Memoirs of the Returnee - Chapter 151



Only Krnovel

The Regressor’s Notepad 151

Abyss (2)

[Bedondon], who logged in again after a long time.

Shadowling’s Rooftop.

“Zion. Are you here?”

Soliet, who had connected first, greeted me.

“Oh. Have you been waiting long?”

“I just logged in too.”

For reference, the friends window says that you have been online for three hours.

“Okay. Then I’ll try harder today.”

I said while stretching.

“Yes, let’s do that.”

I checked Soliet’s level.

[Solid]

│Upper Human│Lv. 20 Thief│

I’m already 20. I’m at the level of a crazy level.

[Planarium] Compared to Soliet, who spends all her free time on Bedundan, my character is still only level 6.

“… … You take it easy. What about the rest of the party?”

“I have already gone to the second dwelling place. I have been waiting for Zion.”

Solliet handed me her crossbody bag as she carried her own bag.

“Let’s go.”

“okay.”

We came out of the shelter together.

“It’s dark.”

The streets of Shadowling were thick with fog and steeped in darkness.

“It’s perfect for moving while hiding. Just follow me.”

Soliet took the lead.

We moved through the quiet darkness.

“Let’s hunt first, Zion. It’s a bit difficult for a level 6.”

“Really? I don’t think my class will be affected much by level.”

“… … I think so too. Zion gains too little from leveling up. Since he can’t raise his base stats. Are there any other trade-offs?”

“Oh, I do get a unique skill. I’m level 6 right now, so if I go up by one level, I get one more unique skill.”

Gamblers unlock new [Unique Skills] every time they reach a certain level. Their luck also gradually increases.

“Oh. Is that so? Then let’s just level up one level. Follow me.”

Soliet guided me.

… … .

──Level up!

──When you reach level 7, you unlock the unique skill of the class “Gambler”.

A secluded landfill on the outskirts of Shadow Ring. Solliet and I slaughtered the ghouls that were sprouting up there indiscriminately.

“What kind of Blade Master are you?”

In particular, Soliet swings her sword like some kind of whirlwind. She looks too powerful to be a thief.

“Yes. Haha. Look.”

Whirilirilirik───!

Soliet spun around, clutching her twin swords.

“It’s a newly learned skill. It’s called ‘Sword Storm.’”

“… … You’re a thief.”

“It suits you.”

The lips that answer are firm.

If that’s the case, I’d rather die than fight. Somehow, I feel like I’m becoming a loser.

“Zion, have you leveled up?”

“Uh. Just now.”

“What skills did you acquire?”

“I am a “box gift”. It’s passive.”

“… … A box gift?”

“huh.”

“Box Gift”

：From now on, every time a gambler levels up 3 times, they will receive a gift box of items appropriate to their level.

：The box must be opened within 72 hours, and the level of items obtained will depend on the gambler’s luck stat.

I turned on the inventory.

[Consumable Item Box]

[Equipment Item Box]

[Augmented Item Box]

There were three item boxes.

“This is it. Every time you level up three times, you get a box like this.”

“… … Please unfold it.”

Solliet looked at the boxes with eyes full of envy.

I started by opening the consumable item box.

[Acquire a return token.]

[Acquire a return token.]

Two return tokens.

“oh!”

I screamed without realizing it.

“What is it-?!”

Soliet also reacted, shaking along.

“Two return tokens!”

“Wow!”

Solliet’s eyes widened. She clapped her hands in celebration.

“Congratulations, congratulations.”

Return tokens are truly valuable items.

No pun intended, they are essentially an extra life and cost around 40-50 gold each.

“Hey, this time it’s the equipment item box. Let’s open the equipment item box.”

She was curious and even stammered like a child.

“okay.”

Next, I opened the equipment item box.

“Specially Stiff Leather Gloves”

“Blinking Bracelet”

“Socks that cool your feet”

I laid it all out.

