-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Carmela's Forest (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Nakedes were monsters rated with a higher danger level than goblins.
They carried a potent venom that could kill an ordinary person within ten seconds of a bite, and even Hunters, protected by their mana, could suffer severe injuries if left untreated.
However, there was something else that enhanced the Nakedes' notoriety even more than their deadly venom.
That was their stealth.
Small in size, they moved camouflaged by their protective coloration, blending seamlessly with their surroundings.
The Nakedes' stealth ability was abnormally developed, making them difficult monsters to detect even for Hunters with superhuman senses.
But if one could sense their presence beforehand...
Swish—
Swish—
"Screech!"
"Squeak!"
They were also very easy monsters to deal with.
Go Yun-seo, pushing off with her feet, instantly dispatched two Nakedes.
She trudged back, carrying the mana stones and carapaces retrieved from the Nakedes' corpses.
On Go Yun-seo's face, a look of bewilderment still lingered.
"Wow, seriously, what was that…? Jin Yu-ha! How did you know?! When you said it earlier, I thought it was just some crazy talk, like…."
"Go Yun-seo. You're speaking without thinking again."
"Hmph!"
As Lee Yu-ri glared sharply, she clammed up, sensing the mood.
I chuckled and replied.
"I have a trait called Detection."
"...Whoa. You had something so rare?!"
"Yes, though I only recently acquired it."
"Kuhh, Gukbap was right! Velvet Academy definitely isn't a place where men just waltz in for free!!"
For a moment, my conscience pricked me.
"Uh, well… I, I was just lucky."
"Oh, come on, traits aren't just obtained by luck! They reflect your usual habits and attitude! You can't get one without considerable effort!"
All traces of her previous anxiety vanished as Go Yun-seo exclaimed with a fuss.
Yuna and Choi So-yeon also looked at me with renewed surprise.
And Lee Yu-ri.
"...You possessed Detection?"
"Yes, Team Leader. I apologize for not mentioning it earlier."
As I bowed my head in apology, Lee Yu-ri flusteredly waved her hand.
"Oh, no. I wasn't trying to scold you, Jin Yu-ha. It's just, information from the status window should be handled carefully, right? We haven't known each other long; we only just met today!"
"If it's for the Team Leader, I could tell you anything about my status window."
"...R-really?"
At that, Lee Yu-ri swallowed hard, her eyes widening.
"Just kidding."
"..."
She bit her lip tightly and narrowed her eyes.
She clearly wanted to say something, true to her personality, but it was awkward as it was our first meeting, and we hadn't even properly bonded yet.
'Ah, I shouldn't be doing this. This is bad. Every time I see her, I just want to tease her.'
Gukbap was originally known as someone who, true to her tank role, was fun to provoke.
I stifled the chuckle that threatened to escape.
"...So, how many meters can your Detection reach? Is that a secret too?"
Lee Yu-ri said with a grumpy voice.
"Ahem, about one hundred meters."
"...That will be a really big help."
"It's only a hundred meters, though."
While Detection wasn't a bad trait, given its ability to preemptively identify monsters and prepare for them,
frankly, from my perspective, having encountered numerous overpowered traits in Velvetstra, it was just average.
'Its limitations are clear, too.'
A range of 100m.
Most Hunters rarely failed to detect enemies within a 100m radius.
However, it seemed to have a good synergy with this dungeon, Carmela's Forest.
Due to the forest's terrain, visibility was short, and the Nakedes themselves were stealth-specialized monsters, making them a bit tricky for newcomers without a detection character.
'Still, with Gukbap alone, she'd notice most Nakedes once they got close anyway.'
Just a moment ago, didn't Lee Yu-ri detect the Nakedes as soon as they entered the 10m range?
She probably would have detected them all the same, even if I hadn't told her beforehand.
But Lee Yu-ri shook her head, as if she didn't think so.
"No. This clearly lightens the burden on me as a tank. I can confidently say this now."
"Huh?"
"Once this subjugation is over, I'll register you, Jin Yu-ha, as emergency reinforcement personnel and make sure you get a little extra from the settlement."
Lee Yu-ri spoke with a stern demeanor, as if she wouldn't tolerate any objections.
I subtly glanced around, and the other party members also nodded in agreement.
I smiled faintly and assented.
"Yes, thank you for your consideration."
"Then, let's get going again."
* * *
Once it was known that I possessed Detection as a trait, the dungeon clear gained momentum.
It was only natural, as one of the biggest headaches that had slowed down progress in Carmela's Forest had disappeared.
"One Nakedes, front, one hundred meters, coming from the right diagonal direction."
"Nay!"
"Two Nakedes, left direction."
"Neng!"
"One Nakedes, following from behind."
