Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

I entered a nearby magic item store.

Ding-a-ling.

“Welcome!”

I hoped I could find it in one go.

Since I didn’t know anything about magic items, I approached an employee and asked.

“Hello. Do you have any magic items related to curse magic?”

“There are some, but… what kind of curse are you looking for? Recently, human hunters have been rampant, and the guild has regulated them, so you can only purchase weak ones for a while.”

“I’m looking for a magic item related to the Curse of the Tracking Arrow. Do you have it?”

The employee looked through something like a catalog and shook his head.

“Sorry. It’s a curse that can be easily misused, so you can’t purchase it as a magic item. You can only use it if you cast the curse yourself.”

Damn it.

“Yes. I understand. Thank you for your help.”

I left the store and sighed.

“There are a few more magic item stores nearby. Should we go and check them out?”

I nodded. I had to grab any straw I could find.

I took a step forward.

________________________________________

…

“If I sell it, I’ll be caught by the guards.”

…

“Our store doesn’t carry that magic item.”

Damn.

Zone 4 is so vast, and the distance between stores is far, so I only went to two more places, but one store refused outright, and the other didn’t even have it on their list.

‘Of course. It’s only natural that they won’t sell it if it’s regulated.’

If someone asks why I stubbornly went to two more stores despite the regulation, well…

‘Anyway, what else could I have done besides looking for a magic item store after putting off finding a curse magician? Maybe there was a store that would sell it at a much higher price, despite the risk.’

The regulation is based on the fact that it can be easily misused. It’s not like they would arrest me just for asking about it.

Even if the stores had a connection and reported me as suspicious, what crime could they charge me with?

“Ahren, the sun is setting. Why don’t we get a room at an inn first?”

“Yes, we should. We’ve been walking around for hours, and everything has been blocked, so let’s give up on buying a magic item. It’ll be difficult, but let’s try to find a black magician or a curse magician from tomorrow.”

After saying that, we headed towards a nearby wooden building, an inn.

As soon as I entered, I saw a scene straight out of a fantasy inn.

The interior was bustling with noise.

Hustle and bustle.

People of various kinds were sitting at tables, eating food, sipping beer, and chatting.

A large fireplace on one wall of the inn added a cozy warmth to the chilly evening air.

“It’s warm.”

I approached the counter, avoiding the busy waiters walking between the tables.

“I’d like to stay here. Are there any rooms available?”

“The accommodation fee for one night is 20 copper coins. Meals are charged separately at 5 copper coins.”

Since this is Zone 4, the price won’t be cheap. I had no choice.

“I’d like two rooms and dinner for two.”

I handed over a silver coin and received 5 large copper coins. One large copper coin is worth 10 copper coins, right?

“Ahren, I’ll pay for my share. I have enough funds too, right?”

I smiled and declined.

“You’ve been helping me all day, so I’ll pay for this. Don’t worry about it.”

“Yes. Then I won’t refuse. Thank you!”

After the conversation, we received two room keys and went to our respective rooms on the second floor to unpack.

We sat at an empty table and waited, and soon our dinner was served.

A bowl of steaming potato soup, a loaf of wheat bread, and a large piece of meat, cooked to perfection, tempted me.

“Bon appetit.”

As I took a spoonful of the warm soup, all my fatigue melted away.

Hmm.

I tore off a piece of bread and dipped it in the soup, and the nutty flavor lingered in my mouth.

Then, I cut a piece of meat and put it in my mouth, and the burst of juice brought happiness to my tired body and mind.

Now I’m really leaving the knight order and staying at an inn.

After a pleasant meal with Yeriel, we went to our rooms.

“Tomorrow, let’s go to the guild and ask about curse magicians at the reception desk after the education.”

As soon as I closed my eyes, sleepiness overcame me.

.

.

.

After having soup and bread for breakfast, we headed to the guild for today’s education.

“Ugh, I’m still angry. How can I face that face for a few days?”

Yeriel kept staring at Isaac, and I was calmer, which was funny when I thought about it after the education ended.

We went down to the first floor and stood in the shortest line, and soon it was my turn.

