Side Story Chapter 97 - Corridor of Desire (2)

"The hell are you on about? Did you eat so much kimchi stew that it dyed your taste buds?" said Cha Yeon-Joo as she approached dumbfoundedly.

"No, for real."

"Do you have any idea how much seasoning goes into making kimchi? There's no way a plain plant would taste like— holy fuck, it does."

Yeon-Joo's eyes widened after crouching beside Oh Kang-Woo and biting a Leuconostoc leaf. The red plant that looked like a cabbage tasted the same as kimchi— a well-fermented one.

"Yeon-Joo..." Kang-Woo looked down at the Leuconostoc with a serious expression. "Red Rose bought some land in Seoul, right?"

"I'm not planting these things."

"WHY NOT?!! IT'S A PLANT THAT TASTES LIKE KIMCHI!!!"

"Are you fucking crazy?! Who in their right mind would plant these things in cash-raking property?!"

"Things?!! This extraordinary discovery will allow humanity to evolve one step further!!"

"You fucking kimchi stew maniac." Yeon-Joo grabbed her forehead as if her head hurt. "Anyway, don't you dare try to plant these things on my guild's property."

"Dammit."

Kang-Woo looked down at the Leuconostoc in disappointment and carefully dug into the earth to take out the Leuconostoc with its roots intact.

'I'll take it home with me.'

Once he figured out how to cultivate them, he would plant them throughout the Earth.

'It's perfect.'

Just like how Mun Ik-Jeom brought cottonseed from China to Korea, humanity would reach greater heights with this otherworldly plant.

"That aside, to think he would hate kimchi... that Demon King is out of his mind."

"The only one out of his mind here is you," said Yeon-Joo firmly. "Whatever, let's get going already. Someone might get to the relic before us if we keep dilly-dallying."

She looked back at Kang-Woo who stored the Leuconostoc in his subspace bag as if it were a valuable treasure, and walked toward him.

She said to Horos, "Lead the way."

"..."

Horos remained silent. His shoulders dropped as if he had given up and led the way. He took them to a small cave that one person could barely fit in.

"We just have to walk straight inside," Horos said.

The passageway grew larger as they headed deeper inside the cave and they soon reached a massive cavity around a hundred meters tall. At the end of the cavity was a giant door about the same height as the cave and guarded by a quadrupedal beast statue that looked like the Xiezhi.

"No wonder we couldn't see it from above."

The inside of the cave was massive but its entrance was like that of an ant's nest. Not only that but the space inside the cave was protected by some kind of barrier, hence it couldn't be detected by the Authority of the Beholder or Insight.

"But how did you know where this place was?" asked Kang-Woo with great interest as he lightly smacked Horos' head.

Although the entrance was tiny, it could have been discovered by a massive search involving countless people. However, Horos was only accompanied by five other demons— nowhere near enough manpower to find a place like this.

"It is thanks to my【Clairvoyance】ability. It allows me to detect even the movement of an ant several dozen kilometers away. I used this ability to search the inside of this cave, which was why I knew the Corridor of Desire was in here."

Horos proudly tapped on his giant eye.

"Dayum, you're more useful than I thought you were."

'I'm gonna eat him using the Authority of Predation and take his Clairvoyance ability later.'

"Alright, let's head inside."

Kang-Woo walked toward the giant door at the end of the cavity.

GRRRRRR!!!

The entire cavity shook as Kang-Woo and the others got closer to the door and a thunderous sound rang. The statue of the giant beast in front of the door slowly moved its head.

[You who have reached the Corridor of Desire.]

A deep voice echoed throughout the cavity. The statue's eyes gleamed white and it examined Kang-Woo and the others.

[If you wish to enter, give up five relics as offerings.]

As Horos mentioned, the gatekeeper demanded relics as offerings.

"Alright."

Kang-Woo nodded and opened the bag containing the relics the apostles of Oceiros generously gave him. They had eleven relics in two bags.

'It's a shame, but...'

He didn't mind investing this much for a ten-star relic.

"Three-star relics are good enough, right?"

Kang-Woo left the four and five-star relics in the bag and offered five three-star relics to the gatekeeper.

[...]

The gatekeeper's eyes shone white in silence. Its gaze shifted away from the five three-star relics and to the bags containing the remaining relics.

Grrrrr.

The gatekeeper said in a low tone, [Eight.]

"What?"

[You must give up eight relics to enter.]

Its deep voice dyed with greed. The gatekeeper smirked. Its dignified expression turned into one blinded by greed in an instant.

"..."

Kang-Woo stared in silence at the gatekeeper laughing greedily. Yeon-Joo, who had been listening in silence from the back, stepped forward with a frown.

"You said five before, motherfucker!" she shouted. "Why did you change your mind?!"

[Hmm.] The gatekeeper smiled nastily and continued, [Ten]

"The fuck you say?"

[You must give up ten relics as offerings to enter the corridor.]

"Motherfucker!!"

Yeon-Joo gritted her teeth and gave the gatekeeper a death glare. However, the gatekeeper chuckled in amusement as if it were enjoying her reactions.

[You shall not pass without offering your relics.]

Just then, Kang-Woo said, "Four."

[Hm? Are you asking me to take four off?]

The gatekeeper stared at Kang-Woo as it chuckled.

"Three."

[...?]

"Two."

[You bastard...] The gatekeeper frowned once it understood Kang-Woo's intentions of counting down by one. [Are you threatening me?]

"One."

[The absurdity!]

