"I'm used to it."
Looking at Lili's numb little face, Lynn suddenly felt that the snarling monsters of the Dungeon seemed almost adorable by comparison.
Those four words were as light as a feather, yet they struck a heavy blow to Lynn's heart. At least a monster's goals were simple—it either ate you or you ate it. But the burden carried by this Pallum girl was heavier and more complex than the fangs or claws of any beast.
Lynn didn't say anything more. Instead, throughout the rest of their exploration, his strikes became significantly more ruthless.
Glintstone Pebbles, Carian Phalanx, Carian Slicer... he treated the monster spawn points of the tenth floor like his own backyard, plowing through them repeatedly. His efficiency left Lili, who was trailing behind, completely speechless. Her backpack was soon stuffed to the brim, with even the smallest corners packed with tiny magic stones.
It wasn't until dusk fell that Lynn finally stopped.
"That's enough for today."
He clapped the dust from his hands, took the bag of materials from Lili, and then tossed her a coin purse even heavier than yesterday's. "This is today's pay, plus overtime."
Lili held the purse, her fingertips trembling. She looked up, her amber eyes wide with disbelief.
Today's earnings were likely more than she had made in the entire past month.
"Master Lynn..."
"Alright, don't get all mushy on me." Lynn waved a hand, cutting her off. "Get home quickly. It's not safe for a little girl to be wandering around. And remember to hide what needs to be hidden."
With that, he turned and headed toward the Guild, his departure crisp and decisive, leaving no room for lingering.
Lili stood there, watching his silhouette vanish into the twilight, clutching the purse tightly.
This time, she didn't ask if he would need her tomorrow.
She simply gave a deep bow and then turned, running in the opposite direction from Lynn, her pace carrying a sense of urgency she had never felt before.
Lynn didn't go straight home. After turning in the quest at the Guild, he ducked into a secluded alleyway.
Orario at night was far more "real" than during the day. As the daytime prosperity faded, all sorts of stories germinated in the shadows.
Lynn wound through several paths smelling of cheap ale and low-grade perfume before finally stopping in front of Patches' shop.
The interior was dimly lit, and the shelves were cluttered with even more miscellaneous junk. There were fragments of rusted armor, dried claws from unknown monsters, and several bottles of weirdly colored, bubbling potions. The air was thick with the strange scent of dust mixed with metal.
Patches was crouching in a corner with a perfectly standard posture, looking like a frog ready to pounce. He was holding a cloth, meticulously wiping a seemingly ordinary dagger.
Hearing the bell, the bald man snapped his head up. His mercenary face was instantly covered in a sycophantic smile.
"Oho! If it isn't Master Lynn! What wind blows you here today?"
Patches bounced up from the ground like a spring, his movements surprisingly agile for his squat frame. He approached Lynn in three quick steps, his face beaming.
"Master, if you were coming, why didn't you tell me in advance? I could have prepared some top-grade black tea for you!"
"Enough, Patches." Lynn pulled out a stool and sat down unceremoniously, crossing his legs. "Cut the crap. I'm not here to support your business today."
"Now, why would you say that?" Patches rubbed his hands together, his smile growing even more eager. "Your presence makes this shop shine with splendor. Even if you were here to tear the place down, it would be my honor."
Lynn glanced at him. Ever since this bald man had received his investment to open the shop, his silver tongue had only gotten slicker.
"I'm here to ask about something," Lynn said, getting straight to the point.
"Ask away! If it's something that can be found out in Orario, there's nothing Patches doesn't know." Patches beat his chest with an air of total confidence.
"The Soma Familia," Lynn uttered the words.
The smile on Patches' face froze instantly.
A flash of panic flickered in his shifty little eyes. He instinctively glanced toward the door before lowering his voice. "Master... why are you asking about that? That's not a good place to be looking into."
"I'm telling you to talk, not to ask questions." Lynn's tone was flat, but his gaze made Patches shiver.
Patches swallowed hard. His mercenary sycophancy vanished, replaced by an unprecedented gravity. He pulled up a small stool, leaned closer to Lynn, and lowered his voice even further.
"Master, you'd best not wade into these muddy waters."
Seeing that Lynn was unmoved, Patches sighed and began to recount everything he knew.
"The Soma Familia. Their patron god is Soma, a god who... well, he's obsessed with brewing 'Divine Wine' and completely ignores the affairs of his Familia. Because of that, the Familia is actually controlled by a few high-level adventurers."
"The leader is named Zanis Lustra, a Level 2 adventurer and the Captain of the Familia. That guy is a complete scumbag—cruel and black-hearted. Everything in the Soma Familia is decided by him and his inner circle."
Lynn listened quietly, his finger unconsciously tapping on the table.
"The method they use to control the Familia is the 'Divine Wine' brewed by Lord Soma." At this point, a hint of disgust and fear appeared on Patches' face. "That wine... it's said to be a peerless delicacy. If you drink it once, you can never forget it. But its greatest effect is that it's addictive."
"Addictive?" The tapping of Lynn's finger stopped.
"Exactly. Addictive." Patches' face turned a bit pale. "Zanis and the others use the Divine Wine to control the lower-tier members. If they want a drink, they have to hand over the vast majority of the money they earn in the Dungeon every day. it's practically mandatory. Anyone who tries to resist... their end is usually... very grim."
Upon hearing the words "addictive" and "mandatory handover," Lynn's expression darkened visibly.
A trace of the murderous aura he had honed in the sea of blood and corpses of the Lands Between leaked out.
The temperature in the shop seemed to drop by several degrees.
Patches felt this chill, and cold sweat rolled down his bald scalp. He was all too familiar with this feeling—it was the precursor to this master taking action.
"Master, Master..." Patches' voice was trembling slightly. "These waters are really murky! Soma may not care about affairs, but he is still a god. With your status as a non-affiliated adventurer, if you get into a conflict with a Familia, it'll be hard to explain to the Guild. For an unrelated Familia, it's not worth it. It's really not worth it!"
Lynn raised his eyelids and looked at him. That terrifying presence vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"I didn't say I was going to interfere."
He leaned back into his chair, his tone returning to its usual lazy drawl. "It's just that a Supporter I hired belongs to that Familia. I'm just doing a bit of background research."
Patches' lip twitched.
Your expression didn't look like you were 'just doing research,' sir! That was the look of someone preparing to flip a Familia upside down!
Lynn tapped the table lightly, stopping Patches from further persuasion.
"Enough, I know where the line is."
He stood up and tossed a small bag of Valis onto the table. "This is for the intel. Use the rest to get some new stock. Stop selling that scrap metal all the time."
Patches scrambled to catch the coin purse, his terror instantly replaced by mercenary joy. His speed of transformation was truly a sight to behold.
"Yes, yes! Master, you are truly too generous! I will surely scavenge the most... most practical treasures in all of Orario for you!"
He bowed and scraped as he saw Lynn to the door, wanting to offer a few more flattering words.
Lynn didn't look back; he simply waved a hand and quickly merged into the night.
Meanwhile, in the dilapidated district in the northwest corner of Orario.
Unlike the warmth of Lynn's home, the Soma Familia compound was like a festering wound forgotten by the city, radiating an aura of despair and decay.
Liliruca pushed open the creaking wooden door, her breath hitched.
She had hidden the coin purse Lynn gave her in her innermost pocket, placing only a small amount of change and the bulk of the materials in the most obvious part of her backpack. This was a trick she had mastered over the years to survive.
However, as soon as she stepped into the dim hall, a shadow fell from the top of the stairs, perfectly enveloping her small frame.
"You're back?"
The voice was cold, like a shard of poisoned iron scraping against an eardrum.
