Chapter 172: Lewd Yokai After School (38)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 172: Lewd Yokai After School (38)
A black moon hung in the sky, and trees glowed, emitting a blue light.
The Otherworld.
A world that overlaps with the human realm, yet is entirely different.
I looked around in awe.
So this is the Otherworld.
As a land ruled by yokai, it had an entirely different aura from the real world.
"How long until we reach Black Moon Village?"
Han Chae-yeon surveyed our surroundings before answering.
"It's not far. But the problem is…"
She paused, staring into the darkness.
"This isn't a neutral zone. Yokai appear frequently in this area, so we could be attacked."
"Are the yokai wandering around here that strong?"
"In terms of raw power, not really. But this isn't the human world. In the Otherworld, strength is the only thing that matters. If you let your guard down, you'll be in for a world of hurt."
Laws and morals meant nothing to yokai.
Only the strong could create order, while the weak were simply hunted.
And, as if to prove that point—
-Rustle…
I felt a sinister presence from within the forest.
"Seo-yun."
Where her gaze was fixed, red eyes began to appear one by one between the black trees.
"Kekeke... I smell humans."
"A fox yokai and even a succubus. Looks like we'll be feasting today."
Yokai with twisted bodies crawled out from the shadows.
They were grotesque beings with irregularly grown teeth.
...Just a bunch of rabble.
The lowest of the low in the Otherworld.
They were beast-like creatures with low intelligence, driven by simple instinct.
But there were quite a few of them.
Dozens of red eyes glinted from between the trees.
"Those things live by hunting runaways or weak yokai."
Baek Mi-ho muttered under her breath.
"I guess we look weak to them."
I smirked and raised my arm. At the same moment, the yokai moved as one.
"Get them!"
-Rumble!
The yokai charged, kicking off the ground. I swung my arm lightly.
The head of the yokai charging at me dropped to the ground.
"…!?"
The yokai flinched, seeing their comrade's head explode in an instant.
Not missing the opening, Han Chae-yeon stepped forward.
"Looks like they need a good whipping."
-Swish!
A whip imbued with yokai energy flew from her hand.
-Sizzle!
Wherever the whip struck, the yokai's flesh was seared away.
"Gyaaaah!!"
Next, Baek Mi-ho created fox-fire and launched it at the yokai.
-Fwoosh!
White flames erupted from her fingertips.
"It's a pain to even deal with rabble like you."
With a wave of her hand, the fox-fire flew out and engulfed the yokai's bodies.
-Kuaaaaargh!!
The yokai screamed as they were set ablaze one by one.
I watched the scene, one hand in my pocket.
At this rate, I don't even need to step in.
Most of the yokai, terrified, began to back away.
But among them, a massive yokai, on a completely different level from the others, appeared.
It growled lowly, supporting itself on an arm covered in a hard carapace.
"So there was a troublesome one mixed in," Han Chae-yeon said, clicking her tongue.
"Seo-yun, that one's not a good matchup for us."
I smirked and walked forward. The giant yokai roared and charged at me.
-Kuaaaaargh!!
I calmly extended my hand.
Then, coating my fingertips with internal energy, I lightly poked the yokai's chest.
That was all.
"...?"
For a moment, the yokai's expression turned strange. Then, its body split in half right where it stood.
I flicked my hand as if shaking off blood.
"Is that it?"
The surviving yokai began to flee in terror.
Watching the scene, Baek Mi-ho exclaimed in admiration.
"Seo-yun... you're so strong!"
Han Chae-yeon also smiled in satisfaction.
"As expected, Seo-yun is special."
I smirked.
"Shall we get going then?"
Under the night sky with its black moon, we headed for Black Moon Village.
The path to Black Moon Village was rougher than expected.
All sorts of minor yokai jumped out from everywhere, targeting us.
Small yokai with glinting red eyes, shadow-like beings bursting from the ground, and beasts of the Otherworld baring their sharp fangs.
But none of them were a threat.
"Grrrrr!"
A giant wolf yokai lunged at me.
I simply reached out and grabbed its neck.
-Thud!
The wolf yokai groaned as it was instantly slammed to the ground.
Narrowing my eyes, I looked down at it.
"They just keep coming all day."
The wolf yokai tried to get back up, radiating killing intent, but—
-Crack!
Han Chae-yeon's whip lashed out like lightning.
The whip, mixed with yokai energy, wrapped around the wolf yokai's body.
"Aaargh!"
"Haa... I feel this every time I come here, but it's always such a hassle."
Han Chae-yeon pulled the whip, and the wolf yokai's body contorted.
After dealing with most of the yokai, we hurried on our way again.
"Seo-yun, that's Black Moon Village over there."
I followed Han Chae-yeon's pointed finger. Beneath the dark red moonlight, a massive wall emerged from the mist.
Faint neon signs flickered above it, illuminating the dark night.
Black Moon Village...
Honestly, I'd expected a small village where yokai lived clustered together, but what spread out before me wasn't much different from a city in the real world.
Inside the massive walls, modern buildings stood packed together.
Various yokai mingled on the streets.
The brightly lit main street looked as if a downtown area from the human world had been transplanted here.
Come to think of it, even in the original story, the developed cities of the Otherworld weren't that different from reality.
Baek Mi-ho watched my reaction, then smirked and said.
"Surprised?"
"I'm a little surprised it's not that different from the human world."
"Black Moon Village is an important hub in the Otherworld. Not just yokai, but humans live here too. There's a lot of illegal trade, and it's a place where mercenaries and information brokers gather."
Han Chae-yeon added.
"But it's by no means a safe place. It's a lawless city."
I looked at the entrance along the wall.
Yokai guards stood watch at the gate, and dozens of other yokai were lined up in front of it.
Just then, a yokai on top of the wall looked down at us and spoke in a low voice.
"Outsiders? You have to pay a toll to enter Black Moon Village."
The one greeting us was a yokai that looked like a giant boulder.
With a stoic expression, he crossed his thick arms, exuding an intimidating aura.
I casually crossed my arms and asked.
"A toll? How much?"
The yokai's lips curled up as he held up his fingers.
"Ten gold coins per person."
Han Chae-yeon sighed softly and muttered.
"These bastards, they raised it again."
"Was it always this much?"
"No, it used to be five."
"Chae-yeon, do you have any gold coins?"
"No... I forgot to bring any."
I looked at Baek Mi-ho, but it seemed she didn't have any either.
"If you don't have gold coins, you can work as a guard at the village entrance or hunt some prey to get a pass."
The boulder yokai said with a sly smile. The other yokai around him snickered.
"What's the fastest way to make money around here?"
The boulder yokai looked at me with interest, then smirked and replied.
"For outsiders like you, the fastest way is to fight in the arena or take care of troublesome yokai."
The arena.
It seemed they had a system where yokai fought each other and people bet on the outcome.
Good, a perfect place for us.
I nodded and looked back at Baek Mi-ho and Han Chae-yeon.
"What do you think? Should we go warm up a bit and earn some gold?"
At my words, Baek Mi-ho and Han Chae-yeon gave a slight nod.
"Okay."
"Sounds good."
Seeing this, the boulder yokai said mockingly.
"Hah, you think you can fight? Rookies who are all for show don't last long in the arena."
I stared intently at the boulder yokai.
"Shut up and show us the way."
His face twisted.
"...Fine. You'll see the arena entrance on the left. But if you lose in there, you won't be making money—you'll end up a slave."
I smirked and walked past him.
"Becoming a slave is the fate of those who lose the fight."
With that, we headed towards another entrance next to Black Moon Village. The atmosphere inside was even stranger.
In that place, filled with a gloomy aura, the loudest spot was undoubtedly the arena.
We could hear the cheers even from a distance.
-Woooooah!
"It's quite lively."
Baek Mi-ho said, her ears twitching.
"Yokai fight each other here while others bet money on them. Humans sometimes participate, but they usually end up dead."
Han Chae-yeon explained. We entered the arena's gateway.
In front of the massive stone doors, enormous yokai stood with their arms crossed.
They were sizing up each participant with glinting red eyes.
The largest of the gatekeepers looked down at us and asked with a sneer.
"Hey, who are you?"
"We're here to participate."
A sly grin spread across the gatekeeper's mouth.
"Oh yeah? Where's the entry fee?"
I turned my palms up and said nonchalantly.
"Don't have any."
At that, the gatekeeper laughed loudly, bantering with the other yokai around him.
"Hahaha! What a bunch of jokers. You want to enter without an entry fee?"
Another gatekeeper next to him added with a jeer.
"You'd better turn back now. This isn't a place for little kids to wander into for fun."
I shrugged and retorted.
"There must be some way to participate, right?"
The gatekeeper then gave a meaningful smile and nodded.
"There is. There's one way to enter without any seed money."
"What is it?"
I asked, intrigued. The gatekeeper's smirk twisted even more.
"Hehe, you'll find out once you're inside."
His tone was ominous. I smirked and met the gatekeeper's gaze head-on.
"Alright. We'll participate."
"Go on in."
I ignored the gatekeeper's sneer and slowly walked inside.
Han Chae-yeon and Baek Mi-ho silently followed me.