Chapter 33

33. The Path to Becoming a Hero

After all the commotion had settled down, or rather, after I had been put through another round of torment by Junior Trainer, I logged back into the game.

And when I did, I had become the hero of the village.

“Well, well! Look at this fellow! He really made quite a name for himself! Hohoho!”

“Tsk… If only I were… ten years… younger…!”

“If you were ten years younger, you'd still be seventy! Hohoho! So, is playing around with that chain of yours something to be proud of?”

“Good grief, listen to the way this man talks! It's because you speak like that that people look down on you as uneducated!”

Hmm.

I suppose that's what had happened.

For some reason, the difficulty of my quests had gone down.

People simply gave me food whenever they saw me.

They even made me clothes using the hides of the wolves I had killed.

The clothes gave me the feeling of some kind of northern European warrior.

It was armor made from the white hides of Wolves That Walk Through Fog, which shimmered like mist or smoke.

But why were outfits like this always exposing the upper body?

I wore it because it had high defense, but it was embarrassing.

[Boots of the Wolf That Walks Through Fog.]

• On foggy days, you can walk on the fog itself.
  (The success rate changes according to proficiency.)

[Hunter's Gloves Embedded with Wolf Fangs]

• Wolf fangs have been embedded into ordinary hunter's gloves, allowing you to reach about one handspan farther than your actual hand.
  Mana Consumption: 5 per second.

I had to use mana, which I didn't have, but there were apparently pieces of equipment with special abilities.

There also seemed to be additional stats when the whole set was equipped, so I decided to put up with it.

When I wore everything, however, I wasn't satisfied with my appearance.

I wanted to look more rugged and completely like a warrior, the kind of person who looked difficult to even touch.

Instead, I looked rather dull, and my body looked like it had been left unfinished.

And why was I walking around with almost my entire upper body exposed as if I had anything worth showing off?

…If I had known this would happen, I would've put more effort into customization.

I had deliberately avoided touching it because I was afraid Pai wouldn't recognize me.

And now I was stuck with this embarrassing appearance.

Ahh, if only Hayangi would return quickly.

Then maybe I could solve the mana problem, or perhaps even my appearance.

Other users probably had at least a little mana, right?

This was troublesome.

“So… you possess Mental Power.”

“Huh? Yes…”

While I was examining and wearing the armor I had received as a reward, the Village Chief suddenly brought it up.

I hadn't expected him to realize I possessed Mental Power just by looking at the chain I had brought out yesterday.

I had thought it would be best to hide my weapons as much as possible.

Even if he asked, I hadn't intended to tell him anything.

So this unexpected situation caught me off guard.

“If you are a user of Mental Power, how about visiting the Training Center in the capital? It is a place where people like you, who have awakened Mental Power and dream of becoming heroes, train.”

W-What an NPC-like thing to say!

I had never felt anything like this while dealing with Pai!

It was so sudden that I felt pressured and didn't like it!

And a Training Center?

Just hearing the name made me imagine a rigid and extremely strict place where children couldn't run around and everyone spent every day sweating blood.

I didn't want to go.

But if I wanted to get past that Great Hero, I definitely needed to sharpen my Mental Power.

So it wasn't really a bad suggestion.

I simply didn't want to work hard at anything more than I already had.

“Hmm, I don't know…”

“Hey now, what's the point of pushing out a kid who doesn't even want to leave and live somewhere else? The young people have already all gone to the city, and we're short on workers! Didn't you say that yourself, Village Chief?”

He wasn't wrong.

If they simply left me alone, I would probably continue operating around this village.

I might occasionally travel somewhere far away, but I could always return here and help with the work.

Besides, by nature, I didn't like being far away from home.

“That's right. We're short on workers, we're getting older, our backs hurt, and our work is getting slower and slower.”

Village Chief, your voice sounds like that of a professional voice actor.

There's a dignified depth to it that you wouldn't expect from a hunched old man.

Could he secretly have been a nobleman in the past?

“But even so, how can we ask a young man who should be walking toward his future to stay with those of us who are living in the past?”

“Ah, no, Chief… It's not like we're trying to block this young fellow's future.”

“Hasn't this young man been doing all the work in the village since he arrived? Can you really say that isn't what you're doing?”

O-Oh…

The Village Chief's presence was incredible.

His overall appearance was gentle, so it wasn't immediately obvious.

