Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. – Chapter 220 – I Found Hope

Author: Cireng

Chapter 220: I Found Hope

Fwoosh!

Beautiful green flames flickered ceaselessly.

“Ahahahahaha!”

I luxuriated in the agony of slowly being driven toward death, swaying my head and arms.

The movements had no particular meaning. It was simply a sacred dance of randomly shaking my body on a whim.

“What do you think of my dance in honor of the Quiet One?”

Wriggle.

Bzzzt!

At that very moment, the presence of the Exalted One arrived, making it impossible for me to interpret Lord Lriria’s faint will.

“Lord Su’eje, you’re telling me to strip naked and dance?”

I sighed.

“Didn’t I ask you not to interrupt rituals meant for someone else?”

Crackle.

“You’re saying I’m the one being strict only at times like this, when I was the one who broke our promise about the ‘Let’s Dress Up Cute Little Karr’ day?”

I lowered my head.

“I have nothing to say. My apologies.”

The day before the main tournament of the Interracial Grand Harmony Festival, I’d made a promise with the Exalted One.

The day after the tournament, I’d let Them freely choose my speech and clothing according to Their tastes.

However, because I’d been caught up in [Grand Chaos Disturbance], I’d ended up spending the day recovering instead.

“I’ll do it tomorrow.”

I nodded earnestly.

“This time, I’ll really do exactly as you say, so please look forward to it.”

No reply came. Apparently, they were still sulking.

Of course, it was probably just a tactic to extract an even greater price from me, so there was no need to worry too much.

“…Patron.”

Abel looked at me worriedly.

“You’ve been burning for too long.”

“Ah.”

I blinked.

“I got carried away.”

I immediately deactivated [Sin: Envy]. The green flames surrounding me subsided.

Immediately afterward, the undead bodies atop the altar began burning once again.

“Perrin. Would you like to smell the offering?”

The good child promptly approached the altar and sniffed.

“Well?”

“It carries Master’s scent.”

“Fragrant, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

Perrin nodded.

“It’s the kind of smell that would drive that white-haired elf completely crazy.”

“How can a corpse smell pleasant…?”

Abel widened his eyes as he prepared to write down my explanation.

“You know that a half-elf’s natural scent is fragrant, don’t you?”

“Thanks to you, Patron, I know that very well now.”

“The fire currently burning the offering and the fire that was burning me just moments ago…”

I smiled.

“Mystically speaking, they’re the exact same flame.”

They weren’t separate fires. The same flame merely continued burning after changing locations.

Because of that, the pleasant aroma produced while burning my half-elf body had transferred directly onto the offering.

“That’s a fascinating Mystery….”

While Abel diligently recorded the new information, Perrin spoke again.

“Master. The pleasant scent is still rather faint.”

“I know.”

If I had been a full-blooded elf, it might’ve been different.

But as a half-elf, one round wasn’t enough to imbue it with as much of nature’s fragrance as I wanted.

“Which is why…”

I smiled.

“I’ll simply keep repeating the process until the half-elf’s fragrant scent has fully soaked into the offering.”

Once again, I used [Sin: Envy] to reclaim the wonderful flames that had been burning the offering.

“Ahahahahaha!”

“…Please remember to pace yourself while burning.”

I enjoyed the sensation of my entire body growing scorching hot, then deactivated [Sin: Envy].

The green flames returned to the altar.

I repeatedly burned the offering, then transferred the flames back onto myself.

“- Guh… aaah….”

“- Ugh… uugh….”

As the process continued, the voices of the outlaw undead grew quieter and quieter.

Having been filled with tremendous vitality, they couldn’t pass peacefully into eternal rest.

Instead, they simply continued burning, their bodies gradually blackening.

[The offerings have been roasted to exactly the degree that the gloomy Lriria would love!]

Lord Lriria would only eat offerings whose exteriors had been thoroughly charred.

Once again, I trusted the ever-reliable cooking timer Mystery, extinguishing the flames at precisely the right moment.

“Perfectly roasted.”

Puff…

Black smoke drifted upward, bringing with it a foul odor… the stench of rotting corpses mixed with burnt flesh.

Interwoven among it all was the subtle scent of nature that had transferred from me.

“…Ugh. That’s awful.”

Perrin, whose sense of smell was exceptionally keen, covered his nose.

Even Abel frowned and stepped backward.

“Even I…”

The Demon King shook his head.

