Chapter 11: Winning The Game


TL: Scaramochi


***


"Duhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, how many times have I told you! I told you not to come in from the side while I'm attacking! At least call out to me!"


"Shut up! It's your own fault for being so lazy! If you're so frustrated, don't take so long to deal with these assholes!"


"I can't help it! This is my ability!"


"What are you trying to do? Then get stronger!"


"I don't need you to tell me what to do! Frey, be more cooperative!"


"Aaaaah! You're not going to do it, are you?!"


The beautiful maidens clasped their hands, bumped their foreheads, and bared their teeth as they bickered with each other.


They are so good with each other today.


The harder you guys work, the easier it is for us.


"Dale, wake me up when you're done."


"Yes, I will."


As soon as the fight started, Mirialia let out a sigh and lay down on the ground.


She was asleep within three seconds. Sometimes I envy this person's ability to fall asleep.


I want to sleep, too, but I can't do it without alerting anyone.


It's a problem.


"I mean, Athena, you're really that good, huh? I thought you were just out of shape. Well, you're better than the first time."


"I've explained this many times, but I was strong before because I had the enchant magic of Est. Without the enchanting, I'm just this good. It's frustrating."


As she herself says, Athena's strength, which is called the 'Golden Flower', was due to Est's enchant magic. Without it, she is now much inferior to that time.


However, Athena has already become accustomed to being without the magic that is enchanted to her. In addition to that, she is getting stronger at an extraordinary speed, probably due to her desperate struggle to keep up with the superior Frey.


She was even able to beat middle level monsters in the intermediate level by herself.


She still hasn't reached the state of being echanted, but she will catch up with it in the not-too-distant future.


There is another problem.


When Athena catches up with Frey's ability, Frey will surely become a burden to the party.


Someone like Frey is the type that once she falls behind, it's a long time coming.


When Athena is growing straight and is in the swing of things, I don't want her to stand on her own feet.


So, while we're at it, let's give her a setback.


It's soooo clumsy, though.


"Hey, Frey, why don't you get along with others?"


I asked from the outside, and Frey, with guns blazing, replied.


"Shut up! Don't tell me what to do! If you're not going to do it, just stay out of it!"


"Whose fault is it that you're unmotivated, single cell?"


"......?"


When I tell her in a more serious tone than usual, Frey calms her anger and looks at me.


Finally, she's ready to talk.


"I'm not saying individual play is bad. It's your role as an ace attacker to lead the party. But what you're doing is not individual play, you're simply getting in the way."


"You think I'm getting in the way......?"


"Yes, you're in my way."


"What's wrong with me?"


"When a monster shows up, don't just run in there wagging your tail like a dog. You're a nuisance. It's not always the case that the monster is in front of you. What if you get caught in the middle from behind or to the side? If the forces are dispersed, the risk increases that much more."


There's more.


"Don't rush into a fight with multiple monsters. It's a nuisance. It's more efficient for Mirialia to finish them off with attack magic rather than you to do it alone. And if you're fighting multiple monsters, you're also taking damage, right? The defense is high, so it's not a serious wound, but the damage is definitely accumulating. You don't notice it while you are fighting because you are in a high state of excitement, but when the fight is over, you end up using the recovery medicine. It's a waste."


There's more.


"When Athena and I are fighting, don't just silently walk beside us. It's annoying. I'm concentrating on the enemy in front of me. I don't have any problem if you attack me by mistake, but if you attack me, I'm not happy. It's just plain annoying."


"You...... you can say whatever you want..."


Before Frey can snap back, I clap her to silence her.


With a grin and a pout, I offers Frey a match.


"Well, I've got a lot more to say, but you're just going to listen to me left and right anyway. So why don't we have an actual match?"


"A match? You think you can beat me?


"No, if you're afraid, you can run away."


"You run away if you're scared of me," he says, his ears perked up.


"I don't mind, but.... But in exchange, let's make a bet."


"That's nice, I like that kind of thing too."


"I'm not a sucker for that. Listen, old man, if I win, don't ever tell me what to do again. I don't like to be ordered around by people who are weaker than me."


"Then, if I win, you'll have to do as I say from now on."


"I don't care if you're a virgin or not, I'll give it to you."


"No,......, I didn't mean it in a pornographic way."


Well, I don't want to bother you with misunderstandings.


"The game is a time attack. The winner is the one who hunts faster against the same number and type of monsters. The combination will be me, Mirialia, Frey and Athena. Is that okay with you?"


"Sure, but it's not just me and the old man, is it?"


"This is a game that demonstrates the importance of party coordination. If you don't like it, you can leave."


"I told you, I don't care. And it's funny that you two dabblers think you can beat me. Hey Athena, give it your all. If you don't give it your all, you're not going to win."


"Of course I'll give it my all......."


Okay, the showdown is set.


For the first time in a long time, I'm on fire. Frey is really motivated by the match. I'm looking forward to seeing her howl later.


As I'm inwardly excited, Athena comes up to me and asks fearfully, "Dale, are you sure you want to do this? If you lose, Frey will be on your ass for a long time to come. She's not a joking kind of person."


"Don't worry. Athena, Frey also said, don't cut corners and really give it your all. Don't be shy."


Athena nodded with a serious expression on her face as she looked straight into the sky blue eyes.


"Okay,...... I'll do my best to defeat you."


"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it."



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