A New Chapter in the Golden Branch
The dialogue between me and Kostin, with the mana concentrator between us, had just concluded.
While Kostin remained absorbed in Cordelia’s legacy—the Wisin Serum—I watched as Ray trotted over with that familiar bouncy stride.
Her words, heavy with concern, made me shake my head with theatrical flair.
“You know it’s fine.”
“Yeah, I know… but still…”
Ray scratched her cheek, and I caught the unmistakable scent of embarrassment rolling off her.
“More importantly, where’s Leaf?”
“Me?”
Leaf had casually lifted the mana concentrator we’d set up with Kostin, now spinning and tweaking it with practiced ease—levers, mana pulses, that satisfied *thump*.
Simple curiosity? Or was he trying to test the limits for himself?
No. Leaf had already mastered the device.
He pulled the exact lever he’d used before, feeding in mana with a casual flick, and the concentrator began to hum.
I turned the whole thing on, the machine groaning in response, gears clicking into place.
Then Leaf’s hand—still supporting the base—produced a crisp *clink* of crystallized mana from the lower outlet.
“What’s that?”
“The concentrator doesn’t just gather. It’s a way of synthesizing mana crystals, in a sense.”
Crystals processed through various catalysts and reagents would eventually become potions.
“Leave it. I’ll handle it later. You two don’t have the tools or reagents for this anyway.”
At that moment, Kostin looked up after finishing his rough assessment of the Wisin Serum.
“Roman Sun.”
He said my full name—rare.
“Sir?”
“You… you’re a descendant of the First Expedition?”
“Me?”
The First Expedition’s official successors could only be the Grand Duke. Seven heroes in total.
History and legend had lost much in the long centuries, but the founding edict of Res Limen by Lombard and Cordelia’s later establishment of the Golden Branch Castle ensured some records survived.
The other five heroes left no descendants—or even students.
And now I was being asked if I qualified?
“That would be the most reasonable conclusion,” Kostin continued, tone even lower than when speaking of Leaf. “But even if it is, it is still the most rational inference.”
“I only acquired it by chance.”
“Chance? Receiving Cordelia’s legacy by chance? Unbelievable.”
“Fate might be a better word.”
“…We’ll see once I study it.”
Kostin had only glanced at the serum, but he already sensed its extraordinary nature.
“Research materials would be available, right? Alchemy advanced through inference and experiment. Cordelia wouldn’t have overlooked that.”
“It’s in the Thelema School.”
“Thelema School?”
“Yes.”
“Initially entrusted to Hekate Cley, I assume. Not bad, but without being an alchemist, she’d struggle to uncover everything.”
Hekate had said as much.
So that was why Leaf had been carrying the serum when he mentioned the Golden Branch.
“From the start, the goal was this?”
Exactly.
Leaf had explained that the school had a teacher.
Afterward he added that his teacher would be leaving the team to protect him, but that detail mattered little.
“I never intended to send Leaf away from the team in the first place.”
“Obvious.”
I’d never planned to send him anywhere.
A walking water purifier. A breathing mountain. How could I abandon that?
If I, a modern Korean, signed demon contracts dripping with poison clauses, Leaf—born high elf—would be forced into unconditional, unpaid, unpaid-holiday servitude to spirits.
I was a fraud too, but Leaf was no ordinary one.
Unlike borrowing demonic power, spirit magic ultimately drained the caster’s own mana. That gap was real. Leaf compensated through his half-high-elf physiology.
In return, any danger I faced would also fall on him.
But that burden was already shared between me and Ray.
Did we abandon such a precious talent out of fear?
Especially in a situation where we might reach the Abyss’s edge?
Absolutely not.
And deep down, the emotional pull ran deeper than any calculation.
Months of time had filled me with a warmth that memories of my lonely slave days could never match.
Thanks to the two of them.
“The only thing I ask is this one request.”
I would entrust the Wisin Serum to Kostin.
