There were so many things I wanted to say and argue about.
Like how even though the holy sword ignored defense and resistance, being a tank by nature meant I lacked additional damage skills, so my DPS against bosses was starting to fall off.
Or how I wished I could use these "fragments" they mentioned to gain even a fraction of Roland''s genius swordsmanship.
Or questioning what kind of boss monster would take defense-piercing damage, then cowardly flee into their fortress and lock the door - what kind of character design was that?
As a gamer experiencing meta changes firsthand, I wanted to discuss it, but Han Se-ah still firmly believed I was an NPC. So I had to keep these thoughts bottled up inside...
''What now...?''
Seeing the knights approaching proudly with their magnificent banners held high in the distance, the words that rose to my throat dropped back into my stomach from sheer absurdity.
It was like being furious about Manager Kim''s lecture at work, then encountering a naked madman urinating on the main street while heading home. Would you still care about what Manager Kim said when there''s a lunatic right in front of you?
When something too ridiculous happens, previous concerns become trivial in comparison. Why would a noble''s carriage come to a boss monster''s fortress, rather than the base camp at the gate?
''Imperial Army, and the Imperial Guard at that? As in the personal guard?''
Seeing the commander beside me trembling like a mouse before a cat at the sight of those tall banners, the elaborate insignia must be Imperial, and the flag beside it bore the familiar Goddess Faith symbol.
The black-armored knights carried both the Goddess Faith symbol and Imperial banner high, as the continent''s Emperor also claimed to be chosen by the Goddess. While the Heavenly King''s armor grotesquely depicted human muscles, these knights'' armor was magnificently designed to set men''s hearts racing.@@@@
Full plate armor in pure black that showed off sleek, gentle feminine curves with a narrow waist. Black from head to toe, with gold decorations on parts like the visor and gauntlets.
They approached so openly and proudly, as if this wasn''t the front of a boss monster''s fortress but some city square.
"My word, what is this?"
"Hm? Why so surprised, brother?"
"Shut up and bow, even if you''re Kingdom adventurers, don''t you recognize them?!"
The trainee commanders frantically adjusted their clothes and tried to control their hired mercenaries and adventurers who had gathered in surprise. The adventurers and mercenaries moved obediently according to the commanders'' fuss, apparently experienced in dealing with important people.
And such movement naturally piqued Han Se-ah''s curiosity. As a streamer, she couldn''t stay still when something new appeared like an event.
She immediately turned her camera toward the carriage receiving strict escort behind the banner-bearing knights. Seeing four massive black horses with gleaming muscular coats pulling it, this must indeed be someone important.
"Wow... what''s this? Those horses look almost like floor 50 monsters. Just one horse must be worth more than most adventurers."
-The horse looks better looking than me lololol
Despite her cute appearance, she bore the fearsome title of 6★ Imperial Empress.
Born 6★ ''Great Empress'' Charlotte
Looking at it now, all three natural 6★s including myself were blonde - ''Paladin'' Roland, ''White Feather Shield'' Bradamante, and ''Great Empress'' Charlotte.
And these three were clearly modeled after the story of France''s Twelve Paladins. Some briefly patriotic French viewers spammed the chat with French flags and baguette icons in revolutionary spirit before being mercilessly purged by the AI.
As Han Se-ah and I stared blankly at the chat, dumbfounded by the sudden appearance of another natural 6★, she walked steadily toward us.
While Princess Bradamante was an elegant, dignified woman, Empress Charlotte was a girl with lazy yet playful eyes. Comparing her to a well-mannered golden retriever or satisfied cheese cat would probably be insulting both the Imperial and Royal families.
"Ah, Your Imperial--"
"Enough. I have no desire for formality from the hero party carrying out the Goddess''s will."
No wonder all the Imperial Guard wore feminine armor - they must be the Empress''s female knight order. The viewers would love that. As I was lost in such thoughts, the Empress approached naturally as Irene went to greet her.
True to her playful, free-spirited image, she seemed to dislike ceremony, lazily waving her wrist before striding up to examine us - specifically me and Han Se-ah - like zoo animals.
"Um, hey... how are we supposed to act before an empress? I mean, empress or emperor aside... this really isn''t helping!"
-What do you expect, average players like us crawl before viscounts and can''t even meet counts, let alone emperors lololololololol
-Emperor empress whatever, we haven''t even seen the princess you noob lololololololol
-If we knew that would we be watching streams instead of cutting off Heavenly Kings'' heads lololol
-Asking chat about palace etiquette is like asking dating advice on 2chan
-But it''s funny how the princess is prim and proper while the empress is so casual, nice twist
Han Se-ah trembled under that blatant gaze. Even a streaming genius like her found it hard to be shameless before the Imperial Empress.
Finding even Han Se-ah''s nervousness amusing, the Empress raised her lips slightly and signaled her knights. Suddenly a tea table appeared on the plains. At least they didn''t insist on black for the tea set - a tea party suddenly materialized in front of fortress walls that were a battlefield five minutes ago.
"So rather than tedious formalities, I''d like to hear what exactly is happening here. A hero''s tale of the tower - how fascinating."
"Ah, y-yes..."
Even Han Se-ah became docile before such a straightforward important person.