Chapter 17. Demon Genevieve.

Jihyuk and his party received lavish treatment from the Baron for two days in the small city of Franca, then departed early in the morning.

They passed through two more cities over the course of a month. And they arrived at the last village before entering the Monster Plains.

In this small village of barely ten households, they spent their last night before heading to the Monster Plains early in the morning.

Not long after they set off, dawn began to break from the distant horizon. It was a truly dazzling spectacle. A sense of awe for nature welled up in everyone’s hearts.

Ah-.

Grace’s heart trembled at the thought that she had finally reached this terrible place.

She remembered that time two years ago. The expedition she had been on with the Hero Raig and seven companions. …Until they first passed through this place, they couldn’t even imagine such misfortune would befall them. Everyone was lost in happy imaginings of what they would do after this expedition was over.

The Orc Grendal drew an arrow towards the sunrise scene, pulled the bowstring taut, and released it. The arrow flew, *piing*-, through the sky and disappeared far away on the other side.

It was like a kind of ritual. …A prayer that this expedition would end safely.

The field where vegetation grew soon brightened. The refreshing scent of grass was invigorating. The weather was milder than in the capital. As a result, their clothes became a little thinner.

They walked for a long time. They couldn’t see anything but endless fields, no matter how far they went. Gid asked if they had already entered the Monster Plains.

“No, the barrier will appear soon. The Monster Plains are beyond that.”

“Barrier?”

Gid asked back at the Orc Grendal’s answer. He had an expression that said, ‘Why is he suddenly talking about a barrier?’

Of course, the barrier didn’t appear even when the sun rose to the top of their heads. What the fuck. During a short break, Gid plopped down on the ground and spat out a string of curses.

“How much more goddamn walking do we have to do, huh?”

This time, the Captain answered.

“We’ll be able to see the barrier around tomorrow morning.”

It seemed he was quite disappointed that they had been riding comfortably in a carriage and now had to walk until their legs hurt. Still, walking was an unavoidable choice because the road wasn’t suitable for carriages.

“Alright, let’s start again.”

The group finished their short break and set off again. Because it was going to be a long expedition, their luggage was very heavy.

The Orc Grendal and Lizardman Kayak carried much more luggage than the other companions. Yahel and Grace, who were relatively weaker, had lighter bags.

The group walked with their faces wrapped tightly in hoods. This was to block the scorching sunlight, as the area was wide open with no shade. Still, thanks to being born and raised in the hot desert, Mahushu was flying around.

The sun, which had risen to its peak, gradually began to set. Soon, a beautiful sunset began to spread across the sky. The sight of the whole world turning red was truly spectacular.

They unpacked their luggage before the sun went down. They couldn’t light a bonfire because there were no branches to start a fire.

By the time the group unpacked, spread out their mats, and finished dinner, the sun had set. Fortunately, the sky was clear without a single cloud, so the moonlight was bright.

They lay down on the mats and went to sleep. Since they weren’t in the Monster Plains yet, there was no need for a night watch.

Jihyuk and Grace were right next to each other. This was in preparation for a possible seizure. Still, she hadn’t had a seizure for a month this time. It was the first time she had been this quiet for so long since that incident.

Jihyuk thought it was fortunate to see her condition improving so much. It seemed that gradually regaining peace of mind had been a big help. He was very relieved that his efforts hadn’t been in vain.

“Everyone, sleep well. Tomorrow is the real start.”

Grace sucked on her pipe before going to bed. She looked at the field bathed in silver moonlight and blew out a long, acrid puff of smoke. The thick gray smoke scattered and disappeared into the air.

She was actually a little anxious right now. She was even more so because she had been quiet until now. …From now on, it was going to be a full-fledged start. She was a little scared of how well her body would hold up.

Jihyuk went around the team members one last time to make sure they were comfortable and returned to his spot. He patted her, who was anxiously puffing on her pipe.

“Don’t worry about anything. I’ll always be by your side. Your companions will always be by your side too. Just think about that. Don’t think about anything else.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Her voice, which had sunk down, trembled slightly. Soon, the two lay down side by side.

She secretly stole glances at the Captain-nim’s calm profile before slowly closing her eyes.

It was very reassuring that he was next to her.

…The seizure didn’t happen that night either.

· · ·

The Hero Team woke up early in the morning and cleaned up the campsite. They roughly filled their stomachs and started walking again. The morning air was colder than expected.

As soon as dawn broke, they saw a long, high barrier in the distance. It stretched out endlessly.

By the time the sun had almost risen from the horizon, they had arrived in front of the massive barrier.

Gid immediately spewed out a string of curses at the majestic sight.

“Ooh, shiiiiiiit….”

Although it had been weathered a lot by the wind and rain without any repairs for a hundred years, the barrier was still faithfully performing its role. The gate in the barrier, which had to be tilted high to see the end, had fallen off. Instead, the entrance was blocked by an enormous pile of boulders.

There was no way out. The companions worried about how to get through this barrier. Grendal quickly dispelled that worry.

“There is an underground passage here.”

The Orc quickly took the lead. The others followed. Of course, Jihyuk knew there was an underground passage, but he thought it was fortunate that he needed a guide because he couldn’t remember the location.

They soon found the stairs leading to the underground. It was a fairly narrow passage. Just enough for Grendal to barely pass through.

