ã€ŠMoto Sekai Ichi&#x27;i no Sub-chara Ikusei Nikkiã€‹


 Chapter 1: A measly despair

    <h4>Chapter 1: A measly despair</h4>

    Putting your life at stake.

    I learned that it was a very difficult thing to do.

    Be it work, sports, hobbies, gambling.

    The subject matters not, but in modern day Japan it¡¯s very difficult to aplish something after having lost everything.

    Livelihood, funds, society, other people, your body, they all get in the way.

    I skipped school, and even as an adult, I did not work much.

    All I did was trying to aim for the ¡°top¡±.

    I literally bet everything.

    Everything except for the bare minimum such as meals, sleep and excretions were dedicated to ¡°it¡±.

    ¡ºWorld¡¯s Rank 1¡»

    And this is the result.

    The pinnacle among millions of people.

    Really, really exhrating!

    What a pleasant sensation!

    I felt as if all my efforts, all of my life was finally rewarded.

    The world¡¯s rank 1, recognized by everyone in this. The same as the presence of God, giving everyone a sense of awe. The strongest existence, the summit in all history, the one who never allowed defeat. That is me.

    That is the result of my life.

    That is everything in my life.

    The rank 1 in the worlddder of the VRMMORPG¡ºMobius Online¡».

    Everything I ever did became history.

    ¡¸¡­¡­¡­¡­¡¹

    Being lost in a daze would be exactly like this.

    The other day, my main character ¡ºseven¡» was hacked.

    Not only my character, but everything from backups to personal data.

    I wasn¡¯t the only victim in this attack. From what I heard, around 3,000 other yers were affected.

    And what¡¯s more, those were the ¡°top 3,000 yers¡±.

    The culprit was already caught. He too was one of the top yers, and it seems, ording to him that ¡°it all started from simply jealousy and turned into a crime¡±. Hacking the character data of 3,000 yers can¡¯t be done by someone with such a lighthearted excuse as ¡°simply jealousy¡±, it was the obsessive work of a deviant, but the media and general public seemed to think lightly of this.

    Well then.

    This was the announcements from Mobius Online operators following the incident.

    It is impossible to recover the affected characters. Aspensation, the affected yers will get preferential billing treatment at the time of creating a new character.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Gastric juices flowed through my throat as I vomited, trembling with rage and feelings of emptiness, but how about the other yers?

    The public opinion was in favor of Mobius too, saying ¡°Mobius management were also victims¡± and even in online forums they were saying stuff like ¡°Mobius response is a reasonable one¡±.

    On Twitter and YouTube, famous personalities whose characters were erased got crazy and rampaged, spreading rumors against the developmentpany after that notice was announced.

    However, with time, the fuss died out and the Mobius hacking case waspletely extinguished.

    You got to be kidding me.

    ¡°¡­Haaah¡­¡±

    I got no motivation left.

    I can¡¯t think of anything left to do.

    All I could do was sigh.

    I haven¡¯t eaten anything but water in thest three days.

    The world¡¯s rank 1 would nevere back.

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright! ¡±

    Well, I can¡¯t keep being like this all the time.

    I cleaned my knees of the bread crumbs that lied on the ground and stood up.

    ¡°Let¡¯s die! ¡±

 Chapter 2: Sub-Character

    <h4>Chapter 2: Sub-Character</h4>

    ¡°¨D¨DEhh? ¡°

    By the time I noticed, I was in Mobius Online.

    I was in the middle of the main street, Vinceton, right in front of the grocery store ¡ºIcicle¡», that I often used.

    These medieval European-styled streets that I¡¯ve seen so many times. To be honest, I never thought I¡¯d see this scenery spreading before me again, this world of magic and swords. Anyway, no matter how many times I see this, I really love it. It gives me the feeling like I¡¯m home.

    But¡­ Just when did I log back in?

    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re in the way!¡¡Don¡¯t just zone out right in front of my store! ¡°

    From behind me, I heard the voice of the poster girl, Ice-chan.

    It¡¯s the familiar tone of a famous voice actor¡­ huh? But I¡¯ve never heard this line before. Was there an update I wasn¡¯t aware of?

    ¡°Mm¡­¡­!¡¡Eh¡­ Excuse me. Did you need something from my store? ¡°

    When I turned around, surprise could be seen in Ice-chan eyes and her attitude swiftly turned meek.

    Looking closely, her cheeks also were thinly dyed in a slight crimson color.

    ¡°Ohh, how cute! ¡°

    I involuntarily spoke my thought aloud. But this is nice. Extremely nice. It wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to call it a godly update.

    ¡°W-wh-what are you talking about, jeez! ¡°

    After that, the blushed Ice-chan turned around looking ashamed and went right inside the store.

    What an incredible behavior!¡¡It seems like, in the time since I haven¡¯t logged in, some sort of poprity system was implemented. This is a nice addition, stupid developers. It seems that thanks to this, the number of yers is increasing, the market seems quite¨D¨D¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­Eh?

    Just now¡­

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D! ¡°

    I saw my reflection in the window of the grocery store.

    Ahh, as expected.

    It¡¯s not the same.

    It¡¯s not ¡ºseven¡».

    This is¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Second, huh?¡±

    I muttered as I touched my cheeks, confirming it was my face.

    At the same time I created my main character ¡ºseven¡» I created the alt character ¡ºSecond¡». This one was to serve as a bank character with zero experience, one I never bothered leveling up.

    Unblemished white skin, blueish-ck hair and silver colored eyes. A transcendental handsome avatar shaped using the limited-time avatar change billing service was reflected in the window showing a surprised expression.

    ¡°I see, so it¡¯s like this.¡±

    I then remembered thest time I logged out was in front of this store.

    Since the inventory of my main character got full while buying industrial amounts of mochi rice for the New Year¡¯s event, I think I used this guy too and just left him here.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Haaaaaaaaa.¡±

    A fucking huge sigh leaked.

    I was stupid for even considering for a moment that I had recovered seven.

    My seven, the world¡¯s rank 1, no longer exists anywhere.

    I went over it over and over again, and just by recalling it I feel like crying.

    It¡¯s useless.

    I don¡¯t think I can bring myself to start over again in Mobius.

    I¡¯ll just log out.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    I can¡¯t log out.

    Or rather, I can¡¯t even open the menu screen.

    Is it a bug?

    For now, should I just press the emergency stop button and return to the ¡°real world¡±¨D¨D?

    ¡­¡­Ah.

    Wait a moment.

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DAh, I see.¡±

    So that¡¯s it. There is no real world. How did I even forget? That¡¯s right. Right. I already.

    ¡°Died.¡±

 Chapter 3: The best world

    <h4>Chapter 3: The best world</h4>

    ¡°Eh, then why am I in Mobius?¡±

    This is weird. What¡¯s the meaning of this?

    Is it that the world after death is Mobius Online?

    ¡°Such a delicious argument¡­¡±

    That¡¯s when I noticed it.

    I feel like I was wishing for something just before I died.

    Hmm, what was it? Oh, yeah, if I remember correctly ¨D¨D ¡¸I wish I was born in the game¡¯s word¡¹ ¨D¨D It was something like that.

    Dying words as pathetic as me.

    But, would it be alright to say they became true?¡¡It is true, right?

    Considering Ice-chan¡¯s human-like lines that were nothing like an NPC, it makes sense.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh.

    If that¡¯s true, then?

    If that¡¯s true.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°Foooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!¡±

    T-this is the best!

    The best!

    Beyond the best!!!!

    Thank you!!

    Thank you!!!

    I forgot about myself.

    I crazily danced for about an hour, while producing weird sounds.

    It meant that much to me.

    This was the happiest moment in my life.

    More even than when I finally reached the world first rank.

    Dozens more, hundreds more than that.

    ¡°Fooooooooooooooooo!!!!!¡±

    I was a thousand times happier.

    ¡°Haa¡­ haa¡­ haa¡­¡±

    As expected, I did get tired.

    Looking at my status, my SP (Stamina Points) were 0.

    I thought I wasn¡¯t moving around much, but then I remembered. This character hasn¡¯t leveled up, so its stats are still at the initial value. A natural result.

    ¡°Haa¡­ fuu¡­¡±

    However, this is my first time experiencing getting tired and out of breath in Mobius.

    Truly a new sensation.

    Truly interesting.

    Truly, with this, my tension rises up!

    I finally came to the game¡¯s world!!

    ¡°Fooooo¡¡¡¸Get him! ¡¹Ehh! ? ¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t resist! ¡±

    People in armor held me down just as I was about to start dancing again. What¡¯s happening!?

    ¡°Are you sure its him? ¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah¡­ He¡¯s being a nuisance in front of my store, please take him away.¡±

    Looking towards the grocery store, there stood the poster girl Ice-chan looking down on me with contempt in her eyes.

    ¡°Who the hell are you! ¡±

    Probably a knight, the NPC asked me.

    No, right now it¡¯s not an NPC but a person, right?

    At any rate, I have no choice but to answer.

    ¡°What¡¯s your problem?¡¡Oh, right, I am-¡±

    ¡°Take him! ¡±

    ¡°Oww, it hurts!¡¡Ouch! ¡±

    Ouch!

    It hurts, but it feels so refreshing!

    ¡­¡­With those thought in my mind, I was arrested by the Third Knight Order.

    ¡ºThird Knight Order of the Castall Kingdom¡» Well, saying it in simple terms, they are like the police.

    ¡°Why were you doing something like that? ¡±

    Inside the Knight¡¯s station, I was put under investigation.

    ¡°I got, hmm, a little excited¡­¡±

    Regaining myposure, I answered a little embarrassed.

    Facing me was the dignified figure of a female knight with wonderful tinum-blonde hair.

    She¡¯s cute, or rather, beautiful. But I¡¯ve never seen an NPC like her. Does that mean, is she a person unique to this world?

    ¡°Hmm¡­ you, by the way you dress, are you a noble?¡¡What house do you belong to? Why were you alone? Where are your attendants? ¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not a noble.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll get no special privileges in our Third Knight Order. Breaking thew is a crime, no matter who. And crimes are evil. It is our duty to judge evil and protect the good citizens.¡±

    ¡°No, like I said, I¡¯m not a noble.¡±

    ¡°Spit it out, wicked noble!¡¡We¡¯re already looking into it! ¡±

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡±

    It¡¯s useless, I can¡¯tmunicate with this person.

    ¡°Silence huh? I see¡­ in that case you leave me no choice.¡±

    Along with a metallic sound, the female knight in front of me unsheathed her short sword from her waist. Are you kidding me?

    ¡°Hey, wait!¡¡I¡¯ll talk, I¡¯ll talk!¡¡I¡¯ll talk, so please! ¡±

    ¡°Hmph, that¡¯s what you should¡¯ve done from the beginning.¡±

    Wow¡­ she¡¯s really angry.

    Or rather, isn¡¯t this overkill already?¡¡If this were to happen in Japan, this would surely cause a march in protest. Or can it be that this is the way police do interrogations? ¡­Nah, let¡¯s stop thinking about it.

    The quickest way to get released is to admit my mistake and properly apologize.

    ¡°My name is Second. I¡¯m an adventurer.¡±

    ¡°Lies! ¡±

    ¡°What do you want me to say!? ¡±

    No use, I got crushed right from the get go.

    ¡°Those clothes of yours, they are tailor-made, not something an adventurer would wear. I¡¯m sure they are quite expensive.¡±

    I see, so it¡¯s because of my gear. They are certainly not as great as my main character¡¯s, but I had this guy dressed in rare clothes to make him look better. So that¡¯s the reason I¡¯m being mistaken for a noble.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­This is bad.

    The conflict between the Third Knight Order and the nobles was a well-known story in the game. So that¡¯s her position, she¡¯s like a policewoman with an overflowing sense of justice, tired of the corrupt politicians and other corrupt policeman, so to speak. Watching the misdeeds of the nobles with her very eyes, cornering them several times in the name of justice, only to take pressure from the upper echelons and have her investigation crushed¡­ I¡¯m starting to think she is like that. ¡°Just why do you think I became a knight?¡±

    Something like that, right?¡¡In any case, I can tell she extremely hates nobles. And right now, I¡¯m dressed as a noble.

    ¡­¡­This is bad indeed.

    ¡°Come on, spit it. What are you scheming¨D¨D¡±

    It was at that moment.

    Along with the loud noise of the interrogation room¡¯s door opening violently, an old knight with a good physique entered.

    ¡°Silvia!¡¡Youplete moron! ¡±

    ¡°Ug¨C!? ¡±

    With a dull sound, he hit the head of the female knight, and then lowered his head towards me.

    ¡°Please forgive this idiot¡¯s rude behavior. I¡¯ll do the questioning instead.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    The female knight called Silvia, left the room groaning and holding her head with a teary face. It looked quite painful.

    ¡°Well then, my apologies. You are suspected of willingly obstructing a business. First of all, please briefly state your identity and upation.¡±

    The old man then opened his mouth as if nothing had happened. Good, at least it seems like I can properly speak with this person.

    ¡°My name is Second. I¡¯m twen- hmm, seventeen years old. Adventurer.¡±

    The truth would be ¡°Shichirou Satou, 23 years old, unemployed, single¡±, but in this character¡¯s status, he is 17, so I answered so.

    I wonder if he¡¯ll believe I¡¯m an adventurer. In Mobius, yers who set up to travel across the world are called Adventurers.

    ¡°I see. Witnesses said you were dancing and giving off strange sounds in front of Icicle, why were you doing such a thing? ¡±

    ¡°I got a little excited¡­ I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°So, you admit it. What was your purpose? ¡±

    ¡°I forgot I was in front of the store¡­ I did it for no particr reason¡­¡±

    Somehow. This is incredibly pathetic. This made me aware that this is already a proper society. It¡¯s useless to think of it as a game forever.

    ¡°I see. Then, do you im that you didn¡¯t intentionally interfered with the store? ¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Understood. Then, I will speak to the other party about this. Can I have you take a drug test in the meantime? ¡±

    ¡°Y-yes¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­How embarrassing.

    After that, I came to a settlement with the store owner of Icicle, and after paying the money I was cleared of charges and released.

    I¡¯ll never forget the kindness of the shop owned who told me ¡°Buy something at our store next time¡± after I apologized and lowered my head many times.

    ¡°¡­But still, was that really okay? ¡±

    I muttered, looking at the mountain of gold in my inventory.

    My current money is approximately 2 billion CL. In my opinion, that¡¯s not a huge amount.

    And the settlement money was only 150 thousand CL.

    150,000 CL¡­ if my memory serves me right, with that amount of money you can¡¯t even afford to buy gear on the level of ¡°This gear doesn¡¯t make me look like a noob¡±.

    Oh, by the way, I changed from the nice rare clothes that made me look like a noble right after leaving the Knight Station. Right now, I¡¯m wearing some dark brown leather gear that I bought in a shop in the city. Head, chest, legs, hands and shoes, those five pieces had abined cost of 2.3 million CL. I¡¯m not sure whether they were expensive or cheap¡­

    Right, I need to investigate the value of money as soon as possible.

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    While thinking such things, my stomach went all ¡°Ruuuu¡«¡±, making sounds. Alright, let¡¯s get something good to eat. I guess the easiest way to understand is to know the cost of each meal and the cost of a night¡¯s stay.

    I walked along the main street and entered the liveliest inn in the kingdom¡¯s capital.

    ¡°How much is it per night? ¡±

    ¡°¡¡¡±

    I asked the girl in the reception, but she just stood there looking at me with her mouth open without saying a thing.

    ¡°Excuse me? ¡±

    ¡°Eh, ah, s-sorry!¡¡A night¡¯s stay, was it!?¡¡Ahh, ehh! ¡±

    She was acting strange and her cheeks were dyed in embarrassment.

    I feel like Ice-chan was also like this before. Is there something wrong with me?

    ¡°Ehh, its 7000 CL per night with meals at morning and evening. 4000 CL for the room alone.¡±

    After a while, she finally told me the price. So cheap!?

    Eh, then the full body gear I bought for 2.3 million CL was actually a luxury product¡­

    Well, I already paid for it. You lose if you care.

    ¡°Well, five nights with meals included, please.¡±

    ¡°Yes, right away! ¡±

    The girl at the reception nodded with a delighted expression and handed me the key to a room. At that time, our hands touched a little and her face blushed as red as a tomato, and reminding me that I was virgin, I too blushed a little. My doubts are increasing.

    While tilting my head, I checked the room I¡¯ll be staying today. It¡¯s fairly wide. Antern is used as a light source. The bed is¡­ so so. Seems like the toilet ismunal. I¡¯m not worried about the bath, since there¡¯s a bathhouse on the first floor.

    I went down to the first floor again and decided to have an early dinner in the busy bar.

    I sat in the counter and ordered this store¡¯s specialty, a hamburger.

    While I waited for my order, I suddenly felt ufortable.

    The sound of whisperings and the stares.

    ¡­¡­Ah, I see.

    I toooooootally stick out like a sore thumb.

    I feel the gaze from the various customers in the crowded tavern.

    Especially, the passionate gazes of the women.

    Now my suspicions turned to conviction.

    It¡¯s my avatar.

    This is the result of choosing the transcendental good looks from the limited-time billing avatar.

    Being a simple game character, nobody spares a nce inside the game, but the story ispletely different when we¡¯re talking about the real world, with real people.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­I wonder what this is. This incredible feeling.

    The incredible and pleasant feeling that this body is no longer just one of a game¡¯s character gives me a shiver along my back.

    My smile unintentionally escaped.

    The world of Mobius Online.

    In this ce, my efforts will not be wasted.

    This is the best scenario, only for me, who has nothing left.

    ¡¸What¡¯s the point of trying your best in a game?¡¹ ¡¸What¡¯s good about being the world¡¯s rank one in a simple game?¡¹ ¡¸Leave those games and return to reality¡¹ ¡¸Come on, let¡¯s go to school instead¡¹ ¡¸It¡¯s about time you properly work¡¹ ¡¸What do you n on doing for your future?¡¹ ¡±

    Those were arguments I kept on hearing, and they made the dissatisfaction in my heart the grow bigger and bigger.

    But right now, my whole world has been overturned.

    ¡°Haha, hahaha! ¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but tough out loud.

    I¡¯ve decided.

    I¡¯ll be the world¡¯s rank one, once again¨D¨D

 Chapter 4: Realistic experience gaining ? Tricks of the early game.

    <h4>Chapter 4: Realistic experience gaining ? Tricks of the early game.</h4>

    Episode 1: Female Knight Arc

    ¡°Ugh©`¡­¡±

    Lifting my throbbing and aching head due to the hangover, I looked around the room.

    I was taken by the spur of the momentst night. It wasn¡¯t good that I drank alcohol which I wasn¡¯t ustomed to, even under the cause of celebrating my reincarnation in a different world. This is not a game anymore, this is reality, so of course I¡¯d get a hangover.

    The time is¡­ from what I can tell by the sunshineing through the window, I suppose around 10 o¡¯clock?

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right.¡±

    An idea suddenly popped up and I took a detoxification potion I had stocked in my inventory.

    It¡¯s a really small bottle just as big as a thumb. I drank it in one go.

    ¡°Oh, oooh! ¡±

    It feels pleasantly invigorating!¡¡So, alcohol is treated as poison, huh¡­

    It seems like I need to investigate which details are different from when this was an online game. Right now, I really have no idea.

    You might wonder why do I need to do something so bothersome, well, that is because from today onwards, I n to be the world¡¯s number one.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll think about my ns for the future while I eat breakfast.¡±

    After years of being by myself, I muttered to myself out of habit, then I went downstairs to the first floor.

    ¡°Oh, hello Second-san. Are you here for lunch? ¡±

    Is it noon already?

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Rice curry, please.¡±

    ¡°One moment, please.¡±

    After the awfully friendly waitress took my order, I went and seated at the counter. I became immersed in my thoughts.

    For the moment, my first challenge will be to acquire ¡°Essential Skills¡±.

    In Mobius, these are a number of skills that are also called mandatory. If you can¡¯t master them, rather than an adventurer, you will be called a beginner.

    Therefore, my first priority will be ¡°Earning Experience¡±.

    The game of Mobius consists mainly in a system based in experience gaining. You need experience to learn skills, and your cumtive experience value improves your stats. Your stats increase at the time of earning experience, and the required experience to learn a skill is approximately equal to the one needed to rank up said skill. The rate at which you learn skills and rank them up depends on the growth type of your character, decided at the time of creation. The way to earn experience is simple, either to defeat monsters or to sessfullyplete quests.

    The skills include a wide range of closebat fighting techniques, long range fighting techniques, magic skills and production skills. Each skill has a rank from 16th to 1st, and furthermore, they are divided in grades, from the first to the ninth grade. Moreover, there¡¯s a special rank called ¡°title¡± beyond that, but I think it¡¯s useless to think about it right now. Of course, arge amount of experience is needed to raise the rank of skills.

    ¡°Oh, speaking of which.¡±

    I opened the status window while I ate my curry.

    Ahh, as expected. The growth type of ¡ºSecond¡» is the same one as ¡ºseven¡», ¡°All-rounder¡±.

    For an all-rounder, the stats growth from gaining experience is uniform all across, so some say it¡¯s not ideal for the world¡¯s strongest. Oh well, since I aim for the world¡¯s top rank by raising all the skills, I can say the all-rounder who can max out all stats is overwhelmingly better than the specialized type, where only some stats increase sharply. The tradeoff is that it¡¯s painfully difficult in the beginning.

    ¨D¨DThat being the case.

    I got no choice but to use that method.

    Saying ¡°thanks for the meal¡±, I returned the empty curry dish, and after paying the meal fee, I left the tavern.

    My destination was the biggest potion shop in the capital.

    ?????????????

    ¡°Can I have some ¡ºDetox?Purifying?High Healing Potions£«£«¡» please.¡±

    ¡°Huh¡­ HUH!? ¡±

    The store clerk was stunned, with a face that said ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you are saying¡±.

    ¡°Excuse me, I know it¡¯s rude, but they are extremely expensive¡­¡±

    ¡°How many do you have? ¡±

    ¡°Erm¡­ currently, 630.¡±

    ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll take them all.¡±

    ¡°Ri-right away¡­¡±

    The clerk nodded as he turned around with surprise showing in his eyes, and went to the back of the store. Probably he went to get them from the stock.

    They are double-strengthened high potions with Detox, Purifying and Healing effect, each one was 120,000 CL.

    120,000 CL ¡Á 630 pieces £½75,600,000 CL

    It¡¯s not a big amount.

    It¡¯s a little discouraging that he only had 630 pieces, but I suppose it can¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°T-th-thank you very much for waiting.¡±

    I confirmed the items and thanked the clerk who brought the 630 potions while sweating. There¡¯s no issue with them. I paid the lump sum of cash, packed the potions in my inventory, and then left the store.

    ?????????????

    Well then.

    Wondering what I¡¯ll do with these high-end potions?

    This was called ¡°Di-que strategy¡± in Mobius, it was an almost rule-breaking way to easily earnrge amounts of experience in the early stages of the game.

    The di-que strategy was a method of earning experience devised by referring to a trick that was present in an old 8-bit game called ¡°Dinosaur* Quest¡± that¡¯s consisted in throwing an item that gave a fixed amount of damage to an enemy that had a high evasion rate in order to defeat it.

    I¡¯m not sure who was the weirdo who discovered this, but as a matter of fact, the potion thatbines the effects of Detox, Purifying and Healing deals a fixed damage to undead-type monsters.

    The ¡ºDetox?Purifying?High Healing Potions£«£«¡» I bought today give a fixed amount of damage to undead, that being 1,200 damage.

    That amount of damage is enough to knock off the HP of the intermediate monsters called Viper Zombie, which give aparatively juicy amount of experience among the undead-types.

    In simple terms, by throwing this thing on a Viper Zombie, even a beginner can kill it.

    It¡¯s wonderfully easy, quick and efficient way to earn experience, but this method was only done by alt characters of somezy people.

    The reason being, it costs a lot of money.

    In order to earn the experience needed to get the skills and stats of what one could call a mid-level character using the Di-que strategy, one would need at least 10,000 pieces of this potion. In total, that¡¯s 1.2 billion CL. The only ones able to prepare suchrge amount of money were those who had a main character.

    In addition to that, the amount of experience earned when defeating monsters varies depending on the amount of umted experience a character has. In other words, the experience value obtained from a weak monster bes less and less as your umted experience grows. That means, if you be stronger than the Zombie Viper by raising your umted experience to the point it bes a small fry, this Di-que strategy bes meaningless.

    Therefore, the Di-que strategy is quite excellent (unless you cared about money) as an early-game experience earning method, but it can¡¯t get you past the mid-levels.

    But in the end, this is nothing more than a trick to get stronger as quickly as possible.

    ¡°To think that the day I¡¯d do this woulde¡­¡±

    In front of me was arge cavern behind the mine that was two hours away by horse from the capital. This was supposed to be a famous hunting ground, but there was not a single soul in sight.

    Probably, the Di-que strategy hasn¡¯t been discovered yet in this world. Or is it that the potion is too expensive for anybody to try it? Or maybe the number of beginners is too low? It¡¯s a mystery, but the fact that I have this ce all for myself remains. Lucky, lucky.

    After advancing for a while, I noticed something. The inside of the cave was strangely dark whenpared to the time this was a game. Taking out from the inventory thentern I bought from the general store, I advanced while holding it in my left hand. Because I bought the highest pricentern, the insides of the cave got quite brighter.

    ¡°¡­Wow.¡±

    There is was. Finally found it. Wriggling Viper Zombies. It was a disgusting monster simr to a snake with a length of over 1 meter. The rotting smell was hideous, even their sticky mucus as they rubbed against each other made a terrible sound, to say nothing of their appearance, they truly had the very worst appeal to my five senses.

    I want to get this over quickly, so I sneaked up on my target and threw the potions, one at a time.

    With a ¡®bajuu bajuu¡¯ sound, one you wouldn¡¯t expecting from this potion, the Viper zombies evaporate one after the other, dying instantaneously.

    Ah¡­ this somehow feels good.

    After wiping clean the ce, I moved to the next hunting ground. When I came back to the first hunting ce, the enemies had respawned, so I repeatedly wiped them out back and forth.

    Then, without taking any breaks, I diligently kept throwing the potions until I finally threw all 630 pieces.

    The amount of experience I earned, well, let¡¯s give it a passing mark. Like this, it seems like I¡¯ll be able to get all the Essential Skills soon, and rank them up a little.

    ¡°Crap, is the sun setting already?¡±

    As I came out of the cave, the sun was barely visible.

    It was darker than I expected. Moreover, I can¡¯t find the horse I just bought. I became uneasy since it was quite expensive.

    ¡°Buhyhyin.¡±

    ¡­Or so I thought. Because the ck horse blended quite well with its surroundings, I couldn¡¯t see it at first. Oo, good boy, Seventh Tei¨­. You got it hard with your ck mane. But say something sooner.

    ¡°Ah, right, right.¡±

    Then, I suddenly remembered. Since I got a decent amount of experience, I decided to acquire the horse-riding skill. The condition to acquire it has already been cleared since I¡¯ve been riding a horse for more than five minutes. Furthermore, I ranked it up from 16th to 9th ss all at once.

    eleration, precision, and jump stability is increased by the 9th ss. Because the amount of required experience is small, itsmon sense for most people to stop at the 9th ss in the early stages of the game.

    ¡°Alright, lets return home, Seventh Tei¨­.¡±

    I rushed on my journey back, mounting Seventh Tei¨­. The road from the mines to the capital is one I¡¯ve taken back and forth many times since the Beta version of the game, so I could even do it with my eyes closed.

    After a while, I got to see the streetmps. The capital atst. Let¡¯s quickly eat and drink, then sleep after taking a bath!

    ¡°Stop!¡¡Who the hell are you! ¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh god. I have a bad feeling¡­¡­

 Chapter 5: Conclusive differences

    <h4>Chapter 5: Conclusive differences</h4>

    ¡°Stop, who the hell are you! ¡±

    As I approached the capital, I heard a dignified voice of a woman, which sounded familiar to me.

    If I remember correctly, she was that slightly dumb knight, Silvia was it?

    ¡°Uh¡­ Thanks for yesterday.¡±

    I greeted her after dismounting from my horse. It¡¯s somewhat embarrassing.

    ¡°Mmm, are you that Second guy from yesterday? What are you doing thiste at night?¡±

    It seems like Silvia remembered me. Also, it she seems to be a little softer in how she speaks to me, just a little though. Most likely she was scolded by her boss.

    ¡°I went to the mine just a bit.¡±

    ¡°Mine you say?¡¡You?¡¡What on earth were you doing there? ¡±

    She said with doubt in her eyes. I see, indeed that¡¯s a questionable thing for someone like me to do. Seems like the police in the capital properly do their job.

    ¡°Earning experience. There¡¯s arge cave behind the mine.¡±

    ¡°¡­Punk, you truly love to tell lies. Are you gonna tell me that you bothered to go to such a dangerous ce to defeat monsters?¡¡Nonsense.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡­? ¡±

    I really don¡¯t get her.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡¡I think the Viper Zombies there are a pretty tasty prey.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. I see, I get it. You obviouslyckmon sense. Or maybe you got a screw loose.¡±

    Said the female knight in a condescending tone. I want to punch her¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­No, wait.

    Did she say ¡°Dangerous ce¡± a moment ago?

    I got a sudden premonition. Could it be¡­?

    ¡°Hey, can I ask you something? ¡±

    ¡°¡­What?¡±

    After asking Silvia, she nodded although incredibly reluctant.

    ¡°There are 21 dungeons, right? ¡±

    The best part, the real thrill of Mobius, the Dungeons, had a total number of 21. All the yers challenged them, and in order to conquer them easily and find faster routes, information was exchanged¡­

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡¡There are currently 19 dungeons found.¡±

    I knew it. That means¨D¨D

    ¡°How many of them have been conquered? ¡±

    ¡°The conquered ones are 13, obviously.¡±

    W-wow¡­ you kidding me¡­?

    ¡°Got it, thanks. Can I go now? ¡±

    ¡°Hmph, hurry and go away.¡±

    I took the horse to the inn while being bathed in Silvia¡¯s ¡°what a weird guy¡± gaze from behind.

    ¡­¡­I see. I got a rough understanding.

    In this world, Death really means Death.

    Although I take it for granted now¡­ five minutes ago I probably would¡¯veugh it off.

    No, this is noughing matter.

    That means¨D¨D There are few people who bother taking deadly risks in order to be stronger. Because dying really means game over.

    And right now¨D¨DInformation that should be unknown unless you risk your live tens of thousands of times, is something that I possess.

    So, in other words.

    ¡°Ha, hahaha, hahahahahaha! ¡±

    I can¡¯t stopughing.

    The world¡¯s first ce.

    I might be able to reach it faster than I thought.

 Chapter 6: Essential Skills

    <h4>Chapter 6: Essential Skills</h4>

    Morning came.

    I got up in a quite refreshed mood and had breakfast at the bar.

    My n was to go to the library today.

    ¡ºRoyal Great Library¡»¨D¨D a.k.a. ¡°Comiket¡±.

    Maybe it has no such alias in this world.

    Why was it called Comiket, you might wonder? It has to do with Mobius¡¯ skill acquisition system.

    There are two main conditions for acquiring skills.

    The first one is to read skill book.

    The second one is toplete that skill¡¯s quest.

    The former is a condition for many of the basic skills, while thetter is a condition for many of the derivative skills.

    And, the Royal Great Library has many of these skill books.

    You should already be guessing it.

    When beginners from the ¡ºCastall Kingdom¡»e to the ¡ºRoyal Capital Vinceton¡», they visit the Royal Great Library and read all the skill books. Well, even if I say read, the condition is satisfied by just flipping through the pages, so you can just go to the shelf on the far right and go through all the skill books one by one around the bookshelf. Because many beginners and alt characters form a line and silently do that, it is said that the situation became simr to that of the Comiket, and thus, the alias was attached. Some people even went as far as to make signboards of ¡¸The line ends here¡¹and others too yed along yelling stuff like ¡¸Na¡ð has been sold out!¡¹. Ahh, those were indeed good times¡­

    ¡­¡­While being reminiscent of the past, I arrived at the Royal Library.

    After paying the entrance fee, I went inside. Going to the rightmost shelf, I immediately started my pilgrimage.

    The ones I got this time, the two basic skills of each¡¾Short-rangebat¡¿ and ¡¾Long-distancebat¡¿, ¡¾attack magic¡¿ of the four elements¡¯¡¸First Form¡¹, plus Bestowal Magic and some quality of life and production skills.

    There are nine types ofbat skills, which are Pawn/Soldier (Fuhyou), Lance(Kyousha), Knight (Keima), Silver General/Silver (Ginshou), Gold General/Gold (Kinshou), Bishop (Kakugyou), Rook (Hisha), Promoted Bishop/Dragon Horse(Ryuuma), and Promoted Rook/Dragon King (Ryuuou).

    TLN: These are named after the shogi pieces, the names in bold are the ones I¡¯ll be using.

    The four basic skills that I¡¯ll be learned this time are ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·, ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡·, ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, and ¡¶Lance Archery¡·. Soldier is a normal attack skill, while Lance is a prating attack.

    Next is ¡¾Attack Magic¡¿, but that is simple since it only has four attributes: Fire, water, wind and earth. All the books here are only for the First Form for the four attributes. The magic books for the Second Form and Third Form can be found in the ¡ºRoyal Magic Academy¡». Afterwards, the Fourth Form can be earned as a reward for capturing a dungeon and the magic book for the Fifth Form can be obtained afterpleting a hidden quest.

    Additionally, there¡¯s a magic that has the ability to grant an extra effect to equipment, that one is called ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡·. In the early stages it is barely visible, but in thete game it exerts tremendous effects. This is one thing you must absolutely remember to take.

    Lastly, quality of life skills and production skills are quite useful. Potion Mixing, Alchemy/Transmutation, cksmithing and so on. I won¡¯t be able to make use of them in the early stages, but I¡¯ll learn them since I¡¯m here and they are skill I will needter on.

    Well, that¡¯s how it is. I finished reading all the books and learned the skills I wanted. It didn¡¯t even take half an hour. I hurried and left the library.

    As for the future, the order in which I¡¯ll prioritize leveling my skills will be ¡¸¡¾Archery¡¿¡ú¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿¡ú¡¾Magic¡¿¡ú¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿¡¹.

    I¡¯ll earn experience while safely attacking from a long distance, then solidify my stance with damage-efficient and easy to use Swordsmanship, and prepare a trump card for those tough opponents with high-firepower magic.

    As for ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿, my avatar is the reason why I¡¯ll try to raise it at this rtively early stage. Along with the ¡°Limited Premium Avatar¡± I purchased when making this Alt character, came a ¡°Premium spirit ticket¡±. Since it promised to summon a powerful spirit, there is no reason not to raise Summoning Magic. However, being an auxiliary skill, Summoning Magic has a limit as to how much you can use it as your main means of attack, so it¡¯s usually judged to raise your skills to a certain extent before.

    Well, now that the n has been stablished, lets allocate my experience points and raise the skills I¡¯ve acquired.

    ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· Rank 16¡úRank 3, ¡¶Lance Archery¡· Rank 16¡úRank 1. I think this is the minimum line to be able to fight by only using Archery.

    All four attributes of ¡¾Attack Magic¡¿First Form Rank 16¡úRank 5, let¡¯s stop here for now. The fifth rank of the First Form reduces the casting time.

    I think there¡¯s no problem even if the others remain at rank 16, but let¡¯s raise Soldier Swordsmanship to rank 9 just in case. It¡¯ll be insurance in case it bes a melee.

    And so, all the experience I had was used up raising up my skills. Well, nothing wrong with that.

    With this, I¡¯ll have a solid foundation. I cane back to the Comiket and learn anything else I might¡¯ve forgotten.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve got to learn the essentials of Archery.¡±

    In addition to Soldier and Lance, ¡¾Archery¡¿¡¯s essential skills are Knight, Silver, Gold, Bishop and Rook. Almost everything. The only ones that are not needed are Dragon Horse and Dragon King. Those two are shy and powerful, but they got almost no practical use and they had a stupidly high cost.

    ¡¶Knight Archery¡·is a sniper attack, ¡¶Silver Archery¡· is a powerful single-target attack, ¡¶Gold Archery¡· is a ranged attack with added knockback, ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· has a strong prating power and ¡¶Rook Archery¡· is an extremely strong single-target attack. Those are the characteristics of each type.

    In particr, ¡¶Knight Archery¡·, ¡¶Gold Archery¡·, and ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, the number of strategies one can use by learning those 3 skills would increase by one or two digits.

    However, these skills, unlike the Soldier and Lance ones, require quepletion of their respective skill quest. But it¡¯s not needed to grab the quest, as long as their conditions are met, you can obtain the skills.

    I dropped by the weapons shop and bought a bow. The one I choose was a long bow. A simple, standard long bow.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, Seventh Tei¨­.¡±

    I returned to the Inn¡¯s stable and set out on Seventh Tei¨­. The destination is the mine, once again.

    Along the way, I took a small detour to the forest. Adding a Soldier Archery strike, I shot an arrow from atop of the horse towards the slime that came out.

    It missed. As expected, it wasn¡¯t possible to hit it the first time. I repeated until the shot connected.

    ¡°Pikki! ¡± With that cute dying scream, the slime sttered and died. Leaving the forest, I returned to the highway and checked my stats.

    ¡°Good, good.¡±

    Since I met the conditions for acquiring the skill, ¡°Knight Archery¡± was added to my archery skills. The condition is quite simple, ¡¸Kill a monster from atop a horse¡¹.

    After that, by the time I arrived at the mine I¡¯ve already met the conditions for acquiring ¡¶Silver Archery¡· and ¡¶Gold Archery¡·. The conditions are simple too, the first being ¡°kill 20 monsters in a row in a single hit¡± and thetter ¡°kill 10 monsters in a row within 3 meters¡±.

    The next one to learn is ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·. This one is a little bothersome. For example, you need to meet two conditions, one is ¡¸Kill five monsters at the same time using ¡¶Lance Archery¡·¡¹ and the second ¡¸Kill two monsters at the same time from a distance of 25 meters or more, using abination of ¡¶Lance Archery¡· and ¡¶Knight Archery¡·¡¹.

    After entering the mine, I wandered around searching for a group of me Ants.

    The lower-ss monsters called me Ants have weak individual strength, but more often than not, they act in groups of dozens and attack relying on each other. In particr, their nest house hundreds of them, and it get pretty troublesome when you get surrounded. However, they are not hard to deal with if you put some distance between you and them. The two conditions can be cleared at the same time if you use ¡¶Lance Archery¡· from a very long distance.

    ¡°Whoa, found them¡­¡±

    I sighed in relief after finally finding a group of me Ants. When I estimated our distance was approximately 30 meters, I used ¡¶Knight Archery¡· to aim.

    Schhwaff¨D¨D With that sound, the arrow flew from the bow, coated in red and white effects. The red one is the effect of Lance and the white of Knight.

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright.¡±

    Taking a victory pose, I said in a quiet voice. That arrow pierced more than ten me Ants. The operation was a sess from just a single shot, and ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·appeared in the skills column.

    Since I was not able to find the nest of the me Ants, I quickly left the ce.

    Well then.

    The only one left is ¡¶Rook Archery¡·.

    This is the most powerful, yet most annoying skill to get.

    Why is it powerful, you might wonder, it¡¯s because this is a ¡¸Scaling attack skill¡¹. Even at the 16th ss, a single attack has a power of 250% raw firepower, and if you raise it to the 9th grade, it scales up to 600%. ¡¾Archery¡¿is the skill that, against a single target, has the potential to produce the most power.

    However, due to the skill acquisition conditions, including all other bothersome skills, this one is definitely inside the top ten worst.

    First, ¡¸Kill 1,000 monsters using ¡¶Silver Archery¡·¡¹. This one isn¡¯t so bad since you end up meeting the requirements anyways. Next is ¡¸Get 500 critical hits using ¡¶Silver Archery¡·¡¹, this too can bepleted without issue.

    A critical hit is a phenomenon that urs depending on the amount of LUK and the ¡¶Critical¡· skill rank, and also the additional effects your gear might have. A critical hit will deal damage equal to 300% of the original damage. The Critical skill is easy to learn, and can be obtained once you deal a critical hit.

    My current rank is 16. My current LUK stat is at 31, and there¡¯s no additional effect from my gear. Therefore, the critical rate is approximately 13%, you get it by dividing LUK by 10 and adding the rank 16 correction of +10%. By the way, if you rank it up all the way to grade 9, it adds a +40% correction. I wonder if I should give priority in raising it when I acquire the needed experience¡­

    Anyway, the talk has gone in a tangent. Let¡¯s get back to the conditions to learn ¡¶Rook Archery¡·.

    In any case, the two previous conditions can be cleared in time as I go along. The problem is thest condition.

    And that is ¡¸Using abination of ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·kill three monsters in a row that have attacked another yer and dropped that yer¡¯s HP by 50% or more, from a distance of 15 meters or more¡¹.

    It annoys me just thinking about it.

    First of all, I need toe across a situation where someone is being attacked by monsters. Then, I need to way until their HP has been reduced by more than half. And adding to that, I would be troubled if the enemy is a strong monster, since it has to be killed in a single hit. And in case you fail even once, you need to start it all over again. This is the worst.

    If this was still an online game, I could ask someone to stay there until their HP is below 50%¡­ and it would be rtively easy to do, but this isn¡¯t a game anymore, it¡¯s the real world. A situation where your HP has been reduced below 50% could already be considered a ¡°life or death situation¡±. It is impossible to ask that of someone. And then, I have to make such situation happen three times?¡¡There no way I can do it.

    However, I really want to get my hands on ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. It is one of the essential skills of ¡¾Archery¡¿.

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, I guess it can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯ll have to find other things to fill that gap.¡±

    Since it couldn¡¯t be helped, I decided to shelve it andplete the 1000 silver kills and 500 silver criticals while waiting for the opportunity.

    And that opportunity suddenly came in an unexpected way.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Royal Great Library.

    The director, Paloma was resting after finishing the day¡¯s affairs.

    ¡°Paloma-sama, could I have a little of your time?¡±

    ¡°Umu, what happened?¡±

    A librarian hase to meet Paloma. She opened her mouth, and asked along a simple bow.

    ¡°Today, there was one suspicious man.¡±

    ¡°Fumu.¡±

    The young librarian women said that, and handed over a single document to Paloma.

    Paloma looked over the report while stroking his white-haired beard.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ohh, nothing but skill books.¡±

    ¡°Most likely, he didn¡¯t read them. He took each book for about 10 seconds before returning them. I believe his purpose was something else.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ording to the report, the man ¡°departed after 25 minutes¡±.

    ¡°He wasn¡¯t reading them, huh¡­ I¡¯ll keep it in mind. If that man visits this building again, be sure to report it to me.¡±

    ¡°By your will.¡±

    The librariandy bowed and then she left Paloma¡¯s office.

    With a quiet murmur, Paloma took a sip from his cup of tea. Ò»Just what did he came here for¨D¨D?

    His monologue quietly disappeared into the teacup.

    =====

    Thank you for reading.

    ¡¾Archery¡¿Skill list

    ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·¡¡ Powerful on-impact range attack.

    ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·¡¡ Powerful piercing range attack.

    ¡¶Rook Archery¡·¡¡ Very strong single-target range attack.

    ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· Strong piercing range attack.

    ¡¶Gold Archery¡· Range attack with added knockback.

    ¡¶Silver Archery¡·¡¡ Strong single-target range attack.

    ¡¶Knight Archery¡·¡¡ Precise sniping range attack.

    ¡¶Lance Archery¡·¡¡ Piercing range attack.

    ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·¡¡ Normal range attack.

 Chapter 7: Crisis in the Third Knight Order

    <h4>Chapter 7: Crisis in the Third Knight Order</h4>

    A week has passed.

    My experience earning has been going well all thanks to the Di-Que strategy. After some small chat with the store clerk, I bought the remaining 500, after throwing these I¡¯ll have used 10,000 in total.

    The rank of my skills has also improved. I haven¡¯t learned ¡¶Rook Archery¡· yet, but the other ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills are fairly good. ¡¶Lance Archery¡·, ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡· were all stopped at the 5th Grade. Their effects are ¡¸110£¥ pration attack¡¹, ¡¸90£¥ sniping sess rate¡¹ and ¡¸200£¥ single target damage¡¹ respectively. ¡¶Gold Archery¡· and ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· were stopped at the 3rd Grade. Their effects are ¡¸80£¥ range damage + knockback¡¹ and ¡¸180£¥ pration attack¡¹each.

    Since I still got a considerable amount of experience left even after ranking them up to this point, you can see how much of a cheat the Di-Que strategy can be. And you can also see how high the average level of a Mobius yer is.

    In addition, with the considerable improvement of my Archery skills, DEX has be quite the prominent stat. Agi too, has risen too much.

    DEX is a stat that refers to dexterity, and is directly connected to the firepower of the ¡¾Archery¡¿ skill. And since it also rtes to the sess rate of production skills, it¡¯s good that it has been going up. AGI is a stat that governs quickness, and the more you got, the better your battle prowess will be.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯ll soon be the turn of Swordsmanship.¡±

    With such idea in mind, I continued on the road towards the cave again today.

    In response to my mutter, Seventh Tei¨­ neighed as if agreeing with me, so I decided to leave the learning of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· alone for the time being, and decided to raise the skills in ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ once the Di-Que strategy is finished.

    ¡°Ugh! ¡±

    It happened as I approached the mine. A vague voice was heard from the other side, across the woods.

    Maybe.

    With some expectations in mind, I jumped off from Seventh Tei¨­ and taking along my long bow, I ran into the forest.

    ¡°Damn it, we¡¯re retreating!¡¡Clear a path to run a¨D¨Dugh!? ¡±

    ¡­¡­People and monsters.

    Rough breathing.

    The sound of metal bumping.

    The smell of blood.

    Screams.

    This was not a sight of the ¡ºMobius Online¡» that I knew.

    About 20 meters ahead, knights who seemed to be from the third order, were surrounded by monsters.

    The monsters¡¯ name is Scarlet Mantis¨D¨D Huge mantis a lurid red color. There are six of them.

    The Third Knight Order seems to be struggling. Five of them are already in the ground and unmoving. There are five others who are holding their sword and formed in a circle formation. It¡¯s easy to see they are probably going to be annihted.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    At a time like this I got angry.

    Angry at the me who was delighted for a second and thought ¡°I may be able to use this and learn Rook Archery¡± and

    ¡°Should I wait for the remaining five people to drop their HP just to make sure? ¡°.

    That¡¯s wrong, right?

    People are dying. They aren¡¯t yers. They are people.

    The same as me.

    And those very people were being robbed of their life and after risking it for their aspirations.

    And I was going to take advantage of that.

    ¡­¡­That¡¯s when I lost my temper.

    It already happened.

    But is not like I¡¯ll sit and do nothing.

    I can¡¯t stand that type of despair.

    ¡°Get down!! ¡±

    I screamed with all I could.

    The five members of the Third Knight Order ducked as soon as they saw me holding my bow.

    Schhwaff!¡¡¨D¨DAn arrow flew, overflowing with a red aura from ¡¶Lance Archery¡·and pierced the three Scarlet Mantis who were in a straight line.

    Those Scarlet Mantis copsed on the ground and died after being left with a big hole in their bodies.

    That was when I first took notice that the 5th grade of ¡¶Lance Archery¡·¡¯s pration was not normal.

    ¡°Gigigigi.¡±

    While raising an intimidating sound, the remaining three monsters targeted me.

    The distance is 20 meters. Since their enemies have turned their attention towards me, the knights seem to have escaped this crisis.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh.

    Isn¡¯t this a nice oue?

    Maybe because it happened so easily, I suddenly got a chill.

    There¡¯s no better chance than this. Pumping myself up, I added ¡¶Silver Archery¡·on top of ¡¶Knight Archery¡· as I stretched the bow.

    Twang¨D¨DAlong that deep sound, the arrow was released from the bow and flew along arge white-silvery aura.

    At the moment itnded on the head of the Scarlet Mantis, the white-silvery light exploded, and 80% of the body was sttered into the woods. 5th Grade ¡¶Silver Archery¡· appears to be quite the overkill against the Scarlet Mantis.

    Without wasting time, I prepared the second shot. The second enemy also followed the same fate.

    And thest one. This time, a critical hit came out and its whole body was blown away. Rainbow colored sparkles from the effectsted for a moment. The damage I dealt was 1566. Stupidly low¡­ Well, even with this rank, I wonder if it¡¯s because the weapon is this that it turned out like that. I feel like I still got a long way ahead.

    Well then, the real issue¡­

    ¡°Nice! ¡±

    I got it!¡¡¡¶Rook Archery¡· learned!

    At one point I had given in on this, but somehow, I got it!¡¡It was the perfect decision. I suppose this is killing two birds with one stone.

    ¡­¡­Then, it suddenly dawned on me. What about the knights?

    ¡°Sorry, you got our thanks. For Helpi¨D¨DAh.¡±

    The five members of the Third Knight Order approached while being wary of the surroundings. The knight who thanked me had a familiar and dignified voice.

    ¡°Second¡­ dono. I have no words to express the gratitude of saving us this time.¡±

    Removing her helmet, the female knight Silvia showed her face and bowed.

    She had a pale face. I suppose that is a given. After all, herpanions were killed.

    ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry. Let¡¯s bring them back home.¡±

    When I said so, Silvia and the other four knights walked towards their deadpanions¡¯ bodies, and made a very clean and beautiful salute.

    ¡­¡­This is not the time to be spacing out.

    After smacking my cheeks with my hands, I followed after then and helped them.

    =====

    Thank you for reading.

    £¼Status Details£¾

    HP¡¡Hit Points

    MP¡¡Magic Points

    SP¡¡Stamina Points

    STR¡¡Short range attack skill power, strength, physical power.

    DEX¡¡Long range attack skill power, dexterity, hit rate.

    AGI¡¡Quickness, avoidance rate.

    INT¡¡Attack Magic skill power.

    LUK¡¡Good luck, critical rate.

    VIT¡¡Simple defense.

    MGR¡¡Magic defense.

 Chapter 8: Ostracized Female Knight

    <h4>Chapter 8: Ostracized Female Knight</h4>

    My first impression of him was the worst.

    I though he was a young nobleman who grew up in a snugly environment that didn¡¯t know hardships, a man with nomon sense that was not thinking about how he would be bothering others as long as they didn¡¯t bother him.

    But right now.

    He defeated six Scarlet Mantis in thirty seconds. From 20 meters away, and nothing but a long bow, an impossible feat to do with Archery.

    How much effort did he put into it?

    I feel sorry for having bundled him together with those dirty nobles.

    How about me?

    From an early age I have wanted to follow the path of a Knight, and this is all I¡¯ve aplished with my sword.

    Useless. No matter what I do, it¡¯s useless. Since I had no talent for the sword I was chastised in my home, and when I finally entered to the bottom rank of the knights, I felt so left out.

    I had no skill after all.

    All I did was speak of justice, I was that lousy justice girl.

    But even that justice felt empty, it did not resonate.

    Even when I exposed the unjust aristocrats¡¯ dirty deals, someone from above always came to stop me.

    And when I tried to expose the boss¡¯ injustice, other knights got in the way.

    Those politicalpdogs.

    I¡¯m sick of it.

    I¡¯m sick of this Kingdom¡¯s system.

    Just take a look.

    Even after the death of ourrades, the rotten upper echelons are trying to capture and use the savior of the Third Knight Order.

    And the reason we got into that predicament was because of an ipetentmander and the unreasonable orders from the upper echelons.

    Is this truly a Knight Order?

    The image of a knight that I once admired and aimed at?

    If that¡¯s so, then, I¡¯ll just¡­¡­

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Second-dono. Aren¡¯t you going to join the adventurer¡¯s guild? ¡±

    After helping the Third Knight Order, I was brought to a room and made to sit in a sofa which seems to be of quite a high ss.

    I was wondering if I¡¯ll be receiving words of thanks, but the first thing the old man sitting opposite from me said was almost the opposite.

    ¡°The adventurer¡¯s guild? ¡±

    ¡°Ahem, I guess I should start from the beginning. I heard that you, Second-dono, despite being an adventurer, did not belong to the guild.¡±

    Certainly, I¡¯m not affiliated with them.

    However, there is no reason to belong to the guild.

    The adventurer¡¯s guild in the Castall Kingdom is an organization that controls and oversees requests such as monster extermination. So to speak, they¡¯re the bridge between the people and adventurers ¨D¨DBut the truth is, they are a rotten organization in this Kingdom that seeks to manage personal information from adventurers in order to serve their own needs.

    The reason why I know this is because that¡¯s the setting of the story in Mobius.

    ¡°Sounds like a nice deal, but I¡¯ll have to refuse.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Can I ask you why? ¡±

    What a tenacious old man. What is his purpose?

    ¡°I¡¯m not particrly bothered by money, and I¡¯m not good at being tied to an organization¡­ maybe because of that. ¡±

    Since it¡¯s probably useless to hide it, I told him the honest reason.

    Immediately after, the old man made an expression that as if troubled.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. As a knight, I don¡¯t want to let such a great adventurer as Second-dono go. Especially this time, when Second-dono¡¯s ability has be quite obvious in a big way. With this being the case, many nobles will rush to get their hand on you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­In other word, you mean the guild will protect me?¡±

    ¡°Pretty much.¡±

    Suspicious.

    He said my ability has be obvious in a big way, but there aren¡¯t many witnesses, so isn¡¯t it good if the Third Knight Order doesn¡¯t speak of it?

    Why would this old man wanted me to join the guild?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Hmm, I have no idea.

    I may join some organization, but I don¡¯t feel that¡¯s something that would keep me from reaching the world¡¯s first rank.

    ¡°After all, no, I won¡¯t join them.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see.¡±

    When I said so, the old man pulled down.

    And then, he opened his mouth after being lost in thought.

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s go with our Silvia. If you have someone from the Third Knight Order attached, it will serve to give them some level of restrain.¡±

    With Silvia¡­

    I see. She might be a bit dumb, but she is quite beautiful. Any man would obviously want her by their side.

    And that¡¯s exactly why I¡¯m afraid to ept this old man¡¯s proposal.

    Perhaps this is what he was originally aiming for.

    That said, I do not understand what the aim is

    ¡°I have no idea what hand the nobles might try to y with. And Silvia is famous for being a tough knight against the nobility in the capital. I think this will be quite effective, don¡¯t you think? ¡±

    This old man gave an additional push.

    ¡­¡­I feel like I¡¯m starting to get it.

    Silvia is tough on nobles. And the upper echelons of the knights are connected to those nobles. In other words, Silvia is a thorn on the side of the knights. Does that mean he wants to relegate Silvia?

    Oops, I went on a tangent again.

    If that¡¯s the case, maybe this is actually a good proposal for me, right?

    Why? Because a wolfes with a bag¡­ Never mind that. This is a unique opportunity to bring a beautiful female knight to my group.

    ¡°How long will she be apanying me? ¡±

    ¡°Uhmm. Let¡¯s ask the person herself ¨D¨DSilvia.¡±

    After I asked, the old man opened the door and called for Silvia.

    After a short while, Silvia, whom now was not wearing her armor, appeared.

    ¡°Silvia. You¡¯ll be in charge of acting as Second-dono¡¯s escort. About the time of this endeavor, as a knight I would like to respect yours and Second-dono¡¯s opinions.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨Deh! ¡±

    Silvia was surprised by the old man¡¯s words.

    Well, that¡¯s only natural. This is pretty much a de-facto demotion. But that also means that her and my opinion will be respected, that is, Silvia¡¯s term will be decided by me. I knew it, it seems like the knights want to chase Silvia out.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia was looking down in silence. I managed to steal a nce at the valley in her chest. Not bad, moderately sized mountains.

    ¡°Got anything to say in particr about your term? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No.¡±

    The old man told Silvia implicitly to remain silent.

    Then, he turned his eyes towards me. Should I be the one deciding the term? In that case¨D¨D

    ¡°How about two years? ¡±

    That¡¯s what I¡¯ve decided.

    Two years. That should be enough time to get to the world¡¯s first rank.

    The old man then spoke without changing his expression.

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    And thus, the female knight Silvia became my escort.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Demoted¨D¨D¡£

    For the knights this might be more like ¡°getting rid of a troublesome person¡±.

    While I was assimting those facts, I apanied Second-dono to the inn as his escort, and together with him, drank at the first-floor bar.

    Even though I refused at first saying I was just an escort, Second-dono kept saying ¡°it¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine¡±.

    There were a lot of shocking events today, so I lost to temptation.

    ¡°Hey, let¡¯s make a deal.¡±

    It was at that moment.

    Second-dono suddenly said something like that.

    I was drinking but was still in a good condition, so I returned it with a ¡°Let¡¯s hear it¡±.

    All without knowing that this deal would change my life in the future.

    ¡°I believe Silvia wants to be prouder of her work as a knight. I want to help.¡±

    I was a little surprised to be called out by my name without honorifics.

    In hindsight, Second¡¯s appearance was quite good. Up until now I only had eyes for my sword, but maybe because I¡¯ve been slowly drinking for some time now, such womanly feeling suddenly sprang out.

    No, his words mean more than that.

    Those words urately represent my current feelings.

    I want to be a proud knight. Since I was young, that was the justice that filled my heart.

    ¡°If you are disgusted with the current state of the Knight Order, I think you should quit it. And, I think you should follow me.¡±

    It was a shocking remark.

    Follow me!?

    Wh-what is this guy saying¡­!?

    ¡°Wh-w-w-w-w-what ar-are you ta-ta-talking about?¡±

    ¡°Wait, calm down, calm down!¡¡I told you, this was a deal.¡±

    Th-that¡¯s right. Calm down, me. This is a deal. By no means this is a pro-pro-pro-proposal. Damn, my face feels hot!

    I emptied the contents of the ss in a dash.

    ¡­¡­Have I calmed down a little?

    ¡°I think Silvia is not someone to give in to power, right?¡¡Then, you should get the appropriate skill. And I have the means to do that.¡±

    Umu, that¡¯s true.

    But it¡¯s easier said than done¡­¡­

    ¡°I was born in the Virginia House of Knights. It is the role of those born in the Virginia House to be a knight and master fighting skills. Therefore, I have walked the path of the sword since I was four years old. I¡¯ve been training in the way of the sword for 13 years now¡­ But it all has been for nothing. I had no talent for the sword. I was despised by my brother and sister, even by my very parents. I am one of those who have failed. And even after barely bing a knight, my sense of justice isn¡¯t shared by others¡­¡±

    I spoke as ifining. It seems like I¡¯m really getting drunk.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­¡±

    Then, Second-dono opened his mouth, as if to say something that was hard to say.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I¡¯m about to tell you. If you don¡¯t have talent for the sword, you should try something else. A spear or a bow should be fine.¡±

    ¡°You ba-bastard¨D¨D¡±

    Flying into rage, I grabbed Second-dono by the chest and stood up¡­ and then I gave up.

    Just what was I trying to do?

    Second-dono said nothing but the truth.

    I¡¯ve always been stubborn and trained with nothing but swords. Even after everyone said I had no talent, only the sword¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­A knight is ¡­¡­ d in armor, holding a sword, riding a horse ¡­¡­A hero who rushed to save those in a pinch¡­¡­¡±

    I wanted to be a knight. A respectable knight. Never sumbing to evil, always an ally of justice.

    ¡­¡­I am pathetic. My tears came out.

    What would the child me think if she were too look at what I have be?

    She would definitely hate it. No matter if I¡¯m d in armor, have a sword, ride a horse or belong to the Third Knight Order.

    It doesn¡¯t matter, I am no knight at all. It pains me just bing aware of it.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it better to press forwards with those aspirations of being a knight? It doesn¡¯t matter what weapon you use. What¡¯s important is only the part about justice and rushing to save those in a pinch, it has nothing to do with swords and armors, right? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It is exactly as Second-dono says it.

    Totally right.

    There is no need to stick to the sword.

    What matters is to have the heart of a knight!

    That¡¯s it. That¡¯s totally it!

    Such a rotten organization is not a ce for a knight to be!

    Quitting the knight order doesn¡¯t mean I would quit being a knight!

    Right now is the time for me to change¨D¨D!

    ¡°Second-dono!¡¡I¡¯ve made my mind. I will follow you! ¡±

    I said it.

    But I will not regret it. I already decided to bet on him.

    When he heard my loud deration, Second-dono just smiled happily and said ¡°I see¡±.

    I feel like my cheek are getting unnaturally hot. I probably have drunk too much.

    ¡°Then, let me tell you about my dreams.¡±

    After saying so, Second-dono began to speak passionately.

    That no matter what, he was going to be the ¡°world¡¯s rank one¡±.

    It¡¯s a very rough dream, one people might be amazed andugh at.

    But his smiling and cheerful face, and his almost glittering eyes.

    ¨D¨DYeah, Second-dono is really aiming to the top of the world.

    I honestly thought so.

    If so, then I¡¯d like to go together with him and help him out.

    I¡¯m sure interesting things will happen.

    Ahh, this is the first time I¡¯ve had a night with so much fun.

    My future surely looks bright¨D¨D!

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°¡­¡­Haa.¡±

    After finishing drinking with Silvia, I returned to my room and sat on my bed.

    ¡°Fu¡­¡­fufu, fuhaha, hahahaha! ¡±

    Aughter came out involuntarily.

    Beautiful female knight ¨D¨DGET!

    Well, I didn¡¯t think it would go as nned.

    She¡¯s probably gifted in either ¡¾Archery¡¿ or ¡¾Magic¡¿. After training ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ for 13 years and not improving, it seems like she¡¯s a specialized growth type, maybe DEX or INT type. There¡¯s also the possibility of being a production type of some sort even if a little, but that would still be good. Anyway, it¡¯s huge that I managed to get apanion. This will dramatically improve safety.

    It¡¯s great that I made a rtionship with that pain in the butt knight order, seems like I drew a big one here.

    However, I told her not to p her resignation to the knight order right away.

    On the surface, she will still be a knight of the Third Knight Order fulfilling her two-year term, but in fact, she¡¯ll be a spy that will leak to me information about the order.

    As a matter of fact, it seems like Silvia was instructed to ¡°persuade Second in order for him to join the Knight Order¡±, but that is now meaningless since she told me.

    Those knights might think that Silvia, being the ¡°Knightish Knight¡± that she is, will have a sense of duty and properly follow those orders.

    Truly, two birds, three birds with one stone, no, I guess it¡¯s four birds with one stone.

    I¡¯m really looking forward to the days starting tomorrow.

    In order to develop Silvia, I want to go to the dungeon and learn the essential skills of ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿, and in addition to that¨D¨D¡­¡­

    I lied on the bed and went to sleep while thinking about that.

 Chapter 9: No, no, no!

    <h4>Chapter 9: No, no, no!</h4>

    Next morning.

    After meeting Silvia, we had breakfast together in the first floor.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s decide on our ns.¡±

    When I said so, Silvia turned a bit of a suspicious look towards me.

    ¡°Hmm, I was pretty drunkst night, so I don¡¯t remember the details¡­ ¡­But, does Second-dono really knows how to get stronger? ¡±

    Hers was an expression of ¡°I want to believe, but I can¡¯t believe¡±.

    ¡°Worry not. Oh, but before that, tell be about your skills and stats.¡±

    *Pout* ¡°¡­Well, I suppose it can¡¯t be helped.¡±

    After hesitating for a moment, Silvia then opened her mouth.

    ¡°I have not raised anything but Horse Riding and Swordsmanship. From Swordsmanship I have Soldier, Lance, Knight and Silver. Each one is second rank and Horse Riding is 11th rank.

    ¡°I see. What about your stats? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­DEX is 121 and INT is 103, the rest are in the double digits.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, by the way, what your STR, AGI and LUK at? ¡±

    ¡°STR 79, AGI 98 and LUK 15.¡±

    ¡°Got it.¡±

    It¡¯s just as I thought. She is the DEX type. And her INT is also high for some reason. If I remember correctly, this was¡­ ¡­oh, yeah, the¡ºMagic Archer Type¡»(Mayumi Type).

    ¡°Alright, the ns have been decided. Silvia, let¡¯s do Archery.¡±

    ¡°Archery?¡¡Certainly, my DEX is high, but I¡¯ve never dealt with a bow, and¡­ It¡¯s not a knightly weapon.¡±

    This girl, still saying those things.

    ¡°You probably specialize in Magic and Archery. Pretty much you¡¯re a Magic Archer.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of anything like a magic archer. ¡±

    Eh, what? There aren¡¯t any in this world?¡¡It should¡¯ve been a very popr job in Mobius.

    ¡°Have you heard about thebined skills or Archery and Magic? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Never heard of it.¡±

    No good.

    ¡°Anyway, there is that thing. You should aim for it.¡±

    Silvia reluctantly said ¡°Well, got it¡± sounding not quite convinced.

    With that decided, there are various things that I have to do.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go over today¡¯s schedule. First, we¡¯ll go buy some weapons. Next is learning skills. Then, earning experience until evening. Do you have any doubts? ¡±

    ¡°Wait, I don¡¯t have much money. And I don¡¯t really want to rely on my parents¡¯ home¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about money. I got plenty.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Just out of curiosity, how much? ¡±

    ¡°A week ago I had 2 billion CL, but right now it should be around 800 million CL? ¡±

    ¡°¡¡¡±

    Silvia opened her mouth so much that her jaw almost reached her chest.

    ¡­¡­Weird. If you go to a dungeon, 2 billion CL is something you can easily earn.

    Ahh, that¡¯s right, the dungeons in this world haven¡¯t been captured yet. If so, there aren¡¯t any crazy farmers going in and out of the dungeons.

    Then, aren¡¯t the items from the dungeons even more valuable?¡¡In other words, aren¡¯t dungeons even more profitable¡­¡­?

    ¡°Well, whatever. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    I abandoned that thought and took Silvia to the weapons store.

    ¡°Thanks for your patronage.¡±

    The good-humored voice of the weapons shop owner echoed.

    This time, in addition to Silvia¡¯s longbow, I bought myself a longsword.

    After giving her the long bow, Silvia said in a quiet voice ¡°Thank you¡±.

    ¡°Weren¡¯t you an archer, Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll also raise Swordsmanship starting today.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Huh.¡±

    Silvia seemed troubled by my response.

    ¡°When I learned the basic skills of Archery in the library, before going to learn the essential skills of Archery, I also learned the basic skills of Swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Oh. HUH? ¡±

    Silvia looked confused.

    I somehow feel like I¡¯m teaching the ropes of Mobius to a beginner.

    ¡°Anyway¡­ juste along with me.¡±

    When I thought it was a pain to exin everything and grabbed Silvia, her cheeks dyed in red and she just said ¡°Okay¡±. She looks pretty cute.

    As I thought, it¡¯s great I got a beauty to join me.

    ¡°No, no, nonono, noooo! ¡±

    Lunch time.

    We¡¯re currently in the forest between the Capital and the mine, and Silvia seems to have turned into a ¡°Nonono broken record¡±.

    ¡°Wh-why do you know what! ?¡¡And what¡¯s more, why teach me so carefree! ?¡¡Just who in the word are you! ? ¡±

    TLN: The no no no Silvia says is more of a ¡°no, im not listening,¡±, since she¡¯s been told ¡°dangerous¡± information that normal people shouldnt have.

    She drew close to me with a threatening look.

    ¡°Why are you so angry?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not angry!¡¡I¡¯m just shocked! ¡±

    Then I¡¯d like if you didn¡¯t yell.

    ¡°The way to learn Bishop Archery and Rook Archery!¡¡I-isn¡¯t that a matter of secrecy! ?¡¡That is information that the nobles have inherited and monopolized for generations! ¡±

    Ohh¡­¡­ I understand now. That¡¯s why the level in this world is so low.

    ¡°Nobles sure only love their own interests after all.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s obviously a given, you idiot!¡¡I don¡¯t want to think about them getting wind of this!¡¡We¡¯ll be tortured, we¡¯ll be killed for sure! ¡±

    It appears Silvia was angry while thinking about me. She sure is a nice person.

    However, in order to take a shortcut to achieving the world¡¯s top spot, it requires Silvia to learn Archery and support me from the rear. And if that support from the rear isn¡¯t able to use ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· and ¡¶Rook Archery¡· then there¡¯s no point in making her apanion.

    ¡°Then, don¡¯t tell anyone this information, Silvia. It should be okay then, right? ¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t screw with me, you total idiot!¡¡I¡¯ll be an idiot if I were to speak about such an advanced Archery!¡¡You idiot! ¡±

    I wonder why she likes saying idiot so much?

    ¡°Then, isn¡¯t it fine as long as we don¡¯t use it in public?¡±

    ¡°Guh¡­¡­well, that much should be fine.¡±

    Ohh, she agreed?

    ¡°¡­¡­No, even then, it¡¯s dangerous. I don¡¯t know where those guys might sniff it out. On top of that, Second-dono is already standing out¡­ maybe they already have their eyes on us¡­¡±

    Somehow, she started mumbling to herself.

    ¡°Rest assured, I¡¯ll protect you if something happens. Just shut up and follow me.¡±

    Let¡¯s try to use the forceful pick-up line-ish strategy and see if it works. But I don¡¯t think it will work a second time, will it¡­¡­?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­O-okay.¡±

    Looks like it worked.

    After that.

    ¡°Nononooo! ? ¡± I took the noisy Silvia who kept saying that while I told her the requirement for ¡¶Knight Archery¡·, ¡¶Silver Archery¡·, ¡¶Gold Archery¡· and ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·.

    Just like myself, she was able to smoothly learn them.

    In addition, I also learned ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·, ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·. They are ¡¸Precision Attack¡¹, ¡¸Strong Single-Target Attack¡¹ and ¡¸Range attack to all directions¡¹ respectively. ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· are quite bothersome, so I shelved them for now. In addition, I n to learn ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·, but that one is on a league of its own, so I will consider it after everything else is cleared.

    When I told them to Silvia, she was so astonished and perplexed.

    When I inquired about why she was so shocked, she told me ¡°So far, I¡¯ve never heard of anyone who knows the conditions for acquiring skill so in detail¡±.

    No but, since it¡¯s such a world, isn¡¯t there some schr or skill researcher, isn¡¯t it interesting to study and find out the conditions for acquiring skills?

    In response to that question, Silvia answered: ¡°Even if you were to narrow down the learning conditions, what would you gain by making it public? ¡±

    ¡­¡­It¡¯s just as she said. There are very few people in the real world who would give up on their own interests.

    ¡°But I feel like I¡¯ve been surprised enough for a lifetime today.¡±

    Just as the sun was moving down, Silvia said such a thing.

    ¡°There¡¯s still onest surprise for the end.¡±

    While saying that in a tone of mischief, I transferred arge number of potions to Silvia.

    ¡°What, su-such an expensive potion¡­¡­ and you even bought so many! ? ¡±

    So that¡¯s why she wasn¡¯t surprised when I went to the potion shop and bought them in bulk, huh? Since I was talking so peacefully with the sales clerk, it really didn¡¯t seem like we were trading tens of millions of CL.

    ¡°It¡¯s too soon to be surprised. How do you think we¡¯ll use this? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wait. I¡¯m starting to get scared. You aren¡¯t going to tell me to put them all in the butt, right? ¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t. Who do you think I am?¡±

    ¡°A pervert.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t answer without thinking! ¡±

    What a rude fellow. Right now, we¡¯ll try and get a lot of experience¡­

    ¡°Well, whatever. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    We head to the cave behind the mine.

    It goes without saying that the first ¡°Nononooo!¡± of the caves echoed inside that day.

 Chapter 10: Reus Dungeon

    <h4>Chapter 10: Reus Dungeon</h4>

    (TLN: Read as Royce, written as Reus)

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to a dungeon today.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You never told me this.¡±

    Silvia looked at me with reproachful eyes. Well, that¡¯s to be expected, I didn¡¯t fill her in on this.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, there¡¯s nothing to worry about. It will be over in a jiffy.¡±

    ¡°Well, if Second-dono says so ¨D¨Dwait, you won¡¯t fool me!¡¡Just what the heck are you scheming this time!? ¡±

    ¡°This is for your own good, Silvia. You want to learn Rook Archery, right? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No, well, if I could learn it, I¡¯d love to.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s settled.¡±

    This time, we¡¯ll go inside the intermediate rank dungeon ¡ºReus¡». This is aparatively easy dungeon among the intermediate ranks. The purpose is for Silvia to learn ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, and for me to acquire ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·.

    The dungeons are divided into three ranks; Upper being the advanced, Intermediate the middle ss, and Lower the easier one. The mostmon dungeons are the Lower rank with nine, followed by the Intermediate ranks with six, andstly the Upper ranks with five. There¡¯s one more dungeon on top of those, but I¡¯d rather not talk about it right now.

    Anyway, there are three reasons why we¡¯re going to the intermediate rank Reus dungeon this time.

    First, the strength of the monsters in it. I¡¯ve already gained some experience and my stats have grown, therefore, even if I¡¯m not equipped with armor, the damage from the lower rank monsters sometimes doesn¡¯t go through. Therefore, in order to get ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, since I need to have a monster drop my HP below 50%, it¡¯s better to have a mid-level monster hit me a couple times rather than letting a low level one hit me over and over and over again.

    The second reason is the low HP and VIT from the monsters here. All the monsters that appear in the Reus dungeon are attack-focused types. But, in exchange for their high STR, their HP and VIT is only two thirds that of the same level monsters. In other words, you must be careful since they are stronger, but their defense is low and they are easier to defeat since they have less HP.

    And the third one. The dungeon¡¯s capture reward. If you conquer the dungeon, that is, going to the bottom floor and defeating the boss, you will receive a reward for it in the form of an item dropped from said boss. Reus dungeon¡¯s boss is called ¡¸me Wolf¡¹, and he drops a rare weapon called ¡ºBow of the zing Wolf¡». It is an excellent long bow with an added fire effect. It was a very popr weapon and one which yers used to level their Magic Archer ss from intermediate to advanced.

    So, it could be said that this time¡¯s objective is to dops and both of us learn the skills and then go and get that drop.

    I also think that our skills match perfectly to aplish that. Silvia¡¯s experience has gone up using the Di-Que strategy, so her ¡¾Archery¡¿ has increased considerably, and even her ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·are at Grade 1 each. In addition, my ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ has also risen and gotten ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡· at Grade 3 and ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·to Grade 1.

    This should be the skill level where two people could clear the Reus dungeon. If the need arises, I can also grab my bow andpensate for theck of firepower, and I¡¯ve also got high-ss healing potions, so we should be able to clear it quite effortlessly.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Well, we¡¯re here.¡±

    It was half a day by horse from the capital Vinceton. One of the reasons was also because this ce was near.

    ¡°Are we really going in?¡¡Will we be okay? ¡±

    Along with the hesitating Silvia, I walked straight into the Reus dungeon.

    It¡¯s a vast cave-like dungeon with walls tainted in a reddish color.

    ¡°Is this b-blood¡­?¡¡No, this looks like the natural color of the stone¡­¡±

    Silvia has been freaking out since a while ago, and while looking around restlessly, she¡¯s been holding her longbow tight and walking behind me.

    ¡°There, finally. That¡¯s your target, if possible, defeat it using only Silver. When you get enough experience, ce priority in raising it. If you are not used to it yet, you should practicebining Knight and Silver.¡±

    I found the silhouette of the enemy about 20 meters ahead. me Lizards. Their number is four. Piece of cake.

    ¡°U-understood¡­¡­! ¡±

    Silvia was a little stiff, but she managed to properly activate the skill. Looks alright.

    The first attack was abination of Silvia¡¯s ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·. Both of them Grade 1. The arrow flew with the white-silvery effect and it hit the me Lizard from a distance in the middle of the chest, opening arge hole in it.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh? ¡±

    Silvia opened her mouth agape and made a silly noise.

    The me Lizard died without being able to do anything. During that time, I hit the remaining three monsters with ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·and after bundling them together, I finished them up using ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡·in one strike. By the way, ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· is a normal attack, while ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· is a piercing attack.

    The conditions for acquiring ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· are two, ¡¸Using ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡·kill three monsters in a single strike¡¹ and ¡¸With abination of ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·hit two or more vital points of a monster ten times in a row¡¹. With this, I was able to meet the first condition.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    When I spoke to the absent-minded Silvia, she came back to her senses.

    ¡°Se-Second-dono. Did I, by any chance, be terribly strong¡­¡­? ¡±

    What is she saying now?

    ¡°I made a promise, right?¡±

    When I said so while smiling, Silvia turned her eyes towards me and a beautiful smile bloomed on her face.

    She is quite the beautiful woman¡­¡­ I¡¯d love if she wore that face at all times.

    After that, we kept going, progressing quickly in the Reus dungeon. ¡°Second-dono! ¡± ¡°Amazing! ¡± ¡°Thank you! ¡± ¡°Amazing! ¡± In high spirits, Silvia appeared to be in excellent condition, and she was very useful as a rear support. She was the right choice as apanion.

    ¡°I will be a Magic Archer! ¡±

    She suddenly became quite enthusiastic somehow. It seems that she was still a bit skeptical about my ability up until now. Anyway, it¡¯s great that Silvia is in high spirits.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Oops. Silvia, halt.¡±

    Six hours have passed since we dived into the dungeon, and we suddenly stopped.

    By now, Silvia has killed more than 3,000 monsters in this area, and there¡¯s only one condition left in order for her to learn ¡¶Rook Archery¡·.

    And that¡¯s the reason I stopped here.

    That¡¯s because the monster I was ¡°looking for¡± finally appeared.

    Its name is ze Troll. It¡¯s arge monster with ridiculous power, but its bald head is its weak spot and it¡¯s easy to target, so a strike from a Grade 1 ¡¶Silver Archery¡·is more than enough to blow its head off.

    And the number of ze Trolls is 3. Pretty convenient.

    ¡°Aim for the head using abination of Knight and Silver from a distance of over 15 meters. Shoot when I give you the signal.¡±

    ¡°Um, got it. But¡­¡­ what are you going to do? ¡±

    ¡°Well, that doesn¡¯t matter. But by no means be shaken up.¡±

    After instructing Silvia, I moved towards a ze Troll.

    My HP is all the way up. In terms of VIT, I should be able to withstand being critically hit six times by a ze Troll. It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll be fine.

    No, it¡¯s not okay. I¡¯m scared shitless. But I really want a rear guard who knows ¡¶Rook Archery¡·¡­¡­

    Ahh, it came right in front of me.

    A single ze Troll targeted me.

    And then, it swung his big club and¨D¨D

    ¡°Second-dono!! ¡±

    ¨D¨DI don¡¯t quite remember what happened at that moment.

    The hit shook my brain. It blew my consciousness. What the heck. I wasn¡¯t expecting this.

    ¡°Geho~~¡±

    The next thing I knew I was lying on the ground and there was something on my mouth. Broken teeth and a lot of blood.

    My HP hasn¡¯t even gone down by a quarter.

    This is bad¡­¡­ I wonder if this could heal broken teeth. In Mobius, drinking a potion could heal up broken arms, but there¡¯s no guarantee a potion will do the same in this world.

    Th-this might not have been a good idea¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Not yet¡­¡­¡±

    I said so while holding onto an Instant Healing Potion (luxury item of course) with my view swaying. I can¡¯t make a sound judgment since I¡¯m in too much of a pain and shock.

    But still, who wouldn¡¯t want to look cool in front of a girl?¡¡One more. Just one. I decided to endure one more hit. I want to avoid wasting this pain I¡¯m already feeling.

    I nced over to where Silvia is. I can¡¯t see that well in the distance, but it seems like she¡¯s waiting for me.

    ¡°¡­¡­Hii¡±

    The ze Troll rushed towards me. A scream-like voice escaped from my lips as I desperately struggled.

    ¡­¡­Hold tight. You¡¯ll be made light of if you escape now. Those who run away are pathetic people. I am the world¡¯s rank one. Even as an alt character, I¡¯ll be the number one in this world. And in order to do so, it¡¯s imperative that Silvia learns ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. This is where I need to work hard. I won¡¯t die. I already made up my mind!¡¡Put up with it like a man!¡¡Show your willpower!¡¡Show your determination!¡¡If you can endure this, you will be a legend!¡¡Silvia will absolutely fall for me!¡¡Probably!

    No, I know I¡¯m being unreasonable, but even if I don¡¯t do it, I¡¯ll end up drinking a potion anyways, so¨D¨D

    ¡°¨D¨DUh!! ¡±

    With the club being swung as a golf club, my body was blown away into the wall. My lungs are crushed, I cannot breathe.

    My HP is¡­¡­ good. Nice!

    ¡°U¡­¡­uuu! ¡±

    I could barely utter a sound.

    But even so, Silvia understood me.

    Bashun¨D¨D the arrow infused with ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·resounded and immediately after that, the head of the ze Troll in front of me burst into a million pieces.

    Haha, in your face¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Well then.¡±

    Two more to go.

    I almost cried when my teeth grew back after drinking a potion.

    I can¡¯t stop at this point.

    I could have stopped if my damage wasn¡¯t totally healed¡­¡­

    Ahh, I want to throw the towel already¡­¡­ but I can no longer pull back¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­I have to go through it. I am the world¡¯s rank one.

    The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one.

    The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one. The world¡¯s rank one.

    Comining and muttering.

    I went to the remaining two ze Trolls.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°You idiot!¡¡You big idiot!! ¡±

    After everything was over.

    I was lying on a cold rock.

    Silvia held me into her chest, and yelled at me while crying.

    A perfect victory¨D¨D

 Chapter 11: Kinkaku hame tarou

    <h4>Chapter 11: Kinkaku hame tarou</h4>

    ¡°Ro-Rook Archery¡­¡­! ¡±

    Silvia was amazed after seeing her status.

    Her eyes were still swollen and red from the crying. She said that while still sobbing like a crying puppy. I wish she wouldn¡¯t worry that much about me being unreasonable, or rather, I feel grateful.

    ¡­¡­Well then. If my prediction is correct, this is Silvia we¡¯re talking about, who values chivalry. I bet she will say something like:

    ¡°¨D¨DSecond-dono. I truly admire you for keeping a promise made to me as yourpanion, going as far as crushing your own bones for it. I am very proud to be by your side. Allow me to pledge my life to serve under you.¡±

    See? I told you.

    Then I just told her what I had told her before.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Just shut up and follow me.¡±

    Silvia locked her eyes with mine.

    Immediately after that, sheughed with a ¡°hahaha¡±.

    ¡°Second-dono, do you think I¡¯ll just shut up because you say it?¡¡What a troublesome person.¡±

    Ha, haha. Iughed.

    Hahahaha, haha, ha¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Well, wasn¡¯t that unexpected?

    After that.

    As we pulled ourselves together and headed further inside the Reus dungeon, I noticed a slight change in Silvia.

    Her outwardly feel as a ¡¸Useless Knight¡¹hasn¡¯t changed at all, but in the moments when I¡¯m about to be attacked by a monster, she makes a threatening face and obliterates that monster with using ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. After having to see that angry face for a while, I ended up preaching to her about it.

    Anyway, Silvia now really gives off the vibe of ¡¸Second¡¯s Knight¡¹, being my knight.. She says it is her job to protect me. Hmm, is this some kind of pretend y?¡¡But, aren¡¯t you too old to be ying pretend at 17¡­¡­?

    And then, she finally said ¡°Second-dono, please let me take the front.¡± as if to protect me.

    ¡­¡­Makes me wonder. Isn¡¯t this quite the hassle?

    Well, let¡¯s not mind it too much. The only thing left is the boss.

    ¡°This is the home of the me Wolf.¡±

    Reus dungeon¡¯s boss, the me Wolf. It is a powerful monster in the shape of arge wolf, wearing mes as if coating it. Thanks to that fire barrier, the only damage it receives is from piercing attacks. Although my memory from Mobius is vague, I remember all the intermediate yers who came visit the Reus dungeon rated this fight as ¡°A pain in the butt¡±.

    However, there is one thing I remember perfectly. And that is¨D¨D

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s entrap it and kill it.¡±

    ¡°Yes? ¡±

    But at a certain point, that evaluation turned into ¡°time sink-small fry¡±.

    The changing factor was a trap approach. Once that strategy was discovered, the formidable me Wolf turned into more of a bullied child.

    ¡°Ready?¡¡First, I¡¯ll attack it with Bishop. Since the me Wolf will target me and run towards me, I¡¯ll knock it back with Gold. At that point, Silvia will attack it with Bishop. Then, the me Wolf will target you Silvia, and when he runs up to you, you knock it back with Gold. The rest is rinse and repeat.¡±

    This is an easy to do strategy to defeat the me Wolf, its name is ¡ºKinkaku hame tarou¡». This is a famous killing technique that can be done by two or more people.

    Using¡¶Bishop Archery¡· you can prate the me barrier and do enough damage, and if it¡¯s of the 12 rank or higher, that amount of damage will certainly pull the me Wolf to you. And if the ¡¶Gold Archery¡·is of the rank 9 at least, the cooldown timer will be enough for this strategy to be aplished by two yers. And above all, the attack pattern of the me Wolf is simple andcks ranged attacks. Therefore, this evil entrapping technique was easily established.

    ¡°Wa-wait. Would it really be that easy? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, if not, this is at least the safest. The key point is to wait until thest possible moment before using Bishop. This is in order to adjust the cooldown timer. All we need to do is stretch the time in order to gain the 10 seconds needed to reuse Gold.¡±

    ¡°I s-see¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡±

    I leisurely went to the ce where the boss was at. Silvia was a bit nervous¡­¡­ but at that moment, her expression just turned into a ¡°pokan face¡±. ( O_O )

    ¡°Awooooooo! ¡±

    Noticing me, the me Wolf gave a howl and afterwards it rushed towards me.

    ¡°He-here ites!? ¡±

    ¡°Alright. Okay, after I knock it back and the wolfes at me again, hit it with Bishop at thest second.¡±

    While talking to Silvia, I shoot an arrow with ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· at the me Wolf. The arrow, enveloped in a red-ckish aura, pierced the me Wolf, but it took it like it wasn¡¯t a big deal.

    ¡°It¡¯s n-not working!? ¡±

    Silvia was surprised. Well, that is obvious, this is a boss. You can¡¯t take it down with a single skill. But he is properly receiving damage.

    ¡°You shoot the Gold when it is around in this position.¡±

    When the me Wolf was around 2 meters away from me, I shot it with ¡¶Gold Archery¡·. At that moment, the arrow, covered in a golden aura,hit it with a dazzling effect and the me Wolf was knocked about five meters back. This is its knockback effect.

    ¡°It¡¯ll being at me again soon. Get ready to shoot Bishop right in front of me.¡±

    ¡°Ye-yeah¡­¡­ I know! ¡±

    Silvia was still filled with tension.

    After the me Wolf restored its posture, it rushed at me again without paying attention to anything else.

    ¡°Kyaun! ¡±

    Silvia¡¯s arrow coated in ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· pierced the me Wolf when it was around 3 meters ahead of me.

    The me Wolf was like ¡°You hurt me!? ¡°, and then it changed targets and rushed towards Silvia, ring at her as it approached. This monster surely is stupid.

    ¡°Let it get very close to you.¡±

    After giving her instructions, Silvia knocked off the me Wolf using ¡¶Gold Archery¡·. Silvia wore a serious expression the entire time, and nodded at my instructions.

    After that, Silvia and I repeated it about 15 times.

    Saying stuff like ¡°This sure feels easy¡± or ¡°Wanna eat dinner togetherter tonight? ¡± I tried to make small talk.

    And after the fifth round, Silvia started to respond to my questions.

    Seems like we¡¯re going to eat dinner in that bar again.

    Then, at the 16th round.

    ¡°Se, se¡­¡­Senden (advertisement)¡± ¡°Denpun (Starch)¡± ¡°Purin! ¡± ¡°Rihitenshutain (Liechtenstein)¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°The name of a country¡± ¡°¡­¡­Well, its fine, I, Inkan (seal)¡± ¡°Kaikan (pleasant feeling)¡± ¡°Ka, ka, ka, kazan (Volcano)¡± ¡°Zakkubaran (Frankness)¡± ¡°Ra¡ª¡ª-imugi pan (Rye bread)¡± ¡°Pattern¡± ¡°¡­¡­What was that, ta? a? ¡±

    ¡°A¡± ¡°A¡­¡­¡±

    We we¡¯re killing time ying Shiritori when the me Wolf died.

    ¡°¡­¡­Damn, it¡¯s a miss.¡±

    I said after looking at the item dropped in the ce where the me Wolf died.

    ¡°Hmm? ¡±

    Silvia also noticed and came closer.

    ¡°T-this is!? ¡±

    I wonder why she is so surprised. It¡¯s just some ¡ºme Wolf Fur¡».

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it me Wolf fur!?¡¡This is a miss!? ¡±

    ¡°Eh, yeah, why do you ask?¡±

    ¡°I-idiot, don¡¯t say stupid things!¡¡Isn¡¯t this a luxury item that can be sold to a merchant for 1 million CL!? ¡±

    ¡°A million¨C!? ¡±

    Way higher than I thought!¡¡No, isn¡¯t it too expensive!?

    The best item from the Reus dungeon is the ¡ºBow of the zing Wolf¡» and that goes from 800,000 to 900,000 CL at most. 50,000 would¡¯ve been a good enough price for the fur.

    To think it would be twenty times its price. Wait a minute¡­¡­

    Considering that, how much would a rare drop from an Upper dungeon go for?

    ¡­¡­I can¡¯t stop grinning.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s bring it back.¡±

    ¡°Umu. Isn¡¯t that obvious?¡±

    Chuckling to myself, I ced the me Wolf fur inside my inventory, and afterwards we left the Reus dungeon.

    After defeating the boss, we took the shortest route to the exit. ¡¸How to reduce travel time¡¹is a very important aspect for those who want to y an MMORPG to perfection. In that facet, Mobius was quite terrible. Its crappy magic system didn¡¯t allow you to learn instant movement magic unless you were quite advanced. The intermediate and lower yers are stuck traveling in horses or flying dragons to get where you need to go. Therefore, I feel very grateful that I knew the existence of this dungeon, since it was quite close. Feels like the grace of getting the asional sweet meal in prison where everything is tasteless.

    ¡°Alright, should we go for a drink?¡±

    ¡°Okay. Exactly what I wanted.¡±

    It was dusk outside. We were inside the dungeon almost the whole day.

    Along with Silvia, we both went back.

    When I said ¡°Next time, let¡¯s aim to clear it multiple times¡±, Silvia answered with a ¡± How many?¡± Then I said ¡°Let¡¯s try for at least three clears in a day¡± and she just ¡°Hahaha, Idiot¡± answered with a dryugh.

    After that, we talked about our hobbies. I heard about her family, and weugh at some silly things on our way back to the capital.

    Just a trifling conversation about our everyday life. But it was rxing and fun.

    ¡­¡­I wonder what this is?

    I feel so happy that I could barely think about my previous life.

    My life in this other world as my alt character is filled with fun, and I even got a friend named Silvia.

    And you can even tell that, as we¡¯ve trained together, we¡¯ve grown closer.

    In this world¨D¨DI¡¯ll became the world¡¯s rank one.

 Chapter 12: Bow of the Blazing Wolf

    <h4>Chapter 12: Bow of the zing Wolf</h4>

    Episode 2: Magic Academy Arc

    Three weeks have passed.

    Me and Silvia roam the Reus dungeon day after day, and now we can clear it six times a day.

    The experience from the dungeonps have piled up, so I think me and Silvia have gone from ¡°Beginner Intermediate ss¡± to ¡°Top Intermediate ss¡±. If we were tea in this world, we would be ¡°hand-picked tea leaves¡±, or if we were noodles, we¡¯d be ¡°yellow and blue strap noodles¡±.

    Talking about my ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿, I¡¯ve already acquired ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·, and they both are steadily rising in rank. They both are currently at Grade 1. Their effects are ¡¸Quick and powerful piercing attack¡¹ and ¡¸Very powerful single-target attack¡¹ respectively.

    I¡¯ll learn ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· at some point, but to use ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ as the main form of attack, I think its current power is enough with Bishop and Rook, so I¡¯ll just go as is for now.

    And, today.

    The item that I¡¯ve been looking for finally appeared.

    ¡°Eh, this is¡­¡­!? ¡±

    Silvia was the first to notice.

    Same as usual, we were fighting the me Wolf using the Kinkaku Hametarou strategy, and so far, the amount of me Wolf fur we¡¯ve collected has exceeded 100 pieces.

    What had dropped this time was a big, burning, crimson bow.

    ¡°It finally dropped! ¡±

    Ah, it took a while¡­¡­quite a while.

    I guess this is what¡¯s called the greed sensor. It¡¯s supposed to have a 2% chance to drop, but it dropped, finally, after around ten dozen tries.

    Thank you, me Wolf. I¡¯m sorry to have killed you over a hundred times.

    ¡°Is this the Bow of the zing Wolf that you were looking for, Second-dono!?¡¡Umu, it looks quite strong.¡±

    Silvia said, impressed after seeing the Bow of the zing Wolf that fell on the ground.

    Also, it seems she has apparently misunderstood.

    ¡°What are you talking about? This bow is for you, Silvia.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?¡¡EHHHH!? ¡±

    With that said, her eyes became like dots.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to be a Magic Archer, right?¡¡Then it¡¯s best to let you use it for now. Here.¡±

    Giving the puzzled Silvia the Bow of the zing Wolf, I had her try shooting it once.

    With a meek ¡°O-okay¡±, Silvia nervously held onto the bow.

    Boh¨D¨D along that quick sound, the arrow coated in ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·flew into the wall of the dungeon and upon impact, it burst into mes.

    ¡°Wh-what!?¡¡How!?¡¡Incredible!? ¡±

    Silvia, whose vocabry has apparently be poorer, had her eyes rounded in amazement.

    ¡°No, it isn¡¯t that incredible.¡±

    ¡°What? No no no no no. ¡±

    Well, no matter what I say, for Silvia this bow is ¡°Incredible¡±. I¡¯ll be troubled if she¡¯s happy with only this much. As a matter of fact, this is pretty close to Magic Archery.

    Why? you might ask.

    ¡°For Magic Archery, a high degree of skill in archery and magic is required. Just this isn¡¯t enough. You should be happy at least after learning the Third Form of fire attribute attack magic.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I-is that so? Sorry for letting it get to my head.¡±

    Silvia answered feeling a little dejected. I feel like I exaggerated a little, but oh well.

    ¡°By the way, is it okay for me to get such a great bow? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, no problem. Since I will shiftpletely to Magic, I have no ns to use it. You will put it to better use, Silvia.¡±

    ¡°For real?¡¡Then, I give you my thanks¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?¡¡Wait, what did you just say? ¡±

    ¡°I will shiftpletely to Magic? ¡±

    ¡°That. I¡¯ve never heard of this.¡±

    ¡°Sorry I didn¡¯t tell you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Seriously this girl, she¡¯s jeering at me like she wants to give me a piece of her mind. She really thinks that I purposely forgot telling her about the dungeon and about magic. Still, Silvia¡¯s reactions are usually really interesting. But it was not quite good this time.

    ¡°Archery, then Swordsmanship, and now Magic¡­¡­ being the world¡¯s number one feels less and less like a dream.¡±

    It has finally begun to take proper form. She muttered that as if being impressed. I wonder if she¡¯s beginning to get a grasp on it.

    ¡°There¡¯s still a long way ahead. Also, there is something I want to ask you about for the future. Let¡¯s talk about it on our way back to the capital.¡±

    ¡°Umu, okay.¡±

    We¡¯re finally leaving the Reus dungeon after being in its care for a long time.

    And what¡¯s more, mine and Silvia¡¯s stats have changed quite significantly.

    ¡°A connection to the Royal Magic Academy? ¡±

    On our way back, I consulted with Silvia.

    ¡°Yeah. Aren¡¯t you the second daughter of the Virginia Knight¡¯s House?¡¡Don¡¯t you have some sort of connection? ¡±

    To learn the ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills, you need to read a ¡ºGrimoire¡». Although the Grimoire for Attack Magic of the First Form can be found in the Comiket, the Second Form and Third Form Grimoire can only be found in the Magic Academy.

    In addition, I don¡¯t know where in the Magic Academy those Grimoires have been stored. Back in the days of Seven, the Second Form and Third Form could be obtained through an auction using real-life money during a short time. In all, it was 30,000 yen. Well, I didn¡¯t have the need for any real-world items back then so that was of no concern for me at all.

    Anyway, I have to ¡°infiltrate¡± the Magic Academy somehow.

    Why infiltrate? That is, to save time.

    ess to the Royal Magic Academy is restricted to only teachers and students. In that case, it is possible to enter using the regr route. However, I do not know how long would it take to take the examination test, get the enrolling interview,plete all the procedures and pay the money. Of course I cannot wait for an entrance ceremony.

    That¡¯s why ¡°Can you get me into the Magic Academy using your connections? ¡± I asked her that question¡­¡­

    ¡°Hmm, no I can not. Don¡¯t you remember that since I had no talent for the sword, my father gave up on me?¡¡I don¡¯t think he would listen to a request from such an unskilled daughter.¡±

    ¡°From what I heard from you, isn¡¯t you father a meritocratic person?¡¡If so, how about showing the power of the current you, Silvia? ¡±

    ¡°No, I think it will still be tough. Father is a person who, by his own skill on the sword, got a peerage as a knight. He might just say that I abandoned the sword and fled to the bow. And I¡¯m not sure whether such a stubborn person can even ept the bow¡­¡­¡±

    I had a feeling that would be the case.

    Yeah, that won¡¯t work.

    If it¡¯s like this, then there¡¯s no other way than to ¡°cheat¡± Silvia¡¯s dad.

    ¡°Okay, I got an idea.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­For some reason, I have a really bad feeling about this.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine. Because I¡¯m good at lying I can even pose as a scammer.¡±

    ¡°What is ¡®fine¡¯ in those words!? ¡±

    After calming Silvia, I roughly exined the operation¡¯s outline.

    Its name, ¡¸Operation Deceive¡¹¨D¨Dwill be carried out tomorrow.

 Chapter 13: Operation Deceive

    <h4>Chapter 13: Operation Deceive</h4>

    ¡°I¡¯m happy to finally meet you, Lord Virginia.¡±

    ¨D¨DA troublesome fellow.

    When I first saw him, that¡¯s what my intuition told me.

    Gathering from his slight bow, I could tell he had a strength of mind, body and spirit. It was easy for me, a Knight with peerage, to know that he had the arm of a swordsman after taking a closer look.

    His figure was quite eye-catching, that even I, being from the same sex, felt like stealing nces. I can¡¯t even begin to fathom how much those incredibly good tailor-made clothes would go for. His glossy shoes were obviously from the leather of a considerably high-rank monster.

    The mantle he wore also deserved a special mention. Jet-ck and ultramarine, a color that mimicked the night sky and pulled in the viewer with its scattered jewels that resembled sparkling stars.

    But. That beautiful decoration was not vaunted on the outside. It was on the inside of the mantle.

    What could be the meaning of it?

    He looks like he hides a secret. I¡¯m afraid it might be something outrageous.

    ¡°Father. This esteemed person is Second-dono, a noble from a foreign country.¡±

    My daughter, whom I¡¯m meeting for the first time in a long time, introduced him to me with a bit of demure.

    Hey, Silvia. Seems like you¡¯re still as bad as ever at lying. Your eyebrows still shake when you do.

    ¡­¡­Well then, with this I know he is not some nobleman.

    Then, who in the world are you?

    Only one persones to mind. And that is¨D¨D¡¸A Prince¡¹.

    The first prince of the Castall Kingdom, us-sama, is good at swordsmanship and it is said that his skills are so good he might even be the number one in the kingdom. The second prince, Maine-sama, is rumored to be the very top of the first years in the prestigious ¡ºRoyal Magic Academy¡».

    The person in front of me exudes self-confidence, overflowing wealth, firm standing, intellectual vision and a transcendental calm. Whoever he is, I cannot evenpare him to the royal family that I know.

    ¡­¡­Good. I should try testing him here.

    Having thought so, I decided to behave as if we were in equal standing.

    If he gets angry, that would mean he only amounted to that much. If his act crumbles, then I can arrest him for impersonating nobility.

    ¡°Umu, Second-dono, was it? I¡¯m Noir Virginia. Thank you for your consideration.¡±

    ¡°Likewise.¡±

    This is surprising.

    With plenty ofposure he smiled and returned a single word.

    Now I¡¯m sure¨D¨D He is of foreign royalty. No mistake.

    If he were part of the faulty nobles over there, he would¡¯ve instantly flown into a rage since a simple Knight had treated him as his equal. This is an action that is always sure to expose their haughty behavior.

    Unless it was someone belonging to royalty hiding their own status. If that¡¯s the case, there is no way I can let this chance slip and lose his grace with such a yful prank. In the first ce, he doesn¡¯t seem to want to keep his identity as royalty a secret from me.

    Which means.

    ¡­¡­I should just be honest and apologize.

    Along with the sound of a bang.

    My head hit the table as I bowed to him.

    ¡°Your highness Second. I sincerely apologize for trying to test you in that manner. I¡¯m ready to receive some punishment. But if you find it in your heart to forgive this worthless me, I would love to hear what you came here for.¡±

    I can¡¯t miss this once-in-a-life-time chance.

    He is a personage that Silvia took the trouble to bring. She knows plenty of how I can ascertain a person¡¯s true nature and skill in the sword just by looking at them. His highness Second is definitely not a person who would bring harm. I don¡¯t know his purpose, but if I can benefit my house, and ultimately the Castall Kingdom, by aiding him then I should just go ahead and grab this opportunity.

    As I bowed my head, I waited for his highness Second to speak.

    And hopefully, something good will befall my Virginia Knight¡¯s House.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    How did this happen?

    That¡¯s what I want to know.

    The operation deceive suddenly took a weird turn All I had nned was to ¡°while wearing rare clothes, pretend to be a foreign noble and trick Silvia¡¯s dad into writing a letter of introduction to the Magic Academy¡±.

    It would be a letter of introduction from a man who was knighted by his ability with the sword alone. Even if there was no real ¡°power¡± behind his backing, there would be ¡°trust¡±. And that, in turn would surely bring a positive reply from the Royal Magic Academy.

    But this was the result.

    What the heck.

    Why is Noir-san lowering his head?

    And what¡¯s with ¡°your Highness¡±?

    Testing?¡¡Punishment?¡¡I really don¡¯t get this.

    I nced over to where Silvia was. Her eyes were like dots and she was frozen solid.

    She has no idea either. I don¡¯t get it.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Ah, no. There¡¯s one thing I do get.

    And that is¨D¨D

    ¡°Lift your face.¡±

    ¨D¨DThat I should take advantage of this.

    After saying so in a voice full of pride, Noir-san raised his face.

    Strangely enough, even though I can¡¯t see her, I¡¯m fairly certain of what kind of face Silvia is making at this moment. Something like ¡°What are you spouting!? ¡± kind of face.

    But there is no turning back now. I decided to continue pretending to be a ¡°somewhat important person¡± and see how far can I go.

    ¡°I too feel sorry for having to somewhat deceive you¡­¡­ but you see, there are some circumstances that force me to conceal my identity. You should be able to understand, right? ¡°

    ¡°Absolutely. I will not speak a word of this.¡±

    Oh. I was just trying my luck, but it seems like it worked out.

    ¡°Today, I came to trouble you with two requests.¡±

    ¡°No at all. If it is within my powers.¡±

    ¡­¡­Seems like Noir-san has been incredibly deceived. I wonder what kind of misunderstanding is he under?

    I¡¯m getting increasingly worried about the Virginia family. Aren¡¯t you a knight that has sworn your allegiance to the King of Castall?¡¡In the first ce, him bowing his head to some random person of unknown birth is a little¡­¡­

    I have to admit he truly is Silvia¡¯s father. In a lot of ways.

    However, no matter how dumb he might be, I can¡¯t be too careless. I switched gears and made full use of my head as I thought about the next words.

    ¡°Then, the first one is but a trivial request. I¡¯d like to have a connection to the Royal Magic Academy. Do you think you can do it? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. If you want to transfer to the first year, I can immediately write you a letter of introduction this very moment. I used to share the battlefield with an elven man called Kevin who is now the person in charge of the first years.¡±

    ¡­¡­Wow. I thought Noir-san would be a trustworthy person, but I didn¡¯t think it would be to this extent. He really is amazing.

    However, transferring isn¡¯t good. The duration is quite long. All I need is to quickly sneak in and take a quick peek at the Grimoires.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine just for a short time. Do you have any ideas? ¡°

    ¡°Uhmm. In that case, I think it would be better to make it a short-term abroad study.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Great idea. That way I can make it look like I came to see how a foreign country¡¯s magic academy was like.

    What should I do for the period? The shorter the better, but it¡¯ll be bad if I can¡¯t find the Grimoires in two or three days.

    Oops, and speaking of which, Silvia also needs to learn the Second Form and Third Form of the fire attribute. Would she be able to learn it by flipping through it like I did?

    ¡­¡­Well, since I¡¯m bing a little uneasy, should I take longer?

    ¡°Alright, two weeks should do for the period. Can I ask you for a letter of introduction with that in mind?¡±

    ¡°Certainly.¡±

    Just as Noir-san answered, his eyes nced over towards Silvia.

    It seems like he is a bit anxious about the second request. And he probably is expecting it to be about Silvia. Noir-san seems to be quite smart. Then I wonder why is he making such a weird misunderstanding? Not that I really mind it since it was thanks to that that I was saved.

    ¡°Well then. With the trivial request out of the way, let¡¯s move to the important one.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    Noir-san replied with an understanding expression.

    After correcting my sitting posture, I opened my mouth.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get straight to the point¡­¡­ I¡¯ve taken a liking to our Silvia here. She has a talent for archery and magic. Would you allow her to apany us as apanion in our travels?¡±

    I slightly lowered my head as I made my request.

    If he allows Silvia to apany me right now, when the issue about the ¡°spy¡± from the Third Knight Orderes to light in the distant future, I think Noir-san will be on my side. If possible, I¡¯d love to have some sort of direct approval from the Virginia House.

    ¡­¡­However, just now I changed how I addressed myself from first person to ¡°Us¡±. Noir-san is quite sharp. I wonder if that was a stupid move?

    ¡°P-please raise your head.¡±

    Noir-san said in a panicking voice. I slowly raised my head.

    ¡°She is but an unskilled daughter. If Your Highness is fine with her, please do not hesitate to make use of her. However, are you really picking Silvia¡­? ¡°

    Seems like he has some doubt remaining.

    Well, no wonder. In Noir-san¡¯s eyes, Silvia is only a girl yearning for knights whom can barely handle the sword. She isn¡¯t even treated as a knight.

    ¡°Certainly, she has no talent for the sword. However, for the bow and magic, we can confidently dere that she has a talent that would make her famous across the whole world. That we guarantee. Silvia should just leave the knights ande with us.¡±

    I dered with confidence.

    ¡°You say Silvia is gifted¡­¡­?¡±

    Noir-san still wasn¡¯t quite convinced. He¡¯s stubborn.

    ¡°She has been borrowed from the Third Knight Order on a two-year contract. After that period is over, we had the intention toe to the Knight Order and ask if she could remain with me. For that, we want to borrow your power, Noir-dono.¡±

    Aftering so far I really want Silvia, so I try to show it in my behavior.

    ¡°¡­¡­With all due respect¡­¡­ no, certainly.¡±

    Noir-san tried to say something against it, but immediately denied it. And with a face as if he had finally made a decision he spoke.

    ¡°To request it so profoundly. I¡¯m sure it will be as you say. I will patiently wait here to listen about her exploits that are sure toe.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    After Noir-san words, I could hear from behind Silvia¡¯s audible breath filled with deep emotions.

    I¡¯m not really sure what to say now, but he is giving his OK, right?¡¡It¡¯s fine to take it as that, right?

    ¡°That¡¯s a splendid disposition. We by no means will forget the help of the Virginia house.¡±

    I nodded, satisfied, and smiled as much as I could. I then took Silvia and left the Virginia house.

    ¡­¡­Strangely, I feel like I barely have any strength in my legs, so the journey back felt a little shaky. God, I really was nervous.

    All the way back, Silvia kept saying ¡°This idiot! ¡± ¡°Huge idiot! ¡± not shutting up.

    And even though you said ¡°Just being there with you made me feel like my heart would stop several times¡±. I know that at the end, when Noir-san acknowledged your talent for the bow, your eyes got a bit watery. Then wasn¡¯t it worth it to have your heart almost stop several times?

    But anyway, I got my connection to the Royal Magic Academy¡­¡­ However, I¡¯m scared to think this will be a lot harder than expected.

    I¡¯m not lying, those are my honest true feelings.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Headmaster Pa. Can we speak for a moment?¡±

    Royal Magic Academy, Headmaster¡¯s office.

    A long-eared man with beautiful features extended his hand and entered the room unreservedly.

    At the center of the room, surrounded by bookshelves, a pen was silently moving in a desk with documents piled up. There sat the woman of faded beauty, wearing sses, that the man talked to; Headmaster Pa.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t I always told you not to call me by my name, Kevin-sensei.¡±

    Just as she said that, Pa stopped the hand holding the pen.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it fine here? We¡¯re the only two here.¡±

    ¡°Ara, I wonder if you¡¯re trying to hit on me? ¡°

    ¡°Hahaha. It¡¯s against my policy as a gentleman to try and make a move on a woman less than half my age.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, that¡¯s right, speaking of which, you¡­¡­¡±

    Pa held her head as she looked at the smiling Kevin. Seeing that, Kevin tried to follow up.

    ¡°No, don¡¯t get me wrong. I do not mean to say that Headmaster Pa is unattractive. If you were a bit more, just a bit more, maybe with a hundred years more you would be inside my strike zone.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯ll never understand elves and their tendency for mature women.¡±

    ¡°Eh, what was that? ¡°

    ¡°I was speaking to myself.¡±

    By the way, the age of the headmaster of the Royal Magic Academy Pa Memento is 49 years old, and the age of Kevin, the teacher in charge of the first graders, is 130 years old. Although Pa is a human, and her looks are good enough to mistake her of being younger than she is, Kevin is an elf, so he looks so youthful that it¡¯s hard to think he has lived over a hundred years.

    ¡°By the way, why did youe here?¡¡You¡¯re not here just to chit-chat, are you? ¡°

    When Pa asked, Kevin snapped his finger as if remembering and replied.

    ¡°A letter from Noir came.¡±

    ¡°Ara, that is rare¡­¡­ But it doesn¡¯t seem like it¡¯s just a letter.¡±

    Pa gets that feeling after seeing Kevin¡¯s face.

    ¡°Exactly. It¡¯s written in the letter¨D¨DA high ss noble from another country hopes for a short-term abroad study at the Magic Academy. I would like to ask if he could study in your ss alongside my daughter Silvia for two weeks¨D¨D.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    As soon as Kevin¡¯s expression became serious, Pa¡¯s expression also hardened.

    The request itself is nothing serious. It¡¯s a two-week short-term study abroad. The problem is, the person who made the request and the person in whose behalf the request is made.

    ¡°What do you think? ¡°

    As if he was waiting for Pa to ask, Kevin opened his mouth and replied.

    ¡°For that stubborn Noir to just rmend ¡®A high ss noble¡¯. In other words, he is someone Noir cannot help but to acknowledge. There¡¯s also the politenguage in the letter of introduction and even going to such lengths as to ce his actual daughter as guard. This is clearly an abnormal situation. I think it¡¯s necessary to take proper measures in advance.¡±

    ¡°I more or less agree with you.¡±

    The two people groaned with their arms folded.

    In the letter of introduction there is nothing about what kind of person wasing to study abroad, or for what purpose. All they knew was his name, ¡°Second¡±.

    ¡°Normally, this would be quite suspicious¡­ right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. But this is a letter from that Noir¡­¡­¡±

    They couldn¡¯t just ignore it. His reputation as a ¡°tough knight in armor who was serious in the ways of the sword¡± gave the man called Noir that much trust.

    After that, some time passed.

    Pa spent a lot of time thinking about it and finally decided on some rough measures.

    ¡°¡­¡­There are two measures I came up with. The first, assuming that this Second-kun is foreign royalty, let him spend his two weeks giving him a courteous reception and a more than satisfactory treatment. The other is to take the stance of treating all students equally and let his short-term study abroad conclude with a mindset of ¡°let sleeping dogs lie¡±. So, which one should we? ¡°

    Both the person speaking and the one listening had bitter faces.

    ¡°Thetter one is better, I suppose¡­¡­ although I¡¯m reluctant. After all, there¡¯s a reason why Second-kun can¡¯t be given exceptional treatment in my ss.¡±

    Along with Kevin saying so, Pa also nodded.

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s true. Because in your ss¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. In ss A¨D¨D¡±

    ¨D¨Dis where the second Prince Maine is.

 Chapter 14: Royal Magic Academy

    <h4>Chapter 14: Royal Magic Academy</h4>

    A week has passed since Operation Deceive.

    Ever since then, Silvia and I have fulfillingly spent our days selling the ¡ºme Wolf Fur¡», and earning experience on the side.

    The experience we earned was mainly by killing slimes. If you go deep into the ¡ºSlime Forest¡» that is located on the road from the capital to the mine, you can find a rare slime that earns you a good amount of experience.

    From it all, the best harvest was the ¡ºWand of Recovery Magic ? Medium¡» that dropped from a holy slime. It¡¯s a super rare item with a drop rate of only 0.05%.

    This ¡ºWand of Recovery Magic ? Medium¡» is a convenient wand because long as it is equipped, anyone is able to use the ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ ¡¶Medium Recovery¡·. In particr, it demonstrates its true value by having a character specialized in the growth type of the healer system use it. That is because the effect ¡¸£«£«£¨plus plus£©¡¹is added only when healer-type users handle it. £«£« is a double reinforcement, and with it, it can be expected to exert 2.5 times the usual effect. With a ¡¶Medium Recovery¡·reinforced with £«£«, you can roughly recover around 50% of the HP of an intermediate yer. As you can see, the added effect is quite powerful.

    Unfortunately, neither me nor Silvia are the healer type, so the £«£« reinforcement cannot be used, however, it¡¯s great to be able to use ¡¶Medium Recovery¡· without any restriction. Thank you, Holy Slime. You gave us a wonderful gift. I wonder if it would go ¡°Piki! ¡± and be happy to receive my thanks?

    ¡ª¡ª-

    And thus, the day to go to the Royal Magic Academy arrived.

    ¡°Is it really okay? ¡°

    Bringing her face close to me, Silvia asked. She¡¯s been like that since a while ago.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, since you killed half of them, I¡¯ve already told you that¡¯s your fair share.¡±

    No matter what, after giving her half of the gold from selling the me Wolf Fur, she¡¯s been spouting ¡°This is too much for someone like me¡±.

    We had 120 pieces of fur and they sold for 1 million a piece. 1 million x 120 is 120 million CL, of which half of it, 60 million CL, is Silvia¡¯s share.

    ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s okay for me to get such arge sum of gold in addition to the Bow of the zing Wolf¡­¡­?¡±

    She¡¯s quite hesitant and with a gloomy atmosphere.

    Right now what should be important is to infiltrate the Magic Academy, but as is, it wouldn¡¯t be weird if we¡¯re made light of by the teachers or students. I need to convince her somehow that this is normal.

    ¡°Listen here, Silvia. 60 million is something you can earn in a day. Small change is small change. Remember we¡¯re aiming to be the world¡¯s top. Stopining about some measly 60 million.¡±

    ¡°But even 10 million in a day¡­¡­¡±

    Oh no, at this rate.

    ¡°You¡¯re setting the bar too low. You¡¯re already part of the team that will be the world¡¯s top. Don¡¯t forget it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Team? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, team. I¡¯ll form it soon.¡±

    In Mobius, a group created by yers was called ¡ºTeam¡». A minimum of three people is required and a quest for the team formation needed to bepleted. But it was so easy that virtually anyone could create a team without problems and y with other yers.

    I¡¯m not sure if the same system exists in this world, but it would be safer to aim for the world¡¯s top by creating a team. Because of the Team¡¯s Master authority, it made it very efficient. It was very convenient to be able to freely see the stats and skill list of team members without needing their permission and to give instructions from remote locations using the Team-limitedmunication function. By all means, I want to create one when the number ofpanions increases.

    ¡°I am¡­¡­ a member of Second-dono¡¯s team¡­¡­? ¡°

    Silvia muttered as her eyes incessantly blinked.

    Seems like her confidence is gradually rising and the idea is finally beginning to settle in her mind.

    ¡°Umu, that¡¯s right!¡¡I am the first team member of the man who¡¯ll be the world¡¯s top!¡¡I can¡¯t be some delicate flower! ¡°

    She got full of spirit suddenly. She also emphasized ¡°First¡±. Are you trying to ce ranks in the members?

    Well, apparently she already forgot about the 60 million at least. This awkward girl is pretty cute.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Having such a conversation, Silvia and I arrived at the Royal Magic Academy.

    Located about an hour away from the middle of the capital by horse, the school is a huge castle-like building, so big that you have to look up.

    ¡°Wee, we¡¯ve been expecting you.¡±

    As we got down from the horses, two people received us, a young man apparently in his twenties and a woman who looked like she was in herte thirties.

    ¡°Thank you for taking the trouble of personally receiving us, teachers.¡±

    I answered using the best speech that I could think of. As expected, some level of courtesy is required when you are a student and are talking to a teacher. As I bowed, I poked Silvia with my elbow, whom was just standing surprised next to me.

    ¡°You are Second, right¡­? Don¡¯t worry about it. ¡°

    The young man asked me. Right, I haven¡¯t introduced myself yet.

    ¡°Yeah. I am Second and next to me is Silvia. I thank you in advance for taking care of us these next two weeks.¡±

    After I said so with a smile, the man and woman exchanged nces, and then the woman began to speak.

    ¡°I¡¯m Pa Memento, the headmaster. Nice to meet you. And this here is.¡±

    ¡°Kevin. I¡¯m the homeroom teacher of the first year¡¯s ss A, where we will be weing Second-kun. Nice to meet you.¡±

    I shook hands with the two people. So, the headmaster is a woman, huh? Unexpected. And Kevin-san seems like he¡¯s the elf Noir-san was talking about.

    Simrly, the two people exchanged greeting with Silvia. By the way, I wonder what kind of treatment would Silvia get?

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the sudden question but, will Silvia be also in ss A? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, she will. The amodations during the study abroad period will not be a dormitory but an inn, therefore you won¡¯t be separated.¡±

    Pa was the one who answered.

    I see, Silvia is supposed to be my personal guard. Damn, was my question weird?

    ¡°Alright, shall we go?¡±

    We entered the school building while being guided by Kevin-san.

    They don¡¯t seem to be suspicious of me right now, but¡­¡­ I need to keep my act together for the next two weeks.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking for today, I¡¯ll have you attend sses in the morning and give you some guidance about the school building in the afternoon. How does that sound? ¡°

    ¡°Will you be the guide, Kevin-sensei? ¡°

    ¡°No, a student will. I asked in ss A for someone, so it¡¯s already been decided whom will. The afternoon is basically self-study and homework time, but if you¡¯re an excellent student you¡¯ll find yourself with some free time.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? You have my thanks.¡±

    Alright. Let¡¯s kill some time in ss for now and squeeze information from the kid who will be my guide in the afternoon. Although I say that, all I care is finding the location of the Grimoires.

    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ve arrived. This is the ss A.¡±

    While I wasughing in my mind, we¡¯ve apparently arrived at the ssroom.

    Kevin-san opened the door without hesitation. The inside of the ssroom was structured in the shape of a fan, simr to the university lecture rooms, and desks were lined up horizontally like steps. So, there are around 30 students, huh? All of them were seated in silence.

    ¡°Good morning everyone. Well, as was announced the other day, two transfer students will be spending two weeks with ss A starting today. Let me introduced them to you. Second-kun, Silvia-san,e in.¡±

    Kevin-san spoke indifferently and then called out to us. Seems like it¡¯s our turn.

    Silvia and I stepped into the ssroom.

    In that moment.

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D¤Ã¡°

    All the students breathed in at the same time, then it suddenly became noisy.

    It¡¯s now been a while since I came to this different world, so by now I know the reason.

    I think, maybe it¡¯s because of my appearance. Mine is a beautiful figure that is impossible to exist in reality. Really, as expected from the One-Time Premium store avatar.

    ¡°Alright then, introduce yourselves.¡±

    Having reached the teaching tform, Kevin-san urged us.

    ¡°I¡¯vee visiting from the ind nation of Zipang, my name is Second. Nice to meet you all.¡±

    ¡°Si-Silvia Virginia. Thank you for your consideration.¡±

    When I gracefully made a light, elegant bow, the mellow voice of some girls could be heard. The male students, on the other hand, are dead quiet. Seems like they¡¯re in a trance looking at Silvia¡¯s lovely face.

    ¡°Thank you. You two can go ahead and take a seat.¡±

    Our seats were in the front row, right in the middle. I can feel a lot of stares directed at us.

    ¡°Since we have some new faces today, let¡¯s start by reviewing the basics.¡±

    After making sure we were on our seats, Kevin-san immediately began the ss.

    This would probably be quite boring for me. With that idea in mind, I decided to half listen to the lecture.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    The morning ss was finally over.

    The contents of the ss were shockingly unexpected.

    I mean, what¡¯s up with¡¸A deep understanding in important in exercising Magic¡¹and ¡¸In order to deepen such knowledge, all magicians aim to enter the school¡¹.

    ¡­¡­It¡¯s my first time hearing such a thing.

    Can they not learn magic after reading a Grimoire?

    Understanding magic and deepening such understanding¡­¡­ I have no idea what that¡¯s about.

    While listening to such a ss, I gradually began to grow anxious and even started to wonder ¡°I might not be able to learn what I need by reading a book¡±. I, who was having such an internal conflict, came to Kevin-san at the end of the ss.

    ¡°I¡¯d love if you could introduce me the person who will be my guide. I¡¯d like to have lunch together and deepen our friendship.¡±

    Those were the words I came up with since I was quite impatient.

    Afterwards, Kevin-san¡¯s eyes rounded as if surprised for just a moment, then he spoke.

    ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t mind. Uh, there he is. Maine-kun.¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­here. Did you call for me, Sensei? ¡°

    A male student named Maine came after being called out by Kevin-san. His appearance was closer to a beautiful boy (Bishounen) rather than a beautiful young man (Biseinen). His height was slightly lower than Silvia at around 160 cm and had a very thinplexion, giving off a timid impression. Maybe because he looked up to me due to our height difference, with his pretty face, he looked closer to a girl than a boy.

    ¡°Are your preparations for the afternoon guidance ready? Second-kun here would like to have lunch with you in order to break the ice earlier. It¡¯s a bit sooner than I told you, but could you take him to the cafeteria? ¡°

    ¡°Ah, yes. It¡¯s fine by me.¡±

    ¡°Good to hear. Then, I leave him in your hands.¡±

    Maine nodded to Kevin-san¡¯s words. His blonde hair swung smoothly like silk.

    ¡°Excuse me. Is it alright to ask him questions regarding magic? ¡°

    I stopped Kevin-san and asked if I could get that sort of information from Maine before he left. I don¡¯t want it to be misunderstood.

    ¡°¡­¡­No problem. He is the top of the first graders.¡±

    ¡°I see. It was a silly question.¡±

    Iughed at myself as I smiled and turned back.

    He is the top!¡¡And I¡¯m free to ask him anything? What a great luck.

    ¡°Maine, thanks for showing me around.¡±

    When I said so while smiling, Maine stared at me in puzzlement for a second, then he smiled too.

    ¡°Yeah!¡¡Leave it to me, Second-san.¡±

    Good, good. He¡¯s not suspicious of me. If he¡¯s like this, I should be able to easily find out where the Grimoire are.

    ¡­¡­Oops, before that.

    ¡°Silvia, let¡¯s go to the cafeteria.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, o-okay!¡¡Excuse me, can you let me through? Sorry.¡±

    I gave a helping hand to Silvia, who was being bombarded by questions by the female students who had her surrounded.

    Right after the ss ended Kevin-san left as if he was in a hurry and had forgotten there was somewhere he needed to be, or at least that¡¯s how he tried to make it look. Seems like I¡¯ll need to take some measures just in case.

    ¡°Sorry, I kept you wa¨D¨D¡±

    After rushing here, Silvia suddenly stopped. Her sight was turned towards Maine.

    ¡°Prince Ma, Ma-Ma-Ma, Maine? ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?¡¡Prince?

    ¡°There is no difference in our rank inside the school. Please treat me as your equal.¡±

    Maine, whom until just a moment ago was smiling cheerfully, suddenly turned expressionless as he replied.

    Prince, prince¡­¡­ In other words, Maine is a prince of the Castall Kingdom?

    ¡°Fo-forgive me for my rude beha¡­¡­ I¡¯m sorry. Maine-dono.¡±

    Silvia bowed back and immediately apologized. It was the movements of a person ustomed to being yelled at.

    Anyway, a prince, huh? ¡­This is my first time seeing one. Somehow, he looks different from the image I had.

    ¡°Kneel before me! ¡± feels more like it than ¡°Please treat me as your equal¡±. Well, let¡¯s do as he says and treat him as my equal.

    ¡°Anyway, Second-san. Let me take you to the cafeteria.¡±

    Suddenly, Maine pulled me by the hand. He sure is assertive.

    Although he was cold to a beauty like Silvia, he is assertive with me.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­This guy, can¡¯t be, right?

    No, wait. No, no, no, but what if¡­¡­ hmm?¡¡No, but maybe. But I heard that in older times, kings and nobles had that sort of disposition¡­¡­ Argh, what is this?¡¡It really bothers me¡­¡­ But that¡¯s exactly why I have to be serious about this. If therees a day when this prince aims for my back hole¡­¡­ Could I refuse such authority at that time¡­¡­?

    ¡­¡­Alright. Let¡¯s ask him straight up.

    ¡°Hey, Maine. Are you gay? ¡°

    ¡°EEEEHHH!?¡¡Of course not!¡¡Why are you suddenly asking that!? ¡°

    ¡°¡¡¡°

    Maine denied it while his face was red as a tomato. Silvia¡¯s jaw seemed to be disjointed since her mouth was fully agape and her eyes rounded in shock.

    ¡°Because, you seem to favor me way more than Silvia, so I thought¡­¡­ Maybe you like, ¡®that¡¯, you know?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®that¡¯!?¡¡You got it wrong!¡¡I like girls! ¡°

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡You know you don¡¯t have to hide it, right? Hey Silvia, you too say something.¡±

    ¡°M-me??¡¡No, His Highness Maine is probably just wary of women, after all he is the second prince.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m asking you in all seriousness!¡±

    ¡°Ouch!?¡¡Do you really need to hit me!? ¡°

    I spent the rest of the road to the cafeteria arguing with this girl.

    By the time we arrived at the cafeteria, we three had already opened our hearts to each other.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°How was it?¡±

    Headmaster¡¯s office.

    Kevin answered Pa¡¯s question.

    ¡°He is outrageous. He didn¡¯t even know the second prince. And those weren¡¯t lies.¡±

    ¡°Ara¡­¡­ that is.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s incredible how much posure¡¯ overflows from his whole body. Just where is a royal family like that¡­¡­?¡±

    Remembering the unique atmosphere Second was d in, Kevin sighed.

    What he perceived as ¡°Composure¡± were remnants of ¡°Second seeing this world still as a game¡± since he was aiming to the world¡¯s top, but Kevin would never be able to understand it as such.

    Even if he had lived for over a hundred years, there was no way for him to know the thoughts of a man who had bet everything in his life into that game.

    ¡°Speaking of which, he said he came from an ind nation called Zipang. Could he be the King of Zipang? ¡°

    ¡°It is not good to try to guess. But well, in any case, he probably has a standing higher than the second prince¡­¡­¡±

    He didn¡¯t know the second prince of a country he came to visit. Or in other words, he had no need to know of him.

    Therefore, it could be inferred that Zipang was above the Castall Kingdom.

    ¡°Zipang¡­¡­ I¡¯ve never heard of it before. I¡¯ll look into it.¡±

    ¡°Please do.¡±

    After such conversation, they both returned to their respective jobs.

    And the two weeks where these two people¡¯s stomach would hurt had begun¡­¡­

 Chapter 15: Backbiting Boys

    <h4>Chapter 15: Backbiting Boys</h4>

    ¡°Second-san. I¡¯ve taken a liking to you.¡±

    At the empty school cafeteria.

    As soon as I finished my beef bowl, Maine said those words.

    Just as I was removing the bad aftertaste of his previous words with this meal, he went and brought it up again.

    ¡°Hey. What¡¯s with that condescending attitude? I¡¯m the man who will be the world¡¯s top (ording to my ns).¡±

    When I answered back, a full smile was stered on Maine¡¯s face.

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I mean, Second-san!¡¡This is the first time I¡¯ve spoken to such an ¡°unreserved person¡±¡­¡­! ¡°

    With a self-satisfied expression, Maine seemingly entered his own world.

    ¡°After hearing that there would be no difference in status in the Royal Magic Academy, I was really looking forward to enrolling here, but soon I came to the realization that everyone still saw me as The Second Prince. No matter if it¡¯s at the pce or at school, I¡¯m just The Second Prince. My mother is the only person who sees me as myself¡­¡­¡±

    Hmm. Well, that¡¯s amon story.

    ¡°Se-Second-dono.¡±

    Next to me, Silvia poked my sides. Ohh, so you can make this kind of voice, huh?

    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay, Silvia-san. That¡¯s a part that I really like about Second-san.¡±

    ¡°N-no, but he was quite rude.¡±

    ¡°You mean when he asked me ¡®Are you gay? ¡®, right after meeting me for the first time?¡¡That¡¯s a thing of the past.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia couldn¡¯t say anything back.

    After drinking some cold water, I opened my mouth and moved to the main subject.

    ¡°By the way, Maine. Do you know where the Grimoires are stored? ¡°

    ¡°Uhmm, if you¡¯re speaking about the ones inside the school, the First Form and Second Form are in the library. The Third Form one is also in the library, but you need the permission of the head librarian if you want to borrow it. And then, the Fourth Form¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait. There¡¯s also the Fourth Form in here? ¡°

    ¡°No. The Fourth Form one supposedly is being kept in the royal pce. Although I¡¯ve only seen it once.¡±

    (TLN: on book: Fire Attribute Attack Magic ¨C Fourth Form)

    ¡°I see¡­¡­¡±

    What a shame. If the ¡¸Fourth Form¡¹ Grimoire was here I would have saved the trouble of going to an Upper-ss dungeon to get it to drop.

    ¡°Second-san, do you want to read them? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I want to read the Second Form and Third Form ones.¡±

    When I answered immediately, Maine appeared to be very intrigued.

    ¡°Are Grimoires that rare in Zipang? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Th-that¡¯s right. They are rare.¡±

    Crap. Now that I remember, I came here with that backstory.

    ¡°I j-just want to take a quick nce at them. I wonder if I¡¯ll be allowed to? ¡°

    I tried to change the flow of the conversation, but somehow faltered. No good.

    ¡°Ahaha, there no need to be flustered about it. I¡¯ll show you to the libraryter.¡±

    ¡°O-okay. Thanks. That¡¯d be great.¡±

    Safe.

    ¡°Well then, it¡¯s about time we should get going.¡±

    Maine said while standing up, and then he started to guide us.

    ¡ª¨C

    ¡°This is the library. Although it is already closed.¡±

    Maine was very thorough and gave us polite information about each building in the academy, but by the time we arrived at the main course, it was already dark outside.

    Certainly, there were many open grounds, gymnasiums,rge lecture halls, and many other ces that I could only describe with ¡°Wow¡±, so I think it was nice of him to take the time to guide me.

    But Maine¡¯s exnations were way too long. Although I told him I wasn¡¯t that interested, every time we came across something he would go ¡¸By the way¡¹ and ¡¸Did you know¡¹ and exin to me when it was built and by who. This was each and every time, almost as if he was an erudite.

    I can see why Maine is the top of the first year. This guy surely has got some weird information mania. Truly a deviant prince who knows nothing but to gather knowledge.

    ¡°The library can be used by any student of the Royal Magic Academy, so you should try again tomorrow. By the way, the chief librarian is an excellent woman who had experience working at the Royal Great Library. The headmaster scouted her directly not long ago, looking forward to her ability¨D¨D¡±

    There he goes again!

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­ ok, ok, ok, that much is enough, Prince.¡±

    I ced my hand on Maine¡¯s back, trying to stop his erudite side from going on, and subtly suggested that we go back.

    Silvia too, as one would expect, had a fed-up look and her worn-out appearance could be seen following me from behind.

    ¡°Maine, how are you going to go back? ¡°

    When I asked, Maine looked around and said,

    ¡°Soon, someone will¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯vee to pick you up.¡±

    The next moment, a woman in maid clothes showed up from somewhere. How did she do it?

    ¡°I had a lot of fun today. Well, see you tomorrow. Second-san, Silvia-san.¡±

    Maine said that, waving his hand as he left with his maid.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Haa©`. I¡¯m dead tired.¡±

    ¡°That should be my line¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia, who heard my mutter, responded a bit angrily and held her head.

    ¡°Second-dono¡­¡­ seriously, I seriously beg you, please¡­¡­ that was really bad for my heart¡­¡­ seriously¡­¡­¡±

    She begged me while continuously repeating ¡®seriously¡¯.

    Looks like this was a mentally taxing day for her. What a poor thing. Who dared treat you like that!?

    ¡­¡­Ah.

    But wait, maybe this was a good oue. After all¨D¨D

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Silvia, from tomorrow onwards you¡¯ll be holed up in the library. You have to learn the fire attribute magic, right? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Gosh.¡±

    In order to master ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ you first need to master ¡¾Magic¡¿. At least I want her to learn the ¡¸Third Form¡¹ of fire attribute attack magic simr to the ¡ºBow of the zing Wolf¡»¡®s attack.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do my own thing. Isn¡¯t that great?¡±

    When I said so while smiling, Silvia muttered ¡°But that would be somewhat¡­¡­¡± feeling a bit troubled. I don¡¯t know why she¡¯s being sulky, but she looks kinda cute.

    ¡°¨D¨DI know right? Hahaha.¡±

    ¡°Haha, that¡¯s hrious.¡±

    Suddenly, I heard some voices from the back of the dimly lit corridor.

    Seems like there were still some students apart from me and Silvia in the school building.

    It happened when I was thinking, ¡®since I can¡¯t enter the library today, I wonder if I should go back to the inn¡¯.

    ¡°Anyways, did you see it?¡¡That guy was a transfer student.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I did, I did. Unbelievable. Men and women.¡±

    Seems like a rumor about me has begun. Since I was a bit anxious and curious, I hugged the edge of the hallway and decided to listen. Not sure if Silvia was also curious, but she was sticking tightly behind my back.

    ¡°He was with Prince Maine. I wonder if there¡¯s something there.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that nerdy, mama-boy? ¡°

    ¡°H-hey, if someone hears you say that¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, there¡¯s nobody here to listen. Anyway, don¡¯t you agree with me? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Well. It¡¯s true that he gets on my nerves. For a guy who looks down on us, I can only hear it as sarcastic when he says to not worry about status. That¡¯s why he¡¯s a loner.¡±

    ¡°Hahahaha, totally a loner. Serves him right!¡±

    ¡°I know. Hahahaha.¡±

    Wow¡­¡­ What terrible things to say. That is nder.

    But still, was that guy Maine a loner? Or maybe he¡¯s being indirectly bullied?

    ¡­¡­Can¡¯t be helped, we¡¯re not even friends yet. Maybe I could make a connection to the Castall royal family and have them show me the ¡¸Fourth Form¡¹ book. No, there¡¯s nothing I can do, it can¡¯t be helped then!

    While I was giving myself excuses with a ¡°yeah, that¡¯s right¡±, their backbitingughter increased a notch.

    ¡°After all, he can get any grade he wants with gold, right?¡¡He sure can¡¯t take it lightly since he¡¯s a prince. Meanwhile we¡¯re busting our asses.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s really disgusting. That stupid goody-two-shoes act of his.¡±

    ¡°Like this, he will surely get all buddy-buddy with that new meek transfer student. Trash likes to gather more trash. Just kidding.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, then what about that ¡°useless demihuman¡±?¡±

    ¡°Ah, I totally forgot. That ipetent is also with him. Hahahaha! ¡°

    ¡°Hahahahaha¡­¡­ huh? ¡°

    ¨D¨DIt was at that moment.

    Silvia somehow jumped out.

    Eh?¡­¡­ What are you doing so suddenly?

    Somehow, the same words that Silvia said to me escaped from my mouth.

    ¡°T-transfer student!? ¡°

    ¡°Bastards, was that ¡°discrimination against demihumans¡±? ¡°

    ¡°What!? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m asking is that was discrimination against demihumans?¡±

    Ahh, I see. Did that trigger Silvia¡¯ sense of justice (lol)? If so, then it can¡¯t be helped.

    Anyway, it¡¯s been a while since Ist saw her knightly figure. Although I don¡¯t really miss it.

    ¡°Ohh, I suppose you don¡¯t know, but there¡¯s this girl called Eko Leafret in F ss, and she¡¯s a failure! ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, for real, she¡¯s a total ipetent. And she also happens to be a demihuman!¡¡So, it¡¯s not really discrimination! ¡°

    These ndering boys are desperately trying to make up excuses.

    ¡°Is that so? Then, what about the matter of calling me and Second-dono trash?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Geh.¡±

    Their faces are turning paler and paler.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure we cane to an understanding if we speak this out. Right? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s not what I asked you! ¡°

    After Silvia dropped her fist on top of those two guys¡¯ heads, they both went away crying.

    You guys should be grateful that Silvia¡¯s STR stat is low¡­¡­

    ¡°Hehe, I sessfully punished them.¡±

    Silvia, with a face that said ¡®How was it? Did you see it?¡¯ smiled proudly as she turned towards me. I¡¯m sure if this girl was a dog, her tail would be swinging from side to side.

    I hope this doesn¡¯t bes a problemter on¡­¡­ Well, no use worrying about it.

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving.¡±

    I left the school building while looking at the map of the inn that Kevin-san gave me earlier.

    ¡­¡­the failure demihuman, Eko Leafret. It more or less became stuck with me.

 Chapter 16: Flashback

    <h4>Chapter 16: shback</h4>

    The next day.

    I properly paid attention to the lessons, then came the afternoon.

    We went to the library.

    ¡°Is it okay for me to see the Second Form Grimoires of all attributes?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s fine. Please give me a moment.¡±

    After speaking to the librariandy at the reception desk, she answered as so and went to the back of the library. With a ¡°Here you go¡±, she handed me four Grimoires. She was quite friendly. She had nice looks too.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Alright.¡±

    After flipping the pages of the ¡¸Second Form¡¹ Grimoire of the fire attribute attack magic, I opened my status window to confirm the ¡¾Magic¡¿ skill of ¡¶Fire attribute ¨C Second Form¡· properly showing there and then I passed the book on to Silvia.

    It had nothing to do with ¡¸Deep understanding¡¹ or anything like that. Maybe because it is magic that I used in the game in my previous life, it is determined that I already possess a deep understanding of it. I wonder if that¡¯s it? Well, I was able to learn it so it doesn¡¯t matter.

    ¡°Already? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, I learned it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­The same as ever.¡±

    Looking at Silvia that was by my side, I flipped the pages of the remaining three books and handed them over to her.

    Okay, I learned them all. Next is the Third Form.

    ¡°Excuse me, is it possible to take a look at the Third Form Grimoires? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ please wait a minute.¡±

    A little embarrassed, the librariandy headed towards the back of the library again.

    After waiting for a while, she came back apanied by a fat 50-year-old woman who wore thick makeup.

    ¡°Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Silk, the head librarian. Are you the rumored transfer student? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m Second.¡±

    She might be named Silk, but she sure isn¡¯t silky at all. Rather, she looks like some badly wrapped gift with some weird wrapping paper pattern someone hastily pped together.

    ¡°What a good-looking guy!¡¡A pleasure to meet you.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    She energetically shook my hands. Her hands felt more like cream bread, having that puni puni texture, or rather poisonous bread due to those eerie purple-colored nails.

    ¡°Well then. I heard you want to see the Third Form Grimoires; may I ask you some questions first? ¡°

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°First, can you tell me the purpose? ¡°

    Silk asked with a smiling face. But behind those eyes she wasn¡¯t smiling at all.

    ¡°They are quite rare in my country you see, so I just hoped to get a chance to nce at them.¡±

    ¡°I see. Then, is that the same reason why you looked at the Second Form ones first? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s right. They are very rare.¡±

    ¡°Then, excuse me for being blunt. You don¡¯t seem to be interested much in the contents. Also, the Third Form is very simr to the Second Form, so I wonder if you won¡¯t get bored just flipping through it? ¡°

    Hmm.

    ¡°No, there¡¯s no way I can. There are many things that can be felt from the book itself aside from its contents.¡±

    ¡°For example? ¡°

    Augh.

    ¡°The feeling of the people who have used it previously, its history, and many other things. To begin with, since they are rare, there¡¯s this deep emotion simply by having it in your hand.¡±

    ¡°I see. However, it¡¯s difficult to lend them just for that reason¡­¡­¡±

    Damn, this old hag is a tough one.

    ¡°To tell you the truth, the loaning procedure of the Third Form books requires the approval of several people, therefore a justifiable reason needs to be given to fill in in the paperwork. I am very sorry, but this time we will have to refuse the loan request.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I understand. It¡¯s a shame.¡±

    Crap, it was useless!¡¡I was so naive, damn it.

    Silk then bowed and left with the same smiling face. I was totally hated.

    This is bad, I¡¯ll have to think of some other method¡­¡­

    ¡°Second-dono. How was it? ¡°

    Right after I returned, Silvia asked me that, to which I answered that it was useless. ¡°So there are things that even Second-dono is useless at¡± Silviaughed for some reason. It made me angry so I told her ¡°Just hurry up and learn it already¡± and gave her a finger flick on the forehead (dekopin).

    Silvia certainly learned ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Lance Archery¡· in about fifteen minutes at the Comiket, while the First Form Grimoire took her about one hour of thoroughly reading it before she finally learned it. Is it because this girl has a ¡°deep understanding¡±? Or it¡¯s just a difference in talent? I can say that I never expected her, being the Magic Archer type, to be struggling this much to learn Magic.

    ¡°I wonder if I¡¯ll be able to learn this in just two weeks¡­¡­ Second-dono, don¡¯t you have something like a trick to make this easier? ¡°

    Silvia then asked me for help.

    Trick¨D¨D a word I really dislike. When I was the world¡¯s number one yer in my previous life, a lot of fledgling yers came and asked me for ¡®tips¡¯, saying ¡°teach me how to be strong¡±, ¡°Do you have any tips for raising PS? (yer skills)¡± and many other simr questions in chat. That was really irritating. ¡°Share with us the tricks to bing the world¡¯s number one¡±, they cheerfully asked me that, but it was easy to see the selfish underlying motive they had,. Just remembering irritates me.

    This is the first time I¡¯ve heard the word ¡°Trick¡± aftering to this world, but I don¡¯t feel ufortable at all. I wonder why?

    Silvia shamelessly said ¡°If I can¡¯t learn it in two weeks, then I will just be a bother¡±, as she asked me for any tricks I could share with her. It¡¯s pleasant that she cares so much. The difference between her and the guys in my previous life is like heaven and earth. Actually, it makes me happy to be relied upon.

    ¡°Alright, I was nning to do something else today, but let¡¯s change that schedule. I will teach you.¡±

    While savoring for the first time in my life the ¡°joy of teaching others¡±, I sat next to Silvia who looked so cute with her happy and joyful face.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Up to this far is fine for today.¡±

    Around the time for the library to close, I shut the pattern-engraved Grimoire.

    It was the first time that I properly read the contents of a Grimoire but, its contents were long and difficult to read sentences. Simr to a thesis.

    It should be easier to understand by practical application than simply by reading it. Having thought so, I began to exin to Silvia in a manner simr to a wiki, like ¡°What kind of effect does this magic exert?¡±, ¡°In what situation should you used it?¡±, ¡°Against what king of monster is this effective? etc., in order for her to learn it.

    Silvia was like a serious student, properly listening to what I was saying while taking notes, and asionally asking questions.

    ¡°Did you acquire it? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­No, sorry. Not yet.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Well, don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    After asking her, Silvia shook her head apologetically. If she could learn it in a day, then there would be little sense to building a Magic Academy.

    We returned the Grimoires and left the library.

    We grew up a bit. Well, shall we go back to the inn?

    ¡°Whoaa! ¡°

    A cute girl with cat ears appeared in front of me.

    She gave a little scream and her eyes rounded into perfect circles as she looked at me with a lost-in-thought face.

    Her blue-green eyes reflected the light of the hallway; sharp, acute teeth stuck out from the edge of her mouth and her pointy ears stood out in her fluffy, chestnut-colored short-cut hair. In addition, a tail was peeking out from the back of her skirt. A cat?

    ¡­¡­Anyway, she has an incredibly foolish look on her face.

    ¡°So handsome! ¡°

    It talked.

    ¡°You mean me? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s right! ¡°

    She¡¯s somewhat cute.

    ¡°I¡¯m Eko Leafret!¡¡And you are? ¡°

    Eko Leafret. Oho, so you are the infamous¡­

    ¡°Second.¡±

    ¡°Second! ¡°

    Just as Eko called my name, she approached me with a huge smile.

    And then, she noticed Silvia that was behind me.

    ¡°Ah!¡¡And you are? ¡°

    ¡°Silvia Virginia. My best regards.¡±

    ¡°Silvia!¡¡Best regards! ¡°

    They shook hands with a smile. Although, a moment after having her hand shook so energetically, Silvia seemed to be somewhat troubled.

    Somehow, just looking at this girl makes me feel a bit happy.

    Such a cherishing manner, no, to say that such a harmless girl is a ¡°useless demihuman¡±, isn¡¯t she just being bullied? ¡­¡­It¡¯s inexcusable. Sorry to butt in.

    ¡°Hey Eko, would you happen to have some sort of problem? ¡°

    While it might be none of my business, I happened to hear about it.

    ¡°Eh?¡¡I don¡¯t think so? ¡°

    Seems like there¡¯s nothing wrong. Huh?

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡Come tell me if you happen to have some sort of trouble. I¡¯ll do something about it.¡±

    ¡°Really!?¡¡Thank you! ¡°

    Ahh, so cute. I want her¡­¡­ I mean, I want her to be ourpanion.

    Still, there¡¯s one thing that bothers me.

    ¡°By the way. What¡¯s with thatrge package? ¡°

    Next to Eko was a cart. It was loaded with an amount of baggage as tall as her. About 1 meter and 40, I think.

    ¡°This?¡¡As you can see, everyone asked me for something.¡±

    Ahh¡­¡­ I see, I see.

    She¡¯s their errand girl.

    Looking at it closely, the contents of the package was all books. Surely those are all books being delivered from the F ss. Did you put them in the cart and carry them all alone to the library? ¡­¡­Admirable.

    ¡°Are you alright? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. Since I¡¯m pretty strong, I¡¯m fine.¡±

    Eko proudly stuck her t chest out with a ¡°Fu fu¡±.

    ¡°Is that so? But, since I¡¯m here anyways, let me help you.¡±

    ¡°Really!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. This me will personally help you. It¡¯s a rare urrence so, you should feel honored.¡±

    After I said so in a haughty attitude, Eko¡¯s happy face suddenly turned sad for some reason.

    ¡°Second, thank you!¡¡¡­¡­But I will do this by myself.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Why? ¡°

    ¡°Because this is the only thing I can do to help. That¡¯s why I¡¯ll do my best to help everyone. And if everyone sees that I¡¯m more and more helpful, I¡¯m sure they will be kinder to me.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Suddenly, my heart hurt.

    I was reminded of something.

    What is it?

    From the depths of my heart, a voice that said ¡°please stop¡± kept echoing.

    Please stop, Eko. That is¨D¨D

    ¡°See ya! ¡°

    After waving her hand, Eko continued to move that package with a lot of effort.

    That honest and frantic manner, that figure of a hard-working fool¡­¡­ and that fruitless effort. Seeing again that gear that no matter how much effort it puts in, it never interlocks with the others, made me remember the root of this ¡°pain¡±.

    Pointless.

    No matter what I did in the game, nothing ever changed.

    There in the game, I worked harder than anyone, I even became the world¡¯s number one.

    But deep down I knew the reality of it.

    That it was useless, it was a waste to bet my life on that.

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes, useless¡­¡­¡±

    I already tasted the depths of that despair, and was made aware that I hated it.

    Was all the effort I put into it wasted?

    Was I an idiot, a piece of trash, a joke of a human being?

    I kept asking myself those questions until the very day of my death.

    I ran away. I ran away to the game, because I couldn¡¯t aplish anything in the real world. I ran away from society because it was a bother. I ran away from others. I ran away from the daily life. I hated it, so I ran away. Like an angry child throwing a tantrum because he doesn¡¯t get what he wanted. Believing everything was against me, I began to despise everything in return; a vicious cycle of self-deceit and justification. And at the very end, I irresponsibly threw everything away and ran away from life itself.

    Then, I came to this world.

    Truly a miracle. You could call it God¡¯s blessing. That helpless me was miraculously saved.

    ¡­¡­However, would Eko also get her miracle?¡¡There¡¯s no guarantee in that.

    Eventually, Eko too will taste a despair simr to mine.

    No, she might already be tasting it.

    I can see how painful her feelings are.

    That¡¯s exactly why. Because I already noticed it with my eyes, I want to extend my hand to her and save her. Those are my true feelings¡­¡­

    ¡°Second-dono? ¡°

    Silvia¡¯s anxious voice returned me back from my sea of thoughts.

    Eko already carried the luggage and was no longer there.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Sorry. Shall we go back?¡±

    I left the school along with Silvia.

    Eko Leafret¨D¨D Somewhere there¡¯s that girl who is simr to the past me.

 Chapter 17: That scent

    <h4>Chapter 17: That scent</h4>

    Midnight.

    I lie on the bed at the inn, trying to think of a solution.

    Isn¡¯t there some way for me to save Eko?

    ¡°Is she really an ipetent? ¡°

    For argument¡¯s sake let¡¯s say she is. Can an ipetent really enter the Magic Academy? That bothers me.

    The Royal Magic Academy divides each year into six groups, ranging from F to A, and the better the student, the closer they are to ss A. However, even if Eko belongs to ss F, this is an elite Magic Academy in the kingdom. For Eko to be enrolled here, she should have some knowledge of magic, and should be able to handle magic in no small measure.

    Then, why is she beingbeled as a ¡°failure¡±?

    I can think of several possible causes.

    For example, her growth type isbat-specialized, therefore her magic-rted stat is low inparison.

    I believe this is the most likely scenario. Even if you could use magic, if your INT is low, then the damage you¡¯ll deal will beughable. If that¡¯s the case, then it can¡¯t be helped that she¡¯sbeled as a failure.

    Another one would be, she has learned Magic, but her amount of MP is low.

    This could be the case too. No matter how much magic you learn, you won¡¯t be able to use it unless you have the sufficient amount of MP.

    The third one could be, she has enough MP, but has not learned Magic yet.

    Somehow, the short Eko gives me the feeling that she couldn¡¯t read such a difficult Grimoire. This possibility also seems high.

    And the fourth one, simply because she is a demihuman.

    I don¡¯t want to entertain this thought too much, but ording to Silvia, in the Castall Kingdom there is some deep-rooted discrimination and persecution against demihumans and dark elves. However, this might be the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back. Chances are high that this is discrimination against being a demihuman,bined with some inability the person in question must have.

    Hmmm. Then, what should I do¡­¡­

    I spent a great deal of time that night worrying about that kid.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Then, morning came.

    And as a result of spending the whole night thinking it over, I came to a conclusion.

    That is¨D¨D

    ¡°Silvia. I was thinking on inviting Eko.¡±

    Make Eko apanion.

    Have her show me her status, predict her growth type, confirm if her current direction is unfit and, simr to Silvia, decide on a position where she would be good at.

    She¡¯s working hard to be useful to others, but as she is right now, her effort might just be wasted. Therefore, I thought to provide her of an environment where she could be of use.

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-dono. My path lies with you, the same as your path now lies with me. I¡¯m not happy about this either. I¡¯m just a lucky person.¡±

    Silvia also wanted to do something about Eko, so she kneeled before me and spoke with an inspiring expression. I would love if she could stop ying knight this early in the morning though.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if Eko could be convinced. In the worst case, I¡¯ll try to have her show me her status and give her some advice on the path she should be moving forward to.¡±

    To be ourpanion would mean for her to drop out of school. It¡¯s not an easy decision to make. I¡¯ll talk to Eko on the premise that she will turn me down.

    ¡°Umu, that should be fine. Without Second-dono¡¯s advice, I would not have noticed my very own potential. I want her to notice it too.¡±

    Nodded Silvia.

    And so, we went to the school in a slightly refreshed mood.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­! ¡°

    Silvia raised her voice as soon as we passed by the school gate.

    In front of us was the mud-covered figure of Eko, sitting in the middle of the road.

    ¡­¡­This was obviously weird. I got this intense feeling of difort.

    ¡°W-what happened!?¡¡Are you okay!? ¡°

    Silvia was the first to rush forward.

    I also ran up while looking at the surroundings. The cause of my difort soon came to light.

    Every student walking the road avoided speaking to Eko.

    They walked by without stopping and turned a blind eye to her. Ignoring her.

    It was possible to say this was something done with ill intent.

    ¡°Hey, Eko. What happened?¡¡Are you okay?¡¡Did you trip and fall? ¡°

    I reached out my hand to her as I spoke.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine!!¡¡Please don¡¯t speak to me!! ¡°

    It was a scream of rejection.

    Eko shook off my approaching hand and stood up with a desperate look, running away from me as if escaping.

    Ah¡­¡­ This is. That. That indeed. It¡¯s awful.

    Ò»That scent that I only smelled once.

    The smell of despair.

    I¡¯m not sure what exactly happened to her.

    But this much I know at least. Eko was indeed aware of it¨D¨D That her efforts were in vain.

    And it now had been thrusted at her.

    The fact that ¡°no matter how much useless efforts you make trying to fool yourself into thinking otherwise, your reality won¡¯t change¡±.

    She was now forced to look straight at it, at this reality that she always looked away from, causing her to despair.

    That is not good. It¡¯s too sorrowful.

    Everyone is allowed to have a dream. Isn¡¯t that right?

    ¡°¡­¡­save you.¡±

    A mutter escaped my lips as I chased after Eko. This might be presumptuous of me. There¡¯s some uncertainty. But Silvia is alsoing along with me.

    Both our paths are the same one.

    Just the same as what Silvia was saying.

    Reassuring.

    Companions are awesome.

    If it¡¯s like this, won¡¯t you be one too?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Don¡¯te!! ¡°

    We finally cornered Eko.

    It took us over an hour to finally reach this situation. By now, sses most likely have already started.

    Even so, this girl is quite slow on her feet. The problem was, every time I caught her and grabbed her arm, she forcefully shook me off and escaped again.

    An hour after we started, Silvia was the first one to drop, dead tired. Eko seemed to still have some SP left.

    Her legs are slow. She is quite strong. And she had plenty SP. Additionally, her INT is low¡­¡­?

    ¨D¨DMaybe.

    A certain expectation runs in my head.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, don¡¯t worry. We just want to talk to you.¡±

    Silvia said so while desperately gasping for air.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to talk about!¡¡Leave! ¡°

    Eko still stubbornly refused.

    ¡°Just leave me alone!! ¡°

    Tears spilled from her eyes. She had probably endured them up until now. Crouching in that spot, Eko began to cry. I¡¯d love to ask her what happened, but right now doesn¡¯t seem like a good time.

    No good, we can¡¯t speak like this.

    Still, I can¡¯t just leave like this without speaking with her. She might even resort to suicide.

    What should I do¡­¡­? After thinking about it for a while, I could onlye up with one thing.

    A gamble.

    A huge bet.

    ¡­¡­Well, I¡¯ll just do it.

    My prediction might be totally off, but this is the only thing I could think of¨D¨D

    ¡°Silvia, don¡¯t be surprised.¡±

    After saying that, I approached Eko.

    ¡°D-don¡¯te! ¡°

    Eko still rejected me with a feeble voice.

    When I was in front of her, I pulled out my sword.

    ¡°Second-dono, what are¨D¨D!? ¡°

    Silvia became flustered. But I can¡¯t stop it anymore.

    Immediately after, I cleanly cut my left hand off.

 Chapter 18: Muscle Priest

    <h4>Chapter 18: Muscle Priest</h4>

    ¡°Ehh¡­¡­? ¡°

    Eko raised her voice, not really understanding the situation that was developing in front of her eyes.

    ¡°You i-idiot!! ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯te¡±

    I stopped Silvia who was trying to get close to me and provide first aid.

    ¡°Kyaaa!? ¡°

    Sounded the shocked scream of Eko.

    Hey, it¡¯s me who wants to scream¡­¡­ God, it hurts¡­¡­!

    Tch¡­¡­Ahh, dammit, I have to endure!!

    If I make Eko a member in this situation, then being the world¡¯s top will definitely be easier!

    Why? Because¨D¨D

    ¡°Eko, you are suited for recovery magic. Use this and show me you can heal my hand! ¡°

    ¨D¨DShe is a ¡ºMuscle Monk¡» after all!¡¡¡­¡­I hope!!

    ¡°I c-can¡¯t do it. No way.¡±

    While shaking her head in denial, Eko kept crying.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, just do it!¡¡Hold this wand! ¡°

    I pushed the wand onto Eko.

    It¡¯s the ¡ºWand of Recovery Magic ? Medium¡»¨D¨D the super rare drop from the Holy Slime that allows anyone to use the ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ ¡¶Medium Recovery¡·just by holding it.

    If Eko¡¯s growth type is really the¡ºMuscle Monk¡» then the additional effect of ¡¸£«£«¡¹limited to the healer types will be activated, and my hand will recover instantly!

    ¡°Daaaamn, it hurts!¡¡Hurry up! ¡°

    ¡°But!¡¡But! ¡°

    ¡°No buts!¡¡I told you, you can do it, just hurry up aaaaaahhh!! ¡°

    ¡°O-okay!¡¡Okay!! ¡°

    I yelled at her. Sweat wasing out from my whole body, and I was attacked by intense nausea and dizziness. Ahh, I¡¯m about to reach my limit.

    Eko brightly nodded while still shedding some tears, and with shaky hands she desperately held the wand.

    ¡­¡­Yes, like that. Do it. I know you can do it. Believe in yourself!¡¡Notice it!¡¡This is your way out!

    ¡°¡­¡­Ohh!? ¡°

    That was probably her surprised voice. Since she now found ¡¶Medium Recovery¡·in her skill list column.

    ¡°I¡¯m g-going to start!! ¡°

    While holding the wand very tightly, Eko activated ¡¶Medium Recovery¡·.

    The next moment, just as I saw the dazzling lighting out from the wand, it wrapped around me¨D¨D

    ¨D¨DAnd then, my left hand returned to its original form as if nothing had ever happened.

    Ahh, thank God.¡­¡­

    ¡°W-waaaaaa.¡±

    Eko gave a surprised cry due to the dazzling light that came out of the wand, and fell back on her buttocks. Silly girl.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­ sorry¡­¡­ can¡¯t stand.¡±

    ¡°Second-dono! ¡°

    Maybe it¡¯s because I lost too much blood, but my head felt light and I fell on the ground.

    While enduring the nausea and the urge to vomit with all my might, I slowly began to lose consciousness¨D¨D¡­¡­

    ¡ºMuscle Monk¡»

    I noticed that was Eko¡¯s growth type while we were chasing her.

    Her legs were slow, she was quite strong, she had plenty of SP, and she was considered a failure in the Magic Academy. In other words, her INT was very low.

    Those elements that seems to be unfit for a magician, are the perfect characteristics of a Muscle Monk.

    For the Muscle Monks, their INT, AGI, DEX, and LUK are at extremely low levels. Particrly their INT and DEX stats are much lower than Heavy Warriors and other battle types. Instead, their HP, MP, SP, STR, VIT and MGR are at a very high level, especially their HP, MP and SP which are stupidly high. To the point where she was able to win in stamina against the intermediate ss Silvia.

    Because their INT is low, they aren¡¯t suitable for magic. They aren¡¯t suitable for Archery either since their DEX is low. Their STR is reasonable, but they can¡¯t make good use of it in offense since their AGI is low. Their MP isrge even though they have low INT. Although a character with these stats might seem useless at first nce, there were some yers who preferred this specific growth type.

    That¡¯s because every well-known team always had a yer who was of this type, of the Muscle Monk type.

    Why?

    Because it was the ideal ¡°tank¡± role.

    Taking advantage of their high HP, SP and VIT, the Muscle Monks use their shield to be an imprable wall and protect the other party members from taking damage from monsters. Furthermore, they could recover their HP using ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ on themselves.

    In other words, they could continue Tanking for as long as they had MP.

    Also, unlike ¡¾Attack Magic¡¿, ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ is not affected by the total INT value. Since INT as a stat is directly connected to the value of the ¡°strength of the Attack Magic¡±, it has no rtion with the effect of Healing Magic.

    Therefore, the Muscle Monk growth type is for cultivating macho-man-like healers who can y the endless role of being a tank while continuously self-healing. Those guys were also known as the ¡°Berlin Wall¡±. A solid wall that would not crumble for 28 years. (TLN: This might a reference of the game life? Berlin Wall was up for 28 years, so maybe not)

    Right. Muscle Monks are such a strong growth type. While the Heavy Warriors and Heavy Knights were conventional Tanks, the Muscle Monks were specialized in tanking and were the ones ying the most active part as forefront yers.

    If Eko, being the Muscle Monk type, bes apanion, then our group will be

    advance guard, center, rear guard.

    The Muscle Monk Eko, the All-rounder me, and the Magic Archer Silvia; we can form a proper team without anything to criticize. We can aim higher. Reach the world¡¯s first ce much faster.

    I really want her¨D¨DThose were my thoughts.

    Certainly, I still had the desire to save her crushed and despairing heart, which closely resembled the me of the past. Because I knew of a way to save her, I couldn¡¯t help but to reach out to her.

    But at the same time, the feeling of ¡°I want obedientpanions¡± was growing bigger and bigger inside me. All in order to reach the world¡¯s number one spot.

    I¡¯m trying to take advantage of her.

    Thinking that Healing Magic is useful, and hoping for her to be ourpanion.

    If I think about it, it was the same for Silvia.

    That was a semi-forceful invitation, taking advantage of the weakness in her heart.

    I wonder if they are alright with this?

    I wonder if I am alright with this?

    I¡¯m uneasy.

    Being unreasonable, using your emotions, somehow managing to convince you, and forcing you to follow me.

    But I really want you toe with me.

    I beg you. Please. Come with me.

    With me, with me¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­Somehow, I had a scary dream.

    When I woke up, I was in a bed. Looking closely, this is one of the rooms of the inn.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re awake! ¡°

    When I called out, Silvia¡¯s lively voice resounded and she hurriedly grabbed my right hand.

    ¡°¡­¡­Don¡¯t push yourself too hard. If you had lost this hand, you wouldn¡¯t be able to be the world¡¯s number one.¡±

    While gently stroking my right hand, Silvia spoke in a quiet voice.

    ¡°It¡¯s somewhat hard to say but, it wasn¡¯t that one, it was the left hand.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia¡¯s ears turned bright red.

    ¡°Ouch.¡±

    She silently pinched the back of my hand and then quickly left the room.

    Ahh, I feel relieved for some reason.

    I¡¯m not sure why that is.

    ¡°Second! ¡°

    Along with a bang, the door was forcibly opened and Eko jumped in.

    She then dove into my chest, muttering ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry¡± while in tears.

    I¡¯m not sure why she¡¯s being sorry though.

    But rather than being apologized to, this is actually a chance.

    ¡°Eko. I¡¯ll say it again. Healing Magic is suitable for you. Quit the school ande with me.¡±

    Even after everything I thought before, I¡¯ll take advantage of her. But I really think that is something that will be her salvation.

    Raising her face while still crying, Eko showed me full smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m happy!¡¡Will I be useful!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Ò»Let¡¯s go, together.¡±

    I pushed my invitation.

    Eko was about to nod with a smile¡­¡­ But suddenly, a shadow descended on her face.

    ¡°Uh¡­¡­ But¡­¡­ But¡­¡­¡±

    She seems to be troubled.

    I want to go, but I can¡¯t go. It looked like that kind of anguish.

    ¡­¡­Is there a reason for that?

    ¡°By the way¡­ Is there a reason why you might not be able to drop out from school? ¡°

    ¡°How do you know!? ¡°

    Eko¡¯s rounded eyes looked up to me as she raised a surprised voice.

    ¡°Because I¡¯ll be the world¡¯s top. Here, tell me what it is.¡±

    I proudly said and waited for Eko to begin speaking.

    ¡°You see¡­¡­¡±

    Eko began talking after wiping her tears.

    Apparently, she¡¯s from a demihuman vige in a remote country.

    Since a young age, Eko has had a stupidly high amount of MP, and when her father, who knew of it, started proudly boasting about it to everyone, the whole vige began to grow their expectation that Eko would have talent for Magic.

    The story began to grow and grow untilst year. It was then that she was admitted into the prestigious ¡ºRoyal Magic Academy¡» using the money that was collected from everyone in the vige.

    A genius from a remote demihuman vige. If Eko were to be a splendid magician, it would lead to the vige revitalization. They probably had such shallow thinking.

    How did she pass the entrance exam? Just because Eko had low INT due to her particr growth type, didn¡¯t mean she had problems acquiring skills and magic knowledge. Rather, she was excellent. She had already acquired the Second Form of two attributes, earth and wind. However, the power of her magic was less than half of that of other students. Therefore, she was considered a failure.

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s the reason why I can¡¯t quit. I can¡¯t betray the expectations that everyone in the vige ced in me.¡±

    The expectations of everyone in the vige.

    What good cane from those?

    They are just a huge weight on her. One that has crushed this girl¡¯s heart and still continues to crush her even more.

    ¡°¡­¡­Don¡¯t worry. Here I have a way out.¡±

    ¡°Ehh¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°A way out. Luckily there¡¯s a good way out.¡±

    Unlike for the past me.

    ¡°A good way out? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. So, rest assured.¡±

    I nodded deeply, then I told Eko.

    ¡°I will be the world¡¯s number one. The first ce in the whole world. Do you get it?¡¡The very top of the whole world. There won¡¯t be anyone stronger than me and you will be a member of that team. Think carefully. Is there anything more distinguished than that?¡¡The Royal Magic Academy is just some bullshit. The court magicians have terrible judgment. The vigers will surely be satisfied and more than happy. They will build you a bronze statue in the middle of the vige over your legendary glory, and that day will start a festival that will continue for three days and three nights, repeating every year. By the time you return to your vige, you would have be someone so great that everyone there will prostrate before you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Pu, fu fu fu.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, Eko-sama, we¡¯re happy you are finally back!¡¡That¡¯s the first thing the vige chief will say, right?¡¡Next will be your father. Eko, please get me the autograph of Second-sama! ¡°

    ¡°Kyahaha! ¡°

    ¡°Then, you¡¯ll wonder, where are the men of the other viges?¡¡Hey, are you blind? Look at your feet Eko. From the moment you walked in, these men have been on their knees! ¡°

    ¡°Kyahahahahaha! ¡°

    Ekoughed. Quite loud. She began hitting her knees. And holding her stomach. It¡¯s great that she cheered up.

    Weirdly enough, I also startedughing along with her.

    I can¡¯t even think of anything unpleasant. I¡¯m just enjoying what¡¯s in front of my eyes right now. Just that, thinking of something else was quite difficult.

    Afterughing for a while, Eko spoke.

    ¡°Second!¡¡I¡¯ll go with you! ¡°

    And thus, the Muscle Monk demihuman Eko Leafret joined our group.

 Chapter 19: Next Aim

    <h4>Chapter 19: Next Aim</h4>

    The next day.

    Together with Silvia and Eko, I came to the Headmaster¡¯s office.

    ¡°Since Eko will be quitting school, I¡¯d like to ask for permission for her to join me as apanion in ss A.¡±

    ¡°Please.¡±

    After I asked for permission, Eko followed.

    The headmaster Pa was dumbfounded.

    I was conscious of the absurdity of my request, but I was also confident that it will be passed.

    Because of yesterday¡¯s ¡°Mud-covered Eko incident¡±, and since it was witnessed by many people.

    ¡°¡­¡­Could you give me a little bit of time? ¡°

    ¡°No problem. How long should I have to wait?¡±

    I tried to apply some pressure.

    Trying to show off my anger.

    ¡°I¡¯ll call for an emergency board meeting at noon. I¡¯ll have a resolution after that.¡±

    Nice. There¡¯s a high chance my request will pass.

    ¡°I¡¯ll look forward the results. I¡¯ll be absent in the morning. Then, if you¡¯ll excuse me.¡±

    With only those words, we left the headmaster¡¯s office.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Second-dono. Why did you act like that? ¡°

    Silvia came asking me.

    ¡°We are foreign students. Moreover, nobility from a foreign country. An act of ¡®Bullying¡¯ came to light right in front of our eyes. Moreover, to a demihuman.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see. So Zipang is a country that treats demihumans respectfully.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll think of this as a burden. And even if that¡¯s not the case, they would leave a pretty bad impression. Furthermore, it¡¯d be a very bad situation for the teachers to be told that they saw the bullying happen and decided to turn a blind eye. They would want to avoid me causing further trouble, so they will try to end this as quietly as possible. Therefore, my request should go through.¡±

    ¡°Second, you¡¯re smart! ¡°

    ¡°Fufu, I¡¯ll be the top in the world after all.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    I was overseeing Silvia¡¯s magic studies in the library, and in the blink of an eye it turned noon.

    When I went to get some food at the cafeteria, Maine approached after noticing me.

    ¡°Second-san!¡¡I heard about it. So, you¡¯ll have Eko-san apany you? ¡°

    Hey, why do you know about this?

    Does this school have no sense of confidentiality?

    ¡°That girl is an excellent healer. The school is short-sighted for not being able to see that.¡±

    I was a bit pissed off and unintentionally said that.

    To which Maine just answered with a ¡°Hahaha¡±.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡°

    ¡°Nothing, it¡¯s just that I see you¡¯re the same as usual!¡¡I really like you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You, I knew you really¡­¡±

    ¡°Second-dono! ¡°

    Silvia poked with her elbow. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I said, to which she answered with ¡°You were going to tell him he¡¯s gay, again, didn¡¯t you?¡±, and scolded me. Next to me ¡°Gay! ¡± Eko repeated what she heard, but was soon scolded too with a ¡°Stop it!¡± From Silvia. Somehow, she looks like a mother.

    ¡°Silvia-san is the same as usual. Eko-san too, looks like you are good friends.¡±

    Maine said while looking at us, although his smiling face had a shade of jealousy.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Ohh, so you were here.¡±

    When I finished eating my beef bowl, Kevin-san appeared.

    ¡°Yeah, so, how did it go? ¡°

    After I asked, Kevin-san answered while nodding.

    ¡°It passed without a problem. Eko-san will be treated as Second-kun¡¯spanion, so she will join you from today onwards in ss A.¡±

    ¡°I see, that¡¯s great.¡±

    I answered with a smile, to which Kevin also returned a smile and left.

    ¡°Why do you want her to apany you? ¡± or ¡°Why in ss A? ¡± He was sharp enough not to ask those kinds of questions. If asked, I was nning to ironically say ¡°So that she would not be bullied again¡±.

    ¡°Second-dono. By the way, why will Eko be in ss A? ¡°

    ¡­¡­Ahh, I forgot I had this mentally handicapped wannabe knight with me.

    ¡°Why? ¡°

    Eko also asked.

    I was at a loss about what to say.

    So that you won¡¯t be bullied again. Well, that¡¯s the easy answer, but that¡¯s not exactly it.

    At one point I thought this would serve as a revenge to those who had been bullying Eko for a while.

    On the flip side, having here with me would also serve to show off how Eko would be such a useful girl.

    However, the person in question didn¡¯t like that idea.

    One single phrase, ¡°let¡¯s be together¡±, that¡¯s all she wanted. Only that.

    ¡°¡­¡­Because you¡¯re our friend.¡±

    So, after muttering that, I left my seat.

    Anyhow, it¡¯s library time.

    There¡¯s not much time left to study. I have to make sure Silvia properly learns magic. And I also have to think of a way to get my hands on the Third Form Grimoires.

    Well then, seems like it¡¯s gonna get busy.

    In order to cool off my slightly hot face, I briskly walked to the library.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Since then, a week has passed.

    Thanks to my detailed and easy exnation, Silvia finally learned the ¡¶Fire Attribute?Second Form¡· ¡¾Attack Magic¡¿.

    When I said to Maine ¡°This girl finally learned it after a whole week¡±, he responded with ¡°Is she a genius!? ¡°, feeling surprised. It seems like the shortest it takes was two weeks. By the way, that record of the shortest time belonged to Maine. Feels like I¡¯m surrounded by geniuses.

    Moreover, seems like Silvia got the hang of it and went to tell the librarian ¡°I feel like I¡¯ll be able to learn the Third Form¡±.

    The head librarian Silk then came and said ¡°Silvia-san has a wonderful talent!¡¡By all means, you can borrow it! ¡°, and was given permission fairly easy. It made me want to argue about my treatment. Does that mean that they would not let those who can¡¯t learn it borrow it?

    Anyway, thanks to that I got a chance to learn it. I asked (?) Silvia, whom was loved by Silk, to borrow the four attributes while I looked by her side. The result was, I got to easily learn the Third Form of all four attributes. A piece of cake.

    Silvia seemed to be working considerably hard too. She has been stuck in her desk, always saying ¡°Just a little more, just a bit more¡±, and confined herself in the library.

    Well, I¡¯ve already taught Silvia everything I needed to teach her, so I was quite free.

    In the courtyard Eko and two others were ying, one of them was Maine and the three of them were ying a simple game of catch ball.

    Maine seems to especially like ¡°Shiritori¡± and challenges me every time he can. During ss, I took a piece of paper and wrote ¡°Cotton¡± and passed it to him. When he got it, he had a face that said ¡°I don¡¯t know¡± and ¡°not fair¡±, to which I just sneered andughed. Maine puffed his cheeks and turned the other side, and when time for the next ss came, I passed him a paper that had ¡°Tambourine¡± written on it. He acts like a somewhat cute guy; I sometimes get worried since he has a shortage of ¡°prince-like¡± characteristics.

    In the break during sses, as I saw Maine reading something silently, I sneaked from behind and found him reading a dictionary. In particr, he was looking up words that began with N. It would be a shame if the next Shiritori game I start with something like ¡°Klutz¡±. I wonder if he¡¯ll get depressed. Gosh, just what are you wasting your time at, Second Prince¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    And so, I¡¯m spending my days chilling like that.

    At first nce it seems to be pointless, but I actually have a n.

    And that is to ¡°Get Maine to like me¡±.

    It seems like that goal has already been achieved¡­ Or rather, I think I aplished it without actually doing anything, but I still think that it¡¯s still not enough.

    Why would I want to be liked by Maine? The reason is the ¡°Fourth Form¡± Grimoire.

    The Fourth Form that is in the royal castle. Maine certainly did say so.

    Among the upper-ss dungeons, the easiest of them all is the dungeon ¡ºAlgin¡». A Fourth Form Grimoire has a 10% chance to drop from the boss in that dungeon.

