Arthur watched closely as Joey cast her spell.
Her skill has improved again in just a few days. The structure of her magic has become more refined.
He had been worried she might make a mistake, but it seemed that concern was unnecessary.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Arthur relaxed his shoulders, but the sudden sound of something falling made him quickly turn his head. Lucy Allen had collapsed on the floor.
The mace, which she had been holding tightly, now rolled on the ground, and the shield, which had made her look the most reliable, couldn’t even make a clink of sound. Her posture, now as chaotic as a broken doll with its string snapped, felt ominous, as if it were signaling death.
Ignoring the surrounding noise, Arthur stared blankly at Lucy. Was she trying to mock us again?
Ha ha. Of course, she was. What reason could there possibly be for her to collapse right now?
If she was going to pretend, she should at least make it convincing.
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The very same person who had been flaunting how much she was loved by the gods just a moment ago, suddenly collapsing—who would believe that?
“She’s fine. Nothing’s wrong. Everything’s fine. But why? Why? Why isn’t she waking up?”
Arthur, who had been denying reality, finally snapped back to his senses when he saw Paybi’s pale face.
“Healing magic is useless. There’s no curse either. Then...”
“Paybi, calm down. Don’t panic like this.”
“How can I calm down when the young lady has collapsed!?”
The nervousness that never showed in front of others was now evident in Paybi. Her mind was in such a panic that she had lost the thought of keeping calm. Arthur, becoming more composed, took a deep breath and stood in front of Paybi.
“Saint.”
“This is useless. This too means nothing. Then... then...”
“Saint!”
After embedding his voice into Paybi’s mind with magical force, she finally looked up and met Arthur’s eyes.
“Do you really think Lucy Allen would fall so easily? Have you made up your mind to follow someone so weak?”
“...No.”
“Then please calm down. Expending your strength like this will only make things worse.”
As Paybi, trembling, crossed her hands over her chest and stepped back, Arthur sighed and turned his gaze to the side.
The fragment of Soladin, who had been standing next to him, silently gestured with his eyes to the right.
Turning his gaze in the direction indicated, Arthur saw Frey, who had drawn her sword, facing a woman made of intertwined tree roots.
With a gaze as sharp as the tip of a spear, the woman asked, in a cold, detached voice:
“Did you do this?”
“Yes. I invited her.”
“Why?”
“To ask for help from someone who carries the power of the gods.”
When the woman smiled faintly, Frey swung her sword and severed her neck. But instead of her face, it was replaced by a newly sprouted root.
Seeing this, Frey tried to swing her sword again, but Kal, extending one of his arms, blocked her path.
“I have no intention of attacking you.”
“How can we trust you?”
“How do you think I was able to break through her immense mental barrier? I, a mere fragment of the Queen, am nowhere near strong enough to penetrate her mind. The only reason I’ve been allowed to spend time with her is because her guardian has granted me permission.”
“I would prefer you spoke in a way we could understand.”
“Oh, don’t you fully understand what she holds? This is becoming a troublesome situation.”
“No. I understand. You’re referring to the fact that Lord Ruell allowed you near her.”
Paybi responded to the woman, who was resting her chin on her hand in thought.
“That’s correct. The one who carries the light of the gods.”
“What makes you worthy of Lord Ruell’s permission to approach the young lady?”
The woman, who had tried to smile politely, now bowed her head respectfully at Paybi’s cold tone.
“My apologies. I am the Fairy Queen. I am but a fragment of her, lost in a dream, wandering between dream and reality.”
The Fairy Queen. The worst enemy they had imagined. The group, always ready for battle, naturally took their positions.
It was a formation they had practiced dozens, hundreds, thousands of times. There was no deviation from it.
“I told you I have no intention of being hostile. Don’t you know? Beings like me find it difficult to lie. It’s the truth.”
Seeing the Fairy Queen tilt her head in confusion, Joey remembered something Erginos had said.
Fairies are pure. So pure that they believe others must be pure too. The Fairy Queen is no different. To put it simply, her head is in the clouds.
“You’re touching someone’s friend without a word and saying you mean no harm? That’s not very convincing.”
Joey, representing the feelings of everyone present, explained, and the Fairy Queen crossed her arms.
Her furrowed brow seemed to indicate she was considering how to convince them.
“Why not just cut her down? I think we could do it.”
