Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: The Hungry Mansion (1)
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I pulled out the straw effigy, the body puppet, that I had shown Park Kwang-rim earlier. Ha, using it now means it’ll be tough to get another one for a while.
Vibrant magical circles spread out in all directions.
-Grraaah!?
Reacting to the sinister aura woven into the spell formulas of the magic circles, the corrupter recoiled and shrank back.
But it was already too late.
As I poured mana into them, the effigy at the center of the magic circles floated up from my hand into the air.
[Agent of the Observer]
Crunch, crunch, crunch….
From the tiny effigy’s body, bizarrely tangled mana threads burst forth. They looked less like mana threads and more like pitch-black tentacles or the grotesquely twisted arms of specters.
-Grraaaak!
The corrupter spat out black flames in resistance, but this side had no physical form either.
My mana couldn’t produce power exceeding the authority of an abyssal being, but right here, right now, in this place.
In this roughly five-pyeong space of the dark alley I had purified through ritual breathing, it could not defy my command.
Crack, crackle!
The mana threads finally seized the corrupter and crushed it.
The corrupter, writhing in non-Euclidean frenzy, was imprisoned inside that tiny effigy, ignoring the laws of physics.
Thud.
The effigy fell to the ground, looking like an ordinary straw doll again.
“You did it! As expected!”
“No.”
It might seem like the surreal influence had vanished, but that wasn’t the case.
To eyes that could detect mana, it looked like a bomb on the verge of exploding, vibrating intensely.
“I’ve materialized and sealed it for now, but it’s not resolved.”
“Then……?”
The curses in [Cthulhu World] were vicious. Especially those guaranteed by abyssal beings—they could only be lifted in highly specific ways.
“The effigy will block the Observer’s effects, so it should be fine for a while. I’ll find a way to deal with it completely later and help properly then. Until—”
In any case, as long as Park Kwang-rim stayed within the range where the subject of consciousness could exert influence, the curse would persist.
If the subject of consciousness sent power exceeding the effigy’s durability in the meantime, the effigy would shatter, and there’d be a massive explosion that wouldn’t even leave bones of Park Kwang-rim behind.
“—I recommend leaving Paju and hiding out somewhere.”
Put conversely, distancing yourself from the subject of consciousness could pause the curse’s effects temporarily.
With luck, the subject might give up maintaining the curse, lifting it entirely.
I explained all that.
“I won’t take payment until I find a solution, so at least spend a couple months outside Gyeonggi Province.”
[Quest information has been updated.
! Time limit: Park Kwang-rim will die in (45) days. !]
Forty-five days? Wonder if I can get a Thousand Gold Hall entry ticket within that time.
“By the way, the coughing has stopped.”
“That’s because this effigy is taking the curse’s effects instead. Lose it, and the curse might trigger again, so carry it with you at all times.”
“Got it. And……”
“Yeah?”
“You said no payment, but…… No, honestly, I didn’t expect you to help like this. Wouldn’t you take even a portion of what I can offer?”
Huh? What’s with this con artist?
[However, since you’ve shown excellent results, a portion of the quest reward will be settled early.
Reward: 150,000 XP + Park Kwang-rim’s trust + 150 million won]
[Park Kwang-rim was a ruthless con-man broker, but he’s impressed by your dedicated attitude. Park Kwang-rim feels deep fondness for you.]
Ah, deep fondness. It’s the affinity level right before solid alliance.
Having affection lead to giving money makes for plausible development.
Is the quest window changing to match Park Kwang-rim’s mental state? Or is it the other way around, his psychology shifting to fit the quest window?
‘Which came first?’
Whether this Park Kwang-rim, rejoicing alive before my eyes, is truly human or just an NPC moving to the system’s script might be more important than it seems.
* * *
Tudor was a more capable broker than I’d thought.
“I figured you’d have maybe two or three requests ready at best.”
“Hmm, looks like you underestimated me.”
The day after I asked and he left, I got a call from Tudor telling me to come to Vasilisa immediately, so here I was again.
No sooner had I arrived than Tudor scolded me for being late and dragged me to his office, where the quest briefing began.
Tudor had lined up a total of eight requests.
The sight of summary files on the requests lined up neatly on the table was quite the spectacle.
Industrious, huh…… No need to dig up this many.
‘No, that’s not it.’
Tudor knew full well I’d only take one of these.
Preparing this many anyway meant he saw me as more important than other fixers.
“The one I recommend most for you is this.”
Tudor pointed to the file on the far left.
Gotta at least pretend to check it out of respect for his investigative effort.
“Let’s see…… A haunted house in Munsan.”
