A Sense of Déjà Vu
Difficulty is relative.
What seems impossibly hard to most people might look like simple busywork to someone properly trained.
"Do you think you could copy that?"
When he asked, Arwen nodded as if it were nothing.
"It looks simple. Dances like that aren't supposed to be too difficult in the first place."
"Really? Why?"
"Because the theme is refinement. If people learn it and still can't perform it, then it's not refinement—it's acrobatics."
The steel doll was demonstrating social dances meant for formal gatherings like banquets and balls.
Such etiquette couldn't be overly difficult. If ordinary people couldn't imitate it, it wouldn't spread widely, and making a mistake could lead to terrible embarrassment.
From Arwen's perspective, the steel mannequin's movements looked almost as simple as basic rhythmic motions.
"Then you should just take the test."
It seemed like they could finish the third trial easily.
But—
"…Hmm. I don't really feel like it."
For some reason, Arwen shook her head.
"Why? Because you don't want to stand out?"
"That's part of it… but look around you."
Woojin turned his head.
All around them, people were practicing the dance. Every time someone made a mistake, small bursts of laughter could be heard.
Even if their skills were clumsy…
Many people were earnestly trying to pass the trial.
"I don't want to take away their sense of achievement."
Sometimes it was better to yield the prey.
If Arwen suddenly stepped in and cleared the trial, it would likely ruin the atmosphere here.
Woojin nodded.
She's thoughtful.
Perhaps because she had once risen to the rank of bishop among the Dark priests, Arwen consistently showed excellent judgment and social awareness.
So they decided to leave the trial to the excavation team.
Instead, Woojin returned to the original reason they had come.
"Let's go look for artifacts."
"Alright."
After leaving the Refinement Trial hall together, Woojin turned to Theodore beside them.
"Where can I find the Tower Master?"
"You'll probably find him in the research room over there. I can guide you."
"Are you sure that's alright?"
Woojin worried that he might be keeping a busy man occupied.
But Theodore waved his hand with a smile.
"I'm free anyway. It's better than just standing around doing nothing."
"Good to hear."
They walked under the guidance of the holy knight.
After a short distance…
They saw several mages engaged in heated discussions. Their desks were piled high with documents.
They were probably researching the alchemy books discovered in the second trial chamber.
"There's Lady Claire."
Arwen pointed toward the center of the laboratory. Woojin had already been looking in that direction.
Duran was shaping light with a wave of his hand, creating something that looked like a mechanical blueprint floating in the air.
Beside him, Claire was scribbling rapidly with a quill pen.
They approached them.
Sensing their presence, Duran glanced sideways.
"What brings you here?"
"I came to get food for these snakes. It seems they need artifacts as a special treat. While I'm here, I'd also like to purchase a few artifacts for ourselves."
"Explain."
Woojin told him about what had happened that morning.
Duran tilted his head in interest.
"What a peculiar creature you've got there… Did you notice any changes after feeding them the artifact?"
"The casting speed of my spells increased slightly. But I'm not sure if that's temporary or if I've simply become more accustomed to using this."
"We'll need to observe them longer."
Duran looked around the room and suddenly called out to a middle-aged mage nearby.
"Benjamin! Come here a moment."
"Yes, sir?"
The summoned mage approached.
Duran gestured toward Woojin.
"This young man wants to buy some artifacts. Sell them to him at cost price. And do we have any defective pieces with slightly lacking performance?"
"Yes, we have a few."
"Give those to him for free. They wouldn't fetch much money anyway."
"Understood."
It was far more generous than Woojin had expected.
Artifacts were luxury items several times more expensive than ordinary jewelry.
Benjamin gestured.
"Come along, young man. Follow me."
"Just a moment."
Woojin stopped him briefly and spoke to Claire, who was still writing with her quill.
"Claire, do you want to come too?"
"I'm a bit busy… why?"
"I wanted to buy you an artifact."
Claire was already a skilled mage, but he still wanted to give her one as a gift.
She smiled and replied,
"You don't have to buy one for me. Even if I had an artifact, I'd hardly ever use it."
"Yeah… that makes sense."
It was a bit awkward.
Since Claire was busy working, they decided to meet again later. Woojin followed the middle-aged mage.
Benjamin struck up a friendly conversation.
"Are you Claire's lover, by any chance?"
"Yes, I am."
"Haha! The young fellows of the Magic Tower will be weeping. But this young lady beside you…"
Benjamin trailed off.
Arwen answered shyly,
"I'm his lover too."
"Well now! You're quite capable, young man. Already holding flowers in both hands!"
Now he didn't feel like selling the artifacts cheaply anymore.
Benjamin joked as they walked, muttering under his breath—mostly about the unfairness of life.
He'd probably get along well with Roland, Woojin thought.
Soon they arrived at a large steel vault.
Benjamin opened it skillfully.
Inside, the vault was divided into numerous compartments, each holding one or two jeweled accessories.
It looked like a honeycomb.
