An Unexpected Encounter at Cheonggyesan Mountain

stood at the summit of Mount Cheonggyesan, enjoying the gentle breeze that carried the scent of leaves and damp earth. Searching for a 1000-year-old ginseng should have been a peaceful and relaxing journey, but I hadn't found a single clue about that elusive ginseng. "Is this ginseng or a wild cat, why does it keep disappearing?" I muttered, slightly frustrated.

While I was busy digging the ground with a tree branch I had picked up, something suddenly shattered my tranquility. The sound of heavy breathing approached. I turned around, and a woman rushed past me in a panic. Her uniform was tattered and stained with blood, but the most striking thing was the Golden Lion emblem on her chest. She looked disheveled, running with a wound on her arm, trying to stop the heavy flow of blood.

"What in the world? A marathon in a horror movie?" I frowned at the sight. Before I could ask anything, the woman kept running, as if death itself was chasing her.

And as it turned out, I was right.

A few seconds later, someone appeared from behind, chasing her at full speed. His hair was disheveled, and the black magic staff in his hand glowed with a dark aura that radiated nothing but danger. His eyes emitted a murderous intent so intense it was palpable.

I was ready to stay out of it, but as soon as the man saw me, his face twisted with fury. Without any words, he swung his magic staff at me like a thug trying to bludgeon someone in a dark alley. Seriously? "A magic staff isn't meant for bashing people's heads in, dude," I thought.

With quick reflexes, I dodged his attack. Standing calmly, I looked at him with a deadpan expression. "Look, man. If you want to say hello, your mouth is for talking, not your staff for smashing people's heads."

I casually swung my hand, just for fun, and SMACK!

His head exploded. Yes, exploded. Blood and brain fragments scattered all around me. I narrowed my eyes at the mess. "Oh, seriously? I just wanted to slap him, not throw a brain party here." I let out a heavy sigh. "And now you've messed up my coat... this is my favorite raincoat, you know?"

As I was still contemplating the aftermath of my possibly over-the-top slap, I heard another set of footsteps approaching. From behind a large tree, another man appeared, wearing the same uniform. But this one had a darker aura, and from the sharp look in his eyes, I could tell immediately: a summoner.

The summoner looked at his dead companion with a calm expression, as if the man's death was nothing more than a minor inconvenience. He took a deep breath, then hissed, "So you're the one who killed him, huh?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. But you saw it yourself, he started it. If magic staffs are made for hitting people, I might need to enroll in magic school to learn their real purpose."

The summoner wasn't amused by my sarcastic remarks. "No matter. He was just a pawn. I can create more of him."

His eyes gleamed. With a quick motion of his hands, he began chanting a spell. The ground around us trembled, and from within the earth, terrifying figures began to emerge—undead corpses, full of wounds with glowing red eyes.

"Oh, now this is getting interesting!" I smirked. "So we're playing zombies now? I hope you've got more than this because this is starting to feel like a low-budget video game."

The summoner ignored me and continued his incantation. I watched the rising corpses with my hands still in my pockets. "Seriously, man? If you want to put on a show, at least add some special effects. This feels like a cheap TV drama."

Casually, I prepared myself for the fight, though honestly, I hoped it would be at least somewhat entertaining. I was bored enough from the fruitless search for that elusive ginseng, so maybe smacking a few undead around would make for a nice distraction.

I glanced at the summoner with a lazy expression. Behind him, the undead stood with outstretched arms, ready to lunge. The woman from the Golden Lion who had run past me earlier was now collapsed in the bushes, her breath ragged. Her severe injuries left her barely able to move.

"Seriously?" I muttered under my breath as I stretched my neck. "If this is all we've got, the fight's going to be long and boring... and I really can't be bothered."

The summoner grinned. "Soon enough, you'll be one of them," he said, pointing at the horde of undead behind him.

"Oh, what? More low-grade drama? Is there nothing more exciting?" I let out a long sigh and glanced at the ring on my left hand the Ring of Cosplay. A grin spread across my face. "If this is how it's going to be, we might as well make it interesting. Maybe I should turn into someone a little... cooler."

Casually, I twisted the ring. A burst of purple light surrounded me, making my hair stand on end as if I had just received the worst hair treatment ever. In front of me, the summoner's eyes widened, clearly confused by what was happening.

As the light faded, I now wore a black suit with gold trimmings, complete with a cape billowing behind me. My hair was now spiked up, styled like Yumi Yiga, the legendary duelist from Duelist Heroe... well, a knock-off version of it. I couldn't help but chuckle. "Yami who? Doesn't matter, as long as it looks cool!"

The summoner in front of me looked bewildered. "What are you talking about? Why has your appearance changed?!"

I crossed my arms, smirking. "You think you're the only one who can summon something? Too bad, I've got a few tricks of my own." I pulled out a thin card from my jacket pocket, though I had no idea when I'd placed it there. "I activate this card! Dark Magician Killer!"

With a flick of my wrist, dark energy swirled in the air. From the vortex, a terrifying figure emerged: "Dark Comedian!" This black clown grinned wide, brandishing its staff while laughing maniacally. It looked more horrifying than funny, as if it was ready to slice its enemies into pieces, not throw around cheap jokes.

The summoner's eyes widened. "What the hell is that?!"

I gave him a bored look. "You don't need to know. What matters is, it's way tougher than your whole stinking zombie collection. Attack them, Comedian, and end this with, you know... the darkest circus ever."

The Dark Comedian moved swiftly, its staff slicing through the surrounding undead. They didn't just collapse—the undead exploded in showers of blood and flesh, their body parts raining down on the battlefield, accompanied by the eerie laughter of the crazed clown.

"Ah, look! They're smaller now—uh, I mean, there's more of them." I chuckled, watching the pieces of flesh scatter around. "Who said bigger is better? Now there are so many smaller bits to enjoy."

