Declared Dead, Exiled, and Betrayed— Now I Walk Away, but I'll Save One Who Cared - Chapter 66

Upon returning from the royal capital, I immediately set out for the dungeon.

I entrusted Yulisha’s situation to Michelle and Shifa.

Viscount Riofendarl had decided to send a letter to Yulisha’s family to explain the circumstances and confirm their course of action moving forward.

Since Michelle also wanted to help, she planned to include a written explanation of the situation, so I left it to her.

I wrote a brief note myself, but considering that I had been exiled due to the use of forbidden magic, would my name even be of any use?

Well, they said they would assess the situation and use it if necessary, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

Thus, despite being summoned to the royal capital for the ceremony, I gained no real progress toward defeating Disemna.

That being the case, I should stick to my original plan—strengthening myself in the dungeon, identifying ways to locate my target, and determining whether I could acquire the necessary search-related skills.

A few days had passed, and the dungeon administrator had likely calmed down by now.

Today, I would focus on my exploration—

“No, you mustn’t. Do you intend to destroy me again, Lax?”

Just as I eagerly entered the dungeon and attempted to proceed, I was stopped.

What now?

“Shaking you back and forth in utter bewilderment…”

“Stop that! What would be the point of such an act?!”

“Stress relief?”

“What a cruel man you are!”

“I was only joking.”

The little one shook its head furiously, but there was no need to react so strongly—I wouldn’t actually do such a thing.

Last time was an unfortunate accident.

“Then hurry up and use this magical device to descend to the deeper levels. Until then, I shall not trust you.”

“Alright, alright… Honestly.”

“That is my line!”

The reactions were amusing, but I knew better than to push too far. I followed its words and moved deeper into the dungeon.

“By the way, what skills are necessary to detect Disemna?”

“You mean to search for the ‘Abyssal Demon’?”

“Yeah. The last time we talked about it, the discussion got sidetracked with skill points.”

“Eep… That was not my fault!”

“I know, no need to panic.”

“Still… I occasionally recall the events of last time and…”

“Yeah, my bad.”

When I reached out to pat it, it flinched but eventually accepted the gesture.

At this point, only time could smooth things over.

“First, show me your skill list. The ‘Abyssal Demon’ is a rare creature with no similar counterparts. It excels at concealment and presence suppression, making it extremely difficult to detect. However, if you could combine ‘Illusion Immunity,’ ‘Focus Alignment,’ and ‘Demon Tracking,’ you might stand a chance.”

“I see.”

“Indeed… I investigated the dungeon’s records, and it seems that even an advanced level of ‘Demon Tracking’ might suffice. However, regrettably, you do not possess that skill.”

“Useless…”

“Eep…! That is not my fault!”

The brief hope I had glimpsed disappeared in an instant, leaving me with frustration and disappointment. The child before me, however, seemed to interpret my murmuring as a complaint.

“I wasn’t blaming you. Now… what should I do…?”

“Hmm…”

Both of us fell into contemplation.

If I couldn’t acquire the necessary skill, then simply exploring the deeper levels aimlessly would be meaningless.

I needed to devise a way to track my target.

But how?

Should I bring Michelle, Shifa, or Claire here to check if they possessed any search-related skills?

No, that wouldn’t work.

They weren’t yet strong enough to explore the deeper levels.

If I brought them here now, I would be breaking my own self-imposed rule.

They wouldn’t complain, but precisely because of that, I had to ensure I managed things properly.

Besides, there was no need to rush without any concrete leads.

At this point, I was still groping in the dark.

“By the way, did previous humans ever manage to defeat the ‘Abyssal Demon’ alone?”

“I don’t think so… At least, I don’t know of any specific cases.”

The information seemed oddly absent—almost as if it had been deliberately erased.

According to the Guardian of the Forbidden Forest, Viscount Riofendarl’s ancestor had cooperated with others.

And Minerva was royalty.

It wouldn’t be strange for her to have had subordinates.

Perhaps that was the angle I should investigate…

If Viscount Riofendarl’s ancestor was involved, then maybe I should bring Shifa here to verify things.

My appraisal magic hadn’t revealed anything significant, but…

“By the way, can my appraisal magic improve further? You mentioned something about ‘advanced-level’ earlier.”

“Hmm… Your level isn’t particularly high. If you use it frequently, it should increase over time.”

“I see… So, skill points can’t be used to level it up?”

“No, they can only be used to acquire new skills.”

“Useless…”

“Eep…”

Seriously, stop reacting to every little mutter…