I obtained the {limit seed} without much trouble; it was in a cave I found with Hoe's help. Speaking of Hoe, I let her go wherever she wanted, but I instructed her not to approach the jungle I was currently in. It had been two weeks since I had managed to kill Tsuhre, so I had a little less than four weeks left before I had to return to Prism to meet Eun-Seo, the second heroine, during the practical monster elimination exam.

Wan: °I ghosted them all month long, but their messages and calls still keep coming°

Except for Shin-hee and Ama-ne ho know me best and are the only ones who understand who I used to be, so it's understandable.

As I walked through this jungle, wondering whether I should call them or do something else, I heard a noise in one of the bushes to my left. I put my phone away and carefully watched the bush. The noise was sharp, so it didn't last, but I felt that whatever caused it was still there. Normally, I would've gone to check, but… no, I'm not suicidal; I'm not going over there. We're halfway into IT0, and as I've said before, "being in IT0 means being cursed," so I'm already half-cursed. Who's to say that if I go, I won't run into a calamity?

A quick lesson: calamities are monsters, but they're unique. They're the only ones of their type in the world. They're not necessarily strong, but they're almost always dangerous.

Wan: °If I were the protagonist or if my luck stat were at 10, I could probably tame the creature behind that bush.°

For some reason, I remembered that the protagonist made a contract with the fourth most dangerous calamity.

Wan: He was seriously overpowered....

Suddenly, a small white string, barely four centimeters long, jumped at me and bit me. At first, I jumped in surprise, but when I realized I didn't feel any pain, poison, or curse, I focused my eyes on the little white string, which was actually a very tiny snake absorbing magic power.

Wan: (grabs the snake between his fingers) I don't have any magic power, so you threw yourself into the lion's den, but this is perfect—having a calamity in my hands. (The snake keeps wriggling.)

Even though it was hard to believe this thing was a calamity, it had potential. In short, it works like the frog demon king in The Daily Life of the Immortal King: it improves and grows stronger by absorbing and taking the magic power of living beings. Outside of this jungle, it would have likely become a high-level calamity, but because this jungle is overwhelmed by the immense magical power of a very powerful seal, the calamity I had between my fingers hadn't developed as much as it could have.

Wan: °I could be nice to it like the protagonist...° but that's not my style, and it takes too much time. Become my familiar.

I used my eyes. I didn't yet know if they worked on calamities, but I figured it was worth a shot.

Wan: °It stopped wriggling…°

[The calamity 'white snake' wants you to fully enslave it.]

It worked. It obeyed and sent me a request for complete subjugation. Of course, I said yes and then sent it to the lair of knowledge.

Wan: Good luck, Uli, Madam Savio, and maybe even Hoe with this calamity.

After that, I resumed following the path.

Wan: °My luck stat is pretty low, but compared to this, it feels like many opportunities are opening up for me.°

After those thoughts, I focused again, reminding myself why I was here.

Wan: Anyway, it feels good to be a bit alone. °Having Hoe around was useful, but I clearly prefer traveling solo…° Focus. (Takes a deep breath and continues on the path.)

Wan: Aside from that, I'd love to be able to eat some—... (stops) .... I can't concentrate... and that's not normal...

As I've already said: "I have nerves of steel," and I think it showed when a private message window in a color that doesn't exist appeared in front of me. I didn't react much, and that was precisely thanks to my nerves of steel. So yeah, it's not normal that I can't concentrate.

Wan: This must be proof that I'm getting closer to where I want to go.

The place I wanted to reach emitted illusions or mental attacks, so not being able to concentrate was normal because I was indeed undergoing mental attacks. However, what I found strange was the fact that I didn't feel anything—not even a tiny hint—nothing at all.

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Wan: °I really need some magic power, even if it's just 0.001...°

With a bit of magic power, I should be able to sense things like this at least a second before, and a second in battle is already a lot, especially if the opponent is only using mental techniques.

Wan: I shouldn't be far now.

When you know you're being hit by a mental attack, its effectiveness decreases. But in my case, it's quite special—someone else might already be hallucinating; yes, I'm clearly praising myself here.

Wan: The path continues to the left...

In IT0, it wasn't the protagonist who found this place but Eun-Seo. She comes here much later, after recovering from her depression, in about two or three years, and she finds a certain comfort in the person she sees here after another hard moment in her life. Even though she never spoke to him, she just saw him and fell in love. Sadly for her, she died without ever learning his name. The protagonist would later come here, mad with grief, unable to bring himself to leave. He decided to stay in this forest for a while, and it's here he would meet the same person Eun-Seo had fallen in love with. This person is sealed in this forest, having sealed themselves here 700 years ago because of their curse. They have a similar curse to mine with my eyes, except theirs was imposed by magical power and is more widespread.

Wan: (continues straight, avoiding some leaves that formed a sort of wall)

In IT0, the author said that in his deep sadness, the protagonist got lost in thought and continued straight instead of turning. So, I did the same, hoping this part hadn't undergone any changes.

Wan: (after passing through the leaves blocking the path) .... °It's the castle described by the author.°

I found myself about thirty meters away from a European-style castle. A bit closer to me, but still some distance away, was a fountain. There was grass everywhere, and you could see the horizon with no end in sight. What surprised me most was that I hadn't seen the castle before passing through the wall of leaves. It startled me because the castle was somewhat big. The reason I hadn't seen it was probably because it was in a sub-dimension—like my lair of knowledge, by the way. Of course, I'm not entirely sure about my 'sub-dimension' theory, but for now, it's the most plausible one I have.

[You've entered a territory that does not belong to you.]

[You've entered: "Morphée's Domain - Lv???."]

