How to Survive as a Mage Inside a Game-Chapter 36: Ruins Exploration (2)

“Huh? Oh—yeah, that’s right,” Pakion replied, sounding a bit caught off guard.

He glanced at Eril before continuing.

“I’d love to tell you more, but... well, talking too much before the mission could cause trouble.”

“That’s a shame. I’ve always had a deep interest in ruins and dungeons. Actually, I wanted to ask a favor...”

Karl kept his tone light and casual.

“Do you think I could join you on the expedition?”

“...??”

Both of them froze, mid-bite, and stared at Karl.

Did they hear that right?

“...What did you just say?”

Karl repeated himself.

“I’d like to join you on the expedition. Think you could let me tag along?”

“...You’re serious?”

Karl nodded.

Pakion gave an awkward laugh.

“Well, this is sudden... You can’t just ask to join out of nowhere like that...”

“No.”

Eril cut in flatly.

She frowned, eyes locked on Karl.

“Look. We met for the first time yesterday.”

“True.”

“And you think it makes any sense to suddenly ask to join a ruin expedition? We don’t know anything about you. No trust, no proof of ability. Why the hell would we let some random guy tag along?”

She wasn’t wrong.

At the end of the day, the point of any dungeon or ruin expedition was to find treasure.

Even among trusted companions, betrayal wasn’t uncommon.

So adding some guy they’d just met and had one meal with? That’d be insane.

Honestly, the only reason she wasn’t cussing him out was probably because both of them were decent people.

“You think this is sightseeing? You know how dangerous ruins are? One wrong step and you're skewered by a trap before you even make it past the entrance.”

“......”

“And if it was just your neck on the line, maybe it’d be fine. But your screw-ups could get everyone killed. Why should we drag around dead weight? Shut up and eat.”

Everything she said was completely reasonable, so Karl nodded calmly.

But this was where the real persuasion would begin.

He wasn’t going to reveal he was a mage.

The expedition was already being led by elite mages from Earthmoon—another top-tier school. They didn’t need more spellcasters.

And even if Karl revealed his true strength, they'd start digging into his identity and intentions. He couldn’t afford that.

Especially not when he had to keep his Altius affiliation secret.

So instead of magic, he needed to prove his worth in another way.

He briefly wondered why the hell he was jumping through all these hoops just to tag along on a ruin exploration.

Still, he’d already brought it up—might as well see it through.

“If you bring me along, I’ll definitely be of help.”

Eril scoffed and folded her arms.

“And where’s that confidence coming from? What exactly are you gonna help with?”

“I guess it’s time I told you. I’m an adventurer, too.”

Their faces turned from skeptical to outright dumbfounded.

“...Come again?”

“I mainly worked in the Empire. Did quite a few dungeon and ruin runs. Are you sure I wouldn’t be useful?”

Eril just snorted in disbelief.

To her ears, that was the most obvious lie she’d heard all year.

He looked too young to have any experience, much less serious exploration.

“Oh yeah? Then tell me—what’s the first thing # Nоvеlight # you do when you enter a ruin?”

“Check the ground stability, airflow, trap presence around the entrance—especially confinement types. Look for footprints or droppings that suggest monsters. Mages will scan for ambient magic levels. Just those checks alone will tell you a lot about the ruin type.”

“......”

That shut her up for a second.

“...Okay, so you know the basics. What types are there then—”

“If there’s a confinement trap at the entrance, there’s a good chance the whole ruin’s trap-heavy. If there are monster traces, expect them clustered in a room—so watch out when opening gate-like passageways, and be especially cautious of the ceiling. High magic levels mean the place probably has active enchantments or wards, so mages will need to stay sharp.”

“......”

“These are just the basics. Feel free to throw me something harder.”

Pakion’s jaw dropped.

Eril didn’t say anything, but her eyes darted nervously.

Even the tougher questions they tossed his way afterward—Karl answered them all without hesitation. In fact, he added extra insights they didn’t even know.

“...Feels like he knows more than we do. How the hell do you know all this, anyway? You don’t even look that old.”

“I just have a baby face. I’m actually a lot older.”

Not a lie. Mentally, Karl was pushing thirty—just the character was young.

Pakion leaned toward Eril, whispering.

“I think he’s legit. If he’s that knowledgeable, even without raw strength, he’d be a huge asset.”

“What’re we supposed to tell the rest of the expedition?”

“Just make something up. No one’s watching our side that closely. We weren’t even told to clear our team additions.”

“...Still, he’s someone we just met yesterday.”

“Come on, when we first formed our group, we were just mercs who’d run a few gigs together. That’s how it always starts. Plus, with the marquis’s knights and Earthmoon mages there, what’s really gonna go wrong?”

Karl overheard their whispers and nearly laughed to himself.

“New comrade,” huh? I just wanted to go on a little ruin tour.

