Chapter 589: She's Too Much of a Cheat

Chronois-san and Life-san’s song finally ended…… and how should I describe it? Bluntly speaking, it was “hell”.

Both Chronois-san and Life-san have very beautiful voices. Chronois-san has a dignified voice, while Life-san has a gentle and soft voice…… However, they aren’t able to utilize the greatness of their voices in the slightest.

If I had to describe it, it’s as if Chronois-san’s dissonance clashed with Life-san’s dissonance, creating a mysterious chemical reaction and transforming it into “something even more repulsive”…… It was the first time in my life that I felt like throwing up when I heard a song…… If it’s possible though, this is something I didn’t want to experience for the rest of my life.

Why? How did it become this tragic…… Why is it that, after such a tragic performance, do Chronois-san and Life-san “have an expression on their faces brimming with a sense of accomplishment”……

It’s just a guess but…… Do these two not realize how terrible their singing was? Indeed, as these two have the position of being Supreme Gods, I don’t think there would be people who would frankly tell how bad they are on their faces……

“……That’s one heck of a song. It makes it sound like a pig’s squeal is far more artistic than it.”

[ [ ……Eh? ] ]

There’s one…… Someone who can say such a thing without hesitation…… Also, I’m kind of scared as to why Chronois-san and Life-san looked seriously surprised with what Alice said.

Ahh, perhaps, both of them were confident in their singing. Then again, I guess this isn’t just some prank of Shiro-san huh?

“Oya? Here is a message from the Head of the God Realm, the God of Creation, Shallow Vernal-sama. “By my name, from tomorrow forward, I forbid God of Time and Space and God of Life from performing songs for others.”…… is her message.”

[ [ Shallow Vernal-sama!? ] ]

A ban has been issued in the name of the God of Creation!? I wonder if the reason she said “from tomorrow forward” is just in case the two of them somehow won in this round? No, I don’t think there’s anyone who sings worse than these two……

“Well then, now that we’ve got the punchline out of the way, let’s move on to the next team. Hey, Fate-san, please remove your earplugs already.”

“……It’s amazing. It would have been more dramatic if people started collapsing at this Karaoke Battle, as if a mass food poisoning just happened.”

“……That would have been a terrible sight to see. Now then, let’s get back on track. From the blue corner…… The only mother and daughter pair in this event! It’s a team of Duchess Albert’s maid, Lunamaria-san and the former top-ranked adventurer, she who is known as the “Bloody Princess”, Noir-san!”

Ohh, the next pair is Luna-san and Noir-san huh…… wait, arehh? It kind of feels like the light in Luna-san’s eyes disappeared…… It’s kind of like she had just escaped hell, but she was thrown into the pit immediately afterward.

I wonder why? Could it be that there is something related to their pairing?

“Let’s immediately hear them sing! Their song’s title is “Lovingly ☆ Lovely ~☆ Vampire”!”

[ ! ? ]

I think I heard the name of a song that’s giving me a headache right now. I mean, isn’t lovingly and lovely kind of overlapping with each other?

(T/N: lovingly is in hiragana, while lovely is katakana (those english words written with japanese characters)

Feeling a different kind of shock, I turn my attention to the two people singing on the stage…… What a tragic scene, this is.

No, the singing itself is good. It’s far better than the duo from earlier. However, ummm, this song…… It’s just like the opening song of those children cartoons they show on Sundays…… It’s a song with a “happy~ happy~” feeling to it.

Noir-san has a body as petite as a child, so she doesn’t look out of place singing a song like this. However, regarding Luna-san…… How should I say this…… It was a bit too spicy for my eyes.

The sight of Luna-san desperately squeezing out her voice in the midst of her dreadnought-class embarrassment, as if she was about to start crying, even brought tears to my eyes.

Unnn. I see, that’s why she appeared with such a tragic look on her face. I’m pretty sure Noir-san was the one who chose this song…… And Luna-san, unable to say no to her mother, had to sing this song with Noir-san.

What a tragic battle, this is. On one hand, a duo so tone-deaf that the word dissonance seemed mild to describe them. On the other hand, a duo performing something that I don’t think is something that should be seen by others…… In a sense, this could even be called a mudslinging match.

The song ended, and it was time to judge. I looked at the flags in my hand, before I glanced at Luna-san on the stage.

Noticing my gaze, she shook her half-crying her face as fast as she could. I could feel the thoughts “I’m begging you, please don’t let me win” being conveyed through her gaze.

“……The winner is Blue team! The duo of Lunamaria-san and Noir-san wins!!! Incidentally, since everyone knows the reason for their cause of defeat, I won’t ask the reason for Kaito-san’s decision this time.”

……I’m sorry, Luna-san. As expected, there’s no way I could allow Luna-san’s team to lose here. Putting aside if it was just me who was listening, I can’t let the audience hear Chronois-san and Life-san’s horrifying voices again.

Apologizing in my heart to Luna-san, who collapsed with a look of despair on her face, I decided to get my mind back on track and waited for the next match.

If it’s possible though, I’d like to see a high-level singing battle again, not a sad one like this……

“Now then, let’s start the third round! From the red corner…… She’s come! The great big shot! Not many people have even heard her voice, and of course, no one has ever seen her sing before! The God of Creation, Shallow Vernal-sama! And her partner is someone who also seldomly sings, but her occasional singing is immensely popular to the public! Our very own Underworld King! Kuromueina-san!”

“This is…… a really powerful duo, isn’t it? Underworld King is famous for very popular songs that she made a hundred year ago like “A Small Story”, and of course, Shallow Vernal-sama’s singing skills is the pinnacle of perfection, so this duo is a top candidate to win.”

