Chapter 20

The late dinner had come to an end, and Sophie’s family returned to their home. Now alone in the room the couple had offered him, Do-Jin slipped off his robe.

“

Phew

.”

As soon as he shed his outer garment, a cold mountain breeze swept in through the window, brushing coolly against his skin. He leaned against the windowsill and gazed outside.

Clouds had begun to gather heavily in the sky above the palisade encircling the village. The moon was hidden behind the thick clouds, plunging the world into pitch-black darkness. The faint smell of rain lingered in the air, suggesting that a downpour might be on the way.

Since he was indoors at the moment, a little rain wasn’t something to worry about. Do-Jin stared at the ink-black sky, letting his mind settle. It was then that something pricked at his senses.

Mana waves?

His skills as a mage weren’t yet refined enough to determine the exact distance or intensity of the disturbance, but there was no doubt about it. Mana was being manipulated. It felt distinctly out of place at this hour, so he activated his Magic Circuits to heighten his sensitivity.

Wait, it’s not just one wave?

The mana pulse he had felt brushing past him wasn’t a one-time occurrence. It repeated, steadily and rhythmically, with precise intervals and consistent strength. Concentrating harder, Do-Jin tried to pinpoint the source of the disturbance.

It... stopped? I don’t know what’s going on, but something’s definitely happening.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Do-Jin threw his robe back on and leaped out the window. Just before he hit the ground, he cushioned the impact with a pulse of Psychokinesis.

The landing still jarred his body, but Do-Jin was no frail mage. He shook it off with ease.

[Night Vision]

A faint glow flickered in his eyes before vanishing, leaving him with enhanced sight that pierced through the darkness. It was one of the spells he’d poured gold into after a lucrative dungeon raid.

Scanning the area, Do-Jin spotted a watchtower built into the palisade and made a dash for it. Climbing the crude log ladder nailed to the frame, his view opened up. To one side, sparse trees dotted the landscape, but in the opposite direction, a barren ridge jutted out conspicuously. And it wasn’t just barren; it was moving.

“Shit...” Do-Jin clenched his jaw. Beyond that ridge lay Gulak Wastelands, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what those writhing shapes were. “Gulak Ants.”

The lawless scourge of the Gulak Wastelands was swarming over the ridge, heading straight for the village. In that moment, a system message appeared before him.

[

Quest

]

Rank: Fate

Objective: Ensure the survival of Gulak Village’s residents.

Rewards: Experience, Gold, ???

Tonight, driven by the vile greed of one man, an entire village faces the threat of annihilation. Save as many villagers as you can.

A Fate-grade quest wasn’t just rare but practically mythical, surpassing even Hidden-grade quests. It could only be triggered when an event capable of influencing the very fabric of the world of Lostania occurred. For that to happen, one had to be at the right place at the right time.

Those goddamn bugs wiping out this village is that kind of event, huh?

Something didn’t sit right with him. Could the obliteration of a village with just a few dozen people really warrant a quest of this magnitude? Not a chance. Upon closer inspection of the quest description, he figured the goal wasn’t to save the village but rescue as many villagers as possible.

So, there’s someone in this village whose survival is crucial to the world itself, maybe more than one person.

Knowing the reason didn’t help much. It didn’t matter who the key individual was if he couldn’t handle the immediate crisis. There was no way to know for certain who had to be saved. There was no guarantee it was just one person, either. He was left with no choice but to save everyone.

With his mind made up, Do-Jin rang the rusty bell installed in the watchtower. As the deafening clangs echoed through the village, he couldn’t help but wonder why anyone had even bothered installing this thing if no one kept watch.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The once-silent village erupted into chaos at the sound.

“What the hell is that noise?”

“Morris, you little shit! Didn’t I warn you I’d string you up by your ankles if you pulled this kind of prank again?!”

People poked their heads out of windows, their expressions a mix of confusion and irritation. Some, assuming it was another prank by one of the village brats, muttered curses under their breath. But all of that changed the moment Do-Jin shouted.

“Monsters are heading for the village right now!”

At the mention of monsters, the villagers’ eyes went wide, their faces pale.

“Mo-monsters?!”

Someone screamed, and a handful of villagers bolted toward the palisade, desperate to see for themselves.

“Arghhh!”

“You useless idiot! Didn’t I tell you to lose some weight? Get the hell out of the way!”

A fat man scrambling up a watchtower on the opposite side from where Do-Jin stood tripped and fell flat on his face. In his place, a wiry man darted up the ladder with practiced agility. Once he reached the top and peered into the distance, his face went ghost-white.

Despite the darkness, Hans, a young villager accustomed to the mountains, managed to make out what shouldn’t have been moving: the ridge, undulating in the shadows like a writhing black mass.

“Monsters! There are monsters crossing the ridge from the Wastelands! Damn it, there’s not just a few!”

At Hans’ shout, the villagers’ faces drained of color. Yet, as hardened survivors of a harsh world, they weren’t the type to freeze up in fear.

“Jenny! Get Sophie and head to the underground shelter! Don’t forget to take food! And don’t come out until it’s completely silent out there!”

“Hanolz, you too! Hide with them!”

“Don’t be stupid! Who’s gonna defend the village if I hide?!”

“Fine. But you’d better not die. No, don’t even think about getting hurt. If you do, you’re as good as dead to me.”

The heads of each household ushered their wives and children into makeshift shelters dug beneath their homes. Once their families were safely tucked away, they armed themselves with whatever crude weapons they could find and stepped outside.