Lili's body stiffened. She didn't need to look up to know who it was. She silently lowered her head, slid the backpack off her shoulders, and placed it on the floor.
A tall, thin figure with gray-white hair and glasses stepped out from the shadows. He didn't rush forward to seize the bag like that idiot Zoru yesterday. Instead, he crossed his arms, looking down at Lili with a gaze that flickered with the light of a venomous snake.
"Good harvest." He tapped the backpack with the toe of his boot, producing a dull thud.
Lili's heart leaped into her throat.
Zanis. Captain of the Soma Familia and the one who currently wielded true power within the group.
"I heard you found a golden goose?"
Zanis's voice held a hint of playful mockery. "That guy named Lynn, the hero of the War Game who took Apollo's assets. As a Level 2, he really is wealthy, isn't he?"
Lili snapped her head up, her amber eyes filled with terror and confusion.
"Don't look at me like that."
Zanis seemed to enjoy her frightened state. He slowly crouched down, forcing himself to be at eye level with Lili, a nauseating smile on his face. "Orario isn't that big. When a celebrity who's been making waves lately takes on a Pallum Supporter, that kind of news spreads fast."
Lili bit her lower lip, her body trembling uncontrollably.
Zanis reached out, his rough fingers pinching her small chin and forcing her to look up.
"Keep following him."
His voice was dropped very low, as if sharing a filthy secret. "Make him trust you. Make him think you're a pitiable, useful little thing."
Lili's pupils constricted sharply, and a wave of ice-cold dread shot from the base of her spine to the top of her head. She finally understood.
"What... what do you want to do?"
"That isn't for you to ask." The smile vanished from Zanis's face, replaced by a grim coldness. "You just need to do as you're told. When he's completely lowered his guard, lure him to the place we designate. You know what to do, don't you?"
Lili's mind went blank. The image of the boy's lazy smile, the rations he casually handed over... these scenes flashed through her mind.
She shook her head almost instinctively, her voice trembling and tearful. "No... Master Lynn... he's different from the others..."
SLAP!
The crisp sound of a strike echoed in the hall.
Lili stumbled from the blow and fell to the floor. A clear five-finger mark quickly appeared on her fair cheek. A trace of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.
"Different?" Zanis stood up and ground his toe into the floor as if crushing an insect he loathed. He let out a cold laugh full of disdain. "Heh. All adventurers are the same—greedy, selfish, and arrogant. You think he actually cares about you? He just sees you as cheap and useful, a tool to satisfy his pathetic hero complex."
Lili clutched her burning cheek, her tears finally breaking through. They slid through her fingers and struck the cold stone floor, shattering into droplets.
But this time, she didn't argue.
She knew that the price of arguing would only be another, heavier slap or even more terrible torture. In this hell, her will was worthless.
Zanis nodded in satisfaction at her broken state. He pulled a small coin purse from his shirt and tossed it casually in front of Lili.
The jingle of coins was jarringly sharp in the dead silent hall.
"This is your reward," he said condescendingly. "Do well, and there will be more in the future. Don't play tricks, Liliruca. You know the consequences."
With that, he didn't spare another glance for the girl on the floor. He turned and hummed a little tune, leisurely heading upstairs.
Silence returned to the hall, save for Lili's suppressed, tiny sobs.
She looked at the coin purse on the floor, then at her backpack—stuffed with today's harvest—which Zanis had seized.
She slowly reached out and gripped the purse of humiliation. Her nails dug deep into her palms until she felt a sharp sting.
She didn't refuse it.
She knew the consequences of refusal.
She also knew that from this moment on, the tiny spark of warmth and light that boy had given her was about to be extinguished by her own hands.
When Lynn returned home, he was greeted by a thick, suffocating smell of... something burnt.
"Cough, cough... Haruhime, are you practicing alchemy?"
Lynn waved a hand to clear the smoke. He saw Haruhime wearing her apron, her face covered in soot, looking helplessly at a mass of unidentifiable black matter in a pan.
