It was a simple story, when I thought about it. This dungeon had to be clearable by AA alone, so shoving her forward was enough to clear most of it. Afterwards, even for vague questions like 'the Brave' or 'the Resilient,' the golems would silently open the doors when I pushed AA to the front.
It felt like paying a toll and passing through a highway tollgate.
AA also seed to be enjoying the fact that the doors opened whenever she stood before them, and Erina, for so reason, was acting even more smug. Her posture seed to be saying to , 'Look. Our AA is this amazing,' which gave
a strange sense of displeasure.
Just this once, should I fuck her again? When I get the chance.
After passing through several checkpoints like that, we quickly reached the 7th floor. Having seen the doors open without any tension whatsoever just by AA standing in front of them several tis, we felt less like we were exploring a dungeon and more like we were out for a walk. Erina openly yawned, and Karin shot her a glare before turning her head away again.
It seed she held back, unable to admonish the princess of a neighboring kingdom as a knight of her own. I, for one, was hoping Karin would just sock Erina in the gut right now. I would have even taken her side.
To be honest, I felt a little guilty scolding Erina, because I was also extrely bored. I, too, had thought the dungeon itself would be quite difficult. But to get a free pass like this was just deflating. What I thought would have turned into a bizarre place ant to screw us over with various corrections had instead turned into an overly easy place due to so strange correction.
“Whoa.”
AA, the first to enter the 7th floor, let out a sound of surprise. The rest of us who followed—, Karin, and Erina—all couldn't help but flinch.
On the 7th floor stood a golem larger than any we had seen before. Its head touched the high ceiling, and its body nearly filled the entire room. A small head was attached to a body so solidly packed that it couldn't budge. As we approached, a light shone from its head, and it spoke.
"Hero, who has received the mission to defeat the Demon King. Co forward now."
"As I thought...!"
It was AA again. Without much thought, I led AA forward, and she too took light steps. For fun, I observed the golem's status window.
Na: ga Golem
Race: ga Golem (Transford)
Level: 78
Strength: 250
Agility: 40
Intelligence: 0
Luck: 0
Traits
Sturdy Body
Takes 80% less physical damage
Looking at the stats, I felt a cold sweat run down my back. Was sothing like this in the ga's dungeon? The level was one thing, but the damage reduction was so broken I didn't think we could destroy it. While I was trembling, the golem finished its scan of AA and opened its mouth.
"You have the right to open the door."
Then, the golem's body split in two, and a door ford in the gap. Both AA and I stared at the door with uneasy expressions. The parts of the golem's body next to the door looked so threatening and solid that it felt like we'd be ground to dust if we passed through carelessly.
AA hesitated for a mont, then took a step. We followed her forward. Fortunately, the golem didn't move an inch until we had all passed. Only after we were all through did the golem move its massive body to close the entrance again. Fuck, now that I think about it, how are we supposed to get out?
"Th-The door closed?"
Erina said in a voice full of fear. Karin reacted with indifference.
"There must be a way out. If it ant to kill us, it would have crushed us as we passed through."
"Don't say such horrible things!"
"But it's the truth, is it not? There will be a way out."
"What if there isn't? Our AA is..."
"If you have any self-awareness as the Hero's companion, I'd appreciate it if you'd show a little more composure. The Hero is AA, not you."
"Th-That's..."
Karin cut Erina down with a very resolute and cold attitude. Erina looked at AA, but even AA couldn't shield her this ti, just smiling as if to say she was in an awkward position. To be fair, even though the dungeon had been boring until now, the situation wasn't so dire as to warrant Erina's tantrum. We hadn't even checked what was on the floor below yet.
If AA had taken Erina's side here, I was planning to side with Karin and tear that pathetic bitch down without rcy, but as expected, she was a person of fine character. If she had lived in the modern era, she would have beco a doctor or a lawyer, but she had the misfortune of being born in this age and becoming a Hero.
Erina was puffing out her cheeks with a sulky expression. She looked a little anxious. Well, she hadn't accomplished anything since joining this party, so it was only natural for her to be anxious. In fact, she seed worried that she might have shown an ugly side of herself to AA and earned her dislike. Not that AA seed to have any thoughts on the matter.
At the end of the long staircase, a bright light was flickering. It seed it was finally ti to face the holy sword. In the ga, the holy sword was just shrouded in a white aura, so its actual appearance was unknown, but it seed I would have a chance to properly see its design this ti.
Probably the last floor. We could see a bright light flickering in the middle of the room. The ball of light, which endlessly emitted a round glow as if a giant orb had been placed there, was radiating a holy and noble energy. AA spoke to .
"Priest."
