novelraw Chapter 70 : Chapter 70
Chapter 70 : Chapter 70
Chapter 70. The Entrance to Hell (2)
"Look here. 'I, Frank, will definitely take my youngest daughter, Noemi, to any future battles.' This is your handwriting, isn't it, Dad?"
"This isn't a battle, it's a ruin exploration."
"But it's a ruin famous for being the most difficult."
Noemi had no intention of losing by even a single word.
I couldn't put her to sleep with sleep magic like last time, which was quite a predicament.
'The reason the Entrance to Hell is known to be difficult isn't because of the monsters or traps that appear.'
When it comes to traps, the ones Mammon set are far more difficult to pass.
Why else would Anonymous have failed?
I don't know for sure, but even Primus wouldn't be able to pass through there easily.
But the Entrance to Hell wasn't to that extent.
'There are maze sections in between, but that's no problem for me.'
The monsters, at their current level, weren't a threat to my life either.
At their strongest, they were just a few liches and death knights.
But the problem was the specter of the first Demon King, who was holding out on the lowest floor.
'The fellow uses a special mental magic to confuse intruders. Besides me, is there anyone else who can break it?'
The mental magic that fellow uses is completely immune to magic resistance.
Meaning, if you're hit, you're 100% affected.
It's on a different level from things like fainting or brainwashing.
'It stimulates the affected person's trauma. It's a vicious magic that returns them to the time they experienced the trauma and, if they can't overcome it, they can never escape from their mental world.'
The word trauma originates from the Latin word for a great wound.
It's a symptom where one experiences psychological anxiety while feeling the emotions of the past when a moment like the fear experienced in the past occurs, and it's not a type of thing that can be easily overcome.
For example, let's assume there's a person with a trauma of being in a car that fell into water.
Even if you tell them various ways to escape before the car is submerged in water, or after the car is completely submerged, would the person themselves be able to overcome it easily?
Of course, it would be difficult.
'The quality of that fellow's mental magic is so bad it feels dirty.'
How many game over screens did I have to see here?
As for me, I knew all of my daughters' traumas through countless save-load tricks, so I could pass it, but that was possible because it was a game, and now this is reality.
It's uncertain whether they could get through it on their own just by telling them, 'You have this trauma, and you can overcome it this way.'
'And while Adel is a character who was in the original, so I'm familiar with her, Noemi is not. As for Rude, I have no idea what kind of trauma he might have.'
Adel might also have had different experiences than in the game, so there's a possibility that the information I have is different.
Anonymous is a character with a naturally high pride, so she might not have experienced any trauma, but is it really right to take the others along as well?
While I was wondering what to say.
Noemi's eyes went vacant for a moment, and she fainted.
"Noemi!"
"Tsk. It seems her mind has reached its limit due to the sudden future foresight. We need to get her downstairs to rest."
I agreed with Rude's words and immediately carried Noemi on my back.
A weight so light I couldn't even tell I was carrying her.
I couldn't quite find an answer as to whether it was right to take such a small child to that dangerous place.
***
Riding on Anonymous who had transformed into a dragon, we came down from the mountain in an instant and took some time to think.
The dilemma of it being too dangerous to go all together, and the sword not lasting long if we didn't go.
The best course of action would be for just me and Anonymous to go secretly, but if we did that, the others, especially Noemi, would put up a huge fuss.
'What should I do about this.'
I'm realizing these days that just because my power has returned doesn't mean I'm omnipotent.
Even that is only half of my power.
'The fourth episode after the mid-game was the Demon King's Castle conquest.'
However, that episode was something the user could choose.
A demon named Desiderius suddenly declared himself the Demon King and rose up in the Demon King's Castle, and we could choose whether to subjugate him or just stand by and watch.
If subjugated, we could conquer the Demon King's Castle and take Desiderius as a subordinate at the same time.
He wasn't a particularly competent fellow, but it wasn't a bad choice in that it could split the demon society in two.
'And you can use the Entrance to Hell at any time, so it has various merits.'
On the other hand, if you stood by, Nox would kill Desiderius and become the true Demon King.
Until then, he had been just one of many Demon King candidates, but starting with this, he gained the title of Demon King and rose to the forefront.
Naturally, you couldn't enter the Entrance to Hell either, and the demon invasion began in earnest, starting a hectic battle.
The former seemed like a better choice than the latter, but many users chose the latter.
Because if you took Desiderius as a subordinate, there was a frequent ending where the fellow would lure the daughter away and they would run away together.
Desiderius' lines were always predictable.
'Your father doesn't truly love you. He only sees you as a tool. But I'm different. I can make you happy for the rest of your life.'
Quietly, as if whispering. But certainly.
As if this were some kind of brainwashing magic, many users lost their daughters at this stage.
'Son of a bitch. Just thinking about it makes me angry.'
Can't you just kill him as soon as you subjugate him?
Unfortunately, there was no such option in the game.
If you subdued the fellow, you had to take him as a subordinate, so the risk was great.
You could divide the demon society and take over the Demon King's Castle, and you could freely enter and exit the Entrance to Hell, but there was also the possibility that the daughter you worked so hard to raise would run away with him.
'This is a headache. If only I and Anonymous went, we could secretly enter the Entrance to Hell and just snatch the dungeon core.'
If the number of people going to the Demon King's Castle increased, sneaking in would be close to impossible.
Because Desiderius' subordinates, who had occupied the Demon King's Castle, would be watching with their eyes wide open.
