I Was Kidnapped By The Strongest Guild
Chapter 139: Adventurer Training

The tongue stuck to the ice wouldn't come off.

The ears of Levinas, which were always perked up energetically, drooped.

"He, Help..."

Levinas cast a pitiful gaze at me.

Her tongue was stuck to the ice, so she couldn't turn her head.

"Uh, um..."

Applying heat would release her tongue, but I had no way to produce heat.

Naturally, I looked up at Jung Yu-na, the mage.

"Her tongue is stuck."

Jung Yu-na grasped Levinas's tongue with her index finger.

Warm steam began to rise, and soon, Levinas's tongue came off.

"Waw!"

Levinas licked the back of her hand a couple of times, perhaps to erase the chill of the ice.

In that brief moment, I examined her tongue.

'Looks like she's not hurt.'

What a relief.

I was worried she might have gotten frostbite.

I felt relieved seeing her tongue wasn't swollen.

"Levinas, is your tongue okay?"

"Yeah··· My tongue's fine, but my heart isn't···"

"Why not?"

"Levinas thought ice people were good people···!"

Levinas frowned, pushing her bangs to the side.

On her white forehead, a small horn appeared.

Tap, tap-

Levinas poked the statue with the horn on her forehead like a woodpecker.

Surprisingly, it seemed to have some attack power, as small ice shards scattered in all directions.

"Ugh!"

Ice shards got into my eyes.

Startled, my ears and tail shot up.

Fortunately, it didn't hurt, just felt cold, but the chill made me shiver.

"Le-Levinas, you shouldn't do that."

Jung Yu-na slipped her hand between the golem and the horn.

For some reason, her gaze was fixed on me.

She wore a somewhat frightened expression.

I didn't know why she was looking at me like that.

Swish!

Levinas's horn, which had been tapping swiftly, lost speed in front of Jung Yu-na's hand.

It only lightly poked her palm.

"Why not?"

"That, that, stabbing with your horn···"

"Stabbing?"

"That..."

Jung Yu-na kept glancing at me.

Her anxious eyes made me tilt my head in confusion.

What was that look all about?

Just as my tail stiffened like a question mark, Jung Yu-na spoke up again.

"Well, ice golems are actually very kind friends···!"

"...Even though it pulled Levinas's tongue?"

"Yes. After a prank, they say sorry and give a gift."

"Wow···! Are ice people gift-givers?!"

At the mention of a gift, Levinas's ears perked up.

The look of anticipation on her innocent face made me hold her tighter.

"Gift-givers?"

"Yeah! A bird that gives gifts after playing pranks is called a gift-giver!"

"Oh, right. It's something like that."

Jung Yu-na waved her staff towards the air.

In that moment, the ice golem's fingers crumbled and settled on a small dish.

"Ah, the ice person's hand···!"

"It's okay. It'll grow back."

"Really···?"

"Yes. But check this out?"

Jung Yu-na sprinkled syrup and red beans from somewhere onto the ice.

She was clearly making patbingsu[1].

"What's this?"

"It's an ice snack. The golem is offering it as an apology."

A bowl for each, Levinas and me.

We accepted the patbingsu as an acceptance of the apology.

'Patbingsu, huh.'

It was my first proper patbingsu in this world.

Intrigued, I poked the shaved ice of the patbingsu with my fingertips.

"Is it your first time having patbingsu too, Gyeoul?"

"Um··· I've had something similar before."

"Something similar?"

"Yes. When you're hungry in the Winter, sprinkling corn flour on snow and eating it tastes good. It's a different flavor from when it's dissolved in water."

The undiluted corn flour produced a richer taste.

It was a delicacy available only during Winter.

"Uh, yeah... But this is even tastier, right?"

Jung Yu-na scooped up a spoonful of patbingsu and shoved it into my mouth.

The red beans and ice blended harmoniously, creating a fantastic flavor.

It was so delicious that my tail wagged like crazy.

"Wow..."

It's delicious.

After receiving the spoon from Jung Yu-na, I began to eat the patbingsu in earnest.

One bite.

Then another.

I kept eating until my head started to tingle, and I collapsed to the ground.

"······!"

Ah.

I shouldn't have eaten it so quickly.

It was so delicious that I had forgotten myself.

Turning to the side, I saw Levinas also squatting down, clutching her head like me.

"Ugh...!"

"Ar-Are you okay...?"

With Jung Yu-na's worried voice, I heard rushing footsteps.

It was the sound of Yeoreum's footsteps, and also the purring of Saebyeok in her arms.

"What's going on?!"

With a frantic voice, Yeoreum rushed towards us.

She placed her hand on our backs to check on us, then shook Jung Yu-na back and forth.

I couldn't see directly, but I could infer what was happening using my sensitive ears.

"Why are the kids like this?!"

