Lakyus's sense of urgency sharpened...
"Is there anything we can do to improve our odds?"
"No. If I had to suggest something, it would be to pray that the Demon Emperor appears near the palace."
"Near the palace? But wouldn't that just increase the number of people needing protection?"
"Exactly. Because the king is there. And if the king is threatened, Gazef Stronoff will have no choice but to fight."
Gazef Stronoff-the Warrior Captain, the strongest fighter in the kingdom. Even Gagaran, an adamantite adventurer, couldn't hold a candle to him. He was said to rival the heroes of legend.
Gagaran interjected, "Is he really that terrifying, this Demon Emperor?"
"I haven't faced him, so I can't say for certain. But in a matter of moments he killed a former orichalcum adventurer inside the palace-and the victim's sword was still sheathed, I'm told."
"Well, that's a bloody terrifying thought."
Gagaran knocked back another gulp of ale.
The air at the table grew heavy. A mighty demon had appeared without warning, and the entire capital lived in dread. The sheer mystery of it-the fact that no one knew when or how he might strike next-was a weapon in itself. The knights inside the palace were stretched to the breaking point, nerves frayed.
Amid the grim mood, Gagaran set down her tankard with a decisive thud.
"Let's change the subject, eh? If worrying won't do us any good, we ought to keep our spirits up."
Evileye sighed. "Gagaran... you are incorrigible."
But even as she grumbled, she seemed to accept the logic. Exhausting themselves with constant vigilance, only to be useless when the crisis actually came, was the worst outcome.
Lakyus nodded in agreement, and Gagaran grinned wolfishly.
"Hey, Evileye, did you hear? A third adamantite team's been recognized-out in E-Rantel."
"...I heard at the Adventurers' Guild this morning. The team 'Darkness', I believe."
Lakyus blinked. "A new adamantite team? This is the first I've heard."
"That's because I only got wind of it last night, Leader. They say the leader's a warrior called Momon the Dark Hero, and his partner's a magic caster named Nabe, the Beautiful Princess."
"...Just two of them?"
"That's what I'm dubious about. What do you think, Evileye?"
Evileye answered carefully, "When I first heard it, I dismissed it as nonsense. But the reports are too detailed to be a hoax. I suspect it's true."
"There you have it, Leader."
The conversation circled back. "If they're that capable," Lakyus mused, "it would be a great help to have them here if we ever face Baal."
"Same thought here. Dunno how much we can rely on them, but if he's a warrior, he can at least act as a shield."
"Gagaran, that's a rude way to put it."
"Eh, no offense meant. Just that warriors are flexible that way."
Noticing her drink was empty, Gagaran signaled for a refill. Then, as if struck by a stray thought, she spoke again.
"By the way, you heard about the new adventurer team that's been making noise in the capital?"
"...No, I can't say I have. Who?"
"They're called 'Silver Wings'. Just made orichalcum."
"Huh. First I've heard of them, too."
"Seems they'd been active in E-Rantel for a while before transferring here officially."
Lakyus was genuinely impressed.
Gagaran might be a daytime drunk, but she had a knack for picking up gossip-probably because he spent so much time chatting up other adventurers. It was a different kind of intelligence than Evileye's scholarly knowledge.
Evileye leaned forward. "Gagaran. What's the composition of this 'Silver Wings'?"
"Right. Rumors say the leader's a magic caster who also fights as a warrior-dual blades, that sort. And the other member's a lightly armored warrior woman."
"Another two-person team?"
"Yup, looks that way."
"Has E-Rantel suddenly taken to fielding tiny adventurer parties? Absurd."
Lakyus hid a smile.
Adventurer teams existed to complement each other's strengths and cover weaknesses. An ideal party combined front-line fighters, high-firepower magic casters, healers, and rangers for harassment. A duo barely qualified as a team.
"But Gagaran, you're awfully well-informed about this 'Silver Wings."
"Yeah, they're the talk of the town. For all sorts of reasons."
"All sorts"?"
Gagaran ticked off a finger. "First, the leader's name is Beryl, and he's supposedly gorgeous. I've heard the female adventurers squealing over him. The men, on the other hand, are shooting daggers."
"That's an incredibly shallow reason."
"That's rumors for you. But hey, those looks might mean work-"
Before she could finish, the inn's door swung open.
Lakyus and Gagaran instinctively glanced up.
There stood a man with black hair, crimson eyes, and skin so pale it was almost luminous. His features were unnervingly perfect. He wore a black jacket over bare skin, leather trousers, and silver accessories that were almost certainly enchanted.
