While the tournament is underway, the magical girl Shadyna will research her newest magic school:

Dark magic!

No, not [Dark] magic. My [Elemental] spells already covers that. Dark magic! The stuff that evil villains throw around like candies to annoy people, including but not limited to destructions of hometowns, summoning demonic armies, manic laughter, and worst of all, kidnapping cute little girls.

They really should stop doing that last one with dark magic. It almost never turns out well for some reason. Remember, right tool for the right job!

All I need to do is wait until the dead gladiators arrive and…

_ Cinrald (PM): , could you build some more of those invisible barriers before sitting at the audience seats becomes more dangerous than fighting in the ring?

Five seconds into the fight and something has already gone wrong!

_ Shadyna (PM): No problemo~ I'll need your material stockpile and some of your guild members, is that okay?

_ Cinrald (PM): Go ahead. Call me if the people down there are not enough for you.

Shouldn't you at least be more reserved since your guild has a tournament to run…?

_ Shadyna: Uh, just asked me to build more reinforced glass. Could you bring me a few materials and help me out a bit?

…I will assume that all of the janitors flexing their biceps means "Yes". No, I will not think any further about it. The last thing anyone needs is a buffed up little girl, right?

…Right?

After giving instructions to the muscular volunteers, I go back to my base to grab my crafting gear. A simple dark green one-piece dress with black patterns resembling the ones on my combat one, but in reverse coloring. No apron this time since food is not the only thing I will be crafting. Just a cute artisan coming through~

To be honest, I initially made a white chef outfit with apron simply for the color-coding. Thing is, the increasing amount of black smoke my body is emitting lately makes me stand out like a mad scientist or a maiden in love cooking for her crush after working their "magic", so that was out for crafting in public.

Sateri, I know you are a sore loser, but hitting a girl in the fashion is illegal! How am I supposed to wear outfits with light colors from now on?!

That's why I made a few more crafting outfits purely for appearances. The stats are the same, but the immersion is infinitely higher!

And by immersion, I meant that I went full reversal and made a medieval-style blast suit, considering how lethal my work as an armorer could be. and cried when they saw me in that setup, so that too was out as a result.

Even though I put so much thought into that one. Uuu…

With chef and demolition expert crossed out in the career paths, I swallowed the tears and went for the last option: Clothier. Still a crafter by all means, and I can wear whatever I want since making outfits is the whole point. I even have this big totally-not-a-sword two-handed needle to look the part to boot!

Shadyna's Fashion Store is officially open for business~!

_ Janitor: Lady Black Mantis, please use the materials here once you return to the mortal plane.

Sateri-dammit, who kept spreading those bad rumors?! Totally false and baseless, I'm telling you~

_ Shadyna: Un, thank you very much. Could you lend me a hand as well? It will be faster with your help…

_ Janitor: Say no more! 's janitor crew will follow your orders even if it costs us our lives!

_ Shadyna: I only want you to eat biscuits and work on some handicrafts though?!

Because the crafting speed scales with attributes, I make biscuits for everyone here. They are like dumplings, but more focused on buffing crafting speed instead. It may or may not have a side effect of turning them into speed demons with all the DEX and WIT, but hey, it's not like they are participating in the tournament right~?

And can you guys eat it normally without showing off your muscles?!

…

Thanks to everyone help, we managed to craft all the barriers by the end of the first round, or in other words, half way through the tournament.

It couldn't be helped, okay? Big items like walls take a long time to build even with my buffs. It has nothing to do with how I remembered the receptionists at the entrance and made more biscuits for them, certainly!

And totally not because everyone was also distracted with watching the matches, un!

Speaking of matches, Hessy and Elri won without much trouble. My gear or not, they really are strong huh.

Hessy's deal with me aside, I certainly did not expect Elri to join in as well. After registering as our guild's representatives, they quickly agreed on ordering new non-[Artifact] equipment sets to avoid violating the contract with the devil that is me. Even [Accelerate Bonus] was turned off in the spirit of not using anything they got from me against each other.

Although I'm happy that my contract is taken seriously and other combatants can have a (relatively) fair fight, aren't you girls a bit too eager to fight each other?! I wanted you to get along, not work around the issue by changing gear every time you have an urge to kill your teammates!

I wanted to ask them to tone down the technicalities, but I'm pretty sure they would call me out on that so no thanks.

