Volume 2 - CH 10

It was late at night. Jade and his fellow party members, Loewe and Rururi, along with Guildmaster Glenn and his secretary, Philly, were gathered around a low table in an empty room. They were holding a secret emergency meeting to discuss the possibility that this recent rumour had something to do with the resurrection of a Demon God.

‘Still,’ Jade said, breaking the heavy silence, ‘something’s not right. Why would a rumour like that spread so quickly all of a sudden?’

Adventurers actively share information through receptions, pubs, dungeons and similar venues. While this exchange allows for a rapid dissemination of information, it also leads to the occasional false rumour being spread.

‘Presumably because people are lured by the sweet promise of a Dia skill. Have you noticed something unusual?’ Glenn asked.

‘It’s the same as with Rufus.’

Jade’s observation caused everyone in the room to gasp.

A month ago, an adventurer plotted to destroy the Blades out of a deep-seated grudge. He killed his allies to ressurect a Demon God, thinking that the fiend would do the deed for him. In the end, it was he who lost his life.

‘Rufus claimed that “whoever finds the relic lying in the hidden dungeon shall be granted a Dia skill.” The same as the current rumour. That can’t be a coincidence.’

Loewe sensed where Jade was going and said, “So somebody put Rufus up to it, and now the same guy is spreading rumours around?”

‘It’s possible. Someone with knowledge of the Demon Gods taught Rufus how to ressurect one as a means of destroying our party, and directed him to the Tower of Chalk. And this time, he is spreading false rumours of relics that can grant Dia skills to lure adventurers into finding another hidden dungeon.’

Jade’s deduction left Loewe speechless. His expression paled, likely because he could imagine what the intentions of this “someone with knowledge of Demon Gods” were.

‘He is trying to use adventurers to resurrect a Demon God?’

‘That’s the only thing I can think of.’

Jade sighed and nodded his agreement, though he would have denied it if he could.

The Demon Gods that lie dormant in the hidden dungeons revive by consuming human souls. To put it bluntly, any living human can serve this purpose.

‘What the hell is this guy thinking? Such a terrible thing…’ a grim-faced Loewe muttered bitterly. So much was understandable, given the circumstances. The Demon God that the Silver Blades had fought a month ago was stronger than anything they had ever encountered before. With multiple Dia skills and a body that could withstand any attack, the Demon Gods had wiped out even the Ancestors overnight. With today’s power and technology, it was highly unlikely they could be defeated.

‘Jade has a point.’

Glenn, who had been listening quietly until that point, finally spoke.

‘The similarities between the rumour and Rufus’ behaviour cannot simply be written off as coincidence. I’m convinced that someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes. If the missy hadn’t been there… If the Demon God had left the tower and reached the town… I’d hate to think what would’ve happened.’

Though Glenn didn’t say it out loud, everyone could easily imagine that tragic future.

Once upon a time, the Ancestors lived on the Helcassian continent, where they possessed powerful skills and technologies. One day, however, they simply vanished overnight. Popular belief has it that their insatiable curiosity provoked the wrath of their god, who destroyed them for their insolence, but the truth is a little different. They created the Demon Gods, relics of immense power and physical strength, who, ironically, were the cause of their eventual demise. Were these to be released from the hidden dungeons, the current Helcassians would undoubtedly follow the fate of their forebears. The thought alone sent a shiver down Jade’s spine. To think that there are still more of these dangerous entities lying dormant on the continent.

‘If the same thing happens again and another Demon God is resurrected…’ Jade said, and for a few seconds, the room fell silent…

‘Excuse me.’

…only to be broken by a low voice.

Everyone in the room lifted their heavy heads and turned at once towards the source of the voice. The walls of the uninviting room were lined with shelves upon shelves of densely packed commission forms, and wooden desks occupied the floorspace in orderly rows. On one of these desks was a particularly large pile of paperwork, with still more scattered across the floor around it. There, in a shroud of darkness, sat a person, shooting murderous glances at the group.

It was Alina, midway through an overtime shift.

‘This Demon God business of yours is all well and good, but… why are you guys here? I am kinda in the middle of work, you know?’

Right. Jade and the others were currently holding their emergency session around the table and sofa in a corner of Ifühl Counter’s office normally reserved for visiting guests.

‘Sorry missy, I know we’re bothering you, but please forgive me this time—ah, here. It’s on me.’

Gahaha! Glenn burst out laughing, breaking the heavy atmosphere. His secretary Philly, who was standing by his side, presented Alina a basket filled with pastries.

