Chapter 167
Chapter 167
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 167
Chapter Title: The Saint's Inner Thoughts Are Audible
I couldn't help but be surprised when I saw Bellamora waiting on Victoria.
Even if this was hell, could she have grown weak enough to obey Victoria?
"Victoria, the person beside you is..."
"Ah, this is Bellamora. After arriving in this hell, I saved her from being beaten by other souls."
Victoria spoke casually as she looked at Bellamora beside her.
Her gaze, as if she were looking at a harmless creature, made me feel something was off.
"...Souls don't dream. So even I, the Succubus Queen, am weaker here than an ordinary human."
Bellamora answered my unspoken question.
Unlike typical succubi who absorb human desire through dreams, she was unable to exert her power in a situation like this.
"So, I've been using her as a servant. It's better than having her limbs torn off and eaten by other souls because of what she did before, right?"
"......"
Seeing how perfectly Victoria had adapted, despite having been in hell for only a short time, was so absurd it nearly made me laugh.
"So, the person beside you...? Don't tell me you've seduced another woman, Lord Astal?"
Then, Victoria shot a meaningful glance at Lord beside me.
"No! I'm a man."
In response to that look, Lord waved his hands dismissively and removed the black knight's helmet he was wearing.
Wolf ears sat atop his black hair, and he had a sculpted face that could be mistaken for an elf's.
"I am Lord Grancia, son of Say Grancia and Rosaria, and a future Pure Love Black Knight..."
Lord introduced himself exactly like that.
Judging by the mana within his body, he was a curious mix of elf and wolf-folk blood.
"I don't understand the meaning... But did you help Lord Astal come to meet me?"
"Yes, I saved him by a hair's breadth."
"Thank you, Lord."
Victoria bowed her head to Lord in thanks, then came running toward me.
Her eyes were red, as if she'd been crying secretly, and her once-proud platinum blonde hair was tangled and dry.
Thump.
"Lord Astal, Lord Astal... I'm sorry for dying first. I'm so sorry..."
Victoria wrapped her arms around my neck in a tight embrace, calling my name endlessly as she poured out her emotions.
The Saint who, to save me from the Demon King Ergothum, had used all her miracles without a care for her body turning into flowers.
"I told you not to use miracles. You were just being stubborn, so there's no need to cry about the result."
I gently stroked Victoria's head, accepting her complaint.
I shouldn't cry or grieve with her here.
Since we've met again like this in the end, I should act composed and unbothered.
A hot sensation blurred my vision, making it hard to see clearly.
"Lord Astal... I'm so glad we met again. I thought I'd never see you again..."
Victoria's voice trembled from within my embrace.
A slight quiver and waver.
Even that shakiness was endearing, so I hugged Victoria tighter.
"So you wanted to meet again in this hell? If I'd killed the Demon King and survived, you wouldn't have seen me."
"No, I would have waited until you grew old and died as a grandfather. Even though I thought my whole body turning to flowers meant I wouldn't come to the afterlife."
Just as Victoria said. She had used miracles beyond her limit to save me in the battle against the Demon King Ergothum.
I had thought Victoria, transformed into something like a large bouquet of flowers, had become a being no longer human.
"Though I never expected to fall into hell. Even I, a Saint."
Victoria looked up at me with a bitter expression. As a Saint who believed in the Heavenly God, she might have thought there would be a heaven.
"To choose to die, leaving behind the lover I love... I'm a truly foolish woman."
"But thanks to that, we were able to kill the Demon King, so don't be too heartbroken. If it weren't for hell, we might never have met?"
I wiped Victoria's tears with my hand, comforting her. After all, falling into hell is what allowed us to meet again.
"You succeeded in killing it? That incredibly strong Demon King...?"
Victoria's eyes widened at the unexpected news, and she stopped crying.
With all our other comrades having fallen, it would be normal to think I hadn't managed to defeat it.
"...Though I died too."
I shook my head at Victoria. If I had killed the Demon King and survived, I wouldn't have fallen into this hell.
