Songs in the Void

ICDS Universe, 1st Dungeon, 6th Floor Shop.

After Lin's awkward display, Tatsuo and Loretta could only stare at him blankly. Neither of them understood why he was acting that way. While Tatsuo was too weak to feel how strong Lin was, Loretta knew exactly how strong he was. So, to see such an act, she was thoroughly confused.

And because Tatsuo was unfamiliar with Lin, he was the first to snap out of his daze.

"Yeah, that's me." Tatsuo replied with a nod. "So, is it possible to remodel the [Orc Lord Set] without losing the stat boost or the skill?"

Tatsuo's words managed to snap Loretta out of her daze, as well. Then, she glanced at Lin with an expression that screamed: "We'll talk about this later. And don't you dare try to run away from me." After that, she turned to Tatsuo with her trademark professional smile.

"If anyone can answer your question, it's Lin." Loretta said while gesturing towards the Draconian standing next to her. "He's the Dungeon's best blacksmith, after all."

Hearing that, both Tatsuo and Lin both looked towards Loretta blankly.

"But… the armor is made of leather, though." Tatsuo said while scratching the back of his head. "I don't think that has anything to do with blacksmithing."

"He's right, Ane ue." Lin said sheepishly. Lin then immediately looked away when Loretta glared at him as he continued. "But I'm still the best person to answer your questions about weapons and armor. Now, let me get a good look at that equipment set."

That said, Lin quickly ran from behind the Shop counter. Though, he knew that would not save him from Loretta's retaliation. But he would leave that for his future self to deal with. On top of that, the Floor Master sets were all made with the Lord's, Sherifina's power. So, he was curious to know if they could be altered.

"Now, let's see what we have here." Lin said after he arrived in front of Tatsuo.

Lin then took out a few tools from his Inventory and used them to examine the [Orc Lord Set] Tatsuo was wearing.

"Man, it's been a long time since I've worked with such low-level crap." Lin muttered as he continued to examine the leather armor. "by the way, what do you want to change it to?"

"Something like this." Tatsuo replied as he pulled his Honey Bee Carapace enhanced Kevlar body suit from his [Inventory]. "This set is too bulky. I'm used to fighting in something more form fitting like this."

Seeing the defensive gear in Tatsuo's hands, Lin looked away from his instruments for a moment. Then, he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Not bad for something made without mana." Lin said. "Whoever made this has got talent."

"Thank you." Tatsuo said with a proud smile. "Took me almost a week to get it just right. And another two days to add the monster parts."

'A week?' Lin thought to himself. 'This kid is talented for someone so weak. And these are made of some peak grade manaless materials. Oh, and what are those?'

As Lin thought about Tatsuo's response, he finally noticed the bladed knuckle dusters on Tatsuo's hands. Naturally, he recognized the material they were made of. And he remembered how difficult it was to work with without sufficient strength.

"Did you make those, too?" Lin asked while pointing at Tatsuo's weapons.

"Oh, these?" Tatsuo asked, just realizing that he had not yet unequipped his weapons. "Yeah, they were a little harder to make. Luckily, Loretta-San had just the right tools for me to do something with that Kobold's kukri knives."

Hearing that, Lin turned back to Loretta. He knew she had the proper tools for sale at the floor shop. In fact, he had worked as a Floor Shop attendant many times in the past, as well. So, he knew everything they sold. Still, to be skilled enough to deal with that material, the boy in front of him must really be talented.

"I see.' Lin replied as he turned back to Tatsuo. Then, he pointed towards the Kevlar body suit as he continued. "So, do you want me to remake this [Orc Lord Set] into something closer to that?"

To Lin's surprise, Tatsuo shook his head.

"No, I want you to teach me how to do it myself, if possible." Tatsuo replied.

'If it's possible for me to do it myself, I might be able to combine it with the [Wraith Queen Set] I'll get on the 10th Floor if I can do it myself.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'If that's possible, even if I can't get the stat boost, I might be able to use [Vengeful Spirit's Wail], too.'

That response surprised both Loretta and Lin. A moment later, however, Loretta shook her head.

'*Sigh* Lin doesn't accept disciples.' Loretta thought to himself. 'There's no way he'll do that. It's even hard to get him to accept blacksmithing requests. It looks like Tatsuo-Sama is destined to be disappointed.'

"I see." Lin said with a nod after he got past his surprise. "Well, if you can spare some time after clearing each floor, I don't mind teaching you."

Immediately, Loretta stopped shaking her head. Then, she stared at Lin with a look filled with disbelief.

'What in the world is wrong with Lin?' Loretta asked herself in a confused tone. 'Did he eat something funny? Maybe Loka managed to convince him to try some of her cookies again. He was kinda loopy after the last time he ate them, too.'

While Loretta was deep in thought, Tatsuo was ecstatic at the response. Like Loretta, he expected Lin to refuse his request. And if he did, he would have to get Lin to do the remodel and hope that he could see through his techniques. But this is much better. He might even be able to increase his crafting skills past E+ without a bunch of trial and error or spending Coins this way.

"Of course!" Tatsuo exclaimed excitedly. "I can definitely spare the time. Thank you, Lin-San…. No, Lin-Sensei."

Despite the fact that his expression did not change, Lin was feeling quite smug. To have someone his bloodline was demanding such respect from acknowledge him as a Sensei, his already high pride was sky rocketing.

