kscans

Chapter 965 - A Calm Gathering of Four

"────Look, I truly, truly, truly understand this already, but…"

"Hm?"

"The way you guys are so off the charts is just insane. Watching it up close, it feels like my sense of common sense is just endlessly being shattered. It’s exhausting. My heart is just worn out from all the constant surprises."

"Hmm…"

"What’s with that reaction? I thought you’d finally come to terms with it by now."

"I have, but it’s not like ‘insanely exceptional players’ are all that rare in this game…"

"Princess. Be so kind as to tell him."

"? Hmm… Haru, what is Arcadia’s active user count?"

"Eh? Ah, right. Somewhere around thirty million, I believe."

"Excluding the West, how many Rankers are there in the combat-focused factions?"

"Thirty."

"One in a million is not what the general public would call ‘not rare.’"

"…Yeah, okay. You don’t have to spell it out like you’re talking to a child. I get it, you know?"

"If we expand the scope beyond just us Rankers to the ‘top tier,’ I suppose there are… somewhere between two and three thousand players whose names are known in this world right now."

"That sounds like a whole lot when you put it into words…"

"That’s just a rough estimate, of course. …Still, that’s one in ten thousand out of thirty million. By any normal standard, that falls well within the realm of rarity────"

"Alright, I get it, I get it! I know! I told you I understand!"

"Oh really? staaare…"

"It’s true, I tell you! I can’t help it! I know it intellectually, but my standards have been completely eroded because the concentration of crazy talent around me is just that high! My whole sense of ‘normal’ is completely shot!"

"…Hmph. Compared to a long time ago, he’s actually become quite a bit more grounded."

"Well, that’s true. …You were super clueless when we first met, after all."

"Mhm. …………This may sound incredibly arrogant of me, but…"

"Eh? What’s with the rare preface? What’s up?"

"…Back then. Meeting someone who knew absolutely nothing about me, aside from my combat abilities, was—and I’m not exaggerating—the first time that had happened in over three years."

"Ah… right…"

"It feels strange to say this now, but I was a little bewildered at the time. …………Heh heh."

"Eh? What’s with the rare laugh? Seriously, what’s up?"

"It’s nothing, really… I was just thinking that it truly was an arrogant thing for a ‘Princess’ to say."

"Princess, in your case, I think that’s less arrogance and more just a statement of fact and common knowledge."

"…Now that you mention it, is my profile really considered common knowledge?"

"Eh, yes. As far as I know, in this day and age?"

"……………………I, I see."

"Whoa, hold on, what’s with all the rare expressions all of a sudden?! What’s gotten into you, Princess? You’re so cute!"

"…Even I get embarrassed when someone I’m close to, other than my family, says things like that to my face. Stop making a scene────…Haru?"

"Yeah, what’s up?"

"Don’t look at me like that."

"You can’t start flirting right in front of me and then tell me not to look. Besides, it wasn’t a weird look."

"Don’t look at me with that gentle smile, like a parent watching over their child."

"That’s not a weird look, is it…?"

"I’m older than you."

"And the one who’s older than you, Princess, is me, Nia-chan!"

"Wha—? H-Hey────"

──────…

────…

──…

"…………………………"

And so, it went something like that.

I’ll set aside the two of them, who started playfully wrestling after the blue-silver one pounced and the azure one was pushed back…

"────…Alright, then."

We hadn’t moved from the spot where we defeated the Great Spirit. We were inside a spherical chamber filled with a soft light and countless platforms that floated weightlessly, defying any sense of up or down. Gravity pulled from the center of the space outward in all three hundred sixty degrees, creating a truly fantastical environment with no concept of a ceiling.

"Sora-san?"

"────Ngh… yes…………"

Ignoring Iris and Nia, who were enjoying their friendship nearby, I lowered my gaze and called out to her. In response, my partner, who was down for the count with her head on my lap, let out a feeble sound.

…This was the result of her giving it her all, so I really shouldn’t laugh.

However,

"Again, great work. You okay?"

"Being cared for with a half-smirk isn’t exactly reassuring…"

Seeing Sora-san so completely limp and drained was, as Nia might say, a rather rare expression. It was so wholesome that a peaceful feeling welled up inside me, and I couldn’t help but grin. It was simply unavoidable.

