Episode 94
Snow-covered mountains after the sun has set.
The monsters that rushed in were something humanoid. Their faces were clearly human, but their necks and limbs were strangely long.
‘He looks like he’s been possessed by a demon for a very long time.’
The moment his eyes met with those running on all fours, Baek Do-hyeon thought. And maybe that thought was right.
“Light!”
I know that spell. Any hunter, and anyone who lived in the Babel era.
It’s a cliché, but it’s truly a promise that brings ‘light’ into the darkness.
Specialized in Holy Power series, basic exorcism spell.
‘The Call of Light.’
Hwaaaaak-!
The sound of horses neighing from afar.
Here! A short but powerful shout. A woman holding a lantern of light riding a white horse across the snowy mountains.
Her long brown hair fluttered in the north wind.
Kieeeek!
The monsters were writhing. As the light rushed in, illuminating the darkness, they too were quickly pushed out of the circle.
Baek Do-hyeon has also heard of it.
Although I have never been on a battlefield like before, I have heard that Korea’s ‘Silent Night’ used to drive out evil with just one word.
As with all the ‘great healers’ of history.
“Are you okay?”
The only AA-class healer in South Korea.
The first nickname is ‘Silent Night’, and another nickname that is even more famous than the first nickname is…
“Oh, Dohyun?”
Fanatic, Na Jo-yeon.
Na Jo-yeon, who made a dramatic appearance, pulled the reins. Purrrrrr. The horse yowled roughly.
“How is Dohyun here… …?”
“That’s it, ah!”
It must have only been a few seconds since it happened so quickly. Still, Baek Do-hyun was startled and looked back. I forgot… … !
Na Jo-yeon also witnesses the accident scene.
Two legs of something stuck upside down in the white snow mountain… … The believer’s cells quickly turned.
“From the sudden appearance of Baek Do-hyun to the familiar petit party size of the two feet, those sneakers… … .”
“ji……!”
“Jo, Jojo, are you okay?”
Instinct was much faster than reason. Na Jo-yeon let go of Baek Do-hyeon, who was running towards her, and ran ahead of him in a hurry.
“… … .”
“Three, my goodness! What the heck! Oh my goodness, are you okay! Hold me. Oh, or don’t hug me… … Oh my goodness, what should I do! You’re so cold. Oh my goodness.”
Pot, pat!
The continuous barrage of holy spells. The ceaseless bursts of light were almost like fireworks.
‘What kind of frontline relief center is this…?’
A healer who is busy satisfying her desires by cuddling with a human cat who is trembling with tears in her eyes.
It’s a strangely familiar scene… … .
Baek Do-hyun, who was watching from a few steps away, sighed. Then he took off his jacket and approached them.
* * *
【Didn’t I tell you to learn the basics? You pretended not to listen and ended up doing a voluntary nerf. I’m so angry.】
‘Noisy.’
Snowman Geo sniffled.
On his shoulders were Baek Do-hyun’s jacket and two layers of blankets that Na Jo-yeon had hastily wrapped around him.
It was almost like a bundle of a thousand, but it was still chilling.
‘Teddy bear child… … .’
Just wait and see. When we meet again, I’ll throw you a bloody festival. I’ll make you frozen bear jerky from head to toe.
“Excuse me, JoJo-sama. Please have some of this. I made it in a hurry, so I’m not sure if it’ll suit your taste… … .”
“Excuse me, Mr. Cho. You can’t eat hot food well. Just give it to me.”
“… … What the heck, no, why, why? Are you sure Do-hyun isn’t going to eat this? It’s precious.”
“Huh? No, really. Of course I was going to cool it down and serve it to you… … .”
“What, what the heck! Has this guy gone crazy! Where did he hijack my event! This son of a bitch has a conscience like a dog!”
“Your violent personality is still the same. Of course, this is something that a ‘close’ person who has known you for a ‘long time’ and is ‘comfortable’ with you would do. Why on earth do I have to explain even these basic things… … .”
“You, you, don’t move your eyes with that mixture of superiority and pity! Stop trembling!”
‘It’s noisy… … .’
40th tutorial combination.
