Chapter 9: New route?

The inside of the 1st Outpost seemed as if it were entirely bathed in the sunset glow.

“Hehe~”

And there, Ppatppat-i 2 hummed a tune as she led the way.

Slowly following her, I turned my head and looked around at the street scenery.

It was a scene much more vibrant than I had expected.

Looking at the noticeable things one by one.

“I heard there was a problem in the forest again today.”

“Did the ruler go on a rampage again?”

“So I heard.”

People carrying all sorts of weapons, chatting with each other.

“Now, if you need anything, just say the word!! We have everything!!”

“Do you have hair loss medicine?”

“We don’t, you person!!”

There were also merchants with numerous goods piled up behind them, hawking their wares.

And in the distance.

Clang! Clang!

The sound of iron being hammered, along with the boisterous sounds of children running around, could also be heard.

It felt more like a village than an outpost.

As I walked along, looking at various things.

‘What’s that smell?’

The scent of freshly grilled meat tickled my nose from somewhere.

“Something smells delicious over there.”

The smell was mixed with a faint charcoal aroma, enough to make my mouth water automatically.

“What kind of food is it?”

-That’s probably the Nyan-jok cooking?

(TL Note: 냥족 (Nyan-jok) – “Nyan” is the Japanese onomatopoeia for a cat’s meow, and “jok” means tribe or race. So, Cat-folk or Cat-tribe.)

-The smell is killer.

-The taste is killer too.

-You could taste that too?

-Yeah, but only in Reality Mode.

-Ah, so you’re saying I shouldn’t eat it!

-Babies playing Baby Mode should just eat baby food~

-Eung-ae!! Gimme food!!

I was slightly surprised to hear that even the taste of food was implemented in Reality Mode.

I never imagined the technology had advanced that far.

Having eaten even rotten food when the world was ending in the past, I knew the importance of food well enough.

There were moments when I had to force it into my mouth to survive, but I definitely felt something back then.

The most important thing is taste.

After coming to a peaceful world like this, no matter how important nutrients were, if it didn’t taste good, I didn’t even want to put it in my mouth.

‘If that’s the case, I should try it later if I get a chance.’

Seeing the chats saying it was delicious, it seemed worth trying.

Nodding my head like that, I soon remembered there was a noticeable word among what the viewers had said.

“Come to think of it, there was mention of the Nyan-jok. What are they?”

-They’re the cats that do the traditional WaHeon cooking.

-You’ll probably see them soon?

-They look cute.

-Agreed.

-The fact that they walk on two legs is their charm point.

-I want one too…

Bipedal cats that cook.

It was a bit bewildering, but there were quite a few different races in my previous world too.

I figured it would be similar to that.

Indeed, just as the viewers said, soon, bipedal cats began to appear.

Cats wearing clothes, carrying cooking utensils or vegetable baskets in their front paws, strolling around.

Calicos, mackerel tabbies, munchkins, Siamese, Russian blues.

There was a variety of types.

One of them glanced at me.

“Ptui.”

It spat on the ground and then quickly ran away on all fours.

“…What was that? Did I do something?”

I was momentarily flustered, but I couldn’t tolerate someone picking a fight and running away like that.

Thwip.

Catching a pebble I kicked up with my toe, I immediately drew my arm back and threw it hard, like a pitcher.

The target was that fleeing creature.

Whoosh.

The pebble flew like an arrow.

And the result.

Thwack!

With a dull impact sound, a pained scream was heard from afar.

“Nyaaaaat!!!”

-Hahahahaha, streamer’s pitching skills, what the.

-She hit it in one go, FR lol.

-Sh*tty cat, down!

-That thing always spat at me too when it saw me, serves it right lol.

-It was really fast so I always missed it, feels like I can finally rest in peace lol.

It seemed that other viewers besides me had also been targeted.

Everyone was saying how satisfying it was.

As I was casually dusting off my hands while looking at the chat.

A leisurely voice accompanied by a hearty laugh was heard from behind me.

“That one’s called Nyeoran. It’s a foul-tempered creature, so I was about to tell you not to mind it, but it seems the young lady has already taken care of it.”

Turning around, I saw an old man with both eyes covered by a black blindfold.

A small frame.

A stooped back.

Except for the blindfold, he looked like any old man you could see anywhere.

But the incongruously neat weapon at his waist.

And his gaze, precisely directed at me, even though he shouldn’t be able to see because of the blindfold.

It was obvious at a glance that this was no ordinary old man.

-Why is that person appearing here?

-???

-Huh? What’s this??

It seemed like a discussion about that person was going on in the chat, as if they knew something, but that wasn’t important.

The most important thing right now was something else.

