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“I hate this! Why do I have to study when I’m playing games too!!”

The sound of a pencil bouncing off a desk echoed within Seyfert Castle. Kasumi had run out of patience, picking up a pile of papers… which had come from her notebook… and tore them apart.

“Well, we’ve been sitting here for two hours already, so it might be good enough.”
“Alright, time for a break everyone.”

Frey, who had taken the role of teacher, called a break and everyone in the room let out a sigh. Soon, Adonis brought some tea for everyone, realizing they were free. Everyone watched with anticipation as she served them.

“By the way, where did Hinagiku go?”

Lycoris suddenly asked that question after looking around. The only person there who did not have exams, Hinagiku, was missing.

“Hinagiku…if I had to hazard a guess, I’d say she’s roaming around Wyndham.”
“Around Wyndham? Why is she rushing alone into enemy territory?”

Hearing Crim, Setsuna reacted with confusion.
In response, Crim frowned and began massaging her temples, as if enduring a headache as she replied.

“Well, to start off, she’s still in elementary school, she’s younger than all of us, so she’s more protected against harassment by the system.”

If a player tried to harass an elementary schooler in-game without consent, the system would instantly kick them into a prison area managed by the game’s administrators, which was quite a harsh punishment.

But Crim and the rest were not the kind of players to exploit those features. Hinagiku had gone there of her own free will, which meant…

“And well…you know her, there’s only one thing she wants.”

Crim just looked far into the distance in resignation.

◇◇◇

Just next to the Starting Hill area, in the Caurelum Low Plateau.

Normally, that was a rather rural and peaceful area…which now was disturbed by the presence of an ill-meaning group of players.

“Umm, I’m sorry but we’re just trying to play with friends…!”

A girl wearing heavy armor and a shield stood covering four other girls, likely her party members, as they were surrounded by other players. There were stories about such groups, who pressured and forced new players into joining their guilds…

“Well, you do you. But it can be dangerous to play alone around here, there’s a lot of PKers hiding everywhere.”
“Yeah, that’s why you should join us so we can keep you safe. Come on, we’re trying to be kind here.”
“You know, we have a lot of friends around here, I could put in a word for you so they don’t do anything. We’ll keep you safe.”

…For now it just seemed like they were trying to force their will onto those girls, while still making it seem like they had the option of getting away. Then again, their smirks and tone of voice made it obvious they had other less friendly intentions, making anyone doubt their words.

But as they all wore high level gear, and the five girls were beginners, they could not break free by force. Then those men surrounding them began to step closer, and…

“…You just said PK, didn’t you?”

The voice of a young girl reached from the plateau.

Then there was a gust of wind, carrying with it blades of grass…and a swarm of mirage-like butterflies flew in and turned into a short figure, with large triangular ears and a fluffy tail.

That silver fox girl seemed to kneel down as she firmly gripped her sheathed tachi, her traditional dress swaying in the wind…giving her a mystical and cold appearance.

Everyone…both the men and the girls, stared bewitched at her…until she looked at them and revealed her eyes consumed by madness.

“H-Hieee…is that the PKK Hinagiku?!”
“You…you just mentioned a Player Killer, didn’t you…?!”

She slipped forward in an instant, appearing in front of one of the men, looking straight into his eyes as he shrieked in fear.

“W-Wait, it’s not me, I’m not a Player Killer. I was just talking about someone I know…!”
“It’s the same if you don’t condemn it.”

He tried to come up with excuses, but Hinagiku merely turned around and walked away, as if she had lost interest. That was followed by a faint metallic clink, which confused the man…until his entire body split apart vertically and vanished.

All that remained…were floating light particles.
No one there had been able to see the girl swing her blade.

…Those men were part of the Union that had declared war on the girl’s Union, so they were already considered enemies, so the girl did not turn into a Player Killer for her actions.

Realizing that, the Schwertrot gang stood frozen in fear, while the beginner girls watched in shock. The fox girl turned around once again.

“Now, let me ask again… What was it you said about Player Killers around here?”

She tilted her head in a cute manner, smiling at them.
But to those men and the beginner girls, that cute face was the same as a snickering grim reaper.

◇◇◇

“…And that’s probably happening right about now.”
“Is she some sort of yokai or what?”

After Crim narrated what she expected was happening, Setsuna interjected with her opinion. A distance away, Frey, Freya, and Kasumi just nodded astringently, sharing the same impression as Crim.

“…I feel like you’re leaving Hinagiku off the leash a bit too much lately, Crim. Are you sure you shouldn’t reign her in a bit?”
“No way, she’s too scary. If she ends up fighting me, I’ll just die instantly when she uses Endless Tachi with Blue Fire.”

Lycoris looked at Crim with concern, but she just shrugged and waved it aside. Maybe Crim could survive being grazed by it, but Blue Fire was a mix of fire element, holy element, and a lot of magic, all of which were Crim’s weaknesses.

“That’s what you’d call a natural predator…”
“I had no idea that there was someone who could defeat Crim so close by…”

Crim’s face clouded over as she muttered that, and Lycoris muttered in shock.

“But if your assumption is right, then what’s going to happen with those beginners…?”

Freya brought up an important point.

If they remained there, it was only a matter of time before another gang went to harass them, or maybe they would face an even worse fate now that the girls had a better idea of what was happening.

Hinagiku alone would not be able to keep all of them at bay either, and if the United Kingdoms sent a bigger force, they would be discovered much more easily, leading to a lot of fighting.

“There’s still some independent groups there that will smuggle them out safely. Blueline has been taking in a lot of refugees, but they could also end up with us.”
“Wait, why would the independent groups do that?”

Frey readjusted his glasses as he spoke, and Lycoris continued asking questions. After all, the independent groups had also lent their numbers when founding Schwertrot.

“It’s true that they’re part of Schwertrot now, but that doesn’t mean that their ideals align. There’s quite a few people who remained in those areas because they truly wanted to help beginners.”
“We’re secretly in contact with them, so there’s a lot of things going on behind the scenes.”
“I can’t believe it… When did you two start scheming like that?”

Freya looked at Crim and Frey with suspicion, but they shook their heads, as that was not their preferred way of acting.

“Actually we didn’t plan most of that. Elmir did the heavy lifting, since he’s already good at dealing with beginners, and White Lily arranged the rest.”
“So it was those two… That’s kind of incredible.”
“That I can agree with. We’ve been blessed to have allies like them.”

Freya was impressed by all that, and Crim nodded in agreement.