kscans

Chapter 489 - The Three Sacred Treasures

Parfait had invited Kazatoki and Lion to her base, and now she was serving them as much food and sweets as she possibly could. Kazatoki and the others had come to thank her, but Parfait, who loved to entertain, paid that no mind and continued to serve them food.

Kazatoki and Lion ate every dish they were given, saying, "This is delicious!" After about thirty minutes, they had completely warmed up to each other and started talking about various things.

"Your base is a cafe style, Parfait-san. It's lovely."

When Kazatoki said that, Lion nodded in agreement.

"My family runs a coffee shop. I've been thinking about opening one myself someday, so I made this place like this for practice."

"Wow! Actually, I'm planning on taking over my family's karate dojo too!"

"A karate dojo, huh. An acquaintance of mine runs a sword fighting dojo, and it seems like they're all having a tough time."

Parfait also attended the sword fighting dojo run by Benitsuru, but she was the only student. The style was just too unique for anyone else to keep up with.

In Benitsuru's case, she was sometimes asked to be a bodyguard due to her combat prowess and her friendship with Lunaria, so she could live comfortably without any income from the dojo. Besides, Simon lived with her, so she was fine with cooking, cleaning, and laundry. Parfait wondered about her future, though.

All dojos must be having a hard time these days, Parfait thought, but then Kazatoki smiled.

"It looks like I'll be getting a fair bit of real money from the combat video with you, Parfait-san, so I'll be able to eat more than just bean sprouts! Of course, I'll still eat bean sprouts!"

"That's great... right?"

"Of course it is! Thanks to that fight, the view count for my past videos has skyrocketed, and it seems like other streamers have contacted me for fights, so the clan is setting up a schedule for me. Until now, I was pretty much on my own even though I was in a clan, but from now on, it seems they'll be managing various things for me, which is a big help."

They really do operate like a real talent agency, Parfait thought, surprised.

Dragon Soul, the talent agency and film distribution company founded by Abel's grandfather Veru, was similar, so Parfait was familiar with the concept.

Apparently, Suien and Randa, who could still be active actors, were handling that side of the business properly. Though they often complained at the cafe, saying things like, "It's so much work!" or "This is crazy!"

As she was remembering this, Lion spoke up.

"Actually, thanks to that, my videos have gotten more views too, so I came to thank you as well."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, Kazacchan and I debuted around the same time, so we often streamed videos together. Because of what happened, my past videos have gotten more views too... though it has solidified my image as the pitiful moe magical girl... so tough."

"S, sorry...?"

When Parfait apologized, Lion frantically shook her head.

"Oh, sorry. I've gotten into the habit of ending my sentences with something negative. I'm really happy, so please don't worry. If I wasn't, I wouldn't have come to thank you. Oh, right, I'm not sure if this is enough of a thank you, but please take this. Kazacchan and I gathered it for you."

With that, Lion placed a large amount of Spider Silk on the table. There was even some Gold Thread mixed in, enough to be worth a small fortune.

As Parfait stared in surprise, Kazatoki smiled and urged her to take it.

"You said you were on your way to a Giant Spider hunting ground back then, didn't you? We took up your time and even got a boost in our video views, so we're really grateful. It's not a real world thank you, just a virtual one, but please, don't hesitate to accept it."

Lion smiled and nodded in agreement with Kazatoki's words.

She didn't need such a thank you, but Parfait figured the conversation wouldn't end until she accepted it, so she took it with a smile.

"Well then, I'll gratefully accept. I actually needed this to level up my Sewing Skill."

"You're leveling up your Sewing Skill too? I thought since you run a cafe, you'd be leveling up your Cooking Skill... Oh, right, original dishes don't have skill requirements, do they?"

"No, no, it's not me. I have a friend who's leveling up her Sewing Skill for me."

"Oh, I see. By any chance, did you also get information that the Sewing Skill might be important for the next event, Parfait-san?"

"Huh?"

Parfait was surprised by Kazatoki's words. It was just a prediction from Rick, but for some reason, Kazatoki also seemed to know that the Sewing Skill would be important for the next event.

Parfait was surprised, but Kazatoki, thinking she didn't know, continued.

"It's just a rumor, but it seems like the Virgo Foundation is making a lot of noise, and it's related to clothing. Also, our clan leader belongs to Virgo, and she said it's true that there's a lot of activity in the clothing industry."

"Is that so... But was it okay to tell me that?"

"It's fine. I wasn't told to keep it a secret, and it's just speculation anyway. Besides, Sewing Skill aside, the clans that will do well in the Spirit Festival event are pretty much decided, and our clan is heading in a different direction, I think."

"A different direction?"

"As you can probably tell from our clan name, our main focus is on PvP battle videos. You can't get good results in the Spirit Festival unless you're a clan that sings or dances."

The Spirit Festival was an event where you livened things up by singing and dancing to entertain the spirits, and until now, it had been an event where you competed for video views.

In Fight☆Club, the clan Kazatoki and Lion belonged to, there were streamers who sang and danced, but they weren't that popular. In fact, the clans that were popular in that area were pretty much set.

"The favorite is probably Kiss of Death. They're the strongest video streaming clan, and they've been dominating the territory around the World Tree for a long time."

"I see. But if they're the favorite, that means there are rival clans, right?"

"That's right. The clans that are always brought up as potential rivals to Kiss of Death are the dance clan Amano-Iwato, the performance clan Gjallarhorn, and the singing clan The Whale That Drinks the Moon and Its Merry Friends."

"Wow, there are all kinds... What was that last one?"

"That's the mysterious clan. They don't have many videos, but the leader, who hides the top half of her face with a mask, has incredible singing ability, and the backup dancers are amazing, so their view counts are insane. Also, they're a small elite group with only four members."

A small clan that could rival a major one despite being shrouded in mystery was an interesting story, but the name sounded familiar, and Parfait tried to remember where she had heard it.

As she was thinking about it, there was a knock on the base's door, and Parfait was brought back to reality.

"Um, it's Cynthia. Is Parfait-san here? I've run out of Spider Silk, so I was hoping to get some if you have any..."

Cynthia's voice, as quiet as a mosquito's buzzing, came through.

She had told her there was no gathering today, but she had let her know that she would be logging in. It seemed Cynthia and the other members had also refrained from AFO during the exam period, but they didn't need to study as much as Parfait, so they had been logging in from time to time to gather Spider Silk or level up their skills.

Parfait told Kazatoki and Lion, "I'll be right back," and approached the door. She opened it quietly.

"Cynthia-chan, welcome. I have guests right now. I'll introduce you when everyone is here, so for today, I'll just give you the Spider Silk."

"Yes, I understand. But an introduction is too much. I am content to blend into the background and watch from afar— Gck!"

From Cynthia's position, she must have happened to see inside, because right after seeing Kazatoki and Lion, she covered her mouth with both hands and fell forward onto the floor.

"Hey, Cynthia-chan!?"

Then, for some reason, Cynthia wrote "Beautiful Girls" on the floor in red letters. Seeing that, Parfait realized it was her usual fit.

"Cynthia-chan, don't leave a dying message on the floor. Why are you even prepared for this..."

It was unclear what kind of performance this was, but Cynthia suddenly jumped up, the timid image from before completely gone, and her eyes began to sparkle. It wasn't a game effect. Her own eyes were definitely sparkling.

"Parfait-shi! This is... this is not good! This humble servant has crossed the Sanzu River once, and has returned, unable to die like this!"

"Calm down a little. You're scaring the two of them... Oh, it's okay. This is my friend, Cynthia-chan. It's just that, well, she has a forced buff that makes her tension jump several times higher when she sees a cute girl..."

It wasn't just tension, it was a berserker type forced buff, but her crude explanation was in vain. Kazatoki and Lion huddled together as if watching a horror movie, staring at Cynthia with bewildered faces.

Cynthia, for her part, looked at Kazatoki and Lion as if they were a little too bright, but then she said, "Excuse me for a moment, de gozaru!" and went outside, closing the door. Immediately, an excited voice could be heard from outside.

"Ginny-shi! Ginny-shi! This is a major incident, de gozaru! There are two unfamiliar beautiful girls in the base right now... Hah! Could it be, those two are a reward that Ginny-shi summoned for this humble servant who lives every day in desperation...? ...What, you don't know? In other words, are those two wild beautiful girls, de gozaru!? If a diamond and a rough stone were both lying on the street, it's only natural to legally pocket them, de gozaru!"

A conversation that sounded like a voice chat to the logged out Ginny could be heard. What's a wild beautiful girl, Parfait wondered, but she seriously started to worry about how she was going to explain this.

"No, no, I will definitely abide by the antitrust laws, de gozaru. However, if you could just see with your own eyes, you would understand, but this is a promised victory that makes even insider trading unavoidable! This humble servant's heart server is on the verge of crashing from excessive access, de gozaru!"

She didn't know what she was saying, but she could tell it was something unsettling. Realizing she couldn't explain this away any longer, Parfait opened the door and stepped outside.

"Um, Cynthia-chan, everyone can hear you, and you're scaring them..."

At that, Cynthia finally came to her senses. Her energetic face turned into an expression of someone whose world was ending tomorrow.

"I, I apologize... I got too excited..."

"Yeah, I think you need to get used to seeing you and Ginny-chan's thing a little at a time... It's, um, bad for the heart..."

After saying that, Parfait brought the dejected Cynthia back inside the base.

Cynthia bowed her head apologetically to Kazatoki and Lion.

