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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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The lanky, piercing-laden grotesque, Nasen, walked through the forest, leaning on his spear.
Dark circles hung under his already skeletal face.
Horrific screams echoed in his mind.
[Buhiiik! Just kill me! Nasen! This is too agonizing! Buhiiik!]
The screams of Huruuku, devoured by Barickmeteo.
Perhaps Nasen would meet the same fate.
In that case, death might be preferable.
There was only one reason Nasen’s life had been spared: he could obtain an item even Barickmeteo didn’t know about.
That item was the Doll Ginseng, said to be within a dungeon called the Labyrinth. A treasure that, upon consumption, could transform even an ordinary human into a superhuman.
“If only I eat the Doll Ginseng… Barickmeteo won’t be able to touch me.”
Nasen didn’t trust Barickmeteo’s promise to spare him.
That lion-headed monster was atrocious enough to devour him after receiving the Doll Ginseng.
“It’s a good thing I lied and said it was a powerful weapon.”
If he had mentioned the Doll Ginseng, they wouldn’t have let him move alone.
There was a reason why Nasen hadn’t retrieved the Doll Ginseng from the Labyrinth, despite knowing of its existence.
The Labyrinth was far from easy.
Thorough preparation was required to increase the chances of successfully conquering it, even slightly.
That’s why he massacred the villagers to create the items necessary for the dungeon raid.
“This should be of some help.”
Nasen was unaware that he was being pursued by Lina and her party because of the desperate massacre he’d committed.
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Kerry left the White Witch after entrusting her with the orb.
[Return in about an hour. The orb will be ready by then.]
The White Witch seemed annoyed that Kerry had given her another task as soon as he arrived.
But it couldn’t be helped.
He didn’t have time to play with the White Witch today.
‘I have to peek into Lina’s dream tonight.’
Since Lina met the Saint today, the probability of her dreaming about her was highest tonight.
If Lina had some other random dream, it couldn’t be helped.
But considering Lina’s reaction earlier, there was a high chance she would dream of the Saint.
‘Even if Lina doesn’t dream of the Saint… just being able to glimpse into her past life would be a huge gain.’
The plan would commence tonight when it was Kerry’s turn to keep watch.
Kerry made thorough preparations. He chatted and played with the party as usual and went to bed early.
He didn’t forget to return to the White Witch to retrieve the orb beforehand. While Kerry was dozing, Victoria woke him.
“Kerry, it’s your turn to keep watch.”
“Hmm. Is it that time already?”
Though he hadn’t slept at all, Kerry pretended to be sleepy as he got up. Now he just had to wait for Victoria to fall asleep.
After running around so much during the day, Victoria would probably fall asleep quickly.
He saw the party gathered around the campfire, sleeping.
Even roughing it felt different with beautiful women.
He saw Lina’s face as she slept across the fire.
It would be hard to find another woman as beautiful without makeup as Lina.
As Kerry admired Lina’s doll-like face,
he heard a rustling sound.
“…”
It was Victoria. Lying in her sleeping bag, she gave him that signal.
The signal of inserting a finger into the circle formed by her hand!
The lewd signal Victoria sent when she was feeling lustful.
‘Isn’t she tired after running around so much during the day?’
Kerry shook his head. Tonight, he really wanted to see Lina’s dream.
Victoria persistently sent him the lewd signal several times.
Hey, they just had crazy sex at the hot spring a few days ago!
He wanted to yell at her to stop poking her finger.
Kerry continuously shook his head in refusal.
“Hmph!”
Finally, Victoria turned her back and lay down, sulking. Was he supposed to feel bad about this?
He decided to wait until Victoria fell asleep.
About 30 minutes passed.
Victoria stopped moving.
He carefully approached her and heard her soft snores. Good. Victoria was definitely asleep.
Kerry took out the hero-grade orb.
It contained the dream-peeking magic the White Witch had imbued it with. What was the name of this magic again?
He didn’t know. He couldn’t remember.
Kerry carefully channeled mana into the orb.
Then, he cast the spell on the sleeping Lina.
What? There was no change.
Just then, an illusion unfolded in Kerry’s mind.
His eyes were clearly looking at Lina’s face, but a completely different scene played out in his mind. This was incredibly strange.
He also heard vivid sounds.
“Waaaah! For Elena and the Empire!”
“Give your lives for the Goddess Elpis!”
The scene unfolding in his mind was a war. Not just any war, but a massive war of immense scale.
Surely this wasn’t something that actually happened in their past lives, right? He really hoped not.
Amidst the horrific war, Lina was swinging her sword.
Each time she gritted her teeth and cut down an enemy, she seemed to grieve.
He saw Natasha beside Lina.
Covered in blood, Natasha screamed.
“Ahahaha! What a crazy world! If everyone dies and becomes corpses, this world will be a better place.”
She was completely different from the Natasha sleeping beside him now.
The Natasha in the dream was a crazed lunatic.
Victoria was also there with Lina. Victoria fought alongside Lina, protecting her back.
She looked quite dependable. She even seemed to have the same burning sense of justice in her eyes as Lina.
It seemed they were very close.
It was hard to imagine her as the lewd noble she was now. He felt a pang of guilt.
‘That woman… is the Saint?’
He saw the Saint he met earlier that day. She was supporting the party from the rear. She was doing better than he expected.
Were there other parties? There probably were.
But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t find them. It wasn’t easy to distinguish unfamiliar faces in the chaotic war filled with blood and swords.
