Chapter 2
HAIR REARRANGED, Mira excitedly put a foot in the bath. The warmth of the water crept up her leg, and her face loosened into a smile. She glanced at the girls soaking here and there as she waded in deeper to secure a corner, where she could gaze upon the Japanese garden up close.
“Truly fantastic.”
A water garden stretched out into the darkness for bathers’ viewing pleasure. At this time of night, the stone lanterns illuminated the garden with a faint light, as if gently lifting the curtain of dusk. Colorful koi fish swam throughout a crystal clear pond lined by mossy rocks, Japanese pine, and a bamboo fence.
The sound of a shishi-odoshi’s bamboo tube occasionally broke the night’s peace with a rhythmic tonk sound before fading into silence. Mira savored the ambiance and looked back toward the spa.
“Whoa! When did you get here?!” she cried, recoiling involuntarily.
The busty young woman from before had sat down next to Mira without her noticing. “Guess you finally noticed, huh?” she grinned.
Mira turned her eyes away from the magnetic pull of the woman’s assets. She casually placed her left arm on the edge of the tub and leaned against it. Finally, she asked, “So, what brings you over here?”
“Oh, nothing in particular! You seemed lonely. Like you needed some attention…y’know?” She wasn’t trying to wash Mira’s hair or her back, so at the very least she had some sense of personal boundaries. Or so it seemed, until she spotted the gleam of the silver bangle on Mira’s wrist and something changed in her eyes. She leaned in to focus on Mira’s left arm.
“Say now…isn’t that a User’s Bangle? You’re not some high-ranking adventurer, are you?”
“Hm? Ah, well, yes.” Mira was confused for a moment. Still unused to calling her Control Terminal a User’s Bangle, it took a few seconds for her to realize there was only one bangle on her otherwise-naked body.
Mira’s answer only excited the woman further.
“No foolin’. I wish I had a User’s Bangle. I hear they’re super convenient! Y’know, I’m D-Rank, but I’m getting close to C. Ugh, so jealous of you.” She circled Mira like a wolf with an innocent smile. After looking up and down Mira’s young body, she seemed to realize something important had gone unsaid. “Oh! Um, my name is Aselia. And you are Miss…?”
“Mira. No ‘Miss.’ Just Mira.”
“Okay, gotcha! So Mira, honey, what’s your class?!” With the ice broken, Aselia dove right back into the matter at hand, invading Mira’s personal space until they were face-to-face.
Slightly excited by the sensation of Aselia’s warm breath on her cheeks, Mira calmed herself by locking her gaze on the nearby garden. She managed to say, “I’m a summoner,” before her eyes fell back on Aselia’s breasts.
After a short, dumbfounded silence from Aselia, the woman managed to say, “Oh, a summoner, huh? I’ve never worked with one. Is the class getting trendy with the new kids?” Then she added cheerfully, “By the way, I’m a paladin!”
“Oho, like Solomon, then?” Mira said casually, prompting Aselia to break out into a big, almost childish smile.
“Wanna know something? When I was a little girl, Mom always told me about His Majesty. He’s my hero and the reason why I picked my class!” Aselia fidgeted bashfully.
Legends of Solomon’s exploits as a paladin were told as bedtime stories. No wonder he’d become a role model for the young woman.
“Oho, so you admire that fool. Have you tried to imitate his fighting style as well?” Mira thought of Solomon’s unpaladin-like ferocity and worried whether Aselia was being led down a dangerous path.
“I’m trying to match him, but I’ve got a long way to go,” Aselia affirmed, apparently knowledgeable about his methods. She looked Mira in the eye and frowned seriously. “Also, you can’t talk about kings like that, honey. Especially not His Majesty, King Solomon!”
“His Majesty,” eh…? Ha!
For most people, that would seem like a fair admonishment. King Solomon was a big deal—a man worthy of respect. That was how citizens of Alcait saw Solomon, at least. But to Mira, he was just a good friend she’d played an online game with for the past few years. The idea of fawning over him when he wasn’t around was just…weird.
“A little late for me to start doing that…”
Something in Aselia’s gaze changed. “Ha ha, you kiiinda sound like you must be close to him. Like you’re friends with His Majesty… But nah, no way! Unlesss…?” Her voice was joking, but her eyes were searching Mira for any sign that she might be onto something. Her hands tightened on Mira’s shoulders and she leaned in even closer.
