NOVEL NEXT “…Ugh.”
The sunlight hitting her face made Yona reluctantly open her eyes.
It seemed like she had dozed off after getting up at night for a quick dinner, taking a shower, and lying down on the swapped mattress.
Yona got out of bed, stretching lazily and blinking her still-sleepy eyes as she looked around.
Nothing had really changed.
It was still the same inn room, and this shabby space made of wood was exactly as it always was.
“…Ah.”
Only then did she remember what she was supposed to do today.
She lifted her right arm slightly, and that strange tattoo was still densely etched into her skin.
She hoped it might have disappeared after a night’s sleep, but no such luck.
With her fair skin, it felt odd that her right arm was marked with jet-black tattoos from shoulder to wrist.
There was no inconvenience in moving, and even her divine power was functioning just fine.
“…I guess it’s okay aside from how it looks?”
The problem was that it looked bad… The head nun would be overjoyed to see her in this state when she went to the cathedral.
Yona quickly washed up and donned her nun’s attire.
She roughly adjusted the part of the habit that hung awkwardly on her chest, then threw a priest’s hooded cardigan over it to complete her look.
“Alright, the key.”
“Going to the guild?”
The owner of Moonlight Inn, who wasn’t very talkative, accepted the key Yona handed over.
Though he spoke little, Yona was a long-term guest, so they exchanged casual greetings every now and then.
“No, to the tower.”
“The tower?”
“Yep. I have something to do. Anyway, thanks.”
With no response, the innkeeper took the key and Yona stepped outside, stretching once more.
The weather was just delightful.
Since suddenly crossing into this world, the one good thing had been the beautifully blue sky.
In this world, which was completely unpolluted, the sky was truly spotless and clear, and looking up always lifted her spirits.
“Alright, let’s go.”
The tower.
Officially named the Evian Mage Research Society, but no one bothered with that; it was simply called the tower.
Since she had to go to the cathedral tomorrow to buy the Sacred Barrier, Yona decided to visit the tower today.
You never know; it might be a situation that needs some magical deciphering.
“Freaky, hey.”
“Oh, Yona.”
Seeing Freaky from the same party, Yona waved first.
Noticing Yona a bit late, Freaky waved back and rushed toward her.
“What brings you to the tower?”
Though Yona was a little taller than most girls, Freaky was barely half her height.
However, when it comes to Yona, Freaky was only half of that.
Moreover, with a face full of wrinkles and pointy ears, Freaky had green skin and, exceptionally for a goblin, some magical talent. He was a rare breed, residing in this tower while working as an adventurer.
And today, Yona had something to discuss with him.
“I came to see you.”
“Me? I’m not interested in the same gender.”
“…Quit talking nonsense.”
Yona almost cursed right then and there.
But since this was neither the guild nor a casual setting, she held back the curse that had almost escaped her lips.
“Is there no place we can talk quietly? Somewhere without people?”
“A place without people? Uh… yeah, follow me.”
Led by Freaky’s hand, they arrived at the library.
As they entered, there was not a soul in sight.
It felt a bit odd that a tower, a place of knowledge and inquiry, had no one in the library.
“Well, everyone’s busy working in their research labs. The library’s for the citizens, but who in this town even uses the library?”
That made sense, so Yona just nodded.
“So, what’s the reason you wanted to see me?”
“Because of this.”
Yona looked around again, confirming again that there was indeed no one around.
Only then did she pull up the right sleeve of her hooded cardigan, exposing her bare skin.
“W-What is this?”
“I don’t know, that’s why I came to find you.”
On her right arm, from shoulder to wrist, were densely packed black letters.
At first glance, it looked like a drawing.
Freaky couldn’t help but stare at Yona’s arm.
“You had this hobby?”
“Are you crazy? My arm’s not a canvas! I didn’t doodle this. It happened after I caught that monster, whether it was a goat or something else, yesterday. You know how it went down, right?”
“Hm… So you mean this happened while you were catching that beast? Can I touch it?”
“Uh, sure.”
Freaky had been a mage for a few years, but he had never seen anything like this.
In Evian, he had seen all sorts of humans, so he had seen tattoos plenty of times.
But this… upon closer inspection, they were letters, and he had never seen letters carved in this way before.
Moreover, it just felt like touching skin when he touched it.
Freaky pressed down on Yona’s arm.
“Doesn’t it hurt?”
“Not at all.”
“That’s strange.”
Yona immediately recognized Freaky’s expression.
Ah, this has nothing to do with magic.
