"Oh, right!"
Greg shook off those disturbing thoughts and looked at Nightmare with a hint of anticipation and testing in his eyes.
"Since your power has started to recover... can you transform into your catgirl form now?"
He remembered Nightmare mentioning before that her full form consumed a lot of energy.
But now that her power had recovered a bit, maybe...
A playful glint flashed in Nightmare's emerald eyes. She elegantly licked her paw and said unhurriedly:
"If you are willing to postpone the moment you receive your Divine Protection for a considerable amount of time, I could indeed barely maintain my original... well, in your words, catgirl form for a while. So, do you want to switch?"
Greg: "...Never mind then."
Although a huge treasure chest was indeed very tempting, when he weighed his options, Greg found he craved power more than breasts.
"A wise decision."
Nightmare didn't seem surprised by this answer; she even nodded with a hint of approval.
Power was the foundation of everything. As a goddess, she understood this better than anyone.
"Anyway, enough talk. Let's head back to camp first."
Greg rolled his shoulders, which tugged at some of his wounds, causing him to hiss slightly.
"I feel like if I hang around here any longer, these injuries are going to start hurting again."
In the battle with the Silent Penitent, although he hadn't been seriously injured thanks to his LV2 Blunt Resistance and Silvia's timely healing, the flesh wounds from the scepter's scrapes and the consumption of mana and mental energy required time and rest to recover.
He didn't want his injuries to flare up because he was showing off.
After all, his main goal now was to rest and recover his strength, because in a few days, the second-to-last major event of the Act Two plot would occur: the Return of the Dead.
The background of the event was set in the Public Cemetery and the surrounding barrens on the outskirts of the City of Glory. Recently, signs of undead activity had suddenly become exceptionally active, with their strength and frequency far exceeding the same period in previous years.
Patrolling city guards reported discovering multiple mid-tier undead creatures and even suspected traces of a Necromancer's activity.
This had already exceeded the scope of a routine security incident, but it hadn't yet reached the level where the kingdom's regular army or the main forces of the Holy Church of Light needed to intervene.
After an assessment, the city administrators decided to issue the preliminary investigation and clearing mission as an official commission to Glory Cael Magic Academy, one of the Five Great Dungeons' affiliated magic institutions, serving as a high-credit practical exam and collaborative task.
In the original plot, this was the first large-scale team subjugation mission that the protagonist, Victoria, accepted.
Although she was eager to prove herself, her cautious nature prevented her from choosing to venture out alone or in a small party.
She joined a large joint clearing team led by several upperclassmen, aiming to work together, share the risks, and split the mission rewards.
It was during this mission that Victoria seized the opportunity. Relying on her gradually awakening Hero qualities and the skills honed through practical experience, she stepped forward at several critical moments, successfully rescuing several teammates surrounded by the undead. Her performance won wide recognition and praise from the team.
It was also through the preliminary reputation she built during this large-scale mission that she gained more attention within the academy, eventually being selected as one of the First-year Representatives to participate in the Hundred Academy Exchange in Chapter Three.
On the surface, this seemed like a team mission with controllable risks and decent rewards.
But Greg knew very well that the crucial prerequisite for Victoria to survive this ordeal unscathed and eventually gain fame in the original story was that she had already built a significant degree of friendship and rapport with Lilith Kahn. Before participating in the mission, she had invited Lilith to join her.
It was thanks to Lilith's powerful, wide-range High-tier fire magic, which was responsible for quickly clearing large numbers of low-tier undead, and Silvia's stable and reliable Light-attribute magic for purification and support, that Victoria could focus solely on assassinating key targets and performing rescues at critical moments.
The core trio, under the cover and cooperation of the larger team, finally completed the mission without any danger.
However, the current reality had significantly deviated from the original plot.
As far as Greg knew, the current relationship between Victoria and Lilith, far from gradually warming up to become best friends as in the original story, was trending toward becoming fated rivals.
This meant that the red-haired turret, who provided Victoria with the strongest fire support and deterrence in the original story, would most likely be absent from this mission.
