Chapter 161 – 161 – The Warrior’s Yoke
If someone makes a tombstone to commemorate my death, I want them to write three words.
First, if you are a porter, please do not show off and avoid getting hit.
Second, if you end up fighting, only fight someone of the right weight class.
Third, if you can’t even do that, I hope you have a 10-cylinder two-wheeler by your side. So that I can run away quickly.
The wind hits my cheeks. A soft mist separates on either side of me.
The front wheels of a huge two-wheeled vehicle speed by, crushing the remains of a destroyed world.
For some reason, the primal ecstasy brings tears to my eyes. Did you say it was the grim reaper’s ax bike? Anyway, this damn thing is mankind’s greatest invention.
If it weren’t for the two-wheeled vehicle that crossed the neatly paved road as fast as a dragon, I would have already been crushed by the tentacles of that high-ranking demon child following closely behind.
The kid named Yagarum looks disgusting. It looks like a huge tree root was cut down and a doll’s upper body was attached to it. There are degrees of bulking up focusing on the lower body.
[Stand there, I will kill you!]
“What, honey, the progress is too fast? We just met today, are you planning to introduce me to your mother first?”
[···This bastard!]
Judging by the fact that he can clearly hear the pad lip through the loud exhaust sound, he seems to have good ears. He seems to understand jokes quickly.
On the other hand, Erina, who did not have as good of an ear or as easy-going as Yagarum, understood what he said only a little later.
“···When you’re thinking about how to take care of yourself, why not worry about driving!”
“I didn’t say anything without thinking. Don’t hold on to your or my shoulders so tightly!”
I barely managed to turn the front wheel to avoid a large, collapsed warehouse. Yagarum’s tentacles hit the floor, scattering the contents of the vault in all directions.
The same can I drank yesterday flew down and landed on the wheel, causing the juice it contained to splatter everywhere.
···If we run at this speed and stumble slightly and fall, we will be like that too. It’s kind of scary to think about it that way.
Erina must have felt the same way and cried out desperately.
“You are such a talented rider. It’s crazy that I got the hang of it after riding it in my dream!”
Thanks to this, I was able to save Florica even if it was too late.
When we arrived Florica was shivering, wrapped in what seemed to be her purple mist. It was as if she had been a little late and she would have frozen and lost her breath.
She looked back at her, hoping she was okay, and fortunately, Florica, who had been carried by Erina, was breathing evenly.
And Erina grabbed my head and turned it to face her.
“So, please just remain a talented rider! I hope you don’t end up screwing up and dying if you neglect to look ahead!”
“I’ll think about it if you speak comfortably again. I’m really bothered by the fact that you speak informally and then raise your voice again, right?”
[···You’re just chatting comfortably when you might get caught and killed by me? Let’s see if we can have a joke while being caught by me and having our existence erased!]
Yagarum seems to have thrown a tantrum.
Still, organizing traffic in relationships is important. If I die here, I have to make sure who I die with.
To hang out so well and then act like we can’t even be friends, it feels like I’ve been sucked out of something and thrown away.
“···Why are you speaking like that? Are you even heartbroken?”
“···Little?”
“This is crazy… That’s why… It didn’t happen in reality, it happened in a dream! What should I do about something so awkward!”
“What happened to you two?”
Florica, leaning on Erina’s back, asked in a tired voice. We answered at the same time.
“A lot happened!”
“Bye, nothing happened!”
Florica half opened her eyes and blankly she looked at us. She then rolled it back and chuckled.
“They shine. Both of them.”
I don’t know what that means, but my voice is weak. Maybe it’s just nonsense that leaked out while wandering around the edge of death.
I felt ominous, so I increased my speed as much as possible. First of all, you have to defeat that devil to live. And if you want to get away with it, you’ll have to do it quickly.
Even the sun is already setting behind the thick clouds. At night, you won’t be able to run while avoiding obstacles.
Moreover, Florica’s hand, which was gradually touching her backside, was very cold. There is not much time.
Unfortunately, that damn devil walks too fast. It strides forward with its hundreds of gigantic tentacles and almost catches up with us.
Tentacles crush and dig into the road. I managed to slip through that gap, but I don’t think I’ll be as lucky next time.
