kscans

Chapter 507 - The Fruits of Training

Trachiyo's return party ended up being a grand affair. Orion from Cats are God, Deeger from Cretaceous, and even Rhadia from Highway Star somehow heard about it and came to the base, so they had a lively time with the clan members.

During the party, Parfait asked about pet speech patterns, but they said their pets didn't have such strange ways of talking. However, they did have various personalities. Orion's Bastet was a battle maniac, Deeger's Quetzalcoatlus was a taciturn craftsman, and Rhadia's Lucky Seven was obsessed with firepower.

Trachiyo was Type: Simon, so his speech and personality were both samurai-like. Parfait had no intention of correcting him, but when she let slip her true feeling that she wished he were a little more graceful or feminine, she was told by those around her, "That's impossible," "I don't think that's possible," and "To begin with, Parfait-chan is... ahem, ahem," which left Parfait feeling a little hurt.

That was yesterday. Today, Parfait and Trachiyo had come to a hunting ground with only monsters that could be hunted solo.

There was no news of the next event yet, and no information from Rick, so she had no particular goal. She chose the mountain-type dungeon "Old Shugendo Trail," where there were many oni-type monsters, hoping to get some items that would sell for a good price.

It was a repeatable dungeon where you could get a clear reward by defeating a monster called a Tengu that only appeared in the deepest part. The reward was good for a solo player, but defeating the Tengu was a hassle, so it was an unpopular spot for solos.

"Alright, Trachiyo. Show me the results of your training here."

"Sessha has undergone training that could be described as washing blood with blood in order to become closer to my lord, de gozaru. Please watch carefully!"

"...Yeah, I'm looking forward to it."

Trachiyo, the cat who had become a samurai. There was no other way to describe the situation, and Parfait felt a little conflicted. She had wanted Trachiyo to be more elegant, but he had become a cat to whom the words duty, humanity, and loyalty fit well. That didn't mean Trachiyo wasn't cute, and she was happy that he had worked so hard for her. Is this a maiden's complex heart? Parfait reached a strange conclusion as she stepped into the dungeon.

Trachiyo was as strong as he had claimed. His search ability was high, and his attacks, which landed the first blow without the opponent noticing and aimed for a critical hit, felt more like a ninja than a samurai, but he was reliably dispatching weak enemies. He used a similar fighting style against strong enemies, but with his speed, he launched a continuous assault and defeated them without any trouble.

However, he would sometimes stand perfectly still, and then counter a monster's attack. It was a fighting style similar to Parfait's.

"Trachiyo, that was..."

"As expected of my lord, you noticed. This is a technique sessha acquired through training, Azuma-ryu Claw Arts Nekodamashi...!"

"Azuma-ryu Claw Arts Nekodamashi..."

Various thoughts raced through her head, like how there was no such thing in Azuma-ryu, and how that's not what nekodamashi is, but the words Parfait said were simple.

"You've learned it well...!"

"I am grateful for the honor...!"

To a third party, it would look like quite a farce, but if they were happy, then that was fine. Parfait thought so and praised Trachiyo.

Be that as it may, Trachiyo had undoubtedly become stronger. His stats seemed to have increased significantly, and the amount of damage he dealt was not that of a cat. Even if Trachiyo was a rare monster, was it okay for him to become that strong? It was on a level where she suspected another bug. If she asked Diite, she would just get a "There are no bugs in AFO" in reply, so she wouldn't say anything.

And so, Parfait and Trachiyo reached the deepest part in no time. As she had heard, a Tengu monster appeared. It had a red face, a large nose, the attire of a mountain ascetic, a giant leaf fan, and wings on its back. It was a typical Tengu.

It would be cruel to make Trachiyo fight this alone, so Parfait joined the battle.

The Tengu frequently used wind-attribute attacks, creating small tornadoes with its fan. When it took a certain amount of damage, it would fly into the air with its wings and constantly attack from a distance, making it an annoying opponent.

Parfait had her transforming weapon, the Beelzebub 666 Replica, so she could damage the flying Tengu normally. She attacked without any particular concern.

And after it took flight, she used the rifle form of Beelzebub to shoot it down. She defeated the Tengu without any problems. It was Trachiyo who was impressed.

"As expected of my lord... I see, a ranged weapon, de gozaru..."

"Don't go off training to learn that, okay?"

It wasn't that she didn't want to know what kind of training a pet cat would undergo to learn a ranged attack, but it would be a problem if Trachiyo, who had just returned, decided he still needed more training and left again.

"Understood. Sessha will master close-quarters combat, de gozaru...!"

He didn't have to master it, but she didn't want to dampen his enthusiasm, so Parfait nodded.

