The Adventures of Rose Hood Chapter: 64-66

Chapter 64: How could I Have not Seen Before

I returned to Selethon in a good mood. I went to the guild and announced my presence, ordering a drink.

I drank it and hummed.

“Hey, Rose. How are you doing?”

“I’m doing well, Dallel. How are you?”

“Good...”

I had never noticed how he looked before. It was a wonder I didn’t go for him before. He noticed my look and lightly blushed.

“Um, could I get you something?”

“Nah, I’ll treat you. What do you want?”

“Um.”

And then, me and Dallel had our first date in the guild hall.

_

“So, you and Rose had a meal together... alone?”

“Yeah, I don’t know what to think.”

“Does she remember?”

“No, she said that since she can’t remember, she wants to make new memories with us.”

I was so nervous. I may be wrong, but that seemed like a date.

“This feels odd.”

“Yeah, but she seemed happy during the meal. I think, even for her case, I should keep meeting with her.”

Jalad looked mad.

“I don’t like this. We need to get her memories back, and then you can try. Right now, it just feels like you're using her amnesia as a way to get her.”

“Hey, I didn’t even flirt with her. We only had a meal.”

“Still, she doesn’t have her memories. She’s likely in a state of confusion. What exactly else did she say to you?”

“Um... she did say how it was a wonder she didn’t go for me before.”

“Exactly. That doesn’t sound at all like Rose.”

“Well, if you remember, she is now fully her. She was only half her before.”

“And you think that’s a big enough change. Even when she possessed Sloth at first, she was self-conscious of her modified behavior. The fact that she isn’t now shows that she is in a bad state, so cool it and let off.”

“Shut up Jalad!”

“No, I’m concerned about Rose, and you aren’t helping.”

“You’re jealous, aren’t you.”

“What?”

“You are jealous of me because Rose actually came and invited me to eat.”

“I can’t believe you right now.”

“I can-”

“Shut up, Dallel!!!”

“I can’t believe I thought of you as a friend. You always hold me back.”

I paused; Jalad looked at me in pure pain. He started walking out of my room.

“Where are you going?!”

He didn’t look back.

“It seems that Rose isn’t the only one who changed.”

He slammed the door.

I sat in silence. I wasn’t going to apologize; I didn’t need to.

I got up and walked out.

“Sir, where are you going?”

“I’m visiting the palace.”

I walked out across the street.

_

“So, you want to reconsider my request.”

“Yes, if you will have me, I would love to join the Kingsguard. I don’t need to be a captain.”

King Dalis smiled.

“Welcome to the Kingsguard, Captain Dallel.”

He didn’t ask why, but he didn’t need to. I had my reasons, and he didn’t care about them.

I left the hall to find my new squad, Royce’s squad.

“Heh, so you finally decided to become captain, huh?”

It was a wolfkin. Darsen, he was recruited so he could continue his slave breaker work.

“Listen, I know I’m not Royce, and I doubt I can live up to his example, but I will try.”

His old second nodded.

“And that’s all we need.”

_

Dallel joining the Kingsguard caused ripples. The city guard lost a lot of respect for him, and Jalad was forced to find a new second. Mammon was shocked and visibly lost respect for him, but the regular people thought he did the right thing.

To bash in the nail, I asked him on a second get together. This was going well...

_

“No!!! Don’t trust me!!! Run!!!”

No matter how much I screamed, only that monster heard me. I knew that there was nothing I could do right now. I was too weak.

Celios’s battle weakened me too much, and she wasn’t diverting energy to me anymore, it weakened her, but she was still powerful on her own.

“There has to be someone who knows the truth, someone who can stop her.”

‘I’m sorry, but there is none. But you can stop all of this, by merging with me, granting me your power and your mind.’

“NEVER!!! If I do that, then a far worse fate awaits them.”

‘You will give in eventually.’

“No.”

‘Everyone has a breaking point.’

