“Unfortunately, I only have bolt-action weapons.”

The casings must be ejected and the rounds loaded manually, meaning their rate of fire would inevitably be slower than automatics. The pistols were the same. All the firearms I had came from Myeong-woo’s custom “inventory” equipment.

At least these used conventional ammunition. If they’d been mana-powered like the Lynx Rifle, they’d have been nothing but display pieces.

“I did receive all sorts of advanced machine guns from Shishio, but I never had time to fetch them.”

He’d readily handed over military-grade weapons I’d never even dreamed of acquiring in Korea. Since modern firearms don’t fit into an inventory, I’d kept them stored separately—such a shame. Had I brought them, the match would have ended immediately.

“There are no spare holsters or ammo belts, either. Use a belt or pockets.”

If necessary, I’d stuff rounds into my pockets. I had plenty of wires and cords at least. I placed a laundry basket in the center and stashed the most usable items inside. Seong Hyunjae, with the pistol I’d given him, slung his bow over his back.

“There should be a bow over there as well. Mr. Song’s skill with one is considerable.”

“Yuhyun might have one as backup, but he likely left it in his inventory. Main weapons get carried; secondary ones usually stay in the bag.”

No need to burden ourselves when we have an inventory. For speed, I’d sometimes pre-equip simple items—but bows were cumbersome.

“If the outside is open, we’ll finish quickly. But in terrain with many hiding spots, it could flip in an instant.”

Becoming Unawakened didn’t change our physical differences. Except for Seong Hyunjae, I’d be at a severe disadvantage in close quarters. Both Yuhyun and Mr. Song were far stronger than me—and Mr. Song, as a former police officer, would be experienced in Unawakened combat.

Meanwhile, our Yuhyun was… untrained. Still too young. I’d never even sent him to a taekwondo school.

“In case of emergency, better for me to handle Mr. Song Taewon and for Han Yujin to face his brother.”

“Yes. And if you point a gun at Yuhyun, I might reflexively blow off the back of your head.”

His body would move before his thoughts could. I strapped weapons to my waist, thighs, and ankles; even Eun-hye’s form-shift item was hidden.

[00:00]

Ten minutes passed, the timer vanished, and the message window reappeared.

[All Awakened shall become Unawakened.]

Simultaneously, my body… hm. No dramatic change. It felt slightly heavier. Seong Hyunjae flexed his arm lightly.

“My partner has endured much, I see.”

“I’m an Awakened, too, you know?”

…Still, I expected to be weaker than Unawakened Seong Hyunjae. With our gear, I might have been stronger. Then another message appeared.

[Your current bodies are dummies; your true bodies rest safely asleep in interspatial storage linked to them. If a dummy dies, the team member’s consciousness shall also sleep, and the dummy will be returned to your team’s waiting room. After the match, dummies and true bodies will be swapped and awakened.]

Just like Japanese dungeons. Since these weren’t our real bodies, death posed no real problem—aside from the pain.

[Victory condition: last survivor. If the two teams make no contact for one hour, the more passive team will incur a penalty.]

One hour. The space wasn’t cramped. Just then, a section of the wall ground open. A rush of fresh air blew in, carrying the scent of damp {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} grass.

It was a forest—no, more like a jungle. I saw a narrow path leading through it.

[All held items have also been swapped for dummies. There is a village at the forest’s center; you may only move within a 10 km radius around the village. Good luck.]

With a village, arriving first would be advantageous. Good thing I brought the bicycle. I tied the laundry basket full of gear to its front with wire, then turned to Seong Hyunjae.

“Hey, get on!”

He climbed onto the bike’s rear rack at once. I blushed. I’d spoken without thinking. Thankfully, only Seong Hyunjae was here—Yuhyun might not have understood even if he’d been present.

“…You’re a civilian now, so hold on tight.”

“Okaay.”

“And stop saying creepy things.”

I pedaled vigorously. Having often ridden with the kids, I could quickly pick up speed even on rough ground. As an Unawakened, a bicycle outran running people by far. And the one Seong Hyunjae gave me was high-performance. Though it rattled, we raced swiftly through the forest.

“You hear nothing, right?”

“No signs of any life besides plants.”

Not even birds or insects. Only branches rattling in the breeze.

“So any sizable movement must be them. If we spot motion, we shoot first.”

Unable to close distance, at least we could wound them. The village hopefully lay in open terrain; here, hiding spots were abundant. And many trees were wet, making total immolation difficult.

Before long, the village emerged: a wooden palisade with five houses and three watchtowers. Smaller than I’d imagined, but not bad—denser cities would have been just as hard to hide.

As soon as we entered, I dismounted and lifted the laundry basket.

“We can only carry so many weapons—let’s hide the rest. But keep all ammunition on us.”

Without bullets, guns are merely clubs. Even if Yuhyun or Mr. Song found the weapons first, at least they’d still be loaded. Not knowing when they’d arrive, we hurriedly prepared and climbed a watchtower.

Seong Hyunjae headed for the only two-story house. I watched as he slipped through the second-floor window and lightly vaulted onto the roof. Even Unawakened, his agility was astonishing. He shed his cumbersome coat and instead wore a vest with multiple pockets over his shirt—no doubt an item in its own right.

Leaning against a tall chimney, Seong Hyunjae waved at me.

‘I should’ve given him a backhand.’

My hand would’ve hurt too. I raised my loaded pistol toward the forest and scanned carefully. No movement yet. To avoid penalty, those two would surely head for the village.

They’d see us, but lack a clear means to attack. Even if they’d wisely stashed their bows, no arrows—since secondary weapons usually stayed in inventory. I suspected Mr. Song was similar.

