Let's Play Minecraft In a World of Sword and Spell

Volume 3 Chapter 14: Behind the Change

(Walson)

When i opened my eyes, I was greeted with the sight of a sea made from crimson magma and glowing red rocks.

The scorching hot air distorted my vision... but I could still faintly see that everything before me was shaped in blocks...

This scene couldn't be more familiar for a minecraft player like me; this place is... the Nether in Minecraft?!

Wasn't I just in the Waterlogged Purgatory?

Suddenly, a shiver ran down my spine, and as I turned my head, I saw a figure.

His limbs were bound by iron chains, nailed to the wall, in a kneeling position.

As our gazes met, he sensed my presence and lifted his head.

That man has a brown hair, with the height of around 1,6 meters, and when i looked more at him, i realized that he's ...... me?

Immediately, I realized what caused that uncomfortable feeling.

That other person look exactly like "me", but he had no pupils, only a pair of eyes emitting white light, "staring" at me without any expression.

He then smiled and uttered two words.

"Found you."

The voice sounded like mine, but it sent a chilling sensation down my spine.

"Walson!"

...Before my eyes, cascading down, was beautiful silky white hair... the worried expression of Derisha, with the polluted walls of the Waterlogged Purgatory in the background.

The back of my head felt something warm and soft... Oh! A lap pillow! A beautiful big sister's lap pillow! Ahh!!

What did I just dream about...? I can't remember. Just a regular nightmare, I suppose.

"You've woken up... Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. How did I end up lying on your lap?"

"Just after the battle ended, when I found you, you had already fainted." Derisha looked at me, assessing whether I was injured, although it made me a little uncomfortable.

Hearing her explanation, I remembered. I blocked that strike, although I didn't die, I lost my right arm... but it has already grown back now.

Watching Derisha kill that thing and even pick up some materials... my professional habit kicked in.

It seems that because I relaxed in an extremely tense state, I quickly fainted and ended up floating on the water's surface like a lifeless body. Later, Derisha found me and brought me here.

"...How long did I sleep?"

"An hour, and... why do you always risk your life like this?" That look... it seems she's angry at me...

"But I didn't die, right?" I said with a smile while reaching for the necklace hanging around my neck.

The part of the necklace where the sparkling gem should be has turned into a dull stone, with cracks on it.

This is the Guardian Stone necklace Grace gave me at my coming-of-age ceremony. By infusing it with magic, it can nullify one deathblow, ensuring that I will have at least a small amount of HP remaining. It's a consumable item.

If it wasn't for me blocking that attack for Derisha, I would have died for sure.

The battle against the Ancient Guardian started with Derisha completely caught off guard.

She was randomly attacking the Ancient Guardian, but her attacks kept getting deflected... Oh, I have to mention this.

At the beginning of the battle, Derisha seemed powerless... Even after activating her Dragon Soul, she couldn't do anything against the Guardian... It was only after I blocked an attack for her and ended up in the water that she suddenly made her move.

That scene was spectacular! If I were to describe it in words, it was like she became the wind!

A raging storm whipped up the surface of the water, forming a gigantic water tornado. With the accompaniment of lightning, the high-speed spinning wind pressure deflected and entangled the Ancient Guardian's attacks, eventually transforming wind, water, thunder, and the Ancient Guardian's attacks into one large water dragon that entered through its eyes and exited from its tail!

The gaps in its armor were flooded with water, causing it to disintegrate from the inside! That scene was insane!

Ah... never mind. Let's look around... Huh? Why are we now on a platform?

"You finally woke up, the warrior who broke through the Waterlogged Purgatory."

A young female voice resonated in my mind.

I looked around in astonishment, almost getting scared.

"But... brave one, even with just resisting this curse, I am too weak to teleport you out or bestow blessings upon you... This world..."

Before my eyes, there was a massive... dragon?

Covered in azure blue scales, its slender body curled around us. It had a beautiful appearance, but it seemed to be on its last breath...

【Cerulean Dragon, Teigitan - Level ??, HP 587,412/3,521,478, Status: 【Withering Curse Level 10】, 【Withering】, Title: Maze Creator】

There were large black tainted markings entwined on its body... Just like Miss Dryad back then!

"Just a few seconds after I found you, we were transported here," Derisha briefly explained. I nodded and shifted my attention back to the dragon.

"I don't know how much longer I can hold on... For the warrior who broke through the maze's mutation and arrived here, I should have bestowed upon you a blessing..."

Could it be...

"Wait a minute, drink this now." I took out a 【Milk Potion】 and approached the giant dragon head that was gazing at us.

"What is this... mmmph!"

I couldn't be bothered with communication, so I simply threw the milk into her mouth.

The effect was immediate.

If Derisha couldn't teleport us out due to her weakness, it would have been a headache for me.

The black cursed markings dissipated and gathered in the air, forming a sphere that gradually took a rather familiar shape.

Just as I suspected, it was a "Wither Skeleton Skull."

Who on earth... keeps leaving these things everywhere? And the annoying part is, I always end up encountering them! I tried investigating it a few times before, but I couldn't figure out anything!

I immediately stored it in my inventory and sealed it away! Along with the leftover item from that idiot who escaped during the Water Golem incident, there are now three of them, all tucked away in my inventory.

What's really going on here...

