Chapter 104: Game Night
「The invincible Sword Saint Avalon has fallen.」
According to the in-game announcement, Sword Saint Merlin fell to the ground in a Yamcha pose.
"Nice! We won!"
Artoria raised her controller high, beads of sweat glistening on her forehead, her smile filled with a sense of accomplishment.
"Congratulations to both of you for defeating such a powerful enemy!"
The atmosphere of the game night immediately reached its climax. Everyone sitting on the sofa was even more excited than she was, cheering enthusiastically all at once.
Especially Oberon, who was so thrilled that he opened a can of Coca-Cola, treating it like champagne and popped it open to celebrate.
Two hours — for two entire hours, after a long and brutal battle, Artoria had gone from a clumsy beginner to a skilled action player, achieving mastery in straight-sword techniques.
Together with Baobhan Sith, using the reckless spirit of wild boars, she finally managed to defeat Merlin in the game.
「Congratulations... Now you are ready to ascend the throne of the King of Lostbelt...」
Said Merlin in the game.
"Your power system has been broken for ages. At this point, even a stray dog on the street could kill the King of Lostbelt, you know..."
Baobhan Sith said while controlling her character, making an extremely disdainful gesture,
"How dare you kill me that many times, you piece of trash!"
「Congratulations indeed. Let us meet again in the spin-off Rune Ring: Dark Nightreign, ahahaha...」
Then, the in-game Merlin turned into petals and vanished.
"So in the end, the one we gave our all to defeat was just a mere projection? Just how deeply is his true body hiding?"
Eikou couldn't help but comment,
"And he even broke the fourth wall so casually. Truly a hard-to-read man..."
"That's great! So the game's cleared now, right?!"
Artoria asked eagerly,
"I still don't feel satisfied yet, can we play it again?"
"What are you talking about? You guys just killed the tutorial village's guide. This is only the prologue." Eikou said.
Artoria smiled brightly: "Then let's keep going!"
"Whoa whoa whoa,"
Eikou shook his head quickly, saying,
"Lady Boar, how about we switch games? It's already been two hours. Even if you're not tired, we're exhausted just watching. Let's play something else, yeah?"
"Umu, that's fine too!"
Artoria seemed to be in an excellent mood, agreeing without hesitation.
"My King, how about trying a board game?"
Gawain brought out a pile of board games from his room,
"UNO, Cheat Moth, Monopoly, Catan... I even bought the Dungeons & Dragons rulebook especially for this! Since we still have time, why don't we play board games until late tonight?"
"I can be the storyteller, the Game Master," Oberon said.
"I don't really understand how it works, but I want to play!" Artoria said with a smile.
"Hmph, count me out..."
Baobhan Sith snorted disdainfully as she put down her controller,
"I don't like noisy group activities like this. I only agreed to play tonight because I'm in a good mood, but don't get the wrong idea — it doesn't mean we're close or anything."
"Ara~, what a tsundere." Eikou shook his head.
"Who's tsundere with you? I genuinely want to say no, you know?"
[After some persuasion, Baobhan Sith finally agreed to play board games with everyone.]
[However, since the rules of Dungeons & Dragons were too complicated, everyone thought for a while and gave up, switching instead to Cheat Moth — a simpler and easier-to-understand game.]
[You all spread out a mat and a blanket in the living room, planning to stay up all night playing games.]
[But just as everyone was about to deal the cards, they suddenly heard the sound of the garage door opening outside, along with the noise of a car backing in...]
[...]
[At that very moment, all of you froze in fear.]
[The atmosphere instantly turned tense!]
"Oh shit, Morgan's back!"
Hearing the sound of the car outside, only one thought flashed through Eikou's mind,
"Hey, hey, Gawain, didn't you say your mom wasn't coming home tonight? What's going on?"
"Probably because things went smoothly, so she finished work earlier than expected. The odds were low, but… not impossible."
Gawain's face turned pale.
Everyone looked down at the messy living room: the carpet was covered in board games, snacks, and drinks, while the barbecue tools outside hadn't been cleaned up yet.
If Morgan were to see this chaotic mess, all of them were as good as dead.
"..."
Only a few seconds passed, but for them, it felt like an eternity.
"Even though I don't really understand the current situation, but..."
Eikou spoke softly, his voice lowering,
"...My body already knows what to do at a time like this."
"In short, just follow the rhythm of this prince's steps and retreat with dignity!"
Oberon shouted in slight panic,
"Everyone, nigerundayo!"
He immediately grabbed the collars of Artoria and Eikou, and following the predetermined escape route, dragged both of them away without looking back.
If put in the language of Rune Ring — what lay ahead was the King of Lostbelt!
[In short, first you must assess the severity of the situation.]
[Compared to the living room where the party was held, you, Artoria, and Oberon are the three people who absolutely must not be seen by Morgan, otherwise things will get much worse.]
[Dragged away by Oberon, you wave goodbye to everyone in the living room, hoping they can still manage to clean up the scene in time.]
[Next time, it'd be better to hold the party somewhere where no parents can interfere.]
[With Morgan's sudden return, you all had to hastily end the post–midterm exam game night.]
[The memorable gaming time spent with your friends has become a beautiful and cherished memory.]
[Bonus reward: one Encouragement Dice. Total count: three.]
...
[May 30th, 10 p.m.]
[After a short while, you, Oberon, and Artoria Caster narrowly escaped Morgan's mansion without danger.]
[The three of you hurried back to the Chaldea Academy dormitory.]
[You felt relieved that Morgan's Fairy Eyes hadn't detected you, nor did you run into Sesshouin that night. Just as you were about to return to your room, your stomach suddenly growled — clearly, the BBQ dinner hadn't been enough.]
[Oberon went back to his room first, asking you to buy him a late-night snack, while you and Artoria stopped by the cafeteria to get two portions.]
[You spent a short while together with Artoria, and the relationship between the two of you seemed to have grown a little closer...]
...