043 Battle Universe

The "Calamity" was a historical catastrophe that went down over three hundred years ago.

The victims numbered in the hundreds of thousands, and those missing were even more numerous. Naturally, the ones responsible for the atrocity were the members of the Demon Race, led by the Demon King.

In most works of fiction, a Demon King usually just sat on a throne in some dark castle, indulging in sloth while nobody really knew what he was up to. But in Noblesse Oblige, things were different.

The Demon Race lived in a different dimension, another world entirely, and they would suddenly manifest in our world without warning. As for why they attacked humans, the reason wasn't known at this point in the story.

However, I knew. They wanted young, talented humans.

Their uses for us were varied—bait, slaves, research materials, or even just playthings. Depending on the individual demon, some even grew stronger by consuming humans. Their tastes and preferences were as diverse as they were twisted.

But the Demon King was an anomaly. He was born as the strongest being in existence and desired nothing. He killed, captured, and preyed upon us for one reason and one reason only: it was "fun."

This whole setup was basically the prologue to Noblesse Oblige. The main story followed us players as we fought to oppose that Demon King.

If you traced the history back to the beginning, the Noblesse Magic Academy and the academies of other nations were all established in the wake of the Calamity. Their original purpose was to nurture talented individuals to ensure such a tragedy never happened again. Over time, however, that sentiment weathered away, and each Academy’s ideology began to shift.

The thing I viewed as a total death flag was the second Calamity—the incident that was destined to occur in the near future. It was a massive pain in the ass because nobody knew exactly when it would trigger. In short, it was total RNG.

It was a shitty event that started without warning, and if I started counting the other headaches involved, I’d be here all day. In terms of game progression, it was the first real wall. Repelling the Demon Race required a massive amount of skill and a whole lot of luck.

In the original game, it probably took me over a week of real time to clear this part. I couldn’t even remember how many times I’d seen the "Game Over" screen. And apparently, that was considered fast. There were heaps of players who couldn't get past this event and were forced to quit the game entirely.

And now, I had to clear it in one go. This was Hard Mode with no continues. Or rather, was I supposed to call this a "Brutal Game turned Ultra-Hard Mode"?

Still, I wasn't going to give up. I was going to [clear] this, no matter what.

---

"...A fruit shop popular in the Royal Capital?"

I was currently at the Ostrava Royal Library, a five-hour carriage ride from the Fanscent Territory. I had already scoured every book in the mansion’s archives, but there were precious few documents regarding the Demon Race.

Even with my meta-knowledge, I didn't remember every little detail. There were mountains of settings I didn't know. This world was a game, yes, but it was also my reality. I’d come here thinking there might be some hidden lore I had overlooked.

If I could have just one wish granted, I’d ask for the ‘Noblesse Oblige Complete Strategy Guide.’ Actually, wait... if I had that, I probably should’ve asked to be someone other than Weiss.

If I could have chosen... it would have to be him.

Anyway.

"...Melomelon Cream is popular?"

I had been trying to research the Demon Race, but a completely unrelated book had been misplaced on the history shelves. It was a guide to local fruits.

"Hoh. Beelan Street, huh? That's close by..."

Apparently, a lot of new shops had been opening lately. It was all information that hadn't existed back when I played the game. Is this another world-line alteration?

...Dammit, I couldn't stop myself from turning the pages.

"The eldest son of House Fanscent is surprisingly girlish."

"Ah?"

Startled by the sudden voice, I looked up to see a woman wearing glasses standing before me.

I knew she’d be here, but seriously? Is she really following the game script this closely?

I had seen her around the Academy a few times, but this was the first time we’d ever had a proper conversation. She had slender limbs and long black hair. She wasn’t particularly tall, but she had a fantastic figure.

"...Fruit and sweets provide glucose. I use my brain a lot, so I’m usually running low on sugar," I blurted out.

"I see. Well, I like them too."

"I doubt I use mine as much as you, though—Cecil Antwerp."

"Oh my. It’s an honor to be recognized by the top-ranking underclassman, Fansent-kun."

"Hah. Don't give me that."

This was the woman who had served as Duke’s partner during the Tag Tournament. She was an underclassman like me, and her magic power and combat techniques weren't anything special. In fact, they were below average.

But the girl was a freak of nature. She held the top spot in every written exam. Wasn't her IQ supposed to be over 200? In the original game, she acted as Allen’s strategist during the final act, but she wasn't the type to become an [ally] just because you asked nicely.

In Noblesse Oblige, there were specific branching points where you had to manually secure certain characters to join your party. Sometimes recruiting one person meant losing another. I hadn't quite grasped all the flags for her yet.

Recruiting her was easily SS-class in terms of difficulty. Was it on par with beating Eva Avery in a fight? I wasn't even sure.

"So, what are you doing?" she asked.

"Researching. What else do people do in a library?"

"I suppose so. That was a trivial question."

"Then I’ll ask you the same. What are you doing here?"

