Chapter 383: Another Hero
Chapter 383: Another Hero
“However, with no concrete information on what to do about the Demon God, we cannot possibly devise a plan.”
I had my hopes up, but it seemed even Diana was at a loss for words with so few clues.
“If I were to venture a guess, it would be the purification of the Giant Magic Stones…”
“The purification of the Giant Magic Stones?”
“Mm. Confirming the Demon God's existence has brought one thing to light. It was a mystery until now, but the mana within the dungeon is, in fact, different from the mana on the surface.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“As you know, mana exists in the atmosphere, in objects—in everything in this world. While every person has their own unique wavelength, the fundamental nature, or perhaps the aura, of mana has always felt similar. However, the mana flowing within the dungeon has always felt quite alien. Because of this, the people of this world cannot use the dungeon's mana directly. Furthermore, the longer one stays inside the dungeon, the more suffocating and exhausting it becomes due to this alien mana in the air. Have you not felt it yourself? The deeper you go, the greater the fatigue, and the slower your mana recovers compared to the surface.”
Now that she mentioned it… In games, health and mana regeneration are naturally faster in town, so I never gave it much thought, but she was right.
The fatigue was definitely real, too.
As my level increased, my stamina had grown to a point where comparing it to a normal person's was laughable. Yet, no matter how much fighting I did, just a few days in the dungeon was enough to make me feel completely drained.
Under normal circumstances, that should have been impossible.
“And the source of that mana is none other than the Giant Magic Stones. Now that the Demon God's existence is confirmed, we also know why the mana feels different. The mana on the surface belongs to the Goddess, while the mana in the dungeon belongs to the Demon God. That is why I suspect that perhaps purifying the aura of those Giant Magic Stones with the Goddess's mana might… but Her Holiness simply told you to go deeper, did she not?”
“Yeah. I've been wondering about that, too. I thought it would be better to deal with those Giant Magic Stones before moving on.”
We put our heads together and tried to guess the Goddess’s intentions, but in the end, we came up with nothing.
Just what the hell is waiting for us deeper in the dungeon?
“Hmm… Perhaps below the 6th Floor lies an even larger magic stone that controls all the others… No, that too is mere speculation with no evidence… Sigh. In any case, it seems we have no way of confirming anything without venturing beyond the 6th Floor. Not unless we can speak with the Goddess once more.”
“I’m sorry. It’s still too soon to use the skill…”
“No. Leia, you have nothing to be sorry for. It can’t be helped.”
In the end, without any real plan, we had no choice but to set our sights on descending past the 6th Floor.
Still, the one silver lining was that, after talking with everyone, we came to the conclusion that Sara would probably be safe.
Of course, that wasn't certain either, but it was true that a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
Right. There’s no way the Goddess is that malicious, right?
From our previous conversation, she seemed incredibly kind.
I wouldn’t let my guard down completely, but for now, I decided to trust the Goddess.
“In any case, let’s end our discussion here for today.”
“Yes. Don’t worry, Sara. I’m sure everything will be fine.”
“Leia… thank you.”
“Sigh… A new Hero and now a Demon God. There’s so much sudden news, it’s hard to keep up.”
“Yes…”
Even Matilda and Silvia wore complicated expressions.
Were they perhaps regretting getting involved?
“S-So, Guwon.”
“Yeah?”
“In the end, the fact that Sara is a Hero…”
“Ah… I don’t plan on revealing it. Let’s just keep it a secret between us.”
“I-Is that so…”
When I said that, a complicated expression crossed Silvia’s face. It was a look of… guilt, I suppose.
“Hm? Why? Is there a problem?”
“N-No. It’s nothing.”
Her expression said it was definitely not nothing.
“Really?”
“Yes… Hyaaaang!”
The moment I pulled the conflicted-looking Silvia into a hug, she turned bright red and her body began to tremble.
She can be so difficult sometimes. Does she really need me to go this far just to get her to speak her mind?
I brought my lips to Silvia’s ear and whispered softly, as if breathing the words into her.
“Silvia…”
“Ye-ye-yes…?”
“Is it really nothing?”
“I-It is! It really is!”
Silvia squeezed her eyes shut and nodded her head up and down vigorously.
Strange. Her expression clearly said otherwise.
But there was no way Silvia could lie to me in this state.
Just in case, I’ll press her one more time.
“If I find out later that you were lying, I’ll never see you again for the rest of my life.”
“Ugh… It’s a lie!”
So it was a lie.
If you were going to confess this easily, you shouldn’t have lied in the first place.
“What is it? Tell me.”
“I-It’s just… I feel bad for Felicia…”
“Huh? Why are you suddenly bringing up the princess’s name?”
The completely unexpected answer caught me off guard.
“Well… because the world believes there’s only one Hero, Felicia is being forced into a marriage she doesn’t want, and she’s being pushed into a situation where she has to bear the child of a man she doesn’t want to… If you were to reveal that Sara is a Hero…”
Ah… so that’s where this is going. But… if we reveal that Sara is a Hero, things will just get more complicated for her.
I feel bad saying it, but if I had to weigh the princess against Sara, the scales would tip completely in Sara’s favor.
“So that woman is in that kind of situation…”
Even Sara, who’d had a huge fight with the princess before, seemed to feel a little sorry for Felicia after hearing Silvia’s story.
