“I-it’s seriously that bad?!”
“Yeah, so watch your back. I’m serious. You never know when she might pop up…and shove a knife in your back.”
I shudder as Cerceus warns me with a dead-serious look on his face.
N-not only can I not have Mash train under her, I have to make sure we avoid her entirely!
I imagine Adenela sharpening a sword, her eyes overcome with insanity, as she quietly laughs to herself, Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh… A shiver shoots up my spine.
CHAPTER 33
Darkness Intensifies
“I heard what happened. I tried to cheer her up, but she wouldn’t listen…,” Aria says before letting out a bitter laugh. I’d brought Mash and Elulu to her room to talk about Adenela.
“Hey, Aria, what do you think I should do? Do you think Great Goddess Ishtar could help me if I told her what happened?”
“Hmm… I don’t know about that… I mean, first Adenela was dumped, then she was scolded by Great Goddess Ishtar afterward. Getting the Great Goddess involved would be too cruel.”
“Yeah…I guess you’re right. But if, by any chance, she ever stabbed Seiya…”
“Oh, you and Cerceus have the wildest imaginations. Adenela would never do something like that. Even if she did by chance try something, Seiya will know what to do.”
Aria then takes a sip of her tea.
What?! Is it just me, or is Aria being a little too calm? What if something happens that we could have prevented? What if that gifted Hero is killed by not the enemy but a goddess? I have to make sure that doesn’t happen. I should probably find Adenela first so that we can have a long talk. Then I’ll tell Seiya to stay clear of Adenela…
Right as I’m coming up with a plan, the door to Aria’s room flies wide open.
“Master Seiya!”
“Oh…! Seiya!”
The Hero himself is standing at the doorway. I’m just as startled as they are.
“Seiya?! What are you doing here?! What happened to training?!”
“I’m taking a break, so I came here to talk to her.”
Seiya approaches Aria.
“You called yourself the Goddess of the Seal before, right? Is there any ability where you could seal away a monster for an eternity?”
Aria lowers her head to Seiya.
“I’m sorry, but I do not possess such an ability. I’m good at breaking seals, though…”
“All right. Got it.”
Huh? An ability to seal away monsters? Why would Seiya even ask her that?
While watching their exchange, it suddenly hits me.
O-ohhh! Seiya is looking for something to replace Igzasion. He’s searching for a way to defeat the Demon Lord since he couldn’t get the strongest weapon in Gaeabrande! Deep within my heart, I find myself proud of my cautious Hero, who is considering the big picture instead of obsessing with what’s in front of him. I just have to put these feelings into words.
“You’re amazing, Seiya! Even during your break, you’re trying to come up with ways to defeat the Demon Lord!”
Seiya instantly casts a piercing gaze at me. That’s when I realize I said something I shouldn’t have.
“Huh? A way to defeat the Demon Lord? But we have Igzasion.”
“Yeah, Ristie, what are you talking about?”
Mash and Elulu stare hard at me.
Ahhhhhh!! I’m such an idiot! Wh-what should I do?!
Before long, Seiya chimes in to help me.
“We don’t know what will happen during the final battle, so it’s only natural to search for another way to effectively attack the Demon Lord. Plus, if possible, I don’t plan on using Igzasion until then. Wouldn’t want to chip the blade.”
Elulu tilts her head to the side.
“I don’t know if it’ll chip… I mean, it’s the strongest weapon in the world…”
They both give dubious glares, but…
“Well, that’s my master for you! Always being cautious!”
“That’s so Seiya!”
A smile tugs Elulu’s lips.
Th-thank goodness! That would have sounded like the strangest excuse if it were anyone else, but it does sound like something that Seiya would do! Elulu and Mash seem to be persuaded at the very least!
Seiya points the sheathed Igzasion—the platinum sword-plus—at me.
“So, Rista, hold on to this for me.”
“O-okay… Ouch, ouch, ouch?!”
Seiya vigorously shoves the sheath into my chest as if he were saying, You just had to open your mouth.
“Gyaaaaaah! My boobs…! You’re crushing theeeeeem!”
Aria giggles.
“You two sure get along, don’t you?”
What?! This isn’t some heartwarming scene! He’s literally trying to crush my boobs!
“…I need to get back to training.”
Seiya turns on his heel after finally giving up on destroying my chest.
“Ugh! That hurt, you know!”
Rubbing my half-smooshed chest, I call out to the Hero before he leaves the room.
“Seiya! Watch out for Adenela!”
“Why?”
“She’s mad at you for being mean to her last time!”
“What did I do to her? I can’t remember.”
His expression is the epitome of indifference as he shuts the door. After Seiya leaves the room, Mash lets out a sigh.
“Sigh… It doesn’t sound like that Adenela person is going to help me train, either… What am I gonna do now?”
“Let’s eat snacks together, Mash!”
“Dammit! Is eating snacks for the next three days really my only option?!”
That’s when Aria approaches Mash.
“Oh my… It seems you have a hidden power within you.”
“Are you talking about my ability Dragon God Metamorphosis? Yeah, I can apparently turn into a dragon if I really try, which is one of the reasons why I want to train more and raise my level…”
“Hmm, the limit seems similar to a seal. Would you like me to break it for you?”