“Hello. How can I help you?”

“I’m looking for a curse magician or someone who can use curse magic for my party or this labyrinth trip. Is there any way the adventurer guild can help me?”

The receptionist paused.

“Well, it’s usually personal information, so it’s difficult to answer comprehensively which adventurer is a curse magician or can use curse magic.”

Damn it. I can’t afford to get blocked here.

“It’ll be faster if you post your name, party information, and the role or job you’re looking for on the party matching board.”

I said I would do that and gave my name and purpose.

“Compared to magic users in the attacker position, it’ll be easier to find someone specialized in curse, common, or life magic… Of course, magic users themselves are rare.”

“Thank you.”

Even though curse magic items are regulated due to the risk of misuse, they can’t stop a curse magician from using a curse.

It’s not right to manage and suppress all black magicians and curse magicians, including those who use curse magic, as potential criminals.

What, do they cast a magic spell on them? Do they provide magic items that notify the guild or impose restrictions when a specific curse is used?

Unless there’s a surplus in the budget, it won’t be easy to do this for adventurers who barely make it through the first and second floors.

‘And even if they do, I still need to find someone who can cast the curse. What other way is there to track him?’

If I follow Isaac into the labyrinth on the day he goes, it’ll be useless if we’re randomly dropped in different starting locations.

I sat down at the table where Yeriel was sitting alone.

“How did it go? You don’t look like it went well.”

“I posted on the party matching board that I’m looking for someone who can use curses. It doesn’t seem likely, but I’ll have to wait and see.”

As I was feeling discouraged, I heard two men, a warrior and a rogue, talking at the table next to us.

I was curious about their conversation, so I listened in.

“Damn. Look at those tits. Hey, look over there.”

“…Oh, come on. You’re an idiot. Look at her ears and eye color. And her outfit. She’s obviously the rumored Arar.”

The rumored Arar?

“Why? Isn’t she just a beastkin? She’s wearing a robe, so she’s obviously a rare magician. Why don’t we try to convince her to join our party?”

Thwack!

The warrior, who had been trying to stop the rogue, heard this and became serious. He smacked the rogue’s head.

“What’s wrong with you? Did you eat something bad or something? Why are you suddenly hitting me?”

“Shut up and listen. Not all beastkin are the same. Within the same race, there are some who are cursed and shunned, called Arar.”

“So, Arar? What’s that?”

At the rogue’s question, the warrior began a long explanation.

“In the past, after incurring the wrath of the god of darkness, girls with black hair and jewel-like eyes began to be born among the beastkin.”

The god of darkness. Of course, there’s a god of light, so there must be a god of darkness.

“It wouldn’t be a problem if it was just their appearance. But apparently, great misfortune befell those who got close to them or stayed with them for a long time.”

He paused as if he was afraid and shook his head.

“Someone died, a plague broke out, monsters gathered, and the village burned down. Eventually, they couldn’t take it anymore and started to kill or abandon the cursed children, shunning them.”

“…

“They even gave them a separate derogatory name, Arar.”

I didn’t expect such a depressing story.

“This is crazy. What did those kids do wrong?”

“It’s unfortunate, but what can we do? Fortunately, some of the abandoned children managed to survive and grow up, and they established a village somewhere on the continent. A village where only a few cursed children can live.”

“It’s good that they survived and created their own community.”

The warrior nodded.

“Yes. As a price for being cursed, they have an abundance of talent in black magic, so they call themselves witches and have chosen that path.”

As he spoke, he paused and lowered his voice.

“But that’s not all. If you succeed in convincing her to join our party, what will happen to our party?”

The rogue was sweating and hesitating.

“I’m sorry. I almost got us all killed with my stupid idea. Damn, after this labyrinth trip, I’ll just go live in the library!”

“As far as I know, that witch… has only been in the city for a short time, but her party has been wiped out twice on the first floor, and she’s the only survivor.”

The warrior laughed, saying that they should stay away from her and have a drink later.

‘The conversation seems to be over. But what about black magic…’

I turned my gaze away from the two men and looked around.

