A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War!

Swoosh!

“Grrr…!”

As Kaiyan pulled his hand out from the heart of the last remaining crocodile monster, blood spurted out like a fountain, and the creature collapsed onto the cold ground.

“Phew… I was hoping for a skill to be created, but that’s a bit disappointing.”

[Still, you got experience points and G-points easily!]

Kaiyan had hoped for a skill to develop while deliberately using repetitive stabbing and hand-blade attacks, but it seemed insufficient. Or, perhaps his attack methods were too different from a systematic approach.

While shaking off the blood-stained hand, the spirits who had been watching the fight with frightened faces approached from behind.

“Kkiruk! Kkiruuk!”

“What are the spirits saying?”

[They’re saying you’re amazing! You’re the first one, Kaiyan, to defeat so many Kumas. It seems they call these crocodile monsters ‘Kuma’.]

“Kuma… That’s a strange name.”

Kaiyan glanced over the pitifully fallen Kumas and the spirits who were frantically scurrying around with shocked expressions.

‘They were weaker than their size suggested, but… it’s hard to believe the spirits could have defeated them.’

“Rieka, ask if the Kumas usually invade like this. And if so, how have they survived until now.”

[Okay!]

To Kaiyan, it seemed unlikely that the few dozen spirits could effectively confront even ten Kumas. Though the spirits might have hidden strengths, their combat power, as sensed, seemed lacking.

When Rieka spoke to a brown bear, which appeared to be the leader of the spirits, the bear nodded vigorously and mumbled something.

“Koo! Koo-ooo!”

[Really? Then how did they survive… I mean, endure?]

“Koo-oo! Koo! Koo!”

[Hmm… That’s possible for spirits, I guess.]

“Koo-ooo!”

[Really? Oh… that’s a bit fascinating… Okay.]

‘How does she understand them? Truly amazing.’

Kaiyan, curious about the conversation with the spirit, looked at Rieka, who hurried over after finishing her talk with the baby bear.

[Kaiyan, I asked them!]

“So, what did they say?”

[Well… There have been a few instances where Kumas invaded like this. But each time, they escaped underground or to the sky, so this is the first time they’ve confronted the invaders directly.]

“I see…”

Considering the speed of the griffin-like spirit, it would outpace an average knight. It would be impossible for the Kumas to catch them. Especially if they could also enter the ground, there would be no need to escape to the sky.

‘Was it because I took the lead that the spirits didn’t hide and just watched? Were they worried something might happen to me?’

The spirits didn’t run away but just watched with anxious eyes when fighting the Kumas. It seemed odd that they would show such loyalty for a single spirit’s life, or that they didn’t flee on their own.

[Kaiyan, here’s an interesting fact.]

“What is it?”

[Sometimes the spirits hunt Kumas. They target a single one, not in a group.]

“What? The spirits do?”

A group of dozens of spirits could handle one Kuma, but…

“Why would they?”

The spirits wouldn’t hunt for leveling up like Kaiyan, so what could their purpose be? Revenge against Kumas for past grievances?

[They do it to obtain the energy of the World Tree. When the gate doesn’t open for too long, they act this way.]

“…How is hunting Kumas related to that? They’re not the World Tree. How can killing them yield the tree’s energy?”

[Yes, it’s possible! The Kumas consume the remaining energy that the spirits couldn’t absorb when the gate opens. Normally it’s impossible, but it seems Kumas can store it in their bodies.]

“That’s intriguing.”

Then, the World Tree’s energy might be present in the atmosphere right now.

Kaiyan noticed the spirits excitedly moving around the Kuma corpses. They were absorbing the energy emanating from the bodies.

‘Interesting. Let me feel the energy of the World Tree…’

As Kaiyan concentrated, trying to sense the energy:

Woosh!

“Koo-oooo!”

“…What’s happening?”

Suddenly, the baby bear spirit emitted a deep brown light and was soon enveloped in it. Kaiyan paused, about to help, but stopped, feeling the warm and holy aura.

“Rieka, what’s this…?”

[Wow… The spirit is evolving! It’s my first time seeing it too! The brown bear is becoming an intermediate spirit!]

“…Intermediate spirit.”

As Kaiyan watched in amazement, the expanding light gradually shrank and released the spirit inside. The spirit’s form had changed.

“Kwoooaah!”

A powerful roar echoed. The source was the brown bear spirit, previously a small cub.

The bear, now about 3 meters tall, had an imposing stature. If one didn’t know it was a spirit, they might mistake it for an ordinary bear or even a monster, with sharp claws and protruding, strong teeth.

“…Such rapid growth is unheard of.”

[Spirits usually do that! They use stored energy to expand their vessel!]

“I don’t quite get it, but… an intermediate spirit, really.”

In such a short time, the cute baby bear had transformed into a mighty adult bear.

