Ch. 187
I was already physically at my limit.
No matter how much mental strength or mana I had, if I lacked stamina, everything else would end up fragile too.
Ash was half right and half wrong. I did need to recover, but I wasn’t so drained that I couldn’t move at all today.
I just wanted to maintain proper condition in case of any traps or dangers we might encounter in the dungeon.
They were all unreliable, so I figured I’d need to carry the weight of six people myself.
If I got a good night’s sleep and meditated for a couple hours at dawn, I’d be back to soaring again.
Literally!
“See? I finished it.”
“Good job.”
Ash spoke as if I’d done something praiseworthy. He smiled and looked at me kindly, as if he even wanted to pat my head.
How dare he… how dare…
“Want one?”
“…Want what?”
“A candy.”
My mouth did taste bitter.
Ash really knew me. Always prepared, always perceptive—there was no need for me to answer.
My lips barely parted and he was already carefully unwrapping the candy.
I blinked as I watched him.
I waited quietly and slightly parted my lips right on cue.
“…”
Huh, isn’t he going to feed it to me?
Even in the darkness, I could clearly see Ash’s face reddening—too much to blame it on the firelight.
He stared at me with trembling eyes, then, as I gazed back blankly wondering what was wrong, his hand shook like he was putting his life on the line as he finally popped the candy into my mouth.
Then he flinched like crazy when his fingers brushed my lips.
If he’d licked them, I’d have made him take responsibility.
[Hmm, tough call. I like Ash, but Master isn’t really empress material… Emperor maybe.]
[You’re having fun teasing me, aren’t you?]
[I can’t help it when your heart’s fluttering so hard I can feel it too.]
[…It’s not like that!]
I only felt a little weird because he was nervous. Ash and I were just friends. With maybe a slight layer of master-servant dynamics mixed in.
“Look at you two.”
“What, planning a household now?”
“When’s the wedding?”
“Sigh.”
The one sighing like the earth was crumbling was Lox. The rest of the guys were grinning lewdly and teasing us. One Rai was enough for that kind of thing.
“What are you looking at?”
“What do you mean? Who was being all lovey-dovey?”
“Oh? You really wanna write that will now?”
Killing them all would take less effort than going through the dungeon. Maybe I should take the more efficient option.
“Nope. Not at all.”
“Goodnight, then.”
“Sleep well.”
Three of them dove into their sleeping bags like their lives depended on it, while the weakest one, Lox, couldn’t let go of his regrets and peeked at us from outside his bag.
I rubbed my forehead.
“They’re teasing you because you’re acting weird.”
“Weird how…?”
“Your eyes are weird right now!”
I got a bit sensitive because of the unfamiliar feeling, and Ash quietly picked up the empty bowl and stood.
“Alright. I’ll stop. You must be tired. Get some sleep.”
“…Hmph.”
“Goodnight, Geenie.”
Ash was on night watch. Instead of sleeping, he sat near the fire and kept guard.
I couldn’t sleep, bothered by the way he sat nearby with his sword, staring out at the lake.
Even after lying down, several things bothered me.
The warmth of his fingertips when he put the candy in my mouth. The voice that whispered goodnight as he moved away. That gentle gaze that just lingered on me.
The more I tried not to think about it, the more I realized how much effort I had to make to avoid it.
[Hmm, Master. I’ve been thinking seriously.]
[Shut your trap.]
[I don’t use a trap—I use telepathy, so I can continue, right? Ash isn’t boyfriend material. He’s husband material! So why don’t you just go ahead and—]
“Shut up!”
Waking up in the middle of the night to strangle a dog by the throat wasn’t exactly bride-like behavior. If anyone was bride material here, it was Ash—not me.
That much was obvious.
—
The morning at the lake, which had likely existed for ten thousand years, was as beautiful as a masterpiece painted with a lifetime of devotion.
A thick layer of mist clung to the surface of the water, painted in shades of violet by the lingering colors of dawn. Fresh sunbeams stretched across the sea, gently piercing the fog and brushing my cheek.
Everything in existence felt peaceful, and as I gazed at the mesmerizing scene, I mumbled quietly.
“…I’m kinda screwed.”
It might sound trivial, but it was a bothersome issue.
I was supposed to play the most important role in this expedition, so I’d tried to preserve my condition—only to fail miserably.
Maybe I slept wrong, but my whole body ached.
Rai muttered weird things next to me all night, and even with my eyes closed, I could still sense the guy on watch looking at me.
I tried to ignore it, but Rai kept pointing it out, so I got more and more irritated.
Thanks to all that, I slept horribly. And on top of that, my usual dawn mana training was completely disrupted by fatigue and distraction.
