Silent Prayer in the Abyss
Nia stared at Luke, her face flushed red.
But whether Nia liked it or not, Luke was positively beaming inside.
*Wai see. This girl is something else. Still, snagging Nia is a million times better than I expected. No more worries about damage from now on.*
Finally, among the Eight Talents, he had secured Nia.
One of the Eight Calamities—the Calamity of the Single Sword, Nia, who rivaled anyone in martial prowess.
Nia’s defining trait was her short stamina, but when she unleashed her burst damage, it was catastrophic.
In the game, that single burst had been enough to one-shot moving targets.
No wonder she’d earned the nickname instant-death bomber.
“How about it? Come with us, Nia.”
Luke offered a faint smile, and Nia naturally lowered her head a little.
She was withdrawn for a moment, then lifted her chin and spoke cautiously to Luke.
“I understand…”
As she said it, her gaze drifted somewhere.
There, in the direction of her eyes, stood the Riana Family—four other children.
“Ah.”
Only then did Luke understand what had been weighing on Nia’s mind.
The Riana Family. She was clearly worried about them.
“Hmm. It seems the kids she was living with are on her mind…”
Luke said without hesitation.
“Hey. Will you all come with us? I can put you to work under me. Or if that doesn’t appeal, I can let you live in the ducal territory. I can even find you jobs.”
The Riana Family kids exchanged glances.
Then their leader, Riana, gave a firm nod.
“If it’s not a problem for the family… we’ll come with you.”
Riana looked at Nia and said, “It’s probably because Nia is on my mind. If no one takes care of her, she might just starve to death right beside me…”
Luke tilted his head.
“…Why?”
“Nia often does meditation. When she’s in that state, she forgets to eat properly. If I don’t call her, she just sits there meditating. So I have to take care of her.”
I hadn’t known there was such a background.
Thinking back, Luke hadn’t known much about Nia.
When he’d met her in the game, she had already caused a massive incident and was endlessly praying at the graveyard of the Riana Family children.
So he hadn’t known much about Nia or the Riana Family.
“Really? Then let’s all go together.”
“Wow… Riana unnie. Then we’re going to be duke’s too?”
“No, idiot. We’re just working in that territory.”
“Wow!”
While the Riana Family kids chatted, Mikhail and One-Armed Jack approached.
“…Oh, young master. You must be tired. You didn’t sleep at all?”
“Nia. Are you feeling all right? Mikhail. Although it’s a bit of a stretch, there’s a place to rest. Would you stay there for a day?”
“Hmm. It’s fine. I’ll be in your debt.”
Before long, a resting space had been prepared, and Nia’s legs gave out.
“Eh…”
While she swayed as if about to fall, supported by Luke and Riana, Nia managed to say, “My body… my body has no strength…”
“You idiot! That’s why I said no one was taking care of you? I’ll carry you.”
Riana lifted Nia and sighed.
“Huu. Young master, you saw it? She says if no one takes care of her, this happens.”
“…Indeed… Someone has to take care of her.”
In the world, Nia was one of the top five among the Calamity of the Single Sword.
Luke hadn’t expected her to have such a soft side.
In the game she kept a stiff expression and poured out Aurora Stella, so he hadn’t known…
She had a somewhat foolish side.
“Young master. Are you planning to take this child and raise her however you like?”
“Yeah. If raised properly, she’ll grow into a terrifyingly powerful being that can split the continent.”
“Aigoo. Young master, you’re joking.”
Mikhail shrugged and shook his head, but Luke knew.
The potential and latent ability this kid carried.
“Waaah…”
“Nia. Are you sleepy? Let’s go to sleep! Uncle Jack!”
“Aigoo. You kids, I’m not your nanny!”
There must be…
There must be…?
***
“…Huu.”
After sleeping for about an hour, Luke rose from his seat.
The sleeping place One-Armed Jack had prepared was rather shabby, but Luke didn’t particularly mind such things.
It was a deep sleep. When Luke woke, Mikhail stood before him.
“Young master. Slept well?”
“Yeah. Mikhail. Did you sleep too?”
“I slept lightly, like a light sleep. Even if Jack took care of the convenience, I can’t stop guarding.”
“Hmm. In this situation, I should have brought one more. We can take turns on night watch.”
“Aigoo. Young master, I’m fine. More importantly, I’m the head of the escort division. I can go a week without sleeping.”
“Really? Then what.”
Luke muttered, stood up, and stepped out of the room.
“Nia?”
“The family kids are sleeping with her. Shall I go check?”
“No. I don’t think I need to wake her now.”
His gaze drifted somewhere.
“It’s probably necessary to have someone who knows Stygna’s geography well. Where’s Jack?”
***
One-Armed Jack was repairing the sword attached to his right arm near his hideout.
Swish. Swish.
While the whetstone sharpened his blade, two figures appeared behind him.
“Jack.”
“…Ah. Mikhail.”
Jack lightly brushed off the razor edge and stood.
