Shia initially thought that Grakshar was being overwhelmed by the energy of Seongnyeok and couldn’t hold on.
But it wasn’t just Grakshar.
All the orcs were on one knee, paying reverence to Lilybet.
“You are the Mother of this city!”
“…Uh, what?”
“Thank you!”
Wait, what the heck is going on?
Shia narrowed her eyes, suspecting it was some kind of orc trick. Lilybet lifted her face from Shia’s embrace and looked at Grakshar.
‘This isn’t a lie, is it?’
This development is suddenly way too out of left field!
Weren’t you planning to kill Lilybet and take over the city?
But regardless of the confusion from Shia and Lilybet, Grakshar continued speaking.
“My name is Grakshar. And my comrades and I have already faced death 20 years ago.”
“At first, we resented and hated the one who brought us to Green City. Death is honorable for orcs. It’s something we can face without regret. But having accepted our rightful deaths, we were called to Green City and became beings that couldn’t die even if we wanted to.”
Considering the traits of orcs, they must have been filled with rage when they first arrived in Green City.
It’s not that hard to understand.
Dying honorably in battle, duels, and fights is the happiest and most valuable thing for orcs.
For such orcs, Green City could be called hell.
“But as time went by, we came to realize that honor is futile, and battle is something undesirable.”
“Uh, what?”
Wait, are you even an orc?
An orc saying that honor and battle are futile?
“Even after coming to Green City, we went berserk. We wanted to fight and declared we would crush the one who brought us here. There were even brothers who preferred that. They thought we could fight forever without dying. But then we realized that the honor we sought was more or less just brainwashing to calm our dissatisfaction with fighting.”
“…..Uh, I see…?”
What on earth is this? An orc…?
If orcs from the previous world had said something like this, they would definitely be suspecting their whole race.
“But through our turf battles with the scavengers in Green City, we came to understand. The filthy alleys soaked in blood, and the aftermath of the wars we instigated meant that the powerless were horrifically torn apart and killed without even being part of the conflict. There’s…there’s no honor in war. It’s just hell. In our living days, we pursued creating hell under the guise of honor! Even our attacks on other clans were just to somehow quell the chaos in the city…!”
Like a confession, Grakshar bowed his head to Lilybet, slamming his fist into the ground as he continued.
“You, you made us realize…!”
“I-I didn’t intend for anything so deep…”
Frustrated, Lilybet muttered from Shia’s embrace.
“I just… killed a lot of monsters… wanting to look away from the corpses I piled up, and because there was no one to pray for the monsters, I wanted to try doing that… It’s not like I have some grand purpose to save you… I accidentally created this sewage while trying to make paradise…”
“It doesn’t matter. Whatever the reason, you made us realize, and if you pray for us, isn’t that enough!”
“………”
Shia didn’t feel any lies in Grakshar’s words and relaxed her body.
Well, Grakshar hasn’t directly said he would kill Lilybet or anything.
“But then you brought in the Association, claiming to become the ruler of this city? What’s up with that?”
“…I’ve realized a lot during my long time here. It’s unimaginable how many incredible resources it takes to maintain this city.”
Reviving the dead.
Bringing souls of monsters from across dimensions.
Restoring a broken city.
Although it only applies to the already deceased in a limited area, it’s a dungeon with an absurd gimmick of infinite resurrection and infinite city restoration.
Lilybet’s talent aside, it’s also possible because of the power source, the Fragment of the Demon King.
“In order to maintain this city, you… the Mother of the City has been shackled here for a long time as its heart. You couldn’t even step outside and carried a heavy burden.”
“Uh, well… I guess that’s true?”
Lilybet averted her gaze from Grakshar awkwardly.
She hadn’t sacrificed for the sake of maintaining Green City, but she definitely hadn’t just been casually martyred as Grakshar implied.
Anyway, it seemed Grakshar didn’t know that Lilybet had been acting as a proxy, creating dolls of herself.
Well, his words weren’t completely wrong. Her actual body had remained here for a long time as the heart of Green City.
“So I will take your place…! You deserve your freedom now!”
With those words, both Lilybet and Shia fell silent.
They had thought of Grakshar as a wicked and ambition-filled orc mafia, but they never imagined he had such an un-orc-like purpose and heart.
“You know, I feel a bit embarrassed thinking I wanted to wipe you all out…”
Ew, I thought of you as children, not orcs.
Shia muttered softly, reflecting on herself.
“But what you’re saying is that in exchange for Lilybet gaining her freedom, you’ll take her place as the heart of Green City?”
“That’s right… Although Green City is a lawless, chaotic city, there are certainly those who are living new lives through it.”
Why, even the Vegan Orc Grakshar and his family are included. Just look at the Grasshopper Chef!
“Don’t do that. This place isn’t worth it.”
“No, it is.”
“To someone, this is paradise…!”
“Paradise…?”
“Even if it’s not paradise now, I believe it will become one someday. I learned things in death that I never understood in life!”
Monsters were living like humans.
Even though they were aberrations, they were maintaining their humanity.
Of course, there were clans, yakuza, and gangs rampaging all around, but there were those who were carving out their own lives.
If given time, maybe other beings could eventually become like Grakshar or the Grasshopper Chef.
‘This place… a paradise out of a dump…?’
A flower of hope bloomed in a place once seen as a sewer, and perhaps one day this sewer itself could be covered in flowers and become a true paradise.
“…..Ah… Ugh…”
Once she reached that thought, Lilybet unexpectedly burst into tears.
