The Most Beautiful in This Universe (2)
The Most Beautiful in This Universe (2)
"......So you're looking for people to enter the dungeon with?"
"Yeah."
"Is there a need for that?"
"Hmm. My goal is to go even higher, you see."
Seoyun nodded as if she understood upon hearing my words. It was characteristic of her not to say much regarding the dungeon.
Well, I had gotten permission, so the very next day I headed straight to the guild. The guild staff member Pion, upon hearing me out, said she had anticipated this and prepared in advance, handing me a stack of papers.
"It's a list of adventurers looking for a party."
"Thanks, Pion."
"It's nothing, I just did my job."
Even as she said that, Pion let out a hehe laugh. I flipped through the stack of papers she handed over, checking the people listed.
'First off... if there are only men, Eunha would be uncomfortable, right?'
She's a small girl to begin with. The likelihood of her feeling displeased if she joined a party full of men was high.
So I excluded men. Then, I looked for someone our party needed.
'Combat is covered.'
I can handle the fighting. And if you just consider combat power, Eunha isn't much inferior compared to me before I leveled up.
With Eunha and me, two people, we should be able to easily handle any enemy.
So what we need isn't combat power, but versatility. Something with diversity, like someone who can handle curses, or find paths and monsters...
'A mage?'
Unfortunately, no mage who couldn't find a party was posting a recruitment notice here. However, there was one mage I knew.
Thinking I'd go talk to him later, I found a person who matched the conditions from the stack of papers and handed it to Pion.
The expression on Pion's face stiffened slightly when she received the paper I handed over, then returned to normal.
"Ahaha, as expected, you're a man too, Dojin-nim."
"......What do you mean?"
"Well, you picked an elf like this, right?"
She showed me the paper. I had only skimmed the specialties, so I hadn't realized—the person I picked was an elf. And a female elf with big breasts at that.
"......That's not it."
"It's fine. All men are like that, you know."
"I'm serious."
It wasn't the right thing to say after picking an elf, but I had no ulterior motives. Absolutely none.
The Magic Tower stood tall at the sunniest spot in the city. The fact it was built in a location brighter than where the territory's lord resided seemed to show just how formidable the Magic Tower's prestige was.
After looking up at the majestic Magic Tower like a high-rise building, I went inside. There were no guards protecting the building.
Well, of course there wouldn't be any idiots foolish enough to raid the Magic Tower, which was packed with mages who were basically human weapons, or sneak in to steal something.
If they did, they'd instantly be detected by magic and turned into a human test subject who walked right in.
I approached a mage standing idly at the first-floor information desk.
"Excuse me."
"Yes, how may I help you?"
"I came to find someone."
"Their name is...?"
"I am the head of the Earth Trading Company."
Saying that, I took out and showed the token Raize had given me. Whether it was truly that impressive an item or not, the mage, who had been asking questions with a bored expression, instantly straightened up with a military posture and began responding earnestly.
"Yes, sir! Whom are you looking for?"
"Raize..."
"Raize? One moment. Are you referring to the mid-level mage Raize?"
"Yeah, a small boy."
"A boy...? There is only one Raize in our Magic Tower, though."
"A mage about this tall, right?"
"—Ah, then that seems to be correct. Please wait a moment."
The mage gave a slight smile, then picked up a communication tube to call for Raize. Not long after, Raize appeared on the first floor via spatial movement.
As I was blankly staring at that sight, Raize trudged over and asked the mage who called him.
"......What is it?"
"A visitor."
"A visitor? ......Huh?"
Only then noticing me, Raize stood there with his mouth agape in a daze, then turned away for a moment and started fixing his hair.
Wondering why he was so concerned about his appearance between fellow men, I walked up to Raize, messed up his hair, and greeted him.
"Long time no see."
"......What's up?"
"I have something to tell you... Is there somewhere quiet we can talk?"
"......Follow me."
Perhaps not liking that I messed up his hair, he guided me in a slightly sharp tone.
Following him, we arrived at a flowerbed filled with fresh flowers. Looking at the surrounding flowers, I asked him.
"What are all these?"
"Alchemy materials. Don't smell them carelessly. You'll get addicted."
"......It's narcotics?"
"There are narcotics too."
Immediately upon hearing that, I plugged my nose and quietly left the flowerbed. Shortly after, the flowerbed ended and we reached a quiet garden plot that seemed to have no one around.
Upon arriving at the garden plot, Raize turned around to look at me and opened his mouth.
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
"......Uh, is this the only place available?"
"Did you think we'd go to a tea house or something?"
"Not that, but... fine. I'll get straight to the point. Do you want to become an adventurer?"
"......? I'm already an adventurer."
"Ah, that's not it... Do you want to become my comrade?"
At those words, Raize stopped and looked me up and down. Then he tugged at my sleeve, pinched my cheek, and started pulling my hair.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing... I thought you might be an impostor."
"What nonsense... So, will you do it?"
"Last time you said not to meet until after leveling up?"
"That was then... Don't tell me you still haven't leveled up?"
At my words, Raize quietly averted his eyes. I had thought a mage of his caliber would be able to level up quickly.
I asked, just in case.
"How many times have you entered the dungeon since then?"
"......times."
"What?"
"0 times."