(Thanks to whom) you were the top and second place students. I heard you were training together at the Hwaseong training center, so you seem closer than before.
Geo took a look at Na Jo-yeon. It felt new. Unlike the regressor whom he had been seeing for a long time, this was the first time he had seen her in a long time.
‘I heard that the drama went under the otaku’s thumb… … .’
I knew you’d be here.
So if you hadn’t come to rescue Bambi, she wouldn’t have come back? Hmm.
‘I almost lost my precious child.’
Geo relaxed his body and leaned back further. When he looked up, Na Jo-yeon smiled brightly.
After a dramatic compromise, it was agreed that Baek Do-hyun would be the one to serve the soup, while Na Jo-yeon would be the one to support him from behind.
“Why are you like that?”
“No, just because you’ve become prettier.”
“I, really!”
“Ms. Na Jo-yeon, please stay still. It’s leaking.”
“Ugh! You son of a bitch… … !”
Byulnim laughs, saying that there is no such thing as a 21st century sultan. Geo pretends not to hear.
Ta, tadak.
A ember crackled in the fireplace. Empty dishes were placed on the table, and late-night conversation continued quietly.
“So, Mr. Jo Yeon, it’s been about a week since you came here? And you haven’t met anyone yet?”
“Um, yes. According to the dates I counted, yes. How come you two are here?”
“… … He, he entered the middle.”
“Huh? A free pass? How, no, why, why? Why don’t you save it and use it for something else? Why… … ?”
Na Jo-yeon’s eyes widened. She looked genuinely bewildered as to why the Joker card, which everyone desires, was used here, even though it was expensive to call.
Baek Do-hyun held the mug still. The voice calling again was quiet. Mr. Jo Yeon.
“It’s been a long time since April outside the tower.”
“……yes?”
“It’s been almost a month.”
“What is that… … ?”
“Jo Yeon-ssi was lucky and only spent about a week here, but the people who came in with her might have… … spent several times that amount of time here.”
In my opinion, it seems very likely that Jo Yeon-ssi will be in the ‘last’ position.
Silence falls.
Na Jo-yeon gradually turned pale as she gradually came to understand the situation. Baek Do-hyun puts an end to it.
“Yes. We are a rescue team.”
Boom! It was the sound of dishes colliding with each other as Na Jo-yeon suddenly got up.
Geo realized that it wasn’t just because so much time had passed that he was surprised.
“Aw, it’s dangerous. Then we have to move immediately, starting tomorrow… …!”
“So that’s what I’m saying.”
A relaxed voice breaks the tension. The two people’s gazes turn. Geo, leaning diagonally on the bed, gestures toward the door.
“What the hell are those things behind you?”
Squeak-.
At the wizard’s gesture, a crack opens in the door. What is revealed through the gap are… …seven children.
They were all children with ‘the same face’.
“… … This is a dead land. A long time ago.”
The total number of members of the Allied Force is twenty.
Najo Yeon, a AA-ranked hunter belonging to the guild 〈DI〉. She opened her eyes a week ago.
The healer began his story by saying that when he woke up, he felt no life anywhere.
“Did you see those monsters on the mountain earlier? These kids call them ‘human mantises.'”
“……human being?”
“Yes. Originally, they were all people from this snow country.”
The place where Na Jo-yeon rescued Geo and Baek Do-hyeon from Seol-san and brought them was a village.
It was an empty village, although not large, and it seemed to have everything, except for one thing: no trace of people.
“I don’t know the details either. But when the sun sets, those ‘mantis’-like things wake up and swarm the village. Then, the people who are attacked also change into the same appearance as them.”
“It’s like some kind of zombie virus.”
“It’s similar. That’s why there’s an immunity method… … . The ‘Salt River’ that flows down this snowy mountain. It’s said that anyone who drinks from the river won’t be cursed.”
“Where is that river now?”
“Now, wait a minute, JoJo-sama! That river is the scariest thing.”
People who drink river water change like that without exception. They become younger, have the same face… …as if they resemble someone else.
I’m gradually becoming someone else, not myself.
In the process, you forget your own name and even who you are, and you transform into a person who continues to get more and more difficult.
“If people continue to become more difficult… … what will happen in the end?”
