Megumin strode confidently towards where that copycat was going to be doing her 'Worthiness Trial' for today. She'd thought Kazuma was calling it quits, but he'd come to her yesterday afternoon and declared he was back in. Funifura and Dodonko had told her they had some sort of argument along the market road, which meant their enmity was likely the talk of the town.
She chuckled to herself. She couldn't have gotten out of here earlier – for all she enjoyed visiting again, Axel was way more interesting than her home!
Though, the decorations and stalls being set up for the occasion were quite nice. Considering how much snow there was, it seemed someone had probably used Control Weather earlier this morning to dust the landscape.
With a shake of her head, she couldn't help but look at her partner and his lack of enjoyment of the scenery with just a pinch of trepidation. He had demonstrated that he could hold grudges before, but he seemed to be stewing in his anger even now…
She narrowed her eyes. He wasn't trying to steal her rival from her, was he?
She opened her mouth to question him, but-
"Finally. Couldn't they have set this thing up any closer to your house?" he complained. She just glared at the side of his head – considering how far her house was from everything else because of their poverty, the answer was probably no – and brandished her staff. "Now, to put an end to this farce!"
"Do you actually have a plan?" he muttered. She scoffed. Of course she did, and this one didn't even involve explosions!
Because she absolutely could not let the village know that she had embarked upon the path of explosions. Though she felt no shame in her choice, she really didn't want to get mocked by everyone if she could help it, and if her parents disowned her, they prob…
No, they'd still accept any money she sent them.
"Of course I have a plan!" she declared, putting her worries behind her. "After I'm done, she'll have no choice but to…"
She turned to the side to find Kazuma raising an eyebrow at her, and she coughed. "Uh… if I know my father and his friends, they're probably going to ask her to answer riddles. We have some magic items to make them, so I'll just destroy them."
Kazuma let out a long sigh. "What if you get caught? We don't exactly have a ton of cash right now. And won't your father get mad?"
She scoffed again. "Of course not! As a Crimson Demon, it's only natural for me to do everything in my power to one-up my rival!"
"And the money?"
"…As long as we don't get caught-"
"Idiot! How am I supposed to get revenge on that stuck-up pixie if we're stuck in jail?!"
He continued on, so Megumin declined to mention that they didn't really have a real jail or prison, since anyone from the village could just use Teleport to get out and anyone who wasn't from the village would just get kicked out. The closest thing they had was a room in the most popular inn that could be locked from the outside for rabble rousers.
Besides, her plan was foolproof!
Absolutely nothing could go wrong!
"…And stop looking so smug… wait, are you thinking this can't go wrong? You don't have to say a flag aloud for it to get set off!"
She continued to smirk, even when he threatened to steal her panties again. Really, brooding didn't suit Kazuma very much, and she wasn't going to let her triumph be ruined by him being a stick in the mud, especially when her victory was-
-OxOxO-
Tanya couldn't believe it. When they'd announced that the most important thing for a Crimson Demon was their intellect and that she would be solving riddles, she'd been tempted to start figuring a way out of the whole endeavor.
Tanya may have prided herself on her logical prowess and knew that she was an accomplished mage renowned the world over, she wasn't a genius by any means. Whatever riddles they'd concocted would probably best her, especially if the answers to their questions were tied up in culture or the particulars of the language people here spoke.
Somehow, she had lucked out! The magical items they used to generate the riddles to ensure 'fairness and originality' were broken beyond short-term repair.
"I suppose we'll have to save this for some other day?" she suggested. She wanted to get back to making her items, and Hyoizaburo had promised they could spend the rest of the day working on them once they finished the trial.
She and the panel of judges – Hyoizaburo, Hiropon, and a teacher from the school named Pucchin – were currently behind the rudimentary stage that had been set up for her trials and other festivities they were planning on for the winter. Her suggestion to the three men currently puzzling over who had broken the items…
…Tanya smiled innocently as they looked up from the items towards her. They didn't suspect her of attempting to cheat, did they? Perhaps offering her own two cents to try and 'fix' the problem would assuage their suspicions?
"Of course, I'd be willing to participate in whatever trial you can think of. This was meant to test the most important aspect of being a Crimson Demon, yes?" she asked. If it was a math question, she could cheat with her Computation Jewel. Esoteric trivia about magic would be beyond her, but perhaps she could work out the answer using her logical and-
Pucchin's mouth formed a grin, the scraggly beard and mustache seeming to fade away in the face of his joy. "Of course! And, since the most important aspect of a Crimson Demon is not their intellect, but their aesthetics, I command you to name yourself and strike a pose!"
Both of the other judges agreed after a moment of thought. "Of course! Intellect is all well and good, but what does that matter if you don't look cool using it?" Hyoizaburo asked rhetorically.
She didn't even have a chance to look pleadingly at Hiropon. "That would be a worthy way to judge how worthy you are. Come! Give us your best introduction!"
She looked between the three of them, trying to figure out if they were indeed serious. She couldn't find any hint of humor. Groaning internally, she asked a question to buy herself time. "At this moment, or…" she trailed off, gesturing towards the stage.
The man cleared his throat while the other two smirked at each other behind his back. "Up on the stage, of course."
They all marched on to the stage, with Megumin's father and the teacher both introducing themselves. Hiropon gave his own introduction and explained to the crowd once more what the point of the spectacle was.
