Childhood
Childhood
The first emotion they felt upon seeing the quest window was bewilderment.
Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined a quest would suddenly pop up in this kind of situation.
But it was only for a moment; Chae-rin and Ha-neul's faces soon lit up with color.
Because it was clear as day that this was their way out.
'This is it!'
Now there was a way to properly help him. The best possible way to get it done without having to run away.
Although the success conditions looked utterly brutal, this seemed to be their only option to help him.
So the two of them quickly pressed accept and spoke with confidence.
"Don't worry, just leave it to us! We'll find a way somehow!"
"Y-Yeah! Don't worry, because I'm going to gather a ton of people!"
They looked rather triumphant.
From their point of view, this was one of those rare moments when a woman could look cool. There was no way they'd easily let an opportunity like this slip.
From Yor's perspective, however, he was still just bewildered.
Since he possessed the Player's Eye, he too had seen the quest window pop up in real time.
And it was giving him a strong sense of incongruity.
The fact that a quest had appeared in this situation was one thing, but the content of the quest itself was another; there were too many things about it that felt deeply significant in various ways.
That wasn't the only thing that nagged at him.
Once again, the words "Future Calamity" had popped up in the rewards field.
This wasn't the first time Yor had seen it.
He'd already seen a similar reward appear way back when he'd caught that Lemegeton follower, Lian, and had left the report to someone else.
Back then, he'd just figured it must be because info about Lemegeton got out thanks to that...
And maybe that prevented some kind of damage somewhere...
He'd just thought about it to himself and moved on.
But now, the feeling itself was different. Wasn't it saying this time that his very survival—the act itself—would be a help?
'...Hm.'
To be honest, Yor wasn't exactly fond of quests.
Because every time something like this popped up, it made it feel like this place really was just a game.
But to him, this place was truly reality.
Even if everyone else blindly believed it was a game, it wasn't that way for him.
Several questions brewed inside him.
Just what did the system want from him? What mechanism caused quests like this to pop up?
'...Ugh, forget it.'
A lot of questions rose up, but he let them slide for now. Right this instant, survival was the priority.
One thing was definitely certain. This was the first good news in a long time. Whatever the case, it was a good thing for him.
"Well then, we'll be off."
"Stay safe."
And so, with hope in their hearts, the two of them secretly slipped outside.
"Should I start recording the video right now, Chae-rin?"
"Yeah. Record it and send it straight by email. I'll add the captions."
And that evening, a simply edited video was uploaded to Chae-rin's YouTube channel.
[Urgently Needed! Recruiting people to do a quest together! Anyone!]
As if to convey something of great importance, the thumbnail even had white text on a black background.
The video's content was straightforward. She was simply sharing an in-game quest and recruiting people to take part.
"Hello, everyone. So, I received a critical quest..."
Having already done plenty of content with Yor, she had racked up 700,000 subscribers by now.
So naturally, the video's views rapidly began to climb.
"It's a tough quest. I know. The risks are big and..."
And that also meant the story would soon reach the ears of NPCs.
The Knight Order, for instance.
Her personal circumstances were already widely known among the players, and the video's subject matter was also quite shocking.
The moment she posted it, it was possible she'd be branded an accomplice and arrested.
The guards might already be searching for Chae-rin and Ha-neul.
"But you know what, everyone? Aren't we the kind of players who always try ramming straight into a new option the moment one appears?"
But she didn't care about any of that.
She'd been prepared for it from the moment she accepted the quest anyway.
"If we fail, so what, we'll just all join Lemegeton together or something."
The video ended with those words.
And starting from that video, dozens of emails began flying into her inbox.
*
"Huuuh..."
Deep in the forest, a man standing there let out a heavy sigh.
It was the sigh of the Commander of the Fourth Knight Order, Rayleigh.
After the method they'd originally planned had failed, worry and concern came unbidden.
The plan at first had been to capture him without fail in the initial clash.
Because things would become incredibly troublesome if he fled into the Deep Layer.
The biggest problem was that the Knight Order couldn't easily give chase inside there.
Just as they'd seen last time, the obstacles blocking their way were more than one or two.
Not only were there carnivorous plants ambushing them out of nowhere, but they also had to consider the high-rank monsters that would come running at the sound of commotion.
And if they ran into something like the Mountain Lord, things would get seriously bad.
Last time they'd encountered that Mountain Lord, he'd only been able to wound the creature and force a retreat because of sheer luck.
There was no telling how long such strokes of fortune would hold out.
Even being able to wound it during that retreat was only possible because over ten knights had sacrificed themselves.
Even for him, that monster was not an existence he could easily contend with.
Consequently, for now, the subjugation squad had merely set up a perimeter outside the Deep Layer and was waiting without concrete action.
