## Chapter 291 – A Chill
ㅡTap, tap.
“Hey, Darkie.”
“Huh? Oh?”
I woke up to a sensation. I barely managed to open my eyes, and Winia was there. She was poking my face with her finger.
“Ugh… what? That tickles.”
I instinctively reached out to touch her chest, but ㅡslap. Winia smacked my hand away and leaned in close to my face.
“Didn’t our Darkie come home super late yesterday too?”
“Ah.”
That reminded me of what happened yesterday.
I spent time with Risha and came home to find them both asleep, so I squeezed in between them and fell asleep too. Judging by how bright it is outside, it must be morning… Winia waking me up means I must have been really tired.
“Sorry, Winia. Come here. I’ll give you a hug.”
“Forget it. Yesterday, you went to meet that guild leader like Unni said, right?”
“That’s… how it went.”
“Tsk. Just get up.”
Is there something to do?
I got out of bed without complaint, just as she told me to. I instinctively tried to start practicing the Chief Jang Kwon-beop, but Winia stopped me.
“Darkie, stop messing around and get dressed.”
She was already ready to go out.
“Is there something to do?”
“Yeah. Let’s go to the Magic Tower together today.”
“The Magic Tower?”
I asked, pulling on my pants.
The Magic Tower?
Come to think of it, I’d never been to the Magic Tower in Isvant. Actually, the only Magic Tower I’d ever been to was the one in Krasheim, and that was just to poke around for various reasons.
Is there something she wants me to get?
I put on my pants, quickly washed my face, and finished getting dressed.
I briefly wondered if I needed to bring my equipment, but going unarmed to a place full of mages was out of the question, so I packed everything.
“Darkie is my porter for today.”
“So that’s what it was? Hehehe.”
As I finished getting ready, Claudia stretched and got up.
“Ugh… Katt, Winia? Are you going out?”
Her languid purple hair and voluptuous brown skin… Seeing her exposed upper body made my lower half perk up as well.
“Winia needs a porter.”
I grabbed my backpack.
“Do you want to come too, Unni?”
Claudia shook her head at Winia’s question and crawled back under the covers. Claudia is always weak in the winter. She just told us to have fun and gave me a kiss.
ㅡWhoosh.
As soon as we stepped outside, the chill of the winter morning greeted us.
I took Winia’s hand and said,
“Should we grab some food before we go? I don’t really want to go right away. I need to eat breakfast to be a porter.”
“Hmm… that sounds good. Let’s go.”
Unlike me taking her hand first, it was Winia who pulled me along. She half-dragged me around, looking for a place to eat.
We ended up in a decent-sized restaurant on the way to the Magic Tower. It looked a bit expensive. Luckily, my wallet is still pretty thick.
We sat down at a suitable table, and I left the ordering to Winia.
After ordering a bunch of stuff and sending the waiter away, she looked at me and said,
“Darkie.”
“What.”
I could sense some dissatisfaction in her posture as she rested her chin on her hand.
“I’ve been thinking, and it might not be a good thing for our Darkie to just do whatever Unni says. A person needs to have some autonomy, don’t you think?”
“Wait, Winia, what are you talking about?”
Not a good thing?
“Claudia-mama’s words are absolute.”
Well, for me, Claudia-mama’s, no, shit, I’ve gotten used to calling her mama. Anyway, Claudia’s words were like a legal code to me.
“Ugh. You idiot.”
“What can I do? She’s mama.”
“What the hell is mama… then am I not mama?”
Changing her posture slightly, Winia rested her chest on the table and said,
“There’s only one mama in this world.”
“I don’t understand a damn thing you’re saying.”
“Hehehe, that’s how the world works. So. What are you doing at the Magic Tower today that you need a porter? Are you buying something?”
She must need a porter if she’s buying something.
Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve been Winia’s porter like this. In other words, it’s a rare date… I used to do it a lot without thinking back in the day. It reminds me of Kim Katt, a newbie to this world.