Behind him came a lightly armored woman warrior.
Lakyus understood at once. These were the Silver Wings.
"Speak of the devil," Gagaran muttered.
Evileye nodded. "Astonishing. The rumors weren't exaggerated. He is remarkably handsome."
"P-please, keep your voices down. It would be terrible if they overheard."
"Leader, it's not like we're insulting them. Relax."
Lakyus sighed and studied the newcomers.
Yes, the man was arrestingly good-looking. She herself received frequent compliments on her appearance, and her friend Renner was hailed as the kingdom's most beautiful woman. Even by those standards, she had to admit the man was extraordinary-though his was a roguish, slightly dangerous beauty.
The kind that hinted at a wickedness with women.
Which, unfortunately, hit her squarely in a very private weakness.
'What is that...? He's so damn cool.'
Lakyus adored all things dark and sinister-shadow, demon swords, evil energy, chaos.
It was a secret passion she hid from her comrades, a fondness for the aesthetic of "a little bad", but undeniably awesome that normally belonged to teenage boys. A mysterious, dark-tinged handsome stranger striding into the inn was enough to make her heart thump.
'Why is he dressed like that? What does that skull-motif magic item do? Where can I buy it? I want one too.'
The questions piled up at a terrifying rate. Forcing herself to take a deep breath, she reminded herself that she was the leader of Blue Rose.
She had to maintain her composure.
"Wait-where's Gagaran?"
She looked up to find Gagaran already away from the table. "He went to invite the Silver Wings over, Evileye supplied.
"What-"
Sure enough, Gagaran was already chatting up the pair.
-x-X-x-
Just as Momonga operated under the name "Momon," I had also decided to become an adventurer. Only because I'd felt it will be boring to keep Clementine cooped up in Nazarick until she rotted.
By Nazarick's standards, she was merely a moderately strong warrior, but by the metrics of this new world she was elite-in the entire kingdom, only a fully equipped Gazef Stronoff could probably best her.
Letting a hero-class fighter languish inside the tomb would have been a waste. Even if she did spend her days hitting the spa with Lazlo, getting massages, polishing her skin to a radiant gleam, grinning from ear to ear. Even if she visited the sauna, drank at the bar, or trained her martial arts against respawning undead.
Surely that wasn't enough. She wasn't a dog to be kept chained at home.
So when I'd proposed we become adventurers, she'd agreed instantly, adding something about it being a date. I could have denied it—but lately I'd been too busy with Nazarick's affairs to spend much time with her outside of nights. Momonga was practically overworked as guildmaster, and I was somewhat force to help share the burden.
'Fine. Let it be a date.'
And so I'd informed Momonga and Demiurge of my intentions. Momonga had agreed immediately. Demiurge had simply smiled and murmured, "As expected of Lord Belial" — abbreviated by my mind into the dreaded "Sasu-Beli."
The demon's baseless but terrifying confidence in me was becoming a regular occurrence.
With Momon the Dark Hero's recommendation, I and Clementine had launched our adventuring careers with a comfortable head start in E-Rantel.
We'd hunted prominent monsters, used skills to track down rare herbs in uncharted regions, and found enough genuine enjoyment in the work to rise to mithril rank in short order.
But their quick ascent led to frequent quest overlap with Momon's team, so I shifted our base of operations to the royal capital.
When I'd informed Demiurge of this decision, I'd received yet another "Sasu-Beli." The demon apparently believed every one of my actions was part of some grand design. I wondered if I had unwittingly become an tactical genius.
A few quests in the capital later, we'd hit orichalcum. The speed of promotion was almost anticlimactic.
I'd registered under a false name. "Beryl" for myself, "Claire" for Clementine. Their real identities weren't exactly safe to flaunt. Momonga was using "Momon," after all-subtlety was the watchword.
Now, with orichalcum rank came better pay, so we'd upgraded their inn. Nazarick's food and accommodations were superior, but eating occasionally in public was necessary to avoid suspicion. And if we were going to eat locally, it might as well be good.
Which was how they found themselves walking into the capital's finest adventurer lodging-and immediately being accosted by a muscular mountain of a woman.
"Oi, you two are Silver Wings, yeah? Keep me company."
Gagaran of Blue Rose. Behind me, I heard something snap—the sound of Clementine's temper, I was sure. An inferior warrior had addressed her with casual arrogance, and she was a breath away from fucking that mountain up.
