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Chapter 61

After defeating the [Minotaur].

“Huff… Huff…!”

The pain from my lack of breath and overexertion caught up with me.

Thud.

Eventually, I collapsed, my strength leaving me.

‘Damn, that was brutally hard…’

My legs felt like they were about to explode.

I\'ve been through quite a few battles, but this was a first.

In the past, I struggled with a combination of mental and physical fatigue, but this time it was purely physical exhaustion from pushing myself to the limit.

It was to be expected.

I’d been moving non-stop to increase my speed, so it would be weirder if I was fine.

Thud thud thud

“M-Mr First Place. Are you alright?”

Thompson, who came running as soon as he saw me collapse, asked with a worried look.

He\'s such a worrywart.

He doesn\'t look like the type to worry at all.

“…I\'m fine. It\'s just that my legs have given out.”

“Well, it\'s no wonder your legs gave out after moving like that. But still, it\'s a relief, right? I thought you might have gotten hurt somewhere while I wasn\'t looking.”

“It would have been a bit dangerous at the end if it wasn\'t for Kayla.”

While we were having this conversation, Barundel and Kayla joined us.

Barundel stopped in front of me and abruptly bent down, lowering his gaze.

“Barundel, why? Is there something wrong…?”

That\'s when it happened.

An unbearable heat surged up my thigh.

I hurriedly looked down to see Barundel pressing his finger into my thigh.

“G-Ugh…!”

I couldn\'t help but groan at the immense pain, and Barundel clicked his tongue as he watched.

“Tsk tsk, I thought so, but your legs are giving out after just that much? You have a long way to go.”

He seemed to want to say that there was still a lot of room for improvement…

“D-Do you really have to press on it while saying that…? I almost died.”

“It\'s good to feel pain like this sometimes. Later, you\'ll be able to feel the pain significantly decrease even if you move the same way.”

‘…So, he did that to make me feel the growth?’

I understood what he meant, but honestly, I didn\'t agree at all.

How could he inflict pain for such a reason?

What a psycho.

‘…Anyway, this guy is really weird sometimes.’

Sometimes he\'s super kind, and other times he\'s a complete madman dwarf.

Well, who am I to say that?

“Aren\'t you the real madman? I still can\'t forget how you used to train while even drinking potions. You looked like you were desperate to die. And what about the Aldeon fissure incident? Back then, you…”

Was he that upset that I called him a madman?

As soon as I voiced my thoughts, Barundel started spitting out past events like a machine gun.

I had nothing to say to refute him, so I deliberately changed the subject.

“By the way, what do we do now? I don\'t think I can move for a while.”

“Hmm… Changing the subject, are we?”

“I\'m serious.”

This was actually a serious problem.

Even if we were up against a high-ranking demon, it was concerning that just one of them could put us in such bad shape.

And it wasn\'t just me.

Thompson, who had taken the brunt of the [Minotaur]’s attack, was still rubbing his arm as if he was in shock, and Kayla was silently focusing on recovering her depleted mana.

Even Barundel\'s axe was completely shattered.

The entire party was shaken after just one battle.

‘They\'re stronger than I thought.’

The problem was that their power far exceeded my expectations.

Of course, my calculations weren\'t wrong.

Thompson, who was gradually opening his eyes to the 4th Circle, Kayla, who displayed the standard firepower of a mage, and Barundel, who possessed a perfect physique and seasoned combat skills.

And me, who had two mythic tier traits.

No matter how you looked at it, our party had the specs to easily take down a single high-ranking demon.

Which meant…

‘They\'ve gotten stronger.’

It meant that for some reason, their power had grown.

And if this was true, there was only one possible reason.

Swoosh

I naturally raised my head and looked up at the sky.

The sky was clear, as the sun hadn\'t set yet.

But even so, I could see the moon, and I finally realized why they had gotten stronger.

My companions, who had followed my gaze to the sky, murmured.

“Huh? That…”

“…It\'s turning red.”

The moon\'s appearance was subtly but definitely different from before.

It was the moment when it became certain that war was coming.

***

Thud, thud.

Thompson\'s footsteps were heavier than before.

It was only natural, since he was carrying the weight of two people with one body.

“…Mr First Place, you\'re heavier than I thought.”

“I think you just feel that way because you\'re tired.”

“Is that so…?”

Anyway, this was the conclusion we had reached.

We would stay outside the border, but for now, we would evacuate to a safe place and set up a base camp.

Since we had to set up camp to hunt for a few days anyway, it was the best we could do under the circumstances.

I raised my head and looked ahead.

There, Barundel and Kayla, who were in relatively good shape, were looking around and guarding the surroundings.

