With one arcing swing of her sword, Aiz severed the head of the final viola.
“That’s all of them!”
“Are there any casualties?”
“At the moment, no…The citizens have all been evacuated!”
The voices of her fellow familia members filled the air of the loading dock, Narfi at their center.
Though for many this had been their first encounter with the giant man-eating flowers, they’d come out of the battle relatively unscathed thanks to the intel Aiz and the others had already gathered on the beasts. They were, after all, members of the famed Loki Familia, which meant the whole lot of them were prodigies, even at Levels 2 and 3.
The entire affair was over barely five minutes after the monsters had first appeared.
The lights have all gone out…Could it be because of the battle?
Aiz thought, having taken out four of the seven flowers herself. A sense of unease passed through her as she eyed the mostly snuffed magic-stone lanterns decorating the trade pier. It was almost as if someone, or perhaps the violas themselves, had purposefully smashed them in the midst of all the chaos.
“…!”
She didn’t have time to think about it long, though.
Tiona’s and Tione’s faces sprang to her mind, and she immediately dashed off and into the night.
—I’m afraiddddd I can’t let you do that.
All of a sudden, she could have sworn she heard the croaking laughter of a frog.
Then.
“That was a wonderful show you all put on!”
“?!”
As the frigid voice gave a hiss, an entire swarm of shadows came flying out of the sky.
“What—?!”
“Kali Familia?!”
The rest of Loki Familia was just as surprised, letting out shouts as the ambuscade of mysterious foes surrounded them, brandishing their weapons. The girls flung back a barrage of weapons of their own, from atop the storehouse and among the shadows of strewn cargo, sending them screaming toward their assailants the second they hit the ground, but every one of them missed.
There were more than twenty enemies against only ten of them, Aiz included.
And they had them completely surrounded.
“What do we do?!”
The faces of their enemies were hidden beneath turbans, but the exposed skin visible from their necks down was noticeably tanned and their armor was minimal, nothing but the bare essentials in order to maximize their movement. They were Amazons, no doubt about it.
Though Aiz had escaped the initial attack, she turned back to them now, fully prepared to aid Narfi and the other second-tier-and-under adventurers in their fight against the twenty-plus masked assailants, until—
“You’ll be facinggggggg me.”
“”
All of a sudden, Aiz found herself veiled in an enormous shadow from behind.
“Ngah—!!”
“Gngh!!”
The vertical strike came at her with incredible force. It was only thanks to her godlike reflexes that she was able to jump out of the way.
There was a monstrous crack as the paved surface of the road underfoot exploded, sending splinters of wood, smoke, and debris flying up into the air. Aiz spun around, putting space between her and her new opponent as she turned to look at them head-on.
She readied her sword, senses keen…then saw a quivering silhouette emerge from the cloud of dust.
“…!”
“Hee-hee-hee, you are goodddddd. You are!”
A flickering metallic glint reflected in her golden eyes, opened wide in shock.
It was a full-body suit of armor, easily more than two meders tall and a nauseating crimson color.
Its wielder currently flaunted a giant ax in both their massive hands. There wasn’t even a trace of visible bare skin. Everything was completely covered by the glimmering armor, and from the fierce twinkle of the ingots within, it was as sturdy as an ox. It had to have been top-tier. And yet at the same time, there was something about it that was even more astounding, on multiple levels. The make was simply perfect, fit to its wielder’s body like a glove, almost as though it had been custom-made…
An image flashed in the back of her mind, of the earthenware figurines she’d seen in that antique dealer’s shop while hunting around for a sword. The suit in front of her now looked almost the same, though a bit fatter around the middle.
Almost like that monster…No, that voice…
Shaking away the somewhat rude thoughts, she instead focused on the voice. As its timbre tickled the threads of her memory, she felt a name rise naturally to her lips.
“Phryne Jamil…?”
The armed figure twisted in a strange show of corpulent torment, almost as though sighing.
