Cursed Villainess' Obsession-Chapter 52

Those who cleared the tower could obtain ancient artifacts.

And those artifacts supposedly held the power of the gods, capable of changing the past.

This was a legend every citizen of the Lillias Kingdom would know.

Thus, Adrian treated my words as nonsense.

“You’re being foolish. That tower has stood for 400 years, yet no one has reached its peak.”

His reaction was understandable.

According to the setting, it was possible to obtain a legendary artifact, but the clearing was also set up to be impossible.

So naturally, no one would have reached the tower's end.

But that was history in this world.

As a player of the game, I had—

I had reached the final floor of that tower.

So, I confidently responded to the negative Adrian.

“Just because no one has reached it doesn’t mean it’s impossible.”

“...Even if you can reach the top of the tower, why should I believe you can do it?”

“I understand that it’s hard to trust me. But remember this.”

I may not be very reliable with my diminished credibility.

“I’m someone who has died and come back to life.”

“……”

He was aware of the recent infiltration of the Demon King’s army.

And he likely knew that I had died during that incident.

After all, he was the one who informed Emily about my death.

He had seen it for himself—my cold, lifeless body.

That wasn’t an illusion or magic; it was my actual corpse.

But I had come back to life.

That was an undeniable fact.

“...Is it really possible to reach it? …The top of that tower?”

Adrian still looked skeptical as he asked.

Though he couldn’t believe it, he surely wanted to.

Humans are beings easily captivated by miracles.

He wished to protect this kingdom.

And if he could reach the top of the tower, clear the labyrinth, and change the past, there would be no safer way to protect the kingdom from the Demon King.

That’s why I nodded firmly.

“Just believe in me this once. I will show you a miracle.”

Adrian remained silent, his expression unreadable as he watched me with crossed arms and closed eyes.

After a moment, he finally spoke.

“Then how do you plan to organize the party? Are you seriously thinking of going alone?”

“Of course not. …You’re the first person I’ve told this to, but I plan to bring Raphne with me.”

While I was away, there was a possibility that the Demon King’s army might invade the academy.

I couldn’t leave Raphne here.

Above all, she was someone I needed to protect, and she was also one of the academy's strongest.

She had to accompany me in our assault on the tower.

Adrian nodded in response to that.

“I understand. Then I’ll go with you.”

“...Huh?”

“Why are you so surprised? I have a mission to protect Raphne from the Demon King. If she’s going, I must go too.”

Thinking it over, that made sense.

There was a chance that if I wasn’t careful, I could lose Raphne during our journey. Even though I had died and come back to life, I would still be anxious about that.

In that case, it was an even better proposal.

Adrian’s abilities were exceptional, so having him with me would make clearing the tower much easier.

“Then let’s plan to leave a month from now.”

“Why a month?”

“I’ll send a letter to the royal palace to get permission. I’ll explain that I’ll be away from the academy. You gather the people and let me know.”

“Understood.”

With that, Adrian joined my plans.

Now, there was a month left until our journey to the tower.

The next day, after discussing my plans with Adrian, I shared the news of my upcoming journey with the people I had built friendships with.

When they heard about it, the most shocked were Emily and Mary.

Raphne, who already knew, simply listened quietly.

“What’s going on?”

Ziegfried, who had been silently listening, finally spoke up.

The people gathered here were the same ones I had assembled during the mansion raid.

In response to Ziegfried's question, I explained the challenge of the tower.

Of course, I omitted the fact that Raphne was the Child of Prophecy. I simply stated that I needed to clear the tower and was going on a journey for that purpose.

After my explanation, a brief silence followed.

“Then I want to go too…”

Emily quietly declared, clenching her fists.

“You’re saying you want to go? You just heard where we’re going. It’s a dangerous place.”

“No, that’s exactly why I should go. I can’t let Ken face danger alone!”

“Yeah, I think the same. I want to go too.”

Mary also declared quietly with a serious expression.

Both of them showed strong determination and appeared unwilling to bend.

Then Ziegfried, who had been silently observing with his arms crossed, spoke up.

