Chapter 132: Blowing Wind (1)
Torium was busy procuring materials to change my appearance.
"From now on, you require a little disguise. If you are noticed then things will become complicated...”
All the prepared materials were like a make-up kit.
Torium sat down with a branch and said.
"Isn’t this also a talent?”
"I thought you only told stories. You can dress up clowns on the side.”
He had his own versatility. Jeff only knew how to use a sword, so the difference between them was like comparing heaven and earth.
'A disguise.’
It wasn’t bad.
I still hadn’t regained my original power so there was no need to complicate things. It was difficult to distinguish between friend and foe.
I was outside the system and there was no guarantee that our relationship would be the same if I met Maxium again. Based on Torium and Jeff’s reaction, just knowing Maxium was a risk. I couldn’t even call out his name.
'I need some time to gauge the situation.’
I didn’t know that much about this world.
It was a fake world made by the Hell Monarch. That was all I knew.
It was impossible to deduce from just listening to a few of Torium’s stories. The smartest choice was to confirm things with my own eyes and develop a plan.
"Can you hide the sound of my heartbeat?”
The disguise couldn’t hide sound. It would be strange if sounds only a living person would make came from me.
Then Torium shook his head.
“Don’t worry. I can solve this problem.”
"You seem confident.”
Torium pulled out a small bottle from the pocket of his pants. The bottle was filled with red blood.
“This is the blood of a thunderbird. Applying the blood will conceal the sound.”
"It is like a soundproof wall.”
"Soundproof wall...?”
"There is such a thing.”
I knew about it. It was something that humans commonly used.
"Hmm hmm. Tell me later what a soundproof wall is. It is something I can’t overlook as a storyteller. At any rate, sprinkling some of this blood will hide sound coming from your body.”
"What about breathing?”
“That isn’t a problem. We sometimes breathe. It is a habit from when we were still alive.”
Torium stared at my face before opening up his disguise tools.
"Then let's get started.”
He held a brush and started painting my body.
'It is separate from swordsmanship.’
It felt like I was watching a sophisticated sword technique.
The work took quite a long time.
It was approximately an hour.
It was over when Torium reached my forehead.
“It is done. It will be hard to tell unless someone has really keen eyes. However, it will be a hassle to maintain and you need to refresh it once a week...”
I peeked in the mirror.
I stayed still and tracked my image in the mirror.
I looked like a violet undead and gave off a strong impression.
“Is this the end?”
"Jeff still has something left to do. He should be coming around now.”
He cleaned his tools and waited for someone.
Jeff.
He came running up with something in his hand.
"Darn mercenary scum! It isn’t a big deal if I borrow it, but they wanted five Jellim branches? Crooks!”
Jeff spat out with disgust as he got closer. The frown on his face showed that he wasn’t in a good mood.
"What is it?”
I asked as Jeff stuck out the cloth in his hand.
"Here ya go. This is a precious seal so don’t lose it.”
"The Mercenary Seal.”
Torium’s words were an insufficient explanation.
I still accepted the token and studied it.
It seemed to be carved out of stone. A pattern of nails was embossed in the centre.
The reason why they gave this to me was simple.
"That is the sign of a mercenary.”
"This world...it has been stopped for a long time. The lord knows the faces and names of everyone in the village. The only outsiders in the Underground World are mercenaries.”
“I like it.”
I grasped the token. It was a job that wasn’t bound to a place so I was pretty interested. I had a similar role in the Demon World.
Why should I refuse?
Torium sighed with relief and said.
“...Attach the seal to your left chest.”
The back of the seal seemed to have some type of sticky paste on it. I glanced at Torium after placing it on my left chest.
"It is quite enthusiastic.”
"What is?"
"Your attitudes toward me."
Jeff and Torium. They showed no hostility towards me from the beginning. I was suspicious when I showed Wrath and the Emperor’s Sword, but they didn’t reveal their greed.
I had given them nothing in the last 20 days. All I did was talk and spar. Even so, they were coming up with ways to defend me. It was hard to think that it was just a simple favour.
“That...”
Gulp!
Torium swallowed his saliva before managing to speak.
"I just think that I will be able to tell the best story.”
"This is your curiosity as a storyteller?”
"I want to see the real thing, not a fake. My stories have all been mere fiction. How can I miss looking at a narrative about this fake world with my own eyes?”
"So it is your treasure.”
"There is no other way. And...I have already been on a long journey.”
He looked exhausted.
He had been sensitive of time since this world was first created by the Hell Monarch.
He could only guess how long had passed.
"Aren’t you afraid of dying on this trip?”
It was a simple question. If he helped me and died, it would be because of his curiosity.
Torium just laughed.
"I am already dead. Apart from my curiosity, I also want to rest. Including me, all the undead...we are just walking corpses...even so, we can’t get any rest until we feel the ‘wind.’ In this world, those who have their desires fulfilled will feel the wind.”
The wind...their dreams, hopes or something like that.
Torium had to keep walking.
One day, I had suddenly fallen here. He was filled with hope after seeing someone alive.
I felt the heat from his dead eyes.
