Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Phobia
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- Squeeech!
- Squeeech!
- Squeeeeech!
‘They summon adds if you beat on them just right, then fight together.’
……I won, but the mother didn’t move.
Looks like it died instantly from that last attack. So all that’s left is to clean up these little bastards.
‘Damn it, if it’s gonna die in one hit, why summon the adds before croaking?’
I wanted to hurry up and get the hell out.
Thanks to the [Curtain of Darkness] spell, the censored black blobs were hidden well enough, but tumors bursting on their necks were spilling out those little…… squirming bastards.
They were much weaker than the mother due to their size, but they looked way more like those…… things, so if I hadn’t preemptively shrouded them in shadows, I’d have lost it for real.
[Madness - Rat Phobia].
Am I seriously going to have to deal with this crap every time I run into something that looks like those…… things from now on? I need to swap it out for a different madness somehow……
‘Incoming. Transformations complete?’
The pitch-black censored offspring were slithering toward me before I knew it. The mother still wasn’t moving. Yeah, definitely dead.
No need to take them on one by one. They’re just early-game trash mobs without any real magic resistance anyway.
‘But there’s too much cover here. Plus…… argh! Gotta finish them before they break out of the shadowed zones!’
I reached out and projected mana onto a distant object.
[Coiling Rope]
A bundle of guts spilling from the monster I’d just destroyed with my spell.
The guts, now tangled with my mana, began writhing like snakes with a mind of their own.
Targets…… one, two, three…… all twelve! Doesn’t matter what exact shapes they are since they’re shadowed.
The gut bundles shot toward the twelve targets, manifesting my will.
Bind my enemies!
- Rip.
- Squeak!
- Squeeech!
The grotesque innards wrapped around all the enemies. Of course, they wouldn’t hold long. Weak enough that a little struggling would break them free.
But that’s all I needed. Better to keep the bastards from scattering and attacking than letting them slip out of the censored shadow zones. A few were already wriggling free, but at least I’d slowed their movement.
[Organ Collapse]
[Spell Enhancement: Deadly Poison]
A curse that necrotizes and liquefies the target’s organs. Horrific effect for a 0th-circle spell.
On a living person, their natural resistance might block it. But my actual targets were these mana-infused gut bundles under my control.
‘Spells like this exist sometimes.’
Not because I have a taste for gore. Among [Evil Alignment] spells, some pack a huge punch but damage the caster’s sanity as a tradeoff.
‘In the game, it showed your sanity stat, but here I can’t check it.’
Seemed like they wanted “powerful but drives you mad over time” magic……
I’m an [Abyss-Gazing Mage]. My unique trait [Abyssal Madness] blocks mental damage from spellcasting.
The innards binding the enemies swelled with gruesome inflammation and pus.
Soon turning into lethal toxic sludge, they infected their victims.
The poisoned r…… bastards shrieked in agony, thrashing wildly. A few lunged at me amid the chaos……
“Hey, stay in the shadows.”
[Shock]
……A simple shock spell to shove them back was plenty.
Moments later, they couldn’t withstand the sticky poison’s deadly toxins and screamed.
- Kweeeck!
- Pweeeck!
- Kraaaah!
Eerie wails that sounded less like beasts and more like tormented humans echoed out.
A hellish scene straight out of some infernal pit.
‘Whew. Not a pretty sight.’
To reiterate, not because I’m into gore. Just picking the most efficient spells available right now.
Before long, the underground storeroom fell completely silent.
“Looks cleaned up……”
Before I finished speaking, a new message appeared in midair.
[Achievement Unlocked!
You overcame your phobia and defeated its source.
Obtained ‘Advanced Achievement: Conqueror of Fear.’
As achievement reward, the conquered phobia is naturally cured, and you gain bonus EXP.]
[System: ‘Madness - Rat Phobia’ has been removed.]
Overcame the phobia?
Even with them covered up and beaten to death remotely?
Felt a bit off in the moment, but hey, losing one annoying madness is welcome.