‘It’s too risky to talk about matters concerning you or the Demon God in the headquarters. The walls have ears, you see. You’d be in trouble too if someone unrelated overheard us, right?’

‘That doesn’t mean you have to do it here! Stop having these gloomy conversations next to me while I’m working!!’

‘Now, now, miss Alina. I’ll help you with your overtime as soon as our meeting is over.’

‘Don’t bullshit me. You’re just trying to get me involved again!’

‘Well…’

‘I’m not falling for your tricks! Just so you know, all this Demon God business has nothing to do with me! That’s your job!’

‘I—it’s like you say, but…’ Glenn mumbled, unable to think of a rebuttal. To his side, Jade whispered in a worried voice, ‘That aside, miss Alina. Have you been eating well? Your cheeks look a bit hollow. They say that when you lose weight, you lose it from the chest first, so you should—’

‘Do you want to die?’ Alina said as she shot Jade a murderous look.

‘Alina, I told you that overdosing on potions is bad for your health! When you’re tired, you should drink something calming, like herbal tea or—‘ a worried Rururi tried to interject, but was immediately cut off: ‘Herbal tea doesn’t do jack shit against overtime fatigue, does it?’

‘Eek!’

‘Miss Alina, I’m a bit of a cook, if I do say so myself. I’ll make you something nutritious next time.’

‘I don’t give a damn about nutrition. The only thing I care about is the Century Festival!’

Alina’s murderous gaze only intensified further as she crushed the quill in her hand.

‘Just so you know, I’ve got an emergency to deal with too!’

Ignoring Rururi’s advice, Alina guzzled down a potion, her overtime companion for when she needed to ward off sleep, and bared her teeth in a menacing expression.

‘This isn’t just overtime! My Century Festival is on the—’

Alina swallowed her words mid-sentence, as if something had just occurred to her. In a complete reversal, she turned her now sparkling eyes to Glenn.

‘I’ve got it! If you use your skill to stop time, I’ll be able to finish my work and still get home on time!’

“Observator Temporis”. Glenn’s skill to stop time. It was with this rare skill that he earned the title of strongest adventurer when he was still active.

‘I’m sorry missy, but that’s impossible.’

However, Alina’s sudden epiphany was quickly dismissed by Glenn.

‘While my skill can stop time, it cannot interfere with the phenomenal world. It freezes all time but mine—well, with one exception. What I’m trying to say is that even if you tried to work while time was frozen, you wouldn’t be able to move, for example, your quill.’

‘Damn…’

Of course, if she had thought about it calmly she would have realised that such a useful skill couldn’t possibly exist, but apparently Alina was so desperate that she had resorted to grasping at straws.

Alina’s sombre gaze fell down on a single booklet, half-buried under a mass of paperwork—a Century Festival guidebook, distributed to tourists every year in anticipation of the festivities. When Jade peeked in over her shoulder, he noticed the booklet’s cover crammed with information that Alina had presumably gathered over time. No doubt there would be even more if he were to look inside. Alina had been unusually obsessed with the festival lately, and it seemed that she was looking forward to this year’s with extraordinary enthusiasm.

‘I guess I won’t be going this year either…’

‘Miss Alina…’

Jade didn’t know what to say at this pitiful, overworked receptionist. Amid the grave silence that hung in the air, Jade placed a hand on Alina’s small, trembling shoulder.

‘It’s too early to give up, miss Alina.’

‘Eh?’

When Alina raised her head, Jade gave her a reassuring smile and pointed his thumb at himself.

‘Haven’t you forgotten someone? Your saviour—’

‘I’ve no idea who you’re talking about.’

‘You definitely do though!?’

Jade was thrown for a loop when Alina gave her a blunt, immediate answer before he had even finished speaking.

‘If I get serious and help you with your overtime, we can get two, three times as much work done in the same amount of time! I’m determined to see you go to the Century Festival!’

‘Yeah right. Knowing you, there’ll be strings attached.’

‘Well…’

As expected of the keen receptionist. She was right on the mark.

‘No, I just thought it’d be nice if, in return for helping you out, we could go on a date to the Century Festival.’

‘Like hell! Who on earth would agree to such a condition!?’

‘Two days then… no, one day! I’ll settle for one day! So let’s have that date!’

‘I’d rather die!’

‘You hate it that much!?’

Decidedly rejected, it was now Jade’s turn to be in tears.

ʻIt looks like you’re misunderstanding something. I want to enjoy the things that I enjoy alone. I don’t like having to accommodate or care for someone else. I’m the kind of person who goes shopping alone!ʼ Alina said resolutely and gritted her teeth at Jade.

