Props
Yu Sobeom thought long and hard.
He had weighed every option, but there was no other way.
“…Fine. I accept the deal.”
The woman named Mu Yeonghui whom he had seen was incredibly arrogant, insolent, and dangerous, but her skill was undeniable.
He couldn’t afford to reject the proposal just because he disliked her and send only Lee Ryeonhwa and the rookies, inviting disaster.
“Yeah, it’s me. I know it’s a sudden request, but gather the reserve members. Tell them to head to Ryeonhwa’s house. I’ll be joining with her and one collaborator.”
He gave the orders to headquarters in a bitter voice. A short while later—
“W-we’re here!”
Highly tense combatants arrived, driving two large armored vehicles.
“I’ll return to headquarters now. You two ride in these. …Understood? Since you brought up the deal, you’d better fulfill the terms safely. If you only talk big and accomplish nothing, I won’t let it slide.”
“Do not doubt this one’s word. (You don’t have to threaten me. I’ll do it properly.)”
After sending off the growling Yu Sobeom, she climbed into one of the armored vehicles.
She chose the one with more space and sat in the rear compartment with Lee Ryeonhwa. Several people were already there.
They were combatants armed to the teeth with cutting-edge military gear, yet—
Shiver, shiver!
They were trembling pitifully.
Mu Yeonghui watched them with a strange look in her eyes.
‘Don’t tell me this is their first real fight?’
Just as she suspected, it was.
These were fresh recruits who had only recently joined. They were being treated as reserves until they gained experience.
But then their seniors had suddenly fallen into comas and been wiped out, forcing these rookies into the field. Of course they were terrified.
‘It happens all the time in Murim too. No matter how skilled you are, everyone gets nervous before their first real battle.’
If luck was bad, the tension could prevent them from showing their true strength and lead to defeat.
Having seen it often, Mu Yeonghui tried to ease their nerves.
She gently asked if this was their first real combat.
“Is this your first time? Going forth to slay something.”
“…!”
Thanks to her bizarre speech filter, the words came out with a terrifying edge. The combatants trembled even harder.
“Eek!”
“W-who’s that?!”
Only now, because of their tension, did they finally notice Mu Yeonghui. They recoiled in horror at her ominous beauty.
“This is Miss Mu Yeonghui. She’s a pro hunter who agreed to cooperate with us this time.”
Lee Ryeonhwa, assuming someone this strong must be a professional, gave an incorrect introduction.
The squad members, believing her, turned to Mu Yeonghui with eyes full of awe and astonishment.
“No wonder the aura around her felt different.”
“I thought a ghost had gotten into the vehicle for a second. So you’re a veteran hunter.”
“Nice to meet you, Hunter Mu Yeonghui.”
They treated her with utmost respect, sensing the undeniable charisma radiating from her.
“It is embarrassing to admit, but yes. This is this one’s first time engaging in the dangerous task of slaying ghosts.”
“We’ve received training, but our opponents are ghosts, after all. No matter how much we prepare, ghosts are beings whose actions cannot be predicted…”
Believing her to be a senior in the field, they honestly poured out their worries.
“Could we perhaps receive some advice? Hunter Mu Yeonghui, what was your first real battle like, and how did you overcome it?”
They even asked for guidance with hopeful eyes. The question stirred up old memories in Mu Yeonghui.
‘What was my first real fight again?’
It had been over thirty years ago.
One of her masters had given her a task…
“Yeonghui. It seems you are ready to experience real combat. Do you know the village east of the mountain? Recently, the peddlers who used to visit have stopped coming. The villagers are growing anxious. Go and investigate.”
So she had gone to check.
‘Bandits had set up an inn on the mountain path. They poisoned the travelers’ food, killed them, stole their goods, and processed the corpses into meat to destroy the evidence. It was a black inn.’
“In the middle of the land, logs had opened their masquerade ball. Lured by the rich aroma, merchants would come, be served poisoned wine, have their treasures stolen, and even their remaining flesh turned into dishes. It was a black house.”
The words slipped out unconsciously, and the martial arts story instantly transformed into fantasy.
“L-logs? Are you saying these log ghosts killed people and ate human flesh?”
“They were not ghosts. They were humans.”
“Pardon?!”
Not only the combatants but even Lee Ryeonhwa looked shocked.
It was common for ghosts to eat people.
But for humans to eat other humans—that was terrifying even by their standards.
“S-so what happened?”
“I severed the heads stained with their sins and gathered them all into a bundle. I presented them to one of my tutors.”
“…Excuse me?”
“I also showed them to the helpless villagers who could do nothing without my help.”
In Murim, cutting off an enemy’s head and keeping it was common practice.
It was proof that you had truly defeated the foe.
But by modern Earth standards, it was grotesque. On top of that, the word “master” had been filtered into “tutor.”
Even if they were villains who ate human flesh, cutting off their heads?
And then showing the heads to the villagers? Giving them to her tutor?
“H-haha.”
“You’re joking, right?”
Lee Ryeonhwa and the combatants tried to laugh it off as a joke, but Mu Yeonghui didn’t look like someone who would joke about such things.
