S-Class Dungeon’s Mistress - Chapter 137

Is it possible with just practice? No, more than that. You practiced to greet me? Adelaide still looked surprised and stared at Cereza. Pia, who was standing right next to her, said with a smile.

“Right. She came out to receive healing regularly, and practiced so much. Thanks to you, Cereza, for giving me motivation.”

“It’s all thanks to you Pia. As soon as you became aware of Cereza’s disability, you offered to treat her. Because you treated her every day without fail, she started talking little by little not too long after. It’s a miracle. In the past, I couldn’t even dream of getting one session of treatment because it was so expensive. How can I ever repay this favor?….”

Cerezo looked at Pia with twinkling eyes. Pia waved her hand saying it was only natural, but Cerezo repeated that he really wanted to repay her. Raham grabbed Pia with a somewhat wary expression.

Of course, Pia, clueless about the situation of the two men around her, continued explaining to Adelaide.

“I asked her why she wanted to learn, well, Cereza seems to be regretful because she wasn’t able to answer every time Master greeted her until now. She immediately asked me to teach her how to say hello. After that, she practiced arduously over and over again, and I guess she thought it was finally time to talk.”

“Hello, Adele.”

Cereza spoke again. Her words were the same, but it was more meaningful when Adelaide realized the effort she had put in to be able to say it, as well as her reason for saying it now and not this morning. Cereza wanted to comfort Adelaide.

Adelaide bit her lip. She then slowly wrapped her arms around Cereza.

“Thank you for saying hello, Cereza. Thank you for giving me strength.”

Cereza blushed faintly and nodded her head, seemingly shy from holding her hand. Adelaide also followed her, nodding her head and smiling broadly.

It’s not that the wall that had collapsed was rebuilt from her greeting. It wasn’t. Stones that fell off the wall were still rolling down Adelaide’s chest, and it would take a lot of time and effort to build them up again.

However, Cereza’s gloomy greeting became one of the first stones to be laid.

If Adelaide were to be asked which part of the wall-building process was the most difficult, she would choose ‘laying down the first stone’ without hesitation. Cereza has helped her with the most difficult task. So, from now on, all she had to do was raise another stone step by step.

* * *

That night, in the first living space. Lisianthus and Lupinus, who were lying in their beds after getting ready to sleep, felt a strange presence and immediately ran out of their rooms. They ran into a demon with a suspicious appearance.

Donning black pants, a black shirt, and a black cloak, it was a demon clad in black from head to toe. It was Adelaide.

“Adele. What are you wearing? In the middle of the night at that.”

“Adela, are you…….”

Adelaide replaced her answer with an awkward hesitant laugh. She was afraid that this would happen, so she hid her presence as best she could. She still lacked skills to deceive Lisianthus and Lupinus. But that was natural though.

“Are you going out to find Caladium?”

Lupinus asked softly with a frown. Lisianthus stared at her with sunken unfamiliar eyes as if he also had the same thought.

“Yes. That’s right.”

“Are you crazy? Where are you going by yours-!…… Where are you going?”

Lupinus got angry, but suddenly lowered his voice, perhaps thinking that his attitude was a bit excessive. But he couldn’t quite understand it. What if something happens! Your body is weak!

Of course, Adelaide has grown to the point where she can win even if she fights any high-level demon, but in the eyes of the legendary warrior, she will forever be fragile.

“…… To find out Caladium’s location, we’ve been sending other demons to collect information, but it doesn’t look like it’s enough.”

With a polite but cold tone, Lisianthus answered, clearly not very pleased with Adelaide’s decision.

“I understand how you feel, but that’s not a good idea. Since his area of movement is so wide, the chances of meeting him are slim, and the timing also has to be right, so if we hurry, we have more to lose. Look at this now. You must have been so busy that you forgot to tell me in advance.… Of course, I wouldn’t dare think that you wanted to go out alone on a night like this.”

Adelaide closed her eyes.

“I-, Lisian. Lupin. I’m sorry for trying to sneak out without telling…….”

As soon as she said that, she somehow felt an illusion that the temperature around her drastically became lower.

“I would never have expected that you were really trying to leave without telling me. Knowing that both Sol Dungeon and Los Halde Dungeon, our opponents, are in Esperanza, you want to go there without an escort…….”

Hic. Lisian is angry. She couldn’t even imagine how angry he was because he didn’t even smile. Adelaide tensed up and looked at Lisianthus and Lupinus.

Smile. Fortunately, Lisianthus wore a beautiful smile on his lips again. Just as it looked like he was about to reassure her, a more terrifying voice was heard.

