Chapter 72: The Red Death (2)
The rainy season has come to the Red and Black Mountains.
Dark clouds covered the sky. This rainy season seemed to be the longest ever.
There was record rainfall, the likes of which even the oldest man in the village had never seen.
The rivers were overflowing like crazy, and places that had been flat just a few days before were now swamps with raging torrents.
Everything in sight was underwater.
...except for Balak's village!
"Pull tighter, tie tighter!"
"Pull up the stanchions!"
"Tighten it up! It's going to float away!"
The low-lying village of Balak was now on higher ground.
It hadn't been moved.
They simply built floating houses out of planks and logs in the tall trees and between the trees.
At least 15 meters above the ground, these wooden houses provided cozy shelter while the world around them was flooded by the river.
Vikir was at the forefront of this massive civil engineering project to raise an entire village up in the trees.
"...Luckily, I won't be swept away."
Vikir thought as he looked out at the rising river just a few meters below.
Bridges had been built between the tallest trees with ropes, planks, and logs, and the barracks were securely anchored to keep them from being blown away by the wind.
And down below, out of sight of the water, drainage ditches had been dug between the trunks and branches of the trees.
In some places, rocks and earth had been piled up to create banks that redirected the flow.
This allowed Balak's village to remain relatively safe from the flooding of the river.
Some men were putting up a rope bridge made of twisted vines between trees through the rain and wind.
They waved to Vikir as he passed by on the plank bridge.
"Hey, Vikir! Our house is safe thanks to you!"
"Thank you! I'm glad I listened to you!"
But Vikir didn't respond to their greetings.
Instead, he squinted at the huge shadow that was slowly moving toward them from the water below.
"Dangerous."
Vikir briefly warned the two men who greeted him.
Hearing Vikir's warning, the men looked down at the bridge in alarm.
Just three meters below them, in the tawny mud, a giant shadow lurked beneath the surface.
And then.
...Poof!
The surface of the water shattered and something leapt out of the water.
It was a catfish with a giant mouth that was more than five meters in diameter!
As soon as it broke the surface of the water, it gaped at the two Balak men above.
This has often happened since the fire.
Energized aquatic creatures would leap at their prey in the trees.
But the catfish didn't get his way.
"Get lost!"
Arrows fell like thunder from the tree trunks.
It was Aiyen, protecting the men as they built the bridge.
...Thump!
Several arrows pierced the catfish's skull, and it twisted and flopped back into the water.
Vikir scrambled across the rope bridge and up into the windswept trees.
"Catfish!"
He looked down, but the tawny surface of the water had already been washed away by the raging torrent.
Seeing Vikir frown, Aiyen grinned.
"That's not a catfish."
"What? Didn't you just see it stick its head out of the water?"
"...I guess you didn't see the body."
I was afraid to let him finish.
Suddenly, the surface of the water on the other side broke and something huge rose up from below.
Sure enough, Vikir understood what Aiyen had said.
The head was flat and the mouth was abnormally large, so I thought it was a catfish.
But that impossibly long body sticking out of the water was no catfish.
It was a giant snake.
<Monsieur Hushu>
Danger rating: A+
Size: 32 meters
Found in: Ridge 8, Red and Black Mountains
-Named 'The Full-body Intestine Snake'.
A snake whose entire body is made up of intestines.
It boasts a large mouth and appetite that can swallow an elephant in one bite, and legend has it that the giant Monsieur Hushu, which has lived since time began, can swallow an entire country.
They are notoriously silent when crawling on land or swimming underwater.
This giant snake of the Monsieur Hushu species was scaled and hissing as if it were about to swallow all the Balak on the floating house.
Aiyen bit her lip.
"Chet. You've got a dangerous one washed up."
The giant rattlesnake was no match for a species that was naturally fast and strong.
Moreover, the one in front of them seems to be quite old and experienced.
[Shhhh!]
The creature opened its mouth, which was so large that it could have been a catfish, revealing a dense row of teeth that sprawled across its entire mouth.
Aiyen quickly fired an arrow at it, but its sleek, hard scales, and the rain that blinded him, made it difficult to get a good hit.
Then.
"Snakes should be caught up close."
A black shadow hovered like a ghost behind Monsieur Hushu.
Vikir. Moving in the darkness, he blazed across the snake's back, unnoticed by rats and birds alike, and then bared his hidden teeth.
He sliced through the artery in his wrist, revealing the magic sword Beelzebub.
And the slimy aura of a Superior Gradient settled over it.
A Baskervillian carnivore.
Six 'lurking ambush teeth' have been released.
Intent on inflicting terrible pain on the opponent, and nothing else!
The blood-red aura emanating from Vakir's sword spins at high speed.
The hard snake scales shattered in an instant, and the soft flesh underneath exploded and scattered as if it had been blown up.
[Kyaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!]
The snake screamed.
But Vikir was unfazed, grabbing the snake by the tongue and lunging forward, his awl smashing into one of the snake's eyeballs.
The fatal wounds to its back neck and eyeball caused the snake to back away, splattering hot blood. It then ducked its head under the water and began to flee frantically.
No, it was more like being swept down the torrent than fleeing.
"...."
Vikir briefly considered giving chase, but decided it was too much to ask in this torrential downpour.
"It was a waste."
Before he knew it, Aiyen was beside him, wrapping a rope around Vikir's waist.
Tugging on the rope around each other's waists, Vikir and Aiyen made their way back up the branch.
Soon, all the villagers were out on the wooden terrace watching the battle.
"Awesome! Vikir, you were the best!"
"That big snake is called Ka'ah, and he's been king around here for decades!"
"You defeated him, that's great!"
The villagers cheered for Vikir.
Then Aiyen snapped.
"You people! Didn't you see me shoot that arrow! If it wasn't for me, you'd be...!"
"Oooh-"
The kids booed Aiyen.
"Ugh, this is why I hate kids."
Aiyen grumbles and shakes off the mud and splash that has drenched her body.
He looked back at Vikir, who was dripping wet, and asked.
"You're not going to get the red death from getting this wet, are you?"
"You never know. Go to the fire and dry yourself."
Vikir strode away, as if the battle that had just occurred had been a minor incident.
Seeing that people were cheering or not, Aiyen went on his way, and he said the words he had been saying for the past two years, one more time today.
"Pass."
* * *
Vikir walked into the barracks.
Outside, the rain and wind were howling, but inside the barracks was bright and warm.
The leather hides on the walls were still flapping about, but they were secured with heavy rocks and strong ropes, so the wind wouldn't blow them away.
Vikir's discovery of a way to prevent the Red Death made him a hero to the Balak, and indeed to all the jungle tribes.
... But the hero is a troubled man now.
It's a job he's never had to do before or since his regression.
"Uncle!"
As soon as Vikir entered the barracks, the Pomerian rushed over and hugged him.
Until then, he had been squatting in the corner of the barracks, staring blankly at the portraits of his family.
Pomerian avoided everyone else but Vikir, who followed him intensely.
She followed him around all day, never wanting to be separated, sleeping, eating, and bathing.
" ...I want to eat."
Vikir wasn't sure how to respond to the child.
It was all he could say to her.
Afterward, Vikir made a simple fire in the corner of the barracks.
With snails crawling everywhere in the rainy season, food was easier to come by than before.
Vikir simply steamed snail flesh with butter, herbs, and backs made from cow's milk.
He then fried them in a mixture of sugar made from sugarcane and cream made from bird eggs.
The rest of the snail flesh was mashed with spicy spices that he had bought from merchants in the past, and when served with vegetables, it became a quite edible dish.
"Delicious, Uncle."
"Isn't that right, your uncle is a good cook."
Beside Pomerian, who was cringing, was Aiyen, who was naturally cringing as well.
Pomerian looked to Vikir, then to Aiyen.
"Mommy. Dad. Same."
Pomerian looked back and forth between Vikir and Aiyen and chuckled, and Aiyen rubbed his index finger under his nose.
"As expected, the kids are really nice."
"...I thought you said you didn't like children ...?"
"When did I say that."
Vikir pressed a hand to his forehead. The barracks were already cramped because of the Pomerians, and now that they'd come to Aiyen, they were even more cramped.
"Don't be too harsh. but at least you can go outside to pee now."
"...."
Vikir could only sigh at Aiyen's attitude as she spread her legs again and swished her leather skirt.
Just then.
Whirring.
The tents at the entrance were drawn back, letting in the rain and wind.
A heavy stone had been placed on top of the gate, making it impossible for it to be blown away naturally.
As if on cue, someone stepped out of the darkness outside the door.
It was Ahun.
"...?"
Vikir and Aiyen frowned at the same time.
Ahun had always been an annoyance, and they were already wondering what he was up to this time.
But.
Ahun's expression when he entered Vikir's barracks was unexpected.
His blue complexion, contorted face, and the way he looked like he was about to cry.
Then, in a desperate voice, Ahun cried out.
"Please help me, Vikir, my sister is...!"
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