I jumped with all my might– breaking the big tree behind me.
“Why did you drop her?! He is just the 0 score guy?! We have to quickly go kill that garbage and kill Lapis Klue La Lumet!!”
A girl who seemed to be the leader shouted.
“Don’t get so angry.”
Hearing that, the other two grinned.
“That small fry is not a problem, anyway. He is just the 0 score guy, you know? It is a proof that he is just a fucking small fry who has no actual battle experience.”
While laughing, they pointed at me.
“Look, Water Arrow is all he can do! So shabby! Even the amount of his magic power is nothing special, surely we can kill him in a matter of sec–”
*Clank*
Suddenly, a high-pitched sound was heard and the girl who was talking fell to the side.
Silence filled the atmosphere as the fainted girl fell without even knowing what had happened.
At the same moment, the remaining two jumped back with all their might.
“H-ha?! W-what did he do?!”
“He hasn’t shot that arrow!! The water arrow is still lingering on his arm!! Did Lapis Klue La Lumet wake up?! Don’t tell me, Tsukiori Sakura came to save them?! No way, right?!”
“Leave that for later, quickly hide your bo– hi!!”
A Nil Arrow grazed the leader girl. Scared, the girl immediately hides behind a tree.
Looking at that, I slowly pulled the trigger.
No matter in the east or west, bows and arrows have always been used to kill humans and animals. A bow is the embodiment of dynamics. It is said that Japanese bows pursued technique and Western bows emphasize on tools (bows and arrows) in order to shoot the arrows in the desired direction.
Using bow required three actions: 『Pull』, 『Aim』, and 『Shoot』. On the other hand, the principle of using a crossbow is to set an arrow in the arc installed in the barrel and aim it from the state where the arrow has already been pulled.
Anyhow, whether it is a bow or a crossbow, the basic principle of pulling an arrow with a bow and shooting the arrow using the pulling force is the same.
But, regarding Nil Arrow, that pulling force is covered by 『Control: Shoot』 console… or in other words, magic power, so there is no need to worry about that. For that reason, the only thing I should regard as important is which one of them is more powerful.
Compared to the bow, crossbows have an initial velocity of more than 400 km. Not only that, it also has an excellent flight distance and penetration power, and is superior in terms of accuracy. However, since it required a high tensile strength, which is about 150 kg, its continuous firing performance is inferior to that of a bow, and its stability after shooting is also bad.
However, these disadvantages disappear if I use Nil Arrow. First of all, a high tensile strength is not needed since it is shot by using 『Control: Shoot』 console. Also, Nil Arrow flies along the cylindrical rail shaped by magic, so it is stable even in the air.
Cylindrical rail. This rail is made with the index finger and middle finger as the basis.
In order to stabilize my straightened right arm, I bent my left arm to use it as a pedestal and aim with the two arms crossed.
After that, the route on– the magical rail created a gentle curve that drew the path to the girl behind the tree.
Next, the crafting. The arrow that I made is long and light… The tip of the arrow is rounded to reduce the killing power while the arrow shaft is just like the basic one, and since I’m not pulling it with a real bow, I removed the nock and attached arrow feathers to keep the flight direction.
The magic arrows–magic bullets that will be shot are three.
A blue arrow that emits a pale light extended to the back of my right arm. It sticks between my index and middle finger, and firmly sticks in the rear.
The magic bullets that coiled around my right arm are in the shape of arrows, and the magic operators, which is the source of the magic, remembers its shape. These magic bullets will disappear after I shoot them. However, they’re, in fact, just flying along the cylindrical rail I formed in advance.
Just like that, the Nil Arrow runs along the cylindrical rail, scattering sparks of pale magic power.
The trigger has already been pulled.
As the magic bullets were about to reach the chin of the girl– I poured more magic power into it.
“Blow her away.”
“Eh?”
*Boom*
Blown to the side, the girl slammed against a big tree and sank under it.
Looking at the scene, the girl leader had her breath taken away.
And then, with her face paled– she screamed.
“A-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!”
