Chapter 725: An Unexpected Return
Chapter 725: An Unexpected Return
“D-Did you wait long….”
A short while later, Diana emerged from the magic circle, her face flushed bright red.
Not just her face, but her whole body was flushed, the rims of her eyes were a little red, and her breathing was even a bit rough and sweet. Still, she had managed to perfectly tidy up her clothes and hair—everything that could be straightened out. Unlike me, she had probably used magic to take care of any smells.
Yep. No one would ever guess she was a woman who had just come out after… comforting herself.
If anything, her flushed face and reddened eyes created a perfect synergy with the excuse I’d given about her crying.
I’m a genius. Thinking back on it, it was the perfect excuse.
But that didn’t mean we were completely out of the woods.
My perfect excuse had the unintended effect of focusing all the girls’ attention right on Diana’s face.
“Diana, are you okay?”
Sara, who usually bickered with Diana the most, peered intently at her face and asked a worried question.
For Diana, who had just been pleasuring herself, having everyone’s eyes fixed on her face must have put her on pins and needles.
She could supposedly hear and see what was happening outside from within the magic circle, but she had been huddled under a blanket, completely absorbed, so she wouldn't have had the presence of mind to pay attention.
Diana probably had no idea what excuse I’d given the others.
“Wh-What do you mean?! Is there something wrong with me?!”
So it was no surprise that Diana reacted so vehemently.
Given Diana’s usual perceptiveness, I had hoped she would be quick enough to read the situation and play along, but I suppose it was too much to expect that from someone who had just been pleasuring herself right next to everyone.
Besides, she has those particular inclinations.
Even though she’d just taken care of herself, how much had she really calmed down?
No. Right after doing that, everyone was staring intently at her face.
If anything, there was a risk she’d get stimulated all over again.
“Sara. That’s enough.”
So, rather than hoping Diana would play along, I decided to step in and handle the situation myself.
Diana. Please, just trust me and stay quiet.
“Diana has things she doesn’t want you to know about. You’d be the same, wouldn’t you, Sara? This isn’t something you need to worry about.”
In short, I was telling them that Diana wouldn’t want them to see she’d been crying, so they should just pretend not to notice.
“That’s… yeah. You’re right. I’m sorry. Please forget what I just said.”
Sara understood my meaning perfectly and apologized to Diana.
“Wha-ah, ahh… Wh-What are you sorry for?! What in the world are you people talking about?!”
But upon hearing that, Diana, who had been trembling for some reason, finally exploded.
Hey! Why now?! Everything was going so smoothly!
…Huh?! Wait a minute. Don’t tell me she…!
I replayed my words, and Sara’s, in my head.
‘Diana has a side she doesn’t want to show you. You’d be the same, wouldn’t you, Sara?’
I was talking about her crying, but from the perspective of Diana, who had just done that, how must it have sounded?
‘Diana doesn’t want you to know she was just masturbating. You wouldn’t want to tell the others if you’d just been masturbating, would you, Sara? So just pretend you don’t know.’
Wouldn’t it have sounded something like that?
And then Sara’s cool acceptance and apology on top of it.
From Diana’s point of view, the conversation must have sounded like something from another dimension, moving beyond mere embarrassment.
When I thought about it that way, her explosion didn’t seem strange at all.
“I-I’m perfectly fine?! There’s nothing wrong with me at all?! I-I… I-Iiii…!”
Diana, who had been shouting in a voice that was on the verge of tears, let her words trail off as her lips trembled.
“Hey, hey. Calm down. Calm down.”
“Heut…!”
To calm her down quickly, I shook my head at Sara and the others, gesturing with my eyes for them to look away, and hurriedly stroked Diana’s head.
But the moment my hand touched her, Diana’s body shuddered.
Just like Silvia.
D-Don’t tell me this girl really thinks everyone found out she was masturbating… Ah, no. Any more of this is genuinely dangerous.
“Here, they’re not looking now, so wipe your tears.”
“Whu… huet? Huh?”
I whispered to Diana in a low voice so the others couldn’t hear, then rubbed the corner of her eye with my thumb.
Of course, there were no tears, and my whisper was probably still audible to Sara with her sharp hearing.
But that’s exactly why I said it that way.
This way, even a panicked Diana should be able to grasp the situation. Because even in a panic, she’s still our brilliant Archmage.
“Uh, uh, uwaaaaaah…!”
After hearing my words, Diana stood there for a moment with her mouth agape and a blank expression. Then, her body began to tremble violently as her face turned beet red.
She covered her face with both hands and squeezed a scream from her throat that was so high-pitched it was almost silent.
It seemed Diana had finally figured out what my excuse was and what our conversation had really meant.
To protect our Archmage’s last shred of dignity, I pulled her into a hug, hiding her face from the others.
But seriously, Diana. You’re not Silvia. You shouldn’t be trembling over something like this, right?
After a good while, Diana finally calmed down a little and pulled away from me.
Of course, her face was still bright red, and she couldn’t even turn to look at the other girls.
In fact, if you looked closely, she was even subtly shifting her legs, rubbing her thighs together.
