Chapter 51: Ambiguity in the Car (3)

Chapter 51: Square 45: The Golden Knight Battle

The plan’s failure came so fast it cost me my running start. I hurried and pushed the door open. ...But the instant I stepped inside, something made my whole body freeze.

"Wait... hold on a second."

Elizabeth was fast. Really fast. And her physical abilities, along with everything else about her, were better assumed to be far above average across the board. She was someone who could go toe to toe with Nest, after all. ...This situation might genuinely be dangerous!!

"Charge!! ...Oh, already moved on. Thought you’d be strategizing here, guess I misjudged that!"

Saying that, Elizabeth dashed off elegantly. Where I’d entered was essentially the back entrance. A tiny shoe rack that couldn’t even fit ten pairs of shoes. With no one in sight, no one would normally think to linger somewhere like this. But Elizabeth had overlooked something in her search: the space behind the door itself.

"That was too closeeeeee..."

I choked back the urge to shout, letting my throat tremble silently instead. This was rougher than I’d expected. Could I actually win with equipment this pathetically weak? I already had Plan B ready to go, could put it into action immediately. But "plan" was a generous word, really just theory on paper. Whether it worked came down to luck and nerve.

"...But I have to win. No matter what."

I clenched my fist tight and stood up quietly. I pulled out the tablet where I’d recorded my own sneeze as a decoy. Set the timer for twenty minutes and tucked it into the shoe rack.

"...Just watch. I’ll make you regret this, absolutely."

Scattering a small amount of pepper around, I slipped away without a sound.

At the end of the first floor hallway, Elizabeth stood frozen in disbelief.

"...Wh-what is this!?"

What she was looking at was a wall-like mound of stones. And not ordinary stones, either. Every single one stacked here was an explosive crystal.

"...I expected something dropping from the ceiling, but leaving them out in the open on the floor like this? I have no idea what he’s thinking."

For now, Elizabeth put some distance between herself and the pile.

"If this actually went off, it would take the entire annex down with it..."

I doubt he’d actually go that far, but caution never hurts.

"First floor’s mostly checked. Second floor next, perhaps?"

Practically itching to actually fight, Elizabeth’s steps grew lighter without her noticing. Completely unaware of the weakest man’s private terror.

I was hiding out in the second floor men’s changing room. Left untouched for so long that the dusty air made my nose itch.

"Hm? Found it! Right here!"

Elizabeth’s voice sounded nearby. Probably standing in front of the women’s changing room next door. Because I’d deliberately left that door cracked open slightly. Naturally, she’d be suspicious. If she took time checking that room, it would buy me a chance to move to the third floor. Well, even if she came in here instead, I’d rigged the lockers, so I could slip out from behind the curtain I was currently hiding behind while she was distracted. Weighing every possibility, I held my breath and waited for a certain sound.

Elizabeth threw open the women’s changing room door forcefully and stepped inside.

"Alright! Time to fi—!!?"

In that instant, Elizabeth dropped low at her absolute maximum speed. In her hand, she now held an explosive crystal.

"Wedged into the door as a makeshift trap... honestly, that gave me quite the scare."

Since the explosive crystal detonated on impact, even hitting the floor would’ve been enough to set it off. He’d rigged it at knee height, like a chalkboard eraser prank. If it had gone off, it would have hit her for certain. But the trap had been foiled. A small smile crept onto Elizabeth’s lips.

"But going to this much trouble means he must be hiding somewhere in this room, surely!? Come on out, then! Ohhohohoho!"

Hearing the commotion from the women’s changing room, I quietly slipped out of the men’s changing room. In the end, Elizabeth spent several minutes searching that room for him in vain.

"H-he’s not here!? How is that possible?"

"Achoo..."

A small sound reached Elizabeth’s ears. A sneeze that sounded like it had tried to be held back and failed, carrying just a hint of panic. There was no way she’d miss that.

"First floor, then! You’d better brace yourself! Ohhohohoho!"

"Alright, headed to the first floor now."

Crouched beside the third floor stairwell, I wiped the sweat from my brow.

"Reception room’s next."

Moving as quietly as possible, but quickly. Elizabeth wasn’t stupid. This trick wouldn’t hold for long. I slipped into the reception room and planted a phone recording of a drawer bumping against a foot and a pained groan.

"That side’s next."

Praying I’d stay undetected a little longer, I moved down the hall. Paying extremely close attention at every corner. The scariest thing in this situation was running into her directly. That would mean an instant loss without even time to pull out any tools. To avoid that at all costs, I used a paring knife as a makeshift mirror, checking around corners without exposing my face.

