Chapter 8: Dungeon O-S (1)


    “Uhh…”


    With a soft moan, Ca slowly opened her eyes.


    The sunlight was peeking through the curtains.


    She hadn’t been exposed to this warm natural light for a while, as she had been confined undergroundtely. Which was probably why she woke up earlier than usual.


    Realizing this, Ca let out a faint sigh,


    “Ah.”


    ‘This isn’t that suffocating basement.’


    Her sigh of relief was brief.


    Just like anyone who had just woken up, Ca’s memories of the previous day began to surface. The moment she rememberedst night’s events, her face flushed bright red.


    “Huh? Uh… Uhm!”


    Almost involuntarily letting out a scream, Ca managed to suppress it just in time.


    Covering her mouth with her hand, she slowly turned her head.


    “……”


    As expected, her master Yandel was asleep, his face contorted in a heavy slumber.


    Had she screamed, she would have woken him up. And most people don’t like to be jolted awake. She remembered her past self fussing over servants in a simr manner.


    Ca chuckled bitterly as she remembered her past life.


    She was no longer that noble youngdy. Now, she was just a ve who must tread carefully, even in breathing, lest she upset her master.


    Worried that Yandel might wake up, Ca carefully slid out of the nket. Just as she stood up to wash her face…


    “Tch!”


    A sharp pain shot up through her lower abdomen.


    The cause of the pain was undeniablyst night’s intense activities.


    Annoyed by the resurfacing memories, she lowered her head again and headed towards the sink in the room.


    However, the moment she opened the bathroom door.


    She could clearly see her current appearance through therge full-length mirror ced right in front of her.


    “This is…”


    One side of her neck was covered in bite marks and kiss marks.


    Handprints were vividly imprinted on her chest, and dried remnants from yesterday’s events were on her swollen lower body.


    It was impossible not to reminisce aboutst night’s passionate encounter.


    How her master treated her and how she moaned under his touch.


    As Ca brought up these detailed memories, she began to squirm in embarrassment… But then she tilted her head slightly.


    It wasn’t as bad as she had thought.


    No, it was much better than what Ca had ever imagined while she was behind bars.


    First of all, Yandel didn’t destroy Ca’s mana core.


    For a mage, a mana core was like another limb, a naturally existing yet vital organ.


    But ves weren’t permitted to use magic, so they were usually ordered to self-destruct their cores.


    However, Yandel didn’t do that.


    Not just that, he recognized Ca’s worth as a mage, even instructing her in the Lintblum breathing method and basic magic.


    As a direct descendent of a magic family, this had significant meaning for Ca, who took great pride in her magic.


    And how Yandel treated her was another thing.


    The treatment of ves, something she had indirectly experienced during her time as a noble and directly observed after bing a ve, was unfair, to say the least.


    Whether their masters were in a good mood or a bad one, the ves were subjected to beatings or even whippings almost to the point of death.


    No one cared, even if a ve died in such a manner.


    After all, ves existed solely for the whims of their owners. No reason was needed for their deaths.


    Ca, being a valuable ve, probably wouldn’t die on a whim. That didn’t mean she would be treated well, though.


    However, Yandel offered Ca rewards and punishments.


    Even the evaluation criteria were based on how well she listened to him.


    It was a given that a ve should obey their master, and yet he promised rewards just for doing that basic duty.


    What a merciful treatment this was.


    But Yandel was not just a merciful master.


    He was also incredibly good-looking.


    Ca’s face reddened for a different reason than before.


    His features were more exquisite than most nobles, and those lips that teased her with a mischievous smile.


    His purple eyes were filled with intent, and his demanding attitude made her feel as if he couldn’t do without her.


    Reminiscing up to that point, she felt differently about the marks left on her body from yesterday.


    “Should I just leave them?”


    Originally, Ca had intended to simply wash her face and then clean her entire body using ‘Clean’ and ‘Cure’ spells.


    Since her mana core was intact, it wouldn’t be difficult.


    However, she remembered how eager Yandel was to leave marks on her body yesterday.


    And this was probably his preference.


    Ca nced at the mirror for a moment, and eventually returned to the bed without doing anything.


    She carefully slid back under the covers so as not to wake Yandel, and she curled up next to him, hoping that her young master would appreciate her like this.


    Upon waking up, I saw Ca curled up next to me.


    Both of us had fallen asleep as if we had fainted. Perhaps that was why we couldn’t properly tidy up.


    Traces of yesterday were still vividly present on Ca’s fair neck.


    Somehow, they seemed more noticeable than the ve mark.


    It was likely true for other parts that weren’t visible.


    As I was fiddling with the bite marks on Ca’s neck, she woke up, perhaps irritated by the itch.


    “Ugh… Huh?”


    Ca let out a strange noise as she slowly opened her eyes.


    Her expression seemed dazed, as if still under the influence of sleep. Her blinking ruby eyes no longer contained any fear or wariness.


    It felt as though a rabbit from another house had suddenly be mine.


    What was going on?


    Even if Ca hade to terms with her situation, this was a rather dramatic change.


    “Master? Are you awake…?”


    Her smile was slightly awkward, but Ca greeted me with it nheless.


    Yeah, who cares why? As long as she was cute.


    I tickled her neck once more, causing her to shrug her shoulders and squirm.


    “Heh… Haah…”


    Her voice and expression were strangely sensuous.


    Images from yesterday came to mind, tempting me to pounce on her, but I managed to restrain myself and got up.


