Chapter 216: New Mission
It was the fifth month of the year 2048.
More than fifteen days had passed since Noah had returned to the Eldritch Manor.
Almost all of his time had been devoted to training.
Not every day did Julian have time to personally train him. As the Duke of Eldritch, he carried countless responsibilities, and most of his days were occupied with official duties and meetings.
Whenever Julian was unavailable, Nathan took his place.
His elder brother was currently at the Mythril Core (High) realm.
He was far stronger than Noah.
Every morning, the two brothers sparred and trained together for several hours. Nathan would patiently correct Noah’s mistakes before leaving the training hall to attend to his own responsibilities.
As the future heir of the Eldritch Household, Nathan had plenty of work waiting for him.
After training, Noah would return to his room, freshen up, and relax for a while.
Sometimes he watched television. Sometimes he played games on his phone.
Then came lunch with his family.
Later in the afternoon, he would head to the library, where Catelyn patiently taught him the theory behind ice magic, mana control, spell construction, and advanced magical principles until evening.
His schedule had become almost identical every single day.
A peaceful routine. And before he realized it. He had grown accustomed to it.
"Damn..."
Noah leaned comfortably against the chair on one of the manor’s spacious balconies.
"This kind of life is incredibly peaceful."
The evening breeze gently brushed past him.
The sky had already begun turning shades of orange and crimson as the sun slowly descended toward the horizon.
He had just finished another lesson with his mother.
A warm cup of coffee rested in his hand.
Whether it was morning or evening, Noah always enjoyed drinking either coffee or tea.
It had quietly become one of his favorite habits.
Resting comfortably on his lap was Nancy.
The black-furred cat had curled herself into a small ball, lazily enjoying the gentle warmth.
Noah absentmindedly stroked her silky fur with his free hand.
A relaxed smile slowly appeared on his face.
"I wish life could just continue like this."
He looked toward the sunset stretching across the distant mountains.
"Wake up, Eat something light...Train until I become stronger...Eat again... Watch TV or play games for a while...Study magic...Eat dinner...Scroll through my phone while petting a cute cat...And then sleep."
He chuckled softly.
"It really isn’t a bad life."
After a brief silence, his smile gradually faded.
"It would’ve been even better if there weren’t demons, villains, and monsters constantly trying to destroy the world."
His gaze drifted toward the distant sky.
"And especially...it’s much better if there isn’t a villain who’s willing to sacrifice the entire world just to save his lover."
He sighed.
"I seriously have no desire to die just because someone else wants to save the person they love."
He took another sip of his coffee before continuing.
"In that situation...I’m definitely on the heroes’ side. At least if the heroes save the world...I will be safe."
Noah smiled helplessly before looking down at Nancy.
"Don’t you think so, Nancy?"
"Meow~"
The little cat lazily replied without even opening her eyes.
Noah laughed quietly.
"You know... I used to like villains much more than heroes."
He gently scratched beneath Nancy’s chin.
"But after actually living in a world like this and facing those dangers...I honestly hope people stay kind. I hope heroes continue protecting everyone. Including me."
His thoughts naturally drifted toward Damien. The young man was destined to become humanity’s greatest hero.
The one who would stand against the greatest darkness this world had ever known.
’I should support Damien as much as I can... He’s the future hero, after all.’
BEEP!
BEEP!
The ringtone suddenly echoed from inside his pocket.
Noah frowned.
"Hm? Who’s calling me?"
He pulled his phone out.
"Lyria? Or maybe Arisha?"
He wondered aloud.
The moment his eyes landed on the screen...
His expression immediately darkened.
"..."
The caller’s name was displayed in large letters.
Damien Ashworth.
Noah’s lips twitched.
"...Damien?"
He stared at the screen with obvious dissatisfaction.
"Why is that devil calling me?"
Just a moment ago, he had been thinking about Damien.
And now the man himself had called.
Noah let out a helpless sigh.
"...Talk about summoning the devil."
Noah let out a quiet sigh before accepting the call.
He raised the phone to his ear.
"What is it?"
A cheerful laugh immediately came from the other side.
"Haha! Noah! How are you doing?
"I’m doing well." Noah leaned back against his chair and took another sip of his coffee. "What about you?"
"I’m doing great, man."
"..."
A brief silence followed.
"So..."
Noah spoke flatly.
"...why did you call me?"
"Can’t I call my own friend?" Damien complained dramatically. "I miss you."
Noah clicked his tongue.
"Tch. Stop talking like a gay."
"Get to the point."
There was another brief silence.
"...Fuck you."
Damien sounded utterly offended.
"I’m not gay!"
"Then start talking."
Damien let out a long sigh.
"...Alright. Listen carefully."
"I’m listening."
"So at the beginning of this month, Master brought me here."
Noah frowned.
"...here?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Do you honestly think I know where you are? At least explain it properly."
