Volume 6, Chapter 34 – Deepening Feelings

This is so annoying.

Draining her glass of sweet wine in one gulp, Nola clicked her tongue impatiently. As for the reason for her impatience, she couldn’t describe it immediately. Digging deeper, it was because Fia had spoken up for Calista this morning, leaving her hanging in the wooden house, which had hurt her quite a bit. Claiming to be friends, yet completely failing the test. The moment she met an old friend, she forgot about Nola—saying it out loud made her seem overly sensitive and a bit embarrassing, but this was indeed one of the reasons for Nola’s displeasure.

Even though the dinner prepared by the Charm Cat matriarch was exceptionally luxurious, and the house was full of singing and dancing, incredibly lively, it couldn’t reduce the annoyance in her heart. Even in her eyes, those dancing Charm Cat girls were eyesores, like flies buzzing in her ears. When a person was unhappy, it was like this: things that would normally seem funny felt annoying when sulking.

Seeing Nola’s impatience, the Charm Cat matriarch kneeling beside Nola smiled and gently massaged Nola’s shoulders with both hands, her movements as gentle as a newlywed wife treating her husband.

“You don’t look very happy. Are you still angry about that Stellacryst Beast child from this morning? There are people in the world who don’t believe in the Goddess. If you get angry every time you meet such a person, you won’t be able to be happy in the future.”

“…”

Nola didn’t immediately answer the matriarch with pinned-up pink long hair—it was more appropriate to call her Tsukuyomi. After refilling her glass, Nola exhaled a long breath.

“Just different beliefs, nothing to say. That guy claimed to have crossed the Netherworld to reach Cold Night. If her belief wasn’t firm enough, she couldn’t have done it. I admire her persistence.”

“Praising your opponent with your mouth, but actually troubled inside?”

As she spoke, Tsukuyomi, wearing shrine maiden attire and possessing an impressive bust, leaned her body toward Nola, her hands quietly wrapping around Nola’s arm. Nola frowned and pushed Tsukuyomi away unhappily.

“I believe I said I don’t like this. Your Charm Cat tricks don’t work on me. Even if you use your charms, you can’t trade for improper treatment from me.”

Only when Tsukuyomi showed a humble, apologetic look like a concubine did Nola withdraw her displeasure. She looked away and spoke to herself.

“What I care about is what she left behind. ‘In this world, besides her god, there are no other gods.’ She didn’t look like she was lying.”

“Do you think what she said is right?”

“No.”

Nola answered decisively. The Goddess saved her life and was willing to answer any question she asked, just like her mother. She didn’t believe her mother would deceive her. Besides, her Goddess had never asked for anything from her. If she had to say, it was only the hope that she could become the leader of Cold Night. However, this was merely a hope. In Nola’s view, this was like a mother’s expectation for her daughter; the Goddess had no need to deceive her at all.

“Then why are you unhappy? Could it be… could it be related to that elf who hasn’t returned yet? She is indeed unique, so unique that I could tell she was extraordinary at a glance. Her soul seemed to glow, attracting my attention. Is she your friend?”

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Hit on the mark by Tsukuyomi, Nola showed obvious avoidance and impatience. She initially wanted to answer “yes,” but recalling how Fia rushed out to chase Calista during the day, she curled her lips and answered reluctantly.

“Sort of.”

“Oh…”

Seeing this, Tsukuyomi finally understood why Nola was unhappy. This was clearly because Fia went to chase Calista, making Nola feel neglected. Although not all friends were like this, it was undeniable that such situations occurred. When both needed help, and the person close to you ignored you to care for someone else, you would naturally feel alienated. It was normal for sensitive people to be troubled by this, tossing and turning at night, and even re-evaluating the distance between themselves and their friends.

As a Charm Cat matriarch who had seen much of the world and had to manipulate people’s hearts to survive, Tsukuyomi understood these little girls’ thoughts all too well. Just like Nola disliking Tsukuyomi wrapping her arms around hers because she had someone else in her heart—like that silver-haired girl she occasionally glanced at under the stage. Although Nola far surpassed Tsukuyomi in strength, she was completely inferior to the latter in terms of emotions, practically a novice. That said, Tsukuyomi was actually only in her twenties.

A smile appeared on her charming face. A full half-day had passed since Fia left; the sky had turned from noon to night. During this time, Tsukuyomi had learned Fia’s identity and the interpersonal relationships among Claire’s group through conversation. Fia was the Eldest Princess of the Silvar Kingdom. According to her Holy Son’s usual course of action (i.e., making Cold Night strong), the simultaneous appearance of both sides should only lead to a fight. Yet now they have become friends. Something incredible must have happened.

