Playing as a Tank

If Asha was exceptionally generous to children, Tana was a thorough meritocrat who didn’t care whether you were a child or an adult.

Therefore, when I showed her how the shield could shoot the damage it received at the monster in its original form, I honestly expected her to be somewhat moved.

As I recalled, there wasn’t a single person among the hunters in who used this type of skill.

And a tank who could defend and attack simultaneously wasn’t all that common either.

Anyway, while Asha wouldn’t even consider using me as a combatant right now, that was understandable.

But I thought Tana, being a severe realist, would recognize my potential and ask me various questions.

“Um, still, this isn’t bad for a start—”
“…I think it’s still too early to make any judgments based on defeating a marsh frog.”

Then she continued to operate the measurement room’s hologram with the same businesslike expression as always.

Well, to be fair, Tana was right that passing just the first stage wasn’t enough to make any judgments.

But when such a fatally cute child—not an expression I should use for myself, but it’s a fact—looks up at you with an expression saying “Please praise me~”, you could at least say “well done” even if it’s just lip service.

However, until I defeated all the low-level monsters prepared in the measurement room, the only question Tana asked was “Are you really okay with this?”

And even that was a strictly professional question to accumulate the damage needed to defeat the monsters.

“For your own sake, you should honestly tell me if it’s too much for you.”
“I’m really fine. So, one more time!”
“…Understood.”

Although Asha’s gaze, which had been growing increasingly murderous with time, alternated between stabbing me and Tana, she seemed to be barely holding back since I hadn’t gotten even a small scratch yet.

But just as we were about to move on to the mid to high-level monster test.

“Stop.”

Apparently unable to observe any longer, Asha, visibly displeased, finally entered the measurement room.

“Tana. How far do you intend to go?”
“I told you earlier, didn’t I? Until it seems like Ms. Lua might get hurt even a little bit.”
“That’s hardly an explanation…!”

The atmosphere instantly turned hostile.

However, in typical Tana fashion, she began to methodically press down on Asha with thoroughly logical arguments.

By selecting only reasonable and rational words, she completely blocked any room for counterargument.

“As someone said, the moment a child who hasn’t even lost their baby fur overestimates their ability is the moment they truly become endangered.”
“T-they shouldn’t reach a point where they overestimate this kind of ability in the first place!”
“You can’t guarantee that a moment when even this kind of ability is needed will never come, can you?”

In the end, as expected, it was Asha who yielded.

It seemed Asha also felt the need to know exactly what my ability was and where its limits lay.

However, continuing to defeat test monsters one by one seemed like a waste of time, so I fearlessly took the initiative first.

How?

“Hmm… can’t Big Sister Tana just face me directly instead of the monsters?”

Like this.

As expected, as soon as I spoke, Asha and Tana’s pupils shook almost simultaneously once again.

Right after that, I explained that I made this fearless request because I had my own reasoning.

“There’s no monster stronger than Big Sister Tana anyway. And I think it would be better if Big Sister Tana faced me directly to understand better.”
“That’s… true, but still, that’s too…”
“Yes, Lua. There’s no need to go that far.”

Afterward, both Asha and Tana continued trying to dissuade me, but this time I stubbornly insisted until the very end.

Why waste time when the most efficient method was right in front of me?

Later, for safety reasons, I was forcibly upgraded from a regular standard-issue shield to one slightly taller than me, but that was fine.

…Actually, I was relieved about the upgrade. To be honest, I was belatedly realizing what kind of thing I had gotten myself into.

My opponent was none other than Tana. Without needing any verbal explanation, anyone who heard her name would acknowledge her as a strong among the strong.

And yet, I said I would try to withstand an attack from such a powerful person.

For now, I desperately had to hope that Tana would show some restraint against a young child like me.

Still, she wouldn’t try to actually kill me, right?

“I’ll stop immediately when even the slightest crack appears on the shield.”
“Yes!”
“And after that, it won’t matter how much you plead.”
“Yeees!”
“…Are you sure you properly understand what I’m saying?”
“Yeeees!!”

