The Turtle Immortal of Nami Island
“Give the Yeouiju back!”
Whoosh—!
A wave of cold air instantly spread across the giant tree. If Bombe hadn’t lowered me and pulled me into her embrace, I would have been blown away to roll in the dirt.
Anyway, thanks to Bombe, I managed to hold my ground. My hair was a complete mess, though.
― No…! You fools…!
The aftermath was immense. It had extinguished the fire that Kang-cheol had been clinging to in a single breath. Kang-cheol even seemed to have lost his strength, plummeting to the ground.
What on earth was inside that tree to make him act like that?
“Huh?”
Looking closer, something was sparkling inside a knot hole in the tree. It was white, round, and shimmering—it looked just like a giant pearl.
The knot hole was massive, fitting the size of the tree, but the pearl itself was a bit smaller in comparison. Maybe the size of Grandfather’s pectorals?
It was a little bigger than a soccer ball.
‘I have a strong feeling about this. No matter how I look at it, that’s the key point, right?’
“Jeolmi! Go get that!”
― Bwong!
― Stop right there!!
Jeolmi completely ignored Kang-cheol’s words—no, he bird-ignored him—and flew off. All Kang-cheol, who couldn’t even fly, could do was crawl on the ground like a pathetic snake.
Even that didn’t last long; he was pinned down by the Unnis and Grandfather, forcing him to stop. I could have killed him instantly if I wanted to, but I didn’t want to see any variables by killing the boss, so I just controlled his movements.
― Bwong.
Jeolmi cut through the air and swiftly brought the pearl back. It was incredibly clear and transparent, and a light like an aurora shimmered across its white surface.
Just by hugging it, I felt something… the mana that had been drained out of me was instantly refilling. It seemed Kang-cheol had been absorbing this power.
― This cannot be…! If only I had a little more time, I could have made it my own…!
“What is this?”
― Do you think I would tell you…!
“If you tell me, I’ll spare you.”
― I don’t trust you!
Smart for a yokai, aren’t you? But as if that resistance meant nothing, Grandfather Yong-su stared intently at the pearl and opened his mouth as if he knew exactly what it was.
“It is a Yeouiju.”
“A Yeouiju…? But Kang-cheol isn’t a dragon.”
“It seems he stole it from another dragon. Realizing he couldn’t wield it himself, he must have hidden it in the Sacred Tree and poured his ‘Heavenly Fire’ into it to try and attune it to his own nature.”
― How could you know…!
Judging by Kang-cheol’s reaction, Grandfather’s deduction was spot on.
“Back in my day, the gate I blocked at the Children’s Grand Park was related to dragons, so I know a thing or two.”
“Aha.”
I pondered, holding the Yeouiju. I glanced at Grandfather, feeling like I should wait for his lead on how to act.
Should I break it?
It felt like a waste… A Yeouiju is a dragon’s treasure, a source of dragon power. It has that image of granting wishes. In fact, just holding it made my mana surge.
‘Or maybe….’
I hugged the Yeouiju to my chest and accepted its power into my body. The amount of mana flowing into me was significant. They said my mana capacity was quite large when I got tested, but….
I could feel double the amount of mana I originally possessed.
I slowly converted the overflowing power into my own mana attribute and poured it back into the Yeouiju. A massive wave of cold energy swirled wildly, centered around me and the pearl.
― Ahhh… My… My Yeouiju….
With a crack, the Yeouiju turned a brilliant blue. At that moment, the giant Sacred Tree slowly turned to dust and scattered, and I could feel the labyrinth’s mana that had filled the area vanishing.
At the same time, the light faded from Kang-cheol’s eyes. As the labyrinth disappeared, Kang-cheol lost all his vitality, going limp as if all his strength had been drained away.
“Hoho, our Shiro is so clever. It seems the condition to close this labyrinth was to either destroy or claim the Yeouiju.”
“Our Shiro, you’re amazing as always, aren’t you?”
“The kid’s got some skills.”
― Bwong.
It was annoying to see Jeolmi naturally siding with my guardians to praise me, but I was soon happy at the thought that we had successfully closed the labyrinth.
The blackened trees didn’t return to normal even after the labyrinth closed; they remained as they were.
“Are those trees going to stay like that?”
“Yeah, that’s why labyrinths are both highly profitable and highly destructive. The altered natural environment remains behind.”
Se-eun Unni approached one of the trees and tapped it with her hand. She looked like she was gauging how it could be used.
“The hardness seems similar to steel, but since Kang-cheol was the boss, I wonder if it has fire-related effects?”
“For now, it doesn’t resonate with my mana.”
Yeon-hwa Unni nodded at Se-eun Unni’s words. If her wood-attribute mana didn’t react, it was possible it only resonated with fire-attribute mana or simply had increased hardness.
“We’ll need to run tests to know for sure, but that’s not our job!”
“Hoho, indeed. The only shame is that Kang-cheol swallowed all the monsters’ mana crystals.”
A boss eating common monsters doesn’t yield much effect. That meant no matter how many crystals Kang-cheol ate, there was no effect that would turn his own crystal into a high-value commodity.
“But instead, I got the Yeouiju!”
I held the giant pearl up high. Just by doing that, a gust of wind swirled, and a chill spread through the surroundings.
“That’s right, Shiro has gained a great harvest. That alone makes it worth coming here, absolutely.”
“Hehe… T-thank you, Hunter-nim.”
“Ugh.”
I wanted to be on Se-eun Unni’s side. Seeing myself appealing to Grandfather like that made me feel a bit uneasy. It wasn’t a bad look, but it was a bad look.
