Chapter: 542
The process of moving the seal of the Evil God was going a lot smoother than expected.
Erginius mentioned it was in a severely weakened state, making it unable to even struggle against its bindings.
“If it weren’t crucial to our plan, I would’ve wiped its existence off the face of the earth.”
Erginius looked at the seal with a hint of regret, yet he didn’t initiate any action.
“Lady Alrn. Apostle of the Goddess. Please infuse the seal with your divine energy.”
“How am I supposed to understand that? Are you really that clueless, Mr. Nerdy Wizard, that you can’t even explain properly?”
“Just infuse it with the divine energy.”
Oh, is that all? You should’ve said that earlier! If you had, I wouldn’t have made any silly comments!
As I followed his instructions and infused the seal with divine energy, I felt something wriggling inside, but soon the entity within fell silent, crushed by the overwhelming presence of the Goddess.
Feeling satisfied, I stepped back when the perverted apostle approached the seal with an unsettling sound.
“Go die. No, the thought of your corpse lingering around is more disgusting, so stick your head in that seal and disappear. Just vanish from this world, please.”
Seeing that expression, I couldn’t help but show genuine disdain, but the perverted apostle didn’t seem affected by it at all. Instead, he acted as if he was inspired.
Ugh! I really don’t like that guy! Why does he only act like this towards me? If he’s going to be a pervert, he should spread the love around equally!
“Lady Alrn was right. The power of the Evil God may be disrupted, but there’s nothing unusual in the dungeon.”
While I was cursing at the perverted apostle, Erginius seemed to have caught on to something, nodding his head.
“It seems that over time, it has become its own independent environment.”
Hmm. I don’t quite understand, but does that mean there’s no problem?
Hah. What a relief. If something went awry in the dungeon, my heart would have dropped.
With our objectives perfectly achieved, we exited the chaotic dungeon city and returned to the Art Guild.
Erginius judged it to be the best environment for storing the Evil God’s seal for the time being.
“Lucy. Bad.”
And there, meeting Frey again, I realized I had taken her teacher away.
Oh right. Frey was supposed to learn something from that Sword Saint, right?
From the fact that she brought Kent along, it seemed she really had prepared thoroughly.
“Sorry. I forgot to mention how utterly useless that pathetic swordsman is. Here, take him back. I don’t need an old perverted woman around anymore.”
“…Lady Alrn, isn’t that a bit much?”
“Right? Lucy, that’s really harsh.”
“What of it? Am I wrong?”
As I shrugged off Frey and the Sword Saint’s complaints, I grabbed Kent’s arms, which had turned pale next to me.
“F-Frey. It seems the Sword Saint has something to discuss, so we should step back for a bit.”
“But Lucy said she’d used him up.”
“That may be true, but still.”
Kent seemed to have understood something from the odd expression on the Sword Saint’s face as he forcibly hugged Frey, flailing in protest. His expression implied he knew how the Sword Saint felt about Benedict.
Hmm.
“Silly Papa.”
“Huh? What’s up, Lucy?”
“Play nice with the silly swordsman and that creepy guy next to him. I think I need to close their mouths to avoid hearing their pathetic whining.”
In any case, since we got help, and Frey, my party member, needs to get stronger, it’d be better for me to toss Benedict into the mix for a bit.
Look. The moment I said that, joy lit up on Yuden’s face. What a vile woman targeting a married man.
“…Huh?”
“What? You really don’t want to grant your cute daughter’s request? You always said you liked Lucy, yet that was all empty talk, huh?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Fine. No, it’s fine. Silly Daddy. Go ahead and do as you please. Who am I to pressure you? I might get eaten by that big mouth of yours!”
“I’ve never once said I wouldn’t! I will! What wouldn’t I do for my cute daughter’s companions?!”
Watching Benedict’s expression change abruptly the moment my title shifted, I couldn’t help but smirk at the cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
“Really a silly-silly papa, huh? Should I speak more at length?♡”
“I’m sorry, Lucy! I promise to be more careful next time!”
After watching Benedict let out a sigh of relief, I stepped into the teleportation magic circle, eager to escape this den of perverts at the Art Guild.
“Hey, Grandpa. I remembered something during training; didn’t you say you had an epiphany after receiving advice from the God of Martial Arts last time?”
