Chapter 544 - The Battle Begins
The one and only enemy and boss to appear in the [Shadow-Infested Arena]. [Rep-La Nobody, The Black Stain that Slays All] takes the form of the challenger's “nemesis.”
For one person, it might take the form of ‘a veteran swordsman who has mastered and sees through all swords.’
For others, it might be ‘a three-headed dragon that unleashes a hundred spells simultaneously.’
And for another, it might be ‘a super-alloy combining robot that doesn’t even flinch when punched or kicked’—the forms of the “nemesis” it creates are endless and varied. It isn't bound to a humanoid shape and does whatever it wants.
And precisely because its form and size are not restricted, if the ‘shadow’ of a challenger above a certain strength remains humanoid and within a conventional size… there is something that many players say as a rule of thumb.
In short: you’re screwed.
They say that because its power is condensed into a humanoid form, the ‘density’ of its strength is on another level.
They say that because it acquires the dexterity of a humanoid, the number of tricks up its sleeve skyrockets.
They say that humanoids are generally ‘Ranked’… so at worst, you should think of it as challenging the [Sword Queen] to a one-on-one or two-on-one fight—that’s the gist of it.
Now then, as for what kind of specs my own ‘shadow,’ the one known as the ‘nine-tailed older sister,’ had—let’s talk about that.
Special Note 1: It is conditionally (?) faster than me.
First, as a premise, it has surpassed my maximum speed, even with [Rocket], on more than one occasion. You might think that’s an instant game over, but the saving grace is that its mobility is likely limited. Its base mobility is slightly below my full power. From there, whether it’s on a cooldown or just on a whim, it will sometimes pull off an incredible burst of acceleration to completely turn the tables. This is something I can deal with through experience and grit, so it’s relatively merciful.
Special Note 2: Its HP has special specs (immune to anything but a clean hit?).
Next, a pretty nasty feature is that it didn’t have the HP gauge that normal enemies possess. I’ve confirmed it in reference videos of other [Rep-La Nobody] fights, so this is likely a spec exclusive to my ‘shadow.’ At first, I was confused, wondering, “What is this, is there even a point to hitting it?” And indeed, the mountain of glancing blows I desperately managed to land while struggling seemed to have no effect at all. The only thing that made it scream—or rather, roar in anger—was my 100% self-destruct kamikaze attack with the point-blank [Ruby Rabbit Bullet].
In other words, it possesses a special durability system where nothing matters unless you hit it with something big. This is also something I don’t really care about; in fact, I’m hoping it might turn into a weakness in the real fight. I’ll choose not to think about whether we can even land a big hit, through a surprise attack or otherwise, on an opponent that will likely have my speed plus Alicia’s durability.
Special Note 3: A one-sided magic war.
Magic circles covering every surface, from the floor to the ceiling; a constant barrage of countless slow-moving, instant-death projectiles; and from the main body, a super-fast, instant-death projectile like the scythe of the Grim Reaper—that’s it.
As for that last one, no matter how many times I explain it, you probably won’t understand without seeing it for yourself. How much of my solo version will be reflected in the Haru x Alicia ‘shadow’ is unknown, but I’d be thrilled if it just disappeared entirely…
—Well, life doesn’t go as you wish, does it?
“Did you get a haircut?”
Ten hours after departing the safe area. It was around lunchtime in real time. Having finished all our adjustments, or rather, our tension control, we stepped into the arena.
The ‘shadow’ waiting for us was so unchanged that I couldn’t help but make a joke.
“…Female form, a nine-tailed fox. Exactly as your information described.”
“Yep… Alicia, your shadow was an armored knight, right?”
“Mhm.”
“Where is the armor, then?”
Seeing her tilt her head, it seemed I wasn’t the only one who was confused.
When two people challenge the arena, [Rep-La Nobody] is supposed to appear as a fusion of each challenger’s ‘shadow’—and yet, here it was, looking exactly like my version.
As long as we don’t move from our entry point or initiate combat, it won’t move on its own. I think we can indulge in a bit more free talk.
“Could it be a pattern where it’s absorbed the nature of your shadow while maintaining my appearance on the surface, acting all nonchalant?”
