Chapter 23
The moment she placed her hand on my back, she began to murmur words I couldn’t understand, and soon a refreshing magic began to wash away the curse that had filled my body.
As my blurred vision, clouded from the curse, returned to clarity, her figure came into view.
She was a tall, curvaceous beauty with wavy golden hair that rippled like waves, her eyes level with mine.
When our eyes met, she flashed me a bashful smile.
“You’ll be fine now. So, what brings the famous figure all the way to the Forbidden Book Zone? Don’t tell me you came because you missed the sexy and cute Instructor Mabel?”
Her eyes sparkled mischievously, like a child up to some trouble.
Ugh, this type was always so exhausting to deal with.
Seeing my expression, she burst into a clear, melodic laugh.
“No matter how it is, I’m still an instructor. Isn’t that look on your face a bit too much?”
Wait—did my thoughts just show on my face?
“Pffft, I’m kidding. I’ve been curious what kind of cadet you were, but it turns out you’ve got a cute side, huh?”
I was completely caught up in her pace.
At this rate, I could already tell I’d be endlessly teased if I wasn’t careful.
I started to regret calling her here in the first place.
“So, what brings you to the Forbidden Book Zone?”
“I’m looking for a specific book.”
“Hmm. It’s rare for a cadet to even come to the library, but to make it all the way to the Forbidden Zone? You must be quite the scholar.”
Saying that, she patted my head approvingly.
To think that, upon seeing a student in the Forbidden Section, her first thought would be ‘academic passion’.
Put nicely, she was an airhead; put bluntly, she was from another dimension entirely.
I was probably the person farthest from ‘academic passion’ in the entire Academy.
Then her expression shifted, and she warned me in a serious tone.
“But the Forbidden Book Zone is very dangerous, as you’ve just experienced with that curse. If you don’t handle things properly, you could even lose your life.”
“Then how should I look for the book I want here?”
“In that case, you call this instructor!”
Placing a hand on her hip, she puffed out her chest confidently.
“You’re looking at Instructor Mabel, who knows everything there is to know about the Forbidden Book Zone!”
“Then… could you perhaps help me find the book I’m looking for?”
“Of course! What book are you after?”
Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.
“I’m searching for a book called ‘Victor Frankenstein’s Research Journal,’ and another one—a red demon-type book bound in human skin, but without a title.”
“Oh! You know about Victor Frankenstein’s Research Journal? Quite the fascinating book. It contains some fresh perspectives on black magic—necromancy, specifically. But it was designated forbidden due to its deranged notions of disregarding and creating life.”
“You’ve read it before, I see.”
At my words, Instructor Mabel nodded affirmatively.
“Of course! Almost every forbidden book that enters the Academy passes through my hands first.”
That explained why she was so eccentric.
Saying that, she pulled out her staff and gave it a twirl.
A magic circle appeared in midair, glowing with blue light.
“This is teleportation magic. The Forbidden Book Zone is far too vast to explore without using movement spells like this.”
The glowing magic circle soon engulfed us.
“Here we are! Wait here for a moment. This instructor will find it for you.”
With that, she skipped toward the bookshelf and began searching through the volumes.
A short while later, her bright voice rang out.
“Found it!”
When I approached her voice, I saw two books in her hands—a worn notebook and another forbidden tome radiating a power far stronger than the rest.
The notebook was small, no larger than two palms pressed together.
As I received both books from her, a blue message window flickered before my eyes.
【Warning. You have approached a fragment of the Nameless Gate.】
【Dungeon: Would you like to enter the Mansion of the Nameless One?】
【Y/N】
I ignored it for now and thanked Instructor Mabel.
“Thank you for your help. Thanks to you, I found what I was looking for easily.”
“Oh my, how sweet! If you ever want to come back after finishing your reading, just call for me anytime.”
Saying that, she handed me something.
“What’s this…?”
“A rabbit’s foot. A symbol of luck. Just press the paw, and this instructor will come running right away. Call me if you ever need me.”
And just like that, she vanished in an instant.
I stared closely at the rabbit’s foot she had given me.
I’d hoped for it, but I didn’t expect I’d actually get it—the Joker card.
The reason I’d gone through the trouble of coming to this tedious field.
Sure, I needed to obtain certain items, but more importantly—
I came to find this research notebook and Mabel herself.
An item obtainable only if you happened to meet her by chance and gained her favor.
The Lucky Rabbit’s Foot.
It allowed me to summon Mabel as an ally once in battle.
And considering Yoo Iseo’s impending corruption, there would come a time when someone skilled in purification like Mabel would be indispensable.
Good. Everything was proceeding just as planned.
After confirming that Mabel had completely disappeared, I pressed the “Yes” button still hovering in the air before me.
The book suddenly emitted light and swallowed me whole.
“Hey, you there!”
A faint voice reached my ears.
Slap, slap.
“We’ve arrived at our destination! Wake up, I said!”
I slowly opened my eyes and looked around.
A man with a thick, unkempt beard was shaking me awake.
