Chapter 123 - The Eastern Ten Seats
Drawn in by the familiar light of teleportation, I surrendered myself to the momentary, well-accustomed feeling of weightlessness.
The roar and heat of the venue receded in an instant, and after the equally familiar sensation of my surroundings shifting completely—I opened my eyes to find myself in an unfamiliar place.
The first thing I noticed was a large round table surrounded by ten chairs. They dominated the spacious room, their designs ostentatiously luxurious and unified in a black-and-white color scheme.
Judging by the atmosphere, I was probably somewhere inside the castle—the underground castle, Ruvalest. The style of the decorations and furniture was similar.
"—You okay, kid?"
Next to me, as I slowly surveyed the area, Goldow, who had teleported with me, looked down at me with his hands on his hips.
…Man, he really is huge, now that I think about it. He looks like he's over two meters tall.
"Ah, uh… sorry, you really saved m—"
"Whoa, stop right there."
My thoughts were still running sluggishly, but as I tried to thank him, he held up a hand as large as my head, cutting me off.
"We Titled Rankers, we treat each other as equals, regardless of rank. No need for formalities. Just talk casually."
Seriously…? I feel a bit hesitant to drop the honorifics with someone who so clearly gives off an older-guy vibe—but man, he's staring. Looks like I have no choice but to fold…?
"Uh… thanks for the help. …Is this good?"
"Perfect, perfect. I'm not one to dislike a guy who gets it."
Yielding to the pressure, I adjusted my tone, and he slapped my shoulder cheerfully.
"Call me whatever you want, too. Goldow, Ossan, Gossan, whatever."
"…Then I'll go with Gossan."
"Kakka! Fine by me. You're the second person after Hinayo to pick a nickname without hesitation."
I figured being direct was what he preferred, and judging by his joyful laughter, I was right—okay, I'll treat him with the same familiarity as an uncle.
Not that I have any uncles I'm close with.
"Well then—welcome, new Ninth. To the 'Round Table' of our Istia Ten Seats."
"The Round Table, huh… Pretty on the nose."
"Well, I mean… what else would you call it?"
From the way Goldow stroked his beard, it seemed this room wasn't set up by the players but had been here from the start.
"I see… So, why was I brought here?"
Honestly, I'm feeling pretty rough, so can I at least sit down? Or more importantly—
"And sorry, but I'm a little worried about my partner, so I'd like to go see her."
The look on Sora's face right before teleporting was stuck in my head.
I didn't sense anything too serious, but I just couldn't shake the reason she'd be making a face like that at that particular moment…
So I asked if I could go meet up with her, to which Goldow laughed and said, "Don't you worry."
"Your partner's waiting with Lotta right now. We'll let you see her as soon as the introductions are over, so rest easy."
"Hah…—Introductions?"
I appreciate the thought, but… hey, what's with that evil grin? I'm starting to get it now, you're quite the prankster—
"—KABOOM!!"
"—kaboom."
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
"Whoa, hey!!?"
It happened the very next moment, just as I sensed something ominous from Gossan's expression.
Suddenly, a high-tension and a low-tension voice echoed out.
And a storm of explosions filled the entire Round Table room.
Engulfed in the raging flames along with Gossan, I let out a bewildered cry and nearly fell on my butt—only to realize the flames, though I was touching them, gave off no heat.
"—………………An… an illusion…?"
I muttered, stunned, at the true nature of the fire that burned nothing, merely assaulting my sense of sight.
Perhaps pleased with my reaction, Gossan laughed heartily beside me. When I looked around again—two new figures had appeared in the room.
One on the left of the round table, one on the right. They were both small, rather young-looking girls, even smaller than Sora.
Both wore matching uniform-like shirts and skirts, topped with mage-like robes in a style that strangely suited them.
The left was red, the right was blue.
While the design of their outfits was identical, the color schemes were different, and even their socks, of different lengths, were worn in a mirror image of each other.
Their hair was a matching light beige, but the red one had a medium cut while the blue one's was long; there were differences here and there—but though their expressions were different, their two cute, well-featured faces were the same.
"Heya heya, nice to meet ya, Mister Acrobat!"
The red one on the left shouted, her high-tension voice ringing out.
"A pleasure to meet you, Mister Ninth."
The blue one on the right murmured, her low-tension voice a whisper.
"Istia's Fourth Seat! [Left Wing] Mi-na!"
The red one struck a dramatic pose with great enthusiasm.
"Istia's Fifth Seat, [Right Wing] Ri-na."
The blue one simply stood there.
—And as the illusionary flames vanished, the red one trotted over to the blue one, who was standing stock-still, took her hand, and forced her into a pose.
Hey, she clearly doesn't like that, you should stop.
"Istia's Fifth Seat! [Right Wing] Ri-na!"
She's even making her repeat the line? Their voices are identical.
"—Together we're the Eastern Wings! You called, and here we are!!"
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
"………………"
Engulfed once more by the explosion, I offered no reaction this time.
I averted my gaze from the red one, whose eyes were sparkling with a triumphant look, and the blue one, who was narrowing her eyes in extreme annoyance—
"Can I go home now?"
This whole spectacle, including my reaction, seemed to have delighted the golden old man. As the man with the shallow sense of humor bent over laughing—ah, yeah. I knew it.
