Chapter 216: See You Tomorrow
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 216: See You Tomorrow
Click—
Perhaps it was because I’d recently oiled the metal hinges, but the inn door swung shut with a smooth, faint sound.
"Finally, I can get some proper rest."
Lately, I had been doing nothing but practicing my skills, only returning to the inn to snatch a few hours of sleep when I felt like I was about to drop dead from exhaustion.
Even then, feeling like every second was precious, I’d often just collapsed and slept on the floor of the first-floor dining area. Thanks to Sola’s wood ents keeping the place spotless, the floor was clean enough that it hadn't been an issue.
"Ah, I guess I don't need to go up to the second floor anymore."
The inn had undergone an expansion. We’d added an extension to the backyard, giving Tresha and Ravi their own rooms, and I’d moved from a guest room into a newly built room of my own. There was no longer any reason to head upstairs.
But...
"Why is it so quiet?"
It was around midnight, so it was time for things to settle down, but the silence felt heavy. Just as I wondered if everyone was already asleep—
"Walter! Go lock the door!!"
"Sola! Hold him down!!"
"What?"
Suddenly, Tresha burst out from the hallway. She snatched Walter off her head and tossed him toward the door, effectively sealing the exit.
Sera was right beside her, shouting orders to Sola. Small ents, about the size of a person's waist, came scurrying toward me.
Clatter!
"What are these things?"
The ents latched onto my legs and refused to let go. When I lifted my legs and gave them a shake, they fluttered off like autumn leaves.
"N-no! Use your bodies to catch him, girls!"
"Right! Let's go!"
Before I knew it, Ravi had joined Sera and Tresha. The three of them piled on, grabbing my legs and waist.
"Uh... Sera? What are you doing?"
"I-I'm holding onto you so you won't run away, Yoo Eon!"
"Huh? Why would I do that?"
What on earth were they talking about? I’d finally come home early to rest, and they thought I was going to make a run for it?
"Y-you've been coming home at dawn every day lately...! You leave so early in the morning that we never even see your face..."
"Ah, haha... I've been very busy recently. I had my reasons."
It was true that I’d barely seen the people at the inn lately. I’d been spending all my time with Iris, so I suppose we hadn't talked much.
"Don't worry, Sera. You too, Ravi and Tresha. I'm planning to sleep in a bit tomorrow."
"R-really...?"
"Of course."
"Oppa! Then what about tomorrow?!"
"Tomorrow? Hmm."
I had plans to enter the Labyrinth tomorrow. Iris had told me that if I wanted to kill Mystery Antoinette, the Succubus Queen, I would absolutely need the power of Horus.
"Tomorrow, I'm going into the Labyrinth—"
"No! Tomorrow is a rest day for the Labyrinth!"
"Excuse me...?"
"That's right! Even the Labyrinth needs to rest!"
Ravi, who was clinging to my right leg, barked at me. Tresha, latched onto my left, chimed in immediately.
"Since when does the Labyrinth have rest days? It's open every day."
"But... Yoo Eon, haven't you been in the Labyrinth for the past few weeks straight...?"
"Ah, haha... Not exactly. I just had some things to take care of..."
From the sound of it, Sera thought I’d been inside the Labyrinth for three weeks straight. Unfortunately, I hadn't actually stepped foot in it recently, but since I hadn't told them where I was going or what I was doing, I couldn't blame them.
"Is it because of the money for the expansion...?"
"No, it's not that, Sera. Really."
"Then why...?"
"Well... let's just say it's for the sake of a slightly better world."
"Gah! What kind of nonsense is that? Sera-unnie's world is falling apart right now!!"
Sera, who had been holding my waist in an awkward stance due to her massive maternal instincts, nodded at Ravi's words and looked up at me. It was true that I hadn't spoken to her at all lately... Was that the reason?
"Sera, I'm sorry."
"Then tomorrow..."
"Once this job is finished, I plan to take about a week off and just stay at the inn."
"I'm telling you, no! You can't go tomorrow!"
"Hear, hear! Poor Sera-unnie!"
"Uh, boy... what do I do here?"
Time was tight. It had been a while since I’d entered the Labyrinth, so I’d intended to get to sleep as quickly as possible to head out first thing in the morning.
Creak...
Just then, Sera's Father walked out of his room, rubbing his eyes, and entered the dining area. He took one look at the bizarre sight of three women tangled around my body and then stared at me intently.
"Aven."
"Yes, Father."
"Are you planning to enter the Labyrinth?"
"That's right. I need to reach the 50th Floor this time."
"Is there a reason?"
"...A very important one."
Ravi, Tresha, and Sera watched him, waiting for his next words. After a few moments of silence, Father let out a long sigh and walked closer.
"Let him go."
"Father...?"
"Sera, and you little ones. Let go of him this instant."
"But..."
"Now."
"Fine..."
Surprisingly, the three of them obeyed him without much fuss. Father jerked his chin toward the hallway, and the two younger ones scurried back to their rooms.
"Sera, really, don't worry. This will be over soon."
"...I hate you. You better finish it quickly."
"Yes, I will."
Sera lingered a moment longer than Ravi and Tresha. She bit her lip as if she had more to say, but after hearing my answer, she finally turned back toward her room.
"Sweet dreams, Sera."
"Yeah... Sorry for holding you up, Yoo Eon."
"It's fine. Go on and get some sleep."
