"Yes, thank you for your passionate invitation. But unfortunately, I must decline that proposal. I, and they, will not be joining your alliance."
Takuto rose quietly from his chair, meeting Vagia's gaze directly as he gave his answer. This was not a diplomatic refusal between nations.
To the envoys of the allied Fonnkavun and to the Hero Yuu, he was signaling that he intended to slip away now. Incidentally, he had already communicated with Vittorio—now in the form of Atou—during a lull in the conversation via mental transmission. The sound of Vittorio’s voice, genuinely delighted and amused when Takuto told him they would be fleeing with their tails between their legs, had been quite irritating…
Fortunately, Vagia didn't seem to perceive Takuto's inner thoughts. She wore a stern expression rare for her and, choosing her words carefully, posed a question.
"Oh my? Turning away a lady makes you a bad man, you know. ♥ ...Would you mind letting me hear your reasons?"
"Hmm," Takuto murmured, feigning thought with a hand on his chin. Then, he glanced at Yuu.
He too was looking his way. The intent was understood.
"The man beside me, Yuu Jinjou, is the RPG's hero. Well, as the Demon Lord of Ruin, I'm as different as water and oil from him—our attributes are completely opposite…"
Vagia frowned, looking puzzled. "What are you saying all of a sudden?"
Sensing a very human element in how her expression kept shifting, Takuto continued to hold the floor.
"Despite those different attributes, when we talked, we found we got along remarkably well. Our guiding principles for action especially matched. In a sense, you could say we hit it off and built this cooperative relationship. Take, for instance, our stance toward the other players?"
"A boy's friendship, is it? ♥ My, how envious! ...Fine, I'll listen. Your stance."
Vagia gave up all pretense, glaring directly at him.
Chuckling wryly, Takuto gave Yuu a slight hand signal. The answer was—
"We crush anyone who underestimates us."
In that instant, the council chamber erupted.
"Wha—?!"
"Your Majesty, over here!"
"This is absolutely insane, destroying the floor like that! And what's with that appearance?!"
True to the spirit of a Hero, the highest-rarity axe pulled from his bag blew the floor apart with an explosive force.
At the same time, Takuto partially released his body's mimicry, slamming the distorted, powerful arm—a blend of human and beast—into the floor.
The result spoke for itself.
The council chamber, crafted by the wisdom and unparalleled skill of the elves, collapsed from its very foundation. Now, only a massive branch of the World Tree barely supported a fraction of its remains.
"Vittorio!"
"Already here! Mufufu~. We should hurry before reinforcements arrive~!"
Vittorio's speech pattern, coming from Atou's face, was rather irritating, but it couldn't be helped.
After all, at the tip of his tentacle was the dazed envoy from Fonkavun, securely captured.
If they released the Disguise, they wouldn't be able to retrieve these people. Thus, it was necessary for him to remain as Atou.
"Whoa! I love a flashy show! Nice and simple, I get it! Here it comes—Flame Arrow!"
A bombastic spell from Brave Questus flew in to suppress the Vagia forces preparing to rush them, creating distance between the two sides.
It seemed those on the other side also understood what Takuto and his group were thinking.
Succubi who appeared to be bodyguards, previously stationed nearby, began to converge on their location.
Furthermore, from farther away, the presence of a vast number of Succubi was heading this way. It was best to flee immediately.
Nimbly leaping from one enormous World Tree branch to another, Takuto made his way toward Yū. By the time he landed near her, she already appeared fully prepared.
"Well, the talks have broken down. Let's run."
"Well, I wanted to keep going a bit longer, but can't be helped! Right, Ai. Leave it to you!"
"Yes, Master! Everyone, over here! Area Transfer Magic, activate! Telesphura—!"
An event-exclusive magic that teleports all characters within a certain range centered on the caster.
Though he'd heard of it, Takuto hadn't expected them to be able to use even this magic, which was impossible to employ through normal means. They really were quite the cheats. But at least this meant everyone could be safely teleported.
A faintly glowing magic circle appeared on the trees beneath their feet.
The rapidly cast magic, about to whisk Takuto and the others safely to the Dark Continent without giving the enemy any chance to pursue—just as it was about to activate—
"Void Mana two, Forest Mana one, release. Spell Card: Barrier of Primeval Forest, activate."
With a single word from Vagia, it all dissipated.
"Huh!? Wh-why!? The magic—!"
"Telesphura failed!?"
The magic had fizzled. The undeniable proof was that Takuto and his companions were still right where they stood.
Yuuto and Ai, caught completely off guard, were in a state of confusion, trying to grasp what had just happened. But Takuto understood perfectly what event had just unfolded.
"A card from the Seven Divine Kings. A troublesome time to use it."
