Atop of the large treeline, a young man with red hair was sitting on one of its many branches. He held a sword in his hand, and his eyes scouted out the lower floor like a hawk staring down at its prey. A carriage drifted by, and after letting it pass through, he quietly dropped from the forest's canopy before closely following behind.

Two months had passed since the start of his training, and the terrain of the central plains of Bayonia started to shift away from its usual large open fields. Trees densely populated its area, and the sounds of birds chirping radiated around him. Grabbing a hold of one of the handles at the back, the man sneakily crept up to the carriage roof. Then, after readying his blade, he quietly struck at the old man sitting at the front helm.

Tack.

The dull sound of metal clashing reverberated on the moving vehicle. Balance was quickly lost, but after widening his stance, he regained stability and struck again. All seemed well as the metal blade slashed through the wind, yet just as it was about to hit, the carriage suddenly turned and its trajectory veered off its course.

In the end, his blade cut deep into the carriage roof. A long struggle ensued as the young man tried to retrieve his blade, but as he looked up, he saw a black figure quickly approach him. Then before he knew it, an overwhelming force slammed into his abdomen.

"Ugh."

Minhyun was sent flying, skid marks traced the dirt ridden path below him, but once he got a good grip on the ground beneath, he pushed himself against it and stopped its ongoing speed.

"How the hell did you know I was coming? You got eyes on the back of your head, old man."

Marus tightened his leash, stopping the carriage in its tracks. The mechanical horse jumped before its gears shifted, releasing a torrent of hot steam.

"...Old man. How many times are you going to call me that? Also, when you lose your weapon during combat, you should keep your focus on the enemy instead. I've seen too many novices die from having a lack of awareness. When it comes to survival, your weapon can be lost, not your life."

He then continued.

"As for the reason you lost, it's because of your smell. Humans have more than eyesight to work with. If you want to sneak up on an enemy, you will have to remove any sense of presence you have. A good way of doing that is by using your surroundings. Here in the northern forest of Bayonia, there's a plant called Mentha. It's used in perfumes for its strong smell. Rub some on yourself, and you can mask your scent with that of the forest."

Minhyun solemnly nodded his head.

"Yeah, I get that. I'll keep it in mind for next time. It's just, for breakfast, brunch, lunch, linner, and dinner, I've had to eat the same thing for over two months now. At this point, I'm getting tired of it."

Marus just shook his head.

"If you want to eat something else, then all you have to do is not die."

He continued.

"Speaking of which, this should be the 157th time. You're only 43 deaths off from hitting the ever so glorious 200."

Minhyun spat.

"You don't have to say that. Just hand it over already."

Marus sighed. After a brief pause he walked over and checked the storage in the back.

"I can't... There's none left. You've died so many times that we've run out of Leklin meat."

Minhyun froze. A large grin drew on his face as he jumped up and celebrated.

"Really! You're not lying to me, right! There's none of that trashy ass meat left for me to eat."

Marus nodded his head. He then frowned and said.

"That'd be correct, but since there's nothing left for us to eat, the only alternative we have is to starve."

Thud.

Minhyun's soul left his body.

"No, that can't be possible! Anything but that!"

The thought of starving sent Minhyun into a frenzy. Food was his lifelong partner in the five years he had spent no lifing video games and reading novels. From cup noodles to instant curry packets, he's consumed just about every convenience food that the market had to sell.

With that thought, he hurriedly ran into the carriage. Once he spotted his target, he walked over and yelled.

"Julius, we have a big problem!"

The young man just lazily raised his head.

"Can't you see that I'm busy. What are you wasting my time for."

Minhyun frowned. A long pause resounded as he thought of something. Then, realizing that he still hasn't responded, he weakly muttered.

"I guess it isn't really a big deal. It's just, we've run out of food."

Julius stretched. His arms opened wide as he pulled open the back seat and uncovered the hidden storage compartment. Seeing nothing there, he frowned before moving out to check their location. His mouth trembled as he found his body lying flat on the dirty floor, but after cleaning himself up, he pointed towards a suspicious looking structure hidden within the woods.

"Stop overreacting, will you. Look, there's a building over there. We can just ask the inhabitants for directions to the nearest city."

Deep within the forest lining, a small wood pillar sat alone in a mountain of trees. Nothing else could be seen, but it could be inferred that it was part of something greater. However, Marus just pointed at it and said.

"Oh, you're right, and judging by its size, it looks to be a village."

He then turned and smiled.

"I guess we've been saved, young master Minhyun."

Minhyun vigorously nodded his head.

