Chapter 64: Dedicated to a Moment Part 11

Time flies like an arrow. While weekdays from Monday to Friday feel like they drag on forever, a week-long holiday seems to reach its final day before you even notice... Time is both cruel and merciful. While entertaining such philosophical thoughts (nonsense) in my brain, the day of the "Wethermon the Tombguard Subjugation Battle," organized by Pencilgon and involving me and OiKatzo, had finally arrived.

Our meeting place was the NPC Cafe "Snake's Apple." When I asked why she insisted on this specific place, it turned out that this cafe was a rare establishment that not only had a menu with no taste restrictions but also accepted Red Name players (PKers). Beginners wouldn't know about a place like this, and high-level players use similar facilities in later towns, so despite its fame, it's a hidden spot with few people. Wait, so that's why OiKatzo was always ordering cake here? That's unfair, I want to eat some too.

"Mmm, brutally sweet!"

"I don't dislike this kind of rough sweetness."

"Yeah, yeah... The reason I had you gather here this morning is none other than to reconfirm the schedule for our operation."

While munching on cake, OiKatzo and I reviewed the plan.

"So basically, we wait in Thirdrema, and when it hits 11:30, we head to the Prismatic Forest Grotto... right?"

"With our current stats, it takes about fifteen minutes to get to that location, so we'll wait in front of the entrance."

"Right. I'll head out after setting a trap to delay the Ashura-kai members going to Fifticia, so I plan to arrive around 11:55... And the moment the date changes, that is the time for the decisive battle."

I don't know what kind of strings she pulled, but the scary-looking NPC owner rubbed his hands together and guided us to a private room where the three of us are currently plotting our evil schemes. Leveling is complete, skills are organized, and weapons and armor are renewed. OiKatzo mentioned preparing some kind of hidden trump card, but I'm just going to do what I can do. Having practiced against super-speed bosses in "Benpi," I should be able to read the opponent's movements from even slight preliminary motions... probably. Furthermore, while helping OiKatzo level up when he was struggling at level 49, I also trained my skills to some extent by fishing for Livetide Destrobusters using the Curse effectively. Speaking of which, here are my current stats:

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PN: Sunraku LV: 53 (15) JOB: Mercenary (Dual Wielder) 150 Mani

HP: 30 MP: 10 STM: 60 STR: 40 DEX: 50 AGI: 70 TEC: 55 VIT: 20 LUC: 74

Skills:

• Infinite Slash
• Drill Piercer
• Infight Lv.4
• Skate Foot
• Parrying Protect
• Hand of Fortune Lv.3
• Great of Climb
• Climax Boost Lv.2
• Five-Boat Jump
• Sharp Turn
• Assassin Pierce Lv.5
• Oppression Kick Lv.6
• Best Step
• Fighting Spirit of the Starving Wolf (Hunger Wolf)
• Off-Road Lv.2
• Vorpal Blade Arts [Water Mirror Moon]

Equipment:

• Left/Right: Empire Bee Twin Blades
• Head: Gazing Bird Mask (VIT+1)
• Torso: Curse of Lycaon
• Waist: Tide of Life Belt (VIT+19)
• Legs: Curse of Lycaon
• Accessories: None

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...Yes, I bought it! I was forced to buy it! I felt scared not buying it! No, more importantly—celebrate! From Tissue Armor to Cardboard Armor! This is a great leap forward. After all, cardboard doesn't dissolve immediately in water. Either way, it's just a drop in the bucket, but if I'm going to do my best, I should make even the slightest effort. I'll start with the Empire Bee Twin Blades to gauge the situation, but I'll switch equipment depending on the circumstances.

"By the way, what kind of trap are you planning?"

"I'm going to tip off a top-tier clan about the location of the Ashura-kai's clan base."

" "Uwah." "

"They'll probably flee to a place unknown to the top-tier clans—in other words, that location. But I don't think they'll arrive at the answer immediately after being raided."

This woman... she's willing to crush an entire clan just for a single battle? Or rather, is this her determination to win, even if it means doing something that would undoubtedly get her mobbed if discovered?

"Anyway, let's assume that's the plan until we enter the area... The main issue is the strategy during combat."

"I'm handling Wethermon."

