kscans

Chapter 465 - The Hidden Ace

At the summit of Balitoa Mountain, in the sky above, the Elder Griffon Lancelot and the players of the "Cats are God" clan were fighting.

Parfait watched the battle from the ground. The high-speed maneuvering was more intense than anything she had ever seen in a normal battle. It was like a dogfight between fighter jets, something she had only seen in games and movies, and she couldn't take her eyes off it.

They were both evading and pursuing each other in a way that Parfait didn't quite understand. They were probably fighting for an advantageous position, but their movements were protean, and she was alarmed when they made moves like a steep dive towards the ground.

As expected of a major clan, they were usually just cat-loving players who passionately talked about how cute cats were, but when they got serious in battle, she was amazed at what they could become.

In the first place, it would be a two-on-one fight, but Parfait didn't think she could win in a PvP match against them if they fought like that. PvP matches were usually restricted by the battle field, so they probably couldn't fight like that, but without any restrictions, she probably couldn't even touch them.

From Parfait's perspective, the only thought that came to mind was "amazing," but the players who were not fighting in the sky and were on standby on the ground also looked strong.

This time, since they had been transported by the gondola, there were few "Cats are God" players fighting on the ground, but the pets they had with them were insane.

Their main pets were the giant, super-fast wolf Fenrir and the eight-legged horse Sleipnir, and Parfait thought they would probably fight using their mobility.

However, she didn't quite understand the pet that Orion had with her. She could tell it was a large cat, but she wasn't sure if it was strong. As if she had the same question, Wilnel looked at Orion's pet cat. And suddenly her eyes widened.

"O-Orion-san, t-that cat is..."

"Eh? Oh, yeah. It's the strongest cat in our clan. But keep it a secret from the other clans, okay?"

Orion said this and winked at Wilnel. Parfait, who was watching, tilted her head.

"Wilnel-chan, is there something wrong with Orion-san's pet?"

"Wrong... Yes, it's wrong. It's the kind of cat that you clearly shouldn't be allowed to tame."

"What do you mean?"

"There are many strong monsters in AFO, but among them, it's considered mandatory to fight monsters with the names of gods with over a hundred people. Did you know that?"

"I've heard of it. You mean monsters like the boss in Hyakki Yakou, right?"

"That's right. And Orion-san has a monster that is thought to be on par with that as a pet. It's unknown if it's a higher species of something or a completely unique individual, but its name is Bastet. It's said to be a cat god."

Parfait's head whipped around, and her gaze turned to the pet Orion had with her. She had never seen it in person, but from what she had seen in videos, it resembled a cat called an Abyssinian. Its yawns and the way it rubbed its face with its front paws were adorable, but it was undoubtedly a monster with the name of a god, said to be one of the strongest in AFO.

Normally, it was said that such monsters couldn't be made into pets. Even if it was possible, the probability was extremely low. That was true even for Parfait's pet, Trachiyo, who was at home in their base today.

Trachiyo also had the name of a god, "Bishamonten," but since he was a higher species of cat, he was strong for a cat, but not that strong compared to all monsters. He was only strong enough for Parfait and Rick, who hadn't even been playing for half a year, to handle, so his taming difficulty was moderate.

But Bastet was different. Despite its appearance, it was a raid-class monster strong enough to take on a hundred players at once. It was a rarer monster than the Snow White that Orion usually had with her, and she had never even heard of a successful taming.

"I should tell you, it's not that strong anymore."

Seeing Parfait's surprised eyes, Orion said this. The RPG trope of characters getting weaker when they join your party was in effect here as well, and it wasn't as strong as a raid-class monster.

However, its growth rate and skills were so strong that they could be called a balancing mistake. Orion had asked the GMs if Bastet's strength was a bug, but she was told that it was not a problem.

(There's no way Diite-oneechan would make a mistake like that. In other words, it's so rare that its strength is also rare.)

There was no way Diite would leave a bug in the game. Therefore, this was legal within the game. It wasn't a pet that could win against a hundred players, but there was no doubt that it would become quite strong.

It was surprising that she could tame such a rare monster, but on second thought, Parfait remembered that the "Cats are God" clan was always trying to tame yokai-type monsters one after another during the Hyakki Yakou. They were often wiped out trying to tame the nine-tailed fox, Tamamo-no-Mae, the two-tailed nekomata, and even the rare boss, the cat yokai "Kasha."

(I've heard that major clans have various hidden aces, so maybe this one is the Cats are God clan's.)

Battles between clans that occurred during events were held quite often. The territorial disputes were the most prominent of these, and because of that, clans often hid their strength.

Parfait was grateful to Orion for showing her this much, as it meant she was trusted a great deal. She vowed in her heart not to betray that trust.

