<427 - Not a Big Deal>
After seeing off the senior, Ishtar, covered in dirt, stood up from the open ground, bleeding.
“Are you okay? Do you want to borrow a handkerchief?”
I pulled out the handkerchief that Jonnas had given me, saying it was a symbol of refinement, and handed it to her. Her dull eyes, like a spirit crushed, glared at the handkerchief in my hand.
Tap!
Like a pet dog barking blindly, the handkerchief flew from her aggressive hand into the air.
I applied the spider’s pull technique to catch it again, and Ishtar’s eyes trembled as if she realized something.
“Why hit the handkerchief you could have just asked for! If you don’t want it, just say so.”
“It was you? The one who summoned that monster.”
“Huh? Uh… I don’t know…”
“You were trying to test us, weren’t you? You had us all fooled.”
“I didn’t mean to!”
“Then what about that senior? Why is such a strong senior following you?”
“That’s because they’re tsundere!”
“Are you kidding me…? Haha. You really know how to make someone miserable.”
Tears welled up in Ishtar’s eyes.
“Are you okay? Do you really not want the handkerchief?”
“I don’t need it.”
“If you change your mind, I can introduce you to some strong comrades who could join the Warrior Party!”
Ignoring me completely, Ishtar limped away without looking back. Watching Yufi and Skola, who were so exhausted they could hardly keep up, I noticed a third-year senior approaching and grumbling.
“Those ungrateful brats. We helped them, and now they’re causing a fuss? They made the mess themselves.”
“Don’t say that! You don’t have to bully Ishtar, who’s already pitiful enough.”
“You really are too nice. Why give anyone a chance when they’re acting so arrogantly?”
“I can’t help it. In the future, Ishtar will need to catch both the Emperor and the Demon King and work hard with an eraser for mine fields!”
“Why would a warrior who gets support from the Emperor need to erase them?”
“That’s just how it is!”
“Ah… you’re from the Foundation, huh. I’m scared to ask anything else now. Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that.”
As the third-year seniors wrapped up their business, they scampered off.
“Don’t forget! I won the bet, so you’ll watch over our Goo training from now on!”
The speed at which the seniors fled tripled.
Chit.
Do they think that just because they run away, they won’t be caught later?
They’ll be huddled together in the Plant Club anyway.
Gugugugung…
I snapped to attention at the sound of distant thunderous clouds.
“Oh no.”
I sensed the Student Council approaching by flight magic in the distance. They were probably coming to investigate after feeling the power used by the Senior Grim Reaper. Getting caught wouldn’t benefit me at all.
Using the stealth function of [Hide] to escape as if from a crime scene, I hurriedly took off.
—
“That’s what happened!”
When I shared what kind of adventure I had with the third-years, Senior Alice showed her discontent by tilting her Dark Aptitude Evaluation Hat.
“You enjoy danger too much. You won’t live long that way.”
“But I couldn’t just let the seniors who bullied our Goo get away with it. I need to teach them a lesson, or our Goo won’t respect me!”
“Goo…”
Look at our Goo clapping weakly, barely lifting its roots. How much had they tormented it to leave it so drained? I have to go bother them at the club next week.
“So… what about the other matter?”
“Senior Charlotte? She’s still alive!”
“…Still?”
“I heard she can’t give up on the Unsanctioned Individuals. So I said I understood!”
“Your explanation is so vague that it’s not clearly communicating what happened. Please tell me the entire story accurately and objectively.”
Senior Alice can be so picky. But since it’s a wish of someone who’s been stuck to the wall for years, I couldn’t help it. I recounted my encounter with Senior Charlotte.
—
Unsanctioned Individuals each find their own way to cope with Mana Disasters. Some attempt breakthroughs by collecting lost items in bulk, while others aim to obtain a powerful lost item hidden at the epicenter of a Mana Disaster ahead of the Unsanctioned Individuals.
Instead of relying on the alien artifact known as lost items, there are seniors who adapt directly to the Mana Disaster itself, engaging in attribute affinity work.
“Senior Charlotte likes straightforward methods!”
“…Who are you?”
As the sharp light was drawn, the three swords broke through the pre-set barrier, trying to reach my neck, but were blocked by overlapping shields.
“My name is Oknodie. I’m, like, 10? 11 years old this year? I’m not really sure about my age.”
“What is a child like you doing in the Student Dormitory Zone? How did you find out my name?”
“Actually, I came to ask you something I’m curious about. Can you tell me who the director who gives orders to you is? That’s all I need to know!”
Even covered in ash, the stunningly beautiful swordsman Charlotte spun her rapier. The strike, charged with rotational momentum, pierced through both shields without any leniency demonstrated toward a child.
Nevertheless, the sword failed to pierce the triple-layered rotating shield that I unfurled at the same time.
“You’re quite bold to ask about the identity of the Foundation’s director right in the middle of a Mana Disaster where even the instructors can’t see you. Do you have more than one life?”
“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not an enemy! I’m also an Agassi of the Foundation.”
“Proof.”
“This is my butler’s whistle. If you’re an Agassi of the Foundation, then you must have a butler summoning item too, right?”
For the first time, Charlotte gazed sadly at the whistle without wielding her rapier. Her hand went into her thick robe and pulled out an old whistle tied with a golden thread.
It was similar to mine but looked far older and worn by time.
“Yours looks clean. An Agassi would keep such a whistle dear.”
“I’ve only had it for less than a year!”