“I’ve never seen you so troubled over someone, even Miss Claire, whom you always mention. She must be very important to you, right?”

“Important? No such thing. She and I are—”

Are romantic rivals.

Nola didn’t say this sentence out loud, mainly because it was too embarrassing. She changed her words midway.

“Not as complicated as you think. More importantly, I came to you to repel monsters. Are the monster attacks Brinkat encounters always of this intensity?”

Too blunt a subject change.

Tsukuyomi laughed inwardly but didn’t point it out. Just as she was about to answer, a petite figure suddenly appeared at the door. Jet-black long hair and a black formal dress—it was Fia, the one who made Nola look unhappy. Fia’s appearance instantly attracted the eyes of everyone in the room. Nola was no exception. A moment of joy flashed across her face, then quickly fell back as she put on a straight face.

My Clan Chief, your emotional expression is too straightforward.

Tsukuyomi smiled bitterly in her heart, her gaze lingering on Nola’s profile. Nola was both her leader and a younger sister to her. When not discussing serious matters, she would often tease Nola from time to time. Nola’s serious reactions were very amusing to her.

“Sorry, I’m back late. I went to the Hunting Grounds midway and explained some things to Erin Slate.”

Smiling bitterly at everyone, Fia took a seat next to Claire. Claire immediately made room for Fia and even shared food from her own plate onto Fia’s. Such an intimate scene made Nola even more unhappy. Unfortunately, Fia didn’t notice. While thanking Claire, she looked straight at Nola sitting in the seat of honor.

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“Have you discussed how to deal with the monsters? It will take at least a week for the elf magic casters to arrive here. Before that, I can make some preparations for Brinkat.”

“Haven’t discussed it yet. You were lovey-dovey with that blue-haired Stellacryst Beast girl all afternoon, making all of us wait for you, the main guest.”

Nola’s voice was full of blame, with a hint of sulking hidden within. However, except for Claire and Tsukuyomi who knew Nola well, no one present heard it. Claire put food into her mouth with a faint smile, while Tsukuyomi covered her mouth with an apologetic smile.

Fia defended herself seriously.

“How could I do something like leaving everyone hanging to hang out with someone else? I parted ways with Calista after a few words. The remaining time was all spent on that surviving great demon. Thanks to that, the great demon confessed a lot of intelligence.”

Not noticing that Nola was actually sulking, Fia continued to explain.

After the great demon woke up, he quickly confessed under the guidance of Erin Slate’s mental magic. He admitted they deliberately infiltrated the city during the monster siege to attack Calista. They had been tracking Calista for a long time and decided to act only after confirming she was alone and not a trap to lure them in.

As for the reason for capturing Calista, it was because a person named “Father” needed a Stellacryst Beast as a sample. Unfortunately, when Erin Slate asked where they were taking the captives and who Father was, the great demon started babbling like a madman. According to Erin Slate’s explanation, this was a manifestation of the great demon’s will fighting against the mental magic. Increasing the mental magic output would drive the great demon completely insane, yielding nothing. Therefore, they could only use torture to wear down the great demon’s will before interrogating for deeper answers.

“Let me go.”

After Fia finished speaking, Milu patted her chest with an expectant and happy expression, as if volunteering.

Milu meant she should be the bait to lure the demons.

Fia refused without hesitation.

“No, that’s too dangerous. And we don’t know what role the person using ‘Father’ as a pseudonym plays. If he’s just a regional small fry, it wouldn’t be worth it.”

“I agree with Sister. If Little Milu acts as bait, she has to go with the Darkborn to their base camp. Who knows what those Darkborn will do? They might eat Little Milu’s limbs as food on the way.”

“I can resurrect—” Seeming to think of something, Milu stood up and took two steps back, then chanted a spell in a low voice. Soon, a short-haired Milu split from Milu’s body. The former tilted her head, scanning the people present with curious eyes. Milu pushed the short-haired Milu forward. “Let her go.”

Hey, clones aren’t used like that either.

Milu’s clones possessed a certain degree of self-awareness, and when they merged back with Milu’s main body, they would share memories and sensations with Milu. Fia couldn’t let Milu choose the terrifying option of sacrificing a clone.

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Fia manipulated a [Spatial Hand] to chop Milu on the head, lecturing her like a parent.

“No means no. The current Milu is too weak; I can’t take the risk. If we must use bait, it should be me. Just disguise with illusion magic, and I can deceive the demons’ eyes. In the end, no one knows if doing this will attract the Darkborn’s attention. They have already lost a fifth-rank and four fourth-rank Darkborn; they will definitely be vigilant. The method of disguising as bait is too inefficient and has a high probability of being futile. No need to waste effort.”

