36. The Duck, Jeong Yoo shin, and Mion
-------------------------------------
Translator: JayM
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: The Duck, Jeong Yoo-shin, and Mion
-------------------------------------
A guard escorted Jeong Yoo-shin to the Explorers Guild exchange office located near the labyrinth exit.
The exchange office was empty as the labyrinth closure order hadn’t been fully lifted yet.
He was taken to a small office in the back.
An elf was sitting at a desk, writing on a scroll.
The elf looked up, dark circles evident under his eyes.
“Investigation Team Twelve led by Karin. Are you the only survivor?”
Jeong Yoo-shin sat down heavily on the chair opposite the elf.
“No. But who are you?”
“I’m the chief scribe for the labyrinth investigation teams. I work for the Council. My job is to record the reports from the investigation teams. Tell me what happened.”
The elf glanced at Jeong Yoo-shin’s hair and added,
“Leave out the sex stuff.”
“Yes.”
He began his report, summarizing the events in the labyrinth by focusing on the facts and omitting his emotions.
Thirty minutes passed.
“…So Karin ran off somewhere, two of my party members turned into animals, and one seems to be… mentally incapacitated. Like she has the idiot imprint.”
“Where are the other party members?”
“They’re waiting outside.”
“Then I’ll just confirm…”
“Quack!”
A sound came from outside, and the elf, who had stood up, sat back down.
“I’ve heard enough. Good work. Go home and get some rest.”
He had finished his report. Now it was time to ask his own questions.
“What happened to the other investigation teams?”
The elf sighed and rubbed his eyes.
“Some have returned. Some haven’t. We’ll have to wait and see. There’ll be an official announcement soon.”
The elf’s answer was vague and evasive. He felt like he wouldn’t get any more information by staying.
So he stood up and left the office.
Creak.
Click.
The door closed, and silence fell over the office.
The elf muttered to himself while rubbing his forehead,
“Sigh. Collapsing a tower, digging a hole, and creating a portal above it? That takes guts. He’s completely insane.”
His pen moved swiftly across the parchment.
After a while…
He finished writing the report and added a note at the bottom.
Further investigation required.
He put down his pen and reread the report.
He nodded in satisfaction and leaned back in his chair.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
It was a quiet afternoon, unusual for the Labyrinth City.
A guard escorted Jeong Yoo-shin out of the exchange office.
A duck, a lizard, and Gillian were waiting for him at the entrance.
He looked at them and said,
“I’ll see you later. Take care.”
As he turned to leave, the duck, which was Lionel, bit his foot.
“Ow! What was that for?”
“Quack!”
‘What does he want?’
“Do you want me to take you to the temple? To remove your imprint?”
The duck shook its head.
“Then what do you want? Be clearer.”
“Quack.”
The duck tucked its head under its wing, pretending to sleep.
“You want me to… put you to bed?”
“Quack!”
“And the payment?”
The duck puffed out its chest.
He stared at its fluffy white belly for a moment.
“You want me to… cut you open?”
The duck nodded.
He chuckled in disbelief.
“Come here. Hey, don’t back away, you damn elf.”
The duck, perhaps due to its former life as an elven archer, was quick-witted. It immediately backed away and quacked loudly.
A passing guard approached them.
“What’s going on?”
“This duck is mocking me.”
“You seem tired. Were you part of the investigation team? Go get some rest.”
“Alright. Come here, ducky. Let’s go home. Aren’t you cute?”
The duck waddled towards him.
‘Now.’
Grab!
He grabbed the duck.
“Lionel, stop this. Snap out of it. You’re an elf.”
The duck flapped its wings.
“Quack!”
The guard chuckled.
“That’s a plump one. Perfect for a hearty meal.”
The duck froze.
Jeong Yoo-shin’s expression hardened.
“He’s really an elf.”
“I know. I saw you from afar. I was just joking. But be careful. It won’t be a joke if you take him outside.”
His words were a sobering reminder for Jeong Yoo-shin.
The clerics had questioned him earlier to confirm his sanity, and now he understood why.
It was a procedure to ensure that he could fulfill the role as his party’s guardian.
He rummaged through Lionel’s clothes.
