I Became a Veteran Who Has to Stir Up Trouble to Survive - Chapter 58

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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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[058] Haunted Mansion
‘A Haunted Mansion, then….’
Urban legends. In similar parlance, creepypasta.
A genre with a devoted fanbase—so much so that web novels and entire communities have spawned from its distinctly eerie and horrifying elements.
The primary objective is to survive the creatures’ attacks while adhering to the rules.
Yet one crucial difference sets this apart: this is no modern setting, but a fantasy world where swords and sorcery reign supreme.
Rather than fleeing blindly from the creatures, I must hunt and overcome them using the rules themselves, all while investigating the mansion.
My highest priority is to uncover and resolve the source of these anomalies before the other Mages can claim the reward for themselves.
“Creatures, then… which means the scarecrow I encountered outside must have been….”
“Yes, there must have been a way to hunt it.”
If only I had grasped the rules correctly.
I surveyed my surroundings.
An ornate chandelier, marble floors polished to mirror-like brilliance, tapestries and frescoes adorning the walls.
A space befitting the Hall that first welcomes visitors to the mansion—one that exuded both opulence and authority.
The cold, crystalline tones of a music box lent it a faintly unsettling atmosphere, yet it remained an impressive place nonetheless.
“…First, I need to find the rules.”
“The rules?”
“Yes. Distorted Spaces of this type always have underlying laws. I need to uncover them—like how we were told not to look back in the Garden.”
Since the rules were inscribed on gravestones in the Garden, there was a high probability that text was similarly hidden on objects or furnishings here.
I rolled up my sleeves and set to work as I always did.
But I felt a gaze upon me. Turning, I found Karen watching me with sharp, piercing eyes.
“…You said this was your first time entering a space like this, didn’t you? How do you know so much?”
“It is my first time. But there’s such a thing as intuition born from experience.”
“Intuition…?”
Karen’s eyebrows twitched gracefully before she exhaled and continued.
“…This Hall is the only safe zone in the mansion where danger doesn’t manifest. If you intend to explore the Distorted Space, you’d do well to leave here and venture elsewhere.”
“Is that so? Then let’s move immediately.”
I stepped forward and opened the door deeper within the Hall.
Creeeeak—
A chilling sound accompanied the revelation of a long, stretching Corridor.
Large portraits hung in rows along both sides, while luxurious carpets lay across the floor.
Save for the fact that the faces within the portraits had been erased beyond recognition, it was an ordinary space like any other mansion.
Karen murmured softly.
“A Corridor—we’re fortunate.”
“What do you mean, Karen?”
“The arrangement and structure of the rooms change randomly each time a door opens. In the three times I’ve experienced this, creatures appeared only once in the Corridor, making it relatively safe.”
‘Once in three times, then….’
In other words, I had violated a rule once during those three passages through the Corridor.
I smiled faintly and examined the portraits.
In the corner of the canvas, instead of the painter’s signature, a cautionary inscription lay cunningly concealed.
[Corridor Conduct Rules!]
[Do not run while traversing the Corridor. They despise those lacking courtesy.]
[The paintings adorning the walls are Portrait Gallery of Former House Masters. Out of respect for those great souls, conduct yourselves with utmost propriety.]
As I strolled leisurely through the Corridor, Radi seized my garment with an iron grip.
“I-is it just my imagination…? I swear I can feel their gaze emanating from the paintings….”
“Really?”
I too sensed a persistent, suffocating malice clinging to the back of my head.
Though the faces within the portraits had been erased beyond visual confirmation, something within those frames was undoubtedly watching us.
As the piercing stares multiplied one by one, Radi whispered with exaggerated alarm.
“I felt it just now! The portraits are staring at us, I’m telling you?!”
“Then greet them.”
“Pardon?!”
“They’re the masters of this Mansion. We must show respect. …Malton, you as well.”
“Understood.”
Malton and I bowed solemnly toward the portraits with deliberate reverence.
“Greetings. We pass through with your permission.”
“We are honored to visit this Mansion.”
Then something extraordinary occurred.
