01x24 - Perfect Replicas

[bunniefuu]

No wonder the Ruins of the King's Tomb have never been conquered.

I wasn't expecting to encounter these here.

Denken, can we deal with that, too?

The one thing I can say is that if this weren't a test,

I would've shattered my bottle a long time ago.

You're there like the wind

Closing your eyes at sunset

I wonder what's on your mind

FRIEREN: BEYOND JOURNEY'S END

With your eyelids open

Your eyes shone like glass

It faintly smelled like a sunny day

Clear up the sky, let flowers bloom

Bloom and blame it on the sunny sky

Even the rain, when it stops

Will make you shine in the sunlight

Calm the stirring sounds in my heart

We go like the sunny wind

Go on and fly over that cloud

Further and further away

EPISODE : PERFECT REPLICAS

We call the lord of the dungeon "Spiegel the Water-Mirror Demon."

It is a monster from a mythical era that appears in Ewig the Sage's heroic tales.

We believe the Spiegel reads the memories of those who enter the dungeon

and creates perfect replicas of its targets.

There are similar monsters in the modern era such as the Einsam,

but the Spiegel's perfect replicas have physical substance

and copy the target's abilities, mana, and skills.

It is the reason the Ruins of the King's Tomb remain unconquered to this day.

Why did Sense choose this dungeon for her test?

A person is evenly matched against their copy.

Defeating them without suffering casualties

requires cool-headed self-analysis and teamwork.

It's exactly the kind of test a pacifist like her would put together.

This isn't good.

We should retreat.

Denken!

Now then, what are we going to do about this?

It's a dead end.

We're cornered.

Four-eyes, could I get your opinion as a cloning magic specialist?

I told you, my name is Land.

But ask away.

How perfect a copy of me do you think that replica is?

Übel, you're chatty even during combat, aren't you?

It's like you'd die if you stopped talking.

You've been watching me closely.

Yeah, that's true. I'd probably die.

And yet it's so quiet.

Does that mean it hasn't copied my memories or personality?

No, it's probably just incapable of speaking.

During the initial att*ck, it swiped my escape golem bottle.

I see. That is what I would do.

It knows about us, too.

It's not attacking despite cornering us because it's wary of your Sorganeil.

Either that, or it's enjoying tormenting us.

That's not funny.

You're bleeding a lot.

You know, you won't last long like this.

You're right.

Can I ask you one last question?

Are you the real one?

Who knows?

Uh-huh.

Use my bottle.

But you need that to survive.

Oh, yeah?

In that case, wait here, four-eyes.

I'm going to get your bottle back.

Hey, wait—

I expected it to close the gap.

I need to see its entire body in order to cast Sorganeil.

Whoever miscalculates the distance first will lose this battle.

If we're evenly matched, then who wins will come down to luck.

I've always been unlucky, so I don't like luck-based contests.

So I have no desire to fight myself.

You must really want to die.

My luck always sucks.

That's why I didn't want to do this.

But...

It looks like your luck was worse.

You were quicker than I expected, four-eyes.

Huh. So the bottle was fake, too.

Übel, you knew that it was a clone of me that was dying.

Why did you rush to your death?

Because I knew you'd come for me.

Do I seem that kind to you?

No, not at all. Not that it matters.

You didn't accept my bottle.

You don't want anyone to die because of you, right?

So I created a situation where my death would be your fault.

Thanks, four-eyes.

I think I learned something else about you.

I see. Good for you.

Are you able to empathize with me yet?

It'll take a little longer.

I think we're pretty close to the bottom.

Ms. Frieren, there are stairs over there.

Fern, let me see the map.

I believe we've fully explored this floor.

There's a hidden room behind this wall.

There's probably treasure there.

I've got a feeling there's a rare grimoire hidden inside.

But we didn't come across anything that looked like an entrance.

You're right.

But based on the structure, I'm certain there's a room here.

Ms. Frieren, this is incredible.

It depicts the achievements of the king buried here.

I've never seen such a well-preserved mural of the Unified Dynasty era.

This is a valuable discovery.

It's magnificent.

Our progress has been unnaturally smooth.

Are we really going to pass without incident?

Maybe.

What are you all doing here?

Structurally speaking, the bottom of this labyrinth should be beyond this hall.

And?

It's been half a day since that thing took up position there.

Huh. This is getting interesting.

Now this is how conquering a dungeon should be.

A perfect replica, huh?

That thing does seem to match my strength.

We can't reach the bottom without doing something about that replica.

Any ideas?

Well, if that's a perfect recreation of me, then its weaknesses

should be the same as the flesh-and-blood version.

Either restraint magic or hypnosis magic are best for defeating a stronger mage.

I'm resistant to both, though.

But it may create a slight opening.

That would be enough for you to defeat it.

Methode.

You're good at that kind of thing.

I wouldn't say I'm good at it, exactly.

Excuse me.

