Chapter 277
Chapter 277
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 277
Chapter Title: Rift, Ceres' Grudge #4
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Goddess Ceres.
The goddess who oversees the changing seasons and the harvest of grains and fruits. In this barbaric medieval world that hasn't yet escaped the framework of an agricultural society, the majesty and power of Goddess Ceres are immense.
From what I'd heard, most of the farmers—who make up a huge chunk of the population in this world—are devotees of Ceres.
As I mentioned before, the more followers a god has, the greater the temple's prestige, and the greater the temple's prestige, the loftier the gods' majesty becomes.
That's why Ceres wields tremendous power. About thirty years ago, she unleashed a winter that lasted for years and killed countless people.
Fuck, a goddess who slaughters people with the seasons.
Why the hell would she do that?
If it were me, I wouldn't believe in a god like that. In fact, after that endless winter, Ceres's cult shrank dramatically, and it's nothing like it used to be.
Her domain has fallen so far that it's dismissed like some dungeon. Temples to Ceres have been abandoned and left to ruin in many places.
Zuzzuzz—.
That's when I heard the sound of massive wings flapping from somewhere. My group—me, Vain, and the Amazon sisters—instinctively ducked our heads and hid among the thick clusters of flowers.
Buuung—.
A gigantic thing like a helicopter flew over our heads. Fuck, of course there are no helicopters in this world. It was a honeybee as big as my head.
Fuck, what kind of bee is that huge?
It's fucking insane.
Luna would've loved it. Not just Luna—my mom and dad would've been thrilled if they were here.
Still, a bee that big would sting like hell. So I just kept my head down, hoping they'd pass without causing trouble.
With flowers sprouting everywhere, hiding our bodies wasn't hard.
"Sis, the ground... the ground is smooshing my face."
"You threw yourself down there, Antiope. Damn, this stuff hits harder than I thought."
"But it's better than getting pollen all over us. Let's just wait until the bees pass."
We stayed prone like that for a while, and an ant crawled right in front of me.
Clack, clack.
Of course, it was as big as my forearm, so it looked plenty tough at a glance. I grabbed its waist and lifted it up.
Zzzi, zzuzzzi.
The massive ant just wriggled in my hand, trying to escape.
For its size, it wasn't that strong or aggressive. Maybe I should catch one and make it a playmate for Kongkong.
But raising ants and spiders together sounds like a hassle, so I gently set it back down.
Zzuz.
It waved its antennae at me a few times, like it was saying thanks for sparing it, then vanished into the distance somewhere.
Fuck, that was one huge ant.
A world full of insects the size of my arm. The dizzying floral scents were messing with my head, and everything started feeling hazy.
"Mr. Hassan, are you alright?"
Vain's voice from behind snapped me back to attention.
"A bit drowsy, but I'm fine."
"Falling asleep here would be the end of us. Let's crawl forward like this. Find the dungeon core and smash this whole space."
"The dungeon core?"
"There should be some special artifact, person, monster, demon—call it what you want—at the heart of this bizarre domain. Destroy it, and the dungeon collapses and vanishes."
Ah.
I'd heard plenty about dungeon cores before.
You could call it the central core that forms the dungeon. The Clefios staff I once held was probably one too. The dungeon started crumbling the moment I took it.
"Is there a relic here too?"
As I asked, Vain rustled up from behind.
"Probably not. According to the records, Theseus fought the guardian here, dealt it a mortal wound, and sealed the rift's entrance with a massive boulder. The core here is likely that guardian."
Guardian, huh.
Like a boss?
Not that thing over there, I hope.
Still prone, I slowly lifted just my head.
No one had mentioned it, but right in the center of this weird flower garden stood a fairly massive tree. And hanging from it, a beehive the size of a cabin.
The eerie buzzing from inside felt ominous to anyone.
"Is that beehive connected to the guardian?"
"Yes. The queen in that wasp hive is the guardian entrusted with this domain."
Fuck me.
Wasps, of all things.
Fuck this shithole world—I was already pissed that even here I had to deal with goddamn wasps. Those little shits. Rage bubbled up from deep inside me.
Buuung—.
But seeing those massive Pokémon-sized wasps buzzing around my head, my anger evaporated just like that. Fighting those fuckers would be crazier than setting a city on fire.
Let, let me go—! Let go—!
That's when I heard a weird voice.
"Hear that? Some kind of voice?"
"A voice? I only hear the bees' wings."
"No, I swear I just heard a voice."
I focused again.
Amid the chilling wind rustling the flowers, the buzzing wings everywhere, and the clacking footsteps of ants, I could clearly hear someone struggling and yelling.
I, I won't lose to you punks! Daughter of Rack, Kirri—how dare you! Let, let me go!
"Ugh, shit."
"Mr. Hassan, raising your head is dangerous—!"
I pushed myself up a bit. Looking up, I saw a grubby little kid thrashing around, clutched in the grip of a huge wasp. Black hair, tiny body. I knew that face.
Why the hell is that kid up there?
A million thoughts raced through my mind, but that wasn't important right now. Whatever it was, it looked extremely dangerous.
You, you bastards! Let go!
Buuuung.
The more she flailed and screamed, the more the flying wasps turned toward her. Several were already escorting her like an honor guard.
