When I picked up the greatsword, it was lighter than I’d expected.
It looked insanely heavy at a glance, but in reality, it had a surprisingly nimble feel to it.
Of course, that was only natural.
If they’d made it weigh as much as a real one, even a game character wouldn’t be able to swing it properly.
It seemed the developers had adjusted the weight to some degree, keeping the realism while still making it playable.
It was a little disappointing.
Not that I’d expected the true weight of a real greatsword, but I’d hoped the sensation in my hands would be a bit more substantial.
Of course, even its current weight was plenty heavy for “me.”
With Reality Mode on, lifting this huge thing with a 165-centimeter physique wasn’t exactly easy.
Of course, that was something I could cover with technique.
To compensate for its heavy weight, I rested the greatsword on my shoulder and dashed.
By shifting my center of gravity slightly forward, I gained an instant burst of acceleration.
In the blink of an eye, I arrived in front of the Domagirius and planted my toes into the ground as if driving them into it.
Normally, inertia would have made me lose balance right then and there, but using my toes as an axis, I converted that inertia directly into rotational force.
At the same time as I lowered my body, I swung the greatsword that had slipped from my shoulder upward from below.
Baaang!
With a sound like hunks of iron colliding rather than blades, the Domagirius’s head shot up toward the sky.
‘Nice impact.’
“Suaaaaaah!!”
The one struck by the greatsword let out a pained scream.
Apparently displeased by that sight, another one beside it quickly swung its tail at me.
My response to that was simple.
I entrusted my body to the rising greatsword and jumped.
Thanks to the force still remaining in the greatsword, my light body floated up with ease.
The one that had swung its tail seemed not to have expected me to dodge its attack like this, and stared blankly at me as I rose into the air.
“Suaaa...?”
Following the center of gravity of the greatsword I felt through my fingertips, I moved my feet in midair.
With that movement as the trigger, my body began to rotate naturally.
What I was aiming for was—
Domagirius A, still careless with its head lifted from the aftermath of the impact.
The rotational force that began at my toes passed through my knees, pelvis, waist, and shoulders—
And finally pierced through my entire body.
I poured all of that accumulated energy into the greatsword.
The greatsword, its stored rotational force now joined by acceleration, plunged straight down toward Domagirius A’s head.
Kuuung!!
Along with the sensation of piercing through something solid,
a far heavier impact than before echoed throughout the entire forest.
Thud.
Domagirius A collapsed, losing its balance with its head pierced by the greatsword.
Landing lightly with one foot on top of it, I turned my gaze to the side and looked at Domagirius B.
It had frozen in the exact posture it had been in after swinging its tail.
The moment our eyes met, it quietly, very slowly took one step back.
Apparently, it was thinking of running away.
‘Running? No can do. I was just starting to have fun.’
Once it had entered my sight, it was my prey.
I had never given it permission to run.
“Tsk.”
Clicking my tongue lightly, I launched myself toward the one fleeing at high speed.
Boom! Booom!
“Sueeeeeh...!”
It didn’t take long to deal with a creature whose spirit was already broken.
In the end, it paid dearly for the crime of nearly ruining my fun.
Thud.
Only after driving the greatsword deep into the ground did I brush off my hands and let out a sigh.
“Hoo.”
There was definitely a slight sense of dissonance compared to reality.
The combat was too easy, too.
Enough to leave me slightly disappointed.
But this sensation, feeling it again for the first time in a year.
A suitable amount of dopamine dominated my brain as if crushing it.
‘It’s a little lacking, but I like it.’
Maybe because my physical specs were lower, I even vaguely remembered how I’d felt when I first awakened.
It had a strangely fresh taste to it.
In truth, the reason I’d been able to hunt them so easily was because of a special system applied only in Wild Hunter’s Reality Mode.
Just like how a bullet hurts less if it’s fired weakly,
in this mode, the damage changes depending on how much actual force you apply.
If you use rotational force to load strong physical power into your attack, you can deal that much greater damage.
Of course, the opposite is also true.
If you just tap something lightly, no damage goes in at all.
In other words, the very concept was different from Baby Mode, where it was like, “I hit it, so damage went in.”