Ignoring Gagaran for a moment, I turned to my partner. "Claire."
"Hmm? What? It's fine."
The smile she wore was radiant. Anyone who didn't know her would see only cheerfulness. I knew better: she was absolutely furious. I turned back to Gagaran.
"Happy to join you."
"Quick on the uptake. I like that. Follow me."
Declining an adamantite adventurer's invitation would have caused needless friction. Gagaran gestured toward a table where a flustered blonde beauty and a petite masked figure sat. Lakyus and Evileye.
'Well, being bothered wasn't the worst thing for reputation.' I didn't dislike Gagaran either, except she wasn't my type—the woman might fall outside my usual preferences.
As I took my seat, Lakyus quickly stood up.
"I'm so sorry—you were dragged over here rather forcefully..."
"Not at all. I don't mind."
I smiled. Lakyus's cheeks flushed faintly. I hadn't even used Charm yet. Was she that susceptible to good looks?
"I'm Lakyus, leader of Blue Rose."
"A pleasure. I'm Beryl, leader of Silver Wings—for what that's worth."
I offered my hand as a greeting. She hesitated for a heartbeat, then took it. Her grip was delicate. Like Clementine, she was a female warrior who somehow possessed formidable strength without bulging muscles-Gagaran excepted.
The woman was magnificently sculpted.
"That's Gagaran, our warrior, and this here is Evileye, our magic caster."
Gagaran shouldered forward, extending a hand. "Hey there!"
"Good to meet-"
The handshake clamped down like a vice. But compared to a max-level YGGDRASIL player, a high-level native warrior's strength was trivial. The level gap was merciless; in this world, people who had bled for their power could still lose to an average gamer from another world.
I respected their effort, at least. I'd cheated my way into power, and mocking them for it would be inexcusable and not in my character.
"You've got quite a grip, Gagaran."
"And you didn't even flinch. You're well trained."
"I'll let you wonder."
Warriors and their "I can gauge a man's strength by his handshake" nonsense. Cocytus would call it "the gleam of a warrior."
I understood none of it.
"And you must be Evileye. A pleasure."
"Yeah. Likewise."
I offered my hand, but she didn't take it.
Mostly Wary.
It was understandable — I looked rather untrustworthy.
"Sorry, she's a bit shy around strangers," Lakyus apologized instead of her.
"Not at all. A little caution is wise. Don't you agree?"
Evileye pointedly looked away.
"So, Beryl-san-"
"Beryl is fine. I'm not accomplished enough for honorifics from an adamantite."
"Then just Lakyus is fine for me as well."
"You sure?"
"Of course."
'Huh, why am I so relaxed around him?' Lakyus thought.
Evileye shot Gagaran a confused glance, but Gagaran looked equally baffled. Lakyus apparently had some ulterior motive for befriending him. He filed away the possibility that he was being drawn into trouble.
"Well then... may I ask a question straight away?"
"Ask anything."
Depending on her query, I'd need a prepared a good truth. Mentally flipping through the background story I'd concocted with Momonga, I braced himself.
"That skull-motif magic item you're wearing-where did you get it? If it's purchasable, I'd love to know the shop."
Lakyus, it seemed, had mistaken him for a kindred spirit. A fellow devotee of the dark and edgy.
-x-X-x-
"Here it is."
The shop stood off the capital's main thoroughfare, tucked into a side street Lakyus would normally have overlooked.
Accessory Shop SODOM, the sign read. It had come recommended by Beryl of Silver Wings.
She had invited the others, but no one had cared to join her. Some weren't interested. Others dismissed the idea that a shop with an unfamiliar name could possibly carry genuine magic items.
Evileye had been the bluntest of all: "There's no way a place like that sells real magic items. You're wasting your time. "
So Lakyus had come alone.
She paused outside, arms crossed, thinking back. The silver skull chain Beryl had worn-despite its sinister look-had turned out to be a legitimate magic item capable of triggering a low-tier healing spell when activated.
Lakyus herself was a faith-based magic caster, she didn't strictly need such a trinket. But if something merely looked the part, she honestly didn't care whether it had any practical effect.
She already wore ten rings on her fingers, none of them enchanted. They were simply fashionable. Cool. That was reason enough. Decorative accessories with no combat value were perfectly acceptable to her.
Even so, she couldn't help thinking the shop's name was odd.
The building was freshly paved and newly painted, the sign bold. Its position on a back street made it inconspicuous, but it had that bright newness of a recently opened establishment.
