MEMORIZE

Deep at night, the forest was dark.

Crying... Crying....

And it was very cold.

"Hmm."

The cold wind blew to the point of killing me, so I shrank a little. Then he pulled his butt straight up towards the burning bonfire.

When you look up at the night sky, you see countless twinkling stars. The rest of the night looks long.

"Cool…."

So when I pulled up the blanket around me, thinking about having a bowl of stew left over in the evening, I suddenly heard a faint snore. I don't know who it is, but it's a video. I smiled blandly and looked around with a sigh.

The dense trees and thick thick bushes. Although this would be a perfect forest, the surrounding landscape was one thing different from the general forest.

It's frosty in the trees that I see.

No, it wasn't just trees. The frost was all over the forest, giving the impression that it was in the middle of Antarctica.

Anyway.

I scoured the perimeter sharply to play the role of an impermanent, and only after confirming that no one was there, I lowered my gaze again.

How long has it been so long?

Tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap!

I raised my eyes slightly at the sudden sound of sparks. Then I could see the flames scattered through the air, and beyond that, I could see someone nodding out. It's Anhyun.

"Well, well, Yeonju...You can't do this....”

You don't even doze off during the break, and you even have an ugly imagination?

Originally, I was going to wake him up after about 15 minutes, but Ahn Hyun's sleep talking changed my mind. To be honest, I was going to tolerate it to some extent if it was Yoo-jung or Hangyeol, but Ko was the exception.

So as soon as I saw the sly smile around his mouth, I opened my mouth without delay.

"Hey, Anhyun."

"Hahaha!"

Proudly, Ahn Hyun responded right away. And the ensuing actions were also surprisingly agile. For a moment, he raises his head straight and looks around with his eyes wide open.

"Hmm. Hmm. Well, brother! I don't think there's anything strange about it. Well."

"…Really?"

"Cough! Cough!"

“…….”

Although he pretended not to be there for a while, he must have felt the saliva on his mouth.

As I squinted and stared, Hyun soon stared at me with an awkward look.

"…I'm sorry."

I quietly opened my mouth, rummaging through the firewood piled up next to me.

"I'll be there sometime this morning, so if you're sleepy, go home and sleep. Don't make mistakes when it's important."

"Oh, no! How dare I... when you're standing on the watch?I'm disappointed. Brother."

"Get rid of the drowsiness around your eyes and tell me. Or at least tell me in advance and close your eyes. I told you before in Mule, didn't you?”

I mean, if you're sleepy, ask for your understanding in advance and doze off. It's a hundred times better to sleep for about 15 minutes and stand on fire watch with a sober mind than to be on guard in a blink.(Of course, there should be a premise that there are at least two imperceptors.)

"Hehe."

Ahn Hyun only smiled awkwardly as if he had made a mistake a hundred times.

I let out a short sigh at the sight, and I stopped pushing. Anyway, it was the hardest time to be on the watch, and I dozed off at that time.

Ahn opened his mouth wide for a while, then carefully opened his mouth to see if he could not beat Suma.

"Hey. You still have a lot of fire watch, right?"

"Yeah, it's a long way to go to shift.”

"Then I'm really sorry, but can I sleep just one minute? I'm so sleepy.”

"…I'll wake you up in five minutes. I'll be looking at your area."

As soon as he got the permission, Ahn Hyun lowered his head and started snoring in 10 seconds.

Only then did I throw the firewood I had caught earlier into the bonfire and stare at the flames flying around.

A little later.

As I looked at the flames for a long time, my head sank into deep thought.

It has already been two weeks since I was commissioned by Eastantel Lowe.

As long as you've been commissioned.

And as long as there's life and death at stake in the request.

I announced the commission announcement and appointment that day, and the next day I set off for the Frozen Forest.

The number of Clan members who participated in the investigation team was six, not many. Come out, Anhyun. And everything was Vivienne, Shin Jae-ryong, Im Hanna, and Jung Ha-yeon. If Song Seung-gyu, who joined the team as an Indian, adds up, the total number of people will be seven.

