Chapter 88: The Weight of Trust

– A Companion in the Closet

1.

The Treasure Hunt of the Wandering Merchant.

It extends not only to the Ashen Mountains of the Yokai Realm but also to the Trash Mountains of the Human Realm.

[The Trash Mountain is filled with valuable goods! Bring me everything you find I’ll buy anything worthwhile. No, just bring everything!]

Thus began the conquest of the Trash Mountain, heralded by the merchant’s cheerful shout.

The standard strategy was simple: repeatedly collect and sell a few valuable items found in Zone 1 of the Trash Mountain.

[Glass Bottle Filled with Shimmering Sand]

A worthless trinket by human standards nothing more than a shiny piece of junk.

Yet, to the Wandering Merchant, it was the greatest treasure of Zone 1.

[Wow! Give it to me! I’ll buy it for 20 Souls!]

The glass bottle, filled with shimmering sand, was easy to acquire and had an excellent exchange rate.

Selling a large quantity of these bottles usually marked the end of the conquest.

Unlike Zone 1, which provided an easy way to amass Souls, Zones beyond Zone 2 became exponentially more difficult, lacking high-value junk items.

To progress further, one had to risk their life traversing the field where all bloodline abilities were sealed.

Even the slightest mistake often meant certain death.

[The Three Principles of the Trash Mountain Conquest]

1. Sell as many Glass Bottles Filled with Shimmering Sand as possible.
2. Listen to the Wandering Merchant hum happily.
3. Complete the field and return to the main area.

In Banyogok, where conquering one field triggered events in another, time was more valuable than gold.

Now that optimized routes had long been established, no player took the Trash Mountain seriously anymore.

Which zone is this?

Feels like it’s past Zone 3.

Damn, this is deep.

Look at the size of those Stray Spirits. If we run into them, we’re dead in three seconds.

Why is Mugon Swordsman the one taking them down in three seconds instead?

This guy is just strong by default. Even with his yokai powers sealed, nothing changes.

Now, in a place where no sane player dared to venture, Mugon Swordsman strode through the wasteland.

[Stray Spirit]

These hulking, mindless half-yokai devoured anything they could grab, chewing and spitting out whatever they found.

If one caught their attention, death was inevitable.

For most players, entering the Trash Mountain meant waking up at its entrance once again,

staring helplessly at the Wandering Merchant, who regarded them with disappointment.

And with each successive death, event triggers would accumulate across all maps,

making it impossible to recklessly force progress through repeated deaths.

To treasure hunters and scavengers alike, Stray Spirits were nothing but a hindrance.

Yet Mugon Swordsman was the only one who didn’t avoid them.

‘A zone where even the Boogeyman can’t step outside of a closet due to the Yokai-Sealing Field… No wonder other players struggle here.’

Banyogok’s power system revolved around Bloodlines.

By channeling the power of yokai blood, players could receive blessings and attain superhuman abilities.

But in the Yokai-Sealing Field, all such abilities were stripped away.

Here, players were forced to rely solely on their raw skills.

For the weak, it was an insurmountable trial.

For those who had built their strength on bloodline powers alone, it was a crushing despair.

Yet, for Mugon Swordsman, these hardships meant nothing.

“Kreeeekk!!”

Every time his sword swung, limbs were severed.

A Stray Spirit flailed in shock as it realized its arms were missing.

Beheading it in such a state was even easier.

The nightmarish entities that transformed this map from a stealth-exploration field into a grotesque slasher horror

were being diced apart like vegetables on a chopping board.

Why is he playing an entirely different map by himself?

Where’s the Trash Mountain we know?

What happened to the horror game where making eye contact meant instant death?

Living Tip: Mugon Swordsman once killed an Executioner without using Bloodline abilities.

Oh wow So if you can kill an Executioner without a Bloodline, you can definitely kill a Stray Spirit  Such useful information

…But how are we supposed to do that?

Oh, I never said you could. Just know that it’s possible.

2.

The secret to effortlessly cutting down the massive Stray Spirits?

‘Is it really that difficult?’

The chat was flooded with complaints.

Excuses piled up, explaining why the Stray Spirits were so strong.

But Hae Eung Eung didn’t agree.

They were big.

They had long arms.

If you got caught, they charged at terrifying speeds.

They hurled heavy debris without hesitation.

Their claws could tear through flesh.

‘So what?’

A massive piece of trash came flying?

Just calmly mark a stable piece of debris to step on and dodge toward it.

If they charged at terrifying speeds?

That just meant they were bringing themselves closer, saving stamina.

If their long claws could tear flesh?

The trash scattered everywhere wasn’t just for decoration.

Guide their wild swings so that their claws snagged on debris or broke.

They had massive bodies and long arms?

That just meant they were designed to be fought.

That was the essence of martial arts.

‘This is the result of relying too much on convenient power.’

Even in the martial world, there were plenty of warriors like that.

People so obsessed with wielding immense internal energy that they forgot the fundamentals.

If their flow of energy was disrupted

If their internal energy was sealed, as if poisoned by San Gong Poison

Then all their fame in the martial world meant nothing.

All that remained was outdated, clumsy swordplay and futile resistance before they died.

‘All because they neglected their basics.’

In this battle, Hae Eung Eung didn’t even use internal energy.

This was the Yokai-Sealing Field.

Just as yokai energy was sealed, the flow of internal energy was also restricted.

At the start of the game, she had simply stood still, reading the chat.

Partly to gauge the viewers’ reactions

But mostly to confirm whether her internal energy was functioning.

‘In story mode, there were two key locations for conquering the Trash Mountain.’

Clank. Rattle. Clank.

The rhythmic grinding of the massive compactor crushing garbage filled the air.

Fsssh.

Ash scattered in the wind, mixed with the faint stench of burning waste.

If she had been beneath the trash heaps, tracking faint sounds or airflow would have been near impossible.

But she wasn’t.

She had already cut down every Stray Spirit standing atop the hills, moving freely across the mounds of garbage.

With a clear vantage point, an unobstructed view, and the ability to read the wind and scent

She held absolute dominance in every aspect.

‘If only this thing weren’t here, it’d be perfect.’

The only burden slowing Mugon Swordsman down

The one trial, the one shackle

Was the wardrobe dragging behind her, the one possessed by the Boogeyman.

Clunk, clunk…

Creaaak, creeeak…

She dragged it along, gripping one corner of the heavy wardrobe.

Veins bulged on her forehead.

She had finally lost her patience.

3.

Thud. Thump.

She punched it.

She kicked it.

But the Boogeyman inside the wardrobe showed no sign of waking up.

What’s the point of killing Stray Spirits if she has to go back down to drag that wardrobe up again?

If it were me, I’d have pushed it off the top of the Trash Mountain ages ago.

Ox.

How does she not get tired of hauling that heavy thing?

It’s a yokai anyway, does she really need to protect it like that?

It’s gonna betray her later, just like the prince. Why is she even taking it along?

Just ditch it.

She’s gonna get stabbed in the back.

The viewers didn’t bother to hide their distrust.

The betrayal of the Prince had already left a bitter taste, and objectively speaking, the Boogeyman’s wardrobe was nothing more than dead weight.

‘It’s not like I ever had a deep connection with the Boogeyman.’

There was the steadfast but honest Wendigo.

The cunning yet meticulous Maga-Nom.

And the exiled Prince, who abandoned his ties when faced with an old enemy.

Three days of ticket hunting.

The colosseum battles.

The joint extermination in the Yokai King’s Palace.

They had all experienced countless ordeals together.

And yet, if someone had to pick the most unreadable among them

Anyone would choose the Boogeyman.

He rarely spoke.

He never revealed his thoughts.

‘But he was there for every battle.’

Even when the situation became dire, he never wavered.

Even against the formidable Yokai Queen, he bought them time.

Unlike the Prince, who had constantly professed his admiration and gratitude

Only to commit the ultimate betrayal

The Boogeyman never once voiced his recognition of her.

And yet, she trusted him more for it.

‘A person who acts instead of speaking. People like that don’t break their promises easily.’

Those who truly valued their words spoke sparingly.

But once they did, they kept their word no matter what.

‘Abandoning him just because things are tough would mean I deserved to be betrayed.’

She wasn’t like the Prince, who let his emotions rule him.

She refused to be like him.

Oh? Is she finally ditching it?

Wait, why’s she rummaging through the trash?

Is this that Wandering Merchant Syndrome again?

That’s just junk!

Wait, is that a rope?

Why is she picking up wagon wheels now?

The viewers were confused.

But when she finished modifying the wardrobe

Tying the doors shut with rope, attaching a handle to pull it more easily,

and nailing wheels to the bottom so she could drag it anywhere effortlessly

Their reactions shifted.

She’s actually taking it all the way.

“I can’t part with this outfit, or that one either!”

“Once a comrade, always a comrade!”

Damn, I’ve never seen a woman like this before.

“Never seen”?? What are you, a purity freak?

Bro, of course she’s the first woman to drag an entire wardrobe around like this.

Yeah, if this wasn’t a first, that’d be even weirder.

Imagine having a hobby of hauling wardrobes.

If the Mute Swordsman was the 13th son of a noble family, she’d probably pull this thing around as strength training.

…That actually makes sense?

She had chosen comrades over convenience.

Whether the Boogeyman would repay that kindness

Or betray it

Remained unknown.

But as the Mute Swordsman struggled to pull the wardrobe across the uneven terrain of the Trash Mountain, sweat dripping from her brow

The scene left a deep impression on the viewers.

Clank. Rattle. Clank.

…Wait.

Why does it sound like the compactor is getting closer?

She is saving the Boogeyman, right?

She’s not about to throw the wardrobe into the compactor, is she?

No way, come on.

Sure, she’s known as the Slaughter Swordsman for how she wipes out every yokai in her path, but she wouldn’t kill the Boogeyman, right?

She literally clears out entire maps before fighting the boss, but nah, Boogeyman’s fine. Half-demon logic.

She’s even bypassed forced defeat events and killed executioners, but there’s no way she’d kill the Boogeyman in an indestructible wardrobe, right?

Bro, the more you defend her, the more suspicious this sounds.

The deep impression was slowly shifting into deep suspicion.

But regardless of what the viewers thought

Hae Eung Eung had never once let go of the Boogeyman.

And inside the wardrobe, the Boogeyman silently watched

From start to finish.