Sanctuary Paradise

Chapter 856 The Strugglers (Part 2)

"Xia?!"

"It's a curse, and a very powerful one at that."

Inside the cockpit, as the blonde little girl collapsed, the expressions on Xing Nu's and the others changed, while Sheng Ji's face darkened slightly. She ripped open the girl's collar, and seeing the black lines that spread like veins across half of her body, she quickly deduced:

"The concealment level is very high, and the erosion is extremely rapid. It was probably left by that overlord-level abyssal creature!"

A curse left behind by a dominant abyssal unit?!
Upon hearing Saintess's assessment, Bell's expression changed, and his hands clenched unconsciously. However, he tried his best to remain calm and spoke in as composed a tone as possible:

"Miss Saintess, is there a way to cure this?"

“I don’t know, Miss Soul Moon. Please use the power of Silver Moon to temporarily suppress the curse in Miss Sia’s body. I need some time to analyze its structure.”

"it is good."

As Saintess spoke, she quickly mobilized the holy light power within her body, penetrating the curse marks within the golden-haired little girl's body. Meanwhile, Soul Moon sat down cross-legged beside her, placed her hand on the other's chest, closed her eyes, and began to mobilize the silver moon power within her body.

Time ticked by, and as the two attacked, the dark patterns that had appeared on the blonde girl's body began to fade, until finally—

"Cough cough, cough cough... Sister Saintess, and Sister Soul Moon, what am I doing...?"

A weak cough came, and the blonde little girl lying on Saintess's lap struggled to open her eyes. After coughing up two mouthfuls of black phlegm, she looked down at her own condition and a look of relief appeared on her face.

"So that's how it is. I thought I was overthinking it, but now it seems that back then... cough cough, it really was a curse?"

“Miss Sia, please don’t push yourself! The most important thing now is to receive treatment. The curse in your body is very troublesome, and if it’s not dealt with in time, I’m afraid…”

Seeing the blonde little girl struggling to sit up, Bell's expression changed slightly. He quickly supported her and tried to remind her, but before she could finish speaking, Shia shook her head, smiled weakly, looked at the Holy Princess beside her, and said:

"Even if it's treated promptly, it'll probably be very difficult to cure, right, Sister Saint Princess? Am I right?"

"..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Holy Maiden fell silent, a rare occurrence for her. This caused the white-haired boy's hand to tremble slightly, and his lips to open slightly, but the words he wanted to ask stuck in his throat, and he couldn't say them.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Argo, the curse within Sia is beyond my ability to handle." After a long silence, Saintess finally spoke.

"Although Miss Hunyue and I can suppress it for the time being, at this rate, Miss Hunyue and I will be unable to continue suppressing it due to exhaustion of our mental energy within a day at most. At that time..."

At this point, Saintess fell silent again and did not continue.

"Holy Princess, is there really no other way?"

"It's not impossible. Theoretically speaking, as long as the abyssal creature that cast the curse can be defeated, the corrosiveness of the curse can be greatly weakened. The problem is..."

The question is, how do we accurately locate each other on this vast planet?

It's important to remember that they were the ones who fell into the spatial rift together. With the Star Maiden's divination skills ineffective, trying to accurately locate the creature within a day is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Moreover, even if they find it, given their current condition, it's uncertain whether they can defeat the opponent safely.

With both Saintess and Soul Moon focused on suppressing the curse on Sia, even if they wanted to track down the abyssal creature that had cast the curse, they still needed to spare one person to protect the three of them.

That would mean that only the white-haired boy could deal with the overlord-level abyssal creature that was strong enough to instantly kill Sia, who was also in the top tier. From any perspective, the risk of doing so was too great.

"Moreover, as I just said, the idea that killing the curse caster can weaken the curse's strength is merely a theoretical guess. If this guess is wrong..."

Saintess looked at the silent white-haired boy and spoke. As his companion, she knew his personality very well, which was why she explained these things so clearly.

"Ahem...Alright, it's just a curse, why worry about it so much?"

In the silence, a soft laugh, tinged with a sense of relief, broke the silence. The blonde little girl smiled slightly, her pale face showing no fear or unease, as if she had long accepted this ending.

"Besides, this is already a very good result. When we encountered that abyssal creature, I thought I would die there soon. I didn't expect Brother Argo to be so amazing that he was able to escape with me under those circumstances."

“However, since things have come to this, there's nothing we can do. So, Al…”

"No, there is another way!"

Before the blonde little girl could finish speaking, a strong and clear voice suddenly rang out. Bell, who had been silent all along, suddenly raised his head and spoke, word by word:

"That is to put an end to this turmoil completely. Please, Sister, descend and heal Miss Sia!"

Om-! !

As soon as he finished speaking, a pure white halo bloomed from beneath the white-haired youth's feet, and began to form array patterns at a speed visible to the naked eye. Upon seeing this, Saintess and the others couldn't help but shrink their pupils.

