Surviving in the Trash Hell Game by Tossing a Coin

Chapter 10 - Erin's Request (1)

The quest window that popped up so suddenly contained some truly strange content.

[ Erin's Request ]

Erin, an 18-year-old girl.

Despite her frail body, she is striving to save Reblen Village.

You must help her with both material and moral support.

The weapon provided differs depending on the coin.

However, for this quest only, you can toss the coin again each time the 'Objective' is updated.

Objective:

You must solve the problems of Reblen Village.

Multiple problems exist, and they will be updated as they are discovered.

However, Erin must survive.

Reward : ??

Upon failure : ??

Heads reward : ??

Tails reward : You will reacquire a +0 Dirt Spoon one time only.

No clear objective was set.

The reward and the penalty for failure were also not set.

Even the Heads reward, which was always indicated, was not set.

Who on earth was it that called the unknown…

A powerful yet fatal word that stimulates the primal human emotions of curiosity and imagination?

Who?

It was me.

Why did I do that?

I stand corrected.

The unknown is just a crappy word.

I shouldn't have listened to such a request from a complete stranger.

"I-I'm Erin Light. It's a pleasure to meet you...!"

That awkward bow, while hesitating, didn't seem cute at all; rather, it made my irritation surge.

But I couldn't act on it.

Since I had accepted the quest anyway, giving up was not an option.

Moreover, the only guidepost for this quest was ultimately this girl, who knew about the problems of Reblen Village.

This meant that if I got on her bad side, it would be a forced failure.

"Sigh, I thought I could rest easy for a few days."

"It's okay, Captain. It probably won't be that hard!"

Instead of replying directly to Erin's words, I muttered just loud enough for Maletta to hear and wiped my face.

It seemed my assumption that crises wouldn't come one after another was just my own delusion.

At least it was a relief that Maletta was beside me to offer comfort.

After calming my mind with a few seconds of deep breaths.

I finally finished my introduction to Erin, who was waiting for a response, blinking her eyes.

"I'm Kang Woon. The mercenary Captain of the Annyeong-wangnyeong Mercenary corps."

"A mercenary captain? That's so cool...! I've only heard about captains in fairy tales!"

"It's not that cool."

Erin reacted with sparkling eyes even to my listless introduction.

There weren't any particular heroic tales to add to that, so I just ended up waving my hand.

"I am Maletta Kreynoah! Our Captain's most reliable mercenary!"

"Ooh! So you're Maletta! Ooh!"

"Oh, you know me? Hehe, I'm pretty famous, but to think the rumors have spread this far!"

Next up was naturally Maletta's introduction.

Maletta took out the giant scythe that was her symbol and swung it around, striking all sorts of poses.

She raised an arm, spun around once, floated in the air; it was a whole commotion.

"Your name sounded familiar! Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you!"

"Ugh, so it just sounded familiar."

However, Erin, much like with me, just had sparkling eyes and showed no more of a reaction.

Maletta exuded an air of blatant disappointment and slung the scythe onto her back.

"So, Erin, what kind of problems does the village have?"

Now that the idle chatter was over, it was time to get to the main point.

At my words, Erin clapped her hands and put on a serious expression, different from before.

"Well... our village is on the outskirts, and the land isn't very good either, so we have to procure our food from the outside."

"You can't go into the forest because it's full of Dark Dogs, right?"

"Yes. We can only go to the very edge of the forest...."

It seemed they were facing the typical food shortage everyone would in an apocalyptic setting like this.

If so, it was a problem that could be solved by procuring food or dealing with whatever was preventing its procurement.

"Let's talk on the way. It's more advantageous to move when it's bright."

Since listening to the situation while sitting still was inefficient, I hurried our steps first.

Erin and Maletta agreed, and we each packed the necessary items for the resolution.

Erin packed the giant halberd I had taken from the ruffians yesterday.

She said she couldn't fight but still wanted to be of help.

Seeing her lift the halberd with ease despite her delicate appearance, I thought she wasn't a weakling after all.

I tossed a coin.

Ting, went the cheerful sound, belying the outcome.

It was tails again, and I got a refill of the Dirt Spoon.

Still, it didn't matter since I had a trump card.

Maletta, as I had asked, packed the ruffians' clothes and equipment we had thoroughly looted yesterday into a bag.

This equipment was to be sold for my travel expenses or used to resolve the quest if needed.

After we finished our preparations, Erin led the way out of the village.

"Oh my, you're helping us so much like this...."

"You are truly a righteous person, thank you!"

"No, it's nothing like that."

