do more things, I too will improve as I practice.”
“That’s good news. However, if we successfully build a fence around the village, we will have many more requests to do in the future. “Don’t you like that?”
Varun, who laughed bitterly when he heard Maureen proudly say that her physical strength was increasing as she put more effort into installing the blocks to build the castle, was scared for no reason. That’s not to say it’s not nonsense, because Morin’s ability to build structures in the form of blocks had great potential for use.
“I am a person who watched before my eyes as I lost everything because I had no power. “Being able to do anything is a blessing in itself.”
However, Maureen shook her head and said that she was actually happy. Others, similarly suffering from the painful wounds of powerlessness, said the fact that they could do something was enough.
‘Me too.’
And it was the same for Varun, who held the cane. He thought to himself that if he could protect this scenery, he could do anything.
***
“Uh, uh…”
After sitting in front of the computer all day, my body stiffened.
When I unconsciously stretch, the dying sound comes out spontaneously. The villagers are also having dinner, so I also have to eat after finishing the monster hunting quest to obtain special equipment and reinstating Riena.
‘It’s not much different.’
I looked through the refrigerator and sighed. Even before meeting the residents, unless it was a rare appointment, I would stay home and play games. In that respect, there was no difference between the past and present when I knew nothing.
“…”
That’s when I took my meal and headed back to the computer. The early evening scenery was visible out the window. The same scenery as before and now. When I thought about it, it seemed a little strange.
All I’m doing is sitting in front of the computer, but right now I’m working to stop monsters that could threaten the world.
Of course, I didn’t have any unnecessary thoughts like asking others to recognize me or treat me like a hero. I just hate that kind of thing.
‘Everyone is growing steadily.’
I sat down again and ate in a daze, looking at the residents. Eating together at their meal times was one of the habits I developed recently.
We also captured some people with a capture app and looked at the changes in their abilities.
In fact, I am helping the residents through various games, but to me, the entire process, including that, seemed like a single game.
Place residents in the right places and sometimes move characters in the game to help.
As a result, those who looked miserable to everyone were eating abundantly and their numbers had clearly increased significantly. Just looking at it like this gives me a sense of accomplishment.
In the first place, aren’t they just real people, not just game data? However, if this is truly a game, there must of course be a purpose.
[Bug Nest]
The bug nest that residents failed to attack is still alive and well. No one knows how many more things like this will come out in the future.
‘That’s why I feel more anxious.’
More and stronger ones may appear. No, it definitely will. The residents are growing steadily, but the thought of whether that will be enough is still lingering in my head.
Not only was it for my own safety, but the more I developed a strange attachment to the residents, the stronger these thoughts became.
‘Should we make them fight after all?’
No matter how I thought about it, I felt like their numbers needed to be increased.
We found a way to develop their talents using the monster essence, a sandbox crafting item, and the hunting mode, a Dark Blood system, but unless we find a more efficient way to turn each person into a Riena-level superhuman, we can only manage 100 people. A slightly higher number is not enough.
To do that, you cannot stand still. As a tribe in the grasslands, they can increase their population by fighting and subjugating others.
I didn’t feel comfortable forcing those who lost the competition and took refuge here to fight against their own people again, but if we don’t become stronger, none of us can survive.
“—. —-.”
Varun, the tribal leader, who had no idea what they would think of my feelings, was saying something to the villagers with a serious expression.
Varun is a commanding and cool-headed leader, but he is also a person who cares about his tribe. The last time I saw him fighting against the marauders, he seemed strong enough, but for some reason it didn’t seem like he would take the initiative to start a war to increase the population.
“what?”
With that thought in mind, I absentmindedly turned to the screen and checked the terrain near the village that the residents had explored. It was like a twist of fate when I saw something.
[Southwestern Plains 1-6], one of the furthest places explored by villagers, literally requires you to flip the screen 6 times to the southwest from where the village is located. A human figure appeared in what was a dark, empty grassland.
I zoomed in and looked at the tiny figures in the corner of the monitor.
[Immigrant Scout Rakum]
[Attribute: Martial Arts]
When I looked at the information on one of them, it occurred to me that it was an immigrant. Their appearance, riding horses, lightly armed, and looking around with torches in hand, resembled village scouts.
It meant that he was a scout for a tribe that had moved to this area.
It seemed like it would run on its own if I left it alone, but I twitched my hand holding the mouse. The screen no longer moved to the west, so it was impossible to look there.
‘Al, it’s right to give it to you, right?’
If I hadn’t noticed it at all, it would have been a bit difficult to just ignore it. This is especially true because if they continue to advance east, they may encounter villagers.
I turned the screen again and lifted Riena, who had finished eating, using the mouse control that I now actively use.
And immediately he set her down gently among the bushes a little far away from the screen where they were. I wanted to drop it off near where the other person was, but I had no choice because my mouse control was limited on the screen where there were people who were not allies.
“—?”
Embarrassed, Riena looked up at the sky and looked around the empty main area. I didn’t know what to do, so every time she went towards the village, I had to catch her with the mouse and turn her around.
I almost felt a little frustrated, but luckily, Liena sensed my intention and this time headed west. She spotted the other person’s torch and hurriedly lowered herself.
“–.”
She looked up at the sky with a determined expression and muttered something, then lowered her body as much as possible and began to approach the other person little by little while making no sign of presence.
After completing the reconnaissance, the scouts turned their horses and headed towards their base, and they followed suit.
In this place where the sun had set and darkness fell, they were the only ones who lit up the darkness with torches, so Riena was able to track them down without much difficulty.
“also…”
Riena finally set foot in an unknown area that not even the scouting party had explored. As the screen progressed, I zoomed out on the screen and found a town with quite a few lights on in the upper left corner of the monitor. The dot-sized torches of the scouts are getting closer and closer to the village at the speed of an ant.
Riena was also watching the scene from the right end of the monitor.
[Nameless Village (1)]
‘It seems like an ordinary village.’
The village residents, who were not sure if they were there originally or had recently immigrated, did not look much different from Varun’s tribe.
Unlike existing looters or vagabonds, these are people who have already decided to settle down and live. There seemed to be about 100 people, but the first thing that came to mind was whether Varun would be able to absorb them into the village.
Will they be able to understand my intention in showing this information through Riena in the first place?
After completing the reconnaissance, Riena crossed the screen again, and I was able to use the mouse again, so I picked her up and immediately returned her to the village.
Of course, Riena reported this to Varun, who was surprised, and the villagers, including Varun, started talking with serious expressions.