“Kent, young lady. I agree, but please wait. If we just kill her without understanding why she collapsed, it’ll be meaningless.”
“The blade speaks wisely. Frey, Kent. I hope you can evolve from beasts into humans.”
“Hmm. Ugh.”
As Frey held back her impulses, the Fairy Queen, who had been frowning, suddenly tilted her head.
“Oh?”
With a voice full of confusion, she hastily turned her gaze to where Lucy Allen had collapsed.
“Haah...”
Lucy Allen, now awake, stretched and yawned.
The group, who had been worried about her, was taken aback by her relaxed behavior.
“That was such a boring dream.”
Lucy’s playful laughter made them lose any intention of scolding her.
Even on this barren land tainted by the power of the dark gods, her smile shone brightly, melting the hearts of those around her.
<Did you talk things over well?>
‘...Did Grandpa send me in? No wonder it felt much more pathetic than I had feared.’
Breaking through my mental barrier almost meant that she was as powerful as a dark god, but the fairy queen’s prepared forest was so poorly constructed.
The trial set by Gancho had been far more threatening.
I had momentarily gotten excited about something that wasn’t in the game!
I can’t believe this would be the end. There must be more to come. There’s no way she would have spoken so confidently without something else up her sleeve.
Ignoring the many anxieties, I waited for Phase 2 to arrive, only to be greeted by the fact that I had woken up from a dream?
<Well, I’d say it’s not that she wasn’t prepared, but more that your abilities are beyond common sense.>
‘...You were watching the whole thing?’
<...I see.>
‘Heh. Grandpa. We’ve been getting along so well lately, haven’t we? Maybe it’s time we have a little conflict like we used to?’
<Well, there’s a thing called past connections, right? There was the favor I owe her, and she doesn’t seem to have evil intentions, so...>
Ignoring Grandpa’s desperate excuses, I stood up, passing my friends who were staring blankly at me, and approached the Fairy Queen, now fully formed through the withered roots.
“Are you ready to declare defeat, chicken coop aunt?”
The price for betraying my purity is high. To challenge me with such a pathetic dungeon.
If it were up to me, I’d attach a leash and parade her around the forest, shouting, “I’m a pathetic old aunt who’s been beaten by a girl, even though I’ve lived nearly a thousand years!”
But of course, if I did that, some virgin outside would probably make a fuss, so I won’t.
“...Yes. I have been defeated.”
“Strange. Why is your head so stiff? You call yourself a queen, but don’t even know manners?”
“What?”
“Bow your head, you clueless idiot. I’m going to make sure you properly apologize for being such a fool when I was trying to help you.”
Of course, I wouldn’t make a scene. I’d make sure to get the apology I deserve. You made me hopeful and then disappointed me...
Ahem. No.
The sin of betraying Erginos’s efforts is not a small one! If you understand, apologize! Fairy Queen!
“I-I... I’m sorry...”
Seeing the Fairy Queen, who had thought she was something, now bowing her head, I felt satisfied. I turned to explain the current situation to my friends.
They were staring at me in surprise.
Hmm. I wonder if it looked like trash to those who didn’t know anything?
Fortunately, clearing up the misunderstanding wasn’t that hard. The Fairy Queen, who had admitted defeat, explained everything.
The friends who understood that the person who had gathered the country’s entire military strength to save her now wanted to die, acknowledged that I had every right to be angry.
“I thought so. Lucy Allen, even if you seem clueless, you’re actually quite meticulous.”
“Yeah. Lucy’s actually nice despite how she looks.”
“Why bring that up? If the young lady gets mad, there’s obviously a reason for it.”
“...Though I feel like there were plenty of times when we were just bullied without reason.”
“What did you say, idiot?”
“Nothing! I was just rambling! Lucy!”
Not knowing why, but seeing Joey glaring at me with a satisfied smile behind the others, I spoke to the Fairy Queen, who was kneeling and looking at me.
“You rotted away and became sweet, huh, chicken coop aunt? You probably already know, but we have a lot of questions for you.”
“Yes. Yes, please ask anything.”
The Fairy Queen, now cooperating rather than whining, seemed strange compared to when we had met in my mind, but this was better than her complaining.
“Tell me what’s happening inside.”
After a moment of thought, the Fairy Queen sighed and spoke in a lamenting voice.
“The Queen’s dream is about to end. It’s because the figure in the dream has appeared in reality.”