Party (1)
Even when Jung Hayan brought Han Sora back wearing a face full of guilt, I had been startled.
She had already received treatment from Sun Heeyoung, and yet she still looked like nothing so much as a bundle of rags.
I had no way of knowing exactly what Jung Hayan and she had gone through together.
But looking at Han Sora’s condition at the time, it was obvious she had suffered far more than I could even imagine.
The aftereffects were still there even after Sun Heeyoung treated her, so no further explanation was really needed.
Looks like the trauma dug in deeper than I thought…
I had never imagined she’d be the type to wet herself just from seeing Jung Hayan.
Now that it had turned out to be a complete misunderstanding, Jung Hayan didn’t seem to pay Han Sora much mind anymore, but I couldn’t help worrying about her the whole ride back to the city in the carriage.
To be exact, I changed my pants three times on the way from the tutorial training grounds to Lindel.
If the carriage hadn’t been so spacious, I was sure I would have changed them seven more times.
Thanks to that, Han Sora was using the same compartment as the deeply sleeping idiot—Dialugia—and to be honest, even that seemed a little uncomfortable for her.
It wasn’t as if I could do anything to help.
Just hearing Jung Hayan’s name sent her into convulsions, and if her shadow so much as fell across her, her whole body started trembling violently. There was nothing I could do from this end.
For the time being, all I could do was watch and wait until she adapted as much as possible.
By then, I had started to wonder whether choosing Han Sora had been a mistake.
Even if we split into Party 1 and Party 2, once the second party was up and running properly, we could stand together in dungeons or on battlefields.
Thinking about it that way, helping Han Sora get her mental state under control seemed necessary to some degree.
Still, she’s better than she was at first.
I wasn’t sure if it was because there simply wasn’t anything left in her bladder to come out, but by the end she hadn’t gone rigid with relief, so it was at least a decent start.
The first step was to show her, in as many ways as possible, that we had safeguards in place.
I was the one holding the leash on a wildly excited hound, and merely showing that I kept a muzzle on it most of the time should be enough to help.
Of course she’d still be scared, but at least it might keep her from having a full-blown attack.
While I was turning over one possible solution after another, the carriage had already passed through Lindel’s main gate.
That was exactly when Yoo Ahyoung’s mouth fell open.
Han Sora, who had been trembling all this time, was staring out the window too, apparently curious, and Lee Changryeol was also glancing out with a look that pretended not to care.
“Wow….”
It was the same reaction our party had when we first saw Lindel.
Of course, that reaction made perfect sense. Unlike the training grounds, which had no conveniences or entertainment to speak of, Lindel showed evidence all over the city that civilization had taken root here to some degree.
There were places to enjoy culture, and even the faces of some people carried a bit of life in them.
As expected, the moment we entered the square, voices began reaching us from everywhere.
“Looking for a party! If only a priest comes, we’re heading out to hunt right away. We’ll split the spoils fairly too. If only a priest comes, we move immediately! Thieves need not apply.”
“Selling a rare-grade item. Come take a look—I’m pricing it cheap.”
“Extra! Extra!”
“Recruiting people for dungeon exploration! It’s a normal-grade dungeon!”
“The bestseller that’s taken Lindel by storm—How the Alchemist and the Genius Swordsman Fell in Love, Volume 3! Limited quantity, only 93 copies left. I’ll distribute exactly 93 copies, no more. To everyone who’s been waiting, we sincerely apologize.”
So they’re even selling novels now…
What drew my eye most of all was the crowd gathered on the outskirts of the square.
It was absolute chaos.
Watching a group made up almost entirely of women desperately fighting over that mysterious novel made me wonder what on earth was going on.
“What? Are you kidding me? I’ve been waiting since last night—how is that even possible?”
“What kind of event is this supposed to be? Who’s running it?”
“I don’t care about the money—if there are any left, just bring them out already!”
“You think we don’t know the big guild executives got copies in advance? So only big guilds get to be readers?”
It was the kind of frenzy I’d expect when Blue announced a new model of potion.
That could make money…
Now that people’s lives had started to gain a little breathing room, it seemed they were spending more gold on all sorts of content.
Seeing them even trying to pressure people who had already bought the limited edition novel into selling it back to them was so ridiculous I nearly laughed.
Without thinking, I glanced sideways at Team Leader Kim Miyoung and spoke.
“Team Leader Kim Miyoung?”
“Yes?”
“That’s….”
“Ah. It seems to be a novel that’s been popular in Lindel recently.”
“I see. Is it selling well?”
“Yes. It was originally something that only circulated in the underground, but word of mouth started spreading, and now… I’ve heard it’s even being distributed in Celia and Dawan.”
“In Celia and Dawan too? Huh… that’s interesting. The content business really does seem promising these days… Do we happen to have anything planned on the Blue side?”
“No, not yet….”
“If you don’t mind, please submit a report including market research. There’s no rush, so I’d appreciate it if you could make it thorough before sending it over. Handling distribution ourselves sounds like it might be fun too… Oh, and has Team Leader Kim Miyoung read that novel by any chance?”
“Pardon? Ah… yes.”
She looked a little hesitant.
