Ch.222Outside. The Daily Life of a Faceless Fixer (3)

Lutegan followed Ortes. Though Ortes had tried to refuse with a smile and roundabout words, he eventually agreed to the accompaniment after repeatedly confirming Lutegan’s firm resolve.

On the path approaching the depths of the ruins, Ortes said that customer satisfaction was his motto and invited Lutegan to ask anything he was curious about.

Ortes truly explained everything kindly.

‘Everything.’

Where and how to step, how to maintain balance. The angle to avoid the giants’ defense mechanisms.

Ortes’ explanations became more detailed and precise as they ventured deeper.

He now began describing the remaining traces of life in the giant ruins. Explanations such as how the bloodstains over there weren’t from real creatures, but traps created by giants to lure harmful creatures that tracked such blood.

Detailed accounts of daily life, like how the foothold around the bloodstains had sunk lower than the surroundings because it had been continuously exposed to the giants’ physical strength.

The more Lutegan listened, the more terrified he became.

Surely these giant ruins shouldn’t have been known to anyone. Even if there had been a traitor among the ancestors of the magic tower who shared information with Ortes, such detailed knowledge would have been impossible.

The knowledge Ortes had already displayed far surpassed the meager clues Lutegan’s magic tower had accumulated over time.

‘How on earth.’

Lutegan had seen Ortes’ group’s excavation site. Their cautious approach clearly suggested that Ortes’ group had been ignorant about the giant ruins until now.

‘No.’

Thinking about it, those who clearly displayed ignorance were the underlings Ortes commanded. Hadn’t Ortes successfully located ruins in the interdimensional borderlands—a task more difficult than finding a needle in a haystack—within three attempts?

Lutegan blamed himself for not feeling uncomfortable with that unreasonable success. It was because Ortes’ acting had been so natural.

Thanks to luck? How foolish of him.

He looked at Ortes. The man was sharing information as if boasting or showing off his knowledge.

‘Why is he telling me all this? Betrayal? If I become wary, betrayal would actually become more difficult—’

“Do you know something?”

A sudden question. Lutegan stammered.

“Wh-what?”

“For what purpose and with what function the giants built these ruins.”

“…No. I don’t know. I only know that giants possessed magic beyond common sense. I came here only to obtain that magic.”

“Then I’ll tell you.”

Ah.

The moment he heard Ortes’ words, Lutegan realized what all the “explanations” had been for.

Mockery.

To a magician, magic is everything. It’s their natural purpose in life to dedicate themselves to reaching higher dimensions of magic, more sublime levels of attainment.

Yet Ortes was emotionlessly saying he would “tell” him about such things.

With an emotionless smile. Describing a smile as emotionless might seem somewhat strange, but from what Lutegan had observed of Ortes so far, he was smiling in most situations.

Meaning that smiling was his most basic expression, equivalent to a normal human’s “blank face.” Following this interpretation, Ortes had maintained a blank expression throughout his conversation with Lutegan.

That smile-covered blank face slowly revealed the truth. That he already fully understood this magic that Lutegan had craved his entire life. His whole demeanor suggested that the giants’ magic was nothing more than cheap trinkets he could toss away like alms.

All his explanations about the giant ruins must have been mockery, as if saying, “Even after telling you this much, you still don’t understand?”

Abruptly, Lutegan stopped in his tracks.

“How is that possible?”

“Pardon?”

“The giant ruins were surely a place known only to my—our—magic tower. So how…?”

Ortes shrugged his shoulders. An attitude suggesting it was nothing significant. A smile that remained unchanged, as if taxidermied.

“Ah. Many people are curious about my outstanding information-gathering abilities. The secret is…”

The corners of Ortes’ mouth lifted slightly.

“If you look carefully, you can understand everything.”

Lutegan was so dumbfounded he couldn’t even respond. Good heavens, what kind of person could unravel the secrets of an interdimensional civilization just by looking carefully?

How on earth do you know so much about other dimensions?

“Haha, I’m joking. It’s a trade secret. Isn’t it natural for a fixer who spends time in places like this to have at least one secret?”

It was an artifact from a world that had already disappeared. It should have been natural that no one in this world would know about it—

Lutegan’s intuition informed him that he had just recalled something very important. He slowly retraced his thoughts.

‘No one in this world besides Lutegan knows about the giant ruins.’

What if they weren’t from this world?

The moment he realized this question, everything about Ortes appeared different.

His strange history, with no records of birth or life outside his activities in the interdimensional borderlands.

An interdimensional expert even among the fixers of the borderlands, an interdimensional addict who spent more than half of each month submerged in other dimensions.

The supreme leader of an antisocial group with followers fascinated by other dimensions.

