Chapter 29: Farewell?

In the pitch-black room, the enormous “ingredient” lay quietly on the stone chopping board.

Checking the status panel.

【Name】: Clorel Greenville

【Race】: Human

【Level】: Lv30

【HP】: 304

【Strength】: 63

【Agility】: 93

【Magic】: 183

【Skills】: Light Magic Lv3, Court Etiquette Lv6, Diplomacy Lv2, Short Sword Technique Lv6, Fire Magic Lv4

【Inherent Skills】: Royal Majesty, Unyielding Heart

【Status】: Dungeon Boss

The atmosphere around the dining table grew somewhat oppressive.

Su Yao used the excuse of preparing food to enter the adjacent room and take a look at Clorel’s panel.

Compared to when they first met, she had grown significantly stronger. With these skills and stats, most people wouldn’t stand a chance against her—not to mention that she could easily defend herself.

But she still had a long way to go before reaching the goal she had originally set.

For now, even if she and Latina managed to persuade Duke Gerald, who had been conserving his strength, to stand up and resist, turning the current situation around would take far more than just a day or two.

Ending this war? No matter what, it would take at least three to five years.

She didn’t even know if she’d ever see Clorel and Sofia again.

Unlike their first encounter, as time passed, these two girls had carved out a special place in her heart.

Thinking about how they were about to leave her Dungeon to undertake a perilous, uncertain mission—one that might even cost them their lives—she couldn’t help but feel lost and troubled.

Perhaps it wasn’t just on the surface; even Su Yao’s heart was beginning to feel like a “child.”

A rational, mature person wouldn’t feel sadness over “losing a companion gained along the way.” Or maybe, in her heart, they had already become more than just “companions.”

No way. Shaking her head, Su Yao tried to banish such unrealistic thoughts from her mind.

“Click.”

The wooden door of the underground chamber was pushed open. A chestnut-haired maid stood in the doorway, but because of the backlighting, Su Yao couldn’t see her expression clearly.

“Not going to catch up with an old acquaintance anymore?”

Her tone held a hint of resentment. Even she was surprised at how she sounded.

Clorel said nothing, simply walking toward her. She had to admit, it was a bit frightening; she didn’t know what this girl was about to do next.

“Eh? What are you doing…”

In a sour mood, Su Yao hadn’t lit the torch in the room. The remaining light filtering through the door was blocked by the chestnut-haired maid standing in front of her.

Just as Su Yao was anxiously wondering if she had discovered something wrong with today’s “ingredient,” the other suddenly bent down and embraced her.

If this had been before, Su Yao might have had the leisure to appreciate the softness against Clorel’s chest—but what happened next left her mind in chaos, with no time to focus on such things.

“Mmm.”

Soft lips pressed against hers. Surprised, she held her breath. Though she wanted to push the other away, her arms stubbornly wrapped around the maid’s back.

The golden-haired loli, with zero experience in kissing, awkwardly stood frozen. Then she felt something trying to pry open the gap between her lips and teeth.

Her cheeks unknowingly flushed hot. Having never experienced anything like this, she began to struggle, but Clorel held her tighter.

Gradually, she gave up resisting.

After a long moment, they parted. Su Yao originally wanted to question what she had just done, but what came out instead was another sentence.

“You’ve already made your decision, haven’t you?”

She regretted bringing Latina back. If Clorel hadn’t met this powerful Fire Magic user, perhaps she would have stayed by her side longer.

The chestnut-haired maid only nodded, catching her breath.

“By the way, I have plenty of other scrolls—swordsmanship, archery, wood magic, ice magic… Give me some time, and I might even get some space magic. You…”

Before she could finish, Clorel raised her index finger to Su Yao’s lips. To Su Yao, this ambiguous gesture meant only one thing.

Her proposal had been rejected. A month wasn’t too long, but not too short either.

From the information gathered earlier at the dining table:

The Vichy Kingdom had seized the capital of this country and controlled vast areas in the north.

After that, their offensive slowed considerably. Maintaining order in occupied territories and preventing a potential Empire sneak attack drained much of their troops and supplies.

Because of this, the nobles who got a breather gathered in the south—some conserving their strength and watching the situation, others actively resisting.

But if no one stepped up as a banner to unite them, they would likely be defeated or surrender individually after some time.

As the Imperial Princess, her stepping forward was undoubtedly the best solution.

Previously, due to enemy blockades, she had to flee north to other countries. Now, with Sofia and Latina by her side, and enough strength to protect herself, wanting to leave the Dungeon was only natural.

“You could have asked Latina to stay in your Dungeon, but you handed her over to me anyway.”

“I never agreed to spare her. I just considered that she has her own business, so I lent her to you for now.”

Su Yao responded with a reluctant tone. She must have been influenced by the golden hair and loli figure; otherwise, she would never have spoken so tsundere-like.

In truth, Su Yao hesitated a long time over whether to keep Latina in the Dungeon or let her go, but in the end, she chose for Clorel’s sake—not for herself.

“You’re so sly…”

Su Yao had even been ready to hold a farewell ceremony for the few of them, but this girl caught her off guard.

The golden-haired loli lowered her head, not wanting Clorel to see her current expression.

“Can I…”

She had wanted to try to negotiate a little more but gave up halfway. She already guessed the answer: Clorel would probably say, “Sorry, I’m the Imperial Princess of this country,” or something like that.

She didn’t want to hear such heavy words. But if this girl had already decided to leave, why did she have to steal her first kiss?

To satisfy her desire? Because she didn’t want regrets before leaving? Or was it a way of thanking her for the help?

Kissing first without a word and then leaving without explanation—this girl was only thinking about herself.

“I’ve decided. I’m going to stay here, establish a new regime, and then cooperate with the nobles still resisting in the south to reclaim our country.”

“Huh?”

Wait, wait! The atmosphere was so intense just now—shouldn’t she have dramatically turned away and said “Wait for my return” or something? She had almost been ready to shed a few tears and say goodbye.

“First, this place is discreet. Even if a large army attacks, we can retreat to the Empire. Second, the resources here are abundant, so we won’t be troubled by financial issues. And… well, finally, that depends on whether you agree or not.”

Su Yao didn’t really hear the long list of reasons Clorel gave. All that talk was just to hide her shyness. She understood that much.

After all, blondes naturally came with a tsundere attribute. For now, it was enough that she was staying. There would be plenty of opportunities to hear Clorel’s true feelings later.

But she wasn’t such an easy woman… thinking that a single kiss could drag her onto the sinking ship was out of the question…

At least, that’s how it should have been.

“You’re impossible. Since you put it that way, I’ll reluctantly agree then.”