    I think for the current Silvia, Eko and I, clearing the ¡ºAlgin Dungeon¡» would be a hard task. It¡¯s just that, that dungeon is a pain in the ass, so I¡¯d rather skip it altogether.

    After having thought so, I decided on better trying to improve the rtionship between Maine and me, to the point where he would take me to the Royal Castle if I ask him.

    ¡°Second, what¡¯s this? ¡°

    While I was lying down on the courtyard while thinking such things, Eko came holding a flyer she picked up from somewhere and asked me about its contents.

    I noticed itter, but Eko seems to be bad at reading.

    Japanese that is, which is themonnguage of this world. She¡¯s not that good at it.

    Why? I was quick toe with an answer. In the time when Mobius was a game, aside from important NPCs, all other demihuman NPCs spoke in ¡°Demihuman Language¡±.

    In other words, Eko had purposely learned Japanese beforeing to this school. And surprisingly, it seems like she learned the Attack Magic Second Form while reading the Grimoire and pulling out a dictionary. But she couldn¡¯t use that magic at all because her INT was low.

    (TLN: This makes so much sense now, Eko speaks quite cute, like a little girl. Or more like a kid who is starting to learn to speak; short phrases, easy words, and mostly hiragana.)

    She looks like an idiot, but this girl might actually be very smart.

    If we go to the church, we should be able to get the ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ Grimoire for ¡¶Small Recovery¡·. If she¡¯s able to learn it by herself, it might be good to take her there so she can learn it quick.

    ¡°¡­¡­Oh? ¡°

    ¡­¡­No, with this silly face she¡¯s making and her mouth open, she doesn¡¯t look very smart at all. It might be a misunderstanding of mine.

    ¡°Alright, let me see it.¡±

    ¡°Yes! ¡°

    When I said so, Eko handed me the flyer.

    Its contents were ¡ºRecruiting participants for the 51st Magic Tournament¡».

    It seems like it will be held in the stupidlyrge Royal Magic Academy. The date is¡­ thest day I¡¯ll be studying here.

    ¡°It seems there will be a magic tournament. Looks like it¡¯s some sort of annual event and the winner apparently gets some prize.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh. What prize? ¡°

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Let¡¯s see¡­¡­¨D¨DEH!? ¡°

    I doubted my eyes.

    The prize for the winner is set to be the ¡ºRing of Pursuit¡».

    ¡°¡­¡­Eko. I¡¯m entering the Magic Tournament.¡±

    I immediately made up my mind.

 Chapter 20: Magic Tournament

    <h4>Chapter 20: Magic Tournament</h4>

    Ring of Pursuit.

    Contrary to itsme name, this is a very powerful essory.

    Its effect ¡¸After using an Attack Magic spell, there is a 10% chance an additional spell will be cast¡¹ although it sounds simple, its benefits can be quite substantial.

    For example, let¡¯s say that you¡¯re in a situation where you have to use Magic against a boss that has very high HP. If you need 1100 casts to defeat it, simply casting 1000 spells will have 10% of those be double attacks. In other words, you can defeat it 100 casts earlier.

    Some people might think it as ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal¡± or ¡°That situation is rare¡±. But that¡¯s not all there is to it.

    In fact, this essory can be strengthened starting from Grade 3. If Iter be acquainted with someone possessing a high rank ¡ºcksmith Job¡» they could use ¡¶Performance Enhancement¡·, turning the Ring of Pursuit into something more monstrous.

    Specifically, after a Grade 3 reinforcement, the chance of an additional attack rises from 10 to 25%. That is, one in every four spells. That means, for every 1000 shots you need to make, you only need to cast 800 of them. It¡¯s an outrageous effect. It makes me get goosebumps.

    But. There¡¯s a reason why such a high-performance item is rare.

    Its price was a whopping 1.5 billion CL. It even came with three memory-foam pillows.

    It was that expensive in the Mobius era. I¡¯m not sure how much it would cost in this world.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­I want it.

    I absolutely want to obtain it.

    No matter what kind of hand I have to y.

    With my mind set, I asked to participate in the Magic Tournament.

    Luckily, the tournament is held on thest day of my study abroad. I used to tell people that the Grimoires were rare to me, so I might seem suspicious if they see me using the Second and Third Form of spells. But if thates to pass, I¡¯ll just do something about it then.

    I need to think of something.

    Or rather, I want the Ring of Pursuit even if they get suspicious of me.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Maine, are you going to enter the Magic Tournament? ¡°

    The day before the tournament. After hearing casual words at lunch, Maine¡¯s expression hardened.

    ¡°¡­¡­Will you participate, Second-san? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I will.¡±

    ¡°Phuuuu!? ¡°

    By my side, Silvia spat her drink out of her mouth in surprise.

    ¡°Why haven¡¯t I heard of this!? ¡°

    ¡°Because I never said it.¡±

    She is the same as always. It was a nice reaction this time though.

    ¡°Say, Maine, do you have something against participating in the Magic Tournament? ¡°

    I got curious and asked him that question. Afterwards, Maine answered with a cloudy expression.

    ¡°Tomorrow¡­ Elder brother will being¡­¡±

    ¡°The First Prince? You don¡¯t like him? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s no it, it¡¯s just, I¡¯m not very good dealing with¡­¡±

    So, you don¡¯t like him.

    ¡°Elder brother has overwhelming talent. Because I only have talent for Magic, my brother, who is good at Swordsmanship, says that I¡¯m a wimp and looks down on me. And even if I have no intentions of it, my brother sees me as an enemy in the fight for session of the throne. He wille visiting tomorrow as the leader of the First Knight Order, but I think his true purpose is to ridicule me in front of as many people as possible.¡±

    Looks like he has a bad personality, that guy.

    However, so the First Prince is the leader of the First Knight Order, huh?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    When I nced at Silvia, she had a face as if she had bitten a sour bug.

    I see, I get it. Of those who used to trouble Silvia, the ¡°Upper Echelons¡± in the knights, the First Prince is the very top of them.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you just skip attending the Magic Tournament? ¡°

    ¡°Impossible!¡¡I¡¯m the Second Prince after all. ¡°

    ¡°I see, what about faking some temporary illness or something?¡±

    ¡°Elder brother would probably say something like: That wimpy brother of mine is a coward that can¡¯t even present himself at the Magic Tournament, while attending the Magic Academy! ¡°

    ¡­If rumors that he is suspected of using his position as Second Prince to tamper with his grades and rank reach the First Prince, and he censures him in return, Maine would have no ce in the school.

    But then, if he faces his brother, he would be severely abused in front of the eyes of many.¡¡Being a prince is hard¡­

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say¡­ Sorry.¡±

    ¡°¡­It¡¯s fine, Second-san. It can¡¯t be helped.¡±

    Has Maine given up? He said this with an expression as if to admit defeat.

    Not worrying about such a sad reality, next to me Eko was happily eating rice. Her appearance was quite soothing.

    ¡°By the way, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Uh, what is it? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ve already learned the Third Form. Three days ago.¡±

    ¡°Seriously?¡¡Three days ago!?¡¡Why haven¡¯t I heard of this!? ¡°

    ¡°Because I never said it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Damn, she got me back¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    The day of the Magic Tournament.

    There were a lot of spectators on the grounds.

    After separating from Silvia and Eko, I was in the participant¡¯s waiting room.

    There were a few other students participating, chatting and making a buzz between each other. About ten people.

    ¡°But that ring that is the prize¡­ what is it? I¡¯ve never heard of it.¡±

    ¡°Seems like, sincest year was the 50th anniversary, they reduced the scale and the price this year.¡±

    ¡°The number of participants decreased too, and there was a change in the rules. It¡¯s not what it used to be.¡±

    Chances are high these students have a low level of skill.

    But even then, to not be able to know the true value of the Ring of Pursuit, even though they wish to be magicians?¡¡Certainly, the 10% effect of the base ring might not seem like much, but don¡¯t they know they can strengthen it¡­?

    ¡°But it seems there¡¯s a rumor that us-sama will be visiting this year.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because of that, the A ss dude.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I see. The Second Prince.¡±

    ¡°I heard a rumor they have a very bad rtionship.¡¡Why is that?¡±

    ¡°Do you think he might want to beat him in an exhibition match? ¡°

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡That would be nice.¡±

    After that, they started to excitedly bad-mouth Maine. The person in question wasn¡¯t present so they had free reign.

    Still, no matter where you go in this school, they all have the idea that ¡°First Prince£¾Second Prince¡± totally engraved in their minds. Seems quite unnatural. I don¡¯t think this is Maine¡¯s fault to be honest, and there¡¯s a big possibility that someone on the side of the First Prince is manipting that impression. Does he hate Maine so much?¡¡That guy called us.

    ¡°Excuse me¡­¡±

    Along with those words, an expressionless Maine opened the door of the waiting room. At that moment, the silence in the room returned. Well, that¡¯s to be expected. They can¡¯t keep their previous talk in these circumstances.

    ¡°Oh, are you seeded? ¡°

    When he heard me calling up to him, Maine¡¯s face lit up with a smile and he ran up to me.

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m in the quarterfinals.¡±

    ¡°Seriously? Then, we¡¯ll see each other in the finals.¡±

    ¡°Hehe, yeah, let¡¯s meet in the finals.¡±

    The Magic Tournament is held like a traditional tournament. The number of participants is 15. Maine was on the far left and I on the far right. Then, if Maine wins twice and I win three times, we¡¯ll meet at the finals.

    I see, I see.

    This is bing interesting.

    ¡­However, there¡¯s one thing I still don¡¯t understand.

    That is¨D¨D

    ¡°By the way, Maine. How do you fight in a Magic Tournament? ¡°

    With a loud noise, everyone dropped at the waiting room. (TLN: Pretty much what is described here is like when someone asks a stupid question and the other characters simply fall to the ground in anime)

    ¡°You¡¯re participating without even knowing that!? ¡°

    ¡°Sorry. Maybe it¡¯s that?¡¡You kill each other with magic? ¡°

    ¡°Not even close! ¡°

    ¡°Then, do you just kill each other normally? ¡°

    ¡°And the magic!?¡¡Where is the magic!? ¡°

    ¡°Is that so? Then I knew it, you kill each other with magic¡­¡±

    ¡°No!¡¡We don¡¯t kill each other!¡¡First of all, forget about killing! ¡°

    ¡°You¡¯re not making any sense.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean I¡¯m not making sense!? ¡°

    The up-until-now frozen atmosphere in the waiting room warmed up a little due to our back and forth. Maine also seems like he¡¯s a bit more rxed now.

    ¡°Seriously Second-san, you are¡­¡±

    Maine then opened his mouth to give me an exnation.

    ¡°The Magic Tournament is done using a ¡®Game Crown¡¯. Therefore, it doesn¡¯t involve anyone¡¯s life.¡±

    Game Crown¨D¨D a PvP£¨yer vs yer£©item. Unlike the ¡¸Everything goes¡¹-type of ¡ºDuel¡», it is an item for ¡®chickens¡¯ who want to fight without risking anything after setting rules, such as item restrictions or skill restrictions, in advance.

    Speaking of why there is no risk, that is because all the ¡ºGames¡» that use a Game Crown are virtualized. Your HP and MP, simrly to the damage inflicted, are also virtualized. Therefore, even if your HP bes zero, after the game ends it is restored without problems. That¡¯s why it is for chickens. Still, some gamers fell in love with this type of game and yed it with any and all variations of the rules, developing into an interesting ¡ºGame¡», different from the normal ¡ºDuel¡»¡­

    ¡°You have to use Attack Magic. That is the rule this time. You understand? ¡°

    I was convinced by the words of Maine.

    ¡­¡­This is just a stupid game.

    ¡°Seventh round!¡¡First year ss A, Second, against First year ss F, Dean. ¡°

    I came out to the grounds after having my name called and found that Silvia and Eko were in a position behind me.

    I waved at Eko who was energetically waving her hands at me with a smile. Suddenly, those hands hit Silvia in the nose, almost causing her to faint.

    ¡°Game Crown, on!¡±

    Sounded the voice of the referee. As if following his instructions, arge circle with a radius of 50 meters appeared, wrapping Dean and I inside of the game field. If you leave it, you lose.

    ¡°Participants, get ready¡­ Begin! ¡°

    Immediately after themand, Dean began to cast.

    Judging from the color and shape of the magic circle that appeared on his feet, it was wind attribute magic of the Second Form.

    ¡­¡­This guy is a fool.

    The First Form is regr attack. The Second Form is an extended range attack. The Third Form is a strong single target attack. The Fourth Form is a strong extended range attack. The Fifth Form is an extremely powerful extended range attack.

    Their cast time bes longer in this order First¡úThird¡úSecond¡úFourth¡úFifth.

    If you get attacked during the casting time, the spell will not bepleted. Therefore, during Games, using Magic with such a long cast time as the Second Form makes little sense. This ismon sense.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Are you for real, Dean?¡¡Don¡¯t tell me you heard a rumor somewhere saying ¡°Second can¡¯t use magic properly¡±?

    I¡¯m at a loss.

    To be looked down upon¡­ Me, the world¡¯s top!¡¡By this kid!!

    His spell will be finished in three seconds, but I could settle this in an instant using just the First Form. But that would be boring. I have to teach him not to insult the holiness of a duel.

    ¡°Prepare yourself.¡±

    I advanced two steps and shoot out the spell ¡¶Wind Attribute?First Form¡· in front of me. Almost at the same time, Dean released his ¡¶Wind Attribute?Second Form¡· spell.

    Magic of the same attribute has the property of ¡°disharmonize¡± and this is a simple defense technique that makes use of that. I received some damage, but since there¡¯s more than double the difference between the cast time of the First Form and the Second Form, you canpensate for the rest and use it to your advantage.

    ¡°Eh!? ¡°

    Dean was surprised. ¡®This is not what I heard! ¡®, ¡®This guy can properly use magic! ¡®, I wonder if he¡¯s thinking along those lines?

    The worst is, since he¡¯s daydreaming about what just happened, he hasn¡¯t even prepared his next move. Is this really the guy who dared look down on me? Amazingly, my anger calmed down.

    ¡°You can choose to either die a man, or die while begging for your life.¡±

    While I said those things, I began casting ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· and by the time I finished speaking the cast was ready to activate.

    Its rank is Grade 5. The cast time has been reduced by two levels and it has a 300% of INT converted into pure attack power. Comparing it to the 600% of the Rook Archery at Grade 9, the power seems to be considerably less. But it makes it up by having 20 skill types in Magicpared to the 9 of Archery, and it is easy to just raise the INT and get considerable firepower.

    ¡°I g-giv¨D¨D! ¡°

    ¡°Ah!¡¡I got dust in my eye! ¡°

    The moment Dean tried to utter a word of surrender, I slyly made a gesture and fired the Third Form spell.

    The fireball, so big that he had to look up, slowly approached Dean while making a thundering sound. And at that moment, Dean hadn¡¯t way to either defend nor dodge.

    ¡°Whaaaaaaa! ¡°

    After Dean was hit, he screamed as his HP was shaved off in an instant. Damn, its power was more than I expected. I intended to tease him and leave him with 10% of his HP¡­

    ¡°¡­Wi-winner, Second! ¡°

    After the game ended, the ground was restored as if nothing had happened. Seems like the specifications back from the game are the same in this world.

    When I nced at Dean, his crotch region was wet. No matter how virtualized this might be, the physiological phenomenon of the real body isn¡¯t virtual. Or maybe he just couldn¡¯t hold it?

    ¡°Oh. I won.¡±

    On my way back to the waiting room, I passed close to Silvia and Eko and we exchanged some words.

    ¡°Second, you¡¯re strong! ¡°

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious, you funny girl.¡±

    ¡°You went too far!¡¡Was that alright? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll eventually be the number one in the world. Anyway, this is ourst day here. I¡¯ll make sure to obtain the winning prize.¡±

    ¡°I g-get it, just please don¡¯t go too much overboard. Please! ¡°

    ¡°I get it, I get it!¡¡What are you, my mother?¡±

    ¡°Second, good luck! ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    I left the ce while Silvia¡¯s fainting figure repeated ¡°Mo-mother¡­?¡±, and Eko supported her from falling.

    After that, the second fight was finished without any issue.

    I moved up to the semifinals but¨D¨D there I found a strange opponent.

 Chapter 21: The real deal

    <h4>Chapter 21: The real deal</h4>

    Trantor: Kari

    Editor: Shoust00

    ¡°Second round of the semifinals!¡¡First year ss A, Second against Fourth Year ss A, Keith! ¡°

    If I win this match, I¡¯ll fight against Maine in the finals.

    The one who came out as my opponent was an expressionless man of the fourth year named Keith.

    ¡°Game Crown, on. Participants, get ready¡­ Begin! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¤Ã! ¡°

    As soon as the game began, Keith closed the gap between us.

    This guy seems to know the deal.

    When it bes a game limited to magic, most of the time wins and losses are decided depending on which side takes the initiative. In that case, the smarter choice is to fight using mainly the fastest magic, the First Form.

    I cast ¡¶Wind Attribute?First Form¡· while looking at the remaining distance between me and Keith. At the same time, Keith stopped his charge and he too began casting ¡¶Wind Attribute?First Form¡·.

    And just like that, a stalemate continued.

    ¡­¡­You see this? This is what¡¯s called a ¡°Threefold Repetition¡±. The shogi term was adopted since, once you activate your magic, your opponent will also simultaneously activate theirs. Since they collide, they¡¯ll offset each other and return the fight to square one. This is one of the ws of this game, and the reason why I concluded that this was a stupid game.

    ¡°¡­I would like for you to lose here. I¡¯ll make sure you receive the appropriatepensation.¡±

    And then, Keith started to speak to me. His was a quiet voice that wouldn¡¯t reach the audience seats.

    ¡°Why? ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t let you and Prince Maine fight.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why I asked. Why? ¡°

    ¡°I want Prince Maine to be the winner, since the winner will get to have a friendly game against us-sama.¡±

    What¡¯s the deal with him? That¡¯s not the attitude to be asking someone for something.

    ¡°Why would you tell me that? ¡°

    ¡°You are not worthy. Please lose.¡±

    ¡°Is it because I¡¯ll win against Maine and the First Prince? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. There¡¯s a meaning in the game between Prince Maine and us-sama.¡±

    ¡°¡­In other words, you want to bring in ¡®politics¡¯ and turn this into a cheap game, am I right? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­This fight can¡¯t be settled otherwise.¡±

    Looks like this guy called Keith is ackey of us, and was hired to make sure Maine wins the final.

    He wants to beat Maine in front of this audience in the friendly game¨D¨D Seems like the rumor I heard in the waiting room was not baseless.

    ¡­I don¡¯t like this.

    What don¡¯t I like? Everything. I don¡¯t like the shallow underlying motive he gave me when asking me to give up.

    Did he really think it would go smoothly?

    Just as I refused, I activated a First Form cast.

    ¡°It¡¯s pointless! ¡°

    Keith yells at the same as he activates ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· to counter my ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡·.

    His counter ability is quite good. Certainly, this fight can¡¯t be settled as is. That is, if it does continue like this.

    ¡°Since this is a nice opportunity, let me teach you the ¡®real deal¡¯.¡±

    ¡°¡­Eh?¡¡You bastard, that is¡­¡±

    Keith seems to have noticed.

    In my left hand was a long bow I had taken out from my inventory at the time of the previous offsetting.

    Why did I do such a thing in this game limited to magic?¡¡That¡¯s what he¡¯s most likely wondering.

    Anyway, it¡¯s toote now.

    ¡°Silvia!¡¡Look closely! ¡°

    When I said so, I made abination of ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· and shot it to Keith.

    ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿¨D¨DThis is also properly ¡¾Magic¡¿.

    By the way, since in ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ you shoot ¡¾Magic¡¿, it doesn¡¯t use arrows.

    Abination of ¡¾Archery¡¿ and ¡¾Magic ¡¿, the acquiring condition is ¡¸While reducing their HP by 75% or more using ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills, kill 1,000 monsters using ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills¡¹. It¡¯s a bitplicated, but as long as you know how to do it, it can be achieved.

    ¡°Wh¡­¡­!? ¡°

    Keith had no choice but to deal with it using the ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· he was preparing. However, since the power of ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· Grade 7 was added, it was impossible to cancel it out using a mere First Form spell.

    ¡°Ugh! ¡°

    Keith was hit.

    Immediately after, he fixed his posture and moved backwards to take some distance. His moves were pretty good, but that decision was the worst. Taking distance from an opponent using ¡¾Archery¡¿¡­ Seems like I need to remind him ofmon sense.

    ¡°This was his aim, right?¡¡The First Prince¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    Keith had a surprised expression after hearing my words. Seems like I hit the mark.

    A game limited to ¡¾Magic¡¿¡­ Obviously a stupid game. Because a stalemate can ur. That means Prince us has some way of breaking it. If I remember correctly, Noir-san said he was good at ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿. Then it¡¯s probably that, ¡¾Magic Swordsmanship¡¿. As long as he uses it, he can¡¯t lose to Maine in this game. He will be able to win one-sidedly. Just like me here.

    ¡°What a shame. I¡¯ll have to make you know how foolish this was.¡±

    I¡¯ll have to punish this despicableckey of the First Prince for trying to use this game as propaganda.

    While aiming with ¡¶Knight Archery¡·, I increase its power by adding ¡¶Silver Archery¡·, and add the impact of ¡¶Earth Attribute?First Form¡· to it. A three skillsbination. It would also help as a service to Silvia, letting her know that she can do something like this with ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿.

    ¡°Damn¡­¡­! ¡°

    Keith tried to evade my attack by turning tails.

    He looks like a panicked mouse.

    ¡°It¡¯s meaningless.¡±

    While saying so, the ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ was released.

    A heavy low sound reverberated. As soon as itnded on Keith¡¯s belly, the Earth Attribute magic exploded and the entire ground vibrated in its aftermath. Keith was blown out of the field, his HP dropping down to zero.

    This is my wrath. A warning not to look down on PvP games. If you don¡¯t wear down your nerves and put your life on the line, there¡¯s no way to be the top in PvP. If you¡¯re not that serious, it just looks like you¡¯re trolling. And even if the surroundings allow it, I will not.

    ¡°¡­Winner, Second.¡±

    The game ended with the quiet voice of the referee.

    A second, two seconds, three seconds went by¨D¨D Then the venue was enveloped in a storm of cheers.

    Compared to the previous games, this surely was a lot more spectacr. An unprecedented climax.

    While feeling a lot better, I returned to the waiting room.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°I¡¯m v-very sorry.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. There will have to be a change of ns, but I have found something good.¡±

    us said in a good mood to Keith, who was lowering his head.

    At the end of his gaze was the back of a handsome man, looking glorious as he was leaving the venue.

    ¡°Most likely, that Second guy will be the champion. If I add him as my subordinate, that stupid little brother of mine will stand no chance.¡±

    ¡°But that man is quite the tough opponent.¡±

    ¡°Keith. Do you think he¡¯ll be able to refuse my invitation? From the Captain of the First Knight Order? ¡°

    ¡°¡­No, nothing like that.¡±

    ¡°Haha, to think I would find a man able to handle posite magic¡¯ while visiting the Magic Academy¡­ing was the correct choice. He¡¯ll make a good pawn.¡±

    While us smiled with a rxed face, Keith stared at him with an expression of anxiety.

    Because he had faced against him, he knew.

    Magic Archer Second. Surely, he will do something outside their expectations¨D¨D

 Chapter 22: A promise with a friend

    <h4>Chapter 22: A promise with a friend</h4>

    ¡°Second-san, you are very strong.¡±

    At the final game.

    Just before it started, Maine began speaking.

    ¡°I guess. Sorry for hiding it. Are you angry? ¡°

    ¡°Not at all!¡¡I¡¯m liking you more and more.¡±

    You¡¯re a good person, Maine.

    ¡°Then, next time take me to the royal pce. I¡¯d like to read the Fourth Form.¡±

    When I answered as so in a clear voice, Maine smiled happily.

    ¡°Of course. Uhmm, but, in exchange¡­ be my f¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Participants, get ready¡­ Begin! ¡°

    The referee signaled the start of the game the moment Maine tried to say something.

    The final game has begun.

    ¡°¡­¡­¤Ã! ¡°

    After having his conversation interrupted, Maine switched gears immediately and cast ¡¶Wind Attribute?First Form¡·.

    Almost at the same time, Ibined ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Water Attribute?First Form¡·, and got it ready to activate.

    Like that, we were about to exchange shots.

    As is, the conclusion is settled¨D¨D But that prediction was soon overturned.

    ¡°HAAA! ¡°

    Maine immediately canceled his cast, and jumped directly into the magic I released.

    Arge chuck of water hits Maine. About 30% of Maine¡¯s HP was being shaved off, but in spite of that, he started casting while taking damage.

    This guy, he managed to do Forced Casting!

    Indeed, if you are attacked while casting, the spell will be interrupted, but if the cast is performed while you receive an attack, it would not be interrupted.

    Maine properly knew about that. As expected of the ¡®Erudite Prince¡¯, though I won¡¯t say it.

    What¡¯s more¡­¡­ that magic is ¡¶Wind Attribute?Third Form¡·. So, this guy had also learned it¨D¨D!

    ¡°Tch.¡±

    I clicked my tongue, then I too cast ¡¶Wind Attribute?Third Form¡·.

    My skill rank is higher than his. Therefore, my casting time is also shorter.

    ¡­¡­As a result, my Third Form and Prince Maine¡¯s Third Form were activated at the same time, and cancelled each other simultaneously.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡±

    The simple difference in power was made clear. Maine staggered back andnded on his buttocks.

    ¡°It is my defeat.¡±

    He sadlyughed after saying that. A surrender deration.

    ¡°Winner, Second! ¡°

    The referee decision came soon.

    ¡­¡­This is not good. Can¡¯t leave it like this.

    ¡°Hey, why are youughing? ¡°

    After thinking thus, I confronted Maine.

    I had to show it in my attitude.

    Before the game started, this guy was trying to say it. He¡¯s gloomy and bashful, a person that makes youugh. But he grasped his fist tightly with his cheeks blushed. He was serious.

    I can¡¯t leave without showing him the answer.

    I have to properly point out the virtues of this guy who¡¯s too soft to do something and let¡¯s everything pass with a ¡°It¡¯s fine¡±.

    I came to think that he was of such forgiving mind.

    ¡°Eh¡­ well, Second-san, you¡¯re strong.¡±

    ¡°No. If your Third Form was grade 5 or higher, I might have lost. It was a dangerous sight. I unconsciously looked down on you. There¡¯s no strength in that.¡±

    ¡°¡­But you are very strong, right?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. Aren¡¯t you bitter? You lost to an opponent that was looking down on you. Aren¡¯t you frustrated?¡±

    ¡°No, not really, that is¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t deceive yourself. If you¡¯re not frustrated here, you¡¯ll stay the same for the rest of your life.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Maine turned silent.

    Suddenly, the sound ofughter and apuse came closer.

    ¡°Incredible evaluation, Second-kun. It is as you say. My foolish brothercks such spirit. I¡¯ve always been telling him that.¡±

    I knew it. He came.

    With sharp eyes and long, golden hair dropping on his back, it was the First Prince us.

    Just as us looked at me, his mouth opened with a smile.

    ¡°I properly looked at your skills. You really have a good arm. I¡¯ll make a special exception. Learnmanding under my tutge.¡±

    Bustle¡­¡­All the people around raised voices of surprise.

    To report directly to the First Prince us would mean having secured an executive position in the First Knight Order. And then, with the crowning of King us, a bright future is ensured.

    An incredible deal. Even me understands it.

    The fact that I was sought in the presence of this public serves as a formal invitation from the Leader of the First Knight Order us, and is proof that Prince us has publicly acknowledged my ability.

    But, on the contrary.

    Refusing this invitation is synonymous with dering, in front of many people, that I¡¯m turning First Prince us into an enemy.

    ¨D¨DThis gives little reason to refuse. Everyone thinks so.

    This is what us was aiming for.

    An invitation that no normal person would be able to refuse.

    Yes, a normal person.

    ¡°Don¡¯t want to.¡±

    I answered with just that single phrase.

    ¡°What did you say? ¡°

    us asked again.

    ¡°Do?not?want?to.¡±

    I repeated myself slowly this time.

    Maine looked over here with a ck face.

    It¡¯s okay. This was within my expectations. I knew that if it became a scenario where us couldn¡¯t beat you because of me, he would try toe and recruit me. After all, isn¡¯t he at the top of the Knights?¡¡Sorry to disappoint you, but the world¡¯s number one isn¡¯t that naive.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡«¡°

    us¡¯ face turned red in anger. I wonder if the expression fuming in anger meant something like this.

    However, I¡¯m not angry at all.

    We¡¯re in the presence of the public.

    Getting angry just because your invitation was refused is not a royal-like attitude at all.

    ¡°¡­¡­Is that right? ¡°

    us said with his face still red.

    Here¡¯s the time to use the wild card I had prepared.

    ¡°I already made a promise with Maine before the game. To visit the Royal Pce with him.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨Deh! ¡°

    Maine¡¯s eyes opened in surprise.

    Right. This deration can be taken with the meaning of ¡°I¡¯m already under the umbre of the Second Prince¡±.

    I certainly made that promise a few minutes ago. Even the referee who was nearby can prove it.

    ¡°¡­¡­Is that so? ¡°

    us looked towards Maine and the referee, with a vein almost popping out from his forehead.

    Maine nodded.

    The referee also nodded his head strongly.

    ¡°¡­¡­I see.¡±

    There was already an agreement between me and the Second Prince.

    He was trying to ¡®invite to divide¡¯, or in other words, simr to recruiting an employee working for anotherpany. That was a vition of manners.

    Therefore, he had no choice but to back down. And the situation had now reversed.

    ¡°What a shame. Well, let us keep doing our best in the future.¡±

    us¡¯ red face became and even darker tone.

    ¡°Second-san¡­¡±

    Blushing slightly, Maine looked over here.

    This guy, seems like he already forgot the sermon I gave him.

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s continue the sermon. That¡¯s right, do you want to y with me until you no longer feel frustrated?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Eh, EH!?¡¡Please spare me!¡¡You know I can¡¯t win! ¡°

    ¡°Are you dumb? That¡¯s not what I meant. That¡¯s why people keep calling you weak and feeble.¡±

    ¡°What a terrible thing to say¡­ Second-san, you really like to recklessly pick on me, right? You¡¯re almost like my brother.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t pair me with the likes of him.¡±

    ¡°Eh¡­? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s because we¡¯re friends, idiot.¡±

    Making a fist with my hand, I hit the top of Maine¡¯s head.

    Although it was painful enough for tears to form at the edge of Maine eyes, he answered ¡°Yes! ¡°, with a smile.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Fuck!¡¡That Maine¡­! ¡°

    While cursing his brother¡¯s name, us went inside the school building and hurriedly headed towards the Headmaster¡¯s office.

    That foolish little brother dared pull ahead of me. That was all it took to tear us¡¯ pride to shreds.

    ¡°Pa Memento!¡¡Are you there!? ¡°

    ¡°Please calm down, Your Highness us.¡±

    ¡°Shut up!¡¡Hand over all the information you have about that sickening person, Second, this very moment! ¡°

    Pa, the headmaster of the Royal Magic Academy sighed at the angry First Prince, and then took out a bunch of papers out from a drawer in her desk.

    ¡°Hand it over! ¡°

    us aggressively ripped the papers from Pa¡¯s hands and started to go through them on the spot.

    ¡°¡­Is this all!? ¡°

    What was written in there was trivial information about how Second had spent his time in the school.

    ¡°He¡¯s a person with a lot of mysteries. Also, about his ind country Zipang, nothing hase up about that ce.¡±

    ¡°F¡­ FUUCK!! ¡°

    us mmed the papers on the floor and left the headmaster¡¯s office.

    ¡°Good lord, I heard he was an easily upset person, but.¡±

    Pa was astounded as she gathered the papers scattered on the floor.

    ¡°¡­Still, Second-kun. I¡¯ll have to look further into him.¡±

    The ck rim around the sses on her face masked her suspicious expression.

 Chapter 22.5: Idle Talk - The daily life of the Fan Club

    <h4>Chapter 22.5: Idle Talk ¨C The daily life of the Fan Club</h4>

    There is a certain organization called ¡ºSecond¡¯s Fan Club¡».

    It¡¯s a huge organization formed the very same day his short-term abroad studies started in the Royal Magic Academy.

    Saying there are 100 members would be an understatement, and among the members, 99% consists of female students.

    Their activities are only one.

    ¡®Watch Second attentively from a distance¡¯.

    Specifically speaking, ¡®Report at the regr meetings each and every single movement from Second in the campus, then get excited whileing up with all sorts of delusions¡¯, is their main activity.

    They nevere close to Second. Yet, they never remove their gaze from him.

    YES Second, NO touch¨D¨D That¡¯s their iron rule.

    By the way, the regr meetings are held every day after school in an empty ssroom. The number of participants increases day by day.

    Just what on earth drives them that far? There are two reasons.

    The first and most important reason is, the incredibly good looks of Second. His unusually well-proportionate face and wless limbs that steal the eyes of the viewer. Not a small number of female students are captivated by him at first sight. His appearance is on a level where the members of the fan club can absorb themselves into it every day.

    And the second reason. That is, Second¡¯s character. At first nce, looking at Second makes you feels like there¡¯s a gap, and you can see a glimpse of his true character when he converses with an open-minded person. For example, he would sometimes speak or act boldly, then unexpectedly he would be a bit yful and mischievous, or he would make use of unforgiving brute force. There was always elegance in his acts, no matter if he looked cool, sexy or silly.

    Every time they caught a glimpse of one of Second¡¯s hidden characteristics, the girls of the fan club gathered and immersed themselves in their stories.

    ¡°Today, Second-sama was rxing in the courtyard, then Eko-san came and sat on hisp and got head-patted.¡±

    ¡°Ahhh¡«¡« the Gap Moe.¡±

    ¡°How sacred.¡±

    ¡°A scene to be painted and used to decorate this school.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Today Second-sama was making fun of Silvia-san.¡±

    ¡°For real?¡¡Ahh¡«, I want to be made fun of too.¡±

    ¡°I know. Or rather, I would love if he could step on me.¡±

    ¡°Eh? That would be a little¡­¡­ Hmm. Not bad at all actually.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Today, Second-sama was ying Shiritori with Prince Maine.¡±

    ¡°Prince Maine was trying to get serious while being led by the nose by Second-sama¡­¡±

    ¡°Second¡ÁMaine¡­¡­I could get addicted to that.¡±

    ¡°HA?¡¡Maine¡ÁSecond is the best, a junior is the best seme, isn¡¯t that supreme? ¡°

    ¡°No, nonononononono, to be seme you need to act all high and mighty, and we know who fills that role.¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡°

    ¡°Oh?¡¡You wanna go at it? ¡°

    This was the kind of conflicts that asionally broke out.

    It was just the daily life of the fan club.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    In addition, there is an elite team in the fan club called ¡°Analysis Team¡±.

    Second finished his abroad study period, and had left the school for some time now. In front of the girls who were suffering from Second withdrawal, the analysis team came out with something incredible.

    ¡°Eko Leafret-san¡¯s covered in mud case. Now that we have a rough overview of it, we will announce the results.¡±

    In this meeting¡¯s time, the analysis team presented a report that had been independently investigated.

    Since it all rtes to Second, the members¡¯ interest was at full.

    ¡°While being called failure and ipetent, Eko-san was being bullied by many students, including the ones from first year ss F. But ording to the results of our investigations, we found out that the cause of her being covered in mud and lying on the road was due to the students of ss F.¡±

    The ssroom became noisy after hearing those words. There were different opinions, like ¡°As expected¡± and ¡°Uneptable¡±.

    ¡°It all began when a male student pressed chores on Eko-san. He used to push all sorts of chores onto her on a regr basis and enjoyed watching her being troubled, but this time, it seems like it was made more intentionally.¡±

    What was that n? The analysis group exined as they drew the events on the ckboard.

    ¡°Eko-san felt those chores were ¡®worth doing¡¯. Seems like her train of thought was that, if she couldn¡¯t use magic, she could at least be useful that way. Therefore, she diligently did those chores. But the male students didn¡¯t like it.

    On the ckboard, the picture of Eko carrying something in bag on a cart was drawn. What was inside was a lot of ¡°soil¡±. And from the soil, an arrow extended¡­ It pointed towards the drawing of a male student with a nasty-looking face.

    ¡°Eko-san, whom was not informed of the contents of the bag, carried it near the school gate. I think that since it was a chore assigned to her by her ssmates, she was working hard in order to be useful. There, the fellow male student came and shot a Water Attribute First Form magic towards the dirt. When the water hit the soil, mud sshed everywhere. And Eko-san was bathed in it since she was at close distance.¡±

    The ssroom once again boiled with noise. It was because it had been a bullying more terrible than they thought.

    ¡°I think you have seen it while she¡¯d been together with Second-sama, but Eko-san is very clever. Perhaps she had already figured that the contents of the bag were dirt, and that they made her carry it in order to dirty her. Furthermore, nobody had asked her to do chores before in the first ce. No one ever stood up for her, so maybe she had her own misconception that she would be recognized if she was to be useful, breaking the hopeless despair of her current situation since she couldn¡¯t just sit and protest.¡±

    The air inside the ssroom became heavy while everyone considered the analysis of the team. Everyone there thought ¡°Poor girl¡±. But.

    ¡°¡­¡­It happened about 200 meters from the spot. It¡¯s a little washed away now, but a slight sign of bloodstains remains in that dead end.¡±

    The flow of the conversation changed.

    ¡°Why is Eko-san so attached to Second-sama? You all are aware that Second-sama immediately rushed to that ce. But what happened after that? We, the analysis team, have investigated that.¡±

    And finally, the main subject.

    The airpletely changed, and the ssroom was enveloped in a strange ardor.

    ¡°After finding Eko-san covered in mud, Second-sama was trembling in anger and most likely said ¡ºDamn cat, tell me who and where is the person who did this to you! ¡». Then, when Eko-san kept silent, he replied ¡ºOhh, do you think you¡¯re in a position to go against this great me? ¡», and smacked the wall with his palm (TLN: Kabedon). Then, Eko-san pointed in the direction in which the boy from ss F had left, her eyes watery and cheeks dyed in red. ¡ºGood girl, now let¡¯s go¡», after saying that, Second-sama held Eko-san without worrying about the mud and went chasing the boy, so fast that his ck-blue hair beautifully fluttered in the wind. And that location is that dead end alley, where only bloodstains remained.¡±

    Every time Second-like lines came out from the lips of the female student from the analysis team, the audience cheered and screamed in excitement.

    ¡°¡ºSeeing how you had the guts to bully her in front of me, I¡¯ll let you have the first move¡», said Second-sama as he was drawing closer to the male student. The male student stepped back, but there was no escape. ¡ºPerish! ¡»After Second-sama spoke, the male student fell down, vomiting blood¡ºB-but you said you would let me have the first move¡­! ¡»And then he said¡ºI©`©`©`diot, that was a lie! ¡».¡±

    Yeaaaaaah!!

    Foooooooooooo!!

    The ssroom was wrapped in cheers and apuse.

    ¡°And this is how Second-sama saved Eko-san, and the peaceful days returned to the school. And I got to confirm again that foreign students sure are amazing.¡±

    This concluded the presentation. The girls in the fan club stood up andvishly apuded as the analysis team was leaving the stage.

    ¡°¡­¡­I th-think I should refrain from entering¡­¡­¡¹

    It was yet to be known that Prince Maine, after seeing the scene and catching a glimpse of the activities of the fan club, had second thoughts on joining the club.

 Chapter 23: Limptfert Dungeon

    <h4>Chapter 23: Limptfert Dungeon</h4>

    Episode 3: ve Arc

    After receiving the winning prize, the ¡ºRing of Pursuit¡» at the award ceremony, we left the Royal Magic Academy almost as if fleeing.

    As for the promise with Maine, I told him that I would visit the Royal Pce after I settled down.

    Curiously enough, I didn¡¯t receive any inquiries from Noir-san or the Knights, neither was I questioned by the headmaster Pa nor the head librarian Silk. Maybe since I pretty much became a magician under the Second Prince, they are unlikely to bring out those things that made me look suspicious.

    And thus, my n to acquire Magic finally seeded. It¡¯s fine to learn the Fourth Form and the Fifth Form in the distant future.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Well then, my friends. Let me announce our immediate goals.¡±

    Silvia and Eko straightened their postures after hearing me talk. They had a feeling of ¡°It¡¯s finally starting¡±.

    I¡¯ve acquired ¡¾Archery¡¿, ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ and ¡¾Magic¡¿ without a hitch¡­ Next, I want to acquire ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿.

    ¡°For the time being, let¡¯s earn experience in a dungeon. In particr, let¡¯s keep clearing it until Eko grows to an intermediate level.¡±

    I think that raising the levels of the skills we¡¯ve recently acquired should be the first priority. Therefore, we will be doing dungeonps for a while starting today. I also want to practice coboration between us three, since it¡¯s important that Silvia and Eko grow stronger and can cooperate. Besides, it¡¯s also fun while aiming for the reward from clearing it. Again, killing four birds with one stone.

    ¡°Ugh. Are we going to the Reus dungeon again? ¡°

    ¡°Dungeon! ¡°

    ¡°Not the Reus one. This time we¡¯re going to another intermediate dungeon called ¡ºLimptfert¡».

    ¡°Uhmm. Well, if it¡¯s intermediate¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Oh! ¡°

    Eko has just been repeating what we say¡­¡­ I wonder if that¡¯s alright. It should be fine, right?

    ¡°In the Limptfert dungeon, it¡¯s more likely to find monsters alone; their defense is high, but they have low attack power. It should serve as a good 1v1 practice. Also, we can get a nice drop from the dungeon boss, the Rock Turtle drops the¡ºShellrock Shield¡». Just the right equipment for Eko.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­ eh?¡¡Wait, a shield you say?¡¡A shield for Eko? ¡°

    ¡°Eko is suitable to be the front-liner and defend us from the monster¡¯s attacks, so let¡¯s raise her ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ starting today.¡±

    ¡°Ok, got it! ¡°

    ¡°Wait. Wait, wait, wait!¡¡Second-dono! ¡°

    ¡°There will be times when the damage can go through even with a shield. For those cases, let¡¯s have you learn ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ too.¡±

    ¡°Oookaay! ¡°

    ¡°Hey!¡¡D-do you want such a young girl to stand at the very front!? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. She will be a proper vanguard before long.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. Why would I be worried about that!? ¡°

    I went to the weapon and armor store along with the annoying and noisy Silvia and the obedient Eko.

    There, I bought arge shield, its height as tall as Eko, without dy. Since there was no armor that suited the body of Eko, I also bought a set of luxury leather equipment. The full set was 4 million CL, more expensive than my whole equipment. The shopkeeper uncle had a beaming smile on his face.

    After that, we went to the Comiket and made her learn two skills, ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡· and ¡¶Lance Shieldmanship¡·. Eko was able to properly acquire the skills after around 30 minutes of reading the books while using a dictionary. I knew it, this girl might actually be quite excellent.

    From there we headed to the ¡ºChurch of Kamel¡», and I noticed Silvia had been quiet. When I asked her if she was now convinced about the position of Eko, it seemed like she was quiet because we were in a library and a church. Ugh, will she be annoying again after leaving the church¡­?

    ¡°Alright, Eko. Let¡¯s have them show you the Grimoire for Healing Magic.¡±

    ¡°Is that okay¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. After asking a sister, I¡¯m sure she would show it to you.¡±

    We enter the church from the front and tell a sister about our purpose. The sister easily agreed, and she immediately brought the Grimoire for ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿¡¶Small Recovery¡·.

    After Eko received the Grimoire, she began reading it with a dictionary in the other hand. I was a bit uneasy since the situation wasn¡¯t looking very good, but¡­

    ¡°I learned it!¡¡Second, thanks!¡¡I was able to learn it! ¡°

    After spending less than 20 minutes reading the Grimoire, Eko said that and came hugging me.

    She¡¯s loud even though this is a church. She showed her feelings straight out without caring for the public eye. Silvia said ¡°Nicely done! ¡± and rejoiced as if this had been her achievement. While patting Eko¡¯s head, I directed a troubled smiled in apologies towards the sister. The sister only replied with a smile as if seeing something pleasing.

    ¡°Okay, shall we go then?¡±

    Our goal had been achieved. There¡¯s no need to be in the church anymore.

    ¡°Wa-wa-wait, hold on!¡¡Eh, are we just leaving like this!?¡¡Let¡¯s at least pray! ¡°

    ¡­¡­There it is again, Silvia¡¯s mother-like side.

    ¡°Haa¡«¡°

    ¡°Haa©`¡°

    When I walked to the front of the God Kamel statue while sighing, Eko followed after me, imitating me. ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped¡±, when I said so Silvia turned towards me and Eko with a questioning look, ¡°Eh¡­? ¡°, then we prayed together while lowering our heads.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Four hours away from the Kingdom¡¯s Capital.

    This is the agricultural town ¡ºPae Ho¡», which is 30 minutes away from the ¡ºLimptfert dungeon¡».

    To think it would take so long to travel here without using a flying dragon, but now that I think of it, sinceing to this world, I don¡¯t remember seeing people moving by flying dragon in the first ce. Seems like it won¡¯t be that easy to tame a flying dragon to move with.

    By the way, I bought a horse for Eko. Its name is ¡°Leaf Impact¡±. It¡¯s quite fast.

    Suddenly, wondering what Silvia¡¯s horse¡¯s name was, I asked her and she answered ¡°White Silver ¡± proudly. White Silver she says? No matter where you look, her horse is brown¡­ I really don¡¯t get Silvia¡¯s sense.

    Anyway, after arriving at the town of Pae Ho and setting up base at an inn, we started to roam the Limptfert dungeon immediately the following day.

    For the first 2-3ps, we proceeded in a rxed manner while prioritizing the acquisition of Eko¡¯s ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skills.

    From ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ I only want her to learn 6 skills. In addition to the basics ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡· and ¡¶Lance Shieldmanship¡·, there is ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡·, ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·, ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·and ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡·.

    The other ones are attacking skills with shields, so these six skills are enough for defense.

    Eko easily acquired everything except the ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡· and ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡·. Each of their effects are: ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡· normal defense, ¡¶Lance Shieldmanship¡· piercing deflection, ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡· defense + knockback, and ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡· range guided defense + knockback.

    Among them, ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·is an easy to use skill that can be said to be the cornerstone of ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿. Range guided defense refers to automatically leading an attack that has entered a certain range, into striking your shield instead of the intended target. It was often called ¡°suction¡± or ¡°Dai¡ðn¡±. Besides, it will even knock it back, so you can see the strength of this skill.

    TLN: I¡¯m uncertain at this point what the knock back means for shield skills, it just says ¡°knockback¡± in english in the description of the skills with knockback. Maybe return the attack? knockback the attacker? but what about ranged attacks knockback?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    A few days passed, and at aroundp ten, Eko began to stand out as a proper Muscle Monk.

    ¡°Hey, Eko!¡¡Are you okay!? ¡°

    A loud bang sounds.

    It was the attack of an ¡ºArmored Lizard¡», a particrly powerful monster even inside the Limptfert dungeon, scoring a critical hit on the shield wielding Eko.

    ¡°Ho¡­? ¡°

    When Silvia shily rushed towards her in worry, Eko just turned towards her and asked ¡°Eh, is something wrong? ¡± in an unconcerned voice.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­Eh? ¡°

    Said Silvia confused.

    No way, to be able to receive such a critical attack from an Armored Lizard¨D¨D is what Silvia is probably thinking, but indeed.

    ¡°It looks like thanks to the shieldmanship, my HP and VIT have risen considerably.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so¡­¡­?¡±

    Eko¡¯s HP hasn¡¯t even been reduced by 5%.

    ¡°Up we go.¡±

    Eko stood up and activated ¡¶Small Recovery¡· on herself, recovering her missing HP.

    She has been growing steadily in her role as a Tank.

    ¡°It should be time to get Bishop Shieldmanship.¡±

    I muttered while looking at the deepest part of the dungeon, to aim at the boss.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Listen Eko. Activate your skills to match my voice as you defend. It should take roughly 15 minutes without breaks. But if you make a mistake, it¡¯s starting from the beginning again. Can you do it? ¡°

    I give her some instructions before confronting the Rock Turtle.

    ¡°¡­¡­Yep. I can.¡±

    Eko nodded with an unusually serious expression and then closed her mouth.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    With my voice as the trigger, she rushed in front of the Rock Turtle.

    So far, we¡¯ve defeated the Rock Turtle around ten times. Up until now, Silvia and I have been attacking it with ¡¾Archery¡¿ from the back while Eko defends at the front, but this time is different.

    The condition for acquiring ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·is: ¡¸Use ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿topletely defend the attacks of a boss stronger than you 100 times in a row¡¹.

    The only bottleneck is the ¡¸Completely¡¹ part. That means you must not receive damage. Therefore, the defense methods are limited.

    You can either deflect the long-range prating attacks with ¡¶Lance Shieldmanship¡·, or use ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡·or ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡· to ¡ºParry¡» while knocking back. Parry is a phenomenon that is triggered when you defend in time in ordance with the attack of the enemy, you get the additional effect of no damage received + weak knockback. By the way, if you were to Parry with ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡·, since the knockback is weak, you have no respite until the follow up attackes and you have to defend immediately, greatly increasing the probability of receiving damage.

    If that happens, it¡¯s no longer a rhythm game.

    It¡¯s hard until you get used to it. But once you master the timings, you¡¯ll always be able to defend with Parry, making it possible to fight in a very advantageous way.

    This time, one of the aims is to have her practice the timing while at the same time fulfilling the condition to acquire ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·.

    ¡°Knight!¡¡Gold!¡¡Knight!¡¡¡­¡­Lance! ¡°

    I perfectly gave out instructions. Eko too was quite sharp as she followed them spot on.

    Although the Rock Turtle is rtively slow and so are its attacks, it is difficult to grasp the timings for Parry at first nce. This boss was the reason why I chose the Limptfert dungeon, but it seems more difficult that I thought.

    ¡°Ahh! ¡°

    Eko failed the parry and received the attack.

    ¡°That right now was a littlete. Can you do it again? ¡°

    ¡°I can! ¡°

    Eko nodded strongly. She used ¡¶Small Recovery¡· twice and headed back.

    Then, about an hourter, while continuing to confront the Rock Turtle, Eko finally learned ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·.

 Chapter 24: A Shield and a Magic Bow

    <h4>Chapter 24: A Shield and a Magic Bow</h4>

    ¡°Well then, Silvia. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s about time that you learn Magic Archery? ¡°

    It¡¯s the day after Eko learned ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·.

    I visited Silvia and Eko¡¯s room in the morning and asked her.

    ¡°Of course. If I can, I want to learn it.¡±

    ¡°You can learn it. Alright, let¡¯s have you learn Magic Archery starting today.¡±

    Along with a happy ¡°Is that so!? ¡°, Silvia began to hurriedly prepare.

    ¡°And me?¡¡And mee? ¡°

    Eko looked happy, as if she was having fun every day. She often asked ¡°What will we do today?¡± or ¡°What will we do tomorrow?¡± and when I answered with something she¡¯d go ¡°Kyaaa!¡± and cheerfully jump around. She¡¯s supposed to be a cat demihuman, but from the way she acts she seems more like a dog.

    ¡°Today, for Eko, we¡¯ll go to the dungeon to check the limitations of Bishop Shieldmanship and defeat the Rock Turtle, while aiming for the Shellrock Shield.¡±

    ¡°Kyaaa! ¡°

    The same response as usual¡­ But Eko is happy after all. So, I think this is alright.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡±

    After buying breakfast at a street stall, we took the road to the now familiar Limptfert dungeon.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s first have you meet the requirements tobine Magic and Archery.¡±

    ¡°Umu. I got it.¡±

    The condition is ¡¸While reducing their HP by 75% or more using ¡¾Archery¡¿skills, kill 1,000 monsters using ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills¡¹. Silvia should have made some progress while we earned experience in the slime forest, so it should be finished afterpletely clearing one dungeon.

    ¡°Eko, try using Bishop Shieldmanship. You¡¯ll be surprised.

    ¡°Yes! ¡°

    I gave instructions to Eko as she was about to receive the hit of the first monster.

    ¡°Ei! ¡°

    Eko then activated ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡· against the iing Armored Lizard.

    Along with a ¡®gakiiin¡¯ sound, the Armored Lizard¡¯s attack was repelled. Eko remained unflinching. The amount of damage she received was a surprising 4.

    ¡°Eh!? ¡°

    Silvia was surprised.

    Eko too voiced an ¡°Ohh! ¡± loudly.

    The effect of ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡· is ¡®Reinforced Defense¡¯. The defense is done by temporarily magnifying your own VIT while defending. At Grade 9, it can protect with a VIT raised to 600%. For a high VIT character, it¡¯s a powerful skill that makes even a Boss¡¯ attack as effective as a mosquito bite.

    ¡°It¡¯s a very strong skill, but it also consumes a considerable amount of SP so it can¡¯t be used often. Rank it up to the 5th ss for the time being. This is a must. After that, go for the 1st ss then the Grade 6.¡±

    At the 5th ss, the cooldown time is reduced and the activation time is shortened. The cooldown time decreases further at the 1st ss. And at Grade 6, it provides an increase in VIT of 500%, which should be a sufficient protection.

    By the way, this skill also strengthens MGR (Magic Resistance) with the same magnification. This is a very useful skill since, as you advance and be stronger, the instances where you must face Magic increases.

    ¡­¡­while I was thinking that, Eko suddenly burst into tears.

    Eh?

    ¡°Wh-what happened!? ¡°

    When she heard me, Eko muttered ¡°Amazing!¡± and ¡°¡­¡­bing useful¡± while still shedding tears. (TLN: Here, the second thing Eko says is quite easy to misunderstand, that is the best trantion I could do, but that¡¯s why Second didn¡¯t understand it.) I wonder if Eko was touched by understanding the great utility of ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·. It is a mystery, but for now I justforted Eko telling her it was okay, and after waiting for her to settle down, we went ahead.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°I learned it! ¡°

    Near the end of the dungeon, Silvia reported this gleefully to me.

    ¡°Nice, let¡¯s test it.¡±

    ¡°Umu!¡±

    Silvia ced an arrow in and pulled the string of the Bow of the zing Wolf, then added ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡·.

    ¡°Here I go.¡±

    Alongside that voice, she shot.

    The arrow flew together with the sound of mes and it hit the chest of a monster. Spreading in an instant, the mes burned the whole body of the monster.

    Silvia¡¯s ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· is at Grade 5 and her ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· is at Grade 3. It wasn¡¯t a critical hit, and the damage dealt to the monster was 581. Well, that¡¯s pretty much okay for a novice Magic Archer.

    ¡°Next, try using the Third Form.¡±

    ¡°Umu! ¡°

    Silvia went and prepared the skills in the same way as before.

    In the center of the bow, a small ball of condensed fire swirled almost as if it were a small sun, its colors mixing between red and ck.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It somehow looks dangerous, I wonder if I¡¯ll be okay?¡¡Silvia, who saw the scene, had a look that expressed those words. I simply said ¡°Just try it¡±.

    And Silvia shot. Immediately after¨D¨D

    ¡°Whoa!? ¡°

    Dokkan!¡¡With the added Third Form, it roared and caused a shockwave as it impacted like a cannonball on the monster. In that moment, the fireball, which was as small as a ping pong ball, swelled to about three times the size of the monster¡¯s body and exploded.

    The ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡·¡®s rank was 9th ss. Non critical. The damage was 1612. Barely within the practical use limit. By changing the ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·to Silver or Rook, and raising the rank of the Third Form, it can be the main skill for a rear guard. I really want her to do her best.

    By the way, my ¡¶Rook Archery¡· at Grade 9 without a critical hit, deals roughly 6200 damage to the same monster. ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·at Grade 6 is around 5000. This much firepower is more than enough here in the Limptfert dungeon.

    ¡°Silvia, amazing! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Y-yeah. It is amazing.¡±

    The person in question just stood in daze, lost in thought after using Magic Archery for the the first time.

    Thus, Silvia took her first step at bing a Magic Archer.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I want to do it.¡±

    That same day¡¯s night.

    It became absolutely unbearable to me, so I approached Silvia and confessed.

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­ EEH!? ¡°

    Silvia replied, her face red as a tomato.

    ¡°I want to do it, Silvia¡­ I can¡¯t bear it any longer¡­ I can¡¯t¡­¡±

    ¡°Eeh!?¡¡W-wait, isn¡¯t it still too early!?¡¡That, is more, for after we deepen our rtionship, isn¡¯t it!? ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t bear it any longer¨D¨DI want to strengthen it already! ¡°

    ¡°Stren¡­?¡¡¡­¡­¡­¡­¡«! ! ¡°

    Ouch!¡¡I was hit.

    ¡°Even though I finally got this Ring of Pursuit. I have no way to strengthen it.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I see, yes, yes, whatever.¡±

    She got quite mad¡­¡­ can¡¯t she take a little joke?

    ¡°Sorry, sorry. But still, this is also rted to your Bow of the zing Wolf.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hmm.¡±

    Oh, she bought it.

    ¡°Eko, you too, you¡¯ll eventually get the Shellrock Shield.¡±

    ¡°£ú£ú£ú¡°

    She¡¯s already sleeping¡­¡­

    ¡°Anyway. Listen here, it¡¯s important to strengthen your equipment. How much damage are you getting out of Rook Archery right now? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm, roughly around 3000.¡±

    ¡°If you strengthen the Bow of the zing Wolf to the final stage, that alone will make it do 12000.¡±

    ¡°Fa-!? ¡°

    Silvia made a strange voice out of surprise.

    Seems like she at least understood how much the equipment needs to be strengthened.

    ¡°Of the 3000 it¡¯s doing now it¡¯ll do 12000. That is 4 times, 4 times more.¡±

    ¡°O-okay. So strengthening it can do so much for it. It is indeed important.¡±

    Silvia nodded convinced.

    ¡°Umu¡­ but speaking of strengthening.¡±

    Oh, did she notice it?

    ¡°Yeah. We need a cksmith.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do? ¡°

    ¡°I can think of four ns.¡±

    I spoke one by one of the ideas I was thinking.

    ¡°Number 1. The three of us form a team and join the adventurer¡¯s guild. Then, we recruit one in there.¡±

    That would make it easier for us to recruit team members instead of having to reach for them individually. However, I don¡¯t know how long it will take until we meet a good cksmith, and there is no guarantee that a reliable and trusted one will appear.

    ¡°¡­That seems to be quite difficult.¡±

    In addition, I was rmended by the Third Knight Order to enter the adventurer¡¯s guild in the past, but I turned it down. It might be difficult to enter now because of that. It might not even be a good idea.

    ¡°Number 2. Find someone who has the aptitude to be a good cksmith and invite them.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­That also seems like it would take some time.¡±

    If we are lucky enough to find one, there are many advantages such as ¡°Learning and growing as a cksmith from scratch¡±, but the chance of meeting such a person is probably about one in a million. Moreover, going around town asking people ¡°please show me your status¡± will surely make me be in debt to the Third Knight Order. This is a world where I might get reported just for talking to someone with a ¡°Today sure is a nice day¡±. I need to be careful and not offend someone no matter how good I look.

    ¡°Number 3. Recruit an active cksmith.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the most realistic? But¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah. We can¡¯t expect much.¡±

    cksmithing is a useful job. It might be impossible to ask someone toe with us, an unknown team, and abandon the workce they¡¯ve worked at so far. Conversely, cksmiths who don¡¯t have a workce could be easily recruited, but such cksmiths must have some fails. After all, it¡¯s not the people we are seeking.

    ¡°Then, number 4. This is likely the winner.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, is it something good? ¡°

    Beforehand I said ¡°There is no other way¡±, ¡°It can¡¯t be helped¡±, and ¡°Promise you won¡¯t get angry? ¡°, in order to prepare her.

    ¡°Buy a ve.¡±

 Chapter 25: Searching for a Blacksmith

    <h4>Chapter 25: Searching for a cksmith</h4>

    ¡°Let¡¯s buy a ve! ¡°

    As soon as I said so, I closed my eyes and prepared for the snap back.

    Silvia¡¯s ¡°Idiot! ¡± specifically. That¡¯s because I knew it woulde.

    But Silvia¡¯s response was contrary to what I expected.

    ¡°Fumu. I see, ve huh? That¡¯s certainly easy to find.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Uh?¡¡You¡¯re not getting angry? ¡°

    ¡°Eh, why would I?¡¡You¡¯ll look for a ve with an aptitude for cksmithing, right?¡¡That¡¯s a great idea. If we go to the ve market, there would be no problem in looking at their status.¡±

    Oh, she let it pass.

    We¡¯re talking about her, THE female knight-sama. I was sure she would blush and yell something at me like ¡°Have you no shame!?¡¡I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make excessive demands to the ve!¡¡Like a perverted person! ¡°. I wondered what kind of scolding I would get, but it seems that¡¯s not the case.

    ¡°Alright. Then, let¡¯s go back to the kingdom¡¯s capital and visit the ve dealer tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Understood. Ah, Second-dono. It might be better if you wore ¡®those¡¯ clothes.¡±

    Those rare clothes, huh? Certainly, those make me look like someone rich, and I will probably get a better service.

    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right, got it. I¡¯ll prepare.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Next morning.

    We temporarily left the town of Pae Ho and returned to the capital.

    Our destination is ¡ºMaurice¡», thergest vepany in the capital.

    ¡°Wee dear customers. My name is Phillip and I¡¯m thispany¡¯s president.¡±

    We were guided to the reception room located at the back of the store, where a plump and smiling old man waited for us. Seems like he¡¯s the most important person in this neighborhood. After all, the way he is dressed screams power. It really stood out and with a single nce I could tell.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for a cksmith ve. Could I look at them and examine their status? ¡°

    ¡°Of course, it would be my pleasure. Let¡¯s not waste any time then.¡±

    After Phillip gave her some instructions, a woman who appeared to be his secretary left the room quietly.

    Less than 10 minutes had passed when she came back in with 15 ves wearing cors.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­So, this is why.¡±

    In that moment I understoodpletely the reason why Silvia didn¡¯t get angry earlier.

    The ves standing in front of me, all of them, were incredibly muscr, bearded old men.

    ¡­¡­I see. I suppose it makes sense. It was me who was under the wrong impression. That¡¯s to be expected when talking about a cksmith¡­¡­ no, actually, this would be expected when speaking of ves. For them to be men. Haaa©`¡­¡­

    ¡°Is there any ve that¡¯s to your liking? ¡°

    ¡°Eh? Ahh! Give me a moment.¡±

    While being discouraged by the shock of seeing nothing but old men, I went through them and had each of the 15 people show me their status.

    The main stats I want for a cksmith are STR and DEX, then LUK, and if they have good INT that¡¯s a plus. And since I¡¯m looking for a cksmith to strengthen my weapons as I aim at bing the world¡¯s top, all of them must be excellent.

    ¡°¡­Not good. None of them will do.¡±

    Among the old men there were none who seemed to be an excellent cksmith. After hearing my words, the old men had a deeply disappointed look on their faces.

    ¡°Is that so? I am very sorry. In that case, would you like to take a look at a crime ve we recently acquired in our store?¡±

    Crime ve?

    I¡¯m not sure what the difference between them and the regr ves is. Well, whatever, it¡¯s okay as long as I find a good cksmith.

    ¡°Alright, show them to me.¡±

    ¡°Right away. However, since he is a crime ve, I cannot bring him here. You¡¯ll need toe to the ves¡¯ cells in the back.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, Silvia and Eko, you two wait here.¡±

    After saying so, I followed after Phillip.

    The ve cells in the Maurice ve Company were like a prison. The room was big, clean and visibly well managed. Seems like the money circted quite well in the Maurice Company. The ves seem to be living a reasonably decent life, even if they don¡¯t go out. The number of people who have a look of despair can be counted on a single hand.

    ¡°From here on, they are all criminal ves. There are 33 people here, but only one of them is a cksmith.¡±

    ¡°Lead the way.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Right this way.¡±

    Phillip went down the hallway and stopped in the room before thest. Perhaps because it¡¯s a room for crime ves, its construction is quite tough.

    When I opened the small window, I could see the inside through some iron bars.

    Over there was an old man too.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Not good either.¡±

    After taking a look at his stats, I shook my head. This old man doesn¡¯t have the aptitude to be an excellent cksmith.

    ¡°Is that so? ¡­¡­.I am sorry we couldn¡¯t meet your expectations.¡±

    Phillip lowered his head.

    Just as I was saying ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it¡±, I became somewhat interested in the room at the back.

    ¡°That room is very solid, what kind of guy do you keep in there? ¡°

    ¡°Ah, you mean over there?¡±

    Saying ¡°Well, at least as an apology¡±, Phillip opened the reinforced double window of the innermost room with a key and showed me inside.

    ¡°She is an assassin who had been serving the Duchess that was executed the other day. Since she was made to assassinate, due to being bound to it by the ve contract, it was ruled that she was not guilty. So after avoiding execution, she was brought to ourpany.¡±

    ¡°Assassin?¡¡Hmmmm.¡±

    I took a look inside.

    ¡­¡­Brown skin, long hair with a color of white and purple, sharp sanpaku eyes, ample chest, an actress-type waist and tight legs.

    Without changing her cold expression, she only moved her pupils and stared back at me who was looking at her from the window.

    Over there was a¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Dark Elf.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. She¡¯s a skilled woman. However, since the Castall Kingdom has instructed to add ¡ºUnable to Attack¡» to the contract, the only uses for her would be a sex ve or a housekeeper¡­ But given that she¡¯s a dark elf, it has proven difficult to find a buyer here, so we¡¯re having trouble dealing with her.¡±

    Unable to attack¡­ Does that mean she can¡¯t attack?

    Still, why can¡¯t he find a buyer for a dark elf?¡¡I wonder why?¡¡I¡¯m pretty sure plenty of people would want to get their hands on such a beautiful woman.

    ¡°Regtions and restrictions, I¡¯m really troubled by all that crap.¡±

    Phillip said along with a troubledugh.

    ¡­¡­Ah. I get it. A while ago, Silvia was saying something about ¡°some deep-rooted discrimination and persecution against demi humans and dark elves¡±. Has the Castall Kingdom enacted some regtoryws as countermeasure?

    In other words, the current trend in the Kingdom is that, let alone treating a dark elf as a sex ve, even having one as a simple ve is frowned upon.

    ¡°Let me see your status.¡±

    Since I already went to the trouble of having her shown to me, I decided to ask.

    Although reluctantly, she obeyed.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hoo.¡±

    First of all, her very high DEX was quite noticeable. Then, her STR and INT are also quite high. The set status of the dark elven race makes them good at magic andbat.

    Still, I wonder why. Her LUK and AGI are also quite high.

    ¡°What about your skills? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Dagger Arts, Archery, Magic, Thread Maniption, Assassination.¡±

    And so she muttered. It was a clear voice that made you feel chills down your spine.

    Alright, with this I¡¯m convinced. The unusually high DEX was because in addition to ¡¾Archery¡¿, she also raised ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿. The reason her AGI is also high is because of her raising her ¡¾Assassination¡¿.

    Or in other words, chances her growth type is ¡ºcksmith Master¡» are incredibly high.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Which means.

    ¡­¡­Un. It¡¯s a bit troublesome that she can¡¯t attack, but as long as she can focus on cksmith it¡¯s alright. It would be like having a maid taking care and supporting us in things other thanbat.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Alright.

    Having made up my mind, I opened my mouth.

    ¡°How much is she? ¡°

 Chapter 26: Yukariâ€™s Origins

    <h4>Chapter 26: Yukari¡¯s Origins</h4>

    I decided on the spot to buy the dark elf crime ve.

    The price was 16 million CL. To have an excellent future cksmith Master at this joke of a price, this world is beyond saving.

    ¡°Then, I will start with the ve contract.¡±

    Saying that, Phillip took out a piece of paper. It was a contract used for very magic. I¡¯ve seen in before in Mobius. It¡¯s used for master-ve contracts by the force of very magic, it makes the ve unable to take any action contrary to what¡¯s indicated in the contract. It¡¯s not a problem of whether the contract could be broken or not, since there¡¯s this mysteriouspelling force that makes it ¡°unable to be broken¡±. Well, the truth is, there are many tricks to breaking it without penalty¡­

    By the way, very magic was a unique skill specific to certain NPCs that appeared several times in Mobius, butcked usefulness as the story progressed. Of course, that NPC was not Phillip, and yers weren¡¯t able to learn it. In other words, there¡¯s a new and unknown set of conditions for acquiring NPC specific skills, meaning that there are multiple people who can use NPC specific skills.

    ¡°Are these contents alright for the contract? ¡°

    Oops, I almost didn¡¯t read it. Let¡¯s see.¡¡The following contract is made between the master and the ve (hereafter referred to as A and B respectively). Number one, it is the obligation of A to provide B with the appropriate clothing, food and shelter so that it does not harm their dignity and life as a person¡­

    ¡­Oh, I see. I just gave it a quick read, but in short, ¡°The master must treat the ves humanely and the ves must be obedient to the master¡±. Quite the decent content.

    There¡¯s only one point of concern. And that is thisst item added.

    ¡ºNumber neen, B can not take any action that results in harm against another person.¡»

    Geez, that¡¯s quite tough. It¡¯s true that she might be a former assassin, but if she was to be attacked by someone, she won¡¯t be able to even defend herself¡­ I¡¯ve got no words.

    ¡°Is there nothing you can do about this? ¡°

    ¡°No. That was an order from the country, so¡­¡±

    Phillip answered while having a bitter look.

    ¡°Well, it can¡¯t be helped. Then, the contents of the contract are fine as they are.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Since it¡¯s limited to ¡°persons¡±, earning experience by attacking monsters should pose no problem. She should be able to attack them.

    While reluctantly consenting, I signed the contract. The dark elf ve also signed it.

    After Phillip confirmed it, he activated the very magic.

    I felt something invisible between me and the dark elf being connected. Quite a new feeling I must say. Her eyebrows also twitched slightly.

    ¡°With this, the very contract has beenpleted. Thank you for your purchase, Second-sama. I look forward to seeing you again here in the Maurice Company.¡±

    The contract ended easily and without problems.

    After being freed from her chains, the dark elf simply stood silently behind me.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I wonder why? This feels terribly awkward.

    ¡°You, what¡¯s your name? ¡°

    ¡°None.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Well, ¡®None¡¯, let¡¯s return to the drawing room.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I meant I don¡¯t have a name.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Seems like she didn¡¯t understand it as a joke. On the contrary, this dark elf has a look of disgust. She sure has guts for being just a ve.

    ¡­¡­Still, no name, huh? What kind of life had she lived?

    ¡°I was kidding. But in that case, it will be hard to call for you. May I give you a name? ¡°

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    Uhmm, a name¡­ dark elf, brown skin, nice body¡­ purple hair, purple colored, purple, violet, Murasaki (purple), Yukari (purple)¡­

    Folding my arms, I kept thinking for about five minutes and then decided on her name.

    ¡°How does Yukari sound? ¡°

    After hearing me, she just opened her eyes slightly more and looked at me.

    ¡°Understood. My name is Yukari. Thank you very much, Master.¡±

    Yukari made a beautiful bow.

    It was such a beautiful movement that I almost bowed back involuntarily.

    ¡°It¡¯s Second. I¡¯ll introduce mypanionster.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Even though I was slightly shaken by receiving the word ¡°Master¡±, I turned my back to Yukari so that she didn¡¯t notice it and hurried back to where Silvia and Eko were waiting.

    Yukari came quietly, following behind me. I guess I should say, as expected of a former assassin, I can¡¯t even hear her footsteps.

    ¡°I¡¯m back.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Second-dono. Did you find a good cksm¨D¨D¡±

    After returning to the reception, Silvia said so as she greeted me back, but her words stopped the moment her eyes matched Yukari.

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-dono. Can it be that this beautiful dark elfdy is?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. She¡¯s Yukari. From today, I¡¯ll develop her as a cksmith Master.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh.¡±

    Silvia copsed on the spot. ¡°I never expected a woman cksmith¡±, ¡°Why didn¡¯t I consider that possibility?¡± and ¡°What¡¯s more, they are huge! ¡°, those were some of her mumbles I somewhat managed to hear.

    ¡°I¡¯m Eko!¡¡Yukari, best regards! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care, Eko-sama.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not Ekosama, you know?¡¡It¡¯s just Eko. ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care, Eko-san.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not Ekosan, you know?¡¡It¡¯s just Eko. ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Eko, I¡¯ll be in your care.¡±

    ¡°Yes! ¡°

    Looks like her Ekomunication skills are quite amazing. However, Yukari is also amazing by remainingposed and not changing her expression while having that exchange.

    ¡°That there is Silvia. She¡¯s a great Magic Archer.¡±

    I began with the introductions. Yukari asked ¡°Magic Archer? ¡± while tilting her head, to which I just answered, ¡°You¡¯ll see in time¡±.

    Then, after buying Yukari¡¯s horse and clothes, ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the town of Pae Ho. Then, we¡¯ll have a meeting about the future ns.¡±

    And along with my voice, we left the Maurice Company.

    Thus, the future cksmith Master Yukari joined our group.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡­¡­At first, I thought she was just nervous.

    But it was different.

    On our way to the town of Pae Ho, I tried to talk about various subjects in order to deepen my friendship with Yukari.

    Nothing I said ever worked.

    No matter what I said to her, Yukari remained expressionless and answered with a in and business-like voice.

    Not only with me, it was also the same when she talked to Silvia and Eko.

    Is she trying to kill her own feelings?

    I don¡¯t know her origins.

    It was only at the ¡°none¡± joke I did that she showed some sort of emotion.

    That look of disgust¨D¨DIn this half a day we¡¯ve been together, that has been the only time I felt an emotion from her.

    In the first ce, I¡¯ve never been really good atmunicating, so I¡¯m already at my limit.

    She might be a ve, but still, she is a newpanion. If possible, I¡¯d like for us to get along.

    If we don¡¯t have a good rtionship, she might go awayter when she bes an excellent cksmith Master.

    I wonder what I should do? ¡­I kept thinking.

    Then, in the end, all I could think of was this.

    Let¡¯s hear it straight from the person herself.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Yukari. Can you tell me about your past? ¡°

    As soon as we arrived at the inn, I called Yukari to my room.

    ¡°Is that an order?¡±

    Yukari answered my question with a really cold voice.

    Her eyes were shaking slightly.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me if you don¡¯t want to.¡±

    ¡°¡­Then, allow me to remain silent.¡±

    I was refused. tly rejected.

    Still, I pretended to be calm and said, ¡°Is that so? In 15 minutes we¡¯re having dinner, you can go back to the next room¡±. she then left and returned to her room.

    It was really a short conversation.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Fu, fufufufu.¡±

    Oops, I identally leaked a smile.

    Still, I didn¡¯t think I would get such a nice harvest.

    Due to my straight-up out-of-nowhere question, Yukari showed the most emotion to date.

    That was, unrest, a bold front, guilt, and¡­¡­ fear.

    There is something in her past. That¡¯s why she doesn¡¯t speak much and acts like a mild ve. And what¡¯s more, she¡¯s ¡°scared¡± of that past of hersing to light.

    As for the reason for hiding that past¨D¨D It is probably rted to the time she was acting as an assassin.

    But that I already know. She should also know that I know.

    Then why hide it?¡¡Why is she scared?¡¡Why is she acting?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°Ahh, I see.¡±

    I unexpectedly recalled.

    About the time when I was the top in the world. ¡°Seven, what do you do for a living? ¡± When I heard that question, I remembered having a simr feeling to how Yukari acted earlier.

    I didn¡¯t want to tell the truth. Therefore, all I could do was lie. I always answered with ¡°Real Estate¡± when they asked me.

    Why was I hiding it? Because if not, the delicate rtionship we had would break. If they knew that I was unemployed, they would always see me with scorn in their eyes. I was scared of that. Therefore, I always kept my distance with others. I was always acting. My act of ¡°Since I have the money and the time, I decided to have fun and be the top in the world.¡±

    ¡­¡­Yukari¡¯s reason probably isn¡¯t so light. However, there are parts in her that are simr to me. Specially that part that looks away from the reality.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll get epted after revealing the truth¡±, she should be thinking along those lines.

    ¡°Betting your life in an online game, you say?¡¡That is amazing! ¡°, I gave up thinking someone who would say stuff like that existed.

    That being the case.

    What should I do to have here out?

    Convince her and make her think ¡°If it¡¯s these people, they will definitely ept the past me¡±.

    That will be hard.

    Quite hard, but it¡¯s worth a shot.

    ¡°Alright! ¡°

    Along with a shout to motivate me, I stood up.

    In any case, right now is dinner time!

 Chapter 27: People Canâ€™t Become That Strong

    <h4>Chapter 27: People Can¡¯t Be That Strong</h4>

    He was a strange person.

    His first response was ¡°Assassin?¡¡I see¡±, extremely t.

    This handsome man was apanied by a dignified knight-like woman named Silvia, and a cute demi human girl named Eko.

    I became his ve.

    Me, a former assassin that has ¡ºunable to attack¡» added to her contract. When I wondered why he would want to buy such a defective item, he said ¡°I want you to be a cksmith Master¡±.

    Not a sex ve. Not a housekeeper either. A cksmith Master.

    I don¡¯t know what that means.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    On the road to the town of Pae Ho, he spoke to me about a lot of things.

    If I had a family. About what were my hobbies. About what I preferred to do on my holidays. About anything that I was especially good at.

    I wasn¡¯t able to give him a straight answer.

    Lucia-sama¨D¨D The now dead Duchess had picked up an orphan. That was me.

    I had no name. If I had to say one, it would be ¡ºShadow¡». From an early age I was raised as an assassin.

    I had no family. I had no hobbies. I had no holidays. The only thing I was especially good at was assassination.

    But I can¡¯t say that.

    Now that I¡¯ve been named Yukari, I am nothing but a mere ve.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Can you tell me about your past? ¡°

    I got angry when he asked me that.

    I don¡¯t want to talk about that. Those were my immediate thoughts.

    What happened in the past? Why was only Lucia-sama executed, but I survived? Once that is revealed, the way they look at me will change. I realize that there¡¯s nothing I can do. This feeling of constraint in my heart will not disappear, it¡¯ll continue to be gued by this huge injustice.

    But it¡¯s useless to speak of it. In that case, I¡¯d rather not talk about it.

    Therefore, I hid it. I retreated back into my shell. I decided to draw a line between me and them, and simply work like a in ve.

    I am just useless, the same as my thoughts. And that¡¯s how I kill my emotions.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Shall we form a team?¡±

    All the members were gathered around the dining table.

    So, I decided to dere this in a loud voice.

    ¡°So, it¡¯s finally time.¡±

    ¡°Time! ¡°

    Silvia and Eko were in high spirits, and nodded as they answered.

    ¡°A team you say? ¡°

    Yukari inclined her head to the side in wonder.

    First of all, we haven¡¯t talked about our goals to Yukari.

    ¡°I¡¯m aiming to be first ce in the world. Silvia and Eko here, are friends who will help me aplish that. I¡¯d like to ask for your help too, Yukari.¡±

    ¡°I am your ve, Master. Of course, I¡¯ll help you if I can, but¡­ first ce in the world? ¡°

    Yukari¡¯s doubts seemed to grow deeper.

    ¡°The first ce in the world. Do you know what it means, Master? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Are you kidding? ¡°

    ¡°No.¡±

    She isn¡¯t believing me at all.

    Yukari¡¯s cold expression felt as if she was stabbing daggers with her eyes.

    But at least, as a by-product, I was able to draw some ¡°disgust¡± emotions from her. Maybe if I keep having her show her emotions little by little like this, she will be able to be more familiar with us. Let¡¯s keep doing it diligently. Diligently¡­

    ¡°Second-dono. I¡¯ve been wondering about it since a while back, but how would you aplish bing the top in the world? ¡°

    Silvia followed up with that question.

    ¡°Very good question, Silvia Virginia.¡±

    ¡°Why my full name¡­?¡±

    ¡°Waginia.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Virginia, Eko.¡±

    ¡°Waginia.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Vir.¡±

    ¡°Waginia! ¡°

    ¡°Whatever, that¡¯s fine.¡±

    Hey, are you really fine with that? ¡­Err, back to the talk about being the number one in the world.

    Well, there are many things to it, but I guess ¡°that¡± is the easiest to understand.

    ¡°There¡¯s a simple way to bing the number one individual in the world.¡±

    ¡°Simple? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Earn the titles for all the skills and continue to defend those titles. In other words, never lose a title battle.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Haa? ¡°

    Silvia opened her mouth and stared at me nkly.

    ¡ºTitle¡»¨D¨D This is the top rank of each skill.

    Let me exin it by using ¡¾Archery¡¿ as an example. There are nine types of skills in ¡¾Archery¡¿ going from ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· up to ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·. In order to win the Title in ¡¾Archery¡¿ you must first raise all nine skills to Grade 9. That is the first condition.

    The second condition is to participate in, and win, the Title Competition which takes ce once every six months. The Title Competition is a tournament-style ¡ºGame¡»for those who have met the first condition for the Title acquisition.

    By meeting the second condition, you are given the right to challenge the current Title holder. So, if you win against the current Title holder, you¡¯ll be able to steal the Title for ¡¾Archery¡¿.

    There are only two other methods of getting a Title, ¡°Be the first one on the server to acquire the first condition¡± or ¡°Sessfully defend your Title in a Title match¡±. Therefore, it¡¯s impossible for more than one person to hold the same Title.

    In other words, that Title means the highest peak of that skill, both in name and rank.

    And getting it for all the skills¨D¨D That makes it very easy to understand.

    Of course, ¡°Full Title Domination¡± is a factor that can be said to be enough for the top spot, but I don¡¯t think that is all there is behind ¡°the real world¡¯s first ce¡±. There were various other criteria in Mobius¡¯ ¡ºWorld Ranking¡», and they all werebined when deciding the rank.

    However, as a clear goal, Full Title Domination seems like a good first step.

    ¡°Do you know about Title matches? ¡°

    ¡°Y-yes, of course!¡¡W-will Second-dono enter that tournament!?¡¡For all the skills!? ¡°

    Silvia rose up in excitement and eximed.

    ¡°To be the world¡¯s top, that¡¯s obvious.¡±

    ¡°T-that is¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Impossible.¡±

    Yukari broke in the chat between me and Silvia.

    Just a single, clear, cold-spoken word.

    ¡°What was that? ¡°

    ¡°I said it is impossible, Master.¡±

    When I asked her, she just repeated it indifferently.

    The air in the surroundings became heavy.

    ¡°Why do you think so? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s a matter of course. People can¡¯t be that strong.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not a reason. Why do you think so? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Like I said, one can¡¯t be that strong.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s your basis? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    After asking her, Yukari simply shut her mouth.

    I¡¯m not sure why, but the one thing I understood was that she was angry.

    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t really like frivolous talks.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t change the subject. On what grounds do you think that? Why can¡¯t one be that strong? ¡°

    ¡°Why you say¡­¡±

    ¡°People can¡¯t be that strong. Why do you think so? ¡°

    ¡°That is a matter of course.¡±

    ¡°But, why do you think so? ¡°

    ¡°That is, because I ¡­¡­! ¡°

    Yukari raised her voice¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­forget it, it¡¯s nothing. If you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯ll go back first.¡±

    She immediately regained herposure and returned to her room as if escaping.

    I wonder what was the continuation of those words. Considering her situation of being a nameless assassin, I could vaguely guess.

    Maybe Yukari wasn¡¯t raised as a ¡°person¡± since she was a child. Being an assassin surely had been a severe job. Incidentally, I know the pain of trying to ¡°be strong¡±. The strictness and the difficulty of ¡°defeating people¡±. As well as its fleetingness.

    That¡¯s why she was angry that I was frivolous.

    I¡¯d totally agree with her. That is, if that person was not me.

    ¡°Dangerous, that Yukari.¡±

    Silvia spoke. Certainly, dangerous. The way she raised her voice but immediately swallowed what she wanted to say afterwards. What¡¯s the meaning of that? A burst of pent up emotions, something that surpassed what she could usually control.

    ¡°She¡¯s mentally unstable. It might be natural considering that she was forced into very in that ve store until I bought her¡­¡­ But still, to try to control herself to that extent?¡±

    ¡°It felt like she wanted to say something but was forced to hold it down.¡±

    ¡°Forced to hold it down? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s how it looked to me. What do you think, Second-dono? ¡°

    ¡°To me¡­ she looked scared that her secret mighte to light.¡±

    When I said so, Silvia happilyughed with a ¡°Fufufu¡±.

    ¡°What? ¡°

    ¡°Nothing, sorry. I wasn¡¯t making fun of you.¡±

    After apologizing, she said ¡°It¡¯s just¡±, as she continued.

    ¡°A woman often shows emotions opposite to what she¡¯s feeling.¡±

    Who knows, maybe both our opinions have some truth in them.

    When Silvia finished saying that, she carried the half-asleep Eko, and they both went back to their room.

    As she was leaving, I felt that for the first time since I met her, Silvia was beautiful¡­ but I quickly changed my mind after seeing the napkin electrostatically stuck in her butt.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Next morning.

    We rode our horses towards the lower-ss dungeon, ¡ºAshaspern¡», located about 15 minutes east of the town of Pae Ho.

    You might wonder why we going to a lower-ss dungeon now. The answer is, for the ¡°team formation¡±.

    To form a team, you mustplete a so-called team formation quest. The contents are: ¡°Clear a lower-ss dungeon with three or more team members¡±. It¡¯s a very simple quest, since any dungeon is fine, as long as it¡¯s a lower ss one.

    Well, speaking clearly, there are some other facts, likepletely clearing all the monsters from the dungeon or clearing it within two hours, but since they won¡¯t pose any problem, I¡¯ll just omit them.

    And since the most efficient way to earn experience so far was doing a clear out of the Limptfert dungeon, I still nned to stay in the town of Pae Ho. That¡¯s why I chose the Ashaspern dungeon, thinking that we¡¯ll clear it faster since it¡¯s nearby.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    And thus, we arrived.

    A cave simr to a gaping mouth on the side of a rocky mountain in the forest.

    It¡¯s been a very very long time since Ist dived into this dungeon. Even then, I only came to the Ashaspern Dungeon once.

    ¡­¡­It was at this time, that I hadpletely forgotten.

    The Ashaspern had a nickname¨D¨D the ¡ºBlown Away Dungeon¡».

 Chapter 28: Ashaspernâ€™s Trap

    <h4>Chapter 28: Ashaspern¡¯s Trap</h4>

    The Ashaspern Dungeon was basically arge cave with a lot of big gray rocks.

    After going inside, the first monster we came across was a goblin. It was a brown-skinned monster simr to a monkey, about half the size of a person. After it noticed us, it rushed towards us, leaning forward and swinging around the club it had.

    ¡°Ha! ¡°

    The first strike was abination of Silvia¡¯s ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿, ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡·.

    Along with a ¡°Bugyaa¡± cry, the goblin fell down after receiving that blow.

    ¡°I see¡­¡±

    Murmured Yukari behind me. I wonder if she was convinced that Magic Archery was apound skill from Archery and Magic?

    ¡°This much is easy.¡±

    Said Silvia. Well, she¡¯s correct, this is a lower-ss dungeon after all.

    ¡°Easy©`! ¡°

    Repeating ¡°Easy, easy¡±, Eko jumped into a group of goblins.

    ¡°Master. Is this alright? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s a fair question¡­ well, just keep watching.¡±

    Over ten goblins headed towards Eko. And that little demihuman girl faced them all head on. Although any person seeing this from the side might get uneasy, she¡¯s a ¡ºMuscle Monk¡»-type Tank through and through. There¡¯s nothing to worry about it.

    Eko thrusted into the goblins while activating ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·. Then, as if being hit by a speeding car, the goblins were all blown away.

    That was the knock-back effect. Then, Silvia¡¯s arrows flew and pierced each and every one of them.

    ¡°¡­¡­This is.¡±

    ¡°Eko is the advanced guard, and Silvia is the rearguard. So long as Eko continues to draw the attention of the monsters, Silvia can use her bow and keep firing arrows at the unprotected monsters.¡±

    It was one of the ways to easily clear a dungeon with two people. By simply allowing a small chance, it made it easier for the rear guard to demonstrate tremendous firepower.

    While I answered her, all twenty goblins were defeated.

    If I tried to butt in, I¡¯d get in the way of their two-people cooperation training. Therefore, I just concentrated on potential surprise attacks and escorting Yukari.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just hurry up and rush ahead since the experience here isn¡¯t that great.¡±

    Nodding to my instruction, Silvia and Eko went deeper inside.

    Yukari just silently followed me. Seems like it¡¯d still take some more time for her to open up to us.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Boss here.¡±

    ¡°Already? It hasn¡¯t even been two hours yet.¡±

    ¡°This is how a lower-ss type of dungeon is.¡±

    The boss of the Ashaspern dungeon is a monster called Goblin King. It is a huge monster with a total of 4 meters in height, but although it¡¯s a boss, its movements are slow and he has little defenses. However, it has an entourage of ten monsters who can use magic around it, Goblin Mages, that make it a bit troublesome to pay attention to both the boss and the adds.

    Well, we have enough power so the mages should drop in a single hit, and the king in two hits. There should be no problems.

    ¡°What is the n!? ¡°

    Eko came asking. I¡¯m not sure why, but this girl loves ¡°ns¡± and before we face a boss, she alwayses asking me for a strategy. ¡°But this time, there¡¯s no strategy¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡­¡­Ahh, it¡¯s useless. She¡¯s just there, waiting for me to say something with her eyes sparkling.

    ¡°Eh¡­ Eko, you take the huge target in the middle, hold it using Bishop. In that time, Silvia and I will finish it.¡±

    ¡°Okay!¡¡Got it! ¡°

    Hearing a proper strategy, Eko opened her eyes in admiration and directed a smile towards me. I feel a bit guilty that she thinks so highly of me, but I¡¯m happy when the person in question is happy.

    ¡°Silvia will do the same as usual. Yukari, you just don¡¯t leave my side.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    After finishing speaking, Eko went straight to the opening where the boss was at.

    ¡°So big©`©`!! ¡°

    Eko raised her voice in surprise.

    Certainly, the goblin king is huge. And also wide. If I had to say, that is an unhealthy kind of ¡®wide¡¯. Inparison, the goblin mages are smaller and thinner than that thing. They look like twigs inparison. Probably they¡¯re not even a meter in height.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Hearing my words, Eko was the first one to rush towards the goblin king.

    At the same time Silvia released a shot towards a goblin mage, killing it. Silvia said ¡°Quite dull¡±, at the same time as she killed another one.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ehh©`? ¡°

    After defending from an attack from the goblin king using ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·, Eko raised such a voice. The damage suffered was only three points. Even less than that of the Limptfert Dungeon¡¯s Armored Lizards.

    ¡°Nicely done Eko.¡±

    After praising Eko, I released a shot filled with ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, towards a goblin that had its attention focused on her. A non-critical 6680 hit. It¡¯s passable.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari¡¯s eyes opened wide. I wonder if she¡¯s surprised by the amount of damage?

    With abination of ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·I shot the second arrow that ends up killing the goblin king.

    As for the goblin mages¡¯ mopping up, Silvia had already wiped them all out.

    ¡°It is over? ¡°

    Eko approached me while looking around. There are no monsters¡¯ figures left.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh? ¡°

    Weird.

    The team formation quest isn¡¯tpleted yet.

    If memory serves me right, the team will be formed the moment you defeat a lower-ss dungeon boss and all its adds¨D¨D

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DOh!! ¡°

    This is bad!

    I noticed it when it was already toote.

    The 4-meter-high body of the goblin king takes some time to disappear. And one goblin mage was hiding behind it.

    That goblin mage is on the verge of death. And with a desperate look on its face, it cast some magic.

    And the timing of the activation coincided with the ¡®disappearance of the corpse of the goblin king¡¯.

    That¡¯s the worst-case scenario!!

    ¡°Fuck! ¡°

    The target of the goblin mage was Yukari.

    I grabbed Yukari¡¯s hand, pulling her towards me, while at the same time shooting a ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· at the goblin mage.

    The next moment.

    The goblin mage died¨D¨D¡­¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¨D¨DBut the ce where we stood was a ¡°sandy beach next to the ocean¡±.

    ¡ºBlown Away Dungeon¡»

    Why did Ashaspern get such a nickname?

    That is because of a ¡¾Magic¡¿used by the goblin mages in a dying state during thest boss¡¯ fight called ¡¶Random Teleport¡·.

    ¡¶Random Teleport¡· is a magic that¡¯s effect is ¡®Teleports the target object to a random location 4 km away from the origin¡¯.

    In other words, you are forced out of the dungeon.

    Therefore, ¡ºBlown away dungeon¡»¡­¡­ But that¡¯s not it. The reason why it started to be called as such was a certain discovery.

    On a certain day a report came up in Mobius wiki.

    The title was ¡°I was blown away to the day after tomorrow¡±.

    The contents were shocking. ¡¶Random Teleport¡· should move you only 4 km away, but the person reported that he was blown away a whopping 255 km.

    Many volunteers began to verify that report immediately.

    And the results were astonishing.

    It was a very strange phenomenon. ¡¸If a goblin mage activates ¡¶Random Teleport¡· while touching the corpse of the goblin king when it¡¯s disappearing, the movement distance will go from 4 to 255 km¡¹. Since it was a one-in-a-million condition, it was a new fact that had not been known until then.

    The yers made a fuss, calling it a bug.

    ¡­¡­But the truth was, this was not a bug, but a special trait.

    In the transfer magic system, the travel distance is determined by the amount of MP lost in the process. Therefore, it is a system where the more distant the ce you go, the more MP it consumes.

    In that case, it is determined that the moment the goblin king¡¯s corpse disappears, the entirety of the goblin king¡¯s MP is lost in that moment. That is, all of the goblin king¡¯s MP is added to the goblin mage¡¯s ¡¶Random Teleport¡·, resulting in a teleporting distance of 255 km.

    Therefore, that shitty blown away incident led to the Ashaspern Dungeon earning the nickname ¡ºBlown Away Dungeon¡».

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    I hadpletely forgotten this incident.

    That was because top yers had little to do with lower ss dungeons.

    ¡°¡­.Haa.¡±

    It was already toote when I remembered it.

    In front of me there is arge ocean, blue sky and white clouds. There¡¯s sand at my feet and right next to me.

    ¡°Wha¡­!? ¡°

    Yukari was wearing an expression of astonishment.

    Well, it would be strange not to be surprised by suddenly appearing at the beach. On second thought, seeing Yukari surprised makes her feel less doll-like.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We were simply teleported by that goblin.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Teleported? ¡°

    Amazing. She already calmed down.

    ¡°Yeah. Probably about 255 km away from Ashaspern.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari looked at me with suspicious eyes.

    I can¡¯t help but to say it. It¡¯s the truth after all¡­

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Oh!¡¡The team was formed.¡±

    Suddenly I noticed that fact. It seems like that mage was the only one left after all.

    ¡°Hmmm.¡±

    I used the team-specificmunication from the bottom right of the status window to contact Silvia, a little scared I must admit.

    ¡°Testing, testing¡­ hey, can you hear me? ¡°

    ¡°I-idiot!!¡¡Where did you go!?¡¡Are you okay!?? ¡°

    Whoa!?¡¡My ears are ringing!

    ¡°I-I¡¯m fine. Just blown away by teleport magic. Silvia, you and Eko just wait at the town of Pae Ho while I return.¡±

    ¡°Is-is that so!¡¡I¡¯m relieved. How long will it take?¡¡Hurry up ande back.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­ maybe six or seven days. You can take a vacation in the meantime. Just rx.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­HAA? ¡°

    ¡°See you©`¡°

    ¡°Hey!¡¡Wait a mo¨D¨D¡±

    I cut off themunication and looked at Yukari.

    ¡°¡­¡­Is this really that far away? ¡°

    ¡°Of course. There¡¯s no point in me telling a lie, right? ¡°

    ¡°¡­Well, yeah.¡±

    Seemingly unwillingly, Yukari nodded.

    Now that I think about it, there will only be us two for a week.

    I would like to somehow deal with this trust issue¨D¨D while thinking such things, we proceeded to the north along the coast.

 Chapter 29: Quarrel

    <h4>Chapter 29: Quarrel</h4>

    If you think about a beach 255 km away from the Ashaspern Dungeon, then this would be the southern coast.

    In that case, if you were to walk north along the coast, you¡¯d end up in the port city of ¡ºKo¡».

    From Ko to Pae Ho, it¡¯s about a day by horse. In other words, from here to Ko is about five days travel on foot.

    ¡°You seem familiar with this ce.¡±

    As if reading my thoughts, Yukari spoke, keeping her expressionless face. Although she probably didn¡¯t mean that. She¡¯s most likely still suspicious of me.

    ¡°You don¡¯t believe me? ¡°

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not it.¡±

    ¡°Then why the cold attitude?¡±

    ¡°I was born like this.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    No use. I decided to change my approach.

    Stirring her up¨D¨D I think this is the only way to bring out Yukari¡¯s feelings.

    Otherwise, I¡¯d go crazy since it seems like I¡¯m speaking to some inorganic matter.

    ¡°Yukari. If you doubt me so much, why don¡¯t youe up with a n?¡±

    ¡°I am your ve, Master. I don¡¯t doubt you.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where this is? ¡°

    ¡°No, I do not.¡±

    ¡°How should we go back to Pae Ho? ¡°

    ¡°Master¡¯s n is the best option.¡±

    ¡°So, you agree? Then why do you have doubts? ¡°

    ¡°Like I said, I don¡¯t have doubts.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to lie to me, you know?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not lying.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    This girl¡­ no, let¡¯s keep calm.

    In cases like this, I just have to keep attacking until she breaks.

    ¡°¡­Now that I think about it, you were like that since the time we first met. Always wearing a shell.¡±

    ¡°Haa.¡±

    ¡°Hiding your past. You don¡¯t want it to be known that much? ¡°

    ¡°Everyone should have one or two things about their past they don¡¯t want others to know.¡±

    ¡°Even if it has nothing to do with the master-ve rtionship? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s of course.¡±

    ¡°Then, do you intend to continue your acting and not reveal your past? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh! ¡°

    So close!¡¡I almost got her!

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Then, that means you admit you¡¯ve been acting? ¡°

    ¡°No. I merely nodded because of your manner of speaking.¡±

    ¡°Can it be?¡¡Do you not want to speak so as not to cause me unrest? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Something like that.¡±

    ¡°Uhmm, ahhh, ehh?¡¡Huh? The ends of your mouth are twitching, you know? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It¡¯s working, it¡¯s working.

    Yukari¡¯s emotions are graduallying out. It should be time to get to the main topic.

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, it¡¯s useless to talk anyways. If so, then just keep quiet. With that decided, do you really think you can remain like that for a long time having this rtionship with me? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s easier if you make yourself clear¡­ that¡¯s an unwrittenw¡­ I think.¡±

    I¡¯m feeling like a detective questioning a suspect.

    To tell the truth, I already have a pretty good idea overall. I found out a bitst night. The executed Duchess, Lucia Icene¨D¨D I remember I had heard that name before.

    ¡°Just spill things out. You¡¯ll feel relieved. After all, it¡¯s useless to hide it.¡±

    ¡°I¡­! ¡°

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    ¡°I, for who¡¯s sake am I hiding¡­! ¡°

    Ohh. What else, what else?

    ¡°Me and¡­ Lucia-sama¡¯s kindness¡­! ¡°

    Kindness. Was that kindness being silent so that she wouldn¡¯t get caught up in that? I see.

    ¡°That¡¯s not kindness. It¡¯s self-satisfaction.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    When I said so, Yukari turned her back on me, and with an angry look she started to walk ahead.

    The strategy was a temporary sess. I was able to have her expose her feelings.

    I think I did go a little overboard, but otherwise I wouldn¡¯t have broken Yukari¡¯s barriers.

    Well, it¡¯s almost time for the sun to set. What should we do about camping¡­?

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    A vulgar man. That¡¯s what I thought of him.

    Bing the world¡¯s number one¨D¨D such a frivolous man trying to attract attention by talking about such an impossible and foolish dream, is not suitable for being my Master.

    His true nature quickly became clear.

    He had a little demi human girl and an excellent Magic Archer girl fight in the front while he just stood and did nothing at the back. This man who advanced through the dungeon in this way while saying ¡°world¡¯s number one¡±, isn¡¯t he the most pathetic?

    His skills in archery, that I caught a glimpse of, against the boss were certainly top notch. But if that was so, why didn¡¯t he demonstrate his prowess along the way?¡¡The reason is that he just wanted to keep himself safe, beingfortable in the back line. When thinking so, this guy seems more and more unpleasant.

    Random Teleport?¡¡A ce 255 km away?¡¡7 days away from Pae Ho?¡¡How does he know that? It¡¯s obvious that is a lie.

    This guy probably used some dirty trick to spend some time alone with me. I knew it, the purpose of him buying me was not to be a cksmith, but rather having me as his sex ve. He ns to bring me to a ce away from the eyes of others and rape me so that the opinion others have on him isn¡¯t tarnished.

    Sadly, I can¡¯t do anything to resist.

    For this man to be my first¡­¡­ If I had known back then, I would have taken my own life¨D¨D

    ¨D¨DWhen my mind wandered towards those ideas, I decided to stop thinking.

    I can¡¯t afford to throw away this life given to me by Lucia-sama so easily.

    That¡¯s right. Why did I forget? I received this life from Lucia-sama.

    I have to use any means if I must resist.

    ¡­¡­This man, Second. He kept persistently trying to pry about my past. I don¡¯t know what his purpose is, but it¡¯s not like I¡¯m keeping quiet for his sake. I¡¯m keeping quiet so that his twopanions don¡¯t get involved.

    And he calls it self-satisfaction?¡¡He makes me want to vomit.

    I can¡¯t afford to show this man a chance.

    Making up my mind, I hurried ahead.

    The first day ended and right now was the morning of the second day.

    He did noty a hand on me.

    On the contrary, it seems like he was awake all night, guarding. Maybe he did it so that I will let off my guard.

    I couldn¡¯t sleep much since I had to stay alert all night. But if this continues, I¡¯ll reach my limit soon. I have to do something, but I have no means to do so. I¡¯m just a ve. I can¡¯t even run away. I don¡¯t know what to do.

    ¡°Hey, just give up already. Tell me everything.¡±

    While I walked thinking of such things, he came prying again.

    ¡°How stubborn.¡±

    Since I got annoyed, I answered while showing a bit of anger.

    ¡°You really don¡¯t trust me that much? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, that much.¡±

    ¡°Then, what can I do so you can trust me? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Let¡¯s see, I could trust you if you die right now, right here.¡±

    A vein was clearly visible on his forehead. It seems like he became angry.

    ¡°Is that how it is? Yukari, you bastard.¡±

    ¡°What is it, Master?¡¡Are you going to use violence against a ve? ¡°

    ¡°Shut it!¡¡You won¡¯t have lunch! ¡°

    ¡°Eh! ¡°

    How despicable!

    ¡°That¡¯s a breach of contract.¡±

    ¡°In the contract it¡¯s written that I have to supply you with enough food. And two meals a day is enough!¡¡I think that¡¯s fair!¡¡Hahahahaha! ¡°

    We still need to walk for who knows how many kilometers, really, this man is¡­!

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡¡If you apologize, I won¡¯t do it, you know? ¡°

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­! ¡°

    How humiliating!¡¡Having to apologize to this man¡­ but¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Just kidding.¡±

    Then, heughed while saying so. That smile looked like he was making a fool out of me, so I couldn¡¯t stand it.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need it.¡±

    ¡°What? ¡°

    ¡°Lunch, I don¡¯t need it.¡±

    ¡°H-hey, you¡¯re going to copse. ¡°

    ¡°I already said it¡¯s unnecessary. I¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    ¡°Hey, wait!¡¡My bad!¡¡Here, eat! ¡°

    ¡°No, thanks! ¡°

    I hurried ahead.

    I need to cool down.

    I became quite emotional back there.

    But I can¡¯t back down anymore.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    I wonder what did I want to aplish¡­?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    It was the morning of the third day.

    Last night was a fight against drowsiness.

    ¡­¡­My feet feel unsteady.

    Two nights in a row not sleeping, walking all day, I had no lunch yesterday, and for dinner I just ate a little.

    No matter if I¡¯m an assassin, I¡¯m a living being after all. I know that my limits are approaching.

    He did noty a hand on mest night either. Perhaps he¡¯s waiting for the moment when I¡¯mpletely unconscious. He is a cowardly man.

    Today¡¯s journey, simr to yesterday¡¯s, was just walking and walking.

    Every time we open our mouths, we can¡¯t help but to quarrel.

    Quarrel at breakfast.

    Quarreling on whom will walk ahead.

    Quarrel at lunch.

    Quarreling on when to take a break.

    Quarrel at dinner.

    Quarrel as soon as the sun sets.

    We already forgot the rtionship of master-ve somewhere along the way.

    Sometimes I wasn¡¯t able to make a judgement because of the sleepiness and fatigue.

    Anyways, I was always careful as to not show a chance. The result of that was our quarrels.

    But.

    This night, I finally fell asleep soundly¡­

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Emotional instability.

    That was obvious.

    There were a number of contradictions in Yukari¡¯s behavior.

    Because she is overly cautious of me, her behavior is inconsistent.

    And as she gets tired, it gets worse and worse.

    Why is she like that? Now I know the reason.

    I got a clue when I was questioning her and the Duchess woman¡¯s name came out the night before heading to the Ashaspern Dungeon. But I became convinced the first night after we were teleported to the coast, when she became wary of me making advances on her.

    ¨D¨DYukari has been ¡®brainwashed¡¯.

    Most likely to ¡®Be wary of that who bes your master¡¯.

    The culprit is clear. Such a skill, ¡ºBrainwashing Magic¡», was an inherent skill of a Duchess called Lucia Icene. She was famous in Mobius, and was nicknamed the ¡®Brainwashing Hag¡¯.

    And to dispel brainwashing magic, there¡¯s only one way. The ¡®manifestation of strong emotions¡¯, only that.

    In Mobius¡¯ main story, there was an emotionally heavy scene where ¡®a brainwashed NPC killed his lover in front of his own eyes, and then the brainwash was lifted¡¯.

    I can¡¯t deny the feeling that brainwashing magic was prepared to force such a development in the story, but it¡¯s different when that story bes the real world. How is it? Isn¡¯t this more troublesome now?

    I have to somehow have her show her emotions.

    And those have to evoke strong feelings.

    It seems like simply quarreling won¡¯t do the trick.

    What should I do?

    How can I? How can I¡­?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡¸¡­¡­¨D¨D!! ¡°

    Not good, I almost dozed off.

    Two more days to the port city Ko. I have to somehow do my best.

    I took an abnormal status recovery potion ++ from my inventory and drank it all at once. To tell the truth, this has only a small effect on drowsiness. Obviously, there¡¯s a limit to what it can do.

    Well, what should I do?

    Gazing at the darkness of the sky, I crossed my arms in front of the bonfire and began to think.

 Chapter 30: Convenient Delusions

    <h4>Chapter 30: Convenient Delusions</h4>

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D! ? ¡°

    A severe pain woke me up!

    It was like something hit my chest¡­!

    ¡°Noo! ¡°

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡Finally, something good! ¡°

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t kill the woman! ¡°

    Yukari was screaming.

    Around us were about five men.

    I was careless.

    Thieves.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I endured the severe pain while trying to not make a noise, and checked my HP as Iy on the ground.

    Not even one fifth was lost. My heart was clearly pierced by a sword. But despite that, this is the only damage I received. Are the statuses of the thieves so ridiculously low? Or are mine just stupidly high? Probably it¡¯s thetter.

    Since they think I¡¯m dead, the thieves arepletely ignoring me.

    Well, it¡¯s only obvious. It would be strange to think that someone stabbed in the heart wouldn¡¯t be dead. I think so too after all. They managed to pick some unsuspecting idiot who had exhausted himself and fell asleep. It would be weird if he didn¡¯t die. But, I¡¯m actually alive.

    ¡­No, let¡¯s leave the reflection forter. In any case, I was lucky. That should suffice for now.

    ¡°Have you tied everything up? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s hurry back.¡±

    ¡°How much do you think we can make for all this? ¡°

    ¡°In the ck market, maybe 40 million CL if we push it.¡±

    ¡°Ahahaha!¡¡I can¡¯t stopughing.¡±

    Carrying the tied-up Yukari, the five thieves entered the forest in the opposite direction of the sea.

    Lucky me!¡¡Those guys, they were blinded by the 40 million loot and didn¡¯t even bother to search my inventory. Certainly, you might not be able to take items out of a dead adventurer¡¯s inventory, but to think that they would pass me off as dead without checking that.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I can¡¯t forgive them.¡±

    This is an opportunity.

    A good opportunity to get rid of ¡°that¡±.

    After I recovered my HP with a Medium Recovery Potion, I followed them into the woods.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Noo! ¡°

    How many years has it been since thest time I cried a womanly scream?

    At first, I thought that man had forced himself on me.

    But it was different.

    I was surrounded by several men. I was tied by experienced hands. Unable to resist. Powerless to even attack¨D¨DI had that terrible restriction.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry back.¡±

    The men went into the woods while carrying me. It was then that I understood for the first time, these men were thieves.

    By the side of the bonfire remained the figure of that man, felled with a sword stabbed in his chest.

    Disappointing¡­¡­ How disappointing. The man who boasted about aiming at being the top in the world, the other party with whom I¡¯ve been quarreling until yesterday, to die so easily.

    And, me too.

    After being used as an amusement, after my value as a sex ve wears out, they¡¯ll just throw me in a garbage dump to end my life.

    My life that began in the garbage, will also end in the garbage. How poetic, this might be fate.

    ¡­¡­But.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­

    I don¡¯t want that.

    I really, truly don¡¯t want that!

    Even being with that man is better!

    Why is it that only I have to experience something as terrible as this!?

    Why!?

    I don¡¯t want this!

    I don¡¯t want this!!

    I don¡¯t want thi¨Cs!!

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong!? ¡°

    One of the thieves rose his voice.

    ¡°¡­¡­Uh? ¡°

    At that time, my forehead felt hot, almost as if I had a fever¨D¨D Then.

    I remembered everything.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°From today onwards, you are a ¡®shadow¡¯. I¡¯m going to call you with that word.¡±

    ¡°Certainly, Lucia-sama.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you are a good girl.¡±

    When I was young.

    Lucia patted my head, and sometimes her rings would get caught up in my hair and it hurt, but only a little.

    I liked her warm hands very much.

    She was my Master, but she also was like my mother.

    ¡°Listen, you need to work. Be useful to me. This is the only way to survive in the Icene house.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡°Good girl.¡±

    I was educated by the gifted assassination unit under Lucia-sama, and I grew to be Lucia-sama¡¯s right hand in the shadows.

    Assassination was my only job. I was such a woman.

    And then, thest day.

    Herst words.

    Why? How did I forget them? I now remembered them. Clearly¡­¡­

    ¡°Ahh, you came. Lend me your forehead a little.¡±

    ¡°Lucia-sama, what in the world¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°This is a good luck charm. A charm that will bring happiness to you.¡±

    A crumpled smile. The hand with a lot of rings gently touched my forehead.

    And the next moment, I lost consciousness¨D¨D

    ¨D¨DAnd when I regained it, everything was over.

    Lucia-sama was executed under the crime of rebellion.

    Everyone in the shadow unit was also killed.

    Only I was spared and taken over to the Maurice Company as a ve.

    No, I was helped. By Lucia-sama.

    By my respected Master.

    By my gentle mother.

    That was Lucia-sama¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­oh.¡±

    I opened my eyes.

    Ahh, I see.

    I was brainwashed.

    That exined everything.

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡­ ¡±

    I couldn¡¯t hold it, so I vomited.

    ¡°Augh!¡¡How disgusting! ¡±

    ¡°Guh! ¡±

    The thief kicked me in the stomach. I was mmed into the wall and rolled on the floor. Where is this ce? Is this the thieves¡¯ hideout?

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t damage our precious products.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s fine, it was just the stomach, the stomach.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s fine. Hahaha! ¡±

    What an asshole.

    While lying in pain, I remembered my past, almost as if it were a distant dream.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Everything was a convenient delusion.

    Only once was I stroked by Lucia-sama. And I distorted it to make it seem like it happened every day.

    A gentle smile?¡¡That kind of smile only happened once, in thest moments, when Lucia-sama turned it at me.

    A mother-like figure?¡¡What kind of mother uses her child as an assassin?¡¡There¡¯s no way I could ever forget those brutal days of killing.

    Why did she turn me into a ve?¡¡Why did she brainwash me?¡¡Why was I the only survivor?¡¡Why?¡¡Why?¡¡WHY!?

    ¡°Why?!¡¡Why-?!! ¡±

    ¡°Hey, hey, hey, what¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    ¡°Did she break? ¡±

    I can¡¯t stop my tears.

    I was¡­

    I was¡­

    Not loved by anyone.

    The only thing I believed was love, was fake.

    What should I do?

    What should I do!?

    ¡°It¡¯ll be a problem if she bites her tongue.¡±

    ¡°You want me to shut her up with a rope?¡±

    ¡°Hey, open your mouth! ¡±

    What should¡­ I do¡­?

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    The five thieves and Yukari entered a hideout inside the forest.

    Two of them were guarding the gate. It is unknown how many people were originally inside. There seems to be no back door.

    If possible, I¡¯d like to settle this before dawn.

    I grabbed my bow, and after setting an arrow, I slowly pulled the string.

    I moved to the side of the hideout so that the two people will ovep in a straight line.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It¡¯s over if I hesitate.

    I can¡¯t afford to let go of this excellent future cksmith Master that I went to great pains to get.

    Ibined ¡¶Lance Archery¡· and ¡¶Knight Archery¡·.

    The moment it was ready, I let go of the arrow.

    Along with the sound of cutting wind, the arrow flew and pierced the head of the first man and blew off the neck of the second one.

    Without even being able to utter a sound, the two men fell down. They were certainly dead. I had killed them.

    I rushed out and approached the entrance, taking a glimpse at the inside.

    ¡°Hey, did you hear something just now? ¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go check.¡±

    I heard such a conversation.

    I switched from my bow to my sword and concealed my breath next to the door.

    As soon as the door opened and the two thieves came out, I shed at one of them diagonally using ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·.

    There was the sound of entrails sttering on the ground.

    ¡°Eh, wh-!? ¡±

    When the other one tried to speak up, without holding back, I shed at his neck using ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·.

    Quite easy.

    I stepped inside their hideout with my sword ready.

    The number of rooms was small. There were no signs of people in the rooms that looked like the kitchen and storage room.

    But many voices could be heard from the innermostrge room.

    While preparing ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·I broke the door of the room.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s wrong!? ¡±

    ¡°Ugh!? ¡±

    ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·is a ¡®range attack to all directions¡¯. The three thieves that tried to surround me were all blown away by the sh, and while scattering their blood, they died instantly.

    ¡°Y-you should be dead.¡±

    They died with a surprised face.

    There were three more thieves.

    Yukari was gagged and rolled on the floor next to one of them. The other two unsheathed their swords and came attacking.

    I retreated two steps diagonally to the right and activated ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·. Its effect is ¡®quick and strong piercing attack¡¯. It¡¯s the most useful ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ skill for interpersonalbat.

    The two thieves came at me in a straight line like idiots. Unleashing ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·, it prated the first one in the torso and cut off the wrist of the second thief.

    ¡°Ahh-AAAHHH! ¡±

    The thief who lost his hand panicked and shouted. Soon after, I dealt with him using ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·.

    ¡°Hey¡­ what the hell is this¡­ are you a monster¡­?¡±

    Muttered the man next to Yukari. Most likely he was the leader of the thieves.

    While lying on the ground, Yukari looked over here with tears in her eyes.

    I couldn¡¯t sense any vignce or hostility from her eyes anymore.

    Nice!¡¡Seems like the brainwashing is crumbling!¡¡What great luck¡­¡­!

    ¡°Hold on!¡¡Don¡¯t move! ¡±

    The leader drew his sword and pressed the de on Yukari¡¯s neck. He was taking her as a hostage.

    ¡°Hey, drop your sword now! ¡±

    I faithfully obeyed. I held the sword in front of my chest with both hands, then I released it.

    ¡°Good, now¨D¨D¡±

    In the next moment, a ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡· spell hit his face head on, and while making burning noises, it burst into mes.

    He was so distracted by the sword falling on my feet that he didn¡¯t notice the spell.

    ¡°Uwaa!? ¡±

    The sword moved away from Yukari¡¯s neck.

    In that moment, I stabbed the leader with ¡¾Magic Swordsmanship¡¿, using abination of ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Water Attribute?Third Form¡·. Receiving a stab with Third Form right in the chest, his torso was blown off due to the water pressure. The fire on his head was also extinguished before it could spread, so it was killing two birds with one stone.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Are you alright? ¡±

    After checking that there were no other thieves, I freed Yukari from her bonds.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    There was no vigor in her eyes.

    Her feelings appeared to be all over the ce, and she was just shedding tears.

    ¡°¡­¡­Let¡¯s go. The air in here is bad.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t find the proper words to call to her, so after saying that, I stood up.

    Yukari followed after me silently while still crying.

    And so, the morning of the fourth day came.

 Chapter 31: Everything Was Overturned

    <h4>Chapter 31: Everything Was Overturned</h4>

    The sky brightened up.

    Yukari, who had cried herself to sleep, woke up along with the morning sun.

    ¡°Here, drink up.¡±

    Saying that, I gave her an abnormal status recovery potion. In a sense, this was simr to an energy drink. Thanks to it, I was able to endure being awake all night. It failedst night though¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­I am sorry.¡±

    I lowered my head to Yukari.

    I got her into a dangerous situation. All because I was careless.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari just silently stared at me.

    Then, after hesitating for a while, she finally opened her mouth.

    ¡°Me too, I¡¯m very sorry.¡±

    ¡°For your attitude up until now? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. The truth is.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I already know. Brainwashing, right?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°Probably ¡®brainwashed to be wary of that who bes your master¡¯. It¡¯s a skill possessed by Duchess Lucia.¡±

    In response to my words, Yukari¡¯s eyes rounded in surprise. Those eyes that were still red and swollen.

    ¡°¡­¡­How do you¡­¡­?¡±

    She tried to say something, but it seemed like she hadn¡¯t yet sorted out her emotions.

    Although it was because of the brainwashing, up until now I was considered an enemy after all. She might still be a little cautious.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay to take it slow. Here, let¡¯s talk while we walk.¡±

    Standing up, I took out a banana and an apple from my inventory and handed them over to her.

    After she received them, Yukari too began to walk a little behind.

    We walked while eating.

    We continued walking after finishing eating.

    Then, we just kept walking.

    After around two hours of walking, Yukari began to speak.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°I¡¯ve spent all my life as an assassin, as a pawn of Duchess Lucia Icene.¡±

    ¡°Pawn? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Lucia-sama picked me up as an orphan, she didn¡¯t even give me a name, and just raised me as a pawn for assassination.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see.¡±

    Although I have a rebuttal, I¡¯ll keep silent for now.

    ¡°Most likely, I was brainwashed to believe that I was happy. So that I could be a good assassin serving under Lucia-sama. Truth is, until the moment when I was captured by the thieves and had fallen into despair, all my days as a ¡®shadow¡¯ were beautiful.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It was all a foolish misunderstanding. No, it was all because of a cruel brainwashing. Then, I got to taste real despair after the brainwashing was undone.¡±

    Yukari¡¯s voice trembled.

    ¡°I was¡­ not loved by Lucia-sama. I was being deceived all this time. A false love was forced into this heart of mine. A respected master, a kind mother, there never was such a thing¡­¡­¡±

    Maybe sadness, maybe frustration, or maybe something else.

    Yukari continued speaking while shedding tears.

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about why I was silent¡­ no, about why I was made to remain silent by the brainwashing.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the reason why Duchess Lucia was executed, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Lucia-sama was executed under the crime of rebellion, but that was a tant lie. It was all a scheme plotted by the opposite faction. Her enemy was the Queen Consort, White Castall¡­ That I know.¡±

    ¡°How do you know? ¡°

    ¡°I was a shadow. My role was to dirty my hands in ce of Lucia-sama. There is no way I wouldn¡¯t know. But¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    ¡°The fact that I was brainwashed and kept from revealing this information to my new master means, this was probably inconvenient to Lucia-sama.¡±

    Yukari had a troubled look.

    The master that had taken care of her until now, and whom she felt indebted to, did not love her. From there, doubts began to sprout and finally, she revealed this information to me. But even then, she still had a sense of remorse. I wonder if the roots of the brainwashing were so deep.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    I suddenly had a good idea.

    I was nning to ¡®use something¡¯ after the brainwashing was undone to earn her trust.

    A deal, so to speak. I remembered about Silvia¡¯s time.

    Although I¡¯m not sure if she¡¯ll ept. Therefore, in order to raise the certainty of it, let¡¯s start by telling her my ¡®thoughts¡¯.

    Only those who know of Mobius as a game would be able to do it, these little ¡®thoughts¡¯.

    ¡°Can you listen to me for a bit? ¡°

    I asked, looking into Yukari¡¯s eyes.

    After a little silence, she simply nodded.

    ¡°Your thoughts are certainly on target. But, Lucia Icene¨D¨D She certainly loved you, Yukari.¡±

    ¡°No way¡­¡­That can¡¯t be. I was just being brainwashed, remember? ¡°

    ¡°What if that brainwashing was made in order to protect you?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No, that¡¯s impossible. If so, then why didn¡¯t she give me a name instead of just raising me as an assassin?¡±

    ¡°In order to protect you, that¡¯s why she didn¡¯t give you a name, and that¡¯s also why she brainwashed you so that you wouldn¡¯t leak any information. That¡¯s how she created the front of ¡ºA poor ve who was forced to assassinate by orders of the Duchess¡¯ brainwashing¡».¡±

    ¡°That was not a front. I actually spent truly harsh days as an assassin.¡±

    ¡°But you were happy, right?¡¡You thought it was good to be the Duchess¡¯ ve, right? ¡°

    ¡°Like I said, that was because of the brainwashing.¡±

    ¡°Here, listen closely¨D¨D Brainwashing Magic only works once per person.¡±

    That was a restriction of Mobius¡¯ ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·. It might be the same in this world. That¡¯s why I felt a sense of difort and then noticed this possibility.

    ¡°¡­¡­Eh¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°In your case, the one brainwashing was the one to keep you alert against me. In other words, you truly thought you were happy in your days as a shadow.¡±

    ¡°But, that¡­¡­¡±

    Is hard to believe¨D¨D she might think. Yukari¡¯s expressions are really easy to understand.

    Half of those thoughts were my true feelings, and the other half, a ¡®sweet bait¡¯.

    A sweet bait you really want to take, that she really wants to believe.

    Yukari was troubled.

    There¡¯s no way. No. But, what if¡­¡­she was troubled because she gradually ¡®wanted to believe¡¯. Something like ¡®How happy would I be if this was really the case¡¯.

    And then, as I waited for the right moment.

    I brought that ¡®something¡¯ I had prepared to the table in order to earn her ¡®trust¡¯.

    ¡°Yukari. Do you want to break out from very? ¡°

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    I confessed everything.

    I haven¡¯tpletely trusted him yet. However, I had no path other than to stay with him.

    Surprisingly, he silently listened to my story.

    And when I finished talking, he spoke out his thoughts.

    ¡­¡­I can¡¯t believe it. Honestly, that was the only thing I could think of.

    But if what he said is true, then¡­ the day maye where I can be proud about myself, about my days, about that which was dear to me and feel that I was not mistaken in thinking so. He seemed to give me that gentle exnation.

    ¡°Do you want to break out from very? ¡°

    He said confidently, with a calm expression.

    ¡°Break out? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I was thinking of doing it after the brainwashing thing was solved¡­¡­ well, if I had to exin it, it would be something like a ¡®loophole¡¯.¡±

    As those sweet words entered my ears, anxiety and doubt grew inside me.

    ¡°In short, your condition as a ve will be lost. The ¡ºUnable to attack¡»thing will also be lost.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Such a thing will? ¡°

    There¡¯s no way this will work.

    ¡°The Maurice Company will keep an eye on me, but well, there¡¯s no problem with that. This is something more important than that.¡±

    What would be more important than turning argepany into an enemy?

    ¡°Trust me. And also, I want you to be my cksmith.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Nonsense.

    It would usually be the other way around.

    Besides, even if he says this, there¡¯s no way it can be done.

    ¡°What an unfunny joke.¡±

    Breaking out¡­ in other words, releasing me from very without the proper release by very magic.

    Impossible. Such a thing can¡¯t be done. If it was possible, there would be no way to maintain the ve business.

    ¡°Then, if I can break you out from very, will you trust me? ¡°

    He grinned and said defiantly.

    ¡°¡­Sure, I don¡¯t mind. I¡¯ll trust you.¡±

    I answered with those words. Like challenging him, if you can do it, show me.

    ¡°Eh? Alright, then head-butt me in the chest as hard as you can.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Excuse me? ¡°

    I don¡¯t know what he means.

    ¡°With your head, hit me in the chest. Do it like you mean it.¡±

    ¡°No, but ording to the contract, I can¡¯t¡­¡±

    ¡°You can do that. It¡¯s fine, just try it. Come on.¡±

    Opening his arms wide, he took a pose as if waiting for me.

    I wonder why is he so confident?

    Where does all thatposurees from?

    ¡­¡­And I wonder why I¡¯m feeling drawn to him?

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it, you know? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m here.¡±

    There¡¯s no way this will work.

    While thinking so, I closed my eyes tight and plunged into his chest with my head.

    ¡°Ouuff! ¡°

    He groaned.

    The air leaving his lungs¨D¨D My head hit his chest, and the pain visibly begun to spread.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­I did it. I was able to do it.

    It wasn¡¯t a lie. This was undeniably an ¡®attack¡¯. Just how on earth¡­¡­?

    ¡°It was a sess.¡±

    Lifting up his face, he said with a smile, and gently patted my back.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­I.¡±

    I was¡­

    I was probably under a huge misunderstanding.

    Didn¡¯t he never, not even once, lie to me since we¡¯ve been together?

    Then I noticed something.

    In my head, various scenes pass through at a high speed.

    Tokun, tokun, tokun. A bit earlier I could hear his heartbeat.

    Ahh, he¡¯s like me, just a lonely person. I felt it so. My heart then started to beat faster and faster.

    And then, I found it. His ¡®traces of trust¡¯.

    When he rescued me from the thieves, his hands were trembling as he cut my rope.

    He was scared. He fought against many bandits, and killed a lot of them. There¡¯s no way not to be afraid.

    It was the same with me. The shaking couldn¡¯t stop after my first job.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡­¡­It can¡¯t be. No way!

    Is he truly aiming to be the top in the world?

    The reason why he left things in the dungeon to those two was for training them?

    The reason why he didn¡¯t leave my side was because he was protecting me?

    The random teleport wasn¡¯t a lie either. The 255km wasn¡¯t a lie either. The distance of seven days to Pae Ho was also true.

    He kept persistently quarreling against me in order to break my brainwashing?

    He kept guard at night in order to protect me?

    He didn¡¯t attack me. In the first ce, ording to the contract, he wouldn¡¯t be able to attack me.

    Was it my mistake?

    Was it my misunderstanding?

    He also saved me from the thieves.

    He listened to my story.

    He was kind and considerate so as to not hurt me.

    He freed me from very. ¡®Trust me¡¯, that¡¯s all he asked.

    All of this, everything just in order to make me grow as a cksmith¡­¡­?

    He did all this for my sake?

    For my sake, for the sake of someone like me, to go this far¡­!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Can you trust me now? ¡°

    My heart jumped when I heard his words.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Yeah.¡±

    I responded while nodding and wiping my tears in his chest.

    ¡°For the time being. I will trust you¡­¡­ my Master.¡±

    Second, a quirky man aiming for the top of the world.

    Maybe, if it¡¯s him¡­

 Chapter 32: Breaking at the Shore and Retreating

    <h4>Chapter 32: Breaking at the Shore and Retreating</h4>

    The break out was sessful.

    Originally, ¡¸Headbutting a ve NPC will remove the very status£¨¡ùThis is irrelevant to the progress of the story£©¡¹ was just a bug, but it wasn¡¯t fixed in the subsequent updates. In other words, the developers didn¡¯t care about it. After all, in Mobius¡¯ story, this was used to simply understand the existence of very as an ¡®extra element¡¯. In the first ce, it was rare for a yer who advanced in the story to get a ve.

    However, this break out method was revolutionary for some yers. For example, there was a quest in the story where you had to bring an enved NPC to a particr NPC, but the ves would not fight any battles, even if they were being attacked by monsters. However, if you were to break out the ved NPC, which was supposed to be a weak ve, it would show incredible fighting prowess and win against the monsters attacking it. With this, you could save time and effort andplete the quest more efficiently. However, the difference wasn¡¯t that big. That¡¯s why it was never fixed. Besides, since very magic didn¡¯t appear at all afterwards in the story, maybe the Mobius developers simply forgot about this bug.

    To test it, I tried to say ¡°please headbutt me¡±, but I didn¡¯t think it would work so well. Simply confirming that even if the NPC is the one headbutting, the very will cancel is huge. If I ever buy a ve again, I¡¯ll headbutt it immediately after confirming that it will be trustworthy enough to check it out.

    ¡°Master, the sun almost sets. Let¡¯s set up camp.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    After that, Yukaripletely regained her usual coldness.

    There¡¯s only one difference, this is without doubt her true self. She wasn¡¯t cold as if she was a machine like before, but more like cold with a touch of human kindness.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to call me Master, you know? ¡°

    ¡°No. This is something I already decided.¡±

    ¡°Ah, is that so¡­?¡±

    ¡­¡­Still, she¡¯s somewhat cold.

    Huh?¡¡At one point I felt as if she was opening up her heart¡­¡­

    ¡°Please leave tonight¡¯s guard to me.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, that helps a lot.¡±

    I quickly ate and lied down.

    I was quickly ovee with drowsiness.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Were you looking at me? ¡°

    ¡°No.¡±

    I felt a gaze on me, but I guess it was just my imagination.

    Closing my eyes, I decided to try to sleep again.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    No, it¡¯s not my imagination.

    ¡°Hey, were you looking at me? ¡°

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Averting your eyes makes you look guilty.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t looking. Please, just go to sleep already.¡±

    I¡¯m somehow not convinced¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hehe.¡±

    ¡°You!¡¡You are looking!¡¡And you are evenughing? ¡°

    ¡°No. I wasn¡¯t looking. Hehehe.¡±

    Yukari answered along with a giggle.

    It¡¯s great that she¡¯s feeling better after just half a day, but isn¡¯t her character a little too different?

    ¡°Tch, you better remember this¡­¡­¡±

    Losing to the intense drowsiness, I decided to simply go to sleep without caring if she was staring at me.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll remember it. I¡¯llpletely remember it.¡±

    Yukari muttered some words I couldn¡¯t catch. I really don¡¯t get this girl¡­¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Next morning.

    ¡°Good morning, Master.¡±

    Opening my eyes after waking up, the first thing to see was the figure of Yukari, who was in the exact same position asst night.

    ¡°¡­¡­Morning.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­No, there¡¯s no way.

    Swallowing the question ¡°Were you staring at me all this time? ¡°, I just answered her morning greeting.

    After eating breakfast, we began to walk.

    At our current pace, we will arrive at the port city Ko today.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Master. What kind of training should I do as a cksmith? ¡°

    Along the road, Yukari suddenly asked about that.

    ¡°Oh, just earning experience and ranking up the cksmith skills should be enough.¡±

    ¡°Earning experience?¡±

    ¡°For now, clearing Pae Ho¡¯s Limptfert Dungeon is the most efficient method. You will earn it there for the moment.¡±

    ¡°Clearing an intermediate ss dungeon¡­¡­. Will that be possible for me?¡±

    Oops, I didn¡¯t properly exin it.

    ¡°Remember we formed a team?¡¡The team leader can manipte the percentage of experience each member gets. If I set you to 100%, you will earn it fast, since all the experience from the defeated monsters wille to you.¡±

    This is what people called ¡®carry¡¯.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    After hearing me, Yukari crossed her arms and was seemingly troubled by something. Her already prominent breasts got pushed up, making them seem extremely outrageous.

    ¡°I too can¡­¡­ no, it¡¯s nothing.¡±

    Yukari began to speak but immediately denied it.

    I wonder if she was going to say ¡°I too can fight¡±?¡¡If so, I hope she refrains from doing so. The time for her to get her cksmith to Grade 9 will increase. But I think she stopped herself from saying more because she was aware of this.

    ¡°¡­¡­Understood. It¡¯s necessary for me to master cksmith as soon as possible. I¡¯m sorry for the trouble, I¡¯ll put myself in your care.¡±

    ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry. This is me just being selfish for the sake of efficiency.¡±

    ¡°In return, please let me take care of Master¡¯s daily life.¡±

    Eh?

    ¡°I will serve you to my fullest.¡±

    ¡°Wait a moment. Eh?¡¡What do you mean? ¡°

    ¡°This is obvious, I¡¯m Master¡¯s ve after all.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that wrong?¡¡You¡¯re not a ve anymore.¡±

    ¡°No, I am a ve. Simple as that.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m telling you, that¡¯s wrong.¡±

    ¡°In order to avoid the Maurice Company growing suspicious of you. That¡¯s why it¡¯s better to keep the master-ve rtionship clear.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­You have a point. ¡°

    I somehow feel like she¡¯s trying to y me, but well, Yukari¡¯s story certainly has some truth to it.

    It¡¯s just, to only keep the front of a master and ve, ying that part only in public should be enough¨D¨D

    ¡°Master. I can see the port city.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. So, we¡¯re finally there!? ¡°

    I¡¯ll get to sleep in a bed atst!

    With that joy filling my mind, the various things that I was thinking until now were blown away.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s beautiful. Quite a lot.¡±

    ¡°The sunrise is more beautiful. Let¡¯s get up early tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    The room we got was on the second floor with a view to the sea, and we were currently looking at said sea from the window.

    For some reason, it¡¯s a two-person room.

    Dark elf ves have a terribly bad reputation. When I was troubled about what to say at the reception desk, Yukari went ahead and said ¡°We¡¯re married¡±, and this is the result.

    A pleasant moment of silence flowed between us. There were several such moments of silence until now between us, but this clearly has a ¡®somewhat good feeling¡¯ to it. Before, it just made me feel uneasy.

    ¡°Thank you very much.¡±

    Yukari was the one to break the silence.

    ¡°What for? ¡°

    ¡°For finding me, it¡¯s good it was you. I really feel that way right now.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡­¡±

    Silence once again. As I hear the distant sound of the waves breaking at the shore and retreating, I get lost in my thoughts.

    Duchess Lucia Icene¨D¨D was she really killed by the Queen Consort, White Castall?

    If Yukari, who was somewhat involved in that, remembers so, then there¡¯s no mistake. But, the reason for that is what worries me.

    I don¡¯t feel like getting caught in something big, risky and unreasonable.

    I know of the First Prince us¡¯ crooked nature. His mother doing corrupt things doesn¡¯t feel out of ce.

    But then, what about his father the King, Barwell Castall?

    In Mobius, he certainly was depicted as a profit-first, self-centered person. If he¡¯s the same man in this world, I wonder if he will be doing wicked acts? NPCs, such as kings that I never really cared much about in Mobius, are something I absolutely cannot ignore in my aim at the top of the world.

    And above all, the Second Prince Maine worries me. I won¡¯t be able to stand a friend of mine getting caught up in some shitty conflict.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯ll have to investigate. That¡¯s how I felt.

    For the sake of me being the top of the world, and for the sake of Maine¡¯s future¨D¨D

    ¡°About the matter of the Queen Consort.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not gonna do anything right now, but I¡¯ll do something about it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    After saying so, Yukari¡¯s usually sharp eyes rounded up as she looked at me.

    When I looked back at her, she returned her gaze towards the sea, and slowly opened her mouth.

    ¡°It¡¯s better not to talk too much about such frivolous things.¡±

    Her form was beautiful and cold, simr to an ice sculpture.

    She tried to hide her slightly smiling lips from me.

    And her slender pointed ears were dyed in red so that, even with her brown skin, I could tell.

 Chapter 33: Coming Together

    <h4>Chapter 33: Coming Together</h4>

    One day after arriving at the town city Ko.

    Leaving early in the morning, we traveled for a whole day and finally returned to the town of Pae Ho.

    ¡°It took you too long!¡¡What were you doing!?¡¡You had me worried! ¡°

    Silvia¡¯s mood, which I met now for the first time in about a week, seemed to be reaching dangerous levels. But I somehow managed to avoid the worst case¡­¡­

    ¡°Second! ¡°

    Since before that, Eko came running and hugged me. I patted her head as she was rubbing herself onto me. She¡¯s totally like a dog. Even though she¡¯s a cat.

    ¡°Sorry, sorry. Did you have any problems? ¡°

    For now, I decided to simply apologize.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ¡®sorry¡¯ me!¡¡It was full of problems!¡¡Do you know how many times I wanted tomunicate!? ¡°

    Her mood got worse.

    Uh oh¡­ Since it would¡¯ve been troublesome, I told her ¡°Don¡¯t contact me unless it¡¯s an emergency¡±. I thought that since there was no contact, there were no problems here, but it seems like something big happened.

    ¡°What happened? ¡°

    ¡°It was at my parents¡¯ ce¨D¨DEh?¡¡Wait a moment.¡±

    Silvia cut off her words as if she had noticed something. At the end of her gaze was Yukari¡¯s figure, standing diagonally behind me.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The two people silently stared at each other. It looked like the two of them were trying tomunicate something by letting their eyes do the talking. But I wonder, why does the air suddenly feel a bit tense?

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright, let¡¯s have a little ¡®girls talk¡¯. Second-dono, wait for us, we¡¯ll go over there for a moment.¡±

    ¡°Ha¡­¡­? ¡°

    Without time to argue, Silvia took Yukari and Eko and began to speak secretly.

    I could asionally hear Silvia¡¯s passionate voice, Yukari too seemed a bit hot-blooded, which was a rare view, but apparently the three of them were having fun chatting. I wonder if that is what¡¯s usually called a girls-only gathering?. Ohh, so a girls-only gathering can emit such a thirst for blood, who knew?

    ¡°With this I think I¡¯ve won.¡±

    ¡°Hmph, but the time we¡¯ve been together is more.¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that only mean that you¡¯ve been together, yet you¡¯ve made no progress at all? ¡°

    ¡°Ugh!¡¡Please stop!¡¡That kind of attack really hurts! ¡°

    Ahh, they¡¯re already at the friendly-fight phase. It¡¯s nice to see that things are going well even with the addition of Yukari.

    ¡°What is the n!? ¡°

    Eko came asking. Indeed, what should we do?

    ¡°Since it¡¯s already evening, we¡¯ll not go to the dungeon today.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    She seemed a bit disappointed. I wonder if Eko likes the dungeons that much?

    ¡°That¡¯s right, let¡¯se up with a n while we have dinner.¡±

    While saying so, I started walking to our usual inn.

    With an ¡°Okay! ¡± Eko held my hand and walked by my side. Behind us were Silvia and Yukari who were still arguing.

    And like this, our new daily lives have begun.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°It¡¯ll be all about earning experience points.¡±

    I dered a simple and straightforward strategy.

    The slightly tipsy Silvia then merrily opened her mouth.

    ¡°What about Yukari? ¡°

    Looks like their rtion is already at the no honorifics level. That¡¯s nice.

    ¡°We will earn experience for Yukari until her cksmith skills are Grade 9. After that, she¡¯ll devote herself to cksmithing.¡±

    ¡°I give you my thanks in advance.¡±

    Yukari expressed her gratitude while feeling a bit apologetic.

    Silvia then poured some wine into Yukari¡¯s ss and said ¡°Don¡¯t worry¡±.

    ¡°By the way, Master. Have you decided on the team¡¯s name already? ¡°

    After pouring wine into Silvia¡¯s ss, Yukari then poured some in my ss and asked.

    The team¡¯s name, huh? I totally forgot about that because of the stupid teleporting incident.

    ¡°No, I still haven¡¯t decided on one.¡±

    ¡°Oh!¡¡I have a proposal! ¡°

    ¡°Rejected.¡±

    ¡°But you still haven¡¯t heard it, you know!? ¡°

    I got a pretty good grasp on Silvia¡¯s naming sense with the brown White Silver horse. I really can¡¯t hope for much from her.

    ¡°Well, Silvia-san, could you let me hear it instead?¡±

    ¡°Umu!¡¡Since I¡¯m a knight who has sworn a blood oath¨D¨D¡± (TLN: ¡°Knights of the Blood Oath¡± SAO reference.)

    ¡°STOP!! ¡°

    Close!¡¡I¡¯m not sure why, but that was close!

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm, we are not knights, so isn¡¯t that a bit inappropriate?¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡I see¡­¡±

    Silvia felt a little depressed since she thought her idea was good. ¡°Then, how about ¡®Knights of Zero¡¯? ¡± When she said that I shut her up by making her drink wine. It¡¯s finally getting dangerous.

    ¡°Then, how about this one?¡±

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    ¡°£Ó from world¡¯s top (£Óekai), £Ï from greatest achiever (£Ïoini), and £Ó from Second¡¯s brigade. Or, ¡®£Ó£Ï£Ó brigade¡¯ for short.¡±

    ¡°Why, oh why, are you guys so borderline¡­? ¡°

    Do they have a grudge against me?

    ¡°Whatever, I¡¯ll let Eko decide.¡±

    ¡°£ú£ú£ú¡°

    She¡¯s sleeping.

    So, I have no choice but to decide myself, huh?

    Name, a name¡­¡­

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ Alright. I¡¯ll go with ¡ºFirstest Team¡». For now, this will be the name.¡±

    I¡¯m not sure if such a word really exists, but that¡¯s to emphasize the ¡°first¡±, and it makes it easy to understand that we will be the ¡°world¡¯s number one¡±. That is the perfect word to express the desire of bing the world¡¯s top. I can also boast since it¡¯s simr to ¡®fastest¡¯. (TLN: Firstest and fastest in Japanese katakana read pretty much identically.) It has a nice sense of speed.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that¡­¡­ the most embarrassing name of them all?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll be the number one in the world anyways.¡±

    And so, in a drunken moment, the name of the team was decided. Well, it seems like about 80% of such names are decided in a tavern in this world. Let¡¯s not mind it much. What¡¯s important about it is the momentum, the momentum indeed.

    ¡°What¡¯s important is to be the world¡¯s number one. Not the name. You understand? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s exactly as Master says.¡±

    Said Yukari as she skillfully poured more wine. Although with an inexpressive face, she interjected.

    And thus, the night ended.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    The next day.

    After making Silvia drink a Detox potion to help her with her headache, we headed to our usual intermediate rank dungeon, the ¡ºLimptfert Dungeon¡».

    Even after all this time, the Limptfert Dungeon is still good. What is good about here you might ask? The nice amount of experience and the easiness to beat the enemies. At this pace, maybe not even a month will pass before Yukari¡¯s cksmith skills reach Grade 9.

    I decided to take a peek at the person.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari was speechless at the sight before her.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡°

    ¡°No¡­¡­. no way, to be this much.¡±

    She showed a rare trembling expression.

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    I suddenly remembered. I have yet to confirm Yukari¡¯s skill ranks.

    I took a peek at Yukari¡¯s skill section using the Team Leader privileges.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­¡±

    I get it. And what¡¯s more, how lucky.

    Among Yukari¡¯s skills, only two have reached Grade 1, from ¡¾Archery¡¿ ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, and from ¡¾Assassination¡¿ ¡¶Knight Assassination¡·. Everything else was at ss rank. Thinking carefully, being an assassin didn¡¯t mean that you would always face against clever adventurers or powerful monsters, so maybe it wasn¡¯t necessary to have high skill ranks in order to function properly as an assassin.

    This is a surprise. She probably was surprised since she didn¡¯t think that I could defeat these monsters with such ease. Well, high ranking skills are this powerful after all.

    But rather than that, what was lucky was Yukari¡¯s ¡®growth potential¡¯. Since her skills weren¡¯t raised as high as I had expected, it will be way easier for her to earn experience. Rather than a month, it seems that like this, she might grow to be simr to a second-rate cksmith in just a couple weeks.

    ¡°Yukari. As you grow into a cksmith Master and make powerful weapons and reinforced equipment, you too will be able to clear intermediate dungeons, and even upper-ss dungeons. Being the top of the world is getting closer. I¡¯ll be counting on you.¡±

    When I told her that, Yukari replied with a ¡°Certainly¡±, and bowed beautifully.

    ¡°Me too, I¡¯ll aim for the top together with Master. The top cksmith Master.¡±

    After hearing her say that with a big smile, I really thought ¡®It¡¯s great to have friends¡¯ from the bottom of my heart.

 Chapter 33.5: Extra: Idle Talk - Back to My Parentsâ€™ Home

    <h4>Chapter 33.5: Extra: Idle Talk ¨C Back to My Parents¡¯ Home</h4>

    ¡°Hey!¡¡Wait a moment! ¡°

    Themunication was cut off.

    Vacation?¡¡Rx?¡¡And what¡¯s more, for 6 days?¡¡Even if he said that, to be told to take a vacation so suddenly is troublesome.

    ¡­¡­But well, at least Second-dono is safe, so I¡¯m a bit relieved. It seems that the team was properly formed and if I think that I can always contact him like this, then there¡¯s no problem¨D¨D

    ¡ºUnless it¡¯s an emergency, avoid contacting me as much as possible¡¡ -Second¡»

    ¨D¨DOr maybe not!¡¡A strange message arrived!¡¡Is-isn¡¯t this more like ¡°please don¡¯t disturb my time with Yukari?¡±¡¡I¡¯m wrong, right?

    ¡°How was it? ¡°

    Eko stared into my face anxiously.

    Ever since Second-dono was teleported, Eko had a face as if the world had ended, but when she heard memunicating with him, herplexion got a lot better. Just now, she was anxiously listening to the contents of the conversation while moving to my left and right.

    ¡°¡­¡­Seems like it¡¯ll take him six days toe back. In the meantime, we¡¯re on vacation.¡±

    ¡°Free days? ¡°

    ¡°Umu.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Silence.

    Eko and I, we both are thinking the exact same thing.

    And that is¨D¨D What should we do these six days?

    ¡°Silvia, I¡¯m hungry.¡±

    ¡­¡­or maybe not.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Since we got a vacation, I¡¯m thinking of visiting my parents¡¯ house.¡±

    Noon.

    We returned to the town of Pae Ho, and while having lunch, we thought about how to spend these holidays.

    ¡°Are you okay with that, Eko? ¡°

    ¡°Yep, let¡¯s go! ¡°

    Eko immediately nodded to my proposal.

    It was easily decided.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s not waste more time.¡±

    ¡°Time©`¡°

    The capital is four hours away from Pae Ho. So even if we leave now, we will arrive at the capital by nightfall. Eko and I returned to the inn and, after checking out, we rode our horses to the capital.

    Along the road I began to think.

    Why did I decide on something like ¡°going back to my parents¡¯ home¡±?

    I would¡¯ve never thought of such a thing if I was still in the Third Knight Order. Actually, I would have avoided doing so.

    ¡­¡­Umu, I wonder why that is?

    Before I could think of an answer, we arrived at the capital.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Ahh, Silvia-chan! ¡°

    The first one I encountered when I returned home was my elder sister ris. Her short blond hair and high height,bined with herck of breasts, makes her look a bit neutral. Elder sister is supposed to be 20 years old this year, but it seems she¡¯s still growing taller.

    ¡°Elder sister, it¡¯s been a long time.¡±

    ¡°How have you been?¡¡As usual, you¡¯re still quite stiff¡­¡­Huh?¡¡Who do we have here? ¡°

    ¡°Good morning! ¡°

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it already night? ¡°

    ¡°Ah, I see. Good evening! ¡°

    ¡°Oh my god, so cute¡­¡­¡±

    My elder sister started to pat Eko¡¯s head. Eko just narrowed her eyes and began to make some purring sounds.

    ¡°It¡¯s decided. I¡¯m keeping this kid.¡±

    Just what in the world is she saying¡­¡­

    ¡°She is our team member, Eko Leafret.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, Eko-chan, huh?¡±

    Elder sister then said, ¡°How is it? ¡°, ¡°Do you want to stay here? ¡°, to somehow try to convince Eko.

    ¡°I can¡¯t, because I already have Second.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh!¡¡The rumored super handsome Prince! ¡°

    Prince?¡¡¡­¡­Ahh,e to think of it.

    ¡°Who¡¯s being so loud¡­? Ohh, isn¡¯t it Silvia? You are back.¡±

    Hearing my noisy elder sister, father came over.

    ¡°Father, I came to greet you using these holidays I got.¡±

    ¡°Nice timing. I had some things I wanted to talk to you about¡­ huh?¡¡This child is?¡±

    ¡°Good evening!¡¡I¡¯m Eko Leafret! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I see. I¡¯m Noir Virginia.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, by the way, I¡¯m ris Virginia. Howdy¡«¡°

    Elder sister introduced herself while making a silly pose. What¡¯s with that ¡®howdy¡¯? I¡¯m a bit worried since she did it in front of Father. Father has warned her many times, but it seems like he has now half given up.

    ¡°C¡¯mon Eko-chan. Shall we go over there to talk a little? ¡°

    ¡°Talk a howdy! ¡°

    Ahh, Eko was taken away. I hope my elder sister doesn¡¯t teach her anything weird¡­ or rather, what was that ¡®talk a howdy¡¯?

    I was having those thoughts. Then, I remembered my father wanted to talk to me.

    ¡°Say, Father. What did you want to talk to me about? ¡°

    ¡°Right. But before that, may I say something? ¡°

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Silvia, you¡¯ve changed a lot.¡±

    I have changed?

    ¡°Are you not aware of it? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m ashamed to admit it, but I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°In this short period of time, you seem to have grown a lot. You no longer act timid before me, nor submissive, you are now calm and full of confidence. You now give a simr air to that person.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D! ¡°

    Simr air to Second-dono? Fufufu.

    ¡°That¡­ makes me very happy.¡±

    ¡°It seems like he¡¯s a good influence on you. That is great.¡±

    Father smiled satisfied, then his expression turned into one more cheerful, and continued.

    ¡°It seems like he won the Magic Tournament. Moreover, I heard that he even refused the formal recruitment from the First Prince in public, while on the other hand, he showed he was on good terms with the Second Prince.¡±

    Gehh!¡¡This is bad!

    ¡°¡­¡­Ab-about that¡­¡­¡±

    I couldn¡¯t think of a good excuse, so my words got clogged.

    Then, Father immediately began tough, ¡°Hahahaha¡±.

    ¡°Thrilling indeed!¡¡It was amazing!¡¡I knew my eyes weren¡¯t lying! ¡°

    Eh?

    ¡°Hey, Silvia. Never let go of him. He will surely be an irreceable existence for our Virginia Household, no, for our Castall Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°O¡­¡­kay.¡±

    I didn¡¯t hear wrong, right?

    I was sure I would be questioned with something like ¡°Who in the world is he?¡±.

    ¡°With this the talk is over. How long will your holidaysst? ¡°

    ¡°About six more days.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, just take it slowly.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah. Thank you very much.¡±

    After saying so, my father, who was acting awfully kind, left.

    No, he should have shown such kindness asionally.

    Ahh, that¡¯s right, this time it felt somewhat different. Maybe it¡¯s as my father said, and I might have gained some confidence. I feel that the fact that I¡¯ve been making hundreds of clears of an intermediate ss dungeon with Second, has given me some solid self-assurance. Therefore, my vision might have broadened to the point where I felt the slight kindness of my father.

    ¡°¨D¨DAnd, what about Second-san¡«? ¡°

    ¡°Uwaa!?¡¡Elder sister!¡¡Don¡¯t just sneak behind me! ¡°

    My elder sister, who was supposed to be ying with Eko, was suddenly standing behind me and almost made my heart stop. Due to the surprise my face turned red. No, this doesn¡¯t mean that I¡¯m flustered due to the contents of the question¡­¡­ wait, who am I giving excuses to?

    ¡°About that, I believe I also have the right to hear it, right? ¡°

    ¡­¡­At the worst timing, someone came toplicate things further. Elder brother Alex sat down in a chair opposite to me while showing off his proud long blonde hair.

    ¡°Second, huh? ¡­¡­I¡¯ll have to ascertain his personality with these eyes of mine.¡±

    Elder brother muttered something by himself. This person hasn¡¯t changed from the olden days either. He¡¯s already 22, but ever since he was 14 years-old he has had this strange self-important tone.

    ¡°Huh, it¡¯s been a long time, Silvia. When were you going to tell me about this guy Second?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while indeed, elder brother. However, what do you mean about telling you¡­?¡±

    ¡°Then, I also want to know!¡¡Silvia, are you in love with Second-san¡«? ¡°

    ¡°What!?¡¡Is that true!? ¡°

    ¡°T-that¡¯s wrong¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­And even if it¡¯s not!

    Ahh, this is getting awkward!

    Tch, what are Eko and Father doing at a moment like this¨D¨D

    ¡°Delicious! ¡°

    ¡°I see, is it tasty? I don¡¯t mind if you eat more.¡±

    ¡°Thanks!¡¡I¡¯ll eat! ¡°

    ¡°Umu, umu.¡±

    Not good, those two seem to have an excellentpatibility!¡¡Isn¡¯t he totally like a grandfather pampering his grandchild!?

    ¡°Silvia, tell that man this. If you want my sister, then you need to defeat me if you want to take her away! ¡°

    ¡°You hear that¡«?¡¡What are you going to do Silvia¡«?¡¡Tell me, tell me¡«. ¡°

    ¡°Geez, enough!! ¡°

    They are so noisy!

    I shouldn¡¯t havee visit my parents!

 Chapter 34: The â€˜Base Relocationâ€™ Plan

    <h4>Chapter 34: The ¡®Base Relocation¡¯ n</h4>

    Episode 4: The Great Spirit King Arc

    Two weeks have passed, and we¡¯ve spent our days clearing the Limptfert Dungeon.

    And finally, the Rock Turtle dropped the ¡ºShellrock Shield¡».

    ¡­¡­Haa, about time.

    ¡°Uuuuuuuuh©`¡­¡­¡±

    This shield was of iparable rarity with the other Eko had, and since she got it, she was hugging it, not letting it go.

    There was no problem after I gave the dropped shield to Eko. Extremely overjoyed, Eko was dancing and jumping around to the point where I worried if she would pass out due to the happiness.

    The problem began after I said, ¡°Give it to Yukari so that she can reinforce it¡±, and Yukari approached to receive it. ¡°Uuuuu¡±, Eko held it tightly and threatened not to hand over the shield.

    ¡°Eko, I¡¯m not trying to steal it. I¡¯ll just reinforce it.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Eko. Even my Bow of the zing Wolf has be considerably stronger thanks to the reinforcement of Yukari. ¡°

    Yukari and Silvia tried to appease her.

    In the past two weeks, among her ¡¾cksmith¡¿ skills, Yukari has given priority to ¡¶Performance Enhancement¡·, and the other day she finally reached Grade 5. With ¡¶Performance Enhancement¡· at Grade 5, the correction of the enhancement sess rate increases, and in addition, it is possible to perform advanced enhancements, that is one stage before the final stage. Therefore, Yukari has been very enthusiastic since she can finally y an active role as a cksmith.

    ¡°Is it true¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, of course. That¡¯s why, c¡¯mon, please. ¡°

    ¡°No!¡¡Her face is scary! ¡°

    It seems the cause was Yukari¡¯s enthusiasm. Certainly, it is normal for Eko to feel scared because of her cold expression. ¡°I¡¯ll take it! ¡°, it¡¯s hard not to think of her saying something like that. Be it your shield, or your head¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Master.¡±

    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about it. You give off a cold impression, but she knows that deep down you¡¯re a good person. So, it¡¯s okay.¡±

    ¡°Umu, that¡¯s true. You¡¯re a cold-looking, jitty-eyed, wicked tongue poisonous woman, but if you look very closely, you¡¯re not that bad.¡±

    ¡°I see, by the way Silvia-san, let¡¯s have a little talkter.¡±

    Since these two are good friends I can leave them alone¡­¡­ But I have to do something about Eko.

    ¡°Eko. We¡¯ll return it quickly. It will be fast.¡±

    ¡°Uuuu©`¡°

    Eko looked at me while pressing her face onto the shield.

    She looks almost like a cat that doesn¡¯t want to let go of her favorite toy. Is it some sort of beast people instinctive thing?

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    I decided to leave this matter for a while. After all, there¡¯s no particr need to rush it.

    ¡°For today, let¡¯s just go back to the inn. We¡¯ll have a strategic meeting at dinner.¡±

    After I told them that, we left the Limptfert Dungeon.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Two hourster.

    At the time of dinner, Eko came with her ears and tail down, and handed over the shield while saying ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡±. Apparently, she ¡®forgot¡¯.

    ¡°It can be helped that you couldn¡¯t restrain yourself, after all, you thought your first present would be taken away.¡±

    Silvia followed up. I see, it might indeed be an action specific to the demihumans.

    ¡°My bad Eko, it will be finished quickly and returned. Yukari, to the third stage, please. Use the reinforcement specialized in VIT.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Right away.¡±

    I handed the shield to Yukari along with some instructions. With ¡¶Performance Enhancement¡·Grade 5, the reinforcement up to the third stage has a sess rate of 94£¥¡ú89£¥¡ú84£¥, and additionally there¡¯s a status correction. By the way, if the reinforcement fails, the stage will return to zero, and there¡¯s a 25% chance that the equipment will be destroyed. I don¡¯t want it to fail as much as possible since I¡¯m investing quite the amount of materials for the enhancement. In this case, a total of 14 ¡®Rock Carapaces¡¯ dropped from the Rock Turtle are consumed. Each of them has a market price of 1.2 million CL.

    ¡°It¡¯spleted.¡±

    ¡­¡­But it seems it went well. As expected of the Grade 5 and the ¡ºcksmith Master¡»-growth type. Excellent.

    ¡°As expected, thanks.¡±

    ¡°No, it wasn¡¯t really much.¡±

    Yukari humbled herself without changing her expression. Recently, I¡¯ve noticed that the tip of her ears move when she¡¯s happy, and redden whenever she¡¯s embarrassed. In 8 or 9 cases out of 10 she will show those reactions when I properly praise her. I can¡¯t help but to inwardly grin every time she¡¯s happy without being aware of that fact.

    ¡°Here, Eko.¡±

    ¡°So fast! ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to thank Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Yukari, thanks! ¡°

    Eko thanked Yukari with a huge smile on her face. Yukari just answered ¡°You¡¯re wee¡±, without changing her expression, but the tips of her ears were twitching.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Change the base? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    After dinner ended.

    Silvia tilted her head and repeated my announcement.

    ¡°Why so?¡¡At the moment, we¡¯re able to make fast clears of the Limptfert Dungeon. The experience we earn is quite good too. And on top of that, how many tens of millions of CL have we stockpiled in Rock Carapaces¡­?¡±

    We still had arge amount of Rock Carapaces, valued at 1.2 million CL each. Yukari warned me that if we tried to sell them all at once, we would obviously gather attention, therefore I¡¯ve been selling them out gradually. But even then, each person¡¯s share of 20 million wasn¡¯t aughing matter.

    Yukari said ¡°It¡¯s insane for a group to clear an intermediate dungeon at this speed¡±. I thought that any person who was strong could do this much, but it seems I was mistaken. While being careful, the most they could do was once every three days. It wasmon sense for an adventurer that this was enough to make a living, and taking further risks was unnecessary. It seems that our team is the only one who clears it several times a day.

    Overwhelming knowledge about the dungeon that allows easy clears, members prepared and with appropriate and high ranked skills and having the room to consider this ¡°having fun¡±. Silvia thinks that unless these three conditions are met, high speed clears are impossible. It might be as she says.

    ¡°There are three reasons. The first one is that the experience there is better than here.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, I see.¡±

    Silvia nodded, adding that if that was the case, then it was okay. Because Silvia is making an effort to raise all the skills in ¡¾Archery¡¿ and ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ to Grade 7, it is necessary to earn as much experience as possible. I, on the other hand, have only ranked up the main skills and left the rest at a lower rank. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve been able to try my hand at ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ with a little experience to spare.

    That¡¯s why Silvia has no room to spare like me, and really wants to earn more experience. It¡¯s natural that she agrees with me on this.

    ¡°The second, I want to make some armor with the materials from that dungeon.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    The dungeon¡¯s boss, where we¡¯ll head from now on, will drop a lot of ¡ºMithril¡». Mithril equipment was the staple for intermediate to high yers. It doesn¡¯t hurt to have some. And it¡¯s many times better than leather equipment.

    And so, thest reason.

    ¡°And the third one, earn more money.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡­ Wait a moment! ¡°

    Silvia was convinced, then immediately after she raised her voice.

    ¡°Do you want to earn more than now!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m thinking of buying a house.¡±

    ¡°A house!? ¡°

    ¡°A house, huh? ¡°

    ¡°Housy! ¡°

    Everybody repeated my words. But I feel like there was a slightly different one mixed in.

    ¡°I want to build a stupidly expensive house on the outskirts of the capital to serve as the Firstest Team Base.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh! ¡°

    When I dered so, Eko immediately raised a happy voice.

    Although I never really used the housing system in the past, I noticed it was quite meaningful in this world. And since I¡¯m going through the trouble, I might as well build a luxurious mansion. But for that reason, money is required.

    ¡°The target is 5 billion CL, and the method to earn it will be ¡ºMithril Alchemy¡». Does anybody have any questions? ¡°

    While Silvia quickly stood up, Yukari calmly raised her hand.

    ¡°Okay, Silvia-kun.¡±

    ¡°Why is the target 5 billion CL? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s easy. The most expensive house in the capital was 2.5 billion CL. It¡¯s just twice that.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia became silent with a face that showed she didn¡¯t understand the meaning.

    A first-ss mansion had a price as cheap as 2.5 billion CL. So, unless I spend at least 5 billion CL, I can¡¯t say that is the ¡°house of the world¡¯s top¡±. That¡¯s all there is to it.

    ¡°Next, Yukari-kun.¡±

    ¡°Yes. What is Mithril Alchemy? ¡°

    ¡°Good question.¡±

    Mithril Alchemy. That was a very famous money-making method in Mobius.

    ¡°Mithril can be procured from the intermediate dungeon ¡ºProline ¡», which is near the cksmithing town of ¡ºBadgordo¡». But, just selling it as is doesn¡¯t make a lot of money.¡±

    ¡°Do you have some sort of n? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. The mithril ore dropped by the boss Mithril Golem can be made into pure mithril using the ¡¾cksmith¡¿ skills ¡¶Smelting¡· and ¡¶Refining¡·, and can be further processed into Mithril Alloybining it with iron using ¡¶Manufacturing¡·.¡±

    ¡°Mithril Alloy¡­¡­¡±

    Yeah, Mithril Alloy. An extremely strong and valuable alloy made by mixing mithril and iron in a 1:20 ratio. By the way, ¡¶Smelting¡· is the most efficient when doing 51 pieces of mithril ore at the time, and ¡¶Refining¡·is the most efficient when using 32 pieces of mithril at the time. By using just one of these processes, the profit bes ten times bigger.

    ¡°Each of them, ¡¶Smelting¡·, ¡¶Refining¡·, and ¡¶Manufacturing¡·require 4th, 4th and 6th ss respectively. I¡¯ll leave that to you Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Certainly, Master. Leave it to me.¡±

    Yukari already has the required skill ranks for Mithril Alchemy. Everything is ready.

    ¡°Thanks, I¡¯ll be relying on you. I¡¯ll give you the recipeter.¡±

    When I thanked her, Yukari¡¯s ears got a little red, and she just replied with a ¡°I¡¯ll be imposing on you¡±, without changing her expression.

    Ahh©`¡­¡­I wonder what is this? I can¡¯t help having fun. I will not stop.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­By the way, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡What happened? ¡°

    Along with a mysterious look, Silvia opened her mouth.

    And then, she pointed out a ¡°certain fact¡± that I had totally forgotten.

    ¡°The Proline Dungeon has never been cleared before.¡±

 Chapter 35: Hardships

    <h4>Chapter 35: Hardships</h4>

    ¡°Second-dono. Why do you know the details of a dungeon that hasn¡¯t been cleared before? ¡°

    Silvia asked a critical question.

    ¡°¡­¡­Oh©`¡­¡­¡±

    I was at a loss about what to say.

    What should I do? Should I make up an excuse? Or reveal the truth to them? What should I do?

    ¡°I somehow noticed it¡­¡­ Ever since the time we met. I wondered if there was a reason for that? ¡°

    Yeah, it¡¯s just like she says. There¡¯s a reason. It¡¯s somewhatplicated to exin, and even then, I¡¯m not sure they¡¯d believe me.

    Sensing the serious atmosphere surrounding Silvia, Eko and Yukari also looked over here. And even if they were to understand, I¡¯ll still feel like they¡¯d criticize me, and I wouldn¡¯t be able to calm down. There must be a sense of guilt somewhere deep in my mind that feels like this. If so, would it be better if I just came clean about it?

    No. I must not tell them.

    My circumstances far exceed theirprehension. And things that aren¡¯t understood are just ¡°scary¡±. Therefore, I should not tell them. We shouldn¡¯t destroy the rtionship that we¡¯ve built. The first ce in the world will be a fleeting dream if that happens.

    Then, Silvia opened her mouth with a dignified look, although I¡¯m not sure whether she knew my inner dilemma or not.

    ¡°¡­¡­You have all my trust. If you want, you can talk to me. I¡¯ll ept anything.¡±

    Strong¨D¨D And honest. That¡¯s how I saw her right now.

    Even though her trust might crumble, she still had the courage to step in and listen. A never wavering will. An integrity that doesn¡¯t lie. A mind too straight that cannot be shaken. Silvia has that.

    I can¡¯t imitate her, I absolutely can never be like her, with her strong and righteous heart; pure, sincere, unblemished.

    ¡°Silvia.¡±

    That¡¯s why¨D¨D

    ¡°Sorry. I will never tell my secret to anyone.¡±

    ¨D¨DI ran away.

    I acknowledged there was a secret, and dered that I would never reveal it. A unteral decision, disregarding Silvia¡¯s strength of mind.

    But it¡¯s not that I want to run away. I must run away from this, or else I won¡¯t be able to be the world¡¯s top.

    ¡°I won¡¯t speak about it someday. Even to the day I die, I won¡¯t reveal it to anybody¡­¡­ sorry.¡±

    I lowered my head. I hoped they would shelve this conversation and just return to our usual daily lives.

    After a brief silence, Silvia ¡°fu fu fu¡±,ughed and said with a caring expression.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really care. But¡­¡­ If it gets tough, you can always withdraw that statement.¡±

    Silvia Virginia.

    ¡­¡­She¡¯s a good woman. I really thought so from the bottom of my heart.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    After Master returned to his room, the three of us secretly held a meeting.

    ¡®What is Master¡¯s secret? ¡®, was the topic. But¨D¨D

    ¡°Hmm. To be honest, I don¡¯t really care.¡±

    I spoke my thoughts.

    That¡¯s right, I don¡¯t have any problem no matter what kind of secret Master has. It seemed like Eko thought the same, and she nodded following my response.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong, I feel the same way, but it somehow worries me a little.¡±

    Silvia¡¯s eyes smiled as she said so.

    Well, that¡¯s certainly true.

    ¡°But, trying to find out Master¡¯s secret¡­¡±

    ¡°Mmm. I¡¯ve been curious about it, but, you¡¯re no longer a ve, right Yukari?¡¡Then why are you still calling Second-dono Master? ¡°

    Oops. This person is quite perceptive.

    ¡°That¡¯s because I promised I would take care of Master¡¯s daily needs.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡Care for his needs, huh? Like some sort of maid? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, something like that.¡±

    ¡°I see, I see. But, isn¡¯t it strange? What kind of maid gets a 20 million CL starting sry? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s just my reward as a cksmith Master, but what about it? ¡°

    Moreover, I¡¯ve almost used up the 20 million already by purchasing some ¡ºSpecial-grade Maid Clothes¡». Master said he will buy a wonderful mansion in the capital, so my debut as a maid will be at that time. If it¡¯s not about that, then I don¡¯t know what this sham of a female knight means. By the way, after checking the price, I noticed these Special-grade Maid Clothes had quite the high performance. However, it¡¯s a mystery why someone would decide to make such high-quality goods only to be worn by a maid.

    ¡°Can you be both a maid and a cksmith? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll show you how beautifully I can aplish both roles.¡±

    Silvia-san became silent wearing a bitter expression. Hehe, it¡¯s my win.

    ¡°I want to be a maid too! ¡°

    Eko said while raising her hand. But no, I can¡¯t let that happen.

    ¡°You can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Ehhh.¡±

    Since that is my identity, I can¡¯t let someone else have it so easily.

    ¡°Anyway, what do you expect Master¡¯s secret to be?¡¡Let¡¯s get back to that.¡±

    When I said so, Silvia unfolded her arms and spoke.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. What I think is that Second-dono is an intelligence agent from another country, maybe? ¡°

    I see, a keen conjecture indeed. If that¡¯s the case, then it¡¯s understandable that he might know details about the dungeon, and also why he can¡¯t reveal his identity.

    ¡°So that¡¯s why he denied it so strongly, since he identally talked about confidential information.¡±

    ¡°But what I don¡¯t understand is¡­¡­ if he¡¯s an agent, why does he want to be the top in the world?¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s true¡­¡±

    Well then. We continued to think about it.

    As we talked to each other, we came up with some ideas.

    ¡°No way, maybe an alien?¡¡Or probably a psychic? ¡± (Silvia)

    ¡°Someone from the future! ¡± (Eko)

    ¡°He could also be from a different world¡­¡­¡± (Yukari)

    Whileing up with such wild ideas, our night was over.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    It¡¯s been five hours since we left the town of Pae Ho and traveled west.

    As the overgrown vegetation decreased, the smell of soil gradually filled the air, and then the cksmithing town of ¡ºBadgordo¡» came into view among the mountains.

    ¡°Alright, once we secure a buyer for the Mithril alloy at the cksmiths Guild, we¡¯ll dive right into the dungeon.¡±

    While hurrying my horse, Seventh Tei¨­, we moved towards the cksmiths Guild. It¡¯s been a long time since Ist dived into the Proline Dungeon, and I was really eager to enter.

    ¡°Second-dono!¡¡Why are you so hasty? ¡°

    After somehow catching up to me, Silvia then asked.

    ¡°From all the intermediate ss dungeons, I like Proline the most! ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s not a reason! ¡°

    ¡°You¡¯ll soon know! ¡°

    I said that whileughing, then hurried to the cksmiths Guild.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Then, an hourter.

    We were still at the cksmiths Guild.

    There seemed to be a few good wholesale buyers. However, none of them epted my proposal. No matter where I went, they all used me of lying with arguments like ¡°It¡¯s absurd for someone to say they¡¯ll provide a stable supply of mithril alloy¡±.

    ¡°Well, this was bound to happen.¡±

    Yukari muttered. Certainly, if someone was toe with a story too good to be true like ¡°I¡¯ll wholesale mithril alloy starting tomorrow¡±, I suppose it¡¯s normal for them not to trust it.

    ¡°What do you think we should do? ¡°

    I wasn¡¯t ashamed to ask that question to Yukari.

    ¡°For one, I think it would be a good idea to capture the Proline Dungeon and get some reputation. They¡¯ll probably trust you if you show them your ability.¡±

    ¡°In other words, join the Adventurers Guild? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡±

    Whoa¡­¡­ I really hate that n. I¡¯ve only got bad memories of the Adventurers Guild in my previous life.

    ¡°Do you have any other ideas? ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t really think of any.¡±

    ¡°What about you, Silvia and Eko? ¡°

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t knyaa.¡±

    Seems like these two don¡¯t know a-nya-thing. (Silvia: Wakaran, Eko: Wakanyai, and Second copies the Wakanyai from Eko)

    ¡°Then, what would happen if we capture the dungeon without registering at the Adventurers Guild? ¡°

    ¡°I believe that willplicate things.¡±

    ¡°I guessed so¡­¡­¡±

    Rather than hiding our identity and clearing it, whilst we get on their bad side and they think ¡°Who do they think they are!?¡¡We will not turn a blind eye to this! ¡± it¡¯s better to be obedient members and have them support us like¡¡¡°As expected of our aces! Look forward to their achievements!¡±.

    But well, that would only be the case if the Adventurers Guild was ¡°upright¡±. But most of the time that¡¯s not the case. If we capture it without registering, who knows what they¡¯ll do.

    If they just tracked our movements that would still be okay, but they might distort the truth and spread rumors among the cksmiths Guild, maybe putting on pressure and interfering with our business partners, or they might even send assassins. With the ¡°Adventurers Guild of Mobius¡± that I know, that is a usible possibility.

    ¡°¡­¡­I guess it can¡¯t be helped then. Let¡¯s find an inn, then go register at the Adventurers Guild.¡±

    After giving up, the crestfallen me and the others headed towards the inn.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°I¡¯d like to register.¡±

    ¡°Ah, y-yes!¡¡This way please! ¡°

    The receptionist was very friendly. It¡¯s at times like these that I really feel the benefits of having this kind of avatar.

    I filled out the registration documents and handed them back to the receptionist. I registered us as a team. The team name was ¡ºFirstest¡», and the members four, including me.

    After refusing their rudimentary exnation, I received the four Guild cards. These Guild cards were something simr to an ID for adventurers. The contents of the card have the individual and team rank, both of which were at F. By the way, the ranks go from F to A.

    ¡°Here is the rookie adventurer¡¯s guidebook, and there¡¯s also various informative lectures.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t need that.¡±

    ¡°I-is that so? ¡­¡­Then, thebined registration fee for four people and the team registration will be 140,000 CL.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Okay.¡±

    I paid the money, then left the reception desk.

    My mood was getting worse and worse. Well, it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t know the reason.

    Actually, a variety of reasons were ovepping. I was frustrated because I wanted to dive into the Proline Dungeon as soon as possible; frustrated because I couldn¡¯t find a buyer for the mithril alloy; frustrated with the situation where I had toe register to the Adventurers Guild, which I didn¡¯t want to get involved with in the first ce; frustrated by the fact that I am currently F rank; andstly, frustrated by the tant money-grubber attitude of the Guild.

    ¡°Hey, hey!¡¡You, the fancy guy with the dark elf! ¡°

    ¡­¡­And while now being irritated by this strange guy, my frustration was reaching a climax. This is why I didn¡¯t want toe here.

    ¡°You¡¯re new here, right?¡¡Let me teach you a lesson. I¡¯m the fellow who educates rookies. Aren¡¯t you grateful? ¡°

    A huge bearded man with lots of scars on his face approached. Behind him were three guys with vulgar expressions. He licked his lips, probably thinking of the ¡°enjoyment¡± he would get with Yukari as if he had already won. Does he really think he can beat me?

    *Pop*.

    I could almost hear the snap in my head.

