Chapter 1099: Chapter 1099

The underground chamber beneath the Alberta Kingdom trembled. Nothing was left in the wake of the march of the sticky, purple-skinned monsters.

Totrias. The monsters of gluttony, remnants of Thanatos that had yet to disappear.

After the monsters had passed, Belga was left alone, and he let out a strange groan.

Tsuna had clearly seen him be devoured and digested by the massive octopus-like creature. Naturally, that had granted immense power to the monster, but that power never reached its full potential before Davey.

In the end, Davey had taken its vitality, making it crumble away. The problem had started there.

[You awakened and bound the subterranean demons, only to become a restraint yourself... yet in the end, you let go of the reins.]

A barefoot woman slowly descended in front of Belga, who stumbled about, having lost his reason. She radiated a blue glow, and she gently lowered herself. She raised a tablet, as if speaking to someone who would not hear her at the moment.

It was unclear who she meant. Whether she was talking about the monster slain by Davey, or Belga who had come there in search of Tsuna only to be devoured, only she knew.

Regardless, she had only sympathy to show. Then, with a hollow gaze, she approached the groaning Belga and placed a hand on his chest. A faint light seeped into him, and with that, she resolutely turned away.

[Annihilation and salvation. It is a sorrowful thing to leave one’s fate to others. May you, too, be given a chance.]

To the spiritual entities like Belga, the avatar of Goddess Freyja before him, named Aria, was a being that must be erased from the world. Even so, Belga didn’t make a move.

Instead, the moment she vanished, his body began to twitch. With a grotesque sound, he contorted, his eyes glowing an ominous red.

Flesh on his back then split open as a massive tangle of tentacles burst forth. It wasn’t long before he began to move, half-submerged in a bloated mass of flesh.

Belga, having become the core of the ancient totria race that was once sealed and studied in the underground ruins, moved solely driven by hunger.

Following his will, massive violet worms emerged from the earth, devouring the forest in their path. Their numbers were beyond counting as the monsters pressed forward, consuming everything in their path.

Were one to chart their course, they would see a straight line leading to the small peaceful territories near the capital. The monsters awakened by the greed of the Vatan Kingdom began to pour in. Their assault wasn’t limited to just one territory, either; instead, it was a simultaneous disaster across many.

The very foundation of the Alberta Kingdom had begun to shake.

Seeing the sudden appearance of Perserque, Rinne had instantly read the room and ran away posthaste.

Davey found himself standing alone, dreading the idea of chasing after Perserque, who had dragged Tsuna’s soul away.

Just moments ago, Perserque had greeted Davey with a radiant and beautiful smile, full of affection toward him. Yet, behind that smile lurked the rage of a demon from hell.

Snapping back to his senses, he shot to his feet. Just as he was about to tear through space, he caught a glimpse of Perserque’s blood-red eyes through a nearby window.

[Kyaaa!! P–Please! Please, spare me!!]

“You’re already dead. How can a dead person beg for their life?”

[I was wrong! Please forgive me! I won’t do it again!]

“Well, you sure know how to talk.” Still dragging her soul behind her, Perserque smiled brightly again at Davey. “I’ll deal with you later.”

In the end, Davey couldn’t escape. Not long after she left, he received a message from her that disrupted his plans.

[It doesn’t look like it’d help anyone to make a scene practically announcing that I’ve shown up at the mansion, so come find me instead. You will find the location enclosed.]

The rendezvous point was a pub run by the Adventurer Guild that stayed open even at night.

Alberta was already in chaos due to the Vatan Kingdom’s nonsense and the assassination of Chancellor Tsuna. That societal instability was exactly why someone of his standing couldn’t afford to be seen wandering around too casually.

After applying a mild face blindness spell and heading to the place she mentioned, he found himself in a quiet pub, not a single soul inside.

Despite it being peak operating hours, not even the owner could be seen manning the bar.

“What’s going on? Did you chase everyone out?”

“I just rented the place out for us. There weren’t any customers, anyway.” Perserque guzzled down a barley beer while Tsuna sat beside her, sniffling quietly.

“Haah. What are you doing, Per?”

“That’s what I want to ask. Let’s get straight to the point: Why did you cheat on me?”

“Cheat? What kind of nonsense is that? Who else do I even have besides you?”

“A lie, huh?” she replied with a cold smile.

“What lie? Don’t start making things up. You’re not acting like your usual self.” Googlᴇ search ⓝovelFire.net

Sure, Davey had gone on a brief date with Tsuna at her request, but technically, it was only to fulfill the final wish of a dead person. It was part of her revival, and Davey could say with certainty that he never held any feelings for Tsuna.

“Sigh. I didn’t ever want to say this, but I suppose the time has come.” Perserque moved before Tsuna flinched and nervously watched her.

Davey couldn’t imagine what had happened in that short time to make Tsuna this afraid. He knew that Perserque could be terrifyingly intense, but Tsuna also wasn’t exactly meek. Still, he wasn’t tactless enough to ask if she was okay in their situation. In that moment, clearing up the misunderstanding was more important.

What baffled him was why someone like Perserque—who usually trusted Davey without question—was so exceptionally upset.