At that, I put my hand to my forehead. My suspicions were correct. It's true he's an excellent mage, but he had no way to show it.
Use magic to prove it, you say? He doesn't even have enough magic power to use inside a dungeon—no mage exists who would waste magic power like that.
In other words, people could only judge by his outward appearance, and his outward appearance is that of a child about the size of an elementary schooler.
There's no lunatic who would take a child into the dungeon. Unless they pick them like me, thinking to use them as a pack mule to pick up magic stones, or they're a criminal who feels sexual desire for children and intends to commit a crime.
It's fortunate he's been safe, as such crimes have become impossible now that the dungeon has completely opened up and become a market so crowded there's no room to step.
"No... well, whatever. Leveling up isn't urgent anyway."
Leveling up is a miracle that makes ordinary people close to superhumans. For mages who have already become close to superhumans through long effort and study, it's not really necessary.
Besides, as he said himself, isn't he a genius mage who mastered beginner magic? If I help him a little, he'll achieve leveling up in no time.
"So, want to come along?"
"......What's in it for me?"
"You can enter the dungeon with me."
"How is that a benefit?"
Raize glared and asked back. Still, for a kid, he was pointlessly mature—an old man in a child's body.
If you're a kid, you should have dreams like a kid.
"Do you know what my goal is?"
"What is it?"
"My goal is... to see the end of the dungeon."
"The end?"
Only then did he start to show interest. No one has ever seen the end of the dungeon. At best, around the 60th floor.
And even that was an achievement accomplished by heroes supported by the nation, at the cost of numerous sacrifices.
A nobody adventurer without affiliation cannot break through beyond that. This is common sense.
I had just uttered words meaning to smash that common sense.
"How about it? Doesn't interest just gush out? Doesn't your heart pound?"
"......Not at all."
"No sense of romance. So, won't you do it? The first adventurer to conquer the dungeon. The sole mage of that party. Will you throw away such honor?"
"Do you really think you can do it?"
With continued persuasion, Raize gradually began to be persuaded.
Now. If not now, I won't be able to persuade him.
Thinking that, I delivered my finishing blow.
"Whether you can or cannot isn't important,"
"Then?"
"Whether you do it or not is what's important."
If you do it, you might succeed.
But if you don't do it, you will definitely fail.
Then, isn't not doing it the stupid thing?
Upon hearing my words, Raize fidgeted and fell deep into thought about something.
"......One."
"Huh?"
"One condition."
"What is it? I'll agree."
"Don't call me kid."
"Aha, so you were hurt being called kid all this time?"
"......Again."
I chuckled and extended my hand to him. To him, who was now my comrade.
"Nice to meet you. Raize."
"—Yeah."
He grasped my hand with a fresh smile.
After Dojin left, Raize looked down at his own palm. A warm heat still remained.
'......How stupid.'
And he belatedly blamed himself for making a stupid decision. See the end of the dungeon? How is that even possible?
It was something even the Empire's Royal Knights couldn't achieve. That monster group, said to be able to fight an entire legion with just a single squadron...
'It's a foolish act.'
Why did he make that choice? A sigh escaped naturally. Haah, letting out a sigh, Raize returned and, seeing Kahuu smiling brightly while waiting for him at the desk, frowned.
"......What is it?"
"Nothing, did you have a good time?"
"Can't you tell?"
"Heh, really? What did you do? Sex?"
Hearing a question not even worth answering, Raize brushed past her. Then Kahuu immediately left the desk and hugged Raize.
"Hey, where are you running off to? Talk to me a bit. Huh? That man didn't even know you're a woman. Why didn't you tell him? So he'll pounce on you later when you bathe together?"
"......Shut up. Let go of this."
"Tell me and I'll let go."
Saying that, Kahuu squeezed with both arms full force. Her ample breasts pressed down on Raize's head. It wasn't painful, but it wasn't pleasant either.
"Let go."
"Kyaaah!?"
In the end, Raize had to draw up magic power and emit an electric current before he could escape Kahuu's embrace.
"He's just... just a comrade."
"A comrade? That person is a merchant, isn't he?"
"An adventurer comrade."
"Ah, you're still doing that childish thing, huh."
At the word 'childish thing,' Raize quietly looked at her. Unaware of Raize's reaction, Kahuu continued muttering.
"What's so difficult about catching monsters even kids can catch, right? One magic spell and they'd all be swept away..."
"It's difficult."
"Huh?"
"I said it's difficult."
With those final words, Raize returned to his research lab. Yeah, that was the common mage's way of thinking.
In reality? Even the current dungeon, which receives reviews saying it has become incomparably easier than before, was excessively dangerous.
'This place is a well.'
In her opinion, the current Magic Tower was too stagnant. So stagnant that only frogs who didn't even know this was a well remained.
'So that was why.'
Only then did Raize realize the reason he accepted Dojin's proposal. He realized it instinctively. That if he stayed here, even he would stagnate.
—There is a larger world, and greater truths.
A saying his teacher often used. To follow that saying,
He stepped into a larger world.
And the next day.
"......Hello."
"Ah, hey."
Upon seeing Eunha, who was about his size, Raize thought of Dojin again.
'Is he perhaps a pedophile?'
And a short while later, an elf with large breasts revealing herself appeared.
"Sorry I'm late, I'm Orion."
'......That's not it.'