Surviving in the Labyrinth City of the Reverse World

16 – Wizard #3

Humans feel a sense of rejection towards beings different from themselves. Even if they’re familiar, they instinctively push them away.

Mocking them for being fat or looking strange. When we were young, it was natural.

Just based on appearance alone, what if the entire race is different?

To maintain “soul protection,” light physical contact is essential. Could we say that the interaction between men and women amplifies efficiency?

You can reduce the consumption from 10 points per day to 9 points.

As soon as Soo learned about this information, she started making efforts. In order to reduce her cost, she awkwardly approached the boys first.

It was useless.

Soo faced rejection from the boys. Even the ones who were moderately friendly would look disgusted and run away when Soo attempted physical contact.

Even the guys who treated their fellow race sisters kindly became sharp and rude in front of Soo.

With a small, fragile body that seemed like it could break with a single touch, they openly displayed their genetic aversion.

There was no guild that would accept a beastman. He only occasionally joined parties as a mercenary.

Swoo lived strictly alone. Meeting his younger brother, who was occasionally conscripted as an explorer, and having conversations with him was the extent of his communication.

No matter how strong his body and mind were, being repeatedly rejected would inevitably break him.

Piece by piece.

Swoo gave up. He had persevered for a year, but not anymore. The time had come to give up on an impossible dream.

He mechanically took on requests. And then an accident happened.

The boy couldn’t handle Swoo’s cost.

The darkness of the labyrinth gnawed at his body.

If he wasn’t a beastman, he would have been swallowed up and died immediately. Should he be grateful for having even a chance to struggle?

If he were human…

Swoo quickened his pace. He couldn’t die leaving his younger brother in the city.

Forcing his heavy legs, which felt like they had been swallowed by darkness and soaked in water, Swoo reluctantly moved in the direction indicated by his animalistic senses.

He saw a portal.

* * *

Swoo quickly glanced at the corners of his eyes. They were swollen and red.

As an adult, it was embarrassing to shed such pathetic tears and talk about the sad things he had experienced. But it seemed like even the hidden regrets were bursting out.

“So that’s why…”

Throughout the week, there had been a strange sensation whenever their skin touched. It turned out that it was a reaction to his lack of resistance to physical contact with the boy.

As they spent a week together, gradually adapting and opening up, they had reached a point where Swoo would try to hug him first.

Swoo didn’t hug the prince for no reason in the central square. After quickly calculating in his mind, he made the decision that it seemed like it would be okay to try.

“Diligent young man.”

I comforted the sniffling Su. I honestly expressed my emotions, apologized, and even offered an apology.

“Jealousy…?”

Su lifted her head to look into my eyes. Then she asked if what she heard was true.

I nodded and spoke.

“When I heard that he died, I felt emotions that I shouldn’t have felt before thinking about anything else. I thought it was unfortunate… but it’s an embarrassing feeling to talk about.”

“……”

“I envied the connection Su had with that friend. And also the connections she had with the people she had a party with before meeting me. They flashed through my mind.”

Su hastily waved her hands in denial.

“No, I’ve never had connections with boys. No one accepted me. Well, except for Ray, who gave up his seat next to him.”

“Really?”

I could already see the sincerity in Su’s expression as she squeezed out the juice. But I wanted to hear it in her own words.

Su vigorously nodded her head and emphatically affirmed.

“So, maybe I just misunderstood and thought I could propose to Ray. If it’s Ray, he would accept me into the party.”

“……”

“Ray, he just showed kindness to the beast who saved his life. It’s just that… I’m alone…”

“Su.”

Despite her confident appearance, Su had many wounds inside.

Even if the scars on her skin could be used as symbols of survival in fierce battles, the wounds in her heart wouldn’t help her live her life.

The wounds that she had to suffer alone without anyone properly healing or acknowledging…

I lowered my head.

This is an important decision. A decision that will have a significant impact on my life as an explorer.

It wasn’t a problem that could be easily decided just by feeling sympathy.

“Do you still want to party with me, Su?”

“!”

A member of the White Tiger Tribe. Normally, a male child would never be recruited into a party.

But I am not a normal male child. I am the owner of the “Soul Protection EX”. I can handle having a member of the tribe and still have room to spare.

“If I can handle it, a beastman is better than a human.”

We have even risked our lives for each other, so our trust in each other is very high. Compared to the connection with the “Miracle Vanguard” formed at the City Hall, it was a start with a ridiculous amount of fondness for each other.

