Ch.113Twelve Heavens (8)

# Twelve Heavens (8)

“Nooooooooo!”

Esmeralda screamed as if having a seizure. It’s not her. Absolutely not.

However, strong denial can sometimes appear as strong affirmation.

The suspicious gazes from Eirene and Millia didn’t disappear.

Esmeralda felt the rope she was standing on shaking violently.

“Absolutely! Absolutely not! How stupid do you think I am to put me in the same category as that thing!”

“Th-that thing…?”

Garnet was shocked.

She knew she wouldn’t be welcomed, but this kind of treatment…

“No, wait! Just wait! Can we calm down and talk about this?”

Esmeralda waved her hands when she saw Garnet’s expression turning fierce.

[Comprehensive Estimate: Lv. 1214]

‘Of all things, her level is so high too…’

Yes, the power of a former Legion Commander Five doesn’t just disappear.

Moreover, when they fought before, Garnet had been weakened from her battle with Agni.

And even now, not fully recovered, she still possessed such power.

Esmeralda had no choice but to keep her complaints to herself.

“It seems like only you need to calm down, Hero? Why are you so flustered… Anyone watching would think you have something to hide. Hero~”

Eirene provoked Esmeralda with a gentle voice.

Esmeralda almost let her hot temper flare again but swallowed her anger while keeping an eye on Garnet.

As Eirene said, she needed to calm down. An uncontrolled ally is essentially the same as an enemy.

She would endure this injustice for now.

Misunderstandings can be cleared up anytime, but if she died here, that would be the end.

***

Afterward, Esmeralda logically explained that she did not like Lug.

“Well, if you say so.”

“Esmeralda, you’re disgusting.”

“Damn it…”

But it was impossible to remove the suspicious looks from the two women.

Of course it was. Since the heart has no form, it cannot be proven.

No matter how much Esmeralda denied it, once suspicion had sprouted in their minds, it was like preaching to deaf ears.

Unless she could read surface thoughts like Esmeralda, there was no way to prove it.

“…Fine. Since things have come to this, I look forward to working with you.”

“Y-yeah…”

In the end, Garnet was the only one Esmeralda could rely on.

Now that two of her companions had begun harboring suspicions that could bury her at any moment.

The only one who could be her strongest support was simply the one with outstanding power.

“This is small, but a gift to commemorate becoming comrades.”

Esmeralda even offered tribute to Garnet. To erase her suspicions while gaining strong backing and countering the other two, there was only one way.

‘I need to make Garnet… not just like Lug, but fall in love with him!’

Create a third force as a check and balance.

Esmeralda knew that the judgment she was making now was extremely dangerous and radical.

But if she didn’t do this, either Eirene or Millia would surely try to put a leash around her neck.

“Well, not bad.”

Crunch.

However, behind such a wicked and vile plan lay stupidity.

What Esmeralda offered to Garnet as tribute and bribe was a cookie she had been saving.

Anyone could see it wasn’t a proper bribe. Indeed, Garnet didn’t notice Esmeralda’s ulterior motives and simply ate the snack.

“As expected of the Hero. That inclusiveness, that mercy. You always show such admirable qualities.”

“Please… don’t praise me…”

Praise can make even a whale dance.

But the praise Lug was sending her now had nothing but the opposite effect.

***

Fortunately, the suffocating journey to Feroco territory came to an end.

Of course, the fundamental problem hadn’t been solved.

What mattered was that they were now in the territory of the Eye of Truth, not the Celestial Order or the Magic Tower.

This meant that at least Eirene and Millia couldn’t wield power as a weapon.

In a sense, Esmeralda had bought herself some time.

While it was good to escape the eyes of wolves waiting to tear her apart…

“I’m seeing you earlier than expected? Hero, Esmeralda and her companions. I checked the letter you sent recently in time. It was… quite amusing.”

Now she was practically sticking her head into a dragon’s mouth.

Of course, Esmeralda didn’t think she would be welcomed.

She even thought it might lead to combat if things went wrong.

After all, La•Pa and the Eye of Truth would have that kind of power.

Nevertheless, she forced this action not only to save her companion Tina but also because she had her own calculations.

“Nice to see you, Headmaster. I don’t know how to respond to such a warm welcome.”

Esmeralda quickly scanned La•Pa and the people with unusual impressions beside her.

[Comprehensive Estimate Lv. 1525]

[Comprehensive Estimate Lv. 1227]

[Comprehensive Estimate Lv. 1432]

[Comprehensive Estimate…]

Just a glance made her want to vomit.

