Chapter 678 – 671 the Underground Village of Bergen
Anne and Ayeong were in charge of soothing the frightened and crying Giflas.
Even when Isilite, Yurpa, Baengnyeogang, and at least Norn and Hwanyeon approached, the three Gifla people screamed and screamed out of breath. What didn’t
=Even if Ayoung is like that, the Fleurs are a symbol of gentleness.=
=I’m gentle too?!=
=But he’s an assassin.=
=Ah.=
Thanks to the performance of the two, the cry of the Gifla tribe subsided, but the fear and tension remained.
Hwanin’s eyes widened as if he would flinch at the slightest movement or burst into tears.
“If you leave it as it is, we won’t be able to have a conversation. Isilite, make citron tea with honey and bring it to me.”
=Yes, Master.=
Sweets are the best way to soothe a timid or crying child.
After tasting the citron tea with honey, the Gifla tribe stopped crying like a child with candy in their mouths and started sipping the citron tea.
Of course, the wary child doesn’t snap food into her mouth just because she is given something to eat.
To show that he had no ill intentions, and to show that food was harmless, Hwanin turned his back on them and drank citron tea with her girlfriends.
“…”
As soon as the hot citron tea is added, a little bit of redness starts to appear on the pale faces of the three Gifla tribesmen, as if they are a little relieved.
Hwanin, who confirmed that, came closer to give them time and patted Silu’s head as he rubbed his head against his leg.
“Now I can use fire. I wondered if his growth was slow compared to Norn, but I was relieved to see he was growing properly.”
Beep.
Half a year has already passed since Shilu was born. However, the body size has not changed even once.
I was worried at first, but when I saw Shilu start breathing fire, there must be a difference between the way the sunset color and the green Kue grow.
“Did I?”
“Okay. It was after you entered the subadult that you started to deal with the wind in earnest.”
“Is that so…」
= It was. It wasn’t until I became an adult that I was able to fly fully.
Isilite listened to her, but Norn, who sipped citron tea with honey while holding her mug with both hands, looked pleased. Things in the past are things in the past, and things now are things in the present.
After stroking Norn’s head, Hwanin instilled a medium-level fire spirit into his body, formed fire energy at his fingertips, and held it out in front of Silu’s beak.
Then, unlike when he was just a few weeks old, he reacts immediately to the energy of fire and bites the Hwanin’s finger with his beak.
=Baby, what are you going to do now?=
After drinking almost all of the citron tea, Yurpa glances at the Gifla tribe and asks.
Perhaps it was the effect of the food, the fear and vigilance toward this side had alleviated. Hwanin also confirmed that and said as he got up from his seat.
“Now that Silu has been found, I will return the land to its original state and depart.”
At first, I asked the Gifla people about the regurgitation of insect-type heteromorphs, and if there was a labyrinth nearby, I decided to stop by.
The original schedule was to find a great sage, ask him if he knew anything about how to relieve the fragments more quickly and about the abnormal phenomenon that had happened to his body, and then find a 5th grade labyrinth in the great plain.
However, the whole time I was on the way, I thought about whether I should stop by the labyrinth first.
Currently, about 1/3 of the shrapnel delivery has been resolved. I thought it would be okay to look back at the labyrinth for a while because I had fully adapted to the aura circulation.
However, he held back because he was a Hwanin who did not want to change the schedule to his liking.
I did, but I met the Gifla tribe, who thought it might be related to the phenomenon of labyrinth reflux.
If this is not a relationship, what is a relationship?
‘Even if it’s meant to be, it’s troublesome if it’s in that state.’
If the Gifla people are so timid and closed-minded, there must be communication problems.
It is better to give up neatly and go to the labyrinth of the great plain after meeting the great sage than to suffer because communication is not right.
Hwanin returned the finished cup of citron tea to Isilite and stood up. Then, the moment she tried to get her to go back to her girlfriends.
= I, there…=
Hearing the girl’s voice from behind, Hwanin looked back at the Gifla girl who was approaching.
Black hair with a slight brown tinge. Eyes glowing amber.
Seeing the girl looking up at him, holding her mug tight enough to make her fingers turn white as if she was very nervous, Hwanin knelt down on one knee and brought her to eye level with her.
“I’m sorry for talking to you while you were scared. Don’t worry, I’ll return the land I opened up perfectly and leave.”
= Oh, no… I… I tried to take away the traveler’s Que… Sorry!=
At the apology of the dark-haired girl who bowed her back, Hwanin showed a light expression of surprise.
The reaction of an adult rather than a girl was felt in her tone and behavior. Could it be that the girl in front of me was not a girl, but an adult of the Gifla tribe?
Looking back at Anne, she shakes her head as if Anne didn’t notice.
