Between Heresy and Taboo (2)
“Hello~?”
“...Sister Sestia?”
“You've returned at just the right time, Sister Kaya. Please, have a seat here.”
Kaya had split from Hendrick, who went off to meet the client again, and made her way back to the monastery. She took one look at the golden-haired woman sitting beside Sestia, sipping tea with a radiant smile, and knew instinctively. A collaborator. Somehow, they'd already worked it out in the short time since. Were the two orders closer than she'd thought? Or was this the only visible collaborator available...?
“Sister Kaya. This is Shae, a crusader walking the path of justice from the Order of Justitia. Shae. This is Sister Kaya, who walks the path of mercy in our order and recently joined a hero party.”
“Whoa~ What a stunningly beautiful nun! The name and the face both!”
“Ah, um. Th-thank you.”
The crusader named Shae seemed to possess an incredibly lively, bright, and gentle personality. The polar opposite of Kaya herself. When Shae smiled, the whole room seemed to bloom. If not for the sturdy medium armor beneath her pretty face—armor that didn't quite suit her—she might have passed for some noble young lady.
“Sister Kaya, if I may ask, how old are you this year?”
“Pardon? My age?”
“Yes!”
“Well, I don't really keep track...”
In that brief moment, Kaya already found Shae overwhelming. She felt like they were cut from entirely different cloth by birth. If Kaya was a weed that had stubbornly taken root feeding on all sorts of negative emotions, then this beautiful crusader—even to another woman's eyes—seemed like a flower that had bloomed amid blessings and constant cherishing from everyone around her. They'd only just met, and the overly familiar attitude was burdensome. The Captain—Hendrick—never judged her for who she was and always respected her. Of course, Shae hadn't done anything wrong, and Kaya didn't show it outwardly.
“Seeing that you're a half-elf, you must be older than me. Would it be all right to call you big sis?”
“...Pardon?”
“We're not from the same order, so 'sister' feels a bit off, but 'Kaya' sounds too stiff, don't you think?”
In the split second she'd thought of the Captain, Kaya found herself being called “big sis” by a woman she'd known for less than five minutes.
I'm... not that much older.
She glanced at Sestia, but the woman just watched with a pleased smile. Wait—when had she scooted so close?
“I'm ready to charge in right now, big sis. You?”
“We're prepared too, but we didn't expect a collaborator this quickly.”
“Ehehe~ Good things are good, right? I was bored anyway, and it's a great cause! Plus, I got to meet such a pretty big sis—what a steal!”
“Ahh... Um.”
This was awkward. Kaya couldn't keep up with her pace. Aside from Hendrick lately, she hadn't been close to friends, siblings, or anyone—hadn't even had warm conversations. This moment alone was too much for her.
“Now, Shae. Sister Kaya is a bit shy, so if you push too hard, she'll get flustered.”
“Oh! Sorry! I didn't realize...”
The blooming flower wilted in an instant, her head drooping pitifully. Kaya suddenly felt like she was the one at fault.
“N-no, it's fine. I was just a little surprised.”
“Really?”
“Yes. We started this as an individual request, so thank you sincerely for offering your urgent assistance.”
As Kaya bowed her head, Shae bowed back with a beaming smile. The kind of beautiful smile that would leave 98 out of 100 men staring in a daze...
“Yes, big sis! Let's go shred those heretical fuckers to pieces!”
“...”
“Big sis?”
“It's nothing.”
On the stairs leading to the second-floor room, Kaya recalled what Sestia had whispered to her out of Shae's earshot.
Skilled. Devout. Beautiful. Great personality. Excellent social skills. However... sometimes.
According to Sestia, a “not-ShaeShae” popped out at unpredictable times, making her incredibly burdensome. That was why she rarely got group missions and had been rejected from hero parties multiple times.
“Big sis? What's up?”
“Nothing.”
Creeeak—
Shaking off her thoughts, she entered the room to find Hendrick perched precariously on a chair, pen in hand, tearing at his hair.
“Captain.”
“Ah, Kaya. You're ba— ”
“Hello!”
Crash—!
“Whoa!”
“Captain!”
“Eek, are you okay?”
What the hell kind of greeting is that for a first meeting? You scared the shit out of me.
It was one hell of an impactful introduction.
Holy shit.
It wasn't like the first pull at the hero support center. I hadn't even asked this woman beaming and staring right at me to join my party. No idea why her profile popped up. But in front of that glowing profile, who gave a damn.
I thought she was some airhead from how wildly she was grinning, but no! We have to recruit her!
