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Chapter 434: Follow your Desires. [Release Version]
🕑 Added 2023-07-12 04:05:49 +0000 UTC____________________________________________________________
Name: Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor Level: 112 Unique Job: Idol Tyrant Fledgling
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Name: Tatsuya Nagata Level: 97 Unique Job: Overclocker
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Name: Kyouya Ishigami Level: 97 Unique Job: Black Bulwark
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Name: Asaka Hanazawa Level: 84 Unique Job: Twilight Novice
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Name: Tasianna Marina Silverpond Level: 104 Unique Job: Ice Fairy
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Name: Ellaine Fiero Helvas Level: 100 Unique Job: Lust Squire
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Name: Grimnir Luedbrumdar Level: 98 Unique Job: Mechanoid Learner
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Name: Shayatierus Level: 107 Unique Job: Frostwind Guard
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Name: Bethlieranha Level: 106 Unique Job: Froststream Guard
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Name: Fargryneill Qilinus Kargryxmor Level: 118 Unique Job: Esoteric Tyrant Fist
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Name: Nishio Kudo Level: 94 Unique Job: Novice of Five
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Name: Misaki Kawano Level: 92 Unique Job: Yumi Ashigaru
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Name: Kohaku Koboyashi Level: 93 Unique Job: Runeslayer Ronin
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Name: Kazumi Hoshino Level: 92 Unique Job: Shinobi Gunner
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Name: Kushlek’zar Level: 115 Unique Job: Aelozonian Summoner
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Name: Krim-Slak Level: 118 Unique Job: Primal Defier
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Name: Grazlahta Level: 118 Unique Job: Primal Guide
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Name: Akasht Level: 118 Unique Job: Croc Charger
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Name: Yorshka Sirris Nordor Level: 137 Unique Job: Silverdust Lancer
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Name: Farron Nordor Level: 124 Unique Job: Greifsword
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“‘Shinobi gunner?’” I stared at one of the unique Jobs, furrowing my brows in confusion at the strange combinations of words. I looked over at the person in question.
Kazumi—who had her [Beastialize] active to look like a katzune—wagged her cat ears, looking flustered as she pulled out a gun from her [Storage Magic]. If this were a normal get-together inside a hot spring, some cat girl pulling out her iron would probably scare quite a ton of people, but most of us just watched this scene without giving an f.
Even if she accidentally shot somebody, with everybody’s stats and skills, it would probably chunk a bit of health that I could heal in a matter of seconds. The only people who were worried were Haruka, Tamae, and Fleindia. The former two were non-combatants with low levels who hadn’t just dived into a murder dungeon, while the latter hadn’t seen a gun before, and it was more like reserved curiosity.
“What is that?” Fleindia asked, before he eyes widened a bit. “Oh wait, that looks like a mana cannon!”
Water crashed and splashed as the Saintess stood up, nearly stepping out of the hot spring if I hadn’t blocked her path with my wing.
This allowed Kazumi to explain, “You can pretty much call it a mana cannon, yeah, Miss Saintess. A handheld version our blacksmith made since it’s a staple back on Earth, well, in certain countries. Not ours. This ‘gun’ makes me pretty much an archer, in a sense.”
This “gun” was more like a one-handed, one-barreled shotgun when it came to the design and function. Made with heavy alloys, I could see Kazumi struggling to hold the weapon up with one hand, but once mana began pulsating through it, and its runes began to activate, she seemed to have less issue lifting it, the magic probably lowering its weight if I had to guess.
With her gun now wieldable, Kazumi had her best friend, Kohaku, throw two hand-sized stones from the surrounding into the air. Like a western gunslinger, Kazumi snapped her aim at one and shot it down, causing it to explode into pebbles. Instead of shooting again, she pulled out another gun and used it to shoot the second down, thinking she looked cool with her akimbo style pose.
Uh, hello?
