Feeling embarrassed that I had pushed too hard, I pretended not to notice, but he tilted his head and focused on tightening my waist again.

He inserted his index finger to create a small gap before finishing the adjustment.

“This should be good enough. You can take it off now.”

“Thank you. You’re taking such good care of me. It’s very reassuring.”

He even helped me take off my backpack. Come to think of it, while his speech is stiff, his actions are kind. He helps wholeheartedly when asked.

Why did my brother treat this person as strange and tell me not to reveal that I’m his sister?

He’s such a nice person.

“I’m just following what I learned from my senior. That’s how they used to take care of me.”

“Your senior?”

“Yes. When I first awakened, I knew nothing, but that person helped me a lot.”

That senior… could it be my brother?

I heard that Hunter Chae Dong Hwa entered the association right after awakening and completing the academy.

If he’s following the way my brother helped him, it’s no wonder he’s treating me like a child.

Before becoming a hunter, he always took care of me in place of our busy parents.

“They sound like a good person…”

“Yes, they were a good person.”

After this brief exchange, a moment of silence fell. It felt awkward to ask more about it or add anything.

“Ah! What should we pack for food?”

I clapped my hands to change the awkward atmosphere and switched the topic.

“How about a cool fish cake soup with radish?”

“Sounds good.”

I bustled about packing the food. Better pack for three people just in case.

‘But was the tent spacious enough?’

[Lightweight backpacking tent

− Suitable for 2 people

− Setup instructions (Expand▼)

It was at least suitable for two people. The medium-sized tent used in campgrounds is for two people but can comfortably fit four.

Since the tent would act as a shelter while maintaining the skill, it seemed we’d have to share the tent.

Putting two tents in the backpack would make it over 10kg with other supplies, and I couldn’t make the person who helped me sleep outside.

‘But is it okay…?’

Even though it was an unavoidable situation, I wondered if it was alright to sleep in the same tent with him.

‘Come on, what could happen?’

But I quickly shook my head and erased my anxiety.

We’d each be in our sleeping bags anyway, so even if we rolled around in our sleep, we wouldn’t touch.

Moreover, someone who seems interested in nothing but quest buffs like that probably wouldn’t do anything to me.

Though I haven’t known him long, he seemed trustworthy to me.

* * *

The day came. It was the first time in a long while that I’d be going outside the campground.

I thought I wouldn’t have a chance to go out until I reached level 10.

“Master, how many egg salad sandwiches did you pack?”

“Five.”

“Did you pack the equipment? Will the crafting hammer be okay? The monster hides might be tougher than expected, can you handle them with that?”

As I was packing my bags to leave the campground, Teddy was fidgeting anxiously.

“I probably won’t need to hunt monsters. I’m bringing this just in case we encounter any, to use Pack to restrain them. Plus, I have someone to help me.”

“But still…”

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa had already finished his preparations and was leaning against a tree, waiting for me.

“It’ll be very cold at night…”

“I’ll be fine. Please take good care of the campground while I’m gone. Can you do that?”

“Yes, Master.”

I waved goodbye as I left the campground. Teddy watched until I was out of sight.

As I turned the corner, Teddy’s figure completely disappeared. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa approached my side.

“I’ll set up the group first.”

“Okay.”

The system had a ‘group’ function that bundled multiple people into one team.

When a group is set, it shares what skills each member used, and you can designate skill targets as a group to apply group buffs.

[‘Chae Dong Hwa (S)’ has sent a group invitation to ‘Yu Bom (F)’.

Accept / Decline] [Group has been formed.]

“I’ll try using the Invincible Backpacker skill.”

“Alright.”

[‘Yu Bom (F)’ has used ‘Invincible Backpacker (S)’.] [Invincible Backpacking Quest

− Read the LNT guidelines thoroughly.

− Reward: 3 hours of invincibility]

A quest arrived immediately.

“What’s this? The quest says to read the LNT guidelines thoroughly?”

I encountered something unfamiliar from the first hurdle.

“It stands for Leave No Trace, meaning to leave no trace when visiting nature. It’s an essential principle that should be applied to all outdoor activities regardless of place and situation.”

“Ah, I see.”

[Seven LNT Ethical Guidelines

1. Plan ahead and prepare

2. Camp on durable and stable surfaces

3. Dispose of waste properly and minimize trash

4. Leave what you find

5. Minimize campfire impacts

6. Respect wildlife monsters

7. Be considerate of other visitors]

When I opened the detailed explanation, the guidelines appeared. If it could be completed just by reading, it was an easy difficulty.