His fingers brushed against something cold.
He pulled it out. It was a gleaming silver tag.
The silver tag of an intermediate-rank explorer.
He put the tag around the duck’s neck.
The guard’s words weren’t a joke.
He had barely survived the labyrinth, and now he could lose his party member to a hungry passerby. What a tragedy.
He looked around. Ahiman was nowhere to be seen.
“Chirp.”
The lizard, which was Ahiman, was suddenly perched on his shoulder.
“Ahiman, are you going to have your imprint removed? Do you want me to take you to the temple?”
The lizard nibbled on his earlobe.
“Let’s do it this way. If you don’t want to go, tap my palm twice.”
He held out his hand, and the lizard, after staring at it for a moment, nibbled on it.
Once. Twice.
“You don’t want to go. Confirmed.”
He couldn’t understand what these people were thinking.
He looked at Gillian and sighed. He took Gillian’s hand.
“Let’s go.”
A strange procession began.
A duck with a silver tag around its neck waddled proudly in the lead.
Behind it, a barbarian held the hand of a warrior in plate armor, and a lizard was perched on his head.
The streets were crowded and noisy.
“Is that the labyrinth investigation team?”
“Did they fail?”
“I don’t know. But two animal transformation imprints? That’s unusual.”
People murmured among themselves but kept their distance.
Jeong Yoo-shin’s face flushed.
‘Stop staring. It’s embarrassing.’
The duck, wiggling its butt, proudly displayed its silver tag as it waddled along.
They walked through the southern district while drawing stares, and arrived at Dalmong’s inn.
“I’m back.”
Dalmong, who was sitting at the counter, jumped to his feet.
“You made it back alive.”
“Yeah. How many days has it been?”
“About a week.”
A week?
‘Time flies.’
Dalmong looked at the others.
“A duck, a lizard, and a paladin. An interesting combination. Where’s Karin?”
“She suddenly started talking about a towel, covered her mouth, and ran off.”
“Is that so? Well, welcome back.”
Jeong Yoo-shin sat down across from Dalmong, who poured him a drink.
“Wait a moment. I’ll get you something to eat.”
“Thank you.”
The duck flapped its wings impatiently, so he picked it up and placed it on a chair.
He gently took Gillian’s hand and led her to the chair next to the duck.
The lizard had crawled onto the counter and was flicking its tongue.
“Ha…”
He sighed.
Dalmong returned from the kitchen with bread, cheese, and dried sausages.
“I can’t build a fire because of the earthquake. Sorry.”
“No problem. Thank you.”
He ate slowly.
Lionel, his eyes gleaming, nudged him with his beak, so he tore off a piece of bread and cheese, and offered it to him.
‘Is this okay?’
He wasn’t sure what ducks ate, but Lionel swallowed it without hesitation.
He offered a piece of bread to lizard Ahiman, who lapped it up with his tongue.
‘They’re good eaters.’
He removed Gillian’s helmet and fed her a piece of bread. Gillian ate it without any problems.
Dalmong smiled faintly at the sight.
They finished their meal.
Jeong Yoo-shin recounted the events in the labyrinth to Dalmong.
“…When we came out of the labyrinth, Lionel turned into a duck, Ahiman into a lizard, and Gillian… well, Gillian’s not all there anymore. I reported everything to the Explorers Guild.”
“You’ve grown, Skar.”
Dalmong patted him on the shoulder.
“I don’t know. I was just lucky.”
“Luck is also a skill.”
Splash!
Beer splattered on his face.
He looked to his side and saw Lionel wiggling his butt as he dunked his head into a mug of beer and flapped his wings.
‘Oh, my head.’
He clutched his head at the bizarre sight.
“Lionel, aren’t you an elf? A proud, long-lived race? Please, have some dignity.”
“Quack!!”
Splash!
More beer splattered on his face.
‘Has he lost his mind?’
He must have gone crazy after laughing and crying in the labyrinth.
A surge of anger welled up within him, but it quickly subsided.
‘Whatever.’
He was too tired. It had been a series of physical and emotional shocks.
He wiped the beer off his face and stood up.
