Chapter: 439
In a dungeon infused with the Power of Void, the most important thing is to distinguish what’s true and what’s false.
Anything here can be a truth or a lie. If you fail to identify this, you’ll have to pay the price.
In other words, if you can see through all the lies, there’s no easier dungeon than this.
Of course, it sounds easy. But under the Authority of Void, it’s nearly impossible to distinguish between everything.
Finding all the lies that are almost indistinguishable from the truth is basically just a load of hot air, and usually, one resorts to magical tools or items containing the Miracle of God to overcome it.
I mentioned this in the little strategy write-up I did for newbies, too.
But you know…
It’s tough to distinguish everything, which is to say it’s ‘almost’ impossible, not entirely.
For someone like me, who’s just rotting away, it’s totally doable.
Just look at the monster charging at us right now.
A deer the size of a truck is threatening us with its antlers, eyes stained red.
Everyone else around me is panicking, shouting about how to deal with it, but I didn’t even raise my Shield and just moved forward.
“Lady?”
“Lady!”
“Lucy Allen! What are you doing?”
“Just watching, you sloppies.”
The antlers of the deer, charging like a maniac, came close to me, but I remained completely unfazed.
[Lucy!]
And then I collided with the deer, but I didn’t get hurt at all.
The deer, which was just an illusion, rushed past me and walked back into the fog.
“…What was that?”
The Perverted Apostle, who was rushing to protect me, stared blankly at the deer’s rear.
“What do you mean? It’s a fake! You can’t tell the difference, you shoddy crow?”
“Fake.”
“How pitiful. What are you even good at besides being a pervert?”
I was in a Mesugaki Skill frenzy, but I didn’t fail to understand the Perverted Apostle’s bewilderment.
During my Speedrun phase, I had memorized how to distinguish all of that since I didn’t even want to waste time gathering tools. Otherwise, it would have been tough to find anything unusual over there.
Was it the weird shape of the antlers? Or was the coloring of the fur off? Distinguishing those twists and turns is no walk in the park!
<...Even if you notice all of that, isn’t approaching it with your bare body too dangerous? >
‘If you know it’s an illusion, this is the best way to deal with it.’
I told them it should be done this way, and Grandpa swallowed his breath for a moment before slowly responding.
[Aren't you scared? ]
‘Well, it’s not that I’m completely unafraid.’
If a deer the size of a truck is charging at you and you’re not worried, are you even human?
Of course, I was scared. It felt like looking down from the highest point of a roller coaster.
But.
‘If I don’t do it, who will?’
If I’ve judged it a fake, then I’m the one who should throw myself into danger. Isn’t that the most logical thing to do?
‘And I can recover from that impact quickly.’
My body is strong like a beast, and besides me, there’s the Perverted Apostle and Phoebe. Even if something goes wrong, it shouldn’t cause too much of a problem.
‘Everything I do has its reasons.’
[Ah... I see. ]
Grandpa seemed a bit displeased but didn’t try to stop me.
So I shrugged my shoulders and turned my gaze back to my friends.
“Just follow my lead, sloppies. It’ll just be a hassle if you guys move around aimlessly.”
Lightly brushing aside the concerns of others, I stepped forward again into the dark forest.
Having successfully seen through the initial illusion, I surpassed a few more illusions, but I ended up failing once in between.
I failed to distinguish whether the tree root flying toward me was real or fake.
With the limited time I had, I failed to make the call and bit my lip hard as I raised my Shield.
THUNK!
A tree root thicker than my waist slammed down on my shield, sending a shockwave through my arm.
So it was real.
“Perverted Apostle!”
“I’ll handle it.”
What part of this thing is different from the real one?
Ah, damn. The part near the ground is slightly different.
It was too dark to notice that!
Having to bear the shock because I couldn’t make a quick judgment, I bit my lip hard.
It wasn’t because the root’s impact hurt me.
I did take some impact after hesitating until the last moment to move, but that really wasn’t a problem for me.
What frustrated me was entirely about myself.
It’s true that over a year has passed since I stepped out from behind the monitor.
And I could also admit that my senses had dulled during that time.
That’s only natural. How could anything be the same as the days I spent grinding time every single day?
