Popular NPC in a Gender-Reversed Game

After that, similar incidents continued a few more times.

“Hang in there.”

Thud.

The otherworlders who had somehow breached the goblin's defenses handed me items as if it were an act of kindness.

“I’m curious, but could you show me the pattern just once? Oh... you can’t?”

Thud, thud.

In fact, most of the items were things that could only be obtained in the city center. From small things like bread to utensils like knives and forks.

“Did you really live in this forest all this time? Then, do you have a partner...? No, never mind.”

Click.

There were even people who took pictures after giving me gifts.

Well, I had enough experience almost being secretly filmed, so I didn’t care much about that anymore.

However, this time, the feeling was slightly ambiguous.

It felt as if I wasn’t the focus, but rather the situation of handing me the items was what they wanted to capture. Almost as if it were for some verification purpose...

Although I couldn’t see the world they lived in, I could roughly guess it.

It was probably to post on an online community. It seemed like it had become a trend to bring modern items to me.

In situations like this, I found myself slightly regretting the ability of the ‘Player’s Eye.’

Now that it had been revealed that I was a Manifestation Bearer, it was clear that some chatter would be circulating among their community.

But I couldn’t see any of it.

“Um... yeah.”

Still, since they were giving me things, I accepted everything.

After all, I had no reason to refuse, and it was always good to accumulate wealth.

Though it felt like I was just collecting more stuff for a move...

Of course, I still felt a strange mix of emotions while accepting.

What was it? They seemed to look at me like a poor puppy.

That gaze felt warm yet somewhat unpleasant.

I was in a slightly better state now, though.

Of course, it had become a bit tougher recently.

Anyway, time passed little by little.

In the meantime, I had been moving every day without much rest.

Right now, the otherworlders were still bringing me gifts.

However, now that my identity was revealed, I never knew when a hunting party might show up.

Surely the otherworlders wouldn’t all keep quiet about me.

One of them would surely speak up, and that news would naturally reach the Empire.

Maybe they were even forming a hunting party right now.

So there was no time to hesitate.

Because of that, I had been very busy lately.

Not only did I have to organize the items in the storage, but I also needed to find a new place to live.

Was that all? To avoid the situation where the cave would be surrounded, I was secretly digging a detour deep into the cave.

‘What the heck, what a hassle in the middle of winter...’

At least this winter, I was fortunate to have stored food in time.

Otherwise, even three bodies wouldn’t have been enough.

Of course, I was still pushing my limits.

After such a busy day, I had to sleep while keeping my guard up.

The forest’s nights were sure to be difficult to enter, but that didn’t mean I could let my guard down.

It was only natural that I couldn’t sleep well, and fatigue was steadily accumulating.

Thus, six days passed since Dantalion fled.

It was only then that I finally encountered a familiar face.

“Yor!”

It was Yu Chae-rin.

After six days since the incident, a known face finally appeared.

Considering it was quite a big event, it felt a bit late for her to show up.

“Hah, ha... I’m sorry for coming late. I had to go on a mission far away...”

As if she had read my curiosity, she quickly explained.

I nodded slightly.

“No, it’s okay. No one could have expected this. Let’s head to the cave for now.”

For me, it was a good thing just that she came looking for me.

I had a thing or two to ask her anyway.

So, I took her with me and headed to the cave.

“Wow... the cave feels a bit empty, doesn’t it?”

That was the first thing Chae-rin said when she entered the cave.

Just as she said, the cave did feel a bit empty. I had been tidying up the clutter that I had left lying around.

Not only that, Yor answered her appropriately.

“Yeah, I’m getting it ready so I can leave anytime.”

“Wait, you’re leaving? Where to?”

She seemed noticeably flustered. A faint sense of anxiety flickered in Chae-rin’s violet eyes.

It was shocking news for her. After all, the NPC she had just become friends with might leave.

She was worried that if I moved elsewhere, she might not be able to meet me again.

Seeing this, Yor inwardly chuckled and said to reassure her.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere right now. Besides, I have a lot to ask about that.”

I didn’t blame her for feeling that way. I, too, didn’t want to leave a place I had grown fond of.

There were bad memories, but still, this place held many precious memories for me.

When I said that, she let out a sigh of relief.

“Phew, that’s a relief then. Do you know how surprised I was when I first heard the news?”

Chae-rin briefly recalled the moment she first heard about it.

The news that a demon had entered the place where Yor lived and that the fact that he was a Manifestation Bearer had suddenly been revealed.

While performing a guild request outside for the first time in a while, she couldn’t help but be shocked.

