Chapter 45: Silia’s Shameful Transformation

“.This makes it the sixteenth time. Haven’t you learned anything from all those defeats?”

In the plaza where many heroes rested, a towering woman spoke.

The woman was a giant Valkyrie, conversing with a smaller hero than herself.

The hero was clad in pristine white priest’s robes, with long black hair.

“T-That’s not the sixteenth time, but the fifteenth! The party before last ended because the user quit early…”

“That’s exactly my point. Are you trying to play word games with me now?”

“Well, yes!”

“Sigh. I’m busy. Don’t forget, this conversation is out of my kindness. You understand that, don’t you?”

“I’m sorry.”

The hero bowed at the Valkyrie’s words.

The hero was the 4-star High Priestess of the Silver Flash, who had met Sid just yesterday.

Since then, she had been defeated twice more.

That was why the Valkyrie had summoned her here.

“High Priestess.”

“Yes, Valkyrie.”

“I know you are an exceptional hero. But do you know why you keep losing?”

“That’s because the meta changes too fast…”

“You still don’t get it, do you? Just memorize this: there are many heroes stronger than you. There are many geniuses far beyond you. That’s why you get left behind. There are no excuses here.”

“But…!”

“Anything else to say?”

“No, nothing. You’re right, Valkyrie… you’re right.” The priest muttered, clutching her robe.

Yes.

The Valkyrie’s words were not wrong.

There were many heroes stronger than herself.

There were many geniuses who surpassed her.

Having stepped on countless heroes and geniuses across worlds, the priest could not deny this truth.

This was the reality of Valhalla.

“High Priestess.”

“Yes, Valkyrie.”

“I am sincere with my heroes. Unlike some of my sisters who almost neglect theirs, I provide support and help them adapt as best as I can. This feedback is part of that process. Do you understand?”

“I understand. I’m grateful every time…”

“Good. Then let’s take it a step further.”

“Huh?”

The priest was caught off guard by the Valkyrie’s words.

“You are not making use of your strengths. Are you aware of that?”

“Not making use? I keep trying hard!”

“But this is the limit of your effort. You know that, don’t you?”

The Valkyrie’s tone was serious.

This was no joke.

“There is a class similar to yours: the Goddess of Silver Radiance. Its average stats are lower, but it has about 28% higher popularity than the High Priestess of the Silver Flash. I recommend you switch to that. You should be able to change easily now.”

“But…! That Goddess class exposes herself like dancers!”

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“Of course it’s a problem! I’m not some mass-produced generic supporter! Why should I do such shameful things? Those dancers aren’t even real priests! They’re impostors pretending to be priests!”

“Mass-produced? Impostors?”

The Valkyrie tilted her head at the priest’s words.

Heh.

Then she let out a low chuckle.

The mood sank, and the priest’s face darkened.

“High Priestess.”

“Yes, Valkyrie.”

“You are less competitive than those impostors. Are you aware of that?”

“But—”

“The mass-produced heroes you ridicule, do you think they never tried? They put in effort, and that’s how they got here. You aren’t in a position to mock them.”

“But…”

“Very well. This feedback ends here. If you choose to stay as you are, I will respect that. I await your next summon.”

With that, the Valkyrie turned away.

The priest was left conflicted with many thoughts.

If she turned her back now, she didn’t know when the next summon would come.

Even if summoned, repeated defeats would be meaningless; she needed change.

She couldn’t keep losing like this forever.

‘But…’

Still, the proposal was harsh.

Of course, ‘exposure’ in Valhalla was no difficult decision.

Some male heroes even changed gender, so what was a few layers of clothing?

‘But…!’

For this priest, it was different.

In her home world, she was a saint who had saved tens of thousands.

Though some heroes easily sacrificed pride, it was harsh for this saint.

Choosing to do so herself made it an even deeper shame.

“Wait!”

The priest called out after gathering her thoughts.

“What is it?”

