“Hmm… So, you’re saying these are the ones with the best physical abilities?”
“Yes, Guildmaster.”
The man looked over the seven slaves lined up in front of him as he listened to the manager.
Except for Slave #128, they all had relatively robust builds for slaves.
They didn’t seem to have any problem using their strength.
They would probably pull their weight once they entered the dungeon.
The problem was #128.
“The others I can understand. But why was that one selected? Small frame, doesn’t look strong.”
“Number 128 is fast.”
“You mean agile?”
“Yes. And she’s also good at concealing her presence. She’s quick on her feet and can assess situations on the fly, not much worse than active climbers. She’s ideal for use as a scout in the dungeon.”
“There’s no one better?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Sigh, I guess it can’t be helped.”
The man let out a deep sigh as he stared at #128, who wore a blank expression. Then, scanning the lined-up slaves, he spoke.
“Alright, we’re starting the operation briefing now. Open your ears and shut your mouths.”
The slaves obediently complied. The man continued, stomping on the foot of a black slave who was taller than him.
“This afternoon, you’ll be entering a dungeon called [A Thousand Spider Eyes]. It’s newly formed, so we have no intel on it. You’re the ones who’ll go gather that info. Impressive, right?”
“……”
“Just so we’re clear, if you accidentally clear the dungeon, there’ll be a huge mess. Just get the intel and get out. Your lives aren’t particularly important in the process, so act accordingly. Still, survive if you can. Your lives are worth money, after all. You saw everyone else get weeded out, right? You’re here because you have at least some use. So we’ll squeeze everything out of you. Makes sense, right?”
The man smiled faintly as he removed his foot.
“Oren will be your supervisor. Do your best.”
“Yes, sir.”
“It’s a rare outing, so make sure everyone wears their ‘collars.’ Just use whatever gear is lying around in the storage. And if you ‘accidentally’ kill any monsters in the dungeon, make sure to bring back any byproducts. Got it?”
“Of course.”
The man called Oren nodded with a soft smile.
“I’ll do my best.”
“Good. Then everyone, follow Oren to the dungeon! We need to head out now to make it in time for the afternoon!”
“You heard him. We’re leaving. Follow me.”
Oren grabbed the hair of the slave standing at the front as he spoke. #128 followed, glaring at the back of his head.
The second floor of the Tower resembled a classic medieval city straight out of a fantasy novel. Many buildings were made of wood and stone, and majestic mansions like those you’d see in Europe lined the streets of this mysterious city. But the food was far from medieval.
“This is f***ing delicious.”
Just looking at the street food I was eating—skewered chicken, a dish so iconic it’s practically Korean soul food—made that obvious.
Not exactly something impossible in the Middle Ages, but this sauce, this perfect harmony of flavors, could only be crafted by the hands of a Korean. It tasted exactly like what you’d get at a college festival in Korea.
How was that even possible? Were all the people in this fantasy world secretly weirdos with kimchi in their veins? Or did some mysterious entity that could perfectly mimic the flavors I craved appear in the Tower?
Sadly, the truth was far simpler.
“Hahaha! You’re eating so well it makes me happy. Here, it’s on the house! Have another!”
The shop owner was also, like me, a Korean who had been transported here. In fact, he used to run a snack bar back in Korea. After being transported, he just kept at it.
Koreans are like Pokémon—when they meet fellow countrymen abroad, they become instantly close. Thanks to that trait, the shop owner’s friendliness toward me had skyrocketed. The free food was a direct result of that.
Grinning widely, I accepted another skewer.
“Wow, thank you! This is so good, I already finished one. I’ll gladly take another if you’re offering!”
“Hell yeah! Let’s go all out today! Everything on the menu—for you and that lady behind you—it’s all on the house today! Eat till you drop! That’s the Korean way!”
“Bless you!”
I never imagined I’d get hit with national pride even in the Tower.
Truly, the snack shop owner had a kind face and an even kinder heart. Thanks to him, Yoo Hana and I didn’t have to spend a dime at a restaurant—we could stuff ourselves before entering the dungeon.
In exchange, we had to listen to the story of his life. But really, I’d heard it over fifty times already, so it wasn’t like I didn’t have it memorized. Unfortunate, sure, but it was the fate of a regressor with perfect memory. Just something I had to live with.
After listening and filling our bellies, I parted ways with Mr. Seo Eunho after a firm handshake. Yoo Hana rubbed her swollen stomach with a groan.
“My stomach… I’m so full… I can barely move…”
“You sound like you’re pregnant.”
“Y-you want to impregnate me? I-I’m not ready for that…!”
“What.”
Amazingly, Yoo Hana had a knack for twisting people’s words into whatever she wanted to hear. Truly tragic.
I flicked her forehead, then pulled out the [Phantom Thief’s Cloak] from my dimensional pouch and wrapped it around myself.
Depending on the wearer’s mana level, the cloak protected the body from external attacks.
On top of that, it erased the wearer’s presence and could change its shape at the wearer’s will—a top-tier artifact.
It was powerful enough to be useful even on the upper floors of the Tower. There was no way a mere Floor 2 dungeon monster could break through it.
[A Thousand Spider Eyes] wasn’t exactly the weakest of dungeons, but it still couldn’t go beyond the limits of its floor. Honestly, I could clear it with my eyes closed.
