Sorcerer’s Handbook

Chapter 234: Integrity at Its Finest!

In the game room, Ashe and Deya were locked in intense Battle.

The Wandering Sword Saint executed a complex Miracle combo, cornering the Time Witch at the edge of the board, rendering her utterly defenseless.

As Ashe was about to finish off this formidable foe with a chain of combos, he excitedly prepared the Wandering Sword Saint’s ultimate Miracle, “Midnight Sun Twilight Turn,” aiming to end the Battle with a flourish!

However, it was the slight pause caused by initiating the ultimate Miracle that Deya keenly captured.

She decisively executed a dodge Miracle, “Reminiscent Years Like Water,” avoiding the Wandering Sword Saint’s ultimate, and then used the throwing Miracle, “Zero Hour Echo,” to turn the tables and pin the Wandering Sword Saint against the edge.

The tide had completely turned. Although the Time Witch was down to a sliver of health, her Talent, the blessing “All Miracle attacks increase the enemy’s stun time by 5 frames,” meant that with a perfect combo rhythm, she could leave her opponent without a chance to resist or escape.

Multiple times, all it took was for Ashe to be hit once by Deya, and then he could practically let go of the controller and watch as the Wandering Sword Saint was endlessly comboed to death by the Time Witch.

In contrast, the Wandering Sword Saint’s Talent, the blessing “Start the Battle with four times attack power, which decreases over time,” meant that if he couldn’t seize the opportunity to finish his enemy right at the start, he stood little chance as the fight dragged on.

Watching the Wandering Sword Saint immobilized, Ashe was frantic with urgency.

If it were just another routine thrashing, it would have been one thing, but this time the Time Witch was on the brink of defeat, and Ashe was so close to avenging his losses. It was like a download progress bar stuck at 99.9% — he couldn’t accept falling at this hurdle!

Ashe cast a steely glance around the room. Only he and Lise were present in the game room; Harvey and Igor had no interest in watching their gameplay, Banjeet did seem interested, but Annan appeared to have plans for him, leaving no time to coach Ashe and Lise’s gaming.

This meant, whatever happened between him and Lise, no one was watching, and no one could stop them.

Lise, it was you who pushed me to this.

I didn’t want to resort to that trick.

But now, it seems like Destiny is making a fool of me.

Ashe kicked away Lise’s stool, and while she was distracted by the fall, he decisively executed a series of Miracles to defeat the Time Witch.

“Remember to game in moderation; too much indulgence is not healthy. Minors should play no more than one hour of games. It’s time for a bath, and with that, let’s call it a night. Goodnight!”

Before Deya could even grasp what had happened, Ashe had already dashed out of the game room, making a quick escape from the scene.

Lise, nursing her sore behind and staring at the door left ajar, heard the announcement from the Holographic Screen stating the outcome of the game. Letting go of the controller, her lips pouted enough to hang a kettle.

Enduring!

But she couldn’t hold back anymore!

“Arghhh!” Deya rolled around on the carpet, choking with rage: “Darn it! Don’t try to calm me down, I’m going to kill him! I swear I’ll get him, not even the Bronze Dragon can save him!”

It took her a while to compose herself, then she stood up angrily, turned off the Holographic Screen, and hit Ashe’s controller as if to vent her frustration before heading back to her room to take a bath.

Around 11 PM, as her consciousness connected with the Virtual Realm, Deya entrusted her physical body to Lise and descended into the Virtual Realm with a scowl.

Lise stretched lazily on the bed, feeling sleepy but not ready to fall asleep just yet.

She was at an age full of energy and had been happily ‘forced’ by the Observer to play hide and seek with Banjeet all afternoon. Interestingly, Aunt Bukin and Uncle Harvey even joined in for several rounds before leaving.

But Banjeet was incredibly skilled, effortlessly finding them no matter how well Aunt Bukin and Uncle Harvey hid, leaving Aunt Bukin with a somewhat sullen expression after her losses.

Lise had wanted to involve her dad in the game, and Ashe, who was in the gaming pod, had agreed readily. However, after searching for a while, Lise discovered that Ashe hadn’t moved at all from the virtual gaming pod, claiming that “the most dangerous place is the safest.”

