HPDBC Chapter 62
Chapter 62
“Hmm...”
With a strange sense of buoyancy, consciousness shifts to another place.
As Ha-neul opened her eyes in the capsule, she gasped.@@@@
“Haah...!”
She had logged out in a very bad situation.
No matter how strong Yor was, the opponent was a monster among monsters, over level 170.
At the very least, a captain of the empire’s knights would be needed just to have a chance against it.
Yet, she had died while being chased by such a creature and logged out.
While she could log back in even after dying, that wasn’t the case for the NPC, Yor. If he died, he would be permanently deleted from the world. And that was truly the worst-case scenario.
“No, no...!”
A creeping sense of unease began to rise within her.
As if she had been running, her heart started to race.
She wanted to open the capsule again and log back in, but of course, that was impossible.
Ha-neul was stuck waiting for three days.
Thanks to that, her anxiety only increased.
Why would she feel this anxious over a game character... Honestly, she found it quite strange, but there was nothing she could do.
Real emotions are not easily controlled.
While she was fidgeting, Ha-neul decided to call her younger sister, Chae-rin, who was also her water-giver in the game. She asked if she could check on Yor since she knew he was injured but felt that he might be in danger.
“No way, really? Okay, I’ll check right away.”
Chae-rin, surprised by the call, accepted Ha-neul's request.
With that, they could at least confirm the outcome.
However, Ha-neul's worries did not easily subside.
So, she prayed to the night sky. May he survive safely.
Crash! Boom! Crack!
The advantage of fighting large monsters is that each attack is huge, making them easy to predict.
Although it was cunning, it couldn’t fake its attacks.
Given its massive size, any attempt to deceive would be quickly seen through.
Therefore, its attacks were intuitive and clear.
Crack!!!
... The downside, however, was that each attack was incredibly strong.
It could break trees as easily as snapping a twig.
Even with my regeneration abilities, if I were to take a direct hit from its front paw, I might be finished.
‘... But still.’
I thought as I dodged its attacks.
‘It’s doable.’
It wasn’t an opponent I couldn’t handle.
At least I could predict its attacks, and although they were fast, I could dodge them in time.
I could endure against that monster, at least for now.
Of course, it wasn’t easy. Every time I dodged, it felt like I was walking on thin ice.
Tap tap, my nerves were fraying.
Focusing entirely on evasion, my fatigue was no joke. My breathing was becoming increasingly ragged.
‘But still, this is something.’
Even so, I smiled.
When I first met that creature years ago, I never imagined I’d face it like this.
Back then, I had managed to wound it on my side through sheer luck, but I had come close to dying to make that happen.
Thinking back to that time, my current situation was far better.
I wasn’t sure if it was weaker or if I had grown stronger. Either way, it was undoubtedly a good thing.
‘The problem is how to attack...’
Fortunately, an opportunity came quickly.
“...Ah! Yor!”
As soon as Yor returned, he saw Chae-rin anxiously pacing near his cave.
It seemed she had rushed over after hearing from Ha-neul.
She quickly approached Yor and checked his condition, then let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew, I’m so glad you’re safe. I was so worried when I heard from my sister that your life was in danger...”
“It was dangerous, but... I’m fine now.”
Yor said, reassuring Chae-rin. For a moment, her eyes darted to the back of Yor.
“But... what’s that?”
“Oh, this? It’s a trophy.”
Yor was holding the Old Tiger's tail.
Even though it wasn’t a victory, it felt wasteful to leave it behind.
And in a way, it could also be considered food. A sort of nourishing meal, to be precise.
In the depths, not everything was just herbs.
Creatures like that, which were saturated with magical energy, could be potions in their own right.
And considering that the Old Tiger was the ruler of this forest, it would surely be worth it as a potion.
‘It’s my first time with tiger meat.’
Well, it should taste good. Yor thought as he stashed the tail away in storage.
Since it was getting late, Chae-rin checked on Yor’s well-being and immediately left.
She couldn’t stay long, as she was still recovering.
Three days passed.
This time, Ha-neul visited his cave.
“Yor! You really made it back safely!”
“Ah, yeah.”
Swoosh.
She rushed over and embraced Yor.
Even though she had heard he was safe from Chae-rin, she had gone through a lot of mental turmoil in the meantime.
Hearing things was one thing, but seeing it for herself was different.
Whether it was that emotion surfacing or something else, Ha-neul acted without realizing it.
“...Uh, could you let go of me?”
“...Huh? Oh!”
Fortunately, the embarrassing moment didn’t last long.
Ha-neul regained her composure quickly, and a hint of blush appeared on her face.
It seemed she felt embarrassed herself.
Now that she thought about it, it was as if she hadn’t shown such intense emotional fluctuations before.
‘Well, that means she was worried about me.’
Yor thought as he smiled slightly.
It was the first time someone had cared about him like this, and he felt a mix of guilt and gratitude. Regardless, it didn’t feel bad at all.
With that, the exploration of the deeper layers came to an end.
It had been dangerous, but nonetheless, the goals were achieved.
He had roughly assessed his abilities, and although it wasn’t herbs, he had acquired a beneficial tiger tail.
A few more days passed.
The new moon arrived, and Yor endured the Frenzy B.
The day after withstood the frenzy, he received news of new developments.
It was the news that the altar of Kimaris, ranked 66, had been destroyed.
This battle ended with the victory of the knights.
However, a 13-year-old demon appeared.
That demon was said to have killed a total of 120 knights, adventurers, and civilians.
Before the nations could rejoice in their victory, they had to prepare for the next demon's descent.