209. King of the North (3)
#209
“What the fuck happened?”
Torn screams were coming from outside the tent. Ronan quickly ran out clutching the hilt of his sword. Adeshan and Jager followed suit.
“This is…?”
“oh my god.”
The moment they came out they instinctively knew something was going wrong. An evil sticky energy was clinging to my skin. The air I breathed in tasted bitter like bug intestines.
“Ugh…! “And the air…?”
“The damn curse has gotten stronger.”
His fingertips tingled. The shadows created by buildings and people were abnormally dark. I don’t know why but the curse placed on the tribe had become stronger overall. What kind of trick did Barca do?
“Aaaah!”
“Stop that!”
Meanwhile screams were still being heard. Ronan quickly turned to the direction the sound came from. The bodies of the deformed werewolves were shaking and changing. The sight of limbs swelling or teeth tearing through the jaw was not a very sight to behold.
“Okay…! “Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!”
“Brother come to your senses! “Oppa!”
Werewolves that looked like family were stomping their feet around them. It seemed that as the power of the curse became stronger the body changed more quickly.
I had a feeling that if we didn’t resolve it quickly something very unpleasant would happen. Like suddenly going berserk and trying to tear your family apart? Ronan who had been rolling his head for a moment shouted loudly.
“Sita!”
“Bwait!”
An echo rang out. Sheeta who was circling in the sky landed in front of Ronan. Ripping off the hem of her own clothes Ronan scrawled a short letter with his pen. He said as he tied the hem of her robe around Sita’s legs.
“If you go west from here there is a city called Rundalian. Find Professor Secret there and bring him back. Its fur has become mushy but you can probably tell by its smell. “Hurry up.”
“Bye!”
Nodding her head once Sita took off without delay. Given the circumstances it was best to bring in an expert. Ronan turned to Ade Shan and opened her mouth.
“Senior please prevent deformed children from running away. “Can you do it?”
“huh. “Just leave it to me.”
Adeshan immediately ran to the deformed son. The shadow’s mana spread in the curse-stained air. The deformed son who had been acting like he was going to explode at any moment became calm for a moment.
“…Amazing.”
Jager muttered with admiration for his surprisingly flexible handling of the situation. I thought that maybe these humans could compete with Barka. Suddenly a young voice came from behind him.
“Ahhh.”
“hmm?”
This turned his head. A werewolf boy was staring at him from about ten steps away. His arms were limp and he was dragging one leg looking somewhat uncomfortable. The nails that had not been trimmed at all looked like ten daggers.
“Are you also a resident of this village?”
No answer came back. Jager who thought this was also a deformed child born under a curse twisted his lips. Then the boy asked pointing at him with his index finger.
“My…this?”
“okay. I am mine. “The surrounding atmosphere is unusual so quickly enter the building.”
“…Jager. Jager.”
However the werewolf boy ignored Jager’s words and began to approach him. Then Ronan turned his head towards the boy.
“What is that?”
He was a boy who gave off a different impression from the deformed children I had seen so far. It was unusual to feel an inexplicable ominousness. Ronan was about to give a warning. The figure of the boy who had come within three steps of Jager disappeared from sight for an instant.
“Wait it’s dangerous!”
Ronan shouted urgently but it was already one step too late. The boy’s figure which had been blurred for a moment reappeared behind Jager. Jeiger unaware of the situation tilted his head.
“what?”
“Jager. Jager. Jager. Jager.”
The boy muttered at rapid intervals. Suddenly five long red lines were drawn diagonally on Jager’s chest.
“Huh…!”
Jay’s eyes widened at the sensation similar to when his limbs were cut off. That was before he could scream anything. Sigh! Five streams of blood spurted out along the stab wound. Ronan’s voice was heard through the shaking vision.
“Fuck Jager!”
“Huh… billion.”
It was unrealistically excessive bleeding. The blood that fell in a parabolic curve soaked the snowy field. Steam was rising from the red puddle. Jager could instinctively feel that his internal organs were being torn into pieces. thud! His large body which was slowly leaning fell backwards. The sky covered with gray-white clouds came into view.
“Jager. Jager. Jager. Jager. Jager. “Grrr.”
Meanwhile the boy was muttering to himself. He was looking at Jager from afar and raised his right hand. It seemed like he was planning to deliver the final blow. The boy’s appearance was about to blur again. Ronan leapt at once and landed blocking him.
“What are you?
“Kyaarak?!”
Ronan swung his sword sideways. The werewolf boy dodged the attack by pressing the back of his head against his heel. Crack! A loud cracking sound rang out as if his spine was breaking.
“what….”
Ronan raised his eyebrows. It was a bizarre movement that did not resemble a living thing. However the attack itself did not miss. A black line was drawn on the boy’s neck and his blood spurted out.
“Kyaaaaaaaa!”
Because the sword strike was so fast he didn’t seem to be able to dodge it completely. The boy who grabbed his neck fell and hit his butt. A few drops of blood jumped up and landed on Ronan’s cheek.
