Chapter 1183 - Around That Time / Around That Time
—Thus, at a time when a close-knit clan somewhere in the world was deepening their friendship even further.
If one were to speak of the place where Rankers gathered regardless of faction, it would be here. At the castle where the leader of all Arcadia's humanity (players) and the unanimously agreed-upon Chief of Staff resided, the [Knight's Royal Castle -El Faria-].
"Now then, once again, let us begin the detailed meeting."
Today, as always, [Lady-in-Waiting]-sama, who calmly spun her diligently clever voice, looked around at the faces gathered at the seats. Along with a bow, she let her quiet declaration echo.
There were about ten people gathered.
First, the raid selection members, including Helena's master, [Sword Queen] Iris. From the same Southern Faction (Sotalm) was [Castle Lord] May, from the Northern Faction (Nortalia) was [Orb Law] Sayaka and [Sound Armor (Berumail)] Rinne, and from the Eastern Faction (Istia) was [Peerless] Irori and [Screen] Yurayura, making a total of six people.
In that case, then.
"As previously notified, the final decision has been made with these six members. ...I have taken either the reply to the message or your gathering here as your consent."
"......"
Along with words that sounded as if there were someone who did not send a reply to the message, Helena's monocle reflected a flash of light while mirroring someone.
She wasn't particularly seeking a reply, but as expected, a certain silver-haired person was silent and unresponsive.
Seeing the blonde samurai wearing a kamishimo next to her let out a small sigh, she hesitated for a brief moment on whether to join in... but swallowing it down, the lady continued her role as the facilitator.
"Including Rinne, who is in her second year, there should be no need to discuss coordination or train with this lineup at this late stage. As for the raid itself, I hope you will all exert your strength to the fullest."
At the edge of the seating. A cheerful girl who had accumulated enough experience to no longer be called a rookie after about two years since the rise of the Rankers, just as Helena said, let out a small shriek of "Hieee..." under the pressure of various responsibilities.
They were close acquaintances through their regular girls' association (T/N: dots over 'regular girls' association' in source). Accustomed to various implications, such as addressing those from other factions without honorifics—which was rare for her—Helena merely let out a faint smile without casting a glance.
"However, each of you is busy. To avoid wasting time and losing resources unnecessarily, we will have you approach this with all your might and in a highly concentrated manner. —The duration will be approximately three days."
Exchanging a glance of confirmation only with her 'master' seated on the throne beside her, the Chief of Staff declared.
"We have drawn up a schedule based on the recent plans we received from everyone. The start of the raid assault (attack) will be at noon the day after tomorrow, and the gathering place will be here in El Faria, the same as today."
"...Haru will be in charge of transportation."
Next, a word inserted like an annotation. Mainly Sayaka and Rinne let out a lukewarm, heartwarming aura with their cheeks relaxing, thinking things like Did she want to say that herself? or She looks happy.
However, the clever [Lady-in-Waiting]-sama utterly ignored her master, the lovey-dovey princess, along with the rest.
"Yes. And then—"
"Yeah. Well, I'm (T/N: dots over 'I' in source) just acting as the buffer."
Nodding flatly, she shifted her gaze to the side, and [Thread-Weaver] Natsume, who was seated next to her, waved her hand casually... —or rather, accepted it with a stiff expression that feigned casualness.
Unlike her senior of two years (Rinne), she was truly still far from it.
Whether she cared too much about seniors and juniors, or valued them too much. As a large-scale battle commander (raid leader) to replace herself, she could see a long road ahead—
Setting that aside,
"The [Deep Realm of Blue Source] where we will launch our raid is not the existing ruins of the northern country, but a virtually unreached region even further away. Since we will be cooped up (T/N: dots over 'cooped up' in source) after setting up a base (camp), this is to avoid accidental contact or commotion with general players... but by coordinating between Haru-sama's and Natsume's tamed beasts (Rim),"
"The travel time will be super shortened. If it's about ten thousand kilometers, it won't even take two hours."
If it were a long road in a physical sense (T/N: dots over 'physical long road' in source), fortunately, Helena and the others now possessed a dramatically effective option—Natsume also uttered words that shattered the common sense of the virtual world from about a year ago, but at this point, there was not a single person who tilted their head or made a retort.
The acrobat, or rather, the esteemed [Crown] is truly something else.
