Black Sun, Silver Blade
Canaria
Joney’s body went rigid as she asked, “Why is the Empire here?”
“What a foolish question.”
One knight stepped forward, brushing past the man wearing a crooked smile.
“Nowhere lies beyond the reach of the great Ro Arca Empire’s black sun. Not even the infamous Demon Continent.”
The armor was unmistakably different from that of the other knights, and his tone carried such authority that it was easy to infer his rank.
In the first place, the fact that he alone had stepped out from among so many knights proved he was no ordinary man.
The knight commander leading the order narrowed his eyes.
“I was told there was a criminal here. Who are you?”
“...A criminal?”
“We are those who stand in defense of the criminal. And blind fools who know nothing of the Empire’s glory.”
“Oh? Is that so.”
After hearing the man’s words, the commander shrugged with exaggerated indifference.
“How regrettable. Still, the Empire is generous. If you repent and reflect on your mistakes now, I’ll overlook such trivial offenses. I’d rather not have to cut down comrades who fought beside me.”
“...What is he even talking about? Comrades who fought beside him? I’ve never sided with the Empire.”
“He’s probably talking about the war with Grasis. The Liberi mercenaries hired by the Empire took part in that war too.”
“Ah... I see.”
Fine and Joney whispered to each other.
Even as they spoke, they kept sneaking glances at the knights, as though the pressure radiating from them was weighing on them despite their efforts to pretend otherwise.
There were far more players than knights, but not all of the players gathered here were on Joney’s side.
And even if they had accepted Yuki’s proposal as the representative of the Outlaws and successfully reached an agreement, that wouldn’t suddenly turn them into allies.
Besides, even among people on the same side, opposing the Empire was another matter entirely.
In fact, quite a few people were already edging back from the battlefield at the sight of the knights.
“What should we do?”
“You’re asking the obvious.”
Yuki grinned.
“Obviously, we fight.”
“...Yuki, weren’t you with the Outlaws?”
“Something more fun showed up than the position I got stuck with. Why would that matter? I was just wondering how strong knights really are. This is perfect.”
“You crazy bitch!”
Fine hurriedly grabbed Yuki, who had already drawn her sword like she might charge at any second.
“If you do that, we’re all going to die...!”
“Why not take this chance to fall in love with the appeal of struggle.”
“No, crazy bitch!”
There was no question about it. This girl had been born in the wrong era.
Or maybe the wrong world.
That, at least, was what Fine thought as he desperately tried to restrain her.
“Logically speaking, retreating would be the right move...”
“Eh? We’re retreating?”
“...”
There was no way they could win.
The other side was made up of elite knights who had undergone professional training, while this side was a ragtag bunch without even a proper commander.
He had no idea how strong the knights were, but there was no way the knights of the Ro Arca Empire would be weak.
Joney bit her lip.
It was one thing to walk the path no one else had walked before, but was there any need to do it while making enemies of so many players and even crossing the Empire?
Memories from the past few days flashed through her head.
After Canaria had saved her life, there had been days spent huffing and puffing up the mountain to bring food.
She had been the one to say thank you, the one to promise she would repay the favor, but when there was no reaction at all, it had still been irritating.
And when Canaria taught her how to use a sword and gave her a name, she had been so deeply moved.
Joney realized something then.
“I’ll fight.”
She had meant to tame the fox, but the truth was that she had been the fox all along, not Canaria.
Some people might ask why she had grown attached over something so small, but to her, it wasn’t small at all.
She had wanted a relationship like this for a very long time, ever since she had lain in a hospital bed years ago.
And there was another reason, too.
“This happened because of me. Then it’s my responsibility to handle it. That’s what it means to be an adult.”
“Ooh, that’s cool.”
“Joney...”
Fine’s expression turned complicated as he looked at her.
“I won’t ask you to carry me, Fine. You’ve already helped me more than enough.”
“I’ll fight with you gladly.”
“Thank you, Yuki.”
She was a little strange, but her level was the highest among the players and she had the most combat experience. There was no more reassuring ally than Yuki.
“Damn it, seriously...”
Fine scratched his head hard, irritation plain on his face.
“Fine. I’ll fight too.”
“Are you sure? You might end up making the Empire your enemy.”
“I’d rather make the Empire my enemy than my viewers. At this point, I might as well turn this into a video and squeeze some views out of it.”
