Chapter 77
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: The Hill Where Ice Flowers Bloom (2)
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"...Did you feel that?"
About an hour after the exploration began.
We were resting near the center, sorting through the magic stones from the monsters we'd hunted.
Sophia suddenly glanced toward the west and muttered.
"Just now... I felt an enormous mana surge for a split second..."
"...I felt it too."
Amelia froze mid-motion while packing away her lunchbox after eating.
Her face showed a hint of panic, a touch of fear, and terror.
"And it wasn't just mana. For a brief moment, an incredibly thick aura of death spread out from the center in all directions."
"What is it? What's going on?"
Watching Sophia and Amelia start piecing things together in a serious conversation, I fell into thought as well.
'Three... of them.'
Thanks to my Empathic Constitution, I could sense it.
The thick aura of death had spread everywhere, and three life forces had been completely swallowed by darkness.
Meaning three victims had already fallen.
"So, what do we do?"
I looked at the two girls, who were still whispering to each other with grave expressions.
They turned to me and asked back.
"What do you think, Hyun-sol? Should we check it out ourselves, or link up with Instructor Seol Yu-bin right away?"
"What do you think is best, Hyun-sol?"
"......"
In the current situation—and according to the original plan—there was no need to hesitate. We should head straight to Seol Yu-bin.
The kids who noticed something off would all converge at the dungeon entrance anyway, along with the undead and the high lich.
They'd swarm toward the biggest cluster of life forces.
But Wol Ha-yeon's involvement in the main story threw a wrench into things, making me waver.
Given her personality, she'd head straight for the lich to buy time for the students to escape.
Or rather, out of confidence that she could handle it alone.
Of course, there was a high chance Wol Ha-yeon might get a little hurt, but she wouldn't die.
A high lich was an S-rank boss, but an SS-rank was on another level entirely.
It'd be like a goblin fighting an orc.
'The problem is... the dullahan.'
Even with those thoughts, what made me hesitate was the dullahan.
A new death aura, which hadn't been detectable before, started emanating right as that massive mana surge hit.
Meaning the dullahan—the one I'd hoped wouldn't appear, the worst-case bad luck—was coming.
With a dullahan in the mix, even Wol Ha-yeon could be in real danger. It created an impossible choice.
Stick here to protect as many students as possible—especially Sophia and Amelia—by linking up with Seol Yu-bin?
Or head to the center to prevent even the slim chance of losing Wol Ha-yeon, the key player in the war against the demonkin—where death meant game over?
"......"
I couldn't choose.
Especially not the latter.
Mess it up, and I could lose Wol Ha-yeon, Sophia, and Amelia all at once.
Even with the saintess's power, hundreds of undead swarming from all sides would be too much.
"Damn..."
I was agonizing, head pounding, unable to decide—when a very familiar voice came from the right.
So familiar it made my heart sink.
"...Wol Ha-yeon?"
As I called her name, she waved cheerfully and approached, as if she'd been waiting.
Yoon Seo-rin followed, slightly out of breath, with about twenty students huddled behind her in a panic.
None of them looked good.
No one was in the mood for jokes.
"Did you guys feel it too? That mana surge from the center."
Wol Ha-yeon scanned the surroundings before asking.
"...Yeah. That creepy mana burst just now? Sophia and Amelia sensed it too."
In response, Yoon Seo-rin narrowed her eyes.
"I hope it's just a mana surge... but there was something more unsettling about it."
"Yeah. It wasn't there before, but it suddenly got thick."
Sophia muttered right after.
Amelia had already clasped her hands, preparing her sanctuary, breathing quietly.
She was usually the brightest, most cheerful saintess of us all, but now her face was the most tense.
Because she knew better than anyone.
How terrifying an aura of death could be.
Wol Ha-yeon glanced back at the group.
The students were trying to hide their fear, but their hands trembled.
"...You guys felt it too, right?"
She said.
One of the students from behind spoke in a shaky voice.
"Y-Yeah... The whole forest suddenly felt... frozen. But that wasn't the end—"
Another picked up.
"From the center... we heard something. Like voices... screams maybe..."
Screams... I swallowed hard.
My Empathic Constitution had caught it—the moment those three life forces winked out. It wasn't my imagination.
'Damn... Probably used Soul Bind, high chance.'
Soul Bind.
One of Karseryon's unique skills—the worst power, endlessly spawning undead soldiers as long as it didn't die.
And this aura now? The dullahan.
Not fully manifested yet, just tremors—but the moment it registered, things were going south fast.
"Hyun-sol."
Wol Ha-yeon's voice snapped me out of it.
I turned, and she met my eyes straight on.
"You give the orders."
"...Me?"
"Yeah. I have a feeling I should leave it to you."
Some students started to protest at her words.
But they must've figured following the orders of the guy who survived a descent-type gate was smart—no gestures, just silently watching me, awaiting command.
"......"
Good, initiative's mine now.
I'd played the game, run this scenario hundreds, thousands of times.
Still, one wrong call... and these twenty-odd kids die.
I couldn't just blurt out the full truth: undead horde incoming, high lich, then dullahan.
They wouldn't believe it anyway—and I couldn't stay silent either.
After a moment's thought, I let out a small breath.
And spoke.
"First off... this area's dangerous. Especially toward the center—three life forces just faded for sure."
"......!"
"You mean... someone died?"
Amelia asked.
"High probability. If you heard screams, call it 100%."
I stared toward the center.
Hairs standing on end.
"Truth is... I've felt an ominous aura since earlier. And it's way thicker now."
Murmurs of fear rippled through the students.
Wol Ha-yeon kept watching me.
"So, what do you think we should do?"
I swallowed dryly and answered slowly.
"...Priority one: link up with Instructor Seol Yu-bin. If we stay here, we could all die."
The students' faces went white.
Yoon Seo-rin quietly unslung the rifle from her back.
"Got it. Simple enough—move out. More numbers mean better survival odds."
Wol Ha-yeon nodded in agreement.
"Right. Center might be too late already. But yeah, we need to group up."
I gave the death aura streaming from the center one last look, squeezed my eyes shut, and prayed.
'...Please, don't show until all the students gather... Dullahan.'
But that prayer seemed too late.
"B-Behind us... another one exploded!!"
"Way bigger than before!!"
Someone shouted.
And with it, a deafening roar like the air shattering swept the forest.
Death aura exploding outward.
Blood turning ice-cold.
Mana flows crushed, twisting with a groan.
"At last... I, we, have awakened from endless eons of eternal void... We shall conquer the continent once more and fulfill our unachieved dreams."
A laugh like death itself, nails on bone.
The high lich's voice.
Yoon Seo-rin swallowed and yelled.
"Move now! No freezing up—head northwest to the rally point, fast!"
Wol Ha-yeon covered the rear.
"Hyun-sol, lead! Your senses are sharpest right now!"
I gripped Eun-wol and took point, probing for directions free of undead auras.
From here on, no looking back—just run.
To survive, to protect everyone, push forward.
And from behind, once more:
"Fleeing... is futile. My army has already descended."
The whole forest seemed to boil, shaking violently.
At the same time, from the direction Wol Ha-yeon and the students had come, hordes of zombies and skeletons—vast numbers—charged toward us.
"Shit!! Mages fall back—swordsmen and tanks up front, hold the line!!"