The summoner stared at me with a pale face. "You... you're a monster!" he shouted.

I shrugged casually. "A monster? Me? Haha, that's funny. But don't get it twisted. You're the ones playing with corpses—who's the real monster here?" I snapped my fingers. "Now, it's your turn."

Panicked, the summoner cast another spell, this one bigger and more dangerous. The ground shook, and from a crack in the earth, a giant creature emerged: "Necrosaurus!" The monster stood tall, with green skin and glowing red eyes.

I sighed, glancing at the final card in my hand. "So now we're summoning giant monsters? Fine, I can play that game too."

With a dramatic flourish, I called forth my ultimate card. "Here it is, my final card... Obelisk the Instigator!"

Lightning struck from the sky, splitting the air around me. A giant figure appeared—muscular with a fierce expression, its face resembling a lion that had just been fired from its job. "Come on, Obelisk! Crush him with your fists of overworked rage!"

With a thunderous roar, Obelisk punched Necrosaurus with his giant fist. The monster's body exploded in a burst of flesh and blood, scattering across the battlefield like a rain of gore. The summoner recoiled in fear.

"How could this happen...?!" he screamed in panic.

I walked closer, casually, hands in my pockets. "Yeah, life's like a card game. Sometimes, all you need is a better hand than your opponent." I gave a slight smirk before raising my hand and snapping my fingers. "Game over, bro."

His head suddenly exploded after my final words. Blood and brain matter splattered through the air, painting the ground a deeper red, sickening to look at. I wiped a small splatter of blood off my cheek and stared at my right hand.

"Wands are for casting spells, not beating people up, amateur." I turned around casually and walked towards the woman from Golden Lion, who was still hiding behind the bushes. "Yeah, congrats, you're not dead... today. Tomorrow? Who knows?"

I approached the woman, who was still panting, crouching behind the bushes after witnessing the summoner's head burst like a watermelon hit by a hammer. Her face was pale, drenched in sweat, and her breathing was still labored.

"Oi, so... what's the story? Why are these weirdos chasing each other around this mountain?" I asked casually, glancing at her trembling hands. I adjusted my jacket, now stained with blood from the earlier fight. Damn, my favorite jacket got ruined, and I don't have a spare shirt. "Is this really important? Or just some cheap movie plot with a bad twist?"

The woman looked up at me, her eyes showing shock that hadn't fully worn off. "I... I'm Seol Min, from Golden Lion," she said, her voice still trembling. "Jang Soo and I... we came here to investigate a rumor about a 1000-year-old ginseng."

I raised an eyebrow. "Ginseng? Seriously... so this thousand-year-old ginseng is real?" I asked, a bit surprised, though more out of curiosity. If it was real, maybe it could fetch a high price.

"No...," she replied, shaking her head. "It was a trap. The ginseng was just a rumor created by the Black Crescent Cult."

I paused for a moment, staring at her with a blank expression. "Wait... wait... so this isn't about real ginseng? I climbed this mountain for fake ginseng? Ugh, what a waste of time!" The complaint slipped out before I could stop it, and I let out a long sigh. "If I knew it was just a scam, I would've stayed at my new apartment and slept."

Seol Min lowered her head, clearly trying to hold back the fear that was still gripping her mind. "We... Jang Soo and I, we were investigating further, and then we were attacked by members of the Black Crescent Cult. We didn't expect them to be so dangerous. Jang Soo... he..." Her voice began to tremble when she mentioned her now-deceased companion.

I scratched my head, growing tired of the increasingly melodramatic situation. "Yeah, yeah, I get the rest. One got stabbed, the other got chased. I can picture it." I sighed, looking toward the forest that had fallen silent after the battle. "Let's go check on Jang Soo's body. I suppose you need to see it for yourself, right?"

Seol Min nodded, though her face showed reluctance. Without waiting longer, I took the lead, with her following behind me.

The short walk led us to a gap between the trees, where Jang Soo's body lay. Or... what was left of it. His head was nowhere to be found, and his body was split in half. The blood that soaked the ground had begun to dry, but the stench was still overwhelming.

Seol Min gasped at the sight. She struggled to hold back her sobs, but I could see how devastated she was.

"Ah...," I whispered softly, taking in the gruesome scene before me. "He probably wouldn't be happy seeing himself like this." I gave a small kick to the dirt near Jang Soo's severed legs. "Well, what can you do? Dying like this... dramatic, but definitely uncomfortable. Feels like... a bad ending choice."

Seol Min covered her face with both hands, her body trembling. "He... he helped so much... and now..."

I glanced at Seol Min for a moment. "You okay?"

She didn't answer. Her breath was still ragged, and I could see how hard she was trying to hold back her tears. I wasn't used to handling situations like this, especially not gently. I just shook my head and sighed.

"Okay, okay. Listen, this is a bad situation, I get it... uh, I mean, I understand," I said in a more serious tone. "But if you just sit here crying like in some Korean drama, it's not going to change anything. The important thing now is that we find a way out of this alive, okay?"

Seol Min slowly nodded, though her cheeks were still wet with tears.

"Look," I continued, "I don't want to get too involved, but if the Black Crescent Cult is behind this, we need to report it to the association, right?"

"Yes... yes, we have to report it," Seol Min muttered.

I sighed again, glancing at Jang Soo's lifeless body. "Such a shame. At least we can pay our respects... but yeah, if we stay sad for too long, we're gonna end up dead too." I shrugged, turning around. "Let's get out of here."

Seol Min looked at me for a moment before finally nodding slightly. The two of us began walking away from the scene, following the path leading out of the mountain. Despite the strange and tragic situation, I couldn't help but wonder, what's the point of getting involved in all this?