Reward and Truth

"Kehma-san. You heard Rokuko-chan, so marry her."

Haku-san said it just like that. I must've misheard. There's no way Haku-san would say something like that. Yeah, maybe she said duelkettou instead of marriagekekkon. Yep, classic Demonlands logic.

"Kehma, so we're getting married, okay? Got it?"

"Uh, right, we're dueling in the arena. Got it."

"It's not a duel. How do you even mishear marriage as duel?"

… Oh. In the language of this world, those two are totally different words, huh. So maybe I confused it with something else then?

"Well, for now, it's an engagement. Where shall we hold the ceremony? We could do it at the White Goddess Faith's church in the imperial capital. Considering your noble status, the actual marriage would probably be a year later."

"… I want to get married right away, though?"

"These things need to follow proper form, Rokuko-chan. You are a noble of the Empire, after all."

"Hmm. Fine. Being called fiancée does have a nice ring to it! Anyway, we're already living together, we have a daughter, and we're basically a married couple already. A year's nothing."

As the conversation rolled on like a ball downhill, it didn't feel real to me—I just kept listening to their voices.

"So, Kehma-san. Can you go ahead with the dispelling now?"

"Ah, yes."

Prompted by Haku-san, I activated the [Divine Alarm Clock]. Beep beep, beep beep, beep beep—as the electronic sound rang out, the white gem on Haku-san's thigh trembled slightly and then shattered with a crack.

Black smoke billowed out and took on a humanoid form. To be more precise, it resembled Core Number 10's silhouette.

"… Ngh!…Agh!"

[A-ah, y-you… y-you bastaaaards!! Raaaghhhhhh!!]

The black smoke screamed in Core Number 10's voice. But the [Divine Alarm Clock] was still ringing, and the sound seemed to eat away at the smoke, gradually causing it to fade. It writhed and clutched its head in agony.

"Number 10…!?"

[Damn you, Number 89, damn you, Dark God, aaahhh, aaahhhhhhh… I'm… fading…!]

With its final scream, the black smoke vanished. At the same time, the accessory that had remained on Haku-san's thigh dissolved into black mist and disappeared as well.

"Whew… That was definitely a curse from Core Number 10. Or maybe it's more accurate to say a curse transformation. That really was the Core itself. If we'd left it alone, it probably would've grown in strength and done something terrible…"

"Onee-sama, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine now. Come, Rokuko-chan. Give me a proper hug."

"Okay! Good work, Onee-sama!"

Rokuko hugged Haku-san tightly as she opened her arms wide.

So it wasn't possession, but some kind of curse manifestation… That kind of thing exists too, huh? Wait—that black smoke was really the Core himself?

"Alright then, let's talk about your reward."

"Uh, um…"

"Hmm? Is something wrong, Kehma-san?"

What happened to that whole marriage conversation? Or maybe it's still happening?

"No, it's… nothing."

"I see. Then, as for your reward, aside from the compensation, I'll give you 15 million DP and the previously offered [Divine Underwear]. Oh, and Mikan will get 5,500,000 DP, including the reward for Core Number 564. He contributed quite a lot, after all."

The [Divine Underwear]—effectively the last piece of the Divine Beddings we'd yet to obtain. The remaining items—being the [Divine Pillow] and [Divine Bedroll], are held by Myodoru and Shikina in Tsuia and could be borrowed whenever.

… Wait. I'm getting rewards on top of marrying Rokuko?? What's going on here? There's gotta be some kind of catch…

"… Kehma-san? You seem a bit spaced out. I get it though—anyone would feel that way after being told they're allowed to marry Rokuko-chan."

"Uh, yeah. That must be it."

I gave a half-hearted reply, and Rokuko let out a slightly annoyed snort.

"… Haku anee-sama. I think this reaction from Kehma isn't about being happy to marry me, but more like disbelief that you gave the approval."

"Oh my. What a shame. Rokuko-chan, maybe you shouldn't marry such a spineless man after all?"

"No way! Besides, do you think there's anyone more suited for me than Kehma? You're the one who made him like this with all your bullying!"

"Well, I will admit that I did push him on purpose."

Haku-san smiled slyly, as if scheming something, and Rokuko sighed deeply.

"That's exactly the problem, Onee-sama… Listen, Kehma. You know, Haku anee-sama has acknowledged you ever since you first beat her in a Dungeon Battle."

"… Uh, what? Really?"

"Yes. Otherwise, she would've never let you stay by my side. Your cluelessness and stubbornness are exactly her type, you know?"

Haku-san chuckled behind her hand.

"Kehma-san, is there any man other than you who could make Rokuko-chan grow this much, secure stable income and safety, and even defeat me in a Dungeon Battle? Rokuko-chan loves you too. She'd hate me if I were to push you away."

So instead of driving me away, she just kept messing with me to keep me in check.

"… So what would you have done if I had run away?"

"Oh, I wouldn't have let you. Rokuko-chan adores you, after all. I'd use any means to stop you… But you didn't run. So there's no problem, now is there?"

Apparently, Haku-san had no intention of letting me go from the moment Rokuko took a liking to me. She'd probably have resurrected me as an undead or something even if I'd died.

It's rare for a single person to stand a chance against an entire nation… But if I could stand a chance, I wouldn't need to run away from Rokuko in the first place.

And on top of that, she still made sure I didn't lay a hand on Rokuko by messing with me. What a monster—oh right, she is a Dungeon Core.

"Are you satisfied now?"

"… Yeah, I guess. So… I really can marry Rokuko, then."

"Yes. But you do understand how I'll feel about the man who's taking away my precious little sister, right?"

"Onee-sama! Stop bullying Kehma already!"

"Fufu, just kidding."

… Her eyes weren't smiling, so I'm pretty sure she was like eighty-percent serious.

Still, if it's something Rokuko truly doesn't want, Haku-san won't go that far. At least I don't need to worry about her killing me or disabling me permanently.

… Man, all the exhaustion I'd been holding back just hit me all at once.

"Oh, right—Kehma-san. You're not allowed to use the underwear's effect yet. That's a hundred years too early for you. Just use it to become a demigod."

"? Onee-sama, what kind of effect does the underwear have?"

"… Ah, um… well, something like… making you more attractive? It's not something Rokuko-chan needs to know about."

Haku-san looked away, dodging the question… Definitely a not-kid-friendly effect.

… That underwear, like the rest of the Divine Beddings, was made by the Dark God—Rokuko's Father—for the Creation God, right? Why the heck would he give it that kind of effect?

Also, "a hundred years too early"—is that just an expression or meant literally? I mean, if I become a god, I'll probably live that long…

"A-Anyway! I'll give it to you now… Make sure to keep it safe and out of Rokuko-chan's reach."

And with that, I received the [Divine Underwear] from Haku-san… Of course, it wasn't like she stripped it off right there or anything—it came in a perfectly normal box.