“What business? The kids probably aren’t awake yet…”
“I’m not trying to take the kids right away. I have something to show you now. One-Armed Jack.”
Mikhail rummaged through his pocket and said, “I’ll pay a generous fee. Can you attach a smart guy to us and take us to Patina?”
“Hmm.”
Jack touched his chin with his left hand, pondering for a moment, then suddenly spoke.
“Mikhail. The reason I didn’t harm you and the young master is quite simple. It’s because I guessed the fear of the Serverki Family and that your skill is not ordinary.”
One-Armed Jack tapped the sword on his right arm with his left hand’s fingers.
“That’s why I can’t guide you there.”
“…Quite unexpectedly. The reason I mentioned earlier seems more like a reason to bring you.”
One-Armed Jack answered simply.
“Why? Because Patina is dirty for us too, so we don’t go there.”
He immediately shook his head.
“Sending the youngest son of the Serverki Family and a knight presumed to have high status into such a place. I’ll get involved in anything related to that.”
His sharp eyes fixed on the two.
“If something happens, I’ll have a gut feeling that it’ll be a very troublesome matter.”
“Hmm.”
While Mikhail frowned slightly and touched his chin, Luke said, “Mikhail. Is Patina dirtier than the rumors say?”
It was One-Armed Jack who answered.
“Young master. That place is one that we, the Nine Dragons, can handle. However, those guys are full of eccentricity and unpredictability.”
“Eccentricity and… unpredictability?”
Jack nodded.
“Yes. Those guys there. Their actions are so dirty that we avoid them. Evil gods’ followers are the basics. Cannibalism, rape, murder. Every crime happens without restraint. In the past, when Stygna was built, the ones who fled from our Nine Dragons. The place where even we don’t associate with is Patina.”
“Hmm.”
At One-Armed Jack’s words, Luke nodded.
When playing the game in the past, the Patina area was even dirtier in rumors.
Luke had entered the game and seen it, and the scenes had been quite intimidating.
But since there was a lot of censorship, it was often mentioned in text to give fear, but as the game became reality…
*This is going to show me a lot of terrifying things I couldn’t see in the game.*
What kind of crazy mission had Bellemian Serverki given?
Luke lightly chewed on the family head and his own father, then said to Jack, “Still, we have to go. Because the family matter is inside Patina.”
“…You’ve got a bad omen. Having to go to such a place.”
Huu.
Jack sighed lightly, approached the two, and said, “I’ll guide you myself. If I go, most guys will recognize me and immediately flee.”
“Thank you. The fee is…”
“The fee is fine. I’m just asking you to take good care of Nia, that little brat. Young master.”
Jack looked at Stygna’s ashen landscape for a moment and said, “That kid is too precious to be here. I was always sorry, but thanks to you, the worry is lessened.”
“Don’t worry. I intend to see the end of the sword.”
“That’s good. If Nia turns out well later, I should give her the guard captain position. Can I just see that little brat’s face for a moment?”
“Of course.”
The three headed to where Nia was sleeping.
***
“…Oh.”
Nia was sleeping soundly in Riana’s arms.
The sight was so happy that Luke briefly recalled her original fate.
The Nia incident publicly revealed in the game was quite terrifying.
The First Sword of the Empire, Shion Belhardt, went to this slum Stygna and dueled Nia, losing.
Unable to accept his defeat, he was utterly cowardly and tried to cut down Nia to erase his defeat.
At the moment he was about to cut her down, One-Armed Jack intervened, but he was fatally wounded in an instant.
Moreover, not only that, but the Riana Family kids including Riana rushed to protect her, but…
The result was tragic.
Jack barely survived with his right arm, which had steel armor, lost again, and along with that, Riana and the kids were cut down on the spot and died.
Nia, looking at the tragedy Shion Belhardt had created, blankly looked at the bodies of Riana and the kids, half out of her mind, and said the name and style of the sword technique she knew…
But none of it came true.
Shion Belhardt looked at such Nia and raised his sword.
At that moment.
Nia was summoned by the evil god.
That day, a great slash remained in the Empire.
The great slash that started from Stygna split half of the Empire, and people learned.
Among the Eight Calamities who killed the First Sword of the Empire with a single sword. The existence called the Calamity of the Single Sword, Nia.
“Young master. Should I wake her?”
“…Leave her. Mikhail. She’s sleeping so hard, I don’t even think about waking her.”
Luke thought about the scene he saw in the game for a moment and shrugged.
“She was stopped before Shion Belhardt came. I’ll take her.”
Luke silently prayed for a moment.
For the world line where Luke wasn’t there, Nia who lost all her family, praying at the graveyard for her family in that world line.
She prayed for a moment.
“Well, since we got her, there won’t be such things anymore.”
“Eh? Young master?”
“No. Nothing. Shall we go, Mikhail? To Patina.”
“Understood. Young master.”
“I’ll lead the way.”
Leading with One-Armed Jack, the three headed to Patina.