“Dalmong, I’m going upstairs to rest.”
Dalmong nodded with a smile.
“Alright. Is that paladin a follower of the Light Spirit God?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll contact them for you, so you get some rest. You look exhausted.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
He said his goodbyes and went upstairs. The duck and the lizard followed him. The lizard was riding on the duck’s back.
“Let’s sleep separately. You go to a different room.”
“Quack!”
‘I give up.’
He entered his room, grabbed the struggling Lionel, wet a towel, and wiped his feet. The lizard scurried off to a corner, so he left him alone.
He wiped himself down, changed his clothes, and laid down on the bed.
The lizard and the duck crawled under the blankets.
“Ha…”
He sighed and closed his eyes.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The next day, around lunchtime…
He woke up.
He lifted the blankets and saw the duck and the lizard sleeping soundly.
“Wake up.”
He shook them awake and went downstairs.
“You’re up? A priestess from the Earth Mother Goddess’ temple took Gillian last night.”
“Good.”
He ate the food Dalmong brought him and then went out for a walk with the other two.
Lionel had clung to his leg and whined until he gave in.
The Knights and the City Guard were still patrolling the streets.
He was stopped and questioned by the guards several times, but each time, Lionel waddled forward and pecked at their knees.
The guards looked at the duck with pity.
“Is he your companion?”
“Yes. He’s a former elf.”
“Sigh. A long-lived race reduced to this… Go on. You’ve been through a lot.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
After receiving several sympathetic looks from the guards, he finally reached the park.
Tents were set up throughout the park, sheltering those who had lost their homes in the earthquake.
He sat on a wooden bench near the fountain.
Lionel, having abandoned all dignity, was splashing around in the fountain as if he was about to start digging for worms.
Ahiman, on the other hand, sat next to him with his eyes closed, basking in the warm sunlight.
He sat on the bench while staring blankly at the duck and the fountain.
He had many things to do, but he couldn’t take his eyes off his party members.
‘He seems to be enjoying himself.’
“Mr. Skar?”
He turned his head and saw Mion.
“Teacher Mion.”
He stood up and bowed. Mion smiled and bowed her head slightly.
“I heard you joined the labyrinth investigation team. I’m glad to see you made it out safely.”
“I was lucky.”
It was true. He had almost been dragged to hell by the Grim Reaper.
If he hadn’t regained consciousness, if he hadn’t been lucky, he would have died.
“Is that so?”
Mion sat down next to him.
The early summer breeze brushed past them.
They sat in silence as they watched the duck splashing around in the fountain.
He pointed at the duck.
“That duck is my party member.”
Mion nodded.
“I see.”
“Why is he like that?”
“I don’t know. He must have been stressed in the labyrinth.”
“Can you relieve stress like that?”
“It depends on the person. You do it too, don’t you, Mr. Skar?”
‘Is that so?’
He couldn’t understand, no matter how hard he tried.
What did it feel like to be a duck?
He wanted to ask Lionel.
The duck quacked and splashed around in the fountain.
He asked Mion,
“Where are you headed?”
“I’m on my way back from the relief center. I wanted to stop by the park first before going back to the temple.”
“The relief center?”
Clink.
Mion showed him a silver tag.
‘Fiona’
The name engraved on the tag.
“A priestess from the Earth Mother Goddess’ temple who was part of the labyrinth investigation team died in the labyrinth. They lost her body, but they managed to recover her silver tag. The party leader apologized to me while crying.”
That was unfortunate.
“Do you want me to hold your hand?”
He asked frankly. Mion glanced at the lizard, then smiled faintly.
A sad smile.
“No. Just stay by my side.”
“Alright.”
He thought of his new, unknown imprint, but he decided not to mention it.
He didn’t want to talk about work while she was mourning someone’s death.
This wasn’t the labyrinth.
He wanted to act like a human for now.
They sat in silence, watching the duck flap its wings and splash around in the fountain.
-------------------------------------
T/N - F*ck man, I laughed so hard in this chapter. Lionel cracked me up with all his duck antics. Though I wonder why Lionel and Ahiman don’t want to have their imprints removed asap? Is it because of lack of money or is there another reason?