Chapter 822: Auden
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 822: Auden
“Ugh… I still feel like there’s something in my butt.”
And the next morning.
Before leaving the room, Sara subtly wiggled her butt and muttered that.
After all, it hadn’t been often lately that her butt was used all night.
Since it had been a while since her butt was thoroughly used, the sensation seemed to linger.
To be clear, I did get an earful before things got to this point, of course.
But it felt like Sara had just said something for formality’s sake, so it passed smoothly without incident.
It’s not for nothing that she’s been with me the longest, you know.
Well, I also knew Sara wouldn’t genuinely get angry over something like this, which is why I did it.
“So, are you turned on?”
“You’re an idiot, aren’t you?”
Sara. That expression suits your face perfectly, but isn’t it a bit much to make at someone you like?
Well, it’s true I said something idiotic.
“She’s calling Oppa ‘you’ again.”
“Yes, yes. Stupid Oppa.”
I’ve been thinking this for a while, but does she think I’ll forgive anything as long as she just adds ‘Oppa’ to the end of her sentences?
Well, I’ll forgive her this time.
“It’s fine. You don’t have to worry, you received the effects of Healing Sex all night, so there’s absolutely no—”
“I wasn’t worried about that!”
“Kyaaaah!”
Pinched in the side by Sara, I left the room and headed towards the dining room, following Vanessa as usual.
But today, the dining room had a different atmosphere than usual.
“You’ve arrived. We’re taking the liberty of imposing, thanks to Telluna’s generosity.”
That’s because not only my girls, but also the executives of the Arachne Clan were gathered in the dining room.
I turned my gaze towards Diana, whose name had been mentioned, and she shrugged, giving me a look that said, ‘Well, we couldn’t just leave them out, could we?’
Well, it’s true we couldn’t just do that.
“You guys really can’t live without the Dungeon, can you?”
“Haha. Well, that’s right.”
And Miriel, as their representative, laughed heartily and brushed off my jab the moment I entered.
I wasn’t complimenting you, you idiot.
“Our dream might finally come true. I apologize for barging in so early in the morning, but I hope you’ll understand.”
At least this one seems to know I wasn’t complimenting her.
Well, if she didn’t have that much sense, she wouldn’t be able to lead a major clan.
So, she knew and still brushed it off like that?
Should I call her magnanimous…? Miriel was still the kind of good-natured person who’d fit right in as a wuxia protagonist.
“So, Miss Miriel, the maiden whose chest is swelling with anticipation. You’ve prepared thoroughly, haven’t you?”
Trying to be sarcastic or playful with someone like her would only make me look petty and strange.
Thinking that, I sat down at the table and decided to get straight to business.
But Miriel didn’t react to the latter part of my sentence; for some reason, she reacted to the former.
“Hm? I don’t think I’m a maiden whose chest can swell any further.”
“That’s not what I meant?! It’s not! Guys! You believe me, right?! It’s really not!”
Are you perhaps getting revenge for me rejecting Alicia?! How on earth did you hear it that way?!
“You look even more suspicious when you panic like that.”
And as I panicked, Matilda, who was acting perfectly like a Cardinal from the start today—perhaps because we were in front of others—gently brought me back to my senses with her words.
“Ah, right. You’re right. My bad. I have quite a history, you see.”
“So you are aware…?”
Diana. Even if I’m thick-skinned, do you really think I wouldn’t be aware? Don’t look at me with such a dumbfounded expression.
And Miss Lutia, clutching her stomach and cackling in the corner. I know it’s funny, but is it that funny that you have to clutch your stomach?
You’re a ‘big sister’ type character too, so why don’t you do something about your clan leader?
Well, she’s definitely not the gently comforting ‘big sister’ type like our Leia, though.
“Hehe. It’s alright. We, more than anyone, know that Guwon-ssi doesn’t act like that with other people.”
As everyone watched me with various reactions, only our angel came to my defense.
Kuh-huh! My angel! Truly the oasis of my heart!
It wasn’t that I didn’t sense a nuance that implied I only didn’t act like that with other people, but often did with them, but that’s not what’s important!
Indeed, I only have my angel!
Anyway, that’s how it came to be that today, even the Arachne Clan executives were all having a meal together.
It seemed they had already had a light breakfast, but since things were this way, it was more convenient to sit at the table together and discuss future plans.
Though we were eating together, among the Arachne Clan executives, only Alicia was actually picking at her food a little, while the others merely sipped tea.
“…What? Do you have something to say?”
And perhaps sensing my gaze, Alicia looked at me with an uncomfortable expression.
Well, it’s unlikely that that Alicia would sensitively pick up on what I was thinking while looking at her; she probably just reacted because I was staring at her while she ate.
For now, it seems she still has feelings for me.
“No. I just meant you don’t have to be self-conscious, you can eat as much as you want.”
“You son of a b— I told you I already had breakfast!”
No. Still, I just felt like you’d eat more. Yeah. My bad. This was definitely my fault.
Since my fault was clear this time, I immediately apologized to Alicia.
But perhaps because she had become conscious of my gaze, Alicia started picking at her food even more than before.
I really messed up there.
Even as she picked at her food, her expression was one that said, ‘To have all this food in front of me and have to act like this…’ which only made me feel more apologetic.
No. But still, don’t you guys live in a mansion even bigger than this?
Well, it’s about quality over quantity, I guess. Does that mean the maids’ skills here are much better?
More importantly, we have the best butler here.
Though that very butler had been silently standing and observing the situation without sparing me a single glance since earlier.
“By the way, not all the executives are here, are they?”
