Chapter 212: Placement Play

After earning a "Damn you!" from the Young Lady of the merfolk, Herbert felt no anger whatsoever—instead, he was secretly delighted in his heart.

"After witnessing that scene with your own eyes, all you can say is that I should die… Fu Leimei, you're still far too soft-hearted."

Little sister, the way you curse sounds more like you're acting cute~

There were two reasons Herbert refused Sofiya at the start.

The first, just as Herbert himself said, was that he had no need for anyone's loyalty.

Even if the true form of that loyalty was Nie Nasha, and the two of them were now indistinguishable, he still had no need for it.

Though this rather distant move made Nie Nasha grumble indignantly inside, Herbert still clung to his stubborn principle.

Loyalty that is not absolute is the same as absolute disloyalty.

Herbert had no need for a loyalty that was mixed with other feelings.

What's mine is mine—I don't need you to give it, and no one can take it away.

And what isn't mine, even if I hold it in my hands, will one day be lost.

The other reason, however, was not so noble and righteous.

Herbert was suspicious.

Not suspicious of Sofiya—her current state had indeed been reset.

Nor suspicious of Nie Nasha—he didn't think She was deceiving him; he had that much trust.

Herbert was suspicious of this entire Mist Mountain Range.

After encountering Sofiya today, Herbert had gained an extra measure of wariness toward the Mist Mountain Range.

As for her existence, Nie Nasha had previously been completely unaware of it.

This place was indeed the remnant of Her divine kingdom, but She had been away too long and had long lost control over it.

She no longer had any perception of those heroic spirits who once answered to Her… this was a very dangerous sign.

The Young Lady of the Harmonious God likely had far less control over this place than he had imagined.

And heroic spirits like Sofiya were definitely not limited to just her.

There would be more creations of the divine kingdom here, more heroic spirits, sacred spirits, and even angels…

And as a valiant and battle-hardened centaur heroic spirit, Sofiya's strength was not to be underestimated.

A legendary-tier Mist Ghost Wolf—even with the wolf pack added in, even with favorable matchups—could it really have pushed Sofiya to her current state?

Regarding this, he harbored a small sliver of doubt.

And if the truth really was as he suspected… in these mountains, at this very moment, might there be other prying eyes?

Might someone be watching him?

If he had acknowledged from the start that he was connected to Nie Nasha, or even claimed to be Her messenger… how would those other heroic spirits react?

After being free for so many years, would they still be willing to become followers of Nie Nasha?

Would they bow down and pledge allegiance the moment he revealed his identity?

Herbert didn't think so.

Hearts can change.

Vast stretches of time are enough to change far, far too much.

A mere hundred years is enough to overturn heaven and earth, to turn the seas into mulberry fields, to give the world an entirely different complexion.

Let alone that these heroic spirits had existed in the world for far, far longer than a hundred years.

So Herbert chose to take a detour, deliberately going the long way around.

I am absolutely not the master you imagine; all I have done is simply unable to bear watching you vanish like this, and have grudgingly accepted your loyalty.

And while this maneuver might be suspected of being utterly pointless—

It could at least make whoever was secretly observing hesitate for a moment, buying him a little more time to grow.

And for him as he was now, every scrap of time was extremely precious.

Perhaps it was nothing more than outsmarting the air, but an extra measure of caution was never wrong.

And after venting for quite a while, Sofiya finally calmed down, somewhat embarrassed as she released Herbert, lowered her head, and said:

"My lord, please forgive my transgression."

Perhaps from the residue of instinct, she did not address Herbert as "master," but used the tone she had once used when serving a deity.

"It's nothing, don't be nervous."

Herbert did not deliberately correct her way of speaking—after all, there was still a true deity hidden inside his body.

And the moment Sofiya let go of Herbert, before he could even steady himself on his own, he was swept into Fu Leimei's embrace.

She floated in mid-air, letting the weight in front press down on the top of Herbert's head, and wrapped her fish tail around his waist.

Herbert: What kind of move is this? A blush to the head?

And after doing all this, Fu Leimei shot a demonstrative glance at Sofiya and smiled smugly.

The result, however, was Sofiya's respectful bow of greeting.

"Fu Leimei, my lord."

And such an obedient reaction made Fu Leimei feel as though her move had been a bit embarrassing, like some little animal vying for the master's favor…

"…Ahem!"

She coughed once, pretended nothing had happened as she loosened her grip, intending to let Herbert go just like that—she couldn't bring herself to.

She floated down from Herbert, then clung to his back, wrapping her arms around his neck from behind.

And habitually, she snuck a little sniff.

And Herbert did not stop Fu Leimei's little stunt either, letting her run wild.

After all, she wasn't heavy to begin with, and now she was using levitation magic—she was practically weightless.

Mm, just consider it like carrying a salted fish on my back.

Herbert observed Sophia; the wounds on her body were still slowly recovering. At this rate, it would probably take some time before she returned to peak condition.

With Fu Leimei here, he wasn't short on bodyguards right now.