Being a streamer meant living off public sentiment.
You couldn’t let your viewers push you around blindly, but you also couldn’t ignore them completely. That was the job.
Even now, with how timid he was acting, the chat was probably already being flooded with “coward” and “loser.”
Along with the letter “chicken.”
So Fine’s indignant shout was only natural.
He might have had a rather pretty face, but his chromosomes were definitely XY, and “chicken” was a magical word no man born male could ever tolerate.
“Who’s a chicken? There’s only one chicken in my life, and that’s ramen!”
“Hah... lame...”
“You shut up!”
“From the look of things, you don’t intend to reflect on your sins.”
The commander said this while watching the trio of streamers banter like a comedy act.
Despite hearing words that openly challenged him, he didn’t seem particularly angry.
His attitude made it clear that, no matter how much the three of them schemed together, it would all be pointless.
“The foolish always refuse to see the glory of the black sun. Even when given a chance to realize their mistakes, they kick it away with their own feet.”
“I don’t know how glorious your precious black sun is, but I haven’t exactly done anything wrong.”
“Not knowing the glory of the black sun is itself a sin.”
Such arrogant words.
And yet, at the same time, they were words that showed the power of the Ro Arca Empire.
Within the Ardeena Continent, there was nowhere that could escape the Empire’s grasp.
“And to defend a criminal is to stand on the criminal’s side. As a knight who must protect justice, I cannot let that stand.”
“You keep saying criminal, criminal. Who are you calling a criminal?”
“Are you pretending not to know?”
The commander frowned.
“The final sword of Grasis. The Crimson Reaper. The monster who slaughtered countless Empire citizens.”
“...You mean Canaria?”
“Yes, yes, that was the name.”
The thought of a being strong enough to butcher players charging at her without so much as blinking, combined with her air of carrying some hidden burden, meant Joney had expected Canaria to be an extraordinary person.
But to the Empire, Canaria’s name seemed to carry even heavier meaning than Joney had imagined.
“The old ones tremble so hard they can barely even speak that name. They go on and on about how ‘if you call her name, the Reaper will come.’”
Thud.
He took a heavy step forward.
With a cloud of pale dust, the weight of that footfall struck the air like a hammer.
“But in the end, she’s nothing more than a grand title earned in war. Alone, she can do nothing. How hilarious is it that you’re all so frightened, huddling in fear!”
The commander extended an arm.
The black cloak trailing from his silver armor whipped violently behind him.
“Today, we hunt a monster. And we will cut off that monster’s head and show it to all of you. The creature you feared was only this much. We will clean out the rotting, decayed knight order and take its place. For a better Empire! For the glory of the black sun!”
“For the glory of the black sun!”
Bang!
The response thundered back after the commander’s cry.
The hundred knights slammed their swords down in perfect unison.
Even Yuki, who had been brimming with confidence all this time, took a step back and looked on with caution at their overwhelming presence.
“I’ll give you one last chance. Move aside now, and I’ll let this go.”
Ching!
“Is that so.”
Instead of an answer, swords, bows, staffs, and the like were drawn.
Those who had wanted to flee had already run, and the ones who remained were burning with fighting spirit.
Compared to before, there were far fewer of them.
On the other hand, some of the Outlaws had quietly moved to the knights’ rear, already preparing to join the fight.
They looked like they were hoping for a few scraps if they helped out.
Even if that wasn’t the case, they had no reason to back down now.
“Apostles don’t die, right? Then look carefully and carve it into your souls.”
Srrrk.
“The greatness of the Empire!”
The knights all drew their swords at once.
The situation was poised on a knife’s edge.
Unlike the relaxed expressions on the knights’ faces, the faces of what one might call the Canaria faction had stiffened.
Not one of them so much as moved, every body tense as they watched the knights’ every action.
But not everyone was like that.
“Haa... I can’t stand it anymore...!”
“Hey, you crazy bitch!”
Yuki twisted her body like someone desperate to pee.
Clutching a greatsword as big as her own body, she charged first.
That was the signal; the knights immediately formed up and rushed forward.
“Joney, get back!”
“Y-Yes!”
Fine, knowing full well how pitiful Joney’s combat ability was, hurriedly sent her behind the line.
Everyone here had gathered to help Joney.
Even if she could resurrect from the revive point, they judged that morale would collapse if she died.
“After this war ends, I’m going to confess to her.”
