Chapter 88: First Activity

Ｒｅａｄ​ ​ｏｎ​ ​Ｋ​ａ​ｔ​Ｒ​ｅａｄｉｎｇＣａ​ｆｅ​

Moonlight Dragon, Cloudsea Dragon, Gem Dragon.

These three dragons had been worshipped by humans for their immense power and grandeur long before the advent of the Saint. Although their relationship with the Saint Church is not exactly friendly, it is not openly antagonistic either.

“Why would a dragon… why, what on earth, what is so bad that it would collaborate with the Cult…”

“It’s a hypothesis, a hypothesis. The scales and horn fragments sold in the market alone couldn’t make a tower of this size. It’s just keeping the possibility open.”

The Gem Dragon often sells parts of its own body in the market. It appears in various markets under a hidden identity, selling its parts disguised as worthless minerals, only to vanish mysteriously.

Many con artists imitate this, and methods to identify the genuine ones have been developed, but con artists are remarkably clever no matter the world. They improve their methods by making more convincing fakes, and then new ways to detect them are invented. It’s a competitive cycle that constantly evolves.

The eccentric Gem Dragon seems to enjoy this, simply watching it unfold.

Sugar has also purchased items for crafting from the market in the original story. Merchants—con artists, really—stand in the marketplace, selling these items for money. At first, she bought what she thought was real, only to waste her money but later in the story, a side quest appeared where she could buy the real thing.

“We don’t take it too seriously either. Even so, would a dragon help the Church?”

“Then how did we get this material?”

“Hmm… I do have a guess, but…”

Cedric closed his mouth and looked at Riley. In response, Riley gave a slight nod.

“First, miss, let’s focus on what’s in front of us. We should check the inspection first.”

After that, Sugar was used to conduct the inspection. It sounded grand, but it wasn’t anything special. They set Sugar close to the tower, examined how it reacted when she used her staff and magic, and tried placing her at the top.

“Do you feel anything?”

“No!”

“Then come down.”

She immediately jumped down. As Riley tried to catch her, she deliberately altered her trajectory and landed next to him instead.

“…”

“Heh.”

She had been grumbling for a while. Riley struggled to hold back his urge to smack her pale head. Cedric, standing nearby, muttered, “You’re playing childish games…” while jotting the results down on paper.

“But this is simpler than I expected.”

“That’s how experiments are. You start with simple things. At first, you shake the bottle, check the color, smell the scent, apply heat, and so on. You explore, step by step.”

Cedric responded as Sugar approached.

“Hmm… But it doesn’t seem to react the same way to me. What exactly is this tower for?”

“At least it’s not just for decoration. Next. Let’s try direct contact.”

To perform a thorough inspection, they intentionally didn’t bring their subordinates. Everyone knew about Sugar’s unique magical properties, but just to be sure, people can be weak against what they can’t see.

With that in mind, they dismissed the others to allow Sugar to exert her full power without concern. It was both consideration for her and for their subordinates.

“Wouldn’t it be better to first look around the area?”

At that moment, Riley chimed in. Direct contact could be dangerous, so he thought it best to first check if there were any other reacting parts or substances around.

“That’s fine. Then the two of you can take a quick walk around and come back.”

Cedric nodded while holding a small pen in his palm, noticeably smaller than his hand.

Immediately, Sugar walked off, and Riley followed behind.

“Why are you following me? I’m fine on my own.”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

Riley grabbed her hand and stayed by her side.

Sugar looked at their hands for a moment before letting out a sigh.

‘What an idiot.’

She was speaking to herself.

Sugar reflected on what had happened before. Not just today, but several days ago as well.

As they walked hand in hand in silence, memories started to come back. The main thing that stood out was her own foolishness. She kept causing trouble for Riley, making things difficult for him.

Why did this always happen?

This man always took care of her and watched out for her. Why was she so irritated with him instead?

At least if she were angry, she would talk about it honestly. But her pride wouldn’t let her, so she pretended she didn’t know, acting like it didn’t bother her.

She was like a child. Her behavior was like a young child, whining over a toy.

Riley was a person. A living, breathing human being with free will. He came to Steele through his own decision, and he stayed by Sugar’s side because he chose to.

Just that much was enough to feel overwhelmed with gratitude. Yet, when things didn’t go her way, she became upset.

Once the anger subsided, all that remained was regret. Why did she get so angry? Nothing changed. It just wore everyone around her out.

Sugar knew that, yet she still acted that way. She would say that Riley was the most important to her, that she trusted him the most, but her actions didn’t reflect that.

She became obsessed. She wanted him to remain hers, not be with other women. She wanted him to meet her expectations.

If I smile, you smile too. If I dislike something, you should dislike it as well.

How arrogant. She couldn’t help but lower her head in embarrassment.

This wasn’t something you could force. Service and consideration couldn’t come from coercion. It had to come from genuine feelings, from the heart.

