Chapter 204
Chapter 204
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 204
Chapter Title: Short Crisis
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"Ah, yeah. The staging is really cool!"
I've experienced most of the gimmicks and events that can happen in [Cthulhu World].
On top of that, my Intelligence stat of 30 lets me remember those experiences down to the tiniest details.
That experience and memory are my greatest weapons for surviving this perilous world.
"Eugh, eughheheh. Please, please spare me! Hehehhe—eughheuk—spare meee!"
A plea that's impossible to tell if it's laughter or sobbing echoes out.
However, my weapons have a weakness.
Memories tied to the phobias lodged in my head don't come to mind easily. Probably because my subconscious avoids them.
I thought it was an easy request when I accepted it, but it turned out to be insane in every sense.
"Hang in there just a bit longer!"
It's a construction site where they stopped midway through building a high-rise.
The space is wide open, but spiderwebs cover everything, making it hard to even secure visibility, let alone move freely.
A person bursts out from between the webs.
"Uwaaaah! Save me! Please! Uwaaaah!"
He's screaming desperately as he leaps through the spiderwebs.
It's truly—truly—truly horrific.
People bound by spiderwebs in their limbs are moving in unnatural ways.
Like—
Puppets.
Yeah, that's the word. They look just like marionettes jerked around by strings.
'My head hurts.'
I was wrong to think this phobia would be easier than the last blood phobia.
[Madness – Puppet Phobia]
"Yeah, I know, man!"
There are no actual toys kids like here.
But the people tangled in these webs are charging at me in horrifying forms that poke at my phobia bit by bit.
"Save me! Save me! Save me!"
Just watching is nightmare fuel, so how must those dangling and moving people feel?
"Eughheheh—eughheuk—"
Hmm, most of them are already lost in delirium.
In a way, I'm jealous.
The truly awful part is that their appearance doesn't trigger my phobia outright.
It just evokes it.
"Ugh! This sucks."
With hostages around, I can't just blast everything away.
[Magma Spray]
Fwoooosh!
High-temperature embers spray in every direction. Despite the name, it's not actual lava. Just scattering glowing flame particles.
Roooar—
"That way! And that way too!"
My Intelligence stat of 30 doesn't just give me memory.
It provides surreal levels of focus and mana control too.
Hundreds of thousands of flame particles erupting everywhere? I can control every single one perfectly.
Thud—boom!
Sounds of people freed from the webs hitting the floor.
"Red!"
"Keee!"
Fwoosh—
Red dives in to rescue the people on the ground.
Whatever's in Red's path—
[Burning Spear]
[Spell Enhancement: Multi-Cast]
Shiiiing—KABOOM! Boom!
I blast them away with magic.
"Good job!"
"Kirrururuk!"
A cry echoes from deep inside the building.
Phase two begins after rescuing the hostages.
A massive spider emerges from the darkness.
Spider body, but a human-like head.
"No, not quite human-like."
It's too grotesque to call human-like. It rolls its eight eyeballs on its face as it approaches slowly.
Generally speaking, this spider looks far more terrifying and gruesome than the hostages from before, right?
It even has surreal power that destroys human minds just by existing.
But its form and intimidation mean nothing to me.
[System: Exclusive Trait 'Abyss Madness' activated. Intimidation effect nullified.]
Crackle—
"Red, hang back a bit. No problems now."
"Keee!"
No more hostages, and nothing eating at my mind.
"Kirrururuk!"
"You little shit, time to pay for getting on my nerves."
[Inferno]
Rooooaaar!!
Enormous flames erupt everywhere, engulfing the area.
Ultra-high-temperature flames empowered by the Four Yin Slashing Sword and [Living Flame].
By the time the flames covering the entire building fade, nothing left in here can threaten me.
[Quest completed!
[Bounty Quest: Nest of the Human-Faced Spider] Reward: 2,500,000 XP + 200,000,000 won]
[You defeated 'Human-Faced Spider.' Understanding of God's kin in general has increased.]
[Achievement unlocked! You defeated one of the daughters of the 'Blind Net Weaver.'
You acquired 'Common Achievement: Web Destroyer.'
Achievement grants 'Human-Faced Spider Egg Cluster' and bonus XP.]
[You may change your residence to 'Under-Construction Building.' Kill the owner if desired.]
"No need."
Why does it keep telling me to kill someone?
"Are these all the rewards?"
From the charred, crushed corpse of the Human-Faced Spider, an egg cluster wrapped in white silk pops out.
"Ah, spider pet."
If raised well, it can become a useful summon. Of course, there's a 70% chance of an instant-death trap event where it eats your insides while you sleep...
I don't know about other Kim Shinwas, but I can control this.
"Hmm, but should I add another to my menagerie?"
No harm in taking it for now. I cast a small barrier around the egg cluster and shoved it into my backpack.
