Chapter: 580
As I faced the fairies rushing at me wanting to sparkle too, I gradually came to understand what the Authority of Embrace really was.
Embrace means to hold someone close. It’s comforting them, no matter who they are, and helping them shake off the burdens they carry, warming them with your presence.
To explain it concretely, just think of the Miracle of Purification I performed in the fairy forest.
This act itself, helping the fairies who had been tainted by darkness for hundreds of years return to their original selves by wrapping them in a miracle, was an act of embrace.
“No matter how I think about it, this power doesn’t really suit me, does it?”
The fairies who had shed their darkness and returned to their original forms were scattering starlight as they danced across the land.
In their words, they were sparkling. They must have lived with such sparkle in the past.
I can see now why people often got enchanted by fairies.
[Why do you think so?]
“I’m not the type to suit embrace, am I?”
How can the word “embrace” go together with a Mesugaki who digs into others’ shortcomings to mock, tease, and trample on them while laughing?
[You should tell this to your friends. They’ll have interesting reactions.]
“Well, they’re precious friends, so there’s that.”
[Hmm. You’re not easy to convince. How about this? Even if Lina and the Apostle of Goddess did something heinous, you wouldn’t cast them away due to your mercy!]
“That’s not mercy; it’s resignation!”
I have no choice but to use this method when dealing with those perverse bastards who actually enjoy my hatred!
Believe me, I’d rather not get involved with those kinds of offenders! Who wants to associate with those kinds of sexual criminals?
<…I’m sorry.>
“You got that, didn’t you?”
[Ahem. Anyway, ask those you’ve helped. No one would say you’re far from embrace.]
I wonder. Ignoring the itching sensation in my heart, I thought about asking just that when I realized it would be tough to even bring it up and scratched my head.
“Lady Allen, how is the consumption during the process of using the power?”
“…For bugs, they’re surprisingly clean maggots.”
I can’t say there was no consumption. Accepting their darkness and transforming it into light put a significant burden on my already struggling body.
Fortunately, they had regained the essence of fairies, so I could somehow make them sparkle. If it had been when I first visited the fairy forest, I might have collapsed from trying to embrace them!
“Then let’s wrap up the practice here.”
– Huh?
– But I haven’t sparkled yet!?
– How unfair!
“You wouldn’t want to see Lady Allen collapsing, would you?”
With ease, the perverted Apostle persuaded the fairies and approached me with a smile.
“I recommend testing the limits of embrace after your body recovers. The Authority of God is conceptual, so as long as you don’t set limits, it’s fine.”
Is imagination that important? That’s no issue! Unlike you who know only this fantasy world, I’ve encountered the vast wonders of modernity!
“How was the dialogue, Your Majesty?”
Just as I was feeling pumped inside, Erginius looked up and asked.
“…It ended well, just as you said, Lord Erginius.”
The fairy queen spoke of good results, but there was a quiver in her voice.
Adding to that was the queen’s face. The one who always smiled couldn’t muster any laughter at this moment.
As I blankly stared at her face, holding back tears, Erginius approached her.
“I apologize, Your Majesty. It’s because of the burden I placed on you that the fairies’ wings…”
“No, um, that’s not it. It’s just… just that past scenery came to mind.”
The fairy queen commented that the shining fairies reminded her of the past, making Erginius’ expression sadden.
No matter the process, it was his actions that darkened the fairy queen’s wings. There must be guilt in that, how sympathetic.
“Just earlier, Lady Allen tested the power bestowed upon her. If used well, the fairies could reclaim their white wings again.”
“…Lord Erginius.”
Before I could interject, the fairy queen spoke in a cold voice.
Her voice, like it had frozen in winter after just having cried, pierced Erginius with sharp eyes.
“That is a choice made by me and the children.”
– That’s right!
– Sparkling is nice, but being the same as the queen is the best!
– Clueless!
– Sympathy!
– What’s sympathy!?
– I don’t know! Anyway, sympathy!
– Nerd!
As the fairies complained in response to the queen’s words, Erginius waved his hands in a panic.
That guy hasn’t changed even after becoming a god. The fairy queen must have a tough time.
After being bombarded for quite a while, once Erginius crumbled down, the fairy queen, as usual, came to me with her radiant smile back.
Her sudden change in expression made her seem more like the queen of darkness than a fairy.
“Apologies for the late introduction, my hero and son of a hero.”
Huh…? What? Hero? Son of a hero? Why is that coming up?
Isn’t that a title meant for that nerdy wizard sprawled out over there?
“If possible, I want to devote all of myself to supporting your life, but I already have a contractor for my life, so it can’t be done.”
No. No, um, what’s that? You don’t need to go that far.
Honestly, the reason I got involved in this was from a selfish desire to grow taller by performing a greater miracle, hoping for new dungeons, so if you present me with something heavy, I’ll want to run away!
