Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells (Light Novel) Vol. 2

by Kaoru Sinozaki

  Ayaka’s group successfully found their meat dragon eyes and exited the ruins. They found their way to a square within the high walls of the ruins where they’d been instructed to gather after completing their mission. All the people they’d met in the ruins, plus Ikusaba Asagi’s group, were already milling around. Ayaka spotted Kobato among them.

  Our group was the last to return. I’m just thankful no one got hurt.

  2-C assembled themselves under the cloudless sky—all except their homeroom teacher Zakurogi Tamotsu, still-recovering Sakura Asami, and poor, dead Mimori Touka.

  “Huh? Who the heck is that?” said Oyamada, hopping down from the fence he was sitting on. Every head turned to see the woman walking toward them.

  “Cat ears…?”

  No, she has human ears, too…those aren’t real cat ears.

  The woman was slender and stalked elegantly across the square. Her hair was pale purple, and her gray eyes flashed like a cat’s. Her clothes were incredible.

  They must increase the flow of mana, too…I can’t even imagine wearing something that revealing, though.

  Two shortswords swung at her waist, but the most attention-grabbing part of her was her tail—it appeared to be made of swords, snaking and swaying behind her as she walked.

  It looks like a snake sword, blades attached together with links of chain…

  “Who the heck are you?” said Oyamada, standing before her. Kirihara looked on disinterestedly. Yasu was sitting, legs crossed, watching quietly from afar; the Takao sisters kept their distance, too.

  “Who’s that hot cosplay chick over there?” Asagi asked Kobato, who was standing next to her. “I thought the Goddess was coming to get us.”

  Kobato looked like she didn’t know how to respond. The cat-eared woman looked around at the class, her eyes landing briefly on each of them before returning to Oyamada.

  “I’m here as a representative of the Goddess Vicius. From now on, I will be handling you when the Goddess cannot come and meet you personally. Today, I’m here simply to introduce myself and guide you safely home,” she said. Though she seemed to feel she was above the whole situation, her voice sounded surprisingly young and childish.

  “Some lil’ stick girl is gonna handle us?” said Oyamada, making a face at her. “You stronger than us or what? Kirihara’s group ain’t following no weakling, got it?”

  “Would you like a demonstration?”

  “Oh? Come on, then,” said Oyamada.

  “Let’s see… If you can land a single hit on me without being knocked on your back, I’ll become your ever-obedient slave for eternity.”

  “There it is! Some conceited line about how you could never lose to me? Bring it on! I can’t wait to see the look on your face when I crush you!”

  Kirihara looked on, pity in his eyes. “Sounds like your bark is worse than your bite, Shougo,” he said.

  “Shut up! I love being a freakin’ underdog, coming from behind and makin’ girls like this beg me to stop!”

  “You must be Oyamada-san. A foul mouth indeed,” said the woman.

  “Huh~? What’s your name, freak?!”

  “I am one of the Disciples of Vicius, Nyantan Kikipat.”

  “Ha… Huh?! Ny-Nyanta— Pfft!”

  Oyamada burst out laughing.

  “Ha ha ha ha ha! Nyantan?! Seriously?! Just how bad do you wanna be a cat, girl?! Th-this ain’t fair, Nyantan, how’m I supposed to compete with these hilarious attacks?! Ha hah—!”

  The woman looked bored.

  “Pffh! Oh man, does this chick have no sense of humor or what~?! Haah, what an idiot! Ha ha ha ha ha! I can’t win! She’s a god! That’s so freakin’ funny! All right, soon as you’re my slave, we’re workin’ on our comedy routines, okay?”

  “Here I come.”

  Clink.

  Three blades shot from the tips of her fingers on each hand, swords like sharp claws. Oyamada drew his greatsword.

  “Oh?! Ready to go, are we? Let’s do this! I’ll try not to hurt you too bad, Nyantan. ♪”

  Several minutes later, Oyamada was on his back.

  “Uh…?! You… You’re like…super strong…! Augh…c’mon…!”