We hear laughing, and a shadow falls over our heads…
“You don’t even know what’s under your feet!”
Youngrak, the new leader, jumped up next to us and swung his arms wide. The devil’s tentacle, as thick as an oak tree, is cut off with a loud sound.
The sword in the cult leader’s hand is light and thin. It’s so hard to believe that he accomplished something like that.
This is possible because it is not ordinary steel. That sword, also called the warrior’s sword because only a warrior can hold it, is a holy sword that radiates a brightness like dawn.
“Heukcheonbu!”
Yagarum screams in pain and targets the cult leader with its remaining tentacles. Can he defeat attacks from all directions alone?
There is no need for that. The religious leader is not alone. Only when he heard the sound of needles tearing the air did Yagarum realize that he was surrounded.
“Aim for his upper body!”
With a resounding reply, ‘My name’, agents of the Protestant Church emerged from the ruins on both sides of the road.
The weapon that troubled us in the desert on the way to Hwanhwagok, ‘Usuyeonno’, makes a roaring sound and pours out its poisonous needles.
A pile of arsenic poison that put dragons to sleep flew into Yagarum’s small upper body. The demon was scared, covered its body with its tentacles, and retreated.
“That guy definitely seems to have a weak upper body. But his upper body is so small that it would be difficult to hit him with a kite. It looks like he has giant octopus legs stuck on his skinny upper body.”
Once I got far enough away from the guy, I stopped. At that moment, Garam, who was warming up by stretching, waved at us.
“It must be heavy. I guess I’ll have to climb up and take it back.”
“···Do you want to engage in close combat with such a huge monster? Wouldn’t it be dangerous?”
“There will be one or two needles dipped in arsenic venom into his head, so even that devil will be slow to react. If he gets caught by that guy who is drenched in anesthetic, he won’t even be able to call himself Taiga.”
When we put Florica down and quickly laid her down on the side of the road, Garam expertly took her pulse.
Then he tapped my shoulder as if it would be okay, then threw me a gourd with a potion and headed towards the devil.
I know Garam is strong, but he is still much younger than me. However, it is dizzying and unsettling to walk without hesitation towards a monster that erases the existence of people.
“···Never get caught.”
“I’m different from the weakling lying there, right? I finally remember that there was a guy like that.”
I feel like I’m being harsh with the person I just caught, but now is not the time to scold him. I supported Florica’s back and tried to pour the recovery potion into her.
But Florica bit her lip and locked it, then turned her head and glared at her. Garam stopped walking and looked back.
“I know what it feels like to be lonely and forgotten. I’ll take care of your revenge. Rest now.”
“I’m really sorry, but that’s not possible.”
Something cold touches my neck. Just as fear swept over me and my body froze, someone pulled my collar back and knocked me down.
Garam, embarrassed, turned back and pulled out the curved sword, but it was already too late. The monsters that came out of her fog are pointing weapons at Erina and me.
Who is it? And how did they fool Garam’s keen senses and get this close?
They even reached out to Florica and almost caught her, but Erina showed her wits. Florica, who was kicked by Erina and fell helplessly, was pulled up to her feet.
As Garam rolled his eyes in rage, the gunmen gave up on the third hostage and retreated. And he stuck the blade even closer to my neck.
“Try to let that person bleed even one drop. I will slaughter them all!”
“I’m glad you said that. I guess this guy is worth at least as a hostage.”
The hostage taker’s voice is calm. It is unclear whether his facial expression is calm or not. His face cannot be seen because of the dust mask with the large ventilator.
However, it is clear that these are people and not monsters. Through the glass glasses, I can see eyes full of determination.
The hostage taker kept turning and glancing at me, then turned my backside forward and held on tightly.
“And I don’t care if you kill us all. We just do what we have to do.”
“What needs to be done?”
“It is our duty to remain loyal to the protector of the inhabitants. Tell those who attack Yagarum to lay down their weapons or the hostages will not live.”
Not knowing what the situation was, I glanced at Erina. Erina swallowed her saliva and said.
