That World of Otome Games is Tough for Us - Volume 4 - Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

The Masked Knight

FROM THE ROOF of a tall building, I looked down at the capital. I wore an all-black outfit, complete with a hooded coat to conceal my head, that had been prepared by Luxion.

When he’d arrived here to meet me, per my summons, his mechanical voice was so annoyed that it was hard to believe he was an AI.

“I have told you repeatedly that I am busy,” he’d sniped curtly at me.

“It’s an emergency. Enough moaning and groaning—help me out.”

“I very much doubt that it is really an emergency. Furthermore, for the record, what I was doing before you called me here was ‘helping you out.’ How ridiculous. If only you hadn’t interrupted me; I was so close to unveiling the location I needed.” He was complaining more than usual, which was saying something. It was like he thought my situation was completely irrelevant. That pissed me off.

“You’ve got that spirit under lock and key, don’t you? She’s not going anywhere. There’s no rush,” I replied.

“That is a much higher priority than whatever issue you have,” Luxion retorted.

“Look, if we don’t clear up the mess I’ve got on my plate right now, I won’t be able to go back home without constantly feeling anxious. So shut up and pitch in.”

“This is another matter that does not require your interference in the first place. Whether Clarice and her retinue perpetrate violence has absolutely nothing to do with you.”

“It’s human nature to want to stop an acquaintance who veers down a dangerous path.”

“As far as I am concerned, this is all trivial,” Luxion replied snidely. “You two should stop being so shortsighted, Master. If you only pay attention to what is immediately in front of you, you will lose sight of the bigger picture.” 

With that, he ended the conversation. His red lens flashed as he projected an image of Olivia and two of her love interests, Jilk and Julius. It looked like they were headed home after enjoying a shopping trip in the capital; their hands were full of shopping bags. As they walked, they chatted together merrily. 

The feed transitioned to cameras with different angles of the trio. That was how I spotted a suspicious armed group that seemed to be targeting the three. The group looked highly organized—even I could tell that much.

“So they’re really going to launch an attack, even after Miss Clarice told them not to do anything stupid.” Dan and his men evidently hadn’t listened to her.

As I contemplated how best to stop them, Luxion surprised me by saying, “No. They do not appear to be people you are acquainted with, Master.”

“What?”

“I have located Clarice, as well as her retinue. None of them came here.” 

As if to prove Luxion’s point, the screen shifted to an image of Dan and his boys drinking at what looked like a pub.

“I’ll kill that bastard Jilk, I swear it!”

“Yeah! He betrayed Her Ladyship!”

“I want to mess up that stupid pretty face of his!”

The alcohol had gotten to them—they were spewing pretty horrific things. Still, a little verbal catharsis was preferable to physical violence. The other customers around them seemed discomforted by their disturbing statements, of course, but I was just glad that Clarice’s followers hadn’t resorted to anything foolish.

“Drinking off their frustration is a perfectly healthy way to handle things,” I said.

“Their statements are a bit alarming,” Luxion remarked.

“If that’s how they blow off steam, it’s pretty harmless.” I paused for a moment, then added, “Anyway, who are those knuckleheads there, about to launch an attack?” If not Dan and his men, who else would have a motive to target the trio?

“That remains unclear. It is possible that they are some sort of thieves looking to rob wealthy targets. However, their matching outfits and the practiced synchronization of their movements seem a little too organized for that.”

“And we’re sure they’re after Prince Julius and the others?” I asked.

“The odds seem quite high, yes. What would you like to do, Master?”

“Help them, of course.”

“You change your principles at the drop of a hat,” Luxion said incredulously.

“I’d prefer that you call me flexible.”

“You’re more like a weather vane. Before, you said that you didn’t wish to interfere with the protagonist. You should hold to that,” he advised.

“Oh, so today you don’t want me to change my mind. Back when Marie—”

“You were torn over whether to help her, too. After extensive consideration, you decided to assist her after all, so I obediently obliged.”

