Deceipt

The day before the tournament arrived quickly.

Niku and I were at the arena making final adjustments and preparations.

"Hey, Kehma. About the timing of that magic just now—"

"Oh, I see. If you deliberately delayed it a little more—"

By the way, Sebas had been giving me advice on my combat skills. His tone had also become more relaxed, and it seemed like we were getting along well.

Thanks to that, my combat skills were improving rapidly. My movements without the golem support were also much better. With the attack power of [Elemental Shot], Sebas said he could see me making it into the main tournament even.

(There was a qualifier, so winning that would bring you into the main tournament. There were actually local preliminaries to make it into the qualifier, but we were exempt because we were from the Empire.)

Niku was aiming for a top 8 finish. Even if I took into account my hidden (and known) strength, it was a better bet to put my hopes in Niku than to get the [Divine Pajamas] myself.

As for the Dungeon Cores who made use of the Demon King Style of combat—they were in a separate tournament from the demons. The prize for the runner-up was the [Divine Pajamas]… The prize for the winner was the right to participate in the Demon tournament. They're just battle junkies. The [Divine Pajamas] is definitely better. There's no doubt about it.

"Honestly, I didn't think that dog would get this strong in such a short time…"

In their sparring match today, Niku actually won.

Fufufu, isn't our girl amazing?

That Niku was running around the arena for stamina training… at a short-distance sprinting speed.

It seemed like she could continue fighting for a minute or so even if she had to stop breathing for whatever reason. She had been told by Aidi that it was better to stop breathing than to have a gap in her breathing, but it was still strange that she could actually do it.

"Hey, Kehma. That dog, seriously, what is she? Where did you pick her up?"

"She's my hug pillow. She was originally a beastkin slave that the bandits bought—but…"

"That's gotta be a bargain… unless the Empire's level is high, or maybe the seller had bad eyesight… I guess it's the latter."

She looked to be a normal beastkin, but it may be because of the supports I made for her.

By the way, I'd mixed the orichalcum grains I'd been producing into her supports. It was a small amount, but it was enough to make a difference.

As a result, I just laughed with a meaningful grin.

I couldn't help myself, given that I was beginning to think I'd be able to get the [Divine Pajamas] without having to bargain for them.

Aidi, Rokuko, and Ichika arrived just then.

"You're working hard."

"Welcome, Ojou-sama. That dog managed to score one against me earlier."

"Well.. Master, you'll be punished later."

"… Tch, certainly, Ojou-sama."

Sebas clicked his tongue in annoyance. With that going on in the background, Rokuko handed me a towel.

"Here you go, Kehma. You're all sweaty… you're working hard for once."

"It's all for those [Divine Pajamas]… I'll be able to sleep well every night once I get my hands on them…"

"Really, you spare no effort for the sake of sleep."

I wiped my face with the towel Rokuko handed me.

When I handed her it back, she wiped my back down after commenting on how sweaty I was.

After putting the towel away into her [Storage], she cast [Purify] on me. Thanks to that, I felt refreshed… hmm? Wait, wouldn't it have been enough to just use it on me from the start?

"Still… the tournament's just a day away and we still haven't figured out a surefire way for me to get the [Divine Pajamas]."

"Eh? What're you saying. Don't you just have to make it to the finals and lose?"

Rokuko replied in all casualness. I mean, it wouldn't be hard if I could manage to do that, but…

"Do you think Niku or I can even make it to the finals in the first place?"

"Obviously. You've been training with me so you're bound to win."

"No, Rokuko. The special training I did with you was just to learn [Elemental Shot]… How am I supposed to win with just that? My opponents are definitely going to dodge, you know?"

In fact, Sebas managed to dodge it. He'd attack me on top of that, so even if I used the golem to dodge, there was no way for me to aim properly while being shaken around by what was effectively a single-person roller coaster. I wasn't even skilled at aiming, so it was all the easier for him to dodge.

As a result, I'd only manage to shoot once or twice while he was approaching.

It'd be different if I'd manage to use the [Elemental Flash] Rokuko talked about, but no luck there.

"Huh? All you have to do is ignore their attacks and keep shooting. What are you talking about?"

"What do you mean what am I talking about? What do you mean by just ignore their attacks?"

"… I'll lend you the blanket?"

… Hmm?

"Eh? Wait. By blanket, do you mean… the [Divine Blanket]?"

"Yeah? There'd be no point if it were a normal one."

Wait. Hold on now. With the [Divine Blanket], if I remember correctly, it has—

"Just to make sure, how does it ignore attacks again, Rokuko?"

"Oh? It's just that the [Divine Blanket] has incredible defense. Tou-sama guarantees it."

—Attack Nullification. The blanket's outrageously stupid ability.

In other words, just wearing the blanket would let me pepper opponents in attacks by turning me into an invincible fixed turret. Wearing it like a poncho would upgrade me into a mobile one.

In which case I'd definitely be able to rely on [Elemental Shot] to win like how Rokuko said.

At any rate, I wouldn't even have to worry about attacks small enough to hit me directly, since the [Divine Blanket] has a recovery effect—though it was still in the range of being considered natural. Haha.

"… Isn't that cheating though?"

"Oh, Aidi? If using a tool created by Tou-sama is considered cheating, then wouldn't that mean you couldn't use your demonic sword either? In a way, you yourself are like a weapon created by Tou-sama, being a demon sword core, right?"

"… That's going a bit far, but reasonable."

"Besides, it's a tournament where you're allowed to use golems, right? In that case, there's no reason to complain about using superior armor."

"Hmm… that makes sense."

Aidi was convinced by Rokuko's argument… looks like there won't be any issues.

… Yup. I'd been training to obtain the [Divine Pajamas] through normal means or negotiation. I'd been influenced by the Demonlands more than I realized.

My brain might have been eroded by all the udon…

"We'll leave the right to participate in the higher-ranking tournament where you and the others appear to the demons. Our goal is solely the [Divine Pajamas], after all. Right Kehma?"

"Aaah, yeah. Definitely."

I was feeling a bit dishonest about the whole thing, but then I remembered that my entire strategy as a Dungeon Master was embracing deceit. I'll put myself together and snatch that runner-up position for the [Divine Pajamas].

"… Goshujin-sama. What should I, do?"

I looked and saw that Niku had stopped running and was standing there.

We'd managed to find a way to obtain the [Divine Pajamas] without relying on Niku… Well, it's not like having her becoming stronger for being mine and Rokuko's bodyguard is a bad thing.

"Ah, right. Niku, just go as far as you can. See the prizes for third place and below?"

"Understood."

"Good luck, Niku! You can even go for gold if you want!"

"Yes, I will do my, best!"

… Wait, I totally forgot that Wataru's going to be participating, so winning might be a bit too difficult.