If it would help understand emotions, he wanted to make this child cry again.

The saying goes that it’s better to cry than to hold it in. He felt that if he could see it firsthand, he would understand why that was better.

Moreover, this girl seemed to be the most emotionally expressive person Dong-hwa had ever seen.

Observing from the side would surely be helpful.

“Please give her to me.”

“You… Are you crazy?”

In an instant, a comrade who had built a close bond of friendship transformed into a shameless scoundrel targeting his sister.

“I’m not crazy.”

“Don’t call me ‘hyung’ anymore. You should know your limits. How dare you mess with family.”

Tae-rim firmly refused.

“What do you mean by messing with? I will cherish Tae-rim hyung’s sister. I’ll make her cry and laugh.”

“What? You’ll make my sister cry? Are you picking a fight?”

“Didn’t you say it’s better to cry than to hold it in? I’ll help with that.”

“Stop while I’m still talking nicely. I’m barely holding back from hitting you right now. Just go to sleep.”

“But I’m not sleepy.”

“What the hell. You’re not even asking for an introduction, but to have her? What kind of thief are you?”

“I think you’ve misunderstood. I just meant to show me your sister. She’s just a 10-year-old girl, isn’t she?”

“Ugh, it’s my fault for showing you. You. Erase what you just saw from your memory. Every single bit. Don’t you dare make a move on my sister!”

Tae-rim growled, looking ready to throw a punch. He seemed to be completely ignoring Dong-hwa’s words.

Dong-hwa couldn’t understand why Tae-rim wouldn’t show him his sister when he just wanted to cherish her like Tae-rim did.

It wasn’t romantic love, just a desire to buy her candy. He couldn’t understand why Tae-rim was so alarmed.

Moreover, since she was the sister of Tae-rim, the most important person to Dong-hwa, he wouldn’t treat her carelessly.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that getting closer to Tae-rim’s family would make it easier to stick around Tae-rim, so he became stubborn.

“Got it? Chae Dong-hwa, answer me. I asked if you understood.”

“No, I don’t.”

“You little…”

For the next few days, Dong-hwa persistently asked Tae-rim to show him his sister. Every time, Tae-rim absolutely refused and pretended not to hear.

Then they encountered a group of monsters, and taking advantage of the chaotic moment, Dong-hwa unilaterally proposed a bet.

“Tae-rim hyung. Let’s bet on who can take down more. If I win, show me your sister.”

“Are you crazy? You’re still on about that? Wake up.”

“Are you afraid you’ll lose?”

“What? Why would I lose to you?”

“You seem to lack confidence. Then I’ll go easy on you.”

“That’s not it! Fine, let’s do it! I can’t believe this.”

Tae-rim’s competitive spirit kicked in and he accepted the bet.

And as a result of the battle, Dong-hwa won by a narrow margin.

It was because Tae-rim got too excited and made small mistakes.

“Think about it again, Chae Dong-hwa. She’s all grown up now and not that cute anymore. You’ll be disappointed when you see her.”

“I was already disappointed by that video. It doesn’t matter.”

“Ah, this is really driving me crazy.”

Eventually, they made a promise to go see Tae-rim’s sister as soon as they got out of the dungeon.

But on the way, a guerrilla gate opened.

Tae-rim, who was sucked in instantly, never returned.

After that, Dong-hwa frantically searched for Tae-rim.

While going in and out of dungeons looking for Tae-rim, he occasionally thought of his younger sister.

Along with the naturally postponed promise.

He could have asked Myung-hyun, Tae-rim’s father, but he didn’t feel like it. If he met her that way, Tae-rim might get angry when he returned later.

For some reason, he was wary of meeting his sister. Although Tae-rim’s sister was important, Tae-rim, who was the key to his memories, was more important.

For five years, he lived almost forgetting about Tae-rim’s sister. Then he recently remembered her again.

‘No. You have to come. If you come, I can do quests, receive buffs, and earn coins. And…’

The moment he saw Bom speaking urgently, he couldn’t understand why that girl came to mind.

That girl who cried her eyes out, saying don’t go, don’t abandon her.

‘I’ll harvest lots of fresh vegetables and prepare good items for you. I got a 3-second sleeping bag today. It’s an amazing item that lets you fall asleep in just 3 seconds. Oh, and I’ll level up quickly to give you lots of buffs. Don’t you honestly like Spring Campground, Hunter-nim?’

Bom wasn’t as expressive as Tae-rim’s sister, nor was she a young child. Her hair was short, and she gave the strong impression of struggling but trying her best despite being clumsy.

But why did she come to mind?

Because she seemed to regret him leaving the campground?

Because it sounded like she was begging him to come back?

‘S-so… Be careful not to get hurt… You’re the only customer, so… So…’

He burst out laughing at her fumbling, seemingly at a loss for words.

‘Yes. Of course I’ll come back. I like it here too.’

It was strange that she was trying so hard when he was obviously going to return, and it was odd that she was belatedly being cautious after saying everything she wanted to say.

No, rather than that, it was a softer and warmer emotion.

Tender and gentle…

Whatever it was, at that moment, he wanted to grant Bom’s wish. It was like an instinct to be generous to something delicate.

“This is difficult.”