“…! Seriously?! You can do that?!”
Even I’m surprised.
“Aria…! Are you sure you want to do that?! Do the spirit world rules even allow that?!”
“All I am going to do is unlock a power that he already has. It won’t be a problem. Besides, I am simply going to teach him how to do it. It isn’t something that can be done in a day, so this will be part of his training.”
If a high-level goddess like Aria says it’s okay, then it’s okay. I guess I can leave Mash to Aria, but Elulu…
As I stare at Elulu, she sends me an awkward smile.
“Don’t worry about me, Ristie! I’ll just hang out in the cafeteria and eat some sweets! I love sweets!”
Elulu seems to have lost some confidence after everything that’s happened.
Aria places a hand on her shoulder.
“You have great potential as well. I will be able to awaken this power within you. What do you say? Would you like to give it a try?”
“R-really?! There’s even something I can do?! P-please help me…!”
I’m impressed. Aria could even sense the hidden power within Elulu as well. Seeing them so happy really lifts a weight off my shoulders. They’re in good hands now.
I find myself slightly optimistic after leaving Aria’s room. Maybe Aria was right about Cerceus overreacting, and Adenela probably isn’t even that angry after all.
It’s just a hunch I have.
But just in case, I walk down the sanctuary’s stairs and head over to Adenela’s room one more time to check on her. In the midst of the darkness, I knock on the wooden door at the end of the hall, but no one answers. Before leaving, though, I randomly decide to place a hand on the doorknob. It doesn’t appear to be locked.
“H-hey, sorry for bothering you, but…”
I walk inside the dim, dull room, but when I look around, Adenela is nowhere in sight. Right when I’m about to give up
and leave, a certain pattern on the left-hand wall catches my eye. There appears to be something written. Engulfed by the darkness, I approach the wall and squint, trying to make out the writing…and I freeze.
KILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILL
It’s written in tiny letters and packed together. Her pent-up resentment for Seiya is painfully obvious! Th-this isn’t good! I have to tell Aria! But the instant I turn around…
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh.”
Adenela is standing, hunched forward, right before my eyes.
“Eeeeeeeeek!”
I fall to my knees. With bags under her eyes, Adenela leans in toward me as I sit paralyzed with fear.
“R-Ristarte, s-seeing that you’re here tells me th-that Seiya—heh-heh-heh-heh-heh—m-must be back as well, right?”
“N-no, I came back myself this time! Seiya isn’t here!”
I promptly spit out a lie.
“O-oh, he isn’t? R-really?”
“R-r-really!”
“Th-then did you n-need me for something?”
“Nope! Don’t need a thing!”
I’m panicking so much that my lies are starting to not make sense.
“Th-then why are you in m-my room?”
Adenela regards me suspiciously, which causes me to panic even more.
“I-it’s, um… I just… I just wanted to see the inside of your room! I—I like looking at other people’s rooms! Wow, I like what you did with the place!”
“…R-really?”
For some time after that, Adenela and I stare in silence at the wall with “Kill” scrawled all over it.
“Aria, Aria, Aria! We’ve got trouble! This is bad! This is really bad!”
I frantically return to Aria’s room and cling to her.
“Take a deep breath, Rista. What happened?”
“Adenela…! Go to her room and see for yourself! She wrote ‘Kill’ all over one of the walls in her room! I was so shocked that I accidentally even told her she had a nice place for some reason!”
But Aria gently smiles.
“Oh, she didn’t write that because of Seiya. That’s always been there. It’s what they call street art.”
“That’s street art?! You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“At any rate, the wall has been like that for a long time now. You must not have noticed before, since her room is so dark.”
So she actually designed her room like that?! Unbelievable! Who does that?!
“You worry too much, Rista.”
“B-but, Aria…!”
Before I can argue any further, Aria sticks up her index finger with a “shhh.” I look to my side to find Mash and Elulu sitting on the floor with their legs crossed as if they are meditating.
“I’m having them deeply concentrate right now, so could you be a little quieter?”
“S-sorry.”
Not wanting to get in the way of their training, I reluctantly retire from Aria’s room.
Aria’s sweet. She probably thinks of both Adenela and me as little sisters. But…
But Adenela is a threat right now! My only choice is to protect Seiya myself!
The next day, Mitis and Seiya diligently continue their training in the Divine Forest.
“Seiya, the eye is what is most important in archery. Focus your attention on your eyes. Having vision that can see the enemy’s position from far away is important.”
Taking Mitis’s advice to heart, Seiya aims the arrow of light at a distant tree before shooting. He seems to have already mastered the magic bow of light. Seiya follows with a question next.
“Would it be possible to shoot multiple arrows at once?”
“Just because it’s a magic bow— No, because it is a magic bow, shooting requires mental concentration to the utmost extent. That is what gives it power and allows the arrow to shoot distances far greater than normal. Therefore, the most you could do is rapidly fire the shafts and mimic shooting multiple arrows at once. However, three shots in a row are the most a human would be able to shoot at that speed.”
