Chapter 43

In the vast world of the internet, countless memes are born, and just as many fade away.

Yet, amidst the endless tide of vanishing memes, there is one beloved pastime that has steadfastly endured in various online communities.

[Who’s Better?]

This pastime was none other than the “Ranking Game.”

The subject of this game changed every time. Sometimes, it would be famous singers; other times, skilled pro gamers, and even abstract things like movies or video games would be ranked.

And of course, Silia Online was no exception.

The fact that the game was popular meant there were a lot of people playing it, which in turn meant many players would engage in this “ranking” pastime.

[So, who’s the best at fighting?]

Yuki’s the obvious favorite, right??

[Comments]

—Isn’t Yuki just high-level but not really that skilled?

┗ ??? What nonsense is this?

┗ Do you even know Yuki’s PvP win rate?

┗ I could beat everyone if I had a high level too.

Curiosity about who the strongest player was turned out to be pretty common.

Among these curious players, there were always some who thought differently.

[I’m not sure who fights the best, but]

Isn’t Joanie the strongest? She just calls on Canaria when she’s about to lose. Insane.

[Comments]

—Not a swordsman, but a summoner;

┗ Swords are just a “hobby” for her.

—Why is the summoned creature stronger than the summoner?

┗ Why is a can opener stronger than the owner?

┗ ???

—Go, Canaria! Tackle!

—Canaria’s still a baby, but she rips people apart…

Joanie, by stats or skill, wasn’t a contender for the top players list. Even Joanie’s fans acknowledged that. Joanie herself accepted that truth without dispute.

Thus, she didn’t often come up in conversations about powerful players.

However, the community’s attention suddenly turned toward something odd.

[But just how strong is Canaria, really?]

(Image of a dimensional creature seen from Joanie’s perspective.)

This was the dimensional creature from Joanie’s recent stream. Its size was comparable to a small house.

Sure, it’s big, but maybe it’s just large and weak?

(Image showing the level and health bar of the dimensional creature.)

It was a level 78-dimensional creature. As many of you know, most people struggle to fight monsters of the same level one-on-one. It’s even harder to fight creatures above your level.

Even the insane player Yuki struggles quite a bit when fighting monsters even slightly above her level.

Given that, you can imagine how strong this creature was.

(Gif of Canaria fighting the dimensional creature.)

But Canaria wiped it out without a scratch. She didn’t even seem tired afterward.

Sure, level isn’t always the definitive measure of strength, but it gives us a general idea.

So, considering Canaria destroyed a level 78 creature with ease, it means her level is likely much higher than that. Even if it isn’t, she’s at least strong enough to obliterate a creature of that caliber.

Back when players were raiding to farm Canaria, there wasn’t enough information to know her name or level. But now, things might be different.

***

[Based on limited data, it’s likely an Expert or even Master rank, but I can’t be sure without more information from watching other Masters fight. However, it’s uncertain, as there’s not enough data to confirm it for sure.] Sёarch* The nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

But, even if Kana is a Master, there’s still a problem. In Silia, the average age for someone to achieve the Master level is reportedly around their 60s. You might think it’s because of a lack of talent, but if you’re talentless, you wouldn’t even reach Master rank in the first place. Even among the most talented, legendary NPCs referred to as unparalleled geniuses, most only reached Master rank after turning 40.

So, if our cute and precious Kana is indeed a Master, it could only mean one of two things:

Either she’s an unbelievably prodigious and sickly girl who defied the heavens to achieve Master rank at a young age… or she’s an ancient sage who’s regained her youthful appearance after years of intense training.

[Comments]

—The conclusion is a bit questionable, huh?

—Sick? Yep, definitely sickly.

┗ Yeah, but that makes her even cuter, doesn’t it?

┗ We caught you, pervert!

—It was kind of obvious she was a Master ever since she started slicing through knights.

—So, you’re saying Kana is technically “legal” now, right???

┗ So, it’s okay to pet her and fawn over her???

┗ This guy is seriously dangerous;

┗ You might need about nine lives to even attempt it.

┗ Doesn’t matter. If I die, I’ll just come back alive~!

***

[After watching Joanie’s latest stream, I changed my class to a swordsman.]

(Kana dodging in midair.gif)

Honestly, how could I resist? I used to think watching swordsmen fight was frustrating, but after seeing Kana wield a sword, I switched immediately.

[Comments]

—What was your original class?

┗ Mage.

—Wait, aren’t you the guy who used to trash-talk swordsmen?

┗ Yeah, that’s me. So, now all the swordsmen avoid me in parties.

—Even the most toxic players are reformed by the sheer brilliance of Kana…

—That scene was legendary. I showed it to friends who don’t even play Silia Online, and they got so hyped that they downloaded the game right away.

┗ You’re quite the salesman, huh?

***

[Does it really matter whether she’s a Master or not?]

What’s important is that Kana is adorable. In that case, go watch Joanie’s stream where she’s teaching Kana to speak Arkish. Kana’s emotionless face paired with her awkward speech is irresistibly cute!

(Joanie’s stream link)

Hurry and check it out!

