And the second...

...... hmm?


　When I woke up, my head was wrapped in something warm.

　I forcefully pried open my eyes, which were still defying me to meditate, and there was Nova's face, facing upside down.

　I see, I understand. Apparently, Nova has been kneeling on me.


"Nova, are you okay?

'That's my line!　Second, is there anything that hurts!　I gave you a potion, but how's your HP?

I'll be fine.


　True, my whole body hurts, but it's bearable, and my HP hasn't lost much.

　...... What, second?　Oh, that's right, the fall damage caused the change to come undone.


"I'm going to be exposed.

I figured it out long ago. Only a second person would use a line in a real fight.


　When I digressed, Nova replied with a small smile.

　Oh, so that's where you were convinced. That's sharp.


　That ......?　Speaking of which, where's the red bean paste?

...... Yeah.

　I get it.

　My experience is increasing right now.

　Somewhere in this hole, the two of us who are still unconscious (stunned) are being hunted by a demon to keep us from being attacked.


What the hell happened?　Where do I ask from: ...... No, I shouldn't ask?

　Nova is confused to see.

　The last thing she remembers is probably around the time she ate my [Demon Magic] after making a hole in the desert with the [Dragon Horse Body Art].

　Well, even so, it was a brilliant hole-breaking. It's a hole made in the same way as Silvia's ambush strategy of incense car rockets during the winter season. I didn't expect to find such a big hollow underneath.


Anyway, all I know is that Second helped me out. Thank you ......!　You put me ahead of revealing your identity and putting yourself in danger~!　I'm so happy~!

'Whoa!　You're welcome, you're welcome. ......!


　The impressed Nova hugged me tightly and gave me a strange voice. It's very hard to breathe. I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.


The second's skill is still indescribable. I didn't think you couldn't touch a single finger.

'No, it's not the same number of moves as a stone. You're going to learn a lot of skills from now on, and you can at least touch your fingers.

'Kuh-ha-ha!　I see, it's going to take a lot more.

But I was honestly impressed with that blindfold. You've got good taste, man.

'Really?　Ahhhh, I'm so happy for you, Second~!

Mug!


　When I told her honestly, Nova laughed like a flower and hugged me. Her ridiculously large breasts hit me again.

　Then she nuzzles her face into my head and takes a few deep breaths of soo-hah, and then starts to speak in a fluffy way.


''Second~. By the way, what was Second thinking when he was doing that~?

Did he do that?

"You've been disguised as an Imperial general~

Oh, that.


　It was supposed to be the most important thing to talk about, but I had forgotten all about it. Maybe it's just like us when they talk about the match before that.


'I didn't turn into the General Seven that was originally there, I rose to the occasion under the name of Seven and became the General's deputy.

"...... uh, sorry, that didn't make sense.


　Nova, who had been delirious, instantly came to her senses and said with a dot in her eye.

'It hasn't even been half a month since I left Second's house, you know?　If you've been sneaking into the Empire for a long time?

'No, after I saw Nova off, I went with Gloria to visit the Alpha's house, uncovered the Promenade family's misdeeds, conquered the Grease dungeon, became a Knight of the Light's Kingsguard, took a liking to Miss Cigarone, became a Knight-in-Chief of the Kingsguard, and now here we are.

........................


　Nova is silent with her hand on her brow.


'...... All right. It's about Second, I won't lie to you. I believe you. So what's the point?

"Vacation.

........................

　Silence again.


'...... kuh, kuh-uh, kuh-uh, kuh-uh-uh!　Well, I'm sure you do!　Those titles mean nothing to the rare eighth crown!　This is painful!　Kuhahahahaha!


　Nova, it's silly.

　Technically, it's "I'm going to destroy the empire in the mood for a vacation," but I didn't tell you because it's too loud.


'Second, will you reveal yourself eventually?　If that's the case, then I, as the general of the Army of the Orangi Kingdom, must be prepared to do the same. Prepare to reveal that the Seven of the Empire was that Second.

