Side: Yuki
In the end, the detailed discussion regarding the dungeon was postponed to a later date, and we decided to head back to the castle for the time being.
Incidentally, I haven't officially "returned" control of the dungeon to Raie-kun. Instead, I designated him as a protected user and granted him administrative authority over it.
There's a mechanical reason for this:
The reason is that taking back control of a dungeon costs double the DP. That includes not just the land's DP cost, but everything—traps, monsters inside, facility equipment, and so on.
The long and short of it is that Raie-kun didn't have enough DP to pay that double-price premium after I had already seized it. Since a formal return was impossible, I had him take on a role as a "Vicar," similar to Labyris's position. It's functionally the same as the sub-dungeons in my main territory, so he's essentially in the same boat as Ratz and the others.
With Derieu there as a guard and the connection to our dungeon established, I'm not worried. Unless a Hero shows up, anyway.
With that settled, we returned to the royal castle of Gartz.
The meetings regarding where to install the new dungeons are currently deadlocked in disputes and look like they'll take a few more days.
The immediate problem was how to kill time in the meantime...
"Ooh, Seraria, you're back. If you're free, want to spar again?"
The one who called out was Princess Lowelle.
"I suppose. The day before yesterday was cut short, after all. Why not?"
"Good! I won't be caught off guard this time."
Saying that, the two battle-loving princesses head to the training grounds.
"What should we do?"
I asked the others.
"Well, I and Kaya aside, I think you really should go with them, Onii-san."
Ratz said, shooing me along.
Ehh, then I'll just be bored.
"Ara? You're coming too, Dear. Otherwise, tonight will be terrible for you."
Seraria peeked her head out from the hallway and said that.
"Terrible how?"
"Hmm... how about a full-blown debauchery party? With all your wives. Including me."
"Seriously, Seraria!?"
"Is that true, Seraria-sama!?"
Ratz and Sheila bit onto the suggestion with terrifying enthusiasm.
Hey now, I only have one body. Doing that would just leave everyone frustrated...
"I don't mind. We can leave work alone for a year or so. Given what we've accomplished so far."
True. In just three or four months, we went from zero population to over ten thousand. By any metric, that's more than enough.
"Right? We've been way too busy lately. I think the idea of shutting ourselves in the inn and eating Onii-san whenever we want, as much as we want, sounds wonderful." (Ratz)
"I agree. Yuki-sama doesn't seem very proactive in that department, so I'd like him to be trained until he's attacking his wives in broad daylight. This is for his education." (Sheila)
Hey, you ladies are getting some very wrong ideas!
What happens if I become corrupted by that?
"It would make me happy if you drowned in our bodies." (Seraria)
"Don't worry. We'll protect you, Onii-san~" (Ratz)
"Think of it as a little break. Even if you fall, we'll pull you back eventually, so rest easy." (Sheila)
Ah, I guess this is a win for them either way.
Rurua would probably gladly spend all day naked with me...
"O~i, are we doing this or not?"
Lowelle called out to Seraria.
"Go on. I'm going with Seraria, so don't leave Lowelle all by herself."
"Ara? What a shame. I was so close to a life of love-soaked decadence, even if Lowelle had to be lonely for a bit."
Not sounding particularly disappointed, Seraria shrugged and headed into the training grounds where Lowelle was waiting.
"So, what about the rest of you?"
"Sorry, but I'm scheduled to discuss export pricing and selection with Sharl-sama."
"I shall stay with Yuki-sama." Sheila added.
"...I'll be acting as Ratz's guard." (Kaya)
With that, everyone split up.
Narjia-san is currently causing a stir at a famous smithy in the royal capital.
Apparently, she's combining the knowledge from my world with ancient Elf techniques to study Gartzian metallurgy and craft whatever comes to mind... I just hope she doesn't create something on the level of an "out-of-place artifact."
『Fu, fufufufu... ah-hahahaha!! Ooh, the imagination, the images are overflowing!! I have a feeling I'm about to make something incredible!!』
Yeah, I'm definitely sealing whatever she makes.
I can't help but feel a "Cheat-class" weapon or armor is about to be born.
While I was thinking that, the match between Seraria and Lowelle had begun, with Qual acting as the referee.
CLANG!
The sound of clashing metal echoed.
"Gugh?! Why?! It hit me dead on?!"
Lowelle looked shocked, even though she had clearly blocked Seraria's strike with her shield.
"Too bad. I wasn't going all out during our last spar."
