Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 143
Chapter 143: Goodbye, Land of Dragons
Once everything was over, Sora and the others, having reached the limits of their exhaustion, logged out and returned to the real world.
Out of habit, they checked outside the window, and the ?Refractory Flowers? that had been blooming across the ground were now turning into particles of light, creating an enchanting scene.
Sora’s younger sister, Shiori, who had also logged out, called her downstairs. The television was broadcasting an emergency live report, where the white-haired goddess El Aurum was announcing that the crisis had been averted thanks to the adventurers’ efforts.
As the screen shifted to news anchors and commentators discussing the events, footage of the intense battle with the ?Demon Dragon King? was shown. It captured the nerve-wracking action, and in the end, everyone praised the adventurers for their hard-fought victory.
For now, the second crisis in the real world had been averted.
Completely drained, Sora collapsed onto the living room floor, and the next time she woke up was…
??? A week later.
It seemed that all the accumulated fatigue had finally caught up with her and exploded.
When she awoke in a hospital bed, Kuro was crying profusely, Shiori scolded her for pushing herself too hard, and her mentor, Shino, reprimanded her for not managing her health properly.
The two of them understood that her reason for overexerting herself was related to Ilya.
Sitting upright on the hospital bed, Sora explained everything and told them she had promised to reunite with Ilya. Hearing that, they didn’t press her further.
As for the concerns expressed by Shinji and Shirou, Sora took the opportunity to tell them the same thing she had shared with Shiori and Shino.
They were initially surprised about the beta players’ involvement, but given the state of the world, they quickly accepted it.
Soon after, Sora was discharged and returned home. She immediately logged back into ?Astral Online? as the adventurer Sora.
Of course, the time limit had passed, and her avatar had reverted from the silver-haired boy back to a girl.
Leaving the room in the castle assigned to her, with Kuro by her side, she was promptly caught by Otter, Alice, and Satanas, who seemed to be lying in wait. Sora and Kuro were then dragged off to an unfamiliar room.
Using the skill ?Insight?, the name of the room Sora identified, if not mistaken, was labeled as the treasury.
As multiple locks were undone, Otter chuckled and said, “As the king, I couldn’t allow the hero who defeated the Demon Dragon to leave without accepting a reward,” and opened the door.
Waiting inside for Sora and Kuro was a mountain of treasures, so vast it was impossible to estimate its value if converted into currency.
However, Sora had no interest in items that could only be turned into money for El’s use.
Understanding this, Otter led them deeper into the room, where there were many items that couldn’t be obtained by ordinary means.
Sora, now faced with one of the most enjoyable yet agonizing decisions in the game, choosing a reward.
“I’ll take this one,” Sora said.
“And I’ll go with what Sora chose,” Kuro added.
The item they picked was a bottle filled with a suspicious-looking purple liquid called ?Dragon’s Elixir?. Its effect was that drinking it would grant the adventurer an extra skill slot.
After gulping down the horribly bitter liquid, they barely managed to finish it, and from the window that appeared before them, they immediately selected “Support Skill” from the three displayed options.
Their skill slots increased from five to six.
After having a light lunch, the two stepped outside the castle. Politely declining Otter’s offer to host a party in their honor that night, they thanked him first.
“Thanks for the reward. This will make me a little stronger to defeat the Demon Lord Shaitan,” Sora said.
“Though I think you’re plenty strong already. A hero who never forgets to keep improving is truly frightening,” Otter responded.
“Well, I’m competitive, after all. Next time we meet, I’ll have the Demon Lord groveling at my feet,” Sora laughed.
Then, Sora turned to face Alice and Satanas. The two dragon sisters dressed in matching, beautiful gowns.
While Sora had been asleep, Otter had announced that Satanas, who possessed the power of the Dragon Shrine Maiden, was actually a direct descendant of the royal family, Otter Fafnir’s true daughter. The citizens had embraced her, and Otter had declared that day a national holiday, celebrating it with a grand festival.
Now, Satanas is highly regarded by the people as one of the heroes who saved the country from the ?Demon Dragon King? Belial.
Incidentally, I heard that the mysterious unit led by the Ghost Dragon King donated all the ?El? they earned to the nation and then passed away peacefully.
That old man, he really just did whatever he wanted and left, didn’t he?