All three gave her more insight into exactly what these people wanted from her. She had seen quite a few introductions during her time in the village, but she wasn't here to please the crowd, but the judges.
Hyoizaburo, relative to others she'd heard, always tried to overcompensate for his poverty and his lack of sense when it came to creating magical items. Playing up her gratitude towards him wouldn't hurt, though being too obvious would likely have the opposite effect.
She hadn't heard Hiropon's introduction very many times, but he seemed to be relatively down-to-earth – though he had nothing on his daughter's attempts to conform to the social norms of Belzerg instead of their village – so perhaps he would appreciate her trying to seem truthful?
Pucchin… she had heard his introduction twice. He was clearly pleased with his position at the 'Red Prison,' the school of the Crimson Demons, but he'd also mentioned having higher aspirations. She didn't know him well, but considering he was the one to suggest the introduction contest and said aesthetics were a Crimson Demon's most important asset, then enhancing her aesthetics might be necessary…
As Hiropon finally got around to introducing her after assuring the public the festival would begin on schedule, she cut him off, stepping in front of the man to address the crowd herself.
"Hmmpf! I have no need for another to introduce me, Hiropon! I am Tanya von Degurechaff, dragon slayer, demon banisher, and the one who comes before you three today, seeking to prove my worthiness to learn at the feet of a master craftsman and lift the curse placed on me years ago!"
The crowd clapped and she fought the urge to smirk as…
Her urge to smirk faded as she looked at the serious faces of the judges. "Ho, the upstart thinks she can introduce herself?" Hyoizaburo asked, an eyebrow raised as he stood to the left of Hiropon.
"Not bad… for an eight-year-old," Pucchin said, peeking out from the right from behind Hiropon.
"Heh! You should have let me introduce you, girl. Such paltry words cannot come close to the abilities of a true Crimson Demon."
The crowd cheered again, their collective gaze switching to her.
She fought not to be caught flat-footed… and smirked confidently. This wasn't the kind of challenge she was used to facing, but she couldn't argue that she much preferred it to getting shot at.
-OxOxO-
"Hey, Kazuma. Can you learn any of those spells she claims I can't? My introductions would be twice as cool if you could produce smoke-"
"You must be more insane than I thought if you think she'd allow me to even try."
Megumin's plan had, in fact, gone off without a hitch… only for the backup plan to be rolled out: the judges forced her to compete against them in declaring her name and making cool poses.
Kazuma was one of the only people in the crowd trying not to die of laughter – he had seen the pixie's friends holding in their own laughter ahead of him and Megumin. Most of the Crimson Demons there had eaten up the absolutely cringiest lines she'd dragged out, though the judges pronounced her poses as being subpar for three separate self-introductions.
He could only imagine how absolutely mortified she must have felt, because she hadn't shown even the slightest hint of being anything but devoted to her performance. She'd pulled out her magic to make her mantle flap in the wind during her fourth performance, which had satisfied almost everyone.
Of course, the one person not satisfied was one of the judges he didn't know the name of.
"'I sense that you are still holding back… release your inhibitions! Only when you truly commit your all will you finally prove that you have aesthetic mastery!'"
She had indeed gone all out, using her spells to make her cape flap in the wind and for smoke to appear from… somewhere while shouting about being the greatest mage to live and rising above any challenger set against her, whether they were 'propelled by foolish naivety' or 'forced under pain of death or salvation to best her.'
That had finally done it, and she'd passed the test and would move on to her second trial tomorrow.
He sighed for what felt like the tenth time since he'd argued with that girl yesterday. As gratifying as it was to watch her degrade herself, he was willing to admit that characterizing her life as being 'easy' yesterday had… not been wise.
Considering what she'd gone through, he almost understood her policing of his interactions with Megumin… but even Megumin had said the idea that he'd have the balls to do anything to her – a phrase he resented the phrasing of and would repay Megumin for eventually – was silly.
Regardless, even if getting back at her like this wasn't going to change her mind in the slightest, it was both gratifying and hilarious. Pushing her too far wasn't going to end well between them, so he felt the score between them was almost settled. He figured he could still get away with a bit more before she did something… drastic in response.
"Hey, what do you think tomorrow's trial will be?"
"Ha! As if I would allow you to peak into the inner machinations of the mind of the mighty Crimson Demons! Such a thing-"
"I can still steal your panties."
"Do you think you would survive the punishment my father and the rest of the village would give you?"
"Do you think you'd survive the shame they'd feel if they knew you could only cast one measly spell?"
"ONE MEA- Oh I'll show YOU measly! SUBMIT TO-"
-OxOxO-
Zachary sighed in contentment as he walked away from the first of Degurechaff's trials. He hadn't expected his following of Degurechaff to bear that many fruits, if he were honest. For all he'd made out to Lolisa that she had inspired him to make changes, his decision to follow her while his own disciples worked to get him allowed back into Axel's Eris Church organization had been something of a whim.
But today, he'd heard her speak! The content of those speeches…
Well, that wasn't as important as the way she had been saying the words or the way that the judges had critiqued her performance – he had been taught within the Eris Church that gesticulation could help when giving sermons to large crowds where every word may not be heard when a Voice Amp was unavailable, but putting one's body into a speech instead of performing the same old movements everyone was trained to understand was unheard of!
He resolved, once more, to ask her many questions when the opportunity presented itself. Not while he was in the village, of course – he didn't have the slightest desire to seem… weird for seemingly following her across the country to ask a question.