“Was it thattttttttt obvious? Even through the armorrrrrrr?…It truly is a crimmmmmme to be beautiful.”
Aiz’s brow drew tight at the confirmation.
Phryne Jamil, otherwise known as Androctonus, the Man Slayer, was the captain of Ishtar Familia.
—Which meant it wasn’t Kali Familia attacking them but…Ishtar Familia?
Then the other assailants, too—were they Berbera? Aiz found herself at a complete loss, filled with both disbelief and a rising sense of urgency. There was no chance she’d be able to aid Tiona and Tione with one of Orario’s largest familias standing in her way.
Meanwhile, Phryne, unaware of Aiz’s inner turmoil, popped open the visor on her helm with a sharp clang, revealing her frog-like features.
“Nnnnnno bother. If I simply kill you nowwwwww, no one will be the wiiiiiiser!”
Loki Familia’s Sword Princess, Aiz Wallenstein, and Ishtar Familia’s Androctonus, Phryne Jamil, shared a long history. Though it was perhaps one-sided, as Aiz, for the life of her, could not figure out why the atrocious frog of a woman had it out for her.
Three times now, they’d crossed swords.
In their first duel, Aiz had been a Level-2 rookie who’d left Phryne with nothing but malicious resentment.
Their second duel had come two years later, a chance encounter deep within the halls of the Dungeon.
And their third duel had taken place right after Aiz had leveled up to Level 5.
The first time, Phryne had had Aiz right where she wanted her when Riveria and the others had intervened, leaving the actual outcome up in the air. The second time had been a draw. And the third time had been a sound victory on Aiz’s part.
“What reason could you have to attack us? And now?”
“Do I need a reaaason to beat you until that mouth of yoursssssss no longer works?” Phryne shot back.
It was the same basic reasoning she gave every time they fought—pure, unadulterated hatred. Even the first time, Phryne had only wanted to give the hotshot record breaker a proper “baptism.” Of course, she had no way of knowing that the hotshot record breaker would go on to rise in power at an almost phenomenal rate, nor that she’d quickly surpass Phryne in terms of status, fame, and strength.
Stronger than you. More beautiful than you.
Though Phryne would never admit it, her valuation of others was different. And there were just some things that were unforgivable. With every fiber of her being, she hated this beautiful young girl who’d zoomed up the ranks to first-tier in the blink of an eye. The same way that Ishtar despised Freya, in fact.
Phryne’s bloodshot eyes stared out from within the confines of her open visor.
Even though she wasn’t privy to Phryne’s thoughts, Aiz knew this fight was inevitable, both from the wrath and bloodlust practically radiating from the other woman, as well as from her experience with their past encounters.
—Are those…particles of light?
She thought with a start as something caught her attention.
And indeed, tiny light particles seemed to be drifting up from Phryne’s face—the parts exposed to the open air, anyway.
“Today will be the day I finnnnnnnally crush you, Sword Pri
ncesssssssss!!”
Her booming voice brought her visor slamming back down, and with it, Aiz’s view of the light particles was cut off.
A mere second later, Phryne was charging, giant axes held high.
“”
The attack was strong.
A true threat, faster and more powerful than Aiz could have possibly expected.
“Gngh?!”
The spot she’d been occupying only a moment ago went up in a catastrophic wreath of debris, just like before.
Though she was able to dodge the ax in Phryne’s right hand with a hairbreadth to spare, the ax in her left hand came down on her before she had a chance to react.
She brought up her sword, and the incoming attack slammed into it with such force that it sent a rippling tremor through her body.
—She’s strong!!
So strong she could barely believe her eyes.
Her power, her speed—everything was on par with Aiz’s own, despite the Amazon being an entire level lower than her.
“Hee-hee-hee! What’ssssss wrong, Sword Princessssssss?”
“…Ngh?!”
She moved her sword in desperation, hurtling toward the twin ax attacks coming at her from all sides.
The violent duel was enough to make the rest of Aiz’s familia and the other Amazons, currently observing from off to the side, gulp in fear. Sparks flew as the three blades clashed against one another again and again, echoing all throughout the trade pier.
Could she have leveled up? Maybe she’s a Level 6 now, too…?!
Her strength, speed, perception—everything was far too high to belong to a Level 5.
Perhaps they hadn’t informed the Guild of her level-up? Or perhaps the official report was never updated? She could think of many possible circumstances that would have led to word of her achievement never making the news. Could she truly have reached Level 6?
But if so, what was this strange feeling Aiz couldn’t quite shake?
Almost as though her opponent were doused in a heavenly sort of nectar—?
“Miss Aiz!!”
The shrill voices of her companions shook her from her reverie, returning her to the duel at hand. Even as she focused on her own fight against two Amazons at the same time, Narfi, as well as the rest of the girls, couldn’t help but shout in response to Aiz’s peril.
“Ssssssssso irritating! Stop with the screamingggggg!” Phryne shouted before chucking one of her axes in Narfi’s direction.
She seemed completely unconcerned at potentially hitting her own comrades currently surrounding the girl, putting enough force behind the ironhanded throw to smash all of them into dust.
Narfi and the Amazons both froze at the sight of the ax hurtling toward them.
“?!”
And in that second, Aiz ran, taking advantage of the space she’d put between her and Phryne and racing toward the direction of the flying ax.
She flung herself in the path of the spinning cutter, stopping it with her sword.
“Hee-hee-hee, what a fool!” Phryne laughed with scorn. She immediately dashed forward, eliminating the distance between Aiz and her. With one mighty swoop, she brought her remaining ax down on Aiz, who was still shaking from the tremendous force the flying cutter had applied to her body.
“Gnnngahh!”
Aiz’s sword caught the ax just in time with a direct block to her front. The impact sent her to her knees with enough force to split the ground below.
Phryne’s face broke into a smile, eyeing the swordswoman like a butterfly caught in a net. “Nowwwww, Sharay! Do it nowwwwww!!” she screamed.
The command’s intended recipient was currently waiting outside the scene of the battle.
Hiding herself atop one of the nearby buildings, she directed her staff toward Aiz and the others in perfect sync with Phryne’s shout, her lips forming the words of a chant.
“?!”
All of a sudden, a wave of high-pitched, high-frequency sound washed over them.
It felt like it was boring into her chest. Unable to take it any longer, Aiz flung away Phryne’s ax before tumbling out of range of the spell.
“What was…that…?”
Though her ears continued to ring, there was no real damage done to her body, and she didn’t seem to be suffering from any sort of status effect, either.
Back at the scene of the attack, Phryne seemed to have taken the full brunt of the hit, but from what she could tell, nothing about the armor-clad woman had changed. Instead, she was now simply gazing in her direction, almost curiously.
Aiz felt a feeling of dread rush through her. Her instincts as a swordswoman were tingling.
—She couldn’t have…?!
Hoping to suppress the foreboding thought before it could become reality, she parted her lips.
“…Awaken, Tempest.”
Only the wind enchantment that should have formed around her at those words failed to respond. Her Airiel was gone.
“…?!”
“Hee-hee-hee-hee, it worked, it woooorked!!” Phryne let out her loudest belt of laughter yet.
The frog woman’s glee said everything, and Aiz realized all too well what had just happened.
“A curse…!”
“Biiiingo!”
Much like its name implied, a “curse” was a type of jinx, different from other “pure” magic spells. It debilitated a target via a variety of witchcraft-like effects that magic couldn’t produce, in exchange for a penalty placed on the caster. Status effects were ineffective against it, and only by a very limited number of methods could it be fended off or lifted.
No doubt, the curse she was afflicted with now was a silencing curse—capable of rendering its target incapable of magic.
And that frog’s never been able to use magic in the first place…!
Aiz realized this with a start, which was why the curse had had no effect on her. Had this been her plan all along?
