I'm just an internet cafe owner

At the same time, Subaru Natsuki, having completed his roll, coordinated with Puck's magic.

On the other side, Rom, who had been knocked away and was being taken care of earlier, took out a sword from a corner. The short sword gleamed, and its extraordinary nature was evident from its appearance alone.

This is his prized possession, and the best weapon he has acquired over the years.

He seized the opportunity and tossed it to Subaru Natsuki. This weapon is called 'Lord Rom's Collection Short Sword', and its usage requirements are Strength 13 and Dexterity 13.

Battle Ash is a universal Battle Ash called 'Giant's Fury'. While in use, it greatly increases the user's Strength and Dexterity by 3. The increase is based on the weapon's requirement, and reduces Intelligence by 1 point.

If Subaru Natsuki were to start with any other class, he wouldn't be able to use this weapon, but coincidentally, he started with the Wanderer class. With this start, he has 14 Strength and 13 Dexterity, allowing him to use this weapon perfectly.

"what?"

Seeing Subaru Natsuki with the weapon, Elsa's heart pounded. Her intuition told her that this weapon possessed extraordinary power.

Subaru Natsuki had no time to think. He had already mastered the technique of changing equipment and using different equipment to fight while fighting the Grek soldiers. He first put his shield behind his back, and then slowly raised his weapon and shouted.

"Giant's Fury!"

His body was covered in a visible red aura of rage, and at the same time, Subaru Natsuki felt his 'intelligence' decrease. This wasn't just a simple numerical drop; it also affected his physical body.

But even if a 'Faded One' has an intelligence of 0, they can become the King of Elden and fight with Lani's Moonlight Greatsword, let alone Subaru Natsuki?

Some might not understand the concept of 3 Strength and 3 Dexterity. Simply put, activating Battle Ash directly increases attributes by 6 levels. Combined with its base 9 levels, this brings the total to 15 levels. 15 levels is enough for a typical Faded One to defeat a true Nightmare Master. As for the Intelligence debuff? Brainless warriors don't need Intelligence.

It's impossible for Subaru Natsuki to defeat Omen-sensei with his skills. In the game, he's a demigod with extremely rich combat experience, and even a clone of him is beyond Subaru's current ability to defeat.

However, facing one gut hunter is enough.

The idea was tricky, Elsa prepared.

They escaped. But just then, a man arrived at the gate.

Sword Saint, Reinhard van Astrea. An absolute powerhouse, possessing dozens of buffs, and capable of continuously increasing them as needed.

"It's been a while since I last saw you~ You really are different from others."

Reinhard smiled excitedly. He had been drawn to the sounds of Subaru Natsuki fighting with the thugs in the alley earlier. To avoid trouble, Subaru spoke first, saying, "We were just joking around."

Then they left. The thugs, not wanting to get arrested themselves, echoed his sentiments and scattered. But Reinhard sensed something special about Subaru Natsuki.

What attracted him wasn't entirely the fight between the thugs, but the aura emanating from Natsuki Subaru when he drew his weapon—the aura of a battle-hardened warrior.

He followed them and witnessed Subaru Natsuki's battle with the Bowel Hunter. It was getting exciting; how could he let the Bowel Hunter escape?

The situation is quite interesting now. Reinhard is blocking the only exit. Coincidentally, Subaru Natsuki, who has also obtained a weapon, is standing in front of Emilia. In a narrow encounter, the brave will prevail, and Erza knows she can't escape.

Having witnessed countless instances of the coldness and warmth of human relationships, Elsa knew what the swordsman before her was up to: he was nurturing talent, and she was the whetstone.

"Hahahaha, I never thought this day would come."

Elsa laughed, she hadn't expected to become a tool. But it was clear that she couldn't leave easily today; she either had to follow the Sword Saint's will and become Subaru Natsuki's 'sharpening stone,' or be killed by Reinhard.

She possesses unique survival skills, but against a being like the Sword Saint, her survival skills seem utterly ineffective.

So she had no choice but to choose Subaru Natsuki.