[‘Yu Bom (F)’ has completed the ‘Invincible Backpacking Quest’.] [You have received ‘3 hours of invincibility’ as a reward.]

“I got 3 hours of invincibility. The quest was easier than I thought.”

“That’s good. Where should we go first?”

“We need to fill out the plant guide and capture monsters. The condition for the midnight theater manager is a dark attribute monster, and for the outdoor book café manager, it’s intelligence over 50. What do you think we should do first?”

“Hmm…”

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa fell into thought for a moment. Soon, he organized his thoughts and spoke.

“Monsters with high intelligence usually use magic as their main attack. In the Blue Starlight Valley, there are typically elemental type monsters.”

“But elemental types…”

“Yes. They only appear in the evening. They become much stronger then, receiving power from the starlight, so we need to be careful.”

I remembered hearing about this from my mom once.

The monsters living in the Blue Starlight Valley become stronger after sunset, receiving power from the dungeon.

This was one of the reasons why this place was an S-class dungeon.

That’s why raids or expeditions aren’t conducted in the Blue Starlight Valley in the evening. Moreover, if you’re really unlucky, you might encounter a mid-boss level monster like an elemental spirit.

They use ranged attacks, making them difficult to evade.

‘Mom was a special case though…’

Mom used to roam this dungeon day and night. That’s how she went missing while wandering alone.

“For today, it would be best to search for dark attribute monsters in the cave while collecting plants. Most plants in the cave will be ones you haven’t collected yet, Yu Bom.”

“Yes, that sounds good.”

Seeing Hunter Chae Dong Hwa walking with straight shoulders, fully armed, I already felt reassured. No matter how I look at it, I think I found a great bodyguard cum navigator.

As we went up along the stream, we saw a tall cliff, and above it, the tops of lush trees were visible. He stopped in front of it.

“Do we need to climb up here?”

“Yes.”

“How do we climb?”

I thought we might be able to climb if there were sturdy vines or something we could use as a ladder, but looking around, I couldn’t see anything like that.

“Please wait a moment.”

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa gazed at the sky. I didn’t know what he was trying to do, but I quietly waited and followed his gaze to the sky.

For some reason, the planet and the island seemed closer than usual today.

‘Is that an island where monsters live?’

Just as I was getting bored wondering how long I’d have to wait, something like a large bird flew over our heads.

The bird’s shadow was cast on the ground, reflecting the light shining down.

[‘Blue Starlight Griffin (A)’ has appeared.]

It wasn’t just a large bird. It was a monster with the upper body of a bird and the lower body of a lion.

[‘Chae Dong Hwa (S)’ is using ‘Shadow Stealing (S)’.]

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa reached out towards the griffin’s shadow. Black energy surged, and the shadow stopped.

The main body flew away, leaving its shadow behind.

[‘Chae Dong Hwa (S)’ is using ‘Shadow Creation (S)’.]

The shadow began to swell larger and larger. Like a flat picture being rendered in 3D, a gray mass rose up and soon took the form of a griffin.

“You can ride it now.”

“This? What is this?”

I understood that he had used a skill.

But what kind of skill is it? Summoning?

“I stole the monster’s shadow and temporarily copied its abilities. Since I only copied its stats, I can’t use monster skills.”

“So… we’re going to ride this up?”

“Yes.”

The monster was large. It looked like it could carry about five people on its back.

‘But what if I fall off while riding?’

There were no safety devices like on an airplane, and I had never thought of monsters as a means of transportation, so I couldn’t help but worry.

Even though it was a shadow-ized monster, its sharp beak and claws still looked threatening.

“Excuse me for a moment. This has a time limit, so we’ll have to wait again if it wears off.”

“Huh? Wait, Hunter-nim?!”

As I hesitated, he lifted my body. I found myself in a princess carry position, something I had never experienced as an adult.

“Ah!”

Startled, I wrapped my arms around his neck as he immediately jumped onto the bird. Then he sat me down in the front seat and sat close behind me.

“You can hold onto the mane.”

“No, wait…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll hold you from behind.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the bird flapped its wings. A harsh wind whirled around us.

It felt like we were tilting backward, and then suddenly my body lurched forward. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa’s thighs and arms were firmly wrapped around my body, so I didn’t lose balance.

The shadow-made griffin circled once before taking off in earnest. I had my eyes tightly shut, then slightly opened them.

We were already so high up that my head was spinning.

“The cave is a bit far from here, so we’ll move there while we’re up here.”

“O-okay!”

“Are you very scared?”