She was right, of course, but I would hold out as long as I could.

‘You know what would really be fun? If I brought us to the point of proposal before making him breathe in his own blood.’

I didn’t react, she would stop taunting when I ignored her.

Please just stop...

She knew my mood, so she knew I was trying to ignore her.

‘Oh, don’t be sad. I know what’ll cheer you up.’

She filled my mind with images of a warped Royce. It was cruel.

I started screaming to shut out the voice of Royce calling me a monster.

Kala smiled.

_

Mammon POV

What was happening? In less than a day, the dynamic changed.

Dallel and Rose started dating suddenly.

Dallel and Jalad had a fight because of that which resulted in Dallel joining the Kingsguard.

Dallel was assigned to be Rose’s guard with his squad.

Dallel argued with me and left in a storm.

Sure, I said some things I shouldn’t have, but Dallel was angering me.

But the most terrifying of all.

I’m pretty sure I was the only one who noticed...

When Dallel left in a storm, causing the guild members to rage at him...

For a single moment, I swear on my life that Rose smiled.

Chapter 65: The Codephrase

I walked in the park with my boyfriend, Dallel. We held hands and wandered.

He was assigned to be my guard, so we could spend a lot of time together.

We had dinner, where he complained about Jalad. He didn’t realize that people gave him nasty looks.

His squad liked him, and they defended him in the public square.

Darsen was the biggest supporter of me and him getting together.

The city was torn on this issue. Some wanted Dallel to return to the guard, but a guard said,

“Until he apologizes to Captain Jalad, we won’t give him any respect.”

The king and the Kingsguard stood on Dallel’s side, and the city guard on the other side. The citizens didn’t know what to do.

Selethon was destabilized, and it was by one man. At least, that’s what everyone thought.

To all 3 groups I was a peacemaker. I acted like I was at all interested in helping. It was pitifully easy.

To Jalad, I acted as though while he was correct, Dallel was also in a tough situation.

To Dallel, I acted as though Jalad was at fault and needed to apologize.

It was almost disappointing that it was that easy.

“It’s a wonderful day, isn’t it, love.”

“It is, Rose.”

I saw Mammon.

“’Xcuse me Rose, but could I speak to ya.”

“Sure, why not?”

“In private.”

He looked at Dallel.

“Sure, why not?”

I turned to Dallel.

“Go home and wait for me, love.”

Dallel nodded and walked off. I turned my face business and looked back at Mammon.

“Yes?”

“I want t’ know what’s goin on with ye.”

He only spoke in his dwarvish accent anymore when he was either tired or angry. He was both.

“What do you mean?”

“This!”

He gestured around him to the several posters, some marked with anti Dalis propaganda.

“Ye did something, and I want ye t’ stop.”

“It’s a result of Dallel joining the Kingsguard, people don’t think he can live up to Royce.”

“Tell me the truth, Kala.”

That name, I looked at him in annoyance.

“I know y’ haven’t regained yer memories, so what’re ye doing, actually?”

Then he signed his death contract.

“And what was that smile when the adventurers were cursing Dallel.”

I noticed that no one was around. What a coincidence.

“Oh, it’s quite simple. Purity hasn’t merged with me yet, so I’m torturing her until she relents.”

Mammon froze.

“What?”

“I’m going to destroy everything the one you called Rose loves until she gives up and lets me absorb her.”

“W-why are you telling me?”

He noticed two things, the silence bubble, and the fact that there are no witnesses.

“Oh, because it’s so tragic. After his discussion with the peacemaking Rose Hood, the guildmaster drank a beer too many and fell out of the window of his office.”

“Wait. GET AWAY FROM ME!!!”

_

Maid POV

Wow, the guildmaster is ordering a surprising amount of beer, I wonder what happened.

I entered the room, but it was empty, and I noticed the window was open.

“Huh, well guess I should close that. Mammon hates having a cold room.”

I looked through the window and screamed.

