Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: I Told You It's Not Easy - 2
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"Wait, hold on. The most painful thing?"
Veronica wasn't the only one flustered. Leventia and Evangeline, standing behind her with shocked expressions, were trembling too.
It made sense. Those two had experience fighting the Demon King.
They knew exactly what had happened when they faced him.
In other words, stepping in there meant they might have to relive that experience.
Or maybe even...
"I told you. It's not going to be easy."
Even in the game, more than half the parties that attempted this trial retired here.
That was why one of the strategies was to send in just the character with the highest mental strength to clear it alone.
No need to make a bunch of people suffer.
Plus, with my Wall of the Heart, I could minimize the damage.
"I'll be fine on my own, so you all rest here."
"But...!"
"If you succeed in the trial, you might see the pasts of the other challengers. Who knows? Some dark history could come to light."
The four of them shut their mouths. I smiled at them.
"What about you?"
"Huh?"
"Look me straight in the eye and say it. Are you really okay?"
I stared into Veronica's turquoise eyes. They were filled with anxiety and worry.
"Eek."
"You're the one who told me to make eye contact, and now you're avoiding it?"
"Ahem. Well, not when you do it so suddenly..."
We locked eyes again. As I gazed intently at Veronica's pretty face, I said firmly,
"I'm really fine."
"Hyunwoo... Aren't all those things you have right now mental stabilizers...?"
Leventia's eyes caught my inventory. Cecil and Evangeline's gazes shifted to my gear. The belt pouches for potions and the hooks on my robe—they were all mental stabilizers, just as she said.
Even with the Wall of the Heart, you have to prepare for the worst.
"You... You planned to go in alone from the start... didn't you? The you I know... If you really intended to take everyone..."
Gulp.
Leventia swallowed hard and looked at me pleadingly.
Just as she was about to speak—
Veronica grabbed my hand.
"Right. If it were you, you'd share those mental stabilizers..."
That's why long-time friends are scary.
Who knew she'd analyzed me this thoroughly?
"I was the one who said I'd lift this curse in the first place. So it's only natural I handle it."
"Ah! Catching the demon is our request too!!"
Seriously.
Leventia and Evangeline were looking at me with expressions like they were about to cry. No point talking to them. I turned to Veronica.
But she wasn't much different from the others.
"Going in as a group is inefficient. It's a waste of mental stabilizers."
"Then let's use these for the mental stabilizers."
Why is she butting in?!
Cecil received something from the knights behind her. In her hand was a top-grade mental stabilizer, comparable to the ones I'd made.
Wait, why is that here?
"After switching to the new armor, some of the knights haven't adjusted yet. It's for them. We're buying up top-grade mental stabilizers from the Alchemist Guild as soon as they come out."
Good lord.
She was using something this expensive like that?
You're more serious about that bikini armor than I thought...
My affinity for Cecil went up.
"U-Uh. We, we can't let you suffer alone... no."
It seemed my opinion was already ignored.
Cecil distributed mental stabilizers to Veronica, Evangeline, and Leventia, and held one for herself.
"...Ha. Fine."
No amount of Persuasion skill would work now.
Guess we'll just go. What can you do?
"But the max is five people, so more than that is pointless."
"...In that case."
"I'll go in first anyway, so follow one by one. If you can't take it, just bail. Ideally, don't come in at all."
Pushing too hard and bottoming out your mental strength would be more trouble.
I started toward the shimmer, but felt a tug on my robe's hood and stopped.
"Urk? What, Veronica."
"Even if we go in and it reduces the burden on you, you'll still take the most, right? So lower your head a bit."
What is she planning now?
I didn't think Veronica would do anything harmful, so I crouched down obediently.
*Smack.*
Long, wavy hair tickled my face as something warm and soft touched my forehead.
"Ah?!"
"Eek..."
"...Huh?"
Ignoring the reactions, she slowly brought her forehead to mine, closed her eyes, and recited a prayer calmly.
"May the divine grant their blessing. No foe shall stand before you, and light shall illuminate the path ahead..."
It was a cardinal-level blessing. And a sincere one at that.
Feeling my overall stats rise, I pulled back as she released her hand and grimaced.
"Use it if you start struggling."
What Veronica used was the priest-exclusive unique skill 'Saint's Blessing.'
It boosted all stats based on holy power and reinforced mental strength.
But it had a once-per-day limit, so wouldn't it be better for you to use it?
"Hehe~"
Veronica giggled smugly. She stroked my cheek and said loudly enough for everyone to hear,
"I'll be fine since you're protecting me."
Her confidence left me speechless.
If you're saying that, then I guess so.
"Uh..."
"Huuu..."
Leventia and Evangeline looked miserable but said nothing. Cecil just watched expressionlessly.
Anyway, everyone seemed ready, so I switched Moonlight to staff form and pointed at the shimmer.
"Alright, for real this time."
Trial time.
.
.
.
How long had it been since I entered the shimmer?
I stood there, arms crossed, watching the scene unfold before me.
I knew better than anyone what the greatest pain was for the man who, upon being dragged to this other world, vowed to return home no matter what.
The events in the forsaken lands in the east of this world.
That was his deepest suffering.
In those cursed lands teeming with hordes of monsters, poison, undead, and temples of evil gods.
