Dark Fantasy: Super Coward Mode-Chapter 175

“Hmm, this seems like a mistake, doesn’t it?”

The Princess’s voice trembled slightly, revealing her unease. She seemed as startled as I was.

Up until now, we had assumed this massive structure was the true form of the Second Princess.

But an ice statue?

If that’s the case, we’ve come all this way for nothing.

“Aphta, if you knew, why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

Aphta, who had spoken nonchalantly as if she had been aware of this all along, hadn’t warned us beforehand. She should have told us not to bother coming here in the first place.

At my question, Aphta averted her gaze diagonally, appearing deep in thought, before returning her eyes to me and answering.

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“Because we needed to come here anyway.”

“Needed to?”

“She’s inside.”

Aphta pointed at the statue as she made the declaration.

The Princess and I stumbled, momentarily losing our balance at the revelation.

If that’s true, why did she make it seem like this wasn’t the right place?

For a second, I’d thought we’d have to retrace our steps entirely.

So, the Second Princess is inside this impenetrable-looking statue?

Oh.

Suddenly, the difficulty of this mission skyrocketed.

“Is there no way to get through it?”

The Princess asked Aphta, who closed her eyes briefly before stepping closer to me.

Her hand pressed against my chest, and she stood still.

“It’s time for you to come out.”

“…”

After her murmured words, a sudden surge of energy within me began to stir violently.

It felt as if needles were piercing every inch of my skin.

My strength was draining rapidly, and I could feel the flow of blood in my veins slowing down.

“L-light is coming from your body….”

As the Princess observed, my body was glowing with a blinding light, so intense that even I couldn’t bear to look.

The light was white, tinged faintly with blue.

And gradually, my vision began to distort.

The beautiful, feline-featured Aphta started morphing into something grotesque, sprouting countless writhing tentacles—

Thud.

Just before an indescribable emotion could overwhelm me, I felt someone’s hand on my back, and the horrifying scene returned to normal in an instant.

At the same time, the freezing air that had permeated even my protective gear was replaced by a comforting warmth, as if I were encased in a shield.

“Hmm, no. Raydan needs to live only seeing good things.”

Ah.

The voice and tone were unmistakably familiar.

I turned my head slowly.

White hair.

Blue eyes.

And a face that bore a subtle resemblance to Aphta.

Standing there was the person I had longed to see the most since regaining my memories.

“Our Raydan is such a coward, after all.”

Oko smiled at me, her expression bright and pure.

The ten years she had waited for me seemed like nothing to her.

Despite the long separation, there was no awkwardness between us.

“So? Was your journey to another universe an amazing experience?”

At Oko’s question, I let the tears fall freely and forced a smile.

“No, it was the worst.”

I answered honestly.

She simply chuckled softly at my reply.

*

“…Why did I completely forget about this until now?”

“Because that’s what Oko wanted. She used a loophole. Erasing her presence temporarily to remove any proof of interfering with humans. That way, no unusual anomalies occurred.”

The Princess tilted her head with a conflicted expression, as if burdened by guilt.

After all, it was Oko who had mitigated some of the chaos that Gaia’s scheming had caused in the empire. Forgetting about her must have felt like an unforgivable oversight.

Oko, however, seemed unconcerned about this and instead stared at me intently.

Her gaze felt a little too intense, though it was likely because she was genuinely glad to see me after so long. Still, the way she examined me felt more analytical than sentimental.

Furrowing her brows, Oko twisted her lips thoughtfully before turning slightly toward Aphta.

“So, who was substituting for Raydan’s life force again?”

“It҈̡͙͍͙͔̟̭̤͎̭͔͙̞̯͍즈҉҇̾̂̿͑͒̓́͆̿͊͋̎̈̎͊͛브҉라҉̛̣̜͔͑͒̒͢ͅ 셴҉̧̯͓̾̈͆͝치҈̡͕͕̔͆͛͝츠҈͖͍̬͙̣̣͎̓́̾̌͊̄̔̒̋.”

“Ah, that one who turns suffering into power?”

“Yes.”

“That explains it. Your hair is still white.”

Oko’s eyes scanned me from head to toe before locking onto mine.

Her proximity was uncomfortable, and I couldn’t help but shift my gaze elsewhere.

“But why are your eyes orange?”

“Huh?”

“If you consumed that one, shouldn’t your eyes be red?”

