Monsters such as Algon, Alpin, and Alchins were extremely 

agile,

 fast, and destructive. They were so dangerous that the support staff members were 

stationed

 at the foot of the mountain around the clock to quickly alert the base camp of any developments.

To protect these sentry members from

monster and beast attacks

, 

San and Biyeon had them 

instal

l

 a protective outpost made of iron bars and jutting spears to hide in. 

Apart from the sentry work, the remaining staff members worked around the clock within the base camp.

“I don’t understand why we’re doing this… Ugh,” Yeria muttered under her breath as she busily moved around.

Working under the hot spring sun, she felt sweat rolling into her eyes

 and

 stinging them. She wasn’t holding a majestic sword… but a hoe. Was this something befitting a Count’s daughter?

Her gaze drifted down towards her bottom half. She wore shoes commonly worn by warriors and a pair of non-flattering pants.

 If anyone looked at her

, 

they

 wouldn

’t

 think that an attractive woman was 

present in

 this unflattering lower half. So, how she became like this

… 

what happened was…

About three hours ago

...

She was wearing a gorgeous and beautiful dress. As the Count’s daughter, she was a talented woman who boasted top-notch martial arts skills. She 

also proudly possessed

 beauty, culture, and academic knowledge.

“Are you going on a picnic?”

This was what the ‘man’ said about her while tilting his head.

“Huh? What?”

“10 minutes, wait… you’re a woman, so I’ll give you 30 minutes. Change into a warrior-like outfit!”

He quickly turned his back and went to another place.

“What are you talking about!” she instinctively screamed. Her face must have been blushing red with shame and embarrassment.

“You… have you ever seen an Algon?” he asked without turning his head. His voice was serious.

“…”

“We’re not going into the mountains to date anyone. And remove that disgusting perfume smell! No one here forced you to participate. The choice is

 yours. You don’t have to return after 30 minutes. How is 

that

, fair enough?”

He threw these final words at her and walked away.

“How dare you say such rude words!”

Yeria’s eyes

 quickly

 drained of life. This was the first time she’d been treated like 

a nobody

.

 However,

 since he was an Awakened Warrior

,

 he had the qualifications to act and talk so stubbornly.

Still, she felt like 

he was going too far

. If it weren’t for her father’s exp

licit

 request, she wouldn’t have even come here. Tears started forming in her eyes. Eventually, the tears flowed down her cheeks.

The fate of a woman in this era... to be passed around 

amongst

 the powerful! Why did her father entrust this critical task to such a stubborn, lowly person? She moved to get changed with heavy steps.

***

Yuren was the 1

st

 Company commander. He 

was given the

 company commander title for the newly formed company unit by the captains.

It was definitely a good opportunity for him. However, he wasn’t happy about it at all. Rather, he felt a growing sense of anxiety and tension.

All of the support staff members had high expectations after being assigned to a new organization. Being with an Awakened Warrior itself was something lucky.

Not only was it highly likely they would survive, but also, no one c

ould easily ignore them. They could also expect a fairly hefty compensation package.

However, th

e

 expectation and daydream of a carefree, easy life crumbled from day one.

‘

How did it come to this…

’ he thought over and over again.

The c

aptains

 moved directly and worked by hand. Their actions overturn

ed

 all ‘common sense’.

They memorized the names of all 20 members as well as each 

member

’s personal information in just one day. 

Usually, respected

 warriors often didn’t even know the names of their own subordinates, even if a year had passed, which was 

usual in

 this 

part

 of the w

orld

.

Also, the

 two captains

 conducted face-to-face interviews with their staff

 members. F

or the staff members, this interview was the first 

of its sort 

in their entire lives. For the first time in their lives, they were asked about their family and were told to speak about their own opinions ‘freely’.

It was a very uncomfortable experience for them.

The first thing the captains did was organize the 

staff

 and 

designate

 responsibilities for each member. The 

staff

 members were grouped into 10-person 

‘

compan

ies’

. The leader of each company was called the company commander. The

 captains

 also de

scribed

 how missions were to be carried out and with what attitude.

The mission objectives w

ere

 clearly laid out, and all of their individual activities and actions 

were to be done

 to achieve the organization’s overall goals. Status, age, or origin w

ould not

 be taken into account regarding task assignments.

Their selection criteria were simple. The first criterion w

as

 that 

the

 person must want the job

. T

he second criterion was that the person must be someone who could do the job well.

The second thing the captains then did was check everyone's equipment. All the equipment they brought was laid out in the yard. Swords, hammers, shields, shovels, pickaxes, hoes, axes, and leather bags. Even feminine products…

They designated

 some of the items as ‘

standard equipment’. Non-standard equipment 

was

 to be managed by a designated staff member

 within

 each company.

In addition, they wanted

 each company

 to take responsibility for managing their respective equipme

nt

. They also drew something and 

ordered

 it to be made at the forge…

Koo-ooh-

Ke-ae-

They could faintly hear the sound of beasts around them. Yuren trembled while thinking about 

the beasts and monsters hidden in the shadows

.

Suddenly, 

he

 realized what kind of situation 

he

 w

as

 in. They weren’t in the safest place on the hunting grounds… they were located at the center, with all the hunting parties branched out from them.