Wan: °It's not necessarily a hostile territory; I should probably head towards the castle...° The mental attacks must have become stronger if I have to think about something so obvious. It proves I'm getting closer to my goal.

[WARNING – IMPORTANT CHANGE]

Wan: Please, system-nim, maybe author-nim, I don't know, but please, I really want this to remain a man. I'm tired of being around only women!

I'm not gay, I don't feel any romantic or sexual attraction towards boys or men. I'm not a misogynist either; it's just that it's been literally a month since I spent more than two hours with anyone other than women. Yes, they were gorgeous women, but I need my dose of testosterone, of well-trimmed beards, of rugged skin… I know it sounds like I'm crazy, but I'm not! Not yet, at least. But it won't be long if I don't meet someone who's not of the female gender.

The character I was supposed to meet was named Morphée, like the sleep fairy mentioned in Greek and occasionally Roman mythology. Morphée is a man cursed to be loved and charmed by anyone who sees him. In truth, Morphée's physical appearance hasn't been much described, but it's often said that he's a being who loves to have fun and entertain others. He's the one who eased the protagonist's sadness after Eun-Seo's death.

[The gender of the character 'Morphée' has been changed.]

Wan: ..... And you think I'm going to be happy about this? Shin-hee, I miss you.

???????: Hahaha, who do I see before me, a new visitor after 400 years of waiting? Hahaha!

It was a feminine voice with a rich laugh.

Wan: (inhales and exhales) °Well, that doesn't change what I need to do, I need to focus !°

???????: Am I so beautiful that you need to catch your breath? Hahaha.

Wan: Morphée, that's a nice castle you have there. (still facing away from ?Morphée)

?Morphée?: Hmm, you know me... You came here on purpose?

Wan: Yes, and contrary to what you might think, I didn't come here to admire your overwhelming beauty, which is, by the way, your curse.

Morphée: °He knows about the curse.° Wouldn't you want to, for starters, turn around and face me, please?

There was a legend that circulated in Olympus and ancient Greece. It said that Morphée sealed himself in a forest and, being incredibly lonely, he took care of the sleep of humans and other living creatures to fill the void. That's where the expression "fall into the arms of Morpheus" comes from, meaning "to fall asleep."

Wan: °I'm not sure if, because of her curse, she'll escape the effects of my eyes....° You see, I'm also afflicted with a curse.

Morphée: Oh~ So, you came here seeking help, then?

Wan: Absolutely not. (ties a blindfold over his eyes) My curse isn't tied to magic power.

Morphée: ... Then it can't really be a curse. You don't even know that much... (An expression of disdain)

Curses are a kind of magic. For example, there's the minor curse of fatigue. It tires the opponent, and the more it's cast, the higher the chance the opponent will faint, though it depends on the target's endurance.

Wan: What I'm talking about now is a curse from another world.

Morphée: Hmm, strange... You seem like a human from this world.

Wan: You come from a world where Olympus was a reality, and I come from a place that's purely ordinary—like this world over 300 years ago. The only difference is, I was born to a truly special father.

Morphée: Well, I've heard many stories of fathers. You may be from another world, but you must know that Zeus was a huge...

Wan: A deceiver?

Morphée: more or less… he already—

Wan: I get it. But to go back to where I was, my father is really special, and I think that if my father had magic power, he would be able to fight on equal footing with Zeus.

Morphée: (surprised) — I don't think you realize who Zeus is...

Wan: I don't think you realize who my father is.

Morphée: Whatever you say, he's still a human.

Wan: He's not a "human" in the literal sense, and more importantly, do you really believe I don't know about the time Zeus was defeated and humiliated by a human, and it was out of his enormous rage that he acquired the lightning bolt, which we now call: "Zeus' Thunder"?

Morphée: . . . - You're lucky we're in my sub-dimension, or you'd be facing Zeus right now.

Wan: I'm not lying when I say my father could fight Zeus on equal terms if he had magic power. But anyway—

Morphée: "If he had magic power"? So, you're saying he doesn't?

Wan: I don't know. I haven't seen him in seven years, and I came to this world afterward, so I don't know if he has any. All I know is that he's here, in this world too.

Morphée: Hmm, good to know.

Wan: Anyway, where was I?

Morphée: Your curse.

Wan: Hrumm, hrumm, yes, thank you. So, I have a curse that wasn't triggered by magic power but by my chromosomes.

Morphée: Chromosomes? I've heard Mobius mention that before, but I've never understood it...

Wan: It's what makes you a woman, gives you the color of your hair, your eye color, etc.

Morphée: By the way, why don't you turn around?

Wan: °The blindfold should be enough°(turns around) I'm warning you, I can't see anything.

Morphée: Is that to avoid being affected by my curse?

Wan: I wouldn't be affected by your curse anyway. My eyes are afflicted with a curse that makes anyone I look at—

Morphée: Die! (suddenly excited) Like Medusa?!

Wan: No. Anyone whose eyes I see has their most intense emotion amplified to the point where they can't control themselves.

Morphée: Ha, I see. But that's not really a curse.

Wan: It's not finished. They become addicted to my eyes, so much so that they try to kill me or do unimaginable things to me. I'm not sure if it wouldn't affect you too, so I preferred to play it safe rather than sorry.

I couldn't see anything, except maybe the sunlight hitting me in the face. I could've just covered my eyes with my hair, but this time I chose to play it completely safe.

Morphée: Hmm, that's quite a bothersome curse, it's true. And I suppose plucking out your eyes and replacing them isn't a viable option?

Wan: I can't even pluck my eyes out.

Morphée: And you didn't come here just to tell me that, did you?

Wan: Indeed, I came here to make an exchange with you.

________________

End of chapter.|