Infinite Dendrogram - Volume 6 - Chapter 1

Chapter One: In the Jaws of the Fox 
Journalist, Marie Adler 
“Just so you guys know, I’m starting college tomorrow,” Ray revealed out of the blue. 
A month of Dendro time had passed since Franklin’s annoying little game. We were currently at a diner annexed to Gideon’s sixth arena, celebrating the success of a recent quest. 
“Oh, really?” I asked. “Well, it’s that time of the year, after all.” 
In real life in Japan, tomorrow was March 31st. As far as I was aware, colleges and the like would normally start on April 1st, but I guessed it had been moved a day back due to it being a Saturday. 
I hadn’t gone to any college or university, so I wasn’t too knowledgeable about this. The manga I was drawing was set in a societal underworld dominated by inhuman assassins, so I hadn’t really needed any higher education. 
...Honestly, I was probably more knowledgeable about guns and poisons than anything relating to college life. 
“I must say, I had no idea you were a college student,” I said, realizing that he was actually younger than me. I’d always assumed that we were as old as each other, or that he was a little bit older. I mean, that bear man was 27. 
Then again, it was entirely possible that he’d repeated years or entered college following a gap after high school, which could easily make him older than me. 
Digging too much into the real lives of other players was bad manners, but even if it was BM, I couldn’t help but be curious. 
How old was he? What college was he going to? Maybe I should just ask him? I wondered. 
“Will that lower your online time?” Rook spoke up before me. 
Oh, yeah, that would be a problem. 
These past few days, Ray the one-armed wonder and Rook — no longer Pimp, but a Lost Heart — had gone on many various kill quests, and I’d accompanied them to help them level up. We’d even returned to the capital and raided the Tomb Labyrinth. Our party had consisted of us three and Kasumi’s trio, and we’d been able to defeat the boss on the tenth floor. 
Just so you know, I’d done little to help them in the actual fighting. I’d changed my main job from Death Shadow to Journalist and only used the “The Pen is Mightier than the Sword” skill, increasing their EXP gain. After all, if I’d just powerleveled them while doing all the work, they wouldn’t learn anything. 
Ray had defeated tons of monsters during the past month, and he was getting close to reaching max level on Paladin. Not only that, but the stat growth bonuses from his job and Nemesis had made his HP enter the quintuple digits. 
...In contrast, my HP growth was so bad that, despite being a level 500+ with a Superior Job, I was still in the quadruple digits, meaning that he’d already surpassed me in this regard. 
Additionally, Ray had had lots of mock battles against me and the duel rankers such as Figaro, which had greatly improved his fighting technique. 
It only went to show that there was much to learn by fighting those stronger than yourself. My feints were working on him less and less frequently. 
Ray would often dedicate entire Dendro days to quests and mock battles, but that would certainly happen more rarely when he started college. 
“On my days off, I’ll be online as much as before, but on weekdays, I’ll only log in for one day,” Ray explained. 
One real-life day was equal to three days here, and he was saying that he’d only be able to stay around for one of them. No surprise there; college students seemed like busy creatures. As far as I knew, they spent their after-school hours living out their youth through club activities or part-time jobs. 
...Despite that, Ray had implied that he’d be online for eight real-life hours each day. Which, if you asked me, made him into quite a no-lifer. 
Looks like the Dendro virus has really corrupted him over the past month, I thought. 
Speaking of corruption... his gear made it look like he’d given in to the dark side. To think that he’d looked so decent back when I’d PK’d him a month ago. 
...Wait, his dark fashion sense isn’t my fault, is it? 
“The turns and twists following the PK are directly linked to the present, so I wouldn’t say the incidents are unrelated,” muttered Rook. “After all, the reason Ray was in Gideon in the first place and got involved in all the incidents here was because the newbie hunt made him go to the Tomb Labyrinth, where he met Figaro, who suggested coming here.” 
Rook, I would prefer it if you didn’t try to hold casual conversations with my thoughts. Also, you’re implying that I’m the one who caused Ray’s fashion sense to take a turn for the worse, and I won’t accept such slander! 