Since this unexpected windfall had been provisionally dealt with, only the other original objective remained.

Herbert looked at the lake water that had been frozen solid, and still couldn't help clicking his tongue in private amazement.

"Hiss…"

Miss Fu Leimei, did you eat the Ice-Ice Fruit?

What a huge display!

Finally sensing the exclamation in Herbert's heart, the mermaid Young Lady on his back smiled smugly.

"Hmph hmph~"

As for the other person present, her expression seemed rather odd. Sophia gazed at the ice-sealed lake and slightly furrowed her brow.

Herbert saw her look and asked: "Did you remember something? Do you recognize it?"

"…No, I don't recognize it right now."

Sophia thought hard for a moment, but finally said regretfully: "But I feel like I must have known it once before?"

"Do you have any other impressions of it? Feelings are fine too."

The centaur heroic spirit rubbed her chin and said uncertainly: "I feel like it's… very familiar?"

"In my heart, although I do feel a bit of annoyance toward it, it's not hatred—it's just that I find it troublesome… Deep down there's more dependence, as if it once gave me a very warm feeling."

She struggled to organize her words, describing this peculiar feeling in her heart.

Although it seemed to have helped her a great deal, at times it was still somewhat annoying. On the surface, the two of them didn't seem to get along very well.

But even so, deep in her heart she still depended on it.

"Listening to your description, it sounds like the everyday troubles between a mother and daughter."

Herbert laughed and remarked. His original intent was just a joke, but he hadn't expected Sophia's expression to change.

"It really does feel like that…"

Hm?

"Really?"

Herbert was briefly stunned. Looking at Sophia's tall, athletic figure, he recalled the childish cry of pain the Holy Grail had let out earlier.

…It couldn't be a loli mom, could it?

Hm?

No, that's not right.

The "Holy Grail's" current form is an octopus, right… right?

Up to now, he had never truly seen the Holy Grail's complete form—he had only ever seen a few tentacles.

Is what it looks like right now really a giant octopus?

Octopuses can't cry out, though!

Herbert thought about all this, and his expression suddenly froze for a moment.

He frowned at the lake water, then shook his head with some regret and said softly: "Fu Leimei, undo the spell."

Fu Leimei: Hm?

The mermaid Young Lady blinked, not understanding why Herbert had suddenly said this: "Hm? It hasn't returned to normal yet. If we release it now, we'll have to suppress it all over again."

The first time suppressing the water elemental spirit, she had used heavy force—that couldn't be helped.

Her fish-heart was kind.

She didn't want to beat up the water elemental spirit a second time; that really was… a bit too inhumane.

"No need, it's no longer necessary."

Herbert waved his hand and said: "Trust me, undo it."

Since Herbert insisted, Fu Leimei finally didn't keep pressing the point.

In any case, she had already gotten a clear measure of the water elemental spirit's strength and could easily suppress it.

"Fine…"

But when Fu Leimei actively released the Sorrowful Binghe, her expression froze for a moment and she let out a soft sound of surprise.

"Eh? What's going on… why is it gone?"

Herbert was quite calm about her reaction. He shook his head and said: "No need to look, it's already run off."

He'd been busy dealing with Sophia earlier and hadn't noticed, but when he went to sense it now, he found that the Holy Grail's location was no longer here.

It had slipped away.

Herbert wasn't surprised by this either. After all, the Holy Grail wasn't a true water elemental spirit but a creation of a deity.

"This…"

Herbert didn't care about it, but some people cared very much.

!!!

After realizing the other party had tricked her and fled, Fu Leimei instantly went red-hot with anger.

"It actually dares to run!?"

My heart is kind, I couldn't bear to hurt you, and to help suppress it I don't know how much effort I spent.

And in the end, you ungratefully ran off?

Run!

Where can you run to!?

Don't let me find you again!

The Mermaid Princess was furious, letting out a furious snort.

"Hmph!!!"

The Holy Grail simply didn't understand Fu Leimei's personality; otherwise, it might have thought twice before fleeing—flee even farther!

"Don't be angry, we'll have another chance to meet it, hehe."

Herbert soothed the furious Fu Leimei, whispering: "But its personality is quite timid—we probably scared it this time."

I've encountered it twice now, and both times it ran away… I wonder if this cowardly, playfully reckless thing will come knocking again.

It probably will.

But this third time, Herbert won't give it another chance to escape.

"There, there, don't be angry."

Honestly, after growing accustomed to Valentina's terrifying oppressive rage, Herbert now found Fu Leimei's anger almost like pouting…

"By the way, it left behind a few things to deceive you."

To escape silently—how easy is that?

The Holy Grail left behind traces of its aura to fool the Sorrowful Binghe and slip away.

Just as Herbert finished speaking, a large golden bubble rose from the lakebed.

The bubble was filled with a liquid like wine, which, though touching the water, did not mix, gently bouncing on the lake's surface.

"What is that?"

"Wine of Forgetting, the favorite drink of the Heroic Spirits," Herbert gestured for Fu Leimei to draw the wine bubble closer.

