TL: xLordFifth
ED:
‘The next question is whether the time needed to focus on Middle Earth will increase…’
The current logout rotation was efficient and reasonable.
But isn’t that only based on a 60-day voyage?
Assuming that it took about 12 days in reality, all participating users could recognize their schedules and focus on Middle Earth.
What if 100 days or 120 days passed, and they didn’t even know the end? What if it was extended by more than 20 or 30 days in reality?
‘Concentration is bound to loosen. There will be users who will not be able to connect due to not only concentration but also other real-life schedules. If there is a hole in the rotation of one or two people like that, the fatigue of users who have to fill it will accumulate, and as a result, the entire user is shaken.’
Even if there was only one hole in a large dam, the crack would quickly spread to the entire dam.
‘It would be better if the end was at least confirmed…. It takes 150 days to reach the new continent! If I did that, I would at least make a new plan.’
What humans struggled with the most was anxiety. And as always, Middle Earth had increased the difficulty of the game by appropriately taking advantage of users’ fears and anxieties.
“Ahhhhh shit! What happened again suddenly-”
“What are you worrying so much all by yourself?”
“Ah, Nara-ssi.”
Leeha was currently in Blue Marlin. It was where Shin Nara, who participated in the expedition as a general inspector of Fibiel, was.
“Is it because of the schedule?”
“Yes. Fernand-ssi is not the only one in a state of panic… At least one person has to move.”
“You always took the lead in times like this. You might need to let someone else do it.”
Shin Nara smirked and scolded Leeha.
It was a tone that was asking why Leeha had to carry the burden. However, her expression was anything but that.
Leeha looked at Shin Nara’s face and smiled.
“You know very well that I am not that kind of person.”
“Heh, that’s right. So Leeha-ssi … Leeha, cough, cough.”
She had an innocent smile. Shin Nara, who almost burst out laughing, managed to swallow her words.
“Me? What?”
“No, no. It’s nothing. It’s all good, but you’re a coach.”
“Huh?”
“S-so! Have you thought about what you’re going to do?”
Shin Nara muttered softly and then quickly changed his mind.
Leeha continued to tilt his head, but his expression became serious again at Shin Nara’s question.
He recognized what the problem was. But what should be the solution?
‘Not now.’
It was something he could definitely say.
The conclusion was that there was no way to overcome this difficulty in the current situation. Therefore, he was able to focus on just one thing.
“We have to keep going.”
“Keep going?”
“Yes. One step at a time. Slowly. In other words, we are walking on parallel beams without being able to see what is ahead. How much longer will the parallel beam continue, and if we do something wrong, we might fall on the parallel beam…. Still, it can’t be helped. The best thing to do in this situation is to move forward slowly.”
Leeha’s voice was resolute.
Shin Nara had round rabbit eyes and slowly nodded.
“That’s right. You know very well.”
“Huh? I know it well?”
“Leeha-ssi watches fencing games, right?”
“O-of course! I also memorized the rules.”
“You memorized it?”
“N-no, I know the rules!”
Leeha, whose relationship with Shin Nara had progressed, almost told her what he had memorized. Shin Nara seemed to have already figured out what Leeha was trying to hide and laughed lightly.
“There is probably no sport played in a narrower arena than fencing. It is a game where I have to point my sword toward my opponent in a limited area… the other person’s skills always seem to magnify and I always feel anxious. It was the same even if I won a medal.”
“Is that so? It doesn’t seem that way.”
“Have you watched my game?”
“T-that- well……”
Leeha wondered if it would have been better if he said, “I memorized the rules so I could watch those games on the internet.”? However, Leeha, who felt somewhat embarrassed, just glossed over it and stopped talking.
Shin Nara, who was staring at the scene silently, opened her mouth again.
“Huhut, anyway, when I am anxious, the coaches say something. We just have to remember one thing. Do you know what it is?”
“Hmm…… swing it?”
“Ah! It’s almost the same. Ding!”
“If it is almost the same, wouldn’t it be ding ding ding?”
“If a sniper doesn’t hit the target, wouldn’t it be a shame? Just because it hits a nearby object, it doesn’t mean it hit, right?”
“Ugh…… truth bomb……”
As Leeha held his chest and acted, Shin Nara burst into laughter.
When the excited atmosphere calmed down somewhat, Shi Nara opened her mouth again.
