Chapter 34: Tezcatlipoca
"That won't do,"
Tristan crossed his arms and declared righteously, "We are Knights of the Round Table, with great dignity. How could we possibly admit to being idiots?"
"I recall Mordred calling you an idiot every day though..."
"That's different. I've never admitted to being a fool!"
"Tch..."
Eikou scratched his head, staring at the two sakura-shaped keys.
"To be honest, why are we even following BB's orders?"
He paused and analyzed seriously:
"In horror movies, the biggest taboo is splitting up. BB clearly wants to weaken our power and take us down one by one. How can we let her succeed? We already have the key—what, is she gonna stop us from going upstairs?"
"What if it's a trap?" Gawain asked.
"We've got four people—two Round Table Knights and a Fairy Knight. Who wouldn't we beat with this team? If she's got the guts, let her send a Grand Servant or Beast!"
Gawain and Tristan nodded thoughtfully. What he said made a lot of sense.
"Baobhan Sith, what do you think?"
"I don't care either way," she said without emotion. "Let's just end this boring farce. I want to go home."
"Alright, I'll take that as unanimous agreement. Forget BB—let's head up together."
With that, he inserted the key into the shutter door blocking the way to the second floor.
Immediately afterward, a piercing alarm rang out.
The hallway lights in the old school building suddenly flared to life—but it was a deep red emergency light, flashing ominously!
["What a pity~ Senpai didn't listen to BB-chan. You foolish people went upstairs together. BB-chan is so sad, it feels like my chest might split open from the pain… So now, I'll arrange a little love·filled·punishment for you~"]
"???"
Click.
It seemed like someone on the other end had pressed a button.
At the far end of the hallway bathed in red light, a tall, slender ghostly figure suddenly appeared.
The figure wore a heavy, gray iron suit of armor and a terrifying mask with bared fangs, shaped like it was frozen mid-laughter.
The flickering red lights lit up that fearsome mask, and a crushing pressure radiated from the figure's body—in every sense of the word.
"That's..."
Thanks to her night vision, Baobhan Sith was the first to clearly see the figure's face. She couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.
["The one here to greet Senpai is the strongest and most terrifying NPC in our haunted house — Tezcatlipoca-sensei, in charge of capturing intruders. Senpai, don't you dare let him catch you~"]
FUCK!!! That's Smoking Mirror!!!!!!
This was just a dumb little haunted house, and they actually pulled out a Grand Servant?!
Eikou couldn't help but tremble, hurriedly shoving the key into the lock and trying to open the door.
But the constantly flashing red lights made it impossible to see where the keyhole even was!
"U o o o o o o o o o o!"
At that moment, Tezcatlipoca let out a monstrous screech and charged at them with terrifying pressure.
Eikou immediately felt his scalp go numb. He quickly turned the key in the lock and pulled up the shutter door.
"EVERYONE RUN!!"
Right then, Tezcatlipoca reached them.
All four of them screamed in terror, and without hesitation, bolted up the stairs to the second floor.
But Gawain—who had been closest to Tezcatlipoca—didn't make it in time. In the blink of an eye, they heard his agonized scream as Tezcatlipoca tackled him to the ground, roaring furiously.
Whoosh!
The lights suddenly cut out. Both Gawain and Tezcatlipoca vanished into the darkness at the foot of the stairs.
Gawain ga shinda!
"Uaaaarghhh! Shooo~!"
But before the remaining three could even mourn Gawain, Tezcatlipoca was already charging up the stairs again with overwhelming momentum, forcing them to sprint away even faster.
The three of them, souls nearly leaving their bodies, ran for their lives while shouting in chaos.
"Tristan, we're counting on you to defeat Tezcatlipoca-sensei!" Eikou yelled.
"Why me?! A student fighting his own teacher who's a Grand Servant? Are you serious?!"
"I don't have a Noble Phantasm, and Baobhan Sith is a girl. Right now, you're the only reliable one." He continued. "Aren't you Round Table Knights bound by a creed? Protect women and children! I'm a child, and Baobhan Sith's a woman — we both need your help! Please, I'll pay you 5 QP!"
"What kind of child are you?!"
"I'm still a kid at heart who loves gundam, damn it!!" he screamed.
"…Fine, sounds dumb, but you've got a point. Running away here wouldn't be knightly."
With that, Tristan suddenly stopped running, his golden eyes wide.
He drew his Noble Phantasm and stepped forward to block the charging Tezcatlipoca.
"Very well. I — Tristan — shall become a sturdy shield and stand—"
Tezcatlipoca, fanged mask gleaming, thundered toward him.
"...Stand before the enemy, protect the child and the lady…"
But seemingly from the speed of his charge, Tezcatlipoca's mask slipped off.
Beneath the horrifying mask… was a face even more terrifying.
"Sorry, that's still way too scary!!"
Just before Tezcatlipoca could collide, Tristan instantly spun around and bolted.
"Why the hell did you come back, Tristan?! Can't you just sacrifice yourself like a real man for once and boost your character value with an epic death?!" Eikou shouted.
"I don't want to! Tezcatlipoca-sensei is genuinely horrifying… If I go alone, I'll be so scared I won't even be able to control my bladder!"
"It's okay, Gawain is already waiting for you on the other side. If all of us survive, he'll be lonely down there! Who's going to eat his mashed potatoes anymore?!"
"At least let a married woman accompany me to the afterlife! And I don't want mashed potatoes!"
"Haah… haah…"
Baobhan Sith, usually extremely fast, was suddenly slowing down and falling behind.
Her breathing grew ragged and erratic, her pretty face flushed bright red — clearly, she was reaching her limit.
Shit, Eikou thought immediately. Even though Baobhan Sith had high Agility, her Endurance was terribly low.
At this rate, she'd be caught by Tezcatlipoca in no time.
If Baobhan Sith got captured, this whole Courage Challenge would be meaningless!
After working so hard to get close to her and learn her skill set, how could he let this chance slip?
He had to break the deadlock!
He glanced at the exhausted Baobhan Sith, then turned to Tristan running beside him.
Eikou took a deep, heavy breath.
"…Tristan, I'm really sorry, but this brother of yours has no other choice. Someone has to be sacrificed…"
"Huh?"
"Once this is over, I'll introduce you to real married women — any type you want!"
"Hah??"
Suddenly, Eikou raised his hand and grabbed Tristan by the shoulder.
[You have activated skill: "A Knight Does Not Die with Empty Hands EX"]
[You have obtained temporary weapon: "The Sorrow of Tristan"]
Holy Lance — ready to launch!
With one arm, Eikou effortlessly lifted the slender Tristan into the air like a crimson javelin.
Then, with all his might, he hurled Tristan straight at the enemy — like launching a spear toward death itself!