A dark and damp underground place.
More than ten people were seated around a round table.
“Ugh, look at this darkness. Did none of you turn on the lights until now that we have people gathered? Are you guys out of your minds?”
Click—
Correction.
A very bright and slightly damp underground place.
More than ten people were gathered there.
“AAAAH! My eyes!”
“The real issue is the excessive brightness of this glowing stone. Even if I wanted to turn it on, the light is too strong!”
“Making a dwelling underground was a mistake! Ugh, what are we going to do about this humidity? At least if there’s this much light, the stench would disappear!”
“Stop making excuses, Libya. You bought this piece of junk glowing stone because you love things that shine. You foolish firebug…”
“Whatever! At least I’m better than incompetent Sephir, who couldn’t even bring in a one manifestor!”
“…What?”
On the surface, they might look a bit shabby, but they were certainly no pushovers.
They were all high-ranking members of the Lemegaton cult.
In fact, most of them were of higher rank, like tribe leaders. Usually, they were super busy, but today they gathered for a meeting.
While Sephir and Libya were at each other’s throats, someone stepped in to mediate them. It was the fourth tribe leader.
“Stop chattering and let’s start the meeting already. So, was the person we met in the forest the one we anticipated?”
“Yep. He admitted it right away when I explained. His personality was a bit unexpected, though…”
Sephir briefly recalled the time he met that person.
An impressive appearance paired with a speech that was as rough as it could get.
The fact that he was a ‘man’ was intriguing, but combined with that unique aura, it left quite an impression.
“Interesting. I anticipated he might not be in the city, but who would have thought he’d be living in that dangerous forest?”
“Exactly. Just that alone proved his strength. He’ll surely be of help.”
“Then why didn’t you recruit him?”
“That’s because he refused so strongly…”
Sephir trailed off.
She couldn’t bring herself to say it was because she didn’t want to be devoured by Seere. It felt too petty.
And just then.
Libya, who had been quietly listening the whole time, suddenly smiled and spoke up.
“That’s because Sephir is just so boring~ Who would want to join when a stone-faced lady makes the offer?”
“Shut up, Libya…!”
This wasn’t an uncommon occurrence. Many among the executives had strong personalities.
When people with such distinct characters gathered, clashes were bound to happen.
Still, nevertheless, the meeting proceeded.
The topic, of course, was about recruiting Yor.
He had already refused once, but that didn’t mean they could just give up.
For them, manifestors were precious; those who grew up until adulthood were especially rare.
And with proven skills, recruiting him was the right choice.
A lot of opinions were thrown around during the meeting.
The moderates suggested to coax him into willingly joining, like Sephir.
The hardliners insisted on forcibly enrolling him and letting him adapt slowly.
And there were even the extremes who suggested just using him as a sacrifice if he didn’t comply.
The discussion, which was going in circles, came to a halt thanks to a woman’s assertion.
“Then next time, I’ll go visit.”
Her position was merely ‘team leader.’
Given that most of the people here were high-ranking, speaking like that was utterly absurd.
Yet none of them pointed it out.
“If I, a fellow manifestor, go, surely he’ll be more inclined to trust me.”
The reason being, she was a highly regarded manifestor within the cult.
These folks revered demons, and due to the world’s oppression, their numbers were drastically low.
So perhaps that’s why, no one argued against her statement.
“Certainly… If you’re also a manifestor, it would be easier to persuade him.”
“Yeah, I agree. Definitely.”
Thus, it was decided that she would be the one to visit him next.
*
Days passed since that strange woman, the tribe leader, came by.
Surprisingly… nothing noteworthy happened.
I neither moved my residence nor prepared to leave.
I did set fire to the goblin’s house once more to tighten our defenses, but that was about it.
Unlike when Haneul caught me last time, I didn’t create chaos this time.
The situation was a bit different this time.
Back then, it wouldn’t have been strange for the knights to come raid us. If Haneul had spoken, the knight order would have gathered.
But now, although more people knew, there was no fear of the knight order invading.
That tribe leader had said that Lemegaton sought recruitment, not extermination.
