Field Battle (5)

In this chapter, the protagonist's POV switches in the following form:

 

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Side:××

 

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Naoto POV

68. Field Battle (End)

 

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Side: Haru, continued

"… So there are Garumon like this too…"

"Shururururu…"

Skira and Aiola flicked their snake tongues in and out.

The pair looked entirely like monsters. Not the slightest hint of beautiful girls about them.

A Value of 5000 was extremely low for a Garumon held by an A-Class Master.

Even so, they belonged to Shiraki, who was at least nominally A-Class. They wouldn't be ordinary Garumon.

"Oh my, it's Midoriya-kun… Huh? Are you going to get in the way of me and Shogo-sama too? In that case… my pets won't forgive you.

"Now, go, my cute Skira, my cute Aiola. Swallow up… my and Shogo-sama's enemies!"

"Fufufu… Haru. From now on I'll be doting on every part of you, splendidly.

"… Like Miu and Yumi, you'll be at the height of happiness once you're given to me."

Shiraki wore a smug grin.

… Had Yumi's wrung-out monologue of misery not moved him even a little?

Even setting Naoto-kun aside, I wanted to rescue her.

"Um… Midoriya-kun is Grass-element. Against Grass-element… Element Change, Fire!"

Pishiin!

When Aihara-san struck the pair with her whip, their scales dyed red.

"Element Change…!"

A skill that changed element, I supposed.

"Now you two… your beloved whip…! Whip of Exhilaration!"

Bishi! Bishi!

Aihara-san lashed them again.

A buff to their attack power, it seemed.

"…?"

So Element Change was Skira and Aiola's skill, and Whip of Exhilaration was Aihara-san's? Hard to follow.

Still, I was grateful she'd led with prep moves.

"Summon Dryad!"

I summoned the dryad Ameri.

Whatever element they were, it didn't matter to Ameri.

"Now, Skira-chan, Aiola-chan, coil! Coil!"

Shururuu…

Skira closed in. Aiola too.

… Compared to how slow they crept, the start of their motion was abnormally fast. Did she have some ability to make beastkin move quickly?

"Earth Barrier!"

I had no choice but to draw them to myself.

I pulled Skira and Aiola's attacks onto me.

Baki baki baki!

"Aaah…!"

Strong. About 15% damage from each of them. Roughly 30% gone in a single beat.

I had to take them down quickly…

"Ugu… aah…!"

Constricted, I couldn't move. If they kept my actions sealed like this, I wouldn't be able to use Earth Barrier next turn, and I'd take the same damage all over again.

"Ameri…!"

I called to Ameri for help. But Ameri didn't move.

I was wondering why, when…

"… Clever girl, Ameri!"

"Soul Refrain, March of Exhilaration x2!"

"Eat this, Demon Art - Black Hole!"

Dogooon!

Yuria, dashing in, immediately invoked her strongest skill.

Skira and Aiola's HP was shaved away in a single hit. Dark was super-effective against Fire. Overwhelming.

"Gufu, gohoo…!"

Aihara-san took huge damage of course… More than that, HP 1. Endure must have triggered.

"… Why are you sleeping? Skira-chan, Aiola-chan, get up…! Molt!"

Bishi! Bishi!

When Aihara-san lashed the pair… their backs split open, and new Skira and Aiola emerged.

"… Ugh, what is this…"

"That's gross…"

But their HP didn't seem fully restored.

"… Hundred-Leaf Wild Dance."

Shubabababababa…!

Ameri loosed a hundred 1-point leaves spread across the three.

"Oh, you're so clever… Ameri."

"You learned it from her, so be more confident. Ameri's strength is your strength."

"Gafu, guu, gohoo!"

Even ten hits weren't enough to drop her. Something else was needed to take Aihara-san down.

"… Hmm, as long as those two have strength left, she won't fall. One more Black Hole, or a hit from Underworld Requiem, and she'll die."

Skira and Aiola's HP was nearly gone. Aihara-san's HP was 1. The battle was overwhelmingly in our favor, but… I couldn't let my guard down.

"… Ahaha… Can't be helped, my Skira-chan, Aiola-chan… You're hungry? Then it can't be helped…

"You can eat them, okay? Demon Art… Snake Bite!"

"… Eh."

