Gladiator vs. Villainess (3)

"There are far more monsters pouring out than I expected," I remarked, gazing up at the crimson rift hovering in the sky. Soon it flashed, and objects resembling shooting stars began plummeting toward the ground. Every one of them was a monster spewed forth by the gate.

"The longer we stall, the more dangerous this will become."

"Indeed."

"Let us divide our forces into two, Lady Lora." Cecilia spoke with calm resolve. "Please hold back the monsters. In the meantime, I will defeat the Monster of the Red Mist."

"What an intriguing strategy. Though I see two problems with it, my dear."

"What might they be?"

"First of all, do you truly believe I would be the one to face all those monsters?"

They were raining down like a meteor shower. Dozens. Perhaps hundreds.

"Could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you not stop all of them, Lady Lora?"

"You underestimate me far too much. Crushing them all beneath my feet would not even be difficult. But if you fail to slay the Monster of the Red Mist, I will be the one forced to suffer endlessly, will I not?"

The gate would not close until the Monster of the Red Mist was dead. That meant I would have to keep blocking the endless tide of monsters from the future.

"I am aware. That is precisely why I am asking you to hold them back, Lady Lora."

"Why?"

"Even though you have left the academy, there are still many who follow you, Lady Lora. Rallying the hidden survivors is something only you can do."

She had a point. Although the gate had swallowed the academy, many survivors remained. They were simply concealing themselves for now. There were few who could lead them.

The esteemed Crown Prince of this nation. The son of the Northern Archduke renowned throughout the north. The student council president who stood above all others. Aside from them, perhaps the academy's principal or instructors.

If none of them could function, then someone like me—the duke's daughter—could guide the survivors.

"If you cooperate with the survivors, I believe clearing out the monsters will be possible."

"I suppose so."

"And Lady Lora, the second problem you have not yet mentioned is this, is it not? Whether this Cecilia Blonny de Allenmis will be killed by the Monster of the Red Mist."

Cecilia rose from her wheelchair. Finding the dress skirt cumbersome, she tore it away, then sliced off the sleeves with equal decisiveness. She drew the greatsword that had been resting behind the wheelchair.

"If I die, then that simply means that was the extent of my worth. A mere, insignificant human who could not overcome her trial."

With the greatsword resting on her shoulder, Cecilia began walking into the distance.

"We shall only know once our blades cross. Whether I will slay the Monster of the Red Mist and devour the trial, or whether this Cecilia Blonny de Allenmis will be devoured by the Monster of the Red Mist and become a trial that only makes it stronger."

"Cecilia."

"If I perish, Lady Lora, you may return to the duchy. Thank you for helping me this far. Even should I lose my life, I will never forget this kindness and will repay it."

Leaving those words behind, Cecilia departed.

Even with one leg severed, another still remained. She swung her sword while balancing on one foot. But Lora had no intention of allowing it. She charged in, attempting to shatter her center of gravity. Rinko gritted her teeth and held on, yet the price was brutal. One arm flew away. Still, something remained. She swung her remaining leg. The leg was severed, and before she knew it, only one arm was left.

'…I can't win.'

From the moment her trump card—the falling attack—ended in failure, Rinko's spirit had already been broken. The only reason she continued attacking was inertia. What that inertia was for, even she herself did not fully understand. She simply swung and kicked at random. Attacks made without heart or thought could never succeed.

Thoroughly. She had been destroyed with utter thoroughness.

Or perhaps she had been broken from the very beginning.

"This time, I'll definitely stop MadMask."

"While I do that, Narim breaks through the enemy main force."

The words her past self had spoken came back to her without a single syllable out of place. In truth, even as she said them, she had known. That she could neither defeat MadMask nor stop him.

Whether it had been stubbornness, pride, the same inertia as today, or professional consciousness as a VTuber. She had refused to acknowledge what she needed to acknowledge, and the price had been brutal.

"It's a wall."