So that in the off chance he tried to sneak out, he wouldn't be able to.
Thankfully, they could at least deal with the monsters up to the Middle Layer.
The injured knights had also been rotated out to new personnel outside the forest.
In summary, their fighting strength was still intact. Though they'd already suffered several losses...
'Hah, this is why I tried so hard to capture him...'
Rayleigh sighed once more.
The problem was that the guy's decision had been more audacious than he'd thought. To think he'd just ignore my sword and run like that.
They'd prepared diligently, but they couldn't cope with absolutely everything.
In any case, the situation had come to pass, and now it was time to devise another measure.
The method he chose for now was one. To advance slowly into the Deep Layer while maintaining the perimeter.
"Don't advance recklessly. I don't care if it takes a long time; thoroughly check for threats around you before each step."
They'd check the ground for carnivorous plants and advance while eliminating every monster that rushed them.
It was bound to take a long, long time, but this was the only option they had.
"..."
Well, actually, there was another way.
It was to wait for Yor to be unable to endure the Deep Layer and come charging out on his own.
And Rayleigh thought this possibility was higher.
Because as far as he knew, the Deep Layer was a space where no person could possibly survive.
Monsters that even the Knight Order struggled against were arrayed everywhere, sunlight barely filtered in, and there wasn't much in the way of anything edible either.
That was also why monsters would occasionally come down to the Middle Layer.
And that wasn't all. It was obvious he wouldn't be able to get any proper sleep either.
He'd heard the monsters there were highly intelligent and frequently attacked at night.
So he'd surely either die there, or he'd reach his limit and flee.
Rayleigh thought the guy's options would be only one of those two.
...However.
If, by some fluke, the guy overcame all of that and survived in the Deep Layer.
And if he used all that experience as nourishment for his own growth.
'Hmm...'
Rayleigh decided not to dwell on that train of thought for long.
*
Day 8.
After sending the girls off, I made a bunch of preparations.
Preparations to survive, that is.
I tuned up my weapons as best I could and took stock of my remaining Holy Waters one more time.
I didn't forget to pack Dantalion's ear and Seere's arm either.
They were precious items, and more importantly, I had no idea when or where I might use them.
It was a relief my weapon sack was so spacious. The fortune I'd spent buying a large Subspace in the past was finally paying off.
As I was doing maintenance by myself for a long time, the conversations I'd shared with the girls yesterday suddenly came to mind.
The chat we'd had briefly after the quest appeared and before they left.
- What do you plan on doing from now on?
I'm going to hold out. And if they're not looking for a drawn-out war, I'll hold out even longer.
- I'm going to gather people. But since I don't know when the battle will be, I'm a bit worried whether we can intervene at just the right time... Couldn't we at least set up some kind of signal so we can prepare?
She had a point. Unlike them, who had the internet, I had no proper means of communication.
Of course, if a battle started, the reinforcements they'd talked about would come, but there was a real chance they couldn't make it in time.
So I'd set a prearranged time for when the fight would break out. And told them to keep it a secret for now.
The timing I'd set was a very specific one.
'The day after it rains.'
I didn't know when that day would come, but since it was summer, it was certain the chance would come at least once.
When the stench of wet earth was heavy in the air, your whole body was drenched and clammy, and the mist rolled in from all sides.
So that the ground was soaked and sank with every step, the visibility dropped, and movement became a pain.
To be honest, it was the worst possible fighting conditions for me too.
But that wasn't just a story limited to me.
Because the conditions were bad for everyone. That was exactly why it would be an opportunity for me.
With my preparations complete, I rose from my spot and started walking.
The plan was to head toward an even deeper part of the Deep Layer.
I had no intention of staying still until that day came.
I'd already been beaten to a pulp by those bastards once. If I fought them in my current state, I could lose even with reinforcements.
On top of that, the enemy must still have had plenty of Holy Water left.
So there was a clear need to toughen myself up a bit more than I was now.
"Well... it has been way too peaceful lately."
I said that and chuckled.
And was suddenly reminded of childhood.
That time not long after I'd entered this forest.
When I'd been forced to push toward the Middle Layer to avoid the people who occasionally came into the Surface Layer.
The memories surfaced in my head: fighting life-or-death duels against monsters stronger than me, barely surviving, and desperately searching for a place to rest.
Honestly, they weren't very good memories, but thinking back now, that was probably the time I grew the fastest. Because if you want to live, you have to push forward.
The current situation wasn't much different. So for a while, I was going back to those days.
A return to that starved and exhausted childhood.
"Sssss, huuuh..."
I re-gripped my spear.
I took a deep breath and advanced deeper in.
It didn't take long for beasts too stupid to know their place to start charging at me.