Chapter 61

Chapter 61

I Installed a Dating App and Girls from Another World Became Obsessed with Me.

Episode 61: To The Third Floor (2)

The stairs leading down to the 2nd floor were not much different from the previous ones.

A spiral staircase with no end in sight.

Only a faint torch illuminated the dark path ahead.

It was a production that stimulated the primal human emotion of fear, but I didn’t care.

I didn’t even use light magic to minimize mana consumption.

Maintaining only the minimum level of tension, I continued downwards.

Meanwhile, I constantly repeated the action of sending a faint electric elemental energy through my mana circuits.

This was preparatory work.

Just as you heat a frying pan before cooking, it was to intentionally put a load on the mana circuits so that they could adapt to the electric elemental energy.

‘…This is driving me crazy.’

I knew it myself, but this kind of work put a strain on both my mana circuits and my body.

Among mages, elementalists made up the largest proportion, and conceptualists the smallest.

Nevertheless, the reason why those who handled electric elemental energy were as few as conceptualists was right here.

Despite its overwhelming power, using it required a natural abundance of mana and strong mana circuits to support it, and the required physical durability was also burdensome for ordinary mages.

In that regard, thanks to the buffs from the holy water, elixir, and the app, I barely crossed the baseline in terms of mana capacity and mana circuits.

However, my physical durability itself was lacking in many ways.

I had no choice but to temporarily compensate by reinforcing my body with the remaining mana, but as time passed, I could clearly understand why there were so few mages who handled electric elemental energy.

This crazy element, which doesn’t even recognize its master and runs wild, rejects the very expedient of reinforcing the body with mana.

“At this rate, I’ll get electrocuted.”

I had no choice but to stop the work I was doing.

My body felt lighter in an instant, but I had no intention of giving up on the electric element.

Rather, I realized that even though maintaining it for a long time was difficult, I could use it multiple times in the short term, so I was satisfied with just that for now.

Clearly, the fire element was powerful, but I had to discard the optimistic thought that I could easily deal with the gatekeeper of the 2nd floor with just that.

Even if it meant straining my body, now was the moment to use lightning.

Besides, I had holy water, so I could just push through with doping if necessary.

I calculated that I could endure to some extent then.

With such miscellaneous thoughts, I soon reached the end of the stairs.

At the end of the tiresome spiral staircase, a stone door similar to the one on the 1st floor blocked my way.

With a light push, the door opened to the left and right with a loud noise.

Along with a gust of dust, a new labyrinth revealed itself before me.

“It’s like a catacomb.”

The structure looked similar to the 1st floor, but there were murals engraved here and there on the walls.

The content of the murals was ominous even at a rough glance.

Corpses formed a river, and what looked like blood flowed on the ground.

The beings in the murals were elves.

They were at war with someone.

“Demonic beasts?”

On the side that seemed to be the opposing force to the elves, there stood a giant dragon, golems, and beings that looked like humans.

It was strange.

Demonic beasts inherently took pleasure in killing humans, so how could they team up with humans and attack elves?

I was momentarily lost in the incomprehensible content, but since I had a long way to go, I shook off the distracting thoughts and walked down the hallway again.

Unlike the 1st floor, where traps had been removed, exploration of the 2nd floor had to be passive.

Unlike demonic beasts, traps couldn’t be detected even with mana detection, so I had to stay alert with every step.

Unlike before, I could block ordinary arrows or falling structures from the ceiling with a barrier, but I didn’t think all traps would be consistently simple.

The unknown possibility that there might be traps that my barrier wouldn’t work against subtly annoyed me.

Because of that, the appearance of demonic beasts was rather welcome.

-Kureuk?

Not long after arriving on the 2nd floor, the first demonic beast appeared around a corner.

It was a group of five lizardmen.

I didn’t know their exact grade, but judging from the aura I felt, they seemed to be around C-grade.

Their aura, which was even embarrassing to compare to a Lizard Warrior, didn’t make me feel even a hint of tension.

