Evil Avalon

Chapter 113 Suspicious handmade bento

(TL:By Rafael,valhallatls.blogspot.com)

I was called to the student council room. Although I really wanted to go alone, Tatsuki-kun followed me and I was worried about what would be discussed. Nevertheless, I returned to my seat in the classroom safely and without incident, which could be considered lucky in the midst of misfortune. Lately, I feel like I'm moving away from my ideal of a "quiet and humble school life," and I'm starting to feel a sense of crisis.

"Ugh, I even received this kind of email..."

I received an email from Kirara-chan saying "I want to talk to you about what happened earlier. Please let me know when you're available." I have no idea what the student council president and others wanted to talk to me about, but it's best to get it over with quickly. However, I've been exhausted from the many events since this morning, and I have various plans. I want to postpone it to another day.

Anyway, the busy time since morning is finally over, and I can take a breather. Thinking that, I slumped at my desk, and then a female student appeared silently in front of me.

"Why didn't you come...?"

When I looked up, Kuga-san was staring at me with half-closed eyes that were difficult to judge if she was sleepy or giving me a dirty look. When I asked her what she meant by "why didn't you come," she indirectly told me to check my email. I quickly operated my terminal screen and started up my email software, then found a familiar email. Apparently, this was what she was referring to.

"Dear Sota-kun, I made a delicious bento box today. If you're interested, would you like to eat together? (Kyaa~) I'll be waiting on the rooftop. (Heart)"

I remembered tossing it into the junk mail folder, thinking it was some kind of advertisement or prank. But when I took a closer look at the sender, it said "Kuga Kotone." What was the purpose of sending such a strange message... or could it be some kind of code? It would be difficult to decipher as the algorithm didn't match. What does "(Heart)" mean?

"Um, what was that about?"

"Just like it says... I made a bento box, but Sota didn't come..."

She held a box-shaped thing wrapped in cloth in her chest, which was a homemade bento, she said. She turned her face to the side and pouted, saying that she wanted to eat it together with me. Her fresh appearance made my heart skip a beat ♪

... Not really.

It was impossible that a girl who usually didn't stand out, eating cup ramen in a corner of the classroom or nibbling on bread alone, suddenly made a homemade bento for me. She definitely had some kind of plan. And this sudden change...

During class battles, the shrewd detective would look at me with a gaze as if interrogating a thief, but she seemed to have studied some girl character and incorporated wriggling movements at crucial moments, making strange gestures. I wonder if they have this kind of training in America.

"... Maybe she wanted to talk about something."

"Yeah. I wanted to have a meeting about future plans... and if our schedules match, I also wanted to plan a hunting trip together."

A meeting, huh. Kuga-san and I have made a "secret agreement". It's the kind where we pretend to have a low level in class and mutually agree to practice diligently. That's mainly my reason, but Kuga-san has a different main purpose.

She is known as a habitual latecomer at school, lacking motivation and always skipping classes, but that's because she is busy gathering information until late at night, reporting to her superiors, going on missions, etc. She's actually a very busy person. She also has her main job as a spy, so she probably wants to adjust her schedule and consult with me about school events.

And an invitation to go hunting. Since she has already reached level 25, leveling up alone is impossible. She says she wants to hunt together with me if possible. It's probably her main goal, or rather, her aim.

What I have to be careful about is that at this point, Kuga-san doesn't have much attachment to Japan and doesn't have any positive feelings towards her classmates, including Akagi. If she finds out about my player knowledge, information will be sucked up to America like a vacuum.

Even if we go hunting together, I have to accurately grasp the progress of her unique event flags that will occur in the future and control the information appropriately.

...So, she should be well aware of the fact that I am being cautious like this. That's why I think she made the bento and sent that strange email, using those tactics. Kuga-san is a genuine DunEx heroine, and she's really cute to look at, but so far she's been a hardcore unsociable character, so those kinds of tactics haven't had much effect. It could be said that I've been saved by that, though.

"Sorry, I have something to do today. We can talk more when we have time."

"I see. I really wanted to talk to you sooner... but okay, I'll bring you some next time, too."

With that, Koga-san returns to her seat like a ninja without making a sound. I'm curious about what kind of bento she made, but I'll decline it just in case there's any truth serum or anything in it.

There are still many things I have to think about after this. I hope everything goes well."

　*・*・*・*・*・*

"Wow, the magical concentration here is incredible. We're at the 20th floor."

"Then let's turn on the light."

In the dimly lit gate room of the 20th floor, Satsuki's eyes widened in surprise at the thick magical energy that surrounded them. Lisa lit a lamp on a magical tool and placed it on the ground, illuminating the small room of about 15 tatami mats, casting the shadows of the three people onto the stone walls.

"Um, we're supposed to meet him here. I'm getting nervous..."

"Until a little while ago, he was exploring the area as a spider Arachne, but the email said he'll be here soon, so let's prepare and wait."

