Chapter 149
Chapter 149
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 149
Chapter Title: 43-3. Is Faith Stronger Than Will?
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The Temple of Tarudun stood atop a sheer cliff in the Lupus Mountains.
Crown Prince—no, here he bore the title of prince—Lupus Granasia's name must have come from this place.
The next morning, I led my companions up the mountain bright and early.
"This is the Temple of Tarudun...?"
"Position-wise, yes."
I pulled out the map and scanned for the spot where the terrain twisted oddly.
This was it, according to my memory. It wasn't exactly easy to spot.
"Kai!! Put me down already... This is embarrassing..."
"You begged me to carry you not that long ago."
Ariel was clinging to Kainel's back. Her legs had started hurting halfway up, or so she claimed. She could've just used magic, but true to her tsundere nature, she was hopeless at expressing her feelings.
For someone so embarrassed, Ariel's face was blooming with a smile.
"...Kinda creepy, huh?"
The temple we finally reached after a long climb looked abandoned, overgrown with weeds and thick with dust—no sign of human activity, like some ruined husk.
Was no one maintaining it anymore? I seemed to recall it being cleaner in the sequel.
There was no sign of the gray-furred lycanthrope who served as caretaker, nor any guardian like Librarian Laplace or the Grim Reaper.
I placed my hand on a massive statue of a wolf clutching a sword to its chest—a sculpture representing Tarudun.
"If I want to hone my swordsmanship, this is the perfect spot."
Just as Laplace had unlocked his grand archmage potential by accessing the Library of Truth, this was the only place that held the key to perfecting my Demon King Slayer.
The layout changed depending on the route the player took.
Normally, you'd snag the cursed sword Horizon, ignore all the traps with its defense boost, and bulldoze through. But I couldn't pull that off now.
"...So cute."
Pine was stroking the forehead of the stone wolf. It stood there like a haetae, guarding the temple.
Watching her, I suddenly recalled the intel I'd bought from the informant yesterday.
What did it mean to seal the wolves representing day and night into a ring? I'd wanted a power that could defy fate to prevent Pine's scripted death in that forced event.
Words that evoked Emperor Locke, but on second thought, even he didn't possess the strength to twist fate.
He couldn't pull Empress Bellin out of that card, after all.
'If it's info even a loner like him couldn't access... it has to be a god above the four main ones.'
The God of Light and the God of Darkness.
They were nothing but tantalizing loose ends, even in class lectures. I'd scoured everywhere in the game for connections to Pine, the Nameless Saintess.
The scraps I found? Loose ties to magic swords or holy swords, and the saintess mentioning the God of Light was the silent type, hard to read.
But what domains did the God of Light and God of Darkness oversee?
Tarudun handled swordsmanship as the God of Will, Akasha magic as the God of Intellect—it didn't seem like they just covered light and dark.
"This is the entrance."
I knocked on the stone door—tap, tap—and confirmed the emerging symbols. Markers of the routes the player had taken.
The paths I'd walked so far: Kainel and Dennis, Nex's companion routes...
Laplace or the Sage didn't quite count as companions this time around, unlike in the game. We hadn't formed a proper demon king-slaying party.
"Whoa... what's this? Helmet dude?"
"Just a puzzle. A simple one."
A glowing lavender line hummed into view on the door, symbolizing the hero couple. Soon after, a golden buttercup appeared, representing the love between the Heavenly Demon and Dennis.
"The trials ahead will probably change based on these."
Nex's was a bat with the sun at its back.
Made sense—they'd need to overcome Asha Aureus's opposition to marry, after all.
No issue with the difficulty either way. The last one was the real key.
And the final symbol to rise: the one marking my route with Pine.
"Huh? Wha—? A blue rose...?"
Up high on the wall. I couldn't hide my shock at the faintly glowing blue rose.
When I'd come here with Pine as the Nameless Saintess, it had been a white rose. What the hell did a switch to blue mean?
"Licht... something wrong?"
Pine fiddled with her manarose hair ornament, brow furrowed. Probably because of that.
Maybe rescuing her from obscurity had derailed the route. The status window had hinted as much.
'It definitely called her a "named princess" now... so not the saintess route, at least.'