Probably ancient dragons like Indra whom she had encountered recently.

People who could easily crush the hero’s party at any moment.

She had always fought with her life on the line.

There was no reason to be cowardly now in front of powerful enemies.

Yes, Esmeralda spoke boldly without being intimidated.

“Will you help me?”

“…Did you eat your manners for breakfast?”

She might have been a bit too bold.

***

Esmeralda made three requests to La•Pa.

The first was naturally to cure Tina’s condition.

The root cause was La•Pa arbitrarily implanting the dragon’s heart into Tina. Although it had helped her survive against Second, Esmeralda pushed forward with her unreasonable demand.

And despite such an obvious ploy, La•Pa just laughed it off and agreed to her condition.

“I don’t need conditions to save my own daughter.”

Because she had her own expectations for Tina.

Moreover, after hearing the whole story, she wanted to save Tina even more.

She was a good talent, wasn’t she?

She could certainly be of great help to her later.

“And… honestly, don’t you think I’m weak?”

“I don’t need to think about it—you’re obviously weak just by looking at you.”

“Then help me train, will you?”

“You’re shamelessly bold.”

The second request was for Esmeralda’s own training.

She was too weak.

She had made it this far through teamwork with her companions, luck, and perseverance.

In that situation, the power of Second she encountered was too overwhelming.

To the point where discussing the Demon King seemed ridiculous.

She realized she was a frog in a well.

The fact that the holy sword she had so much faith in was easily broken also contributed to this decision.

People around her praised her just for surviving against Second, but…

She wanted not just to survive but to achieve victory.

“Hmm… Well… I suppose that’s not bad? I want to keep the Demon King in check too… If you, the Hero, grow stronger, I won’t lose anything.”

La•Pa seemed to consider briefly before readily agreeing to this as well.

Even to her eyes, there was no one in the hero’s party who could train the hero.

The Saintess and the Mage were practically ignorant when it came to swordsmanship.

At most, Tina utilized blades, but even that was just improvisation.

“Then I’ll be in your care until then. You have rooms here, right?”

“…That boldness is already at the level of impudence.”

And the third was to borrow lodgings to facilitate the process.

Of course, La•Pa understood this was natural, but…

It was still too presumptuous. Of course, Esmeralda doesn’t normally act this way.

‘I need to stick around here and build my strength. That’s the only way I can find a path to survive against Eirene and Millia when we leave the city!’

She was just a bit mentally unstable due to her desperation.

***

La•Pa and Lug said they would take charge of Tina’s treatment.

Of course, La•Pa couldn’t be trusted, but Lug…

‘It’s a bit ambiguous, but I’ll have to trust him…’

She decided to trust him for now.

Thus, Esmeralda was able to focus on training, having relieved some of the anxiety in her heart.

Since her companions would also be doing their own training, she wouldn’t need to engage in awkward tension over man problems for a while.

Esmeralda drew her holy sword with a sense of liberation she hadn’t felt in a long time.

“By the way, can I ask you something?”

“Anything is fine. Mother also told me to accommodate your requests as much as possible. So, what are you curious about?”

Then suddenly, Esmeralda had a question for the ancient dragon who would help with her training.

[Name: Shiva]

[Race: Dragon] [Title: Ancient Dragon, War God, Maheshvara, Agent of the Twelve Heavens, One Who Has Reached the Extreme]

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.

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[Comprehensive Estimate Lv. 2000]

“…Do you know what ‘One Who Has Reached the Extreme’ means?”

There were commonalities between Legion Commander Second and Shiva.

They had the same comprehensive estimate and the same title.

And since that estimate was exactly 2000, Esmeralda couldn’t help but wonder about its meaning.

“One Who Has Reached the Extreme… I don’t know the exact meaning, but I think I understand why you’re asking.”

The ancient dragon, Shiva.

The new leader of the Twelve Heavens answered with a hearty laugh.

“It probably means the pinnacle of a species. And in another sense, it also means there’s a wall beyond which one cannot advance.”

“…”

Esmeralda was less surprised by Shiva’s attitude, which suggested he knew exactly what she was asking about, than by the worst-case scenario she realized from his answer.

Yes, Legion Commander Second, the opponent against whom she had felt a wall.

‘Then what about First…?’

That there exists someone far stronger than a being who has reached the pinnacle.

‘What the fuck is he then?’