Mira broke under the pressure of having a naked woman this close. She nodded vigorously, eyes wide as saucers. “I knew him before he became king. We’re like friends.” Completely overwhelmed, the truth came spilling out.
Aselia frowned and glared dubiously at the small girl. “His Majesty became king more than thirty years ago. You don’t look a day over—”
“Ha! And does Solomon?”
Mira was right—Solomon still had the body of a little boy despite his long reign as king. Aselia muttered in agreement and looked the girl up and down again.
“You look like a normal enough girl to me. I don’t see any elf or fairy features…” Aselia hadn’t seen any long ears or wings while tying up Mira’s hair. “Juuust a sec.”
Cocking her head, Aselia took Mira’s upper lip and pulled it up to inspect her teeth. There was no evidence of fangs.
Mira suddenly had to wonder what race she, Solomon, and Luminaria would be counted among. They had once been human, but humans grew older as the years slipped past. She only had begun pondering when Aselia’s eyes widened.
“Then…could it be? Are you a celestial being like His Majesty?!” Aselia blurted out, still managing to keep her voice low. “Is it true, Mira, honey?”
“Calm yourself for a moment. What are these celestial beings you’re referring to?” Mira asked. She’d managed to break free of Aselia’s grip, but now the woman was scooting closer again.
“You mean you’ve never heard…? Hmmm… Celestial beings are people like His Majesty who all appeared around the same time. Unlike long-lived beings, they look like normal humans but never change physically with age. They say a lot of kings are celestial beings. Plenty of adventurers, artisans, and other famous people, too. Some say the heavens sent these people as envoys.”
“Hrmm. So that’s what it means.”
Celestial beings were former players. It made sense. Anyone would start to ask questions when specific people didn’t change at all in thirty whole years. They couldn’t be human, but neither were they one of the known long-lived races. At least the public hadn’t decided they were monsters.
That fate had been a real possibility. Doubt was once cast on her kind, but they had gotten off easily because so many former players had helped the people of this world. Thanks to their work, celestial beings were accepted as a new race and lauded for their incredible power.
“So? Is it true?” Aselia leaned in expectantly.
“You may be right, but it feels odd to think of it that way. In any case, I do have proof that Solomon is a friend of mine,” Mira said, producing the medal that Solomon had awarded her from her inventory.
Aselia turned over the medallion in her hands with great interest. “Wow, it’s true. It has His Majesty’s name engraved on it and everything. So you really are…”
Mira still wasn’t sure how other people recognized the medal as being genuine, or how it linked directly to Solomon. But whatever magic it held certainly worked on Aselia. The paladin gazed at it reverently.
After a long look, Aselia reluctantly returned the medal to Mira. Now she was entirely enchanted with the tiny summoner. “I’ve never seen a celestial being up close! You’re just so adorable. It doesn’t fit how I imagined a ‘celestial being.’”
Aselia did the mental math. Celestial beings were the same folk as Solomon, which meant they were to be respected. If Mira was a celestial being, then she must have known Solomon before he became king.
“Mira, honey…er! Lady Mira. If you know His Majesty’s past, then I beg of you to tell me how he trained before his ascension.”
Aselia kneeled and bowed her head all the way to the floor…which happened to be under water. The sudden act drew the attention of other women nearby, and Mira could hardly bear their gazes.
“Of course! Yes! Now would you cut it out, please?!” Mira yanked Aselia out of the hot water. But the woman couldn’t hear her while her head was submerged, so she tried to go back under. “I’ll tell you anything you want! Please, just knock it off with the dramatics!”
Mira pulled harder, all the while trying to not think about what parts of Aselia’s body she was having to wrap her arms around to bring the paladin back to the surface.
“You mean it?! Oh, do you?! Thank you so much!”
“And knock it off with the Lady Mira stuff, too. I am merely an adventurer; nothing has changed between us,” Mira said, looking off into the garden again to regain her composure.
“Okay, sure. If you say so, Mira, honey. So, how did His Majesty train?” Aselia sat on her knees, ready to take in every single word.
“I will tell you, but…why are you so insistent on knowing? Surely this is beyond mere interest.”
