Chapter 51

Chapter 51. The First Hero (45)

The S-rank skill Emotional Sharing Master prevented spirits from reading their master's thoughts.

But it could also block mind-reading skills, including the kind Count Thornjer possessed.

That was because reading someone's thoughts required access to their emotional connection.

And if that was how the skill worked, something else was also possible.

While standing right in front of me?

Seongchan could read the thoughts of anyone who had established an emotional connection with him.

"It took so much work to create those two-horned Wild Pigs, and she killed one so easily."

Legion Commander Lee Seolhwa looked toward her subordinates.

"Everyone ready?"

"Just give the order!"

Only Wild Pigs and demonic Wild Pigs had attacked Tolkan Village until now.

The demons were standing in formation, waiting for the order to attack.

"Attack!"

At Legion Commander Seolhwa's command, the real assault began.

Rustle.

Na-ye unwrapped the silver foil.

Neatly arranged grains of rice came into view.

Every grain was positioned at a consistent distance from the others, all following the same direction to form a rounded shape.

It was a rice ball that looked almost like a work of art.

[Special Rice Ball for Lee Na-ye]

Once she removed the foil and revealed the dish, its name appeared before her eyes.

She could tell how much thought Seongchan had put into making it for her just by looking at the arrangement of the rice.

Guild Master Cha Hyeonwoo loved rice balls.

He used to say there was nothing better for a quick meal.

He'd created the Rice Ball Guild because he wanted to build a place where heroes could find support and protection.

He wanted people to stop seeing heroes as troublesome outsiders in this world.

By eating rice balls, the guild members could save time and spend more of it hunting monsters.

And if they worked hard for the villagers at the same time, he believed their sincerity would eventually reach the people.

He wanted people to associate the Rice Ball Guild with trustworthy heroes.

Heroes who ate their rice balls and got straight to work.

That was the meaning behind the guild's name.

At some point, we stopped eating rice balls.

"Kyao..."

Silnyang's sadness flowed into Na-ye.

After Cha Hyeonwoo's death, eating rice balls had become painful.

But things were different now.

Na-ye intended to lead the Rice Ball Guild just as Cha Hyeonwoo had.

Nom.

She took a bite of the rice ball.

The well-fried vegetables and sweet sauce delighted her taste buds.

After chewing a few more times, the distinctive, hearty flavor of Wild Pig meat blended with the rice.

Chew. Chew. Chew.

A war was raging around them.

Tae-sik and the other guild members were fighting demonic Wild Pigs and demons.

The ordinary Wild Pigs were being killed by the spears of Tolkan Village's residents.

[All stats increase by 30% for one day!]

[Wind-attribute attack power increases by 100%!]

[Composure increases by 500%!]

Na-ye finished the rice ball.

"Who was it again? Ah, that's right. Cha Hyeonwoo, wasn't it?"

Seolhwa sat comfortably on the chair formed by her six tails.

She crossed her long legs and folded her arms, casually surveying the battlefield.

"He used to eat rice balls in the middle of battle too."

She smiled.

"If that idiot had run away instead of remaining on the battlefield, he might've survived. But he insisted on fighting until the end."

Her smile widened.

"So I made sure to kill him as brutally as possible. From the look of things, you want to follow him to your death too."

"SQUEEAL!"

"Uwaaaaah!"

"Attack!"

"We need support over here!"

"Someone's trapped under the rocks!"

Seolhwa's voice was infused with demonic energy.

That allowed it to reach Na-ye clearly without being drowned out by the chaos of the battlefield.

Seolhwa stopped me from saving Cha Hyeonwoo.

Na-ye and Cha Hyeonwoo had worked together to defeat Lord Vantart.

Na-ye's shield had been strong enough to block Vantart's attacks.

Cha Hyeonwoo's swordsmanship had been powerful enough to threaten him.

If they'd been able to fight two against one, they probably could've defeated Vantart eventually.

If Seolhwa hadn't interfered, Cha Hyeonwoo might still be alive.

Memories Na-ye had forgotten, memories she didn't want to think about, began resurfacing as she stared at Seolhwa.

Anger rose within her.

Then it faded.

With her composure increased by five hundred percent, the anger couldn't overwhelm her.

The helplessness she'd felt back then resurfaced too.

But that also faded.

"Kyao?!"

Silnyang, which had been preparing to share her anger, looked confused.

The moment Na-ye's anger subsided, Silnyang's anger melted away as well.

"Kyao?"

Silnyang sensed Na-ye beginning to feel depressed.

Then even that emotion disappeared.

The spirit couldn't understand what was happening.

