Chapter 10
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Episode 3 - Emergency detour [4]
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"Listen, Seth, where the hell is Clarisse? I can't find her."
"I don't know."
Clarisse was nowhere to be found.
Yuri had lost sight of her in the chaos, right when the monsters suddenly appeared.
He knew very well what Clarisse was like.
She has a strange personality. She usually acts like a naive and fearful child, but even so, Yuri brought her along… because she's incredibly strong.
"Damn it, not even that bastard is around."
Zeth had vanished too.
Seth and Yuri kept busy killing monarchs and saving as many people as they could.
They were gradually reducing the number of abyss creatures.
Meanwhile, in a dark, secluded room…
Clarisse was sitting, hugging her legs.
Her eyes fixed on the floor.
Her face, expressionless. Cold. Without fear. Without emotion.
As if the hell outside didn't matter to her.
Right at that moment…
'Boom!'
The door flew through the air, crashing against the back wall.
Clarisse slowly raised her gaze.
This time, her face changed: there was surprise.
A black, deformed creature crossed the shattered threshold.
Its body was long and slimy. Dozens of eyes locked onto Clarisse.
She shuddered.
She said nothing. She didn't move.
She remained completely still.
In the next second, a sharp pain pierced her abdomen.
The creature had thrown her against the wall.
The impact cracked the concrete.
Drops of blood escaped from her mouth.
Clarisse looked at them.
For an instant, something flickered in her eyes.
It wasn't fear. It was something else.
A smile.
However, the creature struck her again.
This time, it opened its multiple mouths, revealing endless rows of teeth.
The creature's eyes focused on her neck.
Then it lunged at her.
Clarisse raised her gaze and saw the enormous jaw approaching.
It was at that moment her body reacted.
Her expression changed; panic surged powerfully.
She was about to counterattack, to gather all her strength to strike the creature.
But…
'CLANCK! CLANCK!'
The creature's body split in two.
A jet of black blood splattered the walls.
Clarisse, stunned, looked at her savior.
Bright red, emotionless eyes were fixed on her.
A crooked smile accompanied them as he walked toward her with a calm stride.
"Yuri said you have high stats, but you still don't defend yourself."
She didn't respond.
She looked at him, her mouth slightly open, still not fully understanding what had just happened.
"In that case, I'll give you a gift. If you use magic power, this ring can deploy a shield."
"A gift…?"
Clarisse thought, confused.
Without giving her time to process, Zeth took her left hand and placed the ring on her ring finger.
"I think it goes on this finger, right?"
While he thought it casually, Clarisse sank into another sea of thoughts.
"Ring… marriage… ring finger…"
She raised her gaze.
He had saved her.
He gave her a ring.
And he put it on her ring finger.
She looked directly into his eyes.
Silence.
This was…
A marriage proposal!
Without Zeth even realizing it!
Her heart skipped a beat.
A faint reddish glow appeared on her cheeks.
***
Clearing this Detour was very easy.
"I just need at least one group of people to survive, and that will be enough."
The temple would be left in ruins if no one survived.
To clear the Detour, the simplest way was, of course, to ensure there were as many survivors as possible.
"With Clarisse's help, I could save several people."
My stats had already reached 80, and even a bit more.
In addition to the extra points from leveling up, I would soon reach the maximum allowed.
"Clarisse, do you think you can help me?"
Saving as many people as possible depended largely on her.
Not only did she have higher stats than most, but her skills were comparable to Seth's.
Clarisse looked at me for a moment, in silence.
"You're not going to help me…"
I patted her head with a fake smile.
She looked away, gave a slight smile, and nodded.
"Yes, I'll help you."
Nodding, I continued running alongside her.
I looked through one of the hallway windows and could see Yuri and Seth fighting the monsters.
"They're doing well, my characters."
Now it was time to finish clearing this Detour.
***
Detours don't grant rewards like Scenarios do.
"It's obvious, because the rewards are within the Detour itself."
It's just a matter of searching for items or artifacts… if you're lucky.
Seth and Yuri's movements, curiously, remained almost identical to the original story. Though there were small differences.
"Seth didn't even get close to the room where the rings were."
I expected as much.
But in reality, he didn't even pass by it. Maybe because of my actions, but that turned out to be a good thing.
The rings weren't particularly important, but they were for facing Mystra.
They played a unique role in the story.
Oh, and of course, Seth kept the ring that had a regeneration ability… at least until he obtained a similar ability later on.
"The next thing is the location of the Sword of Faith."
In the original story, Seth found the Sword of Faith in about two years.
The reason it was in the ruined city was due to a sub-scenario.
"But that sub-scenario isn't available yet. Certain events need to happen first… and only then will the time come when that city disappears completely."
The ruined city is already in ruins… but when Seth visited it a second time, not even rubble remained.
Everything was a completely clean landscape.
And that's when Seth discovered the Sword of Faith, buried several meters underground.
"According to what that woman told me, the sword is in a church next to a museum."
For now, that's all I know.
First things first: clear the last two Detours.
"Detours first, then the city… and then the secret mission that will only appear for me after maxing out all my stats and reaching level 50."
The peak of F-rank was level 50.
Like the stats, the maximum allowed was 100 for each.
"….."
A rift appeared in front of the group.
It was the exit of the Detour.
"So, we cleared it, right?"