But I could understand to some extent why Angel noona had specifically mentioned him.

“Of course, what you do is your choice. Whatever you choose, I will do everything I can for the one who protected this village from the wolves.”

Judging by the atmosphere, there was no way I could refuse to go to this Training Center.

I would've been grateful if they had simply given me a little space somewhere around the village where I could light a fire and relax.

But they were pushing me this hard, and I was being swept along by the pressure.

Besides…

[Will you give up?]

…

Village Chief…

Just you wait.

Someday, I'll make you regret casually saying that you'd do everything for me.

Even if you later complain that I'm being unreasonable and ask why I'm making such a fuss over something like this, my selfish self won't listen!

“…All right. Let's do that. I mean, yes, I can't just stay here doing nothing forever.”

Could the Village Chief have somehow known that if he left me alone, I would stay still endlessly?

It seemed like he understood far too well that the pressure from those around me was what motivated me to move.

Still, I had made a definite promise, so I couldn't stay in this village forever.

I should level up quickly and clear out the Maze Forest.

The later I was, the more poisonous each word of resentment I would have to hear from Pai would become.

“Hoho, good thinking. I'll give you a pass that allows you to enter the capital, so go whenever you have the time. Everyone knows about the Training Center, so just ask around and you'll find it.”

“Yes. Then I'll go now. How long does it take to reach the capital?”

“Hmm, if you take a carriage from here, shouldn't you arrive in half a day?”

H-Half a day?

Half a day?!

This game was now running on the exact same time as reality, and he was saying half a day?!

Was he joking with me right now?

Ughhh.

Wasn't there anything faster?

Judging from his expression, that seemed to be considered quite fast.

Ahh, mounts.

Fast travel.

Or, if not that, wasn't there at least some kind of portal?

It's a game!

When everyone else is moving quickly, are they seriously going to make me move slowly and call that a virtue?

In a game?!

Don't you want to make money?!

Open the cash shop already!

Open it and sell an item that lets me move between regions with real money!

Quickly!!!

“…Yes. Then I suppose we'll meet again if fate brings us together.”

“Hoho, indeed.”

Time-saving.

Save time, save more time.

Why did twenty-four hours always feel so short exactly when I needed them?

Right now, I wouldn't mind time moving a little slower!

Could this half a day actually mean two or three hours?

Anyway, after a brief farewell, I boarded the carriage and began traveling.

I didn't suddenly lose consciousness after getting into the carriage and wake up in the Imperial capital.

Instead, I actually had to endure the entire journey.

“…Can't be helped.”

Inside the peacefully moving carriage, listening to the rattling sounds, I became obsessed with the feeling that I should be doing something.

So I took out the Indomitable Chains for no reason and played around with them.

I didn't know what their proficiency had been during the testing period, but it was a truly reliable skill back then.

Seeing it nerfed this badly was incredibly disappointing.

F3?

What the hell was F3?

I hadn't checked things like my stats or skills during the testing period, so I didn't really understand the skill proficiency system.

Was F the skill's grade?

Or was F the level of skill proficiency?

Since there was a number after it, it seemed to be proficiency.

Seriously, why had this game officially launched without teaching anyone anything about its game systems?

This had caused quite a commotion in the community too.

Nobody knew what they were supposed to do or how they were supposed to do it.

It had been somewhat resolved because testers like me had been sharing various pieces of information.

But wasn't it normally supposed to be the players learning the game system?

Was I normal for being a tester who knew absolutely nothing?

“Hey, mister. Is it really okay for someone like me to go to a Training Center that raises heroes?”

Could someone like me, who was lazy and indifferent to everything except my own business, really go to such an imposing place where people who dreamed of becoming heroes trained?

While absentmindedly playing with the chain, I casually asked the carriage driver without even realizing it.

Normally, I would think about whether to ask something three times before eventually deciding, Forget it.

Yet here I was, actually saying the thought aloud.

The me inside this game was surprisingly active.

“What's wrong with that?”

“Hmm, I mean… wouldn't it be a problem if someone who wasn't prepared gained great power and swung it around without controlling themselves?”

“The very fact that you've awakened Mental Power is already proof that won't happen.”

“Really?”

“Mental Power isn't something just anyone can easily obtain. My own son also screamed and struggled, saying he would awaken Mental Power, but when he couldn't do it, he ended up staying in the capital as a carriage driver like me.”

