kscans

Chapter 179 - Cheat vs. Hero

For the time being, Hayato put aside the matter of Relic and Sonia and reassessed the current situation.

Rose was swinging a broom with both hands, defeating the members around her. Her speed wasn't instantaneous like Shukuchi, but it was incredibly fast.

And her attacks were one-hit kills. The moment an attack landed, HP dropped to zero and they collapsed. However, the other members weren't so much unable to defeat Rose as they were unable to fight back. They were only defending.

"Relic-san, why is everyone not trying to defeat Rose-san?"

"We do not know if defeating her will improve this situation. If we were to defeat her carelessly and she revived at the Maid Guild in this state, it would be a disaster for the Royal Capital. Also, we thought this was Ban's doing, so we were also concerned for your and Diite-sama's safety. Seeing that you have returned safely, it seems that issue has been resolved."

"Yes. Ban is no longer a problem. But the fact that you couldn't defeat Rose-san is partly our fault, isn't it… Diite-chan, can you turn her back to normal?"

Havato said that and looked at Diite.

Rose's rampage was a programming issue, but Diite could use the holy magic of healing. It was a question that wouldn't seem out of place to Relic. Diite, seeming to realize this, replied to Hayato, "Of course."

"However, it will take time, and I cannot know the detailed symptoms without touching her. I will manage the healing, so I need you to defeat Rose-kun once and incapacitate her. I will make sure she cannot revive at the Maid Guild… with the mystical power of the church or something."

She said that because Relic was nearby, but Hayato, while thinking it was a bit of a stretch, played along.

"Um, that’s fine, but can we defeat her…? No, on second thought, everyone's strength here is cheat-level too. Everyone, defeat Rose-san! If you defeat her, Diite-chan will take care of the rest!"

Havato shouted loudly. His voice echoed through the gorge.

As always, he was leaving it to others, but there was no use complaining about that. There are things people can and cannot do.

The remaining members, who had returned at some point, looked at Hayato with faces of relief, which gradually turned into smiles. They had been on the defensive until now, but now they had permission to defeat her. Following that, they began their attack on Rose.

And some of the members came over to Hayato.

First was Esha.

"What have you been doing, Master? We were having a hard time over here. You owe me a chocolate parfait… in the real world too."

"Ah, yeah, I'll treat you to as many as you want, so do your best to defeat her… just one in the real world."

"It pains my heart to defeat a colleague, but it cannot be helped."

"Your words and your face don’t match. Also, here’s some melon juice. You’re out of MP, right?"

Esha took the bottle of melon juice from Hayato, held it vertically, and began to gulp it down. Then she immediately held out her hand for a "refill." After drinking that as well, she readied her Beelzebub and moved to a position where it would be easier to attack.

After that, Ney came over.

"That maid is amazing! Stronger than any enemy so far! So, Hayato, sorry to ask, but could you restore my weapon’s durability? It’s on the verge of breaking from taking too many hits."

Havato looked at Ney’s sword and confirmed that its durability was almost completely gone.

A one-hit-kill attack doesn't destroy the weapon. In that case, I think we have a chance to win.

"Got it. Leave the repairs to me."

Havato took the Excalibur Replica and Arondight Replica from Ney and took out his beloved blacksmithing hammer. Using the adamantite ore he had, he restored the durability of the two swords.

With fluid menu operations, the two swords were quickly repaired. And he immediately returned them to Ney.

"Fast as always… Alright, I’m going!"

Ney, now dual-wielding, charged at Rose.

As she left, Jolth from the Bandit clan came to take her place. It seemed the only surviving players were Ney and Jolth.

"I don’t really get it, but it seems you’re okay."

"You too. Still, it’s impressive you managed to survive against that Rose-san."

"We came to take care of bandits, so I have no idea why we’re in a situation where we’re fighting a maid. And isn’t she way too strong? She’s clearly cheating. I might have to ask for an additional reward for this to be worth it. Speaking of which, that girl just now, she was equipped with the Demon Lord’s sword, wasn’t she?"

"…Would the manufacturing method for the Arondight Replica be enough of an additional reward?"

"Now I’m motivated. In that case, I guess I’ll manage to defeat that maid somehow."

Jolth said this cheerfully and vanished from before Hayato’s eyes in an instant. It seemed he had used the martial arts skill Shukuchi to move right in front of the maid. And he equipped his usual giant axe and started swinging it around.

It wasn't just Jolth, many members were fighting against Rose.

Sonia and Cecil were fighting, and Noat was providing support by singing. The Maid Chief also joined in and was fighting Rose. The surviving members seemed to be the leader-class members and a few others.

Only Relic was on standby to protect Hayato and Diite, but Rose wasn’t targeting characters from a distance, so she wasn’t even looking at Hayato and the others.

"Yo, you’re back. What you said earlier, is it really okay to defeat that girl?"

Ivan had somehow casually approached Hayato.

"Please do. As long as you defeat her, Diite-chan will heal her."

"I see. Then I’ll join in too. I was told not to defeat her, and I’m not skilled enough to do something so delicate, so I was just watching from a distance."

Ivan, having said that, shifted his gaze from Hayato to Diite.

"Don’t stop me this time, okay? You can’t know you can’t win until you try."

"Ah, I apologize for earlier. I will not stop you this time. However, as I am sure you understand, that Rose-kun is also outside the laws of the world, so you should be careful."

"Hey hey, I’m the Hero, you know? If you’re going to say that, then I’m outside the laws of the world too. Well, just watch. I’ll show you the strength of a Hero."

Ivan said that and walked toward Rose.

What Ivan meant by being outside the laws of the world was not about modification codes. He was saying that the Hero itself is outside the laws of this world.

It was a completely different meaning from what Hayato and the others were thinking, but it was certainly true in a way. The Hero and the Demon Lord boasted incredible strength compared to normal players. Stat-wise, they weren’t that different, but Ivan, who possessed the Hero skill, had various buffs applied to him.

Ivan went close to the fighting Rose and instructed everyone to back down.

"I’ll handle this. Sorry, but fall back. In fact, it’s more of a hindrance if you interfere."

Such a statement would normally be met with resentment, but it was the Hero who said it. Everyone, though somewhat bewildered, took their distance from Rose.

Then Rose’s target shifted to Ivan. She immediately unleashed an attack with her broom.

Ivan deflected it with Excalibur.

"It seems Excalibur isn’t reacting to you. A shame, but you’re too weak. You’re no match for me."

When Ivan swung Excalibur sideways, Rose blocked it with her broom. The impact must have been strong, as Rose was sent flying backward, and the distance between them grew.

"If you get hurt, I’ll take responsibility. If anything happens, just tell this Hero, Ivan."

Right after he said that, Ivan closed the distance with Rose. Not with Shukuchi, but with normal movement. And yet, it was fast.

A sweeping blow from Excalibur struck Rose’s abdomen directly. Her HP decreased, but only by a minuscule amount. Rose’s HP was currently massive due to the modification code. She had already lost a third of her total HP before Ivan, but that meant she still had plenty left.

If once wasn’t enough, then twice, thrice. Ivan swung Excalibur.

Of course, Rose wasn’t just standing there, she was fighting back. But her attacks all cut through empty air. Ivan was seeing through all of Rose’s attacks. To a bystander, it was so certain one could declare it. With the bare minimum of movement, he dodged and blocked. Every one of those actions led to an attack of his own. It was as if he was landing a counter on every single attack.

Right now, all of Rose’s attacks were one-hit kills. If even one of them were to hit, he would be defeated, but even in that tense situation, Ivan was engaging in super-close combat as if it were nothing.

The other members had fought with long-range attacks or hit-and-away tactics, afraid of the one-hit kill, but Ivan’s fighting style seemed to be more difficult for Rose to handle.

Rose’s broom was quite large. It was perfect for swinging around, but it could be said that it lacked maneuverability. It seemed difficult for her to attack an opponent in super-close combat with a broom.

In the first place, the handle of the broom had no hit-box, and only the bristle part could be used for attacks. Ivan was just making sure not to get hit by that, and sometimes he would even block the broom’s handle with his bare hands, nullifying the attack.

If you can fight up close against a one-hit kill, you’d be stronger fighting bare-handed. But Rose-san doesn’t do that. She doesn’t have the mental capacity to think that far, or maybe she was just implanted with a modification code that simply makes her attack with a weapon. Ivan probably sensed that.

There was no way Ivan could know about modification codes, but from his various experiences, he seemed to know how to fight.

And Rose’s HP gradually decreased, and finally, with a single flash of Ivan’s Excalibur, Rose collapsed on the spot.

Ivan, seeing that Rose didn’t get up, said, "I guess that’s about it," and returned Excalibur to the scabbard on his hip.

From the surroundings, not cheers, but sighs of relief were heard.

She must have been a very dangerous opponent. Defeating her might not have been a problem, but for the Maid Chief and Esha, Rose was a colleague. Seeing that colleague on a rampage must have been nerve-wracking.

Diite approached the fallen Rose and placed her right hand on her. After a moment, Diite stood up and nodded.

"She’s alright now. She should wake up in a little while."

This time, cheers erupted.

The Maid Chief bowed deeply to Ivan and Diite, offering her apologies and gratitude.

And Sonia approached them.

"Good grief, we went through a lot because of Ban. I’ll have to show him hell next time we meet."

"The problem must have been in the way we taught him. If we had reprimanded him more, things might not have turned out like this. Hayato-sama, by the way, where is Ban?"

"Ah, yeah. Diite-chan trapped him in a certain space… with the mystical power of the church or something."

Havato felt a bit strange saying it himself, but both Relic and Sonia seemed to have accepted it.

For now, I guess we’ll return to the base and disband for the day… Still, Relic-san as a hacker, huh.

It was still hard to believe, but there was no point in doubting it.

Havato told everyone to return to the base and left the place.