Table of Contents

1. Cover
2. Title Page
3. Copyright
4. 1. The Story So Far
5. 2. Breakfast for Four
6. 3. An Invitation from Tsubasa
7. 4. My First Concert Ever
8. 5. Lady Hex vs. Tsubasa
9. 6. Scoping Mai’s Skills in a Battle of Wits
10. 7. Sugiura’s Leadership
11. 8. Haunted Doll Brawl
12. 9. Rally Thy Shining Soul?!
13. 10. Entering the Vermilion Event
14. 11. Playing Solo
15. 12. The Floor Boss Is…Asagi?!
16. 13. Help from My Friends
17. 14. Real vs. Fake
18. 15. Winning Smiles
19. Afterword
20. Yen Newsletter

Lose at the game and pay the price. If someone who’d lost a Respawn Penalty stood before you, what would you do?

If you reach out to help, then maybe your kindness will come back to you when you need it most. That’s as true inside the game as it is outside…

I’m Mai Yashiro, a completely ordinary second-year high school student at Ryokuka Private Academy…or at least, I’m supposed to be. My life got flipped upside down when a wicked game called Nightmare found its way into my bag.

Once someone starts playing Nightmare, they have to earn 100 in-game points called CP every single day, or else their in-game avatar (which looks exactly like them, by the way) dies. And when our avatars die, we are penalized by losing control of a real-life body part to an actual demon before we can respawn. Whatever body part it is, we can’t use it anymore. It could be our arms, mouth, or ears… And if we keep losing, one day our hearts might just stop.

That’s the kind of terror Nightmare players like me live with every day.

On the bright side, I’m not alone. Ever since I joined the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club at my school, I’ve made plenty of friends who support me. Heck, the last in-game event—the Gold Event, if you’re wondering—required six of us to play together!

That didn’t make it any easier, though. Kamisawa, the mysterious foe who taunts me at the start of every event, warned us, and he sure wasn’t joking. The shapeshifting boss was a real handful, and even Tanaka (the top-ranked player in the game) and Tsubasa (a Nightmare whiz kid, and he’s only in junior high) got Game Overs in the process.

If the Gold Event was that tough, I wonder what’s waiting for us in the next one.

I’m not going to lie. I’m a little worried…but I’ve got tons of super-reliable friends who’ve got my back! It’ll all work out okay, right?

It was the morning after we beat the Gold Event.

I woke with a big yaaawn—Boy, I sure got a good night’s sleep! I thought as I hopped out from under the covers and stretched toward my dorm ceiling.

Every event in Nightmare ended in a face-off against a fearsome boss, which usually made me such a bundle of nerves that I could barely get a wink of sleep afterwards. But it seemed like that was changing: There I was, totally well-rested. Maybe knowing that I had a group of reliable allies in my corner helped put me at ease.

I found myself growing more and more certain that together, we could beat Nightmare for sure. Though, to be honest, we still didn’t even know how to completely beat the game yet. Which meant our only choice for the time being was to keep playing, day in and day out…

Okay, I thought, time to start another day! I mean, what’s the point in looking back toward the past the instant I wake up? Waste of a morning, if you ask me. I slapped my cheeks to knock myself awake.

I lived in the dorms at Ryokuka Private Academy—specifically, a special section of dorms that was set aside for students who’d gotten wrapped up in playing Nightmare. I didn’t head to the main school building for my daily lessons—actually, I barely ever set foot outside of the dorm building at all.

Why, you ask? Well, the dorm building had more than just living spaces. It also had classrooms where we took our lessons, and even our own cafeteria. The chief director of Ryokuka set all of this up so that the Nightmare players in the school could have the closest thing possible to a normal student life while also focusing on the game. Back when I was a normal, non-Nightmare-playing Ryokuka student, I never would have dreamed of spending all day, every day in the dorms. (Granted, I never would have dreamed of spending all day playing any video game, let alone this one…)

And the third floor of our dreamlike dorm was home to the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club.

When I first started playing Nightmare, my only goal was to survive until the game finally ended. That all changed the moment Asagi and I joined the Black Event—the first of many dangerous in-game events. Now, along with the Conquerors’ Club, I had a new goal: Beat the game.

We were certain that if we kept competing and winning in the special events, then someday, we’d figure out how to end the Nightmare for good. The whole club believed it. Who wants to constantly live in fear of some weird video game killing them, anyway? Not me, that’s for sure. I was determined to beat the game and win my old life back.

Knock, knock, knock!!

Huh?!

A sudden series of sharp knocks on my door shook me out of my thoughts.

“Hey! I take it by your lack of response that you overslept. Again. Y’know, you may seem like you’ve got it together, but you’re actually pretty sloppy.” The voice on the other side of the door was Sugiura’s.

Aw, man! I’d gotten so lost in thought, I’d spaced out! Was it time for homeroom already?!

Knock, knock, knock!!

Sugiura’s knocking grew even more ferocious.

“Are you even awake, Mai?!”

“C-c’mon, Sugiura. Mai’s got to be worn out. Think of how she feels with you banging on her door like that!”

Oh… Asagi’s with him, too, I thought when I heard the second voice. Oof, now this is really embarrassing. I tried to shove all the awkwardness and shame deep down inside me as I called out toward the door.

“S-sorry! I’ll be out in a sec…”

As soon as I said that, I realized I was still in my pajamas.

Eep! I’ve gotta get dressed ASAP!

“No need to rush, Mai!” Asagi replied. “There’s still plenty of time.”

“Huh? There is?”

“Yeah. We were talking, and we figured it might be nice for the Raid Team to get together for breakfast every now and then,” Asagi said. “I guess we showed up a little too early.”

Oh, is that all? I thought. That was a load off my mind. It looked like I wouldn’t be late for class after all. I breathed a sigh of relief as I started getting ready for the day.

Hmm? Hang on. Did Asagi say “the Raid Team?” All of us, including the Overlord of Oversleeping himself, Taichi…? I wondered.

“Hey! Wake up! You’re literally fallin’ asleep standin’ up!” I heard Sugiura shout. Then I heard the telltale thump of something (or someone) getting kicked.

“…Wha—?! O-ow! That hurts, man!”

I’d recognize that voice anywhere! So Taichi was with them, too.

The four of us made up the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club’s Raid Team: Sugiura, our leader, who was super scary; Asagi, who was super-sweet to everyone he knew; Taichi, who was super sleepy and could (and did) doze off anywhere; and yours truly.

It had to have been difficult to get Taichi to wake up early for once. Though now that I think of it, it probably took some real skill for him to literally sleep standing up.

“Sorry! Thanks for waiting,” I said as I stepped out into the hallway, fully dressed in my school uniform. Asagi greeted me with a smile.

“Good morning, Mai!”

“Hwaaaah,” Taichi yawned. Naturally, he still looked drowsy. “I mean, mornin’.”

“Good morning, everyone,” I said, even though “everyone” was actually one person short. Sugiura was already walking briskly down the hall.

“C’mon, sleepyheads! Unless ya want me to leave ya behind!”

“““R-right!””” we all answered as we rushed after Sugiura.

As we made our way down the dorm halls, Taichi leaned over and whispered in my ear.

“Sugiura’s the one who cooked up this whole ‘group breakfast’ idea, just so ya know,” he said. “I guess after that battle yesterday, he wants to check in and see how everybody’s doing, or something.”

“That makes sense.”

It really did. Sugiura cared deeply about everyone in the Conquerors’ Club—not that anyone would know it from how harsh he could be! Still, it made me happy to hear Taichi say so. I crossed my fingers, hoping for a nice, enjoyable breakfast.

“I said, let’s go! You’re laggin’ behind! You wanna be late, is that it?!”

“““We’re coming!””” the three of us called out in unison.

Sheesh! How impatient could Sugiura get?! Taichi, Asagi, and I shared looks and grins at this classic Sugiura behavior as we hustled down the hallway.

So there we were, at our first Raid Team breakfast meeting. What was on the menu, you ask? Well…

Taichi and I had toast and fried eggs. Meanwhile, Asagi and Sugiura both ordered the grilled salmon breakfast platter. (Sugiura was the only one who chose to start the day with an extra-large portion of rice, though.)

“Um, Sugiura? Could I ask you a favor…?” Asagi spoke up once he’d eaten about half of his breakfast.

“Whaddaya want, Asagi?”

“It’s just, um… Well, the salmon platter comes with pudding, and…I was wondering…if you were gonna eat yours…”

“Huh?” Sugiura looked puzzled for a moment, but then it dawned on him. Without another word, he reached over and set his pudding cup down in front of Asagi.

“Are you sure?!”

“Yeah. I’m not that into sweet stuff anyway.”

“Y-yesss! Oh man, two pudding cups for breakfast?! Any day that starts like this has gotta be a good one for sure…”

“Would you relax?” Sugiura snorted as he eyed Asagi, who looked positively delighted. “It’s only an extra pudding cup.”

Asagi chuckled sheepishly, but mentally, he was off in Pudding Land.

Seeing the two of them at that breakfast table, it was hard to believe they used to not get along at all. Like, it was really bad. Don’t get me wrong, Sugiura still did his share of shouting—but the four of us spending time together like this had become completely natural.

Just as Sugiura had planned (or at least, as I assume he’d planned), our breakfast meeting was a ton of fun.

“Awright, c’mon. It’s time for homeroom.”

“““Yes, sir!”””

Before I knew it, my lessons were over, and the school day was done.

Every time we completed an in-game event, Nightmare went down for maintenance. That meant our after-school time was finally our own—at least until Nightmare started up again. It was a much-needed chance to catch our breath instead of spending every single day worrying about survival.

So, what should I do today? I wondered. But then—

“What’re you spacin’ out for?”

Oof. I knew that voice, and I did not like where this was heading. I turned to see Tsubasa standing behind me, decked out in his school uniform. He didn’t go to Ryokuka, but it seemed like he’d come to hang out with the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club now that his own classes were done for the day.

“Oh, hi, Tsubasa. Welcome,” I said, pulling my mouth into the broadest, most welcoming smile I could muster.

“Hmph,” he scoffed.

Oh, come on! Kinda rude, don’t you think?! But that was Tsubasa for you. For a junior high schooler, he sure could be cheeky. Cheeky or not, though, I kept talking to keep things from getting awkward.

“So, how’s school going? Having fun?”

“Meh. All my classes are ridiculously easy, so I’m bored outta my skull. Seriously, I can’t stop yawning,” Tsubasa said as he idly thumbed through the math textbook I’d left out on the table. “Hmm. This stuff looks like it might give me a challenge.”

“Huh?!”

“Lemme borrow this for a sec.” With that, Tsubasa copied a page’s worth of math problems into his notebook, then started solving each one. I checked over his answers.

Gulp… He got them all right, I thought. Seriously, is this kid really in junior high?! I couldn’t believe my eyes.

“You don’t have anything goin’ on right now, right, Yashiro?” Tsubasa asked, looking up from his notebook. “Ah, why do I bother asking? You totally don’t.”

Okay, now we’re past “kinda rude” and into “super rude”! I complained internally. I had to admit, though, he wasn’t wrong.

“Who, me? W-well… No, I guess I’m not busy,” I said. I tried to compose myself and answer with dignity, but Tsubasa wasn’t even looking at me anymore. He was rummaging around in his bag.

After searching for a bit, he pulled out a bundle of tickets.

“What are these for?”

“You remember Takimoto, right?”

I was pretty sure I did, at least. He was one of the members of Tsubasa’s usual party in Nightmare, if I recalled correctly. He worked for Sugiura’s father’s company by day, but played in a band in his downtime.

“What about him?”

“These are tickets to a concert that’s happening next week. Takimoto’s band is gonna play, so I want you guys to come.”

“Whoa! That’s cool. Are you sure?”

“Eh, why not? The bigger the crowd, the better.”

“Thanks, Tsubasa! I’ll get these in Sugiura’s hands right away,” I said. “I bet he’ll be on board with all of us going to the concert.”

“Great.”

Tickets in hand, I dashed off toward the table where Sugiura was sitting. But as I got close…

“What?! Hey! I said ‘no!’”

…I heard just about the angriest, most piercing shout I could imagine. Sugiura was yelling into his cell phone.

Now, Sugiura yelled a lot. But this time, his face was bright red, and there was real rage in his voice. I only knew one person who could make Sugiura that angry. He had to be talking to his father.

Sugiura’s dad was the CEO of a company dedicated to beating Nightmare. They printed a magazine called Nightmare Weekly, which published strategies and guides for players. Their website always had the most up-to-date maps and information for all the stages in the game, too, which was always a huge help. But the company always came first to Sugiura’s dad, and the two of them butted heads about it all the time.

