Chapter 59
Easy and Hard Things (1)
Seo Jae-hyuk was in a bad mood.
To be precise, he was extremely uncomfortable.
Even someone like him, famous for his dry face that never showed emotion, was frowning slightly.
It had been a few days since they set up their base camp in Reicam, but there was no progress in the strategy.
Reicam was a small rural village near the sanctuary, home to simple people who lived by farming fields and cutting wood.
When Seo Jae-hyuk first established the base camp, he, as the leader of the strategy team, had ordered, “Don’t tell anyone anything about the scenario.”
But a day later, somehow, the strategy team had become known as the heroes who would save Ganasia.
No one knew who had told them.
Seo Jae-hyuk could only awkwardly smile while accepting potatoes and stew offered by the villagers.
At first, he had appreciated these gestures of kindness.
But now, with no clue on how to clear the scenario, he had become extremely sensitive.
“Are you there~?”
Again.
Seo Jae-hyuk frowned and squeezed his eyes shut as Ahn Yeon-seo hurried out of the tent.
“You don’t have to give it to us.”
“You are our hero, so you must eat well to stay strong.”
Hearing the voice from outside, Seo Jae-hyuk sighed quietly.
Even outside the Babel Tower, he had been irritated by the heavy expectations, and here was no different.
“Damn it… this is worse than our guild training room,” he muttered.
Ignoring Takein’s guild leader, Jeong Min-gu, loudly complaining as if to be heard, Seo Jae-hyuk studied the map again.
The thick, oval map of the Ganasia continent marked three regions: Probel, Reicam, and Provi.
Although there had been no progress in the strategy, they hadn’t been completely idle.
They had gathered information to avoid Agemor’s corruption, and Go Min-han, a mage of Aegis, had cast detection magic at great effort, while Han Romi had read the continent’s memories through “Stories of Leaves.”
In short, one main task was to restore the Ancient Oath, the Cantana Peace Agreement.
They were also starting to find clues about Agemor’s corruption.
Fortunately, they had discovered that the source of the black mist was a northern coastal village called Provi.
‘Provi…’
Seo Jae-hyuk sighed quietly, resting his finger over the area corrupted by Agemor.
He remembered what a refugee from Provi had said:
“There was a man standing on the cliff with long hair. I asked who he was, but he immediately said to me, ‘Hate is such a joyful feeling.’ I told him to stop talking nonsense, and he just laughed. You know, it gives you chills. I tried to ignore him, but suddenly he slashed his own arm. Blood dripped black… Then the next day, the mist spread, so I ran away immediately.”
‘That man is definitely the source of evil.’
Even Jeong Min-gu, who had not cooperated since entering the scenario, agreed with this conclusion.
The strategy team decided that to stop Agemor’s corruption, they must defeat that man.
That meant they had to go to Provi.
…Of course, getting to Provi was a problem.
Even from the closest uncorrupted village in Reicam, it would take three to four hours.
Han Romi could create a field to temporarily neutralize the corruption, but it couldn’t be maintained all the way to Provi.
Moreover, they hadn’t solved hints 2 and 3 of the scenario yet.
Just then, Ahn Yeon-seo entered the tent carrying a steaming pot of stew.
Jeong Min-gu immediately shouted:
“The smell of that stew is unbearable! Let’s go already! We just have to kill that guy!”
Ahn Yeon-seo calmly replied as she set the pot on the table:
“Killing him won’t end the scenario. ‘Unite the two races’ is a separate task. Hints 2 and 3 probably relate to that.”
“Then figure it out already!”
Jeong Min-gu slammed the pot on the table.
Ahn Yeon-seo, the only member without combat skills, supported the team with her Situation Analysis skill.
But that skill required information to provide useful results, so without new information, it was useless.
She fiddled with her tablet, the Chronicle, and added weakly:
“It feels like we’re missing a big piece.”
“What piece?”
Seo Jae-hyuk asked calmly.
Ahn Yeon-seo frowned slightly.
“The Cantana Peace Agreement was broken by Agemor’s corruption. There must be a place or an object related to it in the corrupted areas.”
“Exactly! Figuring that out is the subordinate’s job!”
Jeong Min-gu slammed the table again, shouting.
