Chapter 190 - Readying Her Heart

“I will explain the Land of Demons.”

After settling the matter that had nearly spiraled out of control, Erica explained the information about the operation site.

“As all of you know, the Land of Demons is the stronghold of Godwin’s Demons and demonic creatures.”

“A great deal of demonic energy still remains there.”

The greatest reason the Land of Demons had been impossible to conquer was precisely that demonic energy.

“Demonic energy is a great source of nourishment for Demons and demonic creatures, but for people like us, it is like poison that disrupts the flow of the body.”

“We do not look any different from you, so is there a way to solve that?”

“Of course.”

Erica took out a talisman and showed it to them.

“This is an item provided by Blue Eye, which sponsors our adventurer’s guild.”

“They said it is called an anti-demonic talisman.”

“Is it an item that purifies demonic energy?”

“No.”

“Its role is to push demonic energy away from inside the talisman.”

“It creates a space where we can breathe.”

“Then as long as we have the talisman, there is no need to worry!”

It would have been nice if the conversation had gone that easily, but Erica’s expression did not say so.

“Unfortunately, they say it is impossible to push away all demonic energy.”

“Its efficiency also drops depending on the density of that demonic energy, so it cannot be called all-powerful.”

“That is unfortunate.”

“I heard Blue Eye was the best when it came to magic, but I suppose that reputation is old news too.”

“... Well, that may be true, but I do not think it is wise to insult the people sponsoring us.”

“Urk... I apologize.”

At Erica’s words, the adventurer tucked his tail between his legs.

The bastard who said that probably had no idea how lucky he was that his head had not fallen off.

“In any case, that means we will be exposed to demonic energy, so are you saying we must accept that danger?”

“There is no need to worry too much.”

“It blocks ninety-five percent of the demonic energy.”

“How much time does that give us?”

“The safe limit is twenty-four hours.”

“Even if we accept some risk, we simply need to leave the Land of Demons within forty-eight hours.”

“If we want to do it safely, time will be extremely tight.”

“May I ask where exactly we are going?”

“I will show you on the map.”

Erica spread a large map over the table.

She pointed at a mark indicated in red and said,

“We plan to investigate this place.”

“According to what we learned through a request to Escolaia, it was once called Gyeonghui Palace.”

“Do you think there will be treasure here?”

“In the East, they used magic in a form called the Dao.”

“It was a place where they trained in that Dao.”

“So it would be close to a magical training hall.”

“There will be magic items.”

In their eyes, a mountain of gold coins seemed to appear.

Magic items were rarer and more valuable than simple treasures of gold and silver.

But they could not simply get excited.

That was because, on the other hand, there were risks they had to shoulder.

As veteran adventurers, they were also certain in their calculations.

“There is no way this will be over in a single day.”

“Is this something where we absolutely must accept danger?”

Their shared question was one thing.

Was this an investigation that could be completed within twenty-four hours while relying only on a single anti-demonic talisman?

If it could not be finished in a day, then it was more profitable to back out.

That too was within Erica’s calculations.

“That is why we have prepared a means to shorten our travel time.”

She took out a scroll and pushed it open across the table.

It looked somewhat unfamiliar to everyone, but Ferda recognized it at once.

“We will use a transport tool called a mana-powered automobile.”

“A mana-powered automobile?”

“You can think of it as a carriage that moves using mana stones made by condensing and refining demonic energy.”

They had also considered attaching anti-demonic talismans to horses and traveling that way, but the demonic energy constantly stimulated the horses’ survival instincts, and after only a little farther, they became frightened and fled, so the idea had been abandoned.

“How much time can we save with this mana-powered automobile?”

“We tested it and checked its speed, and two hours should be enough.”

“Two hours!”

They could not help being surprised.

If they marched, it would take at least six hours, and even on horseback, it would only barely take two hours, would it not?

Shortening that to one-third while under the risk of demonic energy was no ordinary matter.

“But there is one problem.”

But as always, things could not be purely good.

“Originally, we intended to use it longer by replacing the mana stones in a detachable manner, but they said that was impossible.”

“May I ask why?”

“Because it is an item made by condensing and refining demonic energy, it easily loses its essence if it comes into contact with demonic energy.”

“In other words, unlike us, it cannot perform properly with a simple ninety-five percent blocking rate.”

“So it will be an integrated unit, and it will only be used to transport us.”

“That means this mana-powered automobile is disposable.”

“How many hours will it operate?”

“Two hours.”

“We can reserve energy until we reach Gyeonghui Palace, but on the way back, we will have to walk.”

“Hmm...”

