Chapter 4 - Bullying Within the Party (1)
Chapter 4 - Bullying Within the Party (1)
Episode 4 - Party Bullying (1)
"Hey, guide! Not yet? The party members are waiting!"
A sharp voice slammed against the stone walls and echoed inside the dungeon.
It was Chloe, the mage and deputy leader of the Empire First Knights Order Second Battalion Hero Party.
She was standing far back, fiddling with her staff, terrified that mud might splatter on her new combat robes.
"Hurry it up."
Han Seoyun, the party's guide and mana engineer, used to work as a programmer in her previous world. Back then, even though there was a mountain of work, at least she had a chair to sit on.
However,
now she was kneeling on the cold stone floor with her upper body bent low, decoding the intricately entangled mana circuits on the dungeon door.
Her knees had long lost all sensation, and under her deep dark circles, her eyes were bloodshot from tracing the flow of mana.
"...It's almost done. Please give me just a little more time—."
"Hey!"
Chloe's sharp yell interrupted her.
"A little more from here? You were wandering around lost earlier too. Are outlanders always this slow with their hands?"
"The party's safety takes priority over work speed...."
As Chloe's glare grew sharp, Seoyun swallowed her words.
"No. I'll finish it shortly."
"Does safety put food on the table?"
The reason time had gotten so tight in the first place was that an old paladin had recklessly charged ahead telling them to trust his instincts, causing them to get lost.
'A veteran who's been dungeon delving for over 20 years? What, "That kind of thing definitely won't happen"? It's a miracle an accident hasn't happened in over 20 years!'
Rather, it was a miracle he had survived until now.
It was ridiculous.
In a dungeon, there were no safety inspectors and no procedures to hold responsible parties accountable for accidents.
So whenever an accident occurred, the blame was always pushed onto the easiest target.
Onto Han Seoyun, the outlander and guide.
"Chloe, stop it. Seoyun-ssi is doing her best too."
"Tch...."
The party leader, Hero Goodwill, mediated in a soft voice.
He approached Seoyun, who was struggling to open the locked door, and patted her shoulder gently.
"It's really tough, right? I'm sorry. Let's hang in there a little more, Seoyun-ah."
The Hero was a good person.
He genuinely worried about Seoyun, and during dangerous moments, he was the first to step forward holding his shield.
The problem was that he believed nice words alone could protect a person.
Goodwill always spoke nice words.
The problem was that he only spoke nice words.
In fact, the more Goodwill looked out for Seoyun, the more relentless the check and ostracization from the noble-born members became.
As Goodwill patted Seoyun's shoulder encouragingly, Chloe's eyes narrowed and her brow furrowed tightly.
'I'd rather be cursed out.'
Seoyun swallowed a bitter smile.
Goodwill's kindness was poison.
The sweeter he acted, the more the party's internal politics stabbed Seoyun into a corner.
Dungeon exploration, worse than a manual labor site without safety guidelines or task division.
And loneliness.
'I'm a programmer. I'm someone who used to sit in front of a computer all day... I can't endure this kind of physical labor!'
Seoyun desperately missed the days in Korea when she tapped away at keyboards with her teammates and shared late-night snacks.
They were rough around the edges, but at least it was a team she could trust.
'I miss triangle kimbap....'
She was hungry and cold.
And above all, she missed that office where at least there was no threat of death.
Ttalgak-Chiik-
"Ah... done."
Kukukukukung-
As Seoyun seized the final flow of mana, the code engraved on the dungeon door was unlocked.
The massive stone door slowly opened with a loud rumble.
Goodwill patted Seoyun's back and laughed.
"That's it! As expected of Seoyun!"
"If a guide can't even do this, what's the point of having her as a party member? As a guide, she should obviously do it! If a guide can't even do this, why on earth are we taking her along?"
"Goodwill-nim, Chloe-nim.... Let's go in."
It was when the party penetrated deeper into the dungeon labyrinth.
Kreurureureu-
"What's that sound?"
"It's the growls of monsters."
An adventurer dressed in a black robe was isolated among a pack of monsters.
"Party leader! Over there!"
"It's a pack of monsters!"
Kwang!
Kwang!
"Someone is fighting alone! Provide cover immediately! Initiating rescue!"
Just as several monsters surrounded the person and lunged, Hero Goodwill leaped forward, emitting dazzling holy sword light.
It was at that moment.
"Hero-nim! It's a time-delay trap! You need to get out of there right now!"
Seoyun, reading the dungeon's unnatural flow of mana, shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Right this instant! Hero-nim!"
"Got it!"
Chwaaaak!
As Goodwill swung the holy sword, a brilliant slash felled the monsters in a single stroke.
He immediately grabbed the adventurer isolated among the monsters and pulled her up.
And right before the floor collapsed, he embraced her and leaped out of the area.
It was right after Goodwill rescued the adventurer.
Kwagwagwang!
The floor where the two had been standing collapsed completely. Not a trace remained.
"That was dangerous."