As Kaiyan sighed, the joyful bear was surrounded by other spirits.

“Kkiruk! Kkiruk!”

“Kyawoo! Kyawoo!”

[They’re saying goodbye to the brown bear, hoping to meet again soon.]

The brown bear seemed to feel the same, gently patting the heads of nearby spirits with its enlarged paws, just like Kaiyan had done.

After patting every spirit, the brown bear turned to Kaiyan and Rieka and lumbered over.

“Koo-oo!”

“…Me too?”

Pat, pat.

“…This feels strange.”

Despite its size, the bear’s paw was still soft. The bond formed in such a short time felt peculiar.

‘Spirits are truly pure beings.’

The thought Kaiyan had when he first saw Rieka resurfaced while watching the spirits.

Who could be sending these innocent beings to a place called Havemime? Perhaps someone like the god Kaiyan had met? If so, what could their purpose be?

Before he could finish his thoughts:

Ziiing!

A strange sound came from above the brown bear, and a rift opened, resembling how Kaiyan used his dimensional cube.

“Koo-oo? Koo-ooo!”

[Wow! That must be the gate!]

“…The gate? Can we leave through there?”

As they watched, the fully opened gate didn’t reveal the other side, remaining opaque.

As the brown bear confidently stepped towards the gate:

“Koo-oo!”

“Whoa! It disappeared…?”

The bear vanished starting from the touched part, like disintegrating dust, getting sucked into the gate. Kaiyan had thought it was just a passage, but this was shocking.

This sight made him dismiss the idea of using the gate to reach the Eunasia continent.

‘Turning to dust… Can we survive that?’

It seemed risky.

While spirits might survive due to their mystical nature, Kaiyan and Rieka likely wouldn’t survive such a transformation.

With a hint of regret, Kaiyan stepped back, holding Rieka.

Ziing!

The gate that swallowed the brown bear emitted a strange sound, expelling colorful dust.

Whoosh.

[Looks like it’s releasing lower spirits.]

The dust from the gate gathered by color, expanding and taking shape.

The forms resembled the nearby spirits, with various animal shapes like a small sparrow, lizard, squirrel, etc.

As Kaiyan watched the newly formed spirits, they opened their eyes and stared back.

“Kkoo-oo?”

[They’re asking who you are.]

“Me? Umm… a temporary guardian for the spirits?”

[Huh? Kaiyan, are you planning to settle in Havemime?]

Rieka, startled by the word ‘guardian’, asked.

“No, we need to get out.”

[But…?]

“Just temporarily. It seems we can’t leave through the gate… We’ll need more G-points. And it’s true that me hunting more monsters is beneficial for the spirits.”

[Ah! Then it’s all good!]

Kaiyan wondered if it was okay for him, almost an alien, to interfere with their ecosystem. But…

‘Canien wouldn’t have sent me to a good place.’

If Havemime was just a land of spirits and monsters, Canien wouldn’t have sent him there. There must be a threat, and that means intervening in Havemime itself.

“Rieka, we need more information. Ask if there are other monsters or any unusual places. Anything odd will help.”

[Okay! I’ll ask for all the information!]

‘Canien overlooked one thing.’

He never knew Rieka, who could communicate with spirits, was with Kaiyan.

Had Kaiyan been alone or not a player, he might have collapsed in this situation, regardless of being an Aura Master or a 6th Circle mage.

In this respect, having Rieka along with the Player’s Shop was reassuring.

“Phew… While Rieka gathers information, let’s check something I forgot.”

Kaiyan decided to check the rewards in storage and his new title and skills.

He was particularly excited about the player system’s rewards. Maybe a quest reward box? What grade?

“Let’s check the storage last and start with the least curious… Skills first. Skill window, Unyielding Strength.”

Ding! [Unyielding Strength (B): Increases vitality by 10% of your strength.]

“Ah! So that’s why…!”

No wonder he felt more energetic since arriving in Havemime, even though his status didn’t change. Especially during the fight with Canien, it seemed odd how his body endured the tremendous strength of 1000.

“This passive skill helped me endure it.”

Even now, 1000 strength seemed inhuman. The strain on the body from channeling such power through a fist must be immense.

“A good skill indeed. Now, the title. Status window.”

Name: Kaiyan / Age: 15 / Occupation: Player / Title: Unbelievable Strength

Level: 74 / Strength: 80 / Agility: 53 / Vitality: 43 / Intelligence: 10 / Points: 0

When he clicked on the title ‘Unbelievable Strength’ in the status window:

[Unbelievable Strength (S)]

-Effect: When allocating points to strength, the effect is doubled.

“…Is this for real?”

The title’s description and rank left Kaiyan in disbelief.

I'm currently Translating the following novels: Pick Me Up! | A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War! | The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player. If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!