Putting aside the fact she thought posing while naked was anywhere cool, the pebble rain about to come down on us was my utmost concern. However, before I could send my mana out, Beth stood up and blew all of it away with her wings and ice breath, sending them flying away … and over the wooden fence separating the women’s section from the men’s.
“Kruaaark!” A lizard’s cry could be heard from the other side. We had multiple scalekin in our party, but there was only a single one currently in the bath and was male.
[“What is the meaning of this!”] It was Shay, and he didn’t sound too happy.
I looked over at Beth and Kazumi, both frozen in place with their jaws hanging down. Neither wanted to speak, causing the awkward air to spread to everybody else as nobody wanted to speak up. Nobody wanted to experience the rage of an ice wyvern. As such, it had to be me—his master’s daughter.
[“I’m sorry for that,”] I spoke through [Telepathy] as it was far easier to speak like this than through my stammering voice.
[“My princess, all I wish is to rest!”]
Oooorgh! The guilt is stabbing me!
Maybe the heat was getting to us, but I think most of us felt second-hand embarrassment ‘casue of that incident. I say most since Neill and Vifi were pretty much unaffected by this. Regardless, it caused us all to turn quiet, so we just all decided to actually enjoy the warm water instead of engaging in more girl talk.
After some time had passed, noise erupted on the men’s side, where I heard Tatsuya, Kyouya, Master, and the other men from our party. They were rambunctious, loudly proclaiming their success in their recent dungeon dive and how wild it would have gotten if Master and the saurians hadn’t helped the boys. Kazumi and the girls quickly informed me the students had just returned from a leveling session, where the girls came back first while the boys sold any of the materials they gained.
Money!
“Right, you guys have been leveling a lot in the past weeks. Thanks for getting those materials while I was working on the summit stuff, guys.” I gave everybody a thumbs up, making sure to remind everybody I appreciated them.
“The money part is our issue, too,” Tamae responded. “Honestly, re-opening the bistro and restaurant had been pretty chill considering it’s more peaceful than all the chaos that happened during this month. Whooo, although the customers from Artorias and Estralia had been complaining that you weren't around.”
I shrugged. “They’re starting to sound like stans …”
Our sub-space hosting our bistro and restaurant did mean we could connect people from multiple nations together into one area as long as we have our portals set up in those locations. Griffonpeak, Firwood, Cedaraille, Phaleisha, and Ullistar from Artorias, Gleisvale from Estralia, and now we also have Inkoran-Tazul.
However, in two weeks, news can spread around pretty fast if you have merchants and adventurers going around, retelling everything that happened. Even without them, you had people with manabirds, sending information for money like the messenger birds from medieval Earth. People knew what happened in this city, and the fact people saw me fighting during the last fight against Maagneil meant my fans back in Artorias wanted to see me more often.
It was essentially stardom. People wanted to hear me and I felt terrible as I couldn’t give it to them with how busy I was.
Hearing me sigh, the girls who didn’t join the summit suddenly had this realization to ask me about it.
Haruka was the first. “Oh right, speaking of which, we can talk about the unique Jobs later but what about the talks? Did everything work out?”
I shook my head. “I had an epiphany during the talks so I tweaked my speech and decision a bit, but I still argued against the full-out war. I switch it over to a ‘faith war,’ where I actually do what Aurena reincarnated me for—gain fans.”
“We got three of the countries on our side—Loatryx being one of them. The other three knew exactly the cons for Hestia’s plan, but the fact they didn’t outright denounce her plan without an argument meant they understood and could sympathize with the goal of this faith war,” Neill added.
“That’s good!” From the other side, I could hear Nishio shout. “I guess you got Yeos and Estralia on our side as we planned, Hestia-san?”
“Yeah! They owed me the most, after all, and with me actually giving a proper argument, especially the part about Kramps’s oath, Loatryx quickly followed along. We just miscalculated about Artorias.”
