3 Rounds by Myself

24 – Hidden Quest (2)

Kung-kung-kung-kung! The sound of heels stepping on the steps came closer and closer.

It was a kicking sound full of anger.

She was approaching Siwoon.

‘Ha, I’m worried about this?’

I swallowed my tension.

A thought popped up in my head.

In preparation for the attack by that ruthless woman, should she at least hold a claymore and strike back if necessary?

‘No, that’s not it.’

Siwoon gave up on her thoughts.

I came for the purpose of receiving a quest, but anyway, it was Siwoon who opened the door to someone else’s residence.

It’s only natural that the landlord gets angry.

If she stood there holding a weapon in such a situation, she could see Siwoon as a robber.

If that happened, instead of purely granting quests, he could have tried to kill Siwoon even more.

It was completely dark under the stairs.

And gradually, at the bottom of the stairs in pitch darkness. The figure of a woman walking upstairs gradually became clearer.

‘I don’t look like a human.’

I saw her face.

Her face was grotesque itself.

Her eyes were full of whites, and her whole body was covered with knife marks and scars exuding a bloody majesty, and a thick fishy smell vibrated.

‘It’s not fun to live….’

It’s an aura that only murderers who have killed people many times can exude.

He was expelling life through his smell and eyes.

For a moment, it felt like Siwoon’s heart was choking.

Kikiiik-. Kiki profit-.

I heard a rustling sound.

She is approaching, scraping her sad scythe against the wall.

I could see her green hair fluttering in the thick darkness.

“Gulp.”

I swallowed my saliva.

“…… What are you?”

I heard her sharp voice.

Before she knew it, she was the one who came right up to Siwoon’s nose.

With her scythe clutched in her right hand.

“Oh, hello.”

Siwoon greeted awkwardly.

I was at a loss for words because I thought that if I had to, I might be stabbed in the skull with that scythe.

‘If you look closely, there are no real ghosts…’

Her expression was expressionless.

She opened her eyes full of the whites of her eyes and stared at her poetry with an expressionless expression, but she was rather afraid of that.

It was an emotionless expression.

If he had a frown on his face, he would be less scared because he looked like a human.

‘I don’t have time to be scared, I have to explain everything.’

“I’m sorry I opened the rock on my own, there is nothing else I can do to help…” “

“What? Are you the famous Hunter? Welcome!”

Unexpected words flowed from the woman who cut off Siwoon’s words.

Then she grinned, revealing the woman’s rotten teeth.

She was like a manic-depressive patient who cried and then laughed, and was angry and then laughed.

“……….”

Staring at the dumbfounded Siwoon, she continued her words.

“Hmm, I will forgive you for opening the door of my house without permission! Because you are a famous Hunter.”

It was a disconcerting development.

The woman’s reaction was in stark contrast to the previous one. But more than that, the words that came out of her mouth were questionable.

-Because you are a famous hunter.

‘No way?’

In an instant, Siwoon’s head flashed.

Soon I could guess the reason.

‘Is my reputation value applied?’

That’s right.

Siwoon’s current reputation level is 5.

Generally, when a hunter enters the other world, the value of fame is -10.

The difference is a figure of 15.

Non-Player Character.

We call it NPC for short.

The woman in front of Siwoon is an NPC.

NPCs, as the space between the other world and the real world cracked after the battle between the black mage Cain and Redin,

It is known that they were created at the same time.

In the other world, NPCs are classified into different categories from those of other worlds,

NPCs are other humans that exist in the other world.

Everyone has their own thoughts and feelings,

It is known that different reactions and different treatment are given according to the value of the hunter’s reputation.

Mostly, NPCs take on various roles such as guide, general store, equipment shop, quest grant, loan officer, and militia.

Some people claim that NPCs are artificial intelligence systems with human emotions, but they are classified as human beings anyway.

The reason Siwoon’s reputation is higher than other F-rank hunters is,

It was because of the history of getting a perfect score in the Hunter Qualification Test.

Each hunter is implanted with a hunter-specific magnetic chip before entering the world for the first time.

In the chip, all information including the hunter’s past and educational background is systematized and input.

As the chip was applied as a system in the other world,

Hunters can display various abilities.

From level up to ability increase, skill display and job transfer, various quests and rewards, rank increase, use of guilds, use of various communities, etc…

In addition, if you commit a serious crime such as killing other hunters in the other world, the history will remain on your chip, and your reputation will drop significantly.

