CH 10 Thief

“No. In fact, this is the first time in the two months I’ve been here that something like this has appeared,” she said. Her voice was calm, but her face was deeply unsettled.

Ren’s frown deepened.

A Salt Sea region.

A red sky.

None of the regions Ren had studied in the academy had anything like this.

There were strange zones in the Land of Origin, of course. Regions with unstable gravity, corrupted forests, and territories ruled by powerful monsters. But nothing he had learned about resembled a place where the sky itself behaved like this.

Ren could no longer deny it.

There were only two possibilities.

The first one was simple.

The Base in this place belonged to the military and was located in a highly strategic region, or this area contained some special resources, and the Base here was controlled by a Noble family.

Ren was not stupid. He knew the academy did not teach awakeners about every Base in the Land of Origin. The Bases located in strategic military regions must be kept secret. The same would be true for Bases owned by powerful noble families.

Long ago, the situation had been even harsher.

Back then, the location of no Base was revealed to newly summoned awakeners.

When someone was summoned into the Land of Origin, they had to survive in completely unknown territory and hope to eventually reach a human Base. The reasoning behind that policy was simple. If the location of Bases became public knowledge, other races could learn those locations and attack them.

Back then, only about thirty percent of awakeners managed to reach a Base alive. Most died before they ever found one.

However, everything changed after the Fall of Mana.

When the Corrupted Ones appeared, every race suffered enormous losses. Entire regions were devastated, and the balance between races collapsed.

Humanity suddenly needed far more awakeners than before. To increase survival rates, the Federation finally revealed the locations of most human Bases to newly summoned awakeners.

The results were immediate. The survival rate increased from thirty percent to nearly fifty-five percent. It was a huge improvement. They could only implement that policy because every race had been crippled after the Corrupted Ones appeared. No race had enough strength to launch large-scale invasions against humanity.

Still, Ren knew that not every Base was publicly disclosed. Key military Bases were still secret. Bases belonging to noble families were also hidden. If Ren and Freya had ended up near one of those secret Bases, their situation would actually be good.

Once they reached the Base, they could explain their situation. Ren could enlist in the military early instead of waiting for compulsory enlistment, or they could pledge loyalty to the noble house controlling the Base.

Either way, they would prove they had no intention of leaking the Base’s location. That was the first possibility. And it was the good one.

The second possibility…

“Where is the Base? You have been here for two months, so you should definitely know where the Base is,” Ren asked, hoping it wasn’t the second possibility.

“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to find any Base. Not only that….” she bit her lips and added, “I haven’t seen any humans. This is an unexplored region.”

Ren closed his eyes.

Fuck.

The Land of Origin was massive. Even after three hundred years of exploration, humanity had barely scratched the surface.

Normally, when humans were summoned to the Land of Origin, they appeared somewhere near a human Base. Ren didn’t know the exact mechanism behind it—that knowledge was restricted to military researchers—but somehow the summoning system always placed newly awakened humans within reachable distance of a human Base. The regions surrounding those Bases were called Explored Regions.

However, there were rare cases—very rare—when an awakener would be summoned in an Unexplored Region. These were territories that humanity had never discovered before. There were no human Bases nearby. No supply points. No portals to return home. Nothing.

Of course, there was still a possibility that the region contained a Base belonging to another race. But that possibility brought different problems altogether. For one, humans could not use return portals of another race, and vice versa.

Ren opened his eyes again.

“Did you meet another race?” he asked.

Even if they couldn’t use another race’s portal, having a Base nearby would still provide advantages. There would be settlements, markets, resources, weapons, and information. Of course, that assumed the race was not hostile toward humans.

“No.”

Freya shook her head slowly. She looked around the silent forest ahead.

“It’s a complete unexplored region. I haven’t seen a human or a member of any other race.”

Ren let out a slow breath. He should have felt shocked. He should have felt despair. If this was truly an unexplored region, then the possibility of ever finding a human Base was extremely low. The Land of Origin was simply too big. Even experienced explorers spent decades mapping small areas. For someone like Ren, finding a Base by wandering randomly would not be possible even in a lifetime.