“Not really. It’s only level 7, so I guess there’s no treasure or anything.”

“Is that so-? Everything looks good.”

“I’ll give you the socks.”

I held out my sock. At that moment, Solliet took a deep breath.

Hehehe-

“… …Can I accept it?”

He glances at me as he asks.

“Oh. Thieves have to move quietly.”

“……thank you.”

Solliet carefully held the sock. She smiled faintly at the warmth of the sock. It was as if she had found a long-lost pet.

I finally opened the [Augmentation Item Box].

“Augmented Transplant: The Body That Grows Fruit”

◆ Every 12 hours, beneficial fruits are produced in the body.

Augmentation is like this. It gives special effects to the character itself, like a relic.

“This is nothing special. Let’s go now. To meet the party members.”

“… … .”

Then Soliet’s face darkened a little.

“Zion. Level 7 might be a bit too much. Raise it higher and-”

“No. It’s okay. I can’t fall behind. I’ll try it first. I have a return token. I have to level up through quests.”

I’m using the unique skill “Betting”, and above all, it’s because the class itself is a “Gambler”.

The more dangerous the quest, the more willing I am to take on it.

“… … Yes. Then… … Follow me. Let’s go right away.”

* * *

We arrived at a forest.

The only path leading to the Shadowling Cabinet.

A forest that looks ominous to anyone, with densely packed trees towering endlessly and fog billowing between them.

[The forest where the abyss flows.]

The name is also ‘The Forest Where the Abyss Flows’. It’s very fierce.

“It is a forest where the abyss flows.”

“Something looks different.”

“Yes. There are three obstacles to overcome before reaching the Count’s castle. This is one of them.”

Solliet clenched her teeth nervously, an unusual sight for her.

“Why the abyss?”

“That… … emotional darkness… … trauma-like things… … continue to flow out of this forest.”

I understood it right away. Soliet’s trauma. Javed and Felix showed up.

“okay?”

“Yes. It felt like it was groping my soul, pulling out the deepest darkness. I couldn’t get through. I barely escaped alive.”

[Quest occurs]

◆ With the help of your party member, Sollyet, you discover the ‘Forest of Flowing Abyss’. You must cross it to get close to the Count’s castle.

◆ Completion Reward: EXP + 900

[You can use the gambler’s unique skill “Betting”.]

[Success probability: 22%]

22%.

Very low, but worth betting on.

“Solid. Give me back my socks.”

“……yes?”

“Give it to me.”

“Ah… … yes.”

Soliet dutifully searched through my pockets.

Then he said in a slightly defeated tone.

“Zion. I think I lost my socks.”

“Give it to me. I’ll make it better and return it to you.”

“… … .”

Then she looked at the ground, lifted her shoes and looked at the soles, felt all over her top, and made a surprised expression.

“Zion. We’re in big trouble. We’re really lost.”

“I said I’ll pay you back. Give it to me quickly.”

“… … .”

Only then did Solliet take out her socks one by one.

I immediately “bet”.

All items obtained from the “Gift Box” and 800 EXP.

[Bet on quest success.]

“Solid. Before you go in.”

I flicked the “return token” to her. Soliet took it absentmindedly and her hair stood on end.

“Zion. The return token is-”

“I’m lending it to you. If you use it, you can pay me back later.”

“……yes.”

She answered softly.

“Zion, be careful. When the narration comes on, that’s when the trauma will appear.”

“don’t worry.”

“There’s nothing to worry about.”

“don’t worry.”

I am immune.

… … maybe not?

It may be largely immune to magical or magical effects, but I haven’t tested it in the game yet.

“let’s go.”

I took up the torch.

“Yes. Let’s go.”

Soliet also took up the torch.

We stood side by side and entered the forest.

[Enter the forest where the abyss flows.]

[All systems stop functioning.]

As soon as the fog covered all systems shut down.

“Solid. Are you following me?”

“yes.”

