Chapter 76: Virtually the Strongest in the World
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 76: Virtually the Strongest in the World
The ogre charged, swinging a massive club.
The wind pressure from the swing alone was incredible, but Rune blocked it effortlessly with her shield.
“Hup!”
Going a step further, she used a Shield Charge to break the ogre’s stance.
Even if she has the Dakuren bloodline, isn’t this impressive?
“Kwoooooooh—!”
Before the ogre’s kick could connect, I quickly grabbed Rune and pulled her back.
“Sever it!”
In that opening, Narupa used magic to deeply slash the ogre’s throat.
She said her specialties were delicate control and efficient spellcasting, and she wasn’t exaggerating. If it had been Resin, she would have blindly tried to sweep everything away with flames or large-scale area-of-effect magic.
“Two on the right!”
Diane called out the enemies’ positions while slightly hindering their movement with hidden weapons.
The rest was settled as I lightly burst their heads using Roar and Howling.
Once Diane signaled that there were no more enemies, Rune quickly checked her shield and shared her thoughts.
“The enemies are moving more systematically as we go. It’s annoying.”
“I didn’t expect commander-class monsters to appear as early as the 20th floor. If this were the Dakuren Dungeon, you’d only see this around the 30th floor. The dungeon’s rank has definitely increased.”
At Narupa’s comment, the furrow in my brow deepened.
I had moved because of a gut feeling and a sense of foreboding, but if Narupa, a veteran of the Dakuren Dungeon, could feel the difference, then our worries weren’t just paranoia.
“Alto… there’s one fewer commander monster than what I confirmed during our rest. It looks like another one moved to a lower floor.”
Diane’s report also made a sigh escape my lips.
“Haa… it’s definitely that woman…”
“Alto, who is it? Your sighs are increasing the deeper we go. Who is it? I’ll crush anyone who makes my Alto suffer.”
“Thanks, but focus on your whetstone, Rune. You’ll hurt your hand.”
“Are you worried about me?”
“Of course.”
“Hehe.”
Rune looked pleased at my simple concern.
But I really wish she wouldn’t look over here while sharpening her blade. She really might cut herself.
“Ah~ Alto, I used too much mana, and I’m feeling dizzy…”
“You only used it once!”
“Rune, do you have any idea how much precise and delicate control was required for that one time?”
“Good job, Narupa.”
I gave a wry smile and opened my arms, and both Narupa and Rune hugged me at the same time.
“Why are you hugging him too, Rune?”
“Alto’s embrace doesn’t belong to you alone, you know? Besides, I’m the primary wife. You should be grateful for my consideration.”
“Yes, yes~.”
They bicker, but they never truly fight.
Seeing them rubbing their cheeks against me while being held, I couldn’t help but think—
“I’m so happy.”
Rune happened to say exactly what I was thinking.
In the distance, I could see Diane looting the ogre, but I ignored her and hugged the two of them tighter.
A moment later, Narupa stretched and asked.
“Alto, if my husband’s guess is right, who is the final boss of this dungeon?”
“Oh, that?”
I suppose it’s okay to tell them now.
“One of the Four Heavenly Kings, Barion of Solitude.”
“…The Four Heavenly Kings?”
Compared to my casual answer, Rune took it heavily.
To be fair, the name of one of the Four Heavenly Kings isn’t something that comes up lightly.
“Can we clear it with just us?”
“Didn’t you say we could defeat any enemy?”
“The Four Heavenly Kings are a different story! Alto, you seemed to have noticed since we were at the Adventurer Guild, so why didn’t you tell us?”
“Hmm…”
Should I tell them this too?
“Anyway, once demons show up, the only ones who can handle them are the war veterans.”
“Wait a minute.”
As I shrugged, Narupa stood before me with a serious expression.
“If it really is Barion of Solitude, how do you plan to face her? What did you mean by that just now?”
“I’ll handle her alone.”
“What do you mean! We’re party members, we should fight together!”
“Right, that’s why I’m taking her on.”
Our Narupa has become quite the whiner like Rune since we became lovers.
It was cute how much she worried about me.
“You girls are my women. A man has to fight to protect his women.”
“What if Alto dies? Then we’ll be widows for the rest of our lives. We’ll live in mourning and resentment forever.”
I stroked Rune’s cheek as she blocked my path, tears streaming down her face.
“I won’t die.”
I couldn’t die even if I wanted to.
“Do you think I’d die and leave you behind?”
Besides, you wouldn’t let me die anyway.
Right?
You little hunting dog.
“Women who love me are rare. I have two such precious women, so there’s no way I’m dying.”
“Alto…”
Good grief, the two of them hugged me again.
All covered in tears.
I’m still not used to this.
It feels good and I’m happy, but I just can’t get accustomed to it.
It feels like more than I deserve.
And more than anything, they’re overreacting.
Because,
“Except for Vulcanus, the other Four Heavenly Kings are all pretty much the same.”
“Huh?”
“Eh?”
At my confident declaration, Rune could only blink.
“What do you mean, ‘the same’?”
“Uh… how should I put this…”
I scratched my chin, lacking the words.