And yet…

He did not feel despair.

Ren looked at the distant forest quietly.

He had made a promise.

A promise to his father.

He would return home.

His father had said he would travel from Base to Base, searching for Ren. That stubborn old man would not give up easily. If Ren never returned, his father might spend the rest of his life wandering through the Land of Origin.

Ren refused to let that happen.

I have a Talent that lets me grow faster than others, and gain lifespan.

As long as there were enemies to kill, he could grow stronger and extend his life. He could live far longer than a normal human.

Even if it took ten years. Twenty years. Or even a hundred years.

Ren slowly clenched his fist.

“I will return home.”

His voice was quiet, but there was no hesitation in it.

No matter how long it took. No matter how far he had to travel. He would find a human Base. And when he did—

He would go back.

Ren was ready to do whatever was necessary to fulfill the promise he had made.

Of course, there was still a possibility that Freya was lying. Ren did not blindly trust people, especially in a place like the Land of Origin. He kept himself open to every possibility. But if she was lying, it would become obvious very soon. If there was a Base nearby, they would inevitably encounter other humans within a day or two. Lying about something like that would not benefit Freya in the long run. So there was a high chance she was telling the truth.

Ren took a slow breath before speaking again.

“Let’s go. We should start hunting monsters and leveling up. If we want to return home someday, we first need to be strong enough to deal with anything we might run into.”

“…you are not scared?” she asked.

It was clear she had expected a much stronger reaction.

“Does it matter?” he let out a small smile. “Whether we are in explored region or unexplored region, my goal is still the same. And you should know something. Awakeners who returned from unexplored regions actually exist. All of them are among the strongest people in the Human Federation right now. So if we manage to return from here, we’ll probably be treated like the most talented awakeners in humanity. The Federation will throw resources, training, and money at us.”

Freya opened her mouth as if to say something, then closed it again. She had expected anger, fear, or even despair. This reaction had not been among the possibilities she imagined. After a moment, a faint smile appeared on her face. Having someone like Ren around was… reassuring. Someone who could stay calm and even optimistic in a situation like this would naturally improve the atmosphere of any group.

“So, where should we go?” he asked.

Now that he understood the situation better, he also understood Freya’s actions yesterday. If she had told him immediately that they were in an unexplored region, she believed he might have panicked. A newly awakened person in hysteria could easily do something reckless and get both of them killed. That was likely why she avoided the topic in a dangerous area like Salt Sea region. It also explained why Freya had come to the Salt Sea region. In an unexplored region, numbers mattered more than anything else. Having even one extra ally drastically improved survival chances. That meant she had been hoping to find other newly summoned awakeners—

Wait.

A thought flashed across his mind.

How did she know awakeners would be summoned in the Salt Sea region?

If this was truly an unexplored region, the chance of someone appearing here should be extremely small.

Ren turned toward her.

“Hey, how did you know someone would be summoned to—”

His words stopped abruptly when a sharp snap of a twig echoed from the forest. Both Ren and Freya turned their heads at the same time.

Behind a cluster of bushes, something moved.

Through the gaps in the leaves, Ren saw the faint outline of a creature that resembled a gazelle. It stood about as tall as a large deer, but its body was leaner and more muscular. Dark stripes ran across its grey hide, and two long curved horns extended backward from its head. Its legs were thin but powerful, clearly built for speed. The creature had bright yellow eyes. It was staring straight at them.

For a moment, neither side moved.

Then the monster realized it had been spotted. It immediately turned and ran.

“Shit! It might be part of a pack. We need to kill it!” Ren reacted instantly.

He bolted forward.

They could not let the monster escape. Ren had only seen it for a second, and he had no idea what kind of monster it was. But if it lived in groups and managed to warn the rest of its pack, things could become extremely dangerous very quickly.

Freya understood the situation just as quickly. She scooped Ren up like she had done yesterday.

“Wait, I can run—”

Ren’s words were cut short by the sudden burst of speed.