"Arachne?!"

Today, the four of them, including Arthur, were planning to discuss their future together. By the way, it was Arthur's first time meeting the other two. Satsuki was curious about what kind of person he was, and couldn't calm down how to interact with him, but Arthur was a rough guy, so there was nothing to worry about. On the contrary, I was worried that he might do something rude to her instead.

"He summons monsters like spiders and takes over their bodies to adventure around this area."

"There's a spell like that too?"

"I'd also get bored if I stayed in one place for too long, so it's good to be able to move around, you know."

Due to the constraints of being a demon, Arthur couldn't move between floors freely, but he found out that he could move around freely by taking over a summoned monster. So for the past few days, he had been exploring various floors as a spider Arachne.

Summoning magic is risky because if the summoned monster becomes uncontrollable, it becomes very high-risk...but if it can be used for various purposes such as dangerous quests and reconnaissance, it could be a big advantage. It might be good to learn at least one spell like that.

Now then. Should I prepare for the discussion?

"Then I'll bring out the table and chairs."

"I brought some delicious tea."

"For snacks, I have these. If you like them, that's great."

They brought out a folding table and four round chairs that were leftover from the Magibag "Improved" bought at the store, placing them in the center of the room. Since our house was a shop specializing in adventurer goods, we had plenty of camping gear. However, it seems that Satsuki is more interested in this Magibag "Improved" than the table and adventure gear.

"Is that a special Magibag that's lighter even with the same weight as before?"

"I want it soon too. It would be great if we could get a lot when we go with Kano-chan next time."

While I was chatting with cute girls, Satsuki pours hot tea from her thermos into paper cups, and Lisa takes out a cookie set she bought from her favorite shop and puts it on a paper plate. The aroma of tea and sweet butter spreads. Let's enjoy it without hesitation.

Although the space is dimly lit and feels cold, it looks so lively when talking with cute girls. The tea is delicious.

As they enjoy their cookies, they hear the sound of someone coming down the ladder with an off-pitch nose hum. It's Arthur, who came to meet someone and was surprised to see Satsuki.

"Hey, hey, hey! I heard you wanted to meet someone... and it's a girl...! Hey, aren't you Sak-Saki Satsuki-chan!"

"Uh, nice to meet you..."

"Wow, it's the real Saki-chan! Big eyes, tousled hair, and a cute, modest chest!"

Arthur observes Satsuki from various angles as soon as he sees her. It's understandable that he's happy to see a girl from the game in person, but he's a little too forward. Satsuki punches him.

"Oh, that hurts... So who's the other beautiful lady? Hehehe."

"Long time no see. You're still flashy... I mean, Arthur."

"What? How do you know my nickname?"

Although he didn't learn his lesson from the punch, Arthur talks to Lisa while being charmed. But when she correctly guesses her nickname from DunEx, he jumps back and stands ready.

"To smooth out the meeting, shall we introduce ourselves first?"

"Hehe, that's a good idea. We might be in for a long ride. Hehehe."

Lisa finds Arthur's teeth grinding and intimidation funny and agrees with him. Well, if Arthur knew who Lisa was in DunEx, she'd be even more surprised.

"Well... I'm Narumi Souta, a player. We'll work together and tackle various problems in the future. I'll do what I can to cooperate, so please take care of me."

"Hmm? Did you explain about DunEx to Saki-chan?"

"I explained that we came from a parallel world."

(TL: cat is out of the bag)

"That's what I heard."

Arthur asks how they explained it to Satsuki. According to Lisa, they said they only came in spirit from a parallel world. For Satsuki, it's easier to believe that they came from a similar world than that this world is a game, and it's easier to accept...

"At least for now, we don't understand what this world is, and I think it's better that way," she said.

"Hmm, well then, next. I'm Arthur. I was inexplicably transported to this world and was terribly bored, but I'm relieved that I've finally made some acquaintances other than the child who was  originally in there," said Arthur as he took a bite of his cookie and held out his horn. "Gently touch it," he said to Satsuki.

However, "the child who was originally in there," huh? It seemed like there was consciousness in the original body, like my Buta mind, but in Buta-o's case, it was always active, and I feel like our consciousness has fused to the point where I don't know if it's "me" or "Butao." Maybe in Arthur's case, the fusion isn't progressing because the mental structure of demons and humans is different.

"Then it's my turn. I'm Nitta Lisa. I'm a player~. Call me Lisa♪"

"Lisa-chan, you said you knew about me earlier, but who were you over there?" asked Arthur.

"Arthur-kun was a famous person, so I think a lot of people knew him~? In that sense, Souta too. In the other world, I was called 'Executioner of the Black'," said Lisa.

"Holy cow!" exclaimed Arthur, leaning forward on the table. By the way, Lisa was also this same girl in appearance in the other world, and she kept going back and forth from head to toe, finally trembling.

