Chapter 6: Final Battle!
Chapter 6: Final Battle!
At last, the spring PvP tournament sponsored by Mystic Arts had come to its final round! The final match was me versus Akira, two members of the same guild duking it out! The two of us walked up the stairs, side by side.
“We finally made it! And we’ve got Libra’s Brush in the bag! We did pretty darn good, huh?” Akira chirped, grinning.
Since the two of us were facing off in the finals, Libra’s Brush was already guaranteed to go to our guild. That made this fight more like a bonus stage or an exhibition match. We could pretty much kick back and have fun from here on out.
“Man, that was a long, hard road. All that money, lost to the darkness...”
“Haha, you did waste a lot of money, huh? Four million Mila in total. Cha-ching!”
“Don’t forget my Fanatic’s Staff.”
The staff wasn’t all that expensive, but I was worse off without it. I was able to get an iron sword to use for a Canesword in this fight, but unfortunately, I hadn’t had time to get a new Fanatic’s Staff. I made a mental note to go shopping soon.
“Well, both of the weapons were either given to you or picked up by Draco, so I’d just give up and say the money wasn’t yours to begin with.”
“Nah, I don’t regret it anymore. After seeing one hit do over five thousand points of damage, I don’t mind one bit! Huge numbers like that are dramatic, Akira! You’ll get what I mean when you try it yourself.”
“Huh? You want me to give up being a sword dancer? Guess I’ll become a symbologist.”
“Whoa! No, no, no. Stay a sword dancer, please.”
The drama cannon can hold its own in one-on-one duels if you ignore the cost, but I really shine when I’m partied up with my sword dancer sidekick. Our partnership is what grants us our real power.
“Oh? You mean for my abilities, right?”
“Yeah, for your abilities. We have perfect synergy.”
“I kinda feel like you’re also in it for the eye candy, though.”
“You got it! It’s honestly just a small bonus, but I’m always appreciative!”
“Geez! I never know whether you even mean the first one these days, considering you’re always checking me out. If I were any other girl, you’d have been screamed at a hundred times by now.” Akira gave me a fierce glare.
“Heh... Well, uh, y’see—”
Luckily, we were interrupted by an announcement.
“Now for the final match! Contestants, enter the ring!”
“That’s our cue!”
“Yeah. Let’s get to it.”
“I’m not gonna hold back. Give me all you got!”
“Totally. No hard feelings!”
Akira and I nodded as we walked up the staircase. The staircase was essentially a private space where nobody else could see us. Akira and I were walking close together, when suddenly she linked arms with me. Her robust chest pressed against my arm, and I marveled at the softness.
“Hey! What the heck?!” I asked, a little flustered.
“Heheh. Is there a problem?”
“I mean, where’s this coming from?”
“Just using seduction to my advantage! I’m gonna make it impossible for you to concentrate so I can get ahead early! Plus, if we walk out like this, you’re gonna get the whole crowd’s aggro. Teehee!”
“Whoa, now that’s just dirty.”
“Mwahaha... I told you I wouldn’t hold back. All’s fair in love and war, Ren!”
“Man, you’re the most ruthless opponent I’ve had yet.”
“So? You know my dirty tricks, but you’re not gonna pull away?”
“Well, however dirty you decide to fight, I’ve gotta fight you back fair and square.”
“Sounds like you’re just having fun to me!”
“No comment!”
“I see how it is. Clamming up now that your back’s to the wall, huh?” Akira chuckled. “Nah, honestly, I was just trying to hide my embarrassment. You made it to the finals, just like you promised. I’m so happy, I couldn’t help latching on. Heehee. Sorry if I surprised you.”
“Oh, well, umm, it was kind of a nice surprise, if you know what I mean...”
We both fell silent, a bittersweet, ticklish emotion fluttering in our hearts. The arena was coming into view as the clamor within grew louder and louder.
What in the world?! I’ve never heard of something like this, even in dating sims!
Akira let go of my arm and ran a few steps ahead.
“Just kidding! Great emotional warfare, right? Now you really won’t be able to focus on the fight!”
“It was all a ruse? Gah, you’re such a jerk!” I ran after Akira in an attempt to catch her. Just as I did, we both lost our balance and fell over.
