kscans

Chapter 876 - A Sibling Scene, Several Days Later

The boss of the fiftieth floor, [Primvare, the Land-Eroding Mermaid], was a textbook example of a truly awful, first-time-killer, bastard of an enemy.

Mermaid? I wanted to tilt my head in confusion. Its twenty-meter-plus frame wasn’t a half-human, half-fish hybrid. Instead, a meagerly-sized human component connected to a torso and tail that made up ninety-nine percent of its body, resembling an eastern dragon.

And, as is the way in Arcadia, big equals strong and tough. Its health, indicated by a large gauge equivalent to ten normal bars, was undeniably raid-class.

Of course, a raid-class enemy wouldn't just be tough… and so, after a long time, we were forced into a gimmick battle.

While fending off the bastard mermaid's diverse physical and magical attacks as it flew freely through the waterless air, we managed to counterattack. As we did, ‘scales’ would flake off its massive body and, true to its name of [Land-Eroding], open holes in the field. At first, I thought, On top of being tough, it spams debuffs with every attack? What kind of garbage game is this? But our party, with the exception of Kanata, was full of people who could dish out damage without moving.

Since it was a complete mismatch, we had Kanata stand by. With me, Sora, and Tetra employing a long-range barrage strategy, we steadily chipped away at the raid-class enemy—a battle that, by Arcadia standards, would normally take dozens of people several hours.

And that was our misfortune.

Who would have thought that jumping into the 'holes' of the disappearing terrain would shift the battle to a separate underwater space, where the fish-named bastard would become ridiculously weak?

For over an hour, we diligently continued our target practice against the loudly screeching [Primvare, the Land-Eroding Mermaid] as it flew around. Just as everyone in the party, myself included, was starting to think, Is it even possible for normal players to beat this…?

Finally, the last of our footing vanished. After we splashed down, it was over in seconds.

The mermaid, having irrationally pursued us into the 'water,' began to writhe as if burned by it, its HP plummeting. Thinking, What, a chance? I blasted a [Maelstrom] at its face, and it dealt ten times the damage of our previous chip shots.

I mean, sure, for a mermaid, it was using fire and earth magic, and for some reason, it seemed to really hate my water spells, but still…

It was a tragedy born from having a party with the members and abilities to deal with everything, which resulted in us pointlessly dragging out the fight. And Kanata-kun was bored for nearly the entire time.

"—If we'd realized the gimmick and jumped in sooner…"

Thump.

"Gah, a melee fighter could have been useful then, I bet."

Hyoi.

"You're right. The underwater stage felt similar to the Great Water Spirit's sanctuary… Ah, but! I learned a lot just from observing, so it's fine! Yes!"

Patter patter patter… Thump.

"That’s good to hear. But still, standing around for over an hour must have been pretty mind-numbing."

"Um… ahaha, well, just a little…"

"That honesty is what's great about you, Kanata."

Seriously, everyone in our clan is so honest—

Anyway, a few minutes after clearing the fiftieth floor, we each touched the monolith in turn, fully unlocking our skills and quickly finishing the other rituals before heading home as planned.

The third event was finally tomorrow. The plan had always been to rest up the day before, so no matter how quickly we reached our target floor, we had decided, “This is it for today.” It was just before nine in the evening.

As usual, we returned to the clan home after our conquest. As usual, we were in the sofa area of the shared space. And as usual, our relaxation time began, just a bit earlier than normal.

What was once the 'shared space with a sofa' had become a 'sofa area'—a sea of sofas, really—after we’d added more long sofas, which were definitely not meant for one person, to accommodate the new members. It was a chaotic scene typical of game housing.

Each person had their own personal color: Sora-san's was sky blue, Tetra's was black, Kanata's was brown, and Ui-san's was gray. I used the initial white one. Tetra had initially been unimpressed, saying, “What is this,” but now he claimed the black one as a matter of course, so he must like it. The members’ evaluations were excellent—

Poof, poof.

"""…………………………"""

Lately, however, I hadn't been able to have my white sofa all to myself.

The reason for that was,

"What is it? Don’t stare so much, it’s embarrassing."

"You’ve got some nerve."