"During transport, please wait by logging out, and use this time to prepare, such as having lunch. By no means should you experience out of curiosity the special skill possessed by Haru-sama's attendant... light speed (not actually light speed), and unnecessarily disrupt your condition."
"......" "......" "......"
"Are we clear, Rinne?"
"Eh, you're naming me?! I won't do it, seriously! I won't!"
"Fufu..."
"That goes for you too, Sayaka-sama."
"Eh, ah, y-yes...!"
Really, 'something else' indeed. Perhaps she should turn a blind eye to some extent to the fact that his influence was spreading unnecessarily—though a sigh, at least, should be permitted.
...Once again, setting that aside.
"Regarding the movement, it will be as such. Regarding the base setup..."
"Yes, leave it to us."
"And controlling my older sister (T/N: dots over 'older sister' in source) as well, yes. To some extent, yes."
She shifted her gaze to 'Shoh' and 'Ren' who were standing by as usual on both sides of the Saint, who had recently been turning into a problem child with a different direction... in other words, the ultimate conscience of the Rankers.
Thus, the Northern Three Laws were fully assembled. By constructing a 'Barrier' together with Sayaka, any unforeseen circumstances could be eliminated in advance, making it the most perfect preparation possible.
In another sense, it was also a perfect preparation.
The naturally reckless airhead (Iris), the Sleeping Princess (May), the fluffy Saint (Sayaka), the troublesome otaku (Rinne), and the ultimately unsociable, self-centered, clumsy tsundere (Yurayura). Surely, it would be difficult for a single person in the 'sufferer' role to take care of them all.
At the edge of the seating, the samurai was looking at the twins with eyes pleading for salvation.
I hope you will do your best together—... Helena, who had nonchalantly placed herself among the stay-behind group, was already sending her support from the bottom of her heart as if it were someone else's business.
"Now then... does anyone have any questions up to this point?"
She continued to handle the reins of the eccentrics, or rather, the troublemakers entrusted to her with trust, using her practiced skill.
◇◆◇◆◇
The few seconds between hearing the teleportation sound and turning around to take it in.
What naturally crossed my virtual brain were the predictions and delusions I had been thinking about all day up to this moment... It probably wasn't just limited to me, and it was a way of enjoying myself that I didn't need to be ashamed of.
Like, if Kanata chose the clad-body, it would definitely be a 'dog', right? Or, if they chose the shift-body, wouldn't an answer finally be shown for the slight mystery of why I had assumed (T/N: dots over 'assumed' in source) they were male until now?
I seriously have no clue about Master. Any clad-body would probably suit her, but a 'dragon' like Nia, or a 'celestial maiden' in the same direction (?) as Ashe is totally possible. But somehow, I also feel like she would choose the shift-body, including her admiration for her grandfather.
Honestly, I was utterly ignoring the system performance aspect, even if I say so myself.
Thinking things like 'that would look good on her' or 'it would be interesting if it turned out like this,' I had been enjoying this exciting prediction time as a completely personal entertainment as I pleased, but...
Well, then.
In the end, no delusion can beat the impact of the reality that arrives. I'm looking forward to both Ui-san's new appearance and Kanata's new appearance—with those kinds of thoughts.
Turning around with a relatively light heart, I—
" "
Upon reflecting a slightly incomprehensible sight (T/N: dots over 'slightly incomprehensible sight' in source) in my eyes, I completely lost my words along with my thoughts, instantly freezing without even letting out a breath. The presence of Sora and Tetra on both sides of me was the same.
Then, in the frozen time, the only ones moving were the two excluding the three of us.
"Oh, my...? Somehow, it feels very difficult to move..."
My slightly beyond description (T/N: dots over 'slightly beyond description' in source) master, and,
"......................I suppose so... wow............"
My slightly lacking in any changes (T/N: dots over 'slightly lacking in any changes' in source) junior number two.
—No, yeah, let's set aside the 'same old Kanata' (T/N: dots over 'same old Kanata' in source) who came without any way to judge whether they were the mysterious Kanata-kun... or Kanata-chan in the end, which is a mystery in its own way.
Right now, more than anything, my heart was full with a prominent major incident.
She herself muttered that it was difficult to move... but that was only natural. It made sense.
"................................T-That is quite unexpected, isn't it...?"
Why, you ask? Because of that.