Since this wasn't a problem that would be solved quickly just by thinking about it, I went to Noemi's room.
"Are you feeling a little better?"
"Yes. I'm fine now."
"That's a relief."
"But Dad. Can we do what we couldn't at the hot spring now?"
"Huh?"
"You promised to spar with everyone. I want to do that now."
I retorted with an incredulous look on my face.
"I don't know what a person who is not well is talking about."
"I'm fine now. You only fought with my sister. Fight with me too."
Under the unwavering gaze of Noemi's eyes, I had to look elsewhere.
"And if I beat you, Dad, you have to promise to take me with you."
"Where to?"
"To the Entrance to Hell. You haven't forgotten what you wrote in the contract, have you?"
Noemi once again pulled out the contract and thrust it at me.
If I wrote something like this one more time, even two bodies wouldn't be enough.
They say there's no dad who can beat his daughter.
With a long sigh, I nodded my head.
"I have no choice. However, my power only returns after the sun sets, so could you wait until then?"
"Of course! Thank you, Dad!"
Noemi smiled brightly and hugged me tightly.
Is she really that happy to fight me?
It occurs to me that perhaps Noemi is the most belligerent among the daughters.
Noemi, the King of Destruction.
And that was a nickname that fit Noemi perfectly.
***
In the evening, after the sun had set.
Noemi and I moved deep into a nearby forest, just the two of us.
"This should be fine."
Noemi nodded as if in agreement.
Noemi is a wizard.
Unlike when facing a swordsman, special care was needed in selecting a location.
'If I'm not careful, the surroundings will be devastated.'
I put a little distance between myself and Noemi and asked.
"Shall we begin?"
"Yeees! Anytime is good."
Noemi's face was full of confidence.
'I heard she overwhelms Adel; I'm curious to see what kind of skills she has.'
Suddenly, one of her characteristics when I first chose Noemi came to mind.
[Ultimate Magical Power]
Previously, no character had possessed such a characteristic.
A characteristic that first appeared in the DLC.
Since other new characters didn't have it either, this must be seen as Noemi's unique characteristic.
Of course, she would not be a match for me who had regained my power.
I was able to subdue Adel and Alvarez with ease even when they attacked me at the same time.
However, since Ragnarok's durability was on its last legs, I brought a different sword.
I had asked Adel to lend me Ceps.
Adel said she could hear Ceps' voice, but not a single sound reached my ears.
I took my stance and gestured with my hand for her to attack first.
Immediately, Noemi cast a spell.
"Earth, rise!"
Then, sharp stone pillars shot up from the ground towards me.
'This much is nothing.'
I simply dodged backwards and avoided Noemi's attack.
At the same time, I stepped on the risen stone pillar and leaped high.
To land a blow on Noemi.
But what is this?
"Huh? Where did she go?"
Noemi, who should have been in front of me, was nowhere to be seen.
While I was flustered.
Suddenly, a fireball flew from the left.
Not just one or two, but at least 10 or more.
It was too close to block, so I immediately cast a barrier to protect my body.
Bang! Bang bang!
Thanks to the barrier, it didn't hurt, but my head was dizzy from the continuous explosions of fire.
But the attacks continued without end.
And it wasn't just fireballs all day long, but all sorts of elemental magic, including water, ice, wind, and electricity, were flying about.
'Phew. This is no joke. If I make one wrong move, I'll lose.'
It was certain that magic, unlike a sword, could be fired from a distance.
Furthermore, as long as her magical power didn't run out, she could attack continuously, which put a swordsman at a disadvantage in many ways.
'But the weakness is also clear. Wizards are fundamentally weak in stamina, so all I have to do is cut their breath before they can cast a defensive spell.'
Of course, this was just a spar.
Such a thing would not happen.
While continuously taking Noemi's magic, I calmly observed the direction she was firing her magic from.
'She's moving left and right without a break while attacking. Is she using spatial transition magic or something?'
If not, there's no way the direction would keep changing like this.
However, a certain pattern was repeated,'Here!'
I quickly moved my body and swung my sword towards where Noemi would be.
With my strength moderately controlled.
'Huh?'
But Ceps merely cut through the empty air.
There was nothing where I had expected Noemi to be.
At that very moment.
"Gotcha!"
Pajijijik-!
"Uwaaaaaaah!!"
Electricity pierced my body, and my vision flashed white.
A tingling sensation that reached the bone.
Every single strand of my hair stood on end, and the words 'Where am I? Who am I?'
spontaneously came out.
Along with the smell of burning flesh, just when I thought I might really die.
"Hehe. You were fooled, weren't you? I was actually on the opposite side."
I could see Noemi sticking out her tongue and mocking me.
"Ha......haha."
I let go of the sword in my hand and raised it above my head.
"I surrender."
"Huh? Already?"
"Yes. This seems to be enough. I've lost."
"Pfft. What's that."
A hollow laugh escaped me as I looked at Noemi, who was grumbling as if this wasn't enough.
'Her mindset is different from the start.'
I had approached this with the intention of going easy on her, but Noemi seemed to be genuinely trying to kill me.
"Since I lost the bet, I'll take you with me."
"Wow! Thank you!"
Seeing Noemi so happy she couldn't control herself, I thought she was cute.
At the same time, I also thought she was scary.
'Now that I've actually fought her, I know.'
Noemi is a genius.
I'm not talking about magic.
A fighting genius I've never seen before.
Perhaps she's a cut above me or Anonymous.