Outlier Skill [Storage], Proficiency Level 9999 – The Strongest Cheat Awakened After 60 Years of Har

Chapter 39: Hot Springs Village and the Legendary Castle 8

After a few hours…

This old man, Tina, and Donna have been diving deep underground with the “Earth Escape” skill.

The goal is to reach the location where Donna claims the Castle Knight is.

Donna has always opposed attacking the Castle Knight.

She stated that it was safe to leave The Castle Knight alone until it became bored and left.

But when she learned of this old man’s power and strategy, she seemed willing to cooperate.

That’s a good thing, because I’ll need Donna and her fellow dwarves’ assistance.

“I think we’re almost there…!”

“All right, let’s keep going straight down…!”

“I think I heard something.”

Tina was right.

Hum, hum, hum… ♪

As we moved through the earth, this old man and the others could hear a humming tune.

It’s such a loud humming.

“However, it’s a bad song.”

Tina complained.

“W-Well…”

“Martina-chan, saying something like that in front of him will enrage him. You won’t be able to control him if he gets out of line, so let’s be careful, okay?”

“Don’t worry. Ash will handle everything, including the entire situation. Isn’t Ash’s plan perfect?

“Hehehe… I can tell Martina-chan adores Ash a lot.”

“Huh…?! I can see it, it’s hollow…! Let’s jump in!”

“All right, Ash, let’s go!”

“L-Let’s go!”

This old man and the others jumped out of the underground cave’s sides and into the interior.

A desolate landscape with large and small boulders strewn about.

However, it was filled with warm steam, which nearly obscured our vision.

The vast central space resembled a hot spring pond with steam rising from it.

There was a massive castle in that boiling pond.

“Oh! It’s really huge…!”

“That’s The Castle Knight!”

“Ah…! That’s right…!”

This is the hero’s fortress as he fights the demon king. A romantic piece of history.

The Castle Knight had a large rock hand growing out of the castle’s outer wall, which was spread out from the massive hot spring. The same could be said for the feet sprouting from the base of the castle section.

His stance was that of a sluggish old man soaking in the tub.

He was humming a tune and appeared to be in a good mood.

“He appears to be having a good time.”

“But doesn’t he have the hot spring stuck up there? Isn’t that why there aren’t any hot springs up there?”

“It’s been like this for days.”

“Wow, that was a long bath.”

“That lump of stone or rock has been immersed in a hot spring. It’s such a slacker, and it sings horribly too.”

Tina sighs, disgusted.

“Shut up!”

The humming ceases, and the air trembles with a loud, shuddering sound.

I’m not sure where it’s coming from, but it’s most likely The Castle Knight’s voice.

It appears to be aware of what we are saying.

“It’s because I’m tired! This is the castle of the hero, you know! Respect and admiration for me! Have you no gratitude at all for saving the world thing?! you ungrateful b*stards!”

“When are you referring to? Old things that cling to the glory of the past are an embarrassment. Always play the game in the present, not in the past. If you can’t, hide quietly and avoid bothering others. That is the definition of grace!”

Tina delivers an excellent sermon that appears to hit the nail on the head.

She used to be soft-spoken and had a lisp when she was with this old man back in the day.

I guess there are some things you can’t hide even if you look and act your age.

Tina, who exudes dignity with her pretty face, is a little, or maybe a lot, more attractive. It’s refreshing.

“…Hey, Nee-chan, just because you’re cute doesn’t give you the right to enter another person’s bathroom; that’s called molestation…! Even if I did something to you, you can’t complain, okay?!”

Tina snorts as she brushes her hair back over her shoulders.

“Try it. If you can.”

Tina’s attempt to attract the attention of the Castle Knight is part of the plan.

This old man is willing to wait and see what happens.

“You’ve got a lot of guts! I’m going to strip you naked and force you to say “that” legendary line that has been passed down since ancient times! Prepare yourselves!”

The Castle Knight reaches inside his body, pulls something out, and throws it at us.

It’s a familiar stone giant.

This old man’s item box also contains the ogre’s fossil.

One after another, they were thrown as if they were trash.

In the blink of an eye, there are more than a dozen of them, surrounding Tina and this old man.

“Leave this to me, Ash…”

“Yeah, but there are more of them than I expected. Are you going to be okay?”

“Don’t worry…! If that’s the hero’s castle, this is the hero’s sword…!”

Whoosh!

A shining, divine magic circle unfolds at Tina’s feet, spreading out rapidly.

The intricate patterns spread out at high speed are an art form in and of themselves.

“Wait, what the…?! How?! Isn’t that the magical circle of the Holy Sword?”

“Come out, Holy Sword Tear!”

The magic circle’s center distorts, and the sword’s hilt slowly emerges from within.

The glittering decorations and the translucent sword blade come next.

It’s a stunning sword that captivates everyone who sees it.

This is especially true when it is held by the equally appealing Tina.

Tina’s hair and skirt hem are ruffled by the wind from the magical circle.

Her chubby thighs jutted out, and you couldn’t see past them, which was also intriguing.

―This old man is pitiful for caring about such trivial matters.

But I couldn’t help but follow my instincts. I apologize.

Tina takes a few steps forward and climbs onto a nearby boulder.

… The angle has been corrected, and the previously invisible area is now visible.

“T-Tina?!”

“?”

“Y-You should go down there… I can see inside… “

“I’m showing you! How’s that? Are you excited?!”

Tina smiles as she returns.

“No… If you say that, it’s not nearly as exciting…”

“Come on, Ash! Don’t be shy! You can get as close as you want and look as hard as you want, okay?”

“Okay…I think I’ll do that next time.”

Wouldn’t the holy sword be offended if it was used for this?

But despite this old man’s worries, the sparkling holy sword shines satisfactorily in Tina’s hands.

“Right. Let’s first remove the distractions and then take our time, shall we?”

“I won’t interrupt you…! You can stand there for a while…!”

The voice belongs to The Castle Knight. It appears to be coming from somewhere near Tina’s feet.

Tina is standing on is actually an ogre fossil.

The stone figure’s eyes are looking right at Tina’s…

“You!! Aaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!”

Tina raises her eyebrows and flashes her holy sword.

Hiiiinnn!

The Holy Sword Wave strikes the stone ogre and shoots it in the face!

As expected, “Holy Sword Tear”.

Tina is the Holy Warrior, wielding the Holy Sword.

“I will never allow anyone other than Ash to defile me…! I don’t care if you’re a hero’s relic or a romantic figure from history…! As long as your existence is obliterated from the world, the fact that I only belong to Ash will be preserved…! Fufufufu, prepare yourself!”

Tina thrusts her holy sword into the crowd of stone ogre statues.