Chapter 166
Chapter 166: Signpost
"I haven't left yet. What a relief."
Though his expression 'what a relief' was somehow out of place, it was also too welcome.
"A relief... you say?"
"Happy to help."
'What could he mean?'
'After being here for three whole days?'
She thought about it briefly, but ultimately it wasn't an important issue in the current situation.
"Does that mean you can help me?"
"Of course."
"How can you help me?"
He smiled again.
As she'd felt before, it was an innocent smile like that of a newborn baby.
"Anything. Everything you want."
'Anything?'
It was reassuring to hear, but also somewhat dubious.
Even more so between two people who had first met three days ago.
"...I have nothing to give you."
"You."
"Pardon?"
"You're here, aren't you?"
Jeon Ra-hwa nodded inwardly.
'I thought so. If he's a man, that's only natural.'
Having experienced it countless times, the next development would proceed smoothly.
"Should I give it to you now? Or after everything's finished?"
He smiled faintly again.
"Not your body."
"...Pardon?"
"Hahaha. You seem to have misunderstood something."
"...?"
"I've lost my memory, you see. Become my signpost for a while. That's enough."
'Lost his memory? So suddenly like this?'
'And in that state, how could he be so...'
"How can I be so strong despite losing my memory?"
"....."
"My body seems to remember how to fight."
"Your name, do you remember your name?"
"Kim Rae-won."
Truthfully, many things didn't make sense, but for now she had no choice but to believe him. In a place where she needed to grab even at straws to escape, rejecting the only straw would be foolish.
Though she was in this pathetic state now, she was never a fool.
"I'm Jeon Ra-hwa."
"I see. Lady Jeon Ra-hwa. What should I help you with?"
"First, can you safely take me as far as Gangdo?"
"Of course."
He, Kim Rae-won, took the lead and walked toward the entrance of Plum Blossom Stronghold.
Jeon Ra-hwa cautiously followed behind him.
When they had nearly reached the entrance.
"By the way."
Kim Rae-won asked without stopping his steps.
"What should we do about those guys?"
'What does he mean?'
Jeon Ra-hwa followed Kim Rae-won's gaze.
It was toward a distant hill beyond the stronghold.
At first she wondered what was there, but looking closely, she could faintly see dark figures in the brush.
At least several dozen people were lying in ambush there.
She didn't know exactly who they were, but they were probably other bandits from nearby. They might have a grudge against Plum Blossom Stronghold, or they could be a passing Wandering Bandit Group.
"What options do you have?"
"What do you want to do?"
"Pardon?"
"I told you. From now on, you're my signpost."
He smiled faintly again, as if finding something amusing.
"If you choose—"
Even in this situation, it might seem strange that it felt refreshing, but his smile was definitely freshness itself.
"I'll do it all."
"....."
"I'll ask again. What do you want to do?"
Though she still couldn't understand what was what, Jeon Ra-hwa could be certain of one thing. Kim Rae-won was sincere.
She watched for a moment toward where the bandits seemed to be hiding.
She could see the shadows rippling as they slowly approached. They probably realized they'd been noticed too.
She'd thought there were dozens, but she was wrong. It was a large group of at least a hundred people.
Soon they got close enough for their appearance to be properly identified.
"Huh...? You people?"
The reason Jeon Ra-hwa was surprised was that among the hundred or so people, a dozen or so were familiar faces.
They were the slaves from this Plum Blossom Stronghold who had been rescued by Kim Rae-won three days ago.
There were women, young girls, and elderly people.
'Why did they come back? And with other bandits?'
The question didn't last long.
Thinking about it, it was too simple a problem.
They had made a choice.
Just as Jeon Ra-hwa hadn't left Plum Blossom Stronghold and remained with Kim Rae-won, they had chosen other bandits to survive.
That all the Plum Blossom Stronghold bandits were dead was synonymous with the stronghold being empty. In other words, this place was now equivalent to a treasure vault filled with all sorts of spoils the Plum Blossom Stronghold Leader had accumulated.
Right when they were rescued, survival would have been the priority, but it was human nature to change one's mind after relieving oneself in the outhouse.
"Hoo..."
Jeon Ra-hwa let out a deep sigh and spoke while looking at the middle-aged woman who had at least been kind to her among them.
"Sister. Why did you come back?"
Greed oozed from the sister's worn and crushed face.
"Our Stronghold Leader said he has wanted Plum Blossom Stronghold for a while."
The hairy giant beside her, standing at least seven feet tall, mercilessly grabbed the sister's plump buttocks and sneered.
It was just as Jeon Ra-hwa had expected.
"Just let us go."
"Why should we?"
"We didn't take a single thing from Plum Blossom Stronghold, so let us go. Just like that."
"No, no."
The hairy giant now grabbed the sister's chest as if to burst it and sneered lewdly. Whether the sister's face contorted in pain or not.
