The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon

I crossed my arms and looked at the man’s heterochromatic eyes, filled with goodwill. For a moment, I fell into thought. I glanced briefly at Rena.

”Could we handle that request in her name instead?”

Rena’s eyes wavered slightly. The human body was fascinating, and the eyes even more so. When I looked closely, it was as if I could see through to something deeper.

”You mean you’d like this to count as Rena’s accomplishment?”

”That’s right.”

My goal for now was to get her promoted within the guild as quickly as possible.

”However, the reward will go to you,” I added.

The man looked surprised, then quickly waved his hand in refusal. ”That would be problematic. The person completing the task should receive the full reward.”

”I don’t like being indebted. You’ve already appraised items for me free of charge.”

The man let out a long sigh. ”If you see this as a debt, then it puts me in a difficult position. The person performing the task is entitled to the full reward. I am merely a messenger.”

”If it weren’t for the guild, I wouldn’t have received the request in the first place. Consider it payment for the appraisal.”

”I’ll take ten percent of the reward at most.”

I said firmly, ”How about the opposite? I take ten percent, and you take ninety percent.”

The value of his appraisal skill was worth at least that much. I didn’t want to haggle or feel further indebted. Emotional debts were the heaviest burden of all. Promoting Rena was my way of repaying a debt to her from a past life. If I owed the man now, I would feel compelled to repay it someday, even in the afterlife.

Of course, the man didn’t know that, but he wasn’t easy to convince either.

”Ninety percent is too much. I can’t accept that.”

”And I won’t take less.”

”Fifteen percent. That’s the most I’ll take.”

”You’ll need money to care for the children, won’t you?”

As the negotiation progressed, I found myself becoming oddly genuine. I didn’t want to lose this argument.

”I’ve integrated into human society quite well. There’s no need to worry about me.”

”I saw the humans who invaded earlier. It doesn’t seem very stable to me.”

We were locked in a ridiculous argument as monsters who killed and dissolved humans without hesitation, fighting over who would take less of the reward money.

I suddenly recalled the adventurers who had raided the dungeon. They had argued over who would get the kill or the loot, and they took turns yielding to one another.

They treated us like farmland, like food. They enjoyed their camaraderie, taking pleasure in their mutual generosity as they divided us. I remembered their smug displays of selflessness.

Their actions made me want to return the favor someday. For some reason, I became more invested in this negotiation. We eventually agreed on a fifty-fifty split.

The slime looked exasperated as he extended his hand. ”Fine. Fifty percent, and I’ll continue to find requests for you in the future.”

”That’s appreciated. Let me know the details of the request, and—”

”Yes, please go on.”

”Take good care of Sean.”

The man’s expression softened at the mention of the child’s name.

He asked with a curious tone, ”Do you know the child?”

I gave a vague response. ”Well... he seemed a bit out of place with the others.”

The man’s face relaxed even more, becoming even warmer than before.

”He’s a child I’ve been paying particular attention to lately. Sharp... and kind-hearted.”

Ding!

[Lime’s Affection has increased by 9!]

[Affection has reached 20!]

[Lime believes you have an eye for children!]

It seemed I had earned his trust, though the misunderstanding felt strange. I shrugged it off.

***

After receiving a detailed explanation about the tournament, I returned to the room. Rena followed me inside.

”What is it?” I asked.

”Why are you being so kind to me?”

”Kind?”

”You’re giving me the credit for this...”

Her voice was unusually subdued, almost trembling.

”I’m just raising you to be useful.”

Half-muted and half-flustered, Rena responded, ”Why not use the director as your informant instead? He’s far more skilled and useful than I am.”

She was talking too much. It was time to shut her up.

I threw out a random remark. ”You’re a good person.”

”What?”

Her fingers trembled slightly. ”I said, you’re a good person.”

”Do you even know how many people I’ve killed?”

”Not that many, I’d guess. And so what?”

From a human perspective, she might be considered a psychopathic criminal. But she had been kind to me.

She had died because of me, and she didn’t abandon me even in the end. That was all that mattered to me. I didn’t care how she treated others, especially those who had tried to kill me.

So what if she killed a few?

Whether she boiled them or ate their flesh was none of my concern.

Rena fell silent, unable to respond. She seemed frozen in place.

”Why? Don’t you want to earn credit?”

She couldn’t possibly dislike that.

”You’re too harsh,” she muttered, her shoulders slumping.

Her expression suggested I had struck a sensitive nerve she hadn’t even realized was there. The sight amused me because it didn’t suit Rena at all.

I decided to change the subject. ”By the way, I’m curious about something.”

”Ask anything,” she replied hesitantly.

”How much is two seirons worth?”

She let out a small laugh, her stiff expression relaxing slightly.

”It’s nice when you don’t know something. You’re quite adorable at times.”

”Just answer the question.”

I deliberately kept my tone blunt. I had no intention of deepening my relationship with her. If helping her led to my death, that would settle my debt. I didn’t want to get further entangled.

With her cheeks still slightly flushed, she answered, ”With two seirons, you could buy three fine horses, a hundred decent swords...”

”And?”

”...or fifty barrels of apple cider. Drinking one barrel a month would last you four years.”

”Hmm. Human economics don’t make much sense to me.”

”Why worry about it? Just leave it all to me.”

Rena smirked, raising one corner of her mouth. That expression suited her.

***

The next morning, we set off for Erast in a carriage that the director loaned to us.

As I looked outside, Rena said in passing, ”How did you get so strong?”

”You mean me?”

”Yes. Don’t overdo it in the tournament. You’ll shock the spectators too much.”

”My goal is three wins.”

”That’ll be too easy.”

”What happens if I win the whole thing?”

