~Chapter 27~
Squelch!
Obok’s powerful blow, so at odds with his cute appearance, struck the goblin’s head.
*Crunch!*
The next moment, the elite goblin’s skull burst apart like a watermelon.
“…Is it really dead…?”
Ivyn frowned slightly as she looked down at the headless goblin corpse.
“Hehe! This Obokro defeated it! Ahem!”
As the delighted Obok danced a little jig in midair…
*Shhh.*
As if drawn by something, Ivyn slowly knelt on the ground and reached out her hand.
The moment her fingertips touched the cold, dead torso…
*Zap!*
That same gripping, tingling sensation she’d felt once before in her heart washed over her, and a whirlwind of black smoke surged into her mind.
As the swirling smoke cleared slightly…
—*Kekeek!* Chieftain! The scouts found something strange! Near the cave by the village aqueduct!
The ‘Echo of the Deceased’ — the ability to peer into a dead being’s memories — began to resonate within her.
*Whoosh!*
What unfolded before Ivyn’s eyes was the sight of a bizarre-looking cave.
‘How horrifying…’
Unconcerned with the observer’s thoughts, the Echo continued.
The view traveled down a winding, intestine-like passage, reaching a dead end.
‘What in the world is this…?’
Everything was smeared with blood.
The walls and floor were littered with debris — a gruesome mix of bones and entrails, whether human or beast.
Just witnessing this memory was enough to make her feel nauseous.
As her mind grew hazy…
Suddenly, her gaze caught on a corpse hung on the wall.
The corpse was divided into four pieces, two pieces hanging on each side.
The panicked, wavering view spun around.
What came into view were chunks of flesh crammed densely into every crevice and crack in the rock wall.
And in the middle of it all…
‘A magic circle?’
From a severed head placed at the center of a geometrically patterned array, some viscous liquid was flowing out, running along grooves carved into the cave floor.
‘Is this liquid… what’s mixing into the aqueduct water…’
Just as this thought crossed Ivyn’s mind…
*Thump, thump.*
Footsteps of someone walking echoed within the memory.
‘…!’
Parting the darkness, appearing in the light’s glow was…
A giant rock behemoth.
*Plop.*
As the ‘Echo of the Deceased’ skill released, Ivyn collapsed forward, catching herself on her hands on the ground.
“Master! What’s wrong!? Are you okay?!”
In response to Obok’s urgent question, Ivyn swept back her fallen hair and let out a rough breath, as if exhaling hard. Beads of cold sweat had already formed on her pale forehead.
“Crazy! What do we do! Master, you look really pale!”
*Kwaaak!*
Obok grabbed Ivyn’s cheeks so fiercely with his tiny front paws that her soft, mochi-like cheeks were squished and bulged upwards.
“Ughhh…”
Ivyn was more disoriented by Obok’s fussing than by the skill’s aftereffects.
“O, Obok… I’m okay, so please let go…”
As Obok, who had been turning her face this way and that to check on her, heard her earnest plea, he *ahem*-ed, looking slightly embarrassed, and removed his small pink jelly-like paws.
“S-so, what did you see, huh?”
“It was…”
Rubbing her sore cheeks, Ivyn began to recall the scenes she saw through the skill.
“I saw a cave in the memory… It seemed like some strange ritual was taking place there…”
As Ivyn recalled that strange, unpleasant, slimy sensation, she suddenly realized something shocking.
“But… I’ve felt this energy before.”
“When?”
“When we went to Cory Village to collect the corpses.”
The energy that emanated from those who died of the plague.
It was similar in nature.
“So… it’s filled with intense resentment…”
Grudge-poison.
It wasn’t bacteria or a virus, but an energy that seemed to contain the hatred and obsession formed throughout an entire lifetime.
For now, Ivyn couldn’t understand how such an energy was created.
But one thing was clear: the liquid flowing from that corpse was the cause of this plague.
“…I think we need to regroup with my brothers quickly.”
—
The triplets’ expressions darkened instantly upon hearing Ivyn’s story.
“Bones and remains… a geometrically patterned array… That’s exactly the method used by those who practice dark magic to set traps.”
“Oh, right. Our Ivyn probably doesn’t know what that is.”
Hwan said, looking back at Ivyn.
“Uh-huh…”
Ivyn nodded awkwardly, but in truth, she knew better than anyone.
Because there was a scene in the original novel that covered this very topic.
Well, to be precise, it was content that appeared in an extra story after the original novel’s ending…
Though, at this point, which was like the novel’s prologue, it was a story from the far future…
Why had it suddenly popped up here?
