Chapter 65
Chapter 65
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Instinct Over Mercy
-----------------------------------------------------------------
By the time Brillit and Dinte had finished off the remaining two Greniers, Ssa approached with eyes wide like a cat that had witnessed something unbelievable.
=No... heavens, how could this...=
Unable to continue, Ssa suddenly burst into laughter before bowing deeply at the waist.
=Thank you for your help. To think you'd take down three beasts all by yourself... If you, Soul Shaman, hadn't been here, we would have watched one of our own die today.=
"No need. If Emergency Ration hadn't warned us and we'd kept moving, you could've handled it easily enough."
A Grenier's charging speed was about the same as Straw Que pulling the wagon. And with proper ranged weapons prepared, they might not have killed them all, but they could've shaken them off.
Ssa drastically revised his evaluation of the young Soul Shaman before him.
Impressive enough just as a Soul Shaman, but polite and well-mannered too, with outstanding abilities in his field—not to mention combat prowess like this!
He'd heard the rumor that the man had rescued village girls from the labyrinth, but Ssa had only believed half of it.
Something like stumbling upon a woman lost in the woods—not the labyrinth—and bringing her back.
Of course. To conquer a Rank 6 forest-type labyrinth required at least three Rank 7 professionals and six Rank 6s combining forces.
And to escape it alone with four powerless village girls?
Mention that in a tavern, and you'd get laughed out of the room.
Yet seeing Hwan-in dispatch two beasts in under three minutes so effortlessly made Ssa feel a chill of awe.
=My heart's still pounding. Your spearwork was art itself. Ugh, why did those clean moves feel so terrifying?!=
He'd already noticed the weapon's quality with a merchant's eye. But even the finest weapon needed skill to back it up.
In Ssa's eyes, it looked like the enemy had impaled itself. Even as a merchant, he knew how extraordinary that was.
"It's not that impressive."
=Hahaha. Too much humility can be poison, they say. You have every right to boast, Soul Shaman. Indeed.=
Hwan-in guessed why Ssa was warming up to him more but didn't show it.
This would make the journey safer, after all.
Brillit returned dragging the three slain Greniers, staring at Hwan-in in astonishment.
She'd heard Dinte's fussing after finishing the last one but hadn't quite believed it. Yet there they were, dead for different reasons each.
As the porters butchered the Greniers, Hwan-in caught Brillit's gaze, turned to her, and gave a slight bow.
=......=
Brillit bowed back in thanks to the man who had protected her lover. Then she mercilessly kicked Dinte's shin—the one responsible for the crisis.
=Kyaaack!=
=You idiot. I didn't tell you to kill all three. I said hold two at bay, and you couldn't even manage that?=
=I'm sorryyy!!=
Thwack!
=Guhk...!=
=Didn't I tell you over and over? Think 'sorry' fixes everything?=
Crack!
=Kek!=
=Why do something you'd have to apologize for? Think I gave you Straw Que so you could dance with a Grenier? That I fed you expensive meals and paid your salary for this?=
=S-sorryyy!!=
='Sorry' again? Your screw-up nearly got Ssa killed. And 'sorry' just rolls off your tongue? Huh?=
Thwack, thwack!
=Greee...!=
Hwan-in understood Brillit's merciless discipline, so he didn't intervene.
Even if he hadn't, he wouldn't have. Interfering would be overstepping.
Instead, back at the wagon, Hwan-in closely examined the spear blade gleaming with a dark sheen.
'Looks like a plain ash spear, but this sharpness.'
Less likely Belbigo's skill in honing the fangs, more that they were spirit beast fangs to begin with.
Suddenly, he recalled the blade boar carcass from Hob Village when retrieving the stone axe.
Maggots had swarmed it, but the hide was intact—and now he regretted not taking it.
Leather armor from that hide might've turned out excellent.
Satisfied with the dark spear for now, Hwan-in shifted to his next curiosity.
After getting permission from Brillit, who had finished disciplining and returned to the wagon, he inspected her spear. He also checked Dinte's, who was limping.
'Same material, same specs, so what was the difference?'
Brillit's thrust had clearly scarred the Grenier's hide, but Dinte's hadn't left a mark.
'Ephnis said awakening depends on aura presence. So Brillit is awakened?'
That would explain infusing the weapon with special power.
He wanted to ask, but hesitated.
Imagining Ssa or Brillit quizzing her on her abilities made him uncomfortable.
Remembering his parents' lesson—"If it bothers you, it bothers them"—Hwan-in held his tongue.
19 days left on the road. They'd grow closer naturally, and an opening to ask about awakening would come.
Ssa bought the three Grenier corpses Hwan-in had felled at a fair price.
"I have no way to take them anyway. Feel free, Ssa."
=Nonsense. As long as you're with our caravan, it's your right.=
Each sold for six silver coins—18 million won in earthly terms, a fortune.
Under Ssa's direction, the three porters skinned all six Greniers, stacking even the torn hides in the wagon.
With toughness shrugging off ordinary iron weapons, they made prime leather armor material.
