A Man and a Woman: 2 Days 1 Night in a Dungeon (1)
A Man and a Woman: 2 Days 1 Night in a Dungeon (1)
The day I returned to Siyoram after finishing my training at the Tower of Knowledge.
I will definitely remember that day as a happy one.
I came down from the floating island and met Ellia first.
Held tight in her arms and gently stroked, I spent a happy time.
When I returned to the mansion, I met Baek A-rin.
I had been relieved because Crisis Observation showed nothing unusual, so how shocked was I to find Baek A-rin herself lying ill in bed.
Fortunately, it wasn't the worst-case scenario, so I was able to melt her cold energy quickly and hold her tight.
I hugged Seo-yul tight when she returned to the mansion, embraced Yeon-hwa face-to-face, and shared plenty of affection.
Late in the evening, I shared a deep hug with my master and Professor Liana, who had returned together, soaking up all the affection I had missed while we were apart.
Just like that, we all gathered around the table and had a cozy dinner together.
It was just having dinner together, but the warm and snug feeling of that moment remains vivid in my mind even now.
So, if anyone asks me whether I was happy that day, I will definitely answer that I was happy.
'Fuck...'
Apart from being happy, I can't help regretting some things.
I spaced out for just a moment, but yesterday's memories came floating up.
Amidst the happy, cozy memories, the image of myself nodding in Hong Yeon-hwa's arms, agreeing to participate in the cross-dressing contest...
I feel like my head is going to shatter from shock.
'Cross-dressing? Me... cross-dressing...?'
My teeth clattered from the eerie horror.
Honestly, my sense of being an adult, a grown-up... isn't that strong.
It was the same before, but I eventually let go of that too, seeing how much I loved acting spoiled with others.
Isn't that why these days I openly show my desires, rush in for hugs, and demand to be stroked and patted?
It's definitely easier on the mind and body once you let go. It's happy...
But I haven't let go of my gender identity.
I have a clear sense of being a man.
That will probably never... change in the future either.
But cross-dressing?
Even if I gave in a hundred times over, it's not like I'm doing it alone as a joke and drowning in self-loathing.
I'm supposed to go out at an official Birth Festival event... a contest... and show the world my cross-dressed appearance...?
'This is insane...'
I couldn't hide my shock. I'm afraid of the future.
But what's even more surprising, shocking, and maddening is that I agreed to it myself.
There was pressure from Hong Yeon-hwa, but in the end, I was the one who gave in and accepted.
At the time, Hong Yeon-hwa's affectionate touch was more important than that future.
Before my reason could even return and regret it, my master and Professor Liana came one after another, and my rationality melted away again.
After finishing the warm dinner and flirting with Seo-yul before putting her to bed, that happy night passed, and when I opened my eyes in the morning, my reason, melted by affection, came back alongside regret.
'Urgh...!'
I twisted my body as if having a convulsion...
"Mmm... Daddy...?"
...or tried to, but I froze stiff at the feeling of Seo-yul in my arms.
Her wings wrapped tightly around me quivered as Seo-yul pressed her face firmly into my chest.
[If you're sleepy, you can sleep more.]
[It's still early, I'll wake you up later.]
"Nnn..."
I gently patted Seo-yul's lower back.
Then, Seo-yul, who had been squirming, soon let out even breaths again and sank back into sleep.
[Phew...]
I let out a sigh of relief, having almost committed the sin of waking a soundly sleeping child for no reason.
- Uh, h-hic, uugh... I-I got it...
'Aaaagh...!'
And then my mind writhed from the pain and regret that washed over me again.
.
.
.
"Did you sleep well...?"
Seo-yul slept about thirty minutes more before waking up.
She could have just slept soundly since she was with me anyway.
But Seo-yul, the model child, got right up.
[Yes, I slept well thanks to you, Seo-yul.]
[Did you have good dreams too?]
"Heehee, I was happy sleeping with Daddy too!"
Seo-yul beamed and threw herself at me, rubbing her cheek against mine.
At that puppy-like behavior, I smiled back and offered her my cheek.
[Hey now... who taught you to pick out only such pretty words?]
"H-hee, Daddy did!"
[Oh, I was the culprit?]
"Gasp, Daddy is the culprit!"
Seo-yul's eyes went wide and round.
It was clearly an act no matter who heard it.
She must have found it funny herself, because eventually a giggling laugh escaped her twitching lips.
[Cute.]
I hugged her tight once at that adorable sight.
Before I knew it, ten minutes had passed since we started flirting in bed after waking up.
We can't stay in bed forever.
I lifted Seo-yul in my arms and came out to the balcony attached to the room.
- Whooosh...
When I opened the door, the early morning wind brushed against my body.
It feels like just the other day I was breathing in the sweltering air, but now it's a pleasantly cool autumn breeze.
And by the time the Birth Festival is in full swing, it'll be winter with white snow falling thickly, I suppose.