It was a subtle reaction, but it was still better than at first.

They would shorten the journey by a full four hours, and for two of the hours they were traveling, they would not need to consume stamina.

That meant they had more energy to focus on the investigation itself, so the risk was reduced considerably.

What had been a reckless act of walking into death had become a challenge worth attempting.

It lit a fire in the adventurers’ hearts.

Erica enjoyed that reaction and continued speaking.

“From now on, I will explain the outline of the operation.”

They spent their time discussing the details for investigating the Land of Demons.

Over three hours of discussion, they added flesh to the outline of the operation and formed a framework to some extent.

The rest was something they would have to replace with the flexibility of adventurers.

“Then we will prepare to depart in three days.”

“Does anyone have any suggestions?”

At Erica’s question, someone raised a hand.

The large hand was enough to identify him without lowering one’s head.

“Speak, Jonathan.”

“Captain Eri.”

“I think we need to settle the pecking order.”

“What do you mean by settling the pecking order...?”

“They say there cannot be two suns under the same sky, do they not?”

Jonathan Sina jerked his chin toward the armor knight as he spoke.

“Should we not compete to decide who is the strength of this expedition?”

Jonathan Sina, who had hailed from the northern great warriors and borne the name of a man of monstrous strength in the 12-member expedition.

The current Jonathan, his descendant, had also established himself as a byword for monstrous strength and was achieving great feats.

Even when testing strength against a ferocious ogre, he did not yield at all, and they said that as he aged, his strength was still growing.

The room instantly became colored with interest.

Pointless competitiveness was something that ought to be rebuked, but,

“If there is mutual consent, we will proceed.”

Erica was also inwardly curious.

What would happen if Jonathan Sina and the armor knight clashed once?

‘I know roughly what Jonathan’s potential and current strength are.’

She knew the bloodline of the old Jonathan Sina and the deeds of the current Jonathan Sina in detail.

But the armor knight?

‘An unknown quantity.’

She had seen him reach a realm that would already be someone else’s limit, yet even that did not seem to be his limit.

Thanks to the provocation from the belligerent Sina family, this was a moment when she could confirm it with her own eyes.

What would the armor knight do?

She was more inclined to think he might refuse.

But the armor knight’s reaction seemed to be the opposite, as though she welcomed it.

‘I finally get to try this thing called arm wrestling!’

Valdrova was extremely happy about this proposal.

Arm wrestling was a means often used among men to show off their masculinity, and construction workers did it often as well.

She had always been in a position where she could only watch arm wrestling.

That was only natural.

Who could possibly beat her, when she could easily lift a log?

Valdrova, unaware of that fact, had been deeply saddened by the fact that they were excluding her.

Valdrova happily clasped that hand, which was as large as a pot lid.

Even though her armor had been made much larger than an ordinary adult man, her own hand looked like a baby’s in comparison.

“Then... begin!”

At Erica’s signal, vicious veins bulged on Jonathan’s hand.

RIIIP!

His clothes could not contain the swelling of his muscles and tore.

CRACK!

The sturdy old wooden table could not properly withstand the weight.

“Hraaaaah!”

Jonathan’s shout and its aftermath made the table tremble.

Valdrova was impressed too.

‘This man is strong.’

It was difficult to believe that the power she felt from his hand belonged to a human.

It was enough to make her wonder if he might easily win even if he fought dragon spawns barehanded.

‘He really is strong, but...’

Even that was only by the standards of the monsters of this earth.

What he was facing now was a dragon.

And among dragons, Valdrova, who would not lose to anyone in strength, was the Aspect of Power.

To Valdrova, the difference in class was as severe as arm wrestling a three-year-old child.

‘Maybe that’s why no one wanted to do it with me...’

Now that she had actually tried it, it felt as though all the excitement had drained away.

“Ohhh...! As expected of the bloodline of the northern great warriors!”

“This is truly a battle between dragon and tiger!”

She could hear people making a fuss.

Jonathan burned with effort amid reactions that seemed to say no one could predict what would happen next.

“Hngh!”

Every time he exerted strength, the veins that bulged out finally surged all the way up to his head, looking as if they might burst through.

Now she began to grow afraid.

The veins bulging on his head made her wonder if he might die like that.

‘If I win like this, won’t he resent me?’

Valdrova did not particularly want to win.

If she beat this man, it would only give him a sense of humiliation.

So Valdrova made a choice.

THUNK.

She chose to lose.

The tense point of contact ended in an instant, and cheers praising Jonathan burst out.

“Ohhh! The northern great warrior won!”

“As expected of the ogre slayer!”

