Chapter 64
Chapter 64
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Trapped Alone with Ariana in the Underground Cave
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"Hah... Hah..."
The earth dragon began crawling across the ground toward me. I had just enough stamina left to reach that exact spot. I was finally hitting my limit.
My head was spinning. Probably because of that red-headed snake bite earlier—the whole world was whirling around. But I couldn't afford to collapse. I trusted Ariana.
Not yet. Not yet.
I still hadn't reached that point right next to the burrow. I had to lure the earth dragon there and make the ground collapse.
"Ngh."
A pack of black anacondas appeared right in front of me out of nowhere. The moment despair hit me—Am I going to die?—a brilliant light suddenly flooded the area.
This was... holy power.
Ray must have awakened as a saintess.
The powerful wave of holy power drained the black anacondas of their strength, sending them crumbling to the ground. They were vulnerable to it as magical beasts.
Rooooaaarrr!!!!
But the earth dragon didn't fall. Still, I could see it had weakened from the holy power's influence. Thanks to that, I seized my chance.
"Raaah!!!"
I exploded forward, surging power into my faltering legs.
I reached the spot beside the burrow. At the same moment, the earth dragon closed in on me.
Grraaah?!
The earth dragon plummeted into the ground along with the earth itself. Fortunately, the collapse stopped just short of me. The terrain under the earth dragon's feet gave way, and it tumbled underground.
"Daron!"
"Hah, hah. Lady Ariana."
Ariana walked over after completing her mission of weakening the ground.
"I took a quick look at the cave below. There were sharp stalagmites jutting upward like spikes. It'll probably die soon after getting impaled on them."
"That's a relief—"
Huh?
"Darooon!!!!"
Darkness swallowed everything in an instant.
Oh.
The ground beneath my feet had collapsed too. As I fell, I caught a glimpse of Ariana above on the surface. Without hesitation, she threw herself down to grab me—even though she might die too. She'd leaped into the depths for my sake.
I remembered how immense the drop looked when the earth dragon fell. There'd been an underground river down there too, so maybe we'd survive the impact if we landed in it.
But hitting water from this height would still hurt like hell.
"Daron!!!"
Ariana was drawing closer bit by bit. We still hadn't made contact. I looked up at her falling toward me from above. My consciousness was fading fast.
Oh.
I still needed to deal with the poison.
The faint image of Ariana calling my name as she reached for me grew dimmer.
Just as her hand barely brushed mine, I blacked out completely.
Some time had passed since the earth dragon plummeted deep underground. Princess Asabel regrouped her forces, eliminated the remaining black anacondas, and returned to the forest's center.
The results of the battle she'd witnessed firsthand were astonishing. A hole so deep its bottom was barely visible. At a glance, she could see the earth dragon lying dead inside.
This had to be the plan devised by that soldier named Daron. Asabel couldn't help but reevaluate his abilities even higher. She had no idea exactly how he'd pulled it off, but no one else here would have ever thought of something like this.
"Your Highness. As you instructed, we've captured the two demons inside the cave. They're securely restrained."
"We'll take them back to the imperial palace, so keep a close watch on them."
"Yes, ma'am."
"More importantly..."
They'd eliminated all the magical beasts and uncovered demons as the culprits behind them. They'd even captured the pair alive. Success was undeniable up to that point.
But there was one massive problem.
"Is there truly no way to find them?"
The two heroes responsible for this victory had vanished. No matter how hard they searched, Ariana and Daron were nowhere to be seen. If they couldn't be found in the forest, that meant they were down there in the depths.
"Tracking the Knight Commander's mana isn't easy either. The area below is full of mana stones, so mana detection isn't working properly."
The mana emanating from the stones was masking Ariana's own mana.
"Do I really have to go down there myself?"
"It's too deep. We don't have the manpower to descend right now."
"Do you think... they're still alive?"
"The earth dragon fell, and the two of them went down with it. And since the ground kept collapsing afterward... even Commander Ariana..."
The mage trailed off, unable to finish. Tears welled up as they faced the loss of a knight they revered. It was improper to show such grief before the princess, but Asabel paid it no mind as she stared into the vast, deep pit.
Even if they'd survived the initial fall, the continuous collapses would have buried them under an avalanche of earth and stone from above.
