The reanimated corpses that moved only by instinct were incapable of making the simple choice of turning to the side. They merely kept charging toward the entrance—where the friction was close to zero—slipping and repeating the same motion over and over.
"Ghk."
This area was somehow dealt with, but when I heard Han Sang-ah's groan, I turned my gaze to the side.
"What the hell is that now?"
A headless corpse, clad in samurai armor and gripping a katana, was fighting Han Sang-ah. She was being pushed back. And behind her, I could see people standing there, utterly at a loss.
They looked exhausted from days without proper food or water. Filthy from being unable to wash, their limbs bound with ropes that bit into their flesh, soaked in blood and pus.
"Hey, switch out!"
At my words, a grinding sound came from between Han Sang-ah's teeth.
"Fine."
She seemed disappointed in herself, but at least she didn't let that disappointment lead her to a stupid decision. As Han Sang-ah ran toward the hostages, I blocked the headless samurai's attack aimed at that opening and wreathed my spear in black flames.
"Well now—did you leave your head somewhere and come with just the body?"
Not that it could answer anyway, since it didn't have a head. I slid its blade aside with my spear and kicked straight into its exposed chest. With the sensation of striking metal, its body was pushed back.
"Cold."
As I stepped back, I checked my leg. Some kind of curse. After burning it away with paradoxical black flames, I examined the sword it held. A damp, sinister violet energy rippled along the blade.
Just how sinister was it?
About as sinister as a fat, middle-aged man licking the thigh of a girl young enough to be his daughter.
—The offering… must be protected.
"Good grief. Now the corpse talks too. No head, but how are you even speaking?"
The thing snapped into stance.
The aura it carried was perversely vile, but its posture was solid—like a Jenga tower carefully stacked before a game.
Unlike the other corpses, this headless one seemed to be a custom job.
"Are you done yet?"
At my shout, Han Sang-ah yelled back.
"I just finished burning everything!"
Then I had no desire to stay here any longer. Dealing with that thing wouldn't be difficult, but… why bother? There was no reason to.
"Pleasure meeting you."
As I said my goodbyes and tried to fall back, the thing drove its sword into the ground. The moment the blade pierced the earth, the sinister energy dwelling in it took the shape of a snake and lunged at me.
I didn't block it. I kept retreating, dodging the snake's gaping jaws, and leapt onto the roof of a mid-sized van.
"Since I'm in Japan anyway, should I try the Japanese I know? Hey, all right!"
Shouting that, I struck the car with my spear.
With a screeching crash, the wheels tore up the ground and the van charged forward like a bull stabbed in the ass.
"Don't go back through the entrance we came in! The car'll skid!"
"I know. I've got eyes."
As I shouted back while steadying myself on the roof, an answer came immediately from the driver's seat.
"Han Sang-ah, the sword!"
At my call, an arm shot out from the driver's seat, a blade clenched in its hand. Catching it, I drew on the magic in my gloves and kicked off the car, leaping forward.
Running faster than the van Han Sang-ah was driving, I cut down everything in our way—trees, brush, corpses, even ghosts—clearing a path.
"Faster, even faster!"
As I drew on my magic once more, dozens of afterimages of swords appeared in midair and vanished.
Appearing for only an instant, then gone.
"Like the balance in my salary account."
Like a hair clipper mowing down hair, I sliced through the mountain's trees and brush, carving a path, until at last we found a proper road.
"The car needs to slow down—can you help?"
"I can."
At Han Sang-ah's words, I let out a deep sigh and took position on the road ahead, steeling myself. Facing a mid-sized van barreling toward me at 150 kilometers per hour, I stretched out my hands and simultaneously drew on the power of my bracelet.
I caught the onrushing van with both hands, dispersing the force as much as possible, and twisted its direction.
With the smell of burning tires, neat tire marks were etched onto the road once more. Then I hopped back into the car.
"Now let's bolt for the harbor—and don't look back."
Once we got there, the fishermen rescue would be a success. The total number of people saved was seven.
"The numbers seem low. There weren't any bodies?"
At my question, Han Sang-ah shook her head.
"How about asking them?"
I shook my head at her suggestion.
"Not now. Let them rest first."
There was no way to know how long they'd been held captive on this island. Probably a very long time. First, we needed to get them some warm food and let them sleep.
Of course, stuffing someone who hasn't eaten properly in a long time with hot meals is dangerous. Refeeding syndrome, I think it was called. In any case, what they needed right now was rest.
We could ask about what happened to the people we hadn't found later.
"I should contact the National Police Agency and ask them to send medical support personnel as well."
"That sounds best."
I had no idea what specific measures needed to be taken for these people. I wasn't a doctor. I spoke to the survivors.
"Are there any other survivors?"
"They're all… dead."
One of them answered with a voice barely audible.
"That's enough."
At the very least, it meant there was no one left that we needed to push ourselves to rescue right now.
"Persistent, aren't they."
Keeping her expression blank, Han Sang-ah muttered as she watched the corpses and ghosts charging after us in the rearview mirror.
"The leader's tagging along too."
