episode_0020

It might not be easy to grasp my confusion through text alone.

So, let me tell you how flustered I was.

“Shatta up! I know everything inside!”

“Uh-uh… We’re closed…”

In the dead of night, I sprinted to the pawnshop and banged on the store door.

As the locked door swung open, a clerk with a cap pulled low over her face appeared.

She blinked at me and the boy, no, girl beside me, then clicked her tongue disapprovingly.

“No refunds. You took it for free.”

“You never said it was for a girl!”

“I never said it was for a boy either.”

“…”

I was at a loss for words.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t been informed of the gender or the rules.

I had just assumed he was a boy at first glance.

“Are there any other bloodkin besides this one? Male ones?”

“There’s only that child who’s not a bloodkin. There are plenty of male slaves, though. Want to see? Non-bloodkin children start at 100 gold.”

“…”

My head started to ache.

Whether I bring in a new slave or not, I still have to deal with this one.

I’ve seen enough monster corpses, but disposing of a human body is still unfamiliar territory for me.

If they die in the dungeon, I might feel a moment of pity, but killing them with my own hands is a different matter.

“What will you do? Dispose of it? If you cover the disposal cost, I’ll take it off your hands.”

“No. Forget it. Just let me take it.”

Spending money just to get rid of the slave I had acquired was foolish.

I didn’t want to do such a stupid thing.

Thinking about it, there wasn’t really a reason to react so strongly.

After all, it was just a tool for activating the Paladin skill. What did gender matter?

…Even as I tried to console myself, I couldn’t shake off the unease.

“So you wanted a boy. I didn’t know that was your preference. I should have paid more attention. What should I do to make it up to you?”

“It’s not like that.”

“Haha. Of course not. Anyway, thank you for taking our troublemaker.”

“Troublemaker?”

“Yes. This is the first slave I caught since starting here. I even handpicked the fangs. I kept him because I vowed not to force-sell the first slave I brought in, but no one bought him even after some time. The boss said if he doesn’t sell by tomorrow, he’ll kill and discard him. Now that he’s sold, I feel relieved.”

I thought it was a typical story.

But faint laugh lines seemed visible around the clerk’s lips now that her makeup was removed.

She looked quite aged; could this bloodkin be the one she brought in when she first started working here?

“Just a moment. When did you bring this bloodkin into the shop?”

“Um… It’s been a little over 10 years.”

“…”

I turned back to look at the pale-faced bloodkin once again.

A rather mature-looking face.

He seemed about 12 years old. If growth stopped and 10 years passed, he must be well over 20 years old.

He could even be older than me.

“Is there a problem?”

“No…”

“Then please visit us again next time. Hooahh.”

The headache intensified.

I grabbed the bloodkin’s wrist and turned away.

Every time I stole a glance at him, a sigh escaped me.

“It’s an object. Don’t worry about it.”

A woman plus a child.

It’s a combination that would evoke sympathy from most people.

I thought my emotions had dulled considerably after repeating regression 12 times, but it seems I’m not yet becoming a monster.

Should I actually be relieved?

“How old are you exactly?”

“…Eternal. 13 years old.”

That means he’s 23.

He’s older than me.

I already felt quite uncomfortable dealing with someone older.

Nevertheless, I decided to find solace in the fact that my mental age is 12 years ahead.

“Mm.”

Rising from my slumber, I realized the sun had yet to rise.

My eyelids felt heavy, and weariness still lingered.

Due to my early awakening becoming ingrained in my body, even if I slept late, my eyes would naturally open.

Last night, after returning to the inn, I roughly washed off the bloodsucker and fell asleep.

Embarrassed to be naked, I closed my eyes and scrubbed myself vigorously, as if doing laundry.

After laying out a blanket on the floor for me, the creature sat somewhat elegantly on it and gazed up at me.

Even after extinguishing the light, it continued to stare at me with its red eyes glowing in the darkness.