"Completely over? Wait, Mr. Argo, you should know very well..."

“I’m serious, everyone.” Before the reprimand could finish, the white-haired boy calmly interrupted him: “Miss Saintess should understand, right? Although we keep saying that we can only wait for rescue, in fact, from the very beginning, we have always had the ability to save ourselves.”

"All we need to do is restart the Abyss Suppression Device, rebuild the damaged elemental barrier, and have the World Fortress supply elemental light once again. Then, the Abyss and its creatures will be able to overcome all the difficulties we are facing now."

That's right, the method has always been in their hands; they just didn't have the courage to face it before.

What was damaged was only the elemental barrier between the planets, not the abyssal suppression device at each stronghold. In other words, if the contractors on the key stronghold planets were willing to restart the abyssal suppression device and bridge the elemental barrier, they could resolve this crisis entirely on their own without relying on others for rescue...

"That's simply impossible." Saintess raised her head, gritted her teeth, and gazed at the white-haired youth before her. Meeting his gaze, so calm it almost made her want to avoid it, she took a deep breath and said:

“Mr. Argo, you should know very well just how great the risk is to attempt to re-bridge the elements in an environment teeming with abyssal creatures!”

"Do you think other contractors are really that enlightened, willing to forgo safer methods and choose this way of gambling with their lives?"

"Furthermore, even if we assume that there are indeed that many contractors who can respond to you, how can you guarantee that the World Fortress will be able to react in time and that the previous situation will not happen again?!"

As the questioning, tinged with a hint of anger, fell, the air in the cockpit seemed to freeze as Saintess pressed her for answers. All eyes were fixed on the white-haired youth, as if awaiting his choice. However…

"Just as you said, Miss Saintess, I really can't give any guarantees, but—"

A calm and gentle voice broke the silence in the cockpit. The white-haired youth took a deep breath, glanced around at the women before him, and spoke in a calm yet firm tone:

"I believe them."

"Half a day has passed since the incident broke out. I believe that with Brother Black Sword's abilities, even if they haven't resolved the root of the problem, they must have already restrained the other side. Therefore..."

"So what?!"

Snapped! ! !
A hysterical outburst, like suppressed rage finally erupting, rang out. The blonde girl, who should have been supported by the white-haired boy, slapped his arm away, stood up unsteadily, and abruptly raised her head, her eyes slightly red and swollen, as she angrily shouted at the white-haired boy before her:
"Believe, believe, believe! Why does Brother Argo always say such disgusting things?!"

"You don't want them to die here? You'll definitely save them? Don't be ridiculous! Why should my life be decided by you?!"

"Trust, trust, always talking about trust with your partners, but in the end, in the end..."

"What do you really know about me?!"

The choked, angry outburst, as if venting all the pent-up resentment in her heart, left the Saintess and the others speechless, unable to find the words to speak. Looking at the blonde little girl standing before them, who seemed utterly alone despite her presence, they were caught in a dilemma, unsure how to begin.
"Bell Crane."

"?!!"

His calm voice, carrying a certain resolve, fell, causing the girls present to pause in surprise. They looked at the white-haired boy before them with astonishment. He, however, lowered his eyes, gazing at the blonde little girl with a complex yet tender look, and spoke:

“Miss Xia, you are right, I do not know you.”

"Including Miss Star Maiden, Miss Saintess, and Miss Soul Moon." "However, the reverse is also true."

"Just like that name I just mentioned, you may not recognize it, but in fact, that is my real name and my true origin."

origin?

This statement...

"Miss Saintess once said that I seem to adapt to everything on the expedition very quickly, right?"

"That's because long before I met you all, I had already fallen into the abyss once, along with my former hometown, along with my companions, the people I admired, the people I was grateful for, and those whose hearts I was moved by."

"!!!"

The calm, somewhat somber voice finished speaking, causing Saintess and the others to gasp for breath, vaguely realizing something in their minds.

“Mr. Argo, could it be that you…”

"Is it wrong to seek encounters in a dungeon? This is my true origin, a derivative world that you may have heard of or may not have heard of."

"I was once the 'protagonist' of that world, but due to an accident, I fell into the abyss-eroded zone called the Dead Sea Ruins with my companions."

"There, I lost everything I once had, but I also gained the opportunity to change everything, to learn about the existence of Paradise, to become the Arbiter, and to meet you all. All of this was made possible by that accident."

"Just as I don't know about your past, I have never told you about my past experiences. Yet, you still consider me a companion, don't you?"

“Miss Xia said that I do not know you. Perhaps you are right, but not knowing enough is not the same as not knowing at all.”