”You’d get a fine warhorse or an excellent sword... but nothing too special from a small-time noble.” She continued, ”If you wanted, the lord might hire you under favorable terms. You’d get a house and even a few slaves.”

Slaves.

”Useless.”

”For vagrants, it’s a good deal. But if you want real money, you should look elsewhere. The real earnings come from something else.”

”What’s that?”

”Tournaments always spawn unofficial gambling rings.”

Jingle.

Rena held up her purse, and the sound of silver coins clinked inside. She had looted them from human corpses.

”I’m going all in.”

”Gambling?”

She nodded confidently. ”Of course. could easily multiply it by twenty. Not betting would be foolish.”

”And who are you betting on?”

”Don’t joke. You’re going to win everything, aren’t you?”

”Not necessarily. Humans aren’t that weak.”

”You’re underestimating yourself,” she said.

”Maybe...”

She might be overestimating me. To her, I might seem like a goose that lays golden eggs, but I could just as easily fail to produce anything.

Am I really that strong?

I wasn’t entering the tournament to boost Rena’s reputation. I wanted to assess my own abilities.

I had battled adventurers invading dungeons and overpowered dozens of soldiers. Yet, when confronted by a single knight, I found myself cut down along with my armor. The strength of humans remained an enigma I couldn’t fully grasp.

The tournament provided me with an opportunity to gauge my capabilities step by step, and it was taking place in Erast, the city from which Rubia had fled.

”Her uncle...”

According to Rubia, her uncle had been sentenced to ten years for human trafficking. He was the same man who had sent assassins after her as a lord.

I needed to see his face. Just knowing what he looked like would be enough for now. Lost in thought, I opened the notebook I carried.

— Captain and his men (Yublam): ☑

— Lord (Erast): ☐

— Hammer and Crossbow (First Tomb): ☑

I saw the checkmarks. I had killed the hammer and crossbow users three or four times each. The captain and his group had been roasted with fire over two separate encounters.

Their screams still echoed vividly in my memory. The only one left was Rubia’s uncle, the lord of Erast.

I said, ”The tournament...”

”Yes, what about it?”

”Will the lord attend?”

”Of course. He’ll be there from start to finish, and he won’t take his eyes off the fights.”

”No other duties?”

”He considers such events part of his role as a lord.”

”You speak as if you know him well.”

”There are plenty of rumors, aren’t there?”

”Do you believe every rumor?”

”I believe what’s said by at least three separate sources. That’s my rule.”

”Are you interested in the lord?”

I deflected her question. ”Not particularly.”

Would I be able to cut down the lord there and then? Could I exact Rubia’s revenge now?

Unlikely.

Even if I managed to get close and successfully assassinated him, it would only cause chaos. Rena might die, and the slime would be in trouble.

There was no point in half-heartedly botching things. If I killed him, I would have to be thorough and possess overwhelming strength.

No tightrope walking. For now, just identifying him will suffice.

As I sank deeper into thought, Rena leaned lightly against my shoulder. Her muscles were surprisingly firm and well-toned. The texture was slightly hard, though still much softer than my bones.

”I’m curious about something,” she said.

”Ask.”

”Where did you learn swordsmanship? How did you get so strong?”

I answered half-truthfully. ”I trained a bit alone in a cave.”

”Alone in a cave?”

”My body doesn’t need food or sleep. It’s ideal for training,” I answered.

”Haha... human bodies really are inconvenient, aren’t they?”

”Yours seems pretty functional.”

”Hmm... you think so?”

She smirked playfully, her lips curling upward. It had been a remark about combat, but it might have come across differently.

I avoided continuing the conversation and stared outside the carriage. Still, she kept talking. I humored her with half-hearted responses and casual exchanges. Her occasional cheerful laughter echoed inside the carriage.

Before long, we arrived in Erast.

”We’re here already?” Rena asked.

”Time flies, doesn’t it?”

”Maybe it’s the carriage.”

”Who knows? Perhaps...”

I looked outside. We weren’t alone as a long line stretched out before the city gates. Groups of six guards inspected the incoming people one by one.

Two guards walked past the line and shouted, ”If you have an invitation, step forward! Invitations...”

”That’s us,” Rena said, nudging me in the ribs.

She leaned out of the carriage and called out, ”Over here! We have an invitation!”

One of the guards approached us. ”Are you tournament participants?”

”Yes, here’s the Jinney family’s invitation,” Rena said.

”Confirmed. Let these guests through first!”

Our carriage bypassed the line and entered without inspection.

”Invitations sure are convenient,” Rena remarked, rotating her neck.

I looked outside again.

Is this the city where Rubia once lived and smiled?

The roads, the bridges, and even the clean water running beneath them felt like remnants of her life.

The time I had spent with her had been brief. She hadn’t profoundly impacted my life, yet the memory of her repeatedly dying before me had etched itself deeply into my mind.

As I absentmindedly observed the city’s corners, Rena asked curiously, ”What are you looking at so intently?”

”Nothing.”

”I heard that the previous lord managed the city well.”

I thought of Rubia living as the lord’s daughter. Rena whispered various tidbits, but I did not reply as I quietly watched the scenery.

Those with invitations were allowed to stay a night in the lord’s castle. After settling into the assigned quarters, I ventured outside to walk along the castle walls.

The lord’s castle was small, but the square-shaped walls offered a clear view of the entire city.

”It’s a practical fortress,” Rena commented, admiring the structure.

Was this where Rubia was slashed to pieces and discarded like trash?

I pondered the fate of Count Ray, who had defied the Emperor, and his daughter, Rubia.

Thud, thud.

Then, someone approached deliberately, making their presence known.