“Politically speaking, it was just the correct move.” Everybody in the women’s section turned around to the entrance of the hot spring, noticing another person had joined up—Asaka. The blue-haired girl, hiding her figure with a towel, sighed as she walked over to the shower. “They had two options—would I lose the most from going against Princess Hestia or King Fugnarus I had been in contact with for so long? You put him in a tough situation.”
“Finally using your parent’s teaching for once, Asaka-san?” Nishio commented, sounding a bit sarcastic.
“Oh, shut it.” Asaka blushed, but he was right, as this was the first time Asaka actually participated in our diplomacy talks. As the daughter of two career politicians, her opinion was valuable. “You guys really forgot that my parents only trained me after my brother died, right? Not like I know enough to speak all the time. Four-eyes and Kazumi, or just Ellaine, are better to talk with … It’s just logic. I don’t need to be there to guess.”
She was right. As somebody who was there, I saw how long King Drangleic had to speak with his advisors and queen to finalize their choice. I was being forceful with my argumentations, to the point I threatened to go against their alliance if they went with a full-out war, but it was the correct move here to push my position and agenda forward. Show King Elutis and King Fugnarus I wouldn’t tolerate them pushing their own motives for the war.
Surprisingly, though, when I told this to everybody, including the men on the other side by raising my voice up a bit, multiple people disagreed with me.
“You can’t just start the first day of the summit like that! That’s just weakening our position here,” Nishio chastised me. “You aren’t in a peace talk with some enemy faction, you are speaking with the people who are supposed to help you with our goals, Hestia-san! People who will send their soldiers to sacrifice their lives to help us go back to Earth. This isn’t being diplomatic!”
“He’s right!” Kazumi agreed. “At the end of the day, you’re supposed to make sure the alliance is formed, not throw it into disarray by dividing the group. I bet all of them are currently talking about what happened today. The next day will just get worse for you, because they will be trying to persuade you now. They have to.”
“It is more complicated than that.” During all of this, I suddenly heard Master’s voice. “The nation’s needs must be upheld, which means pride in this instance. I am sure King Fugnarus and King Drangleic, of all people, are not furious with you, my apprentice. They know you, they fought with you, and they know your goals. It was wise of you to not deny them a war, as inaction on a casus belli this serious will ruin their standings, causing strife within their borders. All of you must not look at this as a one-dimensional proposition from her; she took the first step, now we must all talk to take the second and third step.”
Master!
“However.” That sudden word just caused my heart to stop for a moment. “Regardless of the outcome of day one, I do have to point out the fact you ‘had an epiphany.’ Hestia, at the end of the day I am simply a humble priest, but even I must remind you that as a princess acting as a mediator, you have the power of an individual on your shoulders. We all know politically you do not have much power, and you rightfully pointed out that you have reputational power, in the form of your followers, but you forget your status as a rank B dragon whelpling. That last part is the important fact, Hestia. In a diplomatic setting, your strength as an individual and Aurora is equally as important as everything else in your arguments.”
“I’m not trying to attack any of them. I am not speaking with enemies here, Master,” I replied, but that only caused him to sound even more disappointed.
“Hestia. Recall what Miss Kazumi just said, ‘form the alliance, don’t throw it into disarray.’ Your status as a Champion of Aurena with the ability to cancel out demonic abilities through your songs, a full arsenal of spells and abilities that as your Master makes me proud, and the fact you are the only reason Princess Fargryneill, Vifi, and I are planning to fight against Aureolis.”
I know about the other two, but even you Master? Does all of this not concern you?
“The goal of the Depth Serpents is to bring criminals to justice for our people,” one of Master’s party members, Krim-Slak, spoke up. “We need money to assure that the other saurians from Aelozonia can make it to the mainland. Every bit of Davi we can afford is sent back to Caedhul, where it it invested into the immigration and housing for our people.”
