Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Team Halfwits (3)

After the shocking confession that I didn't have a mother

"Uh, um"

"Well, is that so?"

A strange silence reigned, and bewildered gazes kept flying towards me.

I quickly went on to explain further.

"My mother died giving birth to me. And my father never came back from the labyrinth when I was young. So even now that I'm an adult, I can't meet them even if I want to!"

For reference, this was a hundred percent true from what Id heard from Ainar.

"That"

"You mustve suffered a lot as a kid."

But was it because it was the confession of the youngest member of the team, a barbarian who had just finished his coming-of-age ceremony?

The light of sympathy began to shine in the gazes that looked at me.

"Bjorn, you dont have to force yourself to be fine in front of us."

"Im sorry. I didn't even know that you were in such a situation, and I told you about my family"

"Bjorn, I can't ever replace your parents, but if only you want "

What the ever-loving fuck, you bastard?

I decided to ignore the rest of the dwarf's blathering.

"Its all in the past."

For some reason, I seemed to have become the most pitiful of them all in an instant what to do about it? It wasnt true, so I didn't have to worry about it.

It wasnt that I never had a real mother.

And above all, I was a munchkin barbarian who, unlike them, was on the track of the ultra-elite course by being promoted to a seventh ranked adventurer in only three months.

My core identity was the most essential part.

Well, but when you think about it that way, am I really not the most pitiful of us all?'

I suddenly thought that it might actually be the case.

I was summoned to a game world without my consent, and I had to suffer through the risk of death several times until now.

Fuck, why is my life so miserable?

"Bjorn, you dont look so good! Are you feeling down because you brought up your mother?"

"Yeah, thats"

"If youre missing your family, you can call me sister"

Interrupting the cat-eared girls preaching, I got to the point.

"By the way, whatre we going to do now?"

We couldnt hunt at our primary destination, the Orc Colony, because of those bastards.

Of course, they also said it was okay if we hunted on the outskirts, but how much could the income be if we went there and had to share the loot between five people?

"I think itd be better to go to the Witchs Forest first."

The dwarf offered an opinion as the team leader.

The Witch's Forest is a huge forest area surrounding the portal going up to the fourth floor.

Mainly seventh and eighth ranked monsters frequent the area, including spirit-type monsters with physical damage immunity.

"Of course, its not a good match for us, since we have mostly melee warriors, but since theres a wizard with us, it doesnt seem too bad a choice."

"Hmm, wouldnt it be better to just go up to the fourth floor in that case?"

Rotmiller, who was listening, offered a new opinion.

I also thought this was a better option than the dwarfs opinion.

To most adventurers, the Witch's Forest is perceived as an area they have no choice but to trudge through, because it has little merit as a hunting ground.

None of the essences Id eat drop there, either.'

But the problem was, the dwarf didn't seem like this option at all for some reason.

"The fourth floor is I think it's still too early."

I knew what the dwarf was worried about.

On the third floor, seventh and eighth grade monsters are the most frequent. And the fourth floor is the same.

However, there is a very crucial difference between the two.

"Like I said at the meeting, Ive seen a lot of teams that think its easy and go upstairs, and then get wiped out. It almost happened to my team too, one time."

The presence or absence of a sixth ranked monster.

From the fourth floor, theres a rare chance that sixth ranked monsters may appear.

In terms of the encounter frequency, it's like walking around all day and meeting once every three days

Meaning, as long as you stay active on the fourth floor, encountering a sixth rank monster becomes an inevitability.

Will we be able to get past that one-time hurdle, or not? That is the question.'

In fact, even when playing the game, thered been many times when Id entered the fourth floor at a moderate level, and got bloodied for my hubris.

So, the dwarf's statement made sense.

"I dont think itll be too late to decide about going to the fourth floor after we work together for at least a few more days."

Despite the deeply emotional exchanges wed just had, or the deep interpersonal bonds that might have wrought

This was our first expedition as a team.

It'd only been three days since wed entered the labyrinth, and we still werent very used to each other.

"Moreover, as you know, this is first time in the labyrinth for Dwalky, and this is Bjorns first time making it to the third floor."

Although we did lack somewhat in overall specs, our short time hunting together at the Orc Colony had given me some confidence.

As long as the frontline held, with these members, even a sixth-ranked monster wouldnt be overly dangerous.

Unless some trolling bastard backstabs us while were focused on the front.'

Thered been a lot of NPCs like that in the game.

None of them are like that, right?

Miss, why are you suddenly anxious again?'

Contrary to myself, who was worried about the future, Mishas face had a slightly reminiscent expression.

"Its been a while since Id last been to the fourth floor, so Im feeling a little excited!"

I heard that it was her first time returning to the fourth floor after her team disbanded a year ago

But was it because she was a cat by nature?

She was making some kind of grungy hissing sound with every breath.

"Were going to have to find a place to camp soon."

After moving along the edges of the Orc Colony for a while, it was time to take a break.

"Rotmiller, everyone looks physically fine, how about moving a bit more?"

"You have to go three more hours to find a better place than this spot."

"Hmm, then lets do as you say."

For reference, the time was around 9 pm, which almost coincided with the camping time of the first and second days.

To be honest, I was very impressed.

Is this a what you call a skilful adventurer?'

Rotmiller mustve picked the camping point according to our movement profile and had adjusted speed accordingly.

No matter how many days and nights you spend in the labyrinth, it's good to take your breaks at a specific time.

"Rotmiller, whats your plan for tomorrow?"

"We might be able to reach the Witchs Forest by lunchtime tomorrow."

Well, then itd be the next day or so when we enter the fourth floor.

Whatever question I asked, the answer came back without any buffering time. This was a human navigation system no GPS could compare to.

"Bjorn, could you take the last watch? Youll have to suffer quite a bit once we enter the forest tomorrow, so get some more rest today."

"Alright."

Tonight's first shift was the dwarf, and last shift was me.

The Witch's Forest was a place where melee warriors suffered the most, so that was how the turns were decided, giving us a bit more time for restful sleep.

Well, thered surely be once or twice during the night when I woke up inadvertently, but anyway.

"Bjorn."

I opened my eyes at the whispering voice.

Rotmiller's face was visible under the flickering torchlight.

Since Rotmiller had the turn before me

" Is it my turn now?"

"Not yet."

"Then why"

Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I stiffened.

Dwalky, the dwarf, and even Misha. Everyone on the team was already awake except for me.

Armed and armoured.

I asked briefly.

"Monsters?"

"Both types."

Meaning, both natural monsters and adventurers

As I was about to ask how far away they were, I heard an urgent cry from beyond the darkness.

"Damn it! Following me all the way here "

"Run away!"

They seemed to be adventurers being chased by monsters

Rotmiller closed his eyes, sniffed and sniffed again, then muttered briefly.

"Now I know for sure."

"What do you mean?"

When he frowned like this, something serious happened most of the time, so I unconsciously became uneasy.

And it was no surprise.

"Those whore coming towards us now, must be the ones back at the Steel Rock Hill."

Things were getting fun again.

Editor's Notes:

[1] (lit. when you see an object, greed is born in your heart).

Project discontinuation notice.

Naver, the Korean webtoon/novel platform, has launched a serial fiction service called Yonder for the English-speaking market. This project is included as part of its starter novels. This translation had always been about letting people share and enjoy the great fun I'd had reading this story, so there's no particular need to keep this TL project ongoing.

For those of you who'd been following along on this journey, hope you've had fun! For the subscribers, we'll have some polls and discussions over on Ko-fi.

Cheers!