Therefore, I slowly opened my mouth.
"Then I will hope for your death while travelling.”
"Haven’t I already died? Well...I will keep wondering about strange things.”
After hearing the story, I put away Wrath and the Emperor’s Sword and turned.
"Let's go."
"Do you know where to go?”
“Guide me.”
“......”
The broad wilderness.
Only earth and dust was visible.
A large village was built on it. Approximately 200 stone houses were gathered.
“It is quiet.”
I said while looking at the quiet scenery.
The village was almost deserted. Nobody was wandering the streets.
"By now, they should all be gathered at the lord’s castle.”
“Preparing for war?”
"Correct. There are no children so what reason is there to remain in the village?”
I nodded.
Like Torium said, they were all undead. They had been in this state for a long time and couldn’t have any children. The differences in roles between men and women had disappeared.
Then Torium said carefully.
"I was wondering, can you change your tone?”
"Why are you asking?”
"Lord-nim and the generals won’t appreciate it from a normal undead.”
"I won’t change my tone for anyone.”
I kept this tone even in front of Death Bringer. Nobody could force me to change it.
My resolve was firm. Torium also discovered that.
"The...stay as quiet as possible. Jeff and I will speak.”
Jeff nodded from next to him.
The lord here seemed quite demanding.
The lord’s castle. It wasn’t comparable to my dungeon but it was still quite large. The guards opened the gate after checking Jeff and Torium’s faces.
Shortly after entering the castle, murmuring sounds could be heard.
"This, dammit! Did you forget the nickname of Commander Makdalli? Obstinate Makdalli! He is just obstinate! A vicious bastard who will do everything to get what he wants! He is a commander who commands 100,000 troops!”
"Then should we run away? Haven’t we spent 50 years on this land? Dammit!”
“It is highly likely that they are coming to invade our land. The dullahan Somullem. He is different from normal zombies!"
"H-hasn’t Lord-nim been promoted to a ghoul? There are also a large number of skeleton soldiers...”
In the heart of the castle.
Thousands of undead were gathered in a wide area.
The lord was sitting in a huge chair and watching over the meeting.
The lord was a ghoul. He had gone one step further as a zombie. Two skeleton soldiers were situated next to him.
Torium explained.
"This is how our meetings normally work. 20 of the most influential people in the village will put something together and report it to the lord. Usually it takes half a day...”
“Jeff! You bastard, why did you come so late?”
The heated discussion at the table was broken up as we approached.
The one to speak was a thick zombie. Jeff scratched his head.
"Wait. First of all, I want to introduce someone...”
Another zombie saw the seal on my left chest and said.
“Introduce? Ah, the one next to you? It is definitely the first time I’ve seen him. A mercenary?”
"He has considerable skills. You will have a big shock once you see it.”
"A mercenary...I don’t have much faith. Isn’t it likely that he will run away when the war heats up? He will probably enjoy this village until then.”
"Just look at him. I brought a real mercenary!”
“Jeff, do you guarantee that?”
“Yes. I guarantee it. The Matchless Warrior Jeff guarantees it!”
"I was once duped by Jeff’s assurances.”
"This time it is true!”
He might seem frivolous but Jeff was recognized by the village.
"Aish. Just watch from the sidelines. Understood? Don’t act needlessly overbearing...just stay in the back.”
Jeff pulled my hand and moved.
A large map was laid on top of the table that had the positions of the enemy marked.
Jjak!
Jeff led me over to another young man who was talking.
"The opponent is the dullahan Somullem. He has approximately 1,000 troops. The general configuration is 900 zombies, 90 skeleton soldiers and 10 skeleton priests! The captain of the enemies is the dullahan Somullem! They will arrive in approximately three days. We have 500 troops and most of them are zombies. Any good opinions?”
“Ah, let’s see. Isn’t holing up the only answer? We don’t need to eat or drink. Just endure it!”
"Don’t you know what an ignorant bastard Somullem is? He will just break through the thin walls!”
"Dig a trap!”
The combined opinions weren’t useful.
But I ignored their words and just stared at the map. It was an entire map of the Underground World but I could see a path.
‘The rating of the creature is similar to my current power.'
Dullahan. An advanced 1Lv creature.
A difficult but not impossible opponent.
The status window wasn’t working but a dullahan seemed like a decent opponent. The level of the soldiers wouldn’t be that difficult.
Chwaruruk!
I pulled out Wrath.
Puk!
And I pointed it at the map.
“What...?”
At that moment, it became quiet.
All the undead around the table and even the lord was watching me.
I held Wrath tightly. And...
Chwaaack!
A large part of the map and table.
I pointed to the ripped portion and said.
"Right here. I will break through. Take care of the rest.”
The silence didn’t last long.
The undead around me started complaining.
"What is that guy doing?”
“Attack? A suicide operation?”
"Who brought him?”
The reaction wasn’t good. This was the first time I attended a village meeting, yet I presented such a ridiculous opinion. There was no way it would be good.
Jeff’s expression was completely frozen. Torium slapped his forehead and prepared to defend me.
"Stop!"