Chapter 462 – It’s What I want (3)

Cale had teleported with the others to arrive here.
This was the stone mountain they had seen on the map called 'Nake Mountain.'
Cale recalled the conversation he had with Taylor before coming here.

'Mm, what business do you have there...?'

Taylor Stan who had learned about their destination as he watched them leave sounded concerned.
Taylor had tricked the White Star using keywords such as the Land of Death and treasure, but he couldn't understand why Taylor, who didn't know about the earth attribute ancient power, would sound concerned.

'Is there something fishy I don't know about? Or, is there some sort of problem?'

Cale cautiously asked Taylor.

'Is there a reason I shouldn't go there?'

He needed to talk things out with Taylor in order to make sure that there were no problems as he would be moving around the Stan territory.

'No. There's no reason you cannot go there, young master-nim. There's nowhere in the Stan territory that you cannot go. However…'

Taylor hesitated for a moment before quietly asking with an awkward smile on his face.

'You know about the legend of Nake Mountain, right?'
'Are you talking about the story of the snake?'
'Mm, even I do not know if that legend is true or not. But you see… This is a bit…'

Taylor continued to speak with an awkward expression as if it was difficult to say.

'W, we have people go missing at that mountain every year. And you cannot teleport on that mountain.'
'Excuse me? You can't teleport?'
'Yes. You can't grab the coordinates of that location.'

A mage would need to gather the coordinates with magic to go from point A to Nake Mountain.
However, Nake Mountain was a place where they could not use magic to grab the coordinates.

'Furthermore, it is covered in fog, so you'll need to go with an experienced hunter.'

Taylor left for a moment before returning with a list of famous hunters around Nake Mountain and cautiously started to speak again.

'I don't know why exactly you are going there, but I'm sure it is to protect the Western continent from that villain.'

Taylor who grabbed both of Cale's hands looked toward Cale with respect and admiration.

'Please return safely.'

Cale awkwardly smiled at Taylor's comment that was full of both respect and concern before the conversation ended as they left.

And now…
Cale who had teleported to the village closest to Nake Mountain felt awkward as he listened to the old man who was said to be the most experienced and wisest hunter.

"Anyway, I'm acting like this because you all look so young! Mr. Bob, I don't know what it's for, but don't go to that cursed mountain! Hmm?"
"Senior, is there nothing that can be done?"

Hunter Bobe wanted to help this young merchant named Bob whose name was similar to his.

"Aigoo. I, Bobe, want to help you, Mr. Bob, especially since we have such similar names. It's just that this is a dangerous time right now."

He pointed behind his house.
His house that was at the farthest part of the village was right outside the fog-covered Nake Mountain.

"Half of the people who go into that damn mountain end up dying."

Mercenary King Bud who had been quiet started to speak.

"But sir, doesn't that mean the other half lived?"
"That's because they went when the fog was not there, you naive young man!"

Bud who had instantly ended up as a naive young man touched his hair and kept his mouth shut. He seemed a bit upset but Hunter Bobe, merchant Bob, and the others around them didn't seem to care at all.

Pat pat.

– Hey Bud! Why do you look so sad? Are you upset? I am curious!

The silver Kitten just patted Bud's leg with her front paws while the invisible Raon's chatted in Bud's mind.
Choi Han approached the hunter as Bud's shoulders slumped.

"Senior."

Hunter Bobe flinched as Choi Han approached him. He felt the same way he felt when he faced a large wild animal while he was out hunting.
He couldn't help but look at the eyes of the young man that seemed very experienced.
Choi Han calmly asked for Bobe's help.

"If it is difficult to guide us, please at least tell us the things we should be wary about. We must go into that mountain right away. We need to hurry."
"No, oh, this…"

Bobe scratched his head. It was at that moment. Merchant Bob who had been quiet respectfully started to speak.

"Please sir, we will pay you handsomely for it."
"Aigoo, it's not that. I am not acting like this because of the money-"
"Ten million gallons. That is how much we will pay you for your help."

The others looked toward merchant Bob, Cale, with shocked expressions after hearing the extremely high amount. Cale didn't care as he looked toward the hunter with a respectful gaze.
Hunter Bobe didn't shake after hearing the large amount and just stared at Cale with his gaze that had stiffened with time.

"…Sigh."

He then sighed as he walked into his house.

"Hey, it's obvious he's not acting like this because of the money!"

Bud poked Cale's side and scolded him.
It was at that moment.