“I guess Master wanted me to go crazy from worry.”

“No! No! I made a mistake for trying to leave without saying anything!”

“I misjudged it.” As expected, Lisianthus is the scariest when he smiles while angry.

Adelaide quickly fell to her knees. As the owner of a C-Class dungeon, her knees shouldn’t be as cheap as this. Lupinus quickly grabbed her by the waist and lifted her up with much force as she looked like she was about to do a deep bow if left as is.

“Why are you on your knees? Stand up and talk.”

“To ask for forgiveness…….”

Lupinus clenched his eyes tightly. How hard was the 30 years they had been apart for this woman to struggle like this? He felt a sudden rush of guilt.

Huu. Lisianthus let out a brief sigh as well. It was amazing, seeing him wipe his face down with one hand.

“Adele. If you want to go find Caladium, you can tell me. Even if I was originally against it, I would still have followed what Master wanted without question. Or, do you think you can’t rely on me?”

“No, it’s not like that. I’d love to go with Lisian too. But…….”

Adelaide bit her lips, hesitating. Then she spoke in a cautious manner.

“Somehow, I think Caladi wouldn’t like it.”

The two of them weren’t on good terms. They got used to it to some extent later, but you couldn’t call them close friends.

In particular, Adelaide felt that Caladium had a strange tendency to keep Lisianthus in check. He was proud, thinking that he was the strongest, and it seemed that his ego was subtly damaged when he met someone stronger than him.

And she wasn’t sure, but the biggest reason Caladium left Greenville right now must have been because his self-esteem plummeted after losing to Abaddon. In this situation, it was unlikely that Caladium would welcome Lisianthus’ presence, who was nothing more than a rival. Wouldn’t it make him feel even more upset and avoid them?

For this reason, Adelaide resolved to search for him alone. It’s not like she would leave and not come back at all, she only meant to wander around Esperanza for a few hours a day to look for him.

“Of course, as Lisianthus said, there are already other demons searching for Caladium and we’re also checking new information as they come in, but…… I thought that that wasn’t enough. Just like when I went to the cabin to meet Lupinus, wouldn’t Caladium need this kind of effort as well? I wanted to at least try everything I could.”

A moment of silence passed as Adelaide confessed these thoughts. It wasn’t because she acted without care. Lupinus was relieved.

Lisianthus had a similar thought, and his voice softened a lot.

“I understand what you mean, but…… Still, it is dangerous to go to Esperanza alone now.”

“You know, Lisian. I’ve gotten a lot stronger these days. And I’m taking this too!”

Adelaide smiled and pulled something out of her pocket. It was the artifact that Lisianthus gave her before Lupinus’ attack.

“If I’m in danger, the two of you can come to the rescue. Oh, not Lupin…….”

“No matter how well you hide your human aura, it’s rare for a warrior to come to Esperanza.” Adelaide shook his head.

“And, as Lisianthus said, meeting Caladium is like finding a needle in the desert, but there is something special about me.”

“Is it special?”

“Yes! The power of my wishes! Wouldn’t it be effective if I keep wishing that I would meet Caladium?”

At her bright voice, Lisianthus suddenly remembered the question Caladium had once asked.

“Is your head a field of flowers?”

Of course, unlike him who was rude, he didn’t say it directly.

“It would be nice if that was the case, but……. As you know, it is very difficult to make that kind of wish happen. Especially as it has something to do with Caladium, a devil.”

“Yes. I thought that too. But you never know what could happen!”

She said that, but in fact, Adelaide knew it was impossible. She only brought it up hoping to convince Lisianthus. Lisianthus ate it up.

And as she expected, Lisianthus soon allowed Adelaide to go out to Esperanza. On the condition that she hangs the artifact on her neck and wears it as a necklace.

It wasn’t difficult so Adelaide quickly nodded her head. Lisianthus made her a necklace, and after she wore it, she prepared to leave again.

“Then I’ll go now! Don’t worry too much and sleep first.”

“I have to sleep well without you, right.”

As Lupinus began to grumble, Adelaide quickly kissed him on the cheek. She intended to shut his mouth with a goodnight kiss.

“Me?”

“Yes, Lisian, sleep well.”

Kiss. Lisianthus didn’t miss the chance and kissed her lips lightly.

That’s Lisian for you. Adelaide, accustomed to accepting his kiss, then stepped into the portal to Esperanza.

‘I wish I could meet Caladium! I wish!’

She fervently cried out in her heart, wishing for something that couldn’t possibly come true. Just in case, even at least one miracle could happen and come true.

And soon something amazing happened. Something that could only happen once in a lifetime.