The night in the forest is incredibly dark.
Of course, it was only natural. In a place devoid of the conveniences of civilization, there were few sources of light to rely on. At best, there was moonlight filtering down from above, fireflies, and the gleaming eyes of monsters and beasts.
In this situation, the sight of the monsters’ eyes meant you had to run for your life, so that’s a no-go, and fireflies mostly appear in the summer, so they’re out too.
The only thing to depend on was the moonlight, but today just happened to be the night of a new moon. Most of the moonlight was shrouded in darkness, making the illumination sparse.
Moreover, this place was a bizarre land where not even leaves fell in the dead of winter. In short, it was seriously pitch black.
Darkness inherently triggers a human’s primal fear. Since ancient times, people have been vulnerable at night, and if they wanted to survive, they had no choice but to hunker down indoors.
Those ancestors who feared the night survived, while those who didn’t all returned to dust. The fear of darkness is etched into our DNA.
I too found the nights in this forest quite terrifying at first.
But more than ten years have passed, and now it doesn’t faze me at all.
Still, from the perspective of someone who’s experienced this place before, I couldn’t really fault her feelings.
“H-Help! I can’t see anything, but I can hear sounds…! The monsters are howling…!!”
[Chaerin.. You’re freezing….]
[A real man wouldn’t be reduced to kneeling right now!]
[But I was so scaredㅠㅠㅠ The beast howls are so realistic!ㅠㅠㅠ]
[Wow… I can confirm that howling exists.]
[Yeah… I think I’d rather face a scary brother than a monster…]
[But going back to someone who told you to leave is a bit… It’s obvious they’d reject you.]
“…Okay, just come in.”
So I ultimately allowed her in.
[Oh?]
[This is actually happening LOL]
[Kneeling down once and gaining a night with a man, wow Chaerin, you are a true man!]
[This guy is really something else LOL]
It wasn’t simply because I felt sorry for her. I was also quite curious about her.
Specifically, I wanted to know more about these otherworlders.
Since the cat was already out of the bag, I figured it was only right to at least gather some information about the other party.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you coming in?”
“Oh, yes, yes! I’ll come in now!”
Thus, an uncomfortable night together began.
*
Entering the cave, Yoo Chaerin indulged in a brief fantasy.
Regardless of the situation, she was still a ‘woman.’
While the atmosphere was a bit unnerving, she found herself sharing a space with a handsome guy. Given her desires, it was impossible not to think about it.
After all, thoughts are things that can’t be controlled.
While she wasn’t hoping for anything special on a special night, things could develop if they ended up sharing a blanket, maybe leading to some physical contact, right…?
Even if she tried to suppress it, those thoughts kept surfacing.
“Just sleep here.”
Of course, such fantasies ended when the man assigned his spot to sleep.
Blanket? That sort of thing didn’t exist. All that lay before her was the cold stone floor…
“Sorry. There are no blankets for guests.”
The man who said this was casually laying out his own blanket. Despite the apology, his expression clearly said, “So what?”
“Yeah……”
She thought at least a thin cloth would be offered…
Feeling disappointed, she sat down. But she couldn’t complain. No matter how you looked at it, she had barged into his home against his wishes.
Even so, she thought she would at least be allowed to rest in one spot, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
Leaving her behind, the man ventured deeper into the cave.
There was a campfire lit, but the thick darkness swallowed him up in just a few steps.
A wave of fear washed over her as the man left her alone with only the flickering fire.
He wouldn’t really leave her here alone, would he…?
“Um, excuse me…? Could you at least stay close by?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t go anywhere. I’ll be nearby.”
His words sounded genuine.
From beyond the darkness, she could still hear his voice. The lack of sound echoing indicated he hadn’t gone far.
As I had sensed from the moment I met him, he was a suspicious person.
Still, she sighed in relief inwardly.
‘Phew…’
Though it wasn’t the situation she’d wanted, at least she wasn’t left abandoned in the dark.
Where was that voice coming from?
Of course, technically, there were thousands of other people in this place… but still…
[What the hell, show your face]
[Chaerin, who was really excited, must be disappointed LOL]
[Disappointed LOL]
“……”
It felt odd treating the people communicating solely through text as real individuals. The conversation wasn’t boring, but it was tough to shake off the fear.
And naturally, they were going to be finishing the stream soon.
“Well then, everyone, it’s been fun until now.”
[?? Wait, is this the angle?]
[Oh no, don’t leave]
[You’re seriously quitting now?]
“I have to go to sleep now.”
[You’re not really going to sleep in the game, are you, you crazy person?]
[But why is she sleeping in the game anyway?]
[The streamer says she’s got to sleep in-game because she doesn’t even have any fatigue potions left to help her out~]
[Such a dumbass ww]
[While you’re at it, why not keep the stream on while you sleep?]
“No way. That’s too embarrassing.”
[Ha]
[I can’t believe this]
[You have a talent for teasing]
[Hey, damn-]
Before a flood of curses could fill the chatroom, Chaerin switched off the stream. The last count of viewers remained at a whopping 3,000.
