episode_0042

When I came to my senses, Lucia was on the right side of the bed, and Erme was on the left.

What the hell happened?

I had been drinking with Erme, then Lucia joined in, and the three of us ended up drinking together.

And this was the result.

I looked for Rishiel.

I needed an explanation.

It didn’t seem like anything had happened, but just in case.

—Nothing like that happened.

Rishiel shut down my curiosity with a single sentence.

Well, that was a relief.

After all, Erme and I still had further to go.

And more importantly—

‘Can I handle two of them alone?’

That kind of doubt lingered in my mind.

I glanced to the side. Erme’s face, deep in sleep. Seeing her like this, she looked even prettier.

‘……If we’re talking about beauty, this one’s no slouch either.’

I turned to look at Lucia. Her red hair swayed gently.

If Erme was just beginning to ripen into maturity, Lucia’s beauty was already near its peak.

If Erme grew a little older, she’d probably look something like that.

Thinking that, I turned to Rishiel.

‘……She’s pretty too.’

Maybe it’s because she’s an elf. I don’t feel particularly drawn to her. Or maybe it’s because she’s a spirit.

I twisted my body and slipped out from between them.

After a light stretch, I gathered the things I needed to wear for the day.

‘Maybe I’ll visit the training grounds for the first time in a while.’

It’s a bit unfortunate that I can’t use a private room, but—

I needed to assess my current state.

My swordsmanship had changed after facing Burkan—Black Sea.

Gaining that made me feel like something had shifted.

‘If I show this to that old man, something might change.’

Lost in thought as I prepared, I heard a knock at the door.

Knock knock.

Why are they here at this hour?

I sensed movement outside the door. Teresa, Angyeon, and Rosenta.

The three of them were outside.

“……Yuseong, are you in there?”

“Yeah, I’ll open up.”

When I opened the door, I was met with Teresa’s blank expression. And Angyeon.

“Do you know where Ermel is? I haven’t seen her since yesterday… Ah.”

An Ah that seemed to understand everything.

Only then did I realize the two of them were sprawled across my bed.

“……It’s a misunderstanding.”

“……Don’t worry. I already have a fiancée. I get it. Though other women might not.”

“It’s fine, I’m not misunderstanding.”

“I’m not misunderstanding either.”

Angyeon, Teresa, and Rosenta spoke in order.

But Rosenta’s voice sounded a little hollow.

“……Nothing really happened. We had dinner with Lucia, then drank with Erme, and that’s how we ended up like this.”

“So you built the Great Wall with alcohol, huh? More importantly, Yuseong, I didn’t realize before, but you’ve got quite the way with women.”

What the hell is that supposed to mean?

Are they implying I’m some kind of playboy?

Flustered by the potential damage to my reputation, I quickly denied it.

“No, really, nothing happened.”

“I already know the truth.”

Angyeon grinned as he spoke.

“The leader and you have been busy dealing with something important lately. I know you’re not that kind of person.”

“Don’t lie, Angyeon. You said you couldn’t smell anything.”

“……Don’t undermine the message I worked so hard to deliver.”

So that’s what it was.

I let out a sigh of relief. From now on, I should never let women into my room.

—By that logic, does that include me?

‘You’re not a woman.’

—……

Rishiel made a genuinely hurt expression. But it’s kind of ridiculous to feel any kind of desire toward Rishiel in her spirit form.

“Well, since we’re here, maybe we should sort things out now.”

“Sort things out?”

“Ah.”

As Angyeon nodded, his voice began to echo in my ear.

—When I was caught by the Nokgolma in the labyrinth, some of its memories seeped into me.

“……I see. We should sort this out.”

At my words, Angyeon smirked.

I glanced at Lucia, still asleep on the bed. She’d probably sleep a little longer, so I should wake Erme and take her to her own room.

—Erme doesn’t know either. I think we’ll need everyone gathered to discuss this.

If Angyeon says so, then it must be true.

That guy loves adventure and romance, but that doesn’t mean he’s not sharp.

‘His mind works better than I thought.’

Well, that’s why he’s a mage, I guess.

I asked Teresa to wake Erme and requested an extended stay from the innkeeper.

“Extended stay?”

After a brief moment of hesitation, he asked for silver coins, so I handed them over.

It felt like a waste of money, but it was better than sneaking into Erme’s room.

And so, a half-asleep Erme and the others gathered.

Angyeon cast a strange spell around us.

“Phew, the Silence spell is perfect. Now, at least, no sound will leak out of here.”

“Borrowing this place wasn’t a bad idea either. If it were my room or Yuseong’s, things might’ve gotten a little messy.”

Somehow, that felt like a compliment.

Do I have some kind of related gift? Like the ability to read the memories of objects.

‘Now that I think about it, it’d be weirder if I didn’t.’

This is a world where truth-detecting paper exists, after all. No point overthinking it.

“First, you all know I was devoured by that Nokgolma, right?”

“Yes.”

“And for some reason, Yuseong ended up being the one to kill it. In the process, I merged with it and could read its memories.”

“I see… So while the monster was reading Marcel’s memories, Marcel was also reading its memories.”

“Exactly. And in the process, I realized something shocking.”

“Shocking, like what?”

“First, Nation. The Nokgolma killed his party and left Nation’s head behind as a warning to certain people.”