As a close-combat fighter, the sound thundered.
But Ahn Yeon-seo stayed calm.
‘Subordinate? Even if called Seo Jae-hyuk’s footstool, a subordinate has pride. Opening the path for all the mighty hunters is only something I can do in the strategy team. Gathering and analyzing information, finding the best route—that’s my role.’
Without her, Min-gu would have just rotted away in ignorance.
Just as Ahn Yeon-seo was about to show her frustration, Seo Jae-hyuk spoke quietly:
“Your words are harsh.”
Jeong Min-gu could only express his anger by hitting the table again.
Ahn Yeon-seo sighed in relief, glad she wasn’t drawn into Min-gu’s stupidity.
Just as the heavy silence settled over the tent, a surprised voice called from outside:
“Uh?!”
“Wait, come out here for a second!”
It was Lee Min-jung, vice guild master of Wolpae.
Seo Jae-hyuk immediately jumped up like a spring.
Jeong Min-gu and Ahn Yeon-seo hurried out as well.
Lee Min-jung shaded her eyes with her hand and frowned, staring toward a distant hill.
“Can you see it? It’s moving, right?”
Following her gaze, Seo Jae-hyuk couldn’t believe his eyes.
“…Yes.”
With his exceptional vision, better than ordinary people and even other hunters, he could clearly see the hill.
Humans were marching north, holding flags, their expressions full of determination.
Lee Min-jung quickly pointed to the opposite side.
“It’s not just there. Even in the beastmen area…”
Far off in the beastmen territory, everyone was running north.
It was obvious without thinking.
The two races, who had fought like dogs, were suddenly moving in the same direction, ignoring each other.
“What is happening?”
As confused Ahn Yeon-seo pulled out her tablet, a golden aura shimmered behind them.
Seo Jae-hyuk immediately went on guard and drew his weapon.
A thin, golden weapon, Legato, expanded into a net shape to catch the threat.
The target was a new, unfamiliar presence behind them.
The golden figure appeared silently above their tent.
Everyone just stared at it.
“Strangers, welcome.”
A sudden voice echoed from the golden figure.
It was sacred enough to ease the strategy team’s tension, and Seo Jae-hyuk lowered his weapon slightly.
“I am Oerisa, the god of Ganasia.”
“…God?”
Atheist Seo Jae-hyuk frowned.
He had heard of gods on the 51st floor, but they couldn’t even save the dimension.
There was no reason to trust an incompetent god.
Sensing his discomfort, the golden figure slowly waved its hand.
The golden aura shimmered along with the movement.
Ahn Yeon-seo, staring blankly at the light, finally spoke:
“Are you the god of this continent?”
The figure nodded slowly.
She quickly examined it with her tablet.
The sudden appearance was shocking, but it showed no hostility or suspicion toward the team.
“It doesn’t seem aggressive or hostile, Guild Master,” she whispered to Seo Jae-hyuk.
The decision was his.
Seo Jae-hyuk lowered Legato and listened carefully.
The golden figure finally spoke:
“Strangers, I have a request.”
A request from a god—how troublesome could it be?
While Ahn Yeon-seo tensed, it continued:
“Help the humans and beastmen drive out the darkness. Ganasia is engulfed, and only you, strangers, can end it.”
Ah, that’s the setup?
Ahn Yeon-seo nodded while Seo Jae-hyuk stepped forward.
With their previously vague goal now clear, his expression was calm.
“Should we kill that man in Provi?”
“If the man you speak of is Agemor… my child, then yes.”
Everyone murmured in the team.
So the mysterious man was indeed Agemor from “Agemor’s Corruption,” and Oerisa was his parent?
As Ahn Yeon-seo quickly input the new info, Jeong Min-gu laughed mockingly:
“What? The mother wants us to kill her child?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Min-jung, quietly observing, commented curiously:
“Didn’t she just clear her throat? Can even gods be surprised?”
“No,” said Oerisa, calmly.
“When you finish your task, Ganasia will finally—”
“Finally?”
“…not finally, but gain freedom.”
The god spoke strangely.
Just then, Haewon in Probel, not far from Reicam, rolled her eyes awkwardly.
Oerisa sighed deeply and said softly:
“That’s why I told you to relay my words exactly.”