"You must listen to whatever I say if you want to live."

The hunter returned wearing leather armor along with his bow and arrows. The hunter who had quickly finished his preparations to climb Nake Mountain made Bud look at him in disbelief, but Cale bowed his head and responded respectfully.

"Thank you for your guidance."
"Now then, where do we need to go? The top of the mountain?"

Cale answered the hunter's question about their destination.

"The place that the snake is said to come out."

Nake Mountain.
This mountain was known for a red snake that gobbled up any intruders.
That snake appeared the most when the fog covered the entire mountain and instantly led people to their death.

"…Y, you crazy! I'm not an old man who is crazy for money!"

The hunter subconsciously raised his voice.

"You're going to look for the snake? Do you wish to be bewitched?"
"Yes, sir. That is correct."
"…Really? You don't want to go under the cliff?"
"The top of the cliff please."
"Ho-!"

If you hear the voice of a lost loved one through the fog…
It is said that you would find a beautiful snake covered in red scales if you follow that voice.

If you follow that snake as if you've been bewitched, you'll end up stepping off the cliff without realizing it.
Then you would fall to your death.

"Are you telling me to take you to that cliff?"
"Yes sir, senior Bobe."
"Aigoo, who cares if we are Bobe and Bob! Why the hell do you need to go to that cliff? All of you are so young!"

He was patting his chest as if it was disappointing.
It could not be helped.

"Have you seen the faces of the people who fell off the cliff and died? No, have you heard the things they said? I've seen them, I have. Do you know how they died?"

Just thinking about it was terrible.
Hunter Bobe who knew Nake Mountain well had taken the families of the dead to the bottom of the cliff many times.
There were times they found the bodies too late and they were already rotting or only the bones remained, but there were a few times they found the bodies quickly.

Bobe had received a big shock after looking at the corpses during one of those times.

"They were all laughing! They were all laughing even though they died!"

Bobe had not gone around that cliff ever since looking at that expression.

"Senior, I'm not asking you to take us all the way to the edge of the cliff. Please just guide us to the area around the cliff. We will take care of it from there."
"…You want me to just watch people die? I can't do that no matter how much you pay m-"
"We are going to kill the snake."

Hunter Bobe stopped talking after hearing Cale's comment.

'Kill what? That snake? That ghost? How?'

Cale who saw Bobe's gaze put his hand on the shoulder of the person next to him. Choi Han took out his sword after receiving the signal. He channeled a small amount of his black aura onto his sword.

Bobe's eyes opened wide.
He knew about sword masters and auras even though he lived in this small village under the mountains his whole life.
The corners of the old man's mouth slowly started to rise after looking at the aura for a long time.

"Hehehe."

He closed the door to his house with that short laugh. He then looked toward Cale.

"I don't need the money. I would be making a profit if I can help you hunt the biggest prey of my life."

The old hunter started to walk toward the dangerous fog-covered mountain.

"Please follow behind me in a single line. We need to quickly get there before night time, so we are going to use a narrow shortcut!"

Cale followed behind him.

– I am behind you!

The invisible Raon followed behind Cale, followed by Beacrox who was holding On and Hong, then the Dragon half-blood, and then the Mercenary King.

"Are you okay?"

Bud asked the sweating Dragon half-blood with an odd expression as he didn't know how to treat this guy. The Dragon half-blood quietly waved his hand and followed behind Beacrox.
Choi Han was at the end of the group.

The hunter took out a bag and handed it to Cale before shouting loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Please use the earplugs inside the bag to cover your ears if you don't want to be bewitched! Magic supposedly doesn't work to prevent that noise!"

Cale looked inside the bag. He seemed to have brought as many as he had as there seemed to be enough for the children averaging nine-years-old as well. Cale grabbed his and Raon's earplugs before passing the bag to Beacrox. The old man continued to speak with a serious expression.

"And one time is okay, but don't look at anything red a second time. You must not see it a second time! Do you understand? Just look forward, just look at the back of the person in front of you."
"Senior, what about you?"

The hunter smiled at Bud's question.
He took a black cloth out of his pocket. He then covered his eyes. He also covered his ears with the earplugs.

"I am the person who has survived through the fog-covered Nake Mountain the most."

The old man then turned around once more. He then started to walk forward with both arms out, touching the ground, boulders, and trees as he walked.
Cale realized he picked the right guide after seeing this. Everyone including the children averaging nine-years-old covered their ears and only looked at the back of the person in front of them as they entered the fog-covered forest.

