Round Two Ends; Round Three, an Even Fiercer and More Spectacular Clash Among the Gods, Begins at Once! (Continued)

Although Hela kept trying to convince herself that "this was just part of the job," deep down, the real reason she had gone to such lengths to weaken the Prince's forces... was that she wanted Rhine to see her worth.

Just like the puppets...

But after a moment of silence, Rhine's expression darkened.

He stared at Hela, his eyes full of distaste and weariness.

"Lady Hela, do you have a problem with me? Why would you cause me so much trouble!"

"Ah...?"

Hela froze. Her gaze turned flustered, and she was at a loss.

6. Hela's Allegiance

Rhine's fierce scolding left Hela completely dumbfounded.

Hela froze.

The eager anticipation in her heart was crushed in an instant. Now, she had no idea how to face Rhine's reproach and stood rooted to the spot, utterly at a loss...

Hela had thought that by helping Rhine deal with Lilia, she could surprise him and make him see her in a new light.

But she hadn't expected... that she would instead earn Rhine's displeasure.

In an instant, guilt, panic, anxiety, and all sorts of emotions Hela had never felt before surged through her. Hela felt dizzy...

Hela asked timidly, "Your Highness, did I... do something wrong?"

Rhine nodded solemnly.

"I just got word from Olivia that the Golden Land has dispatched mercenaries to investigate the Desolate Frozen Land in Leyta."

"They're investigating Obadiah's dragon's lair! They already know Obadiah is dead! Lady Hela, were you being listened in on by the Golden Land while communicating with Lilia?"

Rhine's tone was extremely stern, and his voice carried anger he was struggling to suppress.

This made Hela even more flustered, but she couldn't understand what Rhine was talking about at all.

Hela's voice grew even more uncertain. "But, Your Highness, I don't understand. What does this have to do with us...?"

"It has everything to do with us!"

Rhine said coldly, "Lady Hela, do you know what the Golden Land is? It's the holy land of the Golden Dwarves. After the Golden Dwarves went extinct, it was guarded jointly by the dwarf kings. The dwarves must have had good reason to guard it for a thousand years—so do you know what the key to opening the Golden Land is?"

Rhine: "It's the New Single-Handed Sword 01!"

And the New Single-Handed Sword 01 was the sacred treasure Obadiah had guarded all this time!

When Hela told Lilia she had Obadiah's ribs, the dwarves of the Golden Land immediately deduced that the relic of the Primal Sequence, the New Single-Handed Sword 01, had passed into someone else's hands.

The ancient dragon Obadiah had been impossible to defeat because he was immortal.

But they had a good chance against a demigod from Hain—after all, no matter how you looked at it, Hain's demigods could at least be killed!

Rhine, who could have kept a low profile,

now had no choice but to expose himself to the Golden Land's greedy gaze, with no hope of peace.

Hela finally understood just how much trouble she had caused Rhine!

"Your Highness, I... I..."

Hela wanted to explain herself, but she didn't know what to say.

She wanted to apologize, but she didn't know how to do that, either. To her astonishment, she realized that in her twenty-something years of life... she had never once sincerely said, "I'm sorry"!

For the first time, she had a man she truly cared about.

Yet now, not only had she failed to earn his approval, she had even angered him with her own foolishness!

Rhine: "Lady Hela."

Hela stammered, "Your Highness, I'm sorry... I..."

Rhine looked heartbroken and pulled Hela into his arms.

"...Hela, I was so worried about you!"

"Ah..."

In that instant, the world in Hela's eyes seemed to stand still.

Rhine: "You have Obadiah's body, so the dwarves of the Golden Land will suspect that you're the one holding the New Single-Handed Sword 01. They'll target you and come after you... I was so afraid they'd hurt you."

Hela's eyes widened in astonishment.

So... that was it?

Rhine's anger hadn't come from blaming Hela.

Quite the opposite—he was worried about her safety!

Held in Rhine's arms, Hela didn't resist at all. She only closed her eyes with a trembling sense of relief and delight.

His Highness's embrace... was so warm.

That strong, warm embrace captivated Hela even more than his beautiful eyes.

And at last, it shattered the last of Hela's defenses.

Hela asked tentatively, "I... I don't think I understand what you mean, Your Highness. You weren't blaming me, but worrying about me?"

"Hela..."

Rhine held her tightly in his arms. "As soon as I heard about this, I came straight back. You're my business partner, but you're also my friend... and I've realized that perhaps I..."