The villagers, having heard the news from somewhere, repeatedly expressed their gratitude to us.

It wasn't something I did of my own free will, so it felt a bit awkward to receive their thanks, and I followed Erin out as if I were escaping.

***

No personal chatter continued during our journey.

Erin was only diligently explaining the problem the village was facing, that is, the objective.

"So, in times like these, we have to procure food from the market. We managed to get by somehow until now, but...."

The conclusion so far was as follows.

Food had to be procured from the market, and although it was far, there had been no problems until now.

"A few weeks ago, people appeared and started blocking the only path."

"Blocking the path?"

"Yes, they said we have to pay a toll to go to the market from now on...."

However, people suddenly appeared, demanding a toll and blocking the road to the market.

Naturally, the villagers couldn't possibly have money, and because of that, the village faced a food problem.

"We go there to barter in the first place, so there's no way we'd have money. Because of that, we can't pass at all...."

"I see. Charging money on a path used to make money, that's too much."

They were probably the same people or the same faction as the ruffians who attacked the village yesterday.

Either the toll wasn't enough, or they had another objective.

"Weren't they the ruffians from yesterday?"

"Probably. But they feign innocence, so there's nothing we can do...."

"I see."

More important than such speculation was that I had found a clue to the problem that needed solving.

Indeed, during our conversation, the quest window updated.

[ Erin's Request ]

The objective has been updated.

It is said that a group has recently been blocking the passage to the central market of Area 84.

Find them and secure the path for Reblen Village to the market.

Objective:

Deal with the group.

Special Reward Condition:

Maletta must not be involved.

"Huh?"

The objective was as I had guessed, but of course, it wasn't an ordinary quest.

The sentence 'Special Reward Condition' was quite different from what I'd seen so far.

Not only me, but also Maletta, who could see the quest window, tilted her head.

They sure love restricting Maletta.

Of course, the moment a Grade 3 starts catching thieves, it's not a quest but a massacre.

"I don't know what this is, but wouldn't it be better not to do it?"

Maletta, who prioritized safety, immediately recommended refusal.

But rather than refusing right away like her, I decided to assess the situation first.

"Let's decide after we see the group."

"Okay, I understand."

Erin didn't bother to intervene in our conversation of indirect refusal and just walked on, leading the way.

After a long walk, we finally arrived somewhere.

It was a massive tunnel that stretched out for a very long way.

A tunnel dug through a mountain, its entrance about twice as wide as a common highway tunnel.

"This tunnel is the passage?"

"Ah, actually... this area, the southern part of Area 84, is surrounded by mountains. This is the only safe passage to the center."

"Right, if there was another way, you could have just taken a detour. It's not like they can watch that place forever."

Of course, there might have been ways to cross the sea or walk further to the outskirts and through the dense forest.

But people who couldn't even get through the Dark Dogs had no way of attempting that.

"So. You're saying those guys are inside this tunnel?"

"Yes, they were here. They might not be here now, but...."

"Then let's go right away."

Once I reached a conclusion.

I became even more curious about the faces of the bastards who blocked the means of survival for such pitiful people.

So I urged Erin on, and she, as if she wanted that too, nodded and started walking slowly into the tunnel, gripping her halberd tightly.

Using the flame Maletta lit as a guidepost, we followed behind her.

The inside of the tunnel was extremely quiet and dark, and also long.

Only the sound of our footsteps echoing proved that time was passing.

The silence did not last long.

At the midpoint of the tunnel, which we reached after walking for several minutes.

A structure that looked like a barricade, blocking the tunnel, appeared.

"Hey, stop."

As the threatening voice of our target broke the silence, a bright flashlight beam suddenly shone in our faces.

Something they did even though they could identify us with Maletta's flame.

It was self-evident that the action was a provocation and a warning.

They just slowly scanned my, Maletta's, and Erin's faces but didn't have much of a reaction.

It seemed they weren't the same people who attacked Reblen Village yesterday.

Well, they had everything looted from them and fled yesterday.

Whether for the sake of their pride or their results, it was hard to imagine they would be here, perfectly fine.

"Carrying all that stuff, where are you headed?"

However, the robbery was the same as yesterday.

With a calm face, he threateningly tapped the spine of the greatsword slung over his shoulder on his own shoulder.

He stepped up on the barricade and raised his head high, looking down on us.

"Didn't I tell you back then that this place is off-limits?"

"I didn't hear anything like that."

"Huh? You didn't hear it from her? What a clumsy little kid."

The man particularly sneered, waving the light towards Erin.

