Chapter 61

Here’s the English translation of the provided novel excerpt without additional comments:

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### Episode 61 – Beware the Deer

Irregular, branch-like antlers.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The sight of him charging toward me with those antlers sent chills down my spine. If I let him hit me, my body would be turned into a grotesque sieve.

“f*ck, come at me one at a time!”

This was truly a life-or-d*ath situation.

Even though I had my sword in hand, hesitation filled me—would my attacks even work against these deer bastards with their massive muscles and razor-sharp antlers?

“Hail the Sun!”

『Insufficient quest progress.』

“d*mn it!”

CRACK, CRACK!

In the end, the deer slammed into me, and the impact made my vision spin. The sound of snapping branches echoed violently. I was sure my body would be riddled with holes, but thankfully, the crocodile leather armor was thicker than expected, saving me from that gruesome fate.

Still, the pain was so intense it felt like I’d been impaled, and a scream ripped from my throat.

“f*ck, that HURTS!! You… you d*mn antlered bastards!”

CRASH, CRASH!

The one small mercy was that the deer who had charged at me had gotten their antlers tangled together, struggling to move.

It reminded me of an old fairy tale about a deer that got its antlers stuck in branches and couldn’t move—except in this case, I was the one trapped, and there was nothing funny about it.

“Luna, SAVE ME!”

Trapped in this antler prison, I screamed. The deer’s hooves rained down on me as I crouched on the ground—I was about to be flattened to d*ath.

Just then, Luna, who had been watching from above, pulled something from her cloak and threw it toward the ground.

“Hassan! Cover your nose!”

It was a bamboo-like wooden canteen.

Spinning as it fell, it landed near the tangled deer and splashed liquid all over their heads—SPLASH!

“f*ck, what the hell is that SMELL?!”

I thought I had built up a tolerance to most odors, given my upbringing, but even I found this scent absolutely revolting. It was so pungent and spicy, it felt like fire had erupted inside my nose.

Tears streamed down my face, my nose ran uncontrollably—it was like undergoing chemical warfare training.

“This is fucking SPICY!”

“I told you to cover your nose! It’s habanero pepper oil—something deer hate! Just bear with it!”

I had no idea what habanero pepper oil was, but the smell was so intense it made my eyes water. And if even I was suffering this much, the wild deer—hyper-sensitive to strong scents—started thrashing around before collapsing in agony.

Seeing them suffer more than me gave me a little strength.

“f*ck yeah! Serves you right, you little shits! I told you I’d k*ll the first one who came at me!”

Not wanting to waste the opportunity, I grabbed my sword and prepared to strike the struggling deer in the back of their necks—until—

“H-Hassan, no! You can’t k*ll them!”

Luna’s voice froze me mid-swing.

“Why the hell not?!”

“Th-these deer are sacrifices offered to Lady Diana…! If you k*ll them recklessly, we don’t know what kind of punishment we’ll face!”

My nose and mouth were still burning, so I wasn’t in the right state of mind to fully grasp what she meant by “sacrifices.”

But one thing was clear—these deer belonged to someone, and we couldn’t just k*ll them.

f*ck, these bastards beat the sh*t out of me, and I can’t even k*ll them? Even Yu-Gi-Oh! rules are more merciful than this.

“So what, I just can’t k*ll them? Fucking fine, then.”

With that, I sheathed my sword, clenched my fist, and slammed it as hard as I could into the skull of the first deer that had charged at me.

THUD!

Gurgle, twitch, whiiine…

The deer let out a pitiful noise as it writhed.

Oh, now you’re acting weak? Where was this energy when you charged at me? Not that I was soft enough to fall for such a cowardly trick. I’m a ruthless Samaritan, after all.

So when I raised my interlaced fists to deliver another blow to the fallen deer’s skull—

CLACK, CLACK, CLACK!

Hooves pounded the ground. Then, suddenly, my body was lifted into the air.

“UOOF!”

The scenery flashed before my eyes as gravity took hold, slamming me back into the ground.

The impact knocked the wind out of me so hard I couldn’t even scream—just a hollow groan escaped my lips.

“Ugh… augh…”

I thought the deer had all been neutralized by the pepper oil—what the hell just happened?

Gritting my teeth, I forced my eyes open—and there stood a deer with a hide of lustrous, pumpkin-colored fur, its towering antlers and majestic presence making it clear:

This was their leader.

Just then, Luna’s voice rang out from the treetops:

“H-Hassan! That’s the one! That’s the b*stard who stole my money pouch!”

