Chapter 279: The Dragon's Calamity Endures, and the Wolf Howls ~ The Beast of Lightning and Fire Confronts the Sword Wolf, Part 9

Author's Preface

I'm taking tomorrow off from updating!!!!!!!!! (Out of energy)
As expected, moving the characters purely on impulse was a bit too much...

Since I'm half-naked either way, is there even any point in going out of my way to offset the curse? There is a massive point.
Do you understand the sorrow of Meiki-kun, who was treated as industrial waste while his partner operated at full capacity? Understand it. If you don't, I'll beat it into you, ora!

"What's wrong, what's wrong! If you're tired, want me to lop your head off in one swing!?"

"What kind of...!"

The meteor shower of falling Servant Swords—you could say they represent the absolute pinnacle of technique, elevating the transition from auto to manual control into a relentless offensive. So what? Having emptied two cans of Riot Blood, I am currently in the exact same condition as that day... the day I clashed head-on with Sylvia Goldberg.
Furthermore, I'm not using the improvised Cursed Prison. I'm moving as "Sunraku," the character I built up from scratch.

"I've got so much leeway I can just react after seeing them coming!!"

The Arcanum "The Fool" is rotating faster than ever before. The moment the recast time ends, it's used immediately, causing skill recasts to chain continuously as if the skill activation itself had been sealed.
I kick off the air to dash through it, step on a sword to slide across it, and teleport mid-swing to launch a surprise attack. There is nearly a year's worth of difference in playtime between me and Psyger-100. Because of that, despite me launching an onslaught of this caliber, Psyger-100 does not sink, does not fall, and does not yield.

In terms of pure player skill, Psyger-100 isn't even comparable to Sylvia Goldberg. That was no longer on a level you could just call "non-standard." To laughingly match my full power and not even break a sweat makes her an absolute monster. The top rankers in Bakumatsu are like that too, but there are actually quite a few people in this world who genuinely make you think, "They were born purely for this." Psyger-100 is not that kind of existence. To be completely honest, if we're strictly talking about player skill, I don't feel like I could lose.

But that's not it. The strength of the player known as Psyger-100 doesn't lie there. This isn't some trivial matter that can be overcome with mere talent.

"Interesting...! So you're saying one needs this level of strength to cross swords with Lycaon? Bring it on! Then I'll throw everything I have at you and win!! If doing so will lead to my victory over him!!"

What is the most important thing for a gamer?
Player skill? No. You don't need that to boot up a game. Rare items? No. It's not completely wrong, but you can thoroughly enjoy a game all the way to the final boss with nothing but a stick.

The absolute most important thing for a gamer is motivation. No matter how garbage the RNG is, or how much they suck at the game despite loving it, as long as a burning passion blazes within them, humans have no limits.
In that regard, Psyger-100 is top-tier. A flame of passion to "Defeat Lycaon" that hasn't dimmed in the slightest despite an entire year passing. The countless weapons she wields are the crystallization of the player Psyger-100's passion. Every single sword dancing through the air is imbued with the passion, time, and effort she has poured into this game.

A hardcore player. Yes, there's likely no player more suited for the term "hardcore player." The developers are probably crying tears of joy right now.
That is exactly why I'm getting fired up too. The sheer joy of slamming my full power into an opponent this deeply engrossed in the game. That is why PvP captivates people, and it's the exact reason PK never dies out. There are impure reasons too, of course, but the foundation of PK stems from the pure, fundamental desire to fight not against AI-controlled enemies, but against players exactly like oneself.
ShanFro's AI is undeniably in a league of its own. I have nothing but applause for an AI that acts as if those creatures truly exist as living organisms. But that is that, and this is this... It doesn't diminish the fun of PvP.

"【Servant · Sextet】!!"

"Time for some verification... Fly, 'Meiki'!!"

Ah, I am incredibly lucky right now.
The fact that I'm able to activate the Isana Togetsu against Psyger-100—who almost certainly hasn't unlocked the level cap since she hasn't gone to the New Continent, meaning her level should be the exact same Lv.99 Extend as mine—proves it.
Is it because she's repeatedly utilized Level Down Builds? Or is the condition based on her stats being numerically higher than mine due to those Level Down Builds?
Well, whatever. Being able to use the Isana Togetsu—which is originally supposed to only exert its effects against opponents with a higher level than me—is a stroke of luck. It's exactly why I can successfully execute the "verification" I'm about to do.

Whether it was my words or my thoughts that authenticated the order, Meiki revealed its true performance to the light of day in accordance with my will.
To begin with, Meiki possesses two abilities outside of its Counter-Blade Sword combination. The first, naturally, is the "Nether-Aura Effect" that was treated as industrial waste up until this morning. Since it's classified as a buff, it was entirely negated by Lycaon's "Scar," turning it into a garbage ability that did nothing but make my hand crackle with electricity for no reason. Well, that got solved this morning too.
But Meiki has one other ability: it can alter its shape by consuming HP or MP. Specifically, by meeting certain conditions, it can transform from a dagger type into a rapier type, a curved sword type, and so on. To be completely honest, it's easiest to just use it in its dagger form, so this ability was rotting away too... But originally, this ability was designed on the premise of being used in tandem with the "Nether-Aura Effect."

So let's demonstrate the conclusion. What exactly is the Nether-Aura Effect?
It activates upon landing a critical hit, and depending on the number of critical hits landed, as well as the shape of Meiki.........

"Impossible... 'Flying Slashes' that don't rely on skills!?"

"Hahhaa! Verification successful! Just as I thought, if I break the 'Formation,' the Servant Sword skill misfires!!"

It enables "Ranged Attacks."
This is Meiki-kun's true power! It's not just some bonus sheath for Konsho that crackles your arm and transforms for no reason! If anything, Meiki-kun is the one with broken specs!

"It was so blatant that it actually took me a while to notice... Now, what are you gonna do! I'm going to aggressively mix in disruptions from here on out, you know!?"

"Bring it!!"

The ranged slashes change type depending on Meiki's shape. In its rapier form, it fires a highly penetrative flying thrust. In its curved sword form, it fires a flying arc-slash. In its dagger form, it fires a high-speed barrage of flying rapid strikes!

Sword Saints aren't the only ones who can shoot attacks. Even an essentially unemployed Mercenary can pull it off. In this very moment, I'll prove it.

"Even with a starting job, you can pull off a Giant Killing!!"

Looking like a pale blue cold aura, yet blazing like the exact opposite—a fire. Raising my left arm clad in a blue aura that could be interpreted as either, I thrust Meiki toward Psyger-100.
There's no holding back anymore. I'm throwing everything into the flames and heating up until I burn out completely!! Ahahahaha, my tension is so high I'm genuinely terrified of the rebound!!!!!

Author's Afterword
In reality, the notation "Extend" is a tricky one. If you were to express Extend differently, it would be "Lv.99+."
And exactly how much this "+" amounts to isn't displayed, but it is accumulated as a parameter.
For example, when Kyogoku stepped into the realm of Level 100, she didn't just slowly level up from 99 to her current level.

The moment the level cap was removed, the accumulated Extend EXP was instantly converted into levels.

And despite having fought many strong enemies, Sunraku hasn't even been playing for half a year, whereas Psyger-100 has been rigorously training herself since the service launched. There is a definitive gap in EXP between the two of them, it just isn't displayed.
An otherwise incomparable "difference" renders their stats exactly equal for the single reason that she hasn't removed her level cap.

Well, Kyogoku-chan lost simply because of a difference in her understanding of ShanFro's system. If a level difference was all it took to decide everything, there wouldn't be any players capable of defeating Unique Monsters.