Chapter 67

Today is the day we set out on an expedition.

Since this is our party’s third expedition, including the request, everyone seems to have gotten used to preparing for it.

“Yoo Hyun, did you pack everything?”

“Yes, bro.”

“Yoo Rim, what about you?”

“I packed everything, oppa.”

Good. During the first expedition, I had to worry about a lot of things, but this time, it was clear that everyone was preparing well on their own.

“Yoo Ju, we’ve packed everything.”

“Good. Then let’s all get on the carriage now.”

Just as we were about to board the carriage, excluding Song In-woo, Lee Jae-hyo came out of the Clan House and spoke to us.

“…Are you heading out on an expedition?”

Everyone, including me, was surprised. Lee Jae-hyo looked clean and tidy. His messy beard was gone, and his neat appearance suggested he had overcome his grief.

‘…Has he moved on?’

It took some time, but he seemed to have overcome his sorrow. Truly, he had remarkable mental strength. I even felt a sense of respect for him. If it were me, I wouldn’t have been able to recover in the same situation.

“…Jae-hyo, are you okay?”

“Yes… I’m fine. I’m sorry for causing you all so much worry until now.”

“No, Jae-hyo. We completely understand. Just overcoming it is impressive enough.”

“…Thank you, Yoo Ju. No… Clan Master.”

It seemed awkward for him to call her Clan Master since it wasn’t Gu Yeon-jeong but Seo Yoo-ju who held the position.

“While I was holed up in my room… you all did a great job. Honestly, I thought… you might all leave the clan, but seeing you all trying to rebuild the clan made me realize I couldn’t just sit back.”

Honestly, while managing the clan’s situation, Lee Jae-hyo’s absence was deeply felt. Seo Yoo-ju, being a Returner, handled things skillfully, but the rest of us weren’t as adept.

“I feel ashamed of myself. I should have been the one leading you all through hardships, but instead, you all waited for me patiently.”

“…Jae-hyo…”

Looking at the other clan members, they all seemed happy to see Lee Jae-hyo back to his senses.

‘Well, we did receive a lot of help from him.’

In fact, among the original members of Eternity, Lee Jae-hyo was the closest to us. In a way, he was like our mentor.

“I hope you all have a safe expedition. We can discuss the rest when you return. I’ll… take care of some tasks and guard the clan while you’re away.”

“Alright, Jae-hyo. We’ll be back. Please take care of the Clan House.”

“Of course, Clan Master.”

‘It’s a relief he’s back to his senses.’

Lee Jae-hyo was a valuable asset to the clan. He had no rough edges in his personality, so he would surely be of great use.

It was truly good news that Lee Jae-hyo had regained his composure.

*****

We were traveling by carriage. The area Seo Yoo-ju had chosen as the expedition destination was a bit far.

Our destination was a small wilderness next to the Otnelli Forest, a frontier area. From what I had researched, other exploration teams had checked it out but found nothing significant.

When Seo Yoo-ju first explained the reason for choosing this destination, her reasoning seemed quite weak.

She brought various documents to explain, but to me, it felt like a flimsy reason to go on an expedition.

The others seemed a bit puzzled too, but they seemed to trust her judgment. In my case, knowing she was a Returner, I had no reason to refuse. I just nodded along and accepted her explanation.

‘If she’s offering to guide us to a sweet spot, why refuse?’

It was like she was handing me a ripe fruit. All I had to do was reach out and take it.

‘Nice.’

I wasn’t too worried about the expedition. With Wi Ho-yeon as a strong addition, the difficulty level shouldn’t be too high.

“Yoo Ju unnie, I heard we’re heading to an uncharted area. What kind of place is it exactly?”

“Ah… no need to worry too much. It’s a small wilderness next to a frontier area. It’s called the Ashen Wilderness, and while it’s labeled as uncharted, it’s practically a frontier area.”

That’s true. According to the documents I checked, the place we’re heading to is marked as uncharted, but it’s essentially a frontier area. The only reason it’s uncharted is that the paths aren’t cleared. The monsters there aren’t anything special either.

“…Is it dangerous?”

“It should be fine. From what I’ve researched, the monsters roaming there aren’t very strong.”

As soon as Yoo Rim and Seo Yoo-ju finished talking, Wi Ho-yeon, who seemed curious, spoke up.

“…Clan Master, do you think there’s a dungeon there?”

“Hmm… I can’t say for sure, but there’s a possibility, right? According to the documents, only one small clan has explored it, so there might be places they missed.”

“…I see.”

Wi Ho-yeon, being a veteran player, didn’t seem entirely convinced by Seo Yoo-ju’s answer, but she seemed to accept it. Given her loyalty to Seo Yoo-ju, she didn’t seem inclined to question her judgment.

Since we weren’t heading to a discovered dungeon but rather to find one, everyone seemed a bit worried.

“…Don’t worry too much. Whether we find a dungeon or not, there probably won’t be any dangerous situations. Even if we do find a dungeon, if it’s too dangerous, we can just sell it to another clan.”

Everyone nodded at Seo Yoo-ju’s words. It seemed to ease their worries a bit.

After a few changes in the scenery outside the window and a night passing, we finally arrived at our destination.

“Oof!”

“Hey, be careful, man.”

“Ugh… I was getting so bored in the carriage. Weren’t you bored, noona?”

“I’ll admit, I was bored too.”

As everyone got off the carriage and stretched their stiff bodies, Seo Yoo-ju spoke up.

“From here on, we can’t use the carriage, so we’ll have to walk.”

