Gacha Addict in a Matriarchal World C.64: Preparation (2)

“No, Ellie! Don’t you trust me?!”

“Jonah, you have a complicated past.”

“That’s not fair! Just because I often play tricks on you, do you think I do that to everyone?!”

“You just admitted to playing tricks, didn’t you?! Are you confessing to being a repeat offender?!”

Ellie screamed, and I felt wronged. In the midst of this, Karen quietly raised her hand.

“May I say something?”

“…What is it?”

Ellie frowned, clearly wary of Karen. But for me, it was a welcome interruption.

“Inquisitor Karen! Please tell the truth! I didn’t do anything wrong, right? I just asked for a donation of your entire fortune, right?”

“Ah! Jonah, Jonah! Do you think that makes sense?!”

“It’s true.”

“…?”

Ellie wore a dumbfounded expression. Karen continued speaking to her.

“I said it was my entire fortune, but it’s not that much money. Since Sir Jonah said he would use it for a good cause, I trusted him and gave it to him.”

“But still, it’s your entire fortune.”

“More than anything, thanks to Sir Jonah, Ian, who took the curse in my place and collapsed, was able to live. If I think of it as the price of his life, I don’t regret it.”

“Oh.”

Ellie nodded as if she had just remembered something. She probably heard the story of what happened at the temple while she briefly went to the warehouse with Lydia. After struggling for a while, Ellie finally sighed deeply and slumped her shoulders.

“If that’s the case.”

“Hehe. See? When have I ever done something to worry you, Ellie? Please, place more trust in me.”

“No, you’re still doing things that worry me right now.”

“…Didn’t we just agree to go to the first floor together?”

“Right. Lydia said that even if I told you not to come, you would follow anyway. …I’m just wondering, can you tell me why you want to confront One Who Devours the Twilight directly?”

“Why, you ask.”

I tapped my chin thoughtfully for a moment. Where should I start, and where should I end? Should I tell her that this world is made up of my settings? That there are too many seeds of tragedy sown, so I need to become at least a bit stronger to stop them when necessary? Or… that I have a sense of crisis, fearing there might be a setting error for reasons unknown to me?

Of course, it was impossible to tell her all of this. Even if I did, I’d probably be treated as a lunatic. So, I had to be a bit more vague, but I made sure to pinpoint the true nature clearly.

“I need to tie up loose ends.”

“…….”

“It’s something only I can do.”

“Is that so.”

“Yes. Asking for your help doesn’t mean asking you to fight in my stead. It means asking you to help me tie up my matters.”

“I understand.”

“Please, I ask you again, Eli. Help me. Even without one arm, you’re strong, aren’t you? Please use that strength for me.”

“…Alright.”

Eli nodded and added another word while scratching the back of his head.

“But there’s a condition.”

“What? What kind of condition?”

“No matter what, don’t stray from the side of others. Be it me, Lydia, or even this inquisitor. Never jump into danger, and make sure you come back safe without a single injury. …Can you promise that?”

“Yes. I’ll do my best.”

“Don’t try; just do it.”

“But if Ellie is in danger, I’ll have no choice but to rush over.”

“Don’t worry, that won’t happen.”

“I also won’t need to rush in if Ellie is safe. …This is only in the case of a battle with One Who Devours the Twilight, right? Please don’t stop me from fighting with the floor guardian. I also want to try and gain power.”

“What? Why are you bringing up the floor guardian all of a sudden? You said we’re going to the first floor.”

“Eh? I’m talking about the guardian of the first floor.”

“???”

“???”

Ellie and I looked at each other, puzzled. I noticed Lydia, who had carefully closed the door of the warehouse, and Karen, who had been fiddling with the statue of the goddess, also had their eyes wide open.

“Oh dear. Did I not mention this?”

“This is the first I’ve heard of it!”

“Yeah, it’s my first time hearing it.”

“Could it be that the heretics are aiming for…”

I nodded toward the three, who were gasping in shock.

“Yes, I’m not sure where they found out, but it seems they’ve discovered the summoning method for the guardian of the first floor. Whether it’s because they’re not certain yet, they’re still in the trial and error phase, but it won’t be long before they actually summon it.”

