Chapter 91: Organizing

Chapter 91: Organizing

[The moment when you put on the dead mans mask on your face.]

A message window appeared.

[The whispers of the trapped spirit within the mask begin to echo.]

[The penalty effect of the A-rank accessory Dead Mans Mask, Pure Silver Madness is activated.

// Pure Silver Madness: Forces a sanity check when worn. Failure in the check will result in a random mental illness afflicting your mind and you will become possessed by the soul within the mask.

I started to hear distinctly odd noises.

Come down, come into the darkness.

Descend into the deep underground.

Join us. Shed that uncomfortable skin and walk the deep underground with us.

Down, down, down the infinitely descending spiral staircase.

An unpleasant and disturbing voice continuously whispered towards my soul.

[These strange whispers might also transform your soul and body into a form more fitting for the darkness.]

[Attempting to resist the Curse of the Dead generated by the mask with your mental strength stat. Mental strength check failed]

If I had failed, I would have been possessed by the spirit of the Hollow Lords father trapped in the mask and become a cultist worshipping a being of the abyss.

However, that would never happen to me.

I cant hear you, I cant hear you, I cant hear you

I scratched around my collarbone and waited for that effect to activate.

[System: The unique trait Madness of the Abyss has been activated. The result of the sanity check is changed to success.]

Good job.

The message window disappeared without any additional messages.

In an old mirror hanging in one corner of the living room, I saw myself wearing the mask.

I looked like a mad mage who had lost his own face and borrowed that of a dead man.

I activated another ability embedded in the mask.

[The effect of the A-rank accessory Dead Mans Mask, Gift of the Dead has been activated.

// Gift of the Dead: Allows for the storage and retrieval of magical power and knowledge within the mask.

Along with a dizzying tinnitus, magical power from the netherworld began to flow from the Dead Mans Mask.

Ziiiiiiing

Its a complete hodgepodge of low purity magic power.

The mask had a lot of magical power that the previous owner, the Hollow Lord, collected from various places.

Although it was a lot, it was impure and low-grade magical that was poorly refined.

Unlike other magical powers I had absorbed before, absorbing such energy could cause internal injuries or, in martial arts terms, lead to something like qi deviation.

Well, it doesnt matter since Im not going to use it.

I pulled the lines of magical power emanating from the necromancy golems and transferred them into the mask.

Clunk.

As the path of the magic shifted, the golems simultaneously halted their movements and then reset and rebooted.

Creeeek, creak, creeeek!

Now, instead of drawing magical power directly from me, the necromancy golems were supplied with energy through the Dead Mans Mask.

After floating a few magic circles in the air, I slowly removed the mask.

The Dead Mans Mask ascended slowly into the air.

It had essentially become a kind of auxiliary battery.

While the magical power embedded within it was not unlimited and would eventually deplete, the soul sealed within the mask had formed a sort of mana core, which would recharge it to some extent.

If it ever gets to the point where natural recharging isnt enough, I could always fill it up using the resonance stone.

Phew

I paused for a moment and touched my bare face.

The feeling of my face being touched by my fingertips was indescribably eerie and unsettling.

An unpleasant feeling of touching my human flesh.

The very fact of exposing my bare face felt utterly horrific.

Would I eventually go mad from this?

Gradually, I was also beginning to forget what my own face looked like.

I sighed again and put on [Carcosas Mask] that I had been wearing before.

It was an indescribably comfortable feeling.

Now, the face of a monster with four eyes was reflected in the mirror.

Alright, shall I head out now?

The only thing left was to move my important belongings from the studio apartment where I had been living on rent. After some thought, I decided to ask for the help of Jang Hyeon-deok.

He was one of just two NPCs in Paju with whom I had formed a firm alliance.

That noise was Doldol being stubborn after I forcibly removed the refrigerator.

Should I call it gluttony?

Or maybe a hoarding instinct?

Fortunately, even without coveting the refrigerator, there were plenty of items in the studio apartment that caught Doldols interest.

Doldol particularly enjoyed swallowing the cursed gold ornaments that came from the bodies of the golden dancers. It was even shivering with delight.

Im not sure what the difference is, but it seems it has its own tastes.

Alright, step back for a moment, Doldol.

When Doldol stepped back, I summoned my magical power.

[Memory Erase]

Fwoooosh!!

It was a spell that removed magical fingerprints and traces left in space, as well as the memories of objects.

I had never done anything to warrant that level of tracking, but now, not even a psychic with psychometry abilities or a druid who could read the Earths memory would be able to find any trace of me.

Additionally, I had sprayed a magical smokescreen as a precaution against any unforeseen situations before I could finally leave this studio apartment.

Are we really leaving empty-handed?

As I said earlier, everything is packed inside Doldol.

Wow

Jang Hyeon-deok wore a look of amazement.

Where can I find something like this?

You should try hard and rob a haunted house somewhere too.

Ugh, I cant do that alone.

If you take the lead, Ill help.

Jang Hyeon-deok responded with a grimace.

No, Id rather give up.

The cramped studio apartment I had lived in for a few months was now behind me.

There were still some paperwork formalities left, but vacating was something I could manage over a phone call on my way out.

So, should we head back to that theme park right away?

No, sorry, but lets stop by the market first.

The market? Are you going to see the old man?

Wasnt that supposed to be a secret place?

Ah, you underestimate me, Mage-nim. Ive been in this business for six years; how could I not know why fixers frequent Geumchon Market?

Indeed, that was the case.

The Geumchon neighborhood was the only place where you could pick up useful artifacts. It must be information picked up from other fixers.

The market was not far away, so we arrived near the pawnshop quickly.

It was getting dark.

It was a quiet time when vendors were preparing to pack up their stalls, but today, there was an unusually large crowd and the atmosphere was bustling.

Whats going on? There are a lot of people.

Ah, the night market started yesterday. Everyones going to stay open until 10 p.m.

A night market?

Yes. Oh, you might not know? They do it every year around this time.

Hmm I see. But with so many people, theres nowhere to park the car?

Ill be in that alley over there, so call me when youre done.

Certainly, Geumchon Market had a more vibrant atmosphere than usual.

The market boasted temporary stalls selling unusual foods that were not typically seen, and there were various bright lights and impressive banners everywhere.

The problem is

Why does the night market exist?

I know that around this time, there is a night market in Paju, or specifically, in Geumchon Market.

But that schedule belongs to the reality I originally lived in.

In [Cthulhu World], such trivial events do not exist.

Of course, not everything here was exactly like the game, but still, I felt oddly out of place.

The fact that just last night I fought against a 150-year-old skeleton seemed unbelievable given the mundane scene around me.

It felt as though I was not in some bizarre otherworld with fixers and monsters, but had actually returned to my original world.

Of course, I couldnt just blend in immediately.

I layered several spells to minimize my presence then walked through the peaceful Geumchon Market.

*******

TN: Doldol is cute!