Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Weight of Silence
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Four days had passed since returning to the cliffside cave and beginning his recovery.
Thanks to diligently stretching and doing moderate exercise, his muscle aches and joint pains had completely healed. The balance between Cold Ki and Warm Ki had also reached about 10:8, restoring him to a condition similar to before the attack on Hob Village.
Of course, he hadn't spent all that time just restoring his body's condition.
Starting the next day, he went out hunting twice a day, using it as a warm-up while investigating the nature of the pale green lowest-grade souls.
And what he confirmed was that these faintly colored lowest-grade souls weren't souls at all.
'Should I call them spirits?'
They were everywhere.
In the water, there were souls tinged with a pale watery hue; in the sky, ones faintly infused with the blue of the heavens; in the forests, pale green ones; and in the wastelands, pale yellow ones.
He had Emergency Ration search for animal carcasses at the spots where he found them, but after ten minutes with no results, the soul hypothesis seemed meaningless.
'People call the souls of the dead spirits too, so it's not entirely wrong to call them that...'
For convenience, Hwan-in decided to refer to these natural souls as spirits. He immediately began testing his skills, discovering that techniques using spirit orbs performed with the same power as those using soul orbs.
'I've already confirmed Spirit Possession.'
Next, he tested the difference in skill power based on whether he had the staff or the pearl-like stone.
Now that he could command souls and spirits without the staff, he could use Soul Explosion, Soul Arrow, and Soul Shield. As soon as preparations were complete, he ran the experiments and let out a slight sigh of disappointment at the results.
'The reinforcement effect from Spirit Possession is the same. But the power and durability of the skills are stronger with the staff.'
The formula turned out to be: Deer-Antler Staff + Pearl Stone > Deer-Antler Staff = Pearl Stone > Bare hands.
"Hmm."
When his maximum soul orb capacity reached 12, his ability had grown.
That meant his superhuman powers strengthened as his soul orb capacity increased.
So, when would the next growth occur?
'I'll have to train hard.'
While verifying his abilities, Hwan-in would take Huini and Ennel out whenever he had time, catching two beasts at a time.
He could have caught more, but now that he no longer needed to stockpile soul orbs, and the sisters made sad faces saying, "We can't eat them all, and killing too many would ruin the ecosystem," he held back.
Of course, monsters were another story—he had to kill every one he saw without mercy.
The beasts they caught were separated into hides and meat by the women. Efni smoked the meat, while Huini and Ennel tanned and processed the hides.
Ryuhi cut and sewed the tanned hides (as much as they could manage) into clothes and shoes.
'Impressive handiwork.'
Grinding bones the thickness of his thumb into needles and twisting thin strips of hide into cords left a strong impression on Hwan-in.
In any case, the women divided the tasks as if by design, steadily preparing to leave the cave over the four days.
Huin and Ennel, daughters of a blacksmith family, knew how to tan hides and could even repair weapons to a certain extent.
Efni, daughter of a village general store, loved books and knew all sorts of trivia. She said smoking meat was a skill she'd learned making preserved food for the store.
And finally, Ryuhi, whose nimble hands could make anything simple.
They each handled what they were best at—smoking meat, maintaining weapons, tanning hides, sewing clothes, preparing food—but to Hwan-in's eyes, Ryuhi did the most work.
It was Ryuhi who restored the skeletal smokehouse to working order.
It was Ryuhi who improvised a basket trap from grass stems and leaves to catch loaches and decent-sized fish.
It was Ryuhi who molded clay into pottery pots good enough to sell in markets, and she and Efni gathered wild spices from the foothills of Twin Mountains, now Hwan-in's territory.
It was Ryuhi who made delicious stews from the hunted meat, fish, and spices, along with various dishes from foraged mountain vegetables.
It was Ryuhi who made clothes and shoes from beast hides.
Wooden carriers for the smoked meat, with leather covers to wrap them.
Bundles to hold the wooden bottles now serving as water skins.
Even leather cloaks to fend off the cold night dew.
She had made almost everything needed for their departure.
Watching Ryuhi meticulously craft a leather cloak, Hwan-in marveled.
"You're incredibly versatile."
=These are skills I had to learn just to survive...=
As she spoke, stitching the hides together, Ryuhi's face was filled with an indescribable sadness.
He had heard from Huini in secret that Ryuhi had one remaining blood relative, her older sister, whose whereabouts became unknown after escaping the cave.
=The two sisters relied on each other. Ryuhi handled the indoor chores, while Rua took care of the outdoor ones...=
She trailed off, but Huini's sullen expression suggested she believed Rua was dead.
Hwan-in turned his gaze to Ryuhi, who was sewing the hide.
In her Stone Age-style leather clothes, her profile...
'She looks like that woman.'
He realized she strongly resembled the female soul whose body had washed up in the rapids—the owner of that corpse.
"...?"
Suddenly sensing something off, Hwan-in quickly realized what it was.
They had said he came to rescue them at the request of that woman's soul, yet no one seemed to remember it.
Whether they had forgotten or dismissed it as an absurd story and ignored it, either way, Hwan-in pondered.
The woman he buried was undoubtedly Ryuhi's sister, Rua.
The question was whether to leave her with a sliver of hope that Rua might be alive somewhere, or tell her honestly that her only blood relative was dead.
'What a dreadful choice.'
He knew his thinking differed fundamentally from ordinary people. That's why situations without a clear right answer like this irked him most.
To Hwan-in, it didn't matter either way.
What mattered was Ryuhi enthusiastically guiding him out of this damned forest to civilization.
If she drowned in grief, that initial goal might fail. Telling her later...
'If I wait until we reach the village, she might resent me. Telling her before we leave could make her think I used her and lash out.'
