episode_0045

“I reported to Yerina unni. The search in Basel ended in vain.”

“Oh. You deceived a respected unni like that without batting an eye? That’s not good.”

“Who told me to do it!!!”

“Told you to. It’s something you did because you liked it.”

“That’s…! That’s true…”

Alicia stood up in anger, then sat back down.

Don’t misunderstand.

I didn’t force Alicia to spill the beans.

It was her own decision, judging that she couldn’t let Yerina and me meet.

“But I still can’t believe it. Why did unni date a guy like you?”

“You still can’t believe it? Need more proof?”

“Enough!”

Blushing, Alicia glared at me as if I were trash.

Of course, in this chapter, when I revealed that I was Yerina’s ex-lover whom Alicia had never met, her reaction was intense.

But Alicia was very close to Yerina, so there were quite a few pieces of evidence she could use against me.

For example, the way Yerina showed affection for small animals only in front of close friends.

Or the way she tied her hair after showering.

Or her posture when waking up.

Or the position of the mole on her back.

“You can’t believe it. How about when Yerina kissed…”

“I believe you! I believe you! So please stop talking about it! And I don’t know anything about kissing as a woman!”

Huh.

Don’t close female friends kiss and stuff?

Where does my common sense go…?

Anyway.

Alicia will now believe that I was Yerina’s former lover.

It may not make sense time-wise, but with all the intimate information I provided about Yerina, she had no choice but to believe.

And since Alicia respects and likes unni so much, she will be extremely wary of me meeting Yerina again.

So Alicia has no choice but to cooperate with me.

Our mutual understanding of not wanting Yerina to meet is what brought us together to deceive her.

“Now what?”

“What?”

“I should know your whereabouts to some extent. That way, if unni patrols in that direction, I can stop her.”

That makes sense.

“I don’t have a set route. I’m just wandering around the dungeons on a continent-wide journey. Oh. I don’t plan to go to the northern continent for a while, so don’t worry.”

“Dungeons? Were you a mercenary?”

“You can tell by my appearance.”

“Hmm. It’s good news I’ve heard. I would feel terrible if you died recklessly in the dungeon.”

Exactly.

With Yerina’s keen intuition, she would quickly realize that Alicia was lying the moment they met.

At that point, I could subtly leak the news to Alicia that I died in the dungeon.

Then Yerina, through Alicia, would believe that I died and wouldn’t chase after me anymore.

It wouldn’t be a bad idea to leak the news of my death tomorrow, but… I still want to use Alicia as a special informant.

Since I haven’t been to the north for a long time, I have no idea what’s going on there.

At the very least, I should know the current state of Yerina.

“So please make sure Yerina doesn’t approach the Black Star Dungeon.”

“The Black Star Dungeon? Why? It’s not like she’ll…”

“I’m currently blocking the seeds of the Black Star Dungeon. After sweeping the south, I’ll move on to the north. I’ll call you again when that happens.”

“What? Are you joking? How can you conquer the Black Star Dungeon alone?”

“…Alone. No, not alone.”

Feeling left out, Mijung chimed in with a hint of regret.

Right. It’s not alone, it’s the two of us.

Thanks to Mijung, I almost lost my life last time.

“I trust that you will keep it a secret, but today’s conversation is strictly confidential. If any leaks are detected, I will take care of it, whether it’s mercenaries or whatever. I’m going to marry Yerina and live comfortably, so keep that in mind.”

“Got it! I’ll keep it a secret. But can I ask one thing?”

“No.”

“Oh! Really!”

With that, Mijung stood up, putting on her hood.

The leak of trade secrets event ends here.

Up to this point, it’s information that Alicia can know.

“Just one more thing!”

“Hey, you want to lose your suppressor again?”

“Eek…”

Alicia grabbed my wrist and slumped, but when I spoke in a low voice and said a word, she stopped crying and perked up her rabbit ears.

It seems like the approximately 12 hours without the suppressor were quite tough.

Just touching it made her wet herself.

She probably wouldn’t want to experience that again.

“Please. I have something I really want you to answer… Please…”

“Huh. What is it?”

She’s become quite polite.

It’s a significant improvement from when she treated me like a thug when we first met.

Oh well. It feels good.

Ask one more question.

“I obviously don’t believe it! But what if… What if you were the one who defeated the Black Star Dungeon in the southern continent recently… Why do you think that person is risking their life to conquer such a dangerous dungeon? They must have earned enough money to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.”

“Well, I don’t know.”

“What?!”

“Your words were lies. It wasn’t me.”

“Huh?!”

She doesn’t believe it herself.

So let’s just say it was a lie.

“Is that it? I’m leaving now.”

