Chapter 158 :

Episode 32 : Value What One Has (3)

"Ahh.. How much longer do we have to walk for?" Alaine groaned as she was getting bored of walking in a straight line.

"For a while." I said.

I couldn't blame her when we had been walking forward without stopping, although it would have been better to run, I wasn't sure when we would encounter ‘that place’.

Since the place I'm referring to, can appear at any point, I can't rush seeing my guild members slide and fall.

‘It would be hilarious to watch.’ I chuckled at my own thoughts.

While I was having my time chuckling, I found myself holding onto someone's hand.

‘Hm?’

Naturally, I would wonder who was the one brave enough to grab my hand while I was lowering my guard.

‘The hand is smol.’ I smiled, feeling like I could guess who it was.

Tap.

"Huh?"

..I was shocked.

Another one had held my other hand..

Since when did I become a babysitter? Or am I usually the type of person who was good with children?

‘Master, you used to be a babysitter for your comrades.’ Lucifer reminded me.

I sighed and answered. ‘Right, that was too long ago.’

In any case, I felt uncomfortable being held by children unlike my past lives, I should probably check out the ones who grasped my hands.

Eventually, I realized. ‘Ah wait. Aren't there only two children in my guild? Then that means Mya and Noel are just..’

"What are you two doing?" I asked.

On my left was Noel, my non-blood related son while on my right was Mya, a child who I should be watching after.

Not responding to my question, Noel stood still with his two hands gripping onto mine while his glance was staring at Mya with an irritated and jealous look.

"Erm.. Uncle JoonChul.."

At the moment, when Mya finally talked to me, I usually noticed her with a cheerful expression every now and then, yet the look on her face right then and there was filled with anxiety.

‘And she's trying to hide it.’ I narrowed my gaze.

Not long after, Mya proceeded to speak with her hands gripping mine very firmly. "I have a question to ask Uncle JoonChul.."

"Then go on, what is that question?"

Somehow, I was sort of interested in whatever questions Mya had in her head because her expression told me so, plus her grips on my hand were getting rough.

"I heard that we were in a hurry to find loot.." Mya spoke.

And I replied. "Yes, we are."

"Then.. will there be any item that will make me stronger?"

"Of course, though it wouldn't be as good as the items you got from the randomizer loot boxes."

"Won't those items we are hurrying for be good enough to make someone strong?"

She asked me with a wavering voice almost as if her hope in becoming strong via items wouldn't come true.

If it's like this, I wouldn't want her hopes to be crushed this easily, I also wanted her to improve herself enough to not be a burden to others.

‘This is really..’ I sighed inwardly.

In spite of being slightly annoyed by Mya because of the previous stage, I shouldn't be pressuring a child for that reason and I had hoped for Mya to get powerful enough for the Dragon's power to be inherited to her.

..But that will take quite a lot of time, so I can't expect that to happen.

Either way, I shortly told her. "Don't worry, the items would still prove to be useful, and what makes you think you should get stronger?"

"..Since I haven't been as useful as what I hoped for.. I only wish for the items to make me less useless."

For a bright child like her to have realized her usefulness and reacted with such a gloomy expression.

Though I am not a parenting expert, I should try to give her courage or compliment her.

..Since I'm not that cruel of a person..

‘Ahem.’ Lucifer coughed right after.

‘Oi.’ I grunted at him.

Despite being irritated by Lucifer's cough-of-disagreement, I oughta say something to Mya now.

"Mya, for all the children that I have seen in my life, I haven't met a child who could withstand Stage #17's coldness, nor being rational in a life and death dilemma."

"..??! Is that really true?"

"Have I ever lied?" This was a lie.

Shortly after, Mya's eyes landed on Noel until she asked again. "Then.. What about Noel?"

"He's technically older than you, but I guess he's still a kid." I chuckled when I was aware of Noel's surprised expression.

Naturally, Noel gasped as he was clearly furious. "Father! I'm not a child!"

"Hehe.." Mya giggled gleefully at this sight before she mumbled. "I never thought I was good at being a player despite being a child.."

It was obvious that I could hear her murmur and her unbelief tone of voice, so I convinced her. "You're good enough to have a dragon with you."

Confused, Mya said. "Dragon..??"

Out of the blue, while we were having a conversation, Noel interrupted us. "Dad! Stop talking to her!"

Clueless of what Noel meant by that, Mya responded. "Why? I was only asking Uncle JoonChul?"

"Then you're done right?"

"No, I have more questions!"

"Why so many?!"

In between these two, I started to have a thought on this scene. ‘This situation right now.. It reminds me of a certain pair.. Oh devil no.’

..At that moment, my head imagined the thought of Mya and Noel being the uprising of another Mirai and Behemoth.

‘Please let that not be true..’ I groaned.

Afterwards, I spoke to Noel in hope for him not to argue with Mya. "Noel, why do you look angry over something like this? It is only right for a child to ask the adult for answers."

"Then, I have questions that need dad's answers too!"

