Back to the protesting fighters

“You are severely testing my patience.” The golden knight scowled as he was yet again not given a satisfactory answer.

“Do you know who you are talking to?”, the Sexy-Knight wiggled her sword around. “My Liege does not abide incontinence! Fulfill my Lords demands this instant or prepare to face my wrath!”

“What she said!”, Punchy, having joined their retinue, was just as eager. “Yer think yer getting away with stalling like this, ya punk?”

I yawned and plopped another popped corn into my mouth.

This song and dance was going on for hours now. Sylphid and Arios had long since left, leaving goldenboy and company to keep up the fight. The initial tournament guy did exchange place with a manager who later was replaced with a member of the **** Tournament committee. As far as I was concerned it was a simple play for time. I wish Goldie Boy would do a bit more, maybe go a little purging. But I suppose we have squeezed all the value we get out of them.

Just as I was about to doze off, Sir Moron showed up and whispered something in Goldies ear. Eww. Gross

“What?”, the gold knight seemed rather surprised. “Is this true?”

Sir Moron nodded with a grave expression on his face.

Wow, Goldie looks pissed. He glared once more at the official and then stormed off. Sir Moron and the hapless Sexy-Knight rushed after him.

That left a very confused Punchy behind. “W-what just happened?”

Well, based on the obnoxiously smug face the committee guy is making...I guess someone contacted the higher ups of the church and told Sir Goldie to cool it off a bit.

Honestly, this wasn’t that surprising. Rasheul is a very generous donor to the church. It is only natural that they receive something in return for all that protection money.

“B-But...hold on, yer can’t just....”, Punchy was still completely dumbfounded as the tournament official just flat out left her there screaming. “H-hey! That Dark Lord is still meaning business!”

I finished of the last of my soft drink and stood up. No reason to hang around here any longer.

“H-hold on, Rice!”, Punchy ran after me. “W-what are we going to do now.”

“Don’t call me that”, I said, offering Punchy my bag of popped corn. “You want some?”

“Never mind that”, Punchy said, all the same grabbing a fistful of popped corn to shove in her mouth. “This isn’t what ya said would happen!”

Well, yes, I would be a fool to divulge more information then necessary to this human chatterbox. “Relax, for now let’s just head back to our room and...”

“Howdy there!” A girl with a weird hat walked towards us just as we exited the office. She seemed rather high strung.

“Oh, yer that gunslinger Lady Sylphid destroyed in Round 1!” Punchy blurted out with all the tact of a power gorilla.

Right, I remember watching that fight before I handed Mari the devil box. That was only two days ago. Huh. Feels like a lifetime.

“Reckon I was”, The gunslinger didn’t seem to keen to be reminded of how that battle went. “The missus would like to invite you two gals over for dinner. We’re having some steak on rocks and the meat won’t be the only thing juicy. Reckon it’ll be worth your while.”

Oh my. “Is that a fact?” I grinned. That was earlier then I expected.

“Of course we accept!” Punchy almost screamed with excitement. “It would be an **** honor! Extremely honored, even! But…” Punchy looked back to the office.

“It’s fiiiine”, I assured Punchy, finishing off the last of my popped corn. “Let us enjoy a nice dinner.”

Time for phase two.

…

..

.

The three of us returned to the dorm and took the elevator up to the fourth floor. There we entered what was most likely Sylphid's room.

“Welcome back, Mary! Hey Witchie and Fisti! Sit down, sit down! I bet you are hungry!”

W-witchie?

In the middle of the room, in front of a stone plate, full with sizzling meat, sat a happily waving Sylphid. She wasn't alone. There was Eternal Flame, the perpetual fire hazard that apparently heated the plate up and one other very important girl.

“O-Of course Lady Sylphid. right away!” Fisti bowed politely(four times) before taking a seat on one of the cushions surrounding the impromptu feast.

“I am amazed they let you do this”, I said, as I took a seat as well. The meat does look appetizing. Perhaps I shouldn’t have splurged on snacks. Oh well, I am a growing girl. “I must say, I am rather impressed that you figured out my true identity.”

Sylphid grinned and quickly scooped up a big piece of meat only to gulp it down without even chewing. “Fisti told me about it. Gotta say, really dig that cute sorceress apprentice look you have. It’s super adorable!”

I glared at Punchy. That insufferable blabbermouth! If I still had my magic I would cast a mute spell on her! Oh well, it wasn’t a ruse I was planning on keeping up for long. “I take it you haven't brought us here to watch you inhale meat, right?”