"Ah... So that's why..."
Victoria nodded as if she understood immediately, and Lord watched this scene with a pleased expression.
"Reuniting lovers really is the best, it seems."
Lord Grancia smiled in a way that was almost creepy.
"Your smile is a bit unsettling..."
"But he's not a bad guy. He's a helper from another universe who heard the prayers you offered every day since the first day of the Demon King subjugation, Victoria."
I explained Lord's identity to Victoria, who wore a dubious expression.
Even after embarking on the Demon King subjugation, Victoria prayed every day for the party's safe return.
She even prayed for the repose of monsters and demons, believing they might have souls.
"Is that really true...?"
Those small considerations and kindnesses had gathered, now existing here under the name of a miracle.
"Yes, so please rest assured. If we succeed in persuading the God of the Underworld, there's a possibility of returning alive from this place."
"......!!!"
At Lord's statement, the eyes of everyone present, including mine, widened.
"Ah, of course, the God of the Underworld, Thanatos, is the Astal from the most unfortunate worldline among all, so persuasion won't be easy."
Lord casually revealed Thanatos's identity.
I, from the most unfortunate worldline, had paradoxically become stronger than any other Astal Caesaro.
"Right, I almost got centuries of venting frustration inflicted on me too. It's a stretch to call him the same person."
Worried Victoria might think persuasion would be easy, I told her about the atrocities Thanatos had committed against me.
"...What a petty person. After all the effort you put into killing the Demon King, Lord Astal!"
Victoria clenched her fists, steeling her resolve. After all, she was the one who solved problems whenever I caused trouble or accidents.
"So, what will you do about Bellamora? You can't just have her wait on you here."
"I have a good idea. Bellamora?"
Flinch.
The moment Victoria called Bellamora's name, she flinched violently.
A reaction that seemed more physical than verbal. Seeing that, I could guess how much Victoria had made Bellamora obey her will.
"That Thanatos person isn't a soul, right? So wouldn't Bellamora's Illusionary Dream work on him?"
"Probably not."
I shook my head at Victoria's opinion, thinking it would likely be a difficult plan.
"The opponent is a version of me from another worldline who single-handedly killed the Demon King Ergothum. He'd probably just break free from Bellamora's Illusionary Dream. Besides..."
I shifted my gaze to Bellamora, dressed in ridiculous clothes.
"Even if we need to subdue him to attempt conversation, Bellamora fought against us before, remember."
That's right.
Even if the current Bellamora is weakened and obeys Victoria, she was the one who tried to kill me.
"...I've reflected a lot. If I hadn't been saved by Lady Victoria, I would have been a dead woman."
At my words, Bellamora fidgeted with her fingers.
"This is hell, so you can't die here."
"That's even more terrifying! Do you know how many humans I tormented while alive? They're all grinding their teeth, wanting to kill me!"
"Really?"
"Yes! Even if my limbs are torn off alive, they regenerate! Even if I suffer pain that would kill an ordinary person, my breath doesn't stop!"
Watching Bellamora like that, I thought she deserved it.
Seeing her, who tormented humans with Illusionary Dream in life, crying and wailing was quite amusing.
"Then it seems right to leave her here. Victoria, Lord! Let's find the other comrades and move!"
I deliberately made a comment to crush Bellamora's hope. I needed to see how she would react.
"W-wait a minute!"
As expected, Bellamora urgently called out to me and the others, begging for a chance.
"I want to be helpful to Lord Astal too...! I don't want to live in a place like this anymore!"
"There's probably no chance of you returning to life."
"I don't care! Just get me out of here...! Too many souls here know me!"
Bellamora was now clinging to my pant leg, pleading.
Seeing that, I asked Victoria for her opinion.
"Wouldn't it be okay? If Thanatos really is Lord Astal, then Bellamora's Illusionary Dream would work best on him."
"......"
"And, now that my body is fully recovered, I can subdue someone like Bellamora."
With just a glance, Victoria made Bellamora roll left or right, demonstrating the gap in their power.