“Have trouble viewing this positively.”

Even the incarnation of positivity found the offering’s appearance difficult to welcome.

In other words, it had become perfectly suitable as an offering to an Evil God.

“Grand Duke Karr.”

The Demon King smiled.

“Do you truly embrace even this terrible stench as another hardship? I can clearly feel positive emotions flowing from you.”

“Of course.”

I nodded.

At first, it was unpleasant. But after getting used to it, the sensation of my nostrils feeling as though they were becoming desolate ruins wasn’t bad at all.

“In many respects…”

The Demon King laughed.

“This is a sacrificial method that no one but Grand Duke Karr could imitate.”

“Exactly.”

I nodded proudly.

“If I ever publish Karr’s Secret Offering Recipes, I’ll make sure to include a warning that only cultists with fire resistance should attempt it.”

Considering even the perspective of those who would follow the instructions.

It was precisely that sort of small consideration that distinguished an exemplary cultist from a truly malicious one.

“…I honestly doubt anyone would want to imitate such an extreme sacrificial method.”

Though Abel chuckled, he faithfully continued writing down the recipe.

“Will you offer it to Lord Lriria now?”

“Not yet.”

I smiled.

“There’s one final step.”

After waiting for my horribly burned body to regenerate, I rested a hand upon Perrin’s arm.

“Perrin. Would you return to your original form? Just small enough that this basement won’t collapse.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Although it was his first time attempting such a thing, the good child simply nodded calmly.

Crack…!

His enormous beastman body rapidly expanded, transforming into a golden wolf.

Much smaller than his true size, yet still considerably larger than an ordinary wolf.

“Grr?”

“Good.”

I scratched beneath Perrin’s chin, then pointed toward the offering.

“Breathe a weak stream of Light and Darkness.”

A secret ability he’d intentionally refrained from using during the tournament.

Through the Orb of Lumerlan used in his creation, Perrin could directly emit higher-order Light and Darkness.

“Grr!”

Fwoooosh!

Opening his jaws wide, Perrin unleashed a breath of Light and Darkness.

Half of the charred offering immediately became brilliantly luminous. The other half darkened until it resembled the night sky.

A special seasoning, containing even the tiniest fragments of the Divine Power of a Good God… a delicacy to Evil Gods.

“That’s enough. Step back.”

Everything was ready.

I placed my hand upon the offering and began reciting the prayer.

“To the Darkness born from Chaos and immersed in Tranquility, I pray. May Your supreme darkness become the comforting flames that subjugate the natural order of all things, and may those sacred flames consume my body.”

Unlike the other Evil Gods, the Quiet One became disappointed if the proper prayer wasn’t recited exactly.

He would still answer even if I made small mistakes, but if the Evil God wasn’t satisfied, the offering ritual would be nullified.

So I recited every word correctly.

“A living sacrifice has been prepared for the One who gazes upon the twilight that burns all living beings and the inevitable death that blankets the entire earth. May I be granted the honor of witnessing Your dusk.”

Removing my hand from the offering, I quietly spoke.

“Lord Lriria….”

Recipe name: Roasted Undead with Half-Elf Aroma.

“Your meal is ready.”

Saaaaa…

The snake tattoo on my hand dissolved into dark mist, taking the shape of a cobra before flying toward the offering.

The offering melted away, becoming gaseous, and flowed into the mist cobra’s mouth.

Nom. Nom.

The Quiet One’s terminal diligently chewed.

【W-wow…!】

Not long afterward, Lord Lriria cried out in delight.

I could even hear what sounded like humming.

【It’s so, so delicious!】

Such an enthusiastic reaction made all the effort worthwhile.

My dried-up heart pounded loudly.

【H-hehe… Hehe… Ah!】

The Quiet One abruptly stopped His divine message.

Then, after composing Himself, He spoke again.

【The reason I laughed just now was that the oldest believer in Our cult made a truly amusing remark!】

“Ah.”

I nodded.

“I see. That explains it.”

Though he was normally an exceedingly serious being whose sense of humor approached zero, I accepted his explanation without question.

How could I dare challenge an Evil God’s hastily improvised excuse?

【Anyway! Karr, you’re truly My finest believer!】

【You offer Me so many excellent sacrifices, and you’ve increased the number of believers too…!!】

“I’m quite an admirable little treasure, aren’t I?”