If someone could be happy, that was enough.

That was what Valdrova thought, but it did not go so easily.

Jonathan’s eyes, in fact, glared at Valdrova with unusual intensity.

“What the hell was that just now?”

“?”

“You damned bastard!”

“??”

What came back at her, his face flushed bright red, was rage.

When he stood up and tried to grab the armor knight by the collar, the adventurers barely stopped him.

Jonathan shouted.

“Did you think I would be happy if you deliberately lost like that!?”

“Go again!”

Valdrova could not understand.

He had been desperate to win, and she had let him win, so was that not a good thing?

Jonathan screamed again and again, telling her to come at him with all her strength, but in the end, Erica intervened and it fizzled out.

Valdrova still could not understand how he felt.

On the day of the Land of Demons expedition, inside the cave beneath Valdrova Castle, Valdrova had finished preparing to join the expedition.

‘There won’t be any problems.’

All she needed now was to ready her heart.

Valdrova sat down and quietly gathered herself.

‘Those demonic creatures appeared yesterday, so it should be fine again for a while.’

If worst came to worst, she could simply return.

‘If that happens... a lot of people will be surprised, won’t they?’

Valdrova could not guess how they would react.

Would they be happy, with it blending together with the armor knight’s reputation?

Or would they feel betrayed by the fact that she was simply Valdrova, who had once been an Evil Dragon?

That heavy feeling still remained in one corner of Valdrova’s heart.

Valdrova stopped thinking about that issue any further.

After all, the greatest problem lay elsewhere.

—Why are you trying to go to that land?

She raised her head at the voice she heard.

There was the shape of a man there.

Valdrova knew.

That man was nothing more than a weakness created by her own heart.

The name of that weakness was this.

“Godwin...”

The Black Dragon Godwin.

Already dead and gone, he had become one with this darkness and was thrusting himself toward Valdrova.

Valdrova unconsciously placed her hand on her chest.

Her heart was pounding wildly.

—You know it too, do you not?

—If you go there, I will appear.

He spoke gently, as though it were nothing.

That stirred Valdrova’s emotions.

“Yes...”

—Your anger toward me becomes a great strength for you.

“It probably will.”

—But if you cannot be angry, you will commit the same mistake as back then.

“...”

—Look, Valdrova.

At his words, something appeared beside him.

It was Ferda.

A man who was nothing if not kind.

A man who gave her a love she should not be receiving, no matter how she thought about it.

—Valdrova.

—Who is this?

“...”

—Do not think I do not know simply because you do not answer.

—I am nothing more than an illusion you created as you pleased.

That was true.

All the spirits she saw were merely things she had created.

—What do you think would happen if this man died by your hand?

“...”

—Or if my children killed this man?

“...”

—Will you grow angry at me?

“...”

—Or will you only watch, as you did back then?

Back then.

Valdrova knew when that had been.

Godwin had killed the humans Valdrova cherished.

What Valdrova felt was despair.

And anger.

She hated Godwin, hated his spawns, and hated everything about him that threw the continent into disorder.

Even so, she could not be angry.

Because the power she possessed was far too great.

Because she already knew what result her anger would bring, she could do nothing.

“If Mr. Ferda... were to die...”

Ferda’s figure overlapped with the forms of the corpses she had seen.

Valdrova’s brow trembled.

Her head became unbearably heavy and drooped.

She struggled to avert her eyes from that sight.

“Godwin.”

But she did not shake it off.

She lifted her head and looked at Godwin.

The slaughtered image of Ferda returned to normal.

And then it scattered.

“I am afraid of you.”

“But that does not mean I can back down.”

—Are you saying it does not matter if this man dies?

“Mr. Ferda... has done so much for me.”

Ferda was human.

A human who would die in the blink of an eye and return to the dirt.

A human who had joy, yet whose end would lead to sorrow.

But what had that human done?

He was moving to revive the far east, a land of despair.

He was telling her how joyful it was to be alive.

“There is much I cannot do... but I must overcome at least the despair you show me.”

That was why Valdrova was trying to take a step forward.

Even though it would be frightening and painful, and even as she pretended not to see the burden in her heart.

Godwin’s form gradually scattered.

As though satisfied, he whispered into Valdrova’s ear.

—It is pleasing to see you steel your resolve.

“...”

—But you will not be able to do so.

“...”

—Because you have been that sort of being since the moment you took up the spear for the beginning.

—Our king.

With that, he vanished from Valdrova’s consciousness.

Her heart grew calm, and Valdrova donned her armor.

It was time to go to the Land of Demons.