CHAPTER 100……………………………………….
After parting ways with the followers of the Hasent Church, Elias and her group continued along the path. The Emperor and the Princess quietly followed behind her.
“Your Majesty, Princess… if you’re feeling tired, please let me know at any time.”
After clearing the monsters blocking their path with a single swing of her pork cutlet hammer, Elias spoke to the Emperor and the Princess. She was being considerate, knowing that the journey could be long and exhausting for them.
However, as they saw Elias’s overwhelming attack power in action with each step, the two couldn’t bring themselves to admit that they were tired.
“Ha… haha. We’re fine. No need to worry about us.”
“Y-Yes. We’re fine, Saint.”
Elias tilted her head at their awkward responses but didn’t notice anything particularly unusual and soon continued on.
Not long after they moved forward,
“Ah, Theron!”
At the end of the path, Elias spotted Theron fighting against monsters. Overjoyed to have finally found him, she immediately ran toward him.
But Theron drew his sword, wreathed in a blade aura, and shouted urgently upon seeing Elias running toward him.
“Eli, watch out!”
Suddenly—
Something burst out of the ground. It was a mole with wings.
Elias was a little surprised at the sight, and she immediately raised her pork cutlet hammer to strike.
But at that moment—
Shreek!
The winged mole split in two and began to disintegrate into dust. Behind it, Theron appeared.
“Are you okay, Eli? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Theron hurriedly approached Elias, carefully checking her condition.
“I-I’m fine, Theron.”
“You startled me when you suddenly appeared. What if you’d been hurt?”
“I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“No, seeing that you’re safe puts me at ease.”
Theron then embraced Elias tightly, and she instinctively leaned into him.
“I’m glad you’re safe too, Theron. I was so worried after we were separated.”
“I was worried about you too, Eli.”
The two shared a brief, heartfelt embrace. The rest of the group, following behind, smiled warmly at the sight.
It took a moment before Elias and Theron noticed their companions’ gazes.
“Ah… s-sorry, everyone.”
Elias blushed with embarrassment as she spoke to the group. Theron’s ears were red as well.
“Heh, no worries, Saint. Seeing the love of young people like you two… I envy it, actually.”
Count Cadin laughed warmly, and the Emperor joined in.
“Indeed. You two make a fine pair.”
“Hoho, indeed.”
Even Princess Selena’s words followed, making Elias’s cheeks feel like they might burst from redness.
Ahem.
Trying to compose herself, Elias spoke to Theron.
“Theron… actually, we’re in the demon realm. Lilith told me. This is called ‘Mamon’s Maze.’”
“Ah… I see. I had some idea.”
Elias explained the maze of Mamon in detail to Theron.
“And everyone, I just learned from Lilith how to escape this maze.”
At Elias’s announcement, not only Theron but all the companions were surprised.
“Lilith told you? Hooray! We can finally escape!”
“What’s the way to escape?”
Elias spoke to the excited group with a serious expression.
“At the end of this maze, there’s a spire. If we defeat all the demons there, the maze will be undone. Once that happens, Lilith will transport us back to our original location.”
“Oh… as expected of Lilith.”
“Thank you so much, Lilith.”
Hearing Elias, the followers each silently offered a prayer to Lilith.
“Haha, save the prayers for after this is all over. For now, escaping the maze comes first.”
Elias encouraged the group, helping them forget their fatigue for a moment.
With Theron now joining, their pace improved. Occasionally, monsters appeared in groups rather than alone, but Theron’s swordsmanship assisted Elias every time.
Theron really is a true Swordmaster.
Elias felt her heart race every time Theron swung his sword. Seeing him in this way, with his black hair flying and teeth clenched, was unexpectedly captivating.
Of course, she couldn’t simply admire him mid-battle and had to keep fighting. Elias continued swinging her pork cutlet hammer, defeating monsters alongside him.
The journey was not easy. As time passed, the group grew tired, and hunger and thirst set in.
Elias periodically boosted the group’s spirits and led them onward, resting every hour to recover energy and healing those who were struggling with her divine powers.
But if the journey continues much longer, it’ll be difficult.
Even Elias’s divine powers had limits. While rest restored her strength, the continuous battles consumed more than she could recover.
I need to conserve strength for the battle at the spire.
They couldn’t know what monsters awaited at the maze’s end, so conserving power was necessary.
During a brief rest, Theron approached Elias, who was sitting alone.
“Yes, Theron?”
“From now on, I’ll fight alone.”
“Huh?”
He sat beside her and continued.
“You seem exhausted. There’s still the battle at the spire, so it’s better to save your strength.”
“But Theron, you’ll be tired too.”
“I’m fine. You’ve been leading everyone for a long time. Take this chance to rest and regain your strength.”
“Theron… thank you.”
Elias felt a pang of emotion at his consideration. Theron held her hand.
“It pains me to see you carrying such a heavy burden.”
“I’m fine, Theron.”
“Still… lean on me sometimes.”
“Yes. I will. Thank you.”
After the brief, sweet rest, they resumed their journey.
Eventually, they arrived at the spire at the maze’s end.
It’s tall…
A black spire, several dozen meters high, awaited them.
By this point, the group had grown in number, including knights and nobles from both the Lilith and Hasent faiths, all with combat ability.
Those from the Hasent Church had little faith in Hasent itself, prioritizing their own lives. In total, the party numbered about fifty.
There are enough fighters here that it’ll be fine even without me for now.
Elias stood before the spire, addressing the group.
“I’ll go into the spire alone. We don’t know what dangers await inside.”
Bringing everyone in was too risky; there could be traps. Elias, having recovered some strength, was prepared to enter alone. But then, Theron approached her.
“No. I can’t let you go alone. At least let me go with you.”
With earnest eyes, he pleaded. Elias hesitated.
“But…”
She worried about the group left outside the spire.
“Saint, go with Duke Piart. You’re worried, right? That’s fine.”
Princess Selena then spoke to both of them.
“The knights have joined us, and the rest have recovered somewhat. A few monsters won’t be a problem. Besides, monsters rarely come near this spire anyway.”
She was right. Elias had seen no monsters on the way to the spire.
The Emperor, Count Cadin, and the others also urged Elias to go with Theron, concerned for her safety.
“…Alright. I understand. We’ll go together.”
Ultimately, Elias and Theron approached the spire.
“Theron, are you okay?”
“Yes. As long as I’m with you, even if it’s hell itself, I’ll be fine.”
Elias smiled faintly at his words and slowly opened the massive doors of the spire.