Suddenly, everyone fell silent.
The combatants gripped their guns tighter, smelling the gun oil, and trembled even more violently.
“We’ve arrived! Everyone, disembark!”
They finally reached their destination in the midst of that heavy silence.
As all personnel got out, the combatants who had ridden with Mu Yeonghui scrambled out especially quickly.
“I-I’ll begin the briefing.”
Lee Ryeonhwa stepped forward, carefully watching Mu Yeonghui’s reaction.
The place they had arrived at was a forest far from the city center.
Lee Ryeonhwa pointed at a mansion faintly visible through the trees.
“This is the site. Campers who came into the forest happened to discover this mansion… I’m sure you all understand what the problem is, right?”
“Yes!”
Even though she hadn’t explained anything and simply asked if they understood, the squad members answered readily.
‘What’s the problem?’
Only Mu Yeonghui had no idea.
She was about to ask in confusion, but Lee Ryeonhwa had already moved on.
“Only about five people will stay here and monitor the outside. The rest of you will enter the mansion with me and Miss Mu Yeonghui!”
She gave orders and started moving without waiting for a response, so Mu Yeonghui had no choice but to follow.
“It won’t open. I’ll break it down.”
As Lee Ryeonhwa kicked the locked door, the heavy iron hinges snapped and the door toppled over.
The combatants didn’t miss their chance.
They lowered their state-of-the-art night-vision goggles, raised the barrels of their automatic weapons, and entered the mansion.
Staying glued to the backs of Mu Yeonghui and Lee Ryeonhwa, who were leading the way.
‘What a pathetic sight.’
Mu Yeonghui felt the gun barrels pressed close behind her and let out a dry, internal laugh.
Of course, since she and Ryeonhwa were stronger than them, it made sense for the others to hide behind them.
Still, it was funny to see armed men cowering behind two women.
They searched the interior of the mansion. It was larger than expected.
In the end, they decided to split into two teams for a more efficient search.
“Miss Mu Yeonghui, please investigate that side. The rest of us will go this way together.”
Her alone, and everyone else together.
‘Well, it’s true that I’m so strong I don’t need help, and the rest are nervous rookies who would feel uneasy if separated, so it makes sense for them to stick together!’
Feeling an inexplicable sense of isolation, Mu Yeonghui headed to the assigned area.
But Lee Ryeonhwa and her group weren’t exactly comfortable either.
No matter what, the pro hunter they believed in was no longer by their side, so their tension rose even higher.
“Understood? If you encounter a ghost, avoid combat and call out loudly for Miss Mu Yeonghui. You must regroup with her immediately.”
“Yes!”
They searched each room while giving precautionary orders.
Then they found something they couldn’t possibly ignore.
It was a corpse.
A grotesquely deformed human body with limbs that had grown far too long and a melted face.
“Oh my god.”
“Dear heavens…”
The combatants unconsciously let out groans at the horrific sight, but—
“Tsk.”
Lee Ryeonhwa kicked the corpse away without a hint of emotion.
After shoving it aside and scanning the area, she discovered a diary lying beneath it.
“This is it.”
She opened the diary with gloved hands and read it with a blank expression.
March 7th.
I have finally found a way to prove my research.
If there is another dimension neighboring ours, crossing over is surprisingly simple.
March 25th.
I succeeded at last!
Using the method I discovered, I crossed into another dimension and returned.
It was a truly wondrous place.
A land where crystal trees stretched endlessly.
April 8th.
I feel strange.
While continuing my research by traveling between dimensions, I sensed a gaze upon me.
Something feels wrong.
April 10th.
I have discovered the residents of the neighboring dimension!
The moment I saw them, I understood.
They are beings that cannot coexist with humanity.
I hurriedly returned to our dimension and sealed the gate.
April 11th.
Ah, it is already too late.
There were those who had crossed over before I could close the gate.
They did something to my body. It is beginning to twist.
This is the final entry of my life….
A horrifying record left by someone.
After examining its contents, Lee Ryeonhwa’s lips curled upward.
“Pfft. They really wrote a whole novel.”
She openly mocked the diary and looked at the combatants.
“Just in case you misunderstand, this isn’t a real event. You’ve all been educated on this, right?”
“Of course. Most records like this found at ghost sites aren’t real incidents. They’re created by the ghosts themselves.”
Among ghosts, some possessed plausible stories—what could be called “settings.”
They had fabricated pasts that didn’t exist and even prepared related props. This entire mansion was one such case.
Logically, with a city right nearby, there was no reason for a mansion to be built in such a remote forest.
The mansion, the corpse, and the diary were all props prepared by a ghost.
All to frighten humans.
“Hunter Ryeonhwa, should we contact Hunter Mu Yeonghui as well? To tell her not to believe the props inside this mansion.”
“It’s fine. She’s a pro hunter. There’s no way she’d fall for such ridiculous props.”
Lee Ryeonhwa expressed her trust in Mu Yeonghui, but she had no idea.
That the other party wasn’t a pro hunter at all.