Chapter 242: Déjà Vu
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 242: Déjà Vu
—Burst!
"Sera! Theodora!"
"Yoo Eon?!"
"Aven?"
The top floor of one of the most expensive hotels in the Northwest. As expected of the Lymain family's connections, their influence in this district was vast and formidable.
"I'm here too!"
"Ah, Ravi."
"Tch, talk about an underwhelming reaction..."
"Haha... Of course I was worried about you too."
"Oppa, I'm here as well, you know?"
"Right, right. I'm glad. Good to see you're safe, Tresha. Where's Yura?"
Sera, Theodora, Ravi, and even Tresha. Everyone was safe and sound.
"Mom is looking after her. She’s sleeping in the master bedroom right now."
They said Auntie Marta was currently taking care of Yura, who had already fallen asleep given the late hour. Come to think of it, it was quite late, yet everyone was still awake.
"We had a feeling you'd be back tonight, Yoo Eon."
"Hmm... Did I not mention where I was going?"
"You said you were going to the 60th floor."
I told them I was going to the 60th floor and back, yet they stayed up waiting as if they expected me to return in a single night. I couldn't help but wonder if the people at our inn had developed a slightly warped sense of scale regarding the Labyrinth.
They didn't think the 60th floor was just sixty steps or something, did they?
"So, did it go well?"
"Ah, yeah. I managed to settle things somehow."
"I'm sorry for disappearing without a word, Sera."
"No, Sera. I'm the one who should be sorry."
The Antonio Brotherhood had dared to crawl into the Mounted Goat Inn. To prevent exactly this, I had avoided showing my face at the inn for nearly a month.
I had asked Sola to stand guard at night just in case, but I never imagined they would boldly raid the place in broad daylight.
"It might be uncomfortable staying away from the inn, but please bear with it for a little while. I'll finish this as quickly as possible."
"Ah, um..."
When I said that, Sera, Ravi, and Tresha looked at each other, fidgeting with their fingers. They seemed to be hesitating.
"A-actually, it's really comfortable here... The beds are nice, too..."
"Well, I suppose it would be."
As Sera lowered her head, her face flushing red, Theodora—who had been listening nearby—couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
"Pfft! See? Don't worry about us, Aven. I'm used to places like this anyway."
"Thanks, Dora. I feel like I'm constantly in your debt."
"What are you talking about? If you feel that bad, just help me transport a monster later."
"Sure, I'll do that."
On the table in the center of the spacious living room, a high-end board game and various cards were scattered about. It looked like they had been killing time playing games until I arrived.
"Can I see Yura for a moment?"
"Want to see your daughter's face?"
"No, it's not like that..."
Still, she called me 'Papa,' and I hadn't been able to show my face much lately. I didn't want to wake a sleeping child just to show her my face; I just wanted to make sure she was okay.
And I was deeply grateful to Auntie Marta for taking such good care of her. Man, ever since I first arrived in this world, I felt like I was constantly imposing on others.
—Knock, knock.
With a quiet knock, I slowly opened the door to the master bedroom. Perhaps because Yura was sleeping, the lights were off, but the curtains over the floor-to-ceiling windows on one side were open.
The interior was softly illuminated by the faint glow of the city lights filtering in from outside.
"Auntie, about Yura... Oh."
"Shh."
As I stepped inside and my eyes adjusted to the darkness, the scene became clear.
Wait, why is she... nursing?
Auntie Marta had pulled down one side of her dress and was letting Yura suckle. Was this something I was allowed to see? Well, technically, Yura was my daughter.
Auntie is breastfeeding her...? Why...?
When I stood frozen in shock for a moment, Auntie spoke quietly.
"If she won't sleep, you just have to give her the breast."
"Uh, um..."
Apparently, nursing a young child has a sedative effect that promotes sleep. I recalled hearing something like that before, but my biggest question was why Auntie was the one doing it.
Is she... still producing milk?
Sera, her youngest, was already twenty. There was no way she was still lactating. Was it okay just to let her suckle?
