Chapter 12
“Chieftain!”
“Dear gods, it’s the Chieftain!”
“Ugh…!”
Joyful cries rang out endlessly from all directions.
The moment the Chieftain appeared, supported by Ismin, every member of the tribe burst into tears.
It was a clear testament to how deeply the Chieftain was respected and loved.
A short while later.
Hwaruk…….
Ismin gently stroked the back of my hand with a hand wrapped in sapphire-blue flames.
The flames on my hand, which had seemed like they would never extinguish, were instantly covered by the blue fire and vanished completely.
“Just as you said.”
“……”
“I’m sorry for doubting you. And… thank you. For curing my father—the Chieftain’s illness.”
In the awkward atmosphere, Ismin offered words of gratitude and apology.
Her eyes were still cold, as if she hadn’t completely shaken off her hatred toward humans.
However, it was clear that the emotion behind her thanks was sincere. After all, the blue flames of the Lava tribe symbolized grace and blessing.
It was then.
“I heard you were the one who delivered the medicine that cured my illness.”
The Chieftain approached me, leaning on his staff.
His skin had a clear ochre tone, and his lush white hair shone with vitality. It seemed the <Withered Moss> had done its job perfectly.
“I would like to ask the name of my benefactor.”
“Ruth. Ruth Fried.”
“Ruth…”
Thump!
The Chieftain mulled over my name once, then suddenly threw his staff aside.
And slowly—
He knelt on both knees and began to bow before me.
“Ruth. If not for you, I would have left this world without properly saying farewell to my daughter and my tribespeople.”
“……!”
Ismin and the other tribe members watched the Chieftain prostrating himself before me with eyes wide in shock.
They couldn’t even utter a word of protest and hurriedly threw themselves down after him.
I had expected this reaction because the same interaction had occurred in the game, but…
…experiencing it in person was incredibly burdensome.
“Thanks to you, I no longer need to forcibly borrow the forest’s vitality to prolong this old body. You have saved not only me, but the entire ‘Tailve’ Forest as well.”
“I’m glad to see you’ve made a full recovery.”
“Thank you. By the way, may I ask you one thing?”
“Please speak.”
“How exactly did you know how to remove the deadly parasitic insects living inside my body…?”
At that moment, I didn’t miss the faint suspicion and wariness that flashed in the Chieftain’s eyes.
Even though he was showing me the utmost respect, he still distrusted and despised humans just like Ismin did.
A human who suddenly appeared one day had cured an incurable disease that no one else could solve.
Moreover, aside from the Lava tribe, no one should have known that he was even ill.
It was only natural for him to be suspicious.
If I were in his position, I might have said, ‘Thank you. Now get lost.’
“I’ve been chasing her my whole life,”
I recited the lie I had prepared in advance.
“The woman who polluted your sacred land, the <Nuraduke Crater>.”
“What…!”
The Chieftain shot upright from his prostrated position, eyes bulging.
The surrounding tribespeople also gasped and began staring at me all at once.
Especially Ismin, who scowled deeply as if just hearing the name disgusted her, and spat out a single name.
“You… you know that bitch named Jenny or whatever?”
“If knowing her counts as knowing her, then yes. She is the enemy who killed someone precious to me. And Jenny is just the alias she used. Her real name is Theresa.”
But she was far more often called by her infamous title.
“One of the seven worst evils on the continent. We humans call her the [Poison Demon].”
“Poison Demon…”
The fifth of the Seven Great Evils of the continent—[Poison Demon] Theresa.
Just like the other great evils, she was an unbelievably insane monster.
The Poison Demon, who once reigned over the demonic realms of the continent, had one day disguised herself as an ordinary village girl and visited the <Nuraduke Crater>.
‘To be precise, she pretended to have been shipwrecked while traveling alone near the crater.’
A passing tribesman found her and kindly guided her into the crater.
Though called a crater, the <Nuraduke Crater> was actually a treasure trove of life overflowing with tremendous energy like lava.
It was no different from a forest that was simply hot year-round.
At the time, the Lava tribe still didn’t harbor much ill will toward humans, so they treated the Poison Demon with great hospitality.
Or rather, they tried to.
“Poison Demon… Poison Demon… So that was the true identity of that bitch…!!”
Until the moment she released swarms of deadly parasitic insects across the entire crater.
Poisonous insects were common in 《Soden》, but the ones artificially created by the Poison Demon were on a completely different level.
‘Those bugs carry an extreme poison that even a Saint couldn’t cure unless using an extremely rare elixir.’
In action games, weren’t ‘dogs’ and ‘poison bugs’ often harder to deal with than boss monsters?
Faced with the swarm of deadly insects covering the crater, even the powerful fire race known as the Lava tribe was left helpless.
In the end, because of that one insane woman, they were driven out of their home, and the Chieftain, while confronting the Poison Demon, ended up swallowing one of the deadly parasitic insects and hovered between life and death.
“The bitch who defiled our sacred crater and reduced us to this state…!”
Ismin sobbed violently, biting her lower lip so hard that blood began to seep out.
The other tribespeople also wept in deep sorrow.