To test it, I dispelled [Curtain of Darkness]. Rat monsters dead in pools of toxic slime and their own regurgitated blood clots. Rat monsters, rat pups, rats, rats……
“Rats…… rats, rats, rats……”
Yes! I can say it! Freed from those rat bastard shackles!
I was so thrilled I pointed at the corpses and grinned like an idiot for a second.
[System: Penalty trait ‘Shattered Mind’ activates. With only 1 madness remaining, a random madness manifests.]
Ugh, short-lived joy…… Let me savor it a bit longer……
Oh, random replacement?
Please give me a good one…… a good one……
[System: ‘Madness - Triskaidekaphobia’ has been inflicted upon your mind.]
“Thir…… te…… en?”
What the hell? Who’s scared of twel…… plus one? What lunatic fears that number……
‘Ah, shit, it’s scary.’
Not scary-scary, but…… you know that thing? Elevators in Korea with F instead of 4. Like that feeling, amplified millions of times. Thir…… teen feels insanely ominous.
Hard to say which is worse, fearing rats or thir…… teen, but at least numbers don’t attack me like rats do.
‘Anyway, grab the magic stone and bail before escaping.’
The mother rat’s body should have a high-purity magic stone. Let’s see……
The twelve pup corpses sprawled around the mother…… Huh? So……
Their number……
Oh, right…… mother one plus twelve pups.
Damn it. I averted my eyes from the sprawled bodies and headed for the elevator.
No time for magic stones.
Already creepy monster corpses, and that many in an unlucky number? No thanks.
Pushing the elevator button yielded a grating creeeeak…… as the doors opened.
Inside, several long-rotted corpses reeked horrifically.
“Uh…… excuse me.”
Gonna have to make room.
No space to stand, so I kicked a nearby corpse aside to squeeze in.
From the shoved skull oozed weird slime, and a few centipedes crawled out.
‘Eh…… kinda gross, but nothing special.’
Smell’s bad too.
Brain registers the gruesome stimulus, but no real emotional reaction. Just hit the button for the surface.
My reflection in the elevator mirror.
White straitjacket, paper bag with holes over my head……
“Ugh, even I look like a high-purity psycho.”
If I think so, others will worse. Best case, escaped lab experiment.
But no choice. My mind grows an inextirpable madness.
Lost in thought, the elevator reached the surface.
Nothing left to block me now.
Just the chain and padlock on the door.
I’d normally find keys searching the lab, but I skipped all that, so no keys.
‘If I go all out with magic, I could rip the whole door off, not just the lock…… but no need?’
Oh, wait, another achievement maybe.
Channel my scant remaining mana to probe the padlock.
Not with eyes, but touch—and senses beyond.
Ordinary padlock from some ritual, no magic wards.
Fine-tune mana into precise physical force, manipulating the internal mechanism.
Click, clunk.
“Nice. Works like a charm.”
Important test, actually. Without fine control and precise strength, it’d break or crumple.
In [Cthulhu World], monsters are far from the worst. No matter how much mana, brute-forcing won’t cut it for survival.
Luckily, my magical talent went beyond just mana quantity.
[Achievement Unlocked! You unlocked the research lab’s padlock without its keys.
Obtained ‘Common Achievement: Lockpicking Expert.’
As achievement reward, gain trait ‘Dexterous Hands,’ and bonus EXP.]
Just the beginning.
Soon I’ll do not just what I imagine, but the unimaginable too.
Cool night air rushed into the stuffy lab as the door swung open. Late as expected. Almost dawn?
Rat phobia delayed me a bit, but this timing should net another achievement.
[Achievement Unlocked! You escaped the research lab faster than anyone.
Obtained ‘Common Achievement: Lab Speed Demon.’
As achievement reward, gain trait ‘Step Forward,’ and bonus EXP.]
Good.
Outside at last.
Paju City, Gaepyeong Mountain midway up.
Behind me, the [K-3675 Secret Research Lab] entrance hidden by trees and rocks. Ahead……
A vast city sprawled down the mountainside.
Turn any way, the city stretched endlessly. Even in this deep blue dawn, lights pierced every corner.