This is interesting.

You're immune to restraint magic.

Smells nice.

Normally it should work, barring a large difference in mana.

Next, Ms. Frieren, could you please look into my eyes?

Hypnosis magic won't work either.

I cannot penetrate Ms. Frieren's mental defenses.

Oh, my.

You really are resistant to both.

However, while the construction of your mental defenses is complex and solid,

it seems to be a rather old spell.

A specialist in hypnosis magic may be able to exploit its vulnerabilities.

Do you know any among the test-takers?

Edel the second-class mage may be able to do it.

But unlike me, she has no combat abilities.

Honestly, I'm not sure she'd be able to make it this far.

Also, hypnosis magic only works on targets that have minds.

It's unclear if the replicas have recreated those.

We lack too much information.

Edel, what do you think that is?

Who knows?

But it's safe to assume it has all the abilities of the first-class mage Sense.

Concealing our mana and hiding can only get us so far.

We'll have to defeat it.

Do you think we can, Blei?

You and Dünste can't fight properly in this dungeon, to say nothing of myself.

Modern magic isn't suited to dungeon combat, anyway.

An unwelcome side effect of most dungeons having already been cleared

during the era leading up to the Demon King's defeat.

On top of that, powerful defensive spells take up too many resources,

so most att*ck spells use natural objects.

Manipulating and transforming objects already in the area

consumes less mana than creating objects out of nothing.

But that thing does it fairly well.

There are layers of magic cast on its hair.

It probably has numerous methods it could use to fight inside this dungeon.

As I see it, we can't b*at that thing.

Magic is a world of visual imagination.

To be able to manipulate the uncountably large number of threads we call hair,

it must possess a superhuman imagination,

making it a far greater mage than any of us.

Honestly, it's a miracle we managed to evade it for this long.

We did our best.

But we're not fighters. It's time for us to give up.

Honestly, I'm scared and want to go home.

Edel, does your voice not work on it?

Hypnosis magic is indeed my family's calling,

but it's impossible to meet the conditions needed to give it sophisticated commands.

At most, I could create an opening by making it kneel.

Even then, I'd have to make eye contact with it and speak to it.

So it's not impossible.

Assuming it has a mind.

How much time do you need?

Fifteen seconds. Or rather, I doubt we'll get more.

What do you mean?

You'll see.

Activate your defensive magic with full coverage.

What?

In modern magic, there are two ways to defeat defensive magic.

Hit it hard enough, or skillfully slip through it.

Most who use a high number of att*cks are the latter.

I'm surprised.

I wasn't expecting both.

They have the weight of a boulder.

I thought we'd be able to maintain our defenses at full coverage for fifteen seconds,

not that it would break through even before that.

But we made eye contact.

The better the mage, the more closely they watch their opponent.

Kneel!

I see. I understand now.

It has no mind.

It's just precisely mimicking the functions of one.

We can't b*at it.

You'll have to borrow the strength of another.

Run as quickly as you can to the fighters.

But as I said, it's time for me to give up. I'm leaving.

I'm not interested in getting hurt again.

How convenient. It even ensures my safety.

We should run, too.

Is there anyone who can safely reach the bottom?

I told you.

She never intended for anyone to pass from the start.

Currently, we lack information.

We should assume it doesn't have a mind.

That does mean we'll probably have to use brute force, though.

Can you do it?

I don't know.

It's impossible to tell what those things are thinking.

But like I thought, it's not a bad matchup.

Ehre crushes me or Scharf in a simple clash of mana.

But I know how to win.

No matter the opponent or situation.

Brute force, huh?

In that case,

I may be able to k*ll Ms. Frieren.

Oh?

Yes.

Well, then...

Let's come up with a strategy.

And I'm alright (I'll be alright)

Yeah, I hear you (I care about you)

The wind teases this hair that's longer now

There's meaning in everything

Even the days that came to a halt

Now that I finally understand, I've caught up to you

See, things that couldn't have been

Seen if it weren't for these eyes

Why? They begin to overflow

I won't ask to see you, so at least

Let me remember the past, just for today

So, if we were to meet again

No more hesitations, I'd choose the present

Anytime, anywhere, yah (wherever you are)

Anytime, anywhere (smile for me)

I'll be there (close your eyes, and I'll always be there)

Even if there are no absolutes

I'm always aware of your thoughts

Those tears will be alright, dawn will surely break

I'm whispering our lullaby for you to come back home

- That's most of it. - Let's come up with a strategy. - So you had information.

- Why don't we work together? - Don't you think you should apologize? - So you had information.

- Why don't we work together? - Don't you think you should apologize? - I don't like this.

- They don't have any weaknesses. - Don't you think you should apologize? - I don't

like this.

- They don't have any weaknesses. - You seem to be enjoying yourself. - I don't

like this.

EPISODE A FATAL VULNERABILITY - It's Frieren's fatal vulnerability.