Chapter Seven: 'Execution' of the Bowel Hunter

She attacked Subaru Natsuki once again, and just like the first time, the small shield strangely blocked her attack path.

"clang!"

With a crisp sound, her hand was knocked away. But having learned from her previous experience, this attack was just a feint; the real attack came from the white blade in her left hand.

This knife can extend its attack range, thus achieving unexpected results.

It's near, it's near!

She was almost within range of the extended attack. Would the extended blade pierce Subaru's throat? A whetstone? Whatever! What she wanted to do was cripple the 'sword' that the sword saint had set his sights on.

Natsuki Subaru sensed the threat of death, and a look of terror involuntarily appeared on his face. This was a fear of death ingrained in human DNA; even after dying countless times in a game, a game is still just a game.

Seeing this expression, Elsa unconsciously smiled. Everyone only knew that she had a special fondness for intestines, but in reality, she was proficient in various assassination techniques, both frontal and rear-end. The reason she was unwilling to confront someone like Subaru Natsuki directly was simple.

Such experienced 'strongmen' would need to trade injury for life to kill them head-on, which is unnecessary unless there is a deep-seated grudge. But now, she wants to use her own injury to save Natsuki Subaru's life; she wants to disgust Reinhard.

Reinhard saw her actions and was considering whether to take action, but he stopped when he saw Subaru Natsuki raise his sword.

"This move, this move is the one the boss used... weapon parry!"

Feeling his life was threatened, Subaru Natsuki saw a revolving lantern of his life. This revolving lantern is what happens when a person faces death; their brain cells work at full speed to recall their entire life, quickly searching for a way to cope with the danger. Without a coping strategy, the revolving lantern of one's life won't play automatically.

The brain, a biological organ with computing power greater than any supercomputer in the world, has found a way to deal with crises.

He recalled that seemingly invincible technique.

"Watch closely, the instant he raises his knife to strike us, deflect and kneel down!"

Liu Yuan's voice, and the fleeting technique of the character on the screen, were instantly captured by Natsuki Subaru's brain. Natsuki Subaru felt as if his consciousness had vanished, while his body moved involuntarily.

Instead of using his right hand to severely injure the opponent, he chose to block the opponent's weapon.

At this moment, Elsa's smile became even brighter. If Subaru Natsuki had chosen to attack, her only fate would have been death. But now, not only would Subaru Natsuki die, she could also escape unscathed.

But just as the blade extended towards Subaru Natsuki's throat,

"clang!"

The crisp snapping sound startled Elsa. She tried to retreat, but to her horror, she found herself unable to move.

"Your Majesty!"

The two counterattacks completely threw her off balance. In a state of complete imbalance, even a god would have to kneel.

"Execute!" Natsuki Subaru expressionlessly plunged the blade in his hand into her chest, then stepped on her body to pull the weapon out. If Fujimaru Kaori were here, she would definitely recognize that this was a weapon parrying technique that Liu Yuan used when fighting with useless people.

More difficult, but also easier to use.

Subaru Natsuki's eyes gradually regained their light; in that instant, all he felt was pain. His body, his brain, everything ached as if it were on fire. His body was essentially that of an ordinary person; fighting Erza and achieving near-total victory was already a miracle for his body.

His body, especially his brain, wanted to rest, but before resting, Natsuki Subaru looked at Elsa's fallen figure and smiled.

"I...succeeded..."

At that moment, Liu Yuan's words came to mind. Even though he had only met the other person a few times, he thought of him at that moment.

His consciousness was fading; the game's abilities allowed him to forcibly use weapons. But a game is a game, and reality is reality. His physical exhaustion forced him to rest. His subconscious judged that this place was safe, so he decided to rest for a while.

Just before he fell into a deep sleep, he vaguely heard someone calling his name.

"That voice...it's her, isn't it? What's her name...Satina? That's not her real name, is it? That fluffy little guy seems to call her Emilia. Emilia, how nice..."

His consciousness was completely cut off.