_

Jalad POV

“What happened?!”

“M-M-Mammon.”

The maid pointed out the window. I looked, expecting to see him sitting on the opposite side, but he wasn’t there.

Then the maid uttered something that made my heart drop.

“Look down.”

I slowly looked down at Mammon, who clearly didn’t have a clear fall.

I bolted down the stairs and rushed outside.

“MAMMON!!!”

He was barely breathing.

“Mammon what happened?”

“P-poison that seemed so sweet.”

“What?”

Mammon died before he could continue.

_

Mammon died.

Kala could only laugh as I despaired. But when I heard what Jalad said, I knew that he didn’t die in vain.

I grew determined for a moment to keep fighting.

But Kala just kept laughing.

_

Even if we were angry with each other, I still cared for the old man. Jalad told me he died through a letter, and me and Rose went to the guild to talk to him.

“Jalad, is... it true.”

He only nodded.

“What were his last words?”

“It was odd... his last words were, ‘poison that seemed so sweet.’”

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t think it was an accident.”

“What do you mean?”

Adventurers came up after hearing Jalad.

“I’m saying, there is no way Mammon would get that drunk, nor, even if he was, would he have died from a fall like that. And his words, they weren’t slurred at all. He was fully conscious up until his death.”

“Jalad, a tragedy happened, please don’t try to make it worse.”

Rose’s words shocked me and Jalad. But the guild agreed and started yelling at Jalad, but I knew something was wrong, Jalad was right. It was too fishy. And Silas was twitching ever since Jalad said that line.

“Silas...”

All attention turned to me.

“What do you know?”

People started looking at Silas in suspicion and shouting began until I raised my hand for them to stop.

“Dallel?”

Rose looked confused. Upon seeing the confusion Silas seemed to get twitchier.

“Silas.”

“Dallel, he lost someone close to him, let off.”

“With all due respect Rose, shut up.”

Everyone was taken aback.

“Silas, you know something.”

He nodded.

Rose looked at him.

“What do you know?”

“That phrase. It was a contingency me, Mammon, and Rose made before she lost her memories.”

“And what did it mean?”

He gulped and I noticed his power ready to attack at any moment.

“I shouldn’t say.”

At this point one of the aces grabbed him.

“Listen, buddy, Mammon is dead. That phrase meant something so tell us.”

He gulped again. I spoke calmly to encourage him.

“You can tell us, what does it mean?”

“Kala is not good.”

Chapter 66: The Fallen Queen

“You can tell us, what does it mean?”

“Kala is not good.”

What? A contingency like that was made? That means that Purity figured out my goal earlier than my awakening. But I can play it off.

“What do you mean?”

“Rose suspected that she wouldn’t be the same after awakening, then she said that in her memories, she found something that she wasn’t sure what it meant, but then she set up the code phrase. We were to tell it if she tried to silence us.”

Everyone looked at me as they realized.

Silas struck, but he was too slow.

But Celios wasn’t.

_

Rose, no Kala’s head burst as Celios blocked her attack from reaching Silas.

She went flying into the wall before falling on the ground limp.

“That was a close one.”

“Celios? I thought you served her.”

“Nope, I serve Rose, who gave me one command.”

“What was that?”

“Protect you all. I already failed once. I’m not failing again.”

Kala stood up and her head slowly began to reform.

“You... insolent... brat... What are you doing?”

“Defending them.”

“You are forsaken, I can defeat you easily.”

“You’re right. I am, but I owe Rose my life. I gave her every right to kill me, but she curbed her anger and spared me.”

“What?”

“She never used domination.”

Kala’s eyes widened. And I couldn’t help but smile. I knew Rose would never take a slave.

“So, Kala, right? Let Rose out.”

“So... Was this your plan? You are smart.”

She seemed to talk to no one.

“Who are you talking to?”

"I mean, I ripped apart the system, but you still managed to not only reveal me, but unify them too. And when I was so close to getting Dallel where I wanted him.”

