Chapter 132

Back in the game, any curious, unoccupied onlookers would erect a barrier prior to a PvP battle. It was implicitly understood that they were safe from the techniques and magic that went flying. Here, Cayna and Opus were the onlookers. She could have sworn there would be safety measures in place. Nevertheless, Cayna had no intention to dive into the fray. Opus was already on the scene, and his inaction surely meant the demon was up to something. Nothing good, no doubt. Meanwhile, the shock waves and wind pressure began to mix. Rotary Knife Shot Las Ring Saw Shining Saber put distance between himself and Cohral before casting a long-range attack that fired multiple rotating, saw-like rings of wind at once. The level of damage depended on the player, but it was not to be taken lightly. Cohral only struck down the projectiles aimed directly at him. Of course, those that missed their mark flew behind him. These were no match for the eternal and unchanging Battle Arena, but anything else would be torn to pieces. Every participant besides Opus screamed and ran from the approaching wind slices in a panic, and the makeshift chairs along the wall were instantly mangled. It was a bizarre sight, since there wasn’t a single scratch on either the wall or the floor. All the contestants who had just narrowly escaped death saw this and nearly burst into tears. They trembled and held one another in petrified fear as the very picture of hell threatened to choke them with sobs. The seats were quickly emptied, and it was every man for himself whenever a shock wave flew by. The rest were either weirdos brave enough to see the outcome or young men who scowled hatefully at the Battle Arena’s top dogs. The guards escorted His Majesty outside with utmost haste. Knowing the knight captain was partially responsible for this tragedy was unbearable. There were obvious injuries, but the fact that no one had died yet was a silver lining. “Hmph!” This was all thanks to Kuu, who glowed with a white light and sniffed imperiously over Cayna’s head. She seemed to be using a subsystem to forcefully divert the flying saws. Then, the sharp-eyed Armor of Victory spotted safety and made a break for it. Naturally, this refuge was around Opus. He cast Fence as a shield, which allowed that area alone to skirt disaster. Nonetheless, that didn’t mean their fear of the violent gale attack simply disappeared. Cohral was the type to wield his sword with composed clarity, and the Armor of Victory trusted him unconditionally. However, something like this was so unexpected it was like they didn’t even know him anymore. Once everything was over, his comrades planned to force Cohral to his knees and chew him out. However, they weren’t out of the woods just yet. The next surprise to violently bluster into the Battle Arena was not a fiery snake but rather a fiery whip. Flame Blade Strike Ruben Rose This attack used a whip that extended from one’s blade to instantly mow down a wide-range area. Whether or not it could even be called a sword technique anymore was dubious, but unfortunately for everyone except the players, it most certainly was. Cohral’s whip could cancel out Shining Saber’s assault, but the real issue was its trajectory prior to making contact. As long as one knew its flight path, Ruben Rose was relatively harmless. Even so, the end of the whip was faster than the speed of sound, and one miscalculation meant the permanent separation of one’s upper and lower half. Their back-and-forth continued in a similar fashion, and most of the participants who had planned to fight in the Arena ran away. In the end, Shining Saber reigned victorious. Cohral’s loss was merely due to an MP deficiency. “Good fight.” “Tch. You only won because of your weapon type.” “No, it’s mainly ’cause you couldn’t handle the level gap, ha-ha-ha.” “You fools should take a look around before anything else.” An irritated voice interrupted the duo’s post-battle review. When they reexamined the area, their eyes nearly popped out of their heads. The Battle Arena was littered in trash and debris. A very small number of spectators rose from the ground and were just happy to be alive. Shining Saber was the only knight left. Cohral and the rest of the Armor of Victory were uninjured, but the adventurer’s comrades looked disheveled for some reason. Opus and Siren stood there without a single scratch, but this fact was irrelevant. ““Wh-who did this?!”” “It was you numbskulls! This is what happens when players go wild!” The rest of the tournament was pretty much out the window. Even if they tried again the next day, no participant who watched Shining Saber and Cohral fly off the handle would dare challenge them. “Argh, crap. We went to town.” Shining Saber’s head drooped in disappointment; the knight seemed to have realized that he, of all people, had failed miserably and could expect due punishment for shirking his responsibilities. “Sorry.” Likewise, Cohral prostrated dogeza-style before his comrades. But although he was ready to be scorned and cursed as a traitor, they greeted him with unexpected warmth. “Why didn’t you use that power sooner?” “Exactly. If we knew you could do that, we wouldn’t need to be picky about requests.” “Join the vanguard next time! You don’t have to be a shield anymore!” “Let’s make him carry everyone’s stuff for a while as punishment.” Even their incessant complaints were heartwarming and brought Cohral a sense of relief. ““““Still, ya better get ready for the lecture of a lifetime!”””” “…Huh?” His friends grabbed his limbs and dragged him away. A world of suffering awaited him back at the inn. “So the Battle Arena didn’t even have a Fence. Kyotaro really only saw the spectators as props, huh?” As soon as Cohral and the Armor of Victory left, Cayna appeared with Mai-Mai. Kuu had entered Energy Saver Mode and slumped over Cayna’s head. “Excellent work, Uncle Opus,” said Mai-Mai, bowing. “Th-thanks.” Opus grew flustered, and Cayna savored the sight. “So what next, Shining Saber? Think the tourney can continue?” “Honestly, even I’m not sure. His Majesty will probably announce a substitute festival.” The dragoid didn’t seem to know what would happen, either. He could only shrug and shake