Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Otherworld Cheat Harem.

Episode 32: Mastery (2).

‘Mastery?’

While checking the reactions of the other kids to the alarm that popped into my head, Hanyoung raised a hammer, looking puzzled.

“What? It’s not dead even after this?”

Hanyoung, who was poking the smashed head of the orc warrior’s corpse, started to tap its body as if something was strange.

Thump, thump! Unlike when it was alive, the defenseless warrior’s corpse couldn’t block Hanyoung’s attacks at all.

Watching the limbs break and get crushed so easily, Hanyoung tilted his head in confusion and looked back.

“Hey, this guy’s not dying?”

“…What do you mean?”

“I mean, it’s not dropping a mana stone. Doesn’t that mean it’s not dead?”

“Since it’s a boss monster… that could be the case.”

Deokgu said. Meanwhile, I cautiously checked to see what I could do with the mastery.

From the moment I acquired the dominion, the things I could do began to blossom naturally in my mind.

I started to panic as I checked the organized manual.

‘No, this is…’

Mastery was just as the name implied—absolute control over all dungeons below the 10th floor.

“Aram?!”

Eunha was startled and supported the Class President. Aram’s face was flushed, and she was panting heavily.

At that moment, I recalled how many injuries she had treated.

A full-body fracture once.

Partial fractures two or three times.

Though leveling up had strengthened her abilities and somewhat reduced the burden, she must have taken on a considerable amount of injuries to heal that much.

With that thought, I realized what I needed to do first with this power.

Rumble…

The dungeon’s interior began to tremble. Then, the spot where the orc stood collapsed, revealing a large cylindrical machine.

Deokgu groaned upon seeing it.

“…An elevator?”

“Get on.”

“What?”

“Just get on.”

Without further explanation, Deokgu sensed something odd as he watched me board the elevator. However, given that Aram had collapsed, he climbed aboard without further comment.

As soon as everyone boarded the elevator, I pressed the sole button to close the iron door.

A sound weaker than when the machinery first appeared was heard, and shortly after, the entrance opened.

We had arrived on the first floor.

Pant, pant…

“I gave them a potion, so they should be fine when they wake up.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

The priest left the mansion after saying those words. Well, considering a substantial amount of silver was paid for the house call, there was no need for gratitude.

I glanced briefly at Eunha and Seoyoon, who were caring for Aram, then headed outside towards Deokgu’s room.

Deokgu was sitting at his desk in his room, striking a pompous pose as he waited for me. It was the typical otaku posture, with fingers interlocked and chin resting on them.

“Sit down, Dojin.”

“There he goes again with his theatrics.”

As the light reflected off his glasses, making them gleam, I sat in the chair prepared in front of him. As soon as I took my seat, Deokgu lowered his voice and began to set the mood.

“Dojin. As the commander-in-chief of this mansion, it is my duty to know all the information.”

“Commander-in-chief? What nonsense is this…?”

“You’ve earned recognition for your contributions as the dungeon strategy team leader, but in the mansion, you follow my orders…”

“I’m just leaving, alright?”

“Hey, can’t you just play along for once?”

Deokgu, looking disappointed, unclasped his hands and began to lean back in his chair. Then, he started wiping the dust off his glasses.

“So, what did you do this time?”

“…What?”

“The elevator, I mean. It was you, wasn’t it?”

Even without any evidence, Deokgu had figured out just from the circumstances that I was behind it.

While hiding it now wouldn’t make much sense, revealing it was still too big a piece of the pie.

I hesitated, pondering whether to tell him or to keep it hidden. Seeing me in contemplation, Deokgu let out a laugh, as if to say I was being too much.

“…Hey, aren’t we friends?”

“…Yeah, we’re friends.”

“So, it’s such a huge secret that you have to hide it from your friend. Is that it?”

“…Yeah.”

“And yet, you couldn’t even hide it properly and got caught by me right away? Geez, that’s too much. Really.”

Deokgu scolded me as if disappointed, but I ignored his words and fell into a moment of contemplation.

Seeing me like that, he offered a piece of advice.

“If it’s really hard for you to talk about it, there’s nothing I can do. But don’t forget that I can at least give you some advice.”

“…Yeah, it’s better than worrying alone.”

I cautiously explained about the control I obtained in the recent dungeon. The power to dominate dungeons below the 10th floor.

That I used it to create a direct passage from the 1st to the 10th floor.

I don’t know why this power came to me, but it was dangerous. Very much so.

“…I understand now why you didn’t want to talk about it. The fewer people who know, the better.”

“You get it too, right?”

“This is a headache… It’s a power you have to worry about hiding rather than using…”

As Deokgu pondered deeply, he suddenly gasped and looked at me.

“Hey… Dojin.”

“What?”

“We… left the elevator as it is, right?”

“What’s– Oh.”

That’s when I realized. Whether we hide this power or not, the change had already begun. People must have noticed the change.

“…What should we do?”

“Uh, should we head to the guild first? Those people might have figured out the situation. We should ask what they think.”

“…Yeah, maybe we should.”

Hearing that, we headed straight to the guild.

“D-Dojin… you’ve come…?”

“…You look very tired.”

“Yes… a sudden incident occurred.”

Even without hearing what the incident was, he could understand. Since she was Dojin’s dedicated staff, seeing her express gratitude for being able to take a breather with his arrival made his conscience feel pricked, as if it had grown fur.

As he soothed his aching conscience, he began to feign ignorance.

“What happened?”

“Have you not been to the dungeon yet today?”

“Ah, no. Not yet today.”

