The next evening.
I met up with Seo Ye-in and Hong Yeon-hwa, and before heading into the dungeon, we had a quick meal.
While sitting across from each other, sharing mini sandwiches, snacks, and coffee, I casually brought up a question that crossed my mind.
“How did it go with your sister?”
“We talked it out. She was… pretty upset, but I think she’s cooled down a lot.”
“That’s good to hear.”
She probably hadn’t completely gotten over it. More like she had resigned herself to it.
After all, the Bond had already been formed, and there was no undoing it. At that point, getting angry probably felt pointless.
She might’ve even started thinking that she should support it as a sister, now that things had come to this.
“But…”
“But?”
Hong Yeon-hwa hesitated for a while, fidgeting with her hands.
I waited without pressuring her, and eventually, as she absentmindedly touched the crest on the side of her neck, she began to speak.
“She… doesn’t seem to like this.”
“Well, it’s understandable.”
Even without seeing it, I could imagine the scene clearly.
The two Hong sisters trying hard to bridge the gap, making efforts to talk to each other again.
Then suddenly, Hong Ye-hwa’s gaze falls on the crest on her little sister’s neck, and her face hardens.
At that, Hong Yeon-hwa’s voice would drop and she’d start sweating nervously.
I guessed that something like this had happened more than once.
Unfortunately, the location of the crest was nearly permanent.
There would be few chances to move it, and even if one came up, it felt right to ask Dang Gyu-young first.
She did say it was somewhere that would make marriage difficult, after all.
I offered my advice in a calm tone.
“Try not to dwell on it too much. If you just let it go, maybe your sister will gradually get used to it.”
“Mhmm… I’ll try.”
Hong Yeon-hwa slowly nodded her head.
And with that, we cleaned up and headed toward the dungeon wing.
There, we followed Shin Byeong-cheol down the stairs to the underground level.
The Disciplinary Committee’s surveillance was still pretty lax. It seemed like they were focusing all their resources on the temporary storage issue for now.
For Shin Byeong-cheol, that was a golden opportunity.
“Ah, what a pleasant day, huh? If only it were always like this.”
“Exactly, Mr. Shin Byeong-cheol. I was worried we might get caught like before.”
“Hey now! That’s ancient history. I’ve been leveling up every day, you know.”
As he spoke, Shin Byeong-cheol flung chopsticks in various directions.
Each one had a thin thread attached to the end, which he manipulated to scout the area.
He weaved his hands like he was playing cat’s cradle, then gave them a sharp flick.
“Clear, clear. It’s all safe.”
“You’ve definitely improved.”
“Told you, didn’t I? I may not be good in a fight, but I’ve got confidence in everything else.”
“Maybe it’s time you worked on the fighting part, too?”
“Now, now…that’s a comment born of ignorance.”
Shin Byeong-cheol clicked his tongue and wagged his index finger side to side.
“If someone as multi-talented as me were good at fighting too? The balance of the world would collapse.”
“Ah, I see. So you’re the guardian of balance.”
“Exactly. Keep that little secret between us.”
After exchanging some trading banter, we eventually arrived at the dungeon we were going to tackle.
[No.287] [Walking Turtle]
Seeing the teleportation portal, Shin Byeong-cheol stepped aside and gave us an exaggerated bow.
“Well then, enjoy your time in there.”
“See you later.”
After giving him a small wave, we entered the dungeon and were immediately hit by a wave of cold air from all directions.
Hong Yeon-hwa flinched behind me and quickly cast a fire spell, while Seo Ye-in dove into her inventory and pulled out an outer garment.
A thick jumper, a coat, and even a padded jacket. Three whole layers.
She was puffed up like a balloon; poke her and she might roll away.
So I asked her casually,
“Feeling any better now?”
“…Still cold.”
Actually, the thermal enchantment on our school uniforms was enough to make things bearable, but the human sloth had an especially hard time with the cold.
Even bundled in three layers of outerwear, Seo Ye-in was still shivering as she glanced pleadingly at Hong Yeon-hwa.