It had all started with the one who’d given me the PK request! I didn’t know who had done that, but I was willing to bet it was all Franklin’s fault! 
...Strange. I could almost hear him shout, “No, it’s not!” Was I having auditory hallucinations? 
“But wait, if your college starts tomorrow, shouldn’t you be preparing for it today?” I asked Ray. 
“No, I’m actually pretty free today,” he answered. “I’ve already taken care of the necessary paperwork and gone through the physical examination. Right now, it’s about 2PM in real life, so I’ll be online for the whole of tomorrow here in Dendro, log out, and then go to bed. When it’s tomorrow IRL, I’ll have to go to another college briefing and the orientation.” 
Well, he certainly seemed to be more busy than he’d let on. 
“No entrance ceremony?” I asked. 
“Yeah. That’s gonna happen in about two weeks. I was told it’s gonna be held in the Budokan, too.” 
“Wow, I had no idea colleges handled things so strangely.” Having never gone into higher education, I was quite surprised by this. 
...Huh? I thought as a certain word caught my attention. “...The Budokan?” 
Wait a second... 
He was going to a college that was holding its entrance ceremony two weeks from now, at the Budokan? 
“By the way, uh, don’t answer this if you don’t want to, but... what’s the college?” I asked. 
“UTokyo,” he answered with no hesitation. 
...Th-That’s the best place in the country, I thought in shock. The University of Tokyo! 
Oh no. Ray was actually a winner at life. I reluctantly compared him to myself, an unemployed high school graduate manga artist, and it made me feel... 
“...Bitter,” I muttered under my breath. 
“My parents refused to let me live in Tokyo by myself unless I passed the entrance exams for UTokyo during my last year of high school,” he continued. “Also, a year and a half before the exams... on the summer of my second year... I rejected all entertainment and focused solely on studying.” 
“Ohh, well... I see... Hm?” I murmured. 
Entering UTokyo after a year and a half of intensive studying was certainly quite impressive, but he’d started it at about the same time as Infinite Dendrogram had come out, which made me feel kinda bad for him. 
Also, if he’d passed the entrance exams in his last year of high school, then he really was younger than me. 
“Wait, so you’re living alone now?” I continued my questions. 
“Yeah.” He nodded. “I’m from the northern parts of the country, but last month, I moved to a high-rise apartment building in Tokyo.” 
“...Hmm?” I said. 
A college student, living all by himself, not in a dorm or some cheap condo, but in a high-rise apartment building? 
“First mind... now wealth... Curse you!” I grabbed Ray’s collar and rocked him back and forth, not caring about his protests a single bit. 
“Whoa?! What the hell?! Stop shaking me!” he cried. 
Feel the resentment of a have-not! I thought. 
“...I think lots of people would get mad if you called yourself a have-not, Marie,” said Rook under his breath. 
Rook, could you please stop reading my mind and replying? Thank you very much. Also, I didn’t actually say it out loud, so don’t judge me. 
“Anyway.” Rook looked at Ray. “You can actually afford an apartment in a high-rise and don’t have to live in a dorm or a cheap flat... Are your parents rich, perchance?” 
With his collar still in my hands, Ray shook his head. 
“No,” he said. “The allowance I get from my parents doesn’t even cover rent. I can live in a high-rise apartment only because it belongs to Shu.” 
“Oh, so that’s how it is.” I let go of him and nodded. 
So he lives with that reckless furball bear man King of Destruction... Well, his brother. 
...Wait. 
“Eh? Didn’t you say that you live alone?” I asked. 
“Yes, and...? Oh, sorry, the way I put it is confusing. Let me rephrase,” he said, correcting himself. “I’m borrowing an apartment in a building owned by Shu, so I don’t have to pay any rent.” 
That semi-naked fur man actually has an apartment building — a no-effort source of income — in an urban area? 
“Really?” I asked incredulously. 
