Clyde's phone rang as they reached Chika's room. Ruri knocked on the door while he answered.
"What's up, Toru?"
"I found nothing on the news, but if you look outside, you'll notice something interesting. And we're in a bit of trouble. I'm mass-texting the others right now."
Chika opened the door, smiling to see Clyde but frowned at the surrounding women. She had a brush in her hand.
"Okay, screw this, I can't do this patient waiting thing anymore," she said.
"What are you talking about?" Natalia asked.
"Nothing," Chika said. "What's the occasion?"
"You're going to the cult headquarters with us," Yuki said.
Clyde walked to the hallway window to confirm Toru's words when his mouth dropped.
"Ladies," he said. "Not you, squirt." He patted the loli's head.
"Hey!" Natalia snapped. "I'm a wom—holy shimmies."
The others also seemed to wilt at the sight. Toru's text buzzed, revealing a picture that had even more of them from another side of the building.
There were hundreds of minotaur monster girls, surrounding the hotel, some armed, some not.
"Nya, I don't like this," Neko said, running down the hall. She almost made the anime dive into Clyde, but a last-minute block from Chika tumbled away her chances.
Chika trembled and Clyde knew it was rage. What brought this on?
"First you lot—and now more interferences," she said. "Like, can't a girl catch a break?" The group hurried to the lobby to meet with others. And they all had grim or determined expressions.
Clyde nodded to himself. If the minotaurs believed they'd be waltzing into this hotel easily to do something foolish like take back everything, they had another thing coming. He opened the front door, eyes on the approaching army.
"Well, let's see how this goes."
[You activated Summon Mist.]
[Summon Mist: Type: water. Class: uncommon. summon a thick mist that can cover an area the size of a small town. You and your allies will be able to see 40% better than any enemies. Warning, this is useless against enemies that do not rely on vision.]
The sky darkened, winds rising. A thick mist spawned in the area, nearly instantaneously. He realized something then. A cow on earth could smell something six smiles away, according to the books. Did that apply to the minotaur?
"I can't see," one of them cried. "I knew this was a bad idea. What if the demon lord betrayed us?"
"Do you think someone like that will betray anyone?" another minotaur girl said, voice asserted in a way that made her seem like the leader.
Clyde blinked. Alice, standing beside him did too.
"You… can do that?" Alice said to Clyde as Kitome walked up, transformed.
"I may have a lot of skills that I don't use," he said. Kitome shook him.
"Well get to using them, idiot!" she barked.
"Alright, sheesh woman," Clyde said. "Just let me access the window and see what we got."
That's when they all became aware of the hotel staff watching, mouths agape. One of the women fainted.
"Team Stone," another woman said softly
Clyde waved.
"My bad, it slipped Tear's mind to tell you that. We didn't think it was important, since, you know, we're mostly known in our home town. Don't mind us, we won't bother you."
The manager nodded, simply accepting that. Oh well, nothing could be done now without the phenomena. What deity removed it and why? Questions for later, Clyde thought as he accessed his skill menu.
[Tier 2 skill: Blizzard: Type: ice. Class: very rare. Unleash a portable blizzard on your foes. Does Heavy Ice damage. ]
"I used this maybe once," Clyde said, aiming a hand outside. "Tear and Ming, continue to watch the fairy boy. We need to break that contract so he can eat without trying to kill us in defense of the minotaurs."
"I can't believe minotaurs are real, but after what we saw on the news," a staff woman said to the manager.
"Everyone else, go find a place on the rooftop and use big spells to take them out. With that army, I'm pretty sure they weren't going to show us mercy, especially the women. Go!"
As his party took off with their orders, he released the blizzard. Alice and Kitome still remained at his side. They joined in, unleashing multi-targeting attacks. Both were whirlwinds of beauty and destruction. Kitome wasn't the same battle-incompetent girl from before and Alice…well, Alice was just Alice.
[Kitome activated Tier 2 skill: Flurry of Love.]
"Is that a cosplayer?" one of the hotel staff said. Kitome nearly fell.
"I'm not a cosplayer!" she snapped.
She released hundreds of heart bombs into the sea of minotaurs. Since the monsters were weak against ice, the young man was sure his blizzard wiped a ton of them out. He could see through the mist, but barely. Forty percent better? The enemies were probably blind. The sound of his party's attacks rumbled above them like distant thunder.
