Mob Kousei No Ore Demo Boukensha Ni
Nareba Riajuu Ni Naremasuka: Chapter #135
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
Episode 135: Kintama
"....We're retreating."
I decided to fall back the
moment I confirmed there were Guild staffs among the corpses.
The Guild's shelter wouldn't be breached by
just a few B-ranks.
It would take at least a horde of B-ranks, and
it wouldn't be strange at all to find an A-rank there. ...Or perhaps it was
breached from 'within'?
In any case, there is no reason to stay here
with something dangerous likely waiting for us.
Unless there is no other path or if I know this
domain is directly connected to Tachikawa, then this isn't the moment to take
risks.
...But should I recover at least one of the Guild
staff member's bodies?
With the divine power of the Sanmyō no Tsurugi,
I can read memories from the corpse. Maybe I can glimpse some information about
the enemy――
『Master! They're coming!』
"!"
Perhaps it was a mistake to be
so greedy.
In just a few fleeting
moments of hesitation, the enemy was already upon us.
At Yuki's warning, I was swept
into Eliza's arms and we leapt back into the Siren's Domain.
My other cards followed, and
as soon as everyone was inside the gate, the door began to close slowly.
Just as the door was about to
shut completely, a massive hand appeared, gripping the gate with a loud *BAM*
sound.
It was a four-clawed hand
covered in golden scales. Each of its fingers was thicker and larger than a full-grown
man.
Then, a head that truly
screamed ‘dragon!’ peered through, and its long body slithered in, pushing the
gate wide open with a *shhhk* sound.
"――――Huanglong1."
Whose mutter was that? Perhaps
it was me.
Every Japanese person knows
the The Four Divine Beasts2—Seiryō, Suzaku, Byakko, and Genbu3.
The one said to preside over
them was this Huanglong... and it was a legitimate A-rank.
"Master! Don't let Siren-sama be killed!
The Gatekeeper will be replaced!"
"......!"
Startled,
I looked at Siren at the sound of Näkki-Neito's shout.
If an already powerful A-rank becomes a
Gatekeeper and has its shackles removed, then...!
"Näkki-Neito! Take Siren and hide somewhere!"
"Yes! I wish you good luck!"
As Näkki-Neito scurried away,
cleverly slithering her fish-like lower body, I glared at the Huanglong.
Having passed through the
gate, the Huanglong elegantly soared into the air with a majestic air.
The gate behind it was
completely closed, and thankfully, it seemed there were no reinforcements.
――――At that moment, I felt a
strong sense of danger, but somewhere in my heart, I had a sense of composure.
The Huanglong was certainly an
A-rank, but its true home was China, and its power should be somewhat
diminished in this neighboring country.
Its power was likely that of a
lower or, at best, a mid-tier A-rank.
On my side, I had a full team
of B-ranks with combat power on par with A-ranks thanks to [Breakthrough of
Limits], and Suzuka had achieved [Spiritual Recurrence] to an A-rank.
While the A-rank Huanglong's skills are
unknown, our combined combat power and Equipping skills should be enough to
fight it.
And above all, I have the Hamelin's Flute.
If Siren is killed and get replaced as
Gatekeeper, it would mean, on the flip side, that it couldn't pursue us
outside.
Unlike an Irregular Encounter
battle, the peace of mind that I could escape if things went south had given me
a certain inner calm.
But that calmness――――
―――― was shattered by the four
monsters that appeared with the Huanglong's roar.
A blue oriental dragon that
looked like a smaller version of the Huanglong itself: Seiryō.
A mystical white great tiger the
size of a large truck: Byakko.
A crimson phoenix which looked
like a hybrid of a peacock and a cassowary: Suzaku.
And a black turtle, the
largest among the four, even more massive than the Huanglong: Genbu.
Subordinate
Summoning! Dammit! This is bad, the Four Divine Beasts' special skills are...!
『Doesn't matter which! Kill one
of the Four Divine Beasts!』
My order was a step too late.
The forms of the Four Divine
Beasts melted away, and a faint green curtain appeared, surrounding the Siren's
domain.
Shit, too late...!
----Four
Divine Beasts Quadrilateral Barrier
This special skill, usable
only when all Four Divine Beasts are present, allows for an Absolute Barrier to
be erected with the Four Divine Beasts as its anchors.
This barrier cannot be broken
until its duration expires. If cast outwards, it provides an Absolute Defense;
if cast inwards, it becomes an inescapable cage for the enemy.
It was said that this barrier
can even nullify Absolute Attack skills, and it even obstructs
transference/teleportation-type skills such as Emergency Evacuation.