The next moment, Skira and Aiola opened their mouths impossibly wide…

And in an instant, swallowed Setsuna and Yuria whole.

"… Eh…!?"

"Ahahahahahaha～! There, that does it…! If you don't attack, Skira-chan and Aiola-chan will swallow these two and dissolve them.

"If you do attack, that damage goes to those two! Tasty? Tasty, isn't it? You're so cute, Skira-chan, Aiola-chan…! Aha, ahaha!"

"… Th-That's…"

"… Haru! What are you spacing out for! Who cares about that! Knock them all flat, and that's the end of it!

"For Naoto's… for Lady Kanan's sake! All we have to do is win! That's all! Tsunami!"

Doppaaan!

And then… in that instant, Sawako came rushing in and washed everything away.

Setsuna and Yuria along with them, Sawako swept away Skira, Aiola, and Aihara all at once.

"Sa-sa-Sawako-san! Yuria and Setsuna-chan are—!"

"Right now we take them down as fast as possible! There's no room for that!"

"… Y-Yeah!"

"Ha, ha, ha… Sorry I'm late!"

Then, jiggling her huge breasts to and fro with all her might, Patty came rushing in.

"All right, three on three. Let's settle this fair and square. Yumi-san."

"… Sawako… You too, you too, why are you so happy…?

"You're Kanan's slave, aren't you? Being made the slave of someone like Naoto, isn't that humiliating? Doesn't it make you want to die?

"… Did you abandon Kanan? I see, so you were that kind of woman after all…"

"… Yumi-san, wh-what's wrong? You seem… a little stranger than before, don't you?"

"… Maybe she'd given up on everything to keep her mind stable, and seeing us and Kanan-san having fun with Naoto-kun broke that stability…"

"I-I see… Well, I have a bit of an idea about that too. Let's hurry… and rescue her."

"Yeah! For Naoto-kun's sake!"

"… F-For Lady Kanan's sake! Well, I'll fight for Naoto's sake too!"

"Either's fine with me～"

And then the next three appeared.

Yumi Tsuchiya. The others were…

"Heeey, Midoriya-kun… You've gotten cute, huh. Still, no match for how flush my life's gotten. I'm dating Shiraki-kun, the top hottie of the school～… ehehe. Look at these wings… cool, right!"

Basaaa! Ren Natsuki took flight on what looked like bat wings of stone.

And then… "… For Yumi-sama's sake."

A goddess's stone statue. That was the only way to describe her. Crea. All three of them looked unmistakably Earth-element.

"… Everyone, everyone, sink into the mud… Quagmire of Binding!"

Doshuuuuu!

A massive surge of sludge erupted from beneath Yumi's feet, burying the entire battlefield.

"!? This is…"

"Th-this… we can't budge. And on top of that… gugh, probably a debuff on non-Earth-element, plus a buff on Earth-element…"

"… Right… Sawako-san."

"Yes, I know. Leave it to me. I've been stuck doing nothing but training and the stress's piled up… I'll show you.

"The fruits of training under Naoto. Ah, under Lady Kanan!"

"E-Either's fine～! It's all muddy～…"

"… Earth's Resonance… resound. Answer my grudge. Earth's Guardian! Earth's Wrath!"

Tsuchiya-san was firing off skills at an incredible pace.

"Here I come… Earth Elemental, Earth Heal, Earth Breaker, Earth Breaker!"

Gogogogogo…

The goddess statue began to move, layering buffs. What an action count…!

"Heeere we gooo! Anthem of the Earth, eat this! Wyvern Wingbeat!"

Natsuki-san too piled on buffs and started moving.

In that moment…

"Tranquil Water Surface!"

Pan!

… All those buffs were instantly erased.

What remained was only Crea's Earth Breaker and Natsuki-san's Wyvern Wingbeat.

"Earth Barrier!"

I drew that in and blocked it… The damage wasn't much.

"Wh… What did you say…!?"

Yumi looked astonished.

"Fufufu… Did this work for you up till now? But there's always someone above!

"You're inferior to me… which means you're inferior to Lady Kanan!"

Sawako looked triumphant.

"We haven't won yet～!"

"I know! Get blown away, Tsunami!"

"The one doing the blowing away's gonna be Patty～! Ogre God's Great Spirit Strike!"