Meanwhile, I had no intention of simply watching this depressing scene in silence.
“Anyway, while tracking the Poison Demon, I naturally heard about the tragedy that befell your Lava tribe.”
“…I won’t forget the grace you showed by curing the Chieftain’s illness. But I’d like you to leave now. Even if you do this, our wounds won’t heal.”
“You seem to be misunderstanding something.”
It appeared Ismin thought I had come here to apologize on behalf of humanity in place of the Poison Demon.
Before the misunderstanding grew any larger, I spoke directly.
“I cured the Chieftain’s illness with clear expectations of receiving compensation.”
“…Of course. That’s just how you humans are!”
“Even if I had acted out of pure goodwill, your distrust of humans wouldn’t disappear anyway, right?”
“Well, that’s true.”
As if it wasn’t even worth being disappointed about, Ismin snorted and shrugged her shoulders.
The Chieftain, who had been listening, stared straight into my eyes and asked.
“What is the compensation you desire?”
“Please allow me to enter the <Lava Pond of Evolution>.”
The moment I finished speaking.
Sighs erupted from all around.
The shocked tribespeople looked at me with horrified faces, and some revealed their anger with pale expressions.
“You… where did you even hear about the Lava Pond…!”
Ismin refrained from saying more out of respect for the Chieftain, but her eyes burned with hostility, as if asking how much more she was supposed to tolerate.
It was understandable why the Lava tribe reacted so sensitively.
‘Because the <Lava Pond of Evolution> is a holy site to them.’
It was a pond formed by dew that would not evaporate even upon contact with high-temperature magma, and at the same time, it was the center of the ley lines flowing with tremendous life force inside the crater.
Those who bathed their bodies in the Lava Pond…
‘Break through their limits and have their innate flaws corrected.’
Swordsman Demian had completely overcome his Nine Yin Severed Meridians, mage Ray had erased the Witch’s Brand, and hunter Arthur had regained the sight in his lost right eye.
All of these were miracles brought about by the <Lava Pond of Evolution>.
Every character in 《Soden》 is born with one fatal flaw.
And when it came to the Blood Mage’s flaw, no matter how much I thought about it, there was only the ‘blood ki supply penalty.’
A body that would suffer from mental illness and eventually die if it didn’t periodically absorb blood ki.
The <Lava Pond of Evolution> was the only means to turn this damn body back to normal.
‘So whether the Lava tribe treats it as sacred or not, I must enter the Lava Pond no matter what.’
While I was lost in thought, the Chieftain, who had been quietly staring at me, opened his mouth.
“If you’ve heard our story, you must also know why the Poison Demon polluted the <Nuraduke Crater>.”
“Well… roughly…”
“That woman came to our land while hiding her true purpose. She intended to monopolize the <Lava Pond of Evolution>. Naturally, I refused.”
“So when things didn’t go her way, she massacred the Lava tribe and polluted the crater.”
They might not know, but I knew exactly why the Poison Demon coveted the Lava Pond.
For her, who researched poisons, the Lava Pond with its aforementioned effects was the ultimate material.
In the end, the Poison Demon succeeded in stealing a portion of the Lava Pond.
What kind of horrific consequences that would bring later…
‘Just thinking about it gives me a headache.’
“You know the tragedy we suffered, and yet you still demand the <Lava Pond of Evolution> as compensation?”
“……”
“Well, never mind. The only answer I can give you is to give up. This isn’t a matter of whether I permit it or not. Even if I wanted to send you, it’s impossible from the start.”
“Has the crater been completely polluted?”
“Yes. That place has now become a nest for the deadly parasitic insects released by the Poison Demon. The extreme poison they emit covers the air, making it impossible to even breathe.”
Of course.
If they could approach the Lava Pond, the Chieftain wouldn’t have suffered so much from the poisoning.
Perhaps because he was reminded once again of the miserable reality, the Chieftain shook his head with a gloomy face and said.
“So give up on the Lava Pond. If there’s any other compensation you want—”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“What?”
“I’m saying it doesn’t matter even if the crater is polluted. I will go to where the <Lava Pond of Evolution> is.”
“…Do you want to die?”
The Chieftain’s gaze toward me changed from that of a benefactor to a suicidal person.
Regardless, I had no intention of leisurely explaining things to them.
“Please guide me to the crater.”
***
“…It’s a ‘Floating Stone.’ If you hold this, you should be able to reach the inner part of the crater safely.”
After crossing the Lava tribe’s hideout, a steep canyon appeared.
At the top of the canyon was a deep, abyss-like hole. This hole was the Lava tribe’s original home, the <Nuraduke Crater>.
Naturally, one couldn’t dive into the crater with just their bare body, so the Chieftain handed me a ‘Floating Stone.’
“Of course, I’m not sure whether you’ll be safe even after reaching the crater… Ahem!”
“I’ll be back.”
“……”
The Chieftain still looked conflicted until the very end.
As if wondering whether he should stop the benefactor who had saved his life from willingly walking into danger.
I simply waved lightly at him, then threw myself into the hole without the slightest hesitation.
