Chapter 81
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: Infiltration (1)
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With enemies swarming outside, opening the gates would have been too risky. So Woojin and Braknak climbed up onto the ramparts using a rope.
He glanced back on impulse. Far off in the distance, the lonely corpse of the raccoon dog beast lay on the dirt ground.
'Forgot about that one.'
Woojin had captured two raccoon dog beasts earlier, but one had died during transport. He'd set the corpse aside separately and forgotten to retrieve it.
'Should've at least extracted the inner core ahead of time... A bit of a waste, but oh well.'
It wasn't a big deal anyway.
With that thought, he stared at the raccoon dog's body. He had no intention of climbing back down. Going to fetch it now would be foolish.
The abominations wouldn't leave a lump of meat like that alone. Sure enough, as Woojin predicted, a large abomination shuffled over. Its maw split wide, swallowing the raccoon dog whole.
'Just served up dinner on a silver platter.'
Woojin let out a smirk and turned away...
Kududuk—!
The abomination's side bulged out. Soon, a raccoon dog-shaped abomination burst through its flesh. Woojin's eyes widened at the sight.
'...The dead one just came back to life?'
He'd seen a living raccoon dog turn into an abomination before, but this was clearly different.
This wasn't a living beast mutating—it was a long-dead corpse reviving as an abomination. Wondering if he'd seen wrong, Woojin mentioned it to Braknak.
"Can they turn not just living creatures, but dead corpses into abominations too?"
Braknak nodded readily.
"Yes. We've often seen the mutants using beast corpses to bolster their numbers."
"So I didn't imagine it."
Even dead creatures got corrupted once swallowed by an abomination. Woojin tilted his head at the freshly revived raccoon dog.
'What is this... Not like some zombie flick.'
An absurd situation. This grotesque ability was even weirder than expected, making it hard to gauge.
Woojin thought for a moment before asking,
"...Is there any limit to that multiplication ability?"
"Limit?"
"Yeah. There must be some conditions."
Even the best tricks had limits.
They couldn't turn every corpse into an abomination. There had to be criteria, and only qualifying corpses would work.
Braknak scratched his chin.
"Well... I'm not sure. Never observed that closely."
Seemed he didn't know more. Time for some experiments.
"Hold on. Need to catch more beasts."
"Do you have to go yourself?"
Braknak gestured to his subordinates.
"Just have these guys handle the grunt work."
"...Yeah, maybe."
Honestly, it was a hassle.
He sat in a nearby chair to wait, and soon the Nol tribesmen scoured the area, hunting down several beasts.
'Should've done this from the start.'
He'd skipped the middleman.
He scanned the beasts they'd brought: twelve in total, five already dead.
Test with the corpses first.
Most were deer beasts—must be a big herd nearby. Woojin approached a particularly large buck.
Shwick!
He swung his machete, severing the buck's neck. Freshly killed, warm blood dripped from the wound.
Perfect bait for abominations.
Woojin tied the headless buck's corpse with rope and slowly lowered it over the ramparts, like fishing with a line.
'Quick on the draw.'
The abominations, catching the blood scent, rushed over competitively. The lead one gulped down the headless buck.
Change happened immediately. Its belly swelled like a pregnancy, then ripped open as a new abomination emerged.
A headless buck.
To replace its missing head, its chest split open like a mouth, a long tongue flicking from the gap.
Woojin let out a hollow laugh.
'No way... That worked?'
Honestly, he'd tried it thinking it wouldn't. Braknak shook his head in disbelief.
"Truly vile creatures."
"Yeah... This throws off my calculations."
Woojin muttered while gripping the taut rope. The headless deer thrashed to escape.
Like an eager pet begging for a walk. Braknak asked,
"What about that deer?"
"Gotta kill it. What else?"
Step back a bit.
Woojin said as he yanked the rope. The abomination flailed up onto the ramparts.
He'd planned to burn it with an incendiary, but didn't want to waste the rope. Instead, he grabbed the two-handed hammer he'd received as a gift long ago—Skull Crusher—and smashed the deer abomination.
Crack, craaack!!
"Grah, gruuuuh—"
Couldn't hit too hard or risk damaging the ramparts, so he moderated his strength.
Pounding like tenderizing tonkatsu, the abomination shrieked wildly. After four or five blows, it went limp. Subdued. Woojin untied the rope knot from its body.
