Becoming an Extra in a Trash Game

Chapter 37

I can no longer live like this. Please do not look for me.

If Young Master is not a demon, I believe you will understand my heart.

Young Master, I hate you…….

(Omitted section)

…Harlon.

Thirteen letters written with tears.

Harlon was captured again and thought that even if he only looked at documents in this mansion for 10 years instead of 5, he should leave now.

Some maids said that now, with slightly less muscle than before when his face and balance didn’t match due to too much muscle, he looked better balanced.

‘It’s not comforting…….’

That salty taste. The saltiness felt when sweat drips onto the lips.

After working with metal for a long time, even the hands smell of iron, faintly remaining even after a shower.

The pleasure of feeling like your body is spreading like a freshly baked marshmallow when lying in bed after excessive training.

Exercise and training do not betray you. Once you lift something heavy, it returns that much muscle.

Unlike those endlessly piling documents that accumulate even if processed one by one, muscles show a definite reward visibly.

In other words,

“Happiness is out there.”

Harlon brushed back his olive-colored hair that had grown slightly longer, touching his nape, and smiled brightly.

‘Let’s run away.’

If someone saw him running away, they might report it to Adelian.

Harlon muttered that he never thought he would use the infiltration and assassination training he learned from the Golden-beaked Raven Knight Order with gold coins in his mouth like this, as he slowly moved his feet.

No need for luggage. Just take cash and leave for now.

Harlon packed the robe and small backpack he had been secretly preparing, and left the castle with wide eyes.

Anyway, only people inside the castle properly knew that Harlon had become a paperwork slave, so the gatekeeper connected to the outside wouldn’t care much if he left.

Even if they searched for him later after he disappeared, there wouldn’t be much they could find out.

Harlon pressed his hand to his mouth to hide his too-excited face as he came out, and walked slowly to conceal his desire to shout out loud, then ran like crazy as soon as he was out of the gatekeeper’s sight.

Instead of taking the road connecting the castle and village, he cut across a small landscaped forest to enter the inner part of the village, then hurried his steps even while blending into the crowd.

‘First I need to change boats a few times……!’

“Eek!”

He turned left to avoid a man walking slowly in front, but at the same time a girl coming from the opposite direction must have turned in the same direction as Harlon, as they collided, and Harlon reached out his arm to catch the girl who was about to fall.

“Are you alright?”

Harlon carefully straightened up the girl whose waist he had caught as if scooping her up when she was about to fall to the ground after bouncing off Harlon’s solid body, then picked up the papers she had dropped on the ground and handed them to her, and the girl raised her lowered head to look at Harlon.

“Ah, thank you so much!”

A brightly smiling face. Gray hair swaying cutely and violet eyes like pansies.

The girl bowed to Harlon, who was staring blankly with unfocused eyes, then looked at the papers she had received again and walked into an inner alley.

“So… The biggest house is……”

Had his heart moved from his chest to his ears?

Was it possible to hear his own heartbeat even when standing still, not just after running until he felt like vomiting?

Harlon’s footsteps slowly turned towards the inner part instead of the port as he watched the girl who seemed to have lost her way, going in and out of this alley and that alley in front of his eyes.

“May I help you, young lady?”

“Eek! I’m not a n-noble.”

Harlon smiled gently at those round violet eyes.

“My name is Harlon. You seemed to be in trouble, so……”

“I’m Aria… No, Ari. I’m Ari, Ari.”

Even her name is cute… Aria.

Harlon met Aria’s eyes as he received the paper from her hand.

“Do you perhaps… Know where the biggest house is? Luna said to go that way……”

Harlon moved the tip of his tongue as if flicking it inside his mouth and muttered.

‘Young Master, thank you.’

* * *

After ordering Alkaido to investigate the woman I saw at the temple that day, I tried to recall her again, but the more I thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed.

That day, as soon as she saw me, she threw out some kind of foreshadowing remark, then hurriedly went to her lodgings leaving behind a limping patient… And packed up all her belongings and retreated that very day?

‘It’s Carl Lewis, it’s Carl Lewis.’

As I grumbled while sitting crookedly, Luna opened the door and came in.

“Today’s the day we retreat from the temple, right, Young Master?”

“Welcome, Luna. That’s right, it’s finally the day we leave the temple.”

In the meantime, inspectors came to investigate and take testimonies, and I smiled and pressured them saying “I’m a victim too.”