[Alice activated Special tier skill: Lightning storm annihilation.]
"Hold your fire," Clyde said to Alice and Kitome, then texted the same orders to the rest of his party. He wanted to check out the damage. He willed for the mist to part. It vanished instead.
His eyes widened at the giant translucent-green barrier-sphere that surrounded the entire enemy army. "You're shitting me."
"It's pretty easy to forget that they can wield magic," Alice said. "They typically rely on brute strength."
"You underestimate us," the leader's voice boomed. "And now you're going to pay for it. Ready up, aim for their leader."
[The minotaur army has activated a Group skill- Scarlett Desiccation.]
Clyde shook his head.
"We're supposed to be halfway through the cult headquarters right now."
Alice laughed.
"No reason for us to hold back. Use that star storm skill."
"Shouldn't we focus on defending against whatever's coming," Clyde said, the spirit shield skill hanging just on the top of his fingers.
"Leave that to me," she said. "Do you really think I plan to bite the dust from a bunch of minotaurs?"
A giant light began to form from the center of the minotaur army. Alice stepped forward.
"They need time to charge that," she said. "Hurry. Kitome, it's time I used this thing you made for me." She pulled from her purse something that resembled a blue potion and tossed it into the air. It burst, releasing a cloud of sky-blue smoke-like substance into the air.
[Clyde activated Tier 1 skill: Star storm.]
[Alice used an item: Element Bomb! Your skill's element has changed to ice.]
[Talent, Main character stuff: Lady Luck's kiss.]
[Item activated: Necklace of Her Devotion. You have entered enlightenment mode 1. All stats boosted by 100%]
The necklace glowed, pouring aura into and around Clyde. He…felt Kitome's heart—as cheesy as that sounded, the young man couldn't describe it any other way.
[The devastation element has been added into your Star storm.]
And it did devastate. Clyde willed the spell to focus on the minotaurs, not the fucking buildings. He didn't want Team Stone to get a bad reputation already. Well, he wasn't feeling the rep in the first place—all it would take is one whisper and the Viper would be able to surprise him.
He found it a little strange that he had not encountered any word or hint of a Viper. Shouldn't he or it be trying to take over the world or something? Well, the edge lord claimed he was doing that, but chuunis didn't count.
He dropped too many thoughts and internal questions that needed answers. Ah well. One step at time.
When the magic cleared, unconscious minotaur bodies littered the place. Holy shit that spell was strong, he thought.
[The minotaur army has lost the will to fight. All HP: at 1% All were inflicted with feebleness.]
"How are they not dead?" Clyde said. One of the minotaur women was on her knees, trembling. No, crying.
"Please," she said, voice quivering. "Mercy. Don't kill us."
Clyde wished he could duplicate his evil collar for this moment. He sighed at the invasive thought.
"I've got questions for you," Clyde said, stepping forward. He motioned for his team to be on guard.
"Sure," the defeated minotaur said. "Anything you wish. You can even have your way with me."
Abruptly, someone stepped out of nothingness. She was a busty woman with long blonde hair and a warm expression on her face. Something about her felt…really off.
The only thing that killed the mysterious vibe she gave was the Loli Saga shirt she wore.
"Excuse me," she said. "I'll be taking ahold of them."
"What—"
She knelt by the monster girl, placing a hand on her shoulder. Along with the entire army, she vanished in a display of sparkles.
"Who the fuck was that?" Clyde said in an exasperated voice. He shook his head. "She basically stole our win."
"Clyde," Alice said. "That was Noona Necro."
"Who?" Clyde said.
"She was the heir of a silent demon lord house," Alice said. "If she's here…she's the demon lord."
"Who just so happens to be on the minotaurs' side," Kitome said. "Fucking hell."
Clyde grabbed the magical girl's hands and pulled her close.
"You are a crafting genius and don't know it," Clyde said. She gave him a skeptical look, followed by a blank stare. "Kitome. Listen. You—"
"He's right," Alice interrupted. "Necro stole YOUR victory."
Kitome frowned, but her breathing seemed…elated as the young man held her hands.
"I need you," Clyde said. "Y—" Kitome fainted. He caught her on time, stare blank. "What the hell? Never mind, I'll take her to her room. Tell the others they can come back now."