Then, he kicked the now-useless abomination like a soccer ball.
Splaaat!!
It plummeted far beyond the ramparts. Its body burst on impact like a fallen persimmon. One less for the enemy.
Woojin tossed the steel hammer aside and said to Braknak beside him,
"Fetch that head I cut off earlier."
"Right away."
Braknak obeyed promptly. The severed buck head was placed before Woojin.
"Lower this down too?"
"Yeah. Testing something."
Body without head became abomination—now check the reverse.
He tied the buck's antlers with rope. The headless head descended. Abominations predictably swallowed it.
He waited for signs...
"...Doesn't seem like it this time."
"No changes."
The abomination showed no major transformation. Apparently, heads alone wouldn't do.
Woojin hauled it up, butchered it, and Braknak astutely brought more corpses. Needed fresh bait for the rope.
'Upper and lower body next.'
He split the buck torso like filleting fish: head side and tail side. Similar-sized chunks. Tied each separately.
Handed one rope to Braknak.
"Let's try both at once this time."
"Understood."
They lowered the split torso pieces. Waiting abominations snatched them up.
Result...
'...Only the head side turned.'
Just the upper body mutated. Lacking hind legs, it hobbled awkwardly on forelegs. Eerily grotesque.
'Getting the picture now.'
One more test.
Woojin carefully sliced open the deer beast's chest, reached in, and rummaged. Soon found what he wanted.
The deer beast's inner core.
Extracted it, then lowered the intact corpse minus core. An abomination devoured it.
Waited...
...Nothing happened. Woojin's hunch confirmed.
"Seems it needs the inner core to become an abomination."
Even after death, a beast's power lingered in its core. That's how Woojin accumulated strength by hunting many.
These mutant abominations corrupted others' cores, turning them into kin. Dead beasts revived as abominations too.
In conclusion...
"...Might be easier to handle than I thought."
Woojin muttered. Curious, Braknak asked,
"Why do you say that?"
"That ability's useless against humans."
Unlike Demonic Realm lifeforms, humans lacked inner cores. Fighting the Church Alliance would steadily thin their numbers.
Plus, they'd traded signature regeneration for multiplication. Wound-healing regen and doubling numbers both nullified.
'Racial matchup or what?'
The second expedition got wrecked by the Nol tribe, but they'd fare better against these mutants.
Braknak tilted his head. One thing still puzzled him despite the explanation.
"Then what about the corrupted humans?"
"...What do you mean?"
"Exactly that. We occasionally spot mutant abominations in human shape and scent. They're always tougher."
Rarely, human-corrupted mutants appeared. Surprised by the info, Woojin pondered before asking,
"When were these sighted?"
"Even before we left our homeland heading south. Saw one recently too."
Sometimes mutants attacked in packs, led by human-form variants. Exceptionally strong and cunning, like commanders.
"What the hell are they?"
Braknak asked. Woojin crossed his arms, deep in thought.
'Need to see one myself.'
He turned his head.
Woojin's gaze fixed on the distant forest beyond the ramparts. Abomination howls echoed endlessly from there. Somewhere in those woods lurked the monster Braknak described.
"...Be right back."
"Heading into that forest?"
"Something's bugging me."
"Checking it out, huh."
Braknak didn't protest. Woojin hadn't won the Guardian title by gambling.
"Need anything?"
"Some tree sap."
"On it."
Soon, the Nol brought bowls brimming with fresh tree sap from Demonic Realm trees. Potent stench.
Woojin smeared it over his body to mask sweat. Sightless abominations wouldn't detect him if he hid his scent like this.
Preparations done.
"Back in two days at most."
"Take care."
Brief farewell, expecting a quick return. Woojin gripped the rope. His body rappelled smoothly down like a helo drop.
Touchdown on the ground.
The rest was easy. His presence was faint; blind abominations couldn't sense him.
Like anything in life—with the right know-how, dodging them was simple.
'Building that know-how's the hard part.'
Pressing on...
The monster Braknak mentioned appeared: a human-shaped mutant abomination. Woojin observed from behind a rock.
Something familiar caught his eye.
'Iron mask.'
The abomination wore a crumpled iron mask favored by dark cultists. Woojin cocked his head.
'...Did they get to them too?'
Lifeforms with inner cores were targets. Dark cultists were no exception.