How a Black-Haired Barbarian Survived the Labyrinth in Another World-Chapter 84: Imprint suppression ring

"It's cold."

A knife seems to fly straight into my heart.

The crisis to my reputation has returned. The guests who had recently been treating me casually started to show strange expressions.

Gulp.

Jeong Yushin swallowed dryly.

His mind was racing, generating various hypotheses.

It could just be that she's hungry. Maybe the juice she drank went bad. Or it could be that her abdominal muscles contracted because of the intense movement.

But.

‘Could it be the Female Virgin Corruption Mark?’

He considered the worst-case scenario.

He gently set Luna down and shouted towards the kitchen.

“Ann!”

“Yes!!”

Ann quickly rushed out from the kitchen.

“Take Luna to the kitchen and check her stomach!”

“Yes!”

Ann gave a puzzled look but didn't speak further and immediately took Luna into the kitchen.

As Luna disappeared, the guests began murmuring.

“...What exactly happened?”

“Is Luna’s stomach hurting?”

“Owner, explain it to us.”

Several people came over to ask.

“Luna seems to have been very tired after dancing so much today. Please, head home now.”

“...Is that so? Alright. Give Luna my regards.”

“She's been coming often lately. She needs to take care of her body.”

The guests spoke with concern, each in their own voice.

Jeong Yushin watched them leave before heading to the kitchen.

“Ann? Luna?”

“Ah! Master!”

Ann stood up from where she was examining Luna’s clothes.

Jeong Yushin’s face hardened with worry.

“Was there any sign of a mark on her stomach or anything?”

“No. There was nothing.”

Nothing?

What was going on?

Jeong Yushin knelt beside Luna and looked at her.

“Luna, could you hold my pinky finger for me?”

“Is something wrong?”

Luna's eyes trembled with anxiety.

“No, Luna, you trust me, right? It’s just a little checkup, nothing serious.”

“...I...I understand.”

Luna raised her tiny hand and grabbed Jeong Yushin’s pinky finger.

Grip.

“How do you feel?”

“It feels... soft.”

Jeong Yushin stood up. A growing unease crept up his spine.

‘I have to assume the worst.’

The possibility that the female corruption mark had activated.

“Taruman.”

“Yes, Master!”

Taruman entered the kitchen.

“Take Luna home immediately. Her mother is skilled with herbs, so she should know about medicine. Tell her to check on Luna.”

“Yes!”

“I have somewhere to go. You can close up early today.”

“Yes, understood.”

Jeong Yushin hesitated before gently patting Luna’s head.

‘The worst-case scenario.’

He gritted his teeth.

He sent Luna off with Taruman and ran out of the inn, heading straight for the magic tools shop.

The shop where he had bought the anti-mark ring.

Luckily, the lights in the shop were still on.

He quickly ran up to the door and opened it.

Bang!

The door crashed open, and the dwarf wearing monocles looked up in surprise.

“Owner!!!”

Jeong Yushin shouted.

“What... what’s going on?”

The monocled dwarf fumbled in surprise.

“Is there a problem with this ring?!”

Jeong Yushin took the ring off his finger and showed it to the dwarf.

“Ah, that half-breed barbarian. Why are you shouting? You startled me.”

“Owner, I’m in a hurry! Please check it quickly.”

The dwarf took the ring and began inspecting it carefully.

Not ten minutes later, the dwarf looked up again.

“The magic in the magic stone is almost depleted.”

“What does that mean?”

“Look here.”

The dwarf held the ring up in front of Jeong Yushin.

He could see a small gem fixed in the ring.

“This little gem here is the magic stone. The anti-mark works with the magic from the stone. Actually, all magic tools work like this. In short, the magic that suppresses the mark is running low.”

“Why didn’t you explain this in advance?”

Jeong Yushin growled, and the dwarf looked at him incredulously.

“Well, I thought you'd know. Magic stones don’t only come from the labyrinth city, you know?”

Jeong Yushin held his head.

Now that he thought about it, there were some warning signs.

The lack of increased libido as a side effect of the anti-mark was one of them.