“How is it? Do you see anything?”

Kayla shook her head at my question.

“No, not even a single mouse. This place seems pretty good.”

“Really?”

I tapped Thompson on the back to signal him, and he immediately spread his arms.

“Whew-!”

Seeing him exhale like that, it must have been really hard for him.

By this point, I had recovered enough to stand, so I landed safely.

Thud

“Hmm…”

As soon as I stood up, I looked around.

As Kayla had said, there were no demons lurking nearby, and the ground was flat, making it perfect for setting up camp.

“Good. Let\'s do it here.”

“Okay.”

Chuck, chuck chuck!

At my command, the members started moving in unison.

Drrrrrr!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Thompson built the foundation with his earth magic, and Barundel, with his skillful hands, refined it with a work hammer.

A little distance away, Kayla was diligently bringing firewood and stacking it neatly.

She was probably planning to use that spot for meals.

‘They’re fast.’

We had only just started the work, but the base camp was already taking shape.

Our teamwork was now perfect.

The time we spent fighting together over the past few days was paying off.

‘Good, good.’

I looked at them with satisfaction, and then, thinking I should do something, I sat down.

Even though I was injured, I couldn\'t just sit around doing nothing.

I just happened to remember something I could do.

I slowly channeled my mana.

Fortunately, unlike my broken body, my mana had fully recovered.

Woooong!

-Magical computation ability is maximized.

Complex figures and formulas appeared before my eyes, forming the shape of a magic circle.

Soon, the magic circle was complete, and I flicked it with my hand.

And then…

Tak!

The magic circle landed in the desired spot and disappeared into the ground.

I had planted a fire trap spell in the ground, one I had often used.

It would be an invisible barricade to protect our base camp.

‘One isn\'t enough.’

I channeled my mana again and repeated the same process.

Fire trap spells, lightning trap spells, detection light spells, and so on.

Tak! Tak! Chachak!

Magic circles with various attributes and functions were placed here and there.

The base camp was completed around the time I finished all of that.

“Oh, at first I thought it was too crude… but now that it\'s finished, it looks pretty good.”

Thompson, who was the first to finish his work, admired the camp.

The others felt the same way.

“Compared to my old house, this place is heaven.”

“I hate to say it, but my craftsmanship is art, Miss Kayla.”

“Ah… yes, it is.”

Everyone seemed satisfied with their work.

‘It’s not bad.’

Even I thought it was enough to hold up for a while.

While I was having such thoughts, Thompson came up to me and asked,

“Mr First Place, what are you going to do now?”

He was asking how I was going to spend the rest of the time.

I answered in a matter-of-fact tone.

Why else would I have come all the way here to grow quickly?

“We have to hunt again now.”

“What?”

Thompson blinked his eyes as if he hadn\'t expected that answer.

“I thought you were going to rest?”

Thompson pointed at my leg with his chin.

“How can you hunt in that condition?”

“Ah.”

Well, it was understandable for Thompson to be puzzled.

Even though he had seen my abilities, he wouldn\'t know how and when to use them.

“There\'s a way.”

I gave Thompson, who was tilting his head, a knowing smile.

It was time to show him just how amazing a player was in this world.

***

Swoosh!

“Whew…”

Thompson muttered to himself as he hid behind a rock.

‘What in the world is Mr First Place thinking?’

He was doing as he was told, but he still had questions.

Or rather…

‘This could be quite dangerous…’

It was more accurate to say that he was worried rather than questioning.

Not only the party, but he was someone who absolutely must not get hurt.

‘If something goes wrong, I\'ll have to step in.’

He couldn\'t let the epic of the little hero end so tragically.

Thompson clenched his fist and made up his mind.

Even if it meant giving up his life, he would protect Mr First Place.

And if in the process he had to cross a river of no return…

‘That must also be my fate.’

That\'s how much Thompson trusted Yuhan.

‘Mr First Place doesn\'t make mistakes.’

Thud, thud.

With his mind made up, Thompson came out from his hiding place and stood tall.

And then…

“You fake crow bastards! Over here!”

He shouted at the top of his lungs.

Just as Yuhan had told him to.

Screech?

Three or four demon crows turned their heads at Thompson\'s shout, their red eyes glowing.

And at the same time…

“Uwaaaaaaaa-!”

Thompson started running towards the base camp at full speed.

The enraged demon crows flapped their wings and chased after him.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

It was an urgent situation where even the slightest delay could lead to disaster.

“Huff, huff…!”

Thompson, desperately moving his feet, muttered as if he had remembered something.

“But why am I the bait again…?”

He had clearly said he wouldn\'t be the bait again.

Thompson had failed to recall the nightmare of that day.