'Oh, I don't know. I don't know. If I reveal it, you'll be along for the ride.

"Of course. Kuhaha!　There's never been a more interesting story to tell.


　Nova can't seem to stop laughing.

　Indeed, it could be a terribly interesting situation for the Orangi Kingdom. The heavy duty position of deputy general of the Marvel Empire, a virtual enemy country, has a spy in it. And this spy is on vacation. This is just a joke. Which idiot is that?


About this game, by the way...

Yeah, second. I'm a woman who keeps her word firmly. I'll accept a compromise on the Imperial side.

No, that's the thing, though.

　It occurred to me. This could be a chance.


Couldn't we just call it a draw?


!

　When I suggested that, Nova had a good response.


'It would help me if you did, but ...... is that okay?'

There's no way this is going to happen.

I owe you a second ......

　He took a bow. That's what soldiers do.


But then what would you do with ......?

　What do you mean?

　Oh, you mean what to do about the tussle over the Sizin small country.


"On the other hand, what do you think Nova should do?

'Me. I'd like to make an agreement that won't hurt both sides equally, now that we have a draw.

An agreement?

''Mm. If we talk about our true intentions, ...... the Orangi Kingdom wants the Sizun Small Kingdom. The small kingdom is in a great position to prevent the Malbel Empire from invading the former Camel Divine Kingdom while also being able to stare down the Malbel Empire while watching them invade the former Camel Divine Kingdom.

So is the Empire.

'Yes. We want each other. Hence, the answer is four.

'Either the empire gets it, or the kingdom gets it, or both sides get it, or both sides give it away.'


　I said, and Nova nodded quietly.

　And an agreement where both sides don't lose equally, what it means.


'Both sides will let go. It makes the least amount of waves.

　Yes.

'But if you do that, ...... Second, no, Seven individuals will lose money. That bothers me.

　For the Malbel Empire, it was a form of evicting the Orangi Kingdom instead of losing the originally semi-occupied Cizun Small Country. Well, it's a fair point, but depending on how you look at it, you could say that I'm the reason why we lost the small country of Sizun. Call it a loss, is it a loss?

'Well, that's not going to get you fired, is it?　I don't care. It's like, let it happen.

'Kuh-haha!　As expected, a man who became a Knight Commander of the Kingsguard to enjoy his vacation has a different luxury.

Not so much.

'Only, it doesn't make me feel better!　A woman will be ruined if she can't support the career of the man she loves.


　Ah, strong. The characters are as strong as ever. Why is it that I'm surrounded by people who are strong in so many ways?


All right, Second. Let's get this sorted out first. The Orangi Kingdom Army and the Marvel Empire Army retreated from each other at the same time, and henceforth are forbidden to send their armies to the Sizun Small Country without discussion between the two sides. Let's assume that this is the proposed agreement that Seven and I were going to make when we drew up.

No objection.

Tell the Emperor that I am prepared to reconsider the invasion of the former Camel Divine State by the Orangi Kingdom, if it is up to the Marbel Empire.

Okay.

'We'll deal with the other details later. But this is not enough to convince me. I'd like to give Seven something to take home for helping me out. Mmmm: ......


　Nova crosses her arms and thinks about it.

　I don't really need anything, but I guess that's not going to happen in terms of Nova's position and feelings.

　But as soon as my identity was revealed, Nova readily accepted my claim. My compromise plan of "retreating at the same time", which was kicked out before the match for being untrustworthy, was eventually adopted in this draw plan.

　In other words, it's a small and big difference between an Imperial Seven that you can't trust and a Second First Test that you can trust.

　If there was even one such 'trustworthy heavyweight' in the country, perhaps the Empire could do better diplomacy.



"Lord, I'm back now.


　As the two of us were lost in thought, Anko came back with the 《Darkness Transfer》.

''Thank you, Anko, thank you for the help.''

No, for your own good.

　She hasn't even disturbed a single breath, but my experience has increased considerably. I wonder what the hell we've been hunting and how much we've been hunting while we've been passed out.