Seraria quickly leaped back out of Lowelle's range.
"The same goes for me!"
Lowelle charged with her shield raised, chasing after the retreating Seraria.
"That charge is such a pain!"
Seraria complained, but she still managed to evade the shield tackle. That was an evasion fueled by raw Level stats.
"Hoh, you dodged that? Normally, that's a timing where we'd both take a hit."
Surprised but composed, Lowelle raised her shield again, looking for an opening.
I see. That tackle is a technique that puts the entire surface area and weight of the shield into the opponent.
However, if you don't escape the reach of Lowelle's sword, you'll get caught by the follow-up In other words, to dodge, you have to evade the pursuing shield tackle and escape the range of the sword strike that comes in the opening.
This is almost impossible to dodge if you're at the same level. Unless your speed is significantly higher than your opponent's, you can't escape that strike zone. That's why the old Seraria used to settle for a trade-off.
Seraria swung her sword again, but...
Swish.
It was almost silent. Even though it was blocked by Lowelle's shield, the impact was parried without a sound.
"Tch!?"
Seraria immediately jumped back. A sword came crashing down exactly where she had been standing.
"You dodged that too? Your speed has increased even more than I thought."
"That's my line. I'd appreciate it if you didn't see through my strikes so easily."
"Don't say that. This is all I have, after all."
Lowelle shifted her shield.
Wait a minute. I don't know their exact levels, but Seraria's should definitely be higher. To think she can completely defend against that using nothing but her shield and intuition... that's incredible.
"Are you surprised?" Sheila spoke up beside me.
"Yeah."
Honestly, I didn't expect such a close fight—I didn't think Seraria would struggle this much. I thought she'd overwhelm her with the level gap.
"Fufu, it's alright. Only Lowelle-oneesama can do that. However, that is the true way to use a shield. Not simply taking the hit, but parrying it. It requires knowing your opponent's movements and habits, plus an extraordinary amount of talent."
"I can see that."
"We of Gartz prioritize protecting our comrades above all else. If we protect them, they live. And then they can help us. That is what the shield is for. To protect them for even a second longer, we specialize in parrying rather than just blocking. Though, only Onee-sama can do it to that extent."
As we watched the match, Lowelle continued to parry Seraria's strikes effortlessly despite the overwhelming level difference. It was a sight to behold.
"That shield is as troublesome as ever in a one-on-one..."
"I won't let you through that easily."
However, a gap was slowly beginning to form. Stamina. The level difference was finally showing. Parrying that many strikes from a superior opponent is exhausting, both physically and mentally.
"Whew... I can't keep this up. Seraria, my apologies. But give me one last clash."
"...You never care about winning or losing, do you? Very well..."
Lowelle admitted her defeat but asked for one final exchange. Knowing what was coming, Seraria agreed and placed her hand on the katana at her waist.
"Hey, Seraria!"
That katana is bad news. She'll slice through the shield and everything.
"It was Yuki, right? It's fine. This is what I wished for. Don't worry, I'll manage somehow."
Lowelle braced her shield and focused entirely on Seraria. Seraria didn't answer me; she simply dropped into an iai stance.
"Come!"
"Haa!"
...What is this, some kind of shonen manga development?
The two clashed.
The match was decided in an instant.
Lowelle's shield was cleaved in two.
It wasn't at a stage where it could be parried—against that katana and Seraria's skill, a shield meant nothing.
"...Honestly, to think that was your trump card."
"Oh? I don't show my real trump card that easily. Besides, Lowelle, you didn't bring that shield, did you?"
"Well, that's a national treasure. I only use it in emergencies. Still, this shield was quite decent..."
"My sword is also just 'decent.'"
"If that's 'decent,' then the gap between us has grown quite wide."
The two exchanged smiles as they talked. Wow, they have more "protagonist energy" than I do. As I was thinking that, Sheila chimed in.
"Sisters, that was a magnificent match. Even the surrounding soldiers seem to have lost their voices in awe."
She stepped forward.
True to her word, the soldiers who had been watching seemed to come to their senses at Sheila's voice, and applause began to break out.
"...However. Lowelle-oneesama. That shield was a custom order, was it not? The match was indeed wonderful. But destroying equipment is frowned upon. Please pay for the repairs out of your own pocket. Actually, in that state, you'll have to buy a new one."
"EEEEHHHHHHHHHHH?!"
Ah, Sheila. She's... actually very strict about this kind of thing.
Looks like Lowelle won't have a salary for a while.
Rest in peace.
