Chapter 192: Snowy Mountains (2)
The clinic Kai opened in Cordo wasn't received too badly.
"A clinic? Hmm. How well would a wandering adventurer treat people, though..."
"Well, it’s not bad to have one around. If someone’s sick, they might as well give it a try."
"Hey, he’s got quite the talent. Is he a Cleric?"
"Wow. This is pretty refreshing."
Although the villagers welcomed Kai’s clinic, their reactions were less enthusiastic than he expected. Their lukewarm response puzzled Kai.
The responses were explosive every time I set up clinics in places like Frica or Whitehall...
Thanks to that, he had earned a substantial amount of Benevolence stats. However, the villagers in the Snowy Mountains village were healthier than he had anticipated.
Plus, there aren’t even any seriously injured people.
Everyone seemed clean and healthy.
As a result, while his overall affinity increased, there was no rise in his Benevolence stats.
Well, just because I’m doing something I’m good at and is easy for me doesn’t mean it’s automatically a good deed.
Helping those who truly needed something was the condition for being recognized as a good deed in MID Online.
Alright then...
Kai closed the clinic. Although he hadn’t raised his Benevolence stats, he had still accomplished his goal.
Overall affinity has risen, so now there are only a few people left who are wary of me.
That meant he could start looking for clues!
Kai actively walked around the village, trying to engage in conversations with the villagers.
"Hmm. An incident? Incidents happen every day in the Snowy Mountains."
"Outsiders? Well... except for the regular merchants who visit the village, I don’t think any outsiders have come here. You might be the only one in the past six months."
Kai didn’t gain any clues from his conversations with the villagers. However, there was one question that always triggered the same reaction.
"A monster that’s been eating people lately? Umm..."
"Ahem, I wouldn’t know about that."
"The sun sets quickly in the Snowy Mountains. If you don’t want to freeze to death, you should at least find a place to sleep."
Everyone avoided eye contact with Kai, trailing off as they made excuses and left.
What’s with their reactions?
Kai squinted and scanned the small village. The village was so small that he could see it all just by standing on a nearby hill.
A small community like this is trying to hide something... But why?
In MID Online, monsters were the enemies of humans. They were a terror to defenseless villagers, creatures that killed and opposed humanity! Therefore, it was only natural for villagers to welcome an adventurer who came to hunt them with open arms.
But there’s an atmosphere of reluctance to even bring it up. This feels like...
It resembled the behavior of people filled with terror.
Scratching his head, Kai wandered through the village as he looked at the sky grow darker. However, there wasn’t a single inn or shelter in the village, something typically found in every village.
"Hmm, I never expected something like this."
He had assumed that with money, he could just find an inn to stay in. That was why he had spent his time talking to villagers instead of looking around for a place to sleep.
He hadn’t expected that the advice to find a place to sleep would mean this.
Since bringing up the monster, the villagers have even been avoiding talking to me.
Whatever they had discussed among themselves, as soon as Kai approached, they scattered.
At this rate, I won’t even get a clue, and...
Without a place to stay, he was at risk of freezing to death in the Snowy Mountains! Even though his Triple-Headed Ogre fur coat was warm, it wouldn’t be enough to fend off the cold and harsh winds of the Snowy Mountains’ early morning.
Ugh, should I use Shadow Shift and find an inn in another village?
As Kai wore a troubled expression, a woman approached him.
"Um... adventurer, are you by any chance looking for a place to stay?"
"Huh? Oh, yes I am..." Kai turned his head in response, and his eyes slightly widened.
This woman is...
He remembered her because she had been a patient at his clinic. Her gaunt and frail face made her look sick to anyone who saw her. Perhaps because of that, even the other villagers who had come to the clinic had willingly given up their turn for her.
But even after treating her with my holy power, no message appeared.
Sunlight’s Warmth was one of the highest-tier healing skills in MID Online. If she had been sick, she would have been cured the moment he used the skill.
She must just be a naturally thin person.
That was the conclusion Kai had reached earlier.
