Chapter 3

Chapter 3. The Porter of Yensi (2)

I honestly didn't know what dungeons in this world were like. The protagonist of this novel was the female lead, Marina, and she wasn't in a position to run dungeons.

Dungeons and ugly fights were the male lead Gatess's domain. Even then, they were only briefly described, with the focus always on the protagonist, Marina.

"Since it's the 11th floor, lizardmen are showing up too."

In other words, I didn't know the monsters that appeared here. Honestly, I had a habit of reading books rather carelessly. Because I was kind of busy.

S-rank Hunters were basically celebrities—they appeared in commercials and broadcasts more than they took commissions. It paid more and was less dangerous. In my later years, I barely took commissions and just shot commercials nonstop.

I'd only go out on commissions when the government came begging. That last time, the United Nations was whining about it, so I went—and look how that turned out.

"Ugh, blood splattered."

Airi made a pouty face after slicing the lizardman. The lizardman's blue blood had stained her white sleeve. For the record, I didn't even know lizardmen had blue blood.

I'd read romance fantasy because I wanted to watch Marina and Gatess's love story, not to watch monster slaying—which was my day job.

"Butler, wipe it off."

Despite the odd request, the butler pulled out a handkerchief, sprinkled a strange potion on it, and wiped her sleeve. The liquid seemed to be quite a mystical substance—the stain came right off.

"Wow, using holy water like that."

"That stuff comes off with just a few scrubs of soap."

Murmurs from the guards reached my ears. I knew about holy water. It was probably expensive now, but it would get cheap soon. No need to worry too much.

"12th floor."

"My lady, please."

The moment I finished processing the corpse, Airi announced it triumphantly. But the guards' faces were calm.

Obviously. They were guards assigned to a ducal lady—they wouldn't have been given weaklings.

"What rank was the estate dungeon again?"

"C-rank."

"What? Then it's 34 floors max. Why's that butler so worked up?"

"She's the only lady of the house. If she even sprains her hand, heads will roll."

It probably wasn't that extreme. C-rank, anyway. I didn't know exactly what level that corresponded to, but I could tell it was low. Still, I wanted to get out fast.

I was curious about how I ended up here, curious about where in the timeline this world was, and lastly, curious about whether my soul would vanish once I left this dungeon.

I still couldn't tell whether this was a dream or reality.

But contrary to my wishes, Airi kept pushing deeper.

12th floor.

13th floor.

14th floor.

15th floor.

"Please, that is truly enough!"

The butler spread both arms wide to block her. Airi used that pretty face of hers for nothing but a scowl. Not that it made her any less pretty.

"If you wish to go further, you'll have to cut me down to pass."

"You think I can't, Butler?"

"Then do it!"

What a backbone. To turn out this rotten even with such a loyal retainer by her side. You really couldn't ignore a person's true nature. Then again, it was just the personality the author gave her, so maybe it was the author's fault.

"Tch, boring. I told you, I'm still fine."

Be that as it may, Airi's legs were trembling faintly. No one had probably noticed, but she was gradually reaching her limit.

What was she thinking, wielding a sword in gloves? Was this a fencing match? In real combat, you gripped the hilt so it melded to your hand. That's how you felt the sword's feedback.

Wearing gloves actually increased hand fatigue.

The knowledge that came from being an S-rank Hunter was screaming all manner of unsolicited advice. But I couldn't voice any of it.

"Fine, let's head back then."

"A wise decision!"

Airi turned around primly, as if she'd just made some grand decision, then toppled sideways.

In stark contrast to when I had fallen, no one laughed. Dead silence. Even though she'd crashed into the wall far more ungracefully.

"Are you all right, my lady?!"

"I'm fine, obviously?"

Airi, apparently embarrassed, pushed against the dirty wall to try to stand. But by coincidence, the brick she pushed began sliding inward.

I rushed over and stopped her from losing her balance. Meaning I grabbed her shoulders.

The butler and the guards froze at the sight. I'd only moved instinctively in that split second—if I'd thought for even a moment, I wouldn't have done it.

This was also proof that I possessed the power of an S-rank Hunter. An S-rank Hunter's thoughts translated directly into action. Disconnect between thought and action was an amateur's problem.

"You, you......!"

Airi stammered. The milk was already spilled. I decided to just brazen it out.

"You were about to fall and seriously hurt yourself."

"No, I wasn't! Get your hands off me!"

Ow, my ears. I obediently took my hands off and backed away, hiding among the guards. One of them spoke to me.

"What were you thinking, laying hands directly on the lady's noble person? If the lady hadn't been so flustered, you'd have gotten three slaps across the face."

"I'm reflecting on it."

Don't stand out. I knew now that I was no longer an S-rank Hunter. A person needed to know their place. Especially Hunters.

99% of the time, Hunters died because they didn't know their place. B-rank Hunters aiming for A-rank dungeons, A-rank Hunters aiming for S-rank dungeons. The remaining 1% were cases like mine, where a sudden dungeon mutation killed you.

"Still, didn't expect there to be an M-floor."

A guard muttered. I knew about M-floors. The male lead, Gatess, specialized in diving into them.

M-floor was a term that existed in my country too—literally, the mezzanine. Here, it had the feel of a hidden dungeon. Since Gatess was the male lead, hidden floors came to him in droves.

