Serena and the Mysterious Labyrinth - Chapter 250

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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250. Serious Talk During Bath (1)

The next day. High Priest Hazel decided to return to the 10th floor as promised.

The High Priest of Earth gave warm and cozy hugs to each person he met in the lobby, spreading the mercy of the earth.

“I will pray to the earth for everyone to safely exit the labyrinth.”

The high priest who had been smiling warmly when looking at people narrowed his eyes as he looked at the lobby wall.

High Priest Hazel stared at the past dates recorded by Lavenda for a long time before leaving the lobby.

Priest Rihua had also decided to return to the 10th floor.

“I will never forget the Princess’s grace and the comfort of the lobby.”

Rihua’s red eyes, which showed a somewhat fragile but gentle smile, were directed toward the bathroom. Rihua gazed at the bathroom with longing.

“I will truly, truly miss it. But I must complete the mission given by the shining light.”

“Wouldn’t it be fine to stay in the lobby while Knight Marin completes her week? Is there a need to go down already?”

“I’m ashamed to say I’m a weak person. I don’t have the confidence to boldly leave the lobby like the Prince. I must go together when the High Priest leaves.”

“Since you’re weak, it would be good to rest here and replenish your strength.”

Priest Rihua was a 3-star healer. When Serena tempted her while pretending not to be herself, Priest Rihua tightly closed her eyes and turned away from the bathroom.

“Fortunately, I heard there’s a sauna. I can rest at the top of the 10th floor too. Thank you for the suggestion, Princess.”

The priests chose the flower trash prince even after tasting the abundance of the lobby, convenient facilities, and benefits of civilization.

It would be understandable for greedy sycophants, but this was the first time ordinary, sensible people chose her brother.

Serena felt a slight sense of defeat as she prepared to take the priests of earth and light to the 10th floor, but one more person was added here.

“Hehe, Bindo would like to go together too.”

The High Priest of Effort joined the group going to the 10th floor. Hazel, who knew the naturally bald priest’s abilities, was pleased.

“Will you come with us?”

“Hehehe. For now, this side seems to align with Bindo’s purpose.”

The Prince was moving to take revenge on Richard, while the other priests were going down the labyrinth to help the Prince or prevent his death.

Which side was the High Priest of Effort’s mentioned purpose closer to?

‘I’m so envious of that 5-star buffer.’

Serena grumbled inwardly as she teleported to the 10th floor.

The High Priest of Earth stored the fresh vegetables and fruits purchased from the lobby in the Prince’s spatial bag. Priest Rihua entered the lodge, shivering from the cold.

Seraph raised his eyebrows in surprise upon seeing the naturally bald priest, then asked his sister in a sharp tone.

“Where’s Muffin?”

“Muffin decided to stay in the lobby a bit longer. I forgot to mention yesterday, but Countess Nex is also in the lobby.”

“Ah, really?”

Though he pretended not to care nonchalantly, his worry about Muffin not returning was clearly visible. Serena understood her brother.

‘A 5-star monk who throws corruption punches. The ultimate dealer.’

The High Priest of Effort didn’t give allowances to Count Alpha and Low. Count Alpha had secretly thought he would receive an allowance, so this was unexpected.

“Compromise isn’t necessarily bad. But you could have tried harder.”

The naturally bald priest gave the same sermon to the Imperial Knight and hunter instead of allowances, then entered the lodge. Count Alpha and Low each smiled bitterly, seemingly having an idea of what this meant.

Count Alpha approached the Princess to return to the lobby. Beside the Imperial Knight, the hunter rubbed his fake baldness.

“Your Highness. For the safety of His Highness the Prince, Low has decided to remain on the 10th floor for the remaining period.”

It was welcome news that the mountain terrain specialist would stay. However, Serena was worried about one thing.

“Will your personality be okay with that?”

Low, who was extremely shy around strangers, might suffocate or die from stress if left with unfamiliar people. Wouldn’t his enthusiasm lead him to overwork himself?

Low thumped his chest as if asking her to trust him.

“Hehe, don’t worry. Do you know what the characteristic of shy people is?”

“What is it?”

“They’re good at official conversations. It’s a bit scary, but with the High Priest of Earth here, it should be fine. Yes, yes.”

“I see. Prince Willow was waiting to learn how to remove the gamey smell from wild boar from you, so he’ll be disappointed.”

“That’s troublesome work for such an esteemed person. Please tell him not to touch it when I return, as I’ll handle it.”

After hearing the earnest request not to touch anything since the gamey smell would transfer to the knife and cutting board, the Princess and Imperial Knight returned to the 1st floor of Heuji’s labyrinth.

“Radish! isn’t here? Yo?”

“Low decided to stay on the 10th floor while Knight Marin recovers. How admirable.”

“That timid guy wouldn’t volunteer for hardship on his own. Did the Black Knight seduce him? Yo?”

Olive stood on one leg and glared at Count Alpha rudely. Count Alpha readily admitted it.

