Chapter 692: Reinforcements
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 692: Reinforcements
"Lady Hero!"
As the battle settled, Roya rushed forward, her face etched with worry.
Although Ariel had emerged as the ultimate victor, she had been fighting above her rank against an opponent as powerful as a Demon General. Anyone with eyes could see how grueling the struggle had been.
"Are... are you alright?"
Unconsciously, Roya had begun using honorifics. Thanks to the battle she had just witnessed, her admiration for Ariel had reached new heights.
"Wait a moment."
Ariel suddenly held up a hand with a solemn expression, stopping Roya in her tracks. She turned her body away.
"Don't come over yet. Let me... readjust."
"Readjust?"
The usually composed Roya panicked instantly, hurriedly pulling out her staff. "Are you really heavily injured? Please, let me treat you! My healing magic might not compare to the top-tier masters, but it can at least serve as first aid..."
"No... it's not an injury. You've misunderstood. I'm talking about something far more important."
Ariel wore a look of gravity more intense than when she was drenched in blood fighting the Demon General. She shook her head wistfully. "If I don't readjust now, I might not be able to hold it up much longer."
"Is... is that so? Is it really that critical?"
For such a powerful Hero to use the words "not be able to hold it up," just what kind of situation was it...
"It is exactly that critical. Now, turn your back to me!"
"Eh? Do you need me to—"
"Quickly!"
"Oh. Okay."
Though she had no idea what this "more important matter" was, if the Hero insisted, she must have her reasons!
Roya obediently turned around.
Even so, she couldn't help but feel a flicker of curiosity. While she wouldn't peek, she focused her senses to perceive what was happening.
Strangely, she sensed nothing. There were no staggering fluctuations of mana coming from the Hero, nor was there any profound spreading of mystical power. The only thing she heard was the faint, rustling sound of fabric rubbing together.
"All right."
A moment later, Ariel spoke with a hint of satisfaction in her voice.
"You can turn around now."
Roya blinked and turned back, her eyes filled with curiosity as she scanned the Hero...
The Hero didn't seem to have changed at all. She hadn't even wiped away the bloodstains on her body; she looked exactly the same as before.
If there was anything that looked slightly different...
It was that the Hero was now standing with her head held high and her chest thrust out, looking even more confident than before.
And Roya wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt that every move the Hero made now seemed to emphasize her...
"Lady Hero, you..."
"Don't call me 'Lady Hero.' I was just passing through; I can't claim such a title."
Ariel gazed at the girl and gave a gentle smile. "Just call me Ariel. We've faced life and death together; there's no need for such formality."
"Life... life and death together?"
Roya’s cheeks flushed slightly.
It was strange. She was a mature woman who could scold Mitel for sneaking peeks at erotic books without batting an eye, yet her heart skipped a beat again just because of a single sentence from the He—no, from Ariel.
"Then... Miss Ariel, you can just call me Roya. Roya Biscan, I'm an adventurer."
"Roya. That's a lovely name."
Ariel stole a glance at Roya, keenly catching the hint of bashfulness in the girl's eyes.
She felt a great sense of internal gratification.
See? As long as I make a few minor improvements to my "shortcomings," my charm skyrockets, doesn't it?
Ariel whispered to the teacher inside her ring:
This proves my previous strategy was correct all along. My years of romantic experience didn't lie to me. The only reason I failed before was entirely because of that damned Muen Campbell!
Ariel's Teacher: "..."
She didn't know how to argue because, looking at the current situation... it seemed she was right?
"Miss Ariel?"
"Ah, no, it's nothing."
Ariel cleared her throat and returned to a serious demeanor. "Miss Roya, is your companion from earlier alright?"
"Companion... Ah, right, Temier!"
Only then did Roya remember she actually had a childhood friend as a companion.
"I have to find him. Otherwise, if he still thinks I'm in the hands of the Demon Race and actually brings people to their tribe to rescue me, it'll be a disaster."
