Chapter 48: Preparing for the 6th floor (4)

Chapter 48: Preparing for
the 6th floor (4)

The
time flashes back to yesterday evening.

Tomorrow
I will enter the Labyrinth, so I have no training with Idelbert and
no work at the inn.

While
I rested my mind and body, I met with Joy Hog’s party to review what
I needed to know before entering the Labyrinth.

“All
we need to do is take them to the sixth floor and back.”

The
request was simple.

As
the Academy students investigate the Labyrinth’s phenomena, we escort
them.

“I
hear there are quite a few students, almost twenty-five?”

“There
are five other parties of explorers who have also received requests.
Clean ones, not even reformed explorers. Probably five students per
party.”

“Five
parties? The Academy must be pretty protective.”

Even
if they’re not mid-level Explorers, the Joy Hog party is a top-tier
party on the seventh floor.

Hiring
five parties of that caliber is not cheap.

“Of
course. Not to mention the wealth of the academy, there are several
children of nobles among the students.”

Nobility.
I don’t know much about them, but the word conjures up certain
images. Snooty, arrogant, and full of shit.

“That
means no students should ever get hurt or killed.”

“An
aristocrat demanding to know why his child came back dead? Ugh. It’s
horrible to think about.”

“Yeah.
Even if their limbs are blown off, you must keep their life attached.
Otherwise, our heads might be blown off when we get back to the
surface.”

Joy
Hog made a gesture of striking her throat with the blade of her hand.

They
might not actually kill us, but we’d be penalized for failing the
mission.

“But
they’ve got a lot of heart. I promised us two gold coins per party if
we could complete the job safely. Even the kills are ours, except for
a few for research.”

“Two,
two gold coins per party!”

“Ugh.
That’s a lot of money! I’m jealous, but it’s how we make a living.”

Even
on the seventh floor of the Labyrinth, it’s nearly impossible to get
two gold coins per person unless a miracle happens, like a string of
soul stones falling in a row, you’ll never get them.

Humor
the snot-nosed kids a bit as they head to the familiar sixth floor.
For them, it must have been an irresistible, sweet deal.

“Besides,
they’re giving us an assistant academy mage to supervise the
students, which is overkill for the sixth floor.”

“A
teaching assistant is more than enough for the sixth floor, but
they’ll have less direct Labyrinth experience, and they’ll respect
our orders for having more field experience.”

Getting
all twenty-five students safely to the sixth floor was no easy task.

For
every ten novice explorers who enter the labyrinth, there are at
least four or five who have to follow.

So
the Academy promised the escort explorers a variety of support to
make the students’ survival rate a little better.

“Fifth
floor fountain scrolls, all kinds of supplies, and food. That’s a
good deal.”

It’s
a lot of heavy labor to pack the supplies for the sixth floor, but
with the Academy taking care of that, there’s nothing to worry about.

“Any
more questions?”

I
shook my head. So did the rest of the party.

Even
the most elaborate and detailed plans would quickly fall apart in a
labyrinth of randomness.

“All
we need to know is that we’re escorting students, and that another
party of explorers will be traveling with us, right?

Understanding
the big picture, improvisation, and situational judgment are the most
important qualities of an explorer.

All
of them had been explorers for at least three years, so they seemed
to understand the essence of it.

“Alright,
let’s have a good time tomorrow!”

“Oooooh!”

Boom!

We
hadn’t had much to drink the day before entering the labyrinth, so we
just clinked glasses of milk and gulped it down.

“How
does my milk taste?”

It’s
another thing to be squeamish about what Jubeel, the bovine girl,
said after downing the milk.

***

“Balkan.
Here, a gift.”

As
soon as I opened the door to the inn, Diana, who was waiting at the
entrance, handed me something.

I
took the leather armor that emitted a brilliant blue light in a daze.

“It’s
a special armor made from a mixture of artifacts and minotaur skin. I
prepared it for you because I tore your breastplate that day. How do
you like it?”

