Chapter 5
"...Ryan?"
Lilisa's voice calling my na jolted awake.
I must have been quite confused by the unexpected situation.
So much so that I hadn't even noticed Lilisa was right in front of , looking worried.
"Is sothing wrong?"
"That..."
Her question startled again.
Sothing was indeed wrong.
The system ssage, specifically the D&K chat window, was prominently displayed between Lilisa and .
It was showcasing an enormous presence.
But Lilisa's reaction was strange.
"You suddenly touched your eyes and stood still, so I thought sothing happened."
Lilisa acted as if she couldn't see the chat window.
Naturally, information about my power, the Dragon Eye, ca to mind.
It was a minor ability that allowed to see parts of the system ssages.
I had naturally only thought of it in relation to the cultivation system, but it seed to encompass a broader scope.
And the content was sothing only I could see.
"Just a slight pain in my eye... It's nothing."
"Oh, are you alright?"
"It's fine now."
"...Are you really okay? You're not enduring pain just to avoid being a bother, are you?"
"Not at all. I just caused you unnecessary worry."
"Not at all. We're comrades, after all. We'll be together for a long ti, so it's natural to worry. More importantly, we've fallen too far behind the lead. I think we need to speed up a bit."
Lirisa smiled and returned to her spot, and I slowly followed the group.
Of course, even as I walked, my gaze remained fixed on the chat window.
Stage 1-1 is really nothing.
How many heroes have you cultivated so far?
My main character is level 2, and I have one level 1 hero... and 15 units.
What's the composition of your units?
I didn't know much, so I filled it with 15 of the fastest ones!
Oh dear... Still, it doesn't really matter.
Stage 1-1 is practically handed to you.
I'll tell you about unit ratios later and give you the strategy first.
First...
"..."
The chat was updating in real ti.
In fact, I had one lingering question until now.
Was this place where I stood and breathed a world strikingly similar to the online ga D&K but a separate, existing one?
Or had I been sucked into the ga world and beco an NPC?
Or, if not that, had D&K integrated a ga-like system into the existing world, connecting players with this world?
Based on the information given, I couldn't reach a definitive conclusion yet, but one thing had beco clear.
With the appearance of the chat window, the possibility that this world was separate from D&K had vanished.
In other words, the difficulty of survival had once again sharply risen.
"Can't I type in the chat?"
Just in case, I reached out my hand, but there was no particular reaction.
My hand, outstretched in disappointnt, passed through the system ssage and grasped empty air.
The emptiness drained the strength from my body.
Anyway, what would change if I could type in the chat?
"I'm trapped in a ga world, please save ?"
Or, "What you're playing isn't a ga, but another world?"
"Check what happened to the real and report it to the police?"
Whatever it was, I was clearly going to be treated as a low-level attention-seeker.
In online spaces where there's no need for face-to-face interaction, people tend to forget common courtesy and act aggressively.
I would surely be ridiculed for a day or two before being buried by the appearance of new rumors.
Still, being able to check the chat window through my power was not entirely aningless to .
On the contrary, it was quite helpful.
The chat window was like a sea of information, constantly spewing out details.
What I could imdiately confirm was that a fresh, green newbie, who had just started the ga, was about to challenge Stage 1-1.
"Damn it."
A simple mission that only required occupying an empty outpost had been changed to a life-threatening engagent.
Given that there were no benefits to be gained from engagent, due to the nature of D&K's cultivation system, it was best to avoid combat if possible.
The fortunate thing was that there was a way out.
I quickly calculated the difference in power between friend and foe using the knowledge I had learned from D&K.
The enemy's forces consisted of one level 2 hero and one level 1 hero.
And units... 15 ordinary soldiers who hadn't received the benefits of the cultivation system.
Since he said he had composed the units with fast ones, all 15 would probably be units specialized in scouting.
It was a common mistake made by beginners.
On the other hand, our forces were only five level 1 heroes.
Considering the gap between level 1 and level 2, we were overwhelmingly disadvantaged.
'It would be best to avoid engagent as much as possible.'
However, the newbie, having received advice from an experienced player, had gained confidence and was leading his troops towards Outpost 28.
Unit 707, who had no way of knowing this information except for , was also relentlessly advancing towards Outpost 28.
At this rate, an engagent would occur at Outpost 28.
And the losing side would, with high probability, be our Unit 707.
'If that's the case...'
I looked ahead.
Except for The Blonde, who was like baggage, Theo and Lirisa were doing their best in their positions.
Perhaps it was her nature, but she kept looking back at , checking my condition, even while guiding us.
The mont she spoke a few words to Theo and was about to turn back again.
I stopped in my tracks and, with a serious expression, stared intently into the distant, innocent air.
Even reflecting on it now, I think my acting skills were quite excellent.
If it were the Lilisa I knew, she would definitely sense sothing was wrong and speak to .
"...Ryan?"
As expected.
Lirisa cautiously spoke to .
I could see Theo and The Blonde stopping as well.
"Theo. May I request a short break?"
"A break?"
Theo gazed at the watchtower of the outpost in the distance.
Even without words, I felt I knew what he was thinking.
He probably wanted to say, "We're almost at our destination, so why do we need to take a break in the middle of a dangerous forest?"
I quickly continued before Theo could speak.
"Coming here, I saw a few traces that caught my eye."
"Traces? Co to think of it, Ryan, you said you were a hunter's son..."
In truth, I had no mory of being a hunter or any skills for tracking, but I ard myself with brazenness, not changing my expression.