All who touched the river died.
After continued degeneration, they turned to dust. So, only seven people remained. These were the children that Najoyeon met here.
Even they said that this was all they ‘remembered’, and that they had forgotten how the curse began.
Baek Do-hyun, who had been listening quietly the whole time, asked with a dark expression.
“If no one remembers, then what about the strategy… … Who can give me the quest?”
“I’m F. I remember the most.”
I forgot all the names, so just the alphabet. F to L.
All other alphabets are dead.
He also said that since they have the same face, he wanted to distinguish them from each other and held up a pendant with the letter ‘F’ carved into it.
F explained that they were not all from the same village.
They say they naturally gathered here along the river where the ‘Salt River’ flows.
“The Salt River is shallow and doesn’t flow to many places. It’s a bit hazy, but… … If you follow it, you’ll come across a large bridge called the ‘Salt Bridge.’”
Where the largest river is located. There will probably be more people nearby, F said with a twinkle in his eye.
Black curly hair, freckles, and squinty eyes.
The oldest, F, looked to be about fourteen. The rest all looked younger than that. They were all much younger.
The night was deep.
Tomorrow’s destination has been decided.
After the conversation was somewhat over, the children went to bed, and Baek Do-hyeon went out to look around the village for a while.
“This is the biggest room. There are other rooms, so you can use it alone.”
“Hmm, that’s good. If we had said we would sleep right next to each other, we would all have been forced to sleep outside.”
Geo, who was wearing a blanket over his head, muttered indifferently. In front of the fireplace. His gaze was on the stuffed deer head above it.
‘The medieval concept is gone. The Babel bastard is really serious.’
But why are you making such a fuss about the deer? Are you trying to do it?
Na Jo-yeon, who laughed lightly at the joke, sat up. The bedding, which had been cleaned up, was neatly arranged.
“All done. Now, rest.”
“Dobby.”
“yes?”
Crack, crack. Sparks fly.
Geo stared blankly at the flickering flames. You, I mean.
“Why did you stay here? It’s called ‘Salt Bridge’, but anyone can see that it’s the main attraction.”
Tower of Babel 39th floor, main scenario “Chapter 3 Lovers on the Salt Bridge”.
The direction Babel was pointing was clear enough for anyone to see.
But Najoyeon didn’t leave this place. Until they came.
The silence was brief.
Na Jo-yeon answered in a quiet voice.
“When night falls, monsters come. It’s up to adults to protect sleepless children from nightmares.”
“… … .”
“For a hunter, isn’t that too foolish?”
“huh.”
“Haha, go to sleep. You must be tired because you have to leave early tomorrow morning.”
“Ms. Na Jo-yeon.”
“……yes?”
“Aren’t you curious about who I am?”
Why did you come here, how did you get here, and who are you?
As soon as the 40th tutorial ended, the rankings were updated. The world rankings were updated, and the planetary representatives were replaced.
The timing was too coincidental to be considered a mere coincidence.
As someone who was in charge at that place, it was natural for Na Jo-yeon to be suspicious and have questions. However, up until this moment, no questions had been asked.
Geo looked back.
The lights from the fireplace were completely reflected in those eyes. Na Jo-yeon answered as if possessed. Yes… … .
“I’m not curious.”
“… … .”
“Someday, I’m waiting for you to answer me… …not to tell me, but to tell me.”
The most devout believer smiled. It was a faint smile.
Click.
The room that Najoyeon left after closing the door.
Geo looks at the deer head on the fireplace again. His body feels strangely sluggish.
As if they had promised to be together, he approached me. His hand landed on my forehead.
【Keep it.】
【You’re sick.】
“… … Does that make sense? Dobby almost made me shower with his powers.”
【Would you like to go to the safe zone? The road will open from this side.】
“You said you were completely drained of energy, but is that okay?”
【I’m just giving it to you in time.】
【If only I had your permission, what would be impossible for me?】
The ‘Fate Reader’ whispered.
【Allow me, my incarnation.】
【I’m happy to show you how far your covenant can go.】
Looking down on everything and looking up at only one thing.
Extremely arrogant and detailed.
A guide to proper living for rankers.