This meant that, thanks to these crazy c

aptains

, the weakest

 group of people were assembled at the heart of this hunting event. T

he 

group

 that should be in the safest place was setting up a ‘support center’ in the harshest and most dangerous 

central area

...

Yuren reminded himself of the unit’s goals and code of conduct.

“We can choose our missions and negotiate. However, once one chooses, the mission is unconditionally correct and must be completed. 

This

 mean

s

 risking one’s life for the completion of an objective. So, if one's

 going to do it

 anyway, one should just enjoy it. Th

ere’s no

 retreat!”

That’s what Captain San had said.

“First, be wise. Second, use all the means and methods at your disposal. Third, trust your brother and sister in arms until the end.”

This was 

Captain Biyeon’s

 words.

Not all the staff members at the time knew what these unfamiliar words meant.

It was an unimaginable demand in their contemporary class society, and it was a leadership method and attitude that they had never experienced before. However, unfortunately for them, their new superiors were the living incarnations of this 

regimen

 and creed.

The support staff was rewriting a new destiny without 

even knowing it themselves. 

If the support staff members got used to the new ways these two captains proposed, and if they could find purpose and joy in the fierceness of a battlefield, then 

they would be forever changed

.

Relying upon another.

T

eamwork w

ould become

 the final 

lesson

 that would sweep them away from their past selves and towards a new fate. In the end, they would negotiate, navigate, and choose for themselves, so they must risk their lives to bear that fruit.

The afternoon sun was leaning westward. The sounds of monsters echoed here and there.

“It seems like the work is finishing up,” 

San

 said while stretching.

He had just 

finished

 patrolling the base in a 30-meter radius. He checked and 

examined

 the support staff's work progress.

Because the base was for support purposes, it was located in a basin that was easily accessible and seen from all directions. However, this also meant that this base camp would be the easiest target 

for

 all the monsters and beasts in the surrounding area.

San’s

 wish

, to be challenged,

 w

as soon

 fulfilled. All of the support staff organization members probably had very different opinions and 

expectations 

than those of San and Biyeon…

Biyeon’s mouth was slightly distorted. Her hand held a white sword made of Archon bone. It was a little longer than a military bayonet, about the length from her wrist to her shoulder. The overall shape of the sword was modest, but the blade was sleek and 

could be

 easily carried around. It had been specially made for her.

San got up slowly, brushing the dust off his legs. He also held an Archon bone sword in his hand.

Yeria was unable to breathe properly. All the support staff members were barely standing as their legs visibly shook.

In front of them, the heads of giant monsters appeared one after another. A hunting party must have already been slaughtered. Pieces of clothes were scattered all over the monsters’ bodies and a fishy, bloody smell wafted through the air…

“Ar...chon?”

Exploration – Chapter 14

'G-le-le-'

The beasts growled with their necks lowered. Yellow eyes glar

ed

 at their new targets. Even though the monsters were 20 meters in front of them, the low-pitched bass sound was so

 full

 and vibrant that goosebumps formed all over the

 staff members’

 bod

ies

.

The Archon

s' 

tremendous figures spanned over 15 meters. Additionally, there was not just one, but three Archons. Real, true fear in the face of pure evil threw the

 staff members

 into despair.

Pieces of torn cloth were strewn over the

 Archon’s

 skin. The

 staff members

 could clearly see blue cloak material, the same as those worn by the Dong-Myung clansmen, with chunks of flesh sticking onto the monsters’ bloodied bodies.

Keeit-

keeit

-

The support staff members looked to their right. This time, a group of Algons

approach

ed

 with 

lowered

 heads. 

The f

our Algons were 20 meters away.

The smaller ones were 2 meters tall while the bigger ones were over 3 meters tall. They also seemed like they just finished hunting. Their lips were drenched in red blood.

The specially commissioned support staff members staggered backward and instinctively gathered in one place. They looked at each other with eyes full of abject fear and terror.

E

ach of them

 was carrying a sword and shield, but 

they didn’t

 believe they could do anything with these weapons.

A sense of impending doom

 made them look towards their captains with great intensity. Their eyes seemed to implore many things from San and Biyeon.

The

 staff members’

 eyes also seemed to contain a sense of resentment 

for the

 people who drove them to such a godforsaken place to die

.

However, their captains looked a

round

 th

e

 surroundings with nonchalant ease, not even affording the

ir subordinates

 a glance. They were just tilting their heads while 

speaking quietly.

“Oh-ho, are they being hunted, not hunting?”

“That’s surprising.”

While muttering, San and Biyeon gazed at the forest ahead. The forest moved. A group of warriors popped out from the right side from where the Archons had just appeared. They ran straight toward the base camp

. The support staff opened their eyes wide.

The

 approaching warriors

 were the Dong-Myung Clan warriors, led by the Awakened Warrior, Dongye. However, rather than hope, the eyes of the support staff immediately fell into further despair.

“Run… they’re… devils!” The leader, 

Dongye, shouted out

. The appearance of the Dong-Myung warriors was terrible.

Dongye’s entire body was stained in blood, and from 

his

 shoulders to his back, tattered, bloodied flesh was exposed, as if one side had been torn off.

None of the Dong-Myung warriors were without injury.

 Furthermore, none of them had any working weapons. All the fancy weapons that they took with them at the beginning of the hunt were either broken beyond recognition or lost.