97. Undead Hunter Woohyo-ssi
97. Undead Hunter Woohyo-ssi
An excavation site sprawled at the base of the mountains.
Even though it lay beyond the Empire's borders, the investment was so massive that it was officially called a garrison zone.
Laborers dispatched for excavation, merchants who came to trade supplies, Imperial troops gathered to protect them, and adventurers who arrived to take on requests.
In a place of this scale, if you caused trouble, becoming the center of attention was inevitable.
"You certainly turned things upside down in spectacular fashion. Marcus was exhausting himself trying to calm the uproar."
So while I was being questioned and recovering in an isolation ward under military guard, I gave an awkward smile to Jang, who had come looking for me after belatedly hearing the news.
"Well, you see, about how that happened...."
"No need to explain. I already heard it from the young prophetess."
Right. If he'd left Airi to handle my training, they must have already exchanged the details.
Just as I was relieved I didn't have to explain, his gaze slowly drifted toward the armor leaning in the corner of the room.
"So, that previous incident was the result of unleashing a high-ranking demon's potential? To withstand such power and achieve meaningful results—I'm quite impressed."
"Ah, no. It's not really that big a deal. That was the armor's power, not my own..."
"What does it matter if it was the result of using a tool? Most people would lose their nerve immediately and fail to even wield such an item, yet didn't you use it skillfully and produce meaningful results?"
Jang's tone grew serious when I dismissed it as the tool's doing. He chuckled softly and placed a hand on my shoulder, and I could feel his sincerity.
"Even the most talented swordsman, descended from a martial lineage with an ancient and glorious history, cannot put that talent to use anywhere without picking up a sword... In a world where everyone is born with different aptitudes, it's foolish to dismiss someone as useless just because they fail to meet a single condition."
"Yes, but still...."
"Have confidence. At least from what I can see, you have admirably cleared the first hurdle toward becoming a hero."
Right, my goal was to become a hero.
I still didn't know exactly what he meant by a 'hero,' but as he said, if I could get my hands on power, I could achieve whatever I wanted.
Bring Philoi back, earn recognition from others too.
And find a way to coexist with both Airi and Marilyn, and live as I wished, even in a world like this.
"Well, you seem to be sufficiently rested, so let's proceed immediately to the next training. Looks like we'll have to climb a mountain. Are you confident in your stamina?"
Just as I was pulling myself together, Jang handed me back the armor I had removed.
Sensing that my fatigue was finally fading, I donned the armor he offered and answered confidently.
"You don't need to worry about that. The one thing I've done most since I got here is put my body through physical labor."
No matter where you dump me, I'll survive just fine.
For someone whose only merit was that single thing, mountain climbing didn't even register as exercise.
-Murmur, murmur.
The only problem was, since this was a place full of people, there were more things to worry about than just the training.
As soon as I left the isolation ward and strode through the excavation site, I noticed all eyes turning toward me.
Laborers, merchants, adventurers, even the soldiers controlling the perimeter.
"That thing just now, the otherworlder in the black armor caused it, right?"
"Yeah, he's an otherworlder wearing black armor, so it's definitely him."
The earlier commotion had clearly spread among the people at this site.
Then again, if the weapons had held back enough force to make a landslide unsurprising, it'd be weirder if people weren't curious.
"More than that, haven't I seen his face somewhere before?"
"Ah, right. I remember."
On top of that, my ability made anyone who met me never forget me.
Anyone who had encountered me in the past would immediately deduce that the person in their memory and the one who caused the incident were one and the same.
"That bastard is the Hero Hunter U-hyo...!"
"I'd heard the rumors, but I never imagined he'd be this much."
But why did every bastard who remembered me call my name in that crappy way? No, seriously, isn't it weird? My ability is literally supposed to make people remember my name properly, so why do they keep dropping my family name?
"But isn't the name U-hyo weird?"
