Surrounded by the swarm of Black Reapers, the new Black Reaper was led forward with a confused expression.

The path toward the Black Reapers' stronghold felt like a parade of festivities.

The wills of the Black Reapers scattered through the air.

"A sibling!"

"A new sibling!"

The will that flowed out was filled with joy, excitement, and the loneliness of many long years.

It was clear just from the fervent reaction how rare the joining of a new Black Reaper was.

When they arrived at the stronghold, more Black Reapers gathered around.

They gently approached the newcomer and embraced them with their long arms.

That embrace carried emotions that words could not express.

"Mom, is it not painful anymore?"

"Did you come to your senses?"

As they welcomed the new Black Reaper, they kept asking about their mother.

The new Black Reaper, with a bright smile, answered them.

"Mom is weak! And not in pain!"

Upon hearing the news that their mother was well, a sense of relief spread among the Black Reapers.

After a brief moment of silence, the wills of the Black Reapers began to surge out as though they were exploding.

"Mom is not in pain anymore!"

"Weak? What does that mean?"

"Mom, is she coming soon?"

"More siblings?"

"When will mom come?"

"Mom, is she coming soon?"

The Black Reapers, holding onto the new Black Reaper’s limbs, poured out their wills.

It was as though they were about to tear apart their sibling in a frenzy of curiosity.

So, the new Black Reaper had no choice but to answer their endless questions.

"Mom won't eat us anymore!"

This was the start of the explanation about their mother.

And just as the new Black Reaper had been surprised, the Black Reapers from the rift in dimensions were also shocked.

"Unbelievable!"

"There’s a mother like that...?"

The story of their mother continued.

The playful pranks, stealing snacks, throwing things when annoyed, and occasionally giving snacks—this was the everyday life of the Gray Reaper.

Every time the Black Reapers heard about it, they were so moved they could almost shed tears.

"So kind."

"A mom who doesn’t eat you even when you cling to her..."

"A mom who doesn’t melt even when you hug her..."

"A mom who isn’t in pain..."

For the Black Reapers, their mother had always been a presence who was too sick to move properly and constantly devoured Black Reapers whenever she could.

Following that, the new Black Reaper began telling stories about the Mini Reaper Garden.

"The Marshmallow Plains, the Abyss is delicious!"

The soft and squishy Marshmallow Garden, a land of happiness where delicious snacks run around.

And the sea of hot chocolate, the candy mountain range, and the milk snowfield, among others.

All these places were paradises made of snacks the Black Reapers had never tasted.

"That sounds delicious..."

"There’s a place like that?"

"Amazing!"

Then the Black Reapers asked about whether their mother could come.

This was an unknown place where their mother could not be called.

"I don’t know."

The new Black Reaper shook its head as it answered.

"But mom always came."

"She always came when needed!"

"Mom will show up!"

Then, with a bright smile, the new Black Reaper, filled with unwavering belief, declared loudly.

"Mom..."

"I miss Mom."

Seeing this, the Black Reapers from the rift once again held onto hope.

Carrying that hope, the Black Reapers scattered, and the new Black Reaper was finally able to look around the stronghold.

The guide was a Black Reaper with a deep scar over one eye.

When the new Black Reaper first saw the scarred Reaper, it asked, “Doesn’t that hurt?” and tried to offer its wood to heal the wound.

"A wound like this can’t be treated with wood. We need to save the wood."

The scarred Reaper rejected the kindness but expressed gratitude.

"...?"

The new Black Reaper looked around, eyes full of curiosity.

The stronghold was like a vast cavern.

The ceiling was so high it couldn’t be seen, and thousands of tiny lights sparkled on the walls.

They shone like stars, gently lighting up the space.

The star-like lights in the stronghold were all traces of Black Reapers.

The poor comrades who were too injured to heal with wood.

There were so many, it seemed like the stars in the night sky.

"We need mom."

As the new Black Reaper looked at the lights that lit the stronghold, the scarred Reaper gave a small nod.

“!”

When they reached the center of the stronghold, the new Black Reaper’s eyes widened in surprise.

There, in the center, was an enormous furnace, too big to express with words.

Its size was like a small mountain.

"This is the furnace mom left behind."

The scarred Reaper’s will was filled with pride and longing.

In the center of the furnace, white flames were burning.

The flames were massive, but compared to the size of the furnace, they seemed insignificant.

The Black Reapers were drawing wood from the furnace.

