Deadline Is Raining in the Status Window - Chapter 136

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Thank you. I’ll store it well and enjoy it.”
“And this is something I obtained from fighting Makina.”
“…You met that woman?”
“She tried to kill you all. Foolish of her.”
It seemed the beastkin on assignment in Bunny Land had reported everything to Gerth. In truth, making them suffer like that and then handing over just a single ring was too much. At least I’d secured the Eternal Flower Stamina Potion in compensation.
The glass vial Gerth handed me was ice-cold to the touch, and inside, a single droplet of something resembling mercury rolled about lazily. When I asked what it was, Gerth delivered an answer that casually shattered my understanding of the world.
“Mitasung Elixir.”
“I see. I’m giving up on understanding the world’s logic now.”
If it was Mitasung Elixir, then it must be that legendary medicine—a single drop that forms on stalactite tips in the Extreme Yin Ice Cave once every hundred years. Still, this time the quantity was small enough that I thought I could swallow it whole, so I reached to open the bottle when Gerth swiftly snatched it away and placed it on the table. Frost spreading from the glass vial consumed the entire surface.
“You’ll die if Reina Letem doesn’t help you.”
“So it’s dangerous.”
“Very dangerous.”
And yet he’d packed this dangerous substance into his bundle and carried it here with a jingling sound. He must have been confident he could handle it, but Gerth certainly had his reckless side.
“And this is a gift for Kanna.”
Without even opening the lid, purple energy billowed from a white porcelain vessel that suddenly appeared. What in the world was this? Had Gerth taken up gu poison crafting as a hobby?
“The stalker who was chasing Lakne has finally been caught.”
“Don’t say another word. Kanna will be traumatized.”
“Understood.”
The moment Gerth mentioned Lakne, I could identify what this was. It’s a human-faced spider, isn’t it? If it’s a spider with a human upper body, it can only be a human-faced spider. He must have thought of Kanna because this could enhance toxicity.
“Eugene, could you bring me some deep-frying tongs or tweezers? I’ll use them once and discard them.”
“Sure. Got it.”
Handling that with bare hands would be fatal. Sensing as much, I asked Eugene for tweezers, and Gerth praised me for my wisdom. So it really would be fatal to touch it bare-handed.
“Kanna. Can you trust me?”
“Y-yes! I, I t-trust you, Evan!”
“I’m about to put something in your mouth that looks like it could kill you if eaten. Can you still trust me?”
“I-it’s f-fine. W-what’s eating something that might kill me!”
Kanna, your faith in me is excessive. I tried to warn her that no matter what, it’s better to refuse when someone offers you something that might kill you, but Kanna shook her head firmly and spoke with touching conviction.
“If y-you give it to me, Evan, I c-could drink even poison that m-makes blood spurt from seven orifices!”
“That’s exactly why you should learn to refuse sometimes and stay alive.”
“I don’t want to!”
Fine, I can’t dictate the direction of your entire life. I confirmed with Gerth whether this was safe to consume, then took the tweezers the kitchen staff brought. As I lifted the lump from the jar, purple liquid dripped steadily.
“Ugh!”
The scent was rather refreshing, but the appearance was decidedly unpleasant. Still, since it was good for her health, I had to feed it to her. Once Kanna consumed this, she’d experience the same skill jumping phenomenon that Reina Letem and I had.
“Kanna, close your eyes.”
“O-okay!”
I popped the purple lump straight into Kanna’s mouth and watched her swallow it down. Not long after, Kanna began to collapse, and I managed to catch her by throwing down the tweezers just in time. At that same moment, a notification chimed.

The scenario has shifted slightly. I’m awarding 10,000 experience points.

I grew deeply anxious wondering what Kanna would do after eating this that warranted a scenario-change bonus.

