/
“Lloyd-nim, are you still thinking of going inside that dungeon?” Javier asked.
“Of course,” Lloyd replied while looking up at the sky.
There was no cloud adorning the blue sky. The scorching sun should’ve been lighting up the whole place. However, at the place where he and his companion were right now, no sunlight could be found. Dark shadows loomed all over the place.
‘This place is gloomy,’ Lloyd thought as he shuddered subconsciously.
The Progia Gorge was much narrower and deeper than he had expected. Because of that, the sunlight didn’t reach the bottom of the valley—the place where he was—at all. The sunlight might never really reach this place, not just at this time of the day.
‘I don’t think this place has ever gotten sunlight for at least tens of thousands of years.’
In this place, damp moss and unidentified mushrooms covered all surfaces, while not a single blade of grass grew. Even more so at the cave, the dungeon’s entrance, where Lloyd’s gaze was directed.
“This is too dangerous. I’ve been telling Lloyd-nim this over and over again for the last couple of days,” Javier’s characteristic cold, emotionless, and formal way of speaking prickled Lloyd’s ears from behind. “Lloyd-nim, it’s still not too late to turn back. Our enemy is a black mage.”
“
.”
“It’d be better for us to go back to the territory and go back when we’re fully prepared.”
“
.”
“Lloyd-nim?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you listening to me?”
“No, something’s buzzing at the back of my ear.”
“
.”
Still staring at the dungeon’s entrance, Lloyd said, “Are you a parrot? You’ve been saying the same thing repeatedly since we left the Orc Village.”
“When did I
.”
“You keep on saying something like that all the time. ‘Lloyd-nim, it’s too dangerous’, ‘Lloyd-nim, you’re being reckless’, ‘Lloyd-nim, this is impossible’, ‘Lloyd-nim, lower down the blue flag and raise the white flag’. Aren’t these what you said? Anyway-”
Lloyd scrunched his nose.
“I don’t agree with your train of thought.”
“Why is that?” Javier immediately retorted.
Lloyd also answered back instantly, “Because you’re trying very hard to avoid the uncomfortable truth.”
“Sorry?”
“I mean, you can’t even deny it.”
Before Javier knew it, Lloyd was already looking at him. The look in Lloyd’s eyes made Javier unconsciously hesitate.
“Javier? No, Sir Asrahan. Let me ask you a question. Let’s suppose I followed your suggestion, we’re going back to the territory and then coming back here with complete preparation.”
“Yes.”
“All the soldiers who were captured will die in the meantime, right?”
“That’s
.”
“Right?”
“
. Yes, probably.” Javier nodded helplessly.
Lloyd smiled bitterly.
“That’s right. It’s the painful truth we both know. Still, you’ve made a decision, and it’s not to endanger the heir of the estate’s life just to save a few soldiers, am I right?”
“Lloyd-nim, I
.”
“Enough. I admit your decision is reasonable. But, it’s only when you don’t know how to get past the dungeon’s defensive magic booby trap.”
“Pardon?”
What does that mean?
Javier’s eyes narrowed.
“Do you have any plans to break through the traps in mind?”
“Yeah, I think we can utilize the Asrahan Core Technique.”
“The Asrahan Core Technique?”
“Yeah.” Lloyd nodded.
The contents of the [Iron-Blooded Knight] novel suddenly came to mind.
‘That’s right. You’ve made good use of the Core Technique. You, who are a Sword Master a few years in the future.’
In the novel, Javier will raid this dungeon in the future. He had a lot more experience under his belt than he had right now. Taking advantage of his past experience, he devised the most efficient way to get past the magic booby traps. The plan was to use Asrahan Core Technique’s mana absorption ability.
So, Lloyd told Javier about the plan devised by the future-Javier in the novel.
“You’ve tried to gobble up the surrounding mana with the Asrahan Core Technique, haven’t you?”
“What do you mean by gobble-up?”
“Absorb.”
“Yes, naturally,” Javier replied. “I usually do that often.”
“I bet you did. Me too. It can be done anywhere and anytime. Plus, it’s a good way to train the Asrahan Core Technique.”
That was a fact. For that reason, Lloyd also often used to train the Asrahan Core Technique by doing it whenever he had the chance.
He absorbed the natural mana that was all around him, then amplified it just enough to not be noticeable. It was great for training.
“What do you feel when you absorb the mana in the air?”
“Obviously-” Javier thought for a moment and continued, “I feel at peace.”
“Peace? Why?”
“Maybe because the mana in the air is always constant.”
“Right?”
“Yes.”