"I heard somewhere that even his battle cry goes U-hyo, U-hyo."
"That's not something a human being ought to do."
"Is that why he can go around beating the crap out of fallen heroes? Because he gave up on being human?"
Damn it, how far has this rumor been distorted?
But a rumor that had spread this far wasn't going to get corrected just because I tried to clear it up.
"Come to think of it, there's something I've been curious about."
Just as I resigned myself to enduring the usual mockery, Jang—who had been walking ahead toward the mountain ridge—stopped, resting his hand on his staff, and glanced back at me.
"At my age, my memories tend to get hazy often, but your name in particular has remained vividly in my memory."
"Ah, that's probably due to my ability."
It was an ability that didn't need to be kept secret anyway.
When I gave him a brief explanation, he chuckled and began stroking his beard.
"In short, it's an ability that makes it so no one can ever forget you?"
Yeah, a power that was nothing more than that.
Of course, thanks to that ability, I was able to help Philoi's ego grow quickly, but considering how it ultimately led Philoi to run wild and close off her heart, it was a power hard to view purely as an advantage.
If anything, given how it had sometimes earned me infamous titles like 'Hero Killer' while I was a Foreign Worker, I couldn't shake the feeling that right now, the harm outweighed the good.
But...
"Now that's a power truly befitting a hero."
"...Pardon?"
The evaluation that actually followed was the opposite of what I expected.
When I expressed my doubt, Jang resumed his halted steps and spoke with a hint of bitterness.
"No matter how strong and noble, there exist heroes who are forgotten, unable to leave their names in history, you see."
"......."
"...Let's keep going."
"Ah, yes."
Forgotten heroes.
The moment I heard those words, my gaze gradually lowered, eventually resting on the spear in my hand.
Although it gave no response now because it had closed off its heart, there was no issue using it, as it could still fully function as a spear.
But what I thought of in this moment was the soul that had become the medium for this spear....
It was probably the story of the one who had used the name 'Tachia Philoi' before the artisan who forged this weapon.
'Ironically, before those results could even be heard, countless calamities befell this world to the point of rendering such things meaningless. Even the kingdom that awaited her return began to decay beyond recovery, a plague of unknown origin spreading throughout it.'
A hero who was revered, yet forgotten in history as the kingdom that should have remembered her fell into ruin.
The thought that this being had a connection to the person standing before me was definitely not a mistaken one.
****
In any case, from now on, I would officially begin training under his guidance.
Following him alone, I climbed the mountain path and eventually entered a cave that had been bored into the mountain.
The reason we took a different path from the laborers on the way up was that the excavation operations prioritized locations where safety had been secured.
"Well then, let's look for some fellows suitable for training."
"Ah, yes. We decided to combine it with subjugating the undead at the excavation site, right?"
Before coming here, I'd heard that numerous undead had been dwelling in this excavation site where dragon bones had been discovered.
Initially thought to be naturally occurring wild undead, there were now reports of collective behavior, and even sightings of undead digging tunnels.
Based on the circumstances alone, one could interpret that someone was using the undead for some purpose, attempting to excavate the dragon bones from this mountain.
"Indeed. That fellow Marcus is also grinding his teeth quite fiercely over it. So much so that he's putting out requests to adventurers to completely eradicate every single undead on this mountain."
It was likely the work of entities like necromancers belonging to the cultists or liches attached to the undead legions.
At the current stage, humanity had the initiative, but since it was a highly important operation, the Imperial military couldn't afford to relax easily.
Because if they let their guard down even slightly and failed to secure the dragon bones, the outcome might transcend mere loss and become a threat to all of humanity.
"Originally, I had only intended to find a suitable spot and train quietly. However, that fellow Marcus has his eyes on us. We'll need to produce some results to placate him, so I hope you'll put a bit of effort into subjugation while we search for training targets."
"...I don't know the details, but it seems you've really gotten on his bad side."