Dong-hwa thought deeply but couldn’t quite pinpoint what the emotion was.

What was certain was that the emotion made him think of Tae-rim’s sister. The feeling was very similar.

“I’ve been looking for this for a while.”

Dong-hwa finished his reconnaissance and found the gift he had promised Bom.

There were berries between the rocks. They shimmered like crystals.

[‘Chae Dong-hwa (S)’ has obtained ‘Cynthia (S)’.]

Thanks to his high gathering skill level, he obtained the berries without damage. They only grew in small amounts, so he couldn’t get a large quantity.

Tae-rim’s sister liked these too. Since they were delicious enough to make even a child stop crying, Bom would surely like them too.

* * *

When Seok-hyeon woke up, he felt something strange. He felt power overflowing within his body. He opened his status window to check the reason.

[Small Tent Effect – HP Recovery Speed +120%

Spring Campground Area Effect – MP Recovery Speed +10%, Movement Speed +10%, Strength +5

Spring Campground Quest Effect – Critical Hit +20, Defense +10, Accuracy +10%]

“What on earth is going on…”

“Is there a problem, guest?”

Just as he was marveling to himself, Dolly passed by.

“Ah, excuse me. I got some strange buffs, what are these?”

“They’re the owner’s skills.”

“The owner, I mean the campground owner is an S-rank buffer?!”

“No. The campground owner.”

“So who is this campground owner?”

“The campground owner.”

“I’m asking who the campground owner is.”

“If you ask who the campground owner is, I can only say it’s the campground owner, and if you ask what that is again…”

“Alright. You don’t need to explain further.”

Seok-hyeon stopped asking questions. He felt like the same words would just be repeated if he kept asking.

Anyway, if it’s the owner of this campground, these buffs seem to have been given by the woman he saw yesterday. Only buffer-type hunters can grant buffs.

Moreover, percentage buffs can only be given by high-ranking buffers.

Seeing that many are over 10%, it might even be S-rank or higher ability.

‘Does this make sense?’

There were no S-rank buffers among domestic hunters yet. If there were, guilds would have been in an uproar trying to recruit them.

‘Is she hiding in a dungeon like this because that’s bothersome…?’

High-ranking hunters could earn a lot of money in a short time. But not everyone was passionate about hunter work.

Especially, many people were afraid of even encountering monsters.

They utilized their abilities in ways other than combat. For example, setting up in a dungeon like this and doing coin business with a strange concept like a “campground”…

“Well done, Choco! How did you find such a talented person!”

Now he understood. She was one of those rumored powerful hidden talents!

“Woof!”

[‘Seol Mo-gyeon (S)’ flips you off, saying what nonsense are you talking about.] [‘Seol Mo-gyeon (S)’ urges you to leave soon.]

This damn beagle only barks “woof woof” in front of me while growling in front of the owner. Judging by its words, it seemed this mutt hadn’t noticed anything.

“You really are thick-headed. Anyway, this is great. Everything will be solved if we scout the owner. Leave it to me.”

Seok-hyeon was an expert in external activities. Of course, that included scouting.

If he scouted the woman as a Hwarang, Mo-gyeon would return to the guild as well.

‘But how should I entice her?’

Seok-hyeon first went to the river and caught some fish.

[‘Ji Seok-hyeon (A)’ activates ‘Eagle Eye (A)’.] [‘Blue Starlight Rare Fish (A)’ receives a critical hit.]

His accuracy was already good, but perhaps due to the buffs, every shot landed as a critical hit. He immediately went to find the owner with an armful of fish.

“Owner! Please accept this!”

There was no easier way to gain favor than with food. The woman who was hoeing in the vegetable garden accepted the fish with a welcoming face.

“It’s for the quest, right? Thank you, I’ll gladly accept.”

Seok-hyeon, who had intended to lower the woman’s guard and gain her favor with a gift offensive, was puzzled.

Although she said thank you, her attitude was strangely matter-of-fact.

Was it too small a gift?

Moreover, quest? What does she mean?

“What do you mean by quest?”

“Huh? Weren’t you giving me this for the Spring Campground quest?”

Come to think of it, he seemed to have seen something about a Spring Campground quest among the buff notifications.

Seok-hyeon belatedly checked the quest window.

[☀Spring Campground Quest

– Try catching some fish. (Completed)

– Completion Reward: Movement Speed +5] [☀Spring Campground Quest

– Try taking a nap in a hammock.

– Completion Reward: Critical Hit +5] [☀Spring Campground Quest

– Try asking the owner to grill fish for you.

– Completion Reward: Intelligence +5]

Now that he looked, the Spring Campground Quest effect was literally a buff effect given for completing quests. He had unknowingly already completed a quest, so the buff had been applied.

A hunter who directly creates quests and gives buffs as rewards. And all the quests were camping-related, fitting the campground concept.

“Wow! These Spring Campground quests are amazing!”

While thinking she was obsessed with the concept, he couldn’t stop marveling at her incredible ability.

The era of buffers going out of their way to give buffs was over. It was a system where those who wanted buffs had to work for them.

This must be the leisure of someone who knows their own abilities well!

We absolutely can’t let this hunter slip away!

A strange glint of madness flashed in Seok-hyeon’s eyes.