Chapter 57 – 056 the Village – Yulkam
Tweet tweet…….
“…….”
Hwanin, awakened by the sound of birds chirping, let out a silent sigh and stood up.
A queen-size bed made with a wooden frame as a base makes a squealing sound at Hwanin’s movements.
‘Dreaming of that time.’
It seems that he must have accumulated a lot of mental fatigue while penetrating the forest labyrinth. No, maybe it was because of last night’s welcome.
It had been more than two months since I had fallen into this world.
After saving Ryuhi and her children safely, Hwanin arrived at Yulkam, their village, and was warmly welcomed by the villagers.
The women who were thought to have died after being swept away by the tsunami that occurred less than a month ago have returned alive through a terrifying forest labyrinth.
It took an instant for Hwanin to become a village hero by accomplishing what would normally be considered impossible.
The villagers were saddened by the fact that three of the seven people who went missing that day had died, but that was short-lived.
A festival was prepared to celebrate the women’s return and welcome the Hwanin who brought the women safely.
Of course, the protagonist of the festival was Hwanin.
He is an excellent fighter who escaped safely with four women without any ability in that scary labyrinth.
Hwanin, who was sitting at the head of the village, said thanks to all of them and drank the alcohol he poured out.
Unfamiliar people, the atmosphere of the town completely different from what you expected.
Although he was busy accepting and organizing the information pouring in from the excited conversations, Hwanin maintained his rationality as much as possible and dealt with the villagers with a smile.
And by the time the festival reached its climax, it was known through Ryuhi and Epnis that Hwanin was a high-ranking member of a high family from a distant country across the sea (he had never said anything like that) and a spirit master who could handle and bestow blessings on souls.
An incredibly strong warrior poem?
Besides, an old family from a distant country?
Are you also a spirit priest who guides the souls of the dead to rest and gives them peace?
Whoaaaaa-!!
The atmosphere grew even hotter.
The villagers, who had been expressing their gratitude to Hwanin, began to show respect and envy, and their behavior became more polite.
People brought precious liquor hidden in the house, took out rare food ingredients, cooked them, and offered them to Hwanin.
The amount of alcohol and food that went into his mouth increased even more.
It was around that time that my memory began to blur.
‘The film never stopped. I made no mistakes.’
Although he drank a fair amount of alcohol, Hwanin desperately maintained his rationality. And when he decided that he couldn’t stand it any longer, he complained of fatigue to his village chief, who gladly gave him the best room in his house.
That room is the one I woke up in now.
After washing his face for a while, Hwanin looked around the room.
I didn’t know because I was hectic last night, but it was about 10 pyeong, and the wooden floor and wooden walls were covered with colorful carpets or hanging and decorated with various ornaments.
The furniture seemed to be a high-end piece with pieces added, and the storage cabinet for storing luggage was at the level of a work of art with the wood grain beautifully revealed.
The closet was also of high quality, and the bed was a queen size. The bed sheet was a soft leather rug of unknown material, and the duvet was as heavy and warm as a cotton duvet.
‘Looking at it from the village level, it’s really classy.’
The village’s buildings were basically log cabins. More than 90% of the houses and buildings that make up the village are made of wood.
A room of this level in such a town…….
‘It’s probably not the room of the village chief and his wife.’
Shaking his head slightly, Hwanin got off the bed and stood by the window listening to the creak of the wooden floor.
Wheeeee-
When I opened the sliding wooden window, the still blue morning air rushed in with a cool breeze.
Quet.
The emergency food that was sleeping crumpled in the corner of the bed raises its head as if it had been awakened by the cold wind.
Hwanin, who looked at the emergency food, looked out the window again.
The village chief’s house has a high rent in the village. Thanks to the second floor, I could see the entire village at a glance.
The village at the foot of the mountain surrounding the back of the village like a bent arm consisted of about 50 households.
Being small was just the criterion for Hwanin, but everything is there.
A river flows down from the stone mountain behind and crosses the village. There were windmills, waterwheels, blacksmiths, carpentry shops, general stores, and inns along the line, as well as buildings that looked like barns and large buildings that looked like village meeting places.
All of this was built of wood, and the shape of the house was also an unfamiliar Western-style log cabin, so the freshness felt by Hwanin was doubled.
While watching the villagers clearing the traces of yesterday’s festival, I cast my gaze outside the village.