Leaf would continue traveling with us.
Until he found his mother somewhere deep in the Abyss.
Until Ray built enough strength for revenge.
Until I prepared to return to my homeland.
“…Fine. But I have one condition. If you refuse, there will be no negotiation. I will fulfill my duties as Nesha’s sister to Leaf’s mother.”
“At that point, the serum would never reach the Golden Branch.”
“Blackmail?”
“Negotiation.”
The Wisin Serum was both a commission item and a bargaining chip.
In any case, Hekate and I had never discovered its true use.
We knew it could be ingested or injected, but we hadn’t reached the part about side effects.
We had no choice but to entrust proper research to someone else.
And that person would gain the research itself as reward.
“Sweet talking.”
Kostin clicked his tongue.
Cordelia’s legacy was an irresistible temptation for one who had climbed to the top of the alchemists, chasing the ultimate secrets of the art.
A member of the Elixiristae, who believed the Elixir of Immortality was alchemy’s holy grail.
“You won. In the end, Kostin couldn’t let go of the Wisin Serum.”
“I’ll go to the Thelema School personally to retrieve the research logs. I can’t wait even a moment.”
“Very well.”
The negotiation ended.
§
The objective had been achieved.
We left the Golden Branch with bright, cheerful faces.
In that mood, on the second floor of the Golden Branch, Ray emptied her purse, impulsively buying gauntlets and greaves for herself.
With everyone satisfied—me, Ray, and Leaf—we headed back toward the Thelema School, lighter than air.
Suddenly Leaf let out a small sigh.
“Ah…!”
“What? Did something else come up?”
“We were planning to get support materials for the expedition coming soon from the Golden Branch, weren’t we?”
Using her connections, she’d tried to get useful goods from Kostin…
“…Turn around.”
Still, we had to grab what we could.
§
Finally, the day broke.
Three days had passed in the blink of an eye.
The departure date of the expedition had arrived.
The Main Base on the first floor of the Abyss.
We stood at the location Viola had announced beforehand.
After exchanging a brief visual greeting with Arthur, who had already arrived, I took stock of everyone gathered here.
Approximately forty members.
Surprisingly few for an expedition covering the entire second floor.
*Elite, then.*
The number was small, but every single prayer felt extraordinary.
Some had clearly come for sightseeing, like me and Arthur, but such people were rare—perhaps one in every six or seven.
“All here!”
A booming voice that matched the phrase “sturdy.”
It swept across the square like a physical wave.
At the same moment, a woman appeared on the stage.
Viola Perlanter.
Hands firmly on her hips, legs planted shoulder-width apart in proud stance.
From below, her entire figure was visible.
Viola radiated pure satisfaction that no one had challenged her selection.
“Exactly as I picked!”
With one eloquent speech, Viola captured the audience’s attention in an instant and launched into her address without pause.
“As you all know, our goal this time is to search and seal the shortcut assumed to have been dug by filthy Abyss worshippers in the second floor!”
There was little substance after that.
Mostly empty boasts—swearing at the filth, confident that nothing of value would be encountered.
Most listened to her speech out of respect for Viola’s overwhelming reputation as a Pioneer.
Others were less swayed.
“Hello, you’re Arthur’s friends, right?”
The speaker was a woman with soft, kind features.
I hadn’t expected her to approach during Viola’s speech and my tongue stumbled.
“Ah, hello.”
“Pfft, don’t worry. Our captain is surprisingly talkative. But she’s also very capable.”
*Frontier Guild.*
I sent a quick look toward Ray, who was meant to serve as a bridge, but she only shrugged.
‘You’ve never met her? What happened at training camp.’
‘Got chewed out.’
*Okay.*
*Understood.*
Naturally shy Leaf had stuck to Ray’s side to avoid the more outgoing crowd.
“Oh right! I’ve been talking about myself too much. Um… do you know who I am?”