“Well, if you do it, you’re doin’ it without my say-so!” Sugiura gave one last parting shout and hung up. The very next instant, our eyes met.

“What?” Sugiura spat. “You got a problem, too?”

“No, but… What was that about…?”

“Ugh, my old man got it in his head to make ad posters for Nightmare Weekly with you, me, an’ Asagi on ’em—and he wants to post ’em all over town.”

“P-posters?!”

“That’s not the worst of it. They’re covered in this corny catchphrase. ‘We’re the heroes saving this world.’ Embarrassing, ain’t it?” Sugiura tossed a sample poster onto the table in front of him where it curled into a tube. I unrolled it to reveal drawings that had to be Asagi and me. The ‘me’ on the poster was winking and blowing a kiss—totally hamming it up.

Oof, I thought. “Embarrassing” is an understatement. He wants to put these up in public? No way!

“…Your dad’s not gonna go through with this, is he?”

“Putting up normal high schoolers’ pictures all over town is askin’ for nothin’ but trouble,” Sugiura said. “But relax. I got this. I’ll find some way to stop ’im.”

“Um, thanks a lot!” I said with a quick bow. There was one thing I could say for Sugiura: We could always count on him to stand up to his dad for our sake, even if it meant more family fighting.

“…So? If you’re over here, you want somethin’ from me. What is it?”

“Right. Here,” I said as I passed the bundle of concert tickets to Sugiura. I explained that Takimoto and his band would be performing.

“Huh. A show, eh? The venue’s not too far from here, either.”

“Yeah. What do you think?”

“Sounds good to me. Might be a good way to blow off some steam, too. An’ I can dig into the club’s funds to pay for everyone to get there.”

“Would you do that?!”

“Sure. But we’re gonna have to really go all out once Nightmare’s up and runnin’ again. So get your butt-kickin’ boots on,” Sugiura said with a quick, sharp smile.

Wait, is he joking? Or is he for real? I wondered. Nah, if I know Sugiura, he means it. I’d have to be extra-prepared when Nightmare came back online. But for the time being, I was super stoked to go to the show! I’d never been to a concert before. It was one thing to look forward to during the maintenance period.

The next week went by in a flash. The day of Takimoto’s concert had arrived. As soon as we finished the day’s lessons, we gathered in the club room to wait for Sugiura.

“This should be fun, huh, Mai?” Asagi asked.

“Yeah! I’m really excited. Have you ever been to a concert before, Asagi?”

“Nope. It’s my first one, too. Oh! Come to think of it, though, it’s been long enough that Nightmare’s maintenance period could wrap up at any time. We should at least make sure we’re ready for it before we go.”

“Good point,” I said as I pulled out my Nightmare console.

We’d received a Gold Box as a prize for winning the last event. It wasn’t the first one, either. In fact, we had a mysterious box of all sorts of colors for every event we’d completed. I didn’t know what to do with them, so they were piling up in my inventory.

There’s one thing I was sure of, though: The boxes had something to do with beating Nightmare for good. (If not, then I dunno what else they’d be for!) I still didn’t have a clue about anything beyond that…

Oh, hey! I’d better tell Amelie about the show, I thought.

Amelie was the very first monster I’d faced after my Nightmare console appeared in my dorm room. But not long after that, she became my familiar—a monster ally in the game—and now, we get along great. Whenever I feel down, I can always count on Amelie to cheer me up. She may be digital, but she has my back just like all my other friends.

“Hiya, Mai!” Amelie said cheerfully as she turned from her television to greet me. She waved excitedly.

“How’s it going, Amelie?”

“It’s going great, Mai! Like always!”

Hmm? Hang on a sec… There’s a sheet of paper on the floor by Amelie’s feet…, I noticed.

I zoomed in on the paper. Turns out it was a drawing of Zalbatoth and Tow’el. They were labeled ZALLY and TOWY.

Zalbatoth and Tow’el were Taichi and Sugiura’s familiars, in that order. It looked like they’d met up with Amelie a few times to hang out, and they’d become friends. Kinda makes you smile, doesn’t it?

“Hey, it’s go time. Try and keep up.”

Oops! Sugiura had arrived. I told Amelie I’d see her soon, closed my Nightmare console, and followed him out of the room—then out of the building entirely.

I saw a bus parked in front of the dorms, apparently there to take us to the concert hall.

Hold up, I thought. Did Sugiura rent a whole bus for us? There was no one on board other than Conquerors’ Club members.

“Awww, yeeeah! Our own private bus! C’mon, Akaishi, let’s claim the roomy seats in the back before anyone else does,” I heard Takojima, the former bully, call out in a booming voice.

“But I’d rather sit with Youko…,” Akaishi grumbled. He may have been Takojima’s partner in mischief, but he had a major crush on Youko. He was clearly looking around for her, hoping to slide into the seat next to hers.

Unfortunately for him, though, Naomi was already sitting next to Youko. In the seats right across the aisle from theirs sat Kaneda and Masuda. Masuda and Youko had the aisle seats, which meant there was nobody between them. Youko looked overjoyed.

“Tch, that thief beat me to the punch again! Ugh, I ought to curse him! I ought to curse him good,” Akaishi said with a grumble as he reluctantly took a seat at the very back of the bus beside Takojima. His muttering and mumbling continued, though we could no longer understand what he was saying.

“Is it just me, or is there someone whispering behind us?” said Yoichi, grimacing uncomfortably from the seat in front of Akaishi and Takojima’s bench.

“The strange one in the back, yes… ‘Come down with the runs, Masuda… Get carsick, Masuda…’ If he’s not saying it, he’s thinking it… How very spiteful…”

“Meeeow!”

“Sheesh, Rito! Brought your cat along again, didja? You know we’re going to a rock concert, right?”

Rito Hirata was sitting next to Yoichi with a basket on his lap. His cat, Mewta, poked its face out of the basket—wherever Hirata went, Mewta went along with him.

“…I’ll listen from outside… There’s nothing wrong with that, is there…?”

“Ugh. You’re way too cat-obsessed, y’know that?”

Yoichi had a point. Hirata always put Mewta’s needs ahead of his own. He was a true feline fanatic.

“Hey, Mai, d’you want this?” Asagi said from the seat next to mine. He held out a can of Pudding Pop. It was Asagi’s favorite drink in the whole world. It was also pretty much pure pudding smooshed into a can. Believe me, I was skeptical at first, too. But when I gave in and took that first sip, I realized how tasty it was.

“For me? Are you sure?”

“Go ahead! I’ve got cans for you guys, too, actually,” he said, passing Pudding Pops to Taichi and Sugiura with a grin.

“Nice. Thanks, pal.”

“This isn’t my kinda thing, but…fine,” Sugiura said. From the look on his face, I could tell he was struggling to decide whether to take a sip or not.

“It’s good, I swear! Please, just give it a try. Imagine it’s coffee.”

“I—I don’t think so.”

“Drink! Drink!”

“……”

Oh, Asagi… Is this what you’ve become? A Pudding Pop salesman? No doubt about it—he loved Pudding Pop just as much as Hirata loved cats.

Anyway, you get the picture. It was a lively bus ride, to say the least. After twenty minutes of swaying and bumping down the road, the bus arrived at its destination without a hitch.

“Whoa! That’s one huge building,” Asagi said as he looked up at the concert hall. No mistaking where we were—there was even a sign that read: CONCERT. There was awe in his voice.

The building looked a bit like a giant school gymnasium. Tons of people were milling around the entrance, and they looked like the sort of folks you’d expect to see at a live music show.

“Looks like Takimoto’s band isn’t the only one playing.”

“Sure does!”

“Hey, Mai, look over there by the entrance! See that lady in the big frog costume? She’s selling froggy ice cream! Cool, huh?”

“Let’s get some later!”

“R-right! We’ll get some to share. It’s a deal!”

“Keep your cool, you two. We’re goin’ in,” Sugiura said, cutting us off. He led the way into the concert hall, and the club filed in behind him. At the ticket counter, we found Tsubasa’s Nightmare party—minus Takimoto. Tsubasa himself was there, along with Miyazawa, Naitou, and, of course, Tanaka.

“Well, if it isn’t Yashiro.”

“Good evening, Tsubasa! Thanks again for the tickets,” I said with a smile. I thought I was being friendly, but Tsubasa jerked his head away and wouldn’t look me in the eye.

“Forget it. Go take your seats already, why don’tcha? Get a move on, or all the good ones are gonna get taken.” Tsubasa was as curt as ever. Honestly, I was used to it at that point. I was right about to turn to Asagi so we could head in together, when suddenly—

“Oh-ho-ho, you came! You really came! The God of Glasses is among us! Can I get your autograph? You can sign my rice bowl!”

Eep! Tanaka had caught hold of Asagi.

I should explain. Back in Nightmare, Asagi had a spell called Glasses Meteor—and Tanaka took a liking to Asagi the instant he saw him cast it.

Asagi didn’t seem to know what to think about being called “The God of Glasses,” but his confusion didn’t make any difference to Tanaka.

Why is Tanaka so obsessed with glasses, anyway, I wondered. Hmm… Beats me! Tanaka was a real weirdo in my book, but like I said before, he also happened to be the top-ranked player in all of Nightmare. Number one. The strongest player out there.

“Geez, Tanaka, come onnn! The show’s about to start! Let’s get in there before we miss Takimoto’s whole set!”

“Yes, indeed. Arisa’s right. Let’s leave the Glasses God business at that for now, shall we?”

“Oogh. Fiiine. Just one more thing, God of Glasses! Puh-leeease sign this rice bowl!” Tanaka waved his arms wildly in Asagi’s direction as Miyazawa and Naitou grabbed him and dragged him toward their seats.

“I’ve, uh, never signed an autograph before… What’m I supposed to do, exactly?” Asagi stood dumbstruck, staring down at the rice bowl that Tanaka had shoved into his hands.

“Aw, don’t sweat it. I’ll scribble something for ya. He’ll never know the difference,” Tsubasa said. He took the bowl from Asagi’s hands and quickly ran a permanent marker back and forth all over it. I could tell he’d written actual letters on it, but they were too messy to read.

“What did you write, Tsubasa…?”

“Ha-ha! It says ‘stupid geezer’ in my sloppiest handwriting. If you tell ’im it’s Asagi’s autograph, I guarantee he’ll fall for it. See ya later.” Tsubasa shot Asagi and me a nonchalant grin and headed for his own seat. He didn’t seem to notice or care that his prank had left us speechless.

“Man, that Tsubasa sure knows how to handle Tanaka, huh?” Taichi snickered from behind us. “Makes me wanna learn how to tame that wild beast of mine, too. Gotta learn how to not get my hand bit.”

Wait a sec… By “wild beast,” does he mean Sugiura?! Just as I had that thought, my eyes caught Taichi’s. He sneakily pointed a finger at Sugiura, as if to answer the question I hadn’t asked out loud. Geez, Taichi…

“What beast? You got a real ferocious pet, or somethin’?” Sugiura said, turning toward Taichi and looking confused.

“Nah, nothin’ like that. Not yet. There’s one I’m thinking about domesticating, though.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sugiura asked, but I don’t think he really wanted to hear the answer. He didn’t press it any further—he just stood there with the same puzzled expression on his face.

Phew. Looks like he didn’t catch on, I thought with relief. I’m all for a bit of friendly teasing, but a chill had run down my spine, and I wasn’t even the one doing the teasing.

And so we excitedly (and a little nervously) made our way into the main concert hall and to our seats. That meant there was no more talking—we didn’t want to bother any of the other concertgoers. We sat quietly and waited for Takimoto to take the stage.

Five bands came up and played their sets one by one. Then it was finally Takimoto and his band’s turn.

Huh? What’s the emcee saying? I wondered.

The name of the band was Chopstick ☆ Rockies.

Huh… That’s kind of…stupid, I decided. More than anything, it sounded like a brand of disposable chopsticks. As a band name, it didn’t make any sense at all. But right as I was about to get totally lost in that thought—

The curtain rose, and the show was on.

The singer for the Chopstick ☆ Rockies was a normal-looking middle-aged man. I mean, the kind of guy you could see anywhere—except for one thing. His clothes were printed all over with labels from disposable chopsticks.

Hmmm… I don’t think anybody could call that “cool” with a straight face, I thought.