The client didn't say much, even though it might be thought that there were fewer people than expected. I just said that I wanted to go there as soon as possible, so I was just rushing to leave.

Frozen Forest wasn't an exploration site, but it was definitely in my memory.

In fact, by my standards, it was not such a difficult place, so I drastically excluded the necessary positions.(It was good to put in a high performance in terms of efficiency, but I left it because I needed an assistant Clan Lord in the current martial arts.)

Since then, investigators who moved west marched to their destination, and were able to arrive at the "Frozen Forest" just three days ago.

And now, we were just a day before we reached our final destination, the Ice Tower.

Objectively assessed, everything has been smooth so far. There were few monsters in sight (because the siege had already been raging). Except for the extremely cold, there was no Clan One injured.

But if there's one variable, it's the client....

"Huh?"

Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey..

It was then.

Suddenly, at the signs of abnormalities detected around me, I immediately awoke from my thoughts and lifted my senses.

And as the head is fixed and the eyes are turned left and right, you can see gray things appearing one by one among the trees. When I count quietly, I wonder if the number will be about as high as a hundred. At first glance, it looks like a haze or a haze..

'What a strange gas...It can't be all at once like this time.'

I guess they didn't hear the footsteps because they didn't have any more.

- Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee....

(sighs) (sighs) (sighs) (sighs).

Creepy preciousness that can never be heard by human nurture. I grabbed the "mugum" I had put in the blanket, and first, I looked ahead thinking of waking Ahn up.

"An…."

"Brother."

Surprisingly, however, Ahn Hyun was already up. I blinked three or four times to see if I still had sleepiness, but my eyes are sinking endlessly. His hands were creeping toward the Seven Dark Spears.

Anhyun asked in a low voice.

"Hey, what are these?”

"…a ghost."

"A ghost?"

An-hyun held the spear and opened it up and down, but she constantly looked left and right. Then I sent a signal to the guy who was about to run to the tent to wait a moment, and soon began to get a detailed understanding of the signs felt around him.

Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey..

Don't you feel hostility?'

- …go away….

- …hit….

No, wait a second.

'This is….'

I'm trying to say something.

I still listened more to the preciousness of the haze, while not letting go of the sword's hand.

- ……! Yeo…Stop. Go!

- Sal………. Save me...I'm.

Yeah, I'm sure. The noise that sounded like wind at first, now it sounded like something was being said. Am I the only one who heard it? Ahn Hyun rolled his eyes with a stiff face.

"Tongue, brother…" What…I hear a strange murmur. I don't know exactly, but....”

Mumbling. It doesn't sound perfect to me, who has raised my senses to the fullest, but it will sound faint to Anhyun.

I opened my index finger and put it on my lips after expressing my intention to understand, and An-

Run away... Run away! Inside the forest is much …. ……Lucky…!

- You guys... you're being fooled...…in a gold tent… 는 is 은 is ….

Let's see. Is it like that?

Judging from what I heard at the end, I could understand what the ghosts were trying to say, and at the same time, I laid down the sword that I had held firmly.

“…….”

And once he looked back at the tent, he slowly turned his head again and made eye contact with the ghosts.

Soon after, when I made eye contact with Anhyeon at the final station, I opened my mouth quietly.

"Don't worry too much. Get some rest."

"What? You want me to rest.

I nodded my head still. And when I looked sideways, a feeling of agitation flowed in.

- Don't worry...?

- Mo... Jo...hee!

The ghosts became quiet in an instant to see if anyone was quick-witted. I checked their silence and continued once more.

Of course, still staring at Anhyun.

"I know, these are ghosts who have lost their way."

"What?"

"Don't be cold. If you step down soon...Sooner or later, you'll be comfortable. So don't be hasty, just wait quietly."

“?”

Perhaps because Pint gave a slightly different answer, An-hyun tilted his head all the time. But the spirit of them at a stroke within what seems to understand the behavior to me.

- I said.Everything...

- Thank you... - Thank you.

