Jaihin's obsession with Queen Lilith verged on madness.
He abandoned a tactically favorable situation and—seemingly as if stepping on stones suspended in midair—used those phantom footholds to close the distance to us in an instant.
"Whoa, where's the rush? I guess you've been longing to meet the Queen, but come say hello to me first," I said, planting myself squarely in his path.
He seemed to notice me; his charge slowed a fraction.
"You insolent thing. Get out of the way! Your task ends with calling the Queen!" he snarled.
"It's a shame. You only just turned your head to me now," I replied.
"If you insist on punishment, then fine! I'll give you what you want!"
If Jaihin was going to seize the Queen, he'd have to get through me first. He hedged and swung.
—crack.
An aura-laden kick hit. My wrist made a strange cracking noise.
"Holy—this is no joke," I thought.
A throbbing pain radiated up from my wrist through my arm. The sheer gap in raw power was obvious. A straight-up brawl would end badly for me.
"You vermin. Interfere any more and I'll kill you," Jaihin threatened.
"Heh. Try it," I taunted.
There was no way I could step back now.
"She's an unpaid slave I haven't even properly used yet! I won't just hand her over." Queen Lilith Arcadia — a sovereign of a race who could prove extremely useful once the Eveldun arc began — was something I couldn't allow others to snatch away.
"How dare you want me dead— I'll give you what you want!" Jaihin roared.
"Hans, fall back! I'll take over!" Luciana shouted and stepped between us, shielding me.
"Tch. They're like flies," Jaihin muttered.
Luciana's blade sent out a crimson cyclone of strikes; pure white counterattacks met it blade for blade.
"Hmph—quite decent," Jaihin said, half-amused.
"Save your praise for someone not of demon-kind," Luciana snapped.
Even to my untrained eye, Luciana had grown since the exchange with Lady Reisia. She was matching a Four Heavenly Kings' combat prowess—unbelievable for a still-growing first-year student.
"Still, you're no match for the Great Warrior," Jaihin said. Among the Demons, the Revine held pride in raw, martial strength. He began to reveal the primitive might in his muscles.
"Guh—what speed…!" Luciana gasped.
"Hahaha! For a human, especially a female, your sword is impressive! I'll be watching your future with interest!" Jaihin laughed, then abruptly stopped.
"Precisely why you must be crushed as a sprout. If left, you will become a calamity."
The color of the aura between them darkened.
Attacks came in a relentless downpour; Luciana's face was beaded with sweat.
"Luciana, pull back and let me handle this!" I shouted.
"Hans?!" she cried.
"Don't worry. You know better than anyone. In big fights, I usually win," I said, falsely confident.
Earlier I'd stepped in to prevent Jaihin from reaching the Queen, but now it was clear: even if he was the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings, he was still far beyond my current specs.
"Filth. You dared interrupt a sacred duel—pay with your life!" Jaihin bellowed.
Then I did what I could do best.
"You talk about crushing sprouts and then call it a sacred duel? Whether demon or human, show some respect for the next generation. You shame yourself with your words," I taunted.
"Huh? You dodged that?" He seemed surprised that a mere mortal moved like that.
I added, "Answer me. Jaihin Brutaltus—no, let's call you the decrepit wraith who envies youth across species. Is that more apt?"
Revine warriors are proud of their martial skill, their overflowing auras, and their innate strength. That pride made them prone to fall for cheap provocation.
—whoosh!
A gust brushed my cheek: a straightforward, aura-boosted blow. Even a simple strike carried terrifying force.
"Haha, you're violent. But this is a public place—must you break everything? Won't it be unrecyclable?" I snarked.
"Human buildings fall to ruin—who cares," Jaihin snapped, but he too fought to steady his own quivering heart.
'That startup delay is absurdly short,' I thought. There are two boss types: puzzle/gimmick bosses that reward intelligence, and physical boss types that reward player reflexes and physical skill. Jaihin is the latter—minimal startup and recovery windows; he wears you down bit by bit. In the original run, even players who'd faced Rex onslaughts complained.
