chapter02 · 034-ep34

Episode 34: Kagerou's Secret Weapon

When Kagerou did something before their public match, Karin's dress seemed to lose its magical effect and faded. Chat was stunned to see her black hair.

【What was that!?】

【Black-haired Karin ojou-sama looks so different!?】

【Did the dress suddenly lose its effect?】

【Huh!? What's going on!?】

【She's never turned off her dress and hair colors on stream before!?】

【Wait! Did Kagerou do something!?】

"Wh-what is this, desu no?"

"Hahahahaha! It worked! Well then, let's start the match!"

Kagerou dashed off with a vicious grin. But he didn't charge straight at Karin. He raced across the vast, flat construction-restricted area surrounding the dungeon, a clearing in the heart of the city.

"Listen up, amateurs! I've already won!"

He was accelerating to maximize his unique skill, <Accelerating Bullet>, which increased his speed and the power of his charging attacks the longer he ran. And, being a streamer out for revenge, he was explaining his plan as he went.

"You lot've been hyping this fake ojou-sama to hell, but what a joke! Sure she's strong to begin with, but no kid gets THAT strong on natural power alone! All the top-tier monsters have tricks up their sleeves! And her secret's the ridiculous magic items and enchanted gear she makes with <Divine Artisan>!"

Faster. Faster. Kagerou picked up speed, exposing Karin's 'secret.'

"You saw her item box! If she can make that, she can make gear to boost her own strength! And this woman's hidden a whole load of cheating items inside that dress!"

He was certain. <Divine Artisan> was refined enough to produce an item box; surely it could produce any number of empowering pieces of equipment. There was no doubt Karin Yamada was concealing overpowered items beneath her loose dress.

Why else would she solo the lower layers in that absurd frilly outfit? Anyone who actually did that would be a genuine lunatic. Her claims about being inspired by an anime were a bluff to explain away the incongruity. She made enhancement gear from lower-layer drops, used her increased strength to kill tougher monsters, then made even stronger gear. That was how the fake ojou-sama before him had become absurdly powerful.

"Yeah, she's strong. Killin' an enhanced deep-layer variant without a scratch is crazy. I couldn't beat her like that in a million years. But with THIS, something that nullifies magic gear and magic items, it means nothing!"

Kagerou held aloft the countermeasure he'd acquired for a massive sum: a top-class magic item that completely canceled a target's enchanted gear for a short time, though it was nearly single-use. He'd only obtained the rare item through the connections of Black Tiger, one of the nation's strongest clans with considerable political power. The fact Karin's dress had completely lost its camouflage proved it worked.

【WHAAAAAT!? What's that!?】

【An item that nullifies enchanted gear!? How'd you get that!?】

【Wait, is she actually in trouble!?】

【Come to think of it, I've seen theories about Karin ojou-sama's strength like that...】

【There's no evidence she uses tons of magic gear!】

【But how else do you explain her ridiculous strength...?】

【Kagerou, isn't that a dirty trick!? Have you got no pride!?】

【You said fair and square, asshole!?】

【Ojou-sama won't lose to him, right!?】

【That bastard's always been crafty...】

【Someone call the guild or the police's anti-explorer division! An adult explorer shouldn't do this to a minor!】

"Hahahaha! Way too late for that!"

Kagerou roared, moving too fast for ordinary people—or even veteran explorers—to follow.

"She agreed to the match! And we're in the construction-restricted zone! We've both accepted the risk of injury! Whatever outsiders say, you can't do shit!"

Admittedly, an adult man challenging a high-school girl was ethically appalling even if they were both explorers. But Kagerou was a nuisance streamer. He wasn't about to start caring now.

"Bye, ojou-sama! Bye, internet antis! No more riding high on a sneak attack and cheating power-boost gear!"

Maximum acceleration!

"Two hundred and ten thousand concurrents! Haha, you'll taste the same humiliation I did in front of all these people, fake ojou-sama!"

Kagerou raised his training sword and charged at Karin with all his might, laughing. The next instant—DOGOOOOOOOOOOOOON!

With the right side of his face caved in in the shape of a fist, Kagerou lay embedded in the ground.

"Um, you seemed to be enjoying your speech so much that I hesitated to interrupt..." Karin murmured with a troubled expression, lowering the fist she'd swung. "I don't boost my strength with enchanted gear, desu wa."

Kagerou, utterly defeated, learned the merciless truth.