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Chapter 4
It looked like he had injured his head—blood was streaming down, covering his face.
—Ahhh! Blood! It’s blood!
Mel fluttered quickly toward the man.
But the man wouldn’t be able to see Mel.
Perhaps reassured by the fact that someone lived here, the man collapsed with a thud, and Juhee blinked.
—Juhee, what do we do? What should we do?!
Juhee frowned.
Just when things had finally been peaceful, an unwelcome guest had appeared.
And of all places, he had collapsed right in front of her house, so she couldn’t just ignore him.
“…For now, let’s bring him inside.”
It seemed like she needed to take a closer look at his wounds.
It was impossible to move him alone, so she called for Lu.
She couldn’t keep calling him “wolf,” so she had given him a name last time.
“Lu, I’ll wash you in the pond later.”
Lu, who hated getting blood on his fur, hesitated for a moment at those words, then grabbed the man’s shirt with his teeth and dragged him inside.
With Lu inside, the small room felt completely full.
“Thanks, Lu. Wait outside.”
Juhee looked down at the man with calm eyes, then placed her fingers under his nose.
His breathing was shallow, but he was alive.
To examine his wounds, Juhee slowly unbuttoned his shirt.
But the injuries were worse than she expected.
It wasn’t just one long cut on his side.
There were large and small wounds all over his body, and blood was still steadily flowing out of them.
If left like this, he might die from excessive blood loss.
—The smell of blood is too strong.
Mel said, pinching her nose with her tiny hands.
Indeed, the metallic scent of blood filled the air.
Juhee first fetched a towel and wiped away the blood.
Once she cleaned him roughly, the wounds all over his body were clearly visible.
Since this was her first time dealing with something like this, she hesitated, unsure what to do.
Then suddenly, Mel sniffed the air and flew closer to Juhee.
—Juhee, I smell a spirit… Did you summon Undine?
“Yeah, earlier at the pond.”
—That’s great! Let’s ask Undine to heal him! Even a low-level spirit can easily heal wounds like this!
Juhee hesitated for a moment, then quietly called out:
“Undine.”
—Did you call me?
Water droplets gathered in the air, and Undine appeared.
“Can you help me?”
—If it’s your request, I’d even kill someone for you!
She said it so brightly that it almost sounded normal.
Juhee made an awkward expression.
“No, that’s not necessary. Please heal this person.”
—That’s easy! Juhee, lend me some of your strength.
As soon as she finished speaking, Undine approached the man and seeped into his body.
At the same time, Juhee felt something being drained from her.
And astonishingly, the man’s wounds began to heal.
In less than ten minutes, his body was completely restored.
When the treatment ended, Undine emerged again.
—How is it, Juhee? Do you like it?
“Thank you.”
—Call me again next time!
After planting a quick kiss on Juhee’s cheek, Undine disappeared.
The man was now sleeping peacefully, as if he had never been injured.
If not for his blood-soaked clothes, no one would believe he had been so badly hurt.
Since they needed to talk once he woke up, Juhee covered him with a blanket.
The smell of blood still lingered, so she opened the window to ventilate the room and stepped outside.
“Mel, I have something I’m curious about.”
—What is it?
“What is Undine?”
—A low-level water spirit!
“Then… am I a spirit summoner?”
—No! You don’t need a contract with spirits. You can meet them just by calling their names!
“Just by calling their names?”
—Yeah! But you used to dislike spirits. Last time you called one, you even yelled at it to go away… Did you change your mind?
“I was just curious.”
It seemed that Eiril hadn’t liked this ability much.
Probably because, being labeled a witch, revealing that she could summon spirits would only make things worse.
Mel spun around her and said:
—Juhee, want to try calling other spirits?
“Do I know their names?”
—Of course! The earth spirit is Gnome, the fire spirit is Salamander, and the wind spirit is Sylph!
They were all names she had heard before.
Things that could never happen in Korea made her realize again that she was inside a book.
After glancing around, Juhee softly called:
“Sylph.”
—Ah, I was so jealous seeing you only call Undine! I thought I’d suffocate!
