I Couldn't Possibly Call Her Pretty

I couldn't possibly call her pretty. When I lifted the greatsword, it felt lighter than expected. At first glance it looked impossibly heavy, yet it had a surprisingly nimble weight in my hands. That was only natural, of course. If they had modeled it with true-to-life mass, even a game character would struggle to swing it properly. The developers must have fine-tuned the weight to preserve realism while still keeping it playable. It was a little disappointing. I hadn't been counting on the authentic heft of a real greatsword, but I wished the sensation against my palm felt just a touch more substantial. Even so, the current weight was more than enough for me. Lifting something this size with a 165-centimeter frame in Reality Mode was no small feat. Still, that was a problem I could solve with technique.

I rested the greatsword on my shoulder and dashed forward, shifting the center of gravity slightly ahead to gain instant acceleration. In the blink of an eye I stood before the Domagirius. I planted my toes into the ground as if driving stakes. Normally the inertia would have sent me stumbling, but I converted that momentum into rotational force around the axis of my feet. Dropping my stance low, I swung the greatsword upward in a rising slash.

Good feedback.

“Shwaaaaaah!!”

The creature screamed in agony. Another Domagirius nearby didn’t like what it saw and whipped its tail at me. My response was simple. I surrendered my body to the rising greatsword and jumped. Thanks to the lingering force still clinging to the blade, my light frame shot upward effortlessly. The monster that had swung its tail clearly hadn’t expected me to evade like that; it stared at me floating in mid-air, dumbfounded.

“Shwaaa…?”

Following the center of gravity I felt through my fingertips, I adjusted my feet in the air. That motion triggered a natural spin. My target was Domagirius A, still dazed with its head tilted back from the earlier impact. The rotation that began at my toes traveled through my knees, hips, waist, and shoulders until it permeated my entire body. I poured every ounce of that accumulated energy into the greatsword.

The greatsword, now accelerated by the stored rotational force, slammed straight down onto Domagirius A’s skull.

Together with the sensation of piercing something solid, a far heavier impact than before reverberated throughout the entire forest. The Domagirius A collapsed, its head impaled on my blade. I lightly planted my foot on its body as I landed, then turned my gaze toward Domagirius B. It had frozen in the exact posture it held after swinging its tail. The moment our eyes met, it slowly, cautiously took one step backward.

Running away? Not a chance. I’ve just started having fun.

Once something entered my sight, it was my prey. I had never given it permission to flee.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue lightly and launched myself after the retreating monster. THUD! CRASH! It didn’t take long to finish off a creature whose spirit had already been broken. In the end, it paid the price for ruining my mood.

Only after driving the greatsword deep into the ground did I brush off my hands and let out a long breath.

“Hoo…”

There was definitely a slight sense of dissonance compared to reality. The battle had been too easy, almost to the point of disappointment. But this sensation I was feeling again after a full year. A moderate dose of dopamine seized my brain like a hammer. It’s a shame, but I like it.

Maybe because of my lowered physical stats, the feeling faintly reminded me of the first time I had awakened. It had a strangely novel flavor. The reason I could defeat them so easily was thanks to a special system that only applied in Wilds Hunter’s Reality Mode. Just as a weakly fired bullet hurts less, damage in this mode scaled with how much actual force you applied. The stronger the physical power behind a strike, the greater the damage. The reverse was also true—a half-hearted tap dealt no damage at all. In other words, the concept was completely different from Baby Mode’s “I hit it, so damage went through” logic.

While I was absently tapping the fallen Domagirius corpses, I remembered that this game involved harvesting materials from monster bodies. How do you harvest them, exactly? I had butchered monsters in real life before, but there was no guarantee ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the same rules applied in-game, so I turned to UglyUgly2 to ask.

“How do you harvest materials from these?”

“......”

She gave no answer. She simply stood there with her mouth hanging open, staring at me blankly.

Why is she acting like that?