What that meant was this:

"I—I found a hidden floor!"

Airi raised both arms overhead and cheered.

In other words, it was a secret chamber rarely permitted to others. I could understand why Airi was happy. And thank goodness. If she hadn't been overjoyed about discovering the hidden floor, I would've gotten slapped.

"Butler, we honestly have to go in."

"Absolutely not."

"You never know where an M-floor will appear. If we don't go in now, it'll be gone soon."

Airi was right. Gatess had said something like that when explaining M-floors in the novel. I was curious too, but honestly, I didn't want to go in. Because I didn't know what condition I was in.

Know your enemy and know yourself—a hundred battles, a hundred victories.

Know yourself but not your enemy—one victory for every loss.

Know neither yourself nor your enemy—a hundred battles, a hundred defeats.

The current situation was a guaranteed hundred defeats. Of course, all of that was just forced logic. When I was an S-rank Hunter, I won everything just by knowing myself.

"Butler, you don't need to worry that much. It's only floor 15.5 of a C-rank dungeon. If things go south, we can step in."

The ponytailed thug stepped forward. Well, well. Airi's eyes lit up. She'd probably been angling for exactly this. Villainess trait: ears light up the moment someone says what she wants to hear.

The other guards seemed somewhat reluctant, yet he stepped forward boldly.

"Wif! I knew you'd say that. The guard I picked really is different."

Villainess trait number two: absolutely zero eye for people. That's why she treated the female lead like dirt and threw herself at the male lead so shamelessly.

"My lady......"

"Look, I won't hold you responsible even if I get hurt. And the guards are all at least B-rank. What could go wrong?"

"If they were knights, I could go in with peace of mind. But with the guards we have here, I cannot rest easy."

Ooh. The butler's fastball. His words were directed at Airi, but the fastball had been hurled squarely at the guards. That aside, what were the first-string knights doing, not accompanying the lady into the dungeon?

"Hey, that sounds like you're saying we're unreliable?"

Obviously. Why even point that out? The butler nodded as if it were self-evident.

"You lot were originally the ones guarding the youngest young master back at the house. Don't get full of yourselves just because the knights stepped out briefly and you're filling in."

Wow. The butler was going hard. His voice dropped lower, and the guards' faces turned red. The butler's high-altitude fact-bombing seemed to punch through the dungeon ceiling and reduce the guards to ashes.

Of course, it came from loyalty to Airi, but I thought it was the wrong thing to say. Not just because of the personal humiliation—but because people who fancied themselves swordsmen all had similar temperaments. The mediocre ones were practically cut from the same cloth.

Regardless of rank, if they decided someone was weaker than them, they'd lash out. In a sword-wielding dungeon like this, with adrenaline pumping, it would be especially bad.

"Listen, butler. You know your head would fly off in one swing of my sword, right? So stay quiet."

"My job is to protect the lady, not to guarantee your safety. You are nothing more than chess pieces of the ducal estate. Myself included, of course."

The argument between the butler and the ponytailed guard intensified. As the atmosphere turned hostile, Airi watched it all with interest. God, that bitch.

"Could we put it to a vote?"

Someone raised their hand and asked. It was the youngest guard. It sounded reasonable to me, but everyone's expressions turned icy.

"Listen, do you know that proposing a vote to someone of a different class is treason?"

"N-No, I didn't."

Right, this was a medieval era. See, staying quiet like me gets you halfway there. But Airi smiled with interest and raised her hand.

"I'm in favor. Go ahead and vote, the rest of you. I'll graciously let this one slide."

With that kind of pressure and the ducal lady voting in favor, who would dare oppose? And yet, that person was right here. Unyieldingly, the butler immediately cast his vote against.

"I vote against."

"I vote in favor."

The ponytailed guard who'd been clashing with the butler raised his hand. The other guards were busy reading the room. Well, this wasn't the place to draw attention.

I quietly raised my hand.

"I cast my vote against."

"I knew it, since you're just a porter. You don't know anything about honor."

Airi sneered at me. I really wanted to hit her. I wished this novel would hurry up to around chapter 180. That's when Gatess slaps Airi clean across the face.

The other guards exchanged glances as they cast their votes for and against, but in the end, the votes in favor won overwhelmingly. They were the duke's people, after all. How could they ignore the opinion of their employer's daughter?

"Then it's decided. Voting is fun. Father told me never to do it, though."

"I will be reporting this matter to the Duke."

"Go ahead."

Airi mocked the butler. His face reddened. Then Airi went to the wall with the pushed-in brick.

"From this point forward, none of this is my responsibility. Please take note, my lady."

"Yeah, yeah."

The butler reached inside the wall and seemed to manipulate something. Soon the wall split open left and right, and darkness spilled out.

So this was the M-floor I'd only read about in the novel. Oh, suddenly I remembered something. What Gatess had said to Marina when they were in a dungeon together:

- Stay by my side on the M-floor. It's not common, but sometimes monsters above the dungeon's rank appear.

Why did those words suddenly sound like a prophecy? No. It wouldn't come to that. Because if Airi died here, the novel wouldn't be able to continue.

It'll be fine, it'll be fine.

I chanted the mantra and followed them in from the very back.