Otherworld TRPG Game Master

265 – Tail Catching -5

A truly chilling silence fell.

-Beep. Beep beep.

Pop! Pop! Pop!

“Ahhh! Ahhh!”

Everyone stopped fighting and stared at the scene. The mad sorcerer, curled up like a bug, was in a humiliating situation, being thoroughly beaten by the cleaning golem.

“Help! Someone help! Yuli! Yuna! Senpai!”

-Beep beep beep!

“………….”

“………….”

The cleaning golem flashed a fierce red light, swinging the duster aggressively. With every swish, the mad sorcerer’s dust was swept away along with his sanity.

But the one whose sanity was shaken the most was the “Corpse Flower.”

Surely, the magic had been completed properly…?

It had been a preparation of 300 years. She had verified it to the point of obsession to prevent any mistakes or accidents, confirming that it had functioned normally right up to the very last moment.

—

Then, I must accept the unbelievable fact that the mad wizard’s fear is the cleaning golem. Really?

No, seriously.

I’ve seen the sword master wielding his blade in front of me. I’ve seen him create a sea of bones right before my eyes. I’ve heard that the head of the capital’s knight order has seen him too.

The strongest beings of the continent, those who have seen it all, are genuinely terrified deep down inside by… the cleaning golem?

Really?

“Oppa, why are you getting beaten up… ? Can’t you just shoot a flame spear or something?”

“No, it won’t work, nothing gets through to that guy… he’s invincible!”

Right now, because of the learned fear, I’m even giving up on resistance?

Isn’t it truly the one who should be screaming and pleading in mental agony, the corpse flower that has turned into a cleaning golem over 300 years? She trembled with a sense of injustice she had never felt in her life.

Moreover, beside me, things were getting worse. Bennett was grinding his teeth and entering a state of awakening.

“Are you trying to insult Abraham’s death? ‘Corpse Flower’, you won’t die peacefully.”

Why are you suddenly angry? Who is Abraham?

Why is there light coming from the sword?

“… ‘Corpse Flower’, what’s going on? You said we could win!”

“Shut up, Faceless. I’m confused too…”

Don’t look at me with that expression as if to say that after 300 years of research, it all comes down to a cleaning golem. Think logically. It can’t be.

The words of ‘The Snare’, which said that matters involving mad wizards generally turn into a mess, flashed through the mind of the ‘Corpse Flower’. Right, it wasn’t about casting spells on a lunatic.

Even if it was somewhat dangerous, it should have been used on a reliable figure like the purple tower master…

No, now I wasn’t even sure of that. If I cast ‘Summon Fear’ on the purple tower master, it wouldn’t be strange if a flying bundle of spaghetti came out.

Beyond the horizon of common sense lay a chilling unknown.

And the time wasted in the shock of the unknown was fatal.

Splat. Splat, ugh-!

Kaaang-!

The space burst open, and the great wizard descended alongside dragons, tigers, and all manner of illusions.

The purple light quietly shining beneath the pointed hat was filled with unmistakable malice and determination.

Even a brush against it would mean wisdom would fly away in handfuls permanently.

I must prepare. It’s coming.

“Subtract.”

“Bone Wall!”

—

The army of the dead weaves together to form a barrier. While “Subtraction” possesses considerable penetrating power regarding magic, it cannot pierce through thick matter.

However, unlike other illusionists, she also wields formidable physical strength.

“『Illusion Realm: Giant’s Fist』.”

Kaga-gaga-gak-!

From the cracks of the shattered space, a colossal hand reached out, sweeping away the resurrected dead. As effortlessly as brushing away a sandcastle with an arm.

A flash of light flickered once more from the tip of the finger that the master lightly raised. At the same time, an arm, easily exceeding ten meters in size, prepared to smash the ground with a clenched fist.

If “Subtraction” is used as a shield, one would be crushed under the fist.

If one expends energy to block the fist, death awaits if “Subtraction” finds an opening.

Had she not cast “Nightmare Summon,” she might have had some leeway, and could have somehow dragged the unfavorable battle on. But right after casting the grand spell, there was no room to maneuver.

