Chapter 122 – Wendigo – [One]

The ugly kid I used to protect from bullying back in school contacted me a few years after graduation.

When I asked how Seo Yun had been doing lately, she replied that she had entered a teacher’s college. She had decided to become a school teacher.

She said she wanted to look after kids who were living as gloomily as she had during her own school days. Just as I had done for her back then.

She probably said it expecting me to be moved, but from my perspective, it was a wrong decision, and I wanted to tell her to quit it all. If the person I remembered was Seo Yun, and if her appearance and personality hadn’t changed much from how I remembered her from those days, she should never have even attempted to take up teaching.

As you know, teachers aren’t unconditionally respected among kids. Even teachers can be ostracized. And just as school is hell for ostracized students, school is hell for ostracized teachers too.

She was exactly the kind of person suited to become an ostracized teacher.

Even teachers with amiable personalities and neat appearances can experience a collapse of teacher authority for all sorts of strange reasons, but she was what you’d call a ‘loser.’ It wasn’t hard to predict that she would suffer all kinds of humiliation dealing with students.

The students wouldn’t need any great observation to realize she was an easy target. Just by looking at her bizarre face, small stature, and unsociable personality, they’d figure out they could do whatever they wanted during her class without any consequences…

Of course, since she had already entered teacher’s college, it was too late to irresponsibly suggest she look for another job, and it was also difficult to tell her she was a born loser who couldn’t handle being a teacher. In the end, I had to swallow my words of concern and just say a few words of encouragement, telling her to do her best.

But still, it didn’t seem like her ill-suited teaching role would have gone well.

When Seo Yun came to her senses, what entered her vision was the face of a troll, its sagging skin covered with pockmarks.

Seeing it, she was startled and thought, ‘Damn, that’s ugly. Why did this bastard take off its mask?’ The next moment, she was shocked by the very fact that a troll was here.

Why the hell is this thing looking at me?

“You’re awake. Any discomfort in your body?”

In response to the troll’s question, Seo Yun asked back.

“No… Where is this?”

“The village where I live.”

“Why am I here? By any chance…”

“I didn’t bring you. Arnold brought you here.”

It made sense why that stupid roleplayer had brought her here of all places. Oh Haengbok probably hadn’t widely spread the news of what happened that day, and Arnold likely didn’t know about the day’s events. It seemed he brought her to this nearby place to request treatment.

“Then, what about the kids who were with me?”

“If you mean Gaeulbi and Han Siwoo, I don’t know. They didn’t come here.”

A listless reply came back, and Seo Yun closed her mouth for a moment. After much thought, she opened it.

“You remember I said I was thinking of continuing to work with you, right?”

“Yeah.”

“If you’re going to keep working with me, don’t touch them.”

“Understood.”

The answer came out too easily, and Seo Yun frowned.

“Really?”

Perhaps her suspicious expression was evident, as the troll explained.

It seemed like it might get annoyed, but it didn’t. A tired voice flowed from its mouth.

“If I had intended to lay a hand on them, I would have done so long ago. You should know, seeing as I haven’t done anything for over half a year since that day.”

At the unexpected answer, Seo Yun blinked.

“Over half a year has passed since that day? What’s the date now?”

“July 14th.”

The last time she had climbed Taebaek Mountain, winter was ending. Calculating how much time had passed since that day, Seo Yun was horrified.

So, she had been unconscious for several months? She skipped spring entirely? Damn.

“Did my treatment take that long? Since my Health is 11, just removing the bullets should have been enough…”

“It’s not that. I returned too late. To keep you from dying while I was away, people put your body in time stasis.”

The troll explained that after the incident where Kim Ak had to be left to die when it was summoned before, the troll had separately created a body time stasis item for the injured. It had placed that item in the village, and when your half-dead body was transported to the village, the villagers used that item to postpone your death.

Only when the troll returned this time could that time stasis be lifted, and only then could doctors and priests be found to proceed with treatment.

“If my treatment was only possible after you returned here, does that mean you weren’t here during that time?”

“I was away somewhere for a while.”

“Where did you go and what did you do?”

“Things I had postponed because they were considered dangerous.”

It was unexpected. I thought you were holed up in your room upset about that day, but you were out and about doing something?

“Was it important?”

“Yeah.”

“There were many people troubled by your disappearance. Like people trying to exchange coal and potatoes who were in trouble because you didn’t come. Was the work you were doing immediately more important than giving provisions to those people?”

In response to the question, the troll paused for a moment and spoke in an unconfident tone.

“Probably.”

“Where on earth have you been and what have you been doing all this time?”

“I’ll explain that later. Anyway, check if your body moves properly. If it seems fine, you can leave or stay.”

Saying that, the troll left the room, and Seo Yun let out a sigh of relief.

Contrary to her worries, the troll didn’t threaten or interrogate her, demanding to know where that bitch Gaeulbi was. But she shouldn’t let her guard down completely…

Seo Yun sat up and looked around.

It was, of course, an unfamiliar room, but somehow its shape felt familiar.

‘Like an old school’s infirmary…’

Stepping out of the room revealed a corridor-like passageway reminiscent of a school hallway. Walking straight down the passage, she exited the building.

Outside, tents were scattered here and there, resembling some kind of village. Was this the troll’s village, as mentioned?

