NOVEL NEXT Chapter 3 - Meteor 3
Chapter 3 – Meteor 3
“Kyang!”
The moment the Kobold yelped, its leg buckling from the low kick, Lee Yun-ho launched his next attack.
It wasn’t a conscious action, but an automatic movement, as if he had practiced the motion for a long time.
*Thwack!*
A punch, flowing smoothly from the low kick, slammed into the Kobold’s chest.
The creature, already losing strength in its leg, collapsed. Lee Yun-ho climbed onto its body and swung his fist again.
His target wasn’t the head, but the chest, specifically the area where the heart would be.
*Crack!*
His fist dug into the chest.
The sound and sensation of breaking bones registered at the end of his fist.
“Kah…”
The Kobold convulsed once, let out a weak groan, and then stuck out its tongue.
It was clearly dead.
“[A small amount of combat data acquired.]”
“[Accumulating combat data can be used to improve Master’s combat and physical abilities.]”
Lee Yun-ho breathed heavily as he listened to Integra’s voice.
The sensation remaining in his fist was gruesome, but perhaps due to the situation, or the fact that he had killed a monster and not a person, he didn’t feel the horrific and strange sensation described in novels.
He only felt the realization that he had defeated an enemy and survived.
“Haa.”
Lee Yun-ho cleared his head and caught his breath.
“[Master, are you alright?]”
At Integra’s concerned voice, Luther slowly nodded and stood up.
Then Integra’s voice continued.
“[Master, that was excellent combat.]”
“[Even with the combat program installed, it is not easy to utilize combat abilities immediately like Master did.]”
“[Master seems to have a talent for combat.]”
Lee Yun-ho smiled awkwardly at the praise delivered in a gentle voice, feeling a little embarrassed, and Integra let out a soft chuckle.
‘Is it because the data was initialized?’
Integra seemed much more affectionate than she had been in the original, Star Savior.
It was as if she had gained a touch of humanity.
‘Whatever the reason, it really works.’
Installing combat programs.
In Star Savior, Luther Lightseeker could learn new skills instantly by installing various combat programs into his mind, and Lee Yun-ho was no different.
‘It was one of the abilities I really envied.’
As Integra had said, it was impossible to utilize them immediately, but once the program was installed, he could instantly acquire the skills of an expert.
‘Is there anything else besides Hand-to-Hand Combat?’
But just as Lee Yun-ho was about to ask,
“[Master, I recommend securing the belongings of the dog-headed alien lifeform.]”
“[There may be something useful.]”
Lee Yun-ho nodded at Integra’s reasonable suggestion and focused his attention on the Kobold’s corpse.
Its dead appearance, tongue lolling out, was quite gruesome, but he could see a pouch at its waist.
“Hoo… alright.”
Taking a deep breath, Lee Yun-ho steeled himself and began searching the Kobold’s body.
“A dagger and… oh, Blastnuts.”
Two blue fruits, about 3cm in diameter, were inside the pouch at the Kobold’s waist.
As the name suggested, they exploded when thrown. They had practically no power, but they were quite useful in the early stages of the game due to their surprise effect.
“[Master, do you recognize these items?]”
“[If this is not your first visit to this planet, could I ask for additional information?]”
Lee Yun-ho hesitated for a moment at Integra’s question, but then shook his head and said,
“I don’t know much. I just have some knowledge in my head. My memory… seems a bit jumbled.”
Saying something like, “I know it well because it’s my favorite game,” was too risky.
He didn’t know how Integra would react.
“[Understood.]”
“[I will assume you are experiencing some memory impairment.]”
“Right.”
Perhaps because she was currently initialized, or perhaps because she trusted him as her Master, Integra seemed to accept his explanation readily.
‘Let’s talk about the game later.’
After he learned more about the current situation and Integra.
Having made up his mind, Lee Yun-ho started walking again.
Kobolds sometimes acted alone, but they generally moved in packs.
It would be disastrous if he encountered a group, so he had to keep moving.
“Integra, can we continue the conversation we were having earlier?”
“[Are you referring to the spaceship?]”
“[I apologize. My current detection range is extremely limited.]”
“[I can pick up the signal transmitted by the spaceship if we get close enough, but it seems impossible right now.]”
It seemed impossible to find the spaceship immediately.
But instead of being discouraged, Luther thought positively.
‘If I develop the nanites, Integra’s functions will also recover. It’s just not right now, but it means I can find it someday.’
In Star Savior, Luther Lightseeker flew various spaceships.
The Lightsword, a small fighter he piloted in the early stages.
The Lightseeker, a 30-meter-long medium-sized battleship he piloted from the mid-game onwards.
‘And the Lost Ship, Misstiltein, which he piloted at the end.’
The Misstiltein, in particular, wasn’t built with the technology of the Galactic Federation, the setting of Star Savior, but with the technology of the ‘Forerunners.’ It was the pinnacle of lost technology, and its power was truly immense.
‘Actually, even just the Lightsword would be enough to wipe out a whole group of Jogresses…’
Perhaps because he was getting excited imagining it, Lee Yun-ho couldn’t help but smile.
“[Master, I suspect mild symptoms of hypomania.]”
“[Constantly grinning after crash-landing on an unknown planet would look strange to anyone.]”
“[Please inform me immediately if you experience any abnormalities.]”
“R, right.”
Composing his expression after the gentle but factual blow, Luther continued eastward, looking around.
Thanks to the two moons, he could see his surroundings fairly well despite the late hour.