She’s right behind me. I can hear her footsteps.

But I feel strangely uneasy.

“Ah. Let’s walk while holding hands.”

We may be childish, but there’s nothing we can do.

I reached out to grab Solliet’s hand.

Clang-

Then, there was a sound of something falling.

A sharp, cracking sound, like glass breaking and flying shards.

Then an unidentified voice whispered in my ear.

──You feel your heart being torn apart.

──The world doesn’t know, but the biggest secret you hold… … .

──It looks like it’s taking shape.

The omen of the ‘abyss’ that Soliet spoke of─it was a narration.

I froze for a moment. I looked around my body. There was nothing unusual.

“Solid.”

I sang Soliette again.

There was no answer.

“… … Soliet?”

I called once more.

This time again silence-

──Keep the formation!

– No, a scream came rushing in.

Instead of a soliloquy, a violent and urgent vibration.

Chaeaeng-! The sound of a sword that seems about to burst, Kwaa-! The low sounds characteristic of the undead are mixed in with the violent surging of magical power.

Ughhhhh… … .

I saw it there.

There were zombies attached to a carriage.

-Miss! Master! Stay in the carriage! Don’t touch me!

The knights who were trying to escort the carriage brandished torches and swords, but they were already hallucinating and were only swinging their swords here and there in the air.

[Quest occurs]

◆ You discover users possessed by the Abyssal Undead. It’s your choice whether to rescue them or ignore them.

◆ Completion Reward: EXP + 500

Unfortunately, betting is on cooldown, but there is no reason to refuse this quest.

I drew a “card”. It was a colorless card.

Whirik – When activated, the card transforms into a dagger of magical power.

At the same time, the “dice” were rolled.

Degururur-

[18]

18.

This time I won’t make that mistake.

The ability distribution is Agility 14, Endurance 3, Strength 1.

[Stat weighting of dice rolling is applied.]

At that moment, the speed of your breathing becomes steeper.

Even with Agility 14, acceleration is sufficient. The zombies clinging to the carriage and waving their hands, and the knight’s swordsmanship trying to cut them down. The battle situation is slow as if I’m stuck in the air.

“Phew.”

Take a deep breath.

He walks through a stagnant world, holding a dagger in his hand.

There is no need to run. Just move as slowly and skillfully as possible to minimize stamina consumption.

That… … uh… … uh… … .

A zombie that grumbles for three seconds at a time.

In fact, these guys are tricky undead. They don’t die just by blowing their heads up like in the movies. To kill a zombie, you have to destroy its ‘core’, but the location is random for each individual.

I turned on the SZX-9500. A total of thirty-three of them. I observed all of their ‘cores’.

Phew-!

Stabbed a guy in the heart.

Shhh-!

I picked up a bunch of crows.

Tsuzuke-!

I split a guy’s back open.

Kkuddeuk-!

I broke one of his bones.

Bam-!

I popped one of his eyes out.

So, exactly 33 zombies were cleanly cut down with only their nukes.

“Big… … .”

I’m dying from exhaustion.

“end.”

───—!

At that moment, they were all torn apart. They fell to the ground with their entire bodies torn to pieces like firewood.

“Your Majesty! Miss… … ?”

“Oh, I know! I’m doing a good job of not getting bitten, so in front of me… … What the? They’re all dead?”

The people in the carriage were confused. They blinked in shock at the sudden massacre and then noticed me.

“… … .”

They saw the blood dripping from my dagger.

I also looked into their backgrounds belatedly.

Pure white hair.

Pure white hair.

Two of them have pure white hair.

No, the whole body is white.

I know who they are.

Sierrin Aventajer, Sierric Aventajer.

Three more escort knights. A total of five people stare at me blankly.

“… … You helped me?”

The most dignified knight asked politely, and I nodded.

“Huh? Wait a minute.”

Suddenly, Sierin in the carriage stretched out her finger. It was a natural gesture.

