Each attack was incredibly powerful, yes, but between my Fourth Field and Haruka’s ability to slice through energy attacks, it was nothing we couldn’t overcome.
“Though, your final gambit with the Regalia felt like you were taking the fight pretty seriously.”
“Hah-hah. Sorry about that! I was just so impressed with your incredible skills that I got a bit too excited.”
The ashen-haired hero shot me a cheerful smile. At first glance, he seemed like an easygoing guy who didn’t think too hard about things. But in reality, even his expressions were calculated.
It was a fact that he’d turned up the heat toward the end of our epic virtual battle. But I knew the truth—James Szilard owned Regalia that could have easily turned the match in his favor. And I’m not talking just one or two, either—he owned a multitude of them.
So while it might have seemed like he was caught up in the thrill of the fight and went all out, it was just a calculated ploy to see how far he could push us—a perfect blend of coolheadedness and hot, fiery passion, of reason and emotion.
This guy really is something else.
The whole reason for hitting us with all those thermal skills was to see with his own eyes whether we could withstand the threat posed by Keraunos. He had even gone so far as to casually ask for a detailed explanation of Azure Skies’s abilities while we sipped our tea before the battle. He hadn’t overlooked a single thing.
But what if we had failed the test?
In that case, all he’d have to do was play off the whole bet as a joke. Most losers would leap at the opportunity to have their debts wiped clean on the spot.
“That beast is strong. Anyone unable to hold their own against me wouldn’t have a chance fighting that thing.”
Unfortunately, Szilard knew what he was talking about. Keraunos was too much for even one of Sakurabana’s top clans to control. Szilard as he was now might be able to defeat Keraunos, but he would never be able to cleanse it.
I knew he would never admit it, but Szilard was past his prime. According to his backstory in the game, he’d been severely weakened during a past incident. The long-term damage was so bad that it affected even the events of the main plot—something that wouldn’t take place for two more years. So while he was certainly strong enough to overwhelm us, he was by no means capable of saving Jupiter on his own. It had become clear that the thread of fate connecting Szilard to Jupiter’s sad end was less a matter of wrongdoing and more a case of bad luck.
“What about asking one of the other Five Major Cla—”
“If that were feasible, we would have done so a long time ago.”
“I…suppose that makes sense.”
Each of the Five Major Clans had their own way of doing things. Rosso and Blu, for example, operated as a mutual aid organization for foreign nationals. Another offered a place for members of different species to gather.
But having five clans in relatively equal standing—each with their own set of beliefs and priorities—meant an invisible power struggle between them was inevitable.
Territorial skirmishes. Backdoor dealings. Trickery.
It was a five-way balancing act held together only by the sparks of hostility. No one was going to cooperate free of charge.
What Szilard and his clan had needed was a party strong enough to handle Keraunos—something not even Rosso and Blu could manage—and with no affiliation to any of the Five Major Clans. They might as well have been chasing a golden goose.
“It’s a genuine miracle that I met the two of you when I did,” said Szilard.
A miracle, huh? I guess that’s one way of looking at it.
Our party didn’t exist in the original plot, after all. And in the version of this world where that “miracle” didn’t occur, Jupiter, she… Well, I’d rather not even think about it. The whole reason the two of us are here talking is to prevent that future from coming to pass.
“Your impervious defense and Haruka’s ability to cut through energy attacks are just what we needed. Your very presence has relit the flame of hope in my nearly broken heart.”
Even though we had no affiliation with any of the Five Major Clans, it would be a huge scandal if it ever got out that Rosso and Blu had entrusted Jupiter to us. Yet he had done it anyway. I couldn’t even begin to imagine the pressure he felt.
And if a leader of one of the Five Major Clans had put his faith in me, I couldn’t exactly pick the RUN command and flee.
“I’m not sure if we can live up to your expectations,” I said. “But we’ll do everything we can.”
“Have you come up with a winning strategy?”
“I have a plan. Whether we win will hinge on how well we can execute it.”
The ashen-haired man gazed at me in amazement. “I’d love to hear more about it.”
“Of course. First, to prepare…”
His look of surprise gradually turned into a delighted smile. And finally came his patented belly laugh.
“I’m impressed you’ve come up with such an ingenious plan in such a short time. Very interesting! A fascinating gambit indeed!”
“Things are going to be a bit touch-and-go, and Haruka and I will have to do a lot of the heavy lifting.”
If we were fighting that electric bastard, we couldn’t rely on Jupiter’s power at all. That wasn’t necessarily a problem, mind you. We had already factored that into our plan of attack. But it meant both of us had to take on more than our usual share. If either of us sustained a serious injury, that was that—game over.
We needed to successfully cleanse Keraunos and do it without taking any damage. I wasn’t stupid. Even I knew it was crazy to expect a no-hit run when we were up against a beast twice as strong as the Dungeon Reaper. But if Haruka or I got hit by that thing’s miasmic lightning, winning the fight would be the least of our worries.
If we didn’t treat every attack as a one-hit-kill move, we would be in trouble. This was going to be all or nothing. No matter the outcome, the fight against Keraunos would be an epic match full of drama.
“In that case, why don’t you allow me to share your burden?”
For a moment, I didn’t understand what Szilard was saying.
“Um, Sir? I’m not exactly sure what you’re getting at.”
“I’m telling you I want to be a part of the fight. What do you think? Got a spot on your team for James Szilard?”