"Alright, then." Lin replied with a nod. "I'll see you on the next floor. I'll need to get the tools for the job ready. So, I guess I'll see you in a month or so."

Tatsuo's excited expression immediately changed to one filled with confusion.

"A month, are the tools necessary for the job so rare?" Tatsuo asked while tilting his head in a confused manner.

'He's almost as cute as Shin-Nim when he does that.' Loretta thought to herself, making it clear to anyone who could hear her thoughts that she had already fallen head over heels for the protagonist of this world.

"Huh? No… They aren't rare at all." Lin replied, just as confused as Tatsuo. "But I said I'd start teaching you on the next floor. And Loretta told me you're climbing the Dungeon alone. So…"

On most worlds connected to the Dungeon, solo Explorers are quite uncommon. One reason for that is the fact that knowledge about the Dungeon on other worlds is much more widespread than Earth. So, climbing in parties of three to five is the norm. But those who do climb solo are usually quite cautious, as they are afraid of losing a week's worth of time in the Dungeon should they die.

And the reason for this fear of dying in the dungeon is simple. Most of those worlds connected with the Dungeon are at war with an invading force from another world. On top of that, climbing the Dungeon is the fastest way to gain the strength needed to fight those invaders.

"Oh, if you're talking about that…" Tatsuo said with a shrug. "It will probably only take me about a day and a half to climb the next floor. Two days at the most. Unless the 7th Floor is significantly harder than the last one."

Lin looked at Tatsuo as if he just grew a second head after hearing what he had to say. Then, he looked at Loretta with agaze filled with disbelief. In response, Loretta only shrugged her shoulders, not denying Tatsuo's claim in the slightest.

Seeing that Loretta did not deny Tatsuo's claim, Lin turned his head back towards Tatsuo in a mechanical manner. Then, he opened and closed his mouth a few times, as if he wanted to say something. However, no words came out of his mouth.

"A-Anyway… I guess I'll see you in a couple of days…" Lin said in a dry tone after a few false starts.

"Sure." Tatsuo replied with a nod. "Then, I'm gonna go home and get some sleep. I've been fighting those damn wraiths for almost two days straight. I'm kinda tired."

In response, Lin only nodded his head blankly. Meanwhile, Loretta waved her hand while smiling with her signature, professional smile.

"Then, I'll see you tomorrow, Tatsuo-Sama." Loretta said in a cheerful tone.

"Okay, see you later." Tatsuo said with a wave of his own. Then, he turned to Lin and continued. "And I really appreciate your help, Lin-San."

After that, Tatsuo left the Dungeon to go get some sleep.

Meanwhile, Lin took a few more moments to regain his composure. Then, he slowly turned towards Loretta, who was approaching him slowly.

"That kid is a monster." Lin said. "I didn't think Explorers like him still existed."

"Well, they do." Loretta replied. "I met another one in the last five years. And as it turns out, they're from the same world."

"Seriously?" Lin asked in a dumbfounded tone. "What kind of world creates two people like that? It must have extremely high mana levels."

In response, Loretta shook her head.

"No, from what I've heard, it just gained mana only a few months ago." Loretta said in a solemn tone.

"What?" Lin exclaimed. "You can't be serious."

"Oh, I'm completely serious." Loretta replied in a solemn tone.

That statement caused Lin to fall into a daze. Meanwhile, Loretta's expression mirrored her tone. Then, she looked Lin in his eyes as she continued.

"More importantly, what was that about, Lin?" Loretta asked solemnly.

"Huh?" Lin replied, sounding even more confused than before. "What was what about, Ane ue?"

"The way you were acting… Offering to teach him how to craft the gear he wanted… Your oddly respectful attitude." Loretta replied. "And don't even try to deny it. Although you kept the same tone for most of the time you were talking to him, I've known you for a long time, Lin. And the only ones you're that respectful towards are me and sometimes that Oldie… *Cough* I mean the Lord."

Once again, Lin fell silent. He did not really want to explain what he was feeling when he met Tatsuo to Loretta. However, he also knew that Loretta would not leave it alone now that she had witnessed his odd behavior.

"If it were me asking about why you're acting weird, I would get hit with your second bullet for asking about something that wasn't my business." Lin muttered in a somewhat discontent tone. "But if I refuse to answer you in the same circumstances, I'll probably still get hit. Ane ue, you're so unreasonable."

"What was that?" Loretta asked while cracking her knuckles. "If you're gonna say something, I think you should speak up. It's not good to mumble, you know?"

On top of cracking her knuckles, Loretta was releasing a concerning amount of blood lust, causing Lin to jump in fear. Then, after making eye contact with Loretta again, Lin realized that he would be in serious trouble if he did not answer her question. So, he hurriedly told her about the feeling he was getting from his blood while in Tatsuo's presence.

"Hmm?" Loretta hummed in interest while rubbing her chin. "Your bloodline reacted to him. That's weird. He's just a human, right? Why would your draconic blood react?"

"I have no idea." Lin replied while shaking his head. "But it was a really strong reaction. So strong, in fact, that despite being so much stronger than him, I feel like I would never be able to defeat him if we were to fight."

With that, the two continued to discuss the reasons for Lin's strange reaction. Meanwhile, Tatsuo, after getting back to his apartment, took a shower, answered a few texts from Sumire, played the piano for a while, and went to bed. He would be climbing the 7th Floor starting tomorrow, after all.