Chapter 24
“Ah, and if you give me that vest too, I’ll repair it for you by tomorrow morning. Since my mother is always indebted to you, this one’s on the house.”
I was still dazed, but Tanner’s words pulled me back to reality.
“Your mother?”
Whose mother? Was I acquainted with Tanner’s mother?
Then, astonishing words spilled from his mouth.
“The head chef of the Hero Corps, Beth. She’s my mother.”
“Ahh! No wonder I thought I’d seen you somewhere before!”
I clapped my hands in realization. That’s why his smile had felt oddly familiar from the beginning—he was Chef Beth’s son!
“These days, Mother has been so cheerful. She says the Hero has been helping her out a lot.”
“……”
I was at a loss for words.
The truth was, I hadn’t helped Beth out of kindness. I wanted to learn cooking, get Rainbow Stones, and pick up meal buffs along the way.
Of course, as I kept helping, it did become genuinely rewarding and fun… but the start had been pretty selfish. Not to mention, I had also harvested way too many crops and ended up giving her extra work.
Yet hearing that she was happy because of my help made my chest feel strangely ticklish. I felt a sudden determination that I should continue helping her even more.
“Anyway, I’ll patch up the torn part of this vest for you. Did you happen to get hit with lizard venom?”
“Ah, yes. How did you know?”
“It’s embarrassing to brag, but I’m a leather specialist, you see, haha.”
Tanner grinned good-naturedly, and I handed him my leather vest.
“Then I’ll bring it back tomorrow morning.”
“Alright, take care.”
Leaving his friendly smile behind, I headed toward the fountain plaza.
I had a lot to think about, and sitting by the water, zoning out, would help me整理my thoughts.
Today’s battle had taught me many things.
Fights here were truly battles for life and death.
In the game, if you died, you just revived in town, or the healer resurrected you.
But here? There was no guarantee I could revive after dying. And I couldn’t exactly test it out with my own life.
‘So armor is really important.’
If I hadn’t been wearing clothes with just 5 defense, I would have gotten a serious wound on my side.
Even a small cut from slicing onions that morning hurt, so just imagine what lizard venom, strong enough to melt leather, would do to bare skin.
The pain was real. This world wasn’t a dream or a game—it was reality.
And aside from weapons and armor, there was one more crucial thing.
‘I’d better carry some MP and HP potions too.’
Luckily, my decisive strike had killed the lizard. But if it had survived and counterattacked…
Best case: I’d be diving off a cliff and swimming for my life.
Worst case: …I didn’t even want to imagine.
As I leveled up, my mana did seem to increase. But so did the strength of my enemies. One day, I might not have enough mana to defeat them.
Which meant—I needed potions. Lots of potions.
‘It all comes down to money, huh.’
Quests gave a little gold, but never enough to buy good gear or potions.
The only real answer was self-sufficiency.
For now, my main goal was just to raise my skill proficiency by five and unlock a new title.
But to survive in the future, I’d have to craft my own gear and consumables.
This was so unfair.
If I was sent here to save the world, shouldn’t they have prepared me with some legendary equipment and high-grade potions?
Why did I have to gather raw materials, process them, and craft everything myself?
‘This is a scam contract! Cancel it! Void it!’
I flailed my arms and legs toward the starry night sky where some goddess might be watching—but no answer came.
‘……’
After a moment of harsh reality check, I sighed and calmed my frustration.
Yeah, punching and kicking at an invisible goddess wasn’t going to change anything.
So I pulled up the Achievements window to check for rewards.
Since I had fully uncovered the dark parts of the minimap, I completed the “Explore Mid-Isle” achievement and received a Rainbow Stone.
I held the freshly earned Rainbow Stone up under the streetlight.
Its rainbow colors sparkled beautifully inside the gem. What was I risking my life collecting all these for, anyway?
Still, it was beautiful.
“Now there are thirteen left…”
A long way to go. I sighed deeply.
And then—
“…What is it that you have thirteen left of?”
That sweet voice belonged to none other than my favorite character.
“Oh, Adrian. We meet again.”
Having seen him at lunch and now again, I couldn’t help but smile.
“You’re dressed so lightly. You’ll catch a cold.”
