Chapter 38

Chapter 38

The Regressor’s Prank

“Amon! Are you still alive?”

I stepped over the lycanthrope and approached the place where Amon should be.

Soon, I saw Amon collapsed beneath the wall.

“Mm...”

It seemed Amon had been paralyzed exactly as he had fallen after crashing into the wall. Lying face down, he only rolled his eyes and could not make any particular answer.

[ It seems he inhaled the powder directly. Paralysis can also be resolved with acupuncture, can it not? ]

Sierra asked me from beside me.

As she said, placing a needle in the paralysis point would solve it simply.

However, I coldly turned my back.

“I don’t want to look at the back of a fully grown man.”

The paralysis point was on the back.

Even if I released his paralysis, he would only grumble, and even if I did not, the paralysis would wear off on its own after a short while.

Turning away from Amon, I moved my steps toward the lycanthrope’s corpse.

The thing had been cut apart cleanly.

Rebellion Against Heaven, “Chapter One: Space.”

It was my first time using it in actual combat.

[ It was splendid. Did the proficiency of Rebellion Against Heaven rise because you grew used to the reverse grip...? ]

Sierra was puzzled by my growth rate, which she simply could not understand.

Since my skill level had risen, it had been smoother than the Rebellion Against Heaven I showed before.

On top of that, after catching the thing, I had risen another level. I had four skill points left.

If I poured these directly into Demon Swordsmanship, I thought I might be able to use Rebellion Against Heaven’s second chapter. Of course, I planned to save them.

I lifted the lycanthrope’s head, which lay alone on the ground.

Even in the game, there had not been much information about lycanthropes.

How or why it had mixed into the Labyrinth, why it attacked everything it saw indiscriminately...

There were many questions, but since the thing could not communicate, there was no information I could learn.

However, what I had to do now was decided.

—Stab.

I plucked the eye from the thing’s head.

[ Ugh... What are you going to do with its eyeball after plucking it out? I truly cannot understand you. ]

At this, Sierra let out bewilderment.

For the moment, Amon would be able to hear, so I could not answer Sierra’s question.

What was certain was that even I was reluctant about what I was about to do.

I had to eat the thing’s eyeball.

That was the reward I could obtain from the lycanthrope.

“In the game, it only ended with something like, ‘You consumed the eyeball,’ so I did not really know...”

There were many dark places in the Labyrinth.

If one ate the lycanthrope’s eyeball, one advantage appeared.

One could acquire the skill “Night Vision,” which made dark places appear bright.

Since it was the first boss and appeared in the Labyrinth, one could consider it a kind of “flashlight” for players who would frequent the Labyrinth from then on.

But now that I was actually trying to carry it out, I felt terribly reluctant.

“Should I ask a chef I know how one cooks an eyeball...?”

In any case, I wondered if it would even apply properly when the “blindfold” was covering my eyes.

“I’ll put off eating it until later.”

There was one more eyeball, but I did not bother taking that one too.

Night Vision was a skill whose maximum level was 1. Eating one more would have no effect.

I wrapped the plucked eyeball in cloth and roughly put it into my backpack.

Then, holding the lycanthrope’s head in one hand, I took the entry pass from inside my clothes.

I could see Amon’s pupils trembling over there, but I deliberately ignored him.

He would crawl out well enough on his own.

It was time to leave.

***

When I came out of the Labyrinth, the sun had already set.

I had thought I had descended to the fifth floor all at once, but time had flown by.

Holding the lycanthrope’s head, from which blood dripped, I walked straight ahead.

The staff member managing entry into the Labyrinth found me, was startled, and ran over.

“Student over there...! What... what is that in your hand...?”

“It was the creature on the fifth floor. Its corpse did not disappear and remained, so it got in my way. I thought it was strange, so I brought it out.”

“The fifth floor... I believe you need to see the instructors immediately. Could you follow me?”

“Yes.”

Because of the situation, the staff member stepped forward to guide me personally.

The road I walked along with the staff member while carrying the lycanthrope’s head.

Naturally, the attention of the students around us could not help but gather.

“What is that?”

“A lycanthrope...? Don’t tell me that was the thing on the fifth floor...”

“No way. It isn’t even a monster, so how would it be in the Labyrinth?”

“He just came out of the Labyrinth, though?”

I heard the whispers of the students who happened to be near the Labyrinth after coming out of it.

“Was that guy called Zeto?”

“Did you see him placing needles yesterday?”

“Needles?”

“He was really gentle...”

Among them were also the whispers of female students talking for a slightly different reason.

I did not pay much attention and quickly followed the staff member, leaving the murmuring students behind.

It was only natural that my reputation would rise because of this incident.

From this point onward, the player also began immediately drawing attention from the other students.

Following the staff member, I entered the academy’s main building and went to the instructors’ conference room.

The conference room was empty.

There was no way they would be holding a meeting at this hour.

“Then I will go call the instructors. Please sit and wait here.”

The staff member left those words to me and hurriedly ran out of the conference room.

I sat on a nearby chair, placed the lycanthrope’s head on the desk, and waited for the instructors to arrive.

