Volume 2, Chapter 41 – Shield Counterattack

Yisi couldn’t help but smile wryly. Her intention in bringing up the topic had been to get Camilla to teach her real combat techniques—after all, games and reality were two entirely different things. With her half-baked fighting style, she would undoubtedly be at a disadvantage against an evenly matched opponent. But because of Camilla’s earlier praise, she no longer had the grounds to ask for special combat training.

Whoosh—

The sound of a blunt weapon cutting through the air. With the aid of [Flame Blossom], the longsword in Shinku’s hands became a formidable force. Every swing put immense pressure on Mary, and due to the flames, each clash between their weapons left another scorch mark on Mary’s shield.

At the same time, like someone on the verge of exhaustion, Mary’s movements grew increasingly sluggish.

With a fierce downward slash of her flame-wreathed greatsword, Shinku unleashed an incantationless close-combat spell.

“[Slash]!”

“It’s over.”

Camilla voiced exactly what Yisi was thinking. Though Mary was one level higher than Shinku, the gap in combat experience and courage between them was overwhelming. Even with Mary’s innate talent of knowing how to wield any weapon she picked up, it couldn’t bridge that chasm.

At least, according to Yisi’s Omniscient Map, Mary’s only spell, [Charge], couldn’t reverse the tide of battle.

Just like every previous block, Mary gritted her teeth and raised the shield in her left hand, bending her knees slightly to minimize the exposed areas of her body.

Yisi frowned.

“Didn’t Mary’s ability warn her to dodge now…?”

Based on what Mary had said earlier, during combat, numerous battle strategies would flash through her mind. Combined with her description of “knowing how to fight with any weapon she picks up,” none of those options should include just standing there waiting to die. If Mary wasn’t simply too foolish to resist, then she must have hidden an ability Yisi didn’t know about.

For the first time, Yisi used [Eye of God] on Mary. Her blue eyes were instantly filled with countless gear-shaped light patterns.

『

Name : Mary

Race : Half-Elf & □□

HP : 650/650

MP : 72/72

Skills : [  ], [Charge]

』

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“Though the blank in the race field is noteworthy, there’s no change in her skills at all.”

The Omniscient Map also showed that Mary only had two skills: [Charge] and her innate ability as a Fallen, likely unnamed since Yisi couldn’t see its title.

For now, let’s call it [Weapon Mastery].

The moment that thought crossed her mind, Mary’s unnamed skill changed to [Weapon Mastery]. It seemed the display in her mind could be customized.

Just as Yisi was puzzled over why Mary wasn’t fleeing, Shinku’s full-powered slash finally struck Mary’s slightly tilted shield.

Yisi could even hear the shield let out a crack.

But contrary to the expected image of Mary being sent flying, a golden light suddenly flashed over Mary’s lightly clothed body. Then, to everyone’s surprise, Mary wasn’t knocked back. Instead, she deflected Shinku’s sword to the left with her shield and, taking advantage of the opening in Shinku’s guard, thrust forward with the shortsword in her right hand.

“Sacred Retribution?”

Yisi couldn’t help but mutter the name of a basic melee skill from [Ragnarøk]. However, [Sacred Retribution] would turn the weapon golden during the counterattack, which Mary clearly hadn’t done.

Maybe it was a different spell.

Whoosh.

Like a match thrown into an oil barrel, the sound of flames erupting suddenly filled the air. Shinku’s entire body burst into flames, the energy far more intense than when she had used [Flame Blossom]. The heat was so overwhelming that Yisi instinctively stepped back to avoid being scalded.

In that brief moment—less than a single breath—the tip of Mary’s wooden sword burned away in the flames, leaving only a charred stump.

“That’s enough.”

As the two halted their battle, Yisi and Camilla hurried forward. The spell Shinku had used was far too intense. Even knowing her flames wouldn’t burn her, standing engulfed in a three-meter-high pillar of fire was hardly reassuring.

“Camilla, put out the fire.”

“—□□□, [Flame Destruction].”

Camilla chanted an incantation, extinguishing the flames with a fire-destroying spell. Inside, aside from her clothes being mostly burned away and her red hair fluttering wildly, Shinku was unharmed.

She herself seemed shocked by the flames, standing there dumbfounded with her mouth slightly open. Only when she saw Yisi did she snap out of it, immediately bowing in panic.

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“S-Sorry, Miss Yisi! I accidentally burned your precious clothes, I… I…”

“Clothes can be replaced. Are you and Mary alright?”

Yisi turned her gaze to Mary, who, aside from being drenched in sweat from the heat, was also unharmed.

“Yeah… I’m fine too. Miss Shinku’s spell was really scary just now.”

“I… I lost control for a moment, so…”

All her usual calm and composure seemed to have vanished. Shinku fidgeted nervously, her cat ears drooping, her voice so quiet it was almost inaudible.