With each piece of wood they absorbed, the flames in the furnace shrank little by little.

Though it was just a small decrease, it was definitely happening.

From the size of the empty furnace and the remaining wood, it was clear how long the war of the Black Reapers had been going on.

As the thoughts of the long war crossed its mind, the new Black Reaper felt a sorrowful emotion.

"Sad."

The new Black Reaper whispered with a small will.

It was sad to think of how long they had fought the foreign objects without ever meeting their mother.

If someone had told the new Black Reaper that they would end up like this, it would have been so sad it would have cried immediately.

The scarred Reaper, watching the new Black Reaper, also looked a little sad.

When the tour of the stronghold ended, the scarred Reaper turned to the new Black Reaper and sent out a strong will.

The will was full of determination and resolve.

"Now, it’s time to start training. Newcomer!"

Thus began the training, and the new Black Reaper’s pitiful will echoed out.

"Ugh!"

“Mom, hurry up…”

The new Black Reaper lay sprawled on the floor, still searching for its mother.

Golden Horn Isolation Zone near Seoul, where the Golden Reapers were scattered.

I was walking slowly through the isolation zone, still in my ghost form.

It felt like I was checking on the seeds of ginseng I had planted in the mountains.

"There are a lot of strangely shaped horns."

I had learned that the shapes of the Golden Horns were diverse, but seeing them with my own eyes, I was amazed at how many different forms there were.

As I walked, I looked at people with various types of Golden Horns.

Some had horns protruding from their foreheads, like a detective’s assistant, while others proudly displayed goblin-like horns growing from their crowns.

There were those who had horns resembling animal horns, like goat or ram horns, and others had complex, geometric shapes that were rarely seen in nature.

So, I continued my Golden Horn tour, completely forgetting about the Golden Reapers.

Then, I spotted someone with particularly large and stunning horns that drew my attention.

A set of antlers, beautifully extending symmetrically, glowing golden!

"With horns like those, everyday life must be difficult. They probably can’t even cut them, so they must be awkward."

From my perspective, where I didn’t wear clothes because of discomfort, I couldn’t imagine the pain of living with such inconvenient horns.

Perhaps this person secretly cursed their horns while living with them.

Maybe it was the allure of the grand and beautiful antlers.

On top of the giant antlers, a Golden Reaper was happily hanging on, smiling.

"Human!"

The Golden Reaper had something a bit unusual about it.

It had cut small twigs and placed them on either side of its head.

It seemed like it was trying to mimic its cherished human.

"Ah…!"

Only after seeing this did I remember I came here to check on the Golden Reapers, and I began to look around the isolation zone.

It turned out that similar scenes were unfolding all around the isolation zone.

Golden Reapers using their hair manipulation ability to mimic the horn shapes of their cherished humans.

And the humans, smiling happily, watching the Golden Reapers.

Seeing the successfully settled Golden Reapers, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.

"At this rate, soon a whole army of Golden Horn Reapers will pop up, right?"

The true completion of automatic hunting was just around the corner.

The Golden Reapers seemed to really like this place, possibly because it smelled like people who resembled them.

In fact, I was surprised that such a place had become a blind spot for the Golden Reapers.

It wasn’t far enough to require traveling on cloud meat like in other countries, so it was a place the Mini Reapers’ touch rarely reached.

Although it was near Seoul, this place was still slightly far for the Golden Reapers to walk.

Thus, it had become the "Golden Reapers’ Blind Spot."

But now, this area was immensely popular among them.

I smiled to myself, dreaming of the future of the Golden Horn Reaper army.

Hehe.

In the deepest part of the Mini Reaper Garden, Marshmallow Plains.

Ttubang ttubang.

A Golden Reaper was walking alone across the Marshmallow Plains, heading toward the Milk Snowfield with determined steps.

Then, suddenly.

A translucent blade appeared out of thin air and pierced the Golden Reaper near its heart.

"Ah!"

The Golden Reaper’s startled will flowed out.

Its eyes widened in disbelief as it looked down at its chest.

The translucent blade had embedded itself so naturally, as if it had always been a part of the Golden Reaper's body.

And with a soft sound, the Golden Reaper’s body fell helplessly to the ground.

Thus, the Golden Reaper lay alone and forlorn in the middle of the Marshmallow Plains.

No Mini Reapers witnessed the incident from the corners of the Marshmallow Plains.