Wandering Mercenary in an Open World

Yan, who had belatedly discovered the corpses of the hunter and the fairy woman, was startled and backed away.

Regardless of his reaction, the woman adjusted her rag-like clothes and pointed at the corpses with her finger.

“The wicked curse that befell them has death as its starting point. You said you were involved with Hela, so you must know what I’m talking about, right?”

Before she finished speaking, Ruon ran out of the cave.

Ki-ee-ee-ee-

A terrible roar that seemed to squeeze his vocal cords rang out again. It came from the direction of the village.

Ruon immediately hit the ground. Under the dim moonlight, he moved at an incredible speed, cutting through the bushes. He arrived at the entrance of the village in an instant.

The village was a complete disaster.

Screams of terror erupted from all directions, livestock that had broken through the fence ran around in fear, and some houses were engulfed in flames.

And he saw the culprits of all this, roaming the village.

They had hideous, twisted faces, sharp teeth and claws that protruded, and a bizarre movement that rolled their feet like quadrupeds. They were ghouls.

Kee-ah-ah-ak!

Then, one of the ghouls that spotted Ruon let out a deafening scream and charged at him.

As he faced the monster that seemed to embody the malice against the living, Ruon gripped the handle of his sword.

With a sound of hooves pounding the ground, a black horse appeared and turned its body with great elasticity, kicking the ghoul with its hind legs.

With a sound of a watermelon bursting, the ghoul’s head was crushed and it collapsed to the ground, twitching.

The black horse, whose hind legs were stained with blood and flesh, approached Ruon with a snort. It looked like it had escaped from the stable on its own in the midst of the chaos.

You’re a hot-headed one.

Ruon smiled faintly and climbed onto the back of the nightmare. He said,

“Let’s go.”

Hee-hee-hee-hee!

As if responding to its master’s words, the black horse neighed loudly and started to run forward. In that direction, there was a ghoul that was trying to devour a young man who looked like a member of the self-defense force.

Ruon quickly drew his sword and leaned his body sideways, stretching his arm downward.

Kerk?

The ghoul, startled by the fierce sound of hooves, lifted its head only to be slashed by the flashing blade that passed by its neck.

As the severed neck spun around, spraying blood everywhere, the black horse turned itself around and sped up again. On its path, there was another ghoul.

You’re definitely a useful guy.

The nightmare found the cursed beings that were spread throughout the village with amazing accuracy. On top of that creature, Ruon swung his sword wildly and spotted the young men who were struggling in the distance.

“Hang in there! Don’t back down!”

“Where’s Yan? Where did he go?”

“Stop talking nonsense and focus!”

They were wielding spears against a large ghoul, but they looked more like they were flailing to survive than fighting.

Hee-hee-hee-hee!

The black horse also noticed that scene and ran straight toward it.

Because the young men were huddled together, the space to swing his sword was limited, so Ruon made a light movement and stood on the saddle. With his overwhelming agility and strength, he stood upright on the running horse without shaking and threw himself at the ghoul.

“What, what is that?”

One of the young men screamed as a large shadow passed over his head. In the air, Ruon grabbed the ghoul’s head and slammed it into the ground as he landed.

Bang-!

Then, he casually dusted himself off and got up, shaking off the flesh on his hand. The young men gaped at him.

“Th-thank you for saving us.”

“You’re the one who knocked out the hunter at the inn earlier!”

Ruon nodded slightly and answered.

“I’ll take care of the ghouls, so don’t wander around outside and hide in the house right now. Don’t even think about coming out until it’s quiet.”

At his firm voice, the young men quickly hid their bodies in a nearby house. Soon, they heard the sound of a lock clicking.

The human hunters are dead for sure.

Ruon sighed lightly as he confirmed that the clothes on the ghoul’s body, whose head was smashed and killed, were the same as Pablo’s.

Grrr-grrr

Then, with a filthy sound that sounded like phlegm boiling over, ghouls began to slowly reveal themselves from all directions.

Ruon smirked as he saw the red eyes of the hateful creatures.

“Why? Do you still remember the beating you got when you were alive?”

As if his words were a trigger, the ghouls roared and rushed at him.

Ruon immediately swung his sword horizontally. The ghoul that was swept by its trajectory was cut in half at the waist and fell to the ground. Then, he turned his body and slapped the head of another ghoul that came close with the back of his hand.

The fist that didn’t lose any speed even after smashing one head crushed another ghoul’s head and stopped. But it wasn’t because of the force.

Possible continuation:

It was because he sensed something behind him.

He quickly turned around and saw a woman standing there. She had long silver hair, pointed ears, and a slender figure. She was wearing a simple dress that barely covered her body, revealing her fair skin and curves. She was the fairy woman he had seen in the cave.

She looked at him with a cold expression and said,

“You’re too late. The curse has already spread throughout the village. There’s no way to stop it now.”

Ruon frowned and asked,

“What curse? What are you talking about?”

She shook her head and said,

“You don’t know anything, do you? You’re just a pawn of Hela, the goddess of death. She’s the one who created this curse, using the blood of the hunter you killed. She wants to turn this village into a nest of ghouls, and use them as her army to invade the other realms.”

