READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 119
Cecilia was fidgeting in front of the Lieutenant’s Room door.
Isabella let out a deep sigh behind her.
“Are you going to keep hesitating like that? You said you would go in.”
“…I know.”
She said that, but she still looked anxious.
Ugh, I’m so frustrated. Isabella patted her chest in exasperation.
“Kirik. Balutak will take care of it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t worry. Just trust Balutak.”
Balutak, who had been watching, suddenly burst open the door.
Then, with a fluid motion, he pushed Cecilia inside.
Creeeak- clap.
“…?”
Cecilia, who stumbled into the room, turned back with a confused look.
– Oh! So that’s how you do it!
– Kirik. Didn’t I say to trust Balutak?
– You did. Seems like even a bug can be useful.
– Kirik?
“….”
When I get out, I’ll probably have to punch that bug.
Cecilia turned her head again and gazed into the distance.
Charlotte was curled up against the wall.
She lifted her head from her knees at the sound of movement.
Her gaunt face and unkempt hair, with dark shadows under her eyes and dried blood on her lips, made her look like a shell of a person.
Cecilia unconsciously bit her lips.
She couldn’t help but see her own past self reflected in Charlotte.
Feeling an inexplicable pang of sympathy, Cecilia stepped closer.
“Are you going to just sit there?”
“….”
Charlotte buried her face in her knees without answering.
With a bitter expression, Cecilia sat down next to her.
If bringing her here was a matter of responsibility, sitting next to Charlotte stemmed from a sense of kinship.
“Did you come to kill me?”
Cecilia waved her empty hand in response to a question that didn’t even require an answer.
“No, so don’t worry. I didn’t come with a sword or anything. I just came to talk.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
What should I start with?
Cecilia was terribly clumsy at providing comfort with empty words.
Wasn’t the whole point of coming here to convey her true feelings?
“I still hold a grudge against you. I think you killed my master ten years ago. You almost killed my master again too.”
“…I see.”
“Of course I resent you. I hold resentment, but I don’t want to kill you.”
Back then, she had been mad enough to want to kill, but now she felt a wave of regret.
“Your life, my master saved it twice. So how could I kill you?”
“….”
“And a little… I do feel sorry. They say when emotions take over, mistakes happen. That incident was driven purely by my emotions.”
“I understand.”
Cecilia rubbed the back of her neck at the unexpected response.
“Do you remember? When I almost killed my master.”
The situation now was similar to that time, but the roles had reversed.
That must be why she felt a sense of kinship.
Back then, Charlotte had scolded herself, but Cecilia didn’t want to return the emotional turmoil she had experienced.
The psychological pain seemed to come before hate and resentment.
“I was really struggling back then and resented you. How could you keep driving nails into my wounded heart?”
“….”
“What I want to say is this. I understand better than anyone what you feel. You’re probably scared that my master would resent you.”
In an instant, Charlotte’s shoulders twitched, as if she had been struck to the core.
“I took a chance. My master doesn’t resent you for this incident. Even if it means they died, they would have felt the same way.”
And then.
Cecilia forced herself to continue speaking.
“Probably even back then. Until the moment of death.”
“I resent myself.”
“Well, that’s a burden you’ll have to carry.”
“….”
“My master doesn’t know about what happened ten years ago. I haven’t told them yet.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened, looking at Cecilia in shock.
It was as if to say she thought Cecilia would sow discord.
Whenever Cecilia looked at Charlotte, her own past self vividly appeared in her mind.
The slender thread of hope that had lifted her up had perhaps unintentionally come from Charlotte herself.
“You gave me a chance to speak. That’s how you can get forgiveness.”
“….”
“Once you clear it all up, confess to my master. That person will surely forgive you. Well, that’s all I have to say. I’ll be on my way now.”
Cecilia stood up and dusted off her bottom.
Just as she was about to leave, she turned back and sighed resignedly.
“Charlotte.”
Slowly, Charlotte raised her head, and Cecilia stammered for a moment before speaking.
“I just wanted to say I’m sorry for that time.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Charlotte bowed her head as if to apologize.
Cecilia, who was about to say something, closed her mouth again.
Saying more wouldn’t seem comforting at this point.
Creeeak. Cecilia slipped through the open door.
She glanced back one last time before carefully closing the door.
“I’m sorry….”
Remaining alone, Charlotte mumbled.
Though she’d gone, she kept apologizing.
Perhaps the one she was apologizing to had never been here from the beginning.
“I’m sorry….”
***
How did my rank go up?
The Hermit hadn’t gotten stronger; he must have weakened by consuming the enchanted orb.
“Boss, you really absorbed it, right?”
The Hermit said that the orb of enchantment was completely absorbed along with my strength during revival.
That’s why the rank went up, but…
‘Well, you’re the boss, right?’
If the rank fell, it should fall, so why did it rise?
The only logical answer was that the Undead Lair Lord above me had weakened.
