I caught Gissy's face—she was looking at Yute with flushed cheeks, hiding her mouth behind her hand.
...
"You two rats are gonna see what happens when you challenge us." The bandit boss's voice oozed arrogance as he ignored his partner's blushing.
"I'd advise you to give up before you regret it." Fighting alongside Fran gave me a huge advantage.
"I'm relying on you, Alen."
…What?
"I was actually planning on trusting you to be strong enough, and me just supporting you," I admitted awkwardly, a single bead of sweat trailing down my forehead.
"I can't believe you… You'd take advantage of your friend like that?" She pouted and looked away. "I guess there's no helping it…" she mumbled under her breath.
"Ah! But it'll cost you extra."
"But I—"
"No buts! You're not escaping it." She poked my chest.
"It's not fair…"
The warrior woman blushed, looking at us with embarrassment—and a faint tinge of jealousy.
"You think you can just ignore us? C'mon, Gissy. Let's show them not to underestimate us!"
Gissy snapped out of her daze and rushed forward with the boss.
We dodged back, preparing to counterattack.
I parried Yute's axe and went for a strike—only for Fran's spear to slide in between us.
"Oh! S-sorry!" She jumped back in a hurry.
"I-it doesn't ma—" My words cut off as Gissy's kick slammed into my left arm.
Then Yute's punch drove into my gut, leaving me immobilized.
"Alen!" Fran blocked Gissy's follow-up swing just in time.
But then Yute's fist crashed into her face, knocking her back.
He grabbed me by the head while I was still slightly immobilized due to the punh on my gut and hurled me straight at Fran.
Fran caught me, but I saw Gissy's sword flashing in from the right.
I parried while Fran supported me, but Yute's sliding kick swept her off balance, dragging me down with her.
"!!"
Before we could recover, Gissy's sword came crashing down.
I barely managed to block, but her strength pressed against me, forcing the blade lower, inch by inch.
"Nngh…" Fran groaned beneath me. My weight pressed her down as Gissy's power threatened to crush us both.
"It seems neither of you knows how to work as a team." Yute rested his hand on Gissy's head. She nuzzled into his palm, and he smirked. "Unlike me and her."
He wasn't wrong. I'd always fought alone—caring only about my own safety. Fran was the same. In the game, she never had friends, only followers.
She was alone no matter what point in the game you encountered her. The biggest contrast as a player comes not from living in the world of the game I played so much, but from seeing Fran spend time together with other people.
Whether it's just me, or in a group with Theo and Cecil, even now, she spent time with Kaida's group. Seeing Fran have people to talk with made me happy, as it meant that I could save her from her fate.
I won't let her get tangled in her family's plan that leads to an apocalypse. I won't let her turn into a monster.
Because now… she had me. And I wasn't letting either of us die this early.
While they were distracted, the pressure on me slackened.
I shoved with all my strength, forcing the sword away in a single explosive movement.
"Grah!" Fran let out a pained grunt beneath me—the strain must have hurt her.
But it worked. The blade swung wide, and I leapt up, slashing with my dagger.
My attack missed Yute, but Fran had already recovered, sliding into a ready stance with her spear.
"I'm sorry, Fran!" I called back.
"Don't worry, Alen." Deep down, though, she felt it—the nagging thought that she was holding me back. Her years of solitary training weighed heavily on her fighting style.
And I felt it just as much as her. We aren't synchronized in the slightest.
This fight was harder than I expected. In the game, it was turn-based. Facing both at once was exhausting.
I considered using my stronger Sandstorm spell, but it wasn't practical here.
"Alen!"
Fran's shout jolted me, and I blocked Yute's axe at the last second. I managed to parry his axe and clash with him for long enough to stop his advance.
But then Gissy's sword came down diagonally.
Fran intercepted it for me, saving me as we started a double clash of metal between the four of us.
"Are you okay!?" Her voice cracked with worry. She wasn't used to fighting alongside someone, and it showed.