Still, there's always a counter.
"Luciana, watch my movement," I transmitted.
If the startup window is too short to react visually, you brute-force until you can react. That was the plan I'd posted in a comment on some forum: keep bashing until you can read the pattern.
"Let's see if you can dodge this too." I drew my left hand back, preparing a punch.
Path of the strike isn't what matters; staring at it slows reaction. Watching with your body, not only your eyes, matters. With a momentum step, I twisted my body left as I threw the left punch and immediately followed with the right.
Jaihin telegraphed no path. He expected a simple dodge—low-level thinking. After both hands, a brief recovery window opened—short, but enough.
—clack.
My dagger nicked his skin, drawing a shallow wound. It wasn't much, but showing I could pressure him was valuable.
"Is that the same human from before?" Jaihin blinked, incredulous that a human had managed to get under his skin.
He'd dismissed earlier opponents as trivial; now he registered us as harder than expected.
"Heh. So that's the 'resistance' of a human you sneered at. Easier than expected—makes me yawn. Are demons all at this level?" I mocked.
"Don't wag your tongue," Jaihin retorted.
"You'll only impart the same puny wound. You can't do more than this," he scoffed, but his blows grew wilder, designed to drain our stamina.
"How cowardly—bullying with weight. If you're a warrior, settle this with skill!" I yelled.
"Where's fairness in war?" he scoffed, and charged a finishing blow filled with aura.
"You're impressive. Few ever dodge me like this," he sneered. "If you have no strength left, I'll take your head."
I wasn't out of moves yet. "Honestly, I can't quite get the feel of this just by watching. There's a limit to what you learn visually," I thought.
The finishing strike—who would stop it but Luciana? My favorite—silver hair whipping like a banner—turned and smiled at me.
"Then I'll mimic you directly," she said.
"Ha. Forgotten your last defeat so quick?" I joked.
"This is different. My loyal retainer demonstrated, so I'll show you for real," Luciana replied.
She mirrored my motions exactly. When he struck left, she moved left. When he struck right, she moved right.
The difference between us? Her overflowing aura turned the exchanges from grazes into real damage.
"Gah! A mere human woman… she's wounded me?" Jaihin howled in shock.
He paid the price for underestimating Luciana—my favorite, who had narrowed his throat with aura rather than mere scratches.
"Arrogant. Did you think a human couldn't hurt you?" he roared. His breathing grew rough.
He wasn't tired—Revine have monstrous stamina and strength—but the fight was taking effect.
"I didn't expect to throw myself into full force to take a succubus," he admitted, his figure swelling like a pumped balloon as he breathed.
"Before humans arrive, I'll finish my task," Jaihin declared—phase two of the fight: he vowed to kill us and kidnap the Queen.
"This isn't looking good," I muttered.
I'd managed to pry Rene out of his grip and get her to safety, but—
"Ugh—useless protagonist. How did you get the Four Heavenly Kings' attention and pass out like that?" Luciana snapped, scolding even as she fought.
We'd succeeded in getting Rene away, but Jaihin hadn't been focused on us; his eyes were elsewhere—toward the stands. He'd leapt straight to the most ornate section and—one leap—and he had someone by the throat.
Beneath him, a blue-haired young man lay bloodied, as if he'd tried to rescue someone and was now crumpled against the wall.
"Gah! L-let go!" the strangled voice choked.
"What a nuisance. But why does this woman's grim artifact respond? She's neither Queen nor even a demon…" Jaihin mused.
If the woman being choked had been an extra with no connection to me, I'd have fled without hesitation. Even useful allies like Elisabetta or Phrygia might have made me hesitate.
"Hey, you crazy bastard! Let go of her!" I shouted.
Luciana bit back, "Hans—don't rush in. You'll get yourself killed."
But I couldn't stand by—Jaihin had the Saintess.
