Chapter 273: Labyrinth of Change: Labyrinthos (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 273: Labyrinth of Change: Labyrinthos (2)
The subordinates I met there were also ties from my past, if one were to call them that.
The Con Artist Thief, that deadbeat.
He was a fellow with a remarkably peculiar personality, even among those who served under me. It was so strange that I often wondered if he had simply been imprisoned in Labyrinthos until the very end of the original story, as he never made an appearance.
— Huh? Why I came here? Hehe, well, I figured running away to this place was better than letting them strip me of my treasures! Do you have any idea how much effort I put into those beauties?
— Eh? This? This is a rare artifact passed down through the Elven royal family! It was incredibly hard to get my hands on! Probably the second most difficult adventure I’ve ever had?
— It’s not stealing, it’s an adventure! Man, you really don’t understand ro-maaaa-nce! Could you please use the more sophisticated term, ‘Treasure Hunting’?
— What? Are treasures more precious than my life? Well, obviously. Ah, but if the Boss wants some, I’m willing to part with a few. Didn’t I tell you on the day I swore my loyalty?
— I told you that if you just spared my life, I’d give you all my treasures and everything else I own, so please just let me live. I swore to be loyal for all eternity—no, even if the very world itself were to change.
— …Why is a guy who claims things are more precious than his life so obsessed with staying alive? Well, I have to be alive to go meet new beauties.
— And more than anything… I had a feeling that if you were the one to kill me, Boss, you wouldn’t let me go peacefully.
End of flashback.
That was the nonsense the thief had spouted to me on the day Aisha dragged him away to get wasted.
Well, the rest isn’t particularly important. The key parts are that he promised to be my subordinate even if the world changed, and that he promised to yield a few treasures to me.
Despite that, he went and died on his own without keeping his word.
Therefore, what I was about to do wasn’t robbery; it was a noble act of ensuring a promise was kept.
“Anyway, I don’t plan on taking you guys with me this time.”
Classes had ended, and I’d simply mentioned I was heading to a dungeon during some idle chatter.
The faces of my friends, who had been excitedly speculating about what kind of dungeon it would be, instantly contorted.
Seeing their miserable expressions—the kind one might expect from someone betrayed by a trusted lover—made me momentarily wonder if I’d actually done something wrong. But this time, I really had no choice.
It wasn’t a matter of strength; psychologically, it wasn’t a place for kids.
Setting aside the monsters that appeared there, considering the personalities of the prisoners who had survived inside, it was guaranteed to be an ugly sight.
There might be some decent artifacts or elixirs, but I could just fetch those and bring them back for them.
“Well, it’s not a schedule that’ll take very long, so don’t worry too much…”
“I’m against it.”
“I’m against it too!”
“At least say something that makes sense.”
Right, okay. I know you guys are worried about me, but I’m not backing down this time, you punks.
In terms of pure skill, they were certainly capable enough to enter now. However, the criminals in that place were either completely unhinged psychos or individuals who were missing something fundamental in their humanity.
As the saying goes, “he who touches pitch shall be defiled.” There was nothing to be gained by having such kind-hearted friends associate with those sorts of people.
“No, I’m not budging this time. This dungeon has a bad affinity with you guys.”
If I said it was dangerous, they’d make an even bigger fuss. But if I framed it as a matter of affinity, what could they say?
Indeed, they all hesitated for a moment at the mention of affinity, but for some reason, they quickly regained their resolve.
After a brief exchange of looks, Ha-ni and Ga-eul stepped forward as the representatives to persuade me.
…What’s with them? Usually, this is the timing where they’d back off.
“Hey, So-hyun. This isn’t right. How can you expect us to just accept it and move on if you don’t even explain how the affinity is bad?”
“Exactly! You’re trying to overexert yourself by going to a dungeon alone again!”
“The Chairperson is coming with me, and I’ve already found other party members.”
But for some reason, the moment I mentioned having other party members, the two of them began shaking their heads with looks of disbelief.