The path to world peace is truly filled with hardships, and violence. Mostly violence. Sigh~

…

With the safety violation out of the way, I begin to haul the dead gladiators into an empty storage room under the guise of "reward distribution". To be fair, I will give them their just rewards, only that I will borrow a bit of their time as well~

Worry not, for it is one hundred percent safe! It's not like they can die again after dying anyway… That being said, I probably should ask in advance if there is anyone crazy enough to join this tournament while going for a deathless run. Someone other than Elri, I mean. Ju~st to be on the safe side you know?

As for what I'm looking for… It's related to a joke title I received some time ago.

[Corpse Defiler], and its upgraded form, [Corpse Destroyer].

[Corpse Destroyer: The one who hates the dead with a cremating passion. Grant a small damage increase against the dead and undead. Earned by defiling many corpses in succession.]

No matter how you look at it, this is one of those titles made when Sateri was feeling extra snarky one day. Even the effect is token at best. A tiny damage boost against very specific enemies is definitely not worth the pain of having to explain to new friends why you have this title on your resume.

However, its existence sparked a few questions for morbid science: Are there other titles similar to these? Is there a combination title? How many crimes against humanity can one commit to unlock them?

Being a true pacifist who abhors violence, I have absolutely no intention of answering the last question. No way, no how. What's the point of knowing that? Pursuit of knowledge is fine and all, but pick something that at least seems to have some merit!

That's why I'll stop after figuring out the first two.

…Honest.

But really, it was part of the reason why I did not actively go after these titles. The other part is not wanting to spend time gathering corpses to dissec… study. It's hard to store corpses when they have a tendency to disappear and come back to life you know?

The more I think about it, the more this tournament looks like a gift from Sateri. Even if I exclude the might-be-dead-soon acquaintances who will raise a fuss if they know what I'm doing, I still have over a hundred corpses to experiment with. And since I am the one giving them dumplings, they won't try to do something like returning to town. Ufufu~

Materialism is inevitable, even in death!

_ Shadyna: Don't return just yet, okay? First, your rewards.

_ Dead player: Ah… sure.

I think this player was the one fighting Hessy? Brave soul, mainly for not having any ranged capability against her. Not the brightest in the lot, but brave nevertheless.

Technically, first round losers aren't supposed to get anything. I will still give them a candy for "helping" me out though. Sacrificing people for science is one thing, not paying them properly for their service is another, un.

And it's made from spare construction materials from the crafting, so it's not like I'm spending my money per se. did give me the go ahead, right~?

Anyone telling me it's abuse of position is overruled~

Yes, I did use construction materials. Cement, rock, iron, and the like. No sand though. I used it up as it's the main ingredient to make glass. Either way, they will never see the "rock" in [Edible Rock Candy] the same way again!

To this day, I still don't know why I am able to create items using recipes that are borderline nonsensical while no one else in my guild can. What I do know, however, is that I still have a bunch of next-to-useless trash from all of the experimenting, not just this weird [Grass Oil] potion that I somehow crafted with just [Grass].

…Let's use them all and see what sticks. This is totally not because I want to free up inventory space but feel like it's too wasteful just throwing them away, yup!

_ Shadyna: How do you want to be cooked?

_ Dead player: I'M THE MEAL?!

_ Shadyna: Waitress' recommendation it is then.

_ Dead player: WHY?!

Ignoring the dead player's passion for knowledge, I grab the [Grass Oil] from inventory.

_ Dead player: What are you…

_ Shadyna: Heave-ho!

*WHAM*

_ Dead player: AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! Not the lube! Anything but the lube!!!

How rude~ It's oil, not lube.

And welcome to the internet, the only place where your privacy is taken so seriously, no one can hear you scream in a private room! Sateri may introduce broken balance, design whacky mechanics, plan ridiculous events, bully little girls, but the only person who can invade my privacy in this game is the Goddess herself!

Sateri's skewed priorities aside, please stop screaming like I threw Gelly at your face. The only thing I threw at your cold, dead body was a healing potion. It's not going to do any damage even if I was running at terminal speed.

[Condition fulfilled. Unlocked Title: "Corpse Healer"]

See~?

…On second thought, do keep on screaming. Time spent on expressing virtual and nonexistent agony is time not spent on pressing the respawn button, allowing me to deliver even more of that agony in question.