In panic, she jumps out of the shadows and recklessly stretches the red-black arms behind her.
Without hesitation, I put my hand on my scabbard, lowered my posture, and ran toward her.
While slipping through the gap between those four arms– I raised my sword guard.
“I-I didn’t hear about this!! I absolutely didn’t hear about this!! Even though she said there is no one I should be careful of except for Tsukiori Sakura!! H-how could there be someone like him–”
Having entered a suitable distance, I passed the girl and pulled the trigger– in that instant, I drew my sword– and silently put the blade back in the scabbard.
“I… didn’t… hear….”
With her bangs slashed and scattering in the wind, the girl fell on the spot.
“…”
Eh, haven’t I become insanely strong…?
I quietly laughed. Now, I don’t feel like I will die anymore. I have finally overcome the death flag. Although I still have a fiance (fake) waiting for me in the dormitory, I can easily overcome such a death flag (Flag).
After being carried away like that, I regained myself and caught the girl leader. Having completely lost her fighting spirit, she turned her hollowed eyes into the air.
I gently turned over her neck and– sighed, as I found the mark which is the proof of a retainer.
As expected, this is the Devil’s attack event, huh… This mark also happens to belong to Arshariya. Which means, there is no doubt that the event will proceed just like the game.
The Devil– it is a monster that once tried to rule the otherworld and called herself as a Goddess.
And that one monster imitated a human and created the “Six Demon Pillar”.
The first pillar, Arshariya the Shrine of Death.
The second pillar, Reize Lute the Skeleton.
The third pillar, Q the Absolute Destroyer.
The fourth pillar, Nanatsubaki the Myriad Mirror.
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The fifth pillar, Fair Lady the Burn Rites.
The sixth pillar, Time Disappearance.
(T/N: These names may or may not be changed later.)
The six demon pillars will absolutely move with one purpose, which is to dominate the Otherworld and Reality.
These demons will appear in the key scenes of every route in the game and are hostile to the MC and the heroines. Every one of them has their own peculiarity, and almost all of them are newbie killers, which can easily lead to the death event of Tsukiori that I’m concerned about.
The demons will not hesitate to use any means to kill, eliminate, or even make their opponent change sides. For that reason, they continue to target famous magicians and the heroines, and if even one of the heroines is killed by these guys, the story will soon reach the bad end.
The six demon pillars are also good at manipulating humans, that can be seen from how they have believers called 『Devil Religion』, that are widespread in the reality. This Devil Religion is divided into six branches, and the believers of each of these branches have a mark somewhere on their body according to the demons who rule them. These believers are called 『Retainers』, and they are often used like someone who work in black companies, that doesn’t care whether they’re alive or dead as long as they did their job.
By the way, 7th and 8th pillars actually existed. If you ask who they are… Well, they are Hiiro-kun and Tsukiori.
There was a laughing scene where Hiiro is repeatedly revived and killed by necromancy in the game. But to be precise, this scene happened because Arshariya – The Shrine of Death took a liking toward Hiiro and turned him into a demon, thus making him get killed and revived repeatedly.
Arshariya – The Shrine of Death is also known as 『A woman who absolutely will destroy Yuri.』, and is by far the most asshole even among the demons, which is full of assholes. I mean, she got on well with Hiiro and tried to help him get sandwiched between Yuri, after all.
Due to its nature, Arshariya – The Shrine of Death can even revive the dead by sharing a part of herself… In the final stage of Lapis route, there is a scene where Lapis is enraged when she sees a certain person who was revived by Arshariya. And I, who also saw that scene, also hated Arshariya to the core. She is the one I wanted to kill the most after Hiiro.
The event where Tsukiori became a demon is at the beginning of the 『Evil Route』. In this route, Tsukiori who was fascinated by the power of the devil turns into a demon 『Tsukiori Sakura』 and ended up burying the heroines, which seriously leaves a bad aftertaste for me.
