Chapter 139 – Day Trip Dungeon (7)

It was already dusky dawn when he came out of the dungeon.

It won’t be hard to stop by the mansion again, so I’ll go back to the dormitory and rest for a bit before going back to class.

He sighed deeply as he hurriedly walked along with his companions.

I don’t have enough sleep, but I’ll be able to endure this with vitality potions.

If it is an advanced potion or higher, there will be no aftereffects.

Of course, you shouldn’t abuse it.

Even if there were no side effects of the potion itself, it was a human problem.

For example, in the case of vitality potions, there could be minor problems such as disrupting sleep patterns.

A similar example is that if you attach a severed wound as a potion, you will suffer from phantom pain for a while.

Just as there is no phantom pain if healed by the priest’s holy power, it is said that blood will disappear without any problems if it is blessed.

… Should I just ask Helena later before class?

Yes. I hope so.

All right Even if I look like this, am I not a noble of the righteous Church of Light?

Maybe it’s because one thing I’m worried about disappeared, and I hummed a song without even realizing it.

Iris approached, teasing her short legs.

“Master.”

“Yes? What’s the matter?”

“I’m just saying… The owner seems to have penetrated all the paths of that complex labyrinthine dungeon.”

“What, right?”

The future I know has changed little by little as I have been through this and that, but there are things that have not changed.

One of them was the location and structure of the dungeon.

This is because even cultists cannot do anything artificially.

At best, it would be to hide the existence of the dungeon, or to enter first and cover the entrance with a trap.

Even so, it was something they could only do in the dungeon they found first.

She lightly shrugged her shoulders in affirmation, and Iris tilted her small head to the side.

“If that’s the case, then you’re left with a little doubt. If you know the road well enough to find the hidden treasure… Why did you leave it as it is without attacking it yet?”

“…….”

Uh, well I hadn’t even thought about that.

If I had to say it, I would have to say that there was no organization member to clear it. Because we are founding members.

But since I couldn’t tell the truth, I decided to pass the time with the most plausible words.

“Clearing the dungeon is not important.”

“Yes?”

As if not understanding, Iris blinked the same blue eyes as Elisha.

In fact, I didn’t quite understand what I was talking about, so I just kept talking.

“What do you think is the reason for clearing the dungeon?”

“Isn’t it to send the dungeon completely to the other side of time and space? If left alone, the monsters will be freed, whether it’s because of the long time or because of the rituals of the cultists.”

“Right. Then why can’t the monster be released?”

“Why? That’s right, fighting with that many guys causes damage, and the power of the cultists is also replenished, so we have to stop it while we can… For a moment.”

Even though she was dumbfounded by the continuous question of why, Iris hardened her face.

Then he stared blankly at my face and started muttering to himself.

“No, please. No way… But otherwise there would be no reason. The fact that she was hiding in the shadows in the first place….”

“Iris?”

“Above all, if you are the owner… Invited Lindelheit… Legacy of Dragons… Subdue evil spirits….”

The scale of the sparsely heard self-talk is getting bigger and bigger.

I won’t deny that there was an expectation that, to be as blunt as possible, they would interpret it on their own like the last time, but I didn’t expect it to be to this extent.

While she was a little anxious about what conclusion she had come to, Iris nodded vigorously as if she understood.

“I see now. The owner… Those who were the master’s colleagues and ancestors. It seems that you sincerely intended to kill the evil spirit.”

“… Uh?”

“I know as many dungeons as possible and write down the strategy, but I don’t attack and leave it alone. In order to give all those rewards to talented people who can defeat evil spirits one day. That’s great. One overwhelmingly strong man is more important than many halfway strong ones.”

“…….”

No such conclusion?

“The reward of the dungeon is, after all, a piece of power that the good god could not recover. In other words, it is a piece of divinity. If you collect and collect them, you will be able to get closer to God. It’s a ragged divinity, so even if it doesn’t reach godhood, if it’s just that power….”

“Well, that’s roughly it.”

It seems a bit exaggerated, but looking at the conclusion, Iris is right.

Collect dungeon rewards to create synergistic builds, and set achievements to increase your stats.

Repeat this over and over and finally defeat the evil god’s apostle and the evil god’s body.

Because that is the basic goal of H&A.

No matter how talented you are, if you leave it as it is, it will only face destruction while remaining talented.

That’s why you have to constantly return to dungeons whenever you have a chance.

“Even if the seal of the evil god is broken, the god cannot descend. So, create a new god in this land….”

The reason Iris found out by chance. I thought that maybe this could be the true intention of the being who made H&A and spread it to the earth and kidnapped me to this world.