“Yeah, Shu said, ‘Just use any of the free rooms in my three apartment buildings, you can pay the rent after you get a job and start making bank,’ so I just chose the one closest to college, and—” 
“Wait, ‘three’?!” I cut his words short and howled. 
Three apartment buildings in an urban area?! How?! 
“Where did he get the money for them?” I exclaimed. 
Ray put on a distant look. “When he was still in college, he often used to accompany his professors to their presentations in other countries, and he casually bought lottery tickets every time.” 
...You’re joking. 
“He actually won?” I asked. 
Ray slowly nodded. “He called us and said, ‘I hit the jackpot with a lottery ticket I bought for no real reason and got some serious money,’ and even with all the international taxes and handling charges, he still had an insanely huge fortune. I’m kinda scared of finding out the exact amount, so I never actually asked.” There was that distant look again. 
Honestly, Ray’s brother’s IRL luck was so broken, it left me speechless. That arsonist hairball was an enigma both here and on the other side. 
“So yeah,” Ray continued, “Shu used the money to buy land and apartment buildings. I still remember how hard our dad snapped when he shouted, ‘Woohoo! No-effort income! Now I don’t need a job!’” 
Well, it was only natural to be upset when your college graduate son proudly proclaimed that he would live a life of leisure because he’d won the lottery. My sympathies to you, Papa Starling. 
“Anyway, that explains why your working-age brother is online around the clock,” I said. 
“Indeed it does.” Nemesis nodded. “Hm? Wait a second.” 
“What?” Ray raised an eyebrow. 
“You said that Brother Bear was a popular child actor when he was young, and the world champion martial artist during his school years, no?” 
“Yeah.” 
What? That’s just... disturbing, I thought. Then again, I think I’ve actually heard of someone with such a track record. 
“So, basically,” Nemesis continued, “Brother Bear is an insanely talented individual with a brilliant track record who now spends his days as a video game no-lifer NEET surviving on money he won in a lottery?” 
“...Yep.” 
I might not have been in a position to say this, considering I was a manga artist who had shut herself into Infinite Dendrogram instead of doing my job, but... he was definitely wasting his talent. 
“We went off on a tangent there,” commented Ray. 
“Indeed we did,” I agreed. 
What we’d just talked about was so astonishing that it could easily have become the main subject of the conversation. 
“Anyway, starting tomorrow in real-life time, I’m a college student,” Ray said. 
“Real life is important. Don’t neglect it, and do your best,” I said. 
It was a shame that he’d only be able to take quests spanning multiple days on weekends and the like. Then again, right now, in real life, it wasn’t even 3PM. Just as Ray had said, even if he planned to go to sleep early, he could easily spend a whole day’s worth of time here in Dendro. 
“Then let’s go on a big quest tomorrow!” Rook proposed. “We have Audrey, so we can even pick one that takes us far away!” 
Ray and I both nodded in response. 
Flying monsters were always useful in these situations. With Rook’s Audrey and Ray’s Silver, I had come to know this pretty well. 
Maybe I should buy a flying monster myself? I wondered. 
Though I was taking a break from it right now, I’d pooled quite a lot of wealth from my professional PKing, so I definitely had the money for one. These days, I even had some nice extra income from the jobs I was doing for Count Gideon. 
Wait... “pooled”... “pool”... That gives me an idea, I thought and spoke my mind. 
“Then how about we go to the seaside tomorrow?” 
As far as I was aware, these two hadn’t seen Dendro’s seas yet. 
“The seaside? Good idea. We could go fishing,” said Ray. 
“And I might be able to tame an aquatic monster,” Rook put in. 
The two were clearly in favor of it. 
Personally, I was looking forward to sketching them in their swimwear. It was for research purposes, of course. Couldn’t neglect to gather material, after all. 
“The sea, you say?” Nemesis asked with interest. “Fresh seafood... Kamameshi... Seconds, please.” 
“The sea... Maybe I’ll get to cover some sashimi in habanero topping...” Babi murmured. 
Those two were the same as they always were. Also, in my humble opinion, sashimi covered in habanero topping would be sashimi no longer. 
