Even Migratory Birds Have Nests

What was engraved on my right hand was none other than the “Rune of the Abyss”.

Chunsik, looking at my right hand, said he had felt that familiar energy before.

That meant—had he seen the “Rune of the Abyss”?

“Chunsik! Where did you sense that energy?!”

So, I asked Chunsik where he had felt that energy.

Recently, thanks to obtaining another “Rune of the Abyss”,

I was now within reach of seven, the number considered the “ending” in Dungeon God.

If I got one more, I’d have more than half. At this point, it wouldn’t be bad to set a clear new goal for myself.

― You mean this? Hm… Please give me a moment. It’s been so long that my memory is hazy.”

Perhaps to gather his thoughts, chunsik began to pat his own head.

But even after some time, he remained quiet. Just how long was he going to think?

“How long ago was this, exactly?”

― It was over 300 years ago. Uuuugh…”

Chunsik grasped his head with both hands, as if squeezing out his memory. Before long, his eyes snapped open.

― I remember now!”

“Where was it?!”

― Silver Wood! Do you know it?!”

Silver Wood?

Where was that again?

Even when I tried to recall my Dungeon God gameplay memories, nothing came to mind.

Ah.

Suddenly, I remembered a conversation I’d had with Blaz before.

The “Black Knight” who appeared in the Abyssal Dungeon. The so-called “White Knight”, something similar, had appeared at a dungeon near Silver Wood and had once laid waste to the city.

― It was a wonderful city. It was the kind of place where the harmony between humans and nature was obvious.”

But as I listened, something seemed strange.

The “White Knight” destroyed the city 300 years ago. Yet Chunsik was talking as if he’d personally seen the city with his own eyes back then.

“Chunsik, how do you know about this energy?”

Unlike “low-rank undead,” an “intermediate-rank intelligent undead” like Dullahan is said to have a soul.

Could it be that Chunsik was actually the adventurer who lured away the “White Knight” 300 years ago?

That was a classic twist in the web novels I used to read.

― When I was first summoned by my previous master, the very first enemy I faced had that kind of energy.”

Hm?

― He was a really strong fighter. I thought we fought about evenly… but my necromancer, who’d summoned me, died, haha.”

Chunsik, with his wolf head, scratched at it sheepishly.

I’d thought he might be the adventurer who had lured the “White Knight” away from Silver Wood 300 years ago, but it turned out he was actually a victim—defeated by that adventurer.

* * *

Early morning.

After Dmihtan left the room to summon a Dullahan, a whirlwind swept through the Bearded Cat Inn.

“Uwoooooargh!”

“Grunt! The world is spinning around!”

“Barkal, my brother! It’s not the world that’s spinning, it’s you!”

The barbarians, who had drunk copious amounts of golden honey mead, were suffering from severe hangovers. Their painful groans filled the Bearded Cat Inn.

“B-Barkal, are you alright, brother?”

But unlike the barbarians, Serena was completely fine.

Blessed by the god of virtue and love, Liberas, she was immune to heat, cold, and even hangovers.

“The sage! Dmihtan, my brother, where is he?”

“Brother Dmihtan left the inn early this morning.”

As Serena spoke with a bright smile, a red glint flashed between Barkal’s skull helm.

“Early this morning?!”

“Unbelievable!”

“Dmihtan, is even your alcohol tolerance the strongest of us all?!”

The barbarians stared at each other in shock.

While they were all suffering from terrible hangovers, the smallest among them—Dmihtan—had apparently woken up early and left the inn already. This surprised them.

“Serena, you…”

Barkal started to ask why Serena seemed so unaffected, but instead shook his head and closed his mouth.

Though she was a somewhat unhinged priest who threw punches, she was also a devout believer.

He figured she simply hadn’t drunk any alcohol the previous night.

“Brothers, we must get up!”

Barkal shouted loudly to the sprawled-out barbarians.

“Sage Dmihtan left the inn early this morning! Do you know what that means?!”

“No!”

“We’d like you to tell us!”

The barbarians seemed to have no clue what Barkal was trying to say, so adjusting his skull helm, Barkal explained.

“It means that if we who are weaker than the Sage are not diligent, we are in trouble!”

At first, the barbarians of the Respectful Society tilted their heads in confusion, but soon nodded as they understood Barkal’s words.

“My father used to say! If you lack brains, at least you should have a strong body!”

“If the Sage is stronger than we are, what use are we at all?!”

As the barbarians continued shouting, Barkal pressed on.

“Though yesterday, the drink defeated us, today, we shall not surrender to it!”

“Then what should we do?!”