Now then, let us continue the dark magic research for science! Commence innocent laugh of a magical girl who definitely won't do war crimes~

…

[Warning: A great atrocity is underway.]

So… After many certainly-not-atrocities, tons of distractions, a surprise interview, and a jab from the system, I have achieved it, I think.

But what are you calling an atrocity, you beautiful sadistic Goddess?! This is a scientific experiment! What happened to the encouragement and congratulations I deserve to incentivize future endeavors (of sacrificing other players)?!

No, I'm not going to divulge the specifics of what I did, as that will definitely be used against me if I get prosecuted somehow. Un, I'm just a bystander who happened to be nearby when over one hundred dead bodies were being desecrated. Don't believe them if they say otherwise and seek an exorcist to get rid of talking corpses as soon as you can~

As for what I got from the "research"… Lots of corpse-related titles, as expected, and a strange black orb the size of a volleyball. No combination title though.

[Forbidden Growth]

Nice to see you again, useless [Inspect]~

What's with that name anyway? That sounds like something you would see on an adult-only product if taken out of context! Sateri, I don't think it's a good idea to see how far you can push it while keeping an all-age rating…

Back to the matter at hand, [Forbidden Growth] appeared along with the announcement just now. It cannot be put into inventory so I am at a loss about what to do. At the very least, I don't think this is very edible. Throwing an unknown mini-black-hole-like object with a dubious name at people is probably not a good idea either, and most likely frowned upon too.

Social norms sure are bothersome, aren't they~?

For the time being, I give the rewards to the remaining participants and let them go on their merry way. There are not many of them left for reasons comple~tely unrelated to me, with the majority of them being my acquaintances to boot.

Un, no need to complicate it more than I have to. The (former) corpses are already gossiping if the noisy [World Voice] is anything to go by. Next time, let's hire an exorcist or priest beforehand to make sure they don't come back. This pacifist girl is all about bringing peace to everyone, including the dead!

…According to the player list I have here, is missing. Did he respawn or logout after waiting for too long?

His manager says that he has somewhere else to be. Hmm… Can't be helped then. I'll entrust the rewards to his aide and pay the guy an additional candy as delivery fee.

Wrapping up the boring administrative part, I change back to my normal black clothes while walking back to the janitors' staff room. Between feeding dumplings to dead bodies and my job of bringing even more to the corpse pile (and discussing the fights with passing janitors on the way), I wasn't able to go back to watch Hessy and Elri's match at all. Sad~

Although I will certainly watch the recordings again later, might as well watch the rest live as it goes down.

Yes, I know it's not over yet, judging by the general chat from above, and the dark elven sisters' continued commentaries. Seriously, whose bright idea was that to hire them? I can understand Hessy being bad at her job, but I didn't expect 's recruiter to be on the same level as well!

_ Shadyna: …?

The janitor crew is nowhere in sight, probably out to do their thankless work. That's fine and all, but why are and the two other ladies in the Bloody Girl idol group here?

And for the record, this whole idol group idea was 's own doing, okay? I for one would never have guessed that 's innocent question would spark something weird in her, let alone Sateri's involvement with this whole event. How did they communicate, I wonder? I don't think this guildmaster has a [Recall] coordinate to Sateri's room at least.

_ Cinrald: Hello, . What brings you here?

They wave at me as soon as they see me enter the room. I don't know how they act normally, but that service smile they are putting on is pretty dangerous, ju~st saying.

Yeah, no matter how I look at it, the difference between the beautiful idols in frilly dresses in front of me and the bloodthirsty archer maiden who blasts everything with her own blood (according to my guild) can't be bigger. Gap moe, terrifying…

_ Shadyna: I could ask the same. Don't you have a front row seat up there already?

tilts her head with a puzzled look as if she does not understand my question. A few seconds later, she looks like she remembers something and finally responds to me.

_ Cinrald: Sorry, could you repeat that? I muted all my chats to focus on singing and forgot to turn them back on.

What the heck~

_ Cinrald: Why am I here? We were going to get changed after our performance, but the match started so we were watching it here instead of wasting time to go back up.

You damn battle maniacs~ Is something I won't say to their faces, lest them take that as a compliment. Sigh~

_ Shadyna: I see~ Mind if I join?

