Dungeon Maker

"Oh, good. It looks like you are a very quick learner because you are good at controlling magical power."

Gusion, sitting on the chair in the waiting room, clapped loudly.

Yong-ho took a deep breath. Ignoring Gusion's voice that broke his concentration, he circulated his magical power once again.

What Gusion asked of him was to let the magic power run constantly.

His request was very easy but difficult to meet.

The magical power of the demon world was like a living creature. Even the magical power concentrated in one place was supposed to constantly pulsate and move.

However, the movement was disorderly, and in fact, it was often meaningless.

What Gusion asked for was not such a pointless movement, but a purposeful movement.

In other words, it was the flow of magical power that could harmonize with the movement of the body for their synergy effect.

It was a piece of cake for Yong-ho to make the magic flow in the desired direction.

It was an easy request. However, Gusion's other condition made it much more difficult to meet his request.

Gusion wanted Yong-ho to control his magical power unconsciously.

Just as people didn't think about how to move bones and muscles when they moved their hands, he demanded that Yong-ho put his magic to work naturally according to his movement. That was the basics. It was necessary for Yong-ho to embody the movement of his magical power, just like those in the demon world.

Yong-ho moved his hand. Perhaps because his repetitive training was efficient, he could move his magical power without being conscious of it. Merely moving his hand made him feel more empowered than before.

"I think I had better start training you when you don't feel that your magical power is different from before," said Gusion.

Gusion could point it out because he accurately discerned Yong-ho's condition.

Indeed, he was one of Mammon's Twelve Spirits.

Yong-ho smiled bitterly. Although he knew well that Gusion was awesome, he didn't want to admit it somehow.

It wasn't because he had any bad feelings toward Gusion like he did at first. Rather, it was because he was now close to Gusion now.

"So, did you finish writing a reply to Scathach?"

Yong-ho asked him sharply, and Gusion flinched at that. Gusion was away from his place with excuses that he was writing a reply when Yong-ho was fighting with the floor master on the 8th floor or practicing alone in the waiting room.

Gusion, who was getting nervous as if he was a criminal under interrogation, quickly changed the topic and said, "So, your escort girl wants to challenge them in the arena? She made a big decision."

Yong-ho laughed happily because Gusion obviously wanted to avoid his question.

Nodding once, Yong-ho said, "Well, it's Catalina's choice. And I think she can do it without any problem. She has become strong just like I did. By the way, did you write the reply?"

Since Yong-ho talked more than he expected, Gusion frowned at his last words.

After hesitating for a while, he took out a letter from the inner pocket of his coat.

"Here you go."

The letter sealed by melted wax gave him a pretty antique feel.

Yong-ho received Gusion's reply to Scathach, but Gusion didn't let go of his hand.

Still holding onto the letter, Gusion looked at Yong-ho and whispered with a serious expression, "Don't read it! Never!"

"I promise you. Never."

After replying as seriously as Gusion, Yong-ho snatched it from him and put it inside his pocket. "Well, Scathach recites it to me anyway."

At that moment, Gusion's expression changed dramatically. Yong-ho was prepared for a situation where this giant Red Daemon rushed to take back the letter, but fortunately, he didn't do it.

That did not happen.

Gusion helplessly sat on the chair like a man who gave up everything.

While tilting his head, Yong-ho sat down next to Gusion and asked, "What's wrong with Scathach? She's nice and pretty. You seem to like it secretly," said Yong-ho seriously.

She had a good personality befitting her legendary reputation as the best among the Twelve Spirits of the House of Mammon. It was true that she was a dazzling beauty, though she wasn't as beautiful as Sitri.

Sacathach was a bit of an idiot, but she was still attractive enough to anybody.

Gusion smiled with an empty expression then shook his head.

Looking down at Yong-ho, he said, "I like her… But it's scary at night when I'm with her."

"What did you say?" Gusion clicked his tongue. Then he said, waving his hand at Yong-ho, who opened his eyes wide, "You do not yet know the true depth of the night. You're not ready. You are still a rookie."