That’s when Lise realized that this hypocritical adult was definitely a master at slacking off—a true wage thief.

Adults are supposed to go to work, and Dad is definitely the type who would find an excuse to play games openly while at work.

Even though she had a lot of fun, Lise felt it wasn’t enough. But at this hour, there was no one else to play with her, and her sisters had all gone to the Virtual Realm, so…

…was she free now?

Lise suddenly jumped up, clenched her little fists excitedly, and all sleepiness vanished.

Right, with her sisters not around, she could do whatever she wanted, couldn’t she?

But what exactly should she do?

Suddenly, Lise looked down at the new Bracelet she had received.

It still had 10,000 copper coins in it, which the White Queen, Secret Princess, and Black Butler had discussed all afternoon without deciding how to spend the money.

Buying stuff… Lise wanted to buy stuff too!

She twisted the Bracelet and called up the Holographic Screen, and as if sensing her inner desires, the first page that appeared on the Curtain was the shopping store.

I’m just looking to see what’s for sale, she thought to herself.

As soon as Deya entered the Virtual Realm, she realized she was sitting in the back seat of a sports car, with the Observer beside her, and the Swordswoman in the front seat. In her foul mood, she failed to realize that this seating arrangement would also upset another young lady who, with her arms crossed, said, “Can we find a Sorcerer Projection to fight tonight? Preferably a male, I need to vent.”

Ashe instinctively wanted to say ‘tell us what bad luck you’ve run into to cheer us up,’ but he suddenly remembered his promise to the Witch not to inquire about her life, so he swallowed the schadenfreude comment.

He was someone who took promises very seriously, perhaps because his father had kept his promise to buy him a gaming system after he scored dual hundreds for the first time in elementary school, or maybe because he saw his dear elder brother adhere to a promise which resulted in his father standing up to the homeroom teacher’s pressure and allowing his brother to date early because he made it into the top ten in his age group.

Ashe’s father wasn’t what you’d call a traditional good dad. He lacked ambition, sticking to the same job his whole life, enjoying a drink or two in the evenings, and not one to look after the kids. He was obsessed with forging swords—a passion so intense that back in his hometown he even had a forge, where the clang of the hammer on Saturdays mornings was more jarring than any alarm clock. While other kids had sweet dreams, Ashe only dreamed of being hammered down. His brother had it even worse; halfway through a spring dream, as he was about to drop his trousers, he’d dream of the hammer crashing down.

Despite all this, it was hard for the two brothers to speak ill of their father. Not only did they earn bragging rights with their friends by showing off their father’s unsharpened swords when they were little, but more importantly, their father respected them.

He was strict when he needed to be and wasn’t one to coddle or compromise. He didn’t seem to expect much from Ashe and his brother, much like he didn’t expect his crafted swords to be used for anything other than wall decorations. But he was still faithful in smoothing out the roughness of their adolescent years with his hammer. Yet if the brothers showed their own ‘backbone’, he wouldn’t skimp on his respect. Young Ashe didn’t think much of having a father who respected him until he grew up and met all sorts of people, realizing not everyone had a father figure.

Compared to his father, though, his mother was the real piece of work, but that’s a story for another time.

Just when Ashe decided not to delve into the Witch’s foul mood, the Swordswoman turned and asked proactively, “Got any misfortunes to share to cheer us up?”

Ashe would never admit he may have been a bad influence on the Swordswoman.

Deya seemed to have a bellyful of complaints, but aside from herself, the other sisters didn’t care for such trifles. Even though the Swordswoman’s tone was odd, Deya complied and spilled it out: “I met a really despicable man today. In a fair duel, knowing he was about to lose, he still used external factors to throw me off, resulting in my defeat. And he had the audacity to leave without a hint of apology after humiliating me.”

Since saying she lost at a game seemed a bit odd, Deya decided to use the term ‘duel’, considering the game they were playing was “Sorcerer Duel 14”.

“That’s despicable!” Ashe erupted. “How can there be men in this world who can’t handle defeat? I have no respect for him!”

