Chapter 5. Belief and Reality (1)

Chapter 5. Belief and Reality (1)

Every time I shoot, I feel it, but gunshots are definitely not my style.

Even in the military, it was hard to find people who liked the sound of gunshots. There were those who found shooting itself fun, or strangely liked the smell of gunpowder.

For the record, I dislike not only the sound but also the characteristic recoil and the smell of gunpowder.

To be honest, going through a gate with a shield and a gun was a little thrilling. You know, I’ve read plenty of comics and novels. In my childhood in this world, I even dreamed of becoming a hunter.

However, what you imagine in your head is always different from reality.

Bang, bang!

Even when I hold my arm close to the shield and shoot while controlling the recoil as much as possible, I don’t get used to the sensation of shooting with one hand.

“Gweok!?”

And seeing the monster fall while spewing green blood.

Although I prefer meat over vegetables, seeing an animal die right in front of me is a different matter.

Well, it’s fine. Maybe that’s okay. At least, the monster that was approaching me fell while spewing blood, which means it’s no longer capable of harming me.

What truly makes my skin crawl-

Thump.

It was the sensation of something hitting my shield.

It’s not that strong. It’s the sound of a part of the monster hitting the shield, rather than an attack that could reach me.

Ria protects me.

In the party, she’s in the position of protecting the entire party by going out in front, so she can’t focus only on me, but since Lee Si-yoon was standing next to me, there wasn’t a big problem.

After all, it’s inherently illogical to charge head-on at someone holding a ‘gun’. Even if a well-trained person fired the bullet, you never know how it might ricochet, and I doubt anyone would fully trust my shooting skills, which are barely at the level of a conscripted soldier.

Still, the reason I can be in this party is probably because of my holy power.

Screech!

The small monsters that were rushing towards me were cut in half by the sword Ria swung without much effort, and died. It wasn’t a very pleasant sight-

Whoosh.

Ria’s action of shaking her sword in the air before cutting down the next monster was, well.

Kind of cool. Damn it.

I want to fight like that too- but, well, the Saint in the original novel wasn’t that skilled in combat. A healer is just a healer. Although I’m helping with combat by using different equipment, I’m only at a supportive level.

Bang!

Click.

Seeing the slide lock back, I pressed the magazine release-

“Wait, there!”

I heard Han Yu-ri’s shout.

A monster emerged from the forest, to be precise, next to Lee Si-yoon on my right.

Perhaps Lee Si-yoon’s skill could have blocked it. Even if he got hurt, he wouldn’t be seriously injured.

However, even as I thought that, my hands were moving.

As trained by Ria, I calmly placed my pistol in the holster behind my shield. Then, I extended my right hand towards Lee Si-yoon-

“……!”

The white light shining from my hand literally roasted the monster’s exterior to a golden brown.

It has no effect on ‘living beings’. In fact, it might only heal the wounds.

But when the opponent is a being that lives by magic, the story changes.

“Gweok!?”

As soon as the monster fell to the ground, Lee Si-yoon plunged his sword into its neck. Actually, I’m not sure if it can be called a ‘neck’. The entire body was round and fluffy. I guess I could call it the lower part of the area where its brain might be, and the upper part of the area where its arms are.

I don’t know if it’s a real neck, but judging by the fact that the monster’s movements completely stopped with Lee Si-yoon’s sword, that spot seems to be the vital point.

“……Haa.”

I let out a small sigh.

I pulled my gun out of the holster again and inserted a new magazine from my vest. The grip on my forearm was a bit bothersome, but I managed to load it.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

To my question, Lee Si-yoon shook his head.

I looked around at the other party members. As expected, no one seemed to be seriously injured.

“Good. Now, let’s clean up the surroundings. Don’t spread out too much. With Anna in the center.”

To that remark, we all nodded.

*

The party’s overall performance was quite good. We were able to obtain claws, teeth, and the like from the monsters’ bodies, and we earned quite a lot of money for just one outing. Still, it wasn’t at the level the protagonist’s party earned in the original novel, but well, it’s still before the main story.

……The main story.

