Chapter 63: Catch him (1)

Chapter 63: Catch him (1)

The
lobby of the Explorers’ Alliance is always bustling.

It’s
packed with people, from clients who come in to place requests to
explorers looking for work and the staff who serve them.

It’s
a normal scene, but lately it’s been a little noisier.

“Did
you see the minotaur carcass the explorers from the Academy brought
in this time? It was almost the ninth floor.”

“Ah.
A beast that moved up a floor? Of course I saw it, and from what I’ve
heard from the guy in charge of sorting the carcasses at the
Alliance, it’s believed to be the…seed of a mid-tier explorer!”

“Ah.
I heard that a party of 13th level explorers was destroyed by an omen
some time ago, and the male explorer was mauled by a minotaur.”

“Well,
new traps and monsters have appeared since the Omen, so it’s
certainly possible.”

There
was a lot of speculation and conversation in the Explorers’ Alliance.

The
chatter was generally similar.

The
Labyrinth’s omen, the changes it brought, and the aftermath.

It’s
been over a month since the omen went off.

And
now, the explorers who had gone beneath the eighth floor when the
omen broke had begun to return to the Labyrinth City.

Not
all explorer parties have made it up, with some staying in Eden, the
midway point on the 15th floor.

The
number of people who had already returned was considerable, so the
information about the Labyrinth that had been turned upside down by
the omen was spreading quite quickly.

“Of
course, with rumors spreading so quickly, there are some things that
need to be filtered.”

Gellan,
a low-tier top-tier explorer and a man on the verge of becoming a
mid-tier explorer, who had come up from the 11th floor of the
Labyrinth this time, spoke along with the other party members.

“For
example⋯
some crazy male explorer in a helmet slaughtered a dozen minotaurs.”

“And
not just any minotaurs, but special minotaurs.”

“I
heard that the power of the party I was with was at the level of 7th
floor explorers? Does this make sense?”

His
fellow Academy-commissioned explorers testified to having seen the
scene, but to Gellan, it was nonsense

He
just didn’t like the fact that there was a male explorer as good as
him.

“Besides,
I heard one crazy rumor while I was on the ground this time.”

As
Gellan opened his mouth, the female explorers and the male explorers
who were trying to get a rise out of him glared.

“What
rumor? Just tell your sister, and I’ll do anything for you.”

“What
rumor?”

Feeling
confident in the way they looked at him, Gellan told them the rumor
he couldn’t believe⋯or,
more accurately, didn’t want to believe.

“⋯That
the Alliance Leader has a male apprentice⋯Of
course it’s a rumor.
What does that mean?”

A
ridiculous rumor that the Explorers’ Alliance Leader Idelbert has
taken on an apprentice. It had been Gellan’s biggest concern since
he’d arrived on the surface.

“It’s
ridiculous that the leader of the Alliance would take on a male
explorer of no consequence.”

It
was literally an absurd rumor.

What
could the near-perfect Idelbert possibly lack that would cause her to
take on a disciple, even a male disciple?

Gellan
was currently considered the most skilled male explorer below
intermediate level.

Gellan
couldn’t accept the fact that a strange male explorer had overtaken
him and became Idelbert’s disciple.

‘How
much do I love you, Idelbert?’

There
was only one reason. It was because Gellan was in love with Idelbert.

He
wasn’t the only one.

It
was well known that male explorers who met Idelbert, even once, would
develop a serious case of love sickness.

“Is
that true?”

From
the table next to him came the dagger to Gellan’s heart.

Some
drunken junior explorers were talking excitedly.

Gellan’s
eyes rolled back in his head.

“You
guys! Are you really saying that? Can you be responsible for that?”

“Huh?
No, not responsible.”

“We
heard it, but we didn’t see it.”

The
explorers flinched at Gellan’s words, as he shouted with the energy
of a mid-level explorer.

Few
remember the time when Idelbert said she had taken Balkan as a pupil,
and the rumors they spoke spread like wildfire.

Rumors
travel with people and they spread like wildfire.

“I
don’t know the truth because even if I ask the teller, she won’t tell
me, saying that the information is confidential. I don’t know if he’s
really a student or not.”

“Some
rumors say he’s a lover, some say he’s a prostitute who loves her,
and some say he’s a real disciple.”

“Prostitute
or lover?”

“He
must be, because he always comes out of the elevator with his legs
shaking. Bitch.”

“From
what I hear, he wears a helmet because he’s so stupid, but his face
is a bit of a landmine.”

“Who
said that?”

“I
don’t know, I just heard a rumor.”

Gellan’s
stomach flipped hotly as the junior explorers began to gossip amongst
themselves.

How
dare they, how dare they!

His
teeth grinded together as the delusion grew.

As
Gellan chewed on the unknown, unrecognizable bastard who had
obviously approached Idelbert with the intention of devouring the
Explorers’
Alliance whole.

-Ding.

The
elevator dinged, signaling Idelbert’s arrival in the lobby.

Order
was restored to the Explorers’ Alliance, including the clients who
had been shouting for their own gain, the explorers who had been
exchanging last-minute comments, and the nervous Alliance staff.