It was inevitable, considering that just a while ago, I had spent a week going back and forth between life and death in a B-grade gate.

The time to be afraid of five lizardmen had long passed.

-Kurak?!

-Kyaaaa!!

Perhaps realizing that I was alone, the lizardmen who had been sizing me up rushed towards me all at once.

Even as they approached at a rapid speed, I remained indifferent.

In the first place, I already knew through mana detection that those guys were around me. In other words, I had more than enough time to prepare magic.

In the autobiography of a famous mage I read before, there was a saying like this:

[Fireball]

An unprepared mage was weak, but a prepared mage was overwhelmingly strong.

Fireball was the most basic fire elemental magic, but in the first place, there was no such thing as a completely identical magic for a skilled mage.

Transformation magic.

Tearing apart the popularized magic circle to suit one’s taste and using it as one’s own magic.

It was one of the factors that distinguished a skilled mage.

In that regard, I was confident that I was the most outstanding in transformation magic among those in the same circle.

[Bonus of +1000% to all knowledge acquisition related to basic magic studies]

Let me say it again, transformation magic was the very basics of magic.

Not only was it not hindering for me to use, but it was also an area where I could literally put into practice the saying, “learn one, know ten.”

Believing in my strong mana circuits, I blew away the part responsible for stability in the magic circle that constituted the Fireball. While the risk increased, the power of the magic with the limiter released also increased.

If I increased the amount of mana consumed there, the power would be inflated to three times or even more than that of a normal Fireball.

-Kiyaaaaa!!

Kwaang!!

It didn’t even take a second for one of the lizardmen, directly hit by the fireball that flew at an incredible speed, to slam into the wall.

A large amount of dust rose with a tremendous explosion.

I was in a position where I had to minimize mana consumption, but that didn’t mean I intended to stick to close combat all the time.

Use it when needed, but do it when it was sure to hit.

Seeing the lizardman whose upper body was charred black, the other guys flinched and backed away, but it was already too late.

Because the fireball I unleashed wasn’t just one.

[Remaining Matching Time: 138:12:47]

About six hours had passed since entering the underground dungeon, and the exploration of the 2nd floor continued to progress.

Mapping was annoying, but I never skipped it.

I continued exploring in a direction that avoided combat with demonic beasts as much as possible.

Of course, that didn’t mean I didn’t need rest.

In the first place, as a living being, rest was indispensable.

After securing a safe place, I turned on mana detection and had my first meal.

I prioritized speed over taste, so I considered it a satisfactory meal just for filling my stomach.

While resting, I also meditated.

Of course, I could recover mana without necessarily meditating, and if I was in a hurry, I could make do with mana potions.

Nevertheless, the reason I meditated was to minimize mental fatigue and regulate my brain’s condition.

Magic was ultimately a program that runs using the brain as a CPU.

If I didn’t cool down the overheated computer with meditation, there might be cases where I couldn’t use magic even if I had mana.

After finishing about an hour of meditation, I resumed exploration.

After that, I tried to avoid demonic beasts as much as possible through mana detection, but as I increasingly encountered dead ends, battles continued to occur.

Thankfully, the level of the demonic beasts on the 1st and 2nd floors was similar, thanks to which my coin holdings exceeded 3,000.

As my pockets grew thicker, my eyes were drawn to an item being sold in the shop.

[Random Dice]

[Grade: Epic (Consumable Item 3/3)]

[1: Misfortune occurs]

[2: Weak misfortune occurs]

[3: Ambiguous misfortune occurs]

[4: Nothing happens]

[5: Ambiguous luck arrives]

[6: Weak luck arrives]

[7: Luck arrives]

[8: ??]

[If purchased at the undiscounted price, a result of 6 or higher will appear for the first time only]

Frankly speaking, I didn’t know how much progress I had made in exploring the 2nd floor.

In the first place, time was just passing by in a situation where I didn’t even know if the path I had taken so far was correct.

Unknowingly becoming impatient was inevitable.

1,000 coins.

