Chapter 275: One Step 4
TL/Editor: raei
Schedule: 5/Week Mon-Fri
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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When creating monsters that players must fight, insects often serve as inspiration.
Similar to how Western cultures have myths like the Kraken or Cthulhu, born from a fear of octopuses, the variety of insects can evoke human disgust in many ways.
This concept also applies to the mobile game Heroines Chronicle, which features a collection of female characters.
The game includes horrifying monsters ranging from oversized spiders and centipedes to chimeras made of insects.
However, since Heroines Chronicle is a mobile game, seeing insect-type characters wriggling around wasn't much of an issue.
But Heroes Chronicle is a whole different beastit's a virtual reality game.
"Just hearing about it makes me not want to go."
"Insect-type monsters? Like those spiders we saw in the cave?"
"Imagine forests overtaken by spider colonies, or giant beetles the size of cows or horses. Or swarms of hundreds of highly venomous mosquitoes."
The Kingdom seems designed for game balancing, with areas becoming less suitable for humans the further out one goes.
Who would want to establish a village in a place where man-eating mantises, the size of motorcycles, roam?
It makes more sense to head to the warmer East, where the biggest concerns are wolves and goblins.
My explanation made everyone frown.
It seems tales of giant man-eating mantises aren't for everyone.
"So, what's the request from the South?"
"Oh, right. Something strange is happening in the domain of Antibes. They need the help of a faithful... party of heroes to resolve it,"
Grace quickly changed the subject, apparently not keen on discussing the giant mantises and mosquito swarms.
Insect-type monsters from the South are too much even for her.
Sending a letter directly to a hero, not just any adventurer, is a bold move by the lord of Antibes.
A party of heroes attractted attention from both the Kingdom and the Temple.
Ordinary people wouldn't dare contact us, for fear of political fallout.
Making such a direct request must mean they have significant influence.
"Could it be a problem adventurers can't handle?"
"Since they're seeking a party of heroes, it could involve dark mages or evil spirits."
"If that's the case, wouldn't they ask for help from the Temple?"
The polite letter didn't detail the specific problem, leaving us wondering.
The letter begins with typical greetings from the nobility, lavishes praise on the royal family and the Goddess, and extols the virtues of the hero party's achievements before finally asking for help.
It would be much simpler if they could just say, "Dangerous monster spotted in the south, kill for 100 gold."
Of course, being so blunt might lead to backlash from the Princess's noble allies, social ostracization, and even fear of offending the Temple and incurring the Goddess's wrath.
"Anyway, since we're the hero party, the chance of this being a fake request or scam is slim... But the lack of details is troubling. What should we do?"
While pondering, Han Se-ah waved the letter and asked our opinion.
The chat is buzzed with excitement to see the giant mantis, indicating we should go, though part of me is reluctant.
But we weren't ordinary people.
We are part of a hero party, chosen under the Goddess's gaze, believing ourselves to be devout and good.
"Then, we should go. It's a long journey from the North to the southern tip of the Kingdom. Maybe we'll encounter some familiar faces among the traders."
"As much as I dislike it... they must have called on us because it's not a job for ordinary adventurers."
"We must spread the Goddess's grace throughout the Kingdom."
Katie, who holds noblesse oblige dear; Grace, who believes in helping if possible; and Irene, who could never turn down such a request, all agree.
Despite my reluctance to enter the swamps of the South, the significant amount of money in the envelope suggests this is an important request, so I nod in agreement.
Especially since Han Se-ah is leading, we can't afford to overlook anything if it turns out to be a crucial quest.
-Wow, unanimous decision, this is what being a hero party is about
-Let's open a betting pool for the boss, beetle or centipede or something
-But if the beetles are that big, wouldn't a Gigantamax nematode burst out when it's killed?
-Seems like a place where a named monster giant mantis would burst out with nunchaku
-BB Games generously compensating for the original marshes
Seeing this, Han Se-ah smiled, crumpling the letter in her hand, and nodded.
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Raei Translations
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Antibes, situated at the southernmost tip of the Kingdom, is not very large due to its geographical features.
It is sparsely populated with many swamps, making land development impractical.
Apart from the swamp, there is also a dense forest resembling a jungle, making the domain focus on forestry over agriculture.
