Correcting the Villainess of the Academy - Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Parting (2)
The darkness had already settled around us, making the trajectories of numerous lights from gunfire distinctly visible.
Even from a distance, it was evident that something terrible had happened to the village.
At that moment, the faces of Mom, Jinho, and Ina flashed through my mind.
They were all inside the village.
“Seoyeon, you stay here! I’m going to the village…”
“No! Absolutely not!”
Seoyeon desperately stopped me as I reflexively tried to dash off.
T h i s w a s c op ie d fr o m k i n g m t l .or g
“Mom and our friends… I need to check if they’re okay…!”
“We don’t even know what’s exactly happening! Let’s just observe the situation a bit more…!”
“That’s why I need to go see!”
“No! If you really want to go, take me with you!”
Seoyeon stubbornly pulled me back.
There was no more time to argue, and, feeling increasingly anxious, I had no choice but to bring Seoyeon with me to the village.
As we hurriedly ran, tumbling down the slopes several times, I felt no pain.
The village had disappeared from sight behind the trees.
All we could hear now were the sounds.
-Tatatata…
-Boom! Bang…
The loud explosions that had been ringing for a while began to gradually subside.
I desperately prayed that it was nothing serious.
I hoped and prayed that the head of the guard had faithfully performed his duties.
“Huff… Huff…!”
After running for a while, we finally descended the mountain.
Th is w a s c o pi ed f r o m k i n gm t l .o rg
A horrifying scene unfolded before us, gasping for breath.
Th i s wa s c o p i ed f r o m k i n g mt l . o rg
I couldn’t even begin to guess what had happened in that brief period.
Uncontrolled flames were burning here and there.
The village walls were severely damaged in many places.
Even the main gate was gone, leaving behind only a gaping hole.
Around it, marks resembling animal hooves were scattered chaotically, all pointing towards the inside of the village.
I then spotted someone’s body lying atop the wall.
It was a horrible sight; the body had its throat savagely torn out, leaving only the torso behind.
Lying beneath it was the necklace of the guard I had cheerfully greeted just this morning.
“No… No…”
Seeing the body, my heart raced even faster.
“Just wait… Going in any further is really dangerous…!”
T h i s w a s copi ed f r o m k i n gm t l . o r g
“Stay here. I’ll be right back…!”
“No…! Hyun…!”
Ignoring Seoyeon’s pleas, I broke free and headed towards the village.
We re-entered through the same small gap and ran down the trail behind the village.
The scene inside was even more horrific than what we had seen from outside.
Houses were collapsed everywhere.
Unknown sticky, dark red fluids were scattered all over the ground.
Uncontrolled flames flickered here and there, and the black smoke was stinging my eyes and throat.
As I cautiously moved forward, I discovered someone lying beside the square’s side street.
It was the captain of the guard.
As if resenting his failure to protect the village, he was still glaring fiercely even in death.
His blade, which he always wore on his belt, lay broken on the ground.
The captain’s condition meant the situation had escalated to the worst possible scenario.
And soon, I noticed something strange.
Next to him, about five or six bodies were lying together, surrounded by pools of blood seeping from the corpses.
At first glance, they looked somewhat human, but they were twice the size and covered in thick black fur.
Where their feet should be, there were only large hooves, and atop their necks were heads of beasts with long, curved horns.
The sight was so gruesome that I lost myself for a moment, but the sound of approaching footsteps snapped me back to reality.
The sound was rough and crude, like that of horses or goats. As it got closer, I instinctively hid behind a large tree trunk.
At first, I hoped it might be survivors from the village, but that hope quickly shattered.
Instead of survivors, strange monsters with black, curly fur and beastly heads appeared.
Though there were differences in size and color, they resembled the bodies I had just seen.
Blood mixed with saliva dripped from their mouths.
Their vertically slit pupils were terrifying.
One of them kept chomping on something with a crunching sound.
I didn’t want to know what was in its mouth.
They communicated with each other in a language that sounded like the howling of beasts. Then, the leader snorted heavily, scanning the surroundings.
I reflexively covered my mouth to hold my breath, fearing they might have come searching for my scent.
Fortunately, maybe because the smoke and flames covered the area, they looked around puzzledly and then moved away.
After they were completely out of sight, I finally let out the breath I had been holding.
I could easily recall the identity of those monsters.
Demons.
Sinners transformed into hideous beasts by a divine curse.
Now banished beyond the wall to the north, these despicable beings were always looking for an opportunity to invade.
The monsters from the stories Seoyeon once told had just walked past me.
But I couldn’t afford a moment of relief.
Soon after, I realized that our house was in the direction the monsters had come from.