Since
the Four Divine Beasts are outside the barrier, the special
skills of the Trinity of Moon Goddesses4 probably wouldn't be able to
reach them either.
In other words, I had lost my
means of escape for when push came to shove.
"Damn it!"
I should've expected that the leader of the Four
Divine Beasts, the Huanglong, would have a skill to summon them!
It seemed I was actually
agitated by the sudden appearance of the Huanglong, which was why I didn't
think of its Subordinate Summoning skill or the Four Divine Beasts' special
skills.
Or perhaps, my mind was
already at its limit, even though I thought I was staying calm amid the
dramatic changes of the past few days.
"....Huu."
I took a small, deep breath. I
had to refocus.
My mind, which had been a
chaotic mess of colors, was now being painted over with a single, calm shade of
blue.
......Well, it can't be helped. Now that it's
come to this, all I can do is to brace myself and fight.
『Master, should I use
[Spiritual Recurrence]?』
『...No.』
After thinking for a moment, I
shook my head at Suzuka's short question.
『Not yet. Keep it in reserve
for now.』
『Understood.』
Perhaps because Suzuka's
[Spiritual Recurrence] involved an A-rank transformation now, the burden was
immense. Unlike before, using it now entailed a full month of recharging time.
To use it for a second time,
the Tamatebako would be needed, and the current effect duration only lasts for
a few minutes, so extreme carefulness is required.
It wasn't a 'card' I should
play before knowing the opponent's hand.
But I won't hold back on anything else.
『Mea, transform into Hecate! While
you're summoning subordinates, try to see if Subordinate Sealing works! Dress’s
group, use the [Feast of Destruction, Slaughter, and Victory]! Athena, get your
[Aegis Protection] ready! The first strike is the most terrifying! Treat this
like an Irregular Encounter!』
『Understood!』
I gave a small smile at my
cards' powerful nods.
That's right, who cares if it's an A-rank? We
had already defeated the likes of Urashima Taro and the Pied Piper of Hamelin.
Unless there are multiple A-ranks, a single one
is nothing to fear!
『Let's go! OOOOOOOHHHH!!!』
――――Somehow, we just won.
It was a few minutes later. I
stood there, a peculiar feeling stirred within me as I held the loot the Huanglong
had dropped.
The Huanglong was certainly
powerful.
With its Subordinate Sealing
(which probably only worked within the barrier), its Magic Reflection skill that
used the logic of the Five Elements5, and its
overwhelming life force that seemed to gush forth endlessly like a spring,
along with its ability to summon the Four Divine Beasts... they were truly
skills befitting an A-rank.
There might have been other
hidden skills that I hadn't seen.
But alas, its combat power was
only around 4,000, even with a generous estimate, making it no match for us.
Without even needing to use
Suzuka's [Spiritual Recurrence], the Huanglong simply sank under our superior
power.
For my first battle against an A-rank, it was
surprisingly anticlimactic.
"Well, whatever."
I shook my head slightly,
shifting my focus.
As long as we won, there's no problem.
In fact, it was far better
than having a hard time. ...I was just a little bewildered by the huge
disparity between this and the so-called A-rank equivalent Irregular
Encounters.
Now, let's get back on track and take a look at
Huanglong's loot.
What the Huanglong dropped was
a Magic Stone slightly smaller than Urashima Taro's, and a golden, palm-sized
sphere.
"This… what could it be?"
There was hardly any
information about A-ranks out there, unlike B-ranks.
Not much was known about their
drops either, so all I could do was guess based on its race.
Something a Huanglong would drop... what is it?
"A Kintama6ni,
probably."
As I stood there tilting my
head at the golden ball, Renge spoke up.
I was so taken aback that I
asked in disbelief,
"....Huh? What did you say?"
"I said, ‘it’s probably a Kintamani’?
Ah?"
I hadn't misheard. I gave
Renge a look that questioned her sanity.
"...You, why are you suddenly making a
dirty joke?"
"It's not a dirty joke!"
At my accusing gaze, Renge's
cheeks flushed as she yelled back.
"It's a sacred jewel sometimes held by
Buddhist deities! Do you understand if I say Cintāmaṇi7?!"
"Ah! A Cintāmaṇi, I see..."
It was then that I finally
understood and nodded.
I was so surprised. I thought
she suddenly dropped a dirty joke with a straight face...
"Cintāmaṇi, huh? If I remember correctly,
it's a treasure that can grant any wish, right?"
It was said to be the model for the orbs in
that famous national manga about gathering seven dragon
balls8.