They extracted all teeth, selected large bones like femurs and ribs. Meat was limited to thighs and ribs, bled and tied to the wagon's upper frame.
Not for natural drying—he explained it as travel rations.
=Grenier meat is delicious. Especially wind-dried like this—the longer, the richer the umami. Grill or boil it, perfection. Add distilled spirits... mmm.=
Smacking his lips, Ssa turned serious, gazing south.
=Beasts appearing here means a new labyrinth nearby. Close to Yulkam, so a bit worrying.=
...Labyrinths are born?
Hwan-in's curiosity surged, beyond modern understanding.
After a moment, he found a good excuse to ask.
"Labyrinths are born, you say?"
Ssa turned at the question, eyes saying "How do you not know?" as expected.
Hwan-in pulled out the same excuse he'd given Ryuhi: accident during transfer, fell into a labyrinth, from a distant place ignorant of local culture and customs.
"No labyrinths where I'm from. Fascinating."
Ssa accepted without suspicion.
The excuse worked perfectly; he even nodded as if past puzzles clicked.
=That explains asking about the Tribal Alliance's metal plates. Your hair, looks—unlike any race I know. Had me curious.=
Makes sense from far away, he seemed to think. Hwan-in felt a bit deflated.
From Ssa's reaction, undiscovered continents or regions surely existed.
Maybe better to keep using this excuse than pretend normalcy?
As he pondered, Ssa began spilling labyrinth info.
=Scholars concluded after ages of study: labyrinths are living beings. As you'd know... er, sorry. Ahem. Labyrinths yield treasures and materials. No materials? Valuable variant species inside. Or their byproducts sell.=
'variant species for labyrinth dwellers, huh.'
Labyrinth-adjacent land was fertile; massive labyrinths always had cities nearby.
'Like those hellish mountains by Crescent Moon—same reason.'
Monsters could spill out, so armies sealed perimeters, periodically cleared insides, or sent verified adventurers, mercenaries, warriors.
"Alive, so what do they eat?"
=The blood and flesh of entrants, along with aura from people or variant species.=
"......"
Aura purity from gold appraisal—related?
=Grown labyrinths reach underground 100 floors. More growth, better rewards—but riskier. Holy or capital cities manage theirs tightly.=
"Even managed, don't internal monsters fight and feed growth?"
=Oh, sharp deduction for a first-timer.=
Nodding, Ssa cleared his throat, voice lowering.
=Ancient times, they thought so. Sent hordes to clean, but sacrifices fed growth... Then Red Leaf School of the Tribal Alliance uncovered the secret!=
"...Secret."
=Yes. Hidden millennia. Human aura massively fuels growth...!=
Ssa menaced dramatically, but his cute cheetah face ruined it.
"So if they don’t consume variant species’ aura… does that mean labyrinths are kin to variant species?"
=Er... not a scholar, so dunno. Haha.=
Various hypotheses swirled, but irrelevant to him, so Hwan-in dropped it.
"Even managed, hunters or adventurers inside would fuel growth to doom, no? Cities have key facilities... safe?"
==Hm. Labyrinths burn aura to create variant species. Killing them and extracting their corpses helps. Adventurers drain far more aura than they put in.=
Like infinite mines.
But he'd asked about births; why physiology?
Hwan-in smiled, steering gently to spare storyteller Ssa's feelings.
"They pop up anywhere, huh? That's the vibe."
=Truth: no one knows exact birth cause. Types abound—stair, tomb, forest, mountain, lava, highland, ruin, natural—unclassified.=
Nearby cities dispatch troops or groups to assess risk/value, destroy or nurture.
Quite intriguing for Hwan-in.
'Enter labyrinths to fight strong foes?'
Army-worthy threats inside. Fresh ones—what like?
Lost in excitement, Dascon approached Ssa.
=Master. Greniers processed.=
=Good. Let's go. Soul Shaman, front seat?=
"Sure."
Perhaps spilling his backstory helped; learning norms eased greatly. Key questions flowed naturally without suspicion.
Of course, he didn't barrage. Only importants, woven casually into talk.
In the familiar wagon rumble, Hwan-in said comfortably,
"This info's valuable... Feels rude just listening."
=Heavens, no. We reap your blessings; we'd be the rude ones.=
Over five days to Lehil Village, they faced several fearless beast attacks.
Hwan-in wondered if usual, but Ssa said labyrinth-proximate beasts go erratic—would end post-destruction.
Each fight, he cast Spirit Possession lowest spirits on guards, supporting from rear.
Zero casualties; Ssa, guards, porters' goodwill maxed in Hwan-in's eyes.
'Earning favor's easy here.'
On Earth, nice-guy act drew endless demands: overtime, paperwork, loans, guarantees.
Eventually, he went curt; here, unlikely.
Ssa's group had motives too.
Their Soul Shaman: refined bearing, speech, dignity overflowing.
Ample force plus soul arts.
They pictured him a high noble of some tiger clan—courting favor consciously or not.
One day from Lehil.
"Something's off."
For the first time in this strange world, Hwan-in faced human malice.