Despite her reputation for laziness, Lilith seemed to spare no effort when it came to her training.
After finishing lunch, I decided to kill some time at the “Digital Labyrinth” arcade.
First, I tried a new puzzle game in the arcade corner.
In my previous life, I had mostly stuck to fighting games and gun shooting games, but since I now had daily real-life fighting and gun shooting, I didn’t play them as much anymore.
I wanted to forget about work during my leisure time.
After playing through the puzzle game, I moved on to the mahjong games. They had a good selection here.
…Especially the strip mahjong games.
However, I sat down in front of the “Mahjong Master” cabinet, a serious mahjong game.
I chose the beginner’s mode, where the CPU offers guidance on how to play.
It’s not that I’ve suddenly become a purist. I want to improve my mahjong skills.
In strip mahjong, when you’re down to the last piece of clothing, the CPU can draw Kokushi solo within three turns, which doesn’t help in improving one’s mahjong skills.
Mahjong and strip mahjong are different as competitive games. Strip mahjong is a two-player game, but mahjong can be played by three, or typically four people.
In strip mahjong, hand combinations don’t matter as much; the goal is to win quickly to undress the opponent. In mahjong, however, high point values are also required.
Before coming to the Garden, I had only ever played strip mahjong. But after learning that Marika-san was a huge mahjong fan, I’ve been honing my skills here whenever I have a spare moment.
Someday, I might play a game of mahjong with Marika-san.
And perhaps, we might even play with strip rules.
If that day comes, my mahjong skills won’t be enough if they’re still subpar. I am a meticulous and cautious man, like Golgo 13.
I never neglect preparations for the day that may come. This applies to both work and hobbies.
I spent a considerable amount of time practicing mahjong. It’s about time I returned to my room and devised countermeasures against Tozen.
No, wait. I gave Tozen my Handycom strap, so I should get a new one before heading back.
Clasping a few 100Cr coins, I browsed the crane game corner for straps.
New items had arrived in the animal strap section, where I had previously obtained a dire tiger strap.
Alright, I’ll go with this wolf strap. And this cat one. I’ll give this to Lilith.
I’m actually good at crane games. They call me “Crane Master Namihei.”
…Just kidding! In my old world, I was an eternal loser.
It’s not “they” who call me Crane Master, but “I” who call myself Crane Master. …I’m not a loser anymore, so I’m not sad!
With my talent for talking to myself, I enjoyed the crane games, bantering with myself.
Yep, I got both of them after four tries. My skills might be a bit rusty.
I think I used to be able to get them with at most one mistake.
I still have time, so I might as well look around for any other notable items.
As I scanned the expansive crane game corner, I heard:
“Elder Brother, more to the right, right!”
“Shut up! Be quiet, you’re distracting me!”
“Ah! Failed again! Elder Brother, it’s my turn now!”
“Just one more time, just one more time!”
“You’re too slow, Elder Brother! It’s impossible for you! I’ll do it!”
“What did you say? Who’s slow! You’re even more incapable, you idiot. Idiot!”
“Don’t call me an idiot! Mom always said that the one who calls others an idiot is the biggest idiot!”
In the deserted crane game corner, two brothers, like black and white ombrose pieces, were yelling at each other, grabbing each other’s collars.
I should probably stop this. It would be troublesome if they started a real fight here.
“…What are you doing?”
“Oh, it’s you, boy. What a coincidence.”
“Do you think we’re playing darts? We’re obviously playing crane games, brothers having fun together.”
“I question the ‘having fun together’ part, but I understand you’re playing crane games. What are you aiming for?”
The brothers simultaneously pointed at a plush snake.
“Ah, a snake plushie. That’s a bit difficult for amateurs. It’s long and the front-to-back balance is hard to manage. Let me handle this, the pro that I am.”
“Boy, is there such a thing as a ‘pro’ in crane games?”
There is. The moment you declare yourself a pro, you become one. It’s like with Pro Golfer Saru.
Ah, strictly speaking, Saru wasn’t a pro golfer.
Until the professional qualification rules were revised, you had to pass a pro test to become a professional golfer.
Saru was born too early.
Now, unlike straps, plushies, especially snakes, are high difficulty. I need to concentrate.
With the extreme concentration honed by Shigure-san, I managed to get the snake plushie in one go.
“That’s amazing, anchan!”
“Boy, you’re tough when it counts. You’d make a good soldier.”
Heh heh, I’m shining right now! …Ah! Wait a minute!
An emergency siren blared in my mind. This is a dangerous area, I need to extract immediately!
“See ya! I’m making Lilith wait, so I gotta go! Goodbye!”
I snapped a salute and made my escape from the danger zone.
“Whoa, whoa, is anchan a lolicon?”
“You’re impatient, boy. I think you should wait until the beautiful girl becomes a beautiful woman, ethically speaking.”
“Elder Brother, for a guy with a lolicon hobby, isn’t the value in her being a beautiful girl?”
“That’s true too. It’s a value judgment I’d rather not understand.”
The King Brothers were saying what they wanted to say behind me as I walked away quickly.
Normally, I would have tried to argue and defend myself, but since this has been identified as a danger zone, my life is more important than my honor.
Outside the arcade, I stopped and let out a huge sigh of relief.
It seemed I had managed to escape a near-death experience.
After all, “there was only one snake plushie.” The outcome was a foregone conclusion.
The moment I started walking again, it seemed to have begun.
A sound like shattering glass, followed by the impact of fists hitting flesh.
Please fight amicably like Tom and Jerry. Just try not to bother anyone else too much.
When I returned to my room, Lilith was staring intently at my computer.
