Chapter 153: Pressure Point
When Seraphina finished speaking, her cheeks turned so pink that she quickly covered her own face and turned away, her thoughts spiraling wildly as she cursed herself, 'Ah, what's wrong with me? I must be out of my mind. That was not what I meant at all. I only wanted to leave a brief impression on him, so he would keep thinking about my words and misunderstand everything later, but I ended up embarrassing myself instead. Ah… I want to die. You are so foolish, Seraphina. You're unbelievably foolish. How could you be so careless with your words? What is he thinking about you right now?'
Kael stood there like a statue, his fingers unconsciously touching his chin which she had almost crushed with her grip, a faint sting mixing with an odd sense of warmth that he quietly enjoyed, then a sigh escaped his thoughts, 'But who's going to tell her that I have always belonged to her? I have said it countless times already. I guess she never believed me even once. Still, this is not that bad, in a strange way.'
Taking a soft breath, he grinned and spoke while looking at her turned back, "Alright, alright, I'm all yours. So... does that mean you belong to me as well?"
'Why are you rubbing salt into the wound?' she thought awkwardly.
After taking a shallow breath, she forced herself to calm down, then turned to face him again with an intense gaze and hissed, "No, I don't."
His expression dimmed a little, "Why not?"
She snapped back immediately, "Because I said so."
He frowned and protested, "That's not how it works, darling."
She shot him a cold look and answered flatly, "I don't care."
'That's cheating…' he groaned inwardly.
He fell silent for a moment, then spoke quietly, "Well, whatever. Just do what you promised earlier. I'm running out of my patience."
After a long silence, she brought her fingers together and rubbed them nervously, her lips parting slightly while she looked away and muttered in an awkward voice, "M… M—master."
'So cute.'
Kael's eyes widened, a genuine smile spreading across his face as satisfaction filled his expression.
Naturally, that satisfaction did not end there, so he asked with obvious delight, "Say it one more time, will you?"
She glared at him murderously, then let out a deep sigh, her expression becoming unreadable as she reluctantly said, "M-Master…"
Chuckling softly, he pressed further, "Once more."
Getting the chance, he was, of course, enjoying himself to his heart's content. It wasn't every day he got to see his cold and dignified wife acting so awkward, vulnerable, and strangely feminine in front of him. She rarely showed this side of herself, at least as far as he knew, and today she seemed to be embarrassing herself far more than usual, which made the whole situation feel oddly strange.
Suddenly, Seraphina turned around and began walking in the opposite direction without sparing him a single glance.
Kael raised his hand and shouted after her, "Hey, where are you going?"
She did not answer him.
'I guess she's ignoring me now. In that case…'
Taking a deep breath, he shouted with all his strength, "Hey servant! Don't you think it's rude to leave your master alone like this?"
She paused mid-step, her body stiffening briefly, then instead of glaring back at him she moved with calm grace, kneeling down as she picked up the box in front of her with practiced elegance.
'What the…? Is she planning to throw that box at me or what?'
Luckily, she had no intention of doing such a thing to him yet, at least that was what he believed as he watched her walking toward him while carrying the long box in her hands.
Or so he thought.
Because the moment she stopped right in front of him, she abruptly threw the box straight at his face. If he had not managed to catch it at the very last second, it might have genuinely ended his life right then and there.
Unfortunately, the box was far heavier than he had expected, and as a result, the impact forced him to lose his balance and slip onto the floor in a rather humiliating manner.
Seraphina crossed her arms over her chest, and as a faint smile appeared on her face, she spoke in a surprisingly genuine voice, "Master... unbox it."
Kneeling in front of the box, he blinked at her several times, clearly caught off guard by the way she addressed him. Why was she calling him master when he had not even asked her to do so yet, though he could not deny that he did not particularly dislike hearing it.
Lowering his gaze, he stared at the long, thick, orange coloured box resting in front of him, then lifted his head to look at her once more before asking, "Why? What's in it?"
She gave him an amused look, her expression calm and slightly playful, as she said, "A surprise."
He blinked again, clearly caught off guard, "What?"
'A surprise for me? From my cold wife?'
