The Way Home
As we drew closer to the labyrinth city of Haverug, the number of monsters lurking along the roadside grew noticeably higher. When we reached a temporary camp where people had gathered in the distance, it turned out that while goblins and similar monsters were easy enough to hunt one at a time, their sheer numbers made it safer to form teams. Our group of three joined them, creating a party of twenty with all sorts of goals— aspiring adventurers, job seekers, would-be entrepreneurs, and skilled professionals hired to search for family members lost inside the labyrinth.
While we walked, I lamented my utterly pathetic sword skills to the most seasoned-looking swordsman in the group and cautiously asked if he had any advice. The man, who had been watching my swings closely, gave me a puzzled look and asked,
“Have you ever checked what sort of Blessing you received from the temple?”
“Excuse me? What do you…?”
It was the first time I’d ever heard anything like it. I glanced at Sophia. She let out a little “Tehe~” and stuck her tongue out with an adorable smile, as if apologizing for forgetting to mention it.
Come to think of it, the only things I’d heard from Sophia were completely useless trivia. How the white chalk floating in the sky was called the Holy Sanctuary. How Haverug’s most famous chef was invited by the angels and discovered the third floor was just their cafeteria. How he’d seen angels flapping their wings in the training hall while doing weight training with massive rock islands. How the top of the sanctuary was colder than expected, so fewer angels visited. Interesting! I wanted to hear more! Sophia’s random facts encyclopedia was fantastic!
“Then how exactly do you check this Blessing? Do I have to visit the temple?”
“That’s correct. Once you reach the city, go to the temple and politely ask the priest who greets the worshippers to show you the full list of Blessings you’ve received so far. They’ll guide you kindly.”
So in this world, if you wanted to use a sword, common sense said you should first find out whether you had the ‘Blessing of Swordsmanship.’ Apparently everyone received some form of Blessing—strong or weak—that protected them from danger.
Hmm… I really wanted to shout “status window.” The power that let both the reincarnated protagonist with zero special traits and the readers know exactly how strong the person trying to save the world actually was!
I slipped away from the group and whispered quietly.
“Status window……”
“Status……”
Was that not it? I ran through every possible phrase my brain could produce, whispering them like they were carried off by the wind so no one could hear. Having once experienced white letters flickering before my eyes alongside a headache, I felt certain I should be able to see a status window.
Hmm… blessing from the gods… grace……
“Our Father who art in heaven, have mercy on this poor soul, lead the sinners to salvation… How have I lived until now… Every single meal I ate poisonous herbs, clutching my stomach in agony… Sob… Every time I died I endured…… Heuk heuk… The monsters every day… Heuk heuk… Do you know the pain that felt like my heart would burst… Father!”
Good! Not that one! Since I’ve confirmed it, we’re done here!
By the day before we reached Haverug, the chalk floating in the sky had grown enormous. It looked like the cylindrical planetary evacuation fortress from movies in my first life—the one that burned every human on a doomed Earth and fled into space. If that thing fell, an ice age would probably start immediately.
The next day, we finally arrived at the labyrinth city of Haverug.
“Whoa! Home! We’re finally home!”
The moment we passed through the gates, Sophia began jumping around in excitement, her silver hair fluttering. Passersby kept stealing glances at the adorable creature.
“So Sophia, where’s your house? Which way do we go?”
“Yep! Straight that way! Just two days from here! Let’s hurry, Az!”
This labyrinth city was fucking huge. Shit…
While walking, I asked Sophia,
“Then if you want to cross to the other side of the city, do you have to pack camping gear or stop at an inn halfway?”
“Nope. See that elevated road stretching from way over there to the far end?”
“Yeah. I’ve been wondering about it. I figured only important people or temple priests used the upper road.”
“Yep! Wrong! That’s a river!”
“A river? So that bridge is actually a waterway?”
“Yep! If you pay at the aerial ferry station and take a boat, it’s super fast! But we don’t have any money! We spent it all! We’re beggars again! Ahahaha!”
I couldn’t tell if she was crying or laughing. Feeling the harsh reality with every painful step on our sore feet, we spent another night camping on the street. By evening we finally reached Sophia’s house.
“Sophia… you were rich?”
“Heuuung… I’m a self-made woman! What’s with that reaction!”
Sophia strutted forward with her nose in the air, then tripped on her own doorstep, headbutting the door open to welcome us.
“Kyaaaaaaaak!”
“Hello. Excuse us for intruding.”
