Chapter 67

If you pray earnestly, the universe—no, the Goddess of Love—will grant your wish! And that, too, with the high-quality equipment you need right now!

Even I think it’s a pretty poor excuse. Who would believe such a thing? It’s suspicious, but since it’s between us, I’ll let it slide just this once.

That was exactly what I was aiming for with my words, but then…

“Hmm. If it’s Sir Jonah, it could be possible.”

“……?”

…She believes this?

Just to be sure, I carefully observed Karen’s eyes. She was praying devoutly, her gaze unwavering. The conviction that it was possible if it was me was palpably conveyed.

Ellie’s eyes widened in astonishment, her disbelief underscored by the absolute support from none other than the inquisitor.

“Jonah, what on earth have you been doing? It wasn’t like this the last time I saw you.”

“Ahaha. Well, how should I put it? Things just turned out this way.”

“Does that even make sense?”

Ellie sighed, her voice faintly trembling as if she was anxious. Seeing her react this way, it couldn’t be that she was nervous about the fight, could it? Then, there was only one reason. It must be unsettling for her to see me looking different from before as if I might disappear somewhere.

It seemed necessary to reassure her a bit here. As Ellie, merely opening and closing her mouth, tried to say something but couldn’t, I placed my index finger on her lips.

“Shh. I may not be the moneyless, houseless, or strengthless kid who Ellie knew, but I’m still the same kid who was confident in nothing but his face. Nothing has changed.”

“…Is that so.”

“That’s right.”

Ellie closed her mouth briefly and stared at me with an intense, almost uncanny gaze. It wasn’t fear of me disappearing or changing, but something more fundamental, more instinctual. It felt like the look of a child who doesn’t know what to do after facing their wrongdoing.

If something were wrong between us, it would surely be my fault, not Ellie’s. After all, I was the one who forced this incident to happen. But we couldn’t keep up this gloomy atmosphere forever, especially when we were about to head into a fight.

I forced a grin and scanned Ellie’s full-body suit as if I were licking it with my eyes.

“Ellie, what’s with that lewd outfit? Are you trying to seduce me?”

“What? Lewd…? Seduce…?”

Ellie looked utterly bewildered as if she hadn’t expected to hear that at all. Tapping her distinct abs, I continued.

“It can’t be helped. Come to my room wearing this later!”

“Ha! Jonah, you’re the one asking me to come. You think I won’t?”

“Huh? I’ve never stopped you before, so why are you suddenly acting tough…?”

“…Shut up! Anyway, all of this is a story for after everything goes smoothly, so be careful. I won’t ask how you got it, but I’ve seen more than one fool get hurt trying to use new equipment they’re not ready for.”

“Ah. With Lady Lydia, Inquisitor Karen, and even Ellie there, what could go wrong? …But I’ll still hide as promised. And run away if anything happens.”

“Right. That’s enough.”

Ellie, stretching while patting my head with one arm, yawned. The sleek yet flexible muscles characteristic of a predatory beast writhed before my eyes.

“Huat! It’s been a while since we’ve had a real fight. Lydia, don’t hold us back.”

“How many years do you think it’s been since you retired? Don’t fall behind, Senior Ellie.”

The two exchanged grins and took the lead, heading out of Fairy and Silver Coin. Karen and I watched them for a moment before slowly following. It was time to deal with those heretics.

Ellie, Lydia, and I entered first, as promised. Normally, I would pair up with Lydia, but today, I feigned excitement to show Ellie my progress.

After waiting for a while at the meeting place, Karen approached from a distance, exuding a mix of fatigue and fervor.

“You’ve arrived not too late. Were we followed?”

“Of course not. I checked several times just to be sure, but we weren’t followed. …And with the Goddess herself orchestrating this, what interference could there possibly be?”

“…Well. You do know that the Goddess of Love is currently unable to intervene directly on the surface because she’s stabilizing the labyrinth, right?”

“Yes. That’s why the Goddess sent her proxy, Sir Jonah.”

“…….”

Karen’s eyes blazed with fervor, the fanaticism almost frightening against the backdrop of fatigue etched around her eyes.

Is this really okay? To openly proceed with the saint (not) route, secretly carrying out the will of the Goddess?

