Chapter 99: This Knife of Mine is Coated in Poison
The Adventurer's Guild is lively every day.
Axel is a beginner's town, after all. Any novice who wants to become an adventurer will spend a considerable amount of time training here. Therefore, it's filled with laughter and is exceptionally noisy every day.
Furthermore, Aqua is still the kind of idiot who gets carried away with the slightest praise. She once again performed her exquisite party tricks.
Even Kobayashi was infected by the atmosphere and became cheerful.
Feet on the ground, brain turned off.
As expected, the world of Konosuba is more relaxing.
However, Aqua had at least listened to his words this time. She didn't waste her divine power wantonly, just simply using it to spray a few splashes of water over her head to liven things up before stopping.
After a bout of laughter, the party returned to their residence.
Then, Kobayashi, Satou Kazuma, Aqua, and RyuZU gathered in one room.
Don't misunderstand. They weren't having some kind of indescribable private party. They just needed to tell the others what had really happened.
Kobayashi spoke, and RyuZU was in charge of supplementing the details.
"In summary, to change the tragic ending of that world, I ultimately chose to establish the Axis Theocracy and achieved a grand reunion ending."
Kobayashi gave a light, understated summary of his own great deeds.
If it had been anyone else, they would have surely boasted and tried to claim credit from Aqua, but he had no such thoughts.
Because...
"If they ever find out that the goddess they believe in is this woman, they will surely turn to the dark side."
"You said it."
Kobayashi couldn't help but cover his face with his hands.
There is nothing more despair-inducing than having your fantasy shattered by reality. If they knew that the goddess they worshipped was an idiot who had wasted the divine power condensed from an entire nation on a single banquet, they would surely be so angry they'd abandon their faith on the spot.
"Then have some self-respect and don't establish a holy kingdom!"
Kazuma roared, but then he changed his tune. "...Although I really want to say that, since you did it, senpai, you must have had your own considerations, right?"
"No, I was just going with the flow."
"—Kobayashi-senpai?!"
Kazuma looked speechlessly at Kobayashi, who seemed to have given up completely. He had never thought that the senior he admired could be so unreliable at times.
Is that other world going to be okay? I hope it won't be destroyed. It would be great if it could just develop peacefully.
He prayed from the bottom of his heart.
"Wait, wait!"
Aqua burst in and retorted, annoyed, "Why are you guys saying that? Those are my believers! Everyone might be a little strange, but they are all good kids! Can you not look at them with such prejudiced eyes!"
"Hehehe—"
The corner of Kobayashi's mouth twitched. If he hadn't deliberately delegated power to Run, Liver, Najenda, and Esdeath to form a system of checks and balances when he left, that Acting Pope would have surely turned the world upside down.
The Axis Order just has that kind of demonic power.
Kazuma asked again eagerly, "Did you gain anything from your trip this time, senpai?"
"The harvest was plentiful."
Kobayashi tapped his fingers and began to take stock.
[Spectator], [Perfector], [Shambhala], [Supreme Throne]. A total of four Teigu.
Actually, he had wanted to bring all the Teigu back. But the Holy Kingdom had just been established, and its military strength was insufficient. To increase their strength and prevent being besieged, he had only taken a few Teigu that had already been fused or were not particularly important.
He had also thought of bringing back the [Un-erring Bow] as a gift for Kazuma, but it had been destroyed in the chaotic battle to repel the foreign tribes at the end, which was a bit of a regret for him.
"But I have prepared another gift."
He took out a small knife from his pocket. It was shaped like a dagger and looked very plain, without any flashy decorations.
"Ooooh!" Kazuma excitedly leaned in and asked, "What is this knife?"
"A knife reforged from the fragments of a Teigu. It contains a powerful curse-poison. Even a small cut will result in death by curse, so you must be very careful when using and maintaining it," Kobayashi warned him.
That's right. In the final battle, [Murasame] had been shattered by Esdeath. Afterward, he had collected all the fragments, fused them, and forged this knife.
Don't underestimate it. Although it was a bit short, it still retained the one-hit-kill curse ability. It was just unclear if it could still activate the Teigu's original hidden technique.
"How about it? Do you like it?"
"I love it!"
Kazuma picked up the knife with great joy.
Perhaps because he liked it so much at first sight, the knife did not show any rejection, and the two of them were smoothly compatible.
Then, he did something that left everyone dumbfounded. He lightly licked the blade and said with a hint of arrogance:
"—This knife of mine is a poison blade, coated in the deadliest of poisons. Even a small graze, and it's instant lights out for you."