Meanwhile, in Chaldea, there was still a week until the first Spirit Particle Transfer. During this time, the 48 chosen Masters were free to move around.

Reading, learning, and exchanging ideas.

Many of them, as Masters, are geniuses from mage families, while others are selected from among the common people based on their aptitude. No one knows the reason for this selection based on 'aptitude,' but precisely because of this, some mages with lineages are somewhat hostile towards commoners.

"Matthew, let's go have some fun!"

Fujimaru Kaori had given up on thinking about those messy things; money is money, so be it, since all food and drink at Chaldea is free anyway. To make up for her lost money, she decided to fleece Chaldea.

Okay, okay~

Matthew, who was being forcibly pulled along, smiled, and the two walked along chatting and laughing. They spotted a familiar face on the street: Fujimaru Ritsuka, a man with short black hair.

That's right, this person shares the same surname as Fujimaru Kaori. When they first joined Chaldea, everyone thought they were siblings. But one day, a certain 'big bitch' took a test out of curiosity and discovered that they weren't related at all; they just happened to share the same surname, and their given names almost overlapped as well.

Fujimaru Ritsuka walked listlessly and greeted Fujimaru Kaori when she saw her.

"Hi~"

Fujimaru Kaori, hands on hips: "What are you 'hey' about? How many times have I told you? You have to call me 'older sister'!"

"Okay, little sister."

Matthew, who was standing nearby, covered his mouth and laughed when he saw the two arguing.

This connection stemming from sharing the same surname made the two somewhat close, but today Fujimaru Kaori noticed something was amiss.

"Hey Ritsuka! Were you being bullied?"

"No."

Fujimaru Ritsuka subconsciously touched the wound on her neck and laughed, "It was just a friendly spar, an accidental injury."

"Let's have a friendly spar..."

Fujimaru Kaori understood something in an instant. She patted Fujimaru Ritsuka on the shoulder and said, "If it were a day ago, I could only comfort you, but now, hehehehe."

She made a groping motion and then produced a wooden stick out of thin air.

The wooden stick was so big that Matthew and Fujimaru Ritsuka were stunned.

"There's no rule that Masters can't use weapons in sparring, is there?"

Matthew subconsciously shook his head: "No..."

Fujimaru Ritsuka cautioned, "But that's against the rules...weapons without magic circuits cannot be used..."

Fujimaru Kaori laughed smugly: "Who said this doesn't have magic circuits? Watch this!"

A strange thing happened: they sensed the presence of a 'magic circuit' on the wooden stick. No, it wasn't a magic circuit; it just felt like one, but it wasn't.

Fujimaru Kaori patted Fujimaru Ritsuka on the shoulder: "This time, I'll help you get revenge."

Chapter 8: Fujimaru Kaori sparring with her Masters

Fujimaru Kaori and Fujimaru Ritsuka were just very lucky that their compatibility was found to be 100% during the adaptation test, and then they joined Chaldea in a daze.

To these magicians, they were all from humble backgrounds, and that was indeed the case. They hadn't inherited any magic circuits; they had only passed the assessment by chance. Of course, the person who recruited them received a large bonus, which they bought with a luxury car.

Where there are people, there will be comparisons and disputes. Even though Chaldea was established to protect humanity, and even though the Masters they found are all geniuses with the ability to summon multiple Heroic Spirits, the inevitable disputes still exist.

Compared to underhanded tactics, this open and aboveboard competition was all the more frustrating. Fujimaru Kaori was alright; she was carefree and ate and slept. Since she couldn't win anyway, she simply didn't hold a grudge.

Fujimaru Ritsuka was the same, but he had his own persistence, asking for advice every week and getting frustrated every week.

In the past, Fujimaru Kaori would have taken Matthew and Fujimaru Ritsuka to a restaurant for a nice meal, but this time…

"Today, I will avenge myself!"

In Fujimaru Kaori's eyes, Matthew and Fujimaru Ritsuka saw excitement and exhilaration.

"Did you learn any skills?"