But. It was before she left on her journey that the Gifla tribe was said to have perished.
Neither she nor she must have seen the Giflas in person. It will be the same for Yurpa.
“It’s okay. It was a situation where misunderstandings could arise.”
=I apologize for misunderstanding you, that traveler, as a bad person…=
Having said that, the Gifla people asked Hwanin with earnest eyes and expressions.
=Can we stop by our village? The village is in crisis, and we need help from a strong traveler… !=
“… I may ask, are you from the Gifla tribe?”
=Yes!=
“Is the crisis due to the appearance of insect-type heteromorphs?”
= Yes, yes! Heteromorphs started appearing a few months ago, and the village is becoming more and more isolated… The villagers are fighting hard against Arjuang, but there are too many…=
“…”
=If you are a traveler who is strong enough to make the land look like that, you might be able to help… Please!=
The girl bowed her back again and made a loud request, so the other two Gifla boys and girls who saw this also nervously approached him and bowed her back.
=Boo, please!=
=Help me…=
As Hwanin’s eyes turned to her girlfriends, everyone nodded her head slightly.
“All right. Let’s listen to the story as we go to the village. Take the lead.”
After storing the carriage in Aspen, Hwanin moved through the tunnel following the Gifla girl who introduced herself as Hinro.
At first, I tried to move by being miniaturized, but Hwan-yeon said to just expand the cave, so I moved along the path that the earth spirit had widened.
= Awesome… It takes five people to work together to widen the hole…=
When the cute-looking boy, who was loved by most women, admired the ever-widening expanse of the crypt, she replied with her face that the illusion was not a big deal.
“This level is no big deal to a high-level land spirit. There are also samples that you guys have worked on before. Are you more of an adult?”
= Yes… ? That’s right. Me too, Hinro and Yuiu are adults too.
“How old are you?”
=I am 15, Hinro is 17, and Yuiu is 13.=
The adulthood of the Gifla tribe is 12 years old, with an average lifespan of about 60 years, Hinro is 27 years old, the boy is 24 years old, and another Gifla girl, Yuiu, is about 20 years old.
= On the outside, she looks only about 10 years old… You look really young.=
Hwanin asked Hinro a few questions as he heard Baekryogang whispering to Yurupa.
The size of the village, the number of villagers, where the strange species appeared, how many raids they have been attacking, and whether the location of the labyrinth was grasped.
= About 200 people live in the village. There are about 80 houses. Hyungjong Lee appeared suddenly, but when the villagers searched for the cause…=
Roughly speaking, the Gifla tribe was living in symbiosis with a gentle ant demon named Arjuang, and one day, heteromorphic species constantly poured out through a passage Arjuang made.
=The villagers join forces with Arjuang to fight hard against the deformed species, but they are outnumbered… As time passed, strange species appeared on other roads, and strange species began to attack village farms… A lot of villagers got hurt, some were kidnapped by Hyungjong Lee, and some died a while ago…=
“I see. Then it would be a story that it could be attacked here too, but what were you guys doing here?”
=At the end of the crossroads there is a passage that leads to the outside, and there is a cluster of high-quality herbs nearby. I found the traveler’s Que on the way back from gathering herbs to heal the injured.=
Hwanyeon, who was listening to the story on Hwanin’s shoulder, asked.
「Then, if the aisle is widened like this, the heterogeneous species will be able to use it?=
=If this type of species appears, then it’s time to abandon the village and escape…=
“Hmm.”
Hinro’s blurred expression was full of worry. It looks like the situation is not good enough to start thinking about abandoning the actual village.
After walking for about 20 minutes, the tunnel started to go down, and soon after, a scene that was hard to believe that it was underground appeared in front of the party.
A wide hollow with shrubs and bushes growing here and there, the grass is green on the ground, and for some reason, the blinding sunlight is pouring in from the tightly closed ceiling.
=This is our village…=
There was no ordinary house. In most cases, well-cut rocks are made like a wall without a wall to separate the outside from the inside, and the inside is covered with smooth stones.
Some houses were built by digging out the inside of large rocks, but most were living in exposed houses without ceilings or walls.
Thanks to this, the Gifla tribe, who instantly recognized the arrival of the Hwanin party, screamed and tried to run away, but put down their tension at Hinro, Yuiu, and Nape (boy)’s explanation and gathered.
= Travelers who look strong just by looking at them…=
= Wow, Kueda… The feathers look so soft!=
Even the tallest Gifla tribe couldn’t reach Hwanin’s stomach. In addition, Hwanin felt a little uncomfortable because he looked like a 1st or 2nd grader in elementary school.
It was because the parents’ teaching that children are the future of the country and should be treated kindly came to mind.
Although the other party is said to be an adult from a heterogeneous tribe, Hwanin, who has lived in Korea for 26 years, sees the Gifla tribe as nothing but elementary school students.