“Aah!”
“Whoa!”
We both tumbled to the ground in the center of the stadium. As a result... The first impression we gave as we entered was me pushing Akira over. On top of that, my hand was positioned right on her chest! It was almost like I copped a lucky feel, but out here, it was actually pretty unlucky.
Is this what the real deal feels like?! Man, it’s sooo soft! I wonder if it only feels like this in-game, or if it’s like this in real-life too...
“Hey, buddy! Is sullying our precious Akira part of your entrance schtick?!”
“You tryna pick a fight with all of us, dumbass?!”
“I paid to see something like this?! Whoever’s idea this was, I wanna see you right this second!”
“Takashiro, I misjudged you! That’s not what a follower’s supposed to do! We look, but we don’t touch!”
The ground beneath me seemed to shake as the crowd erupted with boos.
“Ahahaha... Sorry, Ren. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
“Don’t sweat it. I already knew you’d be the fan favorite. Let’s just ignore them and get on with it.”
“Okay. Mind getting your hand off my boob, then?”
“Oops! Sorry, my bad.”
“No, it’s my fault, too.”
We both stood up in a panic and faced each other in preparation for the duel.
“Now that I’ve been faced with the fact that I still don’t have a boyfriend at my age, I may have lost some of the wind in my sails, but we’re getting ready for our final match! I’m sure most of the audience understands how I feel!”
A good chunk of the crowd cheered, supporting Ms. Nakada’s sudden admission.
“Go on, just flirt the whole time, why don’t you?! Okay, okay. Start the match, I guess.”
The gong sounded a little sadder this time, too.
Here we go! The final battle is on!
Akira and I stared off amid the relentless booing. I’d been able to scrounge up materials for a new Canesword after the last match, but I was still missing a new Fanatic’s Staff. That meant I wouldn’t be able to deal with Akira’s attacks by guarding for zero damage.
Even so, the shockwaves from Skyfall use magic stats for damage calculations, so a Fanatic’s Staff wouldn’t have been much help anyway. I figured I should aim for a short fight in which I won in one strike. She also had Breath of Ares to fill up her AP bar, so the longer the battle got, the greater her advantage.
If she did manage to secure enough AP, Akira could use Vanishing Whirl to really drag the battle out, like Akabane had. Additionally, she had some sort of brand-new card up her sleeve I knew nothing about.
Once again, the more AP she gets, the worse things get for me. Long battles aren’t good for me, so I should aim for a quick win. All right, first up...
“Enervating Circle!”
I cast the circle with a radius large enough to clear out my MP bar! I wanted to finish her off in one go.
My foe, Akira, used a Toxin to start the match. This was to be expected at this point, so I had entered the battle already holding a Canesword.
“Comin’ in hot!” I took off toward Akira, ready to end the battle immediately.
“No way!” Akira turned and started running away, trying to escape the circle.
Guess she’s not willing to intercept my charge.
“Hey! Get back here, you!”
“Aaah! He’s chasing meee!”
As I chased the poor girl, attempting to cut her down, I probably looked like some kinda despicable thug.
This is prime time if I wanna win, though! There’s no other way!
I ran faster, gradually closing in on her, and soon she was inside the Enervating Circle. Just as I got within attack range, however...
“Vanishing Whirl!”
Akira sprung into the air and disappeared.
“Gah, darn it! You got enough AP for it that fast?!”
I had completely lost sight of her. Now the situation was reversed; she was on the offensive and I was forced to proceed with caution. No matter how much time passed, though, she didn’t attack me. My circle eventually dissipated after its effect time ran out.
“Oh, I get it. You don’t want me getting even a single point of AP.”
AP increases whenever you attack or are attacked. Also, my Parry Ring also gives an AP boost whenever I take zero damage while guarding. I didn’t have any strength behind my normal attacks, so all I’d been able to do until now was build up AP through guarding and having my guard broken.
Akira was cutting off my one source of AP.
“That’s right. Windmill and Stinging Shot may not be strong, but you can move in tricky ways when you combine them. I know if I give you too many options, you’ll come up with something crazy, so I’ve gotta take them away from you instead.”
