Chapter 13
The action I took was simple.
Slide.
Raising my hand and clearly visualizing in my mind the name and shape of the skill I wanted to manifest.
That alone was enough.
Sssst—!
As if an invisible brush were moving, a red hexagram was drawn in the empty air.
……!!
The deadly parasitic insects that had been thrusting their venom stingers forward to kill me instantly froze in place.
Even these lowly insects without intelligence instinctively sensed it.
The unusual and ominous energy flowing from the hexagram that hung over them like a roof.
Paruruk—!!
The deadly parasitic insects that had been swirling around me in a spiral began to break formation.
Sensing danger, they were hurriedly trying to flee.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
When using a wide-area skill, there was no better prey than enemies clustered tightly together.
I muttered indifferently and lowered my raised hand.
As if that short gesture had been a signal flare, the hexagram emitted a terrifying crimson light and began pouring out.
Dududududududu……!!
Dozens… no, hundreds of blood-red wraiths.
[Visionary Blood Sorcery]
[Devouring Spirit Summon]
Grrrrraaaaah—!!
The entities resembling human skulls opened their jaws wide, letting out eerie ghostly wails.
Skulls covered in blazing blood ki instead of flames.
These creatures poured out recklessly from the hexagram and immediately began devouring the deadly parasitic insects surrounding me.
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
Using superior numbers to overwhelm them with an even greater numerical assault.
The sight of countless Devouring Spirits sweeping through the swarm of deadly parasitic insects looked to my eyes like a red whirlwind pushing back a black whirlwind.
‘Whoa…….’
Even though it was a skill I used, I couldn’t help but admire it.
At the same time, it was downright creepy.
The skulls continuously emitting unpleasant shrieks as they devoured the bugs was hardly a beautiful sight.
I swallowed dryly while looking around at the now-empty surroundings.
‘If the first Visionary Blood Sorcery I learned is already this powerful…….’
Just how strong were the remaining Visionary Blood Sorceries that required higher levels and more points to obtain?
At my current level, I couldn’t even begin to guess.
My heart pounded with curiosity toward that unknown power.
There wasn’t much information available about what kind of strength this Blood Mage body could obtain in the future.
But I had a strong conviction that, whatever it was, it would not betray my expectations.
Shaaaaaaa—!
Having finished their feast, the Devouring Spirits casually retreated back into the hexagram as if they had nothing more to do.
The hexagram itself soon disappeared without a trace.
“Whew…….”
I let out a long sigh and continued my descent.
It wasn’t a sigh of relief, but one born from exhaustion.
As expected of a wide-area skill focused on lethality, using it twice in a row was impossible.
I could feel what little blood ki I had left being completely drained.
Still, in that kind of situation, I had no choice but to use it.
‘I need to find the <Lava Pond of Evolution> as quickly as possible.’
Splash.
Before long, my feet touched the ground, but I couldn’t relax.
First, the entire floor of the crater was covered in a sticky poison swamp.
Kirik! Kiriririk!
Sasasak!!
The second reason was that the moment I landed, all kinds of deadly parasitic insects began crawling out from the darkness around me.
Earlier it had been wasp-like bugs, now there were scorpions, centipedes, spiders, ants… a wide variety.
‘I really don’t want to see any of this.’
Even the <Iron-Blood Heart> couldn’t suppress the physiological disgust rising within me.
I glared for a moment at the wave of insects charging from the front with murderous intent.
Click—!
The blood ki flowing down my right arm transformed into a firearm with a long barrel and settled into my grip.
In less than 10 seconds, the distance between me and the swarm of bugs had closed to just 5 meters.
But in this situation, that was actually perfect.
After all, what I was holding in my hand right now was a shotgun.
Taang……!!
The moment I pulled the trigger, a heavy gunshot like a hammer strike shook the entire crater.
A fan-shaped bundle of pellets burst from the muzzle and tore through the wave of insects.
However—.
“Hmm.”
Even though I had fired a shotgun at point-blank range, the dramatic extermination effect I had hoped for didn’t appear.
Spiders and centipedes burst apart, scattering green bodily fluids, but the ones with hard exoskeletons like scorpions and ants remained completely unfazed.
It made me once again feel the true terror of the Poison Demon, who had created these creatures with her own hands.
‘If bullets won’t work, I have no choice but to use another method.’
The instant I made that decision, I pulled out a wooden stick I had prepared at my waist.
It was the <All-Aspect Torch>, the best reward I obtained from killing the Night Fiend in the <Predator’s Labyrinth>.
‘In the end, they’re just somewhat tougher bugs.’
Whether in a game or in reality, the best way to deal with bugs was to burn them.
Hwaruruk—!!
I swiftly swept the <All-Aspect Torch> across the shotgun, causing it to blaze with red flames like a signal beacon.
The blood-red barrel began burning fiercely.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!
I pulled the trigger like a madman toward the swarm of deadly parasitic insects.
Grrruk—!!