“Well… I’ve become interested in ice magic. I thought I’d learn some while I’m at it.”
“Aren’t fire and lightning enough?”
“To reach a higher level, you need to master the basics of elemental magic.”
“Elemental magic?”
Like water, fire, ice, wind, that kind of thing?
“Our Darkie doesn’t know anything about magic, does he?”
“It’s so mysterious. I don’t know anything about it.”
“Hehehe. Darkie’s an idiot.”
“Hey, why am I an idiot? Is everyone who doesn’t know magic an idiot?”
“Not everyone, just Darkie.”
“Grrr.”
Perhaps she felt good after saying that, Winia smiled and briefly explained magic to me.
In short, she was planning to train in ice magic to some extent this winter and aim to become an even more powerful mage in the new year. Come to think of it, Winia is a pretty powerful mage for her age.
I first met her a few years ago, and seeing how hard she’s worked and trained since then, she’s definitely a woman with ambition.
“I didn’t know you were thinking so constructively!”
“I always do. I’ve been a bit lazy lately because of Darkie, so I need to make up for it. You big-dicked Darkie bastard.”
The meal that came out was something similar to a Western breakfast.
Judging by the quality of the dishes… I have no idea how much it costs. It tasted pretty good when I took a bite. It was a hearty, meat-focused meal, so it seemed worth the price.
“Am I just a man with a dick?”
“No, not exactly.”
“Then what am I?”
“I don’t know.”
Hehehe. Seeing her laugh, Winia seemed to be in a much better mood than when she first woke up.
“Darkie has a lot of good qualities.”
“Hehehe, that’s true.”
After finishing our meal, the bill came out to 1 silver and 50 coppers. I barely managed to keep myself from fainting as I paid and headed outside towards the Magic Tower.
“Darkie. Give me a hug.”
“What, how?”
“That.”
“Ah, no, doing a standing fuck in public is a bit…”
“You son of a bitch?”
“Just kidding.”
I immediately picked Winia up in a princess carry.
She seemed to want to cling to me a lot today, so Winia was cute as always. Like a giant with a dwarf on his shoulder, I moved my feet as Winia directed.
“Darkie. It’s so nice being out here together.”
“I like it too.”
“You’ll do everything I say today, right?”
What, why today?
“I don’t know why you’re being like this today, but I usually do whatever you say anyway. Tell me to do whatever you want.”
“Darkie is so nice.”
She seemed to be in a good mood, so I couldn’t help but want to do everything for her. As I followed her directions, the Magic Tower soon came into view.
The Magic Tower in Isvant was about half the size of the one in Krasheim.
In fact, Krasheim, Isvant, and the Doden Barony were all considered to be on the extreme frontier, with Krasheim being the largest of them all.
Isvant was smaller than that.
It was a frontier among frontiers, but the reason Krasheim was so large was that it was adjacent to the uncharted territories. The frequent comings and goings made it grow naturally.
Well, as I recalled those things, I entered the neighborhood where the Magic Tower was located.
“Winia. I think we’re attracting a lot of attention. Are you going to keep doing this?”
“Yeah.”
“No, I’m heavy.”
“Am I heavy, Darkie?”
I don’t think you realize, Winia, but the weight of your two breasts alone outweighs most greatswords, you little minx. Of course, I didn’t say that out loud.
“You’re not heavy… it’s just that I’ve been carrying you for a while.”
“Then keep carrying me.”
“My arms are shaking. And so is my heart.”
Anyway, we arrived in front of the Magic Tower.
There was a special commercial district with a slightly luxurious atmosphere around the Magic Tower, and most of the shops were selling various items for mages.
There were also mages who had set up stalls, so it was quite diverse.
The number of mages wasn’t that high, so it wasn’t crowded, but almost everyone was wearing robes and carrying staffs, so my appearance stood out a bit.
ㅡGlance.