If that happens, in the other world, the hunter’s use of shops, loans, house sales, joining guilds, and raising ranks are all restricted.

And the White Gate, which acts as a guardian for hunters. Will be pursued and punished accordingly.

On the other hand,

There are also such hunters.

To commit numerous crimes and evade White Gate’s pursuit, he removed the hunter chip from his body,

There are also cases where you hide away from their pursuit.

Because hiding like that reduces the chance of being located,

Easier to evade pursuit, but enjoy lifelong criminal activity and fall, or Black Gate, called the ‘evil coalition’ against White Gate. Being scouted by and hunting hunters,

He extorts the property of good hunters.

Also, they

Sometimes they go to war against the Hunter Union Guild, and sometimes they intervene in wars with the state.

A lot of famous rankers already belong to Black Gate.

However, there was one fatal flaw that you had to be prepared for once you became a member of Blackgate.

That you cannot return to the present world for the rest of your life.

As such, in the present world, there is a tense confrontation between hunters and anti-hunters.

Anyway,

I’m going to elaborate on the explanation here.

“Whew….”

Siwoon let out a sigh of relief at being spared trouble due to his superior reputation.

Even if you think about it, the result of the Hunter Qualification Test was really good.

“Hunter.”

Her expression and voice became serious at the same time.

“Tell me.”

“Hunter-nim is famous, so I think he can do what I want….”

“What is your request?”

Although he knew the contents of the request, he pretended not to know and asked back.

She already knew what the request was, and came all the way here to grant it.

However, in order to receive the quest, you must first listen to the NPC’s explanation.

That’s the condition of awarding the quest!

The woman opened her mouth, twitching her eyelids.

“…… There is someone I have loved for a long time. But at some point, that person disappeared. I was so sad, I searched all over the continent to find him, I wandered like a mad b*tch! I heard the news from a mercenary I know. He saw the man in the meadows of Havana… Heh heh heh heh heh!”

Suddenly she shrugged her shoulders and sobbed.

Tears dripped from her eyes, which were covered in white.

At that time, a quest window appeared in front of Siwoon’s eyes.

[Elia’s Tears-1] [Hidden Quest]

Elia, who had a reputation for being the pinnacle of beauty in the continent of Icarus, was passionately in love with Jean Dihart, the royal guard who protects the imperial family.

Resisting the temptations of countless men,

Elia, who promised her betrothal to Diehard, dreamed of a future with Diehard, and she carried his child in her belly.

Dihart, a stern and righteous man, used his arms only for the good of his country.

However, Dihart, the captain of the guard, lost the trust of the royal family due to the scheming of those who envied him, and was accused of being a traitor.

And the death penalty was ahead,

Shocked, Diethart hid from their eyes somewhere on the continent of Icarus.

Elia was shocked and saddened by the news of his disappearance.

However, Elia had a great determination to find him. She traveled all over the continent in search of the hidden Dihart, and she found out that he was hiding in the grasslands of Havana.

The two met again by a competent hunter in the past, but

After Dihart’s agony, the two broke up again.

Once,

You have to listen to her story.

-Timeout: None

-Success condition: listen to her story

-Reward: Quest ‘Elia’s Tears-2’ can be completed.

‘The next series of quests. Why is the quest description so long? Rather…….’

Siwoon stared at Elia, who was crying in front of him.

‘By the way, this woman was the ultimate beauty on the continent?’

Elia’s face was filthy to anyone, no, it was hideous.

‘A person can go crazy like this because of love. Listening to the story is the condition for succeeding in the quest, so let’s just listen.’

“Heukheuk…… Oops! You don’t know how much I loved him He was more courageous and dignified than anyone else. However …… Bad motherf*ckers! Awesome!”

She gritted her teeth as she spoke.

“I’ll listen slowly, so take a breath and talk.”

Siwoon patted Elia on the shoulder.

***

“…………… So that’s how it happened.”

I listened to her complaint with a lengthy and lengthy story for an hour.

She seemed a bit calm when she confided all her complaints.

On the other hand, Siwoon listened to other people’s complaints mixed with anger for an hour, and she was tired.

Elia looked straight at Siwoon.

“You must have that person for me… f*ck! I need to find it. In fact, a certain hunter visited him in the past, but he disappeared again, I miss him. Can you do me a favor?”

