Chapter 39: What Kind of Otherworld Adventure Is This?
The next day.
Rodel Holy Kingdom · Border · Goblin Plains.
The morning sunlight spilled across the vast plains, and a gentle breeze blew by, bringing with it the fragrance of green grass and soil.
In the distance, windmills turned slowly, casting long shadows on the grass, as several early-rising skylarks flapped their wings and soared into the azure sky.
It was such a beautiful picture of an otherworld adventure.
Tranquil, bountiful, and full of unknown vitality, it felt as if every legend should rightly begin on a morning like this.
However...
The mood of the "Lord Hero," the protagonist of this picture, Alicia von Heinrich, was not beautiful at all; she even felt a bit suffocated—in the physical sense.
"Um... could you let go of me first? I want to take a look at the map..."
Alicia helplessly raised her hands, trying to break free from the "human attachments" hanging off her, but it was clearly in vain.
At this moment, she was wearing that silver-white armor that symbolized the glory of a Paladin.
This armor had obviously undergone some "special modifications"; it lacked the bulkiness of traditional plate mail and instead clung tightly to her mature and curvaceous body like a second skin.
The hard, cold silver armor perfectly outlined her S-curve as a mature woman.
A pair of heavy, proud assets pushed high against the chestplate, reflecting dazzling arcs of light in the sun as if they might tear through that thin layer of metal at any moment.
Her slender yet explosive waist was bound by an armored skirt, and with her movements, her long legs clad in white silk stockings were faintly visible between the swaying of the skirt, exuding an ascetic yet strangely mouth-watering feeling.
Despite her upright and heroic posture as a female knight, her exquisite and cold face was currently forced to wear a helpless blush due to being tightly entangled by several beautiful girls.
And the culprits behind all this were none other than her teammates.
On her left arm was the Royal Chief Magician—Scarlett. This witch with burgundy wavy hair wore a deep purple slit robe with pitifully little fabric, and her almost-overflowing softness was pressing unreservedly against Alicia's vambrace like dough.
"Oh my~ why bother with a map? As long as we follow the Lord Hero, wherever we go will surely be the right place~"
As she spoke, Scarlett's eyes were hazy, and her thighs restlessly rubbed against Alicia's knees, her voice so sweet it felt like it could be pulled into threads.
Her right arm was being tightly held by the Holy Maiden of the Church—Luna.
This girl, who looked pure and flawless in her holy white robes, was actually a total 'pervert'! Using her seemingly innocent little hands, she pinned Alicia's arm to her chest with enough strength to nearly snap it.
"Lord Hero~ don't push me away~ To prevent anything filthy from approaching you, Luna must stay in contact with you at all times... Hehe, the Lord Hero smells so good~"
As she spoke, Luna looked up, her eyes constantly flashing with the light of fanatical hearts.
However, these were only the relatively active ones. Behind Alicia followed a Cat-ear Race Shadow Assassin in a black bodysuit, a scantily clad Elf Ranger, and a Red-scaled Dragon Girl carrying a giant sword!
Every one of them radiated an intense longing for the Lord Hero. Feeling the touch coming from all sides and the scent of rouge and powder that was about to drown her, the veins on Alicia's forehead throbbed. Far from enjoying it, she felt goosebumps all over.
[Wh... what is wrong with these women?!]
[I'm here to kill monsters, level up, and save my bro! I'm not here for some suffocating harem party! If you want to be all lovey-dovey, at least wait until we're back in town. This is the dangerous Goblin Plains!]
While being surrounded by a group of top-tier beauties was a dream for many men, for the current Alicia—who really wanted to experience an otherworld adventure and lacked her manhood—this was simply weight training!
Just then.
"Squeak! Squeak squeak!"
There was a commotion in the bushes ahead.
A dozen green-skinned Goblins holding wooden clubs and rusty daggers jumped out, blocking their path!
Looking at this group of gorgeously dressed women, greed immediately flashed in their eyes, and disgusting saliva dripped from the corners of their mouths onto the ground.
"Squeak squeak! Females!"
One Goblin let out a spine-chilling, sinister laugh.
Seeing this, Alicia's eyes sharpened, and her gamer DNA instantly kicked in.
"Stop messing around, enemy attack!"
She let out a sharp shout!
She immediately adjusted her posture and struck a combat stance—though only Tier 1, Alicia's gaze was cold and her expression serious, exuding the full aura of a female knight.
