Chapter 386

Chapter 386

Reincarnated User Manual.

Episode 386: W-IFSS: If This Were A Childhood Friend Story Instead (8)

Hyun-jun, having calmed down to some extent, talked a lot with Yura.

The atmosphere was not as awkward as expected. Since it had been a long time since they last met, there was plenty to talk about. And the fact that this place was inside a game only made their conversation endless.

Especially since Yura was the director of Reincarnation of the Sword Saint, and Hyun-jun had the ability to engage in combat, which was a crucial discovery.

-Krrrk

-Krrrrrrrrr…

The cave they had entered to escape the blizzard was not a safe zone.

Because the game had become reality, the beasts that roamed the field attacking players had also sought refuge from the blizzard inside the cave.

This was something that would never happen in a game.

But not being in a game had its advantages as well.

-Crunch-

Hyun-jun instantly drove his dagger into a vital point. The strike, aimed precisely at the cervical spine connecting the skull and neck, severed the spinal cord in one blow—unlike in the game, it was enough to end the life of the Frost Wolf.

“…I actually won.”

Huff… Huff…

Hyun-jun struggled to suppress the overwhelming thrill rising within him, trying to steady his breath.

The fight had ended in just two strikes, but looking at his condition, it was clear how fierce and brutal the battle had been.

In his right hand, the dagger was drenched in blood.

The opposite hand, stretched out protectively behind Yura, was also covered in blood.

“Hyun-jun, your arm…!!”

Yura hurriedly examined Hyun-jun’s hand. His arm, which had been extended to protect her, bore deep bite marks—three or four brutal punctures.

“Oh no, what should we do? S-status window! There must be healing ointment in the inventory…”

“Forget it. It’s a waste of points.”

“B-but!”

As Hyun-jun dismissed the idea, Yura grew even more frustrated.

There had been two Frost Wolves in the cave. While Hyun-jun was dealing with one, the other had lunged at Yura, and in his rush to pull it away, he had gotten bitten.

Tears welled up in Yura’s eyes out of guilt, but Hyun-jun pretended to be fine and focused on stopping the bleeding.

“We’re in a life-or-death situation, right?”

“Sniff…”

“That means we’ll likely suffer even worse injuries in the future. If we run out of points then… we die.”

“D-die? No! We can’t die!!”

At the mention of death, Yura went into a panic. Her tears stopped momentarily, but her face turned pale, and she bit her lips anxiously.

“I won’t die. Look at this.”

Hyun-jun stretched out his arm toward Yura.

The blood that had been flowing from the punctured wounds had stopped.

Yura’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“This is…”

“It seems like certain game mechanics are still in effect, albeit subtly.”

In Reincarnation of the Sword Saint, wounds inflicted by beast-type monsters caused a bleeding effect that lasted for 5 seconds.

Despite his short playtime, Hyun-jun recalled this detail with ease.

“If the game’s rules still apply, then there’s no way I’d die from something like this. And since my dagger cuts through so easily, it looks like I’m benefiting from some kind of combat adjustment as well.”

“…Yeah.”

“That aside, I just killed a monster. Is there any loot?”

Leaving the now-calmed Yura behind, Hyun-jun cast a cold glance at the cooling corpses.

Then, after a brief moment, he firmly gripped his dagger and drove it into the body.

-Squish- -Crunch- -Rip-

He peeled off the hide, removed the foul-smelling parts, and extracted the bones.

Yura’s eyes widened again at the practiced movements.

‘He’s really good at this.’

The fight earlier was already surprising, but this?

She had thought his comment, “I should be able to handle a fight somehow,” was just a bluff—something a guy would say to sound tough.

Who would have expected him to actually strike vital points with such precision?

“Where did you learn to do this?”

“…Just picked it up. Got bored and tried out different things.”

“I see…”

Yura, still amazed, stepped closer behind Hyun-jun as he continued the dissection.

Each time he sliced through flesh and stripped away bones, the muscles on his back rippled beneath his shirt. Whether it was because of the tension from earlier or something else, Yura found herself licking her dry lips.

-Gulp…

At some point, Hyun-jun had finished preparing the hind leg meat.

He gestured toward Yura, who had been nervously wetting her lips.

“Start a fire.”

“…Are we really going to eat this?”

“Wolves are canines, so we can just think of it as eating dog meat.”

“…This is a beast monster.”

“Let’s try it first. If there’s a problem… Ah, should we just eat it raw to avoid the smell?”

“F-Fire! I’ll start the fire!!”

—————

Fortunately, no more beasts were drawn to the scent.

But they couldn’t just sit around, so Hyun-jun left the cooked meat in Yura’s care and prepared to head out.

Yura didn’t stop him.

Before they were attacked by the Frost Wolves, they had agreed that they needed to find the protagonist as soon as possible.

Ding—

[This brat is the hero?!]

[Meet Kyrie, a poor girl who lost her parents to beasts and become her companion!]

[Reward: 500pt]

“Good! Looks like the Silleya Village isn’t too far from this cave.”

Yura beamed as she read the translucent screen before her.

Hyun-jun, on the other hand, frowned as he trudged through the snow.

“Are you sure it’s safe even if we reach the village? I get that they’d be wary of outsiders, but I’m more worried about whether we’ll even be able to communicate.”

“Just trust me! I’ll take care of everything!”

‘…Says the same person who was trembling just a moment ago.’

