The Heavenly Demon Goes Sightseeing in Murim (7)
When I lifted the corners of my mouth into a smirk, the spirit bristled and squared her shoulders. At the same time, the ears atop her head stood up straight. It was fascinating. What principle made them move like that?
Whether she knew of my curiosity or not, the spirit spoke in a dignified voice.
“This seat is Mint Choco Pineapple Pizza.”
The moment I tried to speak my real name, my mouth moved on its own and uttered the in-game username instead. It was an irresistible force, as if some kind of restraint had been placed on me.
“What did you say?”
The spirit frowned at my words and stammered, repeating my name.
“Mint cho… what?”
Hwaryeong. Baek Hwaryeong. Baek Ara. And so on.
I tried countless times to say my own name, but—
“Mint Choco Pineapple Pizza.”
My avatar in the game would only speak the username I had chosen at the start. I even attempted to use reverse martial arts to forcibly move my lips, yet I was powerless before the game’s enforced restrictions.
What in the world? Had they set it so that no name other than the username could be spoken?
Wait a moment. Did that mean I would have to live inside this game as Mint Choco Pineapple Pizza?
If I had known this would happen, I would have chosen a more normal name! No wonder the viewers had burst into laughter when I picked it.
While I inwardly cursed the ones who had tricked me, the spirit tried several more times to pronounce my name before finally letting out a sigh. It seemed her tongue kept twisting, preventing her from saying it properly. I understood. The words “Mint Choco Pineapple Pizza” were made of a language that did not exist in this Murim world. Had I heard such a name, I too would have been bewildered.
“Do as you wish.”
“The only one here was this seat.”
As I watched the spirit tilt her head in confusion, something suddenly occurred to me. I drew the sword at my waist. If there was anything on me that might radiate the aura of an immortal, it would be none other than the one Geomseon had given me.
When she saw the blade, the spirit let out a gasp of admiration and clapped her hands.
“Was it not this that you sensed?”
Other than this, I had no other guesses. Come to think of it, after finishing the tutorial I had obtained something called an Immortal Fragment. Could it be related to that?
“It was.”
The spirit looked me up and down, then nodded to herself before quietly stepping closer. She rummaged through her robes and pulled out a small gourd and two drinking cups.
Spirits were closer to conceptual beings than actual people. Born as spirits, they took on human-like forms yet possessed values entirely different from humans. Even I did not fully understand their way of thinking. Meeting and conversing with them was no easy task. However, I did know one thing: when a spirit offered alcohol, it was almost always because they wanted to push some troublesome matter onto someone else.
Judging by the awkward smile and sudden offer of a drink with no context whatsoever, it seemed this one’s intentions were similar.
“...I have no such request!”
The spirit tried to deny it, but her trembling voice and wandering eyes proved otherwise. I simply stared at her without saying a word. Gradually, her body began to shrink. Before long, with her ears drooping like an abandoned puppy, she spoke in a voice that sounded almost like a plea.
“I will decide after hearing it.”
The spirit’s explanation was rather vague. The idea of making plum blossoms bloom on that rugged rocky mountain, or the claim that the blossoms must not be allowed to bloom—both sounded like metaphors for something. Yet it seemed the spirit before me lacked the ability to interpret them. It looked like I would have to decipher it myself.
Let me see. What was happening at Mount Hua around this time?
Back then, I had been holed up in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, completely preoccupied with dealing with the cult members and elders. I had not been very sensitive to news from the outside world. Since my revenge was mostly complete by that point, my only concern had been figuring out how to escape the cult. Still, holding the title of Heavenly Demon meant a considerable amount of information reached my ears. Among it was news regarding Mount Hua.
Aha. Yes. I remember now. The leader of the Blood Cult had been plotting something at Mount Hua, and the aftermath had led to the complete annihilation of the Mount Hua Sect. My memory was not exact, but it had been something along those lines. In other words, the wicked ones were the lackeys of the Blood Cult, and “making plum blossoms bloom” was a metaphor for their scheme.
I did not know the exact details, but there seemed to be more than enough reason to head to Mount Hua. If that bastard Blood Cult Leader was involved, I had to go interfere. However, there was one thing I needed to ask first.
“Truly?”
This seat was not some benevolent philanthropist. I did want to ruin the Blood Cult’s plans, but that was all. There was no absolute need to torment them. Whether Mount Hua fell or not was likewise none of my concern. It was not an important matter to me. Right now, the urgent one was the spirit. If she could not present suitable compensation, I would turn away without the slightest hesitation.
“Unnecessary.”
The Gongcheong Seogyu currently sleeping in my pocket was more than enough to serve that purpose.
“That is also unnecessary.”
Even if she offered real-world wealth, I would remain indifferent. There was no way I would eagerly accept game currency. The spirit listed various items, but none of them caught my interest.
It was unfortunate, but such was the way of the world—things rarely went exactly as planned. The moment I turned to leave, the spirit desperately grabbed my collar.
What the spirit held out was an old scroll. At first glance it looked unremarkable, yet it contained the same mysterious aura I had sensed from her. It was no ordinary object.
It held such power? If that was true, it certainly piqued my interest. But how could I trust the words of this being?
The moment doubt formed in my mind, as if reading my thoughts, a window appeared before me.
Plum Blossoms of Mount Hua
Mount Hua stands on the brink of annihilation. If you do not help, its name may truly vanish into the pages of history. Assist the spirit and save Mount Hua.
Reward: Scroll That Pursues Desire
Hmm. So this was her way of proving that what she said was true. I would let myself be fooled just this once. Besides, she had given me that hairpin last time.
“Suddenly?”
“You will accept the request?! Really?!”
“No, no! Here, take it quickly. I shall let you taste the wine of a spirit!”
The spirit hurriedly poured the alcohol and practically forced the cup into my hand. When I drank it, a subtly sweet yet bitter flavor filled my mouth. I could not tell if it was good or bad, but it was certainly not to my taste. What I liked to drink tended to be much sweeter.
You have accepted the quest.
With this, it was confirmed. Even inside the game, I could taste flavors. Hmm. Then perhaps there were games that let one experience gourmet cuisine. If such a game existed, it would be quite intriguing.
“What is it? I shall answer anything!”
If it had been only one of them, I would have thought it merely a personal habit. But since all spirits behaved the same way, there had to be a reason.
When I asked this, the spirit blinked.
“...It is not that. Offering alcohol is a kind of custom for us. Before making a request, we must first offer something delicious to put the other party in a good mood.”
Even though I did not claim deep knowledge of alcohol, I could not agree that this was good.
“It is you who lacks experience. Living shut away in the mountains, you call something like this delicious liquor. In the modern era, there are countless things far superior to this.”
It seemed the spirit thought “modern” referred to the name of the region I came from. Finding her naïve reaction amusing, I began telling her about the various foods that existed in the modern world. Since I had never wasted a single mealtime after arriving in the modern era, I had more than enough to talk about.
The spirit listened with a fascinated expression. At one point she even drooled while listening to my descriptions, then quickly wiped her mouth with her sleeve.
“Are you not a spirit? Have you never been to paradise?”
As we chatted, the time had somehow reached four in the morning. It was about time to leave. There was nothing left to do if I stayed inside the game any longer.
When I stood up and brushed the dirt off my clothes, the girl naturally stuck close to my side. Why was she following me? Shouldn’t a spirit be guarding this mountain? I looked at her with that question in my eyes, and she tilted her head as if asking what was wrong.
If that is not it, then say something. Speak. You may look cute, but the affairs of the world cannot be resolved with cuteness alone, you fool.