Chapter 104

“Surprisingly, I wasn’t that scared.”

“When you think about it, it’s not that weird.”

I said while munching on the breakfast Ria prepared for me.

“Saint Power is not exactly my power; it’s the power from that being up there. It’s from an entirely different dimension, especially one that wields a strong influence in this world. It’s hard to believe there’s absolutely no risk in summoning that kind of power from another dimension, right?”

“…….”

“And crashing after using Saint Power is another thing. Generally, Saint Power should heal others, but the one using it, well, they—”

“…….”

Hmm.

Let’s just eat the bread in silence.

With Ria glaring at me like she wanted to kill me, I quietly ate the toast she generously smeared with jam. A fair amount of crumbs fell onto the small table beside the bed and onto the blanket, but Ria didn’t scold me much.

Yeah, well, it’s true that it’s the job of those managing this place to clean it up, but still…

Scary.

“Um, Ria.”

“What?”

Crunch, crunch.

Freshly toasted bread was perfectly crispy on the outside just next to me. …I mean, a toaster? Dwarves think the same way we do! Bread made from wheat that needs to be grown outside the caves must have been expensive even for a Dwarf, but seeing them serve it to me means they really appreciate me.

Besides, this bread isn’t just your average factory-style loaf. It was made thin from the get-go—

…

Well, let’s stop this reality escape here.

“…Are you mad?”

When I asked that, Ria’s hands stopped moving. While Ria wasn’t putting strawberry jam on, she remained silent for a bit before starting to move her hands again.

“No.”

She seems mad though. Her attitude is nothing short of furious.

Plus, looking at the amount of bread piling in front of me, it feels all the more so. Almost like she’s deep in thought, Ria was stacking more bread than necessary in front of me.

“……”

Let’s just eat the bread quietly.

Fortunately, I was quite hungry, so I eventually managed to finish all the bread.

Whether Ria had eaten breakfast or not remained a secret I couldn’t share with anyone.

*

Ria, still deep in thought, talked far less than usual after that. I’m not dumb enough to tease her and cause a major explosion.

After finishing the meal, I followed Ria outside.

Dwarves, too, have a concept of buildings or open spaces. But in the end, all those places are still inside the caves. My living quarters were quite nice, but at the same time, it made distinguishing between a corridor and a street vague.

People were bustling about in the spacious area, and when they saw me, they quickly moved out of the way. It felt reminiscent of the atmosphere I sensed just before losing consciousness.

Some looked at me as if they feared me, while others gazed up at me in a somewhat worshipful manner. Given the height difference, it’s natural they’d look up, but their eyes almost seemed too bright.

And Ria didn’t say a word about how this situation came to be.

Still, I could guess. There must have been a really intense light pouring down.

A totally intense light that erased all that magical power.

Before long, heavily armed Dwarves and the Knight Order surrounded us. Their protective formation as we went to see the Princess was different from when I first arrived here.

Perhaps it was under the king’s orders.

Thanks to that, instead of heading to the Princess’s room, I was led directly to the King’s audience chamber. It wasn’t my choice to go there; the soldiers surrounding us naturally guided us there.

The Dwarf King sitting on the throne, and the Princess sitting in a chair somewhat less elevated.

Both stood up to welcome me. I felt like my stomach might burst.

“Thank you so, so much.”

The King was the first to speak those words.

“Uh, yeah.”

And that was all I could muster in response to his sudden words.

“I apologize for not being able to speak with you face to face at first. There were just too many sensitive topics that a king has to deal with.”

“Uh, no, well, thanks to the Princess, I learned a lot of things.”

I’d learned a bit too much to feel comfortable about it, though.

“The price for what happened this time—”

“…I’d appreciate it if you could discuss that with the Order.”

After saying that, I hesitated for a moment, then asked,

“Ah, could I ask the Princess one thing?”

“Yes, please go ahead.”

The nearby Princess said with a gentle smile.

I pondered briefly.

It’s why I came here, but I wondered if they’d genuinely comply if I outright asked for it.

However, I couldn’t just say nothing and let it pass.

