Chapter 32: The RoFan Female Lead is Strong (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 32: The RoFan Female Lead is Strong (2)
“If someone were to ask me what I’ve left behind in this world, I would say with confidence: I created my masterpiece, Daisy.”
Did she get hit in the head with a spell during the practical exam?
Watching Violet spout such nonsense out of nowhere, I threw a single question back at her.
“Did you lose too?”
“How am I supposed to win against that?!”
I guess she lost.
Was this brat really a one-trick pony with her sorcery?
“I mean, how is that a Saintess?! If she picked up a Holy Sword, she could instantly change classes to a Hero!”
Of course, even putting that aside, Daisy’s performance had been insane.
“Are there Heroes and Holy Swords in this world too?”
“No. The Goddess is so incompetent she probably doesn't have the power to make stuff like that.”
This girl really has a knack for saying things that invite divine retribution.
Seeing as she’s still alive and kicking, though, maybe the Goddess really is incompetent.
“It’s a total mess.”
I’d heard the Magic Department, having lost face after the terror incident, was chanting slogans about toppling the Swordsmanship Department.
But this time, it was a total defeat.
My 'I-Survived-the-Sword-Emperor' trophy crumbled before Daisy’s 52-game winning streak.
“How did she actually do it?”
Honestly, I didn't even think Ellen could pull that off.
It wasn't even a system where the winner picks the next opponent; challengers stepped up voluntarily after assessing the winner's condition.
In that process, a bunch of high-ranking students, fired up by Daisy’s streak, challenged her and got systematically crushed.
“Divine power is such a cheat.”
Violet, one of the losers, muttered as if making an excuse.
Well, it is a cheat.
Using a power meant for backline support to fight while constantly self-healing?
Since that power was already extraordinary, she’d become a broken character who could deal, tank, and provide utility all at once.
“How did the Demon King even kidnap Daisy in the original work?”
To kidnap that Daisy...
My estimation of the Demon King, who hadn't even appeared yet, shot up.
“Part of it was that Daisy was weaker in the original, but he’s also the final boss—the strongest in the world.”
Violet, the leader of the anti-Demon King faction, frowned but simply replied that the Demon King was supposed to be that level.
“I thought you said he was weaker than Ellen.”
“In terms of pure swordsmanship, yes. But in terms of overall combat power, the Demon King is stronger.”
“Then why does he run away?”
“Even if his overall abilities are superior, it’s a toss-up if they actually fight. If they fought ten times, the Demon King might win seven, but he could still lose three.”
I suppose, looking at it objectively, Ellen in the original was the strongest swordsman in humanity, but his official title was just a Prince of Leon.
Considering the current Sword Emperor, Ellen would have a lot of influence over humanity.
Trading his life to take down the Demon King—the leader and heart of the Demon Tribe—would be a profitable deal for humans.
“Plus, there’s the power of love, friendship, and justice.”
What kind of nonsense was this now?
“If Ellen holds him off, the protagonist’s party comes in to gank him.”
“Ah.”
Right, ganking was the protagonist party’s special privilege.
Attacking a single final boss with a whole group while preaching about justice is common sense!
“But isn't it the same for the Demon Tribe?”
The Demon King is the King of Demons.
If their King is getting jumped, would the other demons just stand by?
“Humans have the advantage in numbers.”
Apparently, due to the effects of RoFan-style turn-based combat, all the useful demons show their faces and get killed by the protagonist’s party before the Demon King even makes his grand entrance.
Of course, the Great Generals and a few other powerhouses remain.
“By that point, the other races start sending reinforcements too.”
Through treaties with the Empire, the other races—who were living perfectly fine on their own—realize the world is screwed and eventually join the demon subjugation.
It seemed they could be used as a sort of containment force.
“There are no male lead candidates among the other races, right?”
“There was one Elf they were testing out, but the reaction was bad, so they suddenly gave him a fiancée.”
Thinking of Prince Esid, having a fiancée didn't necessarily stop a male lead from losing his mind over the heroine, but since the fiancée appeared right after the "testing phase," it felt reliable.
“Was the author really that sensitive to reader feedback?”
“If they were, would they have suddenly gone with a 'Demon King kidnaps the heroine' plot?! He was just a throwaway character they briefly tested, that’s all.”
I could see her grudge against the author in the way she ground her teeth.
They say the scariest thing is a fan turning into a hater.
“Anyway, unless there’s a variable, there’s no cross-species romance.”
And since that 'variable' likely referred to the two of us, it meant as long as we didn't create one, the other races were safe.
“So you’re saying there is romance that transcends national borders.”
“Isn't the world already overflowing with it?”
In the end, humans were the problem.
“Still, after this incident, those numbers should drop significantly.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Excluding her family background, Daisy is a woman with the best specs. She’s kind, beautiful, a Saintess, and surrounded by impressive men.”
She had the perfect conditions to be the 'flower on the cliff' often spoken of in RoFans.
“But her family background lowered the height of that cliff significantly.”
Daisy’s family was a mere Baronetcy.
And a rural one at that.
Because of that, quite a few people thought, 'Maybe even I have a shot?'
There were also plenty of people just trying to get on her good side.
“There’s no loss if it fails. If it works, you get a Saintess and connections to the continent’s most influential people.”
A 'nothing to lose, everything to gain' mindset.
Amateurs who didn't know the danger of a RoFan heroine had approached her like that.
It seemed our 'Boradori' had been busy fending off those idiots out of a sense of duty to save their lives.
“You’ve lived a busy life.”
“The scariest part is that now is actually the most relaxed I've been.”