A silver lining is that the plants from the forests and swamps are rich in mana, making them valuable as alchemy catalysts.
In essence, it is a quiet rural area supported by woodcutters and herbalists.
It is a place where insect-type monsters outnumber beasts, making it difficult for hunters, and mushrooms are the local specialty.
"Oh, you're heading to Antibes? That must be tough.
"Yes. I appreciate your support, brother."
Due to this, facing inconvenient transportation was unavoidable.
It was so difficult to find a coachman that not even invoking the Temple's name helped in securing one.
It wasn't because the coachmen's guild was trying to exploit the situation in front of priests and nuns; rather, no coachman had ventured from the Kingdom's center to its southern edges.
Only coachmen working for large trading companies usually take such routes.
In modern South Korea, despite its small size, traveling from Seoul to the southernmost villages requires using both the KTX[1] and buses.
This is manageable for well-known tourist spots like Haenam but imagine trying to reach an obscure rural area.
Even in a country with advanced transportation like South Korea, reaching such remote locations is a challenge, let alone in a medieval fantasy world where travel is primarily by carriage.
"Being able to serve a hero makes all my travels across the Kingdom worthwhile! I hope the Goddess looks kindly upon me and grants luck to you heroes!"
The Temple had to intervene directly, securing a devout and elite coachman from the Guild, and used the Princess's seal for direct clearance at checkpoints, making their way to the South.
The journey south was confirmed by the changing landscape.
The further south we went, the denser and thicker the trees became.
The forest grew so dense that it blocked out the sunlight from entering through the carriage windows.
"The South really does have a lot of trees."
"It's different from the East, where there were enough trees along the road for shade. Here, the trees are so dense that they block out the sunlight."
"Fortunately, we haven't encountered any giant insects yet."
The conversation flowed lightly among the women during the monotonous carriage ride, interspersed with the coachman's occasional input about the South.
However, the topic that captivated them the most was romance.
Despite being three days into the journey, Grace and Katie still gazed at Irene with twinkling eyes.
Perhaps it was because Irene chose the seat to my left instead of sitting directly opposite.
-Is our Irene making moves?
-Lol, Roland got his seat stolen
-It's a common trope in fantasy that saints have a sensual side.
-Lol, seeing the hero and saint like this makes me want a "We Got Married" mission. How about a sequel to Love Manipulation Squad?[2]
-But the hero is Han Se-ah...
"Actually, it does make sense for Roland to be the hero. With his innate 6 rating and the special ability to summon the Holy Sword, he fits the hero role more. Shouldn't it be Hero Roland instead of Paladin Roland? ...And I'm always up for a mission."
The carriage journey continued for three days following a tedious mountain trek.
Although Han Se-ah took a day off from streaming, it was impossible to omit all the travel scenes.
This situation led to Irene making noticeable efforts to get closer.
At the same time, Grace and Katie, partly supportive and partly watching with excitement, matched the mischievous temperament of the viewers, resembling fans of a reality show about marriages.
[Roland's Giant Holy Sword donated 10,000 Won!]
Set up a night guard shift with Teacher and the Nun together tonight for a fifty thousand donation.
[HotbadNotbad2 donated 30,000 Won!]
I want them to share the same tent.
[Naughty Divine Power Pouch Lover donated 5,000 Won!]
If you make Roland and Irene prepare the meal together under the pretext of magic detection, that's a hundred thousand, okay?
After Grace's character quest last time, the viewers trying to pair me with Grace paled in comparison to the tremendous firepower now.
There was something irresistibly touching about a traditionally reserved beauty making a clumsy approach, enough to resonate with men.
Watching the chat fill with outrageous comments until the disruptive viewers were removed, I found myself involuntarily agreeing.
Our future Saint, unaware of the commotion, hesitantly yet gradually made her way closer to me.
Not clinging directly, but only close enough that our sleeves might barely touch.
She was unaware that this tantalizing and frustrating move was driving the viewers even more mad.
---
[1. raei: KTX, or Korea Train Express, is South Korea's high-speed train system]
[2. raei: "We Got Married" is a South Korean reality TV show that pairs up celebrities to show what life would be like if they were married. A mission in case you forgot, are like streamer requests. Missions for the stream. Not sure about the Love manipulation one, but we can guess from the name.]
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