"Everyone, pay attention! This is a Goblin scout squad! Luna, give me enhancement magic; warriors, help me draw their attention; magician, you're responsible for..."
It was a standard, textbook tactical command.
Only... before Alicia could finish her sentence, a voice that was frigid to the extreme and filled with loathing and contempt suddenly rang out from beside her.
"Tsk, disgusting bugs."
"Eh?"
The Royal Magician, Scarlett, let go of Alicia's arm, leaving her slightly stunned.
The flirtatious mature woman who was acting spoiled and cute a second ago now had eyes colder than a polar glacier!
She looked at those Goblins as if she were looking at a pile of bacteria that had to be eliminated immediately.
"Lowly, humble ants... you dare to look directly upon the Lord Hero's face? Die!"
With that, Scarlett raised her staff. Without even chanting a spell, she gave it a light wave.
[Seventh-Tier Magic: Heavenly Inferno]
BOOM————!!!
[That's overkill!!!]
A massive pillar of fire over ten meters in diameter shot into the sky!
The terrifying high temperature instantly distorted the air—the earth groaned, the grass was vaporized, and the dozen pathetic Goblins didn't even have time to scream before they were evaporated, leaving not even ash behind!
A few seconds later, the fire faded.
Where the Goblins had stood, there was only a massive, bottomless charred crater belching black smoke... "..."
Alicia stood frozen in place, her sword halfway drawn, her face full of disbelief.
"How was that, Lord Hero~?"
Scarlett, having finished her task, instantly changed her expression.
She threw herself back onto Alicia, her eyes full of hearts like a puppy wagging its tail for praise.
"Did I do well? I cleaned them all up for you in an instant~"
"Yeah, cleaned them right up..."
Alicia answered blankly.
Looking at that giant crater capable of wiping out an entire army, cold sweat poured down her forehead.
[Good... good my ass!]
[You used Seventh-Tier magic against a few Goblins? Isn't that a bit too wasteful?!]
[What about cooperation? Tactics? Aggro control? And don't I need to level up? At least let me kill a few Goblins to get some experience!]
Alicia's heart was screaming... She even felt like slamming her sword onto the ground and quitting right then and there!
[What kind of otherworld adventure is this? This is just a bunch of high-level freaks coming to the starting village for some noob-stomping!]
But.
Looking at the adoring "praise me, praise me" eyes of her teammates and their innocent, cute faces.
No matter how much she wanted to complain, Alicia could only swallow her words. She gave a thumbs up and praised her with a dry laugh.
"G-Great job. As expected of the Royal Chief Magician."
"Ooh! I was praised by the Lord Hero~ I love it~"
[Hey! Talk all you want, but stop getting handsy!]
...Meanwhile, at the Underground Labyrinth, The Seventh Layer.
Buzz— Buzz—
The vibration of the mobile phone by the pillow gradually woke the sleeping Lilith.
"Mmm..."
Lilith let out a dissatisfied whimper. She groggily reached out a porcelain-white arm and fumbled around the bedside for a long time before finally grabbing the vibrating block.
She struggled to open one eye; the light from the screen was a bit blinding.
[Bro, I've already set off.]
[I'm in the Goblin Plains now, things are going pretty smoothly... I think.]
[How are you? Are you okay? You aren't being mistreated by that perverted Demon King, are you?]
"Old Song... *yawn*..."
Looking at the message on her mobile phone, Lilith gave a giant yawn. Her brain was still a bit foggy, stuck in "morning startup mode."
She was too lazy to type.
Really too lazy to type.
So, Lilith casually opened the camera function and took a quick selfie of her own sleepy, lazy, and charming face before she was fully awake.
*Click*.
In the photo, Lilith's hair was messy, her eyes were hazy, her collarbones were exquisite, and her skin was a rosy white.
But the dazed Lilith didn't notice these details at all and just clicked send.
[Not fully awake yet, let's talk later!]
After sending the message, Lilith's hand went limp, and her head lolled to the side as she prepared to curl back into that warm embrace for an extra nap.
However.
Only three seconds passed.
Buzz!
Buzz-buzz-buzz!
Buzz-buzz-buzz-buzz-buzz!
The mobile phone suddenly seemed to go crazy and began vibrating frantically! The notification sounds were as dense as machine-gun fire!