45. My Buff is a Drug
45. My Buff is a Drug
Day two!
The party had filled nine capsules in total.
Day three!
The party had filled fifteen capsules in total.
Day four!
The party had filled twenty-three capsules in total.
As the days piled up and their haul grew, the originally warm and friendly atmosphere in the party heated up even more.
They were plenty exhausted after four days, but some things got easier—they'd adapted to hunting and survival, and their packs had gotten noticeably lighter.
And so, night.
Once again, the party gathered around the campfire to talk about the day.
"This is going pretty smoothly. At this rate, we might just scrape together all fifty capsules on the last day."
"Heheh. Just thinking about it makes me happy!"
"Let's all keep it up tomorrow too."
"Yeah!"
They spent the evening trading words of encouragement.
Then came evening of day seven!
After hunting down even the slightly weaker monsters without discrimination, they had finally managed to fill all fifty capsules.
Choi Ah-young hoisted the bag full of capsules and showed it to the party.
"Assignment complete. Now all we have to do is head back to where the Otherworld Crystal is by tomorrow morning."
At Choi Ah-young's words, Seo Ha-yoon practically jumped for joy.
"We did it!"
"Heh heh, this was a predestined 'fate.' I knew it from the very beginning, so I see no reason to rejoice."
Chae Hwa-ra said that, deliberately lowering her voice and acting aloof, but she couldn't hide the delight spreading across her face.
"Then let's head back early. Even if we camp, staying near the crystal's location will be more secure."
Following Choi Ah-young's suggestion, the party walked out of the Encounter Zone.
But partway through, along the forest path, a figure caught their eye.
"Hngh..."
A girl sat there, huddled and dejected, filthy as a vagrant, hugging her knees.
It wasn't that they hadn't seen other people hunting around here over the past week.
They'd often seen parties that had originally aimed for D-rank monsters, then realized they wouldn't fill their capsules in time and switched to hunting E-ranks.
But they'd never seen someone alone and forlorn like this.
"Look at that."
"Is something wrong?"
The other girls spotted her too and approached to talk.
The first to speak was the ever-worried Seo Ha-yoon.
"Um... is something the matter? Why are you out here all alone without your party?"
The girl glanced briefly at Seo Ha-yoon, then stared back into the empty air.
"I—I got kicked out. They said I was completely useless..."
A closer look revealed bruises on her face that looked like she'd been hit.
"They just told me to get out and die... If I die this time, my rank might drop. I don't know where to go, and I want to at least avoid elimination, so I've just been... here."
"Isn't it dangerous to stay here?"
"Even if I tried to go back to where the exam started, going alone in this condition would obviously count as elimination... Even if I can't get a points settlement, I at least wanted to wait for my party somehow and pass the exam..."
It really sounded like she'd been beaten and kicked out.
'I don't know what party it was, but they're pretty damn heartless to throw someone out just for not being useful.'
With Choi Ah-young currently getting shunned by practically every other cadet, it was starting to look like the people in this facility had no real interest in stopping bullying.
Well, no matter how much you try to prevent it, ostracism always finds a way to happen.
"Ah..."
Worry seeped into Seo Ha-yoon's eyes.
It was as if the literal word W-O-R-R-I-E-D had been stamped right into her irises.
'Looks like we're going to be looking after this girl for the rest of the exam.'
The thought came to Hye-yong's mind unbidden.
And the very moment he thought it, Seo Ha-yoon glanced back.
Seo Ha-yoon turned toward the group and whispered.
"It's so pitiful... getting kicked out during such an important exam. Couldn't we stay with her, just for tonight?"
Choi Ah-young and Na Hee-yeon nodded.
"It does seem a little harsh."
"Right. Borderline cruel, honestly."
And so they postponed heading back to the exam starting point. They found a spot close to the exam grounds and decided to stay one more day in the Encounter Zone.
All the Encounter Zones that appeared around the forest were, naturally, inside the forest.
If you looked carefully, there were plenty of spots with running water.
This time too, they found a suitable place, pitched their tent, and began meal preparations.
After repeating the same routine over and over and over, they'd all become camping specialists by now.
"We're all going to go wash up together, so sorry for the inconvenience—please bear with us a little."
"No problem. It is the last day, after all."
Even though they'd come wearing swimsuits, actually washing required scrubbing every nook and cranny, so Hye-yong usually did it quickly and got out first.
Since this girl obviously didn't have a swimsuit, it was natural for Hye-yong to be absent.