The Valkyrie turned.

The priest hesitated for a moment, biting her lip.

Suppressing the swelling fury and shame, she clenched her fist and muttered softly:

“I will change my appearance and class. I will switch to the class you recommended, Valkyrie.”

[★★★★ Goddess of Silver Radiance]

Bang!

And that moment was now.

“Oh! A 4-star!”

“Healer!”

Many voices murmured nearby.

‘How…! Why wear such an outfit…!’

The priest couldn’t raise her head for a while.

Her deeply exposed chest felt like all eyes were on her, burning with shame.

Her bare legs gave her a chilly shiver.

Just standing there made her heart pound like it would burst.

‘Hoo. Calm down. These kinds of heroes are common anyway. If I just stay still, it’ll be fine. Who’d care about me?’

She tried to calm herself with steady breaths.

Such heroes were common to begin with.

The more common, the less they stood out.

She thought that and struggled to calm her mind.

“Hey? That’s the person we met yesterday!”

But someone recognized her.

Met yesterday?

Someone knew her?

“What? What is it?”

“The priest who just came out! The foul-mouthed priest we met yesterday!”

“Foul-mouthed priest?”

The priest flinched at that nickname.

There was more than one hero who recognized her.

A woman and a man.

Two in total.

“Huh?”

When she looked up, two familiar figures stood before her.

One was Sophia of Kuwaland, the apprentice who had whined about not wanting to die yesterday.

“How…!”

The other was Sid, the wandering swordsman who single-handedly cleared the prologue.

In this impossible situation, the priest’s face flushed.

Hup!

‘Huh?’

At that moment, warmth spread through her body.

Unconsciously, she touched herself to check.

Her chest and thighs, which had been fully exposed.

[Equipped Gear]

[★★ White Priest’s Robe]

A modest outfit was now draped over it.

“Oh? Is this hero going to be used? Welcome!”

“Crazy! Why would you use her? I’m the supporter of this party! You traitor! Just because a pretty hero showed up, you’re abandoning me? You’ll get punished!”

A small Goblin and an even smaller Fairy shouted.

“What the—”

The priest was baffled by the strange atmosphere.

Yet the thin layer of clothing brought a strange warmth.

She didn’t know why it felt so comforting.

“Wait. Is this the priest from yesterday?”

Sid approached the priest and asked.

The priest bit her lip and hesitated briefly.

There was no need to pretend not to know him here.

“What nonsense! When did we ever meet?”

She raised her voice and spun her head sharply.

“Heh. Right. That rude one from yesterday.”

“R-rude? Is this crazy priest nuts?”

Sid’s words excited the priest.

‘Oops.’

She immediately regretted it.

She shouldn’t have reacted like that.

She admitted to knowing him by getting flustered.

“Nice to meet you. I was out of it yesterday and couldn’t say hi properly. I’m Sid, the Swordmaster of Hillea. What’s your name?”

“Name? What’s with the nonsense?”

“No, our party usually introduces ourselves like this. It’s to get everyone comfortable.”

“What nonsense…”

The priest struggled to speak for a while.

Was this a joke at her expense?

Payback for yesterday?

“Welcome! Welcome, stranger!”

“Our leader knows you? Then we’re friends!”

“Hmph! I’m Rose! No matter how pretty you are, the supporter spot is mine! Just try to take it!”

Other heroes also greeted her.

Among them was Sophia, the apprentice they met yesterday.

Sophia hesitantly greeted the priest.

“Hello! We know each other, right? Welcome to our party! Nice to meet you!”

“Welcome? What do you mean…”

The priest briefly scanned the heroes.

Sometimes, it happened.

When she had endured unspeakable misery without telling anyone.

“Why… why the names…”

When heavy emotions were suppressed, warmth suddenly welled up.

When a simple ‘have you eaten?’ greeting brought a surge of emotion.

“Tch…!”

The priest turned away coldly.

