HI3: I Don't Want to Be a Valkyrie

"Rozaliya and Liliya, remember to come visit me at the castle if you have time!"

Outside the royal palace in the capital of the Cronis Eagle Kingdom... Princess Dalisaya stood at the entrance, holding back a bit as she bid farewell to Rozaliya and Liliya.

"Alright, we'll come find you when we have time, Princess Dalisaya," Liliya replied courteously.

"Then I eagerly await your visits. And once again, thank you for saving me. I shudder to think what might have happened without you..."

"No need for thanks, Your Highness," Rozaliya said, holding the luxurious gift box in her arms. "The king has already provided us with more than ample compensation."

It had taken two days for Rozaliya and her companions to escort Princess Dalisaya to the capital of the Cronis Eagle Kingdom, where they were granted an audience with the king.

This unusually open-minded king of the dwarves didn't bat an eye at Rozaliya and Liliya's demihuman nature. Upon learning of their heroic deeds in slaying the dragon and saving his precious daughter...

He immediately, without hesitation... personally thanked the two.

Rozaliya, however, didn't place much weight on mere verbal thanks. She got straight to the point and made her request.

Originium!

Rozaliya's actions were undoubtedly impolite, and Liliya, seeing it play out, wished she could have stopped her in time.

Surprisingly, despite expecting the King to get angry, he didn't. Instead, he ordered his men to prepare the requested Originium.

This led to the luxurious gift box now cradled in Rozaliya's arms, containing thirty Originium stones—the maximum number the King of the Cormsolk Nation could spare temporarily.

Rozaliya was highly satisfied with these thirty stones, equivalent to a month-long pass.

To give some context, during their last encounter, Amiya had only given them a handful of Originium stones, and they had thought receiving ten would be impressive.

-

After King Cronis handed over the Originium, he offered to keep a few for dinner. However, upon realizing that it had been a while since he'd seen Princess Dalisaya, he likely had much to discuss with her. Thus, Liliya declined the invitation.

As Rosalia and her group were leaving, King Cronis seemed to recognize that both Rosalia and Liliya were "Heroes." He then entrusted them with a task: to slay the Demon Lord within the borders of the Kingdom.

-

Many Demon Lords ushered the era of power on this continent, but they all fell into two categories.

The first consisted of powerful and wicked Demon Lords. Their castles stood within the Demon Lands on the surface world. These vile beings ruled over demons and magical beasts, occasionally destroying towns and cities in their wake, serving as the primary adversaries of all sapient creatures.

The second type of Demon Lord... built dungeons underground, resembling more those who enjoyed playing games or found themselves bound by time constraints. Their potential harm paled in comparison to their surface-dwelling counterparts.

There was no reason... usually these kingdoms ignored them, at most posting quests for adventurers to either support the Demon Lord's "games" or infiltrate the dungeons to slay the Demon Lord as the final objective.

Adventurers, heroes, even self-proclaimed "Chosen Ones"... would enter these dungeons, overcoming challenges and vanquishing monsters until they ultimately faced off against the Demon Lord.

Normally, the emergence of a new Underground City Demon Lord wouldn't have concerned Cronis Eagle King at all. After all, while their numbers were not untold—there were nearly ten known Demon Lords—their power was confined underground.

However... this new Demon Lord had established his underground dominion perilously close to the heart of the Cronis Eagle Kingdom, causing the king considerable anxiety day and night.

It was a well-known truth in this world that all Demon Lords were driven by an innate wickedness. These rulers of subterranean realms were akin to homebound gamers, and none could be considered "good-natured." Given the slightest bout of curiosity or whimsy, they were capable of committing unspeakable horrors.

Just as Rozaliya had guessed, the System immediately generated a quest upon receiving the King's request.

Naturally, Rozaliya accepted right away.

-

"Well then, Princess Dalisaya, may we meet again!"

After bidding farewell at the exit, Rozaliya and her group prepared to leave.

"Please wait, Rozaliya and Liliya!" Before Rozaliya had taken more than three steps, Princess Dalisaya suddenly called out to her.

Has anything else come up, Princess Dalisaya?" Turning around, Rozaliya looked at the elaborately dressed princess with confusion.

"Although my father has already rewarded you... This is a small token from myself. I hope you'll accept it, Rozaliya."

At that moment, a maid quickly approached Princess Dalisaya, and with both hands, presented her with an exquisitely wrapped gift box.

Princess Dalisaya accepted the gift and offered it to Rozaliya.

"Oh... um..." Seeing the gift in Princess Dalisaya's hands, Rozaliya suddenly felt a bit awkward.

She had only saved the princess because of the origin stones...

And now she'd already received more than enough of them, yet the princess was offering her another.

"I hope you'll accept it," Princess Dalisaya pleaded, noticing Rozaliya's hesitation.

"Rozaliya, take it. It's the princess's kind gesture," Liliya stepped beside her, taking the gift box from her arms.

"Alright then... Thank you, Princess Dalisaya," Rozaliya handed the box of origin stones to Liliya and accepted the gift from the princess instead.

After leaving the royal palace, Rozaliya and her four companions found temporary lodging in a tavern within the heart of the Chronis Eagle's capital—a stark contrast from their days at the borderlands.

As expected of the capital, the accommodations were a vast improvement. The interior boasted a modern-retro design, reminiscent of a trendy hotel.

Rozaliya sprawled on a bed large enough to accommodate ten of her, while Liliya sat nearby, lost in thought.

The gift box containing the Originium lay open before Rozaliya, its contents now vanished into the ether.

"Liliya, we've got over five thousand crystals now," she marveled, her eyes gleaming at the crystal count that had just skyrocketed after her generous purchase.

"Don't forget, Rozaliya," Liliya cautioned, "we still owe System Girl—now known as Ai-chan—a staggering ten thousand crystals. We've only covered half that debt. So, don't even think about using these to draw cards just yet." Her voice was laced with a mixture of exasperation and amusement, as if scolding a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

Hearing Rozaliya's voice, Liliya quickly gathered her thoughts. Glancing at their crystal balance, she deduced Rozaliya's intention and immediately responded with a stoic expression:

"Ugh..."

The previously elated Rozaliya felt her spirits plummet instantly.

Isn't this a bit too much...?

"We still have five months left on our monthly pass..."

"A five-month pass amounts to less than five thousand crystals."

"..." Rozaliya fell silent, realizing that even including the monthly pass, they were still short of the required crystals.

However, as she looked at the tasks before them, Rozaliya's mood brightened again. Won't that be enough for our needs?

And then there was... what Amiya mentioned about every dungeon having a core that powers the entire underground labyrinth. These cores were said to be worth a thousand times more than source stones.

In other words... each core could be worth around 30,000 crystals?