I would try to ignore it if it was one or two, but the current situation seems to be a group of children of about two classes, so the teachings of their parents do not leave their heads.
At that time, a Gifla tribe with a face of about 3rd grade and a neat beard approached Hinro.
= Hinro. Have you gathered herbs?=
=Here it is.=
= I’m glad The injured person came out again, so I thought the herbs I gathered wouldn’t be enough.=
= Yes? Where? Who is hurt?=
= A group of Phoebus came to the tangerine farm downstairs and hurt my wife. He wouldn’t have returned alive if Ar João hadn’t protected him… Could there be anything more dangerous than that? Who are those people?=
= These are strong and kind travelers whom I met by chance on the way. He said he would help us.=
= Yes. It looks like there are two Fleurs. Hello?=
“… Yes, nice to meet you. He is said to be a Hwanin who happened to meet Miss Hinro by chance. I am the leader of the party.”
= My name is Kual. I am temporarily serving as the chief in place of the injured chief. Thank you for helping the village.=
“No. I think it was fate that I met you like this. And… Ayoung.”
=Yep! Mr. Qual? I’m a priestess. I can treat the injured, so can you guide me where they are?=
=Seo, priestess! Really?!=
= What? A priestess? Do you have a priest?=
= Where? Who?=
= Holy Sorcerer!=
The Gifla tribe, who were more interested in Que than women, gathered at the story of a priestess.
=This is how the aura of the Holy Wizard is. Wow~.=
= It’s pretty. But why is unnie naked?=
=Huh?!=
=Hey, that’s not what I’m asking!=
=…=
Ah-yeong blushes at the question of her child, who is less than 90 cm tall, so she runs to Yurpa and takes her see-through cloak and puts it on her body.
= This is the Holy Magician. All the injured people are gathered together.=
=Yep… Then oppa, I’ll be back.=
= Ah Young. I’m going too. =
Anne goes with Ah-yeong, as if she is more attracted to treating the injured than to hear the inside story of the accident.
“Then Mr. Qual and Mr. Hinro. Could you tell me the details of how the village got into trouble?”
= Of course. Hinro? Since I’m a guest you brought, would you like to take me to your house?=
= Of course, I have to take it. Hwanin-nim, I’ll take you to my house. This is it.=
“Yes.”
Hinro’s house was located at a fairly high place in the village.
By Hwanin’s standards, the Gifla family’s house felt like a pavilion made of stone rather than a house, but anyway, Qual went back to pick up Arjuang’s representative.
= Please wait a little while eating this. The uncle will be back soon.=
As we sat down at a place with a panoramic view of the town over a low fence, Hinro brought a basket of tangerines and held it out, and sat down.
Hwanin looked at Hinro for a moment, took out several fist-sized tangerines from the basket, and nodded lightly.
“Thank you.”
If the outside of town is dangerous and the farm is attacked, the food situation may be bad, but it is good to accept the sincerity shown in such a situation out of consideration for the other person’s pride.
If food is really in danger, it’s okay to come here and take out the meat of the beast-type monsters or animals that we hunted and distribute them.
As I was peeling citrus peels for Hwanyeon, Qual came with a member of the ant family who walks standing up.
Baeknyeogang and Yurpa opened their eyes a little wider because the appearance was unexpected.
I thought it wouldn’t be a common ant because of the story of coexisting with Arjuang, but I didn’t think it was a Chungin tribe.
= I’m sorry I’m late. I went around the town for a while looking for this friend.=
Chwit. Chii.
=It’s nice to meet this friend too.=
‘Indeed. Is it classified as a witch beast because there is no interpreter?’
Its size is about one head larger than that of the Gifla tribe. An ant looks quite grotesque and disgusting when zoomed in, but the Arjuang in front of him didn’t have the insect-specific repulsion even though he had grown to a human level.
The overall color is white, close to silver, there are two legs that move like arms and four that function as legs, and the head is round as if it were deformed.
Overall, I would say it looks like an ant from an animation for children raised up and raised up a little more realistically.
“No. So let’s start the story. What was the grade of the heterogeneous species pouring in from the passage connected to the village?”
Chwii. Chih, tsuuu.
Qual interprets what CEO Arjuang is saying.
= Uh… Most of the time, the Arjuang soldiers fought 1:1 and won, and sometimes two or three strong heterogeneous species came out… But it must be difficult for travelers to understand.=
=If you are a soldier ant level, it is common to be classified as a second-class worker. How is CEO Arjuang? He’s a senior soldier… Can we try to fight for a while.=
At Isilite’s request, CEO Arjuang flicked his antennae once, and finally held out an arm that was divided into four parts like a human hand.
