Chapter 239
Chapter 239
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 239
Chapter Title: At the End of Summer #1
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Long ago, I thought this dark, damp cave—and the rats scurrying around it, along with the venomous snakes and scorpions—were utterly horrifying.
"Sber, you've finally escaped the darkness."
But after flailing around in the pitch-black silence of Erebos's domain just moments ago, this dim cave was nothing I couldn't endure.
Of course, that didn't mean it was safe.
Grrr...
Unlike the silent abyss, this cave was its own ecosystem. The beasts' cries echoing from beyond those stalactites, combined with the thudding footsteps, were more than enough to heighten the tension.
In the end, I hadn't been able to close the rift in the abyss.
Still, I'd rescued Delphina's entire party, and we'd all returned to the surface without anyone dying or suffering serious injuries. That alone was enough to be satisfied with.
I hoisted Hippolyte and Elfride, one on each shoulder, and said,
"Let's find a way out quick, Antiope. Pick up some of the ones who are down."
"U-Uh, y-yeah, sure... I will. Yep. I'll do it!"
Ever since we'd escaped the abyss and that bizarre furnace room, Antiope had seemed strangely unable to calm down.
She was probably still in a panic from the people we'd met in that room, unable to keep her wits about her. She'd been through enough ordeals to shatter anyone's mind, after all.
But there was no room for panic in a place like this, where unknown dangers lurked. So I had no choice but to prod her along, even though she looked a bit dazed.
"Get it together."
And so Antiope and I each slung one fallen person over an arm and our backs, then started moving.
Of course, since we didn't know the way out, we were just going blindly. But the uphill slopes that kept appearing suggested we were definitely heading toward the surface.
"Um, th-that Hassa... sir."
"What."
Antiope suddenly switched to awkward formal speech.
Even after learning my true identity, she'd often teased me by bringing up my dark history of calling myself a god. So she was probably trying to mess with me now, too.
Teasing people even in a situation like this?
"Um, th-that thing..."
"What are you trying to say now?"
"Th-that stuff I said before... it was all just joking around, right...?"
Zing-.
Her words brought back memories from a very distant past.
Back when I was still in elementary school. I was often the target of bullying from girls my age. They'd pinch me or punch me whenever they saw me—straight-up school violence.
And when I started to get mad, they'd turn it around: "Hey, it was just a joke! Why react so seriously?" making me out to be some weirdo who couldn't take a prank.
A joke, huh!
To the bullies, it was always just a joke.
Of course, I didn't just take it lying down.
One day, to get revenge on a girl who was tormenting me, I climbed onto the teacher's desk—in my indoor shoes—while she was responsible for cleaning it.
At that moment, I was Todd Anderson himself, rejecting the unfair school system by stepping onto the desk.
O Captain! My Captain!
What the hell are you doing?!
I can still vividly remember that girl, her face flushed red as she stared at the spotless desk, not knowing what to do.
What stuck with me even more was the conversation that followed.
Hey, Hassan! Why'd you step on my cleaning spot!
I'm cleaning the stairs, and you step on them every day.
Wha...?
It was my hidden counterpunch, my masterstroke.
Unable to argue back, the girl trembled and burst into tears. I got in trouble with the teacher, and when I got home, my mom punished me too.
Young as I was, I couldn't understand why I—the victim—was being treated like the perpetrator, the bad guy.
Was this what it meant to become the abuser as the victim?
Had I become a monster myself to fight monsters?
It was a kind of epiphany.
My thoughts raced like a swift current, impossible to pin down, until they reached a conclusion—like lightning striking my mind.
And the conclusion I arrived at?
Maybe that girl actually liked me.
Back in elementary school, I'd been too focused on the bullying to notice. What if she was picking on me because she liked me?
It was plausible enough in those shy, elementary school days when kids couldn't express themselves well.
And maybe Antiope teasing and tormenting me was because she liked me too?
No, that was probably taking it too far. Antiope wasn't in elementary school anymore.
She was just the type who enjoyed tormenting people by nature.
Most people in this godforsaken world were like her—pouncing on weaknesses, biting down, and shaking relentlessly without letting go.
Take Elfride, for example. She'd tormented me plenty and even pinched me sometimes.
Sber, I almost got swept up in those weird thoughts and asked Antiope, "Hey, do you like me or something-?"
That would've filled another slot in my dark history notebook, probably keeping me up at night kicking off the covers.
I'd saved my future self.
"Um, th-that Hassa... sir."
Right then, Antiope called out to me again. She was clearly toying with me right now, manipulating my emotions for fun.
Getting me mad, toying with my feelings, reveling in her superiority—that rotten personality of hers.
My emotions are mine alone.
"Don't make me mad, Antiope."
"Eek, h-heh, y-yes, sir-!"
"I said don't make me mad. You're doing it on purpose, aren't you?"
"Wh-what are you talking about...?"
"You've been using formal speech with me this whole time."
"Ah... Um, uh, aaah... Ah, ah-! Aaaah!"
