Reincarnated User Manual

Chapter 348: Friend (2)

90th Floor of the Tower of Infinity.

Lucia, clutching a letter to her chest, knocked on the inn’s door.

Knock, knock—

“Who is it?”

“It’s me.”

The response was brief, yet it was enough for the tightly shut door to open without hesitation.

The face that appeared belonged to a demon with impressive horns. Aisha something-or-other. She was the daughter of the Demon King, who had spread their influence throughout the tower. Yet, Lucia still couldn’t remember her full name.

“Another letter, I assume?”

“Yes.”

“…They started fighting and got sucked into some strange place.”

There was no need to memorize her name.

Now that Shiron had killed the 3rd Apostle and become the tower’s master, he was bound to clash with Aisha, who sought to claim the position for herself.

Although they maintained a relationship close enough for Lucia to ask for favors like delivering letters, Lucia was unsure what would happen if Aisha discovered that Shiron had taken the role of the tower’s master.

‘I hate lying, but stirring up unnecessary trouble when Shiron isn’t here won’t do any good.’

Conflict and pointless disputes.

Avoiding them required a bit of selfishness.

Though Aisha had provided support for Shiron’s group over the past 100 days, her goodwill stemmed from a shared understanding.

Demons were evil.

Not all of them were inherently bad, but the prejudice that arose 500 years ago and the fact that they weren’t of the same kind made caution necessary.

“I see. My condolences.”

Lucia’s lie felt unnatural due to her lack of practice, but Aisha didn’t bother to nitpick the matter.

For now, she was staying on the neutral 90th floor, but she had personally felt the aftermath of the battle on the 99th floor, right below the tower’s peak.

‘Avoiding unnecessary friction is the wise course of action.’

A terrifying power.

A storm of such magnitude that it shook the entire tower had swept through. While the goal was to become the tower’s master, Aisha had no desire to engage in a fight without justification.

‘It’s not even a match I could win.’

In a direct confrontation, she would lose. In this situation, the best course of action Aisha could take was to sweeten the deal with honeyed words.

Still…

There was something she needed to address.

“By the way, Lucia, there’s something that’s been on my mind.”

“What, what is it?”

“Humans, well… No, I know this might sound rude, so I’ll stop.”

“…Why would you stop mid-sentence and leave me curious?”

Lucia flinched and tensed up. Had she been too vague and gotten caught? But Aisha’s words were far more unexpected.

“Do humans not bathe?”

“…What?”

“I mean, vampires or undead don’t produce waste, so they don’t need to bathe. But I didn’t think humans were the same.”

Aisha squinted as she scrutinized Lucia.

Lucia Prient. A formidable human radiating an unusual aura…

At this moment, her unkempt appearance was too disheveled to believe that she possessed such power.

“When we first met, despite cultural differences, I remember you had hygiene habits better than the tower’s standards.”

“…”

“Is there a custom outside the tower where comrades in danger can’t touch water? Like washing away good fortune or weakening bonds?”

“That’s not it.”

“…I see. Your elf companion was as clean as ever, after all.”

“Elves don’t need to bathe. Especially young elves.”

“Ah, I see.”

Aisha nodded in understanding, but her curiosity about Lucia’s cleanliness remained.

“Then why haven’t you bathed?”

“That’s…”

Lucia hesitated to answer. She couldn’t possibly admit it was because of Shiron.

Since Shiron disappeared, Lucia couldn’t bring herself to leave the spot.

Days turned into weeks, then a month passed.

Clutching a single sword, she stood guard at the place where Shiron vanished.

On the tower’s highest floor, devoid of food and water, she shouldn’t have lasted long. Yet surprisingly, it wasn’t an issue.

“Strange. I don’t feel hungry at all.”

Lucia rubbed her stomach where her hunger should have been. It was a supernatural phenomenon she had experienced in her past life.

Kyrie, who had reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

Back then, she felt hunger, thirst, and even pain much less acutely.

“But if you ask if I’ve reached the same pinnacle now… I’m not sure. Back then, I could clearly feel myself getting stronger. Maybe I’ve already reached that state. Or maybe I’ve just won every fight that came my way. Either way, I don’t feel like I’ve reached divinity.”

“What’s your point?”

“It’s the power of love.”

Lucia clenched her fist and grinned.

“The laws of the world are responding to my devotion to Shiron.”

“What nonsense is that?”

“Don’t you get it? I’ve transcended from being a Sword God to a Love God. Let’s call it the God of Love.”

“…Sure.”

“Oh, and by the way, ‘God of Love’ is shortened to ‘Go-Lov.’ I thought it sounded cool.”

‘Crazy.’