Of course, I couldn’t take the words of those cultists at face value…
‘I think I should just keep an eye on things for now.’
She claimed she’d return next week, so I decided to wait until then.
And to be honest… I didn’t want to venture into the deep layers.
After years of building my infrastructure here, why would I want to start over from scratch?
There might not even be a cavern as wide and deep as this, and I wasn’t sure if I could keep my life intact there.
After all, there were mountain lords roaming around.
‘Unless the knight order comes, I’ll just hold out.’
So, that’s where my thoughts were at.
I’ll hold out stubbornly unless my life hangs by a thread.
The empire’s knight order and the clergy aren’t as dangerous as the folks lurking in the depths.
Time passed.
To say I wasn’t anxious would be a lie. It was an unnerving week.
Finally, the day of the appointment came, and a member of the cult arrived in the forest.
“Hey, where are you! Come over here!!!”
In an excessively loud manner, the voice of a woman echoed throughout the forest.
“What a crazy lady…”
I mumbled curses and hurried in the direction of the sound.
If she kept that up, she was bound to attract not just people but monsters too.
Upon reaching where the noise was coming from, I spotted a woman standing there.
She had wild blonde hair and a fierce expression.
As Sephir had mentioned, a different individual had arrived this time.
“Oh.”
Upon meeting, the first reaction from her was a short astonishment.
“Indeed, there’s a reason Sephir was impressed. I only knew you were a guy, but I didn’t expect this much.”
“No, why are you here again when I said I’m not joining?”
“Because I can’t accept that refusal.”
Wait, did she just refuse to take ‘no’ for an answer?
“First, let me introduce myself, I’m Niki Tanesha.”
That made me open my eyes wide for a moment. Not only was it a name, but it came attached with a surname.
And having a surname in this world usually means nobility.
Suddenly, questions popped up in my head.
‘So, does that mean she’s a noble?’
And she, despite being a noble, chose to join the criminal organization known as Lemegaton?
I briefly wondered why she would abandon her status for that.
“Also…”
Fortunately, this curiosity didn’t linger for too long.
She suddenly started stripping off her top in front of me.
“!”
I couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed at her bold move.
As her thin short-sleeved shirt was taken off, her curves revealed themselves.
A cute white bra came into view.
Sadly, her bust was a bit on the smaller side.
You would expect modesty when someone strips in front of you, yet her face was perfectly calm.
Thinking it over, this was a world turned upside down; taking off one’s top wasn’t that weird if you had courage.
As I watched her for a moment, she pointed to her right side.
“Look, see this mark? I’m also a manifestor like you.”
At that moment, I confirmed what was on her side. Unlike mine, it had a deep red tattoo with five claw marks.
Seeing that, I could understand why she joined Lemegaton.
‘Thus…’
She must’ve been exiled. Manifestors like us have nowhere to go.
Lemegaton was the only place that accepted them, so this was where she entered.
Thinking this made me feel a bit sorry for her.
“I don’t know what you think about this place, but it’s not too bad. Here, being a manifestor is actually an advantage. Everyone looks up to me and treats me well.”
“………”
Certainly, it’s not a bad choice.
After all, I was a human who couldn’t live a normal life and always craved someone I could converse with.
Even though she served a demon, it made sense for manifestors like us who were cast out by civilization.
But I couldn’t help but wonder.
“I’m sorry, but I’ll pass.”
This internal rejection felt odd.
“…Why?”
She tilted her head at my response, seeming genuinely puzzled. Her expression darkened rapidly as if my rejection offended her.
“I just can’t understand. What’s so great about staying in this forest? Is there anything good here? Or is there some lingering sentiment?”
I was momentarily taken aback. I didn’t expect her to get that upset over a simple refusal.
How should I explain… I paused to choose my words, attempting to clarify why I turned her down.
And at that moment.
Rustle—
A figure suddenly popped out from a nearby thicket.
To my surprise, it turned out to be a human I recognized.
One who had been visiting my forest quite frequently lately.
“Uh… Yoo Chaerin?”