There were two bassists—one standing on either side of the stage. Takimoto sat at the drum set, behind the singer. The three of them were dressed all in black, with silver jewelry gleaming under the stage lights. The whole group looked totally rock ’n’ roll—well, except for the middle-aged guy in the chopstick suit, of course!

The band started playing, and right away, the singer wailed into the mic.

In that same instant, the audience erupted into cheers that filled the concert hall.

None of us managed to settle down during the bus ride, and tension still hung in the air as we returned to the club room. Since Nightmare’s Auto-Death System was back in effect, we split into teams and began battling in the game to get it taken care of for the day. I had to earn my 100 CP fast, like everyone else.

Unless Nightmare was undergoing maintenance, players had to earn 100 CP every day, or else—which meant we couldn’t go a single day without playing. If we didn’t, then our avatars (tiny versions of us) were dead meat. And every time our avatar died, we lost the use of one of our own real-life body parts, bit by bit. Our hearts would be the last to go.

Nightmare was a truly terrifying game.

“Awright, we’re gonna hit up this stage. Come with me,” Sugiura said. He’d picked a stage called the Moldering Manor, which was packed with enemies with high attack stats.

“O-okay. Be right there.”

“Picked a pretty tough stage, didn’t you?” Taichi asked.

“Yeah. Leave the easy stuff for the rest of the club,” Sugiura said. It was the right thing to say. As the Raid Team, the four of us were the most elite players in the club.

“Be careful, Mai. But, um, no matter what happens, r-remember I’ve got your back!”

“Thanks, Asagi!”

“Hey! Earth to Asagi! If you’ve got the time to stand around blushin’ like that, you’ve got time to get your butt in gear and find the stage!” Sugiura had spoken. We logged into Nightmare and sent our avatars to the Moldering Manor. We were practically the only players in the area. It figured; most other players would be out earning their CP in easier stages.

“Awright, there. We all made our quotas,” Sugiura announced.

We’d managed to defeat three ghosts that looked something like giant ogres, earning 300 CP and 8,000 experience points. Like Sugiura said, that was enough to free ourselves from the Auto-Death System for the day.

“I’m loggin’ out. There’s somethin’ I gotta take care of,” Sugiura said. “Remember, we’re back to club business as usual startin’ tomorrow. Taichi, go around an’ make sure everyone else dealt with the Auto-Death System, too.”

“You got it,” Taichi said. Sugiura briskly trotted out of the club room.

“Sugiura always looks extra-busy right after maintenance ends, huh?” Asagi said.

“Sure does.”

If I had to guess, I’d say Sugiura was on his way to swap information with his dad’s company. The two of them fought a lot, but there was no doubt about it: If we were serious about beating Nightmare, we needed the company’s intel. And I’m sure Sugiura’s dad valued the information that Sugiura could give him, too. If only they had an opportunity to put their differences aside and get along better, that’d be for the best…for them, and for the rest of us…

“Hmmm… So, what should we do now, Mai?”

“Good question.” I looked around the club room, and—Wait, what’s this? I noticed Tsubasa sitting at a table in a far corner with his back to us. Oh, right! Tsubasa doesn’t have a squad to sit with in the Conquerors’ Club. Still, something was odd. I got the feeling he hadn’t budged in quite a while…

“What’s wrong, Mai?” Asagi asked.

“Nothing… Well, it’s probably nothing. Tsubasa isn’t moving at all. I think he might be in a Battle of Wits…”

“What?!” Asagi blurted. In a panic, he clicked through menu after menu on his Nightmare console until he pulled up Tsubasa’s status screen. “You’re right! He’s facing off with an enemy called Lady Hex.”

“He’s counting on a Battle of Wits to make his CP quota? That’s way too dangerous.”

“Right… I mean, sometimes there’s no way to tell how long one of those battles’ll drag on. It’s really, really risky when the clock’s ticking.” Knowing Asagi shared my concerns only made me worry more. I knew Tsubasa would only get mad at us for butting in, but still… We couldn’t sit back and leave him to fend for himself!

“…What do you say we go spectate, Asagi?”

“Good thinking, Mai.”

We nodded to each other, then sent our requests to watch Tsubasa’s Battle of Wits. Admittedly, we had no way of knowing whether he would accept our requests or not, but we had to take the chance. Luckily, he accepted right away, and Asagi and I headed into the arena.

There, we found Tsubasa sitting in a chair. In another chair across from him, with her face downcast, sat the ghost of a woman in a white robe. She also wore a headband with a lit candle tucked into it at either side of her head.

Now, I’ve seen my share of creepy stuff, but she took the creepy cake. Everything about her said “ghost.” I was only there as an observer, and my legs were still trembling a bit. Tsubasa’s got a lot of guts to pick a fight with a monster like that all by himself, I thought.

“You guys thought you’d drop in to watch, huh? Suit yourselves. Just stay outta it, okay?”

Is that Tsubasa’s idea of a greeting?

I was starting to regret worrying so much about him.

He had three lives, and his opponent was down to two. Battles of Wits didn’t use the same hit points as normal combat. Instead, players and their foes had life points. They started a Battle of Wits with three of them, and couldn’t get any more. In other words, Tsubasa hadn’t been hit by any attacks before we arrived. He was in the lead. But still…

“Be careful, Tsubasa!”

“Sheesh, you’re a pest. It’s only a Battle of Wits. Nothing to freak out about.”

A p-pest? Me? That was shocking enough on its own, but “only a Battle of Wits?” “Nothing to freak out about?” I couldn’t believe it. Battles of Wits could be really, really dangerous! Tsubasa was being super reckless.

“Come on, Tsubasa, don’t be that way,” Asagi said. “We dropped in to make sure you’re okay, that’s all.”

“Urgh. There he is, pest number two… Listen, I’m kinda in the middle of a fight, here. If you’re gonna hang around, could you at least try to keep it down?”

“F-fine… I’m sorry, Tsubasa.” Oooooof. For some reason, I felt the need to be extra apologetic, even though he was way younger than me.

“Phew… That’s a relief,” Asagi said.

“Huh? What is?” I thought back through the little spat we’d had with Tsubasa, but I couldn’t think of anything that struck me as particularly comforting. Then Asagi filled me in.

“Oh, well… Tsubasa thinks I’m a pest, too. You’re not the only pest, Mai. So chin up! I bet I’m a bigger pest than you!”

Whaaat?! Did Asagi really cook that up to make me feel better because he thought Tsubasa’s snide remarks got me down? To be honest, I was totally used to hearing that sort of thing from Tsubasa at that point…but looking into Asagi’s eyes and seeing in them the security and satisfaction he felt, I couldn’t bring myself to say so. It was funny how Asagi always managed to find the strangest ways to let his considerate nature shine through. Besides, even if I didn’t need to be comforted, I was still super happy that he tried. I wondered if Asagi would keep looking out for me, first and foremost, no matter what happened.

“It looks like it’s Tsubasa’s turn to attack now,” he said. At some point while I was lost in thought, he’d shifted his attention. Now, he was entirely engrossed in watching the battle. Flustered, I looked away from him to watch, too. Like Asagi said, it was Tsubasa’s turn to go on the offensive.

In Battles of Wits, players and monsters alternated between attacking and defending every turn. Since it was Tsubasa’s turn to attack, it was Lady Hex’s turn to defend.

Attackers had five options: High Attack, Low Attack, Talk, Charge, and Critical Attack. A Critical Attack could wipe out an opponent’s lives in one strike, but they couldn’t choose it right from the beginning. Players had a Critical Gauge that they had to fill by Charging three times first.

Defenders also had five options: Jump, Crouch, Charge, Counter, and Critical Defense. You could probably guess how most of those work. A Critical Defense was the only thing that could protect players from the Critical Attack I mentioned before. And if their Critical Attack got blocked by a Critical Defense, they’d be left with a totally empty gauge. They had to charge it back up from the beginning. Timing Critical Attacks just right took a lot of strategizing.

Okay, I know I got a little ahead of myself there. Let me cap this off by going over the very basics of a Battle of Wits. A Crouch kept defenders safe from High Attacks. A Jump kept them safe from Low Attacks. But if your foe picked High Attack and you picked Jump, or they tried a Low Attack and you went with a Crouch, you got hit. It all makes sense when you picture it, right? If a ball comes sailing through the air at you, and you jump, it’s still going to hit you. That’s basically what Battles of Wits were like.

Unlike normal battles, player and monster levels didn’t make a difference in Battles of Wits. A fresh newbie could win, and a high-level veteran could lose.

“Look, lady. It’s no fun for me if I beat you too quickly. So think hard for me, will ya?”

Ah-ha. I could tell Tsubasa was taunting the monster across from him.

“What’s that you’re saying? Tee-hee-hee… Trying to make my turn take longer so you’ll have more time to think for yourself, are you? Oh, you’re a sly one, hee-hee-hee… Ah, or perhaps you’re hoping to steal a glance at my choice before you make your own. Is that it?”

“What’s up, Mai?” Asagi asked. He must have noticed my face going pale.

“Look at this,” I said, showing him Tsubasa’s messages.

“Hmm. I wonder what that’s all about… Wait! You don’t think Tsubasa sees you as some kinda rival, do you?”

“Rival…? I think it’s more like he wants to scope out my skills. Haaah… I can’t believe I’m getting this kind of treatment from a junior high schooler.”

“So what’re you gonna do, Mai?”

“…I’ve got to play along for now. If we don’t get this fight over with quickly, Tsubasa’s not gonna shut off his Auto-Death System in time.”

“Ah, good point.”

Seriously, what was Tsubasa thinking, acting like he had all the time in the world? I wasn’t too thrilled about having his life thrust into my hands, either… C’mon, me! There’ll be time to whine later! I’ve gotta get this done! I nodded in determination and turned to face Lady Hex—Tsubasa’s opponent, and now mine.

It was Tsubasa’s turn to defend. He still had three lives, and Lady Hex was down to two. It looked like the ghostly woman had already chosen her attack…and without much fretting over it, either. On top of that, her Critical Gauge was already at two. I was pretty sure she’d chosen Charge again to fill it all the way.

As for Tsubasa, his Critical Gauge was already full, so picking Charge wouldn’t do anything for him. It didn’t make a difference what he chose for the turn.

I sent him a message telling him as much: I bet she’s going to Charge. If she does, none of your options will do anything, so pick whichever you want.

[From: Tsubasa Kaitsu]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

Hmph. Not bad. That’s exactly what I was thinking.

You might be the sharpest one in your Conquerors’ Club after all.

If you win this for me, I’ll give you something good. What d’you say? Worth giving it your best shot, don’tcha think?

END

Oof. Something about that message ticked me off. But I’ll admit I was curious about the “something good.” I didn’t like taking Tsubasa’s lip, but I did wonder what it was.

Tsubasa made his choice and looked up at the screen between him and Lady Hex. Sure enough, she’d chosen Charge. So had Tsubasa.

On the screen, a red aura surrounded the cartoony avatar that represented Lady Hex to show that she was building up energy. Both she and Tsubasa were ready to use their Critical Attacks.

Meanwhile, since Tsubasa’s Critical Gauge was already full, his attempt to Charge didn’t do anything. A puff of smoke went up from his avatar on the screen to make it clear that his action had fizzled.

“Hee-hee… Ah-ha-ha-ha! What are you, a fool?” Lady Hex cackled as she watched Tsubasa’s turn literally go up in smoke.

“Look who’s talking,” Tsubasa said. “I knew you were gonna Charge, so I did that on purpose. Obviously. If you couldn’t figure that out, you’ve got bigger problems than losing a Battle of Wits.”

“……Ngh!”

Yikes. She’s extra mad now, I thought. Lady Hex clenched her teeth so hard that I could hear them grinding as she glared at Tsubasa. He, uh, might’ve taken the taunting a bit too far this time.

“You’re truly an impudent little brat…”

“Is that so?”

“……”

The ghost glared at him with fury, but Tsubasa was unbothered. He didn’t budge. Sheesh, he must have nerves of steel…, I figured in amazement.

[From: Tsubasa Kaitsu]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

So, what’s my next move? I’m attacking this time around.

END

……Hmm……

Tsubasa’s opponent was starting to remind me of someone.

I thought back to the very first monster I ever fought in Nightmare: the Slit-Mouthed Woman I now knew as Amelie. Lady Hex was thinking the same way Amelie did in our Battle of Wits.

Tsubasa was ready and able to strike with a Critical Attack, but that’s what the monster would be expecting. Could it be that simple? Part of me doubted it, but then again, Lady Hex didn’t seem bright enough to outfox us, either.