"Someone really is there. Who's that? Why the hell are they here?"
"Vice Vain, got any bright ideas? That kid's about to get killed by those bees!"
"No options right now. While their attention's on her, we stay hidden and push forward. It's actually a good break for us."
"Huh?"
"While they're distracted by her, we raid the hive."
Vice Vain's tone was ice cold. He meant to use the kid as bait to sneak past the wasps toward the hive.
"That kid—"
But Hippolytus, her buzz slightly worn off, frowned with her flushed face.
"It's that one from last night. Did intel leak? My oversight. I'll save her."
Then she stood up fully and bellowed.
"You bug bastards, the daughter of Mars, Hippolytus, is right here!"
Her shout was like thunder. Utterly fearless. Even the wobbly, drunk Antiope jolted upright in surprise.
"Sis, what? What's happening—!?"
"Damn, the booze was too weak after all. I knew daughters of Mars weren't cut out for stealth, but now we fight—!"
Buuung—.
Wasps dove toward us at ferocious speed. I jumped up too and drew my club.
"Take this, you fucking wasp shits!"
Truth be told, I'd been at my limit holding back my wasp rage. With solid backup here, I figured we'd avenge the honeybees and hives sacrificed to wasps and yelled.
Buuung—.
Suddenly, every goddamn wasp turned toward me?
"Wha, fuck is this?"
Buung, buuung.
Wasps the size of my head plastering my body—it was terror enough to make my legs give out.
"Take this, take this you fucks!"
Their scissor-like jaws and needle stingers assaulted me nonstop. It hurt so fucking bad tears welled up.
"You goddamn shits! Why only me!?"
Did I piss them off with my cursing?
Hippolytus taunted first—why the fuck were the wasps only after me? It was so unfair I got even angrier.
"Get off me, you fuckers!"
I ripped the wasps off my body with my gauntlet and stomped them. Pchak—.
But these giant wasp bastards had shells as tough as their size—no easy squashing.
"Ugh, uwaaa—!"
"Incredible—he's surrounded by Bashkir wasps and hasn't passed out from the venom. What resistance! Even elephants would drop dead from that dose!"
"No, fuck, stop admiring and do something!"
"Wait, they don't seem to be trying to kill you, Hassan. Let's observe a moment. No hostility from the wasps—."
That was the moment Hippolytus spoke.
Buuung—and suddenly my feet left the ground. The wasps had grabbed my limbs and were flying off, dragging me somewhere.
*
*
*
When I opened my eyes, it wasn't some horrific beehive.
An antique wooden chair. A carpet of deerskin—or maybe roe deer. A woman sat elegantly, legs crossed, gazing at me.
First thing I noticed: tall riding boots. Black and yellow patterns crisscrossing, like a wasp's rear.
Her gloves matched. A plain black dress covered her chest, and a small tiara on her forehead was studded with amber gems.
What the fuck. Queen bee?
Too many oddities for a queen bee. She wasn't even insectile. Short, neat yellow bob like a fairy, pointed ears peeking out—so probably—.
"Nymph?"
"Yes! That's right! I'm Doris, the honey nymph! Daughter of the great ocean too! And guardian of this bee domain!"
Honey nymph? What the fuck.
I'd heard of stream nymphs, ditch nymphs, sea nymphs—but honey nymph was a first. My head spun. Giant wasps buzzed in around her.
Situation made no sense, but one thing was clear: she controlled these swarms.
I gripped my club tight, ready to swing.
"You the one controlling the wasps?"
"Controlling? No! Bees are my friends! Honey nymphs are friends with nature! Allies in solidarity—!"
Doris the honey nymph yelled boldly at my question. I'd noticed from her first words: loud as hell.
Every sentence ended like an exclamation point. Her vocabulary felt a bit... lacking.
Is she slow or something?
Still, no hostility toward me. My wasp-honed wariness eased a tad.
Nymph who handles bees. Kinda cool. Fairies made golems from flowers and vines too.
Nymphs have innate affinity for nature and high mana, so druid stuff comes naturally. Makes them popular as materials.
"So, why'd you drag me here, nymph?"
"I don't know! That's what! We figure it out now!"
"What?"
"I must find the treasure Lady Ceres lost! And you're probably the one who has it!"
"What treasure?"
"No use playing dumb! This tiara Lady Ceres gave me—it's reacting to you big time!"
Doris pointed confidently at her tiara. But the vigorous gesture knocked it off, rolling across the floor.
Clang—. Roll roll.
The big gems embedded in it scattered.
"Br, broken!?"
Doris wailed. Wasps buzzed loudly.
Soon, giant honeybees appeared from somewhere, gathered the tiara and gems from the floor, glued them back with what looked like beeswax, and placed it neatly on Doris's head.
Wing wing.
What the fuck. What is this show for?
"All fixed! Anyway, suspicious black-haired guy! I saw you steal Lady Ceres's treasure! Hand it over!"
"What? Hand over what?"
"Thirty years ago—the treasure you tricked me and took! I got cursed for it and can't leave this place a step—! So all black-haired ones are prime suspects!"
Now I kinda got why that Samaritan brat on the ground got kidnapped by bees, and why they targeted only me.
Discriminated against by wasps because of my hair color!
Fuck that.