Coming over the small hill, he scowled. Indeed, there were things he needed to do besides ponder questions he had – the Eris Church in this town needed to be repaired!
Or, it was just a simple shrine as opposed to a full church. The one younger Crimson Demon he'd talked to about 'Shine Street' had simply explained that a 'Crimson Demon's rebellion against all who try to supersede their mighty power extended even to the Gods!'
While he didn't exactly begrudge them their desire to 'make their own Luck,' as it were, the state of disrepair he'd found Eris's Shrine in had been deplorable! He'd taken it upon himself to help repair the place.
As he busied himself with the day's repairs – the tablets inscribed with some of Eris's more important pieces of wisdom needed to be replaced – he could not help but think back to some questions he'd been posed as he recarved the tablets.
The shrine itself wasn't exactly filled with decorations or ornaments, just a few candles and a painting created in the distinct style the Crimson Demon's art was known for. Would he get in trouble if he added a few tablets of his own?
As he spent the rest of the afternoon carving, he went back and forth. He may not have been able to ask Eris directly if his teachings were heretical, but his Luck had not yet fallen and he hadn't faced an unlucky catastrophe, even when traveling with Lolisa.
She had cautioned against reading her lack of action as favor… which was unfortunately one of the only defenses against the many accusations he was committing heresy and also one of the main reasons many of the other Eris Cultists of Axel hadn't thrown their lot in with him yet. If he could just ask her…
SLICE
He swore as he cut himself with his carving knife, his mind momentarily distracted from thinking back to the night the Succubus had asked him those questions.
As he busied himself with cleaning the knife and starting over with a fresh tablet, his mind wandered once more back to that night, and he sighed.
He… did not know what he would do if he was told his beliefs were heretical, but until he was, he would continue to preach his interpretation of Eris's faith.
His mind made up, he set back to work. He would need to eat in a few hours, and as much as he detested the name of the inn he was staying at… he did not exactly have much of a choice unless he wanted to sleep in the woods. Considering how dangerous this part of Belzerg was reputed to be, that wasn't an option…
He smiled wanly. Perhaps he might meet Lolisa? He did wonder where she had flown off to, though he supposed she was probably at the Demon King's castle if he had to guess…
He frowned once more. Were there many Demons in Belzerg? Were they acting as spies, or were they trying to influence regular people? Good questions he probably should have asked Lolisa… though she probably wouldn't have told him, as even a reaction might have helped him glean the truth…
Shaking his head, he continued his work silently, happily placing his own ideas alongside those officially canonized pieces of scripture.
-OxOxO-
Lolisa had more money than she knew what to do with.
It had started innocently enough. She'd been looking for somewhere to stay in the village a few hours after abandoning Zachary and making sure he wasn't following her and had spotted this place.
She hadn't assumed it was some kind of mirror to the operation running in Axel – she wasn't an idiot. If anywhere else in Belzerg had openly advertised a connection to any kind of Demon, they'd probably be shut down by the Church within the day, if the Kingdom didn't send police or soldiers to investigate the place sooner for harboring potential enemies.
Still, she hadn't known what to expect, but an inn trying to attract customers certainly hadn't been it – no Priest would be willing to stay in a place named after a demon if they had any other options… which was why she was absolutely sure Zachary wouldn't be using the place.
She shook her head as she accepted another order and tip. Still, she hadn't expected much her first night there. A trip to the bar, however, and the accidental slip of her cloak had revealed her attire…
At which point she'd been hired on the spot and given triple pay to stay up attending to the patrons of the bar, and while not everyone was into her looks, the ones who were gave off waves of lust that scratched her hunger just right.
Really, if she wasn't sure that Degurechaff and Serebryakov would be giving off significantly more, she might just work her entire stay in the village! Maybe she could tell the others about this place and use it as a vacation spot of sorts?
The bell above the door chimed and she turned around…
Only to duck behind the counter and gulp loudly. Why was he here!? He… wasn't trying to exorcize her, was he?
Well it didn't matter. He'd ask way too many questions if he saw her, which meant…
The middle of the night was a great time to try and scout out Degurechaff and Serebryakov!
Begging the owner for a night off siting a stomach bug – and then lying and saying she'd seen her ex when he'd offered her a potion – saw her walking along the streets and basking in the light of the moon. It wasn't full yet, but even just the partial light of that celestial body rejuvenated her…
And then a maniac grin split her face as she rubbed her hands together. It was time to-
SLAM!
Dazed, she fell to the ground, blinking in confusion. Who else would be up at this time, and how hadn't she seen them? Was her mind really…
Her eyes widened. Kazuma-
"Er, sorry about tha… wait, do I know you?"
She had to get away! "Uh… I-"
She saw his eyes widen at the sound of her voice. Shit! She was wearing a cloak, he never would have-
"What… are you doing here?" he asked, his eyes looking her up and down. She just rolled her eyes.
If she couldn't run, then…
"I have a better idea! How about I give you a good dream and you don't get nosy. Agreed?"
He looked like he was considering it for a second… but instead his eyes narrowed. What are you doing here? After what happened when you tried to give me a dream last time, it couldn't be for my party. I got a refund from you and a coupon as an apology, so it's not for me, which means…" he trailed off.
Then that trademarked scummy smile he was known for grew on his face like mold. "Why are you visiting Tanya?"