“This is how we learn, ‘If you rush when you’re nervous, you’re a pushover, if you stop, you’re a fool, and if you turn back, you’re a coward’.”
“Running……?”
“Yes. If you rush at someone just because you’re nervous, you are a pushover. There is no time when it is easier to set the match than at that time.”
“Is stopping in a similar vein?”
“Yes. If you stop, you are bound to show a lot of gaps. Then what about going back? It’s not worth talking about.”
“Hmm, I know what you mean.”
As Leeha listened to Shin Nara, he was able to understand what she was trying to say.
She wanted to encourage and give strength to Leeha.
“So one step at a time, one step at a time. We have no choice but to take it slowly. Because that relaxedness is a disguise as leisure, it actually weighs down the other person and makes them rush to the other person. Leeha-ssi is not a pushover, a fool, or a coward, is he!”
Rather than saying something, it’s about comparing it to a situation you’ve experienced.
Because her speaking skills were not very good, her intention was clearly revealed, but only her sincerity and warmth were well felt by Leeha.
“As expected of Nara-ssi.”
“What?”
“You sound like an Olympic medalist.”
“W-what do you mean? Is it an insult? I did my best to tell it to cheer you up!”
“Haha, it helped! I am just saying thank you.”
They had a relationship where they could exchange jokes without hesitation.
Through his conversation with Shin Nara, Leeha once again became confident in his choice and gained the power to persuade users.
The issue of navigation to the new continent, on which there were differing opinions, was ultimately moved under the temporary conclusion of maintaining the status quo.
Now that people’s trust in Fernand had collapsed, Leeha’s active persuasion had moved people’s minds, but it was Alexander’s words that quelled other users’ anxiety.
[There.]
Rank 1, there were many meanings contained in that title.
And since Lee Jiwon and other rankers also did not complain, the anxiety turned into confidence again.
The morning after the mood reversal was exactly the 30th day of departure from Kraven Coast, and the first ‘thing’ they found in the bright morning sunlight was the treasure of the New Serpent.
“Oh, what is that? Bird?”
“A bird?”
“T-there! Isn’t that a bird? Something moving in the sky!”
Kidd looked at the place where Bobae’s finger was pointing and shaded his eyes with his hands.
A black dot in the sky moved slowly but surely.
“Oh! This is amazing! Is that real?!”
“If there’s a bird, doesn’t it mean there is a land nearby- no, it’s not the new continent, of course, but there’s at least an island? Things like seagulls only fly near land!”
“If we stop by an island, we can resupply food, right?”
“Yes, yes! We’ll be able to review the mana relay tower again! Wouldn’t it be safer if there was another relay point, not just in the middle of the Sea of Dawn?”
Alexander’s confident attitude was not the only factor that influenced the expedition’s decision to continue the voyage.
In addition to Leeha’s logical and reasonable persuasion, there was no doubt that the hypothesis that Hyein, the top spatial mage, also reassured the minds of the users.
‘Even if it is not in the middle of the Sea of Dawn if we find another island to build another mana relay tower, you will have another chance to save our lives.’
If anything happens, everyone could just teleport there.
If it got to the point where they had to abandon the ship and run away, it meant that the quest was on the verge of failure anyway.
Although it was impossible to avoid the enormous quest failure penalty, the power of Hyein’s hypothesis was that there was at least a possibility of avoiding the death penalty.
“Kiskis, it looks like it’s flying this way… it’s very slow.”
As Kijung and Bobae made a fuss, Biyemi and Jin Gonggong, who were nearby, also joined them.
“Slow?”
“Shouldn’t we already be able to roughly see its shape? Be it a seagull or something else. Kiskis, but I still can’t see its shape properly-”
Biyemi’s expression, which had been talking with a smile, gradually began to harden.
Jin Gonggong’s face hardened again. The giant druid’s expression was stiff.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ha-Ha Leea-nim! Call Ha Leeha-nim! Quick-”
Biyemi made an uproar.
Bobae and Kijung were still just nodding and laughing.
It’s speed was slow? The bird? It wasn’t possible! But what did it mean when it appeared to be moving slowly?
‘It means- that the object coming down from the sky was huge!’
In other words, the thing that was flying towards them was huge.
However, even at the distance, it was about the size of a thumbnail.
