Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 157

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 157: Southern Continent Expedition – Land of Repayment
The plaza where the frozen ice mammoth statue stood.
“…Oh! That’s freezing!”
Merlin had just sat down on the bench when she jumped up with a start.
Well, it was made of ice, after all.
“Ugh, I just wanted to sit down and rest for a bit….”
– Squeak!
Aiquiril, who had hopped from Merlin’s shoulder onto the bench, lifted his head proudly.
“So you can sit, can you?”
– Squeak-squeak!
“Hmph! Don’t show off!”
– Squeak, squeak-squeak-squeak.
The spirit squirrel stretched contentedly and curled up on the bench.
Merlin, watching him with evident indignation, scooped up Aiquiril and hugged him to her chest.
“How’s that? My warmth attack!”
– Squeak-squeak-squeak…!
The two of them were having a wonderful time together.
I’d suggested they get along, but I hadn’t expected them to become best friends in mere days.
Since childhood, my congenital shortcoming had made it necessary to conduct thorough preliminary research, study, and practice conversations before making any friends, so I couldn’t help but feel a little envious.
“Stop bickering and sit nicely together.”
I settled onto the long, sardine-shaped bench and spread a thick layer of spider silk on the seat beside me.
Merlin, who had been ruffling Aiquiril’s head enthusiastically, brightened and sat down on the spider silk as if it were a cushion.
“Phew. Now I feel like I can breathe again.”
“Rest for a moment.”
– Squeak.
“You, however, will run ten laps around the plaza as exercise instead of resting.”
– Squeak-squeak!?
Startled, Aiquiril burrowed deeper into Merlin’s arms.
“Would you like a heated cushion, Kar?”
Luxerion pulled out a shield-shaped cushion from the subspace of his prayer beads that looked warm to the touch.
“No, thank you. I’m fine.”
I surveyed the plaza leisurely, my legs crossed.
A form of faith for Reedni, who loves all manner of fresh experience.
Unlike when I was going around disabling the intrusion prevention systems, this time I was observing carefully and in detail, and he seemed most pleased.
《The wise one praises the bold design that gives no thought whatsoever to visits from other races!》
“…Aren’t you cold, Veldora?”
Veldora, sitting with a hideous scythe beneath him, squinted his eyes.
“Priestess, why don’t you give the cushion to my ‘friend’ Veldora.”
“Yes, here you are, Veldora.”
“…Thank you.”
Veldora quickly accepted the kindness.
Only then did the anxious sorcerer’s expression finally ease.
“Is it warm?”
“Yes….”
Veldora, who had been enjoying the warmth for a moment and even smiling, glanced at my precious bottom.
I quickly shook my head.
“I’m afraid not. I can provide a cushion, but no matter how much of a friend you are….”
“…What, what are you thinking about?”
“Veldora, you can just ignore what he says and speak your mind.”
“Thanks for the advice, Merlin.”
Why would she accept such sinister advice—to ignore what people say—with such a pleased expression?
“Veldora, do you possess some secret art that makes your body warm? How are you so calm about this?”
“I possess no such secret art.”
I continued, gazing at the exquisite street lamps carved from ice.
“When else will I experience the sensation of my buttocks freezing solid while sitting? Such a precious opportunity cannot simply be allowed to pass by, so I merely endure it.”
Compared to the pain I had felt when my body was disabling the intrusion prevention systems of the ruins, “buttock-freezing” was merely the level of hardship one might experience from a gentle fan’s breeze.
……
Veldora furrowed his brow before nodding with apparent conviction.
“Accept all strange words exactly as they are….”
He still carried in his heart the absurd advice that Astrímia had given him.
The next guild master candidate shouldn’t accept every word uncritically without judgment.
“Ah, there you all are!”
As I’d been feeling the cool touch for some time, the Expedition leader Brinia came bounding over and slapped my chest heartily.
“This ruin is truly magnificent! Once we publish the research findings, the scholarly world will be turned completely upside down!”
Gleam.
Her eyes burned with a brilliant light.
Enthusiasm and excitement that slightly exceeded the dwarven average came pouring out of her.
“It seems you’ve achieved remarkable results?”
When I asked casually, Brinia’s lips spread into a wide grin.
