Chapter 211
Chapter 211
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 212
Chapter Title: Jaun at the Lair
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I was hiding behind a rock at the bar, panicking at Jaun's sudden appearance.
……Why are those guys here?
I already knew that Jaun was participating in this episode.
But even in the original story, Jaun's exact actions in this episode weren't properly depicted.
The scenes where they appeared were only at the moment of the final battle with the Disease Beast.
"Wow. The lair is really huge. It's my first time seeing it in person."
"Be careful. There's probably a guardian inside the lair."
"Can't we just raid it like a ruin?"
"Yeah. It's similar. Anyway, let's do this perfectly like always."
Jaun's group was conversing at the entrance to the massive cave covered in snow.
To be precise, it was more like a volcanic vent mixed with a cave.
That was the 'Dragon Lair' managed by the Disease Beast.
'So Jaun raided the lair too.'
It was a fact I hadn't known.
When I read the original, I thought they were only targeting the Disease Beast's 'heart.'
I quietly watched them while rapidly turning my mind.
What was the best choice I could make with Jaun right in front of me.
The first thing that came to mind was secretly calling over the other wizards, including Yoo Ah-yeon, and wiping them out.
But even if we all gathered, we couldn't guarantee victory against Jaun's group, and it could cause major disruptions to the Disease Beast raid as well.
'I have to avoid fighting Jaun after all.'
Catching Jaun was important, but more important was dealing with the Disease Beast.
And the Disease Beast was a catastrophe-grade magical beast that couldn't be taken down just because a couple of S-Rank wizards showed up.
Jaun's power was also necessary.
So the answer was clear.
I turned on the communication magic tool and spoke in a small voice too quiet to be heard.
"Ah, Lee Seo-jun. Can you hear me?"
[Yeah, I can hear you. Looking for a path?]
"Yeah. But the path is so treacherous, I think we have to go all the way around."
[Really?]
"I'll check the back side and contact you again."
[Got it. But is there no lair around there by any chance?]
I turned my gaze toward the lair.
"There's something that looks like a lair, but I'm not sure."
[Hmm. Okay. We'll look for a way up too.]
"Alright."
Click. I ended the call and hid behind the rock again, turning my gaze back to Jaun's group.
They entered the lair with light, picnic-like footsteps.
I activated 'Silent Steps' to mask my presence and footsteps, then slowly stepped out from behind the rock.
"……Ha. This is annoying."
Of all places, Jaun had to show up here.
Yoo Ah-yeon had a calm personality, but whenever she saw Jaun, her eyes would roll back—she was the living incarnation of vengeance itself.
If she found out Jaun was here, I couldn't predict what rash action she might take.
This was another change caused by my intervention.
"……Should I lure them somewhere else."
Meanwhile, Yoo Ah-yeon was staring blankly at the cliff where Kim Sun-woo had climbed up.
Her mind was a mess of various questions.
All because of Kim Sun-woo.
What the hell was that kid?
In the past, she had personally investigated him because he seemed suspicious.
He had outstanding skills but hid his power with a low ranking, and he was hanging around Lee Seo-jun, an important figure for Jaun, so she suspected he might be someone Jaun had planted.
And the information from her investigation was suspicious too.
Unlike ordinary people, there was absolutely no personal info on him.
At first, she thought Jaun had fabricated it, but it seemed too sloppy for that, so she temporarily dropped her suspicions about Kim Sun-woo.
But today's encounter reignited them.
She could overlook the monstrous magic control he showed with that downpour-form magic whose implementation she couldn't even comprehend.
The question Kim Sun-woo had asked her earlier was highly suspicious.
He had asked about the Seonhyeon family.
'Why did he ask that?'
It didn't seem like mere curiosity.
Since she herself had learned of the Seonhyeon family's existence while chasing some secret.
And her investigation revealed that the Seonhyeon family was hiding something not apparent on the surface.
A certain secret research that even she didn't know much about.
'……Is he really connected to those guys?'
Circumstantially, it wasn't impossible.
Yoo Ah-yeon glanced at Lee Seo-jun.
Lee Seo-jun was wandering around, trying various methods to find a way up.
'Kim Sun-woo……
Right now, Kim Sun-woo was revealing his presence here and there, but in the past, he was a student who quietly stayed at the bottom ranks.
But at some point, he showed his true skills and caught Lee Seo-jun's attention.
If her guess was right, this might not be mere coincidence.
"……Lee Seo-jun."
Lee Seo-jun turned his head at Yoo Ah-yeon's call.
"Yeah?"
"I have a question. How did you get close to Kim Sun-woo?"
Lee Seo-jun tilted his head and thought for a moment.
"Hmm. There was a dungeon exploration class at school, and he approached me first, suggesting we team up, so that's how we got friendly."
"......I see?"
So Kim Sun-woo had approached first after all.
Lee Seo-jun looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"Why do you ask?"
"……No. Anyway, we need to find a way over this cliff too."
Given the situation, she'd think about Kim Sun-woo later.
Yoo Ah-yeon slowly looked around. They couldn't waste time like this.
The other comrades were moving to infiltrate the lair too, so they had to time it with their arrival.
While pondering methods, she coincidentally spotted a small, relatively flat snowy slope to the right of the cliff.