Valentia Roseha. It made the most sense that the 6th rank had fallen.
Naturally, worry followed.
It would be a relief if it wasn’t Roseha, but I couldn’t afford to be too comforted either.
Daron and Ren had taken a liking to me as well.
Knock knock.
It was then I heard a knock on the door.
When I told them to come in, the door slowly opened.
Isabella walked in, looking rather hesitant.
“Um, Boss…?”
“What is it?”
She looked uneasy in a way that struck me as oddly familiar.
She had looked just like this when Roxanne visited before.
…Please tell me that’s not it.
“A, um, a VIP has come.”
If it’s not just a visitor but a VIP, it could only mean the Undead Lair Lord.
A sickening feeling crept up my spine.
“A VIP, you say?”
“They’re a lord from the castle….”
A sigh of relief escaped me.
Even if Roxanne had taken a liking to me, I still found her off-putting. It was only bearable because she was Roseha.
“What’s their business?”
“They said they wanted to speak to you in person….”
Isabella trailed off with an anxious expression.
I hoped they hadn’t heard anything about Charlotte’s magic overrun.
When Cecilia was around, we had Kalandas as our informant, so this time the likelihood of them not knowing was high.
‘But still, you never know.’
I ran every possible scenario in my mind.
Especially, I had to prevent any attempt on Charlotte’s life, pulling every resource from the Mausoleum of Faith if needed.
“Tell them to come in.”
“Yes, sir!”
Isabella stiffened in her posture as she left the room.
I felt an instinctive urge to bow my head.
“Th-the castle, you say? Valentia Roseha…?”
“That’s correct.”
“Yikes!”
Hermit’s fur stood on end as if feeling an electric charge.
He was clearly expressing his fear.
‘You’re also an Undead Lair Lord, for crying out loud.’
Having a fellow Undead Lair Lord being scared of another was just… pitiful.
I barely managed to suppress my urge to smirk.
“B-boss… can I hide for a bit?”
“Go ahead.”
With my permission, the Hermit hurriedly moved.
He pressed himself against the wall and awkwardly camouflaged himself as a rock.
I wasn’t sure if Roseha would notice or not.
I could only hope the Hermit was good at hiding.
‘If he gets caught, I’ll be in trouble too.’
I pictured Roseha, radiating an intimidating aura, charging in with the sole aim of intimidating me.
Just then, I heard another knock, and the door opened.
The sound of heels echoed as her silhouette came into view.
Just a glance at her signature alluring smile was enough to recognize her.
As she stepped closer, Roseha waved her hand playfully.
“Long time no see, darling.”
[Lv. 94]
I scrutinized her expression and found no signs of anger.
I sighed in relief and responded.
“It’s been a while, Roseha. Did you come to see my face?”
“Well, as much as I’d like to do that all the time, I don’t want to burden your subordinates, right? I may be aware of social cues.”
“I see.”
“By the way, what rank are you now?”
Her tone suggested that this was the main topic at hand.
I felt a jolt of concern.
Could it really be that Roseha’s rank had fallen?
I reluctantly replied, “I’m 6th.”
“I see. Just to clarify, I’m 5th.”
“…That’s a relief.”
“Huh? What’s with that? Did you worry about me? You knew something happened to me?”
Though it felt awkward to say it outright, I merely nodded.
Roseha burst into a cheerful laugh.
“Don’t worry. I’m fine. Hehe, I didn’t expect you to worry about me. How do I even repay you? I want to do something nice for you in return…”
Roseha’s gaze fixated on my groin.
An involuntary shiver washed over me, and I quickly changed the subject.
“Is that all? To check the rankings?”
“Partly. I also have something I wanted to tell you. It’s about the rank changes. I sent a message to Daron and Ren too. It’s such an unusual event, right?”
Unlike last time with Kalandas, there hadn’t been any signs of rank changes.
Given the sudden shift, I could understand Roseha’s curiosity.
“Ren immediately replied that they’ve risen to 2nd rank.”
“…What does that imply?”
“Exactly. Something must’ve happened to the elder.”
Ren’s rank was 3rd.
Logically, Roxanne’s rank must have fallen for Ren to rise.
‘Roxanne, of all people?’
At first, I doubted whether it could be true, but it was Roseha, after all.
This wasn’t someone who would lie to me.
“The elder hasn’t died. The dungeon remains intact.”
“Then it means they’ve weakened to the point of losing rank.”
“Exactly. I didn’t think it was possible at first, but there’s no other explanation. I sent a message, but haven’t gotten a reply…. Something must’ve happened to the elder.”
This wasn’t just any lord, it was Roxanne.
From what I knew, she was one of the strongest beings in the realm. The boss that had given me the most trouble when I was a player.
How did that Roxanne, from the Abyssal 10th Layer, end up in such a weakened state? Just to the point of falling from rank 7?
“So… what I’m saying is, darling…”
Roseha leaned in closer, eyes eager and glimmering.
“How about we go pay the elder a visit?”