Not only was she still invisible, but her voice was also constantly moving, so I couldn’t figure out where she was.
That’s Akira for you. She’s always on her guard, never leaving an opening. She’s probably waiting until her AP bar fills up completely.
Thanks to AP Limit Break, Akira’s max AP was multiplied by 1.5, making for a total of 450. Once she hit that new maximum, she would probably come at me with her trump card—a legendary move she hadn’t even teased during the entire tournament! This would be our first time facing off since she’d come into possession of it, too. We hadn’t even tested it together at the training grounds.
“Planning on using you-know-what?”
“Mwahaha. Remember, I’m not pulling any punches. I’ve got a feeling I’ll need it to take you down, Ren.”
“Are you sure, though? There are tons of people here.”
“Um, I’ll be fine! I think!”
She’s unsure. Well, that’s normal, considering what it is.
After a few more minutes passed, I figured she was probably nearing 450 AP.
“Okay, um, here goes nothin’! G-G-Get ready for this!”
She faded back in from where she’d been stealthed, and one thing about her was very different.
“Aww yeaaaah! Hot dang, Akira!”
“Woohoo! Yowza!”
“Whooooa! Nice, nice, nice!”
The crowd went absolutely bonkers.
“Wow! That’s insane!”
Akira was wearing totally new gear that was much more revealing. It was basically an eye-popping bikini with its own built-in wrap. Compared to what she was wearing before, this was on a whole other level. The top piece was silver with gold embellishments, and the silvery bottom was a ruffled miniskirt that sparkled in the light.
The outfit really showed off her assets, pleasantly defining her full, round bust and curvy hourglass figure. Her whole belly, including her navel, was clearly visible. While her lower body was just barely covered, the fabric was being moved around so much by the wind that it might as well have not been there at all.
Wow, what an amazing outfit. It’s the perfect marriage of sexy and cute!
“S-Stop staring at me! It’s embarrassing!”
“I’d be a fool to look away from my opponent in battle. Besides, everyone in the crowd is staring at you too, y’know.”
“Augh! Don’t say that! I’m trying to ignore it!”
Her gear was called Angelic Charm. It was another item we’d found at Almishr’r Burial Ground. As you might expect from its appearance, just looking at it is enough to charm you. Its special effect makes it so that members of the opposite sex can’t guard against your attacks. The ability is probably meant to reflect the idea that the enemy is so distracted by you that he neglect his own self-defense. It’s a surprisingly—or should I say, incredibly—strong effect.
On the other hand, the outfit stands out so much that it nullifies all stealth skills, including Vanishing Whirl. With carefully timed outfit changes, that weakness could probably be avoided outright. Akira didn’t have an Equip Ring or the Quick Change talent, though, so she had to change manually. She was probably going to keep Angelic Charm equipped for the rest of the match.
From here on out, I wouldn’t be able to guard any of her attacks. Even if I made the guarding motion, it wouldn’t decrease the damage I sustained. I could only assume she held back something this powerful for so long because it was so humiliating to wear. It was only here and now that she’d broken the seal on this legendary gear.
“G-Get ready! I’m gonna give you the beating of a lifetime!” Akira declared, her face as red as a beet.
“Haaah!”
For the first time in our match, she came in for an attack. Akira slashed at the air from a safe distance, creating a shockwave with Skyfall. Thanks to Angelic Charm, I wouldn’t be able to guard her attacks. She dashed right behind her shockwave, ready to attack me as soon as I moved to evade.
So, what should I do? I could avoid the shockwave, but Akira’s poised to follow my dodge with her own direct attack. With no AP, I can’t use Windmill’s jump to avoid her.
My actions were heavily limited. The only way forward was to go on the hunt for my one-hit kill! I ignored the shockwave and charged straight ahead. I withstood the attack that threatened to blow me away, pressing onward.
Akira attacked.
Dealt 73 damage to Ren!
That’s nothin’ to cry about!
I rushed into range of Akira, who was still right behind the shockwave.
“Hawk Strike!”
She activated her art and leapt into the air above me.
She’s gonna flee for now, huh? I guess she does have 450 AP to blow through.
“Tch. Running away?”
“Nope! Eat this!”
Fwoosh!
Another shockwave was headed in my direction.
