After finishing all that, Noir turned his head and looked at the two lackeys who had watched Zagg's execution from start to finish.
The moment they noticed Noir's gaze, both of them began trembling violently and shrank together.
"W-We're Lord G-Ganu's men. He's a high-class adventurer, a-about to reach Lv. 2. If you... if you kill us... he won't... let you go." One of them barely managed to speak through a shaking voice.
"Don't worry, I won't kill you," Noir said with a smile.
Hearing Noir's assurance, the two of them thought he had been frightened by Ganu's name and immediately let out a sigh of relief.
"R-Right, actually, we've hated Zagg for a long time too. We'll help you keep this secret, and we can even give you his share."
Slash!!
The blade pierced flesh.
"I promised Lady Hestia I wouldn't kill innocent people indiscriminately, so I won't kill you." Looking at the growing terror in their eyes, Noir smiled. He smiled as he walked away, and he smiled very happily.
It was almost as if the Dungeon itself sensed that the terrifying creature had left. Monster silhouettes began appearing around the area once more.
Screams rose up again, but none of that had anything to do with the departing Noir.
Once he left the unexplored region, the black flames slowly receded, and the smile on Noir's face vanished as well.
Ever since part of his memory had returned, Noir had been suppressing himself.
He remembered all those painful memories clearly, yet he had still been able to remain calm.
But if he had truly been able to face those memories with complete composure, then he would never have chosen to forget them in the first place.
Until today, when Zagg threatened him once again, a violent burning sensation surged up from his heart.
That hatred, so intense it nearly burst out of his chest, had almost driven Noir insane on the spot.
Every time he looked at Zagg, every time he heard his mockery, the burning in his chest grew stronger.
Noir had been enduring it the whole time, with the chains called morality constantly restraining his heart.
Until that kick.
Not only had it sent Noir into the room, it had also shattered the last restraint binding him.
When the Flame of Vengeance faded, Noir finally understood everything.
The hatred had not disappeared. It had merely been buried deep inside his heart and transformed into flames by the power of the gods, by the Falna.
That was why he had been able to recover more and more of his memories without collapsing outright.
The price, however, was that once he used Flame of Vengeance, with all his emotions restored, Noir might lash out at everyone around him without distinction just to vent his pain.
Just like this time. Even though he had promised Hestia that he would not be consumed by the skill and walk into darkness, he had never once intended to spare a single living soul within his sight.
Sitting at the entrance, Noir kept replaying the feeling of using Flame of Vengeance.
Unfortunately, he could not bring it out again.
Maybe he was in that strange emptiness that came after release, and the urge for vengeance had faded somewhat.
When the noises coming from inside the tunnel finally stopped, Noir stepped back in once more.
When he reached the same spot as before, all that remained on the ground were two mangled corpses.
Only after confirming that both men were thoroughly dead did Noir finally feel satisfied. He gathered all the spoils from this battle and turned to leave.
At the exchange counter, Noir traded in the mountain-like pile of magic stones and drop items, receiving a total of 320,000 valis, causing quite a commotion.
A crowd immediately gathered around him, asking how he had managed such a haul.
In the end, Eina, who had rushed over after hearing the news, pulled him out of the crowd.
It was the same training room as before. A large pile of glittering valis, all stuffed into money bags, covered the table.
"What happened to you in the Dungeon today?"
Sitting across from him, Eina asked with a grave expression, worried that Noir might have gotten caught up in something dangerous.
There was no way a rookie like Noir, who had been an adventurer for less than ten days, could normally obtain that many magic stones and drop items.
Noir did not hide anything. He told her everything that had happened that day, only altering some of the details to conceal the fact that he had killed people, pushing it all onto the monsters instead.
Just like the three men had originally planned.
"What? How dare the Soma Familia do something like that?!"
Eina's furious shout burst out from the training room, startling the Guild staff still on duty outside.
"Don't worry. As for the Soma Familia threatening an adventurer and using him as bait, the Guild will definitely give you an explanation."
After all, with the Guild's explicit prohibition against Familias killing each other, even the two strongest Familias in Orario, Freya Familia and Loki Familia, would not openly violate the rules.
After explaining the whole process, Noir returned to the church carrying a huge bag of valis.
The moment Hestia saw the money spread all over the table, her eyes turned into valis symbols, and she practically threw herself onto the pile.
