ALL NOVEL Chapter 269
Chapter 269. Island of Death (7)
Greatly flustered, Yoo Ji-han thrust the paper into Desa’s face.
“Desa! Take a look at this.”
“What is it?”
“Here and here, it’s written something.”
“……So what does it say?”
“Don’t you know?”
“It’s completely unfamiliar writing.”
Desa shook his head as if he truly didn’t understand.
A language buried deep within an island in Kallem, so unknown that even Desa, who had spent his whole life in Kallem, had no clue.
At least it meant there wasn’t a shortage of humans living in this world.
‘This was made by outsiders like us.’
Travelers.
Just like the heroes who crossed over from Earth to Kallem, they had knowledge about dimensions.
They had the air of someone searching for something.
‘Are they from Earth?’
Russians and other Earthlings, who were said to have once come to Kallem.
They might be calling themselves travelers.
However, Yoo Ji-han, who had once searched for various foreign languages in the world, was aware that the letters on the paper were far removed from any foreign languages he knew.
‘This is absurd.’
It felt different from acquiring the common language of Kallem through dimensional travel.
He could read Korean, learned in childhood, naturally and effortlessly.
“What’s up?”
“……It’s nothing.”
He mumbled in response to Lee Mi-a’s question, who had been dozing off for a moment.
There was simply no way to explain this situation.
*
About thirty minutes later, Kim Si-hu, who had entered the interior of the island, returned near the ship.
Judging by the expressions of the mages, including Kim Si-hu, it seemed that positive results had emerged.
“It seems like dimensional magic might be possible in the center of this island.”
“Is it different from Kabuum or Maz?”
“It’s completely different! I thought it was Earth, not Kallem.”
The island resembled the land of Earth more than Kallem.
Excluding the fact that this area was marred by a curse, it was the perfect space for using dimensional magic.
“We’ll set up the magic circle, so please prepare to load the cargo and get ready to depart.”
“How long will it take?”
“If Si-hu leads the installation, about an hour will be enough.”
“I’m so glad I didn’t have to fight like Ji-han said!”
The mages, who grabbed their tools, moved toward the center of the island that they had surveyed beforehand.
Meanwhile, Yoo Ji-han helped the other heroes unload and organize the cargo from the ship.
“Ji-han.”
“Yes?”
“Are you worried about something?”
Yoon Do-ha, who was unloading alongside him, seemed to have noticed the complexity of his emotions on his face.
Setting the box he was holding down for a moment, Yoo Ji-han spoke.
“Do you see the black dot on my neck?”
“Dot? Where?”
“……!”
Yoon Do-ha reacted as if he didn’t know what he was talking about.
Yoo Ji-han hurriedly felt his neck with his hand.
‘Has it disappeared?’
The faint dot that had floated above his neck was completely gone.
No wonder the people who returned hadn’t asked about the dot!
“Wait, take a look at this.”
Yoo Ji-han handed the suspiciously written paper to Yoon Do-ha.
“Who wrote these strange symbols?”
“Symbols?”
“What else could these squiggly lines be if not doodles?”
Naturally, Yoon Do-ha couldn’t interpret what was written there.
Instead of examining the letters, he pulled the paper side to side and said,
“It seems like it could tear easily, yet it’s incredibly tough! Where did you find this?”
“I pulled it up from underground.”
“Hmm… I wonder why it was there.”
An object even he, who possessed considerable knowledge as a representative of a large guild, didn’t know well.
While meticulously examining the paper, Yoon Do-ha returned it to Yoo Ji-han.
“Thinking back, I have seen something similar before.”
“Where?”
“In England.”
Yoon Do-ha recalled being invited by Angels Garden, the large guild in England, to visit in the past.
At that time, the guild had welcomed him warmly and shown him various treasures stored in their vault.
“I passed by a paper in the treasure vault that couldn’t be cut by a knife, wet, or burned. Though, they couldn’t turn it into an artifact, so they’ve just kept it.”
“That’s a fascinating item.”
“Guild Master!”
Park Jae-kyung, who was helping carry the cargo, interrupted their conversation.
Because she had heard the familiar name of the guild.
“If it’s Angels Garden… I believe they participated in an expedition to another dimension.”
“Who came? No way, that fireball?”
“That’s right. Sian Pierce has come to Korea.”
“What’s going on? He used to hate outside activities that much.”
“……!”
Sian Pierce.
Upon hearing that name, Yoo Ji-han recalled the orientation session when the expedition was formed.
——Yoo Ji-han! Let’s fight together later!
——If you disappoint me, I’ll kill you—!!
The person who used his unique skill during a meal in the auditorium, heating the whole auditorium.
At the same time, a guy who got dragged around after receiving a low kick from his fiancée.
It seemed he had connections with Yoon Do-ha too.
“Jae-kyung, is that person the Guild Master of Angels Garden?”
“There’s a separate Guild Master who oversees the overall management of the guild, but practically, Sian Pierce is the representative hero of the guild.”
“I see.”
Angels Garden had a similar structure to Keroes, where Yoo Ji-han was involved.
If compared to Keroes, one could see Kim Hyun-tae in a similar position.
“If that fireball goes berserk, it’ll turn everything into a sea of flames — did the restrainer come along too?”
“Yes. They came together.”
“Then that’s a relief.”
“But the term restrainer seems a bit…”
“They should be called restrainers!”
“If Sian Pierce hears this, he’ll really get mad.”
“No problem, the restrainer came along. After all, she’s one of the people who invited me to England.”
The restrainer referred to Sian Pierce’s fiancée.
If Sian Pierce goes on a rampage, she was the only one who could easily stop him.
‘That person’s guild has something like this paper.’
His expression turned serious as he looked down at the paper.
Once he arrived in Korea, he would need to look into Angels Garden.