After a moment of silent vigilance,

‘There.’

A flash of darkness among the leaves—a Togethorn Sentinel’s shadow. I leveled my pistol and squeezed the trigger.

Bang!

With a deafening crack, branches snapped. The black shape wheeled. I cycled the bolt, aimed, and fired again. Immediately:

Clang!

“Ugh!”

Something struck the watchtower’s support. I ducked under the railing just as another shot rang out—thud—and the wood dented. Wait, what the—

Song Taewon’s expression hardened. Messages flooded his vision and the walls vanished. Feeling his body grow heavy, he gazed out at the vivid forest.

“Even Unawakened, Han Yujin—”

“Gun.”

Han Yuhyun said.

“Brother carries a firearm.”

“…Is it not powered by mana?”

“S-Rank weapons are, but low-rank aren’t. You can use ordinary guns.”

“I see….”

Silence fell between the two. Simply becoming Unawakened left them still favored—Han Yujin was negligible strength, so it was effectively two against one.

But add firearms, and everything changed.

“The inventory won’t open either.”

Han Yuhyun tried to draw his bow.

“Same for me. No ranged weapons.”

Neither had thought to pre-equip a bow. Han Yuhyun stared at the forest, blinking. Never before had he felt such helplessness before a battle.

“Brother truly….”

A smile unsuited to the situation surfaced on Han Yuhyun’s face. His mind felt blocked, but somehow he was exhilarated. Han Yujin would finish preparing and await them swiftly.

In contrast, Song Taewon’s face grew dark. Rather than visions of Awakened-on-Awakened combat, he recalled mundane fights before dungeons appeared: unarmored and unprotected, armed only for close range. Meanwhile, the enemy had a gun.

“First, to the village—”

“I have the bicycle.”

Han Yuhyun spoke. In these mountains, running as an Unawakened couldn’t outrun a bike.

“He likely didn’t bring it out of inventory, right?”

Song Taewon muttered with a sigh. Han Yujin surely knew this situation in advance. He’d steeled himself for such unfavorable terrain. Yet he’d been certain he’d win a straightforward fight—even when Han Yujin had haphazardly proposed the wager.

And yet:

“Then… he’s likely already in the village, preparing defences. Close combat remains disadvantageous, so he’ll snipe from a height.”

“If we must emerge from the forest late and approach, the moment we expose ourselves as Unawakened, it’ll be hard to fully evade gunfire. Correct?”

Han Yuhyun, not versed in firearms, asked. He’d only seen ordinary shootouts on TV, and barely paid attention even then.

“Is it automatic? A fully automatic rifle?”

“Eh?”

“For rifles, there’s this bolt…”

Song Taewon snapped a twig, drew its outline in the dirt to explain. Han Yuhyun described the guns he’d seen, convinced they were all manual.

“If it isn’t automatic, you must chamber each round manually, so fire rate will be slow. No scope either, so accuracy will be relatively low.”

We’d still have to rely on luck. The distance to the village—their approach—was critical; they’d surely hold from defensible spots. Even in a small village, it’d be several minutes at least. That’d suffice to land more than a shot or two.

Song Taewon clenched his fist. He wondered if giving up here might be acceptable—but then he forced himself to plot. His anxious gaze flitted about, settling on a stone.

“…A sling.”

A simple but powerful ranged weapon. He hastily removed his shirt.

“Gather stones.”

“Stones?”

“About fist-sized, rugby-ball shaped is ideal, but round will do. You tie them to a cord and swing to hurl them.”

Primitive but once used in real combat, with serious range. With our strength, even more effective. Han Yuhyun scoured the forest for stones as Song Taewon tore his shirt into strips for cords.

After only a few practice throws, both hit their mark precisely. Han Yuhyun’s sling was especially razor-sharp. Before the one-hour limit elapsed, they headed for the village—walking the path but staying to the edges to remain unseen.

Soon, the village rose between dense trees. Han Yuhyun hung his cloak on a scarecrow-shaped frame of tied branches. Song Taewon quickly slashed more branches with a knife and wove vines into place.

“Brother’s in the watchtower; the Guild Leader’s on the two-story roof over there.”

“I’ll take on Hunter Seong Hyunjae.”

With skills gone, physical differences mattered more. While Song Taewon drew Seong Hyunjae’s attention, Han Yuhyun would subdue Han Yujin. Song Taewon moved quietly through the woods, circling toward Seong Hyunjae without leaving cover. Han Yuhyun looped wire around the scarecrow’s neck to hold it upright. Though his vision was reduced, he could clearly spot Han Yujin.

The disadvantage remained, yet Han Yuhyun welcomed it. He let the wire lengthen and sidled along. Once he’d put proper distance between himself and the scarecrow, he deftly tugged the wire to draw Han Yujin’s gaze—and then:

Bang!

A gunshot echoed. Han Yuhyun couldn’t suppress a curl at the corner of his mouth. Knowing it was his own clothes, Han Yujin nevertheless fired without hesitation. With one hand he tugged the wire to hold Han Yuhyun’s attention; with the other he swung his sling. Shoulders and arms coiled, the projectile-–a wicked arc of air–hurled stone forward.

Then: clang! The stone spat against the watchtower. Han Yujin ducked. Seizing the opening, Han Yuhyun dashed from the trees toward the tower, still flinging stones as he ran. Again: clang—the watchtower shuddered.

A crack formed in the support and the structure groaned. Yet Han Yujin did not merely evade. The instant the second stone struck, he rose and locked onto Han Yuhyun’s position. At the corner of his lips, a slight upward curve appeared.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep