Chapter 61: Vengeance!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 61: Vengeance!
And so, the dagger in Baek Ahyeon’s hand fell precisely onto the woman’s arm.
“Aaaaaaaargh!”
This was the main course, and she wanted to savor it slowly. It would be no exaggeration to say that the first two men had been her practice dummies. Through that prior experience, she had learned, however crudely, how to inflict the most pain, how to delay death.
Next, she moved to the legs. She began to clumsily shove the dagger into the woman’s calf, over and over.
“Aaaaaaaaah…”
She seemed rushed, already consumed by madness, yet she never hurried. With bloodshot eyes, she simply continued to reduce the magician’s body to rags.
“S-Save me… P-Please… I’m begging…”
“My sister must have felt the same way. Begging you to save her… right? Begging you to stop…”
“I… I’m sorry… No… I apologize… Kill me… Aaaaaaaaargh!”
As the woman spoke, the dagger hacked at her face, as if Ahyeon couldn’t stand the sound of her voice. It completely mangled her mouth.
After cutting off all the fingers, Baek Ahyeon’s dagger began to fall upon the woman’s chest. She never stabbed deep, only carving into the magician just enough to cause excruciating pain.
“Hahahahahaha!”
Elated by the thought of her revenge, she began to laugh as she slammed the dagger down. It was like watching the Jung Hayeon of the past. When I glanced over at Jung Hayeon, she turned her head away, desperately trying to hide her own embarrassment.
“Sa… Save…”
“Die! You killed my sister!”
For hours, intermittent screams echoed through the chamber until, little by little, the magician’s breathing began to fade. In contrast, Baek Ahyeon’s breathing only grew rougher.
“Haa… Haa…”
As if suddenly overcome with exhaustion, Baek Ahyeon tried to stand, only to stumble. Seeing this, I spoke quietly.
“You are human.”
“I… I know, my Savior.”
This wasn’t some random, cryptic koan. I didn’t know the exact mechanism by which a human evolved into a monster, but considering Jung Hayeon’s case, it seemed that the will to stand with monsters was what triggered the evolution. What I needed, however, was Baek Ahyeon as a human. I didn’t know what might happen if she joined us later, but for now, she had a job to do. I was simply reminding her that she was still human.
As if on cue, the moment I finished speaking, Baek Ahyeon’s equipment began to change.
‘A Class Change.’
Humans gained experience and points even from killing other humans. I had never tested whether it was as efficient as killing monsters, but Jung Hayeon’s case was proof enough. She must have been granted a class based on her accumulated experience. It was an abnormal way to grow, but she needed to become stronger, even if it was like this. Only then could she continue to be of use to me.
“My… my Savior.”
Having completed her Class Change, Baek Ahyeon looked at me with an expression of overwhelming gratitude.
Just as I was wondering what class she had obtained, Baek Ahyeon slowly began to speak.
“I… I have become an Apostle. Your Apostle, my Savior…”
It seemed the class Baek Ahyeon had acquired was a special one. Since she hadn’t gone through a normal Class Change, I had expected her to get something a little different, but it appeared to be a class related to me. It was surely a magician type.
[Pagan]
That was the name of the new class Baek Ahyeon had obtained. As expected, it was a magician type, but it felt very similar to a Dark Priest. Since she had just acquired it, I couldn’t know its effects, strengths, or weaknesses, but even I, who had lived on this continent for ten years, had never heard of this class name. I started to feel a little anticipation for how she would grow.
“You’ve done well. Krrrrk.”
I gave Baek Ahyeon’s shoulder a couple of pats before turning to leave. She was smiling, looking utterly delighted. Since her new class was a type of priest, she likely wouldn’t be ostracized as she had been before when she returned to the city. No, I imagined she would be welcomed.
I headed for the reward room behind the dungeon master’s chamber. There were bound to be many artifacts and items that the ancient soldiers had buried with their leader.
The item I absolutely needed, the Ring of Covenant, would be in that room as well. As I walked slowly, Baek Ahyeon and the Green Skins began to follow me.
When I slowly opened the door, a large coffin came into view. For the resting place of the Ancient Warrior, it was a rather humble tomb. I approached and opened the coffin, and sure enough, countless items became visible. The items hanging on the walls also looked quite decent.
The most eye-catching of all was a pair of exquisite-looking rings.
[Ring of Covenant]
[This ring is enchanted with a magic that allows communication with a distant individual. It is a forgotten ancient magic. These rings were worn daily by the Ancient Warrior Dodrak and his lover.]
[Magic +2]
Green Skins had little interest in accessories anyway, so it was only right that I wear one. The other, of course, had to go to Baek Ahyeon. More important than the stat boost was the need for us to maintain constant contact.
“Take it.”
I tossed the ring, and Baek Ahyeon snatched it out of the air.
“Th-Thank you! Thank you!”
Her face instantly flushed red as she knelt before me. Jung Hayeon glared at Baek Ahyeon, clearly displeased that I had given her the ring, but it couldn’t be helped.
