The Babysitter Wants to Stop Dying

Chapter 34: The Devil in the Deep Mountain Village (3)

The forest Emma guided us through was, frankly, so suspicious you could feel it just by breathing.

There was no need to think any further.

It was the very definition of 'suspicious'.

A forest where you couldn't hear the chirping of insects, the singing of birds, or even a single trace of any animal. We trudged along a path where even the sound of the wind was absent.

Truly a bizarre stroll in the middle of the night.

“How's Lottie?”

“He doesn't seem cold. A bit grumpy, though.”

At Romero's question, I gently patted Lottie's back.

Lottie, wrapped snugly in a thin blanket borrowed from Emma, looked warm, but his expression was sullen.

“What's wrong, our Lottie.”

Romero asked playfully, but the little head turned away with a flick.

“Oh dear……”

The person who wants to get close and the nephew who vehemently rejects it. A dejected Romero trudged forward.

“Lottie, look here.”

“Uu-.”

The little one, having confirmed that Romero had moved away, looked up at me. In a way, I wondered if he was scared.

But then again, considering his behavior so far, that probably wasn't it. He had been wide-eyed and shining even when he was about to become alligator food.

Maybe he saw an unpleasant future through a premonition, or maybe he was angry about walking through a forest like this at dawn. Come to think of it, I was just grateful that he was being quiet.

‘Anyway, what is this.’

As much as I insisted on my 'hunch', here I was, walking through this eerie forest. The Knights had 'ooh'ed and 'aah'ed at my 'hunch's' accomplishment, but in the end, it was decided that we would go to the gorge Emma had mentioned.

But then again, thinking back to Phillip at that time, he definitely didn't look like he wanted to go. Delphi also looked extremely annoyed.

Looking at their reactions, only Romero seemed a little excited.

‘Seeing that, I don't think these people are doing this just out of kindness.’

I think I heard Romero, who was putting on her suit, mutter something like 'I hope there is' in passing.

'What could that have meant.'

'I hope there is', was she referring to something related to the disappearances happening in this village?

I furrowed my brow for a moment, then relaxed it. Well, I'll find out soon enough if I'm with Romero.

“Emma. So, people who went here started disappearing one by one?”

Since I had willingly walked into a trap anyway, I figured I might as well dig for some information. I asked her, who was walking right in front of me, and an answer came back immediately.

“That's right. The commonality among the missing people was that it was shortly after they had been to this forest. My brother was the same.”

Emma, who said that, was walking while looking straight ahead. Her voice was distinctly different from when she was speaking inside the house.

The fear she had shown just from the story was gone, and even though she had entered that scary forest, she seemed to be getting more and more unfazed as time passed.

In fact, she was walking so fast that, I don't know about the others, but it was tiring for me to keep up.

‘She's not even trying to hide it anymore, is she?’

At Emma's attitude, I steeled myself not to be surprised no matter what jumped out at me. The conclusion I came to after combining the unsettling advice the driver had given me all the way here with Emma's story.

‘The people of this village are behind this. The story about the villagers disappearing is probably nonsense. They're luring outsiders like this to plot something.’

Usually, in a remote mountain village like this, something is always happening within.

So, am I scared? Of course not.

To be honest, the famous Knights and a person who was practically the strongest in the world were right next to me. It would be absurd to be scared while buried in a party like this.

Compared to all the incidents I've experienced so far, I honestly don't even feel that nervous.

But just because you're riding an elephant doesn't mean you're not afraid of a flying bee, right? For me, this situation was exactly like that.

I absolutely hate things like ghosts. And this creepy atmosphere even more so.

‘Wait a minute. Don't tell me something like that is actually going to come out?’

At the ominous thought that suddenly popped into my head, goosebumps rose on my arms again.

‘If a person who can control souls appears…… no, in a place like this, it wouldn't be strange for a devil to pop out.’

It was as I was praying that Romero also had the ability to perform a physical exorcism. Suddenly, the side next to me felt empty.

Huh?

“Wait a minute.”

“Why?”

The sound of footsteps that had been trudging along stopped all at once.

“Where did Emma go?”

The moment I noticed that Emma, who had been in front of me and had subtly started walking next to me at some point, had disappeared.

“Uwaaaaaak!”

Phillip, who was in front of me, disappeared with a monstrous cry.

“Phillip!?”

And Delphi, who had called his name, also disappeared with a whoosh,

“Ugh!”

It seemed I was next.

***

Someone kicked me in the back.

Without a chance to struggle, my unbalanced body lurched forward.

‘If I'm not careful, the kid's neck will break……!’

Who kicked me wasn't important. I reflexively curled my body into a ball. Just as I was falling into some kind of pit.

A glimpse of green light shone in the moonlight.

“Easy does it. Newbie, you okay?”

I opened my tightly shut eyes to see Phillip looking down at me.

“It doesn't hurt…… at all?”

For someone who had fallen first, his face was remarkably unscathed. Phillip, who was so nonchalant that it was as if his screams were all an act, held out his hand and chuckled.

“How's that, my shield is no joke, right?”