Not only them but also other people were whispering about the witch.

Wow, I even saw people leaving their line and going to another counter, hissing at her.

“That’s a bit too much… Can’t they just be near her for a while?”

Yeriel grumbled, having overheard the conversation between the men and me.

“It does look a bit strange. She must have experienced this kind of situation many times.”

“Yes. It’s really unfortunate. How much hurt must she have endured throughout her life?”

The line was short, and as people in front of her left one by one, the witch soon reached the reception desk.

“Huff. It’s pitiful, but there’s nothing we can do just by looking at her. Anyway, it’s a big problem that we’ve missed our chance today.”

“Ahren, don’t be too upset! The labyrinth hasn’t opened yet, so we can look for a few more days, and something will come up.”

“I hope so.”

Before leaving the guild, I looked at the witch one last time.

As a fellow low-level adventurer, I might cross paths with her in the future, so I should assess her abilities.

───

[Lumia]

[Strength: E] [Agility: F+] [Endurance: E-]
[Stamina: E] [Magic Power: D-] [Luck: F]

[Held Traits] (Collapse)

Dark Punishment
Basics of Black Magic
Mask of Deprivation
Beastkin Senses

───

───

[Dark Punishment] [P]

A powerful curse bestowed by the god of darkness upon the beastkin.

The darkness that severely isolates the cursed target spreads around the user, always invisible, to a certain radius.

• Luck decreases by four stages.
•
• Those who touch the darkness around the user are covered in misfortune proportional to the time they are in contact with it.
•
• All attacks related to light deal additional damage.
•
• Moderate adjustment to black magic.
•
• All attacks are fixed to the darkness attribute.
•
───

Hiss.

Wait a minute. I can see something around her body?

[Chaos opens his eyes wide and stares at the darkness.]

“What’s that?”

“Huh? What?”

It wasn’t a situation where I could respond to the question.

The dark aura that spread from the witch, Lumia, began to faintly appear.

Hmm. Is that the darkness and the cause of misfortune?

Now that I think about it, there was something like that in Chaos’ description.

──You can see things that are not easily visible.

‘It feels like I’m forcing myself to see something I shouldn’t. It won’t be good to keep looking.’

I hurriedly turned my head away, but she must have felt something strange because she turned her head and looked directly into my eyes.

What are you saying? I can’t hear what you’re saying.

I tried to read her lips.

You. Could it be. You can see it?

She stared intently at my eyes, then rushed towards me, pushing past the people.

Tap, tap, tap.

‘What’s going on? Why are you suddenly running towards me?’

The aura she was emitting as she ran was so strong that it made me take a step back.

‘Don’t come, crazy woman!’

I was about to turn away when I suddenly felt a resistance.

[The user has a record of confirmed misfortune applied in the recent past.]

[The dragon’s heart resists the misfortune caused by the Dark Punishment.]

[A weak divine power reacts to the darkness.]

[The ‘darkness’ in the Dark Punishment is deactivated near the user due to strong resistance.]

Hiss!

“Ah, ah.”

Suddenly, a system window popped up in front of my eyes.

At the same time, Lumia stopped and began to tremble.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. She suddenly started running towards him, then stopped. Why is she acting like this?”

Damn it. The adventurers’ attention was already on us.

“Yeriel, let’s go. We should leave.”

“Yes. I felt sorry for her earlier, but this woman is strange. Let’s get away from her and leave quickly.”

Yeriel grabbed my hand and led me towards the exit.

“Don’t go!”

Lumia shouted and ran towards us with all her might.

Damn it. Yeriel was right behind me.

It was awkward to run away, so I just stood there and let her come.

“Really, I can’t feel the darkness.”

She said this in my arms, like a koala clinging to my body.

She gritted her teeth and tried to cling to me again with all her might.

“I can’t let go.”

She repeated this a few times, and Yeriel whispered to me with a troubled look.

“Ahren… Just take her and let’s go. Everyone is staring…”

Damn it. What am I doing right now?

I sighed and carried Lumia, who was clinging to me, out of the guild.