"Oh, right."
Damien laughed awkwardly.
"I’m currently staying in a city called Everhold. It’s inside the Duchy of Thornveil."
Noah became silent for a moment.
’Everhold...Thornveil...’
He knew that place.
It was the territory where Ophelia’s family ruled.
"So? What about it?"
"I came here with Master for training."
"Good for you."
Damien continued excitedly.
"And now she’s going to throw me—"
He immediately corrected himself.
"...I mean, she wants me to enter a labyrinth."
Noah frowned.
"A labyrinth? Shouldn’t something like that already be under the control of either the Adventurers’ Guild or the Thornveil Ducal Family?"
"Hehe."
Damien chuckled proudly.
"That’s the interesting part. It wasn’t discovered by anyone. I found it."
Noah blinked.
"...You found a labyrinth?"
"Yeah. My master threw me into a forest for survival training. And while wandering around... I accidentally discovered its entrance. So we decided not to report it immediately."
"Master is currently inspecting the entire labyrinth herself. She’s checking whether it’s safe enough for me. If there are monsters beyond what I can handle... Or any hidden dangers... She’ll deal with them first."
"I see..."
Noah nodded slightly.
That certainly sounded like something Morgana would do.
She was strict... But she never threw Damien into truly hopeless situations.
Then Noah asked,
"...So why exactly are you telling me all of this?"
Damien laughed.
"Because I wanted to invite you. You remember when we explored that dungeon together? And we’ve both trained under Master Morgana before. It’ll be much better if we explore the labyrinth together."
"We can train...Fight stronger monsters... And honestly... I think it’ll be much safer if you’re with me."
Noah didn’t answer immediately.
He quietly stared at the evening sky beyond the balcony.
’A newly discovered labyrinth...Knowing Damien’s protagonist luck... There’s definitely something valuable hidden inside. Which also means... There’s definitely something dangerous hidden inside.’
He rubbed his forehead.
’The system will reward me if I accompany him and clear the labyrinth, since it might be one of the act of game.’
Several thoughts crossed his mind. After remaining silent for a few moments.
Noah finally nodded to himself.
Then he calmly spoke into the phone.
"I don’t want to come."
Damien’s voice instantly turned cheerful.
"Great! Then come as fast as you can—"
He suddenly paused.
"...Wait. Did you just refuse?"
His tone rose in disbelief.
"Why don’t you want to come?"
Noah let out a helpless sigh before replying.
"You do remember what happened the last time we entered a dungeon together, don’t you? We encountered something completely unknown. I have no desire to experience something like that again."
Silence followed on Damien’s side.
"Pfft... Hahahaha!"
Loud laughter echoed through the phone.
"Oh, Noah... damn you! I never thought you were such a coward!"
A vein throbbed on Noah’s forehead.
But he remained cool. "I am not a coward. I am just being careful." he said calmly.
"Excuses."
Damien clicked his tongue dramatically.
"I thought you wanted to become stronger. I thought you wanted to face danger and grow through it."
He chuckled again.
"But I guess I was wrong. You are just a coward like others."
Noah slowly closed his eyes.
’Calm down...Don’t fall for it...He is obviously trying to provoke me into agreeing.’
He took a slow breath before answering in an indifferent voice.
"If calling me a coward makes you happy, then go ahead."
"Oh, I definitely will."
Damien sounded far too pleased.
"I’ll make sure to tell Master Morgana that the great Noah Eldritch got scared of a little labyrinth."
He burst into another fit of laughter.
"Hahaha!"
That was the final straw.
Noah abruptly stood up from his chair.
"Damn you, bastard!" he shouted into the phone. "Do you seriously think you can force me into coming?"
"Never!"
---
Later that night...
Noah stood inside his bedroom with an open travel bag resting on the bed. One by one, he folded his clothes and packed everything he would need for the journey.
His sword lay beside the bag, along with several mana recovery potions and other necessities.
Nancy sat comfortably on the bed, lazily watching him move around the room with half-open golden eyes.
Noah stuffed another set of clothes into the bag before letting out a long, defeated sigh.
"Dammit... In the end, I still agreed."
He rubbed his forehead in frustration.
He zipped the bag shut before placing it beside the bed.
After standing silently for a moment, his expression gradually became more serious.
"...Well, I had to go eventually. If Damien discovered a labyrinth by chance, there was a good possibility that something valuable existed inside."
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"I needed to learn everything I possibly could for the future. There were still too many unknowns in this world. And the stronger I became now...the higher my chances of surviving later. Surviving while running from danger is no worth. It’s better to die earlier rather than running away from them."
Noah just wanted to spend his vacation peacefully. But it appears, his luck was affected by Damien a long time ago.
He glanced toward the packed bag before letting out another sigh.
"Though one thing I do know, it would turn into another disaster."
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