Without Lilith as a key combatant, relying only on Victoria and Silvia—even if they joined a large team—the risk would increase exponentially when facing sudden high-intensity undead swarms or elite undead units.
They might be able to protect themselves, but it would be extremely difficult to rescue others and accumulate reputation as easily as in the original story. They might even find themselves in danger.
It was based on this judgment that Greg decided to intervene in the Return of the Dead event.
After all, Victoria had put in so much effort to help him clear the dungeon; it was only right for him to give her a hand at a critical moment.
Therefore, for the next surface operation, he had to adjust his body to the best possible state to deal with any other emergencies that his bad luck might cause.
Greg turned around first and walked unhurriedly toward the camp.
Nightmare jumped lightly off the rock and followed at his side with a feline grace.
This outing was just to stretch his muscles in the shallow layers, not far from the camp.
Before long, the familiar silhouette of the tent and the cleared space came into view.
However, just as Greg was about to step out of the final grove of stalagmites and officially return to his territory, his footsteps came to a sudden halt, and his pupils contracted sharply.
There was movement in the camp!
He saw a sneaky figure wearing a hood, hunched over, wandering back and forth near his tent entrance, the storage area, and the simple stove. The figure was touching things here and looking there, moving carefully and quickly, as if searching for something or trying to confirm something.
"A thief?!"
Greg's first thought was that a student who had entered the dungeon had accidentally discovered this relatively hidden camp and, seeing that the owner was away, had decided to sneak in and swipe some valuables or useful supplies.
After all, he did have a lot of valuable materials collected from monsters piled up there.
"My place is so simple, yet they actually dared to steal from me?"
A surge of anger flared up.
Without hesitation, Greg lowered his body like a stalking leopard and used the shadows of the surrounding rock walls and stalagmites to approach silently and quickly.
His movements were swift and precise, fully demonstrating the physical capabilities he had honed through long-term survival and combat in the dungeon.
The thief seemed completely unaware of the danger behind them.
Just as the person crouched down and tried to lift a corner of the tent to peek inside—
Greg moved!
He pounced from the shadows like an arrow leaving a bow, his right hand clamping onto the other person's shoulder like a steel vice. Simultaneously, he expertly tripped them with his foot while his left hand prepared to cover the mouth that might let out a scream!
A standard set of grappling and control moves, executed fluidly to completely subdue the opponent before they could react.
"W-wah!"
The figure clearly hadn't expected to be attacked and let out a short cry of alarm. Losing their balance, they were pinned firmly to the ground by Greg, face-down on the cold, damp earth.
Greg's knee pressed against the small of the other person's back, controlling their main center of gravity.
"H-help! There's a monster here...!"
The person being held down was clearly terrified, their voice trembling with a sob, their body shaking slightly from fear.
But the next sentence made Greg, who was about to question them harshly, freeze in place.
"...Greg Sass! I-it's all your fault! Even if I die, I'll haunt you for the rest of my life!!"
It was a woman's voice—young and clear. Even with the sobbing and panic, it couldn't hide a unique sense of arrogance.
Greg: "???"
The little thief knows me?
But what does she mean by 'it's all my fault'? And what's this about haunting me even if she dies?
Greg felt a sense of doubt, and the strength in his hands instinctively loosened a bit.
He shifted his knee and turned his body, wanting to see who exactly was pinned beneath him.
The other person also seemed to notice the decrease in pressure and took the opportunity to struggle and turn her head, trying to see the face of her attacker.
The hood slipped off during the struggle, revealing a pair of red eyes filled with tears from fear and anger, staring intensely at Greg.
Their eyes met.
The air seemed to freeze.
Greg's eyes widened instantly, and his expression froze on his face.
Lily?! No, it's Lilith!
Why did she come to my camp again in this disguised form?!
Oh, right, it must be because of that incident.
Greg understood instantly.
She was definitely here to demand an explanation for what happened on the academy's tree-lined path—where he had publicly exposed her admiration for her sister and made those misleading, deep-felt comments!
He just hadn't expected that the Princess's infiltration skills were so poor that she would be pinned to the ground as a thief by the victim she was looking for before she even found him.
The scene was incredibly awkward.
Rate on N.U.