“Ugh… I just wanted to help Master.”

Criticized, Milu covered her head with both hands, feeling wronged.

Fia sighed helplessly, using the [Spatial Hand] to pull Milu to sit beside her.

“If you really want to help me, work hard to improve your strength first, then think about other things.”

“Alright…”

Answering reluctantly, Milu hugged Fia’s arm and leaned her head against it. However, Fia felt that Milu was actually very happy. The suspicious point was that her wing-shaped ears were flapping frequently, as if her goal from the beginning was to lean on Fia.

“Could these Darkborn be related to the monsters attacking the city?” Nola, sitting in the highest seat, asked.

“I don’t know,” Fia withdrew her attention from Milu and answered straightforwardly. “Why do you ask, Nola?”

“The monsters this morning were different from the ones I usually encounter. Their physiques were a size larger than normal, their bodies tougher, and their recovery abilities incredibly strong. Connecting this to their pitch-black appearance, it’s hard not to think in the direction of Darkborn. You know, Darkborn colors are always black and dark purple.”

Physique larger, body tougher, recovery ability incredibly strong, plus a black appearance… A name immediately popped into Fia’s mind.

Chaos.

The alliance between Darkborn and Chaos was nothing new. Plus, the great demon revealed they deliberately attacked Calista during the monster siege. Maybe there really was a Darkborn shadow in this.

However, Nola’s Goddess told her the monsters attacked the city because of the frequent earthquakes in the Weeping Mountains. If Nola’s Goddess didn’t lie to her, there should be no relationship between the Darkborn and the monster attack, at least no direct link.

Even if Nola’s Goddess could trigger a reaction from the Flame Greatsword, Fia didn’t think the Goddess who saved Nola’s life would suddenly turn around and do things to harm Nola. Unless it was a malicious taste of deliberately causing a disaster and then letting Nola appear to save everyone. But even with that choice, the Goddess should have caused it outside Nola’s jurisdiction, not in the territory that had already sworn allegiance to Nola. That would be meaningless.

“Ah… now that Miss Nola mentions it, those monsters, especially the slimes, look very much like the Chaos we saw in Aurora City before. What does Tilulu think?”

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Liti, with her index finger against her chin, looked at Tilulu. Strictly speaking, because of Radric, Tilulu was also a member of the Darkborn and had even manipulated Chaos before. She should be most familiar with the scent of Chaos.

However, Tilulu bit her lip and shook her head in distress.

“I can’t smell the scent of Chaos…”

“Chaos? What are you talking about?”

Nola, who had never dealt with Chaos, naturally felt confused. She knew what Chaos was and knew her Goddess parted with her to deal with Chaos. But Chaos shouldn’t appear on the World Tree Continent. At least according to her Goddess, Chaos was eroding the continent’s foundation beneath the World Tree Continent.

Although telling Nola is fine, there are maids in the wooden house. Spreading the news that there is Chaos in the Weeping Mountains could easily cause unnecessary panic. Fia actively steered the topic away.

“That’s just a baseless guess. The current task is to deal with the monsters in the Weeping Mountains. When I came with Nola before, I observed the nearby terrain. Defending purely with city walls… leaving aside that we’d have to abandon the surrounding villages, whether there’s enough time is a problem in itself. Rather than passive defense, we can take the initiative to set traps, slow down the monsters’ advance, lure them together, and wipe them out in one go.”

“Er…”

The Charm Cat matriarch was the first to show hesitation. She reminded euphemistically.

“Princess, you seem to underestimate the number of monsters in the Weeping Mountains. They are endless and impossible to clean up. Rather than investing a lot of manpower into setting traps that will be drowned by the sea of monsters, focusing on building city walls is a more effective choice. Moreover, the border between the Weeping Mountains and Brinkat City stretches for several kilometers. Setting traps in just one direction will hardly work. Finally, the Clan Chief is right here. As long as the Clan Chief goes to the Weeping Mountains to ask the Goddess, the Goddess will surely solve the monsters for us, right?”

By the end, the eyes of Tsukuyomi and even the maids were on Nola. This put Nola under immense pressure, her expression tense. She wasn’t mentally prepared to announce to everyone that the Goddess had left her.

As if knowing Nola’s embarrassment, Fia waved her hands repeatedly as if talking about something very easy.

“Don’t worry. I will set the traps. You just watch tomorrow. Praying to a god without trying yourself first… the god definitely won’t be willing to extend a helping hand either. Let’s try our best first.”

With that, Fia invited her companions to enjoy the meal, shifting the conversation to daily life.