Anyway, after a quick look around, I decided to get straight to business with Miriel.
“We’d like to bring our full strength, but we have our own circumstances. We can’t pull Genie, who’s crucial for the defense of the 5th Floor village, for a journey that might never end, can we? And Lily…”
Saying that, Miriel glanced at Alicia.
At that, Alicia, who had been picking at her food, hunched her shoulders and looked even more intimidated.
Ooh. That Alicia is backing down.
What’s going on? She usually talks about ‘our Miriel’ as if she’s the older sister.
“It’s a hopeful conjecture mixed with personal desire, but I believe the 5.5th Floor, which lies beyond the Turtle Cave, and what’s beyond that, might be the very end of the Dungeon.”
Anyway, Miriel, who had briefly looked at Alicia, turned her gaze back to me and casually dropped a bombshell.
Honestly, I’d always thought these guys had something shady going on, so even though we’re ostensibly cooperating, I never expected them to openly share information about the Dungeon’s deeper layers like this.
“Huh? Really? Why?”
Though I was quite surprised internally, I feigned nonchalance and casually prompted Miriel to continue.
“It’s a simple matter. As you might have heard from Telluna, no path downwards has been found on the 6th Floor. And it’s filled with monsters from which it’s impossible to obtain a Monster Penis. But until now, the sub-layers could be entered using a Monster Penis obtained from the preceding layer as a key, right? Like how the Ant Nest can be accessed via a Mosquito’s Monster Penis from the 2nd Floor, and the Ice Cave on the 3rd Floor via a Seal’s Monster Penis. But the 6th Floor has no path downwards, and no Monster Penis can be obtained to go to the 6.5th Floor. So, we conjecture that the place reached via the 5.5th Floor might be the very end of the Dungeon.”
I-I see. Now that I think about it, that’s certainly true.
Indeed, a Dungeon exploration professional. No, in the sense of earning money from it, I’m also a professional, I suppose. Anyway.
The 5.5th Floor beyond the Turtle Cave. And beyond that, the end.
Until now, I’d vaguely thought we just needed to reach the end, but hearing her say that, it suddenly felt like the final battle was right around the corner.
No, I don’t even know if we’ll actually have to fight something, though.
“And if what’s beyond the 5.5th Floor truly is the end, isn’t there a possibility that the very last part can be reached even without a Monster Penis? Just like how regular floors are connected by simple passages.”
And as I was grappling with this new reality, Miriel made a statement that further complicated things in my head.
Huh? Wait a minute. That means…
“So, if we enter the 5.5th Floor on this journey, there’s a chance we could go straight to the very end. That’s also why Lily isn’t participating. Even though Lily has a constitution that’s unusually resistant to the Dungeon among priests, it’s not certain if she could endure the Dungeon’s final floor.”
Saying that, Miriel glared at Alicia once more.
That one, she strictly warned me never to say that she was the one who told me, but it seems Miriel found out anyway.
No wonder Alicia was huddled in the corner and Miriel was doing all the talking.
I just thought it was because Miriel was the clan leader, but it seems that wasn’t the only reason.
And through Miriel’s words, the reason for Lily’s absence was, for now, clearly explained.
No wonder one of the most important members, capable of using healing magic even in the deeper layers, was missing.
That’s a shame. I was hoping to subtly use Analyze to check her level if I met her this time.
Well, that’s not important right now, though.
“Indeed. That makes sense.”
Even as I answered casually, my mind became complicated.
While sharing information about the Dungeon’s final floor so openly made me a little suspicious, I still believed these guys had something shady going on.
But these people, they might be able to reach the Dungeon’s final floor on this journey?
Shouldn’t I stop them?
“Of course, even if we could reach the final floor, we don’t know how much we’d be able to investigate. But don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten our promise. If anything suspicious is found, we’ll immediately return and report it to you. Right?”
And as if she had read my thoughts, Miriel said that with a refreshing smile.
Just looking at that smile, she really does seem like a genuinely good person, though.
“Right. Exactly. Since the Goddess specifically brought me to this world to do something, you never know what might pop out, so be careful. And with Lily-ssi out, you don’t even have a healer.”
Ultimately, all I could do in that situation was try to scare Miriel as much as possible with those words.
“…We will.”
Though it seemed to have the opposite effect.
She just seems like a good-natured person, but this one’s also a little crazy.
To make an even more excited expression when told it’s dangerous.
So it’s not for nothing that she’s the leader of the Arachne Clan, I guess.
Whether her old words about wanting to go to the Dungeon’s end simply to fight stronger opponents and become stronger were true or false, it seemed certain that she was a genuine battle maniac.
How on earth was such a battle maniac born in a world like this?
Isn’t she, in terms of disposition alone, far more suited to be a Hero than our Hero who even has the War God’s blessing?
No. In the first place, they said her skill was on par with that trash… I mean, the other Hero, Threon, so she can’t be a Hero.
Anyone can see she’s higher level than Threon and has more combat experience, yet their skill is on par.
If she were a Hero, that wouldn’t make sense.
No. And she’s not even a Demonkin, to begin with.
Thinking that, I casually used Analyze on Miriel.
Truly, without thinking.
Analyze’s skill level had been stagnant since I hadn’t had many opportunities to use it, but Analyze is a skill that activates based on my level anyway.
Thanks to that, Miriel’s information window, which I couldn’t see before, immediately appeared before my eyes this time.
And as I looked closely at that window, I felt as if I’d been hit on the head with a hammer.
Name: Miriel Auden
Race: Demonkin 19
Job: Magic Swordsman 250 / Adventurer 250
Level: 250
…Huh?