“Indeed.” Even Sonya couldn’t help but agree. She wasn’t against the use of outside tactics, but given her current social status, she was destined to become ‘a victim of such tactics,’ so she firmly planted herself on the side of ‘justice.’ “A fair duel should not be compromised.”

“Exactly!” Deya found solace in the collective condemnation, excited like she had made a new friend. “That man is just vile…”

Sonya didn’t actually have much desire to cozy up to the Little Witch, but Deya was like a fruit can that just needed a gentle pry to open. Sonya’s instinct for ‘networking’ prompted her to skillfully echo Deya—women know best how to charm other women.

Before long, Deya had brushed aside all her bad impressions of Sonya, even thinking that Sonya understood her better than the sisters, and had a very sound set of values.

Values that just happened to align perfectly with her own.

As Ashe drove his car in pursuit of the Chariot of the Bull, Deya adjusted her glasses slightly and engaged in a conversation with the sisters.

White Queen: “Do I really not need to step in for communication and intelligence gathering this time? Last night you were vehemently opposed to contacting them.”

Deya: “I can’t always depend on you, and it’s just the Observer and the Swordswoman, I should be able to handle them. Tonight, as usual, I’ll take care of the Virtual Realm.”

Black Butler: “Last night you disliked the Swordswoman, and now after a brief interaction, you’re chatting away with her like there’s no tomorrow. You think you can handle it, but I bet soon you’ll sell us out completely… If it weren’t for the new Little Witch, Princess, you would undoubtedly be the social nincompoop among us.”

Red Death Eater: “Even counting the Witch, the Princess is still the weakest in social skills.”

Deya: “Little Red, do you really have the nerve to criticize me?”

Black Butler: “Little Red just doesn’t socialize, which is different from having low social skills. It’s like not playing games versus being bad at them; they’re not the same thing. So she’s qualified to judge you.”

Deya: “White Queen, look at them!”

White Queen: “Since Princess wishes it so, we should respect her desires. After all, we had a clear division of labor from the start: Princess handles the Virtual Realm Adventure, I manage negotiations, Black Butler is in charge of schemes and misdeeds, and Red Death Eater is responsible for battle and carnage… An occasional cameo is fine, but if possible, work should be left to the corresponding person. After all, we all want to feel needed.”

Black Butler: “Speaking of which, it’s been a long time since I’ve been active, so are you really not planning to let me take the stage? The bond between Observer and Swordswoman is in a delicate state, and White Queen, your babying approach won’t peel back their veil. Let me take over; I can induce a qualitative change in their relationship—perhaps for the better, but I’ll strive to guide it towards the worse. Although we can’t do much in the Virtual Realm, our bodies are already very sharp weapons.”

“No, that’s not acceptable!”

“No, Observer and Swordswoman are important allies for us right now.”

Deya and White Queen objected in unison.

“Ah, it seems it’s another day I’m kept on ice. But I’m not in a hurry,” Black Butler said. “My very existence means… we need me.”

“I’ll wait with great anticipation for the day I take center stage.”

Despite some controversy, Deya regained her position as the spokesperson for Exploration in the Virtual Realm.

White Queen gave her a piece of advice: the focus of Exploration in the Virtual Realm was no longer merely about exploring, but about improving her own status within the exploration team.

Now that she was already on friendly terms with Swordswoman, the next step was Observer.

Observer had agreed with her views earlier, indicating that despite his unpleasant nature, his core values were actually quite sound, so getting along with him should be no problem!

“Observer!”

Sonya’s reaction was even quicker than Ashe’s; she turned her head to see what this ‘new sister’ intended to do.

Deya racked her brains for social skills: it was said that the best way to close the distance with someone was to compliment their appearance.

However, Observer’s face was a blur of mist, impossible to discern, and the trench coat covering the body could well befit the self-defeating comic villain in a fairy tale book, so…

“Your hands are so beautiful, may I touch them?”

Ashe blinked.

Sonya was flabbergasted.

Was she being that straightforward? Generally, wouldn’t the usual approach be to say something about having applied too much hand cream and offering to share some?