“Weeell…the thing is, I’ve kinda plateaued. I’m stuck in D-Rank, and it seems like everything’s going wrong. Like here, and here.” Aselia began pointing to scars on various parts of her body, a few on her ribs and shoulders…others in more delicate areas. “I have to pay a lot for medicine, and none of my Adventurers’ Guild Union requests work out. Like I said, I chose paladin because I admired His Majesty. But lately, I feel like I’ve just hit a wall.”
Aselia’s face clouded over, and she looked down sadly. Mira nodded in understanding.
“Like Solomon, eh? He’s an unorthodox fighter, I wouldn’t suggest using him as a standard.”
“I’ve met a lot of other paladins now, so I know that. But His Majesty is still number one in my heart! So please…let’s say it’s just for reference. Tell me.”
C-Rank adventurers were known as veteran adventurers because there was a sharp rise in difficulty between C and D—a wall of power that was too high to surmount by strength or knowledge alone. D-Rank included some requests meant to test one’s metaphorical wall-climbing ability.
“Well, okay,” Mira surrendered. “If you admire Solomon, then do you have an elemental sword?”
“Of course! My fighting style is specialized for elemental release just like his. Though my weapon is only a crimson straight sword…”
“Hrmm. A crimson straight sword, eh?”
Specializing for elemental release meant the elemental sword’s capabilities would greatly affect her fighting power. Still, a crimson straight sword ought to be fine. It was a standard elemental sword with the power of fire. Easy to handle, no quirks, and with real longevity.
Mira wondered what Solomon had that Aselia didn’t. If the sword wasn’t the problem, then the problem must be behind the sword. “You say you’ve plateaued. Can you tell me more?”
Aselia smiled sadly and continued, “Lately, my swordplay has been abysmal. I can get a good hit in, but I can never finish the enemy off. I take a hefty counterattack, and in the end, I fail. Aargh, this didn’t happen before!”
She slapped the surface of the water in frustration.
“Hrmm. Swordplay problem, eh?” muttered Mira, wiping drops of water off her face. She thought back on the effect of the paladin’s elemental release.
Elemental release unleashed the power latent in a weapon or other piece of equipment, temporarily magnifying its attuned element. In this case, the crimson straight sword would become a blade of fire that burned the enemy.
“I’ve been thinking of ways to solve this myself,” Aselia continued. “The crimson straight sword is what I’ve been using since I was a newbie, so I think I need a change of pace.”
“Ho ho. Well, if you have something better, that’ll surely improve your odds. What did you have in mind?”
Elemental release became much more effective with stronger weapons. Of the fire-aligned swords, the crimson straight sword was low-middling. Not awful, but she could probably find something better with some effort.
Aselia puffed out her ample chest and proudly declared, “A spirit blade! It’s my only choice.”
Spirit blades were extremely compatible with the paladin’s elemental release. Aselia had the right idea. If she obtained a spirit blade, she would make leaps and bounds as a paladin.
“Spirit blades, hrmm? One would be optimal for a build specialized for elemental release, but I hope you understand that they aren’t very easily obtained.”
All spirit weapons gained their power from the spirits’ favor. It was akin to them cutting away parts of their selves. To obtain these weapons, one needed to have a longstanding relationship with a spirit or to be blessed with great luck.
“Yeah, I thought so, too. But just between us…” Aselia leaned close to Mira’s ear and lowered her voice to a whisper. “There’s a port city in the direction of Ozstein. I hear they have shops that occasionally sell spirit weapons for 30 percent off market price!”
Aselia then pulled away again and sunk deeper into the water. “I’ve got a lot of money saved up,” she explained. “I’ve cleared my requests so far with minimal expenses; the only expensive thing I’ve bought was the crimson straight sword. Even if a high-quality spirit sword is too much, I can afford a low-quality one with a 30 percent discount. I’m on my way there now! Apparently, you can get close by train.”
Aselia grinned like a little girl, unable to contain her excitement.
“They have such shops now? How the times have changed,” Mira mused.
Buying a spirit weapon with money. Indeed, that was one method of obtaining them. But given their usefulness and rarity, they fetched unbelievable prices. In some cases, buying an elemental weapon for the same price would be more efficient. But spirit swords were undoubtedly powerful.