He was right about one thing: I’d resolved not to disrupt the game’s plot. The only time I’d broken that resolution was to save Marie. Luxion seemed to understand that exception; still, he was insistent that my reckless desire to help those in front of me was ill-advised.

“You were the one who said you would not involve yourself in the storyline,” he reminded me dutifully.

“Yeah, but…” I gritted my teeth, clenching my fists.

In the projection, Olivia and the two boys were just about to exit an alleyway when their attackers surrounded them. Olivia cowered while the boys jumped in front of her. Jilk had a pistol to use for self-defense, but Julius was unarmed. He tried to use magic to scare their attackers away, but the aggressors seemed undaunted by that. These guys were pros.

“Sorry,” I said finally, “but I want to help them. Give me a hand with this.”

“You are beyond salvation,” Luxion said with great exasperation.

“Hey, I think I’m being an idiot, too. But it is what it is.”

“So you intend to interfere openly with the game’s story henceforth?”

I shook my head. “Nah, I’m not going that far. That’s why I brought this.” 

I reached into my pocket.

***

Julius and Jilk were having a tough time staving off the enemies that surrounded them.

“These men are no amateurs, Jilk,” Julius warned.

“I know that!” Jilk fired a shot at one, aiming for the shoulder. The bullet hit its target with a loud ping, but whatever defensive equipment the man had donned deflected it. Their attackers wore robes, but had seemingly layered armor beneath those.

Cold sweat trickled down Jilk’s forehead as he checked his magazine. “This doesn’t look good. We can only hope help arrives.”

Behind them, Olivia burst into tears. “I’m so sorry. If only I hadn’t suggested that we take a shortcut, this wouldn’t have happened.” She was indeed the one who’d chosen to walk down this narrow alley.

Julius smiled at her. “These are obviously professionals. Even if we’d opted for a different route, they’d still have attacked us.”

“Julius…” she mumbled in response.

One of their attackers burst out laughing. “You really are a prince, acting lovey-dovey even at a time like this. Sadly for you, this won’t have a storybook ending.” He brandished his weapon at them.

Julius and Jilk had come to terms with the situation. Now, all Julius could think about was protecting Olivia. If we at least take down a few of them, we can find an opening so that Olivia can escape. Our odds of accomplishing that don’t look good, though. There’re too many of them.

They were up against nine attackers, and both the ­alley’s exits were blocked. There was no other escape, and Julius, at least, had no weapon.

Still, I can’t embarrass myself in front of Olivia!

He lifted his hand, ready to unleash magic on the aggressors, when someone suddenly dropped on them from above. Two someones, actually. As they descended, they cut down two of Julius’s attackers; upon closer examination, though, one attacker had only been knocked out.

The enemies seemed puzzled by the two interlopers. 

“Who are you?” one of the attackers asked, pointing a sword at the pair.

They answered simultaneously.

“My name isn’t worth remembering. I just came to help because I can’t overlook injustice like this.”

“You may refer to me as the Masked Knight. Not that you’ll ever be permitted the chance, of course. Soon enough, you’ll be but rust on my blade, you perpetrators of evil!”

One of the two was clad in all black; a matching mask concealed his eyes. He wielded a curved blade with a single sharp edge, and his speech was brusque. The other was dressed mainly in white and wore a gold mask with innumerable decorations. His speech was flowery and theatrical. The pair were impossibly dissimilar, save for the fact that they both wore masks. However, the important thing was that they seemingly weren’t enemies—and they didn’t seem acquainted, either, to Julius’s surprise.

The two masked men froze, then pointed at one another.

“Who the hell are you?!”

“I should be asking you that!”

The tension in the atmosphere had eased considerably. However, the attackers were able to adapt quickly enough.

“We’ll dispatch you two as well!”

They descended on the interlopers, and a blade swept down on the black-masked man. It should’ve sliced him open, but he came away without a scratch—presumably because he too had layered armor beneath his billowing black coat.

“Sorry, but this was a custom order,” the black-masked man said. “You guys don’t have a prayer.”

