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(Walson)

After returning to the capital, I experienced the awe of being in a fantasy world for the second time.

Under the guidance of the soldiers that are surrounding us, we delved deep into the underground, yes, into the underground.

Vanos, if only seen from the surface, would appear to be an ordinary small city. But if we include its underground, it becomes a city with distinctive features.

Let me start by talking about the history of this city. About five hundred years ago, the largest religion on the continent, Vantinom, began to deviate from the philanthropic beliefs of a thousand years ago, and extreme racism against the non-human races started to rise, leading to the religious war four hundred years ago.

This war lasted for nearly fifty years, and in the chaos, oppressed elves and dwarves took the opportunity to establish their own territories, forcibly separating themself from the Vantinom-Bishop Branch Church and the Vantinom-Grella Branch Church, and created their own separate empire, namely, the Braatio Empire for the Elves, and Mahamatra for the Dwarves, and the appearance of these two empire marked the end of the war.

Vanos, which was once the sole eastern stronghold of the Western Vantinom-Bishop Branch Church, was only truly recaptured about two hundred years ago.

However, the deeply rooted human supremacy ideology did not disappear. After the recapture, a large number of non-human races and the Vantinom-Grella Branch Church believers moved in, leading to continuous armed conflicts in the civilian population for about ten years.

Apart from the non-human hatred for the humans, there were conflicts among humans as well, fueled by distrust of rulers. The animosity between clans further worsened the city's security.

Later, the Teigitan Kingdom assigned the former frontline general, Vanos Paculio, to garrison the city and implement a policy of dividing various races, naming the city after this division.

During the early days of division, people lived on the surface, and though the frequency of armed conflicts significantly decreased, sporadic skirmishes still occurred as it was challenging to construct defensive facilities within the city, and incidents of trespassing into each other's territories happened.

Later, with the development of mining in this area, people's focus shifted to the surface, and thus, the "Underground City" living style was established. Residential areas and other facilities were moved below the ground, giving birth to [Terraforge City . Vanos].

...Indeed, this place is chaotic, to the extent that even constructing a church can be difficult due to religious differences, and such facilities can easily become targets of armed conflicts.

Although the policy of division was implemented two hundred years ago, it's apparent to anyone that it's merely a superficial solution. After many years, racial tensions have started to rise again. Just now, on my way here, I saw a group of soldiers escorting prisoners, seemingly arrested due to armed conflicts.

In addition to that, I also saw many slaves... There are far more slaves in this city than in other cities, and their treatment seems terrible, mostly comprising non-human races, just like Melon back then.

The influence of the Vantinom-Bishop Branch Church Ideology has led to a prevailing atmosphere of enslaving non-humans, and the enforcement of regulations governing slave traders is weak, resulting in many difficult-to-crack illegal slave trading activities... It must be related to Melon's hometown being nearby, and she became a slave probably because of this.

...But not only is this city problematic, I'm also in trouble now.

Vanos, Zone 1, Underground 11th floor, in a simple room completely built with stone bricks.

"...Walson, how did you end up marrying Derisha?" Grace stared at me with a pained expression.

"I don't know..." That's the only answer I could give, and it was the truth.

Now, I'm kneeling in front of Grace like a child who did something wrong, bowing my head in confession. Under her condescending gaze, cold sweat kept trickling down my back.

"The golden dagger, the crest of the Teigitan Royal Family, is a symbol of engagement. How on earth did you receive such a gift..." Barella, leaning against a doorpost, commented while examining the dagger in her hand.

Her words struck me to the core!

From the information that I got from the girls, In the Teigitan Kingdom, one of the royal kingdom marriage traditions is that, during a marriage proposal, the male proposal would present a weapon to the woman, and if the woman accepts the proposal, she gives the proposer a short dagger in return...

That rock headed princess, what was she thinking...! Ahhhhh!! Why did she take something that symbolizes marriage and use it as a gift...? Wait, didn't I also give her the [Anti-Melon Spear Prototype 1.0] as a gift?

...Didn't she say she originally wanted to buy it? But I ended up giving it to her as a gift... Wait, no, could it be that the reason she blushed when receiving it wasn't because she got a great gift but because she thought I proposed to her instead!?

. . . . . . Aaaaaaa!!

I accidentally proposed to Derisha... Ahhhhhhhh!!

"...Walson, look into my eyes." Grace's voice brought me back to reality, and I noticed that her tone of voice sent shivers down my spine.

"..." Can I please not do that!? Eh, eh, eh, eh! Why did she take off her glasses!?

Wait, wait, wait, this punishment is too cruel!

The first rule of survival in Minecraft is "absolutely never, ever look an Enderman in the eye," and this feels like being offered a poisoned drink to die!

"Hey, Walson, how did you receive this thing?" Before my imminent execution could begin, Barella spoke up again.

I spilled everything about the situation.

From Derisha losing her weapon in the Labyrinth of Water to the misunderstanding caused by me giving her a weapon as a gift, I revealed all of the details to the girls.

"Eh? When Derisha gave you this thing, didn't she say anything to you?"

"...Did she not say anything at all?"

"She only mentioned that the item could be used as a high-level pass to travel freely as a traveling merchant..." I continued to bow down before the two girls.

"..." Hearing this, Grace fell into silence for some reason.

"Not that I like the way she does it, but I understand why she does this,... After all, in your case,, if it's romance related, your head can be harder than an Orhag steel..." Barella spoke up with a sigh.

"Hey! I'm not that dense okay!" I spoke up in protest.

The only response that I got from the girls was a stare, and then Grace put her glass back on and let out a sigh.

"...I suddenly feel a bit sympathetic towards Derisha."

"Indeed, Miss Grace."

Melon and Grace exchanged glances and remained silent for a long time.

"...Afterwards, when you meet Derisha to sort this out, what do you plan to do now, Walson? You're trapped here." Finally, Grace asked.

"Ah... I don't know..." Have I escaped unscathed? Thank you, Barella...

Grace then explained that until they verify my identity, the guards don't plan to let me leave. They've assigned me a room on the 11th floor underground, and right now, I'm effectively under house arrest.

What should I do... If I don't talk to Derisha and clear things up, nothing will be resolved... I also need to take Melon back to her hometown...

"In that case, Master, why don't I go to the Palm Jungle on my own to settle things regarding my hometown? I want to deal with it myself." Melon suggested.

"Really? But..." I'm still worried.

"Palm Jungle is only half a day away on foot from here, Master. I'll be fine."

"But if something were to happen when you're alone..." I'm still not at ease.

"...Then I'll accompany Melon." Grace spoke up, "Aure will stay here with you. She's better at handling social situations."

"I have no objections if you agree." Barella shrugged her shoulders.

Considering the current situation, I'm under confinement, while others are free to come and go as they have the Hero's Certificate... It seems this is the only way...