Chapter 27: Unexpected Guests and the Sinner’s Karma

“Where am I going to find three more people? I can call two of my friends, but should I look for the last one in the guild?”

“I’ll just bring one,” Sephiroth said.

“You… have friends?”

“What a rude thing to say.”

Honestly, it was a shock. There were actually people out there who wanted to be friends with someone who slashes anyone within a 40-meter radius? I stared at him with my mouth agape, but then I realized—to others, I probably looked like one of those people now.

“It’s not a one-sided friendship where only you think you’re friends, right?”

“Princess.”

“Fine, fine. Drop the nickname.”

I snapped at the cringeworthy title. It seemed Sephiroth had realized that this nickname was particularly effective at getting a rise out of me. I really shouldn’t give him any “bait” and just ignore it, but…

Anyway, Sephiroth and I agreed to bring our own people. The ones I was bringing were obviously Gyu-tae and Seong-jin.

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Han Gyu-tae, Park Seong-jin. [Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Can you come to Lake Deya right now? [Friend] JustOneHitOppa: ? I’m busy playing right now. [Friend] PungPungLove: ? Did Sephiroth leave? [Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: I got a Hidden Quest and found a Hidden Dungeon, but it’s a 5-man raid. [Friend] JustOneHitOppa: Hidden Dungeons are always welcome ㅎ. [Friend] PungPungLove: On my way ㅇㅇ.

“I’ve called mine.”

“Mine says they’re coming, too.”

Sephiroth seemed to have succeeded in calling someone as well. A friend of Sephiroth? Who on earth could it be? As I looked at him with suspicious eyes, Sephiroth brushed his cheek.

“Falling for me? Why the stare?”

“Shut up and keep that helmet on…”

I let out an exasperated sigh, and Sephiroth chuckled.

The first to arrive at Lake Deya was Park Seong-jin. After asking if he just needed to come down under the lake, he dropped down from above in a relaxed posture.

I see. I was the only one who made a huge fuss about falling in.

Worrying that Sephiroth might snitch about my earlier embarrassing tumble to my friend, I hurriedly sent the party invite.

“This is my friend.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“This guy’s a bit of a brat,” I added, introducing Sephiroth to Seong-jin.

I nearly jumped when Sephiroth immediately addressed Seong-jin casually (using banmal), but thankfully, Seong-jin wasn’t the type to care about such things. He just shook his head as if it were fine.

“Then I’ll speak casually too. That cool?”

“Don’t care.”

“It’s my first time seeing you in person. You really don’t kill people who come within 40 meters?”

“He told me not to,” Sephiroth said, pointing his thumb at me.

So he actually was keeping that in mind?

Honestly, I had long since forgotten about it. Seeing people scream and run the moment Sephiroth appeared made me assume he was still slaughtering whoever he pleased. Back then, I was only angry because someone I knew had died. I never expected Sephiroth to actually listen to me.

However, I didn’t let my inner thoughts show. I didn’t want to hear about the person I was traveling with committing massacres anymore. If he’s listening, why nag him further?

“Anyway, it’s an honor to clear a dungeon with a ranker. I’m not that great, but please take care of me.”

“As long as you listen, it’s fine.”

“Hmm… I’ll do my best as far as my hands can keep up.”

Since Seong-jin was inherently polite, he managed to maintain a somewhat normal conversation with Sephiroth.

Next to arrive was Han Gyu-tae. A stunning “Noona” in a sharp suit performed a cool landing. The boisterous laughing voice that followed was a woman’s voice that didn’t suit Han Gyu-tae at all.

“So you’re Sephiroth? Hey, nice to meet ya! Eonha, you’re seriously amazing. Finding a Hidden Dungeon and all.”

“Hey, zip it.”

Since my name isn’t exactly common, I hurriedly punched Gyu-tae in the shoulder. Only then did he catch on and laugh awkwardly.

“Ah, well, you know, that was your old nickname.”

“Please just shut up.”

You’re not making it any better…

Understanding about half of what I meant, Gyu-tae whispered a small “Sorry.” I considered kicking him out, but for the sake of our friendship, I sent the invite anyway. Seong-jin was a Knight, and Gyu-tae was a Musketeer. Since he had poured his heart and soul into his character design for the sake of his “Net-kama” (online cross-dressing) persona, the way he spun his revolvers from his holsters looked like something out of a movie.

Wait, hold on. Why is a Musketeer using revolvers?

“Do Musketeers normally use pistols?”

“It looks cooler, doesn’t it?”