"Th-thank you... I'm a mage adventurer, but the trap suddenly triggered, separating me from my party..."
Seoyun looked at the rescued adventurer.
A robe and a staff.
She was a female mage adventurer.
The other female members of the party were openly displeased that another pretty woman had barged in.
'Another... woman? What is with this harem party anyway? Is this Hero guy seriously clueless?'
Or is he secretly enjoying this situation?
"What is your name?"
"Uh, have we met somewhere before?"
Isn't that a pickup line?
Is he really enjoying this situation?
"...Haah."
Seoyun let out a deep sigh.
An increasing party membership was nothing good for Seoyun.
It just meant one more person to clean up after.
'A female mage like Chloe...'
Most mages and swordsmen in this world were drunk on their own abilities and arrogant.
She didn't know how the mage got in first, but if she could explore this dungeon, she must be considerably skilled.
Seoyun presumed Liv would be the same kind of person as Chloe.
However,
the female mage who politely expressed her thanks to Goodwill—
this time approached Seoyun and bowed her head respectfully.
"The ones who saved my life were the Hero-nim and the guide-nim. If the warning had been even a little bit later, I would have fallen along with the floor again."
She brushed the dust off her black robe and smiled.
"Your name is Seoyun-ssi."
Liv, after expressing her polite gratitude to Seoyun for saving her, next stepped up beside Seoyun.
"Guide-nim, your ankle is a bit swollen. I know a bit of magic; may I excuse myself for a moment to help?"
Seoyun was flustered.
Ever since joining this party, no one had ever asked about her physical condition first.
Her injured ankle was sprained when she was blown back by mana recoil while disarming a trap at the dungeon entrance.
"Ah, well... I'm fine."
"Fine? It's swollen like this."
Liv sat beside Seoyun and used chilling recovery mana to soothe the swelling.
"Do you use healing magic too, mage-nim?"
"Well, a bit of this and that. My magic master was a former high-ranking priest."
Liv smiled brightly and spoke to Seoyun.
...
"Kwahahaha!"
The Demon King's laughter echoed deeply through the conference room.
"Kukuku. Liv has successfully infiltrated the party."
"Yes, Liv's disguised mana flow is also flawless. No one in the party suspects her of being a demon. Liv is one of the top disguise experts in the Demon King's Army."
Demon King's Army Strategy Conference Room.
"You secured an escape route just in case, right?"
"Yes. We prepared one on each floor. The rescue team is also on standby to deploy immediately."
"Good. Now Liv's disguise performance needs to shine."
On the large monitor in front of the conference table, the live broadcast of the dungeon and Liv disguised as a female mage were being displayed.
On the adjacent monitor, her mana flow, remaining mana, and vital signs were being displayed in real time.
"You deployed the agent after making sure she thoroughly memorized the target's information, right?"
"Agent Liv was personally recommended by Team Leader Erika. She memorized the trap locations, monster distribution, and expected movement paths in advance. With Liv's skills, she will be able to secure both her own safety and the target's. Wasn't her acting just now the best?"
The Demon King laughed in satisfaction.
"Kukuku, good! Field safety must be maintained under any circumstances. What about the target's ankle injury?"
"Agent Liv treated it."
"Good. That guide is also a precious talent who might join us."
The executives in the conference room nodded in unison.
"That goes without saying. To catch up with the Empire's strength, every single person in the Demon King's Army is precious."
"The party has entered camp too. The day surveillance team shall hand over to the night team and rest. Essential remaining personnel must also strictly adhere to shift rotation times."
"Yes, Demon King-nim! Alright, everyone, it's break time!"
The Demon King's Army executives flooded out of the strategy conference room in a swarm.
"Where are you going to rest?"
"The sleep room. I heard new massage chairs came in, but the reservations are probably already full."
"Heh heh... Too late then. I guess I'll go eat the new snacks in the break room."
...
"The trap design in this labyrinth is truly malicious. You must be suffering a lot, guide-nim."
"Well, it's my job after all."
"No, I know a bit from studying it too, and algorithms of mana circuits like these are way too dangerous to solve alone. Shouldn't an assistant guide be with you? I believe work should be done in two-person teams as a rule."
'Algorithm?'
It was a word she thought she would never hear in this world.
Seoyun's heart thumped heavily.
"Wait a minute. Did you just say algorithm?"
"Yes. Is it a strange expression?"
"Where did you learn that word?"
"It's an expression my master used often. She worked with outlanders for a long time too."
Liv smiled and lifted Seoyun's tool bag for her.
"Don't worry. I'll support you from behind as much as I know. Don't try to shoulder it all alone, Seoyun-ssi. Safety comes first, right?"
From that day on, Liv became Seoyun's shadow.
Whenever other members tried to dump their own share of work onto Seoyun, Liv subtly blocked them.
Whenever Seoyun stood night watch, Liv brewed warm mana tea and stayed by her side.
"Seoyun-ssi, you're really competent. It's just that the Knights Order fails to recognize your value."