　...... or rather, where are we in the first place?


Anko, what kind of demon was there?

　I was curious, so I asked him so. If we can identify the demon, we can probably identify the location.


'It was a colourful monkey, sir.

"--?


　Monkey?

　No, it can't be.

　Because if that's the case, it means we're in a dungeon.


...... red, blue, green, brown, and a white monkey?

I haven't seen the white one. I've slaughtered dozens of the other four colors.

............


　Ah, it's fixed now. You have to admit it.


Second, what's going on?

We're in the Varlene dungeon.

What--?


　Nova exclaimed in surprise.


　A grade A dungeon, 'Valeen' - aka, the labyrinth cave, monkey cave, monkey hole, etc... I don't know much about it, but some guys in Mevion called it the Monky Hall Problem.

　Well, as it's called, it's a dungeon that is full of monkey demons. However, it is never to be underestimated. The troublesome thing is that with the monkeys' quickness and coordination, the high level of humble firepower and the fact that each one of them individually handles [magic], the abundance of their attributes, etc., it's a dungeon that's not quite straightforward.

　And above all, it's a long one. You have to go through endless maze-like caverns without getting lost, and you have to keep dealing with the strong and annoying monkeys. Once you've taken the wrong path, there's no way you're going to end up in a dead end after a few hours. It's a really bad character structure. I haven't met a single player who says they like Verlene, probably because of that.


　...... Well, I see. It's not impossible, if you think about it calmly. Even if the Varlene dungeon, called the Labyrinth Cave, leads to such a remote desert area.

　If you look closely, you can see a familiar pattern painted on the walls. The walls are so tattered that it's hard to see, but that is definitely the Varlene Dungeon.


'Verlene?　The entrance is in the Kamel Godland!　This is supposed to be a cisn small country: ......!

Ten kilometers or so?　It must lead from there to here, underground.

'It was such a long dungeon!

I'm more surprised that the dungeon has a hole in it.


　Is it possible for the system to do that?　This means you've got two entrances to the dungeon.

Oh, no, there's plenty of room.

　If a dungeon had more than two entrances, it already existed. Maybe there was no problem with the new entrance point.

　However, if you could break down the walls to get into the dungeon, wouldn't ...... this be all you wanted to do?　It's limited to dungeons underneath soft ground, but if you dig a hole right above where the boss is, you can create a direct entrance to the boss.

　Maybe it's ...... that management, maybe this is also a specification.

　That's a dream come true. If you can find a place that looks like a good fit, you could break down the walls of the dungeon. But only a few people have such a high STR, though.


...... oh.

　While observing the area, we found something quite nice.

　A camping space, or "safe ground". These are only located on the "right route", which means that this is the middle of the road to the boss. That means we are on our way to the boss.


Hey, Nova. Will this be enough for you to take home with you?

...... what are you talking about?


　Just in time.


Help me capture it.

　Let's go through the Varlene Dungeon.


　Even the "thunder monkey pelts" that the boss drops can be a decent material, so it's enough for a souvenir.

"Wait. A grade A, for two people or ......?

We'll use Anko and Miroku and Angolmore. You'll have a makeover too. There's no harm in going.

What about the soldiers?　We're still staring at each other in the desert.

I think it won't move because I told you not to.

It's going to take hours to attack, isn't it?

They seem to think that the first one to move in is the loser, so I'm sure it'll be okay.

"...... can't deny it.

What, Nova? You scared?

'No way!　It's just that it came so suddenly.


　Nova seemed motivated, too, and as she exhaled deeply to change her mind, she smiled wryly and said


'It's going to be a fun first date.'

　I laughed back, "Must be,



　　* * * *



Prepare for the Dragon King. An earth monkey will jump out of the right corner there in ten seconds, so shoot him when I give the signal.
Yes, sir.
Now.
Huh!

　At the same time as the signal for the second, Nova released a shockwave with the 《Long King Body Technique》 into the void.