The old man was quick.

They had wondered if he would be slow because his eyes and ears were covered, however, there was no hesitation in the old man who had walked through this path for tens of years.
Cale quietly followed behind him.

'I like that he's quick.'

He didn't know when they would be contacted by the Dark Elves from the Land of Death.

'I'm sure the White Star immediately returned to the Land of Death.'

He and Choi Han would be there, but more importantly, he needed the earth attribute ancient power.
That was making Cale concerned and anxious. Of course, the Dark Elves and Mary had set up traps that should last for a few days as they waited for the White Star.
But variables always tended to appear. Cale could not help but be anxious.

Gulp.

His gulping noise sounded extremely loud.
He couldn't see properly because of the fog. The only thing he could barely make out was Hunter Bobe's back. The trees and weeds on both sides of the narrow path hindered his walking, but he could not look around.

It was because he remembered the hunter's warning.

Instead, he chose to organize his thoughts as he quietly walked while only looking forward.

'What kind of power could the final earth attribute ancient power be?'

The first thing he thought about was about the power he might soon end up getting.

'I'm sure it's not a weak power-'
– I am a rock.

Cale heard someone's voice in his mind at that moment.
He didn't hear it through his ears, and it was a voice Cale was all too familiar with.

The Scary Giant Cobblestone. His low voice echoed in Cale's mind.

'…What did he say? Of course you are a rock, Super Rock. What else would you be?'

Cale's expression turned odd.

– Yes, rock. I am a rock. I was one of the first weapons in human hands.

'Weapon?'

Cale who was looking at the old man's back as he walked started to frown.

– Humans do not have sharp claws or legs fast enough to help them escape. That was why they needed something in their hands to fight against their enemies. They needed weapons.

They needed it to hunt, to kill their enemies, or even dominate and conquer others.
Humans needed weapons for everything.

– One of the first weapons was the rock. I, the Super Rock in your body, was one of those first weapons.

The Scary Giant Cobblestone.
Cale had thought that scary was an odd term for the Super Rock.

– That is why I am the Scary Giant Cobblestone. Numerous living beings have died by being hit by this stone.

However, he now felt as if he could understand why he had such a name.

– And I may be the Scary Giant Cobblestone, but I hoped that they would use the rock to build stone walls instead of throwing it at others.

I wanted everyone to live in peace without getting hurt in these stone walls. I wanted to be a sturdy shield for them.
I didn't mind being destroyed in the process, I wanted to become the dirt on the ground to be a field for new life to blossom or a place for people to rest for a bit.

Rocks are the things you can see the most around the world. He chose to fight against the ancient White Star's subordinates and other enemies in places with people who did not have the means to buy expensive and strong weapons.

– However, the other earth attribute ancient power seems to have chosen to remain as a weapon.

The earth attribute ancient power that the ancient White Star possessed.
The Scary Giant Cobblestone had to face that weapon head-on because he had been at the vanguard during the final battle.

– Everything is said to die and return to the earth to turn into dirt. That is why the earth is a place with a significant amount of death.

The Super Rock considered the earth to be a place of birth, but the other power did not feel that way.

– Blood-drenched Rock. That is what I called the other earth attribute ancient power.

He didn't know the power's original name, but that was how the Super Rock had addressed it.
It was red. It was a power that was like a rock that was drenched in red blood.

'…What the-'

Cale felt chills on his back after hearing the vicious name.
It was at that moment.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh-

Cale suddenly felt chills throughout his body.
He heard a noise even though he had covered his ears.
However, it was not the voice of a lost loved one.

'…He said once was fine, right?'

Cale's gaze headed toward the side.
He saw a red wall in front of him.
No, the red-scaled snake's large body looked like a wall.

'Shit!'

Cale quickly turned his head.
It was the snake.
That snake had appeared without any noise or sign.
Actually, he could still hear the stealthy noise of the snake moving.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh-

A snake with a body that was wider than Cale's height was moving next to Cale's group.

'Shit, this is a bit scary.'

Cale cowered a bit at this sight that looked like something that might come out of a scary drama like the Hometown of Legends. (This is a scary show that was on when I was a kid, I still remember one episode where this cat ghost has possessed a person and they ended up with a giant cat head and a human body as they burned to death in the end. Almost 20 years later, that scene is still pretty vivid in my mind. Some scary shit for a kid to watch…)

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]