"Come closer."
"Ah, yes."
It wasn't that I had any strange thoughts. It was just that Yura, nestled in Auntie's arms, looked excessively cute while sleeping.
She's covered in drool.
She seemed a bit old to be nursing, but in moments like this, she still seemed like a total baby.
"Auntie, thank you. And I'm sorry... I don't know how to make this up to you..."
The Antonio Brotherhood had invaded the Mounted Goat Inn. Although Antonio Edgar had caught them immediately and there wasn't much damage, the fact that they had targeted the inn at all was a major problem.
"Forget it. No real harm was done."
"Haha..."
As always, Auntie gave a cool, nonchalant response. But looking at her expression, she actually seemed somewhat happy.
Is she glad to have a granddaughter?
* * *
"Everyone, go to sleep now."
"Yes, we should."
"Everyone stayed up just to see your face, you know."
"Seriously, what were you going to do if I didn't show up?"
Staying up to wait for someone who had just entered the 60th floor of the Labyrinth yesterday... Then again, since I really did return to the surface in just one night, I didn't have much room to talk.
"What about that person?"
"That person?"
"The one with white hair. Iris, was it?"
"Ah, um... She's waiting elsewhere. I need to visit those criminals first, then I'll go find her."
"Right. Good luck with that."
Seeing off Theodora, who was the first to wash up and head to bed, I left the lodging. My destination was the basement of Auction Lymain, where the Antonio Brotherhood criminals who had raided the inn were being held.
The night streets are quiet.
I arrived at Auction Lymain—not exactly 'not late,' but at a reasonable hour—to find Grandfather Alfred waiting for me.
"It has been a while, Head Butler Alfred."
"Welcome, Young Master. I knew you would come."
"Haha... Everyone seems to be waiting for me."
"Indeed."
As always, the old man's gentle smile was top-notch. I realized it only now, but despite his age, the power radiating from him was immense. I was certain he was stronger than most Cobalt-grade explorers.
"Are you feeling alright?"
"Yes. I received treatment far too good for this old body."
"Haha... Don't say that. Everyone needs to live a long life."
"Please, come inside. The Chairwoman and her guests are in the basement."
"Yes, then."
It felt like it had been a long time since I'd been here. I first met Theodora at Auction Lymain, and looking back, things had changed drastically since then.
I thought she was just a prideful beastkin, but I never expected things to turn out like this.
As I entered the basement, memories came flooding back. The time Theodora had gifted me the Dragon Heart. I didn't remember it clearly, but they said I had even fought Grandfather Alfred here.
—Creeeeak...
"Mother."
"You've arrived."
The four criminals were being held in separate rooms for interrogation. Theodora's mother, Lady Lymain, was in the first room. Judging by the state of her right hand, things had clearly turned violent.
The prisoner's face was covered in tears, and blood trickled down his chin as if he had bitten his lip. Looking at this scene, one would hardly guess that this woman was the Chairwoman of a Great Merchant Group.
"Did you find anything out?"
"He won't open his mouth at all. It's as if some kind of deterrent is at work."
"Is there a possibility he truly knows nothing?"
"It's possible. But how would we know? We have no choice but to keep digging until he dies."
"I told you I don't know anything, you bitch!! Argh!!"
The Antonio Brotherhood member tied to the chair convulsed at Lady Lymain's words, thrashing his bound limbs wildly.
"Let me try."
"Hmm? Do you have a better way?"
"Of course."
"H-eek!! Stay back!! I really don't know anything!!"
I reached out with my right hand and immediately tore off the man's head and swallowed it.
—Crunch!
The man, having lost the head that sat atop his neck, stiffened for a moment before his movements ceased entirely. Alfred and Lady Lymain, watching this, seemed momentarily taken aback.
"What did you..."
"Hmm, this one really doesn't know anything. He's just a low-level grunt among many."
I knew after a quick scan of his brain. He was just a common piece of trash; he had no specific information on why they had targeted the Mounted Goat Inn.