his head at her question. Just as the atmosphere eased, everyone felt it. Siren gave Opus’s cloak a firm tug and directed his attention toward the spectator seating. “Master, I sense a malicious presence.” “Hmm?” There stood a young man who had been glaring at Opus for some time. Unsurprisingly, the demon couldn’t ignore his hateful gaze. The figure who staggered to the front row was a player. He glared at Opus with bloodshot eyes before pointing an accusatory finger. “At last! I finally found you, you bastaaard!” he shouted. “““…””” Despite the man’s fury, Opus looked immensely amused. “It’s your damn fault my life is a mess! Never thought I’d get revenge in this world, but this sure is damn convenient!! Hyah-ha-ha-ha!” Laughter like that would convince anyone the man was crazy. He’d apparently been harboring a huge grudge against Opus. “Looks like someone got on this guy’s bad side.” “Yep.” “Uncle Opus, did you do something to him?” “Now there’s a loaded question. I don’t recognize him, though.” “Man, I know just how he feels. So much it hurts. This kind of thing happened to pretty much anyone who fell for one of your war traps and paid the price,” Shining Saber said. His compelling words were spoken from experience. “You’re still clinging to the game? It would be wise to form a clear distinction between fiction and reality.” Everyone smacked their foreheads with an expression that said, “Oh great.” Far from any attempt to win the man over or explain himself, Opus decided to relentlessly antagonize him. The man’s face flushed red with fury. “You’re one to taaaaaaaaalk!” he screamed before throwing something in his hand. “Huh?” “These are—” “What the?!” “Oh my.” The objects sparkling and sailing through the air were large, round jewels that came in shades of green, creamy white, clear, crimson, pale blue, and dark red. Cayna thought they closely resembled the contents of the Guardian Tower Item Box she had perused the other day. And that’s exactly what they were. Each fell to the ground and began to glow as a large shadow oozed from within. An instant later, the shadows materialized to reveal their hulking frames. A striped snake with a single eye on top of its head. A dragon with bright red scales. A black dragon that was one size larger than the red one. A huge, three-headed dog. A six-winged tsuchinoko. A flat, blackish-brown rhino with six legs. All six gave loud, varied calls of Screeee! Graaaah! and Grrrr! The cacophony was tremendous, and Siren tended to the vulnerable Mai-Mai crouched with her ears covered. “What’re those?!” Shining Saber gawked at the three creatures unfamiliar to him. “I suppose it can’t be helped,” Opus murmured. He named each one but offered no further details. The one-eyed snake was a Roklox. The crimson beast was a Red Dragon. The dark one was a Black Dragon. The three-headed dog was a Cerberus. The tsuchinoko was a High Border. The six-footed rhino was a behemoth. Apart from the Roklox, the summonses were all larger than a house and packed the Battle Arena. Everyone had to look up toward the spectator seats to get the full picture. The young male player who had cast the Simple Summons was close by, but in this case, defeating the jewels’ owner wouldn’t cancel them out. “Th-these guys will clear away my resentment! These were super expensive when I bought ’em at auction, but you leave me no choice!” “M-me too?!” Mai-Mai asked frantically upon realizing she was also a target of his wrath. Although these were Simple Summons, a group of six with an average of level 500 was still more than Mai-Mai or Shining Saber could hope to handle. “Go! Mess ’em up good!” Shining Saber drew the Sycophant Sword while Mai-Mai scurried behind Cayna. “Heeeey! Weren’t you one of those great imperial mages?” he asked. “I don’t stand a chance against those creatures. Mother will surely protect me.” Although Cayna did intend to protect Mai-Mai, she didn’t know how to answer bold declarations like that. As Opus filled both hands with magic, she alone casually observed the situation. “Hold on. Why are you the only one chilling out?” Shining Saber asked. “Nah, I was just thinking maybe we shouldn’t do anything.” “Seriously? Someone’s feelin’ confident! You’re positive that guy Opus can take care of this?” Since the role was up for grabs, Shining Saber became the voice of reason. Time continued to pass, but the summonses made no move. Just as everyone was starting to wonder what in the world was going on, the young man who had instigated the whole ordeal could stand their apathy no longer and exploded. “Yo! You guys! Whaddaya think you’re doing?! Attack them already!” The Red Dragon yawned, and the Black Dragon started nodding off. The two-meter Roklox was coiled on top of the behemoth, and the High Border preened its feathers. “What the hell?! Why won’t these idiots do anything?!” The man yelled for them to get a move on, but the summonses completely ignored him. Just as he began to holler and lash out at them, Cayna said something most cruel. If anything, one could say only she understand the truth of the situation. “Unfortunately, those guys will never move.” “What?! How would you know?!” “Because I was the one who put them up for auction to raise money.” To be blunt, the man froze like plaster. Shining Saber looked at him with pity, and Opus gave an exaggerated sigh. After all, although anyone could use jewels to cast a Simple Summons, no creation could turn on its creator. The empty, despondent man stood in frozen shock as Shining Saber tied him up with rope and handed him over to the knights. No one was hurt, and there were almost no eyewitnesses, so he’d most likely spend the night in jail for attempted assault. Kuu released the summonses filling the Battle Arena. They turned into regular magic and vanished. A number of villagers who had watched the entire live broadcast were seemingly perplexed by the tourney that had vaguely ended up being a standard PvP battle, but at least they didn’t cringe. In place of the tournament, a makeshift festival was held for two days until the capital was peaceful once more. Moreover, after Shining Saber returned to the knights with the young man, Cayna didn’t catch him around town for quite some time.