Chapter 18: Not the Protagonist, But Still Here

I checked the map reflexively, confirming Bamtol’s reaction of constantly glancing out the window.

Unlike my worries, the black dots were sparsely distributed, mostly far from the house.

And the four blue dots that had been visible in the distance throughout the journey seemed to have missed this house and passed by, huddled together at a considerable distance.

‘Nothing else is visible nearby. Anyway, those people are safe too. They must be survivors who fell here like us, right?’

Judging by the fact that Ms. Joo Bi-young and Grandma Gwak Hong-bo don’t appear on the map, it’s hard to say for sure, but it seems likely.

Then, can those people also see the status window or the map like us?

Actually, I thought it might be okay to meet and travel with them all the way here, but Kang Do-hee and Kang Do-jin seemed wary of those blue dots getting closer, so it wasn’t easy to bring it up.

They might be villains I don’t know about. Or maybe not.

Still, if survivors joined forces, wouldn’t it be a little easier?

But it was also an ambiguous situation to just take them as companions. The homeowner is separate, and we’re just guests.

As someone who suddenly rolled in, it’s hard for me to suddenly ask them to accept more people. Besides, I don’t even know what kind of people they are…

‘If those people also see the status window or the system, I don’t have to worry too much, but if not everyone can see it, that’s a problem too.’

If you fell into another world and had to survive without any help, it would be hell.

So, even if I don’t know what kind of people they are, I think it’s morally right to reach out first…

‘Seeing this, I’m definitely not protagonist material.’

I realize the size of the vessel I, as a human, possess once again.

At least, I’m far from the protagonists in the trending works these days.

These days, if you’re not overpowered from the start, or even if you weren’t overpowered, you at least get a lucky break within the first five episodes and become overpowered, do everything well on your own, and even if you fall into anguish, you solve the frustrating situations around you, or you get criticized.

Even if there are concerns, if it’s not a problem that can be solved by worrying, they coldly cut it off and come up with clever plans to solve the problems they face. That’s the trend for protagonists these days.

Additionally, the personality is seemingly indifferent and taciturn, but they take good care of their companions, showing a human side, while also possessing a ruthless side. In other words, the trend is for overpowered, refreshing characters to be the protagonists.

In that case, maybe Kang Do-hee is the protagonist.

I thought of Kang Do-hee, who seems taciturn but even takes medicine for sick companions – albeit one that’s been expired for a year.

I was envious of her composure, which seemed like she’d lived many lives, and even in this situation, she doesn’t show any signs of hardship. Whether it’s because her personality is easygoing or not, she seems like a great person in many ways.

‘And muscles. I was envious of her muscles.’

The arm I saw when Kang Do-hee rolled up her sleeves and swung the baseball bat in front of the pack of stray dogs was no ordinary arm. It looked thicker than mine, no, thicker than the average male’s arm.

Did she work out? Or maybe her job involved using her body. Seeing that she’s more comfortable using her strength than her head, she might be confident in solving things with force.

And Kang Do-hee, who took the lead the whole time, didn’t seem unsure. It’s impossible for her to lose to someone in terms of strength. A reassuring tank, you could say.

‘Wait. If you put it that way, my position is really ambiguous.’

I’m not a so-called intelligence character, not a tank, and not a dealer with outstanding attack power. I don’t have any healing abilities either.

‘Status window… can’t you just give me one trait?’

If possible, I’d like a healing or ranged dealer type.

I’m a person who’s good at self-awareness. As a coward who can’t hide it, it would be a little difficult to be a tank or engage in close combat at the front.

Unfortunately, the status window didn’t respond. It didn’t even twitch or seem to be contemplating as usual, it just silently showed the quest window.

‘How stingy.’

Anyway, I remember that the status window answered that it was friendly to me, so I’ll be fine somehow.

Then, at that moment,

“Squeak, squeak.”

“Bamtol, what’s wrong again? Huh? Do you want to see outside?”

It didn’t seem like it, but I was still uneasy about him constantly glancing at the window.

Eventually, I picked up Bamtol and slowly headed towards the window.

I looked outside again through the gaps in the nailed planks on the window, but I still couldn’t see anything.

I saw overgrown weeds like rice paddies, trees that had grown haphazardly and fallen, and the front yard that had been deliberately made to look messy to hide the vegetable garden.

And the figures of people holding what appeared to be weapons, carefully crossing the fishing line tied outside the yard.

“Ah…”

Checking the map again, I realized that they, unlike us, were natives of this world like Joo Bi-young and the elder.

Oh, damn it. What’s the point of understanding the map’s features? I didn’t even expect that residents of this place could approach! How could I be such a fool!

Instead of blaming myself, I carefully shook Ha-yul and Kang Do-jin.

“Ugh…, huh? Hyung?”

“Shh. Kids. Be quiet. Someone’s outside.”

“People? Not monsters, but people?”

“Yeah.”

Unlike Ha-yul’s sleepy voice, Kang Do-jin asked in a perfectly clear voice, as if he hadn’t even been asleep.

