Many thanks to JenamTheBrave, whose English level is much better than mine, for his help with this translation.
Chapter 2: Sanity loss
Welcome noble adventurers! I was waiting for you !
They all looked up to follow the direction that powerful voice was coming from and on the stone balcony they saw a huge stone shape advancing. A sort of humanoid colossus whose spherical head was adorned with a gemstone as eye. The loud voice was indeed coming from this strange creature.
What's that now? Another monster? Welf asked, putting his hand on the hilt of his sword.
I am not an no monster, adventurers, but a guardian created by order of the gods to protect this place.
Finally, a starry-eyed Lefiya broke the silence, as if this creature was suddenly tickling her mage's instincts.
Lady Riveria! Is this what I think it is?
Yeah, it looks like a golem. And very evolved considering its degree of intelligence. I thought the knowledge to create them was lost a long time ago.
Ha! How pleasant to see that some can still recognize what I am! Yes, adventurers, I am a golem made by order of the gods. I am Noruwaralikurata! But you may just call me Noru.
Some in the group raised a wary eyebrow at this somewhat peculiar introduction.
Whoever overcomes my trials shall be granted a reward.
This time, a starry-eyed Liliruka opened her mouth.
Is there really a treasure then?
But of course.
With that, the double stone door opened and revealed a very large pile of gold behind it, along with jewelry and precious stones. And the most discerning eyes could even make out some interesting magical items.
This wealth shall be the just reward of whoever triumphs. But first, you must overcome the last trial!
Perfect ! I was starting to get sick of all this bullshit, Bete said, obviously quite miffed after the many cartoony adventures of the day. Come on buddy, bring it on, let's finish this !
No need for violence, adventurers. You don't have to prove your strength to me, I can already feel it, your falnas resonate with a magnificent shine!
In that case, what do you expect from us, guardian? Finn asked him.
Only your mind shall be tested for your final ordeal, your adaptability to the most unexpected situations. So adventurers, will you have the courage to take up my challenges?
Nobody said anything, but the stone creature had just hit a nerve in some of the adventurers, particularly the captain of the Loki Familia, who had to live up to his nickname,"Braver".
I take your silence for acceptance. Very well, may the pact be sealed!
The golem stretched out its arms and the walls of the room glowed, unleashing powerful magic, before softly fading away.
The pact is thus concluded. Let only one of you fail or withdraw, and the magic of the pact will throw you out, with no hope of ever coming back here. Arm yourself with all your courage, for the Guardian's trials begin!
The huge stone creature raised its arm and pointed to someone in the assembly, on the side of the Hestia Familia.
You! Yes, you, my boy! The one that looks like a rabbit. You really look like a victim! Come closer!
Not really reassured by the guardian's words, which had incidentally kicked his self-esteem, Bell stepped forward anyway and saw that the curtain of light let him through.
And with you… You! he said, pointing to someone on the side of the Loki Familia. You, the emerald-haired elf! Come forward! Ho! Powerful lineage, the blood of royalty, how interesting this is!
Riveria stepped forward next, climbing onto the platform next to the young captain of Hestia's familia.
Well! You ordeal shall be… to kiss!
There was a deafening silence in the room, such that you could hear a pin drop. Everyone's eyes were wide open, none of them sure if they heard what the golem had just said.
Yes, that's it, a kiss! And I mean it, not a quick peck on the lips! I want to see passion! A deep and powerful kiss, with the tongue and everything!
Obviously, Bell couldn't do anything his favorite trick, that of the panicked beet, while quite a few protests erupted from the audience. Only Riveria remained stoic and said nothing.
Well ? Is it too hard for you after all? So, did you overstate your courage, adventurers? If that is your choice, then the pact will kick you out of this place, with the memory of failure from the very start!
Of course, this bloody golem kept whacking at their self-esteem. Eventually, it was Riveria who imposed silence, saying nothing but sticking her mage staff into the stone floor, which was very easy for her, as her physique was amplified by her status. Bell started in panic, when he saw the elf coming towards him. Wordlessly, she grabbed him, one hand wrapped around his hip, one hand on the back of his neck, and she rocked the young man back and captured his lips for what was likely a particularly passionate kiss.
Lefiya and Liliruka both let out a long cry of indignation, but not necessarily for the same reasons. Finn and Gareth said nothing, but their eyes widened at the action of their old friend. The two Amazoness sisters gave a little amused "ho!"before « Mama »'s spunk. Bete was laughing so hard he was close to cardiac arrest. Welf and Mikoto were also wide-eyed and silent, not quite sure whether they were dreaming or not. Harihume couldn't suppress a small moan of frustration, not mistaking the fact that she was literally dying to be in the elf's shoes right now. However, she still noticed in a corner of her mind that Bell perhaps needed her to be more forward with him. As for Aiz, she pouted, and very well. She didn't think seeing Bell being kissed by Riveria would touch her so much. She didn't like it. Nope! She didn't like it a bit!