[I’ve actually been thinking about when to bring it up. Haven’t we had enough to deal with? ]
“Did you come up with anything substantial?”
[Of course. Get ready for it. The martial arts you want to learn are far grander than you expect. ]
Ooooh. So it’s martial arts that even a hero from the Mythological Era would declare as extraordinary!
If you say it confidently like that, then I’m getting kind of excited here!
But if I get my hopes up and it doesn’t meet my expectations, you’ll see a huge disappointment on my face, you know!?
[But still, I need to finish my tasks first. There’s a ton of prep work left, isn’t there? ]
‘…Can you not drop reality right on my face like that?’
I rose excitedly then sank back down with a sigh and returned to Academy Street. There was still plenty I needed to get done.
*
The Duke of Burrow Territory, boasting of having experienced all sorts of things, had a curious view of life.
He had dealt with power struggles after claiming his title, wars with other nations, fighting for the conquest of S-ranked dungeons, marriage, the funeral of a beloved son, days spent in misery,
And just recently, he had even lost his body to the Evil God of Darkness. He thought no one had lived as colorfully as he had.
Thus, the Duke felt he wouldn’t be fazed by even a new visit from the Goddess.
He believed he could merely nod in acknowledgment.
However, that was just the Duke’s delusion.
He hadn’t realized he was caught right in the midst of a storm, mistaking the calm at its eye as everything being fine.
“Right. Considering the grace I’ve received last time, it’s true that I’ll cooperate with whatever Lady Alrn wishes.”
The debt the Duke owed to Lucy Alrn went beyond just having his life saved.
She had prevented the Burrow family from being marked as a historical sin.
She saved his twisted son from hell.
She prevented the people of Burrow Territory from being offered as a sacrifice to the Evil God.
She returned the Burrow Territory, tainted by darkness, back to its pristine state.
What amazed him the most was that despite providing such salvation, Lucy asked for nothing in return.
Even if he had been in a situation where he should have bowed his life to her, Lucy didn’t boast about her merits — instead, she tried to conceal her own achievements.
She sent her subordinates to keep her own existence under wraps.
Did Lucy Alrn realize such actions would only solidify others’ perceptions of her?
On that day, when what they thought was dead Karia had come to him, smiling and talking without saying a word, from that moment, the Duke resolved to cooperate with whatever Lucy did.
Even if a moment arose where he had to stake his family, he would follow her will.
Not merely to repay a debt, but to help the savior named Lucy Alrn guide the world toward a better direction, just as his son had turned those lost in darkness back toward the light.
But then—
“I didn’t expect it to make my stomach hurt, not my neck.”
The Duke turned his gaze to the paper before him and unwittingly sighed deeply.
It listed the attendees for today’s meeting at the Burrow family.
At the top was none other than the two queens of the kingdom.
Even without marrying into royalty, they were referred to as noble blood; having held the title of queen made them some of the few people the Duke had to bow down to.
Next on the list was the Duke of Partran, who carried with him all sorts of bizarre rumors.
The Duke of Partran, often mistaken as a ruler of the underworld due to his distinctive, menacing appearance, was actually a regular person, something the Duke knew, but still, a duke is a duke.
They were not someone he could meet with a leisurely attitude.
Below that was none other than Benedict Alrn, the hero known as Soladin’s Fang, and Count Artea, a wealthy merchant controlling a quarter of Soladin Kingdom’s trade.
While he stood a rank above Benedict, their authority and reputation meant the Duke had to treat them with utmost respect.
Should he invite them as guests, he would certainly have to maintain decorum.
As if that weren’t enough, the list didn’t end there.
The saint of the God Church, currently the most renowned woman on the continent, Phoebe.
The best swordsman in the land, known to be unchallengeable.
The Apostle of the Art Guild, a gigantic religious organization that even the Church of God dared not confront.
The legendary being, the sharpest fang of all, along with the other forest’s master.
And lastly, Karia, who had once put the Duke’s heart in a vise.
“…Am I really supposed to handle all of these guests at once?”
Imagining the array of faces that would fill the long meeting hall, the Duke felt as if his life was shortening.
“But is that not doable?”
He had no intention of refusing this proposal at all.
“Karia. You must know what I’m thinking; where do you think I’d say no?”
“No, not at all.”
“Then why are you asking?”
The Duke was determined to keep his promise.
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