“I’m afraid I don’t…”
“Arthur wouldn’t let someone like that wander around.”
The person who had granted me the benefit of the doubt immediately corrected me.
“Also, it’s not good to show little interest in other explorers. Not just any Master-rank explorer—named members of major guilds should at least memorize the big ones.”
It was perfectly reasonable advice, and a senior’s proper demeanor shone through.
Yet it somehow didn’t land well—probably because of Ray.
*That person… is a lion beastman.*
*Can a lion beastman… be smart?*
Was that even possible?
Ray, my only beastman specimen, had contaminated all my knowledge about the species.
“This one is Ruslan. Rank: Expert. Fights with bare hands.”
While my brain short-circuited at the sight of a wise lion beastman, the gentle woman continued smoothly.
“I am Rudmila. Rudmila Illin. As you can see, a pure human. A mage, and a classic supporter. Same rank as Ruslan—Expert!”
Rudmila’s explanation showed no signs of stopping.
Being talkative might have been more than just Viola’s habit—it might have been her self-introduction as well.
Still, Rudmila’s words were genuinely useful.
She was from the Frontier Guild, along with Arthur and…
“That girl.”
The girl glued to Arthur’s side.
“Dana Collen. She’ll probably join your team.”
“With us?”
“Yeah. Your team plus Arthur and Dana. So five members total under our guild master’s direct charge.”
Rudmila and I would lead the other team.
Viola had divided the teams into four for this operation.
One around the gathering point, sweeping outward from all directions.
“Viola is leading one team.”
“Ruslan and Rudmila lead the Frontier veterans.”
“Then the remaining two…”
“See that one?”
Rudmila pointed.
He had an appearance that would never be forgotten.
Full-body armor.
Not the usual plate of the bare-handed fighters, but chainmail.
Design that reminded one of Eastern styles rather than Western.
“Conqueror’s Grant Dexkar.”
“Ghost Samurai?”
“…I know that name.”
*Hmph. Sorry about that.*
But the name Grant Dexkar was famous.
Unlike the two Experts, Grant Dexkar was a Master-rank explorer.
Even if I couldn’t memorize every Master, I recognized the well-known ones.
There were only dozens of Master explorers.
Most hid in the deep floors without even showing their faces in the city.
Still, I could match the name Grant Dexkar the moment I heard it.
*What is this?*
*Weirdly familiar face.*
“Small connection.”
“I know. Blair Dexkar. Grant’s younger brother?”
“You know him?”
Well, my acquaintance was Arthur’s too.
No major guild would miss Frontier’s selection, especially since Arthur was Viola’s former student—the one soon to become guild master.
“Of course the other guild members would be interested in Arthur’s affairs.”
“And the last team…”
“Over here!”
Just as Rudmila was about to introduce the final team, Viola’s voice cut in, mimicking Rudmila’s tone.
“Departure!”
§
“We’ve started moving.”
“Headcount?”
“Forty-two. The leader is Viola Perlanter.”
Wrapped in a hood and long robe, face and body thoroughly concealed, the voice had been altered by magic, making gender and age impossible to tell.
The person listening calmly flipped a page in the book.
“Viola. Her return will be a decent sacrifice.”
“Can we capture him?”
“Suspicious? Those fakes?”
“…The Pioneer is the pinnacle of this generation. Though not on par with the First Expedition, we can’t ignore her.”
“She stepped back from the front lines years ago and hasn’t set foot in the Abyss.”
“…We can wait until Jegan finishes his resurrection and we have solid information.”
“Hmph. Jegan who got chewed out by the training ground brat— what’s so special.”
*Tap.*
The man closed his book with an irritated gesture.
“And we don’t have the luxury of waiting that long.”
He gently placed the book back in its holder and rose from his seat.
With exaggerated movement, he spread both arms wide.
As if welcoming someone, as if preparing to embrace them.
“Soon the Saint will return.”