_ Cinrald: Of course. Come here.

…Uhhhh… Why am I sitting on your lap? Sure, there is only so much space on the bench, but I can make a new one you know? I'm going to get brutally murdered if your new fans see me right now you know?

What do you mean, the only one doing the brutally murdering is me?!

_ Cinrald: …I'm not getting this new trend of hugging something in your arms.

…Did she seriously think that me hugging this sphere was some kind of fashion statement?!

I mean, I'm usually seen carrying Gelly or Lutena, and now this item I cannot just put in my inventory so it's understandable to interpret that way, but she didn't have to try copying it using ME!

_ Shadyna: It's not a trend~ Anyway, how is the match going?

_ Cinrald: almost scored a ring out at the beginning, but has been pushed back ever since. just wiped the minions so it's going to end soon.

Welp, there goes my money~

Just kidding, I half-expected this to happen. With similar equipment, Hessy simply outclassed Elri so much it feels like one of those unwinnable boss fights. My mentor might have a chance if she had [Accelerate Bonus] due to how much burst damage it can do, but she shot herself in the foot by switching it off.

Being reckless yet surprisingly thoughtful is a big part of her charms though, so I'll let that slide~

_ Cinrald: Do you still think has a chance?

Huh, did she listen to my interview? I didn't think anyone would seriously take my words into consideration but… this is the person who made her own idol group because a child asked her a question after all.

_ Shadyna: Un, it's regrettable that she couldn't win quickly, but I think she can snatch a victory if she times it right.

_ Cinrald: Oh?

_ Shadyna: When she is about to lose and Hessy lets her guard down. That's her last chance.

Since winning with brute force is out of the question, Elri's only options are surprise attacks. While I'm not sure how the first ring out attempt happened, the fact that it was a ring out means my mentor was aware of her limited choices. Someone smart like Hessy would be very cautious after the close call, so it would be nigh impossible to pull a fast one for the rest of the fight.

However, when my lead waitress gains so much ground and her victory is all but certain, she will either subconsciously ease up or pick up the pace to finish it quickly. It matters not if she changes tactics or keeps doing the same thing, it's her pace being (somewhat) disrupted due to changing situation that's important. Not a guarantee by any means, but Elri's best shot at taking her by surprise will be right there.

_ Cinrald: …Like right now? She seems to be giving up if you ask me.

Well~ That's what I would do if I were in her shoes anyway. Whether my knight in shining (?) armor has such a plan to do so is beyond me.

I wonder if she is indeed losing hope or faking it to bait Hessy… Nevertheless, let's try to cheer her up just in case. Unrealistic as screaming heroes winning by pure fighting spirit may be, it's still more probable than winning without putting up a fight, which is pretty much illegal even by fictions' standards!

_ Shadyna (PM): , Elri's victory or defeat will be decided in the next minute or two. Won't you send her some words of encouragement?

_ Poltea (PM): C-can I?! We were afraid of distracting her…

_ Shadyna (PM): Un, I'm sure she will appreciate your help. can help too. Just make sure to use PM and don't let anyone know that I'm telling you, okay?

_ Poltea (PM): O-okay!

Deniability established~ And before anyone asks, I am not favoring Elri, okay? It's just that her winning is the better option between the two… financially.

Yes, the cute leafy half-elf with a big heart will never take a side. Unless it's materialism's side, which is always taken by default!

Despite my best efforts to stay neutral, if words get out that I was rooting for one member over another, there will be gossips. A lot of them. That's where and came in. They are the ones actively helping the beautiful elven knight so no one can complain about my faithfulness as long as they keep my involvement a secret, un!

_ Choruse: Well, well, it appears that our knight requires a few more beatings before this match can end!

's commentary snaps me back to reality, for which I am grateful. It would be awkward if I finished my train of thought and found the match already over.

_ Cinrald: …She perked up. Was that your doing?

_ Shadyna: I have no idea what you are talking about~

Technically, I had not even PM-ed Elri so that's safe right?

_ Cinrald: Well, Sateri-chan is closely monitoring this tournament just so you know.

Aren't you implying something rude there? The friendly children of the neighborhood were cheering for their gladiator of choice like those 50k degenerates up there, only in a different chat channel! Pouts~

_ Elri: [Light Hail]!

