2
I wonder how long it’s been since that conversation.
The road is now pitch black, since the sun set hours ago, and Alice is driving with the buggy’s lights off, hoping to avoid a repeat of the antlion encounter in the desert. An android equipped with night vision is really useful at times like this.
After some time driving and staring into the darkness, Alice narrows her eyes.
“We should be getting close to the ruins. I can see some lights. That’s most likely our competition’s camp.”
I turn to look in the same direction, seeing a small light off in the distance. As we approach, slowing down, the lights eventually reveal an enormous building.
“…Whoa. That’s big.”
It looks about the size of the Tokyo Dome, and it’s definitely out of place compared to the rest of this world’s culture.
I couldn’t help commenting on it, and Alice seems impressed as well.
“Huh, looks like there might be something to this ancient civilization stuff. Hey, Six, if it’s a civilization that can build something like this, the ancient weapon might actually be pretty useful.”
“And of course that ancient weapon’s gonna go berserk and try to kill us when we go to claim it, right? I’ve seen this sort of thing a million times.”
We park the buggy in right where we are to avoid being noticed by the demons and take the time to discuss our next moves.
“It’d be best to finish our survey at night. Otherwise, you won’t be able to make much use of my powerful gifts,” the nocturnal Grimm says, energized by nightfall.
“I’m not going to deny the existence of your abilities like Alice, but I can’t remember the last time your supernatural abilities did us any good. Is there anything useful about you at all?”
“W-wait just a minute! I’m Archbishop Grimm! When the odds are slim, look to Grimm!”
Grimm’s been little better than baggage lately, so here’s hoping she has an opportunity to shine.
Snow appears to finish her observations of the lights off in the distance. “So about our next move… I doubt they’re expecting us to return so soon after our escape from Toris. So…I’m going to propose we do something a little underhanded.” She smiles deviously. “No doubt they’ve let their guard down. After all, we’re in the middle of the kingdom of Toris. The only thing they need to worry about is feral monsters. Therefore, instead of investigating the ruins, why don’t we just attack them during the—”
“Miss Snow, I think you’re taking a little too much inspiration from Boss lately.”
“Say, Snow, unlike Rose and me, aren’t you supposed to be a proper knight? I mean, I know they’re our enemy, but attacking enemies while they sleep? That seems a little much…”
Snow trembles a little in the darkness as Rose and Grimm shoot down her proposal.
“W-we don’t have much choice! There are two of the Demon Lord’s Elite Four over there! Six! Alice! You understand, right? This is a good plan! I mean, you two came up with things like attacking defenseless supply convoys and clearing out the Tower of Duster with that ridiculous tactic! This is right up your alley! Right? You agree with me, don’t you?”
Snow looks desperately to us for support…
“Hey, Snow, who do you think I am? Kisaragi operatives can’t resort to something so lame.”
“Well said, Six. You’re a model Kisaragi operative.”
Snow’s eyes widen in surprise at our sudden betrayal.
“W-wait! I was trying to learn from the tactics we’ve been using and adapt to your way of thinking…!” Snow desperately tries to put forth excuses.
We look over at her, shaking our heads with a sigh.
“Did you hear that, Alice? She claims she’s trying to adopt our way of thinking. Seems she doesn’t have a very high opinion of Kisaragi.”
“Indeed. Six, now’s the time to give her the truth. No sugarcoating anything.”
At the barrage of criticism, Snow’s eyes begin to well up with tears.
“We’re going to rest until morning, then follow them into the ruins. We’ll let them take care of the traps and security mechanisms. Once they overcome all the obstacles and reach their destination, they’ll be worn out. The moment they let their guard down at the objective, that’s when we’ll strike. We’ve thought this out very carefully. And you’d have us throw it all away for something as lame as a night attack? Eesh.”
“Well said, Six. Spoken like a proper Kisaragi operative.”
Alice and I nod at each other. As Snow begins to throw a tantrum, we ignore her and go to bed.
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