༺ Buried Star ༻
“Uhm…”
Glare, who had been reaching forward, slowly closed her eyes.
‘…So, why is she here?’
Hastily hiding my face with stellar mana, I looked down at Glare, who had desperately tried to see my face until her eyes fully closed, lost in thought.
‘I hadn’t even considered it…’
This girl was definitely the child I rescued from the Succubus Queen’s underground prison in the market alley.
Back then, I had just regressed after causing nothing but harm and ruining the empire. Yearning to do good deeds, I distinctly remember having taken special care of her.
That was also why I gave her the Ring of Luck that came as a system reward.
– Swish…
Having thought of it, I checked her right hand when she lost consciousness, but strangely enough, the ring was not there.
I was sure she showed me the ring on her finger just a moment ago. Did she lose it because of the current incident?
“Hmm?”
While holding her and looking around, I noticed something shimmering on her left hand.
“That’s a relief…”
Upon closer inspection, the ring on her left ring finger was shining brightly, even in the dark underground.
“…Wait.”
It was a moment of relief. The fact that it was on the left ring finger felt quite significant.
I didn’t notice from the shock when she showed me the ring, but it seemed like she normally wears it there…
“What, what a cute kid.”
Does she know the meaning of wearing a ring on the left ring finger? Well, even if she knows, it was probably out of admiration or innocence at her age.
Anyway, I was proud that she treasured the ring I gave her. It seems to have helped her significantly.
The frequent mentions in the recent newspapers and the Tower Master’s new disciple Irina talked about turned out to be this little girl.
I was pleased at the positive changes that my actions and the Ring of Luck seemed to have introduced in the current regression.
‘That’s why people should do good deeds.’
If it weren’t for her efforts today, we would have been in big trouble.
She managed to gather most of the survivors and lead them here, allowing Lulu to quickly rescue the remaining few.
The situation would have been rather complicated if many people were still scattered throughout the building. I was just thankful to this little one.
“But… how did she get here?”
Then, I wondered. How was she able to get this far?
The entrance and walls of the building had been twisted and distorted, thanks to Dmir Khan’s spatial magic and the collapse magic of the Church.
Only overwhelming power, enough to even tear space, could directly destroy it.
Like my swordsmanship, stellar magic, or Isolet, who was on the verge of awakening as a Sword Saint.
But, did this little girl exert such overwhelming power?
Name: Glare
Stats: Error
Passive Status: Error
Disposition: Error
Goodness Stat: Error
“…..!?”
Having thought that far, I tried to read her information, but my eyes quickly widened as I tilted my head.
Why were there so many errors? While I have seen many figures with question marks before, it was my first time seeing something marked with [Error].
“Hmm…”
For some reason, the more I got to know her, the more intriguing she seemed to be.
After I leave, I would have to ask Serena to investigate.
– Swish…
With that thought in mind, I slowly set her down from my arms.
“Ugh…”
Inexplicably, she grabbed the collar of my shirt with her small and delicate hands.
“…Once everything is over, let’s meet again.”
I wanted to pamper her and buy her delicious food, but if I did, I’d be bedridden for months.
So, I carefully removed her hand from mine, gently stroked her cheek with a fatherly smile, and got up from my spot.
– Thud…
“…..!”
I suddenly heard a presence behind me, and I turned to look.
– Whoosh…!
And then, a delicate hand covered my eyes.
“Who… are you?”
In the darkness, I heard a whisper in my ear and I responded with a smile.
“Ferloche. What are you doing?”
With that, the hand covering my eyes slowly slid down.
“I? Don’t know?”
, she grabbed my disheveled shirt and pulled it toward her.
“Huff.”
Before I knew it, our tongues intertwined in our mouths.
“Puff…”
“…Nom.”
Brief as it was, I felt dizzier than ever. It was as if someone who knew me well was teasing a weakness I didn’t even know about.
“…How many times did you do that?”
“Huh?”
Seeing Ferloche’s original personality abruptly appear, I once again felt dizzy as she began gently touching my side with her hand.
“Uh, well… that is…”
She hesitated, looking away.
“…I mean this scenario.”
“Oh.”
I smiled at her, and her eyes widened in surprise before she replied with a grin.
“Countless times.”
Her answer seemed ambiguous, but I didn’t mind.
“So, why are you here?”
As she kissed me, stretching out the saliva connecting our lips, she smiled and replied with a smirk.
“First, my foolish personality needed to keep disliking you, and more importantly… we needed at least one person to control the core in this place.”
“What?”
“I couldn’t ignore the pain you’ve felt and will continue to feel, especially the traumatic ones from this time.”
She pulled me closer and whispered softly after kissing me again.
“I’ll bear the pain. You should rest now.”
Then, I was enveloped by a barrier formed by Ferloche’s divine power, and another brief moment passed.
“Uh? Huh?”
Ferloche, who had been kissing me with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them wide.
“Kyaa!!”
She then screamed and pushed me away.
“You, you, you, bad Frey!!”
After being shoved into the barrier she created for me, I staggered to my feet to look at her, feeling briefly dizzy.
“Shameless Frey! Perverted Frey! You’re horrible!”
The Ferloche speaking that way wasn’t the one who sent chills running down my spine earlier. Rather, she was the usual fiercely expressive idiot.
“Hey! Hey!”
“H-hold on…”
Thanks to that, she was holding onto me while lightly hitting me.
“You shouldn’t randomly attack others!”
“……..”