“···I said Yagarum was a giant, right? That doesn’t just mean a big monster or a strong man. Yagarum is one of the high-ranking demons who divided up the fallen demon world. And as long as you live in his domain, “From the perspective of the Zoom survivors, Yagarum is like a king or lord, ruling the area and protecting the people with force.”
“What? The demons of the Demon World coexist by treating people as citizens?”
“I’m keeping them alive on purpose. Because humans can serve as slaves. They can build buildings, operate machines, and even take a bath if necessary…”
“In addition, they often create plays and songs praising the greatness of His Majesty Yagarum.”
The man who caught me spoke hesitantly.
“And they use hiding artifacts to attack innocent passers-by and serve them as food for Yagarum. It is a difficult service for low-intelligence monsters to provide.”
“···Now I understand why the weak Paladin disappeared midway. Why did they attack him while he was wandering around looking for a restroom? They are like bastards who have no sense of honor.”
“When I saw them looking around the scenery, I approached them and whispered that they needed help. I used the pitiful appearance of our survivors as bait to lure them in, and I fired a military artifact from behind to take them down.”
“Really cowardly…”
“I won’t be angry if you call me cowardly. I’ve never thought of doing such a damnable thing with pride. We just did our best to survive.”
A crude dagger that looked like it was made from a piece of ground metal quickly cut the skin on my shoulder. It’s probably a warning.
Garam held his breath and bared his teeth like a wild beast, but the hostage taker lowered his voice more calmly.
“That demon is definitely a fucking murderer, but he is also the only support we can rely on in this fallen world. If Yagarum, the owner of this ‘Dumpster Earth’, is injured, another demon lord will take over his territory. We will aim for, and if Yagarum dies or escapes, we will be surrounded by monsters.”
“Then you are in a position where you need help.”
Florica, who was struggling to stand up, said that and fell down again. Florica fell to her knees, clutching her head and muttering.
“Now I remember. Starving children, old people coughing while lying wrapped in dirty blankets… I thought it was all a trick, so I thought I was lucky.”
“···Do not be saddened by our situation. We, who purchase the safety of our group by sacrificing human beings to the devil, are no different from the Yagarum. With a good heart, they came forward to help us and bring their comrades. “I’m sorry for holding you back and offering you up. I won’t even tell you that I had no choice.”
That’s right. I don’t feel like it’s pitiful at all. I feel like pounding the head until the mask breaks, but the knife is too close to the uvula for that.
“I will shamelessly say this. In your world, there is such a thing as a hero. And you are a hero, right?”
Florica nodded her head in response to her captor’s question. She spoke as if she were chewing it up and spitting it out.
“Don’t mix things up.”
“I heard that a hero is born with a special destiny and is someone who strives to reform for the people. Is that correct?”
“Don’t answer to that bastard.”
“Then, please. Stop the fight and return to Yagarum. If we succeed in persuading you to return, we won’t tear our people to pieces out of anger over losing our prey.”
There are guys like that. As soon as they see a porter, they treat him as a rapist or a low-class person, and as soon as a hero appears, they become angry as if a hero has appeared.
There are things that require a sickle instead of a request fee. There are things that make you feel relieved and your heart sinks when a hero becomes the same as a monster.
There are times when even a 10-year-old warrior is sent to the battlefield, only to return as a rag, clucking his tongue and not paying attention, even though he is a failure. That’s how they treated Tena.
“Hey, you bastards! Are you pushing a girl who almost died again? Is that a request that can come from a human being’s mouth!”
So, instead of Florica, I answered him. My blood was boiling and I couldn’t keep quiet.
However, the hostage taker who took care of my struggles did not react at all. I want to punch this damn thing in the chin, but if I do that, Erina will be in danger too.
The hostage taker pointed with his sword in the direction where the battle between Shingyo and Yagarum was taking place. The agents have probably noticed the situation here, but they don’t seem to have time to devote to this area as they are dealing with a huge monster.
“That’s what Yagarum said at first: ‘Slay Florica Waldenhardt and offer him up. If we succeed, we will take care of your group’s survival for a few more months.’ We followed our author’s orders and our family’s safety was guaranteed for a long time. . We are powerless and all we can do is ask them to go back and die.”
The hostage taker turned his body so he was looking back at me. I was speechless.