If I take this one head-on, she’ll just run away again!
I ran away at an angle to put as much distance as possible between us as I evaded her shockwaves. As soon as I stopped moving, Akira unleashed another attack.
Skyfall and Angelic Charm make for one heck of a combo! It’s a perfect storm against men. If I take it head-on, she runs away. If I run away, she comes after me. Hmm...
“All right. I see how it is!”
I faced the shockwave, opened my inventory, and used a healing potion. My HP recovered just as I took the hit. As a result, I healed about as much as I lost.
Akira’s watching out for my ultimate move, so she won’t step into close range.
Another shockwave came in from beyond my range, so I started running away once more. We followed the same sequence as before: after my quick turn, she shot another shockwave at me as I gulped down a potion. My HP was still the same as it was before. After this second repetition, Akira stopped and stared at me.
“I see... You’re trying to gain AP.”
“Whoops! You got me.”
The reason I moved away from her was because the potion animation takes time. If I hadn’t put a gap between us, the shockwave would’ve reached me before I finished drinking it, interrupting the process. I had calculated the distance between us so that the shockwave reached me just after I finished. If I kept this up, I could build up enough AP to give myself more options. The only way to stop me from doing that was to fight at close range, which would make it possible for me to OHKO her.
So, what’ll you choose, ol’ buddy of mine?
“All I have to do is keep going until you run out of potions,” she said.
That was my biggest worry. If she just continued coming at me with shockwaves, I’d be done for. The amount of AP you get from an enemy’s attack is based on the attack type, rather than the damage dealt. For example, if you deal ten damage or a hundred damage with the same attack, the AP gain would be the same. I took a lot of damage from Akira’s attacks because I couldn’t guard against them, but it wasn’t giving me any more AP than I would’ve normally received.
In other words, I was getting AP at a very inefficient rate. I wouldn’t be able to guard and build up AP over time like I had before since there was a good chance I’d die first. Plus, I didn’t have that many potions left. The sooner I could make this a close-range duel, the better.
“Heh. Are you sure you have the time to spare? I think you’d better hurry. Take a look!” I waved toward the audience.
Whenever Akira stood still, they had the perfect opportunity to snap as many screenshots as they wanted. Flashes from otherworldly lenses filled the stands.
“Aaahhh!”
“Imagine all the pictures people are taking of you in your Angelic Charm.”
“Why don’t you yell at them?! Or, umm, I don’t know, stop them or something?!” Akira’s voice squeaked. Her face was flushed red, and her eyes were brimming with tears.
Oof, maybe I went a little too far.
“Okay, fine, sorry. Time-out for a sec, so I can cover you up.”
“Wha...?”
I used a mana potion to replenish my empty MP bar.
“Enervating Circle! Enfeebling Circle! Stupefying Circle!”
The three-layered circle turned black as my MP fell to zero again. Now Akira and I were pretty much invisible to the crowd. It was dark in the circle as well, but not dark enough that we couldn’t see each other.
“There. They can’t see you now.”
“Oh. Um, thanks, Ren.”
“Hey, no need to thank me. I was just pretending to be nice so I could debuff you.”
“Uh-huh, suuure. You say that, but I bet you just wanted me all to yourself, right? Am I right? Well... I can’t say I’m not flattered.”
“I can remove the circles at any time, y’know.”
“No! Please don’t!”
“Then let’s finish this before they run out! We’ve got one minute!”
“All right! If that’s how it is, let’s see which one of us can OHKO the other first!”
We both moved into close range, readying our weapons. The anticipation of this decisive confrontation sent my nerves crackling. I had about 50 AP, which was enough to use Windmill and Stinging Shot once each.
I’ll have to use them wisely if I wanna win this!
“Let’s do this thing, Ren!”
“Yeah! Three... two... one...!”
“Go!”
With that, we charged toward one another.
“Ultimate move! Cross Crescent!”
This move is a blend of Double Slash and Crescent Slash. It combines Crescent Slash’s wide-range crescent moon effect with Double Slash’s two-hit effect. It even activates Skyfall’s shockwave ability as a bonus. The attack had a wider range than my ultimate move, so I took the full brunt of it and kept moving.