“Then let’s meet up tomorrow at the western gate. How does eight o’clock sound?” I asked. 
“No objections there,” said Ray. 
“Same here.” Rook nodded. 
And so, with the meeting time and place properly set, we went our own ways. 
 
The following day, Ray, for reasons unknown, hadn’t showed up at the meeting spot. The friends list said that he was online, so we checked up on him at the inn he was staying at. 
When we asked, the proprietress of the establishment said, “He didn’t come down when it was time for breakfast, and when I went to call him, I found this in the gap in the door,” and gave us a piece of paper. 
Its contents said:

“Due to certain circumstances, I had to summon Mr. Ray Starling to our headquarters. 
I greatly apologize for this abrupt interruption of your plans. 
Please bring your complaints to the nearest Lunar Society branch.

Yours sincerely, 
The Lunar Society’s spiritual leader’s secretary, King of Assassins, Eishiro Tsukikage.”  

“...” 
“...” 
“Hey, is this a kidnapping?” said Babi, breaking the silence. 
Oh, uh... Yes, I realized. 
I had many things to say about this situation, but the jist of it was this: Ray had yet again found himself in some sort of trouble. 
Barely a month had passed since Franklin’s Game, and it looked like he was now at the epicenter of a new major event. 
“...The swimsuits will have to wait,” I said as I went to contact the furball. 
 
Paladin, Ray Starling 
I woke up to see a ceiling completely unlike the one I had seen as I was drifting off into dreamland. 
“I’m quite sure I was sleeping on a bed at an inn,” I said through my drowsiness. 
Now, however, I was in a futon in a predominantly wooden, Japanese-looking room. 
I momentarily thought that I was back at my parents’ house in real life, but though the room was similar in style, it certainly wasn’t the same. 
It had the aesthetic characteristic of Japanese construction, but it looked far more expensive than any place I’d ever lived at. 
“This is... not real life,” I said as I noticed my avatar’s blond hair drop over my eyes and confirmed that I could open the game’s menus. 
Indeed, I was still in Infinite Dendrogram. 
“You’re awake,” said Nemesis as she popped out of the crest on my left hand and sat on her knees next to my futon. Her posture was surprisingly proper. 
“Nemesis... where are we?” I asked. 
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “We seem to have arrived here while I was still sleeping within you.” 
I was silent. 
From her words, I could deduce one thing. 
The one who’d taken me out of my bed at the inn and brought me here had done it so silently that neither I nor Nemesis had woken up. As far as I was aware, not even Marie, with all her Death Shadow skills, was capable of such a feat. 
Overcome with worry, I looked into my inventory, but thankfully, it didn’t seem like anything was stolen. 
“But Ray, can’t you check where we are by simply looking at the map?” asked Nemesis. 
“You have a... point?” I said as I opened the map, and what I saw made me tilt my head in confusion. 
The words written there were:

[Royal Capital, Altea, The Lunar Society Headquarters]

“...Calm down, me,” I muttered. 
Players were automatically given the maps of the capitals of the countries we belonged to, so the map window showed my exact location. I was in an area outside the walls encircling the capital. That was fine and all, but I couldn’t say the same for the name of the place. 
“‘The Lunar Society Headquarters’...” 
I was at the heart of operations of the one and only Lunar Society — the largest clan in the kingdom and an actual real-life cult. 
The fact that I’d been taken from my inn and was moved to the headquarters of such a shady bunch could only mean one thing... 
“I’M KIDNAPPED!” 
Why did they kidnap me?! For what purpose?! I thought frantically. 
“Don’t men only come to establishments like this when trying to save girls they’re acquainted with?” asked Nemesis. 
“Well, I gue... HEY, NOW’S NOT THE TIME!” 
“Calm yourself. A predicament like this is nothing compared to the lab coat lunatic’s shenanigans.” 
“This isn’t like anything Franklin did, but being kidnapped by a cult is still freaky as hell!” 
“Hm...” she said. 
Okay, Ray, think. Work your brain... Oh, yeah! 