"You need to stay. By the looks of it, you seem to be the most valuable item in Plum Blossom Stronghold?"
"Haa—"
Jeon Ra-hwa didn't even look at the hairy one and scanned the sister and other slaves before speaking.
"Didn't you see? This person here is incredibly strong, you know?"
"We saw. But there are far more on this side than there were at Plum Blossom Stronghold back then. Above all, our Stronghold Leader is a much greater master than the Plum Blossom Stronghold Leader. No matter how strong that person is, how could he handle our Stronghold Leader and these numbers?"
"Ha..."
She sighed again and asked Kim Rae-won standing beside her.
"It's okay, right?"
"What?"
"Kill them all. It's okay, right?"
"Yeah. It's okay."
Your heroic actions have slightly filled [Hero History].
[+1]
Kim Rae-won, no, Dong Bong-soo smiled refreshingly once more and took a step forward.
And he was certain once again.
This place was even more human than the previous world.
Right. If they're human, this is only natural.
Selfish idiots and fools who can't see an inch ahead, everywhere.
"Thank you."
For coming to be devoured on your own.
Though there won't be much flavor.
***
Dong Bong-soo opened the 'Hero Book' in the What is Hero character window.
The complexly intertwined Hero Path revealed itself. Though it was called a Path, in reality it was a kind of skill tree.
The more of a hero I become, the farther along this path I can go.
'Hero, huh.'
The word hero was such an ambiguous word.
Outstanding Male.
What exactly must be outstanding to be called outstanding?
Strength, power, special talent.
There were countless categories.
However, there was a typical hero that humanity universally accepted.
A person who does good, rages against injustice, and has the power to boldly sacrifice themselves for it or solve everything.
'Or a person who pretends to do so.'
Though already doing it, he would do so even more thoroughly from now on.
It would be quite a difficult task.
Fortunately, in this world, the category of such heroes extremely pursued strong power.
Perhaps it would be quite easy.
"Die!"
One bandit charged at him.
He was slow enough to make one yawn.
Dong Bong-soo casually took a step forward. Too simply avoiding the guy's saber and arriving right before his nose.
The hologram of the Hero Path overlapping the guy's face.
There were three techniques he could select with 1 point.
Click—
Crack—
Dong Bong-soo pressed one of them without much deliberation.
[Player 'Kim Rae-won' has taken a step as a hero.]
[Player has learned 'Faith Arrow Lv.1'.]
— Though the beginning is humble, the end will be great. I believe in you. Won't this one step bring a great leap to this world?
Simultaneously, a huge hole appeared in the pupil of the bandit overlapping the hologram. For a button, it was quite slimy and unpleasant.
"You bastard! How dare you to my broth—"
Right behind the bandit falling backward after losing his eyeball, another guy charged.
Fwit—
Before he could even finish saying 'er,' the brothers departed for the afterlife together on the same day at the same time in brotherly affection. Both having lost one eye each.
"Nice, this is."
Quite enjoyable.
Living as a hero character in this place.
Even though not even a day had passed, it felt like a comfortable mask in many ways. He could spout such cringeworthy lines without any concern, and there was no need to put on airs like in the Martial World.
'I quite like this skill called [Faith Arrow] too.'
It seemed almost the same as the technique called Magic Missile that commonly appeared in fantasy stories. Of course, he'd need to use it more.
Was using it more even difficult?
Dong Bong-soo fully dove into the bandits.
Every time his finger pointed at an enemy, a hole appeared in the bandits' foreheads and corpses piled up one by one.
In less than a moment, the hundred or so people were reduced to just one.
"Eee, eeeeek!"
It was the sister.
He didn't know her name. There was no need to know. There was nothing more unproductive in the world than being curious about the name of someone already dead.
The original Kim Rae-won guy was weak, but the method itself he used to become stronger was wrong.
He went searching for quests.
Even though the system manifested in a new world rather than inside a game, truly becoming 'open world.'
Dong Bong-soo smiled lightly and looked back at Jeon Ra-hwa to ask.
"What about her?"
"She must die."
Though expected, he liked that even more straightforward line.
Fwit. Plop.
[You have appropriately responded to the first belief. A reward is given.]
[+1]
[Trust with your first connection has deepened slightly.]
For the first time in a while, he felt anticipation.
For that woman Jeon Ra-hwa's performance.
***
[Faith Arrow]
[Basic Magic] [Projectile] [Linear]
— When belief takes form, it will become light that pursues enemies.
Condenses pure magic and fires it in the form of a shining arrow. When much faith from those who believe in the caster is imbued, it even gains the ability to track targets.
Though the hero's most basic magic, it holds infinite possibilities according to faith level.
Mana Consumption: 10 MP
Cast Time: Instant Cast
Cooldown: 0.5 seconds
Range: 30m
Base Damage: 100 (+Faith Modifier)