Chapter 62

62 The Old Memories of the Cave Zone

* * *

Early in the morning, Cheon Dowoon prepared to go to the Cave Zone. His supplies consisted of the camping backpack Nam Ki-seok had left behind.

After emptying the two bags, Kim Nari and he each carried one.

He also emptied the bags he had obtained from the Snowy Mountain and packed them separately. They were for collecting and storing anything they needed.

Finally, Cheon Dowoon buried Root in the soil inside a beaker.

-Hoo-oong!

He pressed down with his finger to stop it from coming out.

"Stay inside. I'm going out."

As Cheon Dowoon picked up the beaker, Root stopped struggling.

Ah, it's trying to move. It wants me to take it with me. If that's the case, I'll stay still.

Root, reassured that it could be with Cheon Dowoon, went back into the soil with a relieved expression.

"Guu, do you want to go too?"

He asked, but Guu shook its head.

The reason was that someone needed to oversee the young Chimeras, but in reality, it just wanted to bask in the sun in the yard.

In contrast, the fox looked at Kim Nari with a regretful expression.

-I, I want to go with Kim Nari. But…

The fox looked at its fluffy fur.

-My molting is over, and my winter coat has grown in. You said it's a dry place there. If I go, I'll collapse from the heat. I'll just be a burden.

Due to practical concerns, the fox also decided to stay home.

Going were Cheon Dowoon and Kim Nari. And Blue, the carrier.

-Hoo-oong.

Including Root in the beaker Cheon Dowoon was holding, there were four of them.

"Then, shall we go?"

Cheon Dowoon climbed onto Blue's back. As the group mounted, Blue leaped up, understanding the situation.

* * *

"Mister, do you know where the Cave Zone is?"

"I do. It's to the east. I saw it when we went to the Snowy Mountain. Distance-wise, it's closer than the siblings' house."

Blue's high-speed flight shortened the time. Before long, the endlessly stretching Cave Zone came into view.

"There it is. There's no terrain for Blue to land on. Let's get off around here."

Cheon Dowoon tapped Blue's neck twice, and he slowed down and descended accordingly.

Cheon Dowoon held Kim Nari and jumped off. In front of where they landed, tens of thousands of stone pillars stood tall.

"Ooh… this is the Cave Zone."

Kim Nari looked around with a fascinated expression.

There were straight stone pillars and arched pillars. They were so close together that they looked like a maze.

The arched stone pillars covered the sky, making it look like a cave.

"It's not a cave. But it really looks like one."

Kim Nari said with a fascinated expression.

"It's like a cave, but sunlight comes in."

The tall stone pillars cast shadows, but that didn't mean light didn't enter at all. Beams of light poured down through the gaps in the stone pillars that blocked the sky.

A cave with sunlight. It's not a cave, but you'll see why they call it a cave.

Kim Nari understood what Cheon Dowoon had meant.

"This place is like a maze. An ant nest. If you go in, you'll lose your sense of direction."

"It actually is. Once you go in, you can't tell if you're going forward or sideways."

Cheon Dowoon said as he entered the Cave Zone. Unlike his words, there was no hesitation in his steps. Kim Nari followed him in with a trusting expression.

"What we're looking for is a light green mushroom."

"Mushroom?"

"Yes. It's about 3 centimeters in size. Quite small. It glows, so it should be easy to find. Find it, grind it, extract the juice, and apply it to the surface of the house. If it's absorbed into the wood, it'll be fine even if Acidic Snow falls."

Kim Nari looked at Cheon Dowoon with a fascinated expression.

"How do you know so much about that, Mister?"

"Most Hunters would know. It's a well-known method for preparing for Acidic Snow."

It was a mushroom that, although rare, also grew outside the Cave Zone.

Since it had been released on the market before, its efficacy was somewhat known.

'That aside… it hasn't changed much since I last came.'

Cheon Dowoon looked around. He had been to the Cave Zone a few times when he was younger. The last time was around his early twenties.

[One of the researchers went to the Cave Zone alone. He said he was going to pick some mushrooms. It's been a day, and he hasn't come back, so he must be lost. Go and bring him back. He's a capable guy, so we can't afford to lose him like this.]

