Episode 7 — The Masked Woman
Iris was one of the most famous students in the academy.
She was in Year Seven. The highest year in the academy was Year Eight, so she wasn’t at the very top, but it was said without question that she ranked among the top five in the entire school. Her “prestige” as a warrior was on par with active adventurers, and she stood one or two full steps above the average student.
First of all, she possessed a Gift—the Gift of Athena, known as the Goddess of Victory. It was, after all, the Gift once granted to a legendary hero of the past. Its power was said to surpass other Gifts, and its strength manifested most when she was part of a party.
And, like Nada, Iris also belonged to a minority—but in the opposite sense. If Nada “lacked” both things, then Iris “had” them both. And of course, she wasn’t unable to use her Gift—far from it. It was powerful, and having that alone placed her among the strongest in the academy.
Her Ability was none other than “Another Persona.”
When it manifested, she would don a strange mask on her face, and the ability to generate accessories and equipment made some compare her to a modern-day hero—Mana.
Naturally, her raw, innate combat ability was also exceptional. She had lithe but strong muscles, eyes sharper than most, and an outstanding talent for absorbing new techniques.
Her family was famous as well. Bearing the name Scarlet, she was the third daughter of one of the kingdom’s leading noble houses.
Her accomplishments included slaying large dungeon monsters, being part of the youngest party ever to break through the 50th floor, and setting an unbeatable record for reaching the 70th floor, defeating a dragon, and returning to the surface. She had many other feats to her name too.
Naturally, the party she once led—Aghiya—was just as renowned. About half a year ago, Iris had voluntarily stepped down for the sake of her juniors’ growth, and that humble decision only raised her reputation even further. Currently, she is said to lend aid as a temporary member to various parties, contributing to the academy’s development.
On top of all that, she was famous in the public eye for her beautiful golden hair and sculpted features. She’d received countless confessions, and many admired her from afar.
And attached behind her waist was the same kukri knife that Nada carried.
Such a person now stood before Nada.
“You’ve still got that goofy-looking face, Iris.”
Nada sat on the edge of the flowerbed at the corner of the courtyard, looking up at the Iris who stood imposingly before him.
The person in front of him looked nothing like the woman everyone gossiped about at the academy. Rather, chewing on a strip of jerky with that faint stubble on her lip, she looked more like an aging man. There wasn’t a shred of elegance in her appearance.
“How rude. It can’t be helped, this is my first time on the surface in weeks.”
Apparently, her rough appearance and condition were due to spending weeks deep inside a dungeon.
“You’re really okay showing your face like that?”
“Yeah. I was wearing a mask the whole time down there.”
“Anyone who sees you like this is gonna be shocked. Actually, didn’t anyone look at you weirdly while you were on the way here?”
“With this face? No one would guess I’m Iris of House Scarlet. Only you and Nirena know what I look like like this.”
“Miss Nirena… You mean the senior who was with us back in Aghiya?”
“That’s right.”
Their conversation flowed easily, as if no time had passed since they last met.
Finally, after swallowing the last of her jerky, Iris spoke.
“Oh, right. So—I hear you quit Aghiya.”
She glared at Nada with eyes sharp enough to kill.
“…Sigh. Well, first give me some water. I’m thirsty.”
Without changing her expression, Iris tossed her canteen to him.
Nada caught it, put it straight to his lips, and took several big gulps. The water carried a citrus aroma and flavor, making it easy to drink. Many adventurers mixed the juice of citrus fruits into their water before entering dungeons—partly for preservation, since it lasted longer than plain water, and partly because it aided recovery. Iris was one of those people.
Wiping his mouth with his palm, Nada finally began to speak.
“Yeah. I left Aghiya.”
“And when was that?”
“About a week ago.”
“That’s awfully sudden.”
“Right? I thought so too.”
“And the direct cause of your leaving?”
“…Who knows. Ask Reaon, not me.”
Hearing his answer, Iris gave him a strange, sharp look.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Long story short, about a week ago, he said he was going to strengthen the team with new recruits, so he told me he didn’t need a deadweight like me anymore.”
“What’s that? I never heard anything about that.”
“You were down in the dungeon, weren’t you?”
Nada sounded exasperated.
“Even if that’s true, I’m the one who brought you into Aghiya in the first place. A little notice would’ve been nice. In advance.”
Iris pouted slightly, as if sulking.
Even after Nada left Aghiya, she had apparently still kept an eye on her old party.
“Reaon didn’t tell you?”
“Seems like it.”
“Then it’s not my problem.”
Even though he was directly involved, Nada acted like an outsider. Annoyed by his attitude, Iris’ voice dropped cold.
“So why did you just accept it so meekly?”
“Accepted it? Well… I guess you could say that.”
Nada responded casually.
“You do realize you’re supposed to be the adventurer I raised with my own hands, right?”
