Kieran's gaze only lingered a bit on the two Legendary items, then he turned his attention to the figure that walked out of the mist.
When he saw the figure with a bloated stomach, he frowned but didn't let his guard down.
Enemies came in all shapes, sizes and conditions. He had no intention of flipping the boat in the drain.
"Please don't worry, I mean you no harm!"
Hands were waved up high as the figure said.
"My husband is Fandral. I was forced to do something out of my will before… But now, thank you for what you did!"
Fandral's wife?
As the pregnant woman said her words with an apologetic tone, she took a slight bow forward with difficulty despite her condition.
Kieran was inspecting the woman before him.
A common face with nothing much worth noticing other than the slightly quiet temperament; however, Kieran became more vigilant as she appeared.
He didn't forget why Fandral failed to teleport them back to Riverdale in the first place. It was because of his wife's betrayal!
Even though there might be more reasons behind than what appeared, but the betrayal was a fact, and the result wouldn't change even after her explanation.
Fandral's wife's expression didn't change at all when facing against Kieran's vigilant gaze.
"Please hold on a moment!" She said.
Then, the woman placed her hands on her belly and quietly stepped aside, to express that she really didn't mean any harm.
Kieran held both his hands on [Arrogant Word]'s hilt and stared at the woman.
The duration of the curse was longer than Kieran's expectation. Even after the death of Sand of Time, he couldn't feel any better or the curse fading.
Before this, Kieran gave all his effort to keep himself standing, but after the battle, he needed more strength to support himself. He had to use his hands to support his body. Still, he knew that relying on both his hands and supporting himself with the greatsword wouldn't last long. The increasing muscle sourness kept reminding him of his limit.
Fortunately, he didn't have to hold on very long until Mary, Bosco and Fandral came out from the room aside.
"2567!" Mary rushed into Kieran's arms with a loud cry.
Kieran who was still suffering the curse couldn't even reject the sudden hug when Mary threw herself at him. The sudden add-on weight on his body finally made his body crumble and fall to the ground with Mary on top of him.
"2567! 2567! Are you hurt? Where! Tell me! Where does it hurt!?"
The little girl looked at Kieran with shock and panic after the fall. Her sapphire blue eyes started to tear up.
"I'm fine! You father is right inside there, you should go meet him first! After all, that is the reason why you are here, right?"
Kieran lay on the floor, shaking his head. He was bad at handling such awkward situations, and all he could do was to divert the topic as he was lost for actions.
"But...But…"
"Worry not! I'm fine! Just a little exhausted!"
Kieran had to hide the fact that he was cursed to let Mary move away from him.
"Your Highness, you should let Sir 2567 take a good rest."
Bosco, who was good at observing people's expression, said from the side and pointed at the bedroom door.
After a slight hesitation, Mary nodded.
Mary got up from Kieran, and before she went into the bedroom, she reminded him.
"Wait for me! I'll be right back!" She said.
Kieran nodded with a smile, but he didn't put any hope into it.
Although the system didn't notify him about his mission completion, according to the description, "Escort Mary to the imperial city in 30 days", it seemed like it was almost time for him to leave the dungeon.
"Farewell!"
Kieran's heart whispered as he stared at the little girl's back.
He had no idea when he would meet her again.
Other than that, what kind of twisted story would the system arrange for him, making Mary believe that he had a solid reason to leave?
Maybe their next meeting would be after a few years; she might even be all grown up!
Kieran sighed in his heart.
"I didn't think you could really pull it off…"
When Mary and Bosco went inside the bedroom, Fandral walked up to Kieran with a complicated expression. Until the end, the strongest sorcerer in Warren still couldn't believe Kieran had achieved the feat that he thought unachievable.
"Human effort is the decisive factor!" Kieran looked at Fandral and said slowly.
"Human effort, eh? I myself can't pull it off!" Fandral mocked himself with a laugh.
Then, the strongest sorcerer of Warren held his wife's hand and stared silently at her bloated belly; he said softly, "After all, I know where I belong now!"
"Please convey my apologies to his Majesty and her Highness, I have no reason to show my face here anymore! I left some of my notes in my room, I hope they could be of some use to compensate for my mistakes. Farewell, 2567! May we meet again in the future!"
Fandral then walked out the royal bedroom area as he finished. His wife took another apologetic bow at Kieran and quickly followed her husband with quick steps.
Kieran frowned, wanting to say something, but in the end, he couldn't.
He could tell that it was not that Fandral was ashamed to face Mary and her deceased mother, but he was worried about his wife, or more precisely, the heir in her belly!
"After being forced to submit… now he is scared of his own shadow?" Kieran thought in his heart.
Then he shook off the thought and turned his attention to the two Legendary items.
Compared to Fandral's leaving, he was more concerned about what he could get.
As for what could be affected by his leaving? It was not something within his concern.
Kieran believed Mary's father could sustain without Fandral since Jeanne was out of the equation.
Kieran moved towards the items and picked them up.
One was a petite doll, only a finger long, and the other one was a crystal made ring.
[Name: Karma Doll]
[Type: ETC]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Attack/Defense: None]
[Attributes: After a certain procedure, you can lay a curse directly at your enemy, instantly killing them regardless of conditions, 1 time remaining]
[Effect: None]
[Prerequisite: Mystical Knowledge (Grand Master)]
[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]
[Remark: To use Karma Doll, you will need the blood and the real name of the target! Though, bear in mind, the target's strength will be the key factor whether the curse will work effectively!]
...
[Name: Mesly Ring]
[Type: Accessory]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Attack/Defense: None]
[Attributes: 1. Charm; 2. Dominance]
[Effect: None]
[Prerequisite: Spirit B]
[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]
[Remark: Do you want to be popular and loved by all? The best choice is to wear it!]
...
[Charm: When skill is activated, you and your target will undergo a Spirit authentication. When your Spirit is higher than your target, target will be successfully charmed! Target will be your best friend and will do anything possible to aid you! When you fail the authentication, you have to suffer a Heavily Wounded state mental shock. 1/day]
[Dominance: When successfully charmed target, should you choose to dominate the target, a second Spirit authentication will occur, the charmed target will gain +2 Spirit attribute advantage. If you succeed, target will completely obey your commands, if you fail, you will suffer a Lethally Wounded state mental shock!]
[Note 1: Charm target doesn't limited to Human targets]
[Note 2: Targets charmed inside the dungeon world, couldn't bring out of the dungeon, when you leave the dungeon, target will live on by it's previous life]
...
"Lay a curse to kill one instantly? Shhhh!"
Kieran took in a cold hard breath when he saw the description of [Karma Doll]
He knew perfectly well how powerful this item was. It could already be considered as scary!
"Only if I get the real name…"
Kieran suddenly thought of someone, and that someone had become the core of the plan that he was thinking up in his mind, but before he could finalize his plan, a rushed yelling came through.
"The Prairies are invading! We've lost Lightning Fortress!"
Kieran could clearly hear the yell with his ears and promptly raised a brow.