Episode 26
They weren’t completely pointed like the elf he had met before. Perhaps about halfway between a human and an elf in size?
Only then did Jeon understand the meaning of the word “mongrel” that Deiodeun had spoken.
That girl was clearly a half-breed of human and elf.
*A child born between a human and an elf.*
Setting aside Deiodeun’s infinite hostility toward elves, the elves’ feelings toward humans weren’t favorable either.
At least the elves Jeon had encountered were like that. So it was inevitable that he found it wondrous for such an elf to meet a human and form a family.
The girl was hiding behind the middle-aged man, stealing glances at Jeon and Deiodeun.
Her expression was full of fear, but curiosity also dwelt within it.
Then the middle-aged man’s gaze turned to Jeon.
“I haven’t seen this child before. Is he your disciple?”
“Disciple? That dimwit? Pfft!”
Deiodeun burst into derisive laughter.
Jeon’s face crumpled, but he didn’t bother to argue. Because compared to Deiodeun, it was true that he was a dimwit.
The middle-aged man spoke to Jeon.
“My name is Go Duwon. What is yours?”
“I’m Jeon.”
“Are you of Korean descent, by any chance?”
“I don’t even know who my parents are.”
“I’m sorry. I had no intention of picking at your wounds. I was merely glad because you seemed to be of the same Korean descent.”
“It’s all right.”
Even in the slums of Neo Seoul, there were quite a few who cared about one’s origins.
There had been many foreigners in Old Seoul.
As the world changed, foreigners who could not return to their homelands had settled in Neo Seoul.
They had survived desperately, married Koreans or other foreigners, and had children.
With so many races mixed like a blast furnace, pureblooded Koreans were hard to find.
Deiodeun scoffed at Go Duwon.
“Like some kind of madman, are you still fussing over who’s Korean and who’s foreign? Even though your own child is a half-breed mongrel with an elf.”
“You haven’t changed one bit. Still rough, and rude….”
“If a person changes easily, it means their death is near.”
At Deiodeun’s reply, Go Duwon shook his head.
The Deiodeun he was seeing for the first time in years hadn’t changed one bit.
He cared nothing for others’ feelings, and even the venomous words he spat like daggers were the same.
Go Duwon knew better than anyone why Deiodeun hated other races so much.
His anger was not incomprehensible, but a full hundred years had passed.
Of those who had experienced that incident, only a few including Deiodeun were still alive.
While others had quietly buried those memories in their hearts, only Deiodeun still lived harboring such rage; it was simply pitiful.
Go Duwon asked carefully.
“Why have you come here? Did you come to deal with the Bomb Bees?”
“Why should I deal with the Bomb Bees?”
“Is that not the case?”
“Are you still chasing an empty dream? Foolish!”
“It is not an empty dream. If we only deal with the Bomb Bees, we can revive this forest. Do you truly not know?”
“I know only one thing. A tree that is already dead cannot be revived no matter what you do.”
Deiodeun rapped on the tree with his hand.
Thud, thud!
A metallic sound echoed from the carbonized wood.
“It’s not merely dead; it’s completely carbonized. And yet you say it can be revived? Did that wench whisper that to you? You believe the words of a filthy elf bitch? You’d be better off biting a blade and killing yourself.”
At Deiodeun’s venom, Go Duwon could only bite his lip.
Deiodeun’s fury toward elves and other races was too great; persuading him was impossible.
“If you did not come to help, why are you here?”
“I merely stopped by while passing through. The outskirts of the Black Forest are shaded, making it a decent place to rest.”
“I hope you will not stay long. Our entire clan fears you.”
“Do you think I would care about such trash?”
“I suppose not. Because you are Deiodeun. Deiodeun the Slaughterer. I had forgotten that for a moment.”
“If you know now, get out of my sight. Before I send that mongrel’s head flying.”
“Don’t you know better than anyone that that is impossible?”
“Shall we try? Whether I can or cannot.”
“But I shall withdraw here. Please have a safe journey.”
Go Duwon bowed his head with a devastated expression.