"And I'm handling Kirin. Pencilgon is support, right?"

"Right. This is a confirmation of the finer details regarding that. First, Sunraku-kun."

As I was absentmindedly rubbing the back of my neck, feeling a bit lonely without Emul here, Pencilgon turned her gaze to me.

"First, I need you to be able to completely handle almost all of Wethermon the Tombguard's skills for ten minutes."

"Seriously?"

"Until ten minutes have passed, Katzo-kun and I can provide assists, so I want you to be able to deal with his movements no matter what. Because the later it gets, the harder it will probably be for you to handle."

Hmm... Even with prior information, the way to deal with things changes if you haven't seen the actual spectacle. If I can use Katzo as a meat shield during those ten minutes, I can overuse him while trying to conserve my own resources as much as possible.

"So, I'm counting on you, Meat Shield."

"Leave it to me, Soggy Cardboard."

Pencilgon, now ignoring the comedy routine between me and OiKatzo glaring silently at each other, turned her gaze to OiKatzo next.

"Katzo-kun, most likely, you're going to die a considerable number of times. That's why, once ten minutes pass and Kirin arrives, I will effectively become your exclusive support."

"...I heard it was bad, but is it that bad?"

OiKatzo's role is to stall the Tactical Mecha Horse [Kirin] that appears after ten minutes. He's practically superhuman in-game too, so he'd likely handle a rodeo without much trouble, but Pencilgon's words, based on that assumption, convey the severity of the battle whether we like it or not.

"How should I put it... You should abandon images of horses or cows. You should think of it as... a dump truck with legs."

"That went about two levels above my expectations."

Rest assured, I am internally recoiling three levels above my expectations. OiKatzo, about to challenge the Dangerous Rodeo that makes even Pencilgon wary, declared boldly without breaking his fearless smile.

"Well, I'm a Pro Gamer, after all. I'll elegantly play with the horse while that gluttonous amateur gamer gets beaten up by the Robo-Samurai."

"Go ahead. Just try not to get kicked by its hind legs."

"Ah, if you get kicked by Kirin's hind legs, you die. Ashura-kai's tank got erased just by being grazed."

"......"

Your smile is twitching, Pro Gamer.

"The decisive battle is at night. I'll sleep until evening for now, but..."

Having shifted my lifestyle rhythm starting three days ago, tonight is the time slot where I can perform at my best. I could log out and sleep right now, but there are a few things I want to do before bed. I used the disposable magic medium (Magic Scroll) Teleport received from Pencilgon to transfer to Rabituza...

"Kii—!"

"Whoa, what!? A bird!?"

Landing suddenly as if gripping my shoulder with talons, the creature possessed a sharp gaze different from my mask and unmistakable raptor characteristics... A falcon? Startled, I tried to brush it off, but noticed that there was almost no pain in my shoulder and that a small tube was attached to the falcon's leg.

"Could it be... like a carrier pigeon?"

"Pii—"

It extended its leg as if to say, "Hurry up and take it," so I touched the tube. It turned into polygons and vanished, displaying a window.

"A letter... Sender is... Hmm!?"

Dear Sir,

The midsummer sun is strong, and the intense heat continues day after day. I hope this letter finds you well. Although it is sudden, I thought visiting you directly might be a nuisance, so I have sent this letter instead. Today at 11:00 AM, a major update will be implemented in Shangri-La Frontier. As someone unfamiliar with electronic subtleties, I can only marvel at the technical prowess of Shangri-La Frontier to update without requiring a logout. To get to the main point: if it is convenient for you, I would like to confirm various matters with you together after the major update is implemented. How does that sound? Please kindly consider my request.

Psyger-0

For a moment, the writing style was so stiff I thought it was a role-play letter of challenge or something. Umm, summarizing it, I guess it means "Are you free tonight?"... Unfortunately, I am not free tonight.

"Umm, reply button is... this one."

It's detailed enough to display a parchment-style window, but the input is done via a touch-panel keyboard. First, a refusal... Oh right, while I'm at it, why not throw a question to Mr. Psyger-0, who likely possesses top-class ability within ShanFro?

"How do high-level players deal with super-speed frame attacks... there."

