The Devil's Whisper
Somehow, Hyunwoo and Adelia had become partners (3)
Adelia climbed up into the tree and perched on a branch. While she watched in silence, Hyunwoo bent low and carefully approached the clearing where the undead gathered. The moment he drew close, he suddenly straightened and let out a bizarre cry. “Aaaah! Ahihihihohohoho! Ahyoohoo! Abyohohohoho!” It sounded like something from a primitive tribe. The undead all turned toward him at once and began shambling in his direction. Hyunwoo quickened his pace. He didn’t run; he kept making the noise as he moved, circling the clearing to draw them all together.
“For a bandit, he moves quite nimbly,” Adelia remarked. Watching him dodge like an eel, she felt certain he wouldn’t be caught. “Strange fellow.”
As she observed his antics, memories of how he had helped her surfaced one after another. First, rescuing her from the prison (?). Second, suggesting they set traps after the second wave when everyone was exhausted. Third, saving her from the ancient tree monster. That last one had left her with a particularly strange feeling. She had never been greatly indebted to anyone in her entire life. To have someone appear like the wind in her moment of desperation and pull her from the brink—it was the sort of thing she had only read about in novels. Experiencing it herself left her deeply unsettled.
“He seems decent enough for an uneducated bandit… It would be a waste to kill him. Maybe I should win him over and use him as my informant?” If handled properly, he might provide a breakthrough in tracking down the bandit groups and criminal organizations that had recently gone to ground. Yet the moment the thought of making Hyunwoo her subordinate crossed her mind, Adelia shook her head. It was impossible.
“There can be no compromise with criminals. Evil is evil. Making deals with evildoers goes against the Lion Heart Unit’s philosophy that no one who has committed a crime shall be forgiven.”
There was no compromising with evil. Even the smallest offense warranted the blade. That was the Lion Heart Unit’s policy, rooted in the belief that if all evildoers were eliminated, only the good would remain and the world would become peaceful and just. Adelia even held that crime was hereditary and that the children of criminals must also be eradicated to truly uproot evil. That was why she had enforced such harsh measures in her territory, handing down unprecedentedly severe sentences—even to petty offenders—and carrying out executions without mercy.
“Get ready!” Hyunwoo shouted toward her.
Adelia pushed her tangled thoughts aside and focused on the situation. The undead trudged after Hyunwoo in a slow, relentless line while he lured them out of the clearing with his strange cries, like the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Once Hyunwoo and the undead disappeared into the forest, Adelia dropped from the tree. Only a handful of undead remained in the clearing. She strode forward, beheading them and stabbing their hearts. After dispatching them one by one with ease, only she and the core of the Dark Forest were left in the clearing.
“Not bad, that guy.”
Adelia walked calmly up to the core, reversed her grip on her sword, and brought it down without hesitation. There was no mercy for such a hideous thing. The blade sank deep into its surface. With a loud crack, a brilliant light burst forth from within. The glare was so intense she instinctively dropped her sword and shielded her eyes with both arms. The light swallowed everything, illuminating the entire world, and the vast ashen forest vanished in an instant, as if it had never existed.
“Did we escape…?”
Adelia lowered her arms and looked around. A moon hung in the night sky; she stood in a barren field. And then—Hyunwoo appeared in the blink of an eye, pointing a sword at her. He curled his lips into a smile.
“Well done.”
Adelia’s brow furrowed. “You bastard, what is this?”
“Don’t take it personally. Unlike you, who can relax, I couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen after we escaped the Dark Forest. I have to look out for myself too, don’t I?”
Hyunwoo removed the slave collar from around his neck with one hand and tossed it at her feet. “Put it on. It’s your turn to be the slave.”
Adelia glanced at the collar by her feet, then looked back at me. Her eyes were murderous. “Do you really think you can take me hostage and make it back safely?”
“That’s exactly why I’m taking you hostage—to make it back safely.”
“Remember that Marcus and the sisters are with my subordinates.”
“You talk too much. Just put the collar on already. Don’t worry about Marcus and the sisters.”
Keeping her eyes fixed on me, Adelia bent down and picked up the collar. She fastened it around her own neck, never once softening her furious glare. Once it was secured, I took the connected rope in my hand and gave it a light tug.
“Hands behind your back. Turn around and kneel.”