When they realized that the black-masked man was impervious to their attacks, the attackers tried to distance themselves from him by retreating. He charged after them, though, his fists raised. When he punched one of the attackers, electricity crackled through the air. The masked man’s victim jolted erratically before collapsing to the ground in a heap. Meanwhile, the white-masked man masterfully cut down his opponents with the most graceful swordplay.

“Fwa ha ha!” he cackled. “You’re a hundred—no, a thousand!—years too young to try to cut down the Masked Knight! Come, dance to your death before my blade!” His shrill voice echoed through the air, his every movement flashy in the extreme.

A realization hit Julius then. That can’t be who I think it is, right?!

***

Olivia was dumbfounded.

If my plan goes a little awry, it’s not the end of the world. I took into account that something unforeseen might occur. But who are these two? What’s going on?!

The intervention of the two masked men had wrecked her scheme. Both men were incredibly powerful. The black-masked one seemed to rely on equipment more than his own strength, but his fighting style was highly adaptive. The white-masked man was cocky about his abilities—but rightfully so.

Both of them were a nuisance. To think that two idiots would put on such ridiculous masks and interfere with my plans! 

She let herself get flustered, and that was her mistake. Her heart began to pound irregularly as the real Olivia fought to wrest back control. 

No—you can’t actually still mean to fight me, can you, Olivia?! 

Anne had locked the real Olivia away deep in her subconscious while piloting the girl’s body, but Olivia was putting up fierce resistance. Not only had Anne’s plans been dashed, she was now struggling to hold back her body’s true owner. She sank to the ground, curling up. I can’t let them ruin everything. I’ll have my revenge—whatever the cost!

***

I couldn’t believe that, after I jumped in to save Olivia and two of her love interests, someone else had shown up on the scene: The Masked Knight, as he called himself. He was something of a knight in shining armor who had appeared occasionally in the game to save the protagonist. The game never revealed his true identity, even after I cleared all the routes. His costume and mask had been over-the-top in the game, too, but I remembered thinking that he was pretty strong. Seeing his prowess in real life was disorienting somehow.

The enemy definitely outnumbered us, so taking them all on was tough. Before I knew it, the Masked Knight and I stood back to back as we fought.

“If you were going to step in and save them anyway, you should’ve done it sooner!” I snapped at him. “If you had, I wouldn’t be stuck here!” I could’ve kept my nose out if I’d known.

He huffed in displeasure at me. “You’re the one who should learn to read the room! You have a getup similar to mine, so now people will assume we’re partners. I don’t want them to lump us together. You have no sense of aesthetics!”

I’d used any aesthetic sense I had to prioritize minimalism so that I’d look as forgettable as possible. This guy was insufferable.

“Funny,” I said. “It sounds like you think you’ve got any degree of style. Never looked in a mirror? Or are your eyes just bad? You should consult an optometrist.”

We fought as we needled each other.

“I could say the same to you,” he replied. “You have some gall to launch a rescue dressed like that. You look no different than these aggressors. Didn’t you consider the risk that the very people you were trying to help might cut you down? When I saw you, I nearly did so myself.”

That really got under my skin. Unable to control my temper, I caught one of the attackers with my right hook, unleashing a powerful torrent of electricity. They lost consciousness and flopped to the ground.

“Fine, pervert! You want to take me on? Then show me what you’ve got!” I barked over my shoulder. “I’ll lay you flat on your ass, like this guy!”

The Masked Knight took someone down at almost the same instant I did. “Don’t be egotistical, brat! If I wished to dispose of you, you’d be dead in the blink of an eye!”

“Oh yeah? Show me, you gaudy Masquerading Knight!”

“Masked Knight! I’m the Masked Knight!” he shouted back, emphasizing every word. “Get it wrong again, and I’ll beat you silly!”

Both shooting our mouths off, we whittled down the enemy’s numbers. 

The attackers’ leader must’ve realized that the tide was now against them, because he began to edge away from us. “Your outfits may be ridiculous, but you’re strong. I didn’t think I’d have to use our secret weapon here.”