“How many?”

“I saw three. I’ll go outside and wake up the others. Stay quiet.”

After waking the children and immediately leaving the room, I saw Gamja standing blankly in the middle of the living room, staring at the front door.

Gamja seemed to have sensed the presence earlier, like Bamtol.

“Gamja.”

I called Gamja in a small voice. Then, the head that had been watching the front door turned towards me.

“Where are the others? Are they in that room?”

“Goo-uk.”

Gamja, understanding my words, nodded, answering with a fairly large amount. I’m not a druid, but isn’t there really a person inside Gamja?

Even in this situation, I couldn’t shake off the random thoughts and carefully opened the door that wasn’t completely closed.

Inside, the elder and Joo Bi-young were lying side by side, sleeping, and Kang Do-hee was leaning against the closet, closing her eyes.

“Noona.”

“…….”

Even though it was a call as small as a whisper, Kang Do-hee opened her eyes immediately.

“Noona, there are people outside. I saw about three people.”

“What’s the probability that they’re neighbors?”

“Judging by the fact that they’re all holding weapons…”

“We don’t have neighbors.”

Ah, you scared me!

The elder, who had been faintly snoring, joined the conversation. Slowly getting up, the elder pointed to a corner of the closet.

“If those bastards came at this hour with bats, it’s obvious. I let one go last time and spared his life, and now he’s brought others. Girl, you said you know how to handle that, right?”

In the place the elder pointed to, there were two professional bows and arrow quivers that archers would use.

Kang Do-hee, answering with a nod, quietly got up, took the bow and quiver, and said.

“Ha-je. Bring the kids to this room and gather together.”

“What about Noona?”

“I’ll go to the roof and take care of it.”

“Huh? W-wait a minute. I’ll go with you too.”

“Squeak!”

I put Bamtol down on the floor and took the remaining bow and quiver.

‘It’s quite heavy.’

I had some experience shooting a bow in the past, but this bow was completely different from what I used. It was so heavy that I wondered if

I could even hold it and shoot it with one hand.

‘Muscle strength… it’s increased, right?’

To be exact, stamina and strength have increased, but I just hoped that meant my muscle strength had increased.

I took the bow and went out, sent Ha-yul and Kang Do-jin to the room where the elder was, and followed Kang Do-hee up the narrow stairs.

The second floor above the stairs seemed to be used as a storage room. Climbing the stairs further, I saw the door leading to the roof. This door also had many locks, like the front door on the first floor.

Click, click, clunk, click.

Kang Do-hee, releasing the devices as quietly as possible, stopped before opening the door and looked back at me.

“Ha-je.”

“Yes?”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“…….”

Is it because she’s worried I’ll be a hindrance? But when she asked if I’d be okay, the answer didn’t come out right away.

I don’t know what her intentions are, but I should at least say I’m okay, that there’s no problem, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

Yeah. I admit that I’m terrified because some people are loitering outside with weapons.

But right now, something else is tightening me up even more. Right now, we are…

‘We’re going to… shoot people…’

With this bow in my hand….., I have to draw the bowstring towards someone, a living person, how can I be okay?

But that doesn’t mean I can go down here alone and leave it all to Kang Do-hee.

I don’t know what kind of person Kang Do-hee was, what kind of experiences she had, and what kind of past she has.

Kang Do-hee might be a regressor like I imagined, or she might have had a job that I can’t even imagine.

But, even so, is it okay for Kang Do-hee to shoot people alone?

Not knowing what to say, I held the bow tightly, raised my head, and met her eyes.

Unlike my eyes, which were probably shaking terribly, Kang Do-hee’s eyes were like a calm and serene lake, completely capturing me.

“… Honestly, I don’t think I’ll be okay.”

“Yeah.”

“But, even if I’m not okay, I’ll do it with you.”

“……..”

There were many things I wanted to say. I didn’t want to let you shoulder this alone, and I didn’t want to face it, but I had expected that I

would experience it someday, so even if I wasn’t prepared, I wasn’t thoughtless enough to accept this defenselessly.

But, still, at least,

“B-but, Noona.”

“Uh.”

“T-that…, u-um. First. Shouldn’t we try to talk to them? You never know. Th-they might just be… just passing by.”

I couldn’t bring myself to say that the people who secretly came to someone else’s house in the middle of the night with weapons might need help, or maybe they had other purposes, that is, purposes other than bad ones.

If I heard that I didn’t want to attack people recklessly, Kang Do-hee might send me down and go up alone, trying to shoulder everything alone.

Fortunately, Kang Do-hee didn’t stop me. She just looked down at me with an unreadable expression and asked.

“Yeah. If that makes you feel better, I’ll check. But, Ha-je. Do you know how to shoot a bow?”

..Yes.”

It was a beat late, but anyway, I had experience shooting a bow in the past. That was an undeniable fact.

“Where did you shoot it?”

“Archery… cafe…”

A cafe that doesn’t sell coffee that I went to for a company dinner with the publishing team.

There, I recorded an all-ten, proving that I was a native Korean.