Once the three of them were gone, Father sat down in a chair and tapped the table. It was a gesture telling me to sit.
"Yes, Father."
"What have you been up to lately?"
"Oh, well... just some work."
"What are you doing in the Southeast?"
"...How did you...?"
His voice was lower than usual, contrasting with his sleepy face. I had no idea how he knew I was involved in things related to the Southeast.
"Do you know why someone like me, who could reach the 50th Floor in just two weeks, disappears for over half a year every time I enter the Labyrinth?"
"That's..."
I’d wanted to ask him that before. Father was a veteran Cobalt-grade explorer, part of a four-man party that could breeze through the 30th Floor in a week and hit the 50th in another.
Yet, according to what I’d heard from Sera, he was gone for at least six months every time he went on an expedition.
It was strange. If he wasn't going any deeper, why did he stay away from the inn for so long?
"I heard strange things are happening in the Southeast lately. Is that your doing?"
"...It is."
I had planted parasites. While moving inconspicuously in the Northeast where Iris’s magic item shop was located, I had been capturing explorers from the Southeast, consuming them, spitting them back out under my control, and sending them back as infiltrators.
I was receiving reports on everything happening inside. Including beggars and the homeless, I had about eighty people under my control. It was a small number compared to the total population of the Southeast, but it was enough to gather intelligence.
"I know a face in an illegal casino in the Southeast. I heard that lately, people have been losing their minds one by one over there."
"A face you know... Father, are you...?"
"It's not what you think. If anything, they're hostile toward the Antonio Brotherhood. It's a gambling den famous for its deep pockets. They don't have any official backing, but money seems to pour in from somewhere."
"...Is that your doing, Father?"
"Yes, you could say that."
This meant Father had a gambling den in the Southeast where his influence was strong. It was a place where more people won than lost, which should have put it in the red, yet it somehow stayed in business.
Because of that, it attracted a lot of vagrants who managed to scrape together a bit of coin, and because it was so popular, even the Antonio Brotherhood couldn't easily touch it.
"On another note, I had a son. Did anyone ever tell you?"
"This is the first I've heard of it."
"Right. I figured."
"You said you 'had' one..."
"He's dead. He's gone now."
"...I'm sorry to hear that."
The expression on Father’s face, which was usually smiling, sank into a rare somberness. I stood up, went to the desk, poured a bit of beer, and brought it over to him.
"I'm fine."
"You're not drinking?"
"No."
Since he declined, the glass ended up in front of me.
"Adrenaline Break. Did you delete it?"
"No, I still have it."
"My son had the same skill. It was his primary one."
"...Your son was an explorer too."
"Yeah. He said he wanted to follow in my footsteps. Back when Sera was just a little twelve-year-old kid."
"So he was her older brother."
"That's right."
Sera had an older brother. Even though I’d lived at this inn for half a year, this was the first time I was hearing this.
"Do you know the side effects of Adrenaline Break?"
"No, I haven't heard."
When activated, Adrenaline Break grants a sort of acceleration effect to the user's mind. It invigorates the body, makes the mind race, and temporarily burns mana to gain physical power—essentially, it's a strength-enhancing ability.
True to its name, it's a power that causes an explosive surge in adrenaline.
"It heightens your emotions. The longer the ability stays active, the less power the user gains, and they lose the ability to judge the situation properly."
"...I see."
"He took after Marta. He was a very bright kid."
Father reached out toward the wooden mug in front of me, but his arms were too short to reach. I slid it toward him, and he grabbed it, gulping down the beer.
"He died because of the Antonio Brotherhood. My son."
"...!"
"The side effects probably played a part. Even though I gave him a teleportation artifact to use in emergencies."
"...Was he murdered?"
"Yeah. When I went to the Southeast, I found it being sold as stolen goods. The very artifact I gave my son."
"They really are total bastards."
"They truly are."
Since then, Father had been digging for information through his connection with the manager of that gambling den in the Southeast, who also had no love for the Antonio Brotherhood.
His comrades were doing the same.
Despite their high combat power, they purposely avoided promoting beyond Cobalt Grade. When they entered the Labyrinth to hunt monsters, they apparently left their Explorer’s Plates elsewhere. That way, it was difficult for the Guild to track their kills.
"Why are you doing something so dangerous?"
"...It's more dangerous to let those bastards live."
"Yeah, you're right about that."
The reason he hadn't joined the Mayerbridge Union was that being part of an openly hostile faction would make it difficult to enter the Southeast. Even the way he spent his earned money in the Southeast was all a ruse to deceive the Antonio Brotherhood.
"What do you plan to do?"
"In three weeks, I'm going to wipe out the Southeast."
"You think you can?"
"...I will."
"I was being sarcastic. It won't be easy."
"I have to do it."
"..."
Father stared at my face for a moment, finished the rest of his beer, and stood up.
"And the reason?"
"...I'll tell you once things are a bit more settled. I have a reason why I absolutely must do this."
"Fine. I understand."
As he moved his small frame toward the hallway, Father stopped abruptly. Without turning around, he spoke.
"Do you know what my son's name was?"
"...I don't believe I've heard it."
A brief silence followed.
Then, Father scratched his head.
"Aven. Aven Otmarie."
"Aven..."
"I don't know what my daughter was thinking when she gave you that name, but make sure you live up to it."
"...Yes. I will."
"See you tomorrow."