Translator: Nox

My Husband Was Clearly a Paladin

Chapter 13

“Phew….”

Having stepped inside the Dungeon, Irene took a deep breath and blinked.

Just a moment ago, she had been in a bright place filled with sunlight, but the moment she passed through the dark oval portal, a completely different world unfolded before her.

Irene rubbed her arms at the sensation of the chilly, damp air.

It wasn’t her first time, yet she found herself so tense that her hair felt like it was standing on end.

Because of that, Michael had asked her several times at the Dungeon entrance if she was truly alright.

She simply told him she was nervous because it was her first Dungeon, but the trembling didn’t subside easily.

‘Is it because this place is similar to where I died?’

A place where she had entered alone without a knight, only to be chased by Monsters and meet her end.

Since the appearance of low-rank Dungeons was mostly the same, the memory of the moment her breath stopped came rushing back to Irene as soon as she entered.

“I really don’t think this is a good idea. If you go back and wait, I will….”

“I told you, I’m fine.”

To him, who suggested she leave several times, Irene finally let out a voice tinged with irritation.

Then, realizing her mistake, she quickly composed her voice.

“I think it’s better to just finish quickly and go back. Besides, if I’m going to follow Michael-nim around from now on, I need to get used to this kind of fear.”

Of course, she had no intention of ever stepping foot in one again, but since she thought of this as the last time, the lies flowed out smoothly.

“……I understand.”

Fortunately, he didn’t try to stop her further.

Instead, as if he were still worried, he moved a step closer than before, narrowing the distance between himself and Irene.

“I will manifest a light. While it will make it easier for us to move, the Monsters will also see the light and approach, so please prepare yourself mentally.”

“I understand.”

Michael took a small bead-like object from his pocket and tossed it into the air.

The bead, which rose to a height about twice that of a person, spun in the air for a moment before it began to emit a brilliant light.

The interior of the Dungeon was then clearly revealed.

Along with a high ceiling, a cave stretching deep inside could be seen.

‘It’s the most common type of low-rank Dungeon.’

She felt she understood why everyone had been so shocked when an Artifact appeared here in the past.

Who would have guessed that an Artifact—and one with such incredibly useful power—would come out of such an ordinary place?

‘Come to think of it, the fact that I’m in here means….’

It meant the pair who were originally supposed to enter this place had headed to a different Dungeon.

‘I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.’

Irene apologized to them in her heart several times.

Of course, apologizing didn’t make her heart feel any lighter.

‘Is there any way I can give them at least the money left over after paying back the debt to the Count?’

She would set aside money for her future life, of course, but shouldn't she somehow compensate those who were robbed of a life-changing opportunity without even knowing it?

As she was lost in thought while trying to follow behind him, Michael spoke.

“You aren’t surprised.”

“What? By what?”

Thinking something had appeared, Irene hurriedly looked around.

However, she could only hear the cries of Monsters from very far away; there was no presence felt nearby.

Watching her look around, Michael pointed upward with his finger.

The bead was shining above their heads.

“Usually, people are quite startled when they see this for the first time. But since you didn't say a word, as if you were used to it.”

“Ah.”

Irene realized her mistake.

Just as he said, she had been very surprised and fascinated when she first saw that object.

However, she had grown accustomed to it after seeing it several times, and she knew it was one of the Artifacts owned by the Temple.

Of course, that was all from her past life.

Her hesitation on what to say lasted only a moment.

Irene replied nonchalantly.

“Actually… like everyone else, I’ve heard a lot about Sir Michael’s amazing achievements. Because of that, I often heard stories about this wondrous Artifact as well. When the cave on Mount Geden collapsed in the past, wasn’t it thanks to this mysterious bead that the isolated people were able to hold out?”

It was a story she had truly heard before meeting Michael. The bead was always mentioned in that story.

Perhaps because she answered quickly, Michael nodded briefly as if he understood and moved forward again.

*

*

*

Kieek!

Michael swung his sword just once, and several Monsters were sprawled out all at once.

The severed pieces trembled for a moment before vanishing as if melting away.

‘They said there were many water-attribute Monsters.’

As reported, most of the Monsters in the Dungeon were those with water attributes.

‘That’s a relief.’

Among the various attributes of Monsters, the water attribute was relatively manageable to deal with.

They had almost no strong supernatural abilities, and since they dissolved into water instead of blood upon death, it was less visually distressing.