Team Leader Kim Miyoung was the sort of person you could safely call an absolute workaholic. The fact that she seemed to enjoy some leisure and hobbies on her own time was strangely reassuring.
“That’s a relief. Then the content….”
“It’s a bit complicated to explain.”
“I see. Hayan, have you read it?”
“No. It’s my first time seeing it. I didn’t even know something like that existed.”
Clearly, people who enjoyed that kind of content were still a minority.
Still, with the whole place practically reeking of ordinary people living their lives, even the newcomers didn’t seem to think Lindel was so bad after all.
They all looked fairly pleased.
Maybe right now they were thinking something like, So this is a place where people actually live.
Of course, if you looked a little deeper, there were things here that might make you frown, but even so, this was undeniably a city full of life.
There were plenty of people laughing, and the city had its own vitality.
Part of the reason the whole city had become livelier was certainly because the newcomers had arrived, but I also felt like I ought to thank the good people of Lindel for leaving such a favorable impression.
While I was taking in the scenery, the carriage eventually crossed the square and headed toward Blue’s guild house.
Not long after, Team Leader Kim Miyoung’s voice called out to me.
“We’ve arrived, Vice Guild Master.”
“Ah. Yes.”
The moment I stepped down from the carriage, the first things I saw were Park Deokgu and Hwang Jeongyeon.
It had been a really long time since I’d seen that little runt, and standing right beside him was An Gimo.
There was someone else I hadn’t seen in even longer.
Cho Hyejin’s here too.
It seemed things in Castle Rock had been wrapped up more or less.
I figured I’d have a chance to talk to her separately later.
What was a little interesting was that Blue’s guild house had been expanded while I was away.
I’d heard the reports, but…
Seeing it in person was definitely different.
The design itself felt closer to medieval than modern, but it had a certain classical charm.
The newcomers seemed to like Blue’s guild house too, since they kept blinking around in amazement, which somehow made me feel proud.
Before I could even properly tour the guild house, voices were already calling out to me.
“Brother!”
“Ah, Deokgu. Jeongyeon, Hyejin, it’s been a while. And you too, Yeri….”
“Mm….”
“Yes. It’s been a while, Vice Guild Master….”
“And An Gimo?”
“Actually, our former guild master told me to get out if I was going to leave, so I packed up and came straight over. I’ve been staying in Blue for a few days now. Haha….”
“Ah! I see. Welcome to Blue.”
“And now, why don’t you all greet each other properly? These are the newcomers joining us this time. From the left: Yoo Ahyoung, Lee Changryeol, and Han Sora.”
As I turned slightly and introduced them, the first to greet us came into view.
“Hello. I’m Yoo Ahyoung. Please take good care of me.”
“I’m Lee Changryeol.”
“I’m Han… Sora. Please take care of me.”
Seeing them each introduce themselves in their own way made me oddly pleased.
Yoo Ahyoung was quite lively, Lee Changryeol was, well, Lee Changryeol, and Han Sora was still watching Jung Hayan’s expression.
Of course I had to speak again.
I felt the need to get the atmosphere under control.
“Yoo Ahyoung is a warrior-type, Lee Changryeol is an assassin-type, and Han Sora is a mage-type. I’ll explain the details later, but I’m planning to train them as the core members of the soon-to-be-established Second Party. For now, it would probably be best to assign their lodging first… Ah, Deokgu. I think it’d be best if you handled the guide. Jeongyeon, I’d appreciate your help too.”
“Well, if it’s something like that, you’re welcome anytime!”
“Please guide them carefully from the basement to the upper floors, and Jeongyeon can choose their rooms right away. Lee Changryeol said he wanted the room farthest in the corner, so do that… and please think carefully before deciding for Han Sora and Yoo Ahyoung.”
“Mm-hmm!”
“There’ll be a dinner party later, so please finish everything you need to do by then. As for the preparations….”
I figured the guild staff probably handled most of it, but there were always people who wanted to do things on their own too.
“I… I’ll… do it….”
It was Kim Yeri, staring at the new juniors with wide, curious eyes.
She already seemed to think of herself as a senior.
Of course, there was no way I could leave this sort of task to a kid who still wasn’t even an adult. Before I could even think about assigning a guardian, someone else’s voice came from beside me.
“I’ll go with them, Vice Guild Master.”
“I’m counting on you, Hyejin.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll go along as well.”
“That would be good, An Gimo.”
There were a lot of people—more than I could readily count—crowded into a single space, so things felt a little hectic, but I didn’t dislike the atmosphere.
Jung Hayan, who was clinging tightly to me, didn’t seem to care what the mood was at all.
Personally, I didn’t think it was bad.
Since Ddolddoli had been asleep for quite a long time, the mood suggested Dialugia wasn’t going back to her nest today either.
As I spent time thinking that we’d really all be gathered together after so long, the day darkened faster than expected.
The newcomers were still touring Blue’s guild house, and with Kim Yeri, Cho Hyejin, An Gimo, and even Jung Hayan starting to prepare for the party, things naturally wrapped up quickly.
Once word spread that we’d entered Lindel, they had settled in and were now waiting for their lovely regressor to arrive.
Not long after, that bastard opened the door and stepped inside.
I missed you, you little punk.
Meeting his face this close up really had been a long time coming.