    ¡°You know, I¡¯m kind of curious. Why are you picking a fight like this? ¡°

    ¡°Ha?¡¡How so? ¡°

    ¡°Maybe you think ¡®ahh, that¡¯s a sucker rookie¡¯. You think you¡¯re lucky to beat some weak-looking guy and take the beautiful woman apanying him?¡¡Because you can easily disguise it as educating neers? I knew there were people like you, but I guess you got the wrong guy.¡±

    ¡°What?¡¡Are you picking up a fight?¡¡Bastard.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. It¡¯s something else. Aren¡¯t you just the typical crook?¡¡I don¡¯t think you¡¯re at fault. I think the Guild that lets people like you be an adventurer is the one at fault. If a teacher is looking after a problem student, they need to do it properly, right?¡¡Am I wrong? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    When I looked around, everyone, adventurers and staff members avoided my gaze. If there was a knight with Silvia¡¯s sense of justice the story would be different, but everyone here was basically just ¡°letting sleeping dogs lie¡±. But there were quite a few of them here, and if they aren¡¯t doing anything to avoid this, aren¡¯t they just aplices?

    ¡°And what¡¯s this about rookie education? Is it like a secret word or something?¡¡Is he going to teach me a lesson behind the scenes?¡¡Hey, say something.¡±

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t ignore me! ¡°

    ¡°Okay, okay, geez, you don¡¯t shut your mouth, huh? Juste at me. Otherwise it won¡¯t be self-defense.¡±

    ¡°You bastard!! ¡°

    The huge bearded man¡¯s face turned red with anger, and he threw out a punch.

    Unfortunately, he¡¯s full of openings¡­¡­ It¡¯s as if he¡¯s screaming ¡®please kill me¡¯.

    ¡°Stop! ¡°

    ¨D¨DThe next moment, Eko got between me and the big man.

    And his fistnded on Eko¡¯s head.

    ¡°Ooouch¡­.¡±

    The man held his right hand, and made a sound that indicated his bones had broken. Eko on the other hand, was the same as always. It seems like the difference between his STR and Eko¡¯s VIT is just too much.

    ¡°Bastar¨C!¡¡Eh¡­¡­What¡¯s this!? ¡°

    The other three tried to move behind me but¨D¨D they suddenly fell to the ground while raising a confused voice.

    ¡°I tied them up just in case, Master.¡±

    Now that I think of it, Yukari had the ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ skill. As expected of the former assassin of the deceased Duchess, she tied them up without even moving much.

    ¡°Hmph, is there nothing left for me?¡±

    Silvia leaked a disappointed voice while holding her bow. What was she trying to do with a bow in this small room?¡¡Then she muttered, ¡°And even though I¡¯ve been practicing with the Bow of the zing Wolf a lot for a moment like this¡­¡­.¡±. I guess it¡¯s pointless to tell her this is not the point of her having a bow.

    ¡°Thank you. Shall we go?¡±

    While thanking the three of them, we left the Guild while a lot of eyes followed after our retreating figures.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    After walking for a bit, I noticed it.

    My feet were shaking.

    Was I scared of the big man?

    No, that¡¯s not it. I was scared of myself.

    If things had continued as they were and a fight had broken out while I was irritated¡­¡­ In the worst case, I would have ughtered them all.

    But this is not a game. Even though I already realized it, it seems I have yet topletely understand it. Killing a person here doesn¡¯t make you a PK (yer Killer), but a ¡®murderer¡¯. Yeah, I know that in my mind, but seems like I still haven¡¯tpletely lost the sense of this being a game.

    It might be difficult to be the world¡¯s top in this other world, but in apletely different sense.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for today.¡±

    After I told the three of them, each of us went into our room at the inn.

    ¡­¡­This isn¡¯t good. When I killed the thieves, I couldn¡¯t stop the shaking for a while.

    From now on, it would be better to avoid any unnecessary socializing as much as I can. I¡¯m scared I might be twisted.

    Iy on the bed and let my consciousness go while having those thoughts.

 Chapter 36: Baku-agebon-bar

    <h4>Chapter 36: Baku-agebon-bar</h4>

    Cool, I¡¯m feeling really excited this morning!

    Why? Because today we¡¯re finally capturing the Proline Dungeon.

    With my current mood, it almost seems like a lie that yesterday I was feeling down, and I¡¯m currently nning to tell everyone the strategy while having breakfast.

    Eh, mood swings?¡¡No, no, that¡¯s not the case.

    My motivation to aim for the top in the world is in full throttle this morning, and so is my appetite. However, after thinking a bit, I¡¯m sort ofzy and aside from being the top of the world I have no other motivation at all¡­¡­ But I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine.

    ¡°I think we should dive into the Proline Dungeon today.¡±

    ¡°Understood¡­¡­ But, even if we capture it on our own, I doubt the cksmiths Guild would ept it.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Why? ¡°

    ¡°A dungeon capture is something done by a lot of people. It is carried out regrly by the Adventurers Guild in the form of a ¡ºGroup Capture¡». Therefore, even if you were to im that an unknown team captured it alone¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°They will think it¡¯s a lie? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, Master.¡±

    ¡°Even if I show them the Mithril itself? ¡°

    ¡°Right. Mithril seems to be gathered not only from the boss, but also from the monsters inside the Proline Dungeon.¡±

    Oh¡­ Somehow, I¡¯m no longer feeling that excited.

    ¡°Then, how about we clear it many times and collect a lot of mithril? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s a possibility. We could clear it many times.¡±

    Yukari then said ¡°I¡¯m sorry I forgot about that¡±, and continued to think.

    Silvia tilted her head and was also thinking. And Eko, since the story was a bit difficult for her to follow, she began to y with the housents¡¯ leaves swaying in the wind.

    ¡°With that, we might be able to trade with the cksmiths Guild without waiting for the group capture. However, since we ignored their rules, the Adventurers Guild will not remain silent.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, I see.¡±

    I don¡¯t know how often the group capture is conducted, but if we were to ignore the guild and capture it by ourselves, it will be seen as a challenge and crush the efforts of the guild, who had gathered arge number of adventurers, pretty much butting heads head on. There¡¯s no doubt they will hold a grudge against us.

    ¡°Then, wouldn¡¯t it be okay to just participate in the Group Capture, and have Second-dono show his ability? ¡°

    Silvia said, while a lot of question marks seemingly floated above her head. Her line of thought is quite good. However, there¡¯s one fatal w in that n.

    ¡°That would be alright if only they allowed F ranked teams to participate.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, I see¡­¡­¡±

    Group capture raids of an uncaptured dungeon give a great opportunity for adventurers to increase their own fame. Probably a lot of fierce adventurers gather from all over the kingdom. There¡¯s no way they will allow a newly formed F ranked rookie team to participate in there.

    That¡¯s why, capturing without permission will turn the Adventurers Guild into an enemy, and nobody will believe in you¡­¡­ Ahh, they really closed all options.

    ¡°The best thing to do is to contribute to the Adventurers Guild as much as possible, in order for them to allow us to participate in the group capture.¡±

    Yukari calmly stated. That was probably her n from the beginning. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have imed that we should register as adventurers yesterday.

    But, how many months would that take?¡¡As expected, that¡¯s not something that gets me motivated at all. Is it because I¡¯m still thinking about this as a game?¡¡Or is that the difference between the sense of time of the rtively long-lived elves and that of normal people?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh.¡±

    At that moment, an idea came to my mind.

    ¡°Say, Yukari. In short, if the rank of the adventurers is high, they can participate in the group capture?¡¡Or rather, if we be A Rank, can they ept that we captured it alone? ¡°

    ¡°Y-yes¡­¡­ In theory, that might be the case. However, instead of aiming for A rank, it is more efficient to steadily contribute to the guild and earn the right to participate in the group capture.¡±

    ¡°You might be right, but I just remembered a good way.¡±

    ¡°A good way? ¡°

    Yeah, in Mobius era there was ¡°a way¡± that was considered mostly useless¨D¨D it was nicknamed¡ºBaku-agebon-bar¡».

    ¡°Alright!¡¡Let¡¯s go to the Proline Dungeon right away.¡±

    Ignoring the puzzled people, I started to walk away.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Baku-agebon-bar.

    This was a way to raise your adventurer rank with explosive speed.

    However, in Mobius, the adventurer¡¯s rank was a title without much meaning, therefore it was an element that was mostly discarded since it became known that the higher the yer, the more of a waste of time it became. Nevertheless, thanks to the diversity of yers, there were always some who tried to find the fastest way to do things, and they eventually found out ¡°the fastest way¡± to raise the rank.

    And this fastest way should take at least six days. Yet, not many people wanted to spend six days raising their adventurer¡¯s rank in the era this was a game, so it mostly became forgotten information. I just happened to remember it since it was associated with a ¡°certain technique¡± that I used. Truly, knowledge is power, a power that¡¯ll be useful now.

    Well then.

    Six days to A rank. How the heck do you aplish that?¡¡You might be thinking along those lines, but the truth is, this is quite simple.

    There¡¯s an item that¡¯s automatically generated inside the dungeon called ¡ºMagic Crystal¡»¨D¨DYou just need to collect it and deliver it to the Adventurers Guild.

    Among the ¡¸Unlimited Deliverable Items¡¹, the Magic Crystal was the item that earned ¡¸Guild Contribution Points¡¹ the most, therefore, if it could be collected inrge quantities, this was the best method for raising the guild rank efficiently.

    In the Proline Dungeon, around 128 Magic Crystals are produced each day. And assuming you deliver 83 per day, you can calcte that in six days, your umted Guild Contribution Points will be equivalent to Rank A. In other words, if about 500 Magic Crystals are delivered, you can earn Rank A at the guild.

    And the reason why you only deliver 83 per day and not more isn¡¯t because of ¡®want¡¯, but because of ¡®can¡¯t¡¯. The Magic Crystals don¡¯t grow all at the same time, but are generated little by little all the time, therefore some waiting time is needed. Therefore, the limit is around 85 per day no matter how hard you try, so long as you take your time to sleep.

    Then, where in the dungeons are those Magic Crystals? The answer is ¡°Hidden Rooms¡±.

    In these hidden rooms, Magic Crystals can be found inrge quantities. Therefore, as long as you can get into those hidden rooms, getting to A rank is a piece of cake.

    And the way to reach the hidden rooms is a secret technique called ¡¸Explosion Jump¡¹, which was the origin of the Baku-agebon-bar.

    And in addition, the Proline Dungeon has the most hidden rooms among the intermediate ss dungeons. Therefore, if you¡¯re collecting Magic Crystals, this is the ce for you.

    This was also one of the reasons why I loved the Proline Dungeon, besides it being arge and beautiful cave. Thisrge number of hidden elements can tickle anyone¡¯s gamer side. At that time, it was quite a pleasure to explore every corner making full use of various techniques like the explosion jump.

    Well, to summarize.

    We will umte Guild Contribution Points at the Adventurers¡¯ Guild in the next six days, while aiming for A Rank. In order to do so, we need to deliver 83 Magic Crystal per day. Therefore, we need to enter a hidden room with many of those crystals inside the Proline Dungeon. And now, how do we enter those rooms¨D¨D?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Exproshon jamp? ¡°

    Explosion Jump, sometimes also called, ¡°pitiful jump¡±. Why pitiful (hisan)? Simply because ¡¶Fire (Hi) Attribute?Third (san) Form¡· is abbreviated hisan.

    After Eko heard my exnation, she just tilted her head, seemingly not understanding.

    ¡°Yeah. After you jump, I¡¯ll shoot Wind Attribute Third Form at you Eko, then Silvia and I will each shoot Fire Attribute Third Form with the bow at your feet one after the other. All you have to do Eko, is to defend in this order Bishop Shieldmanship ¡ú Knight Shieldmanship ¡ú Gold Shieldmanship. All of them while facing down.¡±

    In the end, this is just a trick to fly higher than a normal jump. If it works well, you can get to a height of nearly 20 meters. This is a technique that can be performed by a single person if they have the Third Form, ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·, ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡· and ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡· all of those at Grade 9, but if the ranks are lower, two or more people are needed.

    ¡°Okay! ¡°

    Eko answered energetically.

    ¡°Hey, is this really going to be okay?¡¡Like, really okay? ¡°

    Silvia then asked me with a worried look. Considering Eko¡¯s MGR, she should be alright¡­¡­ But maybe we should do a rehearsal before doing it for real.

    I looked at my surroundings again.

    This is a really big dungeon, quite wide both vertically and horizontally, with rocky surfaces exposed all over the ce and a slight gray glow. However, since the vertical hole has quite the height, and the horizontal caves are somewhat convoluted, the atmosphere is very eerie, as if it¡¯s not being illuminated by a strong light.

    The monsters in the area have already been wiped out. They are called ¡ºGolems¡» and arerge monsters made out of rock that appear here in the Proline Dungeon, but they¡¯re not that big of a threat, and can be killed with one or two shots of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· at Grade 9. And since they give a nice amount of experience, this is good for ranking up skills.

    In addition, the topography of the Proline Dungeon has two main shapes, a main vertical shaft, simr to a tree trunk, and many small caves that extend horizontally, like branches and leaves, quiteplicated.

    And what¡¯s more, there are hidden rooms in almost every ce that require very difficult techniques to reach them. Even me, who was the world¡¯s top rank, does¡¯t remember all of them, and where they are located. Therefore, to avoid falling into the cave after the Explosion Jump, and sessfully reaching the point chosen, it is necessary to practice carefully first.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s practice here.¡±

    After deciding on a ce that seemed okay, I moved Eko towards the wall and prepared ¡¶Wind Attribute?Third Form¡· while aiming at her feet.

    ¡°Let¡¯s begin. Jump! ¡°

    After making sure Silvia was ready, I gave themand.

    Right after Eko jumped, I shot ¡¶Wind Attribute?Third Form¡· below her, then using ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡· she defended and was blown up about three meters. Immediately after that, Silvia used abination of ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· and ¡¶Knight Archery¡·and shot it from her bow, then Eko defended with ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡·. The knockback effect became a vertical propulsion, and she went up twice as high as before. And finally, I finished with abination of ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· and ¡¶Knight Archery¡·. Using ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·, Eko then gained even more altitude in an instant. About 15 meters from the ground. This much should be enough.

    ¡°Kyaaaaahahaha©`! ¡°

    Eko then started to fall whileughing.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°H-hey, is that fine!? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Crap, I forgot!! ¡°

    ¡°Wha-!? ¡°

    Looking at the worried Yukari and the panicking Silvia, I finally became aware.

    I never thought about thending!¡¡In Mobius there was no problem losing some HP, but here is the real world. I can¡¯t let Eko get hurt!

    ¡°Eko!¡¡Bishop! ¡°

    I shouted so, making a moment¡¯s decision.

    Immediately after, Eko tightly held her shield. I then made a water pool at the point where she would drop using ¡¶Water Attribute?Third Form¡·.

    Dobbaaan!¡¡The moment the shield collided with the water, it sshed everywhere simr to a geyser.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    After shended, Eko was just sitting on the ground looking shocked and surprised.

    Then, as she began to stand up, my face stiffened.

    ¡°Haa haa haa haa.¡±

    Eko slowly stood up, water dripping from her clothes, and looked towards me. My breathing was rough.¡¡Since I was anxious about her being injured, I rushed towards her.

    ¡°Second!¡¡One more time!¡¡Let¡¯s do it one more time! ¡°

    Eko then said so with a face showing she really enjoyed that. Jumping around me, she began to beg to do it again.

    I¡¯m d she didn¡¯t get hurt¡­¡­ I feel like I would¡¯ve lost my mind if so. Silvia and Yukari were still a bit worried, but also quite relieved.

    ¡°Okay, next is the real deal.¡±

    ¡°Okay! ¡°

    After saying so, I went towards the correct location.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°I got them all! ¡°

    ¡°Nice, nowe down.¡±

    There are about three main Magic Crystal production spots in the Proline Dungeon. All of them are hidden rooms obviously, locations you can¡¯t reach without the Hisan Jump. It might be possible to climb using ropes, but if you spend too much time on it the golems will respawn. And even then, most of the people don¡¯t know the existence of the hidden rooms in the first ce.

    Maybe because of that reason, Eko collected around 100 Magic Crystals from just three locations. The sources of these crystals were untouched. There was a huge amount of Magic Crystals that had never been taken by anyone. If it goes on like this, we¡¯ll be able to reach Rank A in six days with ease.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go turn them in.¡±

    We went back to town while feeling excited.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Th-these are¡­¡­!? ¡°

    The guild receptionist had her eyes rounded in surprise.

    ¡°R¡­¡­ Real¡­¡­!¡¡Magic Crystals, and this amount¡­¡­! ¡°

    She alternately looked at me and the Magic Crystals with a surprised expression and her mouth agape.

    Wow, this really feels nice.

    ¡°With this, our team should now be Rank C, right? ¡°

    Back in the Adventurers Guild, one of the rules was that increasing your Guild Contribution Points will also increase your Rank. Therefore, it was possible to explosively increase your rank by bulk contributions without any issue, and achieve Rank A in a heartbeat¡­¡­ but how about the real guild? If possible, I¡¯d like that system to remain the same.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ye-yeah, yes!¡¡That is correct! ¡°

    Nice, nice, this is good. Ranked up from F to C in a moment. To think it would really be this easy. I just hope they won¡¯t tell me something like ¡°You can¡¯t get to Rank A by turning in Magic Crystals¡±ter. (Did I just raise a g?)

    ¡°We¡¯ll turn them all over to the guild. Deposit all the money. And please raise our individual and team rank.¡±

    ¡°Understood! ¡°

    ¡°Thanks, Camelia-san. We¡¯ll bring more tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Un-understood.¡±

    Looking at her name tag over her chest, I called her by her name and gave her a wink.

    ¡­¡­It was a weird act, if I say so myself, and it really gave me goosebumps all over my body, but it seems like the effect this body had was outstanding, since Camelia saw me off while her cheeks were dyed in red. Although the Adventurers Guild has a notoriously bad reputation, it seems like I can establish a good rtionship with the receptionists.

    ¡°Second-dono¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Master.¡±

    But, judging by the cold gazes from mypanions, it seems there is a price to pay for that.

    Or rather, aren¡¯t Yukari¡¯s eyes just too scary? Was she that ufortable with my actions? Well, I guess so.

    ¡°Ho? ¡°

    Eko, as usual, had a foolish look on her face. When I look at her, she gives off this kind and tender feeling with her mouth slightly opened, Eko is so cute I want to pinch her cheeks.

    ¡°¡­¡­Well then. For the next five days, we will collect the crystals and defeat the golems to earn experience. After we be Rank A, we¡¯ll capture and clear the Proline Dungeon several times a day, and make Mithril Alloy. With that money, then we¡¯ll buy a house at the capitol. Let¡¯s go with this in mind.¡±

    I tried to move the talk in a different direction.

    But judging by their eyes, they still didn¡¯t give it up, yet Silvia and Yukari gave their opinion.

    ¡°Umu. I¡¯m in favor of earning experience. Do you still want to prioritize Yukari¡¯s cksmithing skills? ¡°

    ¡°No, cksmithing doesn¡¯t have to be a priority anymore. The experience distribution will be set evenly for all members.¡±

    ¡°So that means we¡¯ll all raise our skills again.¡±

    Silvia nodded while she had her arms still crossed. Judging by her face she had calmed down a little. Probably she¡¯s d she can raise her skills and get stronger. I know that feeling, I was like that at the beginning. I feel like those were the times when I enjoyed the game the most.

    ¡°By the way, Silvia has her Magic Archery, Eko her Shieldmanship¡­¡­ But what are you going to raise, Master? ¡°

    Yukari suddenly asked what was on her mind.

    ¡­¡­Hmm, me, huh?

    That¡¯s right, I already raised Archery, Swordsmanship and Magic to a decent level¨D¨D it might be time to start with ¡®that¡¯.

    Turning my eyes to Yukari, I opened my mouth to answer.

    ¡°Starting tomorrow, I¡¯ll begin raising Summoning Magic.¡±

 Chapter 37: Itâ€™s Not About the First Impression

    <h4>Chapter 37: It¡¯s Not About the First Impression</h4>

    Five days passed in the blink of an eye.

    While Eko gathered the Magic Crystals using the Baku-agebon-bar method, me and Silvia kept hunting golems without stopping until all of them were basically extinct. As a result of doing this continuously until the end of the day, we earned a significant amount of experience.

    Yukari, who had gotten the same amount of experience as us, had a face devoid of emotion as she said in a cold tone ¡°you truly are crazy¡±, at the scene after we finished our hunt. Since the experience points are evenly distributed among the team members, the experience points can be shared with the two who didn¡¯t defeat any monster.

    By the way, while the three of us dived into the dungeon, I asked Yukari to do a certain job, since she would be idle. That was, to survey both the cksmiths and Adventurers Guilds. Since the more information we have, the better, and she even volunteered to collect that information. Well, since she was indeed a former assassin, collecting information of this degree should be child¡¯s y for her.

    There were two important pieces of information obtained. One is, the next Proline capture group will be formed in three days. And the other one is, the cksmiths Guild is gued with a chronk of mithril.

    From this information, it became necessary to reconsider our future policy.

    Be A rank as it is, participate in the group capture, prove the capture and have the cksmiths Guild trust us, and as nned originally, wholesale Mithril Alloy to them. Or, if the cksmiths Guild trusts us using the A Rank, not wait for the group capture and make an exclusive contract with the entire cksmiths Guild.

    With the former, we would hardly make any enemies, but it will take time to earn money. Thetter is way more lucrative, but the Adventurers Guild will surely turn against us. Anti-monopolyw, you say?¡¡There¡¯s no such a thing in the Castall Kingdom.

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­¡±

    While returning to the town of Badgordo from the Proline Dungeon, I was troubled with my arms folded as I was deep in thought. Should I prioritize peace? Or maybe money? Both have their pros and cons.

    ¡°Master. May I have one more day?¡±

    At that moment, Yukari spoke.

    ¡°Do you have an idea? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. Since it seems like Master doesn¡¯t like to spend time uselessly. I might have a slightly different approach n.¡±

    ¡°And that is? ¡°

    ¡°Use the Merchants Guild.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm.¡±

    I get what Yukari was trying to say. Instead of trading directly to the cksmiths Guild, we¡¯ll do business smoothly through the Merchants Guild.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way a merchant can let such a profitable deal pass. They will charge some fee, but I¡¯m sure more money can be made that way. Luckily, we¡¯ll raise our adventurer¡¯s rank to A soon, so I doubt there will be a problem in terms of credibility.¡±

    ¡°But if that¡¯s the case, wouldn¡¯t we end up turning the Adventurers Guild into an enemy? ¡°

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that. Just take part in the group capture that¡¯ll happen in three days, building some reputation with both the Adventurers and cksmiths guild. And behind the scenes, we¡¯ll seal a contract with the Merchants Guild.¡±

    Eh?¡¡I don¡¯t really understand. Howe we won¡¯t turn the Adventurers Guild into an enemy?

    ¡°If Master just wholesales Mithril Alloy to the Merchants Guild in order to make money, that is, afterpleting the clear, you¡¯ll most likely not be criticized too much. And even if the Adventurers Guild were to take some measures, the Merchants Guild will surely protect you.¡±

    I see, that¡¯s the difference between them and the cksmiths Guild. Certainly, they will do everything they can to protect the ¡°goose thatys golden eggs¡±. In addition, if the cksmiths Guild bes reliant on therge amount of Mithril Alloy sold through the Merchants Guild, then the two guilds can be counted as allies. Then the Adventurers Guild will criticize me, but won¡¯t do much aside from that.

    It¡¯s just, it will surely be a big deal. Most likely, the power bnce in Badgordo will shift dramatically. Well, not that I really care.

    ¡°Alright. Shall we go with that strategy?¡±

    ¡°Very well, please leave it to me. I¡¯ll try to get someone¡¯s agreement from the Merchants Guild by tomorrow.¡±

    After I gave the ¡®Go¡¯ to the n, Yukari answered proudly. She had an incredible sense of confidence. You can see her in high spirits, trying to make herself useful in aspects aside from battle.

    Yukari was really helpful in those fields. She has reallypensated for the abilities that I wascking since I focused only on this when it was a game. I can clearly see her now as a full-fledgedpanion.

    ¡°Thank you. Sorry to be so reliant on you, Yukari.¡±

    To my thanking words, Yukari just said ¡°Not at all¡±, in her usual cold tone while quickly removing her gaze from me. But the tips of her ears are slightly red. She¡¯s still just as easy to understand.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    The next day.

    We delivered the Magic Crystals and became A rank really smoothly, then came again to the Proline Dungeon.

    This was to earn some experience while Yukari talks to the Merchant Guild.

    What¡¯s more, as a result of using all my experience points, even the surplus I had saved from before, one of my ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿ skills, ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·has almost reached Grade 4.

    ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿ is divided into two main parts. One is ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·, and the other is ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·. The former is a skill mainly used for taming and making use of monsters, while thetter is a skill to control a ¡ºSpirit¡», of which only one can be possessed per character.

    Raising ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·¡®s rank to Grade 4 unlocks the ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·skill. This is a very powerful buff skill that temporarily increases your status by having your summoned spirit possess your body.

    It¡¯s not an exaggeration to say this is an essential skill if you¡¯re aiming for the top in the world. That¡¯s why I have given priority to acquiring ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·, and in the past six days I¡¯ve only raised ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    ¡­¡­Then, at lunch time.

    Just after ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· reached Grade 4, I was able to learn ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. However, since I haven¡¯t yet acquired the essential piece, a spirit, I can neither use possession nor summoning.

    Since I have it, I¡¯ll use the Premium Spirit Ticket that came with the ¡ºLimited edition premium avatar¡» when I¡¯ll have to call for a spirit. Since it is said that a spirit with a strength of 25,000 or more is promised, this was an item that basically shouted ¡°Look at my money!¡±.

    By the way, the spirit strength is a numerical representation of the power and rarity of a spirit. It was simr to the capsule toys (Gacha) value system, a spirit with an initial strength of 10,000 or more was umon, 20,000 or more was rare, 25,000 or more was super rare, and 30,000 or more was extremely rare. However, since the spirits grow and evolve as they develop, the final difference in spirit strength bes insignificant.

    Well then. The question here is, when should I use the Spirit Summoning Ticket?

    I have one concern.

    At the time of Mobius, the spirits were only characters who spoke predeterminate phrases. But here is the real world. I have a feeling that the spirits might have a will of their own, probably.

    If so, that would increase the number ofpanions by one. Adding a new member with this timing, when we¡¯re still trying to figure things out, it kind of feels off.

    Then, when should be good to do it? I¡¯m in no rush, but it¡¯ll be a problem if I do it toote. I¡¯ll just have to take some time to think about it, I suppose.

    ¡°Mmm. Second-dono, there¡¯s a message from Yukari.¡±

    While I was deep in thought, Silvia spoke to me. Eko was sleeping on her knees. That feels quitefortable.

    ¡°Ohh, I didn¡¯t notice. Thanks.¡±

    I opened the chat section for Teammunication.

    Ohh. The message from Yukari read, ¡°I got to talk to them, but there seems to be one problem.¡± I wonder why? I have a bad feeling about it.

    After we finished our lunch break, we headed towards the Merchant Guild and joined Yukari.

    ¡°Proof of power? ¡°

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari exined to me the circumstances with an apologetic expression.

    ¡°I received a very pleasant response from the Merchants Guild, and also an attractive contract proposal. However, that¡¯s only if we can prove the strength of our team.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t we get A Rank for that very reason? ¡°

    ¡°Allow me to continue the exnation from there.¡±

    While Yukari and I were talking in the waiting room, a middle-aged bald man broke into the conversation.

    ¡°I am the Merchants Guild¡¯s guildmaster, my name is Shin Sei. You are Second-sama, right? It is my pleasure to meet you.¡±

    The man calling himself Shin Sei greeted me with quite the polite manner, but no matter how you look at him, he looks like a person of a not so respectable upation. His height was of nearly 1.90 meters, and he gave an extremely intimidating feeling.

    I just gave my greetings and shook his hand. But my eyes never left this guildmaster. That¡¯s because I felt like he¡¯ll stab me the moment I show a gap.

    ¡°Well then. I¡¯m grateful I got to hear such a fascinating story this time. We at the Merchants Guild are very much looking forward to it.¡±

    The guildmaster said with a smile stered on his face.

    ¡°But¡­¡­ while this might be rude, and I apologize for it, the truth is we can¡¯t trust it too much, even if it came from A Rank adventurers. You say you can get a lot of Mithril Alloy from there, right?¡¡Anyone who heard that would think of it as a lie.¡±

    ¨D¨DThen, his eyes narrowed as he continued, almost as if he was ring.

    The atmosphere changedpletely.

    I noticed Silvia putting her hand on my shoulder. And Eko was shaking a little while pulling my clothes from behind. The two of them were visibly scared. Certainly, I would be scared too. That is, if this was not the world of Mobius.

    ¡°It¡¯s just, there¡¯s one thing. There¡¯s something I¡¯m curious about. How did you get that Dark Elf girl? She¡¯s a professional at this¡­¡­ even across all my guild, she¡¯d rank among the first ss.¡±

    Without being fazed by the guildmasters intimidation, Yukari simply moved her gaze towards me. Her calm eyes appeared to say ¡°this much is just child¡¯s y¡±.

    ¡°That got my expectations up a little. Therefore, I¡¯d like you to prove your ability. That is, that you¡¯re not just bluffing about capturing the Proline Dungeon. If so, we will happily believe you. But if it turns out to be a lie¡­¡­ you shouldn¡¯t expect mercy.¡±

    It was a cold voice apanied by a re that made it feel as if the room¡¯s temperature fell a few degrees.

    It might have a good enough effect to threaten the general public¡­¡­ Unfortunately, it doesn¡¯t work on me at all. Why? Because I can ¡®win¡¯. In terms of the world ranking, this old man is just a small fry that wouldn¡¯t reach even the 10,000th ce. That¡¯s the reason, simple as that.

    ¡°About that proof of power, what should I do?¡¡Do you want me to capture the dungeon now?¡¡If so, then it will take about three hours.¡±

    I answered as calmly as possible.

    What is required is proof that I can go and clear the Proline Dungeon many times. Then, I just need to create an atmosphere that says ¡°it can be easily done¡±.

    However, after the old man heard my words, the atmosphere got tenser, and his eyes red sharper, to the point where some people might faint after looking at him. Did I say something wrong?¡¡Damn, if so, then I suppose I failed.

    ¡­¡­Hmmm, looking closely, it¡¯s really smooth and shiny. He might have something against people with proper hair.

    ¡°¨D¨DAhahaha!¡¡Impressive calmness. Great!¡¡Just like Yukari-san said.¡±

    The next moment, the guildmasterughed loudly as he said so.

    ¡°Hey, were you testing us!? ¡°

    Silvia then turned a gaze full of criticism towards Yukari. In response, Yukari bowed her head, not to Silvia but to me.

    ¡°I am really sorry, Master. But it was a necessary action.¡±

    ¡°Yes. It was me who was the one who came up with it. It was really necessary to ascertain if it was possible to provide a stable supply of Mithril Alloy.¡±

    I see. Does that mean that I¡¯m good by his judgement?

    ¡°Uuuuuuu©`¡­¡­¡±

    Oops, before that, it seems Eko was quite scared and wants to cry.

    ¡­¡­I feel a bit sorry, but let¡¯s have this old man apologize to her.

    ¡°What was that about ascertaining!¡¡Apologize to Eko!¡¡Look at her! Poor Eko! ¡°

    I¡¯ll just ce the me on him.

    ¡°Ahh!¡¡I¡¯m sorry!¡¡I¡¯m sorry! ¡°

    ¡­¡­Contrary to his appearance, he was quick to apologize. He is lowering his head so much while apologizing that his head is even below Eko¡¯s.

    Anyways, with this, the deal with the Merchants Guild should be settled.

    ¨D¨DOr so it seemed, but there was another problem remaining.

    ¡°But, you see, I still need you to prove your power¡­¡­¡±

    While being led by the shiny-headed Shin-san, we were guided to the back of the Merchants Guild, to the drawing room.

    In there, he spoke those words with an apologetic expression.

    ¡°Is that in order to trust me? ¡°

    ¡°No, that¡¯s not the reason. If there¡¯s nothing wrong with my eyes, I can tell you are ¡®the real deal¡¯. But.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, does that mean there¡¯s someone aside from you, Shin-san, who doesn¡¯t believe me?¡±

    ¡°That is so.¡±

    ¡°Specifically? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯d like you to show it at least to some of our staff, and to the people we will be trading with.

    ¡°How many would that be? ¡°

    ¡°Probably, about 200 people.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wow.¡±

    That¡¯s a problem.

    How should I prove my ability to such arge number of people?

    ¡°Hmm, Silvia has the magic bow, and Eko has her shield, should they do some kind of performance¡­¡­?¡±

    The four of us plus 1 began to think, narrowing down possibilities.

    And so, the discussion about what to do started.

    Shin-san was very sympathetic and allowed us to consult with him. He¡¯s a pretty good guy.

    And so, fifteen minutes passed in the blink of an eye. Yet, there was still no sign of a good n.

    ¡°By the way, what kind of special skills do you have, Second-sama? ¡°

    ¡°Archery, Swordsmanship, Magic and Summoning Magic. I can also use Magic Archery and Magic Swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°I can only use Fire Attribute, but Second-dono can use all magic attributes. And every one of his skills are top notch! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­T-that is incredible.¡±

    Shin-san was so surprised, his eyes were as round as his head. Silvia had a satisfied expression, almost as if she was boasting about herself.

    ¡°Master, have you already raised Summoning Magic? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. I got Spirit Summoning to Grade 4 today.¡±

    When I answered Yukari¡¯s question, I heard the sound of something dropping. That was the sound of the pen sliding from Shin-san¡¯s hand.

    ¡°G-GRADE FOUR, YOU SAY!? ¡°

    Shin-san shouted with an incredible volume. It felt as if the whole room shook due to his loud voice. Looks like that had a great impact. His appearance was more of not believing than surprised.

    ¡°Hiiiiiiiii.¡±

    Eko hid behind my back.

    ¡°Hey!¡¡You did it again!! ¡°

    ¡°Whoaa, I¡¯m sorry! ¡°

    When I yelled after he scared Eko again, Shin-san apologized again using his ultra-low bowing posture. That desperate attitude was by no means an act. He really is different from how he looks like¡­¡­ I¡¯m sure he has a hard time with first impressions.

    ¡°H-however, that might be just the way! ¡°

    Shin-san said so when he got up after asking Eko for forgiveness.

    ¡°The way? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah!¡¡Second-sama. A spirit summoning, a spirit summoning! ¡°

    I see!¡¡He means to use ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· in front of many people?

    Certainly, the higher the spirit¡¯s strength, and the higher the rank of ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·, the more spectacr the summoning effect will be.

    Especially, the ¡®first summon¡¯ is much more amazing. Each spirit has its own special summoning effect. This would be perfect for a show of ability.

    ¡°If your Spirit Summoning is Grade 4, then everyone will most likely be convinced of your ability, Second-sama.¡±

    Is Grade 4 recognized as a high rank in this world?

    If that¡¯s the case¡­¡­ then this might be a surprisingly good n. And since I can summon a high-ranking spirit with the Premium Spirit Ticket, the effect will surely be shy.

    ¡°Understood. Let¡¯s go with that.¡±

    Nodding to Shin-san¡¯s proposal, we then discussed the n.

    Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought something like that would happen¡­¡­

 Chapter 38: That Thing is Evil, No Matter Where You Look at It

    <h4>Chapter 38: That Thing is Evil, No Matter Where You Look at It</h4>

    A day had passed since then.

    A total of 200 visitors were gathered on a square at the outskirts of Badgordo.

    Belonging to the Merchants Guild were about 15 staff members, including the guildmaster, Shin-san. The rest were cksmiths belonging to the cksmiths Guild and other merchants from the Merchants Guild.

    We have to prove to them our ability. That way, ording to Yukari, ¡®the system to earn much money while whole selling Mithril Alloy¡¯ will be set. All the fine details were left to Yukari. Ahh, so these are the pains of being a seriously addicted online game junky. I feel sad for myck of knowledge. But, it¡¯s great to have Yukari with us.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, we have gathered here today¨D¨D¡±

    Shin-san then took the lead. He started with a greeting, then an exnation of the outline, and an announcement of the performance that will happen in a moment. When that was over, the crowd of 200 people greeted us with a thundering apuse.

    The first ones to perform were Silvia and Eko.

    ¡°Here I go.¡±

    Silvia stood at the right edge of the square, and aimed at the previously prepared target located at the left, while holding her ¡ºBow of the zing Wolf¡», she used abination of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡·.

    In the next moment¨D¨D a burning mass of magical power was shot, and it flew straight towards the target at a very high speed while leaving behind a trail of mes.

    Then itnded. It became a huge explosion. The target was blown away not by the force of the hit, but by the sheer explosive power, devastating all the surroundings.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­T-this is¡­¡­! ¡°

    The 200 people stared in admiration.

    They might be thinking that with this much, capturing the Proline Dungeon may be possible.

    ¡°Next target, here I go.¡±

    Silvia prepared abination of ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· and was ready to fire it in quick session.

    ¡°Okay©`! ¡°

    What appeared at the left side of the square was Eko, who replied energetically while preparing her ¡ºShellrock Shield¡» with ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·.

    The multitude became noisy.

    At the sudden turn of events, the audience was filled with unrest. What would happen if such a young demihuman was hit with a shot like the previous one?¡¡Before they could think of an answer, Silvia fired her bow.

    At the moment the shotnded, all the spectators must have thought ¡°the child died¡±.

    Immediately afterwards, a ¡®paaan¡¯ resounded!¡¡In other words, the sound of the explosion scattered after hitting something.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh? ¡°

    All 200 people were amazed.

    Eko was unharmed, and she was just showing a big smile.

    How did that happen?¡¡That question was solved soon. They saw it was thanks to the big shield.

    ¡°OHHHHHH! ¡°

    The audience roared. They eximed that those two were amazing.

    The degree of confidence that we can capture the Proline Dungeon surely climbed.

    ¡°That is indeed incredible strength¡­¡­ but, I honestly don¡¯t think they can go and clear it many times a day.¡±

    However, a calm opinion was heard among the crowd.

    That¡¯s right. Considering doing constant clears, this alone is ¡®weak¡¯.

    But this was already expected to happen when we were doing the strategy meeting with Shin-san yesterday. For that very reason is my ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· spell.

    ¡°Next will be thest announcement.¡±

    As Shin-san continued with the moderation, I stepped into the center of the square.

    The eyes of the 200 people were focused on me. However, I wasn¡¯t tense at all. Title matches had over 100 times the audience, and 10,000 times more people watched in on the inte. It¡¯s impossible not getting used to it.

    ¡°Here I go.¡±

    I then took the Premium Spirit Ticket from my inventory and used it. A golden aura covered my body. With this, an initial spirit strength of 25,000 or more is confirmed.

    After one deep breath, and clearing my mind as much as possible, I activated ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D! ¡°

    Arge summoning array with a radius of about 5 meters was deployed around me. The audience was quietly holding their breath.

    Please, be at least one with a spirit strength of 30,000 or more!¡¡I sincerely prayed. But it was already useless to pray. The result has already been determined the moment the previous skill activated, and the spirit to be summoned has already been selected, so it was useless to pray. Still, I wonder why I decided to pray?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh.¡±

    Among the silence, the voice of someone leaked.

    That person¡¯s line of sight was directed towards the sky.

    Eh?

    Noticing something was odd, I also looked up at the sky.

    The sky which had been clear just a few seconds ago, was now covered with thick, ck clouds, and arge whirlpool in the center.

    Thend dimmed as if it were night, and thunderous lightning jolted across the clouds, illuminating the people in ce of the sun.

    Strange, eerie, intimidating¡­ It was a scene filled with a mysterious fear.

    ¡°Just w-what¡­¡­!? ¡°

    The audience was shivering.

    Can this man manipte the climate? ¨D¨DThey wondered.

    Ovepping inyers, the ck clouds slowly approached the ground.

    Some of the audience even said ¡°We get it, so please stop it! ¡± while begging me to halt.

    However, the summoning performance doesn¡¯t stop.

    ¡°¡­¡­There¡¯s no way.¡±

    I then started to think of something from the past.

    That was, after the first major update, a yer was able to summon a spirit with a spirit strength of over 35,001 for the first time.

    One of those spirits was summoned per each of the 29rge updates performed in Mobius online, the most powerful and rarest of them being one with an initial spirit strength of 41,000.

    ¡°Hiii¡­¡­! ¡°

    Screams rose from among the audience.

    The swirl of clouds began to fall, and the sky began toe down like a funnel.

    From the center of it, a huge arm made an appearance.

    An arm dozens of times bigger than a building, with an ominous dark red crest. Just as it turned into a fist, it rushed towards the surface of the ground while making roaring sounds.

    ¡°¡­¡­W¡­¡­.Whoaa, ahhh! ¡°

    Someone then shouted.

    ¨D¨DWe¡¯re going to die.

    If such a huge fistnded, everyone here would die.

    The audience was enveloped in panic.

    Zuuun¨D¨D The moment the fistnded, the ground shook. However, the arm suddenly disappeared almost as if everything had been a dream.

    Forgetting their surprise, amazement, willingness to escape, and even their panic, the two hundred people were just staring at the sight before them.

    Dust clouded the air. About five meters ahead of me, a dark red lightning shed in the air.

    Bang!¡¡Suddenly, the expanded air blew away all the dust. The spectators screamed and crawled on the ground, so as to not be blown away.

    Yet, I wonder why I didn¡¯t feel that wind.

    Then, what appeared in front of my eyes was¨D¨D as expected, ¡®that spirit¡¯.

    ¡°My name is Angolmois. Great King of all spirits governing over the four major elements.¡±

    Angolmois then loudly introduced itself. Even though it was not raising its voice, it was a neutral voice clearly heard even through this raging wind.

    A spirit with a beautiful face that could be taken as a man or a woman, about 160 centimeters tall. Its hair was cut short and shone in red, ck and gold in the wind, and its eyes emitted an intense orange and green light, simr to a supernova. Its clothes were silver colored with several strips, decorations of mounted gemspiszuli and ambers were scattered here and there, the shoes were of a scorched tea and greenish color with an irregr mottled pattern giving off a grotesque and repulsive feeling.

    And then, those hands. They had the same crest as the huge arm that manifested from the sky before, and the crests flickered as if they were hungry for blood. Every time the light reflected from it, a dark red lightning leaked from that emblem.

    Angolmois walked out.

    One, two, three steps, then it stopped.

    A really elegant gait. The epitome of ¡®endlessly deep fear¡¯.

    ¡°My Second. I was looking forward to the day when I could meet you.¡±

    Angolmois said while kneeling in front of me.

    The storm still hadn¡¯t stopped.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, I see. The reason why the wind still hasn¡¯t calmed down, and was making the spectators crawl on the ground, might be because the spirit was thinking ¡®I will not lower my head any lower than those 200 people¡¯, probably. I¡¯ve heard rumors, but to think you are ¡®that kind of guy¡¯.

    ¡°Can you stop the wind?¡±

    ¡°Fufu, as you wish.¡±

    Angolmois smiled and obeyed.

    The wind soon calmed down.

    The audience was stirred. Not because the wind had finally stopped. They were stirred because of ¡®fear¡¯.

    ¡­¡­Well, that was to be expected.

    This guy is evil, no matter where you look at it.

    And this evil being was kneeling before me, so it became like this.

    s, if this guy is the ¡®Great King of Spirits¡¯, then I will be seen as the ¡®Great King of Fear¡¯.

    Please spare me that¡­¡­!¡¡Why did hee with this timing!?¡¡Isn¡¯t the change of getting a spirit with a strength of over 35,001 only about 0.1%!?¡¡If it was going to turn out like this, one with 35,000 of strength was enough!

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I turned my sigh towards Yukari, implicitly asking what to do.

    Ahh¡­¡­ She just shrugged. Seems like I can¡¯t count on her on this.

    ¡°¡­¡­Hmm, sorry. We¡¯ll talkter. For the time being, I¡¯ll send you back. Next time youe out, do it normally.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t like it?¡¡My apologies, my Second. I became a little enthusiastic since it was the first summoning¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Later.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, wai¨C!? ¡°

    I decided to use ¡¶Unsummon¡· as soon as possible, then while taking a deep breath I wiped my forehead.

    And quickly, the square became open again.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The venue was in a state of dead silence.

    They could not believe what had just happened.

    Everyone was equally stunned.

    ¡°Hiiii.¡±

    A merchant who matched his eyes with mine screamed his lungs out, and after quickly avoiding my gaze, he ran away as fast as he could.

    One person became two, and then three, then more and more people started to run away.

    The moment they looked at me, fear clouded their eyes.

    Theypletely believe I¡¯m the master of that demon.

    And thus, the presentation ended.

    Naturally, the trade discussions were cleanly and neatly abandoned. Both the Merchants Guild and the cksmiths Guild said ¡°Never get involved with that guy¡±, and quickly took their distance. Well, that is obvious.

    ¡­¡­I blew it.

    Everything that Yukari took the time to go here and there to prepare and n, went up in smoke in just a moment.

    I feel stupid to fail like this after everything I said about not wanting to be hostile towards the Adventurers Guild. Let alone the Adventurers Guild, now we¡¯ve earned the mistrust of two of the biggest organizations in the Castall Kingdom, the Merchants Guild and the cksmiths Guild. This is no longer about being enemies or allies.

    But even then, what was I supposed to do?

    The spirit was ruling over the four major attributes, Fire, Water, Wind and Earth. Depending on the attribute, the Spirit Summoning manifested in different ways. If it was a fire attribute spirits, it will appear from a fire column; a wind attribute spirits will simply descend from the sky. Something like that.

    However, Angolmois is different. He is set to be the Spirit King, standing atop all other spirits, dominating the four major elements. That is why his summoning presentation is extremely special. It leans more towards the ¡°ruler¡± direction.

    Even in my previous life, as I was the top of the world, I did not have Angolmois. It was just that rare. After all, even since the start of the Mobius Onlineunch, there were only 29 chances to get it. It required for you to use a Premium Spirit Ticket during the ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· with a chance of just 0.1%, and at the same time, be lucky enough to win against all the other yers who were aiming for a rare spirit like Angolmois at each major patch.

    That is virtually impossible¨D¨D Everyone thought so. Even I thought so.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    But I got it!

    Since I¡¯m aiming to be the top of the world, this should be a very weing addition, but considering the current situation, it¡¯s not that easy to rejoice.

    And what¡¯s with that setting? A neutral good-looking body, respectable, arrogant and a King. That spirit is such a big deal. And because it¡¯s so great, I¡¯m not sure I can deal with it.

    Do I really have to call him again to have a proper chat? ¡­¡­Whoa, I¡¯m really not in the mood.

    On the way back to the inn.

    I told Silvia and Eko, ¡°Sorry to have been a nuisance¡±, and to Yukari, ¡°Sorry to have wasted your efforts.¡±

    Silvia just smiled at me and replied with a ¡°That was just you being you¡±. Eko said ¡°It¡¯s fine! ¡°, while nodding to cheer me up. Yukari said ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter, but¡­¡­¡± and tried to say something else, but at least she wasn¡¯t worried about her wasted efforts.

    I felt a little relieved with everyone¡¯s unchanged attitude.

    A lot of things happened today, but at least it seems our everyday life will continue the same.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°I am terribly sorry.¡±

    That same day¡¯s night.

    Yukari came to my room to apologize.

    ¡°Why are you apologizing?¡¡If anything, I¡¯m the one who wants to apologize to you.¡±

    Since the ns and arrangements that Yukari made blew up because of me, I¡¯m the one who should be apologizing.

    ¡°I was just terribly mistaken. The opinions of amon person like me are meaningless. And for Master, someone like me will be just a pair of shackles slowing you down.¡±

    Eh?¡¡I don¡¯t really understand.

    ¡°Shackles? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. Master is someone who¡¯ll be transcendental. You didn¡¯t worry about turning a guild into an enemy or gaining recognition, I now understand this very well, and that there was no need to worry about that small work I was doing.¡±

    That¡¯s wrong, I just can¡¯t think of a way, so I just wanted to proceed as unnoticed as possible. I made a huge blunder this time though.

    But, why would Yukari say something like this so suddenly?

    ¡°Why do you think that? ¡°

    ¡°Because of Master¡¯sposure. You don¡¯t think of this as a failure.¡±

    ¡°No, I think this was a failure. And if anything, this was a huge failure.¡±

    ¡°No, you don¡¯t think that. A person who has really failed won¡¯t be able to eat dinner normally, won¡¯t enjoy a drink after a bath, and most of all, won¡¯t be able to smile like there¡¯s a tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm.¡±

    Now that she says that, I might give off that feeling. Even though such a thing happened, I spend this evening without any change from my usual self.

    ¡°Master should be considering this to be not a major failure. On the contrary, Master probably thought ¡°it¡¯s okay if this fails¡± from the beginning, right? ¡°

    At least the former is correct. That¡¯s because the purpose to save money was to buy a house, therefore, the goal of being the ¡°top in the world¡± is not affected even if that failed. In the first ce, there are other ways to earn tons of money. My initial priorities foring to Badgordo were ¡¸Earning Experience£¾Making Equipment£¾Earning Money¡¹ after all. Then, why did ¡®earning money¡¯ suddenly take priority?

    ¡­¡­Ohh, I see. Certainly, I do not think of this as a failure. Rather, I even thought it was fine if this n failed. And since I wasn¡¯t serious about trying to seed in this, that means the damage is minimal in the case of failure. Yukari is right.

    ¡°You¡¯re incredible, Yukari. You know me better than I do.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not true! ¡°

    Yukari strongly denied it. It surprised me a little because she usually doesn¡¯t express much emotion.

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m sorry. However, I do think I have a good understanding of you, Master.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that what I said? ¡°

    ¡°No. Also, this time, if I had a deeper understanding of you, Master, I might¡¯ve been able to devise a better n.¡±

    I see. So, that¡¯s why Yukari came to apologize. She¡¯s quite dutiful.

    ¡°In that case, don¡¯t worry about it too much. Because I was a little ignorant in that aspect, I left everything to you. I just ended up cing a burden on you, Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Still, I didn¡¯t get to live to your expectations.¡±

    ¡°Like I said, it was my fault. There¡¯s no way you could¡¯ve predicted such a thing, right?¡¡You don¡¯t have to be so hard on yourself. In addition, it was me who agreed with Yukari¡¯s n and made the final call. Therefore, this is all my fault.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari became silent, albeit a little unwillingly. Her expression didn¡¯t seem convinced yet.

    ¡°¡­¡­Would it be better if I focus on cksmithing?¡±

    She then said that while looking down. How did shee to that conclusion?

    ¡°Well, that would be troublesome. Like, really troublesome. After all, you are the brains of ¡®Firstest¡¯, Yukari. It was just by chance that things didn¡¯t go as nned this time. But I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine from now on. Will you help me follow the right road? ¡°

    ¡°¡ª-!¡¡Yes, of course! ¡°

    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be relying on you.¡±

    ¡°Certainly! ¡°

    Yukari replied somewhat happy. ¡°Starting today I¡¯ll change my mindset, and show you how useful I can be as a secretary¡±, she then added.

    Secretary, huh? ¡­¡­That¡¯s the first time I¡¯m hearing this. Well, it¡¯s not like I can tell her no. She will certainly have too much spare time during our dungeon clears, so that might be good for her mental state. It might be natural for her to want to do things other than working just as a cksmith, since she¡¯ll have too much free time in her hands.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s why, hmm¡­¡­ I want to know more and more about master from now on. If I don¡¯t know anything about you, Master, and something happens again¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Okay¡­¡­Eh? ¡°

    The distance between me and Yukari shrank. Then, she came so close, being face to face. Ahh, she smells like flowers.

    ¡°That¡¯s why, that¡¯s why, right?¡¡Tonight, together with me¨D¨D¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¨D¨DKnock, knock, knock.

    At that moment, just when Yukari was about to ask for something, a knocking sounded in the room.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari¡¯s expression then became frozen cold. Hey, that¡¯s scary!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Ce in.¡±

    Feeling a bit shaken, I called out to the person standing outside the door.

    ¡°Excuse me foring thiste in the night.¡±

    The person who entered was a slender old gentleman with a white beard. I didn¡¯t recognize his face, but he seemed to be a gentle person.

    ¡°Second-sama, I assume.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°My name is Forest; I am the steward of the house Lumberjack. I havee in ce of my master. He would like to talk to you face to face in person.¡±

    Ranba jakku (Lumberjack)?¡¡Curry (Steward)?

    Seeing me with question marks above my head, Yukari then whispered ¡°It¡¯s an Earl household whose territories are located in themercial city Le?ador¡±. She then added, ¡°Having the house stewarde in person is a very polite expression¡±. I see, so curry (Karee) as in Steward (Karei)? And what about ¡®Hausu''(House), suchplicated names.

    But, whye at such a time?¡¡The moment I wondered that, Yukari whispered to me ¡°I think he probably came here in secret¡±. As expected, he knows how ¡®famous¡¯ I am¡­¡­

    ¡°Forest-san, is it? Sure, I don¡¯t mind. May I ask what the talk will be about? ¡°

    When I said so, the steward, Forest-san bowed splendidly.

    Then, he opened his mouth as his sharp eyes looked at me behind those round sses.

    ¡°We have a proposal for the trading of Mithril Alloy.¡±

 Chapter 39: An Unprecedented Genius

    <h4>Chapter 39: An Unprecedented Genius</h4>

    ¡°Proposal? ¡°

    I returned that question to Forest-san.

    If he knows about my ¡®blunder¡¯ and still wants to talk about that, there might be something going on behind the scenes.

    ¡°Yes. The Earl house would like to buy Mithril Alloy from you, by all means. The Earl said so himself.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­¡±

    How should I answer?

    This is suspicious. Really suspicious. However, it is also an attractive proposal.

    Rumors of the fearful summoned spirit will spread across Badgordo for the next few days. And with that rumor spreading, I might not be able to stay at any inn in this town. The deal with the Mithril Alloy is also out of the picture. That is as clear as day.

    I think that I should be grateful for such a deal toe with this timing from some other party. But if I ept, I might be biting onto it without giving it a proper thought. This timing seems very odd.

    Alright, let¡¯s decline. It¡¯s not like I can¡¯t make money if I don¡¯t use the Mithril Alloy. Let¡¯s not take any unnecessary risks.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    While thinking this, I took a nce at Yukari.

    When she looked at me, she had a somewhat sorely tempted face.

    Why is she tempted? The reason immediately came to mind. ¡°This time for sure! ¡± She was probably thinking that. She probably thinks the chance for her redemption hase. In other words, does that mean she hase up with something good?

    What should I do?

    ¡­¡­No, wait.

    Just like Yukari pointed out earlier, this is just me with my bad habit of pretending to be troubled. In reality, the answer has already been decided. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter¡¯. If so, then let¡¯s think positively.

    Yeah, it¡¯s okay even if this ends up in failure. That being the case, why don¡¯t I take this as an opportunity to help Yukari¡¯s mental state?

    ¡°Yukari, can I leave this to you? ¡°

    ¡°Leave it to me, Master.¡±

    Yukari tried to y it cool, but I noticed she couldn¡¯t hide her joy since her ears were twitching as she bowed to me, then she started the talk about the trading with Forest-san. She gives off the look of a talented secretary. Although, what she¡¯s doing now ispletely outside a secretary¡¯s job.

    And thus, Yukari and Forest-san talked for a while, polishing the finer details.

    ¡°Master. You will need to meet with the Earl once. When would that be good?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind if all the details on this matter are decided by you, Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Understood. I scheduled an appointment for as soon as possible.¡±

    After their conversation was over, Yukari came and asked me that question. And since I have no ns to meddle in it, I told her that she could decide everything on her own. In addition, I tried to ask her to do the appointment as soon as possible, but it seems she already understood it even without me saying it, as expected of her.

    And then, the meeting ended.

    Tomorrow, I will meet with the Earl who will be visiting Badgordo, and we¡¯ll have dinner. The morning of the following day, together with the Earl, we will move to themercial city of Le?ador by boat. We¡¯ll then have a meeting going over the details in the afternoon and a dinner with the Earl¡¯s family at night. Lastly, after meeting again on the morning of the following day, the contract will be signed in the afternoon.

    ¡­¡­Feels like super express. Well, it really helps me, but I wonder if the Earl is okay with that?

    ¡°Well then, you will be picked up tomorrow evening at the scheduled time.¡±

    After humbly saying ¡°I look forward to our next meeting¡± along with a beautiful bow, Forest-san left the room with a splendid bearing. A very polite and impable old man, I must say.

    ¡°A very easy person to talk to. That¡¯s the impression I got from the short talk, but I think they will be somewhat flexible.¡±

    Yukari said an unexpected thing.

    ¡°Is there any possibility this is a trap? ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t deny there is a possibility, but it is very small. He agreed immediately to the three-day schedule. Besides, the house steward was the one who came to greet you. It seems they really want to make this deal a sess.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    The house steward is the highest position among those who serve their lord. Therefore, in a diplomatic scenario, he¡¯s pretty much the most important person to meet. In addition, unless the Earl had a huge amount of free time or had already decided on it, it¡¯s impossible for someone of that rank to suddenly open up a three-day schedule. In other words, it can be understood that the other party really wants the deal of the Mithril Alloy to seed. The Earl must really want Mithril Alloy.

    ¡­¡­I see. It smells a bit suspicious, but it doesn¡¯t seem to be a trap. With this issue settled, I¡¯ll be able to focus on earning experience points. Then, I¡¯ll be one step closer to the World¡¯s Top (Mansion). However, Yukari will likely be quite busy.

    ¡°I already said it, but is it alright to leave all of this to you? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, please leave it to me. I¡¯ll arrange it so it turns out the way Master wants.¡±

    ¡°You sure are reliable. But that¡¯s not what I meant. Is it a burden to you?¡±

    ¡°A burden? ¡°

    Surprisingly, she doesn¡¯t seem to think so¡­¡­ Or does she? The changes in Yukari¡¯s expressions are so subtle that sometimes I have trouble reading them.

    ¡°In addition to cksmithing, and taking care of me and your secretary duty, you will be dealing with the trading¡­¡­If I were in your shoes, I¡¯d be overwhelmed.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m doing this because I want to. It¡¯s not a big deal. And from my point of view, I think it¡¯s several times more difficult to aim for the top of the world.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I wonder about that? ¡°

    I began to think about it a little, but the vectors were just too different to make aparison. But, if she puts it that way, I don¡¯t feel so bad.

    ¡°Additionally¡­¡­ unlike assassination, this is something worth doing.¡±

    While hanging her head, Yukari said this with upturned eyes. Then she continued.

    ¡°Besides, you promised Master, that you¡¯ll do something about that. That¡¯s why I won¡¯t look back at my dark past anymore, and while trusting you, Master, I¡¯ll only push forward.¡±

    Just a little, Yukari smiled.

    I was happy about her sincereness.

    She, who had nothing, came following me. I need to make my resolution too. Those thoughts were properly transmitted. So, if possible, I don¡¯t want to betray her expectations.

    Let¡¯s make her grow as soon as possible, but steadily, urately and most importantly, carefully. Then, step by step, let¡¯s go together towards the world¡¯s top. I believe that will be not just for my own sake, but also for her, and for everyone else.

    ¡°I have to be the world¡¯s top fast, right?¡±

    I said so while lightlyughing. Although the ¡°World¡¯s Top¡± part reminded me of something unpleasant.

    I wondered if Yukari noticed it too? She made a face of sympathy.

    Why so? That¡¯s because of a path that cannot be avoided if I want to be the top in the world.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bring it back out tomorrow morning, for the time being, just prepare yourself.¡±

    ¡°Understood¡­¡­ but, to be honest, I don¡¯t have much confidence in myself.¡±

    ¡°That feeling is mutual¡­¡­¡±

    Great Spirit King Angolmois¨D¨DA being able to be a powerful weapon in aiming for the top in the world. However, I wonder if I can open my heart with him (her?).

    We became a little depressed after thinking about what would happen tomorrow, and went to bed with that thought in our minds.

    The next day, after breakfast.

    Three people were gathered in my room.

    ¡°Well then, I¡¯ll summon it.¡±

    ¡°W-wait a moment. Give me a little more time to prepare my heart.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s a bit scary.¡±

    Silvia and Eko appeared to be a little apprehensive. Well, I don¡¯t me them. After all, they were made to crawl on the ground yesterday under that overwhelming power.

    The spirit shouldn¡¯t be able to go against me. That¡¯s why I somehow feel relieved, but the girls don¡¯t really understand that. And even though I exined it several times at breakfast, I still couldn¡¯t erase their anxiety.

    Still, there¡¯s one thing that bothers me. And that is, even if Angolmois won¡¯t go against me, it might still be hostile towards Silvia and the others. And even if I order it ¡°Don¡¯t be hostile towards them¡±, I¡¯m not certain it would follow thatmand. At least back in Mobius, it was not possible to give such amand. I wonder what will happen.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m good.¡±

    Silvia said while gripping the Bow of the zing Wolf. Does she mean to use force if an emergency happens?

    ¡°I¡¯m good too! ¡°

    Eko is quite easy to understand. If something happens, you n to protect yourself behind the Shellrock Shield, right? But, why are you hiding even before I summon it, with only your ears poking out behind the shield?

    ¡°I too don¡¯t mind.¡±

    ¡­¡­Yukari was also shrewdly hiding behind Eko¡¯s shield.

    ¡°Ahh! That¡¯s not fair! ¡°

    Silvia argued. Ah¡­¡­

    Whatever, let¡¯s summon it.

    ¡°Here it goes.¡±

    I recalled Angolmois using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    The summon formation was deployed at the center of the room. Unlike the huge circle that appeared the first summon, this was a small formation about two meters in diameter.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¨D¨DMy Second!¡¡What is the meaning of this!? ¡°

    Angolmois was angry as soon as it appeared. And by taking into ount that incredible appearance, that anger sure waspelling. Proof of that was the three girlspletely hiding behind the shield.

    ¡°Ahh, thanks foring out the normal way.¡±

    For the time being, I just thank it. It would¡¯ve been troublesome if a storm and that huge arm appeared in such a small room.

    ¡°¡­¡­It couldn¡¯t be helped, since I was asked toe out normally the next time.¡±

    It said while looking a bit displeased. Are you sulky?¡¡This might be a surprisingly honest guy.

    ¡°More than that, I would like an exnation. Why was I unsummoned right away?¡¡Weren¡¯t you in need of my great power? ¡°

    ¡°No, right now I don¡¯t really need it. However, eventually I will do so.¡±

    ¡°I see, got it. Eh?¡¡No, wait. That wasn¡¯t a proper answer.¡±

    ¡°That didn¡¯t work, huh?¡±

    ¡°Actually, my Second¡­¡­ isn¡¯t your treatment towards me a bit rude?¡¡I am the Great Spirit King, you know?¡¡The great king of spirits that reigns at the top of all spirits. ¡°

    ¡°So what? I am the number one in the world.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡¡So, my Second is such a remarkable character!?¡¡I see, I see, hahaha!¡¡As expected of my Lord, to have the spirit ruling over all spirits! ¡°

    Whoa, so easy to deal with. I wonder if this spirit would be the ideal target for those ¡°ore ore¡± phone scams?

    ¡°By the way. I was just wondering, are you a man?¡¡A woman?¡¡How old are you?¡¡How should I call you? ¡°

    ¡°I am the Great Spirit King. I have no gender. Nor do I have an age. No, woman or man, 1 year old or 10,000 years old, I don¡¯t mind either. My name is Angolmois. You can call me as you like. Angumois, Angol, I don¡¯t really care.¡±

    So, nothing really matters, huh?

    ¡°I see, got it. I¡¯ll call you Angolmois. Also, let me introduce you to my friends.¡±

    ¡°The friends of my Second!?¡¡The number one friends in the world, interesting.¡±

    Feeling a bit scared still, Silvia and Yukari came out from behind the shield. Eko was just listening while poking her head out the side of her shield.

    ¡°From the left, they are Yukari,Eko, and Silvia.¡±

    ¡°Hoo¡­¡­ I understand. Silvia is an expert archer. Yukari has a good arm for cksmithing. And Eko handles the shield. Truly, a very bnced team.¡±

    Ohh!¡¡¡­¡­Oh?

    ¡°Why do you understand that? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. But it¡¯s something that somehowes to me through you, my Second¡­¡­ eh? Oh, Ohhh!¡¡I see, I see! ¡°

    Is information being shared continuously?

    ¡°Angolmois. Who is the first emperor? ¡°

    For now, I tried to test it. But well, there¡¯s no way Angolmois would know¨D¨D

    ¡°Ohh, the First Emperor!? ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    This is bad¡­¡­

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡I understand, my Second. You want to say that I¡¯m a genius whenpared to the First Emperor!¡¡But I¡¯m still inferiorpared to my Second. No, inferior to the one who used to be called Seven, y¨D¨D¡±

    Unsummon!!

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Phew.¡±

    It somehow didn¡¯t end up in something serious.

    Seeing the three girls with question marks floating over their heads, I was probably just barely safe.

    After taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I used ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· again to call Angolmois.

    ¡°Don¡¯t unsummon me so suddenly!¡¡Were you that surprised!? ¡°

    He was angry again.

    While ignoring him, I desperately began to think ¡°Don¡¯t reveal that information about myself¡±.

    ¡°Uh¡­¡­Umu, umu. I got it.¡±

    It got through!

    ¡­¡­I see, so this sort of self-consciousness system can be used in such a way. What a shitty system.

    ¡°You too, try thinking of something.¡±

    ¡°£¨Can you hear me, my Second?£©¡°

    ¡°£¨I can hear you; this is amazing.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Hoo!¡¡This is a very pleasant feeling.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Yeah, I feel the same. I wonder what this is, this sense of togetherness.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Yes. A sense of togetherness.£©¡°

    Fumu, fumu fumu¡­¡­ Isn¡¯t this nice!?¡¡Way too good. With this, the range of tactics can be greatly expanded. Amunication system that didn¡¯t exist in Mobius, and Angolmois, the Great Spirit King, will be of great help on the road to be the world¡¯s top. I can feel the tension rising.

    In particr, Angolmois is the rarest of all spirits. In the spirit¡¯s evolution system, the final strength of a spirit is adjusted so as to not make a big difference between them; however, Angolmois has a characteristic that brings him a level above the others.

    And that is, his ¡ºLightning Attribute¡». A testament of the great spirit who controls the four major elements. In Mobius, it was said that the Lightning Attribute was non-elemental. And Angolmois can unleash an attribute attack that deviates from the absolute rule of corrtion of ¡¸Fire£¾Earth£¾Wind£¾Water£¾Fire¡¹ that exists between attributes. Specifically, it deviates in the way the attribute that has the advantage deals 1.25 times the damage, this one does 1.1 times the damage equally to all attributes. This is a huge advantage. And there is no attribute it is weaker than. You can even call it broken.

    Then.

    And probably because of this ¡°sense of togetherness¡±, I can now understand how to use Lightning Attribute Magic.

    ¨D¨DNo way.

    Taking a look at the ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills column, seems like I have learned ¡¶Lightning Attribute?First Form¡· all the way to ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fifth Form¡· at the 16th ss.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Ehh.

    I¡¯ve never heard of this!¡¡In Mobius, there was no Lightning Attribute Magic among the ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills a yer could learn. And I¡¯ve never heard of a yer owning Angolmois being able to use it.

    ¡°£¨Looks like I learned something really amazing!£©¡°

    ¡°£¨No wonder. Our affinity must be that good.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Affinity¡­¡­Affinity, huh?£©¡°

    I don¡¯t think this is an issue that can be exined with such simple words¡­¡­ Not that I really know the reason.

    Anyways, let¡¯s just rejoice.

    FUCK YEAAAAAAAH! ! ! !

    ¡°Haha, hahahaha! £¨We¡¯re going to get along just fine!£©¡°

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡Haahahahaha! £¨It is just as you said, my Second!£©¡°

    Angolmois and Iughed as we talked. Seems like you can do something like this.

    At one point I was worried about what would happen, but I¡¯m d I was lucky enough to draw Angolmois. Hopefully, as time goes by and they go along together, all three members of the team will rx.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¡­¡­Hey. What the heck is wrong with those two? ¡°

    ¡°Maybe something like telepathicmunication.¡±

    ¡°Telepathicmunication?¡¡I¡¯ve never heard of a spirit having such a skill before¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah, neither have I. Maybe because it¡¯s the Great Spirit King?¡¡Or maybe because it¡¯s Master we¡¯re talking about.¡±

    ¡°Either way, it¡¯s bothersome.¡±

    ¡°Is it he gone?¡¡Did he go back already? ¡°

    ¡°No, he¡¯s still there.¡±

    ¡°Uuuuuu¡­¡­¡±

    Thus, with the addition of a newrade, the daily life of team Firstest starts again.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Earll Lumberjack, you say! ? ¡°

    ¡°Llaaaa! ¡°

    A while after that.

    I was forced to unsummon Angolmois since he was starting to get hyped up, and after the room got quiet again, I spoke about the events ofst night, then Silvia turned into a broken record. Even though it¡¯s pretty funny to watch, I¡¯d love if she could stop since Eko imitates her.

    ¡°Do you know him, Silvia?¡±

    ¡°O-of course I don¡¯t!¡¡But speaking of the Lumberjack house, there¡¯s nobody who doesn¡¯t know about the ¡°Woodcutting Earl¡±. ¡°

    ¡°Woodcutting, Earl¡­¡­!? ¡°

    What¡¯s with those two totallyme names¡­¡­!

    ¡°Themercial city Le?ador was originally a thriving forestry town. It is reputed that thanks to the skill of the Lumberjack family, it became such a big city.¡±

    Yukari gave a supplementary exnation. I see, so that¡¯s where ¡°Woodcutting Earl¡± came from. Yeah¡­ Lame. The more I hear it, themer it is.

    ¡°But that¡¯s not all. At their roots, the Lumberjack house has been known for their martial arts. It is rumored that the present head of the family, Earl Barel, is a sharp and able person who¡¯s aplished in both literacy and martial arts. In addition, I heard that the son and daughter are quite the adventurers.¡±

    Eh!¡¡Are the eldest son and daughter of an Earl house adventurers? It¡¯s quite a liberal family.

    ¡°The older brother, Jerez Lumberjack seems to excel in swordsmanship. Seems like he¡¯s a good match with the First Prince, us Castall. And the sister, Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack, she is¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­She is? ¡°

    Yukari stopped her words almost as in suspense. Her expression was somehow painted with an unusual mischievous smile.

    Then, her mouth opened slowly.

    ¡°¨D¨DIt¡¯s just, I heard she is called a ¡°Genius Spirit Summoner¡±. Master.¡±

 Chapter 40: BET

    <h4>Chapter 40: BET</h4>

    ¡°A genius spirit user? ¡°

    The daughter of the Lumberjack family, Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack. ording to Yukari, she is a genius spirit user who controls a powerful spirit and has achieved adventurer rank A at the age of 16.

    Hearing that, I tried to make a guess. ¡¸Spirit user¡¹¨D¨D in other words she ¡¸attacks using spirits¡¹. But that would be impractical, that is, back at the time of Mobius.

    Certainly, it¡¯s useful to attack using the powerful spirits in the early stages of the game. However, as you approach the middle of the end game, the so-called ¡°It¡¯s faster to just punch them¡± phenomenon urs. Specifically, as a result of your stats rising and your various skills improving, the cost-performance of trading blows is more effective than using spirits. Therefore, in thete game, it¡¯s hard to think of spirits as useful other than to use them for ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. But well, that¡¯s just my opinion. I wonder how it would be in this world? But even so, for the 16-year-old daughter of a noble to be considered a genius and achieve adventurer rank A by using spirits¡­¡­ I have a good hunch.

    ¡°By the way, I think I still haven¡¯t heard your age, Yukari.¡±

    After I said while remembering, Yukari then continued.

    ¡°Uhmm, I¡¯m 19 years old. How about you two? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m 17.¡±

    ¡°I am 16 years old.¡±

    No way¡ª That¡¯s the kind of face Yukari made. Well, I understand why.

    ¡°You are the oldest.¡±

    ¡°Onee-chan! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­In dark elf theory, I¡¯m still young. I¡¯m about 16 years old.¡±

    Yukari¡¯s expression froze after hearing the word ¡°oldest¡±, which Silvia deliberately said. And what do you mean with dark elf theory? Is that some sort of mathematical form?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Wait, am I being relegated in this chat?

    Somehow, I¡¯m getting a bit lonely. You wannae, Angolmois¡­¡­?

    ¡°¨D¨DDid you call for me, my Second?¡±

    ¡°Just talk to me about something.¡±

    ¡°As you wish. Then, let me tell you about the time when I destroyed the earth spirit, Gnome¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°What are you saying!? ¡°

    What¡¯s with this guy¡­¡­ what is he saying!?

    ¡°Did you really destroy him? ¡°

    ¡°Indeed. It happened a certain midnight. He rebelled saying he would defeat me and would rece me as the ruler of the spirits.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I see.¡±

    So, there¡¯s that kind of strife in the spirit world too. Then, I guess he had no choice.

    ¡°And also, not only did he dare to stain my sleep-wear with soil, HE EVEN PUT A CRACK ON MY FAVORITE CUP!¡¡Please, forgive me.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?

    ¡°It was a disgrace for him to attack me on my bed, but he ignored it. He understood what he did when he attacked me. Therefore, I dropped the thunder of death onto Gnome, and turned him into charcoal in an instant! ¡°

    Angolmois thenughed with a ¡°Kakaka¡±. Wait, no, no, no¡­¡­.

    ¡°Was that okay? ¡°

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Ahh, don¡¯t worry about it. The position of next Great Spirit of Earth was left to his daughter.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant¡­¡­¡±

    Aren¡¯t this guy and I connected?¡¡Then why can¡¯t I understand the point of that story?

    As I was sighing at this loose sense of unity, a knock sounded at the door.

    ¡°Second-sama, and everyone in team Firstest, I¡¯vee to pick you up.¡±

    It was the steward of Earl Lumberjack¡¯s house, Forest-san.

    ¡°A carriage is parked downstairs, outside. If you are ready¨D¨D¡±

    I just nodded to avoid making the greeting too long and said we were ready to leave. It¡¯s great that he is polite, but the way he speaks just takes too long.

    ¡°£¨Angolmois, can you change into ¡®manner mode¡¯?¡¡You can, right?¡¡Do it.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨As you wish.£©¡°

    I instructed Angolmois based on the knowledge I obtained by the sense of togetherness.

    In the next moment, Angolmois went ¡¸Bzzzzt! ¡¹like an electrical discharge, and changed into red and ck lightning, entering my body.

    ¡¸£¨With this, others won¡¯t be able to see me.£©¡¹

    We can still talk, but he has no substance. I decided to call this state ¡®manner mode¡¯ from now on.

    ¡°Alright, you guys are ready, right?¡¡Let¡¯s go¡«.¡±

    Afterpleting the necessary preparations, we headed outside to where Forest-san was waiting for us.

    The moment my hand casually touched the doorknob to open it.

    ZZZZZZZT! !

    ¡°DAAAAAAAAAAAMN, IT HURTS! ¡°

    ¡°Se-Second-dono!?¡¡What¡¯s wrong!? ¡°

    It hurts!!¡¡The heck is this!?

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­Fumu. Maybe static electricity overflowing from me?¡¡Or maybe something simr.£©¡°

    T-this bastard, shit¡­¡­!¡¡This wasn¡¯t at the level of static!¡¡Fuck!

    ¡°£¨Hahaha, my bad!¡¡Forgive me, my Sec¨D¨D£©¡°

    Unsummon!

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I¡¯m sorry but, can someone else open the door?¡±

    ¡°Un-understood? ¡°

    Yukari did so while being puzzled.

    ¡°Later¡­¡­ I¡¯ll exin itter.¡±

    Dragging my still numb body, I went to the meeting with the Earl.

    The three girls were bitterlyughing inside the carriage when I told them what had happened. It shocked me that even Eko could make such a face. I vowed in my mind to never use ¡®manner mode¡¯ ever again.

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡Is that so?¡±

    We met with the Earl, then we had dinner.

    I looked at theplexion of Earl Barel Lumberjack, who was sitting in front of me, nodding with a broad grin.

    A good-natured man in his mid-forties, with an athletic body that isn¡¯t too thin nor too fat, and his demeanor was of someone well versed in martial arts, without any opening. Yet, there was a bright intellectual me burning in the back of his eyes. It was easy to see he was a man who had both brains and brawn.

    He was like a veteran warrior, or an old merchant; someone like me couldn¡¯t even reach the heels of such a splendid person.

    And this was a grand entertainment of guests.

    It even made me want to ask ¡®Do you really want the Mithril Alloy this bad?¡¯. Dinner was just this impressive.

    ¡°Was it to your liking?¡¡That is a stew made with mushrooms gathered from Le?ador, it¡¯s my children¡¯s favorite.¡±

    The Earl spoke without erasing the huge smile on his face. But I was starting to feel troubled about how to answer.

    I just answered with the appropriated faked smile. The Earl has been the only one doing the talking. Silvia and Yukari just said a couple words at the start and since then they haven¡¯t made any sound. Eko¡­ Well, Eko has just been eating non-stop since the beginning.

    ¡°Are all of you in the A-ranked team Firstest in your teens? My daughter, Ch¨¦rie is 16 years old. She¡¯s a bit of a stubborn tomboy, but I¡¯d appreciate if you could get along with her at tomorrow¡¯s dinner party.¡±

    Dinner ended without anyplication.

    After saying that, the Earl stood up from his seat and extended his hand for a handshake.

    And thus, he came to see us off, even though we will be meeting again tomorrow.

    Thinking about something that has been bugging me, I stopped my feet.

    ¡°Ohh, Second-dono. Is there something you need? ¡°

    Noticing my actions, the Earl called out to me.

    Perfect. He is way above me, yet he lowers himself. He has social status, honor, ability, and also pride. But then, why go this far?¡¡I just couldn¡¯t help but to wonder that.

    ¡°Lord Barel, why are you going this far for this deal? ¡°

    The Earl kept his smiling face, but his eyes narrowed. I noticed Yukari, who was standing next to me, stiffening in response.

    ¡°¡­¡­People getting wealthy, soldiers getting stronger; it¡¯s all for the country¡¯s sake. This is my belief.¡±

    Fumu. So, he¡¯s a ¡®Fukoku Kyouhei¡± type of guy. (TLN: Slogan of the Meiji era, basically a policy of increasing national prosperity and military power?)

    ¡°Solid, lightweight, longsting. The armor and arms industry of Mithril Alloy is greatly linked to the strengthening of the nation¡¯s power. And that has to be done in the center ofmerce of the Castall Kingdom, or in other words, in my city of Le?ador.¡±

    ¡°So, this is all for the country¡¯s sake? ¡°

    ¡°No. For the people, for the soldiers and for the country. My business must satisfy all three of them.¡±

    The Earl said not even one should be missing.

    ¡­¡­I admire his ¡®determination¡¯. Especially the point where he makes the distinction between people and soldiers. And the soldiers, in this case, might not be limited to soldiers under the kingdom, but also means ¡°people able to fight¡± such as adventurers.

    People and soldiers¨D¨Dbeginners and veterans, so to speak.

    Earl Barel Lumberjack, he has a good understanding of this world. That is, the difference between the weak and the strong.

    That being the case. I doubt he would try to double-cross a strong person such as myself.

    It seems good to bet on this deal.

    ¡°I see, I understand. I¡¯ll look forward to tomorrow¡¯s meeting.¡±

    ¡°Likewise!¡¡Thank you very much for your valuable time today.¡±

    Along with a smile, my party left.

    Thus, the schedule of the first day ended.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    The next day.

    After spending all morning being swayed by a carriage, we moved towards themercial city Le?ador.

    It seems like it was hard to get up early for some of us, since Silvia and Eko were happily huddled together as they slept.

    ¡°Yukari, what are your ns for the deal? ¡°

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that wholesaling continuously is what Master has envisioned. Therefore, I believe the wisest choice is to make short-term contracts, maybe worth a few billion CL of Mithril Alloy, and renew it every few months.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? By the way, how long would it take to earn 30 billion worth of Mithril Alloy? ¡°

    ¡°Please wait a minute.¡±

    After receiving that question, Yukari started calcting while looking at the notes I gave her.

    That was, the amount of Mithril dropped by the Proline Dungeon¡¯s boss, the Mithril Golem, times the five clears a day, then divide its market price by 30 billion.

    ¡°Approximately 20 days¡­¡­ Ehh.¡±

    ¡°Ehh.¡±

    Yukari was surprised by the answer at which she arrived. Obviously, I too was surprised.

    I mean, 30 billion CL in just three weeks. In other words, 10 billion CL a week, or about 1.4 billion CL per day.

    That is incredible. Is Mithril Alloy this valuable in this world whenpared to Mobius?

    ¡­¡­No, if I think about it properly, this is just normal. The probability that Mithril is dropped from the normal golems in the Proline Dungeon is about 6.25%. And that drop is about 1/20 of the size whenpared to the Mithril dropped by the Mithril Golem. And it¡¯s this rare because the dungeon hasn¡¯t been captured yet.

    ¡°Still, it¡¯s not normal.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No, what¡¯s not normal is doing five clears a day.¡±

    How on earth did youe up with five clears being normal¡ª- is what Yukari¡¯s cold eyes were screaming at me. I just answered her with an innocent smile. Seeing me, Yukari just sighed in response, and I must admit that her drooping ears were a little cute.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I don¡¯t think that the price of Mithril Alloy will copse.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. For a deal of 30 billion CL, I believe we can take two or three months toplete it.¡±

    Ahh, that¡¯s true. 30 billion in three weeks would be ¡®five clears a day¡¯. But it might be better to leave two days off each week, and sometimes stop at three clears and just rx in the afternoon.

    ¡°Understood. Then, at the meeting, move in that direction.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Please leave it to me.¡±

    I left the details of the meeting about the deal to Yukari¡¯s discretion. Because if it¡¯s me, then I would probably do it ¡®thoughtlessly¡¯ and it would turn into something outrageous. Silvia also said ¡°That way is better¡±, but that¡¯s something I don¡¯t want to be told by the likes of her.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­While having some random thoughts, I was dozing off in the boat.

    ¡°Master. I can see it.¡±

    Then, I was awakened by Yukari¡¯s voice.

    Looking outside using a small window, I could see the lively scenery of ¡ºLe?ador¡», argemercial city that flourished like the Kingdom¡¯s capital.

    The main street was filled with street stalls, and tides of people walked everywhere doing business amidst all the hustle and bustle.

    This city felt ¡®real¡¯, unlike the time of Mobius¨D¨D a testament that the people living here were alive.

    ¡°I hope this goes well.¡±

    Said Yukari.

    I just nodded with a ¡°Yeah¡± and moved my gaze towards the outside scenery.

    I felt like I was looking at a totally different world.

    ¡°?¡¡¡­¡­!¡¡We there!? ¡°

    ¡°Ughhu!? ¡°

    After waking up, Eko excitedly jumped around as she saw the scene outside. Then, shended on Silvia¡¯s stomach, giving her the worst wake up call.

    How peaceful. Truly peaceful.

    If possible, I¡¯d wish for these peaceful days to continue for a long time. While having those thoughts, I was resting my cheek on my hand and watching the girls.

    However, such a wish was shattered in the evening.

 Chapter 41: Different Positions

    <h4>Chapter 41: Different Positions</h4>

    The carriage arrived at arge mansion in the center of Le?ador.

    Soon after being ushered into a magnificent room, we were called to lunch. After being given such a grand reception, I just decided to enjoy it since I didn¡¯t have to worry about our lodging or meals.

    Lunch was done in a buffet style. The many dishes spreading over the dining table were all of high quality, therefore I was finding it hard to even take one out. ¡°To go to these lengths? ¡°, I muttered in awe, to which Yukari replied with the sound argument ¡°This is their way of showing their wealth.

    Silvia, who was restless, yet doing her best to show a calm front said ¡°What an incredible wee¡±. Even as the second daughter of a Knight House, she didn¡¯t seem to be used to this kind of ce, probably because she was at a very low rank at the Third Knight Order.

    On the other hand, Eko was devouring the food while literally dancing with joy. She both eats and sleeps properly, it¡¯s good to see her still going at her own pace no matter the ce.

    After lunch was over, it was finally time for the meeting.

    Yukari and I entered the meeting room and already inside were a total of about 20 middle-aged men, including the Earl and the house steward, Forest-san. It was quite a sight to see everyone sit down at the same time after we took our seats.

    And so, the meeting started.

    However, I just left everything to Yukari and simply nodded with a ¡°Fumu¡± every now and then to let them know I understood. But, as a matter of fact, I didn¡¯t understand a thing. What is a selling hedge?¡¡Are any people from insurancepanies here?¡¡Or rather, are there even suchpanies in this fantasy world?¡¡Apply magic to make the contract with me?¡¡I really don¡¯t understand a thing¡­¡­

    ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s take things in this direction.¡±

    ¡°Wow, this was a really meaningful meeting. Let¡¯s hope this finishes sessfully.¡±

    ¡°It was an honor for us to be able to attend. There is no problem with the contract as is, right?¡±

    ¡°Not at all, we¡¯re quite happy with its contents. I¡¯m looking forward to what¡¯s toe.¡±

    ¡°Thank you very much.¡±

    While wondering if it was alright to stop nodding at the conversations, the meeting ended in a good mood. I left the meeting room along with Yukari while saying ¡°Thank you, thank you¡±.

    Yukari was quietly delighted the talks proceeded as nned. In other words, ¡°A deal of 30 billion CL, spanning a period of two months¡±.

    ¡°Thank you. You did great! ¡°

    ¡°No. We¡¯re not done, since the contract hasn¡¯t been finished yet.¡±

    Huge amount of money ¡ªGET!¡¡I was so happy I stroked Yukari¡¯s head. And just like her usual self, the tips of her ears were tinted in red while she moved ahead speaking emotionlessly.

    ¡°After a short break, we¡¯ll have dinner with some important figures, including the Earl¡¯s family.¡±

    While trying to hide her fluster, she walked ahead of me.

    While Yukari was earnestly thinking about various subjects, I just followed after her.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    At the dinner party.

    A lot of people were gathered in the hall. They were probably the people who attended the meeting earlier and their families.

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡Second-kun!¡¡Hahahaha! ¡°

    Saying ¡°Let¡¯s put aside our social standing for tonight! ¡°, the Earl dered loudly while drinking a ss of wine in high spirits.

    Nodding in satisfaction, he, together with other people, were happily smiling as they continued to admire the four of us. Is he this happy because he¡¯ll get his hands on Mithril Alloy?

    In the end, I couldn¡¯t do anything aside from joining them in theirugh every time my name was called.

    ¡°Barel-sama, please take a rest over here.¡±

    Forest-san guided the Earl to a chair. Ah, this is probably amon urrence¡­¡­

    ¡°Oh. By the way, Silvia-san, aren¡¯t you Noir-san¡¯s daughter?¡±

    ¡°D-do you know father¡­¡­!? ¡°

    ¡°Of course, I¡¯ve been in his care.¡±

    ¡°I-i-i-it¡¯s an honor! ¡°

    Silvia then started to talk to the Earl. Seems like he and her father are acquainted.

    Yukari, not far from here, was having trouble speaking with some important men. Speaking of which, before the dinner party she said she would ¡°steal the know how¡±.

    Eko was surrounded and being fed by several maid onee-sans.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I feel left out. What should I do?

    It happened when I was thinking -let¡¯s go and mix in Eko¡¯s group.

    Suddenly, a voice sounded from behind me.

    ¡°You, will youe here for a minute? ¡°

    Looking back, there stood THE ssic ojou-sama, dressed in frilly clothes and with her hair in ringlet curls.

    Her height was smaller than 150 centimeters, and her chest was simrly petite. She had fluffy hair and herrge and bright eyes were slightly nted. She would¡¯ve been perfect if she was blonde, but unfortunately, her hair was chestnut colored.

    ¡°Ch¨¦rie-san? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡±

    The Earl¡¯s daughter, Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack. I remember her standing next to the Earl at the beginning of the dinner party, wearing a sulky face. I wasn¡¯t really paying attention since we were told at the start that the son Jerez would not be present. I see, so this is his sister.

    ¡°You, the great me came to speak to you so you should feel honored.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    She spoke in such a way so calmly. Is this girl serious?

    ¡°But even so, don¡¯t go getting some weird ideas! ¡°

    ¡°I am not.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that attitude!¡¡Disgusting! ¡°

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡±

    How should I handle this?

    ¡°Hmph. Come with me! ¡°

    To my surprise, after Ch¨¦rie said that, she turned her back to me and walked away.

    And since I didn¡¯t want to follow her, I just didn¡¯t.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨DHey, you!¡¡Don¡¯t stand there,e with me! ¡°

    After a minute or so, Ch¨¦rie, who had her face turned red, came back angry and after grabbing my hand, she forcefully pulled me along. Was she speaking along without noticing it all this time?¡¡Eh, isn¡¯t that kind of cute¡­¡­?

    And then, the destination to which I was taken was a lonely balcony. What¡¯s with this balcony, it¡¯srge enough to be able to y basketball on it. As expected of an Earl¡¯s house.

    ¡°You, you are a Spirit User, aren¡¯t you? ¡°

    As soon as we arrived, Ch¨¦rie immediately cut to the chase.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s a bit different.¡±

    ¡°Am I wrong!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Ah, is that so¡­¡­? ¡°

    Bewilderment. Did I tease her a bit too much?

    ¡°But I do employ a spirit.¡±

    ¡°I knew it, you¡¯re a Spirit User!¡¡What¡¯s wrong with you?! ¡°

    By her bodynguage, I could tell she was quite upset. I somehow thought, ¡®She doesn¡¯t seem to be a bad person¡¯.

    ¡°Listen closely!¡¡You don¡¯t go getting any weird ideas just because father likes you! ¡°

    ¡°I am not.¡±

    This is the second time I denied that in three minutes.

    ¡°Hey, that tone!¡¡I am an A Rank adventurer!¡¡Be more respectful! ¡°

    ¡°I am, too.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Isn¡¯t yours a group of four that¡¯s A?¡¡I got to A just by me alone!! ¡°

    ¡°Alone?¡¡Ah¡­¡­ hmm.¡±

    ¡­¡­Alone, I wonder how that is¡­¡­

    Doing things her own way, it must¡¯ve been hard.

    ¡°What¡¯s with that lukewarm gaze?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re having some trouble, so you want to talk to me?¡¡Right? ¡°

    ¡°S-shut up!¡¡I can take care of myself! ¡°

    ¡°Ouch!? ¡°

    She hit me!

    ¡°Why did you do that!? ¡°

    ¡°Because you don¡¯t seem to understand our different positions.¡±

    Ch¨¦rie¡¯s caustic tongue spewed those words while she made a face that indicated ¡°This is the natural oue¡±. I wonder what this girl wants to aplish. She¡¯s pissing me off¡­¡­

    ¡°Hey, for what purpose did you call me for?¡¡Was it to hit me? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s wrong, you sure are rude!¡¡It was just to let you know the difference in positions! ¡°

    ¡°The difference in positions? ¡°

    ¡°Exactly. The difference in positions! ¡°

    She looked up at me with a prideful smile. She appears to be full of confidence.

    ¡­¡­Ohh?¡¡I see, I see. I can somehow tell where this is going.

    ¡°Is that so? Then, how on earth are you nning to show me the difference in positions? ¡°

    ¡°Fufu, you¡¯ll know soon enough. Well then, I wonder how much longer thatposure of yours willst? ¡°

    Walking away a bit, Ch¨¦rie took some distance from me.

    ¡°Behold my spirit, it¡¯s alright if you cry! ¡°

    At the same time as she shouted those words, she activated ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    A big summoning circle materialized between me and Ch¨¦rie¨D¨D and from its center, a beautiful brown-skinned woman appeared, very simr to a dark elf.

    ¡°¨D¨DDid you call for me, Master?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right!¡¡Terra!¡¡Introduce yourself to this disgusting man! ¡± (TLN: This can be interpreted as ¡°introduce yourself¡± or something simr to ¡°kick his ass¡±)

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    The brown-skinned female spirit called Terra answered while performing a beautiful bow.

    ¡°I am Terra. I am also called Gnomides (Gnome Death). I¡¯m the great spirit of Earth.¡± (TLN: here, female gnomes are called gnomids (nomidesu) and gnome death is also written the same way (nomidesu).

    ¡°Thank you for your politeness. I¡¯m Second, my pleasure.¡±

    ¡°Second-san, I hope we get along.¡±

    We shook hands.

    ¡°Hey!¡¡I never said to get along with him!¡¡I told you to teach him a lesson! ¡°

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m very sorry, Master.¡±

    Terra-san somewhat gives off a fluffy feeling. Something like she¡¯s doing things at her own pace, to the point where it doesn¡¯t feel like she¡¯s apologizing, even though she¡¯s lowering her head. A mysterious fluffy feeling.

    But even so¡­¡­ it¡¯s quite funny, all things considered. Great spirits of earth are certainly quite rare. Her initial strength was probably about 32,000. Yeah, with this, the ¡°difference in positions¡± is going to be very clear.

    ¡°Hey, what are youughing at!?¡¡You too, why don¡¯t you hurry and take out your miserable spirit!?¡¡Well, I¡¯llugh since nothing thates out will be better than my Great Spirit of Earth!¡±

    I¡¯m the one who will beughing¡­¡­

    While imagining the incredible reaction Ch¨¦rie will have, I prepared to use ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·. And then.

    ¡°If you¡¯re going this far, then it can¡¯t be helped. Alright,¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Second-dono!¡¡Eko has copsed because she ate too much! ¡°

    ¡°What!? ¡°

    Silvia came and cut in between us.

    This is something important. I desperately ran with her.

    And at my back, ¡°Hey, wait a moment! ¡± those yells came flying, but I ran while ignoring them. I can be Ch¨¦rie¡¯s opponent some other time.

    ¡­¡­Thinking back on it.

    It was with this crazy encounter that my peaceful ns in the Proline Dungeon started to crack and crumble.

 Chapter 42: A Lonerâ€™s Scheme

    <h4>Chapter 42: A Loner¡¯s Scheme</h4>

    The female doctor of the Earl¡¯s House examined Eko and determined that, due to overeating, her gastrointestinal activity declined and caused abdominal bloating, and symptoms such as mild dyspnea were present.

    By following her instructions, she will quickly recover by resting in afortable posture.

    Eko said ¡°But it was a waste to leave the food there¡±, almost like she hasn¡¯t repented. Was it because it was that delicious? Or maybe some habit of cat-type demihumans? At any rate, it will be necessary for us to manage the amount of food she consumes. Eko bing fat isn¡¯t the same as a fat cat, since that will interfere with her main role.

    Along with a ¡°Thank goodness¡±, everyone felt relieved for now.

    After rxing in argemunal bath, simr to those of a public bathhouse, I spent the night in a room that was nothing short of those of a luxury hotel.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Next morning.

    Breakfast was served in a buffet style, and then the final meeting was held.

    ording to what Yukari said, acquiring such a volume of Mithril Alloy as to be enough to make a profit of over 30 billion CL will be tough. I¡¯m not sure about the details, but what I have to do is quite simple. And it would be a nice bonus to earn that much valuable experience while in the Proline Dungeon.

    After the meeting was over, we had lunch with some important people. What we were brought were heavy, high-quality bento boxes. Silvia and Eko seemed to also be eating the same high-ss lunch in another room at the mansion.

    After that, we signed the contract and the procedures were finished.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to seeing you again, and everyone in Firstest.¡±

    The Earl had a beaming face. It¡¯s great he¡¯s happy.

    After politely returning the greeting, we left the mansion.

    ¡°Will you go back to the town of Badgordo? ¡°

    As we prepared to leave, Forest-san called out to us. Apparently, he will be bringing us back. Furthermore, it seems he took care of our horses during our stay here. I can feel the fur of Seventh Tei¨­ was getting slightly better. They really left nothing to be desired.

    ¡°Hey, what should we do now? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm?¡¡What do you mean? ¡°

    ¡°Well, you know, about sightseeing Le?ador?¡±

    ¡°I leave it to Master¡¯s discretion.¡±

    ¡°Discretion! ¡± (TLN: just as a side note, Eko tends to repeat thest word someone said when she answers most of the time)

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with whichever you choose.¡±

    Seems like the girls aren¡¯t really in the mood for sightseeing. Then, I guess this was enough.

    ¡°Alright, then, let¡¯s go back¡­¡­ eh? ¡°

    ¡°Master? ¡°

    Then, it suddenly came to mind.

    A feeling like I¡¯ve forgotten something.

    I wonder what was it¡­¡­ hmm¡­¡­?

    ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter, let¡¯s go back home.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨DHey, wait a moment! ¡°

    ¡­¡­Ah.

    ¡°I will go together with you all too! ¡°

    Ipletely forgot it. I forgot about the stubborn tomboyish Earl¡¯s daughter that picked a fight with me.

    Forest-san, confused by her actions said ¡°Youngdy, that is¡­¡±, to which Ch¨¦rie just pushed through while saying ¡°You¡¯re annoying! ¡°, and got inside the carriage.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh, do I really need to ride with her?¡¡With this ¡®tsun tsun¡¯ girl?¡¡Half a day with her?

    ¡°This¡­¡­ I am very sorry.¡±

    Forest-san looked at me with quite the apologetic face. I guess this is a daily urrence for him¡­¡­

    ¡°Master, what is the meaning of this? ¡°

    And for some reason, Yukari-san looked very scary. What did I do to deserve this?

    ¡°¡­¡­For now, let¡¯s hop inside.¡±

    A huge sigh leaked from me. And after giving up, I too boarded the carriage to go back.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    An irritating man.

    Father fawningly lowered his head to him and gave him a grand wee.

    I heard he was an excellent Spirit User.

    Eh¡­ is that sooooo¡­. hmmmmm.

    I am the Earl¡¯s daughter, the youngest Spirit User ever. An A rank adventurer with a promising future. A super, super, super elite who uses an earth spirit. Even if you search the whole world, I¡¯m the only one with this title.

    Father, Mother, the guild, the nobles, themoners, everyone has alwaysplimented me.

    ¡­¡­But despite all that.

    I¡¯ve never been involved in any ¡°business¡± like that guy. I¡¯ve never been useful. I¡¯ve never been helpful to anyone. There¡¯s nothing resembling bustle nor liveliness around me.

    All there is arements like ¡°incredible¡±, just giving me praise. After that, people just leave as if to say I was neither beneficial nor harmful. Wrong, it¡¯s because of this personality of mine. Most likely, people are simply avoiding me.

    Yes, I admit it. It¡¯s jealousy. I am jealous of that man.

    That¡¯s why I called out to him. I figured that way I would understand the difference in our positions.

    Spirit User Second.

    If I had to use one phrase to describe him, it would be ¡°a strange person¡±.

    Always wearing an expression ofposure. He never humbled himself just because I was the Earl¡¯s daughter. Neither was he hesitant. He was actually quite rude, never taking me seriously.

    ¡­¡­Weird.

    I feel something was wrong with me.

    I should¡¯ve been jealous, I should¡¯ve been disgusted, but deep inside my heart I began to think such a foolish talk with him was ¡®ratherfortable¡¯.

    I wonder if friends are something like that.

    He not only received my ¡°harsh words¡±, he even took them as a ¡®tsukkomi¡¯. I never thought that would be so pleasant.

    I felt like I was looking at myself in a mirror, and started to think he might actually be really kind. If that¡¯s the case, then¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­No, nonono. I¡¯m being deceived.

    This is probably that, I¡¯m just being deceived by that kind mask.

    That calmness and his attitude, I¡¯m sure he¡¯s trying to make a fool out of me.

    I¡¯ll never acknowledge it. If I ept it, I lose. Yes, I¡¯ll make him acknowledge me.

    I¡¯ll make him understand. The difference in our positions, that is. Am I going to let him get ahead of himself just because he signed a contract with Father?

    I also have to make him respect me. He won¡¯t be able to oppose the genius, Ch¨¦rie-sama.

    And then, and then¡­¡­

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    The carriage which was supposed to be peaceful, became quite chaotic.

    First of all, it began with the quarrel of Yukari vs Ch¨¦rie, and Silvia getting sandwiched in between their bickering. I was just ying in a corner with Eko, but because I was a rted party, the brunt of the discussion eventually reached me. From there, it then became me vs Ch¨¦rie instead of Yukari, and she along with Silvia simply left the front line while saying ¡°I leave the rest to you¡±, and went to y with Eko. Isn¡¯t that unfair?

    From there, for two hours it was just me and Ch¨¦rie talking back and forth. When I tried to y the fool and leave that matter alone, Ch¨¦rie would butt in, ying the straight man. Therefore, making the arguing start up again, and then it became an eternal loop of ¡®boke¡¯ and ¡®tsukkomi¡¯, as if we were aedic duo.

    She was quite bothersome, but as time went by, it appeared to me that she was getting a bit happier, making me wonder if she was having fun. The way she tried to enjoy herself, while at the same timeining about something, made me think she was a bit simr to Maine.

    ¡°By the way, why did youe along with us? ¡°

    Since keeping up that idle talk was bing hard, I tried to change the topic to a different one.

    ¡°Hmph, a match, it¡¯s a match!¡¡You and me, I¡¯ll make clear which one of us is the best Spirit User! ¡°

    ¡°And how should we do it? A fist fight? ¡°

    ¡°Why should we do that!?¡¡For Spirit users, it¡¯s obvious it should be using spirits.¡±

    Strictly speaking, I¡¯m not a Spirit User.

    ¡°Well, whatever. The method? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmmm.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re thinking about it just now?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not!?¡¡There are so many ways, so I was just thinking which one to use! ¡°

    She¡¯s very easy to understand.

    ¡°Ah, That¡¯s right. Let¡¯s make it a match of earning Guild Contribution points! ¡°

    ¡°That ¡®that¡¯s right¡¯ sounded like you just came up with it.¡±

    ¡°How rude, I did not.¡±

    Let¡¯s go with this¡­¡­

    ¡°Or rather, how is a guild contribution points battle rted to using spirits? ¡°

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Since you¡¯re a Spirit User, you use the spirit to earn points, right? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Ohh, I see.¡±

    ¡°Haa¡­¡±

    Because of such a huge leeway, I could hear a sigh next to me. Tehe¡î

    The thing is, I can earn points without even using a spirit. As opposite to this girl.

    ¡°Okay, I understand. How long will the matchst? ¡°

    ¡°Just 1 day!¡¡Tomorrow¡­¡­ no, the one who earns more contribution points from sunrise to sunset of the day after tomorrow, wins!¡¡OK? ¡°

    ¡°OK.¡±

    Prepare yourself. I¡¯ll make that beautiful face of yours dumbfounded by the huge difference in score.

    While thinking that, I continued to talk to Ch¨¦rie while pitying her in my mind until we arrived at the town of Badgordo.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Night.

    After getting a room at our usual inn, I had dinner and returned to my room.

    Ch¨¦rie took the room next to mine, and at dinner she was also with us, which made it quite noisy.

    The tavern in the first floor of the inn is quite frequented by adventurers. And 90% of those were ¡°It¡¯s Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack! ¡°, ¡°It¡¯s that genius Spirit User! ¡°, ¡°Amazing, she really is here! ¡°, in excitement. Ch¨¦rie seems to be quite the celebrity in the adventurermunity. She really is incredible, or rather, ¡°incredibly bothersome! ¡± is what I¡¯d like to say. Everything she says and does is a bitedic.

    Well, little by little I¡¯m getting used to it. In fact, ying the fool and seeing her butt-in with a straightment is a bit fun. Silvia is just too serious, Yukari is way too cold, and Eko is simply cute, so a good tsukkomi cannot be expected for our team members. She might be an existence thatpensates for thatck, in a sense.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Ahh, that¡¯s right.¡±

    In the midst of my rxing, I recalled an existence that I hadpletely forgotten rted to Ch¨¦rie¡¯s match.

    So, as Iy in my bed, I summoned Angolmois.

    ¡°¨D¨DMy Second, hasn¡¯t it been too long? Don¡¯t you think so? ¡°

    He was angry again.

    Probably because I called him to talk on a whim, and after the ¡°BZZZT!¡± incident in ¡®manner mode¡¯ I sent him back for quite a while.

    Angolmois puffed his cheeks, bringing his face closer and closer.

    ¡­¡­It would be good to be approached like this by a beautiful girl, but this gives me a strange feeling.

    ¡°My bad. I¡¯ve been busy with a lot of things.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Like? Well, why don¡¯t you let me hear it?¡±

    I suppose he wants me to tell him about it. Does he want me going to the trouble of speaking about it with my own mouth instead of just sharing it using the ¡°sense of togetherness¡±?¡¡Or is he just harassing me, knowing that I had a terrible day today?

    While not understanding what he wanted, I exined everything to Angolmois.

    ¡°Ohh, so you met Gnomides.¡±

    ¡°Terra also used that name. She gave me a fluffy impression.¡±

    ¡°I imagine. She¡¯s somewhat unrestrained, that girl.¡±

    ¡°Speaking of which¡­¡­ you killed her father, didn¡¯t you?¡¡Is it okay for you to meet her? ¡°

    ¡°I did not kill him, I destroyed him.¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that so?¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, worry not. There is no problem. Rather, she was delighted to be able to be a Great Spirit.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Seriously? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m serious.¡±

    Terra-san, she might be a surprisingly cold spirit.

    ¡°I see, then, it should be okay to meet her.¡±

    ¡°Umu. And since we¡¯re there, let¡¯s give that Ch¨¦rie girl a surprise too.¡±

    Saying so, Angolmoisughed mischievously. He has an unexpected yful side, contrary to his vicious appearance.

    ¡°Then, do you want to go now?¡¡They are in the next room.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What? ¡°

    As soon as I said so, the look of Angolmois changed.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡°

    ¡°You said they are in the next room, right? Is it the left one? ¡°

    In the neighboring room to the left is Ch¨¦rie, and to the right are the three girls.

    ¡°There¡¯s no sign of people in the left room.¡±

    There¡¯s nobody in the room?

    Where did they go in the middle of the night?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?

    Wait. Something feels wrong.

    What did Ch¨¦rie say?¡¡A match of Guild Contribution Points, right? And as of when, she said the day after tomorrow.

    Why not tomorrow?

    In the first ce, what¡¯s the point of such a sloppy match she came up with in the moment?

    Why did Ch¨¦rie pick a fight with me?

    Why did shee following after us?

    Why does she want a match?

    ¡­¡­Can it be, her real purpose lies somewhere else?

    ¡°It¡¯s jealousy.¡±

    Angolmois pointed out.

    I see, jealousy. I can¡¯t deny that.

    Ch¨¦rie was jealous of me. I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s because of the Spirit User thing.

    And how would she get rid of that jealousy? I¡¯m sure as a result of her thinking about that, she decided to travel with me.

    Her purpose was to take away the meaning of my existence, or something like that.

    In other words, in Badgordo, that would be¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨Deh!¡¡Is she for real!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s no mistake.¡±

    ¡°Whoa, shi¡ªt!¡¡How far does she n to be a bother, that woman! ¡°

    I held my head.

    I have understood Ch¨¦rie¡¯s purpose.

    It¡¯s a reckless one. And an excessive one too.

    And if things go as they are, she will probably die.

    Ahh, ahhhhh, ahhhhh¡­¡­

    ¡°Daaaaamn!¡¡Seriously!¡¡Shit, how bothersome! ¡°

    After jumping down from the bed, in which I was gently weing sleepiness, I rushed out of the room at once.

    ¡°Fufu. You keep onining, yet you rush to help, my Second.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    I will capture the Proline Dungeon earlier than Second. That is my strategy.

    In that case, then.

    He will have to acknowledge me.

    He will have to raise his evaluation of me.

    Both Father and Mother, Second too, they all will look at me.

    Nobody will leave me anymore.

    That liveliness around Second will be mine.

    That way, I won¡¯t be lonely anymore.

    I will change.

    I will use that guy as a stepping stone, and I¡¯ll change.

    ¡°Terra, let¡¯s move on.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes, Master.¡±

    You¡¯re a good girl, Terra. Only you¡¯ve been by my side since I was a child.

    Together with me who was so cynical, high-handed and harsh with words.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hey, we¡¯re going to capture the dungeon.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°They will tell me ¡°join us¡±¡­¡­ as apanion. If that guy says that¡­¡­ will you follow me too? ¡°

    ¡°Yes¡«! ¡°

 Chapter 43: Spirit Possession

    <h4>Chapter 43: Spirit Possession</h4>

    The cold night breeze hitting my body slowly cooled me down.

    That stupid girl is probably still fighting her way among the golems. If that¡¯s the case, then I just need to get to her and, while pulling her by the cheek, force her toe back. The problem is, if she reaches the boss.

    The Proline Dungeon¡¯s boss, ¡ºMithril Golem¡», was famously known as the ¡°First timers¡¯ killer¡±.

    When you finally arrive at the boss¡¯ room, after going through tough and fierce battles against golems, standing there is a huge monster even bigger than the other golems. Everybody then thinks¨D¨D ¡°Oh, I guess physical attacks won¡¯t work on this guy either¡±.

    And that¡¯s a huge mistake. Physical attacks are certainly ineffective against the golems. It¡¯s a legitimate strategy to attack them with Attack Magic or overwhelmingly powerful physical attacks. But the Mithril Golem is different. Neither physical attacks nor Magic seem to be effective.

    yers who faced against the Mithril Golem for the first time without any information easily thought, ¡°Let¡¯s fight it using magic¡±, and try to overwhelm it firing arge amount of ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· magic. Afterwards, obviously no damage goes through. Then, the yer¡¯s target, the Mithril Golemes attacking. And, since they suffer from rigidity after using that much magic they can¡¯t move, and they have no choice but to die while being crushed by the boss.

    It¡¯s almost certain that you will be killed if the first thing you do is fire magic at the boss.

    Then, what should be done?

    Quite easy. Don¡¯t enter the Proline Dungeon until you get to a level where your physical attacks can damage the Mithril Golem.

    Now, the question is whether Ch¨¦rie has high physical attack power?

    The answer is, probably no. She¡¯s a Spirit User who fights truly inefficiently using a Spirit. She¡¯s more of a back-row type.

    Even if she defeats the golems in the dungeon, there¡¯s no way for her to defeat the Mithril Golem. That¡¯s an inevitable oue as long as she¡¯s a Spirit User.

    Just the other day, the ¡°Proline Capture Group¡± was organized by the Adventurers Guild, but it seems like it ended up in failure. The reason for that is obvious. That is, no adventurer whom physical attacks could damage the Mithril Golem was participating. And, probably the information that Magic attacks are ineffective against the Mithril Golem hasn¡¯t been spread out yet.

    Of course, Ch¨¦rie most likely doesn¡¯t know this information either.

    ¡­¡­It¡¯s a race against time. Every second counts.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up.¡±

    As soon as I reached the Proline Dungeon, I unmounted Seventh Tei¨­ and dashed.

    ¡°£¨Leave the guiding to me.£©¡°

    It seems that apparently Angolmois is able to follow the signs of Gnomides. Then that means, Ch¨¦rie is still alive.

    I continued to mow down golems using ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· while being guided in my mind. I moved forward focusing on speed and trying to minimize battles as much as possible in order to reach my target.

    ¡°Fu-hahaha, so such small fries can¡¯t even be your opponents!? ¡°

    Seeing the battles ending up too one-sidedly, Angolmois spoke in a good mood.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since Ist fought!¡¡This is exactly what you¡¯d call having your blood boiling! ¡°

    Laughing so loud, I can no longer see Angolmois as anything other than a real Demon King.

    ¡°I will probably have you workter, so prepare yourself.¡±

    ¡°Certainly! ¡°

    While thinking why I had toe so desperately for that woman in the middle of the night, I hurried ahead while destroying golems.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    I¡¯ve had no friends since I was little.

    I know the cause. My character.

    Nobody wants to get close to an Earl¡¯s daughter who says nothing but cruel things.

    It can¡¯t be helped. I got this personality because I am the Earl¡¯s daughter. Even if I could fix it, I didn¡¯t want to fix it.

    But, to tell the truth, I felt lonely.

    Being all by myself was, lonely. It felt natural to be that way while I was a child, then I realized I couldn¡¯t change my character.

    It was for such a shameful reason that I decided to learn using spirits.

    My one and only friend. To get an existence that absolutely will never leave me. That is, the Great Spirit of Earth, Terra.

    I used her to fill that loneliness.

    In hindsight, that was something that I should¡¯ve never done.

    If I couldn¡¯t stand the loneliness, it might¡¯ve been easier to reach for other people. But I had Terra. That¡¯s why I was able to endure it.

    I spent my childhood like that, my pride getting bigger, my character even more twisted, more stubborn and high-handed. Getting jealous of everything and everyone, with an unfiltered mouth, making an enemy out of everyone, and holing myself up in my own shell¡­¡­ every single day I hid myself in the world of me and Terra. It became a habit.

    It¡¯s toote to change now, I can no longer change this habit of mine.

    Maybe you could call me a ¡°person unfit for society¡± now, right?

    Well, I¡¯m a genius Spirit User and the Earl¡¯s daughter. I¡¯m also good-looking, and my adventurer¡¯s rank is A, so it no longer matters if I¡¯m a misfit. I can live by myself now. I¡¯ve been living alone so far.

    Yes, I¡¯ve been living alone.

    That¡¯s why¡­¡­ I never knew howfortable this was.

    How pleasant it was to talk to someone who could ept my crude character.

    This is nice.

    ¡­¡­This is nice!

    I¡¯ve always wanted a human friend!

    And I finally was able to meet one, for the first time in 16 years!

    I will absolutely, never give up!¡¡I¡¯ll leave him speechless!¡¡I¡¯ll make him acknowledge me!

    ¡°Terra!¡¡One moreing from the right! ¡°

    ¡°Yes, Master¡«.¡±

    Following my instructions, Terra fired Earth Attribute magic. The earth magic collides against the iing golem with a great force, shattering its body.

    As expected of my Terra. She¡¯s the strongest spirit.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s keep going¡­¡­ Oh? ¡°

    ¡°This is¡«¡­¡­¡±

    What came ahead of us was a huge, dome-shaped room.

    And at the center of it, a pale rock so huge that I had to look up.

    ¡°¨D¨DMaster!¡¡Step back! ¡°

    Terra shouted. I felt unable to move after hearing Terra¡¯s panicked voice for the first time.

    ¡°Wh-what is wrong¡­¡­!? ¡°

    The huge rock began to move, making a thunderous sound.

    The rock then grew about three times its size¨D¨D No, I realized IT was standing up.

    ¡°¡­¡­Go-golem¡­¡­!? ¡°

    A golem this big!?¡¡I¡¯ve never heard of it!?

    ¡°This is the boss, Master. We can¡¯t win!¡¡Let¡¯s run away! ¡°

    The boss.

    I see, this guy is the boss.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Terra, let¡¯s do this.¡±

    ¡°Master! ¡°

    If I beat this guy¡­¡­ I have a feeling that I will be able to change.

    You can scream at me and call me an idiot. But I¡¯ve already decided it.

    ¡°Terra!¡¡Earth Attribute?Fifth Form, prepare it! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Ggh¡­¡­! ¡°

    I forced Terra to obey. To use the strongest magic that I just learned recently. It¡¯s the strongest attack that I can do now.

    ¡°Shoot it!! ¡°

    Terra prepared to shoot the ¡¶Earth Attribute?Fifth Form¡· magic at the golem who apparently still hasn¡¯t noticed us yet.

    Immediately after, a magic array spread, amplifying the magic using the power of the great spirit, then¨D¨D the earth cracked. Arge chunk of rock, almost like a mountain, came out from the ground, and after wrapping itself above the huge golem, it waspressed. Then as if being drawn to it, the stone came raining down like a meteor. After receiving a hit from this, it doesn¡¯t matter how big that golem is!

    ¡°Did we do it!? ¡°

    I involuntarily cried while the dust danced in the air, blocking my view.

    I defeated the Proline Dungeon¡¯s Boss. I captured the Proline Dungeon before Second!¡¡With this, with this¡­¡­!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DEh? ¡°

    ¨D¨DOr so I thought.

    Coming out from the dust and dirt, the giant golem walked towards us.

    It was unharmed.

    Terra is suffering from after-magic rigidity. I ampletely defenseless.

    ¡­¡­So big. Incredibly so. I might not be as big as the arm of that rock.

    Ah.

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­¡­¡­!!! ¡°

    I was kicked. Probably.

    I can¡¯t breathe.

    I can¡¯t even hear.

    My body doesn¡¯t move.

    It hurts so much.

    ¡­¡­Eh? How many seconds have passed?

    What was I doing?

    I tried opening my eyes.

    A huge golem ising.

    ¡°¨D¨D!¡¡¨D¨D¨D¨D! ¡°

    Terra is shouting something.

    And then, she stood in front of me with a sorrowful face.

    She is¡­¡­ trying to protect me?

    It¡¯s impossible. I mean, isn¡¯t that thing unscathed?¡¡There¡¯s no way to win. What the heck is this?

    Ahh, I was so stupid. An incredible fool. A helpless idiot. The worst.

    ¡­¡­Oh, it seems I have no time to indulge myself in sentimentality.

    ¡°£¨Thank you.£©¡°

    I can¡¯t properly move my mouth, but¡­¡­ My thoughts were properly transmitted.

    Thank you for being together with this stupid and foolish good-for-nothing loner, and helping me.

    Bye bye, Terra

    ¡¶Un- summ¨D¨D

    ¡¶Un- summ¨D¨D

    ¡°¡¡¡°

    ¨D¨DI will never forget what happened in the next moment.

    Suddenly, a ¡°man with a seven-colored aura coiled around himself¡± appeared, and with a single sword, he caught the arm of the giant golem.

    And more astonishingly, he deflected the arm. He won against the huge golem with ¡°raw power¡±.

    Then, while leaving arge number of afterimages, he gave chase and approached the huge golem in an instant.

    That was ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·. I¡¯ve seen it being used by my elder brother, who is a first-ss swordsman. But that power is weird. It¡¯s too strong. Besides, why is he, who is a Spirit User, using ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿?¡¡And, what the heck is that ominous aura?

    Looking at the sight before my eyes, I forgot about my pain.

    ¡­¡­He¡¯s on a different level.

    I didn¡¯t think he was the same person.

    He alone was overwhelming the huge golem using only ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿.

    Is he a Rank A adventurer like me?¡¡What a joke.

    Genius Spirit User?¡¡Earl¡¯s daughter?¡¡¡­¡­So what?¡¡Is what I want to say.

    ¡°Master, it¡¯s alright now. We¡¯re saved.¡±

    With tears trailing down her face, Terra came to my side. Ahh, I wasn¡¯t able to send her back.

    I¡¯m sorry, Terra. To have such a master.

    ¡­¡­What did I want to aplish?

    Was I just letting it get to my head?

    Idiot. Idiot. I¡¯m really stupid¡­¡­

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Angolmois, let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Alright. My Second.¡±

    All the experience points I earned beating the enemies along the way were allocated to ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. Its rank became 11th ss. It¡¯s a rank at which it can barely be used.

    ¡°Ohh, that seems dangerous.¡±

    Said Angolmois. Is Ch¨¦rie going to die!?

    ¡°Let¡¯s use it here!¡¡Possession! ¡°

    ¡°Haha!¡¡As you wish! ¡°

    I used ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· in a ce still a bit away from the boss.

    Angolmois turned into a seven-colored light. And then, it blended into my body.

    ¡°¨D¨DWhoaa.¡±

    This is incredible.

    That¡¯s the only way I can describe it.

    An ¡®all-powerful¡¯ feeling that¡¯s beyond my imagination envelops me.

    With ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·at the 11th ss, the possession time is 120 seconds, and the reuse cooldown time is 440 seconds. The effect increases all status by 2.5 times.

    If it¡¯s at Grade 9, the possession time bes 310 seconds, the reuse cooldown time is 250 seconds and the status increased by a total of 4.5 times.

    ¡­¡­However, I think that in this world, the effects of ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·aren¡¯t only those. As a matter of fact, the time I¡¯ve spent thinking all of this has been less than a second. What¡¯s this? This is way too powerful. Is it because of Angolmois?

    Thus, in an instant I reached the boss¡¯ room. My movement speed is also incredible, it feels more than 2.5 times. Almost as if time had stopped.

    I found Ch¨¦rie by the wall. She was knocked down, her nose bleeding. Looking closely, she was crying, all the while Terra desperately called out her name.

    I can hear and see that, I see, so my sight and hearing is also much better.

    100 seconds remaining. I jumped in front of the Mithril Golem and took its rocky fist using ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·. The skill¡¯s effect is a ranged attack in all directions, but in fact, this is an omnidirectional skill. If you activate the skill matching the timing, the physical attackspete against each other, and the one with the highest attack power is the winner. And because Gold can hit in all directions, it¡¯s very suitable to use as a ¡®response¡¯.

    ¡°It can¡¯t be¨D¨D!? ¡°

    I can hear Terra¡¯s astonished voice from behind. Did she realize that this seven colored aura is Angolmois¡¯ possession?

    And thus, while fighting and thinking unnecessary things, the Mithril Golem gradually weakened.

    If your physical attacks have the necessary power, this boss is just a ¡°small fry¡± who has a monotonous attack pattern. Therefore, since the Proline Dungeon¡¯s Boss battle is such a rare irregrity, it can be said that this dungeon is quite suitable for clearing.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, it died. It took just 15 seconds to finish it.

    ¡°Fuu©`¡°

    After checking the surroundings, I released ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· along with a sigh. From here, Angolmois can¡¯t be summoned for another 440 seconds.

    Wow, it surely was overwhelming. It felt incredibly good. I might be addicted to it.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¨D¨DSecond-san. Thank you very much for what you¡¯ve done.¡±

    Immediately after, Terra-san was the first to speak.

    ¡°Seriously. What was that?¡¡You¡¯d be dead if I hadn¡¯t noticed it.¡±

    I unconsciously answered in a condescending tone. You might say it was because I was about to go to sleep, and ended uping to this ce instead.

    After hearing myints, Terra was apologizing with her head bowed. Or rather, even if Ch¨¦rie is unconscious, her spirit wasn¡¯t unsummoned. I see, this might be valuable information.

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right. Let¡¯s have her drink this.¡±

    As I suddenly remembered, I forced a high-grade potion into the mouth of the blood-covered, white-eyed idiot.

    Her consciousness didn¡¯t return, but at least her eyes look normal now, so I guess she¡¯ll be alright.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Erm, this child is actually a good child.¡±

    In a single breath, Terra-san began to tell me something as if exining.

    Since there was no reason to stop her, I decided to give her the appropriate response.

    ¡°Even if you say that, I already know she¡¯s not a bad person. She¡¯s just a bit more twisted, short-tempered, stupid and lonlier than most people.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡«¡­¡­It¡¯s as you say. Ever since she was little, this child never had any friends except for me.¡±

    ¡°I can tell.¡±

    ¡°I think that probably this child took interest in you, Second-san. However, since this was the first time for her ever, she didn¡¯t know what to do.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wait a minute. What does that mean?¡¡Did I do something to grab her attention? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah¡«. I think there were a lot of other things, but the main reason was that you were recognized by her parents¡«.¡±

    ¡°D-¡°

    ¡°D¡«? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯te at me with that!¡¡Properly supervise her!! ¡°

    ¡°Since I¡¯m a spirit¡«, I can¡¯t defy my master¡«.¡±

    Somehow, this girl is pissing me off!¡¡Seems like her true nature is finallying out¡­¡­!

    ¡°Sorry¡«!¡¡Don¡¯t hate this child¡«.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t hate her. I don¡¯t hate her, but¡­¡­¡±

    It¡¯s a pain in the ass. Nothing but a pain in the ass. And also, Terra, I think I hate you a little.

    ¡­¡­Ohh, that¡¯s right. Let¡¯s leave things here to mister great. ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    ¡°£¨Mmm, I see, I see. I understand the current situation.£©¡°

    As expected of Angolmois. He grasped the situation in an instant by making use of the sense of unity.

    ¡°¨D¨DIt¡¯s been a while, Gnomides.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hiii¡­¡­Ah.¡±

    The Great Spirit King suddenly appeared in front of her.

    An expression of ¡°fear¡± appeared on Terra¡¯s face, then she backed up a couple of steps.

    ¡­¡­Ohhhh?¡¡Where did that previous attitude go?

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡¡Why are you still s-tan-ding? ¡°

    The moment Angolmois said that, a reddish-ck lightning shed, and Terra¡¯s hands and feet were chained to the ground. She ended up in a dogeza/prostrating position.

    So much for a Great Spirit of Earth. Groveling down, prostrating on the ground while facing towards us. It was quite the spectacle.

    ¡°Wait a moment, that¡¯s wrong. This is not it.¡±

    ¡°Wrong?¡¡My bad.¡±

    As I pointed out suddenly, Angolmois¡¯ strange obedience magic was released, and Terra-san got up.

    Terra-san looked over here with eyes of astonishment.

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Ohh, I see. Then, I will answer the question directly.¡±

    At that point, as if Angolmois had guessed something by the sense of unity, he opened his mouth.

    ¡°The spirits and their masters are gradually united. The more they live together, the stronger it is. This gnome girl was surely dragged by the little girl there. Was it pity? Or maybe yearning? Still, that¡¯s only an excuse for her to not go against her master¡¯s order. That was just the result of both of them always running away and licking each other¡¯s wounds.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Terra-san was shaking, her eyes looking down.

    ¡°By yourck of action, you tried to kill your master. That¡¯s something you should never do. You have failed as a Great Spirit.¡±

    ¡°Wait. Isn¡¯t it easier to understand the master the closer spirits are? ¡°

    ¡°Nay. That¡¯s no reason to be unterally dragged. To be united is to understand each other. But this girl was too close to her master.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­That is, a bit pitiful.¡±

    It¡¯s impossible to not forget aboutmon sense when you want to help a sad child who doesn¡¯t have any friends, as they try to get along.

    ¡°Hmm?¡¡My Second, weren¡¯t you angry at this girl? ¡°

    ¡°No, after hearing this much, the sympathy I have for her is bigger.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? In that case, she¡¯s exonerated. Hahaha! ¡°

    Eh?

    ¡°Is that okay? ¡°

    ¡°I don¡¯t like to make a mountain out of a molehill. I haven¡¯t the slightest interest in the details of the rtionship each spirit has with their master. This time I was just teasing her.¡±

    Saying so, heughed. Wow, this guy has a terrible personality. And what was that? What age does he think we live in? (TLN: Angolmois used quite ¡®old¡¯ speech.)

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Should we go back?¡±

    While feeling appalled, I carried Ch¨¦rie and we left the Proline Dungeon.

    Somehow, I felt a part of her clothes were a bit ¡®damp¡¯. While throwing an oversized sigh, I called Silvia using the team chat and told her to be ready to take care of it.

    Seriously, I hope this girl is ready for what I have to say to her after she wakes up¡­¡­

 Chapter 44: Towards the Fourth Goal

    <h4>Chapter 44: Towards the Fourth Goal</h4>

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DHaa!? ¡°

    I suddenly woke up.

    Three secondster, I noticed I was at the inn in the town of Badgordo.

    What was I doing?

    ¡°Master¡«! ¡°

    Terra came and hugged me.

    Ahh, I see. I¡­¡­

    ¡°Terra¡­¡­I¡¯m sorry, it was my fault.¡±

    Ended up dragging her into it.

    Master and spirit are one in body and soul. Terra almost died for being tied to me, her foolish master. Even though she desperately tried to stop me, I didn¡¯t listen.

    When I entered the Proline Dungeon to capture it, it seemed like there was no better n than this. But in fact, that was just something I was telling myself. It was just a stupid idea that was impossible to achieve. I jumped at the reward, which seemed so close at hand, and almost ended up losing everything.

    ¡°Don¡¯t apologize, Master¡«. I too should¡¯ve given you better advice sooner¡­¡­¡±

    Terra said such a thing. Then, I jumped out of the bed unintentionally.

    ¡°That¡¯s wrong!¡¡You are not responsible for this!¡¡You did nothing wrong Terra; it was all because I rushed forward selfishly! ¡°

    While I was yelling so, I suddenly felt weird.

    Ehh, is my body lighter?¡¡Besides, this skirt is¡­¡­

    ¡°No, it¡¯s my fault because I knew already¡­¡­ That master liked Second-san.¡±

    ¡°Wh-wh-what are you saying!? ¡°

    Like!?¡¡Me!?¡¡That guy!?¡¡What kind of joke is that!!

    ¡°After all, the fact that your face has turned red is proof of that¡«.¡±

    ¡°Yo-you¡¯re wrong!¡¡That¡¯s impossible! ¡°

    ¡°Then, why were you that reckless?¡¡Why did you try to capture the Proline Dungeon?¡¡Why did youe to this town together with him? ¡°

    ¡°Th-that is.¡±

    I¡¯m troubled about how to answer. I wonder why is that¡­¡­ eh?¡¡Just why did I do something like that¡­¡­?

    ¡°¨D¨DThat¡¯s the kind of thing ¡®liking someone¡¯ is, Master.¡±

    Like?¡¡This is liking someone?

    Wanting him to acknowledge me, wanting him to look at me, and also, wanting to keep talking to him more and more, is that to ¡®like¡¯ someone?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­I see¡­¡­So this is love.

    ¡°I should have pointed that out earlier. That way, Master wouldn¡¯t have been so close to dying¡«¡­¡­ And also, you wouldn¡¯t have suffered such an embarrassment¡«¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­What?

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Wait a minute. Eh?¡¡Embarrassment? ¡°

    Certainly, I was saved by Second. Yeah, that was such a shame. But that wasn¡¯t such a huge embarrassment worthy of being mentioned. I¡¯ll apologize the next time I see him, then, if it¡¯s not a big inconvenience, it¡¯d be nice if maybe, hmm¡­¡­

    No, that¡¯s not it. It¡¯s not that I¡¯m thinking that, if things go well¡­¡­ I want to be friends with him.

    ¡­¡­But, oh my god, that looked super cool. The seven-colored aura, the instant movement, the incredible swordsmanship that can¡¯t bepared to the power of a spirit¡­ I¡¯m getting goosebumps just by remembering. Suddenly appearing when I was in a pinch and defeating that impossible enemy¡­¡­¡¡Who wouldn¡¯t fall for him?¡¡It¡¯s not unreasonable, right?

    Wait, no, no no!¡¡That¡¯s not it!

    ¡°A-ashamed of what¡­¡­? ¡°

    I had an incredibly bad premonition. This weird feeling I¡¯ve been having, could that be¡­¡­

    ¡°Second-san helped you, Master, who was knocked down and had your nose bleeding. You were instantly recovered after Second-san made you drink a potion, then, while carrying you, he brought you back here¡­¡­¡±

    So, he made me drink a potion, huh? I wonder if an intermediate recovery potion on the level of curing the state I was in wasn¡¯t that expensive. I think I should add a bit extra when paying him back. Well, but a bloody nose, huh? ¡­¡­I think that would be a bit embarrassing indeed. Oh my, and my clothes were also a bit dirty¨D¨D

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Ehh¡­¡­?¡¡Was I wearing this skirt?

    ¡°The truth is, Master, at that moment you wet yourself¡­¡­ fufufu! ¡°

    ¡°¡¡¡°

    D-did I hear wrong?

    ¡°¡­¡­Te-Terra?¡¡What did you say? ¡°

    ¡°You wet yourself¡«! ¡°

    F*ck!!!!!!!

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­ Uhmm, that, erm¡­¡­! ¡°

    Dawn. After waking up due to the violent knocking on my door, I opened it and found Ch¨¦rie with a red face and suspiciously fidgeting in front of my room.

    ¡°What? ¡°

    I asked, putting a bit of pressure with my eyes, because I was still sleepy. I felt somewhat cranky due to yesterday¡¯s matter.

    ¡°T-this¡­¡­! ¡°

    At that moment, she violently passed something to me. Looking closely, it looked like a letter.

    ¡°I¡¯m s-sorry!¡¡Also, thank you!¡¡Let¡¯s meet each other again!? ¡°

    With smokeing out of her head and her eyes half crying, Ch¨¦rie turned around and left, awkwardly walking like a tin doll. Her ringlet curls bounced up and down each time she took a step.

    ¡°Second-san, I will never forget this favor. Please convey that to the Great King too¡«.¡±

    After saying that with a smile, Terra-san bowed down, then followed after Ch¨¦rie.

    ¡­¡­What was this about?

    After the unexpected farewell, I decided to look through the letter.

    The letter was long, but the three main points written on it were: an apology, gratitude, and hope to meet again. Did youe to just go back already?¡¡Is what I would like to retort. It¡¯s somehow anticlimactic.

    After reading the letter from that prickly, not really honest with herself, loner girl, I decided to go back to bed.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Strategy meeting time.¡±

    ¡°Yaay! ¡°

    While having lunch, I decided to hold the usual meeting to decide on our future ns. The purpose of this meeting is not so much for strategic reasons, rather, this is because Eko loves them.

    Oh, speaking of which, it seems Ch¨¦rie has already returned to Le?ador. Also, the receptionist in the inn said Ch¨¦rie had left something for me, which turned out to be a bag full of gold coins. It was about 2 million CL. Apparently, this is to repay me for ¡®being in my care¡¯. Unexpectedly, she¡¯s a dutiful girl.

    Hmm¡­¡­ having the peace and quiet return after being with that noisy girl feels somewhat lonely. Well, she said we¡¯ll meet again, so we¡¯ll probably encounter each other in the future. I feel like I¡¯ll be able to endure that noisiness better now.

    Well, let¡¯s stop thinking about that and start the meeting.

    ¡°First, Silvia. I¡¯ll tell you the ns I have for you from now on.¡±

    ¡°Alright, here ites, I¡¯ve been waiting.¡±

    Silvia has been very motivated to train herself, proof of that is her remarkable growth. All the ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills she has already acquired are high Grade, her ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills of the first, second and third form are also high Grade, and her ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ is alsoing along great. If everything continues like this, she¡¯ll get them all at Grade 9 soon.

    By the way, in ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ there exist skills other than ¡¶Combine¡·, like ¡¶Synergy¡· and ¡¶Oveying Attack¡·. Both of them are attack skills that one must learn if they want to be a Magic Archer.

    ¡°Silvia, you will aim to get all your skills at Grade 9. And in addition, from Magic Archery you will learn Synergy and Oveying Attack. Also, if you have the leeway, you should learn Dragon Horse Archery and Dragon King Archery.¡±

    ¡°W-wait. Didn¡¯t you say Dragon Horse and Dragon King were both garbage skills, Second-dono? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. They aren¡¯t very convenient skills; their cost isrge and they require a lot of experience to learn. They¡¯re rubbish, to say the least. However, they have the firepower. And above all, you need to get all skills to Grade 9 in order to get the Title.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so it¡¯s to acquire the Title¡­¡­ IT¡¯S TO ACQUIRE THE TITLE!? ¡°

    Ahh, it¡¯s been a while since Ist saw that reaction.

    ¡°Who will!? ¡°

    ¡°You.¡±

    ¡°I WILL!? ¡°

    ¡°Ultimately, your goal is to get the Title for Archery.¡±

    ¡°The T-Title for Archery¡­¡­¡±

    Although, in time, I¡¯ll be the one to take it over.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s over. Next, Eko. Eko¡«.¡±

    ¡°Ye¡«s! ¡°

    Leaving the stunned Silvia aside, I then switched to Eko.

    ¡°Eko, your first priority will be to learn Dragon Horse Shieldmanship. Once you¡¯ve learned it, raise it to Grade 1, and then learn Healing Magic. After that, if you have the leeway, learn all the remaining Shieldmanship skills and aim for the Title.¡±

    ¡°Easy peasy! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m not sure what you mean, but I guess you understood.¡±

    I patted Eko¡¯s head and closed her mouth. Did this child really understand?

    ¡°Andstly, Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master.¡±

    When I called out Yukari¡¯s name, she just answered as if she was waiting for her turn and came closer without making a sound. She looks a bit scary though.

    ¡°Erm¡­¡­ Yukari, you will keep going as you are and get cksmith to Grade 9, then you¡¯ll learn Bestowal Magic and raise it to Grade 9.¡±

    ¡°Bestowal Magic, is it? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s a skill to give special effect to equipment. It¡¯ll be troublesome if you don¡¯t get it to Grade 9.¡±

    ¡°Troublesome¡­¡­¡±

    After hearing my words, Yukari¡¯s eyes shone fiercely and she said ¡°Understood, please leave it to me¡±. I think I¡¯m leaving too much work to Yukari, having her taking care of me, relying on her as a secretary, and on top of that her cksmith and Bestowal; but I guess it¡¯s alright if she¡¯s happy with this.

    ¡°By the way, what would be your ns, Master? ¡°

    She suddenly asked me. That¡¯s true, I guess I can tell them about my own ns.

    ¡°First, I¡¯ll master Dragon King Swordsmanship. Secondly, I¡¯ll raise Spirit Possession to the highest Grade. Third, I¡¯ll learn the Transform skill. And the fourth¡­¡­ Well, I¡¯ll tell you about it when it¡¯s time. Then, the fifth, I¡¯ll go visit Maine for the Fourth Form. Sixth, I¡¯ll acquire the Fifth Form. And seventh, I¡¯ll win the Title for Swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wait a minute. Aren¡¯t those too many things to do?¡±

    ¡°Transform? ¡°

    ¡°Your goals are too specific, it¡¯s even frightening¡­¡­¡±

    In order to learn the ¡¶Transform¡· skills, some really bothersome quests need to bepleted. However, if Ipare them with Dragon Horse and Dragon King, it¡¯s still somehow better.

    ¡¶Transform¡· is a buff skill simr to ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. You can temporarily raise your own stats significantly with it. But, by learning it, my arrangements will finally be ready. My preparations for the ¡®fourth goal¡¯.

    ¡°Well, we¡¯ll still be earning experience in the Proline Dungeon, and make a killing with the Mithril. For about two months starting now we¡¯ll be going back and forth to the Proline Dungeon and the inn, that¡¯s pretty much it.¡±

    After I said so, everyone nodded reliably.

    It already became clear to me that the poor Mithril Golem-kun could be hunted inrge amounts. But are they alright with that?

    ¡°Still, making a huge profit on the side really sounds like you, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°With things going like this, we¡¯ll be able to buy a mansion worth billions of CL without batting an eyelid. Like a ¡®byproduct¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s do our best©`!¡¡Ohh©`! ¡°

    With Eko as the catalyst, everyone replied with an ¡°Oh! ¡°, and thus, the meeting of Firstest came to an end.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Outside the inn. In a slightly distant location, there are two shadows silently observing the meeting of Second and the girls.

    The sixteen years-old, A-ranked adventurer, genius Spirit User and Earl¡¯s daughter, Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack along with her spirit.

    Ch¨¦rie stared intently at Second in the distance while slightly blushing. She was anxious about what had happened ¡®after¡¯ she delivered the letter. Thus, she had been observing Second since they started eating at the bar on the first floor for about an hour. In other words, this is what you would call a stalker.

    ¡°Master¡«, someone is approaching¡«.¡±

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    Her Great Spirit of Earth, Terra then informed her that someone wasing closer.

    ¡°¨D¨DHmm, ahh!¡¡You are Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack-sama, aren¡¯t you!? ¡°

    The person who showed up was a long-haired man, his hair red-brown colored. He went out of his way to try and lower his already high stature.

    ¡°What?¡¡Coming so rudely. Who are you? ¡°

    Ch¨¦rie stared at the man, spouting her usual harsh words. The man then took a step back and hurriedly lowered his head as he spoke.

    ¡°I¡¯m s-sorry!¡¡I¡¯m a huge fan of you, Ch¨¦rie-sama!¡¡I¡¯m called Seram!¡¡I¡¯m a 19-year-old C-ranked adventurer, and a Spirit User still in training! ¡°

    The man iming to be a Spirit User introduced himself as Seram. He had a servile attitude of deprecating himself and praising the opposite party, which would make people feel good.

    However, that didn¡¯t apply to Ch¨¦rie. She always sought for more than that, since for her, it was obvious that she was ¡®superior and the other party was obviously inferior¡¯. Prostrate, lick my shoes ¡ªbehavior such as that. But when that was actually done, she would say ¡°You make me feel sick! ¡°, throwing abuses at that person, and at that point, it was useless to keep talking to her.

    ¡°What a bother. So, what?¡¡I¡¯m busy right now, can¡¯t you see? ¡°

    As the stranger just kept getting in the way of her love (stalking), Ch¨¦rie¡¯s mood just worsened. She even began to think ¡°If the talk will be long, I think I¡¯ll just ignore him altogether¡±.

    ¡°I just wanted to see the Great Spirit of Earth-sama up close, no matter what!¡¡Wow, she¡¯s really amazing!¡¡Her aura ispletely different whenpared to Nymphe! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being a spirit without an aura, my Lord.¡±

    At some point, Seram had already called his spirit using Spirit Summoning. It was a spirit called Nymphe.

    On the other hand, Ch¨¦rie finally decided to ignore him. She sent a look towards Terra that implied ¡°I leave this to you¡±.

    ¡°Ohh, can it be that you¡¯re a wind¡«¡°

    ¡°Yes. I am the wind spirit, Nymphe. It¡¯s an honor to meet you, Gnomides-sama.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡Me too, I¡¯m happy to meet you.¡±

    Nymphe and Terra hit it off with each other, and the talk between spirits started.

    Seram tried to ask questions to Ch¨¦rie, but he waspletely ignored, and since he couldn¡¯t join the talk between the spirits, he just listened from the sides.

    ¡°¨D¨DSpeaking of which, I met the Great King yesterday night.¡±

    ¡°The G-Great King!? ¡°

    With Nymphe raising her voice in response to Terra¡¯s casual words, Seram saw the opportunity to join the conversation.

    ¡°Great King, is it!?¡¡Does that mean, the Great King of all Spirits!? ¡°

    He asked in a way that showed great interest.

    ¡°Yeah. The Great Spirit King Angolmois¡­¡­ the pinnacle of the Spirit World. He was rea¡«lly scary.¡±

    ¡°I have never seen him before. He¡¯s like something divine, way out of the reach of a lowly spirit like myself.¡±

    ¡°I-Is he such a great spirit!?¡¡Wh-wh-wh-where is he!? ¡°

    ¡°Second-san is the person he is under¡«. Look, over there¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°EEEHHH! ? ¡°

    The sudden cry was done by Ch¨¦rie.

    While seemingly disregarding it, it appears she was actually hearing the contents of the conversation.

    Great Spirit King Angolmois¨D¨D An existence above the Great Spirit of Earth, the very top of the Spirit World. Just when did you meet such a great existence, Terra? she wondered.¡¡And after thinking about it, she noticed the name of Second also came out.

    ¡°¡­¡­H-hey, Terra?¡¡Why didn¡¯t you tell me that?¡¡That Second had such, such an incredible spirit¡­¡­ such¡­¡­¡±

    Why on earth was I so proud of having the Great Spirit of Earth? ¡­¡­wondered the trembling Ch¨¦rie. She became blushed from ear to ear.

    But it was good that this was Second, the only person she acknowledged. If it was someone other than Second who had the Great Spirit King under hismand, then she might¡¯ve acted rashly due to jealousy.

    ¡°I forgot about it¡«.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not something you¡¯d forget!¡¡That¡¯s like, super important! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Master¡«.¡±

    ¡°Haa©`¡­¡­-riously. Well, it doesn¡¯t matter¡­¡­¡±

    A Spirit User who employs the Great Spirit King. Ch¨¦rie knows she¡¯s no opponent for that.

    Of course, she feels a little jealous. But, more than that, she feels happy. She also feels pleased that her rival and the only person she acknowledges is strong.

    ¡°¡­¡­Uh?¡¡By the way, where did that man with long hair go? ¡°

    ¡°That person is over there¡«.¡±

    ¡°Geh! ¡°

    Seram was walking along with Nymphe towards the bar on the first floor of the inn where Second was located. Probably, he was a spirit maniac. He probably wanted to take a look at a Great Spirit, like just now when he did so with Terra.

    ¡°Le-Le-Le-Let¡¯s run away, Terra! ¡°

    Ch¨¦rie then said ¡°Second will find me out! ¡°, and so, she decided to flee the town of Badgordo.

    ¡°Yes¡«, Master¡«.¡±

    Terra happily smiled as she chased after her.

 Chapter 45: A Dogâ€™s Misfortune

    <h4>Chapter 45: A Dog¡¯s Misfortune</h4>

    After the meeting I was about to leave the bar, then a long-haired man who gave me a bad feeling approached me.

    ¡°Are you Se-Second-sama!? ¡°

    What¡¯s with this guy? How does he know my name?

    ¡°Yes, I am.¡±

    ¡°I knew it!¡¡I¡¯m a Spirit User, my name is Seram!¡¡I spoke to Ch¨¦rie-sama, that¡¯s where I learned about you, Second-sama! ¡°

    Hee. An introduction from Ch¨¦rie.

    ¡°I am the spirit of wind, my name is Nymphe. I heard that you, Second-sama, were the master of the Great King-sama, thus, I came to pay my greetings as the wind spirit.¡±

    The spirit with a bit of old-fashioned Japanese came closer. A serious-looking female spirit with emerald-colored hair named Nymphe. If I remember correctly, this spirit had about 17,000 in strength.

    ¡°So, what do you want? ¡°

    ¡°That is, hmm¡­¡­ by all means, I would like to see the Great Spirit King¡­¡­¡±

    The long-haired man rubbed his hands together and tried to suck up to me.

    I really hate this type of person, the ones that just try to curry favor with you.

    ¨D¨DHmm?

    The team-limitedmunication.

    The sender is Yukari. The contents are¨D¨D¡±Is familiar with assassination, be wary¡±¡­¡­?

    ¡­¡­Oh, ehh?¡¡Does she mean this Seram guy?¡¡Is he familiar with assassination?¡¡Are you kidding me?

    ¡°How is it?¡¡As expected, is that a no? ¡°

    This Seram guy, with his long hair and frivolous grin, looks more like your usual tavern customer. No matter how I look at him, he doesn¡¯t look like an assassin at all. Rather, his appearance would even make you doubt he¡¯s a Spirit User, so I guess you can¡¯t judge a book by its cover. It might be part of his technique as an assassin in order to approach their target unnoticed. No, I bet that¡¯s what it is. It¡¯s so unbelievable I¡¯m sure that¡¯s what it is.

    Well, whatever. Let¡¯s suppose Seram is indeed an assassin. What is his purpose?

    While thinking about this, I noticed my mind went on a tangent.

    What does this guy gain by seeing Angolmois?¡¡I have absolutely no idea.

    ¡°Why do you want to see him that much? ¡°

    So, if I don¡¯t know, I just have to ask. That¡¯s my style. It doesn¡¯t matter that there¡¯s an assassin here.

    After having a look of puzzlement for a moment, Seram opened his mouth.

    ¡°He¡¯s the top of the Spirit World, the one who made the Great Spirit of Earth say he was a ¡°scary existence¡±.¡¡It¡¯s very natural as a Spirit User to want to see him no matter what!¡¡Such an opportunity onlyes once in a lifetime! ¡°

    That¡¯s indeed a convincing answer. If he was a true Spirit User.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Hmm.

    Ohh, I just came up with something good.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll show it to you.¡±

    ¡°Se-se-seriously!?¡¡Great! ¡°

    ncing at Yukari, she had an expression that said ¡°Is that okay? ¡°. It¡¯s alright.

    Using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·, I called for Angolmois.

    Then, without further ado.

    ¡°£¨Have him kneel.£©¡°

    I gave him instructions in my mind.

    ¡°£¨As you wish.£©¡°

    At the same time that Angolmois manifested, red lightning shed and tied Seram to the ground.

    ¡°Wh¡­¡­oaaa!¡¡W-what is this!? ¡°

    With his knees and head touching the ground, Seram was in a groveling posture. And for some reason Nymphe also got into the same position.

    ¡­¡­I wonder, how does this thing work? If he could use this skill in battle it would be pretty overpowered.

    ¡°£¨This is my privilege as the Great King, the lightning of domination. However, since it only applies to the spirits and their masters, its use is limited.£©¡°

    I see. Forcing the person who was already lowering their head to lower it even more, it sure would frighten them. How awful¡­¡­ as expected of Angolmois and his terrible personality.

    ¡°Great King-sama. It¡¯s my pleasure to meet you.¡±

    Said Nymphe, with her head still on the ground, while trembling slightly.

    She truly looks pitiful. It might be time to let them lift their faces.

    ¡°Lift your face.¡±

    How wonderful is this sense of unity. At the same time as I thought that, Angolmois told them to raise their faces.

    In addition to bewilderment and fear, Seram had an expression of excitement, and Nymphe had one of awe.

    ¡°Ohhhh. A-Amazing¡­¡­The Great Spirit King-sama¡­¡­! ¡°

    Opening his eyes wide, Seram eximed in admiration. That reaction alone was enough to really make me believe he wanted to get close to me to see Angolmois with his own eyes.

    However, there are two people who didn¡¯t miss his clever performance.

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­This man, there¡¯s something weird. I¡¯ll investigate through Nymphe. Wait for a moment, my Second.£©¡°

    ¡°Master. That man, he¡¯s looking for a chance to run away.¡±

    Those were Angolmois using telepathicmunication, and Yukari whispering to my ear.

    These two are really useful.

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DUuu! ¡°

    What is he thinking about?

    With a sudden electrical shock, Nymphe copsed on the spot.

    ¡°W-what is this!? ¡°

    Seram became impatient.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move, brat.¡±

    ¡°Guuuu!! ¡°

    Angolmois forced him down with the lightning of domination. The Great King does as the Great King wants.

    ¡°£¨I got it. This guy is a spy for the Marubell Empire. Seems like he was sniffing around the adventurers of the Castall Kingdom.£©¡°

    ¡°Hee! ¡°

    I involuntarily spoke out after hearing that nostalgic word.

    Marubell Empire¨D¨D Back in Mobius, it was famous as a ¡®military nation¡¯. Since it¡¯s a country that has a deep love for war, sooner orter it should be at war with the Castall Kingdom.

    And a person from such a ce called out to me.

    Is it for reconnaissance? Or maybe an invitation? I¡¯m not sure which one is it, but neither of those is a good reason.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s the meaning of this? ¡­¡­Did I do something rude to you¡­¡­? ¡°

    Seram began to show a frightened appearance. After asking Angolmois to raise his face, he was shaking a little, with tears in his eyes. If this is acting, then he¡¯s really good. As one would expect from that Empire, even its dogs are top notch.

    I don¡¯t really hate the Marubell Empire though. The way they deal head-on defeating the neighboring nations in a battle of power, without any cheap tricks, their meritocratic principles¡­ they are somewhat simr to what being the rank one in the world is.

    ¡­¡­Alright.

    Well then, let¡¯s make this man never forget the name of the world¡¯s top ever again, and then let him go back home.

    As I thought so, I opened my mouth while grinning.

    ¡°You¡¯ve had it hard, Empire¡¯s dog.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    It was great that I was able to observe the Spirit of Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack from up close.

    As expected of the one people call the Genius Spirit User. That Great Spirit of Earth will likely be quite troublesome. She may be a candidate for theing war.

    But well, I would rather not have someone with that character close. In the course of my investigation I¡¯ve noticed that it depends on the spirit, but most of the Spirit Users havepletely timid personalities; however, she was the pr opposite. If I hadn¡¯t been lucky enough to have the Great Spirit of Earth speak, the observation would have failed.

    Well, there¡¯s a big shot that should take precedent now.

    The Great Spirit King. I did not expect him to be here, nor that I would be able to meet him.

    Now that I¡¯ve found out that the top of the Spirit World serves someone from the enemy country, I can¡¯t afford to leave as is. I need to investigate how much of a threat he is, and return to consider how to respond to it.

    Luckily, that person was connected to Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack. I can¡¯t let this opportunity go to waste.

    ¡°Are you Se-Second-sama!? ¡°

    ying the fool, I approached.

    Second, the master of the Great Spirit King was an incredibly handsome man. He turned his sharp eyes towards me and calmly said ¡°Yes, I am¡±. Just that much was enough to make me realize this was not a man I could make light of. Even if he was meeting me for the first time, he didn¡¯t exchange useless words; his careful alertness was terrifying.

    At first nce he appeared to be full of openings, however, there¡¯s no way the man who¡¯s the master of the Great Spirit King would do such foolery in front of a stranger. He was probably testing me out. But my current purpose is not assassination, but investigation.

    After that, a couple of words were exchanged. He appeared to be quite cautious. But that doesn¡¯t matter, I must see the Great Spirit King no matter what. I desperately tried to suck up to him.

    ¡°Why do you want to see him that much? ¡°

    Such a question came out unexpectedly.

    Why do I want to see him?¡¡Didn¡¯t I already show him my spirit? He shouldn¡¯t be doubting me being a Spirit User at this point. Nevertheless, he still asked ¡®Why¡¯. I don¡¯t understand. Maybe my real identity has been found out?¡¡No, there¡¯s no way¡­¡­

    ¡°He¡¯s the top of the Spirit World, the one who made the Great Spirit of Earth say he was a ¡°scary existence¡±.¡¡It¡¯s very natural as a Spirit User to want to see him no matter what!¡¡Such an opportunity onlyes once in a lifetime! ¡°

    In my answer I stressed this was a matter of course.

    In just a moment. Second¡¯s facial expression disappeared suddenly.

    Did I make a mistake¡­¡­!?

    Was I too hasty? I knew it, he was testing me with that question!¡¡If so¡­¡­ no way. Did this man, after just a few seconds of meeting me face to face, find out that my main job isn¡¯t Spirit User?¡¡Impossible. Can a Spirit User really have such a discerning eye? However, the fact is, I¡¯m currently faced with such predicament¡­¡­

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll show it to you.¡±

    ¡­¡­What did he say?

    His answer was too unexpected. For once, I left aside my performance and was really happy. If this was Second¡¯s try at shaking me up, then I had already foolishly showed him the greatest gap.

    Still, as a result of that, I¡¯ll be able to see the Great Spirit King with my own eyes. If just this purpose alone can be fulfilled, I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll be forgiven for some of these failures. I¡¯ll even have something in my favor. All that¡¯s left is to have Nymphe remember it and bring the information back to the Empire¨D¨D

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Wh¡­¡­!? ¡°

    My body moved on its own!¡¡What¡¯s this!?

    Even Nymphe had her hands on the ground. To make even a spirit kneel!?¡¡That¡¯s impossible!

    ¡°Lift your face.¡±

    A clear, gender-neutral voice. I moved my now freed neck and looked in front of me.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Th-This is the Great Spirit King.

    I never heard anything about this. This is insane. It¡¯s terrible. Such a spirit, such a¡­¡­

    While I was absentmindedly thinking that, Nymphe fainted. In a single moment. Even I am not able to resist.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move, brat.¡±

    ¡°Guuu!! ¡°

    I struggled to get away but I couldn¡¯t even flinch. No use.

    Was the Great Spirit King an overwhelming existence to this extent?

    This must absolutely be informed. The presence of the Great Spirit King alone is enough to threaten the Empire.

    But in order to do that, I must get away from this ce at all costs.

    ¡°W-what¡¯s the meaning of this? ¡­¡­Did I do something rude to you¡­¡­? ¡°

    A realistic performance. Ever since I was born into this world, I have been trained day and night as an intelligence agent for the Marubell Empire. In the meritocratic Empire, I am first-ss. I can¡¯t let it end in this ce, in this ce¨D¨D!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°¨D¨DYou¡¯ve had it hard, Empire¡¯s dog.¡±

    Secondughed while saying that.

    My mind went ck, seeing my imminent bleak future.

    This man, from the very beginning he noticed¡­¡­!?

    WHY!?¡¡How did he do it!?¡¡That¡¯s impossible!

    Did the Great Spirit King do something?¡¡No, that can¡¯t be, he and Second never exchanged any words. If so, then was it that dark elf?¡¡Still, there¡¯s nothing that can reveal my identity as an imperial subject. No way, can he read my mind¡­¡­?¡¡Damn it, I don¡¯t know!

    ¡­¡­Ohh. Wait, there¡¯s one thing that I know.

    This is my loss at my own game. Second was always one or two moves ahead of me. That¡¯s all there is.

    This is as far as I go. But as ast act of resistance¨D¨D I¡¯ll beg.

    ¡°I give up¡­¡­ But before I die, if possible, I¡¯d like to write a letter to my family.¡±

    I need to report this information to the Empire at any cost. Even if that¡¯s thest thing I¡¯ll get to do.

    ¡°Huh?¡¡I¡¯ll just say it since it seems you¡¯ve misunderstood something but, I don¡¯t n on killing you.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­?

    What did he say?

    ¡°You¡¯re¡­¡­not going to kill me? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, you can go if you want. Or, would you like to follow us?¡¡Right now, we¡¯re going to capture the Proline Dungeon.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D¡±

    I was at a loss for words.

    This guy is insane¡­¡­!

    From the very beginning he knew I was from the Empire, and he purposely met with me face-to-face. Gave me free reign, he tested me, all just to enjoy himself.

    The only reason he could remain calm was because all this was just a ¡°game¡± for him!

    I¡¯m an agent from the Marubell Empire, you know!?¡¡For me this was a matter of life and death, you know!?¡¡Why did you see this as a ¡°game¡± knowing all that!?¡¡How can you remain with suchposure!?

    Frightening, terrifying, daunting¡­¡­!

    ¡°I¡¯ll ta-take your words dly.¡±

    My voice and my body were shaking. I can no longer keep up the act.

    ¡°Is that so? Then you should go home.¡±

    After being released from my restraints, I stood up with difficulty due to my enfeebled legs. I unsummoned the fainted Nymphe and slowly walked back. I was terrified of turning my back on this man. I¡¯m afraid if I do something suspicious, he will go back to his ¡°game¡±.

    ¡°Also, please tell your boss. The world¡¯s top man, Second, fancies the Marubell Empire.¡±

    Our boss¨D¨D That would be, the Emperor.

    What is the meaning of that?

    ¡°¡­¡­Understood. I¡¯ll be sure to tell him.¡±

    The world¡¯s top man, Second.

    I swore in my heart that I would never forget this monster, and immediately left the Castall Kingdom.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Was that alright? ¡°

    Immediately after Seram left, Yukari asked me. I think she means if it was alright to let him go.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°But to think he was a person from the Empire¡­¡­ it¡¯s incredible that you noticed that.¡±

    ¡°About that. Angolmois checked it out for me.¡±

    Iter learned that memories could be extracted from spirits that werepletely submissive. Furthermore, it seems possible to control enemy spirits if they are lower ss. Being the ruler of the spirit world sure is amazing¡ª I thought so again.

    ¡°But well, didn¡¯t I give him a great impression? ¡°

    ¡°Ehh? ¡°

    ¡°¡­Huh? ¡°

    The moment I said that I could see not only in the eyes of Yukari, but also in Silvia¡¯s that they thought ¡°Is this guy for real?¡± Huh?

    ¡°Ahh, didn¡¯t you know?¡¡I kind of like the Empire.¡±

    ¡°My Second. I like it too.¡±

    ¡°I know right. It¡¯s nice, the Empire.¡±

    ¡°Umu. It¡¯s good.¡±

    After they saw me agree with Angolmois, Yukari and Silvia¡¯s eyes changed into ¡°This guy is hopeless¡±.

    ¡°Master. I¡¯m not sure if you were aware, but just in case, that was ¡®looking down¡¯ too much.¡±

    ¡°Telling an Empire to pass a message to the Emperor telling him that you fancy the Empire is almost like picking a fight with him.¡±

    I was then scolded. I see, that¡¯s true indeed.

    ¡°I see. Well, it doesn¡¯t matter, let¡¯s go to the Proline Dungeon.¡±

    While patting Eko, who¡¯s been saying ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go¡±, since a while ago, I told her ¡°Sorry to keep you waiting¡±, and moved my feet towards the stable.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he switching gears too fast¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s something very Master-like.¡±

    Silvia¡¯s dismayed voice and Yukari¡¯s resigned one could be heard from behind. However, I liked how, even if they said that, they followed me along.

    For about two months from now we, team Firstest, will be collecting Mithril while earning experience inside the Proline Dungeon. And Ipletely forgot about what I said in my sh with the Empire.

    ¡­¡­But.

    In the not so distant future. The fact that this single encounter with Seram will cause such an unexpected situation, at this moment I had no way of knowing this.

 Chapter 45.5: Extra: Idle Talk - Rumors

    <h4>Chapter 45.5: Extra: Idle Talk ¨C Rumors</h4>

    The town of Badgordo. A conversation was happening between a group of adventurers in the guild¡¯s bar.

    ¡°Have you heard?¡¡About that rumor.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡What rumor? ¡±

    ¡°The ¡®Pro-kichi¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ahh!¡¡Sure, I¡¯ve heard it. That¡¯s some serious shit.¡±

    A tall man asked another muscr one while taking a bite.

    ¡°If I remember correctly, that man is the ¡®owner of the demon¡¯, right? ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not all. That group of four now holds the record for the fastest group to reach adventurer¡¯s rank A in the Kingdom, they captured the Proline Dungeon with their group alone, and got even acknowledged by ¡®that¡¯ Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack. It¡¯s even rumored that the three guilds, the adventurers¡¯, merchants¡¯ and cksmiths¡¯, are scared shitless and won¡¯t even mess with them.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that? That¡¯s impossible.¡±

    ¡°By the way, do you know where did the ¡®pro-kichi¡¯ came from? They¡¯re already monsters.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hmm, about the ¡®Pro-kichi¡¯, I actually don¡¯t know much about them. All I know if they¡¯ve captured the Proline Dungeon.¡±

    ¡°For real?¡¡Pro-kichi is for ¡®that¡¯. Proline ?Ki ¡ð gai.¡± (Proline Psychos)

    ¡°Why the heck is that?¡±

    ¡°It seems they do 5 full clear every day.¡±

    ¡°Whoaa, that¡¯s crazy!¡¡There¡¯s something wrong with their head¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°How many adventurers would try to imitate them?¡±

    ¡°Only idiots would. As if it was that easy to make money.¡±

    ¡°Even if we go to a lower-ss dungeon, my group can¡¯t help but to feel anxious each and every time, to do that many clears in an intermediate ss one¡­¡­ it would surely wear you out.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s for sure.¡±

    Theyughed. These two were skilled B-ranked adventurers, who will soon reach A rank.

    ¡°I knew there were people like that somewhere. People on a totally different dimension.¡±

    ¡°Will they aim at the Title Championship? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. The four Pro-kichi will be on that stage in the near future.¡±

    ¡°What!? No way!¡¡I¡¯ve been there three times to see it, but that¡¯s not really an easy thing.¡±

    ¡°Ah, that reminds me, you¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Huh? ¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a fan of that cutie-chan!¡¡You know, the Elf-ojouchan of the bow, what was her name¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°Shut it!¡¡You¡¯re wrong!¡¡I simply like to see the peak of archery.¡±

    ¡°Idiot, you¡¯re very obvious!¡¡You horny bastard! ¡±

    ¡°Like I said, you¡¯re wrong! ¡±

    Going from drinking to arguing, the men¡¯s night continued¡­¡­

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Wee home, Ojou-sama.¡±

    The mansion of Earl Lumberjack.

    The family steward, Forest came to wee Ch¨¦rie who had just returned from Badgordo.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving again soon.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Understood.¡±

    She just told him ¡°There was nothing wrong, so just leave me alone¡± to drive him off and began to prepare herself.

    Preparation for what? you might ask¨D¨D That is, preparations for dungeon capture.

    After being involved with Seram, she was determined to leave the town that same day, but actually, she ended up staying in Badgordo for several days after that.

    Just what on earth would she do that?¡¡Needless to say, it was for ¡®stalking¡¯.

    She was analyzing. Everything about Second.

    And today, she got her answer.

    ¡°The things I¡¯m missing are knowledge, practice and experience.¡±

    What did Second have that she didn¡¯t? From the shadows, she thought up what elements she could use to catch up to him.

    ¡°However¡«, it¡¯s dangerous¡«.¡±

    Terra called out to her master in worry, as she steadily prepared for the dungeon capture.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯smon for it to be dangerous. I noticed it while watching him. But where the danger lies, so to speak, is in the ¡®sin of ignorance¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ignorance, is it¡«? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll cover all possible crises inside the dungeon, and hammer it into my head as knowledge. Create a solution for each one of them, and make my body learn it by doing it over and over again. With that, a thorough risk management is possible. That¡¯s what I can so against that.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Is such a thing possible¡«? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not about can and can¡¯t, since that person is able to do it, I have to do it too! ¡±

    After finishing her preparations, Ch¨¦rie left the house.

    Her destination was the Adventurers Guild in themercial city of Le?ador.

    When Ch¨¦rie entered, the adventurers abruptly got noisy in excitement. Ch¨¦rie was well-known in Badgordo, but here in her home town of Le?ador, she was a celebrity.

    ¡°Hmph, this doesn¡¯t feel so bad.¡±

    ¡°Ufufufu¡«.¡±

    Ch¨¦rie muttered. As she heard that, Terra smiled with joy as she felt the ¡®change¡¯ in her master.

    Before she would say ¡°Shut up, you¡¯re noisy! ¡°, at the hustle and bustle of the adventurers. Now, she didn¡¯t care that much and just quietly spoke. Terra thought that now that she had been close to an overwhelming existence, her had gotten less stressed and calmer.

    ¡°Hey, you. I¡¯d like detailed information about the Ngultrum Dungeon, could you get me a knowledgeable adventurer? ¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes!¡¡Could you just give me a bit of time!? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Then, do you think by tomorrow morning is enough? ¡±

    ¡°Certainly! ¡±

    After speaking with the receptionist, Ch¨¦rie took a room at a nearby inn.

    It wasn¡¯t a particrly luxurious room. Just an ordinary room with a single bed, a desk and a chair.

    And on the desk was a map depicting the structure of the lower-ss dungeon, ¡ºNgultrum¡»that she had gotten from somewhere. She stared at it while thinking and making a troubled face.

    ¡°Ufu, ufufufu.¡±

    Terra got more and more pleased, catching a glimpse of the changes in her master.

    ¡°What, Terra? You¡¯re creepy.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing¡«. Master, you chose a lower-ss dungeon¡«. Decided to gather information from adventurers¡«. Moreover, you even chose your own room¡«. I¡¯m just too happy, I can¡¯t help it¡«! ¡±

    ¡°S-shut up!¡¡And what¡¯s wrong with that!? ¡±

    ¡°No, nothing¡«. Please keep at it¡«.¡±

    Going to a dungeon by her own means, relying on adventurers, staying at an inn without returning to the mansion. It was a parade of things that would never have happened until now.

    Yes, for example¨D¨D¡±There¡¯s no point in going to a lower-ss dungeon! ¡°, ¡°It¡¯s humiliating to rely on those small fries calling themselves adventurers! ¡°, ¡°Are you really going to make me wait?¡¡Call that person right now! ¡°, ¡°Why would I want to stay in such a cheap inn!? ¡± ¨D¨D those were her responses up until now.

    She had changed so much in this short period of time.

    She was that desperate. So desperate that she would throw away her much precious pride, in order to catch up with Second.

    Then. Once she threw away her pride, she realized that it was actually pretty trivial.

    She had a huge growth. And for Terra, who had been with her since she was young, watching her grow, and was now like a sister, there was no way she wouldn¡¯t be happy.

    ¡°Ufufufu¡«.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh, whatever, do as you like¡­¡­¡±

    Terra smiled seeing Ch¨¦rie give up.

    And thus, the curtain of the dungeon capture life of this pair had risen.

    After that, what happened to them? That is a story for another time. However, there¡¯s one thing that can be said, the two of them grew considerably.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Commercial city Le?ador A conversation was happening between a group of adventurers in the guild¡¯s bar.

    ¡°Have you heard?¡¡About that rumor.¡±

    ¡°Which rumor?¡¡There¡¯s a lot going on.¡±

    ¡± ¡®Guruen¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ahh!¡¡Yes, yes. About Ch¨¦rie-sama.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, about Ch¨¦rie-sama. That¡¯s amazing! ¡±

    ¡°I was told that from about two week ago she had been doing one clear every day, but I heard a rumor that today it became three clears in a day.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. She¡¯s young, cute, a genius, a Spirit User and the daughter of the Earl, she¡¯s truly the Ngultrum Angel! (Gurutamu Enjel = Guruen)¡¡She¡¯s already unbeatable! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh¡«, now that I remember, you¡­¡±

    ¡°No, you¡¯re wrong. It¡¯s not like I was following her. I was just evaluating her skills as a Spirit User¡­¡­Eh?¡¡Or rather, isn¡¯t your information too detailed? ¡±

    ¡°Ehh!?¡¡N-No, hey look, I¡¯m just interested in using spirits. ¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡¡You¡¯re a swordsman! ¡±

    ¡°You too, aren¡¯t you an axe wielder!? ¡±

    ¡°Shut your trap!¡¡What¡¯s wrong with following her!? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so you admit it?¡¡You followed her?¡¡You stalker bastard! ¡±

    ¡°Eh!¡¡Didn¡¯t you do the same!? ¡±

    ¡°No, if I had to choose, I¡¯m a fan of Terra! ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s equally bad! ¡±

    ¡­¡­And the men¡¯s night continued.

 Chapter 46: Dragon Horse and Dragon King

    <h4>Chapter 46: Dragon Horse and Dragon King</h4>

    Episode 5: The Darkness Wolf Arc

    We¡¯ve continued to clear the Proline Dungeon for a little over a month.

    We¡¯ve already collected all the necessary mithril.

    It was done with considerable leeway, so this is the result. I can¡¯t help but to say it was easy.

    The experience we umted was so much too.

    I got the most, still, Silvia and Eko have almost raised their existing skills to Grade 9.

    Yukari has also raised ¡¶Manufacture¡· and ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡· up to Grade 9. ¡¶Manufacture¡· is a skill that can be called a synonymous of cksmith, used to make equipment out of materials. Also, for Bestowal, once Yukari¡¯s ¡¶Disassembly¡·skill has gone to a higher rank, I¡¯ll start to carefully consider it. Manufacture, Bestowal and Disassembly, you¡¯re not able to properly dabble in Bestowal without having these three. That wasmon sense in my previous life.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Well then.

    Since we¡¯vee this far and we¡¯re free now, this is a good opportunity. Therefore, I finally decided to let them know what¡¯s next.

    ¡°Since we have the chance, let¡¯s learn the most we can.¡±

    After I told the group, Eko and Silvia nodded with a sense of tension.

    Learn the most we can¨D¨DThat means, using the skills learned up until now, we¡¯ll now be learning Dragon Horse and Dragon King.

    For Silvia, that would be ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·. And in the case of Eko, ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Shieldmanship¡·. And for me, in addition to ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·, there¡¯s also ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·.

    However, since it¡¯s troublesome to rank them all the way up, for the moment I¡¯ll just settle for learning them and stop at the 16th ss. But I¡¯ll raise ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· all the way up since that is a practical skill.

    ¡°Tell me, Second-dono. What is the method of acquiring them? ¡°

    Silvia asked that question with an excited face. Those are the only ¡¾Archery¡¿skills she has left to learn, so she¡¯s really enthusiastic.

    ¡°Firstly, I¡¯ll exin about Dragon Horse Archery. To put it simply, you just have to defeat a dragon.¡±

    ¡°D-D-D-DRA¡­¡­!? ¡°

    Nice reaction. However, since the talk won¡¯t advance like this, I just continued speaking.

    ¡°What¡¯s important is how you defeat it. In the case of Dragon Horse Archery, thest blow has to be done using Bishop Archery. Until then, you need to attack using each and every archery skill, from Soldier to Rook, at least once.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Master. Is such a thoughtless action even possible while fighting a dragon? ¡°

    Yukari asked a naive question. But it was expected.

    ¡°Ahh, once you know how to do it, it¡¯s easy. Besides, this alone isn¡¯t enough to learn Dragon Horse Archery.¡±

    ¡°WHAT!?¡¡There¡¯s still more!? ¡°

    Silvia looked at the sky as if asking for a break. She didn¡¯t think there was more to the Dragon Horse exnation.

    ¡°If you do what I say against five different dragons, you¡¯ll learn it.¡±

    ¡°¡¡¡°

    You could see the shock on her face, and even almost hear it. Not only Silvia, but the tension had also spread to Yukari and Eko.

    Well, it¡¯s bothersome. In Mobius, there isn¡¯t just one kind of dragon. From beginning to end, there are more than 20 varieties. But if we find five of the weaker varieties and meet the condition that way, it won¡¯t be that much trouble. When you think about it, Dragon King is a bit better to get.

    ¡°In the case of Dragon King Archery, all you need to do is kill 10 dragons of any type using just Rook Archery. Well, that way is easier.¡±

    ¡°TH-TH-TH-TH-THERE¡¯S NO WAY THAT¡¯S EASIER!! ¡°

    Silvia yelled. She wondered, ¡°Isn¡¯t this just a dream!? ¡°, then she continued, ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m sure I¡¯m just unconscious¡­¡­¡± and held her head in her hands. I might have broken her spirit a bit too much. Oops.

    ¡°Oh, Swordsmanship has the same conditions. In other words, you and I will be hunting dragons for a while, Silvia. I¡¯ll help you, so it¡¯s okay, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    As a response to my follow up, Silvia said ¡°Re-Really? ¡°, then she raised her face, looked at me and asked ¡°You¡¯ll not just throw me into the dragon¡¯s nest, right? ¡°, in doubt. What does she think I am? There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll do that (g).

    ¡°And me?¡¡And me? ¡°

    ¡°Your case is a bit special, Eko. For Dragon Horse Shieldmanship, it¡¯s enough to have protected a team member with Soldier Shieldmanship ¡« Rook Shieldmanship at least once, who kills the dragon. And do that with 5 different dragons. Dragon King Shieldmanship, however, is to consecutively parry a dragon¡¯s attack using Rook Shieldmanship 100 times. It¡¯s a bit difficult, but I¡¯ll show you how.¡±

    ¡°Got it©`!¡¡I¡¯ll do my best©`! ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do our best.¡±

    Eko was full of energy, and okay with the challenge.

    ¡°And while we¡¯re out dragon hunting, can I ask you to take care of things regarding the Earl, Yukari? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. Please leave that to me, Master.¡±

    Yukari was as expressionless as ever, but she had this slightly triumphant look. I¡¯m a bit happy that I can now somehow read that cold expression of hers little by little as we spend more time together.

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s start with the n then.¡±

    Thus, the curtain was closed on our Proline clears.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°Where are the dragons? ¡°

    Along the way, Eko came asking.

    We¡¯re moving north from Badgordo. And our destination is the ¡®canyon¡¯.

    ¡°There are a lot in the Metio Dungeon.¡±

    ¡°Hee©`.¡±

    The intermediate ss dungeon, ¡ºMetio¡» is an outdoor dungeon. It has the shape of a canyon, and inside of it, seven different types of dragons appear, including the boss. It¡¯s a den of dragons, so to speak.

    ¡°Wait. Did you just say Metio? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­But it hasn¡¯t been captured yet, right? ¡°

    ¡°I can tell.¡±

    The Metio Dungeon is the most difficult of the intermediate ss dungeons. That¡¯s why I thought that if Proline was still uncaptured, Metio would be the same. It might be even harder than the Algin Dungeon, the easiest of the Upper-ss Dungeons, if you just consider the monsters¡¯ difficulty.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to such a dangerous ce?¡¡We?¡¡To defeat a dragon? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡±

    ¡°Are¡­¡­ are we going to be alright? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. There is a small number of monsters in Metio, so we can always go three against one.¡±

    In exchange for that, only dragons appear. However, quality is better than quantity, and each one of them has considerable strength.

