The well-Balanced Yamamoto-san Gets Caught up in a Death Game

Chapter 74

First things first, we can’t just leave Deepa’s corpse lying around, so I consult with Tsuna.

“Tsuna, how do you want to split the spoils? The squid’s already cut in half, so I was thinking we could go 50-50.”

“I didn’t do that much, though.”

Despite his modesty, Tsuna’s subtle contribution in stopping Deepa’s movements alongside my [Dark Avatar] was significant. Plus, he didn’t take any hits from [Gluttony] or [Constriction], which saved me some trouble.

An average player couldn’t have pulled that off.

“It’s fine, let’s split it evenly.”

Besides, I don’t have real-life dissection skills, so getting more would just mean storing it away unused.

“Well, if you insist.”

So I push half of Deepa’s carcass onto Tsuna and take the other half for myself. The fishy smell permeating the rocky area is overwhelming.

It’s not exactly a gruesome scene, but the stench is unbearable. I mean, it wasn’t exactly fragrant before, but this is too much! If anglers come when the sun rises, it’s bound to cause a commotion!

Searching for a suitable spell, I find [Air Purification], a level 4 [Wind Magic] spell. The description says it purifies contaminated air. It’s probably meant for neutralizing poison gas or stagnant air, but…

“[Air Purification]!”

Ah, the fishy smell has diminished.

It’s worth trying anything, I guess.

“Did the smell decrease?” Tsuna seems to have noticed too.

“It was a bit too smelly, so I tried cleaning the air. People fish here, so we should at least tidy up a bit.”

“In that case, should we sprinkle some water too?”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

I use [Water Wave], a level 10 [Water Magic] spell. Designating an area the size of a 25-meter pool, a three-meter-high wave emerges from my palm, washing over the area. I repeat this three times.

There, that should do it.

“Shall we head back? I’m sleepy.”

“Yeah, it’s already five. Oh, the sun’s rising.”

We set off for home, squinting at the rising sun. Upon reaching the inn, we fall into a deep slumber.

■□■

I woke up as the surroundings were beginning to turn orange.

Wow, I overslept…

While thinking this, I answer the friend call that had been disturbing my sleep. Apparently, it had rung several times while I was asleep, but I have a vague memory of hanging up groggily. Yeah, must be my imagination. Definitely.

“Hello? Good morning, Tatsu-san.”

“Good afternoon, you mean! Do you know how many times I’ve called?!”

“Three times?”

“Seven times! And you hung up without a word each time! What’s going on?!”

“Sorry~ I was sleepy~”

“Of course you were! You were fishing late into the night, after all!”

“Huh? How do you know about that?”

For a moment, I thought Tatsu-san might have come to the human country and been there…

But then an unfamiliar URL appeared in the friend chat.

What’s this?

“A world announcement went out at dawn about a named monster being defeated. The message boards are still going wild!”

“Wasshoi, wasshoi?”

“Cute, but cut it out! The problem is that you’re the top candidate, Yama-chan! And there are screenshots to boot!”

“Oh, I’m flattered… Huh? Screenshots?”

What’s that about? I don’t remember allowing or being aware of any screenshots.

“There’s a screenshot of you trying to catch a big one in front of a crowd, and it’s being spread around! On top of that, the news about the named monster’s defeat came out, right? The message boards are buzzing that you must have done it!”

“Eh. Sounds like another troublesome situation…”

Jumping to the URL Tatsu-san pasted, I indeed see a shot of my back as I’m fishing.

But it’s just my back.

My face isn’t shown.

“Isn’t it okay since my face isn’t exposed?”

“That silver armor stands out, you know… If you get caught, you’ll be bombarded with questions, recruitment offers, material trade negotiations, and shameless demands for materials.”

“You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”

“Yeah, thanks to someone I know!”

“Sorry about that~”

I have a feeling Tatsu-san’s mood won’t improve just by bringing back information. I should look for some other souvenirs too.

“And what’s with winning and then disappearing with just a ‘Please don’t look for me’?! I’m angry, you know!”

“Well, about that…”

Come to think of it, I fled to the human country without explaining anything to Tatsu-san.

It’s really awkward.

“O-Okay. I’ll tell you everything that happened back then…”

That should clear things up.

■□■

“The Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings?! How did it come to this?!”

“I’d like to know that myself…”

When I told Tatsu-san about my exchange with Iko-san in the final match, he was incredibly surprised.

Being recommended for the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings is quite irregular, huh.

According to Tatsu-san, there’s apparently a route prepared for extremely strong players to be scouted as Demon Lord’s executives, but…

“But that was supposed to be for when players become too strong in the late game. Getting scouted after nearly two months of operation is bizarre. Yama-chan, what kind of gameplay have you been doing?”

“Uh, freestyle…?”

“How can you become a Four Heavenly King when your growth direction isn’t even decided? It’s weird, isn’t it?”

“Even if you say that…”

I feel like it’s mostly thanks to [Balance].

