The Magical Hunter Girl Decorates the Dungeon! - Chapter 70

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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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The Magic Hunter Girl Decorates a Dungeon! Episode 70
“Won’t you see more of our garden? I can show you all the other flower beds too!”
“Well, I do love flowers… but the more I look at them, the more I want to take them home, and it’s giving me a headache.”
The Pansy, Moss Phlox, and Violet were all truly beautiful. The longer she lingered, the more tempted she felt to abandon the Forsythia.
So it seemed best not to look at any other flowers until she’d filled the third slot with Forsythia.
‘I don’t want to overthink this anymore!’
“Thank you so much for everything! Until you have your tea time, I’ll stay in the Central Garden without causing any trouble.”
Lee Ji curtsied gracefully, lifting her skirt hem. A noblewoman’s manners seemed only fitting for such a refined young boy.
But instead of returning her greeting, the boy just stood there hesitating for a moment…
“About that Forsythia. If I arranged to get some, would you stay here longer?”
“You said there wasn’t any.”
“Then ask the Marquis.”
…What was he saying?
‘Is the Marquis going to dig it up from somewhere in the back mountains?’
As a guest, she didn’t want to impose difficult tasks on her host.
Lee Ji declined tactfully.
“I need to get home before dinner…”
“We can find it by then. This is a Dungeon, after all. It’s a place where all sorts of impossible things happen.”
“…”
“Especially since the owner of this place is a Marquis famous as a collector. His obsession and eccentricities in life are reflected in the Dungeon itself, so anything he’s set his heart on acquiring materializes quickly.”
‘This is beyond my understanding!’
“You mean the Marquis uses Magic?”
“…Roughly speaking. To be precise, the Dungeon helps the Marquis with his… concept.”
The boy gave up on a detailed explanation. It was brief and to the point, at least.
“So, want to explore this place a bit more with me?”
“…”
What should she do?
By common sense, one shouldn’t accept an invitation into a stranger’s home.
‘But I’m the one who broke in here uninvited, and Grimoire said as long as I follow the rules, it’s fine…’
And for some reason—
the boy with glasses felt trustworthy and reliable.
So much so that the thought ‘I should ask Grimoire for advice’ didn’t even cross her mind.
Lee Ji glanced at her watch and nodded.
It was one o’clock in the afternoon.
“Yes. I just need to get home by four o’clock.”
“Got it!”
The boy smiled very brightly.
“First I’ll ask the Marquis to get us some Forsythia. Will you come with me, or would you rather look around here more?”
“I’ll come with you.”
“Good. Just mind your manners, don’t stress too much about it.”
Lee Ji hurried after the boy with quick steps.
Now that she’d decided on all the flowers to take, her heart felt lighter as she looked around the garden.
“What kind of flower is that?”
“Gladiolus. The color is very elegant, don’t you think?”
“It looks like a princess’s dress! …And what about that tree standing alone in the sandy area over there? There’s some foreign language sign on it…”
“Manchineel. Don’t go near it under any circumstances. The entire tree is poisonous—just touching it will cause you incredible suffering.”
Lee Ji flinched and clung to the boy. He was somewhat startled, but instead of pulling away, he spoke in a soothing tone.
“You’ll be fine as long as you stay on the path. Our garden doesn’t have that many dangerous plants.”
“Wait, ‘that many’? Is there more on the way there?”
“See the Coconut Palms by the Lakeside? Don’t go under them. If you get hit by a fruit, not even a Healer can save you.”
“So Coconut Palms are scary trees too… Oh right. What about you?”
“Don’t call me that.”
“What’s your name?”
“…”
She’d forgotten the most important question.
If they were going to spend several more hours together, she couldn’t keep calling him ‘hey’ forever.
As the boy hesitated, Lee Ji spoke first.
“I’m Lee Ji, second grade, class three, Sparrow Elementary School. I’m a Hunter. And a Magical Girl! I’m collecting flowers for my Magical Girl Activities.”
“Is it okay to tell all that to someone you just met?”
“Well, this adult I know says telecom companies and shopping malls sell personal information for pocket change anyway. So I figure I should just tell trustworthy people first.”