And so, little by little, the distribution of items began. Naturally, the chieftain holds all rights to the spoils. The others ran around excitedly at the sight of the numerous weapons, but none of them asked for a weapon or claimed ownership. Still, it was only right to give a proper share to Black Spear, who had helped us.
Since he primarily used a spear, I figured he would like one. I grabbed one hanging on the wall and tossed it to him. As expected, he looked extremely pleased.
[Ancient Spear]
[A spear used by a nameless spearman who served under the Ancient Warrior. When the Ancient Warrior died, the nameless spearman buried the spear he had used his entire life alongside him to honor his achievements.]
[Agility +1]
It was a bit ambiguous to call it high-grade, but its stats were respectable nonetheless.
“My thanks. I will put it to good use.”
That spear would probably end up being used for throwing, but what did it matter? It wasn’t like anyone in the Blood Dagger Clan used spears anyway.
It seemed the nameless spearman wasn’t the only one who had buried his weapon to honor the Ancient Warrior. The more we looked, the more weapons we found. Of course, none of them could compare to the Ancient Flame I wielded, but there were quite a few items that could be called lesser versions—so many that I couldn’t even count them properly.
Among them, the one that could be called a masterpiece was the bow Mev received. It wasn’t from the coffin, but like the sword I had obtained, it seemed to be the bow of the undead archer who served as this dungeon’s mid-boss. The human archer who had been using it was dead, and since I had no one else to give it to, I decided to let Mev keep using it.
Another was the sword now held by the longsword-wielding member of the Goblin Three Sisters. Funnily enough, I had originally intended to give that sword to the eldest, Gark… but when I tried to give the sword I’d taken from Lee Youngdon to the goblin sister, Gark had insisted on taking my old sword instead, passing the better weapon to his younger sibling.
There were many other decent weapons, but we couldn’t take them all.
Baek Ahyeon would take several of the high-grade items to promote this dungeon.
[Shield of Dawn]
[A shield that emits heat when blocking an enemy’s attack. This equipment was used by a nameless friend of the Ancient Warrior.]
[Vitality +2]
Handing over an item like this, in particular, felt like I was crying tears of blood, but it had to be done. She needed to bring back spoils—items that would whet the appetites of high-grade, mid-grade, and even novice adventurers. Only then, just as Black Spear wanted, could the small city of Legius begin to thrive.
Wearing the Ring of Covenant, I gently infused it with my magic. I wanted to test the item’s performance and give her a rough outline of the plan. Naturally, Baek Ahyeon’s ring began to react faintly. Amusingly, she had cheekily placed the ring on her left ring finger. I slowly formed the words I wanted to say in my mind.
[You will take these items to the small city.]
“What…?! Yes… but… what do you mean?”
Baek Ahyeon’s expression was one of utter despair. She was so flustered that she seemed to have forgotten how to even activate the Ring of Covenant. If I hadn’t said anything, it looked like she would have followed us straight to our settlement instead of going to the city. Fearing she was being abandoned, she bit her nails, her lips trembling. I spoke once more.
[Take these items to the city. Then, you just have to testify to the other humans about the items you’ve acquired.]
Unless she was a fool, she would understand what I was saying. They would probably ask her many questions: how she obtained the items, how she was the only one to return alive, what the dungeon was like overall… It didn’t matter if she handed the items over to the city’s authorities or sold them for a reasonable price. There were at least some rules within the city, so while there might be pressure, she wouldn’t have them taken for nothing. Of course, she would omit any talk of meeting a savior or joining forces with monsters.
By any means necessary, she just had to draw the humans here.
[I… I understand. May I ask you to explain the reason, my Savior?]
I couldn’t think of a suitable explanation, so I just fudged it.
[They are sacrifices.]
Baek Ahyeon’s face instantly brightened. The fact that she wasn’t being abandoned, but could do something for me, seemed to bring her immense joy. My trust in her had grown because of this, but I was still uneasy, so I had no choice but to set a few rules.
The first, naturally, was not to speak of the Weapon Merchant.
It would be easier for both her and me if she acted like she didn’t know me at all.
The second was to continuously activate the Ring of Covenant.
Unless there were special circumstances, she had to maintain a constant flow of magic into the ring. I had just realized after infusing it with my own magic that this artifact didn’t require that much mana.
It seemed to be a system that could be maintained for a long time with just a tiny amount of magic—assuming, of course, that the connection wasn’t severed first.
When I stated the second condition, Baek Ahyeon’s expression brightened considerably. It seemed she wanted this even more than I did.
The third was to come when I called.
Of course, the idea of not coming when I called was probably unimaginable to her, but even if we were connected by the Ring of Covenant, I needed to see her face from time to time. This was a condition I set for that reason. Just like the second, this third condition was undoubtedly one she desired even more than I did.
With a slow nod, we began to head out of the dungeon. But first, we had to completely erase any traces of our presence. I pushed my magic to its limit, and soon, sparks began to fly from the Ancient Flame. Using the corpses, their clothes, and even Jung Hayeon’s roots as kindling, the dungeon master’s chamber was immediately engulfed in flames.
It was a moment to bid farewell to the ones who had given so much: to some, the pleasure of revenge; to others, the security of their tribe; and to others still, the possibility of growing stronger.