Retire 414
by Cristae414 Butterflies of Memory (4)
My mind was in complete disarray.
The time we spent facing off against the fairy at the gate was less than five minutes. But if someone told me it had been five hours, I would have believed it.
Even among fairies, Tati had never felt this threatening. When we first entered the dungeon, it did attack us, but thinking back, that was… not entirely sincere. It was more like it was testing us. Trying to figure out why we’d come into the dungeon—whether we were there to clear it, or to chase “Woo Heejae.”
If you think about it simply, maybe its condition wasn’t normal from the effort of maintaining the dungeon. Now that I think about it, for a monster that could fill an entire dungeon with mud, its attacks were rather half-hearted.
Other than that, have I ever met a fairy directly…? Does Alex Hope count as a fairy?
If I just lumped him in as a fairy, it would be an insult to humans.
Anyway, aside from that, the butterfly-caped fairy was the first I’d met as an explicitly hostile invader.
A fairy’s mere presence sends a dungeon’s rank skyrocketing. My father had warned me, and I’d never taken it lightly, but facing one in person was a different matter altogether.
……
Never before had the muggy air of Okinawa felt so welcome.
“U-urgh…”
Robinson, finally released from tension, collapsed to the ground, retching weakly.
“Haaah.”
Han Taekyung, too, pulled off the cloth wrapped around his head and let out a deep breath, revealing a face slick with sweat.
I glanced at Han Taekyung, unsettled by what I’d seen just before we exited the gate. He noticed my gaze as he wiped his face and gave me his usual crooked grin.
…If he was all right, then there was no problem.
I looked at the gate. No matter what kind of hell was unfolding inside, from the outside it appeared perfectly calm.
No matter how I thought about it, something was off. If there had been a fairy dungeon in Japan, there’s no way I wouldn’t have known. What could have happened in the original timeline?
I tilted my head back and looked at the sky.
Through leaves that looked like those inside the dungeon, yet not quite the same, I could see the still-blue sky—not even sunset yet. That meant we hadn’t spent long inside the dungeon after all.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes!”
Han Taekyung answered immediately, letting us know he was fine, but Robinson could only groan.
With a look of pity, Han Taekyung went to her and handed over water and an energy bar. Robinson poured the water straight over her head.
“Aaaagh!”
She let out a short scream, flailing, but the color soon returned to her face.
If the fairy had appeared anywhere but right in front of the gate, things would have been much harder. If it had been at the outskirts, we wouldn’t have been able to retreat so quickly.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“…No!”
At last, Robinson managed a reply.
Given the extreme tension, she might not have noticed an injury, so I checked her over carefully. Especially since, according to Han Taekyung, the butterflies were poisonous. Better safe than sorry.
Fortunately, aside from some sweat, she seemed uninjured.
“Good. Then let’s go back. There’s a lot to do.”
“A lot to do?”
“Yes.”
There were people who needed to be shown a hell far worse than a burned forest.
Jean Robinson flew to Okinawa as soon as he heard from us.
To be honest, I’d considered the possibility that he might be a cold-blooded man, heartless enough to throw his daughter into such a monstrous dungeon. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case; Jean Robinson was, quite literally, furious.
I decided to remove Jean Robinson from the list of people I’d planned to show hell to, a list that included the names of Hong Seokyoung, Kim Chaemin, and Lee Miseon.
Behind Jean Robinson was Toulon’s Anchor’s master, Nicolas de Funès. Funès, looking lost, kept apologizing to me. I crossed his name off the list as well.
“I’m sorry. I had no idea the dungeon would be like that. We were the ones who asked for the favor on short notice, I’m truly sorry.”
“I’m sorry. No one was hurt, I hope? If there was any damage, we’ll….”
Their embarrassment and apologies didn’t seem like an act.
Even if it was, they wouldn’t have set such a clumsy trap.
Right. If someone hadn’t made it out of that dungeon, it wouldn’t have ended as just a dispute between guilds. Han Taekyung and I weren’t ordinary hunters, and we had the backing of Hong Seokyoung, Kim Chaemin, and Lee Miseon.
And we’d been with Jean Robinson’s daughter, Eva. Would Jean Robinson really risk his daughter’s life for a trap that could only hurt himself?
“I trusted the intermediary completely…”
Amid the endless apologies, I caught something that made me uneasy. I frowned and asked Funès,
“An intermediary? May I ask who that was?”
“It’s someone you know, Woo Hunter.”
Jean Robinson, even after his daughter had come so close to death, spoke with careful restraint.
For a moment, I wondered if I’d been too hasty in crossing Jean Robinson off my list, but as soon as I heard the name, I understood his hesitation.
“The president of the General Association.”
“……”
For a moment, I thought I’d misheard.
But there wasn’t a hint of a smile on Jean Robinson’s face. It wasn’t a name to be mentioned as a joke.
“…In Marseille?”
“Yes.”
“Archmage Charlotte Mallet?”
“Yes.”
“……”
Something smelled suspicious—deeply suspicious.
As far as Kim Chaemin and I knew, Mallet wasn’t close to Michel. If anything, she seemed to disapprove of him. Even if she were close, Charlotte Mallet was one of the few archmages with real integrity; I couldn’t imagine her setting such a sloppy, malicious trap.