    ¡°I-I see.¡±

    ¡°You worry too much, you won¡¯t die.¡±

    Silvia seems to be quite nervous. She just responded with a ¡°U-Umu¡±, and returned her sight to the front, but I could still feel her restlessness. Does she have any bad memories of dragons?¡¡When I asked her that, her reply implied that was not the case. Then what is it?

    ¡°I¡¯ve been dealing against nothing but golems for a while. I would be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t anxious about my first battle against something new. Furthermore, dragons are monsters who are the symbols of strength. It¡¯s weird not to be nervous¡­¡­ But even if I say that, I think there isn¡¯t such a word in your dictionary, Second-dono! ¡°

    I see. Leaving the anxiousness aside, it¡¯s good that she¡¯s tense and focused on her first-time fight. Telling her ¡°You¡¯re admirable¡±, I gave her a thumbs up. Silviaughed at her own dismay saying ¡°I¡¯m starting to feel stupid for being this nervous.¡±

    Eko, on the other hand, waspletely normal. Is it because she has a leeway thanks to her high VIT? Or is it just her personality? In any case, it¡¯s good that she¡¯s reliable. I also gave her a thumbs up.

    While continuing like that, we arrived at the Metio Dungeon.

    A ¡®V¡¯ shaped valley surrounded by cliffs so steep that the top can¡¯t be seen. And at the bottom of the valley, a tranquil stream flowed.

    ¡°Ohh, I found one.¡±

    I found a dragon right away.

    Luckily, it¡¯s the weakest among the six types of dragon that appear here, a¡¸White Dragon¡¹. It¡¯s called dragon, but it is undeniably a dragon subspecies.

    ¡°So big! ¡°

    Eko¡¯s eyes rounded in surprise as she raised her voice. Certainly, it¡¯s big. It might be around 10 meters in length. Its rugged white scales were beautiful.

    ¡°A-AAAAAAARE WE GOING TO FIGHT THAT!? ¡°

    Silvia¡¯s legspletely gave in.

    ¡°About that. I¡¯ll set an example at first, so take a good look at it.¡±

    I approached the White Dragon while setting up my longbow and measuring the range.

    Then, using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· I called Angolmois out.

    ¡°£¨¨D¨DOhh, isn¡¯t that a dragon?£©¡°

    A somewhat indifferent reaction was transmitted to my mind.

    ¡°£¨Time for possession.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨As you wish.£©¡°

    I activated ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. Angolmois turned into a seven colored light and merged with me.

    Oh god!¡¡Ahh, this is it, ahhhh, this is the best. No matter how many times I do it, this is incredible. The supreme almighty sensation. The ultimate ecstasy.

    Currently, the rank of ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· is Grade 5, the increase in status is 4 times, possession time is 270 seconds and it has a 290 second cooldown time. To feel this ecstasy for longer, stronger and much more than before, I feel like I¡¯m already addicted to it.

    Well then, now that it¡¯s activated, I can¡¯t let even one second go to waste. The purpose of this is to acquire ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·. First of all, I have to fulfill the condition of attacking it at least once with each of the seven skills, from Soldier to Rook.

    Preparing a ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· shot, I release it right away.

    ¡°GYAOOOOOOO!? ¡°

    It quickly flew and stabbed the White Dragon on the thigh. Obviously taken by surprise, the White Dragon roared in severe pain.

    I thenunched ¡¶Lance Archery¡· in quick session. Those attacks prated the legs of the White Dragon.

    And so, the angry White Dragon rushed towards me. Using ¡¶Gold Archery¡· I knocked it back, and prepared ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·, immediately releasing it.

    ¡°GAAAAA! ¡°

    From the sounds it made, it was the signal that the dragon was preparing a ¡°Breath¡±. I canceled the ¡¶Knight Archery¡· I was preparing next, and ran lightly, making a circle around the White Dragon. This alone is enough to easily evade the breath of the White Dragon.

    Then, the after-breath rigidity came. This gives me the chance for an all-out attack.

    I first released ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, followed by ¡¶Silver Archery¡·, andstly ¡¶Knight Archery¡·. Since I¡¯ve attacked with all seven skills, the condition was met. All that¡¯s left is to finish it off using ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·.

    Its charge can be countered with ¡¶Gold Archery¡·, and its breath by simply running. It¡¯s easy to defend against an opponent like a White Dragon with just this much. If its remaining HP falls below 20%, it will also attack using its tail, however that doesn¡¯t matter since it can be defeated before it has the chance to do so.

    And, like this, the White Dragon went down. This is the result of relentlessly aiming at its legs only. The down state alwayses when the cumtive damage on the legs exceeds a certain threshold and the HP is lower than 30%.

    ¡°OOON!¡¡GYAOON! ¡°

    I shot ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·at the downed White Dragon. And since White Dragon-kun couldn¡¯t resist at all, it was thoroughly defeated. By the way, I would have liked to attack using ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, doing damage more efficiently, but with the White Dragon¡¯s HP I don¡¯t know when it would go down. So, in order to avoid wasting time, I finished it using only Bishop.

    ¡°NGYAAA! ¡°

    When it was on the verge of being freed from the downed state, the White Dragon roared in agony and died. A little more and it would¡¯ve been able to rush at me. I¡¯m d I didn¡¯t use Rook just in case.

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, it¡¯s something like this.¡±

    Releasing the possession, I returned to where Silvia and Eko were.

    The two girls were just standing still with their mouths open.

    ¡°Ahh, I was alone just now, but from now on we¡¯ll do it together, okay? ¡°

    Silence.

    ¡°The strategy against the White Dragon is easy. Using Gold to counter the rush, and evade the breath that alwayses after the dragon makes a weird noise. All you have to do is protect against those two.¡±

    No response.

    ¡°Are you ready?¡¡Alright, let¡¯s not waste time and¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Wa-Wait a minute! ¡°

    Finally, Silvia opened her mouth.

    ¡°Second-dono?¡¡Do you know what you¡¯ve just aplished?¡¡You ¡®solo killed¡¯ a dragon, you know?¡¡Isn¡¯t that an incredible feat?¡¡And, what¡¯s more¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wasn¡¯t it scary? ¡°

    Ekoplemented Silvia¡¯s words.

    Was I scared¡­¡­huh?

    They might be misunderstanding something. I¡¯ll be troubled if they be scared. So, I think I should say it here.

    ¡°Let¡¯s be clear. There¡¯s nothing scary.¡±

    I noticed the two of them were taken aback.

    ¡°Given our status, even if we receive the White Dragon¡¯s strongest attack and it¡¯s a critical, we won¡¯t die unless we get hit three times. Also, as I said before, just counter the rush with Gold and avoid the breath when it makes the weird noise. Or are you saying doing this to defend is some huge undertaking? Anyone can kill it.¡±

    ¡°Th¡­¡­!? ¡°

    ¡°Furthermore, aren¡¯t we aiming to be the top in the world?¡¡Sooner orter we¡¯ll be able to kill a White Dragon in a single blow. For the members of Firstest to be making a fuss against this level of opponent.¡±

    ¡°In a single blow¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Also, I¡¯m sorry for not exining that you won¡¯t die unless you get hit three times by a critical from the White Dragon.¡±

    ¡°Is that so!? ¡°

    ¡°Seriously! ¡°

    Silvia and Eko got angry. I¡¯m really sorry.

    It seems that although I was preaching to them with a self-satisfied face, it was my own fault from the very beginning for not informing them beforehand. I¡¯m ashamed.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you just angry because you were surprised!? ¡°

    ¡°Second!¡¡Say sorry! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! ¡°

    After sharing information earnestly after that, we properly started the hunt for dragons.

 Chapter 47: The Difference Is The Beauty

    <h4>Chapter 47: The Difference Is The Beauty</h4>

    There are seven types of dragons that appear in Metio, including the boss.

    These are: White Dragons, Azure Dragons, Amber Dragons, Emerald Dragons, Crimson Dragon, Golden Dragons, and the boss, a seven colored dragon called Rainbow Dragon.

    Assuming the strength of a White Dragon is 10, Azure Dragons are 12, Amber Dragons are 14, Emerald Dragons are 16, and Crimson Dragons are 20. The Golden Dragons jump to about 80, and the Rainbow Dragon is at about 456. As you¡¯d expect from a boss, its strength is on another level.

    When ites to fighting, we¡¯ll have a leeway up until the Crimson Dragons. However, it might be a little difficult to deal with the Golden Dragon, being eight times as strong as a White Dragon. I alone should be alright, but there¡¯s also Silvia and Eko.

    And obviously the boss, the Rainbow Dragon, is out of the question. If you were to ask if I could defeat it now, it might be possible if I went ¡®solo¡¯, but it would take a long time. But to challenge it with three people, it would be impossible to fight it while having to worry about them. Therefore, I don¡¯t think we can defeat the Rainbow Dragon currently, and if possible, I don¡¯t want to fight a Golden Dragon.

    Well then.

    Our goal this time isn¡¯t to capture the Metio Dungeon. It is to learn Dragon Horse and Dragon King.

    The learning condition for Dragon Horse is ¡¸Defeat five dragon varieties using the seven skills, from Soldier to Bishop, at least once and deliver thest blow using Rook¡¹. And the condition to learn Dragon King is ¡¸Using nothing but Rook, kill 10 dragons¡¹.

    If we apply this trying to be the most efficient in Metio, then it bes something like this ¨D¨D¡¸Kill 10 White Dragons using nothing but Rook, and meet the requirements for Dragon Horse against a White Dragon, an Azure Dragon, an Amber Dragon, an Emerald Dragon, and a Crimson Dragon¡¹.

    Right. We don¡¯t have to bother touching the other two dragons, the Golden Dragon and the Rainbow Dragon.

    Therefore, the strongest enemy will be the Crimson Dragon. That¡¯s a dragon twice as strong as the White Dragon.

    In other words, what I¡¯m trying to say is.

    ¡°This will be an easy victory.¡±

    At dinner time. At the tavern in Badgordo, I dered so while raising my mug.

    Our progress is about half. Today, Silvia was able to learn ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·, Eko learned ¡¶Dragon King Shieldmanship¡·, and I got ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·. The White Dragon-kun that were sacrificed amount easily to over 30.

    ¡°I¡¯m dead tired (hetoheto) after being on my toes the whole day¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Hetohetoheto©`¡°

    Silvia and Eko lied down on the table. Silvia seems to be tired mentally, while Eko was tired physically.

    The most troublesome part of today was Eko¡¯s condition for Dragon King Shieldmanship, the ¡®100 continuous parries¡¯. Getting the right timing to parry is quite difficult, so as I expected, that took her a long time. By the way, Eko described the attacks of the White Dragon like a ¡®tackle¡¯. As expected, even for Eko it was a little painful.

    ¡°There¡¯s only four more for tomorrow. Hang in there a little more.¡±

    I tried to encourage the two girls. The conditions for Silvia and Eko¡¯s Dragon Horse had only been met with the White Dragon. Tomorrow, we¡¯ll meet the conditions with the other four enemies, the Azure Dragon, Amber Dragon, Emerald Dragon and Crimson Dragon.

    ¡°But those four will be stronger than the White Dragons!¡¡Didn¡¯t you say the Crimson Dragon was twice as strong as the White Dragon?¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right. There¡¯s only one thing you need to be careful of. And I just remembered a ¡®silly¡¯ saying about it. Just keep this in mind.¡±

    ¡°Gosh, what is it? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s all good if you don¡¯t get hit.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I don¡¯t know who said it, but it is indeed ¡®stupid¡¯. As if ¡®wherever the head goes, the tail will follow¡¯ worked here.¡±

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    ¡°In other words, even if you can do it, Second-dono, that doesn¡¯t mean I will. ¡°

    ¡°Huh? ¡°

    ¡± ¡®Huh?¡¯ me one more time.¡¡I dare you.¡±

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    ¡°First of all, what you should be teaching us is how to avoid it, you idiot! ¡°

    ¡°Ouch! ¡°

    She got angry. I might have been a bit too silly.

    However, rather than being depressed and lying limp on the table, this feels more normal.

    Looking at Silvia in front of me, I spoke while making the most serious expression I could.

    ¡°¡­¡­Silvia. On a serious note, you can¡¯t let your guard down tomorrow. If you feel hesitant even for a split second, just evade. Okay? ¡°

    ¡°U¡­¡­Umu.¡±

    It seems Silvia was taken aback by my sudden change in mood, but she nodded in agreement to my words.

    ¡°Eko. If you hesitate, just use Bishop, and if you¡¯ll not make it in time, just evade.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Eko was as obedient as ever.

    And after making sure the two girls were attentively listening to me, I continued.

    ¡°Engrave this in your mind, there are three ways to evade. Number 1, when you hear the characteristic sound that precedes the breath, run in a circle with the dragon at the center. Number 2, if it jumps up, run perpendicrly to the direction the dragon is moving. And number 3, the moment the dragon turns its face downwards, immediately drop down and move away.¡±

    In their order, those are breath evasion, crush evasion and tail evasion methods. That way, the breath is wasted, the crush is disced, and the tail is avoided by lying down.

    Originally, one would be killed by the dragon again and again before arriving at the ¡®optimal solution¡¯. However, in this world, one can¡¯t simply just let themselves be killed. Therefore, people who know these measures might be considerably few in number.

    ¡°Okay, roger that.¡±

    Silvia nodded. I¡¯m sure she swallowed what she wanted to say. After all, ¡°How do you know this? ¡°, she had this question in the past. But I already decided not to reveal the reason. And probably because she¡¯s aware of that, she just nodded without adding anything.

    The behavior of monsters and their counter measures. Just how much advantage does knowing only that bring in this world? Although it¡¯s still vague, I no longer feel uncertain about bing the top in the world¨D¨D or at least that¡¯s how I felt.

    ¡°Alright. If you¡¯re aware of those three things I just said, then your life should be fine for now. All that¡¯s left is for you to practice it with the White Dragons. Any questions? ¡°

    ¡°Are you going to capture the Metio Dungeon? ¡°

    ¡°I will not.¡±

    ¡°Oh, okay.¡±

    Silvia had an unexpected look on her face. Eko too was staring at me, puzzled. Can it be that they think I can¡¯t capture it?¡¡If that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯ll have to correct them. I can¡¯t let them look down on the World¡¯s top.

    ¡°If I were to prepare carefully, even in our current situation, there¡¯s no way I can¡¯t capture it. However, even if I capture it, it¡¯ll be a tasteless victory.¡±

    ¡°I k-knew it, you can capture it all by yourself.¡±

    ¡°Amazing! ¡°

    The two of them looked at me with surprise and amazement.

    Yeah, that¡¯s the look. The shock after killing over 40 White Dragons and knowing I¡¯m able to defeat the stronger Rainbow Dragon, but they trust and believe in me. In other words, amazement at my degree of strength. That¡¯s how the World¡¯s top must be seen.

    ¡°However, Second-dono, you are quite strange. While showing a strongmitment to an honor as vague as the definition of ¡®top of the world¡¯, why can¡¯t you see the actual honor of capturing a dungeon?¡¡I thought the same when you said you wanted a mansion. A mansion that is the best in the world¡­¡­ It makes me wonder whether that is greed or not. ¡°

    Silvia suddenly threw a question at me. She seems to want to say I¡¯m a strange person. However, that question is quite weed. The world¡¯s top can¡¯t be considered to be a normal person.

    ¡°I just don¡¯t want to do something useless. After all, being the world¡¯s top is a long process.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying that abnormalposure and unshakable self-confidence are strange¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°But that¡¯s good, isn¡¯t it? ¡°

    ¡°Well, umu. You¡¯re right.¡±

    For some reason we bothughed. This kind of weird, open-minded conversation happened as we got drunk and spoke to each other unreservedly.

    A while after that, Eko¡¯s face falling t onto her bowl marked the closure of our meeting.

    Finally, tomorrow we¡¯ll learn Dragon Horse. But theck of tension on everyone was a nice feeling.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    An incredible battle was taking ce in front of me.

    A Crimson Dragon raged against Second-dono, who was facing it holding a sword and d in a seven-colored aura.

    I¡¯ve already learned ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·and Eko has learned ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡· too. As we always faced them 3 to one, be it an Emerald Dragon or a Crimson Dragon, they never posed a threat to us. It might be good to say it was all thanks to the abnormally urate advice from Second-dono.

    Second-dono also say he had already learned ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·. Then, why is he fighting right now? The reason is, for learning ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡·.

    Since we¡¯re here, I¡¯ll try to solo it¨D¨D with just those words, he walked up to the Crimson Dragon as if he was simply going out for a walk.

    And so, the battle started.

    If I had to use one word to describe it, it would be ¡®beautiful¡¯.

    Second-dono¡¯s movements, which appeared to be refined to the very limit, relentlessly assault the Crimson Dragon.

    How to efficiently and safely kill¨D¨D I feel there¡¯s no exaggeration to say this was the very epitome of these two points¡¯ ultimate form.

    Just how much study, how much practice, and how many risks must one face to reach such heights? I can¡¯t even begin to imagine.

    I stared at this sight as if I was eating into it. Carefully, so as to not miss any move, any moment. Both Eko and I were silent, just watching.

    And after a while, the Crimson Dragon fell.

    The obvious result. Second-dono kept hitting it with ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· at the highest efficiency without receiving a single blow.

    ¡°OK, I learned it. Let¡¯s go home.¡±

    Looking back, he said so in a matter-of-fact manner.

    It was his usual expression. Like when he takes the corner room at the inn, or when he discovers something delicious at the bar, or when he buys something and the total is exactly 10,000 CL. It was a face like that.

    I can¡¯t help but to hear it as one¡¯s presence of mind. Although I don¡¯t think I can do away with just exining it as such.

    There are many people in the world who can defeat a dragon. But, is there really someone else who can defeat a dragon as easily as breathing?

    So far, I¡¯ve caught many glimpses of his various anomalies, however, I¡¯ve never felt them as deep as today.

    Furthermore, I admire him deeply. I too want to be like that.

    And even if I knew there was no way I could stand next to him, I couldn¡¯t help but to chase after that incredible figure.

    ¡°Hoomee©`¡°

    Eko lined up next to Second. And thus, we arrived at the return road.

    And as we walked the road, I then heard the sounds of a sword shing.

    ¡°Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, someone¡¯s at it. You wanna go see?¡±

    It¡¯s quite rare to meet people inside the Dungeons. And it is even rarer for uncaptured Dungeons such as Metio. That¡¯s because, depending on the ability of the person, just entering such a ce can be a matter of life and death. In any case, this is very rare.

    ¡°It¡¯s swordsmanship. And what¡¯s more, it looks like a single person.¡±

    Second muttered.

    Surprisingly, it was a blonde man who was fighting the dragon. A woman could be seen behind the man. Looking at how she wasn¡¯t doing anything, it seemed like rather than support, she was a healing magician. One thing that bothered me was the fact that the woman was, for some reason, wearing maid clothes. Does that mean the man is a noble from somewhere?

    ¡°Ohh, strong? ¡°

    Eko said while slightly tilting her head.

    Well, certainly, he¡¯s strong. You could see he was overpowering the Amber Dragon alone.

    ¡°Ohh, he knocked it down. Looking at the damage, it looks like his attacks were stronger than mine.¡±

    ¡°What¡­¡­? ¡°

    Is he stronger than Second?¡¡In other words, isn¡¯t he some ridiculous monster?¡¡That¡¯s why I said that participating in the Title Championship was a little¡­¡­ umu, it¡¯s so sudden I can¡¯t believe it.

    ¡°Oh, looks like he¡¯s engaging again. This time, it¡¯s an Emerald Dragon.¡±

    The blonde man challenged an Emerald Dragon soon after the previous one.

    Driving his swordsmanship into the poisonous-looking scales, even the Emerald Dragon was as overwhelmed as the Amber Dragon was.

    ¡­¡­Strong. Strong, but¡­¡­ umu, I see. I finally understood the strange sensation I was having.

    His was not ¡®beautiful¡¯.

    He seems to be doing okay against the rush, the breath, the crush attack and even the tail, countering, striking and avoiding. However, the difference is like heaven and earth whenpared to Second-dono¡¯s battle from a little while back.

    There is too much unnecessary movement. There are huge gaps when he attacks and defends. Moreover, he has a fewer number of attacks whenpared to Second-dono, and he¡¯s always in a dangerous spot.

    The difference between him and Second-dono is so obvious that it¡¯s a pity topare them.

    If he and Second-dono were to fight, it¡¯s easy to tell who¡¯ll be the winner. No matter how much his status is higher than Second-dono¡¯s, as he is now, there¡¯s a huge difference between the two of them to overturn that.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    It was then when I noticed it. I have grown, I¡¯ve grown enough to understand the ¡®decisive differences¡¯.

    If it was the former me looking at Second-dono or the blonde man, I would just get carried away, feeling excited like that time when I saw a Title match for the first time.

    But now it¡¯s different. The beautiful movements reveal the difference. Now that I¡¯ve grown along with Second, I might notice something else if I were to look at a Title match. No, I¡¯m sure that¡¯s the case.

    I no longer felt interested in the blond man¡¯s fight, and my thoughts were about the Title match that would eventuallye.

    ¡°I hope he doesn¡¯t die if he runs into the Rainbow Dragon. Even a Golden Dragon might spell trouble.¡±

    Second-dono said while looking at the blonde man.

    If he¡¯s correct, it might be bad for that man. Should I go advise him?

    The moment I was having those thoughts, the man and the woman in the maid dress left the ce. Although imperfect, that man is a talented one, so he might be aware of his own skills.

    ¡°Alright, us too, let¡¯s go back. We¡¯ll join Yukari and tomorrow, we¡¯ll go see the luxury mansion together.¡±

    Second-dono left the Metio Dungeon in high spirits, holding hands with the skipping Eko.

    Not like I¡¯m a stranger to that feeling. As a matter of fact, I too am grinning.

    My skills¡¯ column has the names ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡· in it, arge sum of money is waiting for us, and I¡¯ll be able to live with Second-dono in an incredible mansion. So far, it¡¯s been smooth sailing. It¡¯s kind of scary.

    Eko didn¡¯t change that much since she was happy as long as she could be with Second-dono, but Yukari¡¯s joy was quite remarkable. As the Proline Dungeon clears progressed, the corners of her mouth rose little by little, and at the end she was smiling normally. And we¡¯re speaking of ¡®that¡¯ expressionless-as-a-ghost Yukari.

    But what scares me is that she might be plotting something behind the scenes. U-Umu, I need to stay alert¡­¡­

    ¡°Hey, Silvia, we¡¯ll leave you behind.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, sorry, I¡¯ming! ¡°

    At any rate, I¡¯ll aim for the Title match by raising Dragon Horse and Dragon King as I was told.

    It wasn¡¯t a mistake to follow Second-dono. Today this became quite clear.

    Nodding to myself, I ran to thatrge, hateful figure who tried to ruthlessly make me enter a dragon¡¯s den.

 Chapter 48: Dream House

    <h4>Chapter 48: Dream House</h4>

    As soon as Master and the other two left to go dragon hunting, I went to visit Earl Lumberjack¡¯s house.

    The Mithril Alloy was sent little by little, at the pace of once every two days, so all that was left was to receive the payment; 30 billion CL in total.

    ¡°Yukari-sama, I¡¯ve already been informed. Everything is going smoothly.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s really helpful.¡±

    Forest, the Earl¡¯s family steward, weed me.

    As we had discussed previously, I will be allowed to stay at the Earl¡¯s house until Master returns. The Earl¡¯s side was quick to give consent.

    I¡¯m not such an idiot who would wander around carrying 30 billion CL. I also considered hiring an escort, but I felt a bit unsure about it. And, since being by Master¡¯s side would be the safest ce in the world, I decided it would be better to just quietly wait here.

    However, I¡¯m not only waiting.

    Make the arrangements to purchase a luxurious home¨D¨D Master has already given me that task.

    For the sake of the discussions about it, I decided to rent a room in the Earl¡¯s house and set up a space.

    Developers, constructionpanies, carpenters and the Capital¡¯s top contractors. Everyone who was focused on ultra-high-end residential areas in the outskirts of the Kingdom¡¯s Capital was called. When buying a mansion, it¡¯s okay to just call the seller, but that isn¡¯t enough to fulfill Master¡¯s wonderful dream.

    Soon after, important traders enticed by the smell of money visited the room. Each and every one of them fawned and humbled themselves at me, a Dark Elf. I then realized the huge affects the name of the Earl who governed thismercial city carried.

    Well then, let¡¯s get down to business.

    When Master was investigating about what kind of mansion to purchase, he said this:

    ¡°This one is much smaller than what I had in mind¡±¨D¨D

    Thergest and most expensive mansion in the outskirts of the Capital was priced at 2.5 billion CL, but even then, it wasn¡¯t suitable in Master¡¯s eyes. Then, what should be done? Master said this, his face a full smile.

    ¡°We should buy the nine here in the 3¡Á3 grid, and all thend in between, building a huge one.¡±¨D¨D

    ¡­¡­Even if he was my beloved Master, for a moment I thought he was being foolish.

    However, looking up to him, I saw his eyes were sparkling.

    - ¡°The northwestern one will be a mansion with the motif of Capital of Water.¡±

    - ¡°At the north, a medium mansion simr to a forest¡¯s retreat.¡±

    - ¡°The northeast will be a hot springs¡¯ inn-like mansion.¡±

    - ¡± A standard luxurious mansion with arge garden and a pool at the east.¡±

    - ¡°Let¡¯s make the southeast a mansion for the servants.¡±

    - ¡± The middle and the south side should be attached, building a huge castle in it.¡±

    - ¡°The southwest should have ake-side mansion overlooking Lake Vani.¡±

    - ¡°A Japanese-styled mansion at the west, built on the side of the marsh.¡±

    He certainly said so. I clearly remember it, word for word.

    That being the case, there¡¯s only one thing for me to do.

    Take the first step towards realizing my Master¡¯s dream.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    After exining my request, everyone was silent.

    Well, it¡¯s only obvious. This is something unheard of before.

    ¡°I would appreciate it if you could give me an estimate.¡±

    I bowed politely to everyone, letting them know with a nce that ¡°I¡¯m being very serious¡±. After the traders¡¯ faces were dyed in surprise, they quickly moved on to working the numbers.

    Estimates from each trader arrived that very same night.

    The property cost, thend, and the remodeling; all in all, it came to a total of approximately 21.6 billion CL.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯ve never heard of a person spending so much on a house. Even the Royal family would spend less. As expected of Master, he wants his house to be the very best in the world.

    ¡°Well, next is¡­¡­¡±

    I sent a written reply to each person stating that we¡¯ll make a decision after looking at the actual thing, before continuing with the purchase and construction. Then, I let my back rest on the chair.

    With this, everything is ready. All that¡¯s left is deciding what I should do about the ¡®servants¡¯.

    While immersing myself in those thoughts, the door was suddenly knocked. The one visiting was a maid from the Earl. It should still be early for dinner and there were no ns to wee any other visitor¡­¡­

    ¡°Excuse me. Phillip-sama, the president of the Maurice ve Company, hase. What should I do? ¡°

    ¡°¨D¨D! ¡°

    Maurice Company!

    I¡¯ve never forgotten about that existence, one that could disrupt the peace between me and my Master. However, for them to aim at me the moment I¡¯m by myself!

    Perhaps one of the merchants from before made some slip of the tongue. I always thought this was some issue I had to face eventually, but I didn¡¯t expect it to be today.

    I¡¯m no longer a ve. I was ¡®broken free¡¯ by my Master. Therefore, my contract at the Maurice Company should no longer exist. I can¡¯t run away from this.

    What should I do? There¡¯s the option of meeting with him. However, in that case, I can¡¯t deny that the rtionship can deteriorate.

    At least, seeing how he came here upfront, I can tell he isn¡¯t here to censure. Maybe I should just feign ignorance and meet with him while pretending it happened by ident. However, what if he has already seen through it? Is he here to capture me?¡¡But such an act can¡¯t be done inside the Earl¡¯s house. Then, why did hee to visit me?

    Seems like discovering whether he¡¯s hostile or not will have to be done after I meet and talk to him.

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m busy right now. Tell him to wait a moment.¡±

    Asking the maid to convey that message, I contacted Master using the Team-limitedmunication.

    The reply came quickly. It was ¡°It¡¯s probably alright¡±¨D¨D Although I¡¯m somewhat anxious. However, since Master said so, it will surely be safe.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready. Please bring Phillip-dono.¡±

    After ringing the bell, I gave the maid instructions. The maid answered with ¡°Certainly¡±, and left the room.

    After about five minutes, a fat man with sharp eyes, Phillip the president of the Maurice Company, appeared.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    As soon as heid his eyes on me, Phillip opened his eyes wide and showed a surprised face.

    ¡°¡­¡­Excuse me. It surprised me.¡±

    What did? Without speaking a word, I tried to convey those feelings with my attitude.

    ¡°I had a sense of difort, so I decided toe see how things were¡­¡­ But it seems my intuition has grown dull.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­? ¡°

    I have no idea what he¡¯s talking about.

    ¡°There are some people who are illegally freeing ves and throwing them into the ck market. They are totally a crazy bunch.¡±

    ¡°! ¡°

    I knew it, he has seen through it!

    ¡­¡­No, wait. It doesn¡¯t seem like this man is reproaching Master. What does this mean?

    ¡°In that respect, your master is amazing. He properly manages his ve like this.¡±

    ¡°? ? ? ¡°

    I¡¯m totally lost. I¡¯m no longer a ve. The contract should have expired too. There¡¯s no way this man isn¡¯t aware of that.

    ¡°This is for your dear master. Something your former master entrusted to me.¡±

    ¡°Former, master¨D¨D!? ¡°

    I was shocked. Phillip was presenting a letter to me.

    Duchess Lucia Icene. The woman who picked me up when I was an orphan and raised me as an assassin. Was it a letter for Master?¡¡Just, why?

    ¡°The former Duchess told me to deliver this if the rtionship between you and your master was good.¡±

    ¡°Eh! ¡°

    This man, no, there¡¯s no way!

    ¡°You, you know everything¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°Ohh?¡¡Just what would you be talking about?¡¡I was just holding onto this letter.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re lying, you know I¡¯m actually not a ve.¡±

    ¡°Not at all, that was just my very own misunderstanding. You and Second-sama have a very splendid master-ve rtionship.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Phillip said so with a smile from ear to ear. His intention to feign ignorance was in to see.

    Why would he do such a thing? After thinking about it for a moment, it hit me.

    Why did Lucia-sama save my life? Why was I picked up by the Maurice ve Company? And why was the president of saidpany ignoring the fact I was broken free?

    There¡¯s only one thing that could exin that¨D¨D the letter.

    Was the purpose of all that to deliver this letter to Master¡­¡­?

    ¡°¡­¡­Understood. I¡¯ll be sure to deliver it.¡±

    When I answered as so, Phillip bowed down and continued.

    ¡°Well then. With this, the task has beenpleted, so now let¡¯s get down to business.¡±

    Is there something else? While thinking this, Phillip opened his mouth and said.

    ¡°By all means, use the ves from our Maurice Company for the servants.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°This is where the eastern mansion is nned.¡±

    After joining with Yukari in Le?ador, she guided us as we visited the nned site for ¡ºSecond¡¯s State¡», the super luxurious residential area located in the outskirts of the Kingdom¡¯s Capital.

    What¡¯s in front of me is a mansion as I envisioned. Awn garden huge enough to y ser in it, a stupidly big pool with a wooden deck, a balcony with a panoramic view, palm trees all around, a two-storey huge mansion with lots of big windows, high ceilings and fairly well illuminated by natural light, a kitchen styled like a fancy bar, a living roomrge enough to double as an indoors tennis court; this is totally like a five star hotel.

    ¡°WH-WHAT THE HECK IS THIS¡­¡­!? ¡°

    Silvia¡¯s incredibly loud voice sounded like someone at their death throes as she screamed in surprise.

    ¡°Will we stay here!? ¡°

    Unable to stay put, Eko was excitedly running all over the ce, to the first floor, to the second floor, all across the garden and around the pool.

    ¡°¡­¡­This is just one ninth of it.¡±

    Yukari uttered in a state of shock. That¡¯s exactly right. This is just one out of nine mansions, the¡ºMansion of the East¡». I wonder what they would think of me. It¡¯spletely an overkill. However, I¡¯ll never say it out loud¡­¡­

    ¡°W-Well, if you get bored we can move to another mansion. No, wait, we can just use them ording to the season. This one will be for summer use! ¡°

    ¡°It will cost money to maintain it even when it¡¯s not in use, Master.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s alright, I can make as much money as I want.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Yukari sent me a questioning look.

    ¡°Do you want to see the other ces?¡±

    Saying so, I ran away from her re and walked towards the south.

    After about fifteen minutes of walking, I finally saw the other mansion. This was arge western-style mansion made out of brick. No, it might be more proper to call this a castle rather than a mansion. Its nickname, ¡ºMansion of the Southeast¡», this will be the servants¡¯ house. Still, it will take them 15 minutes of walking to get to the nearest ce from here¡­¡­ nah, let¡¯s not think about it.

    ¡°Hmm?¡¡Are you going to choose from this one and the previous one? ¡°

    She said while her gaze admired the mansion in front of her. But as you¡¯d expect from Silvia, it seems she has yet to understand. I really like this ce.

    ¡°This is also my house.¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡°

    ¡°This one and the one before too, all in all there are nine of them, all of them are my houses.¡±

    ¡°Hee¡­¡­? ¡°

    There¡¯s something quite moving about seeing a tinum blonde beauty having her mouth agape this much in surprise.

    ¡°By the way, this is the house where the servants will live.¡±

    ¡°¡¡¡°

    Ahh, she froze again.

    After bringing Silvia back to her senses, we looked around the mansion. Its interior is wooden, giving it quite the elegant atmosphere. It¡¯s a somewhat antique feeling. It has more rooms than the East one, and probably quite a lot of servants will be living here. Especially, the dining room and the kitchen arerge. Seems like it¡¯s possible to be able to cook arge number of meals at the same time.

    ¡°Please, leave the training of the servants to me.¡±

    After leaving the southeast mansion, Yukari said so. I wonder if she isn¡¯t pushing herself too hard¡­¡­

    ¡°Is that okay? ¡°

    ¡°By all means, please let me take care of this.¡±

    Yukari¡¯s determination was firm. Or rather, it feels like she¡¯s just stubborn. I¡¯m a bit scared to refuse, so I¡¯ll just leave it to her.

    ¡°I-I see. Please take care of it. But don¡¯t overdo it.¡±

    ¡°Thank you very much, Master.¡±

    Yukari¡¯s ears trembled a little, yet her face showed no expression, but I could tell she was happy.

    Afterwards, we visited all nine of the mansions. Seven out of the nine of them need to be rebuilt or renovated. The eastern and southeastern ones were the only ones that will be used as they are.

    And thus, the purchase waspleted. Construction began the very same day. Things have been moving on track all thanks to Yukari.

    The grand total was 21.6 billion CL. I feel this is just a small price to pay for all of this.

    ¡°Second-dono!¡¡I was told we could move to the eastern mansion tonight!¡¡I¡¯m really looking forward to it! ¡°

    Silvia was in high spirits.

    Well, I could understand her feelings very well. I¡¯ve always been quite uninvolved with real life. The reason was, because Mobius was there, and that was enough for me. Well, socially speaking, I was a ¡®failure¡¯.

    However, now that this world has be my reality, my feelings about getting a mansion that could be called a proof of me being a ¡®social sess¡¯ were getting bigger and bigger.

    ¡°HOOOoOoOOUUUUUUSeEEE! ¡°

    Eko¡¯s tension was through the roof, and she was acting a bit strange. Her voice sounded a bit parched too.

    ¡°We¡¯ll have a barbecue today! ¡°

    Well, even I was in the midst of an ecstatic feeling. While still walking to the east, I started to take out shrimp and meat from my inventory, and stab it with a stick. Why am I like this?

    ¡°I will help you.¡±

    Yukari said so, while alsoughing with a ¡°Fufufu¡±. What a rare sight.

    And thus, our strangely excited four-person group had a barbeque in the wooden deck of the mansion all night.

    It goes without saying that nobody was able to get up the next day without drinking a potion due to the terrible hangover.

 Chapter 49: Towards a Solid Preparation

    <h4>Chapter 49: Towards a Solid Preparation</h4>

    Morning came, or rather, it was already noon.

    Relieving the pain in my head with a Detox potion, I descended into the living room.

    Thinking about having a cup of coffee, I turned to the kitchen, and there I found Yukari dressed in ¡®maid clothes¡¯, preparing lunch.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?

    ¡°Good morning, Master.¡±

    After noticing my presence, Yukari greeted me along with a beautiful bow.

    ¡°G-Good morning.¡±

    After returning my greeting, she just said ¡°Please wait a little longer¡±, and returned to what she was doing.

    ¡­¡­I wonder why? She totally looks the part. And since her maid figure is working at the cutting board, she doesn¡¯t look out of ce at all. But, why maid clothes?¡¡Isn¡¯t that weird?¡¡That¡¯s weird, right?

    ¡°¨D¨DWha!?¡¡Now you¡¯ve done it Yukari! ¡°

    Silvia, who had woken up a littleter, yelled while pointing at Yukari. What has she done?

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the winner.¡±

    Yukari answered without even sparing a nce. With a face of frustration, Silvia puffed her cheeks.

    ¡°Ah!¡¡Second!¡¡There was this big fruit outside, and it looked really really tasty and it was like this big, and very high too!! ¡°

    ¡°Alright, alright, calm down first! ¡°

    Eko, who seemed to have been ying outside, came back and while her tail was waving, she spoke without making a pause. Even so, she sure is energetic.

    ¡°A fruit!¡¡A huuuge fruit!¡¡Fruit! ¡°

    ¡°Fruit¡­¡­?¡¡Ahh!¡¡A coconut?¡±

    ¡°Coco nut! ¡°

    ¡°You can eat what¡¯s inside. But, it¡¯s incredibly hard.¡±

    As I told her that, her eyes were shining as she said ¡°Ohhhh¡±. I¡¯ll break one for herter.

    ¡°Lunch is ready now.¡±

    With Yukari¡¯s voice as the signal, we gathered in the living room and took a seat.

    On the table, delicious dishes such as sandwiches and sds were lined up. Light shone through therge windows, and the cool breeze of the garden and pool came through the terrace. Therge living room and high ceiling really gave off a sense of freedom. Next to me is a Dark Elf maid with a nice body, opposite to her is a dignified beauty of tinum blonde hair, and next to her, a lovely cat girl.

    I¡¯ve won. I¡¯ve really won.

    I¡¯m already a winner even without being the top in the world.

    Well, I¡¯ll still get the top of the world spot though.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°A letter?¡±

    After lunch, I heard the details of a matter regarding Yukari while drinking coffee.

    I see, I see, so apparently, thete Duchess Lucia Icene wants me to do something.

    ¡°However, why did Phillip decide it was okay to hand it over at this time, Master? ¡°

    ¡°About that. He was probably brainwashed.¡±

    ¡°¡­I see.¡±

    Yukari seemed to have instantly understood it. It is very strange that the head of argepany came this far just for a dark elf and a letter. However, everything makes sense if you think he was brainwashed by the Duchess.

    Well then. With that being the case, I¡¯m a bit anxious about the contents of the letter.

    What did the Duchess want to hand over to me that caused her to go this far? Let¡¯s see¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Wow.¡±

    What was written in it was something more dangerous than I expected. An unimaginable thing.

    ¡°How was it? ¡°

    Looking at my appearance, Yukari also became curious.

    ¡°This is something troublesome. I don¡¯t know how to say it. However¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°However? ¡°

    ¡°Well, worry not. Just leave it to me.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes, Master.¡±

    Nodding happily, Yukari didn¡¯t ask further. I¡¯m sure she¡¯s curious about it, but she decided to leave it to me. Feeling her gaze filled with interest resting upon me, I carefully read the letter of the Duchess again.

    Four pieces of information were written in the letter.

    ¢Ù A list of reliable people.

    ¢Ú A list of people not to trust.

    ¢Û The true state of affairs inside the Castall Kingdom.

    ¢Ü How to learn ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·.

    None of those spelled good news. From ¢Ù through ¢Û it is understood that the Prime Minister of the Castall Kingdom, a man by the name of Val Morrow, is on the Marubell Empire¡¯s side. There are arge number of agents of the Empire inside the Kingdom and they are guiding the public¡¯s opinion, and the people in the Kingdom who already know this fact are in an unfavorable position.

    The Kingdom is on the verge of being overtaken by the Empire. If Prince us, who was raised to be the head of the ¡ºReformists¡» under the leadership of the Prime Minister, bes a king, the Kingdom will fall into the hands of the Empire. The reforms they are pushing are ¡°To walk, side by side, with the Empire into a new era¡±, but the truth is, the Kingdom will be a puppet of the Empire. Behind the scenes, that shitty treaty would arbitrarily squeeze the Kingdom dry. And even though there have been several small countries that had been absorbed and dried out in this same way, the imperial agents have sneaked inside the media in the Kingdom, hiding this fact.

    On the other hand, the people in the Kingdom who know of this fact, also known as the Conservationists, are fighting against it while keeping in mind the second Prince Maine as a sessor. However, they are few in numbers. Although they advocate for military expansion, in truth, it has been shrinking. The Kingdom¡¯s people have been fervently raising their voice against war. If things continue like this, they won¡¯t even put up a fight, ignorant of their fate of being invaded.

    Thus, that¡¯s where number ¢Ües in, by taking into ount the state of the Kingdom.

    The reason why she wrote down the method to learn ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·, a secret that has been maintained within the Icene family for hundreds of years. I can at least understand that much. She meant to say something like this, ¡°Please, in my stead, do something about the future of the Castall Kingdom¡±.

    If I think about why she chose me, an answer immediatelyes to mind. It makes sense to pass on the ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· to a person clever enough to detect and lift the Brainwashing on Yukari. If I had perhaps failed, the letter would¡¯ve never arrived, and Yukari most likely would be recalled by Phillip, repeatedly looking for a new master for her. In other words, she was looking for a worthy sessor.

    Well, to be honest, I don¡¯t care at all about the future of the Castall Kingdom. However, I made a promise to Yukari, and I¡¯m a bit worried about Maine. Would this settle down if I were to kill the Prime Minister Val Morrow and Queen White?¡¡But then, I feel like I would be made out to be an enemy of the people by the infiltrated operatives. Ideally, Maine should ascend to power and get rid of the rotten parts.

    After giving this some serious thought, I couldn¡¯te up with an answer.

    For now, I¡¯ll just finish the fourth purpose, and stick out my neck for this mess after that.

    Preparations for that aren¡¯t perfect yet after all. I¡¯ll never y a game I¡¯m not going to win. The world¡¯s top must remain undefeated. Even a single defeat isn¡¯t allowed. It makes no sense unless I¡¯m the number one in the world that everyone recognizes. That¡¯s who I am, the best in the world.

    ¡°Alright. The next course of action has been decided.¡±

    For the time being, I decided to put learning ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· on hold. After a nce, it looks somewhat, no, very annoying to learn. I have to make some preparations beforehand. Preparations worthy of the top in the world.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take Silvia and Eko and learn the Transform Skill. Can I leave the servants up to you, Yukari? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. Leave it to me.¡±

    ¡°Sorry to have you take action separately from us.¡±

    ¡°No, pay no mind to it.¡±

    Yukari nodded pleasantly. From the time I started to speak about servants I got the feeling she wanted to say ¡°Please leave their education to me¡±, and it seemed to me that Yukari had something in mind about the ¡®servants¡¯. I wonder if I get that feeling from just her maid clothes?

    ¡°The maid clothes look good on you.¡±

    While parting with her, I gave some words of praise.

    Responding with a ¡°Thank you¡±, Yukari bowed to me and went back inside. Needless to say, her ears were red. I think I did good in praising her.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Afternoon.

    All of us, except for Yukari, came to the slime forest located between the Royal Capital, Vinceton, and the mine.

    ¡°Can we learn it too? ¡°

    Walking next to me, Silvia asked not quite convinced.

    ¡°You sure can.¡±

    ¡°No, but I¡¯ve never heard of a Transform Skill¡­¡­? ¡°

    Maybe it¡¯s a skill that has yet to be discovered in this world. Certainly, its conditions are quite special.

    ¡°There are four conditions. It¡¯s pretty confusing, so I¡¯ll exin it step by step.¡±

    When I said that, Silvia took out a notepad from her inventory. It¡¯s quite Silvia-like to prepare to take notes immediately after hearing it would beplicated. Eko on the other hand, was just happily humming while skipping as she held my hand. She really takes things at her own pace.

    ¡°£±) Inflict exactly four repdigits of damage, from 1111 to 9999, to one type of monster one time or more. £²) Inflict exactly four repdigits of damage, from 1111 to 9999 to a Dungeon boss one time or more. £³) Complete step 1 and 2 within a week. £´) While making a pose, yell, ¡°Transform!¡±. That¡¯s all.¡±

    ¡°Wait a moment. Is thest one for real? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°So, it is¡­¡­¡±

    While being somewhat shocked, Silvia properly took notes. Eko was yelling ¡°Trans©`form! ¡± while crossing her arms. She has quite a good sense.

    ¡°I see. Is the weapon you bought earlier for this matching digit damage thing, Second-dono?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. As we are now, it¡¯s impossible for us to do only 1111 damage with our main skills unless the enemy is from an Upper-ss Dungeon.¡±

    Before we came to the slime forest, I bought three simple spears at the Weapon¡¯s Store in the Capital. Additionally, we learned the ¡¾Spearmanship¡¿¡®s skill ¡¶Soldier Spearmanship¡· by reading the book at the Comiket. We¡¯re all set to do shitty damage.

    Whye to this slime forest you might ask? Well, slimes have the characteristic of having low attack power, but high defense, and this forest is filled to the brim with such slimes. This is the only forest where you can easily fulfill that condition for ¡¶Transform¡·, since all there is here are slimes that can be used for the repdigit damage conditions.

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to take a note of the repdigit damage. You too, Eko.¡±

    ¡°Umu.¡±

    ¡°Yes! ¡°

    ¡°Well, everyone has their spears ready, right? ¡°

    ¡°YEAH©`! ¡°

    ¡°Y-yeah©`.¡±

    Answered the enthusiastic Eko and the not so energetic Silvia. She¡¯s like this right now, but she¡¯ll probably get hooked up on it once she learns ¡¶Transform¡·¡­ ¡­I¡¯m afraid to think she¡¯ll go out night after night, introducing herself with some weird name and yelling the name of a special attack.

    Well, whatever.

    ¡°Alright!¡¡Let the repdigit hunt begin! ¡°

    =====

    Thank you for reading.

    Thank you very much for your support this year.

    And I¡¯ll be in your care this next year too.

    (TLN: Yeah, everything thates after the ===== in each chapter are the author¡¯s notes.)

 Chapter 50: The Fourteen Slaves

    <h4>Chapter 50: The Fourteen ves</h4>

    Well then.

    Master has entrusted the servants to me.

    What a high honor!

    In other words, that means that I¡¯ve automatically be the top servant. Higher than even the house steward. That means, from other people¡¯s perspective, I¡¯ll be a¡­¡­

    ¡°Madam?¡¡Just kidding.¡±

    I¡¯m in such a good mood that I¡¯ve even started talking to myself.

    Inside the room that Master has given to me, which was toorge and elegant for someone like me, I was taking a look at the list of ves I received from Phillip, the president of the Maurice Company, trying to find servants.

    The n I have at the moment consists of three stages.

    First, I will get four men as candidates for the position of butler, chef, gardener and a stable-hand; and also, ten women as candidates for all-purpose maids who can perform any job.

    Next, I¡¯ll give each of them a high level of education and raise their abilities to the level where they are eptable for serving Master.

    And finally, I will fill in the rest of the necessary personnel as their subordinates.

    Well, this is for the best.

    It¡¯s a shame that I¡¯ll have arge number of women get close to Master, a shame indeed, but it can¡¯t be helped to some extent considering the men to women ratio in Firstest. But that is where my scheming, excuse me, I mean education will keep them in check.

    All the servants to be employed will be men and women who are ves. I don¡¯t intend to hire ordinary people. The reason for that, I¡¯m scared of betrayal.

    Even with the ve contract, it¡¯s somewhat scary if you ask me. I could read from Phillip¡¯s speech that the ¡®jailbreak¡¯ was not knowledge only Master knew about. There are several potential enemies, and with the current situation where I don¡¯t know where they mighte from, I can¡¯t help but to be this cautious about betrayal in order to protect Master.

    ¡­¡­Casually, one word crossed my mind.

    Brainwashing¨D¨D Maybe Lucia-sama was feeling like I¡¯m feeling now. If there¡¯s someone you want to protect, do everything and anything to keep them from harm, no matter the cost. Yeah, I will do so as well.

    However, I can¡¯t use brainwashing. Therefore, I will protect Master using my own means.

    That is, make the servants dependent. Give them relief, entice them, and have them put their faith in us. Completely steal away their hearts so that they never try to betray us. And ce that faith in Master.

    Perhaps, even Master thought this far and that¡¯s the reason he decided on the ¡ºMansion for Servants¡». As one would expect from Master. That far insight of his is admirable as usual.

    Picking up ves with as miserable of a past as possible, I put them on the servants list.

    ¨D¨DHere is where Masteres in. An environment where the weak can be saved. For them, this will be their own paradise. A world where such painful pasts, such broken hearts, such unreasonable circumstances can be thrown away. Just as it was for me in the past.

    ¡°Fuu, I guess these should do.¡±

    Havingpiled the list, I cleaned the house as I waited for Master¡¯s return.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­It took me until nightfall, and yet I didn¡¯t finish all of it. It¡¯s unexpected that it took this much just for one single mansion.

    Looks like I¡¯ll really need to increase the number of employees as soon as possible¡­¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    The next day.

    Having Master spare a bit of his time for this matter, we went to the Maurice Company.

    Having no particr issues with my choice, the ve contract was finalized smoothly under the presence of the President.

    The contents of the contract are simple and clear, butpared to mine, ¡°unable to attack¡± wasn¡¯t listed. The main points are basically to have a good master-ve rtionship that doesn¡¯t denigrate them as humans.

    After the contract waspleted, my busy Master gave a light greeting to the ves, and immediately after he went back to the slime forest.

    Well then, with this we got a total of 14 servants, both men and women.

    They all looked at me with frightened, hopeless eyes.

    Dear lord, it seems there¡¯s still a long way ahead. If they were to properly look at the current situation in which me, a Dark Elf, the object of persecution is just standing before them without issue and Master¡¯s simplicity, they may realize there is nothing to feel frightened or lose hope about.

    But apparently, there isn¡¯t a person cunning enough to think rationally while their emotions have been crushed. Still, I see no madness in their eyes. If it¡¯s like this, then it¡¯s only a matter of time before their faith and dependence take roots.

    Taking the 14 ves along, I headed for the mansion in the east.

    As soon as we arrived, I lined everyone in front of the gate, then I stood in the entrance with my back to the mansion and looked over everyone.

    First impressions are very important. Speaking as calmly as possible, I recited the sentence I thought ofst night.

    ¡°You guys have been blessed. Please be aware of it over the next few days.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The ves gulped in. Seems like this really got their attention.

    ¡°And when you be aware of it, please work to be of help to Master. That¡¯s the only condition for enjoying this blessed environment.¡±

    I looked over the faces of the ves. They all seemed puzzled. Well, that¡¯s a given. They cannot believe this. I was the same before.

    ¡°You, who was persecuted because of skin color and was sold into very by the only people you trusted in, your parents. The sisters who were ostracized and used of a crime they had no connection to. You, who was betrayed by your wife and was sold into very to pay for arge debt. The woman trapped in the body of a man who fell into very for the sin of obscenity ¨D¨D¡±

    I exposed each person¡¯s past right there.

    The fourteen people raised amotion. But there was nobody whoined about it. Why? They couldn¡¯t help but worry about what my next words would be. That¡¯s because of what I said before, that they have been blessed. Why did you want to make us aware of that?¡¡Is there really something to have faith towards?¡¡Why should we have expectations?¡¡I will answer those questions to those sad faces.

    ¡°Forget about all of that. Master does not care at all about the color of your skin and all that. All of you, listen, Master already knows your usations were false. Arge debt?¡¡If you stay here, you can pay it back in less than three years. Ahh, and it¡¯s obvious, but Master would never betray you. You feel like a woman even though you¡¯re a man? It¡¯s okay, Master understands and you can definitely workfortably¨D¨D¡±

    I went straight ahead and denied everyone¡¯s past.

    The heart of many of them shook, and the effect rippled across the others. Life gradually returned to those dead eyes. The greatness of their master, the value of trust, the fact that they¡¯ll get paid, the deep feelings of yearning. Even if they can¡¯t believe in this immediately, they can¡¯t help but to have some expectations growing in their hearts.

    ¡°After crossing this gate, the disgrace that has been tormenting you all this time will be a thing of the past.¡±

    Turning my back to the fourteen people, I walked through the gates of the mansion of the east.

    Everyone stared at me, waiting for the continuation of my words.

    Even though they want to save themselves, they can¡¯t reach out for themselves. They want to believe it, but they can¡¯t. Therefore, they wait. They are pitiful existences who can only wait. Therefore, I grabbed those curled, hand-cuffed hands, and forcefully pulled them. Just as Master did for me. The only difference is, I never unlocked the cuffs.

    ¡°Don¡¯t hesitate and just walk through the gate. Come here. If you do that, I¡¯ll give you some work. I¡¯ll educate you from the beginning if necessary. I guarantee there will be enough clothing, food and housing. Nobody has the right to refuse.¡±

    I brought the 14 silent people across the gate.

    Turning back afterwards, I looked at everyone¡¯s faces. Indeed, a good expression. Whether this is true or they are being deceived, they have no choice but to believe. But every one of them has the face of a person who has made their resolution.

    Fufu, they are already like this.

    It¡¯s time to begin my ¡°Make the servants dependent¡± n.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    The fateful day.

    We sisters were bought by a very handsome man.

    After that, a cold and expressionless Dark Elf dressed in maid clothes appeared in front of us.

    A Dark Elf maid¡­¡­ Is she a subordinate of that man?¡¡Speaking of dark elves, aren¡¯t they a target of discrimination in this rotten Kingdom? Looks like we were bought by someone dangerous¡­¡­

    ¡°Sister El¡­¡­¡±

    My little sister Es, held my hand tightly. You¡¯re worried, aren¡¯t you?¡¡It¡¯s alright, I¡¯m with you.

    Fourteen male and female ves, us included, are lined up in front of a stupidlyrge gate.

    It¡¯s an incredible mansion. Well, I sort of expected it, but that man is ridiculously rich after all. I don¡¯t know what he intends to do by buying so many ves at once, but at least it doesn¡¯t seem like we¡¯re going to be sold off ¡®under the table¡¯, so I feel relieved.

    While tasting this drop of relief among the crushing fear, the dark elf woman stood in front of us. She¡¯s an incredible beauty. Moreover, she has no gaps at all. Thus, there is a sense of intimidation exuding from her that makes me shrink, just by having her looking over here. Just who in the world is this woman?

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡­¡­It was at the time I was thinking that.

    She suddenly began to speak.

    We are blessed. Be aware of that¨D¨D She said.

    What is this person spouting? I¡¯m not that fool of a woman. We are not naive enough to be swayed by such words. There¡¯s no way we would believe such a convenient story. And since I¡¯m aware of that, I¡¯m anxious about the future. I imagined the poor environment from which no escape could be possible. Just what kind of sketchy environment is she trying to deceive us into to humiliate us further?¡¡At least, those were my thoughts. Therefore, I cursed in my mind. Only an idiot would have some expectations from the beginning.

    ¡°¨D¨DThe sisters who were ostracized and used of a crime they had no¨D¨D¡¹

    ¡°Wha-!? ¡°

    This woman, how does she know!?

    Or rather, does she know the circumstances of all the guys here!?¡¡This is no good, such a thing!¡¡She really is trying to humiliate us¨D¨D

    ¡°All of you, listen, Master already knows your usations were false.¡±

    ¨D¨D¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?

    W-Wait, what¡¯s the meaning of this?

    Why do they know the usations were false?

    Is there a meaning to know such a thing?

    Why did this woman want us to confront this?

    Does she really need to remember the information from each and every single ve she¡¯ll be using from now on?

    Maybe, just maybe, she¡¯s not trying to humiliate us ¡­¡­?

    ¡°After crossing this gate, the disgrace that has been tormenting you all this time will be a thing of the past.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Ah, that¡¯s right.

    How good would it be if it were to be true?

    Alright, I understand. I¡¯ll believe it.

    She said to go through the gate. If I¡¯m told toe, I¡¯ll go.

    I¡¯ll have expectations. We¡¯ve been betrayed over and over again, but onest time, I¡¯ll believe onest time.

    That¡¯s why¡­¡­I beg you. Don¡¯t betray us anymore.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡­¡­To think there was a time when I had such thoughts!

    What the heck is this!?

    A mansion exclusively for the servants!?¡¡Really!?¡¡Never in my life have I heard of a mansion being used for housing only servants!

    Besides, even if it¡¯s for a simple maid, I can¡¯t understand how every ve has a separate room!!¡¡This is an amazing room!

    Rather, how muchnd do they own?¡¡Can we really stay in a ce like this?¡¡I think I might be misunderstanding something!

    Isn¡¯t the level of education needed pretty high?¡¡She didn¡¯t make a mistake, did she?¡¡Furthermore, a high-quality education isn¡¯t something anyone can easily get, right?¡¡If things go as they are, I might be a top-notch maidparable to those of a senior noble.¡¡Is that okay?¡¡Can I?

    Also, isn¡¯t the food way too good?¡¡Being this delicious, I¡¯m bound to be fat if I were to eat this three times a day.

    No, that was a lie. There¡¯s no way I could gain weight. The grueling training from that perfectionist demon maid was terrible. I didn¡¯t have the time to get fat since I was shown hell once every three days. Well, still, this is like heavenpared to beforeing here.

    Recently, the appearance of Master in the evening, whom I saw from a long distance, has be my sce. I¡¯m not yet allowed to serve you, but my goal is to eventually be able to serve you.

    But really, I have noints except for that dark demon drill sergeant, who is quite scary. Truly, I feel blessed. I¡¯vepletely be aware of this. I was made to. It was engraved in my mind.

    But if I think about it calmly, all of us, the ten all-purpose maids have yet to get close to Master. Isn¡¯t that weird?¡¡Could this be, by any chance, because that demon drill sergeant is¨D¨D

    ¡°El. Why have your hands stopped? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m v-very sorry.¡±

    I was scolded!¡¡Is she an Esper!?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Es looked at me whileughing. Isn¡¯t it great? You sure have a talent for being a maid. Your sister here, on the other hand is not good. Isn¡¯t it usually the other way around¡­¡­?

    ¡°Is that clear?¡¡The ten of you, as you are now, have yet to reach a level where you wouldn¡¯t put to shame the name of ¡ºAll-purpose maid corps¡». Your education, your attitude, and your experience are still not enough. I¡¯ll teach you each of them. Therefore, learn the knack of it. And eventually, you¡¯ll be in a position to teach your subordinates.¡±

    But at the end of the day, Yukari-sama encourages us as she oversees us.

    Even if this person is tough like a demon, somehow, she¡¯s a very good person.

    Well¡­¡­In other words, that¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to say.

    I want to work here for the rest of my life.

 Chapter 51: Preparations Completed

    <h4>Chapter 51: Preparations Completed</h4>

    We spent three whole days learning ¡¶Transform¡·.

    Once we had the equipment, the skills and the target to make the repdigit damage, all we had left to do was to pray to heaven for us to be lucky. Therefore, it took a while.

    Well, that was fine. But the thing is.

    ¡­¡­What I was afraid of, became a reality.

    ¡°In the name of the Knights of Justice, I will bring judgement upon you, bastard! ¨D¨DTransform!¡±

    Currently in the garden of the mansion in the east.

    Silvia was practicing poses alone against a palm tree, thinking nobody was watching her. Then, before I knew it, she was also trying to change her lines.

    ¡°Hmm, for my chivalry¡­¡­no, your sins have been¡­¡­¡¹

    And thus, she tried to improve them.

    I would like her to stop walking around while muttering those lines since she totally looks like a suspicious person, after all, she can¡¯t transform again until the transformation wears off.

    By the way, in case you¡¯re wondering what kind of appearance one has after transforming, that¡¯s quite simple. The color and patterns on the gear currently equipped changes, and a mask and a cloak are added. With ¡¶Transform¡· you can select any of the four major attributes. In the case of Silvia, since she chose ¡ºFire Attribute Transform¡», her equipment became the color of a me, and the mask she wears is also fire-like, her cloak appearing as if she was wearing a me.

    However, as you¡¯d expect from what was a game, it¡¯s not just a fire-like pattern. It¡¯s more like ¡°living mes¡±. And they are in 3D. Her whole body looked like it was actually engulfed in mes. And since that¡¯s an appearance you wouldn¡¯t see in reality, it looks very cool. That can be said to be the main reason Silvia got addicted to using it.

    Well then. An unexpected point came to light with this attribute selection thing for me.

    That¡¯s right, I was able to choose ¡ºLightning Attribute Transform¡». Of course, leaving aside the four major attributes, this was a transformation I had never heard about.

    And I was even more surprised when I actually transformed. Unlike Angolmois¡¯ red-ck lightning, mine was a blue-ck lightning. And it gushed out from my whole body. The design of the mask and cloak was one I had never seen either.

    A never-seen-before design¨D¨D no way. Was it an element originally hidden? Or maybe, it just something newly designed?

    There¡¯s no problem if it¡¯s the former. But if it¡¯s thetter, most likely this world has received an ¡°update¡±.

    In other words, there are elements that have been added that I¡¯m not aware of. This gives me both anxiety and joy at the same time.

    In any case, this is a problem I can¡¯t do anything about, so no use worrying about it. But I have to keep it in mind. If I am to reign as the top in the world, then eventually I¡¯ll face something unknown.

    ¡°Divine punishment¨D¨DFirst Shot! ¡°

    I decided to ignore Silvia, who started practicing her special attack and went to see Yukari.

    In addition to ordering certain weapons and armor, I need her to do ¡¶Performance Enhancement¡·¨D¨D

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    It¡¯s been a while since then.

    I think around two weeks have passed. We¡¯ve been earning experience all this time.

    I¡¯ve gotpanions. I¡¯ve got a home to return to. That home is a mansion. This truly is great!¡¡We¡¯re filled with motivation.

    However, Silvia and Eko¡¯s Dragon Horse and Dragon King haven¡¯t gone up that easily. The required experience points are ridiculously high. And adding to that, that stupid Silvia trying to pointlessly raise ¡¶Transform¡· has made it even less efficient.

    Yukari, on the other hand, has gotten her ¡¶Disassembly¡· skill decently up. It¡¯s almost time for her to begin ying an active role as a cksmith.

    And, as for me¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright, preparationspleted.¡±

    ¨D¨DI¡¯m ready. My preparations have beenpleted.

    As of right now, I¡¯ve raised ¡¶Transform¡· to Grade 9.

    The skills I needed to ¡®prepare¡¯ were ¡¶Rook Archery¡·at Grade 9, ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· at Grade 9, ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·at Grade 6, ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Third Form¡· at Grade 6, ¡¶Critical¡· at Grade 9, ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· at Grade 9, ¡¶Transform¡· at Grade 9, and ¡¶Tame¡· to the 11th ss.

    Any attribute of magic was fine, but I chose Lightning Attribute just because I felt like it. ¡¶Transform¡· was quickly raised to Grade 9 due to its low experience requirements. And although I¡¯d have liked to get ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· to Grade 9, I stopped there because of the incredibly high amount of experience required to raise it from 6 to 9.

    ¡¶Tame¡· is from the ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿ system, a skill to train monsters, and at the 11th ss it can be used on ¡¸Wolf-type monsters¡¹. It can be used when the monster¡¯s health was in the remaining 2/10s of HP, and while the probability is said to be 20%, that probability greatly varies depending on the type and strength of the target monster. By the way, increasing the skill¡¯s rank also increases the sess probability and the variety of monsters that can be tamed with it.

    Well then.

    For what reason did I go through these preparations?

    The answer is, I made all these preparations in order to tame a certain monster¡­¡­ no, a certain demon.

    Its name is ¡¸Darkness Wolf¡¹.

    The answer is, I made all these preparations in order to tame a certain monster¡­¡­ no, a certain demon.

    Its name is ¡¸Darkness Wolf¡¹.

    Inside the upper-ss dungeon ¡ºIsoreus¡» a mutant species of the dungeon boss ¡¸Dark me Wolf¡¹ has evolved after hundreds of years living in the solitude of darkness. The ¡¸Darkness Wolf¡¹ is a rare and terrifying demon ¨D¨D Or at least, that¡¯s the setting it had.

    ¡­¡­Let¡¯s get straight to the point.

    It¡¯s no exaggeration to say that I was able to maintain my position and reign at the top of the world in Mobius all thanks to this Demon. It was overwhelmingly more powerful than any other monster that could be tamed, making it almost cheat-like.

    In other words, in the ranking of ¡®Demons that I really need to tame no matter what¡¯, this one ranks first by far.

    In the past, there was only one person who was able to tame the Darkness Wolf. That¡¯s right, me. At least, during the time I yed Mobius, no other yer was able to tame it.

    Why? Because its difficulty level made it nearly impossible to be tamed.

    In the first ce, normal yers never even got the idea of ¡°Let¡¯s go and tame the Darkness Wolf¡±. The reason for that was ¡°Bosses can¡¯t be tamed¡±. It couldn¡¯t be helped since that wasmon sense.

    And on top of that, the Darkness Wolf was incredibly strong. It was so strong, people even had a hard time trying to defeat it. Therefore, nobody even thought of trying to tame it.

    But the truth was, the Darkness Wolf was tamable. The reason was simple. Although in the lore, the Darkness Wolf was a mutated evolution of the dungeon¡¯s boss, it was treated as apletely different entitypared to the boss.

    I noticed that fact by the way the corpse disappeared. Originally, whenever you defeat a boss in an upper-ss dungeon, a cut-scene will y and the corpse will disappear somewhere along the movie. However, there was no cut-scene when defeating the Darkness Wolf, and its corpse disappeared after a certain amount of time, just like a ¡°normal monster¡±.

    Yeah, that¡¯s when I had my suspicions. Maybe there really is a chance to do it¨D¨DThinking so, I repeatedly tried to tame the Darkness Wolf after bringing it down to less than 2/10s HP.

    The result was a crushing failure. After attempting 1,000 times I felt ¡°As expected, it¡¯s impossible to tame it¡±, since it would be an unheard rate below 0.1% at this point.

    At first, I went at it deciding to try for at least 1000 times and see what happened. And obviously, those 1000 times were no good. However, I wondered why? I couldn¡¯t shake off that feeling. No matter how you looked at it, the way its corpse disappeared was simr to a normal monster. Therefore, the Darkness Wolf should not be a boss.

    Why©`©`©`©`©`©`? I didn¡¯t think my reasoning was wrong on this.

    Gradually, I was just pissed off, or rather I was simply stubborn, so I continued to hunt the Darkness Wolf endlessly afterwards. 2,000 tries, 3,000 tries. Day after day, from morning until night. I wanted to settle this doubt as soon as possible, so I just pushed through. But there was a silver lining. Since the battle was short, I could keep my motivation.

    And finally, the time came. After trying for over 4,600 times, I was finally able to tame it. Yeah, and my predictions were correct!

    This is something I found outter, but it seems the taming chance was about 0.0001% and it ignored Tame skill¡¯s probability correction. I remember a GM saying to me at an in-game event ¡°It was prepared as a joke, but you did well taming it (lol)¡±, and I almost flipped out.

    The Darkness Wolf can be tamed¨D¨Dall the game addicts that heard that information embarked into the taming journey. However, no yer was ever sessful in it.

    The obvious result. Even if the no-life gamers tried, they struggled and gave up, moreover, with a probability of 0.0001%, it couldn¡¯t be done without discipline. ¡°It¡¯s impossible¡±,ints like that were posted a lot in the wiki.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­And that impossibility, I¡¯ll be challenging it again. I was getting ready for that.

    And as for the method, I sorted that out in the past. My body remembers all of it. It can be called aplete strategy, in and out. A n to easily shave off the Darkness Wolf¡¯s HP. However, although the same, this world is definitely different from Mobius.

    ¡°It¡¯s over when you die¡±, being the main difference.

    However, if I can tame the Darkness Wolf, the world¡¯s top spot is as good as mine. There¡¯s no way I won¡¯t try it.

    Geez, it¡¯s been a while since Ist felt scared.

    I might die. I tried reducing the risks as much as possible. I also have an insurance in case of an emergency. Still, I can¡¯t get rid of this anxiety.

    ¡­¡­And just in case, I should raise ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·to Grade 9 just to be safe. I¡¯ll also raise ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Third Form¡· magic to Grade 9. Simply put, I have to raise my stats more. It¡¯s okay to try and be safer, right?

    That¡¯s right, that¡¯s the case!¡¡Or so, the weaker parts of me screamed loudly. But I forced myself to swallow those words. Once I start to think about more safety, there will be no end to it. I¡¯ll simply continue to make excuses in order to run away from it, and I won¡¯t be able to get back up for the rest of my life. Back in Mobius, I never ran away. If I were to run away once, the whole of my persona will copse.

    Currently, the Castall Kingdom and the Marubell Empire are fighting under the table. If I¡¯m taking things too slowly, it¡¯ll be toote once something happens. I really want to tame the Darkness Wolf before firees raining down on me.

    And since I don¡¯t know how long it will take for me to do it, in terms of timing, now is the only moment. I know it will be hard.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Alright, now it¡¯s only the finishing touches.¡±

    Carefully pondering over my resolution, I went over to Yukari.

    I told her toplete the equipment I asked her about first, over everything else.

    A Mithril Longbow and a Mithril Sword, plus a variety of Mithril Alloy armor. The weapons were ordered at five out of six enhancement stages, and the armor at four out of five. Each weapon enhancement is specialized in attack speed first and attack power second. And all armor is specialized in defense. Additionally, I asked for a stage three enhancement for the ¡ºRing of Pursuit¡».

    Incidentally, I noticed it. It¡¯s wrong to overwork Yukari this much.

    However, I can no longer think of reaching the top without her. Hmm¡­¡­That¡¯s right. While I¡¯m with the Darkness Wolf, I¡¯ll let her spend her time rxing.

    Silvia and Eko on the other hand, are bing hopeless.

    These days, those guys are reluctant to leave their elegant life in the mansion. The times they work on their official role has also decreased. Some days, just seeing them pains my heart. If they get too full of themselves, it would only endanger their lives. Therefore, I thought of a special training menu for those two.

    Aside from getting the equipment from Yukari, I¡¯ll also hold a strategy meeting with everyone.

    There¡¯s a lot of things I need to tell everyone. Well, for example, I have to tell them what they should do if I were to die.

    We¨Cll then, tonight will surely be a long night¡­¡­

 Chapter 52: A Nasty Opponent

    <h4>Chapter 52: A Nasty Opponent</h4>

    After talking all night, it was now morning.

    I somehow managed to convince the three girls. I¡¯ll have to report daily using the team-limitedmunication. That might be a little troublesome, but I suppose it can¡¯t be helped.

    I also instructed Silvia and Eko to have a special training by ¡®fighting at the Limptfert Dungeon alone¡¯ while I¡¯m away. However, it¡¯s not like they are going to be diving into the dungeon alone; the two will enter, but one will fight while the other one watches from behind.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t this be a little hard for Eko? ¡°

    Silvia was saying such a thing. Certainly, Eko can only use ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ and ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿. It will take her a considerable amount of time to defeat even one of the monsters along the way.

    However, the answer to her question was no. I told Silvia that, if anything, she had it harder.

    With this special training, these two will surely know the importance of the forward guard and the rear guard. They need to not get too full of themselves. And it will really be helpful if they grow by the time I get back.

    Yukari, on the other hand, was made to take a vacation.

    ¡­¡­However, she said she would be ashamed if she were the only one not doing anything, so I asked her for a single long-term issue. As soon as her ¡¶Disassembly¡·skill is at Grade 9, she will be starting to get actively engaged.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    And thus, it was such a farewell with them.

    When I left the mansion a lot of servants were lined up in front of the gate, and together with the three girls, they saw me off.

    I was a little embarrassed, so I simply told them ¡°Thank you¡± and rode off on top of Seventh Tei¨­.

    From here, I¡¯ll be heading towards the town of Pae Ho. From there, I¡¯ll then head towards the port town Ko and head off to the sea by boat. A small ind nearby is the location of an upper-ss dungeon called ¡ºIsoreus¡».

    Since I have to make a small detour to the Ashaspern Dungeon, I will stay overnight in the town of Pae Ho. The next day, I will travel all day and stay the night in Ko. In other words, the day after tomorrow is when I challenge Isoreus.

    Well then.

    Using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·, I called for my reliablepanion whom I will be fighting along with for a long time, in manner mode.

    ¡°£¨¨D¨DWhy did you call me while riding, my Second? £©¡°

    The minute I summoned him, the Great Spirit King Angolmois spoke to me using telepathicmunication.

    ¡°£¨I¡¯ll share some information since I¡¯ll be fighting a very strong enemy. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨What?!¡¡Is that true?!£©¡°

    Angolmois visibly became in high spirits. I already figured it out a bit, but this guy is seriously a fighting maniac.

    ¡°£¨Calm down. I said very strong, but I think I expressed myself wrong. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨What do you mean? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨It is very strong. Incredibly so. To the point where if one were to win against it the first time they fight it, I would get naked and prostrate before them. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Hoo!¡¡So, there¡¯s an opponent who can make my Second say that?!¡¡My blood is boiling!¡¡Fuhahaha! £©¡°

    ¡°£¨That enemy is the Darkness Wolf. I want to tame it. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Tame, you say?!¡¡Tame such a strong enemy?!£©¡°

    ¡°£¨That¡¯s right. I need to half-kill it, then try to tame it, and if that fails I¡¯ll just start over again. I¡¯ll be repeating this. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨What a brave feat. Admirable. However, hmm¡­¡­ That will be a long fight. £©¡°

    We arrived at Pae Ho while talking about it.

    After securing the lodging, we headed towards Ashaspern.

    ¡°£¨Why did youe here? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨To get the horn of a goblin mage. Well, to put it simply, it¡¯s just something to use as a st resort¡¯. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­Hohoo. You don¡¯t leave anything to chance. £©¡°

    Through the sense of unity I could tell Angolmois was impressed by my preparations.

    After collecting the goblin mage¡¯s horn we returned to Pae Ho.

    And since we were already here, I bought some high-ss potions from the specialty store. 10 million CL in total. I already have in my inventory enough potions that one wouldn¡¯t use them all for a lifetime, but it doesn¡¯t hurt to buy some more when I have the chance. That is because from now on, I¡¯ll consume so many of them it even hurts me to think about.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    The next day.

    From the morning, we went to the port town Ko while I rode on Seventh Tei¨­.

    Taking advantage of the spare time I talked to Angolmois, who was still in manner mode, in order to share the information I had.

    ¡°£¨I¡¯ll think of the basic information I know of the Darkness Wolf, so please check it with the sense of unity. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨As you wish. £©¡°

    Alright, so far the preparations look good. For starters, let¡¯s think about the Darkness Wolf¡¯s basic skills.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡¶Darkness Shift¡·: Transforms from Wolf-form to Human-form and vice versa. The transformation time is 8 seconds.

    ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·: Instantly transfer yourself to a previously known location. However, the transfer destination must be a shadow.

    ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·: Human-form only. Instantly transfer something other than yourself to a recorded location. However, the transfer destination must be a shadow.

    ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·: Human-form only. Emits a fog of darkness that ¡¸Forcibly lowers the remaining HP to 1¡¹ at a wide area in front. Preparation time: 3 seconds.

    ¡¶Darkness Howl¡·: Wolf-form only. Strong long-range attack to the front. Preparation time: 2 seconds.

    ¡¶False Shadow¡·: Negates attacks received from the moment it activates. No preparation time, active time: 3 seconds, cooldown time: 30 seconds.

    ¡ù Physical attacks are nullified when in wolf-form, magic attacks are nullified when in human-form.

    ¡°£¨Wh-What the heck is that! ?£©¡°

    There was surprise in Angolmois¡¯ voice.

    What he was surprised about was probably ¡®that¡¯ and ¡®that¡¯.

    ¡°£¨All attacks are negated! ?£©¡°

    ¡°£¨That¡¯s right. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨And it forcibly lowers your stamina to 1!?¡¡Does such a strange magic exist! ?£©¡°

    ¡°£¨It does. And also, it uses it quite often too. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­¡­¡­£©¡°

    As I expected, even the Great Spirit King became lost for words.

    ¡°£¨There¡¯s no problem with the attack negation. What¡¯s scary is that the near instant death attack is in a ¡°wide area¡±. And even more scary is, after Darkness Magic, it uses ¡®arge number of different attacks¡¯. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Then¡­¡­ You should heal up quickly. Is that the reason why you bought so many potions? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨No, it¡¯s better not to heal up right away. Ideally, one should heal up after being safe. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Why? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Because after using Darkness Magic, it will either use Darkness Summon or Jojutsu to attack. With the former, the priority is to prevent it, and to avoid it if it¡¯s thetter. £©¡°

    TLN: Jojutsu (or Joujutsu) is fighting with canes, as opposed to Bojutsu or (Boujutsu) which is fighting with staves.

    ¡°£¨Wait. Jojutsu?¡¡Never heard of that. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨You¡¯ll see it soon. £©¡°

    The skills of the Darkness Wolf aren¡¯t only the ones I just mentioned. Let¡¯s share those while including them in the behavior patterns this time. These are the Darkness Wolf¡¯s patterns that I¡¯ve learned and umted after thousands of tries and kills.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¢Ù Rush ¡ú ¢Ú Body m or w attack or ¢Û Bite or ¢Ü Darkness Transfer.

    ¢Û Bite ¡ú Darkness Howl ¡ú Darkness Transfer ¡ú ¢Ù Rush or ¢Ý Darkness Shift.

    ¢Ü Darkness Transfer ¡ú ¢Ù Rush or ¢Ý Darkness Shift.

    ¢Ý Darkness Shift ¡ú Darkness Magic ¡ú Darkness Transfer ¡ú ¢Þ Darkness Summon.

    ¢Ú Body m or w attack ¡ú If the attack seeds, Darkness Transfer ¡ú Darkness Howl ¡ú ¢Ù Rush¡¡£¯ If the attack is unsessful, Darkness Transfer ¡ú Darkness Shift ¡ú ¢Þ Darkness Summon.

    ¢Þ Darkness Summon ¡ú Shadow Cane or Dark me Spear and Darkness Trasnfer to wherever is closer.

    Shadow Cane ¡ú ¡¸Jojutsu Mode¡¹until it goes ¡®down¡¯ £¨Repeatedly using Darkness Magic and ¡¾Jojutsu¡¿£©

    Dark me Spear ¡ú ¡¸Strongest Mode¡¹until it goes ¡®down¡¯ £¨Repeatedly using Darkness Transfer and ¡¾Spearmanship¡¿ attacks£©

    After going down ¡ú Darkness Shift ¡ú ¢Ù Rush.

    Jojutsu Mode: Turns the shadow into a cane, relentlessly attacking. A Shadow Cane characteristic is that, even if the shadow is attacked, damage is received.

    Strongest Mode: Makes long reaching attacks with the Dark me Spear while transferring from shadow to shadow. Every time the Dark me Spear is thrusted, a powerful Dark mees out.

    ¡ù ¡¶False Shadow¡· can be added randomly to the above patterns.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­That¡¯s totally outrageous. £©¡°

    ¡°£¨That¡¯s basically what I said. £©¡°

    For the Great Spirit King to be calling the Darkness Wolf outrageous. It really is a nasty opponent.

    Its stats were not high, but there was this ¡°theory about how it was the strongest among the monsters in Mobius¡± among yers. The secret behind that strength was the annoyance of the attacks. In particr, the ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· and ¡¾Jojutsubo was quite nasty. I really want to tame it in this world by all means.

    ¡°£¨I¡¯ll say some important points. The first attack of the Darkness Wolf when in wolf-form is always a Rush, and the first attack when in human-form is always either Darkness Magic or Darkness Summon.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Hmm, how do you respond? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨Well, the response to those situations is already ingrained in my body, I might not have to share that, but I¡¯ll tell you anyways. £©¡°

    There are about 11 points to consider when facing the Darkness Wolf.

    £±£® Try not to receive the Darkness Magic as much as possible. In case you do, immediately drink a potion after getting to a safe spot.

    £²£® Never receive Darkness Magic while in Jojutsu Mode.

    £³£® Don¡¯t get hit by the Dark me Spear.

    £´£® To check if in False Shadow state, just check the Darkness Wolf¡¯s shadow. If there¡¯s no shadow, the False Shadow state is active.

    £µ£® Set up a bonfire in advance to fix the positions of the shadows.

    £¶£® When in human-form, damage it with ¡¶Rook Archery¡· and ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·.

    £·£® When in wolf-form, damage it using abination of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· and ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Third Form¡·.

    £¸£® If ites close while in human-form, counter it with ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·. Aiming at the feet will knock it back, and with a critical it will go ¡°down¡±.

    £¹£® If ites close while in wolf-form, counter it with abination of ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Lightning Attribute?First Form¡·. If it¡¯s a critical, it will knock it back.

    10£® Make good use of the invincible state of ¡¶Transform¡·.

    11£® If ¡¶Tame¡· fails, it¡¯s more time-efficient to use a potion on the Darkness Wolf.

    ¡°£¨Why is that? ¡­¡­Why would you use a potion on the Darkness Wolf?¡¡And what¡¯s the invincible state of Transform? £©¡°

    ¡°£¨The Tame skill stated that it can be used when the monster¡¯s HP is at or below 20%, but in reality, it can only be used once you shave off 80% of the monster¡¯s HP. Therefore, it¡¯s better to recover the 80% of the Darkness Wolf¡¯s HP using potions, and it¡¯s more efficient than waiting for its natural recovery. £©¡±

    You can always kill it and wait for it to respawn, but in this world there¡¯s no guarantee it will appear again, so it¡¯s better to y it safe and recover it with a potion.

    ¡°£¨Incidentally, the Transform skill has the characteristic that it gives an invincibility state until the transformation ispleted. I think it¡¯s around 8 seconds. Did you know you can¡¯t do anything during this time? £©¡±

    ¡°£¨I had no idea. I can¡¯t even begin to grasp the abyssal knowledge that you possess, my Second¡­¡­£©¡°

    This is mainly for an emergency evasion.

    Basically, you would fight alternating between ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· and ¡¶Transform¡· in order to avoid dropping the buffs.

    ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· at Grade 9 increases the stats by a total of 450%, the active time is 310 seconds and the cooldown time is 250 seconds.

    ¡¶Transform¡· at Grade 9 increases the stats by a total of 360, the transformation time is 420 seconds and the cooldown time is 230 seconds.

    In other words, after transforming, you can use possession and then, when 230 seconds have passed, you can use ¡¶Transform¡· again. This might not be important now, but there¡¯s no harm in remembering it.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡°£¨We will arrive soon. £©¡°

    The port town Ko could be seen ahead.

    Then, I noticed just by chance. My hands that were holding Seventh Tei¨­¡¯s reins were shaking.

    ¡­¡­Trembling with excitement. Every cell in my body is restless thinking of the deadly fight that willst for weeks toe.

    How long will the tame require?

    I quietly spent the night before the start of the battle wishing to tame it as soon as possible, while reminiscing of the Darkness Wolf who was now in a world where I have yet to see it.

 Chapter 53: Fierce Fight in Isoreus

    <h4>Chapter 53: Fierce Fight in Isoreus</h4>

    The following morning.

    Chartering a small boat from Ko¡¯s Port, I headed for the ind where Isoreus was.

    It¡¯s not too far off the coast, so I¡¯ll be arriving in about two hours.

    After getting down on the ind, I started to reminisce on it. A huge, dpidated old castle turned dungeon; that was Isoreus. And although it had such a setting in the world of Mobius, it had its own history in this world. Maybe even a lord ruled over this old castle once.¡¡If so, since when did it be a dungeon? And when did monsters start appearing from it? It might be interesting toter search the documents and records.

    While having those thoughts in my mind as I walked, I finally arrived at the front of the Isoreus Dungeon. The old castle was so huge that one couldn¡¯t really see the whole thing. The atmosphere was awfully dark and an eerie silence covered the ce. The only entrance was the castle¡¯s front gate. There, two monsters acted as gatekeepers. The boss is in the deepest part of the ¡®top floor¡¯, but my destination is a different one. The lowest part of the ¡®underground grand library¡¯.

    ¡°For now, let¡¯s go straight to the library.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    Dashing out, I stopped in front of the two gatekeepers. They were two demonic knights nearly three meters tall, wearing an ominous ck armor.

    ¡°Transform.¡±

    The moment the gatekeepers approached me, swinging down their long swords, I activated ¡¶Transform¡·. Twisting my upper body, I put my right hand forward and my left hand on my waist. I chose a pose that was as simple as possible so that I could activate it immediately.

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨D! ¡°

    The two ck knights were then blown away by the blue-ckish lightning that gushed out from my body.

    Enemy characters who were within a certain radius when the transformation process starts were always knocked back. Aside from the 8 second immunity, this was one of the very important effects of Transform. Seems like Mobius management had a really good understanding of how a transformation should work.

    And, one more important thing. The immunity time was 8 seconds, but the time until the transformation waspleted was only 6 seconds. In other words, ¡®you can move while invincible for two seconds¡¯.

    I wonder why it¡¯s be like this¡­¡­?

    ¡°This is how it is.¡±

    Six secondster, I approached the armored knights.

    Knocked back by the effect of the transformation, the armored knights were still alive and well, but a great distance had opened between us. It was on a level where it allowed me to have plenty of time to prepare my skills.

    For knight-type monsters, magic attacks worked the best. Combining ¡¶Rook Archery¡· and ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Third Form¡·, I released it against one of the knights still down in the distance. Along with a loud sound, its head was blown off. The other one was starting to get up. Still, with this distance, I have great leeway in preparing my skills. In a simr way, I defeated it with ¡¸Rook Third Lightning¡¹.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that overkill?! ¡°

    Angolmois said in a great mood.

    ¡°I was able to finish them in a single shot since both were critical, but if that didn¡¯t happen, it would¡¯ve taken a little longer to defeat them. That¡¯s no overkill at all.¡±

    I exined as I went deeper into the Isoreus Dungeon.

    Yeah, critical is a tricky thing. You get a critical hit when you don¡¯t really need it, but when you¡¯re hoping for one, it doesn¡¯te out at all. Therefore, it¡¯s not really good to rely on it. It¡¯s better to think of it as a bonus or else you¡¯re in for a painful ride.

    I could have asked Yukari to craft some equipment and give it the effect of increased critical using ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡·. However, once you start, it is quite the tedious task. It sucks up plenty of money and time. Money is eptable, but I don¡¯t have the time right now.

    Still, an attack with ¡¶Transform¡· at Grade 9, ¡¶Critical¡· at Grade 9, ¡¶Rook Archery¡· at Grade 9, and ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Third Form¡· at Grade 6, while using ¡¶Combine¡· with a Mithril Longbow reinforced to the fifth stage, specialized in attack speed; I think those criticals were barely able to one-shot the knights with low magic resistance¡­¡­ This might be a little harsh.

    These ck knights that serve as gatekeepers are about as strong as Metio Dungeon¡¯s White Dragons. Most yers when they hear that think ¡°The Isoreus Dungeon isn¡¯t that big of a deal after all¡±. But that¡¯s wrong,pletely wrong. The reason is, while in Metio you always fight one on one, in Isoreus, more often than not, it¡¯s at least two on one. At the room in front of thest boss located on the top floor, it bes a 3 vs 1 against monsters that are eight times stronger than the White Dragons. They are on the level of the Golden Dragons.

    However, the monsters in Isoreus are certainly weaker. All the monsters that appear here are attack-focused, therefore their HP and VIT are on the lower side of the Upper-ss dungeons. That¡¯s the case for everything all the way to the boss. In particr, the ¡¸Darkness Wolf¡¹, despite being a head above the boss-ss monsters, has quite the low HP. But in exchange for that, it has incredible attacks iparable with the other bosses.

    ¡°Change of ns. Let¡¯s move to the Great Underground Library considering safety first. Straightforwardness isn¡¯t good here, it¡¯s better to take our time.¡±

    ¡°Straightforwardness? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s better to not be too naive.¡±

    ¡°I see. Let¡¯s work hard, my Second.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, do your best. I¡¯ll also do my best.¡±

    Impatience and frustration are forbidden. Steeling my resolve, we aimed at the deepest part of Isoreus.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Probably about six hours have passed since we were in the castle¡¯s entrance.

    Proceeding cautiously while taking breaks every now and then, the entrance to the Grand Underground Library came in sight.

    ¡°Let¡¯s set up camp here.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­By the side of the road? ¡°

    The tent was set by the side of the hallway, in front of the library¡¯s entrance, in the space between the figures ofrge armors that were lined up at each side in a stage-like tform.

    ¡°We can rx here. The only monsters that appear here are Ghost-type ones, right?¡¡And since ghosts can¡¯t jump, they can¡¯t get past steps of a certain height.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Angolmois silently looked at me, half unconvinced. I wonder if he isn¡¯t in on the idea of sleeping this close to the enemy?¡¡However, if it¡¯s safe, it¡¯s safe.I can¡¯t do anything about it.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Umu. So finally, it¡¯s time for the Darkness Wolf.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Get ready for possession the moment I open the door.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    After taking a break for some time, I finally decided to begin this deathmatch.

    After giving instructions to Angolmois, I then prepared an item that can be set up and used as a light source.

    One of the most useful items in the fight against the Darkness Wolf, the longeststing among the so-called Bonfire-type, the ¡ºGreat Bonfire¡». This item was used during the ¡®Great Barbecue Event¡¯ back in Mobius, and was able to be crafted using the ¡¶Manufacture¡· skill, even at the 16th ss, using a bag of rice as a raw material.

    This is an item with an amazing performance that continues to burn for 336 hours each. Seems like it was designed to disappear after the two-week event period was over, but for some reason people were still able to create it with the ¡¶Manufacture¡·skill even after the event was over. Probably the developers simply forgot about it. And thus, it became an item that was greatly used as a source of light in the Darkness Wolf Tame.

    And surely, I could also make it in this world. So, I¡¯ll be relying on it once again.

    Holding the Mithril Longbow in my left hand, with the Mithril Longsword hanging from my waist, and the Great Bonfire on my right hand, I kicked the door open.

    Immediately after, I activated ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. The red-ckish thunder ran through my body, illuminating the lurid library with a sh.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    ¨D¨DBehind a series of bookshelves, on top of a fallen pile of decaying wood and paper, there she was.

    ¡°£¨That is¡­¡­!£©¡°

    Despite being in a state of possession, I could clearly hear Angolmois. I wonder why he was surprised, even some horror was transmitted to me.

    Not too big, not too small, apletely ck wolf. That was her appearance. The exact same figure as the one that remained in my memories.

    That beautiful fur swaying like a ck me. Those ck eyes as if I was staring into the abyss. Those eyes that I can¡¯t tell where they¡¯re looking or what they are thinking. ws and fangs not too long, but not too short either. At a simple nce, it¡¯s just a ck wolf.

    ¡°£¨Without a doubt, the current you can¡¯t win against this opponent!¡¡My Second, leave this ce!£©¡°

    Angolmois said such a thing. Indeed, a magnificent observation. As one would expect from the Spirit King, truly a proper evaluation. It¡¯s true that with my current status, I¡¯m not an opponent for this monstrous Darkness Wolf. It¡¯s almost likeparing a child to an adult.

    ¡­¡­It¡¯s just that, this is just a game, right?

    ¡°£¨Just shut up and watch.£©¡°

    I set up the Great Bonfire about 15 centimeters above the pile of fallen books, 2 meters to the left from the fourth bookshelf from the entrance. Then, while keeping my eyes on the Darkness Wolf, I ran sideways.

    The Darkness Wolf was currently in her ¡°Wolf-form¡±. For this form, the first attack is always a ¡°Rush¡±.

    I greeted the rushing Darkness Wolf with a Rook Lightning shot. Firing like aser, the red and blue lightning streaks twisted and turned as they left a tail-like trail, attacking the Darkness Wolf. Since physical attacks don¡¯t work at all when she is in wolf-form, you should attack by ¡¶Combine¡· using ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ or ¡¾Magic Swordsmanship¡¿. By the way, I naturally aimed at the feet. That is to umte damage to get her into a ¡°down¡± state.

    Thus, the behavior following the rush breaks into 4 different patterns. This time, since the front left leg was pressed down hard, it seems it will be Body m. That being the case, avoiding it is the best choice. At thest moment of the rush, I jumped to the side.

    When the Body m or w attack fails, the Darkness Wolf will certainly follow with Darkness Transfer¡úDarkness Shift¡úDarkness Summon.

    I watched as it moved, during Darkness Transfer, to a small mountain of books located one bookshelf away, then I also positioned myself facing the Darkness Wolf.

    Just like the pattern, Darkness Shift also happened. After casually jumping on the spot, the Darkness Wolf¡¯s body got wrappedpletely in ck mes, and the figure changed into its human-like form.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¨D¨DLong jet-ck hair and wolf ears. Her eyes were gently closed, and on her face I could see a mole above her slightly smiling lips. Those bewitching limbs couldn¡¯t be concealed behind the coat of darkness that covered her body, and her height sort of bnced her voluptuous proportions.

    To be able to see this figure again after all this time. She, my ¡°Anko¡±, had the exact same figure in this world.

    ¡­¡­Oops, this isn¡¯t the time to immerse myself in my emotions.

    After using Darkness Shift to change into human-form, next is sure to be Darkness Summon.

    I looked at her shadow, while at the same time, preparing to use ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·. Good, there is a shadow. She¡¯s not in ¡¶False Shadow¡· state.

    ¡°Fuu¡­¡­! ¡°

    I calcted the moment to match the activation of Darkness Summon after Anko finished her Darkness Shift, and by moving up three steps, I unleashed the ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·. At moments like this, it¡¯s quitete to start preparing after the transformation has ended. As for the timing, you should start preparing ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· in the 0.2 seconds while the ck me of the transformation is settling and the moment shends, and if you take three steps afterwards, you can activate it immediately. By the way, you can¡¯t move while ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· is being prepared. For Grade 6, the preparation time is about 4 seconds. It is a very risky skill.

    ¡°¨D¨D! ¡°

    The shockwave, along with the shy effect, was released forwards and Anko was directly hit, causing her to be stunned. ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· is a very powerful skill, however, it has a long preparation time, making it somewhat dangerous to use. And one of the reasons for that high power is the stun effect. That¡¯s right, if it¡¯s applied it bes quite strong. But only if it¡¯s applied.

    Well then, this part is where criticals are important. During this period when Anko is stunned, you can shoot two ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shots. If both hits are critical it goes into ¡®down¡¯ state, but if only one shot is critical, or if none at all are, she will continue to stand. If that happens, then one or two more shots of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· are needed to down her. Between the former and thetter, there¡¯s a world of difference in safety.

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ mmm¡­¡­ Nice!¡±

    Alright, this time both of them were critical hits.

    Then, what happens when you bring her down after Darkness Summon? That is, Darkness Shift and a Rush again. In other words, we¡¯re back at square one as far as strategy is concerned.

    Since Anko transformed into a human but wasn¡¯t able to do anything, she will once again use Darkness Shift to transform into the Darkness Wolf form and use Rush again.

    During that transformation period, I took enough distance from her and moved back to the fourth bookshelf from the entrance,while opening with a Rook Lightning attack again. So, what will you bring out next?

    Ohh, she lowered her head. Then it¡¯s a ¡°Bite route¡± rush. cing the Mithril Longbow in my inventory, I focused on avoiding using my full speed.

    After Bitees a Darkness Howl. Avoiding that is easy since it has a preparation time of two seconds. Incidentally, 99% of the time, if you just avoid the Bite at thest second, you can¡¯t escape the howl.

    After rushing across, Anko used Darkness Howl then returned to the book¡¯s mound using Darkness Transfer. Following Darkness Howles a Rush or Darkness Shift. This time it seems to be Shift.

    I already moved to the previous bookshelf. I then prepared ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· with the timing just like before, and after carefully checking for ¡¶False Shadow¡· after transforming, I moved forward three steps. In the case of the Biting route, Anko will use Darkness Magic here, but it¡¯s possible to crush her without allowing her to move unless she¡¯s in ¡¶False Shadow¡· state.

    And so, she was stunned. Then damaged by ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. Unfortunately, only one was a critical.

    Immediately after the stun wore off, Anko moved using Darkness Transfer, then she activated Darkness Summon. Well then, which one will it be¡­¡­? This time it was ¡ºShadow Cane¡». Good, good.

    As a result of the Darkness Summon, she entered Jojutsu mode. However, that doesn¡¯t really matter. Since the damage has umted from the previous two shots, she will go ¡°down¡± with one more ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shot at her feet. I took her down while she was preparing to begin her Jojutsu mode assault with that ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shot.

    While dealing some extra damage with thebination of ¡¶Knight Archery¡· and ¡¶Silver Archery¡·, I moved back to the bookshelf from before and started running sideways again.

    What¡¯s next after going down from Darkness Summon?¡¡That¡¯s right, Darkness Shift into wolf form and Rush again.

    While I prepared to release a Rook Lightning shot, this was all that upied my mind.

    Ahh¡­¡­ how fun.

 Chapter 54: What is Madness?

    <h4>Chapter 54: What is Madness?</h4>

    Crazy.

    This is my honest opinion.

    When we first were united, I touched that ¡°Abyss¡± just a little.

    What the heck was that? It seems my Second still isn¡¯t aware of it, but as a matter of fact, evoking each other¡¯s memories is a simple task.

    However, I couldn¡¯tprehend those memories I called forth.

    A deep, dark heart. One that was beyondprehension was driving my Second¡¯s body.

    No, maybe should I call that my Seven?

    My Second has lived a different life previously¨D¨D I¡¯ve reigned as the Great Spirit King for so long that I can¡¯t even remember, and in that time, I¡¯ve caught glimpses of life on a few differents. However, I¡¯ve never seen or heard anything like that of his previous life. The honorable Second, he who was the first human I served under, was a very special existence. He stood atop a world that was simr yet different to this one. That¡¯s what I don¡¯t understand. I can¡¯t understand. I can¡¯t understand the darkness that resides in that heart.

    ¡­¡­However, only this I understand. Only this thing is clear.

    My Second is crazy. The way his mind works is exquisitely deviated.

    It¡¯s somehow weird that he has memories which exceeds the scope of my understanding.

    And so, my Second happily went ahead. To fight against an opponent whom in my eyes, the eyes of the Great Spirit King, was judged to be way over his league.

    And currently, he waspletely overwhelming that Darkness Wolf.

    He has yet to receive a single attack from the other party, and has continuously connected his attacks at every opportunity given, almost as if he could see the future. A technique stepping on the divine was repeated over and over again, like threading a hair through a needle¡¯s hole from a few meters away.

    Impossible. I wonder what is going through his mind right now?¡¡As I was concerned about these events, I took a peek inside his mind.

    ¡­¡­And I regretted it. Rather thanprehending it more, I was further away from that understanding.

    My Second wasn¡¯t thinking about anything.

    Not quite so, on the surface he was thinking about the best response to the different patterns of the Darkness Wolf.

    But deep down¡­¡­ there was a strong, crazy ¡°pleasure¡±.

    My Second was pleased to be able to be alive right now. It was not a shallow thought either, but an uncontroble emotion that gushed out precisely because he was alive.

    Why?

    I thought he was enjoying the thrill of the fight, but it was something different.

    For my Second, the meaning of being alive was in the fight against the Darkness Wolf.It was even the very meaning of his existence. And at the same time, this deadly fight, he saw it as nothing but a ¡°game¡±. No, this wasn¡¯t only a simple thought. He had carved in his self the fact that he could no longer turn back, inscribed it so deeply in his mind and body that it could no longer be erased. That was the reason why he ¡°only thought of this as a game¡±. And that¡¯s why his mind and body one-sidedly felt pleased.

    ¨D¨D¡ºThe top in the world¡»¨D¨DI suddenly remembered. This was my Second¡¯s wish. However, I knew he wasn¡¯t just aiming at it. He wanted to someday ¡°Get it back¡±. That spot. That resolution was genuine and my Second was truly risking his life, steeling himself in order to return to being the top in the world without fail.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­I was taken aback.

    Maybe my Second really was ¡°betting his life for the game¡±¡­¡­?

    To y in order to live, the meaning of his existence was to continue reigning as the top in the world, and¡­¡­ right now, he wasn¡¯t the top in the world.

    In order to regain ¡°his own existence¡±, that¡¯s the reason my Second was standing here right now.

    Even if it was so helplessly crazy.

    Even if it was a fight nobody could win.

    He was fighting all alone, making full use of those weird and strange strategies that even me, the Great Spirit King, couldn¡¯t imagine or evenpletely understand.

    ¡°£¨My Second¡­¡­!£©¡°

    I felt something burning deep inside me.

    What an obsession!¡¡How tenacious!¡¡What a solitude¡­¡­!

    I was deeply impressed by this lonely and sublimely crazy man, wishing to be stronger than anyone else, doing everything in his power to make that wishe true no matter the cost¡­¡­!

    ¡°£¨My Second! !£©¡°

    ¡°Just shut up and keep quietly possessing me! ¡°

    Okay. I¡¯ll dly keep it up!

    But my Second, you should know this for sure. You¡¯re not alone anymore. This Angolmois is with you, and I¡¯ll walk along your path as you risk your life!

    ¡°£¨Ahahahahahahaha£©¡°

    ¡°Shut up! ! ¡°

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    I wonder if it¡¯s been an hour already? Anko¡¯s HP finally went down to below two tenths.

    This was something easy to tell. When the Darkness Wolf¡¯s HP falls below 25%, the whole body is engulfed by dark mes, signaling the change to ¡°Berserk Mode¡±. And by calcting the number of attacks it took up until the moment she entered berserk mode, you can approximate the number of attacks needed to drop her to 20%.

    And. Now, for the way to tame. The best moment to use ¡¶Tame¡· is when she uses Rush. It was with this timing that I was able to tame her in my previous life.

    ¡°¡­¡­And, it failed.¡±

    Well, I expected that.

    Letting out a sigh, I took out six high-grade potions from my inventory and threw them at the biting Anko.

    The potions¡¯ bottles cracked when they touched the dark me of the Berserk Mode, and the liquid sshed all over her body. And so, in the blink of an eye, Anko¡¯s HP waspletely recovered.

    ¡°£¨Was that okay! ?£©¡°

    ¡°Like I said. It¡¯s more efficient this way.¡±

    ¡°£¨So that¡¯s how it is¡­¡­£©¡°

    Like a me extinguished by dousing it with water, the dark mes covering Anko¡¯s whole body went out with a simr sound, abruptly ending the Berserk Mode. Anko was also making an expression as if saying ¡°Ehh?¡¡Huh?¡¡Why? ¡± or at least that¡¯s how it looked to me¨D¨D she¡¯s a monster after all. That¡¯s why she can¡¯t break out the predetermined pattern, following bitees a Darkness Howl.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s start over again.¡±

    I have to shave off eight tenths of her health again.

    About one hour¡­¡­ It took over twice as long as back then.

    Well, can¡¯t do anything but be patient.

    pping my cheeks to pump myself up, I went at Anko again.

    ¡°Uff, so tired¡­¡­¡±

    After that, I fought with her and failed to Tame her nine more times, then I went back to the tent, exhausted. There¡¯re no worries about being chased, since the Darkness Wolf can¡¯t leave the Underground Grand Library in Isoreus after all.

    ¡°You kept overpowering that creature for ten hours. It¡¯s no wonder you¡¯re tired.¡±

    After a long time, Angolmois finally materialized. He then proceeded to pour some alcohol into a cup for me, as if telling me that I¡¯ve worked hard. I wonder if I¡¯m the first human in the world to ever receive this treatment from the very own Great Spirit King.¡¡I felt really good with myself after thinking that.

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep doing this every day though.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see. Well, if the fights continue just like today, I think there won¡¯t be a problem doing this daily.¡±

    ¡°No, I was just lucky today. She never used False Shadow at the time of Darkness Summon.¡±

    ¡°Ohh? ¡°

    ¡°After Darkness Shift into human form, it¡¯s either Darkness Summon or Darkness Magic. During the transformation, you just need to prepare Dragon King Swordsmanship to stun her, then bring her down with two critical shots of Rook at her feet. That way you can fight safely without having to worry about Darkness Summon or Darkness Magic.¡±

    ¡°I see. So, the risk of the Darkness Wolf using Darkness Summon or Darkness Magic increases if you aren¡¯t able to stun her due to her using False Shadow after you unleash Dragon King Swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Darkness Magic poses almost no problem. As for Darkness Summon, if it summons a shadow cane and switches to Jojutsu Mode, it¡¯s fine. But if it switched to the Dark me Spear, the strongest mode¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What happens then? ¡°

    ¡°I might have to use that¡­¡­ my hidden card.¡±

    It was boring here.

    Why am I trapped in this ce?

    I even read all the books that were in here, but I still didn¡¯t know why.

    Just how many hundreds of years have passed since I got my own ego?

    Let¡¯s try asking when a human visits this ce. Or so I thought, but even then, this body of mine won¡¯t listen to me.

    From the deepest parts of my heart, a strong murderous desire overflowed, immediately moving my body into action.

    Ahh, I¡¯ve killed again.

    What a fragile existence.

    I can¡¯t find someone who can fill my heart.

    Next time for sure. Next time for sure.

    However, I always killed them.

    There¡¯s nothing I can do about it.

    ¡­¡­And gradually. I started to have fun killing them.

    These humans, they were all weak. Their very important, lovely and more-precious-than-anything mes of life were extinguished as easily as if gently blowing on them. That¡¯s why, I really want to rob them of that. I can¡¯t hold back the urge to break them. Yeah, with these very hands.

    Come on, be more tenacious. Live strong, be wiser. Be proud of your own life force. I¡¯ll give your body the chance to show me a lively figure.

    Alright, that¡¯s enough!¡¡¡­¡­What a trifling thing.

    Who wille here next? What kind of life wille? How will they die before me? I can¡¯t wait, I can¡¯t wait¡­¡­

    For my ythings. For my everything. For the only moment where I can feel myself be alive.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Then.

    ¨D¨DHe came. Finally. He¡¯s here. My destined person.

    I felt a strong bond, as if he had cherished me, loved me, in a previous life.

    However, my body began to move by itself. Simr to receiving an order to kill. An order given by God, whom I can¡¯t defy.

    Ahh, Ahhhh, AAHHHH!¡¡I will kill this personage too!¡¡What a¡­¡­ What a wonderful feeling!¡¡There has never been a pleasure like this¨D¨D!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­! ?

    Suddenly, a sweet tingling pierced my body.

    This was the first time I¡¯ve felt something, the first stimulus I¡¯ve had in hundreds of years. Why? How? I¡¯m feeling danger for my life!¡¡This great me!

    Damn¡­¡­!

    Both my hands and feet, they can¡¯t move!¡¡For this me!¡¡For this great me!¡¡How is that possible! ?¡¡NO!¡¡That¡¯s impossible!¡¡However, it¡¯s happening!

    Fuu¡­¡­!¡¡The pain has continued to umte!¡¡Such a, such a thing¡­¡­ This is the first time too¡­¡­!

    Ah¡­¡­Ha¡­¡­!

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­Ah¡­¡­Ahah, AhahaHAHAHAHA!

    Alive!¡¡I felt so alive! !

    I see!¡¡I spent those hundreds of years in darkness in order for this meeting to happen, and I was born out of darkness in order to meet this person!

    Ouch!¡¡It hurts!¡¡But it also feels good! !

    More! Hurt me more!¡¡More suffering!¡¡Give me more pleasure!¡¡Ahh, this is amazing!

    No, I¡¯ll die at this rate¡­¡­!¡¡It¡¯s over now, isn¡¯t it? ¡­¡­It was a really good time. I want to reach climax by your hands at the end. To be embraced, this dream that I¡¯ve had for thest several hundreds of years I¡¯ve been alive, it seems like it¡¯ll be fulfilled in less than an hour. Ahh, this is bliss¡­¡­

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Ehh?

    What¡­¡­! ?¡¡Why, why are you¡­¡­ healing me¡­¡­! ?

    But this indeed was happening!¡¡Is this some sort of dreaming true! ?

    You really are the one who embodies my ideals!¡¡Your splendor is hard to describe with words!¡¡My destined person!¡¡My Lord¡­¡­!

    Ahhh, AAAAHHHHHHHH!

    THIS IS THE BEST!¡¡I¡¯M ALREADY FLYING¡­¡­!

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­Hehehe, hehehehehe.

    Since then, I became absorbed and lost myself in this. I was reminiscent of a long-forgotten pleasure, this provoking body firmly remembered it.

    And I finally met him. My Lord.

    Time and time again, he tossed me around. With each passing moment, he disciplined this fleeting and ephemeral me. He gave me pain, suffering, the feeling of being alive.

    Eventually, my Lord went back. However, I understood. Those clear eyes unmistakably said ¡°I won¡¯t let you escape¡±, as he was leaving. My Lord will surelye again. And at that moment, he will take care of me once again.

    Ahhh, what a wonderful feeling. I wish and pray for me to live together with my Lord. And I want him to hold my neck high in his precious and beautiful hands. Oh God, please grant me these two conflicting wishes.

    And like a girl who felt love for the very first time, my delusions overflowed, unstoppable. Lord, Lord, my Lord¡­¡­someday, please let me hear your name. And if possible, please give me a name too. And then, with those hands on this neck¡­¡­

 Chapter 55: Everyoneâ€™s Everyday

    <h4>Chapter 55: Everyone¡¯s Everyday</h4>

    While Second was in his deathmatch against the Darkness Wolf, Silvia and Eko were going to the intermediate-ss dungeon ¡ºLimptfert¡» as they were instructed.

    That¡¯s right, this was their special training.

    ¡°Let me take it alone from here. Eko, you watch my back.¡±

    ¡°Oookaay! ¡°

    Confidently saying so, Silvia stepped into the dungeon.

    What weed the bow-wielding Silvia were six¡¸Rock Turtles¡¹. Most of the time, inside the Limptfert Dungeon, monsters appeared in groups. And adding to that, there were many monsters here specialized in HP and VIT.

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhh.¡±

    Silvia suddenly noticed that two of them were killed when she released a ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shot. Holding back is surprisingly difficult¨D¨D She thought.

    At present, all of Silvia¡¯s ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills, aside from Dragon King and Dragon Horse, were at Grade 9, so she held a considerably high firepower. To the point where she could ughter a Rock Turtle, prided on their high VIT, in a single shot.

    Therefore, Silvia was being arrogant. If I have this much firepower, there won¡¯t be any enemies for me in Limptfert¨D¨D She thought.

    However. Until now, all the enemies had been pretty much target dummies that had been killed before they got close to her, the keyword being, until now.

    ¡°Uh, eh, er! ? ¡°

    The remaining four Rock Turtlesunched an all-out attack against Silvia. Silvia then tried to fend off the 4 iing enemies using the knockback of ¡¶Gold Archery¡·, but her decision was made toote. Although severely beaten, Silvia¡¯s HP didn¡¯t decrease that much. However, that was enough to make Silvia fly into panic.

    ¡°D-Damn! ¡°

    Forgetting anything about strategy, she just decided to simply kill them all using ¡¶Rook Archery¡· at will. As one would expect, two of them were nearing death, but the two others came attacking her again. And since they were attacking from a closer range than before, she couldn¡¯t avoid the Rock Turtles¡¯ attacks, and neither did she have time to attack them with ¡¶Gold Archery¡·. Then, after being continuously beaten ck and blue, Silvia finally defeated the remaining two enemies using ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. Rather than calling that the fight of an archer, it was closer to being the fight of an armored knight.

    ¡°Uuugh¡­¡­ I showed you a shameful sight.¡±

    After finishing the battle and looking back at Eko, the little cat girl had a hand in her mouth, desperately holding back herughter. Silvia had her head bleeding, yet, she couldn¡¯t get angry. Just now, she had realized the importance of the role Eko yed.

    ¡°¡­¡­I think I¡¯ll need toe up with some kind of strategy from now on.¡±

    And obviously, she also realized it.

    Suddenly, a thought crossed Silvia¡¯s mind. If she thought about things so far, she had been doing nothing but following Second¡¯s instructions without thinking too deeply about it. All she had done was to take down the enemiesing from the front from a safe zone. Almost like a fixed cannon, so to speak.

    She had been safe until now just because there was Second to issue urate orders. However, she wasn¡¯t sure this will still continue to be the case from now on. Particrly with upper-ss dungeons, where a moment of neglect could be fatal. This training must be a message from Second saying, ¡¸You need to be able to secure the minimum safety by yourself¡¹¨D¨D Of this, Silvia was convinced.

    Her being aware of that could already be considered a win for this special training. All that was left was for her technique to catch up to that. As Silvia muttered, ¡°I was naive¡±, she proceeded further inside to continue her special training.

    ¡ª¡ª

    Later on, after fighting with Rock Turtles several times, she switched with Eko. Then, they alternately fought with groups of Rock Turtles and returned home by nightfall.

    As expected, or rather, as Second predicted, the fights of Eko alone took a considerable amount of time. But even then, she fared several times better than Silvia as she fought the monsters. However, considering that the ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill assumed a one-vs-many style of fighting, this was only natural.

    ¡°Somehow, I get the feeling I lost¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°But I couldn¡¯t finish them properly¡­¡­¡±

    And as for Eko, she also realized the importance of the rearguard after she fought alone.

    While guarding off the attacks of the monsters with her ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill, she had to look for the chance to attack. Like that, it became a tedious process with no end in sight. And in addition to that, the irritation of ¡°How long do I have to continue?¡± and the boredom made it easier for her to make a mistake. Adding the increased fighting time to that, her fatigue was many times greater than usual when she fought alone.

    ¡°¡­¡­But.¡±

    She was tired, yet she noticed she had a lot to learn.

    Both Silvia and Eko noticed that ¡°something¡±.

    And that was, be it a vanguard or a rear guard, the two of them worked as one. And neither of them could handle both of those roles alone. That was¨D¨D Like Second said it, ¡°I need both a vanguard and a rear guard¡±.

    The two of them were needed by Second¡­¡­ that fact made the two of them, who were quite tired, to smile broadly. And after finally bing aware of that goal after struggling while fighting alone all this time, was the best stimulus for them.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do our best! ¡°

    ¡°Let¡¯s do our best©`! ¡°

    In this special training, if they really worked hard, they would definitely gain results.

    After the first day of the special training, the motivation of these two girls gained by that hunch, was way beyond Second¡¯s expectations.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    About two months had passed since Second had left to Isoreus.

    Three people were gathered in the east mansion, holding what was now a regr meeting.

    These meetings, held at a weekly pace, were just like a brief report. It was a ce where the three of them would share information obtained during the week and consider the team¡¯s future ns. In addition, since everyone sending different messages to Second would definitely get in his way, the information gathered in this meeting was then summarized, andter conveyed, as a weekly report using the team-onlymunication. Needless to say, this was Yukari¡¯s idea.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we need more.¡±

    ¡°Me too©`.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s necessary at this moment either. But eventually, we will need them.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s get some male ves then.¡±

    ¡°I agree, male ves.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯d rather not get more male ves though.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like that idea either. But it¡¯s still better than getting more potential rivals.¡±

    ¡°Rivals©`.¡±

    ¡°Well, kind of.¡±

    The meeting was unusually heated. The current point in the agenda was about ¡°Restaffing the servants¡±. It seemed like the three girls didn¡¯t want more women to be close to Second.

    But, as if there was something weighing in her mind, Yukari opened her mouth with a face like she had eaten a hundred bitter bugs.

    ¡°However, it¡¯s only a month and a half until thepletion of the five remaining mansions, aside from Second¡¯s Castle (temporal) in the center and south. If possible, I¡¯d like to expand and improve the level of my assas¨C, excuse me, my all-purpose maid unit.¡±

    ¡°Why is that? ¡°

    ¡°Currently, there are 10 in the all-purpose maid unit. This means that, although with a drop in quality, there will be only 10 other me.¡±

    ¡°Hiiiii, scary.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s rude, Eko.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! ¡°

    ¡°U-Umu¡­¡­ That¡¯s certainly somewhat terrifying, but that¡¯d also be reassuring.¡±

    ¡°Right?¡¡After replenishing the personnel under them, then Master¡¯s castle will be as solid as a rock. However, on the other hand, those girls aren¡¯t enough subordinates.¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped as there¡¯s only one manding officer¡¯, is what you want to say?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Once we¡¯ve gotten the workforce, they can be left with everything from education to leadership. However, the only education they can provide for now is maid education. That¡¯s the reason why I think getting as many female ves as possible is good.¡±

    ¡°I see, it can¡¯t be helped then. Let¡¯s make all the maid units be formed with female ves. However, all other servants must be male ves. This is all I canpromise on.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right, I guess that¡¯s fair. I¡¯ll make arrangements for it.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¡­¡­So, you¡¯re finally getting a load off your shoulders?¡¡How about you change with me now?¡±

    ¡°Ara, a bit jealous, aren¡¯t we?¡¡This is an important task entrusted to me by Master. Do you believe you can persuade me to thoughtlessly hand this over to you? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m not jealous, I¡¯m just a bit interested. It¡¯s just, I think it¡¯s better not to show Second-dono every thorny thing you find. He¡¯ll definitely be pulled in.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry. I only show stuff like that to idiots like you, Silvia-san.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take it as apliment. But hey, look at you, desperately trying to keep your act as a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that? ¡°

    ¡°What¡¯s great about looking good only on the surface? ¡°

    ¡°And what about you? You seem to be breaking our agreement of once a week and are sending some pretty cute messages, right?¡¡Ahh, that¡¯s right, about that poem making aparison with flowers the other day, that really made meugh.¡±

    ¡°You too! Your idiotically loud voice at night is a bother. How about you try being a bit quieter?¡¡AHH, MASTER, AAAAAAHHHH, HURRY UP AND COME BAAAACK.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Muscle head.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Aloof woman.¡±

    ¡°I knew it, you¡¯re both scary¡­¡­¡±

    And thus, the days passed by.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°That was close! ¡°

    It¡¯s been about three months since I started on this.

    And finally, the ¡°aforementioned pattern¡± finally appeared.

    As I prepared ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· to counter the Darkness Shift¨D¨D Anko¡¯s shadow disappeared.

    This is the ¡¶False Shadow¡· state. If you attack during this state, the attack will bepletely nullified. And you will surely eat some attack after leaving yourself open. All of Anko¡¯s attacks are deadly for the current me. Therefore, I must never attack while she¡¯s in False Shadow state.

    The active time of False Shadow is always 3 seconds. Cancelling the ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· skill I was getting ready to unleash, I took some distance from Anko.

    And as soon as Darkness Shift was over, Anko used Darkness Summon. This skill summons a powerful weapon. And now that I couldn¡¯t use ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· in time, there¡¯s no longer a way to stop the summon.

    Getting to this point, there¡¯s nothing I can do but to pray. Please, don¡¯t be the ¡ºDark me Spear¡»! !¡¡I thought.

    ¡°¡­¡­Nice.¡±

    This breaks the first barrier. What was summoned was the ¡ºShadow Cane¡». From here on, Anko will rush using Jojutsu mode until she goes down.

    The question here is, how to take her down. Two critical hits of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· on her feet, or one critical and two normal shots, otherwise, it¡¯s 4 normal shots.

    ¨D¨DAnd so, it came. Darkness Magic.

    It¡¯s a vicious ck fog that will force the HP down to one of whoever it touches. Moreover, it has a considerably wide range. ¡°It¡¯s no exaggeration to say that it all depends on luck whether you can avoid it or not¡±, is what the wiki said¡­¡­ But the people who wrote in there were all amateurs. You should never believe what the Mobius wiki said. It was allughable.

    ¡°£¨¨D¨DWhat are you doing! ?£©¡°

    I could hear the surprised voice of Angolmois, who was in possession state. While watching the iing Darkness Magic in front of me, I used ¡¶Rook Archery¡· to attack Anko¡¯s leg. Critical hit!¡¡Nice development, isn¡¯t it?

    ¡°£¨You won¡¯t be able to avoid it!£©¡°

    Yeah, it will definitely hit me. If you had the time to shoot it with ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, you should have used it to avoid¨D¨D was probably what he wanted to tell me. From another person¡¯s point of view, this might seem like a mistake beginners tend to make.

    But just you wait. I¡¯ll turn that preconception upside down. In the first ce, trying to purposely avoid an attack with this wide of a range is what¡¯s a mistake.

    ¡°Transform! ¡°

    With this, the second barrier has been broken through. Transform gives 8 seconds of invincibility.

    The drawback is that my insurance is lost. In addition, the next move is troublesome. But there¡¯s no point in going with my hidden card. I must definitely end it here.

    Transform avoidance¡­¡­ I think not many people hade up with an idea simr to this one for this scenario. Then, why isn¡¯t this written in the wiki? Quite easy. Such people don¡¯t visit the wiki page. If they were to have the time to teach people that ¡°Transform should be used to avoid the Darkness Wolf¡¯s Darkness Magic¡±, they would rather use that time to try for more Tame attempts.

    That¡¯s what that online game was. After it went past a certain point, in an instant, thousands of people turned against one another. Be it their family, the blood of their own blood, it turned into a battlefield where blood was shed. And during that war, everyone tried to gather and monopolize information in order to outsmart their enemies. Everyone was a hated rival in the eyes of others and there were plenty of ces to escape to. But once you ran away, it was over. And everything up until then was for that. Therefore, I absolutely couldn¡¯t fold in. I spent all that time betting my life on it. Well, it was a never-ending, lonely battle, but that was okay. It was fitting for me. Therefore, I poured my everything into it. And nothing could rece the pleasure of reigning atop of that den of thieves, above everyone who had given up¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­Six seconds were spent thinking about those unnecessary thoughts, then, as the shadow cane was quickly spinning through the air, I released a ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shot aimed at Anko¡¯s feet. This one wasn¡¯t a critical. I need one more shot to bring her down.

    However, I don¡¯t have to worry anymore. There¡¯s no problem even if I were to be hit by Darkness Magic since I know that in that moment, I can take her down with one more shot.

    Therefore, I shot ¡¶Rook Archery¡· at Anko¡¯s foot the moment she was about to cast Darkness Magic. Then, Darkness Magic activated. Obviously, I ate it face on, and, in exchange for my HP bing 1, I brought her ¡®down¡¯.

    Conventionally, this would¡¯ve been followed by a shadow cane attack. But because she¡¯s ¡®down¡¯, I can retreat safely and slowly recover. And with this, the third barrier has been broken through. I made it alive¨D¨D

    Well then. When Anko gets up, she always uses Rush after Darkness Shift. I¡¯ve already gone back to my usual position.

    And thus, the ¡®wearing down¡¯ battle started again. I wonder how long will this take¡­¡­?

 Chapter 56: Itâ€™s Over If You Run Away, You Idiot

    <h4>Chapter 56: It¡¯s Over If You Run Away, You Idiot</h4>

    Today, more than 2,000 tries have been made.

    It¡¯s been three and a half months since I came here. I¡¯ve made 18 tame attempts per day, and it¡¯s finally gone over 2,000. This battle, which only took 15 minutes as Seven, takes the current me nearly 40 minutes. Still, I¡¯ve done it 2,000 times without batting an eye. There¡¯s something weird with me.

    ¡°Excuse me, my Second. Isn¡¯t it time to go back already? ¡°

    Most of the evenings were spent drinking together with Angolmois. We drank after spending twelve hours trying to tame Anko, so now it has be a habit.

    However,tely this fellow has been noisy, saying ¡°Let¡¯s go back already¡±. Asking the person in question, it seems he has just been bored and worried about me. I¡¯m kind of grateful for that, but I¡¯ll still be worrying him for a bit longer.

    ¡°We¡¯re still at a good time. I¡¯ll go back home if there are any problems, but so far there hasn¡¯t been anyrge developments reported in the weekly report.¡±

    That¡¯s a lie, though. The weekly reports from the three girls had some concerning issues.

    It seems like the Reformists group led by the Prime Minister Val Morrow, who¡¯s backing the First Prince us, are finally starting to make their move in the capital. There¡¯s little time left. In addition to that, I¡¯m also interested in the growth of Silvia and Eko, and a bit curious about that mischief I left in the hands of Yukari. I¡¯m also eager to see thepleted mansions. And I¡¯m a bit anxious about the progress of Second¡¯s Castle (provisional). I¡¯m bothered about everything.

    And to bepletely honest, I want to go back already.

    Then, why? ¡­¡­Why am I not going back?

    Even I don¡¯t know it myself. It¡¯s just, I¡¯ve simply been making excuses. Excuses to not go back home yet.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, I¡¯m addicted.

    My outlook has narrowed. I haven¡¯t been making normal decisions. I haven¡¯t given up, nor have I wanted to give up. While trying to persist with the taming, I¡¯ve been putting off a lot of issues. Even though I know the possibilities, I¡¯m just ruining myself while hoping for that slight chance.

    But.

    I will keep doing the same thing tomorrow. And the day after. And the week after, and the month after. Unless there¡¯s a reallypelling excuse, I will keep doing this until the veryst moment.

    I can¡¯t help it. It¡¯s only natural. Taming the Darkness Wolf is like a drug I can¡¯t resist taking. And it won¡¯t end until that moment when I taste thatst pleasure of taming her. This feeling as if my head will burst open, it gives me a sensation of flying, and the descending euphoria engulfs me as we sh incessantly. All of this is carved in my brain, something that won¡¯t be erased for a lifetime. There¡¯s only one way to break free from this, and that is to tame her. What a nasty thing.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I¡¯m going to sleep.¡±

    ¡°Umu¡­¡­¡±

    I want to hurry up and finish this. Closing my eyes, I wished so. Drowsiness soon came. And so, my daily routine started again.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    Attempt number 2,159.

    It waste in the afternoon, just a bit over four months sinceing here.

    I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s because I am tired or something else, but I made a mistake for the first time.

    I didn¡¯t manage properly the cooldown time of ¡¶Transform¡·, and I couldn¡¯t avoid the Darkness Magic attack.

    ¡°£¨My Second!£©¡°

    Angolmois shouted. Hey, Spirit King-sama, stop with the useless actions. Nothing wille out from shouting. Also, you¡¯re using telepathicmunication.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¨D¨DShould I use ¡°that¡±? A moment of hesitation.

    Approaching in Jojutsu mode, Anko was closing the distance while swinging the shadow cane in all directions at a speed the eyes couldn¡¯t follow. And currently, my HP was 1. If I get hit, I¡¯m done for.

    What should I do? Should I keep going like this? Or should I use my hidden card? Whatever the case, I can¡¯t choose to drink a potion. I would get hit while drinking it.

    Well, with this being the case, I guess the answer has already been decided.

    ¡°£¨T-That¡¯s reckless!£©¡°

    What I chose was to ¡®avoid¡¯ it. Moving past her right side, I went towards Anko¡¯s back.

    The weakness of the Jojutsu mode is the rear side. If you can go around her, you have the time to drink a potion while Anko repositions herself. That¡¯s right, IF you can go around her.

    The distance between us is about two meters. Aiming for the slight window after the activation of the ¡¾Jojutsu¡¿ skill, I dived towards Anko¡¯s right shoulder side and rushed through without hesitating.

    ¨D¨DSwoosh. I could hear the shadow cane swinging next to my ear. If that connected, I would have been taken out. Close, so close.

    ¡°Foo!¡¡That¡¯s how you escape by a hair¡¯s breadth! ¡°

    ¡°£¨Cut it out!¡¡There¡¯s only so much my heart can take!£©¡°

    Just like that, I sessfully evaded using that special move three more times. And while I was drinking a potion, I received a scolding from Angolmois. Incidentally, the rest was a bit troublesome, but I managed to bring her down using ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, and reset the fight.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­I can still do it. I¡¯m still alright.

    I muttered to myself, while also holding my chest, feeling my rapidly beating heart.

    I almost died. For the first time sinceing to this world.

    It was beyond my imagination.

    ¨D¨DThis overflow. This exhration. This excitement. This feeling I had forgotten for a long time, was now being awakened.

    Fun. Fun. This is fun¡­¡­!

    When thinking about it, I feel like I forgot my original intention. Why did I start ying Mobius? Why did I decide to aim for the top in the world? I felt like the answer to those questions was revived here.

    Mobius was the ce where the ¡®records¡¯ of everything in my life were located. After doing nothing but running away from everything, I came to a dead end where everything just piled up, gathered and finally burst open. So, I decided to no longer escape. All that was left for me was to move forward. And just enjoy everything.

    ¡°Here Ie! ! ¡°

    This is our battle; I can¡¯t be rude to Anko.

    This is the world¡¯s best battle. A sh between me and her.

    Holding up the Mithril Longbow, I went to Anko and took a shot at her.

    Attempt number 2,168.

    I expected it to happen by now.

    Or should I say ¡°Atst¡±? Or should I say ¡°Finally¡±? Or maybe ¡°Now of all times¡±?

    The timings of Darkness Summon after Darkness Shift, coupled with ¡¶False Shadow¡·, made it impossible for me to prevent Anko from entering the ¡°Strongest Mode¡±.

    The current situation could be called ¡°The worst of the worst¡±. Anko¡¯s remaining HP is below 25%. That means, she¡¯s also in ¡°Berserk Mode¡±.

    Strongest Mode + Berserk Mode.

    Her whole body is covered by Dark mes, and the Dark me Spear is amply spewing dark mes too. Her calm figure as she quietly walks wearing a gentle face, narrowed eyes and a thin smile, all while dragging the spear through the ground, is exactly like that of a demon.

    In addition to her already stupidly high attack power, the Dark me Spear is a weapon with a reach of nearly three meters, and furthermore, it¡¯s constantlyunching Dark mes as a long-range attack. After all, it¡¯s not called ¡°Strongest Mode¡± for nothing.

    By the way, with my current status, the longest I can ¡®touch¡¯ that ckish me is two seconds. Any more than that and I¡¯d die. And if I receive even one hit of that Dark me Spear, I¡¯m surely a goner. There¡¯s no way to describe it other than outrageous.

    Well then.

    Getting to this point, I guess there¡¯s nothing I can do.

    Deciding to use my hidden card, I took out the ¡°Goblin Mage¡¯s Horn¡± from my inventory.

    Well, even if I call it hidden card, it¡¯s more like a ¡®fleeing card¡¯.

    The Goblin Mages, the entourage of the Boss of the ¡ºAshaspern¡» Dungeon, use the magic ¡¶Random Teleport¡·. And this Goblin Mage¡¯s Horn is an item that can be activated by thrusting it into a monster which sends it into ¡¶Random Teleport¡·. However, there are many conditions that have to be met, and it basically has no effect on dungeon monsters. Furthermore, the experience value from the monster isn¡¯t used to determine the distance of the Random Teleport. In other words, it is not a very convenient item.

    However, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to use this on Anko. I¡¯ll use it on me in order to escape. Then I¡¯ll be out of here in an instant. Therefore, this can be used as a hidden card; an emergency escape item of sorts.

    ¡°It¡¯s been quite a while¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°£¨Seriously.£©¡°

    While holding the Goblin Mage¡¯s Horn in my left hand, I looked at Anko as she closed the gap while swinging the Dark me Spear.

    Like the incarnation of sun shining in the darkness, the lustrous Dark me raged from the surface of the ck coat covering those bewitching limbs, and it also spewed from the Dark me Spear as it tore through the space and targeted me.

    If it touches me for more than two seconds, it¡¯s the end. Therefore, I can¡¯t get close. It¡¯s impossible like this.

    I can¡¯t win. There¡¯s no way to win. I have no choice but to run away.

    ¡°I¡¯lle back.¡±

    With that promised reunion, I swung the Goblin Mage¡¯s Horn.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Unexpectedly. I felt like her facial expression changed.

    Those gently closed sharp eyes and mouth fixed into a smile. Both opened slightly, almost as if saying¡­

    Don¡¯t go¨D¨D

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­?¡¡What¡¯s wrong, my Second?£©¡°

    What¨D

    What am I¡­¡­ While fighting this strong of an opponent, what am I trying to do¡­¡­?

    What am I scared of?¡¡Why did I n to run away from the very beginning?¡¡What the heck is wrong with me?

    Remembering my thoughts from six hours ago, I began to question myself.

    This is stupid.

    ¨D¨D¡±If you run away in Mobius, it¡¯s over¡±. I¡¯m an idiot!

    Howe I¡¯m trying to break that absolute rule?

    Casually thinking ¡°I don¡¯t want to die¡±. I¡¯m just a coward.

    If I run away from Mobius, what¡¯s left? I¡¯ll have nothing left; I¡¯ll be worthless. The same as being dead.

    The best in the world has to be strong. Stronger than anyone else. Stronger than anything. And that strength must be shown not only with statuses, but with everything. I¡¯ve said it over and over. In Mobius, ¡®there¡¯s no escaping¡¯. Why did I forget that foundation?

    Foolishness. The top in the world, I said? That would be over if I run away. I won¡¯t have a ce if I run away now. So, don¡¯t run away. Don¡¯t make excuses. Stand firm. Face it head on. Don¡¯t show that pathetic gait. Be strong, even if you have to swallow your bloody vomit. Aren¡¯t you the top in the world? Aren¡¯t you the strongest in the entire world!?¡¡And for the top in the world to be running away, even dying would be much better! !

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Transform¨D¨D! ! ! ¡°

    Immediately after, the ck me swelled up,pletely engulfing me. I¡¯ve got eight seconds of invincibility. I¡¯ve only got 2 seconds to spare after the 6 seconds of the transformation. There¡¯s nowhere left to run. Everywhere around here is a sea of ck mes. And Anko is already close to my face. When the invincibility wears off, I¡¯ll die for sure.

    ¡­¡­But that¡¯s okay. I¡¯m not afraid.

    ¡°Hahaha, HAHAHAHAHA! ! ¡°

    Suddenly,ughteres out. It bursts out without me being able to control it.

    I¡¯m not imagining this. Neither is this a mistake. And behind the swaying ck mes, Anko was alsoughing. She looks so happy. So blissful. Right in front of my eyes.

    Hahahaha!¡¡This is the best!¡¡And so are you!¡¡You¡¯ve managed to corner me this far!¡¡You¡¯re strong!¡¡Incredible!¡¡The best!¡¡Ahh, I¡¯m so happy, so very happy right now!

    ¡°Rook Archery! ¡°

    I shout out the name of the skill to decide this all. It was not needed, I just did it as a courtesy.

    My aim isn¡¯t her feet. I aimed straight at her head. Ohh, did you see that!?¡¡It was a critical. I thought so. This has shaved off Anko¡¯s remaining HP to below 20%.

    0.2 seconds remaining.

    Should I escape?¡¡Don¡¯t be stupid.

    I¡¯ll stand dauntlessly, dignified, the obvious thing to do is¨D¨D

    ¨D¨D¡¶Tame¡· was activated the moment the ck mes enveloped my whole body.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­How stupid.

    There¡¯s only a 0.0001£¥ chance, right?¡¡There¡¯s no way this will seed.

    Ahh, I¡¯m going to die. However, I have no regrets. Right here, right now, I didn¡¯t run away from this. I stood proudly as the best in the world until the very end.

    How¡¯s that? Did you see this? Were you impressed? This is what the top in the world means. Amazing, right? Very strong. Without par. Therefore, you guys better respect me.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Did you think I¡¯d say something like that?

    You see, I thought this was strange.

    So far, there had been nobody who used ¡¶Tame¡· while she was in the Strongest Mode + Berserk Mode.

    Or rather, it was impossible to do so. You can¡¯t get close after all. In the first ce, theoretically ¡°You can¡¯t approach during the Strongest Mode¡±.

    Therefore, I only had one path forward. After failing to stop the Strongest Mode due to ¡¶False Shadow¡· and Berserk Mode, I had to bring her down below 20% HP and use¡¶Transform¡·¡®s invincibility time to approach and apply ¡¶Tame¡·.

    ¡ª¡ª

    Who could notice this?¡¡Who could aplish it?¡¡Who could try it?¡¡Something like this.

    ¡­¡­That would be me. Yeah, that¡¯s right. In your face.

    ¡°Haa¡­¡­Haa¡­¡­Ha¡­¡­¡±

    It hurts. My breathing has gone crazy. There¡¯s something wrong with my blood flow. My heart is beating so fast it¡¯s painful. I feel incredibly dizzy. The ringing in my ears isn¡¯t stopping.

    While feelingpletely exhausted, I drank a potion. I could feel the heating back to my whole body and my physical condition gradually returned.

    However, as my senses went back to normal, the fluffy sensation increased more and more.

    Well, this is something that can¡¯t be helped. The natural oue.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¨D¨DIt¡¯s a pleasure to finally meet you, my Lord.¡±

    In front of me, this girl was kneeling down.

 Chapter 57: Anko

    <h4>Chapter 57: Anko</h4>

    The deathmatch was now over.

    Secretly, I was trembling with excitement.

    Anko was speaking¡­¡­!

    This fact was no less shocking than the sessful tame.

    Until now, she was just a monster that repeated some pre-programmed behavioral patterns. But how about it? The moment she was tamed, she started to move as if she had obtained a soul.

    What happened?¡¡What is different?¡¡Was it the Tame skill?¡¡Or was it something about Anko?¡¡This was filled with mysteries¡­¡­

    Then, as if thinking that my long and silent self-reflection was some sort of paralysis, Anko opened her mouth.

    ¡°¨D¨DLord. Ahh! Lord. I will be the sword that ys your enemies. I will be the shield that protects you from anything. My life, my everything belongs to you, Lord. So please, until this body of mine has rotted away and crumbled into dust, please stay by my side.¡±

    She then bowed her head while she kneeled.

    Those contents were spoken like ¡°A seriously prepared line thought for a long time¡± feverishly. And since I was a bit anxious about it, I asked.

    ¡°I have one question before answering your request. Since when did you regain your ego, your consciousness?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve had it for around a hundred years.¡±

    ¡°Then, why did you act like that?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t have the power to resist it¡­¡­ I was being controlled by the power of God.¡±

    ¡°I see, the power of God, huh?¡±

    Does she mean she couldn¡¯t take any free action while we were fighting even though she was conscious of it? It¡¯s quite a pitiful story¡­¡­ however, I can¡¯t deny the possibility that her memories were tampered with the moment she was tamed. It¡¯s possible that memory of ¡°I¡¯ve had my ego for a hundred years¡± was addedter by someone. It might be more rational than to think that there are monsters in this world who have an ego from the beginning.

    ¡­¡­Well, since that¡¯s an issue I really can¡¯t do anything about, it might be better to stop thinking about it. The Darkness Wolf happened to have an ego long before I tamed her. For now, that¡¯s enough.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Anko.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­?¡¡¡­¡­!¡¡Yes! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m Second. Remember it.¡±

    ¡°Certainly!¡¡I will forever! ¡°

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°As you wish! ¡°

    I suddenly called out her name. Immediately affirming, Anko quickly stood up. She¡¯s quite quick-witted.

    Her height is just a bit lower than mine. Her calm face was now painted with a huge smile as her tail swung from side to side and the ears on her head twitched. This made meugh involuntarily, seeing her child-like behavior that really contrasted with her bewitching adult figure.

    ¡°Can I leave the way out to you? ¡°

    ¡°¡«¡«¡«!¡¡Ufufu, leave it to me! ¡°

    When I asked her for this, Anko¡¯s cheeks flushed red and she showed an excessive smile. She looked so happy she couldn¡¯t hold it in.

    I see. This is the first time Anko will experience ¡°to go out¡±. After spending over a hundred years here, there¡¯s no way that wouldn¡¯t make her happy. If so, then I can understand her joy.

    Therefore, while convinced of such, we left the Isoreus Grand Underground Library. Curious about the outside scenery, Anko observed the surroundings with great interest while walking right behind me.

    After recovering the camping gear set at the usual ce, we then went out to the hallway.

    The hallway in front of the library is the den of powerful monsters called ¡¸ck Ghosts¡¹. Alone they have quite the strength, but they are troublesome opponents that attack in group.

    And we were targeted as soon as they saw us. They numbered five. I can solo them; it might be a little hard, but nothing I can¡¯t handle. Thinking on cutting off their numbers before they get close, I grabbed the Mithril Longbow¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Ah!¡±

    In just a moment, Anko moved at an unthinkable speed, stopping right in front of the ck Ghosts. ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·¨D¨D A skill to melt the body into darkness, moving instantaneously from shadow to shadow.

    ¡°How stupid.¡±

    Saying so with a smile, Anko narrowed her eyes.

    And, while moving her right hand in front¡­¡­ She grabbed what seemed to be the head of a ck Ghost.

    ¡°Time to die.¡±

    A torrent of ck mist. That was ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· without a doubt. No way!

    ¡°Ha¡­¡­? ¡°

    My surprised voice unexpectedly leaked. And so did half augh. I doubted my eyes. However, the scene in front of me remained the same. The ck Ghosts had their remaining HP dropped to 1!¡¡Can she ¡°use¡± it!?¡¡That game-breaking magic¡­¡­!

    Immediately after. Basha¨D¨D Along with that light sound, the head of the ck Ghost was crushed by Anko.

    Hey, hey! What kind of skill was that?¡¡Come to think of it, something doese to mind. The ¡°w¡± attack. Can she use it while in human form¡­¡­?

    ¡°Come, Shadow Cane.¡±

    After wiping out the remnants of the ck Ghost attached to her robe, Anko then used ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· with plenty of leeway.

    She summoned the ¡ºShadow Cane¡»¨D¨D A deep ck cane the color of darkness itself. I know it since I¡¯ve fought against it a lot, but that cane is a very nasty weapon. Why? Because it has ¡°A number of fast moves¡±. In other words, it has an excellentpatibility with ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·. Having 1 HP left and being relentlessly attacked with her ¡¾Jojutsu¡¿ skill, it really leaves no room to breathe.

    ¡­¡­I wonder what¡¯s this feeling? That heinous and savagebination that I struggled against too much feels so damn reliable the moment it was used for me. ¡°Give¡¯em hell, girl! ¡°, are words I almost wanted to yell.

    And while I had that in my head, the ck Ghosts attacked Anko all at once.

    ¡°Ufu¨C! ¡°

    Anko swung the Shadow Cane towards the ground, mming it several times. A characteristic of the Shadow Cane is that, even if the shadow is attacked, damage is received. That skill was ¡¶Gold Jojutsu¡·. A quick attack over a wide area forward. And also, towards the shadows in the ground.

    The four remaining ck Ghosts were annihted in that single blow. The obvious conclusion. A hard to avoid, wide-range attack towards the shadows when only 1 HP was left thanks to the ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· attack earlier. In one word, overwhelming. To the point where that couldn¡¯t even be considered a fight. This was a very efficient and calcted strategy, a hunt from someone with unusually high levels of skill.

    Geez¡­¡­ What¡¯s with that? It¡¯s crazy. Insane.

    What¡¯s crazy? You might wonder¡­¡­ Everything is, especially the ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·. I didn¡¯t think it would be usable. Obviously, the Anko in my previous life couldn¡¯t use it. After all, it¡¯s a magic that brings your enemies¡¯ HP to 1.¡¡That¡¯s, without a doubt, a game-breaking skill.

    However, it¡¯s a fact she can use that ¡°game-breaking magic¡± here. In other words, this world¡¯s Anko is clearly different from the one of my previous life. Everything about her, from her ego, to her strategies, to her skills.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Isn¡¯t she way too strong?

    ¡°¡­¡­Well done. It was perfect.¡±

    While still feeling some shivers, I praised Anko.

    Being immersed in her role and watching the aftermath of her actions, Anko immediately turned around and while bowing said ¡°Your words are wasted on me¡±, after hearing me. Obedient indeed. That makes me quite happy.

    Well then, let¡¯s check something. The differences between the previous world and this one.

    ¡°Anko, show me your status.¡±

    ¡°Yes, please have a look at them.¡±

    Answering mymand, Anko put away her Shadow Cane and came leaning over. That¡¯s a little¡­¡­No, that¡¯s quite close. And also, huge. No, right now their size doesn¡¯t really matter. However, huge ones are huge. Damn, they¡¯re so big. In any case, what¡¯s big is big.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Alright, with this, I¡¯m convinced. ¡°Restrictions¡± have been added. For ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· the condition ¡¸It can only be used on weaker opponents¡¹ was added. And also, a cooldown time of 3600 seconds. So, the limit is once per hour. Still, that¡¯s more than enough for this out-of-the-ordinary skill.

    In addition, the cooldown time of ¡¶False Shadow¡· has increased from 40 to 300 seconds. It¡¯s true that being able to use invincibility for three seconds every 40 seconds was too broken.

    Aside from that, the cooldown time of ¡¶Darkness Shift¡· has disappeared, and the cooldown time of ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· and ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· has been set to 60 seconds.

    Compared to my previous life, they all were upwards revisions. Andpared to before taming, everything except ¡¶Darkness Shift¡· was revised downwards. What is the meaning of this? It isn¡¯t thoughtless. Actually, this can be said to be a very thought-out adjustment.

    That¡¯s why.

    I was convinced.

    That¡¯s why.

    I was convinced.

    There is a God. Nay, there is a ¡®producer¡¯.

    I don¡¯t know who that is or what kind of personality it has, but I know it definitely exists. And in order to bnce this world that is simr to Mobius, he or she struggles to make some big or small adjustments. To the point where all the Darkness Wolf¡¯s skills were kept after taming and modified with ¡°for this world¡± in mind.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯d like to thank them. This is the best of worlds. All I can do is thank them for providing me with a ce where I can make my dreamse true. If we can meet someday, I¡¯ll go say hello and give them some sweets. That would be great.

    ¡°Is everything alright? Can I be of help to you, my Lord? ¡°

    While I was thinking deeply about this, Anko asked me as if worried about something. Sorry, I didn¡¯t properly look at your stats.

    ¡°Around 5,000 points out of 100.¡±

    ¡°Ohh! ¡°

    ¡°Kidding, actually about 1 million points.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh, ohhh, Lord. Anko is very happy.¡±

    As I made a little joke, Anko came leaning on my chest. E-eh¡­¡­!?¡¡Hu-huge¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨D¨D¨DAra.¡±

    Then Anko leaked a cold voice. At that same moment, I noticed.

    Three ck Ghosts tried to take us by surprise, attacking from behind. It¡¯s not like they were hiding somewhere. They simply respawned after a certain amount of time. I guess I got too carried away with this sensation.

    Anko, who was the first one to notice the enemies approaching, left my side while feeling regretful and activated ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· while smiling.

    What came out from the darkness was arge weapon, double her height, the ¡°Dark me Spear¡±.

    For her, it was very easy to swing such a long armament. The sinister patterns and decorations would make anyone who sees it think of ¡°death¡±, and the ckish me at the top, eternally burning, made it so the de could never be seen.

    A spear was a weapon with the primary purpose of piercing, but in this case, it was the strongest just by swinging it. Why? Because the dark mes spouted from it whenever it was shaken. So, the more you swing it, the more the mes spread. The unusually long-range and wide-area attack of the dark mes doesn¡¯t give one the chance to approach. And even though it has the perfect attack power, the ¡¾Spearmanship¡¿ skill still adds more power to it. That¡¯s why it isn¡¯t an exaggeration to call it ¡°the strongest mode¡±.

    ¡°You really got in my way.¡±

    I suddenly noticed her angry voice. Why did Anko pulled out her strongest weapon, the Dark me Spear right now?

    For some reason, she was seething with anger. However, she still smiled. What¡¯s with her? She happily smiled even though she was using her strongest weapon. Wow, she¡¯s quite dexterous. Still, what is she angry about?¡¡Can it be because they disturbed our conversation? If so, then she has quite the low boiling point.

    And then¨D¨D the very next moment. Before I noticed, Anko¡¯s ¡¶Dragon King Spearmanship¡· skill was activated and the dark me was fired forwards.

    ¡°Wooow¡­¡­¡±

    The three ck Ghosts that were hit directly werepletely annihted in a single blow. Just one attack. Ehhh? ¡­¡­ Even if she scored a critical, that power is weird. How did she do it? Even without her ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·, she¡¯s damn strong.

    ¡­¡­Ohh. I kind of thought this was the case, but now I can say for sure. At present, she is much stronger than me, if wepare just the abilities. What a frightening thought. And now that Anko has been released from her fixed behavioral pattern, if we were to fight again, there¡¯s a high possibility I won¡¯t even stand a chance. Yeah, probably. That might be the case. But that¡¯s just a possibility. Well, I¡¯ll win.

    However. However!¡¡I mustn¡¯t forget, this formidable wolf is under my control. She¡¯s my de and my shield. So to speak, she¡¯s my equipment. That¡¯s right, in other words, the stronger the better. That means, if Anko is stronger than me, now that I¡¯ve tamed her, I¡¯m over twice as strong as when I first came here. Isn¡¯t that great?¡¡With this, being the top in the world has definitely be closer. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t feel bitter at all.

    ¡°Alright, shall we hurry back home?¡±

    ¡°Understood, Lord.¡±

    I was a bit jealous of her extraordinary strength, but I managed to recover myposure as we went towards the exit of the Isoreus Dungeon.

    I stayed here for four months. It somewhat seemed too long, yet too short. From what I heard, it seems it¡¯s already autumn. The autumn leaves, together with the tamed Anko, really brightened my mood as I walked.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­To think not long ago I felt extremely happy.

    But I learned the hard way. Every great story has its underside.

    ¡°Uuuu¡­¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­¡­¡±

    As soon as we left the Isoreus Dungeon and she was exposed to the sunlight, Anko became ¡®dreadfully weary¡¯.

    She was at a state where she could barely walk by herself.

    After walking a little further and going under the shade of a tree, she quickly recovered her energy though.

    The conditions were simple. She can perform her best under a shadow that covers her whole body. But she will weaken even with a little sunlight hitting her, and will be weakened depending on the amount of sunlight that shines upon her. And it seems that regardless of whether she¡¯s wearing clothes that cover her or not, the simple fact that ¡°light shines over her body¡± seems to induce the weakening.

    In other words, Anko can only fight in ces with shadows. There should be no problem at night or indoors, but if it¡¯s under the zing sun¡­¡­ It¡¯s better to give it up.

    Well, this seems to be the price to pay for wielding ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·. Ahh, just when I thought I had gotten something incredible¡­¡­ I should¡¯ve known it wouldn¡¯t be this easy. Well, nothing I can do about it. This still makes up for the four months of struggles and hard work.

    Anko currently hid in my shadow as we walked. She¡¯s so close to me, she¡¯s practically touching me. Even if her whole body was not hidden, walking seemed to pose no problem as long as even a little was under a shadow.

    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want me to unsummon you? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, you¡¯re worrying about me. Somehow, that makes me very happy. But it¡¯s okay, thanks to you Lord, my energy is holding up. Even if I look like this, I¡¯m still, I¡¯m still¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re grateful to me and my shadow?¡¡You¡¯re good at puns Anko.¡± (TLN: Untrantable pun, ¡®Ore no kage to ore no okage¡¯ is basically ¡®thanks to me and my shadow¡¯)

    ¡°Ufufu¡­¡­ you¡¯re a bully, Lord, I look forward to it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I get the feeling that joke wasn¡¯t said as a joke. No, I have a hunch I better not dig too deep into that. This is apletely different response from when I mess around with Silvia. Yeah, this is a bit scary so let¡¯s stop making fun of Anko. Let¡¯s do that. Or rather, haven¡¯t those big things been hitting my back since a while ago? This girl really likes skinship. Is it because she¡¯s a wolf?

    ¡°We¡¯ll take a boat and stay overnight in the port town, then travel on horse all day from the morning. Just hold on for a bit more.¡±

    ¡°That is nothing. Just being with you, Lord, makes Anko incredibly happy.¡±

    Anko whispered in my ear while twisting her body. That was really effective. Suddenly, I began to wonder how would it be for Anko to be my first, but then I immediately stopped that train of thought, scared of a more intense physical contact that might wait for me.

    And I¡¯ll be alone with her for over 24 hours¡­¡­ I¡¯m starting to get a bit worried. I¡¯d like to call Yukari to set someone to pick me up at the town of Pae Ho.

    And just like that. I left the ind of Isoreus, while feeling some unease all the way.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Pathetic. You can¡¯t do anything but to stick right behind my Second¡¯s shadow? Idiotic.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°To think you would be this useless. Are the Darkness Wolves beings that can¡¯t do anything but to lean on their master¡¯s back? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Come on, say something. Don¡¯t you think so?¡¡Hey.¡±

    ¡°Something.¡±

    ¡°Bitch©`!¡¡Is that the way to speak to a senior? To a Spirit King!?¡¡Did you hear that, my Second!?¡¡Did you hear that, my Second!? ¡°

    ¡°Shut up, aren¡¯t you an adult!? ¡°

    While on horseback on the way from the port town Ko to Pae Ho, I used ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· on a whim. I also wanted to check if ¡¶Monster Summoning¡· and ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·cancelled each other. The spells didn¡¯t have any issue with one another, but the summons themselves did.

    I¡¯m not sure why he cared so much, but Angolmois kept trying to pick a fight with Anko. He might be trying to set who¡¯s the one who¡¯s above, white or ck. Is the Great Spirit King that prideful?

    ¡°Why am I the one being scolded!?¡¡That¡¯s favoritism!¡¡It¡¯s spiritual discrimination!¡¡My Second, if you¡¯re scolding me, also scold this guy! ¡°

    ¡°Eh, why? ¡°

    ¡°This guy bared her fangs at you every day until yesterday!¡¡I can¡¯t forgive that!¡¡Some cruel punishment needs to be given! ¡°

    Ah©`¡­¡­ I see. Now I know why Angolmois was acting like this. He doesn¡¯t trust her yet.

    ¡°I¡¯m already a part of Lord¡¯s soul. It¡¯s up to my Lord to see what¡¯s best to do with these fangs. But if so, then wouldn¡¯t it be strange for Lord to punish himself?¡±

    ¡°Ggghhh, you¡¯re just spouting nothing but sophism! ¡°

    ¡°However, that¡¯s true. If ites to corporal punishment¡­¡­ then I agree with you, Great King. Lord, please properly strangle Anko¡¯s neck by all means.¡±

    Suddenly, Anko¡¯s hands extend to grab my neck. Eh, for real¡­¡­?¡¡How can you say that you want me to strangle your neck while you¡¯re grabbing mine?

    ¡°£¨Look, just because you said something weird. Angolmois, do something about it.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨What do you want me to do! ?£©¡°

    ¡°£¨Something. You¡¯re her senpai.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨U-umu, that¡¯s right, but¡­¡­!£©¡°

    ¡°Ahhh, Lord.¡±

    ¡°£¨Whooaa, hurry up!£©¡°

    I don¡¯t know how long this kind of skinship willst. But I can¡¯t just let this happen. She¡¯s been alone in that darkness for hundreds of years; I know she misses people. She¡¯s also a bit, no, quite quirky. I want to respond to her feelings in a proper way. However, there¡¯s a line that must never be broken.

    ¡°Ahh!¡¡Look! The autumn leaves are beautiful!¡¡You¡¯ve never seen anything like this while you were locked up in that basement, right? You gloomy bastard?¡¡This is a unique opportunity. There, go, go. Get down the horse and go look.¡±

    Nice, Angolmois. She let go of my neck. But you didn¡¯t need to say it like that!

    ¡°¡­¡­To have the courage to try and separate me from my Lord. No matter how much of a senpai you are, there¡¯s only so much I can let pass as a joke.¡±

    ¡°So? what about it? What do you want to do? Shall we settle it right here? ¡°

    ¡°Ufufu. Shall I burn you to death? Shall I shred you to death? I¡¯ll let you choose.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, way to speak, junior (Kouhai).¡±

    ¡°What did you say? I¡¯m nobody¡¯s kouhai. That¡¯s because soon there won¡¯t be a senior no more.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hoo. Then, if you think you can kill me, I¡¯d like to see you t¨D¨D¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¨D¨DEnough, I used ¡¶Unsummon¡·. For the two of them.

    I wish I had done this from the beginning. I¡¯m scared of Anko¡¯s skinship the next time I summon her¡­¡­ But I guess I can use that to settle down the fight between those two. Probably. Angolmois seems more likely to calm down over time.

    Haa¡­¡­ This isn¡¯t great. They¡¯re like cats and dogs. I think I should stop summoning them at the same time.

    Even so, that was dangerous. Don¡¯t they know the limit? Even though they werepanions, they were seriously trying to kill each other. They weren¡¯t even kidding. After all, the view of life and death of spirits and monsters ispletely different from that of humans.

    In any case, now that they are gone, this sure feels calm andfortable. I¡¯ll continue my trip to Pae Ho alone. Wrong, I¡¯m traveling with Seventh Tei¨­, aren¡¯t I?¡¡Anyway, it¡¯s a peaceful trip now.

    ¡­¡­Ahh-ahh. Thinking about the next time I summon them. It makes my stomach hurt¡­¡­

 Chapter 58: Determination (First Part)

    <h4>Chapter 58: Determination (First Part)</h4>

    The sun went down in no time.

    By the time I arrived at Pae Ho, it was already dark. Being dead tired, I went to a suitable inn, ate a meal, took a bath and quickly went to bed.

    Then, the next sunrise, well it was actually already about nine-thirty. I woke up to the sound of someone knocking in the room.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­ what now? ¡°

    Clicking my tongue, I dragged my body out of the bed and went to answer the door.

    There stood a handsome man dressed in butler¡¯s clothes.

    ¡°Second-sama, this is the first time we meet. I¡¯ve been assigned the position of butler for the Firstest family, my name is Cubero. A pleasure meeting you.¡±

    A splendid bow. His short blonde hair swayed along with that movement. I could also perceive a slight smell of a nice perfume. When Cubero raised his face, his blue eyes rested on me. Strong eyes, like those of a warrior. I somehow get the vibe ¡°I¡¯m not an ordinary person¡± from him.

    ¡­¡­Well, for now, I get it. He¡¯s my butler, that¡¯s fine. However, there was this one word I couldn¡¯t help but to notice.

    ¡°Wait a moment, since when did my family be the Firstest family? ¡°

    ¡°Yukari-sama has instructed me to introduce myself as such.¡±

    ¡°For real?¡±

    I¡¯m not sure if I heard about that or not¡­¡­ I¡¯ve been sort of enjoying myself these past four months, my memories are a bit fuzzy.

    Eh?¡¡That¡¯s not bad. That means my public name has be ¡°Second Firstest¡±. Hoo-hoo. I see. Fumu, not bad at all, right?

    ¡°By the way, why did youe here? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m here to pick up Second-sama.¡±

    ¡°Even though you¡¯re a butler? ¡°

    ¡°If it¡¯s for Second-sama, I¡¯ll go anywhere no matter the ce. Incidentally, I¡¯m not only a butler, but also Second-sama¡¯s attendant (valet).¡±

    ¡°Ohh.¡±

    Ahh, not good, I¡¯m so sleepy I can¡¯t even turn my head. I want to sleep for a bit more. However, there¡¯s the checkout time to worry about, what to do¨D¨D?

    ¡°I¡¯m very sorry to have woken you up when you were so tired. I¡¯ll go speak with the innkeeper and let him know, so it¡¯s okay to get some more rest. Ah, here, have a cold drink. I¡¯ll have breakfast ready for when you wake up. Is it okay to bring it here to the room? ¡°

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Ah, yeah.¡±

    ¡°Very well. Please rx for now then, I¡¯ll handle the timings. Well then, please excuse me.¡±

    ¡°Ah, yeah.¡±

    ¡­¡­Nicely done, Cubero-kun. He looks like he¡¯s in his early twenties. However, his extremely meticulous care was like a honed technique. Just what kind of training did he go through in these past four months?

    Ohh, this cold tea is really delicious. I can¡¯t say for sure, but I¡¯m certain he used some good leaves. It gives out a vague luxurious scent.

    ¡°Good night©`¡°

    Speaking towards Cubero, who surely was outside the door, I went back to bed in a very good mood.

    ¡ª¡ª

    Just before noon. Just as I was thinking it was about time to get up, there was a knock on the door. Are you serious? Is that guy an esper?

    When I opened the door, as expected, it was Cubero. The breakfast cum lunch he brought was well-served and delicious. I invited him to eat together with me, but Cubero politely refused, saying he had already eaten.

    ¡°Alright, now to check out.¡±

    ¡°I finished that earlier.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, Seventh Tei¨­.¡±

    ¡°My subordinates are in charge of that, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s helpful. Then, I think I¡¯ll eat some snacks for the way home.¡±

    ¡°For today, I¡¯ve prepared chocte cake and hot coffee.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡­ Ahh, somehow I kind of feel like ying cards with you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m honored. I have an unopened deck here.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    This guy¡¯s amazing. He doesn¡¯t make any oversight in his work. So, he¡¯s a superhuman on top of being an esper, huh?

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty good, Cubero.¡±

    ¡°Your praise is wasted in me.¡±

    Even while being praised, he bows his head with refined movements. As I left the room, he quietly followed me from behind. After I got into the carriage that was parked in front of the inn, he gave some instructions to the two men who seemed to be his subordinates, and then sat across from me.

    The carriage quickly departed. Surprisingly, the shaking and noise from it were about half of what I expected. I¡¯m sure this is a pretty luxurious carriage.

    While trying to somehow put on airs, I looked at Cubero as he sat with his back straight. After noticing my gaze, he said ¡°Is there something you need? ¡± while smiling. After answering him with a ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing¡±, Cubero then said, ¡°Please tell me if there¡¯s anything you need.¡±

    No oversight at all, indeed. Nothing is overlooked¡­¡­ but something feels odd. Ever since the moment we met face to face this morning.

    I don¡¯t know what¡¯s wrong, but I got this feeling of incongruity that I can¡¯t quite pinpoint.

    I wonder what it is? Am I just imagining things? Or maybe I just feel restless. Hmm©`¡­¡­?

    Nope, I don¡¯t know. Well, for now, let¡¯s just stare at him for the four hours it takes to go to the capital to kill time and try to identify this feeling of incongruity.

    ¡°¡­¡­? ? ? ¡°

    Ignoring the puzzled Cubero, I intently watched him. If the concept of sexual harassment were to exist in this world, this ve of mine could certainly sue me for doing this. However, since I¡¯d feel bad for making him stress out, I¡¯ll just do it with moderation.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?¡¡Wait. Stress?

    With that sudden thought, I watched Cubero¡¯s mouth and hands closely.

    Ahh¡­¡­ As I thought. His lips appear to be slightly dry, and his middle and index fingers are trembling lightly.

    ¨D¨DIt appears he¡¯s quite ¡°nervous¡±. I wonder since when? From this morning? Why on earth would he? Well, probably because it was his first day.

    However, he hasn¡¯t said a word about it. He¡¯s doing his best toplete his job and trying hard to hold in all his mental stress, namely nervousness, so as to not displease his master.

    He¡¯s got great willpower. Not being able to stop being conscious, he¡¯s tense and he¡¯s trying to suppress it to the limit by only willpower.

    Hahaha!¡¡He sure has determination!

    ¡°Hahahaha! ¡°

    ¡°I-Is there something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Cubero, you¡¯re great. You¡¯re the kind of guy I like.¡±

    ¡°You like me¡­¡­? ¡°

    Huh?¡¡I feel like I made a mistake in my choice of words.

    ¡°Wait. I didn¡¯t mean it in that way. I mean you have a good personality.¡±

    ¡°I am very grateful for that.¡±

    ¡°Rx, don¡¯t be so stiff. Ah©`¡­¡­that¡¯s right, wanna y cards?¡±

    ¡°Yes. As you wish.¡±

    Looking carefully, his movements were still a bit stiff. Still, he properly does his job, so there¡¯s no doubt he¡¯s a responsible guy. It feels kind of awkward still, but I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll get used to it. I¡¯m looking forward to when his tension ispletely gone.

    Cubero, my butler cum attendant, huh? Somehow, I feel like we¡¯ll have a long rtionship. I¡¯d like to build a friendly rtionship if I can.

    After receiving the cards from Cubero, I opened my mouth as I shuffled them.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you too have a terrible past. If you ever feel lost, just make up your mind and talk to me.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ll do something about it.¡±

    ¨D¨DThat is, if it¡¯s something I can do anything about. I said so while lookingposed. It was a very irresponsible statement that inadvertently came out of my mind because I felt like I grew stronger after taming Anko.

    It¡¯s just, I wanted to look good here. In front of this guy who had shown me his determination.

    Opening his eyes wide and with a shocked face¡­¡­ Cubero bowed his head immediately after. He bowed down below the knee. Almost to the limit.

    ¡°This Cubero will never forget those kind words, Second-sama.¡±

    He then raised his body a little, and I was able to see his eyes. A light had lit in those eyes, making them look like those powerful eyes of a man who has steeled his resolution.

    ¡°Tonight, before the time to sleep. I would like to ask for a little of your time for a consultation.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Tonight, huh? Alright.¡±

    For a moment I thought he might have misunderstood something of what I said, but I changed my mind after looking at Cubero¡¯s eyes. In the corner of his eyes, a little tear was visible.

    He, a man who pushed down his nervousness with willpower alone. There must be a reason for those tears, seeing how he looks like the man who would never show his crying face. What could be the meaning of it? I too have to resolve myself before I meet with him tonight.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s y cards. How about we y ¡®speed¡¯? ¡°

    Pretending to not have noticed those tears, I handed out two cards to him.

    ¡°Spe¡­¡­ I¡¯m sorry, what is that?¡±

    ¡°Haha, I¡¯ll teach you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m very grateful.¡±

    Then, until we reached the capital, I continued to y cards with Cubero.

    I had a lot of fun.

    I returned home atst. Ahh, I was quite excited abouting back home after all this time, but our destination was not the ¡°Eastern Mansion¡±, but the ¡°Mansion on the shore of Lake Vani¡±. A bit of that excitement faded away.

    I see, now I remember. Seems like they adopted my idea of ¡°moving mansions depending on the season¡±. Certainly, the contrast between the red and yellow foliage of the trees and the clear blue Lake Vani makes for a beautifulndscape. I have to say it was a great choice.

    ¡°Wee home, Master.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m back, Yukari. So, we¡¯ll live here in autumn¨D¨DOohh.¡±

    Yukari, who came to greet me, suddenly hugged me while being ovee with emotion. It was a bit surprising, so I was taken aback.

    Then, after hugging each other for a while, Yukari was the first to speak.

    ¡°Please, forgive me for doing something disgraceful. Hmm, I¡­¡­, uhm, I was relieved. There are many things I want to talk about, I¡¯m sorry, but just for a bit, can we stay like this just for a bit¡­¡­?¡±

    Even though we kept in touch regrly, I left everything rted to the mansion to Yukari while I was away for these past four months. I¡¯m sure she was relieved to see my face. While thanking me and apologizing, I gently patted the back of Yukari¡¯s head as her face rested on my chest.

    ¡°¡­¡­Fuu. Please pardon me, Master.¡±

    Five minutester, Yukari separated from me and went back to being the usual cold-hearted Yukari that I knew. I wonder if she¡¯s feeling embarrassed, she¡¯s not making eye contact with me.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s have a meeting about the various problems that have umted so far¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Second©`©`! ! ¡°

    ¡°Guoaa! ? ¡°

    Eko came rushing at me at full speed while calling my name, then tackled me, making me do a weird sound. The sound I leaked wasn¡¯t like someone being struck though. However, it was quite the tackle. Looks like she¡¯s growing up properly.

    ¡°Second!¡¡Wee!¡¡Second!¡¡Wee! ¡°

    While holding me by the waist, Eko rubbed her whole body on me, calling my name as her tail swung from side to side. She totally behaved like a spoiled child, wanting me to pat her head. She was supposed to be a cat demihuman, but now she totally behaves like a dog.

    ¡°Ohh, there, there. I¡¯m back. Eh?¡¡Eko, have you grown a little taller? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me! ¡°

    ¡°I see, you don¡¯t know. By the way, you copied that from Silvia, right?¡¡It¡¯s better to stop.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean with that!? ¡°

    Ohh, speaking of the devil.

    Silvia walked this way with an angry face. However, as she approached, that face gradually turned into a smile. Almost as if she couldn¡¯t suppress her overflowing joy.

    ¡°¡­¡­You look quite fine, Second-dono. I feel like all my worries were for nothing.¡±

    ¡°Looks like your expression has changed. I look forward to the next time we go to a dungeon.¡±

    ¡°Idiot, I¡¯m the one who¡¯s looking forward to that.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, that wasn¡¯t the response I was expecting.¡±

    We bothughed, then held our hands and hugged each other. I¡¯ve never had this much skinship with Silvia before. However, in this pleasant atmosphere, it was almost as if we couldn¡¯t help it.

    After she moved back, Silvia asked ¡°Is there a meeting before dinner? ¡°,ughing lightly in embarrassment. ¡°That¡¯s right. It will be busy¡±, Yukari continued. Eko simply continued to smile.

    Then, I suddenly remembered.

    ¡°Come to think of it, I have someone to introduce to you. We¡¯ve gotten a newpanion.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hoo.¡±

    ¡°Hee¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°? ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Huh?¡¡The previous peaceful atmosphere from just a second ago has suddenly turned somewhat like that of a husband who¡¯s suspected of cheating on his wife.

    ¡°Second-dono. To think you¡¯ve stolen some other woman¡¯s heart? ¡°

    ¡°Master. For the time being, please get that woman here. We¡¯ll do the talking.¡±

    I wonder what they are angry about? And what¡¯s with these two¡¯s threatening attitude? I wonder what kind of reaction would Silvia have if I told her that rather than with words, I persuaded her with my fists? Or rather, why do they know it¡¯s a woman?

    ¡°Wait, wait, I get it. I¡¯ll call her now.¡±

    Complying with their demands, I called Anko out using ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·. Angolmois is currently at his ce.

    ¡°¨D¨DLord, Anko is here as you¡¯ve called.¡±

    Anko appeared from the darkness of a shadow.

    Silvia and Yukari held their breath, being intimidated by the aura of darkness, saying ¡°Tch, huge! ¡°, and ¡°Have I lost¡­¡­! ? ¡± under their breath. It¡¯s normal for them to feel scared, but I somehow feel like something is off.

    ¡°Ara?¡¡These people are¡­¡­fufu.¡±

    On the other hand, Anko muttered something, then thrusted her right hand forward.

    ¡­¡­Eh?¡¡What the hell is she doing¨D¨D¨D¨D!?

    ¡°Sto¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    ¨D¨DI couldn¡¯t make it in time.

    From Anko¡¯s right hand, a stream of ck mist shoots out. This was ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·¡­¡­ And, Yukari, Silvia, and Eko ate it head-on, without being able to do anything.

    The three girls werepletely white as a sheet. But I noticed it right away. Their HP has be 1.

    I then grabbed Anko by the hair as she was trying to deliver the finishing blow, and pulled her back to me.

    ¡°Anko, you, just what in the world are you doing without my permission? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, AAHHHH¡­¡­Lord, I was just going to kill¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­It surprised me. Anko was trembling. Just like a child being loudly scolded by their parents. With eyes about to break in tears,pletely defenseless.

    ¡°Wh¡­¡­What just happened? ¡°

    Silvia spoke after finishing drinking an instant healing potion. She had a look of astonishment, anger, puzzlement, and of fear. The same was true for Yukari and Eko. Well, that¡¯s to be expected, they almost died in an instant. No doubt everyone is scared.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t supposed to kill them, right? What a thing to have tried to do. Ahh, I¡¯m extremely sorry, Lord. Anko will properly reflect on it. I will never ever act on my own again. I will do whatever you say, Lord. I¡¯ll always be useful. So please, forgive me. I am very sorry¡­¡­¡±

    Anko apologized. She bowed down her head and stayed like that. Most likely, she doesn¡¯t want to be hated by me. She¡¯ll probably want to do anything to change herself so that I won¡¯t abandon her.

    However, that¡¯s not the problem. The problem is her sense of values of trying to kill people just because she sees them for the first time.

    It surely is something natural for Anko, being born inside the Isoreus Grand Underground Library, and having spent hundreds of years alone in the darkness of that ce. In that darkness she lived, she breathed it, she wore the darkness as a robe and killed everyone who came close. Maybe, for her, this was her only joy in life.

    ¡­¡­What¡¯s with that? How should I tread on it? How can I correct it? I¡¯m not sure what to do.

    ¡°Anko¡­¡­ from now on, you aren¡¯t allowed to take any free action without my permission. If you want to do something, you need to ask me for permission first. Absolutely, okay? I¡¯ll see what to do then.¡±

    ¡°¡«¡«¡«! ¡°

    While I thought of a solution, I gave Anko a pretty ruthless order for the time being.

    Anko stared at me with a shocked face for some reason, then sat down on the spot and nodded. I don¡¯t know why, but she obviously looks happy. And while staying silent, she kept looking at me. Ahh, she¡¯s just obeying mymand in a disciplined manner.

    ¡°You can talk.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, Lord. What a generous treatment for someone foolish like myself. Please, give me a more severe punishment until this stupid head of minepletely understands. Don¡¯t hold back and make me wear a cor of thorns. And when you deem I¡¯m no longer useful, put me down with your own hands¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Sorry, but I¡¯m a bit busy right now. I¡¯ll do so some other time. Well then.¡±

    I made the call to send her back and used ¡¶Unsummon¡·. My heart aches a little.

    Ahh¡­¡­ My headaches have increased by one. Just what went wrong¡­¡­?

    Even like this, she can ¡®perform¡¯ good enough. However, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s alright for her to stay like that. Sooner orter she will breakdown when I least expect it. And then, some dangerous incident like this one might happen again. Yeah, I¡¯d like to avoid that¡­¡­

    ¡°Master. That just now¡­¡­? ¡°

    Even at such times, Yukari remained calm. She¡¯s trying to regain herposure and analyze the events that just transpired.

    ¡°The Darkness Wolf¡­¡­ A boss-ranked monster that I took four months to tame. Her name is Anko.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Isn¡¯t she too strong? ¡°

    ¡°And she wasn¡¯t doing even half her best.¡±

    Yukari and Silvia were both speechless.

    A monster had unexpectedly be apanion. Although she should be reliable, to begin with, they wore expressions like they couldn¡¯t honestly ept it. After all, they were about to get killed. So, it¡¯s a matter of course.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that. I¡¯ll talk more about itter.¡±

    ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll get everything for the meeting ready then. Let¡¯s have it in an hour.¡±

    Saying so, Yukari went up the stairs to the second floor. I know she cares about me by the way she speaks. But not being able to find the words to respond to her, I just nkly stared at her buttocks hidden under that long skirt¡­¡­ Until Silvia pped me back to reality.

    ¡°Yukari was happy to see you so I¡¯m sure she forgot about the meeting. But at least I¡¯ll stop hearingints since you¡¯re now here, Second-dono. You better be prepared though.¡±

    Silvia also went upstairs while waving her hand. She tried to show a strong front to show me she wasn¡¯t scared, but she was easy to read.