  His greatsword was far out of his reach now—he knelt on the ground, completely out of breath. Nyantan, on the other hand, hadn’t broken a sweat. She seemed completely unfazed, her cat tail swaying gently behind her. Kirihara was looking at her rather differently now too—mumbling something to himself. Ayaka took a deep breath.

  I can’t believe it. That speed…that technique! How long must she have trained?

  Nyantan’s movements had been smooth and practiced—perfect almost to a fault. She looked on with much the same expression she had before the fight—unsmiling, emotionless.

  “Perhaps this has served as our greeting. Let us return to the capital, and I’ll inform you of what the Goddess has planned for you,” she said dryly. “You’re moving on to the next stage.”

  Nyantan Kikipat

  BEFORE NYANTAN KIKIPAT was sent to the Ancient Dragon Ruins to greet the heroes, she was called to meet with the Goddess Vicius in her chambers.

  ***

  The Goddess sat in her room, tossed a piece of paper she had just finished reading onto her desk, and sighed.

  “The Demon King’s armies are on the move, it seems. We may be called to battle much sooner than I expected. I was right to call on you, Nyantan,” said the Goddess, smiling widely.

  “What would you have me do, Goddess?”

  “I will be so busy taking care of this Demon King business that I fear I will need to send you out on my behalf.”

  “How may I serve you?”

  “I wish for you to watch over the heroes for me. Be their guardian, so to speak.”

  “Why me?”

  “You’re strong, wise, and…well, frankly, Ulza is the country I care about the least in all the world. It was wasteful of me to send you there in the first place.”

  “Understood.”

  “Most important of all, you have proven yourself loyal.” The Goddess deftly slipped off her shoes, exposing her bare feet, and looked down at her guest. “Isn’t that right, Nyantan?”

  Nyantan knelt and crawled toward the Goddess’s chair.

  “I wish you to demonstrate your loyalty to me, as you always do.”

  Lick.

  Nyantan’s tongue traced the tips of the Goddess’s toes.

  Lick…lick…

  “Ooh, thank you ever so much! ♪ Any doubt I had about sending you has been completely washed away. ♪”

  Nyantan continued lapping at the Goddess’s feet.

  “Fret not, I will take very good care of your precious little sister. She’s completely safe, I guarantee it. After all, if not even her capable big sister can locate her, she must be entirely hidden away from dangerous, prying eyes!”

  Nyantan paused.

  “Excuse me, but whatever is the matter? Your tongue has stopped moving. Are you quite well? I’m beginning to doubt your loyalty.”

  Lick, lick…

  “Wonderful, that’s right. ♪ Mmm, if only those heroes were as faithful as you, Nyantan… Sadly, I simply cannot reach them.”

  There was a knock at the door.

  “Enter!”

  “Goddess, I’m here to report that—oh!” The servant saw Nyantan crouched on the floor and froze. “M-my deepest apologies—”

  “Oh no, it’s quite all right—this is a ceremonial act, nothing more. Go on with your report.”

  “Ah, well…we’ve heard news that the Elite Five have been spotted in Ulza.”

  “Perhaps chasing that Seras Ashrain? I once thought I might find some use for her, but I have lost interest in the girl. She seems ever so stubborn. Of course, I feel bad that her country had to burn, but…ooh.”

  The Goddess pushed her big toe into Nyantan’s mouth. The licking continued.

  “The Elite Five… Whatever shall we do with Civit Gartland? He’s a rather difficult pawn to mov
e—though I suppose he’ll prove useful soon enough, when my heroes are grown. Oh, I have a marvelous idea!” The Goddess clapped her hands together. “Those heroes are quite leveled up by now, are they not? Let us proceed to the next stage!”

  The Goddess began rattling off orders to the servant.

  “—so, first ask Yonato for a loan of the Four Holy Elders. Oh, and those Sabre-Toothed Tigers, was it? Let’s get them as well. That Dragon Slayer from Ulza—reach out to him, too. Then the Black Dragon Knights, of course… I’m sure he will gladly accept the call to help my heroes grow.”

  “As you wish,” said the servant, beating a hasty retreat.

  The Goddess laughed, smiling up at the ceiling.

  “Perhaps the heroes and the Demon King will be meeting much sooner than I expected.”

