Hong Yeon-hwa continued to apologize even as she walked.
“Sorry…”
“I said it’s fine.”
“Still… I’m really sorry…”
Sensing this couldn’t go on, Kim Ho stopped the group for a moment and spoke to Hong Yeon-hwa in a calm tone.
“You can’t blame others for stuff like this. In the end, I’m the one who asked you to do it.”
“……”
“Actually, it’s not even like it was solely mine. I’m just collecting all your random boxes.”
“Well… yeah, but…”
“Let’s just forget it and move on with a clear mind.”
“Mhmm…”
Though Hong Yeon-hwa slowly nodded, she still carried a sense of guilt.
If she hadn’t stepped up saying she had “a good feeling”, Kim Ho wouldn’t have left the opening to her.
Sure, the rewards were pooled and shared but what was the point of that if she ended up being a burden?
I have to make up for it. No matter what.
Determined not to be remembered as dead weight, Hong Yeon-hwa gripped her staff tightly.
And the chance came sooner than expected.
They ran into a traveling orc tribe.
One of the orc warriors bared his hostility and shouted,
“Chiik! Humans! Do you even know where you are?!”
“This place? It’s where people brawl for fun.”
Kim Ho answered casually.
Then he introduced Seo Ye-in.
“This here is our champion. She’s about to show you primitive orcs what true power looks like.”
“Power is strength.”
Seo Ye-in raised her fist.
“Chiik! Fine! Let’s fight!”
Even the smallest provocation sent the orcs into a frenzy, and the battle erupted instantly.
Hong Yeon-hwa who was more focused than ever began chanting her spells.
All the while repeating to herself, “I have to make up for it. I have to make up for it.”
Whoooooooooosh!
One of the orc tribes was quickly reduced to ashes.
But Hong Yeon-hwa didn’t look particularly pleased.
“It… didn’t drop…?”
The orc warrior hadn’t dropped a random box.
Kim Ho and Go Hyeon-woo each responded casually.
“These things happen.”
“We got back-to-back drops earlier, after all.”
R-Right? That… makes sense, right?
They had beaten the odds twice in a row with a 75% chance. So hitting the 25% once wasn’t unreasonable.
The next one would probably drop.
Trying to let it go, Hong Yeon-hwa moved on.
Not long after, the group ran into another orc tribe.
“Chiik, humans!”
“You weak pig-faced fools. Come at me.”
Provoked by Kim Ho’s taunt, the orcs launched an immediate attack.
The result—
“Still nothing this time.”
“Unlucky.”
Kim Ho and Seo Ye-in commented with mild disappointment.
But for Hong Yeon-hwa, it wasn’t mild at all. Her insides were burning.
Why… why isn’t it dropping? It’s a 75% chance!
A creeping anxiety began to rise.
What if they kept getting no drops?
Then the first two they’d gotten would stand out even more and her failure to deliver after taking on the job would look even worse in comparison.
Kim Ho had told her not to worry, but what if he changed his mind later?
By the time they encountered the next orc tribe, Hong Yeon-hwa could feel herself trembling with tension.
This time, it has to drop. Seriously!
Please, orc warrior. I’m begging you!
Hong Yeon-hwa hurled her fireball with all her desperate hope behind it.
Boom!
As the flames died down…
There was nothing left where the orc warrior had stood.
Nooo!!
Hong Yeon-hwa screamed silently.
Could things really go this wrong?
Even the rest of the party, who had been brushing it off until now, were starting to show concern.
“Three in a row is a bit much.”
“No kidding.”
After a moment of thought, Go Hyeon-woo spoke up.
“Still, judging by how frequent the battles are, we likely have plenty more chances.”
“It’s only the first day. There’s still a lot left.”
“What about the second day? I’ve heard they start fighting among themselves as well.”
“Their numbers drop by half. But the rewards get better.”
Starting on the second day, the drop rate for random boxes rises from 50% to 100%.
If you apply the 1.5x drop rate buff on top of that, there’s even a chance that two could drop.
Of course, that also means you’ll be facing much stronger warriors.
Go Hyeon-woo continued with a question.