"Haha, sorry… Think you can get up?"

"…………Just a little… longer."

I’m sure part of it was her wanting to be pampered.

But it was also an undeniable fact that she was suffering from genuine exhaustion. Understanding both, I simply watched over my partner with a grin as she made no move to sit up.

It seemed she had recovered enough energy to shoot me a half-lidded glare… but well, of course she was tired. She had pulled off something absolutely insane during the Great Spirit battle.

The recommended party composition for [Apollo, Great Spirit of Light] was an unconventional one, with over half its members being mages. It was practically a half-raid encounter that demanded a drawn-out, endurance-based approach, where numerous light mages would combine their spells to create enough light to resist the darkness.

And she had dismantled that entire gimmick all by herself.

Repeatedly, in the span of just over twenty minutes until the battle ended.

One didn’t need to think too deeply to understand just how ridiculously incredible that was.

"I’ve thought this for a while, but your diction is amazing, Sora-san."

"…………I think being trained by a certain someone’s naming sense might have something to do with it."

"[Kieferion (Great Azure-Flamed Jaw that Burns All to Cinders)]! [Gränzigt (Embrace of Hoarfrost that Sleeps in the Freezing Night)]!"

"I still don’t really understand what they mean…"

And so, she had put that amazing diction to full use, weaving the same incantation hundreds of times in rapid succession. She had controlled the concentration-demanding skill of ‘magic’ hundreds of times, even if it was a beginner-level spell. And she had perfectly managed her magic swords in parallel. All things considered, of course she was tired. She had my sincerest gratitude for her hard work.

"…………It’s so hard to catch up, isn’t it?"

She murmured, her amber eyes shifting between me and Iris.

"Talking about stamina? Should I give you the speech about how you’re already in the top percentile compared to the average player?"

"Muu… But that’s out of a few thousand people, right?"

"Whoa… My partner is finally starting to make some extravagant demands…"

"I don’t want to hear that from my partner!"

And that’s what this was about, more or less.

Although she continued her physical training every day with the [Sword Saint]’s version of ‘tag,’ she was talking about how her avatar’s operational stamina in the virtual world wasn’t improving.

As I said, she was already at a more-than-sufficient level, and that was no joke… or so I thought, but Sora-san didn’t seem convinced.

"It’s a huge difference in style, so it can’t be helped. I’ve said it over and over and over and over again, but if I were to use [Cradle of Sword-Craft], unlike you, I’d be down for the count in seconds, you know?"

"I understand that, but…"

I’ve said this over and over and over and over again as well, but unfortunately—or perhaps I should say reassuringly—my partner is surprisingly stubborn when it comes to things like this.

────Well,

"You’ll help me train again, right?"

"Of course. Not just ‘again,’ but for all eternity, whenever you want."

"…………"

"That was a sincere statement from a partner, so don’t pinch me. ──Ui-san should be free now that the Key Tree Maze is cleared, so why don’t we invite her for a three-way free-for-all for old times’ sake?"

"No, thank you. I can’t do anything in that, can I?"

"That was before. Let’s show our master how much you’ve grown."

"…Grown. Lately, I feel like Ui-san is the most incredible one out of all of us."

"That’s true. …Man, I wonder if I’m going to get my butt kicked again."

"I’ve started to win more often when anything goes, but in terms of pure skill…"

At our core, we’re two of a kind, hungry for growth as an extension of our enjoyment.

It’s always like this. Praising each other, surprising each other, being exasperated with each other, all while we sprint forward side-by-side──── and just then.

"────Hey, is it okay if we launch our attack soon?"

"────I see no reason why not. Let us approach from the front."

"…Don’t plan your assault right next to me. Sora-san, you should probably get up now."

"………………"

"Sora-san?"

"…………J-just a little longer…"

"Seriously… your growth in that department is also remarkab—whoa, hey, you guys wai—stop…?!"

After that little bonus scene, it was about time to start packing up and heading home.

---

This is suuuuuuuuuuuper late to bring up, but,

I've never once written that Arcadia is a Japan-only service. If there's a scene where I've depicted that as established fact, please let me know. That would be an unconscious blunder.

An active user base of thirty million in Japan alone is a fantasy on par with a virtual world. No way that's happening.