    Ahh¡­¡­ Everyone around me really has a strong determination.

    ¡°Sorry, Eko.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡±

    When I apologized to Eko she came to my side, grabbed my hand and while saying ¡°Let¡¯s y¡±, she guided me to her room.

    She showed me various things in her room, such as broken palm fruits, pretty stones she picked up by thekeside, andfortable cushions to sleep in.

    I spent my time before the meeting ying with Eko, then at the meeting I heard Yukari¡¯s endlessints, and at dinner, I had a drink with Silvia whileughing. The day I returned home ended unchanged from before.

    ¡­¡­Everyone seemed to have forgiven me for that mess before and avoided bringing that up. My heart felt warm.

    This problem hasn¡¯t been fundamentally solved. However, it¡¯s not such an easy problem that could be solved quickly. I learned in my previous life that switching gears is important. I decided that it was better to consult with everyone about it, and settled on not thinking too deeply for now.

    There¡¯s something that has to be prioritized for now. That¡¯s right, I can¡¯t go to bed just yet. Preparing myself, I decided to wait for ¡®that man¡¯ toe, while fighting the drowsiness with an abnormal status recovery potion.

    ¡­¡­It was around midnight that he showed up.

    The butler Cubero bowed deeply and led me to the shore of Lake Vani after saying ¡°If you could be so kind as toe this way¡±.

    There¡¯s no sign of people anywhere near. Only the sound of the waves pushing and pulling the gravel on the shore was heard.

    Cubero walked in front of me for a while, then he turned around and quietly took off his gloves.

    I was prepared to not flinch, no matter what came. Therefore, I was able to calmly observe him.

    The moonlight shone upon us. And the faint expression on Cubero¡¯s face filled with grief¡­¡­ suddenly changed.

    ¡°I¡¯d like you to fight me.¡±

 Chapter 59: Determinationï¼ˆSecond Partï¼‰

    <h4>Chapter 59: Determination£¨Second Part£©</h4>

    ¡°I¡¯d like you to fight me.¡±

    I think this voice of mine that uttered such words was slightly trembling.

    This morning remains fresh in my mind. I never imagined I would be so stiff the first time I¡¯d meet with my master. It would¡¯ve been different if the other party was an aristocrat. But because the one who opened the door and met me was none other than Second-sama, I was extremely nervous.

    Well then. I thought there wouldn¡¯t be more tension in my life anymore¡­¡­ but soon enough, more than I could handle appeared.

    However, this is an opportunity I can¡¯t let pass.

    It¡¯s vexing to rely on this great person who picked me up from the rubble and gave me a more humane life. However, this isn¡¯t a situation I can just grumble about.

    Second-sama, at that time, said, ¡°When you¡¯re prepared, you cane to me¡±.

    Ahh, how great and merciful he is. I honestly thought it was good that I hade to this great person¡¯s ce.

    I have to meet his expectations. I have to resolute myself, I have to face him. This is a lucky chance I was given by the heavens. I need to grab it with my own hands.

    ¡°As for the method, I¡¯ve prepared a Game Crown. We can use this to¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Nice, you¡¯re prepared.¡±

    Gulp¨D¨DA cold chill ran through my back.

    Second-sama¡¯s face was floating a smile. He looked very happy. Almost like a child who had found a new toy.

    ¡°Cubero. I like guys who have a strong spirit like yours.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m honored.¡±

    Second-sama¡¯s beautiful voice disturbed my mind, almost like a narcotic, as it entered my ears.

    ¡­¡­I can¡¯t be afraid. I can¡¯t fall into his pace. If I don¡¯t show my determination here, my wish will nevere true.

    ¡°Well then, we¡¯re going to have a match, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, of course.¡±

    After Second-sama finished those words, he took a step forward in order to grab the Game Crown. Not good. I failed as a subordinate for having my master walk up to me. Panicking, I rushed myself towards Second-sama¨D¨D

    ¨D¨DBut suddenly, I tripped.

    Did my feet catch on the gravel? No. Something grabbed my leg. But there¡¯s no other person here. No way, was it Second-sama?¡¡But, why would he?

    Without being able to avoid it, I fell forwards. At this rate, I will bump into Second-sama. Painfully, my body tried twisting itself to avoid him, but that was a useless struggle.

    And so, I mmed my head into Second-sama¡¯s chest.

    He held me up before I could fall to the ground. Unexpectedly, blood rushed to my head, so I hurriedly moved back.

    ¡°E-Excuse me for being¨D¨D! ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Then, I noticed.

    I¡¯m a ve. Even if unintentionally, I shouldn¡¯t be able to do any act that would bring harm to my master. However, right now I just plunged into him ¡®head-on¡¯. I¡¯ve done something that shouldn¡¯t be possible. Just what in the world¡­¡­?

    ¡°Did you notice it? I knew you were quite excellent.¡±

    Second continued to smile. In other words, this mysterious phenomenon was caused by Second-sama himself. I now understand that, but I still fail to understand what importance that has for our current situation. I opened my mouth a bit in shame.

    ¡°Just what did you do? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s called Break Out. Right now, you are no longer a ve.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨Deh! ? ¡°

    Astonishment¡­¡­ no, that word doesn¡¯t even begin to describe the feelings of shock I received.

    Did he just say he canceled the very contract! ?¡¡In an instant!?

    I certainly knew such a technique existed. But I¡¯ve never seen or heard of a method to do so in an instant.

    And, above all else, one question remains. And that is,

    ¡°W-Why! ? ¡°

    Why did he release me from very just now?

    There¡¯s no benefit for Second-sama in it, just risks. If I were plotting to rebel, I could even sh at him this very moment¨D¨D

    ¡°The match would be boring otherwise. With this, we can now go at each other without worrying about it.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­

    No, seems like I apparently have misunderstood him.

    For Second-sama, the power of the servants of house Firstest aren¡¯t even in his sight. However, to go to the extent of canceling the ve contract while grinning just because he wants to ¡°go at each other without worrying about it¡±?

    ¡­¡­Our levels are different. The ce we¡¯re looking at ispletely different. I was made to realize I was defeated even before the battle started.

    ¡°Ha ha ha.¡±

    A dryugh escaped from my lips. This person, my master is, without a doubt¨D¨D ¡°A strong man¡±.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Just rx. The battle has already begun.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me. But I would like to say something first as a butler. Please refrain from one-sidedly canceling ve contracts like they are nothing in the future. If I were to be a traitor, you will be taking risks, Second-sama.¡±

    ¡°If I am to be betrayed, then that means I could just go so far. I took a liking to you. That¡¯s why I ¡®broke you out¡¯. I won¡¯t let anyonein. And also, would a traitor preach to me like that? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­You will regret it, you know?¡±

    What cool, intense words. Enduring the tears of joy and yearning, I took some distance from Second and got into stance¨D¨D Preparing my ¡°Fists¡±.

    My main skill is ¡¾Martial Arts¡¿. In particr, my ¡¶Knight Martial Arts¡· at Grade 1 and ¡¶Silver Martial Arts¡· at Grade 3 made me the strongest in my ¡®Team¡¯. Thanks to these two fists, that helpless little brat of the past is no more.

    These two fists that have been with me for 24 years now will at least hit Second-sama once. I¡¯ll show him how far this Cubero hase. That is my determination. I¡¯m resolute to fight til the end. Even if I have to bet my life for it, I¡¯m prepared to do so for my desired wish.

    Clenching my fists, I turn my gaze forward. Second-sama, on the other side, was¡­¡­ simply ¡®standing¡¯. With his arms hanging loosely, he just stared at me with absent-minded eyes.

    ¡°¡­¡­You won¡¯t take a stance? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. You, on the other hand, are quite stiff, Cubero. I said it during the day but, you don¡¯t have to be so stiff. Rx, just rx. What would you do if this staring contest continued like this for hours?¡¡I can see who the winner would be. Don¡¯t you agree? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m very grateful for the advice¡­¡­ but, I think it¡¯s better if you don¡¯t look down on me so much.¡±

    While slowly and steadily closing the distance, I said those words packed with provocation. In the current situation where the skill of my opponent is unknown, the normal way to proceed is to let them take the lead. That strategy isn¡¯t wrong. However¡­¡­I immediately noticed this was the worst kind of opponent to use that strategy.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the one looking down on me a bit too much?¡±

    Second-sama¡¯s gentle attitude made a sudden andplete change.

    In just one instant¨D¨DMy whole body trembled, and my fighting spirit disappeared.

    This is something my body remembers. It understands it since it has dived into many lethal fights. This is real ¡®murderous intent¡¯. In other words, Second-sama is seriously trying to kill me¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨Dgghuu! ! ¡°

    Suddenly, my cheek was struck by Second-sama¡¯s fist. I¡¯m not even sure what skill that was, but I was blown away.

    After I hit the ground, I probably bounced a couple times and then rolled on the gravel for a few meters. My cheek, my jaw, my head, my whole body was hurting. What, what strength¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­From a distance, the footsteps crunching on the gravel sounded as they approached. He¡¯sing to deliver the finishing blow, to this me pitiful enough as to not being able to stand. Ahh, I¡¯ll be disposed of. He sure is disappointed in me for not being properly prepared. Still¡­¡­ There¡¯s no way I could win. No matter how much I n, no matter what skills I use, there¡¯s no way to win.

    Those were my sole thoughts, almost like returning to when I was a child.

    I¡¯m scared¨D¨D

    ¡°Are you stupid? Get up. Show me your determination. Come at me with the intention to kill.¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    What is¡­¡­he saying¡­¡­?

    ¡°Is this all you amount to?¡¡Hey, Cubero. That¡¯s wrong, right?¡¡If you¡¯re not going to stand firm right now, when will you? ¡°

    ¡­¡­Wrong.

    Ahh, I was wrong!

    That¡¯s right, it was different!

    It¡¯s not about reason!¡¡It¡¯s not about strategy!¡¡It¡¯s not about skill!

    Damn, I¡¯m really an idiot!¡¡I had it totally wrong!

    Second-sama hasn¡¯t abandoned me yet!

    If I don¡¯t stand firm now, then when!?

    If I don¡¯t stand firm now, then when!?

    If I don¡¯t stand firm now, then when!?

    ¡°U©aAA©aAA©aAAA©a! ! ¡°

    I could no longer hold back my tears. These tears crawled towards my wounds, reminding me I was alive.

    ¨D¨DGet up, he said. I have to get up no matter what. I need to show my resolve. It¡¯s fine if I die here. Second-sama surely will manage the rest. He promised he would. That¡¯s why I can have peace of mind, leaving it to him. Am I really going to give up? I¡¯m determined. I¡¯ve put everything on the line. So, I¡¯ll stand up even if it kills me¨D¨D!

    ¡°¡­¡­uh¡­¡­fuh¡­¡­! ¡°

    Gathering all my strength, I stood up. I stood up.

    Raising my head throbbing with pain, I looked at Second-sama.

    ¡­¡­Yeah, he¡¯s scary. Tremendously frightening.

    However, what of it?

    Fighting to maintain my consciousness, I just tried to hit Second-sama without even preparing a skill.

    But the moment my fist was caught by Second-sama¡¯s hand, my sight went dark at the time I heard these words.

    ¡°You really are great.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°¡­¡­Where am I?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake.¡±

    Dawn.

    Cubero, who was lying asleep in my bed, finally regained consciousness.

    ¡°Want to drink a potion? ¡°

    ¡°Ugh¡­¡­ no, I¡¯ll pass.¡±

    When I tried to pass him a potion, Cuberoughed bitterly while making a painful sound, like he had a cut in his mouth. ¡°I¡¯d like to keep this wound for a while,¡± he said.

    I didn¡¯t know how to answer, so I just said ¡°I see¡±, and ced the potion back in my inventory.

    For a while, there was nothing but silence.

    It was Cubero who was the first one to break it.

    ¡°Thank you very much.¡±

    ¡°Why are you thanking me?¡±

    ¡°Maybe for picking me up and making me a ve. Maybe for giving me an opportunity. Maybe for allowing me to face against you.¡±

    ¡°Maybe? ¡°

    ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m not sure either¡­¡­ however, I simply wanted to somehow thank you.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that?¡±

    Thinking that he might still have his brain a bit shaken, I stared into Cubero¡¯s eyes. But, after just one second, Cubero embarrassingly diverted his gaze. Eh? What¡¯s with that kind of reaction?

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-sama is a truly strong one. I¡¯ve been made painfully aware of that.¡±

    ¡°I suppose.¡±

    ¡°Even if I look like this, I was very confident in my martial arts.¡±

    ¡°Hee. So, what is it that you want? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah¡­¡­¡±

    When I asked him that question, he got up from the bed with an expression of pain while responding, he then corrected his posture and faced me straight on.

    An expression simr to that he had in the carriage. I thought he was going to talk about how pitiful his life had been until now, but I guessed wrong.

    ¡°I used to be the young leader of a team called R6 (Rimusuma Six).¡±

    ¡°R6? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. A group of righteous bandits based around the capital.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Righteous bandits, huh?¡±

    Righteous bandits were thieves who only stole from the bad guys. They stole from the strong to give to the weak. They are groups disliked by the knight orders but quite loved by the people. Pretty much like ¡®robin hoods¡¯.

    Ahh,e to think of it, I¡¯ve heard a bit about some bandits that made a base near the capital. I think I received some reports about that while I was in Isoreus, from Yukari. In any case, the bandits who were praised to be the best in the Kingdom were crushed without leaving a trace by the Knight of the Castall Kingdom¨D¨D or so it seems.

    ¡°Even if we¡¯re righteous, since we¡¯re basically ¡®stealing¡¯ we surely gather a lot of resentment from various people. Particrly, the nobles who fatten their bellies at the expense of others and are the main targets, they try to crack down on us. And, the same is true even for royalty.¡±

    ¡°You mean to say the Castall Kingdom itselfunched a thorough suppression of righteous bandits?¡±

    ¡°Just like you say. Due to the Second and Third Knight Orders¡¯ repressive force, our R6 was pushed to the brink of annihtion in just a few months. However, as I learnedter¡­¡­ It can be said our destruction was solely due to the First Knight Order.¡±

    ¡°The First Knight Order? ¡°

    That is very strange. The First Knight Order worked mainly as Royal Guards. If you wanted to suppress bandits, it¡¯s weird not to do so with the Third Knight Order, which act like guards, or the Second Knight Order which are like an army.

    It makes no sense at all. However, I had a hunch. It must have something to do with that rotten first prince us who¡¯s leading the First Knight Order.

    ¡°¡­¡­Our boss Rimusuma, he made a deal that in exchange for his head, they wouldn¡¯ty a hand on us. He gave his life, bowing his head so that we would be pardoned. It was the First Knight Order who worked as intermediaries. All we did was wait. And so, the Second and Third Knight Orders epted the conditions¡­¡­ Or that¡¯s what should have happened.¡±

    ¡°Were you deceived?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. In just a few days, the bandit suppression unit led by the First Knight Order was formed, and dozens were killed in a surprise attack. The First Knight Order was feigning neutrality, but they were orchestrating it all from behind the scenes.¡±

    ¡°How terrible.¡±

    ¡°Some of my subordinates sacrificed themselves for me, the young next leader, and so, I finally arrived¡­¡­ at the Maurice Company.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­So, you escaped.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah.¡±

    Cubero nodded, with an almost quiet voice and on the verge of tears.

    He probably regretted it a lot. It must¡¯ve been bitter. That regret¡­¡­ he might be exhausted. It might¡¯ve been eating on to him for the past four months. He might still want to help out his men who are now scattered and hiding. He might want to do something for his men who died while believing the will of their boss Rimusuma would be inherited by the young head, that ¡º£Ò£¶¡» would keep existing.

    ¡°Do you want revenge?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to help out your men?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    I¡¯ll leave aside whether this is right or wrong. However, this is Cubero, a man who showed me his courage. He has the will to keep going even if he dies. He has the guts to face this head-on. And he has shown me that determination already. Then, now it¡¯s my turn.

    ¡°Come with me. I¡¯ll do something about it.¡±

    ¡°¡«ssn¡­¡­Yes! ¡°

    This was a promise between men.

 Chapter 59.5 Idle Talk â€“ A Maidâ€™s Story.

    <h4>Chapter 59.5 Idle Talk ¨C A Maid¡¯s Story.</h4>

    £¼¡¡El and Es¡¡£¾

    There was a group of ten people directly under the chief maid Yukari¨D¨D The all-purpose maid squad reverently called ¡ºThe Great Ten¡».

    Right now, each of those ten were ¡°Demon Captains¡± who had over ten maids under them as subordinates, but they were originally ¡°Neers¡± working under Yukari as their captain.

    ¡­¡­If any of the new maids wouldin about something, those maids would surely answer with: ¡°Work without saying anything is impossible¡±.

    Among the Ten Great were two red-haired sisters, called El and Es. El was the elder sister, at 16, and Es was the youngest, at 15 years old. El had shoulder-length hair, a bit improper for a girl, and her character was tough and strong-minded, like a tomboy. Es on the other side had a side ponytail, and she was more like a meek girl. Their names and appearances were quite simr, but their personalities were theplete opposite.

    There wasn¡¯t a single maid in House Firstest that didn¡¯t know of these two. Why? Because it was really easy to remember them. The sun and the moon, fire and water, convex and concave¡­¡­ there could be manyparisons, but these sisters¡¯ personalities were like that.

    And the characteristics of these two girls were remarkably reflected on their squads.

    The elder sister-led group called the ¡ºEl Squad ¡» was known as the best ¡°fighting group¡± among the all-purpose maids. Only those with higher than normal fighting skills were gathered here, and they were harshly trained until they were exhausted. Therefore, the new maids feared it. ¡°It¡¯s very hard to join them,¡± they said. On the other hand, those with strong fighting spirits actively volunteered for the El Squad. Being part of the El Squad was proof that you were a fierce person. But as a result, the surrounding people always saw them with weird eyes.

    The ¡ºEs Squad¡» led by the younger sister, on the other hand, was said to be the most ¡°Orthodox¡± group in the all-purpose maid corps. In this squad, all members continued to polish and refine different kinds of skills every day, until they reached the level worthy of being called ¡°All-purpose maids¡±. Obviously starting off with waiting, cleaning andundry, but also self-defense techniques andnguage, going all the way to business administration. At first nce many saw it as wide and shallow knowledge, but in reality, it was outrageous. Extensive and deep, more extensive than anyone, deeper than anyone. The maids who didn¡¯t measure up were quickly cut off. In that sense, it wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that the Es Squad was a carefully selected ¡°Elite Group¡±.

    So, like this. Each Squad had their own characteristics.

    But those quirks weren¡¯t visible at the beginning. Only as they spent time together, did their captain¡¯s character and beliefs gradually influence them.

    In short, who they followed was how they grew. Almost like a parent and a child.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Hey. Bitch, you stole my headband, didn¡¯t you? ¡°

    On a certain day. El Squad¡¯s maid Momo grabbed another maid by the chest in the cafeteria. As one could see from the rough attitude and tone, she was a famous maid even among the neers as a hardcore bully. Whether it was good or bad, her 180 centimeters height was considerably intimidating, simply by standing next to you.

    ¡°Ara, what would you be talking about? I really have no idea.¡±

    The other maid was Marina, a member belonging to the Es Squad, and an Elite ording to herself. She was a maid with a somewhat high amount of pride.

    ¡°Don¡¯t lie to me!¡¡You stole it! ¡°

    ¡°Why would you think I did such an act?¡¡There¡¯s no evidence of it.¡±

    ¡°Ha!¡¡I saw you when you did it! ¡°

    ¡°Like I said, where is the evidence?¡¡How can you prove it was me? ¡°

    ¡°Evidence? It¡¯s in my eyes¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°You know, it¡¯s a bother to be told so randomly that I stole something without bringing any evidence. Just like Es-sama has repeatedly said, it¡¯s important to secure evidence. Right?¡¡Girls.¡±

    Marina then asked the people around her. And surely, just as Marina said, the maids next to her, who were also close friends, nodded without hesitation. In aplete turn around, the atmosphere in the ce now changed and Momo was now seen as the viin.

    ¡°¡­¡­But I saw it.¡±

    ¡°Haaa, how many times do I have to say it so that you understand?¡¡It¡¯s just a waste of time. I¡¯ll just say it onest time. How can I be a suspect if there¡¯s no evidence? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Tch.¡±

    Momo, with a mortified face, released the hand holding Marina up. Marina dusted off her chest, then opened her mouth again.

    ¡°How can someone with this low of intelligence work as a maid?¡¡Oh. Speaking of which, you aren¡¯t very maid-like¡­¡­ go away, your stinky sweat will stick to me.¡±

    She giggled, as if to make fun of her. Momo couldn¡¯t say anything back, she just clenched her fist. Then, sensing she had the upper hand, Marina continued further.

    ¡°Get it?¡¡We¡¯re maids who serve the great one who will one day will be the world¡¯s greatest. You should feel ashamed to call yourself a maid serving the Firstest Family. And what¡¯s with those guys? Aren¡¯t all the people in your squad more like mercenaries?¡¡No wonder it¡¯s hard to even call you a maid. That¡¯s right, that¡¯s why you shouldn¡¯t be wearing headbands. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll even poke your head with it.¡±

    ¡°Bitch¡­¡­! ¡°

    Too many words. Momo, whose self had not only been made fun of, but also her friends and captain, couldn¡¯t suppress her anger and tried to take matters into her own hands.

    ¡°So, you¡¯ll use violence?¡¡Ohh, look at yourself. That¡¯s why you¡¯re disqualified as a maid.¡±

    But Marina continued to provoke Momo, who couldn¡¯t talk back.

    ¨D¨DThat¡¯s when an unexpected person came.

    ¡°Ohh, what¡¯s wrong Momo? You can go ahead and hit her.¡±

    ¡°C-Captain! ? ¡°

    El of the Ten Great. Right now, it was meal time for the neers, so there shouldn¡¯t be a captain in this ce. However, El had appeared and the cafeteria became noisy.

    ¡°W-Why is El-sama here¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Ara, I¡¯m here too, Marina. ce your hands behind your back.¡±

    ¡°Es-sama! ? ¡°

    The little sister Es also appeared. Marina¡¯s face paled. The reason she froze was because her captain was there. In other words, their misdeeds so far had been known to their captains.

    ¡°Come one, hit her. Until you¡¯re done.¡±

    ¡°Here you go, Momo-san. Do as you like.¡±

    El and Es said such a thing with a smile.

    Momo then turned towards Marina. Marina¡¯s eyes were moistened and she was trembling. It was an expression of despair. Well, that¡¯s a given. Her elite road on which she walked turned into hell in just a moment.

    ¡°¡­¡­Sorry. I can¡¯t.¡±

    Momo lowered her head after some contemtion. She felt she too was at fault since she couldn¡¯t procure any evidence. And, she did not train in order to hit an opponent who was crying and offering no resistance.

    ¡°Is that so? Clench your teeth.¡±

    El said while floating a gentle smile.

    Immediately after¨D¨D A tightly clenched fist assaulted Momo.

    ¡°Gguee!¡¡Agh!¡¡Buh! ¡°

    A relentless liver blow. Then, as her posture crumbled, an elbow right to the face. And after she fell to her knees, a kick to the sr plexus.

    Everyone present thought ¡°That¡¯s too much¡±, but nobody uttered a word.

    The 180-cm tall woman was one-sidedly beaten by a 16 years-old girl who wasn¡¯t even 160-cm in height. All the neers trembled seeing the figure of the captain of the fighting corps, the¡ºEl Squad¡».

    ¡°The worst thing you can do is go after someone without any proof. Properly remember it.¡±

    ¡°Y¡­¡­Yes¡­¡­Captain¡­¡­¡±

    While bleeding from the nose in a crouching position, Momo answered.

    ¡°Next time, make sure you have enough evidence before going after someone. Then, you can go wild without problems.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes¡­¡­¡±

    El told her subordinates ¡°Take her to her room¡±, and silently watched Momo being carried away.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Es watched her sister¡¯s schooling with warm eyes.

    It looked like so long ago. These two sisters had fallen into very after being framed for a crime they didn¡¯tmit¨D¨D but now, only a few people knew this fact.

    Right now, they spend their days as the happiest. However, the pain of those false usations would probably never disappear from these two sister¡¯s minds. Therefore, their aversion to doubting people couldn¡¯t be wiped away.

    However, looking at it from the other side, this was engraved into their bodies and they understood the measures to take. Both Es and El knew that ¡°Innocent and guilty without evidence¡± were pretty much the same.

    That¡¯s why they both stuck to ¡®evidence¡¯ more than anyone else. At the very least, in the ces where their eyes reached, in this house where their beloved master lived, false usations must never be forgiven. This was something they kept in their minds every day. So, their subordinates should have grown following those ideals.

    ¡°Well now, Marina.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hiiii.¡±

    Still, there were exceptions.

    Like purposely erasing evidence after doing something they shouldn¡¯t.

    Es took out Momo¡¯s headband, which was of course proof of Marina¡¯s misdeeds, and looked straight at her while spinning it on her finger.

    Heaven¡¯s hasrge meshes, but nothing escapes, as the proverb says. As their name of the Sun and Moon of Firstest, their judgement was strict.

    ¡°It¡¯s re-education time. But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not as strict as my sister, El.¡±

    So she said, with a warm smile. Marina felt an immeasurable dread, cold sweat dripping down her spine.

    ¡­¡­After that. A few dayster, a Marina that looked like apletely different person, returned. It became a topic among the maids about what kind of education someone would receive to suddenly change to an almostpletely different person, and it became a rumor among them that the younger sister might be way scarier than the elder sister.

    £¼¡¡Yve¡¡£¾

    Among the all-purpose maid corps, there was a maid nicknamed the ¡°White Demon¡±, and was rumored to be the ¡°most dangerous among the Ten Great¡±.

    She was one of the ten people directly under Yukari, a girl named Yve.

    Always silent, always expressionless, almost as if she was a doll. Coupled with that otherworldly beauty of hers, some called her the ¡°Assassin puppet doll¡±.

    Yes, she was a top-notch assassin, a proud member of the all-purpose maid corps.

    If the ¡ºEl Squad¡» could make a crying child shut, the ¡ºYve Squad¡» would physically shut it ¡®down¡¯.

    That would mean¡­¡­ without sound, without anyone noticing, in just an instant. No traces nor corpses would ever be found.

    And as such, the Yve Squad was given a stare a bit different than the El Squad. And their captain was the White Demon herself.

    If one would ask the maids who the strongest among the maids was, with the exception of chief maid Yukari, nine out of ten would answer¨D¨D ¡°That would be Yve-sama¡±.

    She was that frightening.

    This time, the story will focus on her.

    ¡ª¡ª

    Demon child¨D¨D That was my nickname.

    I had no friends. Not even acquaintances. I only ever spoke to mommy and daddy.

    I was always locked up at home. This way is better, that¡¯s what mommy and daddy always said.

    Still, I could hear the voices from the outside. Voices calling out to me. Yells. ¡°COME OUT, YOU DEMON CHILD¡±¨D¨D they said.

    A certain night. Mommy and daddy invited me to go outside. It was the first time, so I was confused. But they were always smiling, so, I was a bit d and followed them.

    I was then ced inside a wagon while all the vigers yelled abusive words.

    The two of them didn¡¯te with me. They just received something from a fat man. At that moment, they had a smile I had never seen before.

    And so, the carriage left. But the abuse didn¡¯t stop. And now mommy and daddy were also on their side. Ahh, I see. I noticed it. I was sold off.

    Was I betrayed?¡¡That¡¯s probably right. Was I sad?¡¡I think I was.

    But. At the time, I didn¡¯t understand it well enough.

    I just found outter.

    I¡¯m different from others. My skin is white. So is my hair. And my eyes are red. It seems I was too scary. Almost like a demon.

    I just found outter.

    Both mommy and daddy kept me at a distance. They never spoke to me more than necessary, and when they did it was like a mechanical voice, awkward¡­ weird¡­ But they were the only ones who talked to me, so I thought it was normal. How weird.

    I just found outter.

    I became 17 this year. The same age as Master. Apparently, this is when my life properly began.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°£±£® Preliminary investigation. £²£® Speed. £³£® Corpse disposal. The results of the assassination are determined by these three steps.¡±

    Hi, Yve here. Today is Yukari-sama¡¯s assassination lecture, this is my 19th lecture. Obviously, out of 19 lectures, full marks. Looks like this time it¡¯ll be a review lesson since there are many first-time participants. I have bad eyesight, so I sit in the front row.

    The attendees were the Ten Great, all the other girls from my team, and a few other girls I haven¡¯t seen before. Everyone listened very attentively.

    ¡°Investigation is a game of perseverance. Blend into the air, never stand out, collect information about the target without letting people remember your face. I may be unsuitable for this. I¡¯m a dark elf, so I naturally stand out.¡±

    Yeah, I¡¯m not suited for it either. After all, I¡¯m pure white.

    ¡°The speed in assassination, you acquire it with technique and experience. Kill decisively, not making a sound, without the target being able to speak. For it, you can use skills such as Assassination and Thread Maniption. The point is to not get too worked up. Like cutting in half an onion, or crushing a garlic with the side of a kitchen knife. Do it as if you were doing something you normally do.¡±

    I wonder if Yukari-sama is hungry¡­¡­?

    ¡°For the corpse disposal, it should ideally be done with a group. Several people working together, be it burying it, chopping it to pieces, or cremating it. You need to make a n and stick to it. And be sure to leave the premises without being noticed by anyone. I will not allow you to cause trouble for Master. If you don¡¯t need to dispose of the body, try to leave the spot as soon as possible.¡±

    Oh, hearing the basics after all this time. Yup, indeed, the most important thing is¨D¨D

    ¡°These three points are the basics of assassination, but the most important thing is the preliminary investigation. Target selection, behavioral patterns, intrusion routes, escape routes, peopleing in and out, dead times, hours of little guarding, effective assassination methods, and corpse disposal ways. Everything depends on the investigation.¡±

    Yup, preliminary investigation. I can¡¯t do that, I¡¯m ashamed to always have to depend on the others for this. And because the proper assassination work hasn¡¯t started yet, I¡¯m not doing anything at present. Maybe this is the reason why I feel out of ce?

    ¡°¡­¡­We¡¯re all aware that currently there are suspicious movements in the Capital, right?¡¡From now on, we will need to focus more on research and information gathering. That¡¯s why you have to learn about investigative work.¡±

    See? I¡¯m being left out more and more.

    Yukari-sama then said ¡°Aside from Yve, the other Ten are dismissed. Yve, you stay a bit more¡±, and then, she gathered the remaining maids and began to teach them how to train for preliminary investigation. Ahh, I¡¯m the only one left out again.

    ¡°You have it hard, Yve. Because I have no talent in assassination I have stay behind, but let¡¯s do our best. Sorry, hahaha.¡±

    El talked to the gloomy me. I know she¡¯s just joking. But I¡¯m happy!

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­yeah¡­¡­uhmm¡­¡­-o my best.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Sorry, what was that?¡¡I couldn¡¯t hear you at all.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­do¡­¡­-y best¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°HEY!¡¡El-ane, don¡¯t bully Yve! ¡°

    ¡°What! ?¡¡I¡¯m not bullying her! ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t give me excuses!¡¡You were! ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Ahh, I¡¯ve done it again¡­¡­

    I want to get along with everyone, but this always happens. All because I never had any conversation with people other than mommy and daddy until I was this age. This is troubling¡­¡­

    Because my voice is so quiet, people can¡¯t hear me even if I speak over and over, so they often mistake me as being silent. It¡¯s impossible to talk to others. I only have myself to talk with, and even when I triedughing, they just get scared of my face. Haa¡­¡­I¡¯m just a shy, withdrawn, silent and expressionless White Demon puppet doll of assassination after all.

    Evening this far, is it still impossible for me to make a friend?¡¡Or rather!¡¡Would it be impossible for me to speak with my Master for my whole life! ?¡¡Ugh¡­¡­

    ¡°Yve. Come this way.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ye, s.¡±

    Coming back to my senses thanks to Yukari-sama¡¯s voice, I answered while looking down, and followed her.

    Our destination was the garden. Yukari-sama always teaches me how to use ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ in this ce. And since I can¡¯t go investigate, this can¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so depressed. You are the second greatest user of Thread Maniption that I¡¯ve ever seen. Be more confident.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes¡­¡­¡±

    Nicely done, me! I was praised by Yukari-sama. It¡¯s good that I¡¯ve been messing around with all the threats that were sitting around in my cell since I was little.

    Ahh, but there¡¯s someone who¡¯s better than me¡­¡­ I wonder if that¡¯s Yukari-sama?

    ¡°You have a face like you care about the first ce.¡±

    ¡°Ye¡­¡­No.¡±

    ¡°The greatest one is Master. He hasn¡¯t learned it yet, but I¡¯m sure of it without even seeing it.¡±

    Whoa, how can that be so?¡¡Yukari-sama sure is good at joking. But when she talks about Master, I feel a bit happy. A warm feeling that can reach out even to me. I feel augh will escape!

    ¡°E he¡­¡­hiyuhehehe¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Is this that boring? I see.¡±

    E-Eh?¡¡That¡¯s totally not the case!¡¡It was interesting.

    ¡°Be prepared for today¡¯s training, Yve.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ehhh¡­¡­! ¡°

 Chapter 59.7: Idle Talk - Teaching a Failure.

    <h4>Chapter 59.7: Idle Talk - Teaching a Failure.</h4>

    My name is Ploum. I became 14 this year and I¡¯m the stable-hand of house Firstest. A stable-hand is the person who takes care of the horses. For an idiot like me to be assigned such a post, no joking, I wasn¡¯t able to work properly the first few weeks. They really were a mess. Even the most basic chores were difficult; I was kicked by a horse, and even beaten by Jast-aniki.

    Ahh, Jast-aniki is my superior. He¡¯s like a ¡®Stable Master¡¯, well, basically he¡¯s the most important person in the stables. He¡¯s my senior by two years with swept-back brown hair and sharp sanpaku eyes. He¡¯s a terrifying Aniki that would make anyone run away just by looking at him. And also, he¡¯s amazing, after all, he¡¯s a member of ¡ºThe Big Four¡».

    He¡¯s seriously amazing, right?¡¡What are The Big Four you ask? Starting off with the Butler Cubero, then the Head Chef Sovra, the Chief Gardener Lilly andstly the Lead Stable-hand Jast. It¡¯s rumored that each of these four is incredibly dangerous, but I think Aniki is more incredible. Why? Because he¡¯s my Aniki!¡¡He¡¯s really cool. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because of how he looks, or because he works hard, but in any case, he¡¯s really cool.

    ¡­¡­Ohh. And Aniki is the only one who would look after such a sloppy, worthless ve brat like myself. And also, Aniki is the only one who would scold me without getting rid of me¨D¨D

    ¡°Hey, Ploum. What are you doing in the corner of the cafeteria, not even eating? ¡°

    ¡°Geeh, Aniki!¡¡Please, don¡¯t just peek!¡¡Notes, I¡¯m taking notes! ¡°

    At some point, it seems Aniki came here without me noticing.

    I can¡¯t actually write, you see. That¡¯s why I¡¯m practicing hard right now. I thought it¡¯d be nice if someday I could write something like a biography or something.

    However¡­¡­ I¡¯d be a bit embarrassed if Aniki was to find out about it. That¡¯s why I unintentionally lied as a reflex.

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Were you writing? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, yes. But, even if I¡¯m writing, there are some words I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°For real!?¡¡Where did you learn that? ¡°

    ¡°My parents taught me when I was nine years.¡±

    ¡°Hoo!¡¡You sure had a gifted education. Isn¡¯t that great? I¡¯m sure it was useful.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    It¡¯s a lie that I know how to write. Well, it¡¯s true that my parents taught me. But the fact was, my parents were simply trying to raise my selling price as a ve. ves who could read and write were sold at a higher price, so for them, it was an investment.

    But when I had learned just a bit of reading and writing, I happened to hear my parents consulting with a ve merchant about selling me as a ve, and I thought ¡®This is bad¡¯. Thinking, ¡®At this rate, I¡¯ll be sold off¡¯, I ran away from my home and lived in the muddy slums. That¡¯s why I can actually only read and write the a-i-u-e-o. After all, you don¡¯t need to read or write to be a thief. Well, I wasn¡¯t really good so I eventually made a blunder and was caught and became a ve.

    ¡­¡­Speaking of which. Right now, I¡¯m a ve, right?¡¡Since I¡¯m getting a pretty nice sry, it doesn¡¯t really feel that way.

    It¡¯s a miracle, really a miracle. It¡¯s great that I was bought by this house. If you¡¯re a 14 years old brat ve like me, you¡¯re either forced to work until you die, or you¡¯re sold off to some pervert by an under-the-table deal. And if you¡¯re lucky, you¡¯ll end up as the ything of some noble. I don¡¯t have a great face, so that was impossible for me in the first ce.

    Eh, wait¡­¡­?¡¡I haven¡¯t really thought about it until now, but thinking carefully, isn¡¯t the House Firstest a bit unusual?¡¡Even as a lowly stable-hand I have enough sry, the work isn¡¯t that hard and it¡¯s worth doing, the dormitory for us servants is a mansion, I don¡¯t have to pay for rent or food, and since I¡¯m a ve I don¡¯t have to pay for taxes myself.

    Whoa, isn¡¯t this amazing? Almost like a paradise?¡¡And if I get this, how much would Aniki and the rest of The Big Four earn?¡¡Or rather, why did Aniki end up as a stable-hand in this ce?¡¡Are Aniki and the other Big Four, ves the same as me?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh? If I think about it, I don¡¯t really know anything about Aniki¡­¡­

    ¡°So?¡¡Notes about what? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, ehmm.¡±

    While I was thinking about various things, Aniki¡¯s voice returned me to what we were talking about previously. Seems like Aniki is surprisingly persistent.

    Uwaa, how do I fool him? Nothing reallyes to mind. Ahh, no use, I¡¯d look suspicious. Damn,ing to this I¡¯ll just have to lie my way out of this.

    ¡°A-Actually¡­¡­. I was thinking about Aniki and The Big Four¡­¡­ I¡¯d like to write a biography about you¡­¡­ but I don¡¯t know where to start.¡±

    Ahh-aah, it¡¯s over. He¡¯ll totally find out. Shame on me. ¡°Don¡¯te spitting those lies to me,¡± and then he¡¯ll surely hit me. I bet 10,000 CL he¡¯ll do it.

    Aniki then red at me with those eyes that don¡¯t look like they belong to a 16 years-old. I just closed my eyes involuntarily, clenching my teeth at the same time.

    ¡°¨D¨DIsn¡¯t that a great idea, Ploum!? ¡°

    However, what flew towards me weren¡¯t insults nor punches, but excited words.

    ¡°My biography, huh? I¡¯m seriously looking forward to it.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yeah. Please, look forward to it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡¡Ahh, that¡¯s right, wouldn¡¯t it be better to have an interview? ¡°

    ¡°N-no.¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡°

    ¡°No kidding, you are right. An interview would be great.¡±

    ¡°I know right?!¡±

    How did it end up like this? This is a mess; I¡¯ll have to remember it while pretending to take notes¡­¡­

    ¡°Alright. Ask me anything.¡±

    ¡°Aniki, aren¡¯t you busy with work? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m on my break right now.¡±

    Aniki seems to be in a very good mood. He¡¯s all smiles. Is it because of the biography?

    ¡­¡­Well, Aniki is happy, I can¡¯t betray his expectations. Holding my hunger, I readied the pen and paper.

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s start with, what did you do beforeing here? ¡°

    ¡°I was a thug.¡±

    ¡°A thug!? ¡°

    The first question revealed an astonishing fact!¡¡Aniki was a thug! ?¡¡This amazing Aniki was!?¡¡For real!?

    Everything I was thinking about on how to properly do a biography was suddenly blown away as I began to ask further questions.

    ¡°So, you were a thug, huh!? ¡°

    ¡°Well, I started off as an orphan. But after various things, I went astray and ended up bing a thug.¡±

    ¡°Ah, so you were one of those slums lookouts? ¡°

    ¡°I didn¡¯t have that luxury. I just stole every day; I stole simply to eat that day.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The same as me. To steal or to be stolen from, to rob or be robbed. A filthy life of trampling over others. That¡¯s what my life was like. That was the only way I knew how to live.

    ¡°But I was terrible at it, so I had no choice but to be a ve myself so that I could eat. Well, thinking about the end results, I think that was a good choice.¡±

    As Aniki said those words, his eyes looked towards the distance as he continued.

    ¡°And as I was just living there in a shitty cage, depressingly living on, I was suddenly told to get out. It was then that those two took me in.¡±

    ¡°Those two? ¡°

    ¡°Second-sama and Yukari-sama.¡±

    Second-sama!?¡¡He¡¯s someone an underling like me hasn¡¯t seen yet, our Master. Yukari-sama is the household chief maid so I¡¯ve seen her a few times, but I¡¯ve never spoken to her. For someone like me, they are like heavenly beings. Wow, Aniki met those two face-to-face. Like I said, Aniki is great.

    ¡°They had an impressive aura. I could do nothing but feel overwhelmed. I was even trembling like a new-born slime.¡±

    ¡°Are you serious! ?¡¡Aniki was!? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Silvia-sama and Eko-sama are outrageous, but those two are on a whole other level.¡±

    Aniki¡¯s face smiled broadly. Thinking about it, everyone was the same. When they talk about those four of house Firstest, they often somehow end up with a happy face. Just like when you¡¯d talk about your best friends.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯m sure it was envy. That¡¯s why I said what I said next.

    ¡°But Aniki, you¡¯re incredible too. I mean, aren¡¯t you in The Big Four?¡¡Maybe you won¡¯t even lose to Second-sama if you-ughh¨D¨D¡±

    The next moment, Aniki¡¯s clenched fist hit my belly.

    ¡°Uh¡­. Kah..! ¡°

    I can¡¯t breathe!

    ¡°Hey, Ploum. I know you¡¯re an idiot and you¡¯re just speaking without thinking. But you need to know there are things that can be forgiven and things that can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Uu¡­¡­uuu.¡±

    ¡°No matter for whatever reason it is, even if it¡¯s a joke, you need to always respect your master. It doesn¡¯t matter if you think your Aniki is better. That¡¯s a huge mistake, but people are human, so it can¡¯t be helped that we make mistakes. However, you must never say it. It¡¯s fucking irritating.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Oo¡­¡­kay.¡±

    ¡°Well, I understand it¡¯s hard to show respect to someone you haven¡¯t met before. However¡­¡­ remember that you, me, and everyone in this house have a huge debt of gratitude towards him.¡±

    Ahh, it¡¯s just like Aniki says. I was stupid. I wasn¡¯t thinking at all. It¡¯s obvious to be irritated if someone spoke like that about someone you like. I would be the same if someone spoke about Aniki like that. I might even take matters into my own hands.

    Well, but even with this¡­¡­I still like Aniki. I like Aniki who scolds me like this.

    ¡°I¡¯m very sorry, Aniki¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°What?¡¡Why are you crying for?¡¡Really!?¡¡Aren¡¯t you an idiot!?¡¡God, you¡¯re pathetic! ¡°

    He¡¯s a bully, has a bad mouth and is quick to violence, but Aniki was the first person I met here. I want to follow him for the rest of my life.

    I¡¯m just a stupid guy, but still, I want to follow Aniki. Therefore, while I still think of it as ¡°Since Aniki respects him, I will too¡±, I decided to respect Master. After all, what Aniki says is absolute.

    However, that impression of his is too big for me to imagine it. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s an amazing person, but right now I don¡¯t really get it. Somehow it feels like when people say ¡°Because God created this world, you need to pray to him¡±.¡¡I¡¯ve never seen or met God, so I don¡¯t really feel like believing in him.

    However, I wonder why Aniki respects him that much?¡¡Maybe The Big Four are the same?

    Suddenly, I became interested in Master. A man who gathers so much respect from such fierce and strong men. I wonder how incredible of a person is he. Since, unlike God, I can actually meet him, I should be able to find out. However, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll have an opportunity to see him. What should I do?

    ¡°Alright, then my interview is over. How about going to Lilly-chan¡¯s ce tomorrow?¡¡He will continue with the story.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­!¡¡Okay, thank you! ¡°

    That¡¯s right, I can hear about Master from The Big Four!

    ¡°You¡¯re amazing, Aniki! ¡°

    ¡°What?¡¡Ah, sure.¡±

    The next day. After going to the cafeteria at noon, I headed towards the garden to interview the chief gardener, Lilly-san.

    ¡°Oh my, isn¡¯t it Plo-chan?¡¡I was waiting for you.¡±

    ¡°H-hi¡­¡­ I¡¯m Ploum, Lilly-san.¡±

    ¡°Oh, please don¡¯t, no ¡®san¡¯. Just call me Lilly-chan, okie? ¡°

    ¡°O-okay. Lilly-chan.¡±

    Chief gardener Lilly¨D¨D a muscr, bulging man who acted like a ¡®big sister¡¯ greeted me with his rough voice.

    Up until now, I had only seen him from a distance, but facing him like this really makes me feel incredibly intimidated. In more than one way.

    ¡°I heard about you from Jas-chan. He said you were going to write a biography of me!¡¡Shoot away, I¡¯ll answer aaaaanything you ask! ¡°

    He spoke while wiggling his huge body around¡­¡­

    ¡°A-Alright, let¡¯s get to it¡­¡­ Lilly, -chan, how old are you? ¡°

    ¡°Asking a maiden her age is a no-no. But I¡¯ll answer it just for you. I¡¯m 38 this year.¡±

    38 is no longer a maiden. Well, his beard and bald head certainly make him look old¡­¡­ still, his well-defined muscles are amazing.

    ¡°What did you do beforeing here? ¡°

    ¡°I was an adventurer. I was a C-ranked Martial Artist.¡±

    Just like Aniki did, his eyes looked towards the distance. I wonder what happened to Lilly-san in the past¡­¡­?

    ¡°But being totally honest, I didn¡¯t want to be an adventurer. However, I was refused at the work I really wanted as a florist because of my appearance, therefore I had no choice but to work hard at adventuring in order to live.¡±

    ¡°But, you¡¯re pretty strong, right Lilly-chan?¡±

    ¡°Not at all. I was certainly strong, but being an adventurer isn¡¯t that gentle. That¡¯s why intermediate adventurers like myself teamed up to challenge dungeons.¡±

    Lilly-san¡¯s bright face turned a bit darker as she said that.

    ¡°You¡¯re disgusting¡­¡­ I was often told those words. They did it face to face, behind my back, and even if they didn¡¯t put it in words, their attitude expressed that. They all bullied me. I was ostracized and they also stole my items. I always wondered why was I born into such a body, but it was painfully clear that nothing could be done about it even if I worried about it¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Lilly-chan¡­¡­¡±

    This person has also been struggling.

    ¡°One day, a new woman joined the team I was in. That girl was very understanding of my circumstances. That was the first time we met, but I felt like she was a close friend.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so she didn¡¯t abandon you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I was very happy that she had nominated me as a guard while she changed her clothes. I thought I was finally being treated as a woman. But, you see, a few minutester that girl started screaming.¡±

    ¡°Ha¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°It was a trap. In order to get me out of the team. All the team members had colluded and set up that trap for me.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­How terrible. Being told such a terrible story, I don¡¯t know what to say. I wonder what happened to Lilly-san afterwards.

    ¡°I became a ve under the crime of peeping. I was really desperate at that time. After all, nobody would buy a girl with such a disgusting muscr body like me. And even if I was to be bought, my future would¡¯ve probably been forced physicalbor until I died. Right?¡¡I waspletely cornered.¡±

    Well, it¡¯s obvious to be despaired at that situation. If that was me, I wouldn¡¯t be able to trust in anyone anymore. However, I see, Lilly-san was a ve that was bought by this house.

    ¡°¨D¨DUp until then, this was just a depressing story. But from then on, I really began to shine¨D¨D¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?

    ¡°Ahhhh!¡¡It was love at first sight; it really was!¡¡I¡¯ll never be able to forget for the rest of my life the shock I received when I first saw Second-sama! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­O-okay.¡±

    ¡°The obvious reason was because he was extremely handsome, right?¡¡But if Second-sama wouldn¡¯t have been there, that would¡¯ve been the end for me. It was impossible not to fall in love!¡¡Moreover, he gave me a life without inconveniences and assigned me the job I always wanted to do¡­¡­Ahh, I think I¡¯ll¡­!¡¡I think I¡¯ll cry!! ¡°

    He had a dark face just until now, but then he returned to his usual self and it looked like his emotions were about to burst.

    Lilly-san then began to speak about how wonderful Master was, continuously. I felt like I couldn¡¯t find the appropriate time to end the talk.

    ¡°¨D¨DRight!?¡¡Hey, Plo-chan, are you listening? ¡°

    ¡°Y-Yeah. But, it¡¯s about time for the next question.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, oh my, it can¡¯t be, I got too excited. Sorry.¡±

    I¡¯m saved¡­¡­

    ¡°Well, the next question is, why did you be a gardener? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, about that. I suppose the main reason was because I wanted to do it.¡±

    ¡°You wanted to? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t you think taking care of the garden is great?¡¡I¡¯ve always longed for this kind of job. Growing cute flowers and maintaining a dreamy garden, right?¡±

    Ahh, that¡¯s right, he told me he wanted to be a florist. I suppose he does have his cute aspects.

    ¡°However, that isn¡¯t my only job. In fact, it actually doubles as patrolling the ce. Something like a security guard. Cube-chan said this was perfect for me since I looked strong.¡±

    ¡°Certainly, if Lilly-chan is here, any thieves trying to break in would run away thinking a monster hase out.¡±

    ¡°What did you say? ¡°

    ¡°No, nothing, never mind.¡±

    Whoa, this person is really scary.

    ¡°Fuu¡­¡­ oh my, looks like we ran out of time. It¡¯s almost time for that ce to open. So, was I helpful? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Extremely helpful.¡±

    ¡°Then that¡¯s great. Well then, I¡¯ll go talk with Sovra-chan. See ya¡«¡±

    Lilly-san shook my hand then left. This was the first time I talked with Lilly-san, but he looks like a good person. It seems he¡¯s feared and loved at the same time by his subordinates in the garden.

    Tomorrow is Sovra-niisan¡¯s turn, huh? ¡­¡­I¡¯m not really good at dealing with him.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Ohh, the failure came.¡±

    Evening of the next day. When I went to the back door of the kitchen, Sovra-niisan was waiting for me there while smoking a cigarette.

    He has unkempt ck hair with a beard and wears sses. To be honest, he doesn¡¯t look like a chef at all.

    ¡°Who¡¯s a failure? I¡¯m Ploum.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, is that so? Anyway, just sit there.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s only ground over there! ¡°

    ¡°What?¡¡I see. Well, whatever, just sit wherever you want.¡±

    Somehow, I feel like I¡¯m hated.

    ¡°Head Chef Sovra. 35 years-old, single. Taking applications for a girlfriend.¡±

    Without waiting for me to ask a question, Sovra-niisan introduced himself. Hey, wait a moment. Taking applications for a girlfriend?

    ¡°Did you break up with your girlfriend? ¡°

    ¡°HAAAAAA?¡¡I¡¯ve never had a girlfriend, idiot.¡±

    ¡°Then, who was the girl you were walking together with the other day? ¡°

    ¡°Geez.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Haa.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so that¡¯s what you meant?¡¡Alright, I get it. I¡¯ll prepare one or two women for you¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it!¡¡It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m good!¡¡Anyway, let¡¯s continue with the interview! ¡°

    Ahh, he¡¯s a lost cause, he¡¯s too much of a phnderer.

    ¡°What did you do beforeing here? ¡°

    ¡°I was a B-ranked adventurer.¡±

    ¡°Ehh, for real!?¡±

    Unexpected. Moreover, a B-ranked one. That¡¯s pretty awesome.

    ¡°My Swordsmanship and Spearmanship skills were good enough to make the girls scream, you know. Of course, my ¡®night skills¡¯ would make them scream too.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, why did youe here?¡±

    ¡°I was deceived by a woman.¡±

    ¡°Nbufu! ¡°

    I was hit.

    ¡°It was some bitch my parents selfishly decided to be my bride. But that was only so that they could escape their debts. From the beginning, it was just a ruse to fool me into shouldering debt my family had to some dangerous people.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s pretty harsh.¡±

    ¡°And out of all things, it seems that woman got really serious about it. Moreover, it seems she borrowed some money from the same dangerous folks and she had to pay it back soon. That¡¯s why I decided to be a ve in order to pay for the money¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°But? ¡°

    ¡°Actually, she just used the money for herself. I didn¡¯t know untilter, and I couldn¡¯t do anything about it since I was just a ve, but the debt remained and was to be passed on to the master who would buy me. I totally became a booby trap ve.¡±

    ¡°Wow, what a terrible woman.¡±

    ¡°Well, she really did a number on me.¡±

    ¡°It was the worst¡­¡­¡±

    But, then that¡¯s why with this I¡¯m somewhat convinced. Sovra is famous as a womanizer who will go out with many different women in the city when he has the time, but there¡¯s a rumor that he will never spend too much time with a single one. When I saw him on a date in the city, I thought he had finally decided to settle down, but I guess he was just fooling around.

    ¡­¡­He¡¯ll never get serious with anyone. Or more like he can¡¯t get serious. It kinda looks like something cool, but isn¡¯t he just fooling around too much?¡¡I wonder if he really wants to get into a serious rtionship, but his worries prevent him from doing so?

    Ahh, I noticed something peculiar. Let¡¯s ask him.

    ¡°Sovra-niisan. I¡¯m saying it just because, but why haven¡¯t youid a hand on the maids? ¡°

    It was just a light-hearted question.

    But at that instant¨D¨DA knife pierced the ground directly below my crotch.

    ¡°Ueeehh!? ¡°

    ¡°Stop spouting that nonsense.¡±

    It was a quiet voice. I immediately noticed he was extremely angry. Did I make a mistake again?

    ¡°I¡¯m s-sorry, niisan.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want your stupid apology, damn brat. It just looks like you still don¡¯t get what your position is. Ahh, seriously, just what is that Jast doing¡­¡­¡±

    Sovra-niisan said so while scratching his head, visibly irritated.

    I was really taken aback. My inconsiderate words have made him think poorly of Aniki!

    ¡°¡­¡­Listen here, who do you think the maids belong to? Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    After heaving a huge sigh, Sovra-niisan opened his mouth.

    Who do the maids belong to¡­¡­ who do they belong to?¡¡¡­¡­¡­¡­Ah.

    ¡°¡­¡­Is it Second-sama? ¡°

    ¡°Answer faster, dammit. Who do you belong to?¡¡Who was the one who bought you and gave you such a good life? ¡°

    ¡°Second-sama.¡±

    ¡°Who do I belong to? Say it.¡¡Who would buy a worn-out old man ve in his mid-thirties with millions in debt, and still pay him a sry, and provide food, clothing, and shelter?¡¡Come on, say it!¡¡Say it! ¡°

    ¡°Se-Second-sama! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Fool. That¡¯s why there¡¯s no way I would touch something belonging to Second-sama. Don¡¯t ever say something like that ever again, even as a joke. Next time I¡¯ll stab you in the crotch, you shitty brat.¡±

    Putting out his cigarette, Sovra-niisan turned his back on me and left.

    He was totally right¡­¡­ I was being a fool.

    I went back to my room feeling depressed and dragging my body. It¡¯s a big room in the servant¡¯s huge mansion, so nobody would think it belongs to a simple stable-hand. Even at night, I don¡¯t have to do anything, dinner is just served.

    Lying down on my soft bed, I looked up at the dim ceiling.

    ¡­¡­I somehow thought this was paradise. That I was blessed. However, I didn¡¯t realize this paradise was all thanks to someone.

    Just like Jast-aniki, Lilly-san and Sovra-niisan said. I finally began to understand it a little after being told by The Big Four.

    Will a day when I can speak just like theme? If so, I¡¯d love if it woulde sooner.

    I fell asleep while thinking about that.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°The younger ones these days are no good. They aren¡¯t serious enough. In the first ce, they are naive. You get what I¡¯m saying, Jast?¡±

    ¡°Kind of, Sovra-niisan.¡±

    Night. There were two people drinking wine in the corner of the cafeteria.

    A man with sses whose hair was unkempt, Sovra, and a young man with hair all swept to the back, Jast.

    ¡°Still, nii-san¡¯s speech seems to have worked wonderfully. That guy went straight to bed.¡±

    ¡°Ha. I was just messing around with him.¡±

    ¡°Here nii-san, drink another.¡±

    Jast poured more wine to improve Sovra¡¯s mood.

    ¡°Ohh, thanks. Eh?¡¡Well, he wasn¡¯t that bad. But it was all because you didn¡¯t educate him properly.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry for that.¡±

    Jast just bowed down while smiling. Sovra let out a sigh after looking at him, then after emptying his drink, he opened his mouth again.

    ¡°A biography, huh? I didn¡¯t think such an idiot would be able to write one.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll keep learning from now on, I¡¯m sure. Wasn¡¯t that the case with us too?¡±

    ¡°I suppose.¡±

    The two of them closed their eyes as they remembered about the time when they first came to House Firstest.

    ¡°¡­¡­I was desperate. I was originally good at cooking, but I was no professional. Back then it was all studying and training. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll read a book that fast ever again.¡±

    ¡°I was desperate too. I had to work really hard since I didn¡¯t know how to read.¡±

    ¡°You really had it hard. Well, I had my fair share too. I suddenly had to make three meals a day for fourteen people. I had to get better at it even if I didn¡¯t like it.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, that was one way to improve.¡±

    They bothughed while remembering their difficult moments.

    They couldn¡¯t help but tough. Why was it that hard? Why were they so desperate? They understood each other without using words. They just wanted to be useful for Second.

    ¡°Oops, is it thatte already?¡±

    After looking at the watch, Sovra spoke.

    ¡°Usually, Cubero-san would¡¯vee already to drive us away.¡±

    Jast responded whileughing loudly. If the butler Cubero were to find two people drinking in the middle of the night, he would surely chide them.

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right. Wasn¡¯t Cubero going to pick him up?¡±

    ¡°Yes. It¡¯s finally, tomorrow.¡±

    The pair thought about the following day while they drank from their ss. A man¡¯s face came to their minds.

    A face they would see again after four months, their master¡¯s.

    ======

    Thank you for reading.

    Next time, ¡ºChapter 6 The Political Strife Arc¡».

 Chapter 60: About a Good Advisor and a Summon

    <h4>Chapter 60: About a Good Advisor and a Summon</h4>

    A few moments ago, I promised to be Cubero¡¯s strength.

    Since I didn¡¯t feel like going to bed already at dawn, I was wandering alongside theke while thinking about several things.

    There was so much to think about.

    You see, my ¡¸To Do¡¹list is growing a lot.

    There¡¯s my promise to the second prince Maine, my promise with Yukari, the Brainwashing Magic entrusted to me by thete Duchess Lucia Icene, plus, my recent promise with Cubero. Each of them is a headache on their own.

    Everything is somewhat political and intricate, so I don¡¯t know where I should start.

    I used to think ¡°When I get Anko I¡¯ll be able to aplish anything¡±, but it seems that isn¡¯t really the case. No matter how much my fighting power has increased, there¡¯s no way to fight against a whole country. The main reason being, the current opponent doesn¡¯t have a clear shape. If I clearly knew who to kill then the story would be different, but I don¡¯t know who should I kill. Furthermore, it¡¯s notpletely clear that everything would be solved if I were to kill someone.

    ¡°Ahh, what should I do with Anko too¡­¡­?¡±

    I was suddenly reminded of yesterday evening¡¯s events. I have to somehow do something about that girl¡¯sck ofmon sense. It¡¯d be great if it somehow fixed itself.

    She¡¯s a trump card that I went through great pains to acquire, so I¡¯d like to be able to use it for a long time.

    ¡°¡­¡­Hmm.¡±

    I stretched while looking at the rising sun. Thinking about it, it¡¯s been quite a while since I saw the morning sun. How many months have passed since Ist saw a scenery like this?

    The surface of theke was beautifully sparkling under the sunlight. Slowly, taking a deep breath as I felt the slightly chilled morning air, cool andfortable, my head gradually began to clear up.

    ¡°Ah.¡±

    And thus, I came up with something.

    If I don¡¯t know the answer, I just need to talk to someone.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    After breakfast, I made my inquiry towards the three who were in front of me.

    ¡°Do any of you know someone familiar with politics? ¡°

    Right now, I¡¯m looking for someone like a political consultant, in other words, an ¡°Advisor¡±. This was the idea I came up with.

    Silvia and Yukari tilted their heads towards my sudden question, while Eko simply shook hers.

    ¡°I can think of a few people¡­¡­ however, I¡¯m not sure if they can be trustworthy. Moreover, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to introduce them to you.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? How about you, Silvia?¡¡What about Noir-san?¡±

    ¡°Umu. Father is a knight to the core who earned his title by his martial prowess alone, so I wouldn¡¯t expect much from him.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    It was useless. Uhmm, if these three didn¡¯t know, then¡­¡­

    ¡°Please wait a moment, Master. I¡¯ll ask the servants to find out if they have such acquaintances.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t, I¡¯ll ask this guy first.¡±

    Stopping Yukari, who had just stood up, with my hand, I used ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· to call Angolmois forth. I thought that maybe he might know someone who¡¯s familiar with politics in the spirit world. Even if he¡¯s rotten to the core, he¡¯s still the Great Spirit King.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Hmph.¡±

    Angolmois was sulking. He was totally pouting like in a manga, with his arms crossed and his face avoiding me. What¡¯s with this guy. He really is trying to show he¡¯s sulking.

    Come to think of it, I left him alone ever since I sent him back the other day when they were fighting. Ahh, I somehow have to fix the mood.

    ¡°Right now, Anko was sent back for discipline.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. That thing tried to kill my Second¡¯s team members, so that¡¯s a given.¡±

    Crap, I think I worsened his mood. He probably got that information from me with the sense of unity. Most likely he would like to say ¡°Did you see that!? ¡± while yelling. Because the other party, whom he believed was not trustworthy, acted in a way of betraying, even if unintentional.

    However¡­¡­ if he read that with the sense of unity, he should be aware of my thoughts about it.

    ¡°She¡¯s my greatest fighting strength, please see that. Or rather, you too help me rehabilitate her.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Of course. I know that my Second is troubled by it. Therefore, my heart is also troubled by it. However, we won¡¯t be getting along. I don¡¯t trust that thing. Is that alright? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s fine. Thanks.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why my Second. Use me more than ¡®that¡¯ wolf. I¡¯ll show you something more useful than spirit possession.¡±

    ¡°No, no, spirit possession is enough.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡¡Are you just shrugging me off!? ¡°

    ¡°Sorry, sorry.¡±

    It seems he¡¯ll cooperate, albeit a bit angry. He¡¯s somewhat of a gentle guy.

    ¡°By the way, Angolmois. Do you know anyone familiar with politics? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Hmph, who do you think I am? I¡¯m Angolmois, the Great Spirit King ruling over the whole spirit world.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, so you do!? ¡°

    ¡°Fuhahaha!¡¡I do! ¡°

    I knew he would, as one would expect from Angolmois.

    ¡°Who is that? ¡°

    ¡°The name is Windfield. My aide. It¡¯s also a tactician.¡±

    ¡°Aide?¡¡Tactician? ¡°

    ¡°That spirit is in charge of government in my ce, a half-breed of water, and earth.¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait. Are there politics in the spirit world?¡¡And what¡¯s a half-breed?¡¡What¡¯s with all that?¡±

    ¡°Umu. Obviously, there are politics. It¡¯s needed to bring fire, water, earth and wind together and rule over them. And half-breed means they are of mixed parents. That spirit is half water and half earth.¡±

    I see. I always thought his title as Great Spirit King was just for show, but it seems he¡¯s properly ruling.

    However, a spirit¡­¡­

    ¡°Can you call that spirit? ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t directly call it out here. But I can do it indirectly.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by indirectly? ¡°

    ¡°Just as you, my Second, made a contract with me, someone needs to make a contract with Windfield. If I¡¯m present, I can make sure Windfield is the one answering the call.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Haa? ¡°

    Eh?¡¡What did he just say?

    ¡°C-Can you specify the target of the Spirit Summoning!? ¡°

    ¡°Of course. That¡¯s easy to do for the Great Spirit King.¡±

    ¡°Are you kidding!? ¡°

    What the heck!?¡¡Wouldn¡¯t he be able to bring some extremely rare spirits then!?!

    ¡°Well¡­¡­ I can call for them, but they still have the choice to refuse my call.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh, so there¡¯s that.¡±

    No good. Since this fellow has a terrible personality, they will absolutely refuse his call. They would dly ignore him.

    ¡°There should be no problem with Windfield. Because that one is my aide.¡±

    ¡°For real? ¡°

    ¡°Y-yeah¡­¡­ most likely.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    An ufortable silence followed.

    Well, still, I think we should try believing in Angolmois here.

    The question now is, who will be the one using it?

    ¡°Is that Windfield a strong spirit? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s weak. Like, extremely weak. With water and earth, it¡¯s like a half-baked spirit, mostly considered as worthless.¡±

    ¡°Seriously? That weak?¡±

    ¡°However, there¡¯s nobody better in strategy. And Winfield is in charge of all the politics rted to the Great King. There¡¯s no better strategist in the spirit world. It wouldn¡¯t be far-fetched to say Windfield is the very top of the spirit world in that aspect. Hahahaha! ¡°

    ¡°No, this isn¡¯t aughing matter.¡±

    Ohh, Windfield, you poor thing. I somehow get that feeling even before I meet Winfield. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s been hard for that one.

    However, in correspondence, I¡¯m sure Windfield has be wiser. Alright, then the member to perform the summon is decided.

    ¡°Alright¡­¡­ Yukari, you¡¯ll be the one performing the Spirit Summoning.¡±

 Chapter 61: Pawn/Piece

    <h4>Chapter 61: Pawn/Piece</h4>

    ¡°Can I have a moment,¡¡Second-san?¡±

    ¡°What?¡¡Sure.¡±

    After sleeping until noon, I ate a slightlyte lunch and drank some tea Yukari brewed after the meal. It was then that Windfield approached me.

    I looked around the living room, but nobody said anything. These girls, looking so assertive this morning seem to have changed their mood.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Perhaps, this gray-haired spirit with an undercut hairstyle quietly walking in front of me, has made the necessary arrangements for this. Thinking along those lines, I guess it¡¯s as expected from the best strategist in the spirit world.

    In other words, it looks like I¡¯ll spend my afternoon with her. No, I guess ¡®him¡¯?¡¡Is there a specific gender when referring to Windfield?¡¡I¡¯m not sure, I¡¯ll have to askter. Fortunately, thanks to Windfield, today¡¯s schedule has be simpler.

    ¡°Here.¡±

    Walking for a while, we arrived at our destination. The ce where Windfield stopped was a balcony overlooking Lake Vani. This is the highlight of this mansion by thekeside. As one would expect, this is a great scenery indeed. It also feels pleasant to have the cool autumn breeze against my body after having eaten a meal.

    ¡°What did you want to talk about? ¡°

    After hearing those words from my mouth, Windfield¡¯s head tilted a bit before answering with ¡°Let¡¯s just talk about anything¡±.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see, the Duchess Lucia Icene?¡¡Did you receive anything from her?¡¡For example¡­¡­ That¡¯s right, a list of the enemies in the Castall Kingdom? Or how to learn Brainwashing Magic? Or anything like that?¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    How spot on.

    Did I tell Windfield about the letter from the Duchess?¡¡No, I never did. Neither did I say anything about my rtionship with the Duchess. Did Windfield hear it from Yukari?¡¡That¡¯s probably the case, but how did Windfield make such a perfect conjecture?

    ¡­¡­Did this spirit arrive at such a top-secret matter in just a few hours of reasoning from apletely nk te state?

    ¡°I didn¡¯t read your mind, you know?¡±

    My heart jumped one more time. It was at the very moment I was considering that to be a possibility.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been speaking with my Master, Silvia-san and the servants, so that was only my guess. Was it a hit?¡±

    Windfield smiled while holding a teacup and said ¡°How was it? ¡± while tilting their head at the same time. I¡¯m not sure whether it¡¯s a man or a woman, but that gesture felt cute.

    ¡°¡­¡­A hit. But, only about 99% correct. The letter from the Duchess also included a list of people that could be trusted.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I see. Ahh©`¡­¡­¡±

    Windfield showed a slightly depressed expression. I would have wanted to give this spirit a perfect score. Still, it¡¯s amazing that Windfield learned about the ¡°learning Brainwashing Magic¡± thing in just half a day, so this spirit honestly even deserves 120 points out of 100.

    ¡°And so, the real subject is? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, right. Let¡¯s ascertain your priorities first.¡±

    ¡°My priorities? ¡°

    ¡°Indeed. You want the second Prince to win¡­¡­ right? ¡°

    ¡°Right¡­¡­ Ah?¡¡It¡¯d be bad if the Castall Kingdom bes a subordinate of the Marubell Empire, right?¡±

    ¡°It might, it might not. ¡°

    ¡°Hmm? ¡°

    I feel like we¡¯re somehow not in sync about this issue.

    ¡°If things keep going the same way they are, the Castall Kingdom will eventually be under the rule of the Marubell Empire, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be bad? ¡°

    ¡°I don¡¯t think it would be that bad. That is if they don¡¯t defy them.¡±

    ¡°¡­I see.¡±

    So, if there¡¯s no fuss, blood won¡¯t flow, huh?

    ¡°But the royal family will be killed, right? ¡°

    ¡°The Empire won¡¯t kill the second Prince, but if things keep going as they are, it¡¯ll be the first Prince who¡¯ll do it. It would be apetition behind the scenes to see who would rule after they be a subordinate country.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so that would happen?¡±

    The Empire is trying to use its operatives to bloodlessly bring down the country. This seems more serious than I thought. And those are from within the first Prince¡¯s faction, right¡­¡­?

    ¡°Still, I had the image that the Empire was a more militant nation. It¡¯s surprisingly political, huh?¡±

    ¡°Most likely the Empire would bepletely ruthless only against a country that defies them, I think?¡¡That might be why it has that image. Although I can¡¯t really say anything for sure since Ick information.¡±

    I wasn¡¯t expecting any particr response to that question, so I was taken aback by the answer I received. What a terrifyingly smart guy. Even though Windfield¡¯s a slow speaker, this guy properly reads deeper into the conversation.

    ¡°Alright, I understand. So, which one do you prefer? To save the Kingdom and help the second Prince? Or help the second Prince and be a subordinate country of the Empire? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s it. I¡¯d prefer if the Castall Kingdom remains.¡±

    ¡°Uhmm, why is that? ¡°

    ¡°That way the Title Matches can be held like always.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. I see, so that¡¯s why.¡±

    The Title Matches take ce here in Vinceton, the capital of the Castall Kingdom. If the Castall Kingdom became a subordinate of the Marubell Empire, the location of the Title battles might change or even the rules may change. And if ites to the worst scenario, Title battles might disappear altogether.

    In order to achieve my goal of being the best in the world, I want topete in as many Title battles as possible in order to acquire a lot of Titles. Therefore, I would be quite troubled if the Title battles are gone.

    ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s move in that direction.¡±

    While moving the fingers in the air, Windfield said, ¡°Let¡¯s change ns then¡±.

    Huh?¡¡So, the original strategy was to work with the intention of bing a subordinate country of the Empire?¡¡Wait, does that mean it¡¯d be difficult to help Maine while keeping the Castall Kingdom afloat¡­¡­?

    ¡°Ahh, don¡¯t worry. If it¡¯s you, Second-san, even if it bes a bit more difficult, it will work out in the end.¡±

    Again with guessing my thoughts. If a spirit with such an abnormal brain says so, I suppose it¡¯d be alright.

    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®if it¡¯s me¡¯? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ To tell you the truth¡­¡­. I¡¯m, really, excited.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What? ¡°

    Excited?¡¡Why speak of that all the sudden?

    ¡°You see, I¡¯m really weakpared to other spirits. I inherited half the power of water and half the power of earth from my parents, or in other words, I can only produce half the power.¡±

    Certainly, I heard about this from Angolmois. Water and earth powers are reduced by half.

    ¡°It¡¯s really rare, for someone like me to be born. Half-breed, is what we¡¯re called. And even among the half-breeds, I was especially bad, so I was picked up by the Great King.¡±

    ¡°So? ¡°

    ¡°The Great King, he has a terrible personality, right?¡¡He did that exactly because of that, as a snide remark.¡±

    ¡°Whoa¡­¡­¡±

    Is his terrible personality amon perception over there? Or rather, he¡¯s the same even in the spirit world? I¡¯m sure he has never had any friends. Moreover, to simply say ¡°This weak spirit will be my representative! ¡°, to the other spirits because of that.¡¡Whoa¡­¡­Whoaaaa.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get back to the story. You see, I¡¯m weak, I¡¯m the representative of the Great King, and I¡¯m a strategist¡­¡­ I always thought that even if I was summoned, I wouldn¡¯t be able to answer the call. But, today, I was summoned.¡±

    ¡°I see. So that¡¯s where the excitement is from.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. But that¡¯s not the only reason. Second-san, you¡¯re the other reason.¡±

    ¡°I am? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡­ fufufu.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡°

    ¡°Fufufufufu! ¡°

    Windfield hid the smile by covering it with a hand. And then, as if looking at something interesting, began to giggle.

    ¡°This is the first time for me, to get such a strong ¡®piece¡¯.¡±

    A chill ran down my spine.

    It was just a casual word, but the power behind it was tremendous.

    ¨D¨DPiece. Windfield thought of me as a ¡®piece¡¯. So, in other words. The political strife that will develop in the near future will be simply a ¡°game¡± for Windfield, like ying chess.

    What¡¯s with that? What an outrageous guy. Can I really leave it to this guy¡­¡­? Many people might think like this.

    But.

    I had the opposite impression. I can trust Windfield¨D¨D

    Because I, above everyone else, think of this world as a ¡°game¡±. No, not only me.

    ¡­¡­I get it. Windfield could feel that same atmosphereing from me. You are the same as me, right?¡¡You think this is only a game, right?¡¡He saw those traces. That¡¯s why Windfield dared say I was just a piece in front of me. Am I wrong?

    ¡°Hahahaha! ¡°

    The question floating in my mind was affirmed by Windfield¡¯s face.

    So, I identallyughed. This guy and I are simr. That¡¯s what makes this so joyful and interesting. Right now, mine and Windfield¡¯s feelings ovepped.

    ¡°Fufufufu! ¡°

    ¡°Haha, hahaha! ¡°

    And thus, we couldn¡¯t help butugh out like that.

    ¡ª¡ª

    Well then.

    Afterughing for a while, we returned to our previous issue. Speaking of which, we were in the middle of a talk.

    ¡°So, about the priorities? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. First, Brainwashing Magic. Secondly, the second Prince.¡±

    ¡°Wait a moment. Let me share with you how to learn Brainwashing Magic.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Taking the letter from the Duchess out of my inventory, I briefly exined the contents.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡­ the learning condition is to receive 300 attacks from a ve with the Assassination skill.¡±

    ¡°Oh, then, it can be learned today. Shall we visit the second Prince tomorrow afternoon?¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait. By today you mean right now?¡¡Or rather, isn¡¯t it weird? Is it not a contradiction to be attacked by a ve?¡±

    ves can¡¯t take aggressive actions against their masters. However, if I was to ¡®break them out¡¯ like with Yukari, then they would no longer be a ve, so it wouldn¡¯t fulfill that condition.

    There was only one way I could think of. Someone other than me gets ownership of a ve with the ¡¾Assassination¡¿ skill and makes them attack me. However, like with Yukari, almost any ve with the ¡¾Assassination¡¿ skill would have special circumstances so they won¡¯t be able to attack. Then, the other option would be to make a ve learn the ¡¾Assassination¡¿ skill, but one of the conditions to learn it is to ¡°PK¡±. In other words, killing a human is necessary. That¡¯s the main reason why I had put off acquiring Brainwashing Magic before using the excuse of it being ¡°troublesome¡±.

    What about that?¡¡Can I really learn it today?¡¡Are you kidding me!?¡¡That¡¯s Windfield for you.

    ¡°You see, there¡¯s a child among my Master¡¯s subordinates who can use the Assassination skill, named Yve.¡±

    ¡°Whoa, don¡¯t tell anyone!¡¡Got it! ¡°

    Leaving aside why Windfield already knows the skills of Yukari¡¯s subordinates, I got to learn a simple way of learning Brainwashing Magic.

    ¡°So, Yukari will use Knight Thread Maniption to attack Yve, who in turn will attack me? ¡°

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct.¡±

    Alright. Among the ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿skills, ¡¶Knight Thread Maniption¡· is a skill that can control a human being almost like a puppet doll for a certain period of time. Using this skill to make Yukari take control over Yve, she would most likely be treated as a part of Yukari¡¯s equipment and will be able to attack me regardless of the ve contract. I think I should already have that answer, but seriously, what a loophole.

    Still, Windfield was incredible to havee up with a method the moment I revealed the requirements of learning that skill, right?¡¡¡­¡­This guy¡¯s crazy, right?

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go learn it.¡±

    We left the balcony and headed towards the servant¡¯s mansion.

    Yukari told me ¡°Please wait here at thekeside mansion! ¡°, however, I refused while saying ¡°Since I¡¯m the master, I should go see how the servants are doing once in a while¡±, and walked off to where the servants were. That¡¯s right, the number of servants seems to have increased substantially. And because I¡¯m their master, I think I should show my face asionally.

    And thus, together with Windfield, we walked along the road, looking around at the scenery which hadpletely be one of autumn. I wonder if Yukari didn¡¯t want me to have to walk this distance, even though it¡¯s on the premises of my own house, but as I walked in this beautiful autumn scenery with fallen leaves I thought to myself ¡°I¡¯m d I bought it¡±.¡±

    ¡°Do spirits have a gender? ¡°

    While leisurely walking, I happened to be curious about something so I asked.

    ¡°We do. Or rather, we are free to decide on whichever. By the way, I¡¯m a woman.¡±

    Seriously? They are free to decide? In other words, Angolmois hasn¡¯t decided yet, right?

    ¡°You know, just recently, I decided on a woman.¡±

    ¡°Hee. Why so? ¡°

    ¡°Fufufu, it¡¯s a secret.¡±

    Windfield smiled suggestively while cing her index finger in front of her lips.

    To be honest, that startled me a little.

 Chapter 62: Mini Social Gathering

    <h4>Chapter 62: Mini Social Gathering</h4>

    ¡°Ma-, Ma-Ma-Ma-, Mm, Ma-Mas¡­¡­! ? ¡°

    Ahh, there she goes, a Ma-Ma broken record. This is a first.

    ¡°Ma-Master! ?¡¡Wh-why are you here! ? ¡°

    Windfield and I entered the servants¡¯ mansion, and as soon as one of the maids walking across the garden noticed us, she opened her mouth and raised her voice in surprise. What am I? A rare animal or something?

    ¡°I have some business with Yve¡­¡­ well, it doesn¡¯t matter, where is a ce where the servants gather? ¡°

    Since I wanted to give a light greeting to the servants, I thought to ask that question.

    ¡°Yes. Currently, it¡¯s break time for the captain ss maids in the kyafeteria!¡¡P-lease, let me gu-guide you! ¡°

    The maid, who was tensely standing upright, managed toplete the exnation while biting her tongue and showed us to the cafeteria awkwardly walking like a robot.

    She was visibly nervous to the point of being overwhelmed. Thus, I started to make some small chat to try and ease her tension.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m called Ma-Marina. I¡¯m serving as the Vic-Vice Captain of the Es Squad.¡±

    ¡°Hee.¡±

    What the heck is the Es Squad?¡¡The moment I was wondering that Windfield secretly exined it by whispering in my ears. It seems to be one of the squads in which one of the ten maids that Yukari brought initially are serving as captains. And each of them has at least ten members. Eh? Does that mean that right now there are over a hundred maids working here?¡¡For a moment I thought this might¡¯ve been too much of an increase¡­¡­ but considering my home is too wide, they may not be enough.

    ¡°Marina. Do you want me to show you how not to get nervous? ¡°

    ¡°Th-That is¡­¡­I¡¯m ve-very s-sorry. I-I I a-am s-s-sor-sorry fo-f-for b-being n-n-n-ne-ner-n-nervous.¡±

    ¡°Whoa!¡¡Sorry, that¡¯s not it, I¡¯m not trying to me you.¡±

    Marina apologized, looking like she was about to burst into tears. Contrary to her strong,dy-like appearance, with long blonde hair and nted eyes, she seemed to be more like a weak child.

    ¡°Most of the time people can¡¯t bring out their full potential in different circumstances. That¡¯s why you need to figure out some way around it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­F-Figure out a way? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Like a prayer, autosuggestion, or a routine. Well, it¡¯s different for every person.¡±

    This is nothing more than finding a way that suits the person.

    ¡°However, one day, I noticed. It¡¯s really a trivial thing to find a way to have a peace of mind, or to try and make the most of it. You just need a normal state of mind, concentration, and be in good condition. To perfectly prepare your mind and body to surpass their limits you need to be immersed in it.¡±

    ¡°Immerse¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. In short, always be prepared. Be prepared to excel in your area of expertise. Have the determination to never stop, nor slow down. Immerse yourself to the point where you can¡¯t go back to being your previous self. Pour your whole body and mind into it. Then, you won¡¯t be nervous.¡±

    Marina was listening to my words impressed, with her eyes wide open. And then, Windfield with a face of amazement, butted in.

    ¡°Second-san, you know she can¡¯t do it right now, right? ¡°

    ¡°Obviously. It is tiring to do that for daily life stuff.¡±

    ¡°It sure is.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­? ¡°

    Huh?¡¡Marina had that kind of wondering face. And, gradually, she noticed. ¡°Could you be speaking about me? ¡°, I¡¯m sure she wondered.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m just joking. Still, isn¡¯t your tension somehow gone? ¡°

    Windfield followed up with a light smile. Marina then said ¡°Thank you very much¡± with a taken aback expression and followed with a bow.

    ¡°This is the cafeteria.¡±

    A delicious smell drifted from across the end of the hallway. And also, lively voices could be heard. It¡¯s great the cafeteria has this kind of atmosphere. I just ate, but it makes me want to eat again.

    ¡°M-Master hase! ¡°

    Just before we arrived, Marina entered the cafeteria ahead of us, reporting our arrival.

    Then, there was a moment of silence.

    ¨D¨DImmediately afterward, the cafeteria became quite noisy.

    Rustle and bustle!¡¡As the sound of moving chairs was heard, about ten servants in the cafeteria stood up at the same time, bowing towards me. No, no, I¡¯m not the King or anything of the like, you know¡­¡­?

    ¡°Sorry to interrupt your meal. Pay no mind to me and just keep eating.¡±

    ¡­¡­Nobody moved a muscle. What¡¯s going on?

    ¡°Hey, the food will cool down.¡±

    At that point, a couple of people finally raised their faces, looking at each other. The first one to raise her head was a maid with red eyes and snow-white hair and skin. The next one was a middle-aged man dressed as a cook with shabby hair.

    ¡°Let¡¯s eat. We shouldn¡¯t cause too much trouble for Second-sama.¡±

    Ohh, Cubero was in the back too. As expected of the butler, I wonder if he¡¯s like everyone¡¯s leader?¡¡With that serious atmosphere around him, he totally looks like the president of apany.

    And following that leader¡¯s voice, everyone sat down. However¡­¡­ for some reason this feels like a vigil over a body. Nobody is even speaking.

    ¡°Ohh¡­¡­ you, what¡¯s your name? ¡°

    Ignoring the tant efforts of the white maid to not look at me while stealing nces, I talked to the man in the cook attire.

    ¡°My name is Sovra. I work as the head chef.¡±

    ¡°You can speak casually.¡±

    ¡°P-Please, don¡¯t joke.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not kidding. Huh?¡¡Do you smoke? ¡°

    ¡°Y-Yes. I tried to stop.¡±

    ¡°Not that, it gives you a nice impression. Care to join me after you¡¯re done eating?¡±

    ¡°H-Haha!¡¡I appreciate it. It¡¯s a weed invitation.¡±

    As unusual as it was for the MMORPGs, in Mobius, tobo existed as an item. Moreover, rather than being random, it was quite borate. There were more than 20 manufacturers prepared, and the characteristics of each leaf and their production area was quite detailed. Perhaps one of the developers was a heavy smoker.

    After speaking for a while with Sovra, there were still some awkward honorifics but at least they were decreasing.

    ¡°Huh?¡¡Is a single te enough for you? ¡°

    Then. I noticed a muscr macho man¡­¡­ or more like an ¡®onee¡¯ with a lot of makeup.

    ¡°O-Oh my. My belly is already full.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense, you always eat at least three times that amount.¡±

    ¡°Hey! Shush, Sovra-chan! ¡°

    I¡¯m sure he was holding back since I¡¯m here.

    ¡°Don¡¯t hold back. What¡¯s your name? ¡°

    ¡°I am Lilly, Second-sama. I¡¯m working as the lead gardener.¡±

    ¡°You can speak casually. Ahh, the same goes for everyone else. Except when it¡¯s really necessary, I don¡¯t mind if it¡¯s a slightly rude tone.¡±

    When I dered so again, the people were divided into two: those who had a bitter face, and those who were thankful. The former was the majority of the maids and Cubero, and thetter were Sovra, Lilly, a yankee-looking guy with his hair all to the back, and a red-haired maid with semi-long hair and sharp eyes. Ohh, looking closely, everyone is quite unique.

    ¡°In any case, those are some nice muscles you have there, Lilly. It almost looks like a piece of art.¡±

    ¡°Zukyuun! ! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Oh? ¡°

    After praising his muscles, Lilly screamed a single word and hardened. Maybe it¡¯s my imagination but I feel like I can almost see hearts in his eyes.

    ¡°I¡­¡­ I¡­¡­!¡¡Always had aplex for this body!¡¡But!¡¡I won¡¯t let myself get down because of it!¡¡From now on, I will train in order to achieve the ultimate body! ! ¡°

    That was a bold determination expressed in a somewhat girly voice. Lilly turned around and opened his mouth while his cheeks were reddened.

    ¡°Please look over me, my dear Second-sama. I will be a butterfly¡­¡­! ¡°

    And then he left while saying something I couldn¡¯t quite understand.

    ¡°Please look over me, my dear Second-sama. I will be a butterfly¡­¡­! ¡°

    And then he left while saying something I couldn¡¯t quite understand.

    ¡°¡­¡­Is he always like that? ¡°

    ¡°No, that guy¡¯s usually more like a kind older sister¡­¡­¡±

    Answering to my mutters was a gentle-looking maid with red hair and a side ponytail.

    ¡°I see, that¡¯s good. And you are? ¡°

    ¡°My name is Es. And this here is my older sister El.¡±

    ¡°H-Hi. I¡¯m El. Nice to meet you, Master.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, best regards. However, like I said. No need to be so stiff.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m just nervous, so I slipped and went back to speaking politely, albeit broken¡­¡­¡±

    The older sister scratched her head while saying that. She was the same semi-long red-haired girl who was thankful when I said not to be so formal. Contrary to the younger sister, who appeared to be more girly, she had a rougher tone and looked a bit more tomboyish.

    ¡°Speaking of which, isn¡¯t Marina a subordinate of Es? I taught her how not to get nervous. Ask her about itter.¡±

    ¡°Ehhh, is there a way not to be nervous!?¡¡That¡¯s amazing.¡±

    ¡°Incredible. As expected of Master.¡±

    ¡­¡­I kind of feel like I¡¯m in a hostess bar. No matter what I say, they all give it high praise. Maybe I should stop talking about myself.

    ¡°What do you guys usually do? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s different for each squad. My squad is training in serving and cleaning, and working hard on various studies.¡±

    ¡°Mine is just abat squad!¡¡We go to the Dungeon to train, or we train in pairs, one against another.¡±

    ¡°Hee¡­¡­ so it¡¯s different for each¡­¡­ huh?¡¡Combat?¡¡Like battle maids? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. The more energetic are assigned to thebat maid squad.¡±

    ¡°Battle maids? ¡­¡­how cool! ¡°

    ¡°Ohh, you can tell!?¡¡As expected of Master!¡¡Cool! ¡°

    A fighting maid is kinda nice. It¡¯s a man¡¯s romance. And more than anything, they stand out. There¡¯s no doubt that in a Title match, fighting out in maid clothes would surely gather a lot of attention.

    ¡°I¡¯m wondering how strong you are. Want to give it a try?¡±

    ¡°You mean me?¡¡¡­¡­want to y a match? ¡°

    Ohh, nice, this is exciting. She¡¯s quite passionate.

    ¡°It would be for your own interest to just stop.¡±

    Just when I was considering this proposal, the leader, Cubero came in to stop her.

    ¡°Why?¡¡Is it because I¡¯m being selfish? ¡°

    El argued against him. However, Cubero continued speaking without minding those words.

    ¡°¡­¡­Last night, I challenged Second-sama.¡±

    The cafeteria immediately became noisy. Well, that¡¯s to be expected. It would be like hearing the principal of the school suddenly went to the school building at night and broke out all the windows.

    Cubero then dropped a bigger bomb.

    ¡°My Martial Arts are in the Grade rank. In the past, thanks to these fists, I used to be the young leader of a bandit group.¡±

    Everyone gasped in surprise. Well, that¡¯s to be expected. They thought he was a serious chairman, but he then turned out to be the leader of a bike gang.

    ¡°¡­¡­The fight ended in an instant. I was beaten, blown away a few meters without even knowing what skill was used.¡±

    ¡°For real!? ?¡¡Was it that high-level martial arts?¡¡Wow.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. However, I think that was just a hit without using any skill¡­¡­ right? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, yeah. I just punched you back then.¡±

    When I answered, everyone attentively listened.

    Well, after all, my ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ skills are all almost at Grade 9, therefore, my STR is high. If I¡¯m serious I can kill with a punch. That result couldn¡¯t be helped.

    ¡°We¡¯re literally on different dimensions. If you want to challenge him, you need to prepare ordingly.¡±

    After talking to her, Cubero smiled somewhat satisfied. Is this the result of this guypletely showing his resolution?

    ¡°Whoaa, how impressive, Master. I¡¯ll need to train harder with my squad then¡­¡­¡±

    Considering the flow of the talk, it¡¯s obvious the El squad is a perfect fit for the battle maids. It¡¯s not my bad. If you want to me someone, me Cubero.

    ¡°My master ising.¡±

    And then, Yukari appeared in here. Windfield¡¯s announcements have been 100% reliable so far.

    ¡°¨D¨DMaster, this way. Yve, youe too.¡±

    So, the moment finally came.

    Well then, it¡¯s time to learn Brainwashing Magic.

    I left the cafeteria while saying ¡°I¡¯lle againter¡±. Everybody saw me off with a smile. And I made a ¡®cigarette¡¯ gesture towards Sovra implying ¡°Next time¡±.

    Following behind me by three steps was the white maid who stubbornly tried to avoid making eye contact with me. When I asionally nced at her, she immediately averted her eyes. Her cheeks were slightly dyed in red, but other than that, her face was expressionless. Apparently, that¡¯s just the way she is.

    ¡°About Yve-san, I¡¯m sure she¡¯s bad at talking, rather than a shy person.¡±

    That was Windfield¡¯s analysis. I wonder if she had already met her? No, in her case, it wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t know what to talk about, but that she was rather bad at talking? She might be a poor talker so the real contents of her mind are hard to put in words.

    ¡°For those types of people, it¡¯s better to let them be the ones talking to you, allowing them to take their time and just listen.¡±

    Ohh, she jumped straight to the capture method. Amazing. Let¡¯s give her the nickname ¡°Wincyclopedia¡±.

    ¡°¡­¡­?¡¡You¡¯re thinking something rude, aren¡¯t you? ¡°

    ¡°How do you know that¡­¡­?¡±

    Scary, this spirit.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Master. No one will watch in this ce. It pains my heart to do this, but¡­¡­ I¡¯m ready to do it if it needs to be done.¡±

    After a short walk, the ce where we arrived was a dimly lit basement in the servant¡¯s mansion. Why in a basement?

    And Yukari too, why say such a thing with that meek expression? It¡¯s almost like you think I¡¯ll be forcing you to do something shady, isn¡¯t it?

    ¡°Yve, I¡¯ll be blindfolding you.¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­ Ye¡ª, huh¡­¡­? ¡°

    Why blindfold her?¡¡I mean, considering her current reactions, she doesn¡¯t even know what we¡¯re going to be doing from now on, right¡­¡­?

    ¡°This is the ¡®Painless Whip¡¯ I bought at a specialty store, so we can carry out the endeavor safely without having to worry if it hurts.¡±

    Ehh¡­¡­ wasn¡¯t there something else to use?¡¡Rather, aren¡¯t you quite into this already? I mean, to go to such lengths as to buy that at a specialty store.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s begin.¡±

    Setting up threads, Yukari used ¡¶Knight Thread Maniption¡· against Yve. Originally, this was supposed to be a skill to attack others by manipting people or dolls, but right now I can¡¯t see it as anything more than enjoying tying up a defenseless blindfolded girl who is ignorant of her current situation.

    ¡°P-Please be quick.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    After secretly asking for that, a huge smile was given as the answer.

    ¡­¡­Then, one hourter. While being watched over by a brown beauty and a tall beauty, I continuously received 300 shes from a blindfolded girl.

    To be honest, it wasn¡¯t that bad.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Aniki. The horseshoe of the ¡®El Purple¡¯¨D¨DHuh? ¡°

    Shortly after Second had left, the stable-hand Ploum appeared in the cafeteria. It seems he hade to look for the Lead Stable-hand, Jast.

    ¡°Something happen? ¡­¡­It¡¯s incredibly quiet in here. ¡°

    Ploum felt that something was out of ce, after all, he had frequently visited this ce. It was true that the cafeteria was quieter than usual.

    ¡°Ahh, Ploum? Just now, Second-sama came here.¡±

    ¡°Seriously! ?¡¡Master did! ? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. And he talked with us for a while¡­¡­ Wow, it was incredible.¡±

    ¡°Whoaa, this is the first time I¡¯ve seen aniki with such a slovenly appearance¡­¡­¡±

    Turning away from Jast, Ploum looked around the cafeteria. There were several of the captain-ss maids with a face of ¡°Wow¡± in the cafeteria, and even the head chef Sovra was grinningly staring at a cigarette for some reason.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with Sovra-niisan?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s full of himself since he got praised for having a good sense. He¡¯s been like that for a while now.¡±

    ¡°I can hear you, Jast! ¡°

    ¡°Whoa!¡¡Sorry, niisan! ¡°

    Jast simply apologized on reflex. But when he and Ploum apologized, they both were forgiven in an instant.

    ¡°Is this for real? Sovra-niisan in an extremely good mood.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It would usually be a one-hour sermon.¡±

    These two talked in murmurs. Certainly, there was something weird with Sovra. Or rather, the same was true in a smaller or greater degree for everyone in the cafeteria.

    It was the first time in four months that they had seen their master. And because everyone was looking forward to that moment, a surprise meeting when nobody was mentally prepared had an incredibly destructive power.

    ¡°¡­¡­Everyone loves him. They all love that person.¡±

    Jast muttered. Everyone inside the cafeteria had those same strong feelings gushing out.

    ¡°But even then, it seems aniki is the only one that¡¯s more or less the same as always, huh?¡¡As expected of aniki! ¡°

    ¡°No, you see¡­¡­ I was the only one who couldn¡¯t speak with him¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Ohh¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Hey, brat!¡¡What¡¯s with that ¡®ohh¡¯! ¡°

    ¡°Hiii, sorry! ¡°

    ¡°Way to look down on me. HUH?¡¡Haven¡¯t you been cking uptely, Ploum? I think you might need a bit more education, right? ¡°

    ¡°Gyaaa!¡¡Oh, please spare me of that! ¡°

    ¡°I hate ckers.¡±

    ¡°Hiiiiii! ¡°

 Chapter 63: Communication

    <h4>Chapter 63: Communication</h4>

    After dinner. In order to keep my promise, I went to the back door of the kitchen behind the servant¡¯s mansion.

    ¡°Hey, is Sovra here?¡±

    ¡°Ahh?¡¡Who the fuck asks when were so busy¡­¡­ See, Se-Se-Se, Second-sama! ? ¡°

    One of the cooks who noticed me shouted in surprise, he was so shocked I felt his eyes might pop out. Following that, the kitchen was in a turmoil. The guy who spoke to me then showed me a wonderful jumping dogeza. I felt bad for him so I asked him to stand up, but then he started to cry. I¡¯m really bad at dealing with this type.

    ¡°Ahh, thank you. Sorry for the trouble.¡±

    A few momentster, the head chef Sovra, with his characteristic unkempt beard, came rushing out from the back.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry foring when you¡¯re busy. Should Ie some other time? ¡°

    ¡°No, no, no!¡¡I¡¯lle, let¡¯s go! ¡°

    Sovra took out a cigarette pack from his breast pocket in a hurry while saying those words. ¡ºCaramelia¡»¡­¡­?¡¡That¡¯s a brand I¡¯ve never heard of.

    ¡°To tell you the truth, it¡¯s been a while since Ist smoked.¡±

    We talked while heading towards the smoking area. I can¡¯t just tell him ¡°This will be the first cigarette I¡¯ll have aftering to this world¡± after all.

    In Japanese society, there seemed to have been the word ¡°Tobaunication¡± in the past, but I think that was just an excuse you could use to make it easier to talk to a person you just met. Well, to be honest, I never really went out to mingle in the society even at this age, so I¡¯m not sure about that kind of culture.

    ¡°Is that so? These are really good, you know? ¡°

    Listening to my words, Sovra tapped on his cigarette box as if to brag. I¡¯m not sure what he means by really good, but that¡¯s something I won¡¯t say.

    ¡°Hee. Well, I¡¯ve already made up my mind.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, understood. That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about.¡±

    That¡¯s kind of wrong, but I couldn¡¯t think of any other thing to say. The tobo in Mobius was only a ¡¸Dress-up Item¡¹. And obviously, since it was virtual, you didn¡¯t have to worry about the tar or the nicotine. It was literally just a fashion item for people who thought ¡°Cigarettes are something cool¡±.

    And for me, the brand I had was ¡ºHatsuse¡». These, I had a maid go buy from a shop in the capital a while ago. Why did I choose Hatsuse?¡¡Well, I just went for the name since it was kind of cool. (TLN: Hatsuse was the name of a Japanese battleship)

    ¡°Well then.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, you got Hatsuse? Those are strong.¡±

    Reaching a ce where an ashtray was set, I took one of the Hatsuse from my pocket and ced it in my mouth. I heard that the stronger ones are great. I answered with a smile instead of responding, then the smell of tobo suddenly drifted in the air. Huh? Something feels odd¡­¡­¡¡Well, it doesn¡¯t matter, let¡¯s light it.

    ¡°¨D¨DNg-eehho!¡¡Ng-eehho!¡¡Ng-eehho! ? ¡°

    Buhhaa!¡¡What the heck! !

    ¡°Hahaha, I guess it really has been a long time, right? ¡°

    Sovra said so whileughing and smoking his cigarette.

    ¡­¡­Hey, wait a moment. Is this thing a real cigarette?¡¡I¡¯ve never smoked a real cigarette before so I can¡¯t say for sure, but I can certainly tell this feelspletely different from the ¡°Tobo¡± from Mobius that I knew of. It hurts my throat, it¡¯s smokey and smelly. What the heck. Ehh¡­¡­Have cigarettes be real?

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh, somehow, I don¡¯t think I can. Seems like the blend has changed.¡±

    ¡°Oh my, is that so?¡±

    Aftering up with a credible excuse, I put out the Hatsuse in the ashtray. It surely has changed, this Mobius. It¡¯s a bit sad.

    ¡°Huh¡­¡­?¡¡Isn¡¯t your cigarette a bit different?¡¡It doesn¡¯t smell that much, right? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, you mean this?¡¡It¡¯s a new brand that has been popr in the Capitaltely.¡±

    ¡°Caramelia? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, it feels really great to smoke it. The taste and vor are quite different from normal cigarettes. It also makes me feel great and motivated.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? To each their own, I guess. I hope you¡¯ll let me eat something really delicious someday.¡±

    ¡°That is, hahaha, more praise than I deserve.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d love to eat some delicious pork cutlet. So, can I ask you to do something simple with that in mind? However, Yukari will surely be nagging you. Then, while studying high-ss cuisine, please do your best to make some great simple dishes without her noticing.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see, so in other words, you¡¯re telling me to die, right?¡¡Haha, then let¡¯s die happily! ¡°

    ¡°Hahaha, you can take it easy.¡±

    Afterward, we talked about several things for about five minutes, then the talk ended. I think he was able to speak honestly. It was clearly better than when we spoke during the day and he was visibly more nervous.

    Hmm. You can¡¯t make light of Tobaunication.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Uhmm, for today¡¯s schedule, we¡¯ll check my master¡¯s progress in the morning. Then, go greet the second Prince in the afternoon. Okay? ¡°

    ¡°OK.¡±

    Next morning. Before breakfast, Windfield informed me about today¡¯s schedule.

    Windfield was quite happy to get the position of secretary in just one day, but Yukari, who had been my secretary up until now, just begrudgingly looked at her in silence. She looks quite scary so I¡¯d love if she could do something about it. You¡¯re the master, right?

    ¡°We¡¯ve talked properly about it.¡±

    I wish she could stop with the esper thing since it¡¯s bad for my heart¡­¡­ And if you properly talked, why is she still like that? Just look at her. She looks like a resentful demon.

    ¡°¡­¡­Huh?¡¡What happened to Silvia and Eko? ¡°

    I noticed that by chance. No matter how much time passed, those two haven¡¯t shown themselves at the table.

    ¡°I gave those two a mission-noda.¡±

    ¡°Noda? ¡­¡­wait, a mission? ¡°

    ¡°I want them to get in touch with a certain organization-tekina.¡±

    ¡°Tekina? ¡­¡­wait, what organization? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm. Well, Second-san, you don¡¯t really need to know. Or rather, it might be better if you don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that? Now I¡¯m really curious.¡±

    An organization?¡¡Like some guild?¡¡Still, why?

    ¡°It has begun. The Game (War).¡±

    Windfield looked me straight in the eyes, smiling while saying so.

    ¡­¡­A game, huh? This guy, it must be exactly as she says. But for us (the pieces), the meaning is surely different.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be using me. So, I won¡¯t forgive you unless you win.¡±

    ¡°Obviously! ¡°

    She happily nodded in response. That was the biggest smile I¡¯ve seen from her all this time.

    ¡°Master. This is the result after four months.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡±

    After breakfast. Yukari showed me items that have been given various effects. That¡¯s right, during these past four months, Yukari has been practicing Bestowal.

    ¡¾cksmith¡¿¡®s main skills are ¡¶Manufacture¡· and ¡¶Disassembly¡·, and after having ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡· at a high level, it can now be properly utilized. And this is about bestowal.

    ¡°This one too¡­¡­ it¡¯s amazing.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but to raise my voice in admiration. Yukari lowered her head in silence and remained expressionless, however, her elven ears were raised in happiness. I¡¯m sure she¡¯s proud of her own achievements.

    Well, that¡¯s only natural. Bestowal is an area that really requires patience, whenpared to other skills, to the point where I want to avoid it at all costs.

    Let me exin in more detail. Bestowal is basically a repetition of ¡¸Bestowal¡úDisassembly¡úManufacture¡úBestowal¡¹ over and over again. ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡· is a skill that randomly bestows a certain effect on a specific item. In other words, until the desired effect is bestowed, all you keep getting are failures. Of course, you can even fail to bestow an effect. But that¡¯s not all. If the bestowal fails, or if you don¡¯t get the desired effect, you need to ¡¶Disassembly¡· the equipment, returning it to its raw materials, then use ¡¶Manufacture¡· once again and then apply ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡·. If it fails, you just repeat the Disassembly, Manufacture, Bestowal cycle once again¡­¡­ continuing until you¡¯re done.

    And obviously, the materials obtained from ¡¶Disassembly¡· are just a fraction. Therefore, it¡¯s necessary to buy more materials for ¡¶Manufacture¡·, and the more it fails, the more you need to spend on materials.

    This time, she was instructed to only use the materials Silvia and Eko brought from the Limptfert Dungeon as a test, so the material cost was zero. However, in return, the Bestowed equipment that was created was only of intermediate ss. In other words, low risk, low return. But once you start working with A-ss materials, you be aware of the severity of it.

    Well, the bottom line is, I wasn¡¯t really expecting much from this in the end. However¡­¡­ I think I can say ¡°as expected of the cksmith Master-growth type¡±, she managed to surpass my expectations.

    There were three items that Yukari was proud of after these 4 months.

    The first one was a foot equipment called ¡ºAnaguma Shellrock Shoes¡». These are shoes belonging to the Shellrock series made from the material of the Rock Turtle boss in the Limptfert Dungeon. The ¡°Anaguma¡± name at the start represents the effect given by bestowal. The effect is a simple, yet powerful ¡°VIT of the wearer increased to 150%¡±. That¡¯s the highest in the Bestowal defense ss.

    Next was the ¡ºAnaguma Shellrock Armor¡». This was also an Anaguma bestowal. Armor of the Anaguma ss is certainly quite suited for a shield user. In other words, the perfect equipment for Eko.

    And finally, the ¡ºKakugawari Shell Earrings¡». The effect of Kakugawari being ¡°An increase of 5% to the wearer¡¯s critical rate¡± might seem a little nd at first nce. However, to be honest, the Kakugawari was the Bestowal that most yers wanted.

    In addition to the 6 equipment slots: weapon, head, torso, legs, hands, and feet; essories could be worn in four additional slots, arms, fingers, ears, and neck. A total of 10 slots, and if you¡¯re able to acquire equipment with Kakugawari bestowed on all of them, the result will be ¡°50% increased critical rate¡±. That¡¯s right, and if you add your own status to it, you might be able to achieve a critical rate of 100%. So, in a way, the Kakugawari Bestowal is sort of a yer¡¯s romance.

    ¡°Yukari.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Unbelievable.¡±

    ¡°Thank you very much.¡±

    There¡¯s no other way to put it other than that. In four months, she produced three hits. I¡¯d love for her to keep giving it her all.

    I asked her to give the two Anaguma pieces to Eko and the Kakugawari earrings to Silvia. Yukari nodded happily, visibly in a great mood.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I also need to give you some reward, Yukari.¡±

    Incidentally, I noticed it. There might be problems if I give stuff to Silvia and Eko, but nothing to Yukari.

    ¡°No. You already gave me this bitc¨Cahem, this summoned spirit.¡±

    ¡­¡­Why do I get the feeling that problems are already urring? I better take action soon.

    ¡°Then, that¡¯s the reward for the Bestowal. But I also need to give you some reward for always taking care of me. Is there something you want? ¡°

    ¡°Something I want? ¡­¡­Is anything okay? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, anything, just say it.¡±

    The moment I said ¡°anything¡± Yukari¡¯s eyes shined brightly. I feel like I just said something I shouldn¡¯t have, but it¡¯s already toote.

    And then, a shocking statement came.

    ¡°¡­¡­Then, tonight¡­¡­ in my room ¡­¡­uhmm, I¡¯ll be waiting.¡±

    Ehh¡­¡­Does that mean¡­¡­¡­¡­?

    ¡°¡­¡­So that¡¯s what you want? ¡°

    I spoke out involuntarily. Yukari then nodded shyly while looking down, her ears reddened.

    She hid her face behind her long beautiful purple hair, so her expression wasn¡¯t visible, but her mouth, which could barely be seen was embarrassedly happy. From the flow of events, I could perfectly understand she said that while fully prepared.

    I see. So, there¡¯s that.

    I made a woman go this far and actually say it. If I don¡¯t answer to her here, I can¡¯t call myself a man.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go no matter what.¡±

    I simply said that and left.

    It was also a good time to leave since it¡¯s almost lunchtime. We¡¯ll be seeing each other soon.

    ¡­¡­But in the end, I couldn¡¯t even savor the lunch.

 Chapter 64: Middle Finger, Index Finger, Thumb

    <h4>Chapter 64: Middle Finger, Index Finger, Thumb</h4>

    Afternoon.

    Leaving the house in Yukari¡¯s care, Windfield and I went to grab Seventh Tei¨­ and then headed towards the Royal Magic Academy. The purpose was to pay a visit to Maine, the second Prince.

    ¡°Hey, why didn¡¯t we make an appointment? ¡°

    I was quite curious about the reason for that as we were on our way, so I asked. It surprised me that we went to visit him without an appointment. I mean, we¡¯re going to visit a Prince. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t know the reason for this.

    ¡°Zipang is superior to the Castall Kingdom. We¡¯re trying to give that impression.¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­¡±

    I heard the word Zipang after a long time!¡¡Thinking about it, I did have such setting.

    To know the details that even the concerned party has forgotten, this girl is amazing. I can¡¯t believe it¡¯s only been a day since she was summoned. I already heard from Silvia yesterday, but she surely is great at finding information. You can¡¯t do this unless you always absorb the necessary information at the highest efficiency. She¡¯s like a walking ¡®RTA¡¯.

    ¡°I¡¯m grateful for your praise, but what is that? Are we there already? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. We¡¯ve arrived.¡±

    I¡¯m already used to being around this esper.

    Without dismounting Seventh Tei¨­, we crossed the school¡¯s gate.

    ¡°Kyaaaa! ¡°, ¡°Second-sama! ? ¡°, ¡°No way! ¡°, ¡°Why is he here! ? ¡°

    Screams were heard from here and there¡­¡­ or rather, high-pitched voices. With the schoolgirls this excited, it wouldn¡¯t reallye as a surprise if one of them woulde trying to get on my horse.

    ¡°You there©`©`? ¡°

    Since there was no other way, I went around the schoolyard, ¡°Maine, you there? ¡°, repeatedly calling out to him like that.

    Almost immediately after, some students who noticed I came looking for Maine rushed towards the school building.

    ¡­¡­A few minutester, Maine came rushing to this ce wearing a surprised expression.

    ¡°Second-san! ?¡¡What are you doing! ? ¡°

    ¡°Well, there¡¯s no ce to leave my horse.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying, please don¡¯t ride in here! ¡°

    Even though it¡¯s been a while since west saw each other, this back and forth feels nice. It makes me happy.

    ¡°Hey, is there some ce where we can calmly speak?¡¡And also, I¡¯d like to do something about the horse(s).¡±

    ¡°A calm ce? The horse(s)?¡¡Wait, that¡¯s too sudden!¡¡Please behave and quietly stay here for a moment! ¡°

    ¡°Come on, hurry.¡±

    ¡°Seriously!¡¡And I was thinking of finally meeting you after a long time!¡¡Ahhh! ¡°

    Maine returned to the school building muttering with dismay in his voice while holding his head. A few secondster, a maid under the second Prince came from the direction in which Maine left and guided us to the stables.

    ¡°We¡¯re currently arranging a salon. It will only take a moment.¡±

    And then she left us after politely bowing along with those words. She¡¯s quiteposed, unlike my maids. Is this the difference between them and a first-ss one?

    By the way, I didn¡¯t understand the meaning of the salon, so I asked Windfield. It seems it¡¯s something like amon room. As expected of the encyclopedia spirit.

    ¡°Second-san!¡¡Don¡¯t be unreasonable!¡¡Coming here without an appointment and running around the schoolyard on top of a horse! ¡°

    After a while, as soon as Maine arrived at the salon, he started scolding me.

    I properly apologized with a ¡°Sorry, sorry¡±, while sticking out my right hand in the form of a fist.

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡­¡­¡­ Seriously.¡±

    Some secondster, Maine also stuck out his first, bumping it with mine. His faint ¡°Ehehe¡± along that happy look on his face made him look quite girlish, as always. However, he¡¯s a prince.

    ¡°Huh? Who would this person be?¡¡And also, I can¡¯t see Silvia-san or Eko-san¡­¡­¡±

    With a brightened mood, Maine looked at Windfield and spoke.

    ¡°This here is my tactician. Windfield.¡±

    ¡°A pleasure meeting you.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes. Nice to meet you, eh? Tactician? ¡°

    The second Prince reacted to the word Tactician. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s more familiar with that field than me, a former seriously addicted online game junky.

    ¡°Could you, clear out the room, please?¡±

    As Windfield said that, Maine looked at the maid who was waiting in the room. The maid then shook her head saying ¡°I can¡¯tply¡±.

    Yeah, this is troublesome. If Windfield thought we needed to clear the room, then we really need it. I can¡¯t let this maid listen to our talk.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, that¡¯s right.

    ¡°Should I use Brainwash? ¡°

    I just remember I¡¯ve wanted to try out the Brainwashing Magic I just learned, so I asked in a quiet voice. However, Windfield immediately said ¡°No¡±. She then went on to tell me her reasoning.

    ¡°There might be a limited number of times Brainwashing Magic can be used. My guess is that it¡¯s only four times.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­For real? ¡°

    A limited number of uses?¡¡Moreover, only four?¡¡Why such a half-ass number?

    ¡°With my master and Phillip, the president of the Maurice Company, that¡¯s two. To herself, in order to not tell the truth if tortured, that¡¯s another one. And she should¡¯ve used it somewhere else once more, that¡¯s when she was targeted by the Prime Minister and the Duchess¡¯ house was ruined. In total, that¡¯s four times.¡±

    The Icene house was crushed under charges of treason. However, that was just the cover story. The real reason was the scheming by the Prime Minister, who noticed the existence of Brainwashing Magic, and feared it. I knew that too.

    In my previous life, in Mobius, the Prime Minister Val Morrow obtained ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· and brainwashed Castall¡¯s King, Barwell. He then tried to turn the country into a subordinate of the Marubell Empire, but as a result of the yers¡¯ sessful actions, the King¡¯s brainwashing was solved and the Prime Minister was overthrown. That¡¯s how the story went. The contents were quite MMORPG-like.

    However, in this world the King hasn¡¯t been brainwashed yet. Most likely, I think ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· hasn¡¯t fallen into the hands of the Prime Minister. It can be said that this is attributed to the careful actions of Duchess Lucia. She was careful enough to use two of the brainwashing limited uses to emphasize finding a sessor; to find extraordinary and worthy people to inherit the magic, and a good enough person who could ept a rebellious ve who will solve their brainwashing.

    ¡°Is there a possibility you¡¯re being too cautious¡­¡­? ¡°

    The duchess used it four times in a situation where nothing was certain. She left the information of ¡°you can use it four times¡± to her sessor. However, I¡¯ve been wondering all this time. What if it was ¡°At least four times¡± instead of ¡°Only four times¡±?¡¡What if there¡¯s no limit to the number of uses?

    ¡°In that case, then, we¡¯re lucky. But, for now it better to think it¡¯s only four times, to be sure. This means, we need to be careful with it.¡±

    It sounds usible, and isn¡¯t far-fetched either. Unlike the game, in this world we can¡¯t start over. It¡¯s useless to worry about how many times it can be used. When I sighed in frustration at not being able to say anything, she followed up saying ¡°I can understand how you feel¡±. She is a good spirit.

    ¡°Well then. It can¡¯t be helped, I should start talking, just like this.¡±

    Is that okay? Maine and I just felt confused. The maid was also showing a somewhat puzzled face.

    ¡°Uhmm, right, first off let¡¯s begin, with Second-san¡¯s wishes. Second-san wants, you, second Prince Maine to take over the throne.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    ¡°To that end, the First Prince, the First Queen, and the Prime Minister, are in the way. Therefore, we will drive them to a corner.¡±

    ¡°Huh! ? ¡°

    Maine raised his voice in surprise at the sudden bombshell announcement. The maid had her eyes rounded in shock.

    ¡°But you know, we can¡¯t just kill that bothersome trio, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Most likely, the people, won¡¯t agree. And I think the First Prince, together with the operatives from the Empire, will create a disturbance.¡±

    ¡°Hey, wait, wait, wait!¡¡Just what are you talking about! ?¡¡Eh, what do you mean! ? ¡°

    Seemingly unable to catch up, Maine asked us for an exnation. At that point, the maid was covering her ears with both hands. She understands that this is something she shouldn¡¯t be hearing, but she still doesn¡¯t seem to want to go out of the room.

    ¡°We¡¯re talking about you. How we can get Maine to be the new King.¡±

    ¡°Me! ?¡¡The King! ?¡¡Not my brother? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. You don¡¯t want that either, do you?¡¡If he bes King, this country is probably done for.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­W-Well, I certainly wouldn¡¯t want that. However, me bing a King is kind of¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re as hesitant as ever. You want to do it or not? Speak clearly.¡±

    ¡°That is, if I have to do it, I¡¯ll do it. But, what about my brother?¡±

    ¡°No buts. Do you want to be King? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Y-Yes.¡±

    ¡°Well said. There¡¯s no going back on your words, Prince.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Are you serious? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m being serious. It¡¯s just¡­¡­ I¡¯m not very confident.¡±

    ¡°I see, you¡¯ll be alright. It¡¯s just a matter of bing confident.¡±

    ¡°Ahahaha, I see you¡¯re the same as usual.¡±

    Alright, I got his promise. Next is the crucial method.

    After ncing at Windfield, she smiled and opened her mouth to speak.

    ¡°I will use, three moves. I¡¯ll exin starting with the first one.¡±

    ¡°I will use, three moves. I¡¯ll exin starting with the first one.¡±

    She raised three fingers and began to talk about the strategy. Not that it matters, but it seems Windfield is the type of person who raises her middle finger, index finger and thumb. By the way, I¡¯m a middle finger, ring finger and pinky finger type of person. For some reason, I just can¡¯t settle if I break the order of starting from the thumb.

    ¡°The repression of the righteous bandit group, R6, around the capital Vinceton, was supposed to be terminated in exchange for the head of their boss, Rimusuma. However, it was continued disregarding that promise after the boss was executed. Official documents, should exist, somewhere.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I¡¯ve heard about that too. The First Knight Order, who rarely go out of the capital, were saying that the extermination had to be done thoroughly. You mean it was done after the agreement of both parties? ¡°

    ¡°Indeed. The bandits, especially the R6, were attracting an increasing amount of support from the popce. This was, getting in the way, of leading the people¡¯s will, for the imperial policies.¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re saying they were crushed because of this?¡¡Was that my brother¡¯s doing? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. The Prime Minister, he¡¯s manipting the First Prince. And the Prime Minister is, an imperial operative.¡±

    ¡°EEEHHHHH! ? ¡°

    Ohh, so you didn¡¯t know? I was thinking of it asmon sense, but certainly, unless you¡¯re someone like me who knows Mobius, or a genius like Windfield, this is information that you can¡¯t easily know.

    ¡°In the middle of the bandit repression, the R6 and the Second and Third Knight Orders, signed a ceasefire agreement. If we obtain the official documents of that time, and disclose them, the criticism of the First Knight Order will surely increase.¡±

    I see, it¡¯s a good strategy. Still, there¡¯s one thing that bothers me. I then opened my mouth on behalf of Maine, who was still frozen in shock.

    ¡°What would we do if we¡¯re able to get them, but they were tampered with? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s the second move. If we get the original, and present it with the tampered facts, the criticism will increase even more.¡±

    Yeah, that¡¯s easy to say. If we can get them, that would be great, but it would be difficult to aplish. Moreover, who would be the one to get the originals? Would that be my job¡­¡­?

    ¡°Yes, correct.¡±

    See? I told you.

    ¡°Wait. What if both the official and original documents have been destroyed? ¡°

    Ohh, the resurrected Maine asked that question. Yeah, that¡¯s certainly a possibility.

    ¡°I doubt they have destroyed them. But in case they have, that would be like a confession.¡±

    ¡°I see. But the damage would be less than if the operation is sessful, right? ¡°

    ¡°Exactly. If that were to happen, then, that¡¯s why there¡¯s a third move.¡±

    Incidentally, I noticed it. Come to think of it, Maine is actually quite smart. But somehow, he¡¯s alienated.

    ¡°Find a living witness, bring him out, and make a big speech in front of the people.¡±

    A living witness¡­¡­ a survivor of R6, in other words, arade of Cubero.

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­ but if you do that¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Probably, that person¡¯s life will be targeted by imperial operatives, and people from the First Prince.¡±

    Whoa, I got it.

    ¡°A lure operation?¡±

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    Windfield answered with a grinning face. In contrast, Maine¡¯s face was pale.

    ¡°If they are escorted by Second-san, then, they¡¯re probably the safest in the world. And if they attempt to catch them, then that would be good too, since the image of the First Prince will deteriorate further.¡±

    Being praised never feels bad. But then again, she does make it sound so easy.

    ¡°Through these three moves, we will drive the First Prince faction, to a corner. If this is sessful, then I¡¯ll announce, the strategy to follow from there.¡±

    Windfield smiled. Almost as if saying ¡°It¡¯ll work out¡±.

    ¡­¡­Alright, let¡¯s do this.

    ¡°Then, what should I do first? ¡°

    ¡°First, I want you to enter the Royal Pce.¡±

    The two of us stared at Maine. Maine then answered with a bit of a bitter face.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can just get you inside because we¡¯re friends¡­¡­ Okay, what should I do?¡±

    We need some sort of reason. Thinking thus far, I just turned towards Windfield. There¡¯s no way this girl hasn¡¯t thought of a reason.

    ¡°Fufu, it¡¯s simple. I think, it should be time now.¡±

    Windfield shook her body from side to side while saying ¡°Any, minute, now¡±, in a good mood. What does that mean?¡¡Is she waiting for something?

    ¨D¨DAnd then, the next moment.

    ¡°Hmm, ohh. Second-dono. I didn¡¯t think you were actually here.¡±

    ¡°Second©`, hey, hey! ¡°

    Silvia and Eko, opened the salon door and entered.

    ¡°Ahh, Silvia-san. Eko-san. Long time no see.¡±

    ¡°Long time©`¡°

    ¡°Ah, Prince Maine. Long time no see. I¡¯m sure Second-dono has caused a lot of trouble. Allow me to apologize on his behalf.¡±

    ¡°Stop it, it¡¯s embarrassing. This is all because of me.¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s very Second-dono-like to cause problems in the first ce after all, right? ¡°

    ¡°Right©`¡°

    It suddenly became quite lively. Maine was alsoughing happily.

    ¡­¡­No, no, no, that¡¯s not it.

    ¡°Hey, Windfield. You¡¯ve already thought of an excuse for infiltrating the Royal Pce, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Silvia-san, did you bring it? ¡°

    ¡°Of course. This is the letter of rmendation from the headmistress Pa, and these here are the signatures of 230 students.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Haa? ¡°

    Rmendation?¡¡Signatures?

    ¡°For the Royal Court Magician Division.¡±

    Maine was taken aback by Windfield¡¯s mutter.

    ¡°I see!¡¡The First Royal Court Magician Division is flexible since they are in my faction. If you were to use that¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°A spot should be open, as a special temporary lecturer, I think.¡±

    ¡°Winner of the 51st Magic Tournament. Fastest record holder in the Kingdom to reach adventurer rank A. Conqueror of the Proline Dungeon with his team alone. And in addition, a letter of rmendation from the headmistress of the Royal Magic Academy, and from 230 students. Even for me, it would be quite difficult to refuse.¡±

    ¡°But that bothersome trio, would probably, be against it. If the King doesn¡¯t agree¡­¡­ I might have to reconsider, probably.¡±

    No, wait, there are too many things I don¡¯t really understand. Uhmm, where should I start asking¡­¡­?

    ¡°Why is the Headmistress rmending me? ¡°

    ¡°Pa Memento, is close to the second Queen, Freon. And obviously, to the Second Prince.¡±

    Second Queen Freon. Is that Maine¡¯s mother? So that¡¯s the reason why there are so little escorts for Maine in the Magic Academy? But even then, I think Maine¡¯s reputation in the school is quite bad. I¡¯m sure there are quite a few of us¡¯ people in here too. Whoa, how confusing.

    ¡°Then, how did you get the students¡¯ signatures? ¡°

    ¡°There is, this, organization. A huge organization.¡±

    ¡°The ones you were speaking to this morning, huh?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s better if you don¡¯t know them.¡±

    Silvia shook her head along with a somewhat pitying expression. What¡¯s with her? I¡¯m actually quite curious now.

    ¡°Or rather, why a teacher? Isn¡¯t it alright to join as a member?¡±

    ¡°As things stand, being in a position of power, will make it easier to move.¡±

    ¡°Well, it makes sense, but¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Second-san.¡±

    ¡°What? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Just do it. Be a special temporary lecturer.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I wonder if she just found it troublesome to exin, Windfield simply pushed it onto me. I¡¯m weak to being spoken to like that. It makes me want to simply nod.

    ¡­¡­And thus, in this way, I was rmended as a special temporary lecturer for the First Royal Court Magician Division, for some reason. Apparently, I¡¯ll have an audience as soon as tomorrow. That¡¯s incredibly fast.

    Well, I think the earlier, the better.

    When the conversation with Maine was over, the sun was already setting by the time we started to go back. I told the three girls to go back home first, and I secretly went to a pharmacy. I couldn¡¯t find it after looking for it, so I asked the clerk about it, and after finally finding ¡®condom-san¡¯ I bought it immediately. In this world, the condoms were made of the processed air dder of fish-type monsters. Incidentally, they also live in Vani Lake in front of my mansion.

    Then, I ate ate light meal while happily ying with the package of the dder in my hand, I didn¡¯t dine properly just in case. Then I went to take a nice, rxing bath, and finally I skipped in a good mood towards Yukari¡¯s room.

    Now, it¡¯s time for the decisive battle¨D¨D

 Chapter 65: Audience, Decision

    <h4>Chapter 65: Audience, Decision</h4>

    ¡°Hmm, how rare. Did Yukari oversleep? ¡°

    At breakfast, three people were gathered in the living room. And in there, the figure of Yukari wascking.

    Telling herself ¡°I bet she¡¯s still sleeping¡±, Silvia quickly got up.

    ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯ll prepare it.¡±

    ¡°Can you do it? ¡°

    ¡°Umu. I¡¯ll prepare it.¡±

    Silvia decided to be the breakfast cook. While Eko saw her walk off with a bit of an uneasy expression, I turned my head towards her and implied ¡°It¡¯ll be fine¡± with my face.

    ¡°A©`¡°

    I uttered some sort of sound. But I couldn¡¯t speak a proper word.

    ¡°Second, you tired? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m so tired I want to die.¡±

    Yes, I was exhausted. That was a strong enemy. I was ready to go and I began by challenging her with a saturation attack, but it soon turned into a war of attrition, a game of endurance. However, I began to gradually be pushed back by that bottomless and inexhaustible sexual desire, a losing battle. Potion doping was practically meaningless and as ast resort, I ended up using ¡¶Transform¡·. I managed to stay on top thus far. Even when I fought that deathmatch against Anko, I wasn¡¯t this tired. How frightening, the dark elves.

    There was one thing I learned from this; status doesn¡¯t have much impact on ¡®night wrestling¡¯. This is bad. If I don¡¯t work out a strategy as soon as possible, the day when I lose draws nearer.

    Eko opened her mouth and in a small mutter she said to herself ¡°I wonder¡­¡­¡±. What¡¯s with that ¡°I wonder¡±?

    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s done. Help me bring it.¡±

    How fast. It took her less than ten minutes. As I walked up to the kitchen, almost like a zombie, I found six pieces of baked white bread and a tter of fried meat and vegetables. It was quite thebination of colors, still, it seemed to be quite delicious.

    cing it in the middle of a luxurious table, I took some of it with some tongs, stuffing the soft, fluffy bread.

    ¡°Ahh. Yeah, it¡¯s delicious.¡±

    It¡¯s pretty good. It gives the feeling of a man¡¯s cooking, since it can be eaten even in a hurry. But this is fine, because I like this type of cooking. Simple is the best. A simple home-made breakfast consisting of some staple food and main dishes is something you can never get tired of eating.

    ¡°Delicious, maybe! ¡°

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s with the maybe?¡±

    Silvia rebutted Eko while smiling with a relieved face.

    Some timeter, after we finished eating, Yukari appeared in the living room.

    While apologizing for oversleeping in an unusually shy manner, she opened her notebook to tell me today¡¯s schedule. I could see a bit of tiredness in her.

    ¡°Yukari, take a rest for today. You too can rest today, Eko.¡±

    ¡°No, that is¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you heard about the appointment from Windfield yesterday. Today I have an audience with the King, followed by a tour of the working ce. And Silvia is going to the Third Knight Order, right?¡¡And Windfield is going to do something in the capital. See? It¡¯s not really a big deal.¡±

    ¡°Haa, if you say so. However, Master, let me tell you this. An audience with the King is a big deal.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­By your ¡®I see¡¯, I¡¯m not sure you really understand.¡±

    I stood upughing and saying I was kidding. And at that moment, Cubero appeared as if waiting for the perfect opportunity, bowing as he spoke.

    ¡°The carriage is ready to depart.¡±

    Amazing, not a wasted moment. Actually, I kind of wanted to go out a littleter, but let¡¯s just go with the flow and leave now. Although I doubt I can really take my time in the carriage.

    ¡°Yukari, bring her out please.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    Without dy, Yukari¡¯s ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· activated and Windfield was called out.

    ¡°Ya-ho. Well, let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go now.¡±

    Taking Silvia and Windfield with me, we followed after Cubero. ¡°Good night©`! ¡°, Telling them that, I left the mansion on the shore of Lake Vani while being sent off by an Eko who I¡¯m not sure if she was sleepy or already asleep, and a Yukari who was a bit unsteady on her feet.

    Four people, Windfield included, then boarded the carriage. I got in first and sat on the back seat. Next came Silvia, who after a quick look around, decided to sit across from me. Windfield sat next to Silvia without hesitation. And as a result, Cubero ended up seated next to me.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right, Cubero. I¡¯m looking for surviving members of R6, do you know anything? ¡°

    Soon after the carriage departed, everyone became silent so I tried to start a conversation.

    ¡°Survivors¡­¡­ I see. There is this man that was under me called Besaid.¡±

    ¡°Your underling?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Although he is older than me. If I remember correctly, he should be 29.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Could it be that Second-sama¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll search for him. I left it to Yukari yesterday. Seems there¡¯s a special unit in the all-purpose maid corps for it. She looked confident so I think they¡¯ll find him pretty soon.¡±

    I told him about the search. Cubero then bowed down while still sitting, saying ¡°I¡¯m very grateful¡±. I hurriedly told him to raise his head and followed by telling him about the strategy to use the R6 members as ¡°bait¡±. Cubero then bowed even lower and said:

    ¡°We couldn¡¯t hope for anything more than to have our revenge. This Cubero can¡¯t begin to thank you enough.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Well, if you¡¯re grateful, be grateful to Windfield. This is her strategy.¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m very grateful towards you, Windfield-sama, to grant us this amazing opportunity¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait. In the first ce, I don¡¯t really care about revenge or the likes. I just thought what would be best for Second-san and did that.¡±

    ¡°But that still means that you carefully thought about it, at least that¡¯s my opinion¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Well, if you want to be grateful, you¡¯re free to do it on your own.¡±

    Windfield answered in a blunt manner. Cubero on the other hand, thought he had been given permission, and unterally expressed his thanks. He¡¯s a good guy, but he¡¯s sometimes way too serious.

    ¡°Ah, by the way, Silvia. Are you still involved with the Third Knight Order? ¡°

    ¡°Umu, but I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a problem. I hadpletely forgotten about it myself, but Windfield told me to go report. So, today I¡¯m also going to report to the Third Knight Order.¡±

    What¡¯s with that?

    ¡°Silvia-san¡¯s two-year contract, remember? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, certainly there was that thing. Being Second-dono¡¯s guard, while in truth monitoring him, for a period of two years.¡±

    Ahh, that¡¯s right, I remember something like that. And speaking of which, Silvia was instructed by the Third Knight Order to ¡°Seduce and bring Second into the Knight Order¡±. Since we haven¡¯t had any contact with the Third Knight Order thus far, I hadpletely forgotten about it.

    ¡°By using Silvia-san¡¯s rtionship, with the Third Knight Order, she can find the official documents, and hints of where the originals might be. Probably.¡±

    I see. So that¡¯s why Windfield asked Silvia to go report today.

    Indeed, a man suddenly appearing as a special temporary lecturer in the First Royal Court Magician Division would be really suspicious. And if you¡¯d want to get information about such a man, the Third Knight Order, who has ced an escort by his side trying to swing him towards them, is a good candidate for that information. If she were to act like an ally of the Third Knight Order, this would totally be like a double spy scenario.

    In other words, starting now, Silvia and I will go and deceive the people who could be called the center of this Kingdom in their faces. Thinking about it like that, this really is a big deal. Tricking them here and there, brainwashing them if that fails, we¡¯re really trying topletely change the politics of a country. Isn¡¯t this the first step of something incredibly huge?

    ¡°¡­¡­Hey, Windfield. How about just brainwashing the Prime Minister directly? ¡°

    An idea came to my mind unexpectedly. I think we would have a hard time aplishing that, but I couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    After hearing my way too simple idea, Windfield said ¡°I¡¯d love to do that¡± before pausing for a moment and then continuing.

    ¡°However, that would be incredibly hard, probably. Because there¡¯s that case, with the Duchess. Most likely, he¡¯s already taken measures, right?¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡±

    It was the Prime Minister who crushed the house of Duchess Lucia Icene, and the reason was ¡°Fear of the Brainwashing Magic¡±. Then, it¡¯s only natural that he would be wary of it. Yeah, and if he¡¯d taken measures against it¡­¡­ he would raise his MGR or equip essories with the Magic Defense up effect. Would the Prime Minister choose thetter?

    ¡°Then, how about knocking him out, stripping him naked and then brainwashing him? ¡°

    ¡°In that case, we could deal with the possibility, of equipment. And if it¡¯s only equipment, then that¡¯s just fine.¡±

    ¡°But? ¡°

    ¡°The problem is, I wonder if he has taken measures, in order to lift his brainwashing.¡±

    ¡°! ¡°

    Whoa, that got me. I didn¡¯t think of that.

    ¡°And even if we brainwash the Prime Minister, in the end, we¡¯ll have to do something simr. In that case, wouldn¡¯t it be more efficient to just ignore the Prime Minister, and approach the people right from the beginning?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You are right.¡±

    As expected of Windfield-san. Seems there are no blind spots in her strategy. If we try to take a short cut because it¡¯s troublesome, then we¡¯re sure to run into some extra risks.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be arriving soon.¡±

    Looking at the scenery outside the window, Cubero informed us. And then, silence returned to the carriage once again. Each of us will just do what we have to do.

    After arriving at the Royal Pce, a maid from the Second Prince was waiting for me. And suddenly, I was led to the audience room. In there, I joined with Maine.

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-san, are you nervous? ¡°

    ¡°There¡¯s no way.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, right.¡±

    After making some small talk, we stepped inside the audience room. In the distance, I saw a man with a King-like atmosphere sitting on the throne. Next to him were the first Prince us, the first Queen White, and the Prime Minister Val Morrow.

    Walking up to King Barwell with Maine, we both bowed down.

    ¡°Lift your face.¡±

    If this was my previous self, I would have raised my head at this moment. But right now, I have the wisdom of a genius tactician with me. It¡¯s best not to raise your head at the firstmand, she said. This seems to be some sort of manner when having an audience with a King.

    ¡°Good, raise you face.¡±

    Barwell urged me again, with a tone that was more rxed than the first time. Maine and I slowly raised our faces.

    ¡°Are you the person rmended for temporary lecturer of the First Royal Court Magician Division?¡±

    ¡°Yes, his name is Second.¡±

    Maine answered in my stead. Barwell then looked at me as if looking at some goods.

    My eyes met the King¡¯s. Just as I knew, he was a dull, blond, middle-aged man. Most likely due tock of sleep, there were bags under his eyes that couldn¡¯t be covered with makeup.

    Back in Mobius, King Barwell Castall fell ill and retired from the throne. However, that should be something still ahead. Perhaps, there might be some change in the condition of King Barwell since the Prime Minister was not able to obtain the Brainwashing Magic in this world.

    ¡°This individual called Second is someone suspicious of whom we know little to nothing about. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s someone suitable to be an instructor for the Royal Court Magicians.¡±

    Suddenly, someone butted in. Sure enough, it was the Prime Minister.

    ¡°I¡¯m also against it, Father. This person has refused an invitation to the Knight Order twice. I can¡¯t feel any intention from him to contribute to the Kingdom.¡±

    us then followed after him. Is this guy for real? Even someone like me knows that you can¡¯t just say ¡°I (Ore)¡± and ¡°Father (Chichiue)¡± while in an audience with the King. But even then, nobody seemed to pay attention to that. How are they even educating him?

    ¡°Ohh!¡¡Did he decline us¡¯ solicitation?¡¡What a rude individual!¡¡Take this person out! ¡°

    I see, it¡¯s because of this spoiled First Queen that the First Prince has that kind of attitude.

    ¡­¡­And, two knights who seemed to belong to the First Knight Order came to my side. Is it going to be like this?¡¡Is this really how you¡¯re going to act?¡¡Looking sideways, I could see Maine¡¯s face turning blue and shaking his head slightly. Seems like that¡¯s no good. Hmph, seems like I¡¯ll just have to escape.

    ¡°Please wait. Adventurers are people who are like that by nature. It¡¯s also true that those who are not interested in status nor honor, and are excellent individuals, are more attracted to live their lives as adventurers rather than as knights. I believe it¡¯s too arrogant to simply kick him out because he declined to join the Knight Order.¡±

    ¡°What did you say!?¡¡Hairai! ¡°

    Ahh, so that person is Minister Hairai. He has an appearance simr to a store manager with those round sses in a thick frame and the scarce hair that makes it look like a barcode in his head. I heard from Windfield that this baldy four-eyes is the head of the Second Prince¡¯s faction, and a strong ally.

    ¡°But if he refused to join the knights because he could make more as an adventurer, then why did he want to be a temporary lecturer in the Royal Court Magician Division now? I¡¯d like to know that, Hairai.¡±

    Now the Prime Minister objected the minister¡¯s argument. These two, I can almost see sparks flying between them.

    ¡°I heard that Second-dono is on friendly terms with Prince Maine. They spent time together in the same school, ate at the same table, and sometimes they yed games with magic in order to improve each other. And as for the matter of being a temporary lecturer, I think it¡¯s a great idea. Furthermore, even Prince us should be aware that they both really are friends.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d like to add something. There¡¯s no mistake in the minister¡¯s words. But this time, I selfishly asked Second-san this request. Moreover, I don¡¯t know a person more suitable than him to be a lecturer. If he were to serve as an instructor, the Royal Court Magician Division would surely achieve a tremendous growth.¡±

    Minister Hairai fluently answered the Prime Minister¡¯s remarks. And right after, he received support from Maine. The Prime Minister then turned towards us to confirm that fact. us nodded lightly, with an expression as if he had chewed on a bitter insect. Then, the Prime Minister finally shut up.

    ¡°Your Majesty should already know of Second-dono¡¯s track record. I plead for your consideration.¡±

    ¡°Would you allow him to be appointed as a special temporary lecturer? If there¡¯s no visible effect in one month, I¡¯ll personally take full responsibility. So, please, consider approving him.¡±

    As Maine bowed down, I too joined him bowing down. The bothersome trio had their mouths distorted in a way that appeared they would let their sharp tongues speak at any moment. In any case, when Maine speaks with ¡°I (watashi)¡±, he really looks like a woman.

    ¡°Raise your face. Second, there is one thing I want to ask you.¡±

    While I was thinking about somethingpletely unrted, Barwell abruptly said such thing. I wonder what does he wants to know?

    ¡°It was over half a year ago. What were you doing in the Great Library? What were you doing in the Magic Academy¡¯s library? And after that, you visited the Great Library several times along with your team members, what were you doing then?¡±

    ¨D¨DSuddenly, I felt a chill down my spine.

    What was I doing in the Royal Great Library?¡¡He might be referring to when I was looking around searching for the skill books. And in the Academy¡¯s library, when I was reading the Second and Third Form Grimoires. Andter in the Great Library, we three learned some skills. And thanks to my summarized description, they learned the skills faster than usual.

    ¡°The reports keeping. This is what I think, the secret of your strength lies there, isn¡¯t it? ¡°

    It¡¯s probably been found out. The fact that I can learn the skills just by looking at the book. And that Silvia, Eko and Yukari were able to acquire their skills abnormally fast thanks to my advice ¡°from a game¡¯s perspective¡±.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    What to do? Should I try to fool him? Or should I honestly talk about it? While I worried about what to do, Barwell said while the edges of his mouth raised.

    ¡°Fine. Second, you are hereby recognized as a special temporary lecturer assigned to the First Royal Court Magician Division. I look forward to this next month.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­This was actually quite easy. I even dare to say it was kind of anticlimactic.

    With one word from Barwell, the audience ended in the blink of an eye. The bothersome trio left while spitting curses against me and Maine, and the minister nodded in acknowledgement and left after adjusting his sses.

    Andstly, those words of Barwell to me. What was that about? I initially thought he implied ¡°I¡¯m always watching you¡±, but I feel it was sort of different. Did he just want me to tell him my secret?¡¡There¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case. I get the feeling I was approved because I showed a troubled expression. If that¡¯s the case, why?¡¡I don¡¯t know what he¡¯s after.

    But, there¡¯s one thing I can say for sure. This world¡¯s Castall King, Barwell, is a little different from the ¡°Profit-seeker, self-centered King¡± that I knew of. Deep down he might be so, but in this world, his personality is not as dramatized as in the game¡¯s story. At least, during this audience, he was a serious and honest person.

    ¡°It went great, Second-san.¡±

    Next to me, was a happy-looking Maine. However, I wasn¡¯t able to nod to those words honestly.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Well then. I too, have to do my best, right?¡±

    While Second headed for the audience, and Silvia went to report to the Third Knight Order, Windfield was heading towards the center of the capital, Vinceton.

    However, even though it was the center, the ce was a dark and daunting one. As light burns brightly, shadows are also made. And of course, there were such shadows in the royal capital, Vinceton.

    Her face was hidden with a mask, and her body, enveloped with a cloak. It seemed an unusual and suspicious gait, but it suited the atmosphere of this ce. At a simple nce she looked like a man due to her height. Therefore, nobody wanted to speak to her even though she walked in back alleys where shady men gathered.

    ¡°Hey, can I talk with you, for a moment?¡±

    ¡°Ahh?¡¡Who are you? ¡°

    In the back of an alley, Windfield ran into a shabbily dressed man who looked like a vagrant. At first nce the man blended quite well with the surrounding bums, but there was one big difference. His eyes were not dead.

    ¡°Do you enjoy, ying homeless? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Let¡¯s change ces.¡±

    After a moment of silence, the man managed to squeeze those words while sweating nervously.

    The man was impatient. And thus, he began to think. ¡®How was I discovered?¡¯ He certainly had crossed dangerous paths time and time again. He had slipped from dangerous situations countless times. It was the same now. ¡¸Pretending to be a homeless person fishing for garbage near the dumps where the ¡ºStaff of the Royal Archives¡» lived¡¹, was easier whenpared to his past jobs.

    ¡°You are, a reporter, right?¡¡Let me guess, Vince newspaper? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­And what if I am?¡±

    The man got even more impatient. The reason was, he had beenpletely seen through.

    What would a reporter from the Vince newspaper be doing in such a ce? At a nce, it was easy to tell the other party was involved. I¡¯ll be disposed of, he thought. Even the person in question seemed like that. Therefore, the man was scared.

    And after seeing such misunderstanding develop, Windfieldughed with her nose and opened her mouth.

    ¡°I have, a great story for you.¡±

    The n of the best tactician in the spirit world had begun.

    And the moment when the pieces would collide, wasing closer¨D¨D

 Chapter 66: Royal Court Magicians

    <h4>Chapter 66: Royal Court Magicians</h4>

    After the audience, Maine and I wandered around the court.

    Seemingly remembering the promise with me as well, Maine took the opportunity and allowed me to see the Fourth Form Grimoires with the excuse of ¡°Showing me around the court¡±. Thanks to that, I got to ¡°steal a nce¡± at them. I¡¯m quite thankful for that. With this, I was able to acquire the Fire, Water, Air, and Earth Fourth Forms without having to suffer for it.

    For now, I raised all four attributes from the 16th ss to the 5th ss using the experience I had left. Incidentally, the Lightning Attribute First to Fourth Forms spells have been raised to the highest rank. As for the Fifth Form, since the amount of experience required wasn¡¯t even close to Dragon King and Dragon Horse, I had to stop at Grade 1.

    And thus, we reached the final part of the trip. We went to the base of the Royal Court Magicians located not far from the Royal Pce in order to give my greetings.

    While standing next to Maine in front of the Royal Court Magicians, who were lined up in the training area, I noticed something.

    I¡¯m not weed in the slightest.

    Right. It¡¯s great to have be a¡ºSpecial temporary lecturer for the First Royal Court Magician Division¡», but.

    But thinking about it carefully, to suddenly have such a young lecturer assigned to them, the Royal Court Magicians, who are ranked as the elite of the elite, wouldn¡¯t just jump on board and ept me.

    I wonder if it was a bad choice to havee alongside Maine? They surely must be thinking I got this position using my connection with the Second Prince. This will be hard to handle because I do have a connection with the Prince. But even if Iined about that, it would¡¯ve been just as bad if Maine hadn¡¯te. At least they are lined up because the Second Prince is here. They have an air of almost breaking line as soon as Maine leaves this ce. I even feel like they would say ¡°We don¡¯t need a lecturer¡± any moment now.

    ¡°He¡¯s Second-san. For the following month, he will be a lecturer assigned to the First Royal Court Magician Division. Starting today, everyone should follow his instructions.¡±

    After Maine introduced me, the Royal Court Magicians nodded, answering in a mutter ¡°Okay¡­¡± almost as if shrugging him off. You guys should properly answer Maine instead of ring at me. Especially you, the ck-haired short girl with a bob cut on the far right of the front row. Seriously, this hostility is almost as if I were their enemy.

    ¡°Looks like you¡¯ll be alright. Well, I¡¯ll be going then. Good luck, Second-san.¡±

    ¡°You too.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡¡Ehehehe.¡±

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t ¡®Ehehehe¡¯ me. How do you see this being alright?¡±

    ¡°I think you should be fine because it¡¯s you, Second-san. Probably.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s quite like you to say something like that.¡±

    I exchanged words in a whisper-like voice with Maine, trying to keep him from leaving the training grounds. At that moment, a 50-year-old, red-haired old man with the top of his head bald, who was standing in the middle of the front row opened his mouth.

    ¡°Prince, please wait!¡¡There are many members who are not convinced. It¡¯s clear that at this rate, the situation will not be resolved. If only you, Prince, could say something.¡±

    Ohh, this old man really has guts. To speak like this to the Prince, I can tell his position is quite high, and he really trusts him. Maybe this person is the leader of the First Royal Court Magician Division. It¡¯s decided, let¡¯s call him ¡®Red Xavier¡¯. No, Xavier shiny, Xavier best¡­¡­ Although it¡¯s quite hard no to call him Xavier 2P.

    (TLN: one is like the pokemon with different colors, normally referred to as ¡®Shiny¡¯, the second one, I have no idea tbh. And thest one is like when in games, the yer 2 selects the same character and that character appears with different colors. I¡¯m pretty sure the Xavier needs no exnation.)

    ¡°Captain Zephyr. This isn¡¯t something I, a prince, should be dealing with. Rather, this is something that you, the leader of the group and the lecturer who is buying feelings of antipathy, should work out. If I decide to speak then it won¡¯t be taken as for the good of the group. Am I wrong? ¡°

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ not, but still.¡±

    Maine¡¯s sound argument pierced Red-Xavi. So, this person was the leader after all.

    ¡­¡­Ehh?¡¡Or rather, what¡¯s with Maine, isn¡¯t he trying to leave me to my own devices here?

    When I nced at him, Maine had a face of saying ¡°Crap¡± and hurriedly turned away. This guy might still be mad at my surprise visit yesterday at school.

    On the other hand, the Court Mages were nodding as if consenting. They seem to want to say the lecturer who¡¯s causing this rebellious attitude is in the wrong.

    I wasn¡¯t really angry, but after seeing that attitude I decided to get angry. Luckily, there are plenty of targets here, so I even have the ability to pick and choose.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do this then. Those who have aint cane at me. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s a many vs one.¡±

    ¡°Wai¨C, you can¡¯t do that! ¡°

    Maine hurriedly tried to stop me. However, it¡¯s not that I can¡¯t stop, I just won¡¯t stop.

    ¡°Captain Zephyr seems to be the strongest. How old are you?¡¡I¡¯m 17.¡±

    ¡°I am 55.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, I¡¯ll especially teach you how much time you¡¯ve wasted in those 55 years.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What a funny kid. Haha, interesting. Hahahaha! ¡°

    Although Red-Xaviughed, he had a blue vein popping in his forehead. Looks like he¡¯s quite irritated. Like this, the result is quite clear¡­¡­

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it, Captain.¡±

    But there was a woman who couldn¡¯t read the air and butted in. On a second look, she was the short woman with a bob cut who was ring daggers at me earlier.

    ¡°I was the one who sought this fight, so I¡¯ll be the one to do it.¡±

    ¡°However, if the leader fights him due to personal motivations, then nothing will change in the discipline of the group. This is not how a captain should conduct himself. Furthermore, the Second Prince is here.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Certainly, you¡¯re right.¡±

    ¡°In that respect, the best thing would be to carry this out as a mere practice, in and out.¡±

    ¡°Understood. Sherry, you go.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    It seems my opponent has switched to a woman called Sherry. I thought Red-Xavi had the atmosphere of a man among men, but I guess I was wrong. It¡¯s a shame.

    ¡°Hey you, don¡¯t get too full of yourself. This is the ce where the best mages in the Kingdom gather. Don¡¯t think of this as a ce where you can enter with just a little bit of effort.¡±

    Sherry then spoke with a huge sense of pride. Doesn¡¯t she realize the more she talks like that, the bigger the g she¡¯s raising?

    ¡­¡­Alright, I guess this is okay. If I¡¯m going to be a lecturer, I¡¯ll be a lecturer through and through. It will be a ¡®detour¡¯ from the road to be the top in the world, but I think this is something that¡¯s necessary for the survival of the Castall Kingdom. If the Castall Kingdom were to be invaded, the Title battles might disappear, and as someone aiming to be the world¡¯s number one, this is a matter of life and death to me.

    Eh? Wait. If I think about it. Isn¡¯t giving lectures and practical training to these guys, and produce results in a month kind of linked to the Title matches, so to speak? ¡¡Ohh, somehow, I feel really pumped about it.

    ¡°I see, well, thanks for your keen opinion. Would you be my partner? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah, that¡¯s right. You better prepare yourself. No matter how much you¡¯re praised as a prodigy or a genius, in here you¡¯ll be no more than an ordinary person.¡±

    ¡°Are you speaking about yourself? ¡°

    ¡°You really like to piss people off, right? I was talking about you. I¡¯m in the top ranks.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ By the way, do you know the saying about the fish in the pond? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s referring to you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°Ahhhhh, don¡¯t get angry. The angrier you get, the weaker you¡¯ll be.¡±

    In a yer vs yer match, being ovee with emotions even for a second makes you lose; feelings are nothing more than a waste. It¡¯s useless to think about anything. It¡¯s up to you to cut back your thinking to a minimum using your daily training and past experiences. In other words, it¡¯s about not saying anything even when your emotions are bare.

    ¡°Right now, you¡¯re probably thinking this.¡¡Why is such a young man an instructor? Even though it took me doing my best to be a Court Mage. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s because of his connection with the Prince. My pride doesn¡¯t allow me to ask such a guy to teach me. And, what¡¯s with this guy¡¯s attitude? He¡¯s looking down on us. I can¡¯t stomach it, I don¡¯t like it, it¡¯s making me sick.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Heee, so you at least know that. You are totally right.¡±

    ¡°I wonder if you¡¯re frustrated to be looked down upon?¡¡Sherry-chan.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No, not really. And, could you stop talking to me so familiar?¡±

    ¡°There are some cases when you¡¯ll look down on someone, and some cases when you can¡¯t. In the former, the one being looked down upon is at fault. In thetter, the one looking down on you is at fault. You¡¯re obviously the former. What¡¯s a Royal Court Magician? I can take you on even with a hand tied behind my back.¡±

    ¡°You¡­¡­! ¡°

    ¡°See? Didn¡¯t I teach you this just a few seconds ago? I told you not to get angry. Do you understand my words? ¡°

    Sherry-chan was so angry she was trembling. Maine said ¡°You¡¯re going too far! ¡± after poking me with his elbow. Replying with a ¡°This is a lecture¡±, he just ¡°Huh? ¡± me, not knowing what else to say.

    ¡°Sherry?¡¡Uhmm, I brought this, but¡­¡­I think you should stop.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Thank you, Irie.¡±

    Then, a woman called Irie handed something over to Sherry. Does this mean she wasted all this time just while waiting for this to arrive?¡¡I wonder what that is? Judging from its size, it looks like some sort of essory.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s have a match using this ¡°Game Crown¡±. I won¡¯t let you run away.¡±

    Sherry-chan said while looking extremely confident and handed me the Game Crown. I won¡¯t let you run away, you say? She looks extremely serious.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°Nbububu, bubu-hahahaHAHAHAHA! ! ¡°

    ¡°W-What is wrong with you!? ¡°

    I couldn¡¯t help butugh out loud.

    ¡°Hahahahaha, no, it¡¯s just that, hihihi! ¡°

    It¡¯s impossible not tough at this.

    ¡°Haaa, what augh. God, you¡¯re amazing.¡±

    ¡°Like I said, what¡¯s with you? Are you making fun of me? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. Do you guys always train using this? ¡°

    ¡°¨CThat¡¯s right. Well, not that this is any of your business.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Amazing. Awfully amazing.¡±

    In a way, it¡¯s quite amazing. I said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s a many vs one, juste at me¡±. However, even after giving them plenty of opportunities, nobody has attacked me yet. I even carelessly chatted, and even pretended to look away at the training grounds and dared to turn my back on them, yet nobody made a move.

    ¡°Haaa-¡°

    I exhaled one long sigh, then opened my mouth.

    ¡°Even with that confident face, you mean this as only a game?¡¡That you won¡¯t let me run away?¡¡Don¡¯t fuck with me. Enough with the peace idiot y. There are only three people who are passable. Captain Zephyr, Sherry-chan, and Irie-san. Except for these three, the rest of you are garbage.¡±

    Red-Xavi was always on the lookout. He could probably have a nice match with me, but he relegated himself to the sidelines, yet he seemed focused enough to butt in at any moment. In other words, he didn¡¯t see this as a game.

    Moreover, Irie who brought the Game Crown to Sherry-chan and said ¡°This is not the time for this¡­¡­¡±. I didn¡¯t feel the will to fight from her, but she understood the point.

    Sherry-chan doesn¡¯t have any good points like the others. However, her facing me head-on is kind of cute. She has plenty of room to grow. In a nutshell, she¡¯s a mass of possibilities.

    Other than them, the rest of the trash¡¯s thoughts were as clear as day, ¡°In the end, it¡¯s only a game¡±, ¡°It has nothing to do with me¡±. They just felt like extras looking at the development of things between me and Sherry-chan. I don¡¯t really like it.

    Still, it¡¯s my job to make those not interested get to a notable level in this month. I decided to do it, so I¡¯ll see it through. Since I have the chance, let¡¯s make them the strongest magician group in the world. Good for you guys.

    ¡°Listen here, everything inside the ¡®game¡¯ is virtual. It doesn¡¯t hurt when you¡¯re attacked, you don¡¯t die, you don¡¯t need to recover; it¡¯s easy, convenient and you can do it as many times as you want. You might think this makes for great training, but you are quite mistaken.¡±

    In the world of Mobius, there was a penalty for dying. In specific terms, some of your stats were slightly lowered. It wasn¡¯t really a big deal for the average yer, but for the top rankers, this was way too painful. Therefore, although in a different sense from this world, everyone was afraid of dying. And that fear was indeed quite important.

    ¡°You will surely lower your guard. You¡¯ll definitely be over-confident. I can receive one hit, after all, it doesn¡¯t hurt. I can overdo it, after all, I can¡¯t die. That ¡°After all¡± remains deep in your consciousness. And then, because this can be done easily as many times as you want, the real battle bes difficult. You wouldn¡¯t think that to be the case, but you simply don¡¯t realize it¡¯s already happening unconsciously.¡±

    I thought there would be someints, but surprisingly, everyone was silently listening. Alright, then let¡¯s keep talking.

    ¡°The problem is, if you¡¯re not good enough, you¡¯ll die. That moment when, after receiving an attack, it¡¯s too painful to attack back. That¡¯s something I know. Those who are ustomed to ying games, nine out of ten be easily scared. When attacked, you can¡¯t think of how to attack back, and when it¡¯s time to attack, you can¡¯t help but to overthink it. And even if it¡¯s just a moment of hesitation, there are a lot of tough guys who won¡¯t miss it.¡±

    When I nced at Sherry-chan, she was simply staring at the ground with a sullen expression. ¡®I think he is right in a sense, but I don¡¯t like it, so I can¡¯t help but to feel frustrated¡¯. that sort of feeling.

    ¡°The game is something where you can y and experiment. But it¡¯s not something that¡¯s useful for realbat. You should remember it. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be ashamed. Is there anyone who brings out cards to y after picking up a fight? ¡°

    I heard theughs of a few members. The atmosphere warmed up a bit. I thought it would be something more exciting, but I guess this is fine for today.

    ¡°Alright, today¡¯s lecture ends here. I¡¯lle again tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Hey, wait a moment!¡¡I still don¡¯t know what you¡¯re capable of! ¡°

    Just as I finished saying what I wanted to say and tried to go back along with Maine, Sherry-chan called me to stop. My abilities¡­¡­ I see. I guess in her mind, only an idiot would like the idea of being taught by someone weaker than themselves. Or is it for religious reasons? Or maybe she simply doesn¡¯t like me? Yeah, I get the feeling that she just doesn¡¯t like me.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    If I think about the future, then I¡¯d like to do something shy¡­¡­ I wonder if there¡¯s a good performance I can show them?

    Suddenly, the Game Crown in my hand caught my eye. Yeah, this is good.

    ¡°There.¡±

    I threw the Game Crown towards a direction where no people were close. Then, immediately after I prepared a ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fourth Form¡· spell adjusting it towards the location where the Game Crown would fall.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re¨D¨D¡±

    It happened the moment Sherry-chan tried to rebut me.

    PAAA¨D¨DAlong a dazzling sh that could almost be heard, a roaring bang shook the ground. Everyone closed their ears, panicking about what just happened.

    ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fourth Form¡· is basically a ranged attack magic of lightning strikes. It inflicts heavy lightning attribute damage to every object within a certain range of predetermined coordinates. And speaking of how powerful it is, each strike isparable to a Third Form spell. If there are five monsters inside the range, then it¡¯s like shooting five Third Form spells at once. It¡¯s quite the big deal in terms of efficiency.

    ¡°¡­¡­A-A thunder, fell¡­¡­? ¡°

    Turning my back towards Sherry-chan and the others, who didn¡¯t realize it was my magic, I left the training grounds together with a confused Maine while saying ¡°See ya tomorrow¡±.

    After walking for a while, Maine opened his mouth with incredible momentum.

    ¡°That was, something you did, Second-san? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen or heard something about thunder magic¡­¡­¡±

    Well, I guess so. I was also under the idea that ¡°yers can¡¯t use Lightning Attribute Magic¡±. And it¡¯s a skill that I automatically acquired from Angolmois with the sense of unity. Maybe, it¡¯s a magic originally of this world.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Eh?¡¡Wait a moment. Lightning Attribute, lightning attribute¡­¡­Where have I heard it¡­¡­¡±

    Suddenly, switching to a pose as if trying to remember something, Maine began muttering. Then, a few secondster, he turned towards me with a face as if saying ¡°Could it be?¡±.

    ¡°Second-san. The Great Spirit King¡­¡­have you heard of that? ¡°

    So, you know about it, Maine!¡¡Was it written in a book about Summoning Magic or something?¡¡As expected, he¡¯s really diligent.

    And since we¡¯re already at this point, I decided to call out Angolmois using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· and have him introduce himself.

    With a rainbow twisting from out of nowhere, an incredible medieval beauty appeared exaggeratedly while slowly turning around as if dancing and quietly descending.

    (TLN: I remind you that Angolmois¡¯ gender is still undecided, so just for ease I¡¯ll keep calling him as a man unless explicitly stated that he decided his gender to be a woman. And yeah, Second refers to him in this line as a ¡°beautiful woman¡±, but I just said ¡°beauty¡±.)

    ¡°¨D¨DMy name is Angolmois. The one and only ruler over the four major elements, the Great Spirit King.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Maine could only say ¡°Whoa! ? ¡± in surprise, then he copsed in that spot, falling on his butt.

    He managed to stand up with the assistance of a maid who rushed up noisily. Crap, I think this might¡¯ve been too shocking.

    ¡°Sorry, sorry.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t ¡°sorry¡± me as if this was nothing, seriously¡­¡­ I thought my heart would stop.¡±

    Maine red at me while holding his chest with his hand. His cheeks are dyed in red and his breathing is a little rough. He totally looks like I sexually harassed him.

    ¡°Still, it¡¯s unbelievable. I can¡¯t believe you have the Great Spirit King¡­¡­No, this is beyond the level of incredible. With your magic skills and this first-ss summon, are you trying to be a God, Second-san? ¡°

    ¡°Both my Archery and Swordsmanship skills are also top-notch. But other than that, everything is normal.¡±

    ¡°My Second is the best man in the world. And I¡¯m the greatest Spirit King in the Spirit World. In other words, we¡¯re the best of both worlds.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m starting to think that it¡¯s great that you¡¯re on my side, Second-san¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Incidentally, the best tactician in the spirit world has a strong crush on my Second. In the Spirit World, she does nothing but speak about my Second. Only my Second could make that person be like that.¡±

    This is the first time I¡¯ve heard of this. Or rather, isn¡¯t she just speaking like that because she¡¯s bragging that ¡°I got such a strong piece¡±?

    ¡°Tactician?¡¡Ahh, Windfield-san¡­¡­ Eh? Does that mean that person is also a spirit! ? ¡°

    ¡°Umu.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Didn¡¯t I tell you?¡±

    ¡°I never heard of it!¡¡Seriously¡­¡­¡±

    After meeting him for the first time in such a long time, Maine has been nothing but surprised. It¡¯s unforgivable to keep my friend in this much shock. Just who on earth did this? Seriously, that person is crazy.

    ¡°Well, with this, everything is rock solid. I couldn¡¯t hope for a more perfect line up.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡What does that mean? ¡°

    ¡°The tactician is a spirit, right?¡¡Unless her master is identified, there¡¯s no way to assassinate her, right? She has ovee the weakness of a tactician. And furthermore, there¡¯s Second-san, and even the Great Spirit King. Even if I try to think about it, this is way beyond my ideals.¡±

    I see, an assassin. If I think about it that way, then certainly, Windfield is the ideal tactician. Because she¡¯s a spirit, her strength is superior to that of humans, and she doesn¡¯t need to eat nor sleep.

    ¡°You, I like you. I¡¯ll recognize you as a member of my Second¡¯s alliance.¡±

    ¡°T-Thank you very much.¡±

    To speak to a Prince with a you (kisama)¡­¡­ as one would expect from that Angolmois-sama. And Maine looks happy for some reason.

    ¡°Still, even if it¡¯s rock-solid, the people won¡¯t be convinced if we win by force.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Because a country is its people. I too have to steel myself.¡±

    ¡°No, you only need to do that after you be a King. Until then, just leave it to us.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes? ¡°

    ¡°Using the solid formation you said, I¡¯ll gradually drive away the imperial dogs and the idiots who follow them to a corner. And then, I¡¯ll catch the whole herd, making sure none of them return alive. Moreover, never in their lives will they try to go against the Castall Kingdom again¡­¡­ is what Windfield will do.¡±

    ¡°Is that alright? ¡­¡­Or rather, isn¡¯t this something you nned, Second-san?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just one of Windfield¡¯s pieces in this political strife.¡±

    ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen someone talk about themselves as a piece while being this happy¡­¡­¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    After that, I continued to chat with Maine for a while and left the court when the sun was going down.

    Starting tomorrow, I¡¯ll have to work in earnest as a lecturer. I began to think that maybe I should n out my lectures. And while I was thinking about such things, I walked towards the ce where Cubero should¡¯ve been waiting for me with the carriage.

    However, neither the figure of Cubero nor the carriage could be seen there.

    But, in exchange for them, in that ce was¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Silvia? ¡°

    ¡°U-umu. You took a long time, Second-dono. I was starting to get tired of waiting.¡±

    The figure of a dressed-up Silvia, who seemed to be quite tense. I¡¯m used to seeing her in in clothes after all this time, but she looks pretty good since she¡¯s beautiful in the first ce.

    And then, Silvia began to speak, her cheeks dyed in red.

    ¡°The promise, you remember? Of the spirit ticket¡­¡­Or did you f-forget it? ¡°

    ¡°No, I remember it. But didn¡¯t you say to go shopping on a holiday? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ll be busy from now on. So, just a little is fine, go on a date with me. And after looking at some shops, how about d-dinner? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, sounds good. Quite good actually. It reminds me of the old days.¡±

    ¡°Umu. Now that you say it, it was about half a year ago, but¡­¡­ somehow, it doesn¡¯t feel like a long time at all.¡±

    We had a trifling conversation,ughed with each other, went inside some interesting stores, and enjoyed a drink at the bar on the first floor of the inn we used to stay at.

    Just like I thought, Silvia is very suited for a rtionship like the one you¡¯d have with your male friends.

    ¡­¡­Or, so I thought.

    As the two of us continued to drink, the atmosphere gradually began to heat up.

    Silvia¡¯s fierce appeal suddenly exploded.

    And between this and that.

    We decided to move ces to the second floor¨D¨D

 Chapter 67: What have I gotten into?

    <h4>Chapter 67: What have I gotten into?</h4>

    Silvia¡¯s body, that I was seeing for the first time was, in a word, amazing. Her abdominal muscles were visibly divided into six; her limbs were firm; the ces that should stick out, stuck out; and the areas that should be soft, were soft. Her well-proportioned body felt like that of a top-notch athlete.

    Does the status reflect on the body, or does the body reflect on the status? Or does that have nothing to do with it? I¡¯m not sure about the answer, but hers was beautiful enough for me to start thinking that I should start training my body anyways.

    After I told her my honest thoughts, Silvia said, ¡°Second-dono¡¯s body is more beautiful¡±. I didn¡¯t take notice of it, maybe due to the fact that I¡¯m not in the habit of looking in the mirror, but it seems that my body is in a simr state. Well, I suppose it¡¯s not strange for that to be the case since I¡¯ve been doing a training regimen stricter than anyone else. And since our diet ispletely managed by Yukari, maybe all of us have athlete-like bodies.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Good morning.¡±

    Next morning. When I opened my eyes, I saw Silvia right next to me. She returned my morning greeting with her usual ¡°Umu¡±, as expected, she really is beautiful.

    Looking at her, unexpectedly reminded me ofst night. Unlike Yukari, who was extremely passionate in bed, Silvia was more like a girly woman who was even satisfied by just hugging each other. This was a happy miscalction for me, who was quite tired after that ¡®death fight¡¯ with Yukari. But thanks to this, I was able to ¡®love¡¯ her with plenty of leeway.

    We both went downstairs to have breakfast together. Strangely enough, I didn¡¯t receive a team-limitedmunication message from Yukari. Perhaps there was some collusion between Yukari and Silvia. Only god knows.

    ¡°Second-dono. Come to think of it, I got in touch with the Third Knight Order yesterday.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. How was it? ¡°

    ¡°They were literally jumping with joy. It seems like this is exactly with the Knight Order wants the most right now.¡±

    ¡°Do you think they suspected you were ying for the other side? ¡°

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. However, the daily activities continued as usual.¡±

    ¡°If I were to be betrayed by Silvia¡­¡­ I¡¯d likely distrust all people.¡±

    ¡°Hey, stop that. I would never betray you, Second-dono! ¡°

    She then muttered, ¡®There¡¯s nothing more frightening than turning Second-dono into an enemy¡¯. I think that was a good answer.

    ¡°From now on, I¡¯ll be regrly reporting to the Third Knight Order. Windfield said that she would like me to leak small amounts of information to make my position more favorable. And, at the same time¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll search for the official and original documents?¡±

    ¡°Umu. Well, it¡¯s more about collecting information rather than searching for it. The information gathered by the Third Knight Order is great after all. Since they are the ones who signed the agreement with the R6.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure they hid something. Or maybe they were told to hide it.¡±

    ¡°Then, our first goal is to bring it to light?¡±

    Silvia seemed to brim with motivation. Well, that should be obvious, she really loves justice, so it would be no exaggeration to say this job is right up her alley.

    ¡°Well then, I guess I also need to go to work.¡±

    I didn¡¯t think the day where I would use the phrase ¡°need to go to work¡± woulde in my lifetime, but the fact is, I¡¯m now being paid as a special temporary lecturer for the First Royal Court Magician Division. This sure counts as ¡°going to work¡±.

    After paying for the meal and lodging fees, we left the inn. Silvia said ¡°Have a good day (Itterasshai)¡±, but she immediately turned bright red.

    I¡¯m super motivated¨D¨D

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°For today, please let me see your usual training regime.¡±

    As soon as I got to the training grounds, I sat down while dering so.

    The Court Mages from the First Division, however, showed no sign of getting in line. Are they waiting for the leader¡¯s instructions? Or are they just not going to follow any instructions I give? Probably neither.

    When I started to think about what I should do, two people walked up to me. Captain Zephyr and Sherry-chan.

    ¡°Please stop with the jokes.¡±

    Sherry-chan being her usual self, blurted out those words coated with hostility.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what your usual training is after all-mon. I wouldn¡¯t know what to point out if that¡¯s the case, right? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t go adding words. And also, you don¡¯t have to point out anything.¡±

    ¡°That would be a problem.¡±

    ¡°By all means, be troubled.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨DNo, wait. Sherry.¡±

    When Sherry-chan was starting to go over this and that, the captain, Zephyr interrupted her. He had a grim face, but apparently, he wasn¡¯t trying toin. This person at least seems to understand my point.

    ¡°Kid. That magic you used yesterday when you left. That was without doubt, a Lightning Attribute Third Form spell, right? ¡°

    ¡°That was a Fourth Form one.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Is, that so?¡±

    When I wondered what kind of question he asked while starting with calling me kid, this person started to nod while deep in thought. What¡¯s with this guy. Is his brain as empty as the top of his head?

    ¡°Fourth Form?¡¡Please make a more believable lie. There¡¯s no such thing as Lightning Attribute magic, and there¡¯s no way someone like you can use a Fourth Form spell.¡±

    ¡°E-Excuse me¡­¡­¡±

    From behind Sherry-chan, who was grumbling andining, a woman approached timidly. If I remember correctly, I think she was called Irie-san?¡¡She had a gentle-looking face with semi-long tea-colored hair. All in all, her appearance was just normal. I was under the impression she was an honest person, but¡­¡­ Is sheing toin to me?¡¡If that¡¯s the case, this really is a shock. I prepared myself to listen to her words.

    ¡°Second-san¡­¡­ May I have your autograph? ¡°

    It almost made me fall down in surprise. Anding for this with this timing?¡¡What¡¯s with that?

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, but can I ask why? ¡°

    ¡°My little sister goes to the Magic Academy, and, you see, she¡¯s a big fan of you, Second-san. When I told her yesterday at home about you, seriously, she was going crazy¡­.. and she told me to make sure to get her your autograph.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so that¡¯s the reason.¡±

    I behaved as if this wasn¡¯t a big deal, but deep down I was extremely happy.

    In my previous life, when I was the number one in the world, signing autographs, shaking hands, and taking photographs were everyday urrences. It was hard to respond to those people without shattering the image of ¡°The strongest in the world¡± they so admired, and this was something I had totally forgotten aftering to this world. That past glory of being the world¡¯s best seemed to have been reignited for a moment, and an indescribable emotion surged from deep within me.

    ¡°To whom should I dedicate it? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, yes. To Aroma, please.¡±

    I was about to write Seven on the colored piece of paper she brought to sign¡­¡­ but I fixed it to Second. That was close.

    The writing was ¡°From the number one man in the world, Second¡±. I thought of adding ¡°Future¡± before number one, but I think that was too much. Finally, after writing ¡°To Aroma¡±, I thought for a little and added ¡°& Irie¡± to it.

    ¡°Here you go.¡±

    I handed the colored piece of paper to Irie-san, along with a smile. And speaking of smiles, I had one practiced for these asions. If you don¡¯t smile properly after being asked for an autograph, it ends up as a mood-killer. Rather, this is why you have to behave coldly at first. It really creates a contrast. In my previous life, I learned the value of fan service, and that the value of your smile increases if you only show it on limited asions.

    ¡°T-Tha-Thank y-you very m-mush.¡±

    Irie-san left while walking backward, her cheeks dyed in vermillion and her head lowered. Seems like it was a critical hit.

    At that time, I noticed by chance the figures of some female members who looked at her with envious eyes. I see, at first, I thought I wasn¡¯t weed at all, but there seems to be a few people who had a good impression of me. I¡¯m grateful for that. However, on the downside, it seems it will take some time to gain the support from the male members.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    All the while, Sherry-chan looked at me with absent eyes. Just because your appearance is a little on the good side and you have some skills, you¡¯re simply letting it get to your head¡­¡­ That kind of feeling. She really is easy to understand.

    ¡­¡­As expected, it may be better to show my abilities if I want my work as a teacher to go smoothly. If they didn¡¯t understand it from yesterday¡¯s disy, all I can do ise up with something using the four major attributes.

    But, almost as if reading my mind, Captain Zephyr opened his mouth while I was thinking about what to do.

    ¡°Understood. I will give out instructions.¡±

    ¡°Captain! ? ¡°

    ¡°Sherry. This kid¡¯s ability is real. Enough of that, you¡¯re the only one who won¡¯t admit it.¡±

    ¡°But¡­¡­¡±

    Sherry-chan was shocked to have been chided by the Captain, whom she thought felt the same as her. It was a face on which you could almost hear the sound effect ¡°GAAN¡±.

    ¡°Starting now, we do the usual training!¡¡When the lecturer-dono approaches, give priority to answering his questions!¡¡Then, let¡¯s get started! ¡°

    Everyone in the first division, who until now seemed unwilling to do anything, began to move as soon as the captain spoke. The same held true for Sherry-chan. As expected of the captain, hismands are absolute in the group.

    However, I¡¯m sure the captain has it hard too, having to switch from ¡®kid¡¯ to ¡®lecturer-dono¡¯. I¡¯m sure myment about him wasting those 55 years from yesterday has something to do with it. I actually think I might¡¯ve gone too far with that, but it¡¯s not like I really will retract that statement, a fact is a fact after all. And it¡¯s not like apologizing will make him improve.

    ¡­¡­And so, a few hourster.

    Let¡¯s go straight to the point.

    ¡°This is worse than I thought.¡±

    Royal Court Magician Division. Going by that name, I was expecting a bit more from the Kingdom¡¯s greatest mages. I understood most of it yesterday, but still, I thought that maybe there was a million in one chance.

    But how about it? ¡¸Is this a group for ying? ¡¹ was my honest opinion.