For some reason, she let out a bizarre noise like a novice opera singer practicing scales.
"So that's the setup. Got it. Yeah, it was all a test. I almost fell for it. No way. I'm Antiope, your left arm! I saw right through that!"
She rambled incoherently. I had no idea what she was saying, but she probably spent too long in the abyss—her head seemed a bit addled.
At least she'd gotten the message not to tease or torment me anymore. Firm communication really was key.
Grrr...
It was right then.
A strange cry echoed from up ahead in the cave.
"Hassan—! Something's up ahead!"
Antiope set the White Roses on her shoulder down and drew her short spear.
"Leave it to me! I'll handle it!"
She was suddenly brimming with enthusiasm. Which was great for me.
No matter how strong the monsters in this valley's mid-layers were, Antiope could take care of them easily.
Grrr...
The monster that emerged from the darkness was a massive beast made entirely of white bones.
"A b-bone wyvern!? A thing that only shows up in the land of death—why is it here!?"
Antiope panicked at the sight, but I lit up with joy at the monster before me.
"Y-You damn Agumon!"
"Hassan!"
"Hassan-sir, your Paranoi has arrived...!"
Somehow, Luna and Paranoi were riding on its back. The fatigue from moments ago melted away. Relief washed over me, but at the same time, a sharp question poked like a awl in my pocket.
"What are you two doing here? What's going on?"
"We came looking for you!"
"You were looking for me? Why?"
"Because you'd been gone for ten days since entering the abyss! Anyway, glad you're safe!"
Ten days.
According to Luna, ten days had passed since we'd entered the abyss. Both Antiope and I were stunned.
Even including the hardships getting to the cave entrance, I'd figured it'd been half a day at most—maybe one or two days tops. But ten days had passed outside?
Was that even possible?
"I'd heard time flows differently in Erebos's abyss. It's real. Ah, ten days already. I didn't even contact the knight order. What if they think I deserted?"
Antiope stomped her feet anxiously.
She had her own social life, after all. Vanishing for ten days without word would naturally freak her out.
"The city's in an uproar over your disappearances right now! You should head back ASAP!"
Luna's words had us all in agreement.
I could manage, but adventurers like Antiope and Hippolyte had a lot of eyes on them in the city.
News of their disappearance could spark all sorts of incidents.
"Hey, Paranoi, get down. We need to load these people up."
"D-Do I have to get down...?"
"Luna, you too. Everyone off. Let's carry these folks out."
We loaded the fallen onto the bone wyvern and Agumon's backs.
But perhaps wary of the undead growling, Antiope muttered offhandedly,
"Still, you tamed a bone wyvern somehow. They're notoriously vicious. Wyverns are rare even among undead."
"No idea! It just started following us! We met you because we were riding it."
"You're talking about a bone wyvern like it's a stray cat you picked up."
"Heh heh, it's all thanks to my diligent faith...!"
Grrr...
Agumon's blue eyes turned to me. But something felt different from when I'd met it before.
Like the link connecting us had snapped.
In game terms, it was like our mutual friend status had been reset.
Probably because that white-robed man had forbidden necromancy.
I'd have to test it outside, but right now, I probably couldn't use necromancy anymore.
Yet the necromancy that revived Agumon seemed intact. Since I'd released it into the wild after creating it, maybe it'd gained some independence?
At any rate, it wasn't hostile toward me or my acquaintances Luna and Paranoi, which was a relief.
We all followed behind the wyvern toward the surface.
"Whew, we're alive, at least."
"Aaah—!"
As we climbed the uphill path out, Paranoi screamed. Wondering what was up, I saw it'd twisted its ankle on the uneven ground.
"M-My ankle hurts...!"
"You're so unstable you can't even walk properly."
In the end, I had to carry Paranoi on my back. The thing thrashed its arms and legs excitedly behind me.
"This ride feels great...!"
"Hey, it's heavy—settle down."
I seriously considered just tossing Paranoi onto the bone wyvern like luggage. As I debated internally,
"Everyone says Hassan-sir is missing, but I believed you'd conquer the abyss and return...! I'm your right arm...!"
But it wasn't me who responded—it was Antiope.
"Impressive, calling yourself the right arm. I almost fell for it and failed the test. You knew from the start? I thought you were just a dumb nymph— that was acting too?"
"Foolish knight order! Finally recognizing my worth—you've got a long way to go...! That's why it'll take ten more years to be called Hassan-sir's left arm, no, top devotee...!"
"Damn—! I didn't realize this was a test too! Are you secretly some amazing nymph?"
"You figured it out? Not bad—you've got potential. From now on, treat me with respect as your senior...!"
Antiope and Paranoi were getting along surprisingly well. So I dumped Paranoi from my back onto Antiope.
As the two chattered away, Luna asked me curiously,
"What are they on about? The abyss mess with their heads too much?"
"No clue."
"More importantly, Hassan, you still have the doll I gave you?"