The Bird's Trap (10)

We, Aquaril and I, entered the C(+) grade dungeon .

'Haa... I'm so fucking nervous.'

Everything ahead of us, whether it was a person or a monster, was my enemy. And all of them were stronger ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠than Aquaril and me.

'I'm only taking the corpse of the Blood Axe King and leaving.'

Kanisia wanted to enter the dungeon alone because she couldn't give up the hope that the Blood Axe King was still alive.

This was the final gate to recruit her as my companion. After showing her that the Blood Axe King was dead, and claiming the part of her heart that belonged to him, she would become my ally.

'This woman is willing to risk her life for the Blood Axe King who may be dead or alive. If her heart turns to me instead...'

I would gain a powerful ally. This kind of gamble was worth taking.

"Aquaril. We're not going to fight the enemies. We'll sneak in and take only the Blood Axe King's corpse. The monsters and enemies that appear here are stronger than us. So, never think of fighting. Understand?"

"Understood, Master."

Before entering the dungeon properly, I explained our goal and precautions to Aquaril.

The dungeon was a cave-type cave dungeon, unlike the straight-path F and E grade dungeons, it had a complex structure with passages branching in all directions. Of course, it wasn't as complex as a maze-type dungeon, but if we got lost, we could still lose our way, so we had to be careful.

"Then let's go in. We'll move as quietly as possible."

"Yes. Um... but Master."

"Hm?"

"Does it really have to be this way?"

"What? What do you mean?"

I turned to Aquaril, and her dark blue eyes, filled with worry, looked at me.

"Frankly, I still don't understand why Master is risking your life for Lady Laura."

"Wha...?"

I was a bit startled by Aquaril's words. It wasn't that I didn't understand her; it was the first time she was questioning my actions.

Up until now, Aquaril hadn't questioned any of my commands or actions like other fairies. She followed my orders like a program coded to do so.

But this time, for the first time, she questioned my actions.

That was surprising, and at the same time, fascinating.

Aren't fairies supposed to just follow the master's orders?

'No, that's not it.'

From the moment they are summoned, fairies absolutely follow the master. Like a chick thinking the first thing it sees as its mother.

She questioned it, but Aquaril didn't refuse my orders.

What is this... perhaps a higher-level psychology?

'What the hell is this?'

I don't know either. I'm not a psychologist.

'Still...'

It's not bad.

Aquaril, who questions my actions, somehow feels more like a person than a fairy. Is that good?

"Um... To put it simply, I want to make Kanisia my companion."

"Companion... you mean?"

"Yeah. You know it too, but I'm different from other masters. I can steal the ownership of fairies from other masters."

She knows this fact. She is my first fairy and the first one whose ownership was stolen from her.

"So I can expand my power much faster than others. Others have only one way to secure fairies: summoning. But I have two."

"Correct."

"But even if I grow my power this way, I'll eventually hit a wall."

My enemies are currently too strong for me to face.

The 10-star monster [Uroboros] who used my life as a pretext to become my avatar, the Ferdium Empire which, while its prestige has diminished compared to the past, still possesses the strongest single force, and finally Palos's Bird who hides behind the noble cause of creating a world where all are equal and dreams of world conquest.

In addition, countless kings and queens were my enemies.

To stand shoulder to shoulder with them and even make them kneel at my feet, I need to possess a truly huge and massive force.

And that massive force cannot be secured just by increasing the number of fairies.

That's why other masters are necessary. Masters who will become my absolute allies like fairies.

"Fairies alone are not enough. I need masters who can grow on their own."

"Do you think Lady Laura is the master you need, Master?"

"Yeah. Didn't you see earlier? She entered the dungeon to save the Blood Axe King, who might be dead or alive. What if her heart turns not to the Blood Axe King but to me?"

"Hmm... I understand, Master."

"Really? Then..."

"Then, Master."

"Hm?"

Aquaril said to me with a determined face.

"Master, please go out of the dungeon."

"What?"

"Entering this place is too dangerous, even for Master. After all, you said the goal is the Blood Axe King's corpse, so I'll go in alone and bring out the corpse."

"....."

I stared blankly at Aquaril. So... does that mean I'm going to enter this dangerous place alone since I might die here?

"Aquaril."

"Yes, Master."

"You're so fucking sexy."

"What? Huh?"

Swoosh-!

Unable to contain the sudden lust, I grabbed Aquaril's face and kissed her. When I extended my tongue, her peach-colored lips automatically opened. Inside her mouth was soft, sweet flesh.

After the short kiss, I pulled away.

"... Master?"

"Return what you said earlier. Do you think I'm going to send you alone into this dangerous place? Never."

"But..."

"So, let's go together."

"....."

"If we go together, we can safely achieve our ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠goal and leave. So, let's go together. Understand?"

