Chapter 52: Great success?
[You've worked hard, your performance was quite good.]
[In the way Shadow lands would say it... um... roughly at the threshold of beginner level, or about to step on it. Well done.]
[...What? You think your level is higher than that? Hahahahaha. Idiot, you're still a hundred years too early!]
...
A dice fell, showing the letter E.
That was Great success!
[Agility check — Great success!]
The moment the Agility check achieved great success, Eikou felt his body become more agile than ever before.
The ping pong ball coming from Scathach's side suddenly seemed to slow down in his eyes.
Victory was within reach.
Eikou immediately focused the strength of his wrist, powerfully swinging the paddle straight at the incoming ball.
Pop!
This is the strike where I threw away the Crown to make it happen! Ortygia Amore Mio!!!
The ping pong ball, under the full force of the hit, shot forward at lightning speed, slammed onto the table, and suddenly bounced up high — so high that Scathach couldn't reach it.
Scathach jumped very high, swinging her paddle to try to return this strike.
Eikou's heart felt stuck in his throat.
But this time, even Scathach couldn't catch up with the ball's trajectory. She jumped up high, yet still couldn't reach that full-power strike — her paddle brushed past the ball by a hair's breadth.
Thump, thump, thump...
In the end, the ping pong ball fell to the floor!
Everyone present was stunned, staring at the ball rolling out of the court, their hearts filled with a feeling like they had just woken up from a long dream.
"..."
Eikou took a deep breath.
Right after that, he immediately threw the paddle aside, then took out two bottles of vodka and handed them to Scathach and Medb.
To be precise, his real target was Medb.
"For your beautiful eyes, cheers!"
Eikou looked at her with shining eyes, handing her the bottle of vodka.
This time you definitely can't pull off another great success to turn things around, if you do I'll cry for real!
"Ugh, even with Scathach here, I still lost...?"
Medb pouted in frustration.
But she still maintained the elegance of a queen, gracefully and generously drinking down the entire bottle of vodka.
A dice fell.
[Rider Queen Medb performs an Endurance check.]
[The roll is A, check failed.]
[Medb has drunk an entire bottle of vodka with 96% alcohol concentration.]
[This time, without the protection of her lucky constitution, the burning high alcohol content immediately made her lose consciousness.]
Thud!
Right after drinking, Medb collapsed onto the ping pong table.
On her beautiful and noble face, mixed with innocent yet lewd charm, was the unmistakable look of a drunk woman.
[You have successfully defeated Queen Medb!]
[You have tied the head-on match against Scathach, and even defeated Queen Medb right before her eyes, protecting your chastity and saving your teammate Roland.]
[Reward: one Encouragement Dice!]
[You now have a total of three Encouragement Dice.]
Looking at the drunken Medb, Eikou couldn't hide his overflowing joy.
He couldn't help but raise both hands and shout in excitement like someone who had just returned alive from a battlefield.
"Woooo!!!"
"Woooo~shuuu~~!"
Next to him, Roland suddenly shouted along with him.
Hearing that, Eikou froze, turning his head to look at the French knight who was cheering joyfully.
Roland, are you done with your match too?
"Roland," he asked with eager anticipation, "seeing how happy you are, could it be you actually succeeded?"
Although Eikou honestly had never expected this guy to find a girlfriend,
if Roland really succeeded, then the desperate fight he and the other guys went through until now would all be worth it!
Roland shook his head, smiling as he said:
"No, I got dumped outright!"
"What the fuck are you happy about then, don't you think that's unworthy of our sacrifice!"
Eikou snapped,
"Wait, isn't this the part where you're supposed to roll on the floor throwing a tantrum and crying like hell after getting dumped, how come you can accept heartbreak like a real man this time?"
"Ha ha, at first I was really sad, almost cried,"
the knight ruffled his golden hair, laughing heartily as he said,
"But when I saw you guys fighting your hardest for me, all the sadness was blown away like the wind, and all that's left in my heart is pure emotion!"
"Uh uh, that sounds kinda gay, just don't direct your feelings the wrong way toward us."
Eikou helplessly let out a sigh.