Do I just attach this to the falcon's leg? Oh, there, there. Don't make such an annoyed face... For a bird, you're awfully expressive. It's useless to glare at me; I'm confident in the intensity of my eyes too.

"Alright, off you go."

"Pyaa—"

Watching the falcon fly away with a goofy cry unbecoming of a bird of prey, I turned my attention back to Rabituza... Ah, because the letter (mail) came suddenly, the disposable magic medium (Magic Scroll) returned to my inventory. Can't be helped, let's take it out again...

"Pyeee—"

"Eh..."

Isn't that a little too fast? I petted the head of the out-of-breath falcon and opened the letter to find a massive wall of text that made me want to ask how much typing speed was used in that split second. Letting the falcon, whose shoulders were heaving with breath, rest for a moment, I managed to decipher and summarize it.

"Basically... 'Thank you for your reply. It is unfortunate, but I look forward to another opportunity. Generally, for attacks unleashed at high speed, one deals with them by grasping the preliminary movements or using Guard Criticals. Although rarely seen, there is a mechanic where raising the LUC parameter to 100 or more allows you to survive any attack with 1 HP once per battle, but since it is powerless against multi-hit or instant-death attacks, I cannot recommend it much.' Is that it?"

Even this is compressed to one-fifth of the content. Did he already know what I was going to ask before my mail even arrived? Terrifying, Psyger-0. Even so... Hmm, it's information that isn't very useful. No, well, it's not useless, but it's information that the current me can't do anything about.

"Anyway, let's write a thank you note..."

"Pii..."

"...Want to eat some salmon?"

"Pii—!"

The falcon being forced to run high-speed shuttles was too pitiful, so I asked if it wanted to eat the Livetide Salmon I had in excess. Perhaps delighted, it spread its wings and let out a cry before pecking at the salmon.

"Oh, oh, what a cute fellow. But the detail is amazing... As expected of ShanFro."

The insanely detailed craftsmanship, which doesn't show even a fragment of polygons, makes me wonder if I've actually come to another world disguised as a game.

".........Ha."

"Piyo?"

"Nothing... Wait, are you really a falcon?"

I unintentionally snorted at my own wild idea. I can't go to another world, nor do I want to, but it's precisely because I want to experience that extraordinariness that I play games.

"Sunraku-san! Welcome... desu wa?"

Having sent off the falcon with the letter attached, I was greeted by Emul upon transferring to Rabituza. However, she frowned somewhat, climbed up onto me, and twitched her nose.

"What's wrong?"

"...I smell the scent of another beast! Desu wa!"

Are you a Yandere Heroine? There was a Yandere Heroine in that "Pizza Study Abroad" game too. In the end, buyers everywhere retorted, "So the protagonist is the pizza!?"

While I was thinking about that, Emul climbed further up my body and reached the top of my head.

"This place belongs to me, desu wa! I won't lose to some bird that just popped up!"

"Rabbits are counted with the counter for birds ('wa') too, so isn't it similar...?"

"Muuuuuuuu!!"

"Ouch! Ow ow ow, stop!"

Don't hit me poka-poka with STR 30! It hurts!

Author's Notes & Lore:

Mail System: The mail system in ShanFro utilizes birds, acting like carrier pigeons. The more money you pay, the faster the mail reaches the recipient. Technically, they aren't real animals, but due to their appearance, they are recognized as birds. By the way, "Send → Reply" counts as one fee. Heroine-chan (Psyger-0) used the highest grade carrier bird twice in total. Truly bourgeois mail allowed only for hardcore players.

• • Sparrow: (Cheapest. Arrives 5 mins after sending. ~30% chance of being eaten by raptors, mail lost.)
  • Pigeon: (Normal. Arrives 3 mins after sending. Slightly faster than sparrow, 5% chance of being eaten.)
  • Crow: (Pricey. Arrives 4 mins after sending. Won't be eaten, but slightly slower than pigeon.)
  • Owl: (High. Night only. Arrives 2 seconds after sending. Cannot send during day.)
  • Falcon: (Premium. Arrives 3 seconds after sending. Rarely gives items to the recipient... like sparrow feathers.)

Translator's Remarks:

• Counting Rabbits: In Japanese, rabbits are counted using the counter wa (羽), which is typically used for birds. Sunraku points this out, annoying Emul.