Namely, my combat sensors had reacted slightly.

‘A fight would be fun…’

“Who might you be?”

I asked a question to ascertain the opponent’s identity.

“Hoho, just a passing, ordinary old man.”

“I don’t think so?”

“Hoh, why do you think that?”

“Well…”

Before I could even answer that—

“Commander!!”

Ppatppat-i 2, who had gone ahead, was rushing back.

Commander?

“Hoho, Commander, you say. The current Commander is doing well, isn’t he? Such a title is too much for this old man now. Wouldn’t it be a bit embarrassing to be called Commander even when I’m old and withered?”

“But to me, Commander, you are the real Commander.”

“Tsk. Reina. Are you saying this old man’s words don’t sound like words anymore?”

“That’s not it, but…”

“Then just call me Grandpa like before.”

“……”

“Ahem.”

“Yes, Grandpa…”

“Good, hohoho.”

Ppatppat-i 2 turned her head away as if embarrassed, and the old man stroked his beard and let out a hearty laugh.

Watching the two of them, I was able to obtain a few important pieces of information.

One was that the old man was the ‘former’ Commander, and the other was.

‘Ppatppat-i 2’s real name was Reina.’

……It was strangely unfitting.

No, it just didn’t fit.

-Ppatppat-i 2’s real name was Reina?

-Yeah.

-First time hearing it lol.

-I thought Ppatppat-i 2 was her real name until now.

-You think?

-Hahahahahahahahaha.

-Actually, I thought so too lol.

-Can’t we just call her Ppatppat-i 2? Reina doesn’t roll off the tongue.

-To me, she’ll always be Ppatppat-i 2 hyung.

As I stared at them with a sullen expression.

“Well then, Reina. Could you perhaps introduce that friend?”

At the former Commander’s words, Ppatppat-i 2… no, Reina, looked at me, her face turning even redder, not knowing what to do.

It seemed she was embarrassed about showing such a side of herself in front of me.

After a moment of embarrassment, she finally calmed down with a short sigh.

“Hoo… This friend is my junior. Her name is definitely…”

Reina seemed to be pondering my name for a moment.

But eventually, unable to remember it, she looked at me with trembling eyes and asked cautiously.

“What was it again…? Hihaha…”

She scratched her head as if embarrassed.

It seems like she’s doing that because she doesn’t know my name…

‘I never told her in the first place, though?’

I hadn’t even set an in-game nickname.

Therefore, it was normal for Reina not to know my name.

But to those two who didn’t know the situation, Reina was just Ppatppat-i 2 who had forgotten her junior’s name.

“Hey, you rascal! A senior forgetting her junior’s name?!”

“Aish! Really!! I was just out of it today!!”

The two of them bickered over my name.

Eventually, Reina seemed to have lost, as she looked at me with reddened eyes.

“Newbie, you tell him yourself!”

The screen turned gray again and slowed down.

Seeing that, I knew this was the timing to set a nickname.

‘Ah, I guess I set my nickname now.’

[Set your name.]

No matter how realistic the surrounding scenery made this place feel like reality, a single system message like this reminded me that this was inside a game.

‘A name, huh…’

I pondered for a moment, but there was no reason to think for long.

“It’s Haerang.”

I was already using that as my streamer name.

“Haerang, you say. It’s similar to names used by Easterners.”

“Well, I guess so?”

“Newbie, were you an Easterner?”

I nodded at Reina, who was looking at me in surprise.

“Yes.”

Well, I am a native Korean, after all.

Looking to the side, the old man was calmly stroking his beard.

Seeing his blindfold, his eyes were clearly not visible, yet his gaze felt like it was piercing right through me.

“I saw you fighting on the rampart earlier, Haerang. You fought well. If you’re Reina’s junior, you’d probably be a receptionist, but… have you ever thought about becoming a Hunter?”

-What the.

-Was this always the progression?

-No no, definitely not.

-This is really the first time I’m seeing this, what’s going on…

-She gets scouted as a Hunter right here? Are we playing the same game?

-Don’t tell me it’s a new route?

“Commander!!”

“Tsk. Grandpa.”

Reina, who had quickly shriveled at the old man’s words, spoke in a quiet voice.

“Grandpa. The newbie is one of ours, if you take her like that…”

“I see you don’t even remember her name well, so what do you mean she’s one of yours? And seeing her movements earlier, it’s too much of a waste to let her rot as a receptionist.”

“Still…”

“And that friend hasn’t even answered yet, what’s all this commotion? Be quiet. What’s important is that friend’s answer.”

The old man speaking indifferently and Reina looking at me anxiously.

After stroking my chin and pondering for a moment, I first asked the question I was curious about.