At any rate, this Lapis attack event is considered the first contact with the demons. The main culprit in this event is, needless to say, Arshariya. The humans who became her retainers will be able to use a magic called 『Hollow Hand』…. the red-black hands that the three girls used earlier.
It is, in fact, just a kind of summoning technique from the Otherworld, so to be precise, it is different from activating magic using a magic device, but… the power is certain, even that bastard Hiiro, who is confident in his physical strength, can rot if grasped by that hand (just die).
Even though it is called the first contact with the demons, Arshariya herself will only come out at the end of the game. Because if Tsukiori fights her at this stage, no matter how strong she is, she will definitely die. So, for the convenience of the game, fighting her will be on the final stage.
Anyway, how should I clear this matter….
If it’s in the game, Lapis has the goal of making friends in this orientation camp. For that reason, her intimidating escorts, the shadows, and her master were not accompanying her.
This attack precisely happens by taking advantage of that chance. Without the help of Tsukiori, Lapis would disappear from the game, and her route would disappear altogether.
Originally, after Tsukiori helps Lapis, friendship grew between the two who were always quarreling. And in essence, Lapis route is a picture of Lapis being gradually attracted to her first friend, Tsukiori Sakura, and describing her feelings of being afraid of the change of status from just a friend.
If I help her here, that important event will be ruined… in that case, it’s just the same as that garbage asshole Hiiro-kun.
That is why, somehow, I have to make Lapis think that the one who helped her was Tsukiori. Thus, after confirming the safety of the fainted Lapis, I began to think carefully.
“….”
I came up with a good idea!!
I approached the stunned retainer of the demon and smiled.
“Hit me.”
“…. Ha?”
“Hit me with your Hollow Hand. Don’t hold back. Go for it with all your might. This is to protect Yuri, so you will cooperate too, right?”
“Eh, yes, ano…?”
I crossed my arms and took a daunting pose.
“Alright, come on!!”
“…”
With a big smile, I pulled out my sword and thrust it at her.
“Are you… someone who resents Yuri….? (Rough breathing)”
“H-hii!! I-I’ll hit you!! I’ll hit you, okay?!”
“Come put your spirit into it!!”
Receiving the punch of the Hollow Hand from the front, I was blown away and struck into a big tree.
“…”
However, I soon stood up and stared at my body. It seems the wound was not good enough.
“A-ano…?”
“No matter how you look at it, it is insufficient, right?! Is your enthusiasm for Yuri just this amount?! Go reread 『Kiss and white lily for my dearest girl』 by Canno-sensei for a million times, you dumbass!! Your motivation is not enough!!”
“Hiiiiiiiii!! Sorryyyyyyyyyy!!”
“Don’t forget to also read 『Goukaku no tame no!! Yasashii Sankaku Kankei Nyuumon1』 properly, okayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?!”
As the hollow hands approached me, I endured it as if I were taking a shower. Finally, full blood and bruises, I put my thumbs up on the retainer girl in a tattered state.
“Looks like… you can do it if you try (a refreshing smile).”
“Enough… I quit being a retainer…!!”
When a person becomes a demon’s retainer, their parameter will also be corrected according to the demon they serve. And perhaps thanks to that parameter correction to their physical strength and magic power, the two girls who were blown away with a fatal momentum also woke up, and immediately ran in panic.
I would have killed them if they really managed to kill Lapis, but it looks like they have learned their lesson, and since it was just an attempt, I decided to let them go this time.
Full of wounds, I disguised my body as a person who was defeated without being able to do anything. Lastly, I contacted Tsukiori.
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It’s perfect… If Tsukiori comes when I’m in this state, I will forcibly say that it was Tsukiori who defeated the three demon retainers… And if Lapis saw me get defeated miserably and cried to Tsukiori, Lapis should begin to love Tsukiori, who saved her… Good grief, as expected of a 180 Yuri IQ brain…!
And just like that, I laid down on the spot–
“…un.”
“Eh, wait, she woke up a little faster than I expected— Ugh… I lost… (switching to god-like acting)”
Before Tsukiori came, Lapis slowly opened her eyes.