31The second word overturns the game board (Episode 70)
A huge bird swept over the place where they were..
“Is it a griffin??”
“No, it's just a big bird.!”
- fucking big bird!
- This is big bird!
- Something struck me while I was sleeping lol
- Snowman's expression haha
Strangely enough, the bird passed by Kang Seol and his group, and all the firewood was caught in its claws and crumbled to pieces..
“Damn it! Get picked!”
Rattling-! rattly-!
Karen tried to pull out her sword from the sword stance, but ended up not being able to pull it out and just flinched. Like a high-level mime, like someone with a breakdown somewhere.
If I pull out my sword, will there be a big problem?.
“Let's pick! Please, let’s pick it.!”
“Karen! There is no time for that! First, prepare for the next shock.!”
“Okay… First of all, I have to hit it with the sheath of a sword..”
Snowfall's insight has been activated..
[Koopa: Predator of Shadow Canyon]
Grade: Rare
estimated level : 15~24
The corpse hawk, the species from which the koopa is derived, has quite unique characteristics among birds of prey..
The point is that growth varies depending on what is fed. The reason Koopa is able to dominate the skies of Shadow Canyon is because he feeds on the numerous strong creatures spread throughout the canyon..
This hardy corpse hawk appeared in Shady Canyon one day, and gradually grew to the top of the canyon's ecosystem..
It's an ugly, foul-smelling corpse hawk, but if you encounter Koopa in the canyon, you'll need to avoid being targeted by his claws. There are no rumors yet of the Koopa eating humans, but that may be because those who would make the rumor all ended up in the Koopa's stomach..
Basic abilities: [Claw 2], [Find Food 1], [Will Deprivation Cry 2], [Rock Throw 1], [Steel Body 1]
Special Abilities: [Eat Corpse 1], [Nutrition Runaway 1]
Snowfall was surprised that the bird of prey that had just appeared was one of the predators of this wide shaded canyon, but what was even more surprising was the name of this bird of prey..
“Koopa? It's a cuppa?”
Grumpy look-!
“come! hurry….”
“No, I think it's over?”
“…what?”
Kiruuuuk…
Contrary to the expected behavior of Koopa's grand appearance, he disappeared once through the bonfire..
“What is it, bland?….”
“It would have been dangerous if we kept bumping into each other. We can't fly and this is a canyon, a graveyard for the wingless. And even though you can't even draw a sword, you're full of confidence..”
“You said you couldn't draw your sword, but you didn't say you couldn't fight, right? Of course, it's frustrating because I can't draw my sword..”
“Either that or that, hmm. hey! Snowman. What should I do??”
“…uh?”
“Shall we rekindle the fire? Or should I look for somewhere else since this place seems exposed??”
“Let's find another place. If possible, go to a place with a roof..”
“The canyon is full of holes, so you can find any place to enter. Even if the owner is there, it's okay to make it for dinner..”
While Jamard was packing his luggage, Karen approached Kang Seol..
“what's the matter?”
“huh?”
“Are you because you were surprised by the attack? Should I have woken you up earlier??”
“No, that didn't matter. She noticed it before she came anyway. Because it's funny to sleep peacefully in the shadow canyon.”
“But why are you so mesmerized??”
“That's it.”
Kang Seol continued his thoughts and spoke..
“…no. It must be an illusion.”
“What are you kidding me??”
“First of all, I have to find a place to sleep again, so let's talk slowly..”
Snowfall was blaming Karen, but it wasn't actually an illusion..
It couldn't have been an illusion.
‘Koopa, he's alive.?’
This Shadow Canyon was the place where Kiri, the snow horse and the bird of prey hunter, lost his life..
It is also the place where Koopa, the corpse hawk who was his faithful summon and followed his master well, remains alone..
‘How can this happen?….’
* * *
It was a long time ago.
There was nothing more draining than looking back on memories that were more than ten years old..
Kururu… kuru…
- Snowman, why are you hawking a corpse? The party takes a sanity penalty due to the smell..
“Sorry, but Koopa is my pet bird of prey..”