Ivyn was just puzzled.
Not only had she avoided her destined death, changing the plot’s plausibility, but it felt like the original work’s structure and grammar were also being slightly twisted and rearranged.
“So, what do we do now…? Should we send a message to Father first?”
Just as John was looking around at his brothers to ask for opinions.
“Wait a minute, brothers.”
Ivyn interjected.
“I have a better idea.”
The triplets’ expressions changed peculiarly upon hearing their youngest sister’s words.
Their demeanor seemed more apprehensive than welcoming of her idea.
‘Judging by the pattern so far…’
‘It’s always that we try to do something on our own without telling Father…’
‘And end up getting caught up in something bigger…’
John, Hwan, and Dun swiftly exchanged glances unbeknownst to their younger sister.
Their looks seemed to ask, ‘Is it really okay to go along with this?’
However, Ivyn had already stretched out her palm toward them.
It seemed she wanted a high-five.
‘We haven’t even heard the idea yet, and she already wants a high-five!’
‘We haven’t agreed to anything yet!’
‘Ugh… But we can’t openly question it…’
For a moment, they found her cute, adorable, and beautiful appearance slightly vexing.
Who could coldly and cruelly refuse when she was looking at her brothers with such innocent, pure eyes, hoping for their agreement?
Even the stern-hearted Northern Grand Duke would have no choice but to concede a step in the face of Ivyn’s loveliness.
“W-well, let’s high-five first.”
One, two, three, fighting!
The four brought their opinions(?) together and clapped their palms in the air.
“So, what exactly is this ‘better idea,’ Ivyn…?”
Dun asked cautiously, stuttering slightly from nervousness.
“Well, you see…”
—
* * *
“*Sigh.*”
A farmhouse located on the outskirts of Cory Village.
A heavy sigh settled over the poor farming family.
With the plague recently spreading in the village and the water supply via the aqueduct cut off, their livelihood, dependent on growing crops, had become incomparably more difficult.
“I wonder how much compensation the lord will give for the paddy fields left fallow…”
“Compensation? Oh dear, old man, you dream big! We’d be grateful if they just reduced our tax burden a little!”
Just as the husband was about to sigh again at his wife’s complaint-which-wasn’t-a-complaint, his bushy, frosty-white eyebrows drooping.
“Excuse me, hello.”
“Hmm…?”
At the sudden sound of an unfamiliar young man’s voice, the couple turned around.
There stood a handsome young man with neatly styled purple hair, looking at them with a friendly smile.
“Oh, oh my.”
The farmer reflexively took off the straw hat he was wearing and held it respectfully over his stomach.
Faced with the aristocratic aura emanating from the young man, he had acted without thinking.
Despite his humble robe, it seemed even his commoner’s clothes couldn’t hide the innate nobility radiating from his face and posture.
“W-who might you be…?”
The farmer asked the young man, flustered.
“My apologies. You must be very surprised by a stranger’s sudden visit. My name is John. I was passing by nearby and heard about the situation here, so I came to offer help.”
“Help…?”
“Yes. The thing is, a few days ago, I took shelter from the rain in a cave nearby and think I may have discovered an important clue related to this plague.”
“So… what do you want from us…?”
The farmer’s voice was full of suspicion and fear.
But John knew the best way to ease suspicion in such a situation.
“Please, accept this retainer’s fee first. Think of it as compensation paid on behalf of the lord.”
“…!”
John took the farmer’s rough hand and suddenly placed a pouch in it.
Even without opening it, the weight gave away what was inside.
That wasn’t all given to the farmer.
A rolled-up piece of parchment was placed in his other hand.
“Could you deliver this information to the paladin camp? Of course, please leave the original discoverer… as unknown.”
—
* * *
“Who delivered this letter?”
Inside the Holy Kingdom’s camp at Cory Village.
Theodore looked up with a serious expression after examining the parchment.
His gaze fell upon the hastily assembled staff officers seated around him.
“It was a farmer working the fields on the village outskirts. He said he was exhausted from hunger and went into a cave to gather mushrooms growing inside, where he accidentally discovered strange traces.”
At his words, Theodore sprang up from his seat.
“Assemble a special investigation team immediately.”
“B-but, what if it’s false information or a trap set by the Necromancer family…?”
“We’ll know once we check. We can’t ignore a tip just because there might be danger.”
Theodore looked at his staff with a heavy gaze.
“I will lead the investigation team myself. The primary objective is to assess the situation inside the cave. After securing the area, we will collect sample data and return to headquarters.”
