WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Alyo

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Surviving as a Warrior in a TRPG World ◈

Chapter 65: The Way Back (2)

──────

After hearing the Grizzly Owl's roar, Gerik had run blindly in the exact opposite direction from the exit. It seemed that had naturally brought him back near the ruins where they had first camped.

Perhaps because the familiar sight brought him some comfort, the composure Gerik had lost to his fear of the Grizzly Owl slowly returned.

Then a bold thought crossed his mind.

'If the Grizzly Owl had been roaming around in a mad rage for this long...'

There was no way his companions would have dared return here.

With a magical beast driven mad after losing its mate wandering nearby, it would have been far more reasonable to abandon their supplies and leave the forest at once than risk returning to the campsite.

'Then... the camping gear might still be there.'

Once that thought occurred to him, Gerik did not hesitate. He headed straight for the campsite despite the danger.

'It's there...!!'

Just as Gerik had expected, the camping gear remained exactly as it had been when they left. Not only his own equipment, which he had been unable to take with him, but his companions' belongings as well.

'I'm saved...!!'

Excited, Gerik quickly gathered his pack and began stuffing every useful item left at the campsite into it.

'First, the poorly tied-up Grizzly Owl claws...'

Gerik unpacked his backpack and leather bag, then wrapped the Grizzly Owl's claws tightly.

Once the sharp claws that had troubled him throughout the journey were safely stored inside the leather, he no longer had to worry about being cut. Gerik finally relaxed.

With the safety issue handled, Gerik frantically gathered up every supply he could see, including the camouflage sheet, tent, Sleeping Bag, dried rations, Oilwood oil, torches, and spare waterskins.

'Can I even carry all this...?'

Drawing on as much camping experience as he could, he packed everything down tightly and barely managed to solve the problem of space.

But weight was another matter. Gerik lifted the pack, worried whether he could carry so many supplies.

"Ghh...!!"

The heavy load began pressing down on Gerik's shoulders. But once again, the Wild Blessing he had received in the ruined world helped him.

Thanks to his enhanced strength and health, Gerik could easily carry a load that he would never have been able to lift before.

'At last, I can leave this damn place.'

After finishing his preparations, Gerik grabbed his map and compass with a look of utter disgust.

'Don't push myself by trying to find the way with the map alone.'

Maps in this world were much rougher than those from his previous life, and without studying them separately, they were difficult to read.

So rather than relying entirely on the map to find his way back, Gerik decided to use it only to retrace the route he had taken before.

"Let's see..."

Holding the map and compass, Gerik walked toward the entrance to the ruins.

As he tried to recall the route based on the familiar scenery, his enhanced intelligence, or more precisely, his dramatically improved memory, immediately began laying out every path he had traveled as vividly as if he had walked it only moments ago.

He remembered exactly which direction he had turned at each junction and where the dangerous terrain had been. It was as clear as if he had seen it yesterday. His perception, which constantly informed him of his surroundings, was an added bonus.

'Now I'm sure.'

Through repeated experience, Gerik had become certain of one fact.

The enhanced intelligence he had gained through the awakening procedure had not evenly raised his intellectual abilities in every area. It had been heavily focused on strengthening his memory.

'Biased or not, it's good for me either way.'

With that thought settled, Gerik used the map and compass as supporting tools and quickly began retracing the path from his memories.

'Can it really be this easy...?'

The Boundary Forest was called the graveyard of novice adventurers. Yet Gerik crossed the infamous harsh terrain at a pace equal to Katrin's, despite her being a professional guide.

After Gerik had marched for some time...

"...Hm?!"

Suddenly, goosebumps rose on Gerik's arm as an unpleasant feeling washed over him. It felt as though something dangerous was lurking nearby.

He did not know why, and he had no logical basis for it, but Gerik somehow felt that he should not hesitate.

So he put on the camouflage sheet, sprayed odor remover, and quickly hid among the nearby bushes.

"Snort!! Squeal...!!"

'...!!'

Not long after Gerik hid himself, a group of Boarman warriors wandered past him with the corpses of Goblins they had hunted slung over their backs.

'Just as I thought... it wasn't a coincidence.'

Gerik realized that the ominous feeling from before had not merely been his imagination. At the same time, he naturally recalled a stat he had seen in his status window not long ago.

Perception: 5 (An ability that affects awareness of the surrounding environment, danger detection, and intuition.)

Gerik was certain. The feeling from before had been a warning from the enhanced perception granted by the Psionic Awakener, alerting him to danger before it arrived.

'...This is practically a superpower.'

Based on his experiences over the past few days, Gerik trembled as he realized anew just how much he had gained from the Transcendent Procedure.

He had focused only on the intelligence that had pulled him out of death's pit, but perception, which warned him of danger in advance, was just as incredible a weapon.

'That's enough for today.'

Gerik quickly made his way through the Boundary Forest by retracing his memories, but decided to rest when he saw three knots burn down, marking the passage of time.

'This place is safe.'

Before, he would have been terrified that an enemy might leap out from the unseen darkness and ambush him. But now, Gerik had the dependable watchman of enhanced perception.