"Hans! I told you not to get excited—what are you doing?!" Luciana warned, but my feet didn't stop.
Rene was the Saintess—my sister. Our bond wasn't just blood; we shared our past life. But that wasn't the only reason I couldn't allow this. Without the Saintess' blessings—the one thing that directly counters calamity—the ending was lost.
"Humans bewitched by the Queen? Like that bluehead—what a pest," Jaihin sneered.
It was like smashing eggs against a rock. Even without a trump card like unique magic, I had no choice but to try to save Rene—there could be no other option.
"Are you scared? This guy would have charged if he could. Humans are more suited to dying than fighting," Jaihin mocked.
Just standing and meeting the gaze of that old man made my legs go numb with fear. But fear solves nothing—we had to act. I forced my trembling tongue to move.
"So you're curious where the Queen is, huh? Coincidentally, I know her whereabouts," I lied, baiting.
"—!" Jaihin paused.
Persuasion means nothing to the Revine; their minds contain only dominance and plunder. Still, bait might buy time.
"Ugh!" Jaihin flew forward and let go of Rene's throat. He closed the distance to me in a single leap.
"Ha! Blow me away if you can. If you can, show me!" he taunted.
He relied on presence and bravado instead of armor or aura—he wanted to tame the beast before him, but I stepped forward as well.
[Calamity Cult Member List]
[…]
[Summon believers to this place.]
[Lilith Arcadia]
[Y / N]
A scroll slipped free near Rene—a succubus' artifact, the Diamond of the Succubus Queen. That token was a rare treasure only the succubus ruler could use.
"Damn sister. When did you steal that from the Queen?" I cursed—blood will out. I'd brokered the forced contract; I shouldn't lecture her, but—
It was not hard to guess why Jaihin had come.
"Later—payback for this," I swore.
Anyway, an idea to sway his heart had come to me.
—Batory! Immediately leave the field and focus on evacuating the students, Saintess included!
—Hans? Impossible! How could I leave you…
—Trust me. I'll bring his head with a gift.
Batory hesitated. If I died, her bonded minion contract would also break and she'd be grievously injured. She feared not only loss but psychological wounds as well.
—I don't distrust you. I'm worried about you, frost-man.
—If you're worried, please withdraw. If we get dragged into his game, we'll lose.
Batory was a powerful mage but a poor maid; in a grappling-style fight against a seasoned wrestler, she'd be at a disadvantage. Better for Luciana and I to join in a frontal push.
—Still, I'm worried you'll do something reckless. But okay—do it.
I'd set the bait. With Batory chasing the Queen or a diversion, Jaihin's attention might shift.
"Hey! Jaihin Brutaltus! Can you hear me?!" I shouted until my throat hurt. He glanced our way.
"You want the Queen? Then take her!" I called.
To lure in a heavyweight like him you needed a pricey bait.
The banner scroll in Queen Lilith's hands fluttered—she must have been under Whalbaek's care. She screamed, threw the scroll, and fled, avoiding the charging wrestler.
"Whew, you finally answered my call!" Whalbaek crowed.
Luciana called, "Hans Byron, what's going on? Why is a Four Heavenly King here?"
We had at least managed to separate Jaihin from Batory.
"Luciana, are you ready?" I asked.
"I'd like to ask about the woman you summoned, but there's no time. We must take this chance," she answered.
Our blades aligned on the same target.
"I intended to clear the annoying flies first, but if the objective is in front of us, we strike first," Luciana said.
"Do you think we'll let you take her?!" Jaihin snarled.
"Ha! You're just underdeveloped humans. We'll teach you about differences in rank," he snapped back.
Now the plan was set. Batory would handle the rescue and evacuations; Luciana and I would remove the root cause.
"I'll kill you all! The Queen is mine!" Jaihin roared.
"Luciana, move!" I cried.
"Yes! Leave it to us!" she replied.
I lunged, dagger flashing, into the oncoming storm of fists.
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