Lakyus nodded to herself and pushed open the door. A small bell chimed. No one appeared.
The interior was lined with ornaments. Silver accessories with peculiar engravings like artisan craftwork. Trinkets shaped like bones. Coasters bearing arcane-looking magic circles. Cross-shaped earrings. Lakyus's eyes gleamed before she could stop herself.
'This is good. Very good.
She had always purchased striking accessories-strictly by her own subjective standards-but never had she seen a collection so thoroughly saturated in her particular aesthetic.
As she browsed, a voice reached her.
"Welcome. May I help you find something?"
A clerk had materialized without her noticing-a woman of mature years, so refined that Lakyus could easily have believed she was some manner of noble.
"Ah... yes. I was referred by Beryl. Do you carry magic items like the one he wears?"
The woman smiled. "Of course. For verification, may I have your name?"
Lakyus hesitated briefly. Why would a shop need her name? Then again, if they dealt in precious magic items, a certain caution was only natural.
"I'm Lakyus of Blue Rose."
"Ah, the Lady Lakyus. Forgive me."
"No need to apologize. It's perfectly all right."
Being recognized had its uses. Lakyus let out a quiet breath.
"Then, Lady Lakyus, allow me to show you to the back. This way, if you please."
"Yes, thank you."
'So the goods in the front aren't the true magic items, she reasoned. She followed the clerk deeper into the shop. And then something else occurred to her.
"By the way-what is your name?"
"Oh? Mine?"
"Yes. You're not just an ordinary clerk, are you?"
"I assure you, I am a mere shop assistant. Not even the proprietor."
The smile was flawless, but Lakyus felt a small prickle of unease. Would an ordinary shop assistant conduct herself with such poise? And why had she seen no guards in a store supposedly handling precious artifacts?
She swallowed her doubts and tried again. "Then what should I call you?"
The clerk turned back with elegant composure. "Please call me Lazlo."
There was a quiet confidence in the name, as though it meant something profound.
"That's a lovely name," Lakyus said.
"Oh, is it? Yes, I think so too. My father gave it to me. Isn't it wonderful?"
"Y-yes, I suppose...?"
The clerk's sudden enthusiasm caught Lakyus off guard, but she nodded along. Everyone had their own values, and clearly this Lazlo adored her father.
They descended a staircase at the rear of the shop. Lazlo opened a door and activated some mechanism beside it, flooding the space with light. Wooden crates were stacked throughout.
'A storeroom, Lakyus thought.
"Now then, let me show you a few items."
Lazlo opened several crates and presented their contents.
A ring that completely negated first-tier magic and blunted second-tier spells.
A necklace that could store a first-tier spell and release it at the wielder's discretion.
A paired set of earrings that allowed two wearers to sense each other's location.
These were, by Lakyus's estimation, genuinely rare magic items. Their designs-skulls, demonic motifs, dragons-were undeniably striking. But they leaned so heavily into dark power that she could hardly wear them openly as a faith-based magic caster. They were simply too dark for daily use.
And magic items were expensive. Too expensive to buy on a whim. The effects she'd seen would be convenient, but not so essential that she couldn't live without them.
"Lazlo, the items you've shown me are certainly impressive. But do you have anything more suited to a faith-based magic caster?"
"Certainly. Then how about this?"
From another box, Lazlo produced-
"A bracelet?"
"Yes. This is a magic item called the Holy Bangle."
The bangle was beautifully wrought, its engravings depicting waves and light, with a cross-shaped motif at its center. Embedded in the cross was a faintly glowing green gemstone. It did, indeed, look exactly like something a faith caster would wear.
"What does it do?" Lakyus asked.
"Allow me to demonstrate."
Lazlo slipped the bangle onto her own wrist. From a slit in her skirt, she withdrew a knife-longer than a simple self-defense blade. The sight only deepened Lakyus's suspicion that this woman was no ordinary clerk. Perhaps a former adventurer of considerable rank.
Lazlo gripped the knife firmly.
"And now..."
She drove it into her own shoulder.
Blood spattered before Lakyus's eyes.
"What are you doing!?"
Lakyus lunged forward, ready to cast healing magic-
"No, no. No need to panic. It's perfectly fine."
The green gem on Lazlo's wrist flared. Instantly, the wound vanished. No scar, no trace of injury.
"Ah...?"
"That is the effect of the Holy Bangle."
Lazlo withdrew the knife and removed the bangle. The gem at its center had gone colorless, like a spent stone.