Chapter 27 : Adventure Level 15 (5)

The January forest was cold.
On days like this, staying home and reading a book was best, but I had already logged in quite a while ago.

Arrows flew toward me, penetrating the mana barrier before losing momentum and falling.
As I stared blankly at them, Do Yugeon asked, “Aren’t you going to attack?”

Glancing toward the Goblins, I saw five archers nocking arrows onto their bowstrings.
Arrows flew again, hitting the mana barrier and clattering down. Clatter, clatter.

“I will.”

I had to, but more importantly, it was cold right now.
I was wearing thick clothes, had pulled my scarf up to my mouth, and covered my ears with my hat, but it was still cold.
To be precise, my body was warm, but the area around my eyes, exposed to the outside, was freezing, making it miserable.
Touching the area around my eyes, the sensation felt detached.
I wanted to go home.
Why am I suffering like this just to hang out with Do Yugeon?

Using magic was closer to mental labor than physical labor, so the cold shouldn’t severely hinder me, but strangely, I just didn’t feel like using magic.
I just hated the idea of having to think about anything.
No, is this mindset right?

Do Yugeon bent his knees to match my eye level and stared intently at my face.
What.

“Don’t rush me.”
“I haven’t said anything yet.”
“Whatever.”

Using mana, I firmly pushed his forehead back.
He stumbled back, muttering, then straightened his posture.

Arrows flew again.
Leaving them alone this time seemed likely to break the mana barrier, so I restored it.
The impacting arrows fell to the ground.

I have to fight.
It’s better to finish quickly and rest while eating lunch in the Preparation Room.
Yes. That really is better.

I drew a chunk of mana from the Grimoire resting on my head with mana.
Roughly compressing it, I hurled it at the Goblins.
The Goblins shot arrows trying to intercept the magic, but I skillfully maneuvered it to avoid them.
An explosion erupted.
The Goblins, clustered together in formation, were sent flying.

Wind blew from the aftermath of the explosion.
Ugh, cold.
I shouldn’t have bothered compressing it.
One Goblin that hadn’t died staggered, trying to get up, so I finished it off with a burst of mana.

“Let’s eat in the Preparation Room. It’s too cold to hunt more.”

Do Yugeon looked like he wanted to say something, but I ignored him and immediately logged out, then logged back in to move to the Preparation Room.
The temperature wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t cold either.
Now I feel alive.
I pulled down the scarf covering my mouth and took off my hat.
As I was fixing my hair, Do Yugeon arrived.

“You left without even hearing my answer—were you that cold?”
“Of course it’s cold, isn’t it? You don’t seem cold.”

Sometimes, I’m not thinking anything special, but the reactions of those around me are peculiar.
Why do they act like that?
Is it because I’m pretty, cute, and charming?
Hmm.
I don’t really know.
I’d have to see it from a third-person perspective to understand.

I sat down appropriately on the picnic mat.
Do Yugeon placed the lunchboxes and sat down opposite me.

Today’s lunch menu was a Vienna sausage platter with a mixed vegetable set.
I drizzled dressing over the salad, speared a piece of lettuce, and ate it.
The sauce is delicious.
As expected, Grandpa knows how to hire a proper chef.

Looking at Do Yugeon, he wasn’t eating, just staring intently at his lunchbox.
What is he doing?
I watched him for a moment, but he remained still.
What is it, really?
Hmm.

“Do you dislike salad?”

I asked, but in all the time we’d spent together, I’d never heard him say he couldn’t eat salad.
Just six days ago, the lunchbox menu included salad.
Though, even if he can eat it, he could still dislike it.

Do Yugeon flinched, then cleared his throat.
“No, no. More importantly, uh, ah! Did you see the schedule for the Explorer Federation offline meeting?”
“Offline? Was the post uploaded today?”
“Uh, this morning.”
“I haven’t checked the site today.”
“Then you wouldn’t know.”

He explained that the Explorer Federation was preparing to hold an offline meeting.
It’s only been three months since the last offline meeting—what are they planning now?

“Someone hit Level 25 this time, right?”

Party EXP distribution is divided into contribution-based and per-person distribution. With per-person distribution, you can receive EXP even if you don’t hunt yourself, as long as other party members do. Do Yugeon and my party used the per-person system.

Apparently, some rich unemployed person took advantage of this by hiring eight parties, having each party hunt highly efficiently for three hours, thus receiving EXP 24 hours a day.
Moreover, they power-leveled before the firearm ban and recently hit Level 25.

“But hitting Level 25 caused a problem.”

Upon reaching Level 25, leveling up reportedly stopped.
After trying everything with no success, the rich unemployed person thought: Do I need to go to the next room?

There are five doors in the Preparation Room.
Numbers are written on each door in order: 1, 25, 50, 75, 100. Currently, all explorers hunt in the area behind the door marked “1.”

If leveling up stops in the Level 1 room, shouldn’t moving to the Level 25 room work?
Normally, the Level 25 room door wouldn’t open even if tried, but what about after reaching Level 25?

The rich person acted, and the door responded.

[Update in Preparation.]

The story was that the rich unemployed person wasted their money.
This topic heated up the Explorer Federation bulletin board for a while, until an important speculation emerged.