While Julius continued to stand in the back, listening in on their conversation, a weird feeling crept up inside of him. As he thought more and more about the words Marus had said, he felt that something didn't quite add up.

Just how could he tell that it was a village?

...

A couple minutes passed as the group trekked through the overgrown forest. Weeds and rock layered over the undergrowth, and no visible paths were seen leading towards it. Yet once they got a bit closer, they were able to see that it was indeed a village.

"Wow, you were right. Nice catch."

Walking over to the large wooden gate, Minhyun knocked on it before calling out with a loud voice.

"Hello, is anyone there?"

But after no one responded, he tapped on his head and rubbed his brows.

I forgot. Wrong language.

He then tried again. This time, using the correct one.

"Anyone har."

A grimy voice responded from the other side.

"I heard you the first time. What do you want?"

Minhyun brokenly spoke.

"We food."

...

The voice stuttered.

"What...?"

Minhyun trembled.

"Uh... We food?"

...

The gate slowly creaked open, and a small eye peeked from the other side.

"Speak clearly. What do you want."

Seeing that this was going nowhere, Marus interjected.

"We are refugees of the Bluerose group, desperately seeking asylum within Yerim city walls. We saw this village on our way here and wanted to ask if there was any food left to spare."

The voice paused. Then the door fully opened.

"Come inside."

Entering in, the group immediately saw a village in disarray. Holes were poked in the walls, and the roofs were collapsed as multiple buildings were in a state of disrepair. A small lizard-man stood in front of them. His tail was sharp and pointy, and his scales were green in color. However, something about him just seemed off. He looked sickly.

Two others in a similar state stood behind him, weakened and bloody. One of them, a human, had a large gash across his arm. His body was pale and malnourished, giving him a skinny and frail appearance. As for the other, it was a large bear with a gaping hole in his chest. His brown fur looked singed, and he had bald spots dotted all over him.

The three of them huddled together and said.

"Welcome to our village."

Minhyun awkwardly clapped.

"Thank you... you kind."

He then looked over and whispered.

"The hell happened here? It looks like a disaster struck."

Marus shrugged.

"Why don't you ask them? If you want to, then I'll tell you how to pronounce it."

Minhyun, taking his advice, pointed towards one of the buildings and said.

"What happen har."

The lizard-man stepped forward and explained with tears in his eyes.

"We used to be a peaceful village tucked away deep in the forest. However, all of that ended when the Gryphos attacked. It slaughtered our people, and by the time we came to slay it, most, if not everyone in the village had already perished.

He continued.

"If you wouldn't mind, could you please stay the night. It's been a while since we've had visitors, and we would appreciate your company."

Marus responded.

"Of course. We've grown weak and weary from all the traveling we've done, and a place to rest would do us very nicely."

Hearing this, Julius just froze. He then weirdly stared at Marus and said.

"Are you serious..."

Marus just winked before walking further inside.

...

The group of villagers ultimately led them to a dusty room, one where the tides of disaster didn't reach. It had an older look to it, resembling more of the ancient medieval era of architecture. The atmosphere was rustic, yet something about the items inside gave it a somber tone. Sitting down on the creaky wood chair, Minhyun took a look at what everyone else was doing. Over on the bed, he saw Julius continue to read the book he had from before while Marus began to wipe his blade with a clean handkerchief.

Minutes passed, and once his curiosity got the better of him, Minhyun opened the door and took a step outside. Seeing that the others didn't care about what he was doing, he saw this as a sign of approval and closed the door behind him.

"I'll be back once I'm done exploring."

Now that he was all alone in an unexplored village, nostalgia started to take affect in his mind. The area he was in sort of reminded him of the old adventure games he used to play. One where...

Wait... I can't talk about that. I don't want to get sued… Anyways, I wonder if there's any vases for me to smash?

Minhyun continued to walk down the rows of collapsed huts. Something about this place felt off, but after remembering the story he heard, he just chalked it up to the silence.

Clack.

Then, out of nowhere, a sudden noise caught his attention. It sounded like a door being knocked open. Following it, he saw a small wooden building isolated from the rest of the village. The door was locked, but after a bit of Wang Jangling, he managed to pick it open by breaking the wood around it.

I guess this is what happens when you stick with the wrong crowd.

Opening the door, he was surprised to see a little girl sitting inside. She looked to be around seven. Her clothes were ripped and torn, but the fabric used seemed expensive, only losing its luster in the avalanche of dirt encumbering it. A trapdoor was hidden at the back, exposed as the rug around it was lifted up.

Now placed in an unforeseen situation, Minhyun raised his hand and waved.

"Oh, uh… Hi, there."