Kieeeeeeeeeek—!!
The barrel, now enhanced with fire attribute, spewed flames wildly, tearing apart and overturning the tidal wave of insects.
Every impact point erupted with massive explosions as black debris continuously shot upward.
Pubububububung!!
Even the scorpion and ant-type deadly parasitic insects, which had boasted near-invincible durability, were helplessly blown apart and killed by the incendiary rounds created by the <All-Aspect Torch>.
‘I’m not sure if the <All-Aspect Torch> is amazing or if I am.’
As long as blood ki was supplied, there was no need to reload ammunition one by one when firing.
From that point alone, firearms created with <Blood Weapon> already ignored most physical laws, so the shotgun’s unique recoil was minimal.
As you can see, the rate of fire was almost comparable to that of a rifle.
‘What the hell were the developers thinking when they made a character like this?’
Thank you.
By the time I snapped out of my thoughts, all the deadly parasitic insects had been cleanly exterminated. The charred remains of the bugs floated atop the poison swamp.
‘The <Lava Pond of Evolution> is at the deepest part of the crater. I need to hurry.’
I continued advancing while wading through the poison swamp that reached up to my ankles.
I must not be mistaken.
The ‘Authority of Resistance’ only reduced damage from status ailments — it was not ‘complete immunity.’
Although very slowly, the deadly poison flowing in the swamp was steadily accumulating in my body even at this moment.
Considering the path ahead, the absence of an antidote, and
The ‘thing’ I would soon encounter, I couldn’t afford to waste even a single second.
…That was what my head knew.
“……”
In a situation where every second counted, I stopped walking while wading through the poison swamp.
Then I slightly changed direction toward the side.
Toward a ‘arm’ that was desperately stretching out above the surface of the swamp.
Swish—!
I grabbed the arm and pulled with all my strength as if uprooting a radish.
Only then did the body submerged in the swamp fully emerge.
A corpse with rotten flesh and patches of blue-discolored bones exposed.
‘As expected.’
It was a Lava tribe member.
But this corpse was no ordinary Lava tribesman.
The tribespeople killed by the Poison Demon had melted completely in the extreme poison, leaving not even bone dust. But look at this one.
This Lava tribesman had not.
The fire energy accumulated in his soul had preserved the corpse from the deadly poison.
And there was only one Lava tribesman who possessed such noble and powerful fire energy.
‘Lebernin.’
The Chieftain’s son and Ismin’s older brother.
Lebernin was praised as the greatest warrior in the history of the Lava tribe, and his character was also excellent.
That was why, when the Chieftain lost his son and had to flee the <Nuraduke Crater> without even being able to recover the body,
He must have felt a sorrow as if the world was collapsing.
The fact that he had left his son’s corpse behind in this hellhole must have torn at his heart.
‘Just a simple Easter egg.’
Easter egg.
A term referring to the playful act of developers cleverly hiding small behind-the-scenes stories or settings in a game.
Lebernin was one of the representative Easter eggs in 《Soden》.
Whether you noticed it or not, it didn’t matter either way.
In the game, discovering Lebernin’s corpse didn’t trigger any special interactions or rewards.
Well, in the game, that is.
But this place was reality.
I didn’t want to live while calculating gains and losses, ignoring a hand that was within reach.
“Let’s go. Back to your family.”
I still couldn’t forget the sight of Ismin shedding tears of blood as she thought of her dead tribespeople and older brother.
I supported Lebernin’s back with both hands and continued walking.
‘That spot should work.’
Although the entire area was a poison swamp, it wasn’t completely devoid of safe zones.
There were several rock piles of appropriate height scattered around.
The area was narrow, but it was enough to lay one adult male down.
I’d leave him here for now and take him with me when I leave later.
Slide.
After gently laying Lebernin down on the rock pile, I slightly bowed my head and offered a silent prayer for his soul.
Ding—.
Suddenly, a system message appeared before my eyes.
“…What?”
It was the moment an interaction that should not have occurred — because it was originally an Easter egg — had been triggered.
***
“…He really is a monstrous human.”
“Kwahaha! That’s it, sweep them all away! It feels so refreshing just watching!”
“Serves you right, you damn bugs!”
Meanwhile.
The Lava tribe members watching Ruth through the crystal orb had long since shifted from ‘surveillance’ to ‘cheering.’
Every time Ruth blew apart the deadly parasitic insects with his flame-clad shotgun, cheers erupted among the crowd.
The sight of those repulsive pests being swept away gave them an electrifying catharsis.
“Huh…”
Ismin also found herself grinning without realizing it, only to suddenly feel a chill run down her spine.
“That guy… he’s just as monstrous as the Poison Demon.”
In terms of pure combat power.
Ruth Fried not only endured the extreme poison that the Poison Demon had poured her heart and soul into creating, but he also wielded unknown sorcery to effortlessly sweep away the deadly parasitic insects that even the Lava tribe’s warriors couldn’t overcome.