…Which meant we could count on her going for a Critical Defense after all, out of a sheer urge to protect herself. I sent a message to Tsubasa, telling him to go for a High Attack.

[From: Tsubasa Kaitsu]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

Gotcha.

Once again, that’s exactly what I was thinking. Not too shabby.

END

Tsubasa’s just a kid, I thought. So how come it makes me kinda happy when he praises me like that?

Either way, the round turned out exactly the way I expected it would. Lady Hex was now down to one life. A Critical Attack would still take her out, of course, but now a regular attack would do the job, too.

“Urrrgh… No… It can’t be…”

Huh? Lady Hex seems a lot less cocky all of a sudden, I noticed. That’s not how it was with Amelie. Amelie didn’t give up until our Battle of Wits was well and truly over.

“Amazing play, Mai,” Asagi said. “’Course, you always crush it in Battles of Wits.”

“I wouldn’t say I ‘crush it,’” I said. “I’m always fighting for my life.”

“Yeah, but still, you can read a monster like a book.”

“Oh, I get a vague grasp on what they’re thinking based on how they act and what they say, that’s all.”

“‘That’s all’? It’s amazing. That’s like what Hirata does.”

Hirata was the leader of the Scout Squad in the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club—and he could read minds. If you’re looking for amazing, look no further than that. I pondered if it would even be possible for Hirata to lose a Battle of Wits. I had to wonder, right? Then again, I feel like he’d once mentioned that people got harder to read when they were nervous. Besides, for all I knew, human brains and monster brains worked in totally different ways. I’ll have to ask Hirata about it next time I see him, I concluded.

Another message came in from Tsubasa.

[From: Tsubasa Kaitsu]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

Looks like the monster’s onto us, and there’s a weirdo on the way. I’ll take it from here.

Anyway, I’ll send you the thing I promised later. That’s cool with you, right? That’s all for now.

END

Huh. It looked like Tsubasa would be finishing the fight by himself. All that stuff about “something good” aside, I guess he’d decided he’d be more satisfied with the fight if he called his own shots. It was probably for the best.

—But what was that about “a weirdo on the way”?

“You coward…,” Lady Hex said with a sob at Tsubasa. “You keep checking your messages… You’re getting help from someone, aren’t you? That’s cheating…” It sounded like he was right; she was onto us. The way she was wailing, though, I wondered if she really was surprisingly weak, or just surprisingly sensitive. I’d been in plenty of Battles of Wits before, but I’d never seen a monster start crying when they were about to lose before. At least, not that I could recall.

Hmm… Lady Hex might be a tricky foe after all, in her own way.

“Ugh, come on! You’re a real pain, y’know that?” Tsubasa groaned. “Look, no more cheating, okay? Let’s keep fighting, fair and square.”

“…You mean it?”

“’Course I mean it. If you don’t trust me, keep your eyes glued to my hands.”

Lady Hex did exactly that. She stared hard at Tsubasa’s hands.

It was his turn to defend next. What’s he got up his sleeve now? I wondered.

“Here. To show you that I’m sorry, I’ll pick my action first,” Tsubasa said as he moved to press a button. Click.

“Oooh… You liar… You’re only saying that so you can trick me again, aren’t you? Well, I’m not falling for it anymore…”

“You don’t say,” Tsubasa said, looking disinterestedly off to the side. “Fine, then. Pick whatever you want.”

And then—

“Heya, Tsubasaaa! Here I am! Number one in all of Nightmaaare!”

—Tanaka’s booming voice filled the arena!

Well, now I know who the weirdo is, I thought. Sorry, Tanaka, but if the shoe fits…

“How’s it goin’, Gramps? Did your stomachache clear up?” Tsubasa asked with a smirk.

“Sure did, thanks for asking! That’ll teach me to eat too many beef bowls. I knew I shoulda cut myself off at number four,” Tanaka said as he walked over to Asagi and me. “Oh! If it isn’t Yashiro and the Glasses God himself!”

“Huh?! I—I told you, I’m no Glasses God…”

“You don’t have to say it! I know that human body of yours is actually camouflage to hide your true form. Alas that you must wear contact lenses, not glasses, to complete the illusion! Whooo…”

“…Ha-ha-ha.” Asagi gave a dry chuckle; he couldn’t think of any other way to respond to Tanaka coming in and Tanaka-ing up the place like always. Still, you’d think a grown man would know not to scarf down so many beef bowls, he’d make himself sick… I was starting to worry about the guy.

“Oh-ho, looks like ol’ Tsubasa’s gonna win this one, no sweat.”

“Zip it, Gramps. Shouldn’t you earn one hundred CP of your own before you start fussing over me?”

“Huh?! Oh, crud!”

“…Haaah,” Tsubasa sighed. “Man, you really are a dummy. What’re you waiting for? Cancel your spectator request and go earn those CP.”

“Roger!” Tanaka said. Then he turned to us. “You heard the kid. Sorry! I’ll snag my CP and be back here in two shakes. Mai, Your Holy Bespectacledness, cheer on Tsubasa for me, ’kay?” Tanaka canceled his request to watch the Battle of Wits and vanished from the arena in the blink of an eye.

Ahh, the calm after the storm…or something like that, I thought.

“Hmmm. What’d he come here for in the first place?” Asagi mumbled, still dumbstruck by this brief meeting with Tanaka. “Oh! Maybe he was so worried about Tsubasa during his Battle of Wits that he had to come and keep an eye on him, even if it meant toughing out a stomachache!”

I had the same thought myself, but that didn’t keep me from sharing a look with Asagi that had “Yeah, right” written all over it.

“It’s possible,” Asagi said. “Tanaka may look and act like…well, like Tanaka, but he’s a decent adult, deep down. He probably felt okay leaving Tsubasa behind because he saw that we were already here.”

“Maybe…,” I said. In the end, there was no way to know what Tanaka was thinking, and puzzling over it wouldn’t do us any good. Asagi and I decided to go back to cheering for Tsubasa like Tanaka had asked.

“Oh, hey, it’s Tsubasa’s turn to defend now.”

Tsubasa’s enemy had a full gauge. She was ready to unleash a Critical Attack. Tsubasa still had all three of his lives. Any enemy without much in the way of smarts would try to go for the win with a Critical Attack in this situation, and yet—

I took a careful look at Lady Hex. She hadn’t chosen her action yet. She sat there, tilting her head every now and then like she was thinking carefully. As I watched her, it struck me that she might go for a normal attack instead. If nothing else, she’d taken note of how intelligent Tsubasa was. If she went for a Critical Attack and Tsubasa stopped it with a Critical Defense, she would have to Charge her gauge up from zero before she could use another one. All the work she’d already put into filling it up would be wasted, and her chances of winning would plummet.

Timing was everything when it came to Critical Attacks, and figuring out the right timing was tough. Even monsters had to be cautious.

“What’s wrong? Why don’t you hurry up and pick something?” said Tsubasa. “Is all that fretting necessary?”

“…Fine, you choose first, then!”

“Huh? Didn’t I tell you? I already made my choice, lady.”

“In that case, I’d better not see you touching your console again.”

“Fine by me,” Tsubasa said. He folded his hands behind his head with a triumphant look on his face.

“Tee-hee-hee… It seems you’re actually telling the truth this time,” Lady Hex said. She thought for a while longer, then made her choice with the telltale click.

The results of the round popped up on the screen—

Tsubasa had picked Critical Defense.

And Lady Hex had picked Critical Attack.

“Wh-whoa… How’d Tsubasa pull that off while picking first? I guess he must’ve been confident about his guess.”

“Lady Hex’s face told him everything. It said, ‘I want to hurry up and win this.’”

“Huh?! It did?! Man, I didn’t catch that at all…” Asagi’s shoulders slumped.

“Urrrgh… How in the world did you know what I’d choose…?” the monster growled.

“Uh, it’d be weirder if I somehow missed it,” Tsubasa said. “You’re way too easy to read.”

“…Ooogh…” It was plain to see that Lady Hex had lost her will to fight. The Battle of Wits took a sharp turn in Tsubasa’s favor.

In the next round, Lady Hex chose Critical Defense, while Tsubasa went with a High Attack. Tsubasa’s victory was secured the moment the results went up on the screen.

“Urrrgh… I’m never picking a fight with one such as you againnn… Curse you! Consider yourself hexed!!”

“Now you’re finally showing some spirit! Too bad it’s too late,” Tsubasa said. “This must be what they call sour grapes.” He was still cool and in command like he’d been throughout the whole fight. He’d taken the entire battle at his own pace. To top it off, he’d won without losing a single life. No doubt about it—Tsubasa was impressive. “Let’s see here. That’ll keep the Auto-Death System off my back for today. C’mon, let’s get outta here,” he said to Asagi and me with a carefree grin.

“Yep, sounds good. Let’s go, Mai.”

“Right.” And with that, we left the Battle of Wits and found ourselves back in the club room.

“Whaaa—?! Aw, don’t tell me you guys are done already!” Tanaka shouted in surprise, clutching his Nightmare console as he watched us return from the game.

“Uh, yeah. Geez, Gramps, did it really take you that long to get your CP? Man, you stink.”

“That’s not it! There’s too many other players around to get any good hunting done.”

“Seriously? That’s your story, stupid?” Tsubasa leaned in to peek at Tanaka’s game screen.

“See? Quite a crowd, huh?”

“Sheesh. Are you ranked number one or not? You should be taking on a tougher stage with fewer players. You’re totally messing things up for everyone else in this stage by hanging around.” Tsubasa tapped away at his own Nightmare console as he suggested a new hunting spot for Tanaka. It looked like they’d be heading off to another stage together.

Hee-hee. I dunno what it is, but those two make quite a pair, I thought.

“Hey, you guys. If you’ve already got your Auto-Death Systems shut off, then get some rest, pronto. Tomorrow, we’re back to playin’ Nightmare till we drop,” Sugiura cut in. At some point, both he and Taichi had made their way over to our table.

“Sounds good to me,” Taichi said. “I’ve been lookin’ forward to getting some decent shut-eye for hours.”

I looked at the clock. It was 11:15 PM.

“That time already, huh?”

“Come to think of it, the club room’s more or less empty.”

Aside from the four of us in the Raid Team, Tsubasa, and Tanaka, the only ones left in the room were Kaneda, Masuda, and Youko. Oh, and Akaishi was nodding off in a chair next to them. If I had to guess, I’d say he’d tried putting the moves on Youko again, but sleep won out in the end. As for the rest of them, it seemed likely that Masuda and Youko were helping Kaneda level up.

“Y’know, Mai, Kaneda’s gaining levels fast these days,” Asagi said.

“Have you been helping him level up, too?” I asked.

“Yeah. ’Course, Masuda’s doing most of it. I’m only pitching in. He’s really something, that Masuda. Kaneda’s level keeps climbing and climbing. Masuda knows a lot of power-leveling tricks, so I’ve been learning a ton, too.”

“Huh. I guess that’s what you get when you level with the second-highest ranked player in the game.”

“Yeah,” Asagi said. “You’d think Tanaka would be even more amazing, since he’s ranked even higher, but…”

“You’d think,” I said. The two of us stole a glance in Tanaka’s direction just in time to see him leave the club room together with Tsubasa.

That was fast! I thought. I guess working together means they earn a hundred CP really quickly.

Then another thought made its way into my brain. If Tanaka took Nightmare more seriously, he could probably beat the game himself…, I supposed.

Before I could continue that thought, though, I noticed that Youko and her party were wrapping up their game.

Huh? Is… Is Masuda giving Akaishi a piggyback ride? I wondered. It seemed he’d taken it upon himself to get the sound-asleep Akaishi back to his own dorm. How nice can a guy get?

“Man, talk about a stand-up dude,” Taichi said. “Whenever I fall asleep in the club room, someone leaves me here.” No prizes for guessing that the “someone” was Sugiura.

“Don’t push it, dummy,” Sugiura snapped. “That’s all your fault for fallin’ asleep in here. I don’t have time to haul dead weight around the dorms.” One thing was clear: There would be no piggyback rides for Taichi.

“Yeesh… Seriously, it’s like night and day,” I heard Taichi mutter to himself as he glanced back and forth from Masuda to Sugiura.

“Anyway, go get some sleep. I mean it. Lights out!”

Click! True to his word, Sugiura turned off the club room lights and stomped out the door. He clearly didn’t care that we were still in the room.

“You went and ticked him off again, didn’t you, Taichi?”

“…Looks like it,” Taichi said with a laugh.

Ugh, would it kill Taichi to act like this stuff affects him, too, for once…? I thought.

