Chapter 82
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: The Cure and the Farewell
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Plop.
Splat.
The corpses that had been menacingly surrounding the meeting hall until the very end collapsed one after another.
Kang Seol turned to Karen, who wore a stern expression.
"...Well done."
"What?"
"For not forgiving him."
She was still furious with Gunt.
Kang Seol placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Calm down. The villagers are already scared enough."
"Remember what Gunt said?"
"He blabbered so much, I can't recall it all."
"He said something like, if you're weak, you don't even have the right to be evil."
"...I remember."
Gunt's circumstances had indeed been unfortunate.
But that didn't excuse his atrocities.
It was just the desperate cry of a villain full of resentment.
Yet one line from him stuck in Kang Seol's throat like a fishbone.
If you're weak... do you lose even the right to be evil?
What are you...
Because we're weak, do we have to be good and meekly accept the lives we're given?
Karen rubbed her forehead.
To her, it seemed shocking that someone so weak had harbored such endless malice and acted on it.
"Was it his struggle to escape his own fate?"
"Even if it was, Gunt chose the wrong path and sank even deeper."
"Yeah."
With that, Kang Seol rummaged through Gunt's corpse.
Shff.
Fortunately, the liquid preserved in the sturdy vial remained intact.
[Acquired Sleeping Potion.]
[Hypocrite's Relic has been generated.]
[The adventure can be concluded once the time limit expires or a reward is selected.]
Kang Seol would normally end the adventure at this point.
But instead of checking his rewards, he headed to the house where Gunt had been staying.
Clunk.
The door to Gunt's lodging opened easily, as if he customarily left it unlocked despite his boldness.
Finding what he wanted went more smoothly than expected.
"Found it."
[Acquired Gunt's Bag.]
Kang Seol naturally handed the bag to Karen.
Along with it, he passed her a dagger he carried for throwing.
"Check it."
"Hold on..."
Stab.
When Karen slightly tore open the bag's handle, powder wrapped in cloth became visible.
"Looks like it."
"Let's go to the villagers."
They approached the meeting hall.
Jamad was arguing with the people across the hall's door.
"Ugh... stay back! You monster!"
"Not wrong, but welcoming the fairy while shunning the troll stings a bit."
Kang Seol chuckled and walked over to Jamad.
Jamad spoke to Kang Seol like a kid tattling to the teacher about mischief made by a peer.
"They're calling me a monster."
"They're just scared."
"Hmph. This is why I don't like humans much. Everything revolves around them. They think the universe spins for their sake."
"Maybe."
"Whatever. Job's done, so I'm off to sleep. Good luck to the end, fairy."
Karen nodded.
Whether the ordeal had sobered her playfulness, she didn't tease as usual.
Swish!
As Jamad vanished into his shadow space, Kang Seol knocked on the meeting hall door where the villagers were gathered.
"It's safe now. You can come out."
"Really? No more of those monsters?"
"They're all down and not moving."
"Teacher Gunt... I mean, Gunt?"
"...He's dead."
"......"
Creeeak...
An elder from the village closed his eyes, murmuring as he gazed at the scattered corpses reeking foully, wrinkling noses.
"Heavens... how could this happen..."
"...It's all over."
"All this... Gunt the devil did this?"
Kang Seol nodded.
He counted the people emerging from the hall, confirming no one was harmed.
"Gunt had the antidote."
"Antidote...?"
"For the mist plague."
"...My god. Is, is there enough?"
"Enough for everyone in the village."
"Uh... what about the other villages then?"
Kang Seol shook his head.
"He confessed he killed them all. Used this house call as an excuse to turn everyone into those monsters."
"No way... Gunt was a true monster!"
"Anyway, we need to hurry and prepare to administer the antidote to the patients."
"Got it! Everyone, move! Help this man out!"
From then on, things proceeded smoothly.
Some villagers loaded the corpses onto carts, piled them in one spot, and burned them.
Gunt was among them.
A massive cauldron filled with water.
They gathered clean cloths and meticulously wiped down the bodies of the most critical patients.
Plop.
Glug glug...
Thick, dense liquid poured into the cauldron, soon turning the water milky.
Kang Seol poured some into another glass vial to inspect.
A medicine effective only against specific symptoms.
Created by Gunt.
No major issues even if misused.
Special Effect: Recovers from the Sleeping Plague.
Straightforward and easy-to-understand effects.
Kang Seol nodded, confirming the potion's legitimacy.
Once verified, the potion was divided into portions, bottled, and distributed to all patients.
Gulp... gulp...
Caregivers gently massaged the patients' throats to ensure they swallowed without spitting it back up.
Time passed, and once all tasks were complete, the villagers and Kang Seol watched over them from the meeting hall.
And then.
"Ugh... ugh..."
"Hngh..."
The patients began to wake.
"I-it's real!"
"The medicine works!"
"Thank you... thank you, sob... hic..."
"Salvation! A miracle like this!"
As people regained their senses, Karen and Kang Seol's attention was fixed on one woman.
The woman who had helped Kang Seol settle smoothly into Mist Village and steadied Karen's anxious heart while staying there.
"Sera, wake up. Time to get out of that sleep."
Karen grasped Sera's cold hand and bowed her head.
In contrast to the surrounding cries praising the miracle, Kang Seol and Karen's silence grew heavier.
Twitch.
"...Huh?"
Twitch... twitch...
"Her fingers are moving! Sera, wake up!"
Karen excitedly gripped her hand tighter.
"Ugh... hurts... sis... ter..."