Elri emerges from the water dome created by Stella's [Water Bubble] and starts bombarding Hessy from above. Uhhh… Girl, I know you have been working hard at trying to integrating combined arms tactics into a fantasy world that doesn't even have a blunderbuss, but I'm pretty sure that's not what they meant by "air superiority"!?

_ Cinrald: High ground advantage huh. Not bad.

I don't think that's it either~

And somehow, it is working?! I suppose our place's training focuses too much on customer service and not enough on anti-aircraft capability.

Let's remedy that after this tournament. We can't become a world-class restaurant until our employees are capable of shooting down random jet fighters during their breaks!

Even then, I doubt this is anywhere enough to defeat Hessy. While barrages are intimidating to look at, they are not effective against powerful mobile targets who can dodge most of them with ease and shrug off the rest. Need something more substantial, something that is not just a few more numbers in your favor.

_ Cinrald: *Facepalms* Taking that full barrage was not necessary.

Or that.

Hessy decided to surface in the midst of a volley and took most of the projectiles directly except for the glowing javelin. Did she become impatient under pressure, or did she think she could just out-heal the damage? Either way, that's undoubtedly a misplay there.

_ Spectators: Go, , go!!!

Now I'm looking at a waitress and a stingray-riding knight competing to be the highest-jumping dolphin on land. I will lose if I think too much about it so let's not, un.

_ Hessy: [Leap].

The scary waitress became an anti-air missile. No, she did not shoot one. She turned into one by going for an intercept trajectory with [Leap].

_ Elri: Stella, [Leap]!!!

Ah, yes, an interception mission in the aircraft's natural habitat, in which both will ram the hell out of each other to assert dominance and control over this contested territory. The victor is then free to hunt wild bombers that roam the area. Due to the fierce competition and aggressive behaviors often seen during this time of the year, observers are advised to keep a safe distance, preferably beyond visual range to avoid being mistaken for preys.

…That's it, those two are going to get a supplementary lesson in aerial warfare! I can already hear the aviation experts frothing at their mouths while screaming in agony about how unrealistic this dogfight is!

_ Choruse: Stella's down! Stella! IS! DOWN!!!

_ Spectators: UUUUUWWWWWOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!

WHY?!

Sure, the pet is not invincible, but isn't this timing a little bit too much for a coincidence?

It was at that moment, I see the broken chains of [Shared Fate], and of course, Elri overtaking Hessy from above too.

_ Elri: DROP! DEAD! [Leap]!!!

In the span of a few seconds, the match takes a really abrupt turn, both figuratively and literally. Although I can keep up with it thanks to my familiarity with speed, most people might need to rewatch the footage a few times at slower speed to see what is happening.

On the other hand, I'm not really well-versed in the meta so my understanding might be inadequate at best. Still… Could it be that Elri deliberately cancelled [Shared Fate] to let Stella die because it was in the way and had no [Leap] left?

…Scary!!! Note to self: Never, ever stand between her and her enemies. I really don't want to find out if my kind and caring mentor will act differently if it were me instead of her pet!

_ Melodyn: Both combatants are falling!

They sure are~

_ Cinrald: Falling damage… Good call.

…Falling damage? Is that edible?

Just kidding~ Kind of. Not to bash Elri's creative (if not a bit cruel towards Stella) attempt to defeat a superior enemy but I have only one thing to say about that.

[Air Cushion], [Teleport], [Recall], [Fort].

That's already a bit more than one thing. Whoops~

And those are just the skills I can think of to minimize falling damage while playing solo. Outside of skills, there are a few ways to pad a rough landing, like piling up spare random trash from inventory, or random big pets, or random mother and daughter NPCs.

Best not to use the latter two if you are a pacifist though.

_ Hessenria: Slam B…

_ Fuelri: [Slam]!

_ Hessenria: [Parry]!

All in all, my mentor most likely came up with this attack specifically for Hessy, who only had [Devotion] and [Leap] the last time she almost fell to her death. A sound plan, except that the plan depends on Hessy not developing new tactics at all. No wonder why this is being used as the last resort rather than the first.

I'm in no place to say this but… I would rea~lly appreciate if a particular elf could avoid dangerous gambles with my gambling money on the line like this.

Now, it all lies in Elri's ability to keep her target pinned until landfall. Yup, this is bad for my heart. Can I close my eyes until this is over? Please~?