The other attackers retrieved their fallen comrades, then fell back, and the wall of one of the alley buildings exploded as a four-meter-tall armor burst through. It had only a single eye, unlike most Armors, and its sleek design featuring thin plating suggested that it specialized in offense. Three other units of the same design followed it; they quickly surrounded us.

The Masked Knight held his sword aloft. “Aren’t you worried that you’ll draw attention to yourselves by piloting Armors in the middle of the capital? The royal guard will come with Armors of their own.”

The attackers’ leader grinned and threw his arms wide. “I didn’t think we’d have to resort to this, either, but you two are too strong! We’re left with no other choice. You can take pride in that after I send you both to hell.”

The Armors had us pinned down, so the rest of the attackers fled, disappearing into the darkness of night.

“Well,” the Masked Knight said, shooting me a look. “I suppose we’ll have to buy time until the royal guard arrives. If you have some kind of plan, you reckless rapscallion, I’ll permit you to share it now.”

He had an exaggerated sense of superiority. “I’ll wipe that smarmy grin off your face, you dirty perv.” 

Stepping forward, I shoved my katana back into its sheath and snuck a glance over my shoulder. Olivia had collapsed to the ground, face pinched with distress. Julius and Jilk were talking to her, trying to coax her into escaping. Although they’d been up against a wall, they’d done everything in their power to protect her.

“I’ll have you know,” I said, “that I always come prepared to win.” 

I lifted my hand into the air and snapped my fingers. Luxion, who’d been watching the entire time, finally launched into action and sent an enemy Armor hurtling through the air. While the rest of their number were on guard, I charged forward. Using my momentum, I scaled the wall, leaping up to the roof.

“Nice! I almost feel like a ninja running up a wall!”

Arroganz awaited me on the roof, the cockpit hatch wide open and ready. Luxion’s mobile unit was already waiting inside the cockpit as well. As I hopped inside, he said, “I am pleased that you enjoy the special boots I prepared for you.”

I slammed the hatch closed behind me.

Thanks to its ashen-gray color scheme, Arroganz blended into the darkness of night. Luxion was also using a special cloaking device to make it less visible, so I could go for broke without fear of being identified. I grasped the control sticks.

Two enemy units shot into the sky to chase me. One remained behind, probably to deal with Julius and the others.

“You guys may have some niche, stealthy suits, but they won’t be any match for Arroganz,” I said.

One of the enemy suits came charging at me. I slammed Arroganz’s bare fist into them, sending them hurtling back. I wanted to avoid damaging our surroundings as much as possible, but given my opponent, that might difficult.

“If you would just use a weapon, this would end quickly,” Luxion complained to me.

“I’m trying to capture one of them so that we can interrogate them for info.”

“I advise against that. You are making this unnecessarily difficult for yourself.”

Taking an attacker captive would be the best way to find out who’d ordered this entire thing.

The enemies wielded rifles a little too small for their size—the pilots had probably assumed they’d be shooting people, not Armors. For all the good it did them against Arroganz, the rifles might as well have been peashooters. They didn’t have any luck piercing Arroganz’s armor plating. Sensing the futility of their attack, the two enemy suits tried to escape. I sped after them, clapping a hand down on both.

“Knock ’em out,” I commanded.

“Initializing the weakest possible shock wave,” Luxion replied. As soon as he spoke, a current exploded from both of Arroganz’s hands. These suits had sacrificed proper defense for offensive power, so they were incredibly vulnerable to this attack. Once they both went limp, I tossed them aside.

“Just one left.”

***

The black-masked man had distracted and led away two enemy Armors, but one remained for Julius and the others to contend with. He and Jilk raced through the alleyway, trying to protect Olivia as they escaped. The remaining enemy unit brute-forced its way after them, shaving walls off the nearby buildings with each giant step. The sound of its thundering pursuit rattled Julius.

“Is the royal guard still not here?!” he cried.

The white-masked man, who was keeping pace with them, replied, “They’re probably preparing to sortie as we speak, so we’ll need to keep running for a little while.” He grinned, as if the danger meant nothing to him.

Something in Julius snapped. “Can’t you do something about this?!”