“Well, anyway. To get back to the point. Iko-san suddenly said ‘Do your best as the new Four Heavenly King,’ and I got scared and ran away.”

“I can kind of understand how you feel, but it’s a huge chance for advancement, you know? If it were me, I’d jump at it.”

“Eh. I don’t want to work so hard even in a game.”

I’ve played many games, and when I see people acting as clan leaders or party leaders in-game, I think they’re amazing.

Because I’d never want to do it myself.

Everyone has their own values, right?

Some look this way, some look that way, some only ask questions, some don’t listen at all – trying to manage such a diverse group would be exhausting.

To voluntarily take on such a role?

It’s amazing, don’t you think?

And I’m not the type who can do that.

I’m the type who only moves for things I’m interested in.

So I can’t maintain order or work for an organization.

To be honest, I’m not good at group living.

That’s why I think someone like me shouldn’t be put in charge.

“Isn’t it the opposite?”

“Opposite?”

“I get the impression that the underlings work harder. The big shots seem to act more freely.”

Hmm.

Now that you mention it, maybe that’s true?

I think having power does increase what you can do.

It’s like having money versus not having money, right? You can do more with it.

Looking at it that way, maybe the Four Heavenly Kings position isn’t so bad?

“Anyway, just running away won’t solve anything. If they want you, couldn’t you propose your own employment conditions? They might accept.”

“Ah, that might work.”

If I could get power with three meals and naps included, I might consider it!

Though at that point, it’s more like being a king!

Being a Four Heavenly King with royal treatment, it doesn’t make any sense!

“For now, if the Demon Lord’s side approaches you, why don’t you at least hear them out?”

“You’re right. I can’t keep running away forever, so I’ll try that.”

“I think that’s for the best.”

Having received such valuable advice from Tatsu-san, I feel like I have a lot more to think about now.

Oh, while we’re on the topic of thinking things through, there’s one more thing I want to ask.

“By the way, Tatsu-san, if you know, could you tell me…”

“What is it?”

“What’s the difference between a Named monster and an EOD?”

Honestly, I’ve been curious because there didn’t seem to be much difference in strength.

Tatsu-san’s answer was—

“EODs are punishment monsters for players. They’re designed to be difficult or impossible to defeat in a straightforward battle. They simply test the player’s skill and wisdom.”

“Then what about Named monsters?”

“They’re often bosses in sub-stories. They’re given names to show their rank, but their strength varies widely. There are even Named monsters as weak as goblins.”

So I drew the short straw, huh.

Well, maybe Tsuna did.

Anyway, I’m glad to have cleared up that question.

Wrapping up the call with a “Got it, thanks, look forward to the souvenirs,” I start prioritizing my next moves.

Well, I guess the first thing to do is obvious?

“It’s not good to have only the clothes on your back, right?”

And so, activating my [Divine Artifact Creation] skill, I set about crafting a new set of armor.

■□■

Armor. Yes, armor.

To begin with, since Dullahans are headless knights, and knights need armor, I have a restriction that prevents me from removing my armor.

Or is it a racial trait rather than a restriction?

Anyway, I can only equip armor, and flimsy cloth clothing is off-limits.

I once found a cute outfit in a shop and tried to pick it up, but got a “Bzzt! Cannot equip!” warning. It seems I really can only equip armor.

But armor, huh.

Floating in space, I contemplate the design for my new armor.

What exactly qualifies as armor in the first place?

Does chainmail count as armor?

If so, would an outfit made of fine linked chains, like a see-through garment, fall under the armor category?

What about bikini armor?

Is it armor because it has “armor” in the name?

But that’s basically underwear, isn’t it?

Hmm.

I should have asked the information broker about the definition of armor.

Well, I don’t know if they would have known either.

For now, I’ll imagine various designs and check whether they count as armor or not.

It’s a process of figuring out how the system determines what is and isn’t armor.

As long as I don’t actually use materials, imagined armor appears before me one after another, like an armor exhibition. Just looking at their performance and designs was interesting, and before I knew it, I had spent about two hours enjoying this armor showcase.

Yeah, it’s quite fun because the computer fills in a lot of details based on my rough image, sometimes producing surprisingly interesting results. There are even designs that make me want to retort, “Why did it turn out like that?” It’s quite entertaining.

But after two hours of observation, I feel like I’ve started to understand what the system considers armor.

In conclusion, I’ve determined that the system recognizes as armor anything that protects vital areas with hard materials.

A dress with precious metals scattered here and there wasn’t considered armor, but when I made just the chest area metal, it became a type of armor called “dress armor.”

In other words, even if it uses a lot of fabric, as long as the vital areas are protected with hard materials, it should be recognized as armor!

“I wonder if this would work? If I put steel pads in the lining of the chest area, would it count as armor? Though it feels like, ‘Why make my chest even bigger?’…”

But still, if it means I can wear what looks like an all-fabric outfit, it might be worth trying?