An Unexpected Pair: Hyunwoo and Adelia (2)
We kept walking, searching for other people. Thanks to the three large-scale purges of the undead that had already taken place in the forest, we didn’t encounter them as frequently. We occasionally crossed paths with small groups of two or three undead, and each time, the female knight would step forward and dispatch them in an instant. Having no weapon, I simply stood beside her, yawning as I watched the show.
Walking like this naturally led to more conversation between us. In a place where we couldn’t afford to let our guard down, the repeated exchanges of words gradually built a certain level of familiarity. On top of that, we took turns standing watch while the other relieved themselves, and that embarrassing, awkward act softened the wariness we felt toward each other even further.
“Judging by the subordinates following you, it doesn’t seem like you were dismissed from your official post. So why were you locked up in that mansion’s prison in the refugee camp?”
“I went to meet an informant in one of the buildings in the refugee camp to track you down. But it was a trap. I got caught by those bastards and ended up thrown in prison.”
“Hmm. I see.”
I scratched my collarbone and nodded. Walking around shirtless made me itchy all the time. I’d scratched so much that my skin was red in several places.
“I answered your question, so now it’s my turn.”
“Ask me anything.”
“Where is the main base of the Elk Bandit Group located? Is it on a mountain close to Nobern City?”
Adelia’s question made me burst into quiet laughter.
“Something other than that. That’s way too blatant. Let’s avoid touching on sensitive topics.”
“Hmph. I don’t like it, but fine. I’ll ask all I want later when I’m torturing you.”
Adelia thought for a moment before asking again.
“What were you doing at Elchapo’s mansion, and what is your name?”
“Let’s start with the name. It’s Hyunwoo.”
“Hyunwoo?”
I was genuinely surprised.
“Wait. What did you just say my name was?”
“Hyunwoo. Isn’t that it? Hyunwoo.”
A smile crept across my lips. Besides the female boss, there was now someone else who could pronounce my name correctly. Hearing my name said right always put me in a good mood. It made me feel a bit more fond of the other person. It felt special.
“I got scammed by a fake slave trader and ended up at that Elchapo guy’s mansion. You saw the sister and brother I’m with, right? They were slaves the fake trader pretended to sell me but actually stole. I snuck into the prison to get them back and happened to see you there.”
“Then you had nothing to do with the plan to capture me?”
“I don’t know anything about that. I had no idea such things were happening in the refugee camp. I didn’t even know who Elchapo was. Never even seen his face.”
Adelia, walking beside me, scanned our surroundings with wary eyes before continuing.
“Luring me into that trap wasn’t Elchapo’s plan alone. Several organizations worked together, so I thought you might be involved too.”
I wondered if our bandit group was one of them. Did the female boss know about Elchapo’s scheme?
Now that I thought about it, it had been almost two months since the Lion Heart Unit arrived in this region, yet I’d never heard of any organizations being wiped out. For all their fame and momentum, their progress seemed incredibly slow, didn’t it?
I decided to probe a little.
“I heard you made quite the name for yourself in the previous territory. Why does it seem like your activities here are so sluggish? Having trouble making progress?”
“This place is rotten to the core, starting with the vassal groups!”
She exploded with frustration.
“The local powers are no different, and the entire society is corrupt. To eradicate criminal organizations, we need the cooperation of those with influence in society, but they’re all tied to the crimes themselves. They’re reluctant to step forward—in fact, they actively interfere. Getting help is nearly impossible. Once, the soldiers’ food rations were delayed and we went an entire day without eating. Another time, we requested assistance from local agencies multiple times to trace illegal funds, but we were refused every single time. Incidents like these are too numerous to count.”
In short, the uncooperative attitude of the vassal groups and local elites was making their operations extremely difficult.
Suddenly, Adelia stopped walking. Her eyes widened as she stared at me.
“What did I just say?”
“That you’re struggling with local resistance and it’s making your activities difficult.”
“I mean, why on earth did I tell you that…?”
She seemed to realize she had spoken out of turn. She clutched her head with one hand.
“Aah! I said something useless to the enemy. It’s like leaving fish with a cat.”
“I think the situation is a bit different from that.”
“Shut up! Anyway, after dealing with all sorts of nonsense lately, I must have lost my mind for a moment. Get a grip. I need to get a grip.”
Adelia lightly tapped her head with her fist and started walking again. After a short distance, she turned back to me as if something was still bothering her.
“Don’t get too comfortable just because our unit’s activities are restricted. If the royal palace learns that our performance has stalled, a much more powerful unit led by a noble of higher rank than Lord Roten will be dispatched to Nobern. His Majesty the King’s will to eradicate the criminal organizations of the southern region is unwavering.”
“And what about you?”
“If a new unit is sent down, I’ll probably receive orders to return. Or I’ll be placed under the new unit commander’s command.”
“Taking responsibility for the mission’s failure?”
“My promotion will be delayed for a while. Or I might be reassigned to the borderlands.”
She let out a sigh and fell silent after those words.
As I walked quietly, I thought to myself: If Adelia fails, an even stronger unit will be dispatched…
Right now, because her unit was struggling against local resistance, our Elk Bandit Group and most of the other bandit groups had managed to survive safely. But if a new unit led by a high-ranking noble arrived, the lord and his vassals would have no choice but to obey, and a full-scale bandit extermination would begin.
That would be the end of my life.
Damn it. I had to prevent a new unit from coming at all costs. It was better to have Adelia as the commander. After all, her young age and low rank meant the lord and vassals treated her like a rookie and pushed her around. It was better to have someone who couldn’t use her full power.
But if Adelia kept failing to produce results, the new unit would come. And if she did produce results, the day might come when I’d die by her hand.
This was a headache no matter which way I looked at it.
“Adelia.”
After wracking my brain, I called her name, intending to attempt a negotiation. But at that exact moment—
“Shh.”
She quickly crouched down and pressed her index finger to her lips. Realizing she had spotted something, I held my breath and hid in the bushes.
“Undead.”
I looked where she was pointing and saw a wide clearing. The number of undead wandering inside it was easily close to a hundred. And then something grotesquely shaped caught my eye.
“What the hell is that…?”
In the center of the clearing was something that looked like an alien egg. Or, to put it another way, like a giant testicle. The surface of the disgusting egg-like object pulsed rhythmically, as if it were breathing.
I whispered, “Have you ever seen anything like that egg before?”
Adelia scratched gently under her eye as she pondered for a moment, then answered.
“It looks like the core of a Dark Forest.”
The heart of the cursed forest. A pulsating mass that grants life to the woods and imprisons the souls of the dead, continuously producing undead. Destroying it is said to break the forest’s curse and open an escape route.
“A core? You’re saying we’re in the heart of the forest?”
She nodded.
“I’ve heard stories before. They say the Dark Forest has a core that functions like a human heart. That core breathes life into this forest and traps the souls of the dead, creating undead. If my guess is correct, that is the core.”
“Should I call this good luck?”
A sly smile spread across my face.
“If we destroy that core, we might be able to escape this forest without having to wait until morning, right?”
“Only if we can deal with all the undead gathered around it.”
I stroked my chin, racking my brain for a good plan. But Adelia shook her head as if it were impossible.
“The two of us alone won’t be enough. Let’s give up and get out of here.”
An exit was practically dangling in front of us. It felt too wasteful to just walk away. I quickly grabbed Adelia’s arm as she tried to leave, stopping her in her tracks. She turned around and suddenly scowled.
“Who gave you permission to lay your hands on a noble’s body?”
Was that really important right now? I immediately let go and spoke quickly.
“Let’s destroy that core together.”
“Talk sense. You don’t even have a weapon, and you want me to fight dozens of undead by myself? I don’t have much stamina left, and my legs hurt so badly I just want to lie down on the ground.”
I could understand Adelia’s complaint. All the way here, I had simply watched from the side while she fought the undead alone.
“Then just lend me your sword. I’ll handle it myself.”
“How? With what method?”
“Just stay quiet and watch.”
“That sword isn’t yours.”
“You can still lend it to me. You’ve let me borrow it before.”
My words must have struck a nerve. She frowned deeply.
“If you go around spreading strange rumors about borrowing my sword, I will never let you get away with it. Keep that in mind.”
“To be precise, I took it from you fair and square. I didn’t borrow it.”
“You bastard…!”
She bared her teeth and grabbed the hilt of her sword. I moved quickly, pressing my palm firmly against the end of the hilt so she couldn’t draw it.
“Is this really the time for us to be fighting each other?”
I spoke sternly, then stared straight into her eyes with a serious expression.
“I’m going to destroy that core. If you really don’t want to lend me the sword, then help me. It’ll be difficult without a blade.”
“Why take such a risk to destroy it when we could just leave it alone?”
“Right now we can still think and act clearly, but once it passes three in the morning, there’s no guarantee we’ll still be in good condition. We’ll be hungry and exhausted, our vision will blur, and our sword swings will grow dull. At that point, getting eaten by the undead is only a matter of time. And I’m not suggesting we charge in without a plan.”
I tapped my temple with my finger and continued.
“I have a good idea. That’s why I want to destroy it.”
“Even if you have a good idea, we’re still outnumbered.”
“Throw away the idea that we have to fight the undead. We can win without fighting at all.”