I had forgotten that Gyu-tae was a different flavor of crazy compared to Sephiroth. I decided to keep my mouth shut.

“Where’s the person you called?”

“Almost here.”

As soon as Sephiroth answered, a figure dropped from above. I thought the figure looked a bit small, and sure enough, a tiny weasel-folk male character came waddling over.

The moment Han Gyu-tae saw him, his face went deathly pale.

<JustOneHitOppa has left the party.>

“Huh? What are you doing? Why did you leave?”

“I… I think I just remembered I have somewhere to be.”

“Suddenly?”

“Yeah, so, uh, bye.”

“Where are you going, Noona?”

Noona? Noona? Noo-naaa?!

The moment the weasel opened his mouth and called out “Noona,” the atmosphere between us became incredibly bizarre. The only person here who could be called “Noona” was Han Gyu-tae’s female character.

No… maybe Sephiroth is actually a woman?

“Noona?”

Seeing Sephiroth ask back, it seemed that wasn’t it either…

Han Gyu-tae, staring at the weasel with a look of utter despair, looked around for an escape route, but we were already deep underwater. He couldn’t even swim up because the moment the final party member, the weasel, entered, the lake’s surface froze over again.

“We get to party together, Noona!”

The weasel waddled over and stood next to Gyu-tae. The weasel was only half the height of Gyu-tae’s character. Watching the weasel look up at the towering Gyu-tae was pure comedy.

I really wanted to ask why he was calling him Noona.

It was a question of protecting my final loyalty to my friend or protecting my conscience toward that weasel. I decided to endure it for now and whisper the truth to the weasel after the dungeon clear. Or I could ask Sephiroth to relay the message. Having found a compromise between conscience and friendship, I re-sent the party invite.

<JustOneHitOppa has joined the party.> <AngelA has joined the party.>

AngelA? It was a nickname I felt like I’d seen somewhere before. I searched my hazy memory but couldn’t recall the exact source. I let it slide. Our Gyu-tae was fidgeting like a dog that needed to go outside. Even Seong-jin, who usually looked after him, just shot him a pathetic look and looked away.

“Noona, why are you like that? Did something bad happen?”

“…No…”

“Your voice sounds so dead, Noona. Shall I buy you the Phantom Suit Set?”

“I-it’s okay. More importantly, if you stop calling me Noona…”

“What’s wrong? My Noona is even refusing the Phantom Suit? Are you really sick?”

Oh boy. I think Han Gyu-tae is going to cry.

But whether he cried or not was none of my business. Coldly speaking, this was a disaster of his own making, so he had to handle it. It seemed he had treated this weasel like a “whale” (big spender) and squeezed all sorts of things out of him; it was only natural to pay for his sins. Actually, this couldn’t even be called a punishment yet.

[Friend] JustOneHitOppa: Plz save meeeee… [Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: That’s why you shouldn’t have been a Net-kama. [Friend] JustOneHitOppa: I only did it to him! ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ [Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Doing it to one person is still doing it.

He lived his life so recklessly, I knew he’d get caught eventually.

“You guys figure out the Phantom Suit among yourselves. Shall we get moving?”

“Sure. Hello everyone, I’m AngelA. My class is Magician. Please take care of me.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“I’m PungPungLove, a Knight. It’s an honor to party with AngelA-nim. Please take care of me.”

“…”

The weasel quickly bowed to me. Seong-jin and I bowed back. Unlike a certain someone, he was a very polite fellow. Was he friends with Sephiroth because he was so nice? They say “he who touches pitch shall be defiled,” but that didn’t seem to be the case here. Then again, I was different from the Net-kama Han Gyu-tae. Look at Gyu-tae, unable to even speak, just hanging his head.

I drew a cold line in my mind and approached the iron gates. Creeeeeak. As the rusted hinges screamed, the tightly shut doors swung open.

“Let’s all do our best.”

I said it as a “fighting!” cheer, and I felt Sephiroth glance my way.

<You have entered the dungeon: Castle of Doltec.>

A grand voice announced our entry.

It was a space with a mystical atmosphere. White sunlight filtered down from above, and on the ground, glowing blue moss clung to the stones, giving the impression of green stone lanterns. Colorful mushrooms and coral reefs added a floral vibrancy, and the water moss on the floor shone like a lawn, blending perfectly with the turquoise water.

In the center of it all stood a massive castle.

The weathered castle was designed in an Eastern style—the kind of place you’d imagine as an underwater Dragon Palace. Blue roof tiles and red-walled pavilions shimmered strangely beneath the blue water. Beyond the lattice windows, white lights flickered on and off repeatedly.