Akira activated Cross Crescent.
Dealt 494 damage to Ren!
I’ve still got 450 HP! I made it! Now Akira’s right in front of me! If I use my ultimate, it’ll hit her for sure! Agh, but I’m all out of MP. If I use Dead End, it’ll bring my HP down to 1. So if we both attack at the same time, the battle will probably end in a draw. I’ll have to win by using Dead End right after one of Akira’s attacks, almost like a counterattack. All right, next time she attacks, I’m gonna go for it.
“Ultimate move! Aerial...”
The first blow launched me high into the air.
She used Aerial Crescent?!
Because I was forcibly moved by the first attack, I couldn’t counter the second. As I floated in the air, I caught sight of Akira jumping up and pulling back her sword for the next hit.
This is bad. Am I gonna survive this?! I’d better use Dead End to force a draw!
When I saw my HP bar, though, I noticed I had a whopping 228 HP left. The first blow had dealt 222 damage.
Huh, that’s funny. Aerial Crescent’s first and second strikes both deal the same amount of damage, so after I take 222 more damage, I’ll be down to 6 HP. I can take this hit and counter for the win! But would Akira make a mistake like that? My best friend Akira, of all people? I wonder if she’s got another trick up her sleeve. Wait, that means...!
Akira’s move wasn’t Aerial Crescent at all. It was something else entirely.
“...Full Moon!”
Akira rose even higher into the air, holding her sword aloft. She then began rapidly somersaulting toward me. As I watched the flashy animation of her spinning blade, I marveled at the extraordinary feat. This ultimate was probably made by throwing another art on top of Aerial Crescent.
If I had tried to attack her right before she leapt into the air, I would’ve totally whiffed it. Even if I’d wanted to counterattack, her ultimate move—which hit more than just twice—would have killed me.
Thank goodness I noticed something was off!
I set Dead End aside for now and changed my course of action.
“Stinging Shot!”
My direction changed in midair. As she spun by, her sword just missed me.
“Huh?!”
“Skill Set C! Skill Set B!”
I changed sets twice, switching from Canesword to iron staff to Canesword again. I had just launched my Canesword away using Stinging Shot, but doing this brought it back immediately. Normally, you can’t fight while your staff is returning to you, but if you change equipment fast enough, it skips that altogether.
I can’t let this moment go to waste! With my Canesword back in hand, there’s just one thing left to do!
“Ultimate move! Dead Eeeeend!”
It was a direct hit on Akira, who was still spinning in midair.
Smaaaaash!
“Waaaagh!”
Ren activated Dead End.
Dealt 2,622 damage to Akira!
Ren has defeated Akira.
Duel complete! Ren is the winner!
Ren’s duel record is 6W / 0L.
“What’s this? It’s over! The winner is Ren Takashiro! Congratulations!”
I won! Woohoo! Go Ren, go Reeen! Winning is always a thrill, but for the Emperor of the Underpowered, winning with a weak class is all the sweeter!
“Good work, Akira. That was a great fight!” I walked over to Akira and extended my hand, offering to help her up.
“Darn it, I can’t believe I lost. I put on that embarrassing outfit for nothing!” She took my hand, already back to wearing her usual gear.
Wow, she’s quick!
“That was so close! I was like, literally seconds away from losing. We should do that again!”
“Yeah, it was pretty fun! We get Libra’s Brush, too. I’m really glad I joined this tournament.”
“For sure. Pretty sure I got to show the world just how much potential symbologist has. Did you see that, everybody?! You fall in love with symbologist yet?!”
“BOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
Wow. They’re still at it, huh? I’d better get out of the spotlight.
“They clearly hate me. I guess they were all rooting for you, Akira.”
“Hahaha... Oh well.”
“How about we get outta here?!”
“Sure. Let’s go!”
Thus, we exited the stadium and moved toward the waiting room. As we descended the stairs, I shot Akira a bashful glance.
“So, uh, is it cool if I take some screenshots of Angelic Charm later on?”
“Huh? Absolutely not!”
“What?! I can’t believe you!”
“I’m super mad because I lost, so you don’t get to see nothin’! Maybe next time, bucko!”
With that, we successfully took home Libra’s Brush!