“That’s very [Acrobat]-like in its own way. I can’t say it’s impossible.”
“Alternatively, it might have incorporated the ‘omnipotence’ part of your shadow and simply become a super-powered version of my own.”
“That also seems likely. My ‘shadow’ was rather unoriginal compared to yours.”
“No, its ‘specs’ were its personality. I see. In that case, it makes sense that [Acrobat] × [Sword Queen] would result in a trickster monstrosity equipped with overpowered specs.”
“…………I would have liked for my part to be a bit more prominent.”
“I don’t know why you’re being so competitive about this, but let’s just be happy that my flawed side is the base—though for all we know, it might be just as it appears.”
“…You’re right—Haru.”
“Yeah?”
“When you’re really into it, you get more talkative. It’s cute.”
“Okay, free talk is over—get ready, Princess. It’s festival time.”
“Mhm… Fufu, festival time it is.”
I cut off the conversation and summoned the [Alv Stella]. Alicia nodded and took her own ‘sword’ in hand. We stood side by side, facing the ‘shadow.’ Its ears twitched, and its tails began to sway, but [Rep-La Nobody] still didn’t move.
It was waiting for a clear declaration of intent—a single, simple expression of fighting spirit that said, ‘I’m going to crush you.’ Well, I’ve brought a massive one with me. I’m about to unleash it all on you, so be ready.
About ten hours have passed since our departure. Most of that time was spent in an endless sparring session with the strongest princess, and now, my avatar is in the best physical and mental state it has ever been.
We would clash, then rest our bodies. Rest, then clash again—it took more time than expected to find the perfect line of adjustment, but it was worth it.
I stand beside the ‘strongest’ and take a single step forward.
But in truth, my high-flying self has no room for the word ‘awe’ in its dictionary.
“We’re taking it down, Alicia—[Water Enchant].”
“Mhm, with you, we can—[Lightning Enchant].”
With our respective ‘swords’ and ‘lights’ in hand, what lies ahead—
—“The red is here.”—
—is nothing but the path to complete victory.
――――――――――――――――――
◇Status◇
Title: Sword Queen
Name: Iris
Lv: 100
STR: 150
AGI: 150
DEX: 150
VIT: 300
MID: 300
LUC: 100
◇Skill◇
・Alice Diapart
《Perfect Espada》
《Glorious Gladiate》
《Eject Temperance》
《Shin-ki Issen》
《Shin-ki Shiten》
・Lightning Magic Aptitude
《Vortex Voltiate》
《Exalted Embrace》
《Lethal Proacta》
《Disastor》
《Thunderbolt》
《Lightning Enchant》
・Active
《Revolve Astraea》
《Heartless》
《Tempest》
《Fate-Linkage》
《Alvs Divina》
・Passive
《Limit Break》
《The Order》
《Kenkon Itteki》
《Renma Tensou》
《Arcana Heart》
《Lingent Agereil》
《Kyouka Yuugetsu》
《Geoplow Insroat》
《Pale of Dragonica》
《Divine Eye》
《Resolde Vertex》
《Root of Magic》
《Iris-These》
《Hyakuseisha no Ikou》
《Lightning Spirit's Blessing》
《Senkyou Shukou》
《Chihirou Goushi》
《Ryuutou Bakko》
《Four-Sided Blessing》
――――――
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…
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And here, suddenly, is Alicia's status! BAM!!!!!
Note that this omits skills that were barely used or had little contribution, so please assume the actual number of skills is about three times larger. Additionally, the skills listed are all ones she uses as her mains, but they are basically top-tier composite skills that have evolved from multiple advanced skills being integrated. If you were to convert them using the skill delete system, you could assume there are multiple monsters worth 100P, so you can guess how insane they are.
I want to explain each skill someday, but it has absolutely zero bearing on the story, so who knows when I'll get the time. I'm really running out of time, please help.
Also, on a completely unrelated note, the author is currently suffering from COVID. My life is not in danger, so I want to state clearly, 'please do not worry,' but because of that, it will almost certainly be impossible for me to post chapters in quick succession as usual, so please bear with me.
I'm just groaning about how bored I am while stuck in bed, and the best I can do is tap away like Nia-chan. Hahaha.