“It’s really bold and radical, but it’s surprisingly feasible.”

“… I know.”

It’s so plausible that I wonder if that’s the real reason.

Iris opened her mouth while mumbling for a moment.

“And the owner is Gero, the best talent.”

“No. He is the last talent.”

Because if I fail, there’s nothing else.

It’s a problem that the world perishes, but wouldn’t it end there when I die?

Is it because I thought about the transcendent being who dropped me into this world for a moment?

Unbeknownst to me, a rather cynical answer came out.

I looked back at Iris to say, “Oh, I want to say something.”

“Master….”

Perhaps it was already too late, Iris sent a moist gaze toward me.

It’s a face full of sympathy, as if you’ve seen something very pitiful.

I immediately tried to shake my head, thinking that there must have been a serious misunderstanding.

Iris moved one beat faster than him.

Standing still, her arms wide open.

“Hug me.”

“… What?”

“If you don’t come, I will go from here.”

Iris came rushing over, waving her outstretched arms.

She even jumped up and down like a flying squirrel, so I reflexively stretched out her arms to catch Iris.

Thump

Then, as if waiting, Iris wrapped her limbs around her and began to hug me tightly.

The softness of her face, a small but unmistakable presence.

A body scent reminiscent of a forest that penetrates deep into the lungs.

And the reassuring body temperature and soft hand movements that I felt when I was very young.

It wasn’t enough that Iris, who hated being tall, cast Hug me first, and she even carefully patted my head.

“Don’t worry. If I were the owner’s companion, wouldn’t the owner’s burden also be my burden? I am not even the owner’s companion.”

“…….”

“All will be well. Not me… We will make it.”

A kind voice that seems to soothe a child.

… I think I know why Iris says not to treat her as a child.

Honestly, it’s good, but it’s also true that there’s a strange feeling of resistance.

But she can’t let go of Iris.

Now, it’s hard to say that she’s not like that, and even if she did, there’s a reason why she wouldn’t trust me properly.

In fact, more than that, it was because I felt my heart actually loosen up in this ridiculous embrace.

I thought it wasn’t like that, but I guess I was feeling quite pressured too.

Eventually, instead of dropping her iris with her sluggish outstretched hand, she propped up on her hip to make it easier to hold onto.

Like that, Iris and I walked the road clinging to each other for a long time.

Until the moment when she had to part.

***

“Young car.”

Is it because the body is actually light? Iris landed on her floor with light movements.

Iris laughed at the road that divided the mansion and the academy.

“O master. If it’s too bad, she’ll ask the other kids to hold her.”

“What did you say. Isn’t it like that? Is it because I just want to not see you for a while?”

“Well. It’s definitely a pity that I can only see you on weekends. To see the owner and Elisha only after five days.”

“Besides, it’s the exam period, so it will be difficult to do anything with her for a while, even if you see her face.”

“Test period… ? Is it. She’s a master at clearing dungeons, but she’s still in her first year.”

In terms of simple combat power, I’m somewhere between a low-ranking wizard and a middle-ranking wizard.

Even in the top grade of the academy, it’s not as good as me now… In all fields other than combat, there was nothing I could do about it because it was at the level of a first year student who was a little better.

“The more I learn magic, the more I feel… It shouldn’t be possible to just raise the level or learn destructive magic. I don’t know at first, but I think it will become poisonous later on.”

“Oh oh… ! You spoke well. Whatever the case, the basics are important. For that part, the academy will be much more helpful than learning from me or Lady Lindelheit. That’s why I sent Elisha to her academy.”

Iris nodded her head in satisfaction, and as if remembering something, she belatedly took out a crystal ball the size of a human head from her pocket.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a crystal ball for communication. I made one in my free time. If you have this, the academy will be able to contact me as well.”

Then she smiled mischievously.

“Contact me whenever you want to see me. Elisha. Neither do you. Surely you are not bewitched by the master and neglect the master?”

“What are you saying! I will contact you every day before going to bed, so please make sure that Master is properly contacted.”

Elisha grumbled as if she was sad.

For a while, the two priests hugged each other and finally said goodbye to Iris.

“The owner’s budget is still generous, so if possible, I’ll try to complete the robe set by the number of people by then.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard. It’s not such an urgent matter.”

“What? Isn’t it about making a few more magic tools that you already know how to make? Now that the biggest problem, the budget problem, has been resolved, this level is unreasonable.”

He smiled at Iris who confidently held out her missing breasts.

“Good luck then. … See you next week.”

“Well! See you next week!”

I watched the back of Iris as she toddled away for a moment, then shifted her gaze to her other women.

“Let’s go back now.”

To the academy.