The bloodsucker seemed to never sleep.

In the end, I left it as it was and went into the room to sleep.

“If you’re going to run away during the night, I’d rather feel relieved. Huh?”

Suddenly.

As I turned and pulled the doorknob to open the door,

I was startled as a cold object unexpectedly collapsed onto me, causing me to step back.

“······Ugh.”

“Why are you like this?”

It was the bloodsucker.

It seemed as though it had been leaning against the door all night.

But something about its condition seemed unusual.

Lying on the floor, it writhed weakly and made strange noises instead of the emotionless expression it wore all day yesterday, now replaced with an earnest look.

Reaching out its trembling hand as if demanding something from me.

“Ah. I need food.”

I was in a dilemma.

I must have forgotten to feed it last night.

Isn’t any food fine to throw at it?

Bloodsuckers cannot digest food due to their inactive digestive system.

Instead, they rely on blood as their source of energy.

Fresh blood is not expensive here, as feeding on it is legal and obtaining it is not difficult.

The issue is whether it might die if I take too long to get blood.

Perhaps it’s more accurate to say it goes into standby mode rather than dies.

“Well, I have no choice. Open your mouth.”

“······Ugh.”

Reluctantly, I fetched a dagger.

The creature seemed to understand that I was trying to feed it, so it mustered its last bit of strength, raised its head, and opened its mouth.

Swish.

As I made a small cut on my palm, a thin line of crimson blood trickled down my finger and dripped into the creature’s mouth.

It closed its eyes and quietly consumed the droplets of blood.

From this angle, I could clearly see inside its mouth.

Where its fangs should have been, there was nothing.

I thought after ten years, its teeth would be a mess, but they were surprisingly clean and orderly, which slightly surprised me.

“······Gulp.”

“Have you finished it all?”

“······Mm.”

“Hey.”

As it closed its mouth and swallowed, I thought it had finished drinking.

But just as I relaxed, it grabbed my hand, put my finger in its mouth, and seemed hesitant to drink drop by drop.

It seemed reluctant to drink each drop.

Clutching my arm with its cold hand, it sucked on my fingers eagerly.

Afraid it might spill blood if I moved, I couldn’t bring myself to push it away.

So, I had to continue supplying fuel in that state for quite some time.

“Are you feeling better now?”

“······Full of energy.”

Wrapping my hand with bandages, I asked.

At that moment, the creature suddenly stood up and replied with an emotionless expression.

It no longer trembled, and it truly seemed fine.

“I should buy some blood packs.”

Although I didn’t lose much blood, injuring myself daily was still troublesome.

I needed to stock up on blood packs and preserve them with ice magic.

Now that the fuel supply was done, I had to leave immediately.

“Do you remember what I said yesterday? We’re heading straight to the dungeon. Get ready to go out. Oh, do you have anything to prepare?”

“······Yes.”

“I’ll need to buy a few outfits. It wouldn’t be pleasant to attract attention while wandering around in rags.”

“······Yes.”

“But you… wait.”

As I paused while preparing my equipment, I looked at the creature.

Continuing to address it as “you” or “it” felt awkward.

It might be easier to give it a name.

“Do you have a name?”

“······I forgot.”

“I see. I guess I’ll have to come up with one for you. Let’s leave it undecided for now and focus on getting dressed first.”

“······Undecided.”

“Yeah. Undecided.”

“······Undecided.”

Why repeat the same words.

After careful consideration, I suddenly realize and quickly turn back.

Surely, she didn’t think her name was ‘Undecided.’

“No. It’s not that my name is Undecided. It means I haven’t decided yet.”

“······Undecided. I like it.”

“That’s not your name.”

“······Not allowed?”

“Sigh. Fine. Just go with Undecided. It’s rustic and nice.”

In the end, I gave up.

I named a tool that I would use briefly and didn’t want to spend too much time thinking about it.

With such a casually given name, there won’t be any attachment.

