Tanya was in a spectacularly good mood. Not only was Nadine now an official party member, but Alisa had passed her entrance exams. This was cause for celebration!
“Wahahaha! New friend, new friend!”
“Tanya, wipe that sinister smirk off your face!”
“Why should I? I’m a femme fatale, out for revenge! I’m evil, I tell you! Gahahaha!”
“Shhh! Tanya! Keep your voice down!”
“Oui, oui. Nadine’s right, you know. You’re being far too loud. Drunk already, are we?”
Together they ate, drank, and made merry. Nadine wasn’t much of a drinker; instead, she ate four whole herb-roasted pheasants. But even then, she still didn’t hold a candle to Laplace, who ordered one of everything off the menu and devoured it all with relish. Meanwhile, Tanya downed her tankard of ale, savoring the taste of alcohol bought with her own hard-earned money. All in all, it was a sumptuous feast, until—
“Yikes!” a familiar voice called out.
“Huh?” Tanya turned to look.
There, standing in the doorway of the Little Vixen, was a woman she didn’t recognize... on the arm of a man she very much did.
“It’s you.” All at once, the drunken stupor cleared from her mind. “Ryan.”
Sure enough, there stood Ryan, her longtime friend and former party leader—the same man who had fired her. “Hi, Tanya,” he replied, grimacing awkwardly.
“What the...?” Tanya balled her fists and shifted her gaze. “Who the hell is this chick?!”
The woman standing beside him was fairly young... and a Mage, judging from her equipment. Tall, slim, and blonde—definitely Ryan’s type, alright. And while female adventurers’ clothes were all one kind of skimpy or another, hers were particularly tasteless.
A pair of pointy ears sat atop her head, and after a moment, Tanya realized she was a beastkin.
The woman tilted her head in a show of confusion. “Hey, Ryan? Who’s this?” she asked in a simpering voice.
“Oh, sorry Katherine. Remember that old friend of mine I was telling you about?”
“You mean that extremely butch Mage woman you got rid of?”
“Yeah, this is her.”
“Ooh, interesting,” she sneered, staring smugly at Tanya. And as for Tanya, well, she was smart enough to put two and two together.
“You fired me... and hired a different female Mage...?”
“No, no! You’ve got the wrong idea.”
Oh yeah? Which part of what I said is wrong, exactly? Enraged, her blood ran cold. “You fired me... so you could put your girlfriend in the party...?”
✦ ✦ ✦
Ryan laughed dismissively. When they were young, he’d always put on this dopey, boyish grin whenever he was trying to get out of trouble—and it worked, too. Tanya hated that stupid smile. Fuck off!
“Katherine just really wanted to join our party, that’s all. Isn’t that right, Katherine?”
“Right you are, Ryan,” Katherine drawled. Her voice was so syrupy and saccharine, she was obviously doing it on purpose... but her gaze was pointedly fixed anywhere but at them, and she was batting her lashes.
Tanya recognized this signal. Five blinks: “I want to leave.” But Ryan hadn’t noticed.
Evidently this Katherine woman was fairly adept at making use of her personal connections.
“Trust me, I have no ulterior motive for doing this. If anything, well... she’s a junior adventurer, and someone ought to be there to show her the ropes, that’s all!”
Nice try, but I can see your arm around her waist, you liar! You’re just SO pleased with yourself, aren’t—HEY! Quit smiling at each other like that, damn it!
Tanya’s face flushed with rage.
“Interesting. He’s even worse than you described,” Laplace murmured under her breath as she scooped up another spoonful of sorbet.
No kidding.
“Oh, I know!” Ryan shouted suddenly.
“...What?”
“Tanya, I could be wrong, but...”
“Spit it out, Ryan.”
“You’re jealous, aren’t you?”
“...WHAT?!” Jealous?! How on earth did this moron arrive at THAT conclusion?!
“You were secretly in love with me, weren’t you? You can admit it.”
“Wh... Fuck you!” Tanya screamed. Have you lost your mind?!
“I admit, you might be a better Mage than Katherine, but when it comes to women, talent’s got nothing on hotness. Am I right?”
“Yep! Hotness all the way,” Katherine replied at his prompting, though her gaze was directed at her hands. Apparently she was more interested in her nails.
“And no offense, Tanya, but you’ve always been kind of a bitch. This Mage thing you’re doing? It’s not cute or endearing. But Healers? Anyone can be a Healer! You just need to change classes, join a new party, and get a boyfriend. That’s the whole reason I fired you,” Ryan explained without a hint of irony.