I muttered, staring dumbfounded at Ferloche after she finished her nagging and glared at me with crossed arms.
“I’ve only been on the receiving end lately…”
“Quiet! You beast!”
Just as she angrily tried to hit me again, I dodged her attacks inside her barrier.
“Ma-Master!!”
“Lulu?”
“I thought the core’s rampage was delayed, so I came to check…!”
Excluding the party of Serena and Clana and the puppets following them, Lulu, who had evacuated everyone from the building, entered the basement. Seeing that, I smiled, thinking the situation might be resolved more easily than expected.
– Crack…!
“”…….!””
Both Ferloche’s and my eyes widened in shock when cracks began to appear on the barrier that we created around the explosive magic core.
‘Could it be… is this what Ferloche was talking about earlier?’
It seemed I finally understood the reason Ferloche had exposed even her original personality to get here.
.
.
.
.
.
“Master… this is…”
“………..”
Lulu, who was ordering the puppets to drag out the unconscious people from the basement, mumbled while looking at me.
“… What’s the estimated damage?”
While still trapped in Ferloche’s barrier, I was glaring at the now glowing red explosive core and asked Lulu in a soft voice.
“The entire vicinity… is highly likely to be obliterated.”
“Damn it.”
The plan had gone completely awry.
Originally, the plan was to envelop the explosive core with my magic to minimize damage, and along with Clana, Serena, and their party, create a public spectacle amidst the collapsing building.
But with things like this, not just our lives but everyone in the vicinity was in danger.
Including the little girl to whom I gave a ring.
The girl who used to sell vegetables by the road and patted my back in the restroom when I was sick.
Even the maids who sent letters several times expressing their wish to return to the mansion, everyone.
Why did this happen? Surely my calculations were perfect? The acceleration of the core’s rampage was strange, and also how its power doubled.
– Rumble! Rumble!!
“Cough…”
Now, I have no choice but to directly control the core.
Just like I did a few months ago during the assault on the commoner’s dormitory.
“Lulu, you should leave the building now.”
“Huh?”
“As part of the Demon King’s army, I need to fulfill the mission given by the Demon King. So, hurry.”
As I thought about that, I quietly looked at Lulu.
“I, I don’t want to!!!”
Then, Lulu shook her head in fright.
“I want to be with you even if I die!! I can’t live without you!!”
Did she unconsciously notice what I was trying to do? Or was she misunderstanding something?
“I, I will sacrifice myself instead! I will undertake the mission on your behalf! Please use me!!”
“………”
“I’m your expendable item!! So please use me!! If it’s for you, I would be happy to die!!!”
Having said that, she clung to my leg with a pale and desperate face.
It seemed she had seriously misunderstood.
“I’ll commit suicide anyway if you die! So use me instead, and you…”
“Lulu, you’re not expendable.”
“Huh?”
I let out a small sigh, held Lulu’s face, who was crying and rubbing her face against my leg, and whispered with a smile.
“You’re my pet.”
– Buzzzzzz…
At the same time, I ripped the emergency escape scroll I had.
“Huh? Ahhh?”
Before she could resist, she disappeared with the light.
– Rumbleeee…
“Hmm.”
Having been left in the basement with Ferloche, who had trapped me inside a barrier, I looked at the dust and rock fragments falling from the ceiling and turned my head.
– Thud, thud…
Ferloche, who now had a serious expression, was heading toward the core.
“…Huff.”
A moment later, after reaching the core, she took a deep breath and jumped in.
“Aaaaaaaaaah!!!”
Soon after, she began to scream in agony.
“Tsk.”
Watching the scene, I clicked my tongue and touched the barrier.
– Crack… Crack…
Soon, her barrier began to crack.
Even if my body had weakened, the ‘Hero’s Power’ still had its formidable attack power.
– Boom…!
Having summoned the stellar magic in advance, I shattered the barrier and descended towards the core where Ferloche was writhing, and I muttered to myself.
‘I can’t help it…’
Ever since the day my mother died in my place, I had loathed the idea of someone else sacrificing themselves on my behalf.
So, I usually carried the burden alone, but Ferloche had already gone inside.
This time, it seemed like we needed to shoulder it together.
– Whooosh…!
As I entered the core with that thought, I hugged Ferloche tightly.
“……..!!!”
Then, Ferloche, who had been writhing in pain, saw me and wore a surprised expression.
“You’ve suffered just as much as I have, haven’t you?”
I smiled at Ferloche and whispered, then slowly closed my eyes, bracing myself for the imminent pain. But…
“…..Hmm?”
For some reason, even after a long time, no pain came.
What was going on?
.
.
.
.
.
– Buzzzzzz…
“Ugh…!”
Lulu, who was summoned in mid-air outside the building, fell helplessly to the ground.
“What… what’s this?”
“Oh my god…”
Then, the eyes of the survivors, who were anxiously looking at the building, were drawn to her.
“You, you are…”
At the same time, Roswyn had just regained consciousness and stood up.
“Is, is that… the only one who escaped… that’s it?”
With her trembling hand, she pointed to the group of survivors brought out by the puppets she controlled.
“Master, Master!!!!”
“Ah……”
Lulu, realizing the situation, started to panic and ran towards the building with her mouth wide open.
“No, not yet…”
She stood still for a moment in that spot but soon began to follow Lulu, staggering.
– Rumble…!!!
“Master!!!!!!”
The building collapsed at that moment, and Lulu’s desperate cry rang out.
“…No.”
Roswyn crumpled to the ground, helpless.
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