“A warning?”

“Yuseong mentioned finding a suspicious nail, right?”

“Yeah.”

Wait, why is that relevant…?

“Nation was hiding there. I don’t know the details, but apparently, he was trying to do something inside the labyrinth.”

“…….”

Nation was part of Rebellion?

It makes sense, but at the same time, it’s hard to grasp.

Nation seemed like someone with a secure future ahead of him.

“……Anyway, that’s part of it. Let me tell you about the place called the 25th Floor.”

“You have information on that place too?”

“Some, roughly. Normally, even if I’d read these memories, I should’ve died. So let me formally thank you for that.”

Angyeon bowed deeply to me as he spoke.

Come on, no need for that.

“Anyway, the 25th Floor… Because of the recent breakthrough to the 24th Floor, the monsters on the 25th Floor were affected. As a result, they surged all the way to the 1st Floor, and that influence spread to other monsters too.”

“I see. If they had gifts, it’d make sense for the intelligence of nearby monsters to rise as well.”

“And I’m sorry to say, but I already told the Guild Master about this information.”

“That was the right call. The Guild Master can distinguish truth from lies and see through deception.”

“Heh, that’s why I did it. Anyway, that’s the gist of it.”

Angyeon went on to explain more strange phenomena.

But most of it was speculative. Erme chimed in with occasional “Ohhs” and “Ahhs.”

I listened just in case.

Rosenta and Teresa were half-asleep.

“……So, ah, I’ve talked too much. You must be tired after yesterday’s labyrinth run.”

“We can still dive the labyrinth today.”

“True, the labyrinth’s stabilized now, so it’s better to push hard while we can.”

Angyeon nodded as he spoke.

“We’re heading into the labyrinth now. What about you two?”

“I’ll go.”

“I want to rest today.”

Erme agreed.

I refused.

Figuring out Black Sea was more urgent.

At my words, Angyeon smirked.

“That one-week break you mentioned—still valid?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Then you’ve got three days left. That should be enough.”

“Enough for what?”

“I’ll leave that as a surprise for later. Let’s go. It’d be annoying if you caught up too quickly.”

“…….”

Is this about leveling up?

‘Does he not know I’m already Level 3?’

I did level up after killing the Nokgolma.

But before that, I’d been soloing in the labyrinth to level up.

“…….”

Well, I’ll find out when the time comes.

I stepped outside.

“I thought you were resting?”

“No, I just wanted to ask Old Man Volkan something…”

“…….”

An awkward silence followed me the whole way.

“You want to ask about the sword?”

Volkan looked at me with expectant eyes.

Since when does asking about the sword warrant that kind of look?

‘What did I do?’

Regardless, Volkan stood up and loomed over me.

A 2-meter-tall mass of muscle.

I don’t aspire to look like that, but having that kind of body would make survival a lot easier.

“Sorry, but I can’t teach you. My sword is only for my disciples.”

“……?”

What?

I thought Volkan was my master.

“……Did you think of me as your master? Since when do people from the East talk like that?”

“The East has nothing to do with it.”

It’s true that I’m from the East, but still.

“Well, I said that, but I don’t particularly want to be your master either.”

“Then what?”

“You’re not ready to be my disciple. There are too many things about you that rub me the wrong way. I’ve lived too recklessly myself.”

So he’s self-aware.

But knowing that, he still acts like this?

“What’s with that unpleasant look in your eyes?”

“Nothing.”

“Anyway, the moment you become my disciple, people will come after you.”

“How many?”

“They won’t dare challenge me, but they’ll poke at you. And those little pokes will hurt more than you’d think.”

“……Hmm.”

So he’s saying he won’t take me as a disciple because his own mess might spill over onto me.

“Then just teach me about the sword.”

“Straight to the point.”

Volkan picked up a sword as tall as himself and headed inside.

“What are you doing? Come in.”

I followed Volkan inside.

Memories of the first time I met him resurfaced.

‘Compared to back then—’

I’ve gotten much stronger. In strength, speed, everything.

But from a swordsmaster’s perspective, Volkan still—

‘I can’t see his limits.’

That’s how strong he is.

Thud. Thud.

Soon, we reached the center of the training grounds.

Volkan stared at me in silence.

His eyes challenged me—if I dared, I could attack.

I accepted the challenge.

Drawing my sword—

I charged at Volkan without hesitation.

No testing the waters.

From the very first strike—

Whoosh.

A heavy step. The moment my foot landed, a strange ripple-like force swept through the air.

And then—

Black Sea.

A sword that split the darkness surged toward Volkan.

BOOM!

Volkan didn’t move an inch, blocking it effortlessly with one hand.

‘…….’

Damn, he’s strong.

Am I still not even close to reaching him?

Volkan’s expression turned deadly serious, whether he sensed my thoughts or not.

“Where did you learn this?”

“I stole it.”

“You stole this?”

“I picked it up fighting some orc.”

“……You learned this?”

Volkan paused for a moment before speaking again.

“Don’t use this unless you have to.”

“Why?”

“Simple. Because this is a technique used by orc champions. Unless you want orcs worshiping you, that is.”

I briefly imagined a horde of orcs like Burkan swarming around me.

‘……I should seal this away.’

I made a firm decision.