Punchy looked at me horrified. “Don't be rude to Lady Sylphid! She needs to eat like that to fuel her hot body!” Also what do ya mean what that?

I rolled my eyes, but Sylphid only laughed. “No, no, Witchie is right. You see, I came across a rather interesting **** today. Isn't that right my little pumpkin pie?” She addressed the girl next to her, who really didn't look like a fighter at all.

I feigned ignorance and gasped. “Oh my, who might this be?”

Sylphid gulped another large piece of meat down and said something that roughly sounded like. “Explain.”

The blonde girl gulped once. She seemed rather nervous. “I am...Patricia, a maid in the service of Mistress Ojou-sama. I participated in the tournament and lost to Mistress Sylphid.”

All according to plan.

“Cia wanted to bribe me.” Sylphid added, mouth grossly full with meat. “Obviously, that didn't work. I'm not here for the money. So I had some fun tickling her.” She poked the maid swiftly on the belly which made the later squirm. “And you don’t even know the best part!”

“Crimany! The horde of cross-grained outlaws here is a gosh darn shame.” Not wanting to be outdone by her disgusting master, the gunslinger loudly chewed some meat while speaking. “Back in my town, we wouldn't stand for this burro milk. No, siree! We’d string em up at the nearest barn, that we did. Reckon, should have never come to this city dohicky place.”

“Cor blimey, I agree with ya”, Punchy nodded. “But we’re not letting these damn dere wee sleekits walk all over us! We’re gonna pagger them boggin bampots!”

Great. Now there’s two of them.

“But I am glad you did!”, Sylphid interrupted their idiot talk. “I always wanted to have a cute little cowgirl for my harem. I will treat you very well, trust me, that goes for all of you, of course.”

“O-of course!”, Punchy hastily agreed. “I will serve ya with all me hearth, Lady Sylphid!”

“We are not her slaves!” I groaned. “Can we kindly get back to the matters at hand?”

“Oh sure! Matters. Hands.” Sylphid quenched her thirst with a glass of beer and then proceeded to pull the poor maid on her lap. “Cia here, was privy to a lot of information. This Ojou-sama chick apparently runs the city. And it doesn't look like she will give in to threats. Sounds like my kind of girl!”

“Y-yes”, Cia reluctantly admitted. “Even if I where to publicly speak out against her, it would matter little. Please don't make me do this!” The girl started to shake. Clearly Sylphid didn’t install the safety orders in that one.

Sylphid pulled the trembling maid into a hug. “Don't worry. You are safe now. I don't plan to go for the public route. I leave that one to our golden knight.”

“Ya can count that pansy out”, Fisti explained with a huff while I feigned surprise.

“Not the public route? My, Sylphid, whatever do you mean?”

The speed demon grinned at me. “Simple. Cia here told me where they most likely hold Handsome and his two snuggle bunnies captive. We are going to burst in there, kick some ass and save them!”

Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen.

N-No, I can’t start laughing now! But honestly, my genius sometimes scares even me. Naturally, I was aware that Sylphid had defeated Ojou-sama’s maid. And naturally I was capable of predicting her actions from that point onward down to the minute. All I needed was to have Punchy reveal Mari’s abduction.

Then I orchestrated a huge ruckus, with the fighters protesting. All so that their attention would be drawn away from my true objective.

Such, is the power of the great witch of miracles!

Unfortunately, I could not disclose that everyone present is merely a pawn in my intricate game of chess. Pawns do tend to take offense to that fact. Ah, how pitiful.

As such, I only allowed for a delicate giggle. “It is not too bad a plan. Thanks to goldie boy's and Dark Lords complaining, the enemy is focusing most attention on the public side of things. But even so, it will be hard to pull off. I personally won't be able to offer anything but emotional support. Punchy here is pretty weak as well.”

“I'm not weak!” The weakling complained like clockwork. “And my name is Fisti, ya stupid Riceball!”

Sylphid merely grinned. “Oh, Fisti is pretty good from what I saw. But we do have some more assistance. Actually she should show up any moment.”

And sure enough that was when the doorbell rang. The maid dutifully wiggled herself free from Sylphid and opened the door.

“If you excuse me.”

Yet another person entered the room and that one got most of them to inhale sharply. Not me though, after all I did my research.

“V-V-V VALKYRIE!”, Punchy almost got a heart attack.

The strongest Galmon as well as one of the strongest beings on the continent and one of top contenders of this years crown casually entered the room.

“Heeeeeey, Valk!” Sylphid greeted her cheerfully. “Now that everyone is here, shall we discuss the plan?”