Saving her Airiel for later had proved to be her own undoing.
Her trump card had been effectively nullified.
“I readdddddddied these anti-statuses and curses for my fight with Ottarrrrr, but…hee-hee…you’rrrrrrre proving to be a fine guinea pigggg!” Phryne hissed as she studied Aiz carefully, sliding her tongue across her lips within her mighty helm. “Though I wasssssss hoping to try it out on that Nine Hell, toooooooo. Seemssssss she was able to sniff me out!”
“…!”
“An elfffffffff without magic? You might as wellllllllll replace her with a steaming pile of dog shit!”
“You monster!!” Aiz shouted, or at least she would have, had Phryne’s ax not come tumbling down out of the sky toward her.
She quickly brought her sword up to block it, and the high-pitched screech of the resulting impact echoed all throughout the pier.
“Muchhhhhhhhh like you now, hmmmmmm? You’re no match for me nooooooow!!”
“Gngh…!!”
The only way Aiz could think of to break the curse was to take out its caster, but the one in question had already flown the coop. She had no choice—she’d have to continue like this.
Waiting it out wouldn’t do any good, either, considering she had to get to Tiona and Tione as quickly as possible.
Aiz’s eyes flashed. She’d have to face this monster of a woman, whose strength was on par with any Level 6, with nothing but her sword.
—It’s almost like the fairy tale.
The young animal woman hidden among the shadows atop the storehouse couldn’t help but think to herself as she watched the Sword Princess fight gallantly.
“…”
An assortment of feelings reflected in her jade-colored eyes as she watched the swordswoman surrounded by all those Amazon envoys, the long-legged one included.
Beneath the veil disguising her features, her golden locks, the same brilliant gold as Aiz’s own, trembled with abashment.
Tione and Argana’s ship had already made its way well out to sea.
Th
is far away from the coast, nothing but the gleam of the cliff-top lighthouse could reach them.
And atop that boat, a similar scene to the one deep within the bowels of Tiona’s sea cave was currently taking place, Amazons whooping in virulent passion as the sounds of fist on skin reverberated throughout the deck.
“Gnnngh!”
Tione aimed a kick for Argana’s head, but the other woman blocked it with her arm before jumping out of reach.
Argana cocked her head to the side curiously. “You’re fighting much better than yesterday…Why is that, Tione?”
And it was true—Tione’s strikes were hitting with much greater precision than they had the day prior. The increased speed and accuracy enabled her to actually fight on par with her opponent.
“You sure it’s not just you gettin’ soft?” Tione snapped back, though not before she cursed internally.
Tione and Tiona had leveled up only a mere day before they came to Meren. Neither one of them had been able to fully come to terms with their new boosted abilities. There was still a bit of a gap between their bodies and minds, which, though slight, could prove fatal in a match against another top-tier adventurer.
Her fight with Tiona back in the abandoned warehouse had been to rectify exactly this. Just as Aiz had gone up against that giant swarm of monsters immediately after her own level-up, Tione, too, had “adjusted” herself—the sister vs. sister practice duel let her put her new abilities into practice.
She’d been able to rein in the stampeding horse that was her own body. She wasn’t going to be defeated this time. And she assumed it would be the same for Tiona, now able to hold her own against Bache.
Still…she’s got the advantage when it comes to sheer power…
Argana and Bache, too, might have leveled up only a short while ago, but it was still a longer period of time than Tione and Tiona had. Ability-wise, at least, they’d always be ahead. She also hadn’t been able to sense any openings in the other woman’s moves, at least nothing like some of the ones she’d seen in Finn and the others.
Which meant everything was going to come down to technique and strategy. Victory would fall to the one who craved it the most.
“Hmm, yes. Perhaps that is it. I’ve grown soft.” Argana laughed—a remarkable feat considering she was currently locked in a duel to the death. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself. “Then I suppose I’ll have to up my game.”
Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side: Sword Oratoria, Vol. 6 Page 20