“Nope. In fact, it’s a good thing for us that rapscallion took care of those three. If he hadn’t, they’d have surrounded us in no time.” For someone retreating, he was strangely composed.

Julius didn’t know how to respond to the man anymore. 

Jilk inserted himself into the conversation. “If you’d thought things through and brought an Armor of your own, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” he told the Masked Knight. 

The masked man grimaced. “It’s hard to bring an Armor into the middle of the capital. Try to be a little understanding.”

“The guy in black managed it,” Jilk reminded him.

“That’s because something’s seriously weird about him!”

While the pair bickered, Julius focused his efforts on soothing Olivia. “Don’t worry,” he told her gently. “The royal guard will be here soon.”

“Right,” she murmured back. She was deathly pale, which Julius assumed was due to fear. He wrapped a strong arm around her shoulders, pulling her along as they desperately ran for their lives.

But then an Armor crashed in right behind them.

Is this the end of the line?! Julius was beginning to think their lives were over.

“You’re done!” the black-masked man’s voice boomed.

When Julius whipped around, an enormous Armor—barely visible through the darkness—had its foot firmly planted on the collapsed form of the final enemy unit. He carried the other two units in either hand.

Julius desperately tried to gasp in enough air, squinting to make out their savior’s Armor more clearly, but its outline was fuzzy and indiscernible.

The black-masked man’s Armor tossed its prey aside, and its chest hatch popped open, the black-masked man hopping out and landing gracefully on the ground. Then his Armor accelerated into the sky, where the darkness swallowed it up.

“What was that? I’ve never heard of an Armor like that before.” And who was this black masked man? Julius glowered at him.

The Masked Knight ventured closer to the other masked man to call out to him. The black-masked man was busy trying to pry the pilot out of the Armor he’d felled, but he was struggling.

“Damn it! I should’ve broken the stupid hatch open,” he cursed. He seemed to regret sending his own Armor away too soon.

“You’re not thorough enough,” the Masked Knight said imperiously. “I bet women point out how inconsiderate you are all the time. I can tell.”

“Stop wagging your tongue and help me, you pervert.”

“I hope you know that I’d have your head for such slander—if not for your contributions.” The Masked Knight stepped into help, and together the pair dragged the pilot out. Both men reacted strangely to what they found inside the Armor.

“I didn’t think they’d resort to this,” the black-masked knight said.

“They brought Armors into the city. They had to be prepared for the possibility that they might get caught,” said the Masked Knight.

The pilot was completely motionless, but Julius could deduce what must’ve happened. 

The two masked men turned around and started toward the crown prince.

“I’m glad to see that the young lady seems unharmed,” said the Masked Knight. “And as a bonus, neither of you were injured, either, were you?”

Julius wasn’t sure that he appreciated this man considering his safety a “bonus.” “N-no,” he said hesitantly. “I’m…fine.”

Jilk bristled. “How impudent. You find yourself before this kingdom’s crown prince. Show him the proper respect!”

Julius slapped his palm against his forehead. I can’t tell him who this Masked Knight really is, but I also can’t tell him to show Masked Knight due deference without good reason.

The Masked Knight turned away, visibly displeased by Jilk’s scolding.

He’s as immature as ever. But we have bigger problems to deal with. Julius was wary of the black-masked man who’d managed to sneak an Armor into the capital.

The black-masked man was watching them, but his attention mostly seemed focused on Olivia. “Is she all right?”

“Yes, she’s fine. Aren’t you, Olivia?” Julius said, not taking his eyes off the other man.

Olivia clutched her chest, her smile pained. “Yes. I’m just exhausted from running.”

The black-masked man seemed relieved to hear that. His lips relaxed into what almost looked like a smile. “Good. I’m glad you weren’t hurt.” He didn’t seem to have any wicked intentions, nor did he show any inclination to attack them.

Julius relaxed a little. He’s more of a gentleman than I thought.

Jilk stomped toward the black-masked man. “At any rate, I have questions for you both. Don’t even try to leave.”

