Two weeks had passed.
Jeong Yusin’s daily routine was one of endless training.
He would wake up at dawn, warm up his body, and wring out his mana while pondering over how to skillfully wield the imprint techniques.
From morning until lunchtime, he studied writing at the temple.
And from lunchtime until night, he was pushed to the limit at the swordsmanship guild.
The body improved by level-ups adapted quickly to the harsh training.
It was as if the baseline of his physical capabilities had been drastically raised.
This body could be compared to one that had been injected with dozens of times the appropriate dosage of anabolic steroids and growth hormones.
The excess fat had disappeared while working at the Demon Disassembly Site.
He gained muscles at the swordsmanship guild.
Astounded at the explosive growth of his strength and stamina, he involuntarily clucked his tongue.
And yet, he enjoyed it.
“So this is why people get hooked on fitness.”
After finishing his early morning training, he settled on a bench at the inn, admiring his muscular forearm with prominent veins.
“Is this my arm?”
It resembled the robust forearm of a Golden Sun protagonist in harem genres.
Just as he was about to lose himself in peculiar fantasies…
SLAP!
He slapped himself.
“Get a hold of yourself. This isn’t the time for you.”
He rubbed his now-numb cheek and muttered to himself.
SQUEAK.
The door to the inn opened, and one of the beastkin entered. Instantly, all eyes in the inn turned to him.
The murmuring conversations ceased, and an uneasy silence enveloped the inn.
Jeong Yusin regained his senses, turned his head, and looked at the beastkin.
Karin.
The red-haired representative of the Beastkin Union and his benefactor who had saved his life.
Their eyes met.
“Hello.”
She gave a slight bow in greeting. Though he had once groveled for his life, he still owed her the grace of having saved his life.
Karin’s red tail swayed gently.
Her white shirt revealed a black lace bra, and her tight brown leather pants left nothing to the imagination, showing off her well-built thighs and ample rear.
Two daggers crossed at her back, their hilts poking out prominently.
Karin approached and plunked herself down on the chair opposite Jeong Yusin.
“Darmong, food please.”
“Yes, miss.”
Perhaps due to her high standing in the Beastkin Union, Darmong maintained proper decorum.
Darmong courteously bowed and went into the kitchen to fetch the food, placing it on the table.
It was a dish of large sausages stir-fried with potatoes and cabbage. There was also grilled rye bread and a cream similar to kaymak.
“Let’s eat first, then we’ll talk.”
“Yes.”
For a while, the two focused on their meal. Karin ate voraciously, clearly hungry, and Jeong Yusin kept pace with his fork and spoon.
“Phew. That was good. It’s hot, isn’t it? Is it summer already?”
Karin fanned herself as she spoke.
Her shirt was damp from sweat, revealing the embroidery on her black lace bra.
“Did the slave hunters send an assassin?”
A direct question came.
“Yes, but is it appropriate to discuss this in front of so many people?”
“It’s something I want others to hear.”
Karin looked around the room.
Those who met her eyes either sheepishly lowered their heads or hurriedly left the inn.
“I’m sorry. It’s my fault the slave hunters attacked you.”
Karin apologized.
“Why is it your fault, Miss Karin?”
“I’ve been beating up a lot of people lately. They must be pretty mad. Judging by how they attacked you to send a message.”
“What kind of message do you mean?”
“A message that we’re watching you. They couldn’t touch me, so they touched someone I saved.”
“Why would they specifically target me? There were many others.”
“You’re a rootless barbaroy with no backing.”
Jeong Yusin frowned. It was the truth, and there was nothing he could counter with. He couldn’t bring up Simuth’s name either, or Luke would come and kill him on the spot.
“Alright, I’ve received your apology and understand the background of the attack. I’ll go now, then.”
“Not done yet.”
Jeong Yusin sat back down.
“What?”
“Join me.”
Jeong Yusin’s eyes met Karin’s.
When Karin straightened her back, her large bosom pushed out prominently, and Jeong Yusin’s mouth slightly opened.
“Serve me.”
“… Serve what exactly?”
“Various things. I’ll pay you. Fifty silver coins per month.”
This startling offer made gasps and heavy breathing audible from various parts of the inn.
Isn’t it a good offer? He was almost out of money, anyway.
“There are two conditions. You must not enter the labyrinth, and you must stay close to me.”
At Karin’s conditions, Jeong Yusin fell silent and stared at the empty bowl on the table.
After a while,
Jeong Yusin lifted his head.
Karin stiffened.
This wasn’t the man who had bowed at her feet, imploring her to save him.
It was hard to get used to this complete change.
Especially this man’s eyes.
