The Monkey’s Paw.
A short story written by the British author William Wymark Jacobs, it was fairly well known around the world for its grotesque contents. The quality of the work itself was also considerable. It had not been selected as a masterpiece of modern literature for nothing.
However, because the genre of the story was horror, and because society while William was alive was still under the influence of the Mysteries, his novel went beyond fiction and became reality. It was a typical case of a story gaining power.
[The Monkey’s Paw is similar in appearance to the description in the original work. It is simply a little more grotesque. That is because several versions of the story have been mixed together.]
Kim Iseo said.
[First of all, it has six fingers. There are teeth on the back of its hand, and at night it imitates the cries of a monkey. It is also covered in black fur.]
“…….”
[If that were all, you would feel it was a hideous object that must never be touched. Yes, that is indeed the case. However, things with such vicious appearances often induce mental disturbances.]
“You mean it casts something like mind control or hypnosis?”
[Correct. The Monkey’s Paw places witnesses under a hypnosis that makes them ‘absolutely want to make a wish.’ If one’s mental barrier is solid, it can be ignored, but the residents of a village in a mountain valley do not fall under that category.]
As grand as the name mental barrier sounded, mental barriers played a rather important role in battles against the Mysteries. No matter how strong one’s martial ability was, and no matter whether one could cut down aberrations alone, if one’s mind was weak, one would not last long and would die.
It was only natural. The Mysteries wished to drive a blade into a human’s throat anytime, anywhere. The method might be kneading the mind and destroying the ego, or driving one mad until they cut off their own head.
Most people involved in the Mysteries, including the majority of Bureau agents, tended to loathe dying in this manner, with their minds collapsing.
That was why the Bureau also actively operated psychological counseling centers and trauma treatment facilities. The Cartel, too, would perform the bizarre procedure known as trauma washing, as long as one paid.
Even those who had immersed themselves in the Mysteries continuously prepared such mental defenses. Then what about the residents of a small village who had never once been involved with the Mysteries in their lives?
[Naturally, they were bewitched.]
It was an obvious story.
[The child who made the wish is an elementary school student who just turned nine. However, this village is not an ordinary village, so the child was not attending school.]
“……? They didn’t go to elementary school? Isn’t education compulsory?”
Ian asked, frowning. With the rustling sound of papers being turned, Kim Iseo answered.
[You are correct. It is compulsory education. However, this child—no, every minor in this village—was never registered at birth. Let alone school, they did not even receive an education.]
“……That’s practically a ghost story in its own right. Is something like that possible in this day and age?”
[It is possible if religion is involved.]
Kim Iseo let out a deep sigh and continued.
[This village is a cult.]
“……What?”
[They were worshipping an aberration called the Laughing Buddha. We only found out after sending reconnaissance and personnel.]
The Laughing Buddha. Just hearing the name made it clear it was far removed from ordinary Buddhism. Ian was silent for a moment, then took out a cigarette and opened his mouth.
“You’re telling me you didn’t know that until now? Isn’t that a little too incompetent?”
[……There are many excuses I could give, but in any case, we failed to notice. You are not wrong, Mage.]
“So? You went to deal with the Monkey’s Paw, but since the case got tangled up with this thing called the Laughing Buddha, you need my help?”
[That is correct. At present, five members of reconnaissance and personnel are missing. Three are dead. Response Division Team One, which was forcibly deployed, has all gone missing.]
“Hmm…….”
Ian let out a low hum and headed up to the rooftop of the officetel.
At a glance, they sounded incompetent, but he could understand to some extent. Since they had not accurately grasped the Mysteries currently involved and were lacking information as well, they likely had no other method but to keep throwing people in.
If they kept ramming their heads against it like that, they might resolve the incident if they were lucky. But if it were as easy as it sounded, they would not have asked for cooperation like this. They would have tried to solve it somehow on their own level.
It was not as though the Bureau knew how to make homunculi, so their human resources were limited as well. Even if they were people who were not fundamentally very afraid of death, if they all ended up dead, there would be nothing left. Replenishing them quickly was difficult, too.
[We ask for your cooperation, Mage.]
So Ian could understand why she was taking such a humble stance, even though not much time had passed since they had decided to cooperate.
That was that, however, and Ian had no reason to blindly accept their proposal.
“Do you remember the contract we made?”
He spoke with the cigarette in his mouth.
“I said I would decide which requests involving cooperation with the Bureau I took.”
[……I remember.]
“Then you also know that I can refuse this request.”
[…….]
Kim Iseo fell silent. Rather than press her for an answer, Ian lit the end of his cigarette.
It was not as though he was doing this deliberately. If asked whether he disliked the Bureau, that was not the case either. They had not bared their teeth first, so what reason did he have to hate and loathe them on his own?
He simply had a schedule he had already set.
“I’m planning to go hunt a high-ranking vampire. I know you’re in a hurry, but I have a lot to do as well.”
