Chapter 68: Things Money Can Buy 3
TL/Editor: Raei
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Walking down the forest trail with Grace and Irene, I shared stories of my journey to the North.
I mostly talked about how fast I gathered resources as a senior adventurer and the thrill of tasting a crisp, cold beer.
I had to sprinkle in some excitement as there wasn't much else to discuss.
Handing gold coins to a blushing receptionist in the North was also part of a joyous night.
But I couldn't really delve into my experience of surfing the web after a long time and getting lost in a new webtoon.
"Many adventurers in the North are skilled hunters. With its cold weather and rugged mountains, there's less farming than in the East and South. Lots of people sell top-quality fur for a living, so many adventurers used to be hunters."
"I see... there's a difference..."
"Compared to beginner and intermediate adventurers here, those in the North are better. It's not a job for just anyone there. But this place, it's known for high level adventurers."
"Is it because of the tower?"
"Exactly. Climbing to the higher levels of the tower implies a daily struggle. It's not like me who takes it easy with requests. Spending years in such places naturally sharpens your skills."
So, I could only talk about the differences between the North and here, particularly in regards to adventurers.
Grace's eyes sparkled when I said Northern hunters were famous.
When I spoke about the tower, Irene was all questions.
Their clear interests made the conversation flow easily.
Grace isn't a real hunter, but she's curious about the Northern hunters due to her learned skills.
And Irene, a priest, is interested in the tower, where adventurers flock.
Like Han Se-ah, our team members wear their hearts on a sleeve.
The only people I know that are like this are straightforward people like Rebecca, who relies on her instincts.
Most others are cunning like the guild master, the old man at the magic tower, or that person from the information guild.
'That's why I enjoy training beginners.'
They're transparent.
Their actions are cute.
They do as told.
Now I understand why RPG veterans value beginners more than gold.
I get to experience first-hand why strange practices such as nurturing beginners have become a trend.
I wouldn't mind spending all my gold on this team.
"If there are so many hunters in the North, wouldn't they need more vanguards?"
"No, actually, they lack mages. The harsh conditions make many men fighters. But without much to study, there are fewer mages. Specifically, there are fewer mages up for adventure."
"I heard that in the North, there are brothers and sisters who convey the will of the Goddess...."
"Yes, that's correct. But because of the tough conditions, not many priests go on adventures. Temples help injured adventurers, but their numbers are small."
Our conversation continued as we ventured through the forest.
Thanks to Grace's upgraded scouting skills, we spotted a moss wolf's ambush and a helmeted deer's charge from far away.
The chat naturally split our big team into a group of three and two.
Grace, holding the lantern, chats with me, while Irene, just a step behind, listens intently to my tales from the North.
Further back, Han Se-ah is talking with her viewers, observing our group of three.
Kaiden, like a bodyguard, stays at the very rear.
Grace's keen senses make a surprise attack unlikely, yet Kaiden remains vigilant.
"Careful!"
"Let's spin the lottery once, aaahh!"
In contrast to chatty Han Se-ah.
A swoosh echoes as a branch, fashioned into a club, swings around.
A sharp stone attached at the end serves as a blade.
This trap could cause a nasty wound to an intermediate-level adventurer.
It wouldn't be deadly, but it would be a hindrance.
The only ones to set such traps on the tower's 20th floor are, of course, orc hunters.
Usually, they'd use beast fangs or rusty blades for traps when looting or hunting.
Ironically, orc hunters litter the tower, using branches and stones from the forest to create their snares.
"What's this?"
"Looks like an orc hunter trap."
"That's right. Kaiden, good reaction speed. And Hanna and Grace... you both know what you did wrong without me saying it, right?"
Either from their repeated camping on the 19th floor or the overconfidence from having a 6 in the front lines, if not for Kaiden, that sharp stone could've hit Han Se-ah's face.
The height was set for a strong man in armor.
No matter how brutish an orc hunter may be, it wouldn't plan on smashing steel armor with a pointed stone.
That's why most traps aim for the ankles, joints, neck, and eyes.
"I'm sorry, Hanna. I... I should have seen it."
"It's okay. I can block something like a branch with my shield... I guess I was too careless."
