10
***
Esteban reluctantly stepped aside, giving her a stern look. His crimson eyes seemed to boil.
However, Luda wasn’t particularly afraid. Right now, thanks to the “Lantern of the Dead,” it wasn’t dark, there were no monsters or ghosts pursuing them, and Esteban didn’t pose any threat to her.
“You’ve completely lost your nerve,” Esteban commented.
In reality, Luda herself didn’t know that she had the courage to act like this.
She was clearly crossing the line, or rather, blatantly overstepping it. However, Esteban’s reaction wasn’t as negative as she had expected, judging by the increase in his affection points.
Anyway, it was a fortunate outcome. She just needed to handle this well and release Theo safely.
Doing as she wished, Luda entered the underground passage.
It was dark and had a nauseating odor.
Despite having improved visibility due to her newfound ability, the passage was still narrow, and the steep stairs were uncomfortable to navigate.
Luda moved cautiously. Any slip could lead to trouble.
“The path seems to have gotten narrower.”
Esteban mumbled behind her. It seemed like he was talking as if he had never been here before.
Luda agreed, but she didn’t feel like playing along with his comments.
Eventually, the only sounds in the passage were their footsteps and breathing.
Still, it was much better than when she came down alone. Back then, she had felt a chilling presence behind her, even though she was alone.
[System Message: You have achieved the sub-quest ‘Spend more than 30 minutes with Esteban.’ There are no rewards for this achievement.]
Finally, the system window announced the success of the sub-quest.
It was a meaningless achievement with no rewards.
Luda carefully descended the stairs, pondering the recent situation.
‘Why did my affection points increase? Did he like that I offered to go down together? ‘
First, she offered bread, he liked it, but when she actually gave it, he didn’t. Now, her affection points increased because she agreed to go down together.
If he reacted one more time, it could be useful information.
Suddenly, a thought crossed Luda’s mind.
‘Do I really need to care about Esteban’s affection points?’
Luda wondered if it might be better to completely ignore the affection points, given how just one wrong word deducted ten points each time. She had foolishly hoped for 0.1 affection points, which could have ended disastrously.
After descending for a while, their feet finally touched a level floor.
Luda extended her hand to the iron bars in front of her. Theo, who was hanging on his chains, must have heard her shout and lifted his head.
Then, he started creating a small light. A spherical light emerged from his hand and hovered in the air.
“Luda!”
Theo tried to rush toward them, as if he had been waiting for them, but the chains restricted him. All he could manage was futile struggles and the clinking of metal.
Still, Theo couldn’t move from his spot.
“What’s this… a raggedy one?”
Esteban’s voice behind them was filled with disdain. Luda turned slightly to look at him. His forehead was creased in irritation.
[System Message: Congratulations! You have achieved the special quest ‘Descend into the Underground with Esteban.’]
[Reward: Slight increase in Esteban’s Affection.]
[Reward: Increase in Theo’s Danger Level.]
[Reward: Increase in Yulian’s Danger Level.]
[Esteban (Capturable)]
[Affection: -19.7 (0.1▲)]
[Theo (Capturable)]
[Danger Level: ??? (Currently Unavailable)]
[Yulian (Capturable)]
[Danger Level: ??? (Currently Unavailable)]
The system windows displaying the special quest’s achievement and rewards popped up.
Once again, it was 0.1.
“This is ridiculous.”
It might be better to just ignore it completely. Having strange affection points like -19.7 was something she had never seen before.
“Luda, why aren’t you coming in?”
Then, Theo, with a slightly sulking expression, asked.
It was somewhat unfamiliar to hear a well-built adult male with tattered clothes speak like that.
“I think this light will go out soon. Then I won’t be able to see your face.”
The light Theo had conjured had become slightly dimmer compared to earlier. It seemed there was a limited amount of time he could use it.
Luda deliberately kept her back to Esteban and called up her inventory. She couldn’t openly show the suspicious appearance of a key suddenly appearing when it wasn’t there.
“You’re doing something suspicious.”
Esteban muttered to himself, making sure he was loud enough to be heard.
‘It did look suspicious after all.’
However, Luda had no choice. She ignored his comment and unlocked the iron bars. Then, she reached for the key, but Esteban quickly snatched it away.
“I’ll be taking this.”