*Fwoosh*

As if to grant my wish in a twisted way because good will is still a premium commodity even after all wars ended, the black ball decides that it wants to go on a walk and flies off.

Yes, it literally just upped and flew away.

…What the heck~!!!

_ Shadyna: W-wait up!!!

_ Cinrald: ?!

Obviously, I jump off 's laps and give chase. It's not like chasing after dubious artifacts that can leave on their own ever brings misfortunes or curses to everyone involved in movies, right?

And even if it does, it is still something I (unknowingly) earned with my hard, honest work. I will sooner peacefully let this world burn in apocalyptic fire than lose it!

Obsolete questionable rituals can never compete against materialism!

The [Forbidden Growth] flies through the door, into the hallway. Okay, who was the idiot that entered the room last and forgot to close the door?!

_ Melodyn & Choruse: WE HAVE A CHAMPION!!!

Gah~! The match is over already! If this does not turn out to be a powerful artifact capable of destroying a world or two, I will make Sateri regret it.

By destroying a world, or even two!!!

Running after a flying volleyball turns out to be a bit more complicated than I expected. It's fast, not arrow-fast kind of fast, but fast enough to almost lose me at the start. Then there's this thing called "corners" slowing me down just by existing. Running at full speed into one is right out, not to mention that explaining why I think it would be a good idea to wreck half of the arena running after a volleyball will be an even bigger pain in my cute butt.

Un, let's not crash into anything if I can help it.

One thing I will do, however, is silently wishing a horrible fate upon the maniac who decided that it would be nice to make this underground complex a dungeon filled with zigzagging hallways for the atmosphere!

Curse you, ~! Go stub your toe against a wardrobe or something~!

Turning around yet another corner, I find myself back to the empty space directly below the ring. Its diameter is only half that of the above area, barely enough to cover the trapdoors at the edge when the four mini rings are placed, but still as big as a house. Ladders to climb said trapdoors are piled across the room, ready to be used at any time.

No, I have never used those. Climbing ladders? Seriously? Sounds like an overly complicated way of casting discount [Friendship Engine] to me~

At the center of the empty space, the tiny glowing black hole is floating motionlessly, actually looking like an artifact of immense power (and doom) for once.

[Leap]!!!

Since I do not know if or when it will run off again, I am not leaving it to chance. Blasting off at full speed, I slam myself into the sphere rather than run to grab the thing, which turns out to be largely unnecessary as it does not try to escape. Oh well, as long as the end result is the same~

The moment my hands wrap around the weird volleyball, a thought flashes through my mind.

Was this thing always glowing?

*BOOM*

I am flying~!!!

Of course it would explode! Every single time an orb starts glowing, it WILL explode, no exception! Should have seen it coming, really. Not so that I could refrain from grabbing it per se. I would have grabbed it regardless, though I would also have prepared a few countermeasures had I realized that it was going to explode.

No point in crying over spilt milk, but I really need to stabilize myself. This pitch black stream around me is blocking my vision, and I am still being dragged in the flow. The only flow I want to be dragged in is the flow of money, thank you very much!

Activate [Friendship Engine]!

____________

, elven heavy cavalry, renowned champion of Blood Sacrifice Battle Royale, can think of two explanations for the dark geyser that just blasted her and ('s corpse) out of the ring.

One, is that it is an elaborate effect or scripted event as part of the closing ceremony. Considering Sateri-chan's involvement in this whole thing, it is not too wild of a guess. The elf is not the most knowledgeable player by any means, but she is confident that no normal skill has such effects. That, and how it did not kill her even though she was caught in the initial blast, make a pretty convincing argument.

The other explanation is a bonus boss.

Because, again, no normal skill has such effects, with a big emphasis on "normal".

Being a naïve young elf with infinite optimism and unyielding faith in the Goddess on various levels, immediately throws a [Blessed Resurrection Stone] at her arch nemesis then pops a rechargeable all-in-one buff potion, crafted by her one and only guildmaster.

She is certainly not going to fight a variant alone with just common gear, let alone a bonus boss!

_ Fuelri: Get ready, !

_ Hessenria: *Sighs* You need a course in customer service, seriously…

Despite her attitude, the lead waitress gets back up almost instantly. It was hard to understand the situation while lying dead on the ground, but she is as sharp as she is smart, and already got the gist of it by the time she finished donning her backup uniform.