【If I could descend upon the mortal world, I would’ve turned you into an undead and taken you beneath the earth so you could remain at My side for eternity!】

To live forever as His cherished undead.

One of the bad endings awaiting a lonely cultist of Silence.

“…Even for me…”

I smiled awkwardly.

“That would be a bit much.”

The affection of an Evil God truly was too overwhelming for a being of the surface world.

“Perhaps ten thousand years would be manageable…”

I shook my head.

“But living forever as a decaying corpse would be difficult even for me.”

【Ah… I suppose you’re right. S-sorry….】

He visibly deflated.

Having rejected His blessing, I’d immediately made Him feel dejected. As an exemplary cultist, I couldn’t allow the Evil God I served to remain upset.

So I immediately spoke words that would cheer Lord Lriria up.

“Lord Lriria.”

I smiled.

“Wouldn’t you like to witness your divine beast, imbued with your flames, displaying its might upon the surface once more?”

【…Of course I would.】

“Then please wait just a little longer.”

I bowed deeply.

“I, Karr, will make that wish come true. You trust me, don’t You?”

【I-I’ll look forward to it…!】

Then, I requested the reward I desired.

“Please grant me [Destruction · Death · Flame].”

[Destruction · Death · Flame]. A superior flame… the higher-order version of the basic Mystery [Death · Flame · Transformation].

Its requirements for advancement were strict. It was difficult to control.

It also consumed an enormous amount of mental energy.

For that reason, it could never completely replace [Death · Flame · Transformation].

【A-ah… I’m dizzy….】

With a groan, the Quiet One’s presence faded away.

A tiny black dot appeared upon the head of the snake tattoo that had returned to my left hand.

[First-Order Mystery (Growth Type) — Destruction · Death · Flame]

[A serpent-shaped flame imbued with the gloomy Lriria’s power. Its ability to destroy enemies and raise the dead has been greatly strengthened.]

Fwoooosh!

The moment I summoned flames through my prosthetic arm, scarlet fire surged upward.

The color was identical to [Death · Flame · Transformation], yet the serpent of flame writhed with an entirely different level of destructive power.

“An excellent Mystery.”

The Demon King nodded.

“Especially for one granted by an Evil God.”

“Isn’t it?”

Contentedly stroking the snake tattoo, I turned toward the lizardman, who was still staring blankly into space.

“Lord Zmurtral.”

I crouched beside his head and raised two fingers.

“You have two choices. An undead that knows only destruction… Or an undead that knows only death.”

I smiled.

“Which path would you like to choose?”

“……”

Zmurtral slowly turned his gaze toward me.

“Whichever fork in destiny we choose…”

He muttered.

“We shall ultimately starve beneath a procession of butterflies. Only the butterflies shall endure forever! All creation–submit!”

“Hmm.”

As expected, he appeared to require a reboot.

“Perrin.”

I gave the good child an instruction she would surely enjoy.

“Beat him.”

I smiled.

“Until he dies.”

“!!!”

Perrin’s tail wagged furiously. Without hesitation, he struck Zmurtral with one massive forepaw.

“Gah…!”

The lizardman flew into the wall before collapsing to the floor.

“Grrr! Grrr!”

Perrin continued stomping on him relentlessly.

He looked happier than at any other moment since his birth.

“……”

Before long, Zmurtral’s body went limp.

“That’s enough. Stop.”

“Grr.”

Perrin stepped back with a satisfied growl.

I approached the dead lizardman and infused him with [Destruction · Death · Flame].

Continuing until my mental energy was nearly exhausted.

“Phew….”

Pressing a hand against my aching head, I looked down at the still-warm newly created undead.

“Lord Zmurtral. What did you say our future would be?”

“- ……”

The lizardman undead slowly rose to his feet.

“- Every living creature upon the surface shall ultimately meet one of two forms of destruction. Either they shall burn… Or they shall become undead.”

“Hmm.”

I nodded.

“Then what kind of divinity is Lord Lriria?”

“He is the one who ought to hold complete dominion over the destiny of all intelligent life.”

“……”

It seemed a bug had occurred during the mental reboot process.

Perhaps I’d infused too much Destruction · Death · Flame into him.

The Demon King, who had been watching beside me, scratched his chin.

“He hasn’t regained his sanity yet. Was it a failure? Shall we kill him and revive him once more?”

“…No.”

I slowly shook my head.

“This is an overwhelming success.”