Goodwill was crucial in relationships.
Knowing built-up resentment could explode unexpectedly, Hwan-in agonized.
"..."
With no choice, he selected the option with the least risk. When the women were all gathered, he described the appearance of the woman he presumed was Rua and asked if they knew her.
=...=
Seeing Ryuhi's eyes shake violently as she listened, Hwan-in was convinced. He took them all to where he had buried her.
"This is where I laid that woman to rest."
Ryuhi froze at the grave, then frantically began digging it up like a madwoman.
As she removed the piled stones, the other three joined in, clearing them away.
Ryuhi shoveled away the shallow mound of earth until, at one point, a pale hand broke through the soil. She collapsed.
=Ah, aaah...=
'The ground is cool and dry, so it hasn't decomposed yet.'
The other three froze in shock, so Hwan-in stepped forward and pulled the buried corpse out.
=Rua... Uuugh... I prayed you'd escaped safely, that you were alive... Aaah... Aaaaah...=
Clutching her sister's cold, stiffened corpse, Ryuhi wept bitterly, caressing her face as if her heart were breaking.
Hwan-in had once experienced the pain of losing family, and even with his dried-up emotions, he understood. He waited until her tears subsided.
After about three hours of mourning and bidding her sister farewell, Ryuhi—her face streaked with tears—neatly cut a lock of her sister's hair, bound it with a few strands of her own, and tucked it into her bosom.
Then, alone, she dug the grave again, gently laid her sister back, covered her face with broad leaves she fetched separately, and piled carefully sifted earth over it.
"What does covering the face with leaves mean?"
=It's... a ritual prayer that she not see more evil in this world, not linger with regrets, but depart peacefully to the beasts' god's realm.=
"And keeping the hair?"
=To place it in the grave with my parents at the village cemetery. I can't carry the body there...=
It was Efni's explanation, her vast trivia from books shining through.
Having rebuilt Rua's grave single-handedly, Ryuhi—covered in dirt—bowed deeply to Hwan-in.
=Thank you, benefactor.=
"My condolences. Your sister must have passed peacefully, her request fulfilled."
=Yes...?=
Ryuhi, her eyes puffy from crying, looked at him in confusion.
Hwan-in explained how he had known to find them—because of her soul's request.
Ryuhi proved more rational than expected in accepting her sister's death, and he thought sharing this would help her find peace.
The women were stunned.
=Wha?! B-benefactor, you're a soul master?!!=
Hwan-in frowned slightly at Huini's ear-piercing shout, then relaxed and asked,
"What's a soul master?"
=Someone amazing who guides the dead's souls to rest and grants them peace!!=
"...Efni, a more detailed explanation, please."
=Y-yes? Sure. Soul masters can communicate with the dead. Like Huini said, they grant rest and peace, preventing souls from turning into wraiths beforehand.=
"Is that important? Not sarcasm—I'm truly ignorant."
=Huh? Well... if they become wraiths, both body and soul corrupt. No corrupted body can enter the gods' garden...=
Efni's expression screamed, "How don't you know this obvious stuff?" From it, Hwan-in learned it related to funeral rites.
Even into the near-modern era, undertakers, feng shui masters, and grave keepers were professions ordinary people didn't trifle with.
People believed ancestral spirits protected the family only if buried in auspicious sites with proper rites and grave maintenance.
No wonder customs like three-year mourning existed, living in mourning clothes by the grave.
'If it's not fraud but a real soul-handling profession... no wonder they revere it.'
Nodding his thanks for the explanation, Ryuhi—face still tear-streaked—knelt before him again, bowing repeatedly like in prayer, fresh tears falling.
=Thank you. Benefactor, truly thank you! For guiding Rua to rest and peace... I am so grateful! Thank you... Hic...=
"I only did what needed doing."
=Aah...=
Hwan-in inwardly nodded slightly as the women gazed at him with moved, admiring eyes sparkling.
A few words had maxed out their favor. He could expect full cooperation escaping the forest and a hero's welcome in the village.
He then explained he had been teleported here by some unexplained accident, knowing nothing of local customs.
=That's why you didn't know so much, soul master!=
=Huini!=
Ryuhi tried to scold the rude girl, but Hwan-in waved it off with a nod.
"It's fine. It's the truth."
=Sorry. She's good-hearted but blurts out every thought... We've scolded her endlessly, but she won't change.=
=Heehee.=
=That's not praise.=
=...Hiiing.=
=Huini, come here and sit. You know the village elders told you not to speak without thinking. To our lifesaver, the great soul master...! And yet you...!=
Ryuhi's lecture to Huini showed she'd fully processed her kin's death in that short time, finally easing Hwan-in's worries.
He had wondered if hiding it was better, seeing her sob for hours embracing her dead sister.
Of course, losing her only blood relative would bring grief whenever she remembered, but she wouldn't lose all will to live or attempt suicide.
'Learning how much these natives value soul masters is a big win.'
From the women's tales, their home village was a small fishing-farming settlement of about 300 souls, including kids and elders—a rural hamlet.
Considering rural folk's reliance on folk faiths, the importance of soul masters they described couldn't be understated.
This ability guaranteed he'd never starve, anywhere. It might even help trace the gold coin's origin and use.
The pure gold coin nagged at him, slightly dented from the greatsword monster fight...
Hwan-in shook his head lightly to dismiss the worry and asked Efni, who eyed him enviously,
"How much smoked meat is ready?"
=About twenty days' worth. If we forage edibles and hunt along the way, it'll last over a month.=
"Everyone has clothes and shoes, weapons repaired... We're ready to depart."
=Yes.=
Efni wagged her abundant straw-colored tail side to side, thrilled at heading home.