“Huu.”
Jeongwoo gasped for ragged breaths. Dealing with the dead alone was more difficult than he thought. Each individual undead didn’t have particularly high combat power, but dealing alone with those that came at him endlessly consumed a lot of stamina.
He supplemented his depleted stamina with health potions in between, but that alone wasn’t enough.
[Shin Jaehee, how is it now? How much time is left?]
In the darkness, there was no way to check how much time remained. So Jeongwoo occasionally sent messages to Jaehee to check the time. Being alone in the darkness was both boring and lonely. If the king and vassal couldn’t send messages through the system, it would have been unbearable.
[Hey, Shin Jaehee, are you busy? The husband is working hard outside, and you’re not eating delicious things alone, are you?]
He picked a fight for no reason because he was lonely being alone in the darkness.
[What are you talking about, really. I guess it’s not that hard? Seeing how you’re saying such nonsense.]
[Not hard? I’m dying from how hard it is. What time is it now? How much is left?]
[There’s still quite a bit left. It’s not even two o’clock yet. Should I send some people? Is it very hard?]
[As expected, you’re the only one who worries about me. Since darling is cheering me on, I’ll try harder.]
[Bullshit.]
Seeing the last message that came, Jeongwoo burst out laughing. He could picture Jaehee’s face when saying those words. He definitely would have lifted only one corner of his lips with a cynical expression and spat it out.
Shin Jaehee, who pretended to be cold but was actually soft-hearted.
Shin Jaehee, who couldn’t easily cut off even those who stabbed him in the back, and who secretly shed tears worrying even about those who didn’t die because of his fault.
That’s why he had to do all the dirty and filthy work deserving of curses. So that not even a speck of dust would splash before Shin Jaehee’s name.
[Jaehee. You know.]
Jeongwoo continued sending messages even while endlessly swinging his sword. Jaehee must be busy in his own way, but he still sent replies diligently.
[Are you bored? Why do you keep sending so many messages? Why? What’s the matter?]
Seeing Jaehee’s message, Jeongwoo grinned as he seemed to hear Jaehee’s chattering voice.
[After this mission ends, you know.]
[…After it ends?]
Jeongwoo, who had been grinning while exchanging messages, suddenly raised his head. The momentum of the undead, which had been falling with just one or two sword strikes like mannequins, had changed. Just because he couldn’t see them in the darkness, it was certain that these were not the undead that had been attacking until now.
Was the second phase about to start now?
Until now, he didn’t need to put in much strength, but now the undead were quite heavy and solid, requiring considerable force.
[Woo Jeongwoo, after it ends, what? There are two things that make people most annoyed—one is not finishing what you’re saying, and the other is.]
Seeing the message that was deliberately cut off mid-sentence, Jeongwoo let out a chuckle.
Well, that was true. Jaehee was quite playful with people he was close to and had a cheerful personality. Though he himself didn’t seem to know his own personality well.
Jeongwoo gripped his sword and drew a long horizontal line. After several grumbling sword strikes, he learned that the weak point of the undead from the second phase was around the waist.
[Jaehee.]
[Speak.]
[Should we get married after this mission ends?]
After sending the message, Jeongwoo laughed. Rolling the word marriage around in his mouth made him feel giddy for no reason. Jeongwoo raised the corners of his lips once more and swung his sword again. It didn’t cut as easily as expected. Should he change weapons? Jeongwoo pondered for a moment, then drew red flames in a circle around where he was standing.
“Huu.”
Hieeeeeek—
While the flames were burning, the undead couldn’t enter. Then the undead made bizarre sounds and circled around Jeongwoo threateningly, spinning round and round.
“No matter what you do, you bastards aren’t even worth a handful. You’re just killing time.”
Should he suggest just deploying one King’s Veil next time?
It was inconvenient in many ways. If he didn’t become Jaehee’s subject, he couldn’t enter the King’s Veil, and after becoming Jaehee’s subject, he had to be alone outside the veil. Though he knew about this, he was annoyed anew. Why did that bastard Lee Shinhoo have to make a fuss and become a concern?
Lee Shinhoo had felt strangely off from the beginning. It was disgusting to see a handsome guy fawning over Jaehee too.
Jeongwoo lightly shook his head left and right, then lightly flicked his hand in the air.
Then red flames appeared at Jeongwoo’s fingertips.
