Chapter 721 - The Selfish White Who Smiles on the Silver Screen, Part Five
Leaving behind the death effect—the remnants of [Dispersion]-dono scattered by the blades of the water wheel—my body, unable to escape the impact of the hits even if the damage was frozen, was caught and began to fall.
And in just a few seconds, I was swallowed by the still-unsettled dust—
"Ogoff…!"
I landed on my back without being able to break my fall. An intense numbness took over my avatar, and as expected, a forced stun icon blinked beneath my status bar.
This was it. The function hidden within Nia's masterpiece, the [El-Gran Stasia], was certainly a wickedly overpowered spec, but it wasn't some absolutely invincible, ultimate weapon. Of course not.
The reason was simple. My build was fundamentally flawed, lacking any fortitude (VIT), which meant my resistance to debilitating effects like flinching from taking hits was extremely low.
Because of that, I couldn't just ignore enemy attacks and go on the offensive even during the skill's effective period of virtual immortality. And that thing that happens when the effect expires required some ingenuity to use effectively.
For example, in a party, I could activate it as a last-resort life-preserver, endure the attacks while waiting for my allies' support, and then turn it into a counter. But well, in solo play or small-scale battles like this one, it was frankly unreliable.
Right now, I was sprawled out, exposing a massive opening—and what's more,
"Ggh-gah…!!"
Twelve seconds passed. And in the few seconds of grace that followed, I failed to touch anyone, so the stored-up damage, having nowhere else to go, detonated inside me like a pure, unadulterated self-destruct bomb.
A shock greater than the crash landing ripped through my avatar… but fortunately, the accumulated damage was leagues different from the brutal grinding stomp I took from that mole once. My body wasn't sent flying, and I managed to avoid an accidental death by being slammed into a wall (solo) or the floor (solo).
—So, that was fine.
What wasn't fine was that the situation was bad. In the end, it was a 1-for-1 trade, but the one we lost was Hinayo-san, who had used her ultimate magic.
On their side, the one left was [Screen]-dono, who had used her ultimate magic… meaning, due to the 'Song of Decadence' effect laid upon the field, her 'Chantless' state was active. It was, without a doubt, a disadvantageous situation.
Naturally, if she started spamming something like that, I literally wouldn't last. It really hurt that I had misread her resolve.
I never thought she'd abandon supporting her partner and immediately go for a total annihilation of everyone…
……………
………………………
……………………………………………
—So. What in the world was with this person who had just committed such an atrocity?
"Care to… have a little chat?"
She had gone out of her way to approach an enemy who was exposing such an obvious opening. The silver-haired beauty emerged from the dust, her eyes narrowed as she glared at me.
Well, maybe that expression was just from avoiding the dust—
""……………""
I waited, but no words came. As I lay there and she stood over me, a mysterious moment of us just staring at each other passed, and the aftermath of the immense destruction began to slowly clear.
And, along with the murmurs of the crowd as they took in the baffling situation,
""—Hah.""
We both looked up at what the other had prepared under the cover of the smokescreen—at the barrage of well over a hundred projectiles each had poised behind them—and we both laughed with similar expressions.
My, oh my, 'Chantless'… or rather, 'no-chant magic,' is a ridiculously convenient thing. The ability to continue fighting even when your body is immobilized is just too brilliant.
In that fashion, I too had continued the fight while my freedom was restricted, but that aside, there was no way the master of that very authority wouldn't have predicted this.
That must be why she brought a whole host of spears for self-defense… but there was no reason for her to approach me like this in the first place. In the end, she could have just spammed her last attack.
Not that I intended to be crushed so easily, but I still couldn't read her intentions—
"Hey."
"Yes."
I answered her sudden call reflexively. Then, she—or he—with a deadpan expression that seemed to say the smile from a moment ago was just my imagination,
"Don't move."
—issued an unreasonable demand to an opponent in the middle of battle, and in that instant, over a hundred massive rock stakes were unleashed without warning, piercing their target with a thunderous roar.
◇◆◇◆◇
"[Veil Down]."
As the stone pillars pierced the stage and formed a circle, I released my stored incantation and layered another spell.
What the barrier of the earthen prison brought was a severance between inside and out. To put it simply, it was a sturdy, all-encompassing defensive magic—with the little bonus of a slight sound-proofing function.
And so, on the inside.
"……………Um… what exactly is your intention?"
"—I can't give you thirty minutes this time, so I'll give you three."
I cut off and shut down the question from the [Acrobat], who was lying on the floor in one piece as ordered, his eyes blinking in confusion as he was swept up in the situation.
I'm not looking for questions. I'm the only one demanding answers.
"You wouldn't leave me alone, and even went so far as to make that grand declaration. What's your reason for bothering with me?"
"That's—"
"Don't get it twisted, junior. I'm aware that I'm a disagreeable person, but I have no desire to be a total asshole. So if it's necessary, I'm willing to listen, as much of a pain as it is."
"…"
"Convince me. Why should I have to play and laugh with you?"
I was aware that I was spouting childish words, much like a 'disagreeable person' myself. But that's precisely why I had a duty to drive away anyone who approached me so carelessly.
Especially an opponent like the one before me.
Especially a naive fool who, even when faced with such ridiculously unreasonable tactics, didn't respond with frustration, exasperation, or complaint, but—with a purely joyful smile.
"You know, I'm fine with the way things are. I don't like it, but it is what it is. Things not going your way… that's true in reality, here in the virtual world… everywhere."
Without a nod, without an interruption, I threw my words at the eyes that just stared at me.
"That's just how it is. I'm not giving up; I've accepted it."
Things in this world rarely go as you wish. That's a truth even children know these days. Coming to terms with that is something you get used to after living for a while.
"My personality and behavior aren't a pose. Sorry if I gave you the wrong impression—this is just my role-play of showing my true feelings without putting on a fake smile for anyone unnecessarily."
As part of that, I don't swallow my complaints or dissatisfaction… so I do feel bad when I cause a misunderstanding and make an excessively 'nice person' like someone I know worry about me.
But that, too.
"It's not necessary. Leave me be—I always accept the 'now.'"
This is how I refuse to swallow anything, revealing my true feelings and saying 'No.'
If I do that, anyone… even the rankers from the East who tried to get close in a similar way, would all eventually understand 'that's just how she is' and retract their meddling.
And those oddballs who still bothered me after that, while not friends, became acquaintances. That's fine. That's more than enough. It's more kindness than a disagreeable person deserves.
So,
"Now, answer me, junior."
So far, [Screen] had spoken flatly, lightly, simply listing the facts.
"I'm not some princess trapped in a lonely tower, you know."
With genuine goodwill, she was telling him to stop this pointless exercise. As a senior, in her own way, she was trying to admonish her junior—and as she finished speaking,
"—Hah."
That guy, still lying on the ground, let out a laugh that was almost insolent.
"I'm not meddling in your business because I'm worried about you, you know."
He threw out the words and slowly rose to his feet.
About a minute and a half has passed. Outside, Nonomi-chan is trying her absolute best.