The First Hunt

As I stepped out of the quarters, warm sunlight washed over my face. Ever since arriving here, I had been busy gathering information and heading out early for gathering, so sleeping in was a rare luxury. After drinking beer last night and getting a good night's sleep, I felt in the best condition since arriving at this place.

"Huuuup!" I stretched my arms wide, feeling a refreshing release as my entire body uncoiled. After a quick stretch, I leisurely walked toward our meeting spot at the entrance of the Trial Zone. Today was the day of our second quest: hunting. According to the quest window, we had to hunt Kobolds.

"Kobolds, huh..." They were weak, early-game monsters you'd occasionally see in video games, but I had no idea what they would be like in reality. Since I had no real gear or skills to throw myself headfirst into danger, and a single mistake could mean death, I decided to just test the waters today.

Lost in thought, the now-familiar entrance of the Trial Zone came into view. "Ah! Seong-gi!" Hearing my name, I looked up and saw two people already waiting for me. Perhaps because we had gotten closer over drinks last night, Lee Yun-seo waved her hand vigorously with a much brighter smile than yesterday.

"Good morning. Did you rest well last night?"

"Yes! I slept like a baby for the first time in ages! My body feels so light!"

"Same here. Did you rest well too, Sora?"

"Ugh!..." I naturally greeted Yang Sora as well, but the moment our eyes met, she snapped her head away. "?"

"L-Let's... j-just go already!" With that, she marched ahead toward the entrance of the Trial Zone. Bewildered by her reaction, I tilted my head and turned to Yun-seo.

"Did I do something wrong yesterday? She seems to be avoiding me today."

"Hmm... I don't know. She's been quiet ever since we met up earlier... I have no idea either!" Shrugging our shoulders, the two of us followed behind Yang Sora and entered the Trial Zone.

Upon entering the Trial Zone, we saw the familiar forest where we usually gathered herbs, but today we had to venture deeper. Whether by instinct or learning, monsters rarely appeared near the entrance where players frequently roamed. Having gathered information beforehand that we needed to go deeper for the second trial, we naturally bypassed the gathering zone and headed further into the woods.

"Kobolds... Do you know anything about them, Seong-gi?"

"Hmm... Well, I've only seen them in games before coming here, so I'm not sure if that information will actually be useful in real life."

While Yun-seo and I chatted about the quest as we walked through the peaceful forest, Yang Sora remained dead silent, just walking. Strangely, she kept stealing glances at me as if checking my reaction. She looked like a puppy worried about getting caught after doing something bad.

"Um... is something bothering you?"

"Wh-What?!" When I spoke to her first, Yang Sora jumped in startle, looking absolutely terrified.

"N-N-No! I-I'm completely fine! Why would I look bothered?"

"Well, you seem a bit different from usual."

"Th-That's..." Unlike her usual self, Yang Sora kept stuttering, still walking on eggshells around me. I quietly waited for her to continue.

"It's just... uh... we're h-hunting, right?! I'm just nervous! Yeah... that's it..."

"Ah, I see. I didn't think you'd get nervous at all, Sora. That's unexpected."

She's lying. It was painfully obvious she had just made that up on the spot. But since pressing her on a lie she was trying so hard to maintain wouldn't yield any answers ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠anyway, I just played along.

"Oh, is that why? No wonder you've been so quiet." Yun-seo walked up to Yang Sora, holding her hand in comfort.

"Y-Yeah! It's our first time facing real monsters, after all... haha..." It was a terribly awkward excuse, but Yun-seo, genuinely believing her, offered warm words of encouragement. Yang Sora could only offer an awkward laugh in return.

It was when we had walked a bit further. Rustle! The sound of rustling grass echoed nearby. Instantly on alert, I raised my shield and glanced back at the girls. Sensing the presence, they quickly huddled behind me. Yun-seo readied her staff, while Yang Sora drew a short sword from her waist.

"I'll go ahead and take a quick look."

"Okay, be careful, Seong-gi."

Since I was nominally the tank of the party, I crept toward the rustling bushes and peered through the thick foliage. There, I saw two bipedal monsters with faces that looked like a grotesque mix of a dog and a rat.

Are those...? Though they looked slightly different from the games, I instinctively knew these were the monsters we had to hunt. The Kobolds were short, barely reaching my waist, and they held a rusty sword and a wooden club respectively. They hadn't noticed me yet. I gestured for the two girls to come closer.

"There are two monsters ahead. They haven't noticed us yet, so let's launch a surprise attack."

"Will it work?"

"Yes. First, Yun-seo, attack the one in the back with your magic. Then, I'll step forward and block the other one's attack. Sora, use that opening to strike."

"Gulp... Okay." Yang Sora swallowed hard, clearly terrified now. Looking down, I noticed her hands trembling slightly. No matter how much of a monster it was, it couldn't be easy for a normal woman in her twenties to suddenly slash at something with a sword.

"Sora."

"Huh..? Ah!..." At my call, Yang Sora looked up at my face, only to quickly avert her gaze again. Now wasn't the time to worry about why she was avoiding me, so I focused on calming her down.

"Sora, I know you have the hardest job right now. But if we want to survive going forward, this is something we absolutely must do."

"..."

"It's okay if ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you mess up the first strike. I'll block it with my shield, and if things look bad, we can just run. Don't worry too much and just do your best."

"Okay!..." Yang Sora's trembling eyes gradually regained their focus as she listened to my calm voice, turning sharp and clear once more. I nodded, looking between her and Yun-seo.

Following our plan, Yun-seo raised her staff and began gathering ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mana. Soon, a sphere of water coalesced at the tip. "Haaah!" With a sharp shout, the gathered water shot forward. Hearing the noise, the Kobolds whipped their heads toward us, but Yun-seo's water projectile struck the one ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in the back dead-on before it could even react.