Feeling a strange excitement rise within him, he didn't waste even a single moment and quickly began unpacking the box, his movements far quicker than usual.
'What could it be?'
After a brief pause, he glanced at her once more, then with a quick motion, he opened the box fully. The moment he saw what lay inside, his eyes sparkled slightly, and a faint smile slowly appeared on his face as quiet amazement filled his expression.
Inside the box rested several items, each more astonishing than the last, enough to leave anyone speechless at first glance. So he carefully studied them one by one in silence.
The first thing that caught his attention was a graceful longsword, neatly sheathed in a slender gray coloured scabbard, its hilt appearing to be made of wood at first glance, though something about it felt strangely different upon closer inspection. Its cross-guard wasn't exactly fancy but there was an intricate sigil carved into it.
Of course, he did want to try it out, but there was no point in doing so, since he was someone who barely knew anything about swordsmanship, in her eyes.
Beside the longsword lay a slender short dagger that looked as though it had been carved entirely from black obsidian. While it did not appear particularly flashy, its grip seemed to be made out of black leather, and its curved pommel held a gem at its end, glowing with a rich brown tone that reminded him unmistakably of his own hair colour. Next to the dagger rested two throwing knives of the same dark colour, the only difference being that their pommels were straight and lacked any adornment.
Beneath these weapons rested an elegant, perfectly fitted cuirass made specifically for his body, though he could not determine what material it was crafted from, since its surface was layered with black silk woven in overlapping v-shaped patterns that gave it an almost artistic appearance. In fact, he doubted it could even be called a cuirass until he struck it with his fist, only to wince as pain shot through his hand, almost as if the armor itself had retaliated against him.
At first, he assumed the silk was merely decorative, but it quickly became clear that the material was incredibly soft while also possessing terrifying strength, sharp enough to cut into his skin with ease. If he had to guess, this silk must have been harvested from high ranking spider monsters.
'How unexpected! I wonder what kind of blacksmith could create such a monstrous cuirass.'
However, that was not the end of her surprises.
On one side of the box, something else appeared to be neatly folded, and when he picked it up and unfolded it, he found himself momentarily speechless.
'Well... what do you know...'
In his hands rested a long black coat paired with matching pants, both seemingly made from the same black silk as the cuirass's surface, though the coat flared wider near its lower half, giving it an imposing and elegant silhouette. The only issue was that the outfit bore an uncomfortable resemblance to the masked man's appearance.
'It looks good... I guess.'
Standing in front of him, Seraphina watched his childish excitement as he examined his new belongings, and seeing his unfiltered reaction, the corners of her lips curled upward, forming a genuine smile within them, 'He's kind of adorable... when he acts like this.'
Kael, on the other hand, wasted no time at all, quickly putting on the long coat before examining himself carefully, then frowning slightly as he looked again, clearly dissatisfied with something he had noticed.
'You've got to be kidding me... do I really look like a kid to her?'
Pointing at the left side of his chest, his expression turned strange as he asked her, "Why's there a rose on my chest?"
Seraphina remained silent for a brief moment before answering in a slightly sheepish tone, "I don't know."
'She definitely did it on purpose... I'm sure of it. Still, it doesn't look that bad, so I can let it slide this time,' he thought irritably.
She looked at him with a strange expression and asked in a tone that carried a hint of uncertainty, "Are any of them to your liking?"
He lifted his gaze toward her with slight confusion, then a faint smile slowly formed on his lips as he answered honestly, "Yes, of course. Why wouldn't they be? These things look so finely crafted and rather expensive, anyone would end up liking them. Although, I would be lying if I said that was the reason I liked them. But... that's not it... to tell you the truth, I liked them so much because it was you who gave them to me. So..."
She stared at him with a surprised expression that she clearly had not expected to show.
He paused briefly, then scratched the back of his neck in an awkward manner and continued, "Uh, well, thank you, honey."
Seraphina froze for a moment before letting out a heavy sigh as her thoughts surfaced quietly in her mind, 'In the end... it seems I was worried over nothing. I feared that he would start asking me countless questions about why I gave him these, yet he seemed far more focused on examining them rather than questioning my intentions. I keep calling him an idiot all the time... as it turns out, I am also a fool. But can you really blame me? He is so unpredictable... my husband, I mean.'
