Chapter 49
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: The Strange High House in the Mist (1)
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I wasn't interested in the 800,000 gold, but the 300,000 Contribution Points caught my eye.
As I tore open the red request form, the nearby mercenaries glanced over.
A man sitting across from me couldn't contain his curiosity and approached.
“Haven't seen you around before, pal. You're not thinking of taking that request, are you?”
“I am, actually.”
A quick scan told me it was the most difficult request available here.
And the Contribution Points looked pretty sweet.
My answer seemed to fluster the man, and he glanced back at his group's table.
“I don’t know how skilled you are, but you’d be better off leaving it alone.”
“Why?”
“That red request form… it’s a 100-year request.”
“A 100-year request?”
“Yeah. It’s called that because no one’s managed to clear it in a hundred years. Most mercenaries won’t even give it a second look.”
“Even better.”
Isn't aged wine more valuable?
At my response, the man’s face went pale.
Finally, the men at his table started chiming in.
“Hey, back off. You got a death wish?”
“Even the guild’s elite mercenaries couldn’t do it. What makes you think you can?”
“Just leave him be. There’s always one of these types. Some guy from the provinces trying to make a name for himself. Hey, kid, the capital isn’t as easy as you think.”
The men burst into laughter in unison.
The man next to me casually slung his arm around my shoulders.
These guys are getting way too friendly for no reason.
“So, pal, are you even qualified? Not just anyone can take on a 100-year request, you know.”
I slapped his hand away and pulled a golden plaque from my coat.
Seeing the plaque, the man stumbled backward.
“Wh-what are you…?”
How could someone like you...?
The man’s stunned expression said it all.
He was an easy read.
The way he became wary after just one look at the plaque proved it was effective.
The plaque, issued directly by the Guild Master, was no mere trinket.
You shouldn't judge a person by their appearance, you punk.
The real masters are always hidden.
“Well then, I’ll be on my way.”
Not wanting to cause a scene, I waved the paper and walked to the counter.
“Oh my.”
The quest administrator was also taken aback by the red request form I presented. Fortunately, just like the man before, she fell silent when I showed her the direct-command plaque.
Even as she brought the contract, hints of anxiety were visible.
“Are you really going to go? I-it’s not that I doubt your abilities.”
She added the last part, seemingly worried she might have offended me.
Is this thing really that dangerous?
As I signed, I reread the contents of the request form.
This wasn't a status window, just the text written purely on the request form.
[The Strange High House in the Mist]
Difficulty: Undetermined
On the outskirts of the capital lies a forest of perpetual mist. We ask that you deliver an item to a tall, small house within.
Client: Randolph Carter
Reward: 800,000 Gold
'Doesn't seem like much, does it?'
I couldn't understand why this was a 100-year request.
After signing, I handed the contract back.
“Um, there is one problem.”
“A problem?”
“Yes. Even though it's a 100-year request, it’s not that no one ever tries. But for the last ten years, everyone who attempted it has been rejected.”
Rejected? That was an unexpected problem.
So he posts a request but is picky about the mercenaries who take it? Something like that?
“I don't know the exact reason for the rejections.”
However, the mercenaries who returned without even setting foot in the Forest of Mist all supposedly cursed the client, Randolph Carter.
I took the administrator’s words to heart. In any case, I just needed to clear one request.
It was just a matter of earning a little or a lot of Contribution Points; it wasn't a losing deal either way.
“Do you happen to know where the Forest of Mist is?”
I must have looked like a country bumpkin, because she took out a simple map and marked the location for me.
Rather than being offended, I was grateful for such consideration.
“Thank you.”
I took the marked map and headed outside.
A well-paved road and a bustling street crowded with people came into view.
'This place is quite large.'
Whatever the case, it was clearly a prosperous country.
There was no reason to delay, so I headed straight for the outskirts of the capital.
At the city gate, I showed them the request form and the direct-command plaque, and they quickly let me through.
The Guild Master's direct-command plaque seemed to carry more weight than the request form.
Leaving the capital's gate and heading to the western outskirts, I came upon a forest shrouded in mist.
People only guessed it was a forest; no one really knew what lay beyond.
Even on the simple map, the interior of the forest was painted white, like mist.
Despite being only at the entrance, the mist already obscured my vision.
“Where in the world is this house supposed to be?”
I tried to find it using the map, but it was useless.
Maybe I should try using Mana Detection?
The moment I stopped walking, something came flying at me at high speed.
I drew my sword and cleanly sliced the incoming arrow in two.
It was more like magic than an arrow.
Using Mana Detection, I frowned.
'What the hell is this mist?'
There's no such thing as a perpetual mist in this world.
For something like this to exist, there was only one answer.
It was artificial.
Whether by human hands or by magic didn't matter.
This mist was by no means natural.
The mist itself was flowing mana.
Finding an enemy hidden within a mass of mana like this mist was impossible.
As I pondered a solution, countless arrows pierced through the mist.