My physical condition was clearly worse than usual. Not optimal for something important.
I mean, sure—I could still wipe out a village like this.
Because I’m Geenie Crowell, ahem.
“Agh.”
I smacked my aching lower back like a grandma.
My shoulders were sore, and I had a bit of fatigue-related muscle ache. But if I mentioned that, those whiners might cry from anxiety, so I kept my concerns to myself.
I was probably only holding up thanks to the recovery potion I drank last night.
I did briefly consider telling them we should rest more and leave in the afternoon.
But that would come off as such a typical spoiled noble girl thing, I absolutely didn’t want to say it.
I didn’t mind being a burden—but I didn’t want it to be because of weakness.
I had a definite desire to be seen as strong. Even if I was armed with spirit magic and a nasty attitude, I didn’t want anyone to know I was secretly frail.
[Wait, you thought that was a secret? You look like a stiff breeze could knock you over. Since when was it a secret?]
[Hey! I told you not to eavesdrop!]
[What can I do? You’re so tired your thoughts are leaking all over the place. I can hear everything.]
[Curse this stamina.]
Damn it. I’d work out, but even that felt like too much effort.
I already train mana, develop new skills, and plan to take down Rovenin! If I get any more productive, I’ll lose my sense of identity.
“Geenie! We’re ready. When do we leave?”
“Ugh…”
“What’s wrong?”
Enk approached and spoke up, and I forced myself to straighten my back and tilt my head left and right. Ugh, everything hurts.
“You guys sure you don’t wanna write those wills?”
“…Could you not say scary stuff like that?”
“Just kidding. I’ll try not to kill you.”
“With you, it’s impossible to tell what’s a joke and what’s not.”
“It’s always half joke, half truth.”
“So half of you actually does plan to kill us.”
I rolled my shoulder and listened to the familiar grumbling.
When I turned around, the men were all lined up, fully prepped for the dungeon.
The problem was, there were four big horses standing with them. I immediately waved my hands.
“Oh no. No horses. Leave them here.”
“What? Then what do we do with them?”
“Just tie them up somewhere. Taking horses in there would be a massive drain on mana and mental focus. And it’s dark and damp inside—horses might get scared and freeze up. Even humans would find it unsettling. And most importantly, the dungeon entrance I saw yesterday… they won’t fit.”
I mean, maybe if we shoved them in, but they’d die.
That entrance had some nasty features. My back pain might even be from falling in there…
“What if monsters show up while we’re gone?”
“Yeah! These are borrowed horses. If something eats them, we’re in trouble!”
“And without them, we won’t make it to the capital in time! We can’t miss the duel!”
“Then someone can stay behind and watch the horses?”
No one wanted to be the guy to stay behind while a dungeon they’d spent nearly two years searching for was right in front of them.
With a needlessly determined face, Chad spoke.
“We’re adventurers. I’d rather write that will and follow you than babysit horses.”
“What would you write?”
“…I wasn’t seriously gonna write one…”
“Don’t act all dramatic in front of me. It’s annoying.”
Maybe I had adventurer disdain. Who knows.
“Oh! What if we leave your mutt here? No monster’s gonna eat him. If anything, he’ll eat them!”
[Insolence, human!]
“Good idea, but… I need Rai with me this time. He might be useful.”
[Indeed!]
We’d only found the entrance. We had no idea what the dungeon was like or what we might need.
I wasn’t about to leave behind my all-purpose lockpick and external mana battery.
The guys kept arguing about the horses. They were an essential part of the journey.
“When we checked the abandoned houses yesterday, there were signs monsters had died there. They’re definitely nearby.”
“This area isn’t exactly safe. Probably why the village’s abandoned too.”
“If something happens while we’re gone… Lox and Geenie would have the hardest time.”
“Geenie, it’s risky to leave the horses behind.”
I hadn’t even considered the horses, but it seemed wiser to listen to the more experienced travelers.
Not because Ash chimed in. I just really didn’t want to end up walking all the way to the capital.
“Fine, fine. I wanted to save mana, but it can’t be helped. I’ll leave Undine to guard them.”
In the end, more work landed on me.
I was just a temp party member, but I was doing way too much. I wasn’t into unpaid labor.
A bit annoyed, I summoned Undine and Undaine.
One to protect the horses, and one to open a path through the lake. Maintaining both at the same time really made me feel how inefficient this was.
Just because I made it look easy, those idiots had no idea—this was something even Master Yael Roenin couldn’t do. Maybe he could barely manage it for a short time?
“Everyone packed your weapons?”
“Of course!”
“Food and emergency supplies?”
“Got ’em!”
“Wills?”
“HEY!”
“Then let’s really get going!”