Chapter 253: Humanity Calls That Step Either Progress or a Challenge

The shocking truth revealed just now: the true identity of the hardcore player "Psyger-0," the possessor of the Attack Holder title in ShanFro and a massive contributor in the battles against Lycaon and Ctarrnid, was actually none other than Saiga Rei herself...!

"Or rather, have you perhaps figured out the reverse as well?"

"Hahaha, sorry about that. When Rei-chan started talking about a player named 'Sunraku,' I thought 'No way!' and just kind of spilled it."

Well, it's true that aside from minor variations, I generally unify my PNs under the name "Sunraku" whenever I play a game. Ah, but regarding this, is it my fault for standing out so badly that Rei-san... I mean, Saiga-san, ended up mentioning it in real life?

"Um, well... I'm sorry... for keeping it a secret..."

"No, no, it's not exactly something you'd go around announcing openly..."

Wait, if that's the case, why reveal it now? For gamers, real-life information is somewhat of a taboo. If we had built enough rapport in-game to naturally progress into a real-life relationship, that'd be one thing, but what's the reason for revealing it right now, right when things are completely chaotic regarding the clan?

"Hmph... I see."

A schemer after all, huh. Now that it's been revealed that the person inside Rei-san is Saiga-san—the perfect superhuman excelling in both literary and martial arts—it all makes sense. The reason she revealed that Saiga-san and Rei-san are the same person at this exact moment is to forge an "exclusive connection with Sunraku."
Just like how Pencilgon and Psyger-100 are connected behind the scenes, she's establishing a line even deeper than the official and unofficial connections.

Currently, the strongest connections I have—a player hoarding a massive amount of information—are with Pencilgon and OiKatzo, followed by the members of Wolfgang.

But if Rei-san, someone who possesses a clear and definitive connection with me in real life, enters the picture, the story changes entirely.
Rei-san was heavily involved in the defeat of Ctarrnid, meaning she already has ties with half of Wolfgang. But that alone wasn't enough. Since Psyger-0 is requesting to join "Wolfgang," the information held by the Ctarrnid group will simply be absorbed into "Wolfgang." In other words, it won't be an advantage exclusive to Rei-san anymore.

But what if she had a personal connection with me? To be perfectly honest, simply having a personal connection with me—someone who's hoarding a massive amount of information that I haven't even revealed to my clan members yet—would be more than enough to completely outplay Library.

Exactly. Rei-san's... Saiga-san's objective is to take a step ahead among the players other than me. She isn't trying to catch up to me; she's trying to pull ahead of the pack of people chasing after me...!
It's a stepping stone to get closer to the information regarding Rabituza, which currently only Akitsu Akane and I know about...!

But even so, what incredible courage. To deliberately thrust the double-edged sword of a real-life identity reveal into herself.
By exposing my real identity while simultaneously revealing hers, she's forging a certain kind of solidarity. Moreover, she's cleverly stimulating the psychological vulnerability of feeling happy that there's someone nearby who shares your hobbies in real life...!

"A diabolical... intellect...!"

"I-Intellect...?"

"You shouldn't chase too deep, Rei-chan. Instead of aiming for dramatic progress, let's just make sure we securely plant the flags."

"Y-Yes...!"

Exactly. Iwamaki-san is right.
Since when did they realize I was Sunraku? Don't tell me they already pinpointed it back when we escaped Thirdrema? It's possible, but that just makes it all the more unbelievable.
To think she waited for the perfect opportunity from the middle of summer vacation all the way until now, making absolutely sure I never caught onto the "Rei-san = Saiga-san" equation until my impression of Rei-san had improved sufficiently.

Fufufu, you got me. Rather than anger at being deceived, I'm simply overwhelmed by the sheer shock of "Seriously!?" It feels exactly like witnessing the dramatic payoff of foreshadowing in a mystery novel...

"U-Um, well, you see..."

"Nn?"

"If, um, if you're okay with it, um... Tonight—no, tomorrow! Tomorrow! .........T-Togethur! Wou-Would you like... to play ShanFro... with me...?"

Fufufu, so you plan to corner me all at once right here, huh... Bring it on.

"Okay. I'm basically free until next week anyway."

I'll gladly accept your challenge!