Having obtained the treasure the Tengu had been hoarding, Parfait and the others were returned to the dungeon entrance. But Trachiyo's eyes were saying, "Let's go again."

She had no particular plans for the day, and she could still earn more, so Parfait stepped into the Old Shugendo Trail with Trachiyo once more.

"Ah."

"I smell a formidable foe, de gozaru! My blood boils!"

At Trachiyo's request, Parfait and her companion cleared the Old Shugendo Trail many times, but on the fourth Tengu, something strange happened. A rare Tengu monster, "Kurama," appeared.

This Kurama was said to be impossible to defeat solo, and it had hunted many players who were running the dungeon alone. It was also rare for it to appear when in a party, so it was quite disliked among players.

That Kurama attacked without warning.

Its fighting style was the same as a normal Tengu, but its attack range and power were on a different level. A huge tornado assailed them. The attack speed was on the slow side, so neither Parfait nor Trachiyo would be hit by it, but the problem was Kurama's movement. Kurama teleported, so it was difficult to get close. This was the reason solo players had a hard time winning.

"My lord, sessha will engage that one in close combat, de gozaru! My lord, please attack from a distance immediately after it moves!"

Having figured out that it couldn't teleport continuously, Trachiyo said this and charged at Kurama.

(He even thinks up tactics? Isn't my child too amazing?)

When she was in a party, Chris or Rick would think of such things, but Trachiyo had taken their place. In that case, she would do as he said, and she changed Beelzebub into its rifle form.

Kurama immediately teleported away from Trachiyo's attack, but Parfait's long-range attack from Beelzebub hit it right after it appeared. Its HP and defense weren't that different from a normal Tengu, and it took a decent amount of damage.

"A splendid shot, de gozaru!"

"...Yeah, you be careful too!"

She wanted to ask if it was really an AI, but she didn't think there was a person inside, so Parfait quickly came to terms with the fact that Trachiyo was Trachiyo. Even if he was an AI, there was an AI named Diite. If Diite was the same as a person, then Trachiyo was the same as a cat. She switched her mindset.

With Trachiyo's coordination, Parfait whittled down Kurama's HP. Unlike a normal Tengu, Kurama didn't fly into the air even when its HP was low. But its attack pattern changed slightly.

It teleported to dodge Trachiyo's attack, but it appeared right in front of Parfait.

"Crap!"

Parfait took the attack with Beelzebub still in its rifle state. An attack that would have been easily deflected in its sword state was a little awkward to handle in its rifle form, and she took the hit normally.

"My lord!"

Just as Parfait was about to say "I'm fine" in response to Trachiyo's words, she was surprised. Trachiyo was using the Wanna Fight Step skill to increase his own stats.

Immediately after, Trachiyo shot out like a bullet. He landed a blow on Kurama. It didn't end there. Trachiyo began to circle around Kurama.

(Wait, is this Seiryu...?)

One of the Azuma-ryu sword techniques, Seiryu. It was a flashy special move where you circled the opponent at high speed, slashing them, and then finished by leaping into the air with a spinning slash... according to Benitsuru's teachings. The important thing was apparently the coolness factor, but Parfait thought it was debatable whether it was cool or not. Also, in the real world, only Benitsuru and Simon could do it. Parfait could only do it in virtual reality.

Trachiyo was doing an attack that looked like Seiryu. Right now, he was a black circle, circling around Kurama and scratching him. But he was steadily chipping away at Kurama's HP, and it was almost gone.

"Azuma-ryu Claw Arts Ultimate..."

"...Eh?"

"Kuruma-gakari!"

As Trachiyo said this, he leaped up and scratched Kurama while spinning. At the peak of his jump, an effect of Trachiyo's claws glinting occurred. With that attack, Kurama's HP was depleted, and he disappeared into particles of light.

As Parfait stared blankly, Trachiyo hurried over to her.

"My lord, are you injured?"

"I'm fine, but that was..."

"The ultimate technique of Azuma-ryu Claw Arts, de gozaru. I cannot perform it in my normal state, but during Wanna Fight Step, I can manage it. Even then, the success rate is low, de gozaru, but sessha saw my lord get attacked and the blood rushed to my head."

She wondered if AIs could have blood rush to their heads, but Parfait decided that didn't matter and picked up Trachiyo.

"Thank you. That was cool... Um, for your service this time, you have done well!"

"...I am overcome with joy!"

Thinking that Trachiyo would like a samurai-style exchange, she said this, and Trachiyo didn't seem to mind. Wondering if Simon-sensei was the same, Parfait held Trachiyo and put the reward that had appeared into her item bag.