Memorize - Episode 26
26 Meeting Familiar People
Among the monsters that appear in the Trial of Passage, there is one called Manki that closely resembles a monkey. Unlike Deadmen, it can be considered to be at a level that can be called a monster without much reservation. Its body is covered in soft, fluffy fur, so it has no defense, but its behavior is very cunning, and it has a habit of moving in groups of at least four to five. Therefore, it was a monster that was uncomfortable for novice users to face alone.
"Ooki! Ookiki!"
And currently, we were engaged in battle with five monkey-sized Mankis. The Manki, with its heavy body and long tail, is a monster that has considerable strength but is slow-moving. Of course, there are cases where it suddenly jumps high and strikes down, but in such cases, there was no particular danger if you predicted the landing point and avoided it.
"Ookiki! Ookiki!"
"Be careful!"
Ahn Hyun and Kim Han-byeol were currently engaged in a difficult battle with three Mankis. I was keeping one in check, and Lee Yoo-jung was handling the remaining one, so numerically, we could be considered at a disadvantage. But only numerically.
That's when it happened. In the midst of the back-and-forth, one of the Mankis fighting Ahn Hyun suddenly slipped back and crouched down, catching my eye. Judging by its direction, it seemed to be aiming for me. Normally, it would target the precarious Lee Yoo-jung, but given their nature, they rarely targeted females.
They were creatures with strong sexual desires and a strong obsession with breeding activities, getting excited whenever they saw female individuals. Especially when they saw fairies (personally, I think it's unlikely for Mankis to catch fairies) or human women, they went crazy to the point of their eyes rolling back, so it seemed they were planning to deal with the men first and then capture only the women.
"Hyung! Yoo-jung! Be careful! I think one of them has disappeared!"
Ahn Hyun shouted in a loud voice. Having frantically dealt with three, the situation seemed to have improved slightly when one decreased. Still a novice, yet taking his eyes off during a life-or-death battle. Upon hearing Ahn Hyun's words, Lee Yoo-jung's posture became even more defensive. Facing one was already challenging, so at the thought of facing two, her body instinctively shrank. Eventually, the crouching Manki let out a roar and leaped high into the air. And that moment was exactly what I had been aiming for.
Ping!
I pulled the bowstring without delay. The arrow, flying with a sharp sound, beautifully pierced the Manki's head. It was good to use the force of rising and falling in the air, but it seems it didn't think about not being able to move itself. Or maybe it thought it wouldn't be hit. I'm just taking it easy now to let the kids practice, but if I really wanted to...
'Ah, what's the point of me saying this.'
"Oppa! Watch out on your side!"
I know, dear. While aiming at the one that had risen into the air, the Manki that had charged to my side struck down its palm as if to crush me. Without even looking, I dodged the attack by a paper-thin margin and then stabbed the Manki's head with the arrow I was holding in my right hand. A clean counter-attack. I could feel the sensation of soft flesh being penetrated at the tip of the arrow in my hand.
"Kieeee..."
Thud!
With a sorrowful cry, the Manki collapsed, and simultaneously, the corpse of the Manki that had been in the air also fell to the ground. I had taken out two in just 3 seconds. I quickly reloaded an arrow and surveyed the battle situation again, and everyone seemed to be fighting more or less evenly.
Ahn Hyun was fighting using his long sword and shield as before, and Kim Han-byeol was clumsily swinging a sword slightly thinner but longer than a long sword. And Lee Yoo-jung was rampaging with two medium-length daggers with pointed tips.
It seemed that Ahn Hyun was keeping two in check at the front with his sword and shield, and when an opening appeared, Kim Han-byeol would thrust in. Then, if an effective hit was made, Ahn Hyun and Kim Han-byeol would instantly launch a joint attack. Although the fighting was clumsy, they were achieving fairly good results. On the other hand, Lee Yoo-jung seemed to be struggling to get inside due to the reach disadvantage. She occasionally managed to wound the Manki's arm, but she was mostly retreating and swinging her daggers in vain.
Well, it was unreasonable to expect more from kids who had only been holding weapons for 3 or 4 days. Rather, as if to prove they were high-level users, they were adapting to the Trial of Passage at an unimaginable speed. I let out a light sigh and aimed my crossbow at the Manki Lee Yoo-jung was facing. I intended to just create an opening like last time, not to kill it outright.