“Wait! That’s why I used the word ‘if’! If that person who conquers the Black Star Dungeon is you… What do you think the reason would be?”

Persistent.

The reason for conquering dungeons as they come?

It’s simple.

You have to clear all the dungeons to suck up nutrients from them and awaken the final boss, Draken, who sleeps in the other world.

Of course, it’s not necessary to awaken him.

If you don’t, Draken will slowly invade the other world and destroy the world in about 1000 years.

It’s a story that has nothing to do with our generation.

This fact is kept strictly confidential, so there are no riots among the confused masses.

That’s why the heroine’s ending, where she doesn’t awaken the final boss, can be a happy ending.

“If I were that person?”

“Yes.”

But that story is not my cup of tea.

I want to return to reality and end this boring regression that’s already in its 13th repetition.

“To prevent the world from being destroyed. That’s why, isn’t it?”

“…”

Of course, I’m not going to say that directly.

Alicia’s expression is blank after hearing my answer.

“Okay, I’m leaving. Take good care so your suppressor doesn’t get taken away again.”

“It won’t be taken away! I won’t encounter a pervert like you who puts his hand inside a lady’s underwear!”

“Sure. Be careful not to meet such a guy again.”

“Okay…”

Whether she believes it or not is up to Alicia.

Regardless of the purpose, I am indeed preventing the world from being destroyed.

But that’s only when the final boss conquest is successful.

“I need to level up and get stronger.”

Since I’ve already caught the attention of Velfegor, other Four Demon Kings could come out in droves.

I need to be prepared.

I have to get much stronger.

.

.

.

‘To prevent the world from being destroyed.’

It was a response that should have made me laugh.

What does conquering dungeons have to do with the destruction of the world?

If I had said that somewhere else, I might have been laughed at and accused of having delusions.

“That man… How much does he actually know?”

But I couldn’t laugh at him like everyone else.

Because I vaguely knew the true identity of the dungeons that appeared all over the world a few years ago.

When the dungeons first started appearing.

People thought the world was about to end.

Suddenly, giant gates appeared everywhere, and monsters started pouring out of them.

But after it was revealed that the rewards from the dungeons were quite lucrative, dungeons began to be treated like gold mines.

Mercenary groups specializing in conquering dungeons emerged, and many markets were revitalized because of the dungeons.

Of course, there were dungeons that were left unconquered and abandoned.

But as long as you invested a little in troops to keep the overflowing monsters at bay, it wasn’t a big problem.

The blessing of the gods for humanity.

In some circles, dungeons are referred to as such.

But what I learned from the Tower of Magic was far from reality.

“Does the dungeon connect to another world? Or does it know even more than that?”

The research results from the Tower of Magic.

The function of the dungeons was nothing more than extracting energy from our world and sending it to another dimension.

The complex traps and monsters inside the dungeons are devices to protect the dungeons.

And the rewards given are all believed to be illusions to make it difficult to understand the true purpose of the dungeons.

So, who summoned the dungeons?

Where is the extracted energy going?

What exactly are they trying to do with that energy?

All of these are just speculations.

No one knows the truth.

There are many conflicting opinions even within the Tower of Magic.

Among them, the most chilling and unbelievable theory.

That is, the existence of another world is planning to use massive energy to destroy our world.

“To prevent the destruction of the world.”

When I remembered the words of a man named Yujin.

A chill ran down my spine.

That couldn’t be true.

There’s no way that scoundrel knows about the classified stories within the Tower of Magic.

“If it’s true…?”

As I thought about Yujin again, I became confused.

It was a short meeting, but it was not a casual one.

It was a time when I could learn quite a lot about that man.

After observing him during that time.

Yujin, like a clown, like a madman, was not truly insane.

Even though he seemed to have lost his mind, all his actions were based on reason and logic.

If such a person has a firm conviction.

Wouldn’t it be right to believe that there is a basis for that conviction?

The evidence that if the dungeons are left alone, the world will be destroyed…

“How does that man know what even the Tower of Magic couldn’t find?”

But no matter how much I think about it, it doesn’t make sense, and it’s too perplexing.

It should just be dismissed as the ramblings of a madman.

But for some reason, Yujin’s words keep coming back to me persuasively.

Is he someone from an organization that far surpasses the research capabilities of the Tower of Magic?

Or is he a being beyond mortals?

No way… Could it be…?

“I should visit the Tower of Magic again…”

I should revisit the Tower of Magic, which I left a long time ago, and look into the latest research results.

If evidence of the world’s destruction comes from there.

If all of that is proven to be true.

“Then is Yujin fighting alone, risking danger to prevent the destruction of the world…?”

Maybe, just maybe.

It seems like I might understand why my sister fell for that man…