The Proposal

"Isn't hunting hard?"

The apparent leader among the men stepped forward and spoke.

"To be honest, did you even manage to eat properly yesterday?"

As if he pitied them terribly, he looked over the women one by one with an exaggeratedly sympathetic expression.

"When we first split up from you, there were seven of you, weren't there? But now your numbers have dwindled by one more, leaving only the three of you."

"……."

"Why don't we work together again? Shouldn't the survivors join forces?"

Though he said only sensible things, the women reacted apathetically. Their faces showed no interest. I soon understood why.

"Do you mean you simply want us to join forces?"

"Haha, I mean we should help each other out in various ways. Hunt together, search for the remains together, and take care of each other's sexual needs while we're at it."

As the women's faces crumpled, the male leader added in a slick tone.

"We're not asking for much—just suck us off. Right, guys?"

"Yes, hyung!"

"We're really not asking for much!"

As if it would end with fellatio. The moment a dick is in their mouths, their pussies are as good as opened up.

I looked toward the women and nodded.

'That aside, now that I look at them, they all have decent faces.'

It had been too dark yesterday for me to get a proper look, but under the flickering flames of the statue, I could see that despite being dragged through this fucked-up place for over seven days, they had still maintained their beauty.

It meant they were all naturally exceptional.

'No wonder the men are greedy for them.'

The men in particular were all throwing heated glances at Han Sohee, and—

Even with her hood pulled over her head, they seemed to sense that there was something unusual about her, whether it was her jawline, the bridge of her nose, her lips, or the dignity that unconsciously seeped from her.

'Damn, this is getting troublesome.'

After I'd generously seasoned the dish the night before, other guys were trying to get their hands on it first.

It was a dilemma.

If I stepped in here, the arrows would turn toward me, so to avoid leaving future trouble behind, I would have to kill all the men.

But if I did that, the women would weigh on my mind.

Hadn't the Saintess been deeply traumatized by the matter of killing people only yesterday?

'The Saintess matter worked out nicely thanks to good luck, but….'

Relying on the same luck twice would be foolish.

Regardless, it was clear that murder was an act likely to be frowned upon in the first trial.

If I overlooked that, the frightened women might misunderstand and think I could kill them someday too, then stab me in the back.

'Women are emotional and imaginative, so that sort of thing happens often.'

So, at this point, the best course of action was to let the negotiations fizzle out and have us part ways.

It didn't have to take long; just a brief moment would do.

The moment negotiations were postponed, I could storm the men's side and wipe them all out.

"Let's pretend we didn't hear about this today."

Fortunately, the women firmly drew the line.

However, the men let out a mocking chuckle, as if they had expected that much.

"Then you'll starve to death."

"Don't worry about it. We'll take care of our own affairs."

"Ha, you're really being frustrating. Why don't you give up already?"

"……."

"There are only three of you left. What more are you hoping to accomplish? You know most mobs travel in groups of five or more, right? It's obvious you can't hunt anyway, so are you planning to regret it only after you're about to die?"

Ugh. Kim Yoorim wore an awkward expression. It wasn't because the man's blunt words had hit home.

"We'll take good care of you. Just close your eyes and suck us off, will you? You'll get comfortable in no time."

The men began surrounding and pressuring the women. The women backed into a corner step by step and took a defensive stance.

"Stop. Don't come any closer."

Though they quickly drew their weapons and warned them, the men only scoffed.

"Oh, you want to try us? Guys."

"Heh heh. You'll regret this, ladies."

The men drew their weapons too.

"Damn it."

It was a difficult situation. With only three of them and outmatched in strength besides, the women had no way to handle it on their own.

To make matters worse, all they had were short daggers, while the men carried long weapons like swords. It wasn't even a remotely equal fight to begin with.

'Still, a fight can't break out.'

"Drop your weapons and give up."

"Let's not fight among ourselves. Let's settle this amicably."

The men had no intention of killing the women,

"Don't make me laugh. Who would that benefit?"

The women also knew that starting a fight would only harm them, so they couldn't move rashly.

In the end, both sides merely raised the tension as they glared at each other.

'Things are still looking good. Somehow, I just need to make it through today without a fight and postpone the negotiations until later.'

Then I could handle the rest. I could go to the men's side and quietly take care of them.

But the affairs of the world never move exactly as I expect.

"Huh?"

As both sides glared at each other in this hair-trigger situation, Joo Ahyeon suddenly locked eyes with me.

"Minjun oppa!"

"……."

…I'm not her oppa. By age, I'm actually younger than her.

Anyway, that wasn't important, and at Joo Ahyeon's sudden shout, every gaze instantly turned toward me.

"Who else is here besides us?"

"No way—the crazy bastards came down?!"

Startled by the discovery of another survivor, the men turned around and warily faced my direction, and the three women seized the opportunity to run toward me all at once.

"Well, damn."

