Chapter 159

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Hela said in a calm voice, as if she had given up trying to persuade her further.

[Yes, if that is your decision.]

As soon as her words ended, an immense divine energy began to fill Adelaide’s body.

Could this be the power of Helheim? Adelaide, concerned about the pain, crouched her body, however, there was none. Far from being hurt, she felt comfortable.

The huge energy naturally spread throughout her body as if it had been hers from the beginning. For some reason, she felt warm and nostalgic as if she was in her hometown.

‘It’s the power of Hela.’

Hela, the Goddess of Death.

A few days ago, Adelaide was lying on her bed, reading a book written about her.

In the book, it was said that demons often feared her, the goddess who controlled death, but it was unnecessary. For demons whose souls have fallen, death was like an opportunity to wash away their sins and be born into a new life.

At the time, she thought that it was just a pretty line of a bunch of nonsense, but when Hela engraved a piece of her into her body, it made a little more sense. She could feel both the birth and death of life in the warmth that filled her.

How much time has passed?

Adelaide absorbed all of Hela’s power. And she noticed it instinctively. That her own body had changed.

There was not much change in her outward appearance, but the inside was different. The demonic energy, which until a moment ago had reached its limit, now flowed like a shallow stream. As Hela said, her vessel felt bigger.

Adelaide slowly opened her eyes. Suddenly, an unfamiliar landscape appeared before her eyes.

“Wow…….”

She marveled again. Above the purple lake, she could see a castle that shimmered as if it was made of glass. The castle was magnificent enough for hundreds of demons to fit without difficulty, with even its tiniest ornament crafted beautifully. It was Helheim.

Standing in front of the large gate, Adelaide swallowed dry saliva. As soon as she was faced with it, the fear of dying arose.

However, there was no turning back, as she had already taken Hela’s power. She took a deep breath and slowly walked towards the gate.

Creak-

As Adelaide approached, the outer gate opened by itself. Helheim seemed to be welcoming her.

After passing through the gate, there was a huge bridge lined with statues on either side. Likewise, the bridge was transparent as if it was made of glass, which sparkled in various colors.

Adelaide nervously climbed the bridge. She took one step at a time, but didn’t feel anything. It was like that until she climbed the stairs to the castle.

But when she finally opened the door to Helheim and stepped inside, Adelaide’s body hardened.

“Heuk……!”

She drew in a rough breath. It was because of the pain that went up from the tips of her fingers and toes.

Adelaide was proud as she was accustomed to pain, having gone through hunger numerous times. However, even if she was used to it, the pain was the same, so she thought that she could bear all the pain inside. She had persisted through the pain from all the empty stomachs and portal error, so what else could she possibly not endure?

However, she could swear, the pain that was now pouring into her was a kind she had never experienced before.

If she had to explain it, it was close to the punishment of having to drink molten lava without being able to stop. Even if she wanted to close her mouth, she couldn’t, and it felt like all her organs and bones were melting from the hot lava. There was nothing but pain, which she had never dared to imagine.

“Ko, kok…… Heuok……!”

Unwittingly, Adelaide collapsed and rolled on the floor. Before she knew it, her wings rose and twitched grotesquely above her back, and her long nails scratched the floor.

Help me, it hurts so much. She cried out Hela’s name in her heart. But Hela did not say anything, and the pain that seemed to melt her brain continued ceaselessly.

She was in so much pain that she even thought that she would rather die. A second passed like an hour, and her pain showed no sign of abating. Even seeing the tears running down her cheeks felt like another pain.

‘It hurts, it hurts……!’

Her body violently twisted and vomited blood. Keuurk, keuurk. Dark red blood spilled from her mouth. The idea that her organs were melting away didn’t seem to be an illusion.

[Ganglati, I will ask you one last time.]

In her chaotic mind, Hela’s voice called.

[Should I take away your qualifications? Since Helheim has already flowed into your body, you will not be able to survive, but you will be able to rest in peace without any further pain.]

She meant that she would kill her herself.

If it had been the normal Adelaide, she would have shaken her head right away, asking what nonsense she was talking about. But right now, Hela’s offer seemed to be too tempting.

She no longer remembered why she wanted to get Helheim or why she wanted to live. As long as she could just escape from this excruciating pain, she was fine with anything. Even if it were death. Adelaide instinctively tried to nod her head.