"You actually possess this kind of potion! A warrior who possesses such an item actually conquered this maze... The warrior from this generation is truly extraordinary," the voice continued without stopping, just as annoying as Miss Dryad.

"You praise me too much... Huh? You actually know Miss Dryad?" the voice asked.

Even the mind-reading part is exactly the same.

‘Yeah, I've seen her. I even received a blessing from her.’

Derisha, who was standing beside me, looked at me with confusion.

It seems she can't hear my conversation with the Cerulean Dragon ... Let's call her Lady Cerulean Dragon, shall we? It seems Derisha doesn’t have a mind reading skill.

"So, you've become that bitch's servant!? That... that detestable stinking elf!!!!"

Huh? Did her image suddenly collapse?

"Well, then, it won't work for you. Let your girlfriend receive the blessing instea," Lady Cerulean Dragon turned her head and looked at Derisha.

Don't you have anything more to say? This dragon is rather getting straight to the point.

"Huh? No, wait, I'm not his girlfriend."

"Well, whatever. Little girl, what's your name?" Lady Cerulean Dragon asked.

"...Wait, before asking for my name, shouldn't you first introduce yourself?" I replied.

"Oho! You are quite fearless!" Lady Cerulean Dragon  exclaimed.

"Of course, I'm not afraid of you," I said.

"I'm not afraid of you either... Well, fine. I was once a human named Teigitan. I bless the kingdom established by my descendants here," Lady Cerulean Dragon said.

"...My name is Derisha Teigitan, the second princess of the Kingdom of Teigitan," Derisha hesitated for a few seconds and then spoke, "I've heard that the first queen became a god. So... you're my ancestor?"

"Hah... I never thought that after a thousand years, it would be my descendants who would inherit my legacy..." Lady Cerulean Dragon  said.

I had already grasped the general situation from the status column I saw earlier, but in terms of ancestors and descendants, Lady Cerulean Dragon  and Derisha do indeed bear a striking resemblance, especially in their way of speaking.

I sat down on the side, and my right hand felt a strange sensation.

Ah, right, it was blown off just now... It's the first time my hand and leg have been severed... Although they grew back thanks to my Minecraft abilities.

...

... Goodbye, my ex-wife of fifteen years. Hello, my new girlfriend.

While lost in my wild thoughts, there was a commotion ahead, and I looked up at Derisha.

I saw a faint blue light emanating from her body. After a few seconds, the light disappeared, but Derisha did indeed look somewhat different.

I couldn't pinpoint exactly what had changed, perhaps it was her aura or something?

"I bestow upon you my blessing. After your physical death, you will become the next generation Azure Cerulean Dragon, just like that wretched elf's minion," said Lady Cerulean Dragon.

Huh? Wait a minute, did I hear some key words?

"Don't you know? Or did that wretched elf not tell you?" Lady Cerulean Dragon turned to me.

Know what?

"As the next generation of the Dryad, you will also turn into a tree after you grow old and die."

...That's truly shocking news.

...I've been completely fooled by Miss Dryad, ahhh!

"No wonder, life as a tree is extremely dull. If she mentioned it, you wouldn't have willingly accepted," she said.

Damn damn damn damn damn!

I don't want to become a plant in the future, ahhh! I want kill myself before I died due to old age!

"Even if you commit suicide, you'll still become a tree," she said.

Damn it! I overturned the small tea table in my heart.

Amidst the playfulness, I won't go into further details about what happened next. Lady Cerulean Dragon and I exchanged information.

One thing I was most curious about was the "Withering."

According to her, she was attacked by an unknown entity from outside the labyrinth when she wasn't paying attention. It was quite rare because Lady Cerulean Dragon, as the creator of the labyrinth, should be able to sense all living beings entering it and should not be susceptible to ambushes.

She was deep in the 75th level when suddenly she was attacked by something from outside the labyrinth, and when she regained consciousness, she looked like this.

She couldn't see the attacker clearly, but the only clue was the overwhelming taint of death.

The boss from the 74th level, the one that almost destroyed the royal capital, was the water golem. According to Lady Cerulean Dragon, she had set up safety measures for the water golem, preventing it from growing infinitely.

However, the creature defeated the water golem and took it away... and then the entire Water Dungeon went through a transformation, turning into a Deep Sea Ruin.

The stolen item was another one, the entrance barrier device. It's not particularly rare, as there is one at each entrance of every level. Its effect is to create a barrier that allows entry but not exit, which is why we couldn't find the way up.

What could be the reason for stealing it?

...I have no clue.the information that we got so far is too few

"Before I send you away, let me give you a warning," Lady Cerulean Dragon said as we bid farewell. Her voice echoed in my mind this time, and Derisha seemed completely unaware. Was it directed only at me?

"We, the Azure Cerulean Dragon and the Dryad, are the guardians of water and wood... I sense the presence of an extraordinary being from another world, harboring ill intentions, attempting to invade this world, but being hindered by its rules."

"There are seven attributes, seven blessings. As long as they vanish from this world... the 'rules' preventing that being's entry will also disappear..."

"The curse placed upon me earlier can reverse our magic, eliminating the blessings within the water of this world... for now, the blessings of water and wood will not recover..."

"I am deeply concerned, but I don't know where the other guardians are and cannot help you."

"There are five more guardians... be cautious... destiny has started spinning again..."

After her final words, my vision was filled with blinding light.