Ruon felt a chill run down his spine. He remembered the hunter’s last words.

“Hela… will reward me…”

He realized that he had unwittingly helped Hela’s plan by killing the hunter. He clenched his teeth and said,

“Is there no way to stop it? Can’t you do something? You’re a fairy, right? Don’t you have some magic or something?”

She looked at him with pity and said,

“I’m sorry, but it’s too late. The curse is too powerful for me to undo. Even if I could, I wouldn’t. This is the fate of the humans who dared to hunt us down and destroy our forest. They deserve to suffer and die.”

She turned around and said,

“I’m leaving this place. You should do the same, before the ghouls overwhelm you. Or better yet, join them. You’re already tainted by Hela’s touch. You’ll never be free of her.”

She walked away, leaving Ruon alone with the ghouls. He felt a surge of anger and frustration. He wanted to stop her, to make her help him, to save the village. But he knew it was useless. She was right. He was too late.

He looked at the ghouls that were closing in on him. He saw their twisted faces, their sharp teeth and claws, their bizarre movements. He wondered if he would become one of them soon.

He gripped his sword and said,

“No. I won’t give up. I won’t let Hela win. I’ll fight until the end.”

He raised his sword and charged at the ghouls, shouting,

“Come on, you bastards! Let’s see who dies first!”

Before the ghoul’s sharp claws could reach his heart, Ruon twisted the creature’s arm, slamming its body to the ground as if shaking out wet laundry.

Crunch—

The chilling sound of bones and muscles being displaced echoed, and a cloud of dust rose high into the air.

After discarding the twisted corpse like a piece of trash, Ruon immediately gripped the hilt of his sword with both hands. The sharp blade glowed with red runes that seemed to push away the darkness.

Spinning the Ego Sword in his hand, leaving a trail of red afterimages, Ruon suddenly charged towards the distant monsters.

In an instant, the ghouls began to fall one by one, unable to mount even a feeble counterattack, their bodies piling up on the ground.

Screech—Screech—Thud!

Ruon crushed the skull of a ghoul, crawling on the ground with its legs severed below the knees, with his foot and quietly lifted his head.

With the last ghoul slain, no more remained in the village. The ensuing silence confirmed it.

As Ruon caught his breath, the Nightmare horse approached him slowly, rubbing its head against him.

“Where have you been?”

With a faint smile, Ruon stroked the black horse’s mane, and someone approached him, saying,

“To kill a horde of ghouls single-handedly without showing a hint of fatigue. Truly, you possess an extraordinary physique.”

A fairy woman appeared, clapping her hands in admiration. The Nightmare, enjoying Ruon’s touch, suddenly snorted and stood between them with an imposing presence.

Despite the lack of wind, the woman watched the fluttering black mane and said,

“You’re a strange one, aren’t you? Overcoming the power of a lowly creature due to a long-standing curse, yet you guard against me… Was this form not of your own choosing?”

Despite her calm voice, the Nightmare stood its ground, and Ruon spoke soothingly,

“It’s alright.”

The horse stepped back slowly.

“Such a clever creature, isn’t it?”

The fairy woman, with a faint smile, slowly extended her hand and added,

“I mean you no harm, so I hope you won’t startle and take off my head.”

Her body began to tremble, and a sinister purple light started to seep out—not from her body, but from the mysterious tattoos covering it.

What’s this now?

Ruon realized why she had added that warning. The purple light, distorting the faint moonlight and spreading like fog, was ominously unsettling.

He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, ready to sever her head from her body if she made any false moves.

But there was no need for concern.

The sinister light did not target Ruon but the corpses of the ghouls on the ground. As the light penetrated the monsters’ bodies, a sharp scream echoed through the air.

It was as if they were being dragged to hell, and Ruon frowned at the chilling death throes.

He asked,

“What did you do?”

“I’ve broken the curse.”

“Broken it?”

“Yes, a curse is a power that can linger in the world for a very long time if given the chance. If we had buried those ghouls as they were, new monsters would have arisen from the rotten soil. It’s like a shackle. A curse is…”

As the fairy woman trailed off, Ruon watched her intently and said,

“Yan?”

“If you’re referring to Yan, the man who arrived late in the cave, he’s tending to the injured.”

Suddenly sensing movement, Ruon looked around.

The villagers, who had been hiding in their homes during the sudden ordeal, were now peeking out cautiously. Among them were young militia men whose lives had been saved by Ruon.

One of them asked timidly,

“Excuse me, warrior. What happened to the monsters?”

“They’re all dead.”

Ruon replied calmly and turned to the woman, suggesting,

“This doesn’t seem like a conversation to have standing up. Shall we move somewhere more comfortable?”

***

Shortly after, Ruon and the woman arrived at an inn and managed to secure the largest room.

Despite the chaos that had engulfed the village, the innkeeper spared no effort in accommodating Ruon.

He even hurriedly called his daughter to bring clothes for the nearly naked fairy woman.