There was not a paper-thin gap for Jade to interject, but he remained undeterred and confronted Alina: ʻHowever, miss Alina! Being a Century Festival novice, you may not know this, but the place will be full of playboys and skirt-chasers! If a cute girl goes there alone, it’s like telling them to ‘please hit on me!’ They’ll say you were asking for it! If you go with me, you won’t have to worry about any of that.ʼ

‘Just so you know, you’re just as annoying as those playboys.’

‘In that case, it’d be better to go with me, because at least we’re acquaintances.’

‘What kind of logic is that!?’

‘So let’s go on a date—‘

‘I! Don’t! Wanna! Why should I have to give up my pleasures just because of some playboys?’

‘But as things stand, it’s doubtful whether you’ll be able to go at all, right?’

‘Ugh…’

Jade’s remark left Alina without a reply. She hung her head and began to mutter under her breath, ‘but… no, it’s true… I can’t deal with it on my own…’

Alina pursed her lips tightly and glared at the documents.

‘No pain, no gain, I suppose… The festival lasts three days… If I can bear to go out with this bastard for one day, just one day, I’ll be able to enjoy the remaining two!! I just have to entertain this disgusting freak for a day and make up for it with the rest!!’

‘You know, miss Alina, from time to time you think out loud. That’s on purpose, isn’t it?’

‘Fine.’

‘Really!?’

Alina finally gave in and reluctantly agreed.

‘In return! I’m definitely going to the Century Festival! Let’s crush this overtime!’

‘Leave it to me! Let’s do our best, miss Alina.’

‘Ehm, you two…’

Seeing that their conversation had finally come to an end, Glenn awkwardly raised his voice.

‘I’m glad you two lovebirds are getting along well, but can we get back to the main—blegh!?’

In an instant, Alina’s iron fist slammed into Glenn’s face, sending his massive frame tumbling backwards across the sofa.

‘Ma—Master!?’

Philly, who had hitherto been still as a mouse, rushed to Glenn’s side with a pale complexion.

‘Listen. I’m already at my wit’s end with the overtime. One more of those lame-ass dad-jokes and I’ll knock the teeth out of your mouth.’

‘My…my apologies.’

Having put the sofa back in place, Glenn cleared his throat and was about to resume the conversation when suddenly! with a huge noise, the mountain of paperwork stacked carelessly on a nearby shelf collapsed.

‘Eh?’ Jade gasped in disbelief as, one by one, more paper mountains collapsed like dominoes before his eyes, and in no time the entire floor was buried under a sheet of paper. Jade’s jaw dropped to the floor.

‘Don’t tell me… these are all unprocessed!?’

‘Right…’ replied Alina, as she began to tidy up the documents with unsteady feet. Jade had assumed that what was piled atop her desk was all there was, but apparently his estimation had been too optimistic. As Loewe and Rururi helped, unable to just stand by, Alina slowly crumpled the document in her hand.

‘I can’t take it anymore…I can’t take it anymore!’

As tears welled up in her jade-coloured eyes, she suddenly shifted her gaze towards Glenn.

‘Hey! Didn’t you just say that someone was spreading the rumour intentionally!?’

‘Ah, um, yes. The possibility is—’

Before he could finish speaking, Alina tossed away the document and grabbed Glenn by the collar.

‘Tell me who is spreading the rumour! I’ll kill the bastard myself!!’

Even the seasoned adventurer Glenn trembled under Alina’s powerful gaze, so intense it could kill a man ten times over.

‘W—well, we’ve identified to a certain extent where the rumour is coming from, but as for who… besides, even if you killed him, that won’t mean your overtime would just disappear overnight.’

‘Answer me.’

Alina’s face contorted with resentment and fury as she confronted Glenn, her teeth bared.

‘That guy is out there spreading his shameless rumours as we speak. And the number of piece-of-shit adventurers who fall for them continues to grow. He cannot be allowed to live for even single second longer. You agree, don’t you??’

‘Uhm, well, you’re right that he should be stopped. If possible, I’d like him alive so I can interrogate him…’

‘This year’s Century Festival… my reason for living!! My freedom and my dignity! As a lowly receptionist, as a single labourer! Are at stake! I won’t, I won’t! I won’t let that rumour-mongering bitch take it away from me! I will kill him with my own bare hands!’ Alina’s roar of fury echoed through the late-night office. The atmosphere froze with an intense anger that no words of comfort could keep down.