Is It Wrong to Abusing Cartoon Tropes in Dungeon?

Hikari Mariya, the younger sister of Yuri Mariya, is also a shrine maiden. Both sisters possess the qualifications of high-ranking shrine maidens. Moreover, Hikari works at none other than the Western Heavenly Palace itself. In fact, she is currently inside the palace. However, since she is not a member of the Kusanagi family and is only a lower-ranking shrine maiden, she is not qualified to appear before Altair.

Originally, she could have escaped death. After all, the affairs of the Kusanagi family had nothing to do with her. But now, due to Yuri Mariya's interference, she has been dragged into this mess and directly sentenced to death.

And the person who directly caused Hikari Mariya's death sentence was none other than her own sister, Yuri Mariya.

Upon hearing Altair announce Hikari's death sentence, Yuri Mariya was utterly devastated. She had only wanted to protect the people at the shrine. Why did it have to be Hikari who had to die, and in her place? This was absolutely unacceptable!

"O King! O King! Please listen to me, I beg you! Hikari is innocent! She doesn't need to die in my place. I will take the punishment myself. Please, I beg you, don't involve Hikari. I am willing to accept any punishment. Please, I beg you!"

Yuri Mariya prostrated herself on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly, begging Altair to change his decision.

"No, no. I can't bear to let you die. You possess an incredibly powerful spiritual sight ability. You need to stay alive and work for me. So, your sister will have to die in your place. After all, I can't just involve anyone else. Everyone else here has been spared because of your words. So, your sister will have to take the fall."

"No, no, no! O King, I beg you! Hikari is innocent! I am willing to do anything, truly! I beg you, you can make me do anything! Please, I beg you!"

Watching Yuri Mariya cry and plead, Altair shook his head with a look of helplessness.

"No, no. I've already agreed to your request. I can't go back on my word. After all, you were the one who said you would take their place. You can't just say you don't want to do it anymore, right?"

"I..."

Tears streamed down Yuri Mariya's face as she stared at Altair, her mouth agape. She seemed to want to say something but didn't dare. She glanced at Tooma Amatsu, then at Altair, who was still smiling, and her heart was in turmoil.

Seeing Yuri Mariya's internal struggle, Altair smiled and waved to Lu Yinghua beside him.

"Lu Yinghua, go find her sister and bring her here. Let her see her dear sister one last time, since the child is taking her place."

"Understood."

Lu Yinghua nodded with a smile and turned to leave, causing Yuri Mariya to cry out in panic.

"No! Please wait, Lord Lu Yinghua!"

Lu Yinghua stopped after taking a single step, glancing at Yuri Mariya in confusion before turning to Altair with a smile.

Altair nodded to Lu Yinghua, then looked at Yuri Mariya.

Yuri Mariya glanced at Tooma Amatsu, then closed her eyes and bowed her head to Altair.

"O King, please forgive my foolishness. I never intended to take their place. Please forgive me for everything I just did."

"Oh, so you didn't want to take their punishment after all?"

"Yes, I didn't want to take their punishment."

Yuri Mariya gritted her teeth, while Tooma Amatsu lowered his head and closed his eyes, filled with helplessness.

"Well, then, it's settled. Stand up quickly."

Altair continued to speak with a smile, and Yuri Mariya obediently stood up.

"Yuri Mariya, I want you to remember one thing."

"Without my permission, you can do nothing."

"I can do nothing..."

Yuri Mariya walked back to Tooma Amatsu's side in a daze, muttering those words repeatedly under her breath.

"Alright, Lu Yinghua, go find her sister."

"Understood!"

"O King!"

Hearing that Altair wanted to summon her sister again, Yuri Mariya cried out in alarm.

"Don't worry. Your sister won't have to die in your place. I just want to meet her. After all, you'll be coming with us later, and we can't just leave your sister behind. A family should stay together."

Yuri Mariya opened her mouth but could only manage one word.

"Understood."

Lu Yinghua followed Altair's orders and went to fetch Hikari Mariya. When Hikari arrived, Yuri Mariya immediately hugged her and burst into tears, leaving Hikari utterly confused. What was going on with her sister? Why was she suddenly crying like this?

The bodies had already been cleared away, and Hikari had been in the back changing room the entire time, completely unaware of what had happened earlier. She only knew that some important figures were coming, and they were supposed to follow instructions. So, she couldn't understand Yuri Mariya's behavior. In fact, when she saw Luo Hao and Altair, she even looked excited. Were these the important people? One was so beautiful, and the other was so handsome!

Altair greeted Hikari Mariya in front of Yuri Mariya. Being a handsome and important figure, he took the initiative to talk to her, which made Hikari very happy. She even asked Altair if he had a girlfriend, completely unfazed. This made Yuri Mariya's heart race with fear, especially when Altair reached out to pat Hikari's head. Yuri's legs were trembling, terrified that Altair might suddenly strike Hikari dead.

Of course, Altair didn't do that. He simply found the girl quite amusing. She was bold while chatting with him, though it was partly because she didn't know his true identity. But that didn't stop him from enjoying the conversation with this naive child, especially while patting her head and smiling at Yuri Mariya.

Seeing Yuri Mariya's state, Altair felt that she would now do anything he asked, whether it was taking her sister's place or doing anything to protect her. From being forced into it to becoming deeply entangled and unable to extricate herself—such a plotline.

Oh, and by the way, this was about helping Altair use her spiritual sight to see the authorities of Heretic Gods and Campiones. Don't get the wrong idea.

After Hikari arrived, Altair stopped having Lu Yinghua bring people in to be executed, as the preparations outside were nearly complete.

A large amount of materials had been transported to the central plaza of the Western Heavenly Palace, where an altar had been set up. They planned to temporarily summon a Heretic Dragon-Snake to provide the clues needed to unravel the curse.

It turns out that sometimes, people don't know what they're capable of until they're pushed to their limits.

Altair had Lu Yinghua take the Mariya sisters to the back to avoid what was coming next, as the following events were not something the two shrine maidens should be involved in.

Following Altair's demands, a massive black serpent was summoned through the cooperation of the Kusanagi and Sayanomiya families, and it descended upon the world.

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