Mitis points an arrow of light toward the sky. The moment she shoots, another magic arrow has already been formed in her hand. She immediately launches that one as well. She creates and discharges multiple light arrows one after another, but she’s so quick that it looks like she shoots seven beams of light into the blue yonder.
“As you can see, even I can only shoot seven arrows in a row. If I use Order and am able to unlock my true powers, then I could perhaps shoot ten in a row, though…”
“Seven arrows, huh? Let’s imagine you aimed those seven shots at an enemy. What’s the possibility that they’d dodge?”
“If I use Shining Arrow, which surpasses all other magic arrows in both precision and firing range, and spread out all seven…then it would be absolutely impossible to dodge all seven of them. Such a monster doesn’t exist.”
“Are you sure?”
“I swear on my honor as the Goddess of Archery. It would be impossible.”
Mitis breaks into a cheerful smile.
“In any case, rapidly shooting seven arrows in a row is beyond human boundaries.”
“I was just asking.”
After I wait under the shade of a tree for a while, Mitis bows to Seiya before disappearing into the depths of the woods. Looks like they’re taking a break. I approach Seiya and hand him the lunch I made.
“So how’s training going?”
“As planned. I should be able to master rapid-fire by tomorrow.”
“Really? That’s great. By the way, if possible, make sure not to go near the sanctuary until we leave tomorrow. Who knows what Adenela will do to you if she sees you.”
“What do you mean?”
“I told you yesterday. She’s pissed at you.”
“You can’t tell me not to see her.”
“I mean, yeah, you’re free to do whatever you want, but I’d prefer it if you didn’t see her right now…okay? I’ll bring Mash and Elulu here tomorrow and create a gate, so we can return to Gaeabrande directly from here.”
“Rista, why are we even having this conversation?”
“What…? I’m just watching out for you so that you don’t run into her.”
“You’re not making any sense.”
Seiya points to the area behind me.
“Adenela’s been behind you the entire time.”
…What?
I slowly look back.
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh.”
Adenela is ominously grinning so closely behind me that I can almost feel her breathing.
“Gyaaaaaah!”
I scream, then my legs give out from under me just like yesterday, causing me to drop to my knees!
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh. I knew y-you would never come back all b-by yourself, so I’ve b-been following you e-ever since you left the sanctuary…”
After saying that in an amused manner, Adenela slides the sword from the sheath at her waist.
“A-Adenela?! P-please control yourself!”
“I—I can’t. I will never f-forgive that m-m-man.”
Her long, messy black hair begins standing on end like a Japanese ogress out for revenge. She lowers her hips while facing Seiya.
I-I’ve seen this stance before! This is the stance for Eternal Sword! She’s really planning on fighting Seiya…!
“D-draw your sword, Seiya. I-I’m going to show y-you the real Eternal Sword…!”
Bloodlust radiates from her body, ready to explode at any second. Seiya, however, looks as indifferent as ever.
“Long time no see, Adenela. How have you been?”
Both Adenela and I are taken aback by his greeting.
“Wh-what do you think y-you’re doing? What you did to me was u-unspeakable. I will never f-f-forgive you.”
“Your hair is damaged.”
Seiya defenselessly approaches Adenela, then touches her hair as it stands st
raight up.
“Wh-what do you th-think you’re—?”
“S-Seiya?! Watch out! She’s going to stab you!”
But Seiya simply strokes Adenela’s head affectionately, as if he were petting a cat.
“S-s-stop. I-I’m going to m-make you pay…”
But even then, Seiya doesn’t stop, and before long, her hair slowly softens before returning back to normal.
“Yes. That’s a good girl.”
“Seiya…! Cut it out!”
I jerk Seiya over by the arm, stopping his reckless behavior. Then I look at Adenela, who is faintly shaking.
“I-I’ll never f-f-f-forgive you…”
Ack! She’s furious! How am I going to stop her?!
However, Adenela just stares at the ground as she mutters:
“I—I…f-f-forgive…you…”
“…What?”
It wasn’t my imagination, though. After doing a complete one-eighty, Adenela lifts her head. Her eyes, once burning with bloodlust, have transformed into hearts as if she were in love.
“…! What happened to never forgiving him?!”
“I d-don’t know, but I c-completely forgive him now… In fact…I’m in l-love…!”
The sword drops to the ground, and Adenela wraps her arm around Seiya until Mitis returns. Seiya suddenly casts a piercing glare at Adenela.
“Adenela, I need to train now, so stop being an eyesore and go annoy someone else.”
“O-okay. I l-love you…!”
…?! Did she even hear the awful things he just said?! Did the head pats make her so happy she doesn’t even realize he’s insulting her?!
From under a tree, Adenela watches over Seiya in rapt admiration as he trains. I regard her disdainfully until I suddenly remember what Aria said.
“Seiya will know what to do.”
Sh-she was right. Huh, Aria understands Seiya even better than I do…
I feel so stupid for getting all worked up over nothing, and my body turns into jelly. I limply plop myself down next to Adenela.
…Little did I know that true fear was lurking just around the corner…
CHAPTER 34
Nympho
The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious, Vol. 2 Page 4