It’s not that it was small enough that it could be covered with the thumb. To put it in another way….
‘It is so up high that we feel like its speed is slow- and that it looks like the size of a thumbnail?!’
If so, how big would it be when it was above the ship? Biyemi and Jin Gonggong instinctively realized that.
“E-Emergeeeeeency! Emeeeergeeeeeency-! A huge monster appeared above! It’s rapidly descending towards the ship! Everyone, get ready! [Polymorph: Bear].”
Shwiiik, the already big giant turned into a bear and became even bigger. There was one reason why Jin Gonggong chose to transform into a bear.
Kuwoooooooooooh——!
In other words, it was no different than an emergency bell. The users of the New Serpent and the Blue Marlin immediately rushed out onto the deck.
“Uhihihihit! Interesting! Is every day a surprise in this damned sea? It’s so fun!”
“It is not the time to say such things, Petyr-nim! My hawk is so scared that it refuses to fly!”
As Petyr on the deck of the Blue Marlin laughed, the ‘Hunter’ next to him grumbled.
He joined the Minis tournament and was able to be a part of the expedition, with his hawk and Jin Gonggong’s polymorph, they have performed well as scouts so far.
His hawk, who was so courageous, was now sat on his forearm and trembling.
While other users were predicting the size and speed of the monster, there were some users who were not particularly nervous when discussing defense.
One of them was Chiyou, who was aboard the Blue Marlin with Petyr.
“Heuung, indeed…… there is such a monster. It would be easier for us if we could tame just a few of those things. What do you think, Yongyong?”
She walked softly, swaying her waist, and hugged the ‘Tamer’ user’s arm.
“T-that, uh- I-I know what you mean, C-Chiyou-nim, but in order to tame a monster, intimacy is needed first……. I-I wonder if I could tame that guy-”
Aihng, don’t give me such a lukewarm answer. You can tame it, right? I wish you could tame just one and give it to me as a gift. I will treat you well when you come to our store later.”
Her cuteness was like a ripe peach.
Not only did the sweet scent spread just by being near her, but also her combat attire, which was filled with movement like a flower in Middle Earth.
(To be continued…)
TL: xLordFifth
ED:
‘The next question is whether the time needed to focus on Middle Earth will increase…’
The current logout rotation was efficient and reasonable.
But isn’t that only based on a 60-day voyage?
Assuming that it took about 12 days in reality, all participating users could recognize their schedules and focus on Middle Earth.
What if 100 days or 120 days passed, and they didn’t even know the end? What if it was extended by more than 20 or 30 days in reality?
‘Concentration is bound to loosen. There will be users who will not be able to connect due to not only concentration but also other real-life schedules. If there is a hole in the rotation of one or two people like that, the fatigue of users who have to fill it will accumulate, and as a result, the entire user is shaken.’
Even if there was only one hole in a large dam, the crack would quickly spread to the entire dam.
‘It would be better if the end was at least confirmed…. It takes 150 days to reach the new continent! If I did that, I would at least make a new plan.’
What humans struggled with the most was anxiety. And as always, Middle Earth had increased the difficulty of the game by appropriately taking advantage of users’ fears and anxieties.
“Ahhhhh shit! What happened again suddenly-”
“What are you worrying so much all by yourself?”
“Ah, Nara-ssi.”
Leeha was currently in Blue Marlin. It was where Shin Nara, who participated in the expedition as a general inspector of Fibiel, was.
“Is it because of the schedule?”
“Yes. Fernand-ssi is not the only one in a state of panic… At least one person has to move.”
“You always took the lead in times like this. You might need to let someone else do it.”
Shin Nara smirked and scolded Leeha.
It was a tone that was asking why Leeha had to carry the burden. However, her expression was anything but that.
Leeha looked at Shin Nara’s face and smiled.
“You know very well that I am not that kind of person.”
“Heh, that’s right. So Leeha-ssi … Leeha, cough, cough.”
She had an innocent smile. Shin Nara, who almost burst out laughing, managed to swallow her words.
“Me? What?”
“No, no. It’s nothing. It’s all good, but you’re a coach.”
“Huh?”
“S-so! Have you thought about what you’re going to do?”
Shin Nara muttered softly and then quickly changed his mind.
Leeha continued to tilt his head, but his expression became serious again at Shin Nara’s question.