“I know the cure for a hangover!”

Barkal clenched his fist and shouted to them all.

“My father used to say: To be rid of a hangover, you must exercise your body by rolling rocks around!”

“Rocks!”

“I know where there are rocks!”

“Where, Barkal?!”

“The very center of this city! There’s a statue with a rock on its shoulder!”

Follow me!

With that, Barkal shouted and led the barbarians out of the inn.

Left alone in the inn, Serena stared blankly at the entrance the Barkal party had just exited.

City center.

Statue.

Rock.

Combining these three words, it seemed likely he was talking about “Lormod and the Adventurer’s Star,” one of the cultural heritages located at the center of Iushil city.

“B-Brothers!?”

Surely they didn’t really mean to move that statue? Serena, flustered, hurried after the barbarians.

But her quick steps soon came to a halt. Someone had come looking for her.

“Excuse me, are you Serebrina Lightbringer of the Dungeon God adventurer party?”

It was a guild attendant from the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Yes, that’s me.”

Why had the guild sent someone to find her so early in the morning?

Serena tilted her head in slight puzzlement, but she could quickly guess the reason the Adventurer’s Guild had sent a messenger.

“We have information about the person you’ve been searching for.”

Her guess had been correct.

* * *

Summoned by the Adventurer’s Guild, Serena made her way alone to the guild building.

As she walked, she recalled Blaz, the branch leader, promising to help her find someone. Before long, she arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild.

Once inside, she was led to a quiet, neat office, a stark contrast to the noisy bustle of the first floor.

Inside the room, a guild official was waiting for her.

“Serebrina, we’ve found information about the ‘adventurer with the scent of roses’ that you asked about before.”

The moment those words reached her ears, Serena felt her heart drop.

At last.

She murmured to herself inside.

Serena had secretly believed it would be impossible to find him.

The adventurer with the scent of roses. Wasn’t that information simply too vague and fragmented?

But this was all she had to go on.

Fifteen years ago, as a child—before she was recognized for her talent and adopted into her noble family—she’d grown up at St. Lightbringer Orphanage. The nun in charge of her had told this story:

That a man with the scent of roses had left her there.

That was all.

No name.

No face.

A man she knew nothing about.

Only the faint scent of roses served as proof that he had existed.

And she had figured it out.

That man was her biological father.

“D-did you find him?”

Serena’s voice trembled. She wanted to speak calmly, but she couldn’t.

“The information was rather vague, but we did our best. Fortunately, there was a clue that helped narrow things down.”

The official paused for a moment, rifling through the documents before them.

“Because of the ‘rose scent’ trait, we focused our investigation on the Rozelia region. As you probably know, that region is the kingdom’s, no—the continent’s, leading producer of roses. Rose oil, rose perfumes, all kinds of roses are native to there.”

Serena nodded.

“There are only three adventurers who match the conditions you described. All of them either originated from Rozelia or worked there at some point.”

Three people.

Would she have to narrow it down from those three?

Serena was momentarily daunted, but quickly regained her composure.

It was thanks to the comrades she’d been traveling with.

If her brothers had been here, surely they’d have joked, “What if you had three fathers?”

Thinking that made her laugh, helping her not to panic.

“May I hear the details?”

In the past, perhaps…

If she hadn’t been a member of Dungeon God, she might have wavered and postponed the answer.

Though she became an adventurer to find someone, she always ended up asking herself:

Did she really want to find the adventurer with the scent of roses?

That question continued to eat away at her heart. She kept wondering deep down if what she was doing was right.

However, having spent time with her comrades in Dungeon God, she had realized one thing.

Don’t overthink it.

If you lack brains, let your body work a bit harder.

“Please, tell me.”

At Serena’s words, the official began to speak.

“Of the three, only one is currently active as an adventurer.”

“And the other two?”

“The other two have retired. One retired a year ago, the other—fifteen years ago.”

Fifteen years ago.

As Serena heard those words, her eyes widened.

It matched exactly with her age.

Fifteen years ago was when she had been placed at St. Lightbringer Orphanage.

“That’s the one!”

Serena leaned forward over the table, gripping it with both hands as she spoke urgently.

“I think that’s the person I’m looking for. Do you know where he is?”

“That, we’re not sure. The adventurer who retired fifteen years ago… His records have likely been deleted.”

Ah…

Serena let out a short sigh.

“Ahem.”

The official cleared their throat.

“Still, if you go to Odheim, you might learn something.”

“Odheim?”

Serena echoed the official’s words.

Odheim.

The largest city in the Rozelia region.

And the city formerly known as “Silver Wood.”

—

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep