Entering the Game with a Cheat Physique

Episode 40 Monster Festival (2)

Episode 40 Monster Festival (2)

In ＜Song of Sword and Magic＞, the Monster Festival was an event that brought back memories.

A variety of events that reminded you of the school festivals you enjoyed as a student.

Playing games similar to Japanese matsuri gave you the feeling of going back to your school days.

I felt that now too.

“…*Sunbaenim*, are you sure this is okay?”

Ruby let out a sulky voice.

Several hours had passed since I decided to be their festival guide.

Ruby, who initially looked at me with curious eyes, was now wearing a dissatisfied expression.

Like she was saying, “I’M MAD!”

“I was going to write a scoop about you, Sunbae. But at this rate, nothing’s gonna come out. You’re just wandering around and having fun.”

“So what?”

I reply listlessly, starting to walk again.

Ruby seems to think that every time I move, some huge incident is going to erupt.

Well, I guess ever since she met me it’s been a string of battles with Jackson and Apollo.

From Ruby’s perspective, it’s not weird that she sees me as someone who brings trouble…

‘But I’m not exactly a war freak.’

It’s not like *I* hate peace.

“Unnie. Don’t be like that, just enjoy it. You need some time to catch your breath.”

Compared to Ruby, Sapphire seems to have pretty normal sensibilities.

She’s been trying to pull her sister out of work mode, and while it didn’t work at first,

it looks like Ruby’s slowly getting worn down and giving in.

‘Well, she couldn’t help it.’

I’ve taken Ruby to experience all sorts of games.

Taking her to a fish tank where a submersible monster pops out to shock her.

Taking her to a fish-monster catching area and making her do it herself.

Or taking her to a proper monster circus performance and getting her so focused that she forgets about work.

After enjoying all these different types of relaxation, Ruby has just worn herself out.

“…Haa.”

Ruby lets out a heavy sigh and her shoulders droop.

A sign of surrender.

“Fine. It doesn’t look like Heraque Sunbae has any intention of causing trouble anyway. I’ll stop.”

“Good thinking.”

I praise Ruby and arrive in front of a store.

A food stall that’s always at festivals.

I order some snacks that we can eat while walking around.

“I’ll take this and this, please.”

“Okay~! Thank you!”

The owner takes the order with a cheerful voice.

Ruby mumbled, watching me hand her the skewer.

“Sunbae. But are you okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve been paying for everything since earlier.”

As Ruby said, I’ve been covering all the expenses today.

From the viewing to the games and snacks, Ruby hasn’t paid a single won, so I guess she’s feeling burdened.

“Just relax and take it. Don’t worry about it.”

“But…”

“Think of it as your Sunbae treating you. If you feel that bad, then just do me one favor.”

I hand her the skewer.

A lizard monster is skewered and grilled on the stick.

Ruby stared at the skewer, dripping with delicious oil, and finally conceded.

“Okay. Thank you.”

“That’s all I wanted to hear.”

“Hehe. This junior is so happy to have met such a kind Sunbae!”

Ruby, finally regaining her usual energy, shouted cheerfully.

She’d been conscious of work the whole time, but it seems she’s finally decided to enjoy herself.

‘Yeah.’

That’s better.

There’s no need to be swamped with work so early.

At Ruby’s age, it’s okay to just enjoy life.

That’s why I deliberately set up this situation.

“So? What’s the favor?”

Ruby, with her mouth full of meat, asked, munching.

I only asked one thing.

“Be near the tank we went to earlier, on the last day of the festival.”

“Huh? Is that the favor?”

“Yeah. Just hold your position there. If something happens, lend me your strength.”

“Hmm. I don’t know why, but… well, if it’s Sunbae’s request.”

The tank containing the submersible monster becomes a quite intense battleground once the boss fight starts.

But Ruby and Sapphire are 1st and 2nd in the first-year class.

They’d be enough to suppress the chaos and handle the monsters.

‘One problem down, for now.’

Next, someone’s needed to be at the monster circus arena.

I’ll ask about that on the second day.

*

The facility where ‘Monsties’ are housed.

They rented part of Olympia and had a huge cage there.

Big enough for a monster that’d be two or three times the size of an average man.

Borisov, looking at the cage covered with cloth, says to the staff:

“Hey. Is it well secured inside?”

“Yes.”

The staff member in charge of the cage scurries over.

He rattles off the current status of the monster held inside.

‘The Nemean Lion’.

“We’ve thoroughly verified that the restraints can never be released, even when feeding it. We’re constantly monitoring for any possibility of it breaking free from its chains.”

“Good job.”

“Ah, we’re also decorating the cage to draw more attention during the show on the last day. It’s a little difficult with him inside, but it’ll work out.”

Just having a monster out there won’t get attention.

They have to put on a more impressive show to steal the hearts of the first-year students.

So they were decorating to make the lion’s cage look more impressive.

“Yeah. We went through a lot to catch him, it should be worth it….”

Borisov muttered, walking closer to the cage.

He slightly lifted the cloth and looked inside. The lion, towering to the top of the cage, was visible.

Its mane extended long, covering the area around its neck.

A muscular physique, with overwhelmingly bulging forearms and quadriceps.

But more than anything, what caught the eye was the arrogance of it looking down from above.

It held its head stiffly as if it stood above humans.

It must have been captured by the circus members, but as if that didn’t matter.

Even while bound by chains, the lion calmly straightened its posture.

Then, in that instant, his eyes met mine.

“……”

*Gulp.*

Borisov swallows hard.

He’s been in the monster circus business for decades, but this is a first.

For the circus master to be rendered breathless by a monster.

Yeah.

This thing, its ‘kind’ as a monster, is different.

‘It’s terrifying every time I look at it.’

How many of his crew had been sacrificed trying to catch that thing?

He’d spared its life because killing it after finally capturing it felt like a waste, but there’s still an underlying unease.

Just seeing it like this makes his knees tremble, how could he ever relax?

‘Still, the safety precautions are secure.’

There’s no need to even imagine what would happen if that lion got loose in Olympia.

It would be impossible to leverage any favorable position with the Academy using the magic stone.

He’d be saddled with massive compensation and go bankrupt.

“There absolutely cannot be any problems. You understand?”

“Yes.”

“If that lion were to be released in front of the first-year students… our circus would be finished.”

Borisov reiterated to the staff as he pulled the cloth back down.

Yeah, there would be absolutely no problem.

It’s not like decorating the cage could somehow weaken its restraints.

*

Monster Festival, day two.

Today, he already has a prior engagement.

There’s a woman, who specifically left a letter in his dormitory.

He needs to see her.

What the outcome will be, he doesn’t know…

But running from a future because he’s afraid isn’t his style.

He walks along the main street where the festival is being held.

All the cadets are still enjoying themselves, unaware of the impending turmoil tomorrow.

Especially, the thing that draws the most attention from the cadets is right there.

—Baby, I love you!

—Idiot!

Far off in the sky, flying monsters, the Zephyros, being ridden.

This event, also available in ＜Sword and Magic Song＞, is the best way to raise affection.

Choosing your desired heroine and asking to ride the Zephyros almost guarantees you’re on her route.

Meaning, the protagonist usually is the one who asks the heroine first…

“Hi. Herak.”

This time, the proposal is coming to me.

Penel Moira, a second-year heroine from the Magic Department, was waiting for me.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, okay.”

“Ooh-hoo. How disappointing. It would’ve been fun if you were so excited you couldn’t sleep.”

Penel, covering her mouth and laughing, looks quite relaxed.

But for some reason, I could feel her heart pounding as if it would burst.

Thump-thump.

She put a hand on her chest once, and then, finally got to the point.

“Want to ride together?”

“……”

Riding the Zephyros.

As I said before, it’s an event where something romantic happens with the heroine in the original story.

It’s no different in reality.

What would a couple do, riding something alone in their prime?

It’s like a Ferris wheel at an amusement park.

That’s exactly its role.

“Okay.”

But I can’t back down.

It’s rude to Penel, who mustered the courage first.

Also, I need to decide on a stance with heroines who show me favor, at least to some degree.

“Rider.”

I nodded.

It’s just the two of us now.