A serene expression slowly appeared on her beautiful face, making his breath nearly hitch as she spoke softly, "I'm glad you liked them."
...Come to think of it, where exactly had she gotten this much money to buy such expensive items? Every single one of the weapons appeared to be crafted from the body parts of at least S-Ranked monsters, materials that were supposed to be exceedingly rare and incredibly costly.
However, he already knew the answer to that question. She had used all of her savings to create these items specifically for him. She had mentioned it on the day he made that ridiculous bet with her about his abs, saying that she had spent all of her money. Realizing this now made his chest feel strangely heavy.
He wanted to ask her why she would waste her hard earned money on someone like him, a nobody in comparison. But he didn't. Not because he couldn't, but because he didn't want to. She looked genuinely happy giving these to him, and seeing that happiness was enough to make him feel the same.
Still, there was something that troubled him more than anything else. Why had she given them to him so suddenly when she had been carrying them with her for almost a month?
The answer was actually quite simple. She was about to participate in the Dungeon Hunt quest next week. Naturally, she could have waited and given them to him after the quest was completed. So why now? Why give them so early?
Suddenly, some of Arwyn's earlier words echoed in his mind, sending a chill down his spine, "So, you see, she may appear complicated at times, but once you look beneath the surface, she becomes surprisingly easy to understand."
His eyes widened slightly as the realization struck him, 'Seraphina… she's… she's not confident she'll return from that dungeon alive. She, who never wavers even when the situation grows worse, is now unknowingly doubting her own capabilities. That must be the reason why she has been acting so strangely toward me.'
Taking a shallow breath, he stood up, looked at her with a bitter expression, and asked in a somber tone, "So... you've decided to go there, huh?"
She remained silent briefly before replying in her usual calm tone, "Are you perhaps worried about me?"
He took a few steps forward and shrugged casually, "I am not. I know very well who you are better than anyone else, darling. You will definitely beat the shit out of those floor bosses without breaking a sweat, I am sure of it. So why would I be worried?"
After pausing for a moment, he pulled a chair closer and placed it in front of her. "There is a small problem with you, though. You are a workaholic, which means you insist on handling everything on your own no matter the situation. Plenty of people will be going with you, so make sure you rely on them from time to time."
He climbed onto the chair, which made him noticeably taller than her, "They are your allies, after all."
Letting out a slow sigh, he gently placed his hand on top of her head.
He had expected her to resist or at least complain, yet to his surprise she did neither, as if she had been waiting for this moment all along.
She stared at him with a surprised expression that she failed to hide.
He petted her head a few times, then leaned forward slightly until his face hovered dangerously close to hers as he whispered in a low voice, "If you do not listen to me then... you will have to call me your lovely master for the rest of your life. Want to do that?"
Her cheeks turned a soft pink from the strange sensation coming from her head, and without realizing it, her fingers tightened slightly around his wrist as her thoughts wandered. Was this how he felt every time she did the same thing to him?
She sighed softly, then caught his hand mid-motion before answering him in a cold voice, "I'd rather die. Ah, just what kind of sin did I commit for me to listen to your advice of all people in the whole world."
He snapped back at her with a faint scowl, "Hey, I'm special, you know."
She answered him in a strange tone, her voice sounding distant yet deliberate, "Anyway, aren't you forgetting something?"
He raised an eyebrow in confusion as he looked at her, "What?"
She let go of his hand, then found a loose lock of her hair resting near her shoulder, rolling it around her finger in a slow and almost absent-minded manner as she asked him gently, "So… how do I look in this maid outfit?"
Back when he had given her that gift, even when she had forced herself to wear it on her head despite her reluctance, he had not spoken a single word about it, nor had he mentioned whether that clip suited her or not, choosing to ignore it entirely. She had not forgotten that moment even now, which was why she decided that this time she would not wait. Instead, she would ask him directly.
Kael stared at her with a confused expression, then shrugged casually as he answered without hesitation, "What do you mean how? You look so ho—elegant. Yeah, absolutely elegant."
Seraphina blinked a couple of times, then looked at herself and muttered, "Idiot."
