Chapter 464

Day 105 – Evening, Gamerein Commonwealth, Royal Castle

It was merciless, cruel, atrocious, and vile. That was no battle, not a duel either, but a beating more brutal than a slaughter.

Even though I had gallantly stepped forward as a princess to accept the duel, it turned out to be a round robin event, despite my best efforts. The chieftains of Beastmen Country’s warrior clans each demanded a one-on-one duel, and each one was accepted, completely oblivious that this is a trap of beastmen’s customs.

Once a duel is set, no other challenge can be accepted until it is resolved. And so, from those first duels, the hundred and more remaining beastmen all issued their own challenges to Haruka-sama.

And worse still, it’s close combat anything goes style, where beastmen are said to be the most terrifying as there is no time to cast spells. The worst kind of duel, the beastmen are famed as the strongest of all. As he accepted without hesitation he was then asked whom he would choose to face, to which he replied that he would beat the crap out of all of them, and when asked who would be first, he said he’d beat them all at once… I’m deeply worried, but worrying only makes you look like an Idiot, ah, right, they were right behind me. Yes, the Girls’ maxim comes to min『If you worry, you’ll just end up feeling like a fool in the end』 And also the strength.

Each one is the strongest in his own fashion. The chieftain of the Wolf clan, famous for producing swordsmen renowned for their mastery even among other beastmen. The chieftain of the tiger clan, whose physique grants them such brutal strength and feral agility, that some are calling them savage beasts. The chieftain of the bear clan, said to be impossible for anyone to bring down due to their large bodies capable of delivering the mightiest of blows. The chieftain of the ape clan, cunning as humans but wielding beastly power. The chieftain of the leopard clan, the fastest assassins, known as unseen slayers killing without being detected. And though champions are assembling from across the clans, the ox clan seems absent.

And the one leading them, Vakuakku Gamerein, hero of the continent boasting absolute invincibility, and inheritor of the Beastmen royal line, the lion clan’s head.

And yet there was no aura of battle despite their readiness to clash steel, that gathering of pitiful beasts.

「Gahhh, y-you coward!」「Guhhh! Guuhh, foul, so dirty!」「Y-you devil, how underhanded, guhhhbb!」「Gshhhk, gghhh, get off me!」「Gaaahhh! Gyafun!」 ……

Screams and roars that only stirred pity, bellows shaking the air in vain. It was natural and inevitable. Honestly, why would you challenge Haruka-san to an anything-goes combat? Such recklessness against someone who would do anything, such foolishness against someone who would put anything to use? No matter how much they trusted their strength, no matter how invincible they thought themselves, there was absolutely no point to their fighting prowess… Of course these slow-witted beastmen would end up hunted like some common beasts.

They boasted of being the strongest race, capable of instinctively using their primal animal strength and senses in combination with human wisdom and techniques. They might be strong, but they are hardly more than a shabbier version of the Idiots. The very idiots who were bullied by Haruka-kun on the training grounds last night, yet they still were way more feral, more wild, quick to act on instinct alone, totally abandoning something as silly to them as human wisdom… Or perhaps they never had such a thing to begin with, but there was a beauty to their strength.

And yet even they were toyed with by Haruka-san… But these are relying on petty tricks, stealing glances in clumsy attempts to make a coordinated effort. Lacking polish and refinement as humans, but also possessing no beauty of feral savagery, just a bunch of trash, mere braggarts who happen to be a bit quick. And that wasn’t even the real problem.

Wisdom, knowledge, strategy, tactics, those all depend on the basics. But in what world there is a basic strategy for fighting a habitual Dungeon Slayer? Strategy guides exist for the basics, there can never be a manual for dealing with something inexplicable or incomprehensible.

Such a thing just can’t exist. And to challenge such an opponent in anything-goes duel… C-could this be it? Could this be what everyone taught me about, the fateful signpost of destiny, the 『Flag』?! The flag is flapping loudly, whipped about in the wind!

And so they are wailing miserably. Pathetically crawling and rolling about, their faces a filthy mess of tears, snot, and drool as they yelp and howl with empty bravado. Yes, this wasn’t a battle, it was animal abuse.

Thus, there was no battle. It was a very peaceful… trampling. Without even a starting signal, a hundred weapons swung down with a roar. Swing down and struck only the ground. What rose instead was a black cloak with black hair hanging over it, that silhouette handing in the air like wings of the dark bird said to herald death.

And then came hell. A deafening blast. The spraying of ultra-sour vinegar. A relentless barrage of flashes and explosions. And, as if that weren’t enough, clouds of the deadly toxic 『Super Itchy-Itchy Powder SP』 scattered everywhere, a living hell itself!

It had all begun with nothing more than a clap of the hands toward the swarming beastmen, but that clap erupted into an explosive sound, becoming a shockwave that shook the air and blasted the leaping beastmen back. A feint made with『Vibration』 magic! Then came hallucination-inducing flashes, with『Darkness』 layered over them, leaving the beastmen blinded. They lost sight of Haruka-san leaping through the air… so when they felt his presence and hastily looked up, what awaited them was a rain of ultra-sour vinegar. A pelting, drenching downpour of vinegar.

Clutching at their eyes, plugging their noses, they screamed in vain, calling it cowardly, foul, vile. They were shouting extremely obvious things, but the result of challenging someone who was constantly overcoming and surpassing the absolute lowest, most treacherous, and vilest to anything-goes duel was obvious. After all, he is THE worst, so of course no one is worse than him, of course he is devious. He is so crafty and wicked he could even kill the Dungeon Master at the very bottom of the abyss. Serves you right.

Knowing that terror ourselves, we immediately pinched our noses shut and pressed wet handkerchiefs to our mouths. Even so, the vinegar stung, burning our eyes, the terrifying 『Dog Monster(Kobold) Killer』. Beastmen, with their sense of smell said to be hundreds or even thousands of times stronger than humans, many possessing skills in scent-tracking… were now writhing, clutching their noses, slamming their heads against the floor. And on top of that! It looks soo itchy! Is that actual hell?!