The haze disappeared in an instant. It appeared as quickly as it did when it was first discovered, but disappeared in a flash.

So a little time went by, and a still silence came again.

"Hey. Did you just tell me?”

"You're right about what I told you're right.

"No, that's not....”

"Oops, if you say it like crap, get it right."

After spitting out a word, I got up and looked at the bonfire. Around the pile of firewood was a pot of leftover meat stew from dinner tonight.

I lifted the pot with a light touch and glanced at Anhyun. Then, I can still see him gulping down his throat with a blank face.

"A bowl?"

In the midst of a bewildering situation, Ahn Hyun nodded and shook his head, whether he was hungry or hungry.

I suddenly looked up at the night sky, looking for the last bowl and handing it over.

Not yet, the rest of the night is long.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow.'

*

The morning has dawned.

The morning of 'Frozen Forest' is no different from dawn. There was a bright sun rising in the sky, but the shining sun was blocked by the ice of the forest and could not illuminate the earth.

Moreover, as we entered the center, the cold got worse and worse, so we had to march rubbing our clothes.

I didn't take the lead on this march. At the forefront were Song Seung-kyu, an Indian, and Lim Han-na, an archer, and I was in the middle of protecting the rest of the long-distance class with Ahn Hyun.

Rustle, rustle!

Crunch, crackle!

Every time I step on the frozen ground, I hear the sound of frozen bushes crumbling.

"Oh, I'm freezing."

As he passed through the forest, Vivien hugged and grumbled. Even though he wore two layers of robes that were magic to visit Korea, the coldness of "Frozen Forest" did not seem to stop him.

"I know. It was so cold yesterday that I couldn't sleep at all. It was warmer in front of the bonfire."

"Ugh. Right?"

Hayeon also breathed "Ho" between his hands and agreed to Vivien's whining. Then, he looked back at the king and continued.

"Jae-ryong, aren't you cold dressed like that? I saw yesterday that you only wore a priest's uniform."

Is it surprising that you talked to yourself? Shin Jae-ryong opened his eyes briefly and replied with a bitter smile.

"…it's pretty cold."

"Then why are you so....”

"You have to wear it like this to concentrate on exploration. Especially in combat. Honestly, I regret that nothing has happened so far, but...Anyway, I feel the name value of the frozen forest."

"Me, too. I'd rather have a monster and move my body. I feel like my joints are freezing."

Ahn Hyun also grumbled continuously, complaining. He was very excited to hear that he was going on an expedition after a long time, but he seems to be quite bored because the exploration continues more flat than expected.

"That's how the sun rises.Doesn't it melt in here?"

At that moment, Ahn Hyun approached me with a face that popped up in my mind.

"Come to think of it. But I'm suddenly curious. Why is this a frozen forest? And why isn't the ice melting?”

"…I don't know everything."

"Oh, you always stopped by the library before your expedition. So, just in case you know....”

"We didn't have enough time to investigate this time..”

He said it like that, but I could notice what Anhyun wanted. When I went to the research center and the magical city of Magia, I explained some of the stories, and I think I'm curious again this time.

Suddenly, I could feel the eyes of Clan members who were all bored and excited. Even Im Han-han, who was walking ahead, looked back briefly and smiled a little.

"As for the narrative…"I don't really remember in detail.Oh, my God.

I cleared my throat once or twice and stared at Song Seung-gyu's back for a moment. And slowly opened his mouth.

"Anyway, I don't know...You saw the ghosts yesterday, didn'

"What? Yes."

"Then listen. When you go to a grave or a haunted house, you feel creepy for no reason, right? So what it's called is...Yeah, it's called yin-gi. Defining that feeling by the energy of yingi, the ice in the forest is not just ice, but a spectre. It's a single crystal that the souls have made."

"Crystal? So all this ice is made of the negative energy emitted by the original spirits?”

At the first glance of Ahn Hyun, I nodded loudly.

"You can say that. The whole forest is frozen to the point of being called a 'Frozen Forest'.”

"Then…."

