Lisel, as usual, pressed her hands together and gave a polite bow.

“It’s been a while.”

Serein blinked, then returned the greeting for now.

“Ah, yeah. Have you been well? Though… is this really how we’re supposed to be talking to each other?”

“I know it’s confusing, but please hear me out first.”

Lisel had tried to approach Serein the moment Kaeld left.

But sensing something off about his suggestion to temporarily disband the party, she had attached one of her spirits to secretly watch him.

That was how she discovered he was climbing Mount Baharma—the Gem of Destruction itself.

With a sinking feeling, Lisel had sent her spirits to patrol Hasphil territory and discovered that Mide and his party were there.

The Gem of Destruction. Kaeld. And Mide’s group.

It hit Lisel like a bolt of lightning.

“Kaeld is trying to break the seal on the Gem of Destruction. He’s planning to kill Mide and his party with it.”

Serein tilted her head.

Lisel hadn’t expected her to grasp everything immediately and was about to explain more.

But Serein was far sharper than she’d anticipated.

“Oh dear. That old man’s really gone off the deep end.”

“…What?”

“Wait, didn’t Sir Grade destroy the Gem of Destruction? Why is it sealed?”

Lisel was momentarily speechless, a memory from the past catching her off guard.

Hermes Meim.

Lisel had loved Grade, but that didn’t mean she disliked the rest of their party.

Even the First Hero’s party had its bonds of friendship and camaraderie.

And Hermes was the gentlest, kindest of them all.

‘He used to pray for our whole party before every meal.’

He even used to scold Grade rather sternly when he tried to lift his spoon during prayer.

And now, it was Kaeld trying to undo the seal Hermes had given his life for.

At that moment, Serein spoke again.

“Then again, I guess even you wouldn’t know, Lisel.”

“…Isn’t this a bit more urgent? Kaeld is trying to release the Demon King’s seal!”

“He’s been getting pretty desperate lately. I had a hunch he might try something terrible, so I’m not that surprised.”

“….”

“But still, a hero breaking the Demon King’s seal is crossing a line. If he gets caught, he won’t be a hero anymore.”

She added in a quiet voice:

“Maybe I should look for another way too.”

Lisel didn’t miss that small whisper.

Her eyes lit with hope as she spoke.

“Serein. Come with me. Let’s go to Mide.”

Tension flickered across Serein’s face.

Lisel spoke gently, as if coaxing a younger sibling.

“You’re smart, Serein. You already know, don’t you? Across the continent, Mide’s name has already outshone Kaeld’s by far.”

“….”

“Mide has a much higher chance of becoming the hero. And of defeating the Demon King. Obviously.”

“He just seems too nice.”

Lisel fell silent.

She blinked, wondering if she’d heard correctly.

Serein let out a deep sigh and continued.

“You changed your mind a long time ago, didn’t you? Then I don’t have to pretend either.”

“Serein?”

“I saw Mide in Tetra territory too, remember? It was obvious at a glance. He’s a good person.”

“If you know he’s a good person, then why—?”

“Because someone who’ll grant my wish can’t be a good person. They need to be a little rotten, a bit of a scumbag, to go through with it.”

Lisel didn’t understand.

Serein, as if annoyed, waved her hand dismissively.

“So just go.”

“Serein, please think again—”

“I said go. You think we’re close just because I acted a bit friendly?”

“….”

“I won’t tell Kaeld, so just go. We never met, got it?”

Lisel quietly stared into Serein’s eyes.

She was clearly pretending to be indifferent and aloof, but deep in those eyes was a trace of sadness.

After a moment of thought, Lisel said:

“Are you sulking because I left without saying goodbye last time?”

“…Huh? Wait, you just used informal speech?”

“You started it first.”

“….”

“As you know, I’m not very talkative. But because of that, I could observe the party objectively.”

Lisel continued calmly.

“So I know you never liked Kaeld. You never truly followed him.”

“….”

“But even so, you stayed in the party. Because you believed Kaeld was the only one who could grant your wish, right?”

“Pfft. You’ve changed your image, huh?”

