Chapter 11
Tweet tweet.
The shadows of birds fluttering their wings in the sunlight reflected on the ground.
“There’s no exit.”
Baek Doha, who was looking at it, raised his head.
“There’s nothing particularly unusual or suspicious.”
It was Lim Yuchan. He was reporting the results of his exploration of the dungeon over the past few days.
“There’s just one thing I discovered though.”
Lim Yuchan turned his head to look at a particular spot. It was a very large cave behind the lake.
“I saw light leaking from the cave I found.”
“Light?”
“It’s rare, but sometimes exits can appear deep underground, so I’m going to check it out.”
There were various ways exits could appear in dungeons.
Basically, an exit would appear immediately when the boss monster was killed.
Of course, sometimes there was already an exit gate present and killing the boss would open the door.
But occasionally, after killing the boss, an exit would appear in a completely different location.
‘I’ve heard that rarely, they can even appear very deep underground or up in the sky.’
Hmm… Baek Doha rumbled his throat slowly and said,
“If it’s not there either, I guess we’ll have to find the boss monster after all.”
“That’s right.”
There was no other solution to escape from the dungeon.
‘I didn’t think it would take this long.’
To be honest, Baek Doha believed they would be able to escape in less than a week.
Isn’t it obvious? They weren’t just any hunters, but three S-rank ones.
“I’ll go look some more just in case.”
“Yes. It would be troublesome to be trapped here any longer.”
It’s strange enough to see monsters we’ve never seen before, but there’s nothing that looks like an exit, and nothing that seems like a boss. Above all…
“The monsters are gradually approaching this way.”
As if they had caught the scent of humans, more and more monsters were lurking around the cave.
“And as they increase, we see fewer animals, which is also a problem.”
If food runs out and monsters increase, it would be difficult even for them to hold out.
Just as he was resolving to find a new shelter as soon as possible, Baek Doha suddenly raised his head at the sound of a presence.
“Just now…”
Didn’t he hear footsteps?
💎
‘Phew, I almost interrupted them.’
I sighed as I stopped walking.
I was going to ask Baek Doha to teach me about guns as Cha Si-hyeon advised, but I didn’t expect him to be talking with Lim Yuchan.
Not wanting to interrupt, and disliking the suspicion of eavesdropping even more, I fled without looking back…
‘How far have I come?’
I laughed resignedly as I raised my head to check my surroundings.
I had come too far while walking to avoid Baek Doha and ruminating on their conversation.
But it can’t be helped.
‘No exit, and we need to move our shelter.’
The conversation I inadvertently overheard was overwhelmingly bleak.
Come to think of it, more monsters had been gathering as time passed.
Each time, the S-ranks dealt with them in the blink of an eye while I just watched.
Suddenly confused, I absent-mindedly scratched my cheek and turned to go back to the cave.
‘Huh?’
More precisely, I was about to turn. If it weren’t for the strange sight that suddenly appeared.
‘Did I see wrong?’
Just in case, I rubbed my eyes and looked again, but nothing had changed.
No, rather, it had come closer to me.
I mumbled blankly, my mouth agape.
“A wolf and a wild boar?”
Yes, what I saw before me was a wolf cub.
Moreover, it was being chased by some monster that looked like a wild boar.
My mouth fell open at the sight of the wild boar, twice the size of the wolf cub.
It snorted with every stride, its body impossibly massive, its eyes half-crazed.
‘It’s a monster.’
Living in the dungeon had certainly given me an eye for recognizing monsters.
‘But is it being chased?’
Monsters clearly prefer to move at night…
It’s not quite midday, but why are they having a chase in this morning?
Before I could be surprised, they got closer.
They became clearer with each blink of an eye.
Even the wild boar’s bulging muscles.
My desire to fight naturally disappeared, and I hurriedly looked around.
Fortunately, there was a large tree nearby, so I quickly hid behind it.
‘I’ll leave when they pass.’
As I peeked out, I saw the wolf cub panting heavily, seemingly exhausted.
‘… Will it die?’
The result was obvious, really.
‘It’s going to die.’
That little one will die here. Unless I kill that monster here.
Is it strange if this reminds me of when I was struggling, tied up by the Kraken, and Lim Yuchan easily rescued me?
“…..!”
At that moment, the wolf cub’s body leaned forward, unable to withstand its speed.
Watching it tumble to the ground, I wanted to grab anyone and ask.
If I reach out my hand here, is that being meddlesome?
‘Damn it.’
It’s a question no one can answer.
That’s why reaching out was entirely my choice.
[SYSTEM] Opening inventory.
[Dead Gentleman’s Cherished Gun (E)]
I snatched the wolf’s small body and hugged it.