　Even Nova herself was puzzled at first. Why would he release a skill with such a large gap to an empty place? However, after repeating it a few times, he came to think that it was like that.


''--!

　As if he had come to hit it himself, an earth monkey jumped out of the right corner.

　And as soon as it appeared, it fell prey to the shockwave and was buried in an instant.

　With a thud, the huge body of the earth monkey collapsed and the cave shook slightly.

　The smallest monkey demon that appeared was the Fire Monkey, which was less than a meter in length, followed by the Wind Monkey, which was as big as a human child, the Water Monkey, which was as big as an adult, and the huge Earth Monkey, which was more than three meters in length, in that order.


'...... It's tremendous no matter how many times you see it,'
'Earth monkeys?　It's huge. But the thunder monkeys are even bigger.
'No, no. I thought the second's skill, deftness, consistency, and everything else was many times different than the previous standard.
Hmmm, I'm used to this.
'I'm used to ...... so, well, I guess I am.'

　While Nova was blowing up the earth monkeys, Second and the others had killed a number of other monkeys.

　Specifically, in order to prevent the monkeys from facing the Second, who was in the state of "Spirit Possession" and was accumulating the "Tame Attack" of the [Demon Magic] "Thunder Attribute, 4-No Type", Miroku went out to the front line to gather the monkeys' targets while using the "Silver General Battoujutsu" to get away from them, and then Anko's long-range attack with the "Ryouma Jutsu" added to it, and the monkeys that couldn't be killed were The second "tame-attack" exploded just as the two of them gathered to counterattack, killing every one of them.

The key is how to group the enemy and how to kill the enemy you have grouped.
Put it all together?
'Yeah. If you get a leak, you may allow them to fight back. It's normal to take down an enemy without letting them do anything, but it takes a bit of technique to put them all together without letting them do anything ...... I guess it's just a matter of getting used to it.
Ha ha ha. You get used to it after all.

　While muttering that, Nova inwardly felt that was not all there was to it.


　This is not a story that can be put away with a single word of familiarity. How long did it take to experience and acquire knowledge over and over again, and how long did it take for it to become wisdom?

　Perhaps the Second has done all of those things all year long. He must have been so absorbed in his work that he neglected his life. He never gave a single thought to getting ahead in the world and devoted all of his time to eating, sleeping, and excreting, except for the bare necessities of life, such as making money while doing so.

　That was the reason for this gap between them, Nova thought.


'Great. Oh, that's awesome. ...... That's all I can say, and I'm sorry I can't say it.

　She muttered and stared at Second's back.

　Then she quietly made up her mind. In order to reach even greater heights--there would be no better way to reach even greater heights than to resign as an army general, she said.


'Yeah, yeah, that's my boss, Thunder Monkey, but let me do it alone. Maybe that way the target won't be scattered and it'll be quicker.
...... no doubt. I've kept the troops waiting, too.


　In addition, to get next to him, ...... apparently the humans would have to quit too, she laughed to herself and ran after Second's back as he went ahead.





　Two hours later, the second group reached the boss.

　The boss's thunder monkey was a giant white-haired monkey that could be as long as five meters.

　Even so, it moved fast, attacked frequently, and used lightning magic. However, it's not a ranked skill such as the Ichino type that the Second handles, but a single attack magic skill unique to demons.

''Then watch it here.''
Second, I want you to be careful.
"Hm.

　Despite Nova's concerns, Second walked quickly and approached the Thunder Monkey.

　Immediately afterwards, the lightning monkeys attacked Second with a vigorous rush.

''Yo.''

　Second defended with the Mithril Buckler's 《Silver General Shield Art》 and immediately began to prepare the 《Flying Car Shield Art》, and when the Thunder Monkey started to prepare his magic, he rushed forward, blowing it away as hard as he could and knocking it back.

　While he switched to his bow and put in three rounds of 《Infantry Archery》, Thunder Monkey regained his stance and rushed to the second again.


''Brilliant.''

　Nova couldn't help but voice her opinion.