“Indeed! If my hypothesis is correct, this ruin was founded far earlier than the oldest civilized nations of the Three Continents! One might even say it was the very first city!”
The moment the excitable dwarf spoke of her research findings, even snorting with enthusiasm—
Chiming.
A blue gate materialized near the Plaza.
“…It’s done.”
“At last…!”
The explorers of the Eyebeam Bear Love Guild and the Moon Expedition Party cheered quietly.
For the first time in history, the general conquest conditions for the Southern Continent Expedition, which had remained an unexplored Dungeon for fifteen years, were now satisfied.
All that remained was to claim the final reward.
“Made you wait.”
While I was listening to the expedition leader expound on her research findings with enthusiasm, Pingpi came padding over.
She held an ice Staff in one hand—longer than her own body.
“Put the cube down.”
“Understood. Merlin?”
“Yes…!”
Merlin carefully placed the Cube-shaped Artifact in the center of the Plaza.
Pingpi, who had made everyone step back at a distance, raised the wing holding the Staff.
“This is my decision alone, but I hope you don’t mind. After all, my kin are surely drifting further into that high emptiness, crafting more wondrous tools, swept along by the eternal glacier of time.”
Whoosh!
A fierce chill began to swirl furiously from the tip of the ice Staff.
“Honestly, my heart feels lighter. I can finally let go of that creature—something I’ve spent so long with in loneliness and meaninglessness.”
The raging chill spiraled upward and transformed into a massive icicle that came plunging down upon the cube.
Crash!
A blow that, if it struck me now, would end my life in an instant.
Yet the cube bore not a single scratch.
Instead, it absorbed the entire massive icicle in one gulp.
“Aiquiril.”
At Pingpi’s call, the squirrel, who had been quietly observing the entire process, stood up.
“Time for you to play your part.”
– Squeak!
Aiquiril leapt high and landed gracefully atop the cube.
Then, using the ability to pass through ice, she slipped inside the artifact.
Whoosh—!
Soon, a Glacial magic circle centered on the cube spread across the entire Plaza.
An artistic design that embodied fish and glaciers.
The preliminary preparations were complete.
“Merlin, calm your mind and still your heart.”
I tapped her back lightly, nodding gently.
“It would be even better if you prepared yourself to receive a precious gift worthy of all your past efforts.”
The reason I had selected the Southern Continent Expedition as a Dungeon candidate to conquer.
All conditions for obtaining the Hidden Reward had been satisfied through our explorations thus far.
“Blond friend.”
Pingpi looked at me while infusing magical power into the magic circle with her Staff.
“You brought me back to life, genuinely praying for my rebirth despite being someone I was meeting for the first time and despite not being a resident of this ‘outside’ world. This is my repayment for that.”
First condition for obtaining the Hidden Reward.
Mourning for Pingpi and helping with her resurrection.
“All preparations are complete. You should know what to do next, shouldn’t you?”
“I do.”
I turned to look at Aeira, who had been standing quietly beside Brinia until now.
“Lady Aeira. Would you pour water into the magic circle using the Source of Clear Water?”
“…….”
Aeira held my gaze quietly for a moment, then generated a massive volume of water in her hands.
“I showed you how to break my daughter’s curse, so I can do whatever you ask.”
Second acquisition condition.
Bringing the Half-Elf sailor Aeira to the ruins alive.
Whoooosh!
The pristine water that only Half-Elves among sentient beings could generate materialized in the air, pouring down on the Plaza like a sudden downpour.
The magic circle blazed blue, greedily devouring every drop of rainwater.
“And you, Tiger.”
The last of the Extreme Ice Royal Family turned their gaze toward Merlin.
“Aiquiril rarely opens their heart to anyone outside our kind.”
“I just gave them some snacks, and we became friends somehow…?”
“They are a spirit beast. The fact that they warmed to you at all means you possess a good heart.”
Third acquisition condition.
Raising intimacy with Aiquiril, a spirit that cannot befriend the wicked.
Pingpi chuckled and pointed a wing toward the cube at the center of the magic circle.
“Go closer and touch it with your hand. You’ve earned the right. You didn’t waver even in the blizzard’s Delusion Space, did you?”
The final condition.
A resilient mind strong enough to endure the Delusion Space without being consumed.