That makes sense, which is why a Huanglong would...
"Mm, it gives off an incredible amount of
good luck energy. It's probably the same type of item as the Carbuncle Garnet and
the Vouivre Diamond, you know."
Prompted by what she said, I
carefully examined the Kintama... the Cintāmaṇi, and sure enough, I could feel
the energy of good luck.
"Since it's the same type as the Garnet and
the Diamond, does that mean it can be used in the same way?"
"Who knows? Why don't you try crushing
it?"
"That's a bit..."
It would be a disaster if I
crushed it and it just broke.
This was a rare A-rank item,
and of the same type as the Garnet and Diamond at that.
Even if I were to use it, I'd
need confirmation, or I'd be too scared to try unless I was truly desperate.
"Regarding its use, leave it to me."
Athena said, perhaps unable to
bear the sight of me groaning and muttering to myself.
"It will take time since the knowledge is
likely quite limited, but there might be some data. I will search for it with
my Authority of Knowledge.
“Counting on you."
I turned the Cintāmaṇi into a
card and carefully stored it into my Card Holder.
Just then, Siren, her face
twitching, and Näkki-Neito, her eyes mysteriously gleaming, approached.
"To think you actually defeated that..."
"As expected of you, Master!"
"Ah, Näkki-Neito. I'm glad you're safe.
You too, Siren."
Näkki-Neito had just become my
ally and hadn't even been named, so if she was Lost, that would be the
end of her. Ideally, I should have sent her back before the battle, but I
didn't have the luxury of time, and I needed her to help Siren escape.
If Siren had been killed by
the Huanglong, we likely wouldn't have won so easily.
Considering Näkki-Neito also
warned me about the Gatekeeper role being usurped, she might have been the MVP
of this fight.
"I apologize for all the trouble, Siren."
When I gave a small bow,
Siren's eyes widened a little in surprise, then she shook her head.
"No, it's fine. I never imagined such a
creature of that caliber would come from beyond the gate. So? Are you heading
onward from here?"
I shook my head at Siren's
question.
"No, I won't. I'll find another route."
The fact that the Huanglong was
roaming the surface meant that the area ahead was very likely to have a B-rank
or higher dungeon. It also confirmed that a monster even stronger than the
Huanglong was sealed as the Gatekeeper beyond.
Even if this was the only
route to Tachikawa, it was worth exploring other options.
"I see, that would be for the best."
Siren nodded, seemingly
relieved at my response.
...I understood her feelings.
If I were to proceed, another higher-ranked monster like the Huanglong would
likely invade.
"Anyway, let's head back for today..."
It was too risky to push
forward after a battle with an A-rank.
I could use the Tamatebako to
rest, but I wanted to save that as a trump card for combat.
I had used Mea's [Spiritual
Recurrence], so I would use the Tamatebako to recover it, but I should only
proceed once the Tamatebako was usable again.
"Well then, I'm sorry to have bothered
you."
"Mm. Don't worry about it. And don't come
back too soon."
I apologized to Siren one last
time. With her warm words at my back, we returned to Ai's place.
The next day.
We set off again, aiming for another
gate.
Like yesterday, I aimed for a
staircase far from the C-rank dungeon.
If guess is right, this place should also be a
C-rank.
.......But,
"Orcus... a B-rank, huh?"
A gigantic body of a menacing
size that you have to look up. Thick, powerful limbs, and eerily slimy, pale
blue skin... The being in the miasma-filled swamp was Orcus, the Roman god of
the underworld.
Orcus was said to be the deity
who was the original inspiration for Grendel, the giant from 'Beowulf9', who, in turn, was considered to be the
origin of Orcs.
Perhaps connected to this, the
swamp was teeming with countless Grendels and Orcs.
Hmm... was my guess wrong, or did a B-rank
monster just happen to get into the area when it was isolated...?
"What do we do?"
Renge asked me as I pondered,
observing the Grendel from a distance.
"No, we fall back."
When passing through a gate, I
wanted to avoid fighting B-rank monsters as much as possible.
Considering Renge's True
Skill, I can never be too cautious against a B-rank Gatekeeper.
Fighting a B-rank should only
be considered after I had checked all the C-rank Gatekeepers.
I turned back from Orcus's
domain and headed for the next staircase... but,
"Tsk... this one's a B-rank too?"
I clicked my tongue when I saw
a swarm of C-rank monsters within the snowy, rustic-village-like area.
Based on patterns I'd observed
so far, Gatekeepers didn't invite monsters of their own rank into their domains.
This was likely due to the rule that allowed a Gatekeeper's authority to be
usurped if they were defeated.
Therefore, by looking at the
rank of the monsters within the domain, I can roughly deduce the Gatekeeper's
rank.
For now, I'll just confirm the Gatekeeper's
race and retreat.
So
I scanned the area...
"...Nn? Where is it?"
Unable to find the Gatekeeper,
I tilted my head.
The previous Gatekeepers had
all stationed in front of the gate, so they were easy to find. This time,
however, not only was there no Gatekeeper, but the gate itself was nowhere to
be found.
What's going on? Is it using an Invisibility
skill?
As I was thinking, Audrey
suddenly spoke up,
"Goshujin-sama10,
perhaps the master of this place is a cross-space type?"
"A cross-space type Gatekeeper..."
Right, that seems possible.
If the gate is concealed by an alternate space,
it makes perfect sense that I can't find it.
Observing the monsters within
the domain, I noticed that what initially seemed like a diverse array of races
actually leaned heavily towards a particular mythological system.
That beautiful woman dancing in the nude is a Pawci-Kamuy11. That dwarf holding a butterbur leaf
is a Korpokkur. The bear monster is a Kimun-Kamuy12, and that fox monster is a
Cironnup-Kamuy...
I'm starting to get an idea of who the
Gatekeeper here is.
"A realm of the Kamuy (Ainu deities)... Kamuy-Kotan13, then?"
Kamuy-Kotan meant 'the
dwelling place of Kamuy' in the Ainu language. It was a top-tier C-rank cross-space
type monster.
It possessed the Subordinate
Summoning ability to infinitely summon Kamuy-type monsters of C-rank or lower
ranks. On the other hand, its core being had almost no combat ability, so it
adopted the same appearance as its summoned subordinates, blending in among
them as a form of strategy.
So, the Gatekeeper is hiding among these
countless monsters, huh?
"Does anyone know which one is the
Gatekeeper?"
I asked, looking over at my
cards. Suzuka, who had the ability to detect deception, answered while crossing
her arms,
"Hm--m, I think I could see through its
disguise if I could get a good look, but with so many... Why don't we just kill
all of them?"
"That's a bit... you know."
I grimaced, recalling the
battle with the Huanglong yesterday.
My concern was what would
happen to the gate if we defeated the Gatekeeper.
I'd heard that once a
Gatekeeper is defeated, the gate becomes freely accessible until a new
gatekeeper is decided, but if that means the gate just stays open, that could
be a problem.
If it's connected to a domain
with strong enemies, like yesterday, powerful monsters might come through.
If it's just one, it might be
sealed in place as a Gatekeeper, but if there are several, A-ranks and B-ranks
could flood this area.
Furthermore, there’s the
danger of the Gatekeepers' position being taken over by stronger monsters
spreading to other domains as a chain reaction.
Well, even so, I think the possibility is low
since Siren wasn't usurped as a Gatekeeper by Chiron, who was on the same surface,
but I can't say it definitely won't happen.
It would be best to proceed as
cautiously as possible.
I decided to call out to the
monsters in the area, hoping for the best,
"Gatekeeper of this domain, we wish to
pass through the gate via negotiation! If you can hear me, please
respond!"
.........No response, huh? Hmm, though, since
they're not attacking, they don't seem to be hostile.
I turned to Näkki-Neito and
asked,
"Do you know what happens to the gate when
its Gatekeeper is defeated?"
"My apologies. I was never a Gatekeeper
myself, nor have I ever witnessed one being defeated, so I cannot say..."
"I see..."
After pondering for a moment,
I responded,
"It can't be helped. For now, let's go
check the remaining stairs."
if it's C-rank there, I'll try to negotiate. If
it's another B-rank, I'll have no choice but to come back here and defeat this
Gatekeeper.
I turned back and headed to
check the last staircase.
The result...
"......Hydra. No, we're retreating.
Retreat. "
"Aren't you going to negotiate?"
"A Hydra is a no-go."
I answered Athena's question
with a shake of my head.
Hydra had tales of killing
numerous heroes with its poison. Even the immortal Chiron was among them, and
he was in so much pain that he gave up his immortality just to die.
While regular Hydras don't
possess such potent poison, it wouldn't be surprising for a True Skill-holder
Hydra to have uncurable poison.
Orcus, being a type of death
god, was also out of the question.
" It can't be helped. Let's go back to the
Kamuy-Kotan. We'll defeat the Gatekeeper there."
I still had concerns about the
gate being left open… but I couldn't expect to pass through every gate by
negotiation alone.
Well, it isn’t a bad idea to confirm how the gate’s
work now.
