The Pulsating Corpse
“Zombie?”
Apparently, the people of this world—or at least the elves—didn't use the word zombie. They tilted their heads and asked me back.
I quickly opened my mouth to explain. “The things that attacked us earlier.”
“Ah, those corpses...! So humans call them zombies?”
“Well... that's what I call them. Anyway, are there a lot of those zombies in this forest?”
“No, there weren't any originally. But... a few days ago, they started appearing one by one, and then their numbers suddenly exploded. And they definitely died from arrows until last night, but now they won't even die...!”
Rishar furrowed her brow, her face twisted in utter confusion.
Are they getting stronger over time?
Or maybe they grew stronger the closer they got to the Mana Stone Fragment. As evidence, there was the Ebony Staff I carried.
...The Ebony Staff strengthens summons within its range, too.
A bad feeling crept over me for some reason.
“By the way, Yuhyun, how did you get in here?”
“Get in how?”
At my question, Rishar put on a gravely serious expression and spoke. “What? Did the barrier break or something...? Yeah, in a situation like this, that would make sense...”
It seemed a barrier encompassed the entire forest. That would explain why a human like me entering looked strange to Rishar.
I let out a wry chuckle and kept my mouth shut. It was far better to let her jump to her own conclusions than for me to say anything.
That aside...
Looking at her quietly like this, Rishar was quite the beauty. She wasn't called an elf for nothing. Her plump cheeks with their rosy pink flush and her pale white skin were incredibly endearing. And her brown hair, neatly braided into one tidy plait, looked like a work of art.
“Why?”
Suddenly, Rishar lifted her long lashes and looked at me with her large eyes tinged with a light brown hue.
Her voice had a slightly haughty edge, but it was much softer than before. No, she seemed to hold some goodwill toward me now. Good thing I'd kept up the conversation steadily, even if it was a bit of a hassle.
“Just find it fascinating.”
“Fascinating?”
“First time seeing an elf.”
“Ah, yeah... I guess. This is my first time seeing a human, too. Honestly, I thought all humans were a race wrapped up in pure malice. Are you the exception?”
I let out an awkward laugh at that. “Nah. There are plenty of kind people like me. But... like you said, there are a lot wrapped up in malice, too. So be careful. Human tongues carry poison.”
“Yours too?”
“Mine's the good kind of poison.”
“Still poison.”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
As we traded light banter like that, a guttural grrr echoed from straight ahead—the cry of a zombie.
I raised the Ebony Staff and fired a Shadow Arrow. The black orb shot out swiftly, streaking like it was sliding across ice before bursting the zombie's head.
Boom!
The headless zombie collapsed limply to the ground.
“Let's go before the others swarm us.”
“Y-yeah.”
Rishar looked a bit startled, her face blank as she nodded frantically. She seemed a little unsteady, but I didn't have the luxury to worry about the details right now.
I checked the minimap right away and headed toward the Mana Stone Fragment.
Is it there?
After sprinting for a while, we finally arrived.
“Ugh...!”
Between trees uprooted from the base, a massive lump of corpses writhed and twisted. It pulsed like a living heart... thump-thump, emitting a thick, thudding sound.
The gruesome sight made me grimace involuntarily.
Meanwhile, Rishar, nauseated by the rotting stench and the wriggling mass, bent over and started retching.
Looks dangerous.
Just in case, I checked the quest info, but it was the same as before.
...Can I win this?
After scanning the surroundings, I steeled my resolve.
“Goblin Summon, Orc Summon, Slime Summon.”
The moment I activated the skills, goblins, orcs, and slimes appeared around me in an instant.
“Wh-what is this...?”
Rishar stared at me, eyes wide in considerable shock.
“Don't worry, they're friendlies.”
With that, I pointed the Ebony Staff at the enemy and continued. “...Skeleton Summon.”
I tried it just in case, but as expected, nothing happened. Summoning skeletons from enemy corpses seemed impossible.
Clicking my tongue in regret, I looked at the goblins, orcs, and the colorless, wriggling slimes.
“Attack.”
“Kerrrk!!”
“Krwooo!!”
No sooner had my command dropped than the goblins, orcs, and slimes charged the corpse mass. At the same time, it began pounding furiously—thump-thump.
Is it about to explode?
I gulped and ducked behind a tree with Rishar. Then, with a squelch-squelch, the mass started spewing out hordes of zombies.
“Grraaah!!”
“Grraaak!”
Zombies poured out endlessly, like a queen ant laying eggs. The sight left both Rishar and me stunned.
“That's the culprit...!”
Rishar gnashed her teeth, glaring fiercely at the mass. But it kept birthing zombies as if oblivious, blocking the goblins', orcs', and slimes' approach.
“Grraaak!”
Then a zombie swung its arms at a slime, and with a dry crack, the slime's body vanished.
I pulled out my smartphone, and a new alert appeared on the screen.
All slimes summoned by the skill ‘Slime Summon’ have suffered irreparable damage and have been forcibly unsummoned.
Resummoning possible in 10 minutes.
As frail-looking as they appeared, the slimes were weak. I stuck out my tongue and surveyed the area.
“Grraaah!!”
“Kerrrk!”
The battle was evenly matched. Just as I'd guessed, the zombies grew exponentially stronger the closer they were to the Mana Stone Fragment.
I bit my lower lip lightly, pondered for a moment, then aimed the Ebony Staff at the corpse mass.
“Shadow Arrow!”
The black orb shot out the instant I chanted, slamming into the mass and exploding.
“Kieeeek!!”
A screech like nails on a chalkboard erupted from the center of the mass.
What the hell is that?
Was it actually a living creature? As I examined it, a chunk suddenly snapped off and shot toward me at high speed.
“Danger!”
Rishar shouted and shoved me down.
Crack!
Thanks to her push, the projectile smashed into the tree behind me, pulverizing it. The tree's trunk split in half and crashed to the ground with a thud.
Crazy...
Chills ran down my spine the moment I saw it. If Rishar hadn't shoved me, I'd have been split in two or had my head blown open like that tree.
...Dangerous. This is too dangerous.
I'd misjudged. This wasn't an easy opponent. No matter how important the Mana Stone Fragment was, it wasn't worth risking my life.
“You okay?”
Rishar grabbed my shoulder and asked.
“Ah...”
A flash of clarity hit me. What if I ran now? What would happen to Rishar? In the worst case, that corpse mass might kill her.
Of course, if I escorted her safely to the elf village, she'd be fine. But after that?
Damn it.
Don't care. No need to. No obligation. Don't care.
I repeated it in my head, but facing Rishar's worried gaze made my mind go blank. Thinking of her dying to that mass filled me with a surge of guilt.
...Let's do this.
I exhaled slowly, stood up, and checked on the goblins and orcs fighting the zombies.
“Ring of Protection Summon.”
With minimal safety in place, I gritted my teeth.
“...Rex Summon.”
Suddenly, a giant over 2 meters tall appeared before me, swinging its arms wildly.
“Uwaak! Zombies! Smash 'em all!”
“No, squish 'em flat!”
The twin-headed ogre bellowed and started pulverizing every zombie in sight.