“Fire…”
“Yeah, just a second.”
Fwoosh—
Ruby flared red, and a small flame ignited at the tip of her staff.
With a bit of warmth now spreading through the air, we slowly took in our surroundings.
The floor, walls, and ceiling were all made of rough iron, with thick pipes and electrical cables running here and there.
Thud… thud…
Every so often, a heavy tremor would rumble from below, shaking the entire area.
Steadying myself, I pointed toward something.
“See that?”
A rugged iron ladder stretched all the way to the ceiling, where a hatch could be seen. It was likely a way out.
“Wanna go take a quick look?”
“……”
Apparently curious, both Seo Ye-in and Hong Yeon-hwa nodded at the same time.
I led the way, climbing the ladder and giving the hatch a firm twist to open it.
Immediately, a blizzard blasted through the gap.
Whoooosh—!
Seo Ye-in shrank back and slowly climbed back down.
“…Close it.”
“I’ll just take a quick peek.”
“Close it…”
“Just wait there.”
I glanced over at Hong Yeon-hwa. She hesitated briefly, then continued climbing up the ladder.
Of course she’d want to see what was out there.
Thud… thud…
As soon as I stepped outside the hatch, the ground trembled again.
Struggling to maintain my balance, I looked down and saw huge hexagonal platforms laid out across the ground.
Each one was easily larger than a typical room, and they stretched far into the distance.
Whoooosh—!
Other than that, everything was blurred by the raging blizzard, but I could still make out the silhouette of a huge head in front of us.
Studying it closely, Hong Yeon-hwa muttered to herself.
“A turtle…?”
“Yeah, a turtle.”
A mobile fortress. The Walking Turtle.
As the weather suggests, it’s currently crossing the polar region.
For now, just confirming that much was enough.
We went back the way we came.
As I shut the hatch and glanced around the interior, I saw a round bundle in the corner made up of jumpers, coats, and padded jackets.
It was none other than Seo Ye-in, curled up like a pill bug.
When I gave her a gentle push, she rolled away.
“This thing just rolls around.”
“No ball games…”
Seo Ye-in deactivated her pill bug mode and struggled to sit up.
Then she said while stretching her arms toward me,
“Carry me.”
“Out of nowhere?”
“It’s cold.”
“What does being cold have to do with me carrying you?”
“Function impaired.”
“You just don’t want to move, huh?”
– Nod.
I stroked my chin, pretending to think it over.
“Getting carried from the start like it’s nothing… that’s kind of cheeky.”
“Be nice.”
“And what’s in it for me if I am?”
“A kiss.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s what you want.”
“Mutual benefit.”
“Ooh, big words now.”
Putting the kiss aside, I decided to give in here.
Wasting any more time would only be a bigger loss.
I hoisted the outerwear-covered pill bug sloth onto my back.
Then Seo Ye-in gave a lazy wave toward Hong Yeon-hwa.
“Fire…”
Hong Yeon-hwa, though looking conflicted, obediently lit a flame.
Fwoosh.
A small flame rose from her palm, transforming into a mini hydra.
Even that alone made the surrounding temperature noticeably warmer.
I gave a nod and pointed toward the corridor on one side.
“Let’s head out.”
“Okay.”
Thump, thump…
We kept moving along the corridor, steadying ourselves each time the Walking Turtle took a step.
After some time, we reached a room similar to the one we’d first entered.
On one wall, there were various levers and control panels installed.
The problem was that most of them were covered in thick ice and there were even two people trapped inside.
Even so, I asked casually,
“Can you handle it?”
“Mhmm.”
Hong Yeon-hwa stepped forward as if it was nothing.
Then, raising her hand where the hydra flickered, it spat out a fireball with a pfft sound.
Boom!
In an instant, the ice melted away.
The trapped people collapsed out, gasping for air.
“Guhuck!”
Judging by their clothing, they seemed to be crew members who were apparently frozen by something.
Still catching their breath, they finally noticed us and flinched in surprise.
