Chapter 178
Chapter 178. Pursuit (4)
Yoo Ji-han and his party swam through the sea, chasing after the People from Another World’s ship.
Thanks to the magic of the Sylph, it felt less like swimming underwater and more like floating in slightly heavier air.
Min Yu-ri expressed it as feeling like they were flying through the ocean.
“Five minutes have passed.”
In the night sea, the only things they could rely on were the light-bringing magic and the signals from the tracking artifact.
They wasted not a single second as they moved toward their destination.
And when they reached the land…
They discovered the anchored ship of the People from Another World.
‘This is Goheung.’
Yoo Ji-han realized they had crossed the sea to Jeollanam-do, Goheung.
This place was like Yeosu, where another expeditionary force had arrived.
“Is there anyone around?”
“There are no signs of life.”
There was no one aboard the ship belonging to the People from Another World.
All the monsters and cargo on the ship had also vanished without a trace.
As Yoo Ji-han and his party explored the ship’s interior, they found no significant results and emerged outside.
“Where could they have gone?”
“What should we do now?”
“Hmm…”
The group fell into contemplation regarding their next course of action.
Soon, Kim Si-hu, Min Yu-ri, and even Yoon Do-ha’s party members all glanced at Yoo Ji-han.
Formed in Yeosu, this group had unknowingly come to rely heavily on Yoo Ji-han.
‘This is a bit burdensome.’
Even Park Jae-kyung, who had great abilities, was waiting for his words.
Feeling a strange expectation weighing on him, Yoo Ji-han cleared his throat.
“As I mentioned earlier, I am mostly aware of the hideouts of the People from Another World located in Goheung.”
“Ohh…”
“However, rather than moving alone, it would be wiser to join forces with the expeditionary force that has arrived here first.”
“I agree with that.”
Yoo Ji-han made plans to join up with the expeditionary force operating in Goheung.
Even if they were in different regions, the issues concerning the People from Another World would ultimately be connected.
If he could inform them of what had happened in Yeosu, he could seek their assistance.
“Let’s take a short break nearby first. Everyone is tired.”
Yoo Ji-han’s party moved to a nearby private house.
It was already dark in the early morning, and their gear was wet and heavy, so everyone needed rest.
Knowing when to take a break could also be considered a skill.
“Let’s take turns at the night watch.”
“I’ll go first.”
The group rested in a house that still showed signs of those who had evacuated.
Then, the moment Yoo Ji-han started his night watch…
He noticed that Nam Ho-yeol was nowhere to be seen.
From the crumpled blanket, it seemed he had slipped out a while ago.
‘Where did he go?’
Yoo Ji-han stepped into the yard and looked around.
Nam Ho-yeol was in the corner of the spacious yard, bending over and fiddling with something.
—Found you!
As the Sylph spoke, Nam Ho-yeol jerked his head up to look at Yoo Ji-han.
“Ho-yeol, what are you doing?”
“Oh, I was just checking the item you gave me before.”
In Nam Ho-yeol’s hand was a feather from the Invisible Bird they had hunted in Jeonju.
“You told me to use this for something I want.”
“Right.”
“It’s such a good material that I can’t stop thinking about it.”
Nam Ho-yeol’s voice was incredibly bright.
He was happily pondering over a material in A-grade preservation condition.
“Given it’s an expensive material, selling it would be a good idea…”
“That’s not going to happen.”
Yoo Ji-han shook his head from side to side.
The feather from the Invisible Bird was a material he’d already committed as an investment for Nam Ho-yeol’s growth.
Even if he were to fail in making an artifact, it wouldn’t be something to regret.
Nam Ho-yeol fell silent at his response.
And after about ten seconds passed…
“Uh, Ji-han?”
“Yes?”
“Am I following you for no reason?”
As the blacksmith participating in the expedition, Nam Ho-yeol was worried that he was becoming a hindrance to the party.
But Yoo Ji-han answered immediately.
“No.”
“……”
“You are a necessary person here.”
Whether it was sewing torn equipment or sharpening blades, Nam Ho-yeol had already repaired items for the expedition more than 15 times.
He was fulfilling his role as a blacksmith quite well.
“Is it about what happened earlier?”
“Well, yes.”
When the heroes were devoured by the Whale Monster.
Nam Ho-yeol thought that if it hadn’t been for him, the heroes would have escaped the Whale Monster quicker and wouldn’t have missed the People from Another World.
“I acted all cool with my wife, but it’s embarrassing…”
“But thanks to that, the Sylph was able to speak.”
Had he not worried about Nam Ho-yeol and just slipped out of the Whale Monster’s body, he might have missed the Magic Crystal hidden inside the Whale Monster’s belly right in front of him.
What had been a crisis transformed into an excellent opportunity.
—Hehe! Nam Ho-yeol is an idiot!
“What’s with your tone?”
—Ah!
Yoo Ji-han playfully flicked the Sylph on the head.
Then he turned to Nam Ho-yeol.
“Imagine when my child grows up enough to understand words, I’ll tell them today’s story.”
“To my child?”
“You’ll surely be a respected father.”
“Haha, I hope so.”
“Have you thought of a name for your soon-to-be-born child?”
“Not yet… If it’s alright, can you name one for me, Ji-han?”
“Me? Really?”
“If it’s a good name, I’ll consider it a candidate.”
“Hmm, I’m not particularly talented at naming…”
The night deepened with the conversation between the two men.
*
The next morning.
Having recovered their stamina, Yoo Ji-han’s party completed a quick check-up and moved toward the bus terminal near Goheung.
This place was where the Happy Time Guild and the Zhuque Guild were supposed to gather after descending to Goheung.