Along with the word Defeat, Rinko was ejected into the waiting room and muttered to herself.

She had felt it from her very first fight with MadMask. That she was nothing more than an ordinary person who happened to know a little about games. Pro gamers existed on another dimension entirely, and rather than reaching that wall, she had fallen before it.

The overwhelming majesty of the wall she felt back then. The guilt toward her teammates she felt back then.

To herself, whose passion had burned away until nothing remained, what was she supposed to do now? Did victory even hold meaning anymore? There was no way she could win with such an empty shell.

She had already lost to Aurora in her heart. The third round would undoubtedly end in defeat as well.

With vacant eyes, Rinko read the text for what would be the final third round.

How should she decorate the finale? How should she hand over the position of EYEAI's representative Labyrinthos VTuber to Aurora? Those were the only thoughts that came to mind.

Getting all her limbs severed like before wouldn't be so bad. Being thoroughly destroyed might actually make it easier to let everything go.

Thinking that, Rinko moved to lock in the Gladiator—

"Why did you cut off all my limbs?"

Rinko stopped her click at the last moment.

She would have won even without doing something like that. Setting aside the single leg, was there really a need to destroy her so thoroughly, piece by piece? She could have simply taken the throat or pierced the heart.

At the very end, because she had given up, she must have been full of openings.

Question after question. After thinking for a short while, Rinko placed a Discord call to Aurora.

Senior. Aurora had been calling her that since the moment they met. She had dropped formalities with Sora almost immediately, so why was she so polite with her? Even while thinking she could not understand it, Rinko voiced her question.

"Why ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠did you finish me so thoroughly at the end? You could have won without cutting off my limbs, couldn't you? Ah, I'm not angry. I'm simply curious."

Rinko spoke quickly. Aurora replied in a perfectly calm voice.

"Do you remember when Sora cried earlier?"

"……?"

Sora? Why was Sora's name coming up now?

"When the winter team won? That's why she was automatically logged out of the VR capsule."

"Why do you think she cried?"

"Well… because it was moving?"

"I believe it was because she took it seriously. If one ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠does not approach something with sincerity, the emotion will not follow."

That was true. But what did that have to do with this…?

"So I simply took it seriously as well. That way it is more fun, don't you think?"

"Hmm…"

Now that she thought about it, even though Aurora seemed reckless, she was actually a very thorough person. The type who, once she judged herself to have the advantage, saw no need to take unnecessary risks. Since she could win simply by chipping away at her opponent, there was no reason to overextend and give them a chance to turn the tables.

That was why this woman was strong. She was not particularly defensive. Every action carried calculation, and she possessed a brilliant mind that accurately weighed gains and losses.

That must be why she received so many misunderstandings.

At any rate, Rinko understood the message. Even after destroying Kisaki Rinko to the limit, Aurora had not let her guard down until the very end.

"I see. Thank you for answering."

Rinko ended the call with Aurora.

Once again, she faced the character selection screen. Staring at the Gladiator's portrait, Rinko sat in a daze for a moment.

"…How unsightly of me."

Perhaps she should not have listened to that story. The fact that Aurora had not let her guard down was not particularly surprising. To Rinko, Aurora seemed like a perfect superhuman.

However, the part where Aurora had used Sora as an example weighed heavily on her mind. In an instant, she began to feel utterly pathetic.

Ayanokouji Sora. A junior who had only debuted about a month ago. Compared to the other sixth-generation members, she showed some bold qualities, but to a first-generation member like Rinko, she still seemed somewhat inexperienced.

In truth, that was normal. It was Aurora who was unusual for never being intimidated even by her seniors.

Honestly, Rinko had been looking down on Sora. No matter how much teaching Aurora had given her, how well could Sora possibly play Labyrinthos? The preparation period had only been about a month.

At least Anna had some prior experience with Labyrinthos before receiving Aurora's guidance, hadn't she? But Sora had been a complete blank slate without even that foundation.