“Nemesis, I actually have no reason to panic!” I declared. 
“Oh?” 
“I can just log out and return to the save point in Gideon.” 
“That’s a great idea!” 
All right, I’ll just open the menu, start the log out process, and... 

[Cannot log out: In contact with another entity]

...Pardon? 
“I... I can’t log out,” I muttered as I fell to my knees. 
“You sound like the protagonist of a death game VRMMO story,” Nemesis commented. 
“No, really, I can’t. It says that I’m in contact with someone...” 
To log out, a player had to go 30 seconds without touching anyone. We were the only ones in the room, and there was no one who could touch me, so why...? 
“Oh, so that’s why I’ve been feeling a presence here,” said Nemesis. 
A presence? I asked telepathically. 
“Ever since I woke up, I’ve felt as though there was another Embryo here,” she answered. “We are probably within the effective range of a Type Territory or Castle. Naturally, that prevents you logging out, as that counts as you being ‘in contact’ with someone.” 
“Ah...!” Shock overcame me. They’d actually anticipated me trying to go offline, and had prepared a countermeasure. That meant that... 
“It appears the ones who brought you here have no intention of letting you go,” said Nemesis. 
“Seems like it...” 
Suddenly, the room’s sliding door opened up. 
“Hm?!” Completely on edge, I turned towards it. 
“Ray!” Nemesis shouted as she transformed into the Black Blade. I hastily grabbed her hilt and brandished her. 
The one who came through the sliding door... 
“Good morning, Mr. Ray, Miss Nemesis.” 
...was a servant. 
Specifically, a nakai — a waitress-like girl working at traditional Japanese inns. The lack of crest on her left hand meant that she was a tian. 
Besides those two points, the only notable thing about her was the mark on her kimono, which displayed a crescent moon and a closed eye. 
“Your breakfast is ready,” she continued. “I will lead you to it once you’ve changed.” 
Seemingly having said all she had to, she politely bowed and closed the sliding door. 
“Hm...” Nemesis and I were at a loss for words. 
Well, that sure softened the tense air in here, I thought. 
“What now?” Nemesis asked. 
“Guess I’ll change,” I said. 
I was still in my pajamas, after all. I had no idea what I was in store for, but considering where I was, I had to at least be battle-ready. 
“Very well,” nodded Nemesis. “And then we’ll have breakfast.” 
I’m not too sure about that, I thought. What if it’s spiked? 
“Wouldn’t that be a good thing?” Nemesis asked. 
“What?” 
“If the food is poisoned in some way, we can simply use Reversal.” 
...Good point. I guess spiking isn’t much of a problem for us. 
“With that in mind, let’s go have breakfast. We’re kidnapped, after all. Might as well have a feast at their expense.” 
“Nemesis...” I muttered. 
I couldn’t help but feel that recently, this partner of mine had become even more gluttonous. Was she about to go into hibernation or something? 
But we did go to breakfast together.

“This is really good,” I said after taking a bite. 
“It’s... amazing,” Nemesis agreed. 
I mean, sure, it had looked good from first glance, but the circumstances certainly hadn’t made me think it would be. Basically, the breakfast we were given was stupidly delicious. 
“It just... really emphasizes the taste of each ingredient,” I commented between bites. 
“The seasoning is light, but so satisfying at the same time,” Nemesis added. 
I’d never even considered that Infinite Dendrogram had Japanese food of this kind. Not having both hands made it a bit hard to eat, though. I couldn’t hold the rice bowl. 
“I haven’t been this satisfied with my meal’s taste since our first day here,” said Nemesis. 
“Same here, actually,” I nodded. 
“I’m glad you two like it, darlings,” said someone behind me. 
The food the Star Chef had made for my welcome party had been the greatest cooking I’d ever eaten in Infinite Dendrogram, and these dishes here actually rivaled it. 
“It has such detailed flavors,” said Nemesis as we were finishing up. “Looks like the kingdom’s largest clan has no shortage of skilled people. Do they have high-rank and Superior Jobs from the cook grouping or something?” 