Her golden fox ears were drooping, and her fluffy tail hung dejectedly on the floor.
"Mr. Lynn! You're back!"
Seeing Lynn was like seeing a savior. Haruhime hurried over, nearly tripping on her own tail. "Haruhime... Haruhime wanted to prepare dinner for you and Miss Eina, but..."
She pointed at the pot, looking like she was about to cry from frustration. "The book said that if you just mix eggs, flour, and milk together, you can make delicious pancakes..."
Lynn peered at the mass of "pancakes" radiating an ominous aura, and his lip twitched.
"It's fine, it's fine. Failure is the mother of success," Lynn said with a smile, rubbing her head and helping her wipe the soot from her face. "We'll make them together next time. For now... let me handle it."
After making a few simple sandwiches to take care of their late-night snack, Lynn leaned back on the sofa, enjoying the rare peace.
Haruhime nibbled on her sandwich, her amber eyes stealing glances at him every now and then, a happy, silly smile on her face.
Looking at her, Lynn's thoughts drifted to another small figure.
That Pallum girl, Liliruca—had she made it home safely? Was her Familia... truly as Patches had described?
He frowned, feeling an inexplicable sense of irritation in his heart.
The next morning, Babel entrance.
As usual, Lynn saw Lili at their agreed-upon spot.
She was still carrying that massive backpack, standing quietly at the edge of the crowd like a small statue.
"Morning," Lynn walked over and greeted her.
"...Morning, Master Lynn," Lili lowered her head, her voice barely a whisper.
Lynn's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly.
Something was wrong with Lili today.
Though she was always quiet, the feeling of cautious expectation from yesterday had vanished. In its place was a deeper sense of oppression and detachment. She seemed to be deliberately keeping her distance from him.
"Let's go. We're changing spots today. Heading to the Mid-levels."
Lynn didn't ask questions; he just turned to lead the way.
His Rune farming speed over the last few days had reached the optimal point. Going any deeper would take more effort and slow down his efficiency.
Along the way, his keen perception caught more details.
Lili's steps were much heavier than yesterday. Her gaze was unfocused, and she nearly tripped over stones on the ground several times. When picking up magic stones, her movements were distracted.
Most importantly, she hadn't initiated a single word with him today.
During their midday break, Lynn handed her rations and water as usual.
"What happened to your face?"
He finally asked. There was a faint bruise on Lili's left cheek. Although it was partially hidden by her hair, it was still visible under the dim light of the Dungeon.
Lili's body jolted. She instinctively covered her face, lowering her head even further.
"It's... it's nothing. Lili was just careless and tripped last night," she explained rapidly, her voice carrying a trace of panic she couldn't hide.
Tripped?
Looking at the shape of the bruise, Lynn's eyes grew cold. He had seen countless wounds; he could tell this wasn't from a fall. It was a clear handprint.
Silence fell over the area.
Lynn didn't press her further. He just looked silently at the girl in front of him, watching her curl into herself like a wounded animal that was too afraid to make a sound.
"Let's go."
He stood up, his tone flat. "Let's hurry. I want to clear as much as possible today."
"Yes."
Lili replied softly, following behind him.
During the time that followed, Lynn's attacks became fiercer than ever before.
For the first time, he drew the Bloodhound's Fang in front of Lili.
The curved blade in his hand seemed to transform into a bolt of black lightning. Wherever it passed, monsters were decapitated or cleaved in two. Blood spray and shattered magic stones paved their path.
He didn't speak. He simply demonstrated his power through pure, unadulterated violence.
Behind him, Lili watched his silhouette—a back that looked as if it were ready to tear the entire Dungeon apart. She gripped the hem of her clothes, her eyes welling up once again.
She knew. He must have... realized.
But what could she say?
Could she beg him?
She could only lower her head—numbly and mechanically—continuing to play the role of that "useful little thing."
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