As I tapped the fallen Domagirius’s corpse,
I remembered that this was a game where you “carve corpses to obtain materials.”
‘How do I carve it?’
I had actually butchered monsters before.
But there was no guarantee the same method would apply in the game, so I looked at Ppahppah2 to ask.
“How do I carve this?”
“......”
Even at my question, she gave no answer.
She simply stared at me blankly with her mouth hanging wide open.
‘What’s with her?’
While I was looking at Ppahppah2 in confusion,
I noticed something rapidly rising on one side of my vision.
It was the chat window I’d pushed slightly aside because it was in the way.
I moved my hand and pulled it back in front of my eyes.
When I slowly checked what had been said—
- ????
- fuck what did I just see?
- Ah, I’m suddenly questioning my life...
- What was the game I’ve been playing all this time...
- Even if Reality Mode doesn’t have separate monster HP, this is just wrong
- This is Baby Mode, right? This is Baby Mode, right?
- So you’re saying this person is the same species as me?
- Doesn’t seem like it lolololol
- Are you perhaps sure you’re human?
- Euheheheh...
Only the already broken chat window was there to greet me.
‘What’s with them now?’
I hadn’t even properly shown them anything yet.
***
The Wild Hunter Gallery.
Originally, it was a gallery where people exchanged information about Wild Hunter and interacted with other users.
But now that the series had been out for a long time, it had become completely stagnant.
At this point, except for the occasional fresh newbie appearing to ask questions, most of it was just pointless chatter related to the game.
-----------Wild Hunter Gallery----------
Title) Why the fuck does hammer even have sharpness
It’s not a slashing weapon, it’s a blunt weapon, so is there any need to sharpen the edge?
This is fucking ridiculous
---
: Grip.
: Because you gotta hit with the corner
: Apparently you have to scrape off the monster blood after it gets all caked on.
Title) Which monster do you guys most want to smash?
For me, Red Dragon
---
: Brangaur
: Gomauga
: Ibershin
: Balhahala
: Fuck, this bastard changed the title (pic of someone holding a spear, roughly)
Poster: (pic saying “So you’ve opened your eyes”)
: I haven’t, you son of a bitch
Poster: (pic saying “Do not deny your instincts”)
: Ah, this is pissing me off
In the middle of all the usual pointless chatter,
a title appeared that caught the attention of the Wild Hunter Gallery users.
Title) Fuck, I’m just gonna quit the game. This is making me question my life so hard...
OP
If you add up all the Wild Hunter series so far, I’ve played over 3,000 hours
I thought I’d finally shed my newbie skin and become a proper veteran...
But today I just hit a wall, fuck...
There’s this streamer called Haerang, and she plays in Reality Mode, right? lol
(clip)
Watch this clip
What I’ve been doing was no different from a baby doing tricks
I was trying to rush through the Baby Mode story as fast as possible and move on to Reality Mode, but I have no confidence anymore
I should just quit or something
---
: (pic basically saying the game will die if you quit)
: (pic basically begging you to come back)
: Wow, but what’s with that clip? Is that real?
Poster: Yeah, it’s real
: First time I’ve seen someone use a greatsword like that...
: Was it even possible to use it like that in the first place? lololol
Poster: Fr lolol... Ah, this is making me question my life so hard
: You gonna quit?
Poster: Dunno. For now, I think I’ll just watch Haerang’s stream for a while...
: But that clip is... wow. I’m speechless
: Has there ever been anyone who showed that level of performance in Reality Mode?
: No
: As if there would be lololol
: If there had been, the gallery would’ve already been on fire
: Wasn’t Bulramyeon the one with the best physical ability among streamers?
: Bulramyeon is top-tier not just among streamers, but among users too
: No link?
Poster: (link)
Poster: She’s still streaming, so go watch. I came here because I started questioning my life as soon as I saw her hunt the Domas, so it hasn’t been long since she started
: Thanks thanks, going to watch right now
: I’m gonna watch too
-----
The topic that began with one user’s lament on the gallery caught fire in an instant, and the gallery heated up once again.