“Actually, this is my secretary’s natural cooking,” said the voice behind me. “Even in real life, Kage’s food is sooo good that it could be in a manga.” 
“Oh, yeah,” I said. “Cooking is a type of sense skill, so—” 
Suddenly, all the cells in my entire body began to shake. It was a reaction to multiple powerful stimuli attacking me all at once. 
I belatedly felt surprise at the voice that had been joining our exchanges as though it belonged, then became overcome with shock at the woman embracing me from behind, then felt intoxication from her own scent and the fragrant wood incense smell coming from her clothes, and lastly... I was overwhelmed by fear as a living creature. 
I felt as though my neck was in the jaws of a tiger, as though my head could fall off with the most casual of bites. 
“Hh?!” I gasped as I realized that the woman holding me could easily end me. 
I was familiar with this sensation. I had felt it on my first meeting with Figaro in the Tomb Labyrinth, and in my encounter with Xunyu before the Clash of the Superiors. However, this time, I was feeling such danger directly on my skin, which made it countless times more scary. 
“Hmm? What’s wrong, sweetie? You’re shaking,” the woman said, as though whispering to me. “Oh, and don’t glare at me like that, li’l Maiden. This is just some light skinship.” She then slowly let me go, running her pale, slender fingers along my neck in the process. 
“Rgh!” I grunted as I instantly got up, ran to Nemesis, had her turn into a greatsword, and grabbed her by the hilt. 
I had three Counter Absorption uses — my current maximum. And yet, for some reason, it did little to help me feel safe. 
This wasn’t like the time when I’d ran out of uses while facing overwhelming odds, not like the time when I hadn’t been able to activate it fast enough against Xunyu, not like the time when Marie had taken advantage of my flaws in our rematch, and not like the time when it had been broken in a mock battle. 
Though she would probably handle it in an entirely different way, I had a feeling that this woman would render Counter Absorption meaningless. 
“Oh no, sorryyy.” She put her hands together and giggled while apologizing. “I overdid it with the teasing.” In all honesty, that gesture was quite adorable, and an overwhelming majority of men would find it charming. Had I the emotional capacity right now, even I might’ve been captivated. 
However, the fear I’d felt when she’d touched me seemed far more reliable than any cutesy gesture. 
“So you’re Ray Starling and his Maiden, Nemesis,” said the woman — or, rather, the woman-shaped aberration. 
“You’re sooo earnest,” she continued. “I like that. I like that a lot.” 
She cracked a smile just like the one I saw on her in the recording on the crystal, and began introducing herself. 
“I’m the High Priestess, Tsukuyo Fuso. I’m the leader of The Lunar Society. Let’s get along, shall we?” 
Shu, Lei-Lei, Figaro, and now her. We were face-to-face with the last Superior of the Kingdom of Altar. 
After her introduction, Tsukuyo Fuso called some people to clean up the table. 
For the whole time they were doing their job, I was just grasping Nemesis and barely moving a muscle. 
Nemesis and I were both silent, unsure of how to react to the prime suspect behind our kidnapping. 
However, the one to break the tense silence that had overcome us was none other than the person who’d caused it. 
“That left arm of yours...” she said while pointing at the limb I’d lost in my fight against Franklin, which was now replaced by a hook prosthetic. “So you really haven’t fixed it yet.” 
“Sadly, I don’t know anyone who can do that for me,” I said. 
Speaking of which, Marie had said that the High Priestess was capable of it. She held a Superior Job from the priest grouping, after all. Despite that, I had absolutely no intention of asking this aberration to fix me up. I could now understand full well why Marie had recommended against it. 
Seriously, who in their right mind would request anything of... that? Might as well try the devil. He’d probably give you a better deal. 
“For someone who’s barely even talked to her, you sure seem to consider her a danger,” Nemesis commented telepathically. 
Being kidnapped by her is more than enough reason, if you ask me, I replied. 
Besides that, merely being touched by her and exchanging several words with her had been enough for me to come to a conclusion. 