"Ke ke, to that friend, I suppose I seemed like someone who had idled away my years until now."
Tap, tap.
We advanced into the cave, relying on the light of a lantern.
Unlike a mine shaft with rails and central supports laid down, the cave was untouched by human hands, and a dreary atmosphere hung heavily inside.
It was so dark that without light, you couldn't see an inch ahead, making it impossible to work recklessly.
What the commissioned adventurers had to do was search this cave like a dungeon, and once safety was secured, hand over a map and report data to prioritize securing the workers' safety.
-Kirreuk, kraaa!
Right, and conveniently, the creatures that made this place dangerous came calling.
I twisted my spear shaft and aimed the tip, and the lantern Jang held soon revealed shadowy shapes prowling inside the cave.
They weren't human, obviously.
According to what we'd heard from the supervisors beforehand, our side was the only one tasked with searching this cave.
-Uooooh, uwooooh.
-Kyarreuk, kaaaaa.
Groans squeezed from parched throats echoed.
Alongside them, eyes gleamed with sinister magic, and the stench of rot permeated.
The packs of undead I'd seen quite often in this world had responded to the presence of the living and personally come all the way here.
"Looks like the nuisances found us before we could find a training ground. Can you handle them?"
"Yes, well. Undead of this level, at least."
From what I'd heard before coming here, no noticeably dangerous undead had been discovered yet.
If they were ordinary undead, they were manageable without necessarily needing Philoi's help, but with numbers like these, I couldn't afford to let my guard down.
The scariest thing about undead is when the ones with a numerical advantage come charging without knowing fear.
-Uwoooh, oooh....
-U, Uooh...?
But when the distance between the undead actually narrowed, rather than charging at me, they began to stand there blankly, staring at me vacantly.
I barely had time to wonder, 'Why are they acting like this?' before—
-U, U-hyoooo....
-U, U-hyooo...?
As soon as I heard the groans escaping their mouths, I realized what had just happened and slowly relaxed the strength in my body.
Right. This exact thing had happened that time we met in the dungeon months ago, hadn't it?
Undead are, to begin with, things that died and rose again.
Their brains, which should preserve memories, have rotted away, so they're practically in a state no different from suffering dementia.
Hence, unless a necromancer or a higher entity intervenes, all that's left in them is a strong obsession directed at the living.
And my ability—as long as any consciousness exists, regardless of who or what—forcefully rams my name into it and imprints it.
-U-hyoooo.
-U-hyoooooo, U-hyooooooo....
In other words, undead, who have no real thoughts whatsoever, end up in a state where they're just repeating the only name left in their heads—mine.
As long as an undead didn't possess a consciousness, like the Four Horsemen, it was immediately understandable why most ordinary undead wouldn't charge at me even after seeing me.
Yeah, understandable, but....
-U-hyoooooooo~~~
-U-hyoooooo! U-hyooooooooo!!!!
...Damn it.
Now they were even straining their necks to carry on with this shit.
-Slice, slice!
Whatever the case, if they just stand there like idiots, they're easy to deal with.
I cut down every single one of those pathetic sights with my spear, and eventually, silence returned to the cave.
Seeing as they didn't charge even when their comrades were dying mid-way, it seemed I wouldn't have to worry about being rushed later by some sort of camaraderie.
"Ho ho, I see your ability proves useful in unexpected areas as well."
Jang expressed his admiration, watching me after I had effortlessly annihilated the undead pack.
He seemed pleased that the task had become easier thanks to it, but I, who had actually eliminated the undead, couldn't feel particularly cheerful.
-U, U-hyooooo....
Look, even now, isn't the one that's been reduced to just a head squeezing out its last remaining strength to call my name?
Generally, I try not to hold a grudge against my parents, but as these incidents kept occurring, my resentment had no choice but to grow.
Oh, mother and father in heaven. Why on earth did you give me this name?
Come to think of it, it's not heaven but that other world, but whatever.