Thanks to Seongchan, I can keep my composure.

Na-ye no longer felt her anger building.

Nor did she blame herself for how weak she'd been in the past.

She stared at Seolhwa, who was still grinning.

"I'm ready. Come at me."

Na-ye infused her voice with mana, ensuring it reached Seolhwa.

"You think I'll fall for such an obvious provocation?"

"If your tails are stuck in the ground and you can't move, I'll come to you."

"You're not moving either, so why should I?"

Seolhwa looked around.

"Can't you see who's losing right now?"

Na-ye blinked.

Silnyang did the same.

As time passed, the demons' forces were gradually being divided.

"What I'm saying is that I could kill every last one of you by myself!"

Seolhwa shouted.

"Why can't you understand something so simple, you idiot?!"

Then she moved.

Demonic energy surged from her body as she charged.

Several demons were preparing to attack Tolkan Village.

Seolhwa swept them aside with her tails.

"You're in my way! Move!"

Every demon blocking her path immediately scattered to either side.

"Hey! The Legion Commander is coming through!"

"Get out of the way if you don't want to die!"

The demons were accustomed to this.

"What? Why are they running?"

The demons abandoned their attacks and began fleeing like defeated soldiers.

Tae-sik cut down a demon that had turned its back.

Then he looked ahead.

SLASH-SLASH-SLASH!

Seolhwa's tails began slaughtering demons, villagers, and guild members alike.

"So Seolhwa is finally moving."

Tae-sik grimaced.

"She still kills everyone around her whenever she moves."

"Shouldn't we run?"

"Is this really the time to be joking?"

"Right. Of course."

Tae-sik and the Rice Ball Guild members held their positions.

"Some of you, evacuate the villagers."

Tae-sik continued issuing orders while intercepting one of Seolhwa's incoming tails with his aura-covered sword.

"If they get caught in one of those attacks, they're finished!"

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

The spear-tipped tail scraped along his blade with a deafening sound.

And the attack didn't end there.

More tails came sweeping toward him.

Tae-sik swallowed.

How long can I endure this?

After blocking only a few strikes, his hands were already trembling slightly.

"Let's retreat!"

"Has everyone escaped?"

"The demons have all run away! Move!"

With help from the other guild members, Tae-sik finally escaped the range of Seolhwa's tails.

Seolhwa was heading straight toward Na-ye.

"We'll recover and attack again."

Swish!

"Kang Tae-sik!"

A guild member shouted in something close to a scream.

Seolhwa had reacted to Tae-sik's words.

She changed direction and charged straight toward him.

"What?!"

Tae-sik's eyes widened.

"It's too late to dodge! Prepare to attack!"

The tails that had been striking indiscriminately suddenly stopped.

Demonic energy began concentrating around their spear-like tips.

Purple demonic energy shimmered in the air, gradually taking on a more defined shape.

"Stay focused! Maintain your Aura Swords for as long as possible!"

"Thanks to you, Kang Tae-sik, we're gaining some excellent experience!"

"Is this really the time for jokes?!"

WHIRRR!

All six of Seolhwa's tails targeted Tae-sik and the guild members.

BANG! BANG-BANG! BANG!

The Aura Swords collided with the demonic-energy-covered tails.

Every time Seolhwa moved a tail, Tae-sik and the others staggered.

New wounds appeared across their bodies.

"Uwaaaaah!"

There was no room for relaxation.

Tae-sik and the guild members shouted as they fought.

They constantly shifted sideways, desperately blocking, deflecting, and redirecting the tails that were aiming to take their lives.

I can see it.

Only Tae-sik could see a path toward Seolhwa's heart.

Now!

BANG! BANG-BANG! BANG!

Tae-sik struck three of her tails with his sword.

The other guild members knocked aside the remaining three.

For a brief moment, all six tails were spread wide.

Tae-sik gathered strength in his legs.

BANG!

He charged.

At the same time, he poured more mana into his sword.

BZZZZT!

The blue glow of his Aura Sword became even brighter.

I'll end it with this strike.

If the battle dragged on, they were certain to lose.

While he still had strength remaining, Tae-sik concentrated everything into his blade.

He thrust toward Seolhwa's heart.

"Oh?"

Seolhwa sounded mildly surprised.

"So that actually worked."

Swish!

The six spear-tipped tails that had been knocked outward all turned toward Tae-sik.

Demonic energy gathered around them.

They rushed toward him simultaneously.

SHHHHH!

Tae-sik didn't stop his attack.

I trust her.

He couldn't let this opportunity pass.

Even though he knew it was a trap, he had no choice but to charge into it.