And the sea of bones she could manipulate was blocked by Sishel Yurensto.

If that mad sorcerer regains their senses here…

On the brink of life and death, “Corpse Flower” calmly organized her thoughts. To survive here, she must certainly give up what needs to be sacrificed. Forgetting the regret, she must do what must be done.

She could escape. The reason she was able to respond to Faceless’s call was that she possessed an artifact capable of long-distance teleportation.

Overloading the artifact, she activated it immediately. A blue light enveloped “Corpse Flower” and Faceless. Though she couldn’t specify coordinates due to the emergency activation, as long as she could escape this spot, it didn’t matter.

Let’s promise for the next time. She always had a next time.

At that moment.

Through the gap of the beam and the giant’s fist, Benet appeared.

The purple mage was startled, quickly altering the trajectory of “Subtraction.” Was it an unsanctioned charge? A mere warrior’s charge could have been brushed aside in an instant, with a counterattack to follow…

“『Corpse Flower』, I won’t let you escape──!!”

Kiiiiiing-!

That sword. A sword that radiates light felt dangerously ominous.

“Corpse Flower” immediately shoved Faceless’s back.

She could see her eyes widen in shock. It was amusing. Isn’t it only natural to discard the worthless in a dire situation?

Swoosh-!

Faceless hastily summoned her magic to defend, but Benet’s desperate strike cleaved through her torso.

“Ah…!!”

Her scream could not carry to the end. The teleportation magic activated, and she was whisked away somewhere, gravely wounded. She had excellently fulfilled her role as a shield.

At the same time, “Corpse Flower’s” form began to blur. It was an escape. She would flee like this and repay this humiliation tenfold…

Crackle.

Sparks flew in the flow of magic, delaying the teleportation spell.

—

“⋯⋯Did you really think you could call forth my fear and then run away?”

“⋯⋯Interfere until the end!”

He was a mad sorcerer.

While being pummeled by the cleaning golem, he had disrupted my magic.

And the second strike. Bennett’s sword came at me, unwavering, aimed at the ‘Corpse Flower.’ Was he planning to cleave my sister’s body in one blow? No, that couldn’t be.

Was there a way to leave the body intact and only sever the soul of the ‘Corpse Flower’?

From noble mtl dot com

It was a loss. A tremendous loss, but⋯⋯ it had to be sacrificed. I had to abandon my body. It was far better than facing death here. The ‘Corpse Flower’ muttered in despair.

“Fine, Bennett. I had no intention of keeping my promise, but⋯⋯ you insist on taking it. I’ll return it to you.”

I changed the target of the teleportation magic. Instead of the body, I limited it to the soul. With the amount of data to be transmitted reduced, the casting time was drastically shortened.

Leaving the body behind, only the soul escaped.

In that fleeting moment, the ‘Corpse Flower’ left behind a final curse.

“Bennett⋯⋯ you’ve won, so enjoy a brief happiness with your sister. But, how long will that truly last?”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯!!”

Pop.

Bennett’s sword halted just before me, and at the same time, the teleportation was complete.

Slowly, green liquid seeped from the ‘Corpse Flower’s’ hair. It regained its original color, a slightly lighter, silken gray than Bennett’s.

The ‘Fear-Eating Corpse Flower’ had escaped from my sister’s body.

Like a puppet with its strings cut, the woman’s body crumbled. Bennett gently accepted his sister’s body and carefully laid her on the ground. Though weak, it was undoubtedly a living body.

Bennett had finally reclaimed everything he had lost.

The battle against the dark sorcerer that had taken place in a remote forest had come to an end.

—-

I won. It may have ended somewhat embarrassingly, but still, thanks to my efforts, we emerged victorious.

“Getting hit by a cleaning golem isn’t exactly something to brag about, is it⋯⋯?”

Selvia’s comment went unheard. After all, the important point was that I had thwarted the scheme of a named dark sorcerer.

Imagine if a devil-boy knight had shown up. Then the great war would have begun immediately.

