Seizing Happiness
Yuri had always lived quietly, careful never to draw attention, keeping her head down. She knew that no matter how hard she tried, the only things that came back were cold stares and criticism. So this was the first time she had ever raised her voice like that.
It doesn’t feel bad. It was embarrassing, but something inside her felt refreshed. A clean, refreshing sensation, as if her chest had burst wide open. Her heart thumped wildly.
Yuri closed her eyes, savoring the pounding in her chest that felt ready to explode, and sank into a profound sense of accomplishment.
I actually did it…
She could hardly believe it, even though she was the one who had accomplished it. A victory won for the first time in her life without anyone’s help, relying solely on her own strength. It was impossibly precious, and so very sweet.
Is this what happiness feels like?
It felt like something she could become addicted to. Now she understood why the warriors of the North shouted “Battle at all costs!” and devoted their bodies and time so relentlessly to training.
It hurts, though.
Once the initial excitement faded, a stinging pain rose from both her hands. But even that felt joyful. Didn’t they say growth always came with pain? It must be something like that, she thought, opening her eyes and slowly walking toward where her companions waited.
But then—
Tap tap tap!
A tremendous sound of footsteps came rushing from ahead. Something was charging straight toward her at high speed.
“...Hm?”
Her body tensed again on instinct. She struggled to lift her exhausted, drooping head.
And then her entire field of vision was filled with a familiar crow’s head.
“Eek?!”
“....”
It was Raven.
For a moment, Yuri thought her heart had stopped. She was so startled that the club she had been gripping slipped from her fingers. She had grown somewhat used to Raven’s horrifying, murderous appearance, but having him suddenly loom over her like this was still overwhelming, even for her. He was a demon of terror so terrifying he might appear in nightmares.
Grab!
“Hic!”
Feeling as if her sanity was being shaved away in real time, Yuri tried to calm her racing heart—only for a long, black hand to suddenly slip under her armpit. For an instant she thought her heart had been pierced.
“Whoa! R-Raven, sir?!”
The moment she realized she wasn’t dead and felt relieved, an old leather shoe dropped onto the ash-gray ground and her small body rose into the air. Before she knew it, Raven had lifted her up. Her sweat-drenched, pale face was clearly flustered.
Hey, adventurers of the neighborhood, come look at our amazing contractor~
Whether she liked it or not, Raven held her up with an expression that screamed he was dying of pride. Of course, because of the mask, Yuri couldn’t see his face. A moment later his mouth opened, and the familiar title she always heard slipped out.
“Contractor.”
“....”
But for some reason, Raven didn’t continue. Hanging in the air, Yuri stared into his hollow eyes—those black lenses—and felt strangely anxious.
Why is he acting like this? Could it be that he didn’t like the fight? Or maybe I failed again after all?
The longer Raven’s silence stretched, the more her learned habits of self-deprecation, self-blame, and self-criticism crept in and eroded her mind.
Then, from inside the Plague Doctor Mask, Raven’s mouth slowly opened and unbelievable words flowed out.
“Yuri.”
“Ah… huh?”
He had casually showered her with praise that made her face burn.
He had acknowledged her.
“...Now that I look, your hands are bleeding. Did the skin tear because you had no calluses? I should ask the rogue if she has any bandages.”
And at the end, there was sincere worry.
Everything she had once desperately longed for was right here.
“Ah.”
Tears welled up. She tried to hold them back, tried to hide them like she always had, but—
“...Are you all right, Contractor?”
At that unbearably kind voice knocking fiercely on the tightly closed door inside her—
“Ugh…”
Emotion flooded down her cheeks. She was crying.
…The contractor is crying? Just how much did it hurt?
Raven, seeing Yuri suddenly burst into tears, forgot his demon roleplay entirely and panicked.
“Contractor! Does it hurt that badly? Let me see the wounds. Haah… this is driving me crazy.”
He gently set Yuri down on the ground, knelt, and carefully took her hands, examining the injuries with meticulous attention. His touch was as delicate as if he were handling jewels.
Yuri stared at him in a daze.
Raven, sir…
Even on the day they first met, he had knelt before her like this when she was terrified. To her, the foolish girl who had been trembling in fear and unable to step forward, he had spoken gently, as if telling her not to be afraid.
Yuri had come to the Dungeon City to seize happiness. The happiness she—or rather she had thought—was wealth. Power. But not anymore.
“Raven, sir…”
You were the happiness I was looking for.
Happiness won through her own strength. The realization of a long-held wish. Her very own demon.
I don’t want to let go.