Grazlahta, the other carnosilian, agreed. “Divine Quests, of course, are different. God Xohulotel decided to bless Kush, and who are we to ignore his guidance, especially when it led us to fight with you, young scale? Now though, if it weren’t for the fact that we are friends and you are Kush’s apprentice, would you think we would raise our axes against another religion to solve their problems they have left festering for years? Caedhul made the correct choice to stay out.”
“Saintess Fleindia,” Master called. “Even you must be wary of this ‘faith war,’ correct?”
“… Goodness, this is actually turning into my usual hot spring visits.” That flag she put down actually came true; our calming hot spring moment turned serious. “I’ve already given my opinion on the subject to her, and I would lie if I don’t have my own fears on the possibility of a civil war. The Empire could collapse … but at the same time, I am scared that it would happen regardless of the choice. Whether this ‘faith war’ happens or the all-out war, both would lead to the Empire most likely shrinking, or even imploding. If that is the case, then I would rather stay on the side that assures the most lives are saved.”
“I see. You speak the truth. With all the mistakes the Empire has made in the last several years, and especially during this one, it is inevitable. King Elutis, I expect, knows this with the birth of Hestia. She is the signal fire. He could not lead the Empire into total destruction in the last war; peace was made because it was clear the elves and dwarves didn’t have the armies to fully invade.”
[“So the elf is using our grace,”] Shay stated, sounding furious. [“The nerve … It is as I said before, my princess, your conviction in this matter is the most important. You need to lead these rulers, assure they follow your plan.”]
Urgh, his last speech sounded so much more motivating. This time, it sounds so stuffy. Why does it feel so hot! All of this talking is starting to get—
“Nonsense!”
A boy’s voice interrupted everybody, piercing through everything and even this dizzy feeling I was having. It was Tatsuya.
“I understand Hestia is doing all of this because she is the Champion in this matter, but does it not get on anybody’s nerves? The discussion we had prior to the summit was done just like the one in Griffonpeak after we all joined. We gave her tips, helped her on what to say, and so on. It wasn’t anything special, but now when she made a mistake on the matter because she followed what she thought was correct, and all we’re saying is ‘do better!’” His irritated voice turned into a growl, almost as if he had transformed into his werewolf form. “This is just like the church! Putting everything in the basket on us just to send us out to solve their war! I know it’s all a lie and that what we’re doing has a very big impact on us, but why exactly aren’t we all doing more ourselves? Daisy is an idiot for leaving us, but at the very least, he knows he can’t just leave everything to his cousin!”
Tatsuya …
“You’re annoying, dude,” Neill suddenly interrupted him. “But, you got a point. I know I should have said something more. I know I should have done more than to just smile and to add onto what my sister said, but … it’s not like I’m trained for this kinda stuff either.”
I thought she had a ton of moxie during the discussion, even acting a bit antagonistic here and there to help me build my arguments. We discussed this prior, but now you’re telling me she was nervous during the whole thing.
“I’ve never, ever felt this exhausted since my first meeting with those dragonslayers. Not even years of bone-breaking training from my mother was as intensive as the fact that so many people’s lives are in our hands. I would rather just command an army like in Elyonda; at least I know then, I can influence things by punching some bastard. Here? Who am I supposed to punch? Myself for being unable to do anything but support my sister because we discussed it like that? Why didn’t I have an epiphany like my younger sister?”
She leaned back on the hot spring’s edge, sinking her head into the hot water until she blew some bubbles. Slightly rose up, just enough to speak. “But, all of you should have seen how she spoke. Carried herself with full confidence that she could persuade everybody. I get what you mean, Tatsuya, that we should be helping more. But it’s just as Kushlek’zard said, I wouldn’t be here agonizing about solving something I can’t just punch or kick, if it wasn’t for my sister. I wouldn’t be speaking up against the dragonewts if I didn’t know Hestia’s goals. Haaaaa …”
“… It’s hard,” Kohaku chimed in, but didn’t say much else, only staring at the water with a sullen look.