Yisi sighed in relief and patted Shinku’s head.

“It’s fine. As long as you’re unharmed. But the cost of the clothes will be deducted from your pay—this is to remind you to always hold back.”

“…Understood.”

Hearing about the pay cut, Shinku’s already drooping ears sank even lower. Yisi couldn’t help but chuckle, unconsciously giving the fluffy cat ears a gentle pinch.

Warm, soft, and utterly irresistible to the touch.

“Eek!”

Shinku let out an inexplicable squeak, and Yisi yanked her hand back as if electrocuted.

“Uh… sorry. They were just too cute, so I couldn’t help it. As an apology, I’ll cover the cost of the clothes.”

“C-Cute…?”

For some reason, Shinku’s face flushed red, as if embarrassed.

“What’s wrong? Has no one ever called you cute before?”

“…Aside from my clan, everyone else said my ears were ugly. Miss Yisi is the first human to call them cute.”

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As she spoke, Shinku swayed bashfully.

“What a waste…” Those humans were just using her beast-kin traits to flaunt their own superiority. “Shinku, you’re adorable. Don’t feel insecure about your ears. If possible, I’d even hire you at a high price as a hu—”

“As a what?”

“N-Nothing.”

She had nearly blurted out something like “hire you as a hugging pillow,” and Yisi coughed awkwardly.

“Anyway, Shinku, go change in the inn. Standing in the courtyard like this, you’ll catch a cold.”

“Y-Yes, Miss Yisi.”

Watching Shinku hurry off, Yisi turned her attention to Mary, who was being interrogated by Camilla. The golden light that had enveloped Mary’s body was clearly the sign of a spell being cast, but Mary had never mentioned it to either of them. Camilla suspected Mary was hiding something.

“What was that spell just now?”

“I… I don’t know either… Master told me to use one of the unclear options, so at the last moment, I just picked one randomly, and then that happened.”

“So, that spell is one of your abilities. Is that correct?”

“I think… probably… yes?”

Mary answered with a lack of confidence, as if she herself wasn’t sure. Before joining the conversation, Yisi glanced at Mary’s skill list again. Unlike before, when she only had two spells, Mary now had an additional skill called [Shield Counterattack]. Moreover, her level had increased from 7 to 8.

In other words, Mary had not only leveled up mid-battle but also learned a new spell. To Yisi, this was a completely novel phenomenon. In her understanding, learning a spell should involve memorizing incantations and practicing chants. Gaining a skill out of nowhere like this was a first for her.

“Mary, can you perform that move again? I’ll be the attacker this time.”

“Huh? I can try… I don’t think I’ve forgotten how…”

“Then pick up your shield and sword. I’ll lightly swing this stick at you.”

Yisi waved the wooden stick in her hand. Once Mary took her stance, Yisi activated [Eye of God] to observe Mary’s status and gently swung the stick forward. If Mary failed to block, getting hit on the head would definitely leave a red mark.

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Just like before, Mary assumed a textbook defensive posture, tilting her shield slightly to deflect some of the force. Then, the instant Yisi’s stick was about to hit her, a golden light shimmered over her body. She swept her shield to the side, successfully parrying the attack.

“Huh?”

This time, Mary noticed something was different and let out a soft, puzzled sound. Then, just like during the fight with Shinku, her right hand moved on its own, thrusting the shortsword toward Yisi.

“How dare you!”

Clang!

A steel longsword suddenly appeared between Yisi and Mary, slicing Mary’s wooden sword in half.

“Pointing your sword at Onee-sama? Have you lost your mind?”

Camilla frowned slightly, while Mary jumped like a startled rabbit, her purple right eye widening in terror.

“I-I’m sorry! Master, I didn’t mean to! Sorry, sorry!”

“No, it’s fine. I told Mary to do it. More importantly, was that counterattack mandatory? If it’s called [Shield Counterattack], then it’s a two-part move—block and counter, right?”

“Ah… After blocking Master’s attack, I really felt like I had to release the force somehow.”

“Then it’s settled. After lunch, Mary, come with me to the inner district. If I’m not mistaken, you’ve leveled up.”

“Leveled up? I’m level 8 now?”

Though her tone was doubtful, Mary’s adorable face was already lit up with excitement. In this world, leveling up requires significant time and effort. To put it in perspective, the average soldier was around level 4, while a level 9 soldier could easily qualify as a platoon leader commanding thirty men. In fact, the highest-level person in the entire Celtic city was only level 10.

Instead of answering directly, Yisi smiled and shrugged.

“You’ll find out when we go to the inner district this afternoon. For now, go take a bath. You must be drenched in sweat after that fight—you’ll be laughed at if you go out like this.”

“I’ll go right now!”

Unable to hide her excitement, Mary dashed into the inn like a rabbit.