"Yessir!"
Whenever a Nakedes approached within a 100m radius, I would invariably call it out, and Go Yun-seo would sally forth to that spot.
The rest were goblins.
As for goblins, Lee Yu-ri detected them first without any need for my Detection.
"Three goblins confirmed. Go Yun-seo, standby."
"Got it!"
I stood next to Yuna and watched the battle.
Lee Yu-ri, shield in hand, charged forward alone.
The goblins, seeing her, swung the crude weapons in their hands with all their might.
Whoosh—
The weapons swung with dull, whistling sounds.
However, Lee Yu-ri never retreated.
Instead, she pushed deeper, positioning herself at close quarters.
As a result, the three goblins' attack patterns became tangled, and at such close range, their swung weapons lacked proper force.
Lee Yu-ri displayed an artful skill, deflecting the incoming attacks with only slight movements.
She dodged attacks she could avoid, and for those she couldn't, she raised her shield to block, pinning the goblins down without letting go.
Meanwhile, whenever an opening appeared among the goblins,
Go Yun-seo, who had erased her presence, darted out.
Slish—!
"Kiiiek!"
Slish—!
"Keek!"
Go Yun-seo instantly dispatched two of them. But because of this, the remaining goblin's aggro shifted to her.
Just then.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang—!
Lee Yu-ri struck her shield with the dagger in her hand.
"Look at me!!!"
'Ah, that's a taunt skill.'
It was a familiar motion and shout.
Area-of-effect taunt skill. "Shield's Resonance"
As it was a skill utilizing mana, the goblin's gaze and attacks, which had been directed at Go Yun-seo, helplessly turned back towards Lee Yu-ri.
Slish—
Then, in the interim, the last goblin was also dealt with by Go Yun-seo's sword.
Thus, the battle concluded cleanly.
As I took this in, I felt a fresh shock.
'So this is how they fight in reality.'
It was as if I could once again truly grasp the difference between a game and reality.
Even if the battles on a phone screen were made to be flashy, they ultimately couldn't escape the repetition of the same patterns.
'Even evasion wasn't truly the character dodging, but merely represented by a 'miss' indicator.'
In reality, however, monsters employed diverse attacks rather than fixed patterns.
And the way one countered them naturally adjusted to the monsters' movements.
With complex body movements: turning their heads, twisting their bodies, or swinging their shields.
'Gukbap is even more impressive than I thought.'
As I was admiring this,
"My sister, she's really amazing, isn't she?"
A voice, as if reading my thoughts, came from beside me.
I turned my head to see Yuna smiling sweetly.
"Indeed, she doesn't take a single hit at such close range."
"Hehe! My sister's a genius! She probably wouldn't fall behind even at Velvet Academy, where all the geniuses gather!"
Yuna boasted about her sister, looking even more proud than her.
"Certainly, she wouldn't."
I, too, agreed.
Of course, she's a 3-star running wild among 5-stars.
That evasion ability and taunt ability.
These two were powerful, quite unlike what one would expect from her 3-star origin.
"Yuna! Mana stones and goblin fangs!"
"Yes, please!"
And so, we continued our clear, losing track of time.
* * *
Before long, time passed, and it was lunchtime.
Our party set up a base camp.
"Haaah. I'm exhausted—!"
Go Yun-seo buried her face in the ground, sprawled flat on the floor.
Whack—!
"Aargh!"
"Just stay still! You're going to be the death of me. Go Yun-seo, why do you always act so recklessly and get hurt?"
Choi So-yeon smacked Go Yun-seo's back and scolded her.
"Kuhh, I just thought our Healer-nim might be too bored—!"
Go Yun-seo replied with a sly grin.
"Ugh, seriously, the damage dealer gets hurt more often than the tank facing the monsters directly."
"But today was truly amazing! Wasn't this the first time we've pushed so hard and felt so refreshed? If that Hye-ji saw this, she'd be green with envy, wouldn't she? This haul is seriously record-breaking!!! How many of those expensive Nakedes did we get?!"
"...That's true."
As Go Yun-seo shouted, unable to contain her excitement, Choi So-yeon looked at me with a strange expression.
'Hmm, indeed. She looks a bit tired now.'
Perhaps it was the accumulated fatigue from battle, or perhaps the absence of one more damage dealer was the issue,
Go Yun-seo was getting injured more frequently.
Lee Yu-ri, on the other hand, still seemed to have plenty of leeway.
It seemed this party couldn't fully utilize her capabilities.
'Should I start contributing now?'
Originally, my role was to protect Yuna.
But in the end, all I'd done so far was use Detection.
It was merely informing them when a Nakedes appeared.
Of course, my party members praised me, saying it was more than enough help, but for me, it felt no different than freeloading.