It was no surprise, really.
Since she held no expectations, there wasn’t such a great disappointment.
“I don’t feel any magical power at all.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Did you really carve this yourself?”
“No way. Hey, despite how I look, I’m a healer. My job is to heal sick people. Someone like me wandering around with something like this on their arm would be quite the sight, right?”
“Hey, I’m a healer, you know. My job is to heal sick people. I bet they’d love it if someone like me walked around with this on my arm, right?”
“…Well, that’s true, but how can you have no traces at all?”
Freaky was poking and prodding Yona’s arm, looking fascinated.
Yona thought to herself that Freaky probably wouldn’t be much help anyway.
“Hey, do you have a mentor?”
“I do. Want me to show you?”
“Uh, I’d rather not… I feel a bit uneasy with this drawn on my body.”
Freaky’s mentor was someone Yona knew well.
Definitely someone she didn’t want to meet under normal circumstances, but there was no one else to ask in this situation.
“They’re in there. Do I need to go in too? You just need to go in, right?”
“Is it really necessary?”
“I hope so.”
Freaky awkwardly waved as Yona lingered, considering.
Is this really okay? Am I just going to make things worse here?
The one inside was someone who definitely knew how to handle situations, but…
Her thoughts didn’t linger long, and her actions were quicker.
After all, mulling it over wouldn’t change anything, and carrying this uneasy feeling on her arm was even worse.
“Alebians.”
No “sir” or “ma’am.”
She heard that so much it felt like she had a callus in her ear from it.
As she opened the door and walked in, nothing seemed to have changed.
The sunlight streamed in, but it only made the flying dust particles more visible, and thick books were strewn about like landmines.
A strange smell wafted through, paired with an odd warmth as Yona called out again for the owner of the room.
“Alebians!”
“Uh, who is it? Is that you, Yona?”
A slender voice came from behind a bookshelf, and someone peeked out.
A blonde beauty with angular glasses.
Alebians.
“Yona—! Long time no see—!”
With a beaming smile, she rushed over, and before Yona could react, she hugged her tightly.
Yona was taken aback by the soft sensation, and Alebians just grinned at her.
He smiled slyly.
“Why are you taking so long? Do you not love me anymore?”
“I never loved you.”
“What? So that night was just a one-night fling?”
“I never did that. Let go of me.”
Ugh, this is exactly why I didn’t want to come.
As Alebians’ excitement reached new heights, Yona’s irritation began to soar as well.
“I heard about your performance from Freaky. If it weren’t for you, yesterday would have been the day of the Evian Adventurer’s Guild’s downfall.”
“Come on, it wasn’t that serious. It would have worked out somehow even without me. So, is there something specific you want to point out?”
Alebians adjusted her glasses and inspected Yona’s arms closely.
“Your skin is really smooth…”
“No, not that nonsense. I’m talking about this tattoo or whatever it is.”
“Right, right… This thing. I don’t feel any magical power, and there are no signs of magic… At a glance.”
“What do you mean?”
This is the problem with mages.
Would it kill them to speak plainly?
Always with the ‘I can’t feel anything’ nonsense.
“So what’s the conclusion?”
“It’s just letters, I think.”
“I already know it’s letters.”
“No, that’s not what I mean.”
Alebians released Yona’s arm and straightened up to sit properly.
She adjusted her slightly slipping glasses, and her expression turned serious.
“Literally, it’s just letters. No magic, no signs of magic. Just letters, plain letters. It looks more like a tattoo to anyone else. Can you channel divine power here?”
At those words, Yona shut her mouth and focused on channeling her divine power.
The divine energy, coiled within her lower abdomen, responded to her call, spinning around her body.
Then it flowed into her right arm, radiating a gentle white light.
“Yes, it works well.”
“See? If it had any magical power or signs of magic, would divine power even work?”
“True, but…”
Alebians smiled with a peculiar expression.
She stretched her slender fingers and drew a long line from Yona’s shoulder to her wrist.
“I understand your worries. The important thing is what these letters mean. I’ll try to figure that out.”
“Thanks.”
What I don’t like, I don’t like, but what I’m thankful for, I’m thankful for.
Yona said thank you honestly.
Dealing with this lesbian is a bit awkward, but she can be surprisingly helpful in moments like this.
“If you find out what the letters mean…”
“You’ll contact me?”
“No.”
Alebians shook her head.
Yona got chills from the mysterious smile still on her face.
“I’ll come find you at the Moonlight Inn. You’re still there, right?”