  Mimori Touka

  “I HAVE FINISHED CHANGING, Sir Too-ka.”

  We were still in the Dark Forest, but had put some distance between ourselves and the battlefield where we fought the Black Dragon Knights.

  “Sorry about your other clothes,” I said, turning around to see Seras adjusting her shoes.

  “It’s quite all right. I have spares.”

  Back on the battlefield, I asked her to rip up her old clothes and soak the rags in blood so we could scatter them about the forest. We created a trail leading off in one direction with Seras’s shoes and bloody clothes, then headed in the other.

  “They might see through it right away, but it might buy us some time.”

  Our goal is to make it seem like Seras is badly injured, and make them think she couldn’t have gotten far after losing so much blood. No doubt rumors of her injuries will reach the towns and villages nearby. Everybody’s going to be looking for an injured high elf.

  “Right, then. Next stop, Land of the Golden-Eyed Monsters.”

  Seras stopped packing her things to look at me.

  “Are you sure about this, Sir Too-ka?”

  “I’ve already said I want to bring you with me.”

  She’s still worried that she might cause me trouble in the future. People are going to be talking about Civit’s death…will they think Seras did this all on her own? It’d be natural to assume she had help of some kind.

  In any case, soon the news will reach the Goddess, and there’s the chance she’ll realize I’m still alive. That Ruins of Disposal scouting party could’ve already told her, for that matter. Eventually, one way or another, she’s going to find out. I have to factor that into my plans—no wishful thinking. Fail to prepare, and you prepare to fail.

  A distant howl echoed through the forest. Hm? A wolf? Must’ve been drawn by the corpses. Might make cause of death less obvious if the bodies are torn up.

  I remembered the way the other mercenaries had reacted to the uninjured bodies I left in my wake in the Mils ruins.

  I didn’t have time to disguise the bodies at all, but maybe this time, the wolves will cover my tracks. It’ll reduce the chance that the Goddess will find out about me. Maybe the Dark Forest really was the perfect stage for our encounter.

  I reminded Seras again, firmly, that I had no intention of changing my plans.

  “I understand,” she finally relented. “I won’t bring it up again. In return, please, use my life however you see fit.”

  Seras laid a hand across her chest, like a knight taking a solemn vow.

  “Let us hurry onward,” she said as she finished packing up her clothes. “Four of the Elite Five may be dead, but there is still the Heroic Blood Slayer to contend with. His strength is rumored to rival even Civit’s. He’s bloodthirsty and reckless—a difficult man for even his allies to deal with.”

  Seras looked worried.

  “Sir Too-ka…is something wrong?”

  “The Elite Five’s dragons are bigger than the regular knights’, right?”

  “Hm? Oh, yes…”

  I searched my memory.

  “I think…I’ve already killed him.”

  “What?”

  “I mentioned that I had some fights on my way to meet you, right? One of them was this weird, super aggressive guy riding a huge dragon. Yeah—about the same size as the ones those four had. His armor looked just like theirs, too.”

  I didn’t know his name then—I figured he was just some sub-captain.

  “Grim Ritter”—that’s what Civit called him, wasn’t it? Schweitz’s son? Now that I’m thinking about it, I can see the resemblance.

  “I’m almost positive that was the Heroic Blood Slayer. We don’t need to worry about the Elite Five anymore.”

  I killed them all. They weren’t challenging foes like the Soul Eater—not even the Heroic Blood Slayer stood a chance. Only the Strongest Man in the World even came close. I had to trick him—a cheap shot in order to win.

  “You already took down the Heroic Blood Slayer, just like that…?” Seras looked stunned.

  “I guess so.”

  We set off through the forest, walking in darkness so as not to draw attention to ourselves. My eyes were used to the dark, and the light from the moon was more than enough to see by. After days and days down in the Ruins of Disposal, the gloom of this forest was nothing to me.

  “Squee! ♪ Squee! ♪ Squee~! ♪”

  Piggymaru was in a good mood, happy to be reunited with Seras.

  “So that Holy Emperor wasn’t the man you thought he was? You can see through lies, though, right? Why didn’t you notice anything was wrong when you were around him back in Neah?