That, too, was true. The mana in the air spread evenly every time. There were only a few occasions where they were clustered together in one place or weren’t there at all. Therefore, the amount of mana that was being absorbed from the air to the circle was always stable.
“That’s correct, they are always constant, just like when we breathe air. But what if I told you that you could sense the mana clustered around the hidden magic traps when you activated the Asrahan Core Technique and absorbed the surrounding mana?”
“Sorry? That is, of course
. Ah.”
Javier’s expression changed. He looked at Lloyd in a new light.
“The surrounding mana will be abnormally concentrated in one location, which was around the magic booby traps.”
“That’s right. Did you get what I’m trying to say?
“Yes.”
Lloyd grinned. Javier repressed his admiration in his heart, preventing it from leaking through. The notion was rather simple, but he hadn’t even thought of it.
‘Lloyd-nim is right. Originally, magic circles are devices that artificially attract mana—which is widely spread in nature—and alter its arrangement to produce magic. Naturally, there would be an irregular cluster of mana around each one of those,’ Javier thought
So, how do you find the location of the magic traps? Simply use the Asrahan Core Technique to absorb the surrounding mana while walking slowly. Then, when there’s a magic booby trap that’s near, the mana will be absorbed in lumps.
‘With this, I can gauge the direction and the distance from where the mass of mana is coming. Even if the magic traps are hidden and can’t be seen, I can sense them,’ Javier continued to think.
Javier then turned his gaze to Lloyd.
“Lloyd-nim.”
“Yeah?”
“Maybe, it’s possible.”
“Right?”
“Yes.” Javier nodded.
Lloyd grinned.
“So, are you ready to charge into the dungeon right now?”
“Yes, Lloyd-nim can wait for me here, I’ll go inside by myself.”
“I don’t want to.”
“What is the reason? It’s dangerous inside.”
“I know that too.” Lloyd cast a glance around their surroundings and continued, “Would you feel more assured about my safety if you left me here and went inside alone?”
“Pardon?”
“Is there any guarantee that I’ll be safe here?”
“That’s
.”
“There’s none, isn’t there?”
“
.”
Javier remained silent. Lloyd has got a point. He couldn’t say for sure that there would be only one black mage at the bottom of this gorge.
What if he actually left Lloyd here and went inside the dungeon alone? What if Lloyd, who was left behind, got into unexpected danger? He wouldn’t be able to protect him.
Javier sighed softly.
“I understand. Let’s go in together, but I have one condition.”
“A condition? Tell me.”
“Promise me that you’ll immediately escape without hesitation when the situation becomes dangerous.”
“When the situation becomes dangerous?”
“That’s correct. I understand Lloyd-nim’s desire to save the soldiers inside. Still, the most important thing is Lloyd-nim’s safety, so—” Javier’s expression and eyes turned resolute yet grim. “Please run away immediately should the situation become dangerous. Even if you have to abandon me.”
“Hm? Isn’t that already obvious?”
“
.”
“If my life is in danger, of course I’m going to ditch you and run away. I always do that, it’s not like it’s a new thing for me to do.”
“
.”
“Are you upset? Are you pissed?”
“No, I am not.”
“What do you mean with no. Do you know the look in your eyes when you’re looking at me right now?”
“I don’t know and I really don’t want to know.”
“See? You’re definitely sulking.”
“
.”
One of Javier’s eyebrows twitched.
Lloyd whirled and picked up his shovel.
Before they knew it, they were already inching closer to the dungeon’s entrance. The two of them naturally tensed their bodies and heightened their senses. Javier took a step forward.
“From here on, I’ll go first,” Javier said.
“Right, just go ahead, robot vacuum cleaner.”
“What is a robot vacuum cleaner?”
“There’s something like that. It’s a phrase to convey that you’re good-looking.”
“I’m not that good-looking.”
“Oh, so you’re aware. Let’s focus now, this isn’t the time to joke around.”
“But Lloyd-nim is the one who jokes first
. Sigh, nevermind.”
Javier’s expression turned cold. He seemed to increase his concentration. The steps he took became cautious and slow. He advanced little by little, one step at a time.
Just like a robot vacuum cleaner cleaning the floor, he began to gradually absorb the surrounding mana to get a sense of this place.
Kssrk, kssrk,
There was no wind blowing at the entrance of the cave located at the bottom of the gorge. Only a faint sound of Javier’s footsteps could be heard.
How far did he move forward like that?
Suddenly, Javier stopped walking.
“Here, three steps ahead.”
“Don’t be so vague like that, be more specific. Have you ever seen a pocket watch?”
“Yes.”
“Use the time shown on the clock to specify the direction. If it’s exactly in front, use 12 o’clock. Vice versa, use 6 o’clock if it’s in the back. That’s how it works.”