“Davey, I told you before,” she said, her cold gaze peeking out from beneath her robe. “Aeria and Illyna are fine, but beyond them? Absolutely not.”

She coldly cut him off, “Are you trying to betray me?”

“Don’t be ridiculous! Why would I betray you?!”

When Davey got angry, she sighed and pulled a small necklace from inside her robe.

“It’s a necklace that Goddess Freyja gave me, and it’s connected to you,” she said with a bitter smile. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about it. When I wear this necklace, whenever you feel a strong emotion, it gets transmitted to me too.”

“Why would you want that?” he asked, trying to suppress the absurd feeling rising in his chest.

She met his eyes and said firmly, “So that when you’re sad, I can be the first to comfort you. When you’re happy, I can be the first to share in that joy.”

Davey was left speechless.

“When I know you’re angry, I can stay by your side.”

- If you save everyone else, then who’s going to save you?

Illyna had said these words to him before. Apparently, Davey wasn’t the only one left with complicated feelings after hearing them.

“I’m not as strong as Illyna, so this was all I could do. But...” She then explained that she had felt a wave of intense longing and romantic desire through the necklace. “I didn’t mean for things to turn this way, honestly. I wasn’t being possessive or trying to spy on you, but this isn’t right.”

Tears streamed down her face.

“Are you already tired of me? What about Illyna? What about Aeria? Those two girls threw everything away to follow only you!” Her eyes brimmed with tears, and the emotion in them shook Davey to the core.

Davey had to clear up the misunderstanding first. “Let me make two things clear, Perserque. First: Even before we got married—and up till now—I’ve never once gotten tired of you.”

She looked directly at him, trying to read his expression to judge whether he was lying. She’d told him about some of his tells when lying, but not all of them.

“Second: Maybe the necklace glitched or something, but I never had feelings like that.”

Tsuna’s face darkened upon hearing that. She had likely known how he had felt all along, but to have him bluntly reject her feelings right to her face was a severe blow.

Still, Davey had to draw a clear line.

Perserque glanced between the two of them as her brow furrowed slightly. She then nodded, as if coming to terms with something. “I’m sorry, Davey. I must’ve misunderstood.”

“No worries, it’s my own fault for making it look that way. Still, I can’t help but feel a little sad that you didn’t trust me.”

“Then what was with you taking that girl to the Spirit Realm or some other world?”

Davey narrowed his eyes and shot a glare at the tattletale who had crept back. He was certain it was Rinne’s doing.

‘You're going to get a serious scolding one of these days.’

Rinne quickly ducked behind Perserque and stuck her tongue out. “Rinne declares that as of this moment, Rinne is officially switching sides.”

Her ability to switch loyalties on the fly was impressive. Hearing her pledge of allegiance, Perserque pulled Rinne into her arms with a seductive smile.

After locking eyes in a brief staring contest with Rinne, Davey gave up on punishing her and answered instead, “This girl died an unfair death.”

The eyes of Tsuna, who’d been making a bitter expression, opened wide at his words.

“Frankly, while her corpse may be intact, there’s no way to bring her back. She has no choice but to enter the cycle of reincarnation.”

She’d died a meaningless death despite having so much life left to live. He couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. After all, she was just like him, a being who remembered their past life. Given how short that past life of hers had been, he knew she must’ve still held a lot of regrets. Even if it was just for a moment, Davey had thought it’d be alright to grant all her wishes like a miracle.

[So in the end... you just pitied me.]

“I wanted to help you let go. There’s no good to be had in the dead clinging to regrets.”

[Yet it’s true that I held feelings for you. Well, I’m already dead, so what does it matter? I’m going to say everything I want to and move on.]

Perserque chuckled softly. “So bold, throwing yourself at a man who’s already taken. If you’re going to be that brazen, I truly have nothing left to say.”

[I know, okay? I know it’s wrong. But... How can I help where my heart leads?]

Perserque didn’t say a word in response to her grumbling.

[It’s all over, anyways. In the end, I died meaninglessly in this life too. Where’d that god damned innkeeper?! I want a beer before I go!]

She made a clumsy effort to grab a mug, but her hands simply waved through the beer glass as she was unable to grasp anything.

[Damn it! I just wanted to drink one full glass before I leave...]

She muttered to herself with bitterness and regret.

“I heard the gist from Rinne, so now what? What are you planning to do with her?”

“If I take her soul out of the stone, there’s a risk of her soul being damaged. Instead, I’ll watch over her until she’s ready to move on.”

“So she’s in a soul stone, eh? I’ve never seen one ,” she curiously pondered.

“Of course you haven’t. What soul stone in the world would be this convenient? It’s an ancient artifact dating back to the time when Rinne originally lived.”

His answer sparked further curiosity in her. Now that the misunderstanding had been resolved, she no longer had a reason to stay angry.

Still, Davey couldn’t help but wonder where the emotion the necklace had transmitted to her had come from. He wondered if it truly conveyed his feelings.

Perserque seemed to think the necklace around her neck was just a nuisance now, ripping it off to stuff it into her pocket.

“Useless piece of junk. I’ll have a serious word with that goddess next time I see her.”

“Sounds like you got played by Goddess Freyja.”

She gritted her teeth in frustration. “Damn it!”