“I wasn’t raised by you.”
He denied it immediately.
“Really? I remember teaching you plenty of things when you first came to this town.”
“…I guess.”
Nada muttered bitterly.
Clearly, they had some history together, and while Iris recalled those memories fondly, for Nada, they were stains he wished he could erase.
“That’s enough about that. More importantly, when I left the party, I told you I was entrusting Aghiya’s future to you. And what do you do? Abandon it and swing your spear around in a place like this.”
“…It’s not like I forgot what you said, Iris.”
Caught where it hurt, Nada scowled slightly. Iris spotted it instantly and pressed harder.
“Then why did you leave without resisting? If you’d stalled until I came back, maybe something could’ve been done.”
“Maybe. But the leader now is him. The final say is his.”
“…True. In that case, maybe I should’ve forced you into the leader role instead.”
“Not a chance. The others—both your team and the former Aghiya seniors—pushed Reaon forward. You agreed with them too, didn’t you?”
When Iris left the party, she arranged the handover.
The new leader was chosen after consulting the seniors from her graduating class and the previous one. Reaon received overwhelming support. Maybe everyone believed his prestige made him the right choice. Nada’s presence simply lacked weight in comparison.
“That’s right. Although—just to correct one thing—Nirena voted for you.”
“That’s nice to hear.”
Nada’s face didn’t change at all.
“She’ll be happy to hear that… But anyway, you still haven’t told me why you accepted Reaon’s decision. Tell me why you agreed to leave. Even if the leader ordered it, forcing someone out of a party is not easy, you know? There are reports to file and proper reviews to pass. Maybe a back-alley party can skip that, but in the academy, there are rules. You could’ve easily dragged this out for a week. Why didn’t you?”
“I just don’t have any attachment left.”
“Is that really all?”
“Well… if I have to add something, it’s that Reaon and I never got along. That’s it.”
“Didn’t get along?”
Iris looked at him suspiciously.
“Aah. I don’t know why, but he always acted like I was a nuisance. And just the same, I couldn’t stand him as a leader. So why would I have any lingering attachment to a party led by someone like that? At the very least—I don’t.”
Nada stated it plainly.
His tone even carried a hint of freshness. It seemed he had zero regrets about leaving Aghiya.
Iris, on the other hand, very much did have complaints. She sighed as she looked at Nada’s annoyingly carefree face.
“I see. You really do have a… remarkable personality. I can’t say I’m convinced, but I get the gist. So, I want to ask just one thing—why aren’t you carrying your greatsword? That black one I had made for you. Why are you using such a ridiculous weapon?”
“It’s a good weapon, isn’t it?”
Nada propped up his Green Dragon Crescent Blade in front of him as if showing it off.
To him, this weapon was still a bit of a wild beast he struggled to control, but he’d grown fond of it. For some reason, it felt strangely natural in his hands—probably because of the weight.
“Don’t joke around. You had that greatsword. And the armor too… don’t tell me you sold them?”
“No. That guy—the leader—said the greatsword belonged to Aghiya’s equipment stock. So I left it there for him. Armor included.”
Nada smirked.
He clearly really hated Reaon.
Iris stared at him with an expression that said she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“You… didn’t stop to think about how much harder it would be to dive into dungeons from now on? Obviously, both the armor and the weapon you’re using now are lower grade than your old ones. Especially that weapon—it’s wootz steel, isn’t it?”
Wootz-steel weapons had a distinct pattern you could recognize at a glance. Anyone remotely familiar with weapons would notice immediately.
The traits of wootz steel were weight and sharpness, plus durability. No one liked overly heavy weapons, so as equipment, they were ranked at the very bottom.
“Yeah.”
“And you’re still using such an outdated weapon? Both the weight and handling should be miles worse than your old one. Well, the sharpness probably isn’t much different, considering the material.”
“That’s true. But whatever. Things like that—”
“‘Whatever’?—at least try to care about your own life!”
Iris raised her voice.
For adventurers, investing in equipment to avoid death was just common sense. Unless you were absurdly skilled, better gear meant better chances of survival.
“I do care. This weapon just suits me, that’s all.”
Seeing he hadn’t changed his attitude at all, Iris let out a deep sigh.
“Fine, I get the overall picture. Then I’m heading to Aghiya next.”
“You’re going to hear their side too?”
“That’s right.”
Just as she turned to go, Nada called out to her.
“If you’re going, at least take a shower and clean yourself up first. People are gonna freak out if they see you like that, Iris.”
Iris glanced back for just a moment and gave a faint smile.
“You’re right. Then let me give you one thing too. If you’re planning to use a spear, make better use of thrusts—something your greatsword didn’t have. The way you use it now is just plain ugly.”
With that, Iris fully turned her back on him.
Nada didn’t keep watching her leave. Instead, he stood right back up and resumed swinging his crescent blade.
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