She murmured to herself with a complex expression, lost in thought.
“Guwon. Should we just reveal it? I’m confident I’ll never end up like… like Sauron Auden.”
“Don’t.”
In the end, the kind-hearted Sara even suggested it out of pity for the princess, but she was immediately shut down by Diana.
“Huh?”
“Sara. Think about it. The claim that there is only one Hero is merely an excuse. The royal family’s goal is to bind the Hero’s bloodline to their own. If you reveal yourself as a Hero, they will simply target your blood next. Besides, you’re an even better target, as there’s no concern that your child might be unattractive.”
“But I…”
“For your information, the royal family currently has no prince.”
“What? What does that mean…”
“Do you not understand? A child cannot be born between the princess and yourself, naturally. So how would they bind your blood to the royal family? The answer is simple. The father of your child would marry the princess. That way, they wouldn’t even need to incorporate the Hero’s blood directly into the royal line. Under the pretext of sharing the Saint’s lineage, they could ensure the Hero’s descendants serve the royal family for generations to come.”
“I’m never revealing it.”
Did she imagine me marrying Felicia? All expression vanished from Sara’s face as she gave her immediate reply.
“Ah… I-I didn’t think that far ahead…”
As the conversation took that turn, it was Silvia who became flustered.
Reading the mood, I let go of Silvia. She finally caught her breath and continued speaking calmly.
“Pant, pant. I’m sorry… I didn’t consider all that.”
“I know. You simply wished to free your friend from her suffering. I understand.”
“But Silvia. I’m sorry.”
“Yes… I know.”
Silvia nodded as if she understood it couldn’t be helped.
But she still couldn’t hide the apologetic look on her face.
She’d said she and the princess were childhood friends, so it seemed she couldn’t help but feel sorry about this situation, where she had a way to help but was forced to look the other way.
Speaking of the princess, that reminds me, I need to go see her and settle our bet sometime.
If I brought that up now… it wouldn’t just end with a simple scolding, would it?
The risk of Diana finally exploding was especially high.
She already knew about what I did last night, on top of the fact that I’d had a duel while she was away.
If I added that I’d made that kind of bet with the princess… I’d definitely die.
This time, instead of a few pats, she might just unleash a barrage of magic on me.
And Sara might just infuse her fist with mana and punch me.
Right. I’ll bring this up much later, after everyone’s calmed down a bit.
That Threon guy will have to keep abstaining from sex in the meantime… Sorry, buddy. Can’t be helped.
“Guwon. Is something wrong all of a sudden?”
Noticing my inner turmoil, Leia tilted her head as she looked at me.
She really is an angel. She’s always watching over me so carefully. I just wish she hadn’t noticed this time.
“Ah, no. It’s just…”
“It’s okay. Everything will be fine.”
But my angel, having misunderstood something, pulled my head into her chest and gently stroked it.
“Trust in the Goddess, and most of all, trust in yourself, Guwon. If you believe in yourself and move forward, the Goddess will surely light your path. And we will always be by your side.”
“My angel…”
My heart swelled as I hugged Leia tightly and nuzzled my face against her.
“Mmh! Hehe.”
By chance, purely by chance, my mouth must have brushed against her nipple, because she let out a slightly sensual sound, but my angel paid it no mind and continued to stroke my head gently.
Of course, the same couldn’t be said for everyone else watching.
“You pervert! You’d do that even in a situation like this?!”
“Do you just love breasts! Do you love them that much!”
“Shameless!”
“……”
Sara. It hurts when you infuse your back smacks with mana.
Diana. You can use Polymorph now, are you still jealous of breasts? Is it because polymorphed breasts aren’t your real ones or something?
Matilda. The shameless one isn’t me, it’s your brain. You’re one to talk, falling in love at first sight.
And Silvia. I like all breasts, so stop looking so gloomy and smacking your own chest.
“N-No! It’s not like that! You all saw it, didn’t you?! That was a really touching scene! I only had a tiny bit of shameless desire!”
“So you did have a tiny bit!”
“Of course I did! I’m a man! How could I not feel anything when being held against such perfect breasts! There’s no man on earth who wouldn’t! Anyone would feel that way if Leia held them!”
“Oh, perfect… Guwon, you’re too much… You’re flattering me.”
At my words, my angel blushed in embarrassment.
So lovely. Truly an angel descended to earth. No, this very space where she exists is heaven itself.
“What are you shouting so proudly for, you pervert!”
Of course, it seemed no one but my angel was convinced.
Damn it… I just told the honest truth, and this is how they treat me.
Since it’s come to this, I’ll stay glued to Leia’s chest out of sheer spite.
“You’re not letting go?!”
And so, the Demon God strategy meeting, which had begun with a heavy atmosphere, ended on a considerably lighter note.
Honestly, we hadn’t come up with any real countermeasures, nor was there any guarantee that Sara would be completely safe, but just getting it all out in the open with everyone made me feel much more at ease.
Sara probably felt the same way.
So for now, let’s just keep up this cheerful mood by acting like idiots, just like usual.
Staying in a gloomy mood will only make us feel more depressed.
A person should always live brightly and positively, right?
Well, I’m sure we’ll find more clues and come up with a plan before we break through the 6th Floor, at least.
For now, I decided to just take it easy.