He held the key as if protecting it, not letting even a glimpse of it show.
Watching this, Luda quickly assessed the situation. Trying to rush at this point was futile, and it would be nearly impossible to snatch the key from Esteban.
Anyway, once she released Theo now, there would be no need for the key again.
Luda pushed open the door of the iron bars and entered. Theo, with a bright expression, stared beyond Luda’s shoulder. It was a round, innocent gaze.
“Who’s that man…? Someone Luda knows?”
“No.”
Luda denied it without much thought. She figured Esteban would probably respond similarly if asked the same question. They weren’t interested in getting involved with each other.
“I see.”
Theo simply replied, and his smile returned.
Luda cautiously took a step forward, trying to gauge her distance from Theo.
“Now you’re here to stay with me, right? I’m glad Luda came quickly.”
Despite his imposing physique, Theo’s behavior seemed carefree. Luda could imagine his waving his tails at her.
‘How can I get him to use that sword now?’
Luda looked at his slightly messy blue hair for a moment before lowering her gaze. Esteban, who was emanating an ominous aura from behind, subtly concerned her.
“Are you two acquainted?”
“I also found him out just now.”
She replied honestly. In terms of time, it had been a few hours at most. Honestly, Theo probably wasn’t startled, considering how quickly she had arrived.
“Tell me your identity, or I’ll cut your throat.”
It was then that Esteban passed Luda and walked forward. He spat out words that were close to a threat and seemed ready to pull out his sword at any moment.
“Identity? Me?”
However, Theo, far from being intimidated, extended his chest defiantly.
“I don’t really know either.”
It was a shameless answer, but it didn’t seem like a lie. His bright blue eyes blinked without a trace of suspicion.
Esteban laughed briefly but not genuinely. His eyes were anything but friendly, and the atmosphere was tense, as if he were about to draw his sword at any moment.
“It seems like neither of you nor this ragged man has a clear identity.”
“It’s not ragged, it’s Theo. I don’t know why I’m here either.”
“Answer only when asked.”
“I refuse.”
“It seems there’s no point in keeping you alive.”
As Esteban reached for his waist, Luda spoke up.
“Wait a moment.”
“What is it now? Are you going to blabber more nonsense?”
Esteban gave Luda an incredulous look that clearly showed he had no trust in her.
Esteban stared at Luda with a complete lack of trust in his eyes. Whether he felt that she was getting in the way or for some other reason, his tone was overtly hostile.
He could be quite unpleasant with his words.
If there were a “likability” stat for herself, Esteban’s score would probably be around minus 50 in that category.
However, regardless of her likability, Luda’s immediate concern was to persuade him.
“You can’t kill this person yet.”
“Why?”
Esteban asked with a cold gaze.
“He might be a participant in the Ghost’s Night.”
“That won’t happen.”
“No, it might. What if he’s a sacrifice? How would you handle that? Wouldn’t that be a rule violation?”
Luda presented the answer she had prepared in advance, but despite saying it confidently, she couldn’t help feeling anxious.
When she stole a glance at Theo, who had boldly stepped forward to reveal himself, her earlier confidence seemed to have vanished. Now, she felt a bit uncertain, and she kept an eye on Esteban’s reactions.
Meanwhile, the light created by Theo was gradually losing its strength, plunging the surroundings into darkness.
Although Luda had never paid much attention to others, she felt a bit concerned about Theo. He was trapped in this dim underground chamber, seemingly forgotten. His pitiful appearance added to her concern.
Of course, she couldn’t fully trust him given the circumstances, but…
“Luda…”
Theo called her name with longing in his voice, and she met his gaze directly, her lips parting.
“If that’s the case, then I will kick you out.”
“For someone who came all the way here to meet me, you’re quite harsh,” Esteban remarked, raising the corner of his mouth.
‘How should I describe that?’
After a brief moment of contemplation, Luda found an answer.
Villain.
Yes, Esteban was smiling with a face that resembled a villain.
[Esteban’s likability has increased.]
[Esteban (Capturable)]
[Likability: -19.6 (0.1▲)]
‘Why on earth?’
Could it be that he’s attracted to someone with a somewhat twisted personality like himself?
Luda couldn’t help but feel puzzled once again. She couldn’t understand what specific aspects were causing his likability score to go up.