Deiodeun was a man who always did what he said.
His madness had swollen over a hundred years, and now no one could stop him.
Go Duwon took his daughter’s hand.
In an instant, his figure vanished without a trace.
Jeon muttered in surprise.
“He’s an Awakened.”
“Well, he is one who leads a clan. If he hadn’t Awakened, he wouldn’t have been able to look after the clan until now.”
A clan bearing the Go (高) surname living in the wild, they were called the Goya Clan.
It was a name given by the elf who had been Go Duwon’s wife.
That was why Deiodeun disliked it even more.
“We’ll be leaving shortly, so prepare yourself.”
“Yes!”
Jeon nodded.
Though many curiosities about the Goya Clan remained, he decided to set them aside here.
Because he needed to eat before departing on a long journey.
Jeon took out a piece of jerky and put it in his mouth.
He chewed the jerky as slowly as possible and swallowed.
Not long after waking, his mouth was parched.
Even so, Jeon did not stop chewing.
He wolfed down two pieces of jerky and drank some water.
Without lingering, Jeon dusted off his hands and stood.
It was time to leave now.
Deiodeun picked up the crayon he had stuck into the ground.
It was as the two were about to leave the Black Forest without regret.
*Woooong!*
Suddenly, intense noise poured from within the Black Forest.
It was the sound of Bomb Bees flapping their wings.
And not one or two, but hundreds or thousands flapping all at once.
Deiodeun muttered.
“It seems something has excited the Bomb Bees.”
Bomb Bees were demonic beasts.
And demonic beasts with a strong attachment to their territory.
They never tolerated other lifeforms entering their lands.
Something had clearly trespassed into the Bomb Bees’ territory.
But Deiodeun’s interest ended there.
This was merely a place to rest for a while.
Whatever happened was none of his concern.
“Let’s go!”
Deiodeun turned away coldly.
Just as Jeon tried to follow.
“Hareu! Hareu!”
Go Duwon came running toward them, calling out desperately.
Several men who appeared to be his clansmen followed behind him.
Go Duwon, arriving before them, asked Deiodeun.
“Have you seen my daughter, Hareu?”
“Why do you ask me of your daughter’s whereabouts?”
“She was playing in front of the bunker, but she suddenly disappeared.”
Then one of the clansmen pointed toward the Black Forest.
“Over there?”
“The Bomb Bees are reacting.”
At their words, Go Duwon’s face turned deathly pale.
All the demonic beasts in the area had been hunted by Go Duwon.
He had protected the clan by periodically hunting them.
Naturally, there were no demonic beasts left that would provoke the Bomb Bees.
“Could Hareu have entered the Black Forest?”
“We must rescue her quickly.”
“Hareu is in danger.”
Urgent expressions spread across the clansmen’s faces.
The Black Forest, home to the Bomb Bees, was one of the most dangerous places on earth.
Bomb Bees were swarm creatures like ants.
To repel intruders, they did not hesitate to self-destruct.
No matter how strong a demonic beast was, survival in the Black Forest was impossible.
His daughter had entered such a dangerous forest alone.
He couldn’t even fathom how to rescue her.
Go Duwon knelt before Deiodeun.
“Please, save my daughter. I will pay any price….”
“Heh heh! Why would I save such a mongrel?”
“Did you not make a solemn vow?”
“A solemn vow?”
Deiodeun’s face contorted.
“You owed my father a life debt. In return, you swore to watch over Hareu until she turned twenty, so she could grow up safely.”
Veins bulged in Go Duwon’s neck; his eyes were bloodshot.
He was begging with his life on the line, because there was no hope other than Deiodeun.
Deiodeun had suffered a fatal wound long ago.
The one who saved him was Go Duwon’s father.
It was after Go Duwon had already married an elf.
Deiodeun harbored greater rage toward other races than anyone, but he could not kill the daughter-in-law and granddaughter of his benefactor who had saved his life.
When Deiodeun said he would repay the debt in another way, Go Duwon’s father said he would be satisfied if Deiodeun merely left Hareu alone until she was twenty.