“…f*ck. So it’s you, huh? Fine, you’re the one I’m catching.”

Ignoring the pain, I forced myself up. The smug b*stard stared down at me with an arrogant, lofty gaze—like a beast looking down on trash.

That condescending stare pissed me off. Who the hell does this overgrown deer think it is?!

“Meteor Swarm!”

Pretending to collapse, I hurled the rocks and sand I’d secretly gathered right into the deer’s eyes.

This wasn’t cowardice—it was human ingenuity, using the environment to my advantage.

SPLAT, SPLAT!

The deer flinched from the attack, and in that moment—

DASH!

I lunged forward, wrapping my arms around its neck and squeezing. I’d choke it unconscious and drag it straight to the guards!

GRRRAAGH—!

I poured every ounce of strength I had into crushing its windpipe.

But this deer, hardened by a life of crime in the wild, wasn’t going down easy—thrashing violently, it tried to shake me off by slamming me into trees and rocks.

Thud! Crash!

The pain in my back, shoulders, and ribs was excruciating, but I refused to let go, tightening my grip further.

“Grrk—KHHH!”

A pained growl escaped my clenched teeth. If I lost to some d*mn deer, forget Gold Tier—I might as well give up on escaping Bronze Hell.

“DIIIIE!!!”

Grk—stop… stop…

“…The f*ck?!”

I flinched—the deer had spoken.

My grip loosened in shock, and the b*stard took the chance to wrench free, staggering away before turning its back to flee.

Still dazed, I reacted on instinct—I couldn’t let it escape! I launched myself onto its back!

WHUMPF!

My weight crashed down on it, forcing it to the ground. What followed was a messy wrestling match—one that I was losing, because apparently, having four legs meant it could kick me way harder than I could retaliate.

“F-f*ck! Four legs is cheating, you b*stard! Fight fair!”

Still, I managed to grab one of its legs, gripping tight—

Ding!

『Actaeon – Lv. ?? 16

Status: Diana’s Curse | Immature Antlers | Resilient Hooves』

The floating text made me narrow my eyes.

“Actaeon?”

The deer froze.

Then, trembling, it shakily stood up and limped away.

“HEY! Where the hell do you think you’re going?! FIGHT ME!”

It turned back briefly, staring at me before vanishing into the underbrush.

What the f*ck? Is it… leading me somewhere?

I glanced between the tree where Luna was and the forest where the deer had disappeared, torn. But I couldn’t just let it go—so I followed.

“Luna! Stay there and wait for me!”

“H-Hassan!”

—

The deer limped deeper into the forest, pausing occasionally to glance back—as if beckoning me to follow.

Of course, this deer was cunning enough to steal from people—it could be luring me into a trap. Best to stay cautious.

And that level was no joke… definitely not an ordinary deer.

After a long walk, the deer stopped before a cave formed by stacked boulders. It squeezed inside, then let out a few rough, echoing calls.

“Follow me?” it seemed to say.

Goddammit, now I’m taking orders from a deer. What a shitty world.

I half-expected to get ambushed inside—but luckily, the cave was too narrow for any surprise attacks.

Instead, my eyes adjusted to the faint glow, revealing piles of junk littering the floor:

Broken dishes, rusted armor, meaningless rags—it looked like something out of a hoarder’s den.

“You’ve done this more than once, huh, you d*mn thief?!”

Snort, snort!

The deer rubbed its antlers against the cave walls—like it was scratching an itch, or maybe… writing?

A message appeared, scrawled in jagged script:

I. Actaeon. Kairos. Disciple. Human.

“…Human? You’re saying you’re human?”

The deer tapped its hoof.

Holy sh*t.

“You understand me? Tap your hoof once if yes.”

Tap.

No fucking way. A deer that understands human speech?

And then it began writing on the ground:

”I… was cursed… deer’s form…”

“Ah, you were cursed into a deer’s body?”

It nodded.

“d*mn, this world’s wild.”

More writing:

”Help break curse… reward… maiden’s belonging… needed…”

“So you stole from Luna and Rene because you needed a maiden’s item to break the curse?”

Another nod.

Makes sense. Though, at this point, Luna isn’t exactly a “maiden”…

As I pondered, the deer wrote again:

”First to see truth… help me… Styx’s oath…”

### [Afterword]

Thanks to all the supporters! I truly appreciate every comment and recommendation!

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Note: The translation preserves the tone, humor, and intensity of the original while ensuring readability in English. Some phrases have been slightly adjusted for natural flow.

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