When the fish they'd herded into one corner slipped through the net, they belatedly furrowed their brows.

In the meantime, the women took up positions behind me and went on guard.

Lee Sera had already vanished, apparently having dropped back, and was nowhere to be seen.

"What are you?"

Hostile gazes converged on me. The footsteps approaching in long strides held a viciousness unlike when they had been confronting the women.

"Who knows? Just a passerby?"

"Passerby or traveler, get lost while we're still asking nicely. Don't wait until you've been stabbed and regret it."

The situation had already gone beyond the point of no return. In that case, I drew my sword from its scabbard and rested it on my shoulder.

"What if I don't?"

"Ha, there's always some asshole like this. A guy who shows off trying to impress women, only to get the shit beaten out of him."

At the apparent leader's words, the others snickered and joined in. I snorted as I looked at them with contempt.

"Why would I need to impress them? They already seem to trust me more than they trust you."

"……."

When I jerked my chin toward the women behind me, the men suddenly seemed to have nothing to say. They could no longer laugh and only mouthed soundlessly.

"And I don't know what kind of trash you are, but get lost while I'm still asking nicely. Don't wait until you regret it later."

"Go fuck yourself. Who the fuck are you to interfere in our business?"

"Tsk, there are always guys like that. They can't win women over with words, so they have to cause trouble with their actions."

At that, the men's faces reddened with anger before they shouted.

"This son of a bitch thinks we're just going to take this!"

The men approached with their weapons in hand. Their bulging eyes were murderous, as if they intended to tear my limbs apart right then and there.

"Let's see how much you can wag that three-inch tongue of yours even as you die! Guys!"

"You're fucking dead, asshole!"

'…Whew. I guess when words fail, showing it through action is just human nature.'

I had no intention of condemning them for it.

I wasn't all that different myself.

I let out a short sigh, then quietly glared at them, allowing the murderous intent I'd kept carefully hidden until now to fill my eyes.

Flinch.

Those who had been charging at me with their weapons raised flinched at my murderous gaze and stopped in place.

"Huh, huh?"

Tremble, tremble.

To be honest, I wasn't particularly strong. In a way, I had been one of the pieces of trash scraping along at the very bottom.

However, over ten years, I'd experienced countless things and killed countless people, and among all those lives, human lives had certainly been included.

Step back, step back.

How many people had I killed?

A hundred? A thousand? Or ten thousand?

'I don't think I've reached ten thousand yet, at least.'

"Y-you bastard, what the…."

We were definitely both human, but from their perspective, I could be called a monster wearing a human shell.

That was how it looked to those who had only just entered the Selection Process.

"Wh-what the fuck is that guy…?"

And monsters recognize their prey, while prey recognizes its predator. It's instinct.

In other words, it was only natural that they were so terrified by my gaze that they fled through the chapel doors.

"Huh? They ran away?"

Of course, the women who had been standing behind me and hadn't been subjected to that murderous intent found the situation baffling.

I moved toward the door. Two women immediately clung to either side of me.

"?"

"Mr. Minjun, how about we travel together again today?"

"Oppa, let's hunt together and eat together like yesterday."

Kim Yoorim and Joo Ahyeon wrapped their arms around mine and gazed at me fervently.

'What the hell? This is a whole different level of affection from yesterday.'

Ah, was that it? Saving them unintentionally just now seemed to have had a positive effect.

Just as those guys who had fled moments ago said, it looked like I'd really won them over.

"……."

I stared for a while at the place where the men had disappeared, then nodded.

"Sure, why not? Let's go."

***

We passed through the door and climbed the stairs on the right side of the chapel.

Perhaps the effect of winning their favor was real, because even when I put an arm around each of Kim Yoorim and Joo Ahyeon's waist, they merely flinched in surprise and didn't resist.

Both had reasonably sized breasts by Korean standards, but their thighs and buttocks were remarkably full and firm.

'Must be the result of all that exercise.'

It was nice that women like these would squeeze my dick tight with whichever hole I used. They didn't get loose easily, no matter how much use they got.

'Though mages and healers have their own appeal when it comes to fucking them.'

Flesh that was soft and yielding like marshmallows was healing just to touch. It was a different kind of pleasure from firm muscles.

As I reached the second-floor pews, I asked,

"By the way, what was up with those men earlier?"

"Ah, they were people who used to travel as one team with us."

Five days ago—until then, quite a lot of people had still been moving around together.

"There were really a lot of people back then."

They said there had been several parties, so the chapel apparently hadn't been as lonely and silent as it was now, but quite lively.

"But then the parties started disappearing one by one. They probably left to search for the remains. So, after we'd already searched everywhere worth looking around, we decided to check the stage over there."

But that had been a mistake. There had been far more Specters than expected in the fog they ventured into to investigate the area around the stage, and many people had died there.

Unfortunately, their leader had died with them, and the new leader chosen afterward had been blatantly greedy for the women.

