Chapter 16
Chapter 16
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Price of Standing
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Emergency Ration."
Kkwek?
As if sensing it had been called, Emergency Ration turned its head toward Hwan-in.
He'd never once called it by that name before. No matter how he looked at it, it wasn't an ordinary animal, so Hwan-in spoke to Emergency Ration with blunt honesty.
"You'll have to help me."
Without waiting for a reply, Hwan-in lifted Emergency Ration up and sliced through the vine binding it with his dagger, freeing it from its restraints.
This was the moment he'd decided on beforehand—after confirming the reliability of Spirit Possession, he'd let it go.
Originally, he'd planned to release it only after escaping the jungle or, if that failed, while awaiting death.
But after the day's events, he'd changed his mind.
An unexpected accident could kill Emergency Ration before him.
Just the tsunami at the lakeside earlier proved it. If Emergency Ration had been swept away in that wave, bound as it was, it couldn't have flown to safety and would have died helplessly.
He'd thought the same during the fight with the Lizardman.
If the monsters he ran into kept getting stronger—or if surprises hit—the odds of Emergency Ration dying shot up.
The jungle had an eerie lack of snakes. Even so, there had to be at least one somewhere, and plenty of small carnivores he might've missed.
What if, while he was battling a monster, one snatched the bound Emergency Ration?
Or a venomous bug or snake bit it?
That's why he'd resolved to get one last bit of help, then set it free.
If his hunch was right, Emergency Ration would suffer no harm, so no survival issues after.
Gripping the blinking Emergency Ration in both hands, Hwan-in slung the Deer-Antler Staff over his shoulder and commanded the Lizardman's ghost toward "Emergency Ration": come here.
The Lizardman's ghost glided over like mist, morphing into a pale gray orb that seeped into Emergency Ration's chest.
Kkweok?
"...!"
Sensing some change in its body, Emergency Ration let out a kkweok, its eyes starting to glow faintly gray.
Hwan-in broke into a satisfied smile.
He'd been about 92% sure, but this test bumped it to 100%—and cleared up his other nagging doubts too.
The certainty? He'd gained the same power as that Staff-Wielding Green Monster.
Even now, coolness and warmth flowed into him, transforming into Cold Ki and Warm Ki. That meant the energy built up inside over time, hinting his abilities could improve soon.
And this experiment revealed what Warm Ki and Cold Ki actually did.
'Warm Ki must shield the body from a spirit's chill when manipulating ghosts or souls.'
He'd felt that coolness with the animal ghost before. And the instant he used Spirit Possession on Emergency Ration, his own body temp had dipped slightly.
The warmth converting to Warm Ki inside him clearly protected against the spirit's inherent chill during handling. That had to be it.
'Overdo it blindly, and hypothermia—or worse—could kill me.'
The Cold Ki from that coolness probably measured the quality of souls he could control, or the strength of his supernatural powers.
The Deer-Antler Staff had to support spirit manipulation somehow. No way that green monster lugged around a near-useless stick as a weapon otherwise.
Suddenly, a memory flashed: the green monster flailing in panic.
It swung the staff every time it tried to trigger an explosion.
Given the staff's nature, those were probably spirit-catalyzed attacks. But on the third try, staff in hand, it just floundered.
If it'd run out of pre-loaded spirits—no explosion. That explained everything.
Which meant...
'The staff can store multiple souls.'
It felt like puzzle pieces snapping together, a ticklish thrill in his chest as doubts unraveled one after another.
Hwan-in covered the smile tugging at his lips and gave a small nod.
Master this power, and not only escaping the jungle—he'd skyrocket his survival odds.
Just yesterday, lancing his thigh with a red-hot knife over tetanus fears, death had loomed close. Now? Survival beamed down like warm spring sun.
That's when the gray glow faded from Emergency Ration's eyes. About six minutes after possession.
"Duration's not long. Guess I'll have to test the effects hands-on... Hm?"
A hazy wisp leaked from Emergency Ration's chest, rising slow like midsummer haze toward the sky.
Was that the Lizardman's soul?
Tucking Emergency Ration under his arm and gripping the staff, he commanded it: come. But the soul ignored him, drifting higher until it vanished without a trace.
'Once used, souls can't be reused, huh.'
Wondering how many the staff could hold, Hwan-in checked Emergency Ration over.
No color shift, no molting feathers, no temp changes—nothing off.
No side effects from Spirit Possession, apparently. Another layer of satisfaction.
As planned, he set Emergency Ration down on the ground.
Kkwaek?
Awkward with its sudden freedom, maybe.
It cocked its head, flapped its sleek green wings a couple times...
Kkweok. Kkwaek.
Then plopped into the plushest spot on the beast pelt bed like it was its nest, crying out in smug contentment.
"...".
He'd set it free to fly off. What the hell was this?
Kkuu~.
Its laid-back crooning was a bit absurd, but whatever—it'd leave when ready. Tidying up with that in mind, Hwan-in plopped down beside it.
The sun dipped west, darkness swallowing the surroundings.
Soon total black, and nocturnal critters would stir.
Bushes hid them, sure, but this open spot wasn't safe for a snooze. Tonight, he'd focus on gathering Warm Ki, Cold Ki, warmth, and coolness.
Staff across his thighs, Hwan-in closed his eyes calmly.
Mind sharpening, the insect chirps swelled louder.
'Tempting to recreate that green monster's soul explosion... but hold off. First, test how long a manifested soul orb lasts on the antlers.'
Tomorrow: follow the river, kill monsters, harvest souls. Ears perked, he tuned into the warmth and coolness brushing his skin.
In the jungle canopy, sky blocked, nights plunged pitch-black.
But Soul Vision lit up the dark like better night eyes—past few days proved it.
