Chapter 96
Step, step, step.
The group slowly followed the plump backside of the puppy leading the way.
How long had they been walking like that?
The scenery around them gradually began to change.
The land, once filled with vibrant colors, transformed into a barren, lifeless plain.
The once-warm air turned chilly in an instant.
“This place feels… unpleasant somehow.”
Darwin, glancing around, muttered with a slight frown on his face.
Just like he said, the lively Western Flower Field had turned into a dull shade of gray.
A gloomy wind blew through the dry, brittle branches.
‘Ugh…’
I instinctively wrapped my arms around myself at the sudden chill.
It felt like goosebumps crawling all over me.
“I really wouldn’t want to stay here long.”
As Yeriel commented, it seemed the entire group felt unsettled by this place.
[Constellation: Ruler of the Underworld Kings gives a warning.]
[Constellation: Queen of Helheim senses an energy similar to her own land.]
[Constellation: Fallen Star urges you to come closer.]
Even the constellations related to the underworld sent ominous, indirect messages.
— Keating (tinxxx): Wait, wasn’t it just a picnic vibe a moment ago…?
ㄴ Yuhee (uhewxxx): We suddenly turned into the Hell Expedition Team.
— BeautifulLand (chaxxxx): Is this really part of a flower field? Why is this kind of place tucked in here?
— Sol (quexxx): Now it finally feels like the real place to find the Calamitous Despairflower materials.
Judging by the steadily rising reader comments, it was becoming even more real that we’d arrived at the gates of hell.
‘Well, of course people would react that way.’
I felt the same unease myself.
Normally, anyone would prefer a sunlit field over a dreary, creepy wasteland.
‘Uu… uuuu…’
Even the Calamitous Despairflower…
No, now known as Myeolmangi, was trembling its leaves in my front pocket as if it disliked this place.
‘This is kind of unexpected.’
I thought its natural habitat was a gloomy, ominous place like this…
Do flowers have preferences too?
But if it’s more than just preference—
It’s like a fish being afraid of water, isn’t it?
I glanced down at Myeolmangi, who had slipped deeper into my front pocket.
‘Arf arf!’
I snapped out of my thoughts at the barking.
Turning my head, what came into view was a land void of all color—an achromatic plain with not even a hint of life.
And in the middle of it all, a giant pit whose bottom was nowhere in sight.
“Looks like we’ve arrived.”
That was the place we had to enter.
The Western Flower Field was both the “end of the living world” and the “start of the afterlife.”
As such, there were pathways throughout the field connecting to both the living world and the realms of the dead.
“This is the entrance to the Hell of the Hungry Ghosts…”
This particular place led to the Hell of the Hungry Ghosts.
‘Woof!’
The dog that had guided us completed its mission and disappeared with a puff of smoke.
That confirmed we were in the right place.
The real issue now was how we were supposed to capture the Hell Glutton.
“Wait… are we supposed to go down there, Sis?”
Sylvester grimaced, his face full of reluctance.
“Sh-should I fly down and take a look first…?”
Nia, on the other hand, nervously asked as if the ominous pit didn’t scare her.
“No, Nia. You don’t need to do that.”
Seeing how pale Nia’s face was—like even the Grim Reaper would want to be friends with her—it was clear she wasn’t unafraid.
She must’ve stepped forward because she thought it might help.
She really doesn’t know how to take care of herself.
“That’s a passage that leads to the underworld. If anyone goes down there, they probably won’t make it back out.”
It was obvious that the bottom was crawling with terrifying monsters.
Our team was full of high-level combatants, but still…
The Hell of the Hungry Ghosts was a place that even Three Lives Chronicle didn’t describe in detail, except to say terrifying monsters slept within.
Which meant it was also a place we couldn’t recklessly enter.
If we went down carelessly, we could be ambushed—
No, we could end up buried alive beneath a swarm of hungry ghosts.
“So what do we do?”
Xenon, peering down into the pit, asked me.
I tapped my forehead in thought at his question.
‘There has to be a way…’
Biting my lip and thinking it over, I slowly lifted my head as a memory brushed past my mind.
“If we can’t go down, then we bring them up.”
The Hungry Ghosts were beings who ceaselessly wandered in search of something to consume.
“We’re going to bait the starving ghosts.”
Which meant they could probably be lured—with food.
And the food that most drew them in…
“They go wild for the blood of the living.”
Fresh blood.
At my words, my comrades’ expressions darkened noticeably.
The blood of the living.
Just hearing the phrase made it sound like someone would have to sacrifice their neck.
But I wasn’t talking about anyone’s life—just the literal meaning of ‘blood.’
What the Hungry Ghosts craved was the very essence of life itself.
That’s why they would lose their minds over the blood of the living.
“But… what if something way too powerful crawls out from down there?”
Yeriel raised the concern anxiously.
I gave him a soft smile.
“Don’t worry, Yeriel.”
Of course, I’d already thought of that.
“The strength of monsters or vengeful spirits depends on the severity of their sins in life.”
There was an episode set in hell in Three Lives Chronicle, and this was one of the settings I vaguely remembered.
“The stronger they are, the heavier their karmic burden—and that means they’re tightly bound to hell’s causality.”
So any creature capable of crawling up this pit…
Even if strong, would be limited enough that our party could handle it.
“The really powerful ones won’t be able to reach this side.”
They’d have to bear the weight of their own karma just to climb up.
And in the process, they’d use up a tremendous amount of power…
It might even be easier than we expected.
“As expected of my sister! So smart!”
Lyria sparkled with admiration.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, I cleared my throat and looked around at the team.
“So, does everyone agree?”
My comrades all nodded one by one and began preparing for battle.
“Don’t be too nervous. Just do what we always do. The monsters will likely be on par with the ones we met in the Black-and-White War.”
The main one we were after—the Hell Glutton—might be a bit tougher.
But things like ‘Wandering Spirits’ or ‘Blood Hungry Wraiths’ should be easy enough for even Celestine or Sylvester, whose combat abilities were relatively lower.
“Alright then.”
I slowly raised a dagger, intending to cut my palm and let the blood drip down into the pit.
But then…
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Xenon grabbed my wrist firmly and looked straight at me.
“What? We need blood to lure them, don’t we?”
How else were we going to bait them?
As I stared at him in confusion, he shook his head and sighed.
“You’re offering to hurt yourself like it’s the most natural thing in the world.”
…Huh. Was I?
I just didn’t want to ask someone else to do it, since that felt even more awkward…
And it’s not like this kind of wound wouldn’t heal quickly with a potion.
“Forget it. I’ll do it.”
Without waiting for my reply, Xenon took out a dagger and sliced his own palm.
“It’s a bad habit to offer yourself up so easily.”
As he let the blood drip into the pit, he gave me that little scolding, and I tilted my head.
Is this really what you’d call a sacrifice?
I just thought that since it was my idea, it was natural for me to be the one to act on it.
“No, I just—”
But before I could say anything else, a sound from below cut me off.
Rustle rustle—
The faint sound of something crawling up quickly.
I looked down over the edge of the pit.
Flash!
Sinister, crimson eyes flickered in the darkness below.
‘Blood. It’s blood…’
‘Fresh blood…’
‘A living prey…!’
And then, whispers filled with insatiable greed.
Sensing that, I instantly pushed all thoughts away and tensed my body.
“Everyone, be careful!”
It seemed we had hooked more fish than we’d planned for.
**((“Myeolmangi,” as a name, directly translates to “Doombringer” or “Harbinger of Ruin.”))
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