    There’s a lot to do.


    “Let’s wash up quickly and head out. Ah, do you know how to use the Clean spell?”


    “Huh… Yes, I’ve mastered most practical spells. Shall I use it?”


    “Sure. Washing with water might be cleaner, but we’re pressed for time today.”


    “Just wait a moment.”


    I felt a faint flow of magical power.


    Could it be that I can now sense magic? I felt Ca’s mana core resonating with the surrounding mana.


    However, it didn’tst long. Maybe it was just about one second?


    A blue magic circle had already appeared at Ca’s fingertips.


    Raising it up, Capleted the incantation.


    “Clean.”


    A magic circle that wasrge enough to envelop both of us appeared simultaneously.


    A simple geometric magic circle slowly descended from above, covering us from head to toe.


    Our bodies gradually became clean, delineated by a boundary of blue light.


    “…The output ispletely different from the Clean scrolls I’ve used before. This is almost as good as actually bathing, isn’t it?”


    “Hehe. Well, I’m more skilled than most low-level scroll makers.”


    Ca said, twisting her body a bit as if she were shy.


    Of course, as she was still unclothed, even slight movements made her chest sway, drawing my attention there.


    As if taunting me with her jiggling, I used my hand to hold her still.


    Squish.


    “Heh…!”


    Ca stiffened as I touched her chest. Despite what happened yesterday, she still wasn’t used to it. Her reaction was like that of a bunny getting nipped at the nape.


    “Speaking of which, these marks don’t seem to go away, do they?”


    At my query, Ca hesitated before speaking.


    “Th-that’s because they’re not impurities but small injuries… Uh, I could remove them with Cure magic… What should I do, Master?”


    “Hmm.”


    I looked down at Ca for a moment.


    It’d be a shame to remove them…


    “Does it hurt?”


    “Huh? No, it tingles a bit, but that’s it.”


    “Then it’s fine. Let’s just get dressed and go.”


    “L-like this?”


    “Why? You’re not saying you don’t like it, are you?”


    I inflected my voice with the implication of disobedience to an order. Though it might seem trivial, I believe that establishing the master-servant rtionship should start with these small matters.


    “No! Not at all! I’ll get dressed like this, Master!”


    Ca nodded her head vigorously with a tone of slight pride.


    What’s up with her? Why was she so pleased?


    For a moment, my eyes followed her tinum blonde hair, which shook back and forth as she nodded. I chuckled and took new clothes out of my inventory.


    There should be no issue since she did as she was told.


    In a brief moment, Iyered clothes over my underwear.


    Suddenly, I felt a gaze and turned to the side.


    “……”


    “Ah.”


    Ca, who had been carefully picking up her dress, looked at me with a vacant expression.


    My inventory was one of the few special abilities I had, along with the status window.


    In this world, there were magic tools like pocket-space bags or bracelets serving simr purposes to inventories, so I usually passed them off as such tools.


    However, this time, I opened my inventory without wearing any magic tools. And my audience was Ca, a real mage. Passing it off as a magical tool wouldn’t work now.


    “Uh… I-I…”


    Perhaps thinking she saw something she shouldn’t have, Ca hesitated before covering her eyes with her palm.


    “I-I didn’t see anything, Master!”


    “It’s fine if you did. Of course, you can’t tell anyone else.”


    Just to be safe, I gave themand through the ve engraving. Meanwhile, Ca peeked through her fingers.


    “…Really?”


    “Really. I was nning to tell youter anyway.”


    Of course, I didn’t intend to tell her that this was something from a game.


    I had another exnation prepared, just in case she found out that it wasn’t a magic tool.


    “This is an ability I gained from clearing dungeons.”


    “D-Dungeon…!”


    Ca’s eyes widened in surprise.


    H&A was short for Hero and Academy.


    But for there to be heroes, there must be corresponding feats, right?


    In this world, evil Gods existed, always coveting the Eurelia continent.


    Dungeons were the ces where good Gods sealed away the armies of these evil Gods.


    To clear a dungeon meant to wipe out one of these evil armies, a feat that was enough to be called a hero.


    For that reason, quite a few dungeons were hidden throughout this world.


    However, who would risk their lives to venture into such dangerous ces?


    Centuries could pass, and the seal might break, releasing monsters within, but that was a problem for the distant future.


    Not many people would risk their lives for glory alone.


    That was why the Gods offered rewards.


    “So, this is the grace of the Gods…”


    “Yes, it’s a pocket space that binds to your soul.”


    The Gods decided to grant part of the power that maintained the seals to the conquerors.


    This gift was referred to as the ‘Grace of the Gods,’ and it was usually in the form of unique skills or special equipment that one couldn’t normally acquire.


    The setting was that I received a convenient pocket-space ability from among them.


    Of course, even if someone cleared all the dungeons on the Eurelia continent, such a grace wouldn’t exist, but who would know that?


    It was unknown until someone actually cleared all of them.


    And true to her magician’s curiosity, Ca looked at me with sparkling eyes.


    I gently tapped her head as I continued to speak,


    “What are you so dazed about? You’re going to clear one, too.”


    “…Eh?”


    Ca tilted her head as if she didn’t understand what I was saying.


    Then I grinned at her innocent look.


    “Didn’t I tell you? We’re going to be busy today.”


    We should clear just one before the entrance exam.


    With Ca’s abilities, it shouldn’t be too difficult.