-Wow, I almost dropped my phone on my face.
-There are jump scares as well?
-Han Se-ah's scream scared me more.
-Do weaker orcs also set traps?
The branch, sliced by Kaiden's sword, flops to the ground.
For a high-rated party consisting of a 6, a 5, and two 4 members, it was a pitiful threat.
A crude stone sharpened to a point, a rope twisted from thin forest vines, and a branch wound up like a catapult.
Han Se-ah's face reddens, embarrassed she almost fell for such a basic trap.
It wasn't because of the viewers replaying the clip over and over while taunting her.
It's the kind of expression seen on ambitious, prideful prodigies when they make mistakes due to overconfidence.
"Ha, really, Grace... I don't mean to scold, but as the party leader, I need to ask. Honestly, this seems easier to spot than moss wolves. Did we miss it because we were deep in conversation? Or did we overlook it because it wasn't alive?"
"It's the latter. It's just a branch in the forest, there's no special signs, so I didn't notice it. In the case of moss wolves, I can feel their presence, but this is just a tied-up branch, it's something we need to see directly with our eyes."
"So did you see me step on the trap, Kaiden, or did you sense the trap being activated?"
"I reacted to the sound of the thread snapping. It wasn't like stepping on a branch in the forest, it was a distinctive crack."
Han Se-ah, rubbing her face with her hand, asks Grace and Kaiden.
It seems her gamer's pride has suffered a blow.
I learned a bit about Han Se-ah's reputation from the internet while I was in the North.
Before she entered the first virtual reality game, "Heroes Chronicle", Han Se-ah was a well-established female streamer.
She boasted 300,000 followers on her live streams, and over half a million subscribers on the platform where she uploaded videos.
Her gaming videos would rack up millions of views, and even off-topic videos like workouts or mukbangs surpassed 100,000 views, making her an incredibly popular streamer.
"It looks like there's an orc hunter nearby. We search for the traps, but it will significantly slow us down. Instead of reacting to them as we go, we need to thoroughly check the path with our eyes."
"Understood. We might need to tweak our strategy slightly."
Looking at Han Se-ah's past gaming videos, regardless of the genre, two traits were apparent.
One was her competitive spirit.
As both a gamer and athlete, she possessed a fighting spirit that hated losing.
She would retaliate if hit by a skill in a game, and hearing gunfire on the street made her jump into the fight - a characteristic of a fighting dog.
This gave viewers a charm that contradicted her elegant appearance.
"Roland. I have a request... or rather, a command as a leader."
"Hmm?"
"Take the lead in front of Grace, destroy anything in our way and make a path. Not just clearing small branches, but anything suspicious, smash it to create a walkable path for one or two people."
And the second trait was her tendency to solve issues with brute force rather than tact.
-Han Tae-sik is back! Han Tae-sik is back!
-Are you crazy? Your eyes are spinning, aren't they?
-If there's a 6 in the party, you gotta use it lol
-Always used her head as a weapon. Your hot-tempered nature hasn't changed.
-So, it's a straight charge? Not tracking the orc hunter?
The chat lit up in Han Se-ah's twinkling eyes.
The longstanding viewers who understood her character started chuckling, saying that old habits never change.
Meanwhile, the newer viewers looking for strategic insight started to question in the chat if there might be a more tactical approach.
In gaming, Han Se-ah always marches forward with unwavering determination, never concerning herself with the viewers' opinions.
"If there are traps, it implies that the orc hunter is nearby. Even if Grace can't detect the traps, she will still find the orc hunter."
"That... makes sense."
"So, you two, press through the forest."
Hunters pursue their prey.
Rogues disable traps and locks.
Grace's inability to detect the orc hunter's trap is not due to a weakness in her search abilities.
It's an innate limitation imposed by the game's system.
Like me, capable of handling mana but unable to use magic, owing to a fundamental rule of RPGs, Grace can't detect traps.
With this in mind, Han Se-ah issued a decisive command.
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TL Note: uhm Han Tae-sik is a play-on Han Se-ah's name... seems like a name for her aggressive persona. Sorry if it's an actual reference to something... Nothing came up when I looked.
2/5 Enjoy the chappy!
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