Having satisfied all four demanding conditions, it was time to claim the sweet fruit of victory.
“…Kar?”
“Go on. You’ll be fine.”
I gave the hesitant, kind ward girl a gentle push toward the cube.
Merlin stumbled forward slightly, then recovered and walked slowly to the cube, bowing respectfully.
Tap.
The instant her hands—roughened by years of practicing dagger and sword techniques—touched the cube.
Crash!
The magic circle’s light vanished in a heartbeat, absorbed into the cube before it shattered and scattered.
Like flower petals on a spring day, the fragments swirled through the air, dancing around Merlin.
– Churr!
Aiquiril, who had settled atop Merlin’s head at some point, cried out loudly.
“…Aiquiril?”
– Churr.
The spirit squirrel pointed downward with its front paws.
The scattered fragments of ice petals were sticking to Merlin’s hands.
Taking the shape of delicate gloves.
“…What is this?”
“The Extreme Ice Series.”
I gazed at the brilliantly blue gloves as I spoke.
“Artifacts said to rival the Emotion Series that Astrímia belongs to.”
Wisdom’s text blazed across my vision with unmistakable excitement.
《Artifact – Glacial Glere》
《One of the Extreme Ice Series artifacts crafted by the master artisans of the Extreme Ice Royal Family. The wearer can manifest ice weapons of any form they desire, and can also harness the power of spirit beasts or spirits bound through ‘Frost Comrades’ connection.》
《Currently registered Frost Comrade (1 beast) – Spirit Squirrel Aiquiril》
I had finally obtained it.
An end-tier weapon that Merlin could cherish throughout her entire adventuring career.
《Seeing it in person for the first time! The wise one’s eyes grew wide! 》
“How does it feel?”
Once I explained its functions, Merlin’s eyes widened with wonder.
“…Am I really worthy of something like this?”
“Of course you are.”
I turned to look at the other adventurers and asked.
“Is there anyone here who thinks, deep down, ‘That should be mine’?”
“…….”
Tilda raised her hand but quickly dropped it after catching an elbow strike from Rael, the wood elf.
Satisfied, I turned back to Merlin with a smile.
“Seems not.”
“…I feel undeserving.”
“Then I’ll take it. Hand it over quickly. Truth is, I’ve been wanting this all along. Perfect! The Extreme Ice Series is mine now.”
“…….”
Merlin hid both her hands behind her back.
“I’ll just accept it, then.”
“A wise choice.”
I patted Merlin’s trembling shoulders and bowed deeply to Pingpi, my gratitude flowing through the gesture.
The last Extreme Ice Sovereign bloodline remaining in the city returned the bow.
“Blondie, take this as well.”
Pingpi tossed a small fish-shaped object toward me.
My Half-Elf frame couldn’t catch it, so Merlin caught it instead.
《Artifact – Cuek Cuek Cueek!》
《Single-use. Opens a Gate to summon the Extreme Ice Sovereign bloodline.》
“Break that, and no matter where you are, my kin will come to your aid. It’s a mark of our species’ debt.”
One of the Hidden Rewards you could obtain when you fulfilled the conditions to acquire the Glacial Glere.
It was, in essence, a spare life—an artifact beyond measure.
“Kar, expedition member! I, too, wish to express my gratitude!”
“…I suppose I should give something in return.”
Brinia and Aeira each pressed their rewards into my hands in turn.
A worn Secret Art Tome and a gem.
《5th Order Grimoire – All-Seeing Eye》
《You gain the ability to interpret all forms of written language.》
《Gem – Aqurain》
《When inlaid into a weapon, it grants the ability to breathe underwater.》
“It’s a replica of our house’s secret Secret Art Tome, so it’ll tear apart after one reading!”
“Since it’s valuable, feel free to sell it.”
“Thank you both, truly.”
I bowed low, then turned to face the others.
My comrades in the Moon Expedition Party.
The explorers of the Eyebeam Bear Love Guild.
All waiting for my declaration.
“We have succeeded.”
At last, the expedition was complete.
“Now shall we return and bask in the glory and honor?”
Currently C-rank, and in the future, B-rank.
The Southern Continent Expedition.
Across oceans and over mountains, through snowfields and toward triumph—the conquest was complete.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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