Chapter 61
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: A Moment of Normalcy
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The man who ambushed me held out far longer than expected even after being poisoned, but poison is the symbol of assassination for a reason.
His heart, already exhausted and pounding fiercely, spread the toxin rapidly throughout his body. And when he moved violently to fend off the golem's attacks, the poison spread even faster.
In the end, he managed to take down the stone golem, but he couldn't overcome the poison's effects and collapsed to the floor.
I kept my distance while wiping the poison from my body. Spotting him fall, I approached cautiously, still maintaining some distance.
"Urgh... You... I'll kill you..."
Even on the brink of death, his eyes glared at me fiercely without a hint of surrender. Though crawling on the ground, it wasn't exactly intimidating.
"Where did you get my information from?"
Ignoring his glare, I began interrogating him. Amid his agony, he somehow twisted his head toward me and spat.
"Ptoo. Would you talk if you were me? Give me the antidote, and maybe I'd consider it..."
"Hmm..."
To this brazen demand for an antidote, I pulled out alternatives instead. 'Thousand Mosquito' poison herb, 'Death Scorpion' venom gland, 'Grizzly Snake' fangs...
I've used up most of what I brought after applying it to myself.
"What... are you planning..?"
"Oh, nothing much."
I selected a usable poison from the lineup. There's a saying: 'Water knows the answer.' But in this case, it'd apply a bit differently.
"Poison knows the answer."
"Grrgh..."
How many poisons did I feed him? He endured them stubbornly for a long time, but the ones I'd personally tested and selected for torture were reliably effective.
The man's name was Taka. Recently, rumors had spread about ruins on the 9th floor in the eastern district of the Labyrinth City. He'd spotted a Labyrinth Guild member desperate for cash selling info and bought details on me—the first discoverer of those ruins—with everything he had.
Hah, a guild member selling an adventurer's info when they should protect it... Lucky it was this guy who bought it. If someone more capable had, I might be dead already. He rushed in without calculating his poison resistance potion's duration, so I barely subdued him. Plus, [Sensory Block] didn't work...
I rummaged through Taka's belongings. Fortunately, among the gear I'd confiscated was a high-grade recovery potion and holy water, which I chugged down quickly. My blackened skin gradually returned to normal, and I felt my battered body's condition improving.
Having gotten all the info I needed, I cleanly severed the head of the man, who was no longer in his right mind from the poison.
You endured skin-melting poison and even used it to defeat the enemy. [Poison Resistance] rises to level 4. [Poison Technique] and [Regeneration] rise to level 3.
A welcome message appeared. I'd only ingested poison before, but applying it to my skin this time leveled up [Poison Resistance]. Plus, the heavily used [Poison Technique] and [Regeneration].
You endured a curse and defeated a powerful foe. Acquired skill [Curse Resistance lv.1].
The next message surprised me a bit. Alensia had drilled into me how rare 'resistance' skills were, and I'd been using [Poison Resistance] to great effect. Now I'd gotten a similar new one.
What caused it? Was it thanks to [Heavenly Touch] or [Regeneration]? Whatever, I'll think about it later. Too tired right now.
The potions were helping, but my body still felt heavy. Still, I had to move.
I pocketed Taka's knife and thoroughly searched the Big Horned Moss area. With the monsters massacred, now was the time to loot or else I'll regret it later.
Back at the Labyrinth Guild, I reported the quest completion and relayed what Taka had said. The receptionist jotted notes with a gravely serious expression.
A guild member selling an adventurer's info undermined the entire organization's credibility. I got a warning that if it turned out false, I'd face consequences, then headed home.
At the mansion, I told Alensia the same. She said she'd join the internal investigation and left. Overwhelmed by deep fatigue, I collapsed into sleep.
When I came to...
"Oh, Ian. You're awake?"
"...?"
Déjà vu.
Opening my eyes, the mansion was gone. Instead, I was in the temple's treatment room where I'd woken last time after passing out. Gloria sat by my bed, greeting me warmly.
"You were covered in blood, so we worried, but your vitals were better than expected. Still, curse energy lingered in places, so I lifted them all."
Oh right, the curse. Even with holy water, I should've come straight here, but exhaustion made me forget.
As I checked myself over, feeling recovery set in, Gloria sighed and sat beside me.
"Ian... You must have your own reasons for diving into the Labyrinth, right?"
Seeming serious, I just nodded quietly. She overlaid her hand on mine, her face worried.
"Ian... I don't want to burden you, but you're Sia’s—and my—hope. We have no right to boss you around because of our situation... but please value your body more."
As Gloria said that, Clara passed by the hall, recognized her mother's voice, opened the door, and smiled at her.
Gloria waved back with a forced smile, but her tone remained tinged with sadness.
"Clara's dad... my husband... he pushed too hard and passed away."
'Oh, and I'll visit the mansion soon to check on Alensia's treatment progress.'
Gloria opened up to me, forcing a cheer for me, she also promised to drop by soon. I left the temple once I got a bit better.
Honestly, hearing it'd be for 'that' massage made my face stiffen involuntarily, but the mood didn't allow for a refusal, so I nodded and went out.