“……”
She glared at me but obeyed. I quickly bound her arms behind her back with the rope attached to the collar. As I started to stand, something on the ground caught my eye—a bright glint. Brushing away the dirt revealed an ornately decorated dagger. Oh… Had someone dropped this? I picked it up and examined it closely. The sheath was engraved with the same ashen trees and undead we had seen endlessly in the Dark Forest. Could this be loot? A reward for hunting the Dark Forest? Either way, it didn’t matter. A nice-looking weapon had come to me for free. Grinning, I quickly fastened it to the belt at my waist.
“Lady Adelia!”
Sinclair’s voice rang out from a distance. I snapped out of my distraction, stood up, and pulled Adelia to her feet. Wrapping one arm around her neck, I pressed the sword against her. “Stay quiet and you won’t get hurt.”
“Sinclair is terrifying when she’s angry. You should be prepared.”
“Then I’ll just have to annoy her enough to keep her from getting too angry.”
People were approaching. While Adelia and I had been lost in the forest, Sinclair and Marcus had clearly been fighting hard as well. The seven soldiers were now down to four, though Sinclair, Marcus, and the sisters were unharmed. When they spotted us, they quickly assessed the situation and split into sides. Sinclair and the soldiers stopped their horses in front of us, faces grim, while Marcus drove the wagon carrying the sisters around behind me.
“I’m glad you’re safe. I was worried you might be dead.”
“I’m not the type to die so easily.”
Without needing further instruction, Marcus smoothly drew his crossbow and aimed it at Sinclair’s group. Sinclair’s expression hardened as she glared at us.
“What is the meaning of this? Do you not realize you’re at a disadvantage?”
“Of course we do.”
I stated my demands plainly. “Let us go. If you do that, I’ll release Adelia without a fuss.”
“We do not negotiate with criminals.”
“Does that mean you’re fine with Adelia getting hurt?”
Sinclair’s face twisted slightly. “You will regret this.”
“Then do me a favor and show some mercy so I don’t have to. All these fine citizens want is to go home quietly. Is that really so impossible?”
I turned to Adelia. “Right? Adelia. Why don’t you make the wise choice here? You don’t want this place turning into a bloodbath, do you? Marcus may not look it, but he’s handy enough to send at least two or three of them to the afterlife. And so am I.” I emphasized the next part. “I don’t care who stabs me—I’m taking you with me to the grave no matter what.”
I heard Adelia swallow. Sinclair exploded in fury. “You filthy scum!”
“What’ll it be, Adelia? Let’s all play nice.”
I was almost impressed with myself. I sounded like a proper villain. I waited quietly for Adelia’s answer. Her tense gaze slowly shifted to Sinclair. Then she spoke in a low voice.
“Let them go.”
“What? But Lady Adelia, if we want to track the Elk Bandits, these people—”
Adelia cut her off. “I said let them go!”
“…Understood.”
I smiled in satisfaction. “Negotiation complete!”
Still holding Adelia from behind, I slowly backed away. “Here’s how this works. We’ll take the wagon and get about a hundred meters away, then release Adelia there. Until then, stay right where you are.”
Sinclair shouted, “Don’t mock us! We can’t trust your word!”
“We can’t trust you either, which is why we’re doing it this way. And if you let us leave peacefully, I have no intention of kidnapping or harming Adelia.”
“You expect us to believe that?”
“You may not believe me, but Adelia will. Don’t worry.”
At that moment, I leaned in and whispered into Adelia’s ear. “XXX XXXX XX? XXX XXXXX XX XX.”
Adelia’s head snapped up at my words. The others strained to listen, but it was no use. The devil’s whisper ended quickly. I looked at Sinclair with a smile. “Well, shall we hear Adelia’s answer?”
Adelia wore a confused expression. I asked her confidently, “You’ll let us release you after we’ve put some distance between us, right?”
A brief silence fell. Adelia hesitated, then spoke in a dazed voice. “Do as you wish.”
A clear answer. I grinned. Sinclair, on the other hand, shouted in panic. “Lady Adelia! It could be a trick! Don’t accept their proposal!”
Though Sinclair protested, once Adelia had nodded, she had no choice but to relent.
“Until we meet again!”
With sour expressions, Sinclair and the soldiers stood frozen, watching as I cracked the reins and drove the wagon away. Once we were over a hundred meters out, I returned Adelia’s sword and released her cleanly. Before leaving, I had one last thing to say.
“Think it over.”
“……”
She stared at me with troubled eyes. I smiled quietly at her and set the wagon in motion once more.