Aquaril's face turned red as if it would burst. Unlike usual, she couldn't meet my eyes. Eventually, she nodded her head.

"Yes..."

"Then let's go in."

"Ah..."

I held Aquaril's hand and entered deeper into the dungeon. Aquaril, whose hand I held, followed behind me.

Aquaril's hand was surprisingly warm.

*****

I focused all my nerves on my senses, especially hearing. Since the Blood Axe King is no ordinary person, I was sure to hear combat sounds.

Clang- clang- clang-!

"... Master."

"Yeah. I heard it too."

The sound of metal clashing came repeatedly from far away. I nodded my head to Aquaril's whisper from behind. We headed in the direction where the sound was coming from, together with her.

Clang-! Clang-!

The sound grew louder, and finally, I discovered people who were in the middle of a fierce battle. I hid behind a rock on the side of the passage. It was a large rock that could easily hide us two.

"Kyaaaaaaa!"

Clang-!

'This crazy Blood Axe King. He's still not dead?'

I clicked my tongue at the sight of the Blood Axe King swinging his axe at the enemies surrounded like a tiger surrounded by wolves.

It had been quite some time since he fell into the trap, yet he was still alive.

"Surrender, Lidia!"

"Huh!"

In addition, the appearance of his fairy Errita and Lidia was visible. They were protecting the back of the Blood Axe King who was fighting alone. Around them were corpses of dead people.

'Why is this crazy guy still alive? This bastard... if this continues, he'll really come out alive?'

The Blood Axe King, swinging his axe madly, didn't seem to have suffered a major injury. His clothes were soaked in blood, but all of it was the enemy's blood.

'By the way... I found it.'

Since I was hiding behind the rock, I could observe the situation. And I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠discovered a man watching the battle without participating in it.

The moment I saw them, I instinctively knew. They were elite sent by Palos's Bird to capture the Blood Axe King.

'Status Window.'

... Huh?

The man was not a master but a fairy. His master's name was Montblanc Kirios.

'If a fairy is in this place, the woman named Montblanc Kirios is naturally a member of Palos's Bird. And if she has a 4-star fairy... she must be an executive.'

I stored the name Montblanc Kirios in my mind. So that if I find a woman with the exact same name, I can recognize it.

'But... she's weaker than I thought?'

In the game, the Blood Axe King was 3-star, but in reality, it became 4-star. So I thought the elite sent by Palos's Bird would be at most 5-star, at the very end of 4-star.

But the hitman I actually faced was much weaker than I expected. Of course, even now, it's an enormous powerhouse that I can't even reach with my toes.

'Ah, that's it? Convenient?'

After thinking for a moment, I understood why this fairy was weaker than I expected.

Simply looking at the specs, that fairy with the name that reminds me of sausage is slightly stronger than the Blood Axe King. Higher level and higher stats.

Even in a perfect state, if the Blood Axe King and Haggis fight, Haggis would have the advantage. Moreover, the Blood Axe King is currently not fighting the dungeon monsters and enemies one after another?

The probability that Haggis wins is even higher.

So, there was no need to send a strong person according to my criteria.

Palos's Bird was not aiming only for this Chinnimoni. Even at this moment, they would be plotting to occupy other cities.

They wouldn't have the leeway to send strong masters or fairies to such a place. If they had leeway, they would have launched a full-scale war against the Ferdium Empire long ago.

In Palos's Bird, they judged that even a single Haggis, who is a bit stronger than the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Blood Axe King, would be enough to suppress him.

'What should I do...?'

My original plan was to secretly take only the Blood Axe King's corpse. But greed arose.

What if, according to the original scenario, I defeat that guy together with the Blood Axe King?

I could gain enormous experience.

My current level is 40, which is 26 levels lower than Haggis. I can at least expect to gain at least 7 levels. Then, after replenishing the potential I consumed this time, I would have 4 points left.

'But the Blood Axe King must die for Kanisia to become mine.'

Experience and Kanisia.

If I have to choose between the two, of course it's Kanisia. Experience can be obtained anytime by conquering dungeons.

But...

'Why is my throat burning?'

The greed to kill Haggis didn't subside at all. It was so intense that I wanted to kill that guy.

I repeated my worries.

I know that greed is a miserable thing.

According to the original plan, if Haggis kills the Blood Axe King, I can wait for a chance, take the corpse, and return to Kanisia. Moreover, it's not just my life on the line, but Aquaril's life as well, isn't it?

Yeah, let's do it according to the original plan.

Let's watch the Blood Axe King's death from here.

"... Haa."

Suddenly, a laugh came out.

'Do I really have to choose only one?'

After making the choice, the burning throat that was like swallowing sand finally calmed down.

'Even if my stomach bursts... even if I sew it up, I'll eat it all.'

I learned for the first time that I am this greedy a person.