He recognized what the problem was. But what should be the solution?
‘Not now.’
It was something he could definitely say.
The conclusion was that there was no way to overcome this difficulty in the current situation. Therefore, he was able to focus on just one thing.
“We have to keep going.”
“Keep going?”
“Yes. One step at a time. Slowly. In other words, we are walking on parallel beams without being able to see what is ahead. How much longer will the parallel beam continue, and if we do something wrong, we might fall on the parallel beam…. Still, it can’t be helped. The best thing to do in this situation is to move forward slowly.”
Leeha’s voice was resolute.
Shin Nara had round rabbit eyes and slowly nodded.
“That’s right. You know very well.”
“Huh? I know it well?”
“Leeha-ssi watches fencing games, right?”
“O-of course! I also memorized the rules.”
“You memorized it?”
“N-no, I know the rules!”
Leeha, whose relationship with Shin Nara had progressed, almost told her what he had memorized. Shin Nara seemed to have already figured out what Leeha was trying to hide and laughed lightly.
“There is probably no sport played in a narrower arena than fencing. It is a game where I have to point my sword toward my opponent in a limited area… the other person’s skills always seem to magnify and I always feel anxious. It was the same even if I won a medal.”
“Is that so? It doesn’t seem that way.”
“Have you watched my game?”
“T-that- well……”
Leeha wondered if it would have been better if he said, “I memorized the rules so I could watch those games on the internet.”? However, Leeha, who felt somewhat embarrassed, just glossed over it and stopped talking.
Shin Nara, who was staring at the scene silently, opened her mouth again.
“Huhut, anyway, when I am anxious, the coaches say something. We just have to remember one thing. Do you know what it is?”
“Hmm…… swing it?”
“Ah! It’s almost the same. Ding!”
“If it is almost the same, wouldn’t it be ding ding ding?”
“If a sniper doesn’t hit the target, wouldn’t it be a shame? Just because it hits a nearby object, it doesn’t mean it hit, right?”
“Ugh…… truth bomb……”
As Leeha held his chest and acted, Shin Nara burst into laughter.
When the excited atmosphere calmed down somewhat, Shi Nara opened her mouth again.
“This is how we learn, ‘If you rush when you’re nervous, you’re a pushover, if you stop, you’re a fool, and if you turn back, you’re a coward’.”
“Running……?”
“Yes. If you rush at someone just because you’re nervous, you are a pushover. There is no time when it is easier to set the match than at that time.”
“Is stopping in a similar vein?”
“Yes. If you stop, you are bound to show a lot of gaps. Then what about going back? It’s not worth talking about.”
“Hmm, I know what you mean.”
As Leeha listened to Shin Nara, he was able to understand what she was trying to say.
She wanted to encourage and give strength to Leeha.
“So one step at a time, one step at a time. We have no choice but to take it slowly. Because that relaxedness is a disguise as leisure, it actually weighs down the other person and makes them rush to the other person. Leeha-ssi is not a pushover, a fool, or a coward, is he!”
Rather than saying something, it’s about comparing it to a situation you’ve experienced.
Because her speaking skills were not very good, her intention was clearly revealed, but only her sincerity and warmth were well felt by Leeha.
“As expected of Nara-ssi.”
“What?”
“You sound like an Olympic medalist.”
“W-what do you mean? Is it an insult? I did my best to tell it to cheer you up!”
“Haha, it helped! I am just saying thank you.”
They had a relationship where they could exchange jokes without hesitation.
Through his conversation with Shin Nara, Leeha once again became confident in his choice and gained the power to persuade users.
The issue of navigation to the new continent, on which there were differing opinions, was ultimately moved under the temporary conclusion of maintaining the status quo.
Now that people’s trust in Fernand had collapsed, Leeha’s active persuasion had moved people’s minds, but it was Alexander’s words that quelled other users’ anxiety.
[There.]
Rank 1, there were many meanings contained in that title.
And since Lee Jiwon and other rankers also did not complain, the anxiety turned into confidence again.
The morning after the mood reversal was exactly the 30th day of departure from Kraven Coast, and the first ‘thing’ they found in the bright morning sunlight was the treasure of the New Serpent.
“Oh, what is that? Bird?”
“A bird?”
“T-there! Isn’t that a bird? Something moving in the sky!”