“You, look at me.”

I saw her. She saw me.

The Sierra Aventador, illuminated by the torch, is indeed beautiful. It is an established fact that its appearance is the best on the continent.

──But.

Now let me explain it again.

Before her return, Sierin Aventajer was a villainess with a strange fate.

She was pushed out of the line of succession to the great Aventaher family and lost everything to her twin brother Sieric, but she became the wife of a wealthy family and lived a life of luxury as a villainess, until she was a mere chauffeur…

Yes, a human who fell into the abyss because of the rumor of an affair with ‘Zion Askar’.

“That’s right. You… … .”

I thought then and I still think now that the affair was an impossible event that occurred in a very special situation where she was psychologically driven by countless coincidences and coincidences and coincidences.

“Zion Ascal. Right?”

… … But.

It’s amazing to see her, who never remembers the names of people she’s met once, remember my name like this.

“You applied to my club, right? With Gerken.”

I have a slightly ominous feeling.

Maybe she was a ‘strange person’ who was into guys like me from the beginning.

She raised her eyebrows in the shape of the letter 11.

“Hey. What are you doing? You’re Sion Ascal.”

“Who are you? Zion Ascal?”

Sieric appeared next to him.

Sierin smiled and smacked his lips.

“You shut up.”

“… … Ah, this crazy bitch has been doing this since yesterday.”

Sieric grabbed her by the hair.

“Let go of me you crazy idiot! Won’t you let go-?!”

The two rolled around in the carriage.

“… … .”

The escort knight approached, closing the carriage window.

Boom! Boom! Kwadada!

It seems like something big is going on inside the carriage.

“Ignore it.”

Hmm. The escort knight coughed.

“You are my benefactor, yes. My name is ‘Railo’. You said you had a connection with the young lady?”

I shrugged at Railo’s words.

“… … Yes, well. We had a brief connection during our college tour.”

“Then, by any chance, will you come with us to this forest? I will give you a generous reward. Both here and in reality.”

[Quest occurs… … .]

I shook my head.

“Ah. Sorry. I have someone I need to find.”

There’s a lot I’ve received from Cierin before the regression, too much, but my top priority right now is Soliet.

“Let’s find it together. You, if you’re a student at Magic High School, you probably know our faces, right?”

“i know.”

They are the elite of the Aventaher Knights. Among them, Railo is a particularly famous 2nd class knight.

The problem is that the level is low.

They are all the same level as me. It must be thanks to the hard work of my current life that I have come this far.

Knock knock!

Just then, the carriage window opened again. Sierin, her hair all disheveled, poked her head out.

“Hey. Let’s go together.”

There was no sound from inside, whether I had won against my younger brother or not.

“If we just get through here, there are connections inside, right?”

[Quest occurs]

◆ Very wealthy users ask you for help.

◆ Completion Reward: EXP + 600

I looked at Sierin quietly. Sierin frowned.

“… … Ah, what! Why!”

The eyes of Sierin who is looking at me now are definitely not the eyes that are looking at my ideal type.

“What have you been doing all this time? I told you to just say no.”

“… … .”

After all, Sierin before her regression and Sierin now are completely different people.

“… … Yes. I will join you.”

I told Railo.

“Instead, please help me find my party members.”

“Of course. If you’re a student at Magic High School, you can write a letter of recommendation on the Aventaher level.”

“… … .”

I licked my lips.

“Well… I won’t refuse.”

If it’s a letter of recommendation from Aventaher, it could be an unexpected source of income.

“Pfft. Look what he likes.”

Sierin chuckled and closed the carriage window again.

“… … .”

Railo patted my shoulder without saying a word. I raised my eyebrows.

“are you okay.”

Whether it’s Sierin or Sieric, the personalities of the two successors will be well-known even within the family.

However, I don’t hate that kind of attitude from Sierin.

“I understand.”

That means, the grace that has already been ‘received’ before the return is great.