People say that when you have a lot to do, time flies.
After sending off the frenzy, I started my normal daily routine.
I was moving around here and there since I never knew when people would come barging in.
First, I focused on finding a new place to live. After all, I needed to find a suitable location before moving my stuff.
However, it wasn’t as easy as I thought to find a place I liked.
The cave I lived in now was a place I had pondered over dozens of times since I was a kid.
The cave was spacious and had all sorts of infrastructure.
There were quite a few rooms here and there, and it even had its own underground water vein.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t that humid either.
Honestly, it was amazing to find such a big cave in the middle of the forest; I had a pretty good living environment. I guess that’s why my past self chose it as a dwelling.
Anyway, this led me to have high standards.
Caves were rare enough that even someone like me, who roams the forest often, couldn’t find one easily.
Because of that, I ended up investing nearly two weeks just to find a place.
“Hmmm…”
The place I found, to be honest, wasn’t that appealing either.
I chose it simply because it was close to the Deep Layer and had hardly any monsters around.
The place looked more like a pit than a cave.
It was closer to underground than above ground, and it wasn’t that deep.
Well, it could probably shelter me from rain… but…
“Well, it’s not like anyone’s going to climb in here…”
I forced a smile and tried to think positively.
After all, it was the place I liked the most after searching for two weeks, so I had to think positively.
I didn’t disclose its location to anyone.
For the next week, I focused on cleaning up the junk inside the house.
I organized a ton of items piled up in the storage.
“I’ve been hoarding trash…”
Although I was a natural dweller in a cave… I had quite a lot of belongings.
From daily necessities like tissues and towels to a good stockpile of food and spices.
As someone who rarely went to the city, I had a habit of stacking necessary items for a few months.
This way, I could minimize the hassle of going to the city and reduce threats.
Honestly, there hadn’t been many problems so far, but moving meant I had accumulated a lot of stuff.
I’d like to move it all, but the bulk was too much.
Besides, the pit I found wasn’t that spacious either.
I had to separate the items I would take and those I would leave behind.
“I need to deal with that tiger meat soon.”
After tidying up, the things I planned to leave behind piled up like a mountain.
That wasn’t just daily necessities; it was all sorts of stuff I had accumulated up till now.
“Someday I’ll end up using this…” My old habit of hoarding was now causing me trouble.
Once again, my past self was of no use.
In the end, I decided to leave this place as a storage area.
“I’ll just take what I need when I need it.”
Thus, I completed my moving preparations. I had no intention of delaying.
Since I had no idea when the bounty hunters would raid, it was best to hide as soon as possible.
So, I moved my dwelling.
It was a new home.
*
More than a week had passed since I found my new place.
During that time, the chilling winter had passed, making way for refreshing spring.
Of course, I experienced the frenzy once more. This time, it was an A.
This time, I faced the frenzy in my new dwelling instead of the original cave.
…It wasn’t easy. The pit was shallow, and I had to endure pain.
Luckily, no monsters wandered in, but if I left it like this, the pit would definitely start to smell like blood.
With the stench of blood lingering, I couldn’t sleep properly.
So, I had to force myself to clean out the pit, even while feeling ready to faint.
I was exhausted, but I needed to do this to avoid living with that smell.
After finishing, I even went down to the nearby lake for a bath.
“Phew…”
…I hadn’t been living there long, yet already numerous inconveniences were surfacing.
But what could I do? I had to adapt as much as I could.
Of course, even while doing so, people from the forest continued to come by. Among them, Yoo Chaerin and Im Haneul were regulars.
The way of meeting had changed, though.
Whereas before they came to the cave, now I was going to see them.
It was a bit cumbersome… but I needed to gather outside information.
“Why did you come instead of Chaerin today?”
“She’s busy leveling up these days.”
“Aha.”
Most of my inquiries revolved around the movements of the knights.
If the bounty hunters were indeed coming, the knights would be the first to react.
“Well… you don’t have to worry too much. They look extremely busy these days.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Dantalion too. The stuff those Lemegaton jerks are doing is strange. So they’re in pursuit.”
She mentioned there’s someone in the market buying wood and bricks in bulk. They still haven’t identified who the buyer is, but it might be Lemegaton.
They’re busy, probably preparing to build something.
Dantalion was still alive.
Thus, the knights are still crazy busy.
Hearing that, I sighed in relief.
“Phew…”
At least that was good news. My life was still hanging on by a thread.
On the other hand, I started to think about something.
“Wait, if that’s the case, isn’t it unnecessary to move right now?”
