Hound
Hound
When I fell into the game world and realized there were two Heroes, I did a sort of screening process.
It was to screen my companions.
Could I control them? Was there room for them to play an active role even in the late game when the game balance was broken? Would they cause friction with other companions if they became my ally? Was it easy to recruit them? And so on.
In the game called Loque, there were beings who could become companions depending on the branching route, and others who appeared as villains.
I had considered the compatibility of the companions, but after realizing the relationship chart, I decided to recruit any woman I could as a companion unconditionally.
In that sense, Lee Ji-ah met all those conditions. Her personality was easygoing, and she was persecuted by her family because of her trait, Karma of Magic. She could be recruited as a companion with just a little help, and she was a person who could fight on the front lines even in the late game.
Eun Sua was the same. She was a bit cringey, but she was a talented individual in terms of martial prowess. Although, because her supernatural ability was too powerful, there was a sense that she would be pushed back if she fought against martial artists... but that much was easy to cover.
Conversely, I thought Im Na-yeon would be difficult, but it was easier than I thought. The points I taught her regarding her mana deficiencies seemed effective. The disappointing part was her martial prowess, but since I could cover her martial prowess to some extent, it was fine.
Kim Harin was ambiguous. Seeing her glance at me every now and then, it felt like I could seduce her if I just did a little better.
The Hero, Yoon Seung-ha, was a bit ambiguous.
If we're talking about looks alone, I'm superior, but Yoon Seung-ha is the protagonist of this game. His personality is one that can't stand injustice, and he's basically kind to everyone. That doesn't mean he's just a pushover, though.
And above all, there's a reason why the protagonist is the protagonist.
So, there might be women who fall for Yoon Seung-ha.
And Han Jong-woo.
'Han Jong-woo is a no-go.'
He's a pretty capable kid, but when it comes to Im Na-yeon, his eyes roll back, which is troublesome.
With Han Jong-woo, I have to be satisfied with having enough of a friendship to cooperate when necessary and ensuring he doesn't become a villain.
Anyway.
Among them, there is a being who always stands on the side of the companions once you 'save' them. A being whose illustrations come out well, and who always looks at the protagonist. There is a being whose loyalty is so high that she earned the nickname Hound. In fact, her race was half-canine, so that was accurate.
I looked at her. I saw unfamiliar black hair. And although she had long bangs covering her eyes, I could see a slightly protruding burn scar. On top of that, she was emitting a gloomy aura... I understand. She lost her family a while ago.
'Stigma of Icola.'
The Stigma of Icola is a type of... curse, but it was a bit ambiguous. Because it's a type of buff-related ability that strengthens unique abilities.
However, in the sense that it makes the opponent unhappy, it was indeed a curse. Well, making someone unhappy is what a curse is, after all.
I glanced at her and used Knowledge Browsing.
▼
Name: Kim Si-yeon
Strength: 2
Agility: 2
Stamina: 2
Mana: 0
Unique Ability: Vessel of the Swamp Queen
Trait: X
'Found her.'
That was a relief. Actually, I knew where she lived, but it wasn't easy to just go there blindly. A natural encounter was important. I was planning to wander around until tonight if push came to shove, but...
Looking at the status window, I saw physical abilities that had been trained just so-so. Mana was 0. It was only natural since she was an ordinary person who hadn't awakened yet.
I lowered my gaze to examine her unique ability. Vessel of the Swamp Queen. It's an ability to gain favor from beings related to swamps. And it was also a vessel.
A vessel.
In this world, that also means a 'body' suitable for containing an 'extra-dimensional being'. It could be a spirit, or it could be a being called an extra-dimensional Phantom Beast.
To summarize, the villains' plan is to raise the presence of the person named Kim Si-yeon using the stigma, and then 'human sacrifice' her to cause a ruckus. In about a month, the villains will offer her up and summon an otherworldly being.
If the protagonist happens to pass by here and discovers the traces of the curse, he heals her, but if he doesn't, she is offered to the otherworldly being, which then manifests in this world. And it destroys a city and gets killed by the heroes. In that process, the casualties on the heroes' side are quite large. Starting from that point, the villains run even more rampant.
