Chapter 10
A green-burning torch cast eerie shadows that stretched across the space.
The spiders retreated, and Sian scanned the surroundings.
The area was open on all sides, making escape easy even if monsters appeared again.
“Is the staircase to the shrine always this tall? The Grand Temple in the old capital is large too, but it doesn’t have stairs like this.”
The Crown Prince looked up at the shrine in admiration.
“I’m actually glad I get to die seeing something so beautiful. I have no regrets.”
“Your Highness.”
As the situation worsened, the Crown Prince only acted more relaxed, throwing out careless jokes. Sian stopped his lord.
The wound on his neck, bitten by a baby spider, had been covered with Sian’s handkerchief. The bleeding had stopped, but the monster’s poison had not been neutralized. If not for the imperial bloodline’s natural resistance to toxins, he could have died at any moment.
“I know. But if I keep tensing up like this, the pressure might crush me to death instead. Sian, you should try to relax a little too.”
When the Crown Prince lightly patted Sian’s shoulder, Max clicked his tongue and glared in their direction.
“Tch.”
Faction conflicts within the imperial palace had always been fierce.
Sian belonged to the chosen elite.
Born into a scholarly noble house, possessing profound learning, a sharp mind, and mastery of both magic and spirits.
From the moment the Emperor, impressed by him, had him spend time with the young Crown Prince, Sian had understood.
‘So I’ve been assigned as His Highness the Crown Prince’s closest aide.’
He had grown used to the envy, suspicion, jealousy, interference, and attempts to belittle him for standing at the future sun’s side.
Sian never believed his sharp tongue—or his habit of openly ignoring those he deemed foolish or incompetent—was a problem.
Were they not objectively inferior and incapable?
Those who challenged him either crumbled under the gap between them, or shrank away upon realizing that his contemptuous gaze didn’t even acknowledge them as people.
Of course… not everyone was like that.
Lady April was chatting cheerfully with Yeniel, as if they were close friends.
“Now that I think about it, the doll we saw before entering was kind of cute, don’t you think, Lady Yeniel?”
“What doll?”
“The one with the knife spinning inside its mouth! Hmm, I don’t remember the name. It was a boy, and it made creaking sounds.”
“…You think that was cute?”
It was the creepy clockwork boy doll at the dungeon entrance. Even Sian had been internally horrified, just like Yeniel.
Even in this dark, otherworldly place, April’s expression was bright and carefree, as if she were on a picnic.
“But it was a child doll. Isn’t that cute? It’s about the same age as Pipi. Ah, Pipi is my doll’s name! She’s a very cute girl. I wish Pipi and that doll could become friends.”
“…I think you should reconsider that.”
Yeniel rarely gave advice to others, but she seemed genuinely disturbed enough to speak.
“Please think carefully about what kind of existence you want by your side. Don’t trust too easily. You should consider what role it will play in your life.”
Even in such a tense situation, the atmosphere around the group remained soft because of April.
If they had not entered this other world, they might never have realized her strengths.
A dangerously beautiful appearance that could bewitch people.
The day April first appeared in high society had caused a sensation.
Even Sian had frozen at her breathtaking beauty, and several people had fainted or collapsed from hyperventilation.
“Sian Isengriff.”
“Oh my. That name sounds familiar. Aren’t you someone’s friend?”
“You are mistaken.”
April’s father, Marquess Sharon, lived up to his reputation of having muscles where his brain should be. As part of the Emperor’s faction, he always greeted Sian warmly.
The rest of House Sharon? Equally impossible to communicate with. They all seemed to believe Sian and the Marquess were close.
They didn’t even care whether they belonged to the noble faction or the imperial faction. They just… didn’t seem to think at all.
“Hmm, maybe April just has a bad memory. But Sir Sian.”
The way she casually addressed him on first meeting made his heart suddenly pound.
“Yes, Lady April.”
“If you eat grape seeds, will a grapevine grow in your stomach?”
“…Pardon?”
“If I eat grape seeds, will grapevines grow inside my belly? My uncle said four vines would grow inside him, so I think maybe two would grow in me too?”
But that absurd question immediately shattered any illusion.