[If you get cold or anything, you have to tell me right away, got it?]
"Yes."
Both Seo-yul and I are in thin pajamas. Also, there's magic on the balcony, but you never know.
Along with the request, I covered Seo-yul with a blanket and sat down on a chair prepared on one side of the balcony.
Coming out to the balcony early in the morning and looking at the scenery...
Describing it like that makes it sound quite romantic.
Of course, I'm viewing the scenery through Observation, not sight.
I was going to go right back inside if she got bored or disliked it, but I was relieved to see her enjoying the wind with just her head poking out of the blanket.
After enjoying the breeze for a moment, I spread a tablecloth over the table.
"Wow! Sandwiches! Daddy, did you make them?"
[Yes.]
[I made a lot, so you can eat plenty.]
"Okay! I'll eat a lot!"
[Still, don't force yourself to eat.]
Seo-yul's eyes sparkled as I laid out the pre-made sandwiches and poured milk to drink alongside.
She woke up early, so she must be hungry.
Seo-yul's body, nestled in my arms, stirred. Soon, two hands popped out through the blanket wrapped around her like a caterpillar...
"...Ah, I can't get them out."
...did not pop out.
To be precise, just before they came out, Seo-yul flinched and stealthily pulled her arms back in.
And she tilted her head back to look up at me.
"......"
A silent gaze.
But I immediately read the request in that gaze.
[Oh my, Seo-yul's arms are not coming out?]
[What to do... Should someone feed you??]
- Nod nod!
Seo-yul nodded her head vigorously as if I had spoken well.
In the end, I let out a laugh I couldn't hold back and picked up a sandwich.
[Here, say ahhh...]
"Ahh."
Her slightly opened mouth took a small bite of the sandwich.
Soon, the mouth with the sandwich chewed, and light sparkled in her eyes.
"It's delicious!"
[Thank you.]
As the person who made the food, how could I not feel good when the person eating it smiles like that and says it's delicious?
[Here, one more bite... and the milk too.]
"Ahh..."
I kept a smile on my lips and continued feeding her.
'...So, what should I do...'
At the same time, I racked my brain and thought about the upcoming schedule.
I got what I needed from the Tower of Knowledge.
My magic skill improvement was achieved early on, and I obtained lots of information that could only be acquired at the Tower of Knowledge.
I even found a clue about the Curse-Lifting Jewel, and brought back many precious things that Ariel had packed generously for me.
Above all, I even learned to follow Ariel's Unique Magic Path.
I'm still lacking, but managing to grasp the framework is already something.
Inside my head, and in my Subspace, are the spell formulas and interpretations of the Unique Magic Path that Ariel personally transcribed for me.
I can follow the path Ariel pioneered.
Or I can mix in my own uniqueness and pioneer it separately.
On top of that, I even received Purification, the artifact that Ariel herself used.
When I consider them one by one, I've come back with a bountiful harvest far exceeding what I planned.
'What should I do next?'
I've gained and learned a lot, but obviously, I can't stop here.
Apart from it being a great achievement, there is still little I can actually accomplish with just my current level.
So I just have to make plans for growth moving forward.
'The first thing that comes to mind right now is... Spirits?'
I already have hundreds of spirits.
It's a number someone might lack even after wandering the world their whole life, yet I've collected this many just by taking in the ones that follow me on their own.
If there's a slight disappointment, it's that they're still just tiny lower spirits?
Even that small disappointment will end soon.
'Everyone will be ascending soon. Should I get help from Professor Liana?'
While feeding Seo-yul sandwiches and milk, I summoned one spirit.
- Fwooong...
A wind spirit exuding a pale green light.
This one is quite the elder, having been around since I first started collecting spirits.
When I tapped it with my fingertip, the spirit scattered light motes and rested its body on the back of my hand.
At first it was the size of my fingernail, but now it's bigger than my head.
When I synchronized with it for a moment, a strange will-thought echoed in my head.
Interpreting it... the gist was 'I wasn't small.'
'How is this not small?'
Like this, most of the spirits have awakened self-awareness.
Shrugging my shoulders, I pushed away the spirit that bumped against me telling me to take that back.
Meaning, the conditions for ascension were satisfied long ago.
If left alone, they would ascend one by one... but since there are differences among the spirits, it would be better to ascend them all at once.
Other plans came to mind as well.
Several words surfaced and sank in my head.
I combined them appropriately and established an efficient plan.
'Hmm.'
Establishment complete.
I've roughly settled on a plan.
Since there's a lot to do, I should do it in one go if possible.
Thinking that, I tapped on my smartwatch.
* * *
- Creak... creak...
"Whoa, what is that?"
"...You didn't lower the weight, did you?"
"I went and checked, it's real."
"That's creepier. Just tell me it's fake."
This public training room is located on the second-year grounds.