“Hey,” Julius cut in, annoyed, “that’s no attitude to have after all they did to—”

But it was already too late. The black-masked man lifted his fist high. He was smiling maniacally; a completely different, more sinister emotion than what had been there a moment before was evident in his face.

“I’ve got a special present just for you!” he declared gleefully, punching his fist right into Jilk’s face.

“Bwuh!” Jilk grunted as the momentum sent him flailing backward. He crashed noisily to the ground.

The black-masked man grinned. “There. Now I feel better.”

The Masked Knight pumped his fist excitedly—likely because he’d wanted to do the same. “Nicely done, you rapscallion! I’ll ensure you aren’t held to account for that!” Jilk must’ve really gotten under his skin; he was acting as happy as if he’d punched the young man himself.

The black-masked man marched over to Jilk to make sure that he was still alive, then spat out, “Have you taken a hard look at yourself yet? Idiot.” Did he have some personal grudge against Jilk? It wouldn’t surprise Julius, knowing what he did about Jilk. This time, his friend had really pissed off the wrong person.

Julius and Olivia were still dazed in the wake of everything that had just happened—the sudden attack, the unexpected rescue, the desperate running.

“By the way, rapscallion…” began the Masked Knight.

“Quit calling me that, pervert.”

The two launched themselves at one another, grabbing for each other’s collars.

“It’s Masked Knight! Do I need to beat it into you? Is your head that empty?! Nimrod!”

“I try to avoid retaining useless information, actually. While we’re at it, when I started to backstep to dodge the enemy’s attack earlier, you got in my way!”

“Not dodging it more elegantly is your own fault. You could’ve twisted a little, and it would’ve missed you. I figured you only took such a big step back because you’re a dirty coward.”

“You want to fight, you gaudy pervert?!”

“Bring it, brat!”

The two knew exactly what to say to piss each other off. Soon enough, they were throwing punches at each other, but before long the royal guard closed in on the group.

“Excuse us!” one said, weapon raised. 

The royal guard had encircled the two masked men. As soon as they grasped the situation, the pair ceased their squabble. Panic, it seemed, had set in.

“H-hold on. I’m a good guy,” sputtered the Masked Knight. “I fought to save that young lady. If you arrest anyone, it should be this joker here.”

“Good guy, my ass,” the black-masked man spat at him. “How can anyone trust someone who hides their identity?”

“You realize that applies to you, too, right?!”

The two were about to begin clobbering each other again.

“We’ll be taking you both in!” a guard barked, face hardening. “Be quiet, and come along peacefully.”

As if perfectly in sync, the masked men froze and stared at one another. Then, shockingly, they worked together to make their escape.

“I’m not going to jail after coming to their rescue!”

“I feel the same, rapscallion. This is where we say adieu!”

For all their bickering, their synergy was incredible. They broke through the royal guards’ ranks with ease and disappeared into the night.

“H-hold it right there!” The guards started to give chase.

“There’s no need!” Julius told the guards quickly. “Let them go.”

They eyed him suspiciously, but the moment they realized who he was, they hurriedly bowed.

“Cr-Crown Prince! W-we’re so relieved you’re all right!”

“Yeah, thanks to you guys, we are,” Julius said, waving them off. “Anyway, don’t worry about chasing those two. Or, more specifically, don’t mess with that guy in white. I’m telling you that for your own good.”

This seemed to confuse the guards. “Leave the guy in white alone? Does that mean you want us to pursue the guy in black?”

Julius hesitated, then reiterated, “Yeah… Probably best not to pursue the guy in white.”

The guards didn’t push the subject any further, sensing that there was something that the crown prince wasn’t letting on.

“Sorry, but would you mind helping my brother here?” Julius asked. 

He motioned to Jilk, who was still out cold. The guards worked quickly to carry out his request.

Julius made his way back to Olivia. “Sorry,” he said. “This completely ruined our shopping trip together.”

She still seemed dazed, but when he addressed her, she jolted back to attention. “I-It’s fine,” she said. “I’m just…glad you guys protected me.” Her cheeks flushed.

Julius blushed, too. “No, I didn’t do anything. I’m just glad you weren’t hurt.”