    ¡°If war breaks out, the Court Mages can be called to the front lines, right? ¡°

    ¡°Right.¡±

    ¡°Do mages move as a group?¡¡Or do they move individually? ¡°

    ¡°Annihtion, search and destroy, cover, and support. We do everything.¡±

    ¡°So, a half-assed group? ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. We change ns ording to the progress of the battle.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, so that¡¯s why¡­¡­¡±

    Their training was mainly in the form of organizing, scattering and rearranging their formations at each signal. Apparently, they are taught to ¡°use this magic during this formation at this signal¡± with different tactics, repeating it many times so that it bes ingrained in them for the time they need to do it on the battlefield. This is ridiculous although I won¡¯t say it.

    ¡°What about improving their magic? ¡°

    ¡°I let them work on that on their own.¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡°

    ¡°Since everyone works on their strong points, having a baseline training is impossible.¡±

    ¡°No, no, I don¡¯t mean about that. Don¡¯t you go monster hunting? ¡°

    ¡°Uh, experience training, is it? They go hunting in the mines andrge forests about once a week.¡±

    ¡°Hee¡­¡­?¡¡And that¡¯s it? ¡°

    ¡°Indeed, but¡­¡­ is there a problem with that? ¡°

    Hey, hey, hey, are these guys for real? Aren¡¯t they taking it easy?¡¡This isn¡¯t like hunting for deer on a holiday. How many strong monsters you can hunt is directly linked to the strength of your skills, you know?

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you go earn more experience? ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous. There are a lot of objections to it, too. And, there are the budget constraints as well. And so far, there hasn¡¯t been the need for it. Therefore, I¡¯ve left the experience training to the discretion of the individuals.¡±

    Ahh, I see. If they force them to earn experience points, they¡¯ll be nothing more than a ¡®ckpany¡¯. Makes sense¡­¡­ Is what I¡¯d like to say, but I just can¡¯t. How nice it is to be a peace idiot. Aren¡¯t they supposed to be soldiers? Not some randompany workers. Please motivate yourselves to be stronger.

    ¡°Just in case, let me ask. When was thest time you went to war? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­22 years ago.¡±

    ¡°£Ï£Ë, I see. Just don¡¯t say anything anymore.¡±

    I think most of the guys here were just kids at that time. And I bet Sherry-chan wasn¡¯t even born yet. So that¡¯s why they¡¯re not motivated at all.

    ¡°This calls for a drastic reform.¡±

    In the previous Mobius, there was this game called ¡ºTeam Battle¡». You could y team vs team ¡°War Games¡±, but this was something deeper. Swordsmen, archers,ncers, mages, etc. Putting together a well-bnced team with equivalent abilities, the winner was the team who coulde up with a better, well-thought-out strategy. And when it came to Team Battles between the top Teams, it felt like a real war. That was nothing short of a masterpiece, hundreds of yers colliding against each other in a vast field.

    I was busy bing the world¡¯s best individual, so I¡¯m an amateur for Team Battle warfare, but I do have some knowledge. I wanted to eventually form the strongest team and nned to reach the top in the Team Battles as well. Well, that¡¯s a dream that didn¡¯te true.

    But even with my second-hand knowledge, the first time I saw the training of the Court Mages, I thought it was strange.

    Those preconceptions are wrong in the first ce.

    Annihtion, search and destroy, cover, and support. They change ns ording to the progress of the battle¨D¨D that sounds great and all, but this is not the job of a mage in the first ce.

    A mage is a¡¸Medium range soldier who conducts attacks over a wide range with high fire power¡¹. Their might is certainly huge, but they can¡¯t cope with a charge of short-range soldiers such as swordsmen at all, and they can be easily sniped by long-range soldiers such as archers. In other words, ¡°In terms of firepower, one or two people are enough¡±, and ¡°An escort of short-range soldiers serving as a protective wall is essential¡±.

    And even if the annihtion squad is made up solely from mages and they act as a group, it would only take a moment for the enemy¡¯s short-range soldiers to attack and destroy them. And even if they let them act, it would end with a barrage from the enemy¡¯s archers since there¡¯s no one ying the role of protective wall. Then, in the case of cover fire, the Fourth and Fifth Form are attacks of a wide area, so if they don¡¯t watch it closely, friendly fire will end up happening. Andstly, as support, mages are certainly convenient for that, but it¡¯s a wasted use of a mage.

    Do they know that? Or, despite knowing that, is there a reason why they still do it that way? My only doubt is why are they training formations this much?

    Then, I suddenly remembered. Sherry-chan¡¯s words. She certainly said ¡°There¡¯s no way someone like you can use a Fourth Form spell¡±, right?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Can it be?

    ¡°Hey, be totally honest with me. Who here can use a Fourth Form spell?¡¡It doesn¡¯t matter of which attribute.¡±

    One, two, and so on. Out of the 200 people here, only around twenty raised their hands. Whoaa¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­And the Fifth Form? ¡°

    This time, only the captain Zephyr raised his hand. Are you kidding me!? ?

    In order to effectively use a mage in a Team Battle, the Fourth and Fifth Forms are essential. Furthermore, the ¡°INT Demon¡± is the ideal growth type, raising all four major attributes from the First Form to the Fifth Form to the highest Grade. The mages¡¯ strength lies in ¡°High attack power over a wide area¡±¨D¨D a mage who can¡¯t do this can be considered nothing but baggage.

    ¡­¡­And that¡¯s their current state. This First Royal Court Magician Division can be dered to be a collection of recruits, useless in a Team Battle.

    Surely, the mages in the enemy country should be at the same level since thest war was fought over 22 years ago, but this level of mediocrity is not something I can ept so long as I¡¯m their lecturer.

    But even if I say that, what should I do? Am I going to have to teach these guys the Fourth Forms?¡¡Let¡¯s not speak nonsense, there¡¯s no way I¡¯ll go to such lengths.

    There has to be some way, or else, I¡¯ll have to find a way to make it work the way they are right now.

    Yeah, some way, someway¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡°I wonder if that¡¯ll work!?¡¡I¡¯m off for today! ¡°

    ¡°K-Kid!¡¡Where are you going!? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯lle tomorrow! ¡°

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°¨D¨DDon¡¯t move.¡±

    Surprised by that voice, and the cold sensation touching the back of my neck, I froze. What perfect timing. Even if I were to be killed right now, nobody would hear my voice.

    ¡°W-What is it?¡¡What can someone like me do for you? ¡°

    I yed the pitiful beggar. This ce was the back of the Kamel church. Churches and beggars practicallye as a set. Even if you hide your face with a ragged cloth, you don¡¯t stand out. If you want to hide a tree, you hide it in a forest. It¡¯s the same for moving around the churches in the Kingdom. You can safely hide yourself like this. Or so I thought¡­¡­

    ¡°Whoa! ¡°

    Suddenly, the pressure ckened. I sort of fell forward and then I looked back.

    Their whole body covered in ck, a shadow that almost lost itself in the darkness. Standing there, not allowing for a single change, and with a voice that made it too hard to distinguish it from man or woman. This is¨D¨DAn ¡°Assassin¡±.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­What do you want? How did you find me? How do you know who am I?¡±

    There¡¯s no longer any need to keep the lie going. I removed my hood to get a better look.

    ¡°I knew it. You are Besaid-sama, right?¡±

    ¡°And what if I am? Idiot.¡±

    ¡°Cubero-sama is waiting for you.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    A name I¡¯ve heard after a long time. And a name I have thought of every day. The name of the R6¡¯s young leader.

    ¡°I-Is the young leader alive!? ¡°

    No, wait. This might be a trap to lure me out.

    ¡°Where is the young leader.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s at our base.¡±

    ¡°Base?¡¡¡­¡­¡±

    When I tried to take a step forward, a threat blocked me from moving. ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿, huh? How troublesome.

    ¡°¡­¡­How about you introduce yourself?¡±

    ¡°From the all-purpose maid squad serving under Second Firstest, and part of the assassination squad led by one of the Ten Great, Yve. But because I¡¯m an assassin, I can¡¯t reveal my name, voice or face. Please excuse me for that.¡±

    ¡°Hey, hey, is it alright for an assassin to reveal its master¡¯s name?¡±

    ¡°Our Master isn¡¯t someone so weak to be troubled by something insignificant like this.¡±

    ¡°Hoo©`¡°

    ¡°Also, there¡¯s no need to hide it from you.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡¡What do you mea¨D¨DNghhn! ? ¡°

    My consciousness was blown away by the impact on the back of my neck. This assassin wasn¡¯t alone I see. I guess this is only obvious.

    ¡­¡­Young leader, please be alive.

 Chapter 68: A Way To Fight With Magic

    <h4>Chapter 68: A Way To Fight With Magic</h4>

    ¡°Master, here¡¯s this morning¡¯s issue of the Vinz newspaper.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, thanks.¡±

    While having my cheeks stuffed with breakfast in the morning, Yukari handed me the morning newspaper in a curious manner.

    In any case, why the newspaper?¡¡Or so, I wondered. After all, I don¡¯t really have the habit of reading newspapers. Well, I¡¯m not really in the mood to think too deeply about it since I just woke up, so for the time being, I decided to open it and read it.

    ¡°Ngh-ptffffff¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    With the soup entering the wrong conduct, I spout it out of my mouth almost like a geyser.

    I coughed since I almost choked. ¡°Whoa, what a mess! ¡± said Silvia while doing nothing in particr except for being surprised. Eko just happilyughed for some reason on the side. Yukari contemted for a moment if she should wipe all the fish soup mess as she held a towel, but after a moment of hesitation, she only wiped my crotch area intensively. I kind of expected this, but she sure is a lewd little elf.

    ¡°Second-dono. What¡¯s written in it? ¡°

    ¡°Ahh, please let me, exin.¡±

    Before I noticed it, Windfield was already summoned to the living room.

    Spreading the newspaper in the center of the table, she began to exin its contents.

    ¡°This is the heading, you see? ¡ºA Vition of the Knights¡¯ Agreement?¡¡Doubts Over the Suppression of the Chivalrous Bandits¡».¡±

    ¡°Umu. I somehow know what that means, but¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°If, by reading this newspaper, you can understand that the knights are hiding something rted to the suppression of the bandits, then it¡¯s all good.¡±

    ¡°Does this concern the First, Second and Third Knight Orders? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. First of all, it generates doubt against the Knight Orders, and consequently, that doubt will spread towards the First Prince¡¯s faction. In tomorrow¡¯s newspaper, or maybe the one the day after, the details of what happened, will be exined. If the information is small, and delivered in iterations, the effect will be by all means, more impressive. This is basic strategy.¡±

    If you put out a catchy headline about suspicion, the ¡®curiosity¡¯ of the people will make them want to know more. Giving information like this is simr to feeding a starving crowd. After all, many people were skeptical about the seemingly thorough suppression of the righteous bandits carried out by the First Knight Order, so opinions collided left and right; therefore, the more information that was given out, the more it fanned the mes of conflict and the more distrust would spread.

    Moreover, after the alleged vition of the agreement, with the testimony of a survivor of R6 and the request to disclose official documents, the allegations of evidence tampering and withholding will gain momentum. Seriously, a perfect plot.

    ¡°¡­¡­Hey, did you get this information moving?¡±

    ¡°Correct, it was my doing. Second-san, it¡¯s fine if you praise me, you know? ¡°

    ¡°Very, very nice, Windfield. Simply excellent! ¡°

    ¡°Ehh, that¡¯s somehow¡­¡­ well, at least it¡¯s something.¡±

    Windfield looked dissatisfied for a moment, but then shepromised with just that after feeling Yukari¡¯s and Silvia¡¯s murderous intent.

    ¡°Ahh, Silvia-san. I think, you might be called today, by the Third Knight Order. If that urs, then tell them this. ¡®If it¡¯s that man, then he might know something¡¯.¡±

    ¡°You mean that I should say that Second-dono has a suspicious air around him? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Like, ¡®he was talking to a suspicious person behind the inn¡¯. If they ask you, it¡¯s fine to tell them something like that.¡±

    ¡°Umu, okay.¡±

    ¡°Second-san, please be prepared, to be able to move at any moment, in the court. Also, please don¡¯t get kicked out, okay?¡± warned Windfield.

    ¡°If it¡¯s about the former, leave it to me. As for thetter, I¡¯ll try doing my best.¡±

    To be able to make those useless Court Mages into something decent, a challenge reaching the absurd was surely waiting for me.

    Well, after giving it some thought overnight, I managed toe up with an answer. I don¡¯t know how well it¡¯ll work though.

    ¡°¨D¨DI¡¯m very sorry to be interrupting your talk.¡±

    And at that moment. The one who appeared was not the usual Cubero, but a maid. Looking at her, Yukari said ¡°That sure was fast¡±. What is it? I¡¯m curious.

    ¡°We have secured the R6 member, Besaid-sama, at the servants¡¯ residence. How should we proceed?¡±

    ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s why you asked of them? That really was fast. Very nice! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Y-Your kind words are wasted on me.¡±

    The maid answered while looking down shyly. Or rather, was she the one who caught him? Yukari said she was a ¡®pro investigator¡¯, but¡­¡­yeah, no matter where I look at her, she doesn¡¯t look the part. She looks like your ordinary everyday girl. You sure can¡¯t judge a book by its cover.

    ¡°We¡¯ll go see him this moment, Cubero and I. Please get everything ready.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Giving out those instructions, I gulped down my morning meal. Windfield appeared to be having a good time, with a face of ¡°It¡¯s finally starting¡±.

    And then, after a few minutes.

    We met with the living witness in the basement of the servants¡¯ residence.

    ¡°Young leaaaaaaaaader!¡¡I¡¯m so- I¡¯m so happy to see you safe and well! ¡°

    Noisy¡­¡­ This was my first impression. The second thing I noticed was his scary face.

    Just like one would expect from the Yakuza, the righteous bandits seemingly really bet their lives in this kind of job. Even if the Knights had broken their fangs and scattered the herd, his eyes remained as keen as a sharp knife. His angr face and his swept-back ck hair really packed a punch visually.

    ¡°Besaid. You¡¯ve done great surviving that hell. I¡¯m really proud of you for that.¡±

    ¡°Those words are too much for me!¡¡It doesn¡¯t really matter whether I¡¯m alive or dead!¡¡Leader!¡¡The fact that you¡¯re alive is huge for the R6!¡¡The rebirth of the R6 is not just a pipe dream anymore! ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s not it. I¡¯m only here because you guys risked your lives for me. And, the fact that you survived that hell, that will be a great force for us the R6, and for my Master.¡±

    ¡°Huh¡­¡­?¡¡Master¡­¡­is it? ¡°

    ¡°Second Firstest-sama. You, just like me, should by no means make light of this name.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I see, then, that assassin too.¡±

    After hearing my name from Cubero, Besaid stood up while muttering something. His eyes rested on me.

    ¡°Besaid!¡¡Refrain from doing anything strange¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. He wants to see if I¡¯m prepared. Isn¡¯t it okay? He¡¯s your underling (little brother) after all. There¡¯s a bit of mischievousness in him, simr to you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I feel ashamed to admit so.¡±

    Besaid and I stared at each other. After stopping Cubero, he looked down with a slightly embarrassed face.

    ¡°I know this is a bit rude¡­¡­ but please let me test you.¡±

    Besaid approached me while cracking his neck. I can¡¯t see him taking anything like a fighting pose. This guy, he¡¯s quite used to fighting. If I were to bump into him in any ce other than Mobius, there¡¯s no way I could¡¯ve won.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but this isn¡¯t going to be a fight.¡±

    But this is Mobius. No matter how much you struggle, this is an online game. If you fight against another person, it¡¯s not a fight, it¡¯s PvP. The difference in status isn¡¯t easily ovee, and the number of acquired skills and the difference in their ranks isrge. And above all else, the difference in the PS (yer Skills) is enormous.

    ¡°¨D¨DHaa! ¡°

    Besaid¡¯s right hand came straight at me. First of all, I tried to identify it, but it was just ¡¶Soldier Martial Arts¡·. Just looking at it, I had plenty of room to avoid it.

    Hey hey, is this because of the level difference¡­¡­?

    ¡°Ohh, this guy evaded it! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Besaid appeared pumped up, getting carried away. Looking at that development, Cubero just held his head on one hand.

    Yeah, it appears that only that wasn¡¯t enough. ¡°I want to test how strong the beloved master of the young leader is¡±, yeah, that was pretty much stered on his face. However, no matter how much he wants to test his power, the difference between him and me who¡¯ll be the top in the world¡­¡­ It¡¯ll only make me look like a viin.

    This is making me a bit annoyed.

    Thus, trying to be a bit serious, I silently used¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    ¡°£¨Angolmois, possession.£©¡°

    ¡°£¨As you wish.£©¡°

    With a single word, I immediatelymanded for ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·.

    At that moment, Angolmois became a rainbow of light and fused with me.

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­! ? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­W-wh-what is that¡­¡­!? ! ¡°

    Not only Besaid, but Cubero was also surprised. I see this is the first time he¡¯s seen it, right?

    ¡°This is called Spirit Possession. All stats are multiplied by 4.5 at Grade Nine.¡±

    ¡°G-Grade nine¡­¡­! ? ¡°

    ¡°4.5¡­¡­times¡­¡­¡±

    Even if you put it in the simplest terms, it means that your opponent suddenly became 4.5 times stronger than before. It¡¯s a hopeless difference.

    Since Cubero has been beaten by me before, he should have a rough estimate of what my total status should be. Going from there, if they increased by a factor of 4.5, then he must know this is a level where the gap has opened considerably. I can tell as much by his pale face.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­you¡¯ve done it!¡¡Like this, I go without pulling my punches! ¡°

    But I forgot. This was Cubero¡¯s underling, a hardcore chivalrous bandit. No matter how big the difference has be, he¡¯s the type of person to just face it head on.

    GAAN¨D¨D My jaw was hit directly by ¡¶Silver Martial Arts¡·.

    ¡°O-OOOOOoooouchhh! ? ¡°

    It was Besaid who uttered that sound while holding his right hand and turning from side to side on the ground.

    I mean, this is not surprising at all. Because the difference between Besaid¡¯s STR and my VIT was just toorge, Besaid¡¯s attack didn¡¯t go through and all the damage was instead returned to his fist.

    ¡°Ahhh, what an idiot.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but to go to Besaid¡¯s side and apply ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿¡¶Small Recovery¡·. If it¡¯s just a bruise, this should do the trick.

    ¡°¡­¡­S-Sorry. I¡¯m greatly obliged.¡±

    As Besaid stood up, he thanked me deeply, feeling quite ashamed too. Seems like he haspletely lost his will to fight.

    And for some reason, next to me, Cubero was also bowing his head. Knowing how serious Cubero is, I think he might feel the blunder made by his underling as his own.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look down on me, small fry.¡±

    While sending back Angolmois with ¡¶Unsummon¡·, for the time being, I scolded this guy. The two of them bowed their heads even lower.

    ¡°I¡¯ll never look down on you for the rest of my life. If I can be given your forgiveness, I¡¯ll never forget this debt.¡±

    ¡°No, this responsibility lies on me, as his leader. I¡¯ll carry it. I¡¯ll start by teaching Besaid how to be responsible for his acts.¡±

    The story moved in an unexpected direction for a moment.

    ¡°Hey wait, the talk has deviated. It¡¯s fine if you just don¡¯t look down on me.¡±

    ¡°That won¡¯t be enough!¡¡Second-sama is thest hope of us in the R6. You¡¯re the great benefactor who picked me up and saved me. Even if Second-sama allows this to end with just this, I can¡¯t permit it.¡±

    ¡°That¡­¡­That¡¯s right. What should I do? ¡­¡­Coming this far, I¡¯m ready to give you my life at any moment.¡±

    ¡°Like I said, wait!¡¡Why do people never, ever listen to what¡­¡­Eh? ¡°

    Incidentally, I noticed it. Cubero, so that¡¯s what you meant?

    When I looked at Cubero¡¯s expression, he was just looking straight at me. Ahh, I knew it, so that¡¯s the case.

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright, Besaid. If you want to take responsibility for your acts, there¡¯s one thing I¡¯d like to ask you.¡±

    ¡°Something you want to ask me¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Guided by Cubero, this is going smoothly. All thanks to him, I won¡¯t have to bete for the temporary lecturer job. While having that in mind, and thanking Cubero in silence, I opened my mouth.

    ¡°I want you to testify in front of the people.¡±

    ¡°Magic Curtain, was it? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s the only way for you to make a good impact.¡±

    We were in a conference room near the court, and close to the training grounds.

    What is currently being held is a meeting with the group leaders. A ce where the leaders of each group in the First Royal Court Magician Division gathered and we decided on the future policies.

    In there, I talked about the idea that I came up withst night.

    I really wanted to use the word ¡®barrage¡¯ instead of ¡®curtain¡¯, but in this world without any sort of artillery, I don¡¯t know if the meaning would be conveyed, so I decided on ¡®Magic Curtain¡¯.

    Magic Curtain¨D¨D well, that¡¯s just basically a magic barrage. Using a magic with a short cooldown timer, in other words, the First Form, shoot it like a curtain, overwhelming the enemy. This is a well-known tactic both useful for defense and offense.

    In any case, the important part is to ¡°keep firing¡±. With this, it¡¯s okay to fire a few missed shots, after all, what¡¯s important is topete with quantity rather than quality to a certain extent. On the defensive side, aside from overpowering the enemy¡¯s arrows and magic, it can be said that even in the event of a kamikaze assault, it¡¯s excellent to restrain it or even destroy it. That¡¯s the case for ground, but.

    ¡°Wait a moment, kid. But that being the case, wouldn¡¯t the power be reduced? It might not be possible to annihte them. And that also makes search and destroy, cover, and support uncertain.¡±

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a given. Most of them don¡¯t even know the Fourth Form. With that, the other option is to give up on everything. Besides, it¡¯s not the mages¡¯ job to do anything like annihtion in the first ce.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by that? ¡°

    ¡°You, if I¡¯m not mistaken, are most likely a war veteran. Isn¡¯t the best war¡¯s approach to ¡°increase the number of injured over the dead¡±?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­ I see.¡±

    At that point, Captain Zephyr finally realized. Twenty years have passed since thest war, so it must¡¯ve been hard to overturn the knowledge burned in him.

    Incidentally, even though I¡¯m talking about war with a calm demeanor, all my knowledgees from ¡ºTeam Battles¡». There¡¯s no way me, someone who was seriously addicted to online games and lived in modern-day Japan, could have even an ounce of war experience.

    ¡°The number of injured over the dead?¡¡What does that mean? ¡°

    ¡°I suppose that¡¯s a bit difficult for you to grasp, Sherry-chan? ¡°

    ¡°I was not asking you.¡±

    ¡°Hm, me then? In other words, not going as far as taking the lives of the enemy soldiers. By leaving the soldiers injured, you can ce a burden on the enemy. Transporting, recovery, care. This will cause for people to be assigned to those tasks and will also increase their expenditures.¡±

    ¡°I see, I¡¯m somewhat convinced. Thank you very much, Captain. Then, if that isn¡¯t a mage¡¯s job, what is? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­That is, sorry. I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Being given no real answer by the Captain, Sherry-chan turned towards me with a face that seemed to be disgusted by me from the bottom of her heart.

    ¡°Hmm? ¡°

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­¡°

    ¡°I wonder what do you want? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Tell me, please, by all means.¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped, sure, I¡¯ll tell you.¡±

    Sherry-chan asked me with a bitter expression. It¡¯s actually quite fun to pick on her. I think that since Silvia, I haven¡¯t found someone like this.

    ¡°A Mage is basically a ¡°High-power, wide-area, medium-range soldier¡±. They are great soldiers who can make a huge opening in the enemy army by just using a single high-ranked Fourth or Fifth Form spell.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that a contradiction to what you just said?¡¡Like this, isn¡¯t the job of a mage to do that instead of a Magic Curtain? ¡°

    ¡°That is if you were mages like the ones I described just now. How many of you can use a high- rank Fourth or Fifth Form spell? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­About twenty people can. The higher the rank, the fewer people there are¡­¡­I can use Water Attribute Fourth Form at Grade seven.¡±

    ¡°Ehh, for real? ¡°

    Unexpected. Grade seven is quite a high rank.

    ¡°Yeah. How is it? Are you impressed? ¡°

    ¡°By the way, what about the other forms? ¡°

    ¡°Of Water Attribute, from First to Third Form, they all are at Grade nine.¡±

    ¡°Great. What else? ¡°

    ¡°About the Wind Attribute, I¡¯m so-so up to the Third Form. The others aren¡¯t really worth saying.¡±

    ¡°In our group, nobodyes close to Sherry with ites to Water Attribute magic.¡±

    The triumphant-looking Sherry is a bit annoying, but even the Captain spoke proudly. Wait, no, no, no¡­¡­

    ¡°What about the other attributes? You don¡¯t raise them past the First Form? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. After all, it¡¯s better to give priority to the attributes that have a faster growth.¡±

    ¡°But you learn them, right? ¡°

    ¡°Of course. However, just up to the First Form¨D¨D¡°

    ¡°I just don¡¯t get it. If you¡¯re trying to be a mage, why do you devote all your efforts to just one attribute? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­What?¡¡You too, I don¡¯t understand what your point is? ¡°

    ¡°Well, I think that for a mage, it ismon sense to raise all attributes evenly.¡±

    If you raise the rank of all attributes in order, starting from the First Form, and continuing with the least amount of experience required, then the total amount of INT can be increased the most efficiently. If wepare when only one attribute is raised to reach Grade nine, to raising all four to Grade nine, the total amount of INT has a difference of four times.

    Therefore, as a mage, if you want to pack a punch, you should raise all attributes evenly from the beginning. In particr, since the Fourth and Fifth Forms require a huge amount of experience to rank up, you want to raise the First, Second and Third Forms to a high Grade first.

    ¡°Are you stupid? It¡¯s the opposite. Everyone has their own attribute, so it¡¯s better to focus on it and raise it. It¡¯s only a waste to spend time on weak attributes. Well, there sure are people who are good at all attributes, but that¡¯s just one in a million people.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D! ¡°

    Good at an attribute¡­¡­ I had no idea.

    I see. I¡¯m a guy who could learn magic just by looking at the Grimoire, but everyone else had to go to the magic academy and spend time learning how to use it. Is the difference toorge in how much time it takes to learn it? If that¡¯s the case, then it might even take ten years for someone who¡¯s not good enough to learn the Second Form of an attribute they¡¯re weak too. If so, then it surely is bad, no wonder they are so willing to do their best only at the attribute they¡¯re good at.

    However, I wonder why the individual differences are this much? There seems to be a reason that can¡¯t be overlooked.

    To use Magic, a deep understanding of its depth is important¨D¨DSuddenly, I remembered the contents of the ss I took my first day at the Magic Academy. That seems to be the core of the matter¡­¡­ Nope, I still don¡¯t get it. Let¡¯s just ask ¡°Win-aemon¡±, the next time I see her.

    But leaving that aside, the situation is quite bad. I must somehow break these wrong ideas.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s then begin by breaking thatmon sense that Sherry-chan speaks of.¡±

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    Getting up from my chair, I asked Irie-san to bring a Game Crown. With a happy ¡°Yes¡±, she then ran off to get it.

    After that, we moved ces to the training grounds.

    The purpose is to ¡°Compare the power of a single First Form spell, between Sherry and I¡±. This will most likely break theirmon sense, along with their pride.

    Therefore, a ¡°Game Crown¡± is used. The only setting changed was¡¸Disy DPS ON¡¹. This is the setting I used to use the most.

    DPS stands for Damage Per Second, and I think that pretty much exins itself. Originally, this was used to measure the median firepower of continuous attacks over a certain period of time, but this time it will be used to measure just the damage from one spell.

    If there¡¯s only one attack made in that second, then the DPS that appears will show the dimension of the attack. After all, if you divide that attack by one second, the damage will be disyed as it was. However, in this case, since the ¡°Disy DPS¡± function shows the damage at the same time as the attack happens, the spell effect might be obstructive and a little difficult to see. That¡¯s why I chose to dy the DPS disy for a bit, to make it easier.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say the Game Crown was harmful? ¡°

    ¡°In this case, it is rather weed.¡±

    ¡°Haa. I wonder how you¡¯ll use it?¡±

    I handed one of the Game Crowns to the captain Zephyr and the other one to Sherry-chan.

    ¡°You captain, stand here. Sherry-chan will attack the captain using a Water Attribute First Form spell.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the target, huh¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°Understood, alright.¡±

    Since everything is virtual-like, there is no pain at all. Therefore, a real person can y the role of the target.

    ¡°Here I go.¡±

    The game started with Sherry-chan¡¯s voice, directed to the group watching in a circle around them.

    Soon after facing each other, when Sherry-chan¡¯s ¡¶Water Attribute?First Form¡· spell of Grade nine was activated, a basketball-sized water mass flew towards the head of the captain while swirling around.

    Along a ¡®bashaa¡¯ sound, it connected. Noncritical. After a short dy, ¡¸DPS:873¡¹ was disyed above the head of the captain.

    ¡°Well, something like this.¡±

    For some reason, Sherry-chan was speaking proudly. With her ck hair in a bob cut and her short stature,bined with her slim body, she looks just like a ¡®kokeshi¡¯ doll.

    ¡°You look just like a kokeshi.¡±

    ¡°Who are you calling kokeshi!? ¡°

    Ohh, she understood it. I suppose they are also in this world, the kokeshi dolls.

    ¡°Then, next is me and the Leader. You guys, better take a good look at the DPS.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m the target again¡­¡­?¡±

    Ignoring the captain Zephyr, who managed to squeeze out his real thoughts, I faced him.

    And thus, the game started.

    Just like Sherry-chan, I also activated a ¡¶Water Attribute?First Form¡· spell. The rank is also at Grade nine. However, whenpared to hers, mine is clearly¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­Whoa.¡±

    Someone raised their voice. That¡¯s right, it¡¯s clearly smaller than Sherry-chan¡¯s First Form spell. It¡¯s about the size of a tennis ball.

    Mobius¡¯ ¡¾Magic¡¿ has a peculiarity, the higher the user¡¯s INT, the morepact the triggered effect bes. Why? ording to one theory, it is said that this specification was set in ce so that an opponent¡¯s INT can be guessed to some extent when their magic is activated in a PVP. In addition, since the effect is reduced, the visual interference is smaller, and it bes easier to handle. On the other hand, the other party has a hard time hesitating.

    Well, in other words. Something like ¡°The smaller the magic, the higher the power¡±. Therefore, that voice of surprise must¡¯ve been from someone who knew of this specification.

    ¡°Here Ie.¡±

    Using those whimsical words as a signal, I started. I tried to make it sound like this wasn¡¯t a big deal. However, the insides of my mind were different.

    I¡¯ll put my everything in this. And then, I unleashed the ¡¶Water Attribute?First Form¡· spell.

    ¡­¡­With this one shot and the numbers that wille out, I¡¯ll let you all know, to the point where you¡¯ll hate yourself, how much of what you¡¯ve done has been too shallow.

    With no more than a First Form spell. It won¡¯t be because of some grand and shy spell. These were my thoughts.

    This is nothing but the result of you all, happily attaining the position of Court Mages and neglecting the foundations of magic. Regret it, at least. And then, do something to change it. I swore to myself that I¡¯ll make these people in front of me think ¡°I will raise the rank of all First Form spells to Grade nine¡±.

    This is how life is. This is not something to enjoy or to look down upon. Be constantly improving. Or, how can you even call yourselves the best mages in the Kingdom?

    When you¡¯re not fighting with your life on the line? When you¡¯re not fighting properly with magic!?

    ¡°Nuwaa! ? ¡°

    Then itnded. The captain was blown away a few meters, falling to the ground.

    The DPS was disyed.

    Then, there was a moment of silence.

    Immediately afterward, a roar erupted.

    Everyone was surprised. And they were those who doubted their eyes.

    However, those numbers that appeared ruthlessly pointed out the difference between me and them. A true, undeniable fact.

    ¡¸DPS:4693¡¹¨D¨DIt said

    ======

    Thank you for reading.

 Chapter 69: Quickening / Fomenting Trouble.

    <h4>Chapter 69: Quickening / Fomenting Trouble.</h4>

    ¡°Wh-What¡­¡­did you do¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Nothing special. I told you, remember? For a mage, if you don¡¯t do at least this much damage, then it¡¯s useless.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    They were speechless. After all, they didn¡¯t think there was much merit in raising all the ¡¾Magic¡¿ skills evenly. Then, after noticing how strong a real mage is, they realized that they, Court Mages, couldn¡¯t even be truly called Mages.

    ¡°My First, Second, and Third Form spells from the four major attributes are all Grade nine. The Fourth Form ones, all are fifth ss. As for the Lightning Attribute, the First, Second, and Third Form are at Grade nine, Fourth Form is at Grade seven, and Fifth Form is at Grade one. This alone increases the power of the First Form spell this much.¡±

    I spoke after showing them a clear picture. There¡¯s nothing more persuasive than this, and everyone silently listened to my words.

    ¡°You all too will raise the First Form from all attributes to Grade nine. This is your top priority.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­With that, how much will the damage go up? ¡°

    ¡°Generally, it¡¯s about 1.5 times. If the Second Form catches up, then two times. And if you also raise the Third Form, it¡¯s thrice as much.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s certainly¡­¡­ a lot.¡±

    I must¡¯ve convinced them. Forgetting her usual attitude, Sherry-chan had a bitter expression with her arms folded.

    ¡°Speaking of which, some of you might¡¯ve been taught not to learn your weak attribute. If any of you haven¡¯t acquired the First Form,e to meter with the Grimoire and I¡¯ll teach you a little trick.¡±

    After giving out those instructions, all the Court Mages answered ¡°YES¡±. Their voices were a little disjointed, but still, this was huge progress considering I was being ignored up until the middle of today.

    ¡°And so. What¡¯s needed to raise the skills to Grade nine quickly? Do you know? ¡°

    ¡°Experience training, is it?¡±

    ¡°Correct.¡±

    Captain Zephyr was the one who answered my question, although with a sour face. Why would he make that face for something like earning experience points? Perhaps he knows what a ¡°Quick Growth Method¡± is, but isn¡¯t sure if it would work out well with this many people. Well, to solve the problems posed by danger, budget and motivation, I guess it¡¯s too much for the Captain alone.

    However¡­¡­this time, it will probably work out. Knowing that they can do that much damage if they try hard, will definitely get them motivated. That¡¯s what online games were all about. The lower yers move while motivated by the higher yers. And once you find the ¡°trick¡± to it, all that remains is to work hard at it.

    ¡°There should be no serious danger if you follow my instructions. I¡¯ll talk to Maine about the budget.¡± And looking at the current them, motivation should be no issue. ¡°All that¡¯s left is to do it.¡±

    Everyone was itching to start. In their mind was, ¡®if it¡¯s the First Form, we should be able to raise it without much issue¡¯. And that with nothing but some effort, they too would be able to attain ¡°that damage¡± with ease. They¡¯re simple people.

    They can¡¯t help but to long for that vivid picture still fresh in their minds. Just like when I was a beginner and decided to aim for the top of the world, they too wanted to reach that point where their spell would do that damage themselves. And the method to attain that would be given to them free of charge. There was no way any of them wouldn¡¯t reach out.

    ¡°Ideally, the First Form of the four major attributes should be raised to Grade nine. That way, you¡¯ll be able to use a Magic Curtain on the battlefield. Each and every shot of your First Form spells will be twice as strong as those of the enemy, raining down on them like angry hos. How¡¯s that sound?¡¡The First Royal Court Magician Division will be the elite of the elite. Nobody would get close to you. Nobody will challenge you. Bows and arrows will mean nothing against you. And thanks to you, all the existing war tactics will have to be made anew.¡±

    That speech was a bit exaggerated. However, the effect was outstanding. It was enough to make the Court Mages temporarily forget things such as their pride and social status, and ce his or her expectations on me, thinking ¡°This teacher might be telling the truth¡±.

    ¡°This is an unprecedented challenge. But, would you like to face it? ¡°

    At my final push, Captain Zephyr nodded wearing an expression filled with determination.

    ¡°Then, this is it for today¡¯s lecture. Wait for further news.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Those bastards of the Vinz Newspaper! ¡°

    Djarum, the leader of the Third Knight Order, was seething with anger, alone in his office.

    mming the morning paper on the desk, he swung down his fist on it several times. His whole body trembled as hisplexion changed from red, to blue, and then to purple.

    Why was he so angry? It was because of the undeniable facts that were written in the newspaper.

    If everything were toe to light, it would be a situation that would not end with just the First Knight Order, but also the Prime Minister and the First Prince, not to mention himself. That¡¯s why now that it has started toe to light, he couldn¡¯t help being mad.

    Tearing down the newspaper, punching the desk, throwing stuff around and stepping down on them; no matter what he did, the anger didn¡¯t stop. Thus, as a result of his rampage, after a while, the office was devastated as if a storm had passed through.

    One of his subordinates then came to see him in such a room. But after taking a nce at the messy room, he opened his mouth with a face of ¡°I¡¯m just a messenger¡±.

    ¡°Captain Djarum. His Majesty is calling for you.¡±

    ¡°What did you say! ? ¡°

    ¨D¨DSooner than he expected!¡¡Djarum immediately forgot his anger, and in turn, he became extremely agitated.

    Most likely, he would be asked to exin this issue before the king. The subject of the answer would be handled by the First Knight Order, but the Third Knight Order was assigned to handle the official documents after all. And if the investigation goes deeper, it¡¯s certain that he will be requested to disclose the official documents.

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯ll be there immediately.¡±

    Answering to his subordinate, Djarum then frantically started to think.

    He had to somehow earn some time. The reason being.

    ¡°If I don¡¯t tamper with these documents quickly¡­¡­! ¡°

    The official documents on the agreement between the R6 and the Second and Third Knight Orders had not been touched yet.

    If the Second Prince faction confirms the contents of the official documents before they are falsified, then the First Prince faction will be in a predicament. And, at the very least, Djarum, as the captain of the Third Knight Order, will be held ountable. And in the worst-case scenario, just like a lizard¡¯s tail, he will be cut off.

    This was something he wanted to avoid at all costs. With all this in his heart, Djarum answered the King¡¯s call.

    ¡°As for the reason why I¡¯ve called you all here at this time. It¡¯s about the front page¡¯s article of this morning¡¯s Vinz Newspaper. Do you have something to say about this, Prime Minister?¡±

    Five people were gathered in front of King Barwell: Prime Minister Val Morrow, Minister Hairai, First Knight Order Captain First Prince us, Second Knight Order Captain Memphis, and Third Knight Order Captain Djarum.

    Before disclosing the story to the public, the idea was to confirm the facts with those involved.

    ¡°Yeah. This is apletely rootless story. Honestly, it¡¯s bothersome.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? How about you, us?¡±

    ¡°There wasn¡¯t a breach of agreement, Father. After all, suppressing the rebels is something that doesn¡¯t require an agreement to be made in the first ce. Why did this story of an agreemente out after all this time? ¡­¡­This is something I fail to understand.¡±

    us dered in a dignified form, ¡°I didn¡¯t even know of the existence of a ceasefire agreement¡±. However, two people thought those were ¡°barefaced lies¡±. They were Minister Hairai, and the Captain of the Second Knight Order, Memphis.

    ¡°What do you think, Memphis?¡±

    ¡°Yes. For the fact that there was an agreement made, I wasn¡¯t informed of such at that moment. I willmit myself to a thorough investigation within the Second Knight Order as soon as possible.¡±

    Memphis was convinced there was something being hidden. He basically said, ¡°There was a vition of the agreement I wasn¡¯t informed of¡±. However, there was not enough evidence.

    The Second Knight Order was the standing army, so to speak. And Memphis was a patriot by nature, a soldier who couldn¡¯t stand to sit idly and wiggle his tail to the Empire. In other words, he was with the Second Prince faction. That¡¯s why he had always worked hard to acquire information on the illegal activities the First Prince faction might be part of, but they were wary of him so it was hard to grasp their tails.

    And then, at this time, a chance had finally appeared in the form of such a scandal. There was no way he would let this chance slip by. He decided it was necessary to move carefully, without rushing, and properly collect any evidence.

    ¡°And you, Djarum?¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes. This was a story that truly came out of the blue for me. To my perception, while I was having problems with the suppression using the Second Knight and Third Knight Orders, we were only able to reach a prompt resolution only with the help of the First Knight Order. That¡¯s what I remember. Yeah.¡±

    Djarum, the captain of the Third Knight Order, decided to deny it. And to continue denying it to the bitter end, in order to extend the time he had to disclose the official documents. All the while, his brain was working on ways he could tamper the documents with.

    ¡°Hairai.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Gentlemen, I can tell with certainty just by looking at yourplexions. There was indeed a vition of the agreement.¡±

    ¡°What did you say!¡¡Hairai, you bastard, are you taking us for fools!? ¡°

    The Prime Minister was the one who shouted at the Minister.

    ¡°Wait. Hairai, tell me why you think so.¡±

    ¡°If I were in the shoes of the suspected party, I myself would propose to disclose the official documents rted to the suppression of the bandit group in order to prove my innocence. However, nobody has mentioned this. It¡¯s almost like saying there are facts in the official documents that shouldn¡¯t be seen. It¡¯s just a simple reasoning.¡±

    ¡°I see, the official documents, huh?¡±

    Barwell whispered to himself as if convinced. Seeing this situation, the Prime Minister frowned, while Djarum¡¯s face wentpletely pale. The Minister then began to talk as if pushing forward the subject.

    ¡°If the vition of this agreement is indeed true, it will be a crisis in the Knight Orders, and thus, to the national politics. A thorough revision is needed. If the genocide of these people was carried under the pretense of repressing rebels, this could spell, in the worst-case scenario, the copse of the country. If there were such outrageous and wicked people like these, they must not take part in the politics of our Castall Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Why do you call that a genocide!?¡¡Suppressing the rebels is a natural thing to do! ¡°

    ¡°Were you aware, Prime Minister? Currently, crimes such as theft and robbery aremon problems near the slums of this royal capital, Vinceton. Now that the R6 bandits, which up until now had been a deterrent, have disappeared, the number of small scoundrels has increased, and thus the security has greatly deteriorated. As a result of this, with things going as they are, vulgar criminal groups are starting to appear more and more in the capital. But, since the suppression of the R6, no other suppression team has been assembled. Is this negligence? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Obviously, I¡¯m aware of that. However, the truth is, that will never end. After a while, we¡¯ll do a roundup of the criminals. Still, there¡¯s no reason to call that genocide. I¡¯d like an apology.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s speak honestly. I¡¯m concerned that the bandits from the R6 might have been suppressed because they were in your way, ¡®politically¡¯ speaking. The R6 was supported by the popce. They were particrly supported by those who opposed making apromise with the Empire. Since, asmerce with the Empire deepens, the gap between the poor and the rich would be more widespread.¡±

    ¡°Those arepletely baseless usations!¡¡Nothing less than rubbish!¡¡That¡¯s not something people in our position should be uttering!¡¡Aren¡¯t you ashamed to say such nonsense before the King!? ¡°

    ¡°Let me say the same to you, aren¡¯t you ashamed of such an unsightly disy?¡¡It¡¯s almost like you¡¯re confessing.¡±

    ¡°How dare you, bastard! ! ¡°

    ¡°Can you two, stop?¡±

    One phrase from Barwell was enough to quiet down the raging Prime Minister and the opposing minister speaking calmly. These two immediately shut their mouths and bowed down.

    And then, as if to give his judgment, Barwell broke the silence.

    ¡°It looks like this might not be just a made-up story. After each of you investigate this issue, I want a detailed report. I¡¯ll go through it and, if needed, will order the disclosure of the official documents. If that¡¯s the case, I shall summon the concerned parties. That¡¯s all.¡±

    ¨D¨DAnd like that, the curtain of this great turbulence came down.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Call Djarum.¡±

    The Prime Minister, Val Morrow was extremely calm.

    Given the circumstances in which he was ced, the uproar this time was a matter concerning the Captain of the Third Knight Order, Djarum.

    However, even the Prime Minister was impressed. ¡°They did great to poke their nose this far¡± ¨D¨D He thought.

    He had anticipated some shorings in the First Prince faction, but those were some scandals rted to Prince us, and Queen White, as well as the persecution and decimation of Duchess Icene, which he identified as a particrly ¡°critical point¡±. Therefore, countermeasures for those scenarios had been established.

    But. The actual breakthrough came surprisingly because of the ¡°Suppression of the righteous bandits¡±. He never expected the weak link would be that issue.

    However, if they were to poke around too deeply¡­¡­ that could be a considerable key point. With just a single poke, if he were to be careless about it, everything he had worked for so far could go up in smoke.

    ¡°¡­¡­Just, who in the world are you¡­¡­?¡±

    The Prime Minister had been seen through.

    And this way of doing things was too clever for it to be the work of Minister Hairai or the Second Prince Maine. A tricky and clever scheme that set it far apart from his political opponents of the past. He had sensed someone lurking behind the scenes.

    But who was that person? The answer to his question was answered in less than a few seconds.

    ¡°That mage¡­¡­!? ¡°

    He came to the conclusion that the most recent changes urred around that time with the Second Prince. A man named Second, appointed as a temporary lecturer for the First Royal Court Magician Division. The timing was suspiciously perfect.

    ¡°Tch, I don¡¯t have enough information.¡±

    A personpletely out of his radar had suddenly appeared. Therefore, it was just natural that his information on him wascking.

    Still, the Prime Ministermented. Although it was the stronghold of Pa Memento, one of the more prominent figures supporting the Second Prince, he could send some spies to the Royal Magic Academy to widen his informationwork, and he was also able to release some sniffing dogs among the adventurermunity. Therefore, so long as he wanted to obtain information about that person called Second, he could. However, it waste now. Hemented he couldn¡¯t do so sooner.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Pardon me. Sorry, it took me this long.¡±

    ¡°Djarum, huh? You know why I called you? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. It¡¯s about altering ¡®that¡¯, correct?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s great that you follow. It needs to be done fast and carefully. It¡¯s likely the other side will keep a watchful eye.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. In that case, there aren¡¯t too many options.¡±

    ¡°So long as no traces are left, it should be okay. I don¡¯t care what method you use; it just needs to be perfect.¡±

    ¡°U-understood.¡±

    A drop of sweat came down Djarum¡¯s temple. His stomach had been hurting ever since this morning. But there was no turning back now.

    ¡°By the way, Djarum. Could you look up information about that man who became the lecturer for the First Royal Court Magician Division the other day? ¡°

    ¡°The temporary lecturer? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. There¡¯s a high possibility that this person called Second might be involved.¡±

    ¡°What¡­¡­! ? ¡°

    After showing a surprised face, Djarum was then immediately relieved.

    He was familiar with that name.

    ¡°¡­¡­Mister Prime Minister. If it¡¯s about that person, leave it to me.¡±

    ¡°What?¡¡Were you already working on it? ¡°

    ¡°Yes. I have one of my Order¡¯s dogs on him.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m impressed! ¡°

    Here, the bad habit of the man called Djarum came to light. He just jumped straight into the trap that Windfield had set to him. His motivations were also impure, of wanting to show off ¡°I can do this all on my own¡±. It embodied the core ¡®values¡¯ of the Third Knight Order of ¡°Looking down on others as excellent people by taking the credit of their subordinates¡±.

    ¡°Hey, Djarum. Isn¡¯t this a great opportunity toy a trap? I leave to you gathering information about that man, in addition to dealing with the documents. If everything goes ording to n¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, just leave it to me.¡±

    It was still further ahead the time when these scheming smiles would turn into cornered wails.

 Chapter 70: Pitiful Elder Brother, Child Yearning For Motherly Love

    <h4>Chapter 70: Pitiful Elder Brother, Child Yearning For Motherly Love</h4>

    ¡°We in the R6 were deceived!¡¡Our boss, Rimusama, wanted reconciliation, so he offered his life to stop the fighting and signed a cease-fire agreement with the Second and Third Knight Orders!¡¡I¡¯ll never forget it!¡¡The mediators were the First Knight Order!¡¡That agreement was certainly signed!¡¡BUT WHAT WAS OF IT!?¡¡A few dayster, while ignoring that agreement, the First Knight Order joined in on our suppression! ¡°

    In front of a fountain on the central square of the royal capital, the surviving member of the R6, Besaid, spoke loudly.

    Most of the people gathered around him, which now reached almost a thousand, didn¡¯t say a single word and quietly listened to his speech.

    ¡°I still remember it clearly. We were gathering the dead bodies of our friends, lost in the fierce suppression that happened until then, and were holding a funeral. It was then¡­¡­ it was at that moment!¡¡THOSE BASTARDS!¡¡TRAMPLING OVER THE FLOWERS!¡¡KICKING OFF THE DEAD BODIES!¡¡THEY SET EVERYTHING ON FIRE!¡¡THEY AMBUSHED US WHEN WE LEAST EXPECTED IT! ¡°

    Clenching his fist in anger, Besaid continued to speak.

    Atst, he could say it. He could finally reveal everything that happened. He could let the people know about their tyranny. That hellish sight that he had been tormented with and suffered remembering, had unexpectedly transformed into a powerful weapon at this ce. Therefore, he had to continue wielding that weapon until the battle was over. He had a firm resolve. That¡¯s why, more than anyone else, his words felt more real.

    ¡°I can remember the face of the guy who was at the head of the surprise attack team clearly even now!¡¡KLAUS CASTALL!¡¡UNDOUBTEDLY!¡¡IT WAS KLAUS!¡¡KLAUS, THE CAPTAIN OF THE FIRST KNIGHT ORDER!¡¡KLAUS, THE FIRST PRINCE!¡¡I¡¯LL NEVER FORGIVE HIM FOR WHAT HE DID! ¡°

    Amotion arose among the people. It was only obvious. This because, whether Besaid¡¯s remarks were true or not, they were quite troublesome.

    Even then, Besaid did not stop his speech. That day, on that night, what had happened? He spoke in detail about the hell he experienced at that time. How terrible it had been, and how infuriating it was. The people listened to each and every one of his pained words, to what could be called the cries of his heart, aware that it had been a terrible experience. And thus, among them, doubt and suspicion against the First Prince us began to increase.

    ¡°Besaid, that¡¯s enough.¡±

    ¡°Boss!¡¡But there¡¯s still-¡°

    ¡°Looks like it¡¯s time to leave.¡±

    After a while, Cubero approached to stop him. Cubero too still wanted Besaid to talk a little more, but he had to stop him because the Third Knight Order was approaching, and they were going to take Besaid into custody for the crime of nder.

    ¡°¡­¡­Did we get out safely? ¡°

    As they made their way out of the square, the fleeing Besaid asked.

    Cuberoughed at those words that seemingly implied ¡°I thought I was going to die¡±.

    ¡°Even with just giving out one speech, they were sure to have an opening in their encirclement. And also, people will open a hole on their own. After all, Second-sama didn¡¯t tell you to make the speech until you were killed.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? ¡­¡­To be honest, I feel relieved. I was already prepared to never see the revival of the R6, I wonder if I¡¯ll be able to now.¡±

    ¡°Second-sama will eventually think of the re-emergence of the R6, and the search for survivors with potential. And if the search proves to be difficult, he will most likely consult with his tactician-sama.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­There could never be more reassuring words than those.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I think so too. Second-sama¡¯s chivalrous spirit brings tears to my eyes. Windfield-sama too, I¡¯m sure she could solve any problem with a hand behind her back.¡±

    ¡°Just like Second-sama, that cat girl also looks like she can¡¯t do anything¡­¡­ however, I¡¯m afraid to imagine what she¡¯s capable of.¡±

    ¡°I agree with you on that.¡±

    Behind the two people running away, a row of people was seen blocking the Knights of the Third Order.

    Or rather, as soon as they ran. Inspired by Besaid¡¯s speech, the people interfered with the Third Knight Order. ¡°We can¡¯t let Besaid get caught¡±, they thought, and soon they moved into action.

    Hoping this would happen, Windfield had given those instructions, ¡°To attract the Third Knight Order until thest minute¡±. Therefore, this dispute had ensued. And, the more the conflict between the people and the Third Knight Order advanced, the greater the doubt towards us and the First Knight Order became.

    In addition, by letting him get away here, it became very difficult for the First Prince faction to deal with Besaid. As time went by, Besaid¡¯s testimony spread, and the feelings of the people deteriorated. But, with that said, so long as they didn¡¯t silence Besaid, that story will spread no matter what they say. The other option would be assassination, but that would make them look without doubt, as the bad guys. It was a poison that should never be used.

    Right. After all, the moment they allowed Besaid to speak out, the First Prince Faction was already check-mated.

    Just how far ahead and how many scenarios were nned? That¡¯s something only the tactician knew.

    And at this moment, these two reaffirmed something they already knew¡­¡­ Second and Windfield, these two should never be turned into enemies. Cubero was very proud of his master and that tactician, and Besaid was so awe-inspired that he shuddered.

    And thus, the political conflict finally rushed from the middle to thete-stage¨D¨D

    ¡°WHY!?¡¡WHY AM I BEING INSULTED LIKE THIS!? ! ¡°

    The First Prince us awoke in his room at the royal pce.

    Every day, the Vinz newspaper continued to report suspicious allegations about the suppression of the bandits. And using information gathered from the Vinz newspaper, other newspapers also had started to publish articles suspecting of a vition of agreement by the Knights.

    Some articles criticized the First Prince in a roundabout way, some referred to the official documents, and other articles anonymously exposed the truth behind the breach of that agreement.

    On the other hand, imperial operatives performed small demonstrations in order to protect the First Prince, and thus, the Prime Minister. They published articles that defended the First Prince Faction using the state-owned newspaper, but that was just a desperate ploy.

    As a result of that, not a small amount of people were incited toe and speak out. Therefore, the people in the royal capital were divided between the two camps and they all confronted the top.

    What happened next? So long as the conflict continued, the story would be bigger. The allegations of the vition of the agreement by the First Knight Order was soon reced by a scheme of confrontation between the First and Second Princes factions, and not long after, it came to a point where neither faction could withdraw.

    ¡°All I did was to suppress the rebels!¡¡Aren¡¯t those breach of agreement allegations just a hoax!? ¡°

    us was never convinced these allegations were true.

    That was because us himself was never made aware of the ceasefire agreement that was signed with the R6.

    He simply traveled triumphantly, doing as the Prime Minister told him and ¡°suppressing the rebels¡±. As a result, when it came to being bashed out like this, he felt like he could no longer understand what to believe in.

    Was all of this fuss just a hoax? Or did the Prime Minister deceive him? us couldn¡¯t find an answer.

    Currently, there were no voices speaking about the vition of an agreement from inside the First and Third Knight Orders. Of course, the Prime Minister Val, and the captain of the Third Knight Order, Djarum, were silent.

    However, as a result of the investigation carried out by the captain of the Second Knight Order Memphis, several voices were raised from within the Second Knight Order. He didn¡¯t know if it was true or a lie since they didn¡¯t have enough proof, but ¡°their voices were being raised¡± so this issue was only getting bigger.

    In other words¨D¨DRELEASE THE OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS, they cried.

    Maybe there was an agreement with the R6 in the official documents. In that case, us, as the captain of the First Knight Order, would probably be held responsible. Responsible for one-sidedly viting an agreement, even if he didn¡¯t know of its existence.

    ¡°DAAAAAAAAAMN IT! ¡°

    He just couldn¡¯t ept it.

    With this incident, the throne was definitely getting further and further away.

    And it was no longer clear whether the younger brother Maine or the older brother us, will sit on that throne¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨Dus!¡¡Ohh, my us!¡¡My poor child. You¡¯re not doing anything wrong.¡±

    The one who unexpectedly visited us¡¯ room was us¡¯ biological mother, First Queen White.

    As soon as she saw us¡¯ agitated breath, she ran up to him, hugging him from behind.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about those newspapers that speak badly of you, I¡¯ll silence them. No matter what people say, you should aim to be the King in your own way.¡±

    ¡°Mother¡­¡­ If you take that kind of action right now, they will write worse stories.¡±

    ¡°The more they write, the more I¡¯ll silence them. They should know their ce, and be aware of just who they are insulting! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­But.¡±

    ¡°us. All you have to do is think about bing the next King. Seriously, what is that person doing? He does nothing even though his very own son is being tormented! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    us was not good at dealing with Queen White.

    An annoying woman who unts power, knowing nothing about politics¡­¡­This was his evaluation of his mother.

    During his twenty years of life, he had never felt genuine love or affection from his mother. All the words that came out from White¡¯s mouth were ¡°self-aggrandizement under the pretense of aiding another¡±. Everything was selfishness disguised as love. ¡°Be the next King¡±, this was a phrase he always heard every time he met her. ¡°We must never lose to THAT concubine¡± she repeated, so it was imprinted on him from an early age. This was why us was so attached to the throne, and why he saw Maine in such an unusual bad light.

    ¡°I will go cool down my head a little.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡¡You¡¯re right. You need to get better.¡±

    While White urged a maid asking ¡°Is the tea still not ready? ¡°, us left his room, leaving his mother behind and heaving a small sigh. Trying to return aste as possible, he slowly walked down the grand hallway while thinking ¡°Are you really going to wait in my room?¡±.

    He then went out to the balcony as if being invited by the autumn wind.

    In that ce, was the figure of a beautiful young woman, and next to her was a waiting maid.

    She was that person, the one he was expecting to be there as he went to that balcony, the one that fragment deep within his consciousness wanted to see. She was Maine¡¯s mother, Second Queen Freon.

    ¡°Oh, if it isn¡¯t Second Queen Freon. Are you really having tea in such a ce? Someone as refined as you?¡±

    Offensive words came out of his mouth. Seeing us like that, Freon gently smiled, almost as if watching her own child going through a rebellious period.

    ¡°People, you see, need to have some space when they have lost theirs. First Prince us.¡±

    Freon went out of her way and got up from her chair, pulling out the one across from her, and looked at us. That smile that looked just like Maine¡¯s made us felt extremely ufortable, however, he still sat on that chair.

    Tea was poured into his cup by the waiting maid. us then opened his mouth without even touching the teacup.

    ¡°What¡¯s with this behavior? You and I are enemies. Are you trying to pity me? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m just acting the same as in the past. You too have always been like that. Whenever something hard happens, youe secretly to me, and after being spoiled, you go back.¡±

    ¡°Wh-¡­¡­¡±

    us¡¯ face flushed bright red. He had never been aware of this until now, and when he was told that, he felt it really hit the mark.

    ¡°Something bad happened, right?¡±

    Laughing like a mischievous child, Freon looked very simr to Maine. Recalling the face of his hated brother, us managed to regain hisposure.

    ¡°Are you happy to humiliate me in front of the maid?¡¡As expected of the mother of that weak coward. Aren¡¯t you quite wicked?¡±

    ¡°Children really grow up more than you expect when you take your eyes off of them even for a minute. Don¡¯t expect that child to be weak and cowardly forever.¡±

    ¡°I know that even without you telling me! ¡°

    ¡°I wonder. That child seems to have met someone good.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Tch.¡±

    The subject of Maine came out of Freon¡¯s mouth, causing us¡¯ mood to deteriorate. He couldn¡¯t get rid of the idea of ¡°I have to be better than him¡±. It can be said this was the ¡°gift¡± he received from Queen White¡¯s education.

    ¡°And hopefully, you will too. That¡¯s what I really think.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. I¡¯m not such a weak person who can¡¯t be strong unless I¡¯m being influenced by others. I will defeat that stupid younger brother of mine on my own, and I¡¯ll be the next King.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Is bing King the only way to feel rewarded? If you haven¡¯t noticed that, then that is not your sin to bear after all.¡±

    While speaking of us¡¯s dream, she had a face of pain as she whispered those words. Freon, who had watched him grow for many years ever since he was a kid, muttered so with sad eyes.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡¡Tell me to my face.¡±

    ¡°In the not so distant future, you will be forced into a corner. And there wille a time when you¡¯ll certainly have to pay for it. Even then¡­¡­ but even then, you still have a heart that can be saved. It¡¯s alright. No matter who abandons you, I will continue to look only at your heart. Don¡¯t forget this.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­So what? You want me to give up on being the next King? ¡°

    Towards us, who looked at her with sharp eyes, Freon gently smiled and continued.

    ¡°Think of the Prime Minister as an enemy. You will be the next King on your own, right? ¡°

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°This was so effective I¡¯m starting to feel bad.¡±

    Three days have passed since Besaid¡¯s speech.

    The contents of the different newspapers lined up on the table were mostly about ¡°Bashing the First Knight Order¡±. There was a newspaper that had put out an article advocating for the First Prince Faction, but ording to a maid who investigated in the capital, nobody was really paying attention to that newspaper and werebeling it as a traitor. Furthermore, when I asked the maids, it seems the voices of the people in the capital are mostly ¡°anti-First Prince¡±.

    ¡­¡­All of this happened just because of ¡°doubt¡± born out of the ceasefire agreement and suppression, politics are scary. That¡¯s what I honestly thought.

    ¡°But you see. In this case, with a silly dispute like this, the more the government is idle, the more chances of something behind the scenes happening.¡±

    Windfield came and sat next to me. Well, this silly dispute is actually mainly your doing, but that¡¯s not something I¡¯ll really say now.

    ¡°How bad? ¡°

    ¡°Maybe, an invasion, maybe, a third power.¡±

    ¡°I see. A chance is a chance after all.¡±

    ¡°Yes, indeed.¡±

    ¡°Well, in any case, you probably already started making a move, right? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. For now, with this ki©`¡±

    While Windfield said ¡°With this ki©`¡±, she approached me with a kissing face. I can¡¯t really tell if this tall, cool, and beautiful female spirit is joking or not.

    And immediately after that, ¡°kyun¡±¨D¨DShe was sent back with ¡¶Unsummon¡·. Seems like she really pissed off Yukari.

    ¡°Master. For today, you were nning to go with the First Royal Court Magician Division to the dungeon, right?¡¡If that¡¯s the case, then you don¡¯t really have the time to be wasting in a ce like this.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, you¡¯re right. I was supposed to leave a bit earlier. I shouldn¡¯t be taking it lightly.¡±

    Today is the day for experience earning that I¡¯ve been waiting for. Experience training day, if I had to say it in the style of Captain Zephyr.

    Well, it isn¡¯t really a ¡°day¡± per-se, since we¡¯ll be going for three days and two nights. Experience training ¡°journey¡±?¡¡It almost feels like a school trip, so I¡¯m a bit excited.

    ¡°Muu, you can still take it slowly, Second-dono. Also, you¡¯ll be fine even if you take a cup of tea. I¡¯ll help you get Eko ready.¡±

    In order to ensure the safety of all members, Silvia and Eko will being together with us this time. Even if it¡¯s a lower-ss dungeon, you can never be too cautious. It was decided that it was better to challenge it in a way so that nobody suffers a serious injury, even if our preparations are way too overkill for it.

    ¡°Eko. Let¡¯s get ready. Mealtime is over.¡±

    ¡°Hmm©`mmmhmhhm©`.¡±

    ¡°Come on, spit out those shells. How many did you put in your mouth? That¡¯s not how you¡¯re supposed to eat scallops.¡±

    ¡°MMHHMM©`! ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t MMHHMM me!¡¡Eko! ¡°

    ¡°MHMHMMM©`! ¡°

    ¡°HEY!¡¡Take them out!¡¡Take them out right now! ¡°

    ¡°MHMMNNn©`! ¡°

    That quarrel between Silvia and Ekosted almost three times longer than I expected. Eventually, Eko was satisfied with using the other shells to scrape off the scallops of the shells she had to eat them.

    And in the end, we werete. Well, it was just the usual.

    And then. Silvia, Eko and I joined the First Court Mages and set off on an experience training trip.

    Our destination, themercial city Le?ador.

    And the lower-ss dungeon¡ºNgultrum¡»¨D¨D

 Chapter 71: Relaxation Journey, First Day

    <h4>Chapter 71: Rxation Journey, First Day</h4>

    ¡°Second-dono. Is it really alright to leave the capital for three days at these uncertain times? ¡°

    As we were on our way to themercial city Le?ador, Silvia asked me while making a face of unease.

    Certainly, I also had some anxiety about leaving the capital. I can¡¯t help but to think that the life of Besaid might be targeted while I¡¯m gone, or that the Prime Minister might set something up. But¡­¡­

    ¡°ording to Windfield, it¡¯d be like ¡®Sugatayaki¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Hoo.¡±

    ¡°Sugatayaki? ¡°

    Eko tilted her head.

    ¡°It¡¯s a cruel state in which the whole body is grilled after removing all fangs and hooks. As time passes, the heat increases, and so does the suffering. And it has no means to attack back.¡±

    ¡°In other words, does Windfield want them to keep getting impatient while the heat esctes and then they recklessly make their move?¡±

    ¡°That might be. Well, that¡¯s why we don¡¯t have to worry about it, and just take it easy.¡±

    ¡°Has Miss strategist seen through everything? She¡¯s amazing.¡±

    Eko, not really grasping the concept asked, ¡°Is it yummy? ¡°, to which I immediately replied, ¡°You wouldn¡¯t like it¡± while rolling my eyes back. If one were to look at this exchange, it would look like a stupid question, but I¡¯m happy because Eko is simple like this.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡­¡­And then, a whole dayter. I somehow killed time and we finished getting to Le?ador.

    Then, after our arrival. All three of us, plus the First Royal Court Magician Division decided to check-in at an inn first. It was a high-ss,rge inn that you wouldn¡¯t think it possible to get reservations made with just three days in advance, but it was reserved for our private use by using the names of the Second Prince and Earl Lumberjack.

    ¡°Why this ce, this inn is¡­¡­¡±

    Sherry-chan asked this while looking up at the inn, in which one could tell it was expensive just by looking at it.

    ¡°An introduction from the Earl. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s a nice ce, right? ¡°

    ¡°Haa. So? What point are you trying to make by showing us the inn in which you¡¯ll be staying?¡¡Is it some sort of snide remark? ¡°

    ¡°Huh?¡¡You guys are staying here too. ¡°

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    After a moment of silence, not reallyprehending the situation, Sherry-chan then opened her eyes wide and came close.

    ¡°D-did you reserve rooms for 200 people in here! ? ¡°

    ¡°Not at all, it¡¯s all reserved.¡±

    ¡°All reser¡­¡­! ¡°

    She repeated, turning sideways, being lost for words.

    The leader Zephyr, after listening to our exchange, approached us rapidly.

    ¡°K-Kid!¡¡We don¡¯t have the budget for something like this!¡¡Do you know how much it will cost!? ¡°

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you earlier to leave all the amodation arrangements to me?¡±

    ¡°But nobody would expect something like this!! ¡°

    Ahh, I made him angry.

    ¡°Second-dono. It¡¯s bad.¡±

    Silvia came and whispered in my ear. I knew right away what she was trying to say even before speaking.

    After seeing the surprised Sherry-chan and the angry Captain, the members that were waiting in the back suddenly felt dejected. Well, that¡¯s to be expected. After traveling the whole day, they finally thought they would be able to rest. They would surely find this unpleasant. Like this, the morale tomorrow morning, when they go to the Ngultrum Dungeon, would be quite low.

    ¡°Heeey, listen here everyone! ¡°

    Suddenlying up with something, I stood up and walked in front of them.

    The idea was to kill two birds with one stone, raising their morale while at the same time gaining their favor.

    ¡°I¡¯LL SHOULDER THE ACCOMMODATION FEE!¡¡DRINK AS MUCH AS YOU WANT, EAT, PLAY, ENTER THE HOT SPRINGS, SLEEP! ¡°

    The moment I finished dering so, everyone cheered in high spirits. Apuses and finger whistling echoed. Still, to remain in formation even at this moment, as expected of soldiers.

    If they¡¯re this happy with just spending some of my money, it somewhat makes me happy too. I learned that it¡¯s better to spend the money you earn like this,fortably.

    ¡°However, don¡¯t drink too much today. If you have a hangover tomorrow, let alone a monster, I¡¯ll be the one to kill you.¡±

    When I spoke like that jokingly, everyone was surprised. Everyone was feeling better, that¡¯s why theughter was decreasing, probably. Ahh, this is nice.

    ¡°Kid. How should I say it¡­¡­ Is it really okay? ¡°

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped; the reservation is already made. You can¡¯t decline.¡±

    ¡°Is, that so?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright Captain, leave the seriousness aside and enjoy yourself. This level of expenses is of no concern at all.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Haha, that¡¯s good then.¡±

    Captain Zephyr bowed down as if to say ¡°I¡¯m grateful¡±, then went into the inn alongside the rest of the members. He had a nice smile. It almost seemed like he wanted to start skipping without minding the people. That merry mood was quite the pr opposite of before.

    ¡°Uh, what is it?¡¡You can also go inside, Sherry-chan.¡±

    ¡°What a tant n to earn favor. This is why I hate upstart rich people.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Exactly because I just became rich, I don¡¯t know anything about how to spend money.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hmph, is that so?¡±

    Turning away from me, Sherry-chan followed the captain and the rest.

    While I looked at the back of that girl in a bad mood, Silvia came while carrying a tired Eko.

    ¡°Uhm, that kokeshi-looking girl, doesn¡¯t she look simr to someone we know? ¡°

    ¡°Is that so? ¡°

    ¡°Umu. Who was it? ¡­¡­yeah, who was it?¡±

    ¡°Who? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah, don¡¯t you think she looks simr to someone we know? ¡°

    ¡°Like I said, to whom?¡±

    In the end, Silvia just kept saying ¡°yeah, yeah¡±, while not remembering whom.

    So, she looks like someone¡­¡­? Well, Sherry-chan¡¯s sharp tongue and coldness are not like Yukari¡¯s. By appearance alone, she might look closer to Eko. However, by the fact that Silvia can¡¯t remember who, I guess it¡¯s not one of those two who are close to me.

    Well, whatever. More than thinking about this, I want a drink and take a bath. It¡¯d be a waste if we don¡¯t enjoy this high-ss inn now that we¡¯re here.

    I then went inside the inn while feeling pretty good with myself.

    The next day.

    Soon after the sky had brightened, a total of over 200 Court Mages and the three of us gathered in front of the Ngultrum Dungeon.

    The Ngultrum Dungeon wasmonly known as the ¡°Hallucination Dungeon¡±. Other than that, it was also called the ¡°Mushroom Dungeon¡± or the ¡°Euphoria Dungeon¡±.

    The monsters thate out are a mushroom-shaped-type, poisonous ones, or zombies that sprinkle spores from their heads, and I can only think the Mobius management aimed to make this a dungeon of weird monsters.

    This Dungeon, honestly speaking, is quite easy. There¡¯s no other dungeon as easy as this one.

    All the monsters that appear use ¡¶Illusion Magic¡·. If you are hit by it, for about ten seconds afterward, you¡¯ll be shown a hallucination, making it difficult for you to act. And then, the monsters will all rally and attack you during that time.

    There are two measures against it. Resist the ¡¶Illusion Magic¡·¨D¨DOr, eat a ¡°banana¡±.

    ¡°What are you talking about? ¡°, you might think I¡¯m kidding, but this is the reality. For one hour after eating a banana, even if you¡¯re directly hit by ¡¶Illusion Magic¡·, nothing will happen. Don¡¯t ask me why a banana. All I know is it was that ¡®setting¡¯.

    ¡°HA?¡¡What are you talking about? ¡°

    When I told them this story, Sherry-chan spoke on behalf of the astonished Court Mages. Well, I was already expecting this reaction.

    ¡°Eating a banana against Illusion magic, that¡¯smon sense.¡±

    ¡°Something that weird can only bemon sense in that strange head of yours. ¡°

    Seems like they don¡¯t know. Or rather, it seems that hallucination countermeasures have not spread in this world.

    It shouldn¡¯t be because there are no hints. There was an NPC in Le?ador that was called the ¡°want a banana ojisan¡± who just gave you a banana without any context, and also, there were many shops nearby that sold an unnaturallyrge number of bananas here.

    Even then, it is still unknown? ¡­¡­Did that ojisan suddenly leave? Or maybe the shops¡¯ business policies changed? Even if they stock up on so many bananas, they won¡¯t be able to sell them. No, I guess a random old man giving you a banana without saying anything won¡¯t make you eat it in the first ce.

    In other words, since the game world has be the real world, something like this ¡°game-specific peculiarity¡± has been corrected to fit reality. To the extent that what was impossible before might not be impossible now. This is quite an interesting change. After bing the number one in the world, it might not be a bad idea to take a trip and find such changes.

    ¡°In any case, if you eat one banana per hour, Illusion Magic won¡¯t pose a problem. Like this, the monsters inside the Ngultrum Dungeon will all be small fries.¡±

    I then took 2,000 bananas out of my inventory and handed over ten to each person. Everyone should be able to fight without problems for ten hours.

    ¡°It might be a bit dumb to ask this now, but isn¡¯t the amount you can put in your inventory abnormally high, Second-dono? ¡°

    Asked Silvia, who was next to me, with too much free time in her hands.

    ¡°Probably, it¡¯s about 60 times more than normal people.¡±

    ¡°Sixty¡­¡­!¡¡Isn¡¯t that amazing!? ¡°

    If everyone in this world has the default inventory space, then I, who bought the maximum expansion inventory space, has 60 times more. The price was fairly high, one ¡°Yukichi¡±. (TLN: A 10,000-yen bill) But I bought it without any second thoughts. I didn¡¯t do it despite this being my alt character but instead, it was exactly because this was my alt character. After all, Second was originally a ¡°Bank¡± character. If it didn¡¯t have a lot of inventory space, there was no meaning in having it.

    And, while I was remembering that, I finished handing out all the bananas.

    ¡°Now then, divide into squads and enter in turns. I¡¯ll be waiting in front of the boss. I leave the patrolling to you both, Silvia and Eko.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    ¡°Roger©`! ¡°

    This time, each group was made up of ten people each. So long as they ate their bananas, the monsters in this dungeon are no opponent to ten Court Mages. However, since I¡¯m a bit anxious about the boss, I¡¯ll stay at his spawn location and ¡°spawn kill¡± it.

    Also, there¡¯s the possibility of something unexpected happening. That¡¯s the reason why I asked Silvia and Eko to go around the dungeon, checking on them. However, even if I say go around, it¡¯s not them simply wandering. Making use of their greatbination and their experience in clearing a dungeon, they can go around over and over again at an insane speed.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s begin.¡±

    At the same time as I pped my hands, the first group went into the dungeon.

    And like this, the first clear of the Ngultrum Dungeon by the First Royal Court Magician Division started.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Alright, you¡¯re group sixteen, right? Ohh, is this your fourth round? Nice. You¡¯re currently at the top.¡±

    When I pressed a stamp on the stamp card, the girls of the sixteenth group cheered happily.

    This is the end of the Ngultrum Dungeon, a dome-shaped room where the boss appears. However, once you defeat it, it won¡¯t respawn until 15 minutes have passed, so right now I¡¯m free.

    Pushing the stamp on the card meant they hadpleted ¡°one round¡±. In the end, I nned to give a prize to the squad that had the most rounds. And then, everyone went back to take a short break before the next round.

    ¡°Uhmm, Second-san. Can we keep this card as a memento after we¡¯re done? ¡°

    Irie-san was the one who said those words just before leaving. Team sixteen, the squad she was on, was made up of ten girls, and as you could see from thest round, their speed was great.

    When I answered with ¡°I¡¯m fine with it¡±, the girls in team sixteen were very happy. I felt like I heard the words ¡°janken¡± and ¡°auction¡± being said, but since it was about the time for the boss to spawn, I decided not to worry about it.

    ¡°But even if I say that it only takes one hit.¡±

    Thest boss of the Ngultrum Dungeon was a huge poisonous mushroom called ¡¸Magical Fungus¡¹. Other than ¡¶Illusion Magic¡·it was a nasty monster whose attacks had an added poison effect¡­¡­ however, it was very weak to Fire Attribute magic. With the status of the current me, having grown this much, a single ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· spell was enough to deal with it.

    ¡°Bye-bye.¡±

    Just as the Magical Fungus was crawling out of the ground with a huge ¡°GUOO! ¡°, I critically hit it with a ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· spell right in the abdomen. The mushroom was already dead by the time the dazzling mes ran and engulfed his whole body.

    Then¨D¨DAmotion. Several surprised voices came from near the entrance to the boss¡¯ room.

    Then, the girl who was at the head of the group walked up to me.

    ¡°Can you hurry up and stamp it?¡±

    It was Sherry-chan. Why is she in such a bad mood? Can it be that it¡¯s because they are not the top team?

    ¡°Alright, team four, right? This is the fourth round. You¡¯re in second ce as of now.¡±

    ¡°I know. Hurry up and give it back.¡±

    ¡°Hey, hey, why are you so grumpy?¡¡You¡¯re doing quite great.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s none of your business.¡±

    What¡¯s with her¡­¡­?

    After taking the stamp card from my hand, Sherry-chan walked ahead by herself, leaving behind the other members who were resting. Then, those members chased after her, their faces filled with trouble and tiredness.

    I don¡¯t know what she¡¯s so upset about, but there¡¯s nothing I can do but to leave her alone. For the time being, I decided to contact Silvia using teammunication.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, it seems like something troublesome is going to happen. Ahh, this is a bother.

    I¡¯m sure something like this happened before.

    Who was it¡­¡­?

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    An irritating man.

    At first, I thought that this bastard who became our lecturer only did so because of his connection with the Second Prince.

    But unfortunately, his ability was real.

    The things he says too, they sound like aplete mess, but he¡¯s correct.

    But more than anything, I just don¡¯t like him.

    I hate being swayed by his way of doing things, I hate his broadminded behavior and confidence. I can¡¯t stomach it.

    It makes me feel all the efforts I¡¯ve worked so hard at for all my life have been for nothing.

    In any case, I don¡¯t like him.

    Even if what he says is true.

    In magic talent, I¡¯ve always been second to none.

    But he alone shattered my pride.

    But as if that alone wasn¡¯t enough for him, my discipline too, my environment, mymon sense, he shattered everything that was around me.

    Just by looking at this man¡¯s disgusting face, I can¡¯t help but feel helplessly irritated to the point my heart is shaken.

    I can no longer be in control of my emotions.

    The same happened yesterday.

    He made me and the Captain out as the bad guys and used us to make a good impression of himself.

    It wasn¡¯t just a little extra money; it was a lot.

    Surely, the inn was wonderful. The food was good, the bath clean and the roomfortable.

    However, I am not such a person who can enjoy this sort of gift obediently.

    I am the ace of the First Royal Court Magicians. Even I can afford to stay in a high-ss inn like this.

    So, I decided to pay for my own lodgings.

    ¡ª¡ª

    I became a first-ss Court Mage by my own strength.

    It has to be the same from now on.

    I will not be one of that guy¡¯s achievements, I¡¯ll do it with my own ability. Otherwise¡­¡­

 Chapter 72: Relaxation Journey, Second Day

    <h4>Chapter 72: Rxation Journey, Second Day</h4>

    ¡°You¡¯re thest of the morning. Go outside and have lunch while taking a break.¡±

    I told thest team to take a break after the fifthp.

    Only group sixteen of Irie-san, and group four of Sherry-chan are currently in the middle of their sixthp, so after waiting for those two teams, I too will take a break.

    Then, as I continued to wait for the moment the Magical Fungus spawned to insta-kill it, 30 minutes passed when team sixteen finally came.

    ¡°Good job. Go have a lunch break.¡±

    They cheerfully responded with a ¡°YEES!¡±, while noisily moving along. You could tell they had an easy time. I was asked ¡°Would you like to eat together with us?¡±, but I refused them saying I still had some work left to do.

    Then, about three minutester, team four came.

    ¡­¡­They were theplete opposite from team sixteen, each and every member looked extremely tired.

    No, actually there was one member that was different, the group¡¯s leader Sherry-chan. Alongside her fatigue, I was able to see some negative emotions such as impatience and anger.

    ¡°Go have a lunch break. And get some proper rest.¡±

    When I told them so, the faces of the members of team four lit up in relief.

    At this point, I sort of had a rough idea of what happened. Most likely, Sherry-chan was rushing ahead by herself, therefore neglecting to manage the condition of the team as a whole.

    Certainly, there might be arge gap between Sherry-chan and the other nine members. However, that¡¯s exactly why Sherry-chan needed to ¡°conduct herself in a way that considered the other¡¯s abilities¡±. This is exactly the case when a high-level yer wants to clear a dungeon with lower level yers. In Mobius, this was called ¡°carry¡±, however,mon sense dictated that this wouldn¡¯t work unless the person doing the carry took into consideration the ones being carried.

    Still, it¡¯s not like she will obediently pay attention and listen to what I say.

    What should I do? While I worried about that, Sherry-chan was the one to open her mouth.

    ¡°We¡¯ll take a rest after anotherp.¡±

    Ahh, this dumb girl¡­¡­!

    I was bbergasted by this much stupidity.

    ¡°Sherry-san, we should take a break now.¡±

    ¡°Right now, our team isn¡¯t in first ce, right?¡¡I don¡¯t want to take a break until we are.¡±

    ¡°Still, we really need a break.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t particrly need one. And, on the battlefield, there¡¯s never time for a break. Well, if you really feel the need to eat something, can¡¯t you do it as we walk? ¡°

    Her team membersined about it, but Sherry-chan undauntedly stood up against them. And, because she was a high-ranking mage in the First Royal Court Magician Division, those members gradually caved in.

    ¡°But, we are, quite¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Quite what?¡¡First of all, the reason why I¡¯m losing right now is because you all¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Second-dono! ¡°

    And then, the moment Sherry-chan was about to utter a forbidden phrase¨D¨DSilvia¡¯s carrying voice wiped out her words.

    Hurriedly rushing up to this ce from their patrolling were Silvia and Eko.

    While patting the head of Eko as she clung to my waist like she always did, I spoke to Silvia.

    ¡°Good job. It should be fine since I was about to call it for now, what happened? ¡°

    ¡°No, nothing really happened. However.¡±

    ¡°We remembered©`¡±

    ¡°Remembered? ¡°

    About what?

    ¡°That¡¯s right, we met that person!¡¡That¡¯s when I clearly remembered! ¡°

    That person?¡¡Met?

    As I tilted my head in wonder, the girls from team four behind me became noisy.

    Thinking it had something to do with what Silvia told me, I followed their gazes, and there¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨DLong time no see!¡¡Second! ¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while¡«, Second-san,¡±

    Two people were there, a nted-eyed youngdy with brown hair and ringlet curls, and a dark-skinned female spirit with white, fluffy long hair.

    With the sudden appearance of this unexpected duo, Sherry-chan¡¯s resting problem became unsettled.

    On the other hand, with a celebrity like Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack, a genius summoner, an Earl¡¯s daughter, and an A-ranked adventurer, there¡¯s no way she would act selfishly.

    ¡°First, let¡¯s go have lunch!¡¡We can talk afterwards! ¡°

    Ch¨¦rie said those words as a matter of course. Then, suddenly, she led us to the za the First Court Mages were using as a ce for their lunch breaks.

    The square quickly became noisy. I guess this is simr to a national idol suddenly appearing in some family restaurant. Even the captain Zephyr was surprised by the unexpected appearance of this celebrity.

    ¡°Guys, don¡¯t make such a fuss. Take a proper rest as you eat.¡±

    Since it was too noisy, I gave them some instructions and then sat down in an empty space. After showing a bit of hesitation, Ch¨¦rie sat down in front of me. ¡°Not fair¡±, ¡°That¡¯s abuse of authority¡±, ¡°Damn teacher¡±, and other simrints erupted from all over the ce. This Ch¨¦rie, to think she was this popr¡­¡­

    ¡°I-It¡¯s been a while since west met, right? ¡°

    After setting up her lunch box, she turned towards me and those were her first words.

    ¡°You said that earlier.¡±

    ¡°I g-guess you¡¯re right, huh! ? ¡°

    ¡°Are you alright?¡¡Your head, that is.¡±

    ¡°How rude! I¡¯m alright! ¡°

    She seemed to be nervous for some reason. Her retorts aren¡¯t as sharp as before.

    ¡°Is that so? Well, let¡¯s start eating for the time being.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good.¡±

    ¡°Itadakimasu.¡±

    ¡°Itterasshai.¡±

    ¡°Hey, are you sure you¡¯re alright! ? ¡°

    When I retorted at her, Ch¨¦rie blushed while saying ¡°Ahh, my bad¡±. I wonder when she changed to being the ¡®boke¡¯? In both senses. (TLN: Boke is the silly man in aedic duo, but it¡¯s also an inflexion of Baka/idiot.)

    Then, for about fifteen minutes until we finished lunch, I had to endure a weird time with Ch¨¦rie, not knowing if she was doing this ¡°boke¡± act knowingly or if she was just like that.

    Silvia was happy everyone around her was making a fuss, so she was just taking care of her bow while proudly sticking out her chest; Eko being Eko was crazily happy about eating like usual; and the great earth spirit, Terra, was just smiling happily next to Ch¨¦rie and saying nothing. Seriously, nobody helped me. Well, not like I expected their help in the first ce.

    ¡°Hey, you. That thing you said earlier, I want to hear it too.¡±

    While I was enjoying some after-meal tea, Ch¨¦rie beckoned Silvia before saying that. As Silvia was tilting her head in wonder, she continued with ¡°You said you remembered something when you saw me¡±, to which Silvia struck her open hand with a fist as she remembered.

    ¡°Umu. I saw a girl who resembled you, Ch¨¦rie-dono.¡±

    ¡°Hee, resembled me?¡¡Was it a noble? Or a beautiful girl? ¡°

    ¡°She¡¯s there by that rock. See?¡±

    ¡°Hmph. My, isn¡¯t that just an ordinary person? She doesn¡¯t look like me at all.¡±

    ¡°No, the one next to her.¡±

    ¡°That kokeshi girl!?¡¡Moreover, a girl with that terrible expression! ? ¡°

    Ohh, it was Sherry-chan?

    I see. Was it that desperate feeling like she can¡¯t afford to lose? Or that envy-ish impression she gives off? If I had to say she looked like someone, I would have to say she looks like the old Ch¨¦rie. I feel somewhat refreshed now that this has been cleared.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, that¡¯s right. This is perfect, why don¡¯t I consult with Ch¨¦rie, who used to be like that?

    ¡°Hey, Ch¨¦rie.¡±

    ¡°Even I can¡¯t make such a terrible expressi¨D¨DW-What is it? ¡°

    Huh?¡¡I suddenly noticed that it¡¯s not just my imagination that she¡¯s looking strange today, right?¡¡Why?¡¡Is it because we met after a long time?¡¡When I nced at Terra, she just smiled. I don¡¯t know what that means, but it feels kind of annoying.

    ¡°You want me to bring Angolmois out? ¡°

    ¡°Please spare me from that¡«¡±

    For now, I decided to mentally attack Terra, then I turned to Ch¨¦rie.

    ¡°That Sherry girl is, how to say it, you can¡¯t tell if she¡¯s got a sharp tongue or if she¡¯s just making fun of people; she¡¯s an honor student, however, she is rebellious and she doesn¡¯t listen to what you say. Earlier too, she was trying to ignore the instructions of taking a break and wanted to go for another round.¡±

    ¡°Ohh!¡¡I know the answer¡«¡±

    It wasn¡¯t Ch¨¦rie, but Terra, who responded. Even though she became so docile moments ago when the name of the Great Spirit King came out, it seems she hadpletely recovered and was even grinning now. Ch¨¦rie, on the other hand, had her cheeks dyed in red and was hitting Terra in protest.

    ¡°Her team is currently in second ce, so I¡¯m sure she¡¯s working hard to get the first ce, but I think that might be impossible. Because the team leader rushed ahead without a care in the world, the other members are exhausted. If I were to try to advise her, I think she¡¯ll just ignore me¡­¡­ I¡¯d like to make her understand, but, is there a good way to aplish that? ¡°

    ¡°Ehh. Ehh©`¡­¡­¡±

    When she heard this, Ch¨¦rie had a look as if she hade up with something for a moment, but then immediately her expression changed to one as if she had bitten on a bitter bug.

    It was Terra, who was feeling troubled for a while, who broke the silence.

    ¡°She is simr indeed, right, Master?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Ch¨¦rie had a sour face hearing the words Terra said. Most likely, she has a bit of sympathy with Sherry-chan.

    ¡°The answer is simple¡«, Second-san. In order for her to understand¡«, she has to make a terrible mistake once¡«¡±

    ¡°Having her fail? ¡°

    ¡°Yes¡«. Just like what happened, on a certain night, to Mast¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say a word more! ! ¡°

    Ch¨¦rie immediately used ¡¶Unsummon¡· to send Terra back.

    Ahh, I remembered. Come to think of it, this girl tried to capture the Proline before me, and as a result of going in alone, she was beaten by the Mithril Golem, and she was unconscious, her nose bleeding, and she peed¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Ptfff.¡±

    ¡°Seriously!¡¡Don¡¯tugh! ¡°

    With a bright red face, Ch¨¦rie was beating on my chest. Could it be that this girl has been acting strange because I saw her peeing herself?¡¡I get the feeling it¡¯s not just that, but that certainly is part of the cause.

    ¡°Second-dono. It¡¯s about time.¡±

    At this moment, the original schedule for the break time was over. Ch¨¦rie reluctantly left while puffing her cheeks. Looking around by chance, I noticed the jealousy of the men was incredible. Serves you right. For now, I just showed them my middle finger.

    ¡°Alright, after five minutes for preparations, the afternoon session will start. Don¡¯t forget to eat one banana per hour.¡±

    When I gave my orders each group gathered, started with their preparations and nning their strategies without me having to say anything else. As one would expect from soldiers who practice their formations without getting tired of it every single day.

    Now then, should I return to meet the boss? ¨D¨Dit happened just as I was turning my foot towards the Ngultrum Dungeon. Suddenly, Ch¨¦rie pulled the hem of my clothes and said something.

    ¡°¡­¡­Hey. I, came up with a good n.¡±

 Chapter 73 Relaxation Journey, Third Day

    <h4>Chapter 73 Rxation Journey, Third Day</h4>

    That ¡®guy¡¯, whom I met for the first time in a long time, was ten times cooler than I expected.

    Or rather, he looked cool. I wonder what it was?

    After hearing he wasing to the Ngultrum Dungeon, my heart was pounding. And when I finally met him, far from getting better, my heart started beating faster and faster.

    I invited him to have lunch together with the lines I¡¯ve been practicing over and over in my mind.

    So far so good, or so I thought¡­¡­but apparently, from there I started acting weird.

    Seems like, when I see Second in front of me, my mind goes nk and I just bber nonsense.

    And the more I think about it, the worst it bes. Seriously, this is the worst. I bet he believes I¡¯m a weirdo.

    And Terra being Terra, she was just grinning all the time, seemingly finding me funny. Hispanions too were acting at their own pace, making it hard to rely on them. And then him, even though six months have passed, he hasn¡¯t changed one bit.

    It was such a lunchtime, where I was a bit angry, but I also felt quite cozy.

    At that moment, I heard about a girl who was simr to me.

    A girl named Sherry, with round ck hair that made her look like a kokeshi doll, and a bit shorter than me. Apparently, she¡¯s the ace of the First Royal Court Magician Division.

    A rebel against Second. Defiant attitude. Easily offended. High pride. Jealousy. High sense of self, frantic, inflexible¡­¡­To my regret, the more I listened about that girl, the more I thought she looked like the ¡°old me¡±.

    And, right now, she¡¯s fighting with her back against the wall, just like me at that time. No, she¡¯s being consumed there by herself.

    Even if she wants to admit it, she will never do so. She¡¯s fighting the same dilemma.

    I see¡­¡­ So, this is why Second dared to consult me. If I looked simr to her, then I might be able to understand her anguish.

    Fine, leave this to me.

    This Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack is a woman who can properly return a favor.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Somehow, I¡¯m d I was that enthusiastic.

    Even I didn¡¯t expect that he would punch a girl like that¡­¡­

    That girl, she was blown away incredible fast, her eyes turned white and her nose started bleeding. Isn¡¯t that worse than my state when I was hit by the Mithril Golem?

    ¡°You overdid it! ¡°, I wanted to yell. I thought to admonish him.

    However, when I looked at him, that thought flew away.

    A sad, pained face¡­¡­ If I had to exin it, he looked exactly like the protagonist of the novel I read the other day. After stabbing the Demon King, killer of his parents, he found out it was actually his long-lost lover, and it was that same kind of expression, of suffering and love.

    That¡¯s right, I¡¯m sure that Irie girl is Sherry¡¯s best friend. That¡¯s the reason he stopped her from raising her hand against her best friend from a moment¡¯s emotion and decided to turn himself into the viin.

    If she was beaten to that point, neither the people of the 4th group nor the people from the 16th group will say anything to her, otherwise, her heart might ¡®break¡¯.

    Protecting the rtionship between best friends and her team members, leading her towards the right path¨D¨DJust, how kind can he be? Should I call him a helpful person? Or someone really good at taking care of people? He¡¯s fulfilling his responsibilities as an instructor, and even going above and beyond. What¡¯s more, that clear mind that thought about it that far, I can only think of him as dreadful.

    Being this incredibly cool, super strong, gentle and smart, seriously¡­¡­ He¡¯s the perfect person to be my husband!!

    ¡°Eko, heal her.¡±

    Heaving one sigh, he asked that cat to cure her, and then he quickly left.

    I see, I understand. ¡°I leave this to you¡± is what you¡¯re trying to say, right?

    Yeah, indeed I¡¯m the right person. Me, who is ¡®simr¡¯ to her.

    ¡°You¡¯re surprisingly good at taking care of people. Well, leave the rest to me.¡±

    I said those words to him as he was leaving, my chest filled with confidence. I think I was able to say it quite normal if I say so myself, however, my voice might¡¯ve been a bit higher.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    He whispered a single word, alongside a smile with a tinge of sadness. Looking at that deep, neat face and that beautiful, clear voice, I couldn¡¯t help but to suddenly raise a ¡°Hii¡± with a weird voice. This became a precious memory¡­¡­ Just remembering it gives me the strength to do my best for a whole week.

    After losing myself while I was seeing him off, Terra then asked something.

    ¡°¡®Even pockmarks are dimples¡¯, do you know that saying, Master¡«?

    (TLN: A Japanese proverb equivalent to ¡°love is blind¡±) ¡°

    ¡°Uu¡­¡­uu¡­¡­? ¡°

    When I woke up, I was in a dim-lit room inside the inn.

    Ahh, I was, beaten¡­¡­

    ¡°Ara, are you awake? ¡°

    ¡°¨D¨DHmm, Wha-!? ¡°

    I doubted my eyes. Next to me, sitting next to my bed was ¡®THE¡¯ Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack.

    I immediately jumped up, correcting my posture. I can¡¯t let myself be seen as rude in front of the daughter of an Earl.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, you can leave courtesy aside. Still, I¡¯m d you don¡¯t seem to have any problems with your body. It¡¯s all thanks to that girl¡¯s Healing Magic.¡±

    ¡°Ehh? ¡°

    Now that she said it, my body indeed feels light. It doesn¡¯t even look like I received a punch to the face from that fool and fainted.

    ¡°His team member, the beastgirl, healed you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhhh. But, with all due respect, that girl is¨C¡°

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Most people, when they see her, would think of her as a shield bearer¡­¡­¡±

    Just as I tried to deny her words, Ch¨¦rie-sama interrupted me and stood up.

    ¡°If you¡¯re fine now, how about we go for a walk?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m alright.¡±

    The two of us left the room.

    As I walked down the elegant boarded corridor, I could hear the pleasant hustle and bustle from the distance. The sun hadpletely set. I¡¯m sure everyone¡¯s having feast right now.

    ¡­¡­Suddenly, I remembered. The words that I suddenly threw at my team members in a moment of anger.

    Even if I show up at the banquet, I won¡¯t be able to enjoy having dinner with them anymore.

    There¡¯s a part of me that thinks it¡¯s not a big deal, and a part of me that feels sad.

    I wonder what is this feeling? While I struggled with this problem which I couldn¡¯t find an answer to, Ch¨¦rie-sama suddenly stopped walking.

    ¡°I was once brought to this inn by my father.¡±

    Our current location was the courtyard. Ch¨¦rie-sama sat on the edge and invited me to join her.

    ¡°This is a great ce, isn¡¯t it? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah.¡±

    The courtyard, being dimly lit bynterns, was unrealistically beautiful, and even gave off an atmosphere of mystery. The sound of the water flowing, the sound of the grass and tree leaves fluttering in the wind, the sound of the tableware echoing in the distance, the voices of people, the coldness of the night breeze, the smell of soil. Everything soaked deep into my body.

    Somehow, this mysterious sensation made it feel as if I was inside a dream¡­¡­five minutes, ten minutes, I don¡¯t know how much time passed, but I spend it thinking.

    ¡°Before, you see¡­¡­ I felt terribly annoyed by him.¡±

    Starting with a mutter, Ch¨¦rie-sama suddenly began to talk.

    And as to whom her ¡°him¡± meant, I could immediately tell.

    ¡°He had the knowledge of how to capture the Proline Dungeon, and he was liked by my father. Thus, he was able to make a huge deal. One of tens of billions of CL¡­¡­I was frustrated.¡±

    ¡°Prol¡­¡­! ? ¡°

    I was shocked. Speaking of the Proline Dungeon, I heard it is a dungeon in the upper ranks of intermediate difficulty, and that no group that has tried to capture it hase out alive.

    No, that¡¯s not it. It appears that not long ago, a team has captured the dungeon all on their own¡­¡­ It can¡¯t be!

    ¡°Are, did you not know?¡¡Well, I supposed it¡¯s normal to not look up information about people you don¡¯t like. It seems that they did not only capture the dungeon on their own, but they also did manyps each day. The adventurers started to call them ¡®Prokichi¡¯, and nobody approached them in fear. By the way, the team itself consists of four people, but they captured it with only three.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I became speechless.

    Going around such a dangerous ce with only three people is just crazy.

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go back to the topic. At that time, I didn¡¯t know he was such an outrageous guy, that¡¯s why I snapped at him. I can¡¯t stomach him, I don¡¯t like him, it¡¯s making me sick!¡¡I was like that.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Is, that so?¡±

    I unexpectedly felt sympathy. I didn¡¯t like that guy, so I snapped at him every time.

    ¡°Fufu. My case was worse than yours, wasn¡¯t it?¡¡After all, I¡¯m the daughter of an Earl. The bother was different.¡±

    ¡°I-I guess you¡¯re right.¡±

    That¡¯s not something to be proud of. But she might be right.

    ¡°¡­¡­Envy, I was jealous. Why did father like that man? Even with me¡­¡­ And thus, after a single day, the mes of jealousy could no longer be extinguished.¡±

    ¡°What did, you do? ¡°

    ¡°I will capture the Proline Dungeon before that guy!¡¡That way, father, and everyone else will have to recognize me!¡¡I was deranged like that, so I secretly sneaked into the Proline dungeon at midnight.¡±

    ¡°That is¡­¡­¡±

    Obviously reckless. First of all, that is, without a doubt, a suicidal act. However, Ch¨¦rie-sama is alive right now. As for why, I was somewhat able to foresee the reason.

    ¡°Just as I was about to die after receiving a single hit from the Mithril Golem, that guy arrived. Until that moment, I always thought of him as a summoner, but he wielded a sword. Then, while moving at a speed that my eyes couldn¡¯t follow, he one-sidedly overwhelmed the Mithril Golem with incredible swordsmanship and footwork¡­¡­ It didn¡¯t even take two minutes to settle it.¡±

    ¡°T-That can¡¯t b-be! ¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what happened, I saw it with these eyes. And it¡¯s only now that I know what ¡®that¡¯ was. It was Spirit Possession¡­¡­ it¡¯s an advanced skill that is unlocked by raising Spirit Summoning to Grade 4.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­G-Grade 4¡­¡­¡±

    Ahh, I¡¯m feeling lightheaded. In other words, that means¨D¨D

    ¡°That guy is a first-ss summoner. He¡¯s also a top-notch swordsman. Later I learned that he also is a first-ss Archer and Mage. And I¡¯m sure he must have some other hidden card.¡±

    ¨D¨DOur levels are in a different dimension. I could only think of that cliched impression. But, it¡¯s only that. Why? Because it¡¯s impossible. Is he really human?¡¡I can¡¯t help but have my doubts. What¡¯s the difference between me and that guy?

    ¡°That guy¡¯s team members are the same. That bow and shield pair, how many rounds in the Ngultrum Dungeon do you think they made today? ¡°

    ¡°Come to think of it, I saw them many times.¡±

    ¡°A hundred and twenty-eight rounds.¡±

    ¡°A hu¨D¨D!? ¡°

    ¡­¡­That¡¯s crazy. This I thought.

    They made 128 rounds in a dungeon that we could only painfullyplete 16?¡¡Crazy. If that¡¯s not crazy, then I don¡¯t know what is.

    However¡­¡­ I couldn¡¯t even see dirt on them, let alone any sign of tiredness. I¡¯m scared to think this might be ¡°normal¡± for them. They¡¯re on a level where a simple round around the Ngultrum dungeon is ordinary for them.

    ¡°That cat beastgirl, Eko Leafret, she isn¡¯t just a shield bearer. Healing Magic is her strong suit. That¡¯s why you¡¯re now alright even after being hit.¡±

    ¡°I see, so that¡¯s the reason why¡­¡­¡±

    Any wound that was left after that man hit mepletely disappeared as if there had never been one.

    Still¡­¡­Until that rant of mine, something like this never happened.

    Lastly, those words I said to try to protect my pride, hurt my team members. And even though my wounds have healed, those I inflected onto them have not.

    ¡°¨D¨DYou, must have already noticed, don¡¯t you?¡¡About what you shouldn¡¯t have done.¡±

    I don¡¯t know whether it could be seen on my face, but Ch¨¦rie-sama looked at my face and said those words.

    ¡­¡­I already know that; I¡¯ve been thinking about that for some time now. That man¡¯s words are correct.

    But still, I wanted to bring out results with my own power. Otherwise, I would feel as if all my efforts have been in vain.

    Using the weapon called ¡®effort¡¯, I would win, having everyone acknowledge me, and leave that man speechless. But with such reckless behavior, it was only normal to fail. And I, while ming it on others, ran away.

    ¡°That is¡­¡­since I didn¡¯t want to deny my past and future efforts, I ended up hurting them¡­¡­¡±

    My puny pride was protected. But in its stead, I lost their trust.

    Why couldn¡¯t I just be honest? Why did I be jealous? If I had thought about it more deeply, I shouldn¡¯t have gotten angry, I shouldn¡¯t have be impatient, I needed to be calmer and more rational. Regrets rained on me. But even if I thought like that now, there¡¯s no way to undo what I¡¯ve already done.

    After calming down like this, I finally understood it. The price of envy, the price of being unable to back down, is incredibly big.

    ¡°I understand how you feel. You must be thinking that he isn¡¯t even trying to work hard and that he¡¯s just messing around.¡±

    ¡°¨D¨DEh! ¡°

    She hit the mark.

    After giving so much effort to be a Court Mage, that man overtook me in an instant with a face of not even trying. I simply hated that.

    ¡°You see, after that guy helped me¡­¡­ I was a tiny bit curious, about many things, so you see, I¡­¡­ uhmm¡­¡­ investigated him a bit.¡±

    Ch¨¦rie-sama spoke with her cheeks tinged slightly in red. She looked girlish and cute, quite fitting for her age, making me a bit curious about the contents of the story.

    ¡°Listen and be surprised. That guy does work hard. To a surprising degree. Although he doesn¡¯t usually show it. Behind the scenes, he keeps making quite the effort. During the Proline Dungeon rounds, he was so stoic and unperturbed, that I even grew tired by just watching.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I suddenly began to think. I wonder if I ever made such an ¡°effort¡±, of going around an intermediate ss dungeon and capturing it? Every single day, doing several rounds each day.

    There¡¯s no way I would. Even for a lower ss, it would be almost impossible. At best, what I did was hunting monsters in a shallow forest.

    ¡­¡­The one who wasn¡¯t working hard was me.

    ¡°That guy seeds without working hard. And we struggle despite working hard. This is the difference that makes you envy him, right?¡±

    Ch¨¦rie-sama¡¯s analysis fell right on the mark.

    That¡¯s correct. When I looked at him, he always seems rxed and with plenty of leeways. That¡¯s why I decided ¡°he¡¯s not working harder than me¡± all on my own, and became jealous of him.

    ¡°Probably, in order to reach a ce far higher that we can¡¯t even begin to imagine, that¡¯s why he¡¯s working far harder than we can think of. Let¡¯s see, for example, an upper-ss dungeon.¡±

    That¡¯s probably right. No, I¡¯m sure that¡¯s the case.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    I see. I was hit by such a person.

    I was a foolish woman who rebelled against him just because I didn¡¯t like him, who never listened to anybody, who was envious of him despite neglecting my own efforts, and who, despite all that, tried to imitate him stupidly and then rubbed off the responsibility on others when everything went wrong. It might be normal to be hit.

    ¡°I see, so it was that¡­¡­¡±

    The small justification and fragile pride that was in me copsed at this very moment.

    I felt so stupid to have those feeling that before I knew it, a dryugh escaped from my lips.

    Ahh, if this was to happen, I should¡¯ve, sooner¨D¨D

    ¡°How about it?¡¡Once you ept it, it bes easy, right? ¡°

    ¡°!¡¡¡­¡­Yeah, indeed.¡±

    The pains in my heart were blown away as if they never existed.

    ¡­¡­However, that¡¯s not the only problem.

    Just like magic, once it¡¯s shot, it can¡¯t be taken back.

    ¡°You might think it might be over for you, but that¡¯s just not the case. It¡¯s not what you¡¯ve done, but what you will do what determines your own value.¡±

    ¡°But, for me, a Court Mage, to have made such a remark¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Think carefully about the reason why that guy hit you.¡±

    The reason?

    At first, I thought it was for Irie¡¯s sake.

    What would have happened if Irie had pped me like that? First of all, our friendship would have broken down, without a doubt. The me at that time might have hurled some terrible words at her, hurting her deeply.

    That¡¯s the reason why he stopped Irie, right?

    However, a sudden thought came to my mind. If that¡¯s the case, then only stopping her would¡¯ve been enough, right? There was no need for him to hit me.

    Can it be? Did he do it for my sake¡­¡­?

    No way¨D¨DTo put a stop and make everyone forget about the previous me? That¡¯s just stupid.

    However, the more I think about it, the more I agree.

    As a result of that, my head had cooled down, and the sour feelings of those people might have died down, making my atonement a bit easier. And, like this, he also gave me the opportunity to talk with Ch¨¦rie-sama. ¡°She has reflected on it since she was hit in such a shy manner¡±, some people might think that. And probably because of that, at the banquet, the topic of ¡°My reckless behavior¡± has been reced with ¡°His brutality¡±.

    Did he choose to be the bad guy?¡¡I might be overthinking this. Yet, that may be the correct answer.

    ¡­¡­Suddenly, my eyes felt hot.

    I thought everything was over. But, still¡­¡­I can¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm, Ch¨¦rie-sama, when you made that mistake¡­¡­ what did you do afterward? ¡°

    ¡°I apologized, I thanked him and then ran away. I was too embarrassed to meet him face to face.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    I might have done so too if he was the only person. However, he¡¯s not the only one I need to apologize to.

    ¡°You, if you don¡¯t run away now, you¡¯re amazing. You can show your resolve.¡±

    Ch¨¦rie-sama smiled happily.

    I could somehow understand her. That¡¯s what real strength is all about.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright if you¡¯re desperate or torn. You¡¯ll never have a chance like this again. This is the moment to fight. Don¡¯t you think so? ¡°

    That¡¯s right. This is thest and greatest chance that he gave me.

    Gripping my fist¡­¡­ I then got up.

    ¡°Good!¡¡Well then, shall we go?¡±

    Ch¨¦rie-sama followed by my side, her figure so reliable it made me want to cry.

    I wish I could be as strong as her. While thinking that from the bottom of my heart, I stopped forward towards the banquet hall where everyone was.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°I¡¯ll reflect on it.¡±

    It was the night after theps in the Ngultrum Dungeon ended. A banquet was held for the First Royal Court Magician Division in a grand way.

    I was sitting in the most important seat in the banquet hall at the inn, everyone excited to eat and drink to their heart¡¯s content.

    ¡°I¡¯ll reflect on it.¡±

    However, if I could name one difference from a normal banquet, it would be my aspect.

    Of the group members who came to pour me sake, eight or nine out of ten held a ¡°note¡± in their hands and pasted it on me as they poured the alcohol.

    Each time that happened, I would loudly utter ¡°I¡¯ll reflect on it¡±. Immediately after, everyone in the hall would go ¡°hahaha¡±. What the heck is this?

    ¡°I¡¯ll reflect on it.¡±

    The note that was tagged to me right now had ¡°I hit girls in the face¡± written on it. The ce where they ced it was my forehead. Yeah¡­¡­ It really stands out.

    Ahh, the note I had on my shoulder had ¡°Come at me, you shitty feminists¡± written on it. Who the hell wrote this? Alright, let¡¯s remove it, I guess you won¡¯t mind since this is a bit too extreme.

    ¡°You can¡¯t.¡±

    Ahh, it was useless. Damn you Silvia and your strict sense of justice. All because of that personality of hers¡­¡­she was so angry at me in the room beforeing to the banquet, but I guess she¡¯s still mad.

    Ahh, crap, this makes it hard to eat!¡¡You don¡¯t usually put them in the forehead. I¡¯m not a Jiangshi/Chinese vampire, you know¡­¡­

    ¡°Hey, doing fine, boss? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m not a ramen shop!¡¡Don¡¯t just lift it! ¡°

    I¡¯m getting fed up with this. It¡¯s nice to be able to have the Court Mages open up like this, but aren¡¯t they getting overly familiar? Or is this how they usually are? They¡¯re even more annoying since they¡¯ve been drinking.

    ¡°Second, is it fun??¡¡Is that fun!? ¡°

    ¡°This isn¡¯t fun at all, so don¡¯t imitate them.¡±

    After telling Eko that this wasn¡¯t fun, she went on a food-gathering trip with a disappointed face. After a few minutes, she shoulde back with her te filled with food everyone gave her. If I don¡¯t stop her soon, she might fall sick from overeating again, so I turned my gaze towards Silvia. It seems the message was conveyed since she said to leave it to her.

    Noisy¨D¨D In a moment, from a corner of the hall amotion started.

    It¡¯s Sherry-chan. She looked a bit crestfallen and shying away. Behind her was also the figure of Ch¨¦rie.

    When my eyes met hers, she shyly gave me a thumbs up. I don¡¯t know what that means, but that¡¯s not important now.

    Meeting Sherry-chan mid-way as she walked up to me, we sat down in seiza.

    I wonder if she¡¯s angry¡­¡­I thought as I looked at her with a nervous expression.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    She stared at me with a face of puzzlement.

    Why?¡¡Thinking about it, I immediately noticed. It¡¯s the notes.

    Since I had notes on my forehead that read ¡°Second¡¯s S is for Sadist¡±, and ¡°Shitty instructor specialist in making girls faint¡±, I sneered at myself as if to smooth things over and the talked to her.

    ¡°Sherry-chan, to be honest, I¡¯m sorry. For hitting you.¡±

    I apologized while lowering my head.

    Sherry-chan remained there silently, with her eyes wide open.

    ¡°Second, you can have this©`¡±

    And at that moment. Coming back from her food excursion, Eko approached me and stuck a note to my cheek that read ¡°Natural-born shit¡± that someone must¡¯ve given her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll reflect on it! ¡°

    Then, almost as a conditioned reflex, I shouted those words.

    I don¡¯t know how many seconds a silence fell upon the hall, but then the room was wrapped in a thunderousugher.

    ¡°¡­¡­fu¡­¡­fu.¡±

    Holding her mouth with both her hands, Sherry-chan was shaking a little.

    Great, it doesn¡¯t look like she¡¯s angry¡­¡­ that¡¯s what I thought, but the next moment.

    ¡°¡­¡­U-UWWWAAAAAAAAAAA.¡±

    She started to cry for real.

    ¡°EHHHHHH!? ¡°

    Even I didn¡¯t expect this to happen!

    Wh¡­¡­What should I do!?

    I stood up in a hurry and looked around. For some weird reason, Ch¨¦rie was looking triumphantly at me giving me thumbs up. Irie-san¡¯s group was smiling with an expression of ¡°It can¡¯t be helped¡±. Silvia was looking coldly at me, and Eko, she was immersed in her food.

    ¡°S-Sorry. It was my bad. Hey, what¡¯s wrong¡­¡­Oh!? ¡°

    As I hurriedly tried to find out what happened, Sherry-chan slowly rested herself on my chest. When I caught her, Sherry-chan clung to me as she continued to cry. I have no idea what¡¯s going on. From the crowd, some people whistled, at whom Silvia then sent a murderous re, for some reason Ch¨¦rie stared intently at us, and Eko¡­¡­ are you seriously still eating?!

    And then, continuing like this, the night ended on a noisy note¨D¨D

 Chapter 74 Final Moves

    <h4>Chapter 74 Final Moves</h4>

    Next morning.

    We left themercial city Le?ador early in the morning.

    Sherry-chan cried herself to sleep, and when we met again this morning, for some reason her ears turned red and she quickly evaded my sight, so it didn¡¯t turn into a conversation between the two of us. However, I could see her talking to Irie-san and the others so it looks like it sorted itself out in the end. This is good. However, I¡¯m a bit scared of the next time we meet. I don¡¯t know what she¡¯ll say to me at that time, it¡¯s a frightening mystery.

    And speaking of Ch¨¦rie, she didn¡¯t ask and just said ¡°I¡¯ll definitely have to see house Firstest¡±, and forced herself on to us. I made her promise to go back after seeing it, but I somehow get the feeling that she will want to stay sometime.

    ¡ª¡ª

    In such a way, the earning experience trip ended, and so did our little vacations.

    The members of the First Royal Court Magician Division all seeded in raising their INT, albeit a little, by allocating all the experience they gained from doing Ngultrum rounds onto their appropriate First Form spell. With this, the ¡°Magic Curtain Squad¡± has finally made its first step towards taking form.

    Ideally, they all should raise all their attributes¡¯ First Form spell to Grade nine. However, there¡¯s a long way until then.

    ¡°¨D¨DWee home, Master.¡±

    Since I messaged Yukari telling her that I would be bringing Ch¨¦rie home, the servants greeted me all together despite the sun already having set.

    Regardless of her rank as the daughter of an Earl, Ch¨¦rie was visibly quite surprised at the unusual scale of ¡®House Firstest¡¯.

    ¡°Ch¨¦rie, where do you want to stay?¡¡At this time of the year, I would rmend thekeside.¡±

    ¡°T-That is fine, I guess? ¡±

    After crossing the entrance gate, we continued from there a while more. Seemingly taken aback by the size of my house, which was many timesrger than her family¡¯s, Ch¨¦rie¡¯s eyes darted around as she looked at the scenery outside. Well, it¡¯s to be expected, this ce isrger than the Royal Pce after all. I felt good having her make that nice reaction, so I contacted Yukari so that dinner could be as grandiose as possible. However, it seems that the Chef Sovra is sick and resting today, so only a decent meal can be prepared, at most. That cigarette bastard, he had to get sick at this important moment¡­¡­

    When we arrived at thekeside mansion, the only people waiting for us were Yukari and one maid. I think she was called Es if I¡¯m not wrong. It¡¯s the redheaded little sister. It seems like she will be apanying Ch¨¦rie during her stay.

    ¡°Master. Bestowal has been sessful on one more piece of equipment.¡±

    ¡°Really!? ¡±

    Silvia and Eko both went back to their rooms, and Ch¨¦rie was being guided to the guest room, and during that time, Yukari came to report this to me.

    Thepleted equipment was ¡ºAnaguma Shellrock Gauntlets¡»¨D¨D an armor piece for the hands enchanted with Anaguma, increasing the VIT of the wearer to 150%.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing!¡¡With this, Eko will be tougher.¡±

    ¡°I will give it to herter.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, please do.¡±

    ¡°Yes. A-And, there¡¯s something¡­¡­else.¡±

    Yukari then leaned over and spoke shyly while fidgeting.

    Even I who was bad at reading this sort of thing was able to properly notice it. Without Yukari having to finish her words, I stroked her head, slowly going back her neck, and made a promise to meet her tonight. Yukari¡¯s bashful look was, as always, cute, beautiful and bewitching.

    ¡°I know, you are flirting, but¡­¡­¡±

    And then, wearing a pouting expression, Windfield talked to me seemingly appearing out of nowhere. Ahh, this is bad for my heart. Even though it¡¯s my house, she¡¯s like a phantom, appearing in unexpected ces at unexpected times.

    ¡°The state of the conflict, is moving, just as expected.¡±

    She said such a thing looking as if this had nothing to do with her at all. Isn¡¯t this quite important¡­¡­?

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while, since King Barwell ordered the disclosure, of the official documents. And atst, they¡¯ve disclosed them.¡±

    ¡°In other words, they finished tampering with them?¡¡In this short time? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Not just the Second Knight Order, but also with some voices being raised from the Third Knight Order about the vition of the agreement, that person did great.¡±

    Windfield pped her hands as if to praise a student who properly finished their summer homework. Thisposure of hers feels reliable.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get the, original official document. Okay? ¡±

    Nice, it¡¯s time. Looks like it¡¯s my long-awaited turn.

    ¡°And so, can you please, call Silvia-san?¡±

    ¡­¡­Or maybe not just yet.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Inquiry about the criminal records? ¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    After dinner. Windfield was giving some instructions to Silvia, who was sitting in the living room with Ch¨¦rie.

    ¡°When you first met Second-san, you arrested him, right, Silvia-san?¡±

    ¡°Umu, that¡¯s right. It truly takes me back¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Stop, don¡¯t make me remember. I was just confused at that time.¡±

    It just happened as a result of being extremely excited and having danced in front of that store. Only shame remains from that moment when I was arrested due to obstructing a business. In the end, they continued to doubt me and my excuses were useless.

    ¡°I want you to check the documents of that time.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind¡­¡­But, what is the meaning of that? ¡±

    It suddenly dawned on me. I¡¯m sure Silvia was previously instructed by Windfield to answer the Third Knight Order¡¯s call and tell that something along the lines of ¡°That man might know something¡±. Checking the criminal records this time must have something to do with it.

    ¡°Silvia-san, when you were requested by the Third Knight Order to show yourself, you reported various things about Second-san, right? ¡±

    ¡°Umu. As I was told, I only reported lies that would be advantageous for us.¡±

    ¡°And now, it¡¯s about time those lies, have been found out. The Third Knight Order, will be on guard, against you, Silvia-san.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I see. In other words, I am the bait.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s correct. The other party has be suspicious. They will think that there is something in the document of Second-san¡¯s arrest.¡±

    I see. It might certainly be unavoidable that those who tampered with the official documents will think the other party will tamper some of them. Something simr to those people who think ¡°Since I did it, it¡¯s a matter of course others will do it too.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether you falsify it or not Silvia-san, after you go check it, they will certainlye too to investigate. And that person whoes check on it will be the person in the position to deal with the official documents.¡±

    ¡°Tracing it from there, we¡¯ll be able to find out the party behind the falsification of the official documents, and eventually reach the originals.¡±

    ¡°Exactly.¡±

    So that¡¯s why she set up this timing. Right now, when the other party is feeling overly confident.

    The Prime Minister hasn¡¯t noticed he¡¯s being yed with yet. They haven¡¯t made a move. That¡¯s why, by having us, their opponents make a move on them, we will lure out the viin. Amazing, a method to use their confidence against them. I definitely don¡¯t want to have this girl as an enemy¡­¡­

    ¡°Hey, can I say something?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡¡Was dinner not to your taste? ¡±

    ¡°Not at all, the food was delicious.¡¡That¡¯s not it, hey? ¡±

    ¡°What?¡¡Ahh, the toilet is at the end of the corridor at the right.¡±

    ¡°As I said, that¡¯s not it.¡±

    ¡°If it¡¯s not the toilet¡­¡­ then what do you need? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s cruel to treat someone who wet herself one time like this, don¡¯t you think!? ¡°()

    Ch¨¦rie was getting more and more rxed, so she was going back to her old ¡®retorting¡¯ self.

    ¡®Gohon¡¯, clearing her throat, she regained herposure and continued.

    ¡°Is it alright to talk about that in front of me?¡¡Just by listening to the contents, isn¡¯t that¡­¡­a bit too dangerous? ¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s fine if it¡¯s you.¡±

    ¡°I-Is that so?¡¡You sure are trusting.¡±

    Yeah, I do trust you. Specifically, I don¡¯t think that a person who wet herself in front of me will do something against me. I¡¯ll never let you forget the trouble you gave me that night.

    ¡°Leaving that aside, what¡¯s with this house?¡¡Isn¡¯t it beyond amazing? I think it might be bigger than the Royal Pce.¡¡And well-built too, right?¡¡Seeing you poke your head into this political strife, aren¡¯t you trying to someday be the King? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be something like a King.¡±

    ¡°I was just kidding, but¡­¡­what are you nning to be?¡±

    ¡°The World¡¯s Number 1.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s something too vague for me to understand, but I guess there¡¯s no use in trying to persuade you¡­¡­¡±

    Everyoneughed at Ch¨¦rie¡¯s reply, then, after having a pleasant chat with her, the day came to an end.

    It was such aid-back night that nobody would think we were in the middle of political strife.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­No, I totally forgot.

    ¡°Haaa©`¡­¡­¡±

    The following morning. I sat on the sofa in the living room, feeling like a dried-out husk and gazed out to theke¡¯s shore, my breath turning into a white cloud of vapor.

    Yukari, on the other side, was all fine and good, as she prepared breakfast in the kitchen. Are all dark elves like that?¡¡If that¡¯s the case, shouldn¡¯t it be better to change the name of their race to subus?

    I won the game. I somehow managed to win, but I still feel like I lost.

    And, the terrible thing is, now it¡¯s clear that Yukari is still growing, and at a terrifying speed, almost like some extraterrestrial creature. At this rate, the ¡°third installment¡± will be an overwhelming raid. Since the previous two have been hits, I¡¯m sure the next one will have its budget increased. Surely, ¡°The third installment has a meaningless chase and shootout, in which the protagonist and the heroine will share a joyful kiss at the end of it, making it a happy ending¡±, but in this case, let me think, ¡°The invasion continued without resistance as humanity was driven to the most remote ces, but they still survived and continued to live¨D¨D¡±. Yeah, I feel this certainly is a story like that, without salvation. And then, the fourth installment will be a shitty one, remembering the past. ¡°And the truth is, this is what happened¡±, even though it will have an ending like that, the hype would have died down by then. No, it¡¯s not that the hype would die down. What I wanted was that simple and clear story, that pleasant and exciting action where they try to rescue the kidnapped daughter and fight the stupidly strong father who kills people left and right. Just that, not some useless dark, serious and opportunistic war in vain using some shy CGI. In the first ce, why was a supermassive blockbuster pretentiously forgetting about its originality and moving to simply earn more money¨D¨D?

    ¡°¨D¨Dter, Master! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh. What happened? ¡±

    ¡°No, nothing, it¡¯s just that you weren¡¯t answering when I called out to you.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I was lost in thought.¡±

    ¡°Breakfast is now ready.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. I¡¯ming.¡±

    And so, the day began as if nothing had happened again.

    I need to prepare some secret weapon against this extraterrestrial creature. And with that firm resolution in my heart, I arrived a littlete and sat down at the table.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°The contents of the official documents have finallye out, Your Highness, are you sure this is okay? ¡±

    Minister Hairai visited the Second Prince, Maine, and had a meeting about their future actions.

    ¡°Yes. The tampering is now certain. All we have to do now is wait without changing our posture.¡±

    ¡°However, as time passes without any new evidence, it will be our faction the one who¡¯ll be cornered.¡±

    An official document had been disclosed, in which ¡°the fact that an agreement between the R6 and the Second and Third Knight Orders was not recorded¡± was noted, making the current situation for the Second Prince faction a bit tough. They couldn¡¯t help now being suspected of false usations and criticized for their use of politics.

    ¡°Evidence wille. In a few days at the earliest.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It looks to me that you¡¯re cing too much trust on that person, Your Highness.¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped, he¡¯s my one and only friend after all¡­¡­ and he¡¯s beyondmon sense in a lot of ways. You¡¯re not allowed to take measures. Sincemon sense doesn¡¯t work, let¡¯s stop trying to find sense in his actions.¡±

    ¡°It almost makes me feel pity for the Prime Minister, Val.¡±

    The situation may get worse before it changes for the better¨D¨Dwas a quote from the former British Prime Minister, Churchill. But they smiled as if they knew this would hold true.

    ¡°You¡¯ve changed, Your Highness. You¡¯re like a majestic warrior before the battle.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong. I have to act that way for that person¡¯s sake. The real me is just a weak coward, but I can finally act dignified even if it¡¯s just a farce.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s just say we¡¯re quietly waiting for an opportunity to make a move. The fact we got to this point and cornered the Prime Minister like this is all due to you, Your Highness. Even if you don¡¯t think of it like this, Your Highness, it¡¯s fine as long as we, your subjects see it this way.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯d be nice if that was the case¡­¡­¡±

    ¡®If I were to say that, he¡¯d totally get angry¡¯, Maine whispered, but somehow, he had a smile on his face.

    With this, being the next king is¡­¡­Hairai smiled lightly, then he opened his mouth as he lowered his head.

    ¡°Well then, this is all I have to report. Let¡¯s move with him as the focal point from now on.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Thank you, I leave it to you, Hairai-san.¡±

    ¡°By the way, Your Highness. How about you introduce him to His Majesty when you are assured of your session to the throne? Please give this some consideration.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Thosest words of Hairai broke the smile Maine had so far, turning it into a bitter one.

    How can I introduce that rude and outspoken friend? ¨D¨DThe more he thought about it, the more his stomach hurt.

 Chapter 75 Nothing to Lose. No, Itâ€™s Almost Unfair.

    <h4>Chapter 75 Nothing to Lose. No, It¡¯s Almost Unfair.</h4>

    ¡°Djarum!¡¡You still don¡¯t have information on that man!? ¡±

    The Prime Minister, Val Morrow yelled loudly as he called the Third Knight Order captain, Djarum, into his office.

    ¡°P-Please wait a little longer¡­¡­! ¡±

    Djarum bowed down his head deeply.

    However, currently, he was having a hard time collecting information about Second.

    ¡°What about that ¡®dog¡¯!?¡¡Didn¡¯t you say you nted one of your dogs with him?¡±

    ¡°It took some time tampering the official documents, yes¡­¡­if you could give me a bit more time.¡±

    ¡°Do it faster, this takes priority. Even if the suspicions are over, as long as that man is part of the Royal Court Magician Division, we¡¯ll know no peace.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­¡±

    Although he had received an investigation report from one of his subordinates saying ¡°It seems that the dog switched sides¡±, Djarum simply couldn¡¯t admit this right now, so he only lowered his head while his cold sweat dripped.

    I have to do something¨D¨DThis was no longer a situation where he could choose his means.

    After leaving that room, Djarum went back to his office and gave some mysterious instructions to a subordinate.

    ¡°Call ¡®Tender¡¯.¡±

    This was the pseudonym of the head of the so-called ¡°dark side¡± of the knight order. It wasn¡¯t difficult to imagine why he was called so since he was a man presiding over the ¡®shadows¡¯ of the Third Knight Order.

    ¡°It¡¯s a shame¡­¡­ for that little girl¡­¡­! ¡±

    His clenched fist smashed on the desk.

    If this is how you¡¯re gonna y¨D¨D Djarum was furious, yet his face smiled with a wicked grin.

    ¡°If you¡¯ve turned to the other side, then I¡¯ll have to take advantage of you.¡±

    ¡°What, an idiot. To be, caught, just like this.¡±

    Shortly after the tender received his instructions from Djarum, he began investigating Silvia Virginia.

    The tender suspected that Silvia had done something to the documents about Second¡¯s arrest, so to check those documents, he made his move after Silvia had left.

    ¡­¡­All without knowing this was a trap.

    ¡°You¡¯re someone from the ¡®dark side¡¯, right?¡¡And also, in quite a high position at that. Can it be, by chance, you¡¯re the top? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The man captured by the skilled group in house Firstest called the ¡ºYve Squad¡»was actually that ¡®tender¡¯.

    Why was the leader of the dark side of the knights moving in person? There were many reasons for this. To have the ability to not mess up the job, to know the details good enough to understand the contents of the documents on the spot, and be a person capable enough to easily act on their own. Only the tender could satisfy all these points. And above all, Windfield knew there was a reason why he had to do so.

    ¡°Careless, weren¡¯t you? And maybe negligence. At least, I wish you¡¯ve used, a subordinate besides yourself.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Windfield said with a smile. Surrounded by several masked maids wearing all ck, Tender remained silent.

    ¡°Just kidding. I, know. Second-san, Silvia-san, Besaid-san, they¡¯re all on guard, against your subordinates.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­ku¡­¡­¡±

    Atst, Tender reacted if only a little.

    For Windfield, it was really easy to understand Tender¡¯s face. If one could add subtitles, it would be something like this. ¡°Was all of this your doing!? ¡°, sort of.

    ¡°Indeed. Yes, in order to bring you out, I had Second-san join the First Royal Court Magician Division and do some military exercises, I made Silvia-san return to her parents¡¯ home, and had Besaid-san speak out in public. And like that, the ¡®dark side¡¯, would have to devote, some personnel to those ces.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­! ¡±

    He made a surprised face as if saying, ¡°Can you read my mind!? ¡±

    Windfield didn¡¯t deny those thoughts, and while gently smiling, she opened her mouth.

    ¡°Ahh, by the way, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll be able to assassinate Besaid-san. He has this ¡®ridiculous shield¡¯ next to him.¡±

    That slight sliver of hope of his was shattered.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward, to tonight.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It¡¯d be meaningless to torture me. Tender¡¯s eyes said so.

    ¡°I never said I would, right? ¡±

    Just after saying that phrase, Windfieldughed with a ¡®Fufufu¡¯ and left.

    It was only at night, that Tender understood the meaning of those words.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Second-saaan. It¡¯s your tuuurn.¡±

    As soon as I returned from my job as a lecturer, Windfield came and casually approached me.

    It seems like Silvia¡¯s bait operation was a sess. Then that means¡­¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s finally time for the Brainwashing? ¡±

    ¡°Ye©`s.¡±

    It¡¯s time for the long-awaited ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·!

    I couldn¡¯t contain my excitement since I¡¯ll be using this ¡¾Magic¡¿ for the first time, so I headed to the basement of the servants¡¯ mansion while skipping, together with Windfield.

    There I found an untidy 30-something-year-old, tied up old man, rolling around and surrounded by maids. What a poor thing. Well, it doesn¡¯t seem like he¡¯s into that sort of thing.

    ¡°Let¡¯s be done with this quickly. ¡°Then, as we spoke before, if you could.¡±

    ¡°Roger.¡±

    I answered like some sort of delinquent and then approached the old man.

    Crouching down, I rested my fingertips on his forehead.

    I already know how to use it. I just have to touch the other person¡¯s face, think about what I want to brainwash about, and then activate the ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·.

    ¡°¨D¨D!! ¡±

    The old man had an expression of being taken aback.

    ¡­¡­It seeded. Probably.

    It really was a bit too fast.

    I took off his gag and then asked him a question.

    ¡°Who are you? ¡±

    ¡°Third Knight Order¡¯s ninthmanding officer, Tender. My real name is Re. I work behind the scenes as themander of the assassination unit under Djarum and the Third Knight Order.¡±

    ¡°How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°Terrible. The floor is cold, and the ropes are too tight.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? I¡¯ll say this now, I won¡¯t allow you tomit suicide.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m aware.¡±

    The content of the brainwashing wasplete obedience. I made sure to put myself above everything else in his thoughts.

    After Tender¡¯s ropes were untied and he was freed, he crawled and bowed down. A surprised voice leaked from the surrounding maids.

    ¡°A sess, I see. Second-san, give him the order.¡±

    Since this was way too easy, I, for a moment thought this was some sort of deceiving y, but since Windfield said it was a sess, I guess it is. I then gave him ordered with peace of mind.

    ¡°Do you know the person who had tampered with the official documents? ¡±

    ¡°Yes. There are two of them.¡±

    ¡°Catch the most important of the two, and bring him back here alive. Also, bring the original documents.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    We then went out of the basement. Tender bowed to me and immediately ran, vanishing into the darkness of the night.

    ¡­¡­It¡¯s almost unfair, this ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·. Even with the limited number of uses, it¡¯s way too powerful.

    It would be terrible if someone did something like this to me. Specifically, if Silvia was to be brainwashed, she could assassinate me. I don¡¯t think I¡¯d have to worry about Eko and Yukari due to the difference in our stats, but with Silvia¡¯s ¡¾Archery¡¿, she could suddenly snipe me and that would be it.

    ¡°It¡¯s, alright. I won¡¯t let, that happen.¡±

    Windfield words implied this worry was visible in my face. You know, this isn¡¯t reassuring.

    ¡°Now, it¡¯s time to, go get the Vinz Newspaper.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, in that case, let us¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll go.¡±

    Windfield gave a simple refusal to the words of the maids. And then, she moved her gaze to me. I see. Guessing her intentions, I opened my mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re tired of keeping guard today. Get some proper rest.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes. Thank you very much, Master.¡±

    All the maids bowed down to me with a happy look on their faces and broke ranks.

    Looks like Windfield would make a great wife, always supporting her husband. On the other side, I don¡¯t think anybody could hide anything from her.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, my beloved one.¡±

    With a kiss on my cheek, she left like the wind.

    I always thought she wasn¡¯t interested in me¡­¡­ But, ¡®my beloved one¡¯?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    She called me ¡®my beloved one!!

    ¡°I¡¯ve caught him.¡±

    ¡°This quick!? ¡±

    Early in the next morning.

    Tender brought an old man in thete half of his forties. Just like Tender yesterday, the old man was tightly tied up, and some tears could be seen in his eyes as he trembled slightly.

    ¡°And the original documents are here.¡±

    ¡°You brought that too¡­¡­?¡±

    He was quite quick on this job. Probably, the people on their side thought that he would never betray them. Therefore, things were able to proceed this smoothly. Let me say it once again, this cheaty ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· is frightening.

    ¡°Ahh. So soon, huh? Me too, I just finished. I wonder if it¡¯d be in time, for the evening edition? ¡±

    Windfield also came back with timing as if she had been expecting this.

    I then decided to ask Tender some questions.

    ¡°Who¡¯s this old man? ¡±

    ¡°The director of the Royal Archives.¡±

    Are you serious? The corruption runs deep¡­¡­

    ¡°Then, shall we do it to this person, too? Then, let¡¯s take these two, and bring them to Minister Hairai.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll make them confess, right? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It feels like, it¡¯s finally the end, right?¡±

    ¡°Are youing too? ¡±

    ¡°No, there¡¯s something, I¡¯m a bit concerned about.¡±

    I wonder what¡¯s bothering her?¡¡Ahh, I¡¯m sure a lot of terrible things have been going on behind the scenes because of this stupid political fact-checking.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t everything clear already? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Sorry. ¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to apologize. I was just wondering if there was something that even you didn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Indeed. I think there are a lot of things I don¡¯t know. ¡±

    I think her feeling of not understanding was further increased by this remark of mine.

    ¡°Master. I prepared a chair, so if you would.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. Thanks.¡±

    I moved in front of the director, guided by Yukari. He totally looks like a small frightened animal.

    ¡°Windfield. It looked like you and Master had a nice atmosphere going around you, huh? ¡±

    ¡°Whoa, M-Master, what a coincidence. To meet you at this ce.¡±

    ¡°Wait. You, could it be¡­¡­?¡±

    This is bad. It seems that she noticed I was a bit flustered by Windfield. As expected of Yukari, she¡¯s sharp to an excess. However, it¡¯s Windfield we¡¯re talking about, and she¡¯s skillful in talking¨D¨D

    ¡°W-Well then. I think, I should go, do some investigation. ¡±

    Now you¡¯re useless!?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­We¡¯ll have a talk after you¡¯re back.¡±

    Yukari saw off Windfield in a freezing voice that felt as if it lowered the room¡¯s temperature a few degrees.

    This made the director tremble more.

    However, unlike with Silvia, it seems Yukari is angry at the other person rather than at me.

    ¡°Alright. I guess I should also get to work with my brainwashing¡­¡­¡±

    I then tried to my fingertips on the director¡¯s forehead¡­¡­but since he was all sweaty and sticky, I didn¡¯t feel like it. How about his nose¡­¡­ nope, it¡¯s too greasy too, I don¡¯t really like it. Ahh, that¡¯s right, the jaw is fine. With my fingers on his jaw, I proceeded to use ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡·¨D¨D

    ¡°H-Hey¡­¡­What weird thing are you trying to do¡­¡­ and to a tied up old man¡­¡­? ¡±

    Ch¨¦rie, who had just gotten up with perfect timing, came to the living room and made a terrible misunderstanding.

    It took me an hour of excuses to finally convince her to leave and finished applying ¡¶Brainwashing Magic¡· to the director.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Fuu. Ohh, Master, it looks like you¡¯re as jealous as ever¡­¡­¡±

    Windfield, who had run away from Yukari¡¯s cold gaze, was taking a breath behind the shrubbery near the front entrance. Why did she decide to hide there? Well, as expected of their master-servant rtion, she knew Yukari all too well.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­Did she escape?¡±

    Yukari, havinge out to follow after Windfield, returned to the front door while clicking her tongue. When she said ¡°We¡¯ll have a talk after you¡¯re back¡±, she was lying to have Windfield let her guard down, and when Second wasn¡¯t looking, she came out after her. This was something typical of Yukari.

    The psychological warfare between these two women was so fierce and daily, that it was hard to imagine they were actually in a master-spirit rtionship.

    ¡°Well then. What should I do?¡±

    Windfield tried to turn her feet towards the capital, while at the same time thinking in parallel about how to investigate that darkness in the kingdom and how to wrap up this issue with Yukari aftering back.

    At that moment, a carriage approached. It stopped in front of the mansion and two people descended. The butler, Cubero, and the stable master, Jast.

    If she were to right now jump out from the bushes, she could be seen as ying a prank on them and scaring them. After thinking so, Windfield decided to sneakily leave from the back, and so, she turned right.

    ¡­¡­But she suddenly stopped, hearing the unexpected conversation between the two.

    ¡°Still, I¡¯m worried about Sovra-niichan¡¯s condition. He looked bad.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m worried too. And even if he says he¡¯s just a bit sick, it feels somewhat strange.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we try and consult with Second-sama? ¡±

    ¡°But, with Sovra refusing this much¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°You worry about what he says, huh? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to think about that. However, is it alright to not think about what to do in the case of an emergency? After all, let¡¯s consult it with S¨D¨D¡¹

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    She appeared in front of them and called out.

    She was no longer thinking about if she would surprise them.

    ¡°Tell me the details on that story.¡±

    Her demanding face had a very unusual grim expression.

 Chapter 76 Wounded Beast

    <h4>Chapter 76 Wounded Beast</h4>

    Late because of allergies.

    Sorry.

    Pollen¡­¡­ Pollen¡­¡­

    ___

    After taking the brainwashed director of the Royal Archives to Minister Hairai, it became a tumultuous development.

    First of all, Minister Hairai set up a meeting with King Barwell before the Prime Minister could notice this. He gave priority to giving this information to the King the fastest. Secondly, the protection around the second Prince Maine was upped. And finally, acknowledging my contributions to bringing these facts to light, a reward would be prepared for me.

    Why was the need to increase the security around Maine? This was because of Windfield¡¯s instructions. ¡°I don¡¯t know what the Prime Minister, and by that logic, the Empire, will do after being cornered¡±, she said. She borated on that we should consider the possibility of Maine being assassinated. I personally didn¡¯t think they would do something this stupid, but it¡¯s been said since ancient times that you shouldn¡¯t reach your hand out towards an injured beast since you can¡¯t be sure what it would do. So, just to be sure, his security was strengthened.

    On the other hand, about my reward. I asked the Minister if it wasn¡¯t too soon for that, however, he said it was ratherte. It seems he heard from captain Zephyr and the First Royal Court Magician Division about me, and I had been greatly praised for some reason. What the heck did that Zephyr say?¡¡Incidentally, it seems these two were in such good terms that they would often go out for a drink. I wonder if they feel like kindred spirits, both being bald and all.

    ¡°It¡¯s also my role as a Minister to make connections with excellent people like you.¡±()

    Minister Hairai spoke without trying to conceal his intentions while adjusting his sses, which gave off a little shine. Honestly, I thought he looked so cool, even though he¡¯s bald. Yeah, even though he¡¯s like barcode-bald. Trying to cover his head with that little hair left makes him look balder. How strange.

    If in the not-so-distant future I am to be bald, I just hope I am bald bald and not something like this¡­¡­While I thought about something banal like this, it became time to meet King Barwell. It was less than thirty minutes since I arrived. It was quite fast.

    There were three people present besides the King, Minister Hairai, the director of the Royal Archives, and me. The Minister and I were pretty much extras. The protagonist today was the director.

    The Kind was visibly taken aback despite his position, after all, the main offender in the falsification of the documents came forward to confess and also brought with him proof that validated the original documents had been tampered with.

    The director insisted that these alterations were done under the orders of the Third Knight Order Captain, Djarum. In addition to this, he also confessed that he had been threatened by having his family as hostages, and then, using his position, he had to involve one of his subordinates.

    ¡°Why are you confessing now?¡±

    The director answered King Barwell¡¯s questions while in tears.

    ¡°He, he gave me a chance.¡±

    With this, I am now freed¨D¨D the director had a face as if feeling like that.

    I think that probably because of the brainwashing, he felt as if I had truly given him this opportunity, so that¡¯s why he said it like that.

    After contemting the director¡¯s resolute confession, King Barwell crossed his arms and immersed in thought for a while, then he opened his mouth.

    ¡°¡­¡­It seems this dangerous suspicion was correct. Now that we have concrete evidence, I will have to make a decision.¡±

    And this was the end of Prime Minister Val Morrow.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Sovra-san, is dependent on, Caramelia. He consumes it every day since it helps him not remember his debt-bearing wife. Furthermore, he¡¯s not the only one. In the Royal Capital, there are arge number of people who are addicted to it.¡±

    ¡°Addicted¡­¡­? ¡±

    As soon as I returned home, I heard this as a result of Windfield¡¯s investigations.

    The contents were far beyond what I expected to hear.

    ¡°Every holiday, it seems he went to buy it from a seller, who was hiding in the Royal Capital. And that seller is bringing the price of Caramelia higher and higher. To the point where it is no longer something easy to buy.¡±

    ¡°Is his sickness because of withdrawal?¡±

    This is bad. I never thought about drugs.

    Do potions work? ¡±

    ¡°This is more, like a disease. By principle, they don¡¯t work.¡±

    Do potions not work for diseases in this world? Rather, Mobius never had any diseases or drug dependency, so I¡¯m not sure how to deal with this.

    ¡°If it spreads more than this, it will be really dangerous.¡±

    ¡°Have you found out the source of it? ¡±

    ¡°The Sacred Country Kamel. I heard Besaid-san saw the dealer several times as he went around, and that person used the Kamelian churches to hide inside the Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Whoaa, the Sacred Country Kamel¡­¡­¡±

    This was the name of a troublesome country.

    The Sacred Country Kamel was a religious country where the state religion was the Kamelian religion. yers needed to visit this country in the quest that was required to learn the ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿ ¡¶Recovery?Large¡·, however, everyone had a strong impression that this was a terribly fishy country. Simply put, it was a dog-eat-dog country that invaded other countries and made money using religious reasons.

    ¡°It seems like, while the Kingdom was busy dealing with the Empire, they wanted to take a bite at it.¡±

    ¡°And the Caramelia, was this a drug used in preparation for that?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Because it looks like simple cigarettes, it has be quite widespread. I¡¯m certain the Sacred Country wanted to use Caramelia to bring the Kingdom to the negotiation table and push for an unequal treaty.¡±

    ¡°Misfortunes just keep piling on this Kingdom, huh?¡±

    However, it can¡¯t be helped since it has spread this much. We have no choice but to think about how to deal with it.

    ¡°Should I talk to the King and ask him to ban Caramelia? ¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, the price of Caramelia, will shot further up. It will be the perfect market for Kamel-chan.¡±

    ¡°Hey, stop that. This isn¡¯t something to joke about. People rted to me have been its victims.¡±

    ¡°Sorry. But, that¡¯s right, I wonder if it¡¯ll have to be regted?¡±

    ¡°Would it be a better choice to have it thoroughly regted? ¡±

    ¡°I think so. It would be a less objectionable option. But I don¡¯t think the Sacred Country Kamel will stay silent.¡±

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡­ after all, they¡¯ll be making less money.¡±

    Seriously, how troublesome.

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk to Barwell about it.¡±

    ¡°Yes, please do. Well, there¡¯s a limit to what we can do ourselves.¡±

    Just when the issue with the imperial operatives was about to settle down, this time is the damn Sacred Country¡­¡­

    After heaving a sigh, I opened the evening edition of the newspaper in the quiet living room, just after dinner.

    The main contents are about the falsification of the official documents. Here, it was written in detail about how the director of the Royal Archives had tampered with the official documents by the order of the Captain of the Third Knight Order, Djarum. Furthermore, it was strongly argued that the three leaders, the Prime Minister, and the captains of the First and Third Knight Orders should take responsibility.

    The King had already learned this fact, and those three will be held ountable tomorrow. Most of the people hade to support the Second Prince faction, and the imperial operatives had gone underground. No matter where one looked at it, they could no longer win at it.

    And so, with this, the political strife hade to an end for the time being.

    ¡­¡­It seemed both quite long and very short. I personally think this was a one-sided political conflict, just like that ¡°Sugatayaki¡± analogy, getting cornered slowly, and without being able to notice what wasing to them until thest minute.

    However, this political dispute originally began with Yukari¡¯s former master, thete Duchess Lucia Icene. Even if this didn¡¯t have the conclusion that Yukari would have preferred, for the time being, she got herself a reliable spirit and has settled down on it, so I guess it¡¯s a decent oue.

    ¡°Windfield.¡±

    ¡°Yes? ¡±

    I called out to Windfield and tried to say my thanks, but¡­¡­ I felt there was something weird, so I stopped.

    For her, this political dispute was a game. And, I was a piece. That being the case.

    ¡°Good game.¡±

    ¡°Fufu. Well, thank you.¡±

    We understood each other well enough about the gratitude and effort without having to specifically say it.

    For us, this was enough.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°P-Prime Minister. How are you¡­¡­ Prime Minister!? ¡±

    The following morning.

    Aware of the arrest of the director of the Royal Archives, the captain of the Third Knight Order, Djarum panickily rushed to the office of Prime Minister Val.

    At this rate, I¡¯ll be held responsible¨D¨DWith those thoughts in mind, he came to beg to the Prime Minister.

    However, the Prime Minister was surprisingly calm, given the circumstances.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    No. At first nce, he looked calm andposed, but inside, his rage burned like a firestorm.

    Twenty years had passed since he entered the Kingdom¡¯s inner circle as an Empire agent. Little by little, without letting anyone notice, he moved slowly and passed information over to the Empire as he continued his work. And finally, the walls protecting the Kingdom were falling, and he had stopped the First Prince from growing properly and independent, making him the ideal puppet. Nobody could understand his anger, nobody knew how he felt by having all the effort and hardships he spent half his life oveing, being shattered in an instant.

    ¡°The high tide, huh¡­¡­?¡± (TLN: This also means ¡°the right opportunity¡±)

    He muttered a few words. ¡°High tide? ¡°, ignoring Djarum¡¯s question, he slowly opened a locked drawer at the bottom of his desk.

    ¡°It seems like I was building a castle of sand from the very beginning. I was careful and tried my best to build it with precision so that it didn¡¯t copse¡­¡­ but I guess I can only do it so far.¡±

    ¡°Are you giving up!? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­There¡¯s no way. It was the high tide (It¡¯s the right opportunity), didn¡¯t I say?¡±

    What the Prime Minister took out from the drawer was a single dagger.

    ¡°If you can¡¯t build a castle, you just have to take it.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Val. us. Djarum. You¡¯ll be ced in house arrest for an indefinite time. This punishment will be announcedter. Memphis, for you, I¡¯ll give you a two-year pay cut.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    These people were gathered before King Barwell as he handed down his judgment.

    Prime Minister Val was expressionless; us, the First Prince, bit his lower lip; and Djarum, of the Third Knight Order, was shaking with his face bowed. The Captain of the Second Knight Order, Memphis, epted his punishment without saying a word ofint.

    ¡°Also, we will also reward Second Firstest, the special lecturer of the First Royal Court Magician Division, for his merits. Is there any objection?¡±

    When Barwell spoke to this point, the Prime Minister quietly raised his hand.

    ¡°What is it? Speak.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not an objection. This person will eventually be irreceable to our Kingdom. I fear it might be better to take some action before he gets the attention of the masses.¡±

    This was a remark that was unlike the Prime Minister. ¡°Are you changing sides? ¡°, was something everyone present thought.

    ¡°What do you mean by taking action?¡±

    ¡°Take him into the royal court before he is taken in by some other noble. It¡¯s only this before people spread this information. When word gets out, every minute might count.¡±

    Indeed, Barwell was also convinced of this.

    Even with just the King¡¯s informationwork, he was aware of the immense power of this man named Second. He certainly wanted to avoid a scenario where this power was monopolized by some noble or in the worst case, stolen by another country.

    ¡°Haste is also a virtue, Your Majesty.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. His reward will be given this afternoon. Hairai, are the preparations ready? ¡±

    ¡°Yes, everything is ready.¡±

    Minister Hairai shared that same belief that early was better. Therefore, the preparations for the award ceremony had been in ce since the day before.

    However, he couldn¡¯t understand what the Prime Minister aimed at with this.

    What the hell is he up to?¨D¨DWhile Hairai struggled to find meaning in that, afternoon soon came.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    When I was called for the award ceremony and came to the court, I was told to meet with the King first, and was guided to the room where Barwell was waiting.

    As soon as I entered the room, Barwell greeted me. So far, everything was as expected. However, I didn¡¯t think this would be a one-on-one talk.

    As I faced Barwell, silence flowed for some time. He was the one to break the silence as he spoke.

    ¡°I¡¯ll reward you. Is there anything you want? ¡±

    Something I want. Is anything alright?

    Then another Ring of Pursuit¡­¡­No, it¡¯s hard to pass an Amplification Bracelet. No, but, what about a Choker of Giants¡­¡­

    Not good, there are too many things I want!¡¡Or rather, I¡¯d want to avoid feeling disappointed for asking something I could buyter on.

    ¡°Is it possible to chooseter? ¡±

    ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t mind. Then, at the award ceremony, I¡¯ll give you only a certificate.¡±

    At my response, he said ¡°That took you some minutes¡±, andughed. Ohh, he¡¯s surprisingly flexible.

    And again, silence flowed. Barwell might be a quiet person in the first ce. Since I thought it was a good moment, I started to talk about ¡®that¡¯ thing.

    ¡°There¡¯s one thing I want to report. Currently, there¡¯s a cigarette called Caramelia in cirction in the Royal Capital, however, this is an addictive drug. The Sacred Country Kamel is bringing it in, and it¡¯s bing quite prevalent inside the country. I ask you to please regte it as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°Is this true? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s from reliable information.¡±

    ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll take measures immediately. Thank you for this information.¡±

    Whoa, this went faster than I thought. And he even thanked me. This old man, he¡¯s a good person despite being a King. Totally different from the time at Mobius.

    ¡­¡­Ahh, I see. This is the ¡°connections¡± that the minister was talking about.

    ¡°Please worry not, I will not leave the Castall Kingdom. Instead, I¡¯d like not to be bound by anyone.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? I¡¯m relieved to hear that. Even if you don¡¯t be an ally, as long as you¡¯re not an enemy, that¡¯s fine.¡±

    He was quite upfront about it. I see, so this is the reason for this being a one-on-one.

    ¡°How much do you know about me? ¡±

    ¡°I have ears in the Royal Great Library. And also, in the library of the Royal Magic Academy. Do you know Silk, the former subordinate of the Director of the Royal Great Library, Paloma? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that¡­¡­¡±

    That fat olddy with puffy fingers.

    ¡°I got my information from those two, and with the information avable from the general public, I made a guess.¡±

    ¡°As a result, you guessed my secret lies in speed reading? ¡±

    ¡°No. The secret is something that allows fast reading. And that something is a thing you possess. Also, it¡¯s possible to teach it to your team members.¡±

    Amazing, he pretty much guessed it.

    ¡°Haha, don¡¯t make such a scary face. I won¡¯t tell you to teach me that something. However¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­However? ¡±

    ¡°Can I leave Maine in your hands?¡±

    Barwell said that with a gentle smile. That remark was like virtually lying the next King¡¯s position to him. However, that¡¯s not what bothered me.

    Barwell had a face like there was something he couldn¡¯t say, almost as if he knew he didn¡¯t have long left.

    You should be alright for at least the next five years¨D¨DI thought to say. But I wondered if it was alright for me to say it, so I swallowed those words. This world was simr to Mobius, but it was also different. The possibility that Barwell¡¯s condition was worse than what it was back on Mobius is not zero.

    ¡°Your strength and its secrets are probably something unique. I¡¯m not trying to imply you use them for the country. However, I¡¯d like for you to help one person, Maine, as far as your friendship allows you to help him.¡±

    A wish not as the kind of the country, but as the parent of the man who¡¯ll eventually be the King.

    Somehow¡­¡­This gave me a nostalgic feeling. Like when I went to a friend¡¯s house to y, back when I was junior high, and his mother told me ¡°Please get along with my son¡±, and he became embarrassed and said ¡°Don¡¯t say unnecessary things ¡± with a rebellious attitude.

    The rtionship between parents and children is something itchy, even when viewed from the side. I replied to Barwell shily while scratching the back of my head.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯ll be able to do as much as you ask but, if he finds himself in trouble, I¡¯ll help him, I¡¯ll point out when he¡¯s wrong, I¡¯ll invite him for a drink when he¡¯s depressed, and celebrate with him when he¡¯s happy. That¡¯s what friends are for, right? ¡±

    ¡°Without a doubt. I couldn¡¯t have said it better. I guess I didn¡¯t have to ask you this, hahaha! ¡±

    Afterughing for a while, the one-on-one meeting was over.

    I went back to the waiting room and waited alone for the award ceremony to start.

    ¡°The preparations areplete. Please, apany me.¡±

    About an hourter, a maid came to pick me up. ¡°You surely made me wait¡±, while cursing in my mind, I followed behind the maid.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¡­Huh?¡¡Ehh, here? ¡±

    ¡°First of all, greet Your Majesty. After that, we¡¯ll head to the throne.¡±

    ¡°Heee.¡±

    The ce where the maid led me was Barwell¡¯s room, the ce which I had visited an hour ago.

    Is that so?

    With no doubts in my mind, I followed after the maid.

    ¡°Excuse me, Your Majesty.¡±

    ¡­¡­I should¡¯ve noticed.

    It was strange for a simple maid to go inside without even knocking on the door.

    It was strange that, even after having met already today, I was asked toe and greet him.

    And, I should¡¯ve been wary.

    Of the wounded beast.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Following the maid, I went inside.

    First, the smell of iron reached my nose.

    Then, I doubted my eyes.

    The whole room was dyed in dark red as if someone had scattered ink.

    And at the center.

    A person was lying down.

    A blonde old man.

    Lying on top of arge pool of blood.

    His carotid artery had been shed.

    And before I knew it, the figure of that maid was nowhere to be found. Probably she wasn¡¯t even a maid. It might¡¯ve been a subordinate of Tender, I said to myself. That¡¯s what the calm part of my brain thought, but the rest of it was boiling so hard that I couldn¡¯t think of anything.

    ¨D¨DMurdered.

    Not Besaid, not Maine, much less me.

    King Barwell Castall was murdered¨D¨D!

    ¡°Kyaaa!! ¡±

    Behind me, a maid screamed. Unlike the maid in disguise that guided me here before, she was probably a real maid.

    ¡°What is this noise¡­¡­WH-WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!? ¡±

    Seemingly with the preparations now in ce, Prime Minister Val appeared. And while spitting some clearly predeterminate lines, he acted astonished.

    Lured by the voice of the Prime Minister, people started to gather one after the other. Among them were us, Maine, and Minister Hairai.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­Being a suspect? Proof of innocence?

    None of that mattered now.

    ¡°D-don¡¯t you think you can escape. Ahhh, how terrible.¡±

    Jarring.

    Yeah¡­¡­What should I do with this jarring guy?

    A wave of anger that I didn¡¯t quite understand, quietly raised to my lowered head.

 Chapter 77: Walk

    <h4>Chapter 77: Walk</h4>

    I wonder if it was because we shared augh just now? Or maybe because he was the father of a friend?

    Seeing Barwell lying down on the cold floor, thinking that he will never talk orugh again, caused something indescribable gush out.

    ¡°Prime Minister!¡¡I searched this man¡¯s waiting room and found this! ¡±

    Two men, allegedly belonging to the First Knight Order, came to this room while carrying a dagger¡¯s sheath.

    Ahh, so it¡¯s going to be like that. While being in shock, I failed to notice a single dagger, most likely the murder weapon, lying on the floor. The handle resembled the sheath the knight was holding.

    So, I guess it¡¯s a scenario where the murder weapon¡¯s ¡®pairing¡¯ sheath was found in my waiting room?

    Uh©`, Eh©`, Ho©`¡­¡­.

    ¡°He¡¯s the criminal!¡¡And here¡¯s the proof!¡¡Apprehend this man immediately! ¡±

    The Prime Minister yelled while pointing at me.

    At the same time, several knights approached.

    ¡°ANGOLMOIS.¡±

    I performed ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· just like the first time.

    That is, as shy as possible. As I said that, Angolmois manifested himself in front of the knights, as red-ck lightning shed throughout the ce.

    ¡°W-Wha!? ¡±

    The knights, together with everyone else in the room, retreated one step back due to the awe-inspiring existence that suddenly appeared.

    This is my chance.

    ¡°¨D¨DOn your knees! ¡±

    Understanding my goal through my thoughts Angolmois used it without wasting time.

    ¡°What is¡­¡­this!? ¡±

    Even though we were indoors, a roaring storm ran throughout the ce. From ¡®above¡¯ to ¡®below¡¯.

    Being more specific, ¡°a wind that makes you crawl¡±. This was the same mysterious skill he used the first time I summoned him, activating it simply because ¡°he didn¡¯t want any person to have their head above himself¡±. By the way, the ¡°binding thunder¡± was not usable this time since it only works on spirits and their masters.

    ¡°Well then.¡±

    I purposely walked gracefully as I said those words, and stood right in front of the Prime Minister, who was prostrating himself looking simr to a crushed frog.

    Even though he was doing his best to try and endure the wind, as expected, the Prime Minister wasn¡¯t able to move. That meant¡­¡­

    ¡°You outdid yourself this time.¡±

    ¡­¡­I could one-sidedly do anything.

    At this point, I¡¯m sure the Prime Minister was pissing himself out of fear. Still, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to ¡®put him down¡¯. I mean, that would be like saying ¡°I¡¯m the real culprit¡±.

    ¡°It¡¯s full of holes. I don¡¯t understand the meaning of killing Barwell. I also don¡¯t understand why do it with this timing, of all things. I don¡¯t know why there was a dagger¡¯s sheath in my waiting room. I mean¡­¡­If I were to kill anyone, you would be the first one I¡¯d kill, right?¡¡I could easily do it now, right?¡¡Also, isn¡¯t a sheath usually left inside the inventory?¡¡Still, right now I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll even need a dagger nor a sheath.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­u¡­¡­u.¡±

    I crouched down a little in order to look him into his eyes as I said that. The Prime Minister clenched his jaw in a desperate effort to hide the sound of his ttering teeth as he trembled.

    ¡°£¨My Second. If you kill him here, you¡¯d look more and more like the culprit. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨But, I just can¡¯t stand him. At least I think I should take one of his legs. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨I¡¯d love to agree with you, but there¡¯s more to it. It¡¯s better to leave this to Windfield. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨¡­¡­Well, there¡¯s also that. £©¡±

    This is exactly what it feels to not being able to contain your anger.

    However, if I mess up the Prime Minister at this point where there¡¯s no clear evidence that he was the one who killed Barwell, I couldn¡¯t help but been seen as being caught in the crime scene and bing desperate. And, even if the evidence is found, that doesn¡¯t give me a good enough reason to kill the Prime Minister. My opponent is the King¡¯s murderer. This is a matter that should be judged properly, fairly, and justly.

    ¡­¡­So, the first thing should be to clear my innocence?

    ¡°£¨I¡¯ve calmed down. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨Umu. This is why you¡¯re My Second. £©¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    Right now, I should withdraw.

    This is by no means me running away. I simply need to temporarily withdraw to properly deal with this piece of shit.

    It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve lost.

    I haven¡¯t lost to this bastard or the Empire.

    The number one in the world knows no defeat¡­¡­!

    ¡°Tell this to your Emperor, you shithead. It might¡¯ve been because of your dogma, or maybe this was the intention of the Marubell Empire, but you¡¯ve touched something that shouldn¡¯t be touched.¡±

    ¡°Guuu! ¡±

    Kicking the Prime Minister¡¯s arm, he flipped andnded on his back. Not being able to offer any resistance, the Prime Minister was crushed under the power of the wind and remained in that sadly and pitiful state with his belly uncovered.

    ¡°Do you have a way tomunicate?¡¡You do, right?¡±

    Remembering what Windfield said before about ¡°there¡¯s the slight chance¡±, I spoke. Yeah, If I remember correctly, she said it. If Maine¡¯s life was targeted, then that meant the Prime Minister¨D¨D

    ¡°Team-limitedmunication, right? You thought I wouldn¡¯t know of it? ¡±

    ¨D¨DHad made a ¡®team¡¯ with someone of the inner circle at the Empire.

    The same holds true even if the target was Barwell. It¡¯s impossible for him to arbitrarily decide to kill the King of a virtually enemy country. In this short period, he must¡¯ve been in contact with someone from the Empire. This, in of itself proves the Prime Minister had some means of quicklymunicating with the Marubell Empire.

    If you ask me, it¡¯s really easy to form a ¡®team¡¯. All the members who want to be members of that team need toplete the team formation quest, and all they have to do to achieve it is to capture a lower-ss dungeon. It isn¡¯t weird for the Prime Minister to have teamed up with someone from the Empire. Rather, with such a convenient method being avable, there are no spies that do not take advantage of it.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    It looks like my guess was correct. Cold sweat was visible on his face, and he becamepletely silent, all the while avoiding my gaze in apletely guilty manner.

    ¡°Hey, why not asking for the Emperor¡¯s help using that convenientmunication method?¡¡Just tell him that his spy was discovered and is now in a pinch.¡±

    Before everyone¡¯s ears, I revealed, again and again, the fact that the Prime Minister was an imperial agent. With the existence of team-onlymunication also revealed, the Prime Minister should have a bit of a harder time moving now. Some of them might not believe this, but at least the seed of doubt should be instilled in them.

    After that, I made fun of the Prime Minister, gloating in satisfaction.

    However, my anger did not subside.

    Trying to calm down my irritation, I breathed a sigh, then I turned towards everyone to bid my farewell.

    ¡°Watch carefully!¡¡I won¡¯t run away nor hide!¡¡I¡¯ll simply walk out from this room, from this court!¡¡Stop me if you want!¡¡Arrest me if you want!¡¡I will simply walk!¡¡I¡¯ll walk out if this ce!¡¡Remember this!! ¡±

    As I threw those caustic words in anger, I turned my back on them, and simply walked out of the room slowly, one step at a time.

    The top of the world isn¡¯t allowed to run away.

    Even more so in the face of an enemy.

    I didn¡¯t run away. I didn¡¯t lose. Evidence of that is the fact that I¡¯m just walking right now.

    Were they that pressed by my soul?

    Angolmois¡¯ winds should have lost effect for a long time now.

    However, there was not a single personing after me.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡­I¡¯m sorry¡­¡­! ¡±

    As soon as I returned home after contacting them, I was weed by a clinging Windfield, who was apologizing to me while in tears.

    This was the first time I¡¯ve seen her so broken down.

    ¡°She¡¯s been helplessly saying all this time that you might hate her now, Master.¡±

    Besides her, Yukari smiled wryly as she spoke to me. Her expression was also surprising since it waspletely unlike her usual one. Windfield¡¯s dismay seemed to have been considerable enough to make Yukari look like this.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, don¡¯t worry about it. This was not your fault.¡±

    ¡°But it wasn¡¯t the Second Prince, it was the King the one assassinated, even if there was a tiny possibility, I should have.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s wrong. It wasn¡¯t about preventing or not preventing that, I simply hate the people who would go that far as to do that¡­¡­I simply lost my temper a bit there.

    ¡°Oh, My Second, is it okay to call all that pressure back there ¡°losing your temper a bit¡¯?¡±

    Since Angolmois started to get noisy, I used ¡¶Unsummon¡· to send him back. Otherwise, the story will be needlesslyplicated.

    After he went back, I took a short breath. When I casually nced at my side, I found Silvia shaking while gripping her fist.

    ¡°I w-won¡¯t forgive them¡­¡­!¡¡Not only did they kill His Majesty, but they also made you, Second-dono look like the culprit! ¡±

    ¡°Calm down, Silvia. What would you aplish getting angry here?¡±

    ¡°BUT!¡¡Are you going to let that scoundrel do as he pleases!? ¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that, I won¡¯t leave them alone. But first, I need to clear the suspicions on me. That¡¯s why don¡¯t get so angry.¡±

    I said that as calm as possible to try and soothe the furious Silvia. However, I kind of like her being like this. Maybe I find her sense of justice refreshing, or maybe it¡¯s her zeal or her integrity. I feel there aren¡¯t that many people out there who would get this much angry for the sake of others.

    Thinking that Eko might be surprised to see Silvia with such a threatening attitude, I looked at her, but as expected, even at times like this she was still doing everything at her own pace. She was happily sleeping while her chin was on top of the table and her hands extended over it. That might be why a sleeping child (neruko) can also be read as a cat (neko). Oh Eko, please stay like this forever. I¡¯d love for you to keep being thepanion that heals me with her presence.

    ¡°¡­¡­Sorry, I¡¯ve calmed down.¡±

    As my thoughts drifted towards Eko¡¯s healing sleeping face, it seemed like Silvia regained her cool.

    ¡°However, it is pretty bad, huh? You¡¯re currently being suspected of having killed the King, right Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. But Maine and Minister Hairai seemed to think that as a lie, from what I could see in their expressions.¡±

    ¡°Umu, I¡¯m not worried about them. However, the Prime Minister and the Captain of the Third Knight Order are another story. If you leave them alone, I¡¯m sure they will make you look like the real culprit.¡± ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I see, after all the King, who ordered them to be ced into indefinite house arrest, is now dead¡­¡­¡±

    This was a big deal for the Kingdom, but it seems that it will not be enforced now.

    Now that the King has died, the Prime Minister will be the highest-ranking official in the Kingdom, except for the Royal Family. I see, so he was aiming for this.

    ¡°¨D¨Dy, sorry. I¡¯m fine now.¡±

    And, now Windfield returned to her normal self. After separating from me, she returned to her usual brisk beauty expression. And then, she opened her mouth as if waiting for this moment.

    ¡°If things go on like this, it will turn into a civil war, probably. Between the First Prince, and the Second Prince.¡±

    ¡°Then, in other words, the First Prince faction will try to im the throne for us saying he is the rightful heir?¡±

    ¡°Indeed. A battle between the factions, will break out, about who will be the next king. Well, that will not be, particrly a problem, I guess.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hee? ¡±

    It will not be a problem?

    ¡°Why? ¡±

    ¡°Without doubt, the Second Prince, will win. Or rather, will be made to win. And then, the suspicions on you, will automatically clear up, Second-san.¡±

    ¡°Uhmm¡­¡­If you say so, I guess it¡¯ll be like that. Then, what will be the problem? ¡±

    ¡°The Sacred Country Kamel.¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­¡­¡±

    Now that I think of, there was that.

    ¡°Mmm. I¡¯ve noticed something quite troublesome, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t the talks about regting Caramelia gone now that the King has been murdered? ¡±

    ¡°Whoa!¡¡That¡¯s right. After all, this was something that I talked with Barwell just before he was killed.¡±

    He wouldn¡¯t have time to talk about it with others. It might turn out fine if I talk about it with Minister Hairai, but I don¡¯t think right now will be the time for that.

    With the Kingdom split into two and the fight for the session between the two princes¡¯ factions, right now the regtion of the Caramelia is the least of their worries. That means, we¡¯ll need an important person who can move separately from the key figures.

    ¡°Oh. In that regard, I have already, someone in mind. It¡¯s alright.¡±

    ¡°Okay, I leave it to you.¡±

    ¡°Really!?¡¡Is it okay to be that easygoing about it?¡±

    If Windfield says it¡¯s okay, it¡¯s simpler for me to just leave those decisions to her. I decided to stop thinking about the Caramelia issue for now.

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhm. By the way, there¡¯s one thing that bothers me.¡±

    ¡°What is it, Silvia? You don¡¯t know where the toilet is at? ¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t treat me like I¡¯m Ch¨¦rie! ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s quite the interestingeback, but considering the person in question isn¡¯t here, aren¡¯t you just speaking ill behind her back?¡±

    ¡°S-Sorry, that was not my inten¡­¡­That¡¯s not it! ¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s bothering you? ¡±

    ¡°Umu. Second-dono, why didn¡¯t you kill the Prime Minister?¡¡He didn¡¯t have many escorts, right?¡¡I believe that should¡¯ve been a good time.¡±

    Ahh, so that¡¯s where she¡¯sing? I certainly wanted to kill him at that time, my feeling screamed that I killed him. But now that I¡¯ve been calming down, I think I made the right choice on not killing him.

    ¡°If I was to kill the Prime Minister at that moment, the majority of the people would think that I was also the person who killed the King. The only one benefiting from it would be the Empire and the Sacred Country.¡±

    ¡°Uhm, I see¡­¡­ Then, how about killing everyone from the First Prince¡¯s faction? ¡±

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t say such unsettling words so easily. They are the same as ants, in the way, there are thousands of them.¡¡I don¡¯t think you understand.¡±

    ¡°Then, how about sneaking into the Royal Castle, and have Second-dono kill the Prime Minister and everyone implicated?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be stupid!¡¡What am I, a killing machine!? ¡±

    What a rude girl, seriously. ¡°Right? ¡°, when I turned to Yukari asking that with my expression, she responded with one of ¡°Is she wrong?¡± ¡¹¤ß¤¿¤¤¤Êî†¤ò¤µ¤ì¤ë¡£ Ah¡­¡­

    ¡°To be honest, I think that if it¡¯s you, Second-dono, you¡¯de back unscathed after going against thousands of people.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible. I could deal with thousands of monsters, but thousands of humans, that¡¯s impossible.¡±

    Monsters have a fixed behavioral pattern; however, humans move as they will. You can¡¯t easily risk your life as long as you¡¯re not certain about all the irregrities that might happen. My principle is to fight only when victory is certain. Or rather, I don¡¯t even want to think of how killing thousands of people might feel like.

    ¡°I¡¯m a little surprised at the ¡®thousands of demons¡¯ part¡­¡­Then, how about using that girl? ¡±

    ¡°That girl?¡¡¡­¡­Ahh.¡±

    That¡¯s right. One animal, one existencees to mind, that could make the impossible possible. Yeah, well, if I were to use her¡­¡­

    ¡°However, the Sacred Country Kamel takes priority. Given the circumstances.¡±

    ¡°You just don¡¯t want to think about her, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just avoiding that issue, Master.¡±

    ¡°Oh, shut up. In the first ce, this is someone else¡¯s fight. I have no obligation to go out of my way to fix it.¡±

    Both Silvia and Yukari nodded while saying ¡°Certainly¡±. It seemed they were more shocked that I was able to beat thousands of demons, so that got them somewhat excited.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­ALRIGHT! ¡±

    ¡°Wh-What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    Then, Windfield raised her voice. Today I¡¯ve seen many sides, unlike her usual self.

    ¡°I¡¯ve, changed my mind. I¡¯ll be, serious. Leave it to me.¡±

    It seems like she became motivated. Or rather, this means she wasn¡¯t serious all this time? Scary.

    ¡°Second-san, this is an important confirmation. If you were to use anything. Can you, scare, thousands of soldiers? ¡±

    Then, she asked an even more surprising question.

    She wants me to scare thousands of soldiers?¡¡That¡¯s kind of¡­¡­

    ¡°Leave it to me.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t reply with anything but that!

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°The ways of heaven are unpredictable.¡±

    In the private room of the First Prince us. Prime Minister Val addressed us indifferently.

    ¡°The session of the crown will fall under you, without doubt, Your Highness. No matter what the Second Prince wants to say, let¡¯s keep an undaunted attitude.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    us couldn¡¯t bring himself to nod at the words of the Prime Minister.

    A woman¡¯s words kept repeating inside his head.

    ¡°Think of the Prime Minister as an enemy¡±¨D¨DIt was a simple phrase, but it was powerful enough to overturn all the trust us had built up until now.

    ¡°Even if that side were to use force, the First and Third Knight Orders are in our control. We will not be defeated.¡±

    Certainly. He tried to convince himself, but his doubts wouldn¡¯t let him.

    During the bandit suppression, us wasn¡¯t told anything about entering an agreement. He just heard about it once the rebels had been wiped out. When everything came to light, the secret agreement signed as a trap to ughter the rest of the bandits was revealed, and so did the fact that they had tampered with the official documents to hide this matter.

    After he asked the Prime Minister about it, he simply said: ¡°I had no choice but to tamper with the documents in order to protect you, Your Highness¡±. He knew what he was saying, but he didn¡¯t understand the meaning behind it. Such a state of things continued.

    And, furthermore. He argued that the R6 bandits were suppressed because they were a presence that tried to interfere between them walking the path of peace together with the Marubell Empire. But us was faintly aware.

    As the captain of the suppression force, he was convinced that the cleaning of the bandits nestling themselves around the Royal Capital was for the good of the Kingdom, and so he embarked on that expedition. However, at present, due to the elimination of the R6 bandits, the security around the Royal capital had worsened. If this was the case, wouldn¡¯t it have been better for them not to suppress the bandits? Everything seemed to point at that.

    Why was there the need to suppress the bandits?

    That suppression had no national interests in mind. Rather, this was beneficial to the Empire. And if you thought about it carefully, it would continue to be so.

    In addition to that, there were the words of Second.

    Could it be? The Prime Minister is really an imperial¨D¨D

    ¡°Well then, please be prepared for theing battle.¡±

    With us still immersed in his thoughts, the Prime Minister left the room.

    ¡°¡­¡­Tch¡­¡­¡±

    After clicking his tongue, us stopped thinking about it for now and went back to doing his job.

 Chapter 78 Beacon of Retaliation

    <h4>Chapter 78 Beacon of Retaliation</h4>

    ¡°Say, are you, Paloma-san? ¡±

    ¡°!¡¡¡­¡­Who are you?¡±

    Appearing silently inside the office of the director of the Royal Great Library was a tall, beautiful spirit with silver hair in a two-block haircut, Windfield.

    Why did she visit Paloma with this timing? This was the result of searching for a person who could use the King¡¯s informationwork now that Barwell was dead.