Deiodeun had made a solemn vow to that effect.
“Hareu is only twelve. Your vow will not end for another eight years.”
“I said I would watch over her. I never said I would protect her.”
“Must she not survive for you to watch over her?”
*Grind!*
Deiodeun clenched his teeth.
It was a contradiction in the vow.
*I was outdone by a sly old fox.*
Only now did he understand why Go Duwon’s father had made him swear such a vow.
He had clearly prepared for this situation.
Go Duwon said.
“If Hareu does not survive, you cannot watch over her. Am I wrong?”
“Don’t force the issue. Do you think I will bend to your forced logic?”
“I offer my life. Please save my daughter. That child is the only hope for our clan, and indeed for all the people barely clinging to life in this area.”
Go Duwon’s voice carried earnest insistence.
Deiodeun looked at him, furrowing his brow.
Go Duwon’s words were close to sophistry, but enough to leave Deiodeun conflicted.
Deiodeun had lived his whole life as he pleased, but he had never once lied to a fellow human.
Light of conflict flickered on his face.
Then a voice came that saved him from his dilemma.
“I’ll go.”
It was Jeon.
Having traveled with Deiodeun for a long time, he had sensed his complicated feelings.
If Deiodeun truly had no intention of helping, he would have simply cut down Go Duwon and left.
The fact that he was dawdling instead was itself proof of his inner conflict.
Deiodeun looked at Jeon.
“Why you?”
“I was just curious about the interior of the Black Forest.”
“Hmph!”
Deiodeun frowned.
What made Bomb Bees terrifying was that they were swarm creatures.
When countless bees self-destructed to attack, ordinary Awakened could never stand against them.
That was why Go Duwon, despite coveting the Black Forest, had been unable to reclaim it.
He hunted using bow and arrow, like an elf.
He excelled at hunting large demonic beasts, but against swarm monsters like Bomb Bees that overwhelmed with sheer numbers, he was insufficient.
That was why Go Duwon had pleaded so desperately to Deiodeun.
Jeon, on the other hand, had the best compatibility against swarm monsters.
To him, who wielded sand as a weapon, numerical advantage meant nothing.
Deiodeun said gruffly.
“You seem confident.”
“There’s something I wish to test.”
“If you wish to go yourself, I won’t stop you.”
“Please wait until tomorrow morning. If I haven’t returned by then, you may leave.”
“Hmph! I planned to do so regardless. Mark my words. Until tomorrow morning.”
“Then I shall be on my way.”
It was as Jeon was stepping into the Black Forest.
“I’ll go with you.”
Go Duwon followed after him.
Jeon glanced at him.
“Will you be alright?”
“My daughter’s life hangs in the balance. As her father, how could I merely watch?”
“Understood.”
Jeon nodded.
There was no reason to oppose a father trying to save his daughter.
The other clansmen could not muster the courage to follow and stomped their feet anxiously.
Unlike Go Duwon, they were not Awakened.
Go Duwon walked close to Jeon’s side and said.
“Thank you. For stepping forward so willingly.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Stepping forward for others isn’t something just anyone can do. I won’t forget this grace.”
At Go Duwon’s words, Jeon made a slightly awkward expression.
Because he hadn’t stepped forward with pure intentions.
Having risen to D-rank, he had awakened a skill.
The best way to verify a skill was to fight an enemy.
Bomb Bees were the perfect opponents.
That was why he had volunteered even though no one asked.
Since he wasn’t entering the Black Forest with pure intentions, he couldn’t help but feel awkward.
It was then.
*Weeeeng!*
From ahead came the sound of fierce wingbeats.
Go Duwon’s complexion completely changed, realizing it was the sound of Bomb Bees approaching.
He nocked an arrow to his bow.
But Jeon moved faster.
*Swish!*
Sand surged up ahead.
Then a *boom* resounded.
The Bomb Bee charging fiercely had struck the sand wall and exploded.
Go Duwon gaped in shock.
“Good heavens!”