Ping!
"Kieeee!"
The arrow flew and lodged in the right chest of the Manki. Unlike Deadmen, they could feel pain, so the Manki twisted its body and screamed in agony. And Lee Yoo-jung wasn't one to miss this opportunity. Seeing the arrow stuck in the Manki's chest, her eyes sparkled, and she quickly ducked down and dove in. It was a moment when the power of her basic agility score of 50 points shone.
"Die! You fucking rapist monkey bastard!"
Spitting out a coarse curse, Lee Yoo-jung vigorously crossed her daggers as if she had met a lifelong enemy. Simultaneously, a battle cry from Ahn Hyun could be heard from the side, suggesting he had landed a decisive blow.
One second, two seconds, three seconds, four seconds, five seconds. After counting to five seconds, I looked at the Mankis our companions had been facing, and they were all lying on the ground in miserable states. The Manki that Lee Yoo-jung had faced had a large X-shaped cut on its chest, while the Mankis that Ahn Hyun and Kim Han-byeol had faced each had one large wound and many smaller injuries on their bodies. It seemed they had steadily inflicted small wounds from the start and then delivered a final blow when the Mankis' stamina had dropped. Ah, is this what they call the joy of raising children?
The three looked at the two Mankis I had already dispatched, then shook their heads and plopped down on the ground. They were breathing heavily, seemingly quite tense. Well, after facing only one each day, suddenly confronting five must have been more challenging than usual.
"Ah... Damn. I'm covered in monkey blood. Feels fucking disgusting."
Lee Yoo-jung, her short hair swaying, spat on the ground as she shook off the blood. Covered in blood and sprawled on the ground, she looked both strong and beautiful, like a goddess of the battlefield. Ahn Hyun and Kim Han-byeol weren't in much better shape either. Their clothes were tattered, and dried blood stains were visible all over their bodies. If anyone was in better condition, it would be me and Ahn Sol.
I slowly closed my eyes and fell into contemplation.
Three days had already passed since we left the city. In other words, we had been alive for 4 days, including the first day. Today was the 5th day. If we could maintain this pace just for today, it seemed we could reach the warp gate as early as the 6th day, or at least by the 7th day.
Over these 5 days, our life could be described as monotonous if you call it monotonous, or spectacular if you call it spectacular. We literally repeated walking, fighting, resting, walking, fighting, and resting. In our first encounter with a monster after leaving the city, the Mandragora, we almost lost Ahn Sol. It suddenly popped out of the ground with its mouth open, ready to swallow, and everyone except me was so startled they fell over screaming.
Ahn Hyun, who recklessly jumped in, was injured by the plant's thorns, but fortunately, I had sensed it beforehand and was able to respond quickly. After that incident, Kim Han-byeol and Lee Yoo-jung seemed to have realized something. They picked up weapons placed at the Save Point we had barely reached and declared they would fight from now on. Ahn Hyun was reluctant about the girls fighting, but their determination was firm.
Of course, I don't know if they were anxious about leaving the fighting just to Ahn Hyun and me, or if they really wanted to help. However, one thing was certain: I could see a strong desire for survival in their eyes. I was going to need to start training them anyway, so I nodded readily.
After that, as we left the Save Point and passed through the forest, we came across one person. We found her right at the entrance to where the Mankis appeared, and she was a female user. Her face was quite pretty, but unfortunately, she was already dead when we discovered her. Her clothes were torn almost to the point of being stripped off, and her entire body was covered in red bruises. White semen, still warm, was flowing from her genitals, suggesting she had been assaulted by Mankis right up until we arrived. Judging by the streak of blood from her mouth, it seemed she had taken her own life, unable to endure the assault.
Lee Yoo-jung went berserk at the sight and raved about killing those monkey bastards. Whether by coincidence or not, we found five Mankis nearby with their genitals exposed and red, and we immediately engaged in battle. Honestly, it was probably more accurate to say that the Mankis approached us because of Lee Yoo-jung's loud outburst. They had probably just finished enjoying themselves when their female died, and then they smelled new females, so there was no way these excited creatures would just pass by.