“Incidentally, I was the one who wrote those songs lyrics!”

“That is…… something I didn’t know. Shall-tan, how many names did you have?”

“I stopped counting after it reached over 1000.”

A Small Story? Where have I heard that before…… Ahh, I remembered now. That’s the song Illness-san sung before, didn’t she? That was Kuro’s song huh……

Also, Alice…… It’s you again huh. She’s made too many names for herself, scattered in different fields, and I’m pretty sure he did it to make money too. If there are patents here in this world, it wouldn’t be strange if there would be copyrights too……

Even so, the almost omnipotent Shiro-san and the famous singer Kuro…… They really may be contenders for the championship.

Quietly preparing with majestic movements, Shiro-san and Kuro began to sing———- Whoa!?

Eh? No, they’re too skillful. I don’t know if it’s the music or not, nor should I describe it as being highly artistic or not, but it was really amazing. Especially Shiro-san. Her voice was so overwhelming that it seemed as if it was coming directly from her heart. She wasn’t singing a ballad, but I feel tears dripping down my eyes.

I can’t find the words to describe it. Shiro-san was just singing, but her presence was so strong that I couldn’t take my eyes off her even for a moment.

Before I knew it, the song was over in a flash, and silence fell over the venue. After a short pause, the audience broke into cheers and applause.

“This is…… outrageous. This is indeed the voice of God, making me feel like I’m being shown the difference in quality of voice.”

“As expected of Shallow Vernal-sama. I think we could just declare this event as Shallow Vernal-sama’s win, isn’t it?”

Even Alice couldn’t seem to hide her surprise at Shiro’s singing voice. Her voice really is just like she’s on a different level…… This must be a lot of pressure for the opposing duo……

“……Wait, I’m sorry about that. This may sound a bit pitiful, but let;s have the Blue-team sing as well. The neighborhood’s kind doctor, the nun experienced in singing sacred hymns! Vier-san!  As for her partner, ummm, can you sing with that armor on? It’s a magic armor, so wouldn’t it interfere with her voice…… Anyway, this is her partner, Neun-san!”

[……Neun, this is impossible. We can’t win here.]

[……The criteria for winning isn’t just singing ability, so our chance of victory isn’t zero.]

Confronting Shiro-san and Kuro’s team is Dr. Vier and Neun-san’s team…… But as expected, after hearing that song, I feel like their song would be lacking.

The judging criteria is the one I like the best, so it’s certainly not just about singing ability. However, I don’t think a half-hearted song can surpass the previous song’s impact.

As I was thinking about this, I noticed that the instruments that Alice’s band was holding changed. Koto and shamisens? Could it be that they’re singing a Japanese song?

(T/N: Koto, the Japanese equivalent of a zither.)

(T/N: Shamisen, a three-stringed guitar)

This might be interesting then. If it’s something like a Japanese folk song, the tune would be unique and would be something I’m familiar with.

Then, as if it’s the most normal thing in the world, Alice’s idiot group played their instruments and the song began…… but for some reason, Dr. Vier seemed to be panicking.

[Eh? What is this? What the heck is this song!? Hey, Neun! I told you to choose a famous song! Why the heck is a song I’ve never heard before being played from an instrument I’ve never seen before being played here!?]

[……T- This is a famous song though……]

[Isn’t this a song famous in Neun’s world!? Ahh, geez, I shouldn’t have let you choose the song!!!]

……Nope, this is no good. Putting aside if they’re great singers, Neun-san was the only one who could sing this song. Indeed, this song…… I don’t remember where it was, but I remember hearing this at a summer festival or some other festival I went to.

I guess it really was famous in its own right, but it’s only in Japan. It’s a song that Dr. Vier, who was born and raised in this world, wouldn’t understand at all.

In the end, the song ended with only Neun-san singing. I just quietly raised the red flag.

“……It would have been a great song selection, but you should make sure that your partner also knows about this song.”

“Was it a song from Kai-chan’s world? In that sense, I guess they really did make a good song choice…… Incidentally, can Shall-tan sing that?”

“Easy peasy lemon squeezy.”

“……Shall-tan’s really amazing~~”

When Alice told her that she could also sing Japanese folk songs, Fate-san looked a little dumbfounded, but she didn’t seem to bother thinking about it too much and ended that conversation quickly.

“……Now then, let’s get back on track and move on to the next round! From the red corner…… I’ve never heard her sing before, so I don’t know how skillful she is. Her image color is more like blue, but this time, she’s on the red team! The Death King, Isis-san! And she who is famous for how she considers singing as conversing with nature! When one thinks of singing, there is no way that she, the Head of the Spirits is not good at it! The World King, Lillywood-san!”

“Hmmm, I don’t know about Death King…… but World King is really great at singing, isn’t she?”

“Yes, the Spirits has been performing beautiful songs every year at the Festival of Heroes. And of course, their leader has the ability deserving of being their top. This would definitely be a song we could look forward to!”

Next up was the best friends duo, Isis-san and Lillywood-san. As she walked up to the stage, Isis-san glanced at me and gave me a small bashful smile. She’s so cute.

Dear Mom, Dad————— The Karaoke Battle proceeded with various ups and downs. Chronois-san and Life-san’s singing was indeed shocking, but the most surprising one would have to be Shiro-san. That person, seriously———— she’s too much of a cheat.

T/N: No important afterword here. I’ll post this early to make it the usual 2 chapters a day.

Also, for those following the official releases, Volume 11 of YuuShou’s light novel is coming out on May 19.

And Volume 4 of the manga is coming out on April 26.