“Where… am I?”
“Are you still half-asleep? You’re the one who asked to be taken to Count Frankenstein’s manor!”
Count Frankenstein’s manor?
Regaining my senses, I quickly understood the situation.
‘Looks like I successfully entered the Hidden Dungeon.’
<Become a Hero>’s special dungeon — The Mansion of the Nameless One.
It was home to the nameless monster who had killed its creator and seized control of the mansion.
I stepped down from the carriage and immediately checked my body.
It had the same stats as in reality, but my movements felt sluggish.
It was because of the armor covering me.
Damn it. What a nuisance.
My role there was that of an adventurer who had come to kill the monster that had toppled the Frankenstein household.
The coachman who had approached my side clicked his tongue as he looked at the manor.
“Who would’ve thought that a prestigious magical family’s estate would come to that in a single day… Hey, you there.”
I already knew why he was calling me.
After all, how many times had I watched this cutscene while playing the game?
He was going to open his mouth to tell me about the monsters in the castle, their origins, and all sorts of things I didn't need.
“The monster of that castle—”
“I know well enough. No one has ever returned alive from there, and even the Church couldn’t deal with that monster. Didn’t the Church’s sole survivor call that manor a den?”
In the game there had been a skip button, but since I couldn’t expect that in reality, I cut the coachman off.
The coachman grumbled at my words.
“That— that shameless bastard’s child, I was just trying to be helpful and warn you, and these young people these days…”
I ignored his grumbling and watched the Frankenstein manor in the distance.
The place he had dropped me off looked a considerable distance from the Count’s manor.
It looked like at least an hour or two of walking.
“Coachman, why didn’t you drop me off in front of the manor? Why drop me so far away?”
“Is that even a question? The forest surrounding the manor is basically their territory. I’m not risking my life for a few coins.”
In the game I had started right in front of the manor, so I hadn’t expected this difference.
“Maybe—”
“No.”
“Because I thought you might say something.”
“You wanted to be taken to the front of the manor, didn’t you.”
“Tch.”
So I had to walk that distance myself.
As he had said, the minions lurking in the forest would probably be a real nuisance.
“If you want to go back, say so now. I’m leaving.”
“I’m fine. I’d recommend you leave this place as soon as possible.”
“You don’t even have to tell me. I don’t intend to stay long in this unpleasant forest.”
Saying that, he set the carriage in motion with a shout.
After confirming that the coachman had left, I first threw off the cumbersome armor.
It had been too restrictive, and the defense it offered was laughable.
Against the enemies I was about to face, the armor I wore was no better than wearing a cardboard box.
I slowly took a deep breath and called forth the power of a demon.
This place was a world entirely separated from the Academy, so I didn’t have to hide my full strength.
Shadows shimmered and clung to my body, then took shape into black armor.
It was the manifestation of my favored demonic power, the Dark Relic.
When the demonic power settled into my body, a thrill unlike any before washed through me.
An intense power filled my frame, and the Asura Divine Art’s mana that had been filling my dantian diminished in size.
With that, I was ready.
I looked down at the manor visible beneath the cliff.
If I ran at full speed, I might reach it in ten minutes.
“First, should I burn this forest down and start?”
The Flames of Gehenna flared to life.
Crimson ominous flames burst into being around both of my fists.
Unlike the Asura Divine Art’s karmic flames, these flames were ravenous—if they slipped they could even consume the wielder. Once lit, they never extinguished and devoured everything.
They were powerful, but they had drawbacks.
Namely, the mana consumption.
They consumed an overwhelming amount of mana compared to other powers, making repeated or prolonged battles problematic.
So I would overlay another method.
“Hup.”
I assumed the stance of ki and faced the forest where the manor stood.
What I was about to do wasn’t the approach of a gamer who had played the game for a long time; it was the approach of Yoo Sung-woo, who had lived in this world.
I overlaid the Asura Divine Art’s energy atop the Flames of Gehenna.
Although the Flames of Gehenna were more abrupt and violent than the Asura Divine Art’s karmic flames, their essence was still fire.
Under the Asura Divine Art’s guidance, which governed and tamed flames, the Flames of Gehenna slowly complied and followed.
Asura Divine Art (修羅 神功)
Flames of Gehenna (게헨나의 불꽃)
One Punishment, A Hundred Admonitions (一罰百戒)
A straight, forward strike.
Flames shot from my fist like a wave and began to cover the forest.
Once the blaze spread, it turned the vast woods into fuel and burned fiercely.
“Gyuueeek!”
“Kueeeek!”
Strange screams began to rise from the forest.
The sounds were neither wholly human nor wholly beastly—more like the cry of a water deer.
The spreading flames continued to grow.
I increased my perception and scanned the forest, and bizarre monsters were burning, screaming with flames attached to their bodies.
They looked like patched-up rag dolls that someone had sewn back together roughly.
They were chimeras made from humans, the family of the creature that had occupied Count Frankenstein’s manor.
I was going to go see the face of the monster that had annihilated a family once known as a magical house.