—Splat!
"It's a dud. Let's move to the next one."
"...Very well."
* * *
"So they were told just to observe, but they picked a fight for no reason?"
"But the reason they were told to observe the Mounted Goat Inn in the first place is ultimately because of me."
"Just what have you been up to...?"
Despite scanning the brains of all four criminals, not much came of it. However, I was able to obtain several pieces of useful information from the head of their leader, Kenneth.
"For now... the Mounted Goat Inn won't be safe. I've temporarily stationed someone there, though."
"Stationed someone? Who?"
Antonio Edgar, who had been listening, expressed his doubt. I wasn't sure how to explain this.
"Someone I met in the Labyrinth. Her name is Kanna Belfos..."
"Belfos? If it's Kanna Belfos... she must be the youngest of the Belfos family."
"You know her?"
"To some extent."
"That's good. Is it a particularly impressive family?"
"Not exactly, but we have some history with them."
If Lady Lymain said that much, I probably didn't need to worry about Kanna's bluster.
"She should be guarding the inn with her attendant. Please check on them later, Father."
"I will do that."
"Do you have another appointment?"
Gadel, who had been listening, chimed in with a question.
"Yes, my schedule is a bit tight."
"I'd like to know what's going to happen from here on out."
"...That..."
Well, there was no need to hide it from these people. Lady Lymain already knew some of it anyway.
"Three weeks from now. I plan to wipe out the entire Southeast."
* * *
"Iris. We're here."
"Mm."
Inside the magic item shop located in the Northeast. I took a deep breath after spitting Iris out. From now on, I would have to enter Iris's subspace, where the sense of time becomes meaningless, and endure a headache-inducing experience for weeks.
"Your head hurts."
"Whoa, how did you know?"
Continuously awakening new abilities of a skill and gaining proficiency in them causes an immense headache. Whether she read my mind or something else, it seemed Iris had mastered Mind Reading.
"It's okay. We won't do the head-hurting stuff."
"Really? Then what are we doing?"
As we entered the subspace, the surroundings instantly turned pitch black, and the distance between Iris and me widened. There was nothing but darkness all around; Iris, standing in the distance, was the only landmark.
"Why did you go so far away?"
"You said you didn't like the head-hurting stuff."
"Yeah, so what are we doing?"
—Shring...
With a sharp sound, a red magic circle appeared behind Iris's back. Soon, something protruded from within the circle.
Is that... a scythe?
It was a massive scythe, like the kind used for harvesting. It didn't look like a farm tool, though; it was a crimson scythe that looked like some demonic artifact.
"We're going to do... the body-hurting stuff."
"Body-hurting stuff?"
Iris gripped the scythe in one hand and sprouted wings from her back. They were smaller and cuter than before, but I had no idea what she was planning.
"I'll only use ten percent of my power. You have to kill me here."
"Wait, isn't that a bit too extreme all of a sudden?"
"No more talk."
—Whoosh!!!
Before she even finished speaking, Iris flew toward me at incredible speed. Reacting instantly to the rapidly closing distance, I shifted into my combat form and blocked the swinging scythe with my forearm.
—Boom!!
What the...?!
This was really only ten percent of her power? She seemed to be swinging it lightly, but the weight behind it was immense.
"Hmph...!"
—Thud!
After swinging my tail to push back the blocked Iris, I checked my forearm to find a deep gash.
"Whew, Iris. That's impressive."
"Soft."
"What?"
At that moment, the wound suddenly tore open, and blood sprayed out like a fountain. The blood gathered in the air in the shape of a scythe and surged toward me once again.
"What kind of magic is this...!"
A vicious cycle repeated: wounds kept increasing, and Iris's magic triggered from those wounds to create even more injuries. I tried circulating Snowfield Troll blood through my body to heal the wounds, but...
Damn it...! The blood is all being pulled out...!
Instead, it started having the opposite effect of refilling Iris's mana.
In the blink of an eye, Iris closed the distance and stood before me, raising her scythe high.
"Below expectations."