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As Lua Cheia made their rounds across the first floor of the dungeon, they frequently came across areas where the tentacles had begun to multiply dangerously.

But they couldn’t afford to linger too long in any one place. Crim quickly made a call—those who took longer to reposition, like Freya and Jade, would move ahead to the next locations, while she stayed behind to clear out the current area before catching up.

…For some reason, she chose to keep only Kasumi with her.

◇◇◇

“Crim really is incredible… it’s not like she even needs me here.”

Kasumi was breathing heavily, leaning on her weapon like a makeshift cane. Her arms ached after cutting through five tentacles, her hands beginning to go numb. She still didn’t understand why Crim had asked her to stay. Crim was slicing through tentacles with ease—her tally easily five times higher than Kasumi’s.

It made her feel useless, like her presence wasn’t contributing at all.

“Well… I’ll just have to do my best.” She gave herself a light slap on the cheeks to shake off her doubts and readied her weapon once more—

“Ah… Kyah?!” The ground beneath her trembled. A fresh wave of tentacles erupted around her in an instant.

Crim noticed and changed direction immediately—but she was too far away.

“No…!” Kasumi braced herself, closing her eyes, expecting the worst—

“…?”
“There, are you alright? You’re from Lua Cheia, aren’t you?”
“Ah… The Hero?”
“Please, don’t call me that.”

It was the Dragonblood Hero, Suzaku, who had come to her rescue. He looked visibly annoyed by the title Kasumi used. It was pure coincidence that he happened to be nearby. When Kasumi opened her eyes, she saw him standing with his back turned, the severed tentacles twitching at his feet.

Realizing what had just happened, she quickly bowed.

“Ah, umm… thank you for saving me!”
“D-Don’t mention it. I just happened to be passing through.”
“B-But I… I’m always causing the Demon Lord so much trouble, and no matter how much time passes, I keep being dead weight and— owie?!”

She flinched as something tapped her forehead. Suzaku had flicked her.

“Has anyone ever told you that you take things too seriously?”
“…Huh?”
“Your Demon Lord is charging ahead so you can watch and learn, yeah? So take the time to actually observe.”
“Ah…”

That… made sense.

Kasumi had been so obsessed with trying to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Crim and the others that she’d never stopped to consider the proper way to grow.

With nothing else to add, Suzaku turned and dashed toward Crim’s position.

Kasumi watched him go, mulling over his advice. He was right. She was in the best position to learn—right beside the person she admired most. So she focused, closely watching how Crim weaved through tentacle after tentacle with breathtaking grace.

…Huh? Now that I’m paying attention… I can actually follow her movements. Back when we trained together, everything was just a blur… Does that mean I’ve gotten stronger?

But she quickly corrected herself.

No… It’s not that I’ve gotten stronger— It’s that Crim fights with a very specific rhythm.

She was finally able to grasp the tempo of Crim’s combat. She still couldn’t follow every detail, but now she could see the flow—the way circular movements built into chains, how footwork transformed those rotations into straight-line thrusts.

What once looked like chaotic spinning was actually a carefully choreographed dance, each motion flowing seamlessly into the next. The trick was in eliminating unnecessary pauses and making each transition as smooth as possible.

And then it hit her—Crim wasn’t just reacting. She was thinking several steps ahead.

That’s amazing… But if I tried something like that, I’d probably twist my ankle or—ah.

She caught herself again. That was only true in the real world. Crim had said it before—this world ignored real-world physics. Reaction force, poor posture—it could all be dismissed here. That had been a hint all along.

Translating a circular movement into a straight thrust was something impossible in the real world, which was why Kasumi had never attempted it in-game either. But now, she decided to give it a try.

She wound up, then kicked off the ground with such force it would’ve left her feet completely bruised in real life. A loud burst echoed—like a small explosion erupting from beneath her foot.

And then, in an instant, she was propelled forward with such speed that it felt like she had teleported straight to the tentacle she had been aiming at.

“Kyah…?!”

The sudden burst of speed caught her off guard, but she quickly recovered and swung her halberd. It had a massive blade mounted on top—Barzai’s Scimitar, an extremely rare weapon she had obtained from one of the dungeon’s raid bosses.

Her momentum carried the weapon cleanly through the tentacle, slicing it apart far more easily than she had expected.

So this is it… This is the true power of my character in this world!

She replayed the moment in her mind, a thrill rushing through her body as her heart pounded with excitement.

“This… this feels so fun…!”

Quickly scanning her surroundings, she spotted another—no, a whole group of tentacles. Holding her halberd to the side, she launched herself forward like an arrow, sprinting at full speed.

It was in that moment she finally realized just how much she had been holding herself back with the limitations of the real world. Here, in this game, she had far more freedom than she had ever dared to imagine.

“…Assault Buster!!”

She called out the name of a skill, causing her weapon to glow and leave behind a trail of light as it tore through every tentacle in her path.

So this is the world the Ditzy Lord and Hinagiku always live in!

Once she understood how to start moving, the world suddenly felt so much wider—so much more alive.

Until now, her time in this world had felt restrained and bleak. She hadn’t realized how many barriers could be cast aside. It was refreshing. Exhilarating. Liberating.

“Ahahah… This is so much fun… This is the best!!”

It was like she had been released from invisible chains, her laughter echoing wildly as she rampaged through the tentacles.

◇◇◇

“…And there goes another of Lua Cheia’s tanks…”

Crim muttered under her breath as she watched the class president go full throttle, dashing through the battlefield while letting out bursts of giddy laughter.

She had noticed Kasumi’s potential the moment she joined the guild. The only issue was her personality—so bound to the rules and logic of reality that she lacked the confidence to explore beyond them.

“Sorry, Demon Lord. Was it a mistake to intervene?”

The voice came from Suzaku, who was nearby, cutting down tentacles with mechanical ease. Crim simply shrugged and shook her head.

“No… In fact, I’m grateful. It seems I wasn’t the best teacher for her.”
“I figured as much.”
“What?! Thou didst not even attempt to deny it! Why doth everyone slander me with such little hesitation these days?!”

She pouted in protest but couldn’t take her eyes off Kasumi, who had transformed into a whirlwind of destruction.

The oversized halberd Kasumi used was typically seen as a safe weapon—ideal for keeping enemies at a distance. When paired with a shield, it served tanks well. But when used aggressively, without defensive support, it turned into a weapon of brutal precision.

It was often a secondary weapon for tank players like Nord Glacier’s Ernesta, but much more common among frontline attackers like Sara.

Now, Kasumi had found her calling as one of them. It was almost hard to believe this was the same class president from before. But Crim couldn’t have been happier to see her discover her own play style.

“She hath ever been a diligent lass, and so ne’er did she frequent arcades before. Would it be too great a trouble to teach her some fighting games as well, Suzaku?”
“That might actually help… could improve her reaction and reading skills against live opponents.”
“Yes. She still has many more barriers to break through.”

Crim smiled gently, but then her expression shifted as she glanced around. There were barely any tentacles left nearby.

“Looks like this area’s cleared. Let’s meet again for the final battle.”
“Got it. Good luck until then. All to protect her— …Eh, forget it. That stuff’s not really my style.”
“Seriously? Like it or not, the title of Hero is thine… ’tis thou who ought to be leading this…”

Suzaku gave a nonchalant shrug, which only deepened Crim’s exasperation. But there was no time to waste. With a sigh, she turned and dashed off to regroup with her guild.

This time, Kasumi followed behind—moving faster than ever, and keeping pace with Crim without missing a single step.

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