Since it was the first boss, it was a scene I had seen countless times in the game.

“Trying to experience it in reality makes the process a little annoying.”

Thinking idle thoughts such as how nice it would be if there were a skip, I quietly waited for the instructors.

Not even a few minutes had passed before the instructors who had not gone on vacation and remained at the academy arrived in the conference room.

Among them was Reina too.

Then my explanation began.

An impurity that had mixed into the Labyrinth.

Even looking through the academy’s history, it was an unprecedented event.

Because the matter was unusual, the focus became how it had entered the Labyrinth rather than how I had defeated it.

The instructors had an active discussion, then, to some extent, it settled down.

...The conclusion was “unknown.”

The incident ended as a Labyrinth anomaly of sorts.

Opinions were exchanged that special caution would need to be taken in managing the Labyrinth going forward, but at least in the Labyrinth, something like this would not happen again.

In truth, there was nothing the instructors or academy staff could do.

If anything, I was more curious why the Sage, who should be in the depths of the Labyrinth, had left this impurity alone.

“Was the Sage and the deeper floors really ‘unimplemented’ in the game?”

It was difficult to predict the schemes of someone who had lived for hundreds of years.

In that case, I only needed to proceed as I had experienced in the game.

After the instructors’ meeting ended, I saw Reina still remaining in her seat.

Reina was looking at the lycanthrope’s head when she asked me.

“By the way, Student Zeto. One of this thing’s eyes... where did it go?”

“Ah, that one is my trophy...”

“A trophy, huh... Not bad. Anyway, you did well this time. Thanks to you, the number of injured was reduced. It makes me think lending you the bracelet was the right decision.”

Reina glanced at her bracelet on my wrist and smiled with satisfaction.

It seemed this incident had pleased her quite a bit.

“Haha, all I did was wander around the Labyrinth.”

Because praise from Reina, whose mouth was rough, felt rather awkward, I scratched my head.

“I heard you helped Priscilla this time? Priscilla praised you, saying your acupuncture skills were no joke.”

“I did hear that the two of you were close.”

“Well, ever since we attended the academy together, we ran into each other often at the tavern and naturally grew close.”

Reina loved alcohol very much.

What was unusual was that, despite being terribly weak to alcohol, she loved drinking.

At night, if one went to the tavern inside the academy, they could always meet Reina completely drunk.

“Priscilla often drinks because she cannot sleep well due to memories of the past, though...”

Reina tapped the desk, then rose from her seat and continued speaking.

“Anyway, the academy will be issuing a fairly large reward. The academy solved the problem without lifting a finger, and you proved your skill, so...”

Meritocracy.

It was a reward befitting Innocence Academy.

“If things had gone according to the original plan, I would have collected that reward too, gathered money, and made the cursed blade.”

Thanks to this, I would receive a large sum.

Later, I would need to think deeply about where to use the money.

With a lot of money, there were many things one could do. Especially outside the academy.

As Reina left the conference room, she left me with one final remark.

“I can delay getting the bracelet back a little longer. Later, I’ll tease Edward by saying you’re a guy raised with my bracelet. Haha!”

Hearing Reina’s words, followed by a hearty laugh, I could not stop the corners of my mouth from rising.

“I was secretly worried because Reina was not leaving the conference room.”

Even if she had lent it, it was still an Epic-grade item. The bracelet was useful enough that it would be inconvenient without it.

The bracelet, the reward, the eyeball, and reputation.

I had obtained quite a lot from catching the lycanthrope.

The levels that had risen sharply in the Labyrinth were a bonus.

[...Watching my disciple be recognized by others does not feel bad at all. ]

As I sat in the empty conference room, Sierra approached and stroked my cheek.

“I did not get to talk with Sierra much today...”

It was time to return to the dormitory and catch up with Sierra.

***

I was on my way back to the dormitory after finishing everything.

“The first boss was cleared easily... and there is still time until the next one...”

Come to think of it, the sparring match with Kaen still remained.

I did not know when she would ask to spar, but she would probably speak to me sometime soon.

“Yuri is probably wandering around the Labyrinth appropriately...”

Priscilla.

I would need to put some distance between myself and her.

The fact that she noticed the cursed blade but let it pass without saying anything bothered me.

Whatever her intention was, it seemed that if she took any more interest in me, things would become uncomfortable.

“Eisel is...”

Thinking that, I stopped walking.

It was because I saw a familiar platinum-blonde girl walking from ahead.

Eisel’s indifferent eyes, seen for the first time in days, were still the same.

Soon, Eisel approached me and opened her mouth.

“...It feels like it has been a while.”

“Haha, you’re right. We haven’t met since Labyrinth practice began... It has been a while.”

It had only been a few days, but considering the Labyrinth, where time flowed slowly, the expression “a while” might fit.

From Eisel, I could feel an unknown energy different from before. She had already grown one level further.

At Eisel’s suggestion to talk for a moment, I followed her and sat on a bench by the road.

The streetlamp containing a mana stone made her platinum-blonde hair shine even more brightly as she sat on the bench.

Eisel sat on the bench and swung her legs, then opened her mouth.

“...I heard rumors that you have been resolving all sorts of things.”