“So you’re saying there are party members more reliable than us…?”
“No, I’m saying it’s just an affinity issue.”
“So the early-game heroines are just ‘caught fish’ to be ignored once the latecomers start running…?”
“Uh, wait a second. Ga-eul. Stop. Don’t do that. What on earth are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about a manga I’m reading. Why? Does it hit too close to home?”
…Seriously, these guys.
I reached this conclusion because I’m so worried about you, yet you’re slandering me like this?
“I might seem cold right now, but this is all for your sake…”
“Who doesn’t know that? That’s why we’re asking why you’re the only one thinking about us! Let us think about you too. Honestly, So-hyun, do you really think we don’t know you’re in a bad state?”
My breath hitched at Ha-ni’s words.
…What? How do you know something’s wrong with me? No one should know about the Innate True Qi issue except me. I haven’t even shown any symptoms yet because I still have time.
“See? Look at that. We were right. Look at how his face stiffened. Did you really think we didn’t know just because we were pretending not to?”
“Ha-Ha-ni! You promised to keep it a secret from So-hyun!”
Ga-eul tried to stop Ha-ni in a panic, and Lilac belatedly stepped in as if realizing his mistake, but what was the point now that I’d heard this much?
…I don’t know how they found out, but if they really knew about my condition, it made sense why they were being so stubborn.
I was too careless.
I let my guard down, thinking there was no way they could know.
“Ah, don’t stop me! It’s better to just lay it all out! Hiding things like this only makes the rift deeper!”
Yes, that’s very true. If I’d known, I would have just confessed…
“He can’t even control his artifact right now and it’s going berserk, so how can we let him go to a dungeon!”
…What kind of nonsense is that, Ha-ni?
An artifact going berserk? Where did that rumor even come from? There hasn’t been a single incident like that recently…
No, wait. There was. There was exactly one person who might have seen something to cause such a suspicion.
When I turned my head toward Cheon Yu-hak, he began staring into space with his usual melancholic expression. It was an action sufficient to confirm he was the culprit.
Wait, but it feels like that’s not the end of it?
The kids’ reactions are way too intense for it to just be about one artifact going berserk.
Just what kind of misunderstanding are they under?
I might have been given a terminal diagnosis because of my Innate True Qi, but my body is perfectly healthy otherwise, guys…?
I’m telling you, I have no problems.
Actually, yeah, I did feel like they were harboring some sort of misunderstanding on their own.
I figured it would just resolve itself naturally.
Since they all seemed to have different misunderstandings, I thought the topic would just die out once they talked amongst themselves.
That’s why I left it alone, especially since I was busy.
But for some reason, it feels like everyone’s misunderstandings have merged into one. I’m getting the feeling that things have started moving in a direction I didn’t anticipate.
Something.
Something is wrong.
I had an intuition that I had to correct this right now.
It was the kind of feeling that if I took one more step forward, there would be no turning back.
“…Ga-eul.”
“Eek!? What!?”
“If you tell me what you talked about with the others, I’ll forgive you at least.”
“Uh, well, that is…”
Ga-eul wavered between me and the others for a moment before squeezing her eyes shut and speaking.
“We found out everything you’re hiding!”
No, that’s why I’m trying to fix it, because it’s a misunderstanding, Ga-eul…! Please!
“So, what exactly is it that I’m hiding? I think there’s a small misunderstanding between us…”
Perhaps my sincerity in trying to clear the air didn’t get through, because someone stepped in to block me.
“Stop it, So-hyun.”
Lilac, who had been quiet lately, was showing signs of doing something foolish again.
“We were wrong. It must seem like we’re meddling in your business and even investigating you behind your back. I sincerely apologize for that.”
Hey, you punk. Don’t set the mood like that.
Why are you all suddenly looking at me with eyes reserved for a friend burdened with secrets he can’t tell anyone?
…Now that I think about it, that’s not entirely incorrect, but this isn’t the time for that!
“But just as you worry about us, we worry about you too. You might think your problems could burden us, but we’re more than willing to endure that together.”