“Oh, Zumya said she was giving Raydan some power, so maybe the yellow mixed in….”

“Zumya? What are you talking about?”

Aphta’s mouth opened slightly, as if she’d said something she shouldn’t have, before quickly averting her eyes.

No, this reckless divine being!

Why would you say that now?!

“Aphta.”

“…”

“Don’t play dumb. Look at me.”

“Ughhh….”

Oko grabbed Aphta’s cheek, stretching it until their eyes met.

“Thank you for helping. Truly, without you, we wouldn’t have made it this far.”

“…”

“But there were a few things I specifically asked you to protect, weren’t there?”

Aphta raised three fingers.

“First, no matter what happens, do not tell Raydan about me until he regains his memories.”

“And?”

“Second, if you couldn’t find a proper substitute for Oko’s life force, use someone nearby as a stopgap.”

“And the third?”

Under Oko’s sharp gaze, Aphta suddenly lowered her last finger and looked away.

“Aphta!!”

“…”

“The third was to make sure he doesn’t get tangled up with other women!!!”

Now Oko grabbed Aphta’s cheeks with both hands, pulling and stretching them mercilessly like rubber.

“Euuugh, Oko, stop it!”

“How could you ignore the most important one, you little troublemaker?!”

As Oko shook Aphta’s face back and forth, the Princess and I could only blink in stunned silence.

Finally, Oko’s gaze shifted sharply to the Princess, her eyes narrowing.

“Don’t tell me—you too?”

“…”

“No! This is unacceptable! You’re royalty!”

For some time, Oko’s lamentations echoed around us.

*

“Prove that there was a ‘reason’ behind all of this.”

“…It was to build a bond, a sense of camaraderie.”

“Then why did you let it go on for so long?”

“That’s because the Vice Commander sent someone else….”

“Wait, the story you told earlier about meeting Zumya doesn’t match this. Did you meet someone else too?”

“O-Oko, calm down for a moment.”

At my words, Oko’s blue eyes burned like fiery embers.

Her expression, as if she might roar like a tiger, was intimidating, but I couldn’t back down.

“For now, let’s calm down. Let’s put out the most pressing fires first, then deal with everything else.”

“And now the cheater himself is trying to act like the voice of reason…!”

If I left her alone any longer, she would definitely continue to rant, so I quickly threw myself at her.

Thump.

Before she could say another word, I wrapped her in a tight embrace.

I could feel her soft warmth against every inch of my skin, but I forced myself to ignore the sensation.

“R-Raydan?!”

“…We can’t stay like this for long right now.”

And with that, I let go of her.

Caught off guard by the sudden situation, Oko’s face turned bright red as she flailed her arms in shock.

“After all this is over, I’ll hold you longer.”

I said it to exploit Oko’s deep affection for me, though I wasn’t entirely sure it would work.

“Hmm, yes, let’s finish quickly. What are you all doing? Let’s get moving!”

…Oh.

It worked.

Far too well.

Oko’s sudden shift in tone left both Aphta and the Princess staring at her with icy, incredulous eyes.

They probably understood her position but were clearly taken aback by how openly pleased she was.

Ah.

Now all three of them were exchanging glances.

“So, we just need to get through here, right? Let’s go!”

Right. They were ignoring it.

As always, Oko displayed her unmatched ability to brazenly power through awkward moments.

“Everyone, let’s move.”

As I stepped forward to lead the way—

“Raydan, look out!”

Aphta’s urgent voice rang out as my body was shoved forward.

As I stumbled, I turned my head to see a massive chunk of ice falling toward Aphta.

Ah.

“Aphta!!!”

*

Gaia watched Tanthan’s group from afar, her expression cold and distant.

“You mean you understood without me saying anything? So you attacked them because of that?”

Gaia spoke to the woman behind her.

After hearing the woman’s words, Gaia clicked her tongue and shook her head.

“You should have gone further. Completely crushed them instead of merely interrupting.”

After all, this woman had frozen the entire world, yet now she seemed hesitant to take bolder actions.

Sighing at the woman’s inconsistency, Gaia spoke again.

“They’ll be here soon. Get ready.”

The woman nodded cautiously and slowly stood up.

Her jet-black dress seemed to absorb the light around her, while her skin was as pale as if covered in frost.

Her gray eyes, empty and devoid of emotion, mirrored the void within.

This was the Second Princess, the one who had frozen the world.

She rose to her feet.