Chapter 74

Late that night, Colson waited anxiously. The moment the door opened, he grabbed the subordinate coming in and demanded,

"What did you find?"

"Sir. They confirmed that Peron has been seen roaming around the seventeenth village."

"The seventeenth? That's Antarian Federation territory."

"Yes, sir."

"Of all the places he could have gone... Cunning bastard."

Colson ground his teeth at the report.

The Antarian Federation was a power formed by three small kingdoms: Tekan, Esten, and Dalus. Individually, those kingdoms were lacking in many respects, but together, the federation rivaled the five great kingdoms.

'Unlike the other kingdoms, the federation is the only place on the central continent where players can't interfere.'

The five great kingdoms currently coexisted with players, from the raid groups tackling the Labyrinth Tower to those involved with the Red Tower, alchemy, and Druids. As a result, players often occupied key positions in those kingdoms.

The small kingdoms, however, allowed absolutely no player involvement. NPCs managed every aspect of their administration, leaving players with very limited options beyond basic activities such as hunting.

'You can't even establish a clan in the small kingdoms... What is he scheming?'

It was deeply suspicious, but there was little Colson could do for now.

"And what about the matter I mentioned last time?"

"I've put trustworthy men on it, sir."

"He'll have a separate main account... But his alt might have reached the central continent by now, too. Contact every administrator in the villages near the portals."

"Understood."

'Whew... Damn it. There's less than a day left.'

TAP. TAP.

Colson's leg shook with anxiety.

'Surely he isn't still in the Dark Forest?'

He actually hoped Woojin would hurry up and level up enough to reach the central continent.

'Then I could crush that bastard, whatever it takes.'

DING.

It happened just then.

"... Huh?"

[A Message has arrived.]

The instant Colson opened his inbox, he shot to his feet in shock.

"F-fucking hell...!!!"

"W-what's wrong, sir?"

His subordinate stared at him in bewilderment.

"Who's overseeing Thorn Bach right now?"

"Thorn Bach... That would be the Shuran Knights."

"Aitz Shuran? Thank goodness it's that moron, at least."

"... Sir?"

"We're leaving for Thorn Bach right now. We have to get there before they do!!!"

Colson broke into a frantic run.

* * *

CREEEAK.

"Come out."

As the cell door opened, Weden laboriously lifted his head from where he lay.

"H-how could they..."

Standing behind Woojin, Ruen covered her mouth in shock at Weden's condition, then hurried over. She put an intermediate potion to his lips, making him gulp it down, and poured more over his wounds.

"G-ghh...!"

Smoke rose from his wounds. Though he writhed in pain, his dreadful condition improved considerably.

"Boss..."

"Remember me?"

"Of course. But how did you get here...?"

"I came for a quest and happened to spot you. It took me a while to get the key from the Captain."

Weden blinked at him.

"That vicious bastard gave you the key? That can't be..."

"He refused at first, but he handed it over after I asked a few times."

"Asked?"

"Yeah. I waited outside the shrine and killed him about thirty times before he gave it to me. Something about not being able to hunt on the central continent if he died any more..."

Woojin spoke so casually that Weden couldn't help laughing despite his disbelief.

"What happened? They said you borrowed some equipment here and lost it."

"W-well..."

Weden's lips trembled, and he choked back tears.

"I got PKed as soon as I arrived on the central continent. Those bastards were vicious! They'd split into groups and were waiting in front of the portal."

His attackers had exploited the system that made players respawn in front of the portal unless they reached a village and registered a new Shrine of the Revived.

"After they killed me over and over, I begged them. I pleaded with them to let me go."

"And?"

"When I finally reached the village after losing all my equipment... the militia offered to lend me some. They said this sort of thing happened all the time on the central continent."

Listening to Weden, Woojin smacked his lips. It left a dry, unpleasant taste, as though he were chewing a mouthful of sand.

"But then..."

He didn't need to hear the rest.

"Those attackers took all the borrowed equipment, too?"

"... Yes."

'He was set up.'

It was an obvious scheme, but the victim was helpless once caught in it.

'The attackers and the militia must all be in on it together.'

"You should've at least sent Gareth a Message. He's not the sort to turn you away when you need help."

"Well... he told me to come to the White Tavern. I wanted to get at least that far on my own."

Was he stupid, or just naive...?

Woojin let out a quiet sigh, looking at Weden, who still thought that way even after ending up like this.

"You've been through a lot."

He wanted to say much more, but held it in and gently patted Weden's shoulder.

"Karlan. Would you take Weden to the inn?"

"Y-yes, of course."

"If there's a priest or an alchemist in the village, have them treat him. His health is back, but he's still in no shape to move around."

"Let's go."

"B-but..."

Weden rose with Karlan's support and addressed Woojin worriedly.

"I'll get your lost equipment back, too. Go rest for a while."

Weden nodded silently.

"... Master."

"What?"

"N-no. Nothing."

After Weden left, Ruen watched Woojin with a tense expression.

"I... have a feeling this is going to turn into something big."

Setsuna, too, seemed to sense the anger radiating from him. She slipped behind Ruen's shoulder and spoke in a low voice.

CLICK. CLACK.

There were several more people in the jail in circumstances similar to Weden's.

"Th-thank you!!"

"We're out!!"

With no way to escape, they said they had finally given up and begun raising money in the real world.

"Let everyone else out before you go."

"Yes, sir!!"

Keeping only the key to the final cell, Woojin tossed the remaining ring of keys to the prisoners, who kept bowing their thanks.

"Here it is."

Woojin stood before the last cell.

CLICK.

The moment he inserted the key and turned it, a voice cried out,

"D-don't open it!!"

That was rather different from the reactions in the other cells.

"Everyone else is desperate to get out. What's wrong?"

