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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Whoa, what a surprise.
I was wondering what was going on when someone suddenly whacked me on the head.
Thankfully, they didn’t hit me that hard.
It could’ve been really painful.
Huh? You’re wondering why I didn’t say “I almost died”?
Sorry, but my head is pretty tough.
A normal hammer can’t easily kill me.
It takes a lot of force to one-shot me.
Honestly, I was fully conscious even when I first got hit.
I just pretended to be unconscious to make them lower their guard.
It was not something to brag about, but this wasn’t my first rodeo.
Just because it was a dangerous forest didn’t mean people didn’t visit, and those who did were usually pretty strong.
And among them, there were those who came for the bounty on my head or for my body itself.
Damn, I was a minor back then, not even twenty years old.
Those filthy child molesters.
… Anyway, back then, dealing with those guys wasn’t just about skill.
I had to use everything at my disposal.
In that sense, “playing dead” was quite effective.
Being motionless naturally led to them letting their guard down.
Some even lost their reasoning and became fixated on me.
“Haa… haa…”
Just like now.
It made them even easier to deal with.
Winter was also a plus.
All I had to do was pull out the dagger hidden in my sleeve and swing.
Swish!
“Aaaaaargh!”
Just like that.
With little resistance, her wrist was severed.
She was a rogue wearing thin leather armor.
Her face… seemed a bit uglier than average.
That wasn’t important, so I immediately pinned her down and began the interrogation.
The important thing was to find out what she was doing here and why.
“Now, tell me. Why are you here?”
“Ugh… uhh…”
“Answer me.”
Stab!
“Aaaaagh…!”
Unfortunately for her, I wasn’t a very gentle interrogator.
Pain and fear had always been the most effective truth serums.
I lightly stabbed her thigh, letting her know she’d experience hell if she didn’t answer.
I hadn’t done much interrogating, but usually, this was enough to get them talking.
‘Hmm?’
But her reaction was a bit strange.
Instead of speaking, she fumbled around in the air with her remaining hand.
It seemed like there was a purpose to her gesture, rather than just a reaction to pain.
I had a hunch, so I quickly activated ‘Player’s Eye.’
And then, a window appeared before me.
[Would you like to adjust the Synchronization Rate?]
[15%<----------------◆>90%]
It was the Synchronization Rate adjustment window.
The skill activated, so she was a Player, after all.
I immediately stabbed her remaining hand with my dagger.
“Uh-uh, bad hand.”
“Aaaaargh!!”
It was my first time seeing the Synchronization Rate window, but I knew what it was from Yoo Chae-rin.
She said it was the intensity of sensations you could feel in the game.
It seemed she had been fully prepared to experience pleasure, as her Synchronization Rate was set to the maximum.
That was why she was feeling so much pain.
It was a disaster of her own making.
Anyway, I now knew that she was a Player, an otherworlder.
“Ugh… Ugh… I just wanted to… have you… because you’re so handsome… I’m sorry.”
After being stabbed three times, it seemed she was finally ready to talk.
She spoke with tears in her eyes.
I asked her,
“How did you get here? It’s not an easy place to find.”
“W-Well…”
She seemed hesitant, so I pulled out my dagger and waved it in front of her.
She panicked and started talking.
As expected, a knife was the best conversation starter.
“The stream! I saw it on the stream! They showed the location, so I looked for it!”
I sighed.
“Haa…”
The stream.
I knew it would come back to bite me someday.
And it already had.
“You mentioned ‘stream,’ so you must be an otherworlder.”
I already knew she was an otherworlder, but I pretended I didn’t.
There was no need to reveal information about ‘Player’s Eye.’
I asked her a few more questions.
Did the stream show the route here in detail?
Were there other people who might come looking for me?
Thankfully, it seemed they didn’t know about the bounty on my head.
As an international criminal, I even had a wanted poster with my face on it.
Fortunately, it was drawn twelve years ago, so it looked quite different from my current appearance… but there were still some similarities.
But judging by her goal of simply “having sex” with me, it seemed she didn’t know about that yet.