While I watched her with puzzled eyes, something rapidly scrolling upward caught the edge of my vision. It was the chat window I had shoved aside earlier because it was distracting. I pulled it back in front of me with a swipe of my hand. As I slowly read through the flood of messages—

The chat window, already completely broken, was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the only thing greeting me.

Why are they all like this again? I hadn’t even shown them anything proper yet.

WILD HUNTER GALLERY. Originally a place to exchange information about Wilds Hunter and interact with other users. But now that the series had been out for a long time, it had completely stagnated. These days, aside from the occasional fresh newbie asking questions, it was mostly filled with pointless chatter unrelated to the actual game.

While the usual stream of pointless chatter continued, a title that caught the gallery users’ attention appeared.

The single user’s lament that started as a small spark instantly set the entire gallery on fire. The previously stagnant forum was suddenly burning hot again.

Meanwhile, Kim Yeonu—who had finally regained her senses and asked UglyUgly2 how to harvest materials—could only tilt her head in confusion at the sudden explosive surge in viewer count.

What’s happening this time?

She had no idea where the word-of-mouth was spreading from. It was good that the audience was growing, but the way it kept spiking so suddenly was honestly just bewildering.

Having witnessed me swiftly dispatch two ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Domagiriuses, UglyUgly2 trailed off, visibly shaken.

“Just what are you…”

After staring at me speechlessly for a while, she shook her head, picked up the bag she had dropped earlier, and stood in front of the Domagirius corpse. She drew the dagger from her thigh.

“The outpost is right in front of us, so let’s harvest the materials quickly first.”

She knelt down and began expertly skinning the Domagirius with practiced hands. I was slightly impressed that she could switch back to professional mode so quickly despite her obvious shock. Guess she really does take her senior role seriously.

I also took out a dagger from my bag and helped with the harvesting. Soon we obtained the tough hide and sharp claws as materials.

“You can use the materials you obtain later to make armor or weapons. Normally only hunters can craft them, but…”

She glanced at me while holding the materials, then nodded.

“Since you killed them, talk to the blacksmith later. I’ll put in a word with Uncle Tom for you.”

She even handed me the share she had harvested herself.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. I would’ve died if not for you…”

She shook her head and spoke calmly. Was it because her calm demeanor felt so unfamiliar? The previously broken chat window began twitching back to life.

Watching the chat reactions, I grew curious too.

“Is she normally not like this?”

It seemed the viewers were also seeing this side of UglyUgly2 for the first time. Most of them were saying it felt awkward and expressing confusion, so it really must have been completely out of character.

While I was chatting with the viewers, UglyUgly2 finished organizing our luggage and approached me.

“Let’s get going.”

“Okay.”

I followed behind her. Before long, a massive wall came into view. A wooden barrier that easily stood thirty meters tall. The wall, built by lashing together enormous logs each as thick as a person’s waist, radiated a heavy sense of intimidation just by existing. Iron spikes driven into it everywhere, reinforced iron cores, and tough ropes tightly wound together proved this was no ordinary wooden fence.

Beyond the wall, faint lights glowed. The sound of hammering, the murmur of people, and the occasional cry of beasts mixed together. Armed soldiers stood guard on the watchtowers above, spears at the ready. The air carried the mingled scents of straw and oil, along with the smoky smell of freshly lit firewood.

So this is the outpost.

Located in the middle ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of an island swarming with monsters, the atmosphere was rather rough. Yet for some reason, I felt just as much vitality as tension. As I stood there quietly smiling at the dynamic energy, UglyUgly2, who had been walking ahead, turned around.

“First time at an outpost, right? Welcome to the First Outpost.”

She spread her arms wide, proudly introducing the base. And at that exact moment—

RUMBLE.

The enormous wooden gates slowly parted to both sides. Beneath the now dimming sky, the sunset that had settled over the barrier illuminated her face. Her face, dyed orange by the sunset glow… should have been called incredibly beautiful. Honestly, though, my conscience wouldn’t allow it.

She’s ugly…

I couldn’t possibly call her pretty.