"Killing time, I suppose. I’ve already read almost every book in the Ostrava Royal Library, so now I’m just starting my second lap."

If anyone else had said that, I would have taken it as a joke, but Cecil was being dead serious. The collection here easily exceeded a hundred thousand volumes. I had no doubt she had memorized every single one of them.

Naturally, that included information on the past [Calamity] and the Demon Race.

"So, Cecil, why did you call out to me?"

"No particular reason. I just came to pick up a book and thought I saw someone unusual."

"I see."

The shelf I was looking at was for history. This was likely what she was looking for. I pulled a volume from the shelf and handed it to her.

"Here."

She accepted it, her expression flickering with a hint of surprise. "...How did you know?"

"You're a celebrity. Of course I’d know."

Geniuses like her tended to be weirdly dense when it came to themselves. I guess that was just the trope.

"I see."

"Hah. I can't tell if you're joking or not."

"Aren't you more famous than I am, Fansent-kun?"

"Yeah, but for all the wrong reasons."

That seemed to hit her funny bone for some reason, and she let out a little giggle. As far as first contacts went, this was going great.

"Hey, you want to go a round? I was just getting bored."

"...You can play?"

"I'm stronger than I look. Though I don't know if I can match you."

"Hmm? Why not."

She maintained a stoic expression, but I knew she was secretly thrilled. The Royal Library didn't just house books; it had a gaming area too. They had everything from house-playing sets for kids to complex card games for adults.

As we moved to the third floor, I watched her from behind and noticed her step had become quite light. She had a total poker face, but her heart was clearly dancing.

On the other hand, I was a nervous wreck.

I had wanted this opportunity so badly I could taste it. It was unexpected for Cecil to be the one to initiate the conversation, but I had been praying to find her here. If she hadn't shown up, I’d planned to haunt this library for days. Finding her on day one was a huge stroke of luck.

I had to win.

The second Calamity—the future incident—was going to be brutally difficult. And normally, Cecil wouldn't be there. I couldn't remember the exact reason—maybe she went back to her family home, or was away on business, or maybe she just chose not to fight. She wasn't cold-hearted, but she generally lacked interest in others.

I needed to find a way to pull her into my circle so we could [clear] the Calamity. Cecil was worth so much to me that I was willing to tell her everything if that’s what it took. On the game’s old message boards, I’d seen her compared to legendary strategists like Zhuge Liang or Takenaka Hanbei. Having her in the endgame changed the difficulty of the game entirely.

If there was even a chance I could [get] her as an ally this early, I had to take it.

For the sake of today—no, ever since I arrived in this world—I had been practicing Battle Universe relentlessly with Zebis. Even back in my previous life, I had played the mini-game until my hands cramped.

We sat down at a table on the veranda where the sunlight was streaming through the window. It was warm and pleasantly comfortable. However, my heart was burning with a fire that was anything but peaceful.

I had to win. I had to earn her respect. That was the only way to recruit the genius, Cecil Antwerp.

With practiced movements, she opened the box and began taking out the [pieces] one by one. They were exquisite carvings of historical figures striking various poses. Each had a specific [role] and was equipped with different weapons and armor.

Beside Cecil sat the book I had handed her earlier: The History of Battle Universe.

The game was like a hybrid of chess, shogi, and go. As she quietly lined up her pieces, the corners of her mouth lifted just a fraction. She was definitely enjoying this.

Cecil was the strongest Battle Universe player in the world. It was a mini-game within Noblesse Oblige, but it was so well-designed that it could have been a million-seller as a standalone title. It was a game for everyone—men, women, young, and old.

Countless players had challenged her in the game just to recruit her. And every single one of them had eventually given up. I’d heard stories of people who played for over a thousand hours and still couldn't beat her. Even I had never managed to win in my original playthrough.

But this time was different. I wasn't sitting here just to try; I was sitting here to win. I had done the work to back it up.

"Any handicap pieces?" she asked.

"No, an even match—Tagaisen—is fine. But in exchange, if I win, you have to do one thing I ask."

"...Are you being serious?"

"Yeah. I’m saying this to the World Champion, Cecil."

"Hehe... how interesting. But what’s in it for me if I win?"

"You can decide that for yourself."

"Hmm. A fair deal. I’ll accept those terms."

Good. I’ve got her word. Normally, there was no way she would agree to something like that. But Cecil was different. She possessed an overwhelming amount of confidence and pride. Now, all I had to do was win.

Of course, that was the hardest part.

"I’ll take the second move," she offered.

"Then I’ll take the advantage."

In this game, the first player had a slight edge. To her, this was just a game. To me, this was a battle I was staking my life on.

I will win. And Cecil, I'm going to make you my ally. But I’m going to do it in a fair and square fight.

"Well then, Fansent-kun. I look forward to our match."

"Ah, yes. Cecil-san, I look forward to it as well."

I didn't forget to bow before we started. That was the first official rule of Battle Universe.