The saintess route entrance triggered endless traps and schemes symbolizing her trials, pursued by a minotaur.
I'd tanked them all head-on, relying solely on the cursed sword's defense.
Gulp. My throat tightened. Was barging in like this really smart?
I'd come here expecting some sword training method. Now it felt like anything could pop out.
"Licht. Let's go in already."
"Pine, hold on. Aren't you scared? If this is where the wolfkin held their coming-of-age rites, there must be trials."
"Yeah, but with you, Licht... I'm fine."
As I hesitated in fear, a soft warmth wrapped around my arm. Pine had linked hers with mine, cheeks faintly flushed.
She was starting to show the bold confidence I'd seen in the Nameless Saintess I knew. Was it rubbing off from me?
The thought that Pine Granasia might just be that kind of person naturally brought a smile to my face.
"...Yeah, me too, Pine."
I'd tried so hard not to project onto her, but here we were.
I pieced together the wall symbols to unlock the code. Simple—just press them in the order of my routes.
Lavender, bat, buttercup, blue rose. I pressed my palms to them in sequence, and with a low rumble—ku-gung—the door began to slide open.
"Then, are we ready?"
Smoke drifted from the pitch-black darkness inside the temple, where not even an inch ahead was visible.
Traps testing one's will surely lay beyond. I tamped down my unease and stepped forward.
How much time had passed? A voice pulled me awake.
"Licht, time to get up."
Someone was nudging me on a plush bed. The odd poke of a finger against my cheek chased away the sleep.
"Pine?"
A girl with black hair smiled gently beside me. At a glance, she was Pine Granasia—but subtle details differed.
"What happened to your hair color?"
"My hair... what's wrong with it?"
Not silver-white, but jet-black. She looked like a black wolf.
"Wasn't it white before?"
"Hee hee, Licht. You're still half-asleep. How can you say that to your fiancée?"
What? Fiancée? The sudden shift left me reeling.
The bed gleamed with gold fittings and ornate decorations, like something from the imperial palace. Cute dolls dotted the surroundings.
Shouldn't monsters or traps be testing my will by now? I scanned around for the hero couple.
"Where are Kainel and Ariel, Pine...?"
"Kainel...? Who's that...?"
The black-haired Pine looked blank at the hero couple's names.
Something felt off. I touched my face—the soft cheek yielded under my fingers. No pain even when I pinched.
In the distant mirror, my reflection showed no Black Knight helmet. So this wasn't reality—a virtual space.
'In here, Pine and I are engaged...?'
I was still in my academy uniform, thankfully no embarrassing debuff this time.
Losing the sword at my hip stung, but it didn't seem dangerous at least.
"Enough sleep-talk. Get up. Mom and Dad are waiting."
Treating it as the temple's trial, I followed after Pine.
Her black dress was a fresh change from her usual academy attire.
"You're late, Licht."
"You always keep our daughter waiting, don't you, Licht."
Descending the stairs, a black-haired wolfkin couple greeted me. Faces impossible to forget.
"Emperor Locke... Empress Bellin...?"
"No need for formalities. We're family."
Locke Granasia and Bellin Granasia. Seeing them sent ice through my veins. My feet wouldn't move.
This made no sense. One had been turned into a card by Magic Hat, the other saw me as a thief.
"Licht. Sit here."
Pine nudged the chair beside her, patting the cushion invitingly.
It was directly across from the emperor and empress—like sitting on thorns.
"...Got it, Pine."
"Hee hee, good boy, my wolf."
I sat reluctantly. Her usual icy demeanor had melted, making refusal impossible.
"Black cow steak. Your favorite, Licht."
A perfectly seared steak sat before me. Pine took a smaller portion than mine. Her appetite noticeably diminished.
"Eat up... I'm not hungry."
As far as I knew, Pine was a big eater. Telepathy magic and Dragon Heart yielded nothing.
I should sense her presence, but even right beside me, nada. I'd caught on by now.
These people were fakes.
"Father-in-law."
I delivered the line I'd always wanted to say. The emperor's temple vein twitched—suspicious, but whatever.
"What is it, Licht?"
Jackpot. The real Emperor Locke Granasia would never be this cordial.
"What year is it in the imperial calendar?"
I tossed out a question to pierce the lies.