“I’ve heard that no one has conquered that tower yet. Surely, it’s filled with dangerous monsters.”

“...Yes.”

Indeed, as the tower's floors rose, stronger monsters appeared.

Most notably, the ancient dragon Tarros awaited at the top of the tower.

I had thought of some methods to deal with it, but it was certainly a dangerous opponent.

“Then I’ll go with you.”

“Ziegfried, you too?”

“Zig?”

His words surprised not only me but also Ellie beside him.

They hadn’t expected him to suggest going along.

“Zig…! Why would you want to go to such a dangerous place…!”

“Because it’s dangerous, I can’t let Ken go alone. I’ll go with you.”

He smiled faintly as he continued.

“You said it’s a month away, right? ...I’ll train hard during that time, so prepare yourself, Ken.”

“...Yeah!”

It seemed impossible to refuse the three of them.

At first, I had considered suggesting it, but since it was indeed a dangerous tower, I had intended for Raphne and me to go alone.

But if they wanted to join me for my sake, it was honestly a great comfort.

Emily, Mary, and now Ziegfried.

With them as companions, the plan to conquer the tower would surely progress more smoothly than I had initially thought.

“Then I’ll need to study the recovery magic I just obtained.”

“Ken, if you need any help preparing for the journey, I’m here to assist with whatever you need.”

As soon as the trip was confirmed, Emily and Mary began to formulate plans, each with their determination.

In the end, what started as informing them of my journey transformed into a planning session for the trip.

“Wow~ This is truly touching. I’ll be wishing you safety from afar!”

Alicia, who had simply been listening in, waved her hand playfully.

While having her along could certainly be beneficial, it seemed she wasn’t interested in challenges like conquering the tower.

“Alright, then I’ll make sure to pray for your safe return.”

Not intending to drag her along, I lightly patted Alicia’s head.

With the party members decided and a month of preparation ahead of us.

The members who had chosen to join the journey seemed to be preparing in their own ways.

I couldn’t just sit back and relax either.

“What are you planning to make this time?”

As I sat down at the workbench, Raphne approached and asked.

She naturally draped an arm over my neck and leaned against my back.

Since the day I had revealed my true feelings, it felt like the intensity of our physical contact had increased.

Even though I had asked her not to be too stimulating.

Her warm body pressed against my back, and as she rested her head beside mine, I could smell her pleasant fragrance.

‘No, I need to focus and calm down.’

I needed to get used to this.

Right now, I had to concentrate on crafting.

I gathered various tools on the workbench and prepared to start.

The destination for this journey was a dungeon-type tower.

Fights were bound to occur inside the tower, and we couldn’t avoid battles during the journey either.

Of course, with Ziegfried, Raphne, and also Mary and Adrian with us, the field monsters would be easy to handle.

But I still wanted to be helpful.

With a month left, the only thing I could prepare was one thing.

“I’m going to make equipment for Raphne and the others.”

Thanks to the surge of magical power I had recently obtained, gathering materials had become much easier.

Anything I lacked could now be compensated for with magic.

“Oh? You’re making my equipment too?”

Raphne seemed oddly delighted at the thought of me crafting gear.

“Do you have any particular preferences? A weapon you’re accustomed to, perhaps?”

“Hmmm… I use all kinds of weapons well. …Hehe, just make whatever comes to your mind. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

It seemed she wanted to enjoy the thrill of waiting without knowing the outcome.

Alright then, I’ll focus on crafting a weapon suited for Raphne.

To be honest, I hadn’t seen her use a weapon much.

Even when she had, it was mostly when she held a dagger during our little conflict with Ziegfried.

In the game, she had used a practice sword, but outside of that, it was all hand-to-hand combat.

As I briefly pondered over a suitable weapon for her, I suddenly had an idea.

“…Ah.”

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A material that suddenly came to mind paired perfectly with a weapon concept.

“Alright, let’s get started! Raphne, can you light a fire for me?”

“Sure!”

And for a while, the sound of hammering echoed through the tower.