Difficulty be damned. Gender be damned. Race be damned. Class be damned. In over 3,000 hours of The Long Terror, I'd seen countless positive and negative traits on heroes, but “Genius” was rare. Not something you picked up later—it was innate. A flat “+10% to all stats, minimum 1” that helped from early game to late. Even trash heroes became worth raising with it. “Genius” was S-tier, top-1% material.
Just think of how Kaya and I nearly collapsed in 1-2 from missing that 1 damage point...
Anyway, pretty much every Long Terror player agreed. Her sole negative trait “Fits” and the female penalty to physical stats (body/attack/defense) were minor. No other flaws.
Actually, for a crusader tank, being female isn't even bad.
Hidden stat not shown in the profile: healing boost was 0 for men, +2 for women. A well-built female crusader was called a “sex cockroach” for her insane sustain and tenacious tanking.
“Staring so intently makes me shy!”
“Ah, sorry.”
“It's fine! You're handsome!”
...Kaya, what the hell is with this girl? She's kinda overwhelming.
I shot Kaya a look, but she was clenching her fist, glaring at the woman's back of the head.
What's your deal?
If she'd been born on Earth, she'd be an idol or big-corp broadcaster with that energy. Way too high-level for a worthless shut-in gamer like me. Total opposite worlds.
Yeah! Extrovert. Pure extrovert soul. This Shae had the antithesis of my vibe. At least from what I'd seen so far.
“Still can't pass her up.”
“Pardon? Pass up what?”
“Nothing. You said you're ready—have you ever entered a dungeon?”
“Nope! Joined a few hero parties, but ended up solo again somehow. Hehe.”
“Pardon? Why?”
“Hmm, who knows~?”
This girl...
Shae smiled and dodged. My gamer instincts—weak on people but sharp on “game characters”—were ringing alarm bells about recruiting her.
Natural troublemaker!
Causes chaos unintentionally, can't blame her outright, and anyone who tries looks like the villain. Headache incarnate! Sometimes heroes stacked negatives like “Overly Curious,” “Klepto,” “Two-Faced.” Low proc rates, minor issues usually, but when they stacked? Nightmare.
That ominous vibe from a one-in-a-hundred genius? Tragic.
Can I handle her?
Unlike the game, here I interacted directly. Might seem premature since she hadn't even joined or done a request, but Shae was that valuable a crusader.
“...Anyway, let's continue with what we need to do. Did you pack your gear?”
“Yes! Tent, blanket, spare clothes, armor rags, whetstone—all packed!”
“Rations, herbs, antidotes, bandages, holy water, magic oil?”
“Hmm...”
Shae scratched her cheek and averted her eyes.
“Hehe.”
This bitch?
Even without dungeon experience, hero party vet should know basics!
“...How much money do you have?”
“None!”
This fuckin'...
Calm. Calm. Genius. She's a genius trait holder despite seeming dim somehow!
“Captain. Why don't we buy her share too, then bill the Order of Justitia after the request?”
“Oh! Great idea! Big sis Kaya's not just pretty—she's smart too. Jealous~”
“...”
Kaya let Shae's hyper exclamation slide. She'd already figured out how to cope mere minutes in.
“Good call, Kaya. Time-wise, we can head out now without issue. Sound good?”
“As you wish, Captain.”
“Me too!”
I bought Shae's essentials at the shop, then led them back into the Instance Dungeon <Heresy and Taboo Between>.
Entered Instance Dungeon <Heresy and Taboo Between>.
EXP gain reduced inside Instance Dungeon.
Retreat possible inside Instance Dungeon.
The messages were the same as last time. The instance felt unchanged too—atmosphere, layout, all of it.
“Whoa! Anything could pop out here! So gloomy and creepy!”
Shae gushed excitedly, but when Kaya and I just walked silently, she deflated and shut up on her own.
“Captain.”
“Yeah.”
Traces remained, though. We cautiously inspected the bloodstains and surroundings. No corpse.
“No monsters when we came last time.”
“Then the heretics must've moved it.”
“Likely.”
“Ooh!”
As Kaya and I exchanged thoughts, Shae—who'd been quiet—poked her face between us and shouted gleefully.
“If you need tracking, leave it to me, Shae!”
“...Shae?”
“My eyes! My nose! And my touch!”
Not some cute idol act, Shae pointed to her eye, nose, then—randomly—her chest.
“All this is for gutting those moldy fucking heretic shits who deserve their eyes gouged, entrails yanked, hung and burned alive!”
“...”
“Hehe.”
Kaya: -4