Stealthy Footsteps

I moved slowly toward the direction of the lingering thoughts.

"Have you discovered yet another soul from another world?"

"Probably."

—There's a person behind the wall, sir!!!

"A person? Please. Already dead and still talking."

You're one to talk, considering you're dead yourself. A bit harsh, don't you think?

"Hohoho. This maiden was reborn through Master's grace."

"My lord. Bestow that same grace upon me as well!"

"Then you'll just have to serve me even more loyally."

"Bah! A ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mere mage has no business speaking of loyalty or devotion!"

I approached the wall, but nothing was visible. No vessel a soul might cling to, either.

Then where is it?

—The brick! Press the brick, Great Lord!

"Hyung-nim. Is something wrong?"

"Ah. Finish up the cleanup for me. I'm just checking something."

Telling them I was hearing a ghost's voice felt a little off.

I ran my hands over the wall this way and that—

Click.

One of the bricks sank in under my palm.

Rrrrrumble—

The wall slid straight back. A passage that hadn't been there a moment ago now stood open before us.

"A secret passage! There might be treasure hidden inside!"

"I shall take the lead. Follow at your leisure."

The passage was not long. At its end lay a withered, skeletal corpse—and a single book.

—Ohh!! You heard my voice and came for me, Great Lord!

The source of the lingering thoughts was the emaciated corpse.

"My lord! There is a book here."

"My goodness. A book left in a hidden passage—this is clearly a fated encounter!"

Why are you two clenching your teeth and pretending not to notice?

Anyone could see the soul was bound to the corpse, yet neither of them so much as glanced at it.

—Look at me, please! My lords!!

"Master, congratulations! It looks every bit as precious as treasure!"

"I shall present this book to my lord."

"The book can wait. Let's collect the otherworldly soul first."

"Hmph. Is it not enough that a mage and I already serve my lord?"

"Well, Iron-Head's skills are the real deal, at least."

Oh, is that how it is.

"You two just don't want more competition, do you?"

"Hahahaha! Surely not! Would this Isra lack the confidence for such a thing?"

"This maiden is confident she can outshine any subordinate!"

Right. Of course you are.

Ugh. These two.

Faced with a future rival, their opinions suddenly lined up in perfect harmony.

"Did you forget that the more otherworldly souls I take as retainers, the stronger I become?"

"Haha, hahaha…"

"Ah—ahhh…"

When I took an otherworldly soul and breathed it into an undead, that being's talent was inherited by me as well. From Sir Isra I had received the Heavenly Martial Body. From Ingrid, the Origin of Magic.

What kind of ability would the third otherworldly soul carry?

"Aren't you even a little excited?"

"Ahem. I, too, find myself most eager."

"This maiden is simply dying to know what Master's new ability will be!"

Look at how fast they flip.

I could check the book later. First, I would pry the otherworldly soul free from the corpse.

I laid my hand on the desiccated remains, and a pale, hazy current of energy snagged and pulled free with a soft tug.

—Ah! Aaaah!

Jumping already, and I haven't even started. Honestly.

Come to think of it, I had two kinds of corpses I could possess a soul into.

"Mister Ghost. What's your name?"

—Zaug, Great Lord!

Why stick a "Great" in front of "Lord"?

He must have figured I ranked higher than my two retainers.

"Tell me what you did for a living."

—I had a modest connection to archaeology, sir.

"Oho. Archaeology—so a mage type, then."

—Ah. Not exactly, sir. I just did some work related to that field.

If he wasn't a magic type, I'd put him in an Armed Zombie Warrior. If it didn't match his living form, I could always remodel him later.

"Hang on a second."

I shoved the pale current of energy into an Armed Zombie Warrior.

"Kyaaaah!"

He let out a rather frivolous cry of thought, different from the two souls I'd possessed before.

The talent of the third soul I'd taken in. Naturally, it was going to hurt like hell, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠right?

I closed my eyes and waited for the pain to hit.

Ten seconds passed. Thirty seconds. Over a full minute with my eyes shut—and nothing happened.

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

"You've grown strong enough that even a new change doesn't faze you!"

Is that it?

Well, my level had climbed quite a bit, and thanks to Heavenly Martial Body and Origin of Magic, my stats were inflating by the day.

Oh. Look at me. I've actually grown a fair amount.

Time to check what kind of ability this was.

Huh?

The skill description was so completely different from what I'd expected that I was briefly at a loss for words.

"A mere A-rank, I see."

"You iron-headed oaf—look at the description, not the grade!"

"A thief? An assassin?"

Five question marks practically floated over Sir Isra's head.

"Eheh, eheheheh…"

A moment later—

"BAAAAAAAH!!!!"

A tremendous bellow shook the passage to its bones.

Treasure Hunter. In other words, a profession also known as a dungeon-specialist burglar.

"Did you not claim to be connected to archaeology?!"

"Ah. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Well, a great many dungeons are ruins, aren't they, sir?"

Zaug, now parasitizing the Armed Zombie Warrior, didn't show so much as a flicker of shame.

"Bah!!!"

"Hieeeeek!"

Shame might have been absent, but fear was on full display.

