“Impossible!”
A shout rang out from an unexpected direction.
An old sorcerer-monk with vivid green skin mottled with black spots—resembling a toad—stumbled out of the temple and screamed.
“That can’t be! No way! How dare—how dare a mere human!?”
“Right. That’s not normally a spell you can trigger so easily.”
But not now.
I have the pillar stone—the conduit embossed with the Abyssal Entity’s influence.
“Stop! Stop! How dare you mock our faith! Our god! Our master!”
“Stop what? It’s already done.”
I relished the screams in my ears as I shifted the magic circles.
Kwad-d-d-deuk!
“Grrr—grgrgrgr—grgrrgk—”
[“Abyssal Entity: Gajashirah Buddha”’s descent is cancelled.]
The giant brass statue, prepared to serve as the vessel for [Sangdubul]’s arrival, went motionless.
Though traces of [Sangdubul] remain in the statue, it is now nothing more than an immobile relic.
[The lingering influence of “Gajashirah Buddha” dissipates.]
Wheeeee—
A sudden breeze began to flow.
Cool, clear air sweeping through the gorge.
The dampness and oppressive miasma the frog monks had artificially gathered— in short, [Sangdubul]’s power—vanished.
My noxious gas cloud faded too, but that no longer mattered.
“The god’s power is gone...?”
“How could a human, a human undo a god?”
“I—I can’t believe it’s just a human!?”
The frog monks—no, now merely frog-beings—could not accept reality and wailed in despair.
“All right, it’s over now. Release the humans reserved as offerings.”
“Not yet! Not yet! It’s not over!”
The old sorcerer-monk who’d screamed earlier clung to the brass statue with suction cups on both fingers, pouring every ounce of his strength into the gesture.
“Grrr—grgrgrgr—grgrrgk—”
“The god has returned!”
“Our Sangdubul yet stands!”
The frog-beings burst into jubilant cheers. Their fading morale rekindled.
“Well, well. I see someone left to pull off tricks.”
[Sangdubul]’s descent was cancelled.
Though the statue moved before, it was only the puppet show of a long-practiced sorcerer.
“No need for an overpowered spell... but to utterly crush their spirit, a proper demonstration is in order.”
[Gravity Control]
[Elemental Focus]
[Cold Convergence]
Kkri-kik—grgrrgk—kik-kik-kik—
[Gravity Control] drew the scattered rock fragments together.
Then [Elemental Focus] and [Cold Convergence] fused those fragments into a singular form.
“That—that is!?”
“Ali-absurd! It’s absurd!”
Ice and stone now coalesced into a massive serpent poised to strike.
“After all, a frog’s natural predator is a snake.”
[Chains of Dominion]
“Move!”
Gugugugugugugu—
The colossal snake began to writhe, dwarfing the brass statue the sorcerer had tried to animate.
“It moves! That enormous thing is moving!”
“Gyaaaah! Gyaaaaaargh!”
“Calm yourselves! Sangdubul’s blessing—”
The sorcerer-monk had tried to contest power with his brass idol, but even that pantomime was impossible now.
KRAAAANG!!
The brass statue shattered instantly.
Undeterred, I cast another spell.
[Fear Infusion]
[Words of Authority]
“Frog bastards, begone!”
I had no intention of ending with mere words.
Grumble—KRAAANG!
I unleashed the serpent on them—
“Gyaaaaargh! Flee! Flee!”
“Monster! Monster!”
“Spare me! Spare me!”
I watched the frog-beings scatter, then sent my will to Jang Hyundeok.
“Hyundeok, it’s done here. Summon Yeonam Trading.”
—Oh, that was you conjuring it, wizard? Understood!
It wasn’t truly a summoning—just a forced assembly of elements made to move—but details matter little.
A sleek suit reinforced with metal plating at every seam.
“Impressive. I knew I could count on you. Truly the best fixer!”
And a chest so broad it blocked my view.
“You were the one who said you’d come?”
“Oh? Such gruff tone. After so long, you aren’t glad to see me?”
His rippling muscles strained against the suit, as though ready to tear the fabric at any moment.
“Well, it has been a while.”
“Not glad, then?”
He lowered his head and pressed his face close to mine.
Ugh—needlessly persistent.
“Ugh, fine. Good to see you, Team Leader Kwak Daeyong.”
“Hahaha! Indeed, you’re still remarkable.”
This time I’d completed three contracts.
[Quest Complete!
Defeat the cultists occupying Yeonam Construction’s resort site and secure the Jawungsan Gorge.
Reward: 4,000,000 XP + ₩150,000,000 + Yeonam Group Trust]
[Quest Complete!
[Quest Complete!
All tied to Yeonam Group.
So the security chief from Yeonam Construction, Kwak Daeyong, showed up to oversee the relic recovery and HR protection.
[You have gained sufficient experience to advance. Level increased by 1.]
With messages cluttering my view, I reluctantly dealt with Kwak Daeyong.
“I expected someone else, not Team Leader Kwak.”
“Huh? Why’s that?”
Because in the game—
“Well, I thought someone from Yeonam Trading would come.”
“Ah—I see. Because of the relics? Normally, yes, but I’m no longer with Yeonam Construction’s security.”
Kwak Daeyong had long served as security chief for Yeonam Construction and bodyguard for Supervisor Moon Seunghee—then faded out. Now things seemed different.
“So where are you assigned now? Should I call you something else?”
“Hmm, still team leader... but my position’s changed.”
He pulled a crisp business card from his pocket and handed it to me.
Ha, I never thought I’d receive Kwak Daeyong’s card.
It read: Section Chief, Security Team 1, YA Security—Kwak Daeyong.
“YA Security?”
Jang Hyundeok’s voice piped up behind me, having read the card over my shoulder.
“No, it’s said as W-A. From Yeon-Am Group’s W-A.”
Kwak clarified.
“Oh.”
Hyundeok’s halfhearted murmur.
“Hmm...”
I tapped the purifier canister on my gas mask, thinking.
‘What is this? Something new.’
“This is the integrated security firm Yeonam Group just launched. They transferred each subsidiary’s security teams here and....”
“So they operate by redeploying personnel?”
“Exactly. We handle not just guarding but also work for fixers like you. Things have been rough lately, right?”
“Uh—wizard, isn’t this like when a big corporation... invades mom-and-pop territory?”
“Well, I get it. But they still subcontract in the end.”
“Hmph—they haven’t built the infrastructure yet.”
So this is how big corporations work.
They meddle as middlemen, skimming fees rather than doing the job.
“So, what do you think?”
Kwak Daeyong suddenly asked.
“What about it?”
“We talked before. You were with Yeonam Construction’s security, but now you have more authority.”
He grinned confidently.
“Any interest in joining a big corporation?”
“No.”
“No? Even the biggest company everyone admires?”
“No.”
“With the current job market—”
“No.”
“Our company benefits—”
“Don’t have any.”
“Hmm. Fair enough.”
“How’s Supervisor Moon Seunghee doing these days?”
“Ah, Supervisor Moon?”
“You still see her?”
In some story routes, you can assist Moon Seunghee in challenging Yeonam Group’s succession and uncover the dreadful family curse—the “Queenmaker” path.
I skipped the drama, but Moon Seunghee remains a top-tier ally.
“Hm—she’ll call me once this project’s done. She’s on a long assignment in Sokcho and needs a bodyguard. Probably our team will go.”
“Sokcho? That’s an interesting place too.”
In Cthulhu World, Sokcho, Inje, and Goseong are as interesting as Paju.
I wrapped up the handover with Kwak Daeyong.
“Well, if you change your mind, let me know! I’ll be expecting it!”
He waved from the passenger seat of a fully armored heavy truck, flanked by five armed escort vehicles.
“I won’t change my mind, but go ahead and expect whatever you like.”
I waved back and moved to the spot where Jang Hyundeok’s call van was hidden.
“Are we doing more today?”
“Let’s call it here. This thing is less stable than I thought.”
That “thing” meant the large stone apparatus beside the van.
“Ugh, that dolmen was unstable?”
Dolmen...
A human-shaped boulder combined with metal plates, arcane devices sealing spiritual power, and high-purity mana crystals—all crudely fused.
At a glance... it did look like a trash-covered dolmen.
“Don’t worry, it won’t explode.”
It won’t explode.
If this device malfunctions, I die—and the world roughly collapses.
[Portable Barrier Generator].
A magical tool I crafted using pillar stones over the past days.
This device inversely calculates [The One Who Waits]’s influence and emits disruptive waves that jam the entity’s magical pattern.
‘It doesn’t work on everyone, though.’
With this, I’ve hindered the descents of [Predator of the Mountains] and his avatars across Paju alongside Hyundeok.
Just like undermining the descendants of Formouth Hound—sabotaging their sanctuaries before proper rituals—then exploiting or previewing associated quests.
That’s my current work.
[Predator of the Mountains]?
Whatever entity, they need mediums—shamans, rituals, or offerings—to manifest and exert influence here at minimal cost.
They could brute-force using sacred artifacts, but try—before they use the artifact, I’ll have already plundered it.
“No matter what nonsense they try, I’ll make sure they can never descend in Paju.”
“Wizard, you’re talking to yourself again.”
“Tch!”
“Haha—so where to next? Vasiliisa?”
“No, I’m tired. Let’s go home first.”
Quest rewards can wait. And this isn’t my only accepted quest.