"Calm down. It's because of the patbingsu."

"Patbingsu···?"

"Yeah. They ate it too fast and got brain freeze."

While Yeoreum and Jung Yu-na comforted each other, the tingling in my head gradually subsided.

I picked up the bowl of patbingsu I had set down and approached Yeoreum.

"Are both of your heads okay?"

"Yes. We're fine."

"Yeah! Levinas is fine too!"

Nodding, I scooped a spoonful of patbingsu and fed it to Saebyeok.

Yum-

As Saebyeok bit the spoon, her tail wagged as quickly as mine.

I should eat more of the patbingsu too.

Just as I scooped another spoonful, Yeoreum reached out to me and Levinas.

"Can you both give your spoons to me?"

"Spoons?"

Why the spoons suddenly?

I handed my spoon to Yeoreum, expressing my confusion.

"Normally, if you eat cold food too quickly, it can cause a headache."

"I know that."

"Even if you know, it's easy to forget in the moment. I'll show you the right pace to eat."

"Um···"

There was really no need.

While I hesitated, Yeoreum put a spoonful of patbingsu into my mouth.

'It's delicious.'

Was it because of Yeoreum's kindness?

Receiving it didn't feel so bad.

Well, just this once should be fine.

Thanks to Yeoreum's consideration, we were able to finish the patbingsu without any more headaches.

The patbingsu eaten together with everyone was the tastiest I had ever had.

---

---

It was time to go to the hunting grounds.

Today was a special hunting ground, unlike the usual.

"Gyeoul, you have to stick close to the Master, okay?"

"Yes. I'll stick close."

"If it gets too scary, don't hesitate to tell the Master."

"Okay."

Today was the day we were challenging a level three dungeon.

It was natural for Yeoreum to be worried.

"Make sure you don't miss any meals."

"Yes..."

I had to listen to her worried words for more than ten minutes.

Then, I said goodbye to the children.

"I'm off."

"Yes! King! Come back stronger!"

"Good luck."

"Yeah."

It would have been nice if Levinas and Saebyeok could also come.

Unfortunately, only I, who had a lot of experience fighting monsters, could go to a level three dungeon.

'I need to bring plenty of fortifiers.'

Levinas said that as long as she was there, the fortifiers would never run out.

Since there were plenty left, I decided to take a lot and share them with other adventurers.

"I'll be back."

I bowed at the front door.

Yeoreum, Sophia, and the kids all wished me a safe return, which made me feel good.

I was thankful to have a home to return to.

---

---

At the entrance of the level three dungeon, about twenty adventurers stood nervously.

Some maintained an attention stance, while others respectfully clasped their hands in front.

Although each adventurer had a unique posture, they all shared a common thread of tension.

They knew that today's instructor was 'Kang Jinho,' the guild master of the Yeomyeong Guild.

Kang Jinho was known as the undisputed strongest.

"The floor is spotless, right?"

"Yes...! It's been cleaned thoroughly."

The dungeon management civil servant glanced over the floor.

He hoped to pick up even the smallest piece of trash.

Although he knew Kang Jinho disliked such formalities, the civil servant couldn't help it.

"He, he's coming...!"

At the civil servant's shout, one adventurer swallowed nervously.

The mere arrival of Kang Jinho made it hard for the adventurers to breathe.

Is that Kang Jinho?

As all eyes were fixed on him, a lovely child followed Kang Jinho with quick steps.

"Uncle, let's go together."

"…Sorry. I walked too fast."

Sorry. Sorry...? Did Kang Jinho just apologize?

No, more importantly, who is calling Kang Jinho 'uncle'?

The adventurers' eyes, filled with astonishment, turned towards one child.

It was a pure white beast-kin child, adorable with white ears and a tail.

"Oh?"

"Is that Gyeoul?"

A playful rumor had spread among the adventurers.

Perhaps Gyeoul was the real power behind the Yeomyeong Guild.

After all, this child could boss around Kang Jinho.

'If it's Gyeoul, that makes sense.'

An adventurer thought to himself.

The tension that had built up around Kang Jinho melted away like the ebbing tide.

"Don't stray from my side."

"Okay."

"…Wrap your tail here."

Kang Jinho extended two fingers towards Gyeoul.

Without hesitation, Gyeoul wrapped his tail around the fingers.

Even the formidable Kang Jinho turned soft in front of Gyeoul.

Perhaps it would be a fun training session?

Just as the adventurers started to feel a sense of anticipation, Gyeoul swung her backpack around to her front.

Inside the slightly opened bag, numerous fortifiers were visible.

Gifts from Gyeoul to everyone.

---

[1. raei: korean shaved ice dessert!]

And our final bouns! Thank you to Born Dead for this one! Will do bonuses again in the future! Thank you everyone for supporting!

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