Ding—!
「The Former House Masters appreciate those of courtesy!」
「The portraits withdraw their murderous intent from you!」
The gleaming malice dissolved away like mist, and the paintings reverted to ordinary images.
Upon closer inspection, the form that had been crawling forth from the portrait at the Corridor’s end was also retreating back into its canvas.
Radi scratched her cheek and murmured thoughtfully.
“Hmm… could they have been benevolent creatures after all?”
“Some aberrations become docile when rules are observed. In this Corridor, the principle is simple: do not run, and conduct yourself with courtesy.”
Karen and the Mages likely met their misfortune here because they fled hastily from the previous chamber, creating a commotion.
We intended to continue our leisurely pace, but Karen remained frozen, her mouth agape.
“What did you just do? How did you do that?”
“Do what, exactly?”
“No, I clearly saw a creature emerging from that end… and suddenly it retreated back inside.”
“It was satisfied by our courteous greeting and withdrew, naturally.”
“…It worked just like that? My senior Mages and I were breaking a sweat suppressing the Corridor’s monster….”
“A wasted effort, it seems.”
Mages are intelligent, but sometimes their thinking becomes rigidly confined within established frameworks.
I shrugged and left Karen to her bewildered stare, advancing toward the Corridor’s end.
And there, four doors awaited us.
Red, blue, green, black.
Before these vividly colored doors hung an ominous warning.
[Crossroads of Choice. One is truth, two are traps, the rest is eternal banishment.]
[Opening the wrong door may result in permanent Stat loss!]
“Permanent Stat loss, huh… that’s hardly appealing.”
For an Adventurer, Stats were as vital as life itself, and Malton—already burdened by considerable debuffs from the curse’s aftermath—exhaled heavily.
The probability of choosing the correct answer was merely one in four.
Karen seized the moment and interjected.
“Y-yes…! How about this?! Other Mages have challenged this puzzle many times before, only to fail and get banished!”
“The blue and green doors aren’t it, at least.”
“Why not─?!”
“Those two colors weren’t present among the clothing worn by the Former House Masters. Anyone who observed the Portrait Gallery with proper courtesy would immediately notice this.”
The problem was that I had no way of knowing which of the remaining red and black doors was the correct answer.
‘Accessories? Door handle decorations? Or perhaps the frame color?’
I combined every clue I possessed, but none aligned with absolute certainty.
Perhaps the decisive hint had existed in the faces of the portraits before they were erased…
“Well, there’s no helping it then. It’s fifty-fifty.”
“What should we do? Should we turn back now?”
“No, I have just the method for this.”
I withdrew a silver coin from my pocket and spoke.
“A coin toss.”
“…What?”
Karen’s eyebrows twitched with exasperation as she shot back.
“Are you in your right mind?! You’re going to entrust something this critical to mere coin flipping?!”
“There’s no method more certain than this. Wouldn’t you agree, Malton, Radi?”
“A reasonable assessment.”
“Agreed.”
As the two nodded in understanding, Karen stared at us as if utterly dumbfounded.
Entrusting such a momentous decision to pure chance was reckless beyond measure—but that principle didn’t apply to me.
‘If I’ve narrowed the odds down to fifty-fifty, that’s more than enough to work with…!’
Ping—!
「The Passive Skill [Cheater] has activated!」
「[Antagon’s Rune] is in an enhanced state! The probability of drawing favorable results in gambling has increased further!」
I snatched the silver coin mid-spin and declared.
“The black door.”
Without hesitation, I opened the black door.
By the time Karen urgently tried to stop me, it was already too late.
The door swung open, and a new space unfolded before my eyes.
「You have safely passed through the ‘Corridor Anomaly’!」
「You feel yourself drawing closer to the heart of the Distorted Space! You have entered the ‘Study’ area!」
‘As expected, it was the right answer.’
For a moment, I wondered which element of the portrait’s erased section had been black, but there was no time to dwell on it.
An antiquated space with an enormous circular bookshelf that stretched to the ceiling and a mobile ladder positioned within it.