It was definitely an expensive price, but it wasn’t unaffordable.

Coins would accumulate quickly anyway, and their uses were limited.

The deliberation was long, but the decision was instantaneous.

[Would you like to purchase the Random Dice?]

[Y/N]

[Y]

[You have purchased the Random Dice]

[Remaining Coins: 2,150 coins]

[Would you like to roll the Random Dice?]

[Caution! The result of rolling the dice cannot be reversed]

[By the blessing of an unknown being, a result of 6 or higher is guaranteed to appear. 1/1]

[Y/N]

[Y]

[Fate is rolling]

[May luck be with you]

As soon as I pressed the accept button, an eight-sided die appeared on the palm of my hand.

It clearly looked like a simple die, but my instincts screamed that it wasn’t.

This small die felt endlessly heavy.

I felt like I understood a little bit what the app meant by saying fate was rolling.

Still, there was no turning back now, so I rolled the die with a slightly trembling hand.

Tak-

It wouldn’t even come out below 6 anyway, so I guessed I could throw it without worry.

The die that fell on the floor kept rolling as if it would never stop.

It didn’t stop even when it hit the wall.

Rather, it bounced off and rolled even harder.

‘So, you can’t even cheat to get a high number.’

In the time that felt like several hours, the die finally came to a stop.

I checked the number on the die.

In a situation where my mouth was dry, what came into my sight was an 8.

[Ppambabam!!]

[Congratulations!!]

Along with an incredible instrumental performance, a splendid notification window I had never seen before appeared before my eyes.

The font and text size were strangely crude, but the content within was unusual.

[You have proven to be loved by the Goddess of Luck!]

[We would like to offer a reward for our valued customer]

[Would you like to receive it?]

[Y/N]

Just as I was about to press the accept button following the natural flow of my consciousness, I felt an inexplicable unease.

The fact that I rolled an 8 on the die, and the app stepping forward to give a reward.

It fit too perfectly, like a tailored suit and shoes made just for me.

Of course, it could be seen as just good luck, but would a mage with such good luck have been just swinging a sword all this time?

Nevertheless, I couldn’t refuse this reward.

I wasn’t in a position to be picky about hot or cold water right now.

[Y]

As soon as I pressed the accept button, the notification window disappeared.

And.

Paaaaaa-

“…Crazy.”

The empty air in front of me was splitting.

This wasn’t a metaphor or anything. Space was literally tearing apart, and beyond it, a space like the universe could be glimpsed.

Of course, this surreal situation, to the point where I couldn’t even distinguish if it was a dream or reality, didn’t end there.

Something that looked like a human leg emerged from beyond the torn space, and then someone walked out with leisurely steps.

That’s right.

The one who opened that unbelievable space like a door was none other than a human.

“Euchya!”

What’s more, it was a crazy woman with blue twin-tail hair and a bunny girl outfit.

My eyes met hers.

“Nice to meet you, Kang Hyeon-u, dear customer.”

At that moment, I instinctively realized.

“This is the reward you received?”

That she was no ordinary crazy woman.

Meanwhile, Iris, left alone in the temple, continued to pray to the World Tree without resting for a moment after Kang Hyeon-u left.

The golden tree that was listening to her prayers was already rotten and decayed, but that didn’t matter to her.

What was important in prayer was not the practical form but the faith that welled up from the depths of her heart.

Iris’s faith, wishing for Kang Hyeon-u’s safe return, surged like a fierce wave.

As she continued to pray for several hours, Iris felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

“…Hyeon-u?”

The eyelids of the praying woman lifted.

There was no trace of the usual warmth she directed towards Kang Hyeon-u.

It contained a coldness that seemed capable of dropping even a passing bird.

Iris felt the same sensation she had when she smelled the scent of unfamiliar women on Kang Hyeon-u.

Could this feeling be described as mere jealousy?

No, it wasn’t.

This was a more fundamental emotion.

Kkwak-

Veins bulged on the back of her beautiful hands, which were neatly clasped together.