"He would touch the women's butts whenever he got the chance and pressure us to have sex with him. So we left and started acting separately."

"I see."

I understood the general outline of what had happened—why the men and women had begun acting separately. Even so, there was still something I didn't understand.

"You managed to get away. They wouldn't have let you go willingly."

Hadn't I seen their persistence earlier? It was strange that they'd let the women go so easily.

"There were more women than men back then."

"Ah."

When you're low-level, nothing beats having the numbers.

"And there was a more fundamental problem, too. The more people there are here, the more easily the mobs gather in large numbers."

As we climbed the stairs, Kim Yoorim pointed out several locations. Most were places where they could hide behind protruding ledges, pillars, or the like.

"By contrast, there aren't many places to hide."

That was certainly true.

Suppose twenty Specters came rushing out. You tried to hide, but there were only four hiding places, while there were seven people.

Then what were the three who couldn't hide supposed to do?

"Before, there were so many people that no matter how many Specters appeared, we could just rush over in a pack and gang up on them. But not anymore. We don't have enough firepower. So we travel in small groups, hide when there are too many enemies, and only hunt when there are few."

We reached the corridor on the third floor.

「Aah….」

Eleven Specters had just slipped out from one side of a room and begun approaching us.

The women each gripped their weapons tightly and assumed combat stances.

"I've heard the story."

I gripped my weapon as well. The Specters that had spotted us sped up even more. I swung my sword through the air and said,

"Then that's enough of an introduction. So, have you thought about my proposal from last night?"

"Pardon?"

"The offer I made you yesterday."

"Ah…."

Their faces said the time had come. But no answer came immediately.

Were they still deliberating? If so, I needed to help them make their choice.

"Like yesterday, I'll keep them occupied, so you three handle three of them."

I dashed forward, and the three women followed close behind, luring three Specters away and hunting them.

I watched them hunt, then when they were finished, I deliberately swung my sword and dealt with the Specters around us.

Gasp. Gasp.

They looked as though they'd been submerged and barely made it out alive.

The three faces, drenched in sweat, looked at me with hollow expressions.

They had been swinging their knives while being chased for their lives, whereas all I had done was calmly let the Specters attack me, then swing my sword three times at the end.

The contrast between me, who hadn't broken a sweat, and them was stark.

"Um."

The three women approached.

They looked at each other, then nodded as if they had discussed something beforehand.

Kim Yoorim, the oldest of them and a soldier, asked me on their behalf.

"Would it perhaps be possible to pay afterward?"

"Pay afterward?"

"Yes. Once we make it out of here alive, we'll earn money and be sure to pay you back, whether it's at the next Shelter or in the next trial."

"Hmm, I don't know."

"Please. We're begging you."

I had expected them to come at me with something like this. In ten years, hadn't I encountered this sort of person?

I snorted.

'We don't know when we'll die, so there's no way I'm accepting payment later.'

Even if they were fairly hardy survivors, showed potential for growth, and had pretty faces, the moment I was swayed by that and lent them the item, I'd become a sucker.

Some people might dress it up as an investment or an opportunity to draw out genuine goodwill, but I had no such soft-hearted sentiment or patience left in me.

'But if I make up a reasonable excuse, they could appeal to my emotions and keep pestering me.'

So I decided to sell out our Witch of Crimson Flames.

"Actually, I told a companion my age yesterday that I was going to give them the [Snowfield Accessories] in exchange for a quickie. Then they told me to sell it to them instead. They said they'd pay with their body."

"That's…."

"Honestly, you've been here for over seven days, so you know this, but isn't this the kind of place where it wouldn't be strange for anyone to die today?"

They had just hunted so desperately that they were on the verge of death, and couldn't bring themselves to argue with me.

"From my perspective, my companion's offer is more appealing than your proposal to pay me back later."

"……."

The women fell silent.

Even they had to realize that they had made a truly absurd request, relying on my compassion,

because the terms they offered had no appeal whatsoever.

In an instant, the mood sank into gloom. I squatted down, grabbed a Specter's corpse, and said,

"Even so, your circumstances are pitiful, so I'll give you the first opportunity. You're hungry, so shall we talk while we eat?"

"Yes, let's."

"That… sounds good."

"……."

Hungry and unwilling to let the negotiations end like this, the women sat around the monster corpses and began eating them while watching my reaction.

'They were really keeping their guard up. No wonder they'd held out without selling their bodies to the men until now.'

But that lasted only a moment before the women's expressions went blank.

Their expressions went blank, cleared, then went blank again as they ate more of the Specter corpse, then cleared once more….

It was proof that eating the ghost-type monster's corpse was steadily draining their mental strength.

Perhaps that was why?

"Would it be all right… if we did it orally too?"

Kim Yoorim brought it up. She was asking whether it would be all right to get me off orally. I readily nodded.

"Of course."

The moment they suck my dick with their mouths, their pussies are as good as unlocked already.