“Then would it be safe to say we’ll meet our quota without much trouble?”
“That depends on how often we run into them, but we’ll probably manage one way or another. If worst comes to worst…”
As Kim Ho trailed off playfully, Seo Ye-in shook her head.
“Lots and lots of regret.”
“Alright, I won’t use it.”
Hong Yeon-hwa didn’t know exactly what he meant by “use” but she could tell one thing for sure. If he used it, he’d regret it.
And there was a real chance she might be the reason for that regret.
That… can’t happen, right…?
Hong Yeon-hwa’s face gradually turned pale.
Seeing that, Kim Ho asked,
“You okay?”
“M-Mhmm… I’m fine.”
“Want to take a break?”
“No? No, it’s fine!”
Hong Yeon-hwa jumped up in alarm.
If they took a break here, they’d end up killing fewer orc warriors and she’d lose chances to make up for her mistake.
Kim Ho seemed to sense something was off but nodded without pressing.
“If it gets too hard, just say so. Don’t push yourself.”
“Okay… thanks.”
“Alright, let’s keep moving.”
The party resumed following Kim Ho.
As they walked, Go Hyeon-woo brought up the earlier topic again.
“On the first day, countless orc tribes take part, but by the second, it’s less than half that. I imagine by the third day, even fewer remain. It reminds me of gu poison.”
“It’s kind of like that. Some even call it a battle royale.”
“So, it continues until only one warrior is left standing?”
“Exactly.”
“Hmm. Then whoever survives to the end must be incredibly powerful.”
“At that point, they’re not just a warrior anymore.”
The final survivor gets promoted to a higher-tier being.
Seo Ye-in joined the conversation.
“A champion.”
“Correct.”
And defeating the final boss, the Orc Champion, is the clear objective of this [Land of the Warriors] dungeon.
Go Hyeon-woo asked another question.
“In other words, we have to stay in the dungeon until a champion is chosen.”
“Right. What’s important is that we can influence who that champion ends up being.”
If they moved aggressively and reduced the number of orcs, the champion would be decided that much faster.
They could also take out strong champion candidates in advance, weakening the “final product”.
The random box drops would just be a bonus.
Go Hyeon-woo nodded.
“I see. I think I understand the full picture now.”
“Let’s walk around a bit more and find a spot before it gets dark.”
“That sounds like a good plan.”
After pushing through the forest for a while, they began to hear a familiar noise.
Chwik, chwik!
Kraaaargh—!
The group hurried toward the sound, and just as they expected, two orc tribes were clashing violently.
Seeing that, Hong Yeon-hwa’s face lit up.
Two warriors!
This time, they’ll definitely drop!
They have to drop!
Without anyone telling her to, she quickly began chanting a large-scale spell.
Flames rose, forming the shape of a massive phoenix, and hundreds of palm-sized feathers scattered across the battlefield.
[Phoenix Flutter]
Fwoooosh!
Each individual flame wasn’t all that powerful. It was just enough to ignite the target. But in the next moment, Hong Yeon-hwa snapped her fingers and chained another spell.
[Combustion]
Boom-boom-boom—!
Hundreds of firebursts erupted across the battlefield.
Most of the orcs were wiped out, and the party quickly cleaned up the stragglers.
As a result—
[Land of the Warrior Random Box (C)] x2
It dropped! It finally dropped…!
Hong Yeon-hwa was overwhelmed with emotion.
But that emotion quickly faded with what Kim Ho said next.
“Should we open them right away? The glutton boxes.”
Ah…
She had been so focused on the boxes finally dropping after so many failures that she’d forgotten about what came next.
That in order to make up for the duds so far, they now had to hit the jackpot.
Which means… I have to open them again…?
What if it’s another D-rank or E-rank again?
Could she handle that?
Wouldn’t it be better to just back out early?
But if she did that, wouldn’t the chance to make up for everything be gone for good?
While Hong Yeon-hwa hesitated, unable to do this or that and just darting her eyes around, Kim Ho once again used a hidden piece.
As soon as Seo Ye-in opened the random box, he immediately closed the Glutton Box.
Fl—aash—!