Running at the very front of the horde was the headless samurai we'd almost had to deal with earlier.
"Wonder where he ditched his Red Hare—running on foot like that."
Muttering to myself, I climbed over the passenger seat and moved to the back where the survivors were.
"Yep, here it is."
A green cargo cart used for hauling luggage caught my eye.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Extreme sports."
After saying that, I fastened seat belts around each of the survivors, tied the cart's handle to the car with a rope, then kicked the van's rear door open.
"Drive well."
With that, I rode the cart tied to the rope and dropped cleanly out of the car.
The car sped forward. The thrown cart screeched as it was dragged along by the rope. Riding atop it, I adjusted the rope's length with one hand and grinned at the headless samurai sprinting at the front.
"Hi there."
We were moving fast enough that it wouldn't be strange for the cart's wheels to melt. These things were meant for moving cargo, not for riding like a sled.
But it was fine for now. I'd burned away the friction where the wheels and axles met.
With no friction, there was no heat generated. Naturally, that meant the wheels wouldn't melt. Still, durability was a concern. Paradoxical black flames were good at destroying things, not protecting or repairing them.
Even if the flames grew stronger, all they'd do was burn durability away, not reinforce it. Still, it didn't matter. I'd already burned away all the friction on the underside of the cart itself.
Even if the wheels broke, with no friction on the bottom, I could keep this stupidity going, more or less like snowboarding.
"You know, once in your life, you want to try something like this."
I thrust my spear with one hand. The thing drew its blade, blocked the attack, and leapt high.
Blade and spear clashed countless times in midair, showering sparks with every impact. Each time the car swerved, the cart tied to it with a climbing rope danced along wildly.
"Just get lost already. Why are you so damn clingy?"
I kicked it in the chest, sending the headless samurai flying through the air. It flipped its body in an instant, regained its stance, and charged again with ferocity.
Since it was a corpse, it wouldn't get tired. In the end, with a crunching sound, the cart's wheel finally shattered, unable to withstand the repeated impacts.
The underside of the cart slid along the road. At the same time, the car took a sharp turn.
"Ha!"
I tightened my grip on the rope, and my body, along with the cart, lifted into the air, tracing a wide arc. Even then, the headless samurai and the corpses relentlessly lunged for me.
After bursting three heads, parrying the headless samurai's blade, and brushing the cart's underside with my toes midair, I yanked the rope hard.
With a whir, the overturned cart slammed back onto the road, and I landed cleanly on top of it.
"Are we there yet?"
At my shout, Han Sang-ah replied.
"I think we're almost there. No—we're here."
At her words, I took a deep breath.
The charging corpses and ghosts were suddenly wrapped in white light. Black smoke poured from their bodies as they shuddered violently and froze in place.
From here on, it was within the range of the blessing's formation. The car came to a stop in front of the hotel.
"Yeah, I figured you'd endure it. Headless friend."
But not everyone succumbed to the blessing's formation. Even while black smoke poured from its body, the headless samurai stepped steadily toward us.
The small fry couldn't endure it, but that thing had already proven itself a custom job. Still, judging by its condition, it didn't look completely fine.
"Stupid corpse."
It had only barely matched me when it was in good shape—yet it crawled all the way here like this.
"Move the people inside the car. Don't give them water or food."
If they ate or drank on their own, who knew what might happen. Once doctors arrived by boat, they'd take the necessary measures. All we had to do was keep them safe.
Paradoxical black flames flared along my spear. Han Sang-ah began carefully moving the people from the car into the hotel.
As if it couldn't stand the sight, the headless samurai gripped its sword and lunged toward Han Sang-ah—
"Where do you think you're going, leaving me behind like that?"
The spear thrust toward the oncoming wave of blades, writhing like a piranha swimming through a current as it targeted the thing's body.
—You are…
The thing muttered that, then suddenly stepped back and straightened its stance. It didn't breathe, yet it looked as though it were steadying its breath.
"That's Mind's Eye. It knows it. Be careful."
Watching the scene as she carefully moved people, Han Sang-ah called out to me.
"Mind's Eye?"
At my question, she explained.
"Beyond the five senses, a new sense opens. A state where you perceive the opponent's movements before they attack and respond accordingly. How a corpse could—"
"Ah, so that's what it is."
After hearing her explanation, I gave a small snort.
If you hone your skill with weapons long enough, it's a place you trip over at least once.
Put simply, it's a kind of illusion—often interpreted as the 'eye of the mind.'
"Don't take it lightly. It's a realm you can only reach after seriously training in martial arts for a long time."
"And you?"
At my question, Han Sang-ah shook her head.
"I still have many shortcomings. I'm far from reaching it."
"…Listen carefully. I'll only say this once."
I ran my hand along the shaft of my spear, then stated it to Han Sang-ah as if declaring a fact.
"The mind has no eyes."
It was obvious, wasn't it? Why did people ignore such an obvious truth and believe the mind had eyes?
For me, dealing with someone who's fallen into that Mind's Eye delusion is actually much easier.
Because there's a trick to handling them.