She replied quickly. "You're the one who said it, not me."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "I doubt that you're here for Megumin's parents, considering they're happily married and know enough to produce two kids, and I also doubt either of Tanya's partymates wouldn't tell her you're coming. So either you're here for her, or she knows you're coming."
Shit. She could almost feel the satisfaction rolling off of him.
"Fine, you're right. I'm here for Tanya and she knows I'm coming. Happy?" she said, exasperated. He looked shocked, for a moment.
And then he raised an eyebrow at her. "Really?"
She nodded. "Of course! There was some business that came up, and as per her request, we wanted to tell her. I pulled the short straw and had to drag myself across Belzerg to get here," she explained.
"She… knows about the Succubi?" he asked. She rolled her eyes – he'd made that assertion and now he was doubting it? "Yes. We've had a good working relationship for… half a year at this point?"
He opened his mouth and then closed it with a snap after a moment. She wasn't sure she liked whatever thoughts were going through his head, but she didn't have time to guess when he shrugged his shoulders. "Okay. Prove you're here for her."
"Huh?"
"You said you're here to see Tanya. Let's interrupt her and Viktoriya, then. It must be important if you didn't trust the mail to get the news to her."
Fighting the urge to glare daggers through the impudent human – and she could literally feel the smugness rolling off of him now – Lolisa licked her lips… and nodded. "Fine."
His satisfaction doubled at her gritted teeth and he spun around. "What were you doing out so late, anyway?" she asked him, her eyes staring at the back of his head.
She'd only get one chance.
He answered flippantly. "Little miss hardass doesn't want me to do anything to Megumin, so I've been sleeping at the Succubus Inn," he said, glancing at his nails boredly.
She nodded her head. "Sleep! I'll be sure to give you a good dream-"
He dodged out of the way of her silent, invisible spell, his satisfaction growing again as he held out a hand towards her. "Bind!"
She yelped as she was tied up. "The minute you popped up as an enemy through my Enemy Detection skill, I knew you'd try something."
She glared at him again. "You…"
"Now, what to do with you. Brats who lie should be punished, after all."
She raised an eyebrow. "Do you know how much worse we could make the rumors about you? A bit of chatter with our patrons and the whole town will think you have some very… peculiar tastes."
He turned white… but he didn't let her go. "Just tell me what you're doing, really. I might even have a proposition for you," he said conspiratorially.
Seeing as he did have her at his mercy for the moment, and she did wonder what he had in mind, she explained the reason she'd been following them for so long.
He, in turn, explained what he had in mind, and after hashing out some of the finer details, Lolisa found herself with even more money and a plan to push the expected lust between the two of the to heights even the Succubi hadn't imagined possible.
-OxOxO-
Today, Megumin was much more dejected.
"But why? How are we supposed to prove my superiority to my rival if we aren't going to interfere in the trial?"
Kazuma sighed again as the crowd got settled. Instead of a stage, they were now gathered around a large pit where it had been, put into place overnight. Across from the crowd were the judges, while Degurechaff stood to the right of the rectangular pit dug into the ground. She didn't exactly look nervous, but her neutral expression and stance combined with the lack of outward confidence did give him the impression she was suspicious, at least.
If only she knew…
The third judge – whose name he still didn't know – spoke up. "Welcome to the second event! What a Crimson Demon needs above all is luck! You way attempt this challenge as many times as you want until you pick the right door," he said, and within the pit two sets of five doors, one behind the other, could be seen.
Behind each set of doors were pits filled with mud, while a Crimson Demon stood behind each set of doors with a tall, thin platform made out of wood.
"The reason, Megumin, is that Tanya's Luck is horrible," he explained to his party member. When he'd gotten her to tell him what the likely trial would be, he'd decided that he didn't have to do a thing to watch her eat shit.
As Tanya walked down the stairs into the pit, Hyoizaburo picked up where the other judge had left off. "Indeed! However, unlike in times past, you do not simply have to keep guessing until you find the right door."
The gaze of the girl in the pit snapped up as Megumin's father continued. "It came to me in a dream last night… every time the trial-goer fails, rearrange the platform behind the doors so that they cannot simply win by process of elimination, and have multiple sets of doors to prove their Luck is not simply a fluke!"
Kazuma fought to hold back his laughter as the girl in the put began to grow angrier, the lick of hair on her head bouncing through the air while her face grew more and more strained. Getting that Succubus to give Megumin's father dreams – among others – seemed to be reaping rewards already.
Front row seats were going to be worth the price of admission.
-OxOxO-
"Ah~ Seeing someone fail so many times… I should commemorate this occasion! What do you two think?"
Lorelei and Darkness looked between each other as Aqua skipped down the street. "I… think we should get back to Chekera's place," Lorelei said.
She'd be lying if she claimed watching Tanya fall into the mud a few times hadn't been funny – the crowd itself had been split between laughing at her and cheering her on – while the murderous looks she'd sent towards Hyoizaburo had been equally entertaining. Viktoriya had just been exasperated.
After the first ten times, however, the laughing at her expense had completely dried up, and the suggestion that the platform not be changed anymore was suggested – both in the interest of ending things faster and out of concern that Tanya would catch something after being dunked in the cold mud – she had denied the suggestion and powered through.
Similar suggestions after her continued failure – including a buffing spell from Aqua, the removal of the mud, or even just a break – were all similarly denied, though Tanya's protestations were steadily drained of anger as the trial continued.