[Comments]

—Why are you the only one watching? Why are you the only one watching?

┗ I wanna see too! I wanna see too!

┗ I already gave you the link. Go watch it.

┗ I’m at work.

┗ Who’s holding a knife to your throat, forcing you to live a real life?

┗ Dammit;

— (Kana fan art appreciation comment)

***

***

“This one?”

“Apple.”

“Good job. So, what about this one?”

“Carriage.”

“You’re so smart, Kana! Then what’s this one?”

“Idiot.”

“…”

“Loser?”

“…No! If it’s not a person, say ‘human’! At the very least, say ‘Joanie’!”

Joanie made a pouty face at Kana’s response, pointing to herself.

After their battle with the Dimensional Creatures, Joanie hadn’t seen a single monster since.

It was as if all the dangers they were supposed to face during the escort mission had been crammed into those two days.

But it wasn’t just the monsters that had changed.

—

“It’s time for dinner.”

The merchants and mercenaries were bringing their meals to Kana and Joanie personally.

—

“Huh? This seems different from what everyone else is eating.”

“Oh, surely not. Everyone’s been given the same meal.”

—

Their food was much more luxurious than what the other merchants and mercenaries were eating.

And besides that, people were now openly giving them looks of reverence or subtly striking up conversations.

It was understandable why they treated Canaria that way.

After all, she was the one who killed an Ogre and a Dimensional Creature without a single scratch. Naturally, people would want to form connections with her.

‘But why me as well?’

Joanie thought to herself, but after a moment of reflection, she realized it wasn’t all that strange.

It was Canaria who had sorted things out.

And it was Joanie who had brought Canaria to the merchant guild in the first place.

On top of that, Joanie had been introducing Canaria as her younger sister to everyone.

Even if people didn’t believe that, the fact that they shared some kind of relationship couldn’t be ignored. So, it made sense that they couldn’t treat Joanie lightly, or so she speculated.

‘But that’s not really the important part.’

Improved treatment? Gratitude from the villagers?

Sure, those were nice.

But for Joanie, the most significant gain was something else entirely.

“Teach me Arkish.”

She never expected Canaria to make such a request.

At first, Joanie was confused, wondering if this was a dream. But once she realized it was reality, she was thrilled beyond measure.

On the surface, it seemed like a simple request to learn a language, but it wasn’t just that.

It was a small step forward, a gesture from Canaria towards Joanie.

From that moment on, whenever they had time, Joanie taught Arkish to Canaria.

On the first day of the lesson, Joanie asked her,

“Do you know any Arkish already?”

The most important part of teaching was to know the student’s level.

When Joanie asked, Canaria replied,

“Help me. Monster. Bastard. Die. Pain. Retreat. Brat. Aaahhh…”

“Wait, wait!”

Joanie hastily covered Canaria’s mouth as she spouted a string of ominous words.

‘And the last one isn’t even a word but a scream!’

Joanie recalled that Canaria had been a knight fighting on the battlefield.

People tend to learn bad words faster, and in a warzone, it’s unlikely anyone was exchanging kind words. So, it made sense that these were the words Canaria knew.

Realizing that Canaria’s Arkish knowledge was almost a blank slate, Joanie started teaching her the basics, like letters and simple words.

In truth, Joanie herself wasn’t very fluent in Arkish. She hadn’t formally learned the language either—it was just that the game system automatically translated her speech into Arkish.

So, in order to teach Canaria, Joanie had no choice but to study Arkish as well.

Now, on top of studying Granic, she had Arkish to tackle.

Her workload had doubled, but the thought that Canaria was relying on her made it all worthwhile.

“Canaria, you did that on purpose, didn’t you?!”

“?“

“Don’t play dumb!”

“Don’t know. Arkish.”

“…Ugh, you think you can get away with it just because you’re cute?”

If that’s what she thought…

…She was absolutely right.

Joanie clutched her chest as Canaria blinked her wide eyes, her pronunciation still awkward.

Even if she knew that Canaria was saying things like “idiot” and “noob” on purpose, seeing that adorable expression made any desire to scold her disappear.

“Those are bad words, so don’t use them from now on, okay?”

“Idiot?”

“Yes, that one.”

“Noob?”

“…That one too.”

Ahem!

As Joanie was giving Canaria her Arkish lesson, a coachman from the front of the tent cleared his throat, signaling his presence.

“What’s the matter?”

“We’re about to arrive in Liberi.”

“Wow, already?”

It was the announcement that marked the end of their long escort mission.

While she had enjoyed the time spent with Canaria, it had been exhausting, so the thought of finally being able to rest brought a smile to Joanie’s face.

No more bruises from the bumpy ride, no need to use the Drowsy Mode, no more sleeping in a capsule with the Night Watch Mode activated. Now, she could finally lie down in a soft bed…

“That’s it for today’s lesson!”

Filled with excitement, Joanie declared the end of the lesson.

Canaria, on the other hand, turned her gaze away from the now-busy Joanie and looked out the window.

In the distance, the Free Mercenary City of Liberi was coming into view.

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