A small figure similar to Mel appeared in the air.
The only difference was that it had wings instead of arms.
—Nice to meet you! Did you finally decide to call us? I’m so happy!
Encouraged, she called the other spirits as well.
All of them were delighted, saying they were finally meeting her, which left her a bit flustered.
After the noisy spirits left, Juhee asked Mel:
“Can I call mid-level or high-level spirits too?”
—No, that’s still beyond your power.
“I see.”
—But spirits really like you, so they’ll help you with anything!
“Anything?”
—Yeah! They like you so much, it’s basically love.
It sounded like it could mean dangerous things.
But unless she was the protagonist of the story, such events probably wouldn’t happen.
She went back inside and checked on the man, but he was still unconscious.
Even though his wounds were healed, he had lost too much blood to wake up easily.
Juhee carefully examined his face.
He had black hair like hers, and his features were strikingly handsome.
She had never seen him in the village before, so he must be an outsider.
After pondering his identity for a while, she stood up.
In any case, once he woke up, she could just send him away.
“Mel, I’m going to the pond with Lu. Stay here and keep an eye on him.”
—Okay!
Juhee stepped outside again and headed toward the pond with Lu.
At that moment, Juhee believed the man was simply an unlucky traveler who had wandered into the forest.
But that was a mistake.
* * *
“Catch him! Don’t let him get away!”
The man ran with all his might.
The sword he had stolen earlier had long since broken and been discarded.
The horse he had taken during his escape had also died, leaving him no choice but to run on foot.
Then, he saw a forest ahead.
It didn’t matter what kind of place it was.
What mattered was escaping the knights chasing him.
Even from the outside, the forest looked dangerous and dark—surely they wouldn’t dare follow him in easily.
Clenching his teeth, he ran into the forest.
“Everyone, stop!”
The knights chasing him clicked their tongues and halted at the forest’s edge.
The forest, known as the cursed Melina Forest, was a place no one entered willingly.
Since he had run into it himself, it was certain he would be torn apart by monsters.
“Commander Phillips, what should we do?”
“…We withdraw. No one survives in that forest anyway.”
“That’s true, but…”
“Then will you go in?”
“N-no, sir!”
The knight shook his head frantically and quickly retreated.
Commander Phillips felt uneasy but had no choice.
He had no intention of dying pointlessly in that forest.
He decided he would report to his lord that the man was dead.
And so, the knights withdrew from the forest entrance.
That was their biggest mistake.
* * *
Meanwhile, the man who had entered the forest wiped the blood running down his face with his sleeve as he wandered aimlessly.
Because it was night, the forest was so dark he could barely see.
“Damn it…”
He had lost too much blood, and his vision was blurring, but he knew that if he lost consciousness now, he would die.
The wounds from blades all over his body throbbed in pain.
He glanced behind him, but there was no sign of pursuit.
Pressing his hand against the wound on his side—the one bleeding the most—he continued wandering.
“Haah… haah…”
He didn’t know how much time had passed.
At this point, it was a miracle he was still conscious.
Considering how much blood he had lost, he should have already died from excessive bleeding.
He had to find a way out soon.
Instinctively, he realized that if he stayed here any longer, he would die in this forest.
He staggered forward.
Then, just as he felt he had reached his limit, a light appeared in front of him.
“…Light?”
Even if it was an illusion, it didn’t matter.
He desperately moved toward it.
When he finally exited the forest, a wide field spread out before him.
Unlike the forest, the outside was bright and warm.
“Ha… haha…”
Then, through his blurred vision, he spotted a house.
Driven by the instinct to survive, he staggered toward it.
It was Juhee’s house.
He barely reached the yard, almost crawling, but there was no sign of anyone.
Still, it looked like someone lived there.
The place was spotless, without a speck of dust.
As he stood there blankly staring, a voice came from behind him.
“…Who are you?”
It was an indifferent voice, but it calmed his wildly pounding heart.
He slowly turned around.
A young-looking woman was staring at him blankly.
And with that sight, his consciousness faded completely.