“I guess we should hit the hay, too,” Asagi said.

“Yep. All right, g’night.” Taichi didn’t budge from his chair. Instead, he leaned forward and put his head back down on the table.

I couldn’t help but think, Seriously?! You’re sleeping in here?!

“Uh, Taichi? I think you’d better head to your room.”

“The club room is my room,” Taichi said sleepily. “One of ’em, at least. But you can carry me back to my bed if you really wanna, Asagi.”

“Huh?!”

“Leave that knucklehead and get movin’!”

Hmm? It was Sugiura. He must’ve noticed that we hadn’t left the club room yet and poked his head back in to check on us. But that wasn’t all. He threw a blanket roughly over Taichi.

“Oooh, thanks, pal,” Taichi said. “I’ll take a pillow, too, if you’ve got one.”

“Who d’you think you’re talkin’ to, you goof? Your maid? You wanna pillow, use your arm!” Instead of a pillow, Sugiura wadded up a ball of paper and threw it at Taichi. Then he left the club room again—for good this time.

For all that talk, though, Sugiura was a nice guy in his own way. I mean, he brought Taichi a blanket. Even if Taichi did let it go to his head!

Asagi and I shared a quick laugh, then headed back to our own rooms for the night.

Before I knew it, five days had gone by since Nightmare came back online. And, like always, information on how to get the tickets we’d need to enter the next event was hard to come by.

Hmmm… We’ve already checked all the newly added stages and come up empty-handed, I thought as I stepped into the cafeteria. But then—

“Outta the way! Move it!” I heard someone shout. I scanned the cafeteria to find the source and saw Takojima ram into Kaneda as he stood in line at the counter. It definitely wasn’t an accident. Takojima kept moving while Kaneda stood there shaking with his tray in his hands.

Ugh, Takojima’s back at it! I can’t look away from this guy for a second, I thought as I rushed over to Kaneda.

“Are you okay, Kaneda?”

“Y-yeah… I guess,” he said. He sounded miserable. I led him to a nearby table.

“Please sit down.”

“Thanks for always helping me out. And sorry,” he said with a weak smile. “But I think I’ve lost my appetite. I might just head back to my room…”

That does it! I’ve gotta have a word with Takojima!

I looked around for the bully and saw him strutting down the center of an aisle without a care in the world. He was in such high spirits, in fact, that he didn’t see Sugiura coming from the other direction with a big stack of papers in his arms until it was too late. They collided. Sugiura’s paperwork went fluttering across the floor.

“Hey! Whoever ya are, why don’tcha watch where you’re goin’?!”

“Huh? That’s my line, jerk! You’re the one walkin’ right down the middle of the lane like some kinda dimwit! You’re in everybody’s way!”

Oof. Sugiura had a look on his face that would shock the meanest ogre in Hell into silence, and he was giving Takojima a death stare.

“……!! Eep! S-sorry, Sugiura! I didn’t realize it was you! I didn’t mean nothin’ by it… I’m sorry, really. Serves me right for not watchin’ where I was goin’! Ha-ha…” Takojima was terrified. He bent down and scooped up Sugiura’s papers as quickly as he could. He backed down pretty quickly.

C’mon, Sugiura! Lemme see you give Takojima an extra serving of your fury! I thought.

“Takojima…”

“Eek! I m-mean, yeah?”

“I hear you pulled your weight in that Battle of Wits with the Warden of the Dead,” Sugiura said.

“Huh?”

“You helped Kaneda out, didn’tcha? Not bad. Not bad at all. Keep up the good work.” Sugiura huffed, then kept walking. Takojima stood still as stone in the hallway as he watched Sugiura walk away.

“Whooo… He heard that? About me? Man, I was on pins an’ needles! An’ that ‘who-cares?’ smile’a his… Sooo cool… There goes a real man’s man!”

Wait, whaaat?! I thought, shocked.

Takojima wasn’t staring at Sugiura in anger, but in total admiration! He was basically swooning! It looked like Sugiura’s mastery of the ol’ carrot-and-stick approach hadn’t only won him fans among the ladies. One thing was clear: Sugiura was a natural-born leader, through and through.

Part of me understood how Takojima felt. Since Sugiura was usually super strict, whenever he gave a compliment, he really meant it. It could make a person’s whole day.

“Hey, Mai.”

Wha—? I realized Sugiura was now standing right in front of me.

“What is it?”

“Are you about to have dinner?”

“Y-yeah,” I said. “Or trying to, at least.”

“By yourself?”

“Yeah. Everyone else seems too busy today, sooo…”

“Hmph… What about Asagi?” The barrage of questions kept coming.

“Um, well, he said the Chief Director had a job for him, so he’s gonna be holed up in his room working for a while…”

“That so?” Sugiura threw himself into the chair across from mine.

……Huh? All I could do was stare blankly at him. And then—

“Hey, Kaneda, done eatin’ already?” Sugiura addressed Kaneda, who was still standing frozen next to me.

“N… N-n-nooo…”

“Tch. What’re you freakin’ out for…? Am I really that scary?”

“Eeep…”

“Come on, Sugiura,” I cut in. “No wonder he’s scared if you go clicking your tongue like that! That’d make anyone think you’re ticked off at them!”

“…Sorry, did I click my tongue just now?” he asked.

Wait, has he been completely unaware of how much he does it? I thought.

“Anyway,” Sugiura continued, “have a seat, Kaneda.”

“Um… O-okay…” Kaneda stiffly pulled out a chair—leaving an empty seat between Sugiura and himself—and started to sit down.

“Gimme a break! What’re you all the way over there for?! Sit here,” Sugiura snapped as he pulled out the chair right next to his.

“S-sorry,” Kaneda said. He sat down in the chair beside Sugiura, twitching nervously the whole time.

“Awright, Mai,” Sugiura said, turning toward me.

“Y-yes?”

“Pick out whatever you want,” he said as he thrust a menu into my face.

“Huh?”

“I’m sayin’ dinner’s on me. Now hurry an’ choose somethin’!”

Yikes, I thought. He’s even scarier with his eyebrows furrowed like that. Don’t get me wrong, I was grateful that he was treating me to dinner…but you usually don’t scowl at someone when you treat them, right?

Then I noticed that he was brushing his hand against his right ear. And I happened to know he had a habit of touching his ear when he felt bashful about something. Huh, I guess he’s not mad. Maybe he’s trying to cheer Kaneda up, I considered. But if he was, I couldn’t figure out why his face hadn’t gotten the memo. Anyone who didn’t know Sugiura as well as I did would think he was royally ticked off for sure. Hee-hee-hee. Sugiura may be a born leader, but he’s hopeless at this kind of thing, I thought. Relieved, I ordered an omelet with rice.

“Is that gonna be enough for ya?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” Maybe Sugiura’s a big eater or something. He doesn’t look it, though. I thought back to our Raid Team breakfast for a moment. He did order an extra-large helping of rice. I was pretty sure the omelets in the cafeteria were big enough to fill anyone up, though.

“Order somethin’ too, Kaneda.”

“Oh, um, no thanks… I don’t have much of an appetite, so…”

“At least get dessert! I know you’ve got room for dessert,” Sugiura said as he shoved the menu into Kaneda’s chest. He really wanted Kaneda to eat for some reason. But why?

“A-are you sure?!”

“’Course I’m sure. Eat, already! Somethin’ in your stomach oughtta perk you up.”

That explained it, then. Sugiura was being super-duper rough about it, but he was doing his best to cheer Kaneda up in his own way. At least, I think he was.

Timidly, Kaneda took the menu from Sugiura and scanned it from top to bottom over and over again. Maybe he was having trouble deciding.

“Do you know what you want, Kaneda?”

“W-well, I’ve narrowed it down to fresh melon, pancakes, or ice cream, but I can’t decide which to get…” It sure didn’t sound like he had no appetite to me. If anything, he sounded famished. “I’ve got a sweet tooth,” he said. “I guess I’ll go with ice cream. But I dunno, I kinda want them all… Maybe I’ll get all three and pay for two of ’em myself.” Kaneda pulled out his wallet and checked inside it.

No sooner had he done that than Sugiura stood up and walked off to the counter to order.

“Wait!” Kaneda exclaimed. Then he turned to me and said, in a worried voice, “You d-don’t think he’s mad that I took too long to decide, do you…?”

“Hee-hee. I doubt it,” I said. And I really did! If I knew Sugiura, he was off ordering all three of the dishes that Kaneda wanted.

“Here. Eat.” Sugiura came back from the counter and set an omelet and a cup of tea on the table in front of me. Then he set down fresh melon, pancakes, and ice cream (along with another cup of tea) in front of Kaneda. Did I call it, or what?

“You mean it? I—I mean, it’s so much…”

“Yeah. Go on, eat up.”

“Um, thanks a lot.”

“So, Kaneda,” Sugiura said over the cup of coffee and plate of fried rice (which looked like an extra-large) he’d ordered for himself. “How’s it goin’? There’s nothin’ troublin’ you, is there?”

“No. Not lately… Everyone here is nice to me, so…”

“That so…? Look, if anythin’ rubs ya the wrong way, you tell me. I’ll be watchin’ those punks like a hawk, too, so they don’t think you ratted ’em out.”

—Okay, when Sugiura said he’d watch them “like a hawk,” I’ll admit that it sounded a little scary.

“Um… Th-thank you,” Kaneda said. Relief was plain on his face. As soon as we were done eating, Sugiura started working on his laptop, and a few members of the Rescue Squad walked over and offered to help Kaneda level up. Kaneda went with them. It was a real load off my mind to see him feeling better.

Now then, I thought, what should I do next?

But before I could decide, Sugiura looked up from his laptop and pulled out his Nightmare console.

“Awright, let’s go.” He tapped away at the buttons.

“Um… Go where?”

“Into Nightmare, obviously.”

“Huh?!” That caught me off guard. He wants to play Nightmare with me…? As a pair?! I thought.

“Somethin’ wrong?”

“N-no…” It looked like I was right. He meant the two of us would be playing alone. I didn’t know what to do. He wouldn’t drag me off to some impossible stage full of super-tough monsters, would he…? I worried.

“Here we go. How ’bout Haunted Doll Hall?”

“—Bwuh,” I sputtered. I could hardly imagine a scarier-sounding stage. “Um, S-Sugiura? Could we play a different stage?”

“What’re you talkin’ about? I just came across some info online that says there’s a fishy spot in Haunted Doll Hall.”

“Oh, I see…” Now what? I wondered. Haunted Doll Hall wasn’t one of the new stages added in the last update, but I’d still never been there before. To be honest, I’d been steering clear of it.

“Looks like the suggested player level is two hundred and eighty…,” Sugiura said. Like Kaneda, I’d been doing my best to boost my level, but I was still only up to 214.

“Um, so you know, if we go there as a pair, I’m probably…definitely gonna hold you back…”

“Yeah, you got that right.”

Urk. Saying it myself was one thing, but having Sugiura look me in the eye and agree that I would hold him back was a real bummer.

“Let’s call two more people to help out,” Sugiura continued. “Go get Youko and Masuda over there.”

“Wait, you want them? Not Asagi and Taichi?”

“Asagi’s got his hands full with another job, doesn’t he? An’ Taichi’s still snoozin’ in the club room. I wanna get to the spot I read about online ASAP.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” On top of that, Masuda and Youko were both high-ranking players who packed a real punch when it came to combat. Having them along was all the reassurance I needed.

“I’m goin’ in ahead of ya,” Sugiura said. Sure enough, his avatar was already arriving at Haunted Doll Hall. I could see the ramshackle old mansion on his screen.

He’s sure got a lot of guts, barging in there alone, I thought. I couldn’t help but respect his courage.

“Okay, I’ll go get them right away,” I said. I headed over to the table where Youko and Masuda were sitting, along with Akaishi, Naomi, and Hirata. They were in the middle of having dinner together. “Um, Youko? Masuda? Sorry to bug you while you’re eating, but we need your help playing through this stage Sugiura heard about…”

“Hmm? You need me?” Youko asked.

“Yeah.”

“No problem,” she said.

“I’m good to go, too,” Masuda added.

“Great, thanks a lot. Could you come with me? Sugiura’s already playing.”

“Okay!” Youko said. Then she stopped herself. “Actually, gimme a sec, okay?” She picked up the rest of the sandwich she’d been eating and shoved the whole thing into her mouth.

—Gulp.

“Phew! Man, that was tasty,” she said. She picked up her empty tray, but before she could take it back to the counter, Masuda stopped her. It was like a reflex for him.