“When I mentioned I was thinking of staying on the 10th floor, Low readily offered. I’m grateful.”

“Hmm. Radish fell for the Black Knight’s beauty~ I bet he fluttered those long eyelashes like butterfly wings while asking~ Princess, do you know what the characteristic of shy people is? Yo?”

Olive asked the exact same question as her ex-boyfriend. Serena suppressed a laugh that was about to escape.

“What is it?”

“They’ll give their liver and gallbladder to someone they think they’ve become close to! What should we do? Radish has completely fallen for the Black Knight.”

“Olive. I’m a married man with a wife and child.”

“Even if an Imperial noble says that, I can’t believe an Imperial noble, right?”

With the guide openly teasing him, the upright Imperial Knight had no way to endure it. Count Alpha, who had grown up suffering because of his gorgeous and beautiful appearance that made him look like he’d be good at playing around, tightly gripped a pendant that presumably contained a portrait of his wife.

“Olive. Like you and Count Randy, Count Alpha and Low are sharing a desirable friendship. Don’t tease them strangely. That’s rude not only to Count Alpha but also to Low, and it damages your character.”

When the Princess scolded the guide, the knight’s face brightened. Serena also had something to say to Count Alpha.

“And Count Alpha. You seem to grab your necklace when you’re angry… It’s good that you think of your wife, but be careful not to lose it. In Heuji, there’s a superstition that people who frequently look at or lose items with memories in such situations have bad luck.”

In the labyrinth, superstitions carry about 10 times more weight than outside. Count Alpha carefully tucked the necklace pendant inside his clothes.

“I’ll ask the Count to replace it with a stronger chain. Thank you for your concern.”

Serena hoped that baby Alpha, whether born or still in the mother’s womb, would definitely meet his living father. Perhaps her feelings were conveyed, as Count Alpha expressed deep gratitude.

“Both Your Highness and His Highness the Prince are affectionate and kind. I hope your good relationship with Lord Willow continues.”

While Serena valued laughter over a beauty’s tears, Count Alpha seemed impressed by the Prince’s tears he had seen the night before.

The people in the lobby welcomed the knight who returned a day later than others.

“Oh, Sirius! My friend!”

The Prince’s welcome was particularly enthusiastic. Count Alpha responded seriously but wanted to escape quickly, and his gaze fell on Ralph.

“Count Hanson. It seems there’s been progress since we last met. Your bearing is different from before.”

What Serena knew from the number of stars above his head, Count Alpha noticed just by looking at the boy’s appearance. It was quite amazing, though it was probably due to the keen eye characteristic of someone who had trained in martial arts.

“Is, is that so? I’ve been training in shield techniques. His Highness helped me! He was a genius at swordsmanship just as Count Alpha said!”

Ralph tried to speak maturely while suppressing his rising cheekbones. Even though his swordsmanship and shield techniques had been recognized by the Priest of Effort through hard work, he couldn’t help but smile, and his freckled cheeks twitched.

“At this level, you should be able to wield a sword again. How about a sparring match this afternoon?”

“That’s exactly what I wanted! Thank you!”

When Count Alpha turned around, the excited Ralph cheered.

“Yes!”

Beside Serena, who was watching this scene warmly, a small coughing sound was heard. It was Neet.

“Cough. Princess. I learned new magic too! Two spells!”

“Really. I heard from Count Ralph. You’re truly admirable. Besides corpse manipulation, what else did you learn?”

“Corpse restoration magic!”

“Neet’s new magic is really amazing! Even if you cut fish, it becomes fine!”

“Even if you chop it up, it sticks back together! It sounds like a lie but it’s real!”

“Woo?”

Duri was happy about her sister’s achievement, then asked something. Sesi understood and answered.

“Can we eat fish infinitely? No. We tried but it didn’t work.”

Serena looked at Countess Nex and Grey for detailed information. Countess Nex’s voice was hoarse and barely came out, perhaps from crying together while comforting her nephew the night before. Grey answered instead.

“According to our confirmation, processed corpses couldn’t be restored.”

“Processed?”

“Yes. In the case of piranhas, corpses that were chopped up or had flesh cut were cleanly restored, but piranhas that had their flesh filleted or organs removed for eating couldn’t be restored. Additional experiments with labyrinth chickens showed.”

No wonder the chicken that Chicken Golem used to ride was nowhere to be seen. It seemed to have been sacrificed for Neet’s magic experiments.

‘Yesterday’s stew also had all chicken and beef in it.’

“Labyrinth chickens were the same. Corpses that were simply touched to extract magic stones were restored, but corpses that were touched to obtain byproducts like plucking feathers or stripping hide and flesh couldn’t be restored.”

The dream of infinite meat refills was crushed from the start.

“Hmm, I should check if corpse explosion is similar. It exploded well when I just cut off goblin heads.”

“Goblin byproducts are equipment and magic stones, right? Check the conditions before casting the spell.”

At Grey’s explanation, Serena trembled with fear. It was fortunate that the monster used as corpse explosion material at that time was a goblin, but what if it had been another monster with byproducts to process?