Squeeze.
“Contractor?”
Overwhelmed by emotion, Yuri threw her arms around Raven’s neck and buried her face in his broad chest. Fearing he might push her away, she had worried for nothing—Raven silently patted her back. Despite looking like some twisted crow monster from the underworld, he was gentler with her than anyone else. The unexpected contrast somehow tickled her heart.
What is this? Was she actually really scared? She acts tough, but she’s still just a kid.
That was what Raven was thinking.
It feels comfortable. And solid.
Yuri, cradled against Raven’s chest like a child, felt a sense of security. She closed her eyes and slowly rubbed her cheek against him.
…Cold?
And there was no scent at all.
Were those horrible smells some kind of authority meant to inspire fear?
Thinking that, Yuri pressed her ear to Raven’s chest.
….Not a single heartbeat could be heard. As if he weren’t a living creature at all. Was that because he was a demon?
My knowledge has grown.
Yuri wasn’t normal either. But perhaps that was exactly why the two of them had been connected—by a contract, and by the name of fate.
When Sion heard that the contractor had injured her hands, she pulled a glass vial from the leather pouch at her waist and began pouring a clear liquid over Yuri’s hands. The contractor let out a small groan as the liquid stung the wounds.
“Ugh… it hurts so much, Sion, ma’am…”
“We have to clean the wound properly with holy water like this, nyang! It’ll heal faster that way, nyang! So even if it hurts, just bear with it a little, nyang!”
“Oh?”
Raven was genuinely impressed. The advanced medical concept of cleaning wounds to prevent secondary infection actually existed in this primitive medieval world where people ate with their bare hands. But wasn’t holy water supposed to be a precious liquid containing divine blessing?
She’s using something that valuable for the contractor?
This was rather touching.
“Hey, rogue.”
“Nyang?”
“Is that holy water of yours very expensive?”
If so, he would have to repay the debt someday. He was a demon with good credit who couldn’t stand living with unpaid debts.
“Ahaha. Mr. Crow, were you actually worried about that, nyang?”
Sion shook with laughter, apparently finding his question hilarious.
“No need to worry, nyang! Holy water from Bastion is made from rock salt found in the White Zone, so it’s not that expensive, nyang!”
Wait, what? Rock salt?
“…Don’t tell me holy water is just salt water?”
“Priests perform a consecration ritual and prayers on salt water and it becomes holy water, nyang! As long as you have holy water, even serious wounds will heal quickly, nyang!”
“Ow ow ow! You’re wrapping it too tight!”
“Bandages are supposed to be wrapped tight enough to cut off blood flow, nyang!”
Sion declared this while roughly winding the bandage around the contractor’s hand. The contractor twisted her whole body and hissed at Sion, clearly in pain. Yeah, this world really was primitive.
“There! All done, nyang!”
In that short time, both of the contractor’s hands had been wrapped up like perfect cocoons. The contractor looked at Sion with an exhausted expression and offered her thanks.
“Thank you…”
“That doesn’t look like a thankful face, nyang.”
“It’s your imagination.”
“You sound just like Mr. Crow, nyang.”
“Hehe.”
“Huh? Oh right! The Rabbit Spider! I completely forgot about treating the adventurer while I was healing the contractor, nyang!”
“Don’t worry, rogue. I already took care of it.”
While the contractor and Sion had been busy bickering, Raven had picked up the Rabbit Spider’s corpse. No matter how useless the thing was, it was the first prey his contractor had ever taken down. He couldn’t just leave it on the floor. He would have to stuff it and display it at their base. And every day they could look at it and reminisce about today’s magnificent battle.
Man, that really was awesome.
When the contractor used that eye-blinding magic, his chest had swelled with so much pride he nearly popped the Injector out.
“Oh! Well done, Mr. Crow, nyang! If you hadn’t kept it, the slimes or rats or other scavengers might have taken it, nyang!”
Sion’s eyes sparkled with delight as she looked at the Rabbit Spider in his hand. Why was she so happy about it?
Don’t tell me…?
Raven lifted one of the Rabbit Spider’s forelegs and asked, half in suspicion.
“By the way, why are you looking for this thing? You’re not planning to roast and eat it, are you?”
The seven legs hung limply under gravity. Between the obsidian blades the contractor had embedded, white bodily fluid dripped steadily. How could that possibly stimulate anyone’s appetite, cat lady?
Sion’s face crumpled at the sight.
“Don’t say such crazy things, nyang.”
Apparently not.
“Then why?”