It was a moment of silence for everybody, until somebody unexpected broke it.
“I personally think she made the correct move.” Vifi drew everybody’s attention as she leaned her arm on the edge, sitting far away from everybody else. “All this talk about her acting on impulse, criticizing it as if it’s some bad thing. In that stressful environment, not only did she manage to speak up but also continued arguing against actual politicians. If I’m following anybody into battle, I want them to have a head on their shoulders while also having the heart to follow up on their desires. You want her to act differently, you step up and walk the walk!”
She stood up. “I can see it in all your eyes. ‘Why is this demonkin speaking up like this?’ I can say this ‘cause even if I hurt some weakling’s feelings here or there, it won’t change our dynamic in this party. You’ll continue to be scared, and I can continue eating my donuts with that peace in mind. The dragon took the first step, as the Plesia Saint said, and that is fact. Even our indomitable Lord Wrath needs three Warbringers for him to properly act as a general. Where are Hestia’s ‘Warbringers?’ She doesn’t just need help with fighting, she also needs support from the back.”
‘You kept your promise,’ that’s what you said, right? Are you helping me here?
As she was about to leave, she turned around one last time. “Follow your desire. You can feel bad after it’s done, but if you don’t grab the opportunity, you might just regret it later on.”
Is that how you feel about all of this?
“I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t done the same,” Ellaine spoke up. “The only reason why I am part of Aurora is because I finally decided to do what I wanted, instead of worrying about my inability to do so. Vifi is right. We all have our own responsibility here, and even if it is hard, taking the first step is the important part.”
I stood up from the hot spring, walking out to everybody’s surprise. Why? ‘Cause I remembered what happened the last time I just stood still like what Ellaine said. I died. I killed myself as I couldn’t accept my inability to become that idealized idol version of mine, instead of taking up streaming my performances on the internet like so many other performers.
Even if I made a mistake, I still took the correct step forward in this world—my second chance to become an idol. Even if Master was right, even if Nishio was correct, even if what Kazumi said made sense. What was done was done.
My mind finally felt clear. Elutis and Fleindia were correct about being apprehensive about my decision, but I stood by what I said and did. It was like what Master said in the beginning, the step was taken, I now had to continue walking. What was the answer to this? Easy, to do what I was born into this world for, and to use this to prove my plan could work.
I felt that itch to perform.
“Wait!” I turned around, seeing Haruka, Neill, and Ellaine stand up. The former handed me the tablet back. “You’re going out, right? I need to continue testing the streaming function of the recorder; will you let me film you?”
She could read my mind.
“I’ll be using my role as your guardian to take over the mediator role. The summit won’t end soon because of what you did, but that damn bitch is right, I need to finally do something. If you can act like a princess, then I should be able to do the same! I am Fargryneill Qilinus Kargryxmor, second princess of Kargryx; why am I afraid of speaking!” Sis declared. Her competitive ego was stroked by Vifi. “Leave the next few days to me. I’ll keep the ball rolling. You do you! Fuck those old farts; if the avalanche is already happening, all they can do is ride it down!”
Ellaine nodded. “I think I know what you are trying to do here, which means we should get going on the advertisements and merchandise, right? I’ll get Amelia and our families back to work to assure you have the pastries and clothing to attract as many people as possible! We’ll recoup the cost of our debts, and you can start gaining the followers needed for this ‘faith war.’”
I was left speechless. I hadn’t said a single word, but all three of them already knew what to do.
“We’ll get to it!” Tamae did the same, standing up from the hot spring to work. “Food, right? You can’t always do those performances even if you’re on tour, so actually join the bistro and restaurant for some easy singing.”
“It’s a deal! Concerts need time to prepare, anyways, so I’m okay with that!” I smiled, unable to stop the edges of my mouth from growing wider and wider. “I’ll leave a pair of stones here with Neill, while the rest of us board the RV and fast travel aro—”
“Uhm, what should we do?” Kohaku suddenly asked, followed by Kazumi looking at us sheepishly.