"... If I'm around, this village will be destroyed. This is where I belong."

"I don't know. With all this trash piled up and walking around, I'd say it's already as ruined as it can get."

BANG!!

Woojin threw open the cell door.

"You don't have a choice, even if you object. When I came through the portal, I got a quest to meet you."

"A quest...? That divine revelation you Outlanders talk about?"

"More or less."

As Woojin raised his head, the man in the cell hurriedly covered his face with a blanket from the floor.

"I-I said don't come any closer!!"

But Woojin pulled back the blanket wrapped around Nissen.

"...?!!"

Woojin's eyes widened.

"E-eek!!"

Nissen hastily pulled the blanket over himself again and scrambled into a corner of the cell.

[You have encountered Nissen.]

[Quest complete.]

[Quest Name: Nissen of Thorn Bach]

"What I just saw..."

Woojin addressed the hiding man in a trembling voice.

DING!!

At that moment, a notification sounded.

[A chain quest has been issued.]

[Quest Name: Nissen of Thorn Bach → Nissen the Cursed]

'What, I don't even get to refuse?'

A mandatory quest...

Absurd as the situation was, the notifications no longer mattered to Woojin.

"G-go away!!"

"Sorry, but that's not an option for me."

With a sweeping motion, Woojin stripped away the blanket Nissen had wrapped around himself.

Silver hair shimmered like feathers. Nissen looked at him with yellow eyes like a cat's, and smooth, gleaming scales like a snake's covered half his face.

'Just as I thought...'

"Go back! If you stay near me... you'll be cursed and die!!"

Nissen flailed both arms, trying to retrieve the blanket Woojin had taken, but Woojin threw it far away instead.

"E-eek?!"

"That's not a curse."

"... Huh?"

Woojin placed the [Pilgrim’s Cross] against Nissen's forehead.

[Using Pilgrim’s Cross.]

▶ Remove Curse activates.

▶ Purification activates.

Light spilled from the cross and enveloped Nissen, but nothing changed.

"This is a church item that can purify and remove curses. But you saw that, didn't you? Nothing happened."

"B-but... people who stayed with me got sick. Look at me! What could be more hideous than this?!"

Nissen shouted in a tear-choked voice.

"Urgh...!!"

Suddenly, Ruen covered her mouth and began to gag.

"S-sorry... Urgh!!!"

Unable to hold it back any longer, she rushed out of the cell, braced herself against the wall, and began to vomit.

"I'm dizzy..."

Setsuna was suffering just as badly.

"See?! They've been cursed because they stayed near me!!!"

"Then why am I fine?"

"... What?"

Woojin gave Nissen a peculiar smile.

"Your skin... It wasn't always like that, was it?"

"Uh..."

["These scales? They're a reaction to drinking Fairy Water."]

The moment Woojin saw Nissen's face, he remembered what Irurin had said. The scales she had shown him on her wrist were identical to those now covering Nissen's face.

"How did you end up like this?"

"I-I don't know... I just went up the mountain to gather herbs like usual... Then my whole body suddenly started changing..."

"Herbs?"

"Yes. I'm an apprentice mage, but... I'm not very good, so I barely make a living gathering herbs in the mountains. That's why I climb up there every day."

"You must have good stamina."

"What?"

"I mean you might become a more useful mage than you'd think. Not many mages have the stamina to back up their magic."

Nissen stared at Woojin, unable to understand what he was talking about.

"Have you drunk any water that was different from what you usually drink?"

"... Water? I'm not sure. Whenever I take a break from gathering, I always drink from a stream deep in the mountain, so I shouldn't have..."

Nissen shook his head uncertainly.

"Where's that mountain? Take me there. We might find a clue."

"Do you know much about curses?"

"This isn't a curse."

["But you have to be careful. Fairy Water is as dangerous as it is powerful, so you must use only the tiniest amount. Otherwise..."]

Irurin had clearly told Woojin this in Ratan's laboratory.

["It could cause mana chaos."]

"... Mana chaos?"

"The mana inside your body boils up and leaks out. People have been suffering because the mana around you has grown so dense. But it doesn't affect someone without mana."

Nissen looked baffled by his words.

"That's impossible! I'm only an apprentice!"

"You might have been before, but not anymore."

Fairy Water was an even better mana catalyst than the Dragon Mana Stone he had obtained in Ratan's laboratory.

"Climbing the mountain every day to gather herbs may have been a stroke of luck. The fact that your body survived mana chaos means you're physically strong."

Woojin held out a hand to Nissen.

"Come with me. I'll cure you."

Nissen's gaze wavered. This was the first time. Everyone in the village had treated him like a cursed monster...

"Can I... really get better?"

"Of course."

At Woojin's answer, Nissen tightly grasped his hand.

[Nissen wishes to follow you.]

[You can now recruit Nissen.]

[Would you like to add Nissen to your party?]

Name: Nissen

Class: Apprentice Mage of Thorn Bach

Level: 50

Strength 55 Agility 60

Constitution 70 Mana ??

Dexterity 65 Potential 50/50 (??)

Conviction 30 Tactics 30

Total Points: 380

Traits: Perseverance, Steadfastness, Pain Resistance, Herb Gathering

As expected, years of climbing up and down the mountain had given him excellent physical abilities despite being a mage. But one thing stood out.

'His mana stat shows question marks?'

It meant that his mana reserves were too enormous to measure.

[This NPC is currently suffering from mana chaos.]

[Potential may change depending on the results of treatment for mana chaos.]

'Huh...?'

Woojin read the notifications that had appeared in the status window. Unlike those in the Dark Forest, mercenaries on the central continent normally had fixed levels and could no longer grow.

But Nissen was different.

'If I cure his mana chaos...'

It meant Nissen could level up further.