Book 5: Volume 3 Chapter 1, Members of the Management Team

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

Two people faced each other, swords in hand.

 

One was a woman with beautiful flowing black hair. She was so striking that even a deliberate sidelong glance would instantly captivate anyone who received it.

 

The other man, however, was far from appreciating her beauty. Instead, he wore a stern expression, completely cornered by his opponent.

 

Sword in hand, he contemplated how to attack, but no strategy came to mind. He had unleashed every technique he could think of, and each one had been perfectly blocked.

 

The man was already out of breath, while the woman remained calm and composed. She was not even breathing hard. This was proof he was completely outmatched in raw strength as well.

 

They could not keep glaring at each other forever. He had already exhausted every possible attack he knew of.

 

Giving up on strategy at this point, he whipped his exhausted body into motion and swung his sword toward his opponent.

 

Even winded, the tip of his blade did not waver during the attack. He had trained under the principle that when the sword dulled, it meant death.

 

But the attack he unleashed as if it were his final blow was easily parried, just like all the others.

 

Riku did not even understand how it had been blocked.

 

He had prided himself on improving through training and actual combat, but that confidence was instantly shattered in this mock battle. Yet with his opponent still engaged, giving up wasn’t an option.

 

After that, he simply charged headlong with everything he had.

 

It had been since he had first started learning swordsmanship that he’d attack someone so mindlessly. He threw strikes as he pleased, but his opponent continued blocking every single one. She wouldn’t even let him stop. If he tried, she would attack, forcing him to defend. And since Riku could not just stay on the defensive, he had no choice but to keep attacking.

 

He knew he was playing into her hands, but he had no alternative.

 

Of course, such reckless behavior couldn’t continue forever.

 

Riku, completely spent, collapsed to the ground.

 

“Hmm. It would have been better to commit to that final attack rather than overthinking it.”

 

Riku lost consciousness while listening to the voice of that woman, Peach.

 

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When Riku woke, the ceiling he saw looked familiar.

 

“Oh, you’re awake?”

 

Riku turned toward the voice and saw his Mother, Floria.

 

“Mother… I… no, I’m too weak,” Riku said, recalling the earlier mock battle and sighing.

 

Hearing her Son’s words, Floria’s eyes widened. Then she pressed the index finger of her left hand to her temple.

 

“…Well, I guess you don’t have to take after your Parents in every way.”

 

“Mother?” Riku tilted his head in confusion.

 

Floria sighed again.

 

“I was wondering why you’d react this way, but I see. Following your Father’s advice was the right decision in this case.”

 

Riku looked up at Floria, still lying in bed, as she seemed to reach some conclusion about the situation.

 

“You’re saying you’re weak? What an obvious statement. There are countless people in this world stronger than you.”

 

“Is that so…” Riku spoke in a depressed voice.

 

Floria ruffled his hair with a smile.

 

“Wait!? Mother?”

 

It was a gesture she had done often when he was little, but as expected, she rarely did it since he had entered the academy. Feeling both embarrassed and nostalgic, Riku looked flustered. Still, he did not try to stop her.

 

“It’s up to you whether you give up and stop growing, or realize you still have a long way to go and get motivated. Just do whatever you want.”

 

“…That’s harsh.”

 

While the words might have sounded dismissive, Floria genuinely did not care either way. It was Riku who had chosen to pursue the path of the sword. She had no intention of forcing him to continue because of his Parents’ expectations.

 

Even if Riku gave up on the adventurer’s path, as a Mother, she had no intention of abandoning him. Riku understood this, so he replied accordingly.

 

“Isn’t that obvious? I’m your Mother, after all.”

 

Riku could only smile wryly at his mother’s words, which implied he had no intention of giving up.

 

The reason Riku and Peach had engaged in a mock battle in the first place was because Kousuke had noticed something off about Riku recently. It was not that Riku had been acting arrogantly or boasting about his strength to others. It was nothing so obvious. But Kousuke’s eyes had not been fooled.

 

Noticing the small seeds of overconfidence budding within Riku, Kousuke had casually mentioned to him during a visit to the Management Floor that he had not seen Riku’s skills recently. He then suggested a mock battle with Peach.

 

Riku knew Peach well and did not think he could win, but he had still thought it would be a good match and accepted.

 

The result was as seen earlier. Far from a good match, he had not even been able to gauge the gap between them. He had been completely defeated.

 

Riku was reflecting on this with a wry smile when he suddenly realized something and decided to ask Floria about it. He’d been wondering for a while but somehow never had the chance.

 

“Come to think of it, just how strong is Mother Peach?”

 

Floria tilted her head at Riku’s question.

 

“You know? No, don’t look at me like that. It’s not that I’m hiding anything. I honestly don’t know either.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah. I’ve heard that Peach’s preferred weapon isn’t even a sword but a dagger.”

 

First of all, as long as one resided on the Management Floor, combat rarely occurred. But that did not mean Peach and the other members were the type to slack off. They continually trained and honed their skills, as if it were tradition.

 

As a result, Floria, who spent most of her time on the Management Floor, didn’t know precisely how skilled the other members were. Only Sylvia, who trained alongside them, probably had some idea. Even so, since the standards for a shrine maiden’s abilities were also unknown, could a fair comparison truly come up?

 

Riku blinked as Floria explained this.

 

“You’ve managed to get by without any problems though, haven’t you?”

 

Riku found it hard to believe people with such power could navigate daily life without any regard for their companions’ abilities. When two people with little combat experience were involved, that might be understandable, but if one possessed a certain level of power, it was natural to gauge the distance between oneself and others.

 

Of course, there were those who foolishly picked fights, but the management team would never do something so dumb. Riku’s doubts were therefore only natural, but there was a simple reason for this apparent anomaly.

 

“What are you talking about? The management team has Kouhi and Mitsuki. Seriously, with those two, skills and rankings don’t really matter, do they?”

 

“…Ah.” Riku’s expression showed he had just remembered something crucial, and Floria gave him an exasperated look.

 

With the overwhelming presence of Kouhi and Mitsuki, there was no way strange conflicts would break out among the management team. Small disagreements and minor skirmishes certainly happened, but nothing serious.

 

There had never been a situation requiring Kouhi or Mitsuki to show their true abilities, but their constant presence prevented any violent incidents from occurring among the management members.

 

When Floria pointed this out, Riku immediately understood how things had turned out this way. He once again understood just how extraordinary the members of the Management Floor were.

 

Like Floria, each member was talented enough to stand at the pinnacle somewhere. And these were the female members of the Management Floor.

 

Realizing this anew, Riku felt profound respect for his Father, who was surrounded by such accomplished women.