And wasn't the purpose of coming to this dungeon also to gain experience fighting monsters?
Indeed, it seemed I should participate in the next battle onward.
'I should tell Gukbap beforehand.'
I didn't want to act unilaterally and draw glares.
"Unnies! Oppa! Lunch is ready!"
Lee Yuna, wearing an apron, called out, and we all flocked together.
As she spooned various dishes onto our plates with her small hands, a paternal smile naturally appeared on my face.
"Enjoy your meal, Oppa."
Yuna said, scooping soup with a ladle.
"Huh? But where's the Team Leader?"
Lee Yu-ri wasn't among those who came to get their meal.
"...Hmm, Unnie always eats her lunch separately. She says she can't settle down if she eats anything other than what she always has inside a dungeon? Here's some sausage stir-fry for you."
"Ah, alright. Thanks, I'll eat well."
I took my tray and stepped away.
'Gukbap isn't here. I need to ask her if I can participate in combat.'
I activated Detection.
Then, I sensed Lee Yu-ri sitting alone a short distance away.
I turned my steps towards that spot.
And what met my eyes.
Lee Yu-ri was sitting alone behind a large tree, staring blankly up at the sky.
In her hand was a transparent plastic bag.
It was what they called 'plastic bag rice' in the military.
From a rough glance, it seemed the plastic bag contained only gochujang and rice.
It was a meager meal at first glance.
'...Good grief, she's doing this even here.'
I thought she'd eat well here, since it wasn't the expensive Velvet Academy, but it seems I was wrong.
'Saving on food expenses to cover party members' wages, paying off debt, and then secretly eating alone claiming she prefers it. Haa, she really doesn't take care of herself, does she?'
No matter how much debt her family had, she didn't need to give them every single penny she earned.
Personal food expenses weren't that much money, unless one went to expensive restaurants.
But she saved every penny of her living expenses and sent it all home.
'Eating one proper meal wouldn't noticeably increase the debt she had to repay, either.'
Gukbap was chewing what was in her mouth for a long time, as if ruminating.
I quietly approached and plopped down right next to her.
At that, Lee Yu-ri's head slowly turned towards me.
Munch, munch—
"..."
With both cheeks puffed out with food, her mouth continuously munching, she stared intently at me.
Munch, munch—
She tilted her head to the side once.
"...!?"
After staring intently at me for a few seconds like that, her eyes widened like saucers.
"Cough!!!"
She suddenly started thumping her chest, as if she'd choked for a moment.
Clank. Clank. Clank. Clank.
However, she was wearing clothes reinforced with steel over her chest, so it only sounded like metal being struck.
'Idiot.'
I gently patted her back and handed her the water I'd brought.
Lee Yu-ri took the water, hurriedly opened the cap, and drank.
Gulp, gulp, gulp—!
Phew!
"J-Jin Yu-ha!? Wh-what brings you here?!"
Lee Yu-ri wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and said in a flustered voice.
It was a scene as if our first meeting was replaying.
Gukbap's reliability was good, but indeed, this clumsy side of her was her true charm.
"I came because I had something to tell the Team Leader."
"S-something to tell me…?"
At that, her face stiffened, and she grew tense.
She seemed to think I was going to ask for more consideration or demand something.
"Hmm, before that, first—"
Snatch—!
I snatched the plastic bag she was holding in her hand.
"My, my food—!"
Gukbap wore a desperate expression, like a raccoon whose cotton candy had been washed away.
I enjoyed her expression as I put half of my meal into her plastic bag rice. The side dishes and rice I had received.
Well, the soup was out of the question. If I put soup in there, it wouldn't be gukbap anymore, but just a messy mixed rice.
"...?"
"I, I can't eat this much. It seems Yuna gave me extra because I'm a man."
"B-but you must be tired today… You need to replenish your stamina…"
"I'm a man, you know. I need to manage my figure."
I threw that line out, given the gender reversal, but would it work?
I handed the plastic bag rice back to her.
Lee Yu-ri carefully took back the plastic bag rice, now much heavier.
"I-is that so? Ah, even so…"
"It's fine. The Team Leader worked the hardest today."
She clutched the rice as if it were precious, and the corners of her mouth twitched, looking quite pleased.
"Eat well."
"...Thank you."
Lee Yu-ri's face flushed as she nodded repeatedly, expressing her gratitude.
"By the way, you said you had something to tell me, right?"
Lee Yu-ri said, kneading the plastic bag rice in her hands.
"Yes, I'd like to participate in the monster clear from the next battle onward."
"...?" You're already participating plenty."
"Ah, I mean participating in dealing with the goblins."
"...Huh?"
Lee Yu-ri asked back, her eyes wide.