I had to answer in an intentionally high-pitched tone to reassure both Asha, who had become noticeably anxious, and myself.

It made me feel like I had truly become a child for a moment, making my face burn, but there were more important matters at hand.

So, eventually. Finally. At last.

“Shuffle: Shuffle.”

Thanks to Tana using her unique abnormal ability, a total of 52 playing cards were randomly arranged in the air.

Strictly speaking, the two joker cards that could be considered Tana’s true power were excluded, but if those were used, the entire area would become a wasteland.

To begin with, there was no way Asha would just stand by and watch a powerhouse like Tana use her full strength against a child like me.

“Here I go.”

Almost simultaneously, rustle.

Some of the cards floating in the air began to melt and split in two.

Not long after, cards of various colors densely filled every corner.

I unknowingly swallowed dry saliva and checked once more if my tail was completely hidden behind the shield, just in case.

Right afterward, hundreds of cards that had been suspended in the air finally began to pour down toward me all at once.

-Ding.

[A total of 34 damage has been accumulated.]
[Cumulative damage: 0 ▶ 34]
[Available damage: 34]

-Ding.

[A total of 52 damage has been accumulated.]
[Cumulative damage: 34 ▶ 86]
[Available damage: 86]

-Ding.
-Ding.
-Ding.
-Ding.

Watching the message windows being updated dozens of times in less than a second, my first thought was, “What kind of confidence did I have to think I could face this monster?”

The next thought was a belated realization that I should look for settings to manage these excessively noisy message windows.

I noticed that Tana’s cards were stuck in the shield like porcupine quills.

Despite that, I then noticed that Tana was slightly taken aback by the shield showing no cracks whatsoever.

“…Impossible.”

An uncharacteristic, emotion-mixed soliloquy followed from Tana.

That I had successfully withstood those tremendous and fierce attacks without a single scratch.

Was that why?

“How about that?”

Soon after, with just my head peeking out from beside the shield, I once again uttered the exact same words I had spoken earlier.

But somehow, as soon as she heard my innocent voice, her icy face slightly distorted.

In addition, dozens of cards still remaining in the air began to twitch and show signs of changing again.

-Whoosh!

“Waah?!”

Somehow, unlike before, other cards passed by, grazing the tips of my hair rather dangerously, and I finally hid behind the shield again.

And so, after beginning to withstand the rain of cards pouring down once more, how much time had passed?

-Ding!

[A total of 66 damage has been accumulated.]
[Cumulative damage: 12032 ▶ 12098]
[Available damage: 12098]

“Holy…”

The absurd figure written in the last message window that appeared made my inner thoughts escape my lips involuntarily.

I mean, it was me who asked her to face me, but…

It feels a bit different from what I expected when it’s taken this far.

Anyway, enough damage had accumulated to instantly kill most mid to high-level monsters.

Thinking it was time to move to the next stage, I once again peeked my face out from behind the shield.

Based on the confidence from blocking the attacks without a flinch, I was going to ask Tana for stronger attacks with special conditions added.

“Deck forced designation. [Full House].”

For some reason, before I could even speak, I caught sight of Tana already preparing for the next level of attack.

…Huh? Did she read my mind?

But as far as I knew, Tana didn’t have skills like mind reading—

“I’m going again. If it feels dangerous, give me some kind of signal.”

Was it just a momentary illusion that her already machine-like voice had become even more rigid?

Not long after, a total of five cards began to grow larger rather than splitting like before.

They soon began to spin in place, then without any precursors or warnings, they flew fiercely toward me.

And, boom.

The large shield that had been safely protecting me until now shook like a vibrating bell.

Simultaneously, a message window appeared.

[Prevention Impossible (P) successfully activated.]
[Since the external influence exerted on entity name: Lua has exceeded the threshold, it will be repelled.]

-Whoosh!

“Huh?”

The shield in front of me suddenly began to charge forward on its own.

The problem was that I had been strongly gripping the leather shield handle with both hands, not just one.

Therefore…

“Waaaaahhh!!”

Rushing forward as if flying like a superhero was the inevitable outcome.