"Don't worry about me! Just fight as if I'm not there!" It wasn't good advice long-term, but it was the only way we could win right now.
"Bu—"
"No buts!" It felt strange to be the one giving orders. "Just do it."
"F-fine…" She sounded uncertain, but she knew it was the only way.
Yute kicked Fran back. "That's no way to talk to your girlfriend, rat."
As Gissy slashed again, I stepped back, my shirt splitting open with a vertical cut. Luckily, the wound was shallow.
Fran's face went scarlet at Yute's words, but she still ran to my side.
"Fran, don't—"
"!!!" My face snapped sideways as a heavy opened hand fell on my face like a sting.
She slapped me across the face.
"I'm not ignoring you! You're fighting with me whether you like it or not!" She jabbed a finger into my wound, making me yelp. "Look what happened because I didn't care about you!"
"I-I'm sorry!?"
"You better be! Geez, you're useless without me, huh?" Her blush deepened as her finger lingered on my chest. "…Mh!?" She realized what she was doing and spun away, flustered.
"Ahem… I-I got distracted," she whispered.
"I-it's okay." My own face heated up at the lingering sensation of her cold touch.
"Mmh."
"What's wrong, Gissy?" Yute asked, noticing his partner's odd expression.
"N-nothing, Yute." She sighed softly, forcing composure.
"Then do your job right!" he barked.
"Y-yes." She ran at us again, sword raised.
We braced ourselves, and... as her sword was swung diagonally, I decided to trust Fran's words.
She does have more strength to defend both of us.
She seemed to notice me relying on her, and stepped to the front with a happy smile.
She lifted her spear and blocked her attack.
Wasting no time, I leapt forward and slashed away, helping Fran deal with the clash against the warrior woman.
We kept at it for a long second, and out of nowhere, she seemed to be overpowering us. Probably due to a warrior's class passive that I am too focused on the fight to pinpoint.
The fact that she is now overpowering us with no problem was enough for me to understand that.
Suddenly, sparks flew at the connection point between the woman's blade and our weapons.
The pressure suddenly lifted—knocked back by a second slender blade.
"I-I'm sorry for being late, guys." The shy pink-haired girl had arrived.
Her eyes darted to my bleeding wound, cheeks turning pink. "A-Alen! Your clothes!" she closed the distance with me as her hand seemed too shy to touch where I had been wonder on my chest.
Having Fran and now Kaida stare at the wound, especially now that my shirt had been cut by the sword, was slightly embarrassing.
Fran yanked me away from Kaida, glaring at her with anger and a jealous, possessive frown.
"Stay away from him! I held back out of respect because you helped us, but this is too much!" She stomped furiously, shaking Kaida like a ragdoll.
"T-two at the same…" Gissy gasped, covering her mouth, eyes locked on me with concern as she gazed at the two girls arguing.
Well... not arguing, mostly Fran bullying Kaida, and Kaida accepting it with no complaints.
"You rat… Not even I betray my girl…" Yute muttered, sighing.
"Wh-what do you mean!?" I blurted, pointing at them, my face burning.
"…Nothing." His voice now carried… disappointment? "Anyway, one more rat won't save you."
"Wh-what's the plan?" Kaida asked as Fran finally released her, trying hard not to look my way.
"I… don't know."
If only Yani were here. She could've attacked from afar while we distracted them. But she wasn't.
"Just… leave the boss for last? Maybe two of us distract the woman while one fights him."
"I'm not fighting with her." Fran shot down my suggestion before I even finished.
"Then I'll fight with her against the swordswoman while you deal with the boss."
"No."
"Fran, pick your poison. Either I fight with Kaida, or you do."
Silence.
"Why aren't they attacking us?" Kaida whispered, eyeing our opponents, who seemed to be enjoying the show.
"I don't want to be near her…" Fran muttered. "…But I want her near you even less." She grabbed Kaida by the collar and yanked her away from me.
So now it's settled that they'll fight the warrior woman, while I face the boss alone.