Seeing him act as if he knew her, it seemed he was part of the group that had turned her away back then.

"Still, if you really want to pass... maybe if you show some sincerity."

"Sincerity?"

"Money."

But when we showed no sign of moving, the man shrugged his shoulders.

Then, just like Barkan, he made a circle with his index finger and thumb.

"What if we can't pay?"

But not only did we not have the money to pay, we had no intention of paying even if we did.

I raised my head and did not avoid the man's gaze.

At that, the man snickered as if it was ridiculous and lowered the greatsword from his shoulder.

"Go back, or get beaten up by us."

"Ugh...."

Then, in an instant, he leaped from the barricade and slammed his greatsword into the ground.

With a huge bang, a massive cloud of dust rose.

It was a threat.

A threat that he could smash our heads just as he had smashed this ground.

Erin, her halberd rendered useless, took a step back in fear.

For Erin, who had no combat experience and was young, that threat was probably very effective.

The man likely intended it as such a threat.

But not us.

He would faint if he knew how many Grade 1s and 2s I, let alone Maletta, had met in the game.

"About Grade 8. Small fry."

"What did you say?"

Maletta sized up the man's attack as if it were simply pathetic.

The man's eyebrow twitched at the provocation, and he now openly pointed the blade of his greatsword towards us.

"Even if that's true, are we at a level to hear that from ordinary people who aren't even recognized by the Association?"

"Puhaha, you're hilarious! How dare a Grade 8 like you...."

Maletta burst out laughing at those words and was about to step forward, taking out her scythe.

But after hearing the words 'Grade 8,' my thoughts changed a little, so I raised my arm to stop Maletta from stepping forward.

"Maletta, stay out of it."

"Huh?"

Grade 8.

A quarter of the strength of a Grade 7.

Also, a grade that could be defeated if about four Grade 9s gathered.

A grade that couldn't break a tree with bare hands, only slightly superior to an ordinary human.

Grade 9, which even a slightly trained ordinary person could become depending on their skills.

Grade 8, which could be defeated if those Grade 9s gathered.

I couldn't rely only on Maletta in battle forever.

Nor could I rely only on luck and wit like when I defeated the Dark Dogs.

It was time to prove that I could handle it too.

"Against an enemy of this level, we should get the special reward, right?"

The heads from the coin I tossed yesterday.

It was time to use it now.

"Summon Emergency Firefighting Set Armor."

I immediately tossed the coin I had received as a reward from the 'Emergency Firefighting Set' yesterday.

Ting, the coin flew into the sky with a cheerful sound and shone white.

Soon, it began to take the shape of clothes, and that shape flew to me and became a complete 'armor'.

It felt like a transformation scene from a hero comic.

"What's this, a firefighter?"

"Ha! There are public officials even in these backwoods?"

The appearance was that of a firefighter's uniform you'd see at a fire scene.

I couldn't see the stats. I didn't know the special effects either.

But my body felt heavy, and it was self-evident that this heaviness would protect me.

"Summon Weapon."

I also tossed a coin again.

The name of that coin was the weapon of the 'Emergency Firefighting Set'.

The light created in the same way flew into my hand and became a fine weapon.

A +2 sledgehammer, with a bluish luster, the enhancement effect, enveloping its pitch-black head.

It was a bit heavy, but don't underestimate my experience serving as a combat engineer.

I've swung a hammer more than twice as much as you guys have.

"What, are you a suicide wannabe?"

"If you had the money to hire a mercenary, you should have just paid the toll, you morons."

At the declaration of war, the man's four companions emerged from the darkness behind him and jumped down in front of us.

One greatsword, two hand axes, one dagger, one longsword.

A total of five enemies appeared and began to surround us to kill us.

At the larger than expected number of people, Maletta seemed to contemplate, bringing her hand to her back, but when I looked back and nodded once.

"Alright, but I'll jump in immediately if it gets dangerous. Just know that."

She left only those words and stepped back completely so as not to get involved.

Now, the only one by my side was Erin.

Erin was looking up at me, having turned around with a confused expression.

Her eyes were asking, 'Will I be told to step back like Maletta?'

"Erin."

"Yes, yes!"

When I actually called her name, she finally answered, releasing the tension that had built up.

It was also apparent in the way she turned her body completely to face me, as if ready to retreat immediately.

She, of course, had no intention of fighting directly.

But, you see.

A person who only receives help from others can never stand on their own.

"You're with me."

"What?"

And in the first place, where on earth is a mercenary corps captain who fights alone without any mercenaries?