“That's because he gave up halfway.”

Was I any different?

Had I possessed Mental Power from the moment I created my character?

No.

I had obtained it while playing.

I didn't know who that guy was, but if he was still dreaming of becoming a hero, I'd like to help him.

“…Hoho, I think you'll be fine at the Training Center, sir. I don't think there'll be any problem.”

“Really?”

Was that so?

I didn't know if he was just saying it to be nice, but hearing someone actually say it made me feel strangely reassured.

I'm glad I talked to him!

Hmm!

Yes!

Let's stay strong!

Oh!

For some reason, I really felt energized!

Words really were important!

If you kept saying something wouldn't work, it really wouldn't work, after all!

Huh?

Then was the reason I couldn't bring the relic from the forest because I had been scared in advance and imagined that I wouldn't be able to do it?

Was it because I had prepared a safety net?

…No.

That couldn't be it.

No matter how I thought about it, that Great Hero was simply an opponent I couldn't defeat back then.

“Mister, do you know someone called the Great Hero of Patience?”

“The Great Hero of Patience… Ah, you mean the saint from that witch fairy tale? Of course I know her. I doubt there's anyone in the Empire who doesn't know that story.”

“A witch fairy tale. It sounds like it has something to do with the Maze Forest.”

“Yes. The story goes that the Great Hero of Patience sacrificed herself to seal the witch's relic after hearing that the most dangerous part of the Maze Forest was gradually expanding its territory.”

“She was a Great Hero from two hundred years ago! That's the setting, anyway. Apparently, she wasn't a real person.”

“That's a nice, clean summary. I like it.”

“Hohoho! Well, even so, it's only a fairy tale. There's no need to make such a big deal out of it. I'm pretty sure the Great Hero's name was Pa… Pa-something…”

“Ah! Pastien? Yes, Pastien, that's right.”

“Oh! I'd forgotten too!”

“Hahaha! This was a story adults used to tell us whenever they wanted to explain how dangerous the Maze Forest was, even when we were children. They'd say it was a forest that even a Great Hero couldn't escape from.”

After that, the carriage driver really did spend the entire half-day talking as if he were pouring out every story he knew.

He told me various stories about Pastien's background.

He talked about other fairy tales related to the Maze Forest.

He told me about the recent political situation in the Empire.

He even talked about how there had suddenly been so many outsiders appearing recently.

For someone like me who wasn't interested in information, it was an incredibly valuable time.

I had skipped practically the entire story of the game.

But the carriage driver's storytelling skills were so good that I found myself listening to him as if I were being drawn into the stories.

Was this old man the kind of person who got surrounded by his nieces and nephews during holidays and was assigned the role of opening his bundle of old stories?

“And… oh my, we've arrived already.”

I had been worried about how I was going to spend such a long half-day journey.

But thanks to the driver's amazing storytelling and endless stream of stories, I had actually spent an interesting amount of time.

Could this have been something the developers had intentionally prepared?

Maybe they had stuffed the carriage-driver NPCs with all kinds of stories so players would stay interested during the long carriage rides.

Or maybe he was simply the type who started talking excitedly once someone gave him the chance, like a taxi driver.

“What's your name, mister?”

“My name? All of a sudden? Hoho, just call me carriage driver. Someday, you'll become a hero. What use would remembering the name of someone like me be to you?”

“You never know. Maybe it'll be useful for something, Carriage Driver.”

“…Carriage Driver isn't my name.”

“You told me to call you Carriage Driver.”

“…Huh?”

“See you next time!”

I got off the carriage and arrived at the capital.

Unlike Jageun Village, there were tall buildings everywhere.

There were countless people.

And there were many people who obviously looked like users.

The people whispering while looking at my outfit were definitely players.

Considering I was dressed like some kind of barbarian, I couldn't blame them for staring.

“Wow, the game hasn't even been open for a week yet, but that's kind of crazy… Does he do nothing but play games without even eating?”

“So that's what a Rabbit Gongdu looks like… I guess he's not very talented at customization.”

It hurt because they were so obviously players.

Did those guys really think I was deaf just because they couldn't see the person behind my character and that's why they were talking like that?

I eat all my meals properly while playing games!

Where was there another person who lived as healthily as I did?!

“…Haa…”

Let's go to the Training Center.

Let's go to the Training Center.

Let's enter the Training Center where there definitely wouldn't be any players yet.