"Telling us not to stare is a bit much…"

"I-I don’t know what to say… I told you to do your best, but…"

—the gazes of Sora, Tetra, and Kanata were all focused on one spot.

"Is that, um… the right distance for a ‘brother’ and ‘sister’…???"

"Don't worry. I've already started to think of her as nothing more than an affectionate cat."

Sitting on my lap as if she owned the place was none other than my little sister, Ri-na.

Sora-san’s expression was more one of confusion than jealousy. Even my angelic partner, a first-class expert in reading me, apparently hadn’t expected me to be so detached in my response.

That’s because, after calmly weathering her initial post-return assault, I had scooped up her small body, carried her to the sofa as if she were a piece of luggage, and unceremoniously dropped her onto my lap, all without my expression twitching in the slightest.

Pure, genuine indifference. The only reason I was idly patting her head was as a deterrent; if I didn't do at least that much, she would start demanding affection without limit—

This was our new relationship, which had more or less solidified over the past few days.

"…I was surprised by Ri-na-senpai's confession, but…"

"Goldow practically fell out of his chair. I almost did, too."

Incidentally, while all three were looking on with bewildered eyes at the unfamiliar scene, they were all equally aware of the situation, as the details had been shared within the Eastern Faction. Starting with Papa—I mean, Goldow—who had spectacularly flipped out of his chair at the Round Table, almost everyone had reacted with a parade of confused “Huh???”s…

"What is up with your adaptability, senpai? It’s kind of creeping me out."

"A man accepts a challenge when it's thrown at him, right?"

"What are you even talking about?"

In a way, this was a battle between me and Ri-na. If I became conscious of her even for a second, I lose. If I could maintain my 'big brother' act without a shred of awareness, I win. Never mind the fact that by even accepting the challenge, my 'little sister' had already won completely. Like I care. My pride as a man is at stake if I back down from a pipsqueak.

I’m aware that I'm acting somewhat out of desperation. But, you know—

"Hey, what’s up, Sora-san? Wanna come over here?"

"Wh-… N-no, that’s alright! Please, continue being a good big brother…!"

As expected, my actions were partly a deliberate consideration for those around me.

Sora-san, more than anyone, must have picked up on the fact that I had completely stopped seeing Ri-na as a girl. While there were moments when she looked a bit wistfully at my 'little sister' being pampered, I think I’ve managed to completely suppress any jealousy for now.

She's envious of the attention, sure. But—well, I’m playing the part in a way that she wouldn't want to be treated by a guy she has special feelings for.

I don't feel like I’m forcing myself, and I’m not paying much attention to my behavior either. And besides… or rather, more than anything else…

"Hey, you, the center of this whole mess. Stop scratching my knee, it tickles."

"Mmm…"

"I get it, you’re sleepy. Go to sleep. Didn’t you say you have work in the morning?"

"Mmm-hmmm…"

"Don't 'mmm-hmmm' me."

"Just a little…"

Ri-na, for her part, seems to give my detached performance a perfect score. Since that day, the girl has lost all hesitation around me and has become a completely dignified 'little sister.'

Is she acting? Has she fully embraced the role? Or is this her true self? I can't tell anymore. But well, she comes to me for affection the moment we see each other, so she can’t be dissatisfied.

Also,

"I haven't forgotten you clung on for two hours the day before yesterday after saying that. I’m never listening to your 'just a little longer' again. Don't think you can get your way. Now, sleep. Log off."

"Nnnngh…!"

"Gah—!? You little— you headbutted… Hey! That little brat!?"

We’ve even started having playful fights like this.

After landing a blow to her nagging brother's gut, she had the presence of mind to immediately use logging out as the ultimate escape. Impressive. Just what you'd expect from one half of the 'Eastern Wings.'

I’ll never forgive her. She’d better watch out when we meet again tomorrow—

Well, at any rate.

""………………""

"………………You know…"

"What is it? Don’t stare so much, it’s embarrassing."

"That’s not the level of skill you get after just a few days. Were you two actually long-lost siblings?"

"Arcadia has all the fantasy I need, thank you very much."

It seems like it'll work out somehow.

---

By the way, just because he doesn't see her as a girl doesn't mean he doesn't think she's cute. Not that he'd ever say it.