Ugh, my chest feels like lead.
“...up.”
“I mean, you chicks only do this adventurer stuff to find husbands, right?”
“Sh...”
“And most girls tend to act quickly, y’know, while they’re still young.”
“Shut up...”
Most girls. This struck a nerve.
“Huh? What was—?”
“I SAID SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Tanya roared. She put her hand on the hilt of the Not-Excalibur affixed to her back and focused her energy on the mana circuits in her legs.
Wind Magic, engage!
She dashed forward, straight at Ryan.
“Eegh?!” Ryan yelped in terror. Then he felt the chill of a giant blade gently touch the back of his neck, and for a moment, his brain failed to process what had happened. It all happened so fast, his first thought was teleportation magic.
It took him several seconds before he even noticed someone was behind him—and even longer to realize that person was Tanya. Somehow she wielded that giant-sized sword with the grace of a natural, and now she was oozing hostile intent as she held it right against his neck.
At last, he finally understood what had happened... and his legs gave out.
As he collapsed to the floor, Katherine let out a scream. “What was that?!”
“That was me almost killing him,” Tanya replied mechanically. And with a deep breath, she lowered the Not-Excalibur.
“No fighting in the restaurant!” a waitress yelled angrily.
“Wh... You... That sword... You changed classes?!”
“Yep.”
“Why would you do that?! You already couldn’t get a date as a Mage! No guy will wanna date some burly Knight chick!”
Tanya took a deep breath, turned to Ryan, and screamed at the top of her lungs:
“I’M NOT DOING THIS SO MEN WILL LIKE ME, YOU FUCKING OCTOPUS!”
“Get ‘em, girl!” Laplace cheered in the background as she started in on her second bowl of ice cream.
“Octopus?!” Ryan yelped.
“You’re right—I take it back. Even that’s too generous for a worm like you.” Tanya looked down her nose at him, her eyes as cold as ice. “Ryan.”
“Wh-What?”
“I’m going to enter my party into the next Sparring Tournament.”
“You have a party? And you’re entering the tournament? Is that even allowed?”
“Cram it! You better be there, because I’m gonna make you wish you were never born!”
Much as she was tempted to destroy him here, that priceless moment would be better spent in the arena, where she could humiliate him and make him beg for his life in front of a giant crowd. After everything he’d said and done to belittle her efforts over the years, he deserved her revenge in full.
“Wha...?!”
Silence fell. The other patrons all stared at them.
Then Ryan clucked his tongue and got to his feet. “Fuck it, Katherine. Let’s go somewhere else. I’ve had it with this place.”
“O-Okay...”
Tanya glared after him. Once upon a time, that was her best friend. Together, they’d dreamed of going on adventures—no, don’t cry. Not here. Don’t let him win.
“...This is why you’re going to die an old maid,” Ryan spat as he walked out the door.
Even after everything that just happened, it was clear he still only saw her as a mere woman and nothing more.
“Yeah, an old maid that can kick your pathetic ass! GO FUCK YOURSELF!” she yelled after him.
Surely he saw the difference in their power levels. Her biggest advantage as a Magi-Knight came from her mana capacity and proficiency, and she was confident that her overwhelming talent as a Mage would more than make up for her lack of experience as a Knight. Surely she could beat him... Hell, she could’ve lopped his head off just now...
“I’m gonna crush you. That’s a promise,” Tanya muttered to no one. She bit her lip in frustration.
Just then, she felt someone hug her gently from behind.
“There, there. I’m proud of you for holding yourself back, Tanya.”
“Thanks, Laplace.”
“Yeah, um, I think I understand why you have to get revenge on that person. It sounds like he made your life absolutely miserable.”
“Thanks, Nadine.”
“Why don’t we drink some more? This time I’ll join you.”
“Oui, oui! I was just about to order another cup of sorbet anyway.”
“You’re STILL hungry?!”
“But of course! And you know what they say—you can’t... something... on an empty stomach!” Laplace beamed.
Party member #1: Laplace, an ancient Sorceress.
“That Mage woman just now, Katherine... She was in my class at adventuring school, and... well, I don’t know how to put this, but... I’m disappointed to see how she’s ended up.”
Party member #2: Nadine, a former Guild counter clerk.
God, I’m so happy to have you both here with me.
“Let’s make a toast! To this exciting tale of revenge that has only just begun!”
At this, Tanya smiled. She was completely sober again... Yeah, maybe I should have one more glass of wine.
She balled her hand into a fist.
As of tonight, she had declared war, and now there was no backing down.