“…That’s really troublesome. It’s not just about a power struggle in the temple or corruption or anything like that.”

“Just as Senior Ellie says. If you think about what happens every time another power is transferred to One Who Devours the Twilight, we can’t just sit by.”

“But how did Sir Jonah come to realize this? Don’t tell me you already knew about the summoning ritual… Oh?”

Karen, realizing something, placed the goddess statue on the table and offered a prayer. Yep, It seemed she thought the goddess of love might have given me a hint because I’m a saint (not). Deciding to play along, I gave a meaningful smile as if it were true.

“Ahaha. It just appeared in a dream for a moment; I wasn’t sure if it was real or not.”

“……”

“……”

Elli and Lydia looked at me silently, clearly not believing a word. That was fine since it was meant to be unbelievable anyway. I enjoyed their blatant stares and tapped the table lightly.

“So, shall we start making a concrete plan on how to storm in?”

“…Yes. Well, Jonah’s role is decided either way.”

“Jonah. Sidelines. Agreed?”

“There’s no need for Sir Jonah to be in danger.”

The three of them seemed to agree to push me out as if it were planned. What was with this princess treatment? Wait, since it’s a reverse world, it should be ‘prince’, right? Anyway, feeling cherished warmed a corner of my heart, yet I also bristled at the thought they might not trust me. It was a complex emotion.

Is this how a female knight feels when she says not to underestimate her because she’s a woman? One must indeed be in a position to learn certain things.

Pretending to sob, I said,

“How could you? You all gathered to help me, yet you won’t include me in the plan.”

“Don’t be like that. It’s just that we’ve already decided what you can do; it’s not like we’re moving forward without you.”

“Well, that may be true. But if I’m just going to be protected and follow along, there’s no need for me to attend the strategy meetings, right?”

“Huh? Uh, right?”

“Then let me know once everything is decided. Since I don’t know anything about these kinds of extermination plans to begin with, I’ll leave it to you all and follow along.”

“…Considering how much you insisted on following, you’re quite compliant now. What are you up to?”

“That hurts, Ellie. You were jumping to conclusions earlier, and yet you still can’t trust me? I just want to witness One Who Devours the Twilight being defeated and take down the floor guardian.”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

Ellie trailed off, stroking my head firmly as if pressing it down.

“Right. You’re correct. You should focus on ensuring your safety for tomorrow as much as possible.”

“Yes. That was my intention from the beginning when I said I would go ahead. There’s a lot to prepare.”

“Is that so.”

I grabbed her hand, which was still on my head, and gently lowered it. Then, I lightly pressed my lips to the back of her hand.

Smooch~

“Thank you, Ellie. You’re fighting for me even though you’ve retired.”

“If you know that, then treat me well from now on.”

Ellie chuckled, but the power of the hand kiss must have been greater than expected. Her face turned bright red, her lips quivered, and she wagged her tail vigorously.

Laughing at her reaction, I turned to Lydia and Karen.

“I’ll be upstairs if you need anything.”

I told them before heading to my room with Karen’s hefty purse in hand.

Prepare? Yes, I should. But, whether I should or not…it was time to prepare for the gacha!!!

As soon as I closed the door, I spilled today’s earnings all over the desk. Not only had I wiped out a Hobgoblin tribe, but I also included the reward for moving a drugged man to the temple, and there was even all of Karen’s savings. Unfortunately, it was a pile of silver coins with not a single gold coin, but with this much, it must be a considerable amount of money. I didn’t bother counting. After all, it was all going to be spent—no, invested in the gacha.

The goddess statue was gone because I had given it to Karen, but I prayed with a desperate heart.

“If you’re a human being… you know, right?”

Ding!

[Normal Draw]

Use cash or an equivalent amount of magic stones to randomly obtain items and skills between 1~5 stars.

[1 Draw] [10+1 Draws]

“Watch over me!!”

I screamed and frantically pressed the draw button.

The jingling sound of coins filled the air as my pile of silver quickly disappeared. In its place, a flood of various trinkets emerged, accompanied by a message window in front of me.

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

[3 stars: Masterpiece - The Most Beautiful, Cute, and Lovely Goddess Statue in the World]

“???”

No, this…this wasn’t what I meant by asking you to watch over me…