Everyone had indeed given their all for Roland, but unfortunately, this match was way too difficult — the women here weren't the type Roland could easily conquer.
"Well, if getting dumped still makes you feel satisfied, then I guess it's fine…"
"Ha ha, as long as you get what I mean,"
Roland laughed heartily and said,
"One day I'll find my true love, but before that, I'm really happy to have loyal friends like you guys. Don't be fooled by my appearance — in truth, I'm actually weak and timid, you know? Because of what happened with Angelica, and also my foster father… so I'm really grateful to you all for helping me regain that courage. Thank you, everyone!"
"I see, that's good then,"
Eikou smiled lightly,
"I can understand how you feel…"
Not just Roland, he deeply sympathized as well.
Because everyone has times when they're not liked, or fear loneliness — they're all just ordinary, insignificant people, and joining a party is a way to escape that negative feeling — wanting attention, wanting to make their lives fuller, wanting to be loved more, those kinds of motives.
And even if you can't find love at the party, it doesn't matter, because as long as you're not left out, being cheered on by friends and joining in the lively fun — just that process alone can make people feel happy.
Everything that needed to be done had been done. There was nothing left to regret.
"In short, thanks for the help, everyone,"
the tall knight said as he patted Eikou's head,
"But hey, Eikou, you're seriously annoying in a lovable way. So handsome and even kind — going to a party with you, what chance do the rest of us even have?"
"Looks aren't what matters, because first of all, my soul is that of an even more perfect guy!"
Eikou smiled and snapped his fingers,
"If you want attention from friends, there's plenty to go around. How about we go to the next round? Like KTV, or keep drinking, or maybe try an escape room or something?"
Eikou suggested.
Roland nodded: "Sure, let's wake everyone up and go for the next round then? Might as well ask the girls here if they want to come too, it's a party after all!"
"You really don't give up huh, let me ask—"
Before he could finish the sentence, the collar behind Eikou's neck was suddenly grabbed by a slender yet firm hand.
Eikou's heart immediately tightened — he could clearly feel those sharp red eyes staring at him from behind.
He slowly turned around…
And saw the peerlessly beautiful, cold face of Scathach, now flushed red from drinking, yet within that expression was an oddly adorable seriousness.
She held an empty vodka bottle in one hand, the other clutching Eikou's collar, her voice stern:
"Where do you think you're going? Our ping pong match isn't over yet!"
"??"
Scathach-sensei, you're seriously too strong — two bottles of vodka and you're still not down!
Eikou thought to himself. It's just a ping pong match, do you really have to take it this seriously?
"..."
But looking into Scathach's drunken yet determined red eyes, Eikou could clearly feel her fierce competitive will.
If they didn't settle the score here and now, he probably wouldn't be able to leave.
But then again, his goals were already achieved, so getting drunk now didn't matter.
After all, he was no longer affected by the 'prophecy' effect, and the two dangerous individuals, Medb and Murasaki Shikibu, had already been eliminated.
Reality proved that fate could be changed.
He was completely safe now!
"Alright then, if that'll make you happy…"
Eikou nodded seriously,
"Then I'll play with you until one of us collapses. Let's continue."
After saying that, he glanced over at Roland beside him and said: "You can go book the KTV and take everyone there first. I'll come after I finish off Scathach-sensei!"
"You're sure you'll come, right?" Roland asked worriedly.
"Don't worry,"
Eikou narrowed his eyes and grinned,
"I'll be back right away!"
[That night, it seemed you didn't manage to keep your promise, because Scathach was an extremely formidable opponent.]
[The two of you struggled for a long time without deciding the winner, playing ping pong for ages and drinking who knows how much alcohol.]
[Everything that happened afterward is a blur — all you remember is drinking an enormous amount of alcohol. You don't know whether Roland came back for you, how everyone else dispersed, which KTV they went to afterward, or where you ended up after the ping pong match…]
[You have absolutely no recollection of any of those memories…]
[When you open your eyes, the dazzling sunlight stings your eyes, and feeling a soft blanket covering you, you realize you're lying in an unfamiliar bedroom.]
[A half-naked woman is lying in your arms, sleeping soundly like a child.]