16. Rental
"What do you mean? Help with what?"
I had a pretty good idea, but I asked as if I didn't.
"Sorry, I didn't explain enough, did I?"
The explanation that followed wasn't far from what I'd expected.
"The students are running out of money."
"How did that happen?"
"Well, after buying their initial equipment, they didn't have much left."
In my case, I'd consulted with Mary and only bought the minimum necessary items, but the others were different.
They'd bought everything that was recommended—primary weapon, armor, sidearm, even an adventurer's pack.
Of course, all of it was useful for adventuring.
After buying everything they needed, most of them had around ten gold coins left.
That money was essentially a countdown until they reached level 3 and could earn a stable income.
"It wasn't that we had no plan. The idea was to get support from the students who reached level 3 first and pay them back."
But the Kim Yun-ho party and the Lee Min-chan party, who had reached level 3, had simply left the group.
"Come to think of it, Kim Yun-ho and Lee Min-chan probably didn't leave without a reason. What was it?"
"They didn't like the other students' leveling pace, apparently."
As I recalled, the Kim Yun-ho party had reached level 2 in four days, and the Lee Min-chan party in five.
The other kids had mostly reached level 2 in six days.
That didn't seem like much of a difference. What was the issue?
No, wait. Considering that the Kim Yun-ho party had reached level 3 on day eight and the Lee Min-chan party on day ten and gone independent, it wouldn't be strange for the other students to hit level 3 soon too.
If so, did Kwon Chae-a really need to come to me so humbly? The Lee Se-rin party was still there.
"Teacher, how long until the other students reach level 3?"
"At least a week or so."
With that, I understood why the others had left.
These guys hadn't increased their experience pace even after hitting level 2, had they?
The total experience needed to reach level 2 was 300.
The total experience needed to reach level 3 was 900.
So a party that had reached level 2 needed to earn twice as much experience as before to level at a similar pace. And while the Lee Se-rin, Kim Yun-ho, and Lee Min-chan parties had actually done that,
"They've just been doing the same thing they did at level 1, haven't they?"
"But it's dangerous."
The teacher and the remaining students had kept going out to the grasslands and hunting small animals in safe areas even after reaching level 2.
That would not only double the time needed to level up, but there was no guarantee anything would change even once they reached level 3.
If you've leveled up and gotten stronger, you should be able to take on greater risks. If you won't take even a little risk, what's the point of leveling up?
So that was why they'd bailed. It was a more reasonable reason than I'd thought.
"So what exactly do you want me to help with?"
"Could you lend us some money? Once we reach level 3, our income will increase, so we can pay you back."
They'd only been hunting safe animals at level 2, and they thought reaching level 3 would change things?
But something was off. There should be ten students remaining now.
Four in the Lee Se-rin party, four in the Song Ji-yu party, and two in Kwon Chae-a's party.
Even counting the teacher, that was eleven people, so daily expenses would be eleven gold coins. That wasn't an amount the level 3 Lee Se-rin party couldn't handle, was it?
Even a subsistence party earning 150x4 Contribution Points a day made an average of two and a half gold coins per person per day. So a four-person party covered ten gold coins a day.
In that case, it wasn't an amount the Lee Se-rin party—who had earned 300 experience per person per day even at level 2—couldn't manage. And yet they were asking for help?
"Did something happen with Lee Se-rin?"
"W-well, she pushed herself too hard, and..."
The Lee Se-rin party had leveled fastest after me. Even maintaining their level 2 pace, that was 300 experience per person per day. If they'd increased their pace after hitting level 3, they could have earned 450 experience without much trouble. And she'd pushed herself too hard?
Ah, or rather, that was exactly why.
Until now, Lee Se-rin had accumulated experience faster than anyone except me.
But when she suddenly started converting experience into Contribution Points to supply the group's living expenses, she'd gotten anxious.
"What exactly happened?"
"She was doing a temple mission to earn money, and Se-rin got poisoned."
"...Then isn't curing Lee Se-rin's poison more important?"
"W-well, that's too difficult a problem, so..."
There was a cure for the poison, but the location was the problem.
The place where the Lee Se-rin party had gone on a scouting mission and come back poisoned.
A disaster that had appeared in the forest near the city—the cure was said to be inside a goblin village.
"They say it's dangerous even for a level 4 party. So don't get any strange ideas."
"So you're asking me to lend you living expenses just until Lee Se-rin heals naturally?"
"Yeah. I asked Yu-na, and she said Do-hyeon is actually more impressive than he'd told me."
"So I came to see if you might have some room to spare."
Would that solve the problem?
Not at all, in my opinion, but my mouth was saying something else.
"Then what can you give me in return?"
I thought back to the night I'd first met Tia. Back then, I hadn't been able to figure out what I wanted from her. But now, there was something I could get from Kwon Chae-a.
"Huh?"
Tia looked at the bewildered teacher, let out a sigh, and spoke.
"Do-hyeon, I'm going to go take a bath first."
Thanks, Tia. I love you.
Whether she hadn't properly received my mental message or not, Tia sighed once more and left the room.
I asked the teacher again.
"You're asking me to lend living expenses for ten people, for an unknown number of days. And you want it for free?"
That flustered the teacher.
"I-I mean. The teacher doesn't have anything to give."
Nothing to give, sure. But I couldn't approach this too bluntly.
I remembered the spell I'd gained upon reaching level 3.