“We killed a monster, so of course we have to check whether it has a maseok or not, nyang! That’s the absolute basics for adventurers, nyang!”
“Ooh… maseok!”
At the word “maseok,” the contractor’s eyes gleamed with greed from between her black hair.
But—
“Didn’t you say only trash maseok would come out of that thing?”
“I said it might produce low-quality maseok. I never said it would be that bad, nyang.”
…Which meant!
“There’s a chance a good maseok could come out?”
“That’s exactly what we’re about to find out, nyang! Mr. Crow! Put the Rabbit Spider on the ground, nyang! This great one will now teach you how to harvest a maseok from a monster corpse, nyang!”
Sion said this while skillfully drawing the knife (the same one she had used to feed the contractor a cockroach). Damn it, just how many uses did that knife have?
“Ooh. Maseok harvesting technique…”
“Hmph.”
Passing between Raven and the contractor, Sion knelt in front of the Rabbit Spider’s corpse.
“Watch carefully, nyang! Behold the maseok extraction skill of the runner-up from Bastion Academy!!!”
Shrrrrk!
Following Sion’s hand movements, the Rabbit Spider’s black chitin split open smoothly. He had felt it when she was roasting the cockroach, but just how sharp had she honed that blade? The knife met no resistance as it moved.
“Maseok are usually found near the monster’s heart, nyang. Because that’s where mana circulation is most active, nyang.”
“But… why are you cutting open the belly?”
“Spider-type monsters like this have their hearts on the dorsal side of the abdomen, unlike normal beasts, nyang. That’s why adventurers usually aim for the cephalothorax where the nerves are concentrated to avoid damaging the maseok. I was really surprised that the adventurer managed it so well, nyang!”
“Oh? I was aiming for the heart. Guess I got lucky.”
“You’re quite knowledgeable. As expected of the runner-up?”
“Be more impressed, nyang!”
Even while diligently answering their questions, Sion’s hands never stopped. Her fingertips handled the knife with the delicacy of a surgeon performing an operation.
“There, all done, nyang! Can you see it, nyang? This is the heart of a spider monster, nyang!”
The masterful dissection that left no room for imitation came to an end, revealing the Rabbit Spider with its abdomen neatly opened along the dorsal side.
“Ooooh! It really does look like a long tube, doesn’t it?”
“That’s why scholars call hearts with that tubular, pipe-like shape ‘tubular hearts,’ nyang.”
“Ah! My knowledge has grown again. But… where’s the maseok?”
“Don’t tell me it’s empty?”
They could see organs buried in the fluid, but nothing that looked like a maseok.
“Nya-nyang!”
Instead of answering, Sion thrust her hand straight into the Rabbit Spider’s heart with a cheerful cry.
Shlup!
“S-Sion, ma’am?”
“Is she going to eat it after all?”
Her hand, softly submerged beneath the translucent fluid, wriggled a few times beneath the long, tube-shaped heart before suddenly stopping, as if it had grasped something. And then—
◈ A common maseok harvested from a 0.5-tier monster.
◈ Low mana density. Primarily used as currency.
“Found it, nyaAAAAAANG!!!”
A cheerful shout reminiscent of a mountain ginseng hunter who had just found wild simsang rang out across the tenth floor of the White Zone!
“What?!”
“Ooooh! A maseok!”
She found a maseok? For real?
“Unyanyanyanyang!!!”
Whoosh!
With an excited roar, her hand shot out, spraying fluid everywhere. Held high in the air was a maseok so transparent it reminded one of diamond, glowing with a soft light.
“Whoa…!”
“So this is a maseok?”
“No, this is—!!!”
Sion’s pupils dilated with shock.
A maseok impressive enough to surprise a veteran like her!
A feeling of jackpot surged through him.
Is this finally my escape from poverty?
Was he about to evolve into a wealthy demon?
“This right heeeeere!!!”
“Stop dragging it out and just say it, rogue.”
Pffft.
A sound like air leaking from Sion’s playfully curved lips. It was clearly a snort of ridicule. This cat, don’t tell me—
“This is a normal maseok, nyang!!! Did you actually get your hopes up, nyang?! You soft newbies!!! Your dreams are way too ambitious, nyang!!! There’s no way a high-grade maseok would come from a 0.5-tier monster, nyang!!!”
“....”
“Ah….”
The contractor’s eyes, which had been swelling with anticipation, sank with disappointment in an instant.
“Damn rogue.”
“Eek, nyang!!!”
And Sion’s head, which had been cackling with glee, sank deeply under the force of Raven’s fist.