Chapter 78
Chapter 78
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Hide Collection (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Jerry's crumpled face showed no sign of relaxing as he stared at the white hand waving languidly toward him.
How could it?
His shop had just opened minutes ago, and already his first customer was about to shut it down for good.
"Damn it, why does the first customer have to be her?!"
He didn't ask for much.
Just that he wouldn't run into that one person during this quest.
If that was too much, then at least make it the very last encounter.
That was all he'd prayed for to a god he didn't even believe in.
"...Yeah, turns out there really is no god in this world."
Of all people, his first customer had to be his number one avoid-at-all-costs target.
"Yuri Holland."
He'd learned the name of this junior he hadn't even known before during the 50th Cohort's Hundred Steps Rite.
When he found out the rite's sole survivor—the lunatic who'd bashed his head in with a rock—was this guy.
And when that lunatic set the astonishing record of fifteen paces, Jerry was horrified.
"That's... the White Dragon Badge?"
At first, Jerry thought Yuri had earned the White Dragon Badge.
But no.
"Impossible! What kind of White Dragon Badge is that? I guarantee you, it's the Black Dragon Badge!"
Thank goodness that rock had only cracked his skull.
His limbs were still intact.
Realizing that, Jerry made a vow.
He would never get tangled up with Yuri Holland again.
"If one of the people to avoid in this world is a lunatic,"
Then someone to avoid even more was a lunatic with real skill.
And Yuri Holland was a lunatic with top-tier skill, historically speaking.
That alone was reason enough to steer clear, but Jerry had one more critical reason to avoid Yuri.
A very decisive one.
[No big deal. Just do me one simple favor later.]
The favor he'd promised Yuri in exchange for info during the last Dragon Badge scramble.
That was the problem.
"What kind of favor is this lunatic gonna ask for?"
While Jerry agonized over how to dodge that favor, Yuri's head tilted sideways.
"What, you not happy to see me?"
No sooner had he asked than Jerry's stiff face broke into a beaming smile.
"Oh, who do we have here? If it isn't our dashing junior, Yuri Holland? Happy to see you? You bet I am!"
Flattering him like that, Jerry rummaged through the fainted rabbit guy's pockets.
Out came a single piece of hide.
Pure white, palm-sized square leather.
Jerry firmly placed the white hide in Yuri's left hand.
"Our junior's worked hard. Here, take this first."
Then he pulled a similar hide from his own pocket.
Same shape as the rabbit's, but yellow.
He slipped it into Yuri's right hand and winked.
"Come on, tuck this away too. You know what this is, right, junior? White's rabbit hide, yellow's deer hide. Together, that's 6,000 points!"
"Wow, our Jerry sunbae really has killer instincts. If everyone in the world was like Jerry sunbae, life would be so much better, right?"
Yuri's face relaxed instantly at the deer's voluntary surrender.
Seeing that expression—like a weight had been lifted—Jerry let out a quiet sigh of relief.
He could picture what would've happened if he hadn't handed it over willingly.
"But no time to relax yet!"
Jerry unleashed a torrent of words.
"Yeah, some people just have no tact! Oh, right! I haven't explained what I'm doing here, have I? The quest has us playing rabbits and deer."
"Oh?"
"Rabbits: anyone can join regardless of skill, but no attacking! Deer: only certified Grade 1 non-commissioned can participate, can't strike first but can counterattack freely. I don't know the rules for the other animals. This quest is brand new this year."
"Yeah? Anything else?"
"Of course!"
Jerry nodded vigorously.
'With this guy's personality, he'll torment me till I spill everything I know.'
Better to just spill it all upfront—better for body and mind.
That was a choice only someone who'd dealt with Yuri once before could make.
Plus, it was a way to distract him from remembering that 'favor.'
So Jerry desperately spilled even unasked info.
"The rabbits going 'thump' and deer 'meh' is to show our identities, as ordered from above..."
"Skip the useless crap."
"...Yeah, skip that worthless info! Rabbits get 50 hides issued, deer get 20. Get subdued like this and lose your hide? You're processed as dead, respawn in heaven, get reissued hides, and dropped back into the forest."
"Oh? Sounds fun."
"Oh! And on the last day of the hide collection quest, participants playing animals get settled based on how many hides they have left. Value per hide is the same as announced to the hunters—the 50th Cohort."
"Ah, so animals aim to hold onto as many same-value hides as possible, while hunters aim to snatch as many as they can?"
"Exactly!"
Seeing Yuri get it, Jerry nodded with an awkward smile.
Then he tried to slip away.
"Well, this poor deer's soul has to head to heaven for revival, so if you'll excuse me..."
Jerry tried to bolt before Yuri could call him back.
Then.
"Hold up."
Screech—.
Jerry froze at the voice from behind.
"W-Why?"
Turning with a stiff, awkward face, he saw Yuri smirking.
The words from Yuri's grinning mouth were the last thing Jerry wanted to hear.
"Wow, never imagined our Jerry sunbae had such a strong sense of volunteerism. So I can assume you'll handle my favor just as kindly from now on, right?"
"......"