Between slender, elongated fingers, a card with a familiar illustration was visible.
The defeated players' system, taken by Vagia. A trading card game.
Takuto's memory traced back to the Seven Divine Kings database he had once seen. Yes, that card—its effect was to obstruct the enemy's escape.
Originally, it was meant to hinder a summoned monster's evasive actions or new summons, but to have it activate exactly as the flavor text on the card described... that was exceedingly troublesome.
(The effect of Barrier of Primeval Forest lasts for only one turn, so it will wear off soon. But in this situation, even that is a critical amount of time.)
He didn't know exactly how much time a "turn" constituted in this world.
But that moment won't last. Eventually, she'll be overwhelmed by sheer numbers of Succubi. The Vagia's reaction upon witnessing the teleportation magic was nothing short of magnificent. It was safe to assume she had predicted this action and prepared for it. Such preparedness is truly unnerving.
"As you know, not all of us Succubi possess such wondrous magic or abilities,♥" she declared. "After all, we're ultimately from an eroge. Such things only activate through lewd acts.♥ But with this, things are completely different.♥ I was lucky enough to obtain Nanashin's deck. The cost is heavy, but the fact that a living mana source existed within El-Na was a true divine blessing!"
(What a troublesome synergy! Since the mana produced from dragon vein points is finite, the Seven God Kings' cards that consume it will eventually hit a limit. The question is when that limit arrives.)
The Seven God Kings are also equipped with methods to multiply mana using mana-producing cards. However, whether those cards are in the deck is unknown, and so far, there's no sign of it. If that's the case, what needed to be wary of were magic or summons that could activate instantly. The fact that they had to be on guard for a few more rounds of attacks or disturbances of that scale was a difficult situation, enough to make even Takuto lose heart.
"It's okay. It won't hurt.♥ It'll be over before you even finish counting the stains on the ceiling..."
The number of opponents was roughly ten. Two were escorts for Vagia. The rest were common Succubi who had rushed over. The Quolia's envoy was missing, apparently fallen somewhere during the earlier collapse of the council chamber. Since the chamber itself was destroyed, elves would find it difficult to reach. And the stone statue responsible for player communication was nowhere to be seen.
(No... the statue of H is probably in Vagia's hands... I need to be careful of him too.)
Looking closely, Vagia was holding the stone ornament said to possess communication functions. It undoubtedly belonged to the last player called H. It was easy to forget his presence since he kept it at an absolute minimum, but he too was a player. And one for whom all information was unknown...
While vigilance against the Succubi was essential, given that no one knew when he might intervene, he was undoubtedly the one who warranted maximum caution.
"Master, let's do it!"
"Mmm! But isn't this a pinch? This is seriously bad..."
"Ugh, ugh, at this rate, Master is going to be stolen away by a Succubus! My Master! My one and only Master! I won't allow it... I can't...!"
"Hmm, how obsessive! That's some heavy love you've got there..."
Vittorio makes such a comment as Ai's aura grows increasingly ominous. Watching You hurriedly try to calm her down, the nature of their relationship becomes clear enough. Either way, it's certain neither of them will be of much use. Meanwhile, the beastman of Fonkavun, entangled in tentacles, has lost consciousness and is now a complete dead weight. There were never any expectations to begin with, but this one won't be of any help either.
"So I've steeled myself, King Takuto! Can't be helped — this was my fate all along, sooner or later!"
"I had high hopes for Brave Questus's magic, you know. Isn't there some other ability or spell that could resolve this situation? Come on — performing miracles is supposed to be the hero's prerogative, isn't it?"
He prods, obliquely inquiring about the coercive power of events. Whether You could use it actively was unclear, but if he had any means at all, that was the only option left. Yet Takuto knew of no event in the entire Brave Questus series that could address this situation.
The response was exactly what Takuto had predicted.
"Sorry, but unless we do something about that barrier, there's no escape. Brace yourself, Your Majesty."
Brace yourself — those were bold words from You, but Takuto understood perfectly that there was no more room for stalling through conversation.
Resigned, he focused his consciousness, pushing the control precision of the Imperfect even further. Half of its body crackled as it warped into something grotesquely infantile, emitting a bizarre wail that gnawed at the soul.
"Sigh... I suppose there's no choice."
"Heh heh heh. Savor the Succubus's exquisite technique with your whole body."
The battle was about to enter its next stage.
=Seven God-Kings Most Powerful Invincible Ranking===
"Primeval Forest Barrier" — Magic Card
Mana Void 2, Mana Forest 1.
During the player's turn who uses this card and the next opponent's turn, opponent player's summoning and magic card use are prohibited.
※ Official tournament prohibited card.
Current Price ¥125,000
Highest Price ¥850,000
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