  “I felt he was lying at times, but…the princess lied, too, you see.” Seras’s voice was soft as she reminisced. “The princess told me she might lie to me at times, but…there are kind lies and there are cruel ones. Not all deception has to be evil.”

  She’s a smart one, that princess. I suppose Seras gets a true or false reading, but not the specifics. So maybe this princess is really a good person, or maybe she lied to Seras and pretended it was for her own good.

  It sounds like whatever that old emperor felt for Seras didn’t read as “evil” or “hate,” exactly. I can’t blame her for not noticing his true colors sooner.

  “This is kind of a personal question, but do you want to see this princess again?”

  Seras nodded, a little sadly.

  “I’m being pursued by the Goddess of Alion, and then there’s all this with the Black Dragon Knights—I would only cause more trouble for her by attempting to reach out.”

  “You’re probably right, yeah.”

  “I abandoned my country. It’s safer for everybody, especially the princess herself, if I’m seen as a traitorous runaway.”

  “Does she know about all this?”

  “Yes.”

  Seras gently pulled down the neckline of her shirt, showing me the jeweled necklace underneath.

  “I received this from her—though I believe officially it’s considered stolen property. The princess instructed me to sell it to fund my journey, but…I could never bring myself to part with it…”

  “So that’s why you need money for travel expenses?”

  “That’s correct. I know it’s foolish, but…”

  Seras was smiling, but her voice sounded like she was going to cry.

  “The princess gave me this. I can’t sell it—I just can’t.”

  “You must really like her.”

  “I do.” She readjusted her shirt to cover the necklace, looking regretful and sad.

  It might have been illogical to keep it, but I’m still grateful. It’s the whole reason we met, after all.

  “Speaking of travel expenses, did you get the three hundred gold from the Baron?”

  “I…did not.”

  “Well, I guess we shouldn’t go back for it—no sense in making ourselves easier to follow,” I said. Hard to imagine the Baron coming after us, knowing we’d just taken down the Black Dragon Knights, though.

  “I agree, though I apologize that I wasn’t able to secure more funds for our journey.”

  “No worries
—I have more than enough gold and silver here. And hey, look.”

  I tossed the pouch of blue dragonstones to Seras.

  “What is this?”

  “Open it.”

  She gasped “D-don’t tell me these are all…b-blue dragonstones?!”

  “Guess they are, yeah.”

  “Just who in the world are you?” she asked in disbelief.

  “I told Civit, didn’t I?”

  “You said you were out for revenge…I remember.” Her tone was much more serious now. “Is finding this Forbidden Witch part of that goal?”

  “Yeah.”

  She stopped walking.

  “Who are you seeking revenge upon?”

  Seras and I aren’t going to be together forever, so I figured there was no point explaining this to her, but…

  I stopped in my tracks to look back at her.

  “The Goddess Vicius.”

  Seras didn’t look surprised.

  I did call her ‘foul Goddess,’ didn’t I? No point trying to hide it now.

  I told my story to Seras—the Ruins of Disposal, my escape, everything.

  “Then I came out into the forest, and that’s when I met you,” I concluded. Seras had a strange look in her eyes.

  “I believed those ruins to be a sealed tomb. I never suspected it was actually an underground ruins system where the Goddess sent heroes to die.”

  I guess not many people know them as the Ruins of Disposal…still, thinking of it as a tomb isn’t entirely wrong.

  “I got the blue dragonstones from the corpses of some heroes there. There was a famous hero who was sent down there, too—the Great Sage Anglin, I think his name was.”

  “What? The Great Sage Anglin?”

  “He must have gotten on the Goddess’s bad side.”

  “Why did she send you down there, Sir Too-ka? Did you have a disagreement with her…?”

  I must’ve forgotten to mention that part.

  “I was the lowest-ranked hero of the bunch.”

  “But you’re so strong…”

  “There’s a ritual where they dispose of the worst hero in every group.”

  A sacrifice to inspire the others to greatness.

  “I have heard that the Kingdom of Alion values tradition quite highly,” Seras said.