177 Silent Story 9 To the Unprotected Princess (1/2)

SIDE: Sherry.

I'm always on the receiving end.

I can't tell you how many times I've sworn that next time I won't just be protected. .......

The first time Leo protected me was on my eighth birthday.

The scene of all those black guys coming toward me is still fresh in my mind.

But it's not quite as scary a memory as it sounds.

Leo was cool. I have that scene recorded in my head as a memory of how cool Leo was.

Leo's back swinging his sword at a bunch of people ...... was really cool.

But ...... at the same time I was often angry with myself for being so protected.

Normally, a princess like the one in the story would be content to be protected by a brave man.

Always just a healthy dose of bravery waiting for a brave man to help: ......

Would you rather be a princess like that than continue to resist in vain?

Because no matter how hard I try, no matter how hard I practice my magic, I can't handle it at any given moment!

When I was kidnapped, when I was surrounded by demons in the underground city, when the school was blown up, I ended up being protected!

No matter how hard I try, I can only be the one being protected?

Am I doomed to not watch Leo get hurt for me?

I don't want to!　I don't like it!

...... Lee, Shelly!

Ummm, yeah, .......

'Did you have a bad dream?　You were having a nightmare.

...... Lina.

Dream or .......

I was reassured by the worried look on Leena's face as she looked at me and the warmth of Lou's hand in my right one .

'What's wrong?　If you need any help, I'm here for you, okay?

Mm. I'm fine.

It's been a long time coming.

Besides, this nightmare isn't going to change by talking to you.

Really?　You looked like you were in a lot of pain?

Thank you for worrying about me. But I'm fine.

Okay. ...... Okay. Well then, let's get some more sleep.

Then Leena gently squeezes my left hand with her right hand.

'Yeah. . good night.

Feeling the warmth of my hands, I was back in the dream world.

It was now well into the day and Leo was walking me to the dungeon entrance.

”So I should pick you up in the evening, right?

Yes. Thank you. I'll let you know when it's done.

Okay. I'll be back to get you as soon as I hear from you.

Please!　Well, I'm off then!

Don't take it easy.

As soon as we entered the dungeon, I gave my instructions.

'Then we'll go on as usual!

””Yes.”

The usual is that Belle and Lou are the vanguard and I and Leena are the rear guard .

Lou is the vanguard because I forbid Lou to use destruction magic, not ...... to keep Belle from getting involved in destruction magic.

Leo is mistaken, we are not relying on Lou's destruction magic to conquer the labyrinth, even though we did rely on it the first time.

We're hiding in the dungeon to get stronger, so it's not going to be that easy!

Well, I won't tell him because I want him to be surprised when he's stronger.

So I've been having Lou fight with a knife.

Do you think you'll have to give her a level head start to get used to it?　I was thinking ...... I knew that even if I was a slave, the demon race, and even if I gave them a knife, they were still strong.

The difference between races seems to be greater than we thought.

The two fighting races (Belle and Lou) slay more and more demons by themselves, so the rear guard doesn't have much work to do.

If I had let Roo use destructive magic, I'd have more time on my hands, so I'm happy about that.

Generally speaking, I'm in charge of magic attacks and instructions, Leena is in charge of recovery and recording maps, Belle is in charge of warning traps, and Lou is in charge of cutting down demons for the time being.

That's how we're going to attack the dungeon.

We'll take the shortest route to the third floor and find the boss's room on the fourth level. Leena, show me the way!

Yes, sir.

First of all, the one-level boss ...... large number of goblins will be instantly frozen by my magic . I can't wear out Bell and his friends' energy here. Leaving the frozen goblins alone, we move on to the next two floors.

The second level is dominated by two orcs so big they're almost as big as houses.

One hit from an orc and we'd be wiped out.

I can kill them all without letting Belle and Lou attack one by one with magic.

And the third level boss is the very fast-moving kobold.

My magic can't hurt her, so I'll let Belle and Lou take care of it.

It's true that those two...... especially Belle are moving like crazy.

It's a little scary to see her smile in the middle of battle when she's always so quiet.

Maybe he doesn't realize it: .......