Benjamin pulled out several artifacts from the lower compartments.
"Here, take these. They're defective pieces, so the performance is a bit lacking, but they should still be useful."
"How much for all of them?"
"They're free. Didn't you hear what the Tower Master said earlier?"
"There are too many to accept for free."
It felt almost embarrassing to take them without paying.
Benjamin nodded in agreement.
"You're right—this kind of situation isn't common. It seems the Tower Master holds you in very high regard. How did you manage to win him over?"
Care to share the secret?
Woojin dodged the question awkwardly.
"Well… I'm not really sure myself."
"You're being stingy with your secrets."
Benjamin grumbled, but it couldn't be helped.
After all, Woojin couldn't exactly say he had almost beaten the Tower Master to death before sparing him.
Better change the topic.
"I'd like to look at some more artifacts. I want to buy something suitable for combat."
"Is it a gift for this lover of yours, or will you use it yourself?"
"The former."
"In that case, I should recommend something good."
Benjamin took out the accessories from the upper shelves one by one, explaining their materials and functions.
One item in particular caught Woojin's eye.
A platinum necklace set with a pink gemstone. It looked elegant, and the engraved spell was quite useful.
It can cast a protection barrier. Not bad.
It was a consumable item that could only be used three times due to a usage limit, but even so, it was a high-quality artifact that would be difficult to find even in a large city.
"How much is this?"
"It's a valuable one… give me two hundred gold coins."
Benjamin spoke after a moment of thought, as if offering a favor. The item was worth more, but he was lowering the price.
Even so, it was still an intimidating amount.
Arwen, who had been listening, was visibly shocked. The price far exceeded what she had imagined.
"You don't need to buy something like this…"
She muttered that, but Woojin had already taken out a pouch of gold coins from his bag.
"Please check the amount."
"Well, well. You're wealthy."
Benjamin whistled softly as he counted the coins. Before long, Woojin received the necklace.
Arwen looked worried.
"Isn't this too much?"
"It's fine."
To be honest, Woojin's sense of money had been completely shattered for quite some time, so he barely cared.
Ever since he had started spending time with Cindy, he had become much less hesitant about spending money. Besides, even if he hoarded gold coins endlessly, there wasn't really anything else he wanted to spend them on.
"Come closer."
Arwen hesitated but stepped forward.
Woojin personally placed the necklace around her neck.
Then he stepped back and looked at her as if admiring the result.
"It suits you pretty well."
"Really?"
Arwen tilted her head from side to side, examining the necklace around her neck.
Soon a small smile appeared on her lips.
"I'll use it well."
"Good. Don't be too stingy with the spell."
When the time came to use it, she should use it without hesitation. That was the reason he bought it.
After emphasizing that several times, Woojin prepared to leave.
Their business here was finished, so it was time to head back.
"…Hey."
Benjamin suddenly called out.
"Were you calling me?"
"Yes, you. What's your name? Now that I think about it, we never properly introduced ourselves."
"Jin."
As usual, Woojin gave a false name.
Benjamin thought for a moment before speaking again.
"Jin… Have you ever worked at the Magic Tower before? Your face looks strangely familiar."
A rather unexpected remark.
"I've never had such experience."
"Really? That's odd… I feel like I've seen you several times before. That's the kind of feeling I get."
"When exactly are you referring to?"
"I'm not sure. Just a vague impression. Maybe… about ten years ago."
Benjamin muttered, sounding as if he didn't quite believe his own words.
Woojin didn't think much of it.
Ten years ago he had been active in the Demon Realm. There was no way he could have met Benjamin then.
He was about to say as much—
…Wait.
Suddenly, a sense of déjà vu struck him.
Before coming to this world, Kim Woojin had lived through about twelve years of recurring nightmares.
In that dream world, he had experienced countless deaths.
And every time he died, he returned to the starting point where he had first awakened.
Like loading a saved game.
It was a kind of regression.
Even if I lost everything after dying, I could regain my strength fairly easily because I already knew the events and opportunities that occurred in the Demon Realm.
He accumulated experience through death and grew again by reviewing the events from previous runs.
He had repeated that process countless times.
Since time in this world progressed less whenever he died and returned to the start, the timeline had to be calculated based on his final run.
I survived about six or seven years in the last run.
After that, he had crossed into this world and lived here for another two years.
So if someone mentioned ten years ago…
…That would be before I possessed this body.
The time when the original owner of this body had been living, before Woojin began having those nightmares.
Perhaps that person had met Benjamin back then.
As he considered that possibility, another memory surfaced—the first time he had met the Tower Master, Duran.
"Have we met somewhere before? Your face looks strangely familiar."
Duran had said that during their first meeting.
The senior mage Fabian had said something similar.
"This might sound strange, but haven't we met before?"
The same situation had now repeated itself three times.
It was difficult to dismiss it as mere coincidence.
How should he interpret it?
For now, he could only infer one thing.
…There must be a clue somewhere in the Magic Tower.
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