People are seen wearing dust masks. The face is not visible, but the size of the body varies. Boys and girls with shaking hands pointing iron pipes at us. Old, grayish people leaning on canes that could hardly be considered weapons.
There are rather few young people who can fight. The people who had sneaked into the back of Garam’s head using an artifact with a stealth function could hardly be considered a professional armed force.
Erina spoke quickly.
“Hey, does everyone recognize me?”
“I recognized you long ago, my lady. I am so sorry to meet you, who was once our laughter and hope, again in a place like this.”
“Aren’t you ever curious how I’ve been safe all this time? There’s a way to escape to the other world! There’s no need for us to take hostage and fight among ourselves-“
“···It’s a pity, but we know how. We also participated in the construction of a ziggurat-type fortress for invasion. You plan to use the dimensional gap created to send the ziggurat to the other world, right?”
“···Did you know?”
“But our family is trapped in the depths of Yagarum’s lair. He can just lift a finger and we will all be forgotten. All of our flesh and blood… He can turn his back on my daughter, treating her as if she were nothing. “There is no such thing. Then we will end up as people who never really existed.”
Judging by the atmosphere, the hostage taker, who seemed to be the leader of the group of survivors, firmly held the knife pointed at my neck and took off his dust mask with his other hand.
He is a middle-aged man with a bushy beard and grime. That expression is filled with determination, resignation, and despair.
“And you can’t defeat Yagarum anyway. A high-ranking demon is not something humans can deal with.”
When I heard Adamantone’s screams and turned to see where the battle was taking place, I saw that Yagarum had not been paralyzed by the poison but was moving briskly and sweeping the surroundings.
The human-sized upper body is stiff and convulsing, but it appears that the poison has not spread to its gigantic lower body. Garam bit his lip.
A tentacle vine is holding Adamantone’s leg and shaking it in the air. Several remaining branches attack the abandoned building where the Protestant agents are located. The panicked agents jumped out of the building in unison and saved their lives.
And Shin Kyo-ju… Is barely holding on, being crushed by dozens of vines.
The monsters howl from afar, as if they had a premonition of a corpse feast in the middle of the night. Ominous words pass through my mind.
Absolutely desperate. Bewildered. And annihilated.
“Let’s do this, Hero Florica. Go back to Yagarum. Then, the rest of you who are caught in the act can escape. There is only one target we have been instructed to do. Let’s do this before Yagarum’s attention turns this way. “Please decide. That is the greatest consideration I can give in good conscience.”
“Okay, please let go of my friend.”
Florica moistened her dry lips. As if she was ready to make sacrifices. At that moment, her fear disappears and her senses return.
I asked Erina for consent with my eyes. Erina smiled bitterly and nodded her head. I immediately shouted.
“Say fuck it! Garam, run away with Florica!”
“···What nonsense?”
“Stick to the leader’s side and get as many people out of the fight as possible. Let’s not look back! A sense of duty as a hero? Forget that. Even in situations like this, don’t be swayed by psychopaths who push you to be a hero, but think about your own life first!”
The hostage-taker was embarrassed and kicked me in the stomach, knocking me down. But even as his face fell on the pavement, I continued to cry out.
“If Yagarum had targeted Florica, he should have captured her. As you say, porters are nothing more than expendable items in our world, right?”
“There will be a screen map in my backpack that I entrusted to you. If you use it, you will be able to get to the passage of the Demon Cave without my guide. What are you doing, run! You idiots!”
“I’m not going to run. Like I said, I’m an idiot.”
Garam swallowed her anger and tried to force Florica into a hug, but Florica shook her head and pushed Garam away.
Then he lightly grabbed his arm and broke it, knocking him down. While Garam was embarrassed by her unknown technique and fell to her knees, Florica’s blurry gaze turned to Erina.
She then slowly turned towards her ragtag group. One of the boys was so startled that he lost sight of her crudely carved iron bar. Florica smiled a smile that seemed mysterious at first glance.
“You said you knew what it feels like to be abandoned, Garam.”
“Put this down.”
“I know. So I can’t just run away.”
“Stop talking nonsense and let go of this! Tan told me to run away-“
“The bullet didn’t escape either.”