The inertia nearly threw him off balance, and he instinctively grabbed onto Freya’s neck to avoid falling.

They entered the forest in seconds.

The gazelle-like monster had already disappeared among the trees, and there was no time to carefully search for tracks. Freya immediately picked a direction where the bushes were still swaying slightly, likely because the creature had just passed through them. She dashed forward. Branches whipped past them as she ran.

Ren leaned closer and spoke in a lower voice.

“Do you have other weapons besides that saw-sword? I remember you said you left your armor and most of your equipment behind before entering the Salt Sea region.”

“I do. But we need to deal with this first!” Freya replied quickly.

“Then don’t join this fight. Let me handle the monster,” Ren said.

The saw-sword had been useful in the Salt Sea because it could stun creatures there. But inside a normal forest, it would not have that effect. Worse, the loud noise of the spinning blade could attract other monsters.

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Freya nodded.

The monster came back into view ahead of them.

Ren was once again reminded that Freya was completely insane. She was technically a mechanic class, yet she had invested an absurd amount of Stat points into physical stats. Even while carrying him, she was rapidly closing the distance.

Ren raised his hand and began charging his spell. Two Water Bullets formed beside him. He held them in place for ten seconds, increasing their damage by thirty percent. Then he fired. The monster suddenly shifted direction, running diagonally as if it had eyes on the back of its head. Both Water Bullets missed and slammed into a nearby tree trunk.

Ren quickly fired more shots, but each one was dodged.

“It has fast reactions. We need to get closer if I want to land a hit,” Ren said, raising his voice slightly.

His voice was loud enough for Freya to hear over the rushing wind but still quiet enough that nearby monsters would not notice them.

Freya increased her speed.

Unfortunately, the forest limited how fast she could move. The gazelle-like creature was clearly adapted to this terrain. It zigzagged between trees and leaped over roots and rocks with effortless agility, making it difficult for them to close the gap.

Ren clenched his teeth.

Fuck.

There was a real possibility they were already approaching the monster’s group. The creature might also be alone, but Ren was not willing to gamble on that. This was his first time seeing this species, so he had no idea about its behavior.

“Let me down. We’ll pincer it,” Ren said.

“You can’t run fast enough to catch it—”

“Just do it,” Ren interrupted.

Freya slowed slightly. She was about to stop and lower him properly, but Ren jumped off before she could.

The moment his feet touched the ground, he activated Wind Wrap. Wind coiled around his body. His speed exploded forward. Ren ran beside her.

Freya stared at him in shock for a brief moment. His speed was far too fast for someone who had been summoned just yesterday.

“What did you—”

“Pincer attack!” Ren shouted as he changed direction and ran deeper into the forest.

Freya quickly snapped out of her surprise.

What kind of beast ability is that? she wondered briefly.

But there was no time to think about it.

Ren moved through the forest, trying to circle around and appear ahead of the monster.

Meanwhile, Freya continued chasing it from behind.

At first the creature kept glancing back, clearly wary of Ren’s attacks. Freya knew she needed to distract it, and divert it’s attention away from Ren.

Without carrying Ren, Freya could fully focus on her movement. Her control became even smoother. She closed the distance quickly, jumping over the obstacles. At one point her hand nearly brushed against the monster’s tail.

The sudden proximity frightened the monster, and its attention completely locked onto Freya. It did not realize it was being guided slightly toward the left. Toward the place where Ren was waiting.

A few seconds later, Ren burst out from behind a bush directly in front of the creature.

The monster panicked. It tried to change direction.

Ren did not give it the chance. A fully charged Water Bullet shot forward.

The projectile slammed directly into the creature’s head. The impact exploded instantly. The monster’s body collapsed mid-run and slid across the forest floor.

A notification appeared in Ren’s vision.

[Level 8 Striped Gazelle killed]

[845 days lifespan gained.]

[812 EXP gained.]

Ren quickly jumped aside just before the monster’s body rammed into him. Even though the Striped Gazelle had died instantly, the momentum from its final sprint carried the corpse several meters forward before it hit a tree trunk and came to a stop.