My Husband Is Definitely a Paladin — Chapter 12

THIS IS...

THERE IS NO... MISTAKE.

IT IS NOT SOME RARE ORE,

NOR DOES IT HAVE MAGICAL POWER.

IT IS JUST AN ORDINARY PEBBLE, THE KIND THAT ROLLS AROUND ON THE ROADSIDE...

WHY...?

EVEN THOUGH ALL SORTS OF VARIABLES APPEARED IN THIS LIFE,

THE DUNGEONS ALONE HAD STAYED EXACTLY THE SAME.

THE NUMBER, THE LOCATION, THE MONSTERS' ATTRIBUTES, AND THE REWARDS!

SO WHY ONLY DUNGEON NO. 181...?

LADY IRENNE.

LOWEST GRADE DUNGEONS OFTEN HAVE INSIGNIFICANT REWARDS LIKE THIS.

PLEASE DO NOT BE TOO DISHEARTENED OVER THE REWARD.

YOU MUST BE VERY TIRED FOR NOW,

SO WHY NOT RETURN TO THE FORTRESS AND REST?

...AFTER THAT, SIR MICHAEL CONTINUED COMFORTING ME AND TOOK ME ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE LODGING,

BUT NONE OF HIS COMFORT REACHED MY EARS. I ONLY HAD ONE THOUGHT.

I AM DOOMED...

AND I HAVE NO MONEY.

I DO NOT EVEN HAVE SLEEPWEAR TO CHANGE INTO RIGHT AWAY.

I WANTED TO AVOID USING THE GIFTS FROM THE TIRENIAN AMBASSADOR AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

BUT THIS IS NO LONGER THE TIME TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN WHAT IS MINE AND WHAT IS NOT.

I AM PENNILESS AND CARRYING A DEBT OF 100,000 GOLD RIGHT NOW.

THIS IS NOT A DEBT SMALL ENOUGH THAT I CAN JUST SIT AROUND STUPIDLY

BECAUSE I FAILED TO OBTAIN THE INVISIBILITY RING AS PLANNED...

I NEED TO MAKE A NEW PLAN!

AMONG THE DUNGEON REWARDS I RECORDED, WHAT USEFUL ONES WERE THERE?

AH, THIS ONE IS GOOD.

THE REWARD FROM DUNGEON NO. 482, THE STONE OF SILENCE.

FROM THE MOMENT IT IS GRIPPED, IT MAKES THE HOLDER UNABLE TO HEAR NEARBY SOUNDS FOR ABOUT 1 MINUTE.

IT DOES NOT HAVE A USEFUL POWER, BUT THANKS TO ITS DISTINCTIVE SHAPE AND IMPRESSIVE SOUNDING NAME,

IT STIRRED THE DESIRE OF ARTIFACT COLLECTORS AND WAS SOLD FOR ABOUT 20,000 GOLD.

THE PROBLEM IS... THAT DUNGEON APPEARS IN JUST ONE WEEK,

BUT I CAN CHOOSE THE DUNGEON TO SUBJUGATE

AND TAKE THE REWARD ONLY ONCE A MONTH.

AH, WHAT DO I DO...

IF I HAD KNOWN THIS WOULD HAPPEN, I WOULD HAVE ASKED FOR ONCE A WEEK INSTEAD OF ONCE A MONTH.

...SHOULD I ASK SIR MICHAEL FOR ANOTHER FAVOR?

IN THIS LIFE, SIR MICHAEL IS DEFINITELY MORE...

HE SEEMS TO HAVE GOODWILL TOWARD ME AND TREATS ME KINDLY COMPARED TO MY PREVIOUS LIFE.

HE EVEN GRABBED MY WAIST AND HAND SO SUDDENLY...

I CANNOT FIGURE OUT AT ALL WHETHER HE IS UNCOMFORTABLE WITH OUR SKIN TOUCHING OR NOT...

F-FOR NOW, IT IS LATE AT NIGHT, SO I SHOULD SLEEP AND THINK ABOUT IT AGAIN TOMORROW...

IT'S MICHAEL.

ARE YOU INSIDE?

SIR MICHAEL AT THIS HOUR?

SIR MICHAEL? WHAT BRINGS YOU HERE AT THIS HOUR...?

I HAVE SOMETHING URGENT TO TELL YOU, SO ALTHOUGH I KNOW IT IS LATE, I CAME DESPITE THE DISCOURTESY.