    ¡°At the very least, an ally of the Kingdom. ¡±

    ¡°Hoo. So, what does an ally of the Kingdom wants from me, a simple librarian? ¡±

    ¡°There are some things I want you to do, using the King¡¯s informationwork.¡±

    ¡°You!¡¡Where did you?¡±

    ¡°From Second-san.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­So, this is why.¡±

    After hearing the name Second, Paloma stiffened for a moment, but then nodded as if convinced. Paloma himself, being in charge of gathering information, knew quite well that the King had an interest in Second. And what¡¯s more, that Second wasn¡¯t the man who had killed the King.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    Windfield was proud that Paloma had decided to listen to her in the name of her beloved lord, so after a thin smile, she opened her mouth with a serious expression.

    ¡°Caramelia, a drug simr to a cigarette, is being smuggled from the Sacred Country Kamel. This, in reality, is a very bad drug. We want to stop it from spreading as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­If that¡¯s true, then it¡¯s really dangerous.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. There¡¯s, no time to lose. If we regte it, we¡¯ll control it from getting more harmful.¡±

    ¡°I understand. Will my job then be to spread the right information about that drug and prevent it from spreading? ¡±

    ¡°No, the Vince newspaper, is in charge of that. I would like to ask you, for something more direct, Paloma-san.¡±

    ¡°More direct? ¡±

    He repeated those words and moved forwards with an amused expression.

    ¡°I want you to check the dealers¡¯ whereabouts, and if possible, get rid of them.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha! ¡±

    In response, Palomaughed out loud.

    Why would heugh? That because Windfield¡¯s predictions were right on point.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know where you looked that up, but brilliant.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t investigate it. I just, expected it.¡±

    ¡°All the more brilliant, then. Understood, just leave it to me. I¡¯ve been away from ¡®work¡¯ for a long time now, but these arms still remember it.¡±

    ¡°This is a good chance, then.¡±

    Paloma was formerly the leader of the ¡°shadows under the King¡±. A simple director of a library couldn¡¯t manage an informationwork spreading all across the Kingdom.

    ¡°Well, just, don¡¯t be careless.¡±

    Windfield left the director¡¯s office after saying those final words.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Paloma, seemingly hit in a sore spot, turned and saluted the portrait of King Barwell in the room. Then, he headed to work wearing a grim expression.

    ¡°Fool.¡±

    Was that word addressed to the Prime Minister? To the First Knight Order? Or to the current leader of the shadows under the King? Or maybe it was directed at himself.

    For him, what was lost and that deceiving was too much. But there was nobody to punish him, and nobody to use him.

    Then, a request to save the country came. Steeling himself, he promised to crush the Caramelia sellers as if to take revenge on the deceased King, almost like he felt guilty for the death of the King.

    If Windfield figured out this much, and that¡¯s why brought this issue to Paloma, then. This showed how she decided to be serious.

    The best tactician in the spirit world was now demonstrating her true abilities.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Your Highness. The Second Knight Order is splitting into two.¡±

    ¡°About how high is the turn-over/desertion rate? ¡±

    ¡°About 30%. But if the situation leans towards war, more likely 40%. Some fools will try to bet on the winning side.¡±

    ¡°Is that so¡­¡­?¡±

    The captain of the Second Knight Order, Memphis, reported to Maine. Minister Hairai was also present at that ce.

    Currently, the Kingdom was split into two by the First and Second Princes¡¯ factions, and their shes continued. But right now, the First Prince faction dominated the scene. After all, about 30% of the Second Knight Order members turned to the First Prince faction, which had already the support of the First and Third Knight Orders. The Second Prince faction only had the remaining 70% of the Second Knight Order and the Royal Court Magician Divisions.

    ¡°There¡¯s little time left. Maybe we should leave the Royal Capital at once.¡±

    Maine bit his lip at the suggestion of Minister Hairai.

    Once they¡¯ve retreated from the Royal Capital, it would be very difficult to get it back. However, if they stay as they are, they would eventually be surrounded and end up with their backs against a wall.

    ¡°This is no time to be worrying about stuff! ¡±

    Maine struggled to find an answer and Minister Hairai worried about the prince¡¯s life. He was also bing quite impatient. Despite being on the attacking side, everything had turned upside down just before victory was secured. I can¡¯t be too rash, he thought.

    ¡°¡­¡­Alright, I understand. We¡¯ll be leaving the Cap¨D¨D!? ¡±

    Maine broke the silence, and shortly after that.

    A roar that shook the ground rung.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on!? ¡±

    Memphis ran towards the window and looked at the direction of which the sound came. And as he did, he became speechless. The wall near the training grounds for the Royal Court Magician Divisions was blown away without a trace.

    ¡°What in the world!? ¡±

    Both Memphis and Hairai were puzzled. Perhaps, elsewhere, the Prime Minister, Djarum, and us were also bewildered.

    However¡­¡­ Only Maine knew the true nature of that sound without having to look outside the window.

    A lightning strike. A person who could drop a lightning strike with such power in this critical situation, in this cloudless and clear sky¡­¡­Maine could only think of one man.

    ¡°¨D¨DLet¡¯s go. Second-san is calling for us.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª

    A few minutes before Maine got moving. Court Mages were gathering at the training grounds of the Royal Court Magician Division.

    In the absence of the King, the number one across the Royal Court Mages, Zephyr was to be themanding leader of the entire Mage Divisions, not just the First Division. However, there was no guarantee that the rest of the Court Mages would properly obey him.

    ¡°We Royal Court Magicians work for His Highness, Prince Maine. This is a royal decree.¡±

    Zephyr¡¯s deration caused amotion among the Court Mages.

    At present, the First Prince¡¯s faction had the upper hand. That¡¯s the reason many thought of it as suicide, to attach themselves to the Second Prince¡¯s faction.

    If King Barwell were alive, nobody present would have opposed those words. However, considering the current situation they found themselves in, this reaction could be said to be inevitable. Some evencked the self-awareness of seeing themselves as military personnel in the Kingdom. After all, this was a group of people who hadn¡¯t experienced war in more than twenty years.

    ¡°We can do it! ¡±

    One person raised their voice. Then, that one turned into two, then three, then ten, then twenty¡­¡­ the number of people steadily increased.

    ¡°Are you going to go against a royal decree!? ¡±

    One person then argued against Zephyr.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about His Majesty¡¯s order; this is my life! ¡±

    ¡°B-Bastard!! ¡±

    Many Court Mages then spoke against the exasperated leader. Here, too, the forces were split between the First and Second Princes.

    If the power of the Court Mages was to move towards the First Prince camp, then the Second Prince would have no way to win. And even though he knew this, the captain Zephyr couldn¡¯te up with a good n to keep them in ce.

    ¡°¨D¨DEveryone, please think carefully! ¡±

    At that point, one woman raised her voice. The First Royal Court Magician Division¡¯s ace, Sherry.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way he killed His Majesty!¡¡Isn¡¯t this as clear as day!?¡¡No matter how you look at it, this is a plot!¡¡You should be aware that the other party is the one guilty of killing the King!¡¡Are you going to give up without even putting up a fight!?¡¡Shame on you! ¡±

    The Court Mages stopped, intimidated by that rage, seemingly out of ce considering it came from a small girl.

    ¡°As long as he¡¯s here, we will win!¡¡Don¡¯t lose to fear, stay true to your beliefs!¡¡You should by no means forgive them!¡¡You already know this, don¡¯t you!? ¡±

    It was just as Sherry said. The Court Mages who tried to leave this ce were not imperial operatives, nor had anything to do with the Empire. They were simply afraid to die. Of course, they too knew that Second didn¡¯t kill Barwell. This was something done by the First Prince¡¯s faction. But even so, they were afraid to die. Hence why they tried to change sides to the First Prince¡¯s.

    ¡°Sherry, you¡­¡­¡±

    Herpanions in the First Royal Court Magician Division were even impressed by Sherry¡¯s cry. She believed in the man she hated so much to the point of entrusting her life to him.

    What are friends for if not for moments like this? ¨D¨DThey all came forward, and after lining up at the sides of Sherry and Zephyr, they bowed their heads.

    ¡°Please, believe in this! ¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s fight together! ¡±

    ¡°Please! ¡±

    The Court Mages¡¯ feet stopped. They heard rumors of it. The First Royal Court Magician Division had grown dramatically ever since the lecturer called Second came.

    With him, they might be able to win. Many people started to think so.

    But even so, many others were not ready to bet their life on this.

    This was not a decisive factor to change their minds.

    ¡°Then, where is that lecturer now!? ¡±

    ¡°Are you sure he didn¡¯t just run away!? ¡±

    ¡°How can I believe in him!? ¡±

    They too were desperate. But this was only natural, after all, their lives were at stake.

    ¡°That is¡­¡­¡±

    Sherry was at lost for words. She, herself didn¡¯t know where Second was, or what he was doing.

    ¡°See!?¡¡You can¡¯t even answer! ¡±

    ¡°I knew it, we can¡¯t trust him!¡¡You guys were simply tricked by that swindler! ¡±

    In response to her silence, the Court Mages started to move again.

    My words didn¡¯t reach them¨D¨DSherry shrieked, tears of regret umting at the edge of her eyes.

    ¡°He¡¯lle!¡¡He wille for sure!¡¡He didn¡¯t run away!¡¡And he wasn¡¯t a swindler either!¡¡He will absolutely, absolutelye back!! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Sherry¡­¡­¡±

    Looking at her, not caring about her appearance, the heart of the First Royal Court Magician Division was united.

    ¡­¡­However, they knew. That if Second didn¡¯t show up here now, her speech would all have been in vain. Theirs was a hope that was closer to despair. Ultimately, he was a suspect of murdering the King, so he couldn¡¯t simplye to a ce full of enemies.

    They had no choice but to give up. Nevertheless, despite knowing that, Sherry continued to pray, asking God.

    He will absolutelye. He will absolutelye. He will absolutelye. She pleaded.

    ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°¨D¨DEh!? ¡±

    The wall behind the training grounds was blown away without a trace after a thunderous roar.

    Among the smoke, the remnants of the electric shock raged across. A ridiculous power that with just looking at the aftermath, could be predicted to turn mere humans in charcoal in an instant.

    Lightning Attribute Magic¨D¨D the legendary ¡¾Magic¡¿ that was only heard of in tales, was used right in front of them. That alone stopped the actions of all the Court Mages.

    Nobody could wrap their minds around what had just happened. However, it was possible to guess. Yeah, most likely, it was the strongest ¡¾Magic¡¿, a ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fifth Form¡· spell¨D¨D

    And, immediately after.

    A huge wind blew, causing all the smoke and dust to be blown away.

    And, from that ce, a single man appeared.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get the Kingdom back. Follow me.¡±

 Chapter 79 Nearing CheckMate

    <h4>Chapter 79 Nearing CheckMate</h4>

    ¡°Second-san! ¡±

    After breaking the wall and dering so to the Court Mages, Maine came running up to me.

    ¡°You came? Let¡¯s hurry and get away before those guys see I¡¯m here and wig out.¡±

    Since I¡¯m under suspicion of murdering the King, there¡¯s a small possibility that the Prime Minister will try toe and arrest me. If ites to that, this will turn into an all-out war. But given that there¡¯s currently a difference in the military power, I want to avoid that scenario. And also, that would mess up with Windfield¡¯s strategy. This escape is one step of her ns.

    ¡°Certainly!¡¡I¡¯ll follow you! ¡±

    Maine replied with a happy-looking face. Behind him, Minister Hairai had a sour face. Oops, my bad. It might¡¯ve been no good to utter the word ¡°wig¡± in front of Minister Hairai.

    (TLN: This was a bit hard to put into words that made sense in English. It involves a word that had several meanings, a type of wig, and a ng word in Japanese, and in this next sentence, Second corrects himself. Sadly, this was actually quite funny in Japanese.)

    ¡°Let¡¯s leave before they find out I¡¯m here.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Why did you rephrase it? ¡±

    ¡°You idiot, don¡¯t worry about the small details.¡±

    ¡°You!¡¡How dare someone like you to speak like that to His Highness!? ¡±

    And so, the old man who was next to Minister Hairai suddenly got angry. He was a sharp-tongued old man dressed in a military uniform with a funny mustache.

    ¡°Who¡¯re you?¡±

    ¡°Wh-, bastard, how much do you want to disrespect us!? ¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s the Second Knight Order¡¯s Captain. Memphis, that¡¯s just how this person speaks, don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯s no use trying to change him.¡±

    ¡°Okay. If this is what Your Highness wants, I shallply.¡±

    Apparently, funny mustache is called Memphis. If he¡¯s the Second Knight Order¡¯s Captain, it means he¡¯s also an ally. Rather, is that really how Maine sees me?

    ¡°Alright. Then, Captain Memphis, can I leave the Second Knight Order to you and have you lead them as the rear unit? I¡¯m sure you¡¯re already ready, right? ¡°()

    ¡°I was going to follow His Highness even without you bastard having to tell me so. And you don¡¯t have to worry about the preparations.¡±

    His first impression on me seemed to be the worst, although I can me him. Well, whatever. I have no time to worry about that right now.

    ¡°Then, Captain Zephyr, bring all the Court Mages.¡±

    ¡°Wa-wait. I understand we have to move, but where are we going? ¡±

    ¡°To my house.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Haaa? ¡±

    It¡¯s been a while since Ist heard Sherry-chan¡¯s shocked voice. I was somewhat d to see her, whose eyes were slightly red, so I patted her head.

    With her face turning red, Sherry-chan said: ¡°Please stop it¡±. Still, I think that the fact she hasn¡¯t pped my hand is proof she had be a bit more amicable.

    I could hear her outcry a little from over the wall. This is why I just can¡¯t stop patting her head.

    Now that Maine and I have appeared, looks like the Court Mages have made their choice. It¡¯s really good that Sherry-chan¡¯s speech didn¡¯t go to waste.

    ¡°This will inevitably start the war.¡±

    While the Court Mages lined up, Minister Hairai said those words. That¡¯s correct. The Prime Minister will soon join the Empire and raise an army to kill all those who sided with the Second Prince.

    ¡°That¡¯s obvious. What we need to consider now is how to win.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Excuse me. It was a bit chaotic, but I will go too.¡±

    ¡°By the way, who¡¯s that woman? ¡±

    ¡°For God¡¯s sake, that¡¯s the problem with people like you¡­¡­ This esteemed person is-¡±

    With an exasperated face, Hairai tried to introduce the mysterious woman who came and stood next to Maine, but she was the first to speak.

    ¡°I am Barwell Castall¡¯s Second Queen, Freon Castall. You are Second-sama, aren¡¯t you? I¡¯ve heard a lot of rumors about you. Thank you for always been there for Maine.¡±

    ¡°Oh, thank you very much for your kind words. I¡¯m Second Firstest.¡±

    ¡°Firstest? ¡±

    ¡°It means the number one. I thought I would be the perfect name for my team since I¡¯ll be the world¡¯s number one, but it turned into my family name before I knew it.¡±

    ¡°Oh my, fufufufu.¡±

    Apparently, she¡¯s Maine¡¯s mom. Sheughed elegantly covering her mouth with her hand. Her eyes look just like Maine¡¯s, and it feels almost as if she were an older version of Maine. This is so weird, after all their genders are different.

    ¡°Hey, Second-san!¡¡This is no time to be taking it this easy! ¡±

    While I chatted with Freon-san for a while, Maine yelled at me with an impatient expression. Geez, he doesn¡¯t have to get angry¡­¡­

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go then.¡±

    And so, along with my order, the Second Prince faction left the castle.

    And we moved to our new base, house Firstest¨D¨D

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°I wonder what they were going to do, but atst, they left. Prime Minister.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Seems like we didn¡¯t need to use force.¡±

    The Third Knight Order Captain, Djarum was surprised by the explosion by the castle wall but calmed down after seeing the Second Prince leave. He mistook this for a ¡°de facto victory¡±.

    The Prime Minister, on the other side, was also a bit relieved. The reason being, he was still notpletely prepared to face against them, so the Prime Minister wanted to avoid that sort of scenario for now. If he was to crush them, he wanted to make sure to crush thempletely. He nned to line up his pockets for the rest of his life after being ced in a central position in the Kingdom.

    ¡°With this, the next King will be His Highness, us. The problem now is, when should he be crowned?¡±

    ¡°The earlier the better. However, unless we increase our strength andpletely eradicate them, the unshakable rule I¡¯m aiming for won¡¯t be realized.¡±

    ¡°How do you n to do that? ¡±

    ¡°By borrowing the might of the Empire. Reinforcements have already been requested.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡¡You mean to say, inviting imperial soldiers?¡¡But, if t that¡¯s the case, then our Kingdom¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong, Djarum. The Kingdom will enter a new era. One where it will walk alongside the Empire.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Will it be a vassal nation of the Empire? ¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what shape it takes. All we have to do is suck the sweet nectar from it. Isn¡¯t that right? ¡±

    ¡°Ha, hahaha!¡¡You¡¯re right!¡¡As expected of you, revered Prime Minister! ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, us. Finally, finally, you will be King! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes. You¡¯re right, Mother.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m very proud of you!¡¡Here, have a look!¡¡That child of the concubine is running with his tail behind his legs! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Rather than feeling joy, when us looked at the scene beyond the window, his chest tightened.

    Second, that hateful person who killed his father. Seeing the figure of Freon happily smiling next to that man immediately threw his feelings into disarray.

    Moreover. The more he thought about it, the more the doubts on the Prime Minister grew bigger. Thewfulness of their actions felt shakier.

    ¡°Mother¡­¡­ Is that man my father¡¯s-¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about us!?¡¡Didn¡¯t I tell you that you only need to think about bing the King!? ¡±

    This woman thought nothing of Barwell¡¯s death¨D¨DBut this was something us already knew.

    And, there was that too. Both the Prime Minister and the Captain of the Third Knight Order were the same.

    ¡°I will go cool down my head a little.¡±

    Saying his usual words, us ran from his mother. However, there was nobody left in the Royal Pce with whom he could consult.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Second-san. It mighte as weird for me to say this but, haven¡¯t you had any problems with it until now?¡±

    ¡°About what? ¡±

    ¡°Well, your house is toorge. Isn¡¯t itrger than the Royal Pce? ¡±

    ¡°Amazing, right? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Well, yeah.¡±

    The over 3,000 people, including the Royal Court Mages and the Second Knight Order knights could easily fit on the grounds of House Firstest. The rooms were a bit too short, but it was at a level where they could still manage.

    Maine wasn¡¯t the only one surprised, but also Minister Hairai, Captain Memphis, Captain Zephyr, and Sherry-chan. Meanwhile, the Second Queen Freon was curiously looking around.

    ¡°It looks like we¡¯re running out of rooms and servants, so you¡¯ll have to do something about it yourselves.¡±

    ¡°I think the Second Knight Order will be fine since they are camping, but¡­¡­incidentally, how many servants do you have? ¡±

    ¡°I was surprised when I heard it the other day, but apparently there are three hundred.¡±

    ¡°Why do you look so happy when saying that?¡±

    ¡°Because I¡¯m proud of my servants. Everyone here is quite strong.¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute, that sounds scary. Second-san, does that mean they do some special training like what you did with the First Royal Court Magician Division every day? ¡±

    ¡°Well, it hasn¡¯t gotten to that point yet, but eventually.¡±

    ¡°P-Please do it in moderation. Seriously.¡±

    I guess he means to say that the Kingdom wouldn¡¯t be able to ignore a group of three hundred strong people. When I tried to tease him with an ¡°It seems you¡¯re bing more self-conscious of being a King now¡±, he changed the subject saying ¡°Rather, shouldn¡¯t we have a meeting?¡±

    ¡°Ah, Second-san. Wee back. How did it go? ¡±

    ¡°Oh, Windfield. As you can see.¡±

    As soon as I entered thekeside mansion with the main members in tow, Windfield appeared.

    In the living room, there were also the figures of Silvia, Eko, and Yukari. Cubero, the butler, seemed to be working hard dealing with the over 3,000 guests.

    ¡°Well then, we just arrived, but let¡¯s hold a meeting.¡±

    Surrounding the round table, Minister Hairai was the first to speak. I wonder if the mansion seemed strange? Sherry-chan was looking all around while in her seat.

    ¡°Hmm. Even if you call this, a meeting, well.¡±

    Windfield tilted her head at the words of Minister Hairai.

    I¡¯m sure everyone but me was thinking this: ¡°We¡¯re the ones who want to tilt our heads in wonder¡±.

    ¡°Tomorrow, afternoon, they will be, annihted. Meeting adjourned.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­HAA!? ¡±

    Everyone was equally surprised.

    That¡¯s only obvious. After all, they just ran away with the tail between their legs. And they never expected this to take ce as early as tomorrow despite that.

    However¨D¨DExactly because the other party thinks so too, this is the chance to strike.

    ¡°W-Wait. I don¡¯t think something like that can happen.¡±

    Maine said, not believing. Minister Hairai, Captain Memphis, and Captain Zephyr also agreed with him.

    ¡°Windfield-san. Do you have a n? ¡±

    The Second Queen Freon asked calmly. For the sake of moving the talks along, she enquired about Windfield¡¯s strategy.

    ¡°Of course. As we are now, with our current strength, we can¡¯t crush them, right?¡±

    ¡°!¡¡I see, so we need to increase our fighting power. However, where would we¡­¡­?¡±

    Captain Zephyr said, noticing the meaning. Immediately after, Sherry-chan turned towards me and raised her hand.

    ¡°Uh, what is it? ¡±

    ¡°No. Maybe it isn¡¯t rted to this, but¡­¡­¡±

    After giving a little preface, she looked around the room before opening her mouth again.

    ¡°Ch¨¦rie-sama should also be here, wouldn¡¯t she? ¡±

    How sharp, Sherry-chan. She¡¯s right.

    Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack. She, the Earl¡¯s daughter, hasn¡¯t been here since the day the King was assassinated. It should be obvious who gave her directions.

    ¡°Correct. How did Second-san, made the money needed, to buy this house? That¡¯s because he sold, Mithril alloy, inrge quantities to Earl Lumberjack.¡±

    ¡°Mithril alloy¡­¡­Ahh, I see, from the Proline Dungeon¡­¡­¡±

    Sherry-chan nodded Windfield¡¯s statement. The rest of them seemed to be still unaware of the key point here.

    ¡°The Earl is, sharp and capable, isn¡¯t he? Most likely, in anticipation for something like this, he carried that endeavor of mithril alloy weaponry and armor in his territory.¡±

    ¡°No way, Earl Lumberjack¡¯s soldiers will¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s, right. He wanted to, prepare his own soldiers, first.¡±

    And as for the meaning of those words.

    It means 2,000 people geared with mithril alloy equipment will being here as reinforcements.

    They are not simple soldiers. They are reinforcements equipped with mithril alloy gear. Their reliance is withoutparison.

    ¡°It¡¯s a, game of speed. We¡¯llpletely, destroy them, tomorrow afternoon. If we don¡¯t, their reinforcements wille, and we will lose due to the difference in numbers.¡±

    In the current situation, most of the nobles from the country couldn¡¯t still make up their mind whether to support the First or Second Princes yet. If we move faster than the nobles from the First Prince faction send their reinforcements, we¡¯ll have them cut off and it¡¯ll be our win.

    ¡°That¡¯s a great strategy¡­¡­ however, I¡¯m scared of what the Empire will do. Just like Second-san said before, I¡¯m sure the Prime Minister must¡¯ve alreadymunicated with them and requested for reinforcements.¡±

    Maine pointed that out. But Windfield¡¯s replied to him wearing a smile.

    ¡°They won¡¯t,e.¡±

    Why?¡¡She continued as if to answer what everyone asked in their minds.

    ¡°Because we¡¯ll use the Sacred Country Kamel.¡±

    Everyone had question marks floating on their heads wondering what she meant. When I first heard of her scheme, I knew it had to do something the Caramelia, but I didn¡¯t understand. From the fact they are most likely unaware of the Caramelia epidemy, they must be lost as to what she was saying.

    ¡°The Empire is moving, behind the scenes, but so is the Sacred Country. In the Kingdom, there¡¯s currently a drug called Caramelia. Right now, the Sacred Country should also be preparing. I¡¯m certain they are, by now, gathering soldiers near the border.¡±

    ¡°What!? ¡±

    The minister shouted.

    Well, that¡¯s to be expected. Even with the nation in this current critical situation, he just realized the need to deal with the Sacred Country on top of the Empire, this could no longer be considered just a crisis.

    ¡°They wanted to take the opportunity, to set up a war, and settle under the pretense of a peace treaty, the push for the importation of Caramelia. This could be the worst oue, for the Kingdom because, on top of being already overtaken with this drug, now they will also rip off its money.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silence flowed after those words.

    Right now, they seemed to understand how bad the situation the Kingdom was in.

    ¡°This is something we both the Kingdom, and the Empire, want to avoid. That¡¯s why the Empire, knowing what the Sacred Country Kamel is trying to set up, should feel reluctant to send reinforcements.¡±

    ¡°Why so? ¡±

    ¡°It simply is a high risk, low return move, to protect the Kingdom while it has already been bitten by the Sacred Country. For them, a situation where the Kingdomes to an agreement after being exhausted by the war against the Sacred Country might look like a better prospect.¡±

    ¡°Does that mean an invasion has little sense for them?¡±

    ¡°Indeed. They have already profited enough, of the secrets of the Kingdom, through the Prime Minister. They¡¯ve already, made enough gain. Right now, they should have, no reason to send reinforcements. The Prime Minister, has already, served his purpose.¡±

    How pity, she almost seemed to add. However, there was nobody present sympathetic to the Prime Minister.

    Well then. This being the case, the problem at hand was not dealing with the Empire, but with the Sacred Country. Even knowing the reinforcements from the Empire might note, this was not a time to be relieved.

    ¡°¡­¡­First of all, it¡¯s necessary to enact a Caramelia Control Law. Next, we should build a specialized Knight unit to guard the country.¡±

    Minister Hairai, spoke very minister-like and threw an idea. However, that¡¯s a story for if we¡¯re able to cope up with the machinations of the Sacred Country Kamel. If we let this war started, we should prepare ourselves to even have the borders changed.

    ¡°Excuse me. But unless we do something to start it, it¡¯s unlikely they will start a war, won¡¯t they? ¡±

    Captain Memphis expressed his thoughts. This was from a military point of view.

    He¡¯s right. Speaking of war, it needs a reason to be waged.

    ¡°Yes, and here, lies the problem. There¡¯s currently, no good reason, to start up a war. However, they might want to take the opportunity while we¡¯re having problems with the Empire and the civil war issue. Well, if you were the Sacred Country, what would you do? ¡±

    To Windfield¡¯s sudden question, Maine made a face as if he had figured the answer. She then told him, ¡°Go ahead¡±.

    ¡°They will make up a cause.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, half, correct.¡±

    And the other half?¡¡She quickly answered that question too.

    ¡°If it was me, I would make it, so that the other party, made the first move. Maybe.¡±

    Everyone consented with an ¡°I see¡±, however, that brought up a new question. How would they do that¡­¡­?

    ¡°If they raise an army while giving no reason whatsoever, the frontier troops would have no choice, but to gather to stop it. And they¡¯ll remain at the border, ring at each other. And there, they might make some kind of provocation, to those troops? ¡±

    The military power at the frontier isrge, but that¡¯s because they are key to the national defense. However, they alone are not enough to stop an all-out attack from the Sacred Country Kamel on their own. Reinforcements would, without a doubt, be needed. However, currently, there is no room to spare some reinforcements.

    And, what if there¡¯s an excellent strategist like Windfield in Kamel? They might hide soldiers in advance, and make some plot while ring at each other to invite the Kingdom¡¯s soldiers to attack thinking they can win, and after they make the first move,e out and annihte them. There¡¯s the possibility they might have a simr strategy. And Windfield was quite wary of it. With their cunning, cautiously and swift use of drugs to shrewdly weaken the Kingdom systematically and setting up the stage to devour it viciously, we can¡¯t help but consider the existence of such person among their ranks.

    ¡°How about splitting the reinforcementsing from Lord Barel? ¡­¡­No, but then¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°If everything settles tomorrow afternoon, then we can go as reinforcements.¡±

    ¡°However, in that case, there¡¯s the chance we won¡¯t be able to make it.¡±

    Memphis and Zephyr both discussed it among themselves. However, they couldn¡¯te up with a good answer.

    The reason being, the movements of the Sacred Country Kamel were done too fast. If this civil war issue was a game of speed, that issue was one too. Every option would take time since everything already started to move.

    ¡°Well, we already, have an answer, right?¡±

    Windfield said like she had plenty of leeways. She had a face full of confidence that said: ¡°I¡¯ve already read it all the way through¡±.

    And so, everyone paid close attention to her next remark. But the words she uttered took everyone aback.

    ¡°For the, reinforcements to the border, Second-san, will go.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Everyone was at loss for words.

    They all understood what she was saying, but they still failed topletelyprehend the meaning.

    After a few seconds of silence, Maine was the one to break it.

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­He will go, alone? ¡±

    When I nodded with a smile, Maine¡¯s jaw looked like it was about to drop to the floor. That¡¯s not a very princely face to make, to be honest.

    ¡°I won¡¯t be killing everyone. I¡¯ll just go and scare them a little.¡±

    ¡°Scare them a little? That¡¯s nonsense!¡¡It¡¯s too reckless to deal with thousands of soldiers on your own! ¡±

    Well, certainly, if I were to stand alone on the battlefield, there¡¯s a limit to what I could do. ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· only increases my stats by 5.4 times. If it were 1,000 times the story would be different, but still, it¡¯s probably impossible to do it on my own.

    However, if you were to ask if I¡¯d do it alone, the answer would be no. While Windfield hasn¡¯t revealed everything, there¡¯s a trump card up my sleeve.

    It¡¯s a trump card that makes me think that with this one, I could easily be the world¡¯s top, so I¡¯m filled with confidence.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, leave it to me. You¡¯ll have Mithril alloy geared soldiers to fight against the Prime Minister, and more than anything, Silvia and Eko wille with you too. With those two, you can¡¯t lose.¡±

    ¡°That might be the case, but¡­¡­ they might also have someone who has already participated in a Title match. It won¡¯t be that easy.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s wrong. Windfield is the one moving the powerful pieces, namely Silvia and Eko. You know what that means, right? ¡±

    No matter how strong a piece is, it¡¯s meaningless if the person using it is weak.

    That was also the case for Mobius¡¯s ¡ºTeam Battles¡». No matter how great one¡¯s abilities were, they were powerless before the might of numbers. Especially, high ranked team battles had several ways to contain the opponent¡¯s main yers.

    Shogi, Chess, Team Battles, they were all games where you win after getting the King. They aren¡¯t games where the strongest pieces win.

    That¡¯s right. In other words, this is a match between Windfield and the Prime Minister.

    Who¡¯s be the winner?¡¡I¡¯d bet all my money on Windfield without batting an eye.

    ¡°Maine. Don¡¯t worry about other people, just worry about what you¡¯ll do after bing King. Let¡¯s see, I would like to request that this year¡¯s Title match is held at any cost.¡±

    Probably this guy is worried. Therefore, Iughed and cheerfully said that.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ehehe, you¡¯re right. I need to give my best at doing my job. Haaa, I feel just by thinking about how to treat you, Second-san, after everything is over will be giving me a terrible headache.¡±

    At least he seemed well enough to return my remark with some humor. I wonder if the King¡¯s duty is simple and easy? I¡¯m more anxious about himpletely changing. Minister Hairai also seemed to be having a hard time. His barcode might now start a countdown to disappear.

    ¡°Well then, let¡¯s begin. You guys have luck with Windfield¡¯s strategy.¡±

    Well, I think that someone from the Marubell Empire or the Sacred Country Kamel will go bald before the Minister will.

 Chapter 80 Fallen Castle

    <h4>Chapter 80 Fallen Castle</h4>

    ¡°Are they¡¯re really attacking!? ¡±

    Noon of the next day.

    After waiting for the arrival of the Mithril alloy-equipped army of Earl Lumberjack, the entirety of thebined army under the Second Princeunched an all-out attack on the Royal Castle.

    ¡°Fret not!¡¡The difference in strength will be decisive!¡¡We just need to earn some time!¡¡Hold the castle!¡¡It¡¯ll be our win if we endure until reinforcements arrive! ¡±

    The Prime Minister Val issued thosemands towards the Third Knight Order¡¯s captain, Djarum, as he flustered asked him.

    However, a few minutester, the Prime Minister noticed the presence of the Mithril alloy armed soldiers.

    The Lumberjack soldiers formed a line without any gap and moving in unison, they pushed back the First Prince¡¯s faction soldiers into the castle.

    The difference in equipment was as clear as day. Mithril swords and spears which could defeat enemies in one blow, and Mithril armor that could withstand two or three strikes. Moreover, its extreme lightweight provided excellent mobility. And there were 2,000 soldiers equipped with such gear. Normal soldiers were no match against them.

    ¡°Magic Curtain, ready!¡¡¡­¡­Fire! ¡±

    They were not the only active reinforcements. Particrly notable were the mages of the First Royal Court Magician Division.

    Taking advantage of their mobility, they moved to their sidelines and used Magic Curtain¨D¨DThat is, continuous ¡¶First Form¡· spells. The enemy army was shocked by the heavy rain-like ¡¾Magic¡¿ fire, being shot at them from diagonally in front of them. Since they didn¡¯t know a way tobat it, they simply started to turn tail and run.

    The most effective aspect of that rain of spells was the fact that it didn¡¯t stop. Unlike the ¡¶Second Form¡· and ¡¶First Form¡· spells, ¡¾Magic¡¿ of the ¡¶First Form¡·spells had a very small preparation and cooldown timers. By firing in tandem and taking turns, the First Royal Court Magician Division achieved a continuous rain. It would be pointless if their spells did the same harm as a pea shot, but here, the increase of their INT became visible. As a result, the power was so serious that it simply couldn¡¯t be ignored. In other words, the number of injured soldiers increased immediately. This, in a way, was more troublesome than a high death toll.

    ¡°Fuck!¡¡Temporary retreat!¡¡Rearrange the formations and strike at that mage division on the side! ¡±

    In such confusion, themander of the enemy army gave those instructions and tried to rebuild the soldier lines somehow.

    Then, as something fell to the ground¡­¡­ Even more fear struck them.

    ¡°! ? ¡±

    As he raised his sword to issue those instructions, themander¡¯s arm was blown away in an instant.

    Nobody present understood what had happened.

    ¡°I-It¡¯s a sniper¡­¡­! ¡±

    Themander yelled in a coarse voice. At this point, terror and confusion had spread all across the soldiers.

    But that was only obvious. This had been an ¡¾Archery¡¿ attack that could blow off their arms even while being covered in armor in a single shot, and could snipe them from an unknown position¡­¡­No matter how they struggled, this was hell.

    They all must have been thinking this: ¡°Next will be my head¡±.

    It was abined attack of Grade 9 ¡¶Rook Archery¡· and Grade 9 ¡¶Knight Archery¡·¨D¨DAn attack from Silvia Virginia.

    ¡°Retreat!¡¡Retreat! ¡±

    ¡­¡­And so, it ended. The Second Prince¡¯s faction sessfully surrounded the Royal Castle.

    It didn¡¯t even take two hours since the war begun. It was a splendid end of campaign where only the minimum number of pieces were used. Probably only possible because being under themand of Windfield.

    _____________________________________

    ¡°Where did they hide such force!?¡¡And where on earth did they get this amount of mithril armor to fit this many soldiers!? ¡±

    Not being able to ept the scene in front of him, the Prime Minister held his head in an attempt to escape this reality.

    He was ignorant to the fact that it had been Second the one who had collected all this mithril in just a month or so. No, he knew he had been gathering mithril. But he never expected it would be this many of it.

    ¡°Where are those reinforcements!?! ¡±

    Running out of patience, he opened hismunication device. And over and over again he tried to make contact.

    However¡­¡­He had yet to receive a formal response to his request for reinforcements.

    He waited, and waited, but no matter how long, there was no response.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I see.¡±

    At this point, it finally dawned on him.

    He had been abandoned.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­WHY¡­¡­WHY DID THIS¡­¡­AAAAHHHHH, AAAAGHHH¡­¡­! ¡±

    His insides seethed with anger. His voice turned into not so much like a voice but a suffering and frightened wail.

    If reinforcements came, they could win. If the Empire sent their reinforcements, even these mithril armed soldiers would be trivial.

    And yet, even with that¨D¨D!

    The Prime Minister was so angry that the sound of his teeth grinding could be heard. Blood gradually dripped from his gripped fist.

    ¡°DAMN THEEEEM!! ¡±

    _____________________________________

    ¡°Everyone, move.¡±

    Outside the gate, Eko called out to the people in a cheerful voice.

    The besieging soldiers,plying to the words of Eko, cleared a path.

    Eko then, as she readied herself to run to the gate, she prepared to activate ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·. This wasn¡¯t a defensive ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill. It was a¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill to attack.

    This was a skill that added a multiplicative value of VIT to STR, a rushing attack made by jumping forward. And her ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡· was at Grade 9. This meant the bonus was 250%. Its power was unfathomable.

    ¡°Transform! ¡±

    On top of that, she used ¡¶Transform¡·. Its rank was Grade 1. Making it buff all stats by 280%.

    It became all noisy, regardless of them being enemies or allies. It was a shock for those seeing the ¡¶Transform¡· skill for the first time. In the case of Eko, it was Earth Attribute Transform. The appearance of Eko, dressed in rugged rock armor, was almost like seeing a demonic child d in warrior¡¯s armor.

    ¡°Here I cooome! ¡±

    ¡°Whenever you¡¯re ready! ¡±

    When Eko issued that signal, Silvia, who had been in a position far in the back replied. She had also used ¡¶Transform¡·. The skills she was preparing were a Combine of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· Grade 9, ¡¶Knight Archery¡· Grade 9, and ¡¶Fire Attribute?Third Form¡· Grade 9, apound ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿skill¨D¨DThis was currently, her highest firepower attack.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go! ¡±

    ¡°Oookaay! ¡±

    Just before Silvia fired, Eko activated ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡· with a face full of smiles and rushed towards the gate. Their synergy was outstanding, after all they were able to dops around the Limptfert dungeon them alone.

    ¡°This is bad¡±¨D¨DDespite this being the attack of only two people, the soldiers of the First Prince faction intuitively sensed the danger and fired their bows all at once.

    It should¡¯ve been a rain of arrows that made it impossible for anybody to approach. However¡­¡­ Eko¡¯s rush blew everything that hit therge shield away, turning it into dust and not stopping at all. This was the frightening ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡· skill.

    ¡°BA©`©`©`ANG! ¡±

    ¡°! ? ! ? ¡±

    Almost at the same time Eko¡¯s rush hit the castle¡¯s gate, Silvia released her ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ skill.

    The force of the impact made the walls themselves shake¡­¡­And the gate was destroyed alongside a huge roar.

    That¡¯s impossible!¡¡There¡¯s no way a living person can destroy the castle gate with a single attack!

    Everyone thought this, but they were denied by the terrifying sight in front of them.

    Nobody of the ones present here would believe one was a former ostracized knight, and the other was a beast person shunned as a failure in the Royal Magic Academy.

    ¡°All forces, charge! ¡±

    And thus, the castle gate was easily broken through.

    Usually, it would take dozens of soldiers using siege weapon, being showered by a rain of arrows, magic, stones and boiled oil. And only after attacking the castle gate over and over again, it would somewhat break. But here, with only two people and a single attack, it was destroyed without receiving any damage.

    A siege battle should¡¯ve been advantageous for the Prime Minister. Whatever happened, they should¡¯ve been able to hold out for a few days. However, who on earth could¡¯ve expected the gate to be broken right at the start, in the blink of an eye.

    ¡­¡­No. The Prime Minister should¡¯ve taken some counter measures after seeing Second the previous day destroy the wall of the training grounds. That is, if it was even possible to take measures in just one day.

    But this was a game of speed¡­¡­ As Windfield had said, a super-fast battle that didn¡¯t leave room for the opponent to make a move. Like Oda Nobunaga, who after having both fortresses of Marune and Washizu attacked, left Kiyosu Castle just before dawn, and within half a day, and taking advantage of the heavy rain, he surprise-attacked the Imagawa army at Dengaku-Hazama, a lightning fast battle.

    (TLN: I¡¯m not sure on the uracy of this as I just tranted it as it was written and I¡¯m not really versed in Japanese history)

    The desperate siege battle was broken in an instant. Mithril alloy geared soldiers stormed into the castle from therge hole where the castle gate used to be located, and nobody could stop them.

    Then. The castle, in the blink of an eye, had fallen¨D¨D

    ******

    ¡°They really got us.¡±

    In arge room so gorgeous that the word ¡°luxury¡± wasn¡¯t enough to make it justice, a man spoke to himself.

    Good looks that anybody would envy. A perfect body in every aspect. A man with no less presence than the room itself.

    ¡°What do you think, Merson?¡±

    ¡°I think we should¡¯ve sent reinforcements.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, I thought so. But this isn¡¯t what I was referring to.¡±

    Sitting in front of the man was a young woman, that considered their age differences, one would think as her daughter. She was an exquisite beauty with an atmosphere simr to that of the man.

    ¡°The subordination of the Kingdom ended up in failure. That being the case, maybe we need to change our approach.¡±

    ¡°Hoo. Do you have something in mind already? Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    Seemingly interested, and acting like spoiling a child, the man urged the woman to continue.

    ¡°If it were me, I would win over the Kingdom and admonish the Sacred Country.¡±

    ¡°And how would you win them over?¡¡With this time¡¯s issue, the Kingdom will be wary.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a simple answer. Wouldn¡¯t it work out if I were to marry into them?¡±

    There was a moment of silence. The man erased his previous smile and faced the woman.

    ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. However, a daughter like you is more precious than the Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Your praise is wasted in me.¡±

    ¡°Do you think I was trying to praise you?¡¡That¡¯s wrong. It would be naive to think that by marrying a little boy like Maine we would be able to obtain the Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Why so? Even if he¡¯s young, he¡¯ll still be the King of the country.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be an idiot. You don¡¯t seem to understand anything from this one piece.¡±

    ¡°Is that¡­¡­ is that rted as to why you rejected the request for reinforcements, Father? ¡±

    ¡°You heard the Shadow¡¯s report too, right?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You jest, wasn¡¯t that really meant to be taken as some kind of joke?¡±

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡You said it. Well, just wait and see. It will be a good learning experience for you.¡±

    ¡°Understood. If you say so, Father.¡±

    ¡°The Sacred Country won¡¯t be able to put their hands in the Kingdom again. This will be a sight to see.¡±

    ¡°Looks like you¡¯re having fun, Father.¡±

    ¡°Indeed, they picked a fight with a man like that. Why should I not enjoy it?¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Haaa, I don¡¯t want to do it¡­¡­¡±

    On the way to the frontier.

    I was worrying all by myself. I kept on thinking about how do you apologize to a friend after getting angry and having offended them.

    Speaking of which, when was thest time I used ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·?

    It¡¯s been since that incident when she almost killed her allies, right?

    Thinking about dealing with it some other time, I simply put that off forter. I was just unconsciously avoiding it since I didn¡¯t really know how to deal with it. All this issue with her.

    However, the time hase. That¡¯s all there is.

    Atst, I have to make up my mind.

    Born in the darkness of the underground library of the upper-ss dungeon ¡ºIsoreus¡», a mutant species of the Dark me Wolf, the Darkness Wolf¨D¨DAnko.

    A trump card that I spent every day for several months to acquire, but also, an oversizednd mine that I don¡¯t really know how to deal with.

    To be honest, I¡¯m a little scared.

    I don¡¯t know what am I scared of in particr, but I afraid of meeting her face to face again and exchange words.

    Maybe it¡¯s my feelings of guilt from having ignored her for a long time or a sense of shame for trying to use her as a tool, or maybe just primordial fear. Or probably¡­¡­her ¡°too heavy affection¡±, which I¡¯ve noticed slightly.

    Well, I¡¯ll never know unless we meet up and talk.

    ¡°¡­¡­Shall I call her?¡±

    It¡¯s been three hours since I started worrying. I finally made up my mind.

    Fortunately, it¡¯ste at night. Right now, I¡¯m in the middle of an overnight journey.

    Stopping by the side of the road, I got off Seventh Tei¨­.

    In this dim forest road, only the moonlight illuminates the surroundings. I take one deep breath¡­¡­Then activate ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·.

    Immediately after. As if darkness turned and twisted itself, the void slowly took the shape of a bewitching woman wearing ck garments, revealing her.

    Narrowed eyes and a gently smiling face from which you couldn¡¯t feel a specific expression. Then, she silently kneeled down on the spot and bowed her head.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silence followed.

    A few secondster, I remembered. At that time, I ordered her ¡°Do not take any action without my permission¡±.

    ¡­¡­Does this mean Anko is obeying my orders even though I¡¯ve neglected her for such a long time?

    At the same time a chill runs down my spine, a question arises. What makes her do that? Thinking about it, I don¡¯t know much about her.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have kept you waiting. I don¡¯t mind if you speak.¡±

    When I gave her permission, Anko bowed further down and respectfully spoke.

    ¡°Ahh, my Lord. My beloved Lord. I wanted to see you.¡±

    And again, silence followed.

    ¡­¡­Was that all?¡¡After I ignored her for a long time since I thought it was troublesome to handle her, she tells me she loves me and she wanted to see me¡­¡­ is that really everything?

    This gave me a mysteriously pleasant feeling. Like when after you apologize to a friend who you thought was angry, then you feel as if they weren¡¯t angry at all. No, that¡¯s not all. Behind this relief was the guilty pleasure of having obtained a woman who had absolute obedience to me. A convenient woman. Seems like in the end, I¡¯ll take advantage of her.

    But, that¡¯s no good. No good. I will hold off temptation with a resolute spirit.

    ¡°Speak your true feelings, Anko. You and I need to speak byying everything on the table.¡±

    Squatting down, I talked while looking at Anko¡¯s eyes.

    Making a surprised face, with her eyes in the shape of a ¥Ï and her eyes moistened, Anko began to put together her words.

    ¡°Only you can kill me(stop me), my Lord. Only you can let me live(make the best use of me), my Lord. I can¡¯t help but love you unconditionally, my Lord. That¡¯s all there is to it. I¡¯m just satisfied with you, my Lord, having released me from that binding spell from God.¡±

    ¡°In other words, you love me just because I tamed you? ¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong!¡¡I love you because you are you, my Lord. Not just anyone, but because it¡¯s you, my Lord! ¡±

    A fervent confession. It makes me quite happy. Happy¡­¡­But I¡¯m not quite convinced. Does she have absolute obedience because she loves me?¡¡Did she put up with it because she loves me?¡¡Is this alright with her?

    ¡°¡­¡­You have a face as if this doesn¡¯t make sense for you, my Lord. It¡¯s alright, I have made up my mind. I will talk more thoroughly.¡±

    Anko, who read my expression, spoke with a sharp face and a more serious expression. The dark mole next to her lips made her look very sexy.

    ¡°First of all, there¡¯s one thing you¡¯re misunderstanding, my Lord. It would be a huge mistake to think that I would love anyone who had tamed me. If you think otherwise, then please bring that person here right now!¡¡Do you understand? For me, now and in the future, you¡¯re the only one. My one and only.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    ¡°Next is. You¡¯ve apologized for keeping me waiting. Why so!?¡¡I have noint about being treated as your tool, my Lord. Rather, it feels very pleasant when you do!¡¡Of course, there¡¯s the desire of being closer and at your side a little more, but if I push it, there¡¯s still pleasure in the fact that I, a Darkness Wolf, would be neglected! ¡±

    ¡°O-okay¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Just by being used by you, I feel ecstatic!¡¡I can be at the zenith just by serving you!¡¡Ahhh, my Lord!¡¡I am yours, my Lord. My Lord¡¯s Anko!¡¡Just that is good enough!¡¡Absolutely do not forget that! ¡±

    ¡°I-I see. I get it. I¡¯m convinced! ¡±

    This packed quite the punch. I had no choice but to nod my head.

    Maybe, I¡¯ve opened a frightening Pandora¡¯s Box.

    ¡°Ahh, you being convinced is just great. My Lord, please use this Anko here as a tool by all means. Let me be your ughtering weapon. I will be the shield that protects you from anything. Here, I¡¯m at your will, my Lord.¡±

    Looking like she¡¯s in a euphoric state, Anko hugged my body.

    ¡­¡­I see, with this, I can be convinced.

    In retrospect, whenever I gave her an order, she has always this rapturous expression on her face. I suppose it is a pleasure for her to be ordered, to be used. After spending centuries in solitude as the strongest being, the Darkness Wolf, at the Isoreus¡¯ Underground Library, she rejoices at being used by a presence stronger than herself. And that just happened to be me. She has been waiting for decades, for centuries to find a crazy guy like me. And then, I appeared. For her, I¡¯m the only person in the world she can rely on. And that caused to ¡®be twisted¡¯. For her, this isn¡¯t described as a simple dependence, but as deep and dense love. Her life. Her soul. She stakes her whole body and soul to me.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ah¡­¡­¡±

    Just as she was about to touch my lips, I released her body. As she uttered a slightly disappointed voice, Anko, for some reason, looked many times more attractive than before.

    ¡°Don¡¯t make that face. You didn¡¯t do anything bad.¡±

    I, her master, must ept her overflowing twisted feelings. This is the responsibility of the man who named her, and also, the man who half-killed her 2,168 times.

    I have to stop avoiding it. Also, I need to stop making assumptions and deciding what¡¯s convenient for me. It was utterly meaningless trying not to stimte her. I need to face her head-on. That¡¯s all I need to do. Just that.

    We exchanged whispered words at a distance where we could sense each other¡¯s breath.

    ¡°I have a job for you. It¡¯s a big job.¡±

    ¡°Yes, it doesn¡¯t matter what it is.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­But before that.¡±

    ¡°My Lord, I¡¯m very happy. Ahhh, For Anko, this is the best reward¡­¡­¡±

    Anko said as she moved her face closer and her eyes moistened, so as to not let me finish.

    ¡°Please, take the lead, it¡¯s my first time.¡±

 Chapter 81 A happy miscalculation

    <h4>Chapter 81 A happy miscalction</h4>

    For about two hours, we had the best of times, to say the least. The cold night breeze touching my skin also feltfortable.

    However, right now we¡¯re in a situation where we can¡¯t be too rxed.

    ¡°When I spoke about a big job, it¡¯s about scaring thousands of soldiers. Can you do it? ¡±

    ¡°In what way where those people rude to you, my Lord?¡¡If so, then let¡¯s kill everyone we see.¡±

    She¡¯s joking¡­¡­ probably not. I¡¯m afraid she could really do it.

    ¡°Nah, just scaring them is enough. But we need to do it properly.¡±

    ¡°As you wish. I will fill every corner of their hearts with a drowning fear that would make them regret being alive. Fufufu¡­¡­Ahhh, I¡¯ll finally be able to be of service to you, my Lord¡­¡­¡±

    Those words she spoke felt quite reliable.

    However, I felt a bit of pity for her as she lied down, her head resting on myp. She said she couldn¡¯t stand up because her hips had given in. I guess even a wolf would falter halfway through.

    ¡°Can you stand up now? ¡±

    When I said that, I stroked her skin white as ceramic,pletely unresembling her name ¡®Darkness¡¯.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry for the inconvenience. Anko is alright now. Next time, I¡¯ll do my best to properly please you, my Lord.¡±

    She stood up with a bit of regret while saying such a thing. I wonder how on earth will she do her best? If you try and ask Yukari to teach you, I¡¯ll be the one doing his best to stop you. My body won¡¯t hold if there¡¯s another monster like that.

    Saying ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it¡±, Iforted her and walked up to Seventh Tei¨­.

    Immediately after, Anko made a sullen expression.

    ¡°My Lord. Please ride me, instead of such a horse.¡±

    ¡°Eh, can I ride you? ¡±

    ¡°Certainly! ¡±

    What a surprise. I couldn¡¯t ride her in Mobius.

    If I were to ride Anko in her ¡°wolf form¡±, the traveling speed surely will increase. It has a charm, to be honest. But¡­¡­

    ¡°But, what should I do about this guy?¡±

    Seventh Tei¨­ has been taking care of me so far. I¡¯d lie if I said there¡¯s no attachment. Should I drop her in some town nearby?

    While I was thinking about it, Anko approached Seventh Tei¨­, touching its skin. What the heck is she going to do?

    ¡°Worry not, my Lord. I will send this mare home.¡±

    What is she talking about?

    Just as that question came to my mind¨D¨DAnko used ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·.

    And immediately afterward. Seventh Tei¨­¡­¡­¡±Disappeared¡±.

    ¡°¡­¡­HAA!? ¡±

    What just happened?

    What did you do?¡¡Did you kill it instantly?¡¡Did you transfer it?¡¡Did you ¡¶Tame¡· the horse and ¡¶Unsummoned¡· her?¡¡No, that¡¯s impossible. Horses aren¡¯t monsters, so they aren¡¯t part of that system. Then, what just happened?

    I was left alone in the middle of the dark forest, filled with confusion.

    Then, Anko used ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· and returned.

    ¡°I left it in the garden.¡±

    ¡°HAA!?!? ¡±

    ¡°W-Was that alright!? ¡±

    Left it in the garden?¡¡In the garden, does she mean at house Firstest?¡¡To Seventh Tei¨­?¡¡In this very instant?

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­??

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Wait. Wait, wait, wait. I just noticed an incredible possibility. Or more like, I was made to notice.

    ¡°Yo-you, can it be¡­¡­ you can use Darkness Transfer no matter the distance?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s as you say. If it¡¯s a ¡®shadow¡¯ I remember, anywhere is possible.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No way, no way, did you use ¡°Darkness Summon¡± to get Seventh Tei¨­ to the destination you transferred? ¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes.¡±

    ¡°WHAAAAAAT!! ¡±

    ¡°HIIIIIAAA!¡¡I¡¯m very sorry! ¡±

    When I shouted in amazement, Anko reflexively apologized with an expression of rapture.

    This is incredible. Are you serious? I panickily checked Anko¡¯s skill¡¯s info.

    ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·: Instantly transfer yourself to a recorded location. However, the transfer destination must be a shadow.

    ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·: Human-form only. Instantly transfer something other than yourself to a recorded location. However, the transfer destination must be a shadow.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­It¡¯s true¡­¡­¡±

    Seriously¡­¡­ It says nothing about the distance. In the case of ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·¡¯s ¡®something other than yourself to a recorded location¡¯.¡­¡­Does that mean that it doesn¡¯t matter whether it¡¯s a person or a horse?

    I see I guess that¡¯s obvious¡­¡­I should¡¯ve noticed that just like with ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·, this works unlike in Mobius. ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· isn¡¯t a skill to just move around inbat. ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· isn¡¯t just a skill to call out her weapons.

    A nice miscalction¡­¡­no, a happy miscalction. It seems it really was worth the effort to almost die for four months. But if possible, I would¡¯ve wanted to notice this sooner.

    ¡°¡­¡­You, really are the strongest. Without equal.¡±

    I think I made her misunderstood something, so I told that to Anko, who was bowing her head.

    Anko looked up knowing I wasn¡¯t angry, however, she looked puzzled.

    How should I convey this excitement?¡¡My excitement was continuing to build up, so I just spoke my mind.

    ¡°If you say you¡¯re my tool, I¡¯ll have you stay with me until I die. I¡¯ve decided I¡¯m never letting you go.¡±

    ¡°¡«¡«¡«!!¡¡Ahh, my Lord! ¡±

    I was pushed down by an emotional Anko¡­¡­And as a result, we stayed in the forest for another hour ¡®hugging passionately¡¯.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------

    ¡°We¡¯ll move before dawn. Do you remember the port city of Ko? ¡±

    ¡°Yes, I certainly do. After all, that was the first ce I visited with you, my Lord.¡±

    ¡°In that case, transfer there and summon me. Please do it at a ce that¡¯s as inconspicuous as possible.¡±

    ¡°Certainly.¡±

    The border with the Sacred Country Kamel is further north from the port city of Ko. The border is by a small river that goes around the mountains and flows into the ocean.

    In the original schedule, I thought I could ride all morning and evening, and arrive by when the day changed, but now that Anko¡¯s special ability has been rified, I expect to arrive there while the sun is still high in the skies.

    ¡°¡­¡­Ohh¡­¡­¡±

    The scenery changed as if merging with the new one. Looks like I was summoned without a problem. The time is 2:00 am, and the location a wharf. Not a single soul in view. She summoned me ording to my instructions.

    However, why am I being embraced by Anko? Perhaps I was simply summoned to Anko¡¯s hand like when she uses ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· to call for her weapons, the Shadow Cane and the Dark me Spear. It isn¡¯t that bad though.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get going before the sun rises. When the sun is out, please bring back Seventh Tei¨­.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­As you wish.¡±

    When the name of Seventh Tei¨­ came out, Anko made a slightly displeased expression. Is she jealous of the horse?¡¡She a wolf, so I guess it¡¯s not impossible.

    ¡°Transform.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get on.¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    I tried giving her instructions on a stronger tone than usual. And sure enough, Anko replied very happily. Even if she used ¡¶Darkness Shift¡· to transform into wolf form, I could still tell her expression was one of happiness. I suppose her mood got better with this. Or rather, her tail is waving so much that it makes a buzz-like sound. And since her tail in wolf shape is several timesrger than her human form, it catches your eye even if you don¡¯t want to look at it.

    ¡°Go.¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    When I ordered so while at her back, Anko suddenly started to run at a zing speed.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Fast.

    She¡¯s as fast as arge motorcycle. To be honest, it¡¯s taking my everything to just hold on so as to not get thrown off. I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be able to have a conversation like this.

    ¡°S-Stop!¡¡Stop! ¡±

    I yelled desperately since we were on the wrong road. It¡¯s not because I was scared at all. No way.

    ¡°Go north along the sea, and when you hit the third river, go upstream.¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    Anko leaked a ¡¸Waffuu¡¹. If I had to trante it, I guess it would be something like ¡°Leave it to me!¡±. I¡¯d love if you didn¡¯t put your whole heart into it¨D¨D

    See!?

    She now started going as twice as fast as she was going before!

    NOOOOOOOO!

    Bubububububu¡­¡­!

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­Eh, she¡¯ll keep at it until dawn?

    ---------------------------------------------------------------

    ¡­¡­I had a terrible time.

    Especially at the corners. I can only call it a miracle that I wasn¡¯t thrown away and ended up flying at each V-turn. However, I had my dignity as a master to uphold. Let alone puking, I didn¡¯t even throw out aint. I properly endured it. I endured it for three hours. Or rather, she¡¯s totally a monster, for being able to keep that top speed for whole three hours. Wasn¡¯t endurance a privilege of the homo sapiens?

    ¡°Compared to that, you¡¯re kinda cute.¡±

    I leisurely walked alongside the river on top of Seventh Tei¨­ while gently patting it, in order to heal my mental wounds from that three-hour-long roller coaster. It would be a huge issue if Anko heard me saying this, so, for now, I used ¡¶Unsummon¡· to send her back, so I think it should be okay¡­¡­ Probably.

    However, it¡¯s also true that it was thanks to Form Anko that I was able to get here overwhelmingly earlier than nned. For that, I¡¯m grateful to her. Thank you, Anko. I will never ever ride on you except for an emergency.

    ¡°Fuu. Atst.¡±

    Then, after advancing for a while, I finally reached a mountain. This ce marks the national border. The valley after crossing this mountain is the frontier and the ce where thend of the Sacred Country Kamel starts.

    I rode Seventh Tei¨­ while looked at the mountain in my right. It¡¯s the final part of the journey.

    About an hourter, I finally saw the fort of the Margrave, in the basin between the mountains. Far ahead, a line of soldiers can also be seen, allegedly belonging to the Sacred Country Kamel. As expected of Windfield, the situation is as she predicted.

    Well, first of all, let¡¯s go greet the Margrave. Hmm, what was his name again? ¡­¡­Well, it doesn¡¯t matter, I¡¯m just saying hello.

    I ran to the back of the fort and asked one of the soldiers.

    ¡°Is the Margrave inside? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes?¡¡Y-Yeah, I suppose. What? ¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, I leave this guy in your care.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡¡Okay. EHH!? ¡±

    I left Seventh Tei¨­ with the bewildered soldier and entered the fort through the back door for soldiers.

    Maybe because I entered with a confident face, as if I owned the ce, nobody said anything to me. Not quite the security, huh?

    ¡°Hey. Where is the Margrave? ¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡¡Please, this way! ¡±

    The soldier that I called out suddenly guided me very politely. Now that I think of, I¡¯m currently wearing pretty good and rare clothes. Taking a nce around, everyone here looks like a soldier. So, maybe the soldiers mistook me for a guest or something.

    ¡°¨D¨DAhh, you came. That was fast, Second-kun.¡±

    I guess I was wrong. It seems the Margrave informed them in advance.

    When I entered the room, I was greeted by a handsome man in his early 30¡¯s with sses. I wonder if this man is the Margrave? However, how did he get information on me?

    ¡°My bad, I haven¡¯t introduced myself. My name is Steam Bitter-Valley. I¡¯ve been entrusted as the lord of the frontier in the Castall Kingdom. I wonder if you¡¯re really Second Firstest? ¡±

    Margrave Steam Bitter-Valley. A calm and easygoing person. But that also seems to be a front. In this short self-introduction, he tried to establish who was on top. In that case, I can only answer this.

    ¡°I am, but looking at your attitude, you don¡¯t seem to think so.¡±

    ¡°Forgive my rudeness. I wee you to my fort, my guest.¡±

    Without hesitation, he bowed down and weed me as if to try and dodge thatment. However, calling me a guest means he will offer little resistance. It looks like he¡¯s a good-natured person.

    ¡°You don¡¯t look like a negligent person, so I¡¯ll give it to you. Maine¡¯s letter.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You also don¡¯t look like a bad person. Then, this means you¡¯re the special envoy of the next King?¡±

    We both shared augh. Uhehehehe, hehehehe!¡¡I¡¯ve won. In your face. Call me an opportunist.¡¡Call me acting arrogant through borrowed authority.¡¡I don¡¯t care.

    I drank up the tea that was served as a way to say ¡®greetings are over¡¯, and opened my mouth.

    ¡°How did you get information about me? ¡±

    ¡°I too have an informationwork. It¡¯s just, that information only arrived a little earlier than you, Lord Second.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? What are your thoughts on this battle? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think there will be a problem even if you don¡¯t participate right now. However, there mighte a situation where we might have to ask you to involve yourself.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just in time then.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, just right. However¡­¡­I¡¯d really love to see if you could truly do something about it.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha!¡¡Hahahaha! ¡±

    ¡°Hahahahah! ¡±

    This guy is really interesting.

    ¡°Peel off your eyes and look closely. Also, thank me for being in the Castall Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°By all means, I will be paying close attention. If you can drive them away, I¡¯ll pray to the Kamel God even if I don¡¯t believe in it, or even to yourself.¡±

    ---------------------------------------------------------------

    ¡°As a matter of fact, the current situation is that we¡¯re just staring at each other past the border line.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think anything will happen if you stay put, right? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, if only things remained as they are. However¡­¡­it seems they will be performing a public execution tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Did they catch someone? ¡±

    ¡°Yes. One scout.¡±

    ¡°Are you stupid? ¡­¡­That is-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m aware. Sure enough, they will make him into a spy or assassin, ce some crime under him, and execute him just to provoke us. The reason the execution was not today is probably that they haven¡¯t gotten much information from him. They intend to torture him day and night. Or maybe they¡¯re wanting us to get impatient. Haa¡­¡­Yeah, I know that much.¡±

    This guy said ¡°I¡¯ll have to take matters into my hands¡±, as a way of saying he was going to erase that mistake of the scout getting caught. Hey, that¡¯s¡­¡­

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to make that face¡­¡­I too am worried. However, I can¡¯t just abandon him. He¡¯s one of my precious men. If I remain silent and ignore the execution, the morale in here will drop tremendously.¡±

    ¡°Will you endanger the Kingdom for one of them? ¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡¡No, it won¡¯t turn into a crisis.¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡±

    I¡¯ve decided that we¡¯re going to stop the execution because you¡¯re here, Lord Second. If you hadn¡¯te, I¡¯d have abandoned him even if it pained me.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You¡¯re really into lip service, huh?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m often told that.¡±

    I was somewhat convinced. This guy told me he was thirty-three. At that age, you can¡¯t just simply be a Margrave if you¡¯re not talented. He has a somewhat crooked character though.

    ¡°Well, fine. Let¡¯s confirm the operation then. The Margrave army will split into left and right wings, and wait around the fortress in the case of an enemy attack. If that doesn¡¯t happen, then wait in front of the fort in order to charge at any time. Aside from that, leave everything to me.¡±

    ¡°Will that really work out? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Or rather, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll get a turn. And one more thing¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°What is it? ¡±

    ¡°I ask you that, as much as possible, do not disclose what will happen tonight.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡­¡­I thought he meant by those words that this was ¡°for his personal convenience¡±.

    Everyone hides their own trump cards. So, I guessed he was the same. Well, isn¡¯t he just an ordinary person? Those were my thoughts.

    A man able to change the current situation in the Castall Kingdom by himself alone. I¡¯d lie if I say I wasn¡¯t a bit disappointed as to what I was expecting.

    And thus, the veil of night fell.

    It was a quiet night, one that screamed ¡®decisive battle¡¯.

    ¡°Everyone, take your positions.¡±

    I myself will lead the charge in this battle. I told that as an excuse, but I really didn¡¯t want to lose that scout. I¡¯d probably have charged nheless even if he hadn¡¯te.

    The number of enemy soldiers lying in wait can be expected to be 8,000 at the most. And even if we add the 4,000 at the center, they¡¯re 12,000. My army is 7,000 strong. We can¡¯t be a match for them. But this was a bet, if we could crush down the center in one swoop, and then retreat to the fort, that would give us the advantage. If the borderline is maintained as it is and we focus on defense, achieving peace isn¡¯t an unreasonable challenge. I didn¡¯t have to rely on him since I was already prepared for that.

    However, I was curious. How many of the rumors about him are true?

    If I borrow his strength and give him credit, then I won¡¯t have to put my men in danger. There was also that calcted idea. That¡¯s why I weed him as a reinforcement.

    But right now. What¡¯s with that lousy strategy of his?¡¡It makes me worried if this is really okay. When I saw his face, I thought he was an interesting fellow, but since then it¡¯s been disappointment after disappointment. Until just before his departure, his reputation formand kept dropping.

    It¡¯s as if you¡¯re leisurely going out for a pic. Even though my subordinate¡¯s life is at stake. I wanted to yell at him. I wanted to strike some sense into that head of his. This is war. It¡¯s not a ce to y.

    ¡­¡­But.

    It was me, the one who ended being struck.

    ¡°¨D¨DCome, Anko.¡±

    He summoned ¡®something¡¯.

    A ¡®something¡¯ that made your hairs stand on their end.

    Seeing ¡®that¡¯ kneeling beside him, made me instantly realize. That¡¯s not a living thing.

    ¡­¡­A daunting silence fell upon the ce. Nobody present was able to move a muscle in front of ¡®that¡¯.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    And with that word. Thinking it was gone, it reappeared. Seeing it change shape, then again, changed back. And once again, it disappears. From light to darkness, from darkness to light. The man and woman ran amok the battlefield, almost like angels, or maybe, like demons. I couldn¡¯t think of anything and just stood there, watching this scene unfold.

    The darkness gathering and condensing, like converging all the despair in the world¨D¨Dand immediately afterward, I felt nauseous, and at the same time, I understood the meaning of his words.

    This is something I shouldn¡¯t tell others.

    No, this is something I can¡¯t tell.

    This¡­¡­This very picture of hell¡­¡­!

 Chapter 82 Picture of Hell

    <h4>Chapter 82 Picture of Hell</h4>

    ¡°Forming a line and pointing your weapons towards my Lord¡­¡­Ahh, how stupid.¡±

    The summoned Anko muttered some words looking at the 4,000 soldiers in front. It was a gentle voice, simr to one speaking to a dying person.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    With the instructions somewhat given, I signaled the start of the operation.

    Immediately after, Anko suddenly moved to the middle of the enemy camp using ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·. Any shadow that was visible to her was a potential target for the transfer.

    ¡°¨D¨DWha-¡­¡­!? ¡±

    One soldier from the Sacred Country Kamel voiced, flustered with surprise. Well, that¡¯s to be expected. After all, the woman d in ck that should¡¯ve been far away at the enemy line suddenly appeared in front of him.

    ¡°Stupid humans.¡±

    Muttering some words, Anko followed by using ¡¶Darkness Shift¡·.

    Darkness twirled and melted, and from that spot, arge 2-meter ck wolf appeared¨D¨D And so, the soldiers were terrified.

    ¡°A m-monster¨D¨D! ¡±

    Why is there a monster here!? Like that, confusion spread, and then.

    ¡°Don¡¯t falter! Surround it! We have the advantage! ¡±

    They pulled themselves together.

    The soldiers surrounded Anko, rushing at her with spears.

    Dozens of spearmen pierced the wolf-shaped Anko at the same time. That looks like ¡¶Silver Spearmanship¡·, huh? Well, not like it matters. After all¡­¡­

    ¡°It didn¡¯t work, right?¡±

    Looking at it from a distance, I muttered to myself. For some reason, I felt a bit sympathetic to the soldiers of the Sacred Country.

    Why it didn¡¯t work, you wonder? The reason is simple. It¡¯s the basics of the Darkness Wolf taming, ¡¸Physical attacks are nullified when in wolf-form, magic attacks are nullified when in human-form¡¹.

    ¡°I-It¡¯s uninjured¡­¡­!? ¡±

    The battlefield was a wreath of chaos.

    The deadly attack that everyone believed would be fatal to the monsters who had suddenly appeared, didn¡¯t work.

    There¡¯s nothing we can do against it¨D¨DThey thought. Or at least by their expressions, I¡¯m sure all the soldiers thought so.

    ¡°! ¡±

    Immediately after, Anko made an inhaling motion. That¡¯s ¡¶Darkness Howl¡·. A wolf-form only skill an ultra-long-range attack thatbines both magic and physical attributes.

    As an attack, it isn¡¯t that hard to avoid¡­¡­But, what will they do?

    ¡°Something ising! ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­R-Retreat! ¡±

    Seems like they¡¯ll run from it. Yeah, that¡¯s the correct choice.

    ¡°! ¡±

    An ominous mass of darkness gushed out from Anko¡¯s wide-opened mouth. She was deliberately shooting it ¡®diagonally up¡¯. It seems she was ying it smart.

    ¡°H-HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!! ¡±

    The Kamel soldiers let out a pitiful sound in fright. Here, on the other side, the Castall Kingdom¡¯s soldiers were also quite scared¡­¡­ well, it doesn¡¯t really matter.

    ¡°Alright, it seems it¡¯s now my turn.¡±

    Seeing the Sacred Country¡¯s soldiers beginning to withdraw, I activated ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·.

    ¡°£¨Possession. £©¡±

    ¡°£¨As you wish. £©¡±

    Before Angolmois started to rage about Anko, I immediately ordered him to use ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·. Right after that, a rainbow-colored aura exploded.

    ¡°Ohh¡­¡­!? ¡±

    From behind me, I heard some murmurs from what seemed to be the Margrave¡¯s soldiers. This might be the first time they witness Spirit Possession. I know, I get it, it looks very cool. Me too, when I was a beginner, I yearned for it.

    ¡°It¡¯s hunting time.¡±

    ¡°£¨I see. My blood is boiling! £©¡±

    Silently sharing my thoughts, I rushed forth. My aim was their nk. With a high-speed movement that left behind afterimages, I closed the distance with the enemy soldiers in the blink of an eye.

    ¡°Sorry if you die! ¡±

    After uttering a few words, I prepared ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·¡­¡­And exactly four secondster, I unleashed it, drawing a line just by their nk.

    ¡°Here Ie! ¡±

    The shock wave moved through the ground with a roaring sound, dirt, and sand blowing sky high almost like a wave of earth.

    ¡°HIII!? ¡±

    Some of the enemy soldiers got so scared they soiled their pants.

    When the dust settled down, the gouged ground revealed a beautiful straight line, just as I intended. This was a warning. A warning that if they go beyond here, I won¡¯t guarantee their lives. And sure enough, the soldiers of the Sacred Country Kamel continued their desperate retreat, keeping away from that gouged line.

    ¡°What is that!? What the heck is that!? ¡±

    They no longer looked like enemies. However, as one would expect from trained soldiers. Their formation had yet to copse.

    ¡°¨D¨DUfufufu. Wee.¡±

    Before I knew it, Anko changed into a human form using ¡¶Darkness Shift¡·and used ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· to appear in front of them.

    In their eyes¡­¡­ Despair. At that moment, the soldiers¡¯ feetpletely stopped.

    ¡°Come, Dark me Spear.¡±

    Anko used ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·¨D¨DAnd a huge spear, one that looked to be three times her height, materialized. Even I was prepared back then, thinking ¡°If she brings it out, it¡¯s over¡±. Her strongest and most terrifying weapon. In other words, Anko entered ¡°Mighty Mode¡±.

    ¡°Fufu¡­¡­¡±

    With her eyes sharply narrowed and her mouth in the form of a gentle smile, Anko swung the spear as if it were a wooden stick. At the same time, ck mes gushed from the tip of the spear, scorching the ground in an area of about ten meters beyond her, but the firepower still flew beyond that.

    The earth, rocks, encampment tents, and even the barricades were burnt to cinders. Every time Anko swung her Dark me Spear, everything beyond her instantly turned into scorched earth.

    ¡°Whaaaaaaa! ¡±

    The soldiers could no longer keep up with what was happening before them.

    Escape? No, Flee. Completely losing their will to fight, they all turned their back to Anko and fled in fear.

    ¡°We¡¯re still not done here.¡±

    Did they think I would let them escape? When I saw them running towards here, I once again used ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·. Seeing the explosion of flying debris, like a volcano erupting before them, they were forced to change their route.

    Anko is in front of them, I¡¯m on their left, and the Margrave¡¯s army is at their backs. Thus, they inevitably tried to escape to the right.

    ¡°I can¡¯t allow you to.¡±

    Once again, Anko used ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· to instantly move to their right side.

    They made an ¡°Oh, please give me a break! ¡°, sort of face. I could almost hear the voice in the soldiers¡¯ minds.

    Without any choice left, the soldiers then ran away to the front, to the ce where Anko was at just a little while ago.

    ¡°That won¡¯t do.¡±

    Preparing ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·, I targeted the ce just before them.

    ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡· is a skill thatnds a very powerful ranged attack at the point of impact. Its preparation time is 6 seconds, which is long, but the range and power have nothing to criticize. This is a ¡¾Archery¡¿ skill with limited uses.

    Zudon! After that sound, the impact caused a shock as if a bomb had fallen. Thending point of that ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡· shot was a gouged-out circle, resembling a crater.

    ¡°UUAAAAAAAA! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON, SERIOUSLY!?! ¡±

    The ¡®hunting time¡¯ was proceeding perfectly. Almost too perfectly.

    Then, for a few more minutes, they were sandwiched between me and Anko and were being toyed with as if we were ying dodge ball.

    At one point. I casually noticed enemy soldiers approaching my location. A cavalry squad. So, they finally came! Their aim should be to break through me since it¡¯s impossible for them to defeat Anko.

    Certainly, with ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· having ended already, I¡¯m currently just a single man. And, for all intents and purposes, I¡¯m just a normal human being. They might be thinking, ¡°We can beat this guy¡±, ¡°It¡¯s way better than fighting that monster¡±.

    ¡°We¡ª¨Cll, it¡¯s a shame! Transform! ¡±

    The moment the cavalry was about to strike me, I activated ¡¶Transform¡·. I used the 8 seconds of invincibility of the ¡¶Transform¡· skill to knock down the attacking cavalry. The attackers felt as if they had hit against a wall, and most of them had fallen and no longer functioned as cavalry.

    However, it wasn¡¯t possible to stop them from follow on that attack. Thus, I was surrounded by enemy soldiers in no time.

    ¡°Take this! ¡±

    Out of the 8 seconds, six are used toplete the transformation. In other words, there are two more seconds of ¡®moving while invincible; that¡¯s the real thrill of the ¡¶Transform¡· skill.

    As the enemy soldiers surrounded me, I simply ran around the rest of the cavalry, knocking them down with an innocent smile. Then, while I prepared abined skill of ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· and ¡¶Fire Attribute?First Form¡·¡¯s ¡¾Magic Archery¡¿ in those two seconds, I sent out the ¡®signal¡¯. Afterward¨D¨D

    ¡°Wee back, my Lord.¡±

    Just as nned, I was now being held in her chest after she used ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·.

    All the soldiers surrounding me went ¡°Huh!? ¡°, judging from their expressions. It looked like some sort of magic trick.

    ¡°¡­¡­Well then.¡±

    The enemy soldiers who ran away in fear of Anko are considerably in the back. We stood there, with our backs to them. As for the reason¡­¡­

    ¡°Sounds like they¡¯vee.¡±

    Listening carefully. From beyond the darkness, the sound of thousands of military boots and clinking armor echoed.

    The ambushing troops¨D¨DIn other words, the reinforcements from the Sacred Country Kamel.

    Their numbers, as estimated by Windfield, were eight to ten thousand.

    ¡°Please leave this to me.¡±

    Anko gave me a heart-felt smile, putting away her Dark me Spear afterward.

    The dim moonlight together with the torches burning in the rear of the Sacred Country soldiers¡¯ formation revealed their numbers. Forming rows and rows, the reinforcements approached in a siege formation.

    Seeing this made a chill run down my spine. No matter how strong we are, getting surrounded by this number of enemies will be tough. An instinctive fear started to swell inside me.

    ¡°Here Ie.¡±

    Uttering those words, Anko left without even an ounce of fear, and after quietly walking a few steps, disappearing and appearing in front of them with ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·.

    Those soldiers must¡¯ve been puzzled. What is a woman alone going to do against ten thousand soldiers? They wondered.

    And thus¡­¡­Their strategy of hiding in the dark and trying to make a surprise attack would end up backfiring on them.

    ¡°Fufu, FUFUFUFU! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHA! ¡±

    An alluringugher, loud enough that it was even heard at my location.

    And, in a moment¨D¨DAn evil ¡°mist¡± erupted from Anko, dark enough to be clearly seen even in the obscurity of the night.

    Suddenly, my heart felt hard-pressed, and my body stiffed. My brain, knowing the terrible and deadly nature of that ¡¾Magic¡¿, started to unintentionally give off warning signals.

    ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·¡­¡­Anybody whom that dark mist touches will have their HP forcibly lowered to 1.

    That fear. This fear of theirs. I can¡¯t even begin to imagine it.

    In the darkness of the night, aughing woman and a mysterious ck fog suddenly appeared. And without warning, in a ce where you can barely make up the distance to the soldier next to you, your HP bes 1¨D¨D

    ¡°WOAAAAAAHHHH!! ¡±

    Panic ensued.

    Only a few hundreds to a thousand of the soldiers that were at the front rows were hit directly by ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·. However, only that was enough to drag them all to a hellish fear.

    No. This wasn¡¯t something as mild as panic. What would happen if you¡¯re in the middle of a restless mob with just 1 HP left?

    To put it simply, you¡¯ll die. If you were to fall, you¡¯d die soon after.

    The people desperately running from the front in horror collided with the people marching forward and died. And the ones advancing just saw them die without knowing the reason. Such abnormal sight was happening here and there among the toon of soldiers.

    Some of them appeared to be drinking potions, slowly recovering. However, potions that quickly recovered from being left with 1 HP were expensive, so they were rarely distributed among the normal soldiers. They had no room to wait for the recovery magicians to arrive, to their only remaining option was to keep drinking a number of cheap potions. In that way, with some people died and some on the brink of death, the morale finally copsed, leaving them in no shape to put up a fight.

    ¡°Retreat!! ¡±

    And thus, in the middle of the darkness, with fear and confusion spreading, many of the Sacred Country reinforcements were either dead or dying, therefore forcing them to withdraw early.

    ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· has a cooldown time of 3,600 seconds. Meaning, it can¡¯t be used for another hour¡­¡­However, that¡¯s a fact the enemymander wasn¡¯t aware of. So, not knowing when that frightening fog would descend upon them again, they had no other choice but to escape.

    ¡°Ahh, how cute. Come on, run away faster.¡±

    Anko used ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· to call forth her Shadow Cane. With dreadful force she shed at the ground, making pebbles rain on their armor. Anko¡¯s voice, the sound of the raining dirt, and even the sound of the forcefully swung cane must¡¯ve been terrifying for the soldiers.

    ¡°It should be time.¡±

    After seeing the entirety of the reinforcements starting to withdraw, I gave Anko a signal. The next moment, I was on her chest. I don¡¯t think this¡­¡­No, it definitely doesn¡¯t look cool at all. Well, not like I can do anything about it.

    ¡°Behold! ¡±

    I prepared the most conspicuous ¡¾Magic¡¿spell I had, ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fifth Form¡·, and aimed it at their rear. The Fifth Form spell flew at high speed, like a missile, and thennded.

    Baribaribari! With that sound, the electric shock raged as ifing from a cumulonimbus cloud. Despite it being night, the area was lighted by the lightning strike in a way simr to a disco ball, and the thunderous roar echoed across thend.

    This somehow drew the enemy¡¯s attention. Taking a deep breath, I broke the silence.

    ¡°I¡¯M SECOND FIRSTEST! DONT FORGET MY NAME, YOU ASSHOLES! JUST TRY THIS AGAIN AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU! I WON¡¯T JUST LET YOU LEAVE! I ALSO KNOW ABOUT THE CARAMELIA! TELL THE IDIOTS IN YOUR FAITH THAT THEY BETTER NOT LOOK DOWN ON ME! IF YOU GET IT THEN LEAVE AND GO HIDE BENEATH YOUR MOM¡¯S SKIRT! ALSO, RETURN THE PRISONERS, YOU IDIOTS! ¡±

    ---------------------------------------------------------------

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm, Lord Second. By any chance, are you crazy? ¡±

    ¡°You sure are rude, huh!? ¡±

    Everything was now over. When I thought what would he say to me, the first thing that came out of Margrave Steam Bitter-Valley was some criticism while halfughing. Still, I don¡¯t hate him.

    ¡°I was just kidding. I was looking down on you¡­¡­I¡¯m ashamed to admit.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. If that¡¯s true then you should be more ashamed.¡±

    ¡°No, well, let me exin. I think it was only natural for me to make light of you. What was with that attitude? Are you here just to y around? That¡¯s what I thought. But I guess that attitude was only natural for you. After all, you really dide to just ¡®y around¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, don¡¯t praise me so much. It¡¯s a bit embarrassing.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t praising you. No, well, it might¡¯ve sounded like praise, but it wasn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with you¡­¡­?¡±

    ¡°The prisoners of war were returned while being treated quite politely. Over 14,000 of the Sacred Country Kamel¡¯s soldiers have withdrawn. They have been instilled with a fear they¡¯ll never forget. And, our side came out totally unscathed. Do you understand what this means? ¡±

    ¡°A great sess, right?¡±

    When I answered with augh, Steam alsoughed.

    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll say it as many times as I need. Thanks. Thanks. Thank you¡­¡­! ¡±

 Chapter 83 Last Stand

    <h4>Chapter 83 Last Stand</h4>

    Night.

    As sunset came, the royal castle was surrounded.

    The soldiers under the Second Prince were rushing into the fallen castle one after another.

    Their objectives were the Prime Minister, the captain of the Third Knight Order, the First Queen, and the First Prince.

    However, this was easier said than done. Despite every reversal of roles,ing back from being the underdog, their opponent had also taken further measures.

    When about 50% of the castle had been captured, a suicide squad from the First Prince faction was sent. They wanted to earn even a little more time. This had been instructed by the Prime Minister, however, there was little meaning in earning time now. No matter how much they wait, reinforcements from the Empire would no longere.

    Nevertheless, the desperate struggle by the First Prince faction continued, and thus, the battle in the castle was taking longer than expected.

    Being led by Silvia, Eko and the Mithril-alloy equipped soldiers, the Second Prince¡¯s armed forced slowly and steadily pushed forward.

    Unlike the other party, who acted out of desperation, they valued their life. Making even a little mistake could cost them dearly. So, there was no need to rush. The outside of the royal castle was surrounded by soldiers under the Second Prince, and with the escape routes already investigated and sealed off, the top priority was to take control without taking much damage, no matter how much it would take.

    And so, how much time would it take for them to take control over the castle? The night had nowpletely fallen.

    The figure of the Prime Minister had yet to be seen. He most likely holed up at the deepest parts¨D¨DIn the throne room.

    ¡°The way has been opened. Let¡¯s go, towards the throne room. The Prime Minister, will surely, be there.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡°Got¡¯cha.¡±

    Taking the chance when the enemy formation copsed, Windfield instructed Silvia and Eko as they made their way to the throne room.

    Why did she decide to move with them? This was because something she worried about.

    ¡°Found him! ¡±

    Silvia called out. At the end of her gaze was Prime Minister Val, and the Captain of the Third Knight Order, Djarum. And also, one more person¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­This is bad.¡±

    The moment Silvia noticed that person¡¯s identity, her face stiffened.

    Vice-Captain of the Second Knight Order, Gram¨D¨DNo knight in the Kingdom didn¡¯t know that name, a hero among heroes.

    With a height of about two meters, Gram stood silently in front of Val and Djarum, sword in hand, as if to guard them. This meant Gram was with ¡°the other side¡±.

    ¡°Vice-Captain, Gram-dono! Did you sell your soul to that evil man!? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Gram ignored Silvia¡¯s words. His face was quite youthful, making one doubt the fact he was forty years old, but looking closely, one could see he looked somewhat tired.

    Why had hee out with this timing? And at the Prime Minister¡¯s side at that. And as if to answer Silvia¡¯s question, Windfield opened her mouth.

    ¡°Most likely, hostages, I think. His family, probably. After all, he wasn¡¯t in the Kingdom, until now. An expedition? Were they taken hostages, at that time? ¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡­He¡¯s gone that far! ¡±

    A calm analysis. In turn, Silvia¡¯s anger switched to the Prime Minister.

    ¡­¡­But. If possible, Silvia wanted to avoid fighting against Gram. The reason being.

    ¡°I see, so he¡¯s an experienced Title fighter, isn¡¯t he?¡±

    Looking at Silvia and her hesitation, Windfield noticed.

    She was right. Gram had participated in several ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿¡¯s Title matches in the past.

    That, in other words, meant. From Soldier to Dragon King, his ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ skills were all at Grade nine.

    He was undoubtedly a ferocious man.

    ¡°So? Can you, win? ¡±

    ¡°No problem.¡±

    ¡°Imma do my best.¡±

    The three of them had the same opinion since yesterday. In the case a ¡°Title fighter¡± would appear as the enemy¡¯s escort¨D¨Dso long as they were two on one, they could win.

    Windfield too, from an objective point of view, thought they could win. Silvia and Eko¡¯s skills were mostly at Grade nine. Furthermore, theirbination had excellentpatibility, considering their roles as forward and rear guard. They had no reason to lose.

    ¡­¡­Only one possible problem. ¡°Personal experience¡±, a factor that seemed very small, but was surprisingly big.

    ¡°Understood. Silvia-san, Eko-san, lend me your strength. And by no chance, let your guard down.¡±

    Before those words, Silvia and Eko were already moving forward.

    It was then that Gram finally opened his mouth.

    ¡°Silvia Virginia. I know your father very well. Coming two versus one, have you forgotten your pride as a knight? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­! ¡±

    A clever scheme.

    Taking into consideration Silvia¡¯s character, having longed to be a knight and with a strong sense of justice, he spoke about her father and tried to question her pride. Something someone experienced would say.

    ¡°Don¡¯t fall for it. Stay calm.¡±

    ¡°Umu. I know. I know, but¡­¡­There are things I can¡¯t just back down from.¡±

    ¡°¡­.Haa.¡±

    Noticing that Silvia wouldn¡¯t listen, Windfield decided to simply stop and give up on it.

    Silvia, probably influenced in some way by Second, was quite stubborn. She was someone who would risk her life for justice and pride.

    This was why she went along with Gram¡¯s provocation. It was just inevitable.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look down on me, it¡¯s a one-on-one then.¡±

    Silvia held down her bow, taking out an arrow¨D¨D

    ¡°You¡¯re a fool.¡±

    ¡°Eh!? ¡±

    ¨D¨DThe next moment, Gram was closing in on Silvia.

    And thus, therge sword was swung down mercilessly.

    ¡°Kggg¡­¡­! ¡±

    The one who received it was Eko. With a pained expression, she managed to hold on to therge shield.

    ¡°Ohh, you¡¯re amazing. To be able to withstand it.¡±

    Gram, suddenly bing more talkative, praised Eko. However, his movements didn¡¯t stop.

    Taking two steps back to consider his next move, he held hisrge sword lowered.

    What is he going to do? Silvia wondered, and since she was unsure and couldn¡¯t make any predictions, she retreated while preparing a ¡¶Silver Archery¡· shot.

    ¡°! ¡±

    Gram then began to move quickly and at the same time with his sword in parallel with the ground. ¡°A thrust! ¡°, Silvia intuitively felt that was what wasing so she moved her body to the side and got ready to release her ¡¶Silver Archery¡· shot¨D¨D

    ¡°You¡¯re too easy to read.¡±

    All of a sudden, Gram changed his thrust to a sh. He canceled his ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡· skill midway and shed at her with ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·. It was an exquisite and practiced technique that was impossible to avoid with just a nce since there were many feints and she ended up being led.

    ¡°Ugh!! ¡±

    Silvia was shed. With fresh blood flowing from her shoulder, she staggered back about three meters and ended up kneeling.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    However, as one would expect from someone who cleared an intermediate ss dungeon. She stood up immediately without worrying much about her shoulder injury and calmly drank a potion restoring her HP while keeping her distance from Gram.

    ¡°Hyaaa! ¡±

    ¡°Uoo! ¡±

    Silvia wasn¡¯t Gram¡¯s only opponent. It had already be a two vs one, and Eko was now rushing at Gram. She used a skill that was quite sessful during the siege, ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·. But¡­¡­

    ¡°You¡¯re quite open with that.¡±

    It was useless if it didn¡¯t connect. Gram evaded at thest moment, and got ready to unleash a ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· sh at her back¨D¨D

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s dangerous.¡±

    ¨D¨DBut he couldn¡¯t. Taking that opening as a chance, Silvia fired a ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· shot.

    Turning around, Gram deflected the arrow with his sword, and then closed the distance between him and Silvia in an instant.

    ¡°I now understand your power, Vice-Captain-dono.¡±

    Muttering a few words under her breath, Silvia prepared a ¡¶Gold Archery¡· shot. Being a ranged attack with added knockback effect, it¡¯s a rare ¡¾Archery¡¿ skill to cope up with people closing in.

    ¡°¨D¨DFu.¡±

    After quickly reading Silvia¡¯s skills, Gram stopped his rush. And so, he changed tactics. From approaching her quickly and finishing her up using ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·¡­¡­ To finishing her at a medium distance using ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·.

    The preparation time for that skill is 4 seconds. It lets arge opening, but its range and power are alsorge.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I was waiting for! ¡±

    The moment she saw Gram began preparing ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·, Silvia canceled her ¡¶Gold Archery¡· skill and switched to a ¡¶Rook Archery¡· shot. Even if she started preparingter, her opponent had to prepare for four seconds, so she thought she could make it.

    ¡°Well, not bad for a hasty preparation.¡±

    Gram canceled his ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· strike with an expression of having plenty of leeway. This made Silvia confident about her victory. As expected, he decided that he couldn¡¯t counter ¡¶Rook Archery¡· in time and chose to stop, she thought.

    ¡°Haaaa! This ends here! ¡±

    Silvia released her bow, shooting ¡¶Rook Archery¡· as soon as it was ready. If you get hit by it, no matter whether you were a Title fighter, you couldn¡¯t avoid taking a lot of damage.

    ¡°If it were Silver, I might¡¯ve been hit.¡±

    But. Gram leisurely muttered those words¡­¡­then he used ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· against Silvia¡¯s ¡¶Rook Archery¡·.

    ¡°WHAT! ¡±

    ¡°At this distance, that wouldn¡¯t do.¡±

    There was a difference in experience at fighting against other people. The time to prepare your skills, how to respond to something, and more. Gram¡¯s body remembered it perfectly without having to think about it. Silvia, on the other hand, acted while thinking on her next move. The difference was just too big.

    ¡°Fuu! ¡±

    Immediately afterward, Gram weed Eko who was approaching him from behind, with ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·.

    The attack was received with the big shield, causing Eko to stagger. Even though it was just ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·, her opponent was a fierce person at the Title match level. Each of his strikes was tremendously heavy.

    ¡°How is it!? ¡±

    In addition, he continued to chase. Without allowing her time to use a skill, Eko was forced to receive Gram¡¯s ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· with just her shield alone.

    ¡°A-u¡­¡­¡±

    She staggered back, falling on her back. The constant impacts had caused a concussion, preventing her from getting up.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silence fell upon the throne room.

    At this rate, we will lose¨D¨DScreamed Silvia¡¯s intuition. Despite it being a 2 vs 1, she and Eko will lose. It was humiliating, and-

    ¡°I¡¯m fired up.¡±

    It had been a long time since she faced a strong enemy. As a member of Team Firstest, there was no way she wouldn¡¯t be fired up.

    ¡°Don¡¯t! You can¡¯t do it. Let¡¯s go back, Silvia-san. We don¡¯t have to rush it. They, don¡¯t have a ce to run.¡±

    ¡°No. What would happen if the puppet Vice-Captain was to go on a rampage? Our loses might exceed a hundred.¡±

    ¡°Still, it¡¯s dangerous. It¡¯s okay to retreat.¡±

    ¡°Windfield¡­¡­Sorry.¡±

    Speaking just one word, Silvia turned her back. This girl also possessed an unyielding sense of justice.

    ¡°Prime Minister Val, Third Knight Order Captain Djarum. It¡¯s time to pay for your sins.¡±

    ¡°Haha, how can a lowly knight as yourself say such a thing? Aren¡¯t you without options now?¡±

    ¡°I will bring judgment upon you, bastards! ¨D¨DTransform! ¡±

    ¡°!? ¡±

    Silvia performed a Grade six ¡¶Transform¡·. She intended on settling this here and now.

    A me mask, a me cloak. mes gushed from the light armor she wore, making her appearance look like an incarnation of me.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­! ¡±

    Clicking his tongue, Gram prepared a ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· skill. In a single instance, he noticed Transform took time toplete and decided to make good use of it.

    ¡­¡­It was a bet, for both of them.

    If she endured the ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·, it was Silvia¡¯s win. If Gram¡¯s ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· pushed through, it was his win.

    ¡°Come! ¡±

    ¡°Here Ie, little girl! ¡±

    Their timing aligned as if they were measuring it.

    Silvia activated the strongest skill she could prepare in the two seconds of invincibility afterpleting the transformation, ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. At the same time, Gram¡¯s ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· activated.

    Both their skills collided, counterbnced, and¨D¨D

    ¡± ¡±

    ¨D¨DFainting, Silvia fell to the ground.

    The damage wasn¡¯t much. However, she wasn¡¯t able to offset it. In contrast to ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡· was a bad match as a single target range attack. Thus, shepletely received ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·¡¯s stun effect.

    ¡°Ha, HAHAHAHA! WELL DONE, GRAM! ¡±

    ¡°MARVELOUS! Let¡¯s make these intruders, alongside the Second Prince, disappear now! ¡±

    Val and Djarum shouted in joy. The biggest threat was these two who were now knocked out. Until now, they were in a precarious situation, so they couldn¡¯t help but rejoice that the goddess of victory was on their side now.

    ¡°Uuuh¡­¡­! ¡±

    Looking at the fainted Silvia, Eko managed to get up and snarled in a threatening way.

    In front, Gram gripped his long sword while wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. He noticed he was able to defeat the transformed Silvia just because of luck and had fallen while taking little to no damage.

    And then, he noticed it. No way, this little girl too¡­¡­

    ¡°Trans-form! ¡±

    I knew it, he thought. Gram immediately raised his level of alertness.

    ¡°¡­¡­ytime is over.¡±

    This is a Title match stage. With those thoughts in mind, Gram¡¯s concentration increased many times.

    The other party isn¡¯t just a little girl. She¡¯s a ferocious fighter who aims for a Title. Then, concentrating deeper and deeper, Gram¡¯s carelessness disappeared.

    ¡°Hey, your family, is already safe. There¡¯s no need, to keep helping, the Prime Minister.¡±

    Windfield tried to trick Gram. However, in Gram¡¯s mind, those words weren¡¯t heard. They not even registered. His concentration was just abnormal, and he waspletely in an immersive state.

    ¡°Kuh! ¡±

    They collided with each other alongside a loud bang. Gram¡¯s ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· was received by Eko¡¯s ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡·. ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡· had the effect of increased defense plus added knockback. However, Gram wasn¡¯t the only one being knocked back. Eko was pushed back too since she couldn¡¯tpletely guard off the ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· sh.

    ¡°Not so fast! ¡±

    ¡°Kyaa! ¡±

    While Eko tried to prepare ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·, Gram approached without wasting time and kept chasing using ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡·. The Lance skill had a prating effect. Therefore, despite having a shield, Eko was receiving damage to her body.

    ¡­¡­After that, it was a one-sided battle.

    ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ was a skill for defense. It wasn¡¯t suitable for a 1-on-1 battle.

    Thus, Eko had no choice but to keep receiving Gram¡¯s attacks. He slowly shaved off Eko¡¯s HP while using prating attacks such as ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·.

    ¡°Silvia-san! Silvia-san! ¡±

    Windfield struggled to try and somehow wake Silvia up. However, she didn¡¯t respond. And because she was a spirit, she didn¡¯t possess an inventory so it wasn¡¯t possible for her to get an abnormal status recovery potion.

    Meanwhile, Eko¡¯s HP was still being shaved off. As one would expect from a Battle Priest, she was still able to endure and heal the damage on her own, but if ¡¶Transform¡· were to end, she wouldn¡¯t be able to endure for much time.

    There was little time left. Should I try to get an abnormal status recovery potion from someone? ¡­¡­While she was considering that, an unexpected person entered the throne room.

    ¡°¡­¡­First Prince, us¡­¡­¡±

    Quietly muttering that name, Windfield bit her lower lip. It was the worst timing for this.

    ¡°Good timing, Your Highness! Kill that woman lying down there and the grey-haired woman too! ¡±

    Prime Minister Val happily gave out instructions.

    Silently pulling out the sword from his waist, us made his way towards Windfield.

    ¡°Good at swordsmanship, was it? This is bad.¡±

    First Prince us was quite skilled in ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ enough to be the captain of the First Knight Order at a young age. It was said that, aside from Title battles, his skill was unmatched across the Kingdom.

    Windfield stood in front of Silvia as if to shield her while facing us. Despite being a mixed one, she was still a spirit. She was stronger than normal humans. However, she wasn¡¯t strong enough to face us.

    ¡°Fuu¡­¡­I guess I got, no other choice.¡±

    She thought of using her trump card. One she hadn¡¯t told anyone, an ultimate trump card only usable by spirits.

    Originally, she intended on using it if the worst-case scenario came to pass.

    And just now, that worst-case scenario was happening.

    If the capture of the Royal Castle was prolonged, a fierce enemy like someone who had participated in Title matches might appear as the escort of the Prime Minister. In that case, there existed the possibility that even Eko and Silvia together wouldn¡¯t be a match. And if by some twisted chance of fate this scenario happened¡­¡­ She nned to use her trump card. This, she had decided on yesterday.

    Thinking ¡°Now that it hase to this¡±, Windfield decided to use herst move.

    And in that aspect, this was the best move.

    All that was left was her firm resolution.

    ¡°¡­¡­Gram. Weren¡¯t you on an expedition? ¡±

    At that moment, us suddenly began speaking. Surprisingly, his words were directed to the Vice-Captain of the Second Knight Order, Gram.

    Sensing the suspicious air, Windfield decided to take the stand of wait and see.

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­The truth is, I returned today.¡±

    Not being able to ignore the words of the First Prince, Gram responded while still containing Eko.

    ¡°Strange. It¡¯s strange after all.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Your Highness!? If you don¡¯t hurry and kill that woman, they will kill you, my Prince! ¡±

    Prime Minister Val shouted as us muttered to himself as if his time was running out. However, us¡¯ demeanor didn¡¯t change.

    ¡°You were suddenly called back, right? Were you contacted when the vition of the Knight¡¯s agreement became a topic in the Kingdom? ¡±

    ¡°That, is-¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s correct, right?

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough! Gram, you stay silent! Focus on the battle! ¡±

    ¡°Prime Minister! Shut your damn mouth! ¡±

    us shouted in anger. It was at that moment when his doubts turned into conviction.

    ¡°I know your wife. She¡¯s a maid under the Second Queen Freon.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I saw Queen Freon leaving the castle yesterday. But there was no sign of your wife with her.¡±

    ¡°What are you trying to say!? ¡±

    ¡°When I was bashed by the people, I once saw Queen Freon on the balcony. At that time, your wife was still her maid. After that, you were called back. With all this in mind, there¡¯s only one reason why you had to return from the expedition in this short amount of time¡­¡­ how nauseating. It¡¯s easy to imagine the reason.¡±

    ¡°My Prince! That¡¯s a misunderstanding! That maid was fired because of her ineptitude¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Viin. You¡¯ve been tricking me. You¡¯ve been using me. Always, all this time! ¡±

    us gradually raised his voice and red at Prime Minister Val. He¡¯d no longer be deceived.

    ¡°Queen Freon isn¡¯t the kind of person who would fire a maid because of some failure. Gram isn¡¯t a man who would simply leave a royal expedition, ignoring his subordinates to return alone. And me¡­¡­ I¡¯m not a man whose father can be killed and will keep silent!! ¡±

    Raising his sword, us headed towards the Prime Minister.

    ¡°You are the pus of the Kingdom. Empire¡¯s dog. I will punish you now¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°¨D¨DYour Highness, please forgive me. I too have something I have to protect.¡±

    Gram then stood in his way.

    About Eko¡­¡­her ¡¶Transform¡· hade undone and she was beaten on the floor, falling like a ragdoll.

    ¡°Move. I¡¯ll cut you too.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t let you. I can no longer go against him.¡±

    It was almost as if dering he had taken hostages. Still, there was nothing he could do.

    And thus, us and Gram were facing each other.

    ¡°Why won¡¯t you step back. Aren¡¯t you able to easily kill those two?¡±

    ¡°Their subordinates will move.¡±

    ¡°Then, there¡¯s no other way?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I can¡¯t show my face to my family anymore.¡±

    Gram¡¯s attitude towards us was, unlike with Silvia, very respectful.

    ¡°¡­¡­I never expected to face against my teacher in this way.¡±

    ¡°If possible, I too would have preferred to repay you differently.¡±

    ¡°Fuu, I¡¯m sure.¡±

    The two of them slowly closed the distance against each other. Their sword stance was quite simr.

    ¡°Gram! That guy¡¯s useless now! Get rid of him! ¡±

    At that moment, Prime Minister Val yelled those words. However, his voice wasn¡¯t heard by the two people, deep in concentration.

    It was in an instant¨D¨DTheir ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· shed.

    Just how much skill was packed at that moment? It was a world only these two could understand.

    ¡°Guuh¡­¡­uhh.¡±

    us fell to one knee. A deep one was visible on his thigh. It was a wound that wouldn¡¯t let him stand unless healed.

    Gram stared down at that scene with a saddened face. Despite it being for her wife and child¡¯s sake, he had hurt a Prince of the country, his disciple. This fact carved an unheble wound in his heart.

    ¡°Good, Gram! Finish him! Kill him! And Maine, Hairai too, every one of them! Kill them all! Let¡¯s fuck up the Kingdom! ¡±

    Prime Minister Valughed as if he was crazy. No, he was indeed crazy. The vassalization of the Kingdom had failed, the Empire had abandoned him, and now he had nowhere left to go. This turned him in a man thirsty for revenge, only wishing for ruin.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Gram silently approached the still unconscious Silvia. He felt Silvia was the number one threat, so he decided to stab her first.

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s time, I guess. After all, I told him, to leave it to me, right?¡±

    Now was the time.

    Windfield started moving quietly. Without an ounce of hesitation, she walked towards Gram.

    She had steeled herself.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Gram stopped and was on guard. A woman was approaching him without taking any stance. There was nothing more suspicious than this.

    ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s just, I¡¯ll be, a bit lonely. Maybe, I wanted to give him, onest greeting.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­? ¡±

    Laughing with a smile, she spoke those words. Gram felt puzzled, not understanding the meaning of those words.

    ¡°Spirits, you see, can be invincible for a short while, by burning their very existence. About a minute, was it? In that time, I will kill you three and rescue Silvia-san and Eko-san. That, is my, responsibility.¡±

    Windfield¡¯s worries were, unfortunately, right on the spot. Therefore, she tried to take responsibility by using her trump card.

    There were several other paths, but at this moment and at this time, this was the best one.

    Was it the difference in values? The difference she had on her outlook about life and death?

    If everything can be settled with just one life, I¡¯ll dly give mine. Windfield was that kind of spirit.

    ¡°This is the solution. With this, it¡¯s done. There will be no issue except that I¡¯ll be gone. A good ending, right?¡±

    Muttering with a grim expression, she held a hand over her chest.

    At the ce where the human heart was located, also lied the source of life of the spirits.

    And she was going to destroy ¡®it¡¯. An extremely easy, and equally scary method.

    ¡°Bye-bye¨D¨D¡±

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    The next moment.

    Just as Windfield was saying those parting words towards the missing Second.

    Darkness overflowed; the shadows seethed with an aura of intimation that would make people plead for their life.

    An existence of fear that shouldn¡¯t be here suddenly materialized from that shadow.

    From the shadow of the fallen Silvia-

    ¨D¨DAnd then.

    ¡°If it¡¯s a ¡®shadow¡¯ you remember, anywhere is possible, huh? Unbelievable. I didn¡¯t expect you¡¯d be able to transfer to the ¡®shadow of a person¡¯.¡±

 Chapter 84 Alright, thatâ€™s the end.

    <h4>Chapter 84 Alright, that¡¯s the end.</h4>

    So, what¡¯s with this situation?

    It was good that I tried to use ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· with Silvia¡¯s shadow as a test.

    Silvia was lying down showing the white of her eyes, Eko is on her knees, her gear in tatters. Windfield looked at me with eyes rounded in surprise¡­¡­and then, she started crying. For her to cry this much.

    ¡°Did you do this? ¡±

    I spoke to the old man with arge sword who was facing Windfield. The old man red at me while opening his mouth to speak.

    ¡°Who are you? ¡±

    Ohh, his stance leaves no openings. He¡¯s pretty decent.

    I see, so Silvia and Eko were struck down by this old man. Indeed, it seems he has experience in PVP; it might¡¯ve been rushing things when I asked these two who have only experienced dungeon clearing.

    Mobius was a game where decent status differences could be overturned by yer skill alone. Even if it was a two vs one. It¡¯s a huge difference that can only be understood once you experience it. No, I think it would be more appropriate to call it a ¡°wall¡±. A wall that everyone has to ovee one day. Whether or not they can breakthrough depends on how serious they work from then on.()

    This might¡¯ve been a good experience for these two. When I qualified for the Title matches, I believe I became an end-game yer, I gained this strange confidence and sense of superiority that allowed me to intimidate opponents who were weaker than me, so I naturally grew. Even if you have to be trashed at least once, I think it¡¯s a good experience for the future.

    ¡°Good job, Anko. I¡¯ll send you back so you can rest. Or, do you want to stay and look? ¡±

    ¡°Lord, please don¡¯t say something so painful. Please, let me burn your brave figure unto my eyes.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, stay there and look.¡±

    Let¡¯s see, this guy is just¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿? Alright, let¡¯s go with that too.

    ¡°Ohh, there¡¯s the Prime Minister too! You too, look.¡±

    It¡¯s a good chance to let him know who he picked a fight with.

    I then took the Mithril sword from my inventory and faced the old man.

    ¡°When the coin falls, that¡¯s the signal to start. Okay? ¡±

    ¡°Wait. Who are you? And who the hell is that ck woman? ¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It has been some time for me¡­¡­Ahh, I just can¡¯t stand it.¡±

    I flung the coin.

    At that point, the old man braced himself. He switched fast. As expected, my eyes weren¡¯t lying.

    And thus¡­¡­

    ¨D¨DThe coinnded.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s the end.¡±

    I take that back. Right at the start of the match, the old man¡¯s right arm was cut off, deciding the victor in an instant. Damn small fry.

    His first move was too slow. He didn¡¯t even notice nor reacted to the fake ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·. He only looked at my feet. Failed to maintain a proper distance.

    ¡°W-Wh-Who the hell are you!? What did you do!? ¡±

    ¡°What? You ask, it was Soldier Swordsmanship.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s with that sword!? How did it extend!? ¡±

    ¡°Well, it can extend this much. That¡¯s if you grip it from the tip of the handle.¡±

    ¡°Wha¡­! ¡±

    Ahh, he didn¡¯t know that so that¡¯s why he¡¯s so usatory.

    ¡°Study the basics again. Not just the feet, look at the whole picture. Also, shouldn¡¯t you stop with the big sword? It¡¯s not suitable for interpersonal battles at all.¡±

    As I gave him some advice, the old man hung his head and got down on his knees. He was so overconfident, serves him right.

    ¡°Eko, EKO. Ah, are you fainting? Wake up.¡±

    I had Eko, who was crouching on the ground and about to lose consciousness, drink an abnormal status recovery potion and then a high-grade recovery potion. Then, she slowly regained her energy. ¡°Second! ¡°, with a faint smile she hugged me.

    Next, Silvia¡¯s unconsciousness was solved with another abnormal status recovery potion. Silvia started ¡°WHA-!? ¡± as she jumped up, then turned and let out a ¡°Huh? ¡± When her eyesnded on me. Her figure as she looked like she was sleeping was a little cute.

    ¡°Windfield, please exin¡­¡­¡­¡­Huh? Windfield? ¡±

    Just as I was asking about the current situation, I looked back at Windfield and she was still crying. Are you serious? How much of a shock this was?

    ¡°Th-Thank god, thank god, th ¡­¡­WAAAAHH.¡±

    She¡¯s seriously crying¡­¡­

    It can be helped, so I hugged her and waited for her to stop crying while thinking ¡®Spirits sure make the same face as humans when they cry¡¯.

    ¡­¡­Maybe I pushed too much responsibility unto her. Thinking about it, I left pretty much everything to her. I never stopped to think that ever since Yukari summoned her, she has been doing nothing but work, despite it being her first time in the human world. I never had a reason to think about it just because I deemed her smart and thought ¡°She should be fine¡±, but in the end, she¡¯s also a team member. I should¡¯ve paid more attention.

    ¡°I, Second-san, even if you didn¡¯te, I, steeled myself, I was, thinking, it was for the, best, but, but, I really, didn¡¯t want to disappear! There, might¡¯ve been, another way, but, yesterday, I was convinced, this was fine! But now, I couldn¡¯t, ept it! It was, a difficult, decision! I¡¯m sorry, for being useless, forgive me! ¡±

    Wait a second, what are you saying?

    Still, the meaning was conveyed somehow. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being useless¡±, she desperately apologized. She¡¯s probably misunderstanding something. Or rather, her runny nose is all over my clothes¡­¡­ Well, not like it matters, after all, it¡¯s this girl¡¯s master the one doing theundry.

    ¡°Everybody makes mistakes. Even I only realized the versatility of Anko¡¯s transfer in the middle ofst night.¡±

    ¡°No, you¡¯re wrong! I knew the opponent would be strong, but I was conceited! I ced everyone, in a dangerous spot! If only, I¡¯ve made, my decision faster, this, wouldn¡¯t have happened.¡±

    ¡°Calm down. After all, you¡¯re not to me for Silvia¡¯s deadheadedness.¡±

    At the side, I heard a ¡°How awful. ¡± from Silvia, but I ignored her and continued.

    ¡°Say, who was the one who cornered the Prime Minister in less than half a month? Who brought down the castle in just half a day? And thanks to who we could keep the damage to a minimum? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­S-Second-san? ¡±

    ¡°Wrong! YOU, it was YOU! ¡±

    Seems she undervalues herself.

    ¡°All this time you¡¯ve been like a perfect superhuman, right? Always trying to pick the best hand. That¡¯s why one or two mistakes hurt you so much. After all, a stain is more noticeable on a beautiful, pure, white shirt. But I don¡¯t know how that feels.¡±

    ¡°But, if I didn¡¯t, pick the best move, everyone¡¯s lives.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t carry it all by yourself. You can use the next best move, or a move that simply doesn¡¯t lose. Isn¡¯t this a ¡®game¡¯? If so, then y with more leeway.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­! ¡±

    ¡°You tried to solve everything neatly by yourself. Doing it like that is boring. Don¡¯t risk your life just because this is a game. Bet your life on it exactly because it¡¯s a game. It¡¯s times like these. If so, I¡¯m sure it will be fun. You can enjoy it more. How¡¯s it? Do you understand where I¡¯ming from? If you get it, then stop sobbing.¡±

    Windfield was still crying, but she nodded her head on my chest.

    I see I see, she gets it. Then¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s punishment time.¡±

    Her shoulders suddenly quivered.

    ¡°W-Why, Second-dono? Leaving me aside, I believe Windfield did a great job, right? ¡±

    ¡°I know that. But hey, Silvia-san, weren¡¯t you knocked down only because you lost your calm and went all by yourself? That I know veeeeery well.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­U-Umu. I¡¯m very sorry from the bottom of my heart.¡±

    ¡°Still, I¡¯m worried about why was Eko done in so bad. That would be Windfield¡¯s responsibility¡­¡­ Ah, ahh? Wait a minute. Maybe it wasn¡¯t Windfield¡¯s fault and rather it was because Silvia got knocked down on her own that¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°DIE!! ¡±

    At the moment when I was about to unveil the real culprit, the Prime Minister, not reading the mood, threw something at me. Come to think of it, he was still there.

    ¡°Ahh, to dare throw a knife to my Lord¡­¡­! Moreover, poison-coated¡­¡­! ¡±

    Anko caught the flying knife and then spoke while trembling with increasing anger. Can she tell it¡¯s coated with poison just by sniffing the knife? As expected of a wolf, her nose is amazing.

    Or rather, just how much are you going to uselessly struggle, Prime Minister? You need to know when to give up. I don¡¯t even know what¡¯s he trying to aplish now. Is he even aware of the position he is at right now? What¡¯s with this old man? ¡­¡­The more he does the more pitiable he looks.

    ¡°P-Prime Minister! Le-le-le-let¡¯s run away, Prime Minister! ¡±

    The other old man who someone managed to bring the Prime Minister¡¯s sanity back was also pitiful. Who was this guy? The Third Knight Order Captain, right?

    Dju, uhmm, Dju¡­¡­ Djugem? No, Djuru¡­¡­Huh? Was it Djada? DjaDjaDja, Dja¡­¡­

    ¡°KIEEEEEE.¡±

    ¡­¡­In just a moment. It was the moment I took my eyes off from the Prime Minister.

    What I saw from the corner of my eye was a scene in which the Prime Minister rushed at Anko with arge sword on his hand, and shed at her back.

    ¡°Ahh.¡±

    ¨D¨DOr, at least he tried.

    House? Stay? Don¡¯t kill him? I wouldn¡¯t be able to say it in time. There¡¯s no time even for ¡¶Unsummon¡·.

    Anko twisted her body and turned around, then shed with her left hand from bottom to top.

    w attack. It was the full-fledged skill from Anko.

    ¡­¡­Then, I guess. Yeah, the end of the Prime Minister was a terrible one.

    ¡°Whoa, for real¡­¡­?¡±

    In short, blood and meat chunks were stered over the wall. And arge lump of meat, which once was the Prime Minister, was embedded in the wall with circr dents like a crater.

    The force was quite extraordinary, and here and there you could see some white bone-like objects sticking out.

    Plop.

    An unrecognizable piece of meat then fell on the floor. Looking closely, the ceiling was also stained with arge amount of scattered blood and flesh. This will be hard to clean¡­¡­

    ¡°H¡­¡­HIIIIIIIIII¡­¡­! ¡±

    The Third Knight Order¡¯s Captain gave a short squeal and then fell back on his butt. A few secondster, a yellow puddle could be seen on the marble floor. Haaa, another Ch¨¦rie.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m very sorry, my Lord! Once again, I moved on my own! My hand, my hand just slipped! Ahh, this damn hand! ¡±

    ¡°Anko.¡±

    ¡°Y¡­¡­Yes?¡±

    ¡°It couldn¡¯t be helped right now.¡±

    If such a sweaty old man suddenly approached me from behind, I might¡¯ve done the same thing.

    ¡°Ohh, how generous of you. Allow me to bow my head to you¡­¡­¡±

    While patting Anko¡¯s head and her fluffy ears, I forgave her for killing the Prime Minister.

    Ahh¡­¡­But still, it was too quick. He wouldn¡¯t have escaped the death penalty after being captured, but he might¡¯ve had some useful information so it was a waste to kill him here.

    Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. There¡¯s another old man who seems to have some information.

    ¡°HIIIIII! ¡±

    When I turned my gaze towards him, the Third Knight Order¡¯s captain dragged his butt moving back. Oh please, give me a break, you¡¯re spreading that pool.

    ¡°¡­¡­Eh, huh? us? ¡±

    When I tried to look away from that filth, I first noticed Prince us.

    us was standing in a daze next to the big sword old man, which still had a face of despair. There¡¯s no sign of resistance. Looks like they didn¡¯t get ¡®stained¡¯ by the Prime Minister. That¡¯s good.

    ¡°Alright, the case has closed! ¡±

    It feels nice to say it clearly and in one go.

    The Kamel Sacred Country has been driven away. The regtions on the Caramelia have started. The Prime Minister, the Third Knight Order¡¯s Captain and the First Prince have been captured. The First Queen has probably also been caught. The Castle will soon fall. Like this, there isn¡¯t much to worry about left. Next is¡­¡­

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s pack what¡¯s left of the Prime Minister in a box and send it to the Empire.¡±

    ¡°A-Are you serious? Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s send it in a cool package so it doesn¡¯t rot.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Are you serious?¡±

    It¡¯s only natural.

    ¡°I¡¯m angry, you know? He stands there high and might in his safe ce. It was the emperor the one who ordered the assassination of the king anyways. And it was the same emperor who did not send reinforcements. He decided on his self-protection at thest minute. That¡¯s irritating. Right? I too have made my mind. From now on, I won¡¯t let the emperor have a peaceful night of sleep. I¡¯ll harass that bastard as much as I can. I¡¯ll keep him in his toes, not knowing when am I going to attack. And I hope this keeps that shit stressed.¡±

    ¡°G-Good. I thought you were going to start a full out war against the Empire.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have time to fool around.¡±

    ¡°Fool around¡­¡­? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. After all¨D¨D¡±

    Knowing Maine, he will keep his promise with me. In that case, then it¡¯s almost time.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost time for the winter Title Matches.¡±

 Chapter 85 Living conditions and good private punishment.

    <h4>Chapter 85 Living conditions and good private punishment.</h4>

    Soon enough, the Royal Castle waspletely under control.

    All the soldiers under the First Prince faction were detained, and the important figures, aside from the Prime Minister who became a lump of meat, were captured one after the other.

    The First Prince us, with a regretful expression, didn¡¯t even try to resist.

    Dja-something from the Third Knight Order was shaking and crying while covered in snot.

    First Queen White was¡­¡­Well, I couldn¡¯t bear seeing her. I guess when people say bats¡ð¡ðt crazy they mean someone like her.

    Well, not like I care about her anymore.

    In any case, this bothersome issuested long enough. Right now, I just want to go home while skipping, take a bath, and then get some sleep in my current happy mood.

    ¡°How was it, Yukari? Didn¡¯t I keep my promise?¡±

    A grandiose dinner was made, despite it being the middle of the night. I couldn¡¯t just ignore my servants¡¯ efforts and go to sleep.

    So, while getting drunk, I suddenly thought about that and spoke to Yukari.

    ¡°Yes. You somehow managed to do it, Master.¡±

    Seemingly remembering my past promise, Yukari gave out an unusual smile while saying something simr to what I told her back then.

    ¡°First Queen White was the one who drove the Duchess¡¯ house to ruin, but the real culprit was behind all of it was the Prime Minister. It appears that the Prime Minister became aware of the Brainwashing Magic and feared it, so he nned a plot using the First Queen.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I already heard from Windfield.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Then, you should also know how the Prime Minister ended up as.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah. It was quite the sight, or so I was told.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m d you didn¡¯t see it. I almost couldn¡¯t eat tonight¡¯s hamburgers because of it.¡±

    ¡°Master. After gulping down so many of them, those words sound like a lie.¡±

    Certainly. But what can I do? They were delicious.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, where¡¯s Cubero? ¡±

    ¡°Yes, right here.¡±

    There he was. Like always, he¡¯s everywhere.

    ¡°I think I did alright, what do you think? ¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t have hoped for a better result. The surprise attack disguised as bandit suppression was made known to the people and you avenged us, and the coward responsible for it has died. I¡¯m sure that with this, the regrets of the boss and the men who died helping me escape have been cleared.¡±

    ¡°All that¡¯s left if the search for the survivors. But don¡¯t worry, they¡¯re not being hunted down anymore. I¡¯m sure they¡¯lle out soon enough.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes.¡±

    Cubero answered with a broken voice, then cried.

    I quickly understood these were not tears of regret or sadness.

    ¡°Also, tell Besaid. If he wants, he can work here. And, whenever you find a member, I¡¯m always ready to hire them.¡±

    At that moment, his sobs couldn¡¯t be endured anymore and he broke down.

    Cubero wept.

    I thought this guy might be somewhat self-contained, but he might be surprisingly prone to tears.

    ¡°Uhm, next is¡­¡­¡±

    My promise to Maine was also fulfilled. And the future of the Kingdom, entrusted to me by thete Duchess will be bright for a while. Then, what¡¯s left is-

    ¡°Windfield.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Second-san.¡±

    This girl.

    She took care of me in many ways. It¡¯s more than just giving her a rank from one to ten.

    Still, there¡¯s no need to apologize or thank her. Me and her, we both were just ying a game.

    ¡°Was it fun? ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if you got bored. I was, still, green.¡±

    ¡°Were you desperate to win?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I guess, I was in a hurry to win.¡±

    How admirable. Even though until just a few hours ago she was crying emotionally, she¡¯s now objectively analyzing her points of reflection.

    ¡°Second-san, you¡¯re amazing. You had no idle thoughts. Me, on the other hand, how to say it¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Ahh, please stop. You can keep on praising me, but if you want to reflect on it, do it in your room.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Then, I¡¯ll praise. Second-san, you¡¯re cool!¡¡Second-san, you¡¯re the world¡¯s number one!¡¡Second-san, I love you! ¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, this was a fun night.¡±

    Getting moderately drunk feels amazing.

    However, just as soon as she finished speaking, Windfield was ¡¶Unsummon¡·¡¯ed. What did she do?

    ¡°¡­¡­Well then.¡±

    Clearing my thoughts, I turned towards Silvia.

    When her eyes met mine, Silvia smiled wryly while Eko was sleeping on herp.

    ¡°It¡¯s not all over yet, but for now we¡¯re finished. For now, how about getting things back to what they were?¡±

    ¡°Umu. Does that mean? ¡±

    ¡°For starters, do you want to go back dragon hunting in the Metio Dungeon? Tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow!? ¡±

    ¡°Haste is a virtue. Ahh, looking at the time, it would be today I guess?¡±

    ¡°W-Wait, aren¡¯t you switching gears too quickly!?¡¡This, how to exin it, wouldn¡¯t it be better to slowly enjoy the closing of this curtain¡­¡­?¡±

    Oh, Silvia, it looks like after all the troublesome things in this political strife, you want to take things in a more rxed way. Alright, I¡¯m going to straighten you up from scratch for thising Title match.

    ¡°It¡¯s decided. Let¡¯s ignore the Metio dungeon and go for the Isoreus one instead.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t t-t-that an A-ss dungeon!?¡¡No way, that¡¯s impossible, impossible!¡¡At least for me, that¡¯s impossible! ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not asking.¡±

    ¡°Noooooo¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia looked hopeless, thinking she could take a break. Hmm, looking at her I feel a bit of pity so let¡¯s try and prepare a ¡°carrot¡±.

    ¡°Do you want to go shopping on our way back? After all, I promised you and Eko I would get you a reward.¡±

    ¡°T-That, actually sounds fun! ¡±

    ¡­¡­Maybe I¡¯m spoiling her too much.

    Well, whatever.

    And thus. The political strife than we decided to meddle with, came to an end.

    Or so I thought.

    Next morning.

    Maine visited my house in person.

    ¡°¡­¡­Wee, Your Majesty King Maine.¡±

    ¡°Hey, please stop it!¡¡I haven¡¯t been crowned yet.¡±

    ¡°Then, Your Majesty, the next King Maine.¡±

    ¡°Seriously!¡¡Stop with all that. After all, you and I are f-friends, right?¡±

    Maine, for some reason, blushed after saying the word friend. If you¡¯re going to feel embarrassed then don¡¯t say it.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you?¡¡Well, let me say it just in case, it¡¯s a bother if youe this early in the morning. Also, think about your position. It¡¯s not something that can be ignored.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, how mean!¡¡And I was even wondering what sort of item I could give you as thanks.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s great to have you here, Maine. My good friend! ¡±

    ¡°Enough with the empty talk¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Is it about us¡¯s punishment? ¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­¡±

    Apparently, Maine not only came to talk to me about a reward but also to consult with me. I feel like I¡¯m being yed.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to get involved with that, it¡¯s a bother. Isn¡¯t the death penalty fine? Or some private sentence?¡±

    ¡°Yes but, my mother disagrees.¡±

    Heee, Second Queen Freon does? Certainly, that person seems to be kind to a fault.

    ¡°What do you think, Windfield? ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m also, for the death penalty. Same, for the, vice-captain.¡±

    ¡°Vice-captain? ¡±

    ¡°You mean the Second Knight Order vice-captain, Gram? I heard you defeated him in an instant, Second-san.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that old man.¡±

    As far as I¡¯m concerned, that old man doesn¡¯t deserve the death penalty. He did a great job breaking Silvia and Eko¡¯s conceitedness. us is the only one I can¡¯te to like.

    ¡°The main problem here is that Aniue was being used by the Prime Minister. Aniue, in truth, thought he was acting for the benefit of the Kingdom¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°In other words, you mean to say he¡¯s just an idiot who got led to this situation because he believed he was doing it for the Kingdom? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, well, that¡¯s basically right.¡±

    ¡°Then, you can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°I know, but¡­¡­Mother says.¡±

    I see. Maine¡¯s just a mothercon who was being spoken ill of behind his back at the Royal Magic Academy.

    ¡°Maine, you decide. If you don¡¯t think for yourself and decide, it would be no different than your mother being the King.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I guess so.¡±

    Ahh, he¡¯s no good.

    ¡°Better yet, why don¡¯t you make him into your ve? ¡±

    ¡°I thought about that. And I believed that would be good. However, Minister Hairai and Captain Memphis said it would be a national disgrace if the Prince bes a ve.¡±

    ¡°So, what!?¡¡Are you sure you want to care about this ¡®national disgrace¡¯ when the Empire almost devours you from inside? You¡¯re already theughing stock for other countries.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re quite blunt.¡±

    ¡°But it¡¯s the truth.¡±

    ¡°Haaaa¡­¡­Politics are troublesome.¡±

    What¡¯s with this guy speaking the obvious¡­¡­

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ll keep an eye on you so that you don¡¯t be a tyrant, so you can do as you like. If you make a mistake, you can reflect on it and start over again.¡±

    ¡°Second-san¡­¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why now you have to hold a proper winter Title match. Also, hand over all the magic grimoires, from First to Fourth Form.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what you really wanted, huh?¡±

    ¡°This is what I wanted ¡®too¡¯.¡±

    Maine gave a tiredugh and murmured ¡°You¡¯re hopeless¡±. That¡¯s an OK, right? Nice! With this, everyone in my house will be able to learn ¡¾Magic¡¿ from all attributes. There¡¯s no problem since I already got the Fifth Form Grimoire.

    There were a lot of other things I wanted, but this time Ipromised. It¡¯s not like I wouldn¡¯t have done my best if it wasn¡¯t for this. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m lucky I can save all the trouble and time getting them.

    ¡°¡­¡­I understand. I¡¯ll try doing what I want.¡±

    Maine dered so with a firm gaze, I don¡¯t know whether or not he caught on to something with my proper and reasonable advice.

    Well, that¡¯s fine. So long as the Castall Kingdom survives and the Title matches are held, everything is fine.

    ¡°Then,stly, let me tell you how you¡¯ll be treated, Second-san.¡±

    Immediately, Maine began speaking with a serious expression. Looks like this will be something important.

    ¡°The Castall Kingdom acknowledges you and epts you as the Special Appointed Ambassador from Zipang in the Castall Kingdom.¡±()

    ¡°Ahh.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhhh. In other words, you can keep living in the Castall Kingdom as you¡¯ve been, Second-san. I¡¯ll also recognize this stupidlyrge piece ofnd as the Zipang Embassy. Well, this will make things more convenient.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    I feel there are various things wrong with this, but since he seems to have struggled about how to deal with this situation, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. Yeah, it actually is quite a weed situation.

    Since it would¡¯ve seemed quite strange to say thank you, I received those serious words while answering with ¡°I will gracefully ept it¡±. Incidentally, I have no idea whates with this appointment.

    ¡­¡­And, like this.

    The political strife finally ended. And I became the ambassador for a country that didn¡¯t exist.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Melson Marubell, the daughter of the Emperor Gordo Marubell, was horrified.

    After being called by her father, what she saw was something that exceeded her imagination.

    ¡°This is Val Morrow¡¯s pendant, right? It¡¯s the same as the one I gifted you.¡±

    ¡°Chichiue, then, you mean to say¡­¡­t-this is the body of Val Morrow? ¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no doubt. Ha ha ha.¡±

    ¡°This is not aughing matter!¡¡To, something like this¡­¡­! ¡±

    Melson turned her eyes away from the chunks of discolored meat.

    It was hard to believe that such a thing was a person¡¯s corpse. However, if so. If, by chance, this was true. Just thinking like that was enough to make her shudder in fear.

    ¡°Listen. The other party is someone who would send this minced meat to the emperor. That¡¯s not something a lenient person would do.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°The Sacred Country lost. Against that man alone. Don¡¯t think you can just fight him and win. Otherwise, you will end like this. Just, watch over my back and learn. Learn what¡¯s good, learn what¡¯s bad, and grow yourself.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes, Chichiue.¡±

 Chapter 85.4: Idle Talk â€“ Rank Matches (Last part)

    <h4>Chapter 85.4: Idle Talk ¨C Rank Matches (Last part)</h4>

    Rank 1 Yve vs Rank 2 Cubero.

    If we could describe this confrontation in one phrase¡­¡­It would be ¡®the usual¡¯.

    It was always these two in the first and second ce.

    ¡°Looks like it¡¯ll be boring as always.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­snt¡­¡­¡­er.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, is what she said.¡±

    Facing Cubero was Yve of the Ten Great. But for some reason, there was another maid by her side.

    Her name was Luna. And wasmonly known as the ¡¸Interpreter¡¹.

    She wasn¡¯t beautiful nor cute, but she wasn¡¯t ugly either, she had an ordinary face. Her hair was normal, so was her body and her voice; she was a maid with no distinctive characteristics.

    However, her true identity was that of the best assassin in the ¡ºYve Squad¡», Yukari¡¯s treasured assassination unit. But with that said, no assassination had been carried out yet. Still, her ¡®surveince ability¡¯ was remarkable. It was her the one who found the surviving member of the R6, Besaid, and also the one to set up the capture of the leader of the assassination unit under the Third Knight Order¡¯s Captain Djarum, Tender.

    And so, she only held one characteristic quirk. That was, she didn¡¯t show ¡°cowardice¡±. It was not an exaggeration to say she evencked the concept of fear.

    It was because of this. And mostly by chance, that she got to opportunity to speak with the Captain, Yve, who was feared by most of the maids. In this way, Luna learned that Yve¡¯s real identity was that of ¡°a girl who¡¯s simply silent, expressionless, shy, withdrawn, and poor-spoken¡±. Being known as the White Demon or the Assassin Puppet Doll, she simply wanted to get along with everyone else if possible. Luna was struck by her captain¡¯smendable and noble spirit, and since then, working as an interpreter for Yve, she¡¯d been trying to stay close to her as much as possible to help hermunicate with others.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­oo.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, too, is what she said.¡±

    ¡°O-okay.¡±

    However, Luna being Luna wasn¡¯t without fault either.

    She herself was also bad atmunicating.

    By adding ¡°-is what she said¡± at the end of her sentences and devoting herself to the job of the interpreter, she somehow manages to speak properly¡­¡­however, she usually never makes eye contact with people and rarely talks to others; as soon as the work of the day is over, she goes back to her room and talks to her pet spider. A perfect example of a person of the shadows.

    ¡­¡­be¡­¡­re.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your care, is what she said.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yeah. Me too.¡±

    This was quite the peculiar matching of two people who were bad atmunicating. Apparently, all the maid had be ustomed to this scene, but Cubero was still not used to it.

    After their greeting and the two bow to each other, they took their distance and faced against one another. With her roleplete, Luna left for the spectators¡¯ row.

    Muttering to himself ¡°Why do all of our servants have one or two quirks?¡±, Cubero voiced his worries as a butler while loosely holding his fist. For him, it was ¡¾Martial Arts¡¿ as usual.

    Yve, on the other hand. She took a standing posture with both her arms dropping sloppily. At the tip of her white fingers was ¡°something invisible¡± that sometimes reflected a gleam. That¡¯s right, she was a user of ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ acknowledged by Yukari.

    ¡°Well then¡­¡­¡±

    Assuming a fighting pose, Cubero slowly approached. As for Yve, she eventually shook her hand softly.

    ¡­¡­These two had the worstpatibility.

    ¡¾Martial Arts¡¿ was a close distance type of skill. Approach, then attack. It was that simple and straightforward skill.

    ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ however, was a short-range type of skill. It was a multipurpose skill with which you could attack from a distance and at a wide range, furthermore, it could also handle close-quartersbat.

    ¡°That is, a bit hard to evade!! ¡±

    A thread stretched in the space between the two¨D¨DAnd Cubero approached this invisible attack with hesitation, an intuition born from experience.

    The skill that Yve activated was ¡¶Gold Thread Maniption¡·. This was a skill that released threads like tentacles to a radius of about four meters around oneself, restraining any opponent who touched it.

    ¡°Ha! ¡±

    Using ¡¶Lance Martial Arts¡·, Cubero kicked the thread that was about to entangle him, shredding it. Against threads, a kick was better than a punch. Since they¡¯ve fought against each other many times, he gradually learned how to deal with it.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Following that, Yve silently attacked Cubero using ¡¶Lance Thread Maniption¡·. Quickly evading the attack with a step back, Cubero returned to his initial position. Afterward, swiftly activating ¡¶Gold Thread Maniption¡· once again, Yve created a territory.

    ¡°Wow, how fast¡­¡­If we keep like this, it¡¯ll be as boring as usual.¡±

    It was impossible to approach because of this infinite loop, and when he became impatient and made a reckless attack, he would be caught by the threads and be forced to resign. It was the usual pattern.

    ¡°However, I have my pride to uphold as a former bandit. If I keep getting caught by you, my manhood will take a hit.¡±()

    Rolling up the sleeves of his butler shirt, Cubero pumped himself up and approached Yve¡¯s territory again.

    However, this time he had some measures.

    ¡°¡­¡­ku¡­¡­¡±

    Yve reacted with a twitch. She felt something sparkle at the feet of Cubero, who had suddenly stopped.

    Her eyesight wasn¡¯t great. Therefore, she didn¡¯t know what that was. Still, she was convinced that ¡°something will happen¡±.

    And that, of course, wasn¡¯t just her imagination.

    ¡°Wh¨D¨D!? ¡±

    The spectators raised their voices.

    Cubero had activated ¡¾Magic¡¿¨D¨D a ¡¶Wind Attribute?Second Form¡· spell. The light that sparkled beneath his feet was the magic skill being prepared.

    ¡°I recently learned this; you see¡­¡­¡±

    The Second Form was ranged attack magic.

    Coming off from Cubero, a gust of wind blew off Yve¡¯s threads one after the other.

    ¡°Here Ie.¡±

    Shortly after, Cubero rushed at Yve. Almost as if trying to catch her.

    ¡°I apologize in advance for my roughness.¡±

    About two meters in front of her, he leaped, flying through the air. ¡¶Knight Martial Arts¡·¨D¨Din other words, a jumping kick.

    Losing her posture because of the second form spell of wind, it would seem that Yve wouldn¡¯t be in a state of dodging and would receive the flying kick. Still, not even Yve would be able to guard off this ¡¶Knight Martial Arts¡· attack using her ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ at this close of a range.

    ¡­¡­Or so Cubero thought.

    But the truth was.

    It¡¯s not that she wasn¡¯t able to use it. Until now, she just didn¡¯t have the need to use it.

    ¡°No way!? ¡±

    Yve offset Cubero¡¯s kick using ¡¶Rook Thread Maniption¡·. It was a skill to attack like a whip, with several densely bundled threads.

    It was a triple surprise. The surprise that she had mastered such a high-level skill such as Rook, the surprise that she was able to offset his ¡¶Knight Martial Arts¡· which was Grade 2, and also, his surprise by the fact that in apparently all the previous Rank Matches, she had been cutting corners.

    ¡°I lost, it¡¯s myplete defeat.¡±

    Afternding, Cubero dered his loss while being tied up in threads.

    The match ended¨D¨DAnd the rank, it remained unchanged.

    Rank 1 Yve

    Rank 2 Cubero

    Rank 3 Lilly

    Rank 4 El

    Rank 5 Champani

    Rank 6 Cosmos

    Rank 7 Es

    Rank 8 Jast

    ¡°I thought this time the battles in the top rankings would be rough¡­¡­But nothing changed much.¡±

    Thetest order in the ranking was announced once the battle matches ended.

    At the top, Champani beat Cosmos for the 5th ce, and Jast of the Ten Great won against the Stable-head Jast for 7th ce. Other than that, the positions didn¡¯t change much.

    There was one man who turned his sulky face towards the muttering Cubero.

    ¡°I just can¡¯t¡­¡­ept it.¡±

    ¡°Ohh?¡¡Ploum. But you didn¡¯t participate, right?¡±

    The stable-hand, Ploum. He was a fourteen-year-old boy who admired Jast and called him Aniki.

    So far, he hasn¡¯t participated in the Rank Matches. However, he had a look of dissatisfaction after seeing the Rank results posted.

    ¡°It¡¯s about Aniki¡¯s rank. 8th ce¡­¡­Is Sovra-nii-san returns, he will surely fall to 9th.¡±

    ¡°Haaa?¡¡Bastard, are you making fun of me? ¡±

    ¡°Y-You¡¯re wrong!!¡¡It¡¯s just that¡­¡­¡±

    Ploum was dissatisfied with the fact that his Aniki was the lowest of The Big Four. But that wasn¡¯t all. Even above him, there were five maids. As someone who said ¡°My Aniki is the coolest in the whole world¡±, this wasn¡¯t something he could ept.

    ¡°¡­¡­Isn¡¯t it strange that your greatness is determined only by your strength in a fight? ¡±

    However, there was no way he could say such an embarrassing thing.

    This was why Ploum was against the system.

    His real feelings were ¡°A system in which Aniki can¡¯t be the best is wrong! ¡°, but since he couldn¡¯t say that, this took the form of him criticizing it in a roundabout way.

    ¡°Ploum. Are youining about Yukari-sama¡¯s decision? ¡±

    ¡°As I said, you¡¯re wrong!¡¡But¡­¡­it¡¯s strange after all, isn¡¯t it? ¡±

    ¡°Wrong, I¡¯m just weak. A great person can fight just as well as he can do his job. That¡¯s simply something I can¡¯t do. The ranking is right.¡±

    ¡°But¡­¡­Aniki¡­¡­¡±

    When Ploum tried to continue speaking with that pitiful voice, at that moment¨D¨DThe atmosphere in that ce changedpletely.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­ng.¡±

    Raising her hand, Yve said something.

    The servants gathered there turned to the interpreter next to her.

    ¡°I also think it¡¯s wrong, is what she said.¡±

    There was amotion.

    ¡°¡­¡­ssi¡­¡­nk¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t assassinated anyone, nor have I investigated anything, but for some reason, I¡¯m rank 1, is what she said.¡±

    Those were persuasive words.

    Everyone nodded saying ¡°That¡¯s true¡±.

    At the same time, a doubt came to their minds. ¡°Then, is Yukari-sama¡¯s way wrong? ¡°, they made sort of face. The answer was no. Everyone present immediately denied it. As far as it concerned them, Yukari was ¡°absolute¡±, just like Second.

    In that case, what¡¯s this strange sense of incongruity? ¡­¡­At the right time, a person who could solve those doubts everyone held, visited the ce.

    ¡°The time the next Rank Matches will be held is still to be decided. I¡¯ll inform youter.¡±

    It was Yukari herself. She contacted them unconcerned as if she was doing some office work.

    Thinking it was perfect timing, Cubero asked her a question. As expected of the ¡®manager¡¯, the coordinator of the servants.

    ¡°Yukari-sama. Doubts about the system in which the ranking is determined solely by the interpersonalbat ability have been raised. Could I bother you with your thoughts on this? ¡±

    That was a really smart way to put it. After a deep sigh, Yukari then asked back.

    ¡°You don¡¯t get why it¡¯s only aboutbat power, right? Then, what else do you need other thanbat power in the Rank Matches? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­? ¡±

    Question marks floated above the servants¡¯ heads.

    Then, a few secondster. Suddenly noticing their worries, Yukari started speaking.

    ¡°I see, I understand now. Do you think that the rank in the Rank Matches is your position as a servant? ¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong. The order from the Rank Matches is to visualize the individual fighting abilities of each of you, which were unclear until recently, and does not represent the rank of the servants in and of itself.¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    Surprise spread among the servants. The number of people who had misunderstood this up until now seemed considerable.

    ¡°There¡¯s no difference between the servants in the first ce. All of you are ves equally serving under your Master and members of the House Firstest. If I had to say, then there¡¯s a senpai-kouhai rtionship between generation zero, one and two.¡±

    ¡°Then, the reason for the Rank Matches is.¡±

    ¡°It indeed serves to rank yourbat abilities, but that¡¯s just it, it doesn¡¯t serve any other purpose than that. Ahh, but your evaluation is separated from those ratings, so don¡¯t worry.¡±

    In other words, this was only one metric by which Yukari measured the strength of the servants, and it didn¡¯t directly be the position they held as servants.

    ¡­¡­Ohhh.

    This was somewhat anticlimactic for the servants.

    But even so, this didn¡¯t mean anything would change.

    At that moment, a rare visitor appeared.

    ¡°¨D¨DOh?¡¡What¡¯s the matter? Why are you all gathered here?¡±

    ¡°Master!¡¡Why would youe to this ce? ¡±

    ¡°Eh, nothing in particr, I was just taking a walk.¡±

    Feeling a bit shocked, he ced his hands on his pockets and thought ¡°This is also my home, you know?¡± in a sulky way. It was their master, Second.

    ¡°Huh?¡¡What the heck. Ranks? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You see, this is¡­¡­¡±

    Looking at the results posted about the Rank Matches, Second tilted his head.

    Then, Yukari briefly exined to Second, who wasn¡¯t aware of the existence of these Rank Matches.

    It¡¯s an event to decide thebat abilities of the servants, by having them fight among themselves¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­She exined.

    ¡°WHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT¨D¨D!! ¡±

    Second roared.

    A loud voice that he rarely made. Not only Yukari, but the servants were also surprised, unable to move.

    ¨D¨DI screwed up!

    At that moment, Yukari regretted her thoughtlessness.

    Having the servants, who are the property of Second fighting freely and without permission, then ranking them¨D¨DIf one thought carefully, this might¡¯ve been a foolish act.

    ¡­¡­I need to apologize. Having decided so, Yukari tried to open her mouth to apologize¨D¨D

    ¡°So, you were keeping this freaking fun thing a secret from me!!¡¡Seriously!!! ¡±

    ¨D¨DHowever, she stopped.

    ¡°Next time I¡¯ll also participate!¡¡Silvia and Eko will too!¡¡Ahh, you want in too, Yukari? ¡±

    ¡°No, allow me to decline.¡±

    ¡°I see!¡¡Anyway, be sure to let me know the next time you do it!¡¡For sure! ¡±

    And thus.

    The Rank Matches became an annual event with official recognition from Second and turned into a specialty of the Firstest Family.

 Chapter 85.6: ã€Skills Tableã€‘

    <h4>Chapter 85.6: ¡¾Skills Table¡¿</h4>

    ¡¾Archery¡¿¡¡Damage:DEX Dependent.

    ¡¶Dragon King Archery¡·¡¡Powerful on-impact ranged attack.

    Condition to learn: Kill 10 Dragon-type monsters by only using the Rook skill.

    ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·¡¡Powerful piercing ranged attack.

    Condition to learn: Defeat five dragon varieties using the seven skills, from Soldier to Bishop at least once, and delivering thest blow using Rook.

    ¡¶Rook Archery¡·¡¡Very strong single-target ranged attack£¨16th ss:250£¥¡«Grade 9:600£¥£©

    Kill 1,000 monsters with using Silver; critically hit with Silver 500 times; using abination of Knight and Silver kill three monsters in a row that have attacked another yer and dropped that yer¡¯s HP by 50% or more, from a distance of 15 meters or more.

    ¡¶Bishop Archery¡·¡¡Strong piercing range attack.

    Kill five monsters at the same time using Lance; and kill two monsters simultaneously from a distance of 25 meters or more, using abination of Lance and Knight.

    ¡¶Gold Archery¡·¡¡Range attack with added knockback.

    Kill 10 monsters in a row within 3 meters.

    ¡¶Silver Archery¡·¡¡Strong single-target range attack.

    Consecutively kill 20 monsters in a single hit.

    ¡¶Knight Archery¡·¡¡Precise sniping range attack.

    Kill a monster from atop of a horse.

    ¡¶Lance Archery¡·¡¡Piercing range attack.

    Skill book.

    ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·¡¡Normal range attack.

    Skill book.

    £¨Rook£«Knight, Silver£«Knight, and Lance£«Knight can bebined.)

    ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿¡¡Damage:STR Dependent.

    ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Powerful ranged attack forward + stun.

    Condition to learn: Kill 10 Dragon-type monsters by only using the Rook skill.

    ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Powerful ranged attack in all directions.

    Condition to learn: Defeat five dragon varieties using the seven skills, from Soldier to Bishop at least once, and delivering thest blow using Rook.

    ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Very strong single-target attack£¨16th ss:250£¥¡«Grade 9:600£¥£©

    ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Quick and powerful prating attack.

    Using Lance kill three monsters in a single strike; and with abination of Lance and Knight hit two or more vital points of a monster ten times in a row.

    ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Ranged attack on all directions.

    ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Strong, single-target attack.

    ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Precision attack£«added damage against vital points.

    ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Prating attack.

    Skill book.

    ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·¡¡Normal attack.

    Skill book.

    £¨Rook£«Knight, Silver£«Knight, and Lance£«Knight can bebined.)

    ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿¡¡Defense:VIT dependent¡¡Attack:STR dependent

    ¡¶Dragon King Shieldmanship¡·

    Completely defend against attacks from dragon-type monsters 100 times in a row using Shieldmanship skills.

    ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡·

    Defend using the seven types of skills, from Soldier to Rook, at least once; after meeting this requirement, have a team member kill five dragon-type monsters.

    ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Strong forward rush attack£¨VIT is converted to STR and added to the base STR£©£¨16th ss:100£¥¡«Grade 9:250£¥£©

    ¡¶Bishop Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Reinforced Defense£¨16th ss:Defense increased to 250£¥¡«Grade 9:600£¥£©

    Using Shieldmanship,pletely defend against attacks from a Boss stronger than you 100 times in a row.

    ¡¶Gold Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Range homing defense £« Knockback£¨While active, attacks within a certain range would redirect themselves towards the shield£©

    ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡·

    ¡¶Knight Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Defense + Knockback.

    ¡¶Lance Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Deflects piercing attacks.

    Skill book.

    ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡·¡¡Normal defense.

    Skill book.

    ?Parry¡¡£¨Possible when defending in time matching the enemy attack£©£¨No damage received £« weak knockback£©

    ¡¾Martial Arts¡¿¡¡Damage:(STR+DEX+AGI)/2.65

    £¨Omitted from Dragon King to Gold£©

    ¡¶Silver Martial Arts¡·¡¡Strong single attack £¨Punch£©

    ¡¶Knight Martial Arts¡·¡¡Forward jumping attack £¨Jumping kick£©

    ¡¶Lance Martial Arts¡·¡¡Short-range attack £¨High kick£©

    ¡¶Soldier Martial Arts¡·¡¡Normal attack £¨Punch£©

    ¡¾Magic¡¿¡¡Fire, Water, Air, and Earth attributes¡¡Damage:INT Dependent.

    ?First Form¡¡Normal Attack£¨Preparation time:Super short. Cooldown:Super short£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Royal Great Library£©

    ?Second Form¡¡Extended range attack£¨Slow. Long£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Magic Academy£©

    ?Third Form¡¡Strong single-target attack£¨Short. Short£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Magic Academy£©

    ?Fourth Form¡¡Powerful extended-range attack£¨Super slow. Super long£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Upper-ss Dungeon ¡ºAlgin¡» clear reward, drop chance: 10%£©

    ?Fifth Form¡¡Very powerful extended range attack£¨Slowest. Longest£©

    Magic Grimoire £¨Clear a specific quest£©

    ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡·¡¡Permanently grants an extra effect to a piece of equipment £¨Effects given are random£©£¨Chance of sess is 90% at Grade 9£©£¨The higher the rank, the easier it is for rare effects to appear£©

    Skill book.

    ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿

    ¡¶Recovery?Small¡·¡¡£¨Recovers about 50% of a beginner yer¡¯s HP£©£¨For shallow wounds£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Church£©

    ¡¶Recovery?Medium¡·¡¡£¨Recovers about 50% of an intermediate level yer¡¯s HP£©£¨Enough to re-attach a finger£©

    Magic Grimoire£¨Lower-ss Dungeon ¡ºChiro¡» clear reward, drop chance: 20%£©

    ¡¶Recovery?Large¡·¡¡£¨Recovers about 50% of a high-level yer£©£¨Can easily fix a broken arm£©

    Magic Grimoire £¨Clear a specific quest£©

    ¡¾Magic ¡ð¡ð¡¿¡¡Abination of Magic and ¡ð¡ð skills£¨Archery will be used as an example£©

    ¡¶Combine¡·¡¡Combines Magic and Archery skills into a single attack. £¨Example:Fire Attribute?Third Form£«Soldier Archery£©£¨In the case of skill that can be originallybined, like Silver£«Knight, a total of three can bebined, for example:Fire?Third£«Silver£«Knight, etc.£©

    While reducing their HP by 75% of more using Archery skills, kill 1,000 monsters using Magic skills.

    ¡¶Synergy¡·¡¡Combines two Magic skills with one Archery skill. £¨Example:Rook Archery£«Fire Attribute?First Form£«Earth Attribute?Second Form£©

    ¡¶Oveying Attack¡·¡¡Attack Magic that increases in magnitude the more you charge it£¨DEX£«INT£«increasing multiplier applied to the firepower depending on the charge time£©£¨Maximum charge time is 10 seconds£©

    ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿

    ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·¡¡Calls forth a monster that has already been tamed £¨Bonus to the monster¡¯s stats depending on the rank£©

    ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·¡¡Calls forth an owned spirit £¨Bonus to the spirit¡¯s stats depending on the rank£©

    ¡¶Unsummon¡·¡¡Dismisses the summoned monster or spirit £¨Increases the number of monsters in which it can be used with rank, it also reduces dismissing time with rank£©

    ¡¶Tame¡·¡¡Make a monster obey you £¨Can be used after bringing the target to 20% HP or below£©£¨Chance of sess is 20%, but it also depends on the target£©£¨The number of monsters that can be tamed increases with rank£©

    ¡¶Spirit Possession¡·¡¡Greatly increases your stats for a certain period of time £¨16th ss:200£¥¡«Grade 9:450£¥£©£¨Possession time, 16th ss:70 seconds¡«Grade 9:310 seconds£© £¨Cooldown, 16th ss:490 seconds¡«Grade 9:250 seconds£©

    ¡¾cksmith¡¿

    ¡¶Smelting¡·¡¡Extracts metal from ore £¨Ore¡úMetal lump£©

    ¡¶Refining¡·¡¡Increases the purity of a metal £¨Metal lump¡úPure ¡ð¡ð£©

    ¡¶Production (Changed from Manufacturing¡·¡¡Production of alloys £¨Pure ¡ð¡ð£«Pure ¡ð¡ð¡ú¡ð¡ð Alloy£©

    ¡¶Manufacture¡·¡¡Created equipment using raw materials.

    ¡¶Disassembly¡·¡¡Dismantles equipment, returning it into raw material

    ¡¾Others¡¿

    ¡¶Critical¡·¡¡Passive skill that causes an increase in damage with the following probability ¡¸Correction value£«LUK/10¡¹£¥.

    £¨Damage increase, 16th ss:150£¥¡«Grade 9:300£¥£©£¨Correction value, 16th ss:10¡«Grade 9:40£©

    ¡¶Transform¡·¡¡Greatly increases your stats for a certain period of time £¨16th ss:110£¥¡«Grade 9:360£¥£©£¨Transformation time, 16th ss:180 seconds¡«Grade 9:420 seconds£©£¨Cooldown, 16th ss:600 seconds¡«Grade 9:230 seconds£©

 Chapter 85.8:ã€List of charactersã€‘

    <h4>Chapter 85.8:¡¾List of characters¡¿</h4>

    Second Firstest

    17 years old, male, human.

    Transcendentally handsome, with slightly long dark blue hair and unblemished white skin. ¡ùDue to the use of a limited-edition paid avatar.

    Inside lies Satou Shichirou, 24 years old, single. A man who, while dropping out of middle school and not attending high school nor working, was a hikikomori and game addict to the VRMMORPG game Mobius Online in which he reigned supreme with his character named ¡¸seven¡¹.

    Probably because of his pride as the world¡¯s top, he currently acts somewhat self-important with his alt character Second.

    In this mysterious world that he reincarnated in, he is passionate about growing this alt character every day in order to regain his title as the world¡¯s top like those days.

    His personality is like being the world¡¯s number one. And would do anything to be the world¡¯s top. Womene next. At times, things get heated up with some of his femalepanions, but in the end, bing the world¡¯s number one takes priority.

    He has a very good naming sense.

    His hobby was Mobius Online, but right now he¡¯s interested in yer vs yer (PvP) battles.

    The name of his horse is Seventh Tei¨­. It¡¯s a ck-haired horse.

    ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿and ¡¾Archery¡¿ are all Grade 9, except Dragon King and Dragon Horse.

    ¡¾Magic¡¿from the four major attributes are First Form to Fourth Form, from lightning attribute are from First Form to Fifth Form. With the exception of Fourth and Fifth Form, all others are Grade 9.

    ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿¡¯s ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·, ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·, and ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· are all Grade 9, ¡¶Tame¡· is 11th ss.

    ¡¶Transform¡· is Grade 9, ¡¶Critical¡· is Grade 9.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Ore¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Silvia Virginia

    17 years old, female, human.

    A dignified former knight with long tinum blonde hair flowing down her back.

    She¡¯s the second daughter of the Knight Family Virginia and is currently the Magic Archer or Second¡¯s team, ¡ºFirstest¡».

    She¡¯s a typical archer with high DEX and AGI. Her INT is also high, which makes her perfect for Magic Archery.

    She feels indebted to Second, and is in love with him, but those feelings are hard to express properly because of his craziness.

    Due to admiring and yearning to be a knight since she was little, her sense of justice is stronger than in others. She has a serious personality. However, that seriousness has been slowly changing due to somebody¡¯s influence.

    She¡¯s not a great thinker, and can sometimes be called a ditz.

    Her hobby is the study of signature phrases and finishing moves. Apparently, even after bing a first-ss archer, she can¡¯t seem to give up on her dream of bing a hero knight.()

    The name of her horse is White Silver. It¡¯s a chestnut-haired horse.

    ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills are all Grade 9, except for Dragon King and Dragon Horse.

    As for ¡¾Magic¡¿, she had only learned the Fire Attribute from First to Third Form. All at Grade 9.

    ¡¶Transform¡· is Grade 6, ¡¶Critical¡· is Grade 9.

    Refer to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-dono¡¹

    _______________________________________________________________

    Eko Leafret

    16 years old¡¡female¡¡Cat Beastmen

    Her main features are her short chestnut-colored hair, her cat ears, blue-green eyes, and the pointy teeth that peek through her mouth.

    She often makes a silly face with her mouth open, which is caused by the Flehmen response. She has good hearing, and can listen to normal sounds with her human ears, and high frequency sounds with her cat ears. She also has an incredible sense of bnce.

    Originally a failure in the Royal Magic Academy, she now ys the role of Tank, being a reliable wall for team Firstest.

    Her MP is high, however her INT is low. DEX, AGI, and LUK are low, but HP, and VIT, and MGR are high.

    Tank£«recovery type£½ an unusual growth type called Battle Priest. The ideal tank role.

    Her personality is like a cat. However, she can sometimes be like a dog. She doesn¡¯t really care so long as she¡¯s having fun. She loves Second, and as for Silvia and Yukari, she just likes them.

    She sometimes looks like an idiot, but it¡¯s highly likely that she¡¯s actually quite smart. She finds thenguage tedious since she¡¯s used to the beastmennguage (TLN: normalnguage = Japanese, beastmennguage = hiragana only. Also, Eko always speaks in hiragana.)

    Loves the phrase ¡°strategy meeting¡±. She finds it exciting.

    Her hobbies are exploring ces and collecting rare things. There¡¯s a treasure chest in her room filled with her treasured junk.()

    The name of her horse is Leaf Impact. It¡¯s a fawn-colored horse.

    Her ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skills are all Grade 9, except Dragon King and Dragon Horse.

    Her ¡¾Healing Magic¡¿¡¶Recovery?Small¡· is Grade 9.

    ¡¶Transform¡· is Grade 1, ¡¶Critical¡· is Grade 9.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Atashi¡¹ and Second with¡¸Second¡¹(TLN: Both in hiragana.)

    _______________________________________________________________

    Yukari

    19 years old, female, Dark Elf.

    She has long white-purple hair and brown skin. Her expression is always cold and her gaze sharp. She had a nice body.

    She was an assassin under the deceased Duchess. She got caught in a conspiracy, bing a ve. Sheter was bought by Second, bing his cksmith.

    For some reason she¡¯s addicted to Second. To the point where it¡¯s almost fanatical.

    She respects Second as her Master, and loves him as a man.

    Being a cksmith, the Steward of House Firstest, the Chief Maid, and the person in charge of Bestowal, she a very busy person.

    Her character is calm, cool, and collected. She¡¯s a sharp-tongued maid that likes to be right. She has the nickname of ¡°taciturn sex fiend elf¡±.

    Her hobby is observing Second. Something like burning his figure unto her retinas. When she¡¯s alone at nights you can hear her ¡®do something¡¯ in her room.

    The name of her horse is El Purple. It¡¯s a seal brown-haired horse.

    Her ¡¾cksmith¡¿¡¯s ¡¶Smelting¡·, ¡¶Refining¡·, ¡¶Production¡·, ¡¶Manufacture¡·, and ¡¶Disassembly¡· are all Grade 9.

    Her ¡¾Assassination¡¿ skills are from Soldier to Silver, all at Grade 1.

    Her ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿ Soldier to Silver are all high ss.

    ¡¶Bestowal Magic¡· is Grade 9.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Angolmois

    Unknown age, unknown gender, Great Spirit King.

    Short-cut, red, ck, and gold hair with an androgynous face, slenderplexion and fair skin. Wears highly presumptuous clothes.

    Came to this world in response to the ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· used by Second with the Limited-edition premium spirit ticket.

    The Great King who controls the spirit world with Lightning Attribute magic, that deviates from the four major attributes of Fire, Water, Earth and Wind. It¡¯s full of mysteries.

    Has a terribly cocky character. Extremely self-important and proud. In fact, so proud it¡¯s hard to deal with.

    Hobbies include bullying the weak. However, even with all that said, it has some gentle aspects.

    Refers to self with ¡¸Waga¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Waga Second (My Second) ¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Anko

    Approximately 100 years old, female, Darkness Wolf Demon.

    She has long, jet-ck hair, thread-like thin eyes, and a gentle, smiling mouth. Her bewitching limbs can¡¯t be concealed even underneath those dark clothes, ck as darkness, that cover her entire body. She¡¯s slightly shorter than Second, and had ck-haired wolf ears and tail.

    She ces first in the ¡°I want to tame these monsters no matter what¡±-ranking from Second.

    For hundreds of years, she spent her days alone in the Library of Evesting Darkness. Her only entertainment was robing of their lives to those who ventured into that ce.

    For her, Second is everything in the world. Aside from him, nobody and nothing else really matters to her.

    She¡¯s not good with sunlight, and even if a little of it hits her body, she bes extremely weak.

    Her hobby is Second.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹or¡¸Anko¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Aruji-sama (Lord)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Windfield

    Unknown age, female, half-breed spirit of water and earth.

    Slender beautiful woman with gray hair in a two-block cut. Characterized by her sleepy eyes and paused manner of speaking.

    As a spirit, being a half-breed of water and earth makes her a small fry, but in terms of strategy, she¡¯s unmatched.

    In the spirit world, she was active as the military strategist under the Great Spirit King Angolmois, she was called into this world by Yukari¡¯s Spirit Summoning that she performed by instructions of Second.

    In conflicts between people, she has an abnormal brain that can read dozens of moves in advance.

    After hitting it off with Second in terms of ¡°sense of ying¡±, she seems to have be slightly interested in him. However, since she¡¯s actively being obstructed by her master Yukari, things haven¡¯t progressed. However, she even enjoys that back on forth.

    Her hobby is Gedankenexperiment. She always trains about how much can she read ahead correctly with as little information. However, since recently her emotions have surfaced, the results of her experiments have been messed. Her thoughts tend to move in the direction of ¡°this and that¡± with Second as oftely.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-san¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Maine Castall

    16 years old, male, human.

    Because of his silky blonde hair, androgynous face, small stature and slender body, he looks like a woman. But, he¡¯s a man.

    He¡¯s the second Prince of the Castall Kingdom. He attended the Royal Magic Academy, and held the highest score among the first-year students.

    A clear-headed honor student who¡¯s good at magic and has a wealth of knowledge. However, since he¡¯s a prince, others don¡¯t approach him much. Some students speak ill behind his back calling him mothercon and swot.

    Although he often expresses it, he admires Second, and loves him like an older brother figure. Eventually they became friends.

    His hobby is studying. He ranks quite high in the amount of knowledge he has, across the whole Kingdom.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Boku¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-san¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    us Castall

    20 years old, male, human.

    A sharp-eyed handsome man with long golden hair tied in the back. In contrast to Maine, he is tall and with a fairly well-trained body.

    He¡¯s the first Prince of the Castall Kingdom. Captain of the First Knight Order. He was the first in line to the throne.

    So skilled in swordsmanship that he is said to be the top of the Kingdom. ¡ùExcluding Title Matches.

    With a ferocious personality, he¡¯s a man who believes in talent. The cowards without talent are just inferior garbage in his eyes.

    Due to his mother¡¯s brainwash-like education he became obsessed with bing King and developed an uncontroble hate for his brother Maine.

    However, he seems to trust the Second Queen Freon, who was supposed to be his political enemy¡­¡­?

    His hobby is bullying his younger brother. The person in question doesn¡¯t seem to notice his actions show ack of confidence and uneasiness.

    ¡¸Ore¡¹

    _______________________________________________________________

    Barwell Castall

    43 years old, male, human.

    Middle-aged man with dark-blonde hair and sharp expression like that of a bear. King of the Castall Kingdom.

    Profits-first, selfish and self-centered King. That¡¯s what Second thought about him, but he was apparently different in this world.

    He never yielded to the Empire until the very end, and always tried to make a fair judgment.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Freon Castall

    34 years old, female, human.

    Beautiful woman with silky blonde long hair that reached her waist. Very simr to Maine in looks.

    Second Queen of the Castall Kingdom. Maine¡¯s mother. Originally, she was a maid serving King Barwell.

    She has a very keen mind, and because of this, the Prime Minister and the First Queen always got in her way since they feared her.

    For her, her son Maine is the most important, but at the same time, she fell pity for us¡¯ situation.

    Tea time is her hobby. It¡¯s her daily routine to elegantly talk with her favorite maid.

    _______________________________________________________________

    White Castall

    39 years old, female, human.

    A woman with thick makeup and dazzling hair which is a mix of brown and golden.

    First Queen of the Castall Kingdom. us¡¯s mother.

    A person obsessed with money and power. A fool who tramples others in order to gain more power and protect her daily gorgeous life. Nobody likes her, but few voiced their opinions against her.

    She hates the concubine Freon and her daughter Maine. She tried to make us the King at any cost because she wanted to be the King¡¯s mother and wield that kind of power, but since she¡¯s ignorant of politics, she only interfered with us. Still, nobody paid attention to her.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Hairai

    50 years old, male, human.

    Barcode-bald old man. He has the appearance of a store manager.

    He¡¯s a Minister in the Castall Kingdom, and is very good. Leader of the Second Prince Faction.

    He excels in viewing the bigger picture and looks calmly at the future. His manner of speaking is nothing short of refined.

    He is very patriotic, and works hard for the Kingdom. Rumors says it¡¯s because of this that he became bald.

    His hobby is visiting a tavern with his friends on weekends. Despite him being the minister of a country, his tastes are quitemon.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Val Morrow

    51 years old, male, human.

    Has the appearance of a cool uncle.

    Prime Minister of the Castall Kingdom. His true identity is that of a spy from the Marubell Empire. Over the course of 30 years he gained the trust of the King due to this talent.

    Manipting First Prince us from the shadows, he changed him into a puppet, and was secretly nning to do the same with the Castall Kingdom, making them serve under the Marubell Empire.

    However, the n which he spent half his life splendidly went up in smoke after Second foiled it, causing him to go crazy in anger.

    He eventually became a lump of meat and was delivered fresh to Emperor Marubell via cold package.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Djarum

    44 years old, male, human.

    A slender middle-aged man with bulging eyes.

    He¡¯s the Captain of the Third Knight Order of the Castall Kingdom.

    He can do his job, but he¡¯s also dishonest. By stepping over others, he climbed to his current position.

    He¡¯s the type of person to leave things forter. He joined hands with the Prime Minister and was taking advantage of it to the fullest.

    Execution is certain. Currently being tortured.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Memphis

    49 years old, male, human.

    Middle-aged man with a funny little mustache.

    Captain of the Second Knight Order of the Castall Kingdom.

    A soldier to the core. He¡¯s so patriotic that if it¡¯s for the good of his country, he¡¯s willing to work himself to the bone.

    In the past he had the ability and was hailed as someone who would for sure enter the Title Matches, but an illness made him unable to move his legs as he wanted, and since then he¡¯s always been in a position ofmand. He slowly raised until he became a Captain.

    His hobby is going to bars with young girls. After all, you need a breather once in a while. However, he has enough self-control that he only does this about twice a month.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Gram

    36 years old, male, human.

    Arge middle-aged man about 2 meters tall.

    Vice-Captain of the Second Knight Order. Powerful swordsman who¡¯s known as the strongest among the knights.

    Usually kept to himself, he bes quite talkative with ites to fighting.

    Father of two. Devoted husband. His personality is the opposite match for hisrge body. He¡¯s caring and dependable, so there¡¯s no subordinate who doesn¡¯t like him.

    His hobby is cooking refined cuisine on his days off. Not only he does this for his family, he also sometimes invites his subordinates.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Ch¨¦rie Lumberjack

    16 years old, female, human.

    Young nobledy with long brown hair and ringlets. Despite her height and breasts being small, her pride is higher than anyone else.

    However, that¡¯s already in the past. After having met Second, wetting herself and almost dying, she slowly has grown as a person. However, the same can¡¯t be said for her height or breast size.()

    She can be called an elite, being the youngest adventurer to reach A rank, and the daughter of the Lumberjack Earl Family.

    She also holds the title of genius summoner, using the Great Spirit of Earth, Gnomides.

    Because of her arrogant personality, she had no friends growing up, so she named Gnomides as Terra, and spent all her days together with her instead of making friends.

    She deeply respects Second, who rushed to save her in her predicament, and is in love with him. She is a bit of a stalker.

    Can be either the boke or the tsukkomi type (Silly or serious). Her tsukkomi responses are remarkable sharp.

    Her hobby is secretly writing novels at night. She¡¯s currently writing a royal road-type of story about a hero¡¯s daughter, who¡¯s a summoner, who is saved by a prince in a white horse whom despite being a summoner like her, uses swordsmanship.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Anta (inflection of Anata/you) ¡¹

    _______________________________________________________________

    Terra

    Unknown age, female, spirit.

    Beautiful brown-skinned woman. Great Spirit of Earth, Gnomides. Ch¨¦rie is her summoner.

    The name Terra was given to her by Ch¨¦rie when she was a child. The person in question seems to like it.

    Since she had been with her for a very long time, she¡¯s more like an older sister or a motherly figure to Ch¨¦rie. Her love for her is deep.

    But, while it¡¯s unknown if it¡¯s because of love or something else, she loves to tease Ch¨¦rie frequently. Totally not the way to treat her master at all. The proverb ¡°to show results immediately (uteba hibiku)¡± makes Terraugh.

    She has a fluffy and sometimes difficult to grasp personality. ording to Ch¨¦rie, she¡¯s a ¡°mix of an angel and a demon¡±.

    Her hobby is teasing Ch¨¦rie. After that, sheforts her after she calms down.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Barel Lumberjack

    43 years old, male, human.

    Attractive middle-aged man with an athletic body, not to thick, not too thin.

    Earl of house Lumberjack. He has themercial city Le?ador as his territory. He¡¯smonly known as the ¡°Woodcutting Earl¡±.

    It was the Lumberjack Family the ones who made Le?ador, formerly a vige in the forest, develop into arge city that attracts all kinds of businesses.

    He¡¯s aplished both in the literary and military arts, and was well known in the past as a prodigy.

    Although he stepped down from the military path and became a figure of business, he¡¯s still in extremely good shape.

    His hobby is taking a walk. He disguises to hide his identity and walks through the shops in Le?ador. This is a pain for his escorts.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Jerez Lumberjack

    23 years old, male, human.

    Handsome tall man with long brown hair. Eldest son of the Lumberjack family.

    He¡¯s a swordsman great enough to not bring shame to the name Lumberjack. Some people say the best in the Kingdom is us, some say it¡¯s him.

    He wanders the Kingdom alongside his maid, Mariposa.

    The day he meets Second draws near.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Cubero

    24 years old, male, human.

    Handsome man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He¡¯s Second¡¯s steward and a butler of House Firstest.

    Formerly the young leader of the chivalrous bandit group R6 (Rimusuma Six) who were active in the vicinity of the capital, he¡¯s extremely noble-minded.

    Although his heart will always be with his deceased boss Rimusuma, his loyalty towards Second, who saved him, is stronger than anyone else¡¯s.

    He¡¯s like apany chairman, good at bringing employees together, good at caring for others, and with a calm deposition. Despite him being hot-blooded, he values honor.

    He¡¯s responsible for various jobs like waiting, serving, public rtions, servant guidance, alcohol management and consultant.

    Political purges are his hobby. When he sees a servant cking, he happily teaches them with his fists.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-sama¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Lilly

    38 years old, Onee, human.

    Feminine macho-man with bulging muscles. His body is that of a man, his mind that of a maiden. Serves as the head gardener for House Firstest.

    Former C-ranked martial arts adventurer. He was sick of working across several different teams.

    He hated barbaric work like that of an adventurer and wanted instead to do something cute, like taking care of a flower shop.

    He¡¯s very fond of his current position, being able to take care of the garden, and feels like his sleeping sense of gardening has now blossomed. He¡¯s active as both gardener and security guard.

    Fell in love at first sight with Second after being saved. Ever since then, every time he¡¯s in front of Second, his head goes nk with embarrassment and ends up speaking strange things.

    After being praised by Second for the muscr body that he hated, his thoughts changedpletely and he¡¯s now working hard day and night, aiming for the ultimate body.

    He calls all other servants with -chan, and has asked them to refer to him with -chan as well.

    His hobbies are taking baths and muscle training. Recently,ints have been increasing about him doing flexibility exercises in the shared male bath. ording to the person in question, he said ¡°I¡¯m not interested in the nudity of others except for Second-sama¡±, but that doesn¡¯t seem to be the problem.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Atashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-sama¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Sovra

    35 years old, male, human.

    Middle-aged man with unkempt hair and beard, with sses and an uninterested expression. But even if he looks like this, he¡¯s the Chef of House Firstest.

    Got into a marriage scam with a woman he got serious about, lost all his money and fell into very. On top of that, he had to shoulder her debts.

    Former B-ranked adventurer. Originally good at cooking, but preferred to cook man¡¯s cuisine. After he became the head chef, he learned recipes so hard that he felt he would die. Rather, he had to make meals for 14 servants every day, three times a day from the first day, so he was forced to learn.

    He has a yboy personality, but is never serious about a rtionship because of his past trauma.

    Unable to forget her deceiving wife, he started to smoke Caramelia. On every holiday, he went to the seller of Caramelia with the excuse of going out with women. In the end, not being able to afford the increased prince, he copsed because of withdrawal symptoms. He¡¯s currently undergoing treatment.

    His hobby is drinking. He¡¯s admired by many male servants, who call him Sovra-nii-san.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Ore¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-sama¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Jast

    16 years old, male, human.

    Young man with sharp eyes and swept-back brown hair, the delinquent type. He¡¯s a stable-hand.

    He was originally a mischievous orphan. Straying from the right path, he became a vagabond, growing up as a thug, and finally falling into very after a failed robbery.

    Aftering to House Firstest, he was put under hard teachings as a stable-master, finally turning him into a full-fledged man.

    He became even more enthusiastic about his work after officially been entrusted with Second¡¯s horse, Seventh Tei¨­. It is said he cried manly tears after drinking with Sovra.

    Because of his good care, and honest, and upright nature, he¡¯s respected by the younger stable-hands like a big brother.

    Cubero is his natural enemy. Since he was originally a thug, he couldn¡¯t help but to think about the young head of the R6 as incredible.

    His hobby is horse riding. He was happy to find an opportunity to escape from the lifestyle of rob or being robbed, and strives to be a warrior.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Ore¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-sama¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Ploum

    14 years old, male, human.

    A stable-hand brat with short bangs. Looks up to Jast like a big brother.

    Former petty thief brat. Curious and cheeky. Every time he speaks some nonsense, he¡¯s beaten up by Jast.

    He¡¯s infatuated with Jast, and follows him like a big brother.

    His hobby is boasting about his Aniki (Jast). His goal is to eventually write a biography of his Aniki, and spread his greatness to the world.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Ore¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujin (Master)¡¹

    _______________________________________________________________

    El & Es

    16 years old and 15 years old, female, human.