Clyde's phone rang as they reached Chika's room. Ruri knocked on the door while he answered.
"What's up, Toru?"
"I found nothing on the news, but if you look outside, you'll notice something interesting. And we're in a bit of trouble. I'm mass-texting the others right now."
Chika opened the door, smiling to see Clyde but frowned at the surrounding women. She had a brush in her hand.
"Okay, screw this, I can't do this patient waiting thing anymore," she said.
"What are you talking about?" Natalia asked.
"Nothing," Chika said. "What's the occasion?"
"You're going to the cult headquarters with us," Yuki said.
Clyde walked to the hallway window to confirm Toru's words when his mouth dropped.
"Ladies," he said. "Not you, squirt." He patted the loli's head.
"Hey!" Natalia snapped. "I'm a wom—holy shimmies."
The others also seemed to wilt at the sight. Toru's text buzzed, revealing a picture that had even more of them from another side of the building.
There were hundreds of minotaur monster girls, surrounding the hotel, some armed, some not.
"Nya, I don't like this," Neko said, running down the hall. She almost made the anime dive into Clyde, but a last-minute block from Chika tumbled away her chances.
Chika trembled and Clyde knew it was rage. What brought this on?
"First you lot—and now more interferences," she said. "Like, can't a girl catch a break?" The group hurried to the lobby to meet with others. And they all had grim or determined expressions.
Clyde nodded to himself. If the minotaurs believed they'd be waltzing into this hotel easily to do something foolish like take back everything, they had another thing coming. He opened the front door, eyes on the approaching army.
"Well, let's see how this goes."
[You activated Summon Mist.]
[Summon Mist: Type: water. Class: uncommon. summon a thick mist that can cover an area the size of a small town. You and your allies will be able to see 40% better than any enemies. Warning, this is useless against enemies that do not rely on vision.]
The sky darkened, winds rising. A thick mist spawned in the area, nearly instantaneously. He realized something then. A cow on earth could smell something six smiles away, according to the books. Did that apply to the minotaur?
"I can't see," one of them cried. "I knew this was a bad idea. What if the demon lord betrayed us?"
"Do you think someone like that will betray anyone?" another minotaur girl said, voice asserted in a way that made her seem like the leader.
Clyde blinked. Alice, standing beside him did too.
"You… can do that?" Alice said to Clyde as Kitome walked up, transformed.
"I may have a lot of skills that I don't use," he said. Kitome shook him.
"Well get to using them, idiot!" she barked.
"Alright, sheesh woman," Clyde said. "Just let me access the window and see what we got."
That's when they all became aware of the hotel staff watching, mouths agape. One of the women fainted.
"Team Stone," another woman said softly
Clyde waved.
"My bad, it slipped Tear's mind to tell you that. We didn't think it was important, since, you know, we're mostly known in our home town. Don't mind us, we won't bother you."
The manager nodded, simply accepting that. Oh well, nothing could be done now without the phenomena. What deity removed it and why? Questions for later, Clyde thought as he accessed his skill menu.
[Tier 2 skill: Blizzard: Type: ice. Class: very rare. Unleash a portable blizzard on your foes. Does Heavy Ice damage. ]
"I used this maybe once," Clyde said, aiming a hand outside. "Tear and Ming, continue to watch the fairy boy. We need to break that contract so he can eat without trying to kill us in defense of the minotaurs."
"I can't believe minotaurs are real, but after what we saw on the news," a staff woman said to the manager.
"Everyone else, go find a place on the rooftop and use big spells to take them out. With that army, I'm pretty sure they weren't going to show us mercy, especially the women. Go!"
As his party took off with their orders, he released the blizzard. Alice and Kitome still remained at his side. They joined in, unleashing multi-targeting attacks. Both were whirlwinds of beauty and destruction. Kitome wasn't the same battle-incompetent girl from before and Alice…well, Alice was just Alice.
[Kitome activated Tier 2 skill: Flurry of Love.]
"Is that a cosplayer?" one of the hotel staff said. Kitome nearly fell.
"I'm not a cosplayer!" she snapped.
She released hundreds of heart bombs into the sea of minotaurs. Since the monsters were weak against ice, the young man was sure his blizzard wiped a ton of them out. He could see through the mist, but barely. Forty percent better? The enemies were probably blind. The sound of his party's attacks rumbled above them like distant thunder.
