Game Opportunity Becomes Reality Episode 98
============================================================
Game Opportunity Becomes Reality Episode 98
25. One Step Closer (7)
I calmly looked up at the nobles whispering among themselves with my arms crossed, and Arcia spoke up in my stead.
"I can hear all of you."
Nice one, Arcia.
At her words, the nobles who thought they were being careful by talking quietly behind me flinched and swallowed dryly.
I got straight to the point and asked Marquis Trenton what business he had.
"What brings you here?"
"First, allow me to apologize for my party's rudeness."
"Don't worry about it. That's just how noble society works, isn't it? A masquerade where you smile on the outside but never know what's going on inside."
At my blunt remark, Marquis Trenton's brow twitched, but being someone well-versed in masquerades, he quickly composed his expression and revealed why they had all come flocking.
"Marquis Lawrence rarely engages in social activities, does he not? I wanted to show you how many nobles wish to build a rapport with you."
Simply put, the faction centered around Marquis Trenton wanted to establish good relations with me.
Seeing that even within the same camp, factions are divided politicians really are the same wherever you go.
Well, if I were to side with him, that faction would have two of the four marquises backing the Second Prince Luke on their team, making them a formidable group.
"And since we are both Grand Mages of the 7th Circle, I see no harm in active exchange."
"I suppose so."
But when I only gave an ambiguous answer without any real reaction, he merely offered an awkward smile. Soon enough, a third party intervened with perfect timing, and the socializing for recruitment took a new turn.
"How shameless is that? After attacking him like that last time, now you come wanting to be friends?"
"You know full well I had no choice then. Marquis Vincent."
He was the only marquis in the Second Prince's faction who had no connection with me the Kingdom's greatest swordsman, Marquis Vincent.
Having no connection with me meant there was no ill will between us either.
"Have you come to befriend me as well, Marquis Vincent?"
"Don't misunderstand. I did not approach you for such a transparent purpose."
"That's too harsh, Marquis Vincent!"
So Marquis Trenton and Marquis Vincent don't get along well?
Watching the two of them clash with their auras, I turned to Marquis Vincent and asked what his business was.
"It's about Count Klein. You joined this hunting tournament after a long while how about showing us a bit of your skill? Your martial prowess is already famous from when you took down an Aura Master on broadcast, but many are curious since they've never seen Count Klein's martial arts firsthand."
She had already experienced considerable real combat.
But every single battle had been an unconventional situation, so she wasn't widely known publicly.
Turning my head at his words, I could feel the Second Prince looking this way.
Judging by that, Marquis Vincent must be the Second Prince's messenger.
Unlike the early days, the Second Prince had never openly shown interest in Arcia.
It seemed this time, it was purely out of curiosity.
"Can you really gauge an Aura Master's skill against mere deer?"
"It seems Marquis Lawrence is unfamiliar with the royal hunting grounds?"
"Yes, that's right."
"There's more than just animals here."
As I tilted my head, he grinned and held up two fingers in a V shape.
"I've prepared two ogres. That should be more than enough to showcase your prowess as an Aura Master."
The royal hunting grounds raise beasts for entertainment and release them on hunting day.
Think of it as a royal version of an indoor fishing pond.
So I had to put on a surprised expression.
Because what he said meant the royal family actually raised ogres for hunting.
"You raise ogres?"
"As if it's just ogres. They raise almost every monster except winged ones and magic-type ones."
Truly impressive.
Raising man-eating monsters for fun.
I looked at Arcia.
Do it if she wants to; don't if she doesn't.
She was no longer in a position to worry about what others thought.
"I will."
"Make it quick."
"Yes."
Seeing Arcia's enthusiasm, Marquis Vincent looked satisfied.
"You can't use Vanguard equipment in the hunting competition, so do be careful. Ogres are not foes to be taken lightly."
I know.
Ogres were monsters I'd fought thousands upon thousands of times in the game.
A Vanguard wearing Force equipment could easily dominate one 1-on-1, but otherwise, a full party of ten made up of Aura Experts and High-rank Mages would need to coordinate a plan just to bring one down.
In other words, they were excellent sandbags for testing an Aura Master's skill.
Arcia unfastened the dress sword at her waist and put it into her subspace ring, which she'd acquired not long ago.
Then she took out a normal Mithril arming sword from inside, fastened it at her waist, and attached a small round shield only about 25 cm in diameter, looking purely decorative to her gauntlet and strapped it to her left wrist.
But that was the extent of her armament. Marquis Vincent expressed concern at her not putting on any additional safety gear.
"Wouldn't it be better to wear a helmet, just in case?"
"This is enough."
All she had on was a slim leather hunting outfit, a sword, a small shield, and the gauntlet to hold the shield.
To those who didn't know better, she'd seem careless, but they only reacted that way because they didn't know just how much defensive efficiency that shield on her wrist had.
"Follow me."
As Marquis Vincent led Arcia, I walked behind the two of them.
And Marquis Trenton who had approached me earlier trying to build a friendship but ended up sidelined stood beside me as if it were only natural, and many nobles followed us, eager for a good show.
"Finally, we get to see Count Klein's combat."
Of course, Second Prince Luke Win Rhinehearts was among that group of nobles.
After all, he was the one who created this situation in the first place.
To my left stood Marquis Trenton, pretending to be on my side, along with his retainers; to my right were Second Prince Luke and the young Lord of Anahaim, attending in place of the elderly Duke of Anahaim.
"You'll be amazed when you see it."
"Oh? Is she that impressive?"
Seeing it directly is faster than explaining with words.
Moments later, a space with a metal-covered floor came into view.
It was a vast arena about 300 meters in diameter. As Marquis Vincent spoke into his terminal, the floor split open and two massive iron cages rose up like elevators.
