Chapter 186: Last Resort (1)

Princess Tiana and I resumed our shooting range practice after returning from the terrace.

「Hyahhhhhhhhhhh! 」

Next to me, Princess Tiana was screaming oddly as she left multiple bullet holes in the target.

「Gyahhhhhhhhhhh! 」

I was also shooting while half-consciously screaming oddly as well…

…Ah, no more!

Our screams were similar, but there was a crucial difference between me and Princess Tiana. I had already shot a hundred times, but I hadn’t been able to hit the target with even one shot.

Princess Tiana stopped shooting and looked up at the clock on the wall.

「It’s getting late! I’m going now! You can practice as much as you want, Goddess! 」

Princess Tiana spoke while laughing and left me a box full of bullets. Ugh…I was grateful, but I was sure that she got annoyed because of my incompetence…right…?

After Princess Tiana left, I continued practicing with my gun alone in silence.

…I wanted to hit the target at least once!

However, even with half the bullets in the box, I still couldn’t even graze the target. I got tired and put the gun down on the table in front of me with a big sigh.

「I can’t do this anymore…」

I turned around with tears in my eyes, wanting to go back to my room. But then…I saw that Seiya was standing behind me!

「Hyahh!? You startled me!! 」

「If you can’t do it after trying for a while, then you give up right away…that’s the thinking of a typical loser. Or maybe it’s because you’re a useless goddess. 」

「Shut up! I mean, why did you scare me! Why didn’t you just tell me you were here! 」

I wondered how long he had been watching me. I felt so embarrassed when I thought that Seiya had been staring at me as I kept missing the target no matter how many times I shoot.

I spoke as my face was getting hot.

「I…I’m not doing this to be useful during battle! This is just a game! By the way, before you came, you said you were Ready Perfectly!! It means you’re ready to fight Leon, if necessary, right?! 」

I was actually practicing because I wanted to be useful, but I was embarrassed about my awful results, so I just said those lies. Seiya sighed and spoke in a rare, noble manner.

「When I said I was Ready Perfectly, I was thinking about the journey to Tarmine and the troubles at Tarmine Castle. It wasn’t about the fight against Leon. 」

「What? Is that so? 」

「Of course, I did everything I could in the Underworld while considering the fight against Leon. I thought about various possibilities and tried my best. But even so…」

Seiya was silent for a moment, then he frowned and continued talking.

「Princess Tiana upsets me. Something similar may happen in the fight against Leon. 」

「Ah…do you mean, “Princess Tiana will upset me in the fight against Leon”? 」

「That’s not what I meant. This is a world with a Salvation Difficulty Rate of SS+. Duke Leon is expected to be a tougher opponent than the Grand Leon of the past. Just as Princess Tiana’s presence was unexpected, there’s a possibility that Leon will do something that exceeds my expectations. 」

The upsetting feelings caused by Princess Tiana did exceed Seiya’s expectations…Well, Seiya seemed to think that Leon’s attack would also exceed his expectations.

Suddenly, Seiya cleared his throat.

「Well…Princess Tiana’s presence was only slightly, very slightly unexpected. 」

「Then, why were you extremely upset! 」

「I was not extremely upset. Anyways, I’ve changed my mind a bit. You should keep practicing with your gun. 」

Huh?! What a surprise!! He told me before that I didn’t have to practice!! Then, this meant…!!

「So this time, I’m going to be part of the fighting force, is that it!? 」

I said happily, but Seiya looked at me as if he was looking at something trivial.

「Leon will not expect that such an obviously useless goddess like you will open fire against him. So that’s why you can keep practicing. 」

「Why did you say it so harshly!! 」

I didn’t feel so happy anymore. And…

…Hey, Princess Tiana. I knew this person only had two points of romantic feelings towards me…I could understand it clearly even if I didn’t activate the love appraisal skill…

「Anyway, your gun is a last resort…no, it’s the very last resort. I don’t want to use it, but it’s a last resort measure in our defense against Leon. Practice with that in mind. Got it? 」

「I…I got it! 」

It…It…It made me nervous in a different way when he said it like that! Did that mean it would be over if I missed a shot…?

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