He was right. The falling speed was the same, but there was no impact at all. Perhaps Phillip's shield was the type that absorbed shock, as I was able to get up without a scratch even though I had landed on my side.

“This is a shield……. It really doesn't hurt at all.”

“Ahem! Of course, my shield is practically the best in this field!”

Just as I was marveling at the feeling of a shield for the first time, a loud call struck my ear.

“Lottie! Is Lottie okay!”

Romero appeared behind me and hugged me tightly.

“Uh, wai-, ugh, wait a minute, please let go of……”

“You're not hurt anywhere, right? If our Lottie is hurt, I don't care about the objective or anything, I'm going to kill them all right now.”

Romero, who had been rattling off words like a rapper, was only able to calm down after seeing Lottie peek his head out from my arms.

“Phillip, you son of a bitch……. You'll never die a peaceful death.”

From one side, a low curse could be heard. Delphi, who was lying flat on her back, was cursing Phillip as naturally as she breathed.

“See? It hurts a lot without me, right? I told you, sunbae, you need to watch your mouth.”

“You…… I'm definitely going to kill you.”

“Yes, yes. I'll be cheering for you, sunbae.”

It seemed he hadn't put up a shield when Delphi was falling. The smile on Phillip's face was so bright that all his teeth were visible even in the dark pit.

As I was confirming that all five of us had gathered, I heard the murmuring of several people from above.

“Why are those guys so relaxed? Are they crazy with fear?”

“But you know. Didn't that pitch-black guy just walk in on his own?”

“What are you talking about? Do you think he'd go in crazy? Someone must have kicked him!”

The figures of about six people flickered in the faint light.

“But is that important right now? We should be getting out of here soon too.”

“How long has it been since we entered the forest?”

“It's already been an hour. What if we become sacrifices too if we stay any longer?”

‘……That's!’

My eyes met with one of the figures who were talking amongst themselves. I knew it right away. The eyes from the fence that I had met after coming out of the bathroom. Not human, my ass. They were villagers after all.

“You guys, you're the people from before, right? The ones I met.”

At my question, the lamp they were holding shone down on us, and I frowned at the sudden light.

“Don't feel too wronged. Thanks to you, our village will become even more peaceful.”

The one who answered was Emma. Her face, which had seemed so gentle just a moment ago, now looked like that of a crazy woman who had lost her mind. The way she was smiling with her mouth stretched to her cheekbones, she was at least not normal.

“Anyway, Emma, you're amazing at luring people.”

“Visitors have been scarce lately because of the useless rumors! And five of them, including a child!”

“I hope this sacrifice will be of great help. Ah! Everything for the great Lord Marvas!”

“If He just regains His strength, we will……!”

The villagers, celebrating amongst themselves. I calmly counted them, and including Emma, there were a total of six people surrounding the pit.

It was about 3 meters deep. There wasn't a single protruding rock, so it was impossible to climb up.

‘Sacrifices, are they Devil worshippers?’

My guess was getting closer to certainty as I watched them share their joy with gleaming eyes.

‘Well, I have a strong backup, so I'm not that worried……’

The person who had evaporated alligators larger than dinosaurs with a single punch, a person more like a monster than a monster, was right next to me. The other two were also not to be underestimated.

I turned my head to see what everyone was planning to do, when Emma, who was squatting, rested her chin on her hand and looked down at Phillip.

“I never thought there would be a superhuman who uses a barrier. Normally, we would have beaten you to a pulp and offered you to Lord Marvas, but thanks to you, we had to go through the trouble of luring you here.”

“Since you're talking about sacrifices, you're using a rather troublesome method. Wouldn't it have been easier to put something in our dinner? Everyone would have been fast asleep.”

Even at Delphi's sarcastic remark, Emma still didn't lose her smile. She curved her eyes as if looking at a cute chick and said sweetly.

“Our great Lord enjoys hunting for Himself. He detests drugged, sleeping prey.”

This is crazy. What are they trying to hand us over to?

A shiver ran down my spine, and I hugged Lottie, who was in my arms, even tighter.

“But what's wrong with that guy's arm? Is there something wrong with it?”

A bald man bent down and held his lamp closer to the pit. He must have seen my arm well in this dark place.

“I've been watching, and he's moving it, so there's no problem. Lord Marvas will not be angry.”

Emma shook her head and appraised me. When on earth did she watch me so well? I was looking up at Emma with a look of disbelief, when,

Clap!

A clear clapping sound echoed through the pit. At the unexpected action, the murmuring surroundings fell silent.

Everyone's gaze turned to the spot right next to me.

“As expected.”

Clap-clap- clap-clap-clap-clap-clap!

Romero, clapping her hands repeatedly.

The expressions of the guys above crumpled as if they had seen something unpleasant. And it was the same for me.

I sent a quizzical look to Romero, but she was just staring intently at the people above.

Romero's face was full of smiles, as if she had gotten her hands on something she had been looking forward to.

If it weren't for the fact that the corners of her mouth were raised to a grotesque degree, I would have thought just as simply.

“There's definitely a devil here, isn't there?”

A question that was not just cheerful, but downright bubbly. The villagers' expressions crumpled violently.