"Those questions are..?"

"Uhh… Erm.. Wait a moment, father!"

"Then I'll listen to Mya's questions while I wait for you."

"No! The question I wanted to ask..is.. is!"

"Did I teach you to act this way, Noel?"

"Eek.. That's not fair..! I only wanted to be by dad's side.. You don't know how much I miss you.."

When Noel was talking, he looked to be on the edge of crying with his hand tightening around my hand.

..Was I a bit harsh to him?

Instantly, Lucifer answered for me. ‘Yes, master. You were too harsh.’

‘Ah, I'm a horrible father. Technically, not a father, but whatever. I better treat him well before I get slammed by Eric's fatherly emotions.’ I mused.

In a flash, I immediately found my other hand to be freed from Mya's, and I had spotted that she did it just because she wanted to pat Noel's head as a means to comfort him.

"Don't cry." She told Noel.

‘I guess these two won't turn out like Mirai and Behemoth, I'm relieved.’ I grinned when I watched the scene between these two.

———

RUMBLE!!

After a short while, ‘The Rebels’ Guild finally came across an icy place that appeared unexpectedly and abruptly during their walks.

It was quite a surprise since the floor significantly and suddenly shifted as if to readjust the terrain.

..The floor that was horizontally straight, was now a curve to a vertically crescent slide.

And as a result of such a massive change, ‘The Rebels’ guild would have fallen down with a bad injury if not careful.

Luckily for them, they had Frostina to form a platform for them to stand on during their sudden descent.

"Whoa..! That was a close one!" Crystal gasped while staring at the ice platform to see how far down they had fallen.

"Eh? That's not deep! Why did we get scared over this?" She commented without knowing until she spotted the reason why.

A U-Shaped ramp leading to the next floor of this temple, unveiled a massive gap on the other end of the ramp.

If they had fallen deeper and slid off the ramp, it would cost them their lives after descending into the depth.

Eventually, JoonChul informed them. "Take out the ice skates that you got from the winter gear set."

When Alaine was trying to follow what JoonChul told everyone, she suddenly realized. "Are we really gonna just skate down this!?!"

It was then that Raiden spoke. "Of course? What else can we do?"

"Why can't we just let Frostina make a platform for us to go to the other side?"

"Look over there, Alaine. the ‘Creators’ didn't want such a cheat to happen, did they?"

As quiet and less aggressive as he could be, Raiden slowly moved his hand at the ceiling where there was a cluster of white creatures.

"Are those ice bats..?"

"That's right. They're not what a typical bat should be, since they are hostile to anyone who comes in their direction and disturbs them."

By then, Louis spoke. "Don't Bats run away if we surprise them, so what's special about these guys?"

"Sate, they do have mouths that could shoot ice fangs and sonic shockwaves, and their claws could rip you apart."

"Deadly.." Alaine commented with a shiver.

"And their wings allow them to fly at an incredible speed as in to avoid our attacks easier while we have a disadvantage since we are on the ground."

"And their size is… Bigger than a normal bat..!" Alaine exclaimed quietly to not startle the ice bats.

JoonChul mentioned as he was done putting on the ice skates. "I plan on going easy instead of fighting these mobs. It's enough reason to leave them alone instead of antagonizing them."

"At least, they aren't vampire bats because I really don't want something to suck my blood!" Relieved, Alaine spoke.

After that, Mya mentioned while gazing at those creatures, hiding her quivering after witnessing the large fall on the other end of the ramp.

"..The gap.. Uh, the ice bats do have bloody red eyes though and they're pretty like roses."

"Don't like them, they are monsters that could kill." Louis told Mya as he was concerned that she could get attached to those bats.

"But don't they do it to survive?"

Joining Mya's side, HwanGi spoke. "Louis, we killed monsters to survive too."

"Pfft..!! Hahaha!"

At that point, Alaine laughed so hard from witnessing the flustered Louis that she couldn't wear the ice skates properly.

Louis argued as he was embarrassed. "It's not something worth laughing at, Alaine! I'm only anxious about Mya, okay?"

"Hehe, yes, I know that it's your whole personality, caring about Mya as if you're her brother."

‘Is this my karma for upsetting Alaine earlier? Though it's a bit frustrating, I'm happy to see Alaine laughing.’ Louis thought with a smile that didn't fit his annoyed expression.

Clap! Clap!

In a hurry, JoonChul checked to make sure by asking everyone. "That's enough. Have you all put on your ice skates?"

Not long after, HwanGi uttered on behalf of ‘The Rebels’ guild, excluding JoonChul's comrades. "..Everyone has their ice skates on, but what will we do if a few of us can't skate?"

"If you can't skate, hold onto my comrades or someone who knows how to skate."

"What if we fail to make it through the other side?"

"Are you doubting me, HwanGi? Trust me, I'll never let that happen."

Judging by how vex JoonChul's voice just got, HwanGi became aware that he was still frustrated over the unnecessary sacrifice.

