Core 666

While Rokuko was grinning to herself, the deadlock trio — Core 650 and the others — arrived.

"Oh my? What are you doing here, 695?"

"Geh geh, why are you even here when you're dead last?"

"Yeah, don't you know the phrase 'know your place'?"

Rokuko glanced in their direction, but she kept on grinning.

"Well, well. So what business do you three have here? What were your rankings?"

"Ugh, what's with that creepy face? Did your core melt from Otou-sama talking to you? I went out of my way to come talk to you since you're somewhere you don't belong. Me? I'm 321st. Fufufu, I went up three places, you know?"

"322nd. Gekokoko. Got passed by 650."

"310th. I'm the highest of the three of us!"

"Come on, 652, don't get so full of yourself. So, 695. What about you?"

… Rokuko let out a haughty laugh through her nose. Then, with a triumphant look, she spoke.

"210th."

"… Hm? Sorry, say that again?"

"210th! Fufufufu, I won! I beat all of you!"

"Geko? The perpetual dead-last 695 in the 200s? Are you hallucinating?"

"Then look at that ranking board! It's written right there—210th, 695!"

Rokuko pointed at the board. Sure enough, it said 210th, 695.

"Whaaaat?! I-is that real?!"

"No way?! Hey, isn't the display broken?! How could the dead-last 695 be at that rank?!"

"I'm not dead last anymore. I'm 210th. That's right, I'm higher ranked than you! Add 'Number' when you address me, 650!"

"I absolutely refuse. There's no way I'll acknowledge you being 210th. Besides, you've never used 'Number' when addressing us either. What are you even saying?"

"Ah, come to think of it, you're right."

Well then, 'Number' doesn't matter. Rokuko switched gears.

"But what's going on here? How did someone like 695 end up higher than us after we spent years saving up DP? Did Otou-sama make a mistake?"

"Otou-sama making a mistake… is unthinkable. Then, did she cheat?"

"Geko geko, that's it, she cheated! She's a fraud!"

Core 651 croaked loudly, "She cheated! She's a fraud!"

Rokuko, who had been dead last until last year, had suddenly shot up to 210th. Moreover, this ranking wasn't based on yearly earnings — it was a ranking of total DP accumulated since birth. Suspecting cheating was only natural.

And so, the cores who had been surpassed by the formerly dead-last Rokuko latched onto that accusation and turned their attention to her.

"But how would she even cheat?"

"Didn't she get DP from the 'Betrayer,' 89? Like fixing a Dungeon Battle or something…"

"Come to think of it, someone mentioned earlier that she beat Number 112… How could the dead-last core win? Does that mean Number 112 was in on it too…?"

Oh no, what they're murmuring about is actually pretty close to the truth, Rokuko thought.

Wait, does that mean I cheated? Did I actually cheat? Ah, I'm starting to sweat.

"Now confess! What kind of cheating did you do, 695?!"

"N-no, I d-didn't, I didn't cheat, okay?!"

"Wow, you're obviously flustered. So suspicious… nyujururu."

Not even knowing if she'd actually done something wrong, Rokuko's vision started to spin. Her eyes grew hot. She was about to cry.

"Quiet, you unsightly vermin."

A clear, dignified voice rang out. With that single statement, the place fell silent.

There appeared a girl with fiery red hair.

"666…"

"Add 'Number,' 650. That's basic courtesy, is it not? I rank higher than you, and you and I are not close."

Core 666. She was the first among the 600-series to master humanization — the most outstanding core among them.

She was also the youngest member of the Demon King Faction led by Core 6.

"Guh, Number 666! Say something to 695 too!"

"Why?"

"Why?! She cheated to pass us in rank!"

"She didn't pass me."

Core 666 pointed somewhere, and when they looked, it read: '180th, 666.'

She had pushed past numerous predecessors to break into the top 200.

"B-but! She cheated to raise her rank! That's right, she must have gotten DP from 89!"

As for Rokuko, she had received DP from Haku as preparation funds for the Dungeon Battle, inn fees, and even tips, so it wasn't entirely wrong. Crap, was that cheating? She grew even more flustered.

"How foolish… Then why don't you 'cheat' the same way and raise your rank too?"

"Haaah?! W-what are you saying?! Are you stupid?!"

This is pointless, Core 650 shouted.

Meanwhile, this is pointless, Core 666 sighed.

"Stupid or not, if Otou-sama has acknowledged this ranking, then it's not cheating, is it? Calling it cheating just because she earned DP through means you can't replicate? What an outrageous accusation."

"Guh… R-right, since 666 also gets handouts from Number 6-sama, you couldn't really say anything harsh about 695. Soooorry about that, hohoho."

"…"

In an instant, Core 666's blazing magic sword was pointed right before Core 650's eyes. It happened so fast that Core 650 couldn't react at all.

"If you're going to insult Jii-sama… I'll slaughter you."

"Eek?! W-what?! You're going to kill me?! F-f-f-fine then, bring it on!"

Even while saying that, Core 650 quickly retreated and hid behind Core 651. Core 666 made her sword vanish and spoke with an unfazed expression.

"I wonder if even snakes can be cowards? What do you think, 695?"

"Eh? Ah, yeah, I guess… they can be?"

"I see… There you have it, coward."

"Shaaa!! How dare you act so high and mighty, 695!"

"Eh, wait?! How did that become something I said?!"

Hmph, Core 666 snorted.

Though Core 666 had deflected the provocation onto Rokuko, for some reason her nervous sweating had stopped.

Did she just… help me? Rokuko wondered.

"… Oh?"

Noticing something, Core 666 looked at Rokuko. What caught her eye was the red ring of ruby and orichalcum on Rokuko's left ring finger.

"… 695. That's a lovely ring you're wearing."

"Eh? Ah, this? Ehehe, actually, I got a Master, you know? And this ring was a present from my Master."

"Hm, from your Master… It looks expensive. If I'm not mistaken… is that orichalcum?"

"Eh, ah, yeah. That's right."

"May I take a closer look?"

"Eh, um, c-can you see it like this?"

Rokuko completely ignored Core 650 who was still yelling from behind Core 651 and held out her left hand to Core 666.

Core 666 gently took her hand and examined the ring… An orichalcum ring encased within a pure, flawless ruby. She observed it carefully. This treasure was worth at least 50 million DP — possibly even 100 million DP.

"Are you not going to convert that ring into DP?"

"Huh?! No, this is an important ring that my Master gave me as a present. There's no way I would!"

"But if you converted it to DP, you'd rank much higher, wouldn't you?"

Even higher than me. Core 666 glared at Rokuko.

As for Rokuko, she knew Kehma had made it quickly with a small amount of DP, so she hadn't thought it would be worth that much. Well, she had no intention of converting it anyway since it was her precious ring.

"No, I won't."

Hearing Rokuko's answer, Core 666 let go of her hand.

"How carefree, 695. I must admit, just a little… just the tiniest bit, I feel like breaking you."

"Please don't?! It's no joke when you say it, 666!"

Even though Rokuko had called her "666" — the equivalent of addressing someone without an honorific in human terms — Core 666 didn't particularly scold her for it.

Instead, she smiled.

And then, Core 666 spoke.

"Therefore, 695. I challenge you to a duel."