He would have triumphantly thrown body parts at the cow monster and earned 1 death coin.

“Right now, I’m deliberately leaving some pirami to rot for additional experiments. So don’t touch the pirami in that clearing over there.”

“There was such a thing? I’ll help you.”

The Priest of Corruption, who had been listening to the story, readily stepped forward. Grey was startled.

“This is an experiment to return corrupted things to their pre-corruption state – is that okay? Won’t the God of Decay be displeased?”

The pink-haired girl, who had washed her hair in the hot spring and regained her cotton candy-like hair, shrugged her shoulders.

“Auntie told me it’s death attribute magic. And corruption is a child of death, so it’s fine.”

The God of Death also had children. To Serena, this felt contradictory.

“Ugh. It would have been so much cooler if I were a Priest of Death instead.”

Muffin casually committed what would horrify everyone as blasphemy and used the miracle of corruption on the pirami placed in the clearing.

The pirami that had only been giving off a fishy smell while drying up now rotted with a putrid stench.

“Did I make it rot too much? Is this still okay?”

“Cough. I’ll try.”

Even seeing the pirami that had gone beyond slightly spoiled to resemble the floating debris from the 6th Floor, Neet burned with determination.

Neet gripped her staff with the crystal skull and concentrated. Due to her innate condition, controlling mana was more difficult than for others, but fortunately the child also had a natural memory.

Since she never forgot what she saw, heard, and felt, whenever she felt she had moved her mana incorrectly, she would immediately cancel and start over from the beginning. At times like this, the excessive mana that drove her toward death became Neet’s strength.

“I wish to use the power permitted by the Heavens. Please make this rotten fish as fresh as it was right after death!”

The flesh that had rotted to be more liquid than solid gradually became firm. The scales that had lost their luster and were mushy regained their shine, and the pirami’s eyes, which had rotted the most and lost their shape, sparkled with life as if they were alive.

The rotten pirami became a fresh pirami that looked like it would swim gracefully if put in water.

“Phew.”

Neet took a deep breath and drank some water. She had been nervous with Grey, Viscount Nex, and even the Princess watching, making her throat dry.

“Amazing, Neet!”

Serena didn’t spare the praise the child desired. The child’s mouth, visible outside the bandages, opened wide.

Grey coldly analyzed the mana used to restore the corpse from the side.

“This also requires a lot of mana. Death attribute magic can’t be used with ordinary amounts of mana.”

“There must be a reason why the mysterious magic has taken notice of Miss Neet, Grey.”

Viscount Nex praised Neet with a hoarse voice.

“Exactly. Good! Neet, you can use more magic, right?”

“Cough. Yes.”

“Then let’s try an application that can only be done when there’s a Priest of Corruption. The core of corpse restoration magic is preventing the decay of contracted undead. Sister Muffin, please make the pirami rot more weakly than now. Neet, keep maintaining the magic so the pirami doesn’t rot.”

Just from attending theory classes together with Neet, he was already thinking of the core and applications of that magic. Viscount Nex clicked his tongue while looking at Grey.

Serena clicked her tongue for a different reason.

‘He said he would work hard from now on, so why is he putting Neet through the wringer?’

He seemed shocked about not getting allowance, so why was he burning his motivation in the wrong place?

Even though she thought this way, it was teaching that would benefit Neet, so she had no complaints. Serena changed her mind from wanting to rest leisurely and began meditating.

***

Perhaps because she had meditated next to the rotten pirami, the fishy smell and putrid stench had permeated her body. Serena, Muffin, Viscount Nex, and Neet headed straight to the hot spring together.

Viscount Nex and Neet left the hot spring early due to their poor health, leaving only Serena and Muffin in the bath.

Left alone with the Princess, Muffin let out an awkward laugh. Although they had interacted for a long time, strictly speaking, it was like bathing with a friend’s older sister, so it would be awkward.

“Ugh. Countess Randy is going to kill me. She’ll stare at me with those beautiful eyes every day and make me commit suicide from unbearable guilt.”

Correction. She wasn’t awkward about bathing with a friend’s sister, but worried about the jealousy of the friend’s sister’s friend.

“I’ve bathed with others many times, so it’s fine.”

“Still.”

An awkward silence lingered again. Serena pretended to massage her eyes with the hot spring water while organizing her thoughts.

‘The bathhouse somehow reduces psychological distance, perhaps because we’re undressed. Should I ask about Shullen? Whether there was anything strange?’

How should she break the ice?

‘Should I give her shaved ice first?’

While the Princess was pondering, perhaps finding the awkward silence unbearable, Muffin spoke first.

“But it’s kind of funny. My brother actually disliked Lady Serena. To think that same Lady Serena would collect my brother’s remains. If my brother knew, he would have been dumbfounded.”

‘Shullen disliked me?’

Serena’s eyes snapped open. Because she didn’t wipe away the moisture, hot spring water flowed into her eyes.

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