Chapter 249: Side Income
Chapter 249: Side Income
Should I wait here, or should I make a move?
Three wails had echoed through the plains. That meant someone had been murdered somewhere in the Plains of Wailing.
The wails always came after an incident. We were safe for now, but the problem was that it was difficult to pinpoint where the attack had occurred. No one knew if it was near our campsite or far away.
“Ahn Sol… Baek Hangyul… Lee Yoojung… Wake up, quickly…”
Sensing the gravity of the situation, Ahn Hyun was waking the others quietly, careful not to make a scene. I listened for any presence in the vicinity, then turned my gaze to Ko Yeonju. She didn't seem to have noticed anything either. After scanning our surroundings for a while, she shook her head, her expression grim.
“I don’t think there’s anything nearby for now.”
“Don’t let your guard down. If she has appeared, distance is meaningless.”
“She?”
“The Weeping Girl.”
I gave her a short reply and fiddled with the hilt of the Sun and Moon Divine Sword. Hanbyul, who must have taken them out at some point, had a jewel on each of her left-hand fingers. She moved closer to my side and spoke in a low voice.
“Oppa, the Weeping Girl? Could you explain what’s going on?”
“You understand that something just happened, right?”
“Yes. You said someone died…”
“Right. We can break down the murder into three possible scenarios. First, a User was killed by another User. Second, a User was killed by a monster. And third, which is similar to the second, a User was attacked by the wandering spirit of the Plains of Wailing, the Weeping Girl. Make sense?”
I’d spoken faster than usual, so I wondered if she’d understood, but thankfully, Hanbyul nodded.
A little more time passed with us just cautiously monitoring our surroundings, and the area grew deathly quiet. Ko Yeonju, still observing in all directions, backed away until she was closer to me and asked a question.
“But I heard the Weeping Girl rarely shows herself directly to people. As long as you don’t provoke her, you shouldn’t be in any real danger…”
“That’s true. But to put it another way, if you do manage to anger her, you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”
“Are you saying someone intentionally angered the Weeping Girl? How?”
“It’s just one possibility. And there are plenty of ways to do it.”
“Then…”
Just as Ko Yeonju was about to continue, I sensed someone rushing over from the side. It seemed to be Ahn Hyun, who had gone to wake the others.
“Hyung! We’re in trouble!”
“What is it? And keep your voice down.”
“Ah, right. It’s just… something’s wrong with Ahn Sol.”
“Sol…? She’s not awake yet?”
“No, she’s awake, but she’s been spouting nonsense ever since she opened her eyes…”
The moment I heard that, I turned my gaze to where the others had been sleeping. Baek Hangyul and Lee Yoojung were already up, holding their gear and slowly backing away. But Ahn Sol was still on the ground. She was sitting up in her sleeping bag, her upper body exposed, staring blankly into the air. I immediately walked toward her.
“Ahn Sol?”
“……”
“Ahn Sol. Answer me.”
“It’s too late.”
Her words came out of nowhere, completely random. But the moment I heard them, an indescribable, eerie chill shot down my spine. At the same time, a strange sense of déjà vu washed over me.
This is…
It was the same feeling I’d had at the Academy when I went looking for Baek Hangyul. A storm of complex emotions rose within me, but I quickly reined them in. Ahn Sol’s Anxiety Detection ability had already been proven. The priority was to deal with the problem at hand.
“What do you mean, it’s too late?”
“Both.”
“Be more specific.”
“Waiting, and moving. I don’t know what to do either.”
“What…”
What Ahn Sol said was almost identical to the thoughts I’d just had. Just as my chest tightened with a wave of shock, a gust of wind swept coolly through the campsite.
It was then.
Sssssssssssss…
The sound of something rustling through the undergrowth in the dark plains echoed in the silent night sky. The sound was so faint that one might mistake it for the wind, but I had been keeping my hearing sharp since earlier. The source of the sound was quite a distance from the campsite. But one thing was certain: it was getting closer.
Ssssssssssssssssss.
“Huh…? Orabeoni?”
The effect of whatever had put her in a daze must have worn off, as Ahn Sol looked up at me with a hazy expression. I hooked my hands under her arms, pulled her out of the sleeping bag, and walked straight toward the other clan members. She let her lower body drag on the ground, tilting her head in confusion.
“Soohyun. Something’s coming.”
“I hear it too. Everyone, defensive formation. Prepare for battle.”
I spoke in a low murmur, but the clan members followed my orders without fail. The cold sound of weapons being drawn filled the air. Hanbyul asked if she should prepare a Light spell, but I just told her to have it ready. And then…
Sssssssssssssssssssss!
The distance between us and the source of the sound closed so fast the word ‘instant’ felt like an understatement. As the ambiguous noise grew louder, it seemed to catch the attention of the other clan members as well, and their faces began to harden. I could hear Kim Hanbyul and Ahn Sol quietly chanting spells. A moment later…
“G-Good heavens.”
Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk!
There was still some distance, but now we could make it out with the naked eye. Where we all turned our gazes, the culprit making the noise was slowly revealing itself. It was, of all things, a person.
But, though it was a person, it wasn’t walking. It was pressed against the ground, sliding toward us in a prone position.
“Wh-what is that? A person…? Aack!”
Yoojung must have tried to get a better look, as she took a step forward before screaming and stumbling back. The person, who had been rushing straight for us, suddenly swerved just before reaching the campsite. Its side bent into a curve, and its chest and abdomen rippled like a wave. I calmed the panicked clan members and observed its movements.
It’s being dragged by something.
Enhancing my vision to get a better look, I noticed several strange things. First, the User’s body was not in a normal state. It was severely mutilated in several places, and dark red blood was oozing from its mouth. From the way its wide-open eyes wouldn’t close, it appeared to be already dead.
Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk! Ssk, ssk!
It didn’t charge in right away. As if testing the waters, it began to circle the campsite in an S-pattern. As it moved, one of its arms, which had been dangling loosely, was torn off, and an ankle went rolling away. It was a truly grotesque sight.
“Hey, hey! You’re a mage! Do something about that thing!”
“Y-Yes?”
Startled by Ahn Hyun’s shout, Kim Hanbyul stuttered before turning to me, her eyes asking for permission. I spoke calmly.
“Can you hit it?”
“What?”
“I’m asking if you can guarantee a hit. For your information, homing magic won’t work on it. With that kind of mobility, you’ll miss unless your coordinate calculations are perfect.”
“Th-Then…”
Lacking confidence in her ability to land a shot, a heavy shadow fell over Kim Hanbyul’s face. I let out a light sigh and stepped forward. Its movements were so fast that even Hayeon wouldn’t have been confident.
As I stepped up, I heard Ko Yeonju’s voice from behind me. “Soohyun. Should I do it?” But I just shook my head. I adjusted my Helm of Courage and held out my left hand to Ahn Hyun, who was nervously swallowing.
“Give me the spear.”
“Huh?”
“Let me borrow the spear for a second.”
“Ah, yes.”
The thing was still moving. But it was just circling the campsite, ready to charge the moment it saw an opening. I took the spear in my left hand, transferred it to my right, and took a large step forward with my left foot.
For the record, if there’s one thing I hate most…
It’s when some nobody messes around in front of me.
As I pulled my right arm back with the spear, my body naturally twisted to the right. Continuing the motion, the moment my left foot touched the ground, I swung my arm down with great force toward a pre-calculated point.
Swoosh!
My right hand and arm extended in a straight line, and the Pitch-Black Spear shot forward, cutting sharply through the darkness. I hadn’t put much force into it, focusing instead on accuracy, but my Strength stat was so high that the sound of it tearing through the air was still considerable.
Then, just as the thing’s movement paused for a moment as it turned along its predicted path…
Thud!
The Pitch-Black Spear pierced the User’s body without fail. The impact sent its remaining limbs flying into the air, and its movements stopped as if by magic.
“Whoa, a direct hit! Hyung! Did you get it?”
“No, it’s still alive.”
“Then…”
“It must have taken some damage, though. Now I just have to make it come out on its own.”
I had already activated my Third Eye and Sensing. I ordered the clan members to stay put and strode forward.
The prone body, now motionless, grew larger as I approached. I drew the Sun and Moon Divine Sword from its sheath at my left hip, and a brilliant flash of light bathed the area with a crisp sound. The moonlight was full tonight; there was no better weapon to face a creature steeped in malevolent energy.
Even as I got closer, the User’s body remained perfectly still. I briefly wondered what to do before a good idea came to mind. I decided to shower the area around the fallen body with the sword’s light, reflected from the moon.
“Grrrrrrrk!”
The effect was immediate. As the moonlight reflected by the Sun and Moon Divine Sword shone on different parts of the body, a signal came, as if it could no longer bear it. A black, shadowy figure shot out from under the corpse. I extended my left foot in its direction.
I heard the sound of two hands frantically clawing at the ground as the creature opened its mouth wide and lunged for my outstretched foot. I calmly pulled my foot back, luring it in. As it pursued, aiming for my ankle, I brought the sword straight down.
Squish!
“Karararara!”
It didn’t feel like cutting through flesh, but it was like piercing rotten wood. Looking down, I saw a long-haired girl thrashing about with my sword embedded in her neck.
One peculiar thing was that her skin was so tattered her bones were visible, and she had no lower body at all. That meant she had achieved that incredible speed just by pulling herself along with her arms.
Lifting the sword as if scooping a fish from an aquarium, I got a better look at the screaming figure impaled on the blade.
“Hk!”
“H-Horrifying…”
The other clan members must have seen it too, as gasps of horror erupted simultaneously.
So this is the Weeping Girl. It’s my first time seeing her in person.
In the first playthrough, I had only heard her name; I’d never met her. But her appearance was certainly as gruesome as her reputation suggested. Her eyes were gone, leaving only hollow sockets, and her nose was so crushed it was unrecognizable. Her mouth revealed blackened, exposed gums, around which clung glistening clumps of dark red fluid and bits of flesh.
I was about to look down past her missing waist to check the tendrils dangling there when…
“H-Hyung! Watch out!”
“Hm?”
Ahn Hyun’s warning made me look up just in time to see the Weeping Girl crawling up the blade, gnashing her teeth.
Whoops.
It seemed she had accumulated quite a bit of malevolent energy or resentment, as she was moving quite energetically despite being impaled on the Sun and Moon Divine Sword. Unfazed, I calmly stuck my hand into her open mouth. The spirit happily obliged and bit down hard on my hand.
Clack!
The sound of teeth hitting my gauntlet. I admired her spirit, but she didn’t have what it took to pierce my durability and the TOPG.
I clenched my hand, applying a bit of pressure.
Crack! Craaack!
The sensation of teeth shattering traveled thrillingly through the gauntlet to my hand. After completely destroying the inside of her mouth, I flicked my hand, and tooth fragments rained down. I didn’t stop there. I grabbed her flailing hands and crushed them in the same manner.
Is this enough?
I’d shattered her teeth and both her hands. Even if she was still alive, she had lost her means of attack. Feeling much more at ease, I twisted the sword hilt this way and that. After checking for any other dangers, I grabbed the Weeping Girl’s hair with my left hand and lifted her up.
Then, holding her out toward my dumbfounded clan members, I announced in a proud tone:
“I caught it.”