From that point on, Yuriina used brute force to accomplish all her desires. She crushed everyone who tried to stand in her way, defeated the king, and took control of the kingdom.
Of course, taking over a kingdom didn’t magically grant her any sort of political acumen, so she simply ruled everything according to her whims, giving birth to the despotic Kingdom of Tanaka. Yuriina had nothing to work with. Her memories of her past life were incredibly vague, and she had no idea who Yuririka had been, so she had nothing to constrain her desires. Seeing her people cry out in poverty, suffer from starvation, or die from her casual fun sparked no emotion in her.
She had never really intended to maintain the kingdom in the first place. With no concern for the kingdom’s survival, she didn’t care much about anything. There was one love she found, though: cats. While she could kill humans without a second thought, she absolutely melted when faced with a cat.
Naturally, the kingdom began to develop in a way that prioritized cats over people. Anyone who hurt a cat was to be executed. Anyone who attempted to block a cat’s way was executed. The people could starve, but she spared no expense when it came to keeping every cat living in luxury. The gods who had given Yuriina her powers never appeared again, a sign she interpreted as satisfaction with her performance.
When the day came that her beloved pet Mii passed away, Yuriina’s atrocities finally came to an end. Losing the will to live, she holed herself up in her room. There had never been any meaning to ruling the kingdom, so she couldn’t care less about what happened to it now.
After a while, the world was reset. Hearing that announcement from the Great Sage, Yuriina was filled with rage. She had assumed her beloved pet cat had died of old age, but in truth it was the fault of a boy named Yogiri Takatou. There was no way she could forgive him. Killing Yogiri would return the world to normal. For Yuriina, there was no other course of action worth considering.
✦ ✦ ✦
Deep in the forest, Yogiri stood across from a woman who seemed determined to be his enemy.
Yogiri Takatou vs. Yuriina Tanaka: FIGHT!!!
The words appeared in the air between them. Unable to come to an agreement on terms for their contest, the default rules—a fight to the death—applied. Though the battles were party against party, only one name, presumably the party leader, was displayed for each. The ringlet-haired noblewoman was named Yuriina Tanaka, meaning she was likely Japanese as well.
“You have to know about my power, so you must have some idea of how you’re going to beat me, right?” Yogiri asked. She hadn’t attacked immediately, so he wanted to try talking to her. There was always the possibility that she had come here without really knowing what she was doing.
“Of course! Instant death? How can that harm someone like me, who can resist any form of attack?” Yuriina replied, mocking him. It seemed she didn’t think much of him. She was a bit shorter than Yogiri but still managed to appear as if she were looking down on him. “If you do not wish to fight, you can simply end your own life. That will bring my sweet Mii back to life! No... No, if I do not rip you apart myself, my anger will never be satisfied!”
“Fine, let’s fight, then.” Though he said that, Yogiri didn’t move. He knew he needed to fight her, but he had no intention of attacking her proactively.
“So, uh, what do I do here?” Tomochika asked.
Indeed...it is but a single opponent, Mokomoko mused, so Ruler of the Battlefield would certainly be usable, but without the opponent’s consent, it will not activate.
“That seems like a pretty significant drawback. If the opponent doesn’t agree, doesn’t that just mean my power is useless?”
There is nothing to be done about it. Such is the cost of being able to nullify all powers.
“She really wants to kill me, though,” Yogiri said, “so I think you can just watch.”
Even if Tomochika wasn’t going to be involved in the fight, there was no need for her to leave. It was actually safer for her to be closer to Yogiri so that he could protect her.
Yuriina vanished. A strong gust of wind blew past Yogiri, followed by the sound of something sliding across the ground. Turning to look, he saw her sprawled motionless in the dirt.
Yogiri Takatou Wins!
More words appeared in the air, declaring Yogiri the winner.
“I did it.”
“It doesn’t feel like you did much of anything, does it?!” Tomochika exclaimed.
Yuriina had likely tried to attack faster than Yogiri’s eyes could follow. He hadn’t noticed the attack, but that didn’t stop his powers from automatically activating to protect him. The moment she had moved, she had died, her momentum carrying her off behind him.
Yuriina’s body vanished.
“Huh? Are we back in that room?” Tomochika asked.
The scenery around them changed. They were no longer in the forest.
“Back in the Antechamber Area, huh?” Yogiri confirmed. It seemed like after each battle, they’d be returned to the Antechamber Area to wait for the next round to begin.