“So, you don’t want to lose the throne just like that, and you’re asking for my help?”
“That’s right. The Flower Witch is skilled in various magics and commands a legion of monsters…”
“Not monsters, but creatures whose control she forcibly seizes. It’s difficult with highly intelligent beings like humans, though.”
“Oh? The great mage from the neighboring continent is said to even invade and control human minds.”
“Ah, that old geezer? If you mean Magia, I’ve been there once. But that’s a state forcibly achieved through merging with the magical city—so it only works there.”
“I don’t understand a word you’re saying.”
“That’s fine. I never expected you to. And please, let’s not bring up that perverted old man obsessed with the fairy queen again. Just thinking about it makes me want to vomit.”
“…Understood.”
“Anyway, back to the point. If I help you, what do I gain, Crown Prince?”
“I will abolish the witch hunts that have continued until now, acknowledge the existence of witches, and…”
“Ah, I see. You’ll bring us out from the shadows into the light. Fine, I’ll help you.”
“…Huh? No, really?”
“Yes. Is there a problem?”
“It just feels like you agreed too easily.”
“A witch prioritizes the potential of a task over personal concerns.”
“Potential, huh? You’re confident. I already feel like you’ve reclaimed the throne.”
“Of course. What’s the problem? With you, the Crown Prince, there’s legitimacy, my magic and legion, and even the King of the Beastfolk.”
“Huh? The King of the Beastfolk? Who’s that…?”
“Uh? W-wait a moment…!”
“That man staring off into the distance alone.”
—From the Secret Library of the Northern City, Atlanta, New Continent, Victoria Dynasty Chronicles — 18th Emperor (147–147), “Revealing the True Identity of the Barbarian King.”
Amid the commotion of my companions and Hwajeong’s relentless nagging, we finally resumed marching—after a staggering twenty minutes had passed.
“Watch your words! If you keep causing trouble, I might just refuse to help! Or do you want to experience a status ailment?”
Hwajeong’s final warning made me apologize silently as I quickened our pace. Just as the pounding in my head began to subside, I suddenly sensed movement beside me. Turning, I saw Baek Hangyeol, eyes tense and darting around nervously. His small, cherry-colored lips pursed tightly caught my attention, along with his delicate nose, slender shoulders, and pale skin…
“Hm? Hyungnim?”
The word snapped me to attention. Maybe sensing my lingering gaze, Baek Hangyeol looked at me with a strange expression. When I shook my head to signal it was nothing, he smiled softly. Even his smile was beautiful.
“Sorry. I keep feeling uneasy. You never know when a monster might appear…”
“Hmm.”
I recalled how much we struggled passing through the misty forest before. Fighting while magic was suppressed and under status ailments? Though I wasn’t there myself, just imagining it was terrifying. Compared to that, this situation was surprisingly manageable. But it wasn’t entirely unexpected—because the timing was different.
This wasn’t like before, when years passed after the first discovery, and repeated failures taught us the conditions for success. This time, when deciding to assault the ‘Barbarian King’s Tomb,’ I had prepared all conditions and rushed here as fast as possible.
Of course, it’s still early to be certain. But if we aren’t ambushed before leaving the Forest of Mist, I can be confident my choice was right.
Thinking that, I gently stroked the crown of Baek Hangyeol’s head to reassure him. I meant to do it once, but his hair was so soft I found myself running my hand over it two, three times.
“It’s okay. Even if something happens, I’ll be right beside you.”
“Ah…”
Don’t make that weird noise. It makes me want to sneak down and pinch your earlobe just to see your reaction.
“So just focus on your shield, alright?”
“Yes, yes!”
Baek Hangyeol flinched and blushed demurely. His shy smile reminded me of a puppy. Suddenly, a wicked, mischievous urge to make him cry welled up inside me.
…Yeah, I think I really am a pervert.
“……”
Feeling the cold air brush my eyes, I slowly opened them. Blurred vision greeted me, and I let out a soft groan. An inexplicable weariness weighed down my whole body. We had pushed hard yesterday, but usually, after sleep, the body feels refreshed. This level of fatigue meant…
“Maybe Hwajeong was right.”
I slowly stretched inside my sleeping bag and quietly stepped outside. It was still early morning, and the air was chilly against my skin. Smoke drifted through the camp, making it feel even colder. I wasn’t the only one feeling it; every sleeping bag around had the occupant’s head tucked inside.
As I loosened my stiff limbs and walked, I couldn’t help but chuckle. In the center of camp, five of my companions were peacefully lost in dreams. Given the situation, we had set up three shifts of five each to keep watch—how was everyone asleep? Even Shin Jaeryong was leaning against a tree, fast asleep.
“Ahem, ahem!”
“Hmm? Huh, gasp!”
I cleared my throat lightly. Shin Jaeryong blinked, then suddenly let out a sharp scream. Despite his sturdy build, he flailed about awkwardly before locking eyes with me and springing to his feet.
“C-Clan Lord!”
“You must be exhausted.”
“S-Sorry. I was awake just a moment ago…!”
“It’s fine. You still have plenty of ‘change’ left, so just be careful from now on.”
I smiled and patted Shin Jaeryong’s shoulder. His face stiffened briefly. Right—if he understood the meaning of ‘change,’ he also knew my words were a warning, not comfort. After all, there’s a saying: losing a battle is forgivable, but neglecting your watch is not.
“I’ll be more careful from now on.”
“Good. By the way, are you feeling alright?”
Shin Jaeryong made a startled face, then quickly bowed his head. After checking himself over, relief washed over him.
“Phew, no abnormalities.”
“Good. Then…”
With Shin Jaeryong confirmed fine, I turned my gaze to the four others sprawled around. He smiled awkwardly and hurried to wake them one by one.
