Chapter 87 – The Cross of Memories #6

“Well, it’s really dark… It seems like it smells rotten.”

After climbing down the ladder inside.
Me and Kate started walking down the underpass, heading forward.
On the left and right sides of the brick-paved underpass, water channels were dug deep.
Kate clutched her nose in pain at the stench coming from the dirty water.

“Isn’t Mongma-nim okay?”
“Of course I’m in trouble too.”

I, who have been in and out of the underground aqueduct countless times, can’t stand the stench of this place with my bare body. However, he had the know-how to stop the stench.
I pulled out a tin of cream from my backpack and handed it to Kate.

“Put it under your nose. It will block the stench.”

Kate held up the canister I handed her and looked bewildered for a moment before she smeared the cream inside under her nose. At that moment, Kate put on a surprised expression as she sniffed her.

“It smells like cinnamon! What the hell is this cream?”
“It’s a cream made from crushed crook fruit. It has a strong scent, so it’s good for preventing sewage odors. It’s a very useful item for adventurers exploring underground waterways.”

Having received the tin from Kate, I also applied the cream under her nose. My nose became numb to the stench of sewage as a spicy smell resembling cinnamon spread. Once applied, the scent lingers on your nose until the next day.

“Thanks to you, I think I’ll live.”

I let out a bitter smile as I watched the delighted Kate. If she realizes that she will have to suffer from this cinnamon smell until tomorrow, Kate won’t be able to just love it. Even if you wash it off with water, the scent will linger for half a day. The taste of rice quickly changes to that of cinnamon.

‘You don’t need to tell me about the side effects. Let’s just let them rejoice.’

When her stench cleared up, Kate held a map of her arterial system in her hand. With her other hand, she shined the light of a lantern, checking the road.

“The totem the cultists installed is said to be in the stone chamber south of the aqueduct. Have you been there?”
“Southern stone chamber? Show me a map.”

I looked at Kate’s map from beside her. There was a circle marked on the map where the structure of the underground waterway was drawn in detail. I quickly realized where it was. In my own way, I can say that I am a dead person in this underground waterway.

“You were talking about a hiding place.”
“Hideout?”
“It’s a place where adventurers who are in charge of search quests take a break from time to time. It’s a stone chamber with an exquisitely hidden entrance, so there’s no chance of being attacked by monsters.”

In the southern stone chamber Kate was talking about, there was even a stone bed on which to lie down. Of course, it was not installed for the welfare of adventurers in Yoensu. This underground waterway was a structure that the ancients had installed. It could be said that it was a trace of an ancient civilization built on the land of Yoensu.

“It’s strange. A stone chamber.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Why is there a stone chamber in the underground waterway? Isn’t it enough that the water flows well? I don’t think there’s any reason to make a separate room.”
“Because it’s a canal dug by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom. Perhaps this canal was also used as a shelter during a war?”
“A shelter? Really?”
“There’s also a secret passage that leads to the outside at the deepest part of the watercourse.”

It wasn’t from my brain, but from the old adventurers who worked together in the underground canal. I heard that the reason why the private rooms were made in the underground water canal and the roads were twisted and twisted was because this place functioned as a shelter.

For that reason, white bones in the armor of the ancient kingdom were rarely rolling around in the underground aqueduct. Normally, it’s a white bone that has nothing to fear, but it’s better to be vigilant this time. It was said that the pagan totem summons the undead.

“Follow me. I’ll show you the way.”
“Yep!”

I walked forward with a grave expression. It was me who mechanically raised the hand holding the lantern to illuminate the front. If it’s the length of the underground waterway, it’s all in my head. It is no lie to say that you can find your way even with your eyes closed.
When I was a newbie, I was once in distress in this underground waterway for several days.
At the time, I thought I was really behind.
How did you manage to survive?

“I’ll light the front with a lantern. You watch the back.”
“Yeah.”

Kate and I secured our sight by illuminating the surroundings with lanterns in each hand.
There is no need to be so vigilant on both sides of the flowing water.
Because no aquatic monsters live in these underground canals.

There were occasional forks in the underpass, but I reflexively moved my body and took the right path. Kate put on a bewildered expression as she stared at me as I stepped forward through the busy road.

“Mongma-nim, are you a resident here?”
“I’ve never been a villager.”
“Yes?!”
“There was a time when I didn’t have money to pay for an inn. I was sleeping in a stone chamber with underground water.”
“You’re an underground person!”

Kate stuck out her tongue as she watched me speak calmly. It was a pretty wise decision for her to choose me as her quest companion. Because I was superior to silver level adventurers in this underground canal. Like a native guide through the thick jungle, I had enough confidence to guide Kate.

“For a moment.”
“What, what is it?”
“Look ahead.”

I lifted the lantern and illuminated the front of the underpass. There was a huge stone statue where I pointed with the light, and small figures were poking their heads around it. Covered by the shadows of the stone statues, they could only be seen as vague silhouettes.

“Huh? There are some kids in the underground water canal.”

Kate tilted her head as she looked in the direction I pointed.
Certainly, from a distance, what was hiding behind the stone statue looked like a child.
I had no choice but to be mistaken because I was wearing a mat like clothes, and my hair was growing wild.
If you are an adventurer who has entered this underground waterway for the first time.
I just stared at the stone statue for a while.

“It doesn’t move. Are you hiding and preparing to attack this side?”
“Kids attack us? I’ve heard that children in the slums hide in the canals.”
“Occasionally there are kids who look like beggars. But those behind the stone statues aren’t kids. If you look carefully, they have tails on their backs.”
“A tail, a tail?”

Kate just tilted her head.

“I don’t see anything like that? What on earth do you see?”