“Why would you ask me that?”
“Because Sir Sian wears glasses, so you look smart. Wearing glasses means you’re intelligent, right?”
“……”
That was the moment Sian realized his ideal type was someone rational and intelligent.
Yet in this bleak situation, somehow, he found himself being saved by the girl he once thought foolish.
Look at her—was she not trying to protect him from envy and hostility?
Meanwhile, Sian himself had been accustomed to ignoring jealousy since childhood.
What does she even know, acting like that…
Well… being “low intelligence” isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I suppose.
There were exceptions, after all.
If the imperial faction members who endured Sian’s constant sharp criticism had heard this, they would have clutched their chests in rage.
[The favorability of Strategist Sian has increased.]
April, unaware of his thoughts, tilted her head.
Sian is glaring at me.
[The favorability of Strategist Sian has decreased.]
[The favorability of Strategist Sian has increased.]
[The favorability of Strategist Sian has decreased.]
[The favorability of Strategist Sian has increased.]
Why is he like that?
Every time Sian muttered under his breath in a barely audible voice, the favorability kept going up and down.
“What am I even thinking…”
“But that’s not necessarily wrong…”
Seeing the notifications constantly pop up was exhausting.
Can I turn these notifications off?
Favorability notification function OFF
Tip: Open the settings window to enable favorability notifications!
Oh, surprisingly, the notifications turned off.
Following the tip, I opened the settings window.
“Settings window.”
Error occurred!
No player information found.
Tip: Status window cannot be accessed!
If neither of these worked, how was a non-player supposed to survive?
Fortunately, the <Great Mage’s Mansion> options didn’t affect clearing the game. Things like detailed favorability screens were optional anyway.
Favorability detail window
▶ Crown Prince: 90% (Lover)
Favorite gifts: wine, thousand-year joke books
Feelings toward [Light April]: romantic love, possessiveness
▷ Strategist Sian: 57% (More than friends, less than love)
Favorite gifts: writing instruments, bitter things
Feelings toward [Light April]: someone to worry about, someone to support, friendship
Emotional direction, useful gifts for targeting, definitions of how they viewed the player.
Still, it’s annoying that it disappears when I actually need it.
I felt a slight disappointment. Though even if I had it in real life, I’d probably ignore it out of laziness anyway.
In front of the shrine stairs.
After a short rest, we walked along the line of green torches.
Compared to the enormous width of the staircase, each step was oddly low in height.
The path to the shrine was well-lit thanks to the torches, but the green flames made everything feel sinister.
Sparks flickered and our shadows stretched long.
“Lady Yeniel, Lady Yeniel. Looks like this is the end of the room.”
I called out to Yeniel like a child. She answered calmly.
“It seems so. Lady April, be careful with your footing. The steps are quite low, so falling could be dangerous.”
“Okay.”
She laughed and climbed the stairs.
We reached the shrine entrance.
The faint green light made the marble floor appear pale green.
Perhaps due to the atmosphere, it looked less like a shrine and more like a place where demons were sealed.
Inside, a wide interior opened up.
Several large pillars stood neatly, supporting the ceiling. Between them were walls, and there were no windows.
The empty interior contained only faint dust and cobwebs.
“Eek.”
Max flinched at the cobwebs. The others didn’t look much better.
“It’s empty,” the Crown Prince remarked after scanning the room.
“There’s nothing here. Normally, the first floor of a shrine is decorated lavishly with all available budget, like the Grand Temple in the old capital.”
“Indeed, this structure is unusual,” Max said.
I watched Yeniel’s expression. Something had clearly occurred to her—her eyes sharpened with realization.
Then, as if suddenly understanding something, Yeniel spoke.
“This is an inverted shrine.”
“Inverted shrine?”
Sian answered my muttered question.
“A shrine for demons. Unlike normal shrines, the first floor is left empty and the second floor is decorated. So… don’t tell me. Is this a dungeon of demon worshippers?”
Sian’s eyes widened.
At that moment, as if responding to his words, a deep rumbling echoed.
The stone staircase began to rise slowly before us.
The ceiling above opened upward.