"Clear here too."

Harder to see than an actual mirror, but with Elizabeth in gold, spotting her would be instant, no problem there. But just as I was almost at my target room, exactly what I’d been dreading happened.

"You’ve got some nerve!"

That voice, faintly heard from the first floor, coincided with the sound of someone charging up the stairs at incredible speed. Without question, she’d found the tablet! Steadying my trembling hands, I opened the door slowly. Making noise out of panic here would be the end. I slipped inside the door, then deliberately left it cracked open behind me.

"You’ve got some nerve!"

Elizabeth let out an irritated, thoroughly unladylike roar. In her hand, a tablet displaying "Time’s up." The result of searching all around the first floor back entrance, no wonder she was annoyed. More than that, though, her patience was wearing thin with an opponent who refused to fight her properly, no matter how long this dragged on.

"How long do you intend to keep running!? Do you really think stalling like this will create an opening against me? Surely, you haven’t lost your nerve entirely..."

Muttering to herself, she took the stairs five at a time. Reaching the third floor, a faint sound caught her attention, drawing her toward the far end of the hallway.

"...The door’s open."

Just in case, Elizabeth kicked off one shoe and threw it at the door. The shoe bounced across the carpet a few times, kicking up dust, then came to rest in front of the door without incident.

"No trap there."

Slipping her shoe back on, she checked the room through the gap in the door. Since the room had originally served as a guest room, the bed and shelves were still left in place.

"Nothing looks out of the ordinary, but..."

Considering everything so far, she couldn’t help but hesitate to step inside.

"A trap on the floor? Or the ceiling? Ah, or maybe something waiting right behind the door the moment I enter."

Falling deeper and deeper into paranoia. Me, the woman known as this kingdom’s strongest female knight! ...How embarrassing, really.

"I will not lose! Here I come!!"

Elizabeth drew her blade from the parasol. Stepping in forcefully with the draw, her foot showed no signs of trouble. Guarding the front with her rapier, she stepped several paces in and thrust hard toward the ceiling.

"Nothing there either? ...Then, this!"

Elizabeth thrust repeatedly toward the wardrobe, the curtains, the bed, anywhere someone might hide. Still, nothing.

"No trap, and no one here either. What in the world is..."

Elizabeth’s eyes were drawn to the beat up bed. Unable to shake an indescribable sense of wrongness, she kicked it violently. What lay there was something unexpected, ...or rather, nothing at all?

"...The sorts of things you come up with."

At the unexpected outcome, Elizabeth couldn’t help but laugh. There was a hole beneath the bed. Just barely large enough for one person to squeeze through. No time to dig that during the match, so it must have been prepared in advance.

"This crude, hammered-out damage. Looks like someone smashed through with a hammer. Truly, the things you come up with."

That resourcefulness and unconventional thinking was more than enough to reignite Elizabeth’s fighting spirit.

"Setting up an escape route like this, how delightful. Go on, show me everything you’ve got, with all your effort!"

"Never thought I’d manage to buy this much time."

I stood in the middle of the second floor hallway. Every tool I needed was already out of my bag. A last stand, waiting for the enemy in this clear, open space. No more hide and seek.

"...Phone should go off in two minutes. But by this point, guess I don’t need it anymore."

Glancing at my watch, I muttered to myself. Dropped a cup on my little toe just to record that sound, and now it was all for nothing... While thinking that, the noise from upstairs suddenly stopped. From a far room, Elizabeth’s voice rang out along with a loud crash.

"...She noticed. Guess she’ll be here soon."

Sweat beaded on my forehead. I ran through possible scenarios for how Elizabeth might approach in my head. Ideally, she’d charge straight down the hallway. If she did that, I had plenty of ways to handle it. But the worst case scenario would be if she threw her weapon. In that case, with my physical ability, there’d be no dodging it. Well, since Elizabeth already knew exactly how weak I was, I could only hope she’d avoid anything likely to be instantly lethal.

"...Here she comes!"

Elizabeth walked out from around the corner of the hallway, unhurried. Her stance, sword drawn and fully serious, carried a commanding presence that made me sweat even knowing this wasn’t a fight to the death. Having her as an ally had felt incredibly reassuring, but that same presence turned into overwhelming pressure now that she stood as my opponent.

"...Finally found you. I won’t be holding back. Are you prepared?"

"That’s my line. Get ready to learn there’s no such thing as fighting dirty in a real fight!"

Sparks of a fierce battle flew through the annex, right then and there!