A short while after Rakuro left the store first.

"Rei-chan, you bought some time by saying you couldn't sort out your feelings today, didn't you?"

"Ugh..."

"It's exactly that part of you, you know? That part of you. I'm not telling you to push him down on the very first day, but let's work on fixing that habit, alright?"

"Uuu..."

"Listen, okay? You've heard the saying 'Strike while the iron is hot,' right? The iron you're trying to forge is the type that'll just fly away on its own if you leave it be, so you have to strike it down with a blitzkrieg while it's still within reach!"

"I-I'll do my best...!"

"Well, this is a monumental achievement years in the making, so tonight calls for a celebration. I'll open up my treasured alcohol!"

Be that as it may.
Following the advice of Rei-san—or rather, Saiga-san—I began my operation to achieve my goal of defeating Ryuguin Fugaku, or rather, defeating the AI Hanshi: Extreme.

"First and foremost, the efficiency of his movements has reached the absolute pinnacle."

Considering he was an old man treated as a living legend up until very recently, searching through video sites yields a massive number of match recordings.
I'll pretend I didn't see the live stream titled "Searching for that rumored person in ShanFro!" being broadcast by some popular content creator.

"This one is from five years ago, this one is from three years ago..."

I also secured recorded footage from several decades ago, playing them in reverse chronological order to burn his movements into my eyes.

"His footwork is crazy enough as it is, but the way his shinai moves with maximum efficiency is honestly way too absurd..."

In the footage, two swordsmen stand facing each other, gripping their shinais. They faced off with their shinais raised, but perhaps unable to endure the tension any longer, the bullshit-strong old man's opponent let out an ear-splitting battle cry and lunged forward... only for his overhead strike to cleave nothing but empty air.
A step and a half backward, executed having completely read exactly where and at what speed the shinai would pass through. Yet with just that, the challenger exposed a fatal opening.

Even if he frantically tried to create distance, since he had already yielded his turn, his next turn wouldn't come around until he dealt with Ryuguin Fugaku's attack. And since this old man's attacks are based on a Graze = Instant Death (Kendo Rules) system that would even make Wethermon jump in surprise, well.

I'm not exactly an expert on Kendo. My knowledge basically amounts to "Just scream weirdly and smack them on the head, torso, or back of the hand, right?" But even so, I can tell that this old man's movements possess a level of skill completely isolated from everyone else.
A feint entirely predicated on reading the opponent's shinai recovery, followed by a step-in executed with the absolute conviction that his own actions will not be hindered. Gliding like a swordsman with a fundamentally different tier of mobility, he closes in on the challenger's space in an instant, Ryuguin Fugaku's right arm blurs... and a crisp sound rings out.

Despite the lack of any flashy visual effects, that match—which supposedly happened in reality—was so detached from reality that I'd probably believe you if you told me it was a cutscene from a game.

"This isn't gonna serve as a reference at all..."

No, wait. It's too early to give up. It's the Ryuguin Style, right? A style implies a systematized "teaching."
In other words, there must be common movements and logic embedded within it. Logic isn't just discussing zeros and ones and providing evidence; there must be something that those who follow can understand and use as a reference.

"Ryuguin Style, Ryuguin Style... Found it! Ryuguin Style... It's too expensive!?"

One instruction manual costs 9,800 yen! That's a pretty harsh price for a broke high school student! Rejected!!

"Dammit... I have no choice. I can rip off the Action (Movement) to some extent, but the overall Motion (Style), huh..."

A Pseudo-Ryuguin Style learned purely by imitation. No matter how you look at it, it gives off massive trash-mob vibes that'll inevitably get beaten up by the true successor of the Ryuguin Style, but as the saying goes: if you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

"Fortunately, I have the ultimate Teacher (Enemy) known as a Trace AI right here...!"

Prepare yourself, AI Hanshi: Extreme. Enemies in games exist to be defeated...!

Today's battle record: 35 matches, 35 losses.

Author's Afterword
Furthermore, it seems a bottle of Dom Pérignon was opened.

This is a story where the protagonist conquers, and is simultaneously conquered.
Do your best, heroine-chan. From here on out lies an uncharted territory that was left completely vague even in the plotting phase...!