I’ve
only ever seen such a mysterious glow from the Zirnier helmet before.

‘Of
course, it’s much weaker than the Great Helm I’m wearing.’

Given
the deceptive power of cognitive enhancement, it was clear that this
leather armor was no ordinary object.

I
pulled the leather armor over my t-shirt, mesmerized.

The
leather armor, which was a bit small, stretched on its own, hugging
my body just right.

It
felt ridiculously light compared to my heavy iron breastplate. If I
may exaggerate, it felt like I was wearing nothing.

-Thump.

I
pounded it with my fist, and a bell rang. It’s a hardness that could
never come from leather armor.

It’s
as light as a piece of clothing, but its hardness far exceeds that of
iron armor.

“Can
I accept this?! It’s much more expensive than the breastplate I was
wearing, I just can’t accept this!”

I
shouted out in excitement.

Diana
smiled warmly as she watched me touch and admire the leather armor.

“Balkan’s
safety is more important to me than a few bucks, so please don’t take
it too hard. I want you to know that I’m sorry and that it’s the
least I can do for you.”

Awww,
Diana, you’re the best!

I
wish I could give something back, but there’s only so much I can give
her.

I’m
sure she already has a lot, so what can I give her that she doesn’t
already have?

“Uhhh.”

Just
as she was thinking about it, a sweet voice came out of her mouth.

Startled,
Diana immediately covered her mouth, but her appearance was clearly
different.

At
first glance, she was her usual beautiful self with her eyes closed.

“⋯Huu⋯”

Her
breathing was strangely sweet, her chest rising and falling more
violently, and the strange feeling that she was staring at me even
though her eyes were clearly closed.

‘An
omen of the Curse of the Lascivious Weakling’s Corruption Mark!’

Up
until this point, I’d just assumed she was feeling under the weather,
but now that I’d recognized the curse for what it was, it seemed
different.

The
libido was building up in her body, in anticipation of the onslaught
that would come with each quarter.

I
wondered what I could do for her now.

There
was only one thing that immediately came to mind.

Smile.

“Diana.
Do you mind if I give you a little, uh, hug?”

I
said, opening my arms.

I
had enough experience by now to realize that my body was of
extraordinary value in this world.

Maybe
it was my perception, but I could feel Diana’s closed eyes move.

From
her open fingertips, it gradually entered her body, until it reached
a spot. At the same time, Diana’s face flushed red.

“Let
me help you with your libido.”

“Ba,
Balkan⋯!
I, I didn’t give you the armor for that purpose⋯!
I just didn’t want you to get hurt⋯!”

“I
know that, and I know how much you’ve given me.”

I
spread my arms a little wider, and her voice grew quieter.

“So
I just want to give back, even if it’s just a little bit. I know it’s
hard with the curse.”

Actually,
it was 70 percent selflessness and 30 percent curse excuse.

Diana’s
fingertips twitch and tremble. She looks very hesitant.

Her
cursed body wanted to rush over and hug me right now, but Diana’s
overwhelming sense of reason is holding her back.

So
I just went for it.

I
stood in front of Diana’s nose, looking down at her.

Diana’s
trembling arms gradually began to slip under my armpits.

The
pace was slow. Even so, her face showed tremendous conflict and
anguish.

I
hugged Diana tightly before I realized it and a whimper escaped her
mouth.

I
could feel her large udders gently grinding against the leather armor
she’d given me, and her lower belly beginning to flutter.

“Hmph,
hmph.”

Diana’s
hands never reached my back.

She
just stood there, arms outstretched, tightly wrapped around me.

It
was a shame I couldn’t see her face.

“The
curse is bothering you, isn’t it?”

“Huh,
wooh, wooh.”

“Hang
in there. I’ll help you get rid of your libido in no time.”

Diana
let out a series of stupid moans and barely nodded her head.

