Chapter 10
Chapter 10
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Tutorial First Chapter – Adaptation
-----------------------------------------------------------------
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Tutorial First Chapter – Adaptation The third wave will begin. Repel the monster wave and prove your existence. As the remaining time hit zero, new monsters appeared as expected.
In the first and second waves, everyone had been thrown into chaos, but things were different now. All of them stared ahead with steely resolve, bracing for the monster assault.
And right in the middle of it all.
"Everyone, steel yourselves! If we stick to the plan, no one will get hurt!"
There was Yoo Seo-ah, who had become the camp's unspoken leader.
At her shout, the group united as one, gripping their weapons tightly.
"Chik! Kkik, chik!"
"W-Wait, monkeys?"
The stars of the third monster wave: Brown Monkeys.
The creatures emerging from the direction of the rocky mountain were about a meter tall, but each one clutched something firmly in its hands.
From crudely sharpened stone tools chipped off rocks, to stone axes made by lashing stones to sticks, to spears with tips honed to deadly points.
They swung their weapons with the bold confidence of humans.
"Don't panic, everyone! Just follow the plan, and we can do this!"
As Yoo Seo-ah rallied the group, the battle truly began.
The monkeys swung their weapons wildly, while those in the front lines blocked the attacks with thick wooden clubs.
The rear lines thrust out the wooden spears they'd prepared in advance.
Puk!
"Ukik!"
Shield and spear.
It was a classic tactic, and their gear wasn't in the best shape, but there was no better way to fight monsters that weren't human.
As four or five monkeys dropped in the first clash, confidence bloomed on the survivors' faces.
However.
"Uk!"
"Ukik!"
"Kik!"
"Th-Those things... there are too many of them!"
Compared to the first and second waves, the enemy's numbers had surged.
Even by a rough count, there were easily over thirty monkeys in sight, and more were pouring in from beyond the rocky mountain.
As the enemy numbers swelled, the formation naturally began to waver.
And that was exactly when.
"Time to go."
It was Jeong Se-woon's turn to shine.
"H-Hyungnim. Is this really gonna work? Th-Their legs are crazy fast, I tell ya!"
Thud.
"Agh, you madman!"
Park Jeong-pil, holding a bright yellow banana he'd scrounged up from somewhere.
I gave the desperately protesting guy a hearty shove in the back.
The moment banana-wielding Park Jeong-pil was tossed into the midst of the monkeys, their reaction was immediate.
"Chik?"
"Ukchik?"
'Those guys lose their minds over bananas.'
It was knowledge from my memories before regression.
They ate meat too, but their favorite food by far was the bananas growing in the forest.
A fruit they couldn't easily snag because of the forest wolves. And now a human was holding one out, practically offering it up.
"Kiik!"
"Uk! Ukklik!"
The monkeys went wild, charging after Park Jeong-pil in a frenzy.
With their attention split, the people struggling in the fight got some much-needed breathing room.
"Uwaaaah!"
Soon after, Park Jeong-pil lured the monkeys as planned and bolted for dear life. Well, at this point, he'd probably forgotten all about the plan.
'Faster than I thought.'
I'd figured he'd take a few hits at least.
Proving the saying "Daesan-dong's Turtle," his legs moved faster than anyone's.
Already, over twenty monkeys were hot on his tail.
"Hyungniiiim! Save me! I can't run anymore!"
"Come this way."
"I'm already cooooming!"
"Ukik!"
"Chik! Chik! Chik!"
Twenty monkeys. No, now closing in on thirty, trailing behind him—it reminded me of the Pied Piper.
Wooong!
The mana circle surrounding Se-woon's heart spun rapidly.
Time to use the mana circle I'd prepared before the wave started.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Opened the Treasure Vault of Greed. ⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Fire Ball Signature spell of the skilled mage of the Red Tower, 'Deylin Maychant.' Modified to cast regardless of circle, with destructive power varying greatly based on mana input.
Fwoosh!
A spark ignited before Se-woon's hand.
The circle spun wildly, pouring every bit of mana I'd stockpiled before the wave into the spark.
It was nothing like the spark from Kasha's flame last night.
The fireball had already grown past fist-sized, now rivaling the width of my upper body.
It was only a 1-circle spell, but I'd dumped all my mana into it.
"Jeong-pil, get clear on your own."
"Huh? Wait, what do you—uwaaaah!"
I hurled the fireball like a baseball pitch.
As Park Jeong-pil screamed and dove aside, the monkeys trailing him became perfect targets.
"...Uk?"
The banana-obsessed monkeys finally noticed the fireball, but it was too late to dodge.
Kwaaaang!!
The instant the fireball hit the lead monkey, a ferocious explosion erupted.
