༺ Shall We Go To The 2nd Floor? (2) ༻
Queen.
The woman’s name was simply Queen.
It might be an alias, or she might have another real name, but everyone, including her companions, just called her Queen.
She looked exactly like a Queen.
With abundant red hair like blazing flames, a slightly tanned skin, her face was that of a fierce beauty.
“Judas!”
Her attire was a fur cloak and what could be called bikini armor, just barely clinging to her body, but the tattoos that seemed to belong in ruins shielded her highly exposed skin like a shield. (no clue what belonging in ruins mean here)
And by the way, when I described the tattoos as ‘shielding,’ it wasn’t just a metaphor.
Those tattoos each had their own magical effect, protecting the body of their owner.
“Queen.”
I spoke to the woman who was a warrior in the Demon King’s Castle Breakthrough party.
Wanderer Queen.
Slaughterer Queen.
Destroyer Queen.
Foreign Queen of the North.
The most beautiful woman in Northnorden Queen.
As I recalled her countless nicknames.
Thump—
Queen, who set down a barrel mug of beer on the table, suddenly frowned.
“Judas, how did you know I was here?”
Her face was half-red, she seemed to be quite drunk.
Enkidus and Brigitte and the rest were all heavy drinkers, but it was at that moment I remembered none could keep up with Queen.
To her question, I too felt puzzled.
Following Cecily’s words, I came to the tavern named ‘The Last Cherry Blossom,’ and there was Queen.
It couldn’t be just a coincidence.
Perhaps someone who sent Cecily to the past had intended for this meeting.
Bang—
Queen slammed the table with her palm.
“Now that we’ve met, let’s talk! Sit down!”
She yelled loud enough to echo through the tavern.
Some of the patrons drinking at the tavern glanced over, but no one complained or made a fuss.
Probably because of the two men embedded face-first through the wooden floor.
Was it Queen’s doing?
“Planting people in the floor, they’re not dead, are they?”
I asked, sitting down beside Queen.
Then Queen spat on the floor and muttered lightly.
“Those guys, despite being weak, joked about going up to the second floor. I just gave them a light beating.”
As expected, that’s what happened.
Even at our party, Warrior, Queen was quite popular.
Warrior─ it invoked romance and hope for all ages.
Maybe it’s the high exposure of her clothes that makes her defense seem so vulnerable.
Of course, men who approached with impure intentions either got planted in the ground or folded in half twice.
Thanks to her, I learned that human bodies could be folded twice like paper.
“Here you go. The booze.”
Soon the old innkeeper pushed a mug of beer in front of me.
The froth bubbled over, looking like cheap beer, but it seemed quite refreshing.
Swish— Swish—
As I was skimming off the foam with a dagger from my sleeve, Queen said.
“What? Skimming off the foam? You’re still not manly, Judas. That’s why you’re always hiding like a girl, only good for thieving.”
Hiding like a girl, only good for thieving-.
Only Queen could probably say such things to me.
“So Judas, why are you here? It can’t be just to drink with me.”
She asked.
She must’ve asked out of pure curiosity.
She’s someone whose inside matches her outside.
I decided to answer just as purely.
“I don’t know. I’m about to figure out why I’m here. Maybe it’s just to drink with you. Or maybe it’s to go up to the second floor together.”
Taverns like this usually had an inn on the second floor.
So for the patrons, suggesting to go up to the second floor─was no different than saying “Do you want to come over for ramen?”
Or was it “Do you want to come see my cat” nowadays?
That’s old news too.
I need to be in the know of trends after falling into this Pangaea continent.
Anyway.
Queen laughed out loud at my story.
“Judas, I’m not interested in men who are not stronger than me. Didn’t I tell you why I attended the Demon King’s party?”
“You did. Was it because you wanted to leave the boring north?”
I remember Queen came from a city-state in the north called Northnorden.
Rumor has it she was the king’s daughter.
Yes.
Unexpectedly, Queen was a princess.
She ran away because she didn’t want to be involved in a political marriage.
Thanks to her tomboyish nature, Queen’s princess level was a whopping D-.
She was at a level where she can have a good match with little old Naru.
On the contrary, does this mean… Naru could have grown into a troublemaker, as wild as Queen used to be?
Truly a terrible thing!
Anyway.
Queen disliked weak things.