"So you died looting the dungeon this gate was based on?"

"Mm. That does seem to be the case, madam."

"Madam?"

"A beauty such as yourself must be the Great Lord's wife, no?"

Uh. That is very much not the case, buddy.

"Hee. At least this one has an eye for quality."

And why are YOUR cheeks turning red?!

"The mage is no 'madam' of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠any kind."

"Pardon?"

"Say that one more time and I will not let it pass."

Murderous intent glinted in Sir Isra's eyes.

"Hiiiiek! I'll call you my lord, sir!"

Anyway. As for how self-proclaimed archaeology associate and otherwise-known treasure hunter Don Zaug had died—

"I took a mortal wound from a guardian and fled, then stumbled on the secret passage, sir."

"And that passage is this one?"

"That's correct, sir."

So the dungeon turned into a gate? Or was this place a gate from the start?

"I'm uneducated, so I wouldn't really know, sir."

"Expecting too much from a thief, are we not?"

"My. Being empty-headed is something you and Iron-Head have in common, no?"

"Bah! Who are you comparing me to?!"

While my two retainers snarled at each other, I picked up the booklet lying beside Zaug's corpse.

What. What on earth is this?

"Why so startled?"

"The grade is Legendary."

Legendary. The rank sitting just below Mythic, the absolute highest. Even at the Twelve Heroes Weapon Exhibition I'd visited before, there had been only a single Mythic-grade item. Among hunters, Legendary was treated as the practical ceiling.

The sword Sir Isra had wielded in her past life—the Obsidian Greatsword of the Fallen Knight—had been Legendary as well. That said it all.

"But I can't make any of it out."

Garbled characters. Aside from the grade and durability, nothing was readable.

"Oh? These are ancient runic characters!"

She can read this?

This wasn't some ordinary item. It was a full-blown Legendary. If I could figure out what it was for, I could sell it—or use it myself.

My heart hammered. The "fated encounter" Ingrid had mentioned was right here in my hands.

"Can you tell what it is?"

"One moment. I'll need a proper look."

Oh. Ohhhh!

I handed the book over, buzzing with anticipation. Sir Isra, reading my excitement, lit up with a gleam in her eyes as well.

"Mage. Can you decipher it?"

"Hmmm…"

After examining the booklet at length, Ingrid declared—

"Not right now!"

Snap—

She closed the book and threw in the towel.

"Hah! You snatched it up so confidently, and you cannot even read it!"

"I said not right now, you iron-headed oaf."

"What?!"

Ingrid turned the booklet over in her hands.

"This isn't ordinary ancient runic script."

"Not ordinary?"

"Think of it as a cipher."

A booklet with mana patterns twisted through ancient runes. Even with the magical knowledge of that era, she said, you couldn't pierce through to its essence.

"Once I'm stronger, I'll be able to unravel the tangled patterns."

"So I need to raise my mana stat."

Good.

Speccing up was a problem that would solve itself as my own realm rose. Not being able to read it right this second wasn't an issue, was it?

A Legendary-grade item! If Ingrid cracked it, we were looking at a hundred billion won minimum. A lottery ticket with a guaranteed jackpot the moment you scratched it!

Ahh. Sweet. So sweet I might get cavities.

"So the book is the reward, and the thief is a free bonus."

"Hohoho. Master's good deeds are being repaid in this fashion."

—Please don't forget about me either, Great Lord!

Mm. Right. You two were being pretty rough. Treating a precious otherworldly soul as less important than a booklet was a bit much.

"Zaug?"

—Oh my. Just call me by name, freely, Great Lord.

"Tell me your specialty."

With Sir Isra and Ingrid, you could tell their specialties at a glance. Zaug gave off a general thief vibe, sure, but nothing that clicked as this is the one thing.

—I'm excellent at stealing, sir!

Ah. That's… not ideal.

"Hmph."

"Not exactly an ability that helps Master."

Both retainers' reactions were ice-cold.

—A-and, and I'm also excellent at hiding!

"Hiding is conduct that violates the code of chivalry."

"You mean to hide and leave Master behind?"

Hiding, huh. I'd gotten a sense of that when he granted me Stealthy Footsteps.

Wait.

"Can you teach me how to hide?"

—Of course, sir!

Those blue raptors had chilled me to the bone. Learning stealth-type abilities would be a huge help in situations where I couldn't rely on my retainers.

"At my lord's discerning insight, this Isra's eyes have been opened!"

Uh. What are you even saying.

"A second ago you were going on about chivalry."

"What chivalry must place first is my lord's safety."

"Hoho. So even your code of chivalry has a useful clause or two."

"First, my lord's safety. Second, my lord's safety. That is the highest principle."

—I-I have at least a little use too, don't I, sir?

"Even a grub has a talent for rolling."

"Teach your meager craft to my lord with all your heart and soul."

Ugh. The hazing is next-level.

"Thief. Should my lord ever fall into danger, you will shield him with that body of yours."

—Ah. That's a bit…

"Fail to do so, and my blade will butcher you."

—Hiiiiek!

My retainers sure get along wonderfully.

Maybe I should schedule a little "let's be friends" session one of these days.