[It seems like you haven't even started it at all...]

[Well, maybe that's why you can create such strong anguish and longing.]

Aamon, who remained silent until then, suddenly intervened. Gusion's eyes popped up at his heavy and serious voice this time.

"Uh? What do you mean he hasn't even started it?"

"Whatever! Next time I come here, Catalina will challenge the first floor instead of me. I'm going to challenge the 9th floor after that."

This time, Yong-ho quickly changed the topic. Gusion alternately looked at Yong-ho and Amon with suspicious eyes, but Amon did not show any particular feelings while Yong-ho also desperately avoided Gusion's gaze.

Gusion, who tilted his head several times, banished his doubts in no time and replied, "Yes, in order to bring out Brigada's true power, the strength of your subordinate, namely your spirits, is also important."

"The real power of Brigada?"

"Not yet. Let me tell you about it when you reach the next level. If you try to run before even walking, you will fall."

Gusion looked like a man, and he was actually big-hearted. However, he was unusually inflexible now.

However, Yong-ho gently accepted what he said.

Since it was time to leave the arena, he asked Gusion, "How about Kaiwan's condition?"

"Well, she is still recovering but smoothly. So, you won't have to worry."

Gusion wasn't the type of man who told useless lies. As he said, she was recovering really smoothly. If so, she might as well show her face at least once, Yong-ho thought.

But he stopped thinking like that anymore and stood up.

"Okay, let me come back next time."

When Yong-ho opened the door of the waiting room, a man in a beast mask appeared as if he had been waiting. Standing beside him was Catalina, who was training in another waiting room.

He looked sharp. Even though he was hidden in a sheath called Catalina, the blade named black magic seemed to give off a sharp light.

Yong-ho reached out and stroked Catalina's hair. Whenever he touched her hair, the sharpness of the black magic gently gave away. Catalina's expression, which became unusually hardened, also changed gently.

"Let's go back."

"Yes, Lord."

Catalina replied, flapping her tail, who now went back to normal.

Yong-ho also smiled happily then stepped forward with her.

It was when he was about to get out of the waiting room when Gusion stopped him.

"Hey, Little Master!"

When Yong-ho turned around, Gusion folded his arms. After a little pause, he said, "Kaiwan is the floor master on the 10th floor. And the reward on the 10th floor is special so is the penalty."

Yong-ho was currently staying on the 8th floor.

There was only one floor left for him to finish to move up to the 10th floor.

***

When he returned to Kaiwan's break room through the long corridor of the arena, Yong-ho could shake off all the agitation in his heart.

He didn't need to be particularly nervous because he would have to confront Kaiwan.

Rather, what was important was the specialness of the reward and punishment rather than the fact that the opponent was Kaiwan.

He could not yet know the rewards and the penalty. However, it was clear that he had to be more prepared than usual.

[Master, what happened to you in the arena?]

[You look pale.]

As soon as he got connected to Lucia again after leaving the arena, her voice was heard.

Since her voice sounded quite worried, he responded brightly, "No, nothing happened. I'm just a little tired. Didn't anything unusual happen in the dungeon?"

[Your subordinate spirit, Ophelia, who went as an envoy to the House of Randolt, returned.]

[I think she came back with their reply to our surrender advice.]

"She came back quickly."

She really did. Ophelia's mission was to deliver a surrender advice, not get their reply.

So, the fact that she got the reply meant that the head of the Randolt family replied quickly.

Maybe they had already prepared the reply even before Ophelia arrived.

"Where is she now?"

[Well, she is relieving fatigue by sparring with Eligos, a subordinate spirit.]

[I will have her come to the conference room right now.]

Yong-ho didn't know what her sparring with Eligos had to do with her releasing fatigue, but he felt relieved anyway.

If something big happened to him, he would not have anybody to contact because he was in the arena, but at least Ophelia was there, sparring with Eligos leisurely.

"I have to hurry. Let's hurry up, Catalina."

Catalina quickly nodded then headed to the conference room with Yong-ho.