Chapter 263: Because That Tongue Knows Nothing but Taunting

Author's Preface
Glatofudans: "I am Glatos! I am Glatos!"

Oh, do you know, self-proclaimed Goldunine? In games, and in fiction, the one who strikes first is often destined to lose.
The primitive concept of poetic justice serves as the greatest proof of this. Sadly, no matter how beautifully one preaches the wonders of peace, a hero can never truly shine unless a villain goes on a rampage first.

"A newly born Me. Ah, to shake me so. Unpleasant, incredibly unpleasant, Ne."

"Kill! Die! Dieeeeeee!!"

"My cute children, won't you please break Me, Na. Won't you please kill Me, Na... So that she never becomes Me again, Ne."

The self-proclaimed Goldunine's explosive toxic Twin Blades were regenerated once again. But faster than she could swing them down, the four Nagas surged forward and swarmed the self-proclaimed Goldunine.

The first Naga bit off the self-proclaimed Goldunine's right arm.

The second Naga clamped its jaws onto her left arm, tearing it off as it slammed her into the ground.

The third Naga sank its fangs into the self-proclaimed Goldunine's waist, ripping away a chunk of flesh.

The fourth Naga bit into the leg of the self-proclaimed Goldunine—who was already gasping her last breaths—and tossed her battered, heavily wounded body right before the pure white girl, much like a pet showing off its catch to its owner.

This could no longer be called a battle. An execution? A gang beating? No, it's far worse. It's like a pro-boxer wearing brass knuckles repeatedly punching an elementary schooler. The strong forcing their violence upon the weak, completely denying any chance of a counterattack... Ah, that's right. It's a sandbag.

"........."

Honestly speaking, considering the clear conditions of the Unique Scenario, leaving this alone is probably the correct answer.
The curse eroding the Vorpal Bunnies belongs to the self-proclaimed Goldunine. As long as she's defeated, they'll be able to return home and see their families.

I've already earned favor with Vysache and Aydward, and I've already collected the Component Crystal of the "Curse." Once I confirm the self-proclaimed Goldunine is defeated, I'm free to either run away or pull a suicide charge and die.

But no. That's just wrong. Even an absolute nobody like me thinks so.

Yeah, that's right. It's not like I have some protagonist-esque sense of justice or anything like that.
But, let's say I was playing a 1-on-1 game. And suddenly, some guy barges in from the side, snatches my controller, and utterly curbstomps my opponent.

Even if they said something like, "How's that? Amazing, right?" my only response would be to punch them and yell, "Don't just butt in, you idiot!"

"Oh? What is the meaning of this, Ra?"

"That's my line. Who the hell do you think you are, butting in from the side like you own the place, you shitty brat."

"Fufufu, to look upon This form and not cower in fear, what a remarkably brave piece of trash you are, Ne."

The stomping from Goldunine the Inexhaustible was incredibly light compared to the Naga's charge. But even without inflicting physical damage, that stomp breaks the spirit.

"It's not like I actually care that she's getting beaten to a pulp. The only difference is whether I do it or you do it."

At those words, the self-proclaimed Goldunine's burning gaze pierced through me, but that's a given. If you don't at least ignore coordinates and force attacks to hit me, you won't be able to draw out my true power, you know.

"What I'm complaining about is you snatching someone else's prey from the side and looking all high and mighty. I'll screenshot this and expose you, punk."

"Screenshot...? Ufufufufu, how slightly amusing, Wa. The only thing being exposed will be your corpse, Ni."

Flick!

"............"

"............"

Well, you see... Right? While talking like this, I was executing a strategic maneuver to gradually close the distance, but the conversation ended up blossoming far more than I expected... Yeah, we're right in front of each other now.

"Let's see, like this..."

I snapped a full-body screenshot, and then a close-up bust shot as well.
After confirming that the dumbfounded expression of Goldunine the Inexhaustible, who had just been flicked on the forehead by me, was safely saved, I delivered a taunt that would mark my umpteenth personal best this year.

"You should consider yourself lucky. If I was serious, you'd have died thirty times over by now."

Well, she probably has trash durability inversely proportional to her appearance, so it's impossible anyway, but I just had a feeling that the "Goldunine" series of monsters might have absolutely zero resistance to being taunted.

With a ston, all emotion drained from her face. The pure white girl curled up the corners of her mouth, but it didn't look like a smile in the slightest. The best way to describe it was that she merely created the physical shape of a smile... That was the kind of face she was making.
Completely made a fool of, Goldunine spoke but a single quiet sentence.

"Unpleasant, Wa."

"I'm feeling super pleasant, though."

Tap tap. Tapping the amber on my chest, I piled on a follow-up taunt...

