Chapter 182

Chapter 182:  The Undying Monster

A dark, fog-filled forest.

Within it, a village could be seen.

Roughly twenty households.

At a glance, it might have seemed like an ordinary rural village, but in one corner of the village stood a wall of wooden fences... and beyond them lay scattered mounds, large and small.

Moreover, behind those fences stood men ranging from their teens to forties, gripping farming tools or hammers in their hands.

Tension was etched on every face.

Everyone looked utterly exhausted, their cheeks hollow, and deep shadows darkened the skin beneath their eyes.

At that moment, a boy in his teens lowered his head with a nod.

“Michael! Snap out of it.”

A middle-aged man struck the boy’s side with his elbow as he spoke.

“S-sorry!”

“Do you wanna die? Don’t you get it? Right now, the lives of the villagers are in our hands!”

“I-I understand. I’m sorry, Chief. I’m just so tired…”

The middle-aged man was about to continue lashing out, his nerves frayed to the breaking point—

Thud. Thud.

—Grrrrrrraaaaah!

A low growl and footsteps echoed from beyond the fog.

“……”

In that instant, everyone's hair stood on end.

They clenched their weapons tightly, their eyes trained in the direction of the sound.

A shadow, shaped like a human, trudged steadily toward them.

“Uuuuuuugh…”

The boy who had been dozing off went pale, his entire body trembling like a leaf.

Moments later—

Grrrrraaaaah!

The shadow in the fog revealed its true form.

A gray, humanoid figure.

Its outer skin was violently torn, exposing flesh, veins, and muscle in places. Maggots squirmed between its empty, hollow eyes.

Its appearance alone was overwhelming.

Gulp.

Everyone swallowed hard.

‘G-Ghast.’

Undead creatures that had returned from death, similar to zombies.

The problem was that most of these beings had once possessed mana in their bodies.

Even in death, their thick limbs and entire forms gave off a faint blue mist.

All of it pointed to one thing—this wasn’t just another monster.

“Damn it…”

The village chief bit his lip, staring at the creature.

‘Damn mercenaries!’

Ghasts had begun appearing near the village not long ago.

In an attempt to stop them, he had requested help from a mercenary band through the church, and even sent letters to a nearby noble and the Imperial family… but not a single response had come.

Already, four or five nearby villages had been wiped out.

The conclusion was simple.

‘They’ve abandoned us. No doubt.’

In a way, it was inevitable.

Ghasts weren’t just hard to kill—they were monsters far more savage than ordinary zombies.

There wasn’t a single noble soul who would willingly step up to hunt that thing down for the measly reward this village could offer.

—Screeeech!

“It-it’s coming!”

“Hold the line!”

At that moment, the Ghast picked up speed and charged toward the barricade.

BOOOOM!

As its body slammed into the structure, the entire fence shuddered violently.

It was like being rammed by a bull.

“Ugh! H-hold it!”

Several men braced themselves behind the barricade, pushing back with their bodies to hold firm.

“Stab it! Now!”

Others frantically jabbed their farming tools through the gaps, attacking the Ghast.

But—

—Screeeeech!

Even when pierced and slashed, the creature didn’t falter.

To make matters worse, the wounds they inflicted frothed with bubbling foam and healed almost instantly.

“This is insane…!”

“It’s a damn immortal!”

The men’s voices grew more frantic, and the Ghast, as if responding to their panic, became even more frenzied.

BOOM! CRASH!

With each blow against the barricade, the people standing behind it staggered as if they’d be sent flying.

“Hold the line! Don’t let it through! If we fall here, it’s all over!”

“Daaaamn iiiiiit!”

Everyone gritted their teeth and dug their feet into the ground.

If they gave way now, not only would they die—but so would their children, their beloved wives and parents… torn apart and devoured by that impossible monster.

But if sheer desperation alone could save them, wouldn’t life be much easier?

The Ghast's eyes suddenly flared with a blue glow as it rammed its body into the barricade once more.

CRAAAAASH!

“Aaaaargh!”

The barricade shattered into pieces, and those clinging to it were hurled several meters through the air before crashing to the ground.

“Aaaaagh!”

“M-my back!”

Had they been seriously injured?

They flailed about in agony, like fish dragged from a net.

But there was no time to check on the wounded.

—Grrrhhh…

“D-don’t come any closer!”

“Eeeek!”

The Ghast, drooling thick spit, stepped over the broken barricade and approached.

“R-run!”

“Hiiiieee!”

Terrified, the men broke into a panicked retreat.

And then—

“Aaack!”

One boy tripped over a rock and fell hard to the ground.

The Ghast flicked its tongue.

Thump!

It turned in the boy’s direction and accelerated.

‘I-I’m going to die!’

A chill shot down the boy’s spine. Every muscle in his body tensed in paralyzed fear.

“Daaaaamn iiiiiit!”

Suddenly, the village chief burst out from the side, thrusting his farming tool forward.

Of course…

CRACK!

“Gaaah!”

The Ghast’s claws swiped once—cleanly shattering the weapon—and the chief was sent flying, coughing up blood from his chest as he tumbled backward.

“Uuugh… uuuuuuugh…”

The boy’s body trembled violently, then finally gave out.

His legs wouldn’t move. The entire situation no longer felt real.

Lying on the ground, the chief reached out with a trembling arm and said—

“Quick… run, you idiot…”

Screeeeech!

Just as the Ghast turned its attention to the chief and tried to rip out his throat—

CRAAACK!

Screeeeech!

Suddenly, a black shadow appeared like a lightning bolt, and the Ghast was flung backward, rolling and tumbling across the ground.

“Huh?”

“What the…?”

The village chief, the boy, and the other villagers stared wide-eyed at the newcomer.

A blond-haired boy stood there, cracking his knuckles casually.

“Everyone okay?”

“W-who… who might you be, sir?”

“Who else? Your savior, obviously.”

Hardin tilted his head and gave a thumbs-up as he spoke.

Screeeech!

The enraged Ghast charged once more.

Even faster than before—an attack like thunder.

But—

“I wasn’t finished talking.”

Hardin smoothly deflected the creature’s incoming strike, then grabbed its forearm—

CRACKKK!

—and bent it backward in the opposite direction.

Screeech!

Perhaps in panic, the creature twisted its body and thrashed wildly.

“Not so fast.”

CRACK!

Hardin brutally slammed its shin, snapping the leg at an unnatural angle as well.

It was the kind of scene that would make anyone watching wince.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

What followed was a one-sided, relentless barrage of violence.

‘H-he’s strong.’

‘Who is this guy?’

The villagers watching could hardly keep their mouths shut in disbelief.

No one knew how much time had passed—

Screeeee…

—but eventually, the Ghast trembled and could no longer move.

It still seemed to be breathing, but its strength had completely faded.

Everyone silently stared, wondering why Hardin wasn’t finishing the thing off.

At that moment, Hardin looked at the chief and asked,

“You’re the village chief, right?”

“Y-yes, I am.”

“I’ll take care of all the Ghasts around here. So, help me out.”

“Are… are you serious? You’ll help us…?”

“Yeah. So are you in or not?”

To that—

“I’ll help in any way I can! Just tell me what to do!”

“M-me too!”

The men standing nearby grabbed their weapons and shouted enthusiastically.

Hardin crossed his arms and said,

“Alright, then it’s settled. First… capture this thing.”

“Excuse me?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You know what capture means, right? Tie it up with rope, shove it in a wooden box—just don’t kill it. Subdue it.”

“I-I understand, but… why not just kill it?”

For a war prisoner, maybe… but capture? It was a word that didn’t suit a harmful undead like a Ghast.

In response, Hardin raised the corner of his lips into a grin.

“I’ve got a use for these guys.”

For the sake of the family, that is.

---

---

A few days later, in a corner of the fog-covered village—

“Stack it in the back, nice and tight!”

“Urrgh, lift it!”

The villagers were stacking wooden crates—each just big enough to fit a single person—neatly into the wagon’s cargo bed.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

—Grrrraaaaah!

The crates shook with low growls echoing from within.

And as the final crate was loaded onto the wagon—

“Phew… That’s the last of them, Young Master.”

The village chief wiped the sweat from his forehead as he spoke.

Standing below, the blond-haired young man, Hardin Daphne, responded.

“Haah… haaaah… Good job, everyone.”

He slumped to the ground, panting heavily.

He looked completely worn out—and for good reason.

‘Damn these Ghasts… This has been hell.’

For the past few days, Hardin had scoured the area like a bloodhound, tracking down and capturing every single Ghast.

Even with the villagers’ help, the sheer amount of work was more than one person could handle… No wonder his stamina had hit rock bottom.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Hardin asked,

“They’re all loaded up, right?”

“Yes, not a single one left behind.”

“Alright then. Guess I’ll be heading off.”

As Hardin slowly dusted himself off and made his way toward the driver’s seat—

“P-please wait, Young Master.”

“Hm?”

Hardin turned his head at the chief’s urgent call.

The chief was holding out a small pouch with both hands, offering it respectfully.

“What’s this?”

“It’s the… bounty for exterminating the Ghasts. It’s not much, but please accept it.”

“Hmmm.”

So they do have some manners after all.

Hardin exhaled a short snort through his nose and peeked inside the pouch.

‘Well, they weren’t kidding—it really isn’t much…’

The bag contained a jumble of grimy gold coins, silver coins, and even copper ones.

Clearly, the villagers had scraped together every last bit of money they could find.

Hardin stuck out his lower lip and said,

“No need to give me all this. This much is plenty.”

He picked out a few gold coins with his fingers and handed the rest of the pouch back to the chief.

“Eh? You think that’s too much…?”

That couldn’t be.

The chief knew better than anyone—mercenaries had refused to take the job for such a paltry sum, which was why the Ghast problem had remained unsolved until now.

His face filled with confusion, but Hardin just shrugged and answered,

“If I came here just to wipe out the Ghasts, I’d take the whole thing. But I only came because I needed them.”

Hardin tilted his head toward the wagon.

—Screeeeech!

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The muffled groans of the Ghasts stirred from within their wooden coffins.

“What do you mean… ‘needed them’?”

“Well, you don’t need to know that part. Just consider the rest of the money their ‘purchase price.’”

“But we can’t possibly…”

“If you really want to repay me, then when someone from the Daphne family comes around here later, treat them well.”

“D-Daphne… Is that your family name, Young Master?”

“Yeah. Remember it well.”

Because whether they wanted to or not, it would become a name they’d be hearing endlessly in the future.

Hardin grinned and climbed up into the driver’s seat.

“Let’s go!”

—Whiiiiiinnny!

The wagon rumbled to life and rolled out of the village.

Just as Hardin disappeared from view—

The boy, still standing there blankly, turned to the chief and asked,

“Who is that person, really?”

“I’m not sure myself, kid.”

In all my life… I’ve never seen a noble who would willingly step up and handle something like this.