Chapter 62
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: An Old Memory of the Cave Region
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Early in the morning, Cheon Doun prepared to go to the cave region. His supplies were in the camping backpack Nam Giseok had left behind.
After emptying two bags, he and Kim Nari each shouldered one.
He also emptied and packed the bags they had gotten from the snowy mountain. These were for collecting and carrying anything they needed.
Finally, Cheon Doun buried the root in the soil-filled beaker.
-Huuung!
He pressed it down with a finger to stop it from coming out.
“Stay in there. We're going out.”
When Cheon Doun stood up, holding the beaker, the root stopped squirming.
*Ah, we’re on the move. And you’re taking me with you. In that case, I’ll be good.*
Once it confirmed it could stay with Cheon Doun, the root settled back into the soil with a relieved expression.
“Guu. You want to come too?”
He asked, but Guu shook his head.
The reason given was that someone needed to lead the young chimeras, but in reality, he just wanted to lounge in the yard and sunbathe.
In contrast, the fox looked at Kim Nari with a disappointed expression.
-I, I want to go with Kim Nari. But…
The fox looked down at its fluffy fur.
-My shedding is done, and my winter coat has grown in. You said it's a dry place there. If I go, I'll collapse from the heat. I'll just be a burden.
Due to this practical issue, the fox also decided to stay home.
The ones going were Cheon Doun and Kim Nari. And Blue, their ride.
-Huuung.
Including the root in the beaker Cheon Doun was holding, there were four of them.
“Alright, shall we go?”
Cheon Doun climbed onto Blue's back. Once the party was aboard, Blue took off, knowing what to do.
* * *
“Mister. Do you know where the cave region is?”
“I do. It's to the east. I saw it when we went to the snowy mountain. Distance-wise, it should be closer than the siblings' house.”
Blue's high-speed flight shortened the travel time. Before long, the endlessly sprawling cave region came into view.
“That's it. There's no suitable terrain for Blue to land, so let's get off around here.”
When Cheon Doun tapped Blue's neck twice, he understood the signal, slowing his pace and beginning to descend.
Cheon Doun jumped down, holding Kim Nari. In front of where they landed, tens of thousands of stone pillars soared high.
“Ooh… So this is the cave region.”
Kim Nari looked around curiously, a fascinated expression on her face.
There were straight pillars soaring upwards and others bent into arches. They stood close together, making it look like a maze.
The arched stone pillars covered the sky, making it look just like a cave.
“It's not a cave. But it really looks like one.”
Kim Nari said, her face full of wonder.
“It's like a cave, but sunlight comes in.”
The towering stone pillars cast shadows, but it wasn't completely dark. Shafts of light poured down through the gaps between the pillars that blocked the sky.
A cave where sunlight poured in. He had said it wasn't really a cave, but that she'd understand why it was called that once she saw it.
Kim Nari now understood what Cheon Doun had meant.
“This place is like a maze. An ant hill. I feel like I'd lose my sense of direction if I went in.”
“That's actually true. Once you're inside, you can't tell if you're going forward or sideways.”
Cheon Doun said as he entered the cave region. Unlike his words, his steps showed no hesitation. Kim Nari followed him with a trusting expression.
“We're looking for a light green mushroom.”
“A mushroom?”
“Yeah. It's about three centimeters, so it's pretty small. It glows fluorescently, so it should be easy to find. We just need to find it, grind it up, extract the juice, and apply it to the surface of the house. Once the wood absorbs it, it'll be fine even if acidic snow falls.”
Kim Nari looked at Cheon Doun, her face full of wonder.
“Mister, how do you know all this stuff?”
“Most Hunters probably know about it. It's a well-known countermeasure for acidic snow.”
It was a mushroom that, while rare, also grew outside the cave region.
Its properties were somewhat known because it had been available on the market before.
*That aside… not much has changed since the last time I was here.*
Cheon Doun looked around. He had been to the cave region a few times as a child. The last time was in his early twenties.
*A researcher went into the cave region alone. Said he was going to pick some kind of mushroom. Since he hasn't returned after a full day, he must be lost. Go and bring him back. He's a talented one, so we can't afford to lose him like this.*
The institute's Director had given Cheon Doun a personal request.