Honestly, my old house was the best in terms of comfort.
But just as that comfortable thought crossed my mind, I shook my head.
How long had it been since I moved that I was already having these thoughts?
I had no idea when the bounty hunters would barge in, so it was better to keep living here for now.
“No, I mean, I did dig a secret passage in the cave, so it should be fine…”
Anyway, time flowed on.
Other than changing homes, my daily life was still the same.
Hunting, eating, and sleeping were my routine.
There were times when it got a bit boring, but I could solve that by meeting people who came into the forest.
“Hey, where did they go?”
“Wow, no matter how much I look, they aren’t here.”
When I was tired of meeting people, I sometimes hid from the intruders in the forest.
“Hello! Today’s content is─!”
Sometimes I met Chaerin and appeared on her stream.
“Today, I have some surprising news. There’s someone among the otherworlders who can use sword energy. And they’re living in my country!”
Occasionally, I chatted with Im Haneul or Yoo Chaerin, listening to the information they brought.
Overall, my life was pretty peaceful.
Nothing particularly extraordinary happened, and no intruders had entered yet.
It seemed like what she said was true: the outside world was indeed busy. They probably couldn’t afford to care about someone like me.
But as I continued to live, my dissatisfaction with my current dwelling kept piling up.
Living there revealed more than a few discomforts.
First, the entrance of the pit was wider than I thought.
Because of that, the wind came whistling through like crazy.
Even if I covered it with wood, a breeze still managed to sneak in through the gaps.
Well, it might be cool in the summer, but thinking about winter made me gloomy.
Second, the floor was too uneven. Even if I laid down a mat, I could feel the protruding parts when lying down.
In short, it was quite uncomfortable to sleep.
Moreover, I had to walk all the way to the distant lake to wash myself.
And there were various minor discomforts like the pit being narrower than I expected.
Yet, somehow, I endured living like that.
…If it weren’t for the last bit.
What eventually broke me was the next frenzy a month later.
Fortunately, this time it was a B. I could avoid getting my dwelling stained with blood.
“Phew…”
Once again, the feelings that arose were lust, and I was desperately trying to suppress those urges by giving myself some self-comfort.
Stuck in a pit with no side dishes…
I felt a bit pathetic, but there was nothing I could do.
Although it was easier to withstand B than A, it still wasn’t something to be taken lightly.
Anyway, while I was in the middle of stripping and handling those urges…
Suddenly, an intruder entered the pit.
“Peeep…?”
It was an adorable rabbit. Enlarged by magic, but still a fluffy white rabbit.
As a herbivore, it didn’t attack me. Instead, it just stared at me intently.
“…”
A moment of breathless silence stretched between us.
My naked self reflected in its bright red pupils.
The feeling I experienced was difficult to express…
It felt like the rabbit was laughing at me.
Fortunately, it quickly hopped out of the pit, but my sense of self-loathing lingered for a long time, tormenting me.
It was a long night…
*
“Hmm, the old house is definitely the best.”
A few days later, I returned to the cave without delay.
The familiar scenery welcomed me. A nostalgic view I had seen for over ten years.
‘Right.’
Even if someone comes looking for me, they should search in the place where I lived.
I absolutely couldn’t live in that pit anymore.
“Wow, it’s gotten really dusty in here.”
Of course, I hadn’t completely abandoned the pit.
It was uncomfortable to live in, but it was a space where animals wouldn’t often venture and people seldom visited.
I thought I’d use it as a hideout when the bounty hunters came storming in.
After all, I’d made secret passageways in the cave, so I didn’t have to worry about getting cornered.
So, I cleaned up the house a bit and lay down casually.
No matter how you look at it, this place was the best. I had lived here for over ten years, so it was hard to leave.
As I was resting for a while, I heard a sound.
“Hm?”
Creeping footsteps approached.
Three armed women entered. Seeing the weapons and armor they wore, they looked like high-level adventurers.
When they saw me, they started a casual conversation.
“Is this the one?”
“Yes, that’s right. This is the demon’s bloodline!”
“Wow, he’s quite the looker. Worth coming all the way here for.”
I raised my guard and activated the Player’s Eye.
It was a fascinating combination.
One of them was an Otherworlder, while the other two were Gaiaans.
From the looks of it, the Otherworlder brought the two Gaian girls here.
I asked them, “What are you? Why are you here…?”
“What do you think, you bastard?”
One adventurer grinned.
“We came to collect the bounty on your head.”
With that, she drew her sword and charged at me.
