Chapter 37.1
The giant horned rabbit stomped its feet like a bull.
Its distinctive red eyes appeared bloodshot with excitement.
Gulp
Someone swallowed at the sight of the grotesque horned rabbit.
That tiny sound made both the horned rabbit’s and my ears perk up simultaneously.
Ah.
It reacted to the sound of swallowing.
As the horned rabbit turned towards the adventurer, I also aimed my bow at it.
Paang—!
The horned rabbit twitched its ears at the rough sound of the bowstring’s tension.
It stopped its charge towards the adventurer and leaped like any other rabbit.
Thud!
An arrow struck the spot where the giant horned rabbit had been.
It had dodged the arrow by leaping away, guided solely by the sound of the vibrating bowstring.
A skilled fighter indeed.
In terms of combat experience, it was several levels above me, who had only hunted goblins and horned rabbits.
I sighed at the overwhelming difference in skill.
“Grr.”
If only the other adventurers had mana, a creature like this wouldn’t have been a challenge.
I gripped the bow tightly, frustrated, but then shook my head.
There was no need to resent the loss of what I once had.
What mattered was what I could do in the given situation.
I had lived like that so far and planned to continue doing so.
‘Let’s check it out.’
Jung Yu-na had mentioned it.
The horned rabbit, specialized in hearing, had degenerated eyes.
I decided to see if the giant horned rabbit shared this trait.
‘Focus on the eyes and ears first.’
I pulled the bowstring without notching an arrow.
Paang–!
The moment the bowstring vibrated and made a sound, it reflexively jerked its body.
Even without an arrow shot, it reacted just to the sound.
Clearly, it relied on hearing over sight due to poor vision.
Like other horned rabbits, it meant there was no mana in its eyes.
I looked over at Yeoreum to share this discovery, and she gave me a thumbs up.
“······!”
Had she understood without words?
I was slightly excited that I had been of help to her.
Pat-!
I was too late to notice the giant horned rabbit charging at us.
By the time I heard the sound and turned my head, it had already rammed its massive body into the tree I was on.
Kwaang-!
The tree tilted with the impact.
Unable to maintain my balance, I tumbled down with it.
“Gyeoul—!”
Yeoreum reached out to me.
I also stretched out my hand towards her, but we couldn’t grasp each other.
“Ah.”
I’m falling.
I wondered if it would hurt a lot when I hit the ground.
As I entertained such pointless thoughts, Yeoreum suddenly threw herself at me.
“Gyeoul!”
She wrapped her arms around me.
Whether to soften the impact of the fall or to protect my head, she even covered it.
Thud!
Together, we hit the ground.
Falling onto the giant horned rabbit’s back dispersed the impact, but being so close to it, my fear only grew.
“Uh…”
Its horn was as big as my forearm.
Would I die instantly if I got impaled by that?
As I was entertaining such silly thoughts, Yeoreum picked me up and started running desperately.
“Yu-na!”
“Come here!”
Jung Yu-na’s voice came from a nearby tree.
Behind us, the horned rabbit was getting ready to jump.
Its leg muscles swelled up.
Alone, I would have rolled away to dodge, now I was in Yeoreum’s arms.
“Duck down!”
We needed to duck to avoid it.
The moment I reflexively pushed down Yeoreum’s head, she threw my body upwards.
Thwack-!
Accompanied alongside the sound of something being pierced, my body soared into the air.
I was thrown so high that Jung Yu-na, perched in a tree, managed to grab the back of my collar.
“The–the horned rabbit—!”
Hanging by Jung Yu-na’s hand, I rolled my eyes searching for Yeoreum and found her below me, bearing a pained expression.