“Come on, get up! Hurry!”
Watching him rouse Lee Yujeong and Kim Hanbyeol, I shook Sara’s shoulder gently. At the same time, I tapped Seonyul’s thigh with my toe. Seonyul groggily opened her eyes, frowned at the foot touching her, then glared at me with narrowed eyes and sat up, mouth wide open as if to shout.
But then—
“Eeeeeek!”
“……?”
“Ugh? Waaah!”
“……”
For a moment, I thought it was a prank. But judging by her expression, it wasn’t. Seonyul stammered in surprise. A thought struck me.
“Are you… unable to speak?”
She nodded.
That confirmed it. We had our first victim.
“It seems she’s afflicted with a status ailment similar to silence.”
“Me too, I think.”
Suddenly, someone nearby spoke up. Heo Junyoung was walking over. He looked fine at first glance, but wait—why was he staggering? He was tapping the ground ahead with his usual long black sword, almost like a cane.
“Heo Junyoung?”
“I’m blind. I can’t see.”
Heo Junyoung said calmly, then surprisingly sat down beside me. Blind?
“…Are you okay?”
“Can’t be helped. They say it’ll recover once we’re out of here, so we just have to wait. Anyway, I won’t be much help for now.”
He sounded a bit annoyed. Understandable—losing sight is a devastating status for a melee fighter.
Then—
“Hanbyeol? Hanbyeol!”
Turning toward the urgent voice, I saw Shin Jaeryong panicking. Sara and Lee Yujeong looked half-awake, glancing over. It seemed Kim Hanbyeol was also afflicted.
“Clan Lord! Hanbyeol won’t wake up!”
“She won’t wake up?”
“Yes! I slapped her cheek, but she just smiled and kept sleeping!”
“…Sleep disorder, huh.”
I muttered quietly.
Bitter taste in my mouth. Silence, blindness, sleep disorders—all the worst status ailments appeared right from the start. Thanks to prior warning, chaos was avoided, but the expedition’s combat power had undeniably taken a hit.
The biggest problem was that we hadn’t checked everyone’s condition yet. One by one, the others were crawling out of their sleeping bags, awakened by the commotion.
Before long, screams echoed through the camp.
“Wh-what’s wrong with my hair? Why is it like this?”
Nam Daeun clutched his hair, now bleached white, utterly confused.
“My legs! My legs are—ahhh!”
Jegal Haesol was screaming in horror as she stared at her legs, covered in thick, coarse hair.
“…”
Jeong Ha-yeon said nothing. Her eyes were open, so she was conscious, but she couldn’t move at all. She was paralyzed by some kind of status effect. I whispered softly to her, telling her it was going to be okay, trying to comfort her as tears welled up in her eyes.
‘Maybe it’s better to just remove the status effect here and now?’
“—Wait. For now, just hold on. We haven’t been attacked yet, right? Do you think your stamina will recover that easily after what I put you through? Can’t you see your condition right now?”
‘But still…’
“Once you get hit by this effect once, the next time it hits, it’ll come faster. And who knows what’ll happen to the others who haven’t been affected yet. The best thing is to get out of this as quickly as possible.”
I had expected it, but the damage was worse than I thought. I was seriously considering taking on more of the burden myself just to remove the status effect here and now. Of course, Hwajeong opposed it, so for the time being, we decided to wait and observe.
Eventually, I caught sight of Baek Han-gyeol, who had just woken up late and was yawning quietly and politely. For a moment, I wondered—no, worried—if he might have been transformed into a woman. (I hadn’t heard of any status effect that changed gender before, but there were records about the barbarian king’s feminization.)
“Ah.”
Suddenly, a woman’s face flashed through my mind. Han So-young—where was she? It was still early, but with all this commotion, there was no way she wouldn’t have woken up.
I stopped scanning the area and started looking for Han So-young. Just as I finally spotted her sleeping bag, I felt something strange. The top and bottom of the sleeping bag were almost flat, but the middle part was rounded and bulging.
“Is-tan-tel Low Road?”
I called out loudly, but there was no response. Only the bulging part rose and fell rhythmically.
Feeling a bit rude, I slowly unzipped the sleeping bag. But Han So-young wasn’t there. Considering her height from the user info, it made no sense. Then, driven by curiosity, I unzipped the sleeping bag all the way down.
“Uuung…”
As I pulled back the bulging part, I suddenly saw a little kid. Literally, a child. A small girl, maybe eight years old, curled up tightly, sound asleep.
My mind went blank. So, that means…?
I shook my head hard, unable to believe it. I looked again, but the girl was still curled up, burying her face in the sleeping bag. Her jet-black hair shone with a radiant gloss, and her delicate frame looked like a doll painstakingly crafted by a master artisan. And above all, her plump, pale red lips gave off a subtle, almost seductive charm—remarkable for a child.
My hands started trembling uncontrollably. I felt like I had to do something, but my mind kept going blank for no reason.
“Ugh?”
Then, as if sensing the cold air sneaking into the sleeping bag, the girl let out a soft, childish sound. She opened her sleepy eyes, blinking slowly, and struggled to focus on me. After a moment, she tried to sit up, rubbing one eye with her hand while wiping drool from the corner of her mouth with the other.
A little later.
When our eyes met—her small, dark eyes reminiscent of black obsidian—and she was still rubbing her eyes, her lips slowly parted.
At that moment, I—
“Meosseo-neori Road…?”
Boom! I felt my heart drop hard in my chest.
---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=
Ah, the update schedule is gradually speeding up. It’s nice to write what I want to write. My fingers are dancing across the keyboard. Haha. Looking at this, I guess I really am a lolicon…?
Ah, no, that’s not it.
Wishing all my readers a peaceful night. (TT!)