"Wine of Forgetting? That's… oh! Wait, how could this thing appear here?"

Fu Leimei, being educated, recalled what the Wine of Forgetting was after a moment's thought—and was quite surprised.

Why would a divine nectar from the Divine Realm appear in such a mountain range?

Thinking of this, she connected it to many other things.

Yes, I forgot to ask earlier—why is there a Centaur Heroic Spirit here?

"Wait! Where exactly are we!!?"

Herbert, seeing her belated realization, gave a knowing smile: "You're asking about this place? It has many names—which one do you want to hear?"

"Mist Mountains, Divine Forbidden Zone… and also, the ruins of a fallen deity's Divine Realm."

!!!

Upon finally realizing where she was, Fu Leimei's entire body trembled.

She was not Valentina, that ignorant fool—she knew exactly what the term "Mist Mountains" implied.

She had only known she was imprisoned in some monastery, unaware of its exact location, and had never asked the other jailers.

Now, she suddenly understood where she truly was.

The Mist Mountains outside the Mist Monastery.

And she realized what she and Herbert had been doing while charging through here… Are we really this bold?

"Wait! Herbert, you said earlier… you wanted to build your own power here?"

Herbert's smile grew even brighter as he nodded: "Correct. What's the problem?"

Fu Leimei nodded vigorously: "There is a problem—and a big one!"

Herbert laughed heartily, gently squeezing her hand: "Relax, trust me—there will be no problems here."

"This is the most dangerous place—and also the safest."

"Though the Divine Forbidden Zone is dangerous, it also means the gods cannot peer here."

"As for threats beyond the gods… rest assured, I have ways to handle them all."

Hearing Herbert's confident assurance, Fu Leimei still felt uneasy inside, but ultimately chose to believe.

In short—believe for now.

The hero I chose shouldn't be this insane… right?

"Alright, let me collect the Wine of Forgetting."

Herbert poured out the clear water from his waterskin, then slowly filled it with the Wine of Forgetting.

Though the Wine of Forgetting has strong side effects—causing one to forget the past—it is also an astonishingly potent healing potion at the Legendary tier…

Most crucially, it works on non-Heroic Spirits too!

The memory-erasing effect is halved, and so is the healing effect—but it can still save lives in critical moments.

Herbert himself didn't need such a healing potion, but others might.

【"Don't worry about the side effects—I have a way to make it work only as healing."】

"Then that's even better."

Nie Nasha's assurance eased Herbert's breath, strengthening his confidence.

【"By the way, you can let that little mare drink a bit—her wounds will heal quickly."】

"Huh? Can she drink it directly? Won't she forget what happened before?"

I finally completed the quest—don't make me start all over again!

【"No need to worry—Heroic Spirits of her rank need to consume vast quantities of Wine of Forgetting to forget the past."】

That makes perfect sense.

If the Wine of Forgetting were truly that effective, it could be used as a weapon against Heroic Spirits.

Just splash the wine on them in battle, and they'd instantly shut down, becoming blank slates—that's clearly unrealistic.

【"Besides, her memories were just reset once—right now, the Wine of Forgetting is simply a delicious drink to her."】

After receiving assurance, Herbert handed the filled waterskin to Sophieya and said, "Drink. It will help your current injuries."

"But I feel that drinking it… will make me forget many things."

Although Sophieya had been reset, she was not fully reverted to an infant state—she still remembered much knowledge, just couldn't recall it all at once.

"As long as your loyalty to me is firm, you will not forget."

Herbert smiled and pressed the waterskin into her hands. "Come, prove your loyalty to me."

"... I understand."

Sophieya fell silent for a moment, then nodded firmly, taking the waterskin with both hands and said solemnly, "I will prove my loyalty to you!"

With that, she threw her head back sharply.

Glug glug glug!

"Good, Sophieya, you've already proven your… Hey hey hey, don't drink it all!"

Herbert barely managed to wrest the waterskin away from Sophieya, who was already tipsy.

Seriously.

What a little glutton!

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

From within the mist came the rhythmic sound of hooves—hard to imagine anyone galloping through such an environment.

And if they could see the scene atop the horse, they would be even more astonished.

A white-haired boy sat atop a female centaur's back, with a mermaid strapped behind him… it was an extremely strange combination.

"How much longer?"

"Don't rush—we're almost there… Huh?"

As Herbert spoke, his expression suddenly froze. He patted Sophieya's shoulder and made her stop.

"My Lord? What's wrong?"

Fu Leimei, seated behind him, leaned forward, puzzled. "Herbert, what's going on? Did we take a wrong turn?"

"No, the path is correct—but something feels off."

Herbert stared at the scorched earth ahead, watching the new structures rising from the ground, blinking repeatedly.

Huh!

I just said that offhand, and now it's actually grown on its own!?

"Strange…"

He stared at the unfamiliar figure kneeling before the wooden stake, wondering:

"How did the land grow buildings and spawn new humans?"

"Am I playing some idle web game?"

"No, I didn't even spend any money…"

(End of Chapter)