Chapter 03
“Sorry, I can’t enter the castle due to my circumstances. I’m afraid I can only guide you as far as the village.”
“Oh, no. It’s fine. Just guiding me this far is already a huge help.”
At least I didn’t have to worry about starving to death in the mountains anymore. Nor about getting ripped apart by a monster.
I chewed on the jerky Kalion had given me and washed it down with water. At his waist hung a small pouch. Despite being barely the size of a palm, it seemed to contain plenty of preserved food, tools needed for camping in the mountains, and even spare clothes.
‘Is that like an inventory?’
Since I had already considered the possibility that this was a game world after the system window appeared, I wasn’t particularly surprised. Maybe it was some kind of compression magic.
“It would be best to find a place to rest before it gets dark. Can you walk?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
My legs were sore from hiking after such a long time, but this wasn’t the time to complain about monsters being around.
I followed Kalion diligently. He matched his pace to mine and occasionally glanced back to check if I was keeping up.
He looked like he wanted to take my hand or lift me up, but hesitated and lowered it again.
I wasn’t particularly slow, but from Kalion’s perspective, it must still be frustrating. I couldn’t become a burden right after joining the party.
I took a deep breath and looked around with determination.
“Kalion, I see a cave over there.”
“Yes. It would be good if we can rest there.”
“If?”
“There is a possibility of monsters nearby. We should inspect it first.”
Ah, I see.
Kalion went ahead to check the cave. After confirming there was no sign of a monster, he signaled for me to enter.
The cave was fairly wide and comfortable. It went deeper inside, but as he said, it didn’t seem like anything was living there. Honestly, I was more worried about snakes or insects than monsters, but fortunately there was no trace of any living creature besides humans.
“Long live a bug-free bedroom.”
“Stay hidden here, my master.”
“What about you, Kalion?”
“I will scout the surrounding area. It won’t take long.”
Kalion spoke calmly, as if to reassure me.
For a brief moment, the thought crossed my mind that he might leave me behind.
But if he had found me troublesome, he wouldn’t have taken me with him in the first place. I decided to trust him.
“Yes. I’ll wait. Please be careful.”
“Yes, my master.”
Kalion left the cave, leaping over the rocks and disappearing from sight.
Despite wearing heavy-looking armor, he moved effortlessly.
With his entirely white appearance, he looked like a snowflake dancing on ice.
I stared at the cave entrance where he had disappeared, then curled up inside.
He told me to hide, so I would stay hidden. Absolutely.
‘Don’t move even a single step. Just stay here and pretend to be dead.’
This was exactly how people in these kinds of stories ended up dying—disobeying instructions and getting into trouble. I had no intention of becoming an annoying, burden-like character.
So I endured. Until Kalion came back.
However, my brilliant plan was interrupted by a system window popping up without any regard for my peace.
[Lazy righteous people are hated!]
You’ve stayed in a shelter for too long.
In 15 seconds, the shelter will collapse.
Time until burial: 15 seconds
Are you kidding me?
It really cannot stand seeing people comfortable, can it?
As expected, a rumbling sound echoed from deep inside the cave.
If I stayed any longer, I would either be crushed or suffocated under the rubble.
Only then did I understand why characters in survival stories make such stupid decisions.
It wasn’t that they wanted to frustrate readers—it was that they had no choice.
Just like me right now.
‘Sorry, Kalion! I want to live!’
I was already doomed with a 30-day death sentence—I had no desire to die immediately.
I quickly ran out of the cave.
KRRRUMBLE—
The collapsing debris blocked the entrance. If I hadn’t moved, I would have been crushed for sure.
Luckily, it didn’t trigger a full landslide.
‘Thank goodness…’
And just as I relaxed—
A strange sound came from behind me.
“Grrrr…”
The cave collapse sounded like rumbling.
The creature’s growl sounded like “grrr.”
…Now was not the time to think about that.
I didn’t turn around, but just from the shadow cast over me, I could tell its size.
Without a doubt, it was a monstrous creature.
As if impressed by my deduction, the system window popped up again.
[Skill Acquisition Chance]
Sudden Quest! You have encountered a monster.
Scream as loudly as you can.
Success if your volume exceeds ??? dB.
Reward: Acquire skill [Screaming]
Thank you very much for the helpful confirmation that there is a monster behind me.
Screaming? Not fighting, not running—just screaming?
Will it get stunned or something?
“Grrk… krk.”
There was no time to think.
Something huge raised what looked like an arm or leg.
“GROOOAAR!”
“Kyaaaaa!”
I screamed while dodging the attack.
As I barely avoided the first strike, I finally saw it properly.
It was the size of a house, covered entirely in black fur-like threads.
No—it wasn’t fur. It wriggled, like thousands of worms clinging to its body…
“Ugh, ah, aaaaaah!!”
A visceral sense of disgust and fear forced another scream out of me.
The sound was loud enough to make my ears ring.
And for a moment, the monster hesitated.
‘Did it work?’
A new window appeared.
[Current progress: 77%]
Try a little harder ㅇㅅ<
Time remaining: 5 seconds
I’m confiscating that emoticon.
Angrily, I screamed even louder.
“HEEELP MEEEEEEE!!!”
THUD.
The world seemed to slow down.
The monster charging at me was suddenly split in two.
And through the clean cut between its grotesque halves—
I saw Kalion’s face holding a silver sword.
“Master! Are you unharmed?”
A victory fanfare rang out, and another system window appeared.
[Chain Success!]
Congratulations!
You have acquired the skill [Screaming].
[Screaming Lv.1]
Your scream summons nearby allies to your location.
Effect: Doubles ally movement speed within range of your voice.
Duration: 20 seconds.
Stacks up to 5 times.
So it wasn’t a nuisance skill—it was a buff skill.
A buff that could stack up to five times.
At max stack, it would increase speed by 32 times, theoretically making a marathon runner going 20 km/h reach 640 km/h.
That’s faster than a KTX train.
Is that even physically possible?
‘If I have to scream five times at that volume for 20 seconds… my throat will die first.’
Anyway, I survived.
I rolled my stiff shoulders and spoke to Kalion.
“Thank you for saving me, Kalion.”
“I heard the sound of the cave collapsing and rushed here. I thought it was safe, but I still put you in danger. I apologize.”
So he didn’t come because of my scream, but because of the cave collapsing.
Well, the skill only activated after he cut the monster down anyway.
“Don’t apologize. You were trying to protect me.”
The cave collapse wasn’t Kalion’s fault—it was that damn system’s doing.
‘Still… this means I can’t even hide somewhere safe anymore.’
This skill didn’t give me any personal ability—it only buffed allies.
Now I couldn’t even hide alone. I’d have to keep running around screaming whenever monsters appeared to buff Kalion.
From Kalion’s perspective, I’d just look like a useless troublemaker who kept running off.
‘So now I’m a troll… a real troll.’
I had lived carefully, never being a burden to others.
And now this cursed system had turned me into exactly that.