“A Hunter, what exactly is that?”

“A Hunter, you say…”

At my question, the old man seemed lost in thought for a moment.

As if contemplating what words to use.

“Hunters are those who take on guild requests to hunt monsters outside. Basically, they are in charge of practical tasks like environmental surveys, population control, and disaster prevention. But more important than that…”

The old man paused for a moment and pointed towards the forest outside over his stooped shoulder.

“They are literally the frontline shield and spear, protecting people from those terrifying monsters. They are not simply those who hunt, but beings who protect the villages, strongholds, and the lives of those within. They are those who venture forth with the resolve that each expedition might be their last, shouldering that weight. That is the profession of a Hunter, who must be the first to confront whatever threats may arise, whenever, wherever, and however. Are you interested?”

“To summarize, it’s a job where you can always be in danger of death due to battles with monsters. Is that right?”

“Does that worry you?”

I shook my head at the old man’s words.

“No way, of course not.”

A smile had unknowingly appeared on my face.

“Rather, I like it.”

---

I covered my ears at Reina’s shouting voice from the side.

“Your voice is too loud. Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine. I’m doing this because I want to.”

“Still…”

“Really. More importantly, please tell me about the monster that grandpa mentioned earlier. I need to prepare for that first.”

“Haaah…”

Reina sighed and plopped down on a nearby crate.

“You mean the monster for the Hunter qualification test…”

Reina took out a notebook from her pocket.

“Its name is Kukridyaa. It’s a monster that resembles a chicken, and it uses uprooted trees as weapons. I heard it’s ferocious and has been causing a lot of damage lately.”

Reina turned the notebook to show me a drawing of Kukridyaa.

“It looks something like this. He said it’s west of the outpost, so it should be in the Border Forest where we came from.”

The chicken looked strangely stretched out.

Confirming its appearance, I nodded.

“Confirmed. It’s late today, so I should probably leave tomorrow.”

“That would be best.”

“Come to think of it, what about weapons? Can I use the one I was using earlier?”

“It would be better to make a weapon using the Domagirius materials we got today. It’s too late for that today too, so you can go early tomorrow morning.”

“Alright.”

“See you tomorrow then.”

Reina waved and left.

After giving her a light wave, I went into the place she had told me was my lodging.

Wooden furniture, a small map hanging on the wall, a worn-out chair in front of the fireplace.

It was a quiet, warm, and lived-in space.

Sitting in the old chair there, I began to communicate with the viewers I had neglected for a while.

“This is fun.”

-It’s fun for us watching too.

-This is the first time I’ve seen the situation flow like this, it’s fascinating lol.

“Doesn’t it usually flow like this?”

---

[Gajiramyun-nim has donated 1,000 won.]
(TL Note: Gajiramyun (가지라면) – Eggplant Ramen)
[Yeah, like I said before, this is a development we’re seeing for the first time too.]

-FR.

-Normally, the basic route isn’t to fight the Domagirius but to run away, so no one has caught both like you.

-Bulramyeon caught one, maybe.

-That former Commander person isn’t supposed to appear now either.

-The gallery is going crazy right now, saying a new route has appeared lol.

“Ah, Gajiramyun-nim, thank you for the 1,000 won donation. Is that so? He was a bit of a peculiar person.”

I remembered the conversation I had with the old man before we parted ways.

“Come to think of it, I have something I’m curious about, may I ask?”

“Yes, that’s fine. What else are you curious about?”

“You said you saw me fighting on the rampart earlier. How did you see me? Aren’t your eyes unable to see?”

-What kind of question is that lol.

-Surprise attack lol.

-Streamer is so rude lol.

-Hahahahaha.

-Hahahaha, just being rude first, huh?

“Hey!”

Leaving Reina, who looked surprised beside me, I stared blankly at the old man.

The old man seemed slightly flustered by my question.

He then began to laugh heartily.

“Hahahaha. You’re the first person to ask me that to my face. Was that what you were curious about?”

“Yes.”

The old man, smiling faintly at my answer, continued.

“It’s a secret.”

This time, it was my turn to be flustered.

Weren’t you going to answer?

“Well then, until we meet again, young lady.”

Watching the old man leave with a smile, I could only stand there dumbfounded.

“He’s a really peculiar person…”

Tiring.

The donation sound that rang at that moment cut off my train of thought.

---

[Gajiramyun-nim has donated 1,000 won.]
[How about 100,000 won if you clear Kukridyaa tomorrow without taking a single hit?]

A viewer giving a no-hit clear mission.

Seeing him offer such a mission, it seemed he thought it was impossible for me to clear it without taking a single hit.

“Call.”

If they’re just giving away money, I should take it.