“WHO-”

Celios held an arm in front of Jalad.

“It’s incredible, even a contingency in place. If only you would actually merge with me. Then I would stop. No matter... it’s too late now. Rose, enjoy watching those you care about die because of you.”

What she said confirmed what I started thinking. Rose was independent.

“How about you die and give Rose back her body.”

Kala looked at me amused.

“If I die, Rose does too. I am her and she is me. She’s just being stubborn right now.”

“Eh, then let her out so she can forcefully merge you.”

Everyone looked at me in a measure of shock. I just sassed a literal god.

She laughed, and I saw an opening that only me and Celios saw. Her eyes were focused on Celios again, as if daring him to attack.

So, I did the natural thing and got an arrow lodged in her throat.

She coughed and spat out blood.

“Did... you just shoot me? Even though I look like this?”

The others also looked at me in shock.

“When I think of the level of torture you are putting Rose in, I stop worrying about scarring you.”

“Besides, you’re a god.”

She turned quickly, realizing Celios was not where he was supposed to be.

“You won’t die.”

She got kicked in the gut, causing her to crash into the bar.

She got up, snarled and launched at me and Celios.

We fought hard and in perfect synchronization. Almost as though we had done this dance for 50 years.

Kala struck at Celios, and I’d jump over and land an arrow, quickly followed by a blade.

“How are you that strong?!”

“When Rose beat me in the tournament, I realized that I was weak. To get stronger, I battled S ranks. They taught me. I specialized my technique to be able to take down one powerful target.”

Kala slashed, but I cut off her hand, causing her to screech.

Jalad, realizing what to do, charged in, cutting her side.

Kala was in terrible condition, and she staggered, barely able to stand. Then she looked up and it was as though her face had melted as she smiled. Her eyes were gone, and her mouth was in a massive toothless smile.

Then came her aura. It was no longer the rightness. It was fear, pure and unbridled, but I didn’t care.

Celios and Jalad both stumbled, but I was merely more infuriated.

“You are a liar. What is your true title?”

“I am the god of lies.”

She leapt, but I was fast enough. I blocked, and she merely kept mutating as she attacked in order to kill me. All kindness was a falsehood.

“You are cruel.”

Kala stood almost haggard, and her body seemed to be peeling. Inside was another face. It looked like a teenager.

“What is that?”

Even Celios was confused.

As her armor broke off with the skin, she was in some kind of uniform. But there was something that stuck out more than her horrific no-eyed smile.

“A knife wound?”

“No... no no no... Not now. Reform.”

Then the frame of Rose began to cover Kala’s form again.

I struck quickly, and this time, it had no effect.

My blade fell straight through, and I nearly fell.

Then Rose’s body fully reformed, body and all, but the smile was gone, and her face had returned to normal.

“You weren’t supposed to see that.”

She was in a rage, then I realized something.

“That was a human.”

She froze.

“Kala... are you... human?”

She shook and then slapped herself before turning angrily.

“No, I’m not a pathetic weakling like that.”

She struck, but then Celios said something that caused her to freeze again.

“You told us to never investigate other worlds. How did you know they were dangerous?”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“Reincarnation...”

“You don’t know anything, so stop trying to!”

She attacked, but her movements were slightly slower. I couldn’t help but feel sympathetic. We thought of her as a monster, or an unkillable god, but she was just a human child given a lot of power.

“I don’t care about your sympathy.”

She sped up, and then the smile returned.

“I was vulnerable for one moment, and you think that will be enough to stop me?”

“What?”

“I was merely embarrassed that you saw my former weakness.”

I realized then that she was a child, but she was also terrifying, but my response was too slow.

“Hah.”

Her arm was in my stomach.

“Well... that sucks...”

I fell back, and I saw Kala flee quickly before Celios could attack again. My mind went dark.

“Call Elren!!!”

That was the last thing I heard.