“I’ll take that,” he said. “I’m taking my own tray back anyway. Please, Youko, go on ahead and start playing.”

“Wow, thanks, Masuda!” Youko gave him a little bow, blushing all the while. As soon as he left with their trays, she leaned in and whispered in my ear. “Isn’t Masuda dreamy?” I could swear the pupils of her eyes were heart-shaped as she watched him walk away.

“Aw, dang it! I was right about to offer to take her tray, too… That snobby jerk with his Goody-Two-shoes act… I’ll show him… I’ll put a curse on him, that’s what I’ll do! Get stomach cramps, jerk! Stomach cramps and diarrhea, too!!” Akaishi watched Masuda walk away, too, but his eyes were far from heart-shaped. If it was possible for a stare to be sticky, somehow, Akaishi was pulling it off.

Akaishi’s curses always seem to be stomach-based, I thought. Not that it makes much of a difference, but he could stand to be a little more creative.

“…That’s not really what came to mind for you, is it? ‘That Masuda… Just watch, I’m gonna learn whatever I can from him until I’m a real gentleman, too…’ You ought to be more honest, at least with yourself,” Hirata said.

“Wha—?!” Akaishi blinked in amazement; he hadn’t expected to have his mind read so thoroughly.

“Now then, Suzuki, shall we get back to work?”

“Sure,” Naomi answered. “Why don’t you join us, Akaishi? Your squad leader, Youko, doesn’t seem like she’ll be back for a while.”

“N-nah, I’ll stick around here a bit longer.”

“Oh? Okay, well, come find us if you change your mind,” Naomi said. Then she looked over and shot me a smile. “Good luck, Mai! I’ll be cheering for you!”

“Thanks a ton, Naomi!” I smiled back.

Naomi and Hirata stood and left the cafeteria. Mewta trotted along behind them, a fish in his mouth. Hee-hee, how cute! I thought. That Mewta is sure attached to Hirata.

When I got back from talking with Naomi, Hirata, and Akaishi, with Youko in tow, Masuda was already at our table—and in Haunted Doll Hall.

“Mai, Youko, what took ya so long? Hurry and get in the game,” Sugiura snapped.

“R-right! Just a sec,” I said. Youko and I rushed to enter the stage. Once we arrived, we found Masuda’s avatar at the spawn point. He’d been waiting for us.

“Shall we?” he asked. “Which direction should we go in, Sugiura?”

Sugiura spun his computer around to show us the screen as he explained.

“This way.”

“Roger,” Masuda said. Then he turned back to us. “…If you two’ll be so kind as to stick with me, I’ll guide you to him.” Youko and I nodded and made our avatars follow along.

The inside of Haunted Doll Hall was adorned with dolls everywhere we looked. It was really, really creepy. Take a perfectly normal doll, one that’s usually adorable, put it in a dank, dim mansion like this, and boom—instant freak-out.

“Yeeek! Look, Mai, look! Those dolls over there are moving!”

“Yikes!” Straight ahead, I saw dolls perched on top of black shapes that I couldn’t quite make out, swaying from side to side as they crept toward us. Three of them! The one in the middle was a traditional Japanese-style doll, while the two dolls on the sides looked European. All three of them gave me the creeps.

We cautiously made our way into a large, traditional Japanese-style room. A mysterious, circular magic sigil was drawn upon the tatami mat floor.

“Accordin’ to my info, that magic circle only shows up at night.”

“I see… If you ask me, there’s got to be something up with it,” I said. I tried an Examine command on the sigil.

[Put thy soul to use. The way opens only to the worthy. Rally thy shining soul, should thee hope to win what thou desire.]

“Rally thy shining soul…?” What’s that supposed to mean? I wondered.

“Hmm… I give up! I’m no good at this stuff,” Youko said. “I don’t have a clue what that means.”

“Apologies,” said Masuda. “I’m giving it some thought, but nothing comes to mind for me, either.”

“How ’bout you, Mai? Got a guess? This kinda stuff’s the only thing you’re good at, isn’t it?”

Sheesh! Did Sugiura have to put it that way? Rude!

…Okay, fine, he was right. When it came to anything else in Nightmare, I weighed my party down. But when it was time to solve a puzzle, that was my chance to shine.

“Hmm… There’s probably another clue or two somewhere in the room… I get the feeling all that ‘soul’ stuff is gonna be the key.” With puzzles like this, there were usually hints to be found somewhere in the stage. I kept thinking about the bit about being “worthy,” too. I wondered if any of us in the room were “worthy” enough. What if none of us were? Was that even possible?

“Awright, what d’you say we try searchin’ every corner of the room?”

The days went by as they always did, and at last, the day of the event arrived. Over the past week, I’d leveled up to 234, bought new gear, and gotten all my preparations in order. Even I could tell that I was getting stronger by the day. My level used to be down in the single digits! When you think of it that way, that’s a lot of progress, right?

We were all in the club room for the usual Nightmare Conquerors’ Club-wide meeting. As soon as it ended, the four of us in the Raid Squad gathered.

“Another event, huh, Mai? Do your best,” Naomi said, as kindly as ever. “But, um…don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

“Okay! Thanks, Naomi. I’ll do what I can.”

“Asagi, Sugiura, Taichi—take good care of Mai, all right?”

“Of course we will!”

“Yeah.”

“We’re on it!”

…Wait, what’s that I feel? I wondered.

“Meeeow…” Mewta was rubbing up against my leg. That’s rare, I thought. Mewta usually sticks right beside Hirata…

“…Mewta’s worried about you…” Ah, there he was. “…I think he sees you guys as his friends.”

“Wow, really?”

“Really… So come back safe, all right…? I wouldn’t want Mewta to be sad…”

“Sure thing. You can count on us,” I said as I reached down to gently pat Mewta on his little kitty head. His eyes closed—apparently, the petting felt good.

“Okay, Rito, be straight with me,” Yoichi said, walking up next to Hirata. “Can you really tell how that cat’s feeling?”

“Yes… Now, shall I tell your brother Taichi how you’re feeling, Yoichi?”

“You better not, ’cause I’m gonna let him hear it in my own words! Got it?”

“…Are you, now?”

Yoichi walked up to Taichi and stood in front of him. “Listen, Taichi, will you please take the game seriously and not mess around for once? One time, that’s all I’m asking. Also, I picked up some dumplings for you. I’ll put ’em in your fridge for when you get back.”

“Well, isn’t that thoughtful of you, little bro! Thanks a bunch. Now I know I gotta win this thing.” Taichi shot his brother a wide grin.

“Oh, right!” Youko cut in. “We’ve got nineteen billion yen saved up for you guys in Nightmare! That should cover six continues, if you need ’em.”

“Whoa! Thanks, Youko!”

“Aw, don’t mention it. It’s literally the least we can do to help.”

“Yashiro, Sugiura, Taichi, Asagi… I’ll be right here to offer any support I can. Please give this event all you’ve got,” said Masuda.

With encouragement like that, we’ve gotta nail this! I decided.

“Um… Do—do your best, okay?” Even Kaneda was cheering for us, in his own sheepish way.

“Sheesh, Kaneda, speak up! What are ya, a ghost?!” Takojima snapped—he was every bit as loud as Kaneda was quiet.

“Oogh…”

“Oh, give him a break! When it comes to cheering someone on, it’s not about how loud you are! It’s the thought that counts!” Youko said, scolding Takojima. Akaishi nodded furiously in agreement.

“Pffft! What’s the point if they can’t even hear ya? Am I right, Akaishi?”

“M-me?!” Akaishi was flustered. In his bid for backup, Takojima had put his friend on the spot. “I—I—I dunno, I mean, this time around, I’m cheering for ’em all through sheer willpower alone! Like, psychically! Thoughts and feelings are, y’know, crucial for that! Actually, isn’t cheering in a loud voice kind of out these days? I hear what’s trendy now is whisper-cheering, y’know, kinda like reciting a prayer or something under your breath…?”

“Huh? What the heck’re you talkin’ about, man? None’a that makes sense,” said Takojima, staring wide-eyed at his friend.

Just then the notification light on my Nightmare console blinked. I had a new message. Let’s see, who sent it…? Oh!

It was from Tanaka. I assumed it had something to do with the event. I’d told Tsubasa that we found the tickets, and he probably told the rest of his party.

[From: Kenichi Tanaka]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

Yo! It’s me!

The day of the event’s here at last, huh? Here’s a cheer for you!

Beef bowl! Beef bowl! Beef bowl! Wahoo, beef bowl!

I’m going all-out today. Guess how many beef bowls I’ve had since breakfast?

Three! ★ Yummy yum yum!

But past experience has taught me that if I have one more, I’ll get a major stomachache, so I’m leaving it there!

(Oooh! That’s using your noodle! says Bystander C!)

Oh, right, I’ve got some messages to pass along to you. Here goes.

«From Tsubasa»

Meh, do your best. Too bad you didn’t invite me along this time, though.

Don’t come crying to me when you regret it.

«From Takimoto»

Thanks a lot for coming out to my show the other day.

Now it’s my turn to cheer you on!

Keep on fighting for all of us!

«From Naitou»

Heeere’s Naitou!

Do your best, everybody! Get out there and take down Nightmare!

And remember, I’m always accepting applications for whoever wants to be my girlfriend (lol).

«From Miyazawa»

Take care in the event! I’m sorry I can’t be there fighting by your side, but I’ll be working hard to find all sorts of strategies to share with you.

That’s that! I’ll be praying for you guys to put up a good fight! Tanaka out!

END

It wasn’t only from Tanaka; everyone in Tsubasa’s party had a message for us. It was just the encouragement I needed. (Sure, part of it was a little weird…but I decided not to think too much about that.) I thought back over all the kind words and support we’d received. More than ever before, I was confident we’d conquer the Vermilion Event for sure.

“Awright, time to get goin’. Asagi, Taichi, Mai—you all good to go?”

“Yeah, I’m ready.”

“I’m a-okay, boss!”

“Me, too.”

“Then let’s do this.”

“““Roger!””” The three of us nodded as we answered in unison. We made sure the event tickets were filled in with our names.

These special events were like Battles of Wits, in that we didn’t play them by controlling avatars on the other side of a screen. It was like we went inside the game; we had to play as ourselves. I gulped as the usual earphones popped out of their compartment on our Nightmare consoles. I put mine into my ears.

※The game is starting.

[You cannot withdraw from the game beyond this point.]

※Please note: If any nonparticipants attempt to remove a participant’s earphones or otherwise interfere with the game, the participants will be given a Game Over and lose their Respawn Penalties without exception.

A flood of static filled my ears. I wondered how many more times I’d have to hear it before I was finally free. That was the last thought on my mind before my consciousness began to drift away.

……Ngh……

My eyes slowly opened.

—Where am I? Am I in the event already?

I found myself lying on the floor in the middle of a tiny room. There were no windows and only one door. Stuck to the door was a piece of paper that read: HALLWAY OF TRIALS.

I realized that nobody else was in there with me.

Wait, what?! All four of us joined the event… What’s going on? I looked around the room in a panic, afraid that the others had left me behind. And then—

“Welcome to the World of Nightmare.” The voice I recognized as Kamisawa, Nightmare’s top administrator, came out of a speaker attached to the ceiling.

“What’s the big idea?” I asked him.

“Hee-hee… I must admit, I thought it’d take you longer to get here this time. Then again, you always put up more of a fight than I expect.”

Is he trying to change the subject? I wondered.

“Forget that,” I said. “Where are the others?!”

“…You’ll find your meeting place beyond the Hallway of Trials—if you prevail, that is. It’s right beyond that door.”

“Hallway of Trials…?”

“Indeed. I’ve thought long and hard about what your weakness might be…and I’ve finally found the answer.”

“—What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ll have to play to find out, won’t you?” Kamisawa said. “…Alas, I fear this may be our very last conversation.”

What does he mean, he’s found my weakness? I didn’t follow at all.

“Answer me!”

“Now, let the game begin,” he said, completely ignoring my question. “Ah, one more thing. The boss has the key to the Victory Application Point, but I wouldn’t try to fight it until after you reach the meeting place, if I were you. I’m afraid that’s the last bit of kindness I have to offer. And with that…”

—Click.

As usual, Kamisawa cut off his side of the communications.

One thing was clear: I’d have to manage on my own this time. From what Kamisawa said, I knew I would run into the floor boss before I got to the meeting place and reunited with the others.

What do I do? I thought. This is way scarier than usual!

Actually, another thing was clear: I had to gather up my nerve and press on. There was no other way.

