Popular NPC in a Gender-Reversed Game – Chapter 11

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Winter in the Forbidden Forest was very short.

At most, it lasted a month and a half.

Considering winter in Earth lasted for nearly three months, it was only half as long.

As a result, you could witness a rather unique natural phenomenon here…

The leaves didn’t fall even in the middle of winter.

The reason leaves usually fell in winter was to conserve energy.

Compared to summer, there was less sunlight in winter, meaning the energy gained from photosynthesis was less than the energy required to maintain the leaves.

So, most trees shed their leaves in winter.

It was the trend, so to speak.

If they didn’t, they’d suffer losses during winter and be at a disadvantage for survival.

However, there was something the trees didn’t know.

Nature was a society that followed the law of the jungle, and it took time for new leaves to grow.

So, when most trees made the cowardly choice, saying, “Oh no, it’s cold… gotta conserve energy…”

A badass tree would appear, saying, “Screw that, I’m going my own way.” And you would witness something interesting.

If the badass tree survived the winter, it would absorb all the sunlight for a while.

As if to compensate for the harsh winter, the badass tree would grow rapidly.

As a result, the leaves of the badass tree would cover the leaves of the cowardly trees from above.

The outcome was obvious.

The cowardly trees were NTR’d out of the sunlight that even the badass tree had to share.

The choice they made to make up for their winter losses ended up putting them at an even greater disadvantage.

Living organisms that lost the competition inevitably saw their population decline.

As a result, the population of cowardly trees dwindled, and the badass trees that went their own way came to dominate the Forbidden Forest…

Of course, if winter lasted for three months, the badass trees would have withered away.

But the one-and-a-half-month period was just right for them to endure.

For that reason, the lush leaves of this forest rarely fell, regardless of the season.

Natural selection favored the badass trees.

Honestly, at first, I was baffled by this absurd environment.

Trees that didn’t shed their leaves year-round and grew endlessly… no wonder people didn’t venture into this place.

But for the first time in a long time, I felt grateful for this environment.

Why was I suddenly talking about this?

Because those leaves were currently doing me a huge favor.

“Ha… where is he?”

“I came to see him in person, but I can’t even find the cave he lives in.”

Looking down, I saw two female adventurers looking around.

Thankfully, they didn’t think to look up.

It wouldn’t have mattered much even if they did.

The leaves mostly concealed me.

Five weeks had passed since the attempted rape incident.

During that time, I had encountered quite a few uninvited guests.

I didn’t know how many people had watched that stream, but they kept coming to this dangerous place to see me in person.

“Hey, let’s just go.”

“Why? Let’s look around a bit more.”

“No way, I didn’t unequip my items. I can’t die.”

“Ugh.”

Thankfully, this group left quickly.

This was the fifth group I had driven away.

After confirming that they were gone, I climbed down from the tree and sighed.

“Phew…”

The good news was that none of them, unlike the first woman, had malicious intentions.

They mostly just wanted to talk to the “local,” like tourists visiting a new place.

Of course, that didn’t mean I had to meet them.

The second good news was that, as the previous woman had said, the stream didn’t show the route to the cave clearly.

So, even if they found the forest, they couldn’t find my dwelling.

The fact that it was the Forbidden Forest also helped.

All the people who came here were rogues, a class that specialized in stealth.

It wasn’t like a popular tourist attraction crowded with people.

Thanks to those reasons, I had been living without any major problems so far.

Of course, it was more troublesome because I had to be more vigilant, but…

‘Damn, if it weren’t for that stream.’

Every time I thought about it, I blamed Yoo Chae-rin, the streamer.

If it wasn’t for her stream, I would still be living peacefully.

Thanks to her, my life had become more eventful, but I didn’t want this kind of eventfulness.

I would flick her forehead if I ever saw her again.

‘How long will this last?’

After regaining my peace, I had that thought as I walked back to the cave.

Life was already tough enough, I couldn’t keep living like this.

Sometimes, desire would surface.

‘Damn, should I just meet them?’

All they wanted was a conversation.

It felt like they were looking at a monkey in a zoo, but their intentions seemed harmless and I wanted to have a conversation too.

Always accompanied by loneliness, I longed for human interaction.

‘…No, I can’t.’

But I quickly shook off the urge.

As I said before, I was someone with limitations when it came to relationships.

And frankly, I still didn’t fully trust the otherworlders.

I didn’t know how they would react to my Demon’s Blood, or what they would do in the future.

To me, this was reality, but to them, it was just a game.

As long as it was a game, there was no telling when they might turn on me.

Who knows, they might even try to kill me for fun.

I couldn’t find a clear answer today either.

Well, if I felt really uneasy, I could always camouflage the cave…

“…Sigh.”

After finishing my game of hide-and-seek with the otherworlders, I trudged back to the cave.

It was still a while before sunset, but I didn’t have anything to do.

I had enough food, and I had to keep the monsters alive because of the otherworlders.

I was running low on daily necessities, but I needed to prepare before going to the city.

For those reasons, today was a rest day.

As I returned to the cave, I witnessed a rather strange sight.

An uninvited guest was sitting inside.

“Hehe… Uh, hello?”

And that guest looked somewhat familiar.

A woman with silver bobbed hair and violet eyes.

Yoo Chae-rin was waiting for me, sitting demurely.

In front of her were several fruits, perhaps a bribe or a housewarming gift.

She was clearly trying to be friendly.

Her efforts were commendable, but she was the source of all my uninvited guests.

As soon as I saw her, I couldn’t help but curse.

“You little bitch-”

The cave was still chilly, despite the refreshing spring air outside.

Strangely enough, the cave, which was usually silent, was filled with the cries of a woman.

“Sob… sob…”

And for some reason, she had a bright red mark on her smooth forehead.

It wasn’t from a punch… She had been flicked on the forehead.

Quite hard.

It was hard enough to cause significant pain, even with her Synchronization Rate set at 40%.

Needless to say, the woman crying pitifully was Yoo Chae-rin.

Across from her, Yor was watching with an irritated expression.

Her heart ached, as much as her red forehead.

It felt like she was back in school, encountering bullies in a back alley…

“Sob…”

She had been so nervous about meeting Yor that she had run through countless simulations in her head.

She had already anticipated his reaction.

Considering he told her to get lost last time, it wasn’t going to be a pleasant one.

But it was fine.

She had thought of ways to respond.

She had prepared topics to talk about if the conversation stalled.

It was a little funny that she, someone who had never even been on a blind date, was putting so much effort into dealing with a male NPC.

But she thought she was sufficiently prepared.

…But she hadn’t expected to be flicked on the forehead right off the bat.

Unfortunately, that was outside of her predictions.

Naturally, she had no idea what was going on in his head.

So, she cautiously asked him,

“W-Why…”

Yor didn’t say anything.

Instead, he went inside and brought something back.

Clang-!

With a clear metallic sound, something was thrown in front of her.

It was a pair of leather leggings and a dagger.

Expensive items made with high-quality materials.

She was wondering why he was suddenly showing her these things… when Yor finally spoke.

“Are all otherworlders like this?”

Soon, Chae-rin heard the whole story from Yor.

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[Ig hes either really mf strong or they are all super fuckin weak im betting on the former]