Chapter 49
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Midnight Tryst (1)
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"By the way, just where the heck did Sis Da-eun go? Why hasn't she come back yet?"
The light seeping through the cracks in the ceiling had grown far dimmer than before.
It seemed twilight was starting to fall.
Sis had set off to conquer up to the 10th floor hours ago, but it was taking much longer than expected.
Maybe something had happened? Or was clearing out the magic beasts just taking longer than planned?
Even if it was Sis Da-eun, anxiety was starting to creep in.
Should I try contacting her through the mana thread?
Truth be told, I'd never actually tried it before.
I'd only grasped the knack of the mana thread today—what made me think I could pull off some advanced technique?
But infusing mana into the thread wasn't all that hard. Long-distance communication was way beyond me, but maybe I could manage a basic signal?
I scraped together the faint remnants of mana inside me and focused my mind. The transparent mana thread connecting her and me—that slender channel drew my full attention.
Then, very cautiously, I peeled off a tiny portion of my remaining mana and converted it into short, rhythmic pulses.
Tap. Tap. Tap...
Like sending Morse code, I sent faint mana pulses along the thread at regular intervals.
This should at least tell me how far away she was.
The subtle mana pulses flowed along the transparent thread, heading off into the distant unknown. I waited a long time, but no echo returned. She was still quite a ways off, then.
No way she got carried away and went beyond the 10th floor, right?
Just as that suspicion arose, I felt a faint something returning. Like skipping stones on water—a shallow, quick skim across the surface.
It was something close to a 'thought.' A tiny fragment of the scenery she was seeing, the emotions she was feeling.
Shiiiik—Pop!
Closing my eyes and focusing on that faint sensation, blurry images began to surface in my mind. Rough and unclear like old film, but I could tell what was happening.
A barren, frozen wasteland battered by a suffocating blizzard.
Sharp ice shards poured down relentlessly from the sky like rain, while massive ice pillars emitting eerie blue light erupted endlessly from the ground.
It was a frozen hellscape, a desolate land of death.
And right in the center stood a familiar silhouette in black combat gear.
Instructor Cheon Da-eun.
My Sis Da-eun.
She had both arms thrust straight out, unleashing tremendous cold energy in all directions without restraint.
Craaaack!
"...That mess isn't Sis Da-eun's doing, right? It's just always been an ice zone from the start? Right?"
The massive magic beasts surrounding her were helplessly swept away by the ice storm she unleashed.
House-sized beasts froze solid and shattered into pieces, while wolves with razor-sharp fangs screamed as incoming ice shards pierced them.
Even back when I first entered the rift, it hadn't been this intense...
Gulp.
Was she holding back because I was there? Worried I'd get caught up in it?
The overwhelming combat prowess transmitted through the mana thread. Even at 80% of her original self, it was a realm I couldn't even fathom right now.
Looks like she won't make it back tonight.
From the look of things, it'd be late tonight at the earliest—maybe even dawn before she returned. Taking Kim Doyun's group out might have to wait until tomorrow morning or later.
I shook the images from my mind and quietly rose from the hot spring waters.
Guess I'll have to cuddle up with Rena to sleep tonight.
A short distance from the campsite, behind a dark boulder. Yoon Harin slumped down, breathing heavily. Her seething anger had cooled a bit, but her insides still boiled.
"Th-this is all Kim Doyun's fault. Haa, what am I gonna do with that playboy."
Yoon Harin sighed deeply as she thought of Kim Doyun.
It had always been like this.
Childhood friend. The guy next door. They'd hung out because their parents were close, but he'd been a needy little brother type from way back.
Kim Doyun was born with innate swordsmanship talent and had nagged her since childhood to become hunters together. She'd always hated that.
Who in this world wasn't a hunter these days?
His constant nagging had even dragged her into the academy.
She'd awakened to flame magic talent by chance as a kid and gotten showered with praise like "You're amazing!" and "You have to go to the academy!" just like him.
But what Yoon Harin truly loved was the academic pursuit of magic itself.
Ancient runes, spirit communion theory, the delicate process of analyzing mana flow. She despised bloody combat where you burned people alive.
From her perspective, today's events had been a disaster foretold.
"See what happens when you blindly follow that guy? What a mess."
Forcing the reckless raid had been Kim Doyun's idea, and they'd gotten lost because of him too. Supplies running out? Same deal. And to top it all off, making such an embarrassing spectacle in front of a senior they'd just met...
And... that senior too...
Kang Ihyeon. Chewing on the name made Yoon Harin's cheeks flush hot again.
That mortifying moment in the hot spring. She'd told herself it was an unavoidable reaction, but that overwhelming thing she'd glimpsed. Genitals. Cock.
The symbol of an adult man lingered stubbornly in her mind...
"So filthy... Why do all guys my age obsess over stuff like that?"
She grumbled, but honestly, her whole body felt strangely feverish, wrapped in an inexplicable, weird sensation.
The thick, manly scent wafting from Kang Ihyeon in the hot spring kept teasing her nose. Every time he got close, her mind went blank and white.
Probably the steam's heat, but why hadn't she properly brushed off his sly teasing?