I opened the door to find another small room behind it. I didn’t expect a boss to show up in there, but still, I couldn’t be too careful. I stepped slowly into the room, trying not to make a sound.

Then I got a message. A message from Asagi!

[From: Taisuke Asagi]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

Are you okay, Mai?!

It looks like we’re all going to be playing solo for a while. I wish I could teleport over to you right this second, but that’s not happening. Stinks, doesn’t it? I know you’re probably scared, but try to stay calm and be brave. Take it slow and steady. Know that the rest of us are doing our best, too!

I’ll see you at the meeting place. That’s a promise. :|

END

Asagi… That settled it. I had to give this event everything I had. No way was I gonna let Nightmare beat me. I’d made it this far thanks to all the help and support from my fellow players. Now that I was alone, it was all too easy to think, I can’t do anything. I’m scared. It’s no use. I give up. But no. I wouldn’t let those thoughts win. I wouldn’t surrender.

I wasn’t the only one who wanted to beat Nightmare, after all. I mean, that was the whole point of the Conquerors’ Club!

I looked at my inbox again. I had messages from Sugiura and Taichi waiting for me.

[From: Shinji Sugiura]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

I don’t care if you mess up, but you better not give up.

Get to the meeting place, no matter what it takes.

I’ll be waiting.

END

[From: Taichi Tango]

[To: Mai Yashiro]

You doing okay, Mai?

Here’s a tip: If something scary pops up, just imagine something even worse. Do that, and suddenly everything around you will start looking pretty good by comparison—and boom, no more shaky legs.

Hey, I bet Asagi and Sugiura are both suuuper pale with worry ’cause you’re not around right about now! You gotta make it to the meeting spot so they’ll know you’re okay!

END

So Sugiura and Taichi were looking out for me, too. I absolutely couldn’t let them down. I had to get my head in the game.

I sent off replies to all three of them, then began to search the room. The first thing I noticed was a poster stuck to the wall… A poster of Asagi’s avatar. The words “ASAGI—5,000 HP” were written under his picture.

There were more words under that, too: “INVINCIBLE. ESCAPE TO THE MEETING PLACE! YOU’LL FIND MORE DETAILS THERE.”

What’s Asagi’s avatar doing on that poster? I wondered. It was a surprise, to say the least. And why does it show his HP? And what’s all this “invincible,” “escape” stuff about? If the poster was correct, the answers were probably waiting at the meeting place, but still… Whatever was going on, I didn’t like it.

I didn’t have to look far to find the next item of interest. At the base of the wall to the left of the poster, there was a treasure chest. Is it locked…? Doesn’t look like it. I could probably get it open right away, I guessed. I carefully checked it for signs of traps, then slowly pried the lid open.

Inside, I found three Skill Chips. Before deciding whether to pick them up, I checked them one by one.

[Skill Chips]

Greatsword (∞)

[Effects]

Summons a heavy weapon.

You can use a command to draw the sword and put it away again.

[Requirements]

None (Recommended for male players)

Zan Slash (3/3)

[Effects]

Can be attached to a bladed weapon as a Weapon Skill.

Fires a shockwave that allows close-range weapons to attack from a distance.

[Requirements]

None

Trash Bag (1/1)

[Effects]

A run-of-the-mill, black trash bag.

It’s empty.

[Requirements]

Level 1

Hmmm. Going by the descriptions, none of the Skill Chips seemed very impressive. At least the first one, Greatsword, didn’t have any requirements that would stop me from using it, but the parts about how it was “heavy” and “recommended for male players” stuck out. Even if I could use it, I probably couldn’t use it well. And I didn’t have to think very hard to figure out that the Trash Bag was the odd man out… Maybe I’d better search the room a little more before I pick these up, I thought.

During events like this, each player could only carry up to ten items. If we picked up every piece of junk we found, we’d run out of space in no time.

Beep, beep, beep! An alarm rang out from my Nightmare console. I checked the screen and saw this text:

[Call Request from Taisuke Asagi]

Whoa, that’s new! I exclaimed to myself. It looked like we could use our consoles to communicate with each other during this event. Kamisawa hadn’t mentioned it, so I assumed we wouldn’t be able to talk to each other while we were split up.

I accepted Asagi’s request right away. His face popped up on my console screen.

“Oh, there you are, Mai! Great. It’s reassuring to see your face.”

“Same here,” I replied. “I felt kind of helpless and alone, being all by myself. Good thing we can use Nightmare’s communication features this time.”

“You’re telling me. I figured it probably wouldn’t work, but I had to give it a shot anyway. I couldn’t believe I got through. Still, though… It’s hard knowing I can’t do anything to help you out.”

“What do you mean? You’re already giving me extra courage just by calling to talk to me.”

On the screen, I saw Asagi look down and chuckle sheepishly. Maybe I’d made him feel bashful.

Hang on a sec— With Asagi’s head tilted down, I had a clear view of the area around him. He was in a room that looked exactly like the one I was in.

“Um, Asagi?”

“Hmm? What’s up?”

“There’s not a poster in that room with you, is there?”

“Yeah, there is, actually!”

“What’s on it?”

“Well, it’s your avatar, Mai. I don’t get what it means, though. Any guesses?”

“So I’m on your poster, huh? Your avatar’s on the poster in my room.”

“What? M-my avatar?! But why…? Oh! Maybe it means you and I’ll be able to meet up and band together first.”

“I sure hope that’s what it means,” I said. “…But I dunno. I can’t say why, exactly, but I’ve got a bad feeling about these posters.”

“You do?!” Asagi looked straight into his camera at me with wide, surprised eyes.

“I’m gonna try talking to Sugiura and Taichi. Can I call you back later?”

“Of course! While you’re doing that, I’ll look around and see what else I can find in this room.”

“Great, thanks.” I cut the call with Asagi and sent a call request to Sugiura. A moment later, there he was on my Nightmare console screen with the same stony look on his face as always.

“…What is it?”

“Hi, Sugiura! Can you describe where you are for me?”

Sure enough, he was also in a room that was arranged exactly like mine.

“There’s nothin’ else I can say right now,” he said. “Priority number one’s gotta be gettin’ all of us to that meetin’ place.”

“That’s what I was thinking, too.”

The Greatsword Skill Chip I’d found was meant for a male player. I realized that even if I didn’t think I could use it very well, I could still pick it up and trade it off to someone else when we got to the meeting place.

“One more question, Sugiura. Is there a poster in that room?” There was, and he showed me by turning his camera to face it. It had Taichi’s avatar on it. “The poster in my room shows Asagi’s, and Asagi’s shows mine,” I explained.

“Gotcha… I take it Taichi’s lookin’ at a poster of me right about now?”

“That would definitely fit the pattern.”

“Who knows what that’s s’posed to mean? Whatever it is, we oughtta be extra cautious.”

“No argument there…”

“Awright, I’m gonna head outta this room to scout out the meetin’ spot. Fill Asagi an’ Taichi in for me. And tell ’em I don’t want any of you guys leavin’ your rooms till I send you a message sayin’ so, got it?”

“Got it.”

Sugiura would do us all a favor and make the first move. He was always a solid leader, but it was times like these when his leadership truly shined. At the same time, though, I was worried about him.

“Um, Sugiura…? Be careful out there, okay?”

“I know, I know. Awright, already,” he said. He subtly touched his ear while he said it, but his face twisted into a super-scary scowl.

I told Sugiura I’d get in touch with Taichi, and then we ended the call.

Now, then… Before putting a call in to Taichi, I sent a quick message to Asagi to tell him not to leave the room until we heard from Sugiura. A moment later, I got a reply back:

Roger! :| Hang in there, Mai! If you get worried or scared, you can call or text me any time. No problem is too small!

That was Asagi for you. He was always looking out for me. As I read over his message, I could feel my worries fade away.

—Oh! Right! I’ve gotta call Taichi ASAP! What if he leaves his room before I can tell him not to?! I quickly sent him a call request. He accepted it right away, and his face popped up on my console screen.

“Yo, Mai!” Taichi said with a grin, holding a hand up in my direction. He didn’t look scared—if anything, it looked like he was having tons of fun. I noticed he had a marker clutched in his outstretched hand.

I got the feeling we wouldn’t get another message from Sugiura for a while, so I decided to search the room and see if I could find more than a handful of Skill Chips. I figured if I moved around and kept my body occupied, maybe it would keep my mind off of the fear and danger, too. I scanned the room for anything beyond the treasure chest.

There was a table scattered with pens and rulers, and next to that, there stood a trash can. Since there was nothing better to do, I peeked inside.

Orange Peel (1/1)

[Effects]

Just an orange peel.

[Requirements]

Level 39

Bag of Expired Flour (1/1)

[Effects]

The flour inside can be thrown at enemies—but don’t expect it to do any damage.

[Requirements]

Level 5

What is this junk? No matter how you look at it, it’s literally garbage. There seemed to be plenty of useless stuff to go around in the Vermilion Event. We would have to be really, really careful about which items we picked up!

I kept searching the room, but all I found were more seemingly pointless Skill Chips. To be honest, the Greatsword and Zan Slash chips I found in the treasure chest were the only ones that looked remotely useful. I decided to pick those two Skill Chips up first.

What else…? I pondered. It couldn’t hurt to pick up anything that I could possibly put to work. I snagged the Orange Peel, the Bag of Expired Flour, and two more I’d found: Waste Oil and a Broken Rice Scoop. I couldn’t say it made for a very reassuring arsenal, but it was better than nothing. Probably.

After I added all of that to my inventory, the notification light on my Nightmare console blinked again. I took a look at the screen and saw that a notice had popped up.

[NOTICE]

Shinji Sugiura has made his way through the Hallway of Trials!

He has arrived at the Meeting Place.

Party Members Gathered: (1/4)

—! Sugiura made it! Yesss! I cheered internally.

As a wave of relief washed over me, a call request came in from Sugiura. Naturally, I accepted it right away.

“Hey, Mai!”

“Hi, Sugiura! It looks like you made it there safe, huh?”

“Yeah. No big deal. But while I was blowin’ through the Hallway of Trials, I realized somethin’. If I’m worried about any of us this time, it’s you.”

“Huh…? Why’s that?”

“’Cause I’m pretty sure the player on the poster is gonna show up while you’re headin’ down the Hallway of Trials. An’ this event’s got four floor bosses. You see what I’m gettin’ at here?”

Wait, does that mean…?

“Am I going to run into Asagi?”

“Not the real one. A fake.”

“A fake…?” I put two and two together and realized that Sugiura must’ve fought a fake Taichi. “Um, what was the fake Taichi like?”

“He looked like the real thing, but he didn’t talk like ’im. I figure they can’t copy our personalities that well,” he said. “Look, Mai. I made a break for it an’ I managed to outrun my Taichi fake. But that’s not gonna work for you, is it?”

Urk… No, it’s not.

“I’m worried about Taichi, too, in that case,” I said. Can you blame me? He had a fake Sugiura to deal with. Sugiura was quick, athletic, and above all, totally merciless. Just the thought of fighting a fake one had me shaking!

“Huh? Hey, what’s that s’posed to mean…?”

“Um, n-nothing. You’re just, y’know, a fast runner, that’s all.”

“Hmph. I get the feelin’ that’s not all, but whatever. No time to fuss about that.”

Phew. Home free, I thought. I managed not to add an angry real Sugiura to our list of problems.

“Anyway, I gave Taichi an’ Asagi the go-ahead to get movin’. You gear up an’ head out, too.”

“Okay. Got it.”

“I’ll be waitin’ at the rendezvous,” Sugiura said. Then he hung up.

I heaved a huuuge sigh of relief once our call ended, though I didn’t have too much to feel relieved about—for one, I’m not very athletic. What’s worse, I was up against a floor boss that looked like Asagi. Talk about double trouble! But there was no way around it. I had to try.

I wonder if I’ll make it to the meeting place, I thought as I slowly, quietly opened the door leading to the Hallway of Trials. Since I didn’t have much hope of running to safety, I would have to try sneaking my way through without getting caught. I peeked out the door, but I didn’t find what I expected. There was no hallway; the door led into another room—a way, way bigger room than the one I’d been in.

Hmm…, I thought. It is pretty big. Maybe this whole space is the so-called “Hallway of Trials.” It was certainly starting to look that way. I’d been expecting a narrow-ish hallway—wide enough for one or two people to pass through at once—so the huge, open room was quite a surprise. Haaah… I’ve got a really bad feeling about this, I admitted to myself.