Every mage who passed by took a look at me. I felt a bit embarrassed. I had a strong feeling that I was in a place where I shouldn’t be.
“You can put me down now.”
“You’re really selfish.”
“Don’t you like it?”
“No… I like that part! Tell me to do more!”
“Be quiet, Darkie.”
“…”
Winia took my hand and entered the Magic Tower’s main gate with a confident stride. Scanning the surroundings… except for a few people who looked like workers, I didn’t see any swordsmen like me.
There wasn’t even a single black-haired person?
Most of the whispering and disapproving looks were probably due to racial discrimination.
The mages, who were the privileged class and the strong in this world, had a somewhat authoritarian and closed-minded way of thinking.
“Darkie, are you getting nervous?”
Winia gave me a mischievous smile as she looked at my face.
“I’m nervous because I’m embarrassed. Are you enjoying watching me like this?”
“Hehehe. There’s that too.”
“You’re so twisted. Winia. How could you do this to me?”
“So you don’t like it?”
“No, it’s not that… it feels like you’re bullying me?”
“There’s that too.”
Stop repeating yourself.
Winia tied me to the wall like a pet and walked towards what looked like a window. I sighed and leaned against the wall, watching Winia.
Did she have something she ordered or a request?
I crossed my arms and waited patiently, butㅡ
ㅡGlance.
The gazes fixed on me were too much to bear.
The mages were glaring at me as if they were looking at something strange or unpleasant.
Looking at it roughly… it seemed like Winia wanted to enjoy seeing me in trouble. You cunning woman…! I’ll never forgive you…! Why do you like bullying me so much!
ㅡTremble, tremble.
As I clenched my fists, I saw a female mage with a familiar face passing by.
“…?”
What?
Who is it?
A mage with green hair that I vaguely remembered.
I definitely recognized her… but it was as if there was some kind of restriction, and my thoughts wouldn’t connect properly. At the same time, my heart started beating rapidly as if I had glimpsed a memory that shouldn’t be opened.
ㅡThump, thump.
I didn’t know why, but this familiar feeling was clearly anger.
Anger?
Why?
“Ah?”
As I was pondering the mage’s identity, she suddenly turned to look at me.
“Huh?”
Our eyes met.
I knew her face after all.
Her face, which had been looking at me with an expression that seemed to not understand something, began to change from moment to moment. What had started as exploration gradually turned into suspicion.
ㅡShuffle, shuffle.
And after rubbing her eyes once, her face began to contort in horror. Her mouth opened, and she pointed at me… Ah, no! This bastard is!
“Ah! I remember! You’re Roel, aren’t you! Hey, how’s Kustosz doing?”
That’s right. It was Roel.
“You…! You! You’re that!”
I couldn’t close my mouth because I was so happy.
Feeling happy, I reached out my hand to shake hersㅡ
“KYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Then Roel began to wail as if an ominous monster born from humanity’s infinite malice, whose birth no one had wanted, had fallen and let out its first scream.
“Kyak!!!!!!! Kyak!!!! KYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAK!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Then she started convulsing, twisting her hands and feet like the ghouls I had met in the past. I was seized with great fear as I suddenly witnessed a person transforming into a monster.
“Wh-what! Why are you screaming!”
I was terrified and tried to run away, instinctively realizing that something had gone wrong.
I thought that the events of the promotion battle had triggered a sad emotion in her, turning her into a cursed monster.
“What’s going on!”
“What’s all the commotion!”
“Silence! Silence!”
“It’s too loud!”
But I couldn’t run away.
Not only the guards, but also the mages around me were rushing towards me!
Oh, oh! Shit! What the hell is going on!
“Calm down! What’s going on!”
“Please stop that screaming!”
The approaching mages surrounded Roel and me and began to scold us!
ㅡCrack!
Sensing the crisis, I panicked and shouted!
“W-Winia-mama!!! Save me-techiyaaaaaaaat!!!!!”
