The Servant in the Horror Game is Suspicious Chapter 38

A blurry shape streaked through the air toward Ian. He threw himself desperately back toward the cave.

Thud!

But the Shadow Wolf was a split second faster. Its sharp fangs clamped onto his boot. Most of Ian’s body made it inside the cave, shrouded by the darkness, but his feet weren’t so lucky.

The Shadow Wolf hung on tenaciously, dragging Ian back out. He tried to kick his foot free, but the wolf’s bite was like a vice; his foot wouldn’t budge.

“Ugh…!”

The only thing for him to grab onto was the slick stone floor of the cave. Ian was dragged out helplessly until his entire body was back out on the snowfield.

He blindly grabbed handfuls of snow and flung them at the beast, but it wasn’t nearly enough to disperse the Shadow Wolf.

The wolf’s eyes flashed as it bared its teeth menacingly. It seemed intent on dragging Ian back to where the rest of its pack waited to share the meal.

“Let go of me!”

He tried to kick the wolf with his free foot, but he couldn’t reach. The boot on his trapped foot was dangling precariously, nearly pulled off. It was a losing battle. He exerted every ounce of strength to kick the boot away, but it merely flew past the wolf and landed uselessly in the snow.

“Ugh…”

As he was dragged along, Ian stared back at the interior of the cave. The only person he could call for help was Jade. But the words wouldn’t come out. He had never asked or begged anyone for help before.

More than that, would the man even save him? Wouldn’t he just see this as a perfect opportunity and leave him to his fate?

Until now, Jade had helped him. But suddenly, a memory of Jade conversing with his uncle’s henchman flashed through his mind. He imagined Jade standing there, looking down at him with an indifferent gaze as the wolf dragged him away.

“……”

He almost preferred it if Jade didn’t come out at all. To Ian, facing a Jade who looked at his dying form with cold indifference felt more horrific than being torn to pieces by the wolf.

While those thoughts raced through his head, Ian’s body was pulled further and further from the cave. His fingers left long, desperate furrows in the snow.

“Mmm…?”

At that moment, Jade, who had been leaning against the wall, was jolted awake by the commotion.

His lap felt light. Ian, who was supposed to be lying there, was gone. Rubbing his eyes and looking around, he realized with a start that Ian was nowhere in the cave.

“Ian?”

The sun hadn’t quite set yet. Driven by a frantic instinct, Jade didn’t stop to think—he sprinted out of the cave.

“……!”

Jade’s face went rigid. There was a jagged trail in the snow as if something was being dragged away. At the end of that trail, a Shadow Wolf was pulling Ian along.

“Ian!”

He needed something to throw, but there was nothing around but snow. Not even a common pebble. Jade ducked back into the cave to grab anything from the sack.

That was when a piece of firewood with a faint, lingering ember caught his eye.

Fire. It was fire. Shadows vanished in total darkness, but they could also be destroyed by bright light. Moreover, fire was hot.

A fragment of the setting guide suddenly surfaced in his mind: Northern creatures are generally weak to intense heat. He gambled that the Shadow Wolf, which moved like mist and ripples, would share that weakness.

He wasn’t certain. But he had nothing to lose. Besides, the wood itself was heavy enough to disrupt the wolf’s form.

Jade grabbed the firewood with the glowing ember and charged out. He hurled it with everything he had, and it struck the wolf square in the body. The Shadow Wolf distorted and scattered far more violently than when it had been hit by the pumpkin.

In fact, “scattered” didn’t even do it justice. The spot where the wood hit was charred away completely, and the surrounding form began to melt and run like candle wax near a flame.

His instinct was right. The Shadow Wolf’s weakness was high temperature—actual fire.

“Let go, you bastard! I said let go!”

The wolf’s jaws were still locked onto the boot. Jade delivered several heavy kicks to the wolf’s snout with his own thick work boots. Finally, Ian’s foot slid free. Jade pulled him back, putting distance between them before the distorted wolf could reform.

“Huff, huff…”

“Ian, let’s get back to the cave, fast.”

“Huff… Wait, my leg…”

He tried to pull Ian to his feet, but the boy was so drained he could barely walk. Without a second’s hesitation, Jade crouched down in front of him.

“Get on my back.”

After a brief hesitation, Ian slowly leaned against his back. He knew there was no other choice. Once Jade felt Ian’s weight, he stood up. That was when it happened.

“Grrrrr…!”

Another wolf lunged from behind. There had been a second one lurking besides the one hit by the wood.

Judging by its trajectory, the wolf was aiming for the smaller, more vulnerable Ian. Jade spun his body, shielding the boy and narrowly dodging the snap of the jaws.

The wolf that had been hit by the fire was also starting to regain its shape. The cave was only a few meters away. Jade bolted for it. Simultaneously, both wolves lunged.

“Ack!”

In his desperate rush, he lost his footing on the sloped floor at the cave entrance. Those wooden soles were the culprit once again.