They
headed for the elevator, pretending not to notice as they returned to
work.

Gellan’s
bloodshot eyes also turned to the elevator doors.

‘Of
course it’s a rumor.’

He
waited for the doors to open, hoping for the best.

Sure
enough, the elevator opened, revealing an expressionless beauty with
a high black ponytail and a flick of her cat’s tail.

The
head of the Explorers’ Alliance and to the right of Idelbert⋯A
tall man, a head taller than Idelbert, with a massive, muscular body.

He
boldly threw one arm around the neck of the awe-inspiring Alliance
Leader and leaned in close to her.

His
body was drenched in an unidentifiable liquid, and his limbs were
covered in red handprints.

The
female explorers and staff gulped at the sight of the man’s body.

They
didn’t know exactly, but they could tell at a glance that something
terrible had happened.

Idelbert
carefully placed a hand on his waist.

“Walk
carefully, you’ll fall.”

“Yes,
sir. Master.”

With
a word of advice, Idelbert carefully helped him to his feet and led
him out of the Explorers’ Union.

They
were the only ones to slip out of the Explorers’ Alliance when
everyone else stopped.

“⋯The
rumor, was it true?”

“It’s
crazy, the Union Leader actually took a disciple!”

“Hey.
Does that look like a master-disciple relationship to you?! It looked
like a male being fucked by a female!”

“No,
but⋯
I didn’t smell any semen.”

“That
could be explained if the Alliance Leader gave him a massage.”

“The
Alliance Leader giving a massage to some guy she calls her
apprentice? Ha. I’d rather believe a goblin raped a woman!”

The
gossipy crowd, dazzled by the titillating sight, chattered on.

“By
the way, doesn’t that helmet and axe ⋯
look a bit like the male explorer who captured the unusual minotaur?”

“Yes,
that’s him, I saw him when I was out on a mission for the Academy!
His helmet has changed a bit, but there’s no way there’s another man
his size!”

“A
rookie of that caliber is a disciple of the Alliance Leader.”

“This
is a bit tempting.”

Those
with more of an explorer’s ego began to take more interest in his
specs and background.

And
Gellan.

“How
dare you, you fucking whore, steal my Idelbert!”

He
glared at the door of the Alliance he had left, eyes filled with
anger, envy, and jealousy, ready to rip it down at a moment’s notice.

Gellan’s
party silently distanced themselves from him as he began to spew
insults.

***

“Go
in carefully. Master.”

“Yes.
I also gave you a massage, so be on time tomorrow.”

“I
think I’ve had a week’s worth of training just today.”

“If
you come, just come.”

“Okay.”

Idelbert
and I parted ways at the door without entering the inn.

It
seemed that she had come purely to escort me to the inn.

Luckily,
the imprints of Idelbert’s hand on my limbs have almost completely
disappeared by now.

“⋯Balkan.
Are you here?”

“Yep.
I’ll be right there.”

“⋯⋯Good.”

Diana,
who had been looking at me strange lately-or, more accurately, since
Ellie left-didn’t seem to notice, judging by the fact that she didn’t
say anything.

We
casually prepared for the evening’s business.

It
was just after 6:00 and the customers started coming in.

The
inn is still very popular but tonight, unusually, there were a few
guests who came in for something other than a meal.

“We
are a 7th floor explorer party. Do you want to join our party?”

I’m
guessing they were Explorers who saw me with Idelbert and ran over to
try their luck, but their level of sophistication was obvious.

‘I’m
sure the more serious explorers will be much more cautious.’

“You’ve
been talking for over ten minutes now, and if you’re not going to
order, go away. Before I chop off your head with an axe.”

“What,
is this asshole trying to-“

“Ahaha,
our mistake, We’ll come to you next time, properly!”

A
party member was indignant at my cold response, but the leader of the
party turned pale and ran off with the party member’s mouth shut.

I
glanced back to see Diana staring at them with eerie eyes.

‘As
expected of her.’

I
gave her a silent thumbs up, and she closed her eyes once more,
smiled softly at me, and walked into the kitchen.

“⋯⋯?”

Her
back looked strangely listless.

‘Is
something wrong?’

I
followed Diana into the kitchen with a question mark hovering over my
head.

“Bar,
Balkan, is Balkan there!”

A
desperate voice called from the entrance of the inn. It was a
familiar voice by now.

Lammel
Royce, the harpy wizard of the Joy Hog party.

‘The
next trip to the Labyrinth is tomorrow.’

What
on earth could have happened to cause such an urgent call?

Lammel
turned to me, her face pale.

“First
of all, calm down and tell me slowly, what’s going on?”

“That,
that⋯
haha⋯”

In
response to my question, Lammel rubbed her forehead and sighed
deeply.

The
reaction was unexpected.

“Jubeel
and Joy Hog have been taken away by the⋯
guards!”

Alas.

So
that’s what happened.

I
slapped my forehead in disbelief.

“That
crazy milk bag and drunkard…”

Someone
finally reported her⋯