But this was not rejection.

The pent-up sorrow had nearly reached her throat, and she vowed not to break down or look pathetic.

She took Sophia’s hand.

“Silia of Okeadines. Please take care of me.”

“Silia? Such a pretty name! I’m Sophia of Kuwaland! Nice to meet you!”

“Alright. Nice to meet you. And is that country bumpkin named Sid? Is that right, Sid?”

Silia asked, holding Sophia’s hand.

“Yes. Thanks for remembering so quickly. Let’s get along.”

Sid nodded lightly with a smile.

Silia, the saint of Okeadines.

Sid, the Swordmaster of Hillea.

Two who had started as enemies now reunited.

After the brief reunion ended.

[☆ Healing Potion]

[☆ Healing Potion]

[★★ Silver Earrings]

[★★★ Hermes’ Boots]

[☆ Healing Potion]

Tap tap tap! Bang! Tap!

She leisurely flipped over the remaining cards.

[★★★ Male Dying Barbarian Axe]

[★★ Necklace of Protection]

[★★ Rock Monkey Staff Master]

“Oh! Rock Monkey Staff Master!”

“He’s an aggro ping-pong evasive tank specialist! A pretty rare hero!”

When about ten cards remained, a 2-star monkey hero appeared.

Was he a rare hero?

[☆ Healing Potion]

[★★★ Three-Spike Bulletproof Helmet]

[☆ Healing Potion]

[☆ Healing Potion]

[★ Worn Marmskey]

[★★★ Dwarf Goat Rider]

Tap tap tap tap tap! Bang!

Then came a Dwarf hero riding a goat.

When Dulv gave him a glare,

“Hmm? Haha! Just because it’s me doesn’t mean I know all Dwarves! This is a hero I’m seeing for the first time!”

Dulv waved his hand with a laugh.

Apparently, he didn’t know this Dwarf.

[☆ Healing Potion]

[☆ Healing Potion]

[☆ Healing Potion]

Tap tap tap!

With the last potion flipped, all cards were revealed.

One 4-star footwear, and one each of 2-star and 3-star heroes.

Not a bad haul.

“Hey, sir?”

“Hmm?”

“Who was that person you just met? You said this is your second game, right? Could it be you met them in the game yesterday? Even the red-haired apprentice?”

Gobori happened to look at me and asked.

The priest was talking with the apprentice.

She nodded lightly to Gobori.

“They’re both heroes we met early on in the support pack. Our party broke because the user quit early.”

“Ah! But you met them both again? What a coincidence!”

“Heh. Yeah, really a coincidence.”

Silia smiled slyly and glared at the priest.

When they first reunited, she thought about teasing her.

But after learning about Valhalla and seeing the priest shrink in her scanty outfit, a small pity grew.

This priest probably had her own story too.

Even if started with bad luck, not all bonds end that way.

She hoped this would be one of those times.

[Lv. 50: Attacked Young Lady]

Shall we check the dungeon again?

I tapped the dungeon and prepared to set out.

The event was just around the corner; we had to hurry.

[Episode 4 Unlocked!]

[Number of heroes allowed to sortie increased!]

Bang!

‘Huh?’

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed into the void.

[Please select heroes for sortie!]

[Available slots: 0/4]

Four slots?

From level 50, four heroes can sortie?

“Me! Me! Let me join! I’ll boost you!”

Before the message fully appeared, Noraykkun shouted.

“I! I want to go too! Isn’t there one spot left?”

“The party’s missing a tank! It’s my turn! Leave it to me!”

“Dungeon!!! Time to level up!!!”

“Me! Me!”

All the heroes got excited at once.

“What’s with them?”

Only the priest, who didn’t know our user yet, seemed flustered.

Anyway, now it seemed four could sortie.

At times like this, there was a perfectly fitting way to decide.

“Come on! Let’s pick one! If we all agree, the user will accept it! Everyone, gather!”