Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Otherworld Cheat Harem.

Episode 23: Level Up (2).

The Saintess’s request was absurd.

Find a man with black hair?

Considering how many humans, beastmen, elves, dwarves, and other races flocked to this land, it was as difficult as finding a needle in the desert or finding Charles in the capital.

However, the church’s information network, bolstered by the Lord’s help, was above average, and with the distinct appearance the Saintess described, they somehow managed to find him.

“Is this the right person?”

“Yes! That’s him! It’s him!”

When they showed the image of Dojin captured using a recording crystal, the Saintess began to smile brightly, as if wondering how they managed to find him.

Charlotte sighed and asked why she had requested for this person to be found.

“He was an ordinary adventurer. I heard he appeared in the city about two months ago. He’s teamed up with two people from the same region.”

“This is the person.”

“…? Yes, I heard that earlier.”

“This is the person who appeared in the prophecy.”

“…What?”

A momentary dumbfounded sound escaped from Charlotte’s mouth. But she shook her head to regain her composure.

“Are you serious, Saintess?”

“Probably? There’s no evidence, but I’m certain.”

“Do you mean, in your view, this person is the ‘star’ mentioned in the prophecy?”

“That’s right. He is the star.”

Charlotte picked up the record alteration tool and scrutinized Dojin’s face thoroughly. An exotic appearance. Rumor had it that such people lived in the distant east, but she couldn’t determine if that was true.

However, Dojin’s appearance was like someone from a continent beyond the vast ocean.

“I don’t really know.”

“Right? Honestly, I’m not sure either.”

“…Are you joking with me?”

“That’s why, from now on, Lotte, you’ll look into it.”

“Pardon? What should I do about…?”

“That’s for you to figure out from here on.”

The most infuriating statement a superior could ever make.

Hearing that line, Charlotte almost frowned but barely held back and nodded.

“Under… stood…”

In Charlotte’s opinion, the first step to knowing someone was to approach them.

Fortunately, Dojin and his party had been staying at the same inn for months. It was a common trait among foreign adventurers.

‘I should get a job here.’

Charlotte immediately went to find the innkeeper.

“I want to work here.”

“Huh, we don’t need any employees.”

“I just need food and a place to sleep.”

“Well… if that’s the case.”

The owner, after briefly scanning Charlotte’s face and chest, seemed to estimate that the income Charlotte could generate would exceed her room and board costs, and nodded lightly.

“Then change into these clothes.”

Charlotte frowned at the clothes the innkeeper handed her. The clothes he offered were far too provocative for a cleric to wear.

Clothes that would be worn by prostitutes by the window, a top deeply cut to emphasize the chest, and a skirt that didn’t even properly cover half of the thighs…

It was a maid outfit specifically designed to arouse male desire.

‘Saintess, if this is wrong, I swear I’ll kill you.’

Inside, Charlotte resolved herself as she entered the changing room to switch clothes. It was the start of a humiliating day.

When we returned to the inn, the dining area on the first floor was unusually crowded with people.

“Here! A drink!”

“Add more here too!”

“Snacks along with it!”

This inn operated both as a tavern and an inn, compensating for the cheap lodging fees with expensive snacks and drinks.

Therefore, typically cash-strapped adventurers would drink at a cheap bar and come back to sleep here… but today, there was an unusual crowd.

‘What’s going on?’

The problem was that the crowd left no room for us to eat. This gave me yet another reason to justify acquiring a mansion.

‘Where is there a house where you can’t eat because there are too many people?’

Determined to hire a chef once we purchased a mansion, I headed up to the second-floor inn.

I went straight to my room, took off my sweat and dust-soaked clothes, and changed into casual wear. Familiar with the clothes by now, I pocketed a few silver coins and headed downstairs.

Soon after, Seoyoon and Eunha finished a quick wash and came down. The other kids were nowhere to be seen.

“Today… judging by the state of the inn, it looks like we can’t eat here.”

“Let’s go out.”

“What about you, Eunha? Is it okay to eat out?”

“…I don’t mind.”

Since both agreed, I leisurely left the inn. A faint “Ah…” sound came from behind, but it wasn’t a voice I recognized, so I ignored it and stepped outside.

The city was sparkling with mana stones.

If it were Earth, the night in this era would be lit by torches or lanterns, and even those wouldn’t burn long due to the scarcity of oil.

This world was a fantasy world where magic existed, and there was an energy source called mana stones.

These mana stones, boasting energy comparable to electricity, gave humanity the power to chase away the night at an early age.

“Where should we go?”

“Don’t care… anywhere.”

“Me too.”

The two women said to go anywhere. On Earth, that would have translated to “I’m too lazy to think, so you handle everything,” but here, and with these two, their words carried no hidden intent.

“Then should we just eat next door?”