“Wait.”
While firmly holding the struggling creature, I extended my hand holding the gun.
The monster’s steps halted due to the sudden disappearance of its prey.
As soon as its head, snorting and looking around, turned this way, I pulled the trigger.
“……”
Bang! With the gunshot ringing in my ears, the monster’s movement stopped.
It must not have been a very strong monster, as the system notification appeared shortly after.
[SYSTEM] Until rank increase (27/100)
Thud, its body collapsed to the ground.
‘Was this how it felt?’
I recalled the emotionless Lim Yuchan from that day and laughed dejectedly. I felt strangely empty.
Then I looked down at what was in my arms.
This ball of fur was the wolf cub I had saved.
My hand felt damp, and I realized the cub was gnawing on my hand that was holding its body.
After all, I did save it…
“Alright, I’ll put you down.”
It didn’t hurt, but feeling uncomfortable, I sighed and placed it on the ground.
Surprisingly, it didn’t run away but looked around and then turned its gaze towards me.
“Do you have a family?”
At my question, it wrinkled its nose and tilted its head.
Yeah, you probably don’t understand. I just patted its head, and it bit my hand again.
“You’re picky. I won’t touch you.”
Why does it have so much saliva? I stared at my hand covered in drool and shook it in the air.
Looking at its bright blue eyes, I waved my hand lightly.
“Goodbye.”
This time, as if it understood, it started to walk away.
I smiled at its cute back of the head.
‘I wonder if it’ll be fully grown when we meet again.’
If that time comes, I muttered quietly, hoping it wouldn’t attack me. It was just supposed to be that kind of incident.
.
.
.
No, I thought it would end like that, but…
“Berries…?”
I looked at what was placed at the bottom of the cave once, then at the white ball of fur hiding behind the tree once, and then rubbed my forehead.
The wolf cub had come to find me on its own.
💎
I stared at the berries on the ground, sweating profusely.
The wolf cub, presumed to be the culprit who brought these berries, ran away as soon as our eyes met.
‘What am I supposed to do with this…’
In fact, this gift offensive wasn’t the first time.
So… right after I saved it, the very next day.
“What are these branches in front of the cave?”
“That thing was bringing them.”
“That thing…?”
When I asked about the pile of branches, Lim Yuchan pointed towards a large tree. More precisely, at the wolf cub hiding behind that tree.
Yes, it was the wolf I had saved.
It seemed to have worked hard to bring them with its small body, but it was baffling. Of all things, branches. Of course, they were useful for starting fires.
The problem was what came after.
This act, which I thought would be a one-time thing…
“What are these flowers?”
“That one we saw yesterday was placing them.”
The next day too.
“Today it’s pebbles…”
“It just placed them and left.”
The day after that too.
And the next day as well.
“Ack! Is that a snake? A snake carcass?!”
“That one—”
“I know without you saying it!”
On the fourth day, it even left a small snake carcass as a gift.
It’s been 5 days since this strange gift offensive began.
Today’s gift was berries, larger than blueberries and darker in color.
Looking at these unfamiliar berries, I narrowed my eyes.
“I hope they’re not poisonous or anything…”
Maybe because of the color, I felt strangely uneasy.
‘Still, it’s better than a snake.’
I chuckled resignedly and picked up one of the berries, when a thought suddenly crossed my mind. This…
‘Do I really need to taste it myself?’
The moment I thought about using a test subject, no, Cha Si-hyeon, someone tapped my back.
When I turned around, Lim Yuchan was standing there.
“What is it?”
“I found a flickering light inside the cave on the opposite side of the lake, so I’m going to check it out.”
“Light?”
“It happens sometimes. Sometimes a dungeon door opens inside a cave.”
That single possibility was precious to us now, so Lim Yuchan seemed to have decided to go right away.
“But alone? Is that oka… Yes, I’m sure it’s fine.”
I closed my mouth at Lim Yuchan’s look, which seemed to say I should worry about myself. Well, it’s true that I’m not in a position to worry about an S-rank hunter.
“Take care. I’ll let the other two know.”
Currently, Cha Si-hyeon and Baek Doha have gone hunting nearby, but they will probably be back soon. Lim Yuchan wasn’t the type to wait for them.
As if telling me was the end of his responsibility, he walked briskly in the opposite direction. I scratched my cheek as I watched his back. Was it just my imagination?
‘Somehow, I feel uneasy.’
It must be my imagination.
I must have become sensitive after being on edge in the dungeon for so long. I rolled the berry in my hand as I entered the cave.
Lim Yuchan, who left like that, didn’t return even after a full day had passed and the second day was approaching.
💎
Thank you for reading! ♡