While I didn’t want to call it ‘price,’ I had something I wanted their cooperation on.

“I’d like you to share with us the research about the Gate.”

The Princess glanced at the King. He nodded.

It was as if he already knew I’d demand that information.

“The Saintess—”

“…Saint Candidate.”

“Ah, right, right.” The Princess giggled and corrected herself.

“Thanks to you, after expelling that magical power, we’ve had some time to breathe. At least there won’t be any sudden collapse of the ceiling collapsing over us because of magic.”

Moreover, there was no longer a reason to Kidnap the Princess. In fact, the Princess’s wellbeing was likely more important than the power up there.

Research materials on the Gate.

The Princess had an immense amount of magical power stored within her. Whether it was due to her mixed blood of Dwarves and Gnomes that inherited the strengths of both, or if she was just a uniquely talented royalty, I didn’t know.

But that power was certainly ‘extraordinary.’ It was mentioned in the story that after the narrative concluded, tales about the Dwarf Princess circulated.

Details about research involving the Gate arose in the process of going through records. They were mentioned in passing—indicating it might lead back to the Elf’s world that had been closed off. Glaria had asked for that too.

And now, we’ve managed to skip past some of those intermediary stages.

If the Princess focused on the research after crossing over to our world, it should facilitate much safer study. Glaria could also handle magical power, and above all, we had artifacts that could prevent the pressure of that power from needing to be stored firmly inside a Dwarf.

Surely, the research team would be more than thrilled about this.

“Yes, we will cooperate.”

“I will do my utmost to ensure that the results of the Princess’s research won’t harm the Dwarf Kingdom.”

“I believe you. If you were to harm us, you wouldn’t have saved our world at the cost of your life.”

The Princess bent deeply at the waist and spoke to me.

“Once again, I’m truly grateful.”

The sight of the King and the Princess bowing their heads side by side appeared awkward no matter how many times I saw it.

*

Finally, I escaped that burdensome place.

There were still a few things to do. It seemed the Dwarves were planning a grand feast before we head back.

They’d most likely rush over to greet me, unlike the welcoming ceremony where my Saint Power had been a bit daunting.

“Anna.”

As soon as I returned to the room, Ria spoke to me, making me jump.

Had she finally sorted out her thoughts?

I wondered, if Ria told me not to do anything like being a Saint, how I should respond.

No, of course, I wasn’t a true Saint, but still, there were many things I had to do with this Saint Power. I didn’t plan on losing my hands, but now that it’s happened, I might as well do what I can.

There may not be anyone wanting to save the world, but I stubbornly want to protect what’s dear to me, even if it means professing that there’s no divine entity if I were to perish.

Exactly.

I prayed, but I was going to defect at any moment. As long as I saved it, that would be enough.

And didn’t that being above just say so? That it wasn’t necessary. It’s public knowledge, right?

As light fell upon us, Ria and I waved our hands simultaneously to dispel the light.

“…What’s going on?”

After regaining a bit of composure, I asked, and Ria stared at me intently and then opened her mouth.

“Let’s dance, us.”

“…Huh?”

“At the welcome party.”

Ria looked straight at me as she spoke.

“From what I see now, Dwarven nobles will surely line up to speak to you, right?”

“…That’s true.”

“So, let’s just have a dance and skip the complicated discussions.”

“The Dwarves….”

Ah, I had participated in some sort of dancing before. Not exactly social dancing, but more of a dance battle. And one led by unkempt old men.

“I’ll help you escape while you dash around.”

Ria said confidently.

“Then there won’t even be a need for those complicated dialogues, right?”

“…What kind of plan is that?”

But I couldn’t stop a grin from forming on my face.

Ria was also wearing a sly smile by now.

…

In the end, I went along with Ria’s plan.

Throughout the welcome party, we busily twirled around, dodging the Dwarves that occasionally approached us.

Glaria, along with Han Yu-ri and Lee Si-yoon, watched us with bewildered expressions, but before long, Lee Si-yoon had become trapped, alternating between twirling with the two.

We didn’t talk about the being above.

I felt a bit glad for that.

It felt more like just the two of us communicating.