Chapter 58: Tiana is Upset

Tiana is Upset

"That's the entrance to the dungeon. According to the ancient documents, the path doesn't lead to the top of the mountain, but rather deep underground. And...the treasure is undoubtedly located at the very depths."

We reached the base of the mountain, and Tiana pointed not to the peak but far below.

If you look closely, you can see a hole in the mountainside.

It doesn't seem too far from the foot of the mountain.

"When I had heard that the destination was a mountain, so I assumed we would climb it..."　

Erina seemed surprised to be going underground, as she had been prepared for the climb as well.

"Hmm... If the hole is that big, a person could fit inside. I never thought there'd be a dungeon in a forbidden area. Hey, you damn saint. How much do you know?"　

Satya is suspicious of Tiana, who knows more about the forbidden area than the demons.

Certainly, even if she had done some research, it was far too specific.　

"Well, there is indeed a special area at the top of the mountain. But it's not like we have to defeat that thing for now, and it has nothing to do with the treasure anyway. If you want to get all the trophies and achievement, I guess we can come back later? I think His Majesty the Demon King will probably give us permission again."

I didn't really understand what Tiana was saying, but it seemed there was a powerful being at the top of the mountain.　

"Torokon? You mean Tororo Kombu, it sounds delicious... Mmm!! Ah! That's right!! There really is a hidden treasure this time, right!? There wasn't one in the treasure hall last time, you know? I hate to say it, but you already caused a lot of trouble for everyone."

"I apologize for that. But thanks to conquering that dungeon, everyone, including Asha, was able to grow dramatically. If we had been like us before, we probably wouldn't have been able to conquer even the shallowest levels of this dungeon."

"Hmm, that's true. None of the monsters that appeared along the way were inferior to those in the treasure hall. So the enemies inside the dungeon must be even stronger... is that what you're thinking? The demons live in an environment like this, it must be tough compared to the kingdom."　

Erina seemed interested in the harsh conditions the demons found themselves in.　

"The monsters here are just abnormal. Even I, a demon, didn't know the monsters around the forbidden area were so powerful."

Apparently, Satya also feels that the monsters around the sacred mountain are unusually strong.　

"In any case, it's best if the monsters from the sacred mountain don't leak into the city. So, to promote the safety of the city and also level up, let's eridicate them as soon as we find them."

"You know... what exactly do you want us to fight by training us more...? Oh well, I'll just get going."

Asha urged us to hurry onward into the dungeon.

Everyone was drawn in and began walking in formation.

As the vanguard, I quickly walked, determined not to fall behind.　

"Well, I guess... God, I guess."　

As I made my way to the front of the party, I caught something Tiana muttered under her breath.　

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As for the inside of the cave...

There was a staircase leading to the lower level, and it was clear that human or demon hands had been involved.

It looks like a dungeon created by taking advantage of a naturally formed cavity.

When Asha illuminated the area with light magic, it became clear that the cavern inside was much larger than we had thought.

We challenged this sacred mountain dungeon, progressing deep and deep, layer after layer.

In the dungeon, there were no monsters that often appear in the kingdom's ruins, including the skeleton knight that was in the treasure hall.

Instead, powerful monsters like pterosaurs, which are rarely seen, constantly attack along the way.

Even though it's underground.

Moreover, they were far stronger than their species on the surface.　

Although it wasn't an easy victory, thanks to the training, we were able to move forward at a reasonable speed.

It seems our experience at the treasure hall also helped us greatly.　

As a result, we defeated the large monster that was waiting for us at the deepest part and finally conquered the dungeon that lay beneath the sacred mountain.　

But…　

"Eh... you're lying... it can be... There is no way!... I'm sure the treasure was here! But... how did it end up like this?!"　

We were filled with a sense of accomplishment from the victory.

On the other hand, there was one woman who exuded a different vibe.

It's Tiana.

The moment she reached what appeared to be her destination, a pedestal, she began to panic.

There was nothing on what appeared to be a pedestal.

When she realized this, she immediately turned pale.

Her eyes were wandering and her voice was trembling.

"Pff, heh, see?! it's not as I said. It's not there, is it? That treasure thing?"　

Perhaps amazed, Asha spoke to her with a slight disdain.

"Asha-san! Please believe me! It really must exist!"　

Tiana seemed anxious, looking around restlessly, centering on what looked like a pedestal.

"Hehe... I think you said something like, 'There is no doubt that the treasure is there!'? Pathetic, you damn saint. Hehehehe... Why don't you try looking more carefully? Crawl around on the ground! Or should you go and search His Majesty's castle? That would only incur His Majesty's wrath and I'm sure you'd get killed!"

Satya joins in on Asha and ostentatiously mocks Tiana.

"Satya-san, please be quiet. You're getting in the way of my search. Come on, get out of the way."

Tiana, who was literally crawling along the ground in the dungeon searching for something, turned her head to Satya and spoke calmly.

She has a slightly scary look.

"Why are you so calm towards me?! Ugh!"

Satya doesn't seem to be very good at arguing.

So very unlike a demon general, she stomps her feet vigorously.

"Hey Tiana, is there really a treasure here? It certainly does have that kind of vibe. I feel like I've become stronger by reaching the deepest part, but... I'm not sure what we are looking for."

I followed Tiana and cast doubt on her.　

"Oh... Alto-san.. Please believe me!"　

Tiana knelt on the ground and clung to me, looking as if she was about to cry.

