*
The truth is, there was a reason why Pina created that awful dish.
The food she ate at Tardun’s shrine.
A spicy stew that had meat, vegetables, and fish all mixed together.
Pork kimchi stew with canned tuna added in.
Pina wanted to recreate the meal that Lee Soo-hyun’s mother made.
But since she didn’t know the exact recipe…
“More, please. Pina.”
“Okay… got it.”
And thus, a dish that could only be described as something a demon from the depths of hell would make was born.
With a chilling appearance, taste, and smell, Pina even gave up on tasting it herself.
In front of her, the man was desperately smiling as he refilled his empty bowl. In an instant, the stew disappeared.
Pina knew it was bad, given the reactions from the hero couple or the pungent, choking smell.
…But why?
Licht was inhaling the dish that Pina made without showing any signs of disgust.
He distinctly said he hated bitter flavors, yet here he was asking for more.
‘Is he being nice…?’
Reading his expression, he actually looked like he was enjoying it, but there were even small tears welling in the corners of his eyes.
That little kindness made Pina increasingly uncomfortable. Poke — a small needle piercing her heart.
“Thanks for the meal. It was incredibly delicious.”
Licht smiled as he gently ruffled her hair. The distance between them became uncomfortably close.
Pina felt like she was getting addicted to the rough touch of the man petting her.
She turned her head in rebellion, but Licht just smiled back.
‘Oh, now that I look closely, his eyelashes are long.’
Pina evaluated Licht’s brown eyes, like they were carved by a craftsman.
The top button was undone, unlike usual.
Seeing the droplets of water running down his wet hair, Pina gulped, swallowing hard.
With looks like that, noble ladies must have cast sticky glances at him earlier.
If only Licht had been a bit luckier, he could’ve easily caught the eye of some noblewoman and ended up as her servant, making Pina feel uneasy.
Licht, who never met her.
Talking to the Nameless Saintess she had no knowledge of…
‘Why do I keep feeling this way…?’
Recently, Pina began to feel scared about this man who seemed different.
Licht understood Pina well, but Pina felt she still didn’t know him enough.
Pina placed her hand on her armor’s chest area, expressing her discomfort.
“Pina, is something hurting?”
“I’m fine. It’s nothing.”
Pina unconsciously bit her lower lip. The occasional sharp pain in her heart was becoming unbearable.
“…Would you like something sweet? You seem to be overdoing it.”
Whether he understood her feelings or not, Licht quickly returned with a green fruit.
“What is this… Licht?”
“It’s watermelon! I soaked it in the valley water to keep it cool.”
Watermelon, if it’s the kind she knows, looks disgusting and has no edible parts.
“Is this what I know as watermelon?”
“…That’s strange. Sir Helmet.”
However, the watermelon he brought was extraordinary. When cut in half, it was completely filled with juicy red flesh with no empty spaces.
“There’s a way to get them all.”
Another world.
Sometimes, heroes from different civilizations create previously unseen items or spread techniques.
“…Wow, it’s sweet!”
“Seriously, can’t believe it…”
The watermelon that Licht sliced and offered must be similar to fruit from his world. The effects of countless summonings during the Demon God War.
“It’s cool… sweet… like candy.”
Instead of crunchy, the texture was crisp. Pina held the piece of watermelon in both hands and took a bite.
The pure white tail inside her armor lost control and began to sway.
Once again, Licht didn’t leave any of his share. Once was enough.
“…Licht, eat this too.”
Snap, Pina broke off a piece of the watermelon and put it in Licht’s mouth.
Like a mother bird feeding its chick, the hero couple momentarily paused their eating.
“Ah, thank you.”
Licht grinned foolishly while eating the watermelon Pina gave him.
Was it really that delicious?
“Everyone, little lambs! Gather around for a campfire!”
Until someone called Licht’s group, Pina was staring at him intently.
*
Under the night sky, flames flickered.
A campfire built with logs stacked high. Around it, Academy students sat, chatting.
“May I hold your hand, Mardol?”
Cold sweat dripped. But as long as she was by Pina’s side, she could endure.
