Gacha Game Girls Are Obsessed With Me

At first, I was wedged like a siege weapon against her side.

Now, I felt like I was being cradled like a princess, held tightly in her arms as we moved at a very fast pace, and I felt my head spinning.

“Oh my, Arc. You shouldn’t lose your focus, you know? You must firmly protect the affection I will take!”

“Ugh, be quiet—”

If only Elise hadn’t made those strange sounds occasionally.

I might have fainted by now.

“Do you have a penchant for talking to yourself? A man nurturing his own little friend in his heart. That’s somewhat charming in its own way.”

“……”

Whether it was misfortune or good fortune, it seemed Elise’s voice could only be heard by our brave party members.

“Oh my, Arc. Was that your taste? I could keep you company.”

Shut up.

It’s because of you.

After being wrapped up like that for a while.

“It seems safe now. From here on, I’ll walk.”

Without warning, Renatel threw me into the air, then caught me and slammed me down vertically.

I braced for the impact on my lower body.

But I landed more gently than I expected, feeling a bit awkward.

“Must you always come down like this—”

“It’s my preference. I’ve wanted to try it at least once.”

If that’s how it is.

She really isn’t in her right mind.

……Are all heroes out of their minds?

After that, we walked calmly through the dense forest of great trees.

“Where are we heading now?”

I asked one of the top three questions a kidnapped person ought to ask.

“To the rebel army’s base in Darangdae.”

Renatel answered calmly.

In that moment.

The quest line for the Dae-suirim area, which I had long forgotten in my mind, began to resurface.

Dae-suirim.

An expansive forest region centered around the world tree, exuding an auspicious aura.

In the heart of the world tree lived long-lived, pointy-eared sages.

And on the outskirts thrived a variety of beastfolk living together.

Human preferences were incredibly diverse.

And so there were many types of beastfolk.

Among them, three large tribes stood out.

The Myeoin tribe, the Rangin tribe, and the Gyeonin tribe.

Of course, if we counted the population of beastfolk across the entire continent, the Gyeonin tribe would undoubtedly hold the largest number.

Yet the Gyeonin tribe had ancestors who lost their affection for humans after being deceived and forced to mate with them.

Hence, rather than staying in Dae-suirim.

They would be a tribe constantly wandering the human world, searching for a suitable companion.

Naturally, the power struggle in Dae-suirim was compressed into a duel between the Myeoin and Rangin tribes.

The Tower’s Dae-suirim also mirrored reality.

It might even be intertwined with reality itself.

With the selection of the lazy devil Neb, a Myeoin tribe member, as the boss of the 20th floor of the Tower of Wishes, the Myeoin tribe had risen to prominence.

“It’s ridiculous. Those cat ladies are in charge? And borrowing the power of demons, they should be ashamed.”

Renatel showed her sharp teeth and growled.

“That’s why we, the Darangdae, are fighting to enlighten the traitorous Myeoin tribe and their accomplices, and to return Dae-suirim entirely to beastfolk’s hands.”

A radical activist group known as Darangdae.

How that ends up shortened to Darangdae is a perfectly logical question, though.

I could understand the sentiment well enough since “■■wi” sounds a bit more political, while “■■dae” has a more militant feel.

“But what does that have to do with me being kidnapped?”

At my question, Renatel’s ears perked up, her head tilted, and her nose sniffed.

“Isn’t it obvious? If the sage is aligned with them, our justification vanishes.”

It seemed there was quite a sophisticated political scheme behind this.

I had no intention of aligning with them, but…

While Renatel, the head of Darangdae, was passionately sharing her ideology for a while,

I happened to glance at a shining tablet of the sage.

Inside it.

Was a game screen I hadn’t seen in ages.

Our five brave heroes’ journey was unfolding in game form.

Seeing it like this was somewhat nostalgic, exciting, and fresh.

But you guys.

What on earth are you doing right now…?

* * *

About ten minutes after Arc’s kidnapping.

The heroes were navigating through the jungle in a straight line, ignoring the proper path.

At the forefront was.

“Sniff sniff, the scent of my companion has stopped!”

The absolute possessor of superhuman canine powers.

No matter how far apart we were, the moment Arc started grilling meat, this loyal dog dashed to the Guild House, leaving everything behind.

It was Lumi.

It wasn’t as if they prepared for this situation specifically.

Arc’s scent, beginning from the hoodie he wore, extended to his underwear, body odor, and even the unique scent of night flowers he emitted after mumbling to himself.

Nothing escaped Lumi’s nose.

I felt somewhat relieved that there were no lingering scents of grumbling or howling yet.

Lumi and the heroes sprinted.

Of course, they weren’t following the proper road.