Then, like paint dissolving and running in water, the surrounding scenery melted away.
The dream was about to change.
Fragments of dreams flashed through Kerry’s mind one by one.
He saw the Saint and Lina talking. The atmosphere was serious.
[Lina, why are you so careless as a Hero? Because you couldn’t hold back the enemies at the front, the rear was almost endangered again!]
[I apologize… Saint.]
Was this a scene after the previous dream? He only saw a glimpse, but Lina’s performance was truly remarkable. It wasn’t something to be criticized at all.
Lina apologized in a dejected voice, promising to try harder.
[This is such a headache. Why aren’t you showing any improvement as the Hero? I know you’re trying. But there’s no tangible progress. I don’t want to disregard you, Lina, but I can’t keep going like this.]
The Lina he knew was a genius. She was not someone who lacked progress.
[Am I interfering too much? Really. Look here, Lina. Aren’t you being too sensitive? Have you seen other people say those things to me? Because you’re not doing your job properly, Lina, I have no choice but to scold you so much.]
[I apologize. It seems I was being sensitive because I was tired.]
If the Saint acted like that, it was natural for others to hold back their complaints.
The Saint’s position in the Empire was that significant.
He was starting to understand the situation. The Saint’s words were always similar.
[As the Hero, please show us something worthy of the title. You’re the Hero, and you’re the one who asked me to follow you here. Because of you, the Hero, I have to keep scolding you like this?]
[I apologize. I will try harder.]
[That ‘I’ll try harder’ line! I’m so sick of hearing it.]
Kerry thought he didn’t need to see any more. He exited Lina’s dream. He felt bad for her, seeing any more.
That’s how dejected Lina was in her dream.
It was completely different from the Lina he knew. It was undoubtedly because of the Saint.
‘Isn’t this bitch completely insane?’
To put it bluntly, the Saint was gaslighting the Hero.
If Kerry weren’t part of the Hero’s party, he would’ve laughed at the absurdity of the situation.
But Kerry was a member of the Hero’s party! This wasn’t someone else’s problem.
That Saint was going to be his future party member?
Would Lina really want the Saint in the party after experiencing this?
Knowing Lina’s personality, she might accept the Saint as a party member if she deemed her necessary.
Thinking that she just had to endure it. But Kerry absolutely could not accept the Saint.
‘I can’t let her ruin the atmosphere of my precious party.’
He had to do something.
The situation was more serious than he thought. The Saint probably thought she was doing a good job, but she was just a total troll.
If that Saint joined the party, the atmosphere would be ruined.
He didn’t want that!
Kerry liked the current bright atmosphere of the party.
Was there no solution?
Kerry continued to ponder throughout his watch.
‘She sleeps well even after having such a nightmare.’
Lina was still lying down, asleep.
He felt a newfound respect for Lina. Despite her young age of twenty, she’d experienced such things and yet maintained a strong moral compass.
But being righteous alone would only lead to being exploited by a bully like the Saint.
But there was no need to worry.
He had seen this dream.
‘In this life… you can’t troll anymore, you Saint bitch.’
That night, Kerry quietly came up with ideas to stop the Saint.
He recalled the perverted treasure vault his brothers at the magic tower possessed.
The Sage’s vault contained many precious items besides the Arachne’s Ring he’d obtained.
Of course, there was also an item that could completely transform a gaslighting bully into a new person.
Though he wasn’t sure the Saint herself would appreciate being reborn as a new person.
It seemed like he needed to pay his brothers a visit after a long time.
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Morning came.
The party began busily preparing to track Nasen.
“We’ll be moving a bit urgently today. Be prepared.”
Lina’s words, which would have sounded dependable in the past, now felt different.
How much mental anguish must Lina have endured alone?
Until now, Lina had been a reliable presence Kerry could trust and depend on.
He would readily agree to anything Lina suggested because she was a Regressor.
But things changed a little after seeing her dream last night.
‘Even Regressors aren’t all-powerful. Especially someone with a gentle nature like Lina…’
Being kind wasn’t bad, but objectively, it had many drawbacks.
Just look at Lina. Despite being so skilled, she was being gaslighted by the Saint.
If she had a tougher personality, she wouldn’t have become a target for the delinquent Saint in the first place. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got!
“Lina.”
“Yes, Kerry?”
“If you’re ever having a hard time, please tell me.”
“Haha. Thank you. Even without you saying that, I always rely on you, Kerry.”
He wanted to tell her to confide in him anytime, but he couldn’t, which was frustrating.
For some reason, Lina felt like a pitiful younger sister being bullied by a delinquent.
A kind younger sister who only smiled brightly, unable to tell her older brother about the bullying because she didn’t want him to worry. Having relied on Lina all this time, it was natural for him to want to take care of her now.
“Lina, there’s a leaf in your hair. Stay still. I’ll get it for you.”
“…”
Kerry placed his hand on Lina’s hair as he spoke.
Normally, Lina would respond stiffly with something like, “Is there a leaf in my hair?” or, “It doesn’t matter if there’s a leaf in my hair.”
But for some reason, the iron-walled Lina was blushing.
“I…It’s okay, Kerry. I can get it myself.”
“…”
Blushing suddenly like this?
No, that couldn’t be. The iron-walled Lina wouldn’t do that. It must be his imagination.
He must be suffering from delusions of grandeur because he was so popular lately.
But when he saw Natasha approaching with a wary look on her face, he couldn’t help but question Lina’s iron wall once again.
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