I nodded at Anhyun's re-question.

"One of the two. There are spirits with strong notes that cover the entire forest, or there are uncountable ones."

Or it could be both. I didn't bother to bring up the last word and ended it. And let's take a look at the responses, female Clan members. In particular, I could see Jung Ha-yeon shaking her shoulders a little.

It was then.

Crunch, crunch! Tuck!

The march stopped with a loud noise from the floor. Song Seung-gyu, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped walking.

Song said without looking back.

"We've arrived."

As soon as he approached the horse, Song slowly raised his finger and pointed forward. There was still some distance left, but a towering tower creeping up on the tree caught my eye.

"That's the final destination."

"I can see it for sure. We've checked."

"…What would you do? Rest, or right away?"

"Let's get right in.”

I answered immediately and the Clan members arranged the formation with a more tense face.

Soon after, we began to march again, starting with Im Han-na glancing at Song Seung-gyu.

Crunch, rustle!

Crunch, rustle!

After all that time, we were able to get to the front of the tower without any interference.

"Wow. Kim Soohyun. It's really high up here."

Vivien looked up at the tower with a loud exclamation.

The scenery was pretty beautiful, except for the atmosphere. The tower was in the middle of a frozen lake. The ice was thickly frozen around the bottom, as if it were rising from the bottom to the top.

Also, as Vivien said, the size of the tower was quite huge. It was wide, but it was about 50 meters high. The material looked just like bricks, but the outer part was covered with ice, so it seemed to maintain some form.

After a moment of sightseeing, I opened my mouth quietly.

"I'll be ready to go inside."

After a while, we slowly began to reduce the distance from the tower.

As time went by, the appearance was becoming more detailed, and the cracks and stains that were seen in places were giving off an impenetrable look.

It was then.

Im Han-na, who was suddenly at the forefront, stopped walking tall and dropped her head blankly.

"Lim Hanna?"

And at that moment, Song Seung-gyu quickly pulled her arm.

"It's dangerous. It's a ghost."

I shouted right away.

"What's going on?"

Only then did Lim Han-na come to her senses, pointing down with trembling hands.

"I felt something was wrong, so I lowered my head.Something just flew by down here."

Im Hanna's voice was a little frightened. I looked straight down with my third eye and tilted my head. There was only a frozen lake on the way to the tower.

Then, soon, Song Seung-gyu's words came.

"…please don't look down."

"Yes, yes?"

"As Merchanty Road said earlier…There's a lot of original souls here. You'd better not make eye contact at least. They're trying to lure people somehow.”

"Whoa. I see. I'll be careful."

Im Han-na tried to calm down her surprised heart, and gently touched her chest to breathe deeply.

"Mercury Road. We'd better get inside the tower as soon as possible."

I stared at Song Seung-gyu for a second, and nodded calmly.

"Sure, then I'll be right in. Be prepared, everyone.Song Seung-kyu, please lead the way."

"Okay, I'll take the lead."

Song Seung-gyu answered quickly and walked into the open entrance. Then I and the group looked at each other once, and carefully followed him.

As soon as I entered the tower, a moment of intense cold swept over my body.

And when you walked all the way there.

There was Song Seung-gyu standing alone in the center of an empty cavity surrounded by bricks emitting cold ice light. I can't see my face because I'm still looking forward.

Soon as it was, he quietly pointed up.

"Maybe we can get to the eighth floor right away."

And then, the voice of a screeching iron....

"Let's go, hehehe...!”

Unlike what I heard outside, it was a very creepy tone.

============================ Review of the work ============================

Originally, this chapter was intended to be a creepy horror, but it just turned to a general expedition. Because in the next episode, there's a Jwibulnori with hair that's going to continue.I don't think it's going to match. Haha. -_-a

I'm so sorry that I took a break yesterday. I don't know why. I don't know if it's a Monday blues, but I was rather emotional and emotional. I've been feeling lonely all along the way.(sighs)

Anyway, I'll continue to work hard.

Thank you for celebrating the 400th anniversary. :)

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