Why are these two? Brawling with each other while hurling insults?
What happened to the heartwarming mother-daughter story? What a load of bunk.
"Fine, then — it's a duel!"
"Sounds good. I'll get to enjoy that losing face of yours one more time."
"Haaah?"
"What?"
"W-what are you two doing?"
They started sizing each other up, and I couldn't help but intervene.
"Perfect timing. Wof — you. You're the referee!"
"Great idea. And the winner gets Wof—"
"You old hag!"
Wait, what did she just say? More to the point, what on earth was going on here?
Neither of them bothered to answer my question, and they decided to settle things with a duel in the courtyard.
It wasn't as spacious as the arena, but it had a decent amount of room.
Ruriha brandished the black spear "Shadow Dancer."
Mineha answered with the blue spear "Mystic Star Emergent Spear."
The two glared at each other, and I gave the signal with a bewildered look on my face.
"Begin!"
Ruriha immediately conjured a multitude of shadow Rurihas. Was she planning to settle this in one decisive move?
But Mineha didn't flinch. She charged straight at Shadow Ruriha, cutting them down one after another.
"Aaaaaaaaah!"
She closed the distance and wielded her spear with the force of a slashing sword.
The spear's tip was sharp, but the shaft itself wasn't as keen as a blade.
Even if she swung it sideways, it would just deliver a bludgeoning strike like a staff.
Yet, strangely, she was taking out Shadow Rurihas two or even three at a time.
"H-How is that possible?!"
Even Ruriha looked alarmed at the sheer power.
Looking closely, nine 'stars' were attached to Mineha's spear.
Furthermore, the eight stars themselves were rotating, spiraling along the shaft of the 'Demon Star Manifestation Spear'.
The ninth star was at the spear's tip, spiraling with the rest.
When the whole thing spun at high speed, it looked just like a drill. No, it *was* a drill.
A drill was unstoppable. Shadow Rurihas were being eliminated one after another.
"You didn't use that just a moment ago!"
She certainly hadn't. Perhaps it was Mineha's trump card.
And unlike before, there was real momentum here. Loads of it.
Thinking back, during the exhibition match just now, Mineha had lacked that drive.
More than that, she hadn't been acting like her usual self.
Hesitation, or maybe confusion. She'd seemed nervous.
She had lacked initiative and had been on the defensive.
Probably because it was Ruriha. Because her opponent had been her mother.
But now it was different. Completely different.
Maybe it was because I'd called her mother a crusty old hag. She'd lost all reservation.
She was absolutely brimming with the will to win.
The shadow Ruriha had been wiped out, and Ruriha was cornered.
"Kuuu, what gives? This is nothing like before!!"
Ruriha let out a yell, and—snap—her spear flashed.
Mineha retreated in an instant. What was that?
"You didn't use that earlier either, did you?"
Mineha pointed out.
Ruriha had switched her spear.
From "mother" to "crusty old hag" to now just "you." What a dizzying progression.
It was a yellow spear with round, semi-transparent orbs at the pommel and the tip.
The shaft had a yellow-and-black striped pattern, and the spear body was lined with harpoon-like barbs.
"I really don't want to use this. 'Thunder Sonia's Donner' can't be held back."
As Ruriha spoke, lightning suddenly struck her spear.
A massive current crackled and surged, and the orbs at the tip and pommel discharged electricity in a fantastically eerie glow.
That was it. It looked exactly like the discharge phenomenon of a Tesla coil from my past life memories.
Could it be—did Ruriha possess a Relic with the attribute of Lightning?
"Time to settle this."
Mineha has made up her mind, too.
The eight stars orbiting along the Demon Star Manifest Spear and the ninth star at its tip surpass rotational speed.
Eventually, sparks scatter and it takes on the appearance of twinkling starlight.
Both reveal their trump cards, glaring at each other as they ready their stances.
"This is the final strike, Mineha."
"Yes. Let's end it with this."
Ugh, hmm. If anything, I would've liked to see this in an exhibition match.
No, that's not it... I can feel the power emanating from both their spears.
Power of an extraordinary magnitude.
A bad premonition strikes and I activate Danger Discernment. I'm speechless.
This area is completely black. T-This is bad!!
"———Starlight———"
"......Thunderbolt......"
Ah. Both of them charge forward simultaneously.
"———Braver!!!"
"......Indira!!!"
Screaming, just before they collide, I stop both their spears.
I use Relve Move to insert myself between them.
I stopped Ruriha's spear with the Gauntlet of Sacred Stillness.
It shatters from the electrical current. Not again!
I stopped Mineha's spear with the "Thick Knife."
It got torn apart by the drill. Damn it!
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
The two of them tilted their heads in confusion, looking almost cute. The power drained from both their spears.
Thank goodness I managed to stop them.
"Oh my, what are you up to, Wof?"
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Uh, it nearly got really dangerous just now."