The work The Hero Yoshihiko and the Demon King's Castle is very famous in Japan, with all sorts of famous scenes. It wasn't strange that Kazuma would know of it.
He just hadn't expected him to suddenly play with this meme.
Kobayashi scolded him urgently, "Hey, you idiot! I told you to be careful when using it! You'll be killed by the curse if you're not careful!"
"It's fine, it's fine. My hand holding the knife is far away... eh?"
As he was speaking, he tasted a metallic flavor. Then, a stream of crimson flowed from the corner of his mouth. Paired with his panicked expression, it created a strangely absurd comedic effect.
The knife was extremely sharp. Just its edge had been enough to cut a small wound on his soft tongue.
"Ngh."
Kazuma clutched his heart. His eyes bulged as dark characters covered his entire body. Before he could react, he was killed by the curse.
"Pfft—hahaha!!!"
Seeing this, Aqua immediately started rolling on the bed, clutching her stomach and laughing non-stop.
"I told you to be careful!"
Kobayashi scolded him with a headache, but unfortunately, Kazuma had already gone to see Eris and couldn't hear him.
He hadn't expected him to die in such a dramatic fashion. But it was fine; they had an infinite margin for error.
"Aqua, please resurrect him."
"...Hahaha, that idiot Kazuma died so casually. I have to laugh at him properly when he's resurrected."
Aqua used [Purification] to remove the curse-poison from his body, then used her divine power to resurrect him.
The resurrected boy lowered his head in embarrassment, not daring to look at Kobayashi. He had been about to say something, but seeing that he knew his mistake, Kobayashi didn't scold him further.
This concluded the gift-giving.
Unfortunately, there were no suitable Teigu for Darkness and Megumin. But he could use the Teigu on them, like [Spectator] and [Perfector], to help them... develop a bit...
Pah, what am I thinking.
He shook his head, throwing the dirty thoughts from his mind.
After that, the four of them dispersed and returned to their respective rooms to rest. Kazuma was hugging the small knife; he probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight from the excitement.
Kobayashi also fell onto his bed. But he tossed and turned, unable to sleep. It was probably because he had gotten used to sleeping with a flesh pillow. Suddenly being without one made him feel a little lost and empty.
He got up and walked out of the room.
Under the moonlight, he saw a figure acting sneakily in the courtyard, fiddling with something.
He walked over quietly.
"...Aqua?"
"—Eek?!!!"
Aqua's shoulders jumped. She seemed to have been startled. After turning her head and seeing it was him, she let out a big sigh of relief.
"Don't scare me like that, Kobayashi."
"Sorry. I thought you were a thief," he apologized softly.
Aqua asked, "Why are you still up so late? Is something wrong?"
"Because I don't have a comfortable pillow," he muttered.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing."
He shook his head and then asked curiously, "What about you? What are you doing up so late?"
"Well..."
Aqua scratched her head and awkwardly made way.
Only then did he see that in front of her was a pile of fragments—the fragments of the [Supreme Throne]. He couldn't help but ask, puzzled, "What are you collecting it for? Didn't you say its activity was gone?"
"That's right. But I was thinking, could I use my divine power to reawaken its vitality? Although it might not be as big as before, if it succeeds, it could still function with a smaller size."
Aqua explained.
Then, she added, "Didn't you help me spread my faith and even establish a holy kingdom, Kobayashi? So I was thinking if I could also do something for you."
With that, she broke into a big smile.
Under the moonlight, she had an indescribable charm. Kobayashi's heart skipped a beat.
He subconsciously clutched his chest.
What are you getting flustered for? She's Aqua!
He repeatedly scolded himself in his mind.
...Wait, don't tell me she's PUA-ing me? First, she deliberately does something wrong to annoy me, and then she helps me repair my mecha to win my favor... something like that?
He turned his head to look at her silly, dopey expression.
He clutched his chest again.
Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
If it were someone else, they might have a little scheme like that, putting on an act to win favor. But Aqua, absolutely not.
She doesn't have the ability for that, you know.
"Your face is so red, Kobayashi. Are you alright?"
"...I'm fine."
He let out a long breath, cooling his heated cheeks.
"Alright, I'll help you," he said. "After all, it's my mecha, and I still have the Teigu that can enhance the precision of my fingers. I should be able to help."
"Really? That's great!" Aqua cheered.
Under the moonlight, their figures grew longer and gradually merged together.
(End of Chapter)