Suggestion—a spell that implants a suggestion of up to 25 words for 8 hours in a target who fails a Wisdom save.
The problem was that once the duration ended, the target could realize something was off. And since it had a verbal component, getting caught casting it was all too easy.
But I had a solution.
Subtle Spell. Suggestion.
If chanting during the casting was the problem, then I just had to cast it silently.
The Suggestion I'd cast with Subtle Spell took effect, and I considered what suggestion to implant. If it was too blatant, I might get caught later, so I chose an appropriate phrase.
"Teacher, a teacher is supposed to devote body and mind to protecting their students, right?"
Please let it work on the first try. Repeating the same thing over and over would look suspicious.
Whether that prayer was heard or not, Kwon Chae-a failed her Wisdom save and was charmed by the effect of my Suggestion.
"Uh, yeah. That's right. Since I'm a teacher, I have to devote my body and mind to protecting my students."
The teacher repeated the words in a slightly dazed voice.
"Teacher, do you really have nothing to give?"
And then the teacher's face suddenly flushed red.
Kwon Chae-a gulped and undid two buttons from the top of her blouse.
"Um, Do-hyeon. This is a secret from Tia, okay?"
Tia already knew this was going to happen and went to take a bath.
But I didn't let that show and simply waited for the teacher to undo the latch herself.
Kwon Chae-a, flushed red from her face to the tips of her ears, spoke to me.
"I'll lend you my body today, so won't you lend me something too, Do-hyeon?"
At those words, I felt a spark catch in my chest.
"Is that so? Then shall we take a look?"
"Huh?!"
"You said you'd lend it to me. I should see what condition it's in, shouldn't I?"
Kwon Chae-a froze, drenched in shame at those words.
But whether from a sense of duty or not, she slowly undid the buttons.
One, two. Soon the blouse was fully open.
I gave her a look, and Kwon Chae-a dropped her top to the floor.
Kwon Chae-a tried to cover her stomach with both arms out of embarrassment, but she didn't seem to realize that only emphasized her chest.
Or was she deliberately posing like that to seduce me?
"I-is that enough?"
"I think I've only seen about half."
At that, the teacher's hands trembled as she pulled down the zipper of her skirt. Then she undid the button at her waist,
Slither.
The skirt slowly slid down and fell to the floor.
Kwon Chae-a stood there in only her underwear.
After running my eyes up and down her figure, I spoke again.
"Hmm, would it be all right if I had a taste before accepting?"
"W-what do you mean by that?!"
"You can't judge a product just by looking at it."
When I reached out my hand, she swatted it away as if that, at least, was too much to bear.
"N-no! If you're going to touch, you have to lend the money!"
"Can't be helped, then."
I rummaged through my pack and pulled out a bottle.
A potion I'd bought with the Contribution Points I'd saved up instead of experience, in case leveling up in the labyrinth would interfere with scouting.
"This is a potion worth 25 gold coins."
That was just the base cost. Buying it on the market would take about 30 gold coins.
I set it on the table and spoke to Kwon Chae-a.
"When tonight is over, this is yours, Teacher."
"You'll keep supporting us until Se-rin recovers, right?"
"Of course."
Though the method would be different from what Kwon Chae-a was imagining.
"O-okay."
I approached Kwon Chae-a and reached for those luscious breasts.
"Nngh."
I brushed over her underwear once, then slipped my hand underneath it.
Squish. Squish.
Her large, elegant breasts seemed addictive just from touching them.
At the center of that softness, there were nipples tucked tightly away.
"They're inverted, aren't they?"
"Y-yeah."
In that case, I needed to see them before they stood up.
After a few tries, I unhooked Kwon Chae-a's bra, and her inverted nipples revealed themselves to the world.
"Cute."
"Nngh, hyaa?"
As soon as I said it, I took a big bite of her right breast.
When I coaxed the tightly hidden nipple with my tongue, it poked its head out.
Soon I repeated the same on her left breast, and Kwon Chae-a was looking at me pitifully with both nipples now erect.
"Seeing how well they stand up, I guess you're feeling it too, Teacher?"
"N-no. This is, I mean, a physiological reaction."
For a physiological reaction, her expression changed far too much every time I squeezed her breasts.
I'd savored her breasts enough, so now it was time for her lips.
I pressed my lips to Kwon Chae-a's face, and she accepted my lips with a resolved expression.
Slurp. Slither.
With the sounds of saliva exchanging and tongues moving back and forth as the backdrop, I moved my hand over Kwon Chae-a's panties.
"Mmh?!"
She reacted with surprise, as if she'd been distracted by the kiss, but my fingers went into her hole without hesitation,
and touched an unexpected membrane.
I carefully pulled my fingers out so as not to break it, then pulled my lips away and asked Kwon Chae-a.
"Teacher, was this your first time?"
"Nn, haah. Yes."
Kwon Chae-a was slightly teary, probably because my fingers had suddenly entered her hole.
No matter how much of a suggestion there'd been, a virgin had made this kind of offer?
As that question arose, an answer surfaced in my mind.
［Achievement］Virgin Hunter (2/10)
Reward: It becomes easier to seduce inexperienced partners.
It was the reward I'd earned by piercing Eira's virginity.
If the effect was this good, filling all ten might not be that hard.
I pushed aside the other women that thought brought to mind and resolved to focus on the woman in front of me.
"Then I'll have to loosen you up properly."