"S-Sera! You're awake?"
"You're... squeezing too hard."
"Oh, sorry. I'll let go."
Sera's eyes slowly fluttered open.
[Healed all survivors of Mist Village.]
[Achievement: 'Overcoming the Plague' unlocked.]
[Acquired title 「Quack Doctor」.]
Freed from this hell ㅠㅠ
What a nightmare that Gunt bastard put us through!!
Sera arduously propped her creaky body up against the bedhead.
"I... ended up falling asleep after all?"
"Yeah. You were out cold until just now."
"...I see. But how did I wake up?"
"Well..."
Suddenly, conversations halted as everyone focused on Kang Seol's words.
He was the one who ended it all, the one fit to explain its meaning.
Only he had that right.
"We found the antidote."
"Ah! Did Teacher Gunt manage it? Thank goodness..."
"......"
"Where's Teacher Gunt?"
Choices scrolled before Kang Seol's eyes.
Sera of Mist Village asks about Gunt. How will you respond?
1. This was all Gunt's doing.
2. Gunt's a devil! He dragged you to hell.
3. The villagers banded together to drive out the monster.
4. Gunt is dead.
...
Kang Seol told her,
"Teacher Gunt left."
"Huh? He left?"
"The world's not short on sick people just here. He said he won't be back."
"No way... without even saying goodbye..."
The villagers eyed Kang Seol.
Hoping he'd denounce Gunt as a devil.
But while it might vent their anger, it would wound Sera.
Karen grasped Kang Seol's hand.
She didn't want Sera hurt further. She wanted to shield her from the world's darkness, show only the light for now.
"Sera, Teacher Gunt said to take care."
"...That's good. Huh? What's that fire over there?"
With corpses buried in a pit and burning, smoke billowed visibly from anywhere in the village.
"Just burning some stuff."
"Oh, things used by the patients."
"Something like that."
"Just looking at it warms me up."
Karen took Sera's hand and said,
"The bad dreams are over now, Sera."
Having wrapped up, Kang Seol's party moved to a base the next day.
After the bitter lesson from the long-distance adventure before, Kang Seol aimed for the nearby city of Audenin to use base-to-base travel.
It would take some walking time, but using carriages from the base would save much more.
Karen, perhaps reflecting on yesterday, blurted to Kang Seol,
"Thanks."
"For what?"
"For saying that."
"That Gunt left?"
"Yeah."
"He did leave, after all."
Since he went to hell.
Gunt was straight-up terrifying ㅡㅡ
What's scary lol? Sleep with mom and it's fine
Not super strong, but someone you don't wanna fight.
Real black-hearted villain.
The dialogue was creepier !
Snowman's mental game's insane. For real;;
Karen chuckled at Kang Seol's words and patted his shoulder.
"I'll give you 1 point."
"What score?"
"Fill it up, and I'll serve you for real."
"Now that's intriguing. Out of how many?"
"100."
"How many now?"
"1."
Damn No deal!
(serious) Quitting this crazy chicken game.
Grading's brutal hahaha
No This is training montage meta hahaha she'll give 100k at the end
Gryffindor cheering score 1 million~!
For real hahaha
Jamad, carrying the reward chest from this adventure, chimed in.
"Give it up, Snowman. Don't humor the fairy."
What is this? Future me speaking? No way!
S...T...A...Y...
Jamad's a true gukbap summoner!
Ditch this romcom already!
"Quiet down, troll."
"Tch, so when do we open this?"
"Heavy? Want me to carry it?"
"...Shut up."
The reason they hadn't opened the reward chest yet was Karen's suggestion: don't open something so ominous from a horrific event right there in Mist Village—take it far away first.
"Kidding. Alright, let's..."
"Karen, catch."
"Hm? A letter?"
"Sera was too shy to give it in the village. Said to hand it to you once we're out."
Shff.
Kang Seol handed the letter to Karen.
Karen and Kang Seol read it together.
Hi, sis? Not sure if Snowman did as I asked.
Thanks to you two, the village and I are all happy. Truly grateful.
Truth is, I wrote this because I had something to say to you. Surprised?
From the moment I saw you, I admired you. You're closest to my dream! So stunningly beautiful, so incredibly strong. I've been frail since childhood, always wanting to be strong.
If I get strong, more people might rely on me, right? I'm weak and slow, so sometimes people get frustrated.
What does it feel like to be strong? Can you bring hope to those suffering in this harsh world? I may never know, but I want to.
You're strong, sis. Someday, you'll know the answers I wonder about. When that time comes, even if just passing by, stop in and tell me.
Someday, will a world come where no one suffers?
Karen's grip tightened on the letter.
Kang Seol and Karen, reaching the last line, recalled someone's words.
Gunt's.
Heroes are lazy. They didn't save me. Me... me...
Kang Seol asked Karen,
"What're you thinking?"
As she carefully folded the letter away, she replied,
"Something like... gotta get busier? Troll! To celebrate me getting diligent, open that chest now! Put it down!"
"...You're impossible to pin down. Earlier you said manners dictate waiting with that near-death look."
"Hey! No backtalk! We'll power-level off the new gear! Open it up!"
Hey, you crying?
(head under desk) Guys! This dude's lucky hahaha Sob hahaha
No, not crying! (bawling)
Don't piss off Jamad hahaha
Jamad's got great personality
Cuz he's a troll... that thing... trollness is good
Yeah, trollness is great
Karen kicked open the chest Jamad set down.
Clunk.
Whoosh!
[Checking Hypocrite's Relic.]