A short while later, the girls returned from washing.
The filthy hair and face had transformed in an instant.
'When you look at her like this, she's actually pretty.'
She had a shy, naive charm that felt like a mix of Mina and Seo Ha-yoon's vibes.
That is to say: pretty, but lacking in self-assertion and a bit dim.
"Watch the fire for a minute!"
Seo Ha-yoon said that, then pulled the girl into the tent.
"Pang! Come here and try this on!"
"I—is it really okay for me to accept clothes too?"
"Of course! We're about the same height, so it should fit!"
"Th—thank you..."
Pang?
Was her name Pang?
She looked East Asian, but it struck him as an unusual name.
'Ah, a Chinese-nationality character.'
Well, sure, there'd be Chinese people here too.
To be honest, he disliked China, but he liked Chinese beauties and Chinese-style aesthetics.
Things like inns and cheongsam dresses, that kind of thing.
'The mood is warm and pleasant.'
Soon Pang came out, changed into Seo Ha-yoon's clothes, with an expression that looked a little overwhelmed.
Did she think this much kindness was too good for her?
"You must be really hungry, right? Food's almost ready. Just wait a bit longer!"
Choi Ah-young and Na Hee-yeon came out from the tent too, hurrying the dinner preparations along.
"Is—is it really okay if I eat your supplies too?"
Hye-yong felt he should chime in at least once, so he spoke in the kindest tone he could manage.
"We brought more than we expected, so we've got plenty. Eat as much as you want."
"Huhht, th—thank you...!"
Pang looked on the verge of tears, but it seemed she just barely held them back.
They spent the evening like that, and then night.
Soon it was time to sleep.
With six people squeezed together inside the tent, it did look a bit cramped.
"It's the last night, but let's make sure we keep watch properly. We haven't been attacked so far, but if something goes wrong at the very end, that'd be infuriating."
"Of course. Times like this are exactly when you need to stay on your toes."
Hye-yong backed up Ah-young's words about not letting their guard down until the very end.
"Pang, why are you shaking like that? Are you cold?"
"Ah—huh? It's nothing! I was just wondering if it was really okay for me to share the blanket..."
"It's not a bother at all, what are you talking about!"
As Seo Ha-yoon smiled and said that, the air around her seemed ready to blossom into a flower garden.
He always thought this, but marrying someone like her would mean a whole married life full of happiness.
He'd constantly worry that some bad person might trick her and take her away.
"Alright, I'll take the first watch."
Tonight's first watch was Choi Ah-young.
"W—wait!"
Pang stopped Choi Ah-young as she was about to leave the tent.
"What's up?"
"Am I... not taking a watch shift?"
"Ah, yeah. It's the last day anyway. You must be exhausted, so for tonight, just rest easy and sleep soundly."
"Huh? Oh... okay..."
Pang's face looked blatantly disappointed.
What was this?
Why did it look like she was disappointed that she didn't have to stand watch?
The thought suddenly flickered through Hye-yong's mind.
And then a certain proverb surfaced.
'A good Chinese person is...'
Was it the same even in this world?
He wondered if it was just pointless suspicion, but come to think of it, the whole situation was strange.
If they were going to kick her out like that, why form a party with her in the first place?
No, more importantly—were they even allowed to expel a party member like that?
By the rules?
Once the suspicion started, it set off a chain reaction.
'When the topic of night watch came up, didn't she seem nervous about something?'
And she'd seemed to be eyeing Choi Ah-young's pack intently when Ah-young moved it.
At first he'd just thought she was anxious about a lot of things, mentally unstable—but a single keyword, "Chinese," had recast every single action in a suspicious light.
It was prejudice, maybe, but he couldn't help it.
'Right. It never hurts to be cautious...'
Exactly.
He hadn't outwardly shown his suspicion, had he?
If it turned out to be nothing, he could just apologize inwardly.
Tonight.
He decided to cast a buff that would keep him awake and quietly observe her presence.
'Yup. When everyone else is asleep and you're the only one awake, time really does pass stupidly slowly.'
Still, today was lucky, for some reason.
Hye-yong's spot was in the corner.
Right next to him was Na Hee-yeon.
Na Hee-yeon always slept facing Seo Ha-yoon's direction, but tonight—maybe because she was sleeping restlessly—she was facing Hye-yong.
He always thought this, but the sight of a pretty girl sleeping was just angelic.
Especially an angel with the soft, embracing quality of a midriff, you might say?