After falling in fifty times, it had honestly gotten boring, but she had, finally, accepted that she had gotten lucky with the first set enough that she could attempt the second set without having to go through the first over.
After another fifty, at which point over half the crowd had left – the remaining half had stayed to get their bets squared with Kazuma, who'd started taking them after the first three failures – she had finally managed to get past the second.
Aqua groaned in response to Lorelei's suggestion. "C'mon, I don't wanna stand around all day! I already told you that you can't enhance my mana!"
Darkness scoffed. "Aqua… I really can't understand how the real Aqua doesn't punish you for claiming to both be her and have her mana…"
For a moment, the statement hung in the air, and Lorelei looked down and realized that Darkness was looking at her expectantly.
She cleared her throat. "Er, yeah Aqua. But if you really don't want to, I won't make you try my stuff out," she said.
Chekera had been the one to suggest Aqua try out Lorelei's attempts to make magical clothing, claiming he couldn't possibly 'sacrifice his own aesthetics, even for a moment, for anyone.' A part of her disliked the hassle, but another part of her that remembered the skills she'd once possessed couldn't help but admire such dedication.
Making magical clothing… was an odd process. She was sure there was probably some kind of job and skill that made the process as easy as using any other skill, but Chekera didn't have the Tailor job.
And she didn't either, so she'd do her best to emulate his skills.
Aqua began to complain again, but she and Darkness just rolled their eyes at her as they continued onwards. If Aqua wasn't going to help… maybe she could get Viktoriya to help? Though, she'd been poking around some of the buildings she and Kazuma claimed to look like the ones from their world…
She looked up again at Aqua. It was hard to…
Actually, it wasn't all that hard to imagine she was Aqua. It explained a couple of extremely weird things about her, and the Aqua from various plays seemed to match this one.
Shaking her head again, she smiled as she saw Chekera's business again. "Today! I'll make something both fashionable and magically useful!" she declared to the world.
"Careful, don't let this place wear off on you too much," cautioned Darkness. Lorelei merely turned her nose up at her. "Ha! Pitiful words from one unwilling to embrace true power!"
She let the statement hang in the air and then burst out laughing with a shared look with Darkness. As she knocked on the man's door – he'd left the spectacle early – Darkness tilted her head. "Hey, why is he letting you learn stuff without doing what Tanya's doing?"
Lorelei rolled her eyes. "He said that Hyoizaburo wouldn't be Hyoizaburo if he didn't take things too far, apparently," she said. With that and a shrug, she pushed open the door.
Chekera greeted them, and they greeted him in turn. "Now, have you given up on trying to make something other than capes? Admit that they are both the most aesthetically pleasing and efficient way to enhance one's mana!" he declared with a grin.
She shook her head and grinned back. "Ha! I won't give in that easily! Even with my pitiful mana, I'll find a way to weave these magical fibers into anything, or my name isn't Lorelei!"
"Very well!"
They continued, and Darkness merely shook her head… before realizing that Aqua wasn't with them. Sighing tiredly, she left – she doubted they'd even notice she was gone – and headed off to find Aqua.
If she had to guess, she was probably at the lake, or maybe inadvertently messing with people, or even maybe trying to convert people. She honestly didn't know how Kazuma had put up with her for however long they'd been together.
-OxOxO-
As Tanya walked towards the school towards the end of the third day of her 'trials,' she wondered whether she liked the village or not.
Oh, there was plenty to hate. Everyone here acted bizarre, though most of that could be chalked up to cultural differences. Having to do ridiculous things to get what she wanted wasn't exactly outside of the norm for her either – and compared to her last world, the ridiculous things were tame and nowhere near life-threatening.
On the other hand, she could not recall being laughed at while trying to do ridiculous things like win a modern war in her last life.
Of the things to like about the town, however…
She grinned as she looked up the path. She could see the school of the Crimson Demons where her third trial would begin up on one of the larger hills within the area the Crimson Demons called their home.
She'd been told to bring her adventuring equipment, so that hopefully meant she wasn't going to be humiliated tonight.
Not that that was all she had done that day, or that the trial was the only thing she had been focusing on. Who knew when she would have time to do this sort of thing again?
One of the first things she had asked Hyoizaburo was to learn how to make Magic Canceler scrolls en masse. With how useful they had been in the fight against Evan-
But then he'd burst her bubble by bursting out laughing, because they were apparently considered useless.
How that could be, she hadn't had the foggiest idea until he'd demonstrated their uselessness by taking one out and telling her to stop him from casting Lightning Strike. She had tried…
And the scroll, despite burning and shriveling up, had not stopped an earthshaking BOOM from rattling the house.
He had gone on to explain that using some skill points to ensure one's spells couldn't be stopped by such means was one of the first things any smart Mage did – allowing their only form of attack to be canceled would be foolishness of the highest degree. The spell and scroll were only really made in order to counter monsters or animals that could use magic and might not know of the spell.
He'd been shocked she hadn't known and had apologized for the laughter, but she'd just waved it off. The information was obviously incredibly useful, and she and Viktoriya had invested some of the skill points they'd received from bombing those Orcs to do as he had suggested.
Of course, her suggestion that a better version of the spell be made was also laughed at – "Making new spells is no easy feat, even for the most accomplished of the Crimson Demons." – so finding some way to perhaps negate the assumed advantages other
She'd also been making magical items with the man – unlike what she'd been told, making such items was possible without skill points, but those made with skill points would always be better and able to do more than those that weren't.