- …Next time, never do a job that involves summoning beasts. Performance should come first. Corpse hawks eat a lot of food and grow slowly. Plus, he doesn't listen well, he's vicious, and what's the smell like? No matter how you look at it, there are only flaws.
“I was pushed out of the nest by my other siblings. If I hadn't collected it, Koopa would have died..”
- Why are you making that your main focus? Just do it in moderation and release it, that's all..
“You follow me. Koopa will definitely be of great help later..”
- There are so many attractive birds of prey, but why bother raising a corpse hawk... I think those bugs and those barely-capable claws will help you on your adventure.?
The masked man was right..
A bird of prey hunter was a hunter who used birds of prey as his main summons..
Many things make up a bird of prey hunter, including excellent archery skills and knowledge for survival, but the most important of them all is the bird of prey the hunter handles..
Each of the numerous birds of prey had its own characteristics..
Some birds of prey have strong resistance to the elements, while others can break iron with their beaks..
All of these types were beloved by bird of prey hunters..
However, unlike other popular species, the carcass hawk was completely ignored by bird of prey hunters. The reason is because of the shortcomings the man just mentioned..
Snowfall Kiri was an unusual bird of prey hunter who chose this corpse hawk as a companion..
That's why players called him a different species..
At this time, Snowman was one of the ordinary players who had not yet made a name for himself among players..
So the adventure continued, and Kiri's Koopa grew bigger day by day..
Now, Koopa has grown to the point where it gives off a heavy feeling when placed on Snowfall's right arm..
It was just that time..
Kiri's party entered Shadow Canyon..
On the fourth night, they slept in a suitable bed on the edge of the canyon..
[you died.]
And what they greeted instead of breakfast was this message.
Even after a long time, there were quite a few parties that met the same ending as Kiri's party, and the exact reason for their death was still unknown..
- If you fall asleep in Shadow Canyon, you will die..
Only these evil rumors remained, causing players to turn to Shadow Canyon..
* * *
Snowfall was convinced that the huge bird that had just appeared was a Koopa, and paradoxically, she couldn't believe that the Koopa had grown that much..
‘Koopa, you're alive!.’
On the one hand, I was glad to see him, but since I didn't come here as Kiri, I looked at the spot Koopa had left with mixed feelings..
“what's the matter?”
Karen must have thought that Kangseol's reaction was strange, so she put her face right in front of Kangseol's nose..
“master!”
“ah! Uh, why.”
“Wake! come this far….”
“Yeah, I was thinking about something else for a moment..”
They moved around looking for a place to rest for a while..
“I found it, let’s put it here..”
Jamard guided them to a place where the group could rest..
Tuk.
“Phew….”
“Are you tired? Let's take a break again.”
After putting down his luggage, Snowfall sighs. As he was about to start a fire out of habit, he put his firewood back into his belongings..
“Don't start a fire?”
“cold?”
“The terrain blocks the wind a bit, so it’s not that bad, but… Are you expecting that bird to come again??”
“Yeah, I'm reluctant.”
“what?”
Snowfall found Koopa's behavior strange..
‘Why did you just leave??’
At that time, the place where Kangseol and his party were located was a very easy place to attack from Koopa's perspective. However, he suddenly appeared and all he did was scare me..
‘Do humans not eat??’
That was written in the information on Koopa that the Insight Eye could see through..
However, this assumption was meaningless because not all information could be trusted. In fact, it was mentioned that way in the description..
“Why did it appear??”
“That's right... maybe… fire? Isn’t it fire??”
“yes?”
“How could there be a fire in the canyon? It's all adventurers and hunters..”
Not starting a fire in rough terrain was basic survival common sense. Because monsters worse than the cold were able to see the light and come to me..
“Even though he showed up after seeing the fire, his actions afterwards are a bit strange..”
“Were you thinking about that? I... again... There's a lot of worry, my master.”
“First of all, I guess I'll have to spend the night without a light today..”
“doesn't care. Anyway, I brought thermal insulation too..”
Insulating stones were a necessity for adventurers, made for situations like this. It was a great device that helped you maintain your body temperature, allowing you to feel warmth just by holding it in your arms..