"Ugh, so embarrassing..."
As she lost herself in thought, she sensed someone approaching. Yoon Harin whipped around reflexively, and Kang Ihyeon emerged from the darkness.
Despite the awkwardness from moments ago, his expression was surprisingly calm.
"Harin, there you are."
"Y-yes? Senior..."
His sudden appearance made Yoon Harin freeze up again. Her face burned.
"Good timing since I ran into you. I have something to say. Looks like we can't head out tonight."
"Oh... I-is that so?"
"Yeah. Not sure if it's tangled up in puppet cleanup or what, but even at best, it'll be dawn before she returns."
"You have other puppets, then. So we..."
"Sorry, but let's crash here tonight and head out early tomorrow morning together. That okay?"
For a moment, wariness flared at his suggestion.
Spend the night together in this deep cave? Like in the hot spring... did he have ulterior motives?
But as if reading her mind, Kang Ihyeon pulled a capsule tent from his backpack and handed it to her.
"Use this. Brought an extra spare just in case. Might be a bit tight for two, but way better than the bare ground."
His demeanor was so natural. His steady gaze held no lechery—just a caring senior's thoughtfulness.
Ah... I misjudged him.
Embarrassed by her unfounded suspicion, Yoon Harin's face reddened slightly.
She took the capsule tent from Kang Ihyeon and bowed her head.
"Th-thank you, Senior."
"No biggie. Get some good rest. See you tomorrow."
Kang Ihyeon left those words and headed back to his campsite. Left alone, Yoon Harin stood there a moment, sorting her jumbled feelings.
A while later, she set up the capsule tent with Kim Doyun and lay down inside.
"You absolutely stay over there. Got it?"
"What're you on about? We've shared a bed in the home training hall tons of times."
"Ugh, it's 'cause it's so cramped here!"
Yoon Harin warned him repeatedly, but Kim Doyun was snoring away on her side in no time, making her cautions pointless.
"Haa, lucky bastard..."
But Yoon Harin couldn't fall asleep easily.
Ugh, how could I sleep after everything today...
The cold, damp air. Distant dripping water. The rift's noises, which she should be used to, grated especially today.
Her heart felt unsettled.
Memories of the hot spring kept resurfacing. His naked body, the unexpectedly massive manhood, her own blurted slip-up. And... that bizarre, thick scent clinging to him.
Just 'cause I'm tired.
Yoon Harin repeated it to herself, trying to shake off the stray thoughts, but the memories only sharpened, tormenting her.
Finally, stifled, she slipped quietly out of the tent. The cool night air brushed her cheeks, clearing her head a bit. She stood near the boulder where she'd talked with Senior Kang Ihyeon earlier, a short ways from camp. In the darkness, the faint light of his tent was visible.
He's just a normal senior... so why does he stick in my mind like this?
To calm her turmoil, Yoon Harin closed her eyes and focused on the mana flow within her.
The source of her flame magic. Hot, fierce energy like roaring flames. Finely tuning and circulating this mana burned away stray thoughts, clearing the mind. It was her go-to meditation.
Shiii—
Tiny mana particles spread around her, subtly vibrating the night air. Normally, a familiar refreshment would settle her. But not tonight.
...Huh?
Something else caught her mana sense. Faint but distinct—mana pulses from outside. The source... Senior Kang Ihyeon's tent.
What's going on?
Wasn't he asleep? Some kind of training?
Reflexively sharpening her mana sense, she cautiously extended it toward his tent.
The moment her mana sense swept the tent's interior, Yoon Harin froze in place.
It was... far more primal, dense, and suffocatingly hot than she'd imagined.
Two figures inside the tent. One clearly Senior Kang Ihyeon. The other... the Miyazaki Rena puppet he'd brought.
They were tangled together, moving fiercely.
"Hoo, hoo... You like it, Rena?"
"Oof... Hic, ah, hng...!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The info from her delicate mana pulses was so blatant and vivid.
Beastly panting breaths. Slick sounds of flesh slapping flesh. And from the puppet, muffled but undeniable moans.
What, what is this? It's a puppet, right? Why do that with a puppet?
Yoon Harin held her breath.
Her face burned like it might explode, her heart pounding wildly.
The sight of slender Rena writhing beneath him, the wet squelches of their sweat and fluids mixing—it all transmitted directly.
"M-Master...! Ugh, M-Master... Ahh? Hic, ugh, haa...!"
"Hng...!"
A hot moan slipped unbidden from her lips. Her lower belly tingled, heat building between her legs. Her body reacted on its own. Shame mingled with her first-ever intense curiosity and excitement, overwhelming her.
Even with a puppet...
Yoon Harin was innocent.
She'd never even had experience with a guy, let alone directly sensed raw sex sounds or presence like this.
At most, holding hands or light hugs with childhood friend Kim Doyun. Indirect scenes from romance novels or dramas—that was her whole knowledge.
To her, this scene transmitted via mana pulses was shockingly raw.
Man and woman.
No—male and female mating.
Disgusting, it should make her puke...
Yet she couldn't tear her senses away from Kang Ihyeon savagely pounding the writhing Rena puppet.