Arriving at the cave region, he scanned the surroundings. He spread his mana over the area to search for the missing researcher.
*Found him.*
The researcher was collapsed less than twenty meters from the entrance of the caves.
He had lost his way, wandered in circles, and collapsed from exhaustion.
As he approached, the researcher shot to his feet.
*You, you're…! The institute sent you to find me!*
The researcher smiled brightly, his face full of relief. Cheon Doun stared at the man in silence.
*I remember now. You were the alchemist, right? The one who converted his mana hall into life force.*
*You know me? There must be quite a lot of researchers.*
*There are. And they get replaced often. Still, you caused quite a stir with that incident. I remember your face, at least.*
Cheon Doun tilted his head as he looked at the researcher.
*You're not even a combat-type Awakened, yet you crossed a Gate alone. You're crazy. What were you trying to do?*
*That's… my wife is sick. I really needed this to make her medicine.*
The researcher opened the bag he had brought. Inside was a small, fluorescent mushroom.
*There aren't any on the market right now. It's hard to get, and I don't know when it'll be available again. What choice did I have? I had to come find it myself.*
They were words of pure devotion, not what you'd expect from someone who conducted human experiments.
Just as Cheon Doun was about to say something, a giant centipede burst out from between the nearby stone pillars.
The researcher fell back in terror. Cheon Doun stopped the centipede charging at him with a single hand.
A loud crash echoed. Dust and dirt flew. The ground where Cheon Doun stood caved in, but he wasn't pushed back.
Cheon Doun blocked the centipede with one hand and shot out a thread with the other. He stopped it just before it sliced the monster to pieces.
*Is that… a young one?*
In the cave the centipede had emerged from, three small offspring were huddled together.
Monsters that care for their young are rare. A so-called rare species.
Seeing this, Cheon Doun withdrew the thread. Instead, he instantly unleashed his aura.
-Kiiiiiek!
Under the pressure crushing the area, the monster disappeared back into the burrow with its young.
The researcher who witnessed this looked on in astonishment.
*Th-this… this power is…!*
He was an Awakened too. Though not a combat type, he could tell what level of power Cheon Doun had just displayed.
*This is completely different from the institute's records! H-have you been hiding your power all this time? I've never seen power of this magnitude. What in the world…!*
The researcher's words trailed off the moment his eyes met Cheon Doun's.
He'd made a mistake. The researcher sensed it instantly. Hiding his power from the institute meant he wanted to avoid trouble.
And he had just discovered that secret.
That expressionless face was dangerous. He was weighing his life in the balance. Realizing this, the researcher immediately spoke up.
*I won't tell anyone.*
Test subjects were engraved with a spell preventing them from killing institute staff, but it was possible for them to stand by and let someone die.
*P-please. I won't tell anyone. Just get me out of here. Okay?*
If Cheon Doun simply left, the researcher would have no choice but to wander here until he died.
*Th-that's right! I'll cast a silence spell on myself.*
*I heard there are many ways to break that.*
*You can place a mana lock over the spell I cast. That'll work. With the power you just showed, no one will be able to break it. As it happens, I can cast a silence spell with the materials I have on me now. I brought a few things just in case.*
The researcher spoke nonstop as he took out the materials.
*I'm begging you. Please save me. If I don't go back, my wife will die.*
*Is that so?*
*My wife is ill. I have to go back and make her medicine.*
The researcher's eyes were sincere. He pleaded desperately, showing he was telling the truth.
Cheon Doun watched him, then tilted his head.
*So your own family is precious to you.*
The words were laden with meaning. The researcher was someone who knew how to cherish another person, yet at the institute, he had conducted all sorts of human experiments on living people.
A flicker of guilt crossed the researcher's face. He squeezed his eyes shut.
The desire to conduct research on people without restraint.
For an alchemist, it was an irresistible temptation. He knew it was the wrong path, but he couldn't stop.
With a somber expression, he laid out the materials. As he activated his ability, the materials melted away, transforming into formulas. They seeped into the researcher's body, engraving themselves upon him.
*I have engraved it… so that I will not divulge a single thing that happened here.*
All that remained was Cheon Doun's verdict. The researcher stared at the ground, his face anxious.