When I look up, I can see the lake of Allzot and a small marina below.
Between the lake and the village, and to the left and right of the village, there was a fairly wide rice field.
Children are seen herding livestock, and villagers are seen going down to fields, mountains, and lakes to work.
Smart smart
When I opened the door at the sound of a knock, a 2.2m tall werewolf standing in front of the door holding a water basin and soap smiled and asked.
=Spirit Master, did you sleep well last night?=
“Yes. Thanks to the village chief’s consideration, I had a good rest.”
=I can’t help but apologize for bringing a noble soul priest to this humble place. Originally, there is a house dedicated to a noble person like the Spirit Master…….=
“This room alone is great. I’m fine, so don’t worry about it.”
As if his age was revealed by the discoloration of his fur, the sparse gray and white head of the village bowed his head as if he had no respect for Hwanin’s modesty.
=I prepared breakfast. There isn’t much prepared, but if you don’t mind, why don’t you come down and join us? Of course, if you want, we can deliver meals to your room.=
“It is a special law to have a meal together. I will prepare and go down immediately.”
= Thank you. I’ll be waiting for you downstairs.=
Receiving a basin of water from the delighted village headman and washing his face and hands, Hwanin wiped off the water with a towel that could be called a cloth, albeit greasy, and looked at the milky soap with a slight green tinge.
‘Awesome. Does that mean that the culture created by the intelligent body is all there?’
Even so, a sense of heterogeneity is felt when comparing the cultures of the Middle Ages and Ancient Ages of the Earth.
It is more soapy than soap made from only fat, ash, and water.
The alcohol served at the party yesterday was clear alcohol that had gone through the distillation process, and the food was properly cooked with plenty of seasonings such as salt and pepper.
The clothes worn by the villagers were as simple as those of commoners in the Middle Ages in the West, but they seemed to be properly made through weaving.
When I think about them, it feels like a jumbled mixture of the Middle Ages and modern times.
On the way she came with them, she heard stories of this and that, and that there were no barbaric customs, but she hadn’t thought of it to this extent.
After a long time, Hwanin, who had washed off the grease from his face and hands, tidied up his beard with a dagger, swept his hair neatly back with an all-back, and looked out the window again.
“…….”
People with distinctly dog or wolf heads carry farm implements on their shoulders and walk away laughing and patting each other on the shoulder.
When he first saw the villagers yesterday, Hwanin understood why the women called the werewolf a branch of Luke.
The village was a tribal village made up of the Inrang tribe and the Inken tribe of Luke Lang, and all the men were born with such a strong beast form.
The difference from the werewolf he encountered in the forest was that his back was more upright like a human and his physique was a bit more like a human. And he’s just dressed like a man.
Other than that, it resembled a werewolf in almost every way.
‘But the villagers, let alone the women, weren’t surprised when they saw me.’
Are there normal people in this world?
Aside from fighting monsters, he was a Hwanin who gradually began to develop an interest in this world.
Hwanin, who went down to the first floor through the creaky hallway with emergency food, saw thirteen people, including the village chief, gathered at a long table in a spacious living room like a wooden pub.
A man with three children. There are ten women.
‘The village chief and his four wives were said to have eight children.’
The male to female ratio in the village was just about that. Three or four women to one man.
When Hwanin came down the stairs, all thirteen people who were waiting stood up.
Everyone seemed to welcome Hwanin, but especially children, ranging in age from nineteen to six, were looking at Hwanin like idols.
=Come on, Spirit Master, come this way.=
The village chief led Hwanin to the seat of honor that must have been his original seat. Hwanin also sits down without hesitation, so the village chief’s family also sits down.
A woman called the third wife puts a bowl full of various nuts and fresh vegetables in front of emergency food.
After spending some time praying to the god-like being they believe in, the village headman smiled as he brought a sumptuous dish in front of Hwanin.
= Spirit Master. Try this too.=
“Thank you.”
While eating the food that was neatly prepared, the village headman and his wife ate quietly, but the eight-year-old children glanced at Hwanin while they ate, whispering among themselves.
= Whoa. You’re saying that’s an example? It was the same yesterday, but he eats very clean food. =
= Right. You eat like a pig. =
=Why do you only have me! You are too!=
=Who said what?=
= Ephnis said that she was strong enough to defeat hundreds of hobs alone. =
= Ryuhi said that the spirit master killed Bardul too? =
= Seongsu-nim was also sent back by fate. Did you see those fangs?=
= Yes. It was so big…….=
= She’s a spirit priest, but she’s as strong as a warrior…… How.=
It was an atmosphere where an ordinary person would not choke on food, but Hwanin ate casually.