Unless it’s a pure slice-of-life story, there’s usually at least one major storyline. And even in slice-of-life stories, there’s often a central thread that runs through the narrative. Usually, that major thread is used in the process of concluding the story.

In “[Weakest Hunter],” which I read, there was also that kind of major thread.

The Second Gate Incident.

The entity presumed to be the cause of all gate incidents.

And the organizations that had been trying to remove the power that had been suppressing the occurrence of gates.

The problem is that I didn’t read the story to the end, so I can’t be sure exactly what kind of beings they were.

“…….”

Seeing me lost in thought, Ria nudged my shoulder.

When I turned my gaze, Ria had opened her mouth to say something to me but then closed it. She probably intended to say something a little mischievous.

But for a brief moment, Ria, who was looking at me with a serious expression, smiled and patted my shoulder again.

“You did well today. You were hitting them well.”

“The monsters I caught weren’t many.”

“Your role is to be in charge of the party members’ health in the first place. If you were the one stepping forward to take care of everything, the entire party would be in danger.”

I couldn’t think of any rebuttal to Ria’s words.

It feels a little… strange. It feels like it’s been a while since Ria praised me so sincerely.

“I was like that at first too.”

“What?”

“Killing something. It’s not a pleasant thing, is it? Even if the opponent is aiming for my life. You’re probably even worse.”

I wondered what she was basing that “worse” on, but since it wasn’t like I was completely unaffected, I listened to her story silently.

Indeed, it might have been a consideration for Ria to let me enter the gate with live ammunition. In game terms, it’s like she gave the healer a chance to step forward.

Since I was holding a gun, not something else, it would have been more of a hindrance for someone in the position of protecting party members by going ahead.

“…….”

As I stared at Ria with an inexpressible expression, not knowing what to say, Ria shrugged her shoulders, patted my shoulder again, and walked past me.

……Why?

Is it because Ria is actually younger than me, and I’m annoyed? Or is it not that?

Hmm, let’s assume she’s annoyed.

Somehow, I think it’s better to think that way.

*

Before I met Ria, my only thought was to stay out of the storyline and not interfere with the protagonist’s couple, but now that I’ve joined them, I can’t help but think about the main story.

While Ria went to shower, I took out my diary for the first time in a long time.

Fortunately, it’s a diary that no one has discovered yet. Just in case, I wrote down my thoughts on atheism in detail at the very beginning and very end, so most people wouldn’t think of reading the latter half after reading the first few pages.

It’s the same method as hiding the “You’ve been tricked” part in the middle of internet posts to ensure readers read up to the middle.

……I’m not saying I used to write such posts.

As I flipped through the rather thick diary, I found a section where I had summarized the story.

First, the protagonist’s awakening.

As with most novels, the protagonist awakens in a moment of near-death. In this case, it’s Lee Si-yoon.

Although he had already experienced a life-threatening situation once and his limits had been slightly released, he would go through many more events to achieve a complete awakening here.

Usually, it progresses with the heroine falling into danger, and Lee Si-yoon risking his life to save her.

……And, the Saint was included there.

Second, the major storyline.

There is an organization.

The forces beyond the gate.

“……Beings who thought that gates were a grace that could be obtained through God’s power.”

The point where their true nature is revealed is the content that follows the Saint’s story.

The Saint’s immense holy power.

That power is truly the power of God, and therefore, salvation awaits in this world-

“……If you know that, you shouldn’t give power to someone like me.”

I sighed deeply and muttered.

That’s right.

What if I wasn’t possessed by the Saint, but this was a world very similar to the original, but without a Saint?

Wouldn’t it have been better to just leave this body empty rather than creating it and giving it to me?

So that those beings would never know where this world is.

……Or, is there something I am destined to do in this world?

As expected, I still don’t know.

The sound of water from the shower room stopped.

Thinking of Ria, I also remembered the look she showed me earlier.

In this world, besides Ria, has anyone praised me based solely on my own abilities? Other people… they just look at the being behind me.

……We’ve gotten too close.

I sighed deeply and ran my hands over my face again.