As Sora was thinking this with a somewhat complicated expression, the usually bold Alice had a somber look, and the ever-smiling Satanas seemed on the verge of tears, her eyes filled with them.
Seeing such expressions on the faces of the two beautiful princesses pricked Sora’s heart, as if a needle had pierced it.
Just as Sora was pondering how to start the conversation, Alice spoke quietly.
“…You’re really leaving, aren’t you, Sora-sama?”
“Sora and Kuro… are you both going somewhere?” Satanas asked.
“Yeah, we’ve got things we need to do. It’s hard to say goodbye, but we have to move on,” Sora replied.
“I’m sorry, Satanas, but we’ll definitely come back to see you again someday,” Kuro added.
Seeing Satanas on the verge of tears made Kuro’s face contort as if she might cry too, so Sora gently patted her head.
The youngest of the group couldn’t hold back her tears any longer and clung to her sister Alice, sobbing. As the elder sister, Alice quietly held her weeping sibling, while offering her thanks to Sora and Kuro.
“You’ve helped us so much… There’s no way we can thank you enough.”
“It was our pleasure. We had fun,” Sora responded.
“Yes, I enjoyed it too,” Kuro added.
After a brief moment of gazing at each other, Alice coughed softly, her cheeks flushing red.
“…Oh dear, I can’t tease Aria about this anymore.”
“Huh?”
“Remember when I said I’d give you my thoughts on your original form? Well, I’ll tell you now, but come a little closer,” Alice said.
Sora recalled their previous conversation and obediently stepped forward. Kuro, in a panic, shouted, “Sora, stop, stop!” but without any suspicion, Sora leaned in to listen.
Suddenly, something soft lightly touched Sora’s cheek.
It took Sora a moment to realize that it was Alice’s lips. Shocked, she stepped back quickly, her face turning bright red.
“H-Huh?!”
As I stood there confused, the dragon princess, with a playful, mischievous smile, confessed to me.
“I love you, Sora-sama. If you’re okay with it, would you officially get engaged to me?”
“Whaaaaaaaat?!”
Letting out a sort of scream or roar, Kuro, with sharp eyes, suddenly stepped in between Sora and Alice.
Thankfully, since Satanas was present, it didn’t escalate into a fight like the one with Aria before. However, intense sparks were definitely flying between the two.
Meanwhile, Otter, the Dragon King, wasn’t surprised by his daughter’s sudden action. Calmly, he snapped his fingers, and from somewhere, a man who looked like a minister appeared, bringing along a set of documents.
As I sighed deeply, thinking how efficient this all was, I politely turned down Alice’s proposal.
“Sorry, Alice, I appreciate your feelings, but I’m an adventurer, so it’s not possible.”
“Then, is there a chance after your journey ends?”
“Nooo! Sora is my partner!” Kuro said angrily, shaking her head vigorously.
I tried to explain that being partners and being engaged are two very different things, but Kuro just shook her head wildly and wouldn’t hear of it.
It was so funny that I couldn’t help but chuckle, and Alice had a similar smile on her face.
“Hey, why are you two laughing?!”
“Well, I was just thinking how cute my reliable partner is today,” I replied.
“Kuro, can I talk to you for a moment?” Alice said, beckoning Kuro over.
Kuro walked up to her, and Alice whispered something into her ear. Kuro immediately hurried back and clung to my right arm.
Curious about what Alice had said, I asked Kuro, but she just shook her head and wouldn’t answer.
Just then, I received a message.
?Master, there’s a message for you?
Oh, it’s from Shio.
After reading through the contents, I realized we needed to log out quickly once we arrived in the next country.
“Alright, it’s time to go,” I said.
“Goodbye, Alice, Satanas!” Kuro waved.
“Thank you so much for everything!” Alice replied.
“…Please, come back to see us again!” Satanas cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.
With the two dragon princesses and the king standing beside them, the two adventurers turned and walked away.
“Sora, do you think Alice and Satanas will be alright?” Kuro asked, concerned as she walked beside me.
“They’ll be fine,” I replied confidently.
After all, I could see that they had received protective blessings from their great mother.
“Then they’ll definitely be okay,” Kuro smiled.
“Yeah, mothers are amazing.”
With smiles on their faces, Sora and Kuro headed toward the next country, holding one more precious memory in their hearts.
End of Volume 2