Right. The holy sword could only be wielded by a man. I had no idea what kind of fucking setting that was, but the holy sword absolutely had to be wielded by a man. AA was a woman now, so she couldn't do it. I cautiously took a step toward the holy sword. As I approached, the aura of light faintly dispersed, then began to radiate its energy even more strongly.
Even though I wasn't undead, my whole body tingled, and I felt a strong pressure. The other party mbers, including AA, seed to be feeling a similar sensation, their faces contorted in pain. I have to get the holy sword quickly.
A process that was displayed in the ga with a single sentence, 'Draws the holy sword,' was in reality this painful, difficult, and oppressive. I continued to walk toward the holy sword. The fluctuation emanating from the holy sword undulated even more intensely, as if to reject . I ignored this light and reached out my arm, barely managing to push my way through it.
Inside the intense aura, I felt a hard hilt. The hilt was so firmly embedded in the ground that it wouldn't budge with a simple tug. As I gripped the sword, the aura that had been radiating in all directions subsided, gradually shrinking into the shape of a large incandescent light bulb.
At the sa ti, the pressure that had been bearing down on us from all sides vanished, and a quiet stillness descended upon the cavern. Erina collapsed to the floor, breathing a breath of relief. Karin was also barely managing to breathe as she watched the situation unfold. AA asked.
"Priest. Are you all right?"
"Yes. Well..."
I was completely fine. The pressure I had felt just a mont ago had vanished as if it were all a dream. Power flowed into the hilt clutched in my hand. I forcefully pulled the sword from the ground. Once again, a bright light flared out, then subsided, and the sword regained its true form.
"That's..."
"I've never seen a sword shaped like that."
"What a strange shape."
It was a katana.
Fuck, that's right. This was a Japanese ga. I swung the katana around with an uneasy expression. The grip was certainly good, but it wasn't sothing I could use. For soone like
who had never properly learned swordsmanship, it was far more useful to just beat things down with a weapon like a mace that dealt damage even when blocking. I should just hand it over to the king as soon as I get out. With that thought, I brought up the status window.
Ancient Holy Sword
An ancient weapon that can only be wielded by a man. It is a mystery who used it or for what purpose, but it is called a holy sword.
Traits
A Just Price
Instantly kills a target stabbed from behind.
The wound must be at least 10cm deep, and this applies only to humans.
An Honorable Contest
The sword generates a potent poison. To generate it, one must shout 'Contest.'
The poison is colorless and odorless, and the affected target will suffer from an unexplained high fever after 30 minutes before dying.
This applies only to humans. If the sword's owner is in mortal danger, the poison's effect activates instantly.
Unwavering Loyalty
Deals 4 tis additional damage when attacking one's own master, superior, friend, lover, family, or subordinate.
But my mind changed after seeing the effects. This sword is mine. I fucking loved its effects, and it also seed too dangerous for anyone else to use, so I decided I had to keep it. At the sa ti, I had a doubt. Was this really a holy sword? A holy sword that instantly kills my own people if I stab them from behind?
It didn't even have any effects related to demons or monsters. In the original work, the holy sword was a very ordinary item that simply enhanced the protagonist's all stats, so why did a thing like this pop out? As I stared at the sword with a puzzled expression, AA asked.
"Th-That sword, now that you're holding it, how is it? Do you feel like you've gotten stronger?"
"No. It seems I don't have the Hero's talent, after all."
"Is that so? That's a sha."
AA looked genuinely disappointed. I was a bit dumbfounded myself. I had drawn a holy sword only for a killing machine to pop out. I looked at the holy sword with an uneasy expression, then carefully tied it to my side. It didn't even have a scabbard, and the blade was so ridiculously sharp I had to be careful even tying it on.
"But, how do we get out now?"
AA asked. Despite having drawn the holy sword, the golem on the upper floor showed no sign of opening the door. Even when we got close and knocked on the door, the golem didn't budge. I pulled out my mace and asked.
"Should I try breaking it?"
"No. Let's wait a little."
"I think that's for the best. We've spent a fair bit of ti conquering this dungeon, so it would be good to rest here for a bit and think."
Karin agreed with AA's opinion. Erina, for a change, welcod the idea with a bright expression and said.
"Good. Then how about we rest here in this cavern? I used a sylph to look around earlier, and there are many small rooms between the sides of this cavern. I think it would be good to rest and then explore them as we head back down... What do you think, AA?"
"That sounds good."
"Then let's do that."
"Excellent."
And so, we went back down to the cavern where the holy sword had been. Indeed, I hadn't noticed before, but there were several more small rooms in this lowest floor room. Let's rest first. And then think.
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