Reborn as a Weak Earthling, I Became the Most Overpowered Mage Alive-Chapter 53: Ch : Seraphina

[Oh no-! The people of this world are being ruled by an evil dictator. But worry not. Brave knights have stepped forward everywhere to take down the evil of this world and restore peace. Please help them out as much as you can.]

[Game 9 objective - Choose a knight to be your game master and help them take down the current queen. Players can also choose to side with the queen and defend their side. Once a new queen is chosen, that side will win.]

"Looks like this is an open-ended game. Well, it seems like my game quest and your game quest align."

Andrew pointed out as he looked at the system prompt.

The overly flowy prompt at the start did feel out of place, but it somehow suited the dramatic puppet who had made such a creative and imaginative world around them just for a game.

"Well, that’s good. According to my quest, I need to secure players. What about you?"

Seraphina asked, and Andrew took another look at his system quest menu.

"I need to meet the shoe-maker and find a map of this place. How many companions do you need by your side? I might be able to help you out."

Andrew asked Seraphina, and she quickly replied to him.

"I need at least four, but there is no upper limit. Do you have anyone in mind?"

She asked, and Andrew nodded.

"I do have a few companions I am partying with in this body. They are a lot of help to me, and I am sure they will be a lot of help to you as well. Are you willing to trust me on this?"

Andrew asked Seraphina, offering his hand to her. He was not forcing her to take his hand, but giving her an offer she could not refuse.

Seraphina looked at Andrew’s hand with an almost bitter look on her face before she bit her lip and extended her hand to take his.

"It wounds my pride to rely on someone else like this, but I am not foolish enough to think I can do this alone either. Also, I am not fully convinced that you are the same Andrew I knew from Arcane, but I am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt."

Seraphina finally agreed, and a tentative situationship was formed. There was a sudden spark when the two touched hands, and they quickly pulled back.

Before they could talk about what happened, a guard headed their way.

"Hey you-! Are you pretending to be on duty? What are you doing standing around for? Don’t you know that blocking the queen’s path is a punishable offense?"

The guard reminded them, and Seraphina quickly pulled herself together.

"You are right. I was just escorting this offender to prison on these charges. Please allow me to fulfil my duty."

The guard gave Seraphina a searching look. But because it was a game and he was coded like an NPC, he did not question her logic any further.

"Alright. Then make sure you give him the maximum sentence when you put him behind bars."

The guard told Seraphina, and she nodded before she grabbed Andrew’s arm and pulled him behind her.

For a whole minute, Andrew was sure he was going to get locked up by Seraphina to keep up appearances.

But she did not take him to jail, but to the shoe-maker.

"Here, this is where you wanted to come, right? Finish your quest and come back soon."

She told Andrew before she looked at her own system screen.

Andrew allowed her this privacy, and he entered the shoe-maker’s shop.

As happy as he was to see Seraphina and interact with her, he was not foolish enough to trust her outright. The system would not have saved her just because it wanted to be cute.

’Is Seraphina... truly someone I can trust?’

There was a time in Andrew’s life when he would have never questioned her intentions or her trust. But now, he had to be cautious of her every word and action.

"Welcome, dear traveler. What can I help you with?"

The shoe-maker asked, cutting into Andrew’s thoughts, and Andrew quickly broke out of them. He could think about Seraphina later when he had time. Right now, he had a game to play.

"I am here because I wanted to buy shoes. Do you also carry a map of this world?"

Andrew asked, and the shoe-maker’s eyes shined brightly.

"Why, of course. We carry shoes as well as the map you can use to visit these places while wearing these shoes. Here are your items."

[You have found a map]

[You have found ceremonial shoes. Items will allow users to enter hidden dungeons and secret passages around the map.]

Both items were not marked on the map, so Andrew immediately decided to press the shoe-maker.

"Is this really all there is to the map? You said that these shoes are special, right? Then surely you must know of a few ’special’ places I can walk into while wearing these shoes, right?"

Andrew asked in a smiling voice, and the shoe-maker tensed immediately.

"W-What do you mean? You can walk anywhere and everywhere with these shoes. You don’t have to go to any special place with them."

The shoe-maker emphasized this again, not expecting his customer to grill him like this.

"Hmm, are you sure about this? I can always buy shoes from another shop if you don’t want to tell me. You are not my only option...."

Andrew waited a few seconds, and the shoe-maker snapped.

"Alright, I will sell you the additional map. But please, do not tell anyone about this. I will get in trouble if people know I am selling the kingdom’s secrets."

The shoe-maker told Andrew before his map got updated.

[You have found an advanced map of the area. You can now access hidden dungeons and passageways.]

"Thank you, shoe-maker. I will make sure no one knows what you did for me."

Andrew assured him, and the shoe-maker gave him a tentative smile.

"I hope that is the case, for both of our sakes."

The shoe-maker told Andrew before he exited the shop and found Seraphina looking at the system screen with a blank expression on her face.

She looked lost in the moment, and Andrew coughed to get her attention back.

Seraphina immediately closed her system screen and paid attention to him.

"Are you done? Did you get the map of this place?"

She asked, and Andrew nodded.

She waited for him to ask her something, but Andrew did not ask her anything else.