"I definitely thought that the 'Black Knight' who led those fanatics was a gorilla woman!," said Arthur.

"I heard some rude words. I'll punish you~♪" said Lisa.

I also secretly thought she was a gorilla woman. But that's not unreasonable. In DunEx, Lisa was a veteran warrior who led a group and engaged in direct conflicts with PK groups and large-scale clans. Her nickname was enough to make even the most hardcore PKs run away barefoot. It's hard to believe that she is now such a gentle and charming lady.

At first, I was skeptical too, but as we practiced sword fighting together, I became convinced that Lisa was that "Black Knight." Her way of taking distance with the sword and stepping in reminded me of those days when I was killing and being killed over and over again. That being said, I'm curious about what kind of punishment she has in store...

"Finally, it's my turn. Omiya Satsuki here. Just an ordinary... unremarkable person, but I might get in the way, but I had fun adventuring together, so please let me stay with you," said Satsuki.

"I would also like to ask for your help~"

In response to Satsuki, who bowed her head and asked to be with them, Lisa also bowed her head. If being together was fun for Satsuki, then it was for her too, and she was grateful for her concern at school. However, there was resistance to involving Satsuki in the players' troubles.

If it was a school-related event, even if rough guys came to use violence, we were willing to borrow Satsuki's power and even assumed that they would fight together if it came to a fight. That was because we believed it would lead to her happy school life.

However, if the opponent was a large organization that did not shy away from killing or a player with a variety of attack methods, the danger level would skyrocket beyond comparison. I and Lisa were players who knew the future, so we had a duty to deal with such people, but Satsuki was just an ordinary girl. I wanted to keep her away from such dangerous people.

Even so, Lisa said that Satsuki was her partner who shared their thoughts every night, slept and ate together, and relied on each other's backs to fight in the dungeon. On the other hand, Satsuki also said she wanted to be of help if they were to face a dangerous future. In that case, we decided to ask for her help as well.

"I'm also counting on you. Help from someone you can trust is really valuable."

"I have no objections, of course. It's good to be more glamorous, right~"

"Thank you, Sotua, Arthur-kun!"

Lisa stroked Satsuki's head, who was happy with tears in her eyes. Arthur didn't seem to be thinking deeply, but that was fine for now. They could slowly cultivate their sense of camaraderie and bond.

"Well, let's get to the main point. There are many problems such as the adventurer school event, dealing with the outsiders' clan, and the future leveling policy."

"They are all important."

"The adventurer school, huh. But I'm a demon, so I can't move well and probably can't do anything... I want to go outside..."

Because of the "demon's constraints," Arthur weakly lay on the table, saying he couldn't participate in anything outside the dungeon. Even if he turned into a spider Arachne, the summoned monster would return on its own once it went outside the magic field, and he couldn't fully support the team with a spider body in the dungeon, he said sulkily.

However, on the other hand, if we can somehow manage to do that, we will be able to fully borrow Arthur's power, who is almost level 40. If that happens, not only will we gain a significant advantage in solving the various problems I mentioned earlier, but there is also the possibility that we can quickly settle things like collecting weapon materials and processing events.

This constraint has a significant impact on us as well. Despite Arthur's extensive research, he has not been able to find any clues to solve this problem... but that doesn't mean there hasn't been any progress.

"So let's start by talking about that." I said.

Arthur nodded and began to explain what he had discovered so far. Apparently, the constraint was related to a rare form of magic that was used to create the game world. This magic, known as the "World Crafting Spell," was responsible for shaping the landscape, creating the NPCs, and even determining the rules of physics within the game.

Arthur had learned that the spell had been cast by a group of powerful wizards, led by a legendary sorcerer named Merlin. The spell had been created to serve as a form of entertainment for Merlin and his followers, but it had quickly gained a life of its own and became an actual game world.

However, the spell was not without its limitations. It required a constant source of magical energy to maintain, which was why the game was powered by the players themselves. In addition, the spell was designed with a built-in constraint that prevented any player from gaining more than a certain amount of power.

Arthur had been studying the spell for months, trying to find a way to break the constraint. He had discovered that the spell was vulnerable to certain types of magic, and he had even found a few spells that could potentially disrupt it.

"But the problem is," Arthur said, "the magic required to break the constraint is incredibly dangerous. It could potentially destabilize the entire game world and put everyone in it at risk."

I frowned. "So what do we do?"

Arthur shrugged. "I'm still working on it. But I thought you should know what I've discovered so far. If we can figure out a way to break the constraint without causing any harm, it could be a game-changer."

I nodded slowly. "I understand. Keep me posted on your progress."

Arthur nodded and we continued to discuss the matter further, brainstorming different ideas and strategies. As always, working with Arthur was both challenging and rewarding, and I felt grateful to have him as an ally in this strange, magical world.

TL Note- Some readers are asking if Souta will build a harem, well this chapter is the answer.

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