It was important for Javier to do this right now. If he just vaguely said the direction like ‘front’, ‘right’, etc, a disaster could happen. They could accidentally step on a magic circle with a difference of a few centimeters because their stride and position weren’t the same.
As Javier realized what Lloyd meant, he immediately changed his wording to, “One o’clock from here, three steps away.”
“Okay.”
Kssrk, kssrk,
They proceeded to move as Javier continued to detect the traps.
“2 o’clock, two steps away.”
“What about the direction at 11 o’clock?”
“There’s nothing there.”
“Then, let’s take two steps towards 11 o’clock.”
“I understand.”
“Did you detect something?”
“At 9 o’clock. Our front is clear.”
“Okay, let’s move forward again.”
Just like that, they continued to move forward after detecting the traps. Of course there were some dangerous moments, as the trap wasn’t only in the form of magic.
Tuk, swoosh!
There was a faint sound coming from the floor and arrows came flying from a wall. The green substance coating the arrowheads was glistening. The arrows were poisoned!
“There!”
Lloyd’s shovel blocked an arrow that flew towards Javier’s chest.
“Phew, thank you,” Javier said.
“Don’t mind it. Keep moving forward. You detect the magic traps and I block the physical traps, okay?”
“I understand, but
.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t push yourself too hard.”
“A-ha, are you trying to say ‘don’t get hurt when trying to block the arrows’ or something?”
“Exactly. If Lloyd-nim thinks he’s going to get hurt, you can use me as a shield.”
“I am planning to do exactly that.”
“
.”
“It’s a no-brainer.”
“
.”
“You’re sulking again. Let’s get going.”
Thus, the two of them continued to move forward. Javier detected the magic traps while Lloyd deflected the physical traps.
‘Naturally, in the novel, Javier did all of this by himself.”
The story took place a few years later in the future when he had become a Sword Master. On the other hand, right now Javier was only a High-Level Sword Expert. At this point, detecting the magical traps while preparing to defend himself from a physical attack was impossible. No matter how much he was absorbing the mana, in the end, the size of the cluster he should detect was very small.
‘It was said that the mana would be cluttered, but in reality, hm
. It was like drinking a liter of ramen broth and finding a small piece of scallion mixed in there. No, I think it would be subtler than that,’ Lloyd thought.
This was something that required such delicate senses. Lloyd had to help Javier so he could focus fully.
“Now, now, let’s keep going. Slow down, don’t rush.”
Both of them took their time to advance. The surrounding area gradually became darker and gloomier. They only relied on the light coming from the torch, their only source of light, as they advanced.
They detected a lot of magic traps and avoided physical traps for 30 minutes. 30 minutes became an hour, and then it was already 2 hours.
In the meantime, Lloyd constantly tried to remember and recall the contents of the [Iron-Blooded Knight] novel. At the end of this long series of traps, Lloyd knew there was a type of trap that could never be avoided at all.
‘Based on the novel’s description, it should be around here.’
The passage turned sharply to the right. After that, the passage widened considerably. Lloyd could see an open space in the distance on the other side of the passage. Located at the deepest part of the dungeon, there stood the black mage’s laboratory.
‘Found it.’
At the lab in the distance, Lloyd saw the black mage, who was sitting at the table in the middle, immediately jump from his seat. He also saw the black mage beckoning towards them. At that moment, the trap that could never be avoided was triggered. The trap instantly came down from the ceiling.
Click, rattle, bang!
A thick steel barrier fell, completely blocking the passageway in front of them.
At the back, the same thing happened, another steel barrier fell.
Baangg!
As a result, the two of them were completely trapped in the middle of the passageway.
The trap didn’t end there.
Psssh!
Lloyd heard the sound of some air coming inside the passageway. Then, a sweet and fragrant smell pervaded the enclosed passageway. It was a powerful aromatic gas that could induce sleep.
However, Lloyd wasn’t worried at all. The same also applied to Javier. The two of them hadn’t flinched even once, let alone blinked.
“Oi, isn’t this situation rather familiar?”
“Well, now that you mention it, it does seem like that.”
A dark passageway, a confined place, and isolated from the outside. Somehow, they thought of the ant nest they had overcome before. The similarities between both situations made the two of them smile.
Then, they began to deal with the situation calmly.
After a short time had passed, the black mage’s soul—which was relieved due to his success at locking them both up—began to go out of his body and ascend to the heavens like a dancing eel.
Author’s note: Ksrrk ~(-ㅂ-)~ Ksrkk
TL/n: Lloyd is such a bratty tsundere. XD