Even those who usually hated cheesy atmospheres nodded in agreement with Lilac.
“We’re friends. And comrades who have crossed the line of death together.”
Right, I’m really grateful for that sentiment. Honestly, it’s a bit touching.
But I’m telling you, it’s all a misunderstanding! Guys. Being touched is one thing, but we need to clear this up…!
“And you meddled every time we were struggling or in danger, so why won’t you let us do the same?”
What is this? What’s with this atmosphere? Why has this suddenly turned into a scene where comrades are stopping a friend from rushing into a suicide mission alone?
Someone, anyone, please stop this.
Don’t look at me with such determined eyes…!
Just as I thought I would be crushed by the atmosphere and the misunderstandings would pile up, reinforcements arrived as if the heavens hadn’t abandoned me.
“I understand how everyone feels, but don’t push So-hyun too hard.”
It was Cathy Noona, who had naturally joined the group at some point.
“Goodwill given unilaterally can sometimes become poison. Let’s not let our emotions get ahead of us; let’s wait until So-hyun is ready. Okay?”
No, I’m not letting my emotions get ahead of me; I’m the one about to burst from frustration here.
But before I could point that out, her words seemed to have some effect. The others, having cooled their heads, were visibly calming down, so I couldn’t say anything.
Ha-ni, Ga-eul, and even Lilac were hesitating, perhaps thinking they had gone a bit too far.
As expected of a professor. She really is different.
Just as I felt relieved, the professor started saying something strange.
“Don’t worry too much about the dungeon either. I’ll be following along personally this time to protect So-hyun. That should put everyone at ease, right?”
“Pardon?”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Uh…? If he’s going with the Chairperson, then naturally I should…”
“Professor, you have classes to teach. Are you going to skip class because of me?”
This time, I wasn’t going on a weekend; I was going to apply for a field study during the week.
She shook her head for a moment as if that couldn’t be right, then slowly approached and grabbed my shoulders.
“So-hyun.”
“Yes?”
“I’m against it too.”
Ah, so it wasn’t anything else; she just thought she’d be able to go along?
“No…”
“I am against it. Cadet Kang So-hyun. As a professor, I find it difficult to permit this.”
She’s even using formal speech now…?
“…The Chairperson already gave her permission, though?”
“I! Am! Against! It!”
Haha, seriously. This is a headache.
* * *
It was no easy task to persuade them, as they were all determined to follow me, but eventually, I managed to succeed.
— So-hyun. Think about it one more time. There are others who can teach the combat arts classes besides me…!
— Fine, so in the end, we’re still below your standards. I guess we’ll just train hard until you get back from the dungeon. Oh, and what should I tell Luna when her daddy suddenly disappears?
— Loser. Dummy. Do you think being handsome is everything? You’re going to go seduce another woman and bring her back, aren’t you? I know it. It’s so obvious!
— …If it’s difficult, you don’t have to shoulder it alone.
— I’ll work hard so that you can rely on us.
…Or maybe not? It felt more like they were letting me go reluctantly rather than me actually persuading them.
In the end, I didn’t even know what they were misunderstanding, so I couldn’t clear it up.
“Ah, seriously. I can’t do this.”
Well, honestly, I wouldn’t mind taking Professor Cathy along, but if something happens while I’m gone, there needs to be someone to protect the kids.
— Is that really all?
…Ah, damn it. Here we go again.
Right, that’s not all. I’m going to Labyrinthos, of all places, and I need to revert to my old personality for a bit.
Labyrinthos is a place where anyone, unless they are a hero sensitive to human malice, is likely to fall victim.
That’s why the lineup consists of the Chairperson, who can see through lies, and my Master, who is sensitive to malice.
To be honest.
I also have a bit of greed; I don’t want to show the kids even a part of my past personality.
“…Ah, seriously.”
I hope I can get out without killing too many people this time.
But that’ll be hard, won’t it?
Last time, I killed everyone except for the ones who swore to become my subordinates.