“Ugh, ugh…”
She thought everything was alright now.
Having achieved romantic fulfillment, she thought dying wouldn’t be so bad.
After failing countless times in life and creating a dump, she figured it would be fine to clean it up and vanish together.
“Mother of the City, I ask this of you. I may not be enough on my own, but attach these electric wires and pipes to me and my family to make us the heart of Green City. You are now free!”
“……”
“My brothers and I have resolved ourselves!”
Honestly, Shia didn’t see this coming either.
She just assumed an ambitious orc wanting to take over the city would attack Lilybet, but it turns out this orc had undergone so much suffering that he was now in a near-zen state. Shia had never encountered anything like this before.
“…Ha, I can’t just sit idly by when you’re saying all this.”
Shia pulled out the pulsing Fragment of the Demon King.
“Grakshar, you Vegan Orcs don’t need to sacrifice yourselves.”
“What do you mean?”
“And Lilybet, you should come with me! There’s no way a story where the saint saves the queen ends with her being stuck here!”
“………”
Neither of them needed to stay here.
Fortunately, she had a substitute method available.
‘I was originally thinking this way as soon as I accepted the fragment.’
“Lilybet.”
“Ugh, huh..?”
“This will hurt a bit. Can you trust me?”
“……”
Lilybet looked at the Fragment of the Demon King in Shia’s hand.
And in the center of Lilybet’s chest was yet another Fragment of the Demon King that supplied power to Green City.
It seemed she realized what Shia was planning to do.
“…Okay. I’ll trust you.”
Shunk!
At that moment, Shia’s hand pierced deep into Lilybet’s chest.
“Ah, huuh…!”
It didn’t hurt.
Though part of her body and nervous systems were mechanized, Shia’s hand, which had penetrated into Lilybet’s body, was healing her in real-time.
But it wasn’t without sensation.
Creak!
Creak!
“Haah, ha… Haaah…”
Something felt odd and hot… the sensation was strange.
As Shia’s hand delved deeper into Lilybet’s body, creaking and probing around, Lilybet held onto Shia’s collar tightly, simply shuddering to shake off this bizarre sensation.
“Haa, hee… huh…!”
Fwap!
Moments later, Shia pulled out the Fragment of the Demon King that was lodged deep in Lilybet’s chest.
One was a fragment that had lost its will due to the Promise’s Finger, becoming a ticking time bomb.
The other surrendered to Lilybet and became the power source for Green City.
“Fragments resonate with one another and long to become one.”
Shia smiled as she looked at the fragments.
She once thought a Fragment of the Demon King was a type of plague, a disease, and a kind of trash.
‘But today, it’s actually useful. Oh, the Demon King’s teabag fragment too.’
Crash!
Bang!
The miracle of reuniting the lost souls of twins has turned into the miracle of uniting split fragments today.
Life can really throw some surprises at you.
Thanks to Shia’s miracle, the separated fragments became one.
Even the one aimed to become a bigger fragment was still like the other one, having lost its will, and Shia was easily able to merge them into one.
If each had its own intelligence and consciousness, it would have posed an issue, but since both were incapacitated fragments, it was easy for them to become one.
“This will be the heart of this city.”
No one else has to be sacrificed.
They don’t need to stay here.
There’s no need to close the gate and become dimensional lost souls.
The connection to Earth will still be maintained.
And this city will continue to exist.
No one will be able to burn this place down.
With the two fragments merged, the turbine called Green City will have more than enough power to boil the green water.
Also, the overflowing energy of the fragment about to explode can be redirected here too.
“Hah, hah… hah….”
“So, Lilybet, do you like it?”
With slightly dazed eyes, Lilybet looked at Shia and gave a faint smile.
Isn’t this a bit forced?
Just speak, and everything is done.
Whatever happens, it feels like miracles, and they end up actually happening.
Hah…
In Lilybet’s eyes, Shia shone too bright.
Regardless of the forced nature of it all, what mattered to Lilybet at this moment was that Shia had fulfilled everything she had wished for.
She was endlessly, profoundly grateful.
So, so…
‘I don’t have much I can give back…’
There probably wouldn’t be many material desires… Would there be anything Shia wanted?
No. That’s right.
There was something she could give.
Something special that only Lilybet could offer Shia.
“Ishia Seongnyeo…”
“Yes?”
Wait, thinking about it…
Wasn’t Ishia Seongnyeo ultimately wishing for this all along?
It may be an excessive thought, but there’s a slight possibility.
Taking a deep breath, Lilybet calmed her racing heart.
Even for Lilybet, this required a little mental preparation.
Hoo, huu.
Okay. I’m resolved.
“Will you Marry Me!!!!”
“Eh?”
And the moment Menelapie and Teresa arrived in the Underground Cavern…
“Ishia Seongnyeo…”
“Yes?”
“Will you Marry Me!!!!”
“Eh?”
“?”
“?”
A strange sound struck the ears of the witch and hero.
“………”
“………”
And then, they both froze in place.
What kind of situation is this?
Hmm.
Hmmmm…
Hmmmm…
Hmm, Shia isn’t denying it, huh?
Is she flustered?
Or is this positive?
Shia, come on.
Say something.
At the very least, deny it or do something.
She can’t possibly be saying yes, can she?
But contrary to the desires of the two, Shia seemed frozen like a rock, unable to utter a word.
“Hahaha…”
“Ah, what the hell~”
Teresa and Menelapie soon came to a conclusion about the current situation.
This fucking fox girl!!!!