"Kil—"

Gushaaa!!

Instead of a blank shot, the starting signal was the self-proclaimed Golduni... Wait, self-proclaimed Goldunineeeeee!!

"Kill Him. Without a trace... Gruesomely, Ku!"

"Uoooooo! Like hell I'll dieeeee!!"

Even though the self-proclaimed Goldunine got caught in the crossfire and died because of how much I taunted her, if I die here so easily, it'll go down as a dark stain on my gaming history for generations! I'm absolutely surviving thissssss!!

............

.........

......

Time rewinds by about ten minutes.

The era where wars were decided by the sheer number of human resources has long since ended. With the advancement of AI and the increased precision of remote control, the military power of modern wars is now determined by the financial strength required to produce large quantities of equipment. It has essentially become a direct clash of money...

However, the setting of Shangri-La Frontier is the Middle Ages. Meaning, the advantage or disadvantage in war is determined entirely by human resources.
And that principle applies even if the battle isn't strictly between humans. The clash between the Vorpal Bunnies and Goldunine's kin had fallen into a sort of stalemate.

"Eeeei!"

Skills were irrelevant. An overly wicked scythe, swung via a full swing relying purely on physical strength and technique, inflicted a fatal wound upon the neck of a giant serpent.

"This is... um, what you call a really bad situation, right!?"

"Good grief, Elder Brother is being far too reckless... De gozaru na!"

Goldunine's kin... the giant serpents were scattered all over the area. There wasn't even time to pick up their drop items. Akitsu Akane ran through the ongoing battles between the Vorpal Bunnies and the giant serpents unfolding everywhere.

"Uuu, this is hard to use..."

"It cannot be helped since it is an unfamiliar weapon, but the degradation of the weapon is becoming severe, Akitsu Akane-dono de gozaru!"

Exterminating snakes, pushing the frontline forward, and plugging holes. It sounds easy enough to say, but endlessly repeating the process of dealing with continuously spawning snakes while simultaneously protecting the rear unit lighting up the secured sections of the tunnel and plugging the holes was quite a bone-breaking task.

"It really is just like a shuttle run! But since the other participants aren't rivals but allies, it feels very reassuring!"

A giant serpent, struck by the tip of the scythe as if swinging a pickaxe at a rock, shattered into pieces with game-effect mildness.
Even taking that mildness into account, the sight of a fox-masked girl slamming a scythe into snakes was quite a horrific spectacle, but to the Vorpal Bunnies—who could be swallowed whole if they made even a single mistake—she was nothing short of a Goddess of Salvation.

"Ahhh, it looks like it's going to break again!"

"Even though it cannot be helped, Akitsu Akane-dono's handling of the scythe is far too rough de gozaru! It is neither a hoe nor a plow de gozaru yooo!?"

"Uuu, even if you say that..."

The troublesome aspect of Goldunine's kin was not limited to sheer numbers.
Among the snakes that Akitsu Akane... or rather, any Level 99 player, could defeat in a single blow, there would occasionally be a monster capable of half-killing even a max-level player in one hit. Or conversely, a single incredibly weak snake mixed into a swarm of powerful ones. The strength varied wildly from individual to individual.

You never knew where a strong individual might attack from, and sometimes, strong individuals would clump together entirely on their own.
It was not uncommon to be violently blown away by the reinforcements right after thinking you had effortlessly defeated the vanguard. Even Akitsu Akane had experienced several dangerous moments, but she had barely managed to endure them using the stats she had gained from her fierce battles thus far.

"Uuu... I'd like to take a little break..."

"...Then, I will... take over."

"Eh?"

A roaring swing. An iron hammer was slammed directly into the face of a giant serpent that had been just about to bite into Akitsu Akane.
The impact transmitted from the giant serpent's face through its bones, causing its entire body to tremble. And while it flinched, a barrage of sledgehammer strikes was relentlessly pounded into it.

"I'm glad... I made it... in time."

"Mu, you are... Psyger-0-dono!? Why are you here..."

"Hehheeeen! See that, Cee-nii! The armor person I brought is super strong, right!!"

An armored knight carrying the Vorpal Sledge, firmly grasped with absolute power. At her feet, a rabbit riding a boar puffed out its chest proudly.

"Psyger-0-san!"

"H-Hello... Um, where might... Sunraku... san be?"

"He's fighting further up ahead!"

"Then..."

The Rabituza Defense Battle. A knight stood before the endless swarm of giant serpents. The player possessing the highest physical power in this game spoke but a single sentence.

"Let us... kick them aside."

She declared.

Author's Afterword
Truth be told, in terms of actual profitability, Akitsu Akane and the others' "Volunteer" scenario is apparently far more lucrative.