Roya looked at Ariel with a pleading gaze.
"Miss Ariel, could you..."
"Don't worry, of course I'll help you find him. I'm traveling anyway, and I don't have a fixed destination."
Ariel smiled. Lately, she felt her smile was becoming increasingly perfect—at the very least, it wasn't inferior to that hateful guy who had nothing going for him except for his slightly better-looking face!
"That's wonderful!"
"However..."
"However?"
"It seems we won't have to go through all that trouble."
Ariel turned her head, glancing to the side.
"Sister Roya!"
Suddenly, from the other end of the yet-to-be-destroyed Black Forest, several streaks of light flew out from the dense trees, skimming the ground.
"Sister Roya, are you okay?"
The lights resolved into three figures, led by the Temier who had just fled.
He was panting heavily, the lingering traces of fear on his face mostly overwritten by his current excitement.
"I brought people to save you! I happened to run into these two... Huh? Who are you?"
With backup behind him, Temier had finally mustered the courage to return to the battlefield. He looked up, only to find that the Demon General Basaroka—who had toyed with him like an insect—was nowhere to be seen.
In his place stood... a girl who was exceptionally well-endowed?
"I'm just a passing-by, ordinary, big-chested beautiful girl. Don't mind me," Ariel said, crossing her arms.
"Ordinary?"
Temier frowned slightly. He felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort from this girl, though he couldn't put his finger on why.
But now wasn't the time for that.
"Sister Roya, are you hurt?" Temier quickly pushed aside the girl whose chest was far too large for his tastes and rushed to Roya's side.
"Where is Demon General Basaroka? I happened to meet these two senior adventurers. With them here, we have a chance to defeat the Demon General!"
"Defeating him is an overestimation. At most, we can say we have the strength to hold our own."
The two men behind Temier stepped forward.
One was a swordsman in a black trench coat, and the other was a muscular macho man with a bare torso.
Both looked like the fierce and sinister type, appearing even more menacing than the Demon Race. However, they both wore badges from the Adventurer's Association, indicating they were also adventurers wandering this Abyssal land.
"Black Scorpion, Dolan."
"Python, Bult. We are both top-tier adventurers of the Association, with strength around the Fifth-Tier. Working together, as long as it's not one of the top twenty Demon Generals, we have the capital to tangle with them for a while."
After a brief introduction, the two quickly extended their senses to the surrounding area.
Their opponent was a Demon General; they had to be extremely vigilant.
However...
"So, where is this Demon General you spoke of? Why can't we find a trace of him?" Dolan looked around with a strange expression.
He was a Demon General, after all. He couldn't have sensed their arrival and just turned tail and fled, could he?
That didn't fit the personality of the Demon Race.
"He's dead," Ariel said, her eyes reflecting strange flickers of light as she looked at the two.
"Dead?"
Dolan looked at Ariel, puzzled.
"Did another powerhouse from the Association pass through before us?"
"No."
Ariel shrugged.
"No Association powerhouse passed through, and the Demon General didn't run away. It's just that the guy named Basaroka was hacked to death by me."
"I see, hacked to death by..."
Dolan froze, then looked at Ariel in disbelief.
"You?"
A Fourth-Tier Martial Artist?
"What? I can't do it?"
"This... little sister, you shouldn't talk nonsense."
Dolan twitched the corner of his mouth, smoothing out a trace of what was either a smirk or mockery.
"The Abyss is a dangerous place. If you go around telling tall tales, it's very easy to get yourself into trouble."
"How can you say that? Miss Ariel clearly—"
Roya immediately stepped forward to explain for Ariel.
But Ariel raised a hand, stopping her.
"It's fine, no need to say anything."
Ariel gazed wistfully at the sky for the umpteenth time, gave her majestic chest a little shake, and said nonchalantly:
"Every time I finish a mob, someone pops up to say something like that. I've long since gotten used to it."