“…That bastard really taught you something good.”
“Sorry?”
“Never mind.”
The boy swallowed his words.
“My name is Clovis. Can you remember that?”
“Yes! It’s such a cool name!”
“And… um. From now on, you can talk casually to me.”
“But I’m probably younger than you, Clovis?”
Clovis was a head taller than Lee Ji. He had to be two or three years older.
Clovis tilted his head.
“It only looks like a year or two difference. Why do you talk so formally?”
“Because Koreans follow Confucianism.”
“I don’t know what that has to do with anything, but talk casually. It makes me uncomfortable otherwise.”
Lee Ji took a deep breath and finally managed to speak in an informal tone.
“Okay, got it. Clovis!”
“…Good. Let’s go, Lee Ji.”
Clovis turned around. Just before that, she could have sworn she saw the corner of his mouth twitch into a smile.
The two of them made their way toward the mansion along the central promenade of the three-pronged pathway.
On both sides were lush ornamental trees carefully trimmed by a gardener, and various birds flitting between them.
“What kind of bird is that?”
“A starling. Want me to get you one?”
“No!”
“A Magical Girl suits anything beautiful. Having a bird by your side could look nice too.”
“Mmm—but I think birds look better flying around freely than being kept as decorations!”
“…I see.”
Clovis hoped Lee Ji wouldn’t notice that the birds’ wing feathers were clipped slightly, preventing them from flying far.
What worried him even more, though—
was the dingy exterior of the mansion that he couldn’t hide.
A short while later, when they arrived at the entrance, Lee Ji opened her mouth wide in shock.
“Clovis. Is that… really a house people live in?”
The Black Diamond Marquis Estate.
What had looked like a dignified old mansion draped in ivy up close appeared, from a distance, like a ruin being strangled by it.
Over the brown brick, layers of withered and fresh leaves piled thickly, and behind them, enormous insects crawled about with scratching sounds.
Clovis sighed.
“The inside is clean. There needs to be space for the Marquis’s collections.”
“…”
“I’ll go ask the Marquis for that Forsythia and come back. You wait and play in that Mini Garden.”
The place Clovis pointed to had a small tea table, a topiary shaped like a teddy bear, and a swing.
A scene straight out of a Western fairy tale.
She wouldn’t get bored playing there even for hours…!
“Then…”
“Can’t I come along?”
Lee Ji grabbed Clovis’s sleeve. He looked a bit startled.
“Why? Are you scared to be alone?”
“…Yes!”
“It’s really safe… Hmph. Well, if you’re scared, I can’t help that.”
Clovis nodded as if granting a favor, and Lee Ji took her place beside him.
But the real reason she’d grabbed Clovis was different.
‘When he said he was going to meet the Marquis, he looked tense somehow. Is the Marquis strict?’
Either way, since the situation depended on Lee Ji’s request, she didn’t want to just stand aside and watch.
‘We might become friends, after all!’
Just before opening the front door, Clovis made a strange sound.
“You know this is a Dungeon, right?”
“Of course!”
“You also know that Dungeons are places where events that happened somewhere in the cosmos are replayed?”
“…I’ve never heard that before.”
Her teachers at school had only explained two things.
A very strange and dangerous place.
A treasure trove of resources for obtaining Magic Stones.
“Wise men have analyzed that past events and future events are mixed together, but most are past occurrences. The reason I’m telling you this is—”
Clovis spoke more firmly.
“No matter how I’m treated inside, don’t feel sympathy or sadness. It’s all ancient history, and I’m fine now.”
“What? So this was your past?”
“Yeah. The Marquis Estate was once my home.”
“…”
If it had been his home, why did he look so uncomfortable when he said he was going to meet the Marquis?
As if reading Lee Ji’s thoughts, Clovis spoke firmly.
“I’m about to open the door. If you’re not ready, go back to the small garden.”
“…I’ll stay by your side!”
“Okay.”
Clovis opened the door without hesitation, and he looked a little pleased.
The door swung open, and the bell hanging above the entrance chimed.
At the same time, a man’s voice thundered from beyond.
“Clovis! You damn brat, where the hell have you been this time!”

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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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