Whatever, it'll work out. It's for medical purposes, even if it's a bit pervy or maybe I'm just overreacting!
Out of the temple, I had nothing else to do. oing back to the mansion, Alensia was busy with the guild probe. Should I have some solo training? My sword handling felt off, so I skipped bathing, dressed light with a single blade at my waist, and headed out.
Of course, inventory at the ready and my bracelet is fully equipped.
What to do for now? Visit Miranda's forge like last time? Or Lilian's shop?
Both felt like some sort of skill grinding task, not really resting my body and mind. Today, I craved real downtime. Maybe shop in the commercial district once in a while.
Got to the dungeon over wasting my time? But with the guild traitor report, investigations blocked the entry for now... Plus, more info might've leaked, so gotta avoid the risky spots.
Nothing pressing right now to worry over, so I wandered the commercial district. Bored, maybe hit a brothel to manage my [Lust Absorption] penalty...
Oh.
[Magic Tower 1st Branch]
Strolling, I spotted a building labeled as the Magic Tower branch. Right, they sell all sorts of magic tools.
Impressed by Vivian's tool lately, I entered hoping for other useful ones, even if it's not a top-tier item.
"Welcome! Is this your first time?"
I received a standard greeting found in every store. I checked the directory. Beyond just being a magic tool shop: it also has mana training rooms? Huh, never noticed this. With [Mana Breathing], should I perhaps visit often?
Places to submit a personal magic theses... The Magic Tower library is interesting too.
Oh. Is that?
-[Mana Affinity Testing Room]
Whoa, they have that? Mages only train the talented, right? I wonder what my talent is like?
Open to outsiders for a fee. I paid up the amount, with my heart pounding, I entered. Inside waited a weary-looking middle-aged man with blue hair.
"Pleased to meet you. Shall we first do a mana affinity test?"
"Yes. How's it done?"
"Simple. Place your hand on this crystal orb, co-developed by the Archwitch and the Sage. We charge it because it uses a number of minor materials."
I didn't ask why I needed to pay. We're there lots of complainers before?
Vivian made this too... Definitely worthy as her master's disciple. Daunting homework aside.
I put my hand on the orb, he applied some reagents to his hand and rubbed the base of the ornament. It then began glowing slowly.
Oh, does glowing means decent talent?
"Just average. Mundane talent. But you've awakened your mana? The flow's quite stable."
"........."
Average, huh. I recalled what Urn said: mana affinity ties to sensing mana? But what if I tweak that sense?
'[Sensory Amplification]'
Casually, while he scribbled notes, I amplified my mana sensing. My internal mana flow sharpened; the orb's glow then brightened.
"Hm? Did you used a magic tool? The tests shows that it must be pure talent."
He finished writing, questioned the intensified glow. Thinks it's a tool effect. Good.
Before removing my hand, let's have one more test.
'[Sensory Block]'
Muttering internally, I blocked my mana sensing entirely. The glow snuffed out instantly.
"Huh, what's wrong now..."
He fussed over the orb. Felt a tad guilty, but I still continued. [Mana Manipulation]? Can't sense it, can't manipulate it. Instead, if I burn mana repeatedly with [Sensory Block] like before...
'[Sensory Release]'
"Whoa?"
Activating [Sensory Release], the dim orb erupted in brilliant light momentarily. The effect was brief; post-release, the glow start to normalized.
"Wha... what? It looked like advanced magic talent just now?"
He checked for illusions, inspected the orb even. I bullshitted about a quirky tool and left. He tinkered more with the orb—no issues found.
Hmm... [Sensory Release] bursting the brief buildup of mana equals to advanced talent...
Pretty cool discovery. Time to shop now.
The Magic Tower's magic tools were way more varied than imagined.
Standard spatial expansion bags, mage staves, comm crystals. Also strength/agility-boosting jewelry, even cleaning tools.
'Let's grab a high-capacity water creator first. Inventory's more versatile now, so let's get disposable scrolls too... Get some enchant scrolls? Why not.'
Proper ones are a bit pricey, but with some gold, let's focused on consumables. Plenty items are tempting here.
Some super weird stuff too.
"...Slime onahole?"
"Yes. An otherworlder said, 'Why not use slimes as sex toys?!' Scholars researched and made these..."
Smells like a fellow Earthling's influence.
"Gaming console?"
"It projects screen via mana; you can even control characters inside it."
Rough, but it recreates Earth games (another otherworlder's fault?).
"What's that super expensive display item?"
"Ah, the wireless connected ona—"
"Stop."
It sounded pretty risky. It does require the consent of the individual, so you couldn't be a criminal by using this, but...
A space magic grandmaster made this? It's not Vivian, right?
"Hm?"
Browsing around, I spot one shelf overflowed with dirt-cheap items. No buyers.
"What's this corner?"
"It's the cursed items section."
"Cursed?"
"Yes. Mild curses only—severe ones are banned."
Curse... curse...
"Everything from here to here. All of it."
"Pardon?"
[Curse Resistance lv.1]: Increases resistance to curses.
Resistance training season 2.
......I'm totally hooked now.