The woman slightly bowed her head and said, "My younger sibling is currently away from home, so we have a spare room. If you’d like, you can stay at our house for the night."
"Really? Thank you so much!"
Relieved to have found a place to spend the night, Kai sighed in relief and followed her.
It was a little house, built from dark logs like the other homes. However, the moment Kai stepped inside, he felt a familiar feeling.
This feeling is...
It was a cold house, absent of human warmth. It was the same feeling he got whenever he returned to his apartment after going to a convenience store.
When the woman closed the door, Kai awkwardly smiled and asked, "Um... What about the rest of your family?”
"My parents passed away when I was young, and I live with my younger brother... but he’s away from home at the moment."
That meant it was just the two of them, a woman in her prime and him!
After contemplating for a moment, Kai cautiously said while gauging her reaction, "Uh, if me being here makes you uncomfortable, please let me know. I don’t mind leaving."
"No, not at all. In fact, I’m relieved that you’re here, adventurer." With a sorrowful expression, the woman looked up at Kai. "Adventurer, you’ve been asking about the monster that eats people, haven’t you?"
"Yes, that’s right."
"May I ask why you’re asking about it?"
"Of course, it’s to hunt the monster. Do you know something about it?"
As Kai responded confidently, the woman gave a faint smile and replied, "Oh, I know about it, alright. Because..."
Trailing off, the woman began to carefully remove her coat.
"W-wait! What are you doing...!" Kai hurriedly covered his eyes and shouted.
But the woman calmly continued saying, "Could you open your eyes and take a look at this?"
"I-I’m not ready for... such things should be shared between lovers after confirming their feelings!"
"... What in the world are you imagining right now?" her voice turned cold, as if she were addressing a bug.
Coming to his senses, Kai slightly opened his eyes and uncovered his face. "Oh...!"
What he saw was the woman still fully dressed. However, because she was wearing a sleeveless top, both of her arms were fully exposed, and covering one of her arms was a very black tattoo. The design was of something dark and winding, resembling a snake.
"What’s that tattoo...?"
It was a disturbing tattoo, from which black, menacing smoke seemed to seep constantly.
When Kai asked with a hardened expression, the woman put her coat back on and explained, "My name is Luna. Your name is Kai, right? I’ve encountered the monster you’re looking for. That’s how... I ended up cursed like this."
"Cursed?"
He had only heard one clue—that the monster was eating people.
It was said that the Darkness Hunters only had that clue.
From the traces of the battle, they had deduced that the creature was some kind of reptile, but that was all they knew. However, he hadn’t expected the monster to be capable of casting curses.
The options of it being a drake or wyvern quickly vanished from Kai’s mind.
Casting curses isn’t something that can be done without significant intelligence.
A monster’s intelligence typically increased in proportion to its level. In the Snowy Mountains region, where monsters over level 300 roamed, underestimating them could lead to falling into traps and dying. However, magic was a completely different matter.
For a monster to use magic, it would either need to be of a Wizard class...
Or possess exceptional intelligence as part of its species.
Even Blizzard, who’s pretty smart for a lizardman, can’t manage magic.
He was currently teaching Blizzard human language, but his learning pace was slower than that of a five-year-old child.
Could the enemy be a dragon?
As Kai’s eyes gleamed, Luna continued speaking, "It’s the mark of a curse I received after encountering the shadow of a Death Dragon."
"The shadow of the Death Dragon?"
It became clear. The monster he had been chasing was indeed a dragon.
"It's said to have roamed the Snowy Mountains for a long time, but it's kind of a legend... something you'd only hear in old tales."
"But you’ve encountered it in person, haven’t you?"
"Yes. According to what the elders said, it had been asleep for hundreds of years, so there was no need to worry, but..."
"But it’s woken up."
"It’s just a feeling, but I think it’s experiencing extreme hunger now that it’s just awakened. Recently, more and more people in other villages have been marked with the curse as well."
"What happens once someone is marked?"
"They die. It’s a kind of sign. It signals to all the creatures in the Snowy Mountains that I’m its prey. It’s a direct warning not to touch me."
