novelraw Chapter 89
Chapter 89
Ch.89 Actually, That’s Good
“Ugh… these kids really know how to punish someone.”
Leah grabbed my head and shook it, Scarlet twisted my joints to inflict pain, and Mia tickled my ribs.
And Cecilia—worried I might be seriously hurt—carefully kept healing me the whole time.
Honestly, after enduring that bizarre mix of pain, agony, and tickling for so long, my mind was utterly wrecked.
Compared to the ‘quartered alive’ punishment I’d once imagined, this was relatively mild—but still unbearably exhausting.
Being tickled while in pain was seriously infuriating.
Thanks to Cecilia’s meticulous healing—just enough to keep me from dying but not enough to fully relieve the pain—I felt a strange, unsettling mix of tension and relief.
Eventually, after doling out their punishment, they all disappeared.
Assuming they’d gone somewhere on the ship, I gazed out the window.
Staring at the crescent moon over the blue night sea, I thought about my next steps.
I should be able to retrieve the Concept Artifact from the ocean through Mia.
Though, judging by her blank-faced tickling session earlier, she might not listen to my request—but since the King of the Dead’s revival would lead to elven extinction…
if I frame it that way, she might agree.
Roy should regain a physical body in a month or two anyway.
The DLC ‘King of the Dead’ has a surprisingly simple plot:
Roy de More, the King of the Dead, possesses someone’s body to take revenge on the world, then summons his god to annihilate all life.
The Heroes must stop him before he reaches the Sealing Stone—that’s the ending.
Normally, the difficulty is high for a final DLC: endless waves of undead, including undead dragons from the ‘Dragon War’ DLC.
But by my standards, it’s not particularly hard—because all of Roy’s undead and his magic are weak to divine power.
That’s why I’ll need the Goddess’s Wedding Ring and Levi’s Dagger to neutralize the undead, and the Sword Saint’s Blade with the Arbiter’s Armor to overpower Roy himself.
After all, Concept Artifacts exist not for story depth, but purely to aid gameplay.
“Still… it’s a shame about Altarion’s Staff.”
—Knock!
A knock at the door interrupted my thoughts.
Who could it be at this hour?
I quietly opened the door—and saw a gray-haired beauty.
“Miss Scarlet? No… Scarlet?”
She looked shy as she carefully spoke.
“Can we talk for a moment?”
What? Was the earlier punishment just an appetizer, and now the real torture begins?
My palms started sweating.
Worried I might end up in another joint-lock if I stayed alone with her this late at night, I gave an awkward smile.
“It’s pretty late for a man and woman to be—”
Before I could finish, she gently shoved me inside.
“What are you doing? Leaving the door open?”
If you were just going to barge in anyway, why ask?
But seeing her red eyes gleam with clear intent—not listening to any objections—I sighed and closed the door.
“Alright. What is it?”
“Let’s sit and talk.”
She gestured toward the sofa in my room.
I sighed inwardly and sat down—and Scarlet took the seat across from me.
“Is it really true? That you’re from another world?”
I nodded at her curious expression.
“Yeah. It’s true.”
“Then… when you reached out to me during hard times… was that because you knew the future?”
“That’s… a long story.”
Scarlet, the female hero.
From a player’s perspective, few characters feel as satisfying to control as her—massive damage output, smooth mobility, and fast attack speed put her among the game’s top-tier.
But she’s also weak to ice magic and has low HP—making her an easy death for beginners.
That’s exactly why I stepped in.
But how do I explain all that simply?
While I was searching for the right words, she spoke softly.
“Thank you… for helping me. For saving my village… really, thank you.”
“Oh…”
Her unexpected gratitude left me speechless.
An awkward silence filled the room.
“I never imagined I’d say this…”
Her voice was tinged with sadness and self-mockery.
“But I really wanted to tell you how grateful I am—from the moment you first sent that letter until now.”
“If it helped, that’s all that matters. You defeated the Demon King, after all.”
“It was thanks to you… no, thanks to you, Hans.”
She bowed her head in gratitude. I scratched my cheek.
“Don’t be silly. What did I even do? I just sent some artifacts and backup. No matter how strong I am, I couldn’t kill the Demon King—that was entirely your destiny.”
She didn’t respond.
“So lift your head. You did great, Scarlet.”
At my praise, she smiled shyly and looked up.
Then she asked,
“Do you… have a girlfriend?”
“Huh?”
Her sudden question caught me off guard.
“W-why do you ask that all of a sudden?”
Her cheeks trembled slightly.
Was she angry? She looked angry.
“Cecilia called you her boyfriend.”
“Oh, that’s…”
There’s a malevolent spirit in Cecilia’s convent—one that leads her to ruin.
In the original story, after defeating the Demon King and returning to the convent, the King of the Dead’s rise allows that spirit to take over and drive Cecilia to her death.
Back then, I thought it was just a game mechanic to raise difficulty by removing the overwhelmingly powerful saintess.
But in a world that might be real, losing her would be foolish.