    Redhead sisters. The elder sister, El is a boyish girl with semi-long hair, and the younger sister, Es is more girly, with a side ponytail.

    They are members of the all-purpose maid squad, the Ten Great, and serve as captains for the Es squad and El squad respectively.

    El squad is famous as a fighting squad. They feel more like a mercenary group than maids.

    The Es squad is famous for being more orthodox. There are rumors that in a sense, they are tougher than El squad.

    These sisters are famous among the servants, and have several nicknames, like: Uneven sisters, sun and moon, fire and water, etc.

    Because of their past experience of false usations, they are quite strict about doubting people and collecting evidence.

    El¡¯s hobby is martial arts. She has confidence in her skills, and her goal is to make the most of her skills and one day be useful to Second.

    Es¡¯s hobby is sewing. She¡¯s been fixing her sister¡¯s clothes for a long time, so her skills are quite good. Before she knew it, it had be her hobby.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Atashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹(El).

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹(Es).

    _______________________________________________________________

    Yve

    17 years old, female, human.

    Albino girl with pure white hair, unblemished white skin and light red eyes.

    One of the Ten Great. Captain of the Yve squad, the assassination unit directly under Yukari.

    Since she is albino, all the vigers and even her parents thought of her as creepy and called her ¡°demon child¡±, confining her in a prison house from an early age.

    She is silent and expressionless, just like a doll. She wants, in fact, to get along with everyone, but she¡¯s too shy and withdrawn.

    She¡¯s not good with outdoors since she¡¯s weak to sunlight. She also has poor eyesight, and is often helped by her subordinates.

    She¡¯s very skilled with her hands, and uses ¡¾Thread Maniption¡¿. Therefore, with Yukari¡¯s eyes on her, she¡¯s growing rapidly as an assassin.

    Her hobby is ying with threads. There was nothing to do while she was confined, so she spent her days killing time strangely by ripping her clothes and sewing them back together.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸A¡­¡­¡¹, and Second with¡¡¡¸¡­¡­a¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Cosmos

    17 years old, female, human.

    Slender girl with neat, beautiful long ck hair.

    One of the Ten Great. Captain of the Cosmos squad (Cosmos-tai),monly known as the ¡¸Hen-tai¡¹ (Pervert¡¯s squad).

    She¡¯s a helpless pervert. A walking tEROrist. 90% of the words she speaks are dirty talk.

    She has an excellent artistic sense and is great at drawing. Her hobby is the sexual harassment of those of her same-sex.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Champani

    18 years old, female, human.

    A beautiful girl with a spirited hairstyle, fluffy blonde hair that flows in elegant waves. She spends an hour every morning fixing it.

    Her make-up is perfect, her height is moderate, and her breasts are big; she looks like the rich daughter of some noble. Her own maid clothes are also gorgeously decorated.

    One of the Ten Great. She¡¯s the captain of the Champani squad, the self-proimed ¡°Great squad¡±.

    She never cuts any corner when ites to fashion. Be it standing or doing something, she acts like a properdy. However, she¡¯s only a maid.

    Her hobby is bing more like a nobledy. She¡¯s someone who works hard. ¡°Oh ho ho ho! ¡°, is the way sheughs.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watakushi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Luna

    20 years old, female, human.

    A very ordinary woman who¡¯s not beautiful nor cute, but she isn¡¯t ugly either.

    Belong to the Yve squad, and is an excellent assassin. She¡¯s a pro in regards to collecting information.

    She was able to get along with Yve by chance, and since then, she has be her interpreter.

    Shecks the feeling of fear, and there¡¯s nothing she¡¯s scared of.

    She alsocks inmunication skills, and when alone, she¡¯s very gloomy.

    She always ends her phrases with ¡°-is what she said¡± when devoting herself to interpreting. If she doesn¡¯t do this, she wouldn¡¯t be able to speak to others.

    However, when it¡¯s rted to work, she can speak no problem. In other words, she¡¯s terrible at small talk.

    Her hobby is keeping creatures. She loves a pet spider called Consade.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujinsama (Master)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Besaid

    29 years old, male, human.

    Bony faced, very tall man with ck hair swept back and a sharp gaze that seems to kill by staring at you.

    A member of the R6 and former subordinate of Cubero. Totally a yakuza-like person.

    Adores his boss, Rimusuma, loves the young leader, Cubero, and is awed by Second.

    After the fall of the R6, he hid as a beggar and wandered around the Camel Churches in the Kingdom, hiding from the knights at the time he looked for scattered members.

    Now that he reunited with Cubero, he¡¯s working in house Firstest as a servant, while dreaming of the revival of the R6.

    His hobby is fishing. On holidays, he goes to Lake Vani in high spirits. Because he adds a side dish for the servants for dinner by doing this, his evaluation among them is high.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Oira (I)¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Goshujin¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Zephyr

    55 years old, male, human.

    Red-haired, bald at the top old man.

    Leader of the First Royal Court Magician Division. Also known as the me General.

    He values hard work, but hates those who bend the rules. A man fierce like a me. Loyal retainer of King Barwell and member of the Second Prince faction.

    Can use Fire Attribute magic up to the Fifth Form.

    His hobby is going out with his wife and children on holidays. He believes he¡¯s happily shopping as a family but he still hasn¡¯t realized that he¡¯s only used as a luggage carrier.

    Refers to himself with ¡¸Washi (I)¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Kozou (Kid)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Sherry

    18 years old, female, human.

    ck haired girl with a bob cut. She¡¯s small, in many aspects. Because of someone, she¡¯s been started to be called Kokeshi.

    Ace of the First Royal Court Magician Division. Knows Water Attribute magic up to Fourth Form at a high level, and Wind Attribute magic at a moderate level.

    Because of her great pride as an elite, she can¡¯t afford to be looked down upon.

    She¡¯s a freaking serious-working person. She won¡¯t put up with anything that¡¯s not logical, and is unaware of the fail in logic caused by her emotions.

    She kind of acknowledged Second deep down in her mind. She also respects Ch¨¦rie very much as a fellow woman.

    His hobby is her work, but recently she started to realize that this wasn¡¯t a hobby at all. The day when she finds a hobby draws near.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Anata (You)¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Irie

    18 years old, female, human.

    A very ordinary-looking woman.

    She¡¯s a member of the First Royal Court Magician Division. She has a great ability tomand, and is good at managing his teammates¡¯ conditions.

    She¡¯s friends with Sherry, and always worried about Sherry¡¯sck of room to fail and learn. Like the dirt after the rain bes more solid, so did their friendship.

    Her younger sister, Aroma who attends the Royal Magic Academy, is a fan of Second, and after getting curious about him, she also became a fan.

    She spends agonizing nights looking at the colored paper that she got with Second, which for some reason isn¡¯t in her sister¡¯s room.

    Her hobby is aromatic candles. No particr reason for this.

    Refers to herself with ¡¸Watashi¡¹, and Second with ¡¸Second-san¡¹.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Seram

    19 years old, male, human.

    Tall man with defined muscture, with long red-brown hair. Has amon face. Alias, Kimoronge.

    Marubell Empire¡¯s intelligence officer with the setting of being an adventurer from the slums and a summoner.

    His main mission is to gather information about the adventurers in the Castall Kingdom. It¡¯s true that he¡¯s from the slums and wants to be a true summoner. He uses a wind spirit called Nymphe.

    After being in mental tatters because of Second, he went and told the emperor: ¡°The world¡¯s top man, Second, fancies the Marubell Empire¡±, without making a mistake.

    It seems like the stress caused by that made him go bald ten years earlier.

 Chapter 86: Making the best of the Worldâ€™s Top position.

    <h4>Chapter 86: Making the best of the World¡¯s Top position.</h4>

    ¡°For the time being, it¡¯s interpersonal battle training. Is there any objection? ¡±

    ¡°Wait. I¡¯ve nothing but objections.¡±

    While eating breakfast we got a rally meeting.

    But just as I started talking about the future policies, Silvia leaned forward and protested.

    ¡°In the first ce, neither Eko nor I have enough experience points to raise Dragon King and Dragon Horse to Grade 9. Like this, we might not even be eligible to enter the Title Matches.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. We still have more than a month before the winter title matches.¡±

    ¡°Are you aware it took me doing my best for four months to get to where I am?¡¡I admit there¡¯s rtively not much left to raise them to Grade 9, but one month is a bit¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll get them to Grade 9 in three days. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-dono. I have a very bad feeling about that.¡±

    Even though you were drunk, have you already forgotten what you saidst night?

    ¡°We¡¯re going to burst through Isoreus.¡±

    ¡°I-Is that for real¡­¡­?¡±

    Silvia said while slumping and hanging her head.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not saying we¡¯re going to fight until we almost die. What you need right now is one or two interpersonal battle experiences. Even if you wanted, there¡¯s really no time to be fighting monsters.¡±

    ¡°Huh¡­¡­?¡¡So, what do you mean? ¡±

    ¡°It will be just sightseeing. It¡¯ll also be a good opportunity for you to see what an upper-ss dungeon is like. Only Anko and I will be fighting to farm experience.¡±

    ¡°That is imp-¡­¡­Ah, I see, it is possible.¡±

    Possible indeed.

    This is one of the main reasons why I tamed Anko. If you asked that extraordinary murder weapon for it, even she alone can earn experience at an explosive rate.

    Moreover, taking advantage of the unusual versatility of ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· and ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·, we can challenge and capture an upper-ss dungeon in a single day¡¯s trip. Like this, these two will get their Dragon King and Dragon Horse to Grade 9, and we¡¯ll qualify for the Title Matches in a week.

    ¡°Hey, hey, what is a tai-tol match? ¡±

    Suddenly, Eko raised a question.

    ¡°Ehh¡±¡­¡­With that wondering expression, Eko also looked at Silvia and Yukari who was doing housework.

    ¡°Y-You don¡¯t know!? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t, you know? ¡±

    Silvia¡¯s expression was one of surprise as Ekoe closer to her. Saying ¡°For realsies¡± Eko tilted her head.

    ¡°Eko. If you win a Title, the beastmen from your hometown will worship you like a God.¡±

    ¡°Amazing! ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, it¡¯s amazing. That¡¯s why we¡¯ll join the Title Matches.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I will too! ¡±

    Nice, it seems like I convinced her.

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait! ¡±

    ¡°Please wait a moment, Master. I feel like you¡¯re deceiving her.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You should exin in detail.¡±

    Silvia and Yukari both came telling me to wait. Well, I suppose they might be right.

    ¡°Alright, the exnation then¡­¡­Silvia, I leave it to you.¡±

    ¡°Umu, leave it to me! ¡±

    I decided to nominate Silvia, who had a face that screamed she wanted to exin it. Yukari simply nodded and went back to doing housework.

    ¡°Listen, Eko. First of all, it¡¯s not possible to enter the Title Matches unless you have all your skill at Grade 9.¡±

    ¡°All of them? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, no, not all skills per se, just the main skills. Since you¡¯ll enter for Shieldmanship, then it means all those skills, from Soldier to Dragon King.¡±

    ¡°If so, then I¡¯ll get a title? ¡±

    ¡°No. From there, you¡¯ll have to climb in the tournament and challenge the current titleholder. If you win that fight, you¡¯ll get the title.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Sounds hard.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡­but all you have to do is keep winning. However, just know that simply entering the Title Matches is an incredible honor.¡±

    ¡°Okay, got it.¡±

    Heee, so in this world, it¡¯s an ¡°Incredible honor¡±? Back in Mobius, this was treated like a wall separating exceptional people.

    ¡°The Title Match tournament consists of ¡°duels¡±. It has a mechanism where no matter what you¡¯ll always be left with at least one HP, so even if you receive a fatal wound, it¡¯s safe. Potions are not allowed. Also, you¡¯ll be disqualified if you use other skills or skills from other fields. The time limit is one hour, and only the final match has unlimited time.¡±

    ¡®Duel¡¯ is a PvP system that¡¯s not virtual, unlike with a Game Crown. However¡­¡­a ¡°leave you with 1 HP after a fatal wound¡± rule?¡¡Are you serious? There was such rule in Mobius too for duels, but in Title matches, the unwavering rule was ¡°fatal wounds are fatal¡±. Otherwise, it wasn¡¯t exciting.

    Did the fact of this bing a real-world caused some ethical issues because of that rule?¡¡Certainly, it would be a problem if the contestants died in the Title matches. I feel a bit disappointed about this change since I feel my tension fading out, but it might be unavoidable.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re using Shieldmanship, you¡¯ll participate in the Kongou matches. And since I¡¯m an Archer, I¡¯ll participate in the Kisenshou matches.()()

    ¡°Kongou matches? ¡±

    ¡°Umu. And if you win the Title, everyone will call you ¡°Eko Leafret Kongou¡±.¡±

    ¡°Silvia Kisenshou©`¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Silvia Virginia Kisenshou¡­¡­Fufu, fufufufu.¡±

    And here I thought Silvia was knowledgeable, I see¡­¡­So that¡¯s the reason. In other words, having the Title in her name tickled her heart.

    ¡°Hmm, by the way, which Title will you challenge, Second-dono?¡¡Will it be Swordsmanship? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Swordsmanship, but also Magic, Summoning Magic.¡±

    ¡°HA¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    To be honest, I also wanted to participate in ¡¾Archery¡¿, but this time I¡¯ll concede it to Silvia, I was going to list it also but after seeing her with her dropped jaw, I decided to stop. I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll even listen to what I say.

    ¡°So, in my case, it would be Second Issenza Eishou Reiou, a triple crown (sankan). Then, I guess people would refer to me as Second-sankan? ¡±

    ¡°Second-san-kan! ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Sankan (triple crown).¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Even if two crowns are unprecedented, a triple crown will happen first? I was quite surprised, but now that I think about it, isn¡¯t it just normal?¡±

    While I was talking with Eko, Silvia appeared to have revived. It looks like she was shocked by my triple crown deration. Yeah, it feels nice. The best in the world has to be shocking.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be those three in winter. In the summer I¡¯ll aim for a triple crown defense and get five additional ones. Eight crowns altogether.¡±

    ¡°Wha-¡­¡­¡±

    Ahh, she froze again.

    ¡°¡­¡­E-Eko. Don¡¯t misunderstand things. This is Second-dono we¡¯re talking about. He¡¯s the only one who¡¯s weird. Just participating in a Title match is an honor. It¡¯s a huge honor.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    In response to Silvia¡¯s exnation, Eko replied with a vague answer, I don¡¯t know if she understood her or not. I somehow feel that Eko has slowly been changed by my values. Well, everything is an experience. There¡¯s a lot of things you can understand the first time you try to challenge a Title. Whether or not it¡¯s an honor, it all starts with the challenge.

    ¡°Alright, shall we go to Isoreus now? We¡¯ll leave in thirty minutes. Get ready.¡±

    One month until the Winter Title Matches. First of all, let¡¯s get enough experience for what we¡¯recking.

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right. Yukari, I¡¯d like to bring those servants in the top ranks who want to join me, are there any candidates? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes? ¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll be getting a stupid amount of experience. And so will the servants whoe. I hope they can grow in a way they can clear an intermediate-ss dungeon by themselves. ¡±

    ¡°O-Okay. Understood. I¡¯ll call them and bring them in 30 minutes.¡±

    ¡°I leave it to you.¡±

    _______________________________________________________________

    ¡°So, these are the five you gathered?¡±

    30 minutester. Silvia, Eko, and five servants were gathered in the living room.

    ¡°Cubero, Yve, and El, was it? And you are-¡±

    ¡°This is my first time meeting you, Master. My name is Champani.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. You¡¯re just like an ojou-sama.¡±

    ¡°I-It¡¯s an honor!¡¡Impressive!¡¡Wonderful.¡±

    cing her hands in front of her chest, Champani jumped in joy. She¡¯s a child with a lot of emotional expressions. The soft scent of flowers drifted from her gorgeous blonde hair. I feel an extraordinary effort, not only on the fashion she wears but also in her personal taste that reaches every corner of her being. I have a great impression of her.

    ¡°I¡¯m Cosmos. I¡¯ll be in your care, Master.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, likewise. Do you use Jojutsu?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m great with a stick in my hand.¡±

    Cosmos looked like a Japanese beauty with long ck hair. Yeah, however, no matter how clean and neat she looks, she seems to be hiding something. Why do I think that?¡¡Because, as far as I¡¯m aware, ¡¾Jojutsu¡¿ is a skill used by maniacs.

    ¡°Are they all? ¡±

    ¡°Originally, Lilly was supposed to join instead of Cosmos, but it appears there were some problems at work.¡±

    ¡°At work? Is it difficult?¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s his subordinates the ones he¡¯s having problems with¡­¡­ He was in tears, regretting not being able toe.¡±

    Cubero answered with a wry smile. After telling him ¡°tell him toe next time¡±, he nodded with a happy expression.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡±

    Alongside those words, I used ¡¶Monster Summoning¡· to call Anko.

    Agitation and noise soon spread across the servants. That reminds me, I haven¡¯t exined about her.

    ¡°This is my secret weapon. A Darkness Wolf called Anko. She¡¯s a hidden boss of the upper-ss dungeon, Isoreus.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Upper-ss.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. The dungeon we¡¯re going now is the one where Anko originated.¡±

    The buzz immediately calmed down. But soon after, it became noisy again.

    ¡°Do you mean we¡¯re going to an upper-ss dungeon!? ¡±

    ¡°What? Didn¡¯t you hear from Yukari? ¡±

    Cubero wasn¡¯t the only one with a shocked expression. All the servants had paled faces. Well, I don¡¯t know if Yve¡¯s expression is pale since she¡¯s got that pure-white, expressionless face, but she still looks surprised.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t let themy a finger on you. Think of it as a sightseeing tour.¡±

    The purpose this time is to ¡°Show the servants the site¡±, while earning experience. This seems to be nothing at first sight, but it¡¯s actually very important.

    In an online game, what makes you take action sometimes is the longing for high-level yers. If they don¡¯t get a concrete example that makes them think ¡°I want to be like that¡± they won¡¯t get serious at all.

    I want them to yearn to be like me on this visit. And then, for them to take action. I want them to find out that they can survive this simple task of clearing dungeons and earning experience.

    ¡°Be motivated. Be ambitious. And then think for yourself. I have all the information you need to be strong. I¡¯ll tell you if you want to know. Today is just the first step.¡±

    ¡°My Lord.¡±()

    ¡°Yeah. Start the transfer and summons one after the other.¡±

    ¡°Certainly.¡±

    After touching each one of them, Anko used ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· to go to Isoreus, and then ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·.

    Silvia and Eko seemed determined, and together with the servants, who floated bewildered expressions, moved towards the gate of Isoreus.

    ¡°Now, join the team.¡±

    I sent the five of them a request to join team Firstest as a guest. They all epted instantly.

    Temporarily excluding Yukari from the distribution, I set the experience value distribution method in the team to evenly. With this, even if only Anko and I fight, the experience gained will be distributed evenly among eight people.

    ¡°Follow me and don¡¯tg behind.¡±

    I started walking without looking behind. Just before reaching the enemies, I called Angolmois with ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·and used ¡¶Spirit Possession¡· immediately. Again, the servants with the exception of Cubero became noisy.

    ¡°Spirit Possession is one of the Summoning Magic skills. It¡¯s unlocked when you reach Grade 4 in Spirit Summoning. You should remember as much as possible.¡±

    I gave them generous advice. Champani was even taking notes. That¡¯s good. That¡¯s how information leakage should be treated.

    ¡°About the Transform skill that I¡¯ll useter, ask Silvia and Eko what¡¯s its condition to learn.¡±

    I¡¯ll use ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· and ¡¶Transform¡· to fight continuously without dropping buffs. That¡¯s one of the basics for dungeon clearing.

    ¡°Anko. Dark me Spear.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    I¡¯ll spare nothing. We¡¯ll push forward with the highest power from the start.

    Following Anko, I also pulled out my weapon, the mithril sword, from my waist, and started running while preparing ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·.

    ¡°Ufu-¡±

    Anko¡¯s ¡¶Dragon King Spearmanship¡· blew off the two armor knight gatekeepers in one strike.

    Alongside the servants, Silvia and Eko were also shocked. She one-shotted an upper-ss monster. With this, they probably understand how abnormal she is.

    We broke through the castle gate. And keeping the same momentum, we plunged into the old castle that is Isoreus.

    ¡°Straight ahead, enemy at 10.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Straight ahead, enemy at 3.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Forward at 1, enemy at 9.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    I gave out instructions with simple words. The directions were expressed by the hours of a clock. I kept it as simple and easy to understand as possible.

    What kind of monsterses out, from where, and what kind of attacks they make? I know all of it, that¡¯s why I can easily read ahead and respond without a problem.

    The safest thing to do is defeat the enemy before they have a chance to respond. A preemptive strike is the greatest defense.

    ¡°Transformation in 5 seconds, enemy at 11.¡±

    ¡°How should I continue?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go with B.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    I blew away the three ck Ghosts that came from the front left with ¡¶Transform¡·. Anko¡¯s ¡®continuation¡¯ referred to what should she do afterward. My answer of B referred to n B. Since we¡¯ve prepared a corresponding n for all patterns in advance, there¡¯s no need to give specific instructions such as ¡°do this after I transform¡±.

    By the way, n B is: Anko attacks the monsters at the rear of me while the 8 seconds of Transform¡¯s invincibility pass, if she can¡¯t defeat them, I¡¯ll blow them away after 6 seconds pass, then Anko chases them down.

    ¡°Fools.¡±

    This time, however, there was no need for me to blow them away since Anko¡¯s ¡¶Rook Spearmanship¡· took care of them.

    ¡°Forward at 1, enemy straight ahead.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Thus, we cleared the Isoreus with tremendous speed.

    It took less than an hour after entering the castle until we reached the tower where the boss is.

    ¡°Looks simr, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. After all, you¡¯re an evolved version of this mutant species.¡±

    The boss of Isoreus is the Dark me Wolf. It¡¯s a big ck-haired wolf, simr to Anko.

    ¡°F, okay?¡±

    ¡°Certainly.¡±

    n F¨D¨DA preemptive attack using Anko¡¯s ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·.

    To the Dark me Wolf, whose HP became 1 because of the ck fog, a ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· shot was all that was needed to defeat it. An instant kill.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s take a break, then we¡¯ll do another clear.¡±

    Since one clear took less than an hour, counting the break time, that will make it one hour, which is perfect since the cooldown time for ¡¶Darkness Magic¡· is 3600 seconds. Therefore, it is possible to clear Isoreus at a high speed.

    Well, this wasn¡¯t bad at all for it being my first time in a while. My body fully remembers it. If we keep going like this, we can shorten it to 45 mins per clear. If we do so, it¡¯ll be necessary to defeat the Dark me Wolf without relying on ¡¶Darkness Magic¡·. What we can do is push it using the stun effect from ¡¶Dragon King Swordsmanship¡·, of if we think about safety, we can use the ¡°Gold Bishop Hamejiro strategy¡±. Or maybe even the ¡°Gold Bishop Hamesaburo¡±. Yeah¡­¡­

    ¡°¡­¡­Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    While I worried about which strategy to use, Silvia spoke to me with a strange face.

    ¡°My Dragon Horse skill became Grade 7.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. Isn¡¯t that great?¡±

    ¡°D-D-Don¡¯t ¡°that¡¯s great¡± me!¡¡This is too insane!! ¡±

    How noisy!¡¡My ears are ringing.

    ¡°Do you know what you¡¯ve done!?¡¡You¡¯ve cleared an upper-ss dungeon in just an hour without even getting hit, you know!?¡¡And that¡¯s even while protecting us! ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I protected you. I just crushed the monsters before they could do anything.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what¡¯s insaaaaaneeeee! ¡±

    Now she¡¯s screaming again.

    ¡°In just one hour my Dragon Horse went from Grade 6 to 7!¡¡In other words.¡¡Just how much experience did the servants get!?¡¡Wouldn¡¯t it be enough to get a Soldier skill all the way to a high Grade? ¡±

    ¡°Probably.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this just too powerful!? ¡±

    ¡°I suppose.¡±

    Silvia was freaking out because of too much tension.

    Eko, on the other hand, was ying with her skills with a happy voice. Doing things at her own pace as usual.

    ¡°Second-sama.¡±

    Then, Cubero called out my name with an expression filled with determination. Next to him, the other servants were also lined up.

    ¡°I now understand the meaning of why you brought us here.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    ¡­¡­He looks impatient, or rather, does he understand? He has the same sort of motivated face as the Court Mages when I showed them the damage the First Form of magic could do. Looks like this is the effect of them seeing it with their own eyes. It makes me really happy.

    ¡°If there¡¯s something that you want to know, ask me. No matter if it¡¯s a dungeon strategy or whatever. I¡¯m ready to teach you.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­! ¡±

    The five servants nodded in excitement, like newbies who had their mind blown away by a senpai.

    ¡°Well, not I want to focus on a time-attack, so it¡¯s okay for you to go back home. Ahh, Silvia, and Eko, you stay. We¡¯ll go shopping before heading home, in the meantime, stay behind me.¡±

    I sent back the servants thanks to Anko and returned to clearing Isoreus.

    It¡¯s finally getting there. We¡¯ll steadily gain experience and enter the stage for the Title Matches. And finally, I¡¯ll set foot into thend of the World¡¯s Best. I¡¯ll get that position once again.

    ¡­¡­Wash your necks and wait for me, Titleholders. The day when you taste defeat is near.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Everyone, you understand, right?¡±

    The five of them had returned to the Firstest state and were looking at each other.

    In response to Cubero¡¯s words, Cosmos raised her hand.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°My panties got wet so, can I go back?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Wait a bit longer.¡±

    Despite being embarrassed by Cosmos¡¯ shamelessment, Cubero continued to speak.

    ¡°In thest hour, I was able to raise my Soldier Martial Arts to Grade 7, and Silver Martial Arts to Grade 5.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. The same for my Martial Arts. (El)¡±

    ¡°I also raised my Soldier Swordsmanship to Grade 5 (Champani).¡±

    ¡°I feel like my Jojutsu reached its peak all across (Cosmos).¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­e¡­¡­oo (Yve).¡±

    Everyone reported that they had improved their skills. Not being able to really put it into words, Yve simply nodded.

    ¡°We all¡­¡­Have been doing nothing but receiving from Second-sama.¡±

    Cubero¡¯s mutter made everyone nod in agreement.

    ¡°Why did he allow us to have this sort of experience? We have to understand what he really means.¡±

    ¡°I already know. Master is expecting us to be a force (Champani).¡±

    ¡°I also think there¡¯s that, but will he put that much energy into us servants just for that? (El) ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. For him to insert so much energy into us¡­¡­¡± (TLN: This is the best I coulde up with that still makes sense)

    ¡°¡­¡­? ¡±

    Yve tilted her head in response to Cosmos¡¯s mutter. And after waiting for El to smack Cosmos in the head, Cubero opened his mouth.

    ¡°Let¡¯s live up to his expectations. I was only one hour, but there were countless things than we could learn from it. The world Second-sama see and the world we see is different. Now that we know that, there¡¯s only one thing for us to do.¡±

    ¡°Getting closer even if by a little to Master¡¯s level, and devote ourselves to help him, right? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. We can be taught by that great person. There¡¯s no better ce than this.¡±

    To be taught by the world¡¯s best. There¡¯s nowhere else in this world where they could find such a wonderful environment.

    ¡°Let¡¯s learn from Second-sama about dungeon clearing, and study hard so that we servants alone can clear it.¡±

    Here, the servants of house Firstest took their first step in bing an unparalleled group of fierce people.

    _______________________________________________________________

    ¡°By the way, isn¡¯t Master way too cool? ¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t a little toote to be finding that out?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­o¡­¡­ool.¡±

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯ve been thinking this for some time. Yve-san is really easy to understand.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s true. I don¡¯t know why I was so scared of you when you¡¯re so cute.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­te? ¡±

    ¡°Your face is all red, Yvehi.¡±

    ¡°¡«¡«¡«uuu¡­¡­!? ¡±

    Yve, whose skin was pure white because she¡¯s albino, easily turned red when she was even a little embarrassed or excited.

    ¡°I saw you were as red as a tomato when you were staring at Master from behind.¡±

    ¡°Ahahaha, oh poor thing.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get depressed, Yvehi. Even I have to change my underwear every time I see Master.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the poor thing then?¡±

    ¡°Oh ho ho ho! ¡±

    ¡°Panihi, I won¡¯t forgive you.¡±

    ¡°I onlyughed! Why just me!? ¡±

    ¡°I just don¡¯t like the way youugh.¡±

    ****

    [List of currently known titles]

    ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿¡¡Issenza (Speed Sovereign)()

    ¡¾Archery¡¿¡¡Kisenshou (Demon Piercer)()

    ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿¡¡Kongou (Vajra/Indestructible)()

    ¡¾Magic¡¿¡¡Eishou (Sage General)()

    ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿¡¡Reiou (Soul King)()

 Chapter 87: Damage, Salt and Pepper.

    <h4>Chapter 87: Damage, Salt and Pepper.</h4>

    A week after going around clearing Isoreus.

    As expected, soon enough Silvia and Eko¡¯s Dragon King and Dragon Horse both became Grade 9.

    As for me, my ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿¡¯s Dragon King and Dragon Horse got to Grade 9, ¡¾Magic¡¿¡¯s ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fourth Form¡· and ¡¶Lightning Attribute?Fifth Form¡· also reached Grade 9, and so did the ¡¾Summoning Magic¡¿ skill ¡¶Tame¡·; with all that, I¡¯m qualified for each of those Title matches.

    With regards to ¡¾Magic¡¿, you can participate as long as you¡¯ve reached Grade 9 in First to Fifth Form of any attribute. Lightning is an attribute I never heard of back in Mobius, but I guess it should still count as one.

    ¡­¡­And so.

    With this, you could say we¡¯ve reached a resting point, but from here on the real Title matches begin.

    Setting myself aside, this will be Silvia and Eko¡¯s first in a Title Match. But at present, their experience in interpersonal battles is overwhelmingly insufficient.

    A Title Match is a duel between skills. That¡¯s why, in order to practice, let¡¯s say ¡¾Archery¡¿ you¡¯d need an opponent who also uses ¡¾Archery¡¿, the same goes for ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿, you need another opponent with the ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill.

    There¡¯s no problem with Silvia in that regard, I can be her opponent. However, I can¡¯t be of help to Eko since I haven¡¯t learned the ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill.

    Hmm¡­¡­What should I do?

    ¡°Can you call Windfield? ¡±

    Since it¡¯s a waste of time to keep worrying about it, I decided to ask Yukari to summon our advisor.

    After making a bitter expression for a moment, she answered with a nod and called for Winfield using ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡·. There should be a reason why Yukari seemed reluctant to summon Windfield, but when I asked Silvia about it, she just said ¡°You should leave that alone¡±, so I decided to ignore it for the time being.

    ¡°Ahh, Second-san. Long time, no see.¡±

    The silver-haired, tall, beautiful spirit girl with hair in a two-block cut answered with her usual way of speaking, smiling with her sleepy eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while indeed, looks like you¡¯ve been doing fine. Sorry to do this immediately after calling you, but there¡¯s something I need to ask.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Ask me, anything. I¡¯m sure, I can help.¡±

    How reliable.

    After exining the whole situation to Windfield, I asked her for advice on what to do with Eko¡¯s training.

    ¡°In my, opinion. I think that, Silvia-san and Eko-san, might feel that a difference in training time between them, might not be fair.¡±

    I see. Now that she pointed that out, it might be true.

    ¡°So, I think that for now, they should start training, with self-improvement in mind, and you should learn Shieldmanship before you start training them, Second-san. ¡±

    ¡°Seriously? Then it seems like it will take over a week before we start training properly, wouldn¡¯t it? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think, there¡¯s the need for you to, raise the skills all the way up, to be honest. Since it¡¯s you we¡¯re talking about, I think you should be able, to raise them to a moderate level easily, don¡¯t you? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ahh. I see, you¡¯re right.¡±

    Certainly. Even if I don¡¯t raise it to the highest Grade, it can still count towards training her.

    ¡°It might take you a whole day to learn it, and two for it to reach a usable Rank. So, it¡¯ll be three days total, I believe?¡¡That is, depending on how hard you try.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think three days will be that much of a loss.¡±

    ¡°Do you have, anything you want to teach them, in the meantime? ¡±

    ¡°There is. A certain thing. Thanks, Windfield. Thanks to you I have an idea.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure.¡±

    At the end of the conversation, she winked at me and said ¡°I look forward to my reward¡±. Although I know she said it half-jokingly, it actually makes me want to reward her in some way. However, how can I reward a spirit?

    Well, for now let¡¯s think about what should Silvia and Eko do in the three days while I¡¯m away.

    I think I should teach them the secrets of interpersonal battles, right?

    I¡¯m troubled since there are a lot of things I want to teach them. What should I start with? That¡¯s right, if I want to teach them something that doesn¡¯t require a partner then¡­¡­

    _______________________________________________________________

    ¡°The way to exert firepower? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    I called Silvia and Eko to the living room and started the lecture.

    The content is about how to exert the maximum firepower in Mobius. It¡¯s a pretty theoretical talk, not really something you couldpletely understand without practical experience.

    ¡°There are many types of firepower. For example, instantaneous, single, and continuous fight. This time I¡¯ll teach you about instantaneous firepower.¡±

    ¡°Instantaneous firepower? Does that mean, with how much force you can deliver an attack in an instant? ¡±

    Since Silvia¡¯s got a serious nature, she quickly gets into it. Meanwhile, Eko was silently listening while taking notes.

    ¡°Well, you¡¯re not wrong, but it¡¯s a bit more specific. Do you know what DPS is? ¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Damage per second. In other words, it¡¯s the average damage per second in a battle that includes skill preparation and cooldown times.¡±

    ¡°Then, if you continue to fight for 30 seconds with all your might, that¡¯s the value by dividing the total damage by 30, right? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. If you use a Game Crown you can measure it without having to calcte it every time. Today you¡¯ll take advantage of this feature¡­¡­It really has nothing to do with DPS per se, since it¡¯ll only measure your maximum damage in one second.¡±

    ¡°Howplicated. Maximum damage? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It has various ways to measure damage, but for now, I¡¯ll just set it with the function to disy the damage ¡°measured only for one second after the first damage¡±. In other words, it¡¯s divided by 1. I want for you two to find a ¡®method that will do the most damage within that first second to the first attack¡¯.¡±

    Hearing my words, the two of them looked at me with a questioning gaze. It can¡¯t be helped. The maximum damage measured in a second isn¡¯t really DPS in the first ce, so they might wonder why one second, since at a nce this has nothing to do with Title Matches.

    However, it is closely rted. With the special condition of trial and error while finding out ¡°how much damage can they do in one second¡±, they will learn the ¡°depth of this game¡±. I want them both to realize how fun this is.

    ¡°Umu¡­¡­I understand what you¡¯re saying, but is there a meaning in doing that? ¡±

    ¡°Ohh, why do you think so? ¡±

    ¡°Even while we were in the dungeons, I felt Rook Archery was the most powerful. Isn¡¯t the answer obvious then? ¡±

    ¡°Hmm, well, I guess it¡¯s natural for you to feel that way. However, there are things you won¡¯t notice until after you try it. Today¡¯s challenge for the two of you is to find the maximum damage you can do in one second using the DPS disy feature of the Game Crown. Okay? ¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    ¡°Roger.¡±

    Silvia was reluctant, in contrast to Eko¡¯s cheerful reply.

    How much would they grow by the time I¡¯m back from my trip to learn ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿? It¡¯ll be a sight to see.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you one hint. Roughly speaking, firepower can be divided into three types: Machine gun, Shotgun, and Rocket Launcher.¡±

    ¡°Mashin¡­¡­? ¡±

    Oops, I guess the meaning didn¡¯t get through.

    ¡°Consecutive attacks, scattered attacks at the same time, or in a single shot. That¡¯s what I meant.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Hoo.¡±

    Nice, it seems it got thought this time. Silvia made a face as if she caught on something.

    ¡°This is the beginning of the training. I¡¯m looking forward to both of your answers.¡±

    ¡°Umu!¡¡By the way, where are you going, Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I¡¯ll go learn all the Shieldmanship skills by the end of the day.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­A-All of them? ¡±

    ¡°If I have time left, I¡¯ll earn some experience.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Why am I still surprised?¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Silvia-sama. It¡¯s about time for you to take a break.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯ll keep going for a bit more.¡±

    Lunchtime. Silvia, absorbed in her quest to find the maximum damage, refused the invitation from the maid Es to take a lunch break.

    Right now, her head was filled with one thought, ¡°Interesting!¡±.

    Indeed, it was interesting.

    Among the ¡¾Archery¡¿ skills, ¡¶Rook Archery¡· was the one which produced the most firepower¡­¡­that was an unshakable fact, but when the conditions became ¡°in one second¡±, it was a different story.

    Using ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· you could fire three shots in one second. At Grade 9, ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· had an increase in attack damage of 200%. Three shots would total 600%. Yeah, with this being the case, it was the equivalent of the increase of ¡¶Rook Archery¡· of 600% at Grade 9.

    But here is where Critical yed a part. If it activated, the tripled damage increase would be arge factor. Andpared to one, three shots had arger change to score a critical. In other words, with three shots of ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, one could expect more solid damage output whenpared to just one of ¡¶Rook Archery¡·, since it was easier to score a critical.

    In addition to that, with ¡¶Silver Archery¡·, you could fire two shots in 1 second. This would also total 600% damage since at Grade 9 it increased its damage to 300%. There was room for ingenuity here, so it was easy to see why Silvia wanted to keep at it.

    ¡°¡­¡­As expected, she¡¯s immersed in it.¡±

    Es muttered quietly while looking at Silvia.

    Silvia continued to shoot arrows at the ¡®target dummy¡¯ wearing a game crown, and every time the number disyed was mind-boggling, causing Es¡¯s chest to swell with emotion in excitement.

    She wondered if all the Title Match contestants were that amazing. She couldn¡¯t help feeling proud since she was apanion of the master she served.

    And what was more, her master was an even more outstanding person than this first-ss archer. Thinking along those lines, Es suddenly became incredibly happy.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bring you a snack.¡±

    She thought the best thing she could do right now was to get Silvia something to eat that wouldn¡¯t get in the way of her training. Being secretly inspired, Es vowed to work as a Firstest maid in a way that wouldn¡¯t shame his master.

    _______________________________________________________________

    On the other hand, there was Eko.

    She was immersed wholeheartedly in her writing after eating a lot, in the living room.

    The letters she wrote on her notepad were not Japanese, but of the beastmennguage. Maybe because of that poor wording, it was hard to imagine they were coherent sentences.

    What should she do to get the most damage per second with her own ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill? She thought very logically and wrote down ideas one after the other.

    She had the exact same feeling since the morning as Silvia.

    It was interesting, and she couldn¡¯t help to feel like that.

    This was the first time in her 16 years of living that she had such an impression.

    In other words, this was the first moment that she saw life as if it were a ¡°game¡±.

    And thus, she slowly and steadily fell in love with it.

    Is the ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill so deep? She wondered.

    But the more she thought about it, the more she felt a shivering feeling on her back at this interesting aspect.

    If just ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ alone is like this, what would happen if I were tobine it with other skills?¡¡With such thoughts, Eko felt as if she had been freed from some shackles.

    These thoughts had nothing to do with the Title Match. However, those were interesting and unavoidable thoughts. She remembered the smile that the boy whom she loved asionally showed. And right now, Eko felt as if she started to understand the reason for that carefree smile.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Back at home.

    In the end, I learned all the ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill in about half a day and decided to spend the rest of the day clearing Isoreus until evening. ¡¶Dragon Horse Shieldmanship¡·¡¯s requirement of ¡¸Defend using the seven types of skills, from Soldier to Rook, at least once; after meeting this requirement, have a team member kill five dragon-type monsters.¡¹ was a bit of a challenge, but I managed with Anko¡¯s help. It was necessary to lead the dragons to the shade of a rock because of the sunlight, but it wasn¡¯t that much of a trouble.

    The reason why everything went so smoothly was probably thanks to Anko¡¯s ¡¶Darkness Summon¡· and ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡·. Thanks to that I didn¡¯t have to learn ¡°transfer magic¡±, nor did I have to Tame a dragon to serve as a transport. Anko surees in handy.

    ¡°Alright, show me today¡¯s results! ¡±

    Before dinner. I decided to have Silvia and Eko show me their progress.

    Since they seemed to look forward to it, I could feel their high spirits.

    ¡°Let me go first.¡±

    Silvia rolled her arms and held out her bow.

    Well, let¡¯s see what she does¡­¡­

    ¡°HAAA! ¡±

    She started, or rather, she settled it with ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·.

    After approaching the target dummy, she shot ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· at point-nk.

    If I had to express my thoughts in one phrase, it would be:

    You discovered it!?

    This ispletely how I felt.

    That is ¡°shotgun¡± so to speak. ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·is a powerful piercing ranged attack. It shoots dozens of arrows with a prating effect scattered at a specified range over a long distance. If it hits at point-nk range¡­¡­That means dozens of prating attacks hit. Even if each of those shots is not powerful enough, when it bes dozens, the power skyrockets. There¡¯s also the chance for a critical strike.

    ¡°How is it!?? ¡±

    Silvia looked back and waited for my answer while looking anxious.

    ¡°Amazing, good job finding it!¡¡Don¡¯t worry, that¡¯s the correct answer.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Umu! ¡±

    A joyful smile. This also makes me happy.

    I smiled back at Silvia while giving her a thumbs up. It¡¯s like the feeling of enjoying a game together with friends. It made me feel somewhat nostalgic.

    ¡°Alright, next is your turn, Eko.¡±

    Feeling inspired by Silvia, Eko held up her shield.

    She then turned around to face me and opened her mouth.

    ¡°Second, can you do it with me? ¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    At this point, I was already convinced. Eko also reached the ¡°correct answer¡±.

    ¡°Leave it to me. I won¡¯t hold back.¡±

    While trying to hide my smile, I wore the Game Crown and unsheathed my sword.

    Words aren¡¯t needed anymore.

    I activated ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· and shed at Eko.

    ¡°HAAA! ¡±

    Eko answered with ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡· to receive it. At that moment, when my sword was about to touch Eko.

    ¡°Eh!? ¡±

    Silvia raised her voice.

    No wonder. From an objective point of view, it must¡¯ve been a really strange sight. After thinking ¡°The Rook Swordsmanship connected! ¡°, I was repelled.

    That was a Parry by ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡·. However, it¡¯s different from a simple parry, since an additional effect was activated. An effect by the name of ¡°Counterattack¡±.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    I whispered with joy as I saw Eko chase after me while rushing with ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·.

    If you prepare it and activate it at the immediate moment after the repel, it would use 0.0 seconds and it¡¯ll manage to fit in the 1-second rule I gave them.

    ¡­¡­She did great in searching for it. And in finding it. It was a great performance. I can¡¯t praise her enough.

    Then, I fell down. After getting hit by ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡· and falling back, the DPS was disyed over my head.

    A counterattack with ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡·, followed by a Rush with ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·. The damage caused by thisbination of skills exceeded Silvia¡¯s point-nk ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·.

    She might be wondering why did ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ does so much damage. The secret of it lies in the ¡°Counterattack¡± effect. The counterattack effect of ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡· increases its power in proportion to the amount of damage received from the opponent. In other words, the power of my ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· attack was so ridiculously high that it was able to beat Silvia¡¯s damage.

    ¡°Eko, you¡¯re correct. Good job finding it. You¡¯re amazing! ¡±

    ¡°Yaay!¡¡I did it! ¡±

    I went ahead and patted her head, ruffling her hair. Eko squinted her eyes in happiness, then pushed herself into my hand as if asking to spoil her.

    I don¡¯t usually know what she¡¯s thinking since she always acts at her own pace, but today is a memorable day where Eko¡¯s hidden talent was revealed. I have nothing toin about. She properly analyzed her own ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ skill, examined the characteristics of ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡·, and did the best in timing perfectly the rush with ¡¶Rook Shieldmanship¡·. I feel like I can¡¯tpliment Eko enough, for her to discover this on her own in just one day.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Ohh. If I cheer this much for Eko, Silvia will start pouting.

    Silvia, you too are amazing. When I turned around to look at her, I instantly noticed her expression that said ¡°How did I do?¡±. You were practicing all day without eating, trial and error, right?¡¡When I first discovered this characteristic of ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· I felt like jumping and dancing in joy. I wanted their seriousness and diligence when directly tackling a problem in front of them, so they could emte the joy of genuinely having fun.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so shy. You tooe.¡±

    She was feeling a bit embarrassed, but Silvia also came closer and I praised her together with Eko while patting both of them.

    While saying shyly ¡°Stop, don¡¯t pat me¡±, she was obviously secretly happy to be praised.

    ¡°Salt and pepper.¡±

    ¡°Yes? ¡±

    ¡°If you were a steak, today you¡¯d have salt and pepper sprinkled over you.¡±

    ¡°Haha, I see. Will you be cooking then, Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°There are three more weeks left, how would you like to be done?¡±

    ¡°Scary. Then, rare please.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be silly, by then you¡¯d be well-done.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Is this what they mean with ¡°if the pheasant doesn¡¯t call, it won¡¯t be shot¡±?¡±

 Chapter 88: Thinking while not thinking.

    <h4>Chapter 88: Thinking while not thinking.</h4>

    ¡°Well, what are we going to do today? ¡±

    Next morning.

    The thrilled Silvia, of whom I could almost hear her excitement, asked this question with a look of expectation. I could also see Eko fidgeting.

    ¡°Would it still be measuring DPS? ¡±

    Yesterday I entrusted them with looking for the maximum damage they could do in one second. Going by that pattern and increasing the challenge time, today it should be 10 seconds or 30 seconds. The DPS can be easily measured by continuing to attack a specific target for 30 seconds and then dividing the total damage by 30.

    However, there¡¯s little meaning in calcting the DPS in this way. The reason being, all calctions can be done in paper. Furthermore, I already know the maximum DPS for each skill.

    ¡± ¡®If you attack with it, it will produce the most stable firepower¡¯, you have an idea of what skill this is, right? ¡±

    ¡°Umu. Most likely, Soldier Archery.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Soldier¡¯s firepower is the most stable. I call this ¡®continuous firepower¡¯.¡±

    A tactic of continuously delivering stable firepower for a long time with rapid-fire, since ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· has the fastest activation time and shortest cooldown time. Continuous firepower refers to this ability to maintain a stable and uninterrupted attack. I wasn¡¯t the one to make up this exnation, it was called so back in Mobius.

    ¡°However, if you only have a single chance to hit, which skill gives you the most firepower? ¡±

    ¡°The one I found out yesterday, right? Point-nk Dragon Horse Archery.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Correct.¡±

    If you were to continue attacking using these two patterns for 30 seconds, only Soldier and only Dragon Horse, and measure the DPS of each one, the result would be Soldier¡¯s victory. Dragon Horse¡¯s preparation time is too long. However, Dragon Horse is overwhelmingly more powerful when ites to a single attack.

    ¡°Knowing that much is enough. You don¡¯t have to bother measuring the DPS yourself.¡±

    Yesterday¡¯s training of ¡°Seeking the maximum damage you can do in one second¡± is enough to fully understand the characteristics, and advantages and disadvantages of your skills. It seems like my n worked well.

    Not only Silvia, but Eko as well must have a firm understanding of it. Since she noticed the counterattack effect of ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡· that can be used as a damaging attack, exining to her how to do damage with ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿ might be unnecessary.

    ¡°Then, what are we going to do today? ¡±

    ¡°Rx.¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡¡Rx? ¡±

    ¡°Rx.¡±

    ¡°Rx¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Rksu? ¡±

    It might look like nothing, but it¡¯s extremely important.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that I can¡¯te up with something to do. This is something I want you to somehow manage between today and the Title Match.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s not that I wasn¡¯t convinced. But looking at the usual you, Second-dono, I can somehow understand. Rx, huh? I see.¡±

    Silvia seemed to have noticed something. Eko on the other hand said ¡°Ho? ¡°, while tilting her head with her mouth open.

    ¡°Title Matches, sometimes be a crazy charade of just staring at each other for ten or twenty minutes. If you remain nervous all the time, you will definitely get exhausted. You won¡¯t be able to maintain your focus. Rx and focus at the same time. This is the ideal state. And you need to aim for that.¡±

    This is something easy to say but actually hard to put into practice.

    ¡°There are several ways to do so, but I personally have two.¡±

    ¡°Two ways?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. The first is to immerse yourself. Don¡¯t think about anything to the point your mind goes nk. Dive in it to the extent it bes scary.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s, how to say it¡­¡­a bit difficult, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not something you do consciously, and most of the time you don¡¯t even notice it.¡±

    ¡°So, it¡¯s just to immerse yourself, not thinking about anything unnecessary? ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Strictly speaking, just think about ¡°not thinking anything¡±.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Umu, got it. So, what¡¯s the other way? ¡±

    ¡°To think too much.¡±

    ¡°BFFHHHH!? ¡±

    Silvia spewed what she was drinking. Nice reaction.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that theplete opposite of what you said before!? ¡±

    ¡°Just think while not thinking.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand! ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not just about overthinking things. Just think about unnecessary things. The more ridiculous the better.¡±

    ¡°No, no, no, isn¡¯t that bad!? ¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the thing, it¡¯s strangely calming. And it will help you making cool-headed decisions. If you¡¯re agitated, you should give it a try.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­O-Okay?¡¡So, things that don¡¯t make sense, right¡­¡­? ¡±

    ¡°From my personal experience, the more erotic it is, the better.¡±

    ¡°Give me back my motivation! ¡±

    Ehh, but it¡¯s true.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s different for each person. That¡¯s just my way of doing it, I¡¯m sure there should be a way that suits you. Starting today search for it.¡±

    ¡°Umu, that¡¯s right. I¡¯ll find my own way.¡±

    ¡°You too, Eko, alright? ¡±

    ¡°Roger! ¡±

    She¡¯s full of energy. Maybe this isn¡¯t necessary for Eko since she¡¯s someone who doesn¡¯t seem to get too nervous.

    ¡°Good, now let me tell you about your training for today and tomorrow. Take off all of your equipment and go clear the Limptfert Dungeon with only a wooden bow and a wooden shield. By the way, you can only use Archery and Shieldmanship skills. Using Transform is forbidden.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Whoa.¡±

    Silvia made a dejected expression.

    Eko also made a weird sound while showing an empty expression, making it seems like her energy up to this point was a lie. It was easy to tell how she felt by looking at her dropped car ears.

    ¡°There will be many stressful moments. That¡¯s where you¡¯ll have to figure out how to rx.¡±

    I can¡¯t deny I¡¯m pushing a rough training onto them, but if I don¡¯t do this, they won¡¯t be able to make it for the winter title match happening in three weeks.

    Still, this won¡¯t be a life-threatening situation for these two. However, they should be prepared to be surrounded and hit by monsters in case they make a few mistakes. Although they won¡¯t die, it will hurt quite a bit. Would they be able to keep their calm and continue to function properly in such a tense situation? I truly feel a bit sorry for them, but I want them to ovee this challenge.

    ¡°If you manage toe back home unharmed, I¡¯ll give you a reward.¡±

    ¡°Just look, Second-dono!¡¡Limptfert is like our back garden! ¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go©`! ¡±

    I decided to show them a carrot out of sympathy. After all, shopping the other day was a lot of fun. Well, I also had a lot of fun.

    ¡°Do your best.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do, Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll go around Isoreus and get all the Shieldmanship skill to a high Grade.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­I-Is that what you¡¯ll be doing?¡±

    Why so polite all of the sudden?

    ¡°Boohoo, boohoo.¡±

    Evening.

    After I came back from my experience earning trip, I found Silvia crying unnaturally. Next to her was Eko, rubbing her back while saying ¡°I get it, I get it¡±. Is that aedy act?

    ¡°What¡¯s all THAT about?¡±

    ¡°It seems she despaired after failing to return unharmed.¡±

    Ahh. I can see the reason why after hearing Yukari¡¯s exnation.

    ¡°How many times you got hit? ¡±

    ¡°I stopped counting after 10¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia stopped crying and looked at me with a resentful expression.

    ¡°The weapon is weak, I had no armor, it really hurt¡­¡­it¡¯s too much.¡±

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t Limptfert your back garden? ¡±

    ¡°The low attack power of the bow was at the level where I couldn¡¯t do anything if I wasn¡¯t taking cover. It was chaotic since it was very different from the usual. It felt like apletely different dungeon.¡±

    ¡°That might be so. Did you take any measures? ¡±

    ¡°I was in despair since I couldn¡¯t do anything.¡±

    ¡°Want a hint? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Umu.¡±

    She nodded her head after thinking for some time. Eko too gave a single nod.

    More than anything, they must be frustrated.

    I broke the silence while saying ¡°I understand¡± with a smile.

    ¡°You can do it, just take your time.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Somehow, I¡¯ve been unconsciously thinking too much.

    The more time you spend thinking, the less you can maintain your focus, and the more likely you are to make mistakes, he said.

    And as a result, the number of tries will decrease, and you¡¯ll stray away from an ¡°undamaged return¡±, he said.

    Somehow, it was the opposite.

    We needed to take our time, slowly, carefully, and keep our focus.

    One mistake and all this time will be wasted¡­¡­apparently, we had to stop overthinking like this.

    Just keep advancing without making a mistake.

    ¡°Eko!¡¡Come back! ¡±

    ¡°Oookaay! ¡±

    If multiple monsters appear, pull them back one by one and kill them with the two of us.

    As if we were unraveling a tangled thread, slowly, never rushing, without getting irritated, nor getting flustered. Steadily, one by one, endlessly repeating these small things.

    It takes many times longer than usual. However, there¡¯s nothing wrong with that. It¡¯s all to return without harm. All we have to do is focus on that point alone.

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡­! ¡±

    Three monsters noticed us. What was it? One? Two? Maybe I went three steps too far.

    ¡°Guh! ¡±

    Two versus three. We couldn¡¯t cope with it. And I got hit by one of their attacks.

    Shit¡­¡­shit, shit, SHIT!!

    I was too naive!¡¡Why did I move ahead without thinking!?

    Damn it, it¡¯s frustrating. It¡¯s all my fault. Because I¡¯ve been too spoiled.

    ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m sorry, let¡¯s do another one.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s do our best.¡±

    We¡¯re starting over again. From the very beginning, it truly is a daunting task.

    ¡°Oh, I see.¡±

    Incidentally, I noticed it. Earlier I thought ¡°Let¡¯s focus on returning without getting hurt¡±.

    But I wasn¡¯t immersed. And I forgot to rx. All I was thinking was ¡°Let¡¯s focus¡±. In other words, idle thoughts.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­! ¡±

    I was taken aback.

    That¡¯s exactly what Second-dono said.

    Also, for some reason, I can¡¯t remove this feeling that ¡°Everything is connected¡±.

    Yesterday, and the day before yesterday, and also today. All of our training is geared towards the Title Match.

    Can it be¡­¡­?

    ¡°Eko. Let¡¯s experiment a little as we move forward.¡±

    ¡°Experiment? ¡±

    If you¡¯re surrounded, you can¡¯t deal with it. My weapon is weak, so I can¡¯t depend on its DPS output. In other words, that¡¯s it. Rather than a single shot, I should depend on skills that can output instantaneous firepower.

    Up until now, I used nothing but ¡¶Rook Archery¡·. Although I can¡¯t kill the enemies, that¡¯s the highest power long-range attack I have.

    But, what about a point-nk ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡· shot?

    Since by approaching a monster you are more likely to receive an attack, I want to attack from a distance if I can. However, if I can kill it with a single shot, the story is different.

    The Limptfert is not very wide. Since it¡¯s so narrow, the moment youe close to a monster it also sees you unless you hide in the shadow of a rock. Therefore, the time you have to deal with it is limited.

    For example, let¡¯s say you are noticed by two monsters. One can be killed using point-nk Dragon Horse, and the remaining one parried by Eko, and then the two of us can deal with it. Efficiency and safety will increase like that.

    I get it. It¡¯s not cowardly to be careful and try not to make mistakes.

    ¡°Hey, you saw that, Eko!?¡¡It was a one-shot with Dragon Horse! ¡±

    ¡°Ohhh!¡¡Amazing! ¡±

    Just like I thought!¡¡¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·has a prating effect. And since the monsters in the dungeon are like the Rock Turtle with sturdy shells, it is quitepatible with them since it can easily prate their defenses!

    ¡°Ouchhhhh! ¡±

    ¡°Ooowy! ¡±

    We were sorely hit by the Rock Turtle¡¯s intense attack that we even shed tears, but the joy of finally seeing the light outweighed that.

    Just wait, Limptfert. We¡¯ll make great progress starting now.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°Boohoo, boohoo.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Eh, now what?¡±

    When I came home in the evening, just like yesterday, Silvia was on the ground with her face on the sofa, crying fake tears.

    ¡°It seems they were able to reach the boss unharmed, but when they faced the Rock Turtle, the tables turned.¡±

    When Yukari finished her exnation, she shook her head while saying ¡°For Christ¡¯s sake¡±.

    I see. Still, I didn¡¯t expect those two to reach the boss in just two days.

    As I approached to talk to her, Silvia¡¯s body twitched while she was still face down.

    ¡°At first I thought I could defeat it by shaving off its health while Eko parried it¡­¡­¡±

    I didn¡¯t even have to ask before she started speaking.

    ¡°But if all she does is just parrying, the target will decide to attack me instead. The Rock Turtle ignored Eko and charged at me, it was over.¡±

    Uh oh¡­¡­

    ¡°That can¡¯t be helped. Then, how will you deal with the Rock Turtle? ¡±

    ¡°Umu¡­¡­I can only think of Eko repeatedly parry and use the counterattack effect of Silver Shieldmanship to attack it. Since the Rock Turtle has the habit of aiming for the person doing the most damage, I will also adjust my damage so that it doesn¡¯t exceed the counterattack damage of Eko.¡±

    ¡­¡­Yeah. Well, that¡¯s good. I can see she understood most of what I wanted to teach.

    ¡°Silvia, Eko. You really worked hard. I¡¯ll give you a reward.¡±

    ¡°R-Really!? ¡±

    ¡°You sure!? ¡±

    The atmosphere suddenly turned aroundpletely.

    When I nodded, the two of them looked very excited, eximing ¡°We did it, we did it!¡±.

    ¡°We¡¯ll go shopping tomorrow. You¡¯reing too, right Yukari? ¡±

    ¡°Is that alright? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, you have to take a break once in a while. And also¡­¡­This is thest break these two will have.¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡¡Second-dono, what did you say just now? ¡±

    ¡°Nothing really.¡±

    It¡¯s only three more weeks until the Winter Title Match.

 Chapter 89 Quality

    <h4>Chapter 89 Quality</h4>

    The holiday.

    I went shopping with the three girls in the Royal Capital.

    Without any particr purpose, we wandered around the various stores. This alone is especially interesting.

    Everything brings all sorts of brand-new information to my eyes.

    For example, chili peppers. In Mobius there was only one food item named chili pepper, but in this world, there are dozens of different chili peppers. Each has a different production area, a different color, and a different shape. Obviously, there¡¯s also a different taste for each. By whom and where are they cultivated and shipped? My interest knows no end.

    From the viewpoint of the game, this was just an insignificant food item, but here it has a huge unseen market beyond my imagination.

    A mix of games and reality. This seemingly mismatched fusion gives this world an unprecedented depth.

    ¡°Second-dono. Let¡¯s stop by the potion shop really quick.¡±

    Silvia decided to visit our usual potion-specialty store. I get the feeling that the exterior has be a bit more sparkly since ourst visit.

    Then, as I entered the store, an old man who seemed to be the store owner, rushed towards me with a surprised expression.

    ¡°Your Excellency!¡¡Oh my. I thank you ever so much foring to visit my store.¡±

    ¡­¡­Your Excellency?

    ¡°Master, you are an official ambassador. The formal title to be used is Your Excellency.¡±

    As question marks floated over my head, Yukari whispered to me. I see, so it¡¯s because of that.

    ¡°Do you remember me? ¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I wouldn¡¯t. It¡¯s because of Your Excellency¡¯s favor that our shop has flourished so far. I¡¯ve been thinking for a while now toe to visit and offer my greetings.¡±

    While thinking about what did I do? I suddenly remembered. Come to think of it, when I first came to this world, I bought about 1 billion CL worth of potions for the ¡ºDyQue Strategy¡».

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t a problem for you when I kept buying the same potion over and over? ¡±

    ¡°No way!¡¡Didn¡¯t you even tell us how many potions you would purchase in advance? Rather than a problem, I can¡¯t begin to thank you enough.¡±

    Good. It seems he had no problems with the store because of my slightly unreasonable request.

    ¡°Thepounder probably had it rough. After all, I bought a thousand potions every day.¡±

    ¡°He was screaming, but in happiness. Right now, it¡¯s be a funny anecdote.¡±

    Heughed while telling that story. What a refreshing old man.

    ¡°By the way, what can I do for you today, Your Excellency?¡¡Perhaps, are you getting ready for the Title Match? ¡±

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s pretty much it. I¡¯m surprised you knew.¡±

    ¡°I knew it!¡¡I heard of your sess in the recent civil war. Every shop owner was talking about how you would surely win in the Winter Title Match.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Have the contestantse already? ¡±

    ¡°Yes. Just a while ago, three people who have many rumors flying around them here in the capital, visited my store.¡±

    Three people famous enough to have rumors spreading?¡¡Who are they?

    I¡¯d like to ask for their names, but I guess it¡¯s impossible for the shop owner to give me a hint since that would be breaking client confidentiality.

    ¡°I heard something good. Thanks.¡±

    ¡°No. I thank you ever so much for your continued support.¡±

    We left the store after finishing shopping.

    When I turned to Yukari, she spoke before I could even ask her.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s Ernte Kisenshou. It seems that the disciple sisters will also participate in the Kisenshou Match.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re well informed.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m rather surprised that you don¡¯t know this, Master. Right now, that¡¯s the main topic among the people in the capital, the trio that includes the Kisenshou title holder.¡±

    ¡°Are Titleholders that much famous?¡±

    ¡°Far from famous, they are treated simrly to Kings.¡±

    ¡°Then, what do you think will happen if I get a triple crown? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­If I were to borrow your words, Master, it would be crazy.¡±

    ¡°It would be crazy indeed.¡±

    I¡¯m looking forward to it.

    While speaking with Yukari, Eko came to cling on my waist saying ¡°I¡¯m hungry¡±. The hands on the clock also say it¡¯s about time to eat.

    ¡°Alright, want to go eat something?¡±

    ¡°YAY! ¡±

    Eko then climbed my back, forcing me to give her a shoulder ride. Not wanting me to hold her feet, she was joyfully swaying back and forth and left to right. Wow, she¡¯s in a great mood.

    ¡°I¡¯ve thought about it for some time but, aren¡¯t you especially nice towards Eko, Second-dono? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I think so too.¡±

    There¡¯s no way I can¡¯t be nice towards a girl with such cute cat ears.

    ¡°For the afternoon meal, I had Cubero book the whole finest restaurant in the Royal Capital. I hope that fixes your mood.¡±

    In an instant, the two¡¯s expression softened. I¡¯m surprised these two like this kind of thing.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been expecting you.¡±

    When we arrived at the restaurant, Cubero was already there waiting for us.

    Guided by Cubero, we went inside the restaurant. The interior was as luxuriously decorated as the Firstest mansions.

    When the four of us, except for Cubero, were talking about which table was the best, arguing voices could be heard from the entrance.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go take a look.¡±

    Cubero, who was there as our servant, quickly left alongside those words. As expected of a skilled butler. No matter the ce, he doesn¡¯t embarrass us.

    After a while, Cubero came back walking fast.

    ¡°Ernte Kisenshou and the sisters that are his disciples wanted to have lunch here, but apparently, they didn¡¯t make a reservation, so right now they are arguing with the restaurant¡¯s staff. What should I do? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I see. Tell them it¡¯s alright with me. Okay? ¡±

    Probably Cubero is thinking about theirck of reservation. However, I feel a bit sorry for monopolizing thisrge restaurant all for ourselves. Let¡¯s show them how big my heart is.

    When I asked the three girls, they all nodded in return. Silvia was obvious, but Yukari had a sour expression, and Eko, she now had nothing but food in her mind.

    ¡°I¡¯ll convey your words.¡±

    Cubero dashed away.

    Immediately after, the arguing voices stop. It was probably solved. Quite useful, huh? My butler. I¡¯m quite proud.

    ¡­¡­However, five minutes pass, then ten minutes, and Cubero still wasn¡¯t back.

    Wondering if something had happened, I tried to leave my seat, but at that moment Cubero came back followed by an elegantly dressed old man, who appeared to be the restaurant manager.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡±

    When I asked, the old man in charge of the restaurant nervously opened his mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry for asking this, but¡­¡­Could you possiblye to give your greetings to the Kisenshou¡¯s party?¡±

    ¡°HA? ¡±

    Greetings?

    ¡°Second-sama. You don¡¯t need to do such a thing as greet them.¡±

    Cubero said with an expression of anger. The old man was sweating bullets.

    ¡°¡­¡­I see, I understand the situation. Those people think the position of the Kisenshou is higher than the Ambassador.¡±

    Yukari muttered quietly.

    ¡°Seriously, this is stupid. Nobody is above nor below. I feel like vomiting just by thinking that my Master is being used for such performance. Let¡¯s leave this ce.¡±

    ¡°Ipletely agree with Yukari-sama. Rather, it would¡¯ve been more appropriate for the other party to pay their greetings to Second-sama.¡±

    These two are quite angry. And the old man just keeps bowing his head. Next to me, Silvia and Eko turned their gazes at me with a confused expression.

    ¡­¡­Yeah.

    ¡°I wanted to eat lunch at this store today. However, there were problems. Then, should I just run away? ¡±

    This old man has been caught between the Kisenshou and an Ambassador. I feel sorry for him. But in the end, this isn¡¯t my fault. Well, I guess I have no choice but to talk to the other party.

    ¡°No matter what happens, or what anyone says, I¡¯m going to eat here today. I won¡¯t let anyone get in the way. Old man, I¡¯m on your side. What¡¯s with the Kisenshou? No matter what sort of unreasonable things they say, don¡¯t give in. I¡¯ll be your ally. Don¡¯t let them trample over you.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s big talk.¡±

    While I was talking to the old man, I heard a woman¡¯s voice from behind.

    After slowly turning around, there stood a beautiful elf.

    Pointed ears, slender body, well-formed facial features, emerald green long hair, and sharp eyes. Just by looking at her, I could tell she had a harsh personality.

    ¡°You there, are you the Ambassador?¡¡I don¡¯t know which tiny country you came from, but this is the Kisenshou party, you know?¡¡How can you note to greet him? ¡±

    ¡°¨D¨D¡±

    I stopped Cubero with my hand as he tried to take a step forward.

    ¡­¡­I can tell by her posture. This woman is quite strong.

    ¡°What¡¯s with that attitude?¡¡You should greet Kisenshou and give away the best seat here. What you need to do is politely say hello, give up your seat and get the hell out of here quickly, got it?¡¡Unbelievable. I guess there are shameless people everywhere.¡±

    Hearing such an irrational argument was in a way refreshing. However, the problem here is that this woman truly thinks this is natural.

    Is she Ernte?¡¡If so, that¡¯s a shame. Can one really be this proud as a result of being pampered by everyone after bing a Titleholder?

    ¡°You, are you Dee Mix?¡±

    ¡°Exactly. Who are you?¡¡Is it alright for a dark elf to be here? ¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just like a fox.¡±

    ¡°A fox? ¡±

    ¡°Only capable of speaking proudly by borrowing the power of a tiger.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You have some guts.¡±

    Yukari started to pick a fight straight away. The elf woman who wasn¡¯t Ernte, but called Dee Mix took out a bow from her inventory in less than 0.5 seconds.

    Hey hey, are you going to go at it in here?¡¡Just as I was thinking that, a murderous aura emanated from here. Whoa, this girl is serious.

    ¡°MORON.¡±

    ¡°Kyaa! ¡±

    At that moment, a clenched fist struck at the back of Dee¡¯s head.

    Appearing from behind her was an old man with a white beard that reached down to his chest, looking very simr to a hermit.

    ¡°My disciple has been rude.¡±

    ¡°Master!¡¡Don¡¯t bow down your head! ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s your fault I¡¯m bowing my head, you idiot! ¡±

    ¡°Kyaa! ¡±

    She got hit again. And then, she was forced to also bow her head.

    Who¡¯s this old man?¡¡Just as I was about to voice those thoughts, an idea came to mind. Is he Ernte Kisenshou?

    ¡°I don¡¯t really mind. You can eat here if you want. However, you should educate your disciple more thoroughly.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, I¡¯ve heard that before.¡±

    ¡°You what are you talking about!?¡¡Let me make this clear, I¡¯m many times older than you!¡¡Also, you should also train your ves properly!¡¡Or maybe by principle you just don¡¯t educate sex ves!? ¡±

    This girl, does she think that being older makes you more important?¡¡Aside from the fact that the Kisenshou is quite remarkable, why does his disciple like to put on airs so much?¡¡And to also have that extreme discrimination against dark elves¡­¡­Too many bad points.

    ¡°Nee-san, you should calm down. You¡¯ve made Master angry.¡±

    ¡°But they¡¯ve been rude!¡¡Don¡¯t you think so too, Jay? ¡±

    ¡°But, Master is¡­¡­¡±

    From the side of Ernte, an elf woman with short hair who looked like Dee came out. Apparently, her name is Jay. And she¡¯s Dee¡¯s little sister.

    ¡°Let¡¯s stop it (Shimai ya shimai ya). Your sister¡¯s (shimai) issue is closed (shimai ya). Just kidding.¡±

    The Mix sisters, due to the sudden and unexpected bad pun, lost their bnce and fell down.

    The jester Ernte then turned towards us with a serious expression.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, for the inconvenience we¡¯ve caused. Allow me to pay for the food as an apology. Why don¡¯t we sit together as a sign of reconciliation? ¡±

    ¡°Why do we have to sit with these¨C!? ¡±

    ¡°SHUT UP! ¡±

    ¡°Ugyaa.¡±

    Bang, Ernte¡¯s fist fell down on Dee again, causing her to shut up and be teary-eyed.

    ¡­¡­He wants to eat together in this situation?¡¡What¡¯s this old man thinking?

    I don¡¯t understand his reason, so I observed Ernte¡¯s face. He was just floating a smile on his face. I can¡¯t get a grasp on this old man.

    On our side, Silvia and Eko still wore a puzzled expression. And Yukari and Cubero looked angry. Considering this was a ¡°Peaceful holiday¡± the option to eat together shouldn¡¯t even exist.

    However, I lost to my curiosity. I really wanted to see with my own eyes what the Titleholders of this world are.

    ¡°Sure. But I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve reconciled yet.¡±

    I stated at the old man, some hostility in my gaze. Ernte just smiled in return and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that great? Let¡¯s have lunch then.¡±

    ¡°Let me introduce myself again. I¡¯m Ernte Kisenshou. And these sisters are Dee and Jay. My disciples.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? I¡¯m Second. These are Silvia, Eko, and Yukari, in that order. We have a team called Firstest.¡±

    ¡°Hoo, a team? And this is? ¡±

    ¡°Cubero. He¡¯s my servant.¡±

    ¡°Everyone is a very talented person.¡±

    ¡°Can you tell, Jii-san?¡±

    ¡°Jii-san (Old man), you say!?¡¡Please watch your mouth! ¡±

    ¡°Jay. Keep Dee quiet.¡±

    ¡°Understood, Master.¡±

    ¡°H-Hey, Jay! ¡±

    Dee snaps at everything every single time. With a single nce, the little sister, Jay, doesn¡¯t seem too different either. The two of them seem to have much respect for Ernte.

    Is this old man really that strong?¡¡My expectations were rising.

    Earlier she proudly said she was older, but how old are you three?¡¡I¡¯m 17. Silvia is 17, Eko is 16, Yukari is 19, and Cubero, you¡¯re 24, right? ¡±

    When I asked him, Cubero said ¡°You remembered!? ¡°, impressed, as his eyes sparkled. What¡¯s with him?

    ¡°Hoho, how young. If I¡¯m not wrong, I¡¯m 403 this year. I think Dee is exactly 100. Jay is banjyu. She¡¯s still wet behind the ears.¡±

    400¡­¡­For real? This old man in on another level. Or rather, 100?¡¡And banjyu was 81 years, right? (Shogi term, there¡¯s nothing in English about it, but it¡¯s got something to do with recognition in the shogi world andes from the 9¡Á9 grid = 81)¡¡This stunning beauty and her cute sister are also Grandmas!?

    ¡°I¡¯m still 99!¡¡And I¡¯ll be the first elf yet to be an adult that will be a Kisenshou. Remember that.¡±

    ¡°You mean you¡¯ll defeat me? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s how I¡¯ll repay you this winter, Master.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Well then, I¡¯ll have high hopes.¡±

    Apparently, the elves¡¯ age of adulthood is 100. This was something that Yukari whispered to my ear.

    Still, will this discriminatory woman be a Title match participant? ¡­¡­It makes me question her dignity.

    ¡°Our Silvia here will also participate in the Kisenshou Match. My best regards.¡±

    ¡°Hoo.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The moment I casually said those words, the atmosphere in this ce changedpletely.

    Ernte looked at Silvia as if evaluating her.

    In the meantime, Dee¨D¨D

    ¡°Ha! ¡±

    ¡°Are you an idiot?¡±

    Immediately, those words slipped out of my mouth.

    From her unchanged position, Dee immediately pulled out her bow and shot a ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· attack.

    Among the five of us, I was the only one who could react.

    While activating ¡¶Soldier Shieldmanship¡· on the te I grabbed with my left hand, I parried the arrow.

    ¡­¡­Dangerous. If I hadn¡¯t been in sync with the 0.0s timer, it would¡¯ve pierced the te. I¡¯m grateful that my reaction speed hasn¡¯t faded out since I was in my prime in the other world.

    ¡°Hee. So, you¡¯re going to participate in the Kisenshou Match?¡¡Even though you could only blink against my Soldier Archery?¡¡Don¡¯t make meugh. If your friend hadn¡¯t protected you, you would¡¯ve had your chest pierced just now, you know?¡¡Please don¡¯t take Archery so lightly. If a small fry like you participates, the quality of the Kisenshou title will drop. Please retire, by all means, okay? ¡±

    She¡¯s trying to say as much as she can after attacking so suddenly. She¡¯s totally trying to assert dominance.

    Quality. Quality, huh? ¡­¡­Certainly, that was a good quick shot. It was nothing short of splendid to attack from a posture that doesn¡¯t even feel like a stance. However. That¡¯s not something one does at a mealtime.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Silvia remained silent. I¡¯m sure those words made her think. However, she doesn¡¯t have to be that depressed. She still hasn¡¯t fought against a human opponent. I¡¯m sure she¡¯s feeling hurt, being said right from the start that she should quit without even giving it a try, and being branded as a loser, right?

    ¡°¡­¡­You, right now¨C¡±

    The old man is the same. He looked at me with a shocked expression and murmured something, but isn¡¯t there something you need to do before that? Isn¡¯t all this mess because you couldn¡¯t watch your disciple closely?

    ¡°Haa, this is too much. Too much I can¡¯t ignore it.¡±

    I muttered alongside a sigh.

    I¡¯m already angry. I¡¯ll teach them.

    ¡°What?¡¡Did I say something wrong? ¡±

    While sending me a cold gaze, Dee doesn¡¯t seem to think she did anything wrong.

    I see. That¡¯s correct. I guess you¡¯re not wrong, at least in your mind. Then, I¡¯ll also do what I think is correct.

    ¡°Come, Anko. Angolmois.¡±

    While standing up, I activated ¡¶Monster Summoning¡· and ¡¶Spirit Summoning¡· at the same time.

    Gushing darkness and a light shining in seven colors wrapped my sides.

    ¡°W-What is¡­¡­! ¡±

    Dee held her bow up and prepared a skill. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be ¡¶Gold Archery¡·.

    ¡°Ara, ara arara.¡±

    Anko smiled with a finger over her mouth, narrowing more her already narrow eyes.

    ¡°What a pitiful child. Showing your fangs towards my Second.¡±

    Contrary to his words, Angolmoisughed happily.

    Dee took a step back, still pointing her bow at me with confidence.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look down on me.¡±

    ¡°Dee, you mustn¡¯t¨C! ¡±

    Ernte tried to stop her. But he was a littlete.

    The moment I took a step forward, Dee activated ¡¶Gold Archery¡·. It¡¯s a skill that knocks back enemies within a certain range.

    ¡°Transform.¡±

    I nullified the ¡¶Gold Archery¡· shot during the invincible time of ¡¶Transform¡·, so rather than knocking me back, it was Dee the one being blown away.

    Transform, and Angolmois, and Anko, my full swing.

    ¡°Angolmois, wind.¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    ¡°Anko, Darkness Magic.¡±

    ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡±

    Dee was made to crawl, and her HP forcibly lowered to 1.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯m sure she¡¯s experiencing an unimaginable fear. Getting her HP to 1 without being able to do anything.

    ¡°Kouhai, don¡¯t be so intimidating. Don¡¯t you feel sorry for her? Can¡¯t you see she¡¯s shaking like a little slime?¡±

    ¡°You too, senpai, aren¡¯t you having the most fun?¡±

    It seems these two who were always fighting have solved their issues. Or it might be that it¡¯s easier to get along with each other when they have amon enemy.

    ¡°My apologies. Could you please forgive Dee?¡±

    ¡°My sister was very rude. I¡¯m truly sorry.¡±

    Ernte and Jay hurriedly apologized to me.

    But now it¡¯s toote¡­¡­Now that I¡¯ve shown my power, an apology isn¡¯t enough. It¡¯s cowardice. I don¡¯t feel any sincerity at all.

    ¡°Sorry but, I can¡¯t let it slip. This girlmitted attempted murder. And the one she tried to kill is a knight belonging to the Third Knight Order, and a staff member of the Embassy. Do you know what this means? ¡±

    The three people¡¯s face turned blue.

    As I said, it¡¯s toote now. She was making light of the fact that we didn¡¯t have the ability topete in the Title Matches, right?¡¡Even if they had power, did they think that even if the three of them applied pressure in the shadows, we¡¯d keep quiet?¡¡How stupid. If ites down to it, I¡¯ll win against the three of them together.

    ¡°It¡¯s time to pay for all the time you¡¯ve done as you pleased so far.¡±

    If we had not been the other party, they might¡¯ve crushed us like they¡¯re used to without causing a fuss.

    ¡­¡­I¡¯m disappointed. This isn¡¯t at the level of simple harassment. Can a person grow this arrogant by the thoughts of ¡°nobody can defy me, neither in power nor ability¡±?

    Shit. Aren¡¯t you the ones who are degrading the quality of the Title Matches?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    The three of them looked at me with an expression of ¡°What should we do?¡±. You¡¯ve lived for hundreds of years and don¡¯t even know how to properly apologize?

    ¡°On your kneed.¡±

    On this day, I trampled on the head of an old man and a woman for the first time in my life.

    But it didn¡¯t feel as good as I thought it would.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°HAHAHA!¡¡HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ¡±

    At a certain bar. A handsome man wasughing loudly while holding his stomach after receiving a report from a woman dressed in maid clothes.

    ¡°This is not aughing matter. He made ¡®that¡¯ Kisenshou prostrate himself, you know? ¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that interesting!?¡¡Or rather, amazing!¡¡As expected of the man Ch¨¦rie took a liking to! ¡±

    ¡°For god¡¯s sake¡­¡­¡±

    The maid showed a tired expression.

    ¡°However, that old man is a crafty one. He probably knew the other party would participate in the Kisenshou Match and tried to make contact.¡±

    ¡°So, he didn¡¯t stop his disciple running wild intentionally? ¡±

    ¡°Probably. If you think about the information he got in exchange for prostrating himself, the information Ernte got was worth it.¡±

    ¡°No way. Did he prostrate himself before an opponent younger than his great-grandchild for that? ¡±

    ¡°Ernte wasposed from the beginning. For someone who¡¯s lived for 400 years, prostrating should be nothing important.¡±

    ¡°So, it¡¯s like that¡­¡­¡±

    The man then emptied his drink all at once, took a deep breath, and then stood up.

    A long sword, by which one could easily tell his job, hung by his waist.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, Mariposa.¡±

    ¡°Understood, Jerez-sama.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Shit, it¡¯s a bit frustrating. I also wanted to do something cool as he did.¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t, I beg you.¡±

    ¡°Is this envy? ¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, I¡¯m looking forward to the day when I can cross sword with him¡­¡­¡±

 Chapter 90 Eh, a surprise move/hidden hand?

    <h4>Chapter 90 Eh, a surprise move/hidden hand?</h4>

    ¡°Listen. Never mess with that man in the future.¡±

    Right now, as if having forgotten the humiliation he received by prostrating himself about an hour ago, the Kisenshou titleholder, Ernte was in one of the rooms of the ¡ºMix Household¡»¡¯s vi in the suburbs of the Royal Capital speaking to the pair of sisters in front of him.

    The main recipient of those words, the elder sister Dee Mix, trembled, and the little sister, Jay Mix answered with a surprised eyebrow raised.

    ¡°Why¡¯s that, Master? That man, he¡¯s a fool who loses himself to anger and shows his hand. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s a threat.¡±

    ¡°Imbecile. Do you think that was all of that man¡¯s hidden hand?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­But.¡±

    ¡°Think carefully. About when Dee caught that Silviapletely off guard.¡±

    In response to Ernte¡¯s words, Jay remained silent.

    After calming down and thinking back on it she recalled, that man named Second was the mostposed one at the table, and he used a te to parry an attack that far from targeting himself was aimed at someone by his side without breaking a sweat. This was a matterpletely different from just a simple ¡°fast response¡±.

    ¡°Dee. Jay. All you should think about is the Kisenshou match. You must not think about ways to retaliate.¡±

    ¡°But, I can¡¯t just simply back down like this! ¡±

    Jay pushed on with her anger, refusing to back down. This was the first time in her life having to prostrate herself. This was arguably the biggest humiliation she received in her short life. It was the same for Dee, aside from making a blunder as the older sister, she was humiliated by that selfish sense of victimhood of which she thought she held no responsibility, which in turn further aggravated her heart.

    ¡°¡­¡­That woman in ck and that mysterious spirit. Even now I can¡¯t get a grasp on them. And that man changed his appearance in an instant. I have no idea what sort of skill is or how effective it is. Still, do you think you can win? ¡±

    ¡°In that case, let¡¯s attack under the cover of darkness. With the three of us, I don¡¯t think we can lose.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t get it. Jay, throw away the idea that you¡¯re above him. Always think like a challenger. Pride and carelessness will only get in your way. Knowing how to continuously and strictly controlling yourself is the way of the Kisenshou.¡±

    After finishing his unteral sermon, Ernte stood up. And then, before leaving, he left them with a single statement.

    ¡°The woman named Silvia has a very slow reaction time. If you face her, crush her in a quick battle.¡±

    This was information he got in exchange for prostrating. Both Dee and Jay replied with a ¡°Yes! ¡°, filled with respect.

    Nodding in satisfaction, Ernte turned around and left.

    ¡­¡­The sisters had no way of knowing that there was a severely distorted smile on his face.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    The day after shopping trip.

    I called Silvia and Eko out to the garden early in the morning. Yes, this is the start of the interpersonal battle training.

    ¡°For now, let¡¯s start with one fight against me. From there, I¡¯ll decide on future ns.¡±

    ¡°Umu. I¡¯ll be in your care.¡±

    ¡°Roger! ¡±

    For this, we¡¯ll use the ¡°Duel System¡± instead of the ¡°Game Crown¡±. For a duel, one side has to apply and the opponent has to ept it, then it bes approved. We¡¯ll use the same duel settings as in the Title Matches, when only 1 hp remains, you¡¯ll be stunned after receiving a fatal injury.

    ¡°Let¡¯s start with you, Silvia.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Umu.¡±

    She seems to be a little nervous.

    I couldn¡¯t help butugh after seeing her saying ¡°Rx, rx¡±, to herself. Saying ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right¡±, Silvia gave a troubledugh, then she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and pped her cheeks with both hands while saying ¡°Okay,e! ¡°, bow in hand. This is bad, she doesn¡¯t understand anything.

    Well, fine¡­¡­Shall I?

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Second-dono¡¯s gentle expression.

    With that thought in my mind, I assumed a battle stance.

    But the next moment¨D¨DSecond-dono¡¯s expression immediately turned into a cold one.

    ¡­¡­And not even a second after that.

    ¡°¨D¨DEh!! ¡±

    Before I knew, an arrow was flying just a few centimeters from my face.

    When did he shoot? What¡¯s this?¡¡¡¶Soldier Archery¡·?¡¡¡¶Rook Archery¡·? I don¡¯t understand.

    However, only this I understood. I can¡¯t allow it to hit¨D¨DMy instincts made that decision. I reflexively bent down, avoiding it at thest moment.

    ¡°Guehh.¡±

    The next moment, a tremendous impact reached my head.

    Didn¡¯t I avoid it already? No, it¡¯s a follow-up.

    ¡°Eeeh, aguh, ugahhh.¡±

    A second, a third, a fourth¡­¡­ I couldn¡¯t avoid them and I kept receiving arrows one after the other. Each one of them was a direct hit to the head, almost as if they were drawn to it.

    My brain was shaken. It¡¯s less painful than I expected. However, I fail to catch the figure of Second-dono.

    And then, without being able to do anything in return, I lost consciousness.

    ¡°Huh¡­¡­!? ¡±

    Waking up, I understood. This was my loss. And perfectly so.

    ¡°I more or less understand.¡±

    Next to me, who wasying on the grown, was Second-dono¨D¨DMy beloved one¨D¨Dsaying so with his usual expression, but this was the first time that I saw him and thought ¡°scary¡±.

    He could easily kill me whenever he wanted to. Just the same as twisting a baby¡¯s hand.

    ¡­¡­But I wonder why? At the same time as that fear, I felt a mysterious excitement.

    Everything in is his hand. The tremendous pleasure of not resisting this fear, and instead, thrusting myself to it.

    I want you to tell me more. I want you to love me more. I can¡¯t contain these emotions from boiling forth. With this strange sense of tion deep inside me, I saw off Second-dono¡¯s back.

    And now, the duel against Eko began.

    It was simr to mine.

    Eko firmly held her shield up in a guarding stance, while Second-dono seemed the same as if he were out for a walk, still, he surely closed their distance.

    ¡°KYAAAA! ¡±

    One, two, three attacks. More and more attacks kepting at her.

    Even though Eko desperately tried to resist, all of her attacks were answered with parries using ¡¶Silver Shieldmanship¡·, and eventually, the damage umted on her.

    No less than 30 seconds had passed before Eko fainted, making this also Second-dono¡¯s win.

    ¡­¡­It was too one-sided.

    But even then, I thought that she would at least get one hit in. There should indeed be some difference in the status, but the conditions should be the same for both. And speaking of ¡¾Shieldmanship¡¿, Eko should have an advantage in it.

    However, she was unable to do anything.

    What¡¯s different? What¡¯s the distinction? The difference between us and Second-dono is toorge toprehend.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you about the ns after eating breakfast.¡±

    Can this gap be filled in the future? If so, what kind of ns, what kind of training will be able to aplish that?

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Umu! ¡±

    I can help but be interested.

    And deep in my heart, I felt like something starting to burn up.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    Pre-match problems.

    ¡­¡­This is the conclusion I¡¯ve drawn.

    Neither Silvia nor Eko had the spirit of winning, I couldn¡¯t feel it from them.

    Are they afraid of death? Or pain? Or do they just not want to fight? I don¡¯t understand.

    Actually, do they really want to win the Title in the first ce?

    If they¡¯re doing this half-heartedly, they should stop. The battle against these two was so terrible I had to reconsider.

    ¡°At this rate, let alone the Title, you¡¯ll lose the first match.¡±

    Since there was no point in hiding it, I told them this straight.

    The two of them nodded with an expression of ¡°I knew it¡±, and then slowly opened their mouths.

    ¡°Mine and Eko¡¯s feelings are already settled.¡±

    ¡°I, want to fight. In the Title match. I want to make everyone in the vige, happy.¡±

    ¡°Umu, I want to participate too. In particr, I can¡¯t afford to lose to that Dee Mix.¡±

    Unexpectedly, their determination was quite firm.

    I see¡­¡­Well, let¡¯s tell them the ns.

    ¡°For the remaining time, I¡¯ll have you learn as many ¡°surprise strategies¡± as possible. The fundamentals? Themon practices? Fuck them. Okay? You girls are weak. And since you¡¯re helplessly weak¡­¡­This will be a bet, be an explosive contestant, make some noise, give it your all.¡±

    The original n was to teach them thoroughly from the fundamentals. The precise changes in battle that exist in each skill, the ¡°Fundamentals¡±, how to effectively connect each skill, the ¡°Moves¡±, and the decisive factor in the final stage of the game, the ¡°Check Mate¡±. I wanted them to memorize all the PVP knowledge I have, engrave them into their bodies, and train in a way so that they move without being conscious of it.

    But. With the current situation, these two will certainly lose their first match if I teach them starting from the basics since we¡¯ve only got three weeks. There¡¯s also the next season for them, which I personally don¡¯t mind, but I¡¯m not sure these two will agree to that.

    That being the case. I¡¯ve got no choice but to use the ¡°Saddle hand/¥Ï¥áÊÖ¡± surprise tactic.

    Strictly speaking, this is a PvP surprise attack method in which the attacked side is at an advantage if not dealt with firmly.

    But from my experience so far, I¡¯m expecting that nobody in this world would be able to perfectly deal with a surprise attack the first time they see it. The reason behind this is because I don¡¯t believe the people in this world know the exact response to this kind of surprise strategy at all.

    And with this hidden ace called surprise attack, there¡¯s the possibility that they can even one-shot the enemy.

    At least so long as the opponent hasn¡¯t enough umted experience. Falling into an unexpected and terrifying situation, their mind would be in a huge turmoil, and the impatience will make it so that they receive that attack. You only need to disturb their pace, but once that¡¯s done, you can control the flow. This is the main aim.

    I feel a bit bad for the other contestants for using this, but I¡¯d like for them to try again next season after learning from this.

    ¡°A surprise attack strategy? Fumu, exactly what I wanted.¡±

    ¡°Surpri©`se, suprise©`! ¡±

    Both Silvia and Eko seem to be on board.

    Nice.

    ¡°Let¡¯s start the special training.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    A man entered the Royal Capital, Vinceton.

    He came twice a year. And in this season, this man never failed to visit the city.

    The man¡¯s name was Rothman.

    He was in his mid-forties. A middle-aged man with short ck hair, slightly receding hairline, a medium physique, slightly wrinkled eyes, and an unpleasant sharp gaze.

    Everyone called him ¡°Issenza¡±.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you, Rothman Issenza.¡±

    The one greeting him was arge man with a height of two meters.

    ¡°Ohh, Gram-kun, it¡¯s been a while. Did you quit using that big sword? ¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It had its ws.¡±

    The knight Gram belonged to the Second Knight Order. He took responsibility for the previous civil war and left the position of vice-captain; he now served as a rank-and-file soldier doing freebor for the Kingdom of Castall. The reason why his punishment was this light was because of his virtues.

    Also, he was one of the participants of the Issenza match this winter.

    ¡°I see. And I wonder where you found that wisdom.¡±

    ¡°From one interesting guy.¡±

    ¡°Oh, my, my, I can¡¯t wait¡­¡­¡±

    Even Gram with hisrge body was scared seeing that slight smile in Rothman¡¯s face.

    Rothman had been holding the title of Issenza for more than 20 years now. Everyone was aware of his ability. And Gram, who used to cross swords with him in the past knew this more than anyone.

    ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s going to be boring this season?¡±

    He had the face of looking very much forward to this.

    However, Gram also seemed to look forward to it. The reason was, it was hard for him to imagine what kind of deadly fight would that man have against this Rothman Issenza.

    ¡°It might be difficult this season.¡±

    Rothmanughed inside while Gram muttered to himself.

 Chapter 91 Gathering!

    <h4>Chapter 91 Gathering!</h4>

    ¡°Oh no, oh no, to be thiste after Rothman-dono.¡±

    A man arrived at the Royal Capital a bit behind Rothman wore a mortified expression after hearing from a stall on his way to the inn that Rothman Issenza had already arrived at the capital.

    He was a man in his early forties who had ck hair with a few gray hairs mixed in, set in a tightly all-back hairdo; he was slender and tall, wore a foreign kimono, and thin sses.

    His name was Kasakari Ker. He was the self-proimed ¡¸Rival of Rothman Issenza¡¹.

    ¡°No. I¡¯m sure Rothman-dono is in a hurry. So maybe there¡¯s an opportunity to win.¡±

    He single-mindedly muttered to himself as he walked down the main street.

    He didn¡¯te apanied by an attendant, which was unusual for someone participating in a Title match.

    His hometown was a country in the wilderness, far away from the Kingdom of Castall. It was a country so far-removed than the people living there didn¡¯t even understand the value of participating in a Title match. No matter how first-ss his ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ was, there was nobody who would volunteer to join this entric man to travel to such a faraway country.

    ¡°No, no. I can¡¯t let my guard down. Should I dance one of my hometown dances and raise my fighting spirit?¡±

    Suddenlying up with that idea, Kasakari began to dance. And he did so among heavy traffic, where many people came and went.

    ¡­¡­This was a reason why people didn¡¯t approach him in his hometown since nine out of ten people wouldbel him as a weirdo, and also the reason why he didn¡¯t have an attendant.

    As for the people in the capital, it seemed they were well aware of his behavior, and even after seeing him immersed in his dance, they ignored him thinking ¡°It¡¯s the same as usual¡±.

    _______________________________________________________________

    ¡°Kasakari-sama, Kasakari-sama! ¡±

    After receiving a report from the citizens of the capital, a messenger working for the organizers of the Issenza match rushed to Kasakari.

    As usual, using this and that, he managed to calm him down and guided him to an inn.

    ¡°Each and every time, the food here is delicious! However, no matter if I follow the recipe I¡¯ve been given, it¡¯s never the same for me. Just what is the difference? It¡¯s truly mysterious.¡±

    Kasakari didn¡¯t like luxurious goods. And, he loved spicy food.

    Therefore, it had be a standard practice to guide him to his usual cheap inn, and then take him to the usual popr restaurant.

    ¡°The chili pepper? I wonder if it¡¯s a different chili pepper? However, they are not sold in my country. Is there a way to get my hands on some of it?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll prepare some after the Issenza matches are over. Please take them home with you.¡±

    ¡°Ahh! Hey messenger, aren¡¯t you smart? I know, let me perform a dance from my hometown as thanks.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay¡­¡­you don¡¯t have to! Stop it, I said you don¡¯t have to! ¡±

    Oh, please behave yourself. Everyone present wished so, but their expectations were immediately betrayed as he started to show off his dancing.

    This man had once again entered the Royal Capital this season.

    ***

    ¡°Alfredo-sama. We¡¯ll be arriving at the Royal Capital soon.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Thanks for letting me know.¡±

    A man answered from inside a carriage traveling on a gravel road.

    The middle-aged man, whose name was Alfredo, stroked his dull hair which had be messy and then fumbled to open the window of the carriage.

    He was blind. However, his hearing was excellent. To the extent that he could hear the voice of the person driving the carriage among all the loud rattling.

    ¡°It smells quite lively.¡±

    His nose was also sensitive. So were his skin and tongue. It was a special sensation that only he could understand

    He became blind at the age of thirty. Until then, he demonstrated the strength of a lion as a first-ss archer.

    And, from ¡°that incident¡± over ten years have passed. And currently¨D¨DThat strength was transforming into that of a monster.

    ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s about time to pay it back. Kisenshou.¡±

    ***

    There were always many people who were called geniuses.

    Inside arge mansion, in his own room, he was in a desk constantly looking at some documents.

    Muratti Tricolori Eishou¨D¨DThe man at the highest peak of magic.

    At the age of 36, he was considered a young researcher; and despite the current season being summer, he was a little sweaty and wearing only a piece of underwear. His weight was over 100 kilograms despite his height just reaching 170 centimeters and wore rounded sses that bit into his temple.

    ¡°Oh ho, this is a great find.¡±

    Standing up with reckless excitement, he reached out to a pile of books and searched for something new.

    Muratti was currently researching the rtionship between ¡¾Magic¡¿ and ¡¾Summoning¡¿, especially the rtionship between the spirits and the four major attributes. If one were to ask him for the reason for doing this research, his answer would be ¡°because I want to do it¡±. Ever since he had memory, this has been his character, and it¡¯s be so deeply ingrained in him that it remained unchanged even now that he¡¯s be a fat middle-aged man.

    He is a person who loves ¡¾Magic¡¿ more than anything. That¡¯s why it could be said it¡¯s only natural for him to want to know it more deeply. There¡¯s only one problem, this facet of him is stronger in him than in anyone else, and thus, in his unrelentless pursue of the truth of ¡¾Magic¡¿, he has be somewhat of a ¡®magic addict¡¯.

    From the age of four, his life has revolved all around ¡¾Magic¡¿. In the difficulty of social life, only ¡¾Magic¡¿ has never betrayed him. And, the more he could know, the more results he could get, the more he could do, the more he could feel in touch with it.

    After all, he didn¡¯t have to worry about money. Speaking of the ¡ºTricolori Family¡» distinguished in ¡¾Magic¡¿, Muratti was their heir. And his parents being his parents, they also had one or two screws loose. So long as it helped their son¡¯s ¡¾Magic¡¿, they were willing to do anything to create a good environment.

    As a result of this, the ridiculous magic otaku Muratti Eishou came to be. For over thirty years, this person has lived by doing only what he likes, and in that limited aspect he demonstrates extraordinary strength¨D¨D

    ***

    ¡°Oh! Mura-sama! You were here?¡±

    ¡°Ahh! If it isn¡¯t Sarotte-shi? Greetings! ¡±

    ¡°There it is! The salute! Greetings! This! This is a salute! ¡±

    The one visiting Muratti¡¯s room was his one and only friend, his cousin Sarotte. The two spoke with a peculiar speech, and thenughed lightly with a ¡®funny voice¡¯. (TLN: Some japanese ngs are difficult to trante, this for example says something like ¡°fat voice¡±, example in thements, but picture Daru¡¯s otaku-speech from Steins;Gate for Muratti.)

    ¡°Ohh, that¡¯s right, Mura-sama, the Eishou Match will happen in one week.¡±

    ¡°Oufu, I hadpletely forgotten about it -degozaru. Or rather, right now I¡¯m in the middle of researching, I don¡¯t have time for that, I don¡¯t wanna¡«! ¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t really want to either, however! For now, just take a look at this, please.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Ehh, what¡¯s that? A list of participants? ¡±

    Muratti received a few pieces of paper from Sarotte. They were the list of participants for each Title Match.

    He nced over the contents. Each had four participants. In a normal year, there would be two or three people at most. While thinking ¡°There are more people this year than the usual¡±¡­¡­He felt a sense of incongruity looking at one of the participant¡¯s name and then reacted with shock. Sarotte, noticing this urrence, opened his mouth to say ¡°See?¡±.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that crazy? Isn¡¯t it impossible to participate in three? ¡±

    ¡°Suuuu¡­¡­This is not something I can miss.¡±

    ¡°It gives me chills just thinking he could win against Mura-sama.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d understand if this was some sort of advanced joke. But the fact that you¡¯re feeling chills, does that mean that you think this poor old me will lose¡«!? You¡«¡«! ¡±

    ¡°GUEEEEH! My bad, my bad! ¡±

    Muratti grabbed Sarotte by the neck. However, contrary to his silly speech and behavior, his mind was extremely calm.

    Being able to participate in three Title Matches meant that all of the ¡°minor skills¡± in the three ¡°major skills¡± had been raised to Grade 9. This was a tremendous amount of experience.

    You could basically earn experience points by defeating monsters in the game called Mobius Online, but that didn¡¯t mean you could just go beating them at random. It used a system where you couldn¡¯t get a ¡°satisfactory¡± amount of experience unless you defeated monsters that were ¡°equal or above the yer¡±pared to the yer¡¯s status and umted experience gained.

    In other words, one could see that the unusual man who was participating in three Title Matches this time was either ¡°An overwhelming hero who had continued to break through numerous obstacles¡±, or ¡°a patient and fierce man who defeated small fry single-mindedly all the way to the top¡±.

    ¡°Yifufu¡­¡­¡±

    This season will be clearly different from the past Eishou Matches¨D¨DConvinced of so, Murattiughed with a creepyugh.

    But the number one reason for his interest was that this man, besides participating in the Eishou Match, was also joining the Reiou Match. ¡¾Magic¡¿ and ¡¾Summoning¡¿and their rtionship, this was he was studying right now.()

    To be honest, he didn¡¯t care about the Eishou Match at all¡­¡­however, there was one thing, if he could talk to that man, he might be able to learn one more thing about ¡¾Magic¡¿, and for this reason alone, his eagerness to participate in the Eishou Match increased rapidly.

    ¡°A very interesting opponent has appeared.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t help but agree.¡±

    ***

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since Ist was in the Royal Capital.¡±

    An old woman, wearing a wide, three-cornered hat, and a ck roberge enough so that its hem was dragging, had just now returned to Vinceton, the Royal Capital.

    Her name was Cesta. She was 78 years old. She had various nicknames, for example wandering magic granma, matchless magician, me witch, and former Royal Court Magician Leader.

    ¡°Great-aunt, I¡¯ve been waiting for you.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, you, could you be Sherry? Heeee, you¡¯ve grown again.¡±

    The one greeting Cesta was a short woman wearing the uniform of the First Royal Court Magician Division, Sherry. Cesta was her rtive, her Great-aunt.

    Hearing Cesta¡¯s words, Sherry tilted her head. Thest they met was about a year ago. So, her height, sadly, shouldn¡¯t have changed much¡­¡­

    ¡°Did something happen? It¡¯s as if the cover has been peeled off. You look different.¡±

    ¡°! ¡±

    It could be said that Cesta¡¯s bold words were right on the mark. After being startled, Sherry continued to deny that while her cheeks were dyed in red, but Cesta got the better of her.

    ¡°I won¡¯t tell anyone. I see, I see, I¡¯ll have to thank that boy Zephyr. After all, I told him to take care of you.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­No, the Captain doesn¡¯t have anything to do with it.¡±

    ¡°Ehh? What? In that case, I¡¯ll have to scold him. Kekeke.¡±

    Zephyr, the current captain of the First Royal Court Magician Division, was a disciple of Cesta. And it was none other than her the one who made Zephyr learn ¡¶Fire Attribute?Fifth Form¡· magic.

    ¡°But who would go so far for you¡­¡­Well, when I saw your reaction earlier, I was able to understand most of it. A man, right? ¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Uhhhmmm.¡±

    Cesta stared at Sherry while grinning. Sherry, on the other side, had nowhere to look at and she was red to her ears.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll take my time asking youter, but first, could you guide me to the inn? My legs are killing me.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Great-aunt.¡±

    A few minutester, she learned that the man who made her lovely and cute grandniece was also his opponent in the first Eishou match.

    Well, I¡¯ll have to test him first then ¡­¡­while Cesta said so, Sherry¡¯s anxiousness increased and extra amount.

    And thus. Truly fierce and strong people were gathering in the Royal Capital one after the other.

    And then, atst, the Winter Title Matches began¨D¨D

    ***

    £¼Issenza Match£¾ (Swordsmanship)

    £±£® Kasakari Ker

    £²£® Second Firstest

    £³£® Jerez Lumberjack

    £´£® Gram

    {(£± vs £²) vs (£³ vs £´)} vs Rothman Issenza

    £¼Kisenshou Match£¾ (Archery)

    £±£® Dee Mix

    £²£® Silvia Virginia

    £³£® Alfredo

    £´£® Jay Mix

    {(£± vs £²) vs (£³ vs £´)} vs Ernte Kisenshou

    £¼Eishou Match£¾ (Magic)

    £±£® Cesta

    £²£® Second Firstest

    £³£® Nil Weissroy

    £´£® Alpha Promenade

    {(£± vs £²) vs (£³ vs £´)} vs Muratti Tricolori Eishou

    £¼Kongou Match£¾ (Shieldmanship)

    £±£® Domingo

    £²£® Rokunchea* (Rock n¡¯ Chair)

    £³£® Zidane

    £´£® Eko Leafret

    {(£± vs £²) vs (£³ vs £´)} vs Gauloises Kongou

    £¼Reiou Match£¾ (Summoning)

    £±£® Second Firstest

    £²£® Capito

    £³£® Mr. Slim

    £´£® Big Horn

    {(£± vs £²) vs (£³ vs £´)} vs Vogue Reiou

 Chapter 92 Issenza Match Part 1

    <h4>Chapter 92 Issenza Match Part 1</h4>

    Title matches are held twice a year in an arena near the Royal Castle, in summer and winter.

    I wonder how many thousands can it hold? It¡¯s a huge, colosseum-like, circr arena, and arge crowd is currently in it.

    In the special seat in the front, I can see the figure of Maine. After all, the Title Matches are, in a way, contests held in the presence of the King. In other words, it can be said to be a tournament held to show the peak of the fighting arts to the new King of the Castall Kingdom, Maine.

    ¡°¨D¨DStarting now, the 466th Winter Title Matches will begin! ¡±

    After giving a lengthy introduction, Maine finally proimed loudly. Immediately after, thunderous apuse could be hearding from the audience seats.

    This is a scene I¡¯ve seen many times in my previous life. However, no matter how many times I¡¯ve seen it, I just can¡¯t get tired of it. This surging feeling, it makes me feel like I¡¯m back. Like, I¡¯ve finally returned. To this glorious stage¨D¨D

    ¡°Second-dono. The Issenza Match will soon begin. Is it alright for you to not make preparations? ¡±

    As for the matches we will be participating, they are, starting from the first day: the Issenza Match, then Kisenshou Match, Eishou Match, Kongou Match, andstly the Reiou Match. The Matches for one Title are held each day. This seems to be due to the small number of participants, so the tournament starts in the morning and the winner will face off against the current Title Holderter on the same day. Or to put it differently, a new Title Holder is decided every day.

    ¡± I don¡¯t need some stupid preparation¡­¡­Well, whatever. I¡¯m off.¡±

    ¡°Umu. Good luck.¡±

    ¡°Second, good luck! ¡±

    After Silvia and Eko conveyed their words of encouragement, they walked towards the spectator seats reserved for the contestants.

    Right then, I found some familiar faces among the audience. There¡¯s Yukari. Or rather, the group in that area seems to be my servants. Looking closely, aren¡¯t there nearly a hundred of them? That¡¯s amazing.

    Eh? Ahh, there¡¯s also Sherry-chan and the First Royal Court Magician Division¡¯s mages over there. In addition, I can see the uniforms from the Royal Magic Academy here and there. There¡¯s even Ch¨¦rie, the daughter of the Earl, in the front row. I wonder if everyone is cheering for someone? Or maybe for me? Nah, that can¡¯t be.

    ¡°Issenza Match, first fight, Second Firstest, versus, Kasakari Ker! ¡±

    I heard my name being called from thementator¡¯s seat. Quite brief I should say. Seems like he¡¯s not amentator but more like a presenter. At the time of Mobius, there were manymentators that lived up the venue while also reading aloud the livements on the inte, but well, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s really necessary in this world.

    Holding my familiar mithril sword on my waist, I walked down to the center of the arena. On the other side was a middle-aged man with a slick hairdo, wearing a pair of slender sses and a kimono that looked like some sort of national costume. It seems his name is Kasakari Ker.

    Well then. With the number of participants in the Issenza Matches being four, me included, this could be called the semifinals of the challenger tournament. If you win this and the final, and you win against the current Issenza holder, you can win the Title of Issenza in a single day. All it takes is three wins. Well, this might be an easy win.

    ¡°It¡¯s an honor to mee you, new face.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, yes. Likewise.¡±

    A simple bow. He¡¯s quite a polite person.

    While checking the rule settings on it, we equipped the item for the duel, called ¡°Duel Crown¡±. Damage disy function on, fatal wound after reaching 1 HP is a forced stun¡­¡­Alright, everything is good.

    Since there¡¯s no problem, we both epted the duel.

    ¡°Well, then¡­¡­¡±

    Kasakari pulled out his weapon from his waist and took a stance on one leg. Ohh, a rapier, huh? How unusual. And that¡¯s a peculiar stance. That looks more like a batting stance.

    I didn¡¯t need to draw my sword or take a stance and just stood there waiting for the signal to start.

    ¡°¨D¨DBegin! ¡±

    The referee¡¯s signal came.

    In just a moment. Kasakari quickly closed the distance by three steps.

    Well, thinking about it, the way he bent his body, and moved back and forth looked just like a dance.

    ¡­¡­An Issenza Match, or to put it in other words, a match between fellow ¡¾Swordsmen¡¿, is a ¡°Battle to dominate a space¡±.

    I see, then those actions make sense. It certainly makes it difficult to grasp the timing. And, he is likely waiting to see how I¡¯ll approach it. After all, I¡¯m a new face in this tournament, so there¡¯s no prior information on me.

    ¡°It is my principle to not being reluctant of going all out.¡±

    I dere in advance, taking into consideration the courtesy my opponent has shown me.

    It doesn¡¯t matter if this is the first or thest match. I¡¯ve decided to go seriously straight from the beginning in these Issenza matches.

    With the world¡¯s number 1 ¡®steps¡¯, the ¡°Seven¡¯s System¡±¨D¨DWhich has been carefully crafted.

    ¡°! ! ¡±

    In the first step, with abined attack of ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·, I aim to pierce Kasakari¡¯s right foot.

    The second step, Kasakari takes a step back. The obvious response. Immediately after, I aim and sh at Kasakari¡¯s left hand with ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡·, which was left unprotected mid-air as he regained his bnce. That¡¯s the third step.

    ¡°W-Wha-!? ¡±

    Seems like he evaded at thest second. Kasakari then took distance in a hurry. This is the fourth step; he gave quite a huge opportunity. The fifth step, while keeping close attention to our distance, I used ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· and rushed while thrusting at his bosom.

    ¡°I won¡¯t let you! ¡±

    Kasakari started preparing ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· to defend against it with his rapier. That¡¯s the worst he could¡¯ve done as the sixth step.

    Ahh, what a shame. In that case, this will settle it.

    ¡°No way, that¡¯s¨D¨D!? ¡±

    I canceled the skill and immediately after I prepared ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· with my mithril sword and ???I threw it.

    ¡°Guuhh.¡±

    It¡¯s impossible to avoid it because the Gold skill won¡¯t be ready in time to repel it. In a sh, the mithril sword pierced the defenseless neck of Kasakari.

    The seventh step. It¡¯s all about pushing back one¡¯s opponent.

    Kasakari fell to the floor while scattering fresh blood. I was already preparing a ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· attack after taking out another mithril sword from my inventory, but¡­¡­Kasakari never got up. Apparently, since I hit him in a vital spot, all his HP was blown away in a single strike. And, ording to the duel settings, Kasakari was stunned, leaving him with only 1 HP.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­W-WINNER, SECOND FIRSTEST!! ¡±

    After a brief moment of silence, the referee dered in a loud voice.

    At the same time¨D¨Dearth-shattering cheers and apuse echoed all across the arena.

    What an incredible atmosphere. It might be louder than it was back in Mobius.

    Especially, the corner where all my servants are is quite intense. But since it felt good, I waved my hand towards them. Wow, they are even more excited now. That¡¯s great, it makes me happy.

    ¡°What the heck was that!? ¡± ¡°Was THAT Kasakaripletely defeated!? ¡± ¡°What a crushing victory! ¡± ¡°It was over in a second! ¡± ¡°I¡¯ve seen something amazing! ¡±

    Listening closely, one could hear the various impressions from the audience seats. Most of them were of praise.

    However, the way they said ¡°THAT Kasakari¡±¡­¡­It caught my attention. That was an expression as if that man was strong.

    That¡¯s stupid. There¡¯s no way for a person who devises such a petty trick like dancing to disguise his reach to be strong. That was more like something a middle schooler who was just hooked up on Mobius would do to try and gather attention, with the excuse of showing ¡®originality¡¯.

    I can¡¯t deny it would have a good response with the audience, but he was stillcking on the basics. I don¡¯t know how the regr audience sees him, but I can¡¯t see him as anything more than some guy trying to put on airs. This makes me a little angry. I don¡¯t want them to consider someone like him, a strong man. I don¡¯t want them to think a Title Match is something like this. There¡¯s still more to see, way more.

    ¡°Oh wow, that was impressive. What amazing sword movements.¡±

    On my way to the spectator seats for the contestants, an unknown man suddenly spoke to him. He looked like your everyday, ordinary middle-aged man, one you could find anywhere, but his eyes had an abnormal gleam. So, I just ignored him as someone creepy, thinking that maybe he was even some Caramelia addict.

    ***

    The other semi-final was a match between arge man named Gram and a blonde, handsome man named Jerez Lumberjack.

    I remember Gram. He¡¯s the man who wielded arge sword and whose family was taken hostage by the Prime Minister. However, it seems he no longer uses that huge sword. He probably listened to my advice. People who can be honest and listen to the advice of the opponent who defeated them have, in my experience, left a strong impression. I can tell he¡¯s a man with the tenacity to go through thick and thin if it means securing the victory.

    On the opposite side is a man named Jerez Lumberjack. I somehow got the feeling I¡¯ve seen him before and heard of him¡­¡­where was it?

    ¡­¡­Eh!? No, wait. That¡¯s right! Of course, I know. Speaking of Lumberjack, he should be family with Ch¨¦rie!

    ¡°So, he¡¯s that girl¡¯s brother!? ¡±

    ¡°You only noticed this now? Then, Second-dono, that¡¯s not all,e on, can¡¯t you remember? ¡±

    ¡°Huh? Remember what?¡±

    Silvia, who was standing next to me, asked. Since I honestly couldn¡¯t think of anything, I turned towards Eko.

    ¡°At the time with the dragons, right? ¡±

    Eko, on the other hand, seemed to have remembered. She looked at me with her round eyes as if implying ¡°Do you really not remember? ¡°, while also tilting her head. Somehow, it feels kind of harsh. However, I can¡¯t remember what I can¡¯t remember, there¡¯s nothing I can¡¯t do about it.

    ¡°Sorry, when was it? The time with the dragons? ¡±

    ¡°It was when we three went to the Metio Dungeon to learn Dragon King and Dragon Horse. Don¡¯t you remember when we saw a swordsman and a maid on our way back? ¡±

    ¡°What? Ahh! You¡¯re right, I saw them. You¡¯re both amazing, to be able to remember that.¡±

    ¡°Well, seeing your fight just now, Second-dono, I couldn¡¯t help but think about your beautiful figure that I saw that day, and that also made me remember the other time I thought that, that¡¯s all.¡±

    ¡°Beautiful figure? ¡±

    ¡°Ahh¡­¡­No. I-It¡¯s not like that! It¡¯s embarrassing, so please don¡¯t ask me.¡±

    Silvia embarrassed and self-destructed all by herself. I intentionally answered with a ¡°Hmm¡±, as if showing no interest. Only someone dense would keep asking her. I turned my gaze away from her, but I could easily tell she was thinking about ¡®that¡¯ night right now. Well, this is something I can tease herter with.

    ¡°Look, they¡¯re about to make a move! ¡±

    Silvia pointed at the center of the arena, trying to change the subject.

    Gram and Jerez had been staring at each other for about 20 minutes. This is amon situation in matches where the participants¡¯ abilities are close. After all, in an even match, it¡¯s usually disadvantageous to make the first move.

    In the matches for the challengers, the time limit is one hour. So certainly, as Silvia says, it¡¯s about time for either of them to start to make a move.

    ¡°They moved.¡±

    Eko, who was quite enthusiastic, stood up from my knees and leaned forward. I supported her thin waist from behind in order for her to not fall forward. I can¡¯t really see the match because of Eko standing up, and her tail swings all around, tickling my face, but my teacher side feels happy that she¡¯s so absorbed in the Title Matches. That¡¯s right, the Title Matches are interesting. Be it watching them or participating in them.

    ¡°OHHHH! A brute force approach!? Ch¨¦rie¡¯s brother is amazing! ¡±

    ¡°BOOM! BANG! GOOOO! ¡±

    Somehow, she seems quite excited. But what does she mean with ¡®boom¡¯?

    ¡°KYAAHA! ¡±

    ¡°He overpowered him! Did you see it!? Did you see it!? Second-dono! ¡±

    I obviously didn¡¯t.

    ¡°Speaking of which, why are you girls in such high spirits?¡±

    ¡°Well, we couldn¡¯t do it with your fight, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Why not!? ¡±

    ¡°Because it was over in no time.¡±

    ¡°When it started, you won.¡±

    Ahh, so it¡¯s that¡­¡­

    ¡°Looks like Ch¨¦rie¡¯s brother will be in the next fight.¡±

    ¡°It seems like it.¡±

    ¡°From the looks of it, seems like he¡¯s using an old style.¡±

    ¡°Hee, that doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    ¡°Ehh¡­¡­Somehow, in some way, you seem like someone else. Are you okay? ¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s toote to start getting pumped up now. The match is almost decided before it even starts.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re such a man unworthy of cheering for. However¡­¡­Yeah, that¡¯s also cool.¡±

    ¡°You should also start practicing looking cool, Silvia. To win a Title Match means you¡¯ll have arge number of people following after your back. As their object of adoration, you have the duty to look good. Also, the bigger the back, the better.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­It was the same with me, I remember admiring the Title Matches when I was younger. I always dreamed of bing a strong knight, like them. But now, I¡¯ll be standing on the dreamed of side.¡±

    ¡°You first should practice with our servants. That¡¯s perfect for trying to look cool. And they are sure to give theirpliments.¡±

    ¡°Fufu, then, let me show them an even bigger dream. Look, it¡¯s almost your time to enter.¡±

    ***

    The final battle of the Issenza Matches, to decide the challenger of the tournament.

    My opponent was Ch¨¦rie¡¯s brother, Jerez Lumberjack.

    He spoke to me while I was silently checking the duel crown.

    ¡°Second-kun, this is the first time we¡¯ve met. My name is Jerez. I¡¯m a wandering swordsman.¡±

    ¡°Right, but I¡¯ve seen you once before. You were fighting an Emerald Dragon in the Metio Dungeon.¡±

    ¡°I see! Then you should know my ability.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. More or less.¡±

    ¡°I heard you¡¯ve taken care of my sister. I also watched your match against Kasakari a while ago. And I too know about your incident with Kisenshou.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What are you trying to say? ¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just happy, too happy that I can¡¯t hold it anymore. Please entertain me, by all means.¡±

    Wearing a huge smile, Jerez pulled out the sword from his waist. Just like me, he wielded a mithril sword.

    ¡°Second! Don¡¯t lose to something like my brother! ¡±

    At that moment, a mockingment came flying from a certain young noble girl in the audience seats.

    That caused Jerez to drop to the floor.

    ¡°She called you ¡®Something¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ha-Hahaha, it seems she has gotten cheeky after not seeing me in a while.¡±

    ¡°You sure get along well as siblings.¡±

    ¡°At the very least, I do think so.¡±

    Apparently, he¡¯s one-sidedly disliked by his sister.

    ¡°Participants, get ready! ¡±

    Finishing our small talk, we get to our positions ording to the referee¡¯s instructions.

    Jerez¡¯s expression changed to an icy, sharp one, quite different from the innocent boy¡¯s smile he had until moments ago.

    ¡°¨D¨DBegin! ¡±

    We bowed to each other.

    The second after, Jerez immediately closed our distance. Just like Silvia said, he¡¯s quite the straight forward, gung-ho type.

    Well then. The first step is the same, abined attack of ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·, aiming to pierce Jerez¡¯s right foot. It¡¯s the first move of the ¡°Seven¡¯s System¡±.

    ¡°That move, I¡¯ve already seen it!¡±

    He probably yelled so show off his superiority. For the second move, unlike Kasakari, Jerez didn¡¯t dare to avoid my attack and instead made a counter using ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡·, swinging from the upper left side while pulling back his right foot.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­Oh boy.

    Those who understand would know. The meaning of that ¡°Oh boy¡±. Come on, let¡¯s say it together. ¡°Oh boy¡±.

    ¡°Ehh.¡±

    Third move, I could¡¯ve canceled the skill and back off, but I didn¡¯t; instead, while leaning to the left I knocked the handle of his mithril sword slightly sideways with my fingertips.

    ¨D¨DJerez¡¯s ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· attack connected to the ground. And my ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· went to Jerez¡¯s left ankle.

    I certainly felt it touching it. Then, while crouching, I swung while spinning, then prepared a ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· attack.

    For the fourth move, Jerez ¡°passed¡±. I wonder if it¡¯s because he lost his leg, and therefore, his bnce?

    In the fifth move, my ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡· attack hit his brain directly. The oue has beenpletely decided.

    Jerez¡¯s head, which should¡¯ve be a mess because of the attack, was actually unharmed due to the effects of the Duel Crown. However, since his HP has been reduced to 1, he was stunned and had passed out showing the white of his eyes.

    ***

    ¡°We have a winner! Victor, SECOND FIRSTEST! ¡±

    It was somewhat of a tasteless victory.

    The audience seats roared with excitement. Ch¨¦rie on the other hand was shocked still, with her mouth agape. I can imagine how of a shocking image it would be to witness your brother lose his ankle right in front of your eyes. I guess it couldn¡¯t be helped.

    Just like in the first match, I waved my hand towards Yukari then headed towards the contestants¡¯ seats as loud cheers echoed at my back.

    Over there, a familiar ss-waring man was waiting for me.

    ¡°Kasakari-san, right?¡±

    ¡°Most certainly. I am Kasakari Ker.¡±

    Apparently, he already recovered from the stun and got his HP back. He looked full of energy.

    ¡°Second-dono. I¡¯d like to ask you one question about your swordsmanship, forter study.¡±

    ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    He approached me with a serious expression in his face, so I nodded saying a few words. However, Kasakari¡¯s eyes rounded in surprise at my reply.

    ¡°I never expected you would actually answer.¡±

    ¡°Then don¡¯t ask.¡±

    ¡°Oops, please don¡¯t take it the wrong way. It¡¯s just that this could be called a universal thing. Usually, whenever a swordsman asks someone else about their swordsmanship earnestly, the answer is always a no. You are very different. But that makes me quite happy. I¡¯m so excited I can¡¯t control this urge to just wanting to dance.¡±

    You¡¯re also very different from my image of a swordsman, but I decided not to voice those thoughts, or else the story will derail even more.

    ¡°Excuse me. It¡¯s just that in my hometown we express our feelings like this from time to time. How about youe to visit my hometown, Second-dono¨C¡±

    ¡°Just get back to the main subject please.¡±

    ¡°Oh, right, I¡¯m sorry about this. It¡¯s a bad habit of mine. Well then.¡±

    After taking a deep breath, Kasakari opened his mouth slowly with a very serious expression.

    ¡°About your first strike, I thought it was best to evade it. However, I didn¡¯t know what to do from there. Or more like, I couldn¡¯t see where to go from there. I find your swordsmanship somewhat strange. It¡¯s a style of swordsmanship that I can¡¯t help but reconsider themon sense that the receiving side has the advantage. Id¡¯ love to ask you to teach me the secret.¡±

    He asked quite the direct question.

    This man, despite being a Title Match contestant, asked me the ¡°secret¡± without any shame or regard for his honor.

    ¡­¡­It pisses me off. It pisses me off, but it¡¯s fine. If it¡¯s only the basics, I¡¯ll tell you.

    Therefore, by the summer, please be a suitable contestant for the Title Matches. I beg you. You too, Jerez. I just hope you won¡¯t disappoint me.

    ¡°It¡¯s best to put everything to avoid it. If you aim for a counter, you¡¯ll end up like Jerez just now. You either break it with Soldier or avoid it. Both were fine. In your case, using Gold was a bad move. Against Rook, you could¡¯ve turned the battle aiming for a critical with abination of Bishop and Knight.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, I see.¡±

    ¡°Or rather, there would be no end if I were to teach you how to respond to each one. After all, you haven¡¯t gotten the basics down.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­What do you mean? ¡±

    ¡°Always have multiple aims. Don¡¯t cut corners and be careful with particr details. Cover all the bases and think of every way to respond to the other party¡¯s attacks. Make sure to give these three points a proper thought.¡±

    ¡°Please wait. Ahh, no, I think I understand¡­¡­Comprehend? How further? ¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me, but why don¡¯t you think of it as a tree diagram?¡±

    ¡°Would such a thing be really possible? ¡±

    Ha¡­¡­?

    ¡°No, you have to do it. Don¡¯t think about whether you can or cannot do it. Do it. First, do it. Then repeat it for days, months, years. Do it until you can do it properly. And keep at it after. That simple. If you can, you¡¯ll win. If you can¡¯t, you¡¯ll lose. Therefore, you just have to keep doing it until you can do it properly.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    What¡¯s with this guy?

    Even though he has lived in this world before I.

    Even though everything he could¡¯ve done in his life had a meaning.

    ¡°If you got it, get lost. You¡¯re making me feel sick.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­You have my thanks. And I sincerely hope for the birth of a new Issenza.¡±

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°It was amazing! Simply amazing! A-MA-ZING! ¡±

    Meanwhile, the servants of house Firstest were making a fuss in the audience seats.

    ¡°Shut up already, Panihi.¡±

    ¡°Look who¡¯s talking, you and your noisy panting during the match were a bother! Cosmos! ¡±

    ¡°Nice, big sister El. I also thought she was being too noisy.¡±

    It was said that when more than two women came together, they were very loud, but this was already beyond that level.

    There were the Ten Great and their boisterous subordinates, alongside The Big Four with their respective noisy men under them.

    ¡°Did you see it? Momo, that¡¯s Master. Firstest family head, the Master we¡¯re proud to serve! I once was taught how to not get nervous by Master, but that¡¯s a different magnificent story, I even remember it word by word as if it were yesterday. Want me to tell you about it? Do you want to hear it? Well, it began while I was walking in the garden of the servants¡¯ house¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°I get it, I get it, Marina. Please be quiet a little. Or rather, please stop talking to me altogether. Let me savor this emotional aftertaste.¡±

    Marina, the vice-captain of the Es Squad and Momo, the vice-captain of the El Squad were having a conversation of seemingly good friends but were actually biting at each other with theirments.

    ¡°¡­¡­A-Aniki. T-This is Second-sama? Seriously? What an amazing person¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°So, you finally noticed!? Geez! What a useless fellow! ¡±

    On the other side was the blue-faced and shivering stable-hand, Ploum, who kept being hit on the head by the high-spirited Stable Master Jast, who wore a happy expression for some reason.

    All the other servants also shared their feelings with each other, speaking excitedly about their thoughts. There seemed to be those who recorded every move from Second without missing anything, those who analyzed his tactics, and those who were talking about their expectations for the next round.

    ¡°Yukari-sama, is it alright for you to not call for discipline?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine for today. This is Master¡¯s moment to shine.¡±

    ¡°Do you mean it is our duty as servants to make a lot of excitement?¡±

    ¡°Well, making noise without doing it consciously.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Yes. As for me, I can¡¯t stop shaking from a while ago.¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. Second-sama¡¯s swordsmanship¡­¡­How to exin it? It¡¯s nothing short of abnormal.¡±

    ¡°I agree. However, you guys, as his servants, are in a position to ask Master to teach you.¡±

    ¡°I think I would like to thank Second-sama for being born into this world.¡±

    ¡°You do that.¡±

    Like this, one of the reasons why Yukari came to watch the matches with arge number of servants was for the servants¡¯ brainwashing education. In order for them to never betray Second, she brought them to show them his heroic figure to gather their trust, which could be called ¡°fanatism¡±, and their admiration, which could also be called ¡°worship¡±.

    Otherwise, it would be unthinkable for Yukari to bother bringing ¡°maids who could be rivals¡± to such a ce where they could see the splendor of Second and develop a passion for him. So to speak, it was a tough decision for her. This was such an action unthinkable for the past Yukari, who had a strong desire to monopolize him.

    ¡°Yve. In how many seconds do you think the final match will end? I¡¯m betting within 40 seconds.¡±

    ¡°W¡­¡­th¡­¡­ds.¡±

    ¡°Within 30 seconds, is what she said.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? If I win, I¡¯ll leave the instructing of the assassination squad to the two of you for a day and take a vacation. If I lose, I¡¯ll give you a bracer made with Bestowal.¡±

    ¡°Eh!? ¡­¡­er! ¡±

    ¡°Eh, please wait, I can¡¯t be a teacher. Is what she said.¡±

    ¡°This just happened because you bet without asking for the conditions.¡±

    Yukari, Yve, and Luna were all talking about such things; however, their facial expression showed no change. But somehow, the atmosphere was a bit livelier than usual.

    And Yukari being Yukari, she was considerably enjoying it.

 Chapter 93 Issenza Match Part 2

    <h4>Chapter 93 Issenza Match Part 2</h4>

    After parting away with Kasakari and walking down the aisle towards the participants¡¯ seats, I came across a man and a woman talking about something.

    Wondering why did they have to be flirting out at this ce made me irritated, but as I approached them, I noticed the situation was a bit different.

    ¡°Come, let¡¯s go already. There¡¯s a special seat for you, Alpha.¡±

    ¡°Eh, no, I, Uhmm.¡±

    ¡°After all, we¡¯ll be together the day after tomorrow. And nobody willin to see the Promenade¡¯s daughter in the Weissroy family¡¯s seats.¡±

    ¡°No, Uhmm, I, would rather go watch it alone¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°What a sad thing to say! It¡¯s going to be a lot more fun with me. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Ehh, no, wait¡­¡­¡±

    An awfully pretentious man with light blue hair and a beautiful face, who looked more like a band member approached defiantly at a woman with modest eyesses and olive-brown hair.

    I see, he¡¯s a yboy.

    So, I decided to help the woman. The reason being, the bespectacled woman¡¯s huge boobs are seriously shocking!

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Well, even if I were joking, I¡¯ll want to help her since she seems troubled.

    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re a bother.¡±

    First of all, I spoke in a light voice. The pair looked my way after hearing me.

    ¡°Ohh. Aren¡¯t you Second Firstest? Don¡¯t you have thest Issenza match next? ¡°

    ¡°Shut up. You¡¯re in the way.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­This might be a strange thing to say, but aren¡¯t we at the edge of the aisle?¡±

    ¡°What I meant was you¡¯re an eyesore. Or are you too ignorant to get that, rich boy?¡±

    A vein could be seen popping up in the man¡¯s forehead. Good, good, this method of picking a fight always gets full marks.

    ¡°Rich boy? I wonder if you don¡¯t know? I am Nil Weissroy. A member of the Weissroy family, you know? ¡°

    ¡°Oops, then I guess it should be pampered baby. Sorry, my bad. It makes sense then that you don¡¯t understand my words.¡±

    He thought I would be scared if he suddenly dropped the name of his family, but that was not the case. I continued my banter without a care in the world.

    Immediately after that, heshed out.

    ¡°You! A lowly human! You dare defy an elf! ¡°

    ¡°Were you an elf? I would¡¯ve never noticed. After all, you¡¯re all scrawny. Does the Weissroy family have some eating problems? ¡°

    I¡¯d like to tell him to learn from Yukari. She really is the embodiment of what an elf should look like. Just by standing there with her arms folded, you can tell she¡¯s strong.

    ¡°What are you saying!? Are you insulting my family!? ¡°

    I wanted to tell ¡®No, what I¡¯m making fun of is you¡¯ to this Nil Weissroy, an elf who seems to becking in nutrients, but since I was about to go to the stage, I stopped.

    ¡°Well, whatever, just leave the woman alone and get lost.¡±

    ¡°Who do you think you are!? Furthermore, she¡¯s my fianc¨¦! ¡°

    ¡°Eh¡­¡­Is that so? ¡°

    Are you serious? Hey, hey, hey, in that case, I¡¯m just a fool who can¡¯t read the mood, aren¡¯t I? What a huge oversight.

    ¡°N-No, that¡¯s. We¡¯re still not engaged.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Not yet engaged? ¡°

    ¡°We will get engaged the day after tomorrow! ¡°

    ¡°Is that so? ¡°

    ¡°Well, yes, Uhmm¡­¡­If I lose to him in the Eishou match.¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯re not engaged. I guess the elves these days like to lie. That Weissroy family sure is the worst.¡±

    ¡°You bastaaaaard! ¡°

    He went nuts.

    ¡°Alpha will without a doubt lose to me in the Eishou match the day after tomorrow! Then, she¡¯ll be my fianc¨¦! Can you at least understand that much, bastard!? ¡°

    Nil¡¯s face turned red in anger, and he forcibly hugged the woman with sses. Her huge breasts squished against him.

    ¡°My boobs!!! ¡°

    ¡°Bastard, these are not yours! ¡°

    I can¡¯t forgive this man¡­¡­!

    ¡°¡­¡­I see, I see, alright. If she loses to you in the Eishou match the day after tomorrow, you two will get engaged. However, she doesn¡¯t want to get engaged with you. In other words, this is a political issue between two houses! ¡°

    ¡°What are you spouting!? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m correct, right!? ¡°

    Ignoring Nil, I looked at the woman in sses called Alpha and asked.

    Alpha answered with a small nod.

    ¡°Take her home, Anko.¡±

    ¡°As you wish. My Lord.¡±

    At that moment, I used ¡¶Monster Summoning¡·. Almost at the same time as Anko answered, she touched Alpha and both were lost in the darkness, disappearing.

    ¡°Wh-What¡­¡­!? ¡°

    Nil was surprised. It happened in an instant¨D¨DAlpha, who was in his arms, disappeared.

    ¡°Whoa!? Ba-Bastard, what did you do!? ¡°

    ¡°Dunno. She probably had something to do, didn¡¯t she? I¡¯m sure she just went back.¡±

    ¡°Like hell that happened! Didn¡¯t you see she suddenly disappeared!? What¡¯s the meaning of this!? ¡°

    About sixty seconds after standing in front of Nil, who was screaming for some reason, I myself was also summoned by Anko¡¯s ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·.

    ***

    ¨D¨DThe ce where we relocated was the living room of the mansion by thekeside.

    ¡°Sorry to keep you waiting. I only have lemon; I hope you don¡¯t mind.¡±

    ¡°Eh!? N-Not at all. Ehhh¡­¡­? ¡°

    Alpha was confused.

    While I brewed tea in the kitchen, I unsummoned Anko, and then spoke to Alpha as I was cutting a lemon.

    ¡°How about sugar? ¡°

    ¡°Ah, Uhmm, without ¡­¡­¡±

    Apparently, she has calmed down a bit.

    I sat down on the sofa of the living room in front of her, ending up face to face.

    As I took a sip of my cup, I noticed my ck tea wasn¡¯t as delicious as the one brewed by Yukari.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if it¡¯s terrible. There are always others to brew it for me.¡±

    ¡°Not at all, Uhmm¡­¡­it is delicious, you know? ¡°

    Alpha drank a bit of her tea while cooling it off, causing it to cloud her sses.

    Then, for a while. There was a pleasant silence.

    ¡°¡­¡­Uhmm. Don¡¯t you have to go to the Issenza match? ¡°

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­Shit, I forgot. At what time was it starting?

    N-No, however, since I¡¯vee to this point, I can¡¯t help but want to do something about this matter. I have to appear dignified.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Leaving that aside, you don¡¯t want to get engaged to that elf, right? Why don¡¯t you take a piece of advice from me? ¡°

    ¡°That is, well, yeah, if I could help it¡­¡­However, Uhmm, a piece of advice? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s not advice about how to win, but more one about how not to lose.¡±

    ¡°How not to lose¡­¡­? ¡°

    From my two fights so far for the Issenza Title, it appears the Title fighters in this world tend to not know the basics.

    She¡¯s probably the same. In that case, I expect this to be something well worth teaching.

    ¡°I¡¯ll exin it briefly. Never try to use something shy. Keep a distance from your opponent and attack using the First Form, keep the Third Form as the ace up your sleeve and use it only as a distraction. About your opponent¡¯s magic, just do everything in your power to avoid it. Make sure to be thorough.¡±

    ¡°Use the First Form to attack and the Third Form as a distraction.¡­¡­Isn¡¯t it the other way around¡­¡­? ¡°

    I was wondering what she was going to say, but since she already knows this, it looks like she¡¯ll be okay.

    ¡°Take your time to wear down your opponent. Fight patiently. Don¡¯t rely on the deciding factor. Avoid, avoid, and keep avoiding, take any chance, and also keep attacking. The other party is sure to be impatient. They will try to end it. Don¡¯t think that¡¯s a chance. Always, just keep using the First Form.¡±

    ¡°Like that¡­¡­Can I win?¡±

    ¡°Skeptical, aren¡¯t we? In the end, you will. The yer who does more damage when the time runs out wins. Anyway, just move thinking about not losing. Believe in the First Form. The Eishou battle is won by the person who controls the First Form.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Let me ask you one thing. Can I? ¡°

    ¡°What is it? ¡°

    ¡°Why are you helping me this much when we¡¯ve just met for the first time? You have the Issenza match soon¡­¡­and yet you¡¯re trying to help me win my Eishou match¡­¡­¡±

    She asked me a question that¡¯s a bit difficult to answer.

    Why, I wonder? A whim? Because I was frustrated about Kasakari? Even I am not quite sure.

    ¡­¡­I guess so. However, there¡¯s one thing I can say for sure¨D¨D

    ¡°I was captured by those wonderful boobs of yours, and it just happened.¡±

    Something like this.

    Alpha grinned and giggled at my way too honest sexually harassing answer.

    ¡°I think, I will believe in you.¡±

    ***

    After that, using ¡¶Darkness Transfer¡· and ¡¶Darkness Summon¡·, Anko sent me back to the arena, and I made it in time before the start of the final battle.

    The final opponent of the Issenza matches was a man called Rothman.

    He was the middle-aged man with his hair to the back that spoke to me after the fight with Kasakari.

    ¡°Were you the Issenza? Sorry to have ignored you back then.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Thanks to that, I learned that there are some people who don¡¯t know me.¡±

    Hee, what a humble person.

    ¡°Your sword skill, I¡¯ve only seen it twice. And both times it was extremely sharp. I might not be a match against you.¡±

    Rothman calmly spoke.

    And from those words, you wouldn¡¯t believe he overflows with self-confidence.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­I see.

    ¡°You¡¯re strong, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Well, that I wonder. I haven¡¯t cut enough people here.¡±

    ¡°It makes me have expectations.¡±

    ¡°Same here, I¡¯d like to enjoy this.¡±

    I¡¯m slowly getting pumped up.

    That¡¯s right, this is the feeling. This is how a Title Match should be.

    ¡°Participants, get ready.¡±

    I took some distance from Rothman at the referee¡¯s call. Rothman¡¯s weapon was an ordinary long sword.

    But no matter who the other person is, what I do doesn¡¯t change.

    I¡¯ll use the world¡¯s number one fixed attacks¨D¨DThe Seven System.

    ¡°¨D¨DBegin! ¡°

    We bowed to each other.

    At the same time, we both closed our distance.

    First, abined attack of ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·aimed to pierce the front of Rothman¡¯s right foot. Let me see how you receive it.

    ¡°No matter how many times I see it, it¡¯s wonderful.¡±

    Rothman muttered, retreating with light steps; in addition to the first attack, he was able to deal with the following ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· attack. That¡¯s the best response.

    And just like the waves in the ocean thate forth after receding, Rothman switched to the offensive. At that moment, I prepared ¡¶Rook Swordsmanship¡·and made a rush without care. Come one, show me how you deal with this.

    ¡°I see, I see.¡±

    A single phrase. Rothman began to prepare a ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· attack.

    Hey, hey, you¡¯re going to end up like Kasakari. Are you asking for it? Or do you have anything prepared to counter it? If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll y along.

    I immediately canceled my skill and after preparing a ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· attack, I threw my mithril sword.

    ¡°That way of thinking is also interesting.¡±

    Seeing me throw my sword at him, Rothman canceled his ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·attack, and then, using ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· he repelled the mithril sword. Piercing attacks can be fended off by other piercing attacks. It¡¯s a defense using their own traits. Seems like he¡¯s been studying hard.

    Well then. There¡¯s no way this can end with him just repelling it.

    While Rothman tried to fend off the mithril sword, I took another mithril sword from my inventory and prepared a ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· skill. When I did this with Kasakari, it had ended before I got to activate it, but this time I got to properly use it.

    ¡°That¡¯s quite shrewd.¡±

    At that moment, almost at the same time as my ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· skill activated, Rothman activated a ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· skill.

    Ohh, really? The fact that he activated ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· with this timing means that he was already preparing it right after he used the ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· skill. In other words, he read me using ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· and prepared a skill to receive it.

    ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· is a powerful ranged attack in all directions. ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· is a ranged attack on all directions. Both of them are ¡°responding¡± skills, but the former has a wider range and higher power. However, if we only look at the point of defending against an opponent¡¯s attack, both the former andtter and more than enough. In other words¨D¨D

    ¡°Is that everything? Well then, let me start over again.¡±

    Rothman was unharmed.

    And this time, it seems he wants to go into the offensive. Well, there¡¯s that too. Can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯ll receive it.

    ¡°Hyuu¨D¨D! ¡°

    While I breathed through my mouth, a ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· attack came thrusting, aimed at my throat.

    ¡°¡­¡­? ¡°

    A very lenient attack. I fended it off using ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· and waited for the following attack.

    ¡°Fu¨C! ¡°

    A ¡¶Silver Swordsmanship¡· attack from the top. I repelled it. Next, a ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· attack sweeping sideways. I repelled it. And at the end, abined attack of ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· as a decisive attack. I avoided it. It sure makes one yawn¡­¡­

    ¡°If it¡¯s defending, anyone can do it.¡±

    Rothman blurted out after taking some distance.

    A provocation. Almost as if saying ¡°show me a back and forth fight¡°.

    ¡­¡­Why? Why would he say such a thing?

    Can it be that he thought that he broke through my moves?

    Dodge the first attack, make a feint, repel the throw, fend off using Gold, and my attacks are over¡­¡­He really thinks so?

    ¡°Say, don¡¯t you realize you were forced to defend like that? ¡°

    ¡°Forced? What are you saying? ¡°

    ***

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­

    That¡¯s the Seven System.

    That¡¯s what the Seven System is.

    That¡¯s the world¡¯s number one fixed method. It seems like he won¡¯t understand what this means even if he spends his whole life, going like this.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡­¡­All the guys around me had all their skills at Grade 9. Not just ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿. They had also ¡¾Magic¡¿ and ¡¾Archery¡¿, everything at Grade 9.

    That was only obvious.

    A Title Match was a sh between the top yers. A fight of a lifetime.

    It was a game of transcendental technique, in which one poured a dreadful amount of time, betting everything into a single moment.

    So, obviously, I was ¡®researched¡¯. Investigated exhaustively by hundreds of ranked yers. They watched all my battle footage over and over again, studying all my actions, all my movements, from the cement of my feet, to the movement of my fingertips. I even heard some of them say some creepy things like ¡°He has this habit in the 21st move¡±. However, being the number one in the world carried such a burden.

    Against Seven, these are the best moves. If they thought they could win, they were weed to try. This strategy should be hard for Seven to deal with.

    Countless measures were taken by countless only game junkies.

    ¡­¡­But even then.

    Even so, I continued to be number one in the world.

    The Seven System was such a method.

    It was a scheme that umted tremendous evolution in order to fend off, absorb and counter all the countermeasures created by hundreds and thousands of addicted yers against Seven.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­But you, do you really think this is something so easy to be beaten by how you are right now?

    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have let you attack.¡±

    I spilled out some words of regret.

    I was stupid to expect something.

    It¡¯s not his fault. It¡¯s mine because I tried to have a little fun.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Ohh. Again, with that?¡±

    Rothman muttered, looking at my first attack, abination of ¡¶Soldier Swordsmanship¡· and ¡¶Knight Swordsmanship¡·.

    Then, with a deliberate smile, he stepped back just as before and dodged.

    ¡°Will Rook be next then? ¡°

    That¡¯s exactly right.

    ¡°Then, Bishop and throw.¡±

    He¡¯s totally right.

    ¡°It won¡¯t work. Now, Dragon Horse? ¡°

    That¡¯s right.

    ¡°Well then, with this it¡¯s over¨D¨D!? ¡°

    It¡¯s not over yet.

    Since ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡· has a wider range than ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·, if you attack from outside the range of Gold, the opponent has to wait for the Dragon Horse attack to reach a certain range before unleashing Gold. It only takes 0.1 seconds¡­¡­ but that¡¯s a deadly gap.

    ¡°Sorry, I went easy on you before.¡±

    While apologizing, I made a thrust using ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·. A quick and powerful piercing attack. Since it has a piercing effect, you can¡¯t fend it off using Soldier Swordsmanship.

    Rothman spotted my ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· attack, and after finishing his ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·, he desperately prepared a ¡¶Lance Swordsmanship¡· attack¨D¨Dbut still, he was short by 0.1 seconds.

    The Seven System is ruthlessly urate. At this distance, with this timing, when using ¡¶Dragon Horse Swordsmanship¡·if the opponent counters it using ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡·, and you attack with ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡·, there will always be a dy of 0.1 seconds afterward, and it will hit. Therefore, using ¡¶Gold Swordsmanship¡· to fend it off is a bad choice. This is something engraved in the method. And so, it turned out like this. This is a holyw that cannot be overturned. An unchanging fact that has been known for many years.

    That¡¯s why it became part of the method. That¡¯s why it¡¯s necessary to react to it. That¡¯s why you are forced to act. And, a bad move is never forgiven.

    ¡°You¡¯re strong. For an amateur, that is.¡±

    My ¡¶Bishop Swordsmanship¡· attack approached as if been sucked into his heart.

    ¡°¡­¡­AAAAHHHHH!! ¡°

    Rothman roared.

    Toote. The difference of 0.1 seconds, like this, feels like an eternity¡­¡­

    ¡°¨D¨DWinner, Second Firstest! ¡°

 Chapter 94 Issenza Match Part 3

    <h4>Chapter 94 Issenza Match Part 3</h4>

    ¡°Winner, Second Firstest! ¡°

    The referee voiced the result.

    A man looked down with an expression tinged in sadness, a man kneeled down, on the verge of fainting.

    This was, no matter how one looked at it, aplete victory by Second Firstest.

    Namely. It meant the loss of a great champion who had reigned at the top of the Issenza matches for over twenty years.

    Namely. It meant the birth of a new Issenza, one whopleted all the matches in less than forty seconds without ever getting wounded since the first match.

    ¡­¡­And that meant. The curtain of a new era was opening, so beautiful that it blinded everyoneying their eyes upon it, so overwhelming that it took away their breath.

    ¡°¨D¨D! ! ¡°

    Like a dam breaking, energetic cheers echoed all across the arena.

    That Rothman, the former Issenza, didn¡¯t put up a fight. There was nothing he could do. He was beaten instantly, as if one was twisting a baby¡¯s arm.

    This was what all spectators were feeling. This was all too unusual. And yet, there were only a few who could understand what had happened, in the truest sense of the word.

    There were those who didn¡¯t think too deeply about it and simply epted the facts in front of them, bing quite excited. They were those who knew of their own powerlessness, and disagreed with the unreasonable scene in front of them. Those who couldn¡¯tprehend what had happened and just tried to escape from reality. Those who sensed a transcendental and almost god-like skill, unable to keep themselves from trembling. Those who fell in love. Those who became captivated. Those who felt shocked. Those who felt afraid.

    Various emotions, both positive and negative turned into an unstoppable vortex.

    However, everyone surely carved this in their hearts. That was, the name of the man called Second Firstest.

    What will happen with this man in the future? What on earth will he show us? Everyone paid careful attention, with crazy high expectations.

    Finally, it hade. Second Firstest was finally being recognized by the world.

    He had taken the first step towards returning to the position of the number one in the world.

    And he did so with quite the noisy step.

    However, most of the spectators present didn¡¯t know yet¨D¨DThat this man would appear in other Title Matches.

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°us. What are your thoughts? ¡°

    ¡°I can no longer be shocked by it. Your Majesty.¡±

    At the spectator seats, right in front of the arena. King Maine Castall spoke to his brother, us.

    Right now, he was just a man serving under him, having lost his position as First Prince, the Castall name, and having be Maine¡¯s ve.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know what was happening. But you know, right us? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah. If it¡¯s about swordsmanship, and with the exception of those who participate in the Issenza matches, I¡¯m proud that my own skill is among the top in the Kingdom.¡±

    Although it was a bit polite, Maine spoke to him from a superior position. And us, on the other hand, bowed his head and responded with respectful words. This was an unthinkable sight just a while ago, but this was now their absolute rtionship in the royal pce.

    us was barely able to keep his life by bing Maine¡¯s ve. This because of the protection by Maine¡¯s biological mother, Freon Castall, and also in consideration for the circumstances which ced him in a not so terrible position.

    The restrictions he had as a ve were quite severe. There were over a dozen additional restrictions, such a ¡°absolute obedience¡± that made it impossible for him to defy any order by his master, and ¡°attack limitations¡±, by which he could never attack specific people. But us epted them with no problem.

    ¡°That¡¯s Second-san for you, right?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you can just sum it up like that.¡±

    ¡°Is there more to it? ¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    us was a bit irked by Maine¡¯sment, which was pretty much the same as not thinking too deeply about what had happened.

    Do you know how much skill had that man shown!? If he could utter words like that, he wanted to snap back. It wasn¡¯t hard for us to understand this much, since he himself was a first-ss swordsman. Yet, it was very frustrating for him not being able to share his excitement with Maine right now. Furthermore, he thought that he wouldn¡¯t be able to properly serve King Castall unless he made him understand this.

    However, coincidentally, he understood why Maine had made him watch the Issenza match together with him. And that was, so that he could exin the contents of the match. Maine was trying to make up for his ignorance by having us by his side, and learn from him. Without modesty and diligence, an ignorant would remain ignorant. In his mind, us envisioned this as another form of a King.

    An opponent that up until now he had been hostile to and evaded. However, now that their distance was forced to shrink, he saw several things in a new light.

    ***

    ¡°Your Majesty. These are just my thoughts, but I think you are somewhat numbed by it.¡±

    ¡°Numbed, you say?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Probably, no, I¡¯m sure of it, it¡¯s because you¡¯ve spent time together with the new Issenza, Second.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡­To what extend am I numbed then? ¡°

    us contemted Maine¡¯s question. I wonder how should I exin it in a way that¡¯s easy to understand? He thought.

    Although he was manipted by the Prime Minister and the First Queen, he was skilled enough to be the leader of the First Knight Order at the young age of twenty. Furthermore, his ability was unquestionably first-ss.

    ¡°I have the skills to win against three of the knights from the First Order.¡±

    ¡°Yes. That, I know.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s say I have a hundred matches against Kasakari-dono.¡±

    ¡°A hundred matches? If it¡¯s you, us, I guess you might win 20 of them.¡±

    ¡°Not at all. This I can say with confidence. It would be a hundred losses. If we fight a hundred matches, I will certainly lose all hundred. If we were to fight a thousand, I might have the chance to win one of them.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­Is to that point, huh?¡±

    At this moment, Maine seemed to have finally understood the whole picture.

    ¡°The results of the matches between Kasakari-dono and Rothman-dono. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re aware of them, Your Majesty.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. For the past twenty years, Rothman-san has won the Issenza matches¡­¡­¡±

    As those words left Maine¡¯s mouth, his face started to turn blue.

    ¡°And THAT Rothman-dono wasn¡¯t able to do anything against it. I would like for Your Majesty to understand exactly what this means.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­However, at one point it looked like Rothman-san was pushing back a little.¡±

    ¡°No way. He let him do that. Second Issenza was the one who made him act like that. If I were in their ce, I would¡¯ve been yed with too. Or most likely, he tried to prioritize the audience¡¯s entertainment. After all, for him, this wasn¡¯t a match at all.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Maine involuntarily closed him mouth hearing us¡¯sments.

    He thought he was a man above the clouds. While standing at sea level, he was beyond the clouds, past that invisible peak. But after finally reaching the top of the clouds, he noticed the distance between them and Second was many times higher than the distance from the sea to the clouds. The top was so hazy that it couldn¡¯t be seen.()()

    It was unclear if even the inhabitants of this world couldprehend the concept outer space. But if they knew it, they all surely would think this. Let alone beyond the clouds, he was already in space. An inhabitant of the space. The top of the mountain was so big that it already reached the outer space.

    ¡°Once again, I¡¯ve felt shivers. Have you too, us? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m¡­¡­simply in awe. If I could, I¡¯d love to learn the ways of the sword from him.¡±

    Those were unexpected words. Maine¡¯s eyes rounded in surprise¡­¡­Then, he smiled.

    ¡°You¡¯ve be kinder, Big Brother.¡±

    A smile that resembled a lot that of his mother, Freon.

    us smiled, turning away in embarrassment, his cheeks feeling a bit hot.

    ¡°The position as the First Prince. That pride, that thirst for power, and wanting to be the next King. Thinking back on it, it seems all of that was unnecessary for me.¡±

    Thus, Maine. His not so stupid little brother. It seemed he had grown up, wisely, and purely¨D¨D

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°It¡¯s different from what I thought.¡±

    Night. I kept on mumbling.

    ¡°What is different? Second New Issenza.¡±

    Silvia spoke as if to make fun of me.

    Currently, there was a small party titled ¡ºCongrattions on winning the Issenza Title¡» being held at the Firstest state. The reason why it¡¯s small is that Silvia¡¯s Kisenshou Title matches areing up tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow is my Eishou¡¯s Title matches. Apparently, a big production is underway for when all the scheduled matches arepleted.

    However, regardless of whether this is small or not, a party is a party. In addition to the usual members, we also called over a dozen of the high-ranking servants, such a Cubero and Yve. However, despite me telling them ¡°Let¡¯s drink together¡± when I invited them, they were rushing around and serving us, for some reason. So, in the end, it became a dinner party with the usual members.

    ¡°Hear this, Silvia.¡±

    ¡°Umu. Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    For the past hour or so, I¡¯ve been feeling a little tipsy, and beenining like this.

    ¡°The Title Matches were about ten times worse than I expected.¡±

    ¡°T-Ten times¡­¡­?¡±

    The participants of the Issenza Matches are originally residents of this world. In other words, ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿ should be their way of life. They should be pros in ¡¾Swordsmanship¡¿. But what was that? ¡­¡­That was just¡ª-

    ¡°Did it bother you? Did you find it strange? How was it? Did you think at any moment that they were pathetic? Did you feel as if you were watching a mud¨Cthrowing contest between amateurs? ¡°

    ¡°No, in the past I also used to be an amateur like them, so I didn¡¯t care about that.¡±

    ¡°I see. So there was that point of view too.¡±

    Whenever alcohol came into the picture, Silvia and I became quite talkative, Eko simply fell asleep, and Yukari turned even more silent. Therefore, when evening drinks are on the menu, it¡¯s always Silvia and I doing all the talking.

    ¡°But now I can understand¡­¡­If it were the me from before, even looking at today¡¯s battles, I wouldn¡¯t have grasped what you did, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°Are you serious? You were aspiring to be a knight, right? Didn¡¯t you learn Swordsmanship? ¡°

    ¡°I did learn a bit, but not enough to understand these fights, just the basics. To put it into perspective, the sword moves of Rothman-dono and Kasakari-dono would¡¯ve been barely visible. Therefore, I might¡¯ve seen the Title Matches like everyone else, purely as public amusement.¡±

    ¡°Public amusement? Because the level was low? ¡°

    ¡°Umu. I feel bad saying it that way, but yes. However, I could feel your Swordsmanship also being for the masses in a sense, Second-dono.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? ¡°

    ¡°The way you won was vibrant, and it was interesting. Even an amateur would feel a mysterious exhration and they would eventually be addicted to it. That¡¯s what I meant when I said it was for the masses. On top of that, there¡¯s a depth to analyze for the experts, and it can serve as study material for those who want to be stronger, so there are many ways to enjoy it. I¡¯m certain it was much more interesting than a traditional Title Match.¡±

    ¡°Ohh, I see, I see. But Silvia, that was only a matter of course. That¡¯s how a Title Match should originally be.¡±

    ¡°I see, so that¡¯s where you wereing from.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s the reason why I was disappointed.¡±

    ¡°So, you were looking forward to it, but when it was time to open the box, the level didn¡¯t meet your expectations. That¡¯s, how to say it? ¡­¡­A bit sad.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. At first, I was angry¡­¡­But right now, I¡¯m just sad.¡±

    ***

    Suddenly, I noticed the servants who had finished serving us and had nothing else to do, were quietly listening to me and Silvia.

    ¡°Hey, what do you think I should do? ¡°

    Since I thought it would be boring just listening to us, I asked the servants to add them to our chat.

    The first person to react was the butler, Cubero.

    ¡°How about raising more disciples, like Silvia and Eko? I think it would be possible to raise the level of the Title Matches by having strong people who grew up raising their skills under Master, participate in the Title Matches.¡±

    ¡°Not a bad proposal at all. Something else? ¡°

    I ask the others for more ideas aside from Cubero¡¯s.

    Several people raised their hands, so I asked them in order from one side to the other.

    ¡°Having us servants eventually participate in the Title Matches. And when that happens, the standard of the Title Matches will surely rise, and that in turn will give you prestige, Master. So It will be like killing two birds with one stone.¡±

    Those were the words of a maid called Champani. I see, it might be a good idea to take the servants as my disciples.

    ¡°There might be people who haven¡¯t participated in the Title Matches yet but have highbat skills, hiding somewhere around the world, or at least that¡¯s what I think. Thus, if Master bes more active or if you provoke them to a certain degree, those people mighte out.¡±

    Said a red-haired maid with a side ponytail called Es. I admit that¡¯s something quite clever to say. Being active, and provoke them, huh? ¡­¡­If I was the one in hiding, I would never stay silent.

    ¡°I think you are fine just as you are now, Master. When they see your great aplishments, Master, any strong person wouldn¡¯t be able to stay quiet or do nothing, definitely. Won¡¯t theye in great swarms for the summer season? ¡°

    A tomboyish, red-haired maid with semi-long hair named El, said. She¡¯s Es¡¯ sister. So,bining both sisters¡¯ opinions I guess I¡¯m already doing what I need to do, provoking them to a certain degree. Then, does that mean all I have to do now is wait? They indeed have a point.

    ¡°I also agree with El-chan on this. With your overflowing and super-charismatic charm, Second-sama, I believe strong and fierce people will gather from all across the world like insects attracted to honey.¡±

    This time it was the muscr onee-san-type man named Lilly, the chief gardener. He sure likes to praise me a lot. However, going down that rabbit hole, some pests are also sure to gather and that¡¯s something I don¡¯t like.

    ¡°I¡­¡­u¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°I think it would be a good idea to try and raise the overall level of the people by deliberately disclosing information held by you, Master, such as the acquisition condition for some skills. Is what she said.¡±

    The words of Yve, the pure-white maid, were conveyed by her interpreter, Luna.

    At that moment, the atmosphere suddenly froze. ¡°Is this girl for real? ¡°, With such feelings, gazes of amazement and shock fell on her.

    ¡°¡ª-! ¡­¡­? ¡°

    ¡°Did I, have I said something strange again? Is what she said.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s anything but strange. I think it makes sense.¡±

    ¡°Uuuuuh¡«! ¡°

    ¡°Thank you very much, Master, is what she said. Also, she feels embarrassed.¡±

    Yve¡¯s face flushed as if red paint had been poured over her, thanks to Luna¡¯s unwanted and unneededment. Well, it¡¯s so easy to tell she¡¯s bashful thanks to her white skin that it makes me feel a bit sorry for her. ¡°Ptff¡±, hearing me almost fail to contain myughter, Yve trembled with tears in her eyes and turned to hit Luna with her arms.

    ***

    ¡°Well then, are these all the ideas? ¡°

    Nobody else raised their hand.

    I see, I see. Every one of them was a great idea. After listening to everyone¡¯s opinion, I was able to make up my mind to some extent.

    In the first ce, it was a mistake to expect to solve this matter right now. This is still an issue about ¡°from now on¡±. So to speak, right now it¡¯s just after the grand server opening. The world of Mobius Online, from now on, must grow with its inhabitants.

    That being the case. And if I don¡¯t get excited about it, who¡¯s going to do it? There¡¯s no need to feel shy, just leave everything to me. I¡¯ll turn this into an amazing festival.

    ¡°Alright¡­¡­I¡¯ll do everything.¡±

    ¡°Second-dono, that¡¯s-¡°

    ¡°Master, that¡¯s-¡°

    I stood up and loudly dered.

    Not a secondter, both Silvia and Yukari tried to stop me. It¡¯s amazing how these two are in synchrony.

    ¡°Why are you trying to stop me? ¡°

    ¡°Provoking people is bad. Furthermore, wouldn¡¯t that put your dignity in question? ¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t just go easily disclosing the requirements for the acquisition of thee skills. Those things should be kept secret.¡±

    There¡¯s that too, I guess? Well, it¡¯s not good to go and overdo things.

    ¡°Well then, I¡¯ll do everything in moderation.¡±

    ¡°Like hell I¡¯ll believe you! You say you¡¯ll do things in moderation but in the end, things will get out of hand for sure! ¡°

    ¡°I can¡¯t trust your definition of ¡®moderation¡¯, Master. I think if I tell you to add a pinch of salt to a dish, you¡¯ll add a spoonful.¡±

    Turns out, even though we¡¯ve beenpanions for some time now, they still do not trust me it seems. How sad.

    Or rather, it appears Yukari might¡¯ve already told the servants to not let me cook anything.

    ¡°I get it, I do. Then, I will consult with you before doing each one. How does that sound? ¡°

    ¡°Well, in that case, I don¡¯t mind¡­¡­But never dare getting me involved. Absolutely not! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­It can¡¯t be helped, I guess. When you make up your mind it¡¯s hard to convince you otherwise, Master, so I willpromise.¡±

    Maybe I¡¯ve been messing around with Silvia regrlytely, she for sure looks to be on guard. Or is she pretending?

    On the other hand, Yukari still keeps her cold, poisonous tongue. She¡¯s quite different from her night self.

    ¡°I can not eat anymore. ¡°

    ¡°Eh? ¡°

    Did Eko say something?

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­£ú£ú£ú.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re sleep talking!? That¡¯s too much! ¡°

    And thus, the congrattory party for winning the Issenza title was held.

    Tomorrow is Silvia¡¯s Kisenshou battle.

 Chapter 95 Kisenshou Match 1

    <h4>Chapter 95 Kisenshou Match 1</h4>

    ¡°You have my praise for not running away.¡±

    Kisenshou Title Match, the semi-finals before the match to decide the first challenger.()

    My opponent was¨D¨DDee Mix.

    I face her head-on at the center of the arena and spoke at her imposingly.

    ¡°That should be my line. With how bad our Second ¡®Issenza¡¯ messed you up the other day, I¡¯m surprised you dared show your face to the public.¡± ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­That man has nothing to do with this. It is you the one I have a grudge against.¡±

    ?????It is working. I could clearly sense it.

    Second-dono taught me several basic surprise tactics for interpersonal battles. Those also included ¡°Off-board tactics/bangaisen¡±, a sort of psychological warfare that takes ce before or during the game.

    Dee Mix apparently has been ¡°traumatized¡± by Second-dono¡­¡­It was Yukari¡¯s ingenious spirit, Windfield, the one who advised me on this. Second-dono told me ¡°I can¡¯t think of anyone better at off-board tactics as her, so why don¡¯t you ask?¡±. I think so too, but in the case of Windfield, I think she¡¯s better than any person in board tactics too. Wait, should I say ¡®better than any spirit¡¯ instead?

    Anyway. Windfield taught me how to add salt to Dee¡¯s wounds. The procedure is as follows, first to bring out Second-dono¡¯s name, and when an expression of repudiation is shown¡­¡­keep talking without giving her a chance.

    ¡°Only against me? That¡¯s wrong. I am one of Second-dono¡¯spanions. It was you guys who turned the Issenza into your enemy. That¡¯s why you won¡¯t be able to do any despicable acts in this match. After all, Second-dono is watching. And so is His Majesty Maine. Second-dono has a very friendly rtionship with His Majesty. If he were to report on the previous incident, you might be punished by the Castall Kingdom. Maybe even an indefinite suspension from the Title Games. Furthermore, you might¡¯ve thought you were forgiven because you prostrated yourself, but that¡¯s a mistake. Don¡¯t think Second-dono has forgiv¨D¨D¡±

    ¡°Shut up! Shut your trap!! Stop spouting that guy¡¯s name!! ¡°

    Dee red-up and shouted while at the same time she ced her hands over her ears. Looking closely, you could see her body shaking slightly.

    ¡­¡­Wait a second, wasn¡¯t it a bit too effective?

    U-umu, it makes me feel a bit guilty. I should not think ¡°I can¡¯t keep doing these cowardly acts¡±, because I need to keep using them if the surprise strategy that I want to y has a chance to seed.

    ¡°Participants, get ready.¡±

    With those instructions from the referee, we both participants moved to our designated spots.

    Dee had lost her calm expression and was now scratching the back of her head, ruffling her long, emerald green hair.

    Nice, seems like the ¡®off-board¡¯ tactics are a sess.

    ¡°¨D¨DBegin! ¡°

    We bow.

    The next moment, when I rushed forward to close the distance between me and Dee¨D¨D

    ¡°Ahahahaha! ¡°

    Dee held out her bow, her mouth smiling big while sheughed.

    She recovered instantly. Crap, it was all an act¡­¡­!

    ¡°Tch! ¡°

    I hesitated for a moment before evading sideways the ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·shots that came flying my way one after the other.

    ¡°Yeah, That¡¯s right! (Ora ora ora!) So, you¡¯re going to keep running!? ¡°

    ¡­¡­So, it doesn¡¯t seem like she was acting. There¡¯s something wrong with Dee. I don¡¯t know what her reason is, but she appears to be in a hurry to attack.

    If so.

    Let¡¯s do that now. Surprise tactic number one¡­¡­!

    ¡°Eat this! ¡°Demonyer¡±! ¡°

    As I approached Dee while avoiding her ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·onught, when I was at a distance of about 8 meters, I prepared a ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· shot.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to get hit, you know! ¡°

    Obviously, there¡¯s no way to dodge Dee¡¯s ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· at this distance.

    But that¡¯s what¡¯s needed for ¡°Demonyer¡±. If Dee had used powerful skills such as ¡¶Silver¡· or ¡¶Rook¡·, the damage and force of impact would¡¯ve been too heavy to be able to finish my ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· shot. However, if it¡¯s just ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, then.

    ¡°Guuu! ¡°

    It hurts a little, but other than that there¡¯s nothing to worry about!

    ¡°You¡¯re kidding me.¡±

    Those words left Dee¡¯s lips, then she moved her body to evade my ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· skill.

    However, too bad. That¡¯s not what I was aiming at¡­¡­

    ¡°Kyaa! ¡°

    My aim was, something lower.

    ¡¶Bishop Archery¡· is a powerful prating attack. And by releasing it almost parallel to the ground, the arrow scrapes it, creating an effect simr to a smokescreen.

    ¡°What, this¨C!? ¡°

    Dee was enveloped in the smokescreen, blocking her view.

    And that moment brings forth an opportunity. The next move will be the deciding factor in Demonyer.

    You would usually use a smokescreen like this to your advantage by keeping your distance and attacking in a way that makes you have the upper hand. However, Demonyer is different.

    ¡°Eat this.¡±

    I plunged into the smokescreen.

    And after catching Dee¡¯s figure, I followed her through the smokescreen.

    After that, I jumped a short distance at her, as if I wanted to hug her¨D¨D and unleashed a ¡¶Gold Archery¡· shot at her!

    ¡°Wha¨C¡­¡­!? ¡°

    ¡¶Gold Archery¡· is a ranged attack with added knockback effect, but its range is short. However, because of our distance, it is sure to connect!

    ¡°Uhhgee.¡±

    Dee was blown back,nding on her butt.

    This is a huge chance. The first step of the Demonyer surprise tactic was sessful!

    ¡°This is the end! ¡°

    I then fired a ¡¶Silver Archery¡· shot at Dee, who was still lying on the ground.

    With this, it¡¯s decided¨D¨DOr so I thought. Yeah, I got greedy.

    After all, I only know of three surprise attack methods. One for the semifinals, one for the finals, and one for the Title match. That was the ideal n. Therefore, I wanted to keep the other two a secret as much as possible. Even Second-dono told me so over and over again. He said, ¡°These surprise attack methods only work the first time an opponent sees them¡±.

    ¡­¡­Why? Why didn¡¯t I choose ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, which has a short preparation time?

    I truly regret it, but it¡¯s toote now.

    ¡°I~~diot! ¡°

    This is what I get for being greedy. This sure gives me something to learn.

    At thest possible moment, Dee avoided my ¡¶Silver Archery¡·shot at the same time she regained her posture.

    Ahh, this is really the worst.

    It¡¯s like¡­¡­I¡¯m back to the starting point.

    ¡°Looks like you missed your chance! ¡°

    Dee quickly attacked using¡¶Soldier Archery¡·.

    Just as I thought that time three weeks ago, she¡¯s indeed strong. Although her personality is truly terrible, there¡¯s a reason she¡¯s participating in the Kisenshou matches. I mean, she¡¯s even the disciple of the current Kisenshou titleholder.

    ¡°Tch¡­¡­! ¡°

    I tried my best to shot another ¡¶Gold Archery¡·while our distance was still short, but since she was still wary of the Demonyer tactic I mentioned earlier, this time she wouldn¡¯t let me approach even a single step.

    That¡¯s just like Second-dono said. This surprise attack strategy might only work the first time the opponent sees it.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    A moment of hesitation.

    Should I do it, or not?

    ¡­¡­Haa. What am I hesitating for? I can¡¯t, even if only against Dee, let myself be defeated. In any case, I want to win. If so, then I should do it. Isn¡¯t that right?

    Surprise tactic number two¨D¨D¡°Lance Rocket¡±.

    ¡°Ah-ha! So, you¡¯re going to run with your tail between your legs? ¡°

    Ignoring the taunting words of Dee, I sprinted, bringing myself to the maximum distance from her.

    Reaching this point, even if Dee were to shot something like ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·, I could easily see it and avoid it by simply walking aside.

    ¡°Take this! Lance Rocket! ¡°

    I learned from Second-dono that it¡¯s good manners to say the name of the tactic in the case of surprise attacks. Therefore, I obediently did so.

    However, I wonder what¡¯s with this naming sense? I don¡¯t know what a rocket is, but I can tell it¡¯s a kind of a strange word. I bet even I can think of a better sounding name. Like Dark Lance Spark, not too bad if I say so myself.

    Well, leaving his terrible name aside¡­¡­its power sure is tremendous.

    ¡°¡­¡­? What is that? Dragon Horse¡­¡­!? ¡°

    With a mix between confusion and vignce, Dee rxed her arms that had already prepared a ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· shot. Nice, it seems the Demonyer a while back had a great effect.

    While still being a distance away from Dee, I prepared ¡¶Dragon Horse Archery¡·¡­¡­and aiming it below me, I fired a zero-distance shot.

    Bagooooon! The impact shook the ground and the roar echoed all across the arena.

    Dust arose as if smoke. And, before me is¨D¨D a hole that where I canpletely hide if I crouch down.

    Without a moment¡¯s dy, I jumped into the hole and got ¡¶Lance Archery¡· ready to be used.

    ¡­¡­The next moment. A flow of consecutive shots.

    From inside the whole and towards Dee Mix, who was standing at ground level.

    In other words. ???????Ignoring the ground between us and shoot¡­¡­!

    ¡°You, just what in the world are you tryin¨D¨D¡±

    The first arrow from ¡¶Lance Archery¡· pierced through the soil, and more came after that ??pleting a path that reached towards Dee.

    But that¡¯s crazy! That is what you would think, right? I thought so too. That¡¯s why this is considered a surprise attack strategy. So long as you know it, there are many ways to counter it. Or in other words, it¡¯s a tactic full of downsides. However, a person who doesn¡¯t know about it wouldn¡¯t understand it and would make light of it. You get confused. And get splendidly caught in it. The same happened to me. And now to her. That¡¯s all there is to it.

    ¡°No way!? ¡°

    A piercing arrow suddenly appeared from the ground,ing diagonally from below at Dee. It was aplete surprise. Only those who knew in advance that an arrow woulde from there wouldn¡¯t hesitate or be caught off guard.

    ¡°Ugh, egh.¡±

    This is Lance Rocket; two arrows were stuck to her. That¡¯s more than enough. I was lucky.

    So, I jumped out of the hole and shot ¡¶Soldier Archery¡· in rapid session.

    And because of the arrows piercing her abdomen and hips, she couldn¡¯t move like usual to dodge them.

    Shoot. Shoot. Shoot.

    Over and over again I kept shooting ¡¶Soldier Archery¡·.

    ***

    ¡°¨D¨DWe have a winner! Victor, Silvia Virginia! ¡°

    And thus, I¡¯ve won.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    I¡¯ve, won?

    ¡­¡­There¡¯s no way, right?

    It was then that my ears began to notice the sound of the surroundings.

    A thunderous cheer. And all those cheers, all those apuses, they were directed at me.

    ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­I-I¡¯ve won.¡±

    I won. I¡¯ve won. I WON¡­¡­!

    I HAVE WON! I WON, SECOND-DONO!

    £ª¡¡£ª¡¡£ª

    ¡°For being Ernte¡¯s pupils, you guys were quite pitiful.¡±

    ¡°Why? Why did this happen!? Shouldn¡¯t you be blind¡­¡­!? ¡°

    ¡°There are some things you can see only because you are blind.¡±

    ¡°Da¡­¡­mn! ¡°

    Kisenshou event, challenger¡¯s semi-final match.

    Alfredo vs Jay Mix.

    Not even five minutes had passed since the start of the match, but the result was already clear.

    ¡°You should stop studying under that man. It¡¯s not making you sisters any good.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need your advice! ¡°

    ¡°¡­¡­Not in the mood of talking, huh? Then let me show you.¡±

    ¡°Kyaaaa! ¡°

    An overwhelming victory.

    It¡¯s no exaggeration to say this was a one-sided victory.

    When the referee dered Alfredo¡¯s victory, the audience¡¯s excitement erupted.

    But even so, the winner¡¯s expression remained calm andposed.

    And under the guidance of his attendant, Alfredo left the arena.

    Afterward and while watching him, the woman who will be his next opponent and the man who is her master talked.

    ¡°Jay was researched. Everything she did was shut down by Alfredo-dono.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. But I¡¯m sure you were not. After all, you¡¯re a new face.¡±

    ¡°Umu. And I¡¯ve got the surprise attacks.¡±

    ¡°With his calm aposed expression that almost says ¡®I can¡¯t let myself lose¡¯¡­¡­It almost makes me feel a bit sorry for him.¡±

    ¡°He spoke a lot with Jay, right? It seems things run deeper than it looks. I want to ask about that before the next match starts.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? By the way, you only have one more, will you be alright? ¡°

    ¡°I¡¯ll try my best. But to be honest I¡¯m just happy to have one win on my first tournament.¡±

    ¡°Well, I think you¡¯re doing great for only having trained three weeks.¡±

    ¡°Hoo, that is rare. Did you hear that, Eko? Second-dono honestly praised me.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t tease me. It was a good surprise attack. Congrattions on your victory, Silvia.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­Umu! ¡°

    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and

    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!