Wait, why am I not getting taller!? After performing such a miracle, I should be at least an inch taller, right?!
Shoddy God! What the hell is going on? Explain! Now!
“I would love to tell you to surround yourself with fairies, but you already have three fairies with you, huh.”
These guys? Yeah, they are a little strange.
Aside from their cuteness, they give off the vibes of a Sloppy Fox or a Perverted Apostle.
Even now, while other fairies have returned with black wings like the queen, these guys are still prattling on about their sparkles as they circle around me!
“Even so, if I share my strength with you now, it would disturb you, right?”
Huh?! No!? That’s not true! I desperately need those skills! I want to find out what kind of blessing the fairy queen possesses!
“Thus, I will take on the role of a fairy from old fairy tales. Guiding the hero to where they should go is always the fairy’s responsibility, right?”
The fairy queen gathered her hands and closed her eyes. She began singing a song, reciting poetry to guide the hero to where they need to be.
– The heroes of the past left behind their lingering hopes for the future.
– The Holy Knight, serving the gods, vanished, leaving everything in their weapon.
– The noble knight closed their eyes, leaving their intentions in the castle they lived for.
– The wizard, wanting to challenge the gods, left endless possibilities beneath the earth.
– The hero, who never doubted the miracle, packed hope where even fairies couldn’t reach.
– Child of the hero’s soul. Smile facing their dreams and prove that what the hero left behind was not in vain.
After the fairy queen’s prayer, reminiscent of an oracle, I reflected on the song I had just heard.
The Holy Knight must be talking about my grandfather. What he left behind is probably the mace I’m holding.
What the wizard left behind must be the various dolls underground.
What the noble knight left behind would likely be the records left in Garad’s castle.
I can follow so far. I’ve seen this sort of thing once or twice in games.
But what is this hope of a hero supposed to be?
I’ve never seen anything like that!?
And why does the explanation have to be so unnecessarily grandiose!
Hope packed where even fairies can’t reach! My inner middle schooler is about to explode!
– Ding!
As I was eagerly wishing for more clues, a notification sounded in my ears.
[Quest has been updated!]
Quest? Did I just receive a new quest!?
[What the hero left behind.]
[You, who have newly arisen as a hero in this world, and have gained the right to conclude the lingering wishes of the past sages. Obtain the past’s legacy and move toward hope. Challenge the end of this long story.]
[Acquire Ruel’s Mace! (Success)]
[Be recognized by the dolls Erginius left behind! (In Progress) (2/4)]
[Retrieve a memo from Garad’s castle! (In Progress)]
[Reach the place where the hero’s fluid is! (In Progress)]
[Reward: Blooming the Soul of the Hero.]
Wow!
What’s this? It sounds unnecessarily grand!
It smells like a main quest!
It smells like a hidden true ending that didn’t exist in that game that had been stale for years!
With shining eyes, I stared at the quest window, drumming my lips while picturing the map of the continent in my head.
There’s no need to think about anything else. All the other places are already fully explored. The only thing I need to contemplate is where the hero’s fluid is!
First, let’s think about places that couldn’t be accessed in the game as a starting point.
Umm… There’s just way too much! Even if I ask Karia for help with exploration, it’s going to take a lot of time.
I wish there was some kind of clue.
“Sympathy nerd?”
“Sorry. I would like to tell you something, but there are restrictions beyond this point.”
“This is the best I can do, my hero. Please understand.”
Tsk! Just because you became a god doesn’t mean you can act all mysterious now!?
Forget it! I’ve got my own plans without you!
“Grandpa! As a friend to the hero, give me a clue about that guy!”
<...If you blindly ask me, that guy disappeared in the blink of an eye, so I don’t really know.>
Damn it! Even Grandpa has turned into an incompetent!
There’s nothing I can do now.
Additional Commentary!
Help!
Heeellp!
[Press for more inquiries.]
Press for more inquiries? Hmm. In this case, it would be about Grandpa, right?
“Honestly, just tell me! Otherwise, I’ll dig into Grandpa’s black history!”
Erginius has made dolls full of Grandpa’s black stories waiting!? Is that okay!?
[Even if you say so, not knowing is not knowing! Just because I know doesn’t mean I’ll spill!]
“But Gan Shu’s power told me to press for more inquiries!”
[Pressing doesn’t turn the unknown into the known!]
“There must be something suspicious, right?!”
[There isn’t! How many times do I have to repeat this! If you’re the one with the Authority of Embrace, embrace my ignorance too!]
…Is he really completely clueless?
Maybe the incompetent moldy guy created some misunderstanding!
Or maybe I’ve misinterpreted something.
Hmm. Ugh. I don’t have enough in my hands. If I had something to pick at, I could get something out of it.
While I frowned in thought, the information I was hoping for came from an utterly unexpected character.
“Lucy. Lucy. Are you not swapping with Ruel today?”
“…What the hell are you rambling about?”
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