Such things weren’t meant to be demanded from others; they had to be practiced first by oneself.

Especially with this man. Especially, especially with him.

Sugar looked up at Riley. She could tell. She could tell how much he didn’t want to bring her here. Even now, there was a sense of worry, wondering what might happen, and she could feel that through his hand.

And yet, she let herself wander, drunk on the spring breeze, indulging in strange illusions, and even got irritated.

Maybe she was more mature when she was younger. Back then, she was focused on comforting young Riley and didn’t expect anything in return.

‘Has that changed now, though? Have I started to rely on him and expect more?’

Riley had grown. A man much bigger and stronger than Sugar. His height, his shoulders, his biceps—none of them could even be compared to hers. Even now, she was smaller than her peer, Ian.

As she reflected on it, her feelings started to become clearer.

For some time now, she had been paying more attention to Riley.

Her obsession with him, her desire for him to be hers.

The feeling of frustration and confusion, not even knowing it herself.

During the day, she enjoyed being close to Riley, and even at night, she would imagine Riley in her mind. When she was at Steele, she was always living with a tender, affectionate feeling.

This is definitely…

This feeling is definitely…

‘The dreadful weakness of wanting to lean on Riley! You’re pathetic, Sugar!!’

Strangely, Sugar, who had only skimmed the surface opened her eyes wide.

Now, there is only one thing to do!

“Riley! I have something to tell you—”

It was in that moment.

She was about to have a long conversation about her apologies for today and the direction they should take moving forward.

Suddenly, someone turned the light off in the room, and it felt like something had blinked.

It was an outdoor setting, so the expression was unreasonable, but it seemed like the perfect metaphor.

Or maybe Sugar had simply blinked, and the world was continuing as usual.

Either way, it didn’t matter much.

Sugar looked down at her empty hands. Her hands, which faintly retained some warmth. But there was no one to hold them. It disappeared in the blink of an eye.

When she looked around, there were many people. Maybe about twenty. They were all wearing familiar black robes, and each one was staring at Sugar with wide eyes.

“Who is the noble one…?”

“Why have you suddenly appeared…?”

‘I don’t know either.’ Sugar was perplexed.

It was a space that could be narrow or wide. A closed area surrounded by gray stone walls. Maybe that’s why it felt a bit hard to breathe.

Just a moment ago, she had been holding hands with Riley and walking around the crystal tower in the forest.

‘What is this…? What was the trigger?’

Every event has its cause. There’s no way she just suddenly fell into this place.

‘Was it the time spent at that location? Or my mindset? Or…’

While pondering, the looks in the people’s eyes grew more confused. First, she needed to calm them down.

“Wait. Everyone, calm down for a moment…”

But the response was not as expected. As Sugar subtly extended her hand and spoke, they all began trembling uncontrollably and huddling together, looking like herbivores.

“Oh… How does she have such power…?”

“Please don’t be angry… Please take it back… It’s too much for us…”

“Are you a saint? Has a new saint come?”

What are they talking about? Sugar opened her mouth in shock.

First, their clothes. They’re familiar. And the titles they’re using… She didn’t want to know the answers, but she could feel that the energy flowing through her body was unusual. It had been hard to breathe earlier, but now it made sense.

This sticky and unpleasant energy was not a good thing.

Quickly, Sugar began isolating the energy. Ugh. Trying to suppress the nausea, she pushed the energy into one corner of her body and enveloped it with magic. If it were anyone else, they would have died already.

But then, she quickly looked around. The terrified gazes of the people gradually shifted from confusion to surprise, and that surprise transformed into awe-laced fear. She could see it changing step by step.

In a situation like this, what could Sugar do?

“… Kneel?”

Thud—

The twenty people around her all knelt at once.

“We are afraid… We are afraid… Please, liberate us.”

“It is so shameful to be in the same space with you…”

“Please forgive us for not recognizing you…”

They lowered their heads and began trembling again.

Sugar felt conflicted. This was a completely different attitude from the followers of the Shadow Cult she knew. A sudden, unexpected situation. Things she hadn’t been able to say to Riley.

In the midst of it all, there was only one thought she could hold onto.

‘Riley… I’ll do my best…!’

‘I’ll manage without leaning on you. I’ll throw away this weakness.’

It might be a misguided thought, but at least the direction seems good, right?

She made a pledge, mixed with a wish that Riley would be okay and a vague concern. Her worry that she might get struck by lightning as soon as she escapes.

‘Anyway, gaining information and allies is important. I have to do what I can.’

Even though she know two saints, surely the saint in the heavens will overlook this much, right?

With a serious expression, Sugar wiped away the cold sweat and reached out. She didn’t forget to subtly release some black magic for dramatic effect.

“Do not be afraid. I will be with you–”

That day, the Saintess of the Evil God began her first activity.