"Buff nullification? Don't get the wrong idea… Earth's Guardian isn't a buff!"

Ba!

A giant palm appeared in front of the three of them, blocking both the Tsunami and Patty's attack.

"Aah… If it were Naoto-kun, he'd have made Patty use Barrier Crush first and then attacked…"

"There are things even Naoto-san doesn't know～… Haru reveres Naoto-san a little too much～."

"Um, that defense… it's count-based! In that case… Ameri!"

"… Hundred-Leaf Wild Dance."

Shubababa…!

The hundred leaves Ameri loosed broke through the giant rock hand.

… But not in one shot. There might be an effect that defended against a single grouped effect at a time.

… Even so, after three blocks it seemed to vanish.

"Good… we have the elemental advantage too, so this should be fine."

"Don't get relaxed. If she keeps putting up Earth's Guardian, this'll turn into one heck of a long battle!"

"Well, with Patty's Barrier Crush…"

"Patty's Barrier Crush has one use left～…"

"… That one use, we'll just have to make it work."

Next turn.

"… Don't joke around, don't joke around… My grudge, my hatred… there's no way it'd disappear so easily over something like that!

"Earth's Resonance, Earth's Guardian!"

Yumi imitated Sawako and braced to time it.

"Wha-what? Tsucchii? Should I just fire normally?"

"Hurry up!"

"Then! Anthem of the Earth, Wyvern Wingbeat!"

"Earth Elemental, Earth Heal, Earth Breaker, Earth Breaker!"

"What are you doing? Wyvern Wingbeat twice, right!?"

"I already fired, you can't go telling me that now…"

"… Earth's Wrath, Quagmire of Binding!"

"Tranquil Water Surface!"

Bashu!

… The level of training was different. Sawako-san, who'd practiced over and over under Naoto-kun, and Tsuchiya-san, struggling with imitation right now, were on entirely different levels.

… Tsuchiya-san's innate combat ability was by no means inferior.

She handled both Defender and Supporter roles perfectly, solo. With Naoto-kun, she'd surely shine even brighter.

But…

"… Heeere I gooo! Barrier Cruuush!"

"Hundred-Leaf Wild Dance!"

"Tsunami!"

Doppaaan! Zudadadada…!

"Aaaah!"

"…!"

"Ugu, kua, a, aaaah…!"

A near-total wipe… but all three were still alive.

"… Huh? H-Hey, what are you doing, Yumi! You're my slave, your job is to deliver victory to me!

"…'Win.' If you can't follow that command, you'll be punished, executed!"

… That kind of unreasonable demand was unheard of even in the old slave battles.

He'd probably been so spoiled by Yumi's high stats that he'd never bothered honing combat technique. Pre-battle preparation, oddly enough, was his strong suit.

He'd polished only that part and left the actual fighting to the Garumon…

There were apparently a fair number of Masters like that, but…

For me, who'd always been watching Naoto-kun, that sort of Master could only be branded incompetent.

"… Earth's Resonance, Earth's Guardian…"

Yumi acted as if it were her only option… And in fact, it was the right answer.

"Wyvern Wingbeat, Wyvern Wingbeat!"

"Earth Elemental, Earth Heal, Earth Breaker, Earth Breaker!"

And then…

"… Quagmire of Binding, Earth's Wrath!"

"Tranquil Water Surface!"

This time Yumi's timing was perfect. Sawako tried to overlay her own perfection on top, but what couldn't be done couldn't be done.

The buffs weren't fully erased.

"Earth Barrier…!"

The damage hit all at once…! Just how outrageous a buff was that, to blow away the elemental advantage and tear through Haru's HP in a flash.

"… No good, no good. If I fall, we can't win, I… I have to survive…!"

And then…

Haru's HP held at 1.

Whether Endure had triggered, or it had genuinely stopped at 1, I couldn't tell.

If Naoto were watching from outside, he'd have known…

Still, for now, Haru was alive.

With this…

"Flower Drain!"

Boko!

One hit. Just one hit, Haru's attack chipped away at Yumi's shield.

… The single path to victory. He'd seized it.

"Ameri, Patty, and then Sawako-san!"

"… Yes! … After the final action. I'm tense, my success rate's still 90%…"

"… You absolutely have to make it work."

"I know!"

"Hundred-Leaf Wild Dance."