Rhine didn't finish his sentence.

Hela could more or less guess... His Highness probably still couldn't understand his feelings for her.

In truth, Hela couldn't understand her feelings for Rhine, either.

Why...

Why did being held in Prince Rhine's arms make Hela feel so intoxicated...

And those half-spoken, ambiguous words were more than enough to set her heart racing.

It was as if she could see... a new light shining ahead on the path of her life.

But just as Hela was savoring Rhine's embrace...

Rhine suddenly released her and stepped back.

Rhine looked ashamed. "I'm sorry, Lady Hela. I lost control a little and acted presumptuously."

Hela gazed at him, wanting to keep him there. "No, it's all right..."

Rhine: "Let's talk about business."

Hela: "Ah... all right..."

Hela stepped out of Rhine's arms. She couldn't control the waves of emptiness in her heart, but she quickly pulled herself together and listened attentively to His Highness.

Rhine: "Now that the Golden Land knows what happened, it's only a matter of time before they act. This is a serious matter. If we let it fester, it's bound to affect the entire dwarf race."

Rhine said solemnly, "So we have to take the initiative and resolve the problem as soon as possible, before things get complicated. And I hope Lady Hela can help us."

Hela naturally agreed without hesitation.

Rhine hadn't left Hela behind and taken only the three puppets to handle the matter, and that alone made her feel grateful.

But then Rhine added in a low voice, a look of guilt on his face:

"However, I'm sorry, Lady Hela. I'm afraid I can't pay you for this operation. I still have some assets in Dreamland, but they're all set aside for Shia's Gold Swords. I..."

"That's all right!"

Rewards and such didn't matter anymore.

Hela didn't care about any of that now!

At some point, Rhine's handsome reflection had become all that remained in Hela's eyes.

Hela took Rhine's hand and gave him a sincere smile. "I don't need you to give me anything, Your Highness. I only want to help you with your troubles... So all Hela hopes is that you'll give me another chance to prove myself... This time, I won't let you down."

Rhine was deeply moved. "Thank you, Lady Hela."

Hela's smile grew even sweeter.

And so, Hela and Rhine's discussion came to an end.

Hela had won Rhine's affection,

and Rhine had gained a free tool.

A happy ending!

7. Obadiah, Magnificently Resurrected!

The Pay-to-Win Sword was very important to Rhine's strategy.

That wasn't just because the Pay-to-Win Sword was a relic of the Primal Sequence that could serve as Constance's signature weapon. Its damage output was astounding.

It was also the trigger for many key story events.

Like the Golden Land, where Rhine was headed next.

Now that Rhine had gotten the Pay-to-Win Sword early by skipping the usual steps, he could take advantage of the fact that things hadn't yet gotten worse and act in advance, pulling off something he had never managed to do before!

The Golden Land was very important to Rhine.

Once again, Rhine would be going with Hela.

Although Hela had already sworn her loyalty to Rhine, he knew very well that he hadn't finished winning her over.

He had to make her fall even deeper, until she couldn't pull herself free... until she forgot herself and willingly betrayed the ironclad rules the Order had set for the Imperial Guards, making her final sacrifice to Rhine.

That could come gradually.

For now, to go fishing in the Golden Land, Rhine first had to borrow the Pay-to-Win Sword from Constance.

When he arrived at Constance's door,

Constance came out to greet Rhine before he could even knock.

Hela hadn't accompanied Rhine to visit Constance.

She had stayed at her own manor, but her senses had involuntarily spread into Constance's home.

Hela's feelings were complicated.

All demigods possessed senses far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

So Hela was quite certain.

Constance had already seen everything that had happened between her and Rhine.

Rhine's confession to her, his embrace and concern—all of it had made Hela happier than she had ever been... But Hela knew very well that Constance liked Rhine, too!

Not only were their feelings mutual, they were childhood friends who had grown up together. If the Sanctuary hadn't interfered... the two of them probably would have had children by now.

But what about now?

Prince Rhine's heart had begun to waver. He'd realized he had fallen for Hela!

Hela had caused Prince Rhine, whom Constance had always loved, to fall for someone else.

Hela nervously watched Constance's expression.

But Constance looked perfectly calm.

Completely unruffled.

Constance: "Did you need something, Your Highness?"

Rhine: "I'd like to borrow your sword."

Constance: "You mean, Rhine?"

Rhine: "You really did name it that."

Constance: "You told me to name it whatever I wanted..."