She also said she had figured out how to get here on her own.
It seemed it was difficult to figure out the entire route from a first-person stream.
[Would you like to adjust the Synchronization Rate?]
[15%<◆---------------->90%]
“Ugh! Haa… haa…”
Oh, and I just learned something new.
It seemed like you could also adjust the Synchronization Rate with your eyes.
It made sense.
It would be disastrous if she was tortured while unable to use her hands or feet.
The woman’s face, which had been contorted in pain, relaxed significantly.
It was a bit annoying, but whatever.
She had given me a lot of information, so I’d let it slide for now.
“One last question.”
After the interrogation, I asked the question that had been bothering me the most.
“How strong are you among the otherworlders?”
It was an important question.
My future actions would depend on her answer.
If the Players were very strong, I would have to move.
I wasn’t completely helpless, but there was no need to fight them if I could avoid it.
I also had to consider the possibility of them swarming me.
But what if most of them were at her level?
Then there was no need to move.
I could handle them if I was a little more careful.
Of course, I would have to be extra vigilant during my berserk phase and if they had a cleric with them.
But that was a risk I was willing to take.
“M-Me? I’m actually quite strong among the otherworlders…”
Her answer was somewhat hopeful.
But there was a chance she was lying, so I waved the dagger near her eye.
“Really?”
“I-I’m telling the truth! My level is 79, which is really high for otherworlders!”
I didn’t know how high level 79 was, but she seemed sincere.
Who would lie with a knife pointed at them?
Lowering the Synchronization Rate didn’t eliminate the pain.
“Hmm, is that so?”
I smirked slightly.
She considered this high?
It seemed the otherworlders weren’t that strong yet.
That was a relief.
I could handle this.
I didn’t need to abandon my precious home yet.
Even if they came in droves, it would be fine.
Besides me, this forest had a natural barrier called “monsters.”
“Alright, I’ll let you go.”
I pointed my dagger at her.
She looked at me with fear in her eyes and asked,
“Uh… you’re letting me go?”
“You’ll resurrect anyway, since you’re an otherworlder.”
Would I really let someone who tried to rape me go free?
I only regretted that I couldn’t send her to her final rest.
I stabbed her heart with the dagger.
[Fatal blow!]
[Your HP has reached 0!]
“Cough… N-No! My items…!”
With those words, she turned into particles of light and ascended to the sky.
The blood that had been splattered on the floor, even her severed hand… They all vanished as if they were nothing but illusions.
All that remained were her leggings and a high-quality dagger.
I scoffed.
“Hmph, how unfair.”
I only had one life, and yet she could resurrect.
The way they treated my life as if it were fake and worthless, and their irresponsible actions that stemmed from that belief…
The fact that my life was a constant battle, while to them it was just a game…
It left a bad taste in my mouth.
Time marched on, even through unpleasant experiences.
Every morning, the frost that had formed on the leaves melted away.
The bitter winter, which had chilled me to the bone, gradually softened and warmed up.
The only thing that remained unchanged were the lush trees that didn’t shed their leaves even in winter.
The season when even the frozen ground thawed, and the life hidden within bloomed.
Five weeks had passed since Yor appeared on YouTube.
Winter had gone, and spring had arrived.
“…Okay.”
Yoo Chae-rin took a deep breath before entering the “Forbidden Forest.”
It was time to carry out the quest her editor had requested, to befriend Yor.
Of course, Yor had told her to get lost and never come back, but she would at least try to talk to him.
‘W-Well, he seemed like a good person…’
He might look scary and have a prickly personality, but…
He did give her food and shelter.
Chae-rin tried to be optimistic before entering the forest.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to overcome her nervousness and actually go.
“…Here we go.”
After preparing herself mentally, Yoo Chae-rin stepped into the forest.
Just a few hours before facing the brunt of Yor’s pent-up annoyance.
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[Bros gonna flick her to death XD]
Quite a nice resolution to the rapist crisis! Now, to the MC’s likely future friend.