"A warning, huh."
Kai was beginning to understand why he hadn’t been able to heal her with Sunlight’s Warmth.
Sunlight’s Warmth can heal all diseases and status effects, but...
The curse of a being as powerful as a Death Dragon was in a completely different league. It would likely require his skill level to be at the Advanced stage before he could even attempt to purify it.
Sunlight’s Warmth is still only at Intermediate level 7. I’ve got a long way to go before reaching Advanced.
That explained why he hadn’t been able to remove the curse mark on her.
After a moment of thought, Kai asked again, "Can you tell me more about the Death Dragon?"
"The Death Dragon... as its name suggests, has been called the dragon that governs death. It originally didn’t live in the Snowy Mountains, but I’ve heard that it fled here after being gravely wounded in a battle with the legendary paladin, Patrick, hundreds of years ago."
"Hm?" Hearing a familiar name, Kai tilted his head. "Did you just say Patrick?"
"Yes. As a Cleric of the Solarian Church, you must know of him, don’t you?"
"Of course, I know him. But this is the first time I’ve heard this particular tale..."
"There are countless stories of his exploits, so it’s understandable. Anyway, I heard that the Death Dragon, Sineras, fell into a deep sleep to recover from its severe wounds."
"A Death Dragon..."
The identity of the monster that devoured people was far more formidable than he had anticipated.
I wonder what its level is.
The Death Dragon, Sineras. Just from its name alone, Kai could sense an overwhelming power, easily estimating it to be over level 500.
In that case, what should I do...?
One option was to return to the royal palace, report the facts to King Beoruk, and receive reinforcements from the knights.
The second option was to post a notice in the community and recruit other players, just like he had done in the Battle of the Bir Plains.
And the final option was to attempt a solo raid himself for the unprecedented special title.
Well, I really want to try, but realistically it’s too much on my own.
Kai leaned toward one of the first two options.
At that moment, Luna suddenly clutched her arm, breaking into a cold sweat.
Startled, Kai quickly supported her and asked in a panic, "What’s wrong? Is your arm in a lot of pain? Sunlight’s Warmth! Sunlight’s Warmth!”
“Arghh...”
Luna bit her lip hard at the overwhelming pain in her arm.
Then, after about five minutes, the pain finally subsided, and tears began to form in her eyes.
"Adventurer... the pain... It's unbearable. To the point I would just rather die."
Kai, speechless, listened as she continued.
"If I had been alone, I would have ended my life already... But a few days ago, my younger brother grabbed a sword and ax and ran off, saying he would kill the creature that cursed me. I know I’m as good as dead, but... he still has so much life left to live."
Luna, with her frail, bony arm, clutched the sleeve of Kai’s robe.
"I know it’s a lot to ask, especially when all I’ve done is offer you a place to stay for the night. But... please. Please bring my brother back home safely. I don’t expect to survive, but at least save him..."
Ding!
[The Siblings of the Snowy Mountains]
Difficulty: A-
Luna’s younger brother, determined to break his sister’s curse, has left home to kill the Death Dragon.
He left exactly two days ago.
Though he is the strongest warrior in the village, he is far too underqualified to face a Death Dragon.
Catch up to Luna’s brother and bring him back safely.
Quest Reward: Unknown.
After that, Luna seemed to have lost all her strength, and her head fell as she fainted.
As Kai quickly caught her head, the warm tears streaming from her eyes dampened his palm.
"... Sigh."
Bringing knights and gathering other players would certainly increase his chances of defeating Sineras, the Death Dragon.
However...
There wasn’t enough time. Even while he gathered help, Luna would have to endure this horrendous pain alone with no parents to rely on, and her only sibling gone, seeking the Death Dragon to save her.
Kai could only faintly empathize with her tragic and painful situation.
This must be what they mean by omnishambles.
The only way he could save both Luna and her brother was by killing Sineras as quickly as possible.
Kai let out a deep sigh and shook his head.
"...Honestly, no joke, but the price for just one night's stay has turned out to be ridiculously high."
[Quest accepted.]