Jade threw his weight forward, barely preventing them from falling backward into the wolves’ reach. But the momentum was too much.

Jade’s body practically went airborne before sliding and crashing into the cave. He saw a sharp, jagged rock protruding from the floor, but by the time he noticed it, it was too late.

Thump!

As he hit the ground, his left arm slammed violently into the jagged rock. Ian, who had been on his back, tumbled off beside him.

“Ugh…!”

Jade clutched his arm. A sharp, piercing pain exploded through him. His arm bone throbbed with a numbing ache. It was so intense it made his head spin.

No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t move a single finger. This wasn’t just the pain of a bruise. The bone was definitely cracked.

“Are… are you okay?!”

“Ah…”

Ian’s already pale face had gone completely white. He looked like he was about to burst into tears; Jade wanted to tell him it was fine, but he couldn’t. The agony in his arm was so great he couldn’t even find his voice. He knew if he opened his mouth, only a groan would come out. He was just immensely grateful that Ian wasn’t hurt.

Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead. Every ounce of fatigue from the day washed over him, draining his strength. Perhaps today had simply been too much. His eyes kept trying to slide shut.

Maybe I’ll just sleep for a second. He couldn’t go back to the villa yet anyway. He felt like if he just slept for a tiny bit, the pain would be better when he woke up.

Ding.

The only reason he didn’t close his heavy eyelids was an annoying sound ringing in his ear. Jade forced his eyes open.

[ ※ Obtained Title: ‘Monster Hunter’! ]

The system window displayed the text with a flashy, shimmering effect. Monster Hunter? Jade squeezed out what little strength he had left to look at the cave entrance.

Two Shadow Wolves were still pacing near the entrance. But one of them looked strange. It was still blurry, but its form was different than before. It looked like drifting ash after a fire, or something melting in a blaze.

The Shadow Wolf flickered as if it might reappear, then simply vanished. A wolf-shaped trail of smoke rose into the air. It hadn’t just been injured; it had been completely annihilated.

‘Is it because it’s a northern monster?’

The setting guide was correct. In the North, where freezing winds and blizzards raged for half the year, even the Shadow Wolves were vulnerable to fire.

At any rate, it seemed the new title had appeared because he’d finished off that wolf. But what use was a title right now?

As if reading his mind, a new message popped up.

[ >> System << ]

Reward for ‘Monster Hunter’ title: Offensive skill acquired.

>> Special Skill <<

Lv 1. Fireball

A vibrant fanfare effect accompanied the large golden letters. His arm was killing him, and now his ears were ringing from the notification.

“Extra” was the only word for this system. No, besides that…

‘What use is this now?!’

“Seriously, you’re crazy…”

This insane system. He’d gone through all that hell and gotten injured, and now it decided to help. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Jade finally lost consciousness.

When the fainted Jade opened his eyes again, it was the middle of the night. Ian was by his side.

Jade was covered with a blanket, and the back of his hand—which he had haphazardly tied with cloth earlier—was now neatly wrapped in bandages.

Even his arm, which had been broken against the rock, was wrapped in something. It was the wooden boards Jade had left over from making the shoe soles. It looked like Ian had used the thin boards as a splint and bandaged them in place.

‘When did we get back to the villa?’

These were items from the villa—the bandages, the boards. But looking around, he realized he was still inside the cave. How was this possible?

“Are you awake? Are you really awake?”

As he was trying to figure things out, a pale face popped into his field of vision. The boy’s delicate white face was clear, but his eyes were red and swollen. He had clearly been crying. Since Ian was always so stoic and cynical, Jade hadn’t been able to imagine him crying.

Right. He must have been terrified.

There were monsters outside the cave, and his only protector had collapsed unconscious. No matter how mature a child was, there was no way he could have been okay.

“When did you… get all this…”

There was also a lantern and some steamed potatoes. These were also things from the villa. That meant Ian had gone back there and come back.

He couldn’t have gone while the Shadow Wolves were still there, so he must have gone after the sun went down. How did a small child, who had just been threatened by wolves, manage to go to the villa in the dead of night?

Looking closer, the amount of stuff wasn’t something he could have brought in one trip. He must have gone back and forth at least three times.

Even now, while he was crying like this… wasn’t he scared to trudge through the forest to the villa all alone at night?

“Are… are you okay?”

Ian’s voice was exceptionally small as he asked. Jade forced a bright, cheerful smile. He felt that if he didn’t, Ian wouldn’t be able to calm down.

“I’m fine.”

“……”

On the contrary, Ian’s face crumpled as if he were about to start sobbing again.

“Really, I’m okay.”

“Ugh… sob…”

In the end, Ian burst into tears. He didn’t even cry like a normal child, wailing out loud; instead, he made stifled, hitching sounds as if trying to hold it back, which made Jade’s heart ache even more.

Jade used his uninjured hand to pat Ian’s back, comforting him. Outside the cave, the moonlight was exceptionally bright.