Thanks to an ability that warned him before danger arrived, he could rest with a far more peaceful mind.

The following days repeated in much the same way.

Whenever Gerik retraced the path he had taken and his perception sent a warning, he quietly hid to avoid battle. Once the danger had passed, he silently hurried onward again.

Whenever he reached a place where he had camped with the group before, he dug a shelter pit and lay down inside to recover his strength.

Of course, Gerik did not forget what Katrin had taught him. He cut into the trunk of a Blacksap Oak and collected the water that flowed out.

After wandering alone for several days, Gerik finally crossed the Boundary Forest and reached the Outer Forest.

The moment he stepped into the Outer Forest, the pitch-black darkness lifted, and a ray of sunlight struck Gerik's face.

The light was incredibly faint, but after wandering through darkness for days, it felt like salvation.

"Ghh...!!"

That relief instantly loosened the tension Gerik had kept tightly wound over the past few days. At the same time, overwhelming mental exhaustion rushed over him.

He could even feel his perception, which had protected him by constantly sending sharp warnings over the past several days, noticeably dulling.

'...Just endure a little longer.'

Even so, Gerik did not let his guard down. From experience, he knew that terrible accidents often happened during the final stretch.

Had he not nearly fallen to his death after relaxing when his desperate battle with the Grizzly Owl was nearing its end? So he resisted the urge to collapse here and decided to keep moving.

'Stonecreek is only half a day away, too.'

Muttering inwardly as though encouraging himself, he slowly dragged his heavy legs forward once more.

"...Hm?"

While walking toward Stonecreek for some time, something caught Gerik's dulled perception.

When Gerik casually turned his head, a group of adventurers entered his view. There were four of them, and judging by their appearance, they seemed to be a lower-to-mid-ranked Copper Plate party.

Their equipment was impressive enough to remind him of Bruno's party, with whom he had traveled briefly before. Even their smallest movements carried the seasoned skill unique to veterans.

Flinch...!!

The moment the two sides encountered one another, both stopped at the same time without either acting first. Then, as if by agreement, they began warily watching each other amid tense silence.

"..."

After sizing each other up for a while, the adventurers seemed to decide that Gerik was not threatening after seeing his shabby appearance. They gradually relaxed.

But only for a moment. When they noticed the enormous load Gerik was carrying despite his poor appearance, greed slowly crept across their faces.

'Look at these bastards...'

The Gerik from before would have missed that subtle change. But Gerik now had considerable adventuring experience, and his perception had become even sharper through the Psionics procedure.

As a result, he could clearly read that they were not only eyeing his luggage greedily, but beginning to harbor faint killing intent as well.

Having read their ill will, Gerik did not needlessly open his mouth. Only novices did that. Instead, he casually placed a hand on the longsword hanging at his waist.

Then he stared directly into the eyes of the Warrior whom his perception warned him was the most dangerous, carefully watching every one of the opponent's movements.

'If a fight breaks out, how should I deal with them?'

Gerik calmly simulated every possible outcome of a battle and prepared for the worst. Even he found his composure unfamiliar.

'If a fight breaks out... the moment the Warrior at the front attacks, I'll use Charge to get past him, then rush the archer in the back and finish them with Slash.'

That was not all. Gerik also considered sudden developments and prepared countermeasures for every variable in the fight.

Switching to his shortsword if the badly damaged longsword finally broke, escaping with Charge if he was surrounded, even taking an enemy's weapon in the worst-case scenario.

Gerik carefully mapped out every possibility in his mind and finished preparing to kill the adventurers before him.

"..."

Once his thoughts were organized, the killing intent in Gerik's heart naturally transformed into a murderous aura that began spreading in every direction.

The air around them, which had briefly loosened due to the adventurers' carelessness, grew cold again.

That was right. Gerik was no longer a green adventurer.

His desperate battles against powerful enemies and the endless days spent on the edge of death had gradually cloaked him in a chilling presence.

Flinch...!!

Startled by the sudden change in his presence, some of the adventurers who had initially considered robbing him after seeing his ragged appearance flinched.

The most experienced-looking Warrior in the group, whom Gerik had been watching most carefully, reacted the fastest.

Slowly, the veteran Warrior turned to look at the companion standing behind him. It was the relatively lightly armed archer Gerik had marked as his first target.

Not a word was spoken, but their locked gazes clearly carried a warning.

The archer seemed to understand the unspoken signal as well. With a stiff expression, they met the Warrior's eyes and sent a small glance back.

Then, amid the tense silence where battle could break out at any moment, the Warrior Gerik had been watching, the one who looked strongest, slowly raised both hands. Taking a step back, he shouted.

"Hey, what's with this? I was only startled because you suddenly appeared while we were walking! I don't mean to pick a fight with you, so why don't you ease up?"

"..."

If Gerik had been the person he was shortly after reincarnating, he would have responded by exchanging a few words with the man and easing the atmosphere.

But Gerik was no longer an innocent novice. He knew they were backing off not because they were kind people, but because they saw him as someone they could not touch carelessly.

'If I had looked even a little weak, they would have drawn their swords without hesitation.'

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried