Are MZ Shamans In Trouble In Romance Novels? - Chapter 18

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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18.

-Claws tear open the belly and entrails spill out in streams and blood gushes forth, tender human flesh into the tiger lord’s maw

The changgui with half its face torn off dragged its blood-soaked body along. Saliva pooled at the corners of its mouth from the fishy scent of human flesh.

-Come here, let us depart, follow the mountain path far away to the Mountain Lord, let us depart

The changgui standing before the thatched house swayed its body back and forth while producing song-like sounds.

“Ugh, mmph!”

“Hng, ugh.”

The changgui’s shadow grew large and small repeatedly, rippling across the thin paper door. Terror-stricken people covered their mouths with their hands and squeezed their eyes shut.

-Come here, let us depart, follow the mountain path far away to the Mountain Lord, let us depart, come here, come here, come, come, come!

Clatter!

Clatter!

The changgui’s whispers gradually grew louder as the door handle shook frantically.

“Mountain path, follow the mountain path…”

People with clouded eyes swayed their bodies following the rippling shadow. Mournful melodies flowed from their mouths while tears streamed down from their eyes.

“To the Mountain Lord…”

Just as they were about to open the door handle as if entranced.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The loud drum sounds awakened their muddled minds once more. The villagers who barely regained their senses moved far from the door and held their breath.

After a moment-.

Behind the cackling changgui, straw dolls lined up in a long row.

***

The tigers that had been fighting evenly with the Jangseung Spirit returned to the mountains. It was thanks to the ritual effigies that had deceived the changgui’s eyes.

“…”

Calisia and Ian, who had beaten drums all night, lay side by side on the dirt ground with their fingers interlaced. The two who had finally relaxed stared blankly up at the dim sky.

“Soeddongi.”

Calisia turned her head to the side.

“…”

Ian slowly closed his eyes. Last night, everything he knew about the world had been completely overturned. No, he had been forced to properly face the world he had tried so hard to ignore.

“It’s Lakies.”

“…”

And Calisia stood at the center of it all. It was truly strange. This girl who faced so nonchalantly the world he had spent his entire life running from and avoiding.

“…Why.”

Ian, who had been silent for a moment, turned his head to meet her eyes. In that fleeting instant- something swept through his chest.

A flutter. Later, Ian would name this feeling a flutter.

“Soeddongi, you really can’t play drums. Who plays drums like…”

Unlike Ian who had grown strangely subdued, Calisia clutched her stomach and giggled as if something was incredibly funny.

“You weren’t playing the drums, you were practically beating them to death. And are you tone-deaf by any chance? I’ve never heard such rhythm in my life.”

Who plays drums like this, like this-.

She shook their clasped hands up and down while teasing Ian.

“When did I play like that?”

I clearly played like this, like this-.

Ian, who was dumbfounded, shook their clasped hands while mimicking drum playing. He who had been making excuses in response to her continued teasing finally showed slight irritation. He said he had to worry about rhythm when the situation was urgent.

***

“Now that we’ve survived death, the hidden barley rice and seasoned vegetables come out.”

Calisia, with cloth wrapped around her hands, stuffed her mouth full of barley rice. The savory barley with salty seasoned vegetables was truly heavenly.

“Hey! You should eat your share too!”

Calisia handed Ian spoon and chopsticks while urging him to eat.

“Please close your mouth when you eat. And does Valus starve you?”

He raised his eyebrows while looking at Calisia who had stuffed rice and side dishes into both cheeks like a squirrel.

“Uh, huh? What, sorry. The rice is, you know…”

“Mouth.”

Ian firmly cut off Calisia’s words and picked up his spoon and chopsticks. Though it was unfamiliar food, hunger made it quite edible.

“So what’s your next plan after Valus?”

Ian, who had cleanly emptied his rice bowl, put down his spoon and chopsticks.

“I just took one spoonful.”

Calisia, who was eating a handful of seasoned vegetables, muttered with a face that had lost all appetite.

“Plan.”

Ian demanded an answer without even blinking.

“Your eyes are going to pop out. Your eyes are going to pop out. Ah, I got it, so stop glaring at me!”

They say even dogs aren’t bothered when eating. Calisia, who complained she’d get indigestion at this rate, took her hands off the rice bowl.

Gathering mugwort while avoiding the changgui.

This objective had a major trap. The fact was that changgui and tigers came as a set. If the evil spirit it controlled was put in danger, the tiger would inevitably notice.

Therefore, this game was a fight where you had to face both the tiger and changgui simultaneously.

Ah, of course there was a way to just gather mugwort while avoiding the changgui’s eyes. But such tricks could never get you back to reality. Think about it carefully. Where on that damn scroll was the word ‘return’ written?

Q. Then what should we do?

A. The only way is to escape through the standard route. The way to escape a ghost story is to end the story. It’s the ending.

Q. The ending?

A. Yes. Whether it’s a happy ending where ‘the tiger falls and peace comes to Tiger Disaster Village’ or a bad ending where ‘the entire village is stained with blood and the tiger becomes human’ doesn’t matter.

Q. Aren’t those two too different?

A. Either way, an ending is an ending. Ah, the important thing here is that you can’t see any ending without the tiger, who is essentially the protagonist.

Calisia, who had finished her self-interview, nodded briefly.

“But while I roughly know how to stop the tiger, I can’t remember how to eliminate the changgui.”

“So you don’t know.”

“No, I know but can’t remember. It’s not that I was lazy with my studies… This changgui thing isn’t a very trendy ghost. Honestly speaking, it’s quite old-fashioned.”

Calisia raised her index finger and tapped the table. Since brute force wouldn’t work, she needed to use secret arts that old shamans used, but her memory was hazy.

“So you don’t know.”

“I know how to find out though.”

Calisia jumped up and went inside the house to bring out the incense burner and incense she had gotten from Axe. She went out to the courtyard and set down a small table and the incense burner in a spot with good sunlight.

“There’s no… lighter.”

Calisia, who had been about to light the incense, habitually searched through her clothes before lowering her hands with an embarrassed expression.

“Let’s just use the kitchen fire.”

After running into the kitchen and back, she stuck the long incense into the incense burner. Smoke that calmed the mind rose up following the wind.

“Perfect weather for Spirit Summoning.”

Calisia looked up at the cloudless, clear sky and placed both hands on her waist.

***

Calisia stuck out her belly and made an “ahh-” sound to clear her throat.

“Ahem- General! Ahem! Generaaaal!”

Then she shouted loud enough to wake the entire neighborhood. It was so loud that the door of the thatched house across the way opened in surprise.

“Hiiiint!”

Ian covered his eyes with one hand and let out a faint groaning sound. Setting aside his dignity as a noble, the behavior itself was embarrassing. Besides, it was morning right now.

“Valus. You’re neither a rooster nor a bell, so is there really a need to shout like that from morning?”

“There is! The way to reach the gods has always been one thing! Sincerity!”

Calisia answered cheerfully and called out to the General once more. Each time she opened her mouth, the doors of the thatched houses opened one by one with a bang.

“Why is she making such a fuss from morning?”

“I don’t know either.”

“You folks are so frustrating! That must be some kind of scheme to chase away those tiger bastards!”

People who had come out to watch gathered in small groups and whispered about Calisia’s behavior.

“Hiiiint-! Everyone together!”

Ignoring their murmuring, she shouted toward the people with a booming voice.

“…Hi, hint!”

The startled people glanced at Calisia and roughly followed along with her words.

“Put strength in your belly and louder! Hiiiint!”

“Hiiiiiint!”

The people put full strength into their bellies and shouted toward the sky.

Kwaaaaang-!

The moment everyone’s voices came together, dust rose thickly with a thunderous roar as if the earth was splitting.

“Uh, eeeek!”

What appeared before the terrified people’s eyes were books that looked to number in the hundreds.

“No, you should summarize the hints to just the key points, who would…”

Looking at the books that completely filled the ground, Calisia’s mouth drooped downward.

“Haah-.”

She examined the books that had dropped from the sky with very reluctant hands.

“Oh my.”

Tiger Tales, A Night with the Mountain Lord, The Tiger and the Village Woodcutter… Calisia, who had been skimming the titles of the books, stood in front of the incense burner and rattled off all kinds of complaints.

“General. Please give me the hint again.”

Scratching her head vigorously, she pointed at the pile of books and expressed her irritation.

Snap-

Then the incense that had been stuck in the incense burner broke cleanly in half.

“Ha, so that’s how you’re going to play it?”

At the clear meaning of refusal, Calisia stuck in another incense.

Snap-

Snap-

Snap-

“What? Where did all of these go?”

Calisia, who had been frantically sticking incense in, stared wide-eyed at her empty hands.

“…You’re ruining someone else’s household.”

Axe, who had been staring at the pile of books in a daze, unconsciously muttered to himself.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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