In fact, since Adelian’s face obviously showed his noble status, the matter didn’t get too big.

One way or another, it was true that the Ruby party had attempted to prey on a novice party.

‘The dungeon collapse was also reasonably overlooked when connected to the explosion heard just before coming out.’

For some unknown reason, it seemed there was internal strife and they used bomb potions inside, which made it easier to gloss over.

I pressed my finger on Luna’s cheek, which looked like she had lost weight as if she had excessively run dungeons for the past few days.

“Uh…?”

“You didn’t skip meals while running around just because I told you to, did you? You’ve lost weight.”

“No, I didn’t.”

After answering with a slightly muffled pronunciation due to me pressing her cheek, Luna smiled, and I smiled back before turning my eyes to Kane who was now entering, having finished the retreat procedures… But I sighed seeing Kane who had also lost weight and become more slender.

“Don’t tell me you two only ate portable rations while running dungeons?”

“Hehe……”

“Hmm.”

…Well done. Since we’re retreating from the temple today anyway, I should treat them to an expensive meal.

I shook my head and was about to leave when something occurred to me and I looked at the two of them.

“Let’s stop by the magic tower first.”

If I’m right, the more attribute stones the better.

* * *

“We don’t have any.”

I was handing over the Codex when I heard there weren’t any, so I raised my head and looked at the magic tower employee.

“Are you saying the magic tower has no attribute stones?”

Even if they can’t sell in bulk like an auction house, they should sell small amounts, so why?

Seeing my puzzled face, the employee also gave a troubled look and first received the Codex.

“Recently, the supply of attribute stones has suddenly decreased. I think it will be difficult for individuals to buy them for a while.”

Although I had stocked up quite a bit in advance, when you actually try to buy something and it’s not available, it makes you feel like you need it even more.

‘In the game, such detailed implementation of quantity fluctuations didn’t seem to exist, and in the original work, it was a time when Kane was running around somewhere else, so the reason is ambiguous.’

But who am I? Having played the original and the game several times, how could there be nothing I can anticipate?

Usually, for problems like this, if you pin it on the Evil god cult, you’re half right.

The rest is Caiman or whatever else.

“Well then, please enchant without the attribute stones.”

Certainly, whether it’s higher prices than mining cities or the pride of magicians being more expensive.

It seems they charge a bit more for the same magic, but it’s not burdensome. I handed over a fist-sized gem and a few magic stones as a down payment before leaving.

“Have you two heard this saying?”

Even eating is training.

As I said with a smile, Luna and Kane slowly avoided my eyes.

Look at how they’ve lost their baby fat. Huh?

“I’ve been thinking. If we move a little more diligently, we should be able to make green juice even while traveling, right?”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’ll eat well from now on!”

I didn’t remove my suspicious gaze as I gestured that I’d be watching them, then quickened my steps with my leg now had no problems moving.

“Today we’re celebrating my retreat from the temple with delicious food, and for the next few days we’ll rest while I hear about your dungeon runs. Understood?”

“Yes… Sounds good.”

“Alright.”

Actually, Labes where I originally was is one of the continent’s top pleasure cities, so of course the entertainment sector was huge and auction houses, gambling dens, and restaurants were quite high-level.

Having gotten used to that, I thought restaurants in other places wouldn’t satisfy me, but to my surprise.

The Labyrinth city is not only large in scale, but the flow of money circulating inside is also enormous, so with the byproducts from the Labyrinth and magic stones, along with the money spent by adventurers who bring them in living their lives, and the tourism industry made possible by the Labyrinth’s characteristics, the floating population was tremendous.

As a result, the entertainment industry was large and the dining out culture was well-established, and with a higher proportion of wealthy people compared to other cities, there were quite a few high-end restaurants gathered.

Among them, some were very unique, like the one I came to now.

“Wow, this is amazing……”

In the center of the restaurant was an enormous cylindrical seawater tank.

A tank of that size would burst from water pressure, but perhaps fixed by magic, inside was an aquarium like a single ecosystem.

Clams larger than a human body revealed fist-sized multicolored pearls each time they opened their mouths, and colorful exotic-looking fish swam in schools inside the tank.

A baby kraken the size of a small car also went in and out of a shipwreck model set up near a coral reef before crouching flat, and a giant jellyfish that scattered light differently depending on the viewing angle also gently swayed its tentacles as it swam.