“I’ll go ahead first. But I’m leaving a spirit with you.”

She muttered a short spirit incantation.

Serein didn’t see anything, but she could feel a wind spirit settle onto her shoulder.

Brushing her shoulder off, Serein grumbled:

“Why are you doing this without permission?”

“Let’s talk more honestly next time.”

“Hey. Wait.”

“Maybe you don’t feel the same, but I really do think of you like a little sister.”

Serein pressed her lips tightly together.

Lisel stepped back and gave her a soft goodbye.

“Stay well until we meet again.”

Serein didn’t answer.

Once Lisel had completely disappeared from view, Serein scratched her head and muttered:

“…You too.”

Grade returned, visibly disappointed that Lisel wasn’t around.

I crossed my arms and said,

“Sir Grade, your guess is probably right.”

“Hm?”

“Kaeld working with Idria isn’t even surprising anymore. If he’s wielding the Demon King’s authority, then he probably knows we’re staying here.”

“That makes sense. …Come to think of it, why hasn’t Idria come after us directly?”

Good question.

We’ll have to ask Trail.

[Why me?]

‘You said she almost blew up our inn before but changed her mind because you were there.’

[……]

‘If the chance comes, explain it. But it’s not the priority right now.’

I changed the subject.

“I don’t really know the reason, but anyway, we need a plan. Let’s assume the worst—that the seal on the mountain gets broken.”

I said that, but honestly, I didn’t think we’d find a real solution. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ ɴovelfire.net

The Grand Purification Ritual.

A technique that Hermes, one of the first heroes, had used at the cost of his life.

Even when Xenia and Serein teamed up before regression to calm that ghost uproar, they’d barely managed it.

Even with the God’s Agent  and the God’s Monster working together, the Celestial God still demanded their lifespan in exchange.

‘I can’t let something like that happen again.’

Just then, Xenia looked like she was about to speak.

“I think I should—”

I quickly cut her off.

“There’s no need.”

But I wasn’t the one who said that.

…

Haven’t we been through something like this before?

“Neril?”

You’re saying you’ll use Grand Purification, right? That spell has a price.”

“But—”

“Even Hermes had to give up his life to use that kind of spell. You, with your long life ahead of you, shouldn’t be the one casting it.”

“Is it really okay to use the word ‘long’ like that?”

Despite her words, Xenia couldn’t hide the warm smile between in her lips.

‘Seriously.’

I chuckled softly and asked,

“You said there’s no need to use it. So, does that mean you have another plan?”

“Yup. Timing’s perfect. I actually just finished preparing it yesterday.”

Neril rummaged through her bag and pulled something out.

Wrapped in cloth, it revealed a bundle of twigs inside.

“What’s this?”

“The Gem of Corruption.”

“…Huh?”

“‘Huh?’ What do you mean, ‘huh’? We got this along with Idria’s severed hand, remember? Don’t tell me you forgot.”

“Of course I remember. But didn’t it originally look like Patrick’s eyeball?”

“The Gem of Corruption doesn’t have a fixed form, unlike other Demon King cores. So it can take on any shape.”

She laid the twigs out on the table.

Ten, exactly.

“Idria’s severed hand turned to ash after a few days. So instead, I focused on researching the Gem of Corruption.”

“……”

“As you can see, I reshaped it into twigs. Beyond helped a lot.”

“Ah. Now that I think about it, you kept asking Adwin for something at night. You were trying to summon Beyond’s soul, weren’t you?”

“Yup. No time to waste. We have to prepare for what we can.”

To do all that without anyone asking…

I couldn’t help but smile.

Xenia asked,

“But… why twigs?”

“After discussing it with Beyond, we figured this would be the easiest shape to break in an emergency combat situation.”

“Break it?”

Neril nodded and continued,

“You know the Gem of Corruption’s power turns people into monsters. But what good is that to a Hero’s party? So I modified its function.”

“Ah. Just like how you altered the Gem of Desolation from absorbing life force to releasing it. So does this one turn monsters into humans?”

“Close, but not quite. Just turning monsters into humans isn’t versatile enough.”

“Then what?”