Ameri's attack chipped at the shield.

"Ogre God's Great Spirit Strike!"

And Patty's attack… shattered the shield in front of Yumi. In that moment…

"Tsunami!"

It landed perfectly.

The strongest Water-element damage slammed into Yumi. Through the broken shield, it reached Crea and Natsuki-san too…

"Aah… Why, why, why…"

"… Yumi-san, all the mud clinging to you, too… I'll wash it all away. Not me… Naoto, absolutely will…

"… A-Ah, and Lady Kanan!"

"I don't really care anymore～…"

 

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"Holy Light!"

"Naoto… -kun…"

"… Naoto-sama…"

"… Damn it, the guy who beat me, dying from something like this… don't you dare die, hey!

"If you survive, I'll do anything for you! So don't die!"

If I lost… what should I do. Maybe I really should just die.

… Ah, but there's no need to obediently let myself die, is there. Better to break it all, fight and fight, and seize everything for myself. If I, who reached A-Class, disrupted that order and went on a rampage, I wonder what'd happen.

An S-Class Master would just come out and execute me, probably… Even that might be fine.

Even an unjust law is the law. So rather than meekly submitting, if I'm fine with dying anyway, why not bet everything and contest it…

The HP countdown was a countdown to my own death and ruin.

I quietly closed my eyes and waited for the moment…

Pikon!

"… Ah."

"…!? Naoto-san!"

"… Oooh!"

"Uwa, a, a, ah…"

I-it's, it's, it's…

"Hyahho! We did iiiit!"

I forgot I was at death's door and stood up.

"Ah, the bullet…"

"Nah, when the field battle ends, naturally the effect does too. See."

Poro, poro…

The bullets… lost their power and dropped away.

"… This is a bit overdone, or what should I say…"

"With one heal it'd go to HP 2, and the next turn it would've been over.

"… Truly cutting it close, that was."

… I'd had several pinches up till now, but…

This time might really set a new record. Ten seconds later, and it was death.

… The closest I'd ever come to dying.

No, this is ridiculous… I used to laugh at how cheap it was when stories ramped up tension with a "rescued with one second left!" kind of development…

Never dreamed I'd play out something so cheap myself.

… From here on, enough of these pinches. Don't need them. Casual gaming is the highest virtue.

I slumped down and collapsed.

Honestly, this is… bad for my heart… bad…

Aaah… I can't anymore. I don't think I can stand up for a while…

"Naoto-san!"

"Naoto-kun!"

"Naoto-sama!"

… Ah, but if my beloved companions are this overjoyed and hugging me…

Yeah, maybe I should get up. Energy bubbled up from inside me.

"… So I lost… First time in my life. Losing… and feeling happy about it.

"… Don't get the wrong idea. I'm just not satisfied that the guy who beat me lost to a wimp like Shiraki. That's all.

"If I'd been fighting properly from the start, this wouldn't have happened."

Griera ran her mouth in that scornful way, but… tears welled at the corners of her eyes. She'd been worried that much… what is up with this girl, she's adorable.

"… I get it. You were strong, Griera, and your companions were too… no really, way too strong.

"Moruna especially was way too strong."

"… You fought Moruna and survived!? Seriously…? Kishilia doesn't usually want to put Moruna out.

"I figured she'd kept Moruna under wraps…"

"I beat her. Moruna."

"… Oho, that's…"

Griera narrowed her eyes.

"Damn impressive! … Well, then, I've got no choice but to admit it! You're amazing, Naoto Akai!"

Bashi! Bashi! Griera slapped me on the shoulder. My HP felt like it was draining away…

"… About being friends with me…"

"… Yeah. Well, friends, I don't really get it, but… what do you do?"

"Eh? Wh-what indeed? First, talking and stuff? After that, well, if we hit it off and get along well, it'll head toward becoming lovers, sorta thing."

"… You're really an eccentric one! You're not the first to try to woo me, but… you're the first to make me want to listen without sticking a gun to my head. Well, you'd probably try to woo me even if I had a gun on you!"

Griera laughed at that.

"I'll register you on Friend. Be it work talk or unrelated talk… I'll listen."

And so…

I immediately clicked "Yes."

"I agreed, but what's a Friend?"

