Chapter 172
Chapter 172
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: Behemoth - 6
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A pillar of light came crashing down. There was a deafening boom—Kwaaang!
‘……?’
And that was it.
There was no blinding flash that could sear the eyes, no force powerful enough to blow the mansion’s ceiling sky-high, no clouds scattering in every direction from the heavens.
It was just a pillar of light, roughly the size of a wooden stake, descending from a middling height with the exact same effect as it had in the game. And then it was over.
Nix’s carved wooden statue had indeed been shattered, but the surrounding area wasn’t left in ruins. In fact, only that one statue had crumbled away, falling far short of the destructive power he’d expected.
‘So that leaves two possibilities.’
The first was that the blessings from the popes had played a role, but only as a one-time effect.
If the blessings had temporarily skyrocketed my level of divine power, only for the duration to expire shortly after, it would make perfect sense.
‘It’s not a perfect fit, but…….’
I still didn’t know exactly what effects those papal blessings had.
For one thing, it was a concept that had never appeared in the game, and I hadn’t received any proper explanation about them.
On top of that, hadn’t some strange power intervened during the boss fight against the forsaken creation of the gods? And that had been before I received any blessings from the popes.
‘Still, it’s worth testing out.’
I added another item to my mental to-do list. Head to the Holy Kingdom and get blessed by the popes again.
The method involved deep kissing, which was a bit awkward, but I wouldn’t lose out on anything. Honestly, I didn’t hate it. It just pricked at my conscience a little.
‘The second possibility…….’
The second was that this strange power only activated against real enemies.
Simple enough. Nix’s wooden carving wasn’t a real enemy, so it didn’t react, but Behemoth was, so it did. Another perfectly viable option.
Unlike the first, this one would be easy to verify. I could just find any random enemy, stand in front of them, and try using my special ability.
If it didn’t trigger on regular foes, I’d seek out a demon. And if it still didn’t work on demons, then I’d worry about it later.
“Come on out, Nix.”
I gripped the Wingless Nightmare in one hand again and called for her. Now I just had one more test to run.
“Keeheehee. Got it.”
Nix peeked out from behind the tree, showing only her face and chest, then came scampering over with her usual creepy, weird laugh.
Her chest bounced massively in time with her running steps. It was enough to make you wonder if her clothes might fly off.
Her top was cropped short with a deep plunging neckline, and her hot pants had an oddly large cutout—both outfits precarious in their own way.
Nix skidded to a stop right beside me. Her chest kept jiggling for several beats after her legs had stopped.
“Just one more to go.”
I drew the divine catalyst from my belt. It was the same one I’d used in the Behemoth boss fight.
I brought the catalyst right up to the crossguard of the Wingless Nightmare and thrust it upward. As my faith drained away, a sun took root in the blade.
I was fine, but Nix squinted and shielded her eyes from the glare. I pulled her behind my back. She let out a creepy “keeheehee” laugh as she wrapped her arms tightly around my waist.
It was a back hug with an unusual amount of strength in her arms.
‘I can kind of see why.’
I immediately understood from the heavy pressure against my lower back. She had to squeeze hard just to hold on properly because of her chest. Even now, her arms were trembling.
Clearing my throat awkwardly at that brutal truth, I brought the divine catalyst back to the Wingless Nightmare. And I began the chant exactly as before.
This time, though, it wasn’t a solar eclipse—it was a lunar one. That way, it’d be easy to confirm the enchantment had layered on.
The radiant sun shifted to a clear full moon. The golden glow vanished completely, replaced by soft moonlight leaking from the blade, casting faint shadows.
Perhaps because it was moonlight instead of sunlight, it wasn’t as blinding this time. Nix peeked her head out from under my left armpit.
I brought the divine catalyst to the Wingless Nightmare once more. Just like always, I pressed it against the crossguard and slid it up along the blade’s edge—but what lingered in the sword was still moonlight.
The solar eclipse hadn’t triggered.
Which meant my faith had hit rock bottom.
‘My stats haven’t inflated without me knowing.’
From that result, it was clear my faith or divine power stats hadn’t exploded in some hidden surge.
If my divine power had grown that much, my faith should have refilled at a ridiculous rate. With this final possibility ruled out, the cause of the phenomenon remained a complete mystery.
All I’d gained was a bunch more things to investigate, and nothing concrete.
“Alright, Nix. You can come out now. Testing’s done.”
Nix nodded from under my armpit and released her hold on my waist. She stretched languidly, exposing her armpit. It felt like watching a small animal.
She really was pretty short, after all.
I sheathed the Wingless Nightmare at my belt too. The blade’s faint moonlight vanished into the scabbard. Nix looked up at me with a creepy smile.
“What should I do now? Just keep waiting here?”
Her slender finger pointed to the massive treehouse. That was where she lived.
At first, I’d been shocked to hear she lived in a makeshift hut, but when I actually visited, it was so far beyond “makeshift” that I was even more surprised.
No exaggeration—it was so well-built that most people would happily live there for the rest of their lives. It had everything a house needed.
According to Nix, the battle nuns had helped a lot.
‘Though I’m guessing they did it because of me…….’
Whoever it was, they seemed to have some connection to me, so they’d naturally treated her with respect. It was similar to the case with the Ebony Nocturne Knights.
For the record, Nix using black magic didn’t mean she’d be branded a heretic. Despite the name, it had no ties to demons.