“Then you might not know. The… floors 1 to 10 of the dungeon have been merged.”

“…Merged?”

It was news to him. Dojin thought at most an elevator to the 10th floor had been discovered, which increased adventurers’ progress, or someone accidentally reached the 10th floor, leading to more accidental deaths. Such incidents were what he imagined.

Reality was more brutal than that.

“Yesterday, a huge cylinder suddenly appeared on the first floor of the dungeon… Ah, according to investigations, it’s a direct passage to the 10th floor.”

“And?”

“Since that passage appeared… people have been able to meet in the dungeon.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“That’s not good at all…”

Pion explained that the direct passage created a hole in the fourth dimension and made a straight path.

Even Dojin, who had heard explanations about the dungeon from her a while ago, couldn’t understand what was wrong with just that explanation.

In the end, she brought a few sheets of paper and a pen to explain.

“I mentioned a while ago that dungeons spread out like this in a four-dimensional direction, so people can’t meet each other, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Now, that four-dimensional space, the path has been pierced to overlap like this.”

Pion pierced three sheets of paper with a pen. Thus, the three sheets of paper stuck together at the point of the pen.

“That is… so…”

“Now from the 1st to the 10th floor, it’s not the same dungeon as before. People can see each other. Even the darkness that blocked the view has disappeared…”

“Hmm, no matter how I hear it, it only sounds good.”

“Not at all. The quantity that people have been pouring out like crazy, that is, the demand for the lowest-grade mana stones, can’t be met right now.”

“Why is that…?”

“Well, the number of people in the dungeon has increased, but the monsters remain the same.”

The number of people entering the dungeon increased, but that didn’t mean the monsters would increase proportionally. If that were the case, the dungeon would have burst with the sheer number of people and monsters, leaving no room to step.

Dojin understood the aftermath his actions had caused. From his perspective, he merely laid a direct passage from the 1st to the 10th floor, but for other adventurers, it was nothing short of a cataclysm.

Adventurers who had been comfortably hunting and earning money until now would be forced to fight fiercely and compete.

Some who were tired of such competition would strive to reach the previously sealed 11th floor as before.

The parasitic members who had been leeching off the guild would disappear, leaving only the adventurous and challenging adventurers.

What Dojin had done was precisely that.

‘Whether it’s good or bad…’

To put it nicely, it was cleaning up the old guard, and to put it badly, it was kicking away the ladder. Those who were dissatisfied with the behavior of old adventurers would be pleased, while newcomers who were just starting their adventure would blame Dojin.

In any case, it was certain that the fact he caused this situation had to be hidden.

“…Then I guess I have to skip going to the dungeon today.”

“Would you?”

“Yes. Looking at the situation, it doesn’t seem like a good time to go to the dungeon.”

“Yes, I understand… Actually, it’s not such a bad situation for you, Dojin.”

“…Why?”

“Well, it’s just that a direct path to the 10th floor appeared, and you haven’t suffered any losses, right?”

“Oh, that’s true. Yes. Right. I haven’t suffered any losses.”

Hahaha, Dojin burst into laughter and got up before Pion could sense something strange. Then he headed back to the mansion.

Pion looked at his retreating figure wistfully, and then realized she had to return to hellish work, letting out a scream.

─Because of you…!

─Why is it because of me…?

─Because you’re a mother, and look at the state you’re in…

Things scattered here and there, and the loud sound of breaking filled the house.

The young girl only felt that the situation was entirely her fault.

She knew what to do when she had done something wrong. She knew all too well.

─I did… wrong.

─Aram? Were you awake?

─Don’t cry, it’s not your fault…

The girl knew that none of this was her fault. Yet, she couldn’t help it. By taking the blame for something that wasn’t her fault and sacrificing her self-esteem, she could be at peace, if only for a moment.

If sacrificing herself could restore peace in the household, everyone was happy.

─Our daughter is so kind.

She tried to be kind.

─She studies well too…

She studied hard.

─Unlike your father, you don’t give me any trouble…

She tried.

But.

Until when?

How long will it be like this?

Why do I have to be the only one to sacrifice?

Why?

How come?

Crack, her world shattered.

She opened her eyes. The unfamiliar ceiling of the mansion she recently moved into came into view.

Her body felt heavy. It wasn’t the weight of fatigue. It carried actual weight.

When she turned her head, Eunha was lying on the bed, face buried in the pillow. Seeing this, Aram realized that she had been taking care of her.

‘Ah, it was a dream.’

She became aware of the fact. She had fallen into another world. She became an adventurer fighting monsters, and she had succeeded to the point where making a living was no problem…

“…Bathroom.”

Not long after regaining consciousness, the urge that had built up while she was unconscious stimulated her.

Carefully, so as not to wake Eunha, she got up and placed her feet on the floor. Then, with a sharp pain, she fell forward.

“Kyaah?!”

Losing her balance, she closed her eyes tightly, bracing for the impending pain. However, no matter how long she waited, the pain didn’t come.

When she opened her eyes slightly in confusion, Dojin was smiling brightly, holding her by the waist.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah, yes… thank you.”

Aram slowly stood up, leaning against Dojin. Eunha, startled by her scream, woke up and approached her.

“Aram, where are you going…?”

“Oh, just… I just woke up. To pick some flowers.”

“Shall I go with you?”

“I’d appreciate that.”

Hearing this, Dojin handed Aram over to Eunha. As she parted from him, Aram felt a slight sense of regret.

Strangely, her body felt hot. Especially the parts that had touched him.