“What do you think? You might’ve heard of it. It’s a famous one that’s been on broadcasts a few times. Streamers kept visiting until recently, but…… starting around two years ago, people started dying, proving it’s the real deal.”
“No wonder it’s the classic haunted house tale.”
“Exactly. But last year, some rich guy with nothing better to do announced a bounty for anyone who purifies it, making it pretty famous in the spiritualist circles.”
“Still has last year’s bounty, so no one’s succeeded yet?”
“As expected, quick on the uptake. I knew they’d raised the amount a few times, but checking this time, it’s pretty high.”
“How much?”
“150 million.”
“Not bad.”
But this wasn’t the request I wanted.
Plus, what haunts the Munsan house isn’t actually a ghost.
‘It’s a murder game.’
A quest where you become a plaything for crazy old rich folks who lost their minds over the money.
Those tempted by the reward get caught in an artificial murder game in a fake set.
‘What, not some damn Saw game……’
It’s a quest with good achievements and rewards, but what I need is a mansion to serve as a base.
“Interesting story. But I want to do some practice this time, so something I can handle quietly? This seems too flashy.”
Without a hint of disappointment, Tudor pulled out another file.
“How about this? You can handle it right here in Geumchon-dong.”
A ghost in a new apartment in Geumchon-dong…… Not this either.
I lost interest quickly, but Tudor pressed on enthusiastically.
“Every month on the 13th, thirteen ghosts made entirely of bugs appear on the 13th floor of that apartment, make weird noises for 13 minutes, then vanish.”
“That’s……”
Lucky me. Good thing I’d already shaken off my triskaidekaphobia; if I still had it, that story alone might’ve knocked me out.
“……Nah, I’m good. Not this one. Something else would be better.”
As I said that, I picked up another file nearby.
Aha.
Found it.
Good thing the mask hides my expressions. This was the request I’d been looking for.
Doing my best to sound casual, I said,
“This one looks pretty good.”
But Tudor’s expression was oddly peculiar.
“Hmm…… It fits the criteria, so I included it, but it’s a bit iffy.”
The first page of the file read:
[Jangmyeong Mountain Standalone Pension]
“Where’s Jangmyeong Mountain?”
“I told you, it’s meh…… You’re listening to me, right?”
“Yeah, I am.”
Tudor pouted for a moment before continuing.
“Jangmyeong Mountain is a small hill west of here in Geumchon-dong, past Gongneung Stream. There’s a standalone pension there.”
“The reward’s absurd.”
[The fixer shall inherit the client’s entire fortune.]
“Ridiculous.”
That’s why Tudor avoids spiritual requests like this—the people involved are all weird hobbyists or crazies, and even if it goes well, they stiff you on payment, he grumbled on and on.
Because of that, I had to wait until I’d skimmed every file before stating my choice.
“Can we go with the Jangmyeong Mountain standalone pension?”
“You…… I knew you weren’t right in the head from the start, but…… Are you sane? You really think you can claim that reward?”
“I’m sane. I told you from the beginning, I’m not that interested in the reward.”
“For your magic training, right? The commission fee……”
“I’ll cover it if they stiff you.”
“Hmm…… Whatever, do what you want.”
“Great. Then contact the client for me.”
[You have accepted the quest!
[Base Acquisition Quest: The Hungry Mansion] Subjugate all the evil spirits haunting the mansion and restore it to a ‘safe’ state.
Remaining objectives: Unknown.
Reward: 250,000 XP + Ownership of the mansion
Failure: Possessed by an evil spirit.]
As expected, the quest message used ‘mansion’ instead of ‘pension’.
The place I’d be visiting was actually a private mansion, not a pension.
‘It’s not a change in the game’s setting. This was the original setup.’
“Oh, and that request has a special condition……”
“This one? The client will accompany you during the job.”
A place I’d visited a few times in the game.
Fewer clears than other spots, but thanks to my transcendently developed intellect, I remembered everything: clear conditions, methods, hidden elements, secret rewards.
“Yeah. Seemed like they wanted to check something? Client info’s on the next page.”
I flipped the page to the client’s information.
At the top was the client’s name.
“Name’s…… Huh Sang-hyun.”
The core of this quest is managing the client.
Huh Sang-hyun, the mansion’s owner, the client, and the quest’s most important NPC.
Fail to handle him, and the quest won’t end.
The mansion’s specters possess his body too.
‘This quest itself is basically a trap created by the evil spirits and an abyssal being.’
From the homeowner on down, everything around this mansion will come at me.
But the reward is everything contained in the mansion.
[The Hungry Mansion].
This would be my new base going forward.