Chapter 44
Chapter 44
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: To Chabid
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"Arrogant and foolish fools...."
A rough, dry voice scraped out like a towel rubbing against parched skin, scattering into the empty air.
Caw—
A crow cried out in the distance, as if echoing the words.
"Daring to slip away from my sight."
He had predicted they would take the western boulevard and laid a trap accordingly, but those blood clots mocked him by turning back to the mining city.
Because of that, Rich, who had anticipated gaining a new body, only realized the next day that his expectations had been utterly shattered.
That rage. That fury.
"But this time will be different...."
A gurgling sound crawled up from the polluted mana spring.
Caaaw— Caw—
The white hand bones rattled at the sycophantic cries of the familiar echoing around.
"The labyrinth is a bit tricky... but using the residual mana flowing within and the wild undead, I can set an even greater trap."
To track down those who had slipped through his fingers, he had no choice but to send out a swarm of familiars with reduced control, so he had to gather mana again to reconstruct his body.
But once he killed them and claimed their bodies, all would be compensated.
What reason could they have for heading to the labyrinth city of Labirin?
Intoxicated by a handful of gold coins and fame, they would explore the labyrinth—and in doing so, face his wrath from behind.
"Go... go and watch with the other crows."
And even if they moved elsewhere, with multiple crows—not just one—circling every nearby city, they could not escape his grasp.
"This time for sure...."
He would catch that rat pup, make its body his own, and burn its fellow rat pups' souls to offer as sacrifices to dark mana.
* * *
"So the progenitor of the doppelgangers was an experiment by a dragon who lost its lover...."
"Never mind that old cliché. Answer the question."
I wiggled my feet while sitting, looking at the huddled doppelgangers, and the druid who received my question opened his mouth.
"It's... possible. But it won't be easy."
That was enough.
I grinned and began writing a letter to Alkaido.
I'd been curious ever since I first revived them. Excluding the Replication trait, they all had traits that suited their flipped bodies.
So naturally, it seemed like traits obtained from the original human hosts.
'But actually, it's the opposite.'
Take Trauman, the one in the bearded dwarf's body.
Even if the main body was a genderless doppelganger, tastes exist.
He had wanted a woman's body originally, but since his own trait was axe mastery, he took the dwarf body suited for wielding an axe when it came along.
[Adonil—Doppelganger Replica of Adonil]
Main Traits: [Replication(B-)] [Taming(C)] [Affinity(B)]
Hidden Traits: [Incitement(D)] [Iron Wall(C)]
The druid Adonil, who had just spoken with me, said he had been raising a rat that came with an adventurer by feeding it his own body, suspecting his trait might be taming, so he sought out a suitable body as much as possible.
That meant his traits wouldn't change much even if he switched to a different body.
Moreover, since traits could always evolve, if the ingested body had greater talents, he could acquire new ones with some effort.
"Then from now on, learn diligently. You all know I have your hostages, right?"
Crunch—
Kitan, in the dungeon hunter's body, ground his teeth.
Seeing the hot-tempered trait, that one might be hard to fix.
'Alkaido will work them steadily.'
If traits followed the ingested body, artificially created homunculi might lack traits and be hard to utilize.
But if the doppelganger's own traits persisted...
'If I drill them intensely as spies, even if they don't generate spy traits, as long as only the core returns after death somewhere, they can be reused as spies.'
Conscience? None. They hadn't wanted this in the first place, and having lived with blood on their hands, they could atone by contributing to preventing the continent's downfall.
The more I drove them like a brutal, exploitative employer, the further the bad ending receded. They could curse me all they wanted.
"Take this letter and money and go where I tell you."
I smiled at druid Adonil as he took the letter with his wrinkled hand.
Even if sirens were artificial beings, they weren't machines—they got tired if used too long.
Better to send brief communications for urgent matters and details via letter.
"Progenitor. You have to survive. Got it?"
"Baby. We'll work hard to earn your freedom...."
"Don't cry at night missing us."
"Yeah. Since you're out, see and learn as much as you can. Don't get hung up thinking about us."
After hugging tightly and saying goodbyes, Zero waved with a smile as if he was fine, watching the doppelgangers trudge away.
"Then shall we head out now too?"
At my words, Zero rubbed his teary green eyes with his sleeve and looked at me.
"By any chance... are we going to the labyrinth? If so, I want to advise against it...."
"No way. How would the labyrinth's owner know to shove us at someone else this time instead of you all? We're going to Chabid."
Chabid, the land of plains and deserts.
Calling it a country was a bit vague. No king, no proper administrative divisions.
Beastkin usually raised livestock and lived in family or tribal units.
That's why there were more beastkin than humans, and more livestock than beastkin.
Like Mongolia on Earth.
I glanced at Luna, who smiled expectantly and had already started packing.
"How many years since you've been home, Luna?"
"Three years...."
She beamed, tying her long ears like a headband under her falling hair as she packed.
It was fascinating every time.
"Um, this is my first time to Chabid."
Yeah, mine too. Actually, it was the first time for all of us except Luna.
Pretending not to notice with Zero, I opened my mouth.
"What, it's just the beginning. Soon you'll see the world with your own eyes, not just borrowed memories."
Along the way, I'd have him eat and cook all sorts of things to make use of that trait too.
"My chest feels weird—is this what excitement is?"