And above all, they were weak.

‘It’s truly hard to believe that such an Artifact comes from a place that is cleared so easily.’

As they headed deeper into the Dungeon, Irene’s heart pounded harder.

It’s the end.

It’s almost over.

She couldn't know the exact reason why she had come back in time to repeat the same life.

‘But I wouldn’t have been sent back just to repeat the same life.’

The air changed as they passed through a doorway. A ceiling appeared that the bead circling above their heads couldn't fully illuminate.

A space much wider than anything they had seen so far had appeared.

A massive space in the middle of the cave. That place was a very large lake.

Water of unknown depth lapped against a crude wooden bridge. At the end of it stood the Room of Reward.

‘In other words, Monsters will attack when we cross that bridge.’

The Monsters would likely jump out from the water beneath the bridge.

“Please wait here.”

Michael looked behind them once, wondering if there were any Monsters he had missed.

After confirming there were no remaining Monsters, he left Irene at the edge and crossed the bridge alone.

The moment he reached the middle of the bridge, a massive Monster surged up from the lake with a loud splash.

‘What is that?’

The moment she saw that Monster, Irene genuinely recoiled in shock.

‘There’s no way something like that should appear!’

Irene remembered exactly what kind of Dungeon this was. It had been such a peculiar incident, after all.

The pair who had entered here said they had only faced ordinary Monsters until they reached the Room of Reward.

In other words, a giant Monster like that was not supposed to appear.

The Monster, shaped like a long serpent, immediately lunged with its mouth agape toward Michael on the bridge.

“Michael!”

The moment Irene called out his name instinctively, the Monster, which looked ready to swallow Michael whole at any second, stopped its movement.

Kiiii.

Strangely, it made a sound as if it were contemplating, then moved its head this way and that to look at Michael.

It was an action as if it were inspecting him. Michael was also calmly watching the Monster.

Just as Irene was about to shout for him to run away immediately—

Swish!

He moved his hand like lightning and swung his sword. A red line seemed to be drawn across the Monster’s neck, and then—

Kieeeeeeeek!

The Monster thrashed with a gruesome scream. However, the Monster’s body had already been cut and was slowly splitting apart.

Splash!

Subsequently, the sound of the sliced pieces of the beast falling into the lake and the water splashing followed in succession.

‘My goodness.’

Irene looked at Michael, who was standing on the bridge.

She knew Michael was strong. However, in the past, the times she had entered a Dungeon with him could be counted on one hand, and she had always been in the back with others.

Consequently, this was the first time she had properly seen him fight such a massive Monster.

‘To handle it so easily.’

No matter how strong he was, she wondered if it was even possible to kill a Monster of that size in a single strike.

Right then, Michael turned his head and looked at Irene.

Their eyes seemed to meet for a moment, but then he simply turned his head and crossed the bridge alone.

Watching that blankly, Irene also snapped out of it and hurried after him.

“Wait a moment, Sir Michael! Let’s go together!”

But by the time Irene was crossing the wooden bridge, Michael had already entered the Room of Reward alone.

“Sir Michael!”

She wondered why he was suddenly going off on his own like that after taking such good care of her throughout the Dungeon.

When Irene arrived at the Room of Reward, huffing and puffing for breath, Michael was standing there holding a small wooden box in his hand.

“That…!”

“Check it.”

Michael handed it to Irene as if he had been waiting.

Taking the box hurriedly, Irene caught her breath belatedly.

‘Finally.’

Irene shook the wooden box.

The object inside made a rattling sound as it hit the sides.

‘I’m sure of it. It’s that ring!’

According to the records of the pair who had discovered it, when they shook the box, they heard the sound of a single item hitting the sides.

A smile appeared on Irene’s face.

‘It’s finally over.’

With this, she would be able to live a life that had nothing to do with Dungeons ever again.

She would go to the kingdom furthest from this Fortress and live quietly for the rest of her life, never having to hear things like "purifier" or "pair" again.

Thinking so, Irene opened the wooden box. And the moment she saw what was inside—

“Huh?”

Irene’s eyes widened.

If her memory was correct, there should definitely have been a ring inside the box.

Number 181, the low-rank Dungeon with water-attribute Monsters.

No matter how much she thought about it, this was definitely that Dungeon.

“A stone…?”

What was inside the wooden box was not a ring, but a stone of a similar size.