They were forging their own path, getting closer.

“Make way!”

What if there was no path?

Then we make one.

Saha lent all her strength to her hammer, turning the massive rock blocking our way into dust with a single blow.

The dense forest path unique to Dae-suirim made visibility a little challenging, but.

“Over there! I can see a massive city!”

Even though we were all four-star-ranked, still, a hero was a hero.

Moreover, the experience point-enhanced levels honed through countless encounters couldn’t lie.

Ari quickly scaled a giant tree, surveyed from an archer’s perspective, and reported back.

If the heroes began to tire, or if anyone got a minor scratch while forging a path.

“Arc… no, blessings.”

The walking potion of a saint immediately cast recovery and blessings.

Their teamwork had become perfect as they climbed up to the fifteenth floor.

Of course.

“Huff, huff, huff…”

The little one, having lost her specialized riding machine, was busy scrambling after them with her tiny legs.

And at last, they encountered foes for the first time.

“Stop! This is the path to the sacred ground of the Rangin tribe. Outsiders are not permitted to enter!”

The straight line they ran into, unfortunately, led directly to the place where Arc was kidnapped—the Rangin tribe’s sacred ground, “Red Hat’s Hut.”

Naturally, they were on high alert!

But.

“Who cares?”

Lumi imitated Arc’s way of speaking.

The synchronization had the corners of the brave members’ mouths curling into smiles.

The words of the intruders, perfectly mimicking the tone of someone who enjoyed mingling with humans, riled up the Gyeonin tribe soldiers.

“Grrr, I can’t stand it!”

“Defeat the intruders!”

The Rangin tribe soldiers drew their swords in unison.

Combat commenced.

“To bring in outsiders, aren’t you ashamed as a fellow beastfolk!”

“Who cares?”

Having left Dae-suirim and wandering the human world due to an accident in her early childhood, Lumi had no concept of beastfolk pride. With a mindset of “give Arc back!” she jabbed her elbow into the solar plexus of a Rangin soldier.

“Ugh—”

Just as she finished with her claws.

She paused.

– Complete your mission without harming the beastfolk. (In progress)

Realizing the restriction against delivering the finishing blow.

“Gah!”

She controlled her strength just enough to knock him out without killing him.

Lumi completed the takedown, and while looking for her next target, she spun around.

“Huff!”

Even she, with her skillful curves that could make anyone want to touch, vigorously shook her chest.

In contrast, Saha gently adjusted the force behind her hammer, swinging it just enough to knock opponents unconscious.

“Keh, cough…! What in the…!”

Ari’s arrows contained bags of chili powder instead of arrowheads.

Boom!

The Rangin soldiers hit began coughing non-stop.

“Hey, that guy is mine!”

“Dare to target my little brother!”

Thanks to Tynia equipping specialized gear, her performance was vastly improved!

She incapacitated two Rangin soldiers, causing them to panic.

“Yip!”

“Woof!”

Seizing the opportunity, Lumi dove in, delivering simultaneous strikes to their heads.

“Lumi-woof, punch!”

“Tynia-nyah, woof!”

In the midst of it all, the official Arc-approved Lunya combination exchanged thumbs up, sharing a moment.

Surprisingly, the Rangin soldiers didn’t seem all that strong, and even Yo-hena rolled up her sleeves to join the fray.

“Repent! Repent! Repent!”

Holding onto a pitiful little lamb—no, wolf—and continuously bashing its head with a holy text, she was enforcing repentance (physically).

Though she tried to act as if she was calm,

Even Yo-hena was feeling something indescribable bubbling up inside her.

Quickly dispatching the soldiers that were guarding the path.

– Complete your mission without harming the beastfolk. (In progress)

The heroes were confident that as long as they didn’t kill the beastfolk, they would be deemed as “not harming” them.

Still, a bloody incident had already occurred.

While Lumi resumed tracking Arc’s scent through the bloodstains of the Rangin tribe members who had bled.

“We should take what we need, right?”

“Your master would have done that.”

“Yeah, Arc would certainly have done that.”

Ari’s eyes sparkled as she approached the tightly bound Rangin soldiers.

With an ominous premonition, the Rangin soldiers twitched as they realized she was coming.

“Gyaah…!”

“Just kill me! You brazen outsiders! Gah!”

After easily subduing the resisting Rangin soldiers.

Ari delicately cut off their tail hairs using a hunting knife for her stash.

The spirit of creative economics, obtaining loot without taking lives!

If Arc had seen this, he would surely be smiling contentedly.

Ari sniffed.

“Grr! The scent of my companion is moving!”

“We have everything we need! Lumi, let’s go!”

The brave party hurriedly pressed on down the path.

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