Having left the palace, I first made my way to the Art Guild before heading to the city with the dungeon.
To quickly conquer the large dungeon, it was only right for me to prepare the best possible forces I could muster. It would also be much more convenient in case of any unexpected accidents.
With this in mind, I immediately visited the Art Guild and brought along the perverted apostle and the Sword Saint.
Convincing them wasn’t difficult.
Thanks to the fact that the perverted apostle had been in a particularly good mood after serving as a model for a painting, he was more than eager to follow me, and the Sword Saint, who was thrilled at the chance to work with his idol, Benedict, followed suit without hesitation.
To be honest, I didn’t think persuading the Sword Saint would be this easy.
After all, this was Yuden, who, even after all his struggles, still considered Luca a friend. Until everything was settled, I never thought he would leave Luca’s side, even if it meant facing Benedict as a rival.
‘...I really don’t think it’s good for me to be standing next to him.’
When I questioned Yuden about it, he let out a bitter laugh. That laugh spoke volumes about everything that had happened since he reunited with Luca.
‘Don’t worry about security! This place is as close to hell as it gets for the followers of the Evil God!’
The perverted apostle’s confident tone was one I wanted to criticize, but I couldn’t say a word about it.
That was because the Art Guild was filled with divine power so strong that not even the foulest of energies could infiltrate.
‘It happened because of the jewelry I made with the image of the young lady of Alrn!’
Though it looked as though the Art Guild had been subtly overtaken by the divine power of the Divine One, the perverted apostle chuckled without hesitation.
Apparently, the crow goddess had allowed it, so it wasn’t really a problem.
That perverted crow. Does she really think I won’t stop her from invading her domain if she insists on holding onto my paintings?
Ugh, just imagining her smirking face sends shivers down my spine.
With those thoughts, I left the guild and quickly made plans to conquer the dungeon within a day.
I wanted to finish everything before anyone noticed us.
But, alas, my plans were shattered by a damn annoying fool who was now grinning in front of me.
"It’s an honor to meet esteemed guests like yourselves here, where one can usually only meet such distinguished individuals during the foundation festival."
The First Prince of the Kingdom, Rene Soladin, along with several of his subordinates, greeted us with an extravagant display of respect.
"The kingdom’s sharpest blade, Benedict Alrn; the Apostle of the Art Guild, Prete; the Sword Saint, Yuden; and Alrn Young Lady, one of the future pillars of the kingdom."
As his gaze reached me, goosebumps instantly rose across my body.
His eyes, trying so hard to seem polite, felt unnervingly unpleasant.
Why is he acting like this? Why is this jerk pretending to be nice to me? Does he have some hidden agenda?
Did he get some hint from the First Queen?
The last time I met the First Prince was about a year ago.
Back then, he made it clear he didn’t like me, openly expressing it with his every action.
I suspect Lucy might have done something to him, but I still don’t know the exact reason.
If only that damn lunatic old man hadn’t interfered when the Pope visited during the last island trip, I could have learned everything from those memories. That meddling old fool ruined everything.
<You don’t need to worry about it now. The situation has changed drastically since then.>
‘...Really?’
<Your presence is much more significant than you realize. There may be some personal discomfort, but no political issues will arise.>
I trusted my grandfather’s words, and now I understood that with the Second Prince as a rival, the First Prince could never do anything too drastic.
Even so, I couldn’t shake the discomfort I felt about him.
Considering his future, he was both a person to be pitied and, at the same time, an enemy I couldn’t fully trust.
Thankfully, the First Prince’s gaze didn’t linger on me for long.
"It’s especially an honor to meet the great wizard Erginos as well. As someone who shares the blood of Soladin, I can’t express how honored I am to meet you."
"Haha, there’s no need for such excessive flattery."
Erginos, as usual, responded with polite words, showing respect for the Soladin bloodline...
"However, if you would kindly leave this place, that would be enough."
What? This isn’t like when he spoke to Arthur.
Erginos’ sharp tone, unlike when he spoke to Arthur, caused me to blink in surprise, but the First Prince remained unfazed, smiling calmly.
"Please don’t be like that. I didn’t come here because I wanted to."
"Then all the better. For both of our comfort, may I ask you to leave?"
"Erginos, but you are a noble bloodline of the kingdom."
"The problem is that this noble bloodline stands in the way of a great cause."
Was Erginos so bothered by wasting time while preparing to face the Dark Evil God? His tone became sharp, exuding a subtle aura as he pressured the First Prince.