“Okay.”

“Yeah…”

We immediately went next door, found a suitable spot, and ordered food. Fortunately, the food wasn’t too bad.

“Are we training today…?”

“Hmm?”

Eunha paused her meal and asked me. I pondered. Was it right to train on the same day as leveling up?

No, more precisely, was there any point in training anymore?

‘My strength has increased.’

Just by killing monsters, all abilities really increased like a game. Stamina, strength, reflexes, and agility.

And that meant training was not very meaningful in this world.

‘People keep swinging weapons… there was a reason the track was always empty.’

Training was extremely static. It was only painful and distressing.

The fruit it would bear wasn’t all that sweet, either.

Only by enduring pain without giving up every day, could you barely taste a piece of fruit.

However, leveling up was so stimulating. Very easily, very quickly. It allowed you to get your hands on the sweet fruit.

“Let’s not.”

“…Is that okay?”

“Let’s rest today. It seems like physical training is completely meaningless anyway…”

It seemed necessary to rethink the method of teaching Eunha. Exclude physical training entirely, and focus only on skill training…

“Since I’m not sure what to teach either, wait until then.”

“…Okay.”

Leaving the bitter-looking Eunha behind, I savored the taste of the food.

‘Damn.’

Charlotte spotted Dojin and his group and tried to approach him. But it was impossible. Dozens of people were calling out to him.

The gaze that fostered a hatred for humanity and the overtly harassing gestures stopped her in her tracks.

‘Should I just kill them all…?’

It was only after having thoughts she should never entertain as a cleric that she managed to regain her composure.

‘Getting this job was a mistake from the start…’

Taking a job at the inn seemed like a decent choice. It was a way to approach them without revealing her identity.

However, the reality was that she was too busy to actually approach them.

It was a paradox. She took the job to get close to them, yet was too busy with work to do so.

She frowned, contemplating how to approach them. First, she needed to ditch this annoying maid outfit and job.

“Master.”

“Ah, Charles. What’s the matter?”

“I’m going to qui—”

She intended to say she would quit, but changed her words upon seeing Dojin re-enter the inn.

“I just… want to take a break.”

“Yes, you should rest! Of course. You’re our sales contributor!”

The owner, smiling at the increased sales overnight, handed Charlotte the room key, telling her to take a break.

With the key in hand, she promptly followed Dojin to the second floor. Their room was one of the eight rooms at the far end of the corridor.

After confirming the location, Charlotte entered her room to change clothes. Just wearing this perverted maid outfit made her feel ashamed and humiliated.

Having changed into casual clothes, she pretended to make a mistake and opened Dojin’s door… It was locked.

Clank, clank. After trying to open the door a few times, Dojin opened it from the inside and peeked out.

“Who—?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I thought it was my room…”

Dojin, meeting her gaze, paused and looked down at her. Charlotte sensed his gaze and subtly pushed out her chest.

She was confident in her figure. If he showed interest in that figure, she was ready to use it to seduce him.

“…Where is your room?”

“Well, it says this on the key….”

She pretended to be clueless and held out the key. The number on the key was flipped upside down, making it look like the letters on Dojin’s door.

“This is actually on the opposite side. It’s over there.”

“Is that so? Thank you.”

When Dojin slightly leaned out, she didn’t miss the opportunity and immediately leaned out herself.

“Since we’ve crossed paths, why not share a drink?”

“Excuse me?”

“Do you… not like alcohol?”

“No, it’s not that…”

After contemplating for a while, Dojin stepped outside.

“…Yes, well. I like it. Alcohol.”

“I’ll treat you.”

Once again, her charm worked. Thinking so, Charlotte smiled and headed to the first-floor restaurant with him.

Seeing the woman who suddenly spoke to me, I broke out in a slight cold sweat and glared at her.

‘What is this person doing here?’

Blonde hair, green eyes, large chest. Most people would be mesmerized by her beautiful appearance and fail to properly understand her, but…

Even just by looking at her toned physique, I could tell. She was a strong person. Absurdly strong.

‘That’s her, the one who guarded the Saintess…’

And since coming to this world, I had only seen someone as strong as her once. That was the Saintess and the Holy Knights who guarded her.

“Is the drink not to your liking?”

“No, it’s delicious. Yes.”

Whether she was doing it on purpose or had adopted such a concept, her speech was suspiciously stiff to anyone.

I obediently drank the liquor under her commanding tone. Without any snacks, the drink was quite bitter.

“You said your name is Dojin, right?”

“…Yes? Ah, yes.”

I never told her my name.

“And you’re not from this city.”

“That’s… right?”

I never mentioned my origin, either.

“Hmm… Ah.”

And realizing this fact, she opened her eyes wide and looked at me.

In that moment, the atmosphere began to turn tense.