Cheon Doun looked at him, then overlaid the spell with his mana.
The researcher was once again stunned by the vast amount of mana covering the spell formation.
Locking the spell meant he would be spared. He looked up at Cheon Doun, filled with hope.
*Y-you're sparing me?*
*If you engrave one more condition on your body.*
*Y-yes. I'll do anything. Anything.*
Cheon Doun looked at him and smiled.
*When you go back, resign from the institute.*
*I-I will.*
*Cherish your wife. Don't cheat on her and be faithful to your family. Become a good husband in anyone's eyes.*
*Of course. I will. I absolutely will. I'm already doing that.*
The researcher nodded frantically. A devoted, doting husband. Part of a loving couple. He already had such a reputation at the institute.
He was the kind of man who would enter the cave region all alone to save his wife.
*Do you have children?*
*I have two. Both are in high school.*
*Good. They're past the age where they need a lot of looking after. An age where they can distinguish right from wrong. Be good to your children, too.*
The researcher nodded frantically.
*When I go back, I'll be a truly good husband. I'll be a good father. I'll live more faithfully for my family.*
*You should. Assuming your family accepts you, that is.*
*What…?*
*When you go back, show your research data to your family. That's my condition for taking you out of here.*
The hope on the researcher's face instantly froze. Years of research flashed through his mind. The video files, the photos, the documents… The color drained from his face as they came to mind.
*You're a family living under one roof, aren't you? You've probably been pretending to be an ordinary corporate researcher all this time. Your family ought to know what kind of things you've been doing behind that human mask. Don't you think?*
*Ah…*
*Documents, videos, audio files. Everything, without hiding a single thing. Have them view it all in the same room. Engrave that condition on your body. On pain of death if you break it.*
The researcher's hands trembled. Bloodshot tears fell from his eyes.
*If they still accept you after that, then yes. Then you should strive to be a better husband. Strive to be a good father. How about it?*
*Ah… Ahhh…*
The researcher groaned. The sound soon turned into a sob. Cheon Doun smiled.
*Be good to your family. If they still accept you after seeing all that, you'd better be good to them. It'll be a relief if they don't run out vomiting halfway through.*
*Aah…! Aaaah!*
The researcher clutched his face and wept.
The karma for what he had done. It had returned to him like a boomerang. He could see a future where he lost the family he had protected more dearly than his own life.
Contempt, disgust, scorn, fear, terror. The gazes of his family that would be directed at him. He might never be able to face them again for the rest of his life.
*Please… Please, not that… Please…!*
It was useless to beg. He knew, yet he pleaded anyway. Cheon Doun watched the researcher with a puzzled expression.
What on earth was family, to elicit such a reaction?
Of course, he knew in theory. He also knew that people generally cherished their families.
He understood it with his head, but not with his heart.
Having never had one, the emotions related to it had never grown, leaving a hollow void.
*It's fascinating. If I had a family, would I feel that way too? If you have a family, do they really become that precious?*
The only reply was the researcher's sobbing. There was no one to answer him.
* * *
Recalling that day from when he was twenty, Cheon Doun was pulled from his thoughts by a tickling sensation on his cheek.
-Huuung.
The root had crawled up Cheon Doun's arm without him noticing. It sat on his shoulder, patting his cheek with its fine rootlets.
“What's wrong? Is something the matter?”
Instead of answering, the root pressed its body firmly against Cheon Doun's cheek. It pushed its chubby belly into his cheek, then patted his forehead with its leaves.
As he wondered what was going on and stood still, Kim Nari tugged on his sleeve.
“Mister. I think that plant root is trying to comfort you.”
“How random. Why all of a sudden?”
“Your expression looked dark, Mister.”
“Mine?”
Cheon Doun looked puzzled. He wasn't the type to get depressed reminiscing about the past. In the first place, it wasn't a past worth getting depressed over.
All he had been thinking was a mild curiosity about what choice the researcher's family had made.
Still, since the root was desperately leaning against him, he didn't say anything.
“I… uh, I'll stay by your side too, Mister!”
Kim Nari said, not letting go of his sleeve.
*Kids really are random,* Cheon Doun thought with a small laugh.