But it’s the truth, so what can I do?
They’re weak.
At least, they’re weaker than me.
“If it’s one-on-one, I win every time.”
“Pardon?”
“What?”
“…?”
Rune, Narupa, and even Diane all had blank expressions.
An awkward silence lingered until Narupa finally managed to snap out of it.
“W-wait a second. I know about Barion of Solitude too. I’ve read in texts and heard from my father that she’s a battle maniac who seeks strength just as much as Vulcanus. And yet you’re saying you’d win?”
“That information is correct, but… hmm… something’s missing.”
“What is it?”
I don’t know why my mouth feels like it has brakes on it whenever I talk about this.
It’s because that old geezer kept telling me to watch my mouth right after the victory in the Final War.
He said if word got out, people from all over would covet me and make my life miserable.
“Well, first of all, if we’re talking about pure strength… in the Final War, except for Vulcanus, all of the Four Heavenly Kings were defeated by me before that.”
That Vulcanus woman is an exception because she didn’t just retreat; she was defeated and died.
“And that woman Barion, what Narupa said is true, but it’s subtly different.”
“Alto, I’m sorry for pestering you, but could you please tell us what’s different?”
Even Rune was rushing me.
I had dragged it out too long.
Since my thoughts weren’t organized, I decided to list them one by one.
Alright, here’s the premise.
“It’s true that Barion is a battle maniac.”
And then the evidence.
“But she’s only crazy about battles she knows she can win.”
“Huh?”
Another premise.
“It’s also true that she seeks strength.”
The evidence for that.
“But she seeks strength because she wants to fight more battles where she wins, so she doesn’t hesitate to play dirty.”
Those dirty tricks are a variable, but they don’t work on me.
Because, just like with Yobeste, I just ignore everything, take it with my body, and plunge my dagger right in.
Narupa, who looked like she wanted to argue but couldn’t find the words, asked a question.
“That… that doesn’t seem to add up. If she seeks strength, why would she resort to dirty tricks?”
“Ah~.”
This is also hard to explain.
After resting my chin in my hand and organizing my thoughts for a long time, I was finally able to answer.
“Basically, Barion just loves winning. Her weakness is that she looks down on her opponents, so if she lets her guard down and finds herself in danger of losing, she’ll use any means or method necessary just to come out on top.”
“For example?”
“Throwing sand in your eyes is a daily occurrence, and she’s good at taking hostages. She uses poison, too.”
“Wait, wait, wait!”
Narupa clutched her head as if she were in shock.
“What is going on? I knew Alto Bertrand was incredible, but it’s only known that he held off Vulcanus single-handedly. I’ve never heard that you faced all of the Four Heavenly Kings and beat them all!”
“Oh, that?”
I’m really doing a lot of explaining today, which isn’t like me.
“I didn’t attend the first Victory Commemoration Ceremony.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“So the King and the nobles got sulky. They announced that someone like me existed, but they glossed over exactly what I did. They couldn’t gloss over Vulcanus because she was the highlight of the Final War. It’s also famous because it was a ‘Humans vs. the Demon King and the Four Heavenly Kings’ setup.”
It felt embarrassing, like I was praising myself.
A person should be humble.
Rune’s mouth was hanging wide open, and Diane was quietly sitting nearby, listening intently.
Is Diane not working?
“Alto, I have something I’m curious about…”
“What is it, Narupa?”
“If, just if.”
“Yeah. It’s okay, tell me.”
As I accepted with a smile, Narupa took a deep breath.
Her expression shifted from an awkward smile to a serious one, changing by the second, before she took one more deep breath and spoke.
“I heard that the two Heavenly Kings ambushing the right wing was an impulsive move by Vulcanus.”
“That’s right. She came tearing through from the left wing looking for me.”
“Then, if everything had gone according to the human army’s original plan and the left wing only had to deal with one Heavenly King, what would have happened after that?”
That was a question I hadn’t expected at all.
Because of that, the central command, including the old geezer, had argued back and forth incessantly during the Final War.
But in the end, there was only one set policy and strategy.
“If Vulcanus had been somewhere else and only one Heavenly King had come to the left wing—to the formation where the Four Heroes and the Bertrand Unit were…”
The command chose a swift resolution.
By escorting the Four Heroes to the Demon King in one fell swoop.
How?
“Janks and I would have killed that Heavenly King quickly, and I would have taken the lead to go face the Demon King along with the Four Heroes.”
By putting me at the very front as the vanguard.
Saying it out loud made me feel quite bitter.
“When I’m with the old man, I often say it out of habit. That I should have died back then.”
If… just if…
“Because I was originally destined to die along with the Demon King.”
If I had reached the Demon King as well, maybe the Four Heroes wouldn’t have had to die?
It was a ‘what if’ born of regret, spoken without even knowing the Demon King’s true power…
But I really shouldn’t have said that last part.
Rune immediately scolded me, joining forces with Narupa to give me a piece of their minds.
They said if that had happened, they never would have met me and would have grown old and died as spinsters.
I could only say I was sorry.
That was the only thing I could say to my lovers, who were crying so sorrowfully.