The reason we can’t use the carriage anymore isn’t because the path is rough or nonexistent. It’s because coachmen usually don’t venture into uncharted areas for their own safety.

There’s a way to pay the coachman extra to go further, but the clan’s finances aren’t exactly overflowing, so we didn’t do that.

“Yoo Ju, which direction are we heading now?”

“Hmm… first, let’s go according to the data I’ve researched.”



“So, if you look at this here…”

“…Is this a translation of ancient script?”

On the paper Yoo Ju showed, there were writings that seemed to be a translation of ancient script.

“Is this a translation of ancient script?”

“Yes, that’s right. It’s a combination of materials found by a clan that previously explored the Ashen Wasteland and some additional research I did. I asked In-woo to translate it from the expedition logs.”

‘I thought she was sticking around Song In-woo to learn about the clan, but it seems she also had this in mind.’

I thought she was following In-woo around to learn about the clan, but apparently, she also had this translation request in mind.

“If you read the translation… you’ll notice a specific three-letter pattern repeating. It’s a bit hard to spot, though…”

As Yoo Ju said, upon closely reading the translation, I could see a specific three-letter pattern repeating, unrelated to the context.

“…If you combine these three letters and convert them back to ancient script, you get this word.”

“…What word is it?”

“Library.”

I was puzzled by the sudden mention of the word “library.” Given the context, it couldn’t be referring to a library in the city.

“Library?”

“Yes.”

‘…What on earth does this wasteland have to do with a library?’

I couldn’t figure out any connection between the wasteland and a library. No matter how I looked at it, I couldn’t see any relation between the two.

Yoo Hyun’s eyes sparkled as if he had found the answer, and he shared his thoughts.

“Yoo Ju, noona! Maybe it’s referring to a library in the city?”

Hearing Yoo Hyun’s words, Yoo Ju smiled as if finding him cute and replied.

“That’s a possibility… but I don’t think so. Because the clan that previously explored the wasteland also translated the word ‘library’ and thoroughly searched the libraries in the city.”

“Ah… I see…”

Yoo Hyun looked disappointed and sulked.

“…So that clan found nothing?”

“Yes. The clan that explored before gave up after finding nothing in the libraries. They couldn’t find any further clues.”

“Then, Yoo Ju, have you found something?”

“Take a look at this.”

“This is… a map of this area. What are these markings?”

On the map Yoo Ju showed, three locations were circled.

“These are the places we’re going to visit. According to the documents I found, there are three highlands in the Ashen Wasteland. Seeing that these three highlands are specifically mentioned, I think we should explore these three places first.”

There must be something at those three locations. Yoo Ju seemed to be taking things step by step to avoid others getting suspicious if they found the dungeon right away.

“I see, understood.”

“Alright, let’s get going then.”

After moving for quite some time, the highlands gradually came into view.

“Ugh… damn… I hate this. Do we have to climb up there?”

“You have higher stamina stats than me, why are you complaining?”

“Hey, why are you being so petty? Just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean I’m weak.”

“That’s sexist, you jerk.”

“Yeah, if you don’t like it, then leave.”

‘…Damn her.’

“…Fine, I’ll let it slide this time.”

“Let it slide? Do you let things slide when you’re with a woman at night too?”

“…..”

“Kick. Just kidding. Why are you so shy?”

Seemingly pleased with having gotten a reaction out of me, Kang I-seo was giggling.

Wi Ho-yeon looked annoyed by Kang I-seo’s crude jokes, staying far away from her, possibly because she wasn’t immune to sexual innuendos.

Yoo Ju, on the other hand, didn’t seem to like the conversation between me and Kang I-seo and started speaking with a displeased expression.

“Kang I-seo, please refrain from making such jokes. It’s making Yoon Seong uncomfortable.”

“Come on, can’t I make a joke like that…”

“Who in the world makes jokes like that?”

“…Wait a minute. Yoo Ju, don’t tell me…”

“…What? If you have something to say, say it.”

“…Yoo Ju, you’ve never been with a man on Earth, have you?”

“…What?”

“Your reaction says it all. How on earth…”

“What?! What are you talking about?!”

I pretended not to hear the conversation, wanting to protect Yoo Ju’s pride. Looking around, everyone else was also pretending not to hear.

When Kang I-seo looked at Yoo Ju with pity, Yoo Ju, unable to bear the shame, shouted with a red face.

“That’s not true! I’ve been with plenty of men!”

Realizing what she had said, Yoo Ju quickly tried to backtrack, flustered.

“Ah…! No, no! I mean, not that I’ve been with many men, but…”

Before I could respond, Kang I-seo continued.

“…Yoo Ju. There’s no shame in that. Well, maybe there is, but it’s better to just be nonchalant about it…”

“Shut up!”

It was clearly Kang I-seo’s victory. Yoo Ju, already KO’d, was being beaten while down, looking utterly pitiful.

Finally, unable to bear it, I spoke up.

“…There’s no shame in that, Yoo Ju.”

“……”

Hearing my response, Yoo Ju trembled and walked with her head down.

Hyeon-jin, seemingly wanting to lighten the mood, spoke up in an awkward voice.

“Ahaha… The weather’s nice today! It was a good idea to come out, don’t you think, bro?”

‘…Don’t do it, you idiot…’

It was so awkward I could die. Yoo Rim pinched Hyeon-jin’s side, giving him a look to shut up.

“Ouch!”

“…Be quiet, Hyeon-jin oppa.”

“…..”

For a while, we walked in silence.