The Saint Wants to Rest - vanish into fiction

Lately, Yoon Tae-gyeom’s condition has been the absolute worst. This was because he had been assigned the role of supporting the newly appeared S-rank Awakened, Vermouth.

“Can’t we assign this to someone else?”

He had tried making that suggestion to the Director, but in truth, Yoon Tae-gyeom knew it himself. He was the most suitable person to stay close to and assist a powerhouse who claimed to have come from another world. If this guy decided to do something crazy, someone would have to stop him, and who could stop an S-rank Awakened? At the very least, their ranks had to match.

For that reason, he and Yoon So-ra were helping Vermouth adapt to the Gates and this world. The problem arose right here.

“Oh dear, the doneness of this steak is quite poor.”

At that moment, Yoon Tae-gyeom recalled the curses Hong Seo-yun would spit out as naturally as breathing.

“I believe it’s not that bad.”

“It is just that I am a bit sensitive.”

A bit? A bi-it? He had no idea where such nonsense came from. Does a “bit sensitive” guy demand a change because he is unsatisfied with expensive hotel bedding? Does he cause this much of a fuss if the quality of a meal drops even slightly? That man was only satisfied after putting on a suit made by a master craftsman.

Looking at his behavior, he was like the Princess and the Pea from the fairy tales. What is the Princess and the Pea, you ask? It is about a princess who could not fall asleep because she noticed a single pea placed under dozens of mattresses.

The fact that Yoon Tae-gyeom did not voice this out loud was a testament to his incredible patience.

“It seems you were raised quite delicately, Mr. Vermouth.”

“You may just call me Vermouth. I do not believe I was raised that delicately, however.”

“There is no way.”

“It is true.”

Vermouth set down the fork he had been using to poke the steak a few times. He then continued with a bright smile.

“I distinguish between time and place. On the battlefield, I slept well anywhere and ate well. But this is not a battlefield, is it? Since you decided to treat me as a guest of honor, I ask that you do so properly.”

This was driving him crazy. The expression on Yoon So-ra, who stood beside him, was even more transparent than Yoon Tae-gyeom’s. She only began to manage her expression belatedly after Yoon Tae-gyeom poked her in the ribs with his finger. Yoon So-ra, who liked him at first because he was beautiful, seemed exhausted after getting a taste of his hellish fastidiousness for a few days.

After the meal, they took Vermouth to a B-rank Gate in a high-end protocol vehicle. The plan was to put him into an A-rank Gate after he cleared this one successfully. If he could clear even that alone, he would gain the fame he desired.

Recently, Hong Seo-yun and the Phoenix Guild made a name for themselves by clearing a Gate that had risen to S-rank. However, that did not make what Vermouth was doing meaningless. Originally, the standard for S-rank was clearing an A-rank alone.

Every Awakened who receives an S-rank from the Management Bureau goes through this. Usually, it takes about one to two years to complete this process. Vermouth said he would finish all the procedures in just one week.

“If that happens, it will be a new record.”

Yoon So-ra said while checking the Gate clearing records of the Awakened.

“It is a record. Normally, we do not push someone this hard just because they are an S-rank Awakened.”

What if that precious body was mishandled and he died?

“But Mr. Vermouth wanted it.”

“Drop the ‘Mr.’ He told us to just call him by his name.”

“I know, but it is still awkward.”

“What is so awkward?”

“His sensitive, princess-like traits, and his appearance too?”

Yoon So-ra said with an awkward laugh.

“He is not your ideal type anyway.”

“Of course not! I like rugged men. But I realized that all of that becomes meaningless in front of overwhelming beauty. It is quite fascinating.”

“Everything is fascinating to you. More importantly, is the A-rank properly prepared?”

“Yes, Arachne’s Mirror Labyrinth. It is ready as a clean A-rank Gate.”

Most Gate names are given intuitively. If it is Arachne’s Labyrinth, the monsters appearing are mostly spider-types, and fitting for the name “Labyrinth,” it was a Gate that was not easy to exit quickly.

However, Gates with the name “Labyrinth” had their advantages. Because it was a Gate made of narrow, winding paths, monsters did not swarm all at once. There was simply no space for that.

Although the rank was high because the labyrinth walls were made of mirrors, it should be cleared without much trouble. In the past, people solved everything with just their bodies, but lately, items that help clear labyrinths have been released.

[Thread of the Labyrinth]

If you leave this at the entrance and unroll it as you move, you generally will not get lost.