60. Approaching Danger (2)

The lawn was soaked by an unknown stream of rain. The horse that was grazing had long strands of saliva hanging from its mouth.

The roof of the temporary shelter had sagged in the middle due to the sticky liquid.

I looked up at the sky. It was dark.

“A boundary has formed.”

He murmured, a shadow cast over his face.

“What is this?”

“It’s a protective barrier made from the essence of a monster. It seems there’s a problem in the hunting ground.”

“Then let’s get out of the forest quickly.”

He shook his head.

“We can’t leave until the barrier is lifted. It’s set up to protect people from the outside, not those inside. Only those outside can come in.”

He strapped the sword he had set down to his side and mounted his horse.

“Miss, please request help immediately. It will be safer to go where there are more people.”

“What about you, Count?”

“I need to find my wife. She’s probably still asleep, and I must wake her.”

His words strangely reassured me. Even in an emergency, he turned his reins toward his wife instead of fleeing.

Whether he was protecting his heir or his wife, his determination to fulfill his duty was sincere.

As he spurred his horse, it swiftly galloped away. I stared blankly at the spot where he had left and then turned my gaze towards the shelter.

At that moment, something from the sky suddenly covered the shelter roof.

The roof collapsed, and the supporting pillars broke.

It was fortunate that the second team had already departed, so there were few people inside the shelter. A slimy substance clung to the collapsed roof.

The huge slime began to slither off the roof towards me. I couldn’t tell where its mouth was, but the slime was growing larger, stretching towards the sky.

The sight of its gaping mouth sent chills down my spine. A foul stench wafted over. I took a few steps back and then sprinted away frantically.

I headed towards the forest. It was the only place to go. Everyone participating in the hunt was in the forest. They had all the weapons and shields needed to face monsters.

* * *

There were no proper paths in the forest. Trees grew densely and randomly, not planted in straight lines.

If I planted the trees I bought from Philip in the Hwangjaryeong Forest, it would soon become like this.

I understood why they opposed planting trees.

The scenery wasn’t pretty. Most importantly, it was hard to get a sense of direction. It was easy to get lost.

The leaves were so thick they blocked out the sky, making it hard to discern the weather. I found a spot where light barely shone through and caught my breath. The upper branches of a tree were broken.

A large balloon was attached to the branch. It seemed the branch had been broken to hang the balloon.

“Leonie, where are you?”

Deon’s voice came from the air.

I looked around urgently. There was no one in sight.

Am I hearing things?

“Leonie.”

But his voice came again.

I shouted back into the air.

“I don’t know where I am.”

“Is there anything around you?”

I looked around. I found something distinctive. A large balloon was tied to a thick tree. The purple balloon floated in the air.

“There’s a big balloon above me. It looks like it was left for the end of the hunt.”

“There are balloons all over the forest.”

I described something, but his response was disheartening.

“Aren’t there any markers tied to trees at intersections?”

“Not for this hunt. This area wasn’t meant to have such accidents.”

I searched for something to indicate my location.

All I saw were trees, grass, and a sticky, stretching ground every time I stepped.

After a long silence, he spoke again.

“Stay where you are. I’ll come to you.”

Do you even know where I am?

With that, the short communication ended.

I looked up at the sky. It was a pale color.

I shouted, but there was no echo. It felt like the sky was covered by an opaque barrier, shimmering like a dome.

Rustle.

A monster sprang from the grass.

It was a different type from the one that had covered the shelter. The one-eyed monster blinked its large eye, rolling it from side to side.

It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either. It could swallow me in one bite without any trouble.

I swallowed hard. Of all things, I was wearing a dress in this competition, and the frills on the hem were cumbersome. Every step I took, the frills rustled, drawing the monster’s attention.

But I can handle this. I have a gun.

I pulled the gun from my pocket.

I loaded it and aimed at the monster. I placed my finger on the trigger. The cold metal sensation on my index finger felt unfamiliar.

This body wasn’t used to this sensation. Still, I remembered exactly how to pull the trigger. No matter how weak the body, I could move my finger.

It felt a bit wasteful to use it now, but if it bought me some time, it was worth it.

I recalled what Deon had said before. He had pointed to a straw scarecrow and explained how to deal with monsters in the North.

At that time, he said to wedge and twist the sword into the monster, then pull it out.