The rewards it offered weren’t anything I particularly needed.
But for Rita, it would be the perfect weapon.
And to have her join my party in the first place, I needed to visit this dungeon. If I didn’t, it would cause a huge variable later on.
This was my 100th life as a regressor. I’d had more than enough time to realize—whenever possible, minimize variables.
“How… how long does it take to get to the dungeon?”
Yuhana asked. I opened up the map I had prepared beforehand and answered,
“About a 30-minute walk. There’s a cave at the entrance of the forest outside the city—that’s the dungeon.”
“I see… B-but oppa, where did you get this information? The guild doesn’t give stuff like this out…”
“I gave a coin to a beggar, and he told me in return. A lucky chance, really.”
“Ah…”
“That’s why you should always do good deeds. You never know how the world might reward you in return.”
“I-I’ll keep that in mind.”
Yuhana nodded, unable to detect the blatant nonsense I was spouting. I patted her on the head and began to walk again.
Our destination, of course, was the dungeon. Just outside the city, the forest’s entrance was where we’d find the cave—today’s goal.
Getting out of the city was surprisingly simple. With such a high volume of traffic and adventurers constantly coming and going, no one even bothered to check IDs. Lucky for us—we didn’t have any.
“Whoa… The moment we left the city, it’s like, raw wilderness…”
“That’s the classic medieval fantasy setting for you. If we go further into the mountains, we might even run into bandits.”
“Hiiiee… I-I really don’t want to meet any.”
“Same.”
We exchanged light banter as we walked.
If the destination had been far, we might have hired a carriage, but the dungeon wasn’t too far. Walking there wasn’t a problem.
“Ah! Oppa, i-is that the forest over there?”
“Looks like it.”
Before long, we spotted a dense forest full of thick grass and towering trees.
We paused to take a drink of water, rested briefly, and then entered.
It was still daytime, so the forest felt more mystical than scary.
Butterflies flitted about, and squirrels darted between the trees, adding to the wonder of the place.
Since ancient times, forests with small animals were believed to be safe and magical.
Of course, if a bear or a wolf suddenly jumped out, the genre would shift to survival horror. But for now, everything was harmless.
After walking about five minutes past the forest’s entrance, we came across a cave, unnaturally cloaked in shadow like something out of place in this world.
There it was. The dungeon.
“Hana, take out your staff. Time to start getting ready with magic.”
“Ah, okay!”
Following my instruction, Yuhana fumbled with the staff strapped to her back and held it at the ready. I tapped the scabbard at my waist with my fingers, then reached out to brush my hand along the outer wall of the cave.
With a soft ding, a message window popped up before me:
[You have discovered a Low-Tier Dungeon: A Thousand Spider Eyes.]
“Hm.”
I pulled my hand away and turned to Yuhana.
Until now, we’d just been traveling together, but to enter a dungeon—or climb the Tower together—we needed to form a party. Either that or have physical contact when entering.
If we were in the same guild, we wouldn’t need to worry about that, but we weren’t. So we either had to make a party or hold hands.
The latter was easier, but considering all the benefits of the party system, we were going to do that anyway. I looked at her cheerful expression, like she was about to say, “I’m ready to cast magic now!”, and spoke.
“Hana, I looked into it, and apparently, to enter a dungeon together, we need to form a… uh, party or something.”
“Oh, I learned about that too! I-It said if both people wish to become companions or allies, the Tower will automatically link them together!”
“Right. But now that I think about it, we haven’t formed a party yet. Want to do it now while we’re at it?”
“H-here? We’re going to connect here?”
“…That’s quite the word choice. But yeah, here.”
“Y-yes! Let’s connect!”
Yuhana exclaimed as she stared intensely at me with wide, determined eyes.
“Connect, connect, let me be connected to oppaaaaaa…!”
“….”
While Yuhana was chanting her heart out like a desperate priestess, all I did was casually think, ‘I’d like to become allies with the girl in front of me.’
And just like that, a translucent notification window appeared between us.
[A strong desire to connect has been detected between Baek Siyoon and Yuhana. Would you like to form a party?]
“Yes! Yes! Yeeeeees!!”
Without hesitation, Yuhana agreed. I chuckled a bit and accepted the party request as well.
Tuduk.
It felt like an invisible thread had connected the two of us.
The party was officially formed. Smiling with satisfaction, I reached out and squished Yuhana’s cheeks.
“Looking forward to working with you again, Hana.”
“Mweh!”
She responded through puffed-up, squished cheeks.
And then, right at that moment, we heard footsteps nearby. Yuhana reacted instantly, pointing her staff toward the sound. I also pretended to be on alert, placing a hand on my sword’s hilt.
Just then, a man with a sleazy look emerged from the trees, followed closely by a group of ragged individuals. The man tilted his head as he looked at us.
“…Huh? Guests?”
I ignored him completely and turned my attention to the faces of the people behind him—slaves, by the look of them. Among them, I spotted a familiar face.
Though she looked almost grown, her malnourished body was thin and frail. Her golden hair reached down to her waist. Her red eyes were dull and lifeless. And that faint, barely perceptible presence—an innate quality essential for an assassin.
Found her.
I smiled inwardly as I looked at her face.
Currently, she was just a number: No. 128.
But one day, I would give her a name—Rita.
She had finally appeared.