Chapter 84

Is the ring really indicating that it’s this way? Master-dono . 』

In front of the entrance to Ul’s Brute dungeon, Yoru looked at me for confirmation .

At that time, the gate to the dungeon was broken, allowing hordes of monsters to escape .

Thankfully, the gate has since been repaired and is now completely sealed .

As expected of the Adventurer Guild, they work fast .

Since the area was deserted, we could enter, but whether or not we could leave was another matter entirely .

This dungeon wasn’t like the one in the human’s territory, so I couldn’t expect it to have a magic circle on the lower level .

Entering this dungeon would definitely be a gamble .

I looked at the index finger on my right hand .

The light was shining at the closed gate .

「Aah, the light is certainly pointing towards the entrance of the dungeon . 」

I see, Yoru said that and enlarged his body .

I opened the dungeon’s gate and got on Yoru’s back .

「Just as we had planned, we’re going in . 」

『Leave it to me . 』

Since the objective this time was to go to where Amelia was, we had decided beforehand to avoid any unnecessary battles .

We also lacked intel on the exact location of Amelia and the one called Aulum Trace, so there was no need to diligently clear every single level .

Yoru will run past everything besides the fight with the boss .

I was already completely back to normal, and I had said that I could also run swiftly just like Yoru, but my overprotective familiar stubbornly disagreed .

Like this, I didn’t know who was the master .

「…no, wait a moment . 」

Just as he was about to start running, I sensed something and stopped Yoru .

I took out my hidden weapon, and threw it towards a place that just happened to be shrouded in darkness, thus becoming a blind spot .

「Kyaa!?」

There was a small scream, and the female beastman who was peeping at us came out into a lit area .

Because her face was covered with a hood, I couldn’t see what she looked like, but she was quite tall .

Perhaps she was a little taller than me .

I frowned .

This voice, I felt like I heard it somewhere before……

『Who are you . 』

Yoru bared his teeth and growled .

It was so full of ferocity that it made the air shake .

Sure enough, the woman’s knees were trembling and her face stiffened .

「Yoru, weaken the『Intimidation』a little . Even if she wanted to talk, she couldn’t . 」

『…got it . 』

When I told him that, Yoru reluctantly did as I said .

Even so, he had controlled it so that she couldn’t move .

「Um… . 」

A clear, bell-like voice sounded .

I, finally understood what that uncomfortable feeling I had been feeling was .

「You, you’re the fellow who was glaring at the heroes before we had gone into the Continent dungeon, aren’t you?」

She was the woman with the hood on who emitted her thirst for blood towards us who had left the royal castle for the first time .

The woman who said that sacrifices were necessary for summoning heroes .

The hooded woman started to say something, shook her head, and then said this in a quiet voice .

「You are…no,, it is fine now . I’m sorry, but would it be alright for me to join you?」

In response to her request, Yoru straightforwardly said exactly what I had been thinking .

『We can’t trust you . Besides, we’re in a hurry . We don’t have the time to worry about you . 』

I was gentle with Amelia, but somewhat cold towards other people .

It seems like my anger towards those monsters hasn’t quite gone away yet .

「Then, is it alright for me to identify myself?」

The woman said this and took off her hood .

Her cobalt blue eyes seemed to see right through me .

「I am Ria . Ria Lagoon . The first princess of the beastmen territory’s largest kingdom, Uruk . 」

Her eyes, overflowing with strong determination, were a little similar to Amelia’s .

『Hou, why is the esteemed first princess in a place like this?』

The husky beastman made a sound at Yoru’s intimidation .

From the frightened look on her face, he could tell that she didn’t really have any combat experience .

The intimidation that Yoru was releasing right now was similar to what could be felt around the upper levels of the Continent dungeon .

In other words, she didn’t have any fighting abilities .

That’s probably why she suggested going together . She probably understood that she was incapable of fighting .

「I want to meet the elven princess, Amelia-sama . 」

『Amelia-sama!?』

Looking downwards, I knew that I would not be able to keep a level head when I heard those words .

Yoru was also on edge, as he unconsciously undid the intimidation at that unexpected response .

I got down from Yoru’s back,

And, grabbed the beastman named Ria by the collar .

「Guu!?」

「Amelia stayed on the front lines by herself so that she could earn more time for the beastmen who had yet to evacuate , and faced off against a few thousand monsters . …sorry, but I don’t think you can fight . 」

I took out my hidden weapon and pressed it against Ria’s neck .

「No matter how much they say it’s because elves and beastmen don’t get along, is this how they’re going to treat their benefactor? Besides, how did you know that Amelia had been brought here?」

I unconsciously put more strength into the hand holding onto the hidden weapon and beads of blood oozed out from the neck of the terrified Ria .

「…because of the human princess, I had suffered miserably . Besides Amelia, those who hold the title of the princess have never been good people . Depending on your answer, I will, without hesitation, kill you . 」

Saying that, I lessened the pressure of the intimidation a little so that it would be easier for her to talk .

Compared to Yoru’s intimidation, mine was most likely more intense .

When it involved Amelia, I really couldn’t control my emotions .

「Cough…certainly, I can not fight, but I can protect others . Besides, I didn’t come here as a beastman, I came to warn her as a princess . 」

Those eyes were certainly the eyes of someone who was telling the truth .

And, the pulse under my hand was not unusual either .

There were many things that I wanted to ask her, but for now, I let go of her clothes .

However, the hidden weapon was still pressed against the nape of her neck .

「You didn’t answer one of my questions . How did you know that she was here? There was no indication of it . In other words, you planned on coming here . 」

When I sharply glared at her, Ria timidly answered .

「I used the skill『Enhanced Smell』 . A strange smell along with Amelia-sama’s stopped at the entrance . 」