　The Second was completely lean and stood up perfectly ...... and it looked like that to Nova.


　However, to tell the truth, Second - he had made a mistake in his first move.

　He had failed to parry with the 《Silver General Shield Technique》 and had become a mere reinforced defense.

　Parry can be done by matching the skill activation 0.287-0.250 seconds before the attack reaches. However, only in the case of the Silver General, instead of adding a counterattack effect on a successful parry, the grace time is reduced by 0.01 seconds until 0.277 to 0.250 seconds before the attack reaches 0.277 to 0.250 seconds. This is why the difficulty level is so high.

　Recovery after a mistake is also factored in, the second standing. Hence, it was hard to tell it was a mistake at first glance, but even so, the astute ones would have seen through it.

　This was the first time in years that he had fought a demon that he had only fought a few dozen times in the past. Hence, it was no wonder that he had forgotten the senses of the Silver General Pari against the Thunder Monkey. No, of course not.

　The Second is also a human being. Naturally, they can make mistakes.

　But, sadly, Nova, and many of us, have yet to understand that.



　For a few minutes thereafter.

　Second continued to make no mistakes, and continued to decide on the silver general parry.

　The lightning monkey's behavior pattern is that if he is parried with a melee attack, he has an 80% chance of getting at a distance and unleashing a lightning attributed magic technique. If he is defended against by a parry but not a parry, he selects the lightning attribute magic technique at 50%.

　Hence, apply a flying car rush from Parry and follow it up with a bow or something else during the knockback. This is the most stable way to defeat it.

　If you draw 20%, be resourceful, but eventually you can connect the proximity to the parry to prevent it.

　The lightning monkey strategy that had been lying in a corner of my memory of Second. The fact that you can move your body without much thought while remembering it, shows that Mövius Online has been deeply ingrained in your body.


'It's a rhythm game.

　The second muttered when he had just made his ninth silver general parry.

　In a sense, he was right. Parry is a skill that requires an element of rhythm game.

　For the rhythm gamers and fighting gamers who used to pursue it without allowing even a 0.016-second deviation, there is plenty of room for a Silver General Pari. There were many players who spoke so boldly about it, but in reality, it was different.

　In the case of Mevion, each monster has its own individuality in the speed and timing of its attacks. Even more so when dealing with humans. You have to learn this through experience, through your senses, through your body. That is the starting line.

　Even a world-renowned musical genius with an absolute sense of rhythm cannot definitely parry at first sight.

　However, if you are a world-class mevion player, experience will compensate for this. Hence, they may succeed even on the first try.

　In the second, he only missed his first shot, but succeeded completely in the next nine. The trick is to combine direct sight and rhythm. In addition, it is a tweak that is done by moving the shield back and forth slightly so that the enemy's attack arrives 0.250 seconds after the skill is activated.

　A world ranker in Mevion is someone at this level.



''Good!''

　A second, light voice, as if to say that the job was done.

　With the final blow, the thunder monkeys collapsed, their HP had run out.


''Fur and ...... oops!　Lucky, I have a tail too.

　The two items that were dropped were "Thunder Monkey's Fur" and "Thunder Monkey's Tail". It's a grade A material item.


　I'll give them to the emperor as a gift. In other words, I'm offering them to the Emperor.

　I'm not going to be the only one who has been in a position to do that.

　On top of that, the war was averted, and the agreement with the Orangi Kingdom over the small Cizon Kingdom moved in the direction of the compromise that the emperor had hoped for. And he was more than capable of acting as a general.


''Excellent work, Second!　I've been shown some very good stuff!　I'm glad I did!

　When Seven returns to the Empire, it will be a hell of a lot better. Convinced of this, Nova can't hide her joy at the prospect of her man becoming an even bigger man.

　And when Seven reveals his true identity, it will be truly tremendous. That's the kind of thing that would turn the whole international situation upside down.

　Nova was looking forward to that as well.


'Oh. Let's go home then.

　The second one, who had no idea what was going on, was just relaxing in a vacation mood.