“Oh.”
“[Master?]”
Instead of answering Integra’s call, Lee Yun-ho approached something he had spotted.
It was the fruit of a flower blooming near the roots of a tree, and it looked like a green banana.
‘Paparius!’
A fruit favored by dragon hunters in Dragon Hunter 3.
It could be eaten raw, grilled, juiced, dried, and in various other ways. It was the favorite fruit of the siblings Als and Alisa, the protagonists of Dragon Hunter 3.
‘They were shown eating it all the time.’
In particular, Alisa’s Paparius eating scenes were so famous that dozens of fan-made videos had been created.
‘But the real Paparius is right in front of me?’
Unconsciously gulping, Lee Yun-ho carefully plucked a Paparius.
Then Integra warned him in a gentle voice.
“[Master, this is an unknown plant. Ingesting it rashly could be dangerous.]”
Luther paused at Integra’s words.
He had seen countless scenes of people eating Paparius in Dragon Hunter 3, but he wasn’t a human from Dragon Hunter 3 right now.
He was a human from Star Savior.
So there was a possibility that Paparius could be dangerous for him.
“[Master?]”
Instead of answering Integra, Luther examined the Paparius with a serious expression.
‘It should be… alright, right?’
It was certain that Paparius was edible.
Moreover, ‘Luther Lightseeker,’ as a combat homunculus, boasted a powerful digestive system.
He wasn’t sure how much difference there was between a human from Dragon Hunter 3 and a human from Star Savior, but he should be able to overcome some level of toxicity.
‘Alright, let’s eat.’
It wasn’t simply that he couldn’t resist his appetite.
To survive in the world of Dragon Hunter 3, he needed to confirm whether he had any adverse reactions to the food.
“Integra, I’ll start sampling.”
“[Understood. It would be best to ingest only a small amount.]”
“Okay.”
Luther nodded, peeled the Paparius, and took a small bite of the exposed white flesh.
And a smile involuntarily spread across his face.
Sweet.
Not just sweet, but deliciously sweet.
After quickly devouring the small piece, Lee Yun-ho took a bigger bite and marveled again.
The texture, as well as the sweetness, was excellent when he chewed it properly.
“[Is it that delicious?]”
“Yeah, it’s that delicious.”
Finishing another Paparius in one go, Lee Yun-ho carefully stored the remaining fruits and took out the string from the Kobold’s pouch.
‘Securing food is important.’
Tying the end of the Paparius bunch with the string and slinging it over his shoulder, Lee Yun-ho took another step forward with a satisfied expression.
He was even more excited to go to the Pioneers’ Village.
But at that very moment,
“[Master, I see a light.]”
Just as Integra said, a reddish-yellow light was visible in the distance.
Even though the moonlight was bright, it was still nighttime, so the light source stood out. Judging by the color, it seemed to be a bonfire.
‘Hunters camping?’
It was highly likely.
The only people who would light a bonfire in the Forest of Ancient Trees were dragon hunters.
‘I’m conflicted.’
If this were a game, he would have approached without a second thought, but reality was different.
All sorts of people were mixed among the dragon hunters.
‘Let’s just approach the vicinity.’
If it were anywhere other than the Forest of Ancient Trees, he wouldn’t have approached at all.
But the Forest of Ancient Trees was different.
Lee Yun-ho knew almost all of the hunters who resided in the Pioneers’ Village.
‘There were some blunt or unfriendly ones, but no crazies or murderers.’
So Luther cautiously made his way towards the bonfire.
As he got closer, Integra spoke in a gentle voice.
“[Master, life signs detected.]”
“[It appears to be one male and one female.]”
A man and a woman.
Could it be the siblings Als and Alisa?
Swallowing nervously, Luther moved closer to the bushes illuminated by the bonfire and took another deep breath.
‘This is first contact.’
His first encounter with someone living in the world of Dragon Hunter 3.
Suppressing his pounding heart, Lee Yun-ho stepped beyond the bushes.
And the sight that greeted him:
A black-haired girl and a brown-haired man were sitting in front of the bonfire.
Both seemed to have noticed his approach early on, as their eyes met as soon as he emerged from the bushes.
‘They’re not Als and Alisa.’
They weren’t hunters from the Pioneers’ Village either.
They were complete strangers.
But their impressions weren’t bad.
The girl was beautiful as if drawn in a picture, and the young man sitting next to her had a rather handsome face, though his features were strangely blurred.
Luther stopped, raised his hands slightly, and said,
“I’m not a suspicious person.”
“[Master, you seem very suspicious.]”
Lee Yun-ho knew that too.
After all, he was wearing a skin-tight black bodysuit.
But the truly suspicious, or rather, perplexing thing, wasn’t his attire.
“■■■? ■■■■?”
The brown-haired young man stood up and spoke.
But he couldn’t understand a word.
‘Wait, we can’t communicate?’
Thinking about it, it was only natural.
He was Luther Lightseeker, a character from ‘Star Savior,’ while they were humans from ‘Dragon Hunter 3.’
“■■? ■■■■■■■?”
The brown-haired young man spoke again, and Lee Yun-ho became even more flustered.
He had anticipated various situations, but not one where communication was impossible.
Moreover, even if he started learning the language now, it would be a problem.
Without any basic knowledge, he would literally have to learn each word through gestures.
But fortunately, that didn’t happen.
“[Encountered an alien language.]”
“[Beginning language data analysis.]”
Support AI Integra.
Her voice echoed in Luther’s mind.
–CROW–