[A high-ranking vampire hunt…… you say? May I ask when you plan to go?]
“Why are you asking that?”
[Because I believe we can help.]
Kim Iseo spoke in a slightly brighter voice. Ian narrowed his eyes and exhaled smoke with a whoosh.
“Help?”
[Yes. If you cooperate with this mission, we will, of course, pay the basic compensation, and the Bureau will also provide manpower for the vampire request.]
It was a rather unconventional offer. Ian asked with a slightly surprised expression.
“You’ll provide manpower? Is that allowed?”
[There should be no problem. We cannot send very many people, but we can provide at least enough support to satisfy you.]
“And the compensation?”
[We will not take any.]
“Ha.”
Ian burst out laughing.
“The conditions are so good that I’m having trouble believing them.”
[As for trust, we can provide as much as you need. It is also possible to draft a contract that causes death the moment it is broken. If you wish, I will draft it immediately and deliver it to you.]
“No, there’s no need to go that far.”
Her sincerity had been conveyed sufficiently. It seemed the Bureau had judged the matter related to the Monkey’s Paw to be a very important issue. That was why they were going this far.
Ian did not know exactly why they were so fixated on the Monkey’s Paw. Perhaps they intended to destroy it, or perhaps they intended to capture and isolate it. They might even be planning to study it thoroughly and use it.
Whatever the case, it was not an important matter to Ian.
What mattered was that they would participate in the vampire hunt without payment, and the compensation the Bureau’s resources could provide.
As for manpower, the more there was, the better. With Bureau agents joining, Yuna would inevitably have to drop out, but even so, if veteran agents joined, there would be no great loss. If needed, he could ask for support only from mages and have Yuna move with them as well.
Either way, Ian had nothing to lose.
“…….”
If the opportunity arose, it would not be bad to snatch the Monkey’s Paw midway, either. He would not use it because of the danger, but it was decent enough to keep around for research. If necessary, he could use it as a material.
There were more alchemical items than one might think that required the hands or arms of primates. Checking whether an aberration derived from a story fell into that category would also be helpful for his future life.
Having finished thinking, Ian stubbed out his cigarette in a portable ashtray. Then, looking down at the cityscape, he answered.
“I’ll join you at the site. Just send me the address and departure date by message.”
[Ah, thank you. Then I will see you that day. I hope you spend the rest of the holiday comfortably.]
With those words, the call ended. A moment later, a message arrived on his number.
[Kim Iseo: This is the site address and the meeting time.]
He checked it.
The address was the entrance to a mountain somewhere in Gyeongsang Province. The time was tomorrow morning.
Work as soon as the holiday ended. From what he had heard, they seemed to have been grinding down manpower even during the holiday, so it appeared the Bureau’s welfare was far worse than that of most companies. Ian gave a bitter smile and came down from the rooftop.
Since he had work starting tomorrow morning, he had no time to dawdle. He returned home, packed his things in advance, slept until evening, and then rode his bike down to the provinces.
Even though he ate on the way, he was not late for the appointed time.
The entrance to the mountain, where the damp air of dawn had settled. Between trees blooming with frost flowers, a cold fog scattered chill and blocked the view. The faint cries of birds added to the eerie atmosphere.
“…….”
Leaning against his bike, Ian smoked a cigarette as he stared at the evil spirit leaping across the trees.
A ballerina ghost frolicking about with a carving knife in hand. Beneath the ribbons tied around her ankles, human heads hung like fruit.
They were not the heads of fellow ghosts, but of humans who had once been alive.
It was true that ghosts in the mountains were generally strong, but it was rare for them to slaughter people in such large numbers. It seemed the yin energy of this mountain itself was quite strong.
[Ohoho.]
As he was thinking, the ballerina’s gaze met Ian’s. The ballerina smiled with a chilling expression, then lightly ran along the branches and set her foot atop his head.
Since she looked as though she was about to do something in that state, he immediately opened his grimoire and turned her into fine material. Without putting up even the slightest resistance, the ballerina became a blue sphere and fell to the ground.
Thud, thud, thud.
Along with the exorcism, the heads that had been dangling from her ankles also dropped to the ground.
One perfectly fine man standing there, and dozens of blood-soaked heads.
No matter how one looked at it, it was a strange scene. Ian let out a deep sigh and roughly pushed the heads aside with his foot.
“Mage.”
Just then, a voice came from behind him. Ian pinned the head he had been rolling like a ball under a tree with his foot and turned his head.
“You arrived early. I’m sorry. The road was a little blocked, so I came ahead on foot by myself…… Uh.”
Kim Iseo, who had been walking over with her pink hair fluttering, discovered Ian, the heads strewn around him, and the head he was stepping on, and her mouth fell open.
“……Mm.”
In a situation that anyone could only misunderstand, Ian scratched his head.