So I approached Cecilia solely to enter the convent—the one place men aren’t allowed.
I ended up exorcising the spirit… and accidentally receiving Cecilia’s love.
Later, as the newly appointed saintess, she forced me to confess…
And I only did it because I didn’t want to get on the Church’s bad side.
When I explained this simply to Scarlet, she gasped.
“Wait—so you only confessed because she blackmailed you?!”
“Yeah. If I hadn’t, I’d have been dragged off to the Inquisitors. Those holy knights were glaring at me like I was already guilty…”
“So… you don’t have a girlfriend now?”
She asked with a heavy, hopeful look.
Technically, I’d been in something like a fling—but after being betrayed and nearly killed, that’s over.
So yes, I’m single.
But… should I really say that?
“Well…”
My hesitation made Scarlet narrow her eyes.
“Do you? Or don’t you?”
“I don’t.”
At my answer, she smiled in clear satisfaction.
“Hehe… good. I’ll take my leave now.”
I walked her to the door.
“Good night.”
“You too.”
After saying goodbye, I lay down on the bed.
“Finally… I can sleep.”
Just as I closed my eyes to enjoy the comfort of the mattress—
—Knock!
Someone knocked again, jolting me awake.
Seriously… who is it this time?
I got up and opened the door—
“Father Hans?”
Cecilia stood there.
What now? Did you all make a pact to visit my room one by one tonight?
Shaking off the absurd thought, I said,
“Saintess?”
—Zap.
She glared at me.
‘What? You are the saintess!’
She pushed past me into the room.
“Call me by my name.”
Pouting slightly, she muttered under her breath.
Flustered, I quickly corrected myself.
“Ah—what brings you here, Cecilia?”
“Call me normally. Like you call L-e-a-h.”
Hah… is she jealous of Leah?
Cecilia walked over and sat on the sofa as if it were her own.
Are they acting alike because they’ve traveled together so long?
I sat down too—and she gave a gentle smile.
“I never dreamed Father Hans was Leah’s master.”
“Well… haha…”
My awkward laugh made her frown deeply.
“Is this funny to you?”
“Ah—no?”
But she quickly softened.
“How could I not know my boyfriend had a disciple?”
Well… because I never told you.
But can I say that outright?
Cecilia’s known for her possessiveness…
“Answer?”
“I… I’m sorry. I just… never said anything.”
She snorted.
“Hmph. Fine. I’ll forgive you—just this once. After all… I am Father Hans’s girlfriend.”
I was stunned.
What? I only confessed because you forced me—and that counts as having a girlfriend?
“But cheating is bad! You know that, right?”
She stared at me with wide, expectant eyes.
There’s no way I’m dumb enough to ask, “Do you really think we’re dating just because I confessed under pressure?”
Besides, I’ll soon return to the Old Continent—where the Church holds immense power.
Antagonizing Cecilia, one of its top leaders, would be idiotic.
“Of course I know. I only have the Saintess—”
“Cecilia!”
She cut me off with a sulky pout. I sighed inwardly.
“Only Cecilia.”
Can’t you just leave me alone?
“By the way… is it really true that the Church of Death is trying to revive the King of the Dead?”
At her serious question, I nodded slightly.
“Yes. If this world truly mirrors the game I played… then his revival might be unavoidable.”
In the game, players can’t stop the King of the Dead’s resurrection.
Candidates like Scarlet, the prince, or the adventurer Colt appear in-game, so players can intervene indirectly—
but Cardinal Davinus never appears anywhere in the game.
It’s as if the developers deliberately made it impossible for players to interfere with the King’s return.
“I see… but there’s still hope. You’re the wielder of Equality, after all.”
That reminded me of something I’d long wondered.
Equality is a Concept Artifact—no NPC in Destiny ever knew of its existence.
If they had, the game would’ve been broken.
So how does she know?
“How do you even know Equality exists? In the game, no one knew about it.”
Cecilia’s eyes widened.
“Oh! Our Church has possessed a Prophecy Scroll since ancient times. It speaks of the God of Death, his apostles, their plan to revive the King of the Dead to bring death upon all life—and the Adversary who opposes them.”
I knew that part.
“The scroll says the Adversary wields Equality—the power of El, the Creator.”
“Huh?”
I was baffled.
The Creator’s power is Equality? An ‘Adversary’?
That story never appeared in the game.
Lost in thought, I barely noticed her shrug.
“We don’t know the details either. The prophecy is too obscure and hard to interpret.”
I desperately wanted to read it.
“Cecilia… can you show me the Prophecy Scroll?”
She nodded slightly at my earnest request.
“Hmm… but it’s late tonight. I’ll show it to everyone tomorrow.”
Then, with a faint blush, she stood up.
“I’ll go now. And don’t forget.”
“Forget what?”
“That we’re dating.”
That’s the one thing I really wish I could forget.
As she headed for the door, she paused and turned back.
“And our relationship… is a secret from everyone.”
With that, Cecilia hurried out.
Why keep it secret?
I didn’t understand—but then again…
“Actually, that’s good.”
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