As I quickly surveyed the new surroundings, a parchment suddenly flew before my eyes.
[Study Library Rules of Conduct!]
[Maintain silence. It is the fundamental etiquette of the Study.]
[Handle books with care. The volumes here are precious assets of the House Master.]
[Do not be alarmed if content escapes from the books. They are merely Librarians who maintain this Study, and they will withdraw of their own accord if you focus quietly on reading.]
“So we’re supposed to be quiet here?”
“Then we can’t talk at all?”
“Well, I suppose to that extent….”
That was when it happened.
[First rule violated.]
[Silence in the Study.]
[Silence in the Study.]
[Silence in the Study.]
Suddenly, black smoke billowed from the corner of the bookshelf, and a grotesque creature burst forth.
A monstrosity composed of books and ink—its torso a dense mass of typeset characters.
As the creature charged forward with an eerie sound like pages turning, Malton stepped ahead and swung his mace.
Crash!
But the creature absorbed the impact and only grew larger.
“What, what is this?! Could this monster also be invincible?!”
“No… it’s not invincible—it’s actually multiplying…!”
[Second rule violated.]
[Handle books with care.]
[Handle books with care.]
[Handle books with care.]
As the typeset characters struck by Malton’s mace bounced against the bookshelves, creatures began erupting in a chain reaction.
Ink masses poured down from all directions, blanketing the space above until the ceiling vanished from sight.
While my companions panicked, I quickly reviewed the Study rules again, deciphering each one carefully.
And I understood.
The way to defeat this creature was not through force.
「Rule 1. Loud noises in the Study summon creatures.」
「Rule 2. Confronting the creatures only calls forth more of them.」
「Rule 3. The creatures withdraw if you focus quietly on reading.」
“Everyone, be silent! Close your mouths and pretend to read!”
I shouted as I grabbed the nearest book.
Radi and Malton quickly caught on and opened their books.
Only Karen stood dazed, unable to grasp the situation.
“What? Read books in this situation?”
“Shh!”
I clamped Karen’s mouth shut and forced a book into her hands, and the creatures that had been rampaging so fiercely suddenly froze.
They circled around us, sniffing curiously, but upon seeing us reading peacefully, they lost interest and dissolved into smoke, vanishing away.
「You have evaded the crisis by adhering to the rules!」
「You have effectively vanquished the aberration! Experience acquired!」
I exhaled deeply, finally allowing the tension to drain from my shoulders.
Radi swept a hand across her chest, her eyes reflecting relief.
I too released the grip of anxiety, breathing steadily once more.
Yet Malton, whose gaze had met mine, remained buried in his tome, gesturing frantically beyond his shoulder.
A chill crept down my spine from behind—I spun around to find another aberration still there, dripping ink, its gaze fixed upon us.
More precisely, upon Karen’s hair, which blazed like living flame.
Only then did I notice the minuscule warning inscribed at the bottom of the parchment.
[Warning! Fire magic is catastrophically destructive to the Library’s collection!]
[Should your party contain a flame-aspected mage, do not—under any circumstances—let the Librarians discover this! Should they find out… our condolences.]
“Damn it!! Everyone to the door!!”
The moment the book creature behind us unhinged its maw, awakening every aberration in the Study, the sole exit was barricaded by towering stacks of tomes.
I spun toward Karen and roared.
“Cast magic! Right now!!”
“Cast magic…?! Here, now…?”
“Yes!! Anything—just hurry!!”
Karen, hesitating in panic, reluctantly began chanting her incantation.
The moment the brief spell echoed forth and magic erupted, I realized something had gone catastrophically wrong.
「The soul of the Selurian Golem dwelling within your spirit senses formidable magic!!」
「Such overwhelming mana!!! Exercise caution!!!」
「Secrian’s Ring warns you!!! This is power beyond your capacity to withstand!!!」
「The Mansion is on the verge of destruction!!! The master of this Distorted Space expels you all!!」
“This insane—!”
In an instant, as if a napalm bomb had detonated before my eyes, my entire vision erupted into an inferno, and the world went black.

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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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