As the geyser runs out of juice and rapidly shrinks in size, it splits into swirling streams resembling comets' tails, except that the glowing dust is pitch black instead of sparkling. They converge on somewhere high up in the sky, beyond the rendering distance. While players do not know what is up there, the majority of them have seen enough bosses' cutscenes to see where this is going.

After the last stream finally dissipates into nothingness, "that thing" descends from the sky like a meteor. Stopping merely a few meters above the giant hole, the mysterious entity reveals herself.

_ Shadyna: Hiyo~

…

"The last boss really came!!!" Think the brave champion, her strongest rival, and pretty much everyone else in the vicinity.

____________

[Friendship Engine], off. [Air Cushion], on.

For some reason, the black stream broke apart and began to flow into my hands. So did the volleyball, and the black smoke around me, which is kind of worrying.

HP… Full. MP… Full. Attributes… Still have enough digits, I think.

Well, that means I'm not dying at least. Yay~

I can try flying at Mach Speed to escape, but decided against it. First of all, I didn't get blasted into the sky in a literal sense to go back empty-handed. And second, if this is a scripted event, the streams will most likely chase me down to the end of the world no matter how fast I go.

Therefore, the only thing to do is stand still and wait.

…This is a bit like a desperate hero channeling the support of humanity and their loved ones for the ultimate finishing move, isn't it~? By the power of friendship, love, and everything that belongs to the journal of an middle schooler, I will make the demon king regret being born~!

Pretty sure the sparkling lights are supposed to be white or pink though… Oh well~

The streams were completely absorbed into my hands before I could find a tea set in my inventory for a small break. Taking my gloves off reveals countless lines of intricate stylized flora patterns that run up to half my upper arms. Needless to say, the newly-acquired tattoos boast a jet black color which makes Hessy's [Dark Bolt] seem like they are glowing in comparison.

Meanwhile, the ominous smoke around my body is completely gone, as if it was never there to begin with.

I don't really understand what's happening, but does this mean I can wear white clothes as long as I use long gloves now?

Happy face~

[Condition fulfilled. Unlocked Title: "Lady of the Dead"]

I-is that what I think it is?!

Behold, unlimited powa~! The combination title (I think) is finally here! Human(oid) sacrifices really are the way to unlock dark magic. Well, maybe not exactly dark magic, but I'm not complaining with the result~

Can't wait to show these off to Hessy and Elri, and ask them to [Inspect] for me while I'm at it!

In fact, let's go right now. I want to see who won the match as well.

[Air Cushion], off. [Leap]! Commence orbital descent!

…

_ Shadyna: Hiyo~

Somehow, Hessy is already sighing, and Elri looks like she wants to go home.

…It's because of this big hole on the arena ring below me, isn't it? I had a suspicion when I saw the blue sky after my vision cleared, but yeah, there's a big hole on the arena ring.

Who could have done such a thing~? Sateri, you really need to stop ruining a girl's important day. Elri doesn't get to win tournaments every weekend you know? Look, she is troubled because you destroyed the stage where the award ceremony is supposed to take place. My presence here is totally irrelevant, okay?

…Sigh, there's no way I can convince them that Sateri was the one at fault instead of me, is there? Let's just fix this and pretend I don't know anything (I really don't!), un.

*Plop*

I place a smaller ring on top to cover the hole. It's a patchwork, but it will do since the small ring is still bigger. The big ring is insured by [Blueprint] so it will return to normal… eventually. Until then, this will do. Another job well done~

_ Shadyna: There~

_ Choruse: …HERE COMES A NEW CHALLENGER!!!

_ Spectators: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!

What. Da. Heck! , you traitor~!!! Don't try to pit others against me just because you decided that it would be good blood sport you busty lunatic!

_ Melodyn: , please get on with it. It will only hurt a bit at first.

_ Elri: That's because I will be dead many times over just from any kind of hit! And phrase it normally you damn maniacs!!!

Ignoring the implicit insults being thrown around, what are my options… I didn't expect to be attacked here but my inventory should have something I can use…

Ah, found it.

_ Shadyna: I would prefer if you had told me beforehand but okay. [Lumious…

_ Elri: Waitwaitwaitwaitwaitwaitwait!!!

Déjà vu…

_ Shadyna: Yes~?