Telling myself this, I
returned to the Kamuy-Kotan domain.
I then launched an
area-of-effect attack at all the monsters in sight, one after another. Eventually, with a ripple in space, the scenery changed, and a gate
appeared.
The newly revealed gate faintly
glowed.
"Does this mean... the gate is passable
now?"
I tentatively touched the
door, and it automatically began to open.
We all slipped through the
gap, and the opening gate slowly began to close.
Seeing that, I let out a
sigh of relief.
...Thank goodness. The
gate didn't stay open after the Gatekeeper was killed.
I tried touching the gate
again, and it started to open, so I quickly took my hand away and stepped back.
It closed.
I then had my cards try, but the
gate didn't react.
It seemed that the gate's
mechanism was such that only the qualified individual could open it, and that qualification lay with the Master themselves, not the cards.
This
meant that even if a Gatekeeper was killed, monsters wouldn't be able to just
pour through from the other side.
For
now, the worst of my concerns was avoided........
With
that confirmed, I turned to Eliza and Yuki,
『Eliza, prepare the transfer. Yuki, once Eliza is ready, activate [Lord
of the Territory].』
『Yes, Master.』『Understood!』
Yuki's [Lord of the Territory] skill's
range changes depending on the strength of the enemies nearby.
The extent of its range can give a rough idea of the threat level.
My
concern was attracting an A-rank if there were any nearby, but for that reason, I had Eliza ready with our escape at any moment.
This
was the new strategy I had devised last night before going to bed.
"AOOOOOOOOOooo----!"
As Yuki's howl resonated, a
wave of energy pulsed through the surrounding area.
Its range was comparable to
that in Hokkaido, indicating no A-rank monsters were nearby.
...Glad that I hadn't drawn a
second bad hand, I sighed in relief.
『Hm! This is?!』
Suddenly, Yuki bolted.
『What’s wrong?!』
I questioned, and as I did, I
shared her senses.
And I immediately understood
why she had took off running.
Countless monsters, sensing
Yuki's power, desperately tried to flee beyond the territory's range. Among
them, I could feel the presence of ‘that monster’ that I loved so much... and
there were several of them!
Yuki quickly dealt with the
closest one and returned.
In her hand was a gleaming red
jewel... a Carbuncle Garnet.
『Here you go, Master.』
『Thanks, you did great, Yuki.』
As I excitedly put the Garnet
into my pocket, my mind was racing.
Yuki's senses had detected the presence of
multiple Carbuncles besides this one.
Considering that we couldn't detect a single
one in the vast Hokkaido area, there is a high possibility that a secret
dungeon where Carbuncles appear exists here.
"Heh, I didn't think I'd get to use this
card so soon."
I grinned, pulling out a
single card.
It depicted a beautiful,
bare-skinned female warrior astride a sturdy black horse, wearing only a fur breastplate
and loincloth.
――――It was a card of Kimaris the Second14----a.k.a Carbuncle Radar.
***
Notes:
2 Written as 四神 in the raw. They are mythological creatures that appeared on Chinese constellations along the orbital plane of Earth around the Sun ↩
3 In order: Seiryō: Azure Dragon (of the East), Suzaku: Vermilion Bird (of the South), Byakko: White Tiger (of the West), and Genbu: Black Tortoise (of the North). ↩
4 Refer to [World of Frozen Moonlight]. It wipes out all non-allied servants/subordinates and blocks the summoning of new subordinates.↩
5 likely refers to the Wu Xing (五行), or the Five Phases/Elements from traditional Chinese philosophy: Wood (木 - Mù), Fire (火 - Huǒ), Earth (土 - Tǔ), Metal (金 - Jīn), Water (水 - Shuǐ). These 5 are believed to control and explain phenomena occurring in the world. Together with the members of the Four Divine Beasts, Huanglong represents Wu Xing for Earth. ↩
6 キンタマ is golden balls (if translated literally), but it is also the word for *cough* test1cles, balls, and nuts in Japanese. ↩
9 An Old English poem. Beowulf is the hero’s name. ↩
10 So sorry, we’ve been forgetting how Audrey calls Maro like this instead of ‘Master’ that everyone else uses… ↩
11 A Kamuy in charge of lust ↩
12 It means ‘God of the Mountain’ in Ainu. One already appeared before in ch. 95, and we translated it as Kimunkamui back then. ↩
13 Fun fact, Japan has an actual place named Kamuy-Kotan. It’s in Hokkaido. ↩
14 He got one when he used one of the Lottery Cards before in ch. 125↩
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