Of course, the incline was still very steep, impossible for a normal person, but with mana-enhanced body strengthening, it would be easy.
"Let's go that way."
Lee Seo-jun looked at the cliff Yoo Ah-yeon pointed to and nodded, thinking they could climb it.
Then he contacted Kim Sun-woo via the communication magic tool.
"Kim Sun-woo. We found a path. Wait there."
The reply came immediately.
[You found a path?]
Kim Sun-woo's surprised voice came through.
"Yeah, we did. We can climb up soon."
[No, ha…….]
Suddenly, an inexplicable sigh came through.
"Why the sigh all of a sudden?"
[What? It's just cold. Ah! Then I'll look for the lair.]
"Uh…… alright."
Click. He turned off the communication magic tool.
Lee Seo-jun turned to Yoo Ah-yeon. They looked at each other, nodded, and strengthened their bodies with mana.
Flash!
They quickly scaled the cliff.
The snow made it a bit slippery, but their trained bodies and mana allowed them to climb without issue.
"……Whew."
Yoo Ah-yeon, who reached the top of the cliff, let out a big sigh and looked around.
A massive cave covered in snow came into view.
"……Is that the lair?"
"Seems like it. What. It's right there."
Yoo Ah-yeon contacted Jeong Je-won, who was raiding another lair, via the communication magic tool.
"We found our lair."
[Good. We're inside raiding now. How's your side? Any issues?]
Yoo Ah-yeon looked around again before replying.
"Yeah. No big problems. What about you guys? No magical beasts or anything?"
[No beasts yet.]
It was then. Another man's voice came through the magic tool.
[Ah, can everyone hear me?]
[Yes, we can.]
[This is Team B. We just finished raiding our lair.]
[Oh…… that's pretty fast.]
Jeong Je-won muttered in a surprised voice.
[The lair was close by. Ah! As the vanguard, let me share info on the lair: the interior is very similar to a ruin.]
"……A ruin?"
[Yes. Like a ruin, there's a guardian at the end of the lair, and defeating the guardian gets you the dragon's treasure. But the guardian is really strong. One member of our team got seriously injured.]
[Oh no. Did you find the Disease Mystery?]
[Yes, but whether you can call this a 'mystery'……]
[What do you mean?]
[It's a mystery, but it feels like a living being. You'll understand when you see it. But it won't break even if you try to destroy it, so you probably need to gather the pieces from other lairs to destroy it.]
It made sense.
In other words, the Disease Mystery was split into pieces, and to lift the Disease curse, they had to collect them and make the complete form.
"Got it for now. We'll contact you again after we finish the raid."
Click.
Yoo Ah-yeon ended the communication and looked at Lee Seo-jun.
Lee Seo-jun had been wearing the communication magic tool too, so he heard the whole conversation.
"We need to hurry with the raid."
Just then, a man approached from afar.
It was Kim Sun-woo.
"What. Where'd you go?"
"Sorry. I was looking around."
"The lair's right in front of us. Did you see it?"
Lee Seo-jun pointed at the lair.
Kim Sun-woo looked at it and gave a small laugh as if he hadn't known.
"Ah, there it is…"
The moment Kim Sun-woo started to reply.
Kwaaaang—!
A powerful mana surge accompanied a massive roar.
At the same time, everyone turned tense faces toward the direction of the explosion.
It was clearly from inside the lair.
Yoo Ah-yeon's expression hardened instantly.
"This mana……
It wasn't mana that an ordinary wizard could produce.
At least S-Rank wizard-level magic.
Yoo Ah-yeon ran into the lair without a word.
Kim Sun-woo and Lee Seo-jun followed behind.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!
The closer they got to entering the lair, the louder the roars became. Judging by the mana felt from inside, at least six sources.
And soon, voices echoed from deep inside the cave.
"Kuhahaha! Finally took it down. Hey, this guy was tough!"
"Come on, the guardian's down, so grab what we can and get out quick."
Yoo Ah-yeon stopped her running footsteps upon hearing the voices.
Her heart pounded wildly. The self-harm scars on her wrist ached.
An unforgettable voice. The laughter she heard from the burning mansion as a child. How could she forget.
……No way. Are those guys inside?
Yoo Ah-yeon widened her eyes and clenched her fists. Lee Seo-jun, sensing it too, gripped his sword tightly.
The moment Yoo Ah-yeon was about to charge forward.
Someone grabbed her wrist firmly.
"Calm down."
A low, steady voice.
Yoo Ah-yeon quelled her boiling rage for a moment and turned her head.
Kim Sun-woo was looking straight at her with clear eyes.
"Fighting them head-on like this is suicide."
"What are you talking about. Those guys are in there……
"What are you gonna do alone?"
Yoo Ah-yeon shut her mouth for a moment.
"There'll be chances to take them down anytime. Even if not now, there are plenty of opportunities."
Yoo Ah-yeon ground her teeth.
It was frustrating, but Kim Sun-woo was right.
Even if her comrade Jeong Je-won were here, maybe.
But just the three of them against Jaun was not just reckless—it was idiotic.
Yoo Ah-yeon suppressed her anger and regained her composure.
And at the same time.
Her suspicions about Kim Sun-woo completely vanished.
"……You're not with Jaun."
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