296 - - a bit of a plot

"Oh, old man Barconia's back from the dead!"

"Oh, thank God! Oh, I'm so glad. ......"

Sora and Kugase, who had been holding each other's hands, jump up in friendship at the sight of the flame wizard who has suddenly risen from the dead.

Yuril, standing behind them, exhaled a breath of relief and patted his shoulder.

The twins, who had been watching from a distance, relaxed their tense expressions as if in sympathy with each other.

Moe, who had rushed up to them cheerfully, looked at Barconia's face and started laughing happily.

The old man with the beard has no hair on his head. You're bald!"

He then starts to smack the newly revived Balconia on the head with a casual smack.

It seems that while the wounds could be healed, the hair could not be regenerated.

At the cruel child's suggestion, Barconia hurriedly reaches out her hand and opens her mouth with a gasp when she doesn't feel the familiar texture of her hair.

She also touches the bridge of her nose and then slumps her shoulders.

"Ugh, what a surprise! No, first of all, you should be glad that you are safe. Yes, you can grow your hair and beard again. ...... will grow back, right?　Please, someone tell me it is so!"

"I don't have time to worry about my hair or anything!　You almost died, Mr. Barconia."

"Sola is right. You've suddenly gone so reckless that we're all in a panic.

I'm sorry to have caused you so much worry. It seems that you were able to defeat him safely. I'm glad to hear that all your hard work was worth it.

As Barconia apologized lightly while looking at the fallen lord of the labyrinth, Sola shrugged her shoulders in dismay.

Then she turned serious and strongly stated, "I'm sorry, but I'm not going to do it.

I don't care what happens to me. I understand that you still want to do something about it. I did it myself. But for those who are left behind, it's a very painful experience. So please promise me that you won't do this anymore."

"Well, I'm really sorry to have bothered you. I sincerely apologize for that. If you just tell me not to do it, I can only say that it is impossible. In that situation, I was the only one who suffered little loss, and in addition, I was the only one who had no problem leaving the battle. In the same situation, I would make the same choice again and again.

There is not a trace of hesitation in Balconia's eyes as she says this definitively.

It was the look of a man who would give his life not for the sake of victory, but for the sake of his friends who would win the victory.

The word "faith" came to Sora's mind, but he shook his head quietly to the side as if to deny it.　

I understand. Then I will be angry as many times as I want and I will do my best to avoid such a situation.

"Hmm, thank you very much for your kindness, Sora-sama. I will keep that in mind. By the way, the person who saved me was..."

At the words of Balconia, the eyes of the people around her turned all at once to the man who had performed the miraculous magic trick.

Moldamo's face did not change even a little in response to the sudden attention, and Rummella, unable to hide her confusion, asked, "What is it that you are doing?

I am surprised. You have a branch of the , don't you? But how did you come to ......?"

Rummella's question is understandable.

When magic users belong to the same temple, it is a basic rule for them to teach each other their skills without revealing them to each other, since duplicate effects of their magic skills would be useless.

And if a skill can heal even a dying person, it is so important that it can change the whole strategy of the group.

There is no reason to hide the possession of such a skill.　

Furthermore, although can be used only once every three days, it has the effect of removing not only wounds but also all kinds of abnormalities, and it is such a secret branch that even Ram Merura, who covers almost all healing branches, could not receive it.

Naturally, the owner is given the highest priority in protection, so it would have been unnatural not to reveal it.

When asked the most obvious question, the waterman replied evasively.

"Yes, I'm in trouble. I am very sorry that you have found out about this. Now Riccoli will have to die. Is it about time?"

"Yes, I do. Let's get started."

The player got off Moldamo's back, and he put his favorite whistle to his lips.

In his vision, he sees Thor and Raszel, who are finally approaching.

"What's wrong, sister?"

The next moment, a gentle melody began to flow from Licori's flute.

It was not a magical song, but more like a hand-clap.

Strangely enough, however, everyone's movements stopped for a moment.