*
“The magic circle installation is almost complete!”
“Everyone, get ready!”
The preparations for the dimensional teleportation magic circle were nearing the final stage.
Those who had been avoiding the spot to not disturb the mages moved with their cargo toward the center of the island.
“Chilla! Is that very heavy for you?”
“Chirp! Not heavy at all!”
The one carrying the most weight on his back was Chilla.
Watching Chilla, who carried such a large body, many female heroes gasped excitedly.
“When we go back to Korea, let’s take another picture together!”
“I want a video!”
“Phew! This little star’s popularity! Smile!”
Snap!
Chilla was striking a pose as he brushed the hair off his forehead.
He had been so focused on activities in Kallem that he hadn’t had time to enjoy himself, but now that they had achieved their original goal, the atmosphere was one of everyone crowding around Chilla.
“At this rate, his personality will get worse.”
“These days, he even steals my food when we eat.”
“Haa….”
Min Yu-ri sighed at Lee Mi-a’s comment with a displeased expression as she watched the scene.
While it was nice that Chilla was being adored as the master, he had been getting more arrogant since he opened up.
Having heard that conversation, the Sylph flew over to Chilla and said,
—Chilla! They say you’re getting a bad personality!
“Chirp? What’s wrong? An insignificant spirit like you is talking to me?”
—What?! Just look at this little rat talking!
“Chirp! A superstar is too busy, so go away!”
Chilla brushed off the approaching Sylph with irritation.
Finally, unable to take any more of Chilla’s behavior, Yoo Ji-han stepped in.
“Chilla.”
“Chirp?”
“Let’s keep it moderate.”
“Chirp, chirp… understood, Captain.”
Upon receiving the command, Chilla’s round ears drooped slightly.
No matter how mischievous he acted, he would follow Yoo Ji-han’s orders faithfully.
‘Chirp! Defying the captain is equivalent to death!’
The leader of the party and the core of all actions.
Going against him was akin to destroying the party.
This was deeply ingrained in Chilla’s mind.
“We need to cast protective magic, so everyone leave your baggage here!”
As Yoo Ji-han lowered the cargo onto the magic circle, he kept the piece of paper from the traveler separately.
It seemed Traveler J prepared the paper for his companions, but he intended to take it to Korea for investigation.
“Ji-han and the older sisters over here, please.”
“What about the magic circle?”
“I did my best with what I could.”
Yoon Do-ha had flattened a wide area of land by pulling out trees.
On that surface, patterns such as hexagrams and triangles were being repeated within a drawn circle.
“We’re off!”
Snap!
All party members, including Desa, climbed onto the magic circle.
The mages, raising their staffs high, began to mutter something.
Boom!
The magic circle was bathed in light from the edges.
Suddenly, their vision was engulfed in a blinding white light.
“……Did we succeed?”
“We succeeded!”
The Kallem Expeditionary Force had reached the boundary of the dimension.
“We did it! We did it!”
“Kyaaa!!”
“Let’s go home—!”
The mages celebrated, their research results from Kabuum finally laid out before them.
“What, what is this?! What on earth just happened…!”
“Mmmmmm! I dislike this place.”
“I suddenly have bad memories.”
Desa turned his head anxiously in the featureless space, and except for Yoon Do-ha and Mumu, who had been kidnapped here, everyone else was in a rising mood thinking they could go back.
“Hey, hey! It’s too soon to be happy.”
“Let’s toast when we get back to Korea.”
“Here’s the dimensional teleport scroll!”
Swoosh!
The pre-prepared magical scrolls reacted to the magical power input and seeped into the ground.
Grrrrrrrrr!
The dimensional boundary shook as if an earthquake was occurring.
The hearts of the excited heroes began to darken gradually.
And Yoo Ji-han, who was staring straight ahead without blinking,
‘……Again?’
Had to face the same tranquil silence he’d encountered when he first crossed from Earth to Kallem.
There was nothing in sight, nor any sound reached his ears.
Only his body and consciousness existed there.
——Love.
——My darling…
‘I can hear it.’
Amidst the ongoing silence, a familiar woman’s voice rang out.
A voice that he could never forget after hearing it once.
So warmly gentle yet simultaneously filled with a chill that made him dislike hearing it.
——My beloved son.
As always, she called her son in a tender tone.
Keeping his lips pressed together tightly, Yoo Ji-han quietly listened to her call.
——Would you die for me?
And followed by her request.
“I refuse.”
Yoo Ji-han coldly and decisively rejected her.
‘Whatever it is, I don’t want to.’
He didn’t know the full story, but asking someone to die for her, even if that someone was her child.
A normal mother wouldn’t ask her son to die.
Instead, she would sacrifice herself for her son.
However, right after he spat out his rejection…
Thud!!
Yoo Ji-han’s body, which had been standing firmly on the ground, collapsed.
“Cough!”
It felt like he was being drawn down by a gravity 100 times stronger!
Even if he pushed off the ground with his hands, he couldn’t lift his body.
No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t escape, so Yoo Ji-han focused desperately on not letting the ruin crush his breath.
——Kki-ki-ki-ki!
——Kki-ki-ki-ki-ki-ki!
Soon, the pitch-black vision turned a sickly crimson.
With a nauseating noise, the furious woman’s voice burst forth.
——The best friend you can have will hate you most in the world!
——No matter how hard you try, you will not receive the reward you deserve!
——You will be ignored by others for your entire life and fail to gain anyone’s recognition!
——You shall despair and, after much despair, end your life by your own hand…!
If someone were to unravel a curse through words, this is how it would feel.
The woman’s tone was laced with a terrifying hatred toward the opponent.
And.
“Oh, is that right…!”
Having somehow managed to roll over, Yoo Ji-han displayed his middle finger toward the blood-red sky.