"...? ......??? ...Eh, um, Haru-kun? Everyone..."
A voice that I couldn't help but feel was slightly different from usual came as if from above (T/N: dots over 'from above' in source).
"......Did you shrink (T/N: dots over 'shrink' in source)?"
Because her physique had completely changed.
"Uh, well... no, it's the opposite. It's the opposite, my master."
"The opposite...?"
"Well, I mean, it's true that I also shrink with `[Trance]`, but that's not it, Ui-san, you've gotten bigger. —Your height (T/N: dots over 'height' in source) has grown (T/N: dots over 'has grown' in source) like crazy."
Thus, in the Second World where clever things like hand mirrors did not exist. When I told her without hiding the 'appearance' reflected in my eyes, the unfamiliar [Sword Saint]... however, with a truly familiar gesture,
"........................My...!"
Gentle and calm. After looking down and gazing slowly, thoroughly, patiently, and peacefully at her own transformed figure, she showed a ladylike surprise and laughed merrily.
Yes. She laughed (T/N: dots over 'laughed' in source), and,
"—Haa, ugh..."
Beside me, my partner was sunk. To be honest, I had also taken a direct hit and was on the verge of losing consciousness, but even though he had sunk grandly first, it was in front of his beloved. Holding on with sheer willpower, I danced with prime numbers in the corner of my mind.
This is bad.
No, it's lethal.
Something like, th-this...—
Is something like this allowed to exist?
Probably just about matching my height in the 'real world'. Clearly tall for a woman.
Her gray hair, which was usually cut at her shoulders, kept its color but became straight, flowing long hair, just like when she wore `[Futsunomitama]`, the strengthening effect of her special title Sword Saint.
Slender and long limbs, golden eyes that had changed color from her usual gray... and the greatest change, or rather, the 'characteristic part', was her right forehead. A single pure white 'horn' that emitted a small but certain presence.
If I were to express that appearance honestly—the single character for 'ogre' came to mind.
In short... not a small Yamato Nadeshiko, but my master, who had achieved an ultimate and rule-breaking ultra-dimensional evolution into a completely adult Yamato Nadeshiko, looked down at us.
"Ufufu..."
First, she made her move by patting my head with a truly joyful expression.
"—I leave the rest to you, Tetr-a..."
"The rest of what?!"
While dealing a complete finishing blow to her disciple, she smiled happily.
Well, setting aside the deceased for now.
Since the number of people who have revealed their Trance has increased, I'll release each person's reason for choosing as a bonus here.
—Shift-Body Group—
Protagonist: Being able to use two MP bars, isn't this the only choice? (Typical feeling of an MP-wasting build)
Irori-kun: Wanted a second build (Wide-area annihilation specialized mage type)
Orin: Wanted a second build (Agility-specialized type to eliminate own weaknesses)
—Clad-Body Group—
Sora-san (Heavenly Fox): Gender change is a bit scary.
Ashe (Forest Dweller): That's it, let's seduce a certain someone with fluffiness (failed plan)
Nia-chan (Dragon): I'm jealous of the fox girl who is called cute, cute by a certain someone.
Tetra-kun (Cat): No need for a second MP bar or a second build.
Fuji-san (Kingfisher): Animal lover. Wants to keep a cat.
Lu-chan (Dog): Because I am a lady!!!!!!!!!! (???)
Master: I won't say to whom, but I thought this one would be more appreciated.
Kanata (?): Thought it would be fine by now.
—White Throne Raid Participation Unknown Group—
Gossan: Unknown
Gen-san: Unknown
Hina-san: Unknown
—Unlikely to Have a Reveal Opportunity Group—
Rotta-san: `[Trance]` Squirrel (Highly praised as cute by real-life wife)
Zou-san: `[Trance]` Tall blonde beauty (Teased by wife with 'Who is that woman?')
—The Public—
The popularity of the shift-body `[Trance]` is overflowing, maintaining an extremely skewed population ratio.
As for the finer details, Tetra-kun (Cat) is a black American Shorthair.
Lu-chan (Dog) seems to have a brown Dachshund as her model type.
Wait, did I not describe Lu-chan's dog-type clad-body???
Well, whatever.
Needless to say, as always, it is completely left to each individual's thoughts,
so the intentions of the outsider (me) are not involved at all. Please understand.