Chapter 99
Chapter 99
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 99
Chapter Title: Currents Below the Surface
-----------------------------------------------------------------
After parting ways with Resim, Hwan-in spent the next few days wandering the central district according to his original plan, taking stock of the souls' numbers.
He considered getting a proper appraisal on the stone axe that the weapon shop owner had given a quick once-over, but since a full appraisal could cost anywhere from five silver coins to gold pieces depending on the item's grade, he decided to pass.
It was just a stone axe he'd been using roughly anyway, and he'd already learned its basic effects—increased durability and durability recovery—so he figured he could keep using it as he had been.
Anyway.
Hwan-in scoured every corner of the central district in search of souls.
With the whole city buzzing about the Soul Shaman these past few days, he couldn't exactly get active right now, but the more souls he observed, the more emotions he sensed, and the more resonances he performed, the better he sensed he'd understand the lingering attachments those souls harbored.
'And my own emotions, too.'
It had already been nearly a month since he'd started living in Wayford.
Hwan-in was half-convinced that the souls' emotions were starting to affect him as well.
He was a completely different person from the one who'd first fallen into this world.
Their ways of thinking were similar, sure, but now he found himself feeling faint flickers of liking or irritation or unease toward big and small things.
If these emotions kept piling up in a situation like this, what would become of him?
Would he end up like ordinary people, feeling joy and sorrow, laughing and crying and getting angry?
He couldn't even imagine what that version of himself would be like, but for now, he kept wandering in search of souls and trying to resonate with them.
Wayford had four public cemeteries.
He'd purified nearly all the souls in the Second Cemetery, but the other three still had plenty left, and while the streets didn't have a ton of wandering souls, there were more than a few.
The frustrating part was how the entire city was abuzz with talk of the Soul Shaman, making it hard to move freely.
If he acted now, his identity would be exposed in an instant, and any actions he took would face massive restrictions.
He had no interest in that kind of situation, so he'd stuck to quiet backstreets and alleys where people were scarce to gauge the soul count, but even then, he hadn't noticed any suspicious stares or pursuers.
'Just like Ssa said.'
He'd deliberately chosen sparsely populated areas for easier movement, yet there was no sign of the Bloodhide Clan approaching.
In any case, Hwan-in strolled along the well-paved roads—like something out of ancient Rome—taking in the buildings in the back alleys.
Even the back alleys in the central district were clean and got plenty of sunlight.
Buildings weren't allowed past a certain height to begin with, the gaps between them were wide, and they were a good distance from the second inner wall, so the sun bathed the ground evenly from morning till evening.
It felt nothing like the damp, musty vibe of shady back alleys without sunlight—more like a typical residential neighborhood.
He even spotted someone with a sack on their back picking up trash from the ground; a badge on their upper garment marked them as part of the administrative office, leaving Hwan-in quietly impressed.
'They even have sanitation workers.'
Making that much tax revenue must mean even the Ho Tribe pays attention to this stuff.
Come to think of it, most carriages on the roads had bags attached under the horses to catch their droppings, preventing messes anywhere.
Kue were pretty low on waste relative to what they ate and had a habit of doing their business in quiet spots, so they were excluded from the start.
Thanks to that, not only the city's roads but even village main streets stayed free of animal waste.
The waterways crossing villages and cities were always clean, laundry in general areas was only allowed at designated spots rather than anywhere along the riverbanks, owners were obligated to clean up after pets that soiled the streets, and there were things like septic tanks along with jobs to maintain them.
History books said hygiene awareness was a mess from ancient times before the Middle Ages, but lately new research and hypotheses were emerging.
Apparently, modern people and ancients alike had similar hygiene awareness, backed by historical records.
The only reason people back then seemed dirtier was because water wasn't as easily accessible as it is now.
By comparison, people in this world lived alongside superpowers.
Shwaaa—
A faint aura of a spellcaster emanated from the sanitation worker's fingertips as a gentle stream of water sprayed out. They brushed the wet spot, and the water evaporated quickly, taking the contaminants with it.
"......"
Even after awakening a superpower, growth wasn't infinite.
Just as aptitudes varied from person to person, so did growth limits—plenty of people topped out at rank 1.
Those folks couldn't even enter labyrinths easily, so they contributed to everyday society with their powers instead.
'With rank 1 professionals handling daily life like this, they can maintain hygiene on par with the modern world.'
Of course, not everyone was a professional. Regular folks carried sprayers on their backs, but that was beside the point.
Wayford's estimated population was 300,000, and awakeners appeared at a rate of about one in hundreds.