Covered in blood, hands trembling, the man injected himself in the arm and slumped over.
His unfocused eyes stared at the sky.
His haggard face, worn down by countless illnesses and status ailments, was all too familiar to me.
Yeah.
It was me.
The place I'd come to acquire the Wall of the Heart after temporarily leaving the hero party, unable to endure the mounting stress.
Me from the time I obtained the achievement 'Comprehensive Mental Hospital,' which I wasn't supposed to get until the very end after falling into this world.
"U... Uu..."
I'd already gone through dozens of cycles of gaining and curing mental illnesses, pushing me to my limits.
My eyes were bloodshot, my limbs limp, my body covered in wounds from battles and self-harm.
Most of my hair had long been bleached by poison, and my nails were chipped and broken from enduring screams and despair.
My voice barely worked after recovering from aphasia not long ago.
And yet.
I didn't stop.
-Kiiiiieeeek!!
Shortly after the injection, horrific screams echoed. Leeches approaching, targeting my weakened mind.
We'll take your body.
We'll devour your mind and gain new flesh.
The approaching leeches snickered and emitted waves. With my mental strength lowered by the drug, I fell right into the attack.
-Is that all you've got? Acting like a sage, but you're no different from a clown. And those lowbrow jokes and amateur playing. It's just annoying—stop it.
A beauty with pale blue hair sneered coldly. Her casual insult gnawed at my heart, spiking my stress, and another illusion appeared.
-What are you doing?! Humans really are hopeless! Idiot! Moron! Who'd eat this crap? And you ruined my bow! The draw feels off!
An elf mocking me from above, venting the stress built up from battles.
Beyond them, the crimson-haired beauty who'd dumped her responsibilities on me just fidgeted uselessly, her lips moving silently.
-Sorry... Sorry...
They're all your enemies.
You have no allies here.
No one in this world will stand with you.
So why struggle?
No one appreciates your efforts.
Just give up.
It'll be easier if you let go of everything.
You're not loved anyway.
You're not recognized anyway.
You won't survive anyway.
Sweet temptation urged surrender, denying the positive hopes anyone would wish for.
Do you really need to go back?
Suffer through all that with them?
Who cares if this world falls apart?
What if dying sends you back to Earth?
No matter what, they won't accept you.
So.
Give us that body.
The leeches' despairing temptation grew thicker.
Dazed from the drug, sitting blankly as I listened to them, I lifted my head.
Claire.
Leventia.
Evangeline.
Members of the hero party I had to defeat the Demon King with.
The leeches drove me with illusions of them—their heart-cutting insults and irresponsible neglect treated as normal.
"...O..."
-Yes... That's it. Reach out...
"...Ah!!"
-Thud.
A fist slammed in.
The leeches vanished from the Monk skill 'Explosive Fist,' but the already-inflicted mental illness 'Hallucination' kept tormenting me with its source of pain.
The knight and elf archer ahead mocked me.
Pathetic, only that much? Scoffing at me for trying without even a blessing.
The hero just watched from afar.
"...One... down."
The vivid hallucination was almost satisfying.
Now, all that was left was to cure this mental illness.
What was it I needed to cure Hallucination again?
-You're worthless. Can't even handle this training—what's the point...? Sigh. Whatever. Go fix this.
-Human scum! Go make food! If it's crap again, you're done!
-Hyunwoo... S-Sorry... Sorry... It's my fault...
Process and consume the Soul Mark obtained by capturing the Leech Queen at the end.
I had the processing technique, so no worries there.
-What the hell are you doing?! You're delaying the journey! Don't you know defeating the Demon King is more urgent than helping trash like them?!
-Sigh. If that's how it is, just quit the party and live alone, you worthless human.
-Really sorry... Just hold on a bit longer... Once we defeat the Demon King, I'll definitely... definitely reward you...
The insults and neglect from the hallucination-born illusions made me laugh instead.
I'd split from the party because of their stress, and now their illusions stressed me out again.
The world itself seemed to obstruct me—I couldn't help but laugh.
Yeah.
I know it's not entirely your intent attacking me.
But even so, as part of this world, if I sit idly, I'll get swept up and fight you all.
So, I'll use the world in my own way.
No matter how painful that may be.
-Sage!
-Human!
-Hyunwoo...
"Noisy as hell."
Their voices alone made stress surge, hard to even think.
Suppressing the splitting headache as proof, I drew a dagger and stabbed my thigh.
-Squelch!!
My body shook from the burning pain in my thigh. But thanks to it?
My mind cleared, the headache subsiding.
The effect of 'Self-Harm Disorder,' the first mental illness I got here, was reducing stress.
"Still a ways to go."
37 more to the Wall of the Heart.
Still far.
No time to sit around.
I chugged a potion to heal, then trudged back into the cursed wasteland.
.
.
.
"Yeah. Still a long way."
From entering this world until now.
I'd watched my most painful past.
Ridiculously, what I gained at the end of that suffering let me smile even now.
But the road ahead was still long.
Author's Note
Hello! It's Malmulmalmul!
Uwaa... The holiday's over... No breaks until Christmas nowㅠ
Sighㅠ Hang in there this week....
See you tomorrow! Bye~!