Boom!

The gatekeeper stomped its foot and glared fiercely at Kang-Woo. Kang-Woo slowly turned around and stuffed the five relics he put down in front of the gatekeeper back into his bag.

"Too bad. I have no more relics to give you."

Kang-Woo closed the bag and turned back to the gatekeeper.

"What are you doing?" He crossed his arms and gestured at the door with his chin. "Open the door."

"Wh-What do you think you're doing?!!" shouted Horos wide-eyed. "You're mocking the Lion of the Corridor?! Are you insane?!!"

Horos turned around in pallor and bowed in front of the gatekeeper.

"Th-This human simply cannot think straight due to his insanity!! I-I implore you to quell your rage—"

[IMPERTINENT HUMAN—!]

"

PEEEEEEEEEEP!!!

" Horos screamed.

Rumble—!!!

The cavity shook violently as the gatekeeper, over fifty meters tall and larger than Echidna, rushed forward. Its giant front foot, which seemed to easily weigh dozens of tonnes, smashed down on Kang-Woo. Kang-Woo grabbed Horos by his head and flung him to the side before the gatekeeper's foot landed on him.

BOOM—!!!

A giant crater formed where Kang-Woo had been standing.

[How dare you mock the Lion of the Corridor?!] the Gatekeeper shouted haughtily as it looked down at the human who was crushed into a pulp.

Wriggle.

[Hm?]

Kang-Woo, who had been crushed by the gatekeeper's front foot, stood up slowly. Black mucus flowed out of his split top and bottom halves and merged.

"Looks like you can get through the Deific Essence barrier."

The human who had been crushed crossed his arms again as if nothing happened and smiled leisurely.

"But that's all there is to it."

The flesh of Kang-Woo's palm split open and black mucus poured on the ground like a waterfall. It spread throughout the ground of the cavity and reached the gatekeeper's feet.

[Wh-What the—]

"Dark Spears."

The gatekeeper tried to step back but sharp blades shot up from the black mucus before it had the chance.

Stab! Stab—!!

[Gaaaaaaaaahhh!!]

Thousands of spears shot out of the darkness and pierced the gatekeeper's feet. The spears then span rapidly, turning the gatekeeper's feet into mush. The gatekeeper collapsed.

[Kurgh, guh... U-Urghhh.]

The gatekeeper stared at Kang-Woo in fear. Its fifty-meter-tall body trembled pitifully.

[Y-You pass.]

"Huh? Pass what?"

The gatekeeper stuttered, [Y-You have proven your worth to me. Y-You may enter the Corridor of Desire without offering relics.]

It was talking as if it had been a test all along.

"Oh~! So this was all to test whether I was worthy or not?"

[C-Correct.]

"I knew it! So you picked a fight with us by raising the required number of relic offerings on purpose, huh?"

[Of course!] The gatekeeper nodded as its eyes shone white.

"Wow, I was so surprised, you know? My balls almost shriveled up because I was so, so scared!!"

[It was to pick out those worthy from the unworthy. I hope you understand.]

"Hahaha! I see!" Kang-Woo smiled brightly and walked toward the collapsed gatekeeper. "But you see, I was so~ sooooo~ scared."

[I apologize for scaring you.]

"No, you don't understand. I was so scared that I almost pissed my pants while doing multiple backflips in midair!!!"

[I-I see.]

"I WAS SO~~~!!! SOOOOOOO~~~~~ SCARED!!! I THOUGHT I WAS GOING FUCKING INSAAAAAAAAAAAANE!!!" Kang-Woo slapped the gatekeeper's cheek like hitting a drum and screamed, "AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! SO SCAAAAAAAAAAARY!!! I WAS SO SCARED THAT YOU HURT MY FEEEEEEEEEEEEEELINGS!!!!!"

[W-Wait.]

"IS THERE ANYOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE?!! WHO CAN CONSOLE MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?!!"

[C-Calm down, human!!]

"ANYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE?!! IS THERE ANYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE?!!!!"

Kang-Woo's eyes rolled backward as he convulsed and foamed at the mouth.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! WHAT DO I DO?!! WHAT SHOULD I DO, SIR GATEKEEPER?!! I'M SO SCAAAAAAAAAAAAARED!!! I'M SO SCARED THAT I JUST MIGHT TEAR YOU APAAAAAAAAAART!!!"

[I-I will let you in right away, human!! I will open the door, so just calm down!!]

"WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!"

[C-Calm down!!!] shouted the Gatekeeper as it stared at the human suddenly convulsing uncontrollably.

Bash! Bash! Bash! Bash! Bash!

Kang-Woo's slaps suddenly turned into punches. The gatekeeper's head slowly began to dent like iron being hammered.

[GAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! S-STOP, HUMAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!]

"IS THERE ANYOOOOOOOOOOONE WHO CAN TEND TO THE WOOOOOOOOOOOUNDS OF MY HEAAAAAAAAAAART?!!"

[WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU ACTING LIKE THIS?!!]

"WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYY DIDN'T YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUU JUST TAKE THE DAMN RELICS THE FIRST TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIME?!!"

[P-Please!!! Please calm down, humaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!! I-I'm sorry!!!] begged the gatekeeper as it shook its dented head.

Kang-Woo suddenly froze.

"You're sorry?"

The gatekeeper nodded as it trembled. [Y-Yes! I'm sorry!!! Please forgive me!!]

"Really?" Kang-Woo smirked. "Then hand over all the relics you took until now."