174 – Nymphs and Efforts Don’t Betray #1
“My father often said that this old lighthouse could be a light that illuminates this world and another world. He said that lost souls come from another world, following the light of this beacon.”
Achilles’ home had a lighthouse.
It was a very large and old lighthouse, so outdated that one had to manually spin a generator that looked like a bicycle pedal to shine the light.
“My father said it was thanks to this lighthouse that he met my mother. He always likened her to a goddess from another world or a wingless angel.”
Druk, druk, druk-.
As Achilles turned the generator, the light shone brightly.
Of course, it was around 1 PM, so the light was not visible in the bright daylight, but the fact that it was a beacon illuminating another world stirred my emotions quite a bit.
A lonely lighthouse keeper.
A woman from another world.
It felt like a story one might see in a novel or movie.
“Your father must have been a romantic.”
“Everyone thought that. But looking back, he was never telling romantic stories or chasing after fantasies.”
Druk-.
Legion adjusted the angle of the old lighthouse as if moving the light around.
Then something strange happened.
A hazy structure began to appear on the horizon, like a mirage.
What could I call it?
An island?
A floating house?
It was hard to see.
It literally flickered like a mirage.
“I think there’s something over there. It looks like a house. A house is floating over the sea.”
“Good eye, Il-do. I only fully saw that building in the shape of a house just before I was about to switch to S rank. Now, let’s go down.”
We descended the lighthouse.
As we walked down the winding stairs, Achilles continued to speak.
“This lighthouse’s light seems to reflect the hidden world that exists in the same space. The house over the sea only appears at the moment this beacon shines.”
We headed to the harbor and boarded Achilles’ yacht to go to the house over the sea.
It was literally a house over the sea, resembling a wooden cabin.
Creeak-. Creak, creak-.
As we climbed onto the mirage house, the old wood creaked as if screaming.
It felt like a real house illuminated by the lighthouse’s beacon, not some illusion or phantom.
The sensation of being in a fantastical house was quite fascinating, and Ari also seemed curious as she looked around.
“Is the person in the painting your mother? She’s beautiful. She resembles you, Achilles, with those blue eyes. I think her features look similar, too.”
Ari asked.
The place she pointed to had a frame, but the content inside looked like just a white piece of paper.
Soon, Achilles nodded as if impressed.
“It seems that the painting in that frame is fully visible to you, Ari. Beautiful, huh… To me, her features are so blurry that she looks like a faceless ghost…”
It seemed that the visibility of the structures and items in this house varied from person to person.
Achilles, too, was looking at the painting in the frame, but it was blurry for him while Ari saw it clearly, including the expression and color of her eyes.
Could it be thanks to Ari’s psychic talent?
“Oh, now that I look again, it might not be visible…”
Ari took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes as if she had lost focus.
At that moment, Achilles picked up ‘something’ in this phantom cabin.
I couldn’t see what the object was clearly, but it dangled and shook, looking like something with a bell attached to a stick.
What would happen now?
While I was wondering, I suddenly heard a sound like water slicing through.
Soon, as I peeked out the phantom-like window, I saw a fog forming around the house we were staying in, covering everything, including the beach and the lighthouse’s light.
—Crrrung…!
At that moment, Kkungkkungi, who had been sleeping in my pocket, fluffed up as if agitated.
He acted as if he were on guard, but Achilles calmly said, “As long as it doesn’t attack first, we won’t be in danger.”
If it doesn’t attack first, it’s not dangerous?
What isn’t?
While I was thinking about it, I felt a strange presence outside the window.
When I opened the door, I saw a long canoe approaching us, heading toward the underwater house.
—…
In the canoe was a man dressed in a black robe.
Or rather, could I even call that a man?
The body revealed outside the robe was nothing but a pale, hazy skeleton!
“Demon…!? Senpai! Be careful! It’s a demon!”
Ari tensed, moving her hand to her waist.
It looked like she was ready to draw a knife at any moment.
Swoosh-.
At that moment, Achilles raised his palm as if to stop Ari.
“It’s fine. The ferryman Charon doesn’t harm humans. He is just a ferryman drawn by the light and sound of the bell. Now, everyone, let’s get on.”
Achilles stepped onto the oddly shaped boat.
I felt as if I was mesmerized by this surreal situation, yet I stretched my foot onto the boat.
Following my lead, Ari also boarded.
Finally, Morales, who had seemed indifferent to everything, said, “Hieeek…! Don’t leave me, Morales, in this strange ghost house…!” and stepped onto the boat.
So, what would happen now?
Swoosh-.
Achilles rummaged through his pocket and pulled out some jingling coins.
Then he handed them over to the skeletal ferryman.
“Achilles, what are those coins…?”
“They’re ‘Whispering Coins.’ I wonder where the ferryman Charon will take us today.”
Griiik-.
Wheeeee-.
The old, shabby boat began to move through the hazy mist.
# # #
The mist was so dense we could not see even a step ahead.
After about 30 minutes of sailing on the sea, the boat finally stopped, and we arrived at a strange jungle-like island.
“A jungle…”
As Achilles got off the boat, we followed him down.
—Caw-!
—Shyaa-!
Soon, lizards crawling on four legs sprang out from the dense jungle foliage.
They were lizards with scales as bumpy as pineapples, and their size was intimidatingly similar to that of crocodiles.
I knew the name of these lizards.
“Fruit Lizard?”
It was said that their blood tasted sweet like fruit juice.
They were reportedly sold to connoisseurs at quite a high price.