Facing each hand, Isilite measured the strength of the other person’s strength through the force of their pushing each other, and then informed Hwanin.
=It is judged to be similar to other Chungin people outside.=
“Then, do you mean that many of the second-class heteromorphs and third-class heteromorphs occasionally appear? How many times have you encountered that strong heterogeneous species?”
Tsureu, tsureur… Tsu?
=A total of seven before escaping from the nest. There’s only one heteromorphic species that looks stronger than that, but I’ve seen it before.=
“Then, at least level 4 to level 6 labyrinths are connected to the nests of the people of Arjuang.”
It is rare for heterogeneous species in the depths of the labyrinth to come out of the normal reflux. If the 6th grade labyrinth causes a regurgitation, only the 5th grade heterogeneous species come out of the labyrinth and spread in all directions.
Occasionally, a grade 6 heterogeneous species is said to come out, but even if it causes regurgitation, there must be soldiers who need to protect the heart core, so it is not a large number.
In other words, it is currently most likely to be a grade 4 labyrinth, and the possibility of a grade 5 cannot be ruled out.
Tsueuu Tsureut.
The story of CEO Arjuang continues.
The location of the labyrinth is currently unknown. No, Hyungjong Lee couldn’t even go in because the number of people coming over was frightening.
It is said that they do not know whether the labyrinth has flowed backwards or if there is an open labyrinth nearby and they can escape from it.
=Now the situation in the village is very bad. Out of 200 people, 70 were injured, and there were people who were dragged away by Lee Hyeong-jong and did not know whether they lived or died…=
The story that followed was about how bad the situation in the village was.
There were 10 farms around the village to feed 200 villagers, but 9 of them were attacked and destroyed by heterogeneous species, and the only remaining one is scraping by.
Heterogeneous species are being attacked once or twice a day, and Arjuang and Gifla tribe, who have joined the village, work together to defeat the heteromorphic species, but the number of injured continues to increase.
The Gifla tribe is very dexterous, and their strength, stamina, and agility are average enough to far exceed adult Luke and women.
However, it is safe to say that due to its low aggression, it can be said that it cannot engage in close combat at all, and perhaps because of its high basic specs, the awakening rate of warriors, fighters, and sorcerers is only about 1/3 compared to other races, making it even worse.
Because of this, when Arjuang, who has joined the village, blocks the Heterogeneous from the front, the Giflas make crossbows or bows and fight in a way that both men and women support from the rear.
=I thought about abandoning the village before the travelers came. However, the Great Plain of Hiarid is full of strong monsters and beasts… There were a lot of injured people, so even if we got out of here, we couldn’t guarantee how many people would get to the nearby city alive.=
Having said that, Qual looked at Hwanin and the others with worried eyes and said.
=So, you don’t have to risk going down to the basement. He said he was going to the Cheonam Mountains, right? An escort to a nearby town on the way is sufficient. Of course, I’ll give you an example.=
What Qual brought out with those words were various beautifully cut jewels.
When converted into money, 30 gold coins were good enough.
= My grandfather and father, and even me… It is made by carving a gem stone that you sometimes find. Other than this, I don’t have anything that people outside would like…=
“…”
Hwanin, who looked at the jewel for a while, closed his eyes, and Qual, who interpreted the action negatively, became sullen.
People on the outside say they like jewels, so I made them into jewels… Is this not enough?
Knock knock.
What should I do, ask the villagers to collect things that people outside will like? Thinking so, Qual turned to her as she felt Hinro touch her next to her.
And Qual, who read her thoughts in her eyes, couldn’t help but lower his head with a more gloomy face.
Instead of him, Hinro carefully brings her words out.
= I… Hwanin?=
“… ?”
=I heard that the man outside likes me, our Gifla girl. I’ll give you my body if you escort the villagers to the nearest city.=
Hwanin gasped for breath.
After hearing such a declaration from a girl in the 1st or 2nd grade of elementary school, she even sees a vision of her two deceased parents looking at Hinro with a stern expression.
“… No. I did it because I had something to organize my thoughts, but it seems I gave you anxiety.”
= Ah! Thank you Then my…=
Hwanin, who seemed to know what she was about to say, felt a slight headache rise and covered Hinro’s mouth.
“Miss Hinro. You don’t have to. I don’t know how other men are, but my taste is mature women like my lovers here.”
= Oh. Ah yes…=
Hwanin sighed inwardly at the unreliable answer and took her jewel pouch to Qual and said.
“I will accept Mr. Qual and Miss Hinro’s request. If clearing the labyrinth seems impossible, then don’t worry, I will guide you to the nearest city.”
In response to his answer, Qual rubbed his chest and was relieved, and Hinro made a worried expression, wondering if it was made of this.
Hwanin sighed inwardly at the conflicting reactions of the two.