The reason it was called black magic was simply that it consumed the user’s life force along with their mana. Pure mana use was regular magic; adding life force made it black magic.
“Probably? If I have to leave here, I’ll let you know. Then you can take our kids and head back to the castle. I’ve got some other stops to make.”
Nix nodded with a creepy grin. I patted her head.
As I watched her beam goofily, a battle nun approached from afar. I pulled my hand away from her head. Nix’s face fell instantly.
“I greet the esteemed guest.”
The battle nun bowed ninety degrees as soon as she reached me. Her chest, unable to withstand its own weight, swung heavily downward.
“What’s up? Did the Heresy Inquisitor or Interrogator ask you to pass on a message?”
The battle nun shook her head vigorously.
“A knight in silver armor from the imperial palace is looking for you, so I came to inform you.”
“Really?”
The arrival was way later than expected.
It had been three days since I sent the letter, and for someone to show up only now—considering Kaisilia’s personality—meant she’d dragged her feet quite a bit.
And it was surprising that Kaisilia hadn’t come herself but sent a subordinate knight instead. Given the interest she’d shown me, her showing up personally wouldn’t have been odd at all.
Especially since demons had appeared in this incident.
“You’ll stay put while I go meet them, right, Nix?”
I stroked the nodding Nix’s head a few more times as she grinned creepily, then headed toward the city. The battle nun followed quietly behind me.
As we walked toward the city, a sudden curiosity struck me, and I glanced back.
“You said a knight from the palace came earlier—who was it?”
I had a rough guess about the knight’s identity. It was just a confirmation question.
“She asked not to tell you her name. Just to mention the silver armor and leave her identity as a surprise for when you meet. But if you insist, I can certainly tell you. Shall I?”
Leave the identity as a pleasure for after the meeting.
It was an unexpected request, but precisely because of that, it made her identity even easier to guess.
Among the captains of the Silver Dawn Knights, only Lise or Claudia would make such a playful ask—and Claudia wouldn’t come without Lise tagging along, so only one remained.
Even if Claudia insisted on coming, Lise wouldn’t let her.
“Nah, it’s fine. If she went that far, it’d be rude to spoil it beforehand. I’ll see for myself.”
“Understood.”
‘Her personality hasn’t changed a bit.’
Half expectant, half anxious, I entered the city. I wondered what surprise she’d prepared this time to call it such a “pleasure.”
And then, I met an unexpected figure.
Long silver hair cascaded down to her thighs, swaying behind her. Silver eyes, just like her hair, gazed at me with a faint smile.
She wore a white sleeveless top and silver dolphin shorts. Her long, slender thighs extended below the shorts, and even beneath the thin white fabric, her braless chest rose prominently as ever.
“……Iris?”
It was Iris.
Iris gave a barely perceptible quirk of her lips and waved at me. I waved back and walked over to her side.
From her outfit, it looked like she’d left her armor somewhere.
“What brings you here? Where’s Lise? I figured it had to be her since they said a knight in silver armor from the palace.”
Iris smirked at my question.
“You’re half right, Delta. Lise was originally supposed to come.”
“Originally?”
“She had other business come up. So I came in her place.”
“For that reason? I can already imagine her reaction.”
“She was about to die of frustration.”
“Figured as much.”
We both laughed, facing each other.
Maybe because she’d regained all her former honor and status, Iris had become far more approachable than when we first met. Enough that we could laugh like this together.
“How’s palace life? Managing okay?”
“I wouldn’t call it comfortable. If we’re just talking comfort, staying with Lady Aurora was far better. But this is a matter of honor, so I can’t complain.”
“Good to hear you’re doing well. How’s Lise?”
“You’ll have to comfort her a lot in bed when you see her next. Seems her stress isn’t getting properly relieved.”
“Ah.”
I instantly caught what Iris meant.
In short, pent-up frustration. The reason she specifically mentioned “bed” was obvious.
“……What about Claudia and Erika? They doing alright too?”
“Of course they are. So don’t worry about us. If anything, I’d like to hear what you’ve been up to, Delta.”
“Well, as you can see.”
I glanced at the battle nuns. Even as we walked, they sent reverent gazes my way. Iris nodded without a flicker in her expression.
“I figured you’d pull something like this, Delta. You always did the most outlandish things.”
Her silver eyes began to grow distant, so I shot back in disbelief.
“We haven’t even been apart for a full month yet, right? You sound like you’re reminiscing about something from a decade ago.”
“Naturally. The time we spent together was short, but it carved itself deep between us all the same.”
“……Huh?”
Stunned by the unexpected words, I blurted out a double-take. Iris seemed to realize what she’d said, stammering and visibly flustered.
It must have slipped out unconsciously. Which meant it was probably her true feelings.
“So, what brings you here? Wait, no—I can guess. The demon, right?”
Iris looked so fidgety that I smoothly changed the subject, pretending not to notice. Catching my intent, she eagerly shifted gears.
“Spot on, Delta. His Imperial Majesty heard you took down a demon and sent an imperial decree personally.”
Iris carefully held out an ornate letter she’d kept floating nearby, offering it with both hands. It seemed treated with special magic.
I accepted it with both hands too. Knowing even Kaisilia had opted for a decree instead of coming herself made me more apprehensive about its contents.
“It’s your call to check it, Delta.”
I cautiously untied the string around the letter. The tightly rolled parchment unfurled on its own.