I knew nothing about her ‘ideal type,’ but she seemed to like strong people, similar to the barbarian-born Cariote.
So, to approach Queen, you need to be strong, whether man or woman.
“Am I not strong enough?”
I asked Queen.
My voice came out more sly than I expected, surprising even myself.
But trying to hide it, Queen chuckled and chewed on the jerky that was served as a side dish.
“No, you’re not enough. You. Have you had a proper fight since you defeated the Demon King? No training. I bet you didn’t join any war either.”
“Well, that’s…”
“I heard you were looking for a marriage partner, showing up at matchmaking sessions? Got rejected by heaps of women, I heard? I laughed so hard when I heard.”
Swoosh—
Was the rumor so widespread that Queen had heard about it?
I felt awkward, and Queen held up five fingers.
“Five. The number of high demons I’ve defeated since the Demon King died. If I include their minions, it’s countless. I’ve been rolling in the battlefield.”
I see.
I vaguely sensed that Queen had become more refined and hardened than before.
The current Queen was stronger than when she broke through the Demon King’s castle.
“Why hide it? My level is now 48, soon to hit 49. Honestly, I feel like I won’t lose to anyone. Judas, you can’t beat me.”
“Is that so.”
It didn’t seem like mere bravado.
Waaaaavee—
Right then, the bird-shaped tattoo on Queen’s right shoulder glowed red.
Reflexively, I brought the fork I was holding in front of my face, and with a powerful shock, I felt my body lift off the ground.
Boom—!
I felt like a half-filled water bottle thrown into a typhoon.
When I came to, I was smashed against the wall of the tavern.
“Fu-.”
a sudden attack?
But then again, Queen had teamed up with Tenebris.
Queen holding a giant double-edged axe.
She had already stood up and was looking down at me.
“Stand and fight like a man, Judas. Don’t hide or run away cowardly. I never liked your cowardly ways, even back then.”
“That’s regrettable. I quite liked you. Not as much as Brigitte, though.”
My head was spinning from the impact, and I barely managed to stand up.
The impact was still buzzing in my body, stronger than any attack I had ever received. It wasn’t bluster that she was close to level 49.
“M-My tavern!”
“Run away!”
People fled in the commotion.
Among them, Queen gripped an ax like a cleanup hitter.
Then, swelling her thigh muscles, she leaped at me again.
Boom—!
This time, I drew a dagger to block somehow.
Knowing an attack was coming, it was easy to read the trajectory.
Queen’s attacks were straightforward, after all.
But reading the trajectory didn’t exactly solve the problem.
I ended up half-buried on the wooden floor in the same posture I blocked the attack.
Crack-!!!
The ground was too flimsy to withstand Queen’s strength.
“Tsk─.”
I stealthily hid and attached myself to the ceiling.
A brief respite to catch my breath.
Queen growled around like a dinosaur that missed its prey.
“Tsk, hiding again. All you do is run and hide cowardly. You might have used your tricks to kill the Demon King, but that mindset of yours will end up killing you!”
* * *
“……”
I think a head-on fight with Queen was a no-win scenario.
To beat her, I needed to make the most of my own advantages.
To defeat Queen─
Did Cecily come back from the past to defeat Queen at this ‘Last Cherry Blossom’ before she grew stronger?
As I thought this, Queen shouted.
“Are you there!”
Whooosh-!
Her giant double-bladed ax struck the inn’s wall.
Of course, I wasn’t there.
“Tsk!”
Her instincts were as poor as ever.
But then there was a problem.
“If you won’t come out, I’ll smash this inn to pieces!”
Whooosh— Boom—! Boom—!
Queen’s giant ax swung wildly, demolishing the inn like an excavator.
The inn was being smashed to pieces.
“I’ll kill you just like this, and those suspicious girls, your daughters or whatever, will all die too Judas!”
“……”
It seemed I couldn’t just stay hidden.
No choice then.
Pop—
I gripped the dagger in reverse and leaped at Queen.
But that was the worst move.
Thud—
“Here you were.”
Queen grasped the nape of my neck in her hand.
To keep up with my speed, Queen’s agility must have increased since before!
Like being bound in a noose, my breath tightened and in an instant, my vision turned yellow like pickled radish, then red.
“Judas, your strength isn’t just this. Are you planning to die in vain like this? Maybe it’s better to die here than be consumed than Nocturne or whatever you’re dealing with.”