“Um… but is it really okay for me to just keep the Yeouiju?”
I checked Yeon-hwa Unni’s expression. After all, she was the one who officially obtained the rights to clear the labyrinth; I was worried if it was okay for me to take the biggest piece of loot.
Contrary to my worries, she crossed her arms with a cool expression.
“It doesn’t matter. Your contribution to this labyrinth was much higher, kid. But… you probably won’t be able to take it that easily.”
“Huh? Why?”
“I don’t know the specifics, but it’s a Yeouiju, right? The Korean Awakened Association has strict regulations on loot related to dragons.”
“What…?”
What kind of nonsense is it to dig up an artifact only to be told to pay the country for it?
“Labyrinths are often more related to a country’s local mythology than gates. And… dragons are traditionally associated with kings, so they’re more valuable when the state utilizes them rather than an individual. Plus, they’re hard to handle.”
This is ridiculous.
I was planning to make a giant dragon with this Yeouiju and become a Dragon Rider…!
Even if not that, I was looking forward to it becoming a great artifact with a little processing. I was so excited.
“Hoho, don’t worry too much. Usually, a dragon’s Yeouiju is confiscated because it sometimes provides benefits to world politics by sensing the fate of a nation… but if the Association confirms it has no such ability after testing, the ownership will be yours.”
“Wait… but if they confirm it does have such an ability, does it just get confiscated by the state?”
“Instead, you can choose to receive treasures or resources held by the Association, so it’s not a huge loss.”
“I see….”
Still, it was a letdown. To think I could be forced to give up loot I rightfully earned through my hunter life. Isn’t this unfair?
As I pouted, Grandfather patted my head.
“Even in China or the US, if loot that affects the nation appears, the state takes it, so don’t feel too wronged.”
Well, I guess that makes sense. Like… if an artifact of Qin Shi Huang appeared, the state would probably take it.
In fact, there was a case where the leader of a terrorist organization who obtained a reward related to Gilgamesh in the Middle East established a country and got it recognized.
Of course, that hunter later crossed the line and offended the US… and was erased from history.
“Still, Shiro is in a better situation than other hunters!”
Se-eun Unni tapped my shoulder and said energetically.
“Why?”
“Because Jong-wu Ajusshi is on your side, right?”
“Ah…!”
Ice is the best, Snow Girl is the best.
Connections are the best.
“I’m feeling sluggish~”
Anyway, having safely cleared the labyrinth, we headed to the accommodation we had booked nearby. We could have returned to Seoul right away, but since we were already out, we moved toward Chuncheon, which was close to Cheorwon.
The plan was to spend the night at the accommodation and visit the labyrinth in Chuncheon immediately. The Yeouiju had been handed over to a labyrinth processing company to be sent to the Association.
‘So there was a healing labyrinth in Chuncheon….’
There were cases like the Jeokgeunsan labyrinth that needed to be dealt with quickly, but there were also labyrinths that were intentionally kept open rather than closed.
The Nami Island labyrinth in Chuncheon was exactly that case.
― Kke-buk
― Bwong?
― Kki-ung?
― Kke-kke-buk-buk.
― Bwong-bwong-bwong.
What are they doing?
The characteristic of Nami Island, which had turned into a labyrinth, was the appearance of countless spirits, goblins, and turtle spiritual beasts.
Even now, a turtle spiritual beast with a jade-shimmering shell was showing off in front of Jeolmi and Bombe. It looked old with its long beard, but to think it was acting cute….
Jeolmi, Bombe… you two need to relearn Confucianism.
“The power of the Tree of Life is quite refreshing, isn’t it?”
“Yes! It’s so good. I’m just walking through the forest… but it feels like I’m in a hot spring.”
The reason why beings that usually turn into monsters and become hostile to hunters could be gentle was all thanks to the origin story of Nami Island.
“A beautiful island where spirits and goblins live in harmony under a giant Tree of Life. That was Nami Island.”
“Ohh…! How do you know all that, Se-eun Unni?”
“My dad’s favorite drama was Winter Sonata, so we came to Nami Island quite often.”
Anyway. The Tree of Life that appeared with the labyrinth made the monsters gentle, and it embraced the entire island by emitting pure mana that could be felt not only by hunters but also by ordinary people.
Thanks to that, the island was covered in a forest that looked like a typical oriental fantasy.
“Se-eun Unni. But why are there so many turtles?”
“Nothing has been officially confirmed, but… there’s a rumor that the boss of this labyrinth is a giant Turtle Immortal.”
“A Turtle Immortal?”
Is it like the Turtle Master from Dragon Ball…?
“Yeah, so… there are quite a few people who have seen a Turtle Immortal larger than an average adult man walking around with a staff and leading the turtle spiritual beasts…?”
“Ohh…! Why did you stop talking?”
What is it?
Why was Se-eun Unni’s gaze fixed on my face before slowly looking up?
…Plus, it feels like a shadow has fallen in front of me.
“…U-Unni. Please tell me it’s not true.”
“Th… Shiro.”
No way… surely, something like a third-rate web novel isn’t happening, right?
“C-can you look behind you carefully?”
Gulp.
Trembling, I turned my head.
It was exactly as Se-eun Unni had described. A giant turtle-human was looking down at me, stroking a long black beard and leaning on a staff.
He was even wearing a hanbok.
The turtle-human was huge, but because I was so small, the difference felt even greater.
― Hoho, so the child of snow has come to this place.
Gurgle—
I almost fainted.