Chapter 46: Preparing for the 6th floor (2)

Chapter 46: Preparing for
the 6th floor (2)

“Have
you, by any chance, met Idelbert Adeline?”

‘How
do you know that by smell?’

I
mean, she’s a cat, so why not? But how does Serif know Idelbert’s
scent?

It’s
never easy to pinpoint an object based on its body odor alone.

It’s
almost impossible unless you’re very familiar with the scent and have
been in a relationship long enough to know exactly who it is as soon
as you smell it.

‘Are
they related? On second thought, they have the same last name.’

Adeline
it’s not a common last name. No way.

‘Are
they sisters?’

“Yes.
She’s my teacher.”

“Your
teacher?! You mean her?!”

“Yes.”

“Ugh,
ugh!”

Her
floppy cat ears and tail twitched as if to reflect her frustration.

Serif
swiped her hand across her holy power dispenser, as if trying to
swallow a bad word.

Boo-boo-boo-boo-boo.

Then
she felt the necklace vibrate and flinched.

“Hmph!”

Realizing
how close she was to me, she blushed and backed away in anger.

“I’m
sorry, I shouldn’t have made such a mistake⋯”

“It’s
okay, I’m pretty used to this.”

I’ve
been training so intensely with Idelbert lately that I’ve become a
little immune to the sight of wild udders jiggling wildly.

It’s
only a little, of course, and the sight of Serif’s breasts, so
magnificent and full even when wrapped tightly in her priestly robes,
is arousing in a different way.

“Ahhhhh.”

My
comment brought even more remorse to Serif’s expression.

It
was a sympathetic gaze, as if looking at a rape victim.

‘Now
that I think about it, Serif had some outrageous misconceptions about
me.’

“More
than that, were you acquainted with my master?”

At
my unnecessary prodding, Serif’s expression grew fierce again, and
she clutched the necklace in her hands as if in frustration,
muttering softly.

“⋯A
faithless fiend,
a cunning traitor⋯”

‘Doesn’t
sound like a good relationship.’

Whatever
had happened between them, the shakiness in her voice was unnerving.

“⋯I
mean, I just know her face, but she didn’t do anything suspicious,
did she⋯?”

“Suspicious?”

I’m
not affiliated with the temple, but I know that the Mother Earth
Goddess’s Order prohibits all lewd acts, including sex.

It’s
against the teachings of Mother Earth, obviously.

I
recalled my training with Idelbert.

‘She’d
occasionally choke me with her bun thighs and give me a lap pillow,
but nothing overtly sexual.’

“Nothing
like that, in fact, I feel stronger than ever these days thanks to my
master, who is a bit rough but takes good care of me.”

The
axe strapped to my waist was a natural relief, a gift from Idelbert.

“Well,
that’s good, I’m glad to hear that, yes.”

Serif
looked like she had suffered a bitter defeat.

“Well,
I can take care of you just as well as Idelbert, nay, even better
than she can. If you ever need a miracle or a blessing, you can
always come to me⋯!”

“Oh,
yes⋯”

She
sounded so eager that I nodded involuntarily.

Her
red eyes sparkled like rubies as they held mine.

It’s
like watching a cat clutching a stuffed animal for dear life, afraid
it will be taken away.

“Serif,
it’s almost time. There are too many wounded explorers because of the
omens⋯”

Just
then, a gold-armored paladin appeared from behind Serif.

[Nate
Ellyn LV. 4■]

[Nate
Ellyn has Blessings and Curses: 2]

Maybe
it’s because I leveled up so much on my last trip to the Labyrinth,
but even against an almost mid-level explorer opponent, there were
fewer censors in the status bar.

I
can’t see the details of the blessings and curses, but I can see the
count.

“Ah⋯
okay, I’ll be right there, Balkan, would you mind extending
your hand?”

I
hesitate for a moment, then extend my hand, and a warm glow envelops
my fingertips.

It
felt similar, yet different, from when I used the Blessing of
Radiance.

“It’s
a miracle of mental barrier. It’s a one-time use, but it will block
all mental attacks below intermediate level, so be careful at all
times. You’re a valuable person, Balkan.”

The
words that followed stung more than the sudden miracle.

I’m
just a lowly explorer.

‘So
this is a high-ranking priest of the Mother Earth Order, the Order of
the Beneficence and Respect of All?’

It’s
quite a shock to me, having grown up in an orphanage without parents
and never being treated as a valued member of anyone’s household.

I
believe you, Serif. You are a faithful priest.

“Thank
you. Serif. I’ll be sure to come back for you next time.”

“Yes!
I’ll be waiting!”

Serif
smiled broadly, and with a flick of her cat ears and tail, she and
the golden paladin headed for the Great Hall.

I
watched them go in silence, then turned toward the library.

Oh
dear. Time to read. My head already hurts.

Isn’t
this some kind of mental attack?

***

“Serif,
why did you waste your miracles on such a man?!”

Nate
Ellyn, the gold-armored paladin of the temple, couldn’t understand
the whole situation.

“There
are more than a hundred mid-level and above explorers lining up to
receive the Serif’s miracle, and that’s not all, even those snobby
nobles are lobbying the temple for a glimpse of the Serif’s face!”

Serif
Adeline was a senior priestess of the High Priory.

She
was a woman in a position to make anyone come to her.

Every
day, dozens, perhaps hundreds, of explorers await her approval for
the dazzling miracles she performs.