[Elia’s Tears-1 Quest has been completed.]

[Elia’s Tears-2 Quest is available.]

[Elia’s Tears-2] [Hidden Quest]

According to her, somewhere in the grasslands of Havana, a man named Dihart lives in hiding dressed as a wild boar.

For Elia, we must first find that man.

-Time limit: within 24 hours.

-Success condition: Discover Dihart.

-Penalty for refusal or failure: Relationship with NPC Elia.

-Reward: Relation with NPC Elia rises to .

Can perform ‘Elia’s Tears-3’.

‘I did say that the refusal penalty will turn into a hostile relationship with Elia.’

In an instant, Park Tae-seok’s voice came to Shi-woon’s mind.

-If you refuse Eliara’s quest, a scythe will fly right away, mercilessly! You must be careful!

“Ha.”

Siwoon laughed briefly in dismay.

‘This is a complete anti-threat quest.’

That’s right.

It was nothing more than a counter-threat disguised as a request.

He asked if he could listen, and if he didn’t, Elia would attack with that sad scythe.

‘Well, in any case, I came all the way here after going through a lot of hardships to complete this quest.’

Siwoon readily accepted the quest.

***

Havana Cave.

Siwoon traversed deep into the Havana grasslands and came into a cave.

It’s been an hour since I walked through the cave like that.

I didn’t just go into the cave without any countermeasures.

He observed numerous footprints on the ground in the meadow, and among them, he came here by following suspicious-looking footprints.

‘The footprints are those of a man named Dihart.’

There was a reason Siwoon could be sure.

The shape of the footprint was like that of a wild boar.

However, he was able to spot the loophole by seeing that the upper and lower parts of the footprint were dark.

‘The boar’s soles are flat. So when you step on the ground with the sole of your foot, the center of gravity is flat. On the other hand, what if a person steps on the ground wearing shoes that imitate boar soles?’

‘The shape of the footprint may be similar, but the two parts of the footprint will be inclined. It’s just the forefoot and heel. Unlike a boar’s feet, human feet have blunt flesh at the heel and forefoot.’

It was.

Siwoon discovered the minute difference in inclination between the footsteps of a human being pressed by the heel and forefoot in the wild boar footprint.

It was thanks to his eyes that were better than others that Shiwoon could discriminate so sharply.

Trumbling…Chin!

Siwoon stopped walking.

In an instant, his eyes flashed! It grew.

‘Footprints end here. It’s nearby! It’s around here.’

The cave was quiet.

Monsters didn’t exist at all.

…… No, it wasn’t that they weren’t there, they were all devoured and turned to bones, lying on the floor.

Wow! Wow!

In an instant, a sound was heard.

It was the sound of rough chewing of flesh.

‘I can hear it.’

Inside a cave full of darkness.

There are pointed icicles on the ceiling of the cave.

The moonlight penetrating through a small hole in the surface of the cave only illuminated the part of the cave minutely.

Trip-tuk- The sound of water dripping from the icicles on the ceiling and hitting the floor resounded loudly.

Siwoon cautiously held up the claymore and approached the sound.

With a quick step, cautiously.

‘Men are rumored to be ferocious. I have to be careful not to make footsteps.’

As we got closer, we saw a human figure.

He is squatting, chewing the body of a bat with his teeth, with a giant boar skin wrapped around his back.

His face was visible through the disguise.

His face was covered in blood.

His arm, visible through the skin of a pig, had bumps of muscle like a beast.

‘He’s definitely in good shape because he was a former guard commander.’

Wow! Wow!

… A sound came in succession.

The sound of a bat’s head being ripped off and disintegrating into a man’s mouth.

It gave me goosebumps.

[You have completed Elia’s Tears-2 Quest.]

[Elia’s Tears – 3 Quest is available immediately.]

‘Okay, I’ve completed the discovery for now.’

By the way. The voice that followed was enough to make my hair stand up.

[Crash Quest ‘Traitor’s Pursuit’ has arrived!]

[The quests ‘Traitor’s Pursuit’ and ‘Elia’s Tears-3’ collide!]

[Quest crashes! It goes over to the double branching point state.]

‘What? …… A collision quest?’

Siwoon’s eyes flashed.

I can’t do this.

I checked the quest window that just opened.

‘…… This, this?’

The situation in which the collision quest suddenly occurred was an incomprehensible and absurd situation.