“Gurgle-.”
If I stay like this, I’m really going to die.
No choice then.
Bang—!
That’s when a loud gunshot was heard.
Along with the acrid scent of iron, Queen let go of me.
Seizing the moment, I created distance, but Queen grimaced, looking at her wrist pierced by the bullet.
“Judas, did you use a gun?”
“No. But this guy did.”
Beside me stood a shadow, guns and daggers in both hands.
The classic armament of a robber.
Queen laughed at that sight.
“Finally brought out your shadow. I’ve seen this shadow before. Now the fight will be enjoyable. But will one be enough? To stop me, Queen, you’d need at least an army!”
Instead of responding to Queen’s confident taunt, I charged at her with the shadow. A melee erupted in an instant.
I had the advantage in numbers.
But Queen laughed with ease.
“Those who break through the level 40 threshold receive blessings from the gods. In my case, it’s 《Omniscience》. The more enemies I face, the stronger I become.”
“I know that.”
“Judas, you have it too. A skill gained by breaking through level 40. Bring it out. The talent that turns you into the king of thieves. You don’t show it to the kids, do you?”
“Tsk, fighting comrades really isn’t my thing. You all know too much about me.”
I widened the gap again.
I wasn’t sure if I was doing the right thing, but to take down Queen, I’d have to exert my full strength after all.
“It’s your turn!”
With my shout, a bunch of shadows rose.
The shape of a giant wielding a hammer.
There were easily more than ten.
Each shadow had strength above the Silver Tier.
But Queen was still overflowing with composure.
“These guys, I’ve seen them before. Don’t tell me it’s the Hammer Squad from Mohamder? You think you can win against me with these? Half-strong ones are just sacrifices before my 《Omniscience》!”
Whoosh—
As Queen swung her axe, the shadow Hammer Squad was sliced down like falling leaves.
Was it futile to buy time?
No choice then.
“These guys are still not there yet.”
Swoosh— Swoosh—
Two shadows rose at my feet.
One was the shadow of a highway robber, and the other was the shadow of a mage.
Queen raised her eyebrows at the sight.
“New shadows? They look strong. They must be the ones you’ve recently killed.”
“Exactly─.”
Unable to answer, I just nodded.
It was because the shadow wielding a dagger had swung its blade toward my nape.
Slash—!
The shadow’s blade narrowly missed my head, sending chills down my spine.
“Tsk-.”
As expected, Jack’s shadow would not listen to me, it must be because it was stolen not too long ago.
Then, how about Mage Faust?
“……”
The mage’s shadow was busy looking at its own shape of a hand and moving its body around.
Though it had no expression, it was probably painting its face with a mixture of wonder and astonishment.
“Go!”
I shouted towards the shadows.
The ones that had been acting individually until now rushed toward Queen at my command.
Flash-. Queen’s tattoo emitted light.
“A strong opponent, but sadly, not my match!”
Whoosh— Whoosh—!
And with a single horizontal motion.
A great swing of the axe split the shadows’ torsos in half.
But that was good.
Queen now was full of openings.
“Bullet time.”
I maximized my agility of 20 and stopped time.
During that moment, I approached Queen and aimed my dagger at his nape.
Swoosh—
Accelerated time.
Queen spoke as though surprised.
“When exactly? Judas, you’ve gotten faster than before.”
“Yes.”
“But you’ve become duller than before. The you of the past would have killed me without hesitation. You wouldn’t have done something like aiming a dagger at my throat.”
“……”
“It’s not some soft camaraderie. You are just afraid. Are you afraid of becoming level 50 if you kill me? That’s what scares you, right?”
Queen was right.
Queen was strong.
Killing her would definitively make me level 50.
At that, Queen chuckled-.
“Didn’t you say it when you brought down the Demon King? Power must be suppressed by greater power, right? Now you’re afraid of becoming level 50 and being consumed by Nocturne? You coward.”
“What are you saying I should do?”
“Don’t avoid the fight. Rather, run towards the center of it! Sometimes facing it directly is the only way.”
Swish—
Queen pushed away my dagger with her hand.
Pat— Pat—. Then she brushed off the dust on her body.
Watching her relaxed demeanor, I was momentarily lost in thought.
I felt like I understood why Cecily had sent me here.
To hear what she had to say.
To hear the words─ don’t run away.
“Good, Judas, let’s go to the second floor.”
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