Each weapon came with unique traits based on the spirit that blessed the sword. If a weapon had the power of a flying spirit, then the wielder would find themselves much lighter on their feet. In the case of a violent spirit, swinging its weapon might cause power to rage forth. If one had armor from that very same spirit, it would unleash powerful counterattacks when struck. The value of each blessing was part of the spirit weapon’s charm.
That was why they synergized so well with paladins. During a paladin’s elemental release, this power would be magnified. Mira had seen Solomon in action with a spirit weapon before. And if Aselia had a chance of getting a spirit weapon, Mira would not stop her—it was sure to make her a stronger fighter.
However, Mira had to wonder if Aselia was too fixated on the sword. After all, paladins were defined by their skills at defense, not offense.
Mira looked up and down Aselia’s body. She was visibly scarred in several places. Many of them were on her upper body, which should be easily defensible by a shield. Aselia herself had said that she sustained many injuries from counterattacks, which suggested that she was too focused on her sword.
A paladin’s primary defense was, naturally, their shield. But Aselia had said that the crimson straight sword was her only major expense.
“Incidentally, what sort of shield do you use?” Mira asked, keeping in mind that Aselia might be using a totally acceptable shield.
“Shield? Umm, just the kite shield I bought from a weapons shop before I started my journey,” Aselia answered, cocking her head slightly.
“Hrmm,” Mira murmured.
The elemental release paladin build had a tried-and-true way of fighting. Release the shield’s element, block an attack, and strike when the enemy’s been blown off guard by the shield’s effect. This was the foundation from which all paladin skill rotations began, including Solomon’s.
“What element does the shield have?”
“None. It’s a totally normal one. Do you think that’s why?”
It seemed she would have to relearn to fight from square one. Mira dug every detail of Solomon’s journey out from the depths of her mind. If Aselia wanted to be like Solomon, then she ought to take this lesson seriously.
“To the best of my recollection, Solomon procured an elemental shield before an elemental sword. It took quite a while before he obtained the sword, in fact. His fighting style was, to be frank, pretty boring back then.”
“Huh?! But His Majesty is known for…” Unable to believe it, Aselia recalled everything she knew about Solomon. He was known for his masterful swordplay! She wanted to call Mira a liar…but Mira had known Solomon from the start.
“Trust me when I say that the Solomon of today started with the same paladin building blocks as anyone,” Mira assured her.
“The fundamentals, huh? If a celestial being says so, then I have to trust you.” Aselia seemed to be chewing it over and finally swallowed Mira’s words. In search of motivation, she finally asked, “So how do I compare to His Majesty?”
“Hrmm. I have yet to see you in battle, so I cannot say for certain. But if you wish to follow in Solomon’s footsteps, you should procure an elemental shield before a spirit blade. We fought together often, so I can say with certainty that his fighting style stemmed from using a shield alone.”
“Okay…okay. You’re right. I’ve always wondered if I made the right call about the shield, you know.”
“I’m surprised that you’ve made it this far…”
Aselia’s rash of recent injuries had left her with niggling doubts. Still, she’d kept charging forward, never daring to stop and go back to the drawing board. Light now shone onto Aselia’s lost path. Mira’s knowledge of Solomon’s past made Aselia long to return to her roots. The truth she’d refused to accept began to illuminate the way to her future.
“I’d really love it if you told me what elemental shield His Majesty started with!” Aselia put her hands together, pleading…which also pressed her breasts together. Mira’s eyes wandered as she struggled to maintain her focus.
She finally sputtered, “I believe it was the ruby stone shield.”
Mira had witnessed Solomon obtaining his first elemental shield because he had dragged her along. The ruby stone shield was a fire-attuned shield obtainable from a special monster. She reminisced about their journey. The stone shield came in all eight elemental varieties, and naturally, she had helped him obtain each one. She also had to chuckle at what a chore it had been.
“The ruby stone shield was where His Majesty started off. Okay. Thank you, Mira, honey. I’ll start off the same way!” Aselia declared, determination plain on her face.
“I won’t stop you, but they are rather poor options compared to other elemental shields. You may be able to find something a little better.”
“No! I want to walk the same path as His Majesty!” Aselia insisted.
Mira could hardly do anything but offer her support. She smiled, knowing that Solomon would love to hear this story.
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