The village elder questioned, “Hans, what do you mean by ‘not just a few’? We’ve rarely had problems with beasts or monsters thanks to the palisade.”

“I don’t know, sir,” Hans replied, having just descended from the watchtower, his face still pale. “It’s too dark to tell exactly, but you know how far away that ridge is. If it looks like it’s moving even from this distance, we’re talking at least dozens, maybe hundreds.”

Hans’ grim report silenced the gathered men. Fear etched itself onto their faces as they huddled together, muttering.

“We should abandon the village and run.”

“And then what? What’ll we eat come winter?”

“Better starving later than dying now!”

“We can’t go outside the palisade at this hour. We’ll just get slaughtered anyway.”

The debate grew heated until a calm, resolute voice cut through the noise like a blade. “We can defend it.”

The men turned toward Do-Jin, who had climbed down from the watchtower after surveying the situation.

“Who the hell are you?” the elder asked. “Are you the one who raised the alarm? Never seen you before.”

But before he could press further, Hanolz and his friends interrupted, practically shouting over him.

“Mr. Mage! He’s a mage!”

The elder froze. “What did you just say? A mage?”

“That’s right!” Hanolz nodded eagerly, pushing past the others to face Do-Jin. “This is the kind mage who helped us out earlier, sir. He saved me at the checkpoint when I was in trouble!”

“And he used magic to unload all that firewood in an instant!” another villager chimed in.

With hope rekindled, Hanolz hurried to Do-Jin, his voice trembling with desperation.

“Mr. Mage, I know it’s shameless of me to ask for your help like this, but you’re the only one we can rely on right now. Please, save us. Save my wife and daughter. If you do, we’ll find a way to repay you. I swear it.”

The weight of his responsibility as a husband and father had finally overwhelmed him, breaking through the fear he had been suppressing.

Do-Jin placed a firm hand on Hanolz’s shoulder. “Pull yourself together, Hanolz. If you start falling apart now, who will keep this place safe?”

Tears welled up in Hanolz’s eyes. Seeing a man built like a bear about to break down wasn’t exactly a sight for sore eyes, but knowing those tears came from sheer love for his family made it hit differently.

Do-Jin turned and addressed the group bluntly, “No more questions unless you’re lining up to be the ants’ next meal.”

Some of the villagers were halfway through opening their mouths to speak when they flinched and snapped shut.

“We’re running out of time,” Do-Jin continued. “I’ve been watching from the tower. The good news? No more ants are crossing the ridge. Bad news is the ones already here are more than enough to turn this place into a graveyard.”

Muttered curses broke out among the villagers, some out of fear, others just venting.

Do-Jin didn’t bother with the theatrics and cut to the chase. “But we can take them. If you stick to my plan, we’ve got a fighting chance.”

“I’ll fight like hell!” Hanolz practically squealed, his voice jumping an octave. Others who had seen Do-Jin’s magic caught his energy, their fear turning into determination.

“I’m not letting those bastards anywhere near my family! I’ll die before I let my wife and kids end up as ant chow!”

Do-Jin shook his head, shutting them down. “Listen up. I’m not here to throw you to the ants. I’m here to save you. If they break through the palisade, that’s one thing, but handing you a bunch of crappy weapons and telling you to fight? That’s a death sentence.”

The men fell silent, looking down at the pathetic excuses for weapons they carried, makeshift spears that looked like they’d fall apart with one good swing. They didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell against the Wasteland’s nastiest predators. But if they weren’t fighting, then what the hell could they do? Their eyes, wide with a mix of fear and hope, turned to Do-Jin.

“Instead, you’re going to help me another way,” he said.

“Say the word!” Hanolz shot back so fast it was like his brain hadn’t even caught up.

“The ants are still a little ways out. Based on their speed, we’ve got time before they reach the palisade. Use it to gather everything that burns. Firewood, furniture, heck, if it can catch fire, I want it at the front of the village.”

“Flammable stuff? No problem! Consider it done!” Hanolz nodded like his life depended on it, then whirled on the others. “What the hell are you all standing around for? Mr. Mage said to get anything that burns!”

Some of the villagers hesitated, doubt written all over their faces. It was clear they hadn’t seen Do-Jin’s magic firsthand.

Hanolz wasn’t having it. “Elder, I saw him use magic with my own two eyes! So stop dragging your feet and get to it!”

He jabbed a finger at Hans. “Hans! Get a crew together and haul out all the firewood. The rest of you, with me. We’re going house to house and grabbing anything flammable. Elder, you’ve got the keys to the hall, right? You’re in charge of that.”

After seeing Do-Jin in action, the villagers followed suit and dragged the doubters along with them. The chilly mountain air buzzed with activity as they brought out everything from winter firewood to broken furniture. Piles of kindling and logs began to take shape at the village’s front entrance.

“We’re gonna freeze our asses off this winter,” one man muttered bitterly.

“We’ll manage,” another replied with a sigh.

“Think we’ll actually make it through this?”

“Hell if I know. But if we don’t get through tonight, winter’s not gonna matter, is it? Worst case, we all shack up in the hall and figure it out.”

They kept up the bitter back-and-forth while smashing apart wooden tables and hauling planks.

Then, all at once, a scream tore through the night. “Get inside! Everyone, back inside the palisade!”

The ants had arrived, and they were right on their doorstep.