Adrian sighed, then took off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders.
It was still warm from his body heat.
And…
‘It smells nice.’
Like the library. Paper, ink. With a faint hint of winter trees.
My face grew a little warm.
‘Why is he always so kind?’
I knew he was like this—always quietly looking out for my character in the game. That was why I liked him so much.
“Oh, I was actually wearing another layer, but it got damaged, so I left it to be repaired. Thank you for the jacket.”
I smiled as I pulled it tighter. His warmth seeped into me.
“…Just return it when you get back to the dormitory.”
Adrian shrugged like it was nothing.
And so, I walked with him toward the dorm.
“Heading home from work?”
“Yes.”
A short answer, a seemingly blunt expression.
But even that made me happy.
If the game was a piece of art, then before me now stood the character I loved most from that story—alive, breathing.
His death in the game had left me with deep sorrow. Even if he was just an NPC, I had truly liked his kindness.
The walk to the dorm felt far too short.
Before I knew it, we were in the building’s lobby.
“…Thank you.”
I returned the jacket. He accepted my thanks with just a nod. That was all.
“Well then, I’ll see you later.”
Regretfully, I turned toward the stairs leading down to the basement.
But then I heard footsteps following me.
Ah, Adrian must be heading to dinner too. Our farewell suddenly felt awkward.
“You’re back? Oh, and the young librarian is here too.”
“Good evening.”
I smiled brightly and greeted Beth.
Even though we had spent time together earlier in the day, I was still happy to see her. Her cooking was that good.
“What’s this? I thought you’d skip dinner since you ate more than usual at lunch.”
“…Someone nagged me to take better care of myself.”
Adrian glanced between me and Beth as he spoke.
“Haha, that’s good! You’ve got to eat well when you’re young. Otherwise you’ll get osteoporosis when you’re old!”
Beth laughed heartily as she piled scrambled eggs onto both Adrian’s and my trays.
I had just lifted my spoon when—
“Ah, I’m so hungry, my stomach and back are about to high-five!”
The noisy voice made me look up. Darren had just walked in with the twins, shouting dramatically.
He stacked his tray with a mountain of food, then plopped down beside me and Adrian.
“Yo, Elaine. Heard you tangled with that temple knight today?”
Hack, cough!
I nearly spat out my eggs at his words.
“Wh-what? How do you even know about that?”
“It’s all over the place. I heard you said his tongue was too long and promised to show him what bullets taste like?”
What? Was there no such thing as secrets on this island?
It had only happened a few hours ago! How could the exact dialogue have spread already?
“They said the innkeeper’s aunt delivering lunch boxes overheard it.”
“……”
I couldn’t even deny it—it was true.
“I—I didn’t say his tongue was too long. I just said his tongue was long…”
“Same difference.”
Darren’s look said, “That’s the same thing.” The twins looked equally shocked, as if their faces read, Wow, didn’t expect you to be such a scrapper.
“Hey, listen! He’s the one who picked the fight first!”
Frustrated, I smacked the table lightly in protest.
He had laughed in my face when hearing my name, ridiculed me, dismissed my abilities, and even had the nerve to say I’d die without ever getting married. Not to mention blatantly ogling my body!
As I poured out my complaints, the others finally seemed to understand, and they joined in criticizing that knight.
Especially Lena, who scowled fiercely at the part about him staring at my figure.
She didn’t say anything to defend me, but just having her share my anger lifted a weight off my chest.
“You let him live? You’re too nice. Next time I see him, I’ll beat him so hard he won’t know which way is up.”
Darren clenched his massive fist, as big and solid as a festival fruit platter.
“…I understand the sentiment, but physical violence is not acceptable. Fighting the temple at a time like this will only cause problems.”
Adrian put down his fork elegantly, but his voice held a hint of displeasure. He was clearly angry on my behalf, though he hid it better than Darren.
“Still, how could someone be so rude? Laughing at the precious name your parents gave you, right in front of you!”
Typical of a game made in Confucian Korea—filial piety spread like common courtesy.
But this was a misunderstanding I couldn’t leave alone.
“No! My parents would never give me such a ridiculous name!”
Before I realized it, I had blurted that out.