"She has captivating blonde hair, is very mature despite her young age, hates spicy food, likes sharp things, avoids eye contact when lying, twirls her left hair with her index finger when shy, likes to wear pretty dresses, hates having her hair down, bares her teeth when angry, is skilled at stealing, shows a terrifying smile when killing, and likes to squat alone in a corner when lonely... This is all I know about Miss Sia."

"I……"

“Miss Sia, perhaps I don’t know you well enough, but at least what I do know about you is enough for me to make a decision, and—”

The white-haired boy paused slightly, looked at the blonde little girl whose eyes were brimming with tears, knelt down, gently stroked her head, and said with a smile:

"That's precisely why Miss Xia, you should all live your lives to the fullest. Only in this way will we have more time, more experiences, and more possibilities to introduce each other as we just did, and to get to know each other better, right?"

As the words fell, in a daze, it seemed as if there were the sound of tears falling to the ground. A hazy, tearful light was reflected in the white-haired boy's clear, jewel-like red eyes, transforming into choked sobs in response:
"Playing the cheater..."

"That's so unfair..."

"Because I feel these things need to be properly discussed."

"Liar, scumbag, womanizer, child killer, anyway, Brother Argo, you've definitely fooled countless people with this method!"

"That's precisely why I need to shoulder this responsibility."

"I don't care about that at all!!!"

"What abyss, what Dead Sea ruins, what DanMachi world, what inexplicable object of admiration—none of these have anything to do with it!!"

"I just, just..."

"I don't want to see my family members die in front of me anymore!"

The choked sobs subsided, and the blonde little girl tightly gripped the warm hand stroking her head, tears and snot mingling together as she burst into tears, just like a real fourteen-year-old girl.

No one knows how a fourteen-year-old girl ended up in the paradise.

No one knows what kind of experiences made her hate her so-called 'brother' so much and yearn for a living 'sister'.

No one knows when the 'Ripper,' who terrifies many contractors in the Death Paradise, developed the morbid and twisted habit of showing that kind of smile to those who have been disemboweled.

But at least, at this moment, the blonde girl who had so desperately longed for that warmth of the past could only utter these words:

"So, so..."

"Brother Argo...you absolutely can't die!"

The desperate sobs subsided, and the blonde little girl, choking back tears, lowered her hand, watching the white-haired boy step into the teleportation array. He, in turn, gave a gentle smile and nodded.

"Yeah, I promise."

Boom——! !

The next instant, a dazzling silver-white light erupted from the teleportation scroll in the white-haired boy's hand, transforming into a violent spatial fluctuation that enveloped it and vanished from the spot, leaving only the sobbing blonde little girl and the silent Star Maiden and the others there, listening to the last words echoing in their ears:
"So, let's get to know each other's stories properly after everything is over."

……

Reef No. 127, the area where the No. 4 abyss suppression device is located.

Dim light streamed down from all sides, and across the darkness-shrouded land, roars and wailing echoed from afar, reminding everyone who entered that this was the world of abyssal creatures, but this time…

boom--! !

A dazzling silver-white light burst forth, tearing a striking rift in the sky. Like a space railgun, it slammed heavily into the tower standing in the center of the plain, revealing the white-haired boy's figure, exuding a rich aura of the world.

[Note: The class skill "World's Sanctuary" has been successfully activated, and you are now completely immune to the effects of "Spatial Shock" and "Abyssal Erosion"!]

[Note: The class skill "Unyielding Radiance" has been successfully activated. During this time, the user's Abyss Resistance is increased by 5 points, and the Abyss Corrosion effect is reduced by 50%.]

Am I alone again?
In mid-air, Bell gazed at the earth shrouded in darkness, and a long-lost yet familiar sensation flashed through his mind.

Alone and alone, trapped in darkness.

only--

It's different from last time.

[Hint: The talent ability "Hero's Vision" has been activated and will last for...]

[Note: The title effect "Lone Warrior Deep into the Territory" has been activated and will last for...]

[Notification: The job skill "The Last Guardian" has been activated, lasting for...]

[Note: Confirmation complete. The Abyss Suppression Device has now switched to "Bridge Mode" and will automatically maintain maximum output power during this period!]

Boom! ! !
A loud bell tolled from the tower used to fix the abyss suppression device, and pure white light representing elemental power shot up from the top of the tower. A white-haired boy stood on the tower, and wisps of pure white flame rose from his body, spreading towards the short blade as he struck a pose.

"Roar--!!"

The next second, a cacophony of roars and howls exploded in his ears. As a pure white beam of light erupted, the beasts that had been slumbering in the darkness seemed to be stimulated and all looked toward the direction of the tower.

Faced with this scene, the white-haired boy calmly raised his short blade in front of him, his gentle expression towards the blonde girl transforming into a resolute and ruthless look.

(Image from the cover of DanMachi manga, volume 20)
come on.

This time... he will absolutely not back down!!!

……

(End of this chapter)