_ Elri: Can I decline?

_ Shadyna: Sure~!

…Wait, what?

_ Shadyna: Eh?

_ Everyone: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHH?!?!

And so, the Blood Sacrifice Battle Royale concluded peacefully (?) without further bloodshed. I'm glad that Elri has finally realized the values of pacifism, even if it took Hessy's life for her to do so. Better late than never right~?

Despite the dark elven sisters' nagging afterwards, I did not go through with a show match just to satisfy the bloodthirsty audience. The reason was not so much pacifism prevailing, but rather my own memories of what had happened when people got caught up in my [Luminous] spells.

It was… not very beneficial to a deathless run, to put it mildly.

____________

[Warning: A great atrocity is underway.]

The ladies at the reception hall were startled to see a big group of angry-looking players charging through the gate. And somehow, leading them is the guildmaster of , , along with right behind her.

They remember both guildmasters entering the arena before the opening ceremony, and are quite confident that one of them is supposed to be dead!

_ Receptionist: Uhm… We are full righ…

_ Vladina: Out of the way! This is an emergency!

Not giving any proper explanation, the angry peas… player mob rushes to the right hallway, the one with the "Gladiators" sign, to be specific.

_ Receptionist: W-wait! That's not…!

The beautiful receptionist's plead fell on deaf ears, since mobs are not known for their ability to heed warnings or follow instructions in general.

To be fair, their target is the underground complex below, so they cannot go the path that leads to spectator seats above even if they wanted to.

Except that they could if they had known where to turn. They didn't build the place though, and as a result can only depend on the memory a gladiator who walked there, namely the guildmaster of .

Running past the long stairs and into an expanded hall, the crowd find three manly men in skintight overalls wielding mighty brooms blocking the path ahead.

Two were standing across each other, leaning against the walls like street thugs in a dark alley. The third guy was crossing his arms in between, staring a hole through the intruders with pure menace and FIGHTING SPIRIT as he speaks.

_ Muscular janitor: This area is currently OFF LIMITS!!!

It would be pretty intimidating, if it weren't for his ridiculous appearance that makes people more disgusted than threatened.

Damn posers!!! Is what would be yelling right now while blasting magic at full power, if the posers in question weren't 's guild members and thus her allies…

That, and fighting maniacs being a royal pain in the rear.

_ Vladina: Let us through. Black Mantis is up to no good again.

_ Muscular janitor: She is our guest, and we didn't hear nothing from guildmaster! Besides…

_ Vladina: …Besides?

*Pomf*

A hand taps on her shoulder. And it was from behind.

_ Muscular janitor: You guys are the one up to no good to me.

Turning around with a sense of dread like a husband getting caught cheating, the lolita sees the two receptionists standing behind her.

Smiling.

In full plate armors.

With morning stars in hands.

It was at that moment, she was reminded of the precious time with her former manager. Be it guildmaster, members, or patrons, no one questions the cute proprietresses' authority in their own teahouse and survives.

might have built this complex. might be the rightful owner of this land. However, right here, in these interconnecting hallways through which all spectators and gladiators alike have to walk, the receptionists guiding them to their final destination reign supreme. The fact that they got past the mob unhindered with only their glares is more than enough of a clue why going against them is a bad idea.

And for anyone who dares oppose…

*SMASH* *WHAM*

_ Vladina & Torenis: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!

Censorship happens. The ladies of are powerful first and beautiful second, something their allies finally remember as they get completely decimated by the two receptionists in close-quarters combat.

The janitors? Those macho maniacs put on their skintight robes and started throwing support magic.

Yes, two of them are magi. The other one is a healer. The muscle density of magi is as high as their fighter counterpart, much to the horror of everyone else.

_ Half-dead Torenis: Call , NOW!!!

_ Half-dead Vladina: SHE IS NOT RESPONDING!!!

The alliance's sufferings continue. Their agonizing screams echo through the halls, but ultimately are drowned out by the roaring cheers from above.

By the time the massacre ended, the tournament had been over already. It took a very long time for to realize that every other chat channels except for general and party chat were still muted, and even longer for her to stop laughing at how her receptionists and janitors halted the advance of a force outnumbering them 30 to 1 thanks to chokepoints, home turf advantage, and most importantly, biscuit doping.

That damn sloppy woman!!!