Kidd looked at the place where Bobae’s finger was pointing and shaded his eyes with his hands.
A black dot in the sky moved slowly but surely.
“Oh! This is amazing! Is that real?!”
“If there’s a bird, doesn’t it mean there is a land nearby- no, it’s not the new continent, of course, but there’s at least an island? Things like seagulls only fly near land!”
“If we stop by an island, we can resupply food, right?”
“Yes, yes! We’ll be able to review the mana relay tower again! Wouldn’t it be safer if there was another relay point, not just in the middle of the Sea of Dawn?”
Alexander’s confident attitude was not the only factor that influenced the expedition’s decision to continue the voyage.
In addition to Leeha’s logical and reasonable persuasion, there was no doubt that the hypothesis that Hyein, the top spatial mage, also reassured the minds of the users.
‘Even if it is not in the middle of the Sea of Dawn if we find another island to build another mana relay tower, you will have another chance to save our lives.’
If anything happens, everyone could just teleport there.
If it got to the point where they had to abandon the ship and run away, it meant that the quest was on the verge of failure anyway.
Although it was impossible to avoid the enormous quest failure penalty, the power of Hyein’s hypothesis was that there was at least a possibility of avoiding the death penalty.
“Kiskis, it looks like it’s flying this way… it’s very slow.”
As Kijung and Bobae made a fuss, Biyemi and Jin Gonggong, who were nearby, also joined them.
“Slow?”
“Shouldn’t we already be able to roughly see its shape? Be it a seagull or something else. Kiskis, but I still can’t see its shape properly-”
Biyemi’s expression, which had been talking with a smile, gradually began to harden.
Jin Gonggong’s face hardened again. The giant druid’s expression was stiff.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ha-Ha Leea-nim! Call Ha Leeha-nim! Quick-”
Biyemi made an uproar.
Bobae and Kijung were still just nodding and laughing.
It’s speed was slow? The bird? It wasn’t possible! But what did it mean when it appeared to be moving slowly?
‘It means- that the object coming down from the sky was huge!’
In other words, the thing that was flying towards them was huge.
However, even at the distance, it was about the size of a thumbnail.
It’s not that it was small enough that it could be covered with the thumb. To put it in another way….
‘It is so up high that we feel like its speed is slow- and that it looks like the size of a thumbnail?!’
If so, how big would it be when it was above the ship? Biyemi and Jin Gonggong instinctively realized that.
“E-Emergeeeeeency! Emeeeergeeeeeency-! A huge monster appeared above! It’s rapidly descending towards the ship! Everyone, get ready! [Polymorph: Bear].”
Shwiiik, the already big giant turned into a bear and became even bigger. There was one reason why Jin Gonggong chose to transform into a bear.
Kuwoooooooooooh——!
In other words, it was no different than an emergency bell. The users of the New Serpent and the Blue Marlin immediately rushed out onto the deck.
“Uhihihihit! Interesting! Is every day a surprise in this damned sea? It’s so fun!”
“It is not the time to say such things, Petyr-nim! My hawk is so scared that it refuses to fly!”
As Petyr on the deck of the Blue Marlin laughed, the ‘Hunter’ next to him grumbled.
He joined the Minis tournament and was able to be a part of the expedition, with his hawk and Jin Gonggong’s polymorph, they have performed well as scouts so far.
His hawk, who was so courageous, was now sat on his forearm and trembling.
While other users were predicting the size and speed of the monster, there were some users who were not particularly nervous when discussing defense.
One of them was Chiyou, who was aboard the Blue Marlin with Petyr.
“Heuung, indeed…… there is such a monster. It would be easier for us if we could tame just a few of those things. What do you think, Yongyong?”
She walked softly, swaying her waist, and hugged the ‘Tamer’ user’s arm.
“T-that, uh- I-I know what you mean, C-Chiyou-nim, but in order to tame a monster, intimacy is needed first……. I-I wonder if I could tame that guy-”
Aihng, don’t give me such a lukewarm answer. You can tame it, right? I wish you could tame just one and give it to me as a gift. I will treat you well when you come to our store later.”
Her cuteness was like a ripe peach.
Not only did the sweet scent spread just by being near her, but also her combat attire, which was filled with movement like a flower in Middle Earth.
(To be continued…)