In response, I gave a soft smile and said,
“Don’t worry, we’re not your enemies.”
“…How can we believe that?”
“Didn’t we just get you out of there?”
“What if you froze us just to get us out? Maybe you want to use us.”
Suspicious guys.
Of course, I had already prepared what to say to convince them.
But just then, Seo Ye-in who was shivering slightly from the cold again slipped out of piggyback mode and walked up to Crew Member A.
Then suddenly, she smacked him over the head with a pot.
Clang!
Crew Member A collapsed with a thud, and Crew Member B’s face went pale.
Still trembling, Seo Ye-in said,
“…We’re not enemies.”
“Y-Yes! Of course not!”
It must’ve been so cold that she couldn’t even spare the time to persuade them.
So she opted for a faster, more effective means of communication.
As I carried Seo Ye-in on my back again, I spoke to Crew Member B.
“He’s not in any danger, so don’t worry. We’d appreciate it if you could guide us.”
“Uh… where would you like to go…?”
“The auxiliary power core. The closest one.”
“That’s, um…”
As the word “power core” suggests, it’s one of the most vital facilities in a mobile fortress.
Being asked to lead us there made Crew Member B hesitate for a moment. But when Seo Ye-in quietly pulled out her pot again, he quickly turned around and began walking ahead.
I followed behind, continuing to ask questions.
“What exactly is happening here?”
I already knew. This wasn’t my first time clearing this dungeon after all. But I was asking to help the other party members understand.
I hadn’t given them any guides or walkthroughs beforehand.
Crew Member B searched his memory and stammered,
“Well, I don’t know the details…”
“Just tell us what you saw.”
“What I saw were… people in mage robes, and these walking ice chunks.”
“Anything else unusual?”
“A blue jewel…? I think it was a sapphire.”
I glanced over at Hong Yeon-hwa and exchanged a look, then gave a nod.
The intruders were clearly mages from the old Sapphire Magic Tower.
“And then?”
“They made a similar demand. Asked to be led to the power core. We refused… and this is what happened.”
Would’ve been easier if they’d just frozen one person as a warning, like Seo Ye-in did.
Then again, they probably didn’t need to cling to these two crew members. They had plenty of others to use as guides.
Walking in step beside me, Hong Yeon-hwa asked,
“Why the power core…?”
“If you control that, you control everything.”
It was more effective than taking a typical hostage and if they wanted, they could even shut down the mobile fortress entirely.
I added a comment.
“Of course, taking it all won’t be easy.”
Moving a super giant turtle required an absurd amount of energy.
There wasn’t just one or two auxiliary power cores, and even the Sapphire Tower mages would have a hard time occupying all of them.
“We’ll just run around and stop them as we go.”
“Ah…!”
Hong Yeon-hwa nodded as if she’d gotten the general idea.
And I followed up with,
“If possible, I’ll leave most of the fighting to you. We’ll just watch.”
“Sure, got it.”
That was probably what Hong Yeon-hwa wanted anyway.
The more ice-type enemies she could take down, the faster her Aqua Flame rank would rise.
We were having this exchange about the dungeon as we walked when we turned a corner.
Shweeeeeeek!
Sensing a sharp piercing wind, I yanked Crew Member B back with Wind Force and in the spot where he’d been standing, razor-sharp icicles slammed into the ground.
Moments later, two mages in sky-blue robes appeared and began firing volleys of icicles.
Shweeeeeeek!
But in the very next moment, a curtain of flame erupted, and the incoming icicles all melted into steam.
A seamless counterattack from Hong Yeon-hwa.
Boom-boom-boom!
The ice shield was instantly shattered, and the mages were engulfed in flames.
“Urgh!”
“Wh-What the—?!”
As the panicked enemies turned to flee, Hong Yeon-hwa glanced over at me.
She looked like she was expecting something, so I gave her a short reply.
“Good job. Let’s keep it up.”
“Mhmm…!”
It felt like her invisible tail was wagging like crazy.
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