As they were talking, Lancelot fell to the ground. It seemed to have taken a lot of damage in the air battle, and its remaining HP was about twenty percent. This was where Parfait and her friends came in.

Parfait, Chris, Rick, and Wilnel jumped out from behind the rocks. Following them, the members of Cats are God who had been waiting on the ground also followed. Orion remained hidden behind a rock, but she sent Bastet after Lancelot.

(So that gun Orion-san has is for giving orders.)

Orion was dressed in a steampunk-like outfit and had a gun hanging from her waist. However, the gun was not for attacking, but for firing bullets that left a trail of colored smoke.

It seemed she was also conveying the general strategy to her clan members with it, and it seemed she was using it to give orders for attack and defense. She had seen similar tactics in other large-scale battles, so Parfait thought it might be essential for large-scale battles.

Her pet, Bastet, was also acting according to those instructions. As expected of a monster with the name of a god, it was doing everything, magic attacks, support, healing, and debuffs, all by itself. Furthermore, its movements were quick, and its claw attacks also dealt a lot of damage.

It seemed like Bastet could win on its own, but its coordination with the pets and members of the "Cats are God" clan was ridiculously good. They were too good at the hit-and-away tactic of dealing damage and then backing off.

On top of the fact that someone was always attacking, Lancelot, who was being attacked, seemed to be confused about who to pursue, and its head was moving restlessly.

(The monster's AI is confused... Their hate management must be really good. They're adjusting so that no one deals too much damage.)

This was the first time Parfait had fought in an alliance with another clan, but she was learning a lot. Individually, Parfait was strong, but when it came to coordination, her clan was weak, so the fighting style of Cats are God was a great reference for her.

That aside, if things continued like this, they wouldn't get a chance to shine at all, so Parfait charged at Lancelot.

Unlike "Cats are God," which dispersed the monster's hate, the "Mont Blanc" clan's strategy was for the tank, Rick, to take all the hate. The coordination between the clans was not in sync, but the members of Cats are God, seeing that Parfait and her friends were attacking, took the opportunity to hide behind a rock and recover their lost HP.

Immediately after Parfait charged, Rick used skills like War Cry and Shield Bash to draw Lancelot's hate towards him. He also used other skills like healing and taunting to draw hate.

In the meantime, Parfait, Chris, and Wilnel began to attack, being careful not to draw more hate than Rick. Natsu, Ginny, and Abel began to support and attack from a distance.

Although the clan had just been formed, they supported each other with just eye contact and gestures, as if they knew each other well. Wilnel, who had just met them recently, was a little awkward, but it was only a slight sense of unease and she was able to handle it without any problems.

Lancelot, who had taken such an attack, had only a sliver of HP left, and it put strength into its front and back legs to launch a final attack. Then it jumped, and an effect like gathering magic in the air appeared.

This was the attack preview motion for the Elder Griffon's ultimate move, the super-wide-area all-target attack "Shockwave." It was an attack that dealt massive damage to everyone on the summit and in the sky, so the basic strategy was to hide behind a rock even if you were in the air when it started.

However, Parfait didn't know this. The only ones in the "Mont Blanc" clan who knew were Rick and Wilnel.

"Chris-chan!"

"Hm? You want to do it? Alright, come on!"

Parfait started running towards Chris, who was a short distance away. And Chris knelt down on one knee and placed both hands on that knee.

While most of the people around them were hiding behind rocks with puzzled expressions, Parfait ran at full speed and placed her foot on Chris's hands.

"Hyaa!"

Chris let out a spirited voice, and with Parfait's foot in her hands, she stood up with a burst of energy and threw Parfait towards Lancelot with all her might.

Normally, Lancelot would be out of reach even with a jump, but with the combined effort of Chris, Parfait flew high enough to easily get close.

"Eh? Wait..."

As such a voice leaked from Orion, Lancelot also looked surprised. At that moment, Parfait unleashed a series of iai slashes.

Whether there was some kind of damage correction, Lancelot's HP was rapidly depleted.

But just when it was almost gone, Parfait began to fall. She was out of range of her iai slashes, and just when everyone thought it was over, Parfait's Belzebuth changed into the shape of a gun.

At this, the members of "Cats are God"'s eyes went wide, and Lancelot's expression was a perfect match for the phrase "a pigeon shot by a peashooter." Immediately after, several bullets were fired from the gun, piercing Lancelot.

Lancelot, whose HP had run out, let out a mournful cry of "Kweee..." and fell to the ground. Parfait, who was also falling, landed normally.

"We did it! Orion-san, we won!"

"Eeeh...?"

Surrounding them, including Wilnel and Rick, were stunned by their unconventional victory, but Parfait and Chris, who didn't know the proper strategy, didn't care about their surroundings and high-fived in joy.