“No…”
I forced my unresponsive body to stand.
I gripped my trembling hands and wildly beating heart.
Hiding among the debris, I continued forward.
T h i s w a s c o p ie d f r om k i n g m t l. o r g
And not long after, I witnessed unfamiliar sights of familiar people.
T his w a s c o p i ed f ro m k i ngm t l . o r g
The grocery store grandpa who always gave back extra change.
The film theater sister who always greeted with a smile.
The neighbor who would loudly sing whenever he drank.
The people who, until yesterday, had greeted me with smiles, were all lying on the ground as cold corpses.
-Tak!
Holding onto my sanity was becoming extremely difficult.
T h i s w a s copi e d fr om k in g m t l. o r g
Suddenly, someone grabbed me.
My heart dropped, but then I heard Seoyeon’s breathless voice behind me.
“Huff… Huff… What are you doing, Hyun? Didn’t you see those monsters gathered there? There were dozens at a glance. We need to get out of here quickly. Hurry…!”
“No… Mom… Jinho… Ina are…!”
“…It’s too late.”
“…What?”
“I just checked over there. All the villagers are already…”
Hearing Seoyeon’s words,
Pain gripped my heart as if it was being squeezed.
Seoyeon kept pulling on my hand with a gloomy expression, trying to lead me away.
– Growl…
But then, a low and strange howling sound came from behind.
We turned around and saw three monsters standing not far from us.
The same monsters had returned to find us.
Upon spotting us, the monsters wore evil grins as if their mouths would split open.
One tilted its head back to look at the sky and let out a scream that could tear ears.
Shortly after, the sound of dozens of hooves trembling the ground began to approach from afar.
“What are you… Why have you done this to our village… this…?”
Naturally, the monsters offered no response.
T h i s was c o p i e d f r o m k in g m t l . o r g
They just drooled like looking at delicious food, wearing malevolent and grotesque smiles.
Only then did I manage to regain some of my senses.
It was clear they intended to kill us after the villagers.
I thought of Seoyeon’s life and death first.
Seoyeon was here because of my stubbornness, as if brought into danger.
It was already too late, but I had to somehow save Seoyeon.
If the alarm system had worked properly, the commotion would have already reached the neighboring areas.
Considering the time when the first explosion was heard, if we could just get out of the village, we might soon receive help.
Now was the only chance before other demons approached.
“…Seoyeon, I’ll distract the monsters. Use that chance to run!”
“What are you-!”
Making a split-second decision, I told Seoyeon and then sprinted forward.
I charged at the demons in front of me.
I desperately tried to create an opening for Seoyeon to escape.
– Thump!
– Thud!
T hi s w as co p ie d fr o m ki ng m tl . o r g
“Ugh…!”
But I was just a 16-year-old, quite small for my age.
There was no way I could hold back three monsters, each far larger than an average adult man.
As soon as I lunged at them, they beat me and I rolled on the ground.
The taste of warm, metallic blood gradually filled my mouth, perhaps from a split lip.
I wondered why they hadn’t just snapped my neck, but seeing their faces watching me like observing a monkey’s tricks, I understood their reason.
“No…!”
“Hyun!!”
Despite my efforts, Seoyeon, looking utterly distressed, had no intention of running away.
The monsters seemed to change their target, leaving me behind and approaching Seoyeon.
“You said no…!”
Struggling, I staggered to my feet. Again, I stood between Seoyeon and the monsters.
But the monster easily dodged my full-force attack with minimal movement.
Then, with its claws sharpened, it slashed at me, losing balance from my strike.
– Slash!
“Ah!”
I turned my head reflexively, avoiding a fatal injury, but a burning pain and sensation of tearing rose from below my eye.
Warm liquid trickled down from my face.
The monster approached the fallen me, roughly grabbed my neck with one hand, and lifted me into the air.
“Gasp… Choke…”
“Hyun!!!”
I could feel the merciless grip constricting my throat.
Th is w a s c op i e d f r o m k i n gm t l.o r g
From a distance, Seoyeon’s voice calling my name reached me.
Just when I thought I might be strangled to death, the demon threw me forcefully towards a stone wall.
– Crashing!!
“Ugh… Choke…!”
Hitting the wall, an intense pain as if all my bones were shattered hit me.
My head felt heavy, and my thoughts began to blur.
The last scene my eyes captured was Seoyeon running towards me.
Then the demon turning around, aiming for Seoyeon’s neck.
Seeing my pitiful state, Seoyeon nearly screamed in despair.
“No!!!!!!”
And the moment our eyes met, I lost all consciousness.
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KaiLauncelot
Hope he doesn’t get memory loss.