Speaking of skill points, she had sought out someone capable of using Teleport yesterday and had the spell explained to her. The utility of such a spell was impossible to calculate…
Or so she had thought. Once it had been shown to her and explained, it wasn't quite as useful as it first appeared. Firstly, it was Advanced magic, which meant she'd need to memorize all the gestures and incantations if she wanted to do it right.
Trying to use it without knowing those, considering her Luck, would likely leave her fused with some kind of animal if she wasn't just killed.
That wasn't the end of its downsides, however. It had a maximum number of people it could be used on safely and it could only be used to send her to a 'registered anchor point' – which amounted to anywhere she did the anchoring chant associated with the teleport spell. Both could be increased using more skill points, but the upgrades were almost as expensive as the skill itself.
Despite those downsides – and not being able to teleport behind enemy defenses was a major downside – the ability to escape any fight she found herself in that couldn't be blocked except by exceptionally powerful barriers like the one around the Demon King's castle would be an incredible boon when she got the skill points and made time to memorize the chanting, gestures, and associated flow of mana.
She smiled as she continued hiking up the hill at the edge of the village. She and Viktoriya had both raised a few levels after bombing those Orcs. Perhaps…
She frowned. Something was… up with Viktoriya. She didn't know what, but for the past two days, she'd been giving Tanya quite odd looks when they'd both rolled out of bed. Tanya wasn't sure exactly what those looks promised, but the florid Russian spoken after staring at Tanya putting on her clothing certainly promised something.
So, she really did need to speed things up if she could, especially considering Viktoriya's birthday was only a few days away. Hopefully they would be back at Axel before then…
She sighed and her thoughts drifted to the others she had brought with her. Darkness and Lorelei had been training a bit with their swords – no prizes for guessing who was training their defenses and who was training their swordsmanship – among other things. Aqua had apparently tried her hand at gaining some followers from among the farmers that visited her shrine.
She hadn't fared that well, which put a smile on Tanya's face.
She had also found time to beg Chekera to at least be allowed to look at his 'washing pole.'
She grit her teeth. The images Viktoriya had recorded on her Computation Jewel hadn't done it justice.
It was a gun. And not a normal gun, like her own, but a gun that was at least as large as some of the anti-tank rifles she'd seen during the war, if not longer.
She hadn't ever gotten close to them… barring in a few of her fights against the Bloody Valkyrie. The first time it had been sprung on her she hadn't known what to make of the buildup of very familiar, very potent mana a few kilometers away and had only barely managed to survive using the Type 95 to reinforce her shields enough so she could survive the ensuing explosion.
Needless to say, dealing with the weapon she had decided to wield for that month had not been fun.
She shook her head and focused back on the gun she had seen. Unlike her own weapon, the entire thing was made of metal, it was almost as long as Lorelei was tall, and it had a peculiar funnel sticking out of the back of it. As Viktoriya had said, the funnel sucked in any mana sent its way.
What it did with that mana, she didn't currently know. One could assume that, with the lack of any other intake besides the funnel and its general shape, that it fired the mana out of the barrel, and while she'd work with that assumption for the moment, figuring out what it actually did was important.
But… as loath as Tanya was to rely on gut feelings, she didn't feel it was a Divine Relic. It certainly hadn't given her any headaches, at least.
She had begged Chekera to let her take a closer look at it, to try and take it apart… though she didn't even know if she could, or if she could put it back together if she did. The only other thing she had much experience with that absorbed mana like that was the Type 95, and she didn't have the faintest idea of the mechanism behind its ability to summon mana from nowhere. Nor did she really have much of an idea for the physics behind magic beyond what she had needed to do her job – Schugel would know, but even if his help were available she wouldn't accept it in taking this thing apart.
She'd shown him her own rifle, explained that she was curious, and even promised that her tampering wouldn't affect its job as a laundry pole – messing with the components at the base certainly wouldn't impact the ability of the barrel to repel rust.
He'd agreed, on the condition that she help him make some clothing tomorrow – an easy condition she would have no problem fulfilling.
She couldn't help but smile as the top of the school crested the hill. She hadn't found any way to pull it apart – everywhere she expected a screw or a point it had been welded together or ever a seam had been spotless and seamless. She'd spent an hour pouring mana into it, at which point a display on the side had started giving off light, perhaps a tenth full.
She laughed as she finally crested the hill and looked upon the 'Red Prison.' If a shot from that gun represented ten hours of constant mana consumption…
She would not be invulnerable with such a weapon. It was an unwieldy weapon that wasn't suited for close combat, and a certain someone, considering she had become a Thief in this life, could try to assassinate her.
Even so. This weapon ensured she'd never lose a fight again!
-OxOxO-
Tanya was given the tour of the place, and she tried to be as polite as possible, making small talk about its resemblances to the schools of her first and second life and expressing a desire to start a school system in Belzerg, perhaps modeled on this one.
The system with Wiz, the Succubi, and the orphanages of Axel was all well and good, but if she wanted to make it semi-mandatory, it would need to look professional and provide worthwhile services to those who went, regardless of class or profession. She didn't really have the first clue about how to run a school, so learning how things were done here was useful in that regard, at least.
Eventually, the tour did have to end. The various students of the school were assembled for a late night demonstration, and she could only sigh fondly as she remembered her own tutelage during her second life…
As well as her time as a teacher. Though, she doubted Pucchin would appreciate her giving him tips. He seemed pretty proud of his own abilities.