‘Are you cold?’
Ronan frowned at the strange sensation. Blood that should be hot was as cold as ice water. The color was closer to black than red and did not resemble living human blood. At that time the boy jumped up and ran towards me screaming.
“Jager! Kyaaaaa!”
“what?!”
Ronan who quickly took a defensive stance narrowed his eyes. The boy was flying towards Jager ignoring Ronan.
There was something strange about him too. Ronan turned to look at him and activated his aura at the same time. Seaaaa… The blade’s body glowed scarlet and the flying body of the boy appeared in front of Ronan’s nose. For the first time a look of confusion appeared on the face of the boy who had experienced an inexplicable phenomenon.
“Kyareuk?!”
“It’s okay.”
Ronan tugged at the hilt of his sword. A clear straight line was drawn over the boy’s stomach which was hovering in the air. Phew! Black blood spurted out like an explosion soaking everywhere. A body cut in half rolled around on the floor.
“Ugh…!”
Suddenly an unpleasant odor stung Ronan’s nose. It was the smell of a corpse that I had grown sick of in my past life caused by decaying blood and flesh. Suddenly the boy’s voice rang out from beneath my feet again.
“Garr! “Jay!”
“What the fuck?”
It was a truly bizarre sight. The boy with only his upper body remaining was moving towards Zeiger using his arms as legs. A trace made by black blood was being drawn along the boy like a calligrapher’s calligraphy. Ronan laughed as if he was shocked.
“…is this a living corpse?”
Suddenly the neck that had been cut first caught his eye. It was not a survivable injury to begin with with half of it cut off and shaking.
Ronan leapt and trampled the boy and swung his sword again. Suddenly! As he gritted his teeth his head burst into dozens of pieces. His rotten brain and flesh flew everywhere. The remaining body parts stopped moving and became limp.
I could feel it when I looked up close. Barca’s mana was oozing from the boy’s body tissues. Ronan who was looking down at his body twisted his lips.
‘It’s clear that he was an assassin sent. Perhaps he wanted to get rid of it since it had served its purpose. Anyway this is definitely…’
Information about necromancy that he had once heard flashed through his mind. I wanted to find out what happened right away but unfortunately there was something else I had to do now. He sheathed his sword and ran straight to Zeiger.
“Fuck you you can’t die now.”
“Huh…Huhuh….”
He was holding his breath as if he was going to die at any moment. The blood from his chest was flowing non-stop. He tried pouring the remaining pain potion but the wound was too deep to have much effect.
Ronan gritted his teeth. I never thought something like this would happen when Sita left. Suddenly Jaygeo who was looking at the sky opened his mouth.
“hey….”
“Don’t say that idiot. “It hurts.”
“Look at my…inside pocket….”
“Inside pocket?”
Jager nodded slightly. He didn’t know what he was talking about when everyone was dying. Ronan was rummaging through his inner pocket and pulled out an item. It was an octagonal compass but it was stationary and did not point in any direction. Jager said.
“The thing I was going to give you earlier… he probably used it to… track me… damn it… he somehow took my blood…”
“What is this?”
“It’s something called a blood needle… it’s a precious magic tool that points to the owner of the blood applied to the needle…”
It is said that blood acupuncture needles refer to tracking targets within a certain range. Jeiger said that on the day Barca joined his staff he saw him taking his own blood and applying it to the acupuncture points.
“But…just like he wouldn’t trust me…I didn’t trust him…I’m sure it will help…”
He chuckled in a voice mixed with blood. Zeiger explained that he once secretly collected a trace of the man’s blood and put the blood on a needle. He was truly a suspicious and cunning man. Ronan who took his blood gauge nodded his head.
“Are you coming? “Use it well.”
No answer came back. Only the slightest sound of breathing could be heard in the wind. It was a candle of life that would be extinguished in less than ten minutes. Ronan who was quietly looking at Jager spat on the floor.
“no way. “Fuck.”
He was a bastard without fail but I couldn’t help but feel bitter. It seemed like it wouldn’t end peacefully. Ronan was in the car trying to move to help Adeshan. Suddenly a loud shout rang out from behind.
“Woah! “Save everyone!”
“what?”
Ronan turned his head. Something was flying fast in the sky far away. The black outline resembles Sita but there is something a little more attached. Before long Ronan’s eyes widened as he recognized its identity.
“Damn Secret?”
“Gyaaaa!”
A pure white werefox was riding on Sita’s back. The fox who was screaming and clutching his feathers with all his might was someone he knew well. Sita found Ronan and dived at an angle close to vertical.
“Bwaaaaaat!”
“Oh my god! oh my god! “This can’t be right!”
A louder scream rang out. The moment Sita suddenly braked with her four wings and landed Secret tumbled down. As he was lying down and out of breath he swore at Sita.
“What a mean bird. “You really thought you were going to die!”
“Bwahahaha!”