MAY I HAVE A MOMENT OF YOUR TIME?

SOMETHING URGENT...?

PEOPLE ARE STILL WALKING AROUND AT THIS HOUR...!

COME IN!

HURRY, BEFORE ANYONE SEES YOU!!

BEFORE ANYONE SEES ME...?

GASP, I GRABBED SIR MICHAEL'S ARM WITHOUT REALIZING IT...

A PURIFIER AND KNIGHT WHO HAVE FORMED A PARTNERSHIP ARE OFFICIALLY TREATED AS EQUIVALENT TO HUSBAND AND WIFE.

IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH A HUSBAND AND WIFE BEING TOGETHER?

HUSBAND AND WIFE...

THAT IS NOT IT, BUT...

YOU ALSO HAVE THE SPECIAL STATUS OF A PALADIN, SIR MICHAEL...

IF SOMEONE SEES YOU VISITING AT THIS TIME OF NIGHT,

RUMORS THAT DAMAGE YOUR HONOR MAY SPREAD...

I GUESS EVEN A NOBLE PALADIN IS STILL A MAN IN THE END~

...IF HONOR CAN BE TARNISHED BY SOMETHING SO TRIVIAL, THEN IT WAS ONLY WORTH THAT MUCH FROM THE BEGINNING.

YOU DO NOT NEED TO CONCERN YOURSELF WITH SUCH THINGS, LADY IRENNE.

AGAIN, LIKE BACK THEN,

HE TOLD ME "NOT TO CONCERN MYSELF"...

AS EXPECTED, A VARIABLE DIFFERENT FROM MY PREVIOUS LIFE APPEARED, SO HE IS ONLY TREATING ME A LITTLE KINDLY.

I SHOULD NOT MISUNDERSTAND THINGS ON MY OWN.

MORE IMPORTANTLY, DID YOU NOT SAY YOU HAD SOMETHING URGENT TO TELL ME?

AH, YES.

BEFORE I CAME TO THE FORTRESS, I TOLD YOU

THAT I HAD SUBJUGATED AN UNSTABLE DUNGEON IN THE TIRENIA KINGDOM, DID I NOT?

THE DUNGEON UNFORTUNATELY APPEARED INSIDE TIRENIA'S ROYAL CASTLE,

AND AN ACCIDENT OCCURRED WHERE MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL FAMILY WERE DRAGGED INTO IT.

OF COURSE, I RESCUED THEM ALL BEFORE THINGS BECAME DANGEROUS, BUT...

AH, SO THAT IS WHY TIRENIA TRIED SO HARD TO REWARD HIM.

He saved the royal family, after all...

EVEN IF IT MEANT SENDING THIS LUXURIOUS ROOM AND EXPENSIVE ITEMS TO MICHAEL...

EXCUSE ME FOR A MOMENT.

WH-WHY IS HE SUDDENLY TAKING OFF HIS SHIRT?!

S-SIR MICHAEL?!

HUH...?

A SCAR THAT WAS NOT THERE IN MY PREVIOUS LIFE...?!

DURING THE RESCUE, I INEVITABLY RECEIVED A SEVERE WOUND FROM AN UNRECORDED SPECIES MONSTER.

THE WOUND ITSELF IS HEALING EVEN WITH ORDINARY MEDICINE, BUT...

I CANNOT SHAKE OFF THE DEMONIC ENERGY THAT ENTERED MY BODY THROUGH THE WOUND,

SO I AM BARELY SUPPRESSING IT WITH MY HOLY POWER.

BUT AFTER SUBJUGATING A DUNGEON, LIKE TODAY, OR LATE AT NIGHT,

THE DEMONIC ENERGY INSIDE MY BODY RUNS WILD NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY TO CONTROL IT.

SO...

LADY IRENNE,

I WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU FOR PURIFICATION.

...PARDON?

JUST NOW...

WHAT DID I HEAR?

WH-WHAT DID HE ASK FOR?

PURIFICATION...?

SIR MICHAEL

CAME TO ME

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT FOR PURIFICATION...?

AH... UM...

I MEAN...

WHY DID THE PLACE I BACKED INTO HAVE TO BE THE BED!!!

S-SIR... MICHAEL?

NO, UM, I...

W-WAIT,

WAIT, I AM NOT MENTALLY PREPARED YET!!!

I AM NOT READY YET!

LADY IRENNE.

COULD YOU PLEASE...

HOLD MY HAND FOR A MOMENT?