Wriggling.
Fidgeting.
Afraid they might get caught by the archers standing guard with their eyes wide open from the watchtower (or maybe not),
The five warriors took the longest possible detour, hiding behind trees, ducking behind rocks, sometimes even crawling stealthily along the ground.
Anyway, with their superhuman physical abilities, they moved swiftly—shhhhk!
Advancing towards the Pokorong pasture.
At this point, calling them warriors felt less fitting than calling them thieves—so meticulous were their movements!
Of course, they completely lacked the essential skills for true thievery, like stealth or disguise.
“What the hell are they even doing…?”
A sigh naturally escaped Arc’s lips as he observed their antics from the omniscient gamer’s perspective.
But his voice didn’t reach the would-be thieves.
Leading the charge in this out-of-place world, donned in an explosively revealing bikini, was none other than the exhibitionist knight.
“This should be far enough, right?”
“Shh! Saha, keep your voice down. We might get caught.”
Whispering among themselves, the thieves exchanged glances in front of the massive wooden fence enclosing the Pokorong pasture.
And then—
“Hmph!”
Even though they tried to keep their voices down, the restrained grunt still leaked out.
Woosh!
With Saha’s brute strength—capable of crushing boulders—
Ari was launched into the pasture.
With a light tap-tap, she landed gracefully.
A sturdy rope, twisted from Langin tribe tail fur, came flying over the fence.
While Johanna, who had insisted she would rather climb than be thrown, scurried up the rope,
Woosh, woosh!
Tina and Rumi were sent soaring through the air in succession.
Rumi managed a clean landing, but—
“Eep!”
The tiny, chubby little demon failed to land properly and let out a startled squeak.
“Poko?”
Hearing an unfamiliar sound, a Pokorong that had been peacefully grazing nearby tilted its head in curiosity.
But Pokorongs weren’t exactly smart enough to distinguish between Langin, Kenin, or Demonfolk.
So, it simply buried its head back into the ground and resumed its diligent chomp chomp chomp grass-eating routine.
“Phew.”
“Tina, be careful-woof.”
Whispering, Rumi leaned in close to Tina’s ear, playfully blowing a ticklish breeze.
Soon, Johanna peeked her head over the fence.
Despite being a sheltered saint, she still had enough guts to scale a wall.
With a neat thud, she landed smoothly.
At almost the same time, Saha came crashing down like a meteor.
The thief party, assembled.
***
Just as I was about to look away from my smartphone screen—where watching them made my head ache—
A far worse, dreadful, and horrifying reality awaited me.
“…Is this food?”
“Of course.”
Looking at Renatel, who gazed back at me with an expression that asked if there was some sort of problem,
I began sweating nervously.
What the hell?
Am I actually a prisoner?
Is that why they’re just feeding me whatever scraps they have?
As I scanned the table in disbelief,
Renatel and her friends—the residents of Darang Hill—were happily, and quite ravenously, devouring the food.
Maybe it’s actually tasty?
With that thought, I cautiously scooped up a spoonful.
“…Ugh.”
A thick vegetable porridge (without a single grain of rice, just grass),
And meat chunks, still soaked in blood because no one had bothered to drain them before cooking—an overwhelming stench of raw flesh assaulted my taste buds.
“Why? Doesn’t suit your taste?”
Damn it.
I wanted to yell, ‘How can you even call this food?!’
But seeing Renatel remain completely unshaken, eating this grotesque mix without even a flicker of emotion—
Ugh.
Complaining felt pointless.
Is this the Langin tribe’s standard?
Rumi also seemed to eat just about anything… Is this just normal for beastfolk?
Nevertheless, as a guest,
I couldn’t afford to be picky about the food, so I forced myself to scoop up a spoonful and shove it into my mouth.
“How is it that human men even eat so elegantly…?”
“Grrr, grrrr…”
I did my best to ignore the sounds reaching my ears and took another spoonful.
Thus, with maximum effort in maintaining my expression and an almost superhuman level of patience, I endured what felt like a torturous mealtime.
“Dessert is served!”
Finally, the chef, the pride of Darangkum Hill.
Estel… or something… One of those ‘-tel’-named Langin folks brought out a plain salad with no dressing.
“Ugh…”
I grabbed the back of my neck.
This place is hell…
I discreetly checked my smartphone under the table again.
“…?”
What the hell.
What are those guys doing?
Since when was there a riding system?
Each of them was riding one of those giant round-eyed birds I had seen when I was kidnapped earlier, zipping around and shrieking joyfully.
Wait, the background looks familiar.
“Renatel-nim! The Pokorongs have escaped!”
“What?!”
The scenery looked strangely similar to the Darangkum Hill I had just toured.
“And an intruder! An intruder is charging forward on a Pokorong!”
“What do you mean—
No way.