He had also learned something while treating Edel.

The magic in the stone could drain out.

With just a little thought, he could have deduced this earlier, but there had been no time due to the fifth prince’s matter.

‘Damn.’

Jeong Yushin scratched his head.

The dwarf adjusted his glasses.

“Still, there's a little bit of magic left. With this amount of magic, the other person may have felt pleasure. But the corruption must have been suppressed. If you replace the magic stone right now, it should be fine.”

“Can I just recharge the magic?”

“Exactly. To do that, you’ll need a new magic stone. Just pay the cost, and I can swap it out anytime.”

A magic stone.

He had one.

The mid-level magic stone Ahiman had left for him.

‘So, there’s no way I can just die quietly?’

“I have a mid-level magic stone. Wait a minute, I’ll get it.”

“It’s almost time to close the shop...”

The dwarf muttered with a sour face.

“So?”

“Ah... never mind.”

Jeong Yushin left the dwarf and quickly returned to the inn, grabbed the silver coins and the magic stone, and came back.

“Here it is.”

“Oh ho. This is a magic stone from the blood-sucking mosquitoes that live in the labyrinth swamp.”

“Is that good?”

“It’s decent. Where did you get this? I’d like to buy it.”

“Just swap it out for me.”

“Pfft. It’s a bit of a waste. Fine, I’ll do it.”

The dwarf stood up and opened his mouth.

“I almost forgot. If the magic stone is different, the side effects will change. Since this is a blood-sucking mosquito’s magic stone, there’s a high chance you’ll move your hand unconsciously.”

Different side effects with different magic stones?

That was a new discovery.

Unconsciously moving his hand instead of increased libido.

“That sounds too dangerous.”

“If you focus, it should be fine. I think it’s much better than the libido increase side effect.”

“I’m good at controlling my libido.”

Jeong Yushin responded naturally.

The dwarf closed his mouth and stared at Jeong Yushin.

“What?”

Jeong Yushin frowned and asked.

“Ah... never mind. Wait here. I’ll swap the stone.”

The dwarf took the ring and the magic stone into the workshop behind the counter. After a while, a clattering noise could be heard, and soon the dwarf came out.

“All done. Two silver coins.”

“Two silver coins to swap one magic stone?”

“This is a skill. I got it cheap because I know someone from Maya. Be grateful.”

“Got it.”

Jeong Yushin handed over the silver coins and received the ring, sliding it back onto his finger. The red magic stone fixed in the ring sparkled.

There were no dizzy spells this time.

One thing did come to mind, though. It was something he absolutely needed to know.

“How can I tell when the magic in the stone is completely depleted?”

“To measure it accurately, you’ll need to ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) come to the magic tools shop. It’ll probably run out in two months. Come back then.”

“Got it.”

Jeong Yushin scratched his chin and thought carefully.

‘So this is what magic stones are used for.’

Indeed, assuming the worst was the only way to avoid tragedy.

At least now he had knowledge about magic stones. The necessity of them felt so real, almost tangible.

Now there was one more reason to go into the labyrinth.

“Wait, don’t!”

The dwarf’s frantic voice snapped Jeong Yushin back to reality.

“What?”

He looked down and realized his hand was stroking the dwarf’s beard.

He had unconsciously reached up to stroke his own chin, but...

‘Damn side effects.’

Jeong Yushin quickly pulled his hand away from the dwarf’s beard.

“Why did you bring your hand to my beard?”

“Yes, you reached out and grabbed my beard! I was just standing still!”

The dwarf protested with a wronged expression.

“Really? Sorry about that.”

“Barbarian, get a grip on yourself! This happened before, too.”

“Before? When?”

“Er... no, never mind. Get going. It’s closing time.”

The dwarf waved his hand and chased Jeong Yushin out.

Jeong Yushin reluctantly walked with his hands behind his back, heading down the street alone.

When he returned to the inn, Taruman approached him.

“Master, Edel checked on Luna. She said there’s nothing unusual, so you don’t need to worry about Luna.”

“I see. Thanks, Taruman.”

Jeong Yushin nodded.