If Ortes were a being from beyond dimensions? All these characteristics would naturally be explained.

Of course there would be no birth records. He wasn’t born in this world.

Why was he an expert on other dimensions? Because he was originally a being who dwelled in other dimensions. Isn’t it natural to know about one’s homeland well?

It would also make sense that his followers worshipped Ortes to an unusual degree if it was part of mental manipulation using interdimensional infiltration. Lutegan felt terrible fear.

He wasn’t sure why he couldn’t sense the characteristic boundless power of “interdimensional beings.”

Perhaps he had sent an avatar with deliberately restricted power to break through the dimensional wall, or perhaps he had descended by possessing one of this world’s bodies rather than in his original form, thus unable to use power beyond his vessel.

What mattered was the realization that the being before him was a monster that humans should never associate with, one they couldn’t handle.

Lutegan unconsciously stepped backward.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?”

The moment that emotionless smile turned toward him again, Lutegan turned and fled.

“Huh? Mr. Lutegan! Wait a moment!”

He heard running footsteps. Ortes’ underlings. The puppets of the other dimension had begun to chase him.

Lutegan ran at full speed. He remembered the location of the ruins where the giants’ magic was recorded. Someday, when that interdimensional monster had forgotten about him, he would return and seize the secrets.

But not now. These ruins were currently in the jaws of the monster, in Ortes’ grasp.

He had to get out of here right now—

Click.

Something was stepped on by Lutegan’s running foot.

It was a trap that Ortes had casually explained. The giants’ pest control device.

Pests. Like insects. Insignificant creatures.

Ortes’ smile flashed in his mind again. Had Ortes known that the terrified Lutegan would step into an insect-catching trap himself?

He probably did. He had driven Lutegan to such an ironic fate to make him realize his own insignificance.

Whirr— The sound of magical power loading into the trap. Lutegan closed his eyes, wanting to turn away from his imminent end.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

Even after more than ten seconds, Lutegan’s consciousness continued. He slowly opened his eyes.

Ortes stood before him.

His life had been extended by Ortes.

“The trap… why…?”

“Goodness, really. I told you not to run off recklessly. I managed to cut the magic lines just right and dealt with it just before activation. Did something come up that you needed to leave? If you had said something, I would have guided you out.”

Indeed, a high-frequency blade was embedded in the wall.

But Lutegan knew well, contrary to common belief, that cutting a trap’s magic lines wouldn’t stop its operation. That was just for show.

From this formality, Lutegan realized a simple fact. Just as humans could easily kill insects, they could also easily save them. From the moment Lutegan signed the contract with Ortes, even his death had become Ortes’ property.

“I don’t need to go outside. …Let’s go to the ruins.”

Understanding his position, Lutegan hung his head. Ortes replied without disturbing his smile.

“Yes. Understood. Just trust me and follow.”

***

The exploration of the giant ruins continued for 6 hours and 32 minutes after that. As they went deeper and deeper, Lutegan had to carry out more and more instructions.

Just like Ortes’ followers.

There was no time to question. As they descended, the traps became more intricate, and not immediately obeying orders meant facing life-threatening danger.

Ortes effortlessly broke through ruins that would normally require months or years of excavation, dismantling traps along the way.

For this breakthrough, Ortes issued hundreds, perhaps thousands of commands, and Lutegan faithfully obeyed. Questioning meant death. Submission guaranteed life.

A simple proposition.

In the final moment, Ortes revealed that this place was the refrigerator of the giant civilization and presented the core of the refrigerator to Lutegan.

Even while holding the artifact he had desired his entire life, Lutegan couldn’t feel joy. Because Ortes hadn’t ordered it.

He held the core component of the “refrigerator” with blank eyes.

“Be happy! This is the secret of the ruins you so desired!”

Only then could Lutegan smile. Though it was clearly the fulfillment of an aspiration passed down through generations, he was rejoicing not from the satisfaction of achievement but by someone else’s command.

Somewhere in the mind of Lutegan, who held the giant artifact, a voice questioned whether it was right to surrender his lifelong dream to another’s will like this.

Lutegan glanced at Ortes. He hadn’t issued any separate command. Then the questioning was not permitted, and unpermitted actions were causes of death.

He simultaneously enjoyed fear and joy. He ignored the doubts arising in one corner of his mind and pushed them into the deep darkness.

A ripple formed in Lutegan’s heart. Therefore, he told himself: no matter how strange the order, he must follow it. That is the will of the one who came from outside.

There was a voice within him that opposed his decision until the very end, but it was fine; everything had turned out well. The difficult battle was over. Lutegan had won the fight against himself.

He trusted Ortes.