The director of the research center had entrusted Cheon Dowoon with a personal request.

Arriving at the Cave Zone, he looked around. To find the missing researcher, he covered the area with Mana and began his search.

[Found him.]

The researcher was lying down less than 20 meters from the entrance of the cave.

He had lost his way and was circling in the same spot until he collapsed from exhaustion.

As he approached him, the researcher jumped up.

[You, you are…! The research center sent you to find me!]

The researcher smiled brightly with a relieved expression. Cheon Dowoon stared at the man silently.

[I remember now. You were an Alchemist, right? The one who converted Mana Hole into life force.]

[You know me? There are quite a few researchers.]

[There are. And they get replaced often. But you were quite the talk of the town because of that incident. I remember your face at least.]

Cheon Dowoon tilted his head as he looked at the researcher.

[Crossing a Gate alone when you're not even a combat-type Awakened. You're crazy. What did you want to do?]

[That's… my wife is sick. I needed this to make medicine.]

The researcher opened the bag he had brought. Inside was a small, fluorescent mushroom.

[There aren't any on the market right now. It's hard to get, and I don't know when they'll be available again. What can I do? I have to do the legwork.]

It was a pure-hearted statement that didn't seem like it came from someone who conducted human experiments.

Just as Cheon Dowoon was about to say something, a giant centipede jumped out from between the nearby stone pillars.

The researcher screamed and fell. Cheon Dowoon blocked the centipede that rushed toward him with one hand.

A loud noise rang out. Dust flew up. The spot where Cheon Dowoon stood was dented, but he didn't budge.

Cheon Dowoon blocked the centipede with one hand and shot out threads with the other. It stopped before it could cut the monster's body into pieces.

'That's… a baby?'

Three baby centipedes were huddled together in the cave where the centipede had come out.

Monsters that take care of their young are rare. A so-called rare species.

Seeing that, Cheon Dowoon retracted the threads. Instead, he instantly raised his own energy.

-Kieeeeek!

The monster disappeared into the cave with its young, overwhelmed by the pressure that crushed the area.

The researcher's face was filled with shock as he watched.

[T, this… what is this power…!]

He was also an Awakened. Although not a combat type, he knew the level of power Cheon Dowoon had displayed.

[This is completely different from the research center's records! H, have you been hiding your power all this time? I've never seen this level of power. What's going on…!]

The researcher's words were cut off the moment he made eye contact with Cheon Dowoon.

He had made a mistake. The researcher instantly sensed that. Hiding it from the research center meant he wanted to avoid troublesome situations.

He had learned that secret.

That expressionless face is dangerous. He's weighing my life. Realizing that, the researcher immediately opened his mouth.

[I won't tell anyone.]

Test subjects are engraved with Spells to prevent them from killing research center employees, but allowing them to die was possible.

[P, please. I won't tell anyone. Please take me out of here. Huh?]

If Cheon Dowoon just left, the researcher would have no choice but to wander around here and die.

[T, that's right! I'll cast a silencing Spell on myself.]

[I heard there are many ways to break that.]

[You can put a Mana lock on top of the Spell I cast. That's all you have to do. With the power you showed earlier, no one will be able to break the Spell. I happen to have the materials to cast a silencing Spell right now. I brought all sorts of things just in case.]

The researcher spoke non-stop as he took out the materials.

[Please. Save me. My wife will die if I don't go.]

[Really?]

[My wife has a disease. I have to go and make medicine for her.]

The researcher's eyes were sincere. He desperately appealed, stating that his words were true.

Cheon Dowoon tilted his head as he looked at him.

[So, your family is precious to you.]

It was a statement with a lot implied. The researcher was someone who knew how to cherish someone, but despite that, he conducted all sorts of human experiments on living people at the research center.

A look of guilt flashed across the researcher's face. He tightly closed his eyes.

The desire to conduct unrestricted research on people.

For an Alchemist, it was a temptation that was hard to resist. He knew it was the wrong path, but he couldn't stop.

He listed the materials with a gloomy expression. When he activated his ability, the materials melted away and turned into formulas. They seeped into the researcher's body and were engraved.

[I have engraved that I will not disclose anything that happened here…]

All that was left was Cheon Dowoon's judgment. The researcher anxiously looked down at the ground.