Watching as Renatel and the others hurriedly left their seats,
I felt cold sweat trickle down my back.
**
“Kyahaha! Go, Pokoko!”
“Pokoko!”
The Pokorong Heist and Riot Operation was a massive success.
Today’s MVP was Tina.
She had simply gone to the sunbathing Pokorongs, who were lying flat on their bellies enjoying the warm sunlight, and cast a Hug~♡ spell on them.
“Pokokok!”
“Pokko!”
“Pokokokoko!”
The Pokorongs, which had been lazing around belly-up, suddenly had their eyes turn red and flipped over.
They started pecking and rubbing against each other, like birds grooming each other’s feathers for hidden insects.
But the moment Tina’s skill duration ended—
They forgot why they had fought, because they had tiny bird brains!
But they had fought!
So they were angry!
With this mysterious yet foolproof mechanism, the Pokorongs’ rage gauge filled to the max, and they started furiously chirping.
Meanwhile, Sahaa, the assigned demolition expert, swung her flame-wrapped hammer at the wooden fences.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
While visually stimulating, it also physically created an escape route.
“Pokko!”
“Pokokokoko!”
The loud crashes inevitably caught the attention of the sharp-eared Pokorongs.
And so—
Dududududu.
Dudududududududu—!
Now furious, the Pokorongs charged in every direction, recklessly rampaging and bursting out of their pens one by one.
“Now’s our chance!”
The thieves, who had already bonded with the Pokorongs thanks to Rumi’s excellent animal communication skills,
swiftly climbed onto the escaping Pokorongs’ backs and blended in with the stampede.
Watching the Langin tribe warriors pour out of the fortress in a panic, the raiders calculated their move and—
“Now!”
Seizing the moment when the guards’ attention was divided, they charged straight through the now-open fortress gates.
“Should we… should we shoot?”
“But our Pokorongs might get hurt…!”
Pokorongs served as both transportation and hostages.
The archers in the watchtowers couldn’t even consider drawing their bows.
Thus, the once-thieving party evolved into a full-blown band of outlaws, wreaking havoc inside Darang Hill without restraint.
“Poko! That way, woof!”
“Pokko!”
With Rumi leading the way, her Pokorong gallantly dashed through the streets.
Of course, minor property damage along the way was an unavoidable law of nature.
That wasn’t the hero party’s doing.
It was the Pokorongs.
And then—
“Arkuuuugh!”
“Master!”
“Hic, Master, hic hic…! Your face… it’s half gone…!”
At last.
Far in the distance, at the top of a rather sturdy and luxurious wooden building—
The Seer, gazing at them with deep affection, came into view of the outlaw parties.
Immediately—
Rumi, fire!
“Woof!”
Lightly stepping on Pokorong’s back and leaping into the air like a bullet, Rumi spun three times midair before—
Thud!
Landing right next to Ark.
“What are you do—ugh!”
“Master! From now on, I’ll protect you, woof!”
Without hesitation, Rumi slammed into Ark, flinging him over her shoulder like a sack of cargo.
Then, with lightning speed, she returned to her position atop Pokorong.
For a hero’s physical prowess, it was a simple, basic maneuver.
But—
“Grrrr…”
“Master! Hang in there, woof!”
For a mere human like the Seer, it was impossible to endure such speed and impact.
Thus, Ark pathetically passed out on the spot.
Any remaining possibility of forming an alliance with Darangdae fizzled out like bubbles bursting in water.
Witnessing Rumi’s act of lawlessness, the bandits—no, the heroes—
“Nice one, Rumi!”
“Rumi-woof! That was awesome!”
Cheered in excitement.
“Hey, don’t come any closer! This time, I’ll really shoot! I swear I’ll aim properly!”
Meanwhile, they fired warning shots to keep the Langin tribesmen at bay.
“Do not harm the beastfolk… Do not harm the beastfolk…”
And to top it all off—
Despite having caused utter chaos all the way up to the fifth sector, they had yet to claim a single kill.
Because, in her immense mercy, the saintess had been generously bestowing the Goddess’s blessings upon both allies and enemies alike, lest the Lang tribesmen actually die.
Thus, the bodies of those sent flying by Pokorong were shimmering with sacred light.
After some time spent giving both the disease and the cure—
[Tower of Hope, 16th Floor – Great Forest: Langin Tribe Territory, Sector 5 Cleared!]
As the Seer returned to the party—
A system message appeared before Ark’s tightly shut eyes, unseen by the heroes.
[The Seer has lost consciousness.]
[Returning outside the tower in 10 seconds.]
In accordance with the tower’s impartial judgment of Ark’s condition—
Whoosh. Whoosh. Vroooom.
At last, the hero party reclaimed Ark and escaped the tower.
Whether this could be called a happy ending remained uncertain.