I had never tried drinking lizard blood, as I found it somewhat off-putting, but I had heard these lizards were A-rank demons, making them tough opponents.
“Stay back.”
Achilles placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
Swoosh, boom-! Rumble rumble-!
Then, just like a sound of lightning, it seemed that all of the five “Fruit Lizards” collapsed and started convulsing in the blink of an eye.
One second.
No, what happened in less than a second?
I heard that Achilles was able to move at a speed close to supersonic, possessing his own time-stopped world—The World—but it seemed to be true.
“What a pity. It seems like a dud.”
Swoosh-.
Achilles got back on the boat and handed the coin to the ferryman he called Charon.
After that, we explored islands like Desert Island and Lava Island, each time witnessing Achilles’ thunderous sword skills effortlessly taking down many demons.
“So, Achilles, you mean you can explore the rifts freely whenever you want. You can use that lighthouse to illuminate the floating houses, and from the floating houses, you can take a boat out.”
When the light of the lighthouse went out, we returned to Achilles’ luxurious mansion.
I felt like I understood why Achilles was so strong.
He was like the main character who could freely explore the infinite rifts!
To be able to explore rifts at will was almost like cheating.
“It’s not entirely at will. The ferryman Charon won’t take me onto the boat without a ‘Whispering Coin.’ Also, he doesn’t take me wherever I want.”
I see.
In any case, it was a day where I could understand how Achilles’ formidable abilities were formed.
“Actually, what I’m looking for is the Island of the Snowy Mountains. I was thinking that if I asked the ferryman Charon, he might take me there.”
Five years ago, Achilles mentioned that he fought against many powerful demons and rescued people lost in the T-rank rift “Snowy Mountain” that occurred on Hios Island.
“It was a place crawling with A-rank demons, even starting from low S-rank demons.”
Then, during that rift, Achilles met a man and mistakenly thought him to be the master of the rift, a demon sorcerer, so out of bravado, he charged at him but was utterly defeated.
“He was a man who commanded Squirrels and Honey Ants. Il-do, have you ever heard about a man who commands Squirrels and Honey Ants? I remember he had a burn on the back of his left hand.”
A man with a burn on the back of his hand who commanded Squirrels and Honey Ants.
The man who defeated the rising star that was S-rank Achilles.
It was news to me.
At that moment, Ari stepped forward while listening to the story.
“So you’re saying that man cannot be met right now. You called Senpai all the way to Greece just to introduce us to that made-up story or a fake man…!”
Hearing Ari’s protesting words, Achilles scratched his forehead awkwardly.
Scratch, scratch-.
“Well, I thought that if Il-do was with me, maybe Charon would take me to that snowy mountain. But it seems my expectations were misguided.”
I see.
In the end, I couldn’t meet the man who had defeated Achilles.
What Achilles clearly left me with was only the way to use the “Whispering Coin”?
“Il-do, it seems I made you walk a long way for nothing.”
Achilles apologized to me.
If you asked me whether coming to Greece was a wasted effort, I would say not at all.
The Nymphs were happy, Kkungkkungi acquired the skill “Squirrel Storage,” and even the Typhoon Cloud Iningyi grew safely into a rare species called ‘Rainbow Ring.’
It was a good experience for me as well.
“As a token of compensation and remembrance, I’ll give this to you, Il-do.”
Swoosh-.
Achilles handed me an old book.
I couldn’t see what was written on it, but Morales recognized it first.
“Ahh-! This is ‘The Hero’s Path’…! It’s the first volume…! It looks like the real deal since it even has the handwritten signature of the hero educator ‘Chiron’…! This is incredible…!”
Seeing Morales make such a fuss, I realized that Nymphs really do love to make a big deal about things.
Soon, Ari also covered her mouth with her palm as if she was surprised.
“…This seems like something that could be donated to a museum! Although it might not be a relic or a national treasure, it should certainly be worth an A-rank treasure…! This is like a ‘Magic Book,’ isn’t it?”
A-rank treasure.
I heard that could support three households if sold to collectors.
To give something like that to me?
“Achilles, are you sure this is alright? Isn’t a ‘Magic Book’ an incredibly rare book? I’ve only seen one in real life while living as an Awakened.”
“It seems that this will be more necessary for you now. I assure you it will definitely be helpful. If you drop a drop of blood on the book, its content will change according to you.”
A training book that helped Achilles become known as the strongest S-rank.
A magical book where the content changes according to each person!
Though I acted outwardly calm, I was feeling a surge of excitement!
I couldn’t wait to open it!
What would be written inside?
Swish-.
I pricked my finger with my gathering dagger and dropped a drop of blood on the cover of the old book.
Wowww-.
The old tome began to shine.
It was sure to become my personalized training book tailored to “Haildo.”
Because it was such a magical book!
Squats 100 times, push-ups 100 times, sit-ups 100 times, run 10 km every day without fail—surely it would be written something like that, right?
Flap-.
『The training contents are strictly confidential and must never be disclosed to others!』
『If this rule is not followed, penalties must be executed.』
Oh. It feels quite serious!
『Training List – Achieve all for expected rewards』
『Reward – Endurance 1 NP』
“Ooooh.”
As I flipped through the pages, the content was written in Korean, true to the promise of a magical book that changes based on the person.
What if it had been written in ancient Greek letters?
『Petting Core’s head 0/1 time』
『Massaging Core’s legs 0/1 time』
However, I didn’t quite understand what those contents meant.