"Zero chance of survival?"
"Yes..."
"We've lost such valuable talents."
"Hey! Don't jump to conclusions like that!"
A woman suddenly interrupted Asabel and the mage's conversation.
"Fuck! Who said they're dead? We need to figure out a way to find them, don't we?"
"How insolent!"
As Ray approached, arguing heatedly, the knights moved to restrain her.
"Do I still look like some commoner to you? Quit being dense and shut the hell up, will you?"
"I-Insolent."
"Fuck off, I said!"
Ray, now a saintess, had no reason to tolerate such treatment anymore. As a saintess, she'd receive honors even above the princess's. But Ray wasn't happy about her awakening at all. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying nonstop, her thoughts consumed by Daron.
"Saintess. Please compose yourself."
"Princess! They're saying Daron's dead right now—how am I supposed to stay calm?!"
Ray had no sense of decorum.
"You heard it earlier. Survival odds are low, and we have no way to search now. I regret Daron's death too, but..."
"Cut the bullshit! Who's dead?!"
Ray shouted with unwavering conviction.
"Daron's alive! I guarantee it as the saintess!"
This wasn't mere whining.
Before parting with Daron, Ray had placed a small measure on him out of worry. Using the holy power trickling into her, it was like an imprint that let her sense his condition.
Truth be told, it was just an experiment, so she wasn't sure how accurate it was. But it gave her hope that it was still attached.
"Ragelot."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Send word to the imperial family. Request personnel capable of searching the mana stone-filled cavern below for those two."
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Saintess. We'll try as you say. But not right now."
"I... know."
Reinforcements might arrive tomorrow, or the day after—who knew? And even if they did, the search wouldn't end quickly. Finding Daron and Ariana would take time.
Daron...
She couldn't imagine life without him. Whether she became a saintess or not didn't matter.
She'd just unleashed a burst of holy power, and it would take time to recharge. She wanted to rush down there blindly, but Ray still didn't know how to wield her holy power precisely enough to find him. Besides, as the "saintess," the knights were blocking her path. Protecting the saintess was only natural.
Ray prayed Daron would make it through safe and sound.
I opened my eyes.
A bluish glow and a jagged ceiling came into view.
For now... I'm alive?
Slurp. Sluuurp.
More importantly... something felt off.
Smack. Sluuuuurp.
Someone was sucking on the inside of my thigh, right below my cock. Thinking it might be a snake, I strained to lift my head and check. What I saw was astonishing.
"Ah... Lady Ariana?"
Slurp? Pwah— Da, Daron!
Ariana pulled her mouth away from the inside of my thigh, her face lighting up with immense relief. Her eyes were misty—not sweat, probably tears.
"I thought you were gone. Sniff... I'm so glad you're okay."
"What are you— Ngh."
"Don't move. I was sucking out the poison."
I remembered the red snake bite.
"Hasn't it been a while, though? I don't know how long I've been out, but..."
"About an hour. I blocked the poison right away. When we fell into the burrow, I used my mana to keep it from spreading. I've almost got it all out now."
"Hngh."
A groan escaped my lips naturally. Even though it was my inner thigh, Ariana sucking on my body like that was way too erotic. With my pants off and only my underwear left, it felt just like foreplay.
Sluuurp. Slurp. Hm?
Poke.
My cock hardened straight up and prodded her cheek.
Hmph, slurp.
Ariana resumed sucking the poison from my thigh. Her next actions felt so natural. She tugged down my underwear and pulled out my cock. It sprang free like a coiled spring, and she seemed slightly startled by its size, but she stayed focused on my thigh.
After about five more minutes of sucking my thigh, Ariana finally pulled away. She spat, and out came the blackish liquid with it.
"Phew... That should get all the poison out."
"Thank you."
My legs were still stiff. But feeling was returning, and I could move them a little, so they'd probably recover fully soon. That was close. Honestly, I'd thought my odds of dying were way higher than surviving. But Ariana had grabbed me, landed us safely, and stopped the poison from spreading—saving my life.
"More importantly..."
"Yes?"
"This area's really swollen too."
"You mean my cock?"
"I'll... suck it dry for you♥."
No trace of shyness on her face—just the look of a lustful woman. And in those deep, smoldering eyes burned a passionate flame of desire for me.