Even accounting for inflow from outside, the number of professionals in the city probably didn't exceed 1,000.
Not everyone who awakened loved fighting or had the talent for growth or access to training opportunities, so some just lived like the unemployed.
Lost in such thoughts, Hwan-in exited the back alley and blended into the crowd, heading to the nearest cemetery.
The closest was Wayford's Third Public Cemetery.
A brass nameplate engraved in bold script was affixed to the arch-shaped wooden entrance.
Like the Second Cemetery, there was basically no fence—just waist-high shrubs revealing mounds of varying heights across the grounds.
Scattered small trees and flowers blanketing the grass gave it the feel of an autumn hillside in many ways.
'......The Second Cemetery felt like a summer forest.'
After checking out the Fourth Cemetery next and visiting the First as well, Hwan-in thought Earth's cemeteries could use management like this.
Each cemetery was themed around a season, making them look like seasonal parks.
The First had a spring vibe with a small pond. The Second was summer forest. The Third, a petite autumn hill. The Fourth, a winter flower garden.
Having inspected all four cemeteries and the central district for souls, Hwan-in realized that the groundskeepers—or perhaps the shrines—were influencing the souls' self-awareness.
Souls wandering the central streets roamed in a dazed state like those in Yukam or Etbrook villages, but cemetery souls had clear awareness, chatting among themselves or whatever. That had to be why.
The groundskeepers' abdominal warmth—their soul energy—was three to five times higher than non-groundskeepers, so the souls might be influenced by that power, or the shrines could have some special force aiding soul awareness.
Ielcata, whom he'd mingled with intimately over the past few days, crossed his mind.
Thanks to embracing her and absorbing her soul energy every day for three days straight, hers had diminished quite a bit.
If soul energy affected soul consciousness, would the remaining souls in the Second Cemetery grow hazy like those outside the grounds?
=Will the Soul Shaman show up tonight too?=
=I hope so. And I hope he visits our house.=
=Your grandma passed recently, right?=
=Yeah...... I miss her.=
"......"
Walking the streets, he'd already overheard dozens of similar conversations just today.
Surprisingly, even the cemetery souls were gossiping about the Soul Shaman's appearance.
By now, he had a decent grasp on how this world worked—basic customs, people's mindsets and habits.
But knowing didn't mean understanding.
He could use superpowers now and saw people who looked nothing like Earthlings every day, yet nothing felt familiar. Why was that?
As he mulled it over, evening came. He stopped by Ssa's mansion to pick up Emergency Rations and got invited to dinner, enjoying a lively family meal with Ssa's kin.
Back at Olts Hotel with Emergency Rations, Hwan-in suddenly realized he'd been relying on Ssa more and more lately.
Sure, he'd saved the man's life twice and shared some profits, but Hwan-in had received plenty too (ID issuance, city tour, knowledge sharing).
If he kept freeloading like this, a sense of debt would kick in, and annoyance would rear its head again.
"......"
He pondered ways to settle the debt, but nothing came to mind.
The only idea was to reveal his identity before leaving Wayford and disclose his connection to Ssa to build him a contact......
'That'd just hinder my future activities. Can't keep it as an option.'
After requesting a bath service and sinking up to his neck in the hot tub to sort his thoughts, Hwan-in chose an option his old self never would've considered.
'I'll take what he gives, and pay back the debt when the chance comes later.'
[Kyaa! Ah, no. Stay still...... a bit!]
[Kuet! Kuwoot!]
Flutter flap! Splash!
[It's not hot! The water's lukewarm......?!]
Flutter flutter—crash! Shwaaa—
[Mom! Kyaaak?!]
[Kue~!]
Hwan-in let out a small sigh at the commotion outside the bathroom and emerged in a bathrobe.
What he witnessed was a scene straight out of "total disaster."
An overturned bucket flooding the bathroom floor.
A drenched maid with a tearful face, soaked from head to toe.
Emergency Rations, looking pathetic like a half-washed cat, flapping wet wings in a tantrum.
Kueeek~!
Roaring like a dinosaur, it scattered water droplets like buckshot with every wing flap.
The maid shielded her face with both arms, then spotted Hwan-in and whimpered.
=S-Sir~.=
Maybe he shouldn't have asked her to bathe Emergency Rations. The little guy had gotten filthy playing with Ssa's kids, so he'd requested it.
Hwan-in wrapped Emergency Rations in a towel and scooped it up.
"I'll take care of this one. Clean up the floor."
=Y-Yes!=
Watching the maid, who looked like she'd been spared execution, grab cleaning tools from the cart to mop the flooded floor, Hwan-in sniffed the now-docile bundle in his arms.