Even if you can’t see it, it can’t be helped. Because in the underground canal, Kate and I have no choice but to differ greatly in their search ability. It was simply a matter of experience.
I can roughly tell if it’s a human or a monster just by hearing the sound of fur shaking from a distance.
Because I knew all the types of monsters that appeared in the underground canal.
Here, it means chewing characters and adventurers.

“It’s a monster called Rat Man. They’re like goblins who live in underground canals. But unlike goblins, they’re funny guys who dress up like people. They wear clothes and grow hair. They pretend to be people and catch adventurers who explore the canals.”
“Ratman!”
“There’s no need to approach it. It’s probably coming from the other side soon.”
“How do you know he’s coming!”
“Because the red eyes are looking this way. Can’t you see?”
“What are you seeing…”

After two years of experience, my predictions came true. The small creatures hiding behind the stone statues eventually came out onto the underpass.
Because they weren’t very patient.

As they crept up and closed the distance, I held my lantern forward. I skillfully adjusted the angle to illuminate the spot where they were standing from the front.

Kiyiyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!
Kkackkackkackkackkackkackkackkackkackkack!!
Kyaooooo!!

The moment the bright light hit me, I could properly identify their shapes.

A giant bipedal rat.
It was the size of a child, and its fluffy fur was covered with a mat. A thick tail the size of a forearm was wriggling between their legs.

Undoubtedly, that was Rat Man.
Those damn rats who drove me to death many times during my newbie days.

“Three is a bit much.”
“Oh, how should I run away!”

Because of the sudden light, the rat men had seizures on the spot for a while. In that short time I was able to make a judgment.
Whether to run away or start a fight.
If it had been me a month ago, I would have chosen to run away.
Dealing with three ratmen at the same time meant risking serious injury. Even if you can barely kill it, you become a beggar by taking a lot of money from the treatment center.
But now that I’ve learned magic, I’m different.

“Stay still. I’ll take care of it.”
“Can you do it alone?”
“Possible-.”

I quietly put the lantern on the floor.
Just in time, Kate was shining a lantern in this direction from behind, so the line of sight was sufficiently secured. Thanks to Kate, who functions like a ward totem, it seemed like they could fight 3:1.

Kiyiyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!

Has your eyesight ever been restored?
The ratmen who were rolling on the floor rushed towards us.
Ratmen running on all fours while letting out frenzied cries!
Its movement is agile, so it is unreasonable to snipe it with a magic sphere.
But I had a great weapon called the water whip.
It is a water whip that has been calibrated with groundwater.

“Liquid-.”

There was no need for any preliminary work to cast water magic.
All I had to do was to immediately pull the water whip out of the canals that flowed on either side.
In an instant, a thick whip of water was completed on my hand.

It’s a polluted water whip that smells like rot!
I never thought I would wield such a filthy weapon with my own hands.
It was truly fortunate that I had put on my leather gloves before entering the canal.
After this quest, he vowed to throw away his gloves.

“Damn it! You rats!”

When he swung the water whip horizontally, the ratmen who rushed at him were swept away in one blow. The two of them bounced back, and the quick-witted one jumped to avoid the whip as if jumping rope.

Did you dare to realize the living point in the subject of a rat?
Watching Ratman screaming and surviving alone, I felt wild anger.
There was no time to retrieve the whip he had wielded.
But you don’t necessarily need to return it.

“Liquid-!”

In the blink of an eye, a new water whip was born in my left hand. Ratman, who rushed at him freely, let out a cry close to a scream as if he was frightened. But it is already too late. I swung the water whip at the slippery Rat Man again, unable to overcome the inertia.

“It’s a double whip!!”

Kiyiyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!

Ratman screams and bounces off!
The moment the whip hit, his skin tore apart. Dirty blood splattered and Rat Man lay on the floor with his stomach exposed. The other two ratmen who were hit in the first round are also lying on the floor convulsing. In an instant, the three ratmen were incapacitated. If it’s a whip, it won’t usually hurt.

“Dae, it’s amazing, Mongma!”

Seeing me overcome 3:1 by myself, Kate exclaimed.

“It’s not yet time to be vigilant.”
“Yeah? They’re all down?”
“Ratmen sometimes pretend to be dead. There’s no other part of the body that makes money anyway, except for the tail. It’s better to thoroughly confirm kills.”

I mercilessly swung my whip at the three ratmen lying on the floor.
He insulted the dead ratmen without paying attention to the manners of the dead. It was the moment when I was about to kill two and end the other one with my own hands.

“Hey, wait a minute, Mister Dream!”
“What?”
“Leave the other one to me!”

Calling out, Kate grabbed her mace and lunged in front of her. She then proceeded to slash the moribund rat man down relentlessly. I couldn’t help but be surprised to see Kate ending Ratman’s life. I didn’t know that girl could have such a violent side.

“Hyaaaaa-

Kate, screaming and using the stick pack!
As soon as he wielded the iron mace, Rat Man had no choice but to become a piece of cake. Kate stopped using the stick only after turning the rice cake into a blood cake.

“Haha.”

In front of the corpse Rat Man, Kate gasped for breath.
After catching her breath, Kate looked at me with a commanding expression.

“Bo, you see, I did one too! I didn’t eat it raw this time!”
“Ah, is that so?”

A face that looks like it wants to be praised.
What’s so great about a subject that barely hit the last hit?

A big deal by nun standards?
Maybe Kate had made incredible strides as an adventurer.
Because Kate, an unkillable adventurer, had a hand in her killing. In other words, the ability to hit the last hit on the healing tool has been newly added.

“It’s amazing! Our Kate is the best!”

The moment I blew compliments as I wished.

“Whoops!”

Kate burst out laughing.
It was such a bright smile that I was speechless.