Hyun-jun let out a deep sigh.

He didn’t argue further, but he couldn’t shake off his doubts about Yura.

Back in his memories, Yura was someone who excelled at everything.

But from what he had seen during the earlier fight, she wasn’t some kind of flawless superhuman.

More than anything, what bothered him was Yura’s so-called perfect plan.

“Fortunately, this is right after Kyrie lost her parents. The loneliness and despair a parentless child feels—if we exploit that, getting the brat on our side should be a piece of cake!”

Was she a genius or what?

Yura grinned, bouncing excitedly beside him.

Meanwhile, Hyun-jun shot her a sideways glance and gave a wry smile.

‘Then and now… she’s still a total psychopath.’

Sure, Kyrie was a stranger, but she was still a kid who had just lost her parents.

Hyun-jun shuddered as a vague memory surfaced in his mind.

“Ah!”

Yura suddenly gasped while checking her status screen.

Hyun-jun followed her gaze and spotted a flickering light near the horizon.

‘That must be it.’

Sure enough, Silleya Village wasn’t far away.

They quickened their pace, eventually encountering the village sentries.

‘Wow, they’re huge.’

Just as Yura had expected, the guards were enormous men.

Hyun-jun was already close to 190 cm, but these guys were even broader—their clothes, reminiscent of northern barbarians, made them look easily over 140 kg.

“Who are you?”

One guard placed a hand on his sword hilt while the other spoke.

Hyun-jun instinctively tensed, mirroring their wariness.

This wasn’t modern society. Even in rural towns today, strangers were met with suspicion. In a medieval setting like this, it would be even worse.

“Didn’t I tell you to leave it to me?”

Yura shot Hyun-jun a confident smile.

Since they could communicate, she was ready to move on to the next step.

“We are not suspicious individuals!”

“That doesn’t answer my question. Who are you?”

“We are… travelers. Unfortunately, we got caught in a snowstorm and are seeking shelter!”

“…”

The two massive guards exchanged glances.

They didn’t seem convinced and even began whispering amongst themselves.

“Wait here. I’ll call someone.”

“Someone? Who?”

“We can’t trust you just yet.”

One of the guards said this before disappearing into the shadows.

Moments later, he returned with an elderly man dressed in neat attire.

The old man came to a stop in front of them, scrutinizing Yura.

She smiled brightly and began to greet him.

“Ah, hello—”

“Are these the travelers?”

Her cheerful greeting was cut short.

As expected, the reaction toward unknown outsiders was far from welcoming.

“Yes, they are.”

“Just the two of them?”

“Yes. We were traveling togeth—”

“Pfft!”

Once again, Yura was interrupted—this time by a mocking laugh.

“Oh, little outsider… you lie so shamelessly.”

“…Lie? We really did get lost while traveling.”

“I’m asking how you got here.”

This time, he let her finish speaking.

But his wrinkled face showed no hint of amusement.

“It takes at least a week to reach the nearest village from Mother’s Mountains.

—————

Not only that, but vicious beasts attack at all hours— even a skilled warrior wouldn’t survive alone.”

“…”

“And yet, the two of you—who look so weak—somehow made it here.

I don’t know how, but you must be either possessed by an evil spirit or cursed.

—————

We cannot allow such ominous people into our village.“

“T-that’s not…”

“Leave at once!”

Suddenly, a blade was drawn.

Yura flinched as the cold steel pressed against her neck.

“E…?”

What happened to the perfect plan she had imagined?

Her mind went completely blank.

‘You son of a b—?’

Hyun-jun gritted his teeth as a surge of heat rushed to his head.

They had barely survived one crisis, and now they were already facing another.

He had to think fast.

Panicking wouldn’t help—if he acted recklessly, things would only get worse.

‘Didn’t even see him draw his sword…’

Their skills were far above his own.

If just one of them was this strong, facing both was impossible.

‘Is there a way out of this?’

Hyun-jun forced himself to calm down and focus.

They had to get inside.

Without Kyrie, they’d either freeze to death or be left to fight the rampaging Demon God without a hero…

Then, an idea struck him.

‘…Kyrie!’

Hyun-jun thought of the girl inside the village.

“Wait.”

“Tch!”

A second blade was now pressed to his throat.

Drip—

Unlike Yura, he didn’t feel the chill of the blade—only a burning sensation.

“Isn’t this a bit much? I’m already weaker than you guys. Or… are you afraid of cursed beings?”

“Leave now!”

“…Afraid, huh?”

The old man, who had been about to turn away, suddenly stopped.

He gestured for the guards to lower their weapons, though they didn’t look pleased.

“You don’t feel cursed. Are you bluffing to save yourself?”

“Of course I want to live.”

‘This is the second time today I’ve bled…’

Hyun-jun ignored the stinging pain and forced a grin.

“But you want to live too, don’t you?”

“How dare you—!”

“Watch your mouth, outsider!”

“…”

The old man narrowed his eyes.

Hyun-jun didn’t miss the shift in his expression.

“Someone in your village has died recently, haven’t they?”

“…People always die in harsh lands.”

“And some of them had children, right?”

“Are you threatening me using a child?”

“Kyrie.”

A smirk crept onto Hyun-jun’s lips.

At that moment, he caught the flash of realization in the old man’s widened eyes.

“Wouldn’t you like to know why her parents really died?”