Mebius World Online – Mari’s VRMMO Diary, Embarking on a Laid-back Adventure as a Novice - Chapter 84
Tbh, waking up at 3am almost everyday just too cook is make me tired.
84. Mari-nee and The Empress
The place we headed to with the king was a large, gaping hole at the foot of the mountain, a little away from “Memento Mori.”
“This is the ‘Cave of Vows.’ Within this cave, neither Legios nor Caldia can harm each other, thanks to ancient techniques,” the king explained.
“Is that also due to ancient techniques?” I asked.
“Likely so. This cave has existed even longer than <Memento Mori> and there are no records of how it was built.”
Before the cave, soldiers from Legios and Caldia stood in formation, glaring at each other as if in a standoff.
Three figures, including the empress who seemed to have arrived first, advanced between the two columns and disappeared into the cave.
Bringing up the rear was a woman dressed in mourning attire.
For a brief moment, her face turned in our direction.
Through the gap in her swaying veil, her bright red lips seemed to smile.
“!”
The moment I saw that, a shiver ran down my spine, and I instinctively grabbed his sleeve, the one who was beside me.
I could tell he was concerned about me by the way he looked at me.
But I couldn’t take my eyes off that woman until she disappeared from view.
It wasn’t just caution.
Perhaps it was fear.
And maybe, I had felt it somewhere before…
As the woman disappeared into the depths of the cave, the king followed.
While following behind the king, I secretly handed him something.
“What’s this?”
“I want you to hold onto it. I can’t handle it, but maybe you can,” I said.
At the very least, he was more likely to be able to handle it than me, and it seemed better than nothing.
Maybe it was like an amulet?
Or maybe I was just seeking some peace of mind.
Well, either way, it didn’t matter…
As I had hoped, there was nothing to worry about…
Contrary to my expectations, the inside of the cave felt extremely artificial, as if it had been carved out of rock rather than naturally formed.
There were no rough rock surfaces exposed, no spread of damp ground; just smooth, polished stone hollows.
There were no seams on the surface, no tunnels; it felt more like a structure from the near future.
Although there seemed to be no light sources inside, the stones themselves emitted a faint green light, making it easy to navigate.
However, with numerous branching paths and no landmarks, it seemed easy to get lost.
Glancing back, I was dismayed by the similarity to the scene I had just seen, so I hurriedly focused on following the king.
If I were to lose sight of the king, I was confident I wouldn’t be able to find my way back to the surface alone.
At worst, I might be able to survive by returning through hunger…
“Nevertheless, Your Majesty, you proceed without hesitation, don’t you?” I remarked.
“This is knowledge instilled in kings and those equivalent to them. Moreover, decisions between nations are generally made at the deepest part of places like this. Here, although monsters do not appear, once you get lost, it’s difficult to find your way out, so be careful,” the king warned.
Responding to the king’s warning, I vigorously nodded my head.
And we continued forward for several tens of minutes.
As we descended through numerous branching paths, eventually a pale blue light different from before came into view.
As we approached, its brightness increased, and by the time the dazzling light registered, a wide space had opened up.
“Whoa…”
In awe of this strange sight, I momentarily forgot the tension I had been feeling and let out a voice of admiration.
In the center of the space, clear blue water was contained, and on top of it spread a limestone table that seemed to have been crafted over many years.
“This is the deepest part of the <Cave of Vows> It’s called the <Lacus Lacrima> or the <Lake of Tears> due to the shape of the water contained here,” the king explained.
“What a beautiful place,” I remarked.
When I looked down at the water’s surface, the light emitted by the stones reflected countless times in the high-transparency water, resulting in the entire lake shimmering blue.
Walking along the narrow path leading to the limestone table, I saw the empress standing with her hands placed on the hilt of a sword plunged into the ground, her eyes closed and unmoving.
As I approached the king, when the distance between us was about two meters, her eyes suddenly opened.
Coming face to face with the empress at close range, I couldn’t help but think that calling her a beauty would be an understatement.
At least, words like “peerless beauty” or “supreme ruler of a nation” seemed necessary before her.
Her ice-blue hair was tied slightly above the back of her head, and she stood at over 170 centimeters tall, maybe?
Her waist was surprisingly slender, yet her chest was…
Involuntarily comparing myself to her, I suffered a great deal of internal damage.
Her long, curled lashes covered her slit-shaped eyes, which exuded both luster and dignity, captivating even someone of my own gender.
“Now, you will tell me your true intentions soon, Wilhelmina von Legios,” the king asked without being distracted by the empress’s appearance.
“We wanted to meet the person known as the hero and have a conversation, Areis Roa Caldia.”
“Enough with the nonsense. Do you, a thorough rationalist, go to such lengths just to meet a single adventurer?”
“I do not appreciate nonsense. There is no deception in my purpose, and my purpose has already been fulfilled.”
“What do you mean?”
The empress’s gaze flicked towards me for a moment.
Her gaze was chillingly cold, not something you’d want directed at you.
“A weakling with no worth to compare to my strength. Disappointing.”
“Oh, calling the heroes of my country weaklings? Disappointing? That’s quite amusing, Wilhelmina von Legios!”
“I spoke the truth. And I find nothing amusing about it, Areis Roa Caldia.”
With tensions escalating between the two, I, left behind, felt troubled.
Even if she called me weak, I didn’t particularly care, so I hoped they wouldn’t get into a fight.
I’ve never thought of myself as strong, and considering she’s at the top of a meritocratic country, it’s natural that I might seem weak.
In fact, despite the level cap being raised from 30 due to a major update, my level has remained at 20, unchanged since the event ended.
Feeling at a loss, I decided to ask about something I had been curious about.
“By the way, where did the other two go? You entered the cave together as three.”
The king seemed interested in my words as well, and the pressure directed at the empress weakened slightly.
In response, the empress also seemed to ease her pressure.
As we waited for an answer, what we heard was an unexpected statement.
“I do not know.”
…hmm?
“But you entered this cave together, didn’t you? Not knowing means…”
“It’s free for those who walk behind me. There’s no reason to stop my younger brother and his so-called fiancée from doing so.”
No, no, disappearing midway like that is definitely suspicious.
“Are you saying that…”
The king seemed to have sensed something, as he forgot his anger from earlier and stared at the empress with a bewildered expression.
And what the king had sensed soon became a reality.
First I-, no, first we heard countless footsteps.
They echoed from the entrance, gradually materializing into the form of soldiers from the empire.
Leading them was the man I had seen from afar on the watchtower, or according to the empress, her brother.
Behind him, another group followed.
Their equipment was mismatched, and unlike the soldiers, they didn’t seem to have any discipline.
Well, it’s understandable since they’re not soldiers.
Their true identities were adventurers from the empire.
And among them, there were figures I’d rather not see again, including Leon and his group.