I led Claudia inside, accepting Sophia’s chaotic greeting. In the entrance living room, Sophia spent a long time rubbing her reddened forehead before giving us a full tour of the house. I never imagined I’d be living in a three-story stone building. I was shocked by the bathrooms—there were two of them, one on each floor.
After looking around and talking it over, we decided to stay at Sophia’s house. While she helped Claudia wash in the bathroom, I rested for a moment in the room she’d given me.
Hoo… I was exhausted… Trying to reflect on the nonstop days…
Zzz… Zzz… Urk… Ahem……
When I opened my eyes it was already morning. I must have been more tired than I realized. After we finished breakfast together, Sophia headed out to meet some acquaintances she knew in the city. Claudia sat on the sofa in the corner of the living room, still exactly the same as always.
After thinking hard about how to help her, I reached one clear conclusion: I absolutely could not burden Sophia any further. I needed money if I wanted to take her to the temple or a healing clinic. In this enormous city where angels flew overhead, there had to be someone who knew how to cure her.
“Um… Claudia… my lady… you know we can’t use that title anymore, right?”
“Whether you remember or not, we’ve been together since the cave that held us captive. It must have been incredibly difficult.”
From my perspective she had simply been the person lying collapsed in front of the sealed cave that villagers occasionally mentioned, yet somehow we had come this far together. I didn’t pity her excessively, nor did I desire her body because she was beautiful. Besides, embracing her in her current doll-like state with no intelligence left didn’t seem like it would be enjoyable. I had simply helped because I wanted to.
Whether she understood or not, I needed to finish what I had to say.
“Everyone trapped in that cave was the same age. And I am not your servant.”
“I’m not above you either. So from now on I’ll speak casually.”
“We’ve been living as beggars until now. Ha… so I need to go look for work. Can you stay by yourself, Claudia?”
Come to think of it, when had Claudia gone to the bathroom…? It startled me, but it didn’t really matter.
“I left food on the table so eat whenever you want. Make sure to use the bathroom. Um… I don’t know where the adventurer’s guild is, so it might take me tomorrow or even a few days. Anyway, I’ll be back soon.”
I should have asked Sophia to lend me some money. This was bad. Wasn’t paying a fee to register as an adventurer common sense? Not wanting to rummage through someone else’s house, I searched the bag the village chief had given me, took a few sellable items, and headed out.
“Hoo… thank goodness. Is this the 27th branch of the adventurer’s guild?”
I left the house and asked a nearby resident; the adventurer’s guild was close by. Luckily it was only an hour’s walk. The interior was clean, with just enough noise to hear the conversations around me. I approached the reception desk.
“Welcome. My name is Marie. This appears to be our first meeting. Are you here to register as a new adventurer?”
“Yes. How does the application process work?”
“Please fill out this form. Do you know how to read and write? If not, I can assist you.”
“I know how. I’ll do it myself.”
“You must have received an education. You seem like someone from a distinguished family.”
Was it that obvious? In our village, everyone had gathered in the square from a young age to learn useful skills—reading, arithmetic, proper manners, and so on.
“Here. I’ve filled everything out. Is there anything else?”
“Yes. The registration fee is one silver.”
“Um… would these work instead?”
I rummaged through my clothes and placed the items on the counter one by one: a gold candlestick, gold necklace, silver ring, brass bowl, silverware set, and the portrait of the village chief and his wife that I had carried on my back. Marie wore the expression of someone who had just seen another lunatic and proceeded to bite, squeeze, and tap every single item.
After a long inspection she sighed and said,
“By any chance… are you a thief?”
“Ah, no! It’s just… when I told my parents I was coming here, they… sob… gave me all the valuable things in the house… heuheuhup……”
“Ah… I see! I’m sorry. I misunderstood……”
She composed herself and continued.
“All the items that appear to be gold are fake. The rest also have no value. However!”
“Of these two silverware sets, one is real silver. The other is fake.”
“Will this be enough?”
“Of course. This silverware set was quite famous in this city……”
“Famous……?”
“It’s a Poison Detection Tableware Set for people with many enemies, so it sold at a high price.”
“Ah, thank goodness.”
“Since it’s second-hand I’ll give you half price. Here is your change—four silver.”
??????
That spoon-and-fork set was worth a million won in the modern era and ten thousand nyang in the Joseon dynasty? In the martial arts world I had never even seen money. Still, it was expensive. This was the first fruit I had earned through my own hard work (no it wasn’t).