Some dirt had accumulated on the floor. It smelled musty. There were many cobwebs in every corner of the passage. *Euiik*-. Yahel, who hated bugs, hunched her shoulders and walked quickly.

After passing through the long underground passage, they were finally able to emerge onto the ground on the other side. Whether it was just a feeling or not, the air suddenly felt a bit ominous.

“From here on, it’s the Monster Plains. So, everyone, be tense now.”

They began to walk in formation in earnest. From here on, trees were growing sparsely. The grass was also up to their ankles. So, they could hear the sound of stepping on grass, *sageurak sageurak*, every time they walked.

It was a vast prairie. Occasionally, the bones of unidentified monsters were lying on the ground. Some had rotten flesh attached to them. They finally began to realize the name Monster Plains.

They occasionally saw wild animals running in the distance. They ran away as soon as they saw these uninvited guests.

It was truly a natural landscape untouched by human hands. The difference from the Demonic Realm was that this place was at least less suffocating.

They walked and walked. In the meantime, the sun was already beginning to set slowly. The grass, which had already grown up to their thighs, swayed in the wind, making a *sswaaaa* sound like rain.

“Let’s rest here for a bit.”

Everyone sat down on the ground with a groan.

Although the sun was setting, Jihyuk had no intention of camping today. This time, he was planning to walk all night.

In the Monster Plains, it was necessary to change the pattern to walking at night and resting during the day. It was inefficient to risk sleeping at night when monsters were actively moving around.

The reason they moved during the day and slept at night in the Demonic Realm was because of navigation. Since it was easy to get lost if they moved at night in the Demonic Realm, where the trees were dense, they risked sleeping at night, but there was no need to do that here, where it was easy to find their way. It was also beneficial in terms of physical strength, as they only needed to set up one night watch during the day.

Jihyuk had already mentioned this to the group in advance, so they didn’t ask why he wasn’t unpacking.

They filled their stomachs and took a long rest until the sun went down. Soon, night came.

The air was completely different between day and night. As the monsters, who had been quiet during the day, began to move in earnest, a chilling aura began to spread.

From then on, Jihyuk’s team began to walk with torches held sporadically. The sound of the grass rubbing against their bodies in the wind sounded eerie. The team members’ tense breaths became rough, *huuk huuk*.

Everyone drew their weapons and walked cautiously, guarding their surroundings. Occasionally, the cries of unidentified monsters could be heard in the distance. Every time that happened, Grace turned her head sharply in that direction and trembled slightly. Grendal, who was following closely behind her, asked if she was okay.

“…Yeah, I’m okay.”

Fortunately, the monsters didn’t attack until the second break.

Every time they took a break, Jihyuk hunched over with his head bowed, put his knees up, squatted down, and wrapped his arms around Grace’s shoulders. It wasn’t a big deal, but it was a great comfort to her. She overcame her anxiety and fear there. …She didn’t want to show weakness because of her pride and face.

“Alright, let’s go.”

The team members’ faces were full of fatigue. But they couldn’t stop halfway here. There was still a long time until the sun rose.

So, the group finished their second break and set off again. And before long, they felt a monster approaching. Everyone quickly got into battle formation.

“Yahel, light-!”

The drug-addicted magician created a sphere of light and floated it into the air. Soon, a huge monster crawling on all fours appeared nearby. Its hairless body was as black as darkness, and its eyes were so red that it looked like a demon from hell.

They quickly formed a formation. The monster prowled around, sizing them up, then suddenly jumped and charged. Gid blocked the front with his massive steel shield. As the monster’s attack was blocked, the team members’ counterattacks followed immediately. Yahel’s fire magic and Grendal’s arrow hit the monster’s body almost simultaneously.

But the monster’s breath hadn’t been cut off yet. Then, Mahushu ran like a ray of light and stabbed a short spear into the monster’s crown.

The monster’s body stiffened as if struck by lightning, then fell to the side with a thud. It was such a great combination that Jihyuk didn’t even need to step in.

“Everyone did well.”

They checked to see if anyone was hurt, took a short breather, and then set off again.

In that way, the group fought four more battles until dawn. As they did, Grendal’s skills improved as he gradually regained his sense of combat.

“Shit, it’s the sun.”

Gid rubbed his sleepy eyes and smiled brightly as he saw the sun rising from the horizon. Everyone yawned sleepily.

“We’re staying here.”

“Hua, shit, I thought I was going to die from being so sleepy-!”

Everyone was so exhausted that they plopped down on the ground as they were. They roughly filled their stomachs, spread out their mats, and fell asleep as soon as they lay down. Still, a night watch was needed in case of an emergency.

“I’ll do it. Captain-nim, please sleep.”

“There’s no need to do that. I can do it.”

“No. I’ll do it.”

The Lizardman Kayak stubbornly insisted for some reason. The Captain smiled slightly and patted his shoulder, thanking him.

The other team members were already passed out and sleeping. Grace was also sleeping uglily with her mouth wide open and drooling. …He was very sorry that he couldn’t show her this side of her.

Jihyuk also lay down and put a hood over his eyes. Even with his iron stamina, he was tired if he didn’t sleep.

It felt like something was sinking deep below the surface of sleep. His senses slowly began to dull.

Jihyuk soon fell into a deep sleep.