I tilted my head. “Uuuh, how about you two join me on the stage? Tasianna and Ellaine can’t always perform, so having some more people would be great!”
“O-oh, well, we can’t sin—” they were about to reply, before Asaka suddenly interrupted them.
“Leave it to me. I have an idea where we can use the two’s talents.” She then turned to Misaki, who had been quiet up until now. “And you?”
“… I’ll keep shooting,” she stated. “I’ll visit Saint Azelfa. I’ll make up for my lack of skills through bowmanship.”
Having one or two snipers wouldn’t hurt. As we did lack super long-range attacks aside from me and Vifi, I left Misaki to do what she believed was the correct choice.
“Then, Saintess Fleindia!” I grabbed her and pulled her out. “That means you’ll get my full attention!”
“E-eh?”
With Beth following behind us, Ellaine, Neill, Haruka, Tamae, Fleindia, and I left the hot spring, quickly cooled ourselves with a cool shower, before dressing. Once we were outside, our discussion on how to execute everything stopped when I saw Master standing before me. He was stroking the feathers on his head.
“Don’t forget, mages need to be cool of mind and reserved … Say we do go with this faith war idea and we then pivot it into our strike force idea to kill the Prince of Envy once he is exposed. How will you do it with Melloxtressa still asleep?”
“… You’re worried about the other Prince of Sins?”
He nodded. “Regardless if the Prince of Envy became deranged or not, would they leave one of their members to die? Maybe to replace him with somebody else, or maybe their camaraderie will push them through. If the worst were to happen, or if the Prince’s sin heirs were to protect him, what will you do then? Do you have a plan then?”
“I haven’t thought it through that far …” I admitted. There was no point in lying or deflecting right now.
Master nodded once again, but this time smiled. “I understand … Then you concentrate on what you have to do. Leave the summit to your sister for now to take the second and third step. We’ll make sure to give her the support she needs.”
That felt … a bit underwhelming, honestly. Master took immense pride in being my teacher, and that meant he usually had a lesson here or there to lecture me about. It happened when we first met and had our reunion in Elyonda. He looked pensive even, looking not at me, but staring at what seemed like nothing.
This felt … unnerving. “Master, you are acting strange. What’s on your mind?”
He stroked his chin. “… How to assure we all survive.”
With those words, Master left us, returning with his room while the other saurians went to get their meal. I was considering speaking to him again, but when I knocked on his door, nobody answered and I learned afterward from Lorena that she saw him leaving the subspace. He did come back later, but drunk, accompanied by an equally inebriated Grimnir who had just finished his meeting at the railroad guild.
Maybe Master was equally stressed out by everything and just needed a break?
In any case, next morning, my guess seemed to have come true as he was back to his jolly nature. I didn’t pursue the matter any longer as we were back to the same old training sessions he usually gave me. This time it was just fine tuning my control over [Hydra] and [Sun, Consume All], while he tested out his custom spells.
Neill, as expected, went to the summit, accompanied by Ellaine and Shay, while I was left to my own devices, finally getting a chance to just take a break instead of doing something important. As such, it was finally time for me to test out something I’ve been longing to use for a while now. There was still one more day for the next concert I was planning, so I wanted to get this done now so I could focus on other things.
<Mimic Golem’s Mana Core: A core of a mimic golem still intact and able to house a vessel. This one in particular allows the creation of a [Monster Room Mimic]>
And …
<Evolution Points: 30/30>
<You may evolve your unique Job. Please evolve it to re-obtain the ability to level up your development Jobs! Enjoy the Prestige Points!>
Comments
You are right. I had the Pokemon Fledgling in mind when I wrote this
TimeDrawsNigh
Idol Tyrant Fletchling Should be Fledgling, no?
:D
brunoid
Thanks for the chapter!