So what was going on?
Had I misjudged the archmage? Or was Mallet herself a victim? Or…?
Damn.
My confusion must have shown, because Jean Robinson clenched his teeth and said,
“I’m looking into it myself. If I find out anything, I’ll let you know right away.”
“Please do. No matter how sloppy the investigation was, this is too much… Ah. What about the dungeon? What will you do?”
“We have to clear it.”
Jean Robinson answered firmly, as if there was no other option.
“A fairy dungeon is too dangerous. Especially with flying monsters inside—if there’s a dungeon break…”
“Wouldn’t it be difficult on your own? I know you’re skilled, but a fairy is…”
The first thing I did after leaving the dungeon was contact Hong Seokyoung.
Naturally, Hong Seokyoung hit the roof.
To say he “hit the roof” is too gentle—he was angrier than Jean Robinson. If not for his injured leg, he’d have flown to Okinawa himself and killed everyone involved.
“I only got here first with Nicolas. As soon as I heard from you, I called the guild together. My guild members are on their way to Okinawa now.”
“…Right now?”
“Yes.”
“Huh? The other uncles are coming too?”
“Eva.”
I was seeing things in Marseille I hadn’t noticed before.
Jean Robinson’s face visibly relaxed when his daughter approached, whole and unharmed.
Of course. If he hadn’t cared, he wouldn’t have asked me to train her.
“I did set fire to the inside of the dungeon, just so you know. You saw it in Marseille, right? My item.”
“Oh, that fire? Then it’ll take a while to go out.”
“Do you have a magician in your guild?”
Jean Robinson hid his expression well, but I’d asked because I wanted to see his reaction.
If you know what you’re looking for, you don’t miss what Jean Robinson is hiding.
“No. We don’t have a magician.”
A slight tightening around the eyes. Quivering lips. A deep hatred in his gaze.
He definitely hated magicians.
“Soon, Kim-saem from Korea… Archmage Kim Chaemin will be here. He said he’d be entering the dungeon. Is it all right if he joins you?”
“Archmage Kim? That’s a relief. If someone of that caliber is with us… I’d actually appreciate the help.”
His relief at Kim Chaemin’s name was genuine.
He wasn’t averse to magicians in general. It really did seem to be a result of his conflict with his own country’s magicians.
“Then, if you don’t mind, could you tell us about the fairy you saw inside?”
“Work already?”
“Eva.”
“I know, I know. I know how dangerous it is, too.”
Robinson shuddered.
I glanced at the two of them. Work could wait; after all, it would be a while before Jean Robinson’s guild members arrived to enter the dungeon.
“Still, I’m fine. I’m not hurt. Thanks to Woo-saem and Han.”
He wasn’t the type to be openly affectionate, even with family. But in the way he turned his body slightly toward Eva, in the worry and affection visible beneath his stiff expression…
I had no desire to get too involved in family matters. All I needed to know was that Jean Robinson hadn’t abandoned his daughter.
And most importantly…
……
Han Taekyung peeked out from behind Jean Robinson, mouthing something and waving his arms exaggeratedly.
…What is he doing?
It looked like he wanted to tell me something, but I couldn’t make it out.
When I stared blankly at him, Han Taekyung pounded his chest in frustration, then waved his arms even more. If he wanted to say something without the others noticing, why not just speak Korean? Or use a phone, for that matter.
And if that was too much, there’s always sign language. Why all this ridiculous body language…? He’d been quiet since we left the dungeon, but now he seemed to be back to his usual self.
…Maybe it was better when he was quiet. No, but Han Taekyung being quiet was scary in its own way. Now I understood why Han Eunyoung was so terrified of him.
As I kept watching, Funès glanced back in confusion. Han Taekyung quickly hid his arms behind his back and pretended nothing was happening.
I pressed my hand to my forehead.
“You two should get some rest before going back in. There are plenty of rooms… By the way, whose mansion is this?”
“It’s my cousin’s villa.”
Funès answered, glancing at Han Taekyung.
“Ah, right… It’s not even my house, so it’s strange for me to say this, but please, make yourselves comfortable. Talk things over.”
I looked at Eva Robinson as I spoke.
Funès seemed to realize why I was putting off the conversation and gave me a grateful look. Jean Robinson hesitated for a moment but, concerned for his daughter, didn’t refuse my suggestion.
I left the three of them to talk. Well, more accurately, I left so I could talk with Han Taekyung.
I dragged Han Taekyung out into the garden.
“What is it?”
“Are you going back into the dungeon, sunbae?”
“Me?”
I looked at Han Taekyung. The sunglasses were perched on his face like a tattoo.
“What about you, Han-saem?”
“Me? Am I allowed to?”
“No.”
“Yeah. I figured.”
Han Taekyung grinned.
But the smile didn’t last.
“Whether you go in or not… No, wait. Kim-saem said he was going in, right? Then there’s something you absolutely need to know.”
Whenever Han Taekyung got this serious, it made me uneasy. I nodded for him to go on.
“That butterfly bastard said something suspicious.”
Han Taekyung started laughing again, as if he couldn’t get the words out any other way.
‘Nothing can stop me, who has returned from death.’
I looked at Han Taekyung.
“That’s all.”
He rubbed his ear and gave a crooked smile.