“There’s no point thinking about this now.”
Kane shook his head.
Carrying the corpse of the Immortal Demon King might sound sinister and impressive.
But right now, this so-called Immortal Demon King could only enhance his cleaning magic— aside from that, it was completely useless.
Even if Kane wanted to test if it was really because of the Immortal Demon King, he had no way to do so.
More importantly, he needed to guard against the Tower of Truth as soon as possible— that was the real priority right now.
Although they had won the previous battle against the Scarred Man, the price was Taliya’s injury. For a while, Taliya wouldn’t be able to serve as a significant fighting force.
And yet, the Scarred Man was only a vanguard. The real boss guarding this stage of the story was someone else, and much stronger than the Scarred Man.
In the late stages of the game, although it never reached the absurd point where Saints were as common as dogs and Legends roamed everywhere, the final bosses Taliya had to face were all at least Saints— sometimes even Seventh-Rank Legends.
Even at her peak, Taliya might not be able to escape unscathed from an enemy at the Legend level.
Let alone now, when she was wounded.
If the plot didn’t change, a Seventh-Rank Legend would soon descend upon this city.
With Loharin’s current strength, there was no way they could get out of this unscathed.
They needed someone even stronger, someone who could match or even far surpass a Legend, to hold the line.
“Can we get in touch with Freyren— hm, I mean, with Miss Flora?”
Demonkin Assassin, First Generation Hero’s Companion, Elf Forbidden Spell Archmage, known as the Funeral Bearer— Flora, Taliya’s master, was their strongest external ally.
Flora was recognized as one of the world’s top powerhouses. If she could protect them, no matter what monsters and fiends the enemy sent, there would be nothing to fear.
Seth spread her hands and gave a bitter smile: “Nephew, you really think too highly of me. How could I possibly contact Miss Flora? Not just me— even His Majesty might not be able to meet her. But, if it’s the Hero, or Miss Taliya, maybe she has a way to reach Miss Flora.”
Seth’s tone was teasing, and as she spoke, she nudged Kane with her elbow.
Her meaning was obvious.
Kane pretended not to get it and ignored her.
But he had to admit, Seth wasn’t wrong.
Flora, the Forbidden Spell Archmage— a legendary figure who had spent her life pursuing the pinnacle of magic, with a nearly eternal existence— was interested only in magic.
Now, she had one more interest: teaching the newly awakened Hero, Taliya.
Before this, there were barely any records of her appearing in history.
At present, the only person with a way to contact Flora was Taliya.
And that was the troublesome part.
Although Taliya and Flora were master and disciple, because Taliya hated studying and loved to slack off, Flora had to constantly discipline her.
Now that Taliya had given him the Angel’s Tear, it would be difficult to get her to take the initiative to contact Flora.
“I wonder if I could trick her into calling Flora by using Kun’er’s identity.”
Kane muttered to himself, calculating silently.
Now that Taliya was injured, for safety’s sake, she’d probably consider the bigger picture.
Seth, who didn’t know what was going on, saw Kane’s serious expression and thought he was worried or scared. She patted his shoulder comfortingly:
“Alright, don’t overthink it. You’re still a kid. Leave the business of protecting the land to us old bones. What you need to do is take a bath, get a good night’s sleep, relax completely. If you’re lucky, you might even find a pleasant surprise in the bath, hmm?”
Kane curled his lips. “Whatever surprise you’re talking about, I’m not interested.”
Still, a bath did sound like a good idea.
“Remember, don’t let slip that I’m Kane—right now, I’m Kun’er.”
Since he’d be staying here with Taliya for a while, Kane could only keep pretending to be Kun’er.
After reminding Seth, Kane turned and headed toward the bathhouse.
But just as he rounded a corner—
——Clang!
“Oww, my head…”
That voice? Why is she here…
“Taliya, why aren’t you in bed? What are you doing here?” Kane looked at Taliya, dressed in a patient’s gown, sitting on the floor like a duck and rubbing her backside.
“Ah, well, I…”
Taliya instantly grew guilty, her eyes darting everywhere. But soon she scratched her head and gave a silly, cheerful laugh:
“I was worried about you, Kun’er, so I wanted to come check on you.”
“You should be more worried about yourself than me.”
Without hesitation, Kane stepped forward, scooped Taliya up by her thighs, and carried her into his arms.
“Yah!”
Taliya yelped instinctively, her small hands landing on Kane’s broad shoulders.
Ah~, this is Kun’er’s scent~ Taliya immediately wore a lovestruck, silly grin.
Drool dripped from the corner of her mouth.
“If you dare sniff around, I’ll throw you out.”
Kane half-closed his eyes, threatening coldly. Taliya instantly grew flustered, averted her gaze, and hurriedly said:
“Kun’er, you’re a patient too, you know! I can go back by myself.”
“I’m not that sick. Don’t worry, I’ve got enough strength to carry you.”
After all, she was his lifesaver—Kane wouldn’t refuse such a small favor.
Being carried by her crush, Taliya was naturally happy.
But remembering her original purpose, she hurriedly struggled:
“Kun’er, I really can go back on my own. Put me down, or I’ll—”
Gurgle~
Before she finished, a loud, embarrassing rumble echoed up and down the corridor.
Kane had to stop in his tracks. Looking down at the blushing, shy girl curled up in his arms, he finally understood why she’d snuck out in the middle of the night.
“I’ll go ask the kitchen to make you something to eat.”
“No way, the kitchen only makes bland, tasteless mush. I just escaped from there.”
After all, she was a patient who’d just suffered a serious injury— it made sense for Taliya to be eating light.
But clearly, that was torture for a girl with such a strong appetite.
“I really can’t eat that stuff. Let me get some roast chicken or fried skewers from outside— just a little, I promise, my dear Kun’er?”
Taliya pleaded pitifully, shaking Kane’s arm.
Pitiful, weak, but such an eater.
Kane, remembering she’d gotten hurt for his sake, softened:
“Just a little, okay?”
“Yay! I knew you were the best, Kun’er!”
Taliya immediately hugged Kane’s head, burying him deep in… Oh, wait, she didn’t—she just squeezed him so hard it hurt.
Kane’s face was nearly rubbed raw.
“Kun’er, are you thinking something rude?”
Stare~~
Taliya fixed Kane with a ghostly stare.
Kane quietly looked away and said:
“Alright, let’s get going, or the shop will close.”
After Kane’s hasty excuse, the two soon arrived at a small tavern not far from the Border Count’s Mansion.
Taliya was truly starving. As soon as the roast chicken arrived, she devoured half of it in two bites.
Kane hadn’t been hungry, but seeing Taliya eat so happily, he started drooling, too.
Oh well, since things had come to this, he could only obey the ancient and mysterious Oriental Aesthetics—when in doubt, eat first.
He opened the menu to order.
——Ding-dong
At that moment, the crisp sound of a wind chime rang out, vibrating through the air. Kane instinctively looked up— and his heart skipped a beat.
He was so startled he nearly lost his soul.
It was Enya!
Enya had actually found them?!