He feasted his eyes and killed time.
When midnight came, Choi Ah-young carefully came to wake Na Hee-yeon.
"Hee-yeon. It's time for your watch."
"Hm? Mhm... got it."
It was a shame Na Hee-yeon left, but thanks to that he had a clear view of Pang's state.
That lucky bastard who'd been sleeping wedged between Seo Ha-yoon and Na Hee-yeon!
Not that he was jealous, but he carefully studied her figure, lying there on her back.
Hah. Hah. Hah.
'Her breathing seems a little shallow.'
It was faint, but hearing an audible "hah" while she was sleeping was a bit weird.
Hye-yong created a buff to boost his own hearing, sight, and ability to sense presence.
He focused on Pang's sleeping body, and soon signals began to appear here and there.
Fingers twitching.
Toes wriggling.
Ears faintly quivering.
Her breathing was irregular. She didn't look like she was asleep at all.
'Don't tell me you're awake.'
The moment that thought crossed his mind, Pang cracked open just her right eye, almost imperceptibly.
'You *were* awake, you...!'
Why wasn't she asleep?
Why?
His suspicion deepened, but it was still too early to be certain.
It could just be that she was anxious about tomorrow and couldn't fall asleep easily.
He did have a stay-awake buff on, but sleep had already completely fled him anyway. Hye-yong observed her condition even more closely.
'I hope she makes a move before it's my turn on watch.'
Maybe another hour passed?
Pang lifted the blanket slightly and, with excruciating care, tried to slip out.
Hye-yong immediately closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep.
Zzzzip....
Pang was opening the tent zipper very quietly, trying to get out.
'Here it comes.'
His heart pounded.
Was suspicion becoming reality?
He held his breath and waited. Soon she exited the tent and closed the zipper again.
The night watch was for detecting external threats. Naturally, it didn't account for betrayal from their own side, so the person on watch was positioned some distance from the tent.
So Na Hee-yeon wouldn't know.
Hye-yong had to be the one to move.
Hye-yong counted exactly ten seconds, then made his move.
[ Covert Movement ]
Stealth 14-level increase
[ Night Vision ]
Night Vision 3-level
'Ten!'
Time to move.
He created a buff, cranked his stealth to maximum, and tailed Pang.
Thanks to night vision, he could see Pang moving the moment he got out.
'That's toward our packs.'
It wasn't completely confirmed yet, but by now he had to assume the worst.
An uncontrollable sense of indignation began to slither up from his chest.
'Look at this brat.'
We treated you so damn well, and you're planning to stab us in the back!
'Though I don't know if she was lying in wait with this goal from the very start.'
Come to think of it, the method was almost too obvious.
Anyway, let's get after her.
'There she goes.'
Sure enough!
Pang was rummaging through Ah-young's pack, which he'd seen her eyeing so intently earlier.
Hye-yong had been gauging the right moment to pounce. He realized it was now.
'My presence is completely hidden right now. I'll creep up behind her and tackle her down.'
He had to be ready to sprint the second he was spotted.
A tense moment.
Afraid that even the sound of his heartbeat or breathing might give him away, he held his breath and approached with painstaking care.
Pang, who had been rummaging through Ah-young's bag, finally discovered the capsule bag. She examined it, then hugged it to her chest.
By that time, Hye-yong was right behind her.
'If I hadn't remembered that proverb, how the hell would I have ever caught this?'
Now it was time to really pounce.
[ Assault ]
Strength stat 10-level increase
Agility stat 10-level increase
She looked frail, but he couldn't let his guard down.
In case she had some strength and could overpower him in return, he buffed his strength. And he buffed his agility so he could pounce quickly.
'Gotcha, you little thief!'
—Tch!
At the sudden presence, Pang hastily whipped her head around, the capsule bag still clutched to her chest.
"Wh—who's there!"
But Hye-yong had already charged in, his hands clamping down on both her shoulders and throwing her to the ground.
"Kyaak!"
Thud!
Forcibly thrown down, Pang thrashed wildly, but he pressed his palms against her shoulders and used his body weight to pin her so she couldn't escape.
Then with his right hand he covered her mouth, making sure no one would come running.
"Mmph! Hmmph! Mmph!"
"Quiet. You want everyone to come?"
"...!"
Pang's face was instantly flooded with terror.
Seeing that softened his heart a little, but trying to steal the fruits of all their effort was simply unforgivable.
Hye-yong projected the most menacing presence he could muster and decided to interrogate Pang.