The First Prince tried to maintain a calm demeanor, but the pressure from the legendary hero began to show on his face.
"You should know, if you wish to become king, you must have autonomy."
<Lucy, this is your chance.>
As Erginos continued to press the First Prince, my grandfather suddenly spoke.
‘What?’
<Why didn’t you settle your debt with him last time you met?>
Ah, that’s right. I had brushed off the rumors and let him go with that debt.
<Now, you could repay that debt and clear things up.>
Perfect. That creepy guy’s debt had been bothering me for a while. If I can settle it now, even better!
Or, if I handle it well, maybe I can make him owe me more.
Feeling pleased, I smiled mischievously and nudged Erginos, who was standing next to me, with my elbow.
"Ugh?!"
A voice that didn’t match the mighty wizard's image came out, sounding quite weak.
"W-What are you doing?"
"Poor pathetic virgin mage. I know you're jealous because you’re meeting someone better than you, but you should control yourself. If you keep this up, you'll just look pathetic."
"I’m not jealous."
"Was that not jealousy? Was it hysteria instead? Did you unload your stress on someone you didn’t know how to handle? Haha, you’re so heroic. It’s so pathetic, it’s almost funny. Keep going."
I took a step back, as if mocking a dancing clown, letting him continue as I enjoyed the spectacle.
Erginos, looking slightly irritated, sighed and closed his mouth.
"Now, this pathetic prince who can’t even handle such a loser... what are you doing here?"
After finishing off the situation, I addressed the First Prince, but he just stared at me, wide-eyed, without saying anything.
Wait. Looking more closely, it wasn’t just the First Prince who was surprised. His subordinates, too, had forgotten their manners and were staring at me in confusion.
What’s going on? Why is everyone reacting like this? I just stopped the virgin mage from throwing a tantrum, and now everyone’s staring at me.
"Does even a hero show respect in front of Lady Alrn’s beauty?"
"The Apostle of the Goddess, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t treat me as one of your kind."
After hearing the Apostle’s voice, filled with awe, I finally understood the situation.
To me, he was just a pathetic virgin skeleton who could do nothing in front of a mature woman, but to everyone else, it wasn’t the same.
To those who knew him as the legendary great wizard Erginos, what I had just done looked like I had received recognition from a hero.
‘...Grandfather, was this all planned?’
<I’m not sure.>
‘Please be more specific!’
<Well, no matter what, this is a great opportunity to talk to them more comfortably, isn’t it? That’s the important part.>
Ugh. This slippery old man.
Surrounded by surprised gazes, I took a deep breath and called the First Prince again.
"Have you forgotten how to speak to a woman after being holed up in the palace?"
"...Ah, I apologize."
Finally coming to his senses, the First Prince cleared his throat and explained why he had come.
"According to Erginos’s plan, we need to remove the being sealed within the large dungeon."
"That’s right. We need to let some sunlight shine on this underground recluse who can only vent its frustration."
"According to him, the seal of the Evil God is the key to maintaining the dungeon. If it disappears, the dungeon itself will collapse, won’t it?"
If the large dungeon collapses, it doesn’t just mean the dungeon disappears.
It means adventurers who relied on dungeon raids for their livelihood would disappear.
It also means that those who made a living by trading with the adventurers would lose their means of survival.
Simultaneously, the wealth that adventurers circulated would vanish in an instant.
Originally, dungeons might have been born from the Evil God’s wrath, but now they carry the lives of many.
"That’s right."
Erginos answered calmly to the First Prince’s realistic concerns.
"However, it must still be done. The place must disappear."
"If that place is where the Evil God gains power, then it should be destroyed. But we must be given time to prepare for the chaos that will follow."
"We might create an even greater disaster trying to prepare for the chaos."
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Both the First Prince and Erginos didn’t back down from each other’s opinions.
Their values clashed, and there was no avoiding the conflict.
However, as I listened to their conversation, I couldn’t help but feel a question arise.
"If removing one useless idiot from underground won’t make the dungeon disappear, then why bother?"
We never saw the dungeon collapse just because we defeated the Dark Evil God.
Sure, the difficulty decreased, but the dungeon still kept going.
Muttering to myself as I thought about what I had seen in the game, I suddenly realized all eyes were on me again.
Looking at their confused eyes, I regretted speaking out loud, but it was too late to take it back.
...
How am I supposed to explain this?
I’m not really sure how to explain it!