The truth is, there’s no other option. If I declare now that ‘It was all a lie,’ I might be branded a heretic for impersonating a saint and risk being executed by Karen.

Despite this, I felt a twinge of guilt, or perhaps it was a sense of responsibility. Casually, I fiddled with the goddess statue I had stashed away in the subspace, asking inwardly.

‘Is it okay to go on like this?’

The statue remained soft, chewy, and warm—the permission was unmistakable. Since the agreement with the concerned party had been smoothly concluded, there was no need for hesitation.

Although a fingernail-sized divine power had settled inside me, I didn’t know how to use it. For now, I tried my best to imitate the benevolent smile of the goddess statue I had observed thoroughly yesterday.

“However, I can’t do anything with my power alone. Will you help me, Inquisitor Karen?”

“Until my power is exhausted, there will never be an end to this faith.”

“Wonderful. Then, may I ask for your guidance right away?”

“Leave it to me.”

Karen, brimming with enthusiasm, led the way. Lydia, shivering as she watched, and Ellie, wearing a dumbfounded expression, stood side by side and asked in a low voice.

“Jonah, tell us the truth. Are you really a saint?”

“Ye-yeah, Jonah. I won’t tell anyone, so can you give us a little hint? Just a little?”

No, why are they both so serious? With a bitter smile at their naive expressions, I shook my head.

“Actually, I’m not sure myself. The Goddess of Love indeed favors me, but this love is not unconditional. …More than anything, I’m not sure if I’m even worthy of it.”

“……”

“……”

Ellie and Lydia, who were once so curious, now pressed their lips tightly shut. I shrugged my shoulders toward them.

“But my feelings toward both of you are selfless. Just like how you both help me without expecting anything in return!”

“…Well, it might not be about helping, but rather repaying a debt.”

“Jonah owes me a debt. I have no intention of letting him go until he pays it all back.”

The two followed Karen with a snicker. How long had we roamed through the Great Forest?

Since we had deliberately met on the outskirts where no one was around, it took quite some time to reach the deepest center, the illusion of the World Tree.

Still, perhaps because it was before the labyrinth had reshuffled, with Karen, who had been there once, and my skill in not getting lost, we managed to find our way without trouble.

The giant trees that were common in the Great Forest left me speechless for a moment with their majesty, which seemed not just to cover the sky but to support it.

“This is the World Tree…”

“Just a little further from here is where I encountered One Who Devours the Twilight.”

“Let’s proceed with caution from here.”

I moved forward using my Sound-Eating Footsteps. The others employed their unique techniques or magical tools to approach the World Tree silently.

Up close, the World Tree looked more like a wall than a tree trunk. Of course, it wasn’t solid, so touching it meant passing right through… yet, despite that, there was an open plain around the World Tree as if something was indeed there.

And on that plain, there were figures that, at a glance, emitted a suspicious aura. They were certainly wearing robes of ordinary colors, but that alone couldn’t mask the distorted divine power emanating from their bodies.

Above all, it was but a glimpse, yet a red heart symbol was engraved near the heart. This mark of fanaticism indicated a vow to offer one’s heart—everything to the goddess of love. Without a doubt, they were followers of One Who Devours the Twilight.

They were gathered closely in front of the decaying corpses of monsters strewn about; their appearance was bizarre beyond comparison. Fortunately, thanks to the havoc Karen and Ian had wreaked previously, there seemed to be fewer in number than expected.

At the center stood a fanatic of unusually small stature, as Karen had mentioned, but possessing divine power more intense than anyone else present. The distorted divine power was not just leaking out; it was flowing freely, indicating he either had no intention of hiding it or could not do so.

At first glance, he looked like he had something going on… but right now, there was something more important.

I thought it would take a while since they were hunting monsters in front of the World Tree… but to think they’d find the right method in just one day.

The followers of One Who Devours the Twilight stood around in a circle drawn on the ground. At its center, two people were tightly bound. Not just any other race, but the elves, who so desperately wanted to protect the World Tree in its lifetime, would be this time’s sacrifice. And this was the correct answer.

“I didn’t expect them to find the summoning method so quickly.”

The grinding of teeth in anxiousness was brief. For some reason, the faces of the two elves tied up looked familiar.

“…Lemon? Apple?”

Why were those girls captured again? Did they enter the labyrinth because they wanted to be tightly bound?