Chapter 20: The Top-Tiers Passing Each Other

"Huh, that player is still there..."

"Why is such a high-level player standing like a statue in the first town?"

"I heard they're looking for someone."

"Actually, I heard the player inside is a woman."

"Seriously? A female player using a rugged male character... that's nice."

"Forget it, forget it. She won't pay attention to small fry like us who just started."

With the start of summer vacation, the number of new players had increased explosively, making it difficult to find the specific person she was looking for—or so she thought. That is why it was truly a miracle that she managed to hear that name on her way back to her clan's headquarters, after being scolded by the clan executives and forced to return.

"I'm telling you, it's not just about leveling, you have to raise your player skill too!"

"I guess you're right... Even though we're the same level as Sunraku-san now, I can't track the Vorpal Bunnies' attacks at all."

"They say that people who are good at VR games can fight decently even at Level 1... I'd say Sunraku-san has trained considerably in other games!"

"You say that like you know, but this is your first VR game too, isn't it, Rina?"

"P-Please don't say that!"

A boy swinging a brand-new sword as if imitating someone, likely on his way back from the weapon shop; a thief girl laughing heartily; and a mage girl puffing out her cheeks. Perhaps it was because she had been searching for and thinking about that name for so long that she was able to pick out the word amidst the noisy crowd. Aware that her appearance was intimidating, she approached them as quietly as possible to avoid startling them, and asked quietly:

"Um..."

"Yes...? Hyaaa!?"

"Whoaa!?"

"Uooh!?"

It didn't work.

From an outsider's perspective, "a fully-geared high-level player standing silently behind beginners" was an action that was quite bad for the heart, but fortunately or unfortunately, there was no one around to calmly point that out. Suddenly accosted by a clearly strong armored knight, the trio—Soma, Kahho, and Rina, who had previously encountered a bizarre bird-headed player—coincidentally all thought the exact same thing: Why do we only keep meeting abnormal people?

"W-What is... it?"

"I... am not going to attack you. I just have something I want to ask..."

Soma's speech had become strange, mixing his natural tone with polite honorifics, but the armored knight replying to him also spoke to the three beginners in a tone that was a bit too halting to be called proper roleplay.

"Did you... meet a player named... Sunraku?"

"Eh, ah, y-yes..."

"In the forest... well... I guess you could say he saved us?"

"Though at first, we thought he was a new type of monster..."

Kahho smiled wryly as she recalled the half-naked bird-head (who was actually a pretty nice guy) who had suddenly jumped out of the grass and slaughtered what she now knew were troublesome monsters, but at the time had looked like cute rabbits.

"Please tell me... tell me where he is."

"Umm... I'm pretty sure he said he was going straight to Secondil, right?"

"He also said he was going to level up a bit more before that."

"But looking at the recommended level for the Gluttonous Giant Serpent, hasn't he probably cleared it by now?"

(...No wonder I couldn't find him no matter how hard I looked.)

She felt a slight suspicion that she was being toyed with, but the female shop owner who had helped her in various ways to get closer to him had warned her: "He's an oddball who likes Trash Games, so you should assume he'll take unexpected actions." But to think he spawned in the forest from the start and went straight to Secondil...

"...Thank you for the information. It's not much of a thank you, but please take this."

"Eh, wait—"

"...Well then, I'm in a hurry."

"Wait a seco—she's gone..."

"Kahho, what did you get?"

"I wonder... A Magic Scroll... [Coordinate Transfer (Teleport)]...?"

It would be a while yet before they learned that the item the armored knight handed them—the disposable magic medium Magic Scroll: [Coordinate Transfer (Teleport)]—was an item that could not be obtained until reaching much further into the game, at the very forefront of the current conquest.

The armored knight sprinted through the Forest of Rampancy with agility (AGI) unimaginable from her appearance. Because [Coordinate Transfer] is a spell that warps the user to their last updated respawn point, she had to travel to Secondil on foot.

(I considered the possibility of unexpected behavior... but to think he didn't even stop by the First Town...!!)

Naturally, the very first town, Firsteia, serves as a tutorial base for players who have just started the game. To think he completely ignored it and headed for Secondil... and the fact that he hadn't respawned there meant he had broken through the Gluttonous Giant Serpent without dying even once. After all, it is just the first boss; once you understand the "first-sight killer" poison dung, it is an easy boss. Even so, clearing it within a day of starting is phenomenal. If he hadn't engaged in such a forced march of leveling, she would have been able to find him... find Sunraku, at a much earlier stage.

The armored knight ran through the area, which would take players of the appropriate level ten minutes at their fastest, in just two minutes. She closed in nonstop on the Gluttonous Giant Serpent, which raised its head to intimidate her.

"...'Highest Strength', 'Enchant Hellflame', 'Apocalypse'!!"

On the first step, she applied a massive buff to her STR. On the second step, she imbued her readied greatsword with elemental attributes. And on the third step, she drove it home...

"I wish they would do something about having to fight the boss every time... though I suppose it's better to have it for Shuttle Runs."

Behind the armored knight running toward Secondil, the body of the Gluttonous Giant Serpent—still in its intimidating pose—was split vertically in two... leaving only the guaranteed drop item, "Gluttonous Fang," on the ground.

Fortunately or unfortunately for someone, this was an event that happened in the afternoon.

Author’s Notes & Lore

Shuttle Run

Area bosses will respawn normally if you update your respawn point at the next town and then return to the previous town. The act of defeating the area boss, making it respawn, and repeating this process is called a "Shuttle Run."

Translator’s Remarks

• Shuttle Run: A term often used in sports tests (Suicide drills), but in gaming, it refers to moving back and forth between two points efficiently to farm XP or items.