Well, technically, this was still the early part of the RoFan's introduction.
Even if one big early-game incident had occurred, the events of the first year were light compared to what was coming in the future.
“Anyway, there were a lot of annoying guys sticking to her. But thanks to Daisy going wild this time, the atmosphere has changed.”
The reason so many guys took a 'why not' shot at Daisy was largely due to her personality.
She was genuinely kind and the type to socialize with everyone regardless of status.
Since she was a noble from the countryside herself, it wasn't strange that she didn't care about the status gap with commoners.
But she also treated the Empire’s royalty, foreign royalty, and high-ranking nobles no differently than commoners.
“But the vibe of a 'Kind Yoo J-suk' is different from a 'Kind Kang H-dong'.”
“That analogy makes perfect sense!”
After these final exams, Daisy was no longer perceived as a kind and fragile Saintess, but as a monster who could take on a squad-level force by herself if pushed.
Her personality hadn't changed, but those who saw her in action found it hard to treat her as they usually did.
“The problem is that even Esid is acting like that!”
Violet looked miserable.
Her boss was pushing the Minor Sword Emperor, but she hadn't given up on the Esid stock.
Now that Prince Esid had voluntarily challenged Daisy and lost like a dog, she was worried about her stock crashing.
“Why did he even challenge her?”
“I guess he wanted to show off his cool side.”
Seeing her grumble about him doing something unnecessary, I could pretty much guess what happened.
Between Asran and Esid, it seemed the ones who moved first were the ones who lost out. In this world, the one who stayed still had the highest chance of taking the lead.
In fact, Prince Arwen, the king of the Magic Spammers, had waited until Daisy was defeated before he started challenging people. He appeared much later, swept everyone remaining, and achieved a solid record of 17 consecutive wins.
“So your score goes up just by staying still. Should I make Prince Ellen do something too?”
“Actually, during summer vacation—!”
“Good luck with that.”
I shut down Violet, who was blatantly trying to shove Prince Ellen into the Holy Kingdom travel party, and thought about the upcoming schedule.
Since finals were over, classes would be light.
The Sword Emperor seemed busy with something, so I wouldn't have to act as a sandbag for a while.
“Usually, that’s when something blows up.”
“Shut up.”
Violet, who was destined to suffer in the Holy Kingdom, spat a curse at me, but I ignored it.
Surely, something wouldn't just happen here like in a novel.
“I didn't know back then. That right before vacation...! Gwah!”
I punished the top of Violet’s head for providing that cursed narration, but a lingering sense of unease remained.
The day of the break ceremony.
Fortunately, nothing had happened until today.
But I didn't let my guard down.
It was a law of RoFan that something always happens at the very last moment.
For example, Prince Ellen, blinded by the RoFan heroine, could run away on the day of the ceremony to join her party.
“Then, I’ll just go say goodbye to the Flower Arrangement Club...”
Watching Ellen say he’d go greet his club mates after the ceremony.
“Execute.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Who are you?”
I initiated the prepared operation.
Operation Name: Homecoming.
“Wait, hold on!”
“Don't move. You might lose a limb if you do.”
Seeing the light envelop our bodies, Ellen looked panicked.
“You said we were going back by carriage!”
“The dispatched knights will return by carriage. They’ll bring the luggage too.”
Teleport.
Casting it without preparation like this was expensive, but I could minimize the cost with short-range teleports.
“...Where are we now?”
“A Magic Tower.”
“So it’s not a one-shot deal...”
“Did you think it would be?”
Magic feels omnipotent, but because of that, every corner of the Empire has countermeasures against teleportation.
Could one teleport directly from the Academy, the heart of the Empire, all the way to Leon?
“We have to transfer five more times.”
“No, if it’s going to be like this, we should have just taken the carriage...”
Not a chance.
It costs a lot, but isn't this exactly why teleportation exists?
“It just shows how much the Queen is waiting for you.”
“Now I want to go even less...”
“Tell me if you feel motion sick.”
Taking the miserable Prince Ellen with me, we spent a long time hopping from Magic Tower to Magic Tower.
Just as my head was starting to feel a bit fuzzy from the continuous mana interference.
“Let’s fight!”
The moment we arrived at the Royal Magic Tower, Princess Hestia was there waiting with a declaration of war. I finally felt like I was back home.
#1 Holy Kingdom Correspondent, Codename Boradori.
This damn black company has terrible support.
I mean... they do pay the salary on time.
And they give good bonuses!
But sometimes, I wish they’d dispatch some manpower instead of just giving money.
“It’s my first time going to the Holy Kingdom.”
Beside me, a pair of sparkling eyes were filled with anticipation.
The Holy Kingdom.
The nation of the Goddess, which influenced countless other countries.
It was a place that housed numerous religious relics, including the Holy Land.
A place visited by countless pilgrims and tourists every year.
The heart of the religion where the Pope, Cardinals, and Holy Knights lived.
Because of that, most people thought of the Holy Kingdom as a sacred place.
And in a way, that was true.
The place might be sacred, but the people were not.
Rather, it was a place full of trash who used the young Pope as a figurehead to use religion for politics.
“I’m so excited!”
I know that those pure eyes will soon be dyed with disappointment.
Even knowing that, I couldn't stop Daisy.
I already knew the original plot was ruined, but I couldn't just let the Holy Kingdom fall further into ruin.
Besides, my damn boss, Mr. Adam, told me to go suffer if I wanted to get paid.
“I guess so...”
And so, even knowing the miserable future that awaited me, I had no choice but to go on this overseas business trip with tears in my eyes.