kscans

Chapter 219 - Interlude: The Lazy Diva

Rose faced a member of the Ten Holy Demonic Swords in the second-floor hallway of the base.

The Ten Holy Demonic Swords. A clan strong enough to have made it to the top four in the previous Clan War. The clan that defeated them was the one Ivan belonged to. Depending on the tournament bracket, they had the skill to have been the runners-up.

Rose was a little pleased to be called strong by such an opponent.

However, the Ten Holy Demonic Swords were after Hayato. If she or Noat were to be kidnapped here, it would be a repeat of the incident with the bandits. She wanted to avoid that at all costs.

"Hayato-sama is not here. I must ask you to leave."

"Ho? But I sense someone's presence from that room."

The woman from the Ten Holy Demonic Swords pointed her katana at the Dark Knight's room as she spoke.

It was a complete misunderstanding, but it put Rose in a difficult position. She did not think the woman would be convinced even if she said it was not Hayato.

She had no issue with showing the person inside.

But the Dark Knight wore black armor, and his face was hidden. She did not know why he would not remove his armor, nor was she sure he would agree to show his face. There was also the possibility he might use this as leverage to demand his release.

Still, staying silent would not move the situation forward. It might be futile, but she decided to explain the circumstances.

"The person in that room is not Hayato-sama. I must withhold the details, but it is someone else."

"What, is that so."

Rose was taken aback. She had not expected the woman to believe her. She had heard the Ten Holy Demonic Swords was a group that would stop at nothing to achieve their goals. She had not thought they would be reasoned with.

"But that is that. You are strong, are you not?"

The female samurai before her said this with a smile playing on her lips.

"I intended to hold back at first. But it is impossible. To see such a strong warrior and return without doing anything would be a disgrace to the name of a samurai."

Rose could sympathize with that line of thinking to some extent, but being on the receiving end of it was another matter entirely.

The next moment, the female samurai moved within range of Rose's katana. Rather than moving quickly, it was more like she moved by catching Rose off guard.

Rose blocked the katana, which was swung down swiftly from above, with the handle of her broom. The materials were bamboo and metal, respectively, but a short, shrill sound echoed through the hallway.

"You are skilled!"

The female samurai attacked further. Vertical, horizontal, and diagonal slashes. Rose parried all of them.

(She is toying with me. She is gradually increasing her speed to test how much I can take. At this rate...!)

The female samurai attacked without seeming to use her full strength. Rose, however, was defending with everything she had. If the attack speed increased any further, she would not be able to keep up.

"Noat-sama, I will create an opening! Please escape!"

Rose conveyed this to Noat, who was behind her. Even if Noat did not usually go outside, this was an emergency. She shouted, believing that Noat would act accordingly.

Even if Rose and Noat were defeated, they would just resurrect at this base. In fact, being defeated would be a faster way to escape. However, if they were captured with ropes or the like immediately after resurrecting, there was a chance they could be taken to the Eastern Country.

Thinking to at least let Noat escape, she attacked with a body blow using her broom held horizontally. Her aim was to pin the female samurai against the wall, allowing Noat to slip past along the edge of the corridor in the meantime.

But even as Rose charged and pinned the female samurai, Noat showed no sign of escaping.

What was more, for some reason, she was opening the door to the Dark Knight's room.

"Muscle-chan, I will tell Lunaria-chan you did a good job later, so help me out a little."

As Noat said this to the room, the Dark Knight lumbered out. He was equipped with a sword and shield, fully prepared for battle.

Seeing this, the female samurai shoved Rose away and grinned.

"Well, well, the one in the room was a Dark Knight of the Demon Lord's Army. And on closer inspection, you are Noat from Ivan's clan. To come looking for Hayato and find such people, I am a lucky woman indeed... Will you indulge me?"

"I do not know the situation, but if you are strong, I shall be your opponent. Do not expect me to go easy on you just because you are a woman."

"I do not expect the Demon Lord's Army to go easy on a woman. But that is what makes it worthwhile!"

The female samurai ignored the Rose she had pushed aside and charged at the Dark Knight. Her speed was incomparable to her attacks on Rose.

The Dark Knight, completely unfazed, continued to block her attacks with his sword and shield. The durability of his equipment would decrease, but he took no damage.

One could say the situation had improved. The female samurai's target had shifted from Rose to the Dark Knight.

Rose quickly moved to Noat's side to shield her.

"Noat-sama, let us go outside now. They both seem focused on each other, so we should be able to escape without being noticed."

"It is fine, we do not need to run. We will win this. The only time I leave my house is when I run out of money."

"Eh? No, but--"

Noat began to hum, "Hmm hmm hmm," and the effect of her Song Skill activated.

"Hmm?" "What in the?"

The Dark Knight and the female samurai were surprised at the same time.

The song Noat used was "Weakness," which had the effect of lowering all of an opponent's abilities. It took time, but if she kept singing, it would eventually reduce their abilities by about half.

"That song from back then! But it will not work this time!"

The female samurai headed for Noat.

"Your opponent is over here."

The Dark Knight used "Shield Bash," an attack where he slams his shield into his opponent.

Normally, this would cause a knockback and stagger her, but the female samurai, despite being sent flying into the wall, paid it no mind and continued toward Noat.

"Out of my way!"

Rose, trying to protect Noat, was sent flying by the female samurai's attack, even though she guarded.

"Noat-sama!"

Rose cried out as the katana closed in on Noat.

"It is over!"

Everyone thought Noat had been cut down. Everyone present, except for Noat, thought so, but it did not happen.

Noat had stopped the attack by catching the blade between her hands.

"Relic's special Blade Catch. I knew if I sang this song, you would be forced to aim for me."

Noat resumed her humming, switching the effect of her song. She changed to "Hellfire," which extended the duration of status effects, and then unleashed a Low Kick.

"Guh!"

The female samurai, her stance broken by the Blade Catch, was unable to dodge it completely.

Noat's STR was low, so it dealt no damage. But it inflicted the Stun status. Furthermore, the song's effect extended the duration of the status ailment, leaving her immobile for twenty seconds.

Noat switched songs again. She used "Witch's Game," which increased the effect of Curse Magic. Then she unleashed a curse.

The female samurai's HP began to gradually decrease.

Normally, Stun is broken upon taking damage, but it is not affected by damage-over-time effects. In other words, the female samurai was having her HP whittled away by Curse Magic while unable to move.

"This is... I am beaten. I will be defeated before the Stun wears off."

Normally, this combo could not defeat a combat class. But the female samurai had just taken damage from the Dark Knight's Shield Bash. That damage was just enough for her HP to reach zero before the Stun wore off.

Noat struck a pose, placing her left hand on her right hip and covering her left eye with the palm of her right hand. According to her, it was a cool pose.

"I am a woman who gets serious for the sake of a lazy life. Hayato-san will be back eventually, so come back another day."

"As expected of someone from the Hero's clan. I lost to your song back then, and I have lost again... but next time will be different. Well, there is no point if Hayato is not here. Tell him I will be back again someday. Do not worry, it was just a bad habit of mine acting up. I really did just come to talk. So, farewell. I look forward to seeing you again."

Her HP reached zero, and the female samurai collapsed. An instant later, her body vanished. She must have resurrected at her registered base.

Confirming this, Noat broke her cool pose.

"Alright, dismissed. I am going back for a second nap, so do not be loud. No one shall disturb my slumber...!"

"That was good exercise. I wish someone would attack this base every day until Lunaria-sama returns..."

"That would be noisy, so fight outside next time."

"If the weather is nice, that would be better. I am not fond of being cooped up in a room."

"I do not understand what you are saying. Inside is the best. Ah, Rose-chan, thank you for making the bed. With this, the best sleep is all but guaranteed."

The two of them returned to their own rooms.

Rose, who had watched the entire exchange, was in shock.

She had thought herself strong, but she had been helpless against that female samurai. Yet, the Dark Knight had been her near equal, and Noat had delivered the finishing blow.

She had thought Noat was just a support class, but it turned out she could fight as well. Rose cursed her own shallow judgment.

(Ivan-sama's clan... huh. In a ten-person clan, you cannot just be a parasite. Especially not if you are going to win the Clan War. Hah, I have to try harder.)

Rose gripped the broom in her hands tightly, then began to prepare, deciding to start by cleaning the area.