That was a relief. If Luna had been affected by his mark and fallen into corruption, she would have had to live in the city prison, whether she wanted to or not.

“Mas... Master?”

Taruman called out to Jeong Yushin.

“What?”

“Why were you stroking my stomach?”

Jeong Yushin froze, quickly retracting his hand from Taruman’s stomach.

‘Damn side effects!’

“Th... that’s the new side effect from the anti-mark. Sorry about that.”

“Ah... okay.”

Jeong Yushin sighed as he looked at his hand.

‘This isn’t easy.’

The next morning, Jeong Yushin went to the Earth Goddess Temple.

Around lunchtime, after finishing his lessons, he started tutoring with Mion.

Jeong Yushin spoke frankly. He explained that last night, he had used a new magic stone to suppress the Female Virgin Corruption Mark.

He warned her about the side effect of unconsciously moving his hand and asked her to be cautious.

Mion smiled faintly.

“Master, it doesn’t seem like such a big side effect. I understand. I’ll trust you this time.”

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“Thank you.”

After lunch, Jeong Yushin and Mion sat in the empty classroom to start their lesson.

“...This part should be written like this.”

Mion sat right next to Jeong Yushin and helped him.

The textbook was more advanced than a children’s fairy tale, but the vocabulary was similar to that of a fairy tale.

Thanks to her clear explanation, Jeong Yushin was able to focus.

Scratch, scratch.

In the afternoon, the quiet classroom was filled with only Mion’s breathing and Jeong Yushin’s pen sounds.

“Ma... Master!”

Suddenly, Mion’s panicked voice rang out.

Jeong Yushin snapped to attention and looked up.

Mion was bowing her head, and her ears, visible through her platinum hair, were bright red like an apple.

“Yes... huh...!”

On the desk, a large mound of mozzarella cheese spread out.

And then.

Soft.

His hand was gripping Mion’s large chest tightly.

He had gripped so hard that his fingers were completely buried in her chest, making it impossible to see them.

It wasn’t the soft touch of lovers.

It was the barbaric touch that might belong to a heroine in an NTR story, whose fall had been sealed.

A hand that thoroughly suppressed resistance and reminded the heroine of her status as a mere woman.

Mion turned her head away, seemingly embarrassed to face Jeong Yushin.

From Mion’s lips, a small voice escaped.

“Ma... Master, please let go.”

“Sorry, I’m sorry!”

Jeong Yushin hurriedly pulled his hand back and apologized.

Mion covered her chest and shook her head.

“A... Ah, no. I got too close. Sorry.”

Jeong Yushin bit his lip.

“Mion, I’m sorry. It’s difficult to control the side effects, so maybe we should end the lesson here?”

“Sh... should we?”

Mion turned her head and looked at Jeong Yushin.

“Yes. I’ll prepare more thoroughly next time.”

“Thoroughly?!”

Mion’s voice pitched high.

Jeong Yushin calmly responded.

“Mion, I’ll find a way to reduce the side effects. Sorry about this.”

“Ah... yes... yes.”

Mion fidgeted with her fingers and responded.

Jeong Yushin gathered his things and stood up.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, take care, Master.”

“Yes.”

Jeong Yushin left the empty classroom and walked down the corridor alone.

He looked up at the sky for a moment after leaving the temple.

‘Soft.’

The feeling still lingered on his fingers.

The first time he had ever touched a woman’s chest. He felt both moved and apologetic.

‘How long had it been since I’ve been deprived of gold?’

He couldn't remember for over six months. Maybe around eight months?

Jeong Yushin shook his head.

The side effects were too intense. If he wasn’t careful, his hand would move on its own, and he had no way of knowing why it moved like that. There was no consistency to the movement to blame it on libido.

Even so.

Couldn’t there be a way to control it?

Training had helped suppress the madness.

Maybe this time, training could help?

‘I should go with the swordsmanship combination.’

He instinctively felt that way.

Jeong Yushin threw on his bear-shaped bag and started running toward the swordsmanship training.

His black hair fluttered in the wind, racing through the southern streets.