“Huh? Ah, that...”
Greg followed her gaze toward the Shaman's corpse. Even he felt a lingering fear seeing its gruesome death.
“...Yeah, that was me. It's a... well, a dark magic spell I haven't quite mastered yet.”
When he had first cast it, he truly thought Dark Pulse was a useless skill. It had looked pathetic and lacked any presence, so he assumed it couldn't deal any real damage.
He never expected its real combat effectiveness to be so outstanding—or rather... so sinister.
It had directly inflicted a lethal debuff platter on the target, cursing a LV23 elite monster to death out of thin air.
Though this time, it was pure luck.
If that tiny black dot had missed earlier, or if its effect hadn't been so absurd, Silvia might have...
A wave of lingering fear washed over Greg.
He had grown used to exploring the edges of the dungeon alone lately. In battle, he mostly focused on his own positioning and skill rotations, lacking sufficient awareness to cover a partner.
Silvia was a long-range support who lacked melee self-defense and practical combat experience. He had to learn from this lesson and pay closer attention to her in the future, never letting her fall into such danger again.
“I knew it...”
Receiving a confirmation, Silvia's eyes brightened even more as she looked at Greg, a clear mixture of admiration and delayed wonder shining within them.
He had effortlessly handled a siege by over a dozen Goblin Warriors all by himself, using an unprecedented black bracer that seemed capable of swallowing everything to defuse every attack.
And at the critical moment, in an incomprehensible way, he had instantly killed the Goblin Shaman—a monster even she could feel was dangerous—saving her while she was completely defenseless...
Senior Greg's strength was far greater than she had imagined, and his methods were inscrutable.
Besides, this was already the second time he had saved her...
Senior Greg... is really amazing.
He's reliable and attentive. Even though he's so strong, he was always so low-key before...
And when he rushed over earlier, he looked so anxious... Was he worried about me?
Her heart seemed to skip a beat, and her cheeks flushed warm.
Silvia instinctively lowered her head, not wanting Greg to see her expression right now.
A feeling blending gratitude, admiration, and something far more hazy and indefinable quietly took root and spread within her heart.
The hand he had held still seemed to retain that warm sensation.
Greg shifted his gaze away from the Shaman's corpse and looked toward the gloomy entrance leading to the middle layers, his brow furrowing once more.
“I really didn't expect a creature like a Goblin Shaman to come out of the deep area into the shallow layers...”
In the original game's setting, the Goblin Shaman was an elite monster that only appeared in the deep area of the first layer, reaching level LV23. Within the first layer of the Academy Dungeon, it was already considered a high-tier magical beast.
Its appearance here undoubtedly proved that something unusual had occurred in the middle layers, or even the deep area. Moreover, the severity of the situation was likely worse than anticipated.
He grew increasingly curious about the situation below, while becoming even more vigilant.
What could have driven these monsters, which should have had fixed activity territories, to cross over into the shallow layers at all costs?
Taking a moment to adjust his breathing and catch his breath from the minor fatigue of battle, Greg turned to Silvia, his tone becoming far more serious than before.
“Rested enough? We need to keep moving and check out the middle layers. After this... I'll keep a closer eye on you. I won't let you fall into danger like that again.”
“K-Keep a closer eye on me?!”
Silvia snapped her head up, her pink eyes widening slightly as the blush on her cheeks deepened.
Those words sounded... like they carried a special meaning?
“Yeah.”
Greg nodded and explained naturally, “After all, I promised Victoria I'd take good care of you. I need to keep my word.”
“...”
Silvia's expression froze in an instant.
The sparkle in her eyes seemed to scatter under an invisible breeze.
She let out a soft “Oh,” her voice trailing off. The subtle flutter and bashfulness from a moment ago faded rapidly, replaced by a faint sense of disappointment that she didn't fully understand herself.
So it was because of... Victoria...
She remembered how Greg had given that precious Reflection Gem to Victoria without hesitation.
She remembered how he had visited the hospitalized Victoria alone late at night, offering words of comfort and encouragement...
And now, the reason behind his promise to pay closer attention to her was actually due to a promise he made to Victoria.
Thinking about it carefully, Silvia realized that compared to her, Senior Greg seemed even closer to Victoria.
Even though she was a Messenger of the Goddess just like him, even though she was constantly working hard to help, even though earlier... he had truly saved her and seemed so worried...
Why did it feel like Senior Greg's gaze, his attention, and his special actions were always directed more toward Victoria?
Victoria was her most important friend, and Senior Greg was someone she respected and was grateful to.
She should be happy that they got along so well.
Yet at this moment, what was this lingering, sour ache of disappointment deep in her heart?
Silvia unconsciously bit her lower lip and lowered her head, avoiding Greg's gaze.
She didn't want Greg to notice her strange mood. It would make her seem immature and... narrow-minded.
“What's wrong? Are you still feeling unwell?”
Seeing her fall silent and bow her head, Greg assumed she was still shaken by what had just happened or feeling physically unwell.
“N-Nothing at all!”
Silvia hurriedly shook her head, forcing a smile that looked natural:
“I'm fine, Senior Greg. Let's... keep going. I'll stay close behind you.”
She tried her best to cheer up, but that inexplicable empty feeling in her heart wasn't so easily dispelled.
If Greg knew what she was thinking, he would probably laugh his head off.
What do you mean, I'm closer to that gray-haired brat?
You should know my Excalibur is still glowing right now because of you!
Of course, the present Greg had no idea what was going through her mind.
Though he felt her smile was a bit forced, he simply assumed she hadn't fully recovered from the fright and didn't pry further, merely reminding her once more:
“If you feel anything wrong or if your mana consumption gets too high, tell me right away.”
“Mm, I understand,” Silvia answered softly, following behind Greg as they headed toward the middle layers' entrance that emanated an ominous aura.
Her gaze, however, drifted between Greg's tall, vigilant back and the void of darkness, looking somewhat absentminded.
Rate on N.U.