"It's unclear whether they are traces left by the enemy or by our allies going to and from the outpost. I need a little ti to confirm that."
"If that's the case... Alright. I'll follow your opinion."
Fortunately, Theo followed my suggestion without any particular suspicion.
The group searched for a suitable place where they could rest and hide.
anwhile, Theo followed close to , as I was subtly trying to distance myself from the group under the pretext of looking around.
"I'm not doubting your skills, but it's still dangerous alone. I'll go with you. I'm a lumberjack, so I don't have enough knowledge to help you with what you're doing, but at least I can be a guard."
"That's..."
"Oh, no!"
Just as I was worrying about how to shake off Theo, unexpected assistance appeared.
The Blonde, tears streaming down her face as if all the moisture in her body was being extracted, clung to Theo's leg.
"Please, stay with . Please..."
It seed she found Theo, who was older and physically robust, to be reassuring.
The Blonde, clinging to Theo, loaded up another round of tears, and Theo gave a look that clearly showed his helplessness.
"But I can't send Ryan alone... Lilisa. You go with..."
"No. It's faster if I go alone."
I quickly cut Theo off, just in case Lilisa might follow.
And I quickly walked away from the group.
Fortunately, there was no sign of Lirisa following.
From behind, I heard Theo's worried shout, telling not to overexert myself.
Thanks to the dense bushes, I was quickly able to get away from the group, and I finally caught my breath.
Objective achieved!
Thank you!
Thanks to you guys, I was able to clear the stage.
I'm currently retreating towards the airship!
Looks like there was no engagent with the enemy.
You seem lucky.
Now, you just need to process the acquired fruits and cultivate your hero.
You shouldn't make the mistake of upgrading the airship first.
"Gasp."
Even at this mont, the White player was carrying out the operation at Outpost 28.
Judging by the situation, it seed I only needed to stall for about 30 minutes.
"Co to think of it..."
It wasn't intentional, but the place I requested to scout was not far from the cave where the easter egg existed.
Originally, I had planned to occupy the outpost and retrieve it under the pretext of scouting the surroundings, but since things turned out this way, it seed better to retrieve it right away while also killing ti.
Finding the cave's location wasn't difficult.
Although my mory was a bit hazy from long ago, it was a place I had visited countless tis whenever I cultivated a new character in the early days of the ga.
"Found it."
A small cave cleverly hidden by bushes.
A familiar place I had faced countless tis beyond the screen.
However, since it was my first ti witnessing it directly with my own eyes, a subtle feeling where familiarity and freshness coexisted dominated my mind.
At the entrance, several very old footprints, only faint traces remaining, were imprinted.
"..."
It felt nostalgic.
Perhaps so of them belonged to the heroes I had cultivated.
And so of Reisia and my player character's.
"...Sigh. What am I even doing?"
Given the situation, even indulging in sentintality felt ridiculous.
I entered the cave.
The interior was so dark it was hard to see even a step ahead, but it wasn't a big problem.
After all, I knew the path inside perfectly.
After carefully walking for a few minutes, fumbling along the wall, a faint light began to appear in the distance.
Light filtering through a small crack in the ceiling illuminated a section of the cave about 5 ters in diater.
And at its center, a uniquely shaped flower blood, using the light as nourishnt.
The stan in the center of its petals glowed with a clear blue light.
"It's here."
The blooming cycle of the flower was not short.
I had been worried that soone might have picked the flower, but it was a relief that it turned out to be a groundless fear.
I picked the flower with joy.
Cha-rang—!
With a clear sound, blue light burst forth and seeped into the delicate petals.
A rose that blooms in a dark, damp cave when light perates it.
Due to its rarity, adventurers who have discovered a naturally blooming Cave Rose are few and far between.
Magic amount: 12.
"Dragon Eye can even see things like this."
The Dragon Eye was showing more than I had expected.
Perhaps I might be able to see even more than the system ssages players saw.
Since I had achieved what I wanted more easily than expected, I pondered the characteristics of the Cave Rose.
Firstly, the Cave Rose is one of the very few consumables that can absorb magic by being consud directly, without relying on the power of a magician... that is, the power of the cultivation system.
However, if consud imdiately without assistance, the absorption rate would drop sharply, and I would only be able to absorb about 3 out of 12 magic.
But I had no intention of consuming it right away.
The second characteristic of the Cave Rose.
It was that its properties changed so that only the person who directly collected the flower could absorb its magic.
Even though I had fallen out of favor with Viscount Lemming and had been told he would abandon my cultivation, if he was a human with any sense, he would have no choice but to grant magic due to the special properties of the Cave Rose.
If that happened, I could gain a significant lead over other unit mbers with a magic stat of 12, and if I was lucky, I might even awaken a new power.
Placing the flower carefully in my backpack, I left the cave with much lighter steps than when I entered.
Perhaps because I had achieved my goal, the warm sunlight piercing my eyes felt pleasant.
And one more thing.
Objective achieved!
Thank you!
Thanks to you guys, I was able to clear the stage.
I'm currently retreating towards the airship!
Looks like there was no engagent with the enemy.
You seem lucky.
Now, you just need to process the acquired fruits and cultivate your hero.
You shouldn't make the mistake of upgrading the airship first.
Through the Dragon Eye, I could confirm that the White soldiers who were working at Outpost 28, the mission objective, were withdrawing.
Now, all that remained was to plant the Alliance flag at Outpost 28 and return, and the first operation would be successfully completed.
Everything was going smoothly.
It seed like it would be a lucky day.
I couldn't think anything else.
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