Inside those cages were two ogres with eyes bloodshot red as if in a berserk state.
-Grrrrrr.
-Bang! Crash!
Many nobles flinched and stepped back at the ferocious presence of the ogres pounding their cages and roaring, but Second Prince Luke and Marquis Vincent both Aura Masters and I a Grand Mage along with Marquis Trenton, paid it little mind.
When the Second Prince snapped his fingers, soldiers carrying each noble family's banner along with chairs set up their positions.
Prince Luke and those confident in their skills or bold enough took their seats without a care, while others stood watching, ready to flee at any moment.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes."
"Then after a 30-second count, the cages will open. Best of luck."
As Marquis Vincent stepped back, Arcia stood alone between the two massive cages.
Arcia was already small, but the ogres stood ten meters tall, making her look even more diminutive than usual.
[5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Open.]
The countdown ended before long.
-Kyaaaaaa!
As the massive iron gates opened, the two enraged ogres charged fiercely at Arcia.
And the battle that followed shattered everyone's expectations.
-Boom! Boom!
Given her build, any intelligent person would assume she was an evasion-type swordsman.
But Arcia's combat style was tougher than any Aura Master present.
"Good heavens."
"D-Damn. Did the ogres just get sent flying?"
Defend, then attack.
A simple strategy, but how many could pull it off against an ogre with nearly 50 tons of mass?
Probably almost none.
Except for the Arcia right before their eyes…
Everyone was struck speechless at the sight of the massive ogres being helplessly sent flying by her small round shield, which had seemed purely decorative.
The ogres, apparently reeling from the single collision, staggered to their feet, and Arcia, strolling over as casually as if on a walk, drove her blade through one ogre's brow.
-Kyaaaa!
The remaining ogre charged in even greater frenzy.
-Boom!
-Crunch!
But the result was worse than before if anything, never less.
When the massive fist struck Arcia's shield, the ogre's arm shattered with a crack, bone piercing through skin.
Ogres' bones what are they, after all?
They're as tough as steel and commonly used as weapon material like metal.
For an ogre's bone to break so feebly it simply defied common sense.
-Slash!
-Thud!
The ogre let out a shriek-like roar and tumbled across the ground, and she again calmly walked over and swung her sword, sending the house-sized ogre's head flying.
The battle ended so quickly that the 30-second countdown marking the start felt almost long.
-Clap, clap, clap.
When Arcia then paid her respects to Second Prince Luke, I applauded in place of him, who stood dumbfounded.
Arcia came up to me as she always did and took the spot beside me, and the nobles around us flinched and stepped back a pace.
"No, how is that possible? Even with Aura reinforcing the body, to take a strike carrying the weight of nearly 50 tons of ogre without yielding a single step, and so calmly at that."
"Could she be releasing her Aura Blade through the shield at the right timing?"
"Is that possible?"
"I wouldn't know without trying."
Prince Luke, who had tried to assess the skill of Arcia, the kingdom's only female Aura Master, from above, and Marquis Vincent, the kingdom's finest sword, showed expressions beyond admiration sheer confusion.
"Count Klein! How is such a battle possible!?"
In the end, Prince Luke, unable to hold back, asked Arcia.
Unfortunately, they had picked the wrong person to ask.
"I went *fwish* and blocked it with all my strength."
Arcia's theoretical explanations were hardly worth listening to.
Prince Luke and Marquis Vincent, their composure lost, wore faces twisted in plain view.
* * *
After the hunting competition thrown into chaos by Arcia ended, we returned to the castle.
In the carriage, recalling Prince Luke's horrified expression, I let out a low laugh.
"Should've recorded it. The more I think about it, the funnier it gets."
Though unexpected, Arcia's fame was sure to rise greatly because of this.
She was known as the nation's only female Aura Master, but unlike magic, there lingered the underlying belief that no matter how skilled a woman was in martial arts, she could never surpass a man.
However, Arcia's stunning performance with her small frame shattered everyone's preconceptions.
Even Marquis Vincent, the kingdom's finest sword, likely couldn't break through Arcia's defense.
Thanks to that, the hunting competition ended having etched in a shocking lesson: "A person who became an Aura Master at twenty truly is different in every way."
"Well done."
Having gone to an unwanted gathering yet unexpectedly getting a good laugh, I patted Arcia's back in praise.
"Huh?"
But something was strange.
Arcia, who would normally show some reaction, was staring blankly out the window.
There was nothing special to see outside, so I voiced my confusion and pulled her shoulder and she slumped over helplessly.
"Arcia!"
I lunged to catch her before her head hit the floor, and shook her with a startled expression.
I was lying on the floor with her on top of me, so shaking her made for an odd sight, but this wasn't the time to care about that.
Even at my shout she didn't respond, and I felt my mind go white.
"Milord! What's wrong!?"
The driver, sensing something was amiss, stopped the carriage, and the knights called out to me with a knock.
"Don't come in!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
I couldn't let anyone see Arcia looking like a marionette with its strings cut.
I shook her frantically in panic how many seconds passed like that?
"Ugh!"
Arcia came to with a stifled groan.
"Adrian?"
She jolted upright in surprise, and I, my heart still pounding, asked with a face gone pale.
"W-What? What just happened?"
At that, Arcia lowered her head, apologizing for causing worry.
"It seems the connection with the Hollywood system was forcibly severed for a moment, and the blow hit me."
"What?"
The Hollywood system refers to a Virtual Reality-based online environment created by Grand Duke Lucas.
Arcia is playing the game alongside me without using any separate equipment, which is possible because part of her mind is linked to the Hollywood system.
"Just now, there was an error where the entire Hollywood system went down for 10 seconds. I don't know the reason either."