"Wow! Noir-kun, how much is all this? Does this mean we don't have to keep living in this broken church? No, wait, we should buy equipment first, then medicine. No, no, what we really need most is to take you to see a doctor!"
Hestia chattered on and on for quite a while before finally calming down a little.
Only then did Noir tell her what had happened in the Dungeon that day.
Unlike the version he had reported at the Guild, this time he told the whole truth.
Gods could see through lies, and Noir had already prepared a suitable "truth" in advance.
But when he saw Hestia's smile, and heard her constantly thinking about him, planning how to use this money to treat his illness and buy him equipment, he suddenly no longer wanted to lie.
He did not want to deceive someone who trusted him.
Even if the result was that he might be cast out of the Familia.
So Noir began the story from the moment he left that morning, from when he had already decided to kill the three men the instant they threatened him.
As she listened to Noir's account, the excitement in Hestia gradually faded.
Watching Noir speak in a flat voice, coughing as he described burning his enemies to ash, and skillfully using words to sidestep the promise he had made to her while still harming others,
Hestia's expression grew complicated.
She knew Noir did not have to tell her any of this.
The lie he had designed was extremely clever. Every word of it would have been true, yet the actual meaning would have been the exact opposite. Even a god could not have discerned it.
And yet he still told her everything.
He laid out all of the truth before her.
"I'm sorry, Lady Hestia, cough cough. I broke our promise, cough cough. I killed them."
He had clearly broken the promise he made with Hestia before, yet once he finally spoke the truth, Noir felt strangely lighter.
Then, with his head lowered, Noir suddenly felt a pair of small hands cup his head and pull it against something soft.
"No, I'm the one who should be apologizing."
Hestia pressed her cheek gently to the top of Noir's head and spoke in a soft voice.
"I won't say things like that anymore, telling you not to kill innocent people indiscriminately."
"I know what a kind person you are, Noir-kun. Those fried potato puffs you gave me that day were delicious. They were the best food I'd eaten since I came down to the lower world."
"A kind Noir-kun like you... what did you go through? What kind of harm did you suffer, and what sort of pain did you endure to awaken a skill like that? I don't know."
"I didn't know anything, and yet I still tried to stop you. What kind of feelings were you carrying when you agreed to that promise with me?"
"The one who should apologize... was always me."
"I just hope your life won't be nothing but hatred, Noir-kun. When everything is finally over, I want you to still be able to keep living in this world."
Noir said nothing. He only listened quietly.
The two of them had lived together for almost ten days now, and as a goddess, Hestia could clearly feel Noir's sense of distance.
It was not directed at her.
It was directed at this world.
Every night, he would report every single thing he had done during the day.
Every valis he earned, aside from what was necessary for weapon maintenance, he gave to her.
It was almost as if he had already prepared himself to leave at any moment.
Even though no one had ever asked him to do that.
That was not what Hestia wanted.
When Noir gave her that gift yesterday, she had truly been happy.
Faced with Hestia's feelings laid bare like this, Noir did not know how to respond.
He had long since grown used to this world's cruelty and coldness, but now, for the first time, he had no idea how to answer kindness.
"I..."
Noir opened his mouth, yet no words came out.
"Noir-kun, is there anything you want to do?"
Pushing him away in one motion, Hestia suddenly spoke as if the heavy atmosphere from just now had never existed.
"You're forbidden from going to the Dungeon tomorrow. How about we go take a walk through the shopping district instead?"
Other than revenge, was there anything else he wanted to do?
Suddenly, a flash of gold crossed his mind.
"If possible, I want to go thank someone, cough cough."
"Who? Granny May?" Hestia asked curiously.
"No. An elf. She was the one who saved me from the slave traders, cough cough."
"What? So it was the one who saved you, Noir-kun. Then tomorrow we absolutely have to thank her properly."
"Get a good rest tonight. Tomorrow we're going on a date~"
With that, Hestia patted the sofa.
"Come on, Noir-kun. Let me update your Falna first."
[Noir: Lv. 1]
[Strength: H-153 → G-207]
[Endurance: C-666 → B-749]
[Dexterity: H-103 → H-161]
[Agility: I-92 → H-142]
[Magic: I-0 → I-55]
[Magic:]
[Skills:]
『Flame of Vengeance』
『Mask of Pain』
『High-Ranking Player』
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