It was a hit.
Of course, the viewers abruptly left hanging were gonna be pissed, but that was none of her concern.
In any case, she had a knack for igniting her broadcasts.
“You talk to yourself a lot, don’t you?”
While she got caught up in her thoughts, a voice spoke up in the darkness.
It was the man’s voice.
Yor thought,
‘What a relief…’
He had been pondering how to strike up a conversation when she gave him the perfect opportunity.
“I could’ve sworn I heard you talking to someone earlier, what was that?”
To be honest, he had wanted to bluntly ask, “Is that chat window next to you visible to everyone?”
But that seemed way too suspicious.
Who knew if it was visible to others apart from himself?
With the stream still running, he didn’t want to highlight anything peculiar about himself.
Thankfully, after she switched off the stream, he felt grateful. Not only did it give him a topic to discuss, but it also meant that the eyes of the other viewers were no longer lingering on him.
“Oh, is that what you mean?”
While thinking this, Chaerin opened her mouth.
“Oh, this is a stream. People log on to watch me do things… How do I explain this?”
Gaining information from people isn’t limited to just words. Body language, atmosphere, and so on can also reveal hidden information.
In that regard, Yor being here was quite satisfactory.
He could see her while she couldn’t see him.
Having lived here for a long time, he was far more accustomed to the dark than others.
Yor nodded at her explanation.
‘I thought it would be a secret.’
To his surprise, she explained without hesitation. The concept of ‘streaming’ was somewhat well-known even in this world.
After all, if you walked down the street, you’d see plenty of people talking to themselves. It was impossible to hide.
Yor then moved on to his next question.
“You said you’re an otherworlder. Where are you from? Is it a different world from ours?”
His seemingly casual question was, in fact, very significant to him.
Depending on her answer, his future attitude would change. If the world he thought matched up, perhaps… he could dream of returning home.
“Oh, you mean where we are? It’s a completely different place. It’s a place called Earth…”
And, as her nonchalant answer returned to him, Yor couldn’t help but be astonished.
‘…!’
Internally, he cheered. The connection he thought had been severed for decades had returned before him.
Of course, he didn’t know if this Earth was the same as the one he originally lived in, but nonetheless, he had found a civilization resembling the one he came from.
Just that discovery alone made Yor feel as if a massive link had been forged.
From there, Yor questioned her profusely. How she ended up here, what her world was like, and what she found fascinating after arriving, and so forth.
Chaerin, who had considered herself a nice conversationalist, answered his inquiries diligently, albeit avoiding those details that people from this side of the world were unlikely to understand.
Realizing she was surprisingly chatty, she found herself regretting, ‘I should have just kept the stream on…’.
But she was not only receiving questions; she also mustered the courage to ask him a few.
“Um, could you tell me your name?”
“…Yor.”
Thanks to that, she managed to learn the man’s name. The moment she heard it, his nickname tag transformed from [Unnamed NPC] to [Yor].
With excitement, she asked another question.
“By the way, why do you live in this forest?”
“…Hey.”
“Yes?”
“I’m currently providing you with a place to shield from the night. In this dangerous forest, I think I’ve offered you enough goodwill, don’t you agree?”
“Oh, yes… that’s true.”
“So don’t expect more, and just stay put. Don’t pry any deeper.”
“…Yes.”
Yor spoke in a tone sharper than usual. As if warning her not to cross certain lines. It made her take a nervous nod in response.
She thought she had somewhat developed comfort, but that wasn’t the case…
Afterwards, Chaerin had no choice but to limit her questions.
As a result, the conversation mainly proceeded with Yor asking questions first. He would ask her about something, she’d respond, and then he’d react.
Though it turned into an interview-like format, it was amusing in its own way.
Earlier, Chaerin had hardly ever talked to a guy like this. So, in that sense, the chats felt a bit scary yet oddly exciting.
She ended up talking with Yor for quite a while until, at one point, she dozed off.
*
“Hey, wake up.”
“…Ugh, huh?”
Tap, tap.
A few hours later, Chaerin awoke to someone poking her shoulder with a foot.
When she blinked her blurred vision and looked up, Yor was apparently nudging her as he stood there.
“It’s morning. Time to head out.”
Hearing that, she glanced around. The previously pitch-black cave was now illuminated.
After that, it was a rapid series of events. She rose, ate some deer meat offered by Yor, and was nearly shoved out.
To kick her out so soon after waking… though at least he did provide breakfast.
“Thank you for yesterday. You helped me survive.”
“Get lost. Don’t come back.”
Until her last moment there, Yor remained icy.
It couldn’t be helped. While the chat from the previous evening had been entertaining for him, once was enough.
The closer they got, the more Yor felt he would only be left in a bad spot. As a manifestation of demon’s blood, he was bound to be rejected wherever he went.
As she walked further away, Yor watched her with a hint of regret.
He sighed, thinking of the sky from last night.
“Ha…”
It had undeniably been a new moon. A waning dark moon.
Meaning soon, the new moon would come.