This girl, really….
“Oh, right. I was talking with Diana earlier, and I think we might need to adjust our strategy.”
Seeing her like this, I was forced to make a decision.
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“Until now, our goal has been to get down to the 5th layer as quickly as possible, but I think it would be better to raise my skills to your level first.”
For Silvia and Matilda, the 5th layer was the most suitable place to level up.
It was especially important that the level was appropriate for Matilda.
If Matilda’s passive skill level increased, she too would be able to learn Goddess Advent.
In fact, after having that dream, my decision to focus more on dungeon exploration wasn’t just about strengthening my skills; I was also considering Goddess Advent.
When all was said and done, the fastest way to clear up all my questions was to hear the situation directly from the Goddess herself.
Of course, I couldn’t completely rule out the possibility that the Goddess was using my ignorance to scheme something, but if I worried about every little thing like that, I’d never get anything done.
That’s why I had planned to descend the dungeon as quickly as possible to build up our strength while simultaneously raising Matilda to a level where she could use Goddess Advent. But it seemed my own skills weren’t up to the task.
I felt it keenly while fighting the turtles—if I went down to the 5th layer now, I’d just be a burden.
“So, what are you trying to say?”
“I think I need to focus on building up my skills on the upper floors for a while. I’m sorry that it’ll be a period that won’t be very helpful to you all.”
“That’s fine. We don’t mind at all, but….”
Hearing my words, Leia glanced at me with an anxious expression.
No, it wasn’t just Leia. Sara, Silvia, and Matilda were all giving me suspicious looks.
Well, after what just happened, it was only natural they’d react this way when I said I wanted to focus on building my “skills.”
Even though I’d shown that I was reflecting on my actions, I hadn’t shown them the entire process of my repentance like I had with Diana.
“You. If by some chance….”
“It’s not what you’re thinking.” I cut Matilda off before she could finish, speaking with the most sincere expression I could muster. “But even if we go together, the fact remains that I’ll end up with the most important role, right? And considering our party’s balance, I think raising my skills to your level is the best thing to do right now.”
“So, I know it’s a little weird to say this so soon after coming to the dungeon, but how about we call it a day and head back up? Alicia has probably brought up the matter of cooperating with us by now, and Diana will have a hard time focusing on exploring in this state.”
That’s right. I had decided to head back up for now.
It was embarrassing to say this just a few days after declaring I would focus on the dungeon, but it couldn’t be helped. This seemed like the most efficient path.
And more importantly, that last part was the real key.
This girl, Diana… there’s no way she can fight at her best in this state.
“If that’s the reason, then I don’t mind, but….”
At my logical persuasion, Sara nodded, though she still wore a slightly uneasy expression.
She was probably thinking that if I tried to go to the dungeon alone, she could just watch me and follow along.
“Alright. Then let’s call it a day and head back, even if it’s a bit early. You’re okay with that too, right, Diana?”
“Uh, hmm?! Hmm! Hmmm! I have no problem with that whatsoever!”
When I spoke to Diana, she gave a response so suspicious that anyone could see she still hadn’t recovered her composure.
You’d better be grateful I came up with such a good excuse for you.
To the others, it would just look like she was bluffing to hide the fact that she’d been crying.
And so, just one day after entering the turtle’s den, we turned around and headed back up.
There was the problem of everyone getting more and more worried because Diana didn’t say a single word to any of us the entire way back.
Since I knew the real reason, I wasn’t too concerned, but because it was all supposed to be because I’d made her cry, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt whenever the others shot me looks that felt like accusations.
But other than that, we made it back to the 4th layer town without any trouble.
Even though Diana wasn’t speaking to us, she still properly used her magic to stop the ocean currents when we passed from the ice cave back to the 4th layer.
In any case, since Diana was in that state the whole time, we had Silvia, who volunteered, take care of selling the magic stones, and we headed straight for the mansion.
“Welcome back. Lady Diana, while you were away, someone from the Arachne Clan….”
“Later.”
The unsuspecting Vanessa greeted us and tried to relay an important message to Diana, but Diana cut her off curtly and headed straight for her room.
“Guwon. You know what to do, right? This time, you’d better console her properly. For real. For Diana to get like that… what on earth did you do?”
The girls, who hadn’t been able to hide their worry the entire way back, saw Diana’s state and gave me a push from behind.
Hey, Sara. Don’t say things that can be misunderstood. Vanessa’s glare is getting scary!
“Don’t worry.”
On the outside, I put on a serious face and said that, then pretended to hurry as I followed after Diana.
It wasn’t really something to be so worried about.
Especially considering how Diana’s back had twitched when Sara told me to go console her.
Smiling a silly smile to myself, I followed Diana into her room.
“Hmph! Mmm! Mwah! Mwah!”
The moment I stepped into the room, Diana clung to me as if pouncing, showering my lips with a barrage of kisses.
Yep. This was it, in the end.
Our exhibitionist Archmage, it turned out, had been so incredibly turned on by the whole situation—pleasuring herself right next to all of you, and then mistakenly thinking you all knew about it—that she couldn’t contain herself.