Seeing its companion get hit, the remaining Kobold shrieked and rushed forward, brandishing its rusty sword. "Kieeeek!" I immediately gripped my shield tightly, pushed through the bushes, and blocked the Kobold's path. Clang! The monster's rusty blade clashed against my shield with a sharp metallic ring. Perhaps due to its small stature, even someone with low stats like me could easily hold my ground.

Now it was Yang Sora's turn to finish off the Kobold I was blocking. Please, let her take it down in one go... Just as the thought crossed my mind, I looked over and saw Yang Sora already charging toward the monster.

"Aaaah! Die!!!"

"Kiek?" Gripping her sword tightly with both hands, Yang Sora swung it straight down at the Kobold. Startled by the sudden attack coming from its blind spot, the Kobold tried to dodge, but the blade sliced clean across its chest, sending it crashing to the ground.

"Haaah... haaah..." Yang Sora panted heavily, staring down at the Kobold she had just slashed. In an instant, the monster dissolved into dust and vanished. "Phew..." Once the target of her glare disappeared, Yang Sora let out a long sigh of relief as the tension left her body. Yun-seo, who had been waiting behind me, hopped forward excitedly. "Wow! It went exactly according to your plan, Seong-gi!" "Ha, haha... We did it..."

"Great job, both of—" In that split second, I saw the first Kobold—the one hit by Yun-seo's magic—push itself off the ground and charge at Yang Sora with its club raised. "Kieeeek!" I shoved Yang Sora aside as she stood there catching her breath, throwing my shield up in the same motion. Thud! "Ugh!" A heavy impact rattled my shield, forcing a groan from my throat.

Fortunately, I managed to block the blow. Snapping out of their brief daze from the sudden turn of events, the two girls immediately launched their counterattacks. "Haaah!" "Aaaah!" "Kweeek!" Struck by both of their attacks simultaneously, the Kobold dissolved into dust just like the first one.

"Phew... That was close..."

"Are you okay, Seong-gi?" Watching the Kobold vanish, I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. Yun-seo rushed over to check on me. My arm still felt numb from the impact, but after stretching a bit, I didn't seem to be injured. "Yeah, I'm fine—"

"Hey!" Yang Sora cut me off, stomping over to me. "Hey! What were you going to do if you got hurt?!"

"S-Sora? I'm fine. I saw it coming and blocked it properly."

"Still! That was dangerous!"

"If I hadn't blocked it, you would've been in real danger."

"Ugh..."

Yang Sora bit her lip, unable to refute my words. Still, her anger hadn't subsided as she kept huffing and glaring at me. Intimidated by her fierce gaze, I subtly avoided her eyes. "Tch! Don't you dare do something like that ever again!"

"Well, I'm the tank, so it's my job. Haha..." Glare! "Ugh..." As she glared at me once more, I felt like my precious manhood was shrinking under her gaze. No... not my precious little friend... Stop glaring at me...

"S-Sora, calm down. No one got hurt, right?" Yun-seo walked over to soothe the still-agitated Yang Sora. "But Seong-gi, please be more careful next time! As the tank, you're the most likely to get hurt!"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Yun-seo turned to nag me with genuine worry. Eventually, Yang Sora calmed down, approached me again, and spoke.

"Um... th-thanks... I didn't get hurt because of you..." With her cheeks flushed bright red, Yang Sora turned her head away in embarrassment as she muttered her thanks. Seeing this side of her made me appreciate her charm in a whole new light. I smiled and nodded at her.

Wait, now that I think about it, Sora's cause of death was... getting hit in the head with a blunt weapon, right? Was it supposed to be just now? Once the situation settled, the cause of death revealed by my skill, Dying Message, flashed through my mind. I had pushed her fated death to the back of my mind while adjusting to the quests, but now I recalled the vision clearly.

No... I don't think it was like this. In the vision I saw, Yang Sora's body was already covered in minor wounds. Considering that, this wasn't the moment of her fated death. Besides, if this had been the moment, the skill would have deactivated the instant I saved her. Since we'll be hunting from now on, I need to keep a much closer eye on her...

"Seong-gi?"

"Yes?" As I was lost in thought about my skill, Yun-seo suddenly appeared in front of me, tilting her head. "What's wrong? Are you hurt somewhere?"

"Ah! No, it's nothing like that. I was just thinking we should be more careful when we fight Kobolds from now on."

"I see! Anyway, look at this! Tada!" Yun-seo pinched something between her fingers and held it out to show me. Looking closely, it resembled an animal's molar. "Is this...?"

"Yes! I searched the spot where the Kobolds vanished, and this was lying there. When I picked it up, a notification popped up saying it's a Kobold's Tooth!" She placed the tooth in my palm. I focused my gaze on it, and after a moment, an information window appeared.

"Oh! It really is! So we just need to collect these now!"

"Yes! That should do it!" Yun-seo smiled brightly, nodding in agreement.

"Hmm... Let's call it a day and head back. Since it was our first hunt, the sudden release of tension is going to drain us physically."

"You're right. My hands are actually shaking right now."

"I'm fine, though?" Yang Sora tried to act nonchalant, but I distinctly remembered her hands trembling before we started. Even now, despite her efforts to hide it, I could see her body shivering slightly.

"Besides, we need to discuss our positions and how to handle sudden situations in the future, so let's head back for today." When I smiled at Yang Sora, pretending not to notice her trembling, she reluctantly nodded. Having encountered and hunted monsters for the first time since entering the Tower, we dragged our weary bodies back toward the residential area.