The Dark Princess’s Predicament

“Heavenly Glow Kiori! You’ve caught that witch!”

“Be careful!”

Several Temple Knights surrounded me. I shivered, my small hand clutching a corner of Heavenly Glow Kiori’s armor.

Heavenly Glow Kiori waved her hand, stopping the knights who were attempting to rough me up. “Stop!”

“But, Heavenly Glow Kiori, she is the most dangerous, most vicious Dark Princess in this dungeon!”

“She’s just a little girl!” For some reason, Heavenly Glow Kiori tightly gripped my shoulders, shielding me with her body as if protecting her own sister.

‘Heavenly Glow Kiori smells so wonderful…’

‘How strange. Since I’ve become a girl, my body shouldn’t feel anything for Heavenly Glow Kiori, who is also a girl. Yet, why do I feel so nervous whenever I’m close to her?’

Just then, a sudden clamor erupted from outside!

“Heavenly Glow Kiori! This is bad! H-huge numbers of skeleton soldiers have suddenly surged out and surrounded us!” A warrior, his face streaked with blood, burst into the treasure room.

“What!” Heavenly Glow Kiori’s delicate frame trembled.

“Leader! It’s a trap!” Loynin, clad in her revealing green armor, also retreated into the room. “Skeletons, an overwhelming tide of skeletons! They’ve completely encircled us!”

All eyes turned to me, filled with fierce accusation.

Heavenly Glow Kiori pushed me forward slightly, her gaze heavy with suspicion as she looked at me. “Was it you?”

I gazed at Heavenly Glow Kiori’s captivating eyes and cherry lips, inhaling the faint, orchid-like fragrance of her breath, and innocently shook my head.

“Heavenly Glow Kiori, don’t be fooled by her!”

“This witch is just pretending!”

“Yet she hasn’t killed any of you. Instead, you’re all so quick to lay hands on a little girl!” Heavenly Glow Kiori defended me.

“But you saw with your own eyes that she can use Tier 4 magic, Heavenly Glow Kiori!” the bald man shouted, his eyes burning as if he wished to devour me whole.

Just then, a commotion erupted at the entrance. Several Temple Knights, enveloped in thick black-purple smoke, stumbled through the doorway and collapsed onto the ground.

They were riddled with dark purple magic arrows.

One of the knights coughed up black blood and gasped, “Th-this is a trap! Young Miss, run quickly…”

It seemed these were direct subordinates from Heavenly Glow Kiori’s family, addressing her as ‘Young Miss.’ She released me and rushed to the fallen knight, kneeling beside him. Placing her hands on his body, she emitted a golden glow to provide emergency treatment.

“Leader, what is this…?” The revealingly armored female warrior, Loynin, pointed at the magic arrows embedded in the knight’s body.

“Holy Devourer Arrows.” Heavenly Glow Kiori gasped, a cold breath hissing between her teeth.

“Impossible! According to our intelligence over the years, there have never been skeleton archers using Holy Devourer Arrows on the second underground level! Th-these arrows have immense corrosive power against our sacred defensive armor! They are practically the bane of Temple Knights! And we are completely unprepared! We have no equipment to resist these arrows! Heavenly Glow Kiori, do you still not believe that little wretch has deceived us?!” the bald man fumed.

Meanwhile, my expression remained utterly innocent, though inwardly I was smirking. ‘Hmph, do you think the dungeon is still filled with those idiotic monsters, each fighting in their own territory, waiting for adventurers to break through level by level? You should see who’s truly in charge now! I secretly moved all the elite skeleton archers from the seventh level, who are equipped with Holy Devourer Arrows, to the second level! Just you wait, the real show is yet to come!’

Heavenly Glow Kiori stood up and walked toward me, her expression grave. She grasped my shoulders, then instinctively slid her hand down, feeling the small armor I wore. A complex look appeared in her eyes.

She glanced around and spotted a small alcove in the corner. Taking my hand, she said, “Come with me.”

“Heavenly Glow Kiori…” Everyone looked at her actions with a hint of confusion.

Heavenly Glow Kiori led me into the alcove of the treasure room. She took a deep breath, hesitated for a moment, then closed the dilapidated small wooden door.

Dim light filtered through the cracks in the broken eaves and crumbling walls. The small room, only a few feet square, felt somewhat cramped even with just the two of us inside. The air was filled with Heavenly Glow Kiori’s unique fragrance.

As I inhaled that scent, I found it incredibly difficult to think.

From a very close distance, Heavenly Glow Kiori scanned my body, which was wrapped in her cloak. Her gaze was calm and indifferent. ‘Was she planning to kill me with a single sword stroke in this dark room?’

“Take it off.”

Two simple, cold words escaped Heavenly Glow Kiori’s lips.

‘Eh???’

“Wh-what?” I feigned misunderstanding, asking in return.

Heavenly Glow Kiori seemed a little impatient. She grabbed the cloak I was wearing, but without using force. Instead, she gently, yet irresistibly, pulled it down little by little.

My small hands instinctively pressed against her arm. However, my body had become weak and soft from excessive tension, my hands seemingly unable to exert any force, completely powerless to stop her.

The cloak was slowly and gently pulled from my body, sliding to the floor. My embarrassing, unpresentable armor was once again exposed before Heavenly Glow Kiori, and in such a confined space, at such close proximity, even a slight movement of our bodies would inevitably lead to contact. The distinctly different scents of two women mingled together.

Yet, Heavenly Glow Kiori remained unhurried, a stark contrast to my nervous and embarrassed state.

Heavenly Glow Kiori’s gaze, seemingly burning, swept over my body, making me involuntarily curl up, my hands unsure where to cover myself.

“Take it off.” Heavenly Glow Kiori’s eyes gestured to the tiny, almost non-existent black armor I wore.

‘Eh??? Th-this, this too? B-but I’m not wearing any underwear beneath it! Heavenly Glow Kiori! Heavenly Glow Kiori, you can’t just calmly order me to strip naked in front of you like that!’

As she spoke, Heavenly Glow Kiori herself tossed her hair back, reaching her hands behind her, apparently intending to start taking off her own armor.

‘Eh??? It’s one thing for me to take mine off, but why is Heavenly Glow Kiori taking off her clothes too??? ‘

Yet, Heavenly Glow Kiori seemed completely at ease, as if this were a perfectly normal situation. It was as if we were just two girls heading out for a swim, squeezed into a changing room, getting dressed together. As fellow girls, there was no awkwardness or barriers; she was completely natural and skilled, utterly ignoring me as she began to remove her own armor.