"A friendship bond formed between separate Masters, sir. It can also be formed with Garumon… There are four levels of Friend.

So this is the second of four levels."

"Hooh, I see…"

In my Friend column, totally empty until now, C-Class rank 403 Griera was added.

"… Wait, rank 403? Well, I guess C-Class rank doesn't really matter…"

"That's right. None of my crew has Gates.

"If you're a Friend, you can come visit me anytime via Gate.

"Once things settle down, come on over. I'll welcome you."

With that, Griera walked off.

… Aah… she was a cool, strong woman… And cute and sexy too…

Just then a Gate opened. Out stepped Almaria-san.

"I've come to escort you, Naoto Akai-sama.

"… That was a fierce battle. The audience was wildly excited. Congratulations on your victory."

"… Thank you…"

Led by Lyuka and Luna, my incapacitated party members all in capsules… together with them, I stepped through the Gate.

… And back atop the original stage.

Waaaaah…! The huge crowd welcomed me with thunderous applause.

"Now, here is the victor, Naoto Akai-kun! Everyone, applause!"

Pachi pachi pachi…!

Hizaki-san put on a strangely composed announcer act.

It suited her idol-anime-heroine-style looks well.

I scanned the area and quickly found the one I was looking for.

"Naoto-kun!"

"… Haru!"

Apart from Haru, Patty, and Sawako… everyone was in capsules.

"It looked rough on your end too."

"Ah, I heard about it after… I thought my heart would stop. Just ten seconds later and it would've been over…"

"Ahaha… Well, Lyuka and Luna held on for me, desperately."

If not for that, it would've been over.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness…"

Haru looked about ready to cry.

"Haru, you did your best too. Thank you, thank you…"

I hugged Haru, Patty, and Sawako close.

"… Sawako, I'm sorry, Kanan got hurt…"

I'd already forgiven Griera, so the damage we took was… only Kanan having nearly been violated by that Wanda bastard.

"Yes, yes… At any rate, what matters most is that you're safe.

"… O-Of course, Lady Kanan being harmed is something you'll have to seriously reflect on!

"But, this is the result everyone fought desperately to win.

"This is a victory of bonds, with Naoto at our center… no, with Lady Kanan at our center!"

Sawako was in a celebratory mood and didn't seem of a mind to blame me.

"… Such a hassle～"

"Don't say that. Naoto-kun seems to have taken a liking to Sawako-san, after all…"

Haru and Patty had gotten a little chummy somewhere along the way.

… Of course, it was natural to praise everyone who'd survived, but the ones who'd really busted a gut were the currently incapacitated members… I'd have to richly reward everyone later.

Just then the organizer of all this, Eclair Feradria, came over with Sario Shard in tow.

"… Congratulations on your victory. Naoto.

"First, the reward I promised you on my end is… direct contact rights with all six of our members.

"Should you wish to speak with any of us individually, feel free to call upon us whenever you have the time."

With that, she tapped her system with a pi.

A Just-Friend request. I pressed approve. More Friend members added.

… Well, once they became knights or companions, this Friend column wouldn't matter anymore.

"That was a truly magnificent battle. I was deeply moved.

"It was a far more entertaining spectacle than the prior slave battles."

"…"

"Spectacle"… the word irritated me a little. Well, that's what it was.

"Then next time you'd enjoy participating more than watching.

"When I get promoted to S-Class, please accept a challenge from me."

"… Yes, accepted.

"Next, between you and me, this Reido Academy mass-otherworld-transfer incident… let us settle it once and for all."

Dowaaaaaah…

At Eclair's declaration, the venue erupted into even greater enthusiasm.

"… Now then… Please receive your other prize from your victory."

And then, next was…

Are these guys coming, I thought, feeling a little sour.

Shiraki, plus Wanda's Seven Knights crew: nominally an A-Class Master and his knights, but dragged out like criminals.

… No, they were criminals. My victory conditions included a clause requiring Shogo Shiraki and the others to atone for the crimes they'd committed.

"P-please wait. Please wait, Lady Eclair."

Shogo Shiraki, exhausted to the bone, pressed his case to Eclair.

"Th-This match is invalid. Yes, invalid… Th-That mercenary, Griera, that Griera, she dragged us down! Sh-she tried to shoot my knights, Furuya and Haida, dead!