Woong—!
The moment I gripped the Floating Stone tightly, a translucent membrane wrapped around my body, and my falling speed decreased sharply.
Thanks to that, I was able to descend as leisurely as if riding an elevator, but…
[You have entered an area filled with Deadly Poison.]
[Your body is being contaminated.]
[Life force is rapidly decreasing.]
[All status values have decreased by 50%.]
The moment he descended to the middle section inside the crater.
System messages akin to a death sentence continued to fill the air one after another.
The surroundings, which had only shown dark walls, were now completely filled with greenish deadly poison fog.
‘As expected.’
It was a deadly poison that didn’t stop at draining life force but even shaved away stats.
It meant the Poison Demon’s toxin contaminated not only the body but the soul as well.
Truly, her notoriety from the days when users were still active — where searching her name would bring up ‘that bitch’ as a related keyword — hadn’t faded one bit.
Any other person would have already rotted away and died by now.
But not me.
[‘Authority of Resistance’ is resisting the Deadly Poison!]
[Life force is decreasing at an extremely slow rate!]
[Status reduction has been adjusted from 50% to 5%!]
This was it.
The reason why, on the very first day of my possession, the moment I obtained the ‘Authority of Resistance,’ a plan to overcome my penalty immediately flashed in my mind.
Right now, sacred blood flowed through my body and the power of the Authority was in effect.
‘No matter if she’s one of the Seven Great Evils of the continent, in the end she’s still just a human.’
There was no way mere human-made poison could dare defile the blood of a Constellation.
Wiiiiing—!!
It was then.
Just as the bottom was starting to come into view, the loud sound of insect wings buzzing violently rang out.
Parararak—!!
Soon after, swarms of bugs with dozens of eyeballs attached to their heads came flying in.
Each bug was the size of a pigeon, with a pickaxe-like venom stinger protruding from its body.
They were the deadly parasitic insects.
‘Ugh.’
Even when I saw them in the game they were extremely disgusting, but seeing them in person was even worse.
‘Moreover, their numbers are too many for <Blood Weapon> to handle.’
If there were only a few, I could pick them off one by one from a distance using a bow or gun, but…
‘When there are hundreds of them swarming like this, it’s a completely different story.’
Even with the ‘Authority of Resistance,’ these creatures had terrifying penetration power with their stingers.
If hundreds of those venomous stingers stabbed me all at once, the outcome was as clear as day.
Goooo—!
Even as the swarm of deadly parasitic insects surrounded me from all directions, I calmly raised my blood ki.
It was time to use it.
One of the three new skills I obtained by investing 5,000 BP.
The Blood Mage’s first-ever ‘wide-area skill.’
***
“That man… he’s definitely going to die.”
“Even though he’s a human… it feels strangely uncomfortable.”
“…Still, he did cure our Chieftain’s illness.”
After Ruth headed into the crater.
The tribespeople in the forest let out short, sorrowful sighs.
Ismin’s reaction wasn’t much different. Although she had maintained a cold attitude until now, Ruth was the human who had saved her father’s life.
To be honest, she had even considered treating him to a warm meal.
‘…Stupid idiot.’
Whether he was brainless or simply didn’t value his own life.
Right before entering the crater, she had tried several times to dissuade him and told him to change his mind, but he ignored her completely and left without hesitation.
As Ismin roughly scratched her head and silently prayed for Ruth’s soul,
“The crystal orb has activated.”
“Hey, what’s the point of watching? He’s probably already a rotting corpse by now.”
The tribespeople gathered around the ruby-red crystal orb and murmured among themselves.
This crystal orb, called the ‘Eye of the Volcano,’ was an artifact that transmitted the situation inside the <Nuraduke Crater>.
They had prepared it for monitoring purposes, but now it felt pointless.
Ismin and all the other tribespeople were already convinced that Ruth had died from poison.
However.
“Huh?”
“Eh, what?”
The eyes of those casually peering into the crystal orb widened like lanterns.
They had no choice.
“He’s… still alive?”
“No, not just alive… he looks completely fine?”
The image of Ruth reflected in the crystal orb looked far too calm.
Even though the deadly poison fog created by the parasitic insects filled the entire area, he showed no signs of poisoning and merely wore an indifferent expression.
“T-That’s impossible…”
Watching him endure that nightmarish deadly poison so casually, Ismin broke out in cold sweat from the shock.
For a moment she wondered if the poison simply didn’t work on humans, but she quickly shook her head and denied it.
-“With this, I’ve proven that no one except a Constellation can survive my poison.”-
She still vividly remembered the Poison Demon’s words.
Then what on earth was this?
Enduring that lethal poison with his bare body without even taking an antidote.
Just as the tribespeople were turning to each other in agitation,
Parururuk—!!
The deadly parasitic insects that had finally spotted their prey swirled like a vortex and surrounded Ruth.
The sight sent chills down the spines of those watching through the crystal orb.
“D-Danger…!”
The moment Ismin unconsciously leaned forward,
BOOOOM—!!
With a terrifying roar,
A dazzling blood-red light completely dyed the screen inside the crystal orb.