Compared to the fact that there was not much food prepared, there was a strong sense of hospitality as the whole dish, such as chicken, was rich in vegetables and meat dishes.
Hwanin, who roughly guessed the reason, casually ate food and chatted with the village headman.
=That level 6 forest labyrinth is notorious even in the country, so no one goes in, but you spend two months there.
“I was lucky. It was because I survived even after witnessing holy beasts that were beyond my capabilities.”
Literally, I was lucky.
According to the story, the place where he appeared was a forest-type labyrinth (I heard that there are many types of labyrinths), but it was also in the outskirts.
Had he been forced to go in the direction he had initially taken, he would have soon lost his life.
= Ah. You’re talking about the messenger of the soul fire and the mountain demon. They are holy beasts, who are said to be hard to see even if they go through their entire lives. Village idiots like us live for decades and all we do is listen to them with our ears. Heh heh heh.=
Breakfast was finished in a warm atmosphere, and the village chief, his wife, and children left home to start their day.
Since there is no such thing as compulsory education, it seems natural for six-year-olds to work.
After being told by the village chief to rest in peace, Hwanin took a spear and a stone axe and came out to the yard in front of the house and swung the spear to relieve his stiff body.
It’s not that my body is really stiff, it’s that I feel that way.
Thanks to the effect of the bloody stone, it is safe to say that the physical condition is always the best.
I drank nearly 5,000cc of fruit wine and beer last night, but my current state without a hangover is proof of that.
As it calmly repeats the four movements of stabbing, cutting, knocking down, and lifting, villagers passing by stare blankly at it one by one, realizing that a lot of time has passed, and hurried on their way in surprise.
After repeating the four movements 1,000 times for two hours, Hwanin felt refreshed and washed his sweat-drenched body at the well.
The water was so cold that the word “Sirida” Was appropriate, but it was just right for the hot body.
After wiping off his sweat, Hwanin called for emergency food to walk around his front yard and pick insects.
“Emergency food. Do not fly in the village.”
Quet?
“Because it is dangerous.”
At last night’s birthday celebration (more like a welcome ceremony), it was revealed that the emergency food was Hwanin’s pet, but what kind of accident could happen?
If you see vigilante-looking men with arrows strapped to their backs, you might get hit by a blind arrow.
Dream!
With his wings wide open as if he knew, Hwanin carrying emergency rations on his shoulder slowly descended down the road to the village.
The residents we encountered along the way greeted each other with a respectful attitude.
Rather than saving the village women safely, he seems to respect him more because he is a spirit priest.
The reason why I came down to the village without resting at home was simple.
Since I arrived in the village yesterday, people’s spirits had been seen all over the village, so I wanted to find out why.
I guess that this is the reason why the village chief treated them so kindly and why the villagers showed such respect.
Hwanin, who was leisurely wandering around the village and checking the number and shape of the souls, was able to see the reddish souls among them.
So far, the souls of animals and beasts that Hwanin has seen have all been gray and transparent, close to white. The same was true of the souls of people over 40 whom I saw in the village.
A woman’s soul that follows a certain girl, a soul that doesn’t budge in a certain place, or a soul that wanders around indiscriminately.
Most of them were light gray and didn’t look like anything special, but the wolf-headed male spirit standing at the entrance of the village was different.
That soul felt as eerie as the color.
‘I don’t feel well…….’
If it were just a different color, there would be no problem, but the creepiness makes it even more ominous and uncomfortable.
I can’t feel it when I go to other places, but when I go closer, my heart beats even if I’m not looking at the red soul, and my skin tingles there.
As I stared at the red spirit standing in the distance attached to the fence surrounding the village, the man on the watchtower glanced down and quickly came down to talk to Hwanin.
=Hello, Mr. Soul!=
“Hello. You have a lot of trouble with the watchman.”
= Oh, tell me something. As a member of the village, it is a natural thing to dohaha.=
When Hwanin politely accepts the greeting, a cautious man with black and white hair resembling a border collie smiles with his tongue sticking out.
It was Hwanin who looked at the owner and thought it was like a dog he likes.