“Property inversion. Like turning a monster into a human, it can invert the core properties of magic or sorcery. For example…”

She lifted her finger.

A small, flaming arrow appeared above it.

“This is a basic Fire Arrow. But if you snap one of these twigs while casting it, it’ll turn into an Ice Arrow.”

Ah, so that’s what she meant by “property inversion.”

I tilted my head.

“That’s amazing, but I don’t really see how that helps us in the current situation. I mean, why not just cast Ice Arrow in the first place?”

“You said grand purification has a cost, right?”

“Yeah…?”

“What if you could invert that cost—change it so there’s no cost?”

Everyone’s jaws dropped.

Xenia was especially stunned, nearly in disbelief.

“Is… is that really possible? Can I test it?”

“No.”

“Thank you! …Wait, why not?”

“Because they’re too valuable. I only managed to make ten. Can’t make more.”

Only ten, huh?

Well, considering they’re basically “miracles without a price,” ten was generous.

I nodded and said,

“I always thought you were amazing, but this… this is incredible.”

“S-stop. I didn’t do it alone.”

She waved her hands shyly.

I wanted to thank and praise her more, but knowing her personality, I figured it might just make her uncomfortable—so I held back.

Instead, I turned to Xenia.

“Xenia.”

“Yes?”

“You should be the one to keep these.”

“Me? Not you?”

“Those twigs are basically tools meant only for grand purification. You’re the one who should carry them.”

“You want a holy knight to carry a Demon King’s core?”

“You literally used the Gem of Desolation to pray to the Celestial God. Bit late for complaints.”

“Ugh. Fine. Let’s hope that seal on the mountain doesn’t break after all.”

She gently tucked the bundle of twigs into her robes.

Then turned to Neril.

“Neril, you made these for me from the beginning, didn’t you?”

“No.”

“Still, thank you. Really. I’ll find a way to repay you someday.”

“I said it wasn’t for you.”

“For someone with the stigma of a backroom deal and a bad reputation, you sure look after me like a big sister. You’re the best.”

BANG.

Neril couldn’t take it anymore and shot to her feet.

She spun around abruptly.

“Where are you going?”

“The bathroom.”

“……”

“No, tea. I’m going to make tea.”

Clearly flustered.

I noticed her ears peeking out from her dark blue hair had turned bright red.

Thanks to her, we had a little spark of hope now.

I turned to Offense and asked,

“What was the Demon King of Destruction’s power again?”

“Making Miss Pheasant heavier.”

WHACK.

Under the table, Xenia kicked Offense’s leg hard.

Why’s she so angry? He’s not wrong.

[You should stay single forever, honestly.]

‘Would you shut up.’

Offense rubbed his leg and said,

“Relax. I wasn’t saying you’re fat, Xenia.”

“Please don’t say it directly.”

“I mean pressure. Crippling pressure that crushes your whole body. So strong normal people couldn’t even breathe under it.”

“……”

“Anyone with weak bones or organs would die in order—bones crushed, organs pulverized.”

A brief silence fell.

The first Demon King—the Demon King of Destruction.

His power was an invisible force that pressed down on the earth with unimaginable weight.

The area of effect was horrifyingly vast.

To the point that it covered nearly a fifth of the continent.

Xenia spoke,

“They say the Demon King of Destruction, unlike the others, was very inactive. He just sat still in the northernmost part of the continent, slowly expanding his area of influence.”

“And even that was a devastating enough attack. Humanity couldn’t fight back; they were simply crushed.”

“According to Grade’s records, even he—at his prime—struggled to move once he entered that zone.”

“You could say your effective power drops by about 50% just by being there. Honestly, killing the Demon King even with that handicap… that’s what made the First Hero legendary.”

Then Adwin asked,

“Do you think Idria will show up herself? Like last time?”

“Doubt it. Not just because I cut off her hand—if she’s got a trump card, there’s no reason for her to move personally.”

“…Don’t tell me Kaeld is coming?”

I didn’t even hesitate.

“He definitely is.”

TL : Phew… finally made it to chapter 75. At this point, I don’t even need to tell you what to do. You know.

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