"Now students, this shall be a demonstration of… a modification of our normal teaching routine," he said, gesturing towards the woods. From within, Crimson Demons emerged, dragging monsters behind them.
She looked between the children and the monsters. She was aware this world's age of adulthood was fourteen, but some of the kids assembled looked eight. Sure, she'd been plenty willing to kill stuff at that age, but her circumstances were extenuating. How did they…
"This shall be both a demonstration of Tanya's magecraft as well as a demonstration of that technique we taught some of you new students recently."
She smiled, not at the sight of the three monsters set against her, but at the picture their words, this location, and the facts had painted.
This school was for the Crimson Demon Village. Somehow, everyone in the village was an Archmage. Paralyzed monsters were being brought to her and the students.
So… if she hired some mages to go out and paralyze monsters and bring them back for people to kill, she could speed up how fast people leveled up. What if she brought monsters from stronger areas to Axel? How fast could people level up?
She readied her gun. "This is about to get noisy," she warned, her mind still racing and a smile splitting her face.
This did it. Despite the negatives, she did like this town. She'd have to thank Megumin somehow – perhaps giving Kazuma's party some quests with extra high rewards would work? When was her birthday, actually?
There would be some problems – it was highly unlikely she was the first person outside of the Crimson Demon Village to come up with the idea. Perhaps there weren't enough mages to make the hypothetical school viable outside of the village? One couldn't really change how much mana one was born with…
Although she could think of at least two potions Wiz sold that could help with that problem.
She readied her gun, tuning out the chatter of the students that sat on stands overlooking the field she faced the monsters on. One appeared to be a run-of-the-mill One-Hit-Kill Bear, while the other two were-
Scratch that, the larger wolf had ripped the smaller one apart. She shrugged and fired off a shot through the bear's head.
An explosion engulfed it, to the applause of the children. She turned and bowed to them-
"Tanya, be careful! That wolf is a Fenrir. They kill veteran adventurers and control ice!" shouted the teacher.
Tanya just rolled her eyes. No mangy animal was going to dampen-
And then it rushed towards her, and she jumped out of the way as a wave of ice nearly froze her solid. She swore as it repositioned, jumping at her again while she scrambled back, seeking some space.
She needed to get better with fighting on the ground, considering how often she didn't get to use her flight spell.
Still, her reinforcement spells were doing wonders as she dodged its attempts to freeze and tear her open. Her sword found its way into her hand, and she sharpened it, swinging wide to create some distance.
The wolf glared at her, snarling and looking around, trying to find a way out. Tanya merely raised an eyebrow and drew her pistol. "Napalm," she said, pulling the trigger.
The flames were loud and impressive, masking the bullet's presence until the wolf began to limp. The continued to snarl as she poured more mana into the flames, the light dancing off of her glinting teeth.
It continued to back away, and she took in a breath. With room between her and it and no way for it to approach…
She fired another bullet silently, and though it tried to dodge, it failed. Another explosion detonated, destroying the monster.
She sighed again and bowed towards the crowd of cheering children.
"How'd you make your sword glow like that?"
She sighed. "It's… due to an inefficiency of the spell I… invented. Hyoizaburo and his friends thought it looked cool, so they gave me a skill up potion and I can change its color now," she explained patiently as the azure glow of her sword cycled.
They were wowed by the light display, while the judges congratulated her. She was pretty much done – there were just a few things for her to do tomorrow, and then she'd finally get her curse broken.
Her night soon ended with her trekking back to Megumin's house with a whistle on her lips. Despite everything she'd learned and all the ideas swirling through her head…
This had become her favorite part of her stay her. Doing… other stuff with Viktoriya, sure, but just… being with her, however much their schedules allowed for it.
Not even the idea that she'd be back to how she once had been or the idea that she might soon have a weapon that would mean she could win any battle could hold a candle to her time with her.
-OxOxO-
Yunyun could not help but feel that something was… off.
Axel hadn't had these outposts the last time she'd been here, and though she hadn't wanted to blow through them considering one of her… acquaintances was the mayor and had set them up because she'd nearly been killed by a spy of the Demon King or something, having to wait hours for her to arrive seemed…
But if this was just proper procedure, then could she really-
"My apologies for keeping you waiting. We're having… quite a bit of trouble. You said your name was Yunyun?"
Yunyun couldn't speak, for a moment. This person… how could it be?
"You… your the woman from the carriage I met about a month ago… you said you were looking for something you thought lost…"
"Ah, I guess you were serious about not forgetting, then?" Wolbach smiled slightly. "Yes, it's me. Sorry for not telling you my name, but… you'd probably have realized who I was if I had told you, yeah?"
"Bu- But, if you're Wolbach, then…"
She shrugged somewhat sheepishly. "Yes, I'm afraid that Axel is surrounded by the Demon King's army. You see, if you remember when you and your friends killed Hoost, your friend apparently has a black cat."
The woman's gaze sharpened. "I want that cat."
Yunyun opened her mouth to ask how she had even found out… but no, it must have been the terrorist the Demon King's army claimed they were searching for. She shouldn't have waited so long…
Yunyun's shook her head. "T… Chomusuke-"
"Don't call it that. That cat is my other half, and such a name is… outlandish and demeaning."
"Chomusuke is precious to my f- my rival Megumin. Plus, if I gave it to you, you'd get stronger, right?"
Wolbach nodded. "Of course. It's my other half, after all. Now. If you don't get me that cat…"
She let the threat hang in the air, but Yunyun just glared. "I may not have surpassed Megumin yet, but I am still an Archmage!" she declared.
Oddly, Wolbach hadn't gotten up yet. Yunyun began to chant, weaving her hands as she directed her mana to encompass her being…
Only for nothing to happen. Wolbach merely raised an eyebrow. "Oh, didn't anyone tell you? This room has been enchanted so that no one can teleport out of it."
Yunyun whimpered. She'd heard the Demon King had enchantments that could stop some kinds of magic, but teleportation?
Wolbach rose again, stretching and sighing tiredly. "Unless you're willing to tell me where that cat is…" she said, trailing off.
Yunyun shook her head and glared, while Wolbach sighed again. "Well, then I can't let you out. You'll just have to stay here for a while. Once I am whole again, maybe I'll let you out."
"On the other hand, you did help kill my friend Hoost. Perhaps I'll use you as bait for your friends and then kill you anyway," she mused.
Yunyun couldn't help but sniffle as the ringing laughter of the Demon King's General echoed until the door slammed shut.
She eyed the walls of her room despondently. They'd gone down a flight of stairs, which meant trying to use a spell on the walls might bring the structure down on her… and whoever else Wolbach had captured. The door was an option…
But she didn't have a doubt Wolbach had guards somewhere, and Wolbach herself was undoubtedly a formidable foe. She'd have to bide her time. And, in the meantime…
"Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why'd you trust them! They didn't even have any good excuse besides 'the Governor's request' that I come with them! I could have fought my way in…"
In the meantime, she could berate herself for having fallen for such a trap!
-OxOxO-
"You know, if you were actually a Crimson Demon, you'd be good mayor material," Hyoizaburo said.
"Uh… thanks?" she said as she watched the man continue his work on her rings. The two for blood loss, luck, and alcohol tolerance would be first – the man claimed working with Coronatite for the mental corruption ring would require him, his wife, and Tanya working together to ensure it didn't destroy them or the house – and watching him at work…
The number of skills the man had developed without the help of his Adventurer's Card was mind-boggling, and the skill with which he worked was equally humbling. If she had had the opportunity to devote herself to something other than war, could she have achieved the same thing?
She shook her head as he completed the first one. Now that she had a moment…
"Sir, if I may ask… would it be frowned upon for me to use the technique I witnessed at the school outside of the village?"
He stiffened a bit at that. "What technique?"
So she explained the pieces of the puzzle she had put together, and the man sighed. "Our secret leveling technique. I… if you truly prove yourself tomorrow, I suppose there would be no harm. However, the version you witnessed is only part of the whole," he said.
He took up the gems she had brought, turning them over in his hands. "The more complete form of our secret leveling technique is what the entire town does. Making items like these require tons of skill points. Performing the technique on the scale of the entire town every once in a while, plus our raids on the Demon King's castle, are what provide us with the experience to level up and gain skill points, as well as the material to make Skill Up potions."
Tanya's eyes widened, and they fell back into silence as he finished his work.
A technique she could use to gain skill points for herself by leveling up. She'd hit a plateau eventually due to her level, but the possibility of getting the skills and spells she'd been forced to put off lit a fire in her belly.
-OxOxO-
He could help but laugh.
"Fuhahahaha! When Moi set out to come to this town in search of that useless shopkeeper, Moi hadn't foreseen the presence of a second General!"
Indeed, he'd been getting quite a few of his predictions wrong lately. That wasn't exactly unexpected – no Duke of Hell could exercise their full power if they weren't in Hell – but to have not foreseen something of this magnitude…
"How shameful! Moi's abilities have grown too dull under the yoke of that Demon King who thinks himself different from all the rest!"
Of course, as he strolled towards the empty crypt his foresight told him would be the perfect place to make his dungeon, he supposed that the holiness surrounding the town probably had something to do with his predictions being off. Perhaps…
He sighed forlornly. But no, he was unlikely to die anytime soon, which was a real problem. The ritual for the Anniversary would already be quite strong with how many people the Demon King had gathered around himself. He had no obligation to be present…
But even the presence of one of his lives lingering in the ritual would…
Well, Belzerg would not last long. He'd been hoping, on his months' long trip, to find an adversary willing and able to strike him down, but he'd had no such luck – only brats from other worlds who, despite being a good meal, couldn't do a thing to him.
He tossed another look over his shoulder – even if he didn't use his eyes to see, perhaps the lazy, desperate Goddess with an ego larger than the Demon King's castle would sense his sight anyway – and let out another laugh.
"What does moi know? Mine sight did not speak to me of Wolbach arriving. Perhaps I will meet my end and be free from the Demon King's grasp?"
No one responded, of course, but he did not mind. He had a dungeon to design and build… and if a few of his dolls wandered out and attracted some challengers – from the town or from Wolbach's camp – well, he certainly wouldn't mind a snack…
-OxOxO-
A/N 1: We're nearly there. Next chapter things start coming to a head.
A/N 2: If you'd like to donate to support me monetarily, search for Sugarcane Soldier on the website of the Patrons.
A/N 3: Thanks to lekille for being a Basic Patron.
Many thanks to Afforess for being a Super Patron.
A big thank you to WarmasterOku for being an Ultra Patron.