Once I was prepared for it, it was easy to sense the signs of teleportation… hmm? Wait, this is clos—
"—Well, hello there. A pleasure to meet you."
"Hyuh…!?"
Directly behind me—practically zero distance, she was so close.
At the same time a seductive voice whispered in my ear, a slender arm wrapped in a long, white lace glove slithered around my neck.
"Wh-what the—?!"
"Ufufu… You have a cuter reaction than I expected, Mister Acrobat?"
As if enjoying my flustered state, the woman's voice caressed my neck—hey, what are you doing?! Please stop caressing my chest with those weird hands!!
Just as I was about to use [Ignition] for a high-speed escape, the slender arm released me as easily as it had come, leaving behind a small smile.
I took two or three wary steps back before turning around—and there stood a beautiful woman clad in a gardenia-colored formal dress.
Her lustrous black hair was gathered in a chignon, save for a single lock that fell across her cheek. Her calm hazel eyes held the allure of a mature woman.
She was a bit tall for a woman, her eyes slightly above mine. She had a stunning, curvaceous figure, and the somewhat revealing design of her dress made it a little hard to know where to look.
—But what stood out most of all were the holsters at her waist.
It had come full circle; the very fact that they didn't match the glamorous dress made them a perfect fit. Nestled within the rugged leather were two large, crimson pistols, one on each side.
"Sorry for surprising you. —I am the Sixth Seat, [Scorching Gaze] Hinayo. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The woman—Hinayo—pinched the hem of her skirt and performed a perfectly executed curtsy, smiling and giving me a wink.
"—I don't think my introduction is necessary, but…"
"That… surprised me."
From my side, just as I was momentarily captivated by her elegant gesture—a voice I had heard plenty of just moments ago spoke up.
I whipped my head around, and sure enough, there he was: the young man in the formal samurai attire with whom I had just fought a fierce battle.
He stood leaning against the back of a tall chair, a refreshing smile on his face that was a world away from his viciousness on the stage.
"Let me introduce myself again—Seventh Seat, [Sword Protector] Irori. I welcome you, from the bottom of my heart."
With a brisk greeting, he offered his right hand.
To be honest, I had a few things I wanted to say to this guy…
"…………"
But when he acts so coolly and refreshingly, it just makes me look like the one picking a fight, so I couldn't say anything.
I returned his handshake with what I'm sure was a complicated expression—and he, probably understanding what was on my mind, gave a wry smile before letting go of my hand.
And then the next person teleported in.
"—So you're the [Acrobat]."
The man who appeared before me got straight to the point.
"I'm Haru. N-nice to meet you."
Remembering Gossan's words about rankers being equals, I adjusted my speech… and met the direct gaze of his gunmetal-gray eyes, offering my right hand in return.
…………………………Ten seconds passed. Just as I was about to look away, unable to bear the man's silent, intense stare.
"—Eighth Seat, [Twin Fists] Genkotsu. Nice to meet you, Haru."
The man—Genkotsu—nodded, grabbed my hand with a grunt, and shook it vigorously… yeah, he doesn't seem like a bad person.
Unlike the quirky bunch so far, his avatar was quite simple.
Short-cropped white hair, a stocky, medium build. Aside from the black lines on the collar and cuffs, his attire was identical to a real-life karate gi, with no weapons in sight.
His overall vibe was that of a "strict person"—
"Let's have a match sometime, if we get the chance. I'm looking forward to it."
—but seeing the way he smiled awkwardly, yeah.
He's definitely not a bad guy.
"—Well then, I guess it's my turn."
"Huh…?"
A slightly high-pitched boy's voice reached my ears.
Honestly, this was the biggest surprise so far. What surprised me was—the fact that he had been in my field of vision the whole time, and I hadn't noticed him until now.
His hair, almost the same gray-black color I had recently changed mine to at Nia's suggestion, was tied in a single ponytail that reached his back, which suited his androgynously handsome features well.
His eyes were the same color as his hair, with a slightly cat-like shape. I don't know if it's right to describe a boy this way, but he gave off a generally cat-like impression.
His attire was also all black. It was similar to my black top and bottoms… wait, actually, we look pretty similar all around???
Though the designs were completely different, the shape of his clothes was very close to my [El-Gran Series] set.
A short jacket with a large hood, and slightly loose-fitting pants. Hmm, not exactly matching, but… I feel a slight kinship.
Like Genkotsu, he had no visible weapons. Was he not using any, or just had them put away for now?
"I'm a bit shy, so no appeal time for me. The Ninth… no, wait—the Tenth Seat, [Undying] Tetra. Nice to meet you, senior."
Wait, why senior?
"Aren't you the senior here…?"
"I'm definitely younger than you. I don't want to act all high and mighty with someone older than me."
Besides, it's easier to say, the boy—Tetra—added casually, propping his chin on his hand from his seat, which he had apparently been in for some time.
"Hah…"
Well… I guess it's not the time to be nitpicking every little thing. I'll let it slide…
In any case, with this, all of Istia's Titled Rankers, excluding the two who had retired or were in seclusion, were gathered.
It was… quite a sight.
Every last one of them had an incredible aura… Though they were all different, their confident demeanors made me keenly aware of the difference between us.
And then there's me, the representative of the common folk, a massive glitch in the system, trying to blend in.
Um, can I please go home now?
No? I see…