“Humans are fragile creatures.”
True enough. Beast-kin were generally far stronger on average. But when those words came from Gerth, one of the Four Demon Kings himself, didn’t they carry a rather ominous weight?
Eugene flinched at hearing it and glanced nervously at Gerth.
“Gerth. Perhaps choose your words more carefully.”
“Weaker than insects, then.”
“Mm…”
I shouldn’t have said anything. The original phrasing was better.
I could guess the mechanism behind Gerth’s sudden choice of “insects.” Since he’d mentioned catching Lakne’s stalker, he’d likely recalled that spider’s demise, and since spiders weren’t technically insects, he’d selected “insects” as a term encompassing all arthropods.
All things considered, this conversation was exhausting me. Let’s drop the subject entirely.
“What’s this about Lakne’s stalker?”
“Lakne requested protection from the Tower. It was about ten years ago.”
So Lakne had such a history. That explained it—I’d always wondered why there was an Arachnid Floor when all the other Floor Masters corresponded to the zodiac.
Long ago, before Lakne came to Serpent King’s Tower, she’d built a happy home, her husband had passed away according to nature’s course, and she’d raised her children well before they all became independent.
After completing life’s major milestones, she’d returned to her hometown to spend her remaining years in peaceful rest, only to find that Nompangi, whom she’d known since childhood, had been using her house as his own.
Even when she’d driven Nompangi out of the village, he’d return the next day, and when she’d tried to kill him, he was so quick she couldn’t catch him. She’d sought help from the village spiders to eliminate the stalker, but shockingly, every single spider in the neighborhood believed Nompangi was Lakne’s husband.
During Lakne’s absence from her hometown, Nompangi had been spreading propaganda to the other spiders, claiming Lakne was his wife, that they’d mated, and that she’d hidden him away because she didn’t want to eat her husband while raising their children.
The village spiders had believed this beautiful, touching story with absolute conviction, pitied the faithful Nompangi spider waiting for Lakne’s return, and had done everything from sharing food to repairing his house to donating necessities.
No one believed her when she called him a stalker—they only said it was a marital dispute gone too far. Nompangi was too quick and too good at hiding to kill, and those who’d been close to Lakne were subtly pressuring her to repay the money her “husband” had spent, pushing her to the brink of desperation.
“Ten years ago would overlap with when Leri took his vacation.”
“Thanks to Lakne’s work, both Leri and Sharit were able to rest.”
Besides Leri, the other one resting would be that Sea Dragon who’d taken maternity leave. So her name was Sharit.
“Lakne had grown children, then. I never would have guessed.”
“Gerth. Tell Lakne to watch out for this bastard Eugene too. He’s got a thing for certain types of fiction.”
“Evan. I’m not the sort of person who drags fictional preferences into reality.”
“Then why did you suddenly start using formal speech with Lakne?”
“Because she’s a married woman. I should use respectful language.”
“That’s bullshit.”
Eugene had just returned after putting Kanna to bed and immediately spouted nonsense, so I called him out on it. Gerth watched us both in turn, then spoke with utmost seriousness.
“Evan. I have a question.”
“A question?”
“What is this ‘fiction’ you mentioned?”
“Ah…”
How was I supposed to explain this perversion? Should I just state it plainly? But what about Eugene’s social reputation? And was it even appropriate to tell Gerth? Wouldn’t I catch grief from Hubert later?
After considerable deliberation, I decided that Gerth had been an adult for quite some time and deserved to know. I told him the truth.
“It refers to fictional content depicting sexual desire toward married women, women with children, older women, or widows—and various acts involving them.”
“I see. So Eugene only likes married women, older women with children, or widows?”
“That’s one way to look at it.”
“Well, I don’t drag my fantasies into reality, that’s the thing.”
“But wouldn’t you absolutely love it if your fiancée participated in a scenario where her husband was in the adjacent room?”
“….”
Eugene tried to maintain composure, but the corners of his mouth were twitching. He was clearly imagining it.
“Eugene.”
Gerth, who had been lost in thought, suddenly furrowed his brow and spoke seriously again.
“What benefit do you gain from living that way?”
Gerth genuinely seemed curious why Eugene lived like that.
If enriching one’s heart could be considered a personal benefit, then perhaps there was something to gain. I was about to explain this to Gerth when Eugene turned the arrow toward me.
“Hey, what about you, Evan! Which do you prefer—just Gerth, or Gerth with his son in the adjacent room?!”
“Hmm….”
That’s playing dirty. Of course Gerth was more appealing when Hubert was in the adjacent room. It wasn’t often you saw Gerth flustered like this.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but when you really break it down, Gerth is an DILF. In technical terms, we call it a dilf.”
“Hmm…, well.”
“It means we share the same taste.”
Is that so? Did I have a dilf preference? Now that I thought about it, Gerth as Hubert’s father was far more attractive than Gerth alone.
I see…, I was a deviant after all.
“Gerth.”
“Hmm?”
“I like you as Hubert’s father.”
“Thank you. Hubert is a lovely child.”
The meaning clearly didn’t get through, but that was for the best. Let Gerth remain pure—I’d bear the weight of depravity myself.
With my resolve set, I extended my hand to Eugene. He grasped it eagerly and shook it vigorously up and down.
“Evan. Welcome to the fellowship.”
“Pleased to meet you, comrade.”
We had always liked the same things from the start. I felt my friendship with Eugene deepen as I steered the conversation back to Lakne.
“So Lakne is doing well?”
“The one who spent ten years peeking, sending gifts, clipping newspapers, and sending love letters—she got to kill him with her own hands, so she threw a party.”
“That must have been exhilarating.”
“Wenri and Leri are also celebrating with all their might.”
I’m grateful Wenri and Leri are by Lakne’s side. Playing with friends while washing away the filth of the past is good for mental health.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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