Cheon Dowoon looked at him and covered the Spell with Mana.

The researcher was once again surprised by the vast amount of Mana covering the Spell Matrix.

Locking the Spell meant he would be saved. With that hope, he looked up at Cheon Dowoon.

[Y, you're going to save me?]

[If you engrave the conditions I say on your body one more time.]

[Y, yes. I'll do anything. Anything.]

Cheon Dowoon looked at him and smiled.

[When you go back, quit the research center.]

[I, I will.]

[Cherish your wife. Don't cheat and be faithful to your family. Be a good husband that anyone can see.]

[Of course. I will. Definitely. I'm already doing that.]

The researcher nodded vigorously. A devoted husband. A loving couple. That kind of rumor was already rampant in the research center.

He had even entered the Cave Zone alone to save his wife.

[Do you have children?]

[Two. Both are in high school.]

[That's good. They're past the age where they need a lot of attention. They're old enough to know right from wrong. Be good to your children too.]

The researcher nodded vigorously.

[When I go back, I'll be a really good husband. A good father. I'll be more faithful to my family.]

[You should. That is, if your family accepts you.]

[What…?]

[When you go back, show your family the data you've researched. That's the condition for me taking you out of here.]

The researcher's hopeful expression instantly hardened. The research he had been doing for years flashed through his mind. The video footage, photos, and documents came to mind, and the color drained from his face.

[They're family living under the same roof, right? You've been pretending to be an ordinary company researcher until now. Your family should know what you've been doing under that guise. Don't you think?]

[Ah….]

[Documents, videos, audio files. Everything without hiding anything. Let them view it all in the same place. Engrave that condition on your body. If you break it, you die.]

The researcher's hands trembled. Red, bloodshot tears fell.

[Even if they accept you after that, yes. Then, try to be a better husband. Try to be a good father. How about it?]

[Ah… ahh….]

The researcher groaned. That sound soon turned into sobs. Cheon Dowoon smiled.

[Be good to your family. If they accept you after seeing all that, you have to be good to them. It'll be a miracle if they don't throw up and run out.]

[Ahh…! Ahhhh!]

The researcher covered his face and sobbed.

The karma for what he had done. It had come back like a boomerang. He envisioned a future where he would lose his entire family, whom he had cherished more than his own life.

Contempt, disgust, scorn, fear, terror. The gazes of his family that would be directed at him. He might never see their faces again for the rest of his life.

[Please… please, not that… please…!]

It was no use begging. He knew that, but he still begged. Cheon Dowoon looked at the researcher with a puzzled expression.

What was it about family that elicited such a reaction?

Of course, he knew it theoretically. He also knew that people generally cherished their families.

He knew it in his head, but he didn't understand it in his heart.

Because he had never had one, the emotions related to that part had not grown and were hollowly empty.

[It's amazing. If I have a family, will I feel those emotions too? If I have a family, will it really become precious?]

All that returned was the researcher's sobbing. There was no one to answer.

* * *

Cheon Dowoon, who was reminiscing about that day when he was twenty, was awakened from his thoughts by a sensation tickling his cheek.

-Hoo-oong.

Before he knew it, Root had crawled up Cheon Dowoon's arm. It sat on his shoulder and patted Cheon Dowoon's cheek with its Rootlets.

"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

Instead of answering, Root pressed its body tightly against Cheon Dowoon's cheek. It pressed its plump belly against his cheek and patted Cheon Dowoon's forehead with its leaves.

He wondered why and stayed still, and Kim Nari grabbed his sleeve.

"Mister, that Rootlet seems to be comforting you."

"Out of the blue. Why all of a sudden?"

"Your expression looked dark."

"Mine?"

Cheon Dowoon looked puzzled. He wasn't the type to be depressed while reminiscing about the past. In the first place, it wasn't a past that was worth being depressed about.

All he had been thinking about was wondering what choice the researcher's family had made.

Still, since Root was desperately leaning on him, he didn't say anything in particular.

"I'm… uh, I'll be next to you too, Mister!"

Kim Nari said, not letting go of Cheon Dowoon's sleeve.

As expected, kids are so random. Cheon Dowoon smiled wryly as he thought.