After a bit more back-and-forth, they turned to Karl.

“Alright, Karl. You’re in. But there’s still one thing left...”

“Payment?”

They were hired by Earthmoon to serve as guides, which meant they were being compensated.

Karl shrugged.

“You don’t have to pay me. You’re doing me a favor letting me tag along—least I can do is not be a burden.”

Pakion blinked, caught off guard by how easily Karl let that go.

“That makes us feel kinda bad, but... alright. We can revisit that after the expedition.”

“By the way, you mentioned other members of your group. Do they need to agree too?”

“Nah, they won’t care. As long as it doesn’t cut into their pay, they couldn’t care less. They’re sleeping right now, but you can meet ’em later.”

And just like that, Karl secured a spot on the ruin expedition.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

* * *

The source of this c𝓸ntent is freewebnøvel.coɱ.

A few days later, the day of the expedition.

Karl made his way to the southern city gate with the Slot Adventurer Group.

Pakion, Eril, and the two others he’d only recently met: Kroc and Aris.

[Lv.28]

[Adventurer, Mercenary]

[Lv.26]

[Adventurer, Mercenary]

Kroc was a massive guy, easily a head taller than Pakion, and Aris was just your run-of-the-mill 2nd Circle mage.

Aris glanced at Karl and asked,

“Pakion filled you in on the basics about the ruins, right?”

“Yeah.”

They suspected it was a mid-sized ruin.

According to their preliminary scouting, there wasn’t anything particularly distinctive near the entrance, so the type of ruin couldn’t be determined yet.

“Alright then, let’s just do our best.”

She left it at that and quickly walked over to join Kroc, chatting with him.

Just like Pakion said, neither of them seemed the least bit interested in Karl’s sudden involvement. Actually, they didn’t care at all.

Which suited Karl perfectly.

They were all going their separate ways after the expedition anyway, so keeping some distance was for the best.

The five of them arrived first at the gathering point and stood near the city gate.

Soon after, knights from Marquis Dante’s house and mages from the Earthmoon School showed up.

“Huh, didn’t expect that. Looks like someone fancy from the marquis’s family is joining us,” Pakion said, staring at a woman at the center of the Dante group.

Karl, curious, asked,

“Who’s that? The marquis’s daughter?”

“Judging by the knights guarding her, it’s gotta be. I think that’s his eldest daughter, Rosariel Dante. And yeah, she’s just as gorgeous as the rumors—ack!”

Eril smacked him hard on the back.

“Why don’t you just go kneel at her feet and hand her flowers while you’re at it, huh?”

“Shit... you trying to get me executed for insulting a noble?”

It seemed like everyone involved in the expedition had arrived.

But then—

“...??”

As Karl casually scanned the crowd, he realized something was seriously wrong.

“Hey, Pakion.”

“Yeah?”

“Where’s House Pluton?”

Pakion tilted his head, puzzled, but answered anyway.

“Count Pluton’s territory is nearby, neighboring this one.”

“And their relationship with House Dante?”

“Oh? Uh, pretty sure they’re enemies. Some blood feud that goes way back generations. Their lands border each other, so it’s no surprise they hate each other’s guts. But why are you asking?”

Karl silently stared at one of the knights among the Dante group.

[Lv.41]

[Spy from House Pluton]

“Let me ask you something.”

“Yeah?”

“If one of those knights over there turned out to be a spy from House Pluton, wouldn’t they use this expedition as a chance to blow everything to hell?”

“...Well, yeah, probably? But where’s this coming from?”

Karl didn’t answer. Instead, he looked over at the priests standing nearby.

Pakion noticed and commented,

“Looks like the marquis brought along some priests too. Good. Their healing’s way better than what mages can do.”

“......”

Good, huh?

If Pakion could see what Karl was seeing, there’s no way in hell he’d call that a good thing.

Among the priests, one woman stood smiling sweetly.

[Lv.38]

[Apostate, Cultist of the Evil God]

And that title had absolutely nothing in common with her gentle appearance.

Karl felt a headache coming on, and his gaze shifted to the Earthmoon mages.

“...Pakion.”

“Yeah? What now?”

“You said Earthmoon discovered the ruin and organized this expedition, right?”

“Yeah. That’s what they said.”

[Lv.50]

[Black Mage from the Helzar School]

Then why the hell is there a black mage standing right there?

The middle-aged man leading the Earthmoon group had that exact title.

“This expedition’s giving me a good feeling, though. My gut’s usually right about these things, y’know? Trust me.” Pakion grinned.

“Pakion.”

“Huh?”

“You might wanna take that gut feeling and throw it as far away as possible.”

“...Huh?”

Karl looked up at the clear blue sky, feeling like the world had turned sideways.

What the actual fuck is this...?

Was this some kind of sick, twisted system prank?

Because this expedition?

Yeah—something was very wrong here.