"I-Is such an outrage permitted! It's a desecration of a sacred duel, blasphemy!

"Therefore, invalid! I declare this match invalid! This match is invalid!"

Shiraki rattled off that sort of logic.

Eclair watched Shiraki's pitiful state with apparent amusement.

She had this nasty habit of taking pleasure in people's sorry, ugly states. I mean, what could a person who'd enjoyed those filthy slave battles have but nasty habits?

… Anyway, Eclair watched Shiraki's wretchedness with apparent satisfaction.

"… Now, Griera-san was a mercenary you yourself brought along. If your own mercenary defeated your own knights, what's the problem? Isn't that the fault of whoever hired such a mercenary? We watched the spectacle, and Griera-san was a touch short-tempered, but no surprise she'd grow angry.

"The two of yours were the rude ones, by far."

"N-no, b-but, h-how could I lose, how could I lose to a stingy, shabby man like this, a man who was the worst even as a slave! Some kind of cheating must've been involved! That's why it's invalid! This match is invalid!"

"Fufu, fufufu! Such a wretched excuse, it's so absurd I can't help but laugh."

Eclair didn't take him seriously. Of course not.

"The reason he was the worst as a slave is that he was an outstanding Master. That much is plain by now, isn't it?

"Come now, any other excuses? Since we've come this far, I shall hear them all."

"U-uah, th-these guys, these guys dragging me down is what's bad! These useless dolts! Th-there's no way I'd lose! Because these guys were incompetent…!"

"Y-You bastard, Shiraki! You son of a bitch! I properly took down Kanan and got within an inch of fucking her!

"… I don't remember what happened after, but I made my contribution to the score! The fact you lost is your damn fault!"

"H-how is this my fault! Who do you think looked after the lot of you incompetents and elevated you to knights!"

"… I took down Suzanne! Splitting an instant's opening, perfectly! It's your fault!"

"I-I took down Yuria and Setsuna too! Because you incompetent dolts were useless, if you'd properly chipped away at Haru this never would've happened! It's not my fault! That's why this match is invalid!"

"Fu, fufufu…!"

At their all-around pathetic display, Eclair looked truly delighted.

"Come now, anything else?"

Eclair tormented him further.

Eh, we're still watching this comical excuse-fest? I was getting fed up… but no matter how much Shiraki carried on, he only made himself look more pathetic.

"It's the Garumon's fault for being incompetent, especially Yumi! Because that one's trash! She couldn't lay a finger on Sawako, a girl who'd been nothing more than Kanan's slave! Being palmed off such a piece of trash was the original mistake!

"She's a defective shit-tier bitch who can't even have sex! … Well, the taste was… cough, cough.

"A-Anyway, palming a useless piece of garbage like Yumi off on me is what's wrong!

"I'm not at fault! That's why this match is invalid!"

"… Now then, your wretched, comical excuses have finally all been laid out, haven't they.

"… Lucky you. That unwanted Garumon will be taken off your hands.

"Yumi Tsuchiya. From this moment, you become Naoto Akai's Garumon. Anything to say?"

Eclair shifted her target to Yumi.

"… Forgive my rudeness up till now. From here on, with all my heart and effort, I shall serve you, Naoto Akai-sama…"

Yumi Tsuchiya muttered those words in a dry, hollow voice.

"Naoto-kun, Yumi-san is, somehow…"

I asked Haru about Tsuchiya-san's mental state.

"Yeah, properly… I've got to explain it, get her to understand…"

I'd finally gotten that Yumi Tsuchiya, but with her in this state, I couldn't be wholly happy from the heart…

"After that, let's solidly confirm the futures of all the Reido Academy students Shiraki was holding."

Now then, after that…

"Then, regarding Shogo Shiraki's crimes.

"Taking lives idly is no more permissible in this world than in the original world.

"After we vanished… it appears the boys did rather as they pleased with the Garumon and others.

"By our investigation, the Masters you four directly killed number four.

"We will confirm with Yumi-san and the other Garumon as well, but… it appears there's no doubt."

Eclair gave us that answer.

If she investigated, that ought to be reliable. She was an S-Class Master in this world, a princess in the original.

She wasn't the type to tell pointless lies.

"Four murders, huh…"

"The principal offender is, in the end, Shogo. But the other seven are basically just as guilty; they egged him on, joined the lynching… essentially the same crime, you could say."