For that purpose, the person named Kim Si-yeon had everything controlled without her knowing.
They killed her parents, disguising it as an accident.
They maximized the desires of her relatives to make them covet her parents' inheritance.
And they cut off her human relationships one by one.
They didn't even allow meetings on chat apps.
'Because of her virginity...'
In matters related to sacrifices, the issue of whether one is a virgin or not was a very critical matter. This is because if a non-virgin sacrifice is offered, the being receiving the sacrifice gets angry and casts a curse or something similar on the person who performed the ritual. If the person who performed the ritual is weak, they could even be torn to death.
That's why the community jokingly called it a unicorn.
I walked over to Kim Si-yeon. I felt her flinch as she looked at me.
"You've been cursed. You want to break the curse, right?"
I went straight to the point. Rather than wrapping it in all sorts of flowery language, breaking the curse with decisive action was more trustworthy.
And above all, I trusted my looks, which were absolute to women.
"A curse? How did you know I was cursed..."
"Because I'm someone who researches curses. Looking at the burn scar on your face, you've been under it for quite a while. Roughly about 3 months?"
Actually, I don't really know that. I'm just saying it because it was mentioned in the game.
"...Then you must also know what kind of curse is on me?"
"Yes. It's the Curse of Icola. Actually... it's a bit awkward to even call it a curse. It's a type of buff-related ability that strengthens unique abilities."
"...A buff?"
"It's an ability of the type that says you get a scar in exchange for strengthening your unique ability. Although it requires consuming quite a lot of resources. Well... to be precise, the expression 'sacrifice' or 'human sacrifice' would be more accurate."
"...A sacrifice?"
I deliberately used strong words. It wasn't actually wrong, either. I felt Kim Si-yeon's voice tremble at my words.
"Yes, a sacrifice. Your ability is related to that. And the curse on you is what amplifies that curse."
"Then can you break the curse?"
"Yes. I can also protect your personal safety. And above all, don't you want revenge?"
"Revenge..."
She faltered. I don't not understand her feelings. Because she doesn't know yet that the villains killed her parents.
"What do you think is the easiest way to get a sacrifice?"
"Kidnapping?"
"Kidnapping is kidnapping, but the heroes are extremely sensitive to that sort of thing. Human sacrifice is horrific, but it's extremely efficient, so it's dangerous enough to blow away a whole city in the blink of an eye."
"..."
"So, most people handle human sacrifice cautiously. They would never do it in a country like Korea, where the land is small, there are many talented people, and surveillance is thorough... but if the sacrifice is very special, the villains think differently. They isolate the person by distancing them from the people around them one by one, and then they take them. In that process, they sometimes kill people too."
"...No way."
"Yes. Your parents were murdered. By villains."
"..."
Kim Si-yeon made a shocked expression. Her lips trembled. And after closing her eyes for a moment, she gritted her teeth.
"Do you have proof?"
I showed her Ash's phone.
Kim Si-yeon scrolled up on the phone. Various texts were visible. And she stopped her hand from scrolling. A wrecked vehicle was visible on the phone screen. A message reporting that the Demon-humans had killed them, disguising it as an accident, was also visible.
"Can I get revenge?"
"Of course. You are a much more amazing being than you think."
We entered a nearby abandoned building. It's a building rumored to be demolished soon because it's so old. When I asked if she knew of a space nearby with no one around, it was Kim Si-yeon who pointed this place out.
I prepared a small, simplified summoning ritual.
Originally, rituals are uneasy even if you prepare and prepare, but as far as Kim Si-yeon is concerned, it doesn't matter much. That's because her very existence is too special to the being we are about to call.
I sprinkled the sheep's blood I had prepared in advance and drew the summoning circle.
As I made the mana resonate with the blood, it started to emit a purple light.
Woooong!
Even though it was a building surrounded on all sides, wind started to blow. The wind lifted my hair. My mouth went dry. The presence of the being about to appear started to press down on everything.
The breeze became intense, and soon it became a storm. I hurriedly hugged Kim Si-yeon. It was because I thought Kim Si-yeon might get hurt by the wind, which was more intense than I thought. As Kim Si-yeon was held in my arms, I used mana to hold her body steady.