Like opening a massive jeweled chest.
Game lore: After the ‘Great Collapse’—otherworldly beings invading reality—North Korea and neighbors crumbled.
Korea fared better, absorbing magic stones from monsters and otherworldly tech for massive change.
Awakened powers, magic stone tech, endless refugees.
Plus adventurers, madmen chasing fortune.
Unprecedented chaos and boom transformed Korean cities into monsters themselves.
Endlessly growing, devouring humans, vomiting gold and mana.
That’s Paju in [Cthulhu World] before me.
“Never thought I’d see the opening I watched hundreds of times for real……”
Classic vista hinting at the massive open-world field ahead.
Back then, main title floated in the sky, scenario text appeared.
[You successfully escaped the unknown research lab. But with no memories, and nothing……]
There it is. Super familiar…… Huh?
Static, crackle……
Blue sparks disrupted the slowly forming text, replacing it with something else.
[You successfully escaped the research lab you already knew. With much prior knowledge, you had no interest in recovering memories or uncovering lab secrets.]
What?
[The warped researchers and the indescribably grotesque monsters they summoned blocked your path, but you overcame them with astonishing wisdom, knowledge, and potent magic. You seized your own safety through your own power!]
[You escaped ‘K-3675 Secret Research Lab.’ EXP gained.]
[You accumulated enough EXP to reach the next level. Level up by 1.]
[You defeated a zombie. Understanding of ‘Undead’ category increases.]
[You defeated mutant rats (12). Understanding of ‘Mutant Creatures’ category increases.]
[You defeated a giant mutant rat. Understanding of ‘Mutant Creatures’ category greatly increases.]
[You accumulated enough EXP to reach the next level. Level up by 2.]
[Discovery: Acquired secret research lab item (1). EXP gained.]
[Discovery: You found a secret area. EXP gained.]
[EXP Bonus: You achieved a total of (3) achievements in ‘K-3675 Secret Research Lab.’]
[You accumulated enough EXP to reach the next level. Level up by 1.]
[Reached Level 5! Level-up reward: 1 bonus stat point to freely allocate.]
[Despite knowing much, you feel lost on where to go. As you already know, the body you inhabit has no records or identity. Sudden survival worries bring a bleak uncertainty about the future. Yet you must press on to live. You already know what death means in this world.
Now, a chaotic future awaits you.]
……Wanna go?
No clue who, but someone’s watching me.
Probably the same bastard who dragged me here. This reeks of Nyarlathotep’s schemes.
No, 100% Nyarla.
Nyarlathotep is one of the abyssal entities in [Cthulhu World].
Infinite influence across worlds, universes, timelines, with twisted malice.
Countless masks, countless aliases.
That’s Nyarlathotep.
Among busy abyssal beings, only he’d yank a random human from another world, dump them, and watch for kicks.
“Hey, asshole! You Nyarla? Nyarlathotep, right?”
[No.]
This bastard!!
The message window fled like it was scared.
Many outer gods penalize or curse those who speak their true names, but they vary—some ignore it, some even like it.
Nyarlathotep’s the latter.
With over a thousand avatars and names, he doesn’t care about a name drop.
Unlike gods who see humans as bugs or pawns, he’s interested in them, even pulls pranks……
His “pranks” stem from an alien humor no human intellect grasps, dooming victims to beg for death.
Hard to imagine Nyarlathotep uninvolved here……
“……Haa.”
Sigh escapes, but no choice.
Thought of smashing their expectations by fleeing to Incheon or abroad crossed my mind, but pointless.
Gear up fully. Top priority: fix this pathetically low strength.
Allocate new bonus point to strength.
****
Kim Shin-hwa
Class: Abyss-Gazing Mage
Level: 5
Magic Tier: 0th Circle
Madness: [Mask Obsession], [Triskaidekaphobia]
Strength 5
Vitality 5
Agility 8
Intelligence 30
Mentality 14
Charm 16
****
4 or 5, equally pitiful, but better than nothing.
Time to head down the mountain.
The city of peace, hope, and madness.
Paju awaits.