Declared Dead, Exiled, and Betrayed— Now I Walk Away, but I'll Save One Who Cared - Chapter 74

Now we knew for certain—Claire was the Mage.

At least, according to her.

But I was inclined to believe her.

“I can understand Sage and Mage, but what about Guardian and Seeker? Do you know anything about them?”

“Of course, I do. To be precise, the full titles are: Sage of Remembrance, Wandering Warrior, Dreaming Mage, Idle Guardian, Seeker of the Righteous Path, Shifting Doll, and Enchanting Dancer.”

…That was more than I expected.

“Do those adjectives have significance?”

“Of course, they do. If they didn’t, they’d just be for show. Are you some kind of fantasist, Lax?”

“That’s not what I meant! So, are you going to explain their meanings?”

“First, tell me how you’ve been figuring things out. When you said, ‘So you really are the Mage,’ were you just guessing?”

Claire threw a question back at me.

Was this a test?

“I figured I was the Sage, Michelle was the Guardian, Claire was the Mage, and Shifa was either the Seeker or the Doll. I still don’t know about the Warrior and Dancer.”

“Hmm… Well, assuming you trust what I’m saying, I think you’re right. If you want to confirm it, take everyone to the dungeon administrator and have them check their skill lists. Your Sage title is obvious, but the Idle Guardian has the skill Key of the Watcher, the Dreaming Mage has Dreamwork, the Seeker of the Righteous Path has Demon Search, and the Shifting Doll has Self-Suggestion.”

“So if they have these skills, that confirms they’ve inherited the titles?”

“Exactly.”

And so, Michelle, Claire, Shifa, and I entered the dungeon.

The moment we did, we were instantly transported just outside the deep layers.

Apparently, they had finally decided to stop waiting for my confirmation and just forcefully teleport me.

They must have been terrified.

“Of course! You have no idea what it’s like to fear for your existence when a part of you—the dungeon itself—is about to be erased.”

“…You always talk like that?”

Something was different.

She used to sound more arrogant.

“My tone has been affected by external influences. So? Why are you here?”

“I need you to check the skill lists of the people I brought. Specifically, I’m looking for Key of the Watcher, Dreamwork, Demon Search, or Self-Suggestion.”

“Understood. The women have agreed to have their skills examined?”

“Of course.”

“Yes.”

“…”

…Oi, Claire.

Why are you staying silent?

The dungeon administrator is looking at me suspiciously now.

You have met before, haven’t you?

“Ow… Lax, you’re so mean.”

“I can’t just scan people without their consent…”

“We know that! Claire, now’s not the time for jokes.”

“Oops, my bad.”

Not oops!

But at least we were finally getting somewhere.

“Hmm, let’s start with this lady… Michelle, right? As expected, she possesses Key of the Watcher. Its effect is unknown, though.”

“Unknown?”

So my prediction was correct.

But the fact that the skill’s effect was a mystery…

Should I be relieved or concerned?

“It’s fine. When the time comes, it will reveal itself. As long as she has it, that’s enough.”

“I see. Well, in that case, yes, she possesses the skill.”

“I have no idea what it does either, but if it will reveal itself when necessary, I won’t dwell on it.”

Michelle didn’t seem too concerned.

Not that I was going to say that out loud—she’d just sulk about it.

Still, that confirmed one of them.

“Next is Claire. She has Dreamwork.”

“And its effect is…?”

“…”

“Huh?”

“Apologies, but I don’t know.”

“Is it impossible to analyze these skills?”

“Seems that way,” Claire said nonchalantly.

She looked far too composed.

Like she was still hiding something.

But… I had already decided to trust her.

Hadn’t I?

…Well, whatever. The important one now was Shifa.

“And this young lady… Shifa, was it? She has Demon Search.”

“I see…”

“Does it have a known effect? The name seems pretty straightforward.”

“Yes, this one is clear. It allows the user to locate and attract demons. The acquisition condition is the death of a family member at the hands of a monster. Since her skill is already active, that means—”

“My mother and brother were killed during a past stampede.”

“I see… I regret that. As the dungeon administrator, there was nothing I could have done to prevent it, but I offer my condolences.”

“Thank you.”

The atmosphere suddenly turned somber.

I wanted to complain about how he just dropped that on us, but there was no point.

So Shifa’s skill not only had a clear effect…

But also a defined requirement.

“Maybe… Eranda had that skill too.”

“Huh?”

“What do you mean?”

If Shifa was the Seeker, then shouldn’t Eranda have been the Doll?

“When Eranda was in danger in the Demon Forest, she did summon demons. We just don’t know whether it was Disemna or the Ruin Demons.”

“That’s true…”

“Or maybe it was her unborn child—Fiel. It could also have something to do with how Jikil died.”

…Yeah.

Let’s not think about that too deeply.

“Since the title and magic appear in the Riofendarl bloodline… I wondered if Shifa might also have Self-Suggestion.”

“She doesn’t. That skill isn’t anywhere on her list.”

With that, we had confirmed what we already suspected—Michelle, Claire, and Shifa were all part of the allies.

“When I was in the royal capital, I felt something strange. Maybe… a demon was there.”