Chapter 209
There didn't seem to be anything particularly special anywhere else they could go. Hanyaseong felt disappointed, his energy drained.
"I thought there'd be something."
It just felt like visiting some ancient ruin. He'd hoped for a unique artifact or two, but nothing like that turned up.
The three critters had wolfed down their chocolate bars and were now cackling again, clamoring for more gold bars. Hanyaseong tossed them another chocolate bar and turned away.
"Yadong, let's go."
With a low grrr, it followed. This must be why he hadn't wanted to come in the first place. Nothing worth seeing.
They retraced their steps through the long corridor toward the door. Once more, clusters of lights swarmed into view. Had to be holograms—they flickered in and out of existence like that.
Yadong took the lead, and Hanyaseong followed right behind. At the door, Yadong lifted a paw and rubbed the pattern again. Sure enough, the square door materialized in a glow.
Stuff like this was still downright magical. A door appearing out of thin air.
He pushed it open and stepped out; naturally, the door vanished behind him. Only the massive door loomed ahead once more.
"Who the hell even lived here?"
Grrr. Yadong headed back up the steep path. It was like he didn't want to repeat his earlier answer. He'd drawn that giant figure with his paw, after all. Those giants had definitely been here.
But there was zero payoff. Just sightseeing some curiosities? If scientists came poking around, they might uncover new facts—but that wasn't happening. He didn't want to publicize this place. Better to keep it his secret.
Gripping the rope, he climbed the steep path again, and it was brutally exhausting. After an hour of grunting and straining, he finally crested the top, his arms utterly spent.
Yadong hadn't waited; the rascal was already gone. What a jerk, Hanyaseong thought as he trudged back through the passage, shoved his pack ahead, and climbed to the surface.
Snow was still flurrying outside.
"Damn it, what a pointless waste of effort."
All sweat, no reward. Yadong had been right—they should've skipped it. The little guy must've known it'd be a bust.
Hanyaseong shoveled dirt over the cave mouth and returned to the lodge in Forest 0. Yadong was already there, munching snacks by the fire. Exhausted, Hanyaseong dumped his pack and collapsed onto the bedding.
"Ugh, that was brutally tiring..."
Felt like he'd gone rock climbing for real. His arms were trembling from the lack of strength.
He crunched down a white fruit first, then eyed the green one. Should be fine to eat it too—Yadong had scarfed one down. It seemed to boost stamina, so he popped it in his mouth, took a swig of water, chewed, and swallowed.
After a while, drowsiness crept in, and the shaking in his arms stopped. A pleasant languor washed over him. Sleeping pill, maybe... Not a bad feeling, though. Hanyaseong drifted off to sleep.
Yadong woke him later; it was dark outside. Evening already. Yawning and stretching, he felt surprisingly light on his feet. He'd braced for muscle pain, but his condition was great. That green fruit must have stamina-boosting effects—his fatigue had vanished in no time.
Hanyaseong jotted stamina boost next to the green fruit in his notebook. Added that it might aid sleep too. Perfect for when he was drained and listless.
Yadong threw a fit, so he quickly boiled some instant hangover soup.
"Tomorrow, let's go hunting. Catch an ostrich bird and have some meat."
It panted happily. Made sense—they hadn't had meat in ages. If he went back to that other world, Yadong would be stuck eating fruit here. He'd left plenty of provisions, but not enough for months.
He added two pouches of microwave rice to the bubbling pot and kept it going. After they ate, he took a walk to the temple ruins to help digestion. Snow blanketed everything; the spots he'd dug before were invisible. By next visit, winter would be over—he could dig again then.
He wandered the ruins, returned to the lodge, read an exploration book, and finally crashed late into the night.
The next morning, he geared up heavily with Yadong and headed to Forest 3. Winter there too—deep snow everywhere. Massive animal carcasses and bones frozen in place dotted the landscape.
Out in the open plain, no carnivores or cyclops ape monsters in sight. No ostrich birds either; he searched forever. They'd probably migrated. Over an hour, and zilch.
Had to target other megafauna.
"How about that one?"
A hippo-like behemoth grazed on frozen grass at the mountain base by the plain. He'd seen its kind before—huge, but low aggression. It barely glanced at passersby. Still, impossible to take lightly at elephant-times-five size. That was on the "small" side here; the local giants were all colossal. Half the bulk of Jurassic dinosaurs, at least.
Yadong eyed it hungrily too, dagger in mouth, gaze gleaming. Winter meant fewer big game, so they strode openly onto the plain. No predators or apes nearby—they let their guard slip a bit.
Hanyaseong gripped his True Sword; Yadong kept his dagger clenched. They crept toward the hippo-beast cautiously. Crossbow stayed in the brush—useless against that bulk. Arrows would be like toothpicks.
Plan: Slash ankles for bleed-out or knockdown, then decapitate.
They circled silently behind. The beast was lost in eating, oblivious. Winter famine had it desperate—gnawing snow-buried roots and bark.
Others had migrated to lush pastures; this lazy one and a few stragglers stayed behind. Good meat on a slothful brute, Hanyaseong figured. He closed in and slashed the rear ankle with all his might.
Shk! The thick hide split, blood spraying.
Kuwooo! It whipped its head around with a roar. Pain from the half-severed ankle turned its huge eyes bloodshot, face twisting viciously.
Hanyaseong flinched but reflexively hacked the other rear ankle. It buckled, massive body swaying before crashing ass-first to the ground.
Yadong pounced, slicing both front ankles with quick dagger swipes. Swish, shk! Blood gushed; it belly-flopped down.
It thrashed desperately, but severed tendons kept it pinned. Kuwooo! It bellowed in agony.
Pitiful, but this world was survival of the fittest. Weak became prey.
"Don't blame me. Your fault for straying from the herd."
Sweating with tension, Hanyaseong stood before it, True Sword ready. Blood pooled from all four legs; it weakened fast, slumping, breaths ragged. Awaiting death.
Heart twinging, he ended it mercifully—two-handed overhead stab into the neck artery.
Pfook! The blade pierced deep.
Kuwoo... It shuddered, moaning.
He yanked the sword free—blood fountained. Doused head to toe, he stabbed repeatedly.
Pfook! Pfook! Pfook! Slashed downward to sever the throat. Violent spasms, then head lolled. Pupils dilated rapidly.
Hanyaseong twisted the embedded blade, ensuring the kill.