---
A week later…
Outside, the sun bathed everything in a soft golden hue, its light filtering gently through the window, making the room glow warmly, while birds perched on a nearby tree continued to cheer noisily, their voices blending with the quiet atmosphere inside.
At the far end of the room, near the bright wall and behind a large desk cluttered with documents, sat a beautiful woman with mint-green hair tied neatly into a ponytail and sharp teal-green eyes that reflected exhaustion beneath their clarity.
Her chin rested on her palm as an exhausted expression crossed her face, though this exhaustion did not come from her broken mana core but rather from the crushing pressure weighing down on her shoulders. Seraphina had gone on the quest today, so she had taken over command in her absence, yet the endless stack of documents she had been signing showed no sign of decreasing.
'At this rate… I'll be done for in no time.'
Standing in front of the desk was Lyra, her posture confident as always, though the complicated look on her face suggested she was struggling internally to bring up what she needed to say.
Noticing this hesitation, Arwyn shot her a sharp glare and asked coldly, "What?"
Lyra remained silent for a moment, then spoke in a somber voice, "Uh, Lieutenant. The town's current situation has worsened overnight. Last night, two murders occurred in the northern district. Both victims were young men. The killings happened the same way as the previous three, with their throats slit and no sign of struggle left behind. To make matters worse, those two young men were part of the rebellion group that set up camp outside the Knight Order's office. They are claiming that the murders were meant to silence the rebellion. Because of that, many townsfolk have begun to side with them. Their anger toward us keeps growing, and the town wants answers. Even the duke himself sent a letter this morning demanding an explanation."
She paused for a moment, then continued with an even more serious tone, "As if that was not enough, since morning we have received countless reports of crimes, most of them involving theft and bandit attacks. According to several knights who were patrolling nearby, a group of unknown gangs has been moving around the town and causing chaos while the Captain is absent."
Arwyn was just about to sign a paper, but her hand stopped mid-motion as her fingers curled around the pen so tightly. Her exhausted expression turned into an almost disturbingly ghostly face.
Growing nervous, Lyra asked cautiously, her voice wavering, "So… what should we do, Lieutenant? We are waiting for your—"
Before she could finish her words, a loud shout erupted from outside, forcing her to stop.
"RESIGN, SERAPHINA! RESIGN, SERAPHINA!"
At that moment, Arwyn finally lost what little patience she had left. She pressed the pen so hard into the signing paper that the tip of the pen broke with a soft thud.
Taking a slow breath, she spoke in a venomous voice that carried authority and cold resolve, "Arrest that bastard. Right now."
Lyra hesitated, her eyes widening slightly as she replied, "B-but Lieutenant… the Captain told us not to intervene with him. If we act now, it might only worsen the situation and provoke the townsfolk even further."
Arwyn remained silent for a moment, then a dark expression settled over her face as she spoke again in a cold and commanding voice, "It's an order, Lyra. Don't make me repeat myself."
Lyra remained quiet for a moment, then nodded stiffly, "U-understood."
Arwyn stood up from her seat, the cloak draped over her shoulder swaying slightly with her movement as she gave her instructions in an icy tone, "Hand the murder cases over to Aldren. Deploy some troops to patrol the town immediately. If they witness crimes happening directly in front of them, they are not to arrest the perpetrators immediately. I am granting permission to break the legs of those criminals instead, but make sure none of them are killed."
She then turned and walked forward slowly. Her steps were controlled and graceful, but her expression was anything but calm. 'There's no way everything happening at once is a mere coincidence. Although the Queen possesses the ability to bend one's desires, there is no chance she would be foolish enough to turn these people into obvious puppets. That means these are nothing more than lowly criminals she has been using for her own benefit. If that's the case… then I must not hold back any longer. I'm sorry, Kael. You've been working so hard to heal me, yet it seems I have no choice but to rely on magic once more.'
Once her thoughts settled, Arwyn came to a stop beside Lyra, who glanced up at her before speaking with a hint of concern mixed into her voice, "Where are you going, Lieutenant?"
Arwyn looked over her shoulder, her teal-green eyes gleaming slightly as she shrugged, "I will personally interrogate that rebellious bastard."