When
we broke the embrace and pulled apart, she grabbed my wrist and
dragged me somewhere. It turned out to be her bedroom.

I
didn’t have time to look around, even though it was my first time
there.

As
soon as I entered the room, Diana pushed me against the wall.

“I’m
sorry for forcibly bringing you here⋯
that blessing you use, it feels so strange⋯
I thought I’d collapse if you used it in the hall⋯”

I
nodded and focused on the blessing of radiance.

Having
practiced using it for a while now, the light appeared in my hand
much faster and smoother than before.

I
looked at Diana’s lower belly and saw a womb heart pattern already
forming.

As
I knelt down for a closer look, I could see Diana’s lower belly and
smooth Y-zone.

Maybe
it was because she was wrapped in a gray dress that showed off her
body shape, but every time she breathed, her cute lower belly moved
in and out a little.

Furthermore,
the last time I saw her, she was very dark and pink, but now she was
blurry as if I could see her right in front of me.

‘It’s
probably because it’s just gotten over the runaway.’

Koo-koo-koo-koo.

“Nghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

A
hand wrapped in light pressed down on Diana’s soft, curvy belly, and
immediately the light began to disperse the darkness.

“Ah.
I’m sorry, I’ll be more gentle.”

I
suppressed Diana’s curses while sweating for a while.

The
darkness, exposed to so much light, rebelled. But it didn’t last
long.

The
dark womb symbol disappeared, and we stared at each other, drenched
in sweat, for a moment.

That’s
when things changed drastically.

I
was so focused on Diana’s womb that I didn’t notice the unfamiliar
sound outside.

“Who’s
there?”

I
ran to the door, but no one was there. Instead, a book lay on the
doorstep.

[Ellie
Ordia: A Journal of Portal and Dimensional Magic 1]

It
was a book that had become very familiar to me recently.

***

“Ellie⋯”

Diana
raised her eyebrows as soon as she saw the book. It was an unfamiliar
reaction.

At
the same time, her reaction confirmed it. Ellie Ordia was indeed
Diana Ordia’s foster daughter.

“⋯How
come you two don’t
get along so well?”

‘The
fact that she only covered the surname in the book and didn’t
reveal it during introductions as well.’

I’m
not sure exactly, but Ellie seemed to be uncomfortable with Diana.

“⋯You
knew that about Ellie, didn’t you?”

“Yes.
Idelbert told me in passing.”

“⋯Until
I adopted her, things weren’t so bad between us. We ate and laughed
together, sometimes slept in the same bed when we couldn’t sleep, and
she liked to use magic, which I often taught her.”

Diana
said, reminiscing bittersweetly.

“But
since then⋯since
she entered the Academy⋯”

Diana
swallowed hard and mo more words flowed from her mouth.

Instead,
the bitter, regretful look on her face said it all.

“⋯⋯”

To
be honest, I was a little shocked. I had never seen such an
expression on Diana’s face before.

There
are as many different kinds of families in the world as there are
stars.

There
are orphaned families like mine and my sister’s, there are simple
families, and there are complex families like Ellie and Diana’s.

As
an orphan, I don’t know much about parent-child relationships.

I
don’t understand warm relationships, I don’t understand bad
relationships.

‘Still,
this isn’t it.’

I
wish Diana didn’t have that look on her face and the same goes for
Ellie.

I’ve
known Ellie for a short time but the way she smiled when she was
excited about my tales of the Labyrinth and focused on her research,
it was never the smile of an evil person.

I
wonder what must have been going through her mind to leave the inn
this way.

It
may be arrogant, but I thought to myself that I want to put this
broken family back together again.

***

Thirty
minutes before entering the Labyrinth, the party hasn’t gathered yet.

Once
inside the Labyrinth, it’s hard to have a leisurely conversation so
this was the perfect opportunity.

“Hey,
Ellie. Do you mind?”

The
sullen-faced elf looked up at me nonchalantly.

“⋯No.”

This
wasn’t going to be easy.