“…You’re Jonnas Wahyhiemhai’s Agassi.”
“Wow. How did you know?”
“The only butler permitted no time to nurture an Agassi, while raising the Foundation’s weapon is a man who pays for his own sins with the Agassi’s life. Your butler is that kind of person.”
“Hmph. Sounds like you don’t get along with Papa.”
“Papa…?”
“It’s nothing! But now that my identity as an Agassi has been proven, could you tell me about the director? Information requires a give-and-take!”
Although the slender figure peeking through the robe and her distinctly beautiful features held a gender-neutral charm that could appeal to anyone, she wasn’t a good trading partner.
“You’re Alice’s sister, right?”
“Eh?! How did you know about Alice?”
“Because you were the unfortunate Agassi selected by Jonnas from the same 978th generation.”
“Don’t speak of Jonnas like a misfortune totem!”
“That man isn’t bad. But for an Agassi forced to have their training period shortened, being chosen by him is the worst luck there can be.”
She digs into painful topics casually. Hitting one’s own sore spot.
“Jonnas Wahyhiemhai. If he’s the unfortunate butler, then he must know who my precious person’s enemy is.”
“I’m looking for a director, not a butler!”
“My precious person and your enemy are the same. They would be the most successful butler among this generation to produce the most capable Agassi.”
“Aha. Then I’ll be going now!”
“You won’t leave just like that.”
As Charlotte’s rapier extended into thin air, the blade suddenly pierced near my head, disregarding space.
“Why do you think I humbly shared information with you? It doesn’t matter if I tell you. You can’t go back. That information is the price for my toll to the Netherworld.”
━━━
[Sudden Event: Encounter with Charlotte!]
The Foundation’s Agassi Charlotte knows the identity of the enemy Alice wanted to find out about, which is none other than Charlotte’s butler! However, to convey this information to Jonnas and uncover the identity of Charlotte’s butler, you’ll have to survive Charlotte’s attempts on your life. Strength, wisdom, and eloquence. Anything will suffice. This crisis is quite serious for someone who jumped into the Student Dormitory Zone too quickly, just like a flower that bloomed too early and then wilted! Please escape safely to peel the cellophane stuck to Titosso’s light stand. A light stand that only emits one color is too uncomfortable!
━━━
Hmph. It seems the one writing the event dialogue cares more for Titosso than for me.
I’m worried about Titosso instead!
[Charlotte’s Rapier Technique]
[Destruction Technique - One-point Refinement]
The senior’s skills were sharp enough to significantly alter the seriousness of the event dialogue. If I had to compare it, it would be like the advanced version of a warrior.
Unlike [Holy Mirror], where I could predict where and when the attacks would be sent, Senior Charlotte’s sword tip could stab at any time and spring from anywhere.
The sword swung toward me from in front and unexpectedly came from behind; a horizontal swing threatened my sides, flickering indications of strikes above and below my feet.
Feigning timing, it would act as if it would reach a distance of 5 meters first, then close that gap with two steps, while striking from behind the sequence of one-point refinement.
‘Incredibly technical speed attacks!’
Being able to perform such diverse variations using just one-point refinement clearly showed the combat philosophy that fundamental skills encompass everything.
Among the third-years, I had to wonder how many could catch this sword—certainly not an exaggeration to say that she could stand as a fourth-year student based on her combat prowess!
However, humans have the concept of human nature.
Clang!
No matter how quickly she strikes or how cleverly she deceives, whether she engages with her true strength or not, I managed to comprehend and deflect all of her attacks without getting fooled at all.
“Too bad, senior! That combat style is something I’ve long since grown accustomed to.”
A build known as [All-In-One Punch Character] that annihilates all patterns and kills in one strike isn’t something that appeared on the first trial of the game.
In fact, it was a technique I enjoyed most before reaching this build—the dazzling swordsmanship of the playable character, Warrior [Ishtar].
At one time, that swordsmanship was what I had enjoyed the most.
“…Is that so. For the sake of revenge against Alice, Jonnas Wahyhiemhai must have taught you all my techniques.”
Charlotte’s eyes were filled with some solid misunderstanding, and she relaxed her stance.
“But the power he knows is limited to the strength I had before entering the Student Dormitory Zone.”
Instead, she raised her sword even higher, assuming an upper stance while pointing at my head.
It was strange that this peculiar pose, despite being a thrust and not a swing or a cut, signaled enormous pressure compared to her previous stance.
‘Oh wow. This isn’t going to be an event I can brute force through!’
As soon as I sensed the mounting pressure, I realized this required a trick.
Thus, I tried one.
“Senior Charlotte, you’re strong and beautiful!”
“Is that so? That’s too bad. Beautiful flowers inevitably grow thorns. Your flattery won’t halt this blade.”
“That’s why I think you could join the Warrior Party as a comrade!”
“…Huh?”
“You might have aims to obtain the Unsanctioned Individual’s proof at the Student Dormitory Zone, but having the status of a party member in the Warrior Party would surely be a huge advantage, right? I could introduce you to Ishtar!”
Finally, the sharp rapier, as sleek as the royal roses, lowered its tip to the ground.
—
“Not a big deal, but that’s what happened!”
“That’s a huge deal! The comrade you wanted to introduce to Ishtar is Charlotte!”
Alice fiddled with the brim of my hat while crumpling my head.
“Ouch, that hurts!”
“You can handle a little pain.”