As for the immediately concerned, it was impossible to know what was going through Riveria's mind. Bell, on the other hand, was currently subjected to a set of stimuli that were impossible to process. His nice teenager's brain, inexperienced with women, but still high on hormones, could not keep up with the flow of information and had cut off advanced processes, so that he could do nothing but submit to the high-elf's actions.
The elf ended up releasing her ordeal partner, who collapsed to his knees, only managing to articulate a very vague:
I can't ever get married now...
The emerald-haired noble lady picked up her staff and walked back to her comrades, who were unsure of how to process all of this.
I admit that you surprise me, Riveria.
Come on Finn, what are you talking about? Nothing happened at all.
Uh… Riveria?
Nothing ... happened ... at ... all ...
She said then, emphasizing each word while giving her captain a particularly scary smile. Despite his nickname, Finn knew the difference between bravery and recklessness. So, for once, he listened to his survival instinct rather than his courage.
Absolutely ! Besides, I don't even remember what we were talking about! Do you remember Gareth? It's quite unfortunate to have memory loss at our young age.
Ho, me neither, I don't remember what we were talking about, it probably wasn't that important. said the dwarf to keep up with his commander's poor sense of comedy. It was better to forget this story very quickly.
Meanwhile, Bell had returned to his group, as if on autopilot mode, before falling to his knees, his stare as blank as if his soul had been sucked out of his body. But the worst part was that everyone knew it was just getting started.
Good, now for your second test, brave adventurers! For this one ...
The stone creature raised its arm again and pointed its huge finger at a person on the side of Loki's familia.
You, werewolf, come closer, you look like the sharpest tool in the shed!
Tss! was obviously Bete's only reaction to his selection.
And then… You, the samurai girl, come forth! The golem said, pointing to Mikoto. She gulped, not really sure about her fate before stepping in turn on the platform.
Tss! So what do we do ? Should I snog the girl too ?
No, adventurers! I never make the same jok… trials twice! But let's stick to romance for now. My boy, seduce this young woman!
Ha? What the fuck? I got better things to do than this bullshit!
If you withdraw, you fail the tests as a whole!
Bete turned to his group, but he met Riveria's dark gaze and scary smile. Immediately, he realized that she would never accept to have been the only member of the group to take one for the team.
Tss! 'kay, I get it!
The werewolf then turned to Mikoto, who was still shocked about this ordeal's contents and seemed to seek moral support from her familia's side. Alas, everyone seemed lost except for Bell, who still looked in deep search for his soul.
When the ash-haired adventurer came to her, she instinctively stepped back until her back met the wall of the room. Then, Bete put a hand against the wall, right next to Mikoto's head, and leaned slightly towards her, towering a good head over her.
You ... I must say that you really impressed me during the war game. For someone I thought weak, to rush like that against so many opponents, it was down right ballsy. And that, I can respect. I like women with spunk, the wolf said, casually picking a lock of the woman's hair between his fingers.
You had to give it to Bete : he was really, really far from ugly. If you omitted his big mouth and his bad temper, there was a certain charisma to him. A tall man, with a strong face, well-cut musculature, highlighted by a jacket that did not leave much to the imagination. In short, he was perfectly attractive to anyone with a minimal sensitivity to the bad boy style. And in the face of this sudden and formidable attack, Mikoto could not help but play the ripened beet as well.
Ho! The famous kabedon technique! I see you're a man of culture as well! Very impressive! You have succeeded, brave adventurers.
The two of them returned to theirs respective allies, one annoyed and the other not knowing where she was. But only four people had passed and there were thirteen. They clearly weren't out of the woodsyet.
Meanwhile in Orario, in the home of a certain Familia, a god, particularly known for his jokes and sometimes incomprehensible actions, was inspecting his office as a chienthrope girl was cleaning the room.
Tell me Lulune, did you remove things?
Only irrelevant old stuff Master Hermes, you collect way too much unnecessary stuff and Asfi asked me to clean up our things a little bit. I assure you, I have not touched our archives.
However, the god still seemed worried about something and there was this bad feeling that never left him.
Lulune, weren't there two rolls closed with blue ribbons hanging around here somewhere?
Ho! This? Fake treasure maps, I dumped them with the old stuff. You really have to be ten years old to believe in this sort of thing.
Hermes suddenly turned pale when he remembered why he kept these maps here.
Lulune. Do whatever it takes to find these maps ASAP, or we're all dead ...
To be continued…