It was indeed a wonderful sound to listen to, but the situation was still a little strange.

Rummella, who had heard the sound of her sister's flute many times, immediately understood what had happened.

She looked at Licori, who continued to play, in surprise and muttered something.

"Why are you playing 'the music of the Mimôryô' ......?"

It is a trait given by the Lord of Suikanju, and is used to force monsters and allies to listen to the music you play.

Once activated, the player is restricted in his movements until he finishes listening to a song.

Moldamo looked around to make sure that everyone had stopped, and suddenly pulled out a knife from his pocket.

He places the blade, which waves in the air, at the throat of Licori, who is happily whistling a tune.

The man continued his conversation without hesitation as Rummella and the others gasped at the sudden turn of events.

"I know it's very presumptuous of me, but would you be willing to give us the right to seal up that miasma hole?"

These words are followed by a moment of silence.

Only the sound, which had changed to a slow tune, flowed through the room, enveloping everyone, leaving them with a feeling of being out of place.

The first to speak was her twin sister, Kikiriri.

"I'm ............ dumbfounded. What is that?"

Nenemimi, next to her, nodded her head in agreement.

Shrugging her shoulders deliberately, Kikiriri continued in her usual tone.

"I was wondering what he was demanding, going to the trouble of threatening me with a knife and talking about sealing the hole. I'm surprised at you.

At her sister's words, she nodded her head again and again without saying a word.

"I'm not interested, and I can only say that you can do what you want. But be prepared to get a big chunk of the prize money.

"I'm the same way!　What do you mean, who's going to contain it? Well, I don't care who it is, as long as they give me lots of money.

Kugasse, with a look of relief on his face, agrees with the twins.

Rasel and Barconia quickly exchange glances, then raise their eyebrows in sympathy.

They must be well aware that without the relic, there is no room for them to participate in the discussion.

And he also feels for the adventurers who have been burdened with such a heavy responsibility by the temple and their home country that they have to resort to such unreasonable measures.

Yuril, who is a party to this, looks at Sora and Thor as if to ask them a question.

When they shook their heads at him, he shook the tips of his ears just a little.

Moe stroked Balconia's head, humming a song to the tune of "Soo Bees Soo Bees".

He seemed to like the way it felt.

Finally, Thor opened his mouth to the attention of everyone.

"No, I would be very grateful if you could seal it up for me. Can I ask you to do that?"

"...... Eh."

For the first time that day, Moldamo had a look of astonishment on his face.

Riccoli's flute sound was disturbed, but he barely managed to recover.

"No, I mean, are you sure?"

"Yeah, no one seems to have any objections. So I'd like you to put that nasty knife away as soon as possible.

"No, this is not a threat, it is necessary to complete the "bitter water of sorrow" for Ram Merulla-sama. ......"

Inside the body of Ram Merulla, a high-ranking water user, there is a relic that feeds on the suffering and pain of others.

But the relics have not yet grown enough to fill the miasma.

So Licori and Mordamo plan to ensure the relic's power by staging the tragic stabbing death of her sister in front of Ram Merulla's eyes.

In fact, the magic trick of "a drop of the soul offering" was a hidden gem for this purpose.

The plan was to bring Licori back to life in a hurry when the "bitter water of grief" was completed by sucking in Rummella's emotions from her inability to heal her precious sister's fatal wound.

"Hmmm. Is it possible that it would be better if Ram-chan despairs?"

"Yes, yes. Well, I guess so.　

"Then there is an easier way. Sola, could you lift your finger a little? Not that way, the other way.

The girl holds up the ring finger of her left hand as if to show it off, just as Kugase told her to do.

There shining on it was a ring with a beautiful black gemstone.

"What's wrong with that ring?"

"Heh heh, this?　This is for you, Thor-chan.

"Stop it, don't tell me what happens next!　......Oh, please."

Ram Merulla's plaintive cries echoed in the depths of the earth.