While grabbing my waist.

Because of the location, I got excited with vulgar fantasies.　

"Even if you say that... there's no sign of the treasure, so there's nothing we can do."　

Then Erina, who had been silent up until then, started muttering something.　

"Mountain top"

Mountain top ...that must mean the summit of a sacred mountain.

"There's something! Guuuu... Whyyyy... There's no way! Uuuhh... There's gotta be something!!"

But it's noisy.

Tiana clung to me, screaming and yelling with her nose running.

Oh, I got snot on my pants.

I mean, she blew her nose on my clothes...　

At the very least, please be a little quieter.　

"Hmm? What's wrong, Erina?"　

"What about the summit? Tiana... just before we entered this dungeon, you said there was something at the top of the sacred mountain, right?"　

"Alto-shan, please believe me...there is a hidden treasure, a hidden treasure...huh? Um, Erina-san, did you say something just now?"　

"That's why I say we should also go to the top of the mountain."　

"Huh... the top of the mountain?! You mean the summit?! You mean that one?... What?! Impossible!! Impossible, impossible, impossible! You guys are not prepared enough!! With your abilities, Alto and the others will just turn into ashes!!"　

"What on earth is at the top of the mountain?"　

Tiana has some information she hasn't revealed to us yet.

I questioned it.

"Well ... Um... Um... It's a umm... D---on"　

"Ahh? What did you say? I didn't hear you well."

Asha must have been extremely annoyed as she approached Tiana with a frightening look on her face.

"Ahhh... a dragon... there is a dragon that is the lord of the sacred mountain!"　

"You mean a real dragon? Not a pterosaur, but the one from fairy tales?"

Speaking of dragons, they were supposed to be legendary creatures that wreaked havoc long ago.

I think the ending was that the ancient hero somehow managed to shoot them down.　

"Yes, that one."　

"Cut your jokes, you damn saint. The dragon was barely defeated by the ancient demons! If such a ridiculous being existed on the sacred mountain, the demons would have been in uproar long ago. Even if it did exist, does His Majesty know about it?"

Apparently, among Satya and her kinds, there is a legend that the dragon were repelled with their own hands.

Maybe in reality, the demons and humans joined hands and fought them.

"I don't know anything about that! It's just end-game content to test your skills and has nothing to do with the main story!"　

"Okay, let's head out."　

"Such a quick decision!!"　

Tiana says my decision was hasty.

My instinct told me that we should go there.

Besides, since we've come this far, it might not be a bad idea to aim for the summit of the sacred mountain.

Tiana will provide supplies like water from a mysterious space.　

"Yes, it's annoying, but... we can't back down now that we have come this far."　

Asha agrees with my suggestion.

I thought that Asha, who has a strong sense of ambition, would agree with me, believing that she would be able to grow even more if she reached the top of the mountain.

"Kufu... I wonder what kind of attack this dragon will launch... I'm looking forward to it."　

Erina is already filled with the desire to fight the dragon she has yet to see.　

"Should I challenge the Lord of the Forbidden Sacred Mountain? Well, even if His Majesty gets angry, I can just blame it all on the damn Saint."　

It seems that Satya is prepared to throw everything at Tiana if there is any problem.

Actually I think that's correct.　

Well, Tiana would probably be able to handle it even if she was at the forefront of the problem.

I don't know though.

"I don't want to! If everyone dies, it'll be sooooo hard to revive you all! That's why I don't want to! At the very least, can't we wait until the existence of the treasure is confirmed before we go in with a perfect preparation? That's right! I want to defeat it within 15 minutes!"　

"You're so confident that you will be the only one not to die."

Where does Tiana's confidence come from, given that she is a prerequisite for survival?

Well, I can understand why, since she's unusually stiff even among the party.

"Isn't that obvious? Don't lump me in with some low-level priest. I'd hate it even more. Even if I don't turn to ashes, the thought of having to pull four coffins back down the mountain would be disgusting. I'd hate it so much that I'd swing your coffins around and attack the dragon."　

Just imagining a priest using a coffin as a striking weapon is terrifying.

What kind of thinking would lead you to think of something like that?　

"Which do you think would be better, Tiana? Trying your best to reach the summit, or retreating and being thoroughly punished by everyone? I don't care either way."　

"Eh! So I get to have everyone to punish me? Yay! Let's go home right now. Then, let's have a fivesome... Ah... Ah... Ahh... No... Stop... Forgive me... Ah... Ah... Ah..."　

Hmm? What's this strange feeling?

Did something happen to Tiana?　

"... My apologies. Let's go then, to the summit. I'm sorry for causing you all trouble before we reached the summit, but next time I'll support you with all my might. I'm sure the treasure is there. Let's go, for the sake of peace between humans and demons."　

"Oh, okay. I'm glad you're interested, Tiana. Well, I'll ask for your support."　

I thought she'd suddenly become calm, but what a change.

Were you satisfied after all the fuss?

Well, I'm glad you're calm.　

Now, let's take a short break before heading back down.

We had already cleared out the monsters on the way there, so it shouldn't be too difficult.　

TIPS: Hero's Slacks　

Slacks blessed by a saint overflowing with emotion.

This alone gives it miraculous defensive power and it does not deteriorate over time.

There is a mysterious stain that won't come off even after washing.

According to experts, the stain is the source of the blessing.

It looks dirty, but if you wear protective gear around your waist, there shouldn't be any problems.