From now on, your name is Undecided.

“Hey. Let’s get going now.”

“······Okay.”

Even though when it’s just the two of us, I feel like I’ll be called “Hey, you” more often.

“······Yujin.”

“Why.”

“······Yujin.”

“Why are you calling me that.”

“······Just because.”

After teaching her the name, she’s been acting strange since earlier.

Ignoring the echoing voice along the cave wall, I decide to focus.

I tie the rope tightly around the stalagmite.

Just one more knot, and it will be done.

“······Yujin.”

“If you’re calling me for no reason again, then yes.”

“······Keep standing there, okay?”

“Yes. Stand still there.”

“······Water.”

“You want water?”

“······Step back.”

When I sneak a glance behind me, I see Undecided standing in the middle of the vast chamber.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Droplets falling from the ceiling hit Undecided’s head continuously.

She stood still as instructed, not moving an inch and taking all the water hits.

“If it bothers you, at least dodge a little.”

“······Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. A little water won’t hurt.”

As she steps aside, a suspicious-looking door reveals itself to anyone who sees it.

That’s the entrance to the dungeon we’re challenging today.

How many dungeons have we cleared?

Was it the 6th one?

Known as the Black Star Dungeon, it boasts the most brutal difficulty among early-stage dungeons.

The dungeon mechanics themselves aren’t that difficult.

The problem lies in navigating the maze-like cave to reach the entrance and facing life-or-death situations from the start.

“Is it over now?”

Leaving Undecided standing still, I walk around to double-check if everything is ready.

Dozens of small holes in the cave wall, barely big enough for one person to crawl through.

And the ropes tautly strung in front of them.

Everything seems fine.

I signal to Undecided with a thumbs-up and move to a safe spot to hide.

“Hey. Open the door.”

“······Okay.”

As I command, Undecided nods and reaches out to the door.

Once that door opens, the mid-boss-level monster, Fenrir, will rush out aggressively.

She’s the culprit who saves newbies who mistakenly think they’ve become adept at dungeon raids and helps them escape this crazy game.

Players must start the battle surrounded by monsters in the center to satisfy Fenrir’s appearance condition by touching the door.

It’s a crazy difficulty level where you can’t even touch it unless you’ve grown almost to the point of challenging the final boss.

The standard play is to form a party and watch each other’s backs.

It may seem funny that users in a romance game cooperate to pursue the same heroine, but that’s how it goes.

Of course, I don’t have any comrades to form a party with, but it doesn’t matter.

“······It’s open.”

Clang, clang…

The door creaks slowly with a grim sound.

And at that moment, fierce wolf howls erupt from all directions.

“Creak!”

“Awoo!”

In an instant, dozens of giant wolves burst out of the cave.

The ropes blocking the entrance become weak and slack.

Sharp claws and teeth come at Undecided as she stands still following my orders.

But at that moment.

“Crack!”

Thud.

Arrows fired from the crossbow set up in advance precisely pierce the monsters’ heads.

The firing trigger is tied to a rope at the entrance.

They pull the trigger themselves, driving an arrow into their own heads.

Having watched Fenrir’s charge for the 12th time, I know the speed well, so if I aim correctly, it’s a perfect shot every time.

“······Agh.”

Mijeong lets out a scream that lacks any authenticity, her expression emotionless.

The bodies of the Fenrirs slump, stopping right in front of Mijeong.

Before I knew it, wolf corpses piled up around Mijeong, with only her face barely visible.

“Are you okay?”

“······No issues.”

Dealing with them alone is burdensome and time-consuming.

With many dungeons to clear today, depleting stamina from the start is not an option.

I actively utilize methods that can resolve without exertion.

That’s my way of conquering dungeons.

“Let’s go in right away. Time is of the essence.”

“······Okay.”

Stepping over the wolf carcasses, I push open the door Mijeong slightly nudged.

Time is running out.

Let’s move quickly.