[Fun Task: Hundred Kills]
[Task Content: It's time to demonstrate true martial prowess. Please defeat 100 opponents in combat before midnight today and spread your fame far and wide]
[Task Reward: Exclusive bound equipment]
[Failure Penalty: Seal hearing for 24 hours]
[Note: The reward is quite valuable. Please don't miss this opportunity]
[Note: Cheating is prohibited. Please ensure the duel environment is fair and just. Secret collusion, advance bribery, and similar actions will result in invalid defeats]
"..."
"Kaguya-chan, are you okay?"
Chika asked cautiously.
Apart from slightly biting her lower lip, Kaguya showed no signs of distress. Her expression was cool and composed, her tone calm. "I'm fine."
"That's good." Chika let out a breath of relief. "Getting weird tasks two days in a row—if it were me, I might have already started crying."
You've been fooled. The ice sculpture girl is just good at managing her expressions. She looks calm on the surface, but she's not calm at all inside!
Natsuki looked at Kaguya. He could clearly see text erupting above her head.
[Unfair unfair unfair unfair...]
Why is it me again?
I feel like someone is targeting me in secret!
"Two days in a row of tasks. Kaguya-chan's horoscope might just happen to be in retrograde." Chika suggested. "Kaguya-chan, remember to watch the NHK daily fortune-telling program before leaving home tomorrow morning."
She'd already watched the fortune-telling program yesterday morning. It was completely useless!
Natsuki spoke up after a moment of thought:
"Let's discuss how to complete the task instead."
The male way of thinking—encounter a problem, solve the problem.
"Roger." Chika propped her chin on her right hand, murmuring to herself. "A hundred kills sounds kind of..."
Their eyes met.
Natsuki and Chika tactfully looked away in unison.
Both veterans of the road.
"Defeat a hundred people." Kaguya's delicate brows furrowed slightly. She was also thinking seriously. "It would be so much simpler if I could just bribe my opponents."
As the young lady of the Shinomiya family, relying on real-world power and influence wasn't shameful at all.
If not for the no-cheating rule, forget a hundred kills in one day—a thousand kills might even be possible.
"Ah, I've got it!" Chika's eyes lit up. She quickly raised her right hand and said brightly, "How about rock-paper-scissors?"
"We play rock-paper-scissors. It's simple and convenient. We could finish the task in minutes."
"That doesn't sound reliable." Natsuki shook his head. "But we can try it first to see if it meets the conditions."
"Let's duel, Kaguya-chan!"
Chika put her left hand on her hip and extended her right hand toward Kaguya.
Kaguya also thought it was unreliable, but... it was just rock-paper-scissors. Trying wouldn't cost anything.
Then Kaguya lost five games in a row.
"Huh? I won again?" Chika blinked, her voice bright. "Looks like the horoscope program was right. My luck really is good today."
Looking at Chika proudly lifting her chin, Kaguya began to question her very existence.
Was her luck really this bad?
"Let me try." Natsuki looked at Kaguya and raised his right hand. "Fujiwara-san's luck does seem to be exceptionally good today. The best approach is just not to play against her."
"..."
Kaguya bit her lower lip slightly and began the rock-paper-scissors match.
This time she finally managed to win.
"Kaguya-chan, how did it go?" Chika looked over expectantly.
Kaguya shook her head gently, her expression calm. "It didn't work."
As expected, the rock-paper-scissors game didn't meet the task requirements.
"Let me think again..." Chika fell into thought once more. "Um, Kaguya-chan is so good at archery. How about entering an archery competition?"
As an all-around genius girl, Kaguya excelled not only academically but also in tea ceremony, flower arrangement, dance, koto, aikido, naginata, and archery. Her archery skills were the strongest—she'd won first place at nationals back in middle school.
If she participated in archery duels, the probability of completing the task would indeed be quite high.
However...
"My stamina won't allow it." Kaguya shook her head gently.
Even as an all-around genius, Kaguya had weaknesses. For instance, stamina. As a young lady, she had so many things to learn that she couldn't possibly have time to run around exercising. So Kaguya's basic stamina was actually lower than an ordinary girl's.
In gaming terms, she was like a marksman with high attack but paper-thin defenses—one hit and she'd go down.
Kaguya had already considered the possibility of archery duels.
She was confident she could achieve a hundred kills, but doing it in one day was impossible. Her arms would give out midway.
In fact, she had considered all competition types related to physical activity, but her severe stamina shortcoming meant she had to reject them all.
"How about shogi?" Chika said next. "Kaguya-chan is super smart. Whether it's shogi or go, you're amazing at both. You should be able to achieve a hundred kills in one day, right?"
"The task requires demonstrating martial prowess. Chess should count as an intellectual game." Natsuki pondered. "Either way, we won't know until we try."
"I remember there's a shogi set in the Tabletop Gaming Club's drawer." Chika quickly said. "Let's go verify it now?"
"Mm."
The three went to the Tabletop Gaming Club together.
Chika found the shogi set, and she and Kaguya began to play.
In less than ten minutes, a winner was decided. Chika's forces were routed—a crushing defeat.
"Still no good." Kaguya's delicate brows furrowed slightly.
"I can't think of any other ideas." Chika sprawled limply on the table.
Natsuki spoke up after careful consideration:
"I've thought of a method that might work."
"Huh? What method?" Chika quickly sat up straight. "Tell us, Natsuki-kun."
"Have you ever played arcade fighting games?" Natsuki asked.
"I've heard of them, but never played." Chika shook her head.
Kaguya crossed her right arm over her chest. "I've never played either."
Well, he should have expected that.
Kaguya was a proper young lady, and Chika, though a bit airheaded, also had a good upbringing. Obviously neither girl would have had any contact with arcade fighting games.
"Having heard of them is fine. In short, they're fighting games played on arcade machines." Natsuki continued. "One-on-one fair duels, martial competition. It might satisfy the task's conditions."
"We won't know if it works until we try."
"There's a game center on my way to school. I suggest we go verify this right now." Natsuki finished laying out his thoughts. "If it doesn't meet the task conditions, we'll think of other methods."
"Sounds pretty good." Chika quickly cast her vote in favor. "Let's skip class, Kaguya-chan!"
"We don't need to skip class." Natsuki retorted. "There's still time before class starts. If we walk quickly, we won't be late."
Kaguya pondered for two seconds and nodded slightly:
"Let's go to the game center."