At those words, Lyra's face stiffened, her expression turning pale as though she had just witnessed something terrifying, and she could only mutter under her breath with genuine sympathy, "Ah… poor guy."
---
Meanwhile…
Seraphina found herself standing before the mirror in her room once more, though this time she was clad in her silver armor, its surface catching the light with a quiet brilliance. After carefully combing her hair, she brought one hand to the side of her head and gently placed the hairclip above her hair, rubbing it lightly a few times to ensure it stayed in place.
'Where did he disappear to so suddenly this morning? I wanted to pet him a few times before heading out on the quest.'
Speaking of which, her decision to join the quest had never been a purely impulsive one driven by personal desire alone, since there were several important objectives she intended to accomplish by taking part in it.
First, she wished to gain strength through slaying monsters while also refining her old skills through actual combat experience. Although she was still far from learning any new techniques yet, she knew that sharpening what she already possessed was just as vital.
Second, she needed to buy time until outside assistance could arrive, yet due to the duke's sudden refusal, she had no choice but to request help from her father instead. While she harbored deep resentment and complicated emotions toward him, she was not foolish enough to gamble with the lives of her people over personal grievances. While it was true that she was undeniably strong, she was also keenly aware of her own limits, and she knew she could not save everyone through her strength alone. She had yet to receive an answer from him, but she was prepared to wait.
Third, there remained a strong possibility that another demon was involved behind this Dungeon Break. When her father explained how demons were believed to appear one by one following the sudden emergence of a single entity in this world, even he seemed uncertain of that conclusion. That uncertainty suggested another possibility, not a single demon but a group that had arrived together. Some could be hiding within the dungeon itself.
She had fought one with her own hands, so she understood all too well how terrifyingly powerful they truly were. If the adventurers were to encounter such beings directly, she doubted they would escape unscathed as she once had. She could not afford to lose a single adventurer under the current circumstances. Moreover, she had once failed to save someone from a demon simply because she had arrived a little too late. She had no desire to experience that bitterness again.
Lastly, the sudden danger facing the town granted Queen a tremendous advantage in their ongoing silent battle. Judging by her month-long silence and lack of hostile actions, it was clear she had been waiting patiently for this exact moment to arrive.
Whether Seraphina joined the quest or not seemed irrelevant to her, as if she joined, Queen could either harm the town during Seraphina's absence or attempt to strike from within the dungeon by bending someone's desire or sending her subordinates directly. If Seraphina chose not to join, then Queen would most likely attack once the Dungeon Break occurred and the town was overwhelmed defending itself from the swarming monsters. Either way, Seraphina would end up cornered in the end. That was precisely why she intended to destroy Queen's plan itself.
Letting out a soft breath, she picked up her half-helm and fitted it over her head, the metal covering half of her face while leaving only her pink lips visible. She then gazed at her reflection through the narrow slit of the visor and spoke quietly, her voice carrying a calm yet resolute edge.
"You wanted to avoid confrontation, huh?"
Blue flames were dancing behind the visor of her helm.
"Let's have a war, shall we?"
---
Somewhere far away, surrounded by dim light, behind several layers of cold iron bars, Serelina sat silently on the stone floor while holding her knees close to her chest and burying her head between them, remaining unmoving as the world outside continued to flow forward while time inside this place seemed to rot and stagnate without mercy.
It must have been almost a month since she had been thrown into this deep prison beneath the Academy, cut off entirely from the outside world due to a powerful artifact embedded within the structure itself. An artifact designed to block mana interference so thoroughly that nothing could enter or escape, rendering even Serelina completely unable to use her ability no matter how desperately she tried.
Under normal circumstances, such isolation would have driven anyone into madness long ago, yet she remained barely intact only because there was someone else trapped here alongside her, someone who had remained by her side through every silent hour and every suffocating night.
"Lina?"
'What is with this strange nickname?'
Interrupted by the familiar voice, she narrowed her eyes slightly before lifting her head just enough to respond.
"I'm listening, President."
On the other side of the wall sat a woman around the same age as her, crossing her legs as if she were sitting on a chair rather than the cold prison floor. Her deep scarlet hair fell behind her like a flowing waterfall, her vermilion eyes mesmerizing even in their dull state. Despite her messy appearance and clear exhaustion, she still looked no different than she always had.
