Chapter 131
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: Rogue Guild
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Rogue.
A literal translation would be something like vagrant or thug, but in the Labyrinth city, "Rogue" refers to one of the key positions adventurers take on.
They primarily handle scouting duties, using skills like [Stealth] for reconnaissance, disarming traps scattered throughout the Labyrinth, unlocking traps or treasure chests in ancient ruins that occasionally appear, targeting vital points on strong enemies, and so on...
Especially in the Labyrinth, where paths are convoluted and ambushes from monsters happen daily, the "Rogue" role is considered extremely important. Naturally, the Rogue Guild, which teaches such Rogues their techniques, has grown to a considerable size within the Labyrinth.
And my first impression upon seeing this Rogue Guild was...
'This place is creepy as hell.'
...That was the feeling that naturally came over me.
It made sense, though. The guild members, proudly wearing gear that concealed their identities as Rogues, moved without making a sound like ghosts rather than people. Every one of them had a hand resting on the dagger at their waist, watching me intently.
And...
"Ah. Don't step there. Step on it, and the trap triggers with arrows shooting out."
"........."
I felt [Trap Detection] activate as I seriously wondered if I'd walked into the guild house or straight into the Labyrinth. What kind of insane guild sets up traps inside their own guild house?
Regardless of my dumbfounded reaction to the trap, Hiss grabbed my hand and led me forward, carefully stepping only where it was safe.
...I'd just been startled by a trap in such an odd place, but I had skills like [Trap Detection], so I could pinpoint their locations. Looking closer now, they didn't seem that threatening anyway.
"Ah, that spot..."
-Tap.
Before Hiss could finish warning me, I moved forward, stepping only on the safe zones I'd identified.
"...Not bad? When I first came to the guild, I stepped on at least one."
She praised me with a grin, reminiscing about her own first time. Buoyed by the confidence, I pressed on, only to notice that the deeper we went into the guild house, the more varied the traps became.
But it was oddly fun, so I ignored Hiss's guidance and navigated by detecting the traps myself.
-Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
This is fun. Feels like training too. Probably set up for practice? I hadn't encountered traps lately, so I hadn't used [Trap Detection] much, but it hadn't rusted...
"My, you're quite skilled. Are you here to join our guild, by any chance?"
"?!?!"
Caught up in the thrill of clearing the trap section, with Hiss praising me, a sultry woman's voice suddenly spoke from a spot with no presence whatsoever.
A chill ran down my spine as I whipped around to see a woman with red hair and eyes, bat-like wings, gazing at me with interest.
'...A demon? When did she get there?'
"Ah, Guild Master!"
As I broke out in cold sweat and stayed on guard, Hiss recognized her and smiled brightly. The red-haired woman smiled back at Hiss.
...Guild Master? If Hiss called her that, did that mean this woman was the Rogue Guild's leader?
"What brings you here, Guild Master?"
"Daphne was looking for you, Hiss. So I came to find you."
"My mentor?"
"Yes. Seemed urgent."
The woman called Guild Master mentioned Daphne... Daphne, wasn't she Alensia's old colleague? Anyway, she relayed that Daphne urgently needed to see Hiss.
Hiss started to leave immediately but hesitated, glancing at me standing beside her.
"Who's the man beside you?"
"Ah, he's an acquaintance. I promised to show him around the guild today..."
"I'm fine, so go ahead."
Hiss was fretting over me and couldn't go to Daphne, so I told her it was okay. The tour didn't have to be today. As Hiss fidgeted, the woman called Guild Master stared piercingly at me for some reason.
"Still..."
"I said I'm fine? We can do it another time..."
"Oh. In that case."
As Hiss wavered, the Guild Master, who'd been eyeing me strangely, inserted herself between us.
"Shall I show you around the guild?"
"Pardon?"
'What the hell is going on?'
"This is the training ground for Grade 3 guild members. It has simple traps inside, and over there is where we keep training weapons. And..."
Hiss had rushed off upon hearing the urgent news, leaving me with the Rogue Guild Master, who introduced herself as 'Scarlett,' guiding me through the guild.
"And this is the area for Grade 1 guild members. Seeing your skills just now, Ian, if you joined the guild, you'd quickly become a Grade 1 member."
"Ah, sure..."
And she kept subtly encouraging me to join along the way.
Just trying to recruit talent? That explained why someone as high-ranking as the Guild Master personally offered to give the tour... Her attitude had been incredibly friendly from the start.
Hm. Hm. Not to brag, but I'm pretty decent talent. Not arrogance—objectively speaking.
*Slurp...*
"Hm?"
"What's wrong?"
"...Nothing."
What was that sound just now? I swear I heard something weird.