But then, she saw a familiar object in sight. A round-shaped artifact was glistening on the blood-stained floor. It looked like it fell out of her coat pocket when she fell.

A bright light. Adelaide knew what that meant. It meant that her condition had been communicated to Lisianthus.

‘Lisian.’

When she remembered his name, reason returned.

He had always been worried that Adelaide might get hurt even a little. But if she died like this now, how sad would Lisianthus be? Even if he used his long-range portal power, he won’t be able to come here to Helheim, so he would likely not even be able to find her body.

The image of Caladium, who confessed to her and left, came to mind one after another. Lupinus, who had been guarding Greenville, and the faces of the other precious members were all vivid.

‘I can’t die like this.’

Adelaide bit her lower lip hard. Blood dripped from her already red lips.

“No.”

She answered firmly. Coarse breath escaped between her gaping lips.

“I will live.”

Adelaide, who barely squeezed her voice out, lifted her head.

[Alright. Stay strong.]

[I don’t know how long you can hold out.] Hela added, feeling sorry for her.

At the same time, the pain as if her organs were bursting spread all over her body again.

“Aaaaack!”

Adelaide screamed uncontrollably. It was such a horrific cry that whoever listened would be horrified.

But even after hours of screaming, her throat dry and her lips chapped, she refused to ask to be killed until the very end.

A few days passed like that.

* * *

It had been three days since the owner of Greenville had not returned.

There were no problems in operation since their system was well-established. The warriors who were hunting for Bricaber leaves flocked like bees every day and all died, and the gold and silver treasures in Greenville’s treasure room continuously piled up.

However, as time went on, the atmosphere in the dungeon grew darker.

Nonetheless, the members of the 2nd and 3rd living spaces, including the Skeletons and Durahans, remained calm. They worried about Adelaide, if she was sleeping or awake, but they believed that she would soon return safely and greet them again.

If Adelaide died, the dungeon master’s death would be marked on the dungeon pad. A demon from the Demon King’s Castle will come and try to collect the money.

Not doing so was proof that Adelaide was alive somewhere. Therefore, the demons worked harder so that she would not be disappointed when she returned.

On the other hand, Lisianthus, who had always maintained his composure, was the most affected by her absence. From the day Adelaide had not returned, he looked for her without eating or drinking anything. Of course, he had no time to sleep at all.

After a long time, the Skeleton Captain saw his face and it was almost like that of a half-crazed demon. His golden eyes were out of focus, there were dark circles under his eyes, and his expression was colder and more menacing than ever. It looked like he would explode from just touching.

Lupinus was no exception. He disregarded Adelaide’s request not to come to Esperanza at all costs, and went all over Esperanza. Fortunately, there were no major problems as he had gotten used to the demonic magic, but they could see his body getting tired day by day.

He sometimes stood alone in the living room with the lights off, muttering, ‘You can’t disappear like this again.’ He looked like a madman, no different from Lisianthus.

On the other hand, Bell seemed to have become very depressed after Caladium and Adelaide disappeared from the dungeon. He refused the walks he loved so much, and he didn’t even play around stealing the Skeletons’ bones. He would simply enter Adelaide’s room in his original large form, curl up and whimper.

And how he got the information, there was an article about Adelaide’s disappearance in the Dungeon Daily.

{「The owner of Kronatan’s Greenville Dungeon, Missing’!」

It was recently reported that Greenville Dungeon, which became a hot potato after winning the war against Sol Dungeon, is experiencing difficulties with their operation due to the absence of their owner.

The owner of Greenville Dungeon was Ms. A, a high-level succubus, was a demon who had once become a hot topic for her stunning appearance. A supposed dungeon without discrimination, she had changed her words urgently due to the issue of one of her demons being a perpetrator of as*ault.

When the demons heard the news of her disappearance, they sent opinions such as ‘It wasn’t a place that bowl was worthy of climbing in the first place’, ‘A succubus running a dungeon, demons passing by must be laughing.’

The Skeleton Captain harshly crumpled the Dungeon Daily and threw it into the furnace. It was a pity that Lisianthus and Lupinus didn’t have the time or mind to read this, but if either of them had seen it, something big would have happened for sure. Adelaide probably doesn’t want that result.

‘Adelaide, where the hell are you?’

He looked at the black Cerberus sleeping in Adelaide’s room. So many demons are worried, so please come back safely. He prayed earnestly.

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