There were many teenagers roaming the village. One girl looked at her and shouted.

“Hey, that’s the one who got shot and was carried here!”

Suddenly, everyone’s gaze focused on her. Boys and girls approached, showing interest in her.

“She finally woke up!” “Looks like the treatment went well!”Curious gazes seemed utterly unwilling to depart. As Seo Yun, bewildered by the strangely high number of teenagers compared to Happy Village, a girl asked.

“You in middle school? Obviously you don’t go to school, but your age, I mean.”

“No. I’m older than I look.”

“Then did you not grow because you didn’t get enough to eat? Where are you from?”

“Happy Village.”

“Ah, that crazy Kim Rayeon…! A somewhat peculiar kid went there! Is she doing well there?”

“She was doing well. I don’t know how she’s doing now.”

Seo Yun suspected these teenagers might be subtly trying to find out Gaeulbi’s location under the Troll’s orders, but after talking more, there was no sign of that at all.

Unable to bear it, when Seo Yun asked if the Troll had told them to do anything, this was the response she got.

“Nothing?”

“Did the Troll say anything specific?”

“No. We’re not really close with the Troll.”

What kind of talk was this?

“Isn’t that Troll Sir the big boss here?”

“Well, yes, but that Troll’s an NPC, right? Seems like he has his own things to do. He’s busy doing this and that alone and doesn’t really talk with the people here. Except for sometimes suddenly popping out to warn people not to swear if someone’s cursing… Even that, he seemed to restrain himself after Gaeulbi ran away, maybe reflecting on it.”

According to them, the Troll was a teenager living in this village and didn’t have much emotional exchange with the other residents. Despite the Troll protecting and caring for the people here with his unique transcendent abilities, even procuring and supplying Provisions, he didn’t seem to receive great respect.

In fact, the people here didn’t even seem to know what the Troll did. One girl pointed to the building Seo Yun had just come from and said.

“You see that building? It was originally our school, but the Troll arbitrarily used some weird magic to change it into a strange medieval-looking building? He’s holed up in there and doesn’t let anyone in. What on earth is he doing inside… But you’re really pretty. Are you going to live here from now on?”

“No…”

Seo Yun frowned and looked at the building she had just exited.

So, that building was indeed a school. It seemed the teenagers living in this village originally took classes there.

Seo Yun thought. Why on earth did the Troll occupy this school and take care of these students? Were Gaeulbi and Han Siwoo also students of this school…?

They were in the middle of various conversations. All the gazes fixed on Seo Yun shifted.

“Oh, the Troll…”

With heavy footsteps, the Troll approached. This time, he was wearing his signature golden mask.

At the Troll’s appearance, the students didn’t seem particularly pleased, nor did they offer formal greetings. The fact that they didn’t even ask where he found this charming, 10-point girl suggested they really had a distant relationship.

The Troll also didn’t pay attention to the gathered students and spoke to her.

“That mining village, you said they’re in a difficult situation because they can’t trade Provisions right now?”

“Yes. So, can you deliver some Provisions? I need to resume trade quickly.”

The Troll silently nodded. Then, he suddenly looked at her and said.

“You’ve raised your Level a lot since I last saw you. Already Level 10, and seeing you’re on the verge of 11.”

“Have to work hard. Need to hit Level 15 quickly to Ascend to a god, right?”

The Troll looked at her again and spoke in a dejected voice.

“Seems you still intend to cooperate with my plan, really.”

“I said so, didn’t I?”

“So, do you remember that becoming a god is a sacrifice? That’s why even Epic Level NPCs could become gods but choose not to and remain in the Mortal Realm…”

“I remember.”

“Do you have a reason to sacrifice yourself?”

“I think I mentioned it last time, but not really? It’s just because I can, so I should.”

Seo Yun shrugged her shoulders. The Troll continued asking in a weak voice.

“Are you leaving now?”

“I should. May I go?”

“If you wish.”

“Then I’ll go. Thank you so much for healing me.”

“Don’t… thank me…”

With that, the Troll turned around and re-entered the building that was the school. As soon as the Troll left, Seo Yun was surrounded by the boys and girls who had been waiting nearby.

One boy asked.

“You’re Level 10?”

“Yes. Why?”

“I just did my Class Change and have been Level 1 for years, wow…”

The teenagers began to make a fuss. How on earth did you reach such a high Level, did you really fight Monsters risking your life, how could a tiny girl like you do that.

Seo Yun asked.

“You guys don’t hunt Monsters?”

One large-built boy answered.

“We’ll have to someday, but not right now. Fighting risking your life is something you do when you become an adult, right? For now, we just have to memorize the Rulebook diligently…”

And Seo Yun thought.

‘The Troll must be protecting them well indeed. In Happy Village, they roughly considered seventeen as adult age and gave weapons to teenagers, but here, seeing there’s no need for that. And yet, they’re not close at all…’

After that, she received various questions for quite a while; it seemed her appearance and Level had made a favorable impression on them. Many kids suggested she rest here before going, but Seo Yun declined.

“Then see you later!”

Bid farewell by them, Seo Yun left the village.

She had to reunite with her two teammates as soon as possible. While she had been unconscious and collapsed all spring, she had no idea what those two had been doing.