"And this is where we learn lockpicking... Want to give it a try?"
During the tour, we arrived at a room full of various locks, and Scarlett handed me a lockpick, inviting me to try.
Try it, huh...
-Click. Click. Clunk!
"Easy."
"...?"
I unlocked the lock she'd given me in under two seconds with just the lockpick.
I hadn't used it much, but thanks to [Lust Absorption], my [Lockpicking] had reached level 4, plus the Dexterity bonus from [Heavenly Touch]... This was a piece of cake.
"...Hold on. Want to try something harder?"
"Sure, why not."
Looking at me as if testing, Scarlett brought over more complex locks from the ones arranged around. It was fun, so I kept picking the ones she handed me.
After unlocking over ten locks, she finally stopped at a particularly intricate one.
'Sigh... If I amp up fingertip sensitivity with [Sensory Amplification], I could do even better...'
The thought crossed my mind, but I stuck to just [Lockpicking] and [Heavenly Touch]. Even so, Scarlett looked genuinely impressed.
"...At this level, your [Lockpicking] skill must be level 5... No, your hand movements suggest lower, but do you have [Dexterity]?"
I shrugged in response. Sharp folks usually noticed anyway, but there was a difference between them figuring it out and me saying it outright.
After that, the "tour" felt more like tests. Every time we entered a training area, Scarlett would ask if I wanted to try, and out of curiosity, I did.
Checking [Stealth] skills, finding hidden guild members with [Scouting] or [Detection], locating concealed traps, and so on.
Of course, I didn't show my full abilities—just enough—and Scarlett watched me in constant amazement.
"...Impressive. Why not really join our guild? If you do now, I can give you Grade 2 status... No, with my authority as Guild Master, straight to Grade 1."
Scarlett kept pushing me to join, even offering Grade 1 status immediately.
'Sigh... Not really interested.'
But it didn't appeal much. I wanted to learn Hiss's shadow manipulation ability, but she said those were personal secrets not taught in the guild. I already had [Stealth], [Lockpicking], [Assassination], [Scouting]... so nothing new to learn.
The rentable gear for members tempted me a bit, but Miranda would soon make my new equipment, so even that wasn't a big draw.
-Click!
Finally, in the [Trap Disarm] training section, as I disarmed the trap in front of me, I politely declined Scarlett's offer.
-Pfft!
"Ugh."
"Ah."
As I pulled my arm back to answer her question, the imperfectly disarmed trap activated, piercing my finger. Thanks to [Physical Resistance], it didn't go all the way through, but a small wound opened, and a few drops of blood fell.
"Are you okay? Your hand... Huh?"
"Ah, it's fine. This much heals right away..."
Sure enough, when Scarlett worriedly lifted my hand, the wound had already closed. Scratches like this healed in seconds now.
"...Ah, let me wipe it for you."
-Swipe. Swipe.
"Sorry. I shouldn't have asked you to try..."
"No, I wanted to."
Scarlett apologized and hurriedly wiped the blood from my hand with a handkerchief.
I'd had my fun anyway. Testing my skills in a place with such systematic training setups was valuable experience.
*Sigh... Haaah...*
"Hm????"
"What's wrong?"
"No, just now..."
I swear I heard another weird sound. What was it? Since it's the Rogue Guild, maybe someone stealthing around inside?
"We've seen enough of the interior. Let's head to the reception room. I'll have some tea prepared."
After I got the scratch, Scarlett ended the training tour and led me to a reception room with a sofa and tea table. She sat me down, saying she'd bring tea, and stepped out briefly.
'Does a Guild Master usually serve tea personally?'
It felt a bit odd, but... whatever. Some people are like that. She seemed on good terms with the guild members during the tour.
While waiting for Scarlett, bored, I looked around the reception room. The decorations were all predominantly red. Her taste?
There were some unique ones I'd never seen. This... a bat? Why bat decorations? Bats only reminded me of monsters from the cave layers.
Wandering the reception room, I approached the door Scarlett had entered to fetch the tea. Peering through the glass panel, I saw her boiling water in a kettle.
'Pantry for snacks and tea leaves? Pretty normal... Hm?'
Glancing inside the pantry before turning away, I saw Scarlett pull something from her pocket while brewing the tea.
'Handkerchief?'
Looking closely, it was the handkerchief she'd used to wipe my blood earlier. Then her eyes gleamed eerily, and red droplets floated up from the handkerchief.
...My blood? How? Why?
Feeling something off as I watched her, Scarlett stared at the extracted blood drops before popping them into her mouth.
"????"
"Mmm... Ahhn♡"
"?????"
A moan escaped her, and as I stared blankly, our eyes met through the window.
"........."
".........Gulp."