Seira glanced down at the rambling Lucia with narrowed eyes.

A mix of coldness and lukewarmness—contradictory expressions yet fitting.

Half her gaze held exasperation, while the other half was genuine concern for her friend.

When Shiron had been gone for about a week, Lucia had wept in despair, believing he might be dead.

Seira thought Lucia had been better off then.

Crying was a natural response to losing a lover, friend, or family. But now, just look at Lucia.

Disheveled and grimy.

Even if hunger didn’t bother her, the aftermath of the intense battle had left sweat and dust clinging to her.

‘This is bad, really bad.’

Lucia cheerfully tossed around nicknames like “Love God” and “Go-Lov,” but the Seira who remembered Kyrie knew better.

Lucia’s lack of concern for her state was reminiscent of defeated soldiers Seira had seen over the years.

‘If I don’t do something…’

The clear abnormality alarmed Seira.

“That… Kyrie?”

“Yeah?”

“Forget the God of Love nonsense for a moment, and can’t you just wash up?”

Even if alarmed, her words came out sharp. After all, how could a person change overnight?

Of course, it was praiseworthy that she didn’t outright hurl insults, but unlike Seira, who was over 700 years old, Lucia was still a young girl.

A girl at the age where she should be concerned about her appearance, pondering all day about how to leave a good impression. However, her current state was the complete opposite. Seira’s blunt words were enough to make Lucia’s expression freeze in shock.

“Do I smell that bad?”

“Well, it’s not a terrible stench or anything. You smell a bit like… wet dog, but anyway, your appearance is a mess, so just go clean up!”

“…”

At Seira’s sharp rebuke, Lucia sniffed herself hesitantly.

‘…It’s not bad enough to make a fuss over.’

To put it simply, it was like the smell of a wet puppy. Oddly addictive the more you sniffed it, but not the fresh scent one would expect from a young girl.

Just as she was starting to acknowledge the need for a bath, Lucia shook her head vigorously.

“No, I’ll stay like this.”

“What?!”

Seira recoiled in horror, but Lucia didn’t waver and looked her in the eye with unwavering determination.

-He told me to wait here.

“Shiron told me to wait.”

“Crazy…!”

“‘Crazy’?! That’s too harsh!”

“Tsk.”

Seira scowled, her face wrinkling in frustration. The wet-dog smell was one thing, but it was as if Lucia’s brain had turned into that of an abandoned mutt waiting for its owner.

“No, really, think it through. Imagine if Shiron came back while I was leisurely bathing!”

Lucia’s sharp retort made Seira grimace further. The faint trembling of her eyelids hinted at her mounting annoyance.

“Shiron went off to face the Demon God alone, didn’t he? He hasn’t returned, so he’s probably still fighting, even after a month. A fight like that must be a life-and-death struggle.”

“…That’s true.”

“After such a grueling battle, imagine coming back to a place where we’ve been enjoying warm baths, smelling like soap, and living comfortably!”

“…”

“Or worse, imagine Shiron coming back while I’m in the middle of a bath and not being able to greet him properly! Wouldn’t that leave a negative impression on him? That’s what I’m saying!”

‘…Seeing you like this would probably be a bigger shock. Then again, even I wouldn’t want to be hated by the kid.’

Seira thought Lucia was spouting nonsense, but on some level, she could understand her reasoning.

‘Well, there’s no point in trying to understand this.’

Lucia folded her arms and nodded. At the time, she felt the need for some emotional anchor.

Although Seira’s magic had allowed her to confirm that Shiron was still alive, it didn’t change her resolve. Lucia kept to the bare minimum of cleanliness during this time.

“Oh, by the way. I have something to tell you.”

Just as she was about to receive supplies from a subordinate, Aisha called out to Lucia.

“Hm? What now?”

“They say some humans with Platinum rankings have climbed from the first floor to the 70th floor of the tower.”

“Platinum?”

“Yes. I thought they might be acquaintances of yours.”

Aisha then unfolded a neatly folded piece of paper and showed it to Lucia. On it were images of a black-haired human maid and a sharp-looking woman. Lucia’s eyes widened in shock.

‘Siriel and the black-haired one?!’

“Wh-why are they…?”

“Are they dangerous people? You look pale.”

“Uh… Could you give me that letter for a moment?”

“A letter?”

Though puzzled, Aisha handed over the letter she had received.

Rip!

The letter was shredded into pieces in an instant. Aisha’s demonically sharp eyesight couldn’t even follow the motion, leaving her dumbfounded.

‘Am I screwed?’

No doubt about it—she was utterly screwed.

Without a second glance, Lucia bolted toward the tower’s highest floor.