"Oh dear. What do you mean?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
I explained to them that if their attacks had collided, this entire area would have been wiped out.
Wiped out might be an overstatement. But we could have died.
Mineha listened to my explanation with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, then let out a wry laugh.
Ruriha, who had been in a foul mood, forced a slight smile and brushed it off.
Good grief.
The Gauntlet of Sacred Stillness would restore itself automatically, but I'd have to buy another knife.
Sigh. That meant another audience with the goddess was coming up.
"So why were you two fighting in the first place?"
"That's a secret."
"There are all sorts of reasons."
It seemed neither of them intended to tell me.
"Then please fight nicely from now on."
"You're right. Let's do that. Mom."
"Yes, nicely, dear."
Mineha. She'd taken to calling her "Mom" naturally.
Ruriha looked happy. Good.
After that, the two of them headed back to the watchtower rooftop.
They seemed to want to talk things over a bit more. I hoped it would be okay.
I left the house and stopped by Arifa's shop.
After chatting with Arifa about today's meeting, I brought up the knife.
"You really do go through a lot of knives."
"I really do. So, do you have anything sturdy and thick?"
"Hmm. Sturdy and thick... Oh, hold on a second."
"Y-yes."
Arifa went to the back of the counter.
Before long, she came back carrying a wooden box.
She set the wooden box on the floor. It had a lid on it.
"This is some unsorted stuff Agaro sent over quite a while ago."
As she spoke, she opened the lid of the wooden box.
All sorts of junk was jumbled up inside.
"So Agaro's stuff — that'd be from the bandits' loot?"
"Who knows. Might be dungeon finds too, for all I know. I think there were a few knives, and oh — see, it's written right on the lid."
A tattered piece of paper was stuck to the lid of the wooden box.
In messy handwriting, things like "weird ring," "silver necklace," and "lump of iron?" were listed.
Among them, faintly scrawled, was "thick knife?"
Pretty rough work. That's so like Agaro.
"It's true. Um, could I take a look?"
"That's why I brought it. Help yourself."
"Thanks."
I used the Wheel of Fortune.
Several green lights were visible. No yellow or blue ones.
The thick knife was easy to find.
It was the largest item in the box, and it glowed the brightest green.
When I pulled it out, the handle was curved into a shape like a billhook.
It was sheathed in leather, and when I drew it, a pitch-black, square blade emerged.
The blade was like a thick iron plate.
It was a bit heavy to hold, but only slightly. Yeah. The shape was odd, but it felt just right.
This one.
"How much for this?"
"Well then. Appraisal... Sure, 5,000 will do."
That reaction. Maybe it was worth more than I thought.
I felt like I'd gotten a pretty good deal.
Wondering if it was really okay, I paid the 5,000 oro.
"Don't go breaking it right away this time. Break too many knives and the Goddess of Knives will show up in your dreams."
Arifa said with a laugh.
"Huh? Goddess of Knives?"
«I've already met her.»
"Right. It's an old superstition that she'll scold you in your dreams. I used to hear it a lot back when I lived in the slums of Abdara."
"Abdara...?"
"The Abdaral Empire. My and Agaro's homeland."
"Huh..."
"It's quite far from here."
"Is it in the desert, by any chance?"
"Oh my, you're pretty well-informed."
The name just had a sort of Arabian ring to it.
Plus, Arifa and Agaro both sort of had that look about them.
"A street vendor wearing a turban told me about it."
"That region has a lot of ethnic groups living together in clusters. The big ones are called vassal states. Abdara. Abdaral is the largest vassal state among them and calls itself an empire."
"Huh... I'm learning something."
"Of course, even with a carriage, it'd take over a year to get there from here."
"It's quite far."
"And it's not all flat roads. You'd have to cross major rivers and mountain ranges. On top of that, ferocious monsters and bandits lurk about."
"That sounds difficult."
"Yeah, it was a matter of life and death. I'm just glad I made it to this country, Hydrangea. Back then, Abdara was in a constant state of civil war and chaos. I hear it's much quieter now, though."
"Don't you ever want to go back to your hometown?"
"Not really. I didn't own a home in the slums. I had very few possessions. To top it off, when I fled, I got separated from all my friends and acquaintances. They're all missing. I have nothing left to go back to. This place is my home now."
"I see..."
"What about you, Wof? Don't you want to return to your hometown?"
The question prompted an immediate answer from me.
"No, I don't. My hometown is a backwater village about two months' travel from here.
My parents and siblings are probably still alive and well. But I'm not your typical eldest son who left to seek his fortune. There's no place for me in that village anymore."
"I see."
Leaving the village had always been the plan.
I came to Hydrangea because my uncle's hideout was here.
He promised to give it to me, so I came.
"So, in a sense, you could say this is my hometown too."
I have a house here. I have friends and people I care about.
Lately, every day has been a whirlwind of excitement, and honestly, I find that kind of fun.
It's exhausting, though.