“Come to think of it, there’s no need to swing a sword, right? It’s not like other people are watching.”
Though he told Yang Yumi to film everything, he could edit out what he didn’t want to show, so there was no need to hide his magic.
“——”
Jeongwoo’s voice resonated through the air. Though one couldn’t hear exactly what he was saying, immediately after, something that came from Jeongwoo’s mouth floated into the air. It was a very strange sight. That cluster of light floated upward and rose above Jeongwoo’s head. The sparkle grew increasingly stronger.
It looked as if light and darkness were competing in strength. Thanks to the cluster of light rising, he could see the surroundings to some extent.
Keuuuaaaaa—
An undead with a hideous appearance, all its skin peeled off, opened its mouth and screamed.
“Hmm. Perhaps the darkness is for me, not for you guys.”
He lightly flicked his hand and put flames into the undead’s open mouth. Then the undead was instantly engulfed in flames and burned, quickly turning into black ash that scattered in the wind.
[If you wear a wedding dress, I’ll think about it.]
Then a message came from Jaehee. Jeongwoo, who had been focused on burning the undead, wondered what he meant for a moment, then burst out laughing. Despite the time spent pondering, it was a pleasant answer.
[You promised? If you want it, a wedding dress is nothing. Then Jaehee, how many children should we have? For the sake of humanity too, it’d be good to leave many fruits of our love, right? I’m fine with a basketball team or soccer team. I’ll just work hard to earn money.]
[Woo Jeongwoo. Don’t you know the saying ‘Don’t discriminate between sons and daughters, have just one and raise them well’?]
[Sorry, then let’s have just one. Jaehee, since you’re the mom, the mom should decide.]
[……I’m the mom?]
[Yeah. So our family plan is to have just one, right? If you change your mind, let me know. I’m ready anytime.]
Jeongwoo burst into giggles even while playfully putting flames into the undead one by one to burn them. The surroundings were acrid with the smell of burning.
After a while, a message came from Jaehee.
[…Yeah. Just come back safely. Whether we get married or have children, you have to be alive to do it.]
Seeing that message, Jeongwoo grinned. If possible, he wanted to capture this and keep it forever. Even if it was a joke, even if it was just something said casually, it was fine.
Jeongwoo raised his head to look at the light floating above him.
“All impure things, disappear. Annihilation.”
With Jeongwoo’s words, the cluster of light swelled its body. The light, swelling as if about to burst, gradually spread out and soon burst with a pop. There was no sound, only light. The burst light explosively spread out in an instant.
And the undead touched by the light burned away as they were. Soon they became pitch-black ash and scattered into the air.
All the undead in the area where the light spread disappeared just like that.
“How much time is left now?”
There was nothing left in the area where Jeongwoo was standing.
However, the undead were beings that couldn’t be killed anyway. Even if they were all burned and became a handful of dust, after a certain time passed, the undead would crawl out again. The content of this mission was to endure the time of night.
[Is there any movement from Lee Shinhoo’s side?]
[Not yet. Nothing else has been detected.]
[Still, don’t let your guard down. You never know when something might happen.]
[Woo Jeongwoo, you nag. I said I got it. Don’t worry and take care of your own body. Just try getting hurt somewhere. I won’t let you off.]
Seeing Jaehee’s message worrying about him made him laugh again.
[What will you do if I get hurt?]
[I’ll take a photo of you in a wedding dress and hang it on the wall.]
Jeongwoo burst out laughing loudly. If Jaehee wanted, he could wear a wedding dress ten times, twenty times.
[I’m fine with filming a wedding video too.]
[Hey, Woo Jeongwoo, you pervert. That’s enough.]
[You’re the one who brought up the wedding dress first? You’re the one who wants to see me in a wedding dress?]
[Ha, you Hongdae pervert demon king. I should have known when you caused that chaos at Hongdae-ipgu Station.]
It was when Jeongwoo was giggling while exchanging silly messages with Jaehee.
Then a system window appeared.
[Everyone! You’re all fighting well! ˘ᗜ˘ Excellent. But there’s an urgent announcement. (•́ι_•̀*)
Night of the Dead mission—an emergency patch will be implemented according to the supervising Constellation’s will.
* Manifestation of Nightmare has been patched. From now on, Night of the Dead and Manifestation of Nightmare will proceed simultaneously.]