‘Looks like a fight happened here.’
The bus terminal still bore traces of battle.
Ruined buses and scattered tires caught Yoo Ji-han’s eye.
With this situation, they might have already left.
“Hey! Over there!”
At that moment, Kim Si-hu spotted someone inside the terminal building.
It was a hero wearing specialized equipment.
He too spotted Yoo Ji-han’s party and poked his head out from a broken window.
“Could it be… Park Jae-kyung?!”
“That’s right.”
The heroes of Yoon Do-ha’s party recognized him.
As they faced each other, they were indeed heroes belonging to Happy Time and Zhuque, just as expected.
The Vice Guild Master of Happy Time, who came as a representative, asked Park Jae-kyung.
“Why are you here when you should be in Yeosu?”
“Um…”
Park Jae-kyung briefly explained the situation to them.
Mainly, he conveyed that the People from Another World who had fled from Yeosu had entered Goheung.
“Did you happen to run into them?”
“No, we didn’t see anyone like that.”
“How are you operating in Goheung right now?”
“We arrived last night and are currently searching extensively.”
In Happy Time, where there were quite a few tamers, they were mainly using their pets for scouting Goheung.
However, unlike the Yeosu expeditionary force, they had wasted a lot of time getting caught in illusions.
As a result, despite searching through the night, they had made no significant progress.
“Oh, there come the search party! We’re about to hold a meeting. Would you like to join us?”
“Sure.”
With the search party returning after three hours, a meeting was held at the terminal.
“We found a suspicious ship entering the port!”
“That’s the one we’ve been chasing. There’s no one there now.”
“Uh… well then, aside from encountering a few monsters, there’s nothing else particularly noteworthy.”
“The People from Another World?”
“No humans were sighted.”
Unfortunately, the returning search party could not bring back any particularly useful information aside from the ship used by the People from Another World.
Considering that the groups of People from Another World and monsters must have moved together at night, it appeared they had hidden themselves through magic.
“We need to deploy a wider search party than this!”
“Instead, let’s just relocate entirely.”
“That’s right. There’s no point in staying at the terminal.”
……
……
During the internal meeting, opinions about the course of action for the expeditionary force were exchanged.
Some suggested to widen the search party while others wanted to move to a completely different location.
Various other methods were also suggested, but none produced solid ideas.
At that moment, Yoo Ji-han exchanged a brief glance with Park Jae-kyung and spoke.
“I know their hideout.”
“Excuse me, who are you?”
“You idiot! It’s the Spirit Master.”
“Oh, that person…”
People who recognized Yoo Ji-han whispered softly among themselves.
In the midst of that, a man spoke up.
“What gives you the right to know their hideout?”
“Excuse me?”
“Who are you to say you know where they are hiding?”
Though he doubted Yoo Ji-han’s words, Park Jae-kyung quickly intervened.
“I can guarantee that you can trust him.”
“Park Jae-kyung says so?”
“Yoo Ji-han is the joint leader of the Yeosu expeditionary force along with me.”
“……?”
At the declaration that Yoo Ji-han was the expedition leader, several people frowned or tilted their heads.
The man who had initially questioned him had a similar reaction.
“What about Jung Gi-jun from Red Hole?”
“Gi-jun has given his place to Ji-han.”
“Why? That guy is Rank 3! Isn’t that a bit low?”
“That’s just how much Gi-jun recognizes him.”
“It’s not like an expedition is a playground; I really don’t get it…”
He was displeased that someone who seemed inferior to him occupied a higher position.
After this expedition, each person would receive rewards from the country based on their contributions.
He felt unhappy that Yoo Ji-han would get better rewards than he would.
But at that moment.
“So what?”
“……Huh?”
With a single comment from Min Yu-ri, the man who had raised his voice was momentarily dumbfounded.
“What do you mean it doesn’t make sense? You weren’t in Yeosu.”
“No…”
“Ji-han is a leader recognized by both the Hero Department and the expeditionary force. This isn’t something you can question.”
Min Yu-ri’s sharp rebuttal silenced the man.
She then turned her piercing gaze around the room and spoke.
“Don’t belittle our party leader just because you don’t know him well.”
“Snap!”
At Min Yu-ri and Chilla’s slightly angered attitude,
Those who had previously disregarded Yoo Ji-han simultaneously flinched.
“I completely agree with him.”
Even Park Jae-kyung strongly supported Min Yu-ri.
The meeting room fell momentarily silent in the fierce atmosphere created by the two women.
‘So Park Jae-kyung would back her up too.’
‘She isn’t usually like this, is she?’
‘The way everyone’s defending him shows there’s definitely something to it.’
Thanks to the two of them, Yoo Ji-han could comfortably continue speaking.
*
The meeting led by Yoo Ji-han concluded.
Before leaving the terminal, he took a brief moment to chat with his party members.
They discussed how to coordinate their teamwork in the upcoming battle.
“J-Ji-han!”
At that moment, Nam Ho-yeol, who had been lingering by Chilla’s side, called out to Yoo Ji-han.
Wondering what was going on, all the party members turned their heads that way.
Everyone was shocked when they saw him.
“What the?!”
“No way!”
“Your hand! Where’s Ho-yeol’s right hand?!”
Nam Ho-yeol’s right hand had seemingly vanished right up to his wrist.
Just then, as Nam Ho-yeol fiddled around in the air with his left hand, his right hand reappeared.
Yoo Ji-han’s eyes widened as he looked at what was in his hand.
“Could it be…?”
“It’s the feather!”
It was a ring artifact made from the feather of the Invisible Bird.