She has no armor. Her body became emaciated after being held captive for so long, losing her moisture. Her knife was also taken.
All Florica is wearing is her old cloth clothes that look as if they were changed to be sacrificed to her. This is probably the outfit chosen by that group of survivors.
But strangely, the shabby-looking Florica now seemed stronger than ever.
“By suffering, the suffering of the world will be alleviated, and by bearing responsibility, the responsibility of all people will be alleviated…”
Her weak bare ankles stopped shaking. Florica looked up at her sky as the murky clouds cleared and the cool shadow of the moon became clear.
“Be gentle, strong, and strong as iron. May you be hope, joy, and light.”
“···What are you talking about?”
“I thought that was what a warrior was. Now I don’t know. It’s often said that there is a difference between honor and a yoke. Did I want to be honorable, or was I forced to run while wearing a yoke?”
I can’t understand a single word. Florica herself is not sure if she understands what she is saying.
Florica looked down at me with her blank expression on her face and she smiled.
“I just hope that what I leave behind forgives me.”
Florica’s empty hand turned to the sky. As if she was trying to catch the faint moonlight falling on her face.
Garam looked up at Florica as if she was dumbfounded. She did and the next moment she opened her mouth.
Florica really caught the light. The radiance held tightly in her hand took shape and separated from her group of lights. She was at a loss for words because I couldn’t even figure out what kind of miracle she was doing.
The hostage taker, who was stopping the boy who lost sight of her weapon, looked back at her Florica and became very nervous. Because there was a sword in her hand that I don’t even know when it was drawn.
But I know what that sword is. Having seen it for years, there is no mistaking it.
Engraved on her sword are corpse predators such as rats and hyenas. It is an animal that is compared to bravery because it eats rotten meat and wanders at night.
The sword’s maker carved it as a warning. The owner’s shabby fate was engraved on the stone of the sword that fell from the sky, with the hope that the owner would always be on guard.
Vigilance was neglected. The sword’s owner fell and its upper part broke off and disappeared.
But why is the sword of the ‘Lighthouse of Uja’ that disappeared like that now in Florica’s hands?
Florica held her lighthouse in her hands and held it high. Garam, whose joints were freed and frozen, looked up at the figure.
The moonlight moves. As befits its nickname, the lighthouse, the blue brilliance emitted from the blade touches the sky. It is different from the yellowish and dazzling light of the enemy in Adamantone’s hands.
The moment the sharp light rising from the sword reached the sky, I saw an unbelievable sight of the clouds parting.
“I will leave here the part of me that was young and sad.”
Garam shouted to urgently avoid. The warriors on the straight path were scared and retreated to both sides, as if they had a premonition.
However, Yagarum’s massive body could not deviate from Florica’s straight path ahead.
The light that reached the sky struck down like a thunderbolt. There was a loud noise as the metal broke and the ground shook.
The distant Yagarum, which had been hidden from view by Florica’s back, soon split its body in two directions and scattered to either side of Florica.
If the tentacle vines with hundreds of strands were stretched out, they would probably be a hundred meters long. Thanks to this, it took a long time for all the pieces of meat to fall to the ground.
When the clanking sound stopped, Shin Gyo-ju, who was out of breath, found the body of the creature among the tentacles.
Until the new leader grabbed it and dragged it over, we and the group of hostage takers were just staring at Florica in fascination.
“Yagarum… Is dead.”
“Okay, he’s dead. It’s over. Can you please let us go?”
“How…How could this happen…?”
“···Let it go, you scum.”
“It would be good for you to listen to our porter. Put down your weapons before I cut off your arms.”
Shin Kyo-ju, covered in devil’s blood and gasping for breath, threw Yaga Lum’s torn body in front of the hostage takers. And he glanced at Florica.
“Did you do this?”
“I guess so. I’m sorry for not listening to you, Tan. I don’t want to survive by borrowing your life.”
Florica smiled faintly and looked back at us.
“I’m sorry to everyone. I don’t think I can give up my life for you.”
“Uh, uh…”
“I don’t want to make my friend, the person you’re holding on to, sad, the person who told me to run away.”
