Memorize Chapter 246

“Should we stay put like this, or should we move?”

Three wails echoed through the air. This meant that someone, somewhere in the Wailing Plains, had been killed.

The wails only sound after an incident occurs. For now, we could assume we were safe, but the problem was that it was difficult to pinpoint the location of the incident. No one could tell whether it happened close to our campsite or far away.

“An-Sol… Baek Hangeol… Yun-Jung… Get up quick…”

Sensing the gravity of the situation, An-Hyun was quietly waking the others without causing a commotion. I listened briefly to the sounds around us before turning my gaze to Go Yeon-Joo. But it seemed she hadn’t picked up on anything either. After scanning the surroundings for a while, she shook her head with a grim expression.

“It doesn’t seem like anything’s nearby for now.”

“Don’t let your guard down. If she shows up, distance doesn’t matter much.”

“She?”

“The Wailing Girl.”

I gave a short reply, my hand fidgeting with the hilt of my Sun-Moon Divine Sword. Han-Byeol, who had somehow already slipped gemstone rings onto her left fingers, sidled up close to me and spoke in a low voice.

“Oppa, what’s this about a Wailing Girl? Could you explain the situation a bit?”

“You understand that something just happened, right?”

“Yeah. You said someone died earlier…”

“Right. So, there are three possible scenarios for a killing. First: a player was killed by another player. Second: a player was killed by a monster. Third: it’s somewhat similar to the second, but it’s when someone is attacked by the Wailing Girl, a spirit that roams the Wailing Plains. Got it?”

I spoke faster than usual, wondering if she’d catch it all, but thankfully, Han-Byeol nodded.

After some time spent on high alert, the surroundings grew eerily silent. Go Yeon-Joo, still vigilantly observing all directions, took a step back toward me and asked, “But I’ve heard the Wailing Girl rarely appears directly in front of people. Unless provoked, she shouldn’t cause much harm…”

“That’s true. But on the flip side, if someone does anger her, they’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

“So you’re saying someone might have deliberately provoked the Wailing Girl? How?”

“It’s just one possibility. And there are plenty of ways it could happen.”

“Then…”

Just as Go Yeon-Joo was about to continue, I sensed someone hurriedly approaching from the side. It was likely An-Hyun, who had gone to wake the others.

“Hyung! We’ve got a problem!”

“What problem? And keep your voice down.”

“Oh, right. It’s not that—it’s An-Sol. She’s acting strange.”

“Sol? She hasn’t woken up yet?”

“No, she’s awake, but she’s been spouting nonsense ever since…”

At those words, I immediately turned toward where the others had been sleeping. Baek Hangeol and Yun-Jung were already up, clutching their gear and cautiously retreating. But An-Sol hadn’t even gotten up yet. Still in her sleeping bag, she was half-sitting, staring blankly into space with vacant eyes. I quickly walked over to her.

“Sol?”

“…”

“Sol, answer me.”

“It’s too late.”

Her words came out of nowhere, completely out of context. But the moment I heard them, an inexplicable chill ran down my spine. At the same time, a strange sense of déjà vu washed over me.

'This is…'

It was the same feeling I’d had back at the Academy when I went looking for Baek Hangeol. Complex emotions stirred within me, but I quickly suppressed them. An-Sol’s ability to sense danger had already been proven. For now, the priority was dealing with the immediate situation.

“What’s too late?”

“Both.”

“Explain it a bit more.”

“Waiting or moving—I don’t know what we should do either.”

Her words were almost exactly what I’d been thinking moments ago. As a wave of astonishment hit me, making my chest feel heavy, a cold gust of wind swept through the campsite.

That’s when it happened.

Shhhrrrr…

From the dark plains, the sound of rustling grass pierced the silent night. It was so faint that it could’ve been mistaken for the wind, but I had already heightened my senses. The source of the sound was quite far from the campsite. But one thing was certain: it was getting closer.

Shhhrrrrr…

“Huh…? Oppa?”

Perhaps the effects of whatever had been influencing her were wearing off, as An-Sol looked up at me with bleary eyes. I slipped my hands under her arms, pulled her out of the sleeping bag, and headed straight for where the clan members were gathered. She let her legs drag, tilting her head in confusion, clearly unaware of what was happening.

“Su-Hyeon, something’s coming.”

“I heard it too. Everyone, form a defensive line. Prepare for battle.”

I spoke in a low murmur, but the clan members diligently followed my orders. The cold sound of weapons being drawn echoed in my ears. Meanwhile, Han-Byeol asked if she should prepare a light spell, but I told her to just keep it ready. And then…

Shhhhhhh!

The distance between us and the initial sound closed so rapidly it made the phrase “in an instant” seem inadequate. As the ambiguous noise grew closer, the clan members’ faces began to harden, as if they, too, sensed something unsettling. The faint sound of Kim Han-Byeol and An-Sol quietly chanting spells could be heard, and a little more time passed.

“My God.”

Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick!

The distance was still there, but now it was close enough to identify with the naked eye. At the spot where we all turned our gazes, the source of the sound was slowly revealing itself. It was none other than a person.

But, though it was a person, it wasn’t walking upright. It was sliding toward us, lying flat on the ground, as if being dragged.

“What… What is that? A person…? Eek!”

Yun-Jung, trying to get a better look, stepped forward but immediately screamed and retreated. The figure charging straight at us suddenly veered off course just before reaching the campsite. Its side curved in an arc, and its chest and abdomen rippled momentarily like waves. I calmed the rattled clan members and quietly observed its movements.

'It’s being dragged by something.'

When I sharpened my vision and examined it closely, I noticed several anomalies. First, the player’s physical condition was far from normal. Their body was severely mangled in multiple places, and dark, congealed blood was oozing from their mouth. Their wide-open eyes, unblinking, suggested they were already dead.

Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick! Shwick, shwick!

The figure didn’t charge in immediately. Instead, it circled the campsite in an S-shape, as if testing us, prowling back and forth. In the process, one of its dangling arms tore off, and an ankle rolled away. It was a truly grotesque sight.

“Hey, hey! You’re a mage, right? Do something about that thing!”

“Huh? W-what?”

Startled by An-Hyun’s words, Kim Han-Byeol stammered and glanced at me, seeking permission. I spoke calmly.

“Can you hit it?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if you can hit it with 100% accuracy. For the record, homing spells won’t work on that thing. With that kind of mobility, unless your coordinate calculations are spot-on, you’ll miss.”

“Then…”

Her face darkened with uncertainty at the question of whether she could hit it. I let out a light sigh and stepped forward. Its movements were so fast that even if Ha-Yeong were here, she wouldn’t have been confident in hitting it.

As I moved forward, Go Yeon-Joo’s voice came from behind. “Su-Hyeon, should I take care of it?” But I shook my head. Adjusting my helmet, I extended my left hand toward An-Hyun, who was nervously swallowing.

“Give me your spear.”

“Huh?”

“Lend me your spear for a sec.”

“Oh, sure.”

The figure was still moving, circling the campsite as if waiting for the slightest opening to charge. I passed the spear from my left hand to my right and took a wide step forward with my left foot.

For the record, one thing I absolutely hate is…

'When some insignificant pest acts cocky right in front of me.'

I pulled my right arm, holding the spear, slightly back, naturally curving my body to the right. The moment my left foot touched the ground, I swung my arm down hard toward the pre-calculated point.

Whoosh!

My right hand and arm extended in a straight line, and the Raven spear sliced through the darkness with precision. I hadn’t put much force into it, focusing on accuracy, but with my high strength stat, the sound of the spear tearing through the air was still formidable.

As expected, the moment the figure paused its movement to change direction on its predicted path…

Thud!

The spear pierced clean through the player’s body. The remaining arm and leg flailed into the air, and its movements stopped as if by magic.

“Whoa, a hit! Hyung! Did you get it?”

“No, it’s still alive.”

“Then…”

“It’s taken some damage, though. Now we need to make it show itself.”

I had already activated my Third Eye and mana detection earlier. I signaled the clan members to stay put and strode forward.

The motionless, prone figure grew larger in my view. I drew my Sun-Moon Divine Sword from my left waist, and with a clear ring, its dazzling blade bathed the surroundings in light. With the moonlight at its peak, there was no better weapon for dealing with something steeped in malevolent energy.

Even as I approached, the player’s body didn’t twitch. I briefly considered my options and soon came up with a good idea. I decided to shower the area around the fallen body with the sword’s reflected moonlight.

“Grrrrrr!”

The effect was immediate. As the moonlight reflected off my Sun-Moon Divine Sword danced across the player’s body, it seemed unable to endure, and a signal came right away. Something black—a shadowy figure—suddenly sprang out from beneath the fallen player. I stepped forward with my left foot toward the direction it was coming from.

I heard the sound of both hands frantically clawing at the ground, and I confirmed the figure lunging at my extended left foot with its mouth wide open. I calmly pulled my foot back, luring it in. As it chased after my ankle, I swiftly thrust my sword downward.

Shunk!

“Karararara!”

The strike wasn’t heavy, but it felt like piercing through rotten wood. Looking closely, I saw a long-haired girl writhing with my sword lodged in her neck.

One peculiar detail: her skin was so tattered that bones were visible, and her lower body was completely gone. This meant she had been moving at that speed using only her arms to drag herself along the ground.

Like scooping a fish from an aquarium, I lifted my sword, and I could observe the figure more closely as it thrashed, impaled on the blade.

“Ugh!”

“That’s… horrifying…”

The clan members, now able to see it clearly, let out simultaneous gasps of dismay.

'So this is the Wailing Girl. It’s my first time seeing her in person.'

In my first life, I’d only heard of her, never encountered her. But her appearance lived up to infamy from that time. Her eyeballs were gone, leaving only hollow sockets. Her nose was crushed beyond recognition. Her mouth revealed blackened gums, with dark, viscous blood and bits of flesh glistening around it.

As I lowered my gaze to check the dangling tendrils where her waist should have been…

“Hyung! Watch out!”

“Hm?”

At An-Hyun’s warning, I looked up to see the Wailing Girl sliding down the sword’s blade, snapping her teeth.

Whoops.

The accumulated malevolent energy or resentment must be considerable, as she was still moving vigorously despite being impaled by the Sun-Moon Divine Sword. Unfazed, I calmly slipped my hand into her gaping mouth. As expected, the spirit eagerly chomped down on it.

Clack!

The sound of teeth clashing against my gauntlet. Her ferocity was admirable, but it wasn’t enough to pierce my durability or TOPG.

I clenched my hand and applied a bit of pressure.

Crunch! Crack!

The sensation of her teeth shattering transmitted through my gauntlet, sending a thrilling jolt. After thoroughly demolishing her mouth, I shook my hand, and fragments of teeth scattered to the ground. I didn’t stop there. I grabbed her flailing hands, still thrashing in the air, and crushed them to pieces as well.

'That should do it, right?'

With her teeth destroyed and both hands shattered, even if she’s still “alive,” she’s effectively lost all means of attack. Feeling more at ease, I twisted the sword’s hilt to check for any other threats. Then, with my left hand, I grabbed the Wailing Girl’s hair and lifted her up.

Turning to the clan members, who were staring at me with dazed expressions, I spoke in a proud tone.

“Got her.”