“Damn it. You could at least tell me who you are! Who just attacks without warning!”
Seeing the magic arrows, I knew it wasn't a monster.
I took a stance and swung my sword at the arrows.
Thanks to [Wind Fang], a slash that utilizes wind, the arrows' trajectories were all thrown off.
I swung my sword again, slightly clearing away the nearby mist.
“So, you want to do this the hard way?”
Just as I was about to start the fight, a hooded man descended from a tree.
The middle-aged man with a white beard removed his hood.
“I am Randolph Carter.”
“So what… wait, Randolph Carter?”
“Lately, many have been trespassing in the Forest of Mist. My apologies for not announcing myself.”
I was wondering why he suddenly stated his name.
I sheathed my sword and showed Carter the guild's request form and the direct-command plaque.
The guards had been more impressed by the plaque than the request, but this guy didn't seem to care much about the plaque.
Carter folded the request form and looked me up and down.
“You’re too young to have decided on suicide. Go back.”
Carter handed the plaque back to me and turned away.
Calling a young man with a bright future suicidal—what nonsense.
Chasing Carter as he disappeared into the mist was impossible.
My body moved toward Carter before my mind could think.
My hand passed right through Carter's arm.
Carter stopped, perhaps not expecting me to follow.
'Is he a ghost? Wait, but he touched the request form and the plaque I gave him.'
Carter was dressed like a hunter.
No part of his body looked transparent, nor did he seem to be floating.
Thinking it might have been my imagination, I moved my hand toward his arm again. It brushed past and through his arm.
Swish, swish. I waved my hand back and forth. Unable to watch any longer, Carter grabbed my arm.
“What are you doing?”
“Uh…”
I looked down at the arm Carter was now holding.
This time, I could feel it.
Thanks to Carter grabbing my hand, I understood the situation.
'I can't touch him, but he can touch me.'
That's a total cheat code.
My surprise was brief; realizing I couldn't let Carter go, I spoke up.
“I didn’t come here to die.”
I looked at the mist beyond Randolph Carter.
“You asked for someone to investigate the house in the mist, didn't you? I'll do it.”
This was a request that had reportedly gone uncleared for a hundred years.
A request that couldn't be cleared for a hundred years was one thing, but the guy who kept it posted was no ordinary person either.
“What have you got to lose, anyway? Why not?”
“Very well.”
Carter let go of my hand.
“But first, I will ask one thing. You do not have to answer.”
“And if I don't answer, the request is off the table, I assume?”
“That is not for me to decide. You know of the Taboos, I presume?”
“Of course.”
In this world, there exists a special race called 'Muels'.
Muels are bearers of the divine factor—in other words, descendants of a god.
The god mentioned here doesn't refer to latecomer gods like myself.
It refers to the beginning of all things.
Even I don't know exactly what that is.
Muels, possessing the divine factor, could use mana.
Although their abilities varied individually, they could use mana to activate skills, fly, create powerful bodies, live for a long time—anything was possible.
Hearing this, one might think it's a good thing, but the problem was that individual variation.
Some live for hundreds, even thousands of years.
Others die before they even reach the age of ten. The same went for the amount of mana they possessed.
In the end, the Muels were a collection of mutants with nothing in common.
And every Muel had a 'Taboo'. Just as their abilities varied, so too did their Taboos.
In this world, the concept of 'faith' itself did not exist.
There were only stories of the race called Muels, who inherited the divine factor, and of the beginning.
I was certain that this era preceded the modern age I knew.
“What is your Taboo?”
The moment I heard the question, I understood why he'd said I was free not to answer.
A Taboo was something not to be broken, and it was personal. For some, it could be a fatal Achilles' heel.
Unlike my anxious self, Carter looked relaxed.
“You got any friends?”
“You haven't answered my question yet.”
“I asked if you have friends. It'd be a problem if you went around blabbing about this.”
Carter frowned at my retort.
His expression practically screamed, 'Why would I do something so pointless?'
“You've heard of the Pledge of Vows, right?”
“Don't you think you're being unnecessarily cautious?”
“This is the least you can do when asking for someone's secret.”
“Fine.”
I had no intention of backing down. Carter reluctantly agreed.
[Initiating the Pledge of Vows.]
[Initiator: Cha Sung-jin]
It had been a long time since I'd heard that name. I thought I wouldn't be hearing it for a while.
“In the name of Randolph Carter, I vow not to speak of Cha Sung-jin's Taboo. Do you consent?”
“I consent.”
[The Pledge of Vows has been executed.]
A red thread intertwined between my finger and Carter's.
With this, if he tells anyone my Taboo, I will know.
It's possible to add more conditions depending on the situation, but I didn't bother.
The red thread wrapped around our fingers vanished. It was merely invisible to the eye.
Now that we'd made the Pledge of Vows, I had to keep my promise.
I told Randolph Carter my 'Taboo'.
And he laughed at me.
What a jerk.