'No smell anymore.'
This was the same Emergency Rations that had bathed unscathed in the icy mountain stream of the Twin Peaks.
Back in the bathroom, Hwan-in gently rinsed it with cold water, toweled the feathers, and smoothed the ruffled ones.
Kue~.
As it let out a low, pleased croon at his touch, Hwan-in asked,
"You can stay still like this, so why the fuss earlier?"
Ket! Kuet! Kueeek!
He stared at its indignant protests, then chuckled.
"Mad because they messed up your feathers?"
Kuet!
"......"
Fair enough—even people get annoyed if you brush their hair from bottom to top. And from what he'd seen, they'd done worse than that, thoroughly tousling them.
"Alright, last rinse—close your eyes."
Shwaa—
Kue~!
As cold water poured over its head, Emergency Rations let out a short whine, then shook its whole body like a happy puppy, thrilled.
"Heh heh."
Were even the down feathers under the outer ones soaked? Looking bedraggled like a drowned cat, it tilted its head at Hwan-in, who was suddenly chuckling at it.
Why's he laughing? Clueless about its own pitiful state, Emergency Rations got wrapped in a dry towel. As Hwan-in stepped out, he saw the maid standing primly in the now-spotless bathroom.
She clearly hoped for a paid service tip, but the problem was her uniform—and likely her undergarments—were utterly soaked.
Hwan-in handed her a silver coin.
"Thanks for washing Emergency Rations. Use this for laundry."
=Thank you! Um, then the paid service......?=
"Not in that state. Next time."
=Y-Yes.=
Her face said "It's fine anyway!" but unable to defy a guest, the squirrel-eared maid trudged out with a sullen expression.
Hwan-in had planned to meet Ielcata right after his bath, but drying Emergency Rations' feathers delayed him a bit.
Not by much, though. By deep night, when streets were empty of pedestrians, he left the hotel with his fluffy charge in tow...
"......Closed for the day?"
For some reason, chains barred the Second Cemetery entrance, restricting access.
Had something happened to Ielcata? Or had it leaked that she was traveling with the Soul Shaman?
Pondering by the "No Entry" sign, a cotton-clothed woman approached from inside the cemetery, lantern in hand.
=Hello~. Excuse me, sir, could you tell me your name?=
"Hwan-in."
=Ah. You've finally come. We've been waiting.=
"......Is something wrong with Ms. Ielcata?"
=Yes. The groundskeeper caught a rare cold. It's a stubborn summer one, and to avoid spreading it, she asked to relay that she can't meet today or tomorrow.=
'I didn't drain her soul energy enough to weaken her immunity that much......'
Puzzled but acknowledging it, Hwan-in returned to the hotel.
The next day.
Thanks to diligently roaming daily without fail for a month, Hwan-in achieved his knowledge goal sooner than expected.
'This puts me at the level of a minority race unfamiliar with local customs.'
Resim had seen him that way, as had Isilite, Brillit, Ssa, high-end brothel courtesans, and hotel maids.
Even if he slipped on some Ho Tribe customs, they'd chalk it up to a traveling minority's mistake and let it slide.
'Now, then......'
Time to resume training, which he'd postponed for knowledge gathering.
It wasn't just because more people were hunting the Soul Shaman.
'Haven't done much meditation or mental focus lately.'
Fighting the Urger had made him acutely aware of his physical limits, and sparring Haien Jod had driven home the gap between him and close-combat professionals.
Normally, you'd focus on superpower growth over evident physical limits—more rational that way.
But Hwan-in didn't neglect physical training.
With Soul Possession boosting his dynamic vision and reflexes, he could reliably beat rank 5s at least.
Stronger superpowers would make it easier, and defense could be handled with pricey enchanted gear.
That left him with no shortage of training: physical conditioning aside, meditation and mental focus, soul purification, soul skill practice, resonance for spiritual sense enhancement, and soul energy absorption.
'Mental focus and meditation today.'
He'd squeezed in 10-20 minutes daily, but it wasn't nearly enough.
During breaks, playing with Emergency Rations now and then while clutching the pearl stone and repeating meditation and focus, Hwan-in got a front desk call around lunchtime: two visitors looking for him.
'Two? Bloodhide Clan?'
Guessing their identity, he changed into the black shirt and beige slacks from the tailor shop and headed downstairs.
The two women seated on the lobby sofa rose in unison.
One was a stranger in a suit with red bear ears; the other...
=Hello.=
...Haien Jod, waving lightly with her spiked-gloved hand.