But you know…
The pride of a rotten person isn’t something that can just be brushed off with excuses like that.
In a situation like this, I can’t afford to be light-hearted.
With my lip bitten down hard, I furrowed my brows and seized my Shield.
*
In the fog-filled dungeon, Joy, who joined Lucy, heard about the current situation through the Apostle of the Arts Church.
This place was a completely different location from the dungeon they intended to conquer.
This dungeon was created using the Power of Evil God.
The reason they ended up here was merely by accident.
And Lucy’s original objective was to conquer this dungeon.
Upon learning all of this, Joy’s mind flooded with numerous questions.
Why hadn’t they informed them of this?
Did they not trust them enough?
Did they always see them as helpless children?
Why didn’t they consider that while worrying about others, others might worry about them too?
As she locked eyes with Lucy Allen, who was watching them anxiously, Joy nearly blurted out all of those words but forced herself to hold them back.
What was truly important now was escaping this dungeon.
It wouldn’t be too late to ask that outside the dungeon.
Thinking that, Joy suppressed her questions and quietly followed what Lucy commanded.
However, as time went on, the voice in Joy’s heart only grew louder.
If they made even the slightest misjudgment, they would surely suffer immense injuries.
Moreover, during the process, they had faced numerous dangers and sustained various injuries.
Yet, Lucy, who continued leading them at the forefront, looked incredibly precarious.
It wasn’t that Joy didn’t trust Lady Allen.
In different circumstances, she undeniably displayed a nearly omnipotent side in this dungeon.
There must be a clear reason she was repeating such dangers.
She understood that, she did.
But knowing wasn’t the same as mentally accepting it.
How could she accept just watching her friend charge into danger with her bare body?
This was exactly why Joy felt like she was becoming a burden to Lady Allen, just like when she nearly died during the entrance exam at the academy.
As all sorts of thoughts swirled in Joy’s head and faded away in cycles, the smoke filling the forest suddenly began to move deeper inside.
The sight of something being sucked in seemed far from normal.
“Hmm. Such a pretentious and arrogant sloppiness, but you’re not completely stupid, huh? You realize this won’t work, so you’re running away. How pathetic. Truly Evil Godlike.”
Lucy chuckled, speaking those words before stepping toward where the fog was being sucked in, while her party followed her as they always had.
Upon arriving at the center of the forest, there were stairs leading down into the ground, with an awful smell of blood and decaying flesh wafting from within.
At the smell, Joy felt momentarily nauseous and rummaged through her past memories.
And then she realized where she had encountered that smell before.
A place that had long been an evil nightmare for her. A place she thought she had overcome but still occasionally faced it in nightmares. A place symbolizing her powerlessness.
The place where the Alchemist resides.
Realizing this, Joy froze and stared blankly at the entrance.
She still recalled the horrific enemies she had seen there. The multiple life-or-death situations she had faced. And the confrontation that awaited.
“Fool.”
Hearing that distinct voice that seeped into her ear, Joy snapped back to reality and met Lucy’s eyes beneath her.
Those eyes were filled with worry.
“You’re making a face like you’re about to wet yourself, huh?”
“W-What face!? That’s slander!”
“Hehe. So, what are you going to do? Stay here? If you’re just going to sit and shake, I’ll handle that sloppiness down there and come back.”
Joy pondered for a moment upon hearing her question.
If Lady Allen was saying this, it meant she had full confidence.
She might even be thinking that she’s a hindrance.
“…No, it’s alright. If I have a chance for revenge, why would I step back?”
Even as she thought this, Joy didn’t retreat.
If she stepped back now, she felt that she would remain a hindrance in Lucy’s eyes forever, so she bit down on her teeth.
Upon witnessing this, Lucy momentarily closed her mouth before breaking into her usual snickering laughter.
“Making a strong front. If you go in there and start blubbering, won’t that be super embarrassing?”
“There’s no way that’ll happen.”
“Oh? Really? Alright then. Do as you see fit, you crybaby fool.”
“I’m telling you, that won’t happen!”
After that, Lucy posed the same question to others, and each time the response remained consistent.
No one wanted to retreat from here.
Confirming that, Lucy shrugged her shoulders and took the lead, stepping toward the stairs first.
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