"That emotion is purely yours, so judge it yourself. Let's go."
Since I'd swept so much into my sub-space at the start, and bought extras just in case, I quickly packed Zero's travel bag too before leaving the inn. Zero stopped dead at the sight of the sky.
Seeing him reach up as if trying to grasp the air, I felt a pang and whispered to Luna instead of telling him to stop.
"Can we get a horse suitable for Zero?"
"Hmm... we could, but if we're going to my family's place, our horses would be better, young master."
The horse Luna, I, and Cain were riding were battle-trained warhorses, far superior to anything available here.
Better to get one from Luna's tribe, who tamed and raised wild horses.
But what about travel in the meantime?
I subtly turned to Cain, whose golden eyes flickered briefly before settling.
"No."
"I haven't even asked yet?"
"Absolutely not."
"Isn't that petty? Then ride with Luna?"
"I refuse again."
Jerk....
I grumbled after subtly trying to put Zero on Cain's horse and getting rejected.
"Then Luna, can we buy a good mare and swap it there? A mare would be good for breeding too."
"Ah, they'd love that. Wild herds have few females... and they're heavily protected at the center, so taming them is tough."
After my leg got injured once, Luna had lost much of her timidity around me and Cain, and her stuttering had lessened.
Impressed, I reached out, stroked her head like tugging her ears, then sent her to buy a horse. After, I poked Zero, who was still gazing at the sky as if it didn't hurt his eyes.
"Stop gawking and follow."
Caw~
Instead of rummaging my sub-space for Zero's clothes and basic gear to fit his build, we headed to the central tower with the labyrinth entrance, where a crow cried excitedly overhead.
Like pigeons ruling Korea, crows dominated here?
No wonder they were common—even running carriages didn't faze them.
"By the way, Zero, you still have no combat skills or notable support abilities?"
"Yes. I haven't fully absorbed any being, and the environment wasn't suited for actively learning or trying...."
Plus, I don't know my traits yet... he added hesitantly, so to save time, I called Cain.
"You've eyeballed Zero's measurements, right? Go buy clothes, a robe, light armor."
"Sure."
"I'll go to the temple near the labyrinth with Zero, meet at the labyrinth entrance."
The labyrinth entrance at the central tower was a landmark here, easy to gather at.
"Shield up when you're out."
I turned on my shield at Cain's nagging with a yeah yeah, then moved with Zero.
I knew Zero's traits from my user vision, but Zero only knew rumors from books or faint knowledge, so he seemed expectant.
Alone with me, even without speaking like he had honey, his eyes sparkled—he was hugely anticipating something....
'But dude... you still don't have a main trait.'
[Zero—Beginning and End of Doppelgangers]
Main Traits: [Replication(D+)] [Kindness(A)]
Hidden Traits: [Master of Disguise(A)] [Cooking(S)] [Dignity(C+)]
Hidden trait values were visible only to me, and Replication didn't show on altered bodies, so the temple would only reveal....
[Kindness(A): You are a kind person.]
Cain and Luna got wooden plaques with long, motivational descriptions.
Labirin had many rough folk, and adventurers outnumbered civilians in rechecking traits, so the plaques were curt and businesslike.
Zero fiddled with his plaque like a puppy chased out in the rain, then pocketed it openly dejected.
"You know traits can change?"
"Yes... I know if I work and learn at anything, it'll be fine."
But why do you look half-dead?
Waiting at the labyrinth entrance for Luna and Cain, two crows circling overhead—one shot straight across the distant sky, the other perched on a nearby building.
'Feels like we're being followed.'
Who among us has druid talent, me, Cain, or Luna?
Lost in silly thoughts, Luna arrived leading a plump, glossy-coated horse, and Cain joined with greaves, armguards, leather armor and robe covering the upper body—light gear.
"Luna's homeland is Chabid, called the land of plains and deserts?"
"More like a confederation of tribes... but close enough."
Bordered by monster zones, mountains, deserts, and mostly rough grass plains unfit for grazing, it was a beastkin nation of nomads.
The continent's widest desert and widest plains together.
'And the place where Cain mutual-destructed with the one called the Demon King at the end.'
I smiled softly and spoke.
"Then let's go."
Riding would take at least three or four months.
A distant, perilous, rugged journey.
But money was great.
Chabid's vast expanse had only one portal, but where was it?
"Um... customer. Really going to Chabid? The price is awfully...."
The portal manager hesitated, mindful of my noble pride. I shrugged and handed over a gem of fitting size.
"Wow...."
Before Zero, seeing a portal for the first time, could gawk again, I shoved him in first, then stepped into the rippling portal.
* * *
Caw? Cawk? Caaaaw!
No, what the hell is that mad human?
According to Familiar No. 1, directly linked to the master, humans were foolish, attached to material things—so having come to this labyrinth city, they'd wander the labyrinth in vain greed until gaining something big.
No, it's been a month, two months. Why move now, why?
Familiar No. 8 flapped its wings like malfunctioning, lifted and dropped its talons on the branch, screeching hysterically.
If it flew to inform the master, who had gone to activate the labyrinth trap upon Adelian's group's arrival at the entrance, it'd take ages.
Caaaaaw!
No choice!
"Huh? What's that? The bird's gone crazy!"
Familiar No. 8 dove urgently, hurling itself through the portal before the light fully faded.