Scanning alertly with its help, Hwan-in saw an uneventful night pass, dawn chasing shadows. He hid his regret.
All night gripping the Deer-Antler Staff, meditating and focusing—no gains on what he wanted.
'Not bad, though.'
He'd scored elsewhere.
First, renamed his "hallucination vision" to Soul Vision properly.
Seeing colors on lifeless stuff felt off for "soul," but souls mattered more than colors here.
Priority called for it.
Two discoveries overnight.
Soul Vision held nine hours straight: eyes stung a bit, nothing else.
And Warm Ki with Cold Ki circulated nonstop, like blood through veins in key body spots.
Absorb more coolness and warmth, and they'd strengthen for sure. Cross-legged, he napped an hour to catch up on sleep.
'Gotta camp somewhere safe tonight.'
Sleepiness eased, he stretched awake and dropped his pants to check the right thigh wound.
Unwound the shirt-bandage: crushed Golden Bell Flower had hardened solid.
"Hm."
The cooling relief long gone.
Wound tugged faintly, but pain negligible—made him wonder if it numbed too.
Frowning at the possible adhesion, he prodded the crusted mash. It peeled off smooth, like spent poultice.
The revealed healing flesh made his eyes widen.
The hot-knife cauterized mess—mangled, swollen—had mended overnight, like a month healed.
"No wonder the green monsters hunted Golden Bell Flower."
Defied Earth biology, but Hwan-in accepted it, crushed fresh flower, smeared it on, covered with leaves.
The cool embrace on the wound felt damn good.
Rebandaged, he broke camp.
Kkwaek, kkwaek.
Gently shooed Emergency Ration off its "nest" on the beast hide, rolled it up, inventoried weapons and gear.
'Soul orbs lasting six hours is a letdown.'
Mid-meditation at the six-hour mark—midnight—the Beast-Head Monster's soul on the antlers had haze-drifted skyward, just like a used one.
Don't use in time? Soul auto-liberates.
New day meant hunting fresh souls—risky business. He frowned faintly.
'Six hours too short. Will stronger power extend it?'
If not, he'd train body alongside power.
First monster tomorrow: pure physical takedown.
'Busy day. Kill monsters, stock souls. Recreate green monster moves.'
Dedicate the day to verifying powers. He unpacked a rations bundle for breakfast.
Morning fare: bitter grass roots, bland sprout veggies, chewy tree inner-bark scraps, two half-dry coral mushrooms, two Corona Berries.
Plus seven finger-length bugs.
Emergency Ration had parked itself in front the moment he unpacked.
Kkwaek.
A wry chuckle escaped—absurd. He gave it all seven bugs, mushroom crumbs, a nibble of underripe Corona Berry.
Unwrapped yesterday's two steamed Jade Crabs...
"Spoiled, huh."
Soul Vision showed white when fresh; now faint red tinged them. Sniff: faint sour whiff.
'Shelf life under a day. Jungle heat's fault.'
Catch only what he could eat from now on. Offered to Emergency Ration: it sniffed, then kkwaek! Kkwaekko!—flapped excitedly.
'Still good for you?'
Set 'em down: crack, clack! Snap, crunch!—it demolished shell and all with gusto.
Smart bird wouldn't touch rot. Should be fine.
Watching it pulverize flesh and shell alike stirred complicated feelings.
No sign it'd leave. Planning to tag along?
Chewing the tasteless sprouts, he calculated: eleven days with Emergency Ration, roughly.
Fuzzy from blackout time, but about right.
Dog or cat might bond by now—but this bird he'd toted acting pet? Baffling.
Forgot the abuse?
Paralysis Bead zap.
Bound and "Emergency Ration"-ed.
Bait to distract monsters.
If reversed, Hwan-in wouldn't sit pretty.
First free moment: lure every monster nearby for payback.
...Whatever. Popped the last Corona Berry, dusted his butt rising, packed up. Meal done, Emergency Ration preened its feathers with its thumb-thick forehead horn, then stared hard.
Finally flapped up, plunked on the beast-hide bundle like its throne: kkwaek!
"...".
He stared long; it stared back, head tilt.
Kkwaek?
"...Whatever. Your life's your own."
Kkwaek!
Got it or not...
Back at the riverbank, Hwan-in couldn't just drop down rashly.
Yesterday: seven Lizardmen nearby. Overnight? Nearly tripled to twenty, scattered along bank and shallows.
River crawling with monsters made sense.
The freak lifeform—Horned Scale Whale—tsunami survivors washed back to turf overnight.
Lure one? Six or seven'd swarm—density screamed it. Small sigh, he trailed the river south.
Upstream same story.
Worse: Frogmen joined. Monster variety up.
Like 1.5m poison dart frogs supersized, limbs beefed, propped upright.
Amphibian frogs, reptilian lizards—why no turf war?
Maybe those "Lizardmen" were newt-kin, blue hues making 'em cousins.
"Hm."
Two hours, 10km: Lizardmen and Frogmen didn't thin—increased to sixty total sighted.
How to play it? Hwan-in pondered briefly.
"Path's clear."
Old relief pitcher for the company baseball team.
Fist-sized rock in hand, cliff-top stance: eyed the nearest lone Frogman. Windup—heaved hard.
Swoosh—thunk!
Gerruk!!
Stone flew faster, truer than expected—burst its eyeball.
Now the pissed Frogman charges, right? Hwan-in's face hardened slow.
Gerrrr! Gek!! Gegrrr!!
Kwaaak! Kwaaaak!!
Gegogogo!!
Gegurk! Geeek!!
Eye-gouged Frogman bellowed; kin reacted, croaking in one by one.
And with horde in tow, it hopped upslope hunting him—Hwan-in bolted without a backward glance.