And if I were to name the second hero of this battle, it would undoubtedly be Yuna. I embraced Yuna, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, and spun around. I loved how she fit snugly in my arms.

“Oh my, you cutie, it’s so good to see your face again, Master of the Magic Tower!”

“Ah, have you been well? Eating and sleeping okay?”

“Of course. There were times when I missed the scent of the Master of the Magic Tower and couldn’t sleep, though⋯⋯.”

“Hehe⋯⋯.”

Yuna giggled softly and inhaled against the nape of my neck. It tickled.

As we shared happiness and recharged each other’s energy, Yuna made a strange nasal sound, as if sensing something was off.

“Yes?”

“Um, why do you ask, Master Matabju?”

“Well, it might just be my misunderstanding, but… why do you smell like fire magic?”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

Oh.

Yuna quietly pressed for an answer. Her eyes were dull, lacking their usual spark.

“Did you use fire magic?”

“Oh, no. It’s just… there’s a reason for that. I was split and my power was lacking.”

“I asked if you used it.”

“Yes, yes… just a little. I used it slightly.”

I quietly set Yuna down on the ground and knelt submissively. I should have switched to illusion magic and erased the smell of fire magic before getting caught.

“Is this betrayal?”

“No, no… my heart’s home is in the tower of water, and illusion magic is the greatest magic in the world. I must have been momentarily led astray.”

As I was being scolded by Yuna (it didn’t hurt at all), Selvier interjected from the side.

“Excuse me. I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation, but how about we first sort out the situation? You can’t just be here in the forest like this.”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

Yuna looked back and forth between Selvier and me, and a terrifying beast began to stir within her purple eyes. She silently asked me what had happened.

Well, I couldn’t just tell someone who likes me, “Don’t like me…” That wouldn’t make the feelings disappear. It felt a bit unfair for her to press me like this.

Yuna seemed to have been momentarily flustered, but soon appeared to understand. She calmed her emotions and spoke to Selvier.

“⋯⋯Talk to us later. Selvier. You know there are others who came before you.”

“Yes. Anytime. It’s a matter we need to address eventually. But I’ll say this in advance: I have no intention of giving up.”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

Fidgeting. Yuna’s fingers moved as if she were about to unleash a death beam, so I hurriedly embraced her from behind to soothe her. She quickly relaxed. Flower-shaped illusions began to float around us.

“I said let’s sort out the situation, didn’t I?”

While that was happening, Selvier got scratched.

This was the first time two women were fighting with me in the middle. Yuna and Yuria had always gotten along so well that I had never experienced a catfight until now. My mind was slightly blank.

Suddenly, I missed Yuria and felt her to be quite remarkable. If I had been jealous of Yuria, it was definitely not the other way around. Pinkvalez, I need you…

What should I do? How can I handle this?

—

Through my brilliant mind, I conjured the optimal move to break this awkward atmosphere. And I executed it immediately.

“Everyone, stop! It’s because I’m too handsome and charming that this tragedy is happening… Please don’t fight over me. It’s all my fault…!”

“…Yeah, you could have been a little less handsome.”

“…I wish you had a few rough edges.”

Don’t agree…! You all know that’s not what I meant!

In the meantime, elves peeked out from the bushes and shouted. It seemed they had managed to escape and survive somehow.

“The wizard is not at fault!”

“Right, right!”

“…?!”

In this situation, such words were not an assist but a bombardment.

Yuna looked at me with a face that said, what are those guys doing? I could see the gauge of the Master of the Magic Tower’s anger rising to a dangerous level, so I quickly explained the situation to avoid misunderstandings.

“Um, they’re just a group of elves who have taken a liking to me.”

“What on earth have you been doing—!”

“No, it was my clone, I mean, a fragment acted on its own…!”

I had to dodge Yuna, who was chasing me to hit my head with her staff, and engage in a chase around the open area for about five laps.

—-

After roughly settling the romantic front, I headed to the scene, where Bennett spoke with a dark expression, as if the weight of the world rested on his shoulders, in front of his younger sister.

“…Verda isn’t waking up.”

What on earth does that mean?