"But the First Knights Order is the imperial family's top group. Just belonging to it is an honor."
"If so, they should treat you in a way worthy of that name. Haa... The Knights Order is so frustrating in that regard. That's why I became an independent adventurer belonging to the guild."
"...."
Liv's warmth was different from Goodwill's lip-service favors.
Goodwill told her to hang in there.
Liv actually shared the load so Seoyun could find the strength to go on.
Seoyun gradually began to open her heart to Liv.
In this hellish party, Liv was the only person Seoyun could lean on.
"Until this dungeon raid is finished and we leave, I'll stay and help you."
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it. I'm also someone who received help from the Hero-nim. And you, guide-nim, are my savior as well."
...
The incident broke out in the lower levels of the dungeon.
As the saying goes, an inevitable accident will eventually happen.
Seoyun had left a green mana mark indicating safety on the central corridor.
On the other hand, she carved a red off-limits mark on the corridor branching off to the side.
[Do Not Enter]
"Huh? Do Not Enter? Anyone can see this looks like a spot with treasure."
However, Chloe and the knights ignored that mark.
"Is a mere guide trying to stop the Knights Order? Secure it!"
Several knights advanced into the forbidden area following Chloe's orders.
However, moments later—
Kwang!
"Uwaaaaak!"
"Help me!"
As if it had been waiting, the trap triggered.
Before, they had merely gotten lost,
but this time, the outcome was gruesome.
Kwang!
Kwang!
Kwang!
"Kyaaaaaak!"
As the trap triggered, parts of the corridor began collapsing with thunderous rumbles.
"Guide! What did you do! You said you disarmed all the traps!"
"The knights are trapped!"
"Save me! I'm stuck here!"
Seoyun looked at Chloe, the deputy party leader who had ordered the advance.
"No, Chloe-nim! I put up a mark saying it's dangerous to advance that way!"
"Hey, outlander. Are you blaming me right now?"
"An unexplored path isn't safe! There's an order to exploring!"
"Then you should have stopped us more forcefully! And done it faster! Isn't that your job?!"
Chloe's absurd shift of responsibility.
Once again, all the blame began falling onto Seoyun.
Seoyun, having reached her limit, finally couldn't hold back and yelled.
"Anyone would think that path had traps! Why on earth do you keep ignoring my words! You never listen to me even once!"
Chloe's expression twisted viciously.
"This crazy bitch! How dare you talk back to a noble mage?!"
Chalssak-!
Seoyun's head snapped sharply to the side.
Her lip tore, and blood flowed.
"Keuk..."
As if slapping her cheek wasn't enough to satisfy her rage, Chloe raised her staff and pointed it at Seoyun.
"You trashy outlander bitch! You can't even do your own job right? Because of you, this dungeon raid is ruined!"
Chloe began screaming at the top of her lungs so loudly that everyone in the dungeon turned to look in shock.
"Do you know how important the results of this expedition are?! Supplies are limited! We need treasure! I brought you along because of rumors that you were competent, but party safety? No. No! You're a total piece of trash slacking off and shirking your own duties!"
"Chloe, stop it!"
Goodwill, who had returned after rescuing the trapped knights, shouted urgently.
But it was too late.
The tip of Chloe's staff gleamed chillingly.
"This is all your fault!"
The power of magic forcibly twisted Seoyun's limbs.
"Your discipline is lacking! I, Chloe, deputy party leader, am deeply disappointed in you, Seoyun!"
Chijijik-
Mana poured out from Chloe's staff.
"Kkeuaaaaak!"
The torture magic that twisted her limbs commenced, and Seoyun's screams reverberated horrifyingly through the dungeon interior.
"Stop! Now is not the time for this! There are still knights trapped in that pile of rocks! Chloe! St... stop!"
"Goodwill-nim, a wench like this needs to be taught a lesson right away. She's a bitch who'll cause even bigger accidents. As deputy leader, I must! Absolutely!"
As if trying to shift all responsibility for this accident onto Seoyun,
Chloe's eyes were completely unhinged.
"Stop! Chloe, I told you now is not the time!"
Goodwill reached out to grab Chloe's arm to stop her, but paused for a moment.
If he forcefully suppressed Chloe—a deputy leader and a noble—he could be forced to step down from his position as Hero and party leader.
"Euaaaaak!"
Seoyun's screams and the Hero's hesitation.
Between them, another staff cut in.
Pajik!
Chloe's mana flow was forcibly severed.
"What the?!"
Chloe turned around in panic.
"Take your filthy hands off her, Chloe. You cowardly bitch."
The one who severed the mana was none other than Liv.
"Outsiders butt out! We are currently conducting internal motivation for the Knights Order!"
"...To call something like this 'motivation.' The Knights Order is truly barbaric."
"What? A mere adventurer coming at the Imperial Knights Order? Do you even know what you're doing?"
The usual gentleness vanished without a trace from Liv's face.
"Yes. I know very well. Human noble."
In her eyes, only a chilling murderous intent directed at Chloe remained.