She’s as bad as, if not worse than, Franklin. 
“Heh, agreed,” Nemesis said. “I also feel the same way about the presence behind her.” 
I could feel her shift her attention towards somewhere behind Tsukuyo Fuso — an area we couldn’t see from our position. 
“Hmm...” The aberration showed little concern about Nemesis and me being on high alert. Ignoring that completely, she continued her questions. “You can fix it, but you’re not doing it... Why aren’t you getting the death penalty? Hm?” 
“What?” I raised an eyebrow. 
“I mean, if you get the death penalty, you’ll be completely healed after just a 24 hour break, no? I don’t see the reason to spend more than ten days... a whole month of this world’s time... with such a disability.” 
Oh yeah, Marie said the same thing, I recalled. Still, I don’t think that’s an option. 
“What kind of idiot dies just to fix his arm?” I asked. 
Even if I had to die in the near future, I didn’t want it to be for the sake of just an arm. That would be unreasonable. 
“Ha ha!” Tsukuyo Fuso laughed, her eyes open wide. It wasn’t a loud, roaring laughter — the sounds escaping her covered mouth were a bell-like giggle. 
I didn’t know if anything I said was funny or if she was laughing for some other reason, but I felt like taking advantage of this moment was a bad idea, so I just stood stock still. 
“This... is so good.” Tsukuyo Fuso muttered as she stopped laughing and looked at us again. 
Her gaze was completely different from before. 
I felt as if there was some sort of fire in her eyes, and it made me freeze in fear. 
“You know, sweetie,” she said, “I actually had you come here to invite you to join my clan. You’re pretty famous, after all.” 
“Not happening.” 
If I ever entered a clan, this certainly wouldn’t be it. 
Cults were freaky in and of themselves, but more than that, I was just really scared of the... thing before me, and that feeling only grew stronger the more we talked. 
“I’ll fix your arm if you join us, though,” she offered. “I’m the only one in this country who can do that, you know?” 
“Still... not happening.” 
“Hmmm...” She turned away from me. 
The fact that she wasn’t facing me anymore soothed me, if only a little bit. 
I didn’t know whether she was aware of my current emotional state, but Tsukuyo Fuso continued talking. 
“I don’t want anyone who chooses a ‘logical’ death penalty.” 
Wait... What the hell is this ominous feeling? I thought. 
“I don’t want anyone whose reasons for not choosing a death penalty are boring.” 
She’s looking away from me, and yet... 
“And I don’t want anyone who’s not cute in some way.” 
Yet the fear binding me just continues to grow. 
“So, honestly...” she said before quickly turning around, making her long hair sway. “I really want you.” 
Those words, combined with her gaze, filled me with fear far greater than before. 
“...Gh! HELLISH MIASMA!” I shouted. 
Still holding Nemesis in my right hand, I directed Gardranda’s right bracer towards Tsukuyo Fuso and launched the triple debuff mist. I didn’t care that we were inside or that she was close to me. That aberration was far scarier than any debuff. 
“Oh, so this is the Legendary they were talking about,” she said. “Holy Zone Horizon.” 
In an instant, the miasma was gone. The dark purple mist vanished as if it had never been there. 
“What?!” I gaped. 
The space around us was bathed in light and filled with a purified air. It felt as if the world itself had been remade anew. 
“This is one of my High Priestess skills,” she explained. “It nullifies all disease and curse-based debuffs within the area!” 
“Nullifies them... all?!” I yelped. 
The High Priestess was a Superior Job from the priest grouping, which was focused on healing and purification. I should have expected her to be able to do this! 
“It’s quite a shame. That might’ve worked if you’d been up against anyone else.” She covered her mouth and giggled again. 
Ohh no, I’m not giving up yet! I thought. 
She was a support-type Superior Job, so she ought to have lower stats than vanguard roles. Of course, I didn’t expect her to be as frail as Franklin, but in 1v1 melee combat, I should have a chance... 
“Okay, me neeext!” she said as I kicked the tatami below and sprinted to her side. “Lunar Divider Field.” The world was engulfed in night. 