I felt something approaching over the roughly drawn, simplified summoning circle.
[Are you the one who called me?]
A deep, dignified voice was heard. 'Heard'... that expression wasn't appropriate. It was a language being carved into my mind. It was exactly as described in the game. Fortunately, it was the same here.
"Yes, I called you."
[...Is it because of that child?]
"Yes. I stepped forward to fulfill the contract."
[How fascinating. That a mere human knows of that.]
I felt it let out a long sigh.
[Still, is it a relief? Actually, I thought the being who inherited his blood was already gone. It still remains in this world. I will fulfill the contract. You, do you desire power?]
The voice was directed at Kim Si-yeon. Kim Si-yeon made a thoughtful expression for a moment, then squeezed her eyes shut and said.
"I, I desire power."
[I will fulfill the contract. You will obtain power as you wish. The price is the ability you possess.]
"I don't have any ability?"
[You do. You just haven't realized it.]
"Th, then I will make the contract."
[A very good choice.]
As the words were carved into my mind, the wind blew violently.
The wind began to emit a silver light. The wind made of silver light was sucked into her forehead, and letters were carved.
The letters were carved, and the silver letters glowed and wrapped around Kim Si-yeon's body. Her body floated in the wind, and the surroundings began to greedily devour mana.
Ttuduk. Ttuduk.
The sound of bones twisting was heard from her body. Her skin started to crack with a 'jjeojeojeok' sound. It was the process of her body being reconstructed. Her hair texture changed. From black hair to a grayish color. Grayish ears resembling those of a dog appeared on top of her hair. A tail also newly appeared near her tailbone.
The wind stopped. She landed quietly in mid-air.
She opened her eyes quietly. A golden glint flickered.
"Here."
I quietly took off my outer garment and handed it to her. It was none other than because all her clothes had disappeared during the process of her body being reconstructed.
I quietly checked the status window.
▼
Name: Kim Si-yeon
Strength: 15
Agility: 15
Stamina: 15
Mana: 15
Unique Ability: Wind and Wave
Trait: X
It was a stat clearly different from before.
The unique ability had changed. Probably a few traits had been created too. The problem was that I couldn't see them. I don't know what the mechanism is, but it was a bit painful that I couldn't examine the traits with Knowledge Browsing.
As if she couldn't believe it, she examined her body here and there. She touched her tail and touched her newly formed ears a few times.
"Damn it!"
There was a man growling while spitting out profanity. His name was none other than Kim Woo-jin.
He was the person monitoring Kim Si-yeon. Having left his post for a moment due to a text from Ash, he realized that the curse he had placed on her had disappeared.
If it had just been that, it would have been fortunate. The sacrifice itself for the curse was somewhat rare, but it could have been smoothed over somehow.
A flow of mana was felt from the abandoned building. A violent flow of mana. And it was an alien mana that could only be felt from an extra-dimensional being.
And that meant someone had stolen and used the sacrifice they had created.
"What should we do?"
"Grr."
I thought while gritting my teeth. Head over there now? That would be suicide. Such an alien flow of mana was too good at attracting attention. Perhaps the heroes had already been dispatched.
"Retreat."
"But."
"Reporting is the priority for now! Think about what comes after later. And with a mana flow like that, the heroes must have all been dispatched. Guilds and clans will move too."
"...Understood."
Seeing his subordinate making a dissatisfied expression, Kim Woo-jin felt dizzy. Villains have the advantage of being able to vent their desires to their heart's content, but there were just as many dumbass bastards.
Rubbing his aching head, he led his subordinates and retreated.
He had intended to.
It was for the brief moment of a blink.
In the space where no one was, a woman appeared at some point. Blue short hair and eyes reminiscent of a lake were visible.
"As expected, Siwoo was right. Does he really have an ability related to 'foresight'? It's too extraordinary."
I heard the woman muttering.
And my vision twisted for a moment. I saw a familiar physique wearing the clothes I was wearing. The dozen or so subordinates who were with him were the same. What should naturally be on their shoulders was not visible.
'Huh, why is my body...'
And that was his last memory.