“Hiccup.”
She started hiccuping again, shuddering slightly.
It’s been so long since they peacefully gathered like this. She was so nervous when Quert showed up.
‘He’s a gentle monster, so it should be fine.’
Originally, he’s a monster that protects weak wild animals in the forest. No matter how much they are made of mana, some types don’t cause harm if treated normally.
“Licht.”
Pina closed her hand and opened it as she spoke. The surroundings were so noisy that her voice was getting drowned out.
“Do you miss your original world?”
“…Why all of a sudden?”
“Just… curious…”
Is she uneasy about me leaving? Now that she mentions it, Dennis and the Celestial Demon were unusual.
Dennis already had a gate open and didn’t need to return to Korea, where monsters came out.
The Celestial Demon, White Lily, would likely prefer this place over a world of kill or be killed.
Pina might be cautious about such things.
Heroes from other worlds are supposed to return after completing their missions.
That’s why the reward in my status window was ‘Return to the Real World.’
“I do miss it, but…”
He softly held Pina’s hand as he spoke.
Being in a public place, it felt bittersweet to see her wearing the crystal helm again.
“…I still have things to do. I won’t go back until then.”
There’s no reason to return yet. Even though this world is just a game, the pain and death felt here are real.
I won’t leave until I make our Pina happy. I have no family or relatives waiting for me anyway.
If there’s anyone close to family for me now, it would be the grandparents who took me in the village.
‘…It might be Pina.’
I cautiously thought about the white wolf watching the campfire next to me.
“Catching the Demon King…?”
“It’s more complicated than that. It’ll likely be harder.”
Connecting the love lines of the characters to complete the Grand Route.
There are couplings involving Drake and the Sage that I don’t know about. I must work even harder.
If I capture the Demon King, Black Cloud, wouldn’t something happen then?
“What’s that? Sounds weird.”
At that moment, laughter erupted from the crystal helm, and Pina tapped me on the shoulder as if there was no need to worry.
Lately, Pina’s cold demeanor had largely disappeared. She even occasionally spoke honorifically.
What could have happened to turn the Nameless Saintess into this?
Considering the information I’ve gathered so far, it seems related to the Demon King of the Hero Church.
Using the power to layer falsehoods, erasing names or existence, and, with the power of ignorance, making the people around her forget.
‘With the power of impotence, she made formidable strength impotent….’
Then what’s the reason she struggles using Divine Power?
The abilities of a Saintess should be as strong as Schartines showed at the social club, strong enough to purify a vampire.
“….”
At that moment, a sudden thought hit me.
The sensation I felt when I defeated the Demon King of Might was strange.
It reminded me of when I cut through a doll made of paper — it felt hollow inside.
The name of impotence isn’t Intinium, but Finn. The Magic Hat was still a potential danger lurking behind.
I’m anxious.
The flickering flames began to lessen. The raucous conversations sounded like stretched tape.
In addition, the trees swaying in the wind moved as if time had stopped, slowly.
Flicker, flicker, the shaking forms made me narrow my eyes.
“Mardol, something feels wrong──.”
Even the words that came out sounded slow, as if they were in a slow-motion video.
Only one thing could cause such a phenomenon.
‘…Apostle of Sloth.’
Looking up at the sky, a dazzlingly white moon appeared. In it, there was a circular ring of slightly different color.
It resembled a loading screen but was different.
In Night Heart Trilogy, the loading screen is depicted as a dragon biting its own tail, surrounded by a bright halo.
But what I saw now had no wings or horns. Just a smooth shape, like a snake.
Ouroboros. A being that could be seen as a descendant of the draconic creatures from the loading screen.
Apostle of Sloth. Heinell.
He’s the one who puts players under a slow status effect. He slows the surrounding objects while attacking.
Was the Apostle of the Hero Church in Calisium Valley for some reason?
Trying to shout for everyone to evacuate, but my body moved slowly, making it impossible to react properly.
In that moment, a cold sensation touched my shoulder.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a torrential downpour started to pour down, and the nearby valley water swelled instantly.