For him, the information about being a ‘Manifestation Bearer’ had to be kept hidden until the moment of death.

I even heard that a random guy interrupted the broadcast, causing it to end abruptly.

She was deeply worried, thinking something terrible might have happened.

Fortunately, she was able to receive some news over the internet little by little.

In any case, seeing him safe and sound now put her mind at ease.

While she was thinking that, Yor opened his mouth again.

“Anyway, I have something to ask. What exactly was said among the otherworlders? Suddenly they started giving me gifts.”

“Oh, that...”

Chae-rin shared the community’s opinion about Yor for a moment.

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Fortunately, most users seemed to have a favorable response towards him.

There was a sense of familiarity built up from her appearances on broadcasts.

Moreover, sympathy for him hiding in the forest due to his bloodline was the prevailing sentiment.

The recent act of kindness from the otherworlders also stemmed from that.

“Phew...”

After hearing that, Yor let out a sigh of relief.

This much was okay.

While being pitied did feel somewhat strange, at least it meant they were being favorable.

However, he couldn’t feel completely at ease yet.

Chae-rin had clearly mentioned ‘most,’ which meant there were opposing opinions as well.

“Of course, there are some people who are unhappy.”

Chae-rin continued.

“There are people who think that since a Manifestation Bearer is a criminal, he should be captured. Others are worried that when the demon resurrects, their favorite NPC might die... Some users are even looking for a bounty hanging over his head.”

Chae-rin said that and clicked her tongue, saying, “Those rice-eating pests...”

Yor nodded calmly in response.

It was a reaction he somewhat expected.

After all, with how many otherworlders there were, it would be strange if there were no dissidents.

It was actually a much better situation than he had imagined. After all, most users were still favorable.

However, that still didn’t matter much to Yor.

To be honest, he felt he could still handle the otherworlders even if they came after him.

The real problem was the Gaia inhabitants who might have heard his news.

Yor cautiously asked.

“What’s the situation with the knights...?”

“Well, I’m not sure about that yet...”

Chae-rin trailed off.

While she could check the users’ discussions through the community, it was hard to get information about other things.

Moreover, she had headed straight to Yor after finishing her request, so of course, she had no time to gather information.

But she had heard a few things.

“However, it seems like it should be okay for the time being. With Dantalion’s situation and the Lemegeton matters, the knights seem really busy these days.”

So, it was her speculation that there wouldn’t be time to worry about that for now.

Hearing that, Yor thought to himself.

‘So, we have a grace period for now...’

That was a fortunate piece of news. He had been ready for an invasion at any moment.

Of course, it was just speculation, but it was still a comforting piece of news.

In any case, he had received almost all the information he was curious about.

Yor relaxed his mind a bit and was about to resume organizing the storage.

‘Ah.’

Just then, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

Now that he thought about it, there was still one more thing he needed to ask.

Yor briefly entered the storage, then thudded something in front of Chae-rin.

When she saw it, she furrowed her brows for a moment.

“Ugh, what is this?”

It was Dantalion's severed ear.

The item that Harold had not been able to gather while running away.

Wriggle, wriggle.

Even after separating from its body, the ear was still busy morphing.

Although its shape remained that of an ear, the sight of its flesh recombining into a new form was both grotesque and fascinating.

So, he decided to keep it for now.

After all, it was a part of the demon’s body, and staring at it had its own kind of fun.

Not to mention, based on past experiences, there was a chance it could be an item.

“Could you appraise this for a moment?”

With that, Yor handed the object to Chae-rin.

She frowned but went ahead to check it as he suggested.

The ‘Player’s Eye’ that Chae-rin looked through projected itself in front of Yor.

[Severed Ear of the Demon from the Reverse Side]

Indeed, it was an item, just as he had thought.

The reverse side of the demon... It seemed that was Dantalion’s nickname.

“It’s right. Here you go.”

After confirming, Chae-rin immediately returned the item to Yor.

As if she didn’t want to touch it any longer than necessary. She seemed to have no immunity to anything squirming.

Yor held it and sank into thought for a moment.

‘So it really is an item...’

If so, what would its effects be?

He suddenly remembered the time he used Seere’s arm.

The severed body parts from a demon tended to reflect part of that demon's abilities.

This one likely wouldn’t be much different. He didn’t know if it projected magic or something else.

Just then, while he was lost in thought, a faint sound could be heard.

The tip of the severed ear shrank, and suddenly, a voice echoed in his head.

Or rather, it felt like it was being directly hammered into his mind.