The
nobility and upper class, eager to make a connection, bombard her
with gifts, pay her off, and do whatever it takes to get a glimpse of
her face.

But
what the hell is going on here?

Serif
Adeline has her paladin stationed at the temple’s window to greet a
lowly explorer.

She’s
not even attending to her duties when she hears of this mysterious
man’s arrival!

‘Even
a miracle I’ve never received before!’

Now,
this was a shocking event that hadn’t happened to Nate Ellyn since
she became the Paladin of Serif.

“Well,
Nate, I know what you’re talking about. I’ve had enough of people
trying to get in my way.”

Serif
Adeline laughed softly but it was a slightly different smile than the
one Nate had seen before.

‘No,
no. On the contrary, this smile is the usual Serif.’

It
was so subtle that she didn’t notice it right away.

It
was still a beautiful, dazzling, sublime, compassionate smile.

It
was a fake smile that felt like a mask.

Even
then, others would not even notice.

Nate,
who had been by Serif’s side for ten years, could recognize the
slightest difference.

‘⋯The
way she looked at him was so much more colorful and natural-‘

“He’s
a valuable man, far more valuable than the likes of me.”

Serif’s
quietly muttered words halted Nate’s train of thought.

How
many people in the Labyrinth City right now were more valuable than
Serif?

“He’s
only a lowly explorer, Serif!”

“Yes.
He’s just a low-level explorer now, but will he be later?”

Serif
smiled, her natural smile again. Who was she thinking of now, Ellyn
wondered.

The
answer was obvious.

“He
will shine with a dazzling brilliance one day.”

With
that, Serif clasped her hands together and prayed.

Her
tail and ears, the symbols of the cat beastman, dropped slightly,
then straightened.

An
unearthly sound rang out from the clasped hands.

“So,
I can’t let that sneaky fiend take him from me.”

Serif
vowed, clutching the cross necklace that trembled slightly on her
chest.

“Never.”

Thinking
of the woman who had once been her sister, and the demon who had
betrayed her and the temple.

***

The
temple’s library was quite large. I’ve never been in one, even in
modern times, but it seemed to be twice the size of a public library.

However,
despite the number of books and the size of the building, few people
actually came to read.

With
the help of the librarian, I was able to find a few books on what I
was looking for.

[Correct
gender for boys and girls]

[Why
Monsters Are Dangerous: Male Corrupting Pheromones (with
illustrations)]

Why
Monsters Are Dangerous: Male Corrupting Pheromones (Illustrated) was
tattered from the cover, as if it had been turned over many times.

The
librarian looked at me very suspiciously, so I grabbed a couple other
books.

[The
Mysterious and Amazing Tale of the Labyrinth]

[Mythology
of the Earth Mother Goddess and Light]

“Don’t
you have any books on portals?”

“You’ll
have to go to the Academy’s Great Library for specialized books like
that.”

I
was most curious about books related to fountains and portals, but
the temple didn’t seem to have any.

‘How
am I supposed to get into the Academy?’

It
was practically impossible to get in.

I
sat down and read for a while.

I
returned the book [The Correct Gender of Men and Women] because it
was full of nonsense that made my head spin.

[Why
Monsters Are Dangerous: Male Corrupting Pheromones (with
illustrations) was also full of things that made my head spin.

–
Male corrupting pheromone is a specialized pheromone that makes men
go crazy with pleasure when they are attacked by a monster.

–
Men who fail to overcome this pheromone are either doomed to spend
the rest of their lives as rugs for the beast or commit suicide out
of pleasure, and no man has ever been able to overcome it.

This
seemed to explain why the goblins’ victims cried out for p*ssy.

–
The stronger the man who is corrupted by the monster, the stronger
the monster’s seed. The growth period of the seed is up to⋯.

I
don’t know if I should be thankful that my pure, clean brain wasn’t
tainted, but at some point the pages of the book were torn out.

Considering
what I’d read so far, I’m sure someone had torn out the racy
illustrations.

It’s
a world without pornography, so it’s understandable. Children in
other worlds do the same thing.

There
was nothing special about [The Mysterious and Amazing Labyrinth]
either. It’s a lively adventure story that seems to be full of
fantasies about labyrinths.

If
exploring the labyrinth was as bright and hopeful as it was in this
book, I would have gone down to the depths of the labyrinth.

I
also wanted to read the fairy tale of the Mother Earth Goddess and
the Myth of Light, but time was short. I must go now to make it to
the evening rush.

I
paid half a silver coin to borrow the book. It was quite expensive
because it was categorized as a luxury item.

I
skimmed through it before I left, and was about to put The Mysterious
and Amazing Tale of the Labyrinth on the return table when I heard a
voice.

“Mister.”

An
unfamiliar voice came from right next to me.

I
spun around to see a red-eyed elf staring straight up at me.

An
elf girl with long, floppy ears, a large wizard hat and robe, a white
t-shirt and tennis skirt, and sharp, round, mysterious eyes.

“The
book, if you’re not going to read it, give it to me.”

It’s
a perfectly natural question, but I’m already scratching my head.

‘Mister?’

Me?
Mister? I’m twenty-two, haha.

The
moment I opened my mouth to correct the spoiled brat.

“But,
mister, are you an explorer?”

I
turned to face her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“Then
have you ever tried entering a labyrinth portal?!”

Naturally,
my gaze drifted to the book she was holding.

[Ellie
Ordia: Research Journal on Portals and Dimensional Magic 1]