[Alice activated Special tier skill: Lightning storm annihilation.]
"Hold your fire," Clyde said to Alice and Kitome, then texted the same orders to the rest of his party. He wanted to check out the damage. He willed for the mist to part. It vanished instead.
His eyes widened at the giant translucent-green barrier-sphere that surrounded the entire enemy army. "You're shitting me."
"It's pretty easy to forget that they can wield magic," Alice said. "They typically rely on brute strength."
"You underestimate us," the leader's voice boomed. "And now you're going to pay for it. Ready up, aim for their leader."
[The minotaur army has activated a Group skill- Scarlett Desiccation.]
Clyde shook his head.
"We're supposed to be halfway through the cult headquarters right now."
Alice laughed.
"No reason for us to hold back. Use that star storm skill."
"Shouldn't we focus on defending against whatever's coming," Clyde said, the spirit shield skill hanging just on the top of his fingers.
"Leave that to me," she said. "Do you really think I plan to bite the dust from a bunch of minotaurs?"
A giant light began to form from the center of the minotaur army. Alice stepped forward.
"They need time to charge that," she said. "Hurry. Kitome, it's time I used this thing you made for me." She pulled from her purse something that resembled a blue potion and tossed it into the air. It burst, releasing a cloud of sky-blue smoke-like substance into the air.
[Clyde activated Tier 1 skill: Star storm.]
[Alice used an item: Element Bomb! Your skill's element has changed to ice.]
[Talent, Main character stuff: Lady Luck's kiss.]
[Item activated: Necklace of Her Devotion. You have entered enlightenment mode 1. All stats boosted by 100%]
The necklace glowed, pouring aura into and around Clyde. He…felt Kitome's heart—as cheesy as that sounded, the young man couldn't describe it any other way.
[The devastation element has been added into your Star storm.]
And it did devastate. Clyde willed the spell to focus on the minotaurs, not the fucking buildings. He didn't want Team Stone to get a bad reputation already. Well, he wasn't feeling the rep in the first place—all it would take is one whisper and the Viper would be able to surprise him.
He found it a little strange that he had not encountered any word or hint of a Viper. Shouldn't he or it be trying to take over the world or something? Well, the edge lord claimed he was doing that, but chuunis didn't count.
He dropped too many thoughts and internal questions that needed answers. Ah well. One step at time.
When the magic cleared, unconscious minotaur bodies littered the place. Holy shit that spell was strong, he thought.
[The minotaur army has lost the will to fight. All HP: at 1% All were inflicted with feebleness.]
"How are they not dead?" Clyde said. One of the minotaur women was on her knees, trembling. No, crying.
"Please," she said, voice quivering. "Mercy. Don't kill us."
Clyde wished he could duplicate his evil collar for this moment. He sighed at the invasive thought.
"I've got questions for you," Clyde said, stepping forward. He motioned for his team to be on guard.
"Sure," the defeated minotaur said. "Anything you wish. You can even have your way with me."
Abruptly, someone stepped out of nothingness. She was a busty woman with long blonde hair and a warm expression on her face. Something about her felt…really off.
The only thing that killed the mysterious vibe she gave was the Loli Saga shirt she wore.
"Excuse me," she said. "I'll be taking ahold of them."
"What—"
She knelt by the monster girl, placing a hand on her shoulder. Along with the entire army, she vanished in a display of sparkles.
"Who the fuck was that?" Clyde said in an exasperated voice. He shook his head. "She basically stole our win."
"Clyde," Alice said. "That was Noona Necro."
"Who?" Clyde said.
"She was the heir of a silent demon lord house," Alice said. "If she's here…she's the demon lord."
"Who just so happens to be on the minotaurs' side," Kitome said. "Fucking hell."
Clyde grabbed the magical girl's hands and pulled her close.
"You are a crafting genius and don't know it," Clyde said. She gave him a skeptical look, followed by a blank stare. "Kitome. Listen. You—"
"He's right," Alice interrupted. "Necro stole YOUR victory."
Kitome frowned, but her breathing seemed…elated as the young man held her hands.
"I need you," Clyde said. "Y—" Kitome fainted. He caught her on time, stare blank. "What the hell? Never mind, I'll take her to her room. Tell the others they can come back now."
