016 – Nymph Inoi # 16
Before I knew it, it was evening.
The weather was significantly chilly.
Perhaps because it was dark, or because I had heard the term ‘haunted house,’ everything felt eerie.
“Ugh, there are so many bugs. Ugh, bugs.”
What was scarier was that this house had been abandoned for a long time, so there were indeed a lot of bugs. From centipedes to silverfish and cockroaches, it made me think that people might have fled because of the bugs.
—Kkungkkung…!
Fortunately, the Squirrel Beast Kkungkkungi was busy hopping around the haunted house. All the bugs had fled outside due to the unreasonable presence of Kkungkkungi.
“That’s amazing. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
—Kkungkkung…!
How could they all flee like that?
As I wondered, Inoi spoke.
“The fur of a Squirrel has a special magical power…! The special magic of a Squirrel is highly effective at driving away bugs…!”
“Really?”
“Moreover, Kkungkkungi is a big and speedy top-tier Squirrel in my view…! It’s natural that the small bugs fear Kkungkkungi…!”
I’m not sure about the science, but maybe it’s a similar effect to how bugs dislike smoke? Suddenly, a curious thought sprang to mind.
“What about Ahn Ahn? Isn’t he an ant? Wouldn’t it be bad to keep him together with Kkungkkungi?”
“Muhuhu… Ahn Ahn isn’t just any ant; he’s a powerful Emperor Ant among honey ants…! The two beings are equal in my view…! So it’s okay…!”
I see.
Indeed, the Squirrel and the Emperor Ant seemed to get along well.
Kkungkkungi was jumping everywhere, and though he would hop onto the ant’s back or pull at his legs, they seemed to have a good relationship.
—Zzuz!
The Emperor Ant Ahn Ahn began cutting through the old garden’s bushes with his sturdy front teeth or tossing them around with his horns. Was he tidying up the garden?
“Hey, this isn’t our house yet. We’ll have to clean up later.”
Just then, someone suddenly poked their face into the yard’s entrance. I was genuinely startled by the unexpected face, but before I could scream, the face spoke.
“Student, are you filming for that, um, MyTube or something?”
Upon closer inspection, it was an old man.
He looked to be in his 70s or so.
Wearing a baseball cap and a vest, he seemed like just an ordinary elder.
“Who are you?”
“Hmm, I’m the village head here. I’ve appeared on MyTube a few times; haven’t you seen? Did you come to experience the haunted house? I came to take a look.”
I see.
The village head pulled out his phone and showed me several MyTube videos he appeared in.
Seeing the numerous MyTube videos, it seemed this haunted house was a more famous place than I had thought.
“This place, you see… it’s full of water veins and is a site infused with energy. The orchard lady who originally lived here ultimately went through, what should I say, nightmares every day….”
“…Did she have an accident?”
“No, she’s living well in America. Anyway, it doesn’t sell. It’s a very unusual place. I think it might be because of that well….”
While saying this, the head glanced at the well.
However, it seemed he was extremely afraid to look directly at it.
“Twenty years ago or so, the orchard lady’s father suddenly started digging a well. He said he saw something in a dream or something. Even back then, every house had running water and filters, so I was wondering why he needed a well.”
The village head spoke ominously but was also quite excited. It seemed he had shared this story with others more than once.
“Digging alone, oh, the earth was dug swiftly like a bulldozer. That man had immense strength.”
The countryside was aging and declining since children weren’t being born and young people weren’t coming, making it a desolate place.
Talking to me, who had come to visit, it seemed like he found it fun to share trivial stories.
“In any case, after digging for several nights like a madman, he actually hit water. Isn’t that amazing? What’s more amazing is that the water was quite unusual….”
Unusual water came from the well?
As I felt puzzled, the village head coughed.
Though New Year had passed, it was still winter, so it was likely because it was cold.
“It’s cold, cold. I should go in now. Anyway, be careful of that well. There have been people who fell in there. Tell the elders to make sure that no young people have to clean up bodies.”
Swoosh-.
With those words, the village head turned to leave.
Then he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
“By the way, I’ve been curious since earlier. Is that a living squirrel you have on your shoulder?”
“Pardon? Well, it is a squirrel, but….”
—Kkungkkung…!
“Wow, this squirrel barks like a dog. It’s quite big and follows people well. Looks like it’s chasing some bugs. Can you bring it to my house for a moment?”
Indeed.
I had encountered numerous people while working as an Awakened, so I could read the room well.
This might be the main point for the village head.
Since I might end up living in this village, I thought it wouldn’t be bad to score some points with the locals in advance.
“Sure. Where is it?”
“Just a short walk, about five minutes.”
“Inoi is also going with us…!”
Pabababat-.
Inoi followed us.
The village head glanced over at Inoi and casually asked, “She reminds me of my granddaughter. Is she a nymph?”
He didn’t seem to find the nymph particularly surprising.
I thought he would be astonished, thinking, “Wow, a nymph! Elves were amazing, but this is even more amazing…!”
However, for elders, it seemed there were many experiences in life that dulled their sense of wonder, so perhaps it was no big deal to him.
Anyway.
With that feeling, we entered the village head’s house.
The house was solidly built, with a TV bigger than I could stretch my arms, and it even had two refrigerators.
—Kkungkkung…!
Sasa-sasa-.
As Kkungkkungi entered the house and barked loudly, something black that had been hiding beneath the refrigerator quickly darted out and fled outside.
It was truly a chilling scene.
“Wow, that’s incredible. Did you see that? The cockroaches just fled in an instant.”
“I saw it. It’ll be more livable now. Ugh, there have been a lot of bugs for several years….”
“Muhuhu, but this is a temporary phenomenon…! I think we must create charms to prevent the bugs from entering…!”
Inoi snipped a bit of Kkungkkungi’s tail hair with scissors, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and hung it at the entrance.
This was supposed to prevent bugs from coming in.
“Wow, that’s fascinating. It’s not just our house; it seems like we should do it for the house next door and across the street too.”
The village head marveled, clearly impressed.
Honestly, I too was surprised by Kkungkkungi’s potential.
Could this be it? If he just did pest control instead of being an Awakened, wouldn’t he make a fortune?
Of course, after a lot of hard work, I had reached C rank, and I had the desire to pursue a career as a Hunter, so I didn’t feel like doing other jobs.
“Did you say Inoi is a nymph? Do you like honey water? Have some before you go.”
An elderly woman, who seemed to be the village head’s wife, offered Inoi a glass of honey water. She looked more like a madam than a grandmother.
Inoi said, “Ahh…! It’s really good…!” and drank the honey water.
Soon after, the madam handed us a bag filled with fruits and candies.
# # #
We visited several houses, driving away the bugs and collecting loads of food like fruits and jerky. Inoi seemed in high spirits, saying, “This is a nymph-friendly village…!”
Of course, Kkungkkungi was upset.
—Grurung…!
He had lost a lot of his tail hair because we had to make so many charms.
To soothe the angry Kkungkkungi, I had to make a promise to him.
“I’ll buy you a mixed nut pack tomorrow. The one with macadamia nuts.”
—Kkungkkung…!
Kkungkkungi liked nuts but had a refined taste, especially loving the expensive peanuts. Anyway, I took a lap around the village and gathered a lot of food.
With the thought that this night wouldn’t be boring, a hint of suspicion also arose.
“They’re being too friendly to an outsider.”
There was a saying about rural sentiments, but—
The countryside I had roamed while working as an Awakened had been wary of outsiders, especially Awakened. However, this village showed none of those signs.
No, I was indeed being guarded, but Inoi wasn’t. Looking at Inoi, it seemed the wariness directed toward me had diminished.
Perhaps, thanks to Inoi’s childlike appearance, I had benefited from being in her company?
“Or… maybe the people in this village already knew about ‘Nymphs’….”
While pondering various theories, we soon arrived at the haunted house where we would be staying.
I was taken aback by how the overgrown weeds, spider webs, and thickets in the yard were now neatly tidied up.
—Zzuz!
“Did you clean too hard?”
The Emperor Ant Ahn Ahn had even gone so far as to block the hole in the wall with a large stone.
Was it good for him to work hard, being an ant?
“Take a break.”
When I sliced an apple in half and handed it to him, the ant shook his head up and down vigorously.
It was probably a sign of approval.
With that feeling, time passed.
“Ahh, the stars are so visible in the sky…! I, Inoi, thought this peculiar world had no stars…!”
In the yard, Inoi shouted while looking at the sky. Indeed, looking up at the sky, countless stars were shining. It was probably because this place wasn’t as bright as the city.
So when would the ghosts appear?
As I waited, thinking about this, time passed, and it was around 11 PM.
Zhirir-.
Something strange pricked the nape of my neck.
—Grurung…!
The Squirrel Beast Kkungkkungi, who had curled up and dozed off on a nearby cushion, perked up its fur, reacting to something.
This reaction. Could it be that a ghost was appearing?
If an unknown person had felt it, that might have been the case.
However, as a ten-year veteran Awakened, I felt differently.
“No, this is a magic response. Very faint, but….”
I regulated my breathing and circulated the mana within my body from my fingertips to the top of my head. With a tingling sensation and the faint magic thickening like a smell, I headed toward the source of the magic.
The target was the well situated in the wide yard.
Looking down into the dry well, I was shocked in many ways.
“This is…!?”