Sita flapped her wings and giggled. Ronan who was looking at the unfamiliar sight opened his mouth.
“…thank you for your effort.”
“Yes I know! “He recklessly told me to get on his back and I wonder what the heck is going on! Oh my god!”
Secret stood up. It was ten times faster than expected. I jokingly said that it could carry people but I never imagined that it would actually carry people. Ronan snapped his fingers once and pointed at me.
“That’s right this is not the time. Sita. “Please fix this bleached tiger.”
Jager was still alive. I bet it wouldn’t have lasted more than five minutes but for now he was alive. As if responding Unsita spread her four wings.
“Bye!”
A red mist surrounded Jager. Soon the bleeding stopped and the wound began to heal. The blood that had flowed out of his body was flowing back into his wound. The Jager’s snout which seemed like it would never move again moved happily.
“Wow it’s really… amazing.”
“Did you survive? “Close your mouth and lie down.”
“…thanks.”
It seemed like the urgent crisis had been overcome. After saying thank you Jager lost consciousness. When he turned his head the three crits were already looking around with serious expressions.
“I see. The curse has definitely gotten stronger. “I guess I have to deal with it urgently.”
It seemed like the situation had already been figured out. Secret immediately started preparing for Haeju without even asking about the circumstances. Ronan asked.
“Is it okay to not have seaweed ingredients?”
“It would be nice to have it but I have to try it like this. Ronan just make sure no one gets near me.”
“yes?”
Suddenly Secret ran into the middle of the village. He picked up a twig and started drawing geometric patterns on the snow. It didn’t take long to figure out that it was a magic circle.
“This is…”
“Rzinka. Lanaviel. Terado.”
As Secret chanted the spell the magic circle began to emit a soft light. The white light that seeped out of the magic circle gradually expanded gradually removing the darker shadows. Soon a hemisphere composed of light slightly brighter than the surroundings covered the tribe.
“That purr….”
“Daughter. “Are you out of your mind?”
“What is this light?”
The deformed children stopped changing. The screams coming from all directions quieted down. The bitter air and the darkened shadows had returned to their original state. Secrit slumped down in his seat and patted his chest.
“Whew… I guess I took a breather for now.”
“That’s amazing. “Is this what you’ve done?”
“Unfortunately no. This opponent is much stronger than I thought. Rather than that let me ask you something for a moment.”
Ronan seemed to know what Secret would ask. His eyes stayed on Jager who was lying face down and out of breath. Ronan nodded his head.
“Anything. Instead please listen to my explanation first before asking.”
“explanation?”
“yes. I’ll explain it as briefly as possible. therefore…”
Ronan briefly explained what he had experienced and heard. The true dark figure is Barka Turgen and the fact that we must follow him to Heyran. Secret’s round eyes opened wide.
“oh my god. The Sword Saint had a brother. Besides that Chi is a curse caster?”
“Not only that but I think he also uses necromancy. “Do you have any more questions?”
“…no. “There is nothing at all.”
As expected Secret did not know about the existence of Barca. Ronan who didn’t want the story to get longer asked a question.
“professor. What should I do to completely remove the curse? “I don’t have time.”
“…I have no choice but to either have the caster lift the curse or kill him. “This is truly… this is ridiculous…”
Secret was mumbling something to himself and establishing his hypothesis and future plan. It was an action that resulted from a wizard’s unique desire for knowledge. It was obvious that it would probably be like that for a while.
“You have to bleed in the end.”
Ronan took out his blood gauge. Perhaps because Barka was not within range yet the needle was not moving. After he finished his work Ade Shan came to his side.
“Thank you for your hard work senior. “It seems like things have gotten bigger.”
“…huh.”
“what. are you okay?”
Ronan asked worriedly at his unusual tone of voice. This time there was no reply. Adeshan’s gaze stayed on the blood gauge needle where Barka’s location was marked. The large eyes were a dark dull charcoal gray.
“…senior?”
Ronan asked again but this time there was no answer. She couldn’t look into her head but it seemed like she was never thinking positive thoughts.
She found out that Barka’s cruelty in sending the corpse of a young child to be killed was cruel but that he was also the mastermind behind the massacre that took place on the Night of the Fangs. She would have been as much hated as the incompetent commander.
“…huh. are you okay. “I’m sorry for worrying you.”
Ade Shan belatedly raised her head and smiled slightly. However it was not a smile that came from kindness as usual but a smile that was like a pressure stone to suppress emotions.
After finishing the work the three people and one horse returned to Rundalian. Thanks to this the werewolves who escaped the crisis saw them off. Jager took some of the tribesmen to their home base in the Najun Mountains.
“Then shall we leave?”
“huh.”
There was no time to waste as the curse was growing stronger throughout the area where the stakes had been driven. Ronan and Adeshan spent just one night in Rundalian before beginning their new journey. The destination is Heiran. It was the northern tip of the continent and the polar region where Barca Turgen was based.