Biting his lower lip regretfully, HwanGi thought. ‘JoonChul-ssi, he has stopped addressing me with -ssi because of what I did.’

While HwanGi was feeling regret over his action, a short time passed and it had become awkward from the silence of the area until Louis spoke.

"Then just to be safe, I'll be the one who carries Mya."

In that moment, as Mya looked displeased to be helped again, but she couldn't just refuse Louis, fortunately for her, JoonChul had noticed the look on her face.

"Louis, who is Mya Rose?" JoonChul asked Louis seriously.

Dumbfounded by that question, Louis answered. "She's a child? And Mya is Mya."

"She may be a kid, but she's a player just like you, Louis. Don't spoil her with your kindness since it will just weaken her later on."

‘What is with him now?’ Louis grunted in his head before he responded to JoonChul. "What? You can't expect me to let her skate through this?"

"I said hold onto someone, not carry someone."

Even if Louis wanted to rebuttal JoonChul, he couldn't do that toward his leader, so naturally, Louis had to listen to JoonChul.

Plus, it wouldn't be dangerous or life-threatening if Louis were to hold Mya's hand while she skated. Thus, it wouldn't pose a problem to him either way.

Rustle…

‘Mya..’ Louis suddenly looked at Mya and watched as her expression was very..

At that point, he remembered the conversation he had with Mya a few hours ago where she showed her concerns and sorrow in being weakest amongst ‘The Rebels’ Guild members.

‘Was it my mistake that she felt weak because it was my fault? …No way, I was only trying to protect her.. I'm just worried for her life, that's all..’

‘But I didn't mean for Mya to feel burdened by my overprotectiveness.. Maybe I should just listen to JoonChul this one time for Mya's sake..’ Frowned as Louis pondered.

However, it still made him concerned and furious over JoonChul's words as Louis said. "..Fine, I'll hold her hand and help her."

"Good."

Considering how JoonChul aided her, Mya felt thankful toward him for allowing her to have a chance at doing things by herself and allowing her a chance to be useful.

"Thank you.." Mya whispered quietly to herself, unaware that JoonChul could see her thankful grin.

As she was gratified enough to beam a smile on her face, she blushed a little thanks to JoonChul's help.

Rustling…

Nonetheless, it wasn't the time to be enjoying one's time, because the obstacle in front of them was a huge opening that could lead to their lives ceasing to exist.

In due course, JoonChul uttered at a low volume as to not wake the ice bats. "When I count down to 1, we all will slide down right away. Now, get ready for it."

During this moment, Alaine gulped down her saliva just to show how nervous she was.

"3."

On 3, Mya was trembling slightly by the fact that she was going to slide down a ramp with the other end being a deadly drop of an end to her life.

"2."

In 2, Louis could sense his concerns and fear when he felt Mya's shaking hand, yet he held her hand tight to calm her down despite having fear of death.

"1!"

"Frostina!"

As per JoonChul's quiet cry, Frostina instantly dropped off her ice platform and caused everybody to fall down toward the ice ramp.

CLANK!

There they went, skating on the ice downward while building up their speed and momentum at the same time.

Surprised like they were, they were first stunned by falling and skating the moment they landed, but the amazement and fear had subsided when they were getting used to ice skating.

CLINK!

In a blink of an eye, they had reached the lower end of the U-Shaped ramp, and were climbing back up with their immense speed.

Frightened and stunned, Alaine gasped inwardly. "Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh.. my god!!!"

The closer they were to the other side, the more frighteningly thrilling it got, because they were nearer to the end after pacing through the early part.

Swoosh!

And slowly yet so fast, they whooshed into the air after swiftly getting fling off the U-Shaped ramp, soaring upward as they hollered in the middle of the air to overcome the deep gap beneath them.

"JoonChul, this is insane! Are you sure we can make it!?" Louis asked while feeling chill down his spine after seeing the depth of the gap.

..It was obvious that half of them had the same doubtful thought in this one moment..

..Could they even make it to the next floor?

"AAAHH! This is too high!! I don't think we're gonna make it!!" Alaine shouted silently.

Even HwanGi was seeing the impossibility of this feat. "The gap is too wide for us to reach the next floor, JoonChul-ssi!"

"Shut up. We'll be fine." JoonChul responded quickly.

Clink…

"D-Did we do it?" Alaine spoke with her eyes shut.

In no time, she gasped.

After she had opened her eyes, she found herself to be in the place where everyone was aiming for, standing there before turning around to see if it was for real.

"That was sooooo! Cool! Oh my god!! We even did it in one go!!" Baffled and joyous, Alaine grinned as she cheered to everybody who had made it here.

"I did it like everyone else did!" Mya gasped quietly while she congratulated herself.

Truly, they overcame something like this within their first try and achieved a moment of not having to fear the deaths of others.

"Yay!" Alaine cheered, pretending not to be scared by the depth. ‘My soul almost faded at that moment.. haha.. oh dear lord.. That was worth a heart attack..’