"It seems so… but why hasn't the window appeared?"
"There wasn't a reward either."
They still didn't know that, unlike Scenarios, rewards in Detours have to be found.
A smile appeared on my face.
"It's better if they figure it out themselves, just like in the original story."
Taking a step toward the rift, I didn't look at any of them.
But I felt Yuri's gaze fixed on my back.
I clenched my teeth.
I stepped into the rift.
"She'll be an annoying character, but I can control myself…"
***
Right upon exiting the Rift, a screen appeared before me.
「The constellation 'Mother of Light' says she is upset with you」
"....."
I expected it.
Constellations cannot send messages when you are inside a Rift.
Another window popped up.
「The constellation 'Demon God of Evil' laughs at 'Mother of Light' upon seeing one of her followers die」
And of course, she wasn't the only constellation watching me.
「The constellation 'Mother of Light' grits her teeth and says you will regret killing one of her followers」
Having a constellation as an enemy was a terrible idea.
Seth had made enemies of several.
From the beginning, he hated constellations, believing they were responsible for bringing him to this world.
However, Jerry had made it clear that accepting the invitation of the 'Chosen' was each person's responsibility.
"Ha. A low-rank constellation threatens me?"
A new window popped up, this time different.
「Stigma: Requiem of Devoured Souls has been activated」
The constellation's message suddenly began to distort.
The letters started to fade, and at that moment, a new notification appeared.
「The constellation 'Mother of Light' feels excruciating pain and looks at you with fear」
"....."
'What is happening?'
Surprised, I checked the stigma in more detail.
'It doesn't say it can harm a constellation, only that I can make them stop watching me if I want.'
Stop watching me…
I thought for a moment.
That meant I could harm them, enough to make them choose not to watch me out of fear.
'It might just be an assumption... but I'm not sure.'
Anyway...
I looked at the constellation's new message with a cold smile.
I knew perfectly well she was watching me just before the message was erased due to the stigma.
'I don't know what happened, but don't mess with me.'
Everything I create... is just a tool to survive.
***
After returning to the starting point, I leaned against a tree while watching the construction of the small village.
'Originally, it was supposed to be destroyed in two days... but that won't happen anymore.'
Since we cleared the Rift, the creatures of the abyss would no longer emerge from there.
While I was thinking, I didn't notice someone approaching me.
"W-would you like... some water?"
"....."
My expression froze.
'W-wait... this scene. I remember it. I wrote something exactly like this in the original story.'
I stood still upon seeing Clarisse's face.
I could tell.
Her eyes avoided mine. She handed me the water without me asking. Her ears were slightly red. Her lips pressed together... embarrassed.
Then I looked at the ring on her left hand.
It was on her index finger.
'That's where it goes, right...?'
I knew that putting a ring on a woman's certain finger meant something... but I couldn't remember exactly which one.
Click.
Then I remembered.
'This...'
I slapped my forehead for not noticing earlier.
"H-heh... yeah, thanks for... the water."
Clarisse smiled, and without saying anything else, she sat next to me.
Instinctively, I shifted a little. The hairs on my arms stood on end.
"....."
After drinking the water she gave me, I glanced at her.
'I said I would change the relationships between the characters... but I never said they would connect with me like this.'
She had truly fallen in love with me.
I shook my head.
Maybe I was just imagining things.
But I couldn't deny how Seth had unintentionally made Clarisse fall for him.
'It was almost the same as how I helped her... but the ring changed things too much.'
Although the ring was supposed to be for Yuri, it now seemed to belong more to Clarisse than to her.
"H-hey, Clarisse..."
At that moment, her head fell onto my shoulder.
I looked at her. She was asleep... with a smile on her face.
Then I looked at her hand.
"....."
The reason for that smile... was because she was thinking of me.
'This is really bad...'
Tap. Tap.
I looked up.
A pair of eyes were watching me.
"It's not what you think. She just came to me."
"Heh. Why are you saying that? I don't care."
"....."
Right.
I forgot these two don't have a close relationship.
Looking at Seth, I asked,
"Were you looking for me for something, Seth?"
As if remembering his purpose, he nodded and said:
"Apparently, while we were in the Rift, a group of people found another one. But it's different from the one we cleared."
Now I understand.
I remembered mentioning something like that... but still…
'Isn't it too soon?'
That Rift was supposed to be found in two days.
During the escape from the creatures of the abyss, a group of people was supposed to encounter it.
After that, after resolving the crisis for not having cleared the temple, Seth, Yuri, and Clarisse were supposed to go to that new Rift... at the insistence of a man.
'The assassin.'
Among them was someone hidden.
An assassin who acted as a leader, always with a fake smile. He was the village chief, considered the strongest among them all.
But his personality became even more twisted due to his murder-related skills. He could no longer resist the urge to kill.
And that's when he learned about Seth's group...
"What do you think?"
Seth's question pulled me out of my memories. I looked at him.
"The sooner, the better."
Seth nodded.
"I already told Yuri, so we'll set out tomorrow at dawn."
I sighed slowly.
"Fine."
"Oh, and by the way... she's drooling all over you."
"....."
I felt something wet on my shoulder. I had been distracted.
I looked at Clarisse's mouth.
A thin line of saliva was dripping from her lip, soaking a good part of my shoulder.
'Woman... you're a damn nuisance.'