But that method had its limits with a gun. I had to aim for a vital point to take it down with one shot.

My target now was the eye. The eye.

I quietly stared at the monster’s eye. The large, single eye blinked slowly, revealing red flesh each time it closed. With each slow blink, an unknown liquid oozed from its tear duct. It resembled the rain from earlier. It was disgusting.

With my finger on the trigger, I aimed.

Rustle.

At that moment, the grass where the monster stood rustled. I turned the gun toward the sudden movement.

The rustling stopped, and the thick grass parted. What appeared between the dark green grass was…

Countless eyes, like the ones on the monster before me. A swarm of monsters was hiding in the grass.

This monster had one eye. Those eyes belonged to other monsters.

Drool dripped from the monster’s open mouth.

My body froze.

The eyes, hidden by the grass up to my waist, glowed fiercely.

The monsters were gradually gathering toward my gun.

One bullet wouldn’t be enough.

I would have to ask for help again. There was nothing I could handle alone.

I always had many choices, but there was little I could actually choose.

“It can’t be helped.”

I didn’t want to face him here, either.

I raised my gun-bearing arm toward the sky. A large balloon floated in the air.

I pulled the trigger toward the ad balloon.

With a loud bang, an immense amount of air rushed out, and the fireworks inside spilled out.

Confetti fluttered and scattered everywhere.

It was supposed to be a celebratory scene when the person who caught the most beasts returned.

Normally, this would be a moment of celebration surrounded by many people, praising the hero.

But the sight before my eyes was far from beautiful despite the first fireworks bursting.

* * *

When the balloon burst with a loud noise, the monsters charged. They all turned their heads in the direction of the sound.

However, the confetti swirling everywhere slowed their reaction. They seemed to have developed only their hearing, with their sense of smell and sight appearing to have atrophied.

I watched the falling confetti. The powder lingered in the air before gently settling on the ground.

Soon after the balloon burst, the nobles participating in the hunt rushed over. They must have been drawn by the loud noise. Among them was Deon.

The confetti hadn’t even fully settled. Through the floating bits, I saw his face.

“Are you hurt?”

He approached me and asked. It was a question I heard every time I needed help, and it now felt like a greeting.

“No.”

“Thank goodness.”

He stood next to me. It still felt a bit awkward standing beside him.

“What happened? And what are those monsters?”

“I don’t know. They’re not the usual creatures that appear in the forest.”

He gripped his sword.

“The barrier will be lifted within an hour, so we can leave then.”

He reassured me.

They hadn’t come alone. They had brought strange objects with them.

There was a crystal sphere floating in the sky from earlier.

The light on the blue crystal sphere flickered. It was a crystal sphere used for broadcasting and recording the hunt.

It was odd how it buzzed around the sky. Its focus was on Deon.

“When will the guards arrive?”

Someone shouted towards the crystal sphere.

-Identifying location. Please wait.

“The monsters are coming. If we stay like this, we will be slaughtered.”

-We are identifying the location. Please wait.

The mechanical voice echoed repeatedly.

The loud mechanical sound seemed to provoke the monsters. As soon as the voice finished, a monster jumped out. It seemed ready to charge, its foot stomping the ground.

This monster was larger than the one that had attacked me in the forest. I could see it snorting visibly.

And behind the monster… there were an overwhelming number of monsters waiting.

We were cornered. There were so many that even fighting them off would be difficult.

Now I understood the purpose of the crystal sphere.

It was deliberately making mechanical noises. While everyone was holding their breath to avoid attracting the monsters, the unregulated mechanical sounds were provoking their aggression.

Although this was a situation where we were calling for help, the recording continued.

The purpose of capturing the chaotic scene was obvious. The crystal sphere’s goal was to observe Deon.

In this situation, Deon couldn’t drink blood and had to face the monsters with only his strength.

The repeated message made the nobles murmur anxiously.

I scanned the group.

There were about ten armed people. They were lower-ranked nobles who were either distant from the royal family or had no significant background, or they were anti-imperialist nobles. I recognized a few faces, but it was obvious without needing to ask.

To die naturally. To be buried with the unnecessary nobles to the royal family without lifting a finger.

If other nobles died along with the prince, it would undoubtedly be concluded as an accident.

It was a cliché trap.

And as clichéd as it was, it was powerful.