"I'm so sorry for startling you... This humble servant... I, I have this illness where I get excited and make offerings when I see a beautiful girl who looks good in cosplay... I apologize for making you feel uncomfortable..."

Kazatoki and Lion frantically shook their heads.

"No, no, Lion-chan and I were just surprised. Besides, it's not unpleasant to be called a beautiful girl. Lion-chan aside, I was actually happy because it was the first time anyone has ever said that to me."

"Um, Kazacchan, no one's ever said that to me either?"

"Huh? But there are comments like that in your stream, right?"

"That's 'pitiful beautiful girl'... Well, I guess it's technically in the beautiful girl category... but I'm not happy about it..."

"Are you both video streamers...?"

They were now in a situation where all four of them were talking, so Parfait introduced them to each other, partly to help them get used to Cynthia. In particular, she gave a thorough explanation about Ginny, who would probably be arriving soon, saying she was of the same kind as Cynthia.

After they had explained their situations and how they met, things finally seemed to calm down. However, Cynthia had been staring at Kazatoki with an overly serious gaze for a while now.

"Kazatoki-san, if I may be so bold as to ask... do you like foxes?"

"Foxes? I've only seen them in videos, but I think they're cute. But what is this about...?"

Parfait also thought foxes were cute, but she had no idea what this was about.

"Ah, sorry. In a certain community, there is a combination that has been passed down since ancient times, known as the Three Sacred Treasures..."

"The, Three Sacred Treasures? A combination?"

"Yes. For Lion-san, who is already complete, any further setting would be unrefined... In simple terms, it would be like adding fried shrimp to a katsu curry that's already topped with a hamburger patty, fried chicken, and a croquette. Does that make it easier to understand?"

"Doesn't that actually make it more difficult...?"

Parfait retorted out loud, but in her mind, she added, But mom would order a Neapolitan on a hot plate on the side as her second stomach, and add a melon juice and chocolate parfait to that.

"Um, to put it more simply, it's an overload of settings... in other words, it would be too much. However, for you, Kazatoki-san, there is still room. You're still at the level of a large katsu curry..."

"I like curry, but there's still room, you say?"

"I hear you make a living as a video streamer. And that you're on a roll right now thanks to the combat video with Parfait-san."

"W, well, yes. I'm grateful for that."

"Then now is the time to strike. Of course, I won't force you, but if you'd be willing, I'd like to bestow the Three Sacred Treasures upon you, Kazatoki-san—"

As Cynthia was saying that, the sound of hurried footsteps came from the second floor.

It was almost certainly Ginny. Parfait glanced at Kazatoki and Lion.

The two of them, having understood the situation from the earlier explanation, nodded as if they had resigned themselves to their fate.

Parfait had assured them that she wasn't a bad person, so she thought it would be fine to some extent, and waited for Ginny.

Then Ginny appeared, coming down the stairs. And when she saw the two of them, her pupils dilated.

"Ginny-chan, hold back!"

At Parfait's words, Ginny flinched and covered her mouth with both hands, but her gaze was fixed on Kazatoki and Lion. Then, with an unsettling intensity, she locked her eyes on Kazatoki.

Parfait knew. That was her real life demonic eye in action.

After about ten seconds, the intensity faded from Ginny's eyes. She took a deep breath, approached the table, sat down, and closed her eyes.

"I have found the answer to the universe."

Parfait, Kazatoki, and Lion looked puzzled. They didn't know what answer she had found, but Cynthia alone gazed at Ginny with expectant eyes.

Ginny, in the meantime, was holding a cup of tea with her pinky extended. She brought the cup to her lips, took a single sip, then snapped her eyes open and looked at Kazatoki.

"Fox Miko 'noja' Princess..."

"As expected of Ginny-shi! This humble servant was thinking the same thing—"

Ginny raised her hand lightly, cutting off Cynthia's words.

"With a side of bokukko...!"

"...Excellen-t-t-t! Per and fect, Ginny-shi! Kah! Is that combination not a completely forbidden alchemy, de gozaru!? Even the Philosopher's Stone would turn pale, de gozaru!"

Ginny had said something you might see on a restaurant menu, and Cynthia was agreeing with her.

Ginny closed her eyes, stood up, and raised her right hand high. Cynthia also stood up with a smile, and the two of them exchanged a high five with only their right hands. After the high five, they placed their right hands on their hips, moved so they were back to back, and both closed their eyes, turning their faces to the lower left.

They looked a little smug, and Parfait was exasperated, but then she remembered.

I've seen that finishing pose in Heart-Pounding Pandemonium... More importantly, what do I do about this atmosphere...?

Kazatoki and Lion, unable to grasp the situation, were blinking in confusion, while Ginny and Cynthia remained frozen in their smug pose.

Parfait hesitated, but then decided to leave it to Rick and sent a voice chat request for help.