Jeong Yusin’s eyes, filled with strong determination, branded Karin’s heart like a fiery imprint.
“Impossible.”
A much deeper voice penetrated her ears, making Karin’s body hairs rise.
“Why? Isn’t it a good offer? You don’t have to go through the trouble of entering the dangerous labyrinth.”
“I need an imprint.”
“What kind of imprint?”
As they exchanged questions and answers, Karin increasingly felt like she was being pulled into a mire.
“I will not disclose this easily.”
A firm rejection.
A vein popped slightly on Karin’s forehead.
“So? If you don’t want to say, don’t. It’s probably just some insignificant imprint. And why are you talking down to me?”
“I apologize.”
Jeong Yusin immediately cowered.
Upon seeing this, Karin’s irritation rose even further.
“Alright. Get out.”
“Yes.”
Jeong Yusin immediately stood up and left the inn.
Karin bit her lips tightly. Feeling the gazes around her, she glared around the inn.
“What? Are you done staring? If you’ve finished eating, get out!”
People scattered like flies, hastily leaving the inn.
“Randolph!”
Karin shouted furiously. From outside the inn, a giant wolf beastkin entered and bowed.
“Yes.”
“Send some kids to keep watch.”
“Whom should we watch?”
“The black-haired barbaroy who just left.”
Randolph recalled the incident a few months ago.
The man he had forced to the ground.
He had seemed weak and unremarkable, but now his master seemed interested in him.
‘Our master isn’t used to rejection.’
With a bitter feeling, Randolph bowed lower and asked,
“Do we really need to watch over him?”
“I saved him. It’s my accomplishment. No matter how high or low the slave hunters fly, they cannot soil my deeds. I don’t care how he falls, as long as the slave hunters don’t kill him.”
“Yes.”
Randolph left the inn, and Karin was left sitting alone.
“Darmong.”
“Yes, Miss Karin.”
“Where did that barbaroy go?”
“He went to the Dejimoseon Temple.”
“Why?”
“To learn how to read.”
Karin smirked.
“Is he really a reliable man?”
“He hasn’t caused any trouble.”
“Have you heard anything? What kind of imprint is that barbaroy looking for?”
“I don’t know. He hasn’t mentioned anything.”
“What does that barbaroy want exactly?”
“He seems to be short on money.”
“Alright. I’ll come back later. Let him know.”
Karin placed a pouch of silver coins on the counter and left.
Darmong sighed deeply.
As a member of the Beastkin Union, he couldn’t refuse Karin’s questions and requests. Still, he had tried his best to side with Scath.
“Oh, my head.”
Darmong’s lamentation echoed through the empty inn.
Late at night, Darmong was sitting at the counter with his arms folded.
“He should be here about now.”
CRASH!
“I’m here.”
The inn door opened, and Jeong Yusin entered.
Judging by how much dust and sweat covered his body, his training at the swordsmanship guild had been brutal.
“A letter came for you.”
“For me?”
“Yes.”
Jeong Yusin walked over briskly, tore open the seal, and glanced at the contents.
“Hmm.”
Jeong Yusin wore a serious expression.
“Is there some big problem?”
“No.”
In response to Darmong’s question, Jeong Yusin replied with a sigh mixed with words.
“Then?”
“I can’t read it. It’s too difficult. Can you read it for me?”
Jeong Yusin handed over the letter.
Darmong calmly took the letter and began to read it.
“They’re disbanding the party. Dell is retiring, Einhofer has been hired at the forge, Carlton was appointed as a clerk in the magic department of the Second Academy of Lionel Kingdom. The main reason given is that they cannot continue the party due to Dito’s betrayal.”
Jeong Yusin slumped, completely drained of energy.
‘So that’s it. They’ve given up and are moving on to their own lives.’
The image of Carlton watching the stars early in the morning that day pierced his heart.
He swallowed his bitter feelings. He couldn’t afford to give up. He had nowhere else to go.
He straightened his back and posture.
He couldn’t afford to be swayed by emotions. There were more pressing matters.
‘I need to earn money.’
Two weeks had passed. It was about time to pay the rent, get the gear ready, form a party, and buy supplies for the labyrinth exploration.
‘Damn money.’
A sigh escaped his lips. His posture sagged.
Even in this fantasy world where giant talking bears existed, the fear of money hit him just as realistically as it had in his original world.
‘Lives are mostly the same, I guess.’
Darmong looked at Jeong Yusin’s gloomy face and stroked his chin.
“Scath, is there a task you’d like to take on? How about it?”
“What is it?”
Darmong smiled bitterly as he saw Jeong Yusin’s eyes light up.
‘Sorry.’