Unlike humans with whites and pupils, mermaids with almond-shaped eyes that appeared entirely blue, and with splendid fins and tails instead of ears, were also moving about enjoying the water in some of the tanks.

‘Seeing that they don’t have slave collars on their necks, I guess those mermaids are regular employees.’

Light-based magic seems to have been cast, as the inside of the tank shines brilliantly even from afar, and seeing the mermaids occasionally pick out fish or shrimp from inside, it seems you can also choose what you want to eat directly.

“What do you want to eat?”

Listening to the faint aria of a mermaid echoing in the restaurant, I asked Luna and Kane, and they both moved their lips.

“Umm, actually even if I look at the menu, I don’t know what’s what……”

“I don’t know what Ingpalka is in Ingpalka fry.”

Yeah, actually I don’t know well either.

But pretending I did, I smiled as if I knew everything and said.

“Order anything. You have to try unfamiliar things often to learn. Once you order, you’ll find out what Ingpalka is, right?”

So we decided to unify with Course A for now, along with the problematic Ingpalka fry.

Since there are courses up to C, I should bring them here to eat them all one by one for a while.

Is it because they sing underwater that the sound spreads evenly throughout the restaurant?

Watching a mermaid with wavy turquoise hair decorated with coral and shells singing an aria as she swam through that large tank from the 3rd floor, I soon turned my gaze to the slowly emerging food.

If it were Earth, this would be the aperitif.

A glass of pre-meal drink comes out first. It’s alcohol meant to whet the appetite, so it’s about a sip’s worth in a thin, tall glass, and this is white wine.

It’s a very fresh and subtle wine with a dry taste that finishes cleanly, so it immediately stimulated my appetite.

As soon as I put down the glass, a server standing next to me, Kane, and Ruby set down a small bowl shaped like a spoon with scallops and white sauce on top.

“This is an appetizer of Cha Briere scallops with Michus sauce sprinkled with kimi.”

It’s convenient that they explain.

The texture is crunchy, and the sauce is creamy yet soft, with a spicy taste like pepper that spreads for a moment before disappearing, leaving only a pleasant aftertaste of spices.

And a slice of terrine is made by finely chopping fish and meat, putting it in a mold to harden, and then thinly slicing it.

When I put it in my mouth, the fat of the meat melts first with the temperature of my tongue, spreading a rich taste for a moment before being erased by the light taste of fish.

It’s thin and small, so eating just one piece is disappointing…

Next comes shrimp potage to warm the stomach, followed by a glass of white wine and grilled croaker. Actually, I had never heard of the fish’s name before, but the shape was similar to croaker steak.

And a spoonful of sorbet made by freezing sour fruit to cleanse the palate.

“This is the tenderloin of the double-horned white-feathered basilisk.”

The main dish is chicken.

Should I say it’s between the tenderness and fat of chicken breast and leg meat?

When I cut it with a knife, it cuts easily like tofu, but when I put it in my mouth and chew, it’s not too soft and rather has a chewy texture, with juices spreading with each bite.

Like well-stewed native chicken, it has a deep flavor without any gamey smell, and I unconsciously muttered ‘delicious’ before swallowing.

And finally, to cleanse the mouth full of meat juices, a salad of fresh seaweed and vegetables comes out on a plate smaller than a palm.

Since it’s definitely a course meal, small portions of various types come out, and they explain what ingredients each dish is made of, so it’s also helpful for broadening Luna and Kane’s knowledge.

‘I’ll be clocking in here for a while.’

Traveling is good, but what is it? Food is also happiness.

After the basilisk tenderloin, it was time for dessert and after-dinner drinks, but we had additionally ordered Ingpalka fry, so that came out last before dessert.

“This looks delicious.”

“It’s unique……”

Just looking at it, this is like fried dried filefish.

It’s not fish fry that crumbles when you chew, but fried dried fish, which was almost identical to the fried dried filefish I ate on Earth.

The slight difference is that dried filefish has a unique smell that’s a bit lingering, should I say?

It has a slightly sweet, strange smell in a delicious way, but this one only smells of savory oil before chewing, and when chewed, sweet and salty juice comes out along with the oil.

After finishing the Ingpalka fry, we opened our mouths while eating pickled seaweed berries that burst with sweetness in our mouths as dessert.

“So, tell me what you did while I was lying down.”