We were inside, and yet above us, I saw a dark sky with a large blue moon. An unnatural space — a world abnormal. 
“It’s just like in the crys...tal... Gh?!” I said. Or at least tried to, but something strange began happening. 
“Ray?!” Nemesis exclaimed. 
As the night I’d once seen in Marie’s crystal overtook the world, my body started malfunctioning. I wasn’t taking in any air... No, I was breathing normally, but my lungs and heart weren’t delivering oxygen like they were supposed to. Not only that, but my body was quickly turning colder! 
“This is my Kaguya’s... my Superior Embryo’s unique skill,” she said as she looked down on me, squirming on the floor and grasping at my chest. “Its name is ‘Lunar Reduction Field.’ It’s pretty famous. You didn’t know about it?” 
No, I goddamn didn’t! 
“Basically... this skill creates an area where all the numbers I find inconvenient are reduced to a sixth of their original value.” 
Inconvenient... numbers? 
“It divides enemy stats by six, the damage they deal by six, their heart rate by six, their body temperature by six... among many other things. Oh, and it’s probably six because it’s ‘Lunar.’ The gravity on the Moon is six times weaker, you know?” 
“Wh...?!” 
What the hell?! No one could stand a chance against that! 
The damage she would receive would be divided by 36 — the combination of the stat and damage division. Not to mention that her opponents’ bodily functions would drop way below tolerable levels. 
“Well, high-level people can resist it. A bit,” she added. 
That basically meant that a sub-level 100 newbie like myself would be feeling its full effect. 
“But... I...!” I said through ragged breaths as I remembered one of my skills. 
...I have a way to fight this! 
“Neme...sis!” 
“Very well!” cried Nemesis as she switched from her Black Blade form into the Flag Halberd. 
At the same time, I activated Like a Flag Flying the Reversal. It was one of Nemesis’s unique skills, and it reversed the effects of debuffs I was subjected to. 
Now, I’ll turn this Superior Embryo’s debuff against its Master, and... 
“Khh...” I groaned and realized that something was off. 
Reversal was up and active, yet it was still hard to breathe. It had become a bit easier, sure, but that was the extent of it. 
“What... is this...?” Nemesis said, her voice thick with shock. “I... I can’t reverse it? Can’t push it back? The output is just too...” 
“What’s wrong, Nemesis?!” I shouted, but all I got in response was silence, as if she was completely dumbfounded by something. 
“You have the right idea here,” said the aberration. “My Kaguya is focused on debuffs, so this skill Nemesis has is her, well, nemesis.” 
I didn’t know whether she’d learned about my Reversal beforehand or if she’d figured it out just now, but she clearly knew what it did. 
“But...” She tut-tutted me. “That only applies when you and I... and our Kaguya and Nemesis... are on a similar tier.” 
“Wh-What...?” I stammered. 
What does that mean? 
“Your Nemesis is still just low-rank, while my Kaguya is a Superior Embryo.” 
Smirking in the most terrifying manner, she slightly opened her eyes and looked at me with a spine-chilling gleam in her gaze. 
“Their base powers are on entirely different digits, sweetie,” she continued with a giggle. “You can’t carry 100 tons just because you can lift 100 kilos, you know? Same thing. Though, from how it feels here, she can probably reverse debuffs from high-rank jobs just fine. Heh heh.” 
“Gh!” I shouted. 
The description for Reversal did say that its effects could be affected by the enemy’s level and skill level. But... the skill had reversed so many debuffs I’d been subjected to. It had even turned around all the nightmarish status effects piled on me by the Lich, so how could it have no effect here? 
“Up until now, you’ve won against stronger enemies because you were compatible, no?” she said with an eerily gentle voice as she walked up to me. “Well, here’s something for you to keep in mind, darling. Compatibility... isn’t enough to win against someone with absolute power.” 
Then she extended her bare foot from out of her junihitoe and kicked me directly in the chin. 
“...Hh,” I gasped as my consciousness was forced to shut down.