Nerine was silent for a moment, then shrugged coldly.
"Let's run away from this hell."
---
Sometime later, a tall man clad in a dark shirt paired with matching pants walked along a desolate stone path riddled with cracks, countless pieces of debris scattered around him while half-broken abandoned houses stood silently on either side. His dark hair fluttered quietly in the wind and his gray eyes hid behind round glasses that reflected soft light.
Some distance ahead, several people clad in expensive armor and finely crafted armaments had gathered, their costly weapons hanging proudly at their sides as they formed a half-circle around a large table. Without pointing at anyone, he continued forward while counting them quietly with his eyes.
'One... Two... Twelve A-Rank adventurers including me, huh? That is quite the number for a subjugation quest. The guild really is going all out this time, though I am just glad that Silver Dawn didn't decide to participate.'
He came to a halt in front of the group and lifted his gaze, where a tall table stood before him with four figures positioned behind it, each one standing out unmistakably among the rest.
At the center stood his wife clad in her familiar silver armor, yet unlike usual, she wore her helm this time, her silver hair flowing behind her like a waterfall. In this appearance, she resembled a true Knight Captain, making it obvious that she would command the entire party without question.
To her left stood a tall young man with neatly kept black hair and strikingly handsome features, wearing heavy armor that gleamed conspicuously among the rest as though it craved attention, his calm green eyes resembling nature itself while remaining fixed in her direction, a greatsword hanging elegantly at his waist.
He was Valric Gravem, the leader of the one and only S Ranked party, the Crownbreakers of Velhart. They were the sole party ever to reach the sixtieth floor of the dungeon. The bastard was not only monstrously strong, having slain the sixtieth floor boss alongside his comrades, but also enjoyed absurd popularity within the Guild, especially among women.
'Damned womanizer! How dare he keep staring at my wife like that? Who gave him permission? I will teach this bastard a lesson once this is over.'
To Seraphina's right stood a beautiful woman dressed in an intricately designed outfit befitting a mage, her elegant hat resting neatly atop ash-colored hair that curved slightly in awkward strands as if she had just come out of bed. Her expression seemed rather nonchalant, but her cold violet eyes betrayed far more than she allowed to show. Although no weapon was visible around her, he knew better than to assume she was unarmed.
'Mistress of Waves?'
She was also a member of the Crownbreakers party, Valric's long-time comrade, and one of the few people who stood beside him all the way to the defeat of the sixtieth-floor boss, a battle that would later be spoken of with reverence among adventurers. She was popular throughout the guild, and even among men her name carried a certain allure for her striking beauty, yet despite all of that, she was known less for her appearance and more for the sheer absurdity of her habit of openly calling herself a mistress, a title she claimed with shameless confidence.
The last of the S-Ranked adventurers stood slightly apart from the others near the edge of the gathering, her arms crossed as she looked away from the table, her blue hair fluttering faintly in perfect harmony. Her face was concealed behind a navy-blue helm that revealed only her glistening brown lips.
'Mistwalker, huh? I've never managed to meet her even by some stroke of luck. She even rejected my invitation to meet, saying she had no interest in kids these days, and now here she is, joining on her own initiative. How unexpected!'
Suddenly, she turned her head almost instantly, looking somewhere... no, no, not just somewhere, she was looking directly at him among the many figures standing there. He couldn't see her eyes due to her helm, but despite that, he was still able to feel the overwhelming pressure of her gaze pressing down on him, sending a chill down his spine.
'Fuck! Did she recognize me?'
---
At the same time...
Somewhere else, standing atop the highest tower of Velhart where the town below looked like a living painting frozen in time, a tall man stood, wearing a long black coat that fluttered behind him as the wind passed through the tower.
A half-cloak rested over his shoulders, a hood shadowing his hair, while a dark mask etched with white curving lines concealed his face entirely from view.
'Huh? Isn't anyone here to welcome me yet? How unwelcoming!'
He scratched the back of his head lazily, his posture relaxed despite the height and exposure.
"I guess... I'll just have to make myself comfortable here."
---
(Chapter Ended)
To be continued...