I took another look around. This giant hallway (which, again, seemed more like a long, spacious room) was randomly scattered with blocks of all colors. Well, I say “blocks,” but like the hallway, they were way bigger than one might expect. If I curled into a ball, I’d probably be able to hide behind one.

Maybe I can use these blocks to get to the meeting place safely, I strategized. I looked down at the floor and saw a red arrow pointing in the direction I was supposed to go. I could still move forward or backward, left or right, freely…but the arrow pointed straight ahead. That probably leads to where I wanna go, I thought. Probably.

Slowly and steadily, I crept in that direction, taking care to stay hidden behind the blocks. It was scary, to say the least. My floor boss could show up at any time…

And then—

<!> Floor Boss Approaching <!>

—flashed on my Nightmare console screen.

He’s here! But where?! In a panic, I looked all around in search of the boss. There, standing right behind a square, yellow block, in his school uniform, stood Fake Asagi. And he was looking over in my direction. Wait… Did he catch me already?!

No sooner had I caught on than Fake Asagi started running. I could hear his feet pounding against the floor as he made a straight line right for me.

Oh, crud! He’s gonna get me! I thought. I took off running, too, in the opposite direction. In other words, right back the way I’d come. I panted hard as I ran. It’s no use… I’m already out of breath! The distance between me and Fake Asagi got shorter and shorter with every step. There was no way I could beat Asagi, even a fake one, when it came to sheer strength.

I don’t need to tell you he caught up with me. And then—

Yank!

Fake Asagi grabbed me by the arm.

“…Ack!”

To my surprise, when I turned to look at Fake Asagi, he was smiling kindly. That smile… It was the same smile Asagi always gave me. Then he leaned close to me, and I felt my back thump against the wall.

“Heh-heh-heh. Looks like I won…,” Fake Asagi said with a chuckle. He stood right in front of me. It seemed impossible to run away now.

“A-Asagi…”

I was freaking out! He may have smiled like Asagi, but the Asagi I knew never acted like this!! I tried to shove Fake Asagi away, but he didn’t even flinch. Then he tapped at the Nightmare console on his arm and equipped himself with a sword.

Ooogh…

I lifted my tear-drenched face and immediately heard the voices of the Nightmare Conquerors’ Club all around me.

“Are you all right, Mai?!” Naomi asked as she squeezed my hand. From how hard she held it, I could tell I must have been shaking.

“Y-yeah… Sorry. I got a Game Over.”

“That’s okay, Mai. We know you played your hardest. You always do.”

“Thanks, Naomi…” It was comforting to see her smiling every bit as sweetly as she usually did.

Since I was the only member of the Raid Team who’d woken up, the club must have guessed what happened. They all looked at me with worry in their eyes.

I looked down at the Nightmare console in my hands. The top part of the screen read, [Game Over. You may continue in 59 minutes. (Continuing will cost 3,000,000,000 in-game yen.)] But that wasn’t all. Below that, it said:

[You have lost your Respawn Penalty: Left Hand. Your Respawn Penalty is only temporarily forfeited for now, but if your whole party gets a Game Over, the whole party’s Respawn Penalties will be lost.]

Respawn Penalties worked a little differently during events than they did during normal gameplay. We only lost the use of our body parts if our party didn’t win the event. For example, even if I died again and lost my mouth, I would still be able to talk for as long as the event lasted. Again, this was the rule for events and events alone. I figured it had to be that way, or else events would be impossible. If our legs stopped working during an event and we couldn’t run anymore, we couldn’t possibly win. A game’s got to at least have a system to let us keep playing.

“What’s going on in the game, Yashiro?” Masuda asked.

“Well, here’s the thing…” I filled them in on everything from the structure of the event to how I got a Game Over.

“I see… So you’ve got to get past a fake Asagi. That seems quite tough.”

“It is. There’s no way I’ll ever outrun him… If he sees me, he chases me, and if he chases me, he catches up. I can’t get away.”

“…So you can’t win with strength or speed. Is that what you’re saying?”

“Yeah…”

Now what? If I just waited out the hour and jumped back in blindly, I knew the same thing would happen. I had to use my downtime to think of a plan.

“Hey, Mai, your console’s lighting up!” said Youko. A new notice flashed across the upper part of the screen.

[NOTICE]

Taisuke Asagi has made his way through the Hallway of Trials!

He has arrived at the Meeting Place.

Party Members Gathered: (2/4)

From the looks of it, Asagi made it through the hallway safely. That’s a relief…

I looked up from Nightmare to see Masuda coming over to the table with a sheet of paper in his hand.

“Would you mind sketching the area you were in for me, Yashiro?”

Now that my hour was over and my 3,000,000,000 yen was paid, I found myself back in the starting room—the one with nothing but a door. All right! Gotta do my best!

As I reached for the door, I heard Kamisawa’s voice again.

“Heh-heh. Looks like you’re going through quite a struggle,” he said. He sounded like he was having the time of his life.

“……” How big of a jerk could you be?

“Again, I’ll admit I do feel a bit lonely when I realize this might be goodbye… But I suppose what will be, will be.”

“Don’t go deciding what ‘will be’ just yet!” I shouted back. “Watch me. I’ll win this time.”

“Heh-heh… You’ve got spirit, I’ll give you that. By all means, prove me wrong.” And with that, he cut off the connection.

I opened the door and headed into the next room. This time, I saw the Skill Chips in a new light. I considered them again and made a some choices. The Bag of Expired Flour would stay, but it wasn’t quite enough. All flour would do was block Fake Asagi’s vision for a little while. It wouldn’t slow him down for very long. If I was going to make a break for the meeting place, I needed to stop him in his tracks.

After a bit more thought, I decided to take the Bag of Expired Flour, the Waste Oil, and a Bag of Expired Pepper. Then I decided to take whatever else seemed remotely useful. At first glance, that described exactly nothing in the room. But now that I looked again, I saw that wasn’t true. There was plenty of stuff that I could use to slow Fake Asagi down with a bit of work and creativity.

I tapped on my Nightmare console and selected the Bag of Expired Flour. A bag of flour appeared in my right hand. I untied the knot that held the bag closed. There. Now I’m ready, I thought. I gripped the bag tightly and held my hand out of sight as I stepped carefully into the Hallway of Trials.

The giant blocks were still there. I crept along behind them like I did last time, trying to stay hidden. I still hadn’t seen Fake Asagi. Yet. If he was waiting in the same spot as before, he would be behind a square, yellow block a bit farther down the hall.

—Ba-thump. Ba-thump. My heart beat louder and louder with each step. I was terrified, but that didn’t matter. I had to get through the hallway. The rest of the Raid Team would be waiting for me. And most of all, I didn’t want to end the game stuck in such an awful place. I gathered my courage and pressed on.

The four of us were met with loud cheers the moment we looked up. Cries of “““Congratulations!””” came from all corners of the club room. That was when it sank in that we’d beaten the event and made it home safely again.

“Welcome back, Mai,” Naomi said, greeting me with a huge grin. “I’m so glad you’re safe!”

“Good to be back! And me, too.”

“Sooo? What was the event like this time? Don’t spare any details,” Youko said, leaning in excitedly.

“That’s Mai for you,” Asagi said. “Popular as always.”

“For real! What’re we, chopped liver?” Taichi griped.

“What’s your problem, you two? If you got time to sit around whinin’, c’mere. I gotta whip up a report to my dad’s company, and you’re gonna help with the paperwork.”

“H-hey, wait! Waaaugh!”

“Eeep! Somebody, help me!”

Sugiura yanked poor Asagi and Taichi out of their seats and dragged them over to his computer.

“Ah-ha-ha-ha, I guess it’s not their lucky day.”

“I feel a little sorry for them, though. We should save some sweets and tea to take to them later.”

“Yeah, sounds like a plan,” Youko said. “I’ll set aside these burnt pancakes and let Sugiura eat ’em. Gotta get rid of ’em anyway.”

“Sheesh, Youko, isn’t that cruel and unusual punishment?” I looked at the pancakes she was talking about. They barely qualified as edible.

“Aw, don’t worry. Sugiura hates sweets, remember? See, it all works out! If anything, I bet he’ll be begging for more bitter stuff like this.”

Er… I dunno about that, Youko…, I thought.

“Would you mind if I ate those?” Masuda said, cutting in. It seemed he’d overheard us talking about Youko’s plate of way-too-crispy pancakes.

“Bwuh?! N-no! I mean yes, I mind! It’s a bad batch! And all those scorched bits can’t be good for you,” Youko sputtered.

You seemed totally fine with feeding them to Sugiura, though, I pointed out to myself.

“That’s fine. I’m sure if I scrape off the burnt parts, the rest is delicious. Either way, I’m hungry,” said Masuda as he took the plate of pancakes out of Youko’s hands with a grin.

Youko’s cheeks turned bright red as she slumped straight down to the floor. “Aw, man… If I’d known, I woulda tried way harder to bake a good batch…”

It hit me that Masuda probably swooped in and took the cruddy pancakes on purpose to save Youko from Sugiura’s wrath. Our leader would’ve chewed her ear off if she’d plopped that plate of disasters in front of him.

“…Congratulations on another victory, Yashiro…”

“Meow.”

“Another killer victory, you mean. I’m gonna have to start studying your moves!” said Yoichi. He and Hirata had made their way over to talk about the event.

“Heyo! What kinda monster didja face this time?!” Takojima interrupted through a mouthful of takoyaki.

“We can hear all about that later,” Akaishi said. “For now, I simply must ask you to make me pancakes sometime, Youko.”

“Urgh… I can’t get a single word in… Oh! C-congratulations, Yashiro!” Kaneda said, sheepishly waving over the gathering crowd.

“Thanks, Kaneda!” I said, smiling back at him through all the bustle and noise. The club room was buzzing with voices; it seemed like everybody had something to say. But it was a comfortable racket. It let me know that I was safely back in the real world.

—Shhhk!

The club room door suddenly slid open—and who should walk through but Tsubasa’s party?

“Aw, you beat it already?”

“Hey, Tsubasa, I thought the Glasses God was supposed to be here… I don’t see him anywhere…”

“Shut it, Gramps.”

“Awww…”

Tsubasa made his way over to me.

“Meh, you did all right, I guess,” he said. “Oh, by the way, I forgot to give you your reward for the Battle of Wits the other day.”

“Oh!” Now that he mentioned it, he had promised me “something good.” I’d totally forgotten, too. He handed me a flyer advertising the delivery service from a restaurant called Kaitsu Beef Bowls. “Huh? Does this mean I’m getting free beef bowls?”

“Free? What are you, stupid? Of course they’re not free. Be sure you pay up.” Tsubasa laughed like he was looking at the world’s biggest dummy. (Honestly, I felt like the world’s biggest dummy for falling for it.) “But if you give ’em the number written on that flyer, it’ll be ten percent off. Order for a lot of folks, and they’ll give you a bigger discount, too. Call if you’re in the mood for a beef bowl.”

“Okay… Thanks…” …Actually, the bowl in the photo on this flyer does look really, really good. I decided to sneak it onto Sugiura’s desk later. If I included a note about the 10 percent discount—and the even bigger group discount—I bet he’d order some for the whole Nightmare Conquerors’ Club one day.

It wasn’t only Tsubasa and Tanaka, either. Takimoto, Naitou, and Miyazawa were also there to congratulate us on winning the Vermilion Event. I felt totally surrounded by friends.

“Ah, Mai! Over here! I’ve got a can of Pudding Pop with your name on it. Wanna have a drink?”

Oh! That’s Asagi! I thought. He and Taichi must have finished helping Sugiura with the reports, because they all looked relaxed—even Sugiura, though he just glanced in my direction without a word.

“……”

“Heya, Mai, Zalbatoth’s come out to play,” Taichi said. “Why don’t you guys get Amelie and Tow’el, and they can all hang out?”

“Hee-hee! Good idea!” I clicked over to Amelie’s room on my console.

“Hi, Mai! How’d the event go?!” she asked.

“Another win!”

“Yesss! Congrats!” Amelie grinned very broadly.

“Thanks, Amelie. How’d you like to go over there and chat with everyone for a while?”

“Sounds great! I wanna hear all about your courageous battles and stuff!”

“Hee-hee,” I giggled as I carried my console over to where Asagi, Taichi, and Sugiura were sitting.

I knew they had my back, and thanks to them and the rest of the club on my side, I could keep on fighting. I wasn’t just fighting for myself—I was fighting for them, too. And having someone to fight for was the greatest buff one could get in Nightmare.

“Online! Vol. 6: Lady Hex and the Raid Team Impostors”

End

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