...This is the worst.
That damn bastard knew all along and just watched.
But even knowing that, Jerry couldn't show his disgust—making him feel pathetic.
"O-Of course! What's the favor?"
"My favor is..."
"W-What is it?"
"Hmm, what should it be?"
"......?"
"Ah! That's it!"
"W-What?"
"Should I tell you now?"
"......"
"Tell you?"
...This guy for real.
Seeing Jerry's cheeks twitch, Yuri smiled with his eyes.
'This much teasing is enough?'
Any more and he might actually cry.
With a shrug, Yuri said,
"Nah, I'll think of something better later and ask then."
Jerry let out a shallow sigh, eyeing him warily.
"So... I can really go?"
"Yeah."
Jerry nodded and bolted without looking back.
Or he would have, if Yuri hadn't called again.
"Jerry sunbae."
"Ah... what now?"
Jerry's face looked ready to burst into tears.
Yuri chuckled and pointed at the fainted rabbit guy.
"Not taking him?"
"......"
Normally, he wouldn't care.
But desperate to escape even a second sooner, Jerry said,
"G-Gotta take him."
Worried Yuri might say more, he hurriedly slung his squadmate over his shoulder and fled.
Yuri waved enthusiastically at Jerry's retreating back.
"See ya! Let's meet again!"
Under that send-off, Jerry's face looked utterly soul-drained.
Once Jerry was gone.
Yuri looked down at the rabbit and deer hides in his hands.
"Hmm... 6,000 points, huh."
He didn't know how many animals were released into this forest.
But rabbit per head: 50 hides, deer: 20—that alone was massive points.
Even just hunting rabbits and deer without greed would net plenty.
Greed flared in Yuri's eyes.
"This is totally... a goldmine?"
Points were practically begging to be taken in this forest.
Time for a hunting frenzy.
Whoosh!
Yuri dashed off, every minute and second precious.
* * *
A muscle-bound deer guy knocked out a 50th Cohorter, eyes rolling back as he crumpled sideways.
"Gack!"
Thud—.
And around him lay five more from the 50th Cohort.
It started with a dozen, but after the first guy went down in one hit, the rest scattered.
Only four stuck around to fight.
Of course, they met the same fate as the first.
"Hmph!"
The deer guy snorted at the fainted ones.
Sweat beaded on his forehead.
'These are official riders, alright. Way tougher than the riffraff from the Dragon Badge scramble.'
Sweating from just four opponents.
Figuring he'd have to play it safe past a certain number, the deer hurried away.
Soon after, a group arrived at the scattered 50th Cohorters.
Rustle—.
Black clothes, black hats, black masks.
One scanned the fainted ones and said,
"Send them all to hell."
As the apparent leader, the black-clad figures hoisted the 50th Cohorters over their shoulders.
Then they leisurely departed.
* * *
Thick tree trunk.
A rabbit-eared girl hid behind it, scanning around.
Extreme vigilance, clear as day.
Confirming no one nearby, she sighed in relief.
"Haaa... survival's tough."
This hide collection quest was pretty lucrative even for established riders.
Stick to the forest shadows right, and even as a rabbit, you could pocket up to 40,000 points max.
That's why the weakest, those who couldn't handle other roles, volunteered for rabbit.
'Bit rough from day one.'
With 300 from the 50th Cohort flooding in at once, dodging was trickier than expected.
'Well, it'll get better soon.'
Give it time, and the number roaming the forest would thin out a lot.
Then he'd have breathing room.
Standing, she thought,
'Can't stay put too long.'
Anywhere less than perfectly concealed meant constant movement to boost survival odds.
As the rabbit girl moved to go.
Rustle—.
Thud—.
A small noise from somewhere, and a black shadow dropped fast from above.
"Wha—?!"
She tried to shout in surprise, but the shadow was faster.
Whack—.
A sharp, dizzying blow to the back of her head, and her vision went black.
The last thing she saw: golden eyes.
Like a tiger eyeing prey.
Thud—.
The rabbit girl collapsed.
Rustle—.
Yuri plucked hides from her bosom and bolted.
One of his pockets bulged thickly.
* * *
Yuri roamed the forest freely.
Any rabbit or deer in sight got a smack to the nape, hides snatched.
In total: 22 rabbit hides, 6 deer hides.
About six hours for that.
Top-tier results among the 50th Cohort prowling the woods.
Yet Yuri didn't stop.
'I'm still hungry!'
That burning greed wouldn't quit till the rabbits and deer were extinct.
Darting through the forest with gleaming eyes, Yuri noticed something.
'This place... seems divided into zones?'
Outer edge: rabbits, just inside: deer.
'If that's true... deeper in, higher-point beasts will show up.'
For now, plenty of rabbits and deer, no issue.
But if deaths outpace respawns, other riders would head inward too.
Even his own kill rate outstripped respawns—that was a problem.
Rabbits and deer, once common, grew scarce over time.
'Without that, I'd have way more than this in six hours.'
So Yuri planned to expand his hunting inward.
'Probably wolf territory next.'
Yuri headed for the wolf den.