So Rinko had thought Sora might drag the team down.

Yet the results spoke for themselves. The winter team had won. She had approached the competition more seriously than anyone, and the moment she won, she burst into tears and was automatically logged out of the VR.

The juniors are better than me.

"I'm supposed to be the senior, though."

The mutter slipped from her lips.

"Yes… So that's what it was…"

And then she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠realized.

Why Kisaki Rinko was standing here.

How Kisaki Rinko should live from now on.

What remained for Kisaki Rinko.

What meaning Kisaki Rinko held.

"……"

Her fingers trembled. It was hesitation laced with fear. It felt just a little like having a nightmare.

"…Because I'm the senior."

With a sigh, Rinko clicked. Trickster locked in.

There was a first VTuber. Seeing that first VTuber's success, people who wanted to become VTubers appeared. Those known as the Four Heavenly Kings of VTubing emerged. They established their own agencies to represent the industry and guide their juniors. All of that was now in the past.

The era of 3D VTubers that had dominated the times came to an end, and the age of Live2D VTubers arrived. Due to profitability issues, many 3D VTubers chose to retire. The VTubers once called the Four Heavenly Kings vanished one by one. Even the very first VTuber ceased all activity.

The VTubers who had walked this path first disappeared amid countless failures and hardships, yet the VTubing industry continued onward.

-Tap. -Tap.

Footsteps echoed through the dark underground waterway. When Rinko slightly opened her eyes, she could see red glowing eyes watching her from afar.

"Senior Rinko?"

As if questioning why Rinko was simply standing there doing nothing, Aurora called her name.

In Rinko's heart as she looked at Aurora, a sliver of fear resurfaced.

It was a wall. The wall she had crashed into in the past without being able to overcome it. She knew it instinctively. Just like with MadMask, she would not be able to defeat Aurora.

But none of that mattered anymore. Winning or losing held no meaning.

"You may not know this, Aurora, but in this industry, many people become VTubers because they admire someone. Are you aware of that?"

Aurora nodded.

"Anna was that kind of case."

"She was. She said she liked Rui, didn't she?"

Rinko let out a small laugh. Last year they had been in the same league and interacted with each other.

It was rather absurd. There was a perfectly respectable VTuber named Rinko in the same company, yet Anna admired a VTuber from another agency.

"I wonder if there were people who became VTubers because they admired me."

"There must have been."

"Then, was I a VTuber worthy of their respect?"

"I believe so. At the very least, I think one could respect me far more than someone like Aynatz."

"Is Aynatz already being referred to as 'someone like'?"

Well, it was understandable. She deserved that kind of treatment.

"I want to be called a good senior to all of you. A senior who could serve as a role model."

"……"

"You will all become someone's senior someday. Next year, the seventh generation might join us."

Those who were once great VTubers fade beyond the horizon of the era. Yet it was precisely because of those who came before that the VTubers who shine in the present were born.

The commonplace phrase "Seniors guide their juniors" could also be rephrased as "Seniors become the nourishment for their juniors."

Rinko pulled with her left hand.

-Shiiing!

Blood burst from Aurora's left arm. Because Aurora reacted instantly, it did not become a severe wound, but it was no minor injury either. She clearly had not expected it—that Rinko would pick the Trickster.

"Have you ever played Labyrinthos in story mode?"

When Rinko stroked her fingers, piano wire slid into her palm. She had predicted Aurora's approach and set up piano wires and traps throughout the area, then pulled them to slice Aurora's arm.

"In story mode, the gladiator said this: Anything that cannot kill me is merely a trial."

Rinko put away the piano wire and adjusted her grip on the sword in her right hand. Whip-sword. The Trickster's primary weapon.

"──From now on, I am your trial."

Aurora. Either devour me and rise to greatness. Or be crushed by the trial and die.

Now, only one thing remains for me.

That I am your senior.