If he didn't do something like this, he'd end up watching his fellow guild members die before eventually dying himself.

"Tae-sik! That was too reckless!"

"I did it because I trust Guild Master Lee Na-ye!"

Na-ye's shield flew toward him, carried by Silnyang's wind.

It intercepted all six tails.

BANG-BANG-BANG!

The tails couldn't penetrate Na-ye's shield.

The force behind them weakened.

Tae-sik's Aura Sword continued toward Seolhwa's heart.

"You can't pierce my heart with that."

BANG!

Tae-sik's Aura Sword struck a shield.

Seolhwa had pulled it from her inventory.

She possessed two arms and two hands in addition to her six tails.

She now held a shield in one hand and a spear in the other.

After blocking Tae-sik's Aura Sword with her demonic-energy-covered shield, Seolhwa tightened her grip on the spear.

The spearhead, also infused with demonic energy, shot toward Tae-sik's heart.

SHHHK!

It was too late for Na-ye to intercept it with her shield.

"Silnyang!"

"Kyao!"

Silnyang's wind wrapped around Tae-sik.

It changed his direction, pulling him away from the spear before lowering him safely to the ground.

"KYAOOOOONG!"

As Silnyang drew closer to Seolhwa, its fury intensified.

Those emotions swept over Na-ye too.

But thanks to the special rice ball, Na-ye's composure had increased by five hundred percent.

She didn't panic.

Nor did she become angry alongside Silnyang.

If Seolhwa hadn't been there, Cha Hyeonwoo wouldn't have died.

Na-ye could remain calm.

Silnyang couldn't.

When they had cut off Lord Vantart's horn, they'd believed victory was within reach.

But Vantart's swirling sword had suddenly targeted Cha Hyeonwoo's heart.

Na-ye had tried to block it.

Seolhwa's spear had stopped her.

[Hyeonwoo!!!]

Had her desperate shout reached him?

Cha Hyeonwoo had barely managed to twist his body away from the attack aimed at his heart.

Silnyang's wind had blocked the swirling force.

But Cha Hyeonwoo hadn't been able to stop the sword itself.

A deep wound had been carved across his waist.

Even after losing a horn, Lord Vantart's fighting spirit hadn't diminished.

Whoosh!

Cha Hyeonwoo used the wind to create distance between himself and Vantart.

At the same time, he grabbed Haiman and retreated.

Haiman had only just lost both legs.

His eyes were lifeless.

[Seokdu! Carry His Majesty Haiman and get him out of here! Na-ye!]

Cha Hyeonwoo looked toward her.

[Na-ye, Silnyang... I'm counting on you.]

Silnyang refused to leave.

It wrapped itself tightly around Cha Hyeonwoo's neck.

Cha Hyeonwoo gently stroked the spirit's head.

Then he took Na-ye's hand.

The wind emblem on the back of his hand began releasing wind.

That wind swept over the back of Na-ye's hand.

A matching emblem appeared there.

[Let's go together, Hyeonwoo! Silnyang wants to go with you too!]

[No. Someone has to stay behind and hold them off.]

Cha Hyeonwoo turned toward Haiman.

[Your Majesty Haiman! Please don't hate the heroes! Don't cut off support for the Rice Ball Guild. I'm counting on you!]

[Hyeonwoo!]

[Go! Otherwise, they'll target you and Silnyang too!]

The Aura Swords in both of Cha Hyeonwoo's hands intercepted Lord Vantart's swirling sword.

[Ah, if that's the situation, I suppose I should eliminate your entire plan.]

Seolhwa targeted Tae-sik, who was carrying Haiman on his back.

Na-ye raised her shield and blocked Seolhwa's attacks.

Silnyang cried out desperately.

In the end, Na-ye had no choice but to retreat.

She was the only person capable of stopping Seolhwa's tails.

There had been no other choice.

Silnyang had never forgotten what happened that day.

"KYAOOOOOOOO!"

Now, faced with the object of its vengeance, Silnyang completely lost control of its anger.

It launched wind blades toward Seolhwa.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Seolhwa blocked them with her demonic-energy-covered shield.

But the sharp blades still cut several of her tails, drawing blood.

"I'd better take better care of my tails."

Seolhwa pulled all six of them back.

Then she looked toward Na-ye.

"Now, here's a question for you."

Silnyang was preparing to release another barrage of wind blades.

Na-ye's eyes were sharp.

Seolhwa smiled at them.

"What do you think will happen if I don't block your next attack?"

Demons and villagers were mixed together across the battlefield.

And Silnyang was blinded by rage.