[Glutton Box]
▷ Glutton Points: 1,600 → 2,600
Kim Ho gave a satisfied nod and praised her.
“Another B-rank. As expected of our lucky charm…no, our bundle of light.”
“Guess I’m lucky.”
“If you don’t mind, shall we try one more?”
“……”
But then, instead of opening the second random box, Seo Ye-in quietly stared down at it… and then lifted her head to look at Hong Yeon-hwa.
Before long, all eyes turned toward her, and Hong Yeon-hwa, flustered, opened her eyes wide like a startled rabbit.
“M-Me…?”
“Hmm. You’ve seemed quite troubled for a while now, Miss Hong. How about giving her a chance to turn things around?”
“N-No, I-I’m fine, really…”
She waved her hands frantically and backed away.
And yet, strangely enough, she didn’t have such a bad feeling about it.
For some reason, she felt like it might work out this time.
Sensing that mood, Kim Ho spoke.
“Give it a try.”
“But… what if I mess up again…?”
“Just think of it as eating one less.”
Something in his calm demeanor gave Hong Yeon-hwa a quiet boost of courage.
After taking a deep breath, she reached for the random box with trembling hands.
Then, after making eye contact with Kim Ho one last time, she quickly flung the lid open.
Shak! Shashak!!
Click—!
[Glutton Box]
▷ Glutton Points: 2,600 → 2,800
“Ah.”
Hong Yeon-hwa’s vision went dark.
***
After that, Kim Ho’s party continued across the Land of the Warriors and took down two more orc tribes.
One of them dropped a random box, and this time, it was Go Hyeon-woo’s turn for a proxy opening.
For whatever reason, Seo Ye-in pointed to him.
Flaash!
[Glutton Box]
▷ Glutton Points: 2,800 → 3,300
“A break-even result.”
Go Hyeon-woo let out a bitter smile.
500 points meant it was a C-rank pull. Which was about the same as feeding it directly without using the hidden method.
But since Hong Yeon-hwa hadn’t even managed that much with her 100 and 200 points, her expression only grew more gloomy.
Soon, darkness began to fall, and the party decided it was time to camp.
They picked a suitable spot, set up tents, and installed an alarm spell.
Then they all sat together for dinner, but Hong Yeon-hwa just picked at her food and eventually slipped into her tent.
She crawled into her sleeping bag and curled up in a corner.
I totally blew it…
If she had just fed the two random boxes normally, that would’ve been 1,000 points. But instead, she had to act all bold and ended up with only 300.
Rather than making up for anything, she’d just become an even bigger burden.
All I can do is try harder tomorrow…
And I’d better stay far away from any random boxes…
Sighing heavily, Hong Yeon-hwa sulked in the corner of the tent, tossing and turning in misery.
After a while, she sensed someone approaching from outside.
Then, Kim Ho and Seo Ye-in entered the tent.
“Pillow.”
“Yes, Bundle of Light. Right this way.”
Maybe it was thanks to her back-to-back jackpot pulls, but his attitude toward her was unusually warm and attentive.
As always, the two of them placed their sleeping bags right next to each other.
Then, at the same time, they turned to look at Hong Yeon-hwa.
“What are you doing over there?”
“Just… it’s comfortable… here…?”
“You find the corner comfortable?”
“Mhm…”
To be honest, it was anything but comfortable, but Hong Yeon-hwa turned her back to them, trying her best not to show it.
But then, unexpectedly, Seo Ye-in came over and started tugging at her sleeping bag.
“……”
“Wh-Why…?”
“Kim Ho pillow.”
“……!”
“There’s room.”
She kept tugging at the sleeping bag while pointing at the empty space beside them.
Watching quietly, Kim Ho chimed in.
“You really don’t look comfortable. You didn’t sleep in the corner before, either.”
“……”
“Come over here. You can keep your sleeping bag apart or not. It’s up to you.”
“…Thanks.”
Hong Yeon-hwa felt her eyes well up at their kindness.
As she moved her sleeping bag closer to Kim Ho, she thought to herself,
Yeah… so what if he’s a little greedy. He takes such good care of me.
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