Seo Dawon showed little response to my honest reveal.
Was that really the only question he had? However, within the minute, a new message arrived.ย [For that price, though, wouldnโt it be better to get carried through a more useful Dungeon, to get power leveled?]
As expected, he must be bored. But I also found the long, silent walk down the hallway uninteresting, and, at a quick glance, no one seemed to have noticed my strange behavior. So, as if my thighs were a keyboard, I began typing.
Before I could explain that Lackey was the default servant provided when Necromancers chose their profession, Seo Dawon said, โWhatโฆI wasnโt your first?โ in a strange tone.
While we walked for 30 minutes, we continued to exchange banter. Unexpectedly, Seo Dawon was not a bad person to talk to. Though I had the constant feeling that he was amused with my general situation, he didnโt seem overly patronizingโjust teasing? His words were surprisingly funny as well; I was in danger of bursting into laughter twice.
Perhaps Seo Dawon was curious about the man who revived him, he had asked countless questions about my life. I was reluctant to answer many of themโฆFamily ties, where I lived before I entered the Hubโฆ
Whether or not I had a girlfriendโฆquite personal questions. I lied, [I had one, but got dumped]. Though Seo Dawon had a good sense of humor and was easy to talk to, he was not the type to be considerate of social conventions. He didnโt seem to notice my reluctance to answer some of his questions. If something tickled his curiosity, he dug for answers until the bitter end.
In fact, Iโve never had a girlfriend before. Sure, I wasnโt the most popular person around, but I was also uninterested in women in the first placeโฆ.But I kept that information hidden. I felt if I had revealed my disinterest in women, Seo Dawon would just dig more into my personal business.
At this point, I slowly became curious about Seo Dawonโs past.
Now that I think about it, this jerk dug so far into my past without revealing anything about himself! I didnโt ask before since I didnโt want to make him wistful or uncomfortable about his deathโฆbut it seems I was considerate for nothing! He just casually asked me whatever suited his fancy, without avoiding any topic.
Seo Dawonโs personality didnโt seem to be one to be stuck on the pastโฆ.So, during a pause in our conversation, I lobbed a question at him instead.
The answer was hard to refute; I turned my head, unwilling to compare myself to Dawon. Instead the ghostly man just met my eyes and smiled. He looked me up and down before saying, in a meaningful tone, โI was popular with men too.โ
My sarcastic retorts did their best to hide my flushed cheeks and agitation, but I couldnโt help but think that my thoughts were somehow transparentโthat made it hard to speak to Dawon afterwards.
Seo Dawon didnโt make efforts to continue heckling at me either, andโthankfullyโthe conversation soon dissipated.
Kim Sangyoon shouted โHalt!โ His large voice drew all attention. The heavy set warrior lowered his greatsword onto the floor with a metallic thud and looked at me. โChoi Lee-kyung. Whatโs the name of the material you need?โ
โAh, thatโsโฆ.โContaminated Dark Liquid.โ It drops when you kill a Mourning Slimeโฆ.โ
โAnd those appear in the trap rooms, correct?โ
His latter question was not directed at me but at the Treasure Hunter leading the party. He replied, โYes, hyung! Weโre entering the room right now!โ
A new system message popped up simultaneously with his response.
โฟโโโโ-ใโใโโโโ-โพ
Youโve entered a Normal Mode trap room!
โฟโโโโ-ใโใโโโโ-โพ
After that message popped up, a transparent yellow liquid flowed out of the cracks in the walls, blocking the passageway.
Though the new monster provoked my sense of danger, I wasnโt nervous at all. Nothing could compare to the horrifying beings Iโd encountered in the hard route or in Dawonโs foggy memoriesโฆHowever, the liquidโs stench was a problem.
Though we were 100 meters away, the sour, damp, and nasty smell still poked at our nostrils. As the smell stagnated and concentrated, I felt like vomiting.
โฟโโโโ-ใโใโโโโ-โพ
New monster information has been updated!
[Tower of Command โ Mourning Slime.]
The Mourning Slime is an acid monster that only appears in the normal routeโs trap room. This slime, which used to live in the underground waterways of the tower,ย usually gorges itself upon the dead bodies clogging the sewers. Upon realizing how delicious living beings are, the slime has left its territory to directly hunt for prey!
It has strong acid and poison attacks and is resistant to physical skills; please be careful!
โฟโโโโ-ใโใโโโโ-โพ
After reading the message, all the party members took out and wore the masks that they had prepared in advance. Kim Sangyoon, in the lead, had also followed along, but he hesitated when he noticed my uncovered nose.
โHey, you donโt have a mask?โ He asked.
โHuh? Yeahโฆ.โ
I was at a lossโthis situation was so far out of my wheelhouse. I didnโt know that the Mourning Slimeโs stench would taint the air.
Kim Sangyoon looked at me in surprise and cursed, โAre you out of your mind?โ Indeed, I felt like I would go crazy if I took my nose out of the crook of my elbow. He threw something, a small black cloth, through the gap between my arm and face. โQuickly use that, you fool.โ
[Refresh Air โ Mask]
Type: Mask
Durability: 140/140
Level Restriction: N/A
Special Skill: Increased resistance to odors and poisonous vapors while worn.
Description:
Made by Ha Jieun of โJeolla Workshop.โ
Odor Resistance +100
Poisonous Vapor Resistance +100
Berserker had unexpectedly given me a new mask, fresh from his inventory; I was so startled by his thoughtfulness, that I stared at the cloth, dumbfounded.
Then, he approached my side, โWhy arenโt you putting it on?โ He clapped my back with a heavy thud. I quickly scrambled to protect my face from the devastating odor.
Why is he being so nice all of a suddenโฆ?
โHey, stay back, okay?! Even if the material spawns, donโt approach until I give you the โall clear!'โ Sangyoon shouted. โIf you get poisoned, youโll die a dogโs death.โ
โโฆAh! Yes!โ
Following his instructions, I ran to the very back of the party. The rest of the members began to fall into formation and deal with the slow but tricky looking โMourning Slime.โ
At first, the slime didnโt look like a monster and resembled, instead, yellow and oily wastewater that leaked into a river. But, as it attacked another party member, its mouth became well defined. Frankly, the image of it gaping its maw and trying to swallow a human was shocking.
โThatโs going to drop the material you need?โ Seo Dawon, who had been standing quietly, suddenly spoke.
โYeahโฆโ I said, in a quiet voice, staring resolutely ahead.