[You defeated a kin of the 'Blind Net Weaver' and stole its egg cluster. She will be furious if she learns you harmed one of her daughters.]
Messages start popping up like they were waiting.
[Many other abyssal beings are taking interest in you. You can no longer return to your old life. In particular, the 'Mountain Predator' whose plans you disrupted feels great affection for you.]
"Ugh, why affection of all things?"
The [Mountain Predator] worshipped by the Gourmet Expedition Team is one of the top sadists among abyssal beings.
It has a hobby of turning humans it likes into pets.
'Play with them until bored, drain their blood, then toss them aside when done.'
I'd expected the [Mountain Predator] to meddle once or twice more since I got tangled with the Gourmet Expedition Team anyway.
Finally, the message window spits out its usual spiel about the chaotic future and vanishes.
"But why bring that up now?"
The stuff about [Mountain Predator] should've come up back at Paju Samneung, right?
Is some change happening among the abyssal beings that I don't know about?
I recalled the Tudor file in my backpack.
'Guess I should meet that senior from the Feast Offerings after all.'
Sun's already set. Better clean up and head back.
I called Tudor to report the request completed.
- You're really not working tomorrow?
"I told you, I have stuff to do tomorrow. Hospital, hospital."
- Hmph, I don't believe you anymore when you say you're going to the hospital.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
- You've said you were going to the hospital like three times before and didn't go?
"Me? Did I? Three times?"
- Huh? Doing it again. You repeated 'hospital' three times while talking about Lee Sunbin.
Lee Sunbin is an NPC I rescued during the Yeonam Construction ghoul incident.
Probably still hospitalized in the closed ward at Paju Central Hospital?
By the way... three times?
"Did I say that recently too?"
- Uh? No, it was a few weeks ago. You don't remember?
"No, it's nothing. Just mixed up the dates."
No recently, so probably during the fish phobia episode.
Back then, the fish phobia didn't cause delirium for me but intermittent memory loss.
I didn't even realize my memories were being erased until I got trapped in In-su Village.
Some damaged memories returned after the fish phobia vanished, but only partially.
So bits of my past memories are still blank here and there.
- Honey? You listening?
"Ah, sorry. What'd you say?"
- Hmm... I don't know what's up, but if you're really going to the hospital, get some counseling while you're there.
"......"
- Ah! Not teasing you, this is serious. It's essential for fixers, you know?
I know.
Fixers fight surreal beings for money, and get eroded by the madness they induce, gradually going insane.
- If you want to keep working long-term, go to the hospital like Serene and get counseling.
"Got it, got it. I'm fine."
I brushed it off and hung up.
'Am I really fine?'
The daytime message about getting some sleep pops back up.
"......"
Looks like I need to face it properly instead of avoiding.
But right then.
"Huh?"
Mana suddenly gets sucked out.
This isn't normal.
I turn toward the direction of the Hungry Manor, far off. Can't see it from here, but something feels off.
"Intruder?"
Mana gets sucked again.
"Wha? What's going on?"
Something serious must've happened at the manor that they can't handle easily.
[Gate Creation]
Good thing I have magic to teleport straight home.
I step through the hole in the air toward the manor.
Brief darkness and disorientation.
Now, the Hungry Manor is right in front of me.
"Well, damn."
The manor is in chaos.
Shattered windows everywhere. Wreckage of death spirit golems scattered around.
And—
"Ahahahahaha!!"
A chilling laugh.
On the roof.
An unfamiliar woman with insanely long black hair whipping around is causing havoc. And a man blocking her.
"Auntie! Stop, come out of that body now!"
Heo Sanghyeon's voice. He's up on the roof too.
But the woman called auntie lets out a horrific screech and rages.
"Kyaaaha! Shut up! This is my house! You're the one who should leave!"
BOOM!
A massive explosion rocks the roof.
Auntie—Heo Jihyeon, it seems—cast a spell.
Heo Sanghyeon gets flung away helplessly by the blast.
"Ugh! Red! Grab Sanghyeon!"
"Keee!"
Fwoosh—
Red, now gigantic, catches Heo Sanghyeon falling from the roof.
Heo Sanghyeon, dangling from Red's leg, yells at me.
"Shinwa! It's Auntie!"
Ah, I know. But... weird stuff flying around her?
Huh? What did I just say to Sanghyeon?
"Yes! Auntie the puppeteer possessed Hyeon-deok!"
Ah, damn.
Sanghyeon, don't use that word.
Intense headache, body shaking.
No trace of Jang Hyeon-deok left. Just Heo Jihyeon in a ragged dress, wild hair flying.
Heo Jihyeon's spirit is wrapping Jang Hyeon-deok's body. Probably recreating her prime appearance.
And three shadows floating around her.
"You just took whatever from the basement..."
No wonder Sanghyeon can't win.
Humanoid lifeforms wearing masks like mine.
The three homunculi I created are floating around her.