If the System focuses on numbers in multiples of 25, couldn’t what happened at Level 1 evolve and happen again at Level 25?
Just like Slimes suddenly appeared in the middle of the city at Level 1, couldn’t Goblins suddenly appear with knives in the middle of the city at Level 25?
Goblins are putting it mildly; what if Acid Slimes appeared and melted building pillars?

Such speculations had been discussed since the early days of the fantasy phenomenon, but this time, the added credibility made the discussion different from previous ones.
But even so.

“What does that have to do with the offline meeting?”
“You don’t get it. It’s very important. If such a situation occurs, what should explorers do!”

Do Yugeon exaggeratedly raised both hands.
What is he talking about?

“What would explorers do then?”
“Hunt!”
“We have the police. I heard their equipment has changed recently.”

Do Yugeon made a sullen face.
“Miss Cha Haneul, you have no romance. No romance.”
“It’s just reality.”
“Then let’s go to the meeting to protect my fantasy.”
“Not interested. The cold weather makes it even less appealing. Just get your fantasy fix by playing games.”

I picked up some salad and ate it.

“Come on, let’s go.”
“Not interested, not interested. If you want to go, go alone.”

Do Yugeon stared intently at his lunchbox, then spoke.
“Then I have no choice but to take drastic measures.”

What measures?
Curious, I watched as he picked up a Vienna sausage with his chopsticks and held it out toward me.
“Here, ah.”

…?
Wh-what?

Do Yugeon urged me, making “ah ah” sounds.
I felt my face flush hot.
What is he doing, embarrassing me like this?
It’s fortunate we’re alone; if anyone else were here, ughhh…
Just thinking about it is embarrassing.

“Hurry up and eat. My arm hurts.”
“…Don’t lie. There’s no way it hurts.”
“Since you won’t eat, my heart hurts, so my arm hurts too.”

Ughhhhh, what is this now? Is he crazy?

Using mana, I snatched Do Yugeon’s chopsticks and the Vienna sausage.
I placed the sausage back where it belonged and laid the chopsticks across the lunchbox lid.
Then I said one thing.

“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Drastic measures. I’ll keep doing it until Miss Cha Haneul agrees to attend the meeting.”

As Do Yugeon tried to pick up his chopsticks again, I pressed down on them firmly with mana, preventing him.
“Do you think only I get embarrassed by this?”
His face is red too.

“It’s embarrassing, but not impossible. It’s worth trying.”
Don’t show confidence in things like that.

He struggled to lift the chopsticks, then gave up and said, “But I can’t eat if you do this.”
“Then don’t do it.”
“That’s not an option.”
“Then don’t eat.”
“That’s too mean.”

I glared at him.
“I’m hungry.”

Ah.
Really.

“Fine, okay. Let’s go to the offline meeting.”
“Yes! I win!”

Do Yugeon did a victory celebration.
So smug.
Then he continued eating his lunch.

“Still, it’s a relief. Since the Mage’s Encyclopedia skill disappeared, I don’t have to worry about revealing my skill window at the meeting.”
While lying about it at the same time.

We finished eating and packed up the picnic mat.
Time to go hunting again.
Do Yugeon led the way toward the Level 1 room door.

Come to think of it, I should probably say this.
“Do Yugeon.”
“Yeah. Go ahead.”
“As I’ve said a few times before.”
“If you’ve said it before, isn’t it better not to say it again?”
“Repetition is important for learning. Anyway, as I’ve said a few times before, liking me is unavoidable because I’m charming.”
“You have an excessive sense of self-importance.”
Maybe, maybe not.

“People’s feelings have no boundaries, so mistakes can happen. But from the perspective of the person on the receiving end, whether it’s a mistake or not…”
It would be unpleasant.
“You understand without me saying more, right?”
“I told you, it’s excessive self-importance.”

Sitting at my school desk, I read the paper placed on top.

Career Plan and Life Design.

It’s homework.
The first year is almost over, and vacation starts in a few days, and they’re giving us this now.

I tried to finish it quickly during break time, but progress was slow.
Because I don’t usually think about these things.
Well, I’m only in middle school right now.
It feels like being asked to predict the future 10 years after graduating high school and university and describe a suitable job for investment.
I want to tell them to get it right themselves first.

Ah. What should I write in the occupation section?

Right after realizing my past life, I definitely had the will to actively utilize my past life, focus on self-development, and make ambitious plans.
I don’t know how things ended up like this.
Was it the moment I realized I wouldn’t have to worry about food, clothing, or shelter for the rest of my life even if I did nothing?
Was it the realization that in my past life, I lived solely on inertia without passion or anything else, and this life would likely be the same?
More importantly, what should I really write for occupation?

“What are you doing, my young lady?”
Yu Mina came over and looked.

“Occupation? You’re stuck starting with occupation? How strange.”
“What is?”
“You can just write anything like Owner or CEO. You have a group to inherit. Then writing the life design part is easy too.”
“That’s a bit…”

Submitting something like that would surely be seen by Grandpa or Dad.

“What did you write? Judge, as expected?”
“No. I really dislike being a judge.”
Your father is a judge.

“Really? Then prosecutor or lawyer?”
“I detest the legal field.”
Coming from a family of legal professionals and disliking it, does she have some other dream?

“Then?”
Yu Mina showed me the paper she was holding.
Nothing was written on it.

“I was going to use what our young lady wrote as a reference. But there’s nothing to reference.”

Well, sorry about that.