“Don’t plant a flag and focus!”
As the players wrapped their weapons in mana, the knights answered in kind, coating their swords and shields with mana too.
Unlike the players’ mana, which swayed unsteadily and flickered unevenly, the knights’ mana remained perfectly stable, not trembling once.
Even if their realms were the same, that didn’t mean their strength was.
That was the thought that flashed through her mind.
“Aaagh!”
A red line was drawn across the body of the swordsman who had bravely charged in.
The sword he had been knocked back from the shield with went flying from his grasp, and he vanished from this world before he could even recover it.
“Haaap!”
Whoosh!
With a heavy sound of air being cleaved, a greatsword flew toward the knight who had sent one swordsman reeling far away.
Could he block it with a sword?
After a moment’s hesitation, the knight used the shield in his other hand to stop the greatsword.
“Ghh...!”
A groan escaped the knight’s lips as the weight piled into his arm.
The woman before him was different from the others...!
He grit his teeth, realizing that after just one exchange.
“Ah... this feeling, like my blood’s boiling... I love it...”
With a crooked grin, Yuki kicked off the ground again.
Twisting her waist with all her strength, she turned her body and swung the greatsword in the same motion.
The enhancement from mana and the force of centrifugal swing combined to create a terrifying speed.
Once again, the knight could not meet her blade head-on.
When the knight took a step back, Yuki advanced one step. When he retreated again, she came after him once more.
At the sight of that pathetic display, as if he were being pushed back by nothing more than a mere Apostle, the commander clicked his tongue.
“Tsk. So useless.”
When they got back, he’d have to make them run a hundred laps around the parade ground.
The commander raised his sword.
Chill!
In that instant, a cold shiver ran down Yuki’s spine.
Feeling a chill like ice water had been poured down her back, she forcibly pulled her greatsword back and hurled herself away.
Slash!
“...!”
A sword aura flew through the spot where she had been standing a moment ago.
“Aaaagh!”
“What was that! What just flew at us!”
“Sword aura! Dodge it!”
Everything in a straight line from Yuki was severed in two.
One person clutched their arm and screamed.
Another vanished into a spray of light before they could even scream.
Others stared in horror at the comrades who had disappeared.
Joney’s eyes wavered at the catastrophe that had unfolded in an instant.
“He’s strong...”
The backlash from moving against nature came late.
Ignoring the protest of her creaking, screaming back as best she could, Yuki steadied her breathing.
“This might be a little rough.”
She had thought fighting nonstop had made her strong, but Yuki instinctively understood that she could not take the commander.
If he had been a boss bound by the system’s restraints, maybe she could have beaten him. But this wasn’t a raid or a boss fight. It was war.
In war, the weak did not survive.
Even after releasing a sword aura that split the very ground beneath their feet, the commander showed no sign of fatigue as he raised his blade again.
With a low, humming vibration, mana began gathering slowly.
When that mana fully condensed, another strike like the one before would be unleashed.
Focusing as hard as she could while watching the commander, Yuki’s eyes went wide.
The commander’s eyes were not on her.
“Duck!”
The end point of his gaze.
The one standing there was Joney.
Joney turned at Yuki’s frantic shout, but by then the commander’s arm was already slashing downward toward the ground.
Swiiish!
“...!”
A massive sword aura cut through the air.
Joney’s wide eyes caught the blade aura flying toward her.
I can’t dodge this—
As death drew near, time stretched long.
She could clearly see the sword aura rushing toward her own body.
But Joney, too, was caught inside that stretched time.
Her eyes slipped shut as she sensed her death.
One second, two seconds, three...
“...?”
Several seconds passed with her eyes squeezed shut, but no pain came.
Did I die before I even had time to feel it...?
She almost wished that were the case.
What if, the instant she opened her eyes, the incoming sword aura turned her into J/ney?
Shaking violently, Joney slowly opened her eyes.
The first thing she saw was pink.
Soft pink hair, like cherry blossoms, swayed gently, and a sweet fragrance lightly wrapped around her.
Next came a small body, maybe two head lengths shorter than Joney, wrapped in a shabby black cape.
A girl stood proudly in front of her, holding a sword that looked as though it might snap at any moment.
It was a form Joney had desperately wanted to see, yet had never once seen before. And still, by instinct alone, she knew who the girl was.
“Canaria...!”