“I see…”
“What do you say? Sally wanted this to be your decision, Maple.”
Inside the castle, Pain had caught up with Maple and explained the vital role she’d play in this plan. He’d been very clear about the risks involved, and Maple nodded along as she let it all digest.
“……I can do that!”
She looked a little nervous, but spoke emphatically.
“Excellent. Then we’ll have to hammer out the details. Naturally, I have no intention of exposing you more than absolutely necessary.”
“Good!”
“Gather Maple Tree and join us in the castle training grounds. Sally’s there already, and I intend to join her soon.”
“Gotcha!”
Maple headed off to where her guild was resting.
“Hey, everyone!”
“Oh, what’s up?”
“You’ve perked up. Or rather…you seem motivated again.”
“Pain’s putting a plan together and we’re all in it!”
A ripple went through the guild. Instinctively, everyone knew this would not be just another surprise attack, nor merely an attempt to thin the enemy numbers.
“Are the details settled?”
“Not quite yet…but we’re after Thunder Storm and Rapid Fire.”
“All four of them?”
“Ugh, we…”
“…may not be much help.”
All four of those players were a major threat to Mai and Yui, and their concerns were reasonable. But if Maple was with them, it was a very different story. It all came down to the specifics of this plan.
“Then it’s time for a planning session. Where’s Pain run off to?”
“He’s with Sally in the training area!”
“Cool, let’s join them. I ain’t about to keep losing!”
Maple Tree headed to the training ground, where they found Pain and Sally exchanging furious blows.
The sheer speed and ferocity of it did not seem at all like a warm-up, and Maple gaped at them.
“Oh, Maple’s here! Hey! Break time!” Frederica called.
Weapons were sheathed.
“Thanks.”
“Sure, but…consider me astonished. You’re aiming for even better performance?”
“I am.”
“Impressive.”
“Just don’t gun it so hard that you run outta gas!” Frederica chimed in.
“Yeah, I know.”
“Everyone’s here, right? Let’s get down to brass tacks,” Pain said, and began to explain the plan. “Our enemies want to eliminate Maple. We’ll use that against them. In other words, she’ll be bait to lure them out.”
“Maple, you okay with that?” Sally asked, double-checking.
“Yep! It’s fine!” Maple said, nodding.
“But if we bring in the entire Order, they’ll think twice.”
“So that’s where we come in?”
“Exactly. There aren’t many of you, but each one of you is powerful enough to be a potential threat. Perfect for this plan.”
Pain focused on Wilbert first.
“Maple, if Wilbert’s detection skills locate you, you’ll definitely draw the enemy out. It won’t really change things if they know you’re baiting them—which is why I want to keep our forces at a level that won’t discourage them from taking action.”
“We want them seeing it as a risk, but one worth taking. That’s a fine line to walk.”
Aside from Maple, only a few players would be on the front lines. The rest would be backup if things went wrong.
“Assuming we snare all four—the most obvious formation is Velvet and Hinata in the lead, with Lily and Wilbert providing cover fire from the rear.”
“Agreed. Their abilities and personalities both lean that way.”
“Once the fight starts, we’ll hit them hard and split them up. I and a few others will fly at Rapid Fire on Ray, isolating Thunder Storm.”
“And where will that leave them?”
“See, those two are a problem,” Frederica said. Referring to Hinata’s Isolation Domain.
If she was capable of using that again, she could drag two players into a fight they’d surely lose. Mai and Yui? Iz and Frederica? Their deaths would be inevitable.
“So we can only send in two players—two who can match them.”
“And one’s gotta be Maple, since she’s our bait. So the other choice is clear.”
“Me,” Sally said. She was strongest when at Maple’s side.
Partly down to compatibility between stats and skills—but also because they each knew how the other fought.
No one argued with this decision.
“That’s the gist of it. Now for the fine print…”
“The longer this goes, the more the other guilds will get involved. And we have to split their forces so Sally and Maple can focus on their fight.”
“Let’s do our part, Yui!”
“Mm-hmm. If anyone gets close, we do this!”
Yui mimed swinging a hammer. The best way to split forces was to eliminate them entirely.
Much of this plan would depend on the enemy’s response. It was clearly risky, but given the odds of the enemy coming after the castle again, they had to act now.
Time was running out. Everyone focused on the discussion as they tried to eliminate obvious strategic flaws ahead of time.
✦ ✦ ✦
Once the plans were set in stone, Pain got ready to leave.
“Frederica, we’ll relay this to the relevant parties. Help me out.”
“Will do! Bye, Maple, Sally! Break a leg!”
To avoid Wilbert spotting them, The Order was prepping highly mobile teams and stationing them at the rear to help in case of a retreat—or worse.
With his movement skills, this should have been Dread’s job, but Plan B involved a lot of Frederica’s buffs.
“Begin as per the schedule.”
“Yup! We’ll be good to go!”
With that, Pain and Frederica left.
The remaining Maple Tree members did what prep they could, reviewing their item stock, etc.
“Kanade, mind making sure?”
“Sure thing, Sally. I’ll double-check.”
“Kasumi, can you help with my warmups?”
“Absolutely. Those are the backbone of this plan.”
Once they were in the field, there’d be no time for inventory checks. Best to handle that sort of thing now, and rest assured later.
“Whew, now it all hangs on their response.”
“Yeah, but we know their goals and have just the thing to lure them in.”
All things considered, they’d set Operation: Maple Bait for a time not far from the date change, believing that would force their foes to a snap decision. If they missed this opportunity, she’d have Indomitable Guardian back—and the barriers they’d need to overcome would be that much higher. Their foes would likely be all too aware this was their last chance, and one they could not afford to miss.
“Maple!”
“We’ll come running if it gets dangerous!”
“Cool! Let’s try and win this thing!”
“Good luck!”
“We’ll be watching the perimeters.”
This was a plan that would change a lot depending on how their opponents responded to it, and there was only so much they could do in advance. And since there was no time to doctor the field with Iz’s items, their side had no clear advantage. This would be a fair fight, but they planned to win nonetheless.
✦ ✦ ✦
A while later…
With their departure time approaching, Sally finished her warm-ups and headed back inside.
“Maple.”
“Hey, Sally! Let’s do this thing!”
“Yeah. You clear on your part?”
“I am! But your end seems far harder…”
Maple looked mildly concerned. Sally did play a major role in this plan, one no one else could hope to handle.
But her concern just made Sally grin.
“I’m good to go,” she said, looking Maple right in the eye. “Trust me. Your life is in my hands.”
“Okay, I believe in you! I’ll handle the rest of the defense.”
“Cool. I know you will.”
Trust begets trust. When Sally was in trouble, Maple was there. When Maple was in trouble, Sally would handle it. They each did their part and left the rest to their partner. This was a strategy that relied upon that trust.
“You all ready to go, Maple?”
“Yep!”
“Then let’s move out.”
Joined by the rest of Maple Tree, they headed to the outer walls, where the Order of the Holy Sword members were waiting.
“You’re here?”
“You look ready. Let’s head out!”
If they lingered to chat and the date changed, it would blow the whole operation. Not wanting to waste any more time, they set out for the enemy lines.