Blossoms of the Dead
A sigh escaped me involuntarily. I'd hoped for some useful info this time, but no such luck.
The Outer God that carved this writing must be some grotesque thing made of green and white splotches. Lacking any real form.
"Mr. Tantun!"
As I stewed over the inscription, trying to tamp down my irritation, Mu Yeon came running up and started rubbing some paper-like thing she'd pulled from her pocket against my body.
"M-Mu Yeon?"
"I-I told you not to look... I told you...!"
She stared at me with eyes brimming with tears. Even if she didn't know I was immune to it, was it really that upsetting?
"Uh... what's this?"
"I-it's an amulet. It blocks Outer God interference to some extent."
An amulet? It blocks Outer God interference? There were items like that?
It didn't affect my mind at all, but the thing was clearly working—the edges were crumbling into powder bit by bit.
"If it's that important, why didn't they hand one out with the supplies?"
"...It's hard to make, so it's valuable. And normally, no one reads what the Recorder writes anyway."
So she still gave me one when it mattered. It hadn't even been long since we met, and here she was worrying this much about a criminal like me. I could see firsthand why the community rated her so highly.
My nose tingled, and a warm feeling spread through my chest.
"Don't ever read the writing on the walls again. Dealing with the aftermath... it's worse than killing someone...."
Until those last words, anyway.
She was worried about me killing someone? And casually dropping that she'd kill me herself right to my face?! Take responsibility for the genuine emotion I just felt!
"...."
"N-no! I mean, what I meant was... ugh... anyway, you can't just look at it recklessly! If you do it again, I'll have to suppress you, so be careful."
Too late to backpedal after saying your piece, huh? Well, yeah. If a criminal ignored you and went off doing whatever, nearly doing something worse than suicide... who'd not get mad? I'd probably kick first and ask questions later myself.
"Sorry. I'm so used to reading stuff like this that I forgot...."
"You're used to reading it...? You mean you can actually understand what it says?"
I nodded at her stunned question.
"A Mystic Scholar? Your record didn't mention that.... But if so, it explains how you could read it—and even that abnormal sexual fetish of yours."
Uh.... Well, better Mystic Scholar than lunatic, I guess. But what the hell do Mystic Scholars do to make that connection?
...Tougher crowd than I imagined.
For now, I'd let the misunderstanding stand. Mu Yeon didn't seem to have some hunter-like nose for sniffing out lies.
"A-hem, yeah, I can read it."
"I-I knew it. That's how you took down the Observer."
"Is the Observer that dangerous of an Outer God?"
"...Yes. The knights have ranked Outer Gods by hierarchy. The Observer measured as a Greater Outer God. You probably know as a Mystic Scholar, but the Recorder who wrote this is in the same class. The moment you understand that language, you go mad."
Greater Outer God. I'd known Outer Gods had ranks—Lesser ones too—but hearing it straight out like this was new.
"That's why the Princess rated you so highly for defeating it."
Fitting for an early-game boss: top-tier hierarchy. Proven by the fact even the Hunter couldn't beat it.
"And the Gardener we're here to take down... she just occupies the forest zone without causing distortions, so she's rated low among Common Outer Gods."
"Then why hasn't she been dealt with?"
"Uh, can I say? Hmm... at this point... Rondan has the biggest Hearth, so Outer Gods interfere more here. Lower priority than others. If the Knight Commander came, it'd be over quick."
Mu Yeon lamented that the Knight Commander was too busy for minor stuff like this. Knight Commander, huh. The community didn't think much of her either. Maybe she lived up to her reputation after all.
"If it's that low-tier, can we two handle it?"
"Um... Normally two-man teams, but that's for contingencies. Solo knights can handle it, so we should be fine."
Hmm. Guess we're good, then. Rumor-level info, not super reliable, but we had to do it anyway.
"Oh, right... anyway, are you really okay?"
"Yeah, for now."
I ignored the prick of conscience as she muttered 'Definitely a Mystic Scholar...' under her breath. Better than being called an Outer God enthusiast or a psycho.
"Then... shall we go in?"
Mu Yeon approached the gate, unlocked the padlock we'd used to secure it, and swung it open. It screeched loudly—probably from years of disuse.
Stepping inside looked tricky; thick stands of saplings blocked the way.
"Wait a sec."
She gripped her axe with both hands and started swinging to clear the trees.
But... is that right?
Each swing sent shockwaves that obliterated every tree in its path.
...So it really was just a toy in appearance; the physics were intact.
After a good while, she turned back, panting.
"Hoo... all clear. Ready to go in?"
"Yep."
So this was the power of a knight order member the community hyped up. ...Better not get cocky around her.
Mu Yeon led the way, me following. All around bloomed beautiful flowers. I didn't know what kind, but their fresh scent made the place feel surprisingly lovely for an Outer God's domain. Fitting nickname for the Gardener—a pretty flower bed.
As I admired them, I glanced at Mu Yeon. She looked terrified.
"...Eek, heeek."
Ah, yep—definitely my Super Coward Mode turning them cute for me.
"Mu Yeon...?"
"C-corpses... everywhere...!"
W-wait. What? These gorgeous flowers were all corpses?
Good thing she explained, or I'd look like the crazy one muttering nonsense. But still, flowers from corpses? Kinda random.
"Ah, a-ah. Yeah. It was so shocking I blanked for a sec...."
I faked a dazed expression, pretending I'd seen the bodies too, and scanned around. Only then did her suspicious look fade.
"But why are there so many corpses here?"
"From their clothes, Candles. Ugh."
"Candles?"
"Y-you don't know? You know the Hearths block the blizzards from the snowfield Outer Gods. Outside that, humans surviving in harsh lands are called Candles. Groups clinging to life around logs, day by day. Traitors who steal from the Hearth logs. Some sneak in through rat holes like this. Of course..."
She pointed at the flowers.
"They took a wrong turn and died horribly...."
Lots of flowers meant lots of bodies, huh. Thieves or not, dead folks deserved a prayer. May they live happy lives next time without stealing.
"...Ugh, urk, no. I can do this. I can do it."
Her self-hypnosis was pitiful. If I saw corpses instead of flowers, I'd probably freak worse than her. Lucky me.
"Shall we head in?"
"W-wait a minute!"
No more stalling. Rip the band-aid off quick—that halves the fear.
"Can't run, can't run, can't run...."
Finally psyching herself up, I left her behind and stepped forward.
Outer Gods might not be that dangerous if you could talk to them. The writings were all ridiculous anyway, and the Observer was thrilled enough to 'hek hek' after a little play. Plus, the Lesser Outer God in my pocket even followed me because she liked me.
I scanned around for the Gardener, sticking to open paths to avoid trampling flowers.
"You there?"
"N-no! Don't shout like that...!"
Come on. Gotta call her out to fight or talk. And we could bail if dangerous—the writing said so. Past walls hadn't lied, like with the Observer.
But after wandering and calling forever, nothing jumped out or responded. I stayed alert for bushes, but mostly false alarms.
Deeper in, I called back to Mu Yeon.
"She's definitely here, right?"
No answer.
"Mu Yeon?"
Still nothing. Even scared, she'd reply. I turned—and she was gone. No trace.
Eh? Huh?