Having achieved his goal, Greg contentedly continued leading the exploration. The next objective was clear: satisfy the trigger conditions for the hidden mini-boss.
Relying on his memories as a player, Greg began leading them to complete the prerequisites one by one.
These conditions were trivial and seemingly unrelated: killing specific monsters in three different areas, collecting items usually ignored, and staying at specific coordinates for a short time.
Victoria and Silvia found some of Greg's instructions strange, but given his previous performance and familiarity with the dungeon, they chose to trust and cooperate.
On the way, at the end of a dead end filled with broken pottery that seemed to be a former storage room, they saw a small, low altar made of rough black stone.
There were no offerings on the altar, and its surface was covered in thick dust, looking like it had been abandoned for countless ages.
"Why is there an altar here?" Silvia asked softly, her pink eyes filled with confusion.
"And there's nothing being offered on it."
"Who knows? Maybe the people back then had some weird hobbies." Victoria looked at it for a few moments but, seeing nothing of interest, lost interest.
But as a goddess, Nightmare naturally sensed the anomaly: "Can you feel it, my other half? There's a troublesome fellow inside."
"Yeah, I know."
Greg didn't explain much, because this was one of the ultimate goals of this exploration.
But not now. They had to return here after the trigger conditions were met.
The three left the dead end and continued on their detour.
Silvia's gaze drifted past Victoria, who was leading the way, and eventually settled on Greg.
He was slightly turned, vigilantly scanning for potential dangers. The lines of his profile were clear and... striking in the dim light of the cavern.
"Senior Greg..."
Since their last intimate contact, Silvia could feel a seed beginning to sprout in her heart.
Now, an uncontrollable urge, mixed with secret longing and a thrill of guilt, suddenly rose within her.
Her heart raced uncontrollably, and her palms sweated slightly.
"I just... I just want to replenish Senior's mana... After all, I didn't contribute much earlier, and I have plenty of mana to spare. Sharing some with him so he can protect us better is... is only right."
She told herself this, as if searching for a rationalization for her next move.
But the excuse was so thin that she couldn't even fully convince herself.
The deeper reason was the desire to be near him, to touch him, to confirm his existence. It was a subconscious search for comfort and connection in this dangerous environment—a sense of possessiveness that she didn't want her friend to notice.
She took a deep breath, held it, and moved as lightly as a cat, silently pressing against Greg's side.
Close enough to smell the scent of dungeon dust mixed with a certain crisp freshness on him.
Then, she reached out. Her slender, pale fingers, carrying an imperceptible tremble, gently grasped Greg's hand hanging at his side.
The moment their skin touched, a faint current seemed to pulse through them, startling Greg, who had been on high alert.
He wanted to ask Silvia what was wrong, but when he saw her fingers interlaced with his, he was suddenly at a loss.
"Hahaha, what a hussy! As expected, the Saintess of that hussy goddess would be one too!" Nightmare's voice suddenly rang in Greg's mind.
"Shut up, you Hajimi! How could my lovely Silvia be a hussy!" Greg roared in his mind.
Meanwhile, Silvia's heart skipped a beat. A blush instantly stained her cheeks, spreading all the way to her ears.
Suppressing the urge to pull her hand back in shyness, she looked up at Greg, who had turned his head at the contact. She offered a smile she had practiced countless times, her pink eyes shimmering with moisture. Her voice was kept very low, carrying just the right amount of concern and a hint of timidity:
"Senior Greg... using that magic just now must have taken a lot out of you, right? I-I'm a bit worried... I have some mana to spare, I can give you a little..."
As she spoke, she channeled the gentle light magic within her, letting a faint, life-filled glimmer flow between their joined palms.
This was indeed a variation of 【Shimmering Heal】. Its effect was weak, but it served as a perfect cover for replenishing mana.
"See? She's doing it for a good reason! How could she be a hussy!" Greg argued with Nightmare again.
Nightmare laughed. "Stop pretending. You know the truth, and I can feel it—you're starting to enjoy this."
"......"
This was hard for Greg to refute. After all, being treated in such a secret and intimate way by a beautiful girl of Silvia's caliber—who clearly had special feelings for him—was something no guy could resist.
Furthermore, the forbidden thrill of wondering what Victoria would do if she found out made it even harder to decline.
"Senior Greg...?" Silvia gazed into Greg's eyes without blinking, observing his every reaction.
She was both hopeful that he would accept her kindness and afraid he would see through her less-than-pure intentions—and even more worried about being caught by Victoria up ahead.
"Well... um..." Greg had no intention of exposing her, nor did he pull his hand away immediately.
Instead, he slightly closed his fingers, holding the soft, delicate hand more firmly in his palm. His fingertips even unconsciously brushed against the smooth back of her hand.
He gave Silvia a gentle smile and replied in a low voice, "Thank you, Silvia. I feel much better now."
Nightmare: "It seems the day I hear that hussy goddess panting beneath you isn't far off."
Greg: "......" Am I that kind of person!?
But that does sound quite exciting...
Greg's response and that smile instantly drowned the faint guilt in Silvia's heart like honey, bringing immense joy and satisfaction.
He accepted! He wasn't repulsed! He even... held back!
Senior's hand is so warm... and he smiled at me...
Her inner joy was almost overflowing, but the remaining thread of reason reminded her of the danger. She craved this brief contact but had to constantly keep an eye on Victoria's movements.
"What are you two talking about?" Victoria, walking ahead, asked casually as she turned around.
In the split second before Victoria's gaze swept over them!
As if she had practiced it a thousand times, Silvia moved with incredible agility and naturalness, quickly and gently pulling her hand from Greg's.
Simultaneously, she slid half a step back. The blush on her face vanished instantly, replaced by her perfect, gentle, and quiet smile.
She even reached up to smooth a stray lock of pink hair by her temple, as if she had simply been standing by Greg's side, having a perfectly normal post-battle conversation.
"Senior and I were talking about the attack patterns of those Swift Hunters," Silvia's voice was steady and soft.
"Their stealth is even better than the records suggest. We'll have to be more careful next time."
"Oh, right. We should watch out." Victoria didn't suspect a thing and nodded, her gray eyes still holding the excitement of their loot.
"But the things they drop are good! I hope we run into a few more."
Greg cleared his throat at the right time. "You shouldn't say that, gray-haired brat. Monsters that attack from where you can't see are still very dangerous."
Victoria replied nonchalantly, "I don't care about monsters that only dare to attack from behind!"
For some reason, after hearing this, both Greg and Silvia's expressions turned a bit strange.
Rate on N.U.