And the result was our victory. Thinking that we should move forward one step at a time, I rose from my contemplation.
"Sol. One towel and a bottle of water for unni."
"What did you say?"
Kim Han-byeol sharply retorted at Lee Yoo-jung's slip of the tongue.
"Ah, sorry. I misspoke because I'm tired. Not Han-byeol, but a bottle."
"Hehehe... Yes... Unni, you worked hard."
"Hard work my ass. What the hell is that oppa, dealing with these monkey bastards so easily? Give me that crossbow! I want to use a crossbow too!"
I smiled awkwardly at Lee Yoo-jung throwing a tantrum. If you're that upset, just get stronger yourself.
'You know, when I first started, there was no one to help me like this, and I had to crawl on the ground swinging my sword.'
Of course, I couldn't say this out loud, so I just smiled awkwardly.
However, now that they've swung their weapons a bit, they seem to have noticed something. Watching me fight, they seemed to have noticed that there was something different. Kim Han-byeol was sitting modestly, catching her breath, but Ahn Hyun, despite panting, wasn't taking his eyes off me.
"Hyung, did you come from some special forces or something? How can you shoot that crossbow so well?"
"...These days, they teach all this in the military."
"Oh, oppa, stop lying. I can understand if it's shooting, but who learns crossbow in the military?"
"Says the guy who's never been to Seoul. Go to the military first before you talk. You think they just make you hold guns and go bang bang? Bayonet skills, Taekwondo, dagger techniques, throwing stars, bows, and crossbows are all part of basic martial arts training."
At my words, the expressions of Ahn Hyun, Lee Yoo-jung, and Ahn Sol became strange. Only Kim Han-byeol seemed to have noticed that my words were a lie, as she chuckled. I wasn't particularly worried. I thought that revealing this much was within the allowable range, given that the team had already firmly established itself.
"Ugh... I don't know. I just want to rest now. My head hurts for no reason."
"If you're going to rest, sit up or stand up. What will you do if we get attacked while you're like that?"
"I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know. Sol, sorry, but can unni have just one chocolate? I'm hungry."
"Sol, give some to oppa too."
"I'd like one as well, please."
"Yes~. I'll bring them right away~."
Ahn Sol moved quickly at the successive requests from Lee Yoo-jung, Ahn Hyun, and Kim Han-byeol. At Ahn Hyun's strong insistence, his sister was restricted from directly participating in combat. Instead, she was helping everyone like this. Since Ahn Sol seemed to have a nature that enjoyed helping others from the start, she didn't appear to have any major complaints, so this level of errand-running was understandable.
I slowly sat down, watching Ahn Sol hand over water bottles with a bright smile.
Humans are animals with excellent adaptability to their surroundings. And if that's linked to the desire for survival, the synergistic effect of combining the two is maximized that much more. I felt anew that this saying was true. No matter how high-level the users are, women who were enjoying ordinary daily lives just a few days ago are now swinging swords familiarly at monsters. Thinking of myself, who trembled for a while at the sensation of killing a living creature when I first defeated a monster, I couldn't help but smile bitterly.
Of course, it wasn't that there were no worries at all. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, they might be able to wield weapons without burden now because their opponents are monsters threatening their lives. But what if the opponent was another person? Would they be able to act without hesitation like now? Honestly, I wanted to train them on that aspect too if the opportunity arose, but unfortunately, there was no such opportunity.
"Everyone, let's get up now. We need to walk diligently today too if we want to find even a yellow roof. Is that okay with you too, hyung?"
"Yeah."
A Rest Room, huh? It'll be harder to find as we get closer to the central gate. But there was no need to say it out loud, so I simply answered. At Ahn Hyun's words, Lee Yoo-jung nodded with a slightly relieved expression. As I watched everyone shaking off the foreign substances on their bodies and starting to get up, I was about to organize my thoughts and dust off my seat. Although I had turned off my magic detection for practice, I suddenly stopped in my tracks at the presence of several auras felt nearby.
It was the moment I turned my head at the sound of rustling bushes.
"Huh, what are these guys?"
At that moment, my companions and I could see four people who appeared, pushing through the dense undergrowth.