“Rumors?”

I asked this while looking at Eisel.

Soon, Eisel opened her mouth to answer the question.

“Mm... Things like you caught a lycanthrope in the Labyrinth?”

“...That happened today, yet rumors spread really quickly.”

It would have been strange if rumors did not spread.

“They also say your acupuncture skills are outstanding, that you are kind and gentle and they like that, and so on... You have become quite popular.”

Eisel continued, frowning as if displeased.

“Haha, it was an urgent situation, so I merely treated them as kindly as I could.”

At my answer, Eisel’s expression eased a little.

After that, I exchanged small talk with Eisel.

What she ate.

How the Labyrinth was.

How stupid the goblins she met on the third floor had been.

...We could not have a deep conversation.

She was a regressor, and I was a possessor.

Neither of us could pour our inner thoughts out to anyone.

As if we understood each other’s positions, neither of us brought up anything deep.

It was certainly a trivial conversation.

But even such a trivial conversation seemed to gradually calm my heart.

Suddenly, just around the time the conversation was about to end pleasantly, Eisel made an uncomfortable expression.

“After talking at length for once, I’m thirsty.”

At Eisel saying she was thirsty, I remembered the water I packed in my backpack when entering the Labyrinth.

I rummaged through my backpack and found the water bottle. But the bottle was empty.

It was because I had drunk a lot of water while running from the third to the fifth floor.

“Ah, the water is all gone. Maybe a nearby cafe...”

Eisel, watching me take out the empty water bottle while rummaging through my backpack, cut off my words and leaned her head in to observe the inside of the backpack.

Soon, her hand moved.

“What is this...?”

What Eisel pulled out after suddenly thrusting her hand into my backpack was a flask containing pink liquid.

“Ah, right.”

It was something Sierra had wanted to buy at the general store, so I had bought it, but I had forgotten to take it out of my backpack.

“Potion of Charm?”

Holding the flask, Eisel slowly read the label.

At this rate, I would be branded as a man who went around carrying things like a “Potion of Charm” in his backpack.

“Ah, that is...”

“Isn’t this just an ordinary drink with no real effect?”

Eisel cut off my attempt to fix the situation and tilted her head slightly as she spoke.

A regressor was still a regressor.

She also knew that this was only a potion that was nothing more than a drink.

“When I stopped by a general store, the old lady who owned it handed it to me, and I put it in my backpack and forgot about it. I had no idea it was a potion with such a name...”

Thinking I could breathe a little easier, I made a natural excuse.

[ So that was just an ordinary drink... ]

Sierra’s disappointed voice rang out after learning the truth about the Potion of Charm.

Why was she disappointed?

After hearing my answer, Eisel opened the lid of the flask.

“I’m thirsty. Is it all right if I drink this?”

Eisel asked me in a dry tone.

I nodded to her.

Receiving my permission, Eisel immediately drank the Potion of Charm.

Seeing her swallow it hastily, she seemed to have been very thirsty.

After all, it was only a tasty drink.

Nothing special would happ...

—Shatter!

...Suddenly, Eisel, who had been drinking the potion, dropped the flask onto the ground.

Perhaps she had drunk all of the potion, because no drink flowed from the broken flask.

“Zeto... I... My body feels strange somehow...”

Eisel murmured in a weak voice.

Then, with her cheeks deeply flushed, Eisel pressed close to my side.

Eisel’s eyes looked as if she were bewitched by something.

Her mouth closed tightly, and she stared at me.

I could not tell whether it was Eisel, the excellent actress, acting, or whether I had bought a real “Potion of Charm.”

[ D-Disciple... Did you not say it had no effect...? ]

Sierra hurriedly covered her eyes with her hands, fumbled helplessly, and stammered.

No matter how I thought about it, there was no way it could have an effect.

Then why was Eisel behaving like this?

Eisel’s hand, which suddenly approached, grabbed mine.

Then she slowly brought my hand to her left breast.

At my fingertips, I felt the academy uniform shirt covering her chest and the beating of her heart.

“Uh...”

At the sudden incident, my mind went blank.

Soon, Eisel brought her face toward mine.

Under the streetlamp, her moist lips gleamed.

“If the Potion of Charm was real... what happens?”

I could not judge the situation properly.

Regardless, Eisel’s face was gradually coming closer.

Now she was so close that her breath touched my mouth.

I had to push her away, but my body would not move.

Just when I wondered whether she intended to kiss me, Eisel tilted her head right before it happened.

Then she brought her lips to my ear.

“...It’s a prank, hehe.”

Her sensual laugh reached my ear, and then Eisel moved away from me again.

Eisel looked amused, the corners of her mouth raised high.

“It was just an ordinary tasty drink. Your reaction is fun.”

“Then why the hand...?”

Even though my head was spinning, I barely managed to throw a question at Eisel, who was full of smiles.

“The sound of my heart. For you, rather than hearing it, I thought touching and feeling it directly like this would be easier to remember.”

Eisel, her eyes bewitching, whispered softly to me.

Sierra, who had been silently watching this scene, spoke words Eisel could not hear.

[ S-so wicked... ]