As Kang Seol hugged the warming stone, she felt herself falling into sleep. But, is it because of what she just experienced? She couldn't fall asleep all the way.
Tuk.
Karen gently placed her hand on Kang Seol’s head..
“Leave it alone. Nothing will happen.”
“okay.”
Only after her hand touched him did Kang Seol lower his head. The eventful first night in Shadow Canyon ended like that..
* * *
The next day, Kangseol and his party began to search the terrain of the canyon in earnest..
“What's so big?”
“Fortunately, there is a wide road. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been strange if I fell down at any time..”
“Trolls have a positive side too..”
“The fairy has a lot to complain about. Karuna was her quiet friend.”
While Karen and Jamard were talking, Snowfall moved forward..
‘You came out... enemy.’
Karen followed and said as she saw where Snowfall was looking. There were gray-skinned goblins who were wary of the surroundings..
“They're goblins..”
“okay.”
It wasn't uncommon to encounter goblins on adventures. As monsters that appear regularly in fantasy worlds, they appear in many adventures and in many terrains..
Although it was tricky that its power varied greatly depending on the time it appeared and the terrain, it was not a monster to worry about..
Crrrrr…
wow!
Goblins talking among themselves.
“What should I do? Deal with it? Looks like scouts?”
“I'm wondering if it's okay to make a fuss.”
“I'm afraid the bird will fly?”
“Also, I'm afraid the target will sense the commotion and hide deeply..”
“There is a possibility that.”
In Pandea, it was not possible to receive huge rewards just by killing all the monsters in the adventure..
Additional rewards are given only when you obtain a meaningful enemy or object in an adventure, but even if you catch a monster, there is no additional reward other than a small amount of experience points..
‘As a result, it prevents it from becoming a daily wage, but.’
If the player can handle all the enemies alone, from that moment on, the things prepared for adventurers lose their meaning..
If the additional rewards related to kills are excessive, this phenomenon can be accelerated by monopolizing all the rewards, which is systematically blocked..
“hmm….”
Karen looked at Kang Seol's seriously worried expression..
“why?”
Kang Seol felt her gaze and asked.
“I just thought you were enthusiastic..”
“Well, since your life depends on it, you have to work hard. Let's go round and round. There is no reason to waste time without information..”
“good!”
Snow and his party continued their life in the canyon like that..
They encountered various types of monsters as they went, but they were able to search a wide area because they avoided collisions as much as possible..
However, unlike the efforts, the search did not produce results..
It had been five days since I came to the canyon..
“eww… When can I start cooking and eating it? If you're doing this for the big bird, just….”
“Hold on, I’m tired too.”
Meals play a bigger part in the adventure than I thought. Since time immemorial, the thing that brought me the greatest pleasure when repeating simple tasks was mealtime..
Kiruuuk…
Meanwhile, Koopa toured the skies above the canyon..
Snow and his party carefully searched for traces of the spider without being noticed by Koopa..
“uh? This is the place?”
Karen opened her eyes wide and grabbed Snowfall's robe..
“what?”
“The spot where the goblins were found at that time. The road leads here.”
“It was half a turn. Five days and a half... Time is running out?”
“The most frustrating thing is that I couldn't even see a spider's web, let alone a spider..”
“You know all that without even having to point it out..”
“hmm… What's wrong?.”
The party looked at the place where the canyon goblin scouts had stayed..
Karen was checking to see if they had left anything behind, and Jamard was guessing where the skirmishers had headed..
After some time passed, what I heard was, as expected, the sound of losing strength..
“Can't see anything special? What's there, troll??”
“Not really. But where did it go? For goblins, they didn't leave any traces..”
“Eh? No way? Well, they should still be here..”
It was then.
[Sensitivity is triggered..]
[find traces of something.]
snowfall told them.
“…Come here, everyone, come this way..”
“why?”
“I think I found it.”
Hearing Kang Seol's words, Jamard and Karen quickly approached him..
“what? That's really true?”
“I found it?”
Instead of answering, Kang Seol pointed to something with his finger..
“uh?”
“Hoo….”
Jamard and Karen looked at the tips of Snow's fingers and laughed..
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