Meanwhile, Kim Yeonwoo, who was asking Ppahppah2—who had finally come back to her senses—how to carve materials, could only tilt her head when she saw the sudden explosive increase in viewer count.
‘What is it this time?’
Just where did the word of mouth keep coming from?
It was a good thing that the number of viewers was increasing, but having it keep jumping up so suddenly like this was only bewildering.
***
After seeing me swiftly deal with the two Domagirius, Ppahppah2 trailed off as if flustered.
“What exactly are you...”
She stared at me in speechless silence for a while, then soon shook her head and picked up the bag she’d dropped on the ground.
Then she took out the dagger strapped to her thigh and stood in front of the Domagirius’s corpse.
“The outpost is right in front of us, so let’s hurry up and carve the materials first.”
Saying that, she knelt down and began cutting into the Domagirius’s hide with practiced hands.
I was slightly surprised by how she seemed flustered, yet immediately showed a professional side.
‘So she does act like a senior after all?’
Watching from the side, I also took a dagger out of the bag and helped with the carving,
and before long, we were able to obtain materials called Domagirius Tough Hide and Sharp Claws.
“The materials you obtain can be used later to craft armor or weapons. Originally, it’s a system only hunters can use, but...”
Holding the materials in one hand, she glanced at me, then nodded.
“You’re the one who hunted them, so go to the smithy later and ask. I’ll put in a word with Uncle Tom for you.”
Saying that, she even placed the portion she had carved into my hands.
“Thank you.”
“For what? If not for you, I’d be dead...”
She spoke calmly, shaking her head.
Maybe because that sight felt so unfamiliar,
the broken chat window began to stir back to life.
- Troll-sichi Ppahppah2 is saying something like this? Is the sun rising in the west tomorrow?
- The sense of wrongness is insane...
- The wrongness of a calm Ppahppah2 is on par with an Elder Dragon, sign here
- Signed
- On par, signed
- This Ppahppah2 is too awkward, please go back to normal...
- Do you miss Ppahwang? For someone like you, here’s a compilation of Ppahwang’s flags...
- Now that I think about it, maybe not
- Viewer normalization is Ppahwang after all!!
Seeing the viewers’ reactions, I also became curious.
“Is she not normally like this?”
- Yup!
- If she were like this normally, she never would’ve gotten the nickname Ppah-troll lolololol
- Fr lolol
Apparently, the viewers were seeing this side of Ppahppah2 for the first time as well.
Seeing how most of them were confused and calling it awkward, it seemed she was completely different from usual.
While I was talking about various things with the chat window like that, Ppahppah2, who seemed to have finished organizing the luggage, approached me.
“Let’s head out now.”
“Yes.”
Following behind her as she walked ahead, it wasn’t long before a massive wall appeared.
A wooden rampart that seemed easily thirty meters tall.
The wall, built by weaving together enormous trees as thick as a person’s waist in diameter, radiated a heavy sense of pressure just from looking at it.
The iron nails driven into various places, the reinforced iron cores, and the tough ropes tightly twisted and fastened together proved that this was no mere wooden fence.
Beyond the wall, faint lights flickered, and the sounds of something being hammered, the murmurs of people, and the occasional cries of beasts mixed together.
In the watchtowers above, armed soldiers stood guard with spears raised.
The air was filled with the mixed scent of straw and oil.
I could even smell the soot, as if rising from firewood someone had just lit.
‘So this is the outpost.’
Since it was in the middle of an island where monsters roamed, the atmosphere was somewhat rough, but strangely, I could feel as much vitality as tension.
As I stood there smiling quietly at that dynamic air, Ppahppah2, who had been walking ahead, turned around.
“It’s your first time at an outpost, right? Welcome to Outpost No. 1.”
She spread her arms and proudly introduced the base.
And at that moment—
Ruuuumble.
The enormous wooden gate slowly split open to both sides.
Beneath the sky that had become dusky before I knew it, the sunset falling over the wall shone on her face.
Ppahppah2’s face, dyed orange by the sunset, was, how should I put it...
It was the kind of atmosphere where I felt like I should say she was incredibly pretty, but honestly, my conscience wouldn’t allow that.
‘She’s ugly...’
I really couldn’t bring myself to call her pretty.