Because of that, 99% of its users are second-years, so it's perceived as a second-year exclusive public training room.
- Screeeech...
The people using this public training room were each wearing a similar expression.
Shock, surprise, grimace...
Quite a common set of emotions.
The place they were all directed at was also unified.
"Hoooh..."
- Creak...
The person receiving all the attention, Lee Ji-yeon, didn't particularly care.
She channeled strength through her entire body and lifted the barbell gripped tightly in one hand.
- Screeeak...
The weights of the bars installed in the training room vary.
There are light weights you might see in a gym for regular people, and weights that would challenge superhumans devoted to physical training.
But nothing is heavier than the bar Lee Ji-yeon lifted.
She visited the training room in comfortable exercise clothes.
Massive lumps of metal, bigger than a human torso, attached to both ends of a slender bar.
The metal itself is twice as heavy as ordinary metal.
Even processed into suitable plates, it's a weight most cadets would struggle to lift.
Lee Ji-yeon had hung it as a solid chunk of metal and was lifting it with one hand as if it were a dumbbell.
"...Ji-yeon, isn't it heavy?"
Faced with that extraordinary sight, a friend who had come with Lee Ji-yeon asked with an appalled... and worried expression.
In her hand was a cute, dainty dumbbell.
Contrary to its appearance, it was a dumbbell with considerable weight, but the bizarre spectacle next to her made her lose her nerve.
To put it bluntly, if Lee Ji-yeon swung that thing at her right now... she felt like she'd be crushed right through her defensive magic...
"Yeah, I'm fine, no problem."
At the worried gaze, Lee Ji-yeon nodded calmly.
A bead of sweat dripped from her chin and seeped into her cleavage.
Lee Ji-yeon let out a deep breath for a moment and lowered the barbell she had lifted with one hand to the ground.
- Boom!
Even though she had clearly lowered it slowly... carefully, the force made the floor shake heavily, making nearby friends flinch in fright and tremble.
Had several spells not activated before it touched the floor, the floor would have caved in...
"Hoooh..."
Closing her eyes again and steadying her breathing, Lee Ji-yeon looked down at her hand.
Clench... When she balled her hand into a fist, the Giant Strength she felt in her grasp was vaguely estimated.
What was certain was that it had skyrocketed far beyond her last measurement.
It wasn't just her physical abilities.
Besides that, the growth curves in various areas were clearly on a sharp upward trend.
Enough that her supervising professor had asked her what happened.
Of course, Lee Ji-yeon was originally one of the cadets representing Siyoram at the moment.
The Taesan family, the eldest daughter of the main clan head.
Her inherited qualities are excellent, and her own personality isn't one to slack off on effort.
With the Blessing of Growth added on top, her growth couldn't possibly be slow.
...Even considering that, her current growth rate was extremely fast.
Her growth curve is clearer than when she first enrolled in the early first year.
"......"
It hasn't been long since her growth got this boost of momentum again.
So, about a month ago...
- Ding
'...An alarm?'
It was then that her smartwatch rang.
Even though she had set most contacts to silent for concentration, the alarm rang.
Meaning it's an important alarm.
Lee Ji-yeon drained a bottle of water neatly and tapped her smartwatch.
A hologram floated up into her view.
[Contact: Junior Lee Ha-yul]
'Ah.'
It's my junior.
No matter that her nearby friends whispered at her abruptly brightening mood, Lee Ji-yeon stretched out her finger and pressed the hologram.
The hologram changed.
Soon, the text history with Lee Ha-yul appeared.
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Yes (A long time ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Understood (A long time ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Yes (A long time ago)
...
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Yes (6 weeks ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Thank you for worrying about me (6 weeks ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Have a good weekend too, senior (6 weeks ago)
...
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: I just got back! (Yesterday)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Sorry that the mentoring schedule got delayed because of me! (Yesterday)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: (Akria Five-colored Fruit Candy Coupon) (Yesterday)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Hehe... I'll treat you to a meal next time too! (Yesterday)
All of it is old content.
For a moment, she felt a flicker of pride at how his tone had gradually grown soft and mellow.
Quickly scrolling, Lee Ji-yeon reached the recent exchanges.
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Peekaboo (A moment ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: (Emoticon of a puppy poking its head around a corner) (A moment ago)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Senior, would you like to resolve the mentoring progress together in a dungeon? (Now)
"Dungeon?"
Lee Ji-yeon tilted her head—a questioning motion.
Then, as if confirming her reaction, additional explanations flew in.
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: I've already picked out the dungeon (Now)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: It's a two-day schedule (Now)
▶Junior Lee Ha-yul: Ah, just the two of us, senior and me (Now)
"......"
There's no need to add explanations like that... well, actually, there is a need.
It feels a bit... hmm... hard to put into words.
Lee Ji-yeon stared at the hologram with an odd expression.
* * *