Grateful for the innkeeper’s kindness, Ruon offered a substantial amount of silver coins, but the innkeeper refused, saying,

“In just half a day, you’ve bestowed upon me, my daughter, and the villagers a debt of gratitude we can never repay. How could I take money from such a person?”

With no choice but to accept the refusal, Ruon entered the room and leaned back in a wooden chair, gazing out the window.

Yan was shouting something at the young men, holding a torch. Ruon could have listened in, but he chose not to. It was undoubtedly a speech about restoring the devastated village.

He’s a good son-in-law.

With that thought and a faint smile, Ruon was interrupted when the door opened, and the woman entered the room.

She had washed her body and changed into proper clothes, and she was not unworthy of the adjective beautiful, but it was inevitable that her eyes were more drawn to the grotesque tattoo that started from her chin.

What the hell is that?

The tattoo, which seemed to express something indescribable rather than letters or pictures, gave the viewer a hard-to-explain discomfort just by looking at it.

Moreover, Ruon, who had witnessed the ominous purple that had leaked out of the tattoo, could not shake off the uneasy feeling.

Meanwhile, the woman sitting across from him sighed softly and opened her mouth.

“I was so sorry for how much you were shaking. Why did you insist on washing me by yourself…”

Ruon realized that the remark was directed at the innkeeper’s daughter, but he was not curious, so he went straight to the point.

“Did the pursuers who chased you all die and get cursed to become ghouls?”

“Wait, wait. No matter how urgent it is, it would be better to introduce ourselves first after moving to a different place.”

The fairy stretched out her hand. Ruon grabbed her hand and she said.

“My name is Tarwen.”

“Ruon.”

Tarwen shrugged her shoulders lightly at Ruon’s dry introduction.

“Okay, Ruon. I’ll answer your question. You asked if the ones who chased me were all cursed, right? Well… I’m not sure, but if they had contact with the witch, there’s a high chance of that.”

That was the end of her words, and silence came for a moment. It was a temporary silence that came because the two had questions about each other. They had to think about what to ask.

The one who organized his thoughts first was Ruon.

“You’ve been lumping the target who chased you from the cave as a witch, not Hella… Is the one who’s chasing you a group, not an individual? And the reason you’re being chased is because of that tattoo?”

Tarwen’s eyes widened at the smooth question.

“…You’re not just a strong warrior, are you? That insight is amazing.”

It’s hard not to know when you have such an extraordinary tattoo.

Ruon muttered to himself, and Tarwen nodded and answered. “That’s right. Exactly. I’m being chased by a group of witches called ‘The Cradle of the Dead’, and Hella, who you mentioned, is also a member of that place. And this tattoo that covers my body is the reason they’re chasing me.”

Ruon asked her as she took a breath.

“What is that tattoo?”

Tarwen hesitated for a moment, then opened her mouth slowly.

“You must have noticed, but this is not an ordinary tattoo. It’s a magic circle. The most evil one in the world.”

She added with a grim expression.

“A magic that opens a passage to the abyss.”

Here is the edited version of your text:

After washing herself and changing into decent clothes, she looked beautiful enough to deserve the compliment, but her eyes were inevitably drawn to the bizarre tattoo that began from her chin.

What was that thing?

It was not a letter or a picture, but something unspeakable that the tattoo seemed to convey. It gave a hard-to-describe sense of disgust to anyone who looked at it.

Ruon, who had seen the sinister purple leaking from the tattoo, felt a nagging uneasiness.

The woman sitting opposite him let out a low sigh and spoke.

“I felt so sorry for how much you trembled. Why did you stubbornly want to wash me by yourself…”

Ruon knew she was talking to the innkeeper’s daughter, but he didn’t care. He got to the point.

“Did the curse of becoming ghouls fall on all the people who chased you?”

“Hold on, hold on. We should at least introduce ourselves first, now that we’ve moved to a different place.”

The fairy held out her hand. Ruon took it and she said.

“I’m Tarwen.”

“Ruon.”

Ruon’s introduction was terse, and Tarwen shrugged lightly.

“Alright, Ruon. I’ll answer your question. You asked if those who chased me were all cursed, right? Well… I can’t be sure, but it’s likely if they touched the witch.”

She paused, and silence fell for a moment. It was a brief silence that came from their curiosity about each other. They had to think of what to ask.

Ruon was the first to sort out his thoughts.

“From the cave, you’ve been calling the one who chased you a witch, not Hella… Are you being chased by a group, not an individual? And is it because of that tattoo?”

Tarwen widened her eyes at his fluent question.

“…You’re more than just a strong warrior, aren’t you? That’s some insight.”

It was hard to miss when she had such an unusual tattoo.

Ruon muttered to himself, and Tarwen nodded and replied. “Yes. You’re right. I’m being chased by a witch group called ‘The Cradle of the Dead’, and Hella is one of them. And this tattoo that covers my body is why they’re after me.”

Ruon asked her as she caught her breath.

“What is that tattoo?”

Tarwen hesitated for a moment, then said slowly.

“You must have realized, but this is no ordinary tattoo. It’s a magic circle. The most wicked one in the world.”

She added with a grim face.

“A magic that opens a gateway to the abyss.”