“…Of course! I want to party with you, Ray!”

Tears welled up in Su’s eyes again. How lonely must he have been in the Labyrinth City? Why is he so choked up with just a single party invitation?

I smiled wryly and wiped Su’s face, hearing his forced but confident answer.

“Then let’s party. We’ll go down to the Labyrinth together in a week.”

“Yeah! Got it. Together with me and Ray… to the Labyrinth…!”

Knock, knock, knock.

Right after forming the party in such a touching way, someone knocked on the door of the inn. Knock.

It was the innkeeper, an older lady.

– The bath is ready.

“I’m going!”

Even though we just returned from exploring the Labyrinth, we couldn’t resist taking a bath. No matter how tired we were, we had to wash up and sleep.

If not, it’ll be even more frustrating.

“Do you want to take a bath with me, Suwoo?”

“…Me, me, me? Me? It doesn’t matter to me, but…”

“Are you really that uncomfortable with it?”

“Ray!”

Suwoo let out a gasp.

“A boy being with a girl! You shouldn’t say such things so easily.”

“Why not?”

“There are many bad adults in the city. A cute and kind boy like you could…be devoured without even realizing it!”

“Oh, come on. That’s unlikely.”

Is there really human trafficking happening in the Labyrinth City? All the boys are kind to each other.

“Suwoo’s just using a metaphor with his words.”

Being devoured doesn’t mean being literally eaten, but it has a different meaning.

“Maybe it won’t be so bad.”

I want to be devoured. I want to be surrounded by older sisters like Brown from the “Poison Dagger” and be devoured.

“…Are you worried?”

“I am.”

“Well then, Suwoo can protect you. Let’s go take a bath together.”

Gulp.

Suwoo’s Adam’s apple bobbed heavily. The sound of swallowing saliva was so intense that it felt like it echoed in my ears.

“I, I…”

“You haven’t showered for over a week, Suwoo. You smell bad, so go shower and sleep.”

“…”

Unable to deny my words, Suwoo reluctantly followed me, being dragged by my hand.

“…Ray, do I really smell? Is it that bad?”

“A little.”

“…”

“But I actually like Suwoo’s smell.”

“hehehe. Is that so…?”

He’s definitely a werewolf. I can’t tell if his tail is wagging like a dog’s or not.

Thanks to that, it was easy to understand Suwoo’s emotions.

* * *

Feeling refreshed after bathing, I came out.

Should I eat and sleep or just sleep? I pondered over it and decided to sit at the first-floor hall table.

“Oh, there, mermaid girl!”

The innkeeper called out to Suwoo. Her voice was harsh, as if she had boiled a pot of anger.

“What if you bleed everywhere! Clean up! If you keep coming out, I’ll block you!”

“Ah…”

The lady worked hard to clean the floor. Now that I looked, there was a streak of blood beneath the path Suwoo had walked.

Suwoo hastily pinched his nose. Nasal mucus dripped down.

“What’s wrong? Did it burst again?”

“…Well, yeah. I, I didn’t know either.”

“Weren’t you applying pressure during your bath earlier?”

“I was. I did.”

Soo couldn’t continue speaking. With a look of confusion on his face, he slightly tilted his head back and pressed his nose to stop the bleeding.

I was the one who taught him that method. He kept wiping away the flowing blood, feeling frustrated.

Soo’s innate resilience quickly stopped the bleeding. The nosebleed subsided.

“Soo, surprisingly, your nasal blood vessels are weak.”

“……”

“Now that we’ve become a team, let’s understand each other’s weaknesses and compensate for them. It would be helpful to keep in mind when recruiting other explorers in the future.”

Soo kept his lips tightly sealed. The situation with his burst nose was quite embarrassing.

“Here’s your meal.”

The innkeeper’s daughter brought bread and soup.

“Enjoy your meal, oppa.”

The way she treated Soo and the look in her eyes when she looked at me were so obvious that it made me feel even more embarrassed.

Soo chewed on the bread and drank the meat soup.

Perhaps it was because it was the first ordinary meal he had in a week, but even the simple food tasted so delicious.

When he had finished about half of his meal.

“Excuse me.”

At that moment, someone spoke behind me.

“If it’s not too much trouble, could we have a little conversation?”

She was a woman with her robe turned inside out and a staff in hand.