A normal Fire Ball wouldn't pack this punch, but mine wasn't ordinary.
It was a modified version from Mammon's vault.
Thanks to that, all thirty monkeys melted into the flames.
Those at the epicenter vanished without a trace, while the ones farther out had fire catch their fur, screeching in agony.
They rolled desperately on the ground, but this was no ordinary fire—it was magical flame that wouldn't die easily.
Just like that, a single strike wiped out around thirty monkeys.
"...H-Hyungnim. What the hell was that? Magic? That's magic, right? Insane!"
Park Jeong-pil wasn't the only one shocked. Everyone fighting the monkeys stared at Se-woon.
"Magic?"
"What, like some fantasy novel...?"
"Well, with the system messages and monster waves already, it's not far off from a fantasy story."
"So, can we use magic too, maybe?"
"Y-Yeah, probably?"
With the enemy numbers slashed by more than half in one go, the battle flowed smoothly.
Even though I'd used up all my mana, close combat was my main style anyway.
If I jumped in now, the wave would end in minutes.
But.
'They can handle the rest.'
Se-woon held back.
If I stepped in and cleared the monsters now, I'd just rob them of experience. Plus, if I kept bailing them out, they'd grow too dependent.
It was a chance for points, but I passed.
'Points I can farm outside anyway.'
Hidden pieces weren't limited to the wolf forest.
There were surely similar ones on the boar hill or the monkey rock mountain.
Dealing with those came first.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ — Consumed 'Brown Monkey'. Absorbed nutrients. Agility +3. Absorbed nutrients. Agility +0.3. ... ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Constellation 'Hungry Prince' is greatly satisfied, saying the meal was perfectly well-done. Constellation 'Hungry Prince' lets out a huge cheer after taking one bite of the monkey roast! Se-woon turned away, not forgetting to use the Authority of Gluttony.
The moment he started to move, Park Jeong-pil snapped out of it and called after him.
"H-Hyungnim! That was incredible! Wow, magic! I-I'm so glad I decided to follow you!"
"Yeah?"
"You bet! Park Jeong-pil here! I'll serve you for life!"
"Good. Looking forward to it."
"Of course! Anytime you need something, leave it all to me!"
"Perfect. Was worried you might not cut it. Eat the banana yourself. You'll need to run a lot next wave too."
"Yessir! I'll run plenty... Huh?"
As if the conversation was over, Se-woon headed toward the hill.
And behind him.
"Run again...?"
Park Jeong-pil stared wistfully at Se-woon's back, banana in hand.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Tutorial First Chapter – Adaptation Successfully cleared the third wave. Awarding 50 points to all wave participants. Not long after Se-woon left, the wave ended successfully.
'Ended faster than expected.'
Even after I'd thinned the herd, I'd thought it'd take over ten minutes, but they wiped them out in under five.
A sign their mindset had changed.
Soon, the individual contributions tallied up.
⚔ RANKINGS ⚔ 1st: Jeong Se-woon 2,480 points 2nd: Yoo Seo-ah 340 points 3rd: Kang Han-cheol 320 points "Oh ho."
My score was whatever, but second and third had swapped—Yoo Seo-ah and Kang Han-cheol.
"Makes sense. Even cheap gear is still proper weapons."
Before regression, she'd been called "Whirlwind" and risen to ranker status.
She'd said she'd trained with swords back on Earth before arriving here.
Kang Han-cheol's physique was solid, but he couldn't match a sword-wielding martial artist.
"Kuik?"
"Kweeeek!"
As he crested the hill, more boars than expected charged into view.
They'd been rooting around in the dirt, but the moment they spotted Se-woon, they barreled toward him with full force.
True boar-like ferocity.
A normal person would scream and flee from that charge, but.
Slash—
Regular Brown Boars were no match for Se-woon anymore.
Dodging with Ten Paths Subduing Legs footwork, he swung his sword using Hamel Family Longsword Technique principles, and the boars toppled like scarecrows.
✨ LEVEL UP! ✨ Lv. ? → Lv. ?+1 Halfway up the hill, Se-woon's body flashed briefly.
In the tutorial, limited to specific monsters, leveling up usually took until the fifth wave, but Se-woon had hit +3 levels by the third.
Plus the Authority of Gluttony boosted his stats far beyond a beginner's.
How much time passed?
The rampaging boars on the hill fell quickly, and at the highest point, the target Se-woon sought appeared.
"Kweeeek!"
"No time to waste. Let's end this quick."
Taller than Se-woon, with rock-hard muscles bulging under thick hide.
The boss monster ruling Boar Hill, 'Boar Digging the Hill,' bared its massive tusks and snorted menacingly.