Darmong silently apologized in his heart, unable to voice it.
“Miss Karin wants to hire you.”
Jeong Yusin frowned.
“Isn’t this an old story? I said no.”
“It’s a different offer. She will visit tomorrow evening. How about listening to her out once?”
“But…”
KACHUNK!
Darmong placed a leather pouch on the counter. The jingling sound confirmed it was definitely coins.
Jeong Yusin’s resolve wavered.
“Fifty silver coins. She said it’s an advance.”
“Grgh! Alright, I’ll listen.”
Though Jeong Yusin clenched his teeth in frustration, his eyes were glued to the pouch of silver coins.
Darmong took a silver coin from the pouch and flicked it to Jeong Yusin.
“You’re meeting her tomorrow evening, so go get cleaned up at the bathhouse.”
“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
The next day, after finishing all his chores, Jeong Yusin visited the public bathhouse in the southern district.
Thanks to the vigorous training at the swordsmanship guild, Jeong Yusin was looking rather disheveled.
The bathhouse owner said sternly,
“Don’t stab anyone just because you see a hole.”
“I’m not that kind of person.”
“If you stick a sword into someone with their back bowed and claim, ‘He was asking for it by revealing his hole, I couldn’t resist,’ let me tell you this: A person with their back bowed is just that, a person with their back bowed.”
Barbaroys, these crazy bastards.
He was utterly sick and tired of these Barbaroys.
“I’m not that kind of person. I prefer women.”
“Better not change your mind. I’m letting you in because business is tough these days. Be careful.”
The bathhouse owner didn’t even listen to Jeong Yusin’s words.
‘What exactly are these Barbaroys up to?’
Hatred towards Barbaroys he had never even seen swelled within him.
Passing the counter, Jeong Yusin stripped at the locker room and entered the bath. The air inside was thick with steam.
People walked past, stark naked.
A man with tattoos all over his body swaggered past and bumped into Jeong Yusin.
“Hey, what guy…?”
The man scanned Jeong Yusin from head to toe, his gaze fixating on one spot.
“Sorry.”
“Unbelievable. Such a young guy with something monstrous..”
The man looked at Jeong Yusin’s face in disbelief and then back down at his lower half.
“What kind of imprint is that? Speak, what imprint is that?”
The man asked.
‘This bastard.’
Jeong Yusin’s face twisted.
“It’s not an imprint. It’s embarrassing, so please stop looking.”
“Eh? Oh, sorry.”
The man scratched his head awkwardly before walking away hastily.
Seeing him try to talk, Jeong Yusin guessed he was a fresh newcomer unaware of the notoriety associated with Barbaroys.
Observing quietly, he noticed similar behavior among the people.
They used buckets to scoop water from a giant wooden tub to wash their bodies before entering the pool.
Once inside the pool, they would relax their bodies or chat with others before leaving the bathhouse.
On closer inspection, there were even scrubbers and saunas.
‘No hairy beastkin present here.’
Feeling relieved, Jeong Yusin approached the wooden tub.
People were scooping water from the tub and pouring it over their heads and bodies.
Jeong Yusin followed suit.
Pouring water from the tub over his body, he shivered at the sensation of the warm water rushing down.
Having been only wiping himself with wet towels daily, the proper bathing stirred deep emotions within him.
“Ah. Sex.”
The surrounding people gasped and stepped back, some covering their backsides with wary eyes.
He paid it no mind. This was sex.
After cleaning off sweat and dirt, he entered the pool.
Immersed in the warm water, Jeong Yusin closed his eyes, hearing the murmurs of people around him.
“Did you hear?”
“What about?”
“About what happened in the labyrinth.”
“Is it about the disappearance of the novice explorers? I already know it but…”
“It’s not just that. The return of mid-level explorers who entered recently is also delayed.”
“That’s common, right? Doesn’t seem like a shocking piece of news to me.”
“Every exploration guild branch leader in the city received a summons just the other day. It’s usually not normal.”
“…”
“The movement of the knights in the Labyrinth City is unusual too. Let me tell you, entering the labyrinth now is not a good idea.”
“Damn. It’s tough enough making a living in the city already, do we now have to venture outside the city and earn a living? Tch.”
“Taking a break and coming back isn’t a bad idea.”
“Easy for you to say. My whole family is here…”
The men continued their various discussions, but Jeong Yusin paid no attention to them.
‘Something’s happening.’
Something was going on in the labyrinth.
Jeong Yusin crossed his arms and looked at the ceiling.
Information that novice explorers wouldn’t gain access to was flowing in the higher echelons.
And with that realization, Jeong Yusin felt a strong hunger gripping at him.