She’s completely treating this as her own room, but that’s fine.
“What are you looking at?”
Lilith, while crunching on a cigarette chocolate, said,
“It’s footage of my crushing defeat when fighting Shigure with the two of us.”
Ah, right. There were cameras in the four corners of the dojo. She was retrieving and analyzing that footage.
It’s diligent work for someone who considers laziness a virtue. But I should honestly be grateful for this diligence that helps me. Maybe I should express my gratitude with a gift.
“Here, as a reward for your mental labor.”
I handed Lilith the cat strap I got from the crane game earlier.
“Oh, it’s cute. Thank you. For once, you have good taste. I assume it’s from the arcade, though.”
“So, what were your analytical findings?”
“Just as Shigure said herself. She has superior speed and power, but nothing too remarkable. That’s why we were able to put up a decent fight at first. …The reason we went from a narrow defeat to a crushing one is that she began to perfectly read our combinations. …She must have figured that I’m easier to manage than the Warrant Officer… How humiliating!”
Lilith bit down on her cigarette chocolate with a crunch. She’s really fired up. Scary, scary.
“In extreme terms, Shigure wins battles solely through prediction and strategy. It’s impossible to win by outthinking her.”
“Are you saying we should give up because she’s superior? No way! I want to win as long as I’m competing! Besides, if Shigure were an enemy in a real battle, we’d be finished.”
“I’m not saying give up. The reality is that it’s impossible to outthink her with proper swordsmanship and Nenshin Power. If that’s the case, we need to strategize based on that premise. If our actions are being read, let’s start by thinking of tactics that don’t matter if they’re read… Lilith, I heard you bought the brainwave-induction knife. Buy a training version next time. First, we need to increase the variety of our actions.”
“Okay, so I’ll be joining the offense?”
“Yes, Lilith, you know about Shogi, right? Even with the same board, if the opponent gains just one more piece…”
“The number of choices skyrockets, doesn’t it? It’s unavoidable that we’ll be read, but the point is to increase their effort in reading us. A nice annoyance tactic. The Warrant Officer has quite a personality.”
“I’m flattered by your praise. Mental fortitude also has stamina. Three choices consume more energy than two. Shigure-san’s mental stamina is probably the highest in the Garden, but it’s still meaningful to wear her down. We’ll fight with straightforward tactics that increase our options. As bait.”
“Bait? Isn’t that based on the premise that we can’t outthink her?”
“Not with proper swordsmanship or Nenshin Power. So, if it’s not a proper tactic, I’ll use something else. But you know, the underside only works because there’s an underside. Without straightforward tactics that allow you to fight reasonably well even when read, the trap tactics won’t succeed.”
“Here we go, your specialty, trap tactics. Aren’t you more like the devil than me, Warrant Officer? Do you have a black tail hidden in your underwear?”
“I don’t want to hear that from you, Lilith, with your black wings hidden behind your back. Trap tactics, first, it’s psychokinesis. And then…”
I explained to Lilith how to effectively use psychokinesis, as taught by Sanpin-san, and outlined a trap tactic with an added bonus.
“I see, so that’s the strategy. That’s a good move. But this tactic won’t work a second time.”
“One successful attempt is all we need. Do you get a second chance on the battlefield?”
“That’s true. You’re right. Even the strongest warrior has only one life.”
Lilith made me some coffee, so we enjoyed a brief tea time.
It’s 4:30 PM. Time to go. I forgot to think about countermeasures against Tozen.
It’s fine. I know I’ll lose. I’ll think about how to make use of the loss after I’ve lost.
“I’m heading out now. I have an appointment to battle Tozen.”
“I’ll make some Hitsumabushi to kill time until the Warrant Officer returns.”
“Are you casually deciding on dinner with a pun?”
“Do you dislike eel?”
I stood up from my chair and saluted Lilith.
“No, I love it! Eel is the best!”
My personal junior chef nodded magnanimously.
“Very well, then Hitsumabushi is decided for tonight’s menu.”
“Chef, may I make a special request!”
“You may. State it.”
“I would like Kimo-suimono for the soup!”
“I will do my best. And… I will teach you an ultimate countermeasure against Tozen, so lend me your ear.”
Tozen-san countermeasures devised by Lilith, huh? It’s worth listening to.
Lilith beckoned me closer. I don’t think we need to whisper in my room.
As I leaned down slightly, Lilith brought her face close to mine.
…It wasn’t my ear she wanted, but my cheek.
I felt the soft touch of Lilith’s lips on my cheek. Ethically, it’s probably wrong, but I smiled… no, I grinned.
This is bad. I’m falling deeper and deeper, pulled in by this little devil of a girl.
Lilith suddenly stopped kissing and turned away, pouting. Ah, your cheeks are turning red, Young Lady?
You don’t want me to see your blushing face, do you? I want to see it, though, a blushing Lilith.
With her back turned, Lilith spoke in a slightly tremulous voice, offering words of care that didn’t quite sound like it.
“It’s probably impossible not to get injured against Tozen, but I’ll make Hitsumabushi and Kimo-suimono, so just don’t end up in the Medical Pod!”
“Thanks, that’s good advice. See you later.”
I left my room with a light step. After closing the door, I even skipped.
Me, a 20-year-old, skipping happily and whistling after a 10-year-old beautiful girl kissed me on the cheek… What kind of person am I?
I had previously stated I wouldn’t enter any contests due to a lack of confidence, but I’m retracting that statement. <(_ _)>
I’ve decided to submit my web novel to the “Narou” online novel awards.
Participants receive feedback from readers, and I’d really like to hear it.
My work is nurtured by feedback, after all.