"Under Earth's penal code, eight people responsible for four murders, what would happen?"

"Death for the principal, in some cases.

"Though given the offenders were 17 at the time of the crimes, it gets tricky…"

"Ah, juvenile law. Forgot about that. I hate it, so I'll ignore it. Even under-18s have judgment, come on.

"In this world, a person becomes an adult at 15.

"… So under this world's standards, what does it come out to?"

"It depends on who's judging. When a Master commits a crime, a Master of equal or higher rank has the authority to try them.

"Of course, one cannot trifle with the law… but in this case, no one will object to whatever conclusion you, Naoto, reach."

"… This world really should establish a proper judicial system… For my part, if they were properly tried under law I'd be fine with that too…

"Anyway, if they sincerely repent and reflect on their crimes, they'll do volunteer work going forward, conditional release. If not… well, the death penalty's on the table too."

"… Then with magic that listens to the heart's voice, let us check how much they're reflecting on their own crimes."

Almaria-san cooperated, and…

The level of repentance was about 0 for Shiraki. Among the other knights, some had a fair amount of guilty conscience.

"10, 70, 30, 50, 30, 60, 60…"

"Tentatively, the four who scored 50 or above will get four years of light torture. (Whole-body whipping followed by salt rubbed in the wounds and other intense-pain methods.)

"After release, they'll undergo behavior monitoring by exclusive legal NPCs and dutifully serve volunteer assignments.

"If they refuse the volunteer assignments or run, that's no remorse, and the punishment escalates to 1 year of torture (pain that includes loss of limbs) → 1 year of hellish torture (pain at a level that makes you regret being born). After that, the death penalty.

"Going forward, they'll have to seriously consider how to atone to the people they killed.

"But the guys with no remorse, the 20-30 range, get heavier punishments from the start. Four years of hellish torture followed by the death penalty's also fine by me…"

"Wha… w-wait, remorse, I'll be remorseful! Naoto-sama, please forgive me!"

The four ground their foreheads into the floor in desperation.

Shiraki, seizing the moment, fawned and groveled.

"All right, hearts' voices～!"

"Hmm… Sasaya and Haida are borderline… Four years of torture, and let's see if they reflect. If their remorse rises, conditional release on volunteer assignments. Though I don't know what kind of volunteer work you can do without limbs.

"If their remorse doesn't rise, or they hold a grudge instead, then 1 year of hellish torture followed by the death penalty."

"I shall arrange it."

"As for Shiraki and Wanda, these two are no good. As principal offenders for four murders, four years of hellish torture followed by the death penalty."

"D-don't fuck with me! I, brilliant, handsome, and the absolute best, I, death penalty!? There's no way! I just cleared away some trash! What's wrong with that! Don't fuck with me!"

"No, you butchered Hashida-kun and Omori-kun, who tried to remonstrate with your tyranny, and after that you toyed with the rest of your classmates as slaves before torturing Endo-kun and Sato-kun to death… Truly, there are no extenuating circumstances."

"Yumi, Yumi! Plead my case! It's your fault! It's all your fault! It's because you made me a slave! It's your fault, you…!"

"… Naoto Akai-sama…"

What would Yumi say, I wondered.

"…"

But she said nothing.

"Yuumiii! Save me, save me! I'm not the kind of person who should die in a place like this! I, who should rightfully be at the apex of this world! The handsomest, the absolute best of men, Shogo Shirakiiiii!"

Batan

Shiraki and Wanda were carted off by prison-officer NPCs.

… Good, glad the bastard who'd defiled Kanan was trash and could be executed.

Well, since the death penalty came from the crime of murder, that's fine.

"With that, I hereby end the slave battle I have hosted.

"Looking forward to the future endeavors of the victor, Naoto Akai-shi, everyone, please give him one final round of grand applause."

Pachi pachi pachi… Waaaa…

Amazing～

Wonderful～

Pachi pachi pachi pachi pachi pachi…

I bathed in thunderous celebration.

When you got down to it, this could be called an honor of sorts.

It made all the effort worthwhile.

… The real rewards I'd be receiving plenty of from here on!

There were so many rewards I didn't know how to receive them all. So… I'd just receive each one carefully, one at a time.