Even after watching him fight the entire time, she couldn’t fathom it.
The true identity of that human.
Or the depths of that power.
‘Are all humans originally this strong? No, that can’t be. It’s just those two who are abnormal.’
It was a completely absurd delusion, but still… what if.
What if Ruth had been by their side when the Poison Demon went mad and attacked her own kin?
Would they have been spared from living such miserable days?
While Ismin was lost in such meaningless thoughts,
“I felt heavy-hearted thinking we were abandoning our benefactor to his death, but it seems there was no need for that.”
“Gasp!”
“C-Chieftain…”
The Chieftain, who had returned to the forest after guiding Ruth to the crater, had at some point joined the tribespeople and was looking into the crystal orb.
He didn’t show his emotions as openly as the others, but as his own daughter, Ismin could tell.
‘…He’s happy.’
Her father was finding considerable comfort in Ruth’s actions as he exterminated the deadly parasitic insects.
‘Well, for him it’s probably just clearing away annoying bugs on his way to the Lava Pond…’
Still, the result had given every member of the Lava tribe a sense of satisfaction. Ismin decided that when he returned, she would at least thank him for his hard work.
‘Though saying “thank you” still feels a bit much…’
It was exactly then.
A very familiar face appeared on the other side of the crystal orb.
Not just Ismin.
“Huh?”
“T-That’s…”
The tribespeople watching the same scene, as well as the Chieftain, all recognized it at once.
They all knew exactly whose corpse Ruth had just pulled out of the poison swamp.
“Brother… Lebernin?”
“L-Lebernin…!”
Even though his entire body was horribly rotten from being steeped in poison, there was no way they wouldn’t recognize him.
To Ismin and the Chieftain, he was their only family. To the tribespeople, he was a pillar they could rely on with all their hearts.
“Ah… Aaaaah!”
It was then that tears finally flowed from the eyes of the Chieftain, who had been the only one staying composed until now.
A regret of a lifetime.
His own incompetence — for failing to die in his son’s place, and for not even being able to recover his son’s body.
“Ruth… you…”
As if trying to console himself,
Beyond the crystal orb, Ruth was doing his utmost to pull Lebernin’s corpse out of the mire.
He then carefully lifted the body and slowly laid it atop the rock pile, offering a silent moment of respect.
Watching this scene, the Chieftain felt the heavy knot that had been lodged in his heart slowly melt away.
“……”
Ruth was his benefactor who had saved his life, regardless of his motives.
Yet he had gone even further and pulled his son’s body out of the poison swamp.
A complete stranger had done what the Chieftain himself should have done.
‘And yet here I am, just watching through this tiny orb…’
More than gratitude toward Ruth, the Chieftain lamented his own incompetence.
It was at that very moment.
Creak…… Creak…….
“……?!”
Behind Ruth, who was kneeling on one knee before the corpse,
Something began to appear with a grotesque noise.
***
‘…So that’s how it was.’
Roughly three minutes after the system message appeared.
Having learned the truth, Ruth looked at Lebernin with complicated eyes.
And once again made up his mind.
He had to take Lebernin out of the crater no matter what.
Creak…… Creak…….
An unpleasant sound, as if joints were being forcibly twisted, reached Ruth’s ears.
When Ruth turned his head toward the source of the noise, there—
Creakkkkk—
Kiiii—
Hundreds of deadly parasitic insects were crawling across the poison swamp, gathering around him.
However, the atmosphere was noticeably different from before.
Their movements seemed artificial, as if they were being controlled by something rather than moving on their own.
Soon after.
Kigigigigik—!!
The swarming deadly parasitic insects merged together and began forming a single shape.
[A… Aaah…….]
It was a naked woman.
A woman made of the deadly parasitic insects’ carapaces and bodily fluids let out a heated moan.
She stared at Ruth with hollow white eyes that had no pupils.
<It’s you?>
“……”
<The bastard who slaughtered my children….>
There was only one person on the entire continent who would call those repulsive bugs “my children.”
One of the Seven Great Evils of the continent.
[Poison Demon] Theresa.
She had appeared.
‘Not her main body, but…’
The Poison Demon injected her own cells into every deadly parasitic insect she created.
What stood before Ruth now was an avatar formed using those cells as a medium.
<More importantly, I’m impressed… Why doesn’t my poison work on you—.>
“Right forearm.”
<?>
“That’s where the highest concentration of your cells is gathered.”
Ruth pulled the trigger.
BOOOOM—!!
The incendiary round burst out with a deafening roar and completely blew off the avatar’s right forearm.
<Kik, Kikik……!!>
The avatar, which had been maintaining a precise — albeit extremely unpleasant — form, became covered in tiny cracks like a statue hit by a bat and began to distort unsteadily.
“Poison Demon. Did you think I wouldn’t know you would show up here?”
Ruth aimed the smoking barrel at the Poison Demon and spoke in a cold voice.
“You thought I wouldn’t know?”