Chapter 378: Side 2: Summo...ner?

Author's Preface
If I hadn't scheduled this post in advance, there definitely wouldn't have been an update today...The Rogue's design... is the best! (Prince-level impression) [*1]
I'll survive even if I have to gnaw on the walls until I see next week's build.

Games are an incredibly simple means of detaching from one's everyday self.
Because of this, not everyone fights monsters as a virtuous Pioneer. That applies just as much to the former Ashura-kai—the players who purely enjoyed PKing as villains.

If so, then there are absolutely players who put their all into enjoying "underworld society roleplay." And those types of players were incredibly convenient existences for Arthur Pencilgon.

"Hello there, Money-Grubbing-kun?"

"Geh, Arthur Pencilgon...!? You already sniffed me out...!"

"Sniffed you out?"

"...Ah."

Zenith Guevara, a spectacular first-turn self-destruction.
Pencilgon, whose cheerful smile instantly stained into a pitch-black, evil hue, stepped into Zenith Guevara's shop with a completely frozen smile that looked as if time had stopped.

"Hiding something, are we... Smells fishy, doesn't it... Come now, if you're going to act like an underworld informant, holding out on me isn't a very good look, is it?"

"Kh, stop, don't come any closer! Don't defile my virginity! I want my first time to be with a pure, innocent girl!"

"I'll punch you straight in the face, you know? Also, any 'pure' girl getting media exposure is drenched in greed in some way or another, okay?"

"Nooooo! I don't want to hear it! Don't shatter my dreams, my dreams!!"

"People who demand perfection from the opposite sex usually end up dying alone... Well, whatever. So? You look like a rip-off merchant with a good front-facing inventory, but behind the scenes, you're the informant Zenith Guevara selling intel on players and NPCs? I've got a little something I want to ask you."

"What is it, you planning to snoop on the movements of the no-lifers? If so, I ain't got much for you. The 10 PM Army got obsessed with that 'Scar' guy, so progression through the Sea of Trees has completely stalled. If I had to say anything, thanks to the map Tottori the Shimane brought back, the route to the Forest-folk village has been confirmed... but that ain't what you came here to ask, is it?"

Pencilgon deepened her smile with a smirk.
Precisely because ShanFro is a game with such isolated reality, there are many who throw themselves into roleplaying to become the characters they dream up, and among them, Zenith Guevara was Pencilgon's top pick for an informant.

She had no idea how actual informants operated, but at least in the game of ShanFro, an excellent informant was one who could gather:

"Information from players inside the game"
"Information from players outside the game"
"Information from NPCs and the like within the game"

At the very least, gathering those three as a baseline and then possessing the skill to sift through and select the useful information was crucial.

To achieve the first condition, one needed to set up a base in a location where the latest information could constantly be procured.
From that perspective, an informant who always stayed in one specific spot couldn't be trusted. Their information itself would often be unconfirmed, outdated, or mixed with embellishments.

The second condition seemed simple but was actually quite difficult. After all, it involved gathering information from places any player could access simply by logging out, meaning the intel was a massive jumble of gems and stones.

And the third—this was where connections mattered more than anything else. Relationships with NPCs required far more roleplaying than relationships with players, meaning it was incredibly difficult to extract information with a half-hearted impression.

That was exactly why Pencilgon utilized Zenith Guevara, who fulfilled all three of these conditions, quite frequently. In fact, he was among the informants she had used when she deliberately crushed the Ashura-kai herself.

"What I want to know is... the internal situation of that 'Black Dragon Subjugation Squad' or whatever they're called."

"...Hey, wait a second. Even with our short history, I know that whenever you start digging into a specific organization, nothing good ever comes of it... but messing with them is a bad idea."

"Why?"

According to him, the animosity toward Noirlind, who had assaulted the frontline base, was incredibly high.

According to him, the crafter classes, led by Emi-Lia, who had rapidly fortified the frontline base, had essentially become its figureheads.

According to him, because Noirlind had gathered so much hate, paradoxically, there were many players who were favorable toward Siegwurm, meaning the 'Defeat Siegwurm' faction wasn't viewed very kindly.

"Back during the Ashura-kai thing, you managed it through sheer numbers, but it's impossible this time around. You're dealing with a super massive clan of over a hundred people now, you know?"

No matter how you dress it up, a battle ultimately comes down to total resources. Especially since the 'Black Dragon Subjugation Squad' was a massive faction containing the vast majority of the crafters stationed at the frontline base.
Zenith Guevara showed intense reluctance, basically saying he didn't care if Pencilgon wanted to go on a suicide run, but he absolutely couldn't stand the thought of the backlash chaining back to him like a string of potatoes.

"Nfufufufu, the only time I fight a battle I can't win is when I'm trying to blow everything straight to hell. More importantly, can you do it or not?"

"...Well, it ain't impossible. It's not like they're completely secretive about every little thing over there. Unlike that Unique Killer of yours."

"Sunraku-kun, huh... If you leave him alone, he just hoards information on his own, so at this point, he's basically like an abandoned fish trap."

That being said, Pencilgon had already formed a decent idea of how to extract information from Sunraku.
In short, he clammed up when forced. Rather, if she created a situation where Sunraku had no choice but to spit out the information and hyped him up, he'd spill it easily—that was Pencilgon's read on the situation.

However, she currently had no intention of telling anyone that or putting it into practice, because, well, it was simply more fun to provoke him than to flatter him.

"Besides, we've got all sorts of agreements with Library regarding Unique-related stuff. Passing it to you before them is probably going to be a bit difficult."

"Is that so, well, I wasn't expecting much anyway..."

"Ah, but how about I share some intel with Money-Grubbing-kun on a separate matter..."

Baring her teeth in a grin, yet with a malicious glint in her eyes that suggested she intended to roll everything around in the palm of her hand, Pencilgon declared.

"Our clan members made contact with Noirlind."

"...Seriously?"

"And just for the record, we're in the 'Defeat Siegwurm' faction."

Zenith Guevara fell silent, deep in thought. Even if he acted the part of an informant, Zenith Guevara was still a player. Rather than just watching the colored dragons get beaten down by sheer numbers, participating behind the scenes in the massive festival that was the subjugation of Siegwurm would be much more fun.

"...Alright, fine. I'll pull a few strings for you."

"Nice, nice, you sound just like an informant right now."

"And one more thing, there's someone I want you to meet."

"Hmm?"

Changing locations, Pencilgon, who had stepped into the Sea of Trees where dinosaur monsters spawned, followed Zenith Guevara's lead along a pathless path.

"I was planning to make a massive public announcement and sell these off eventually, but... if I'm using you 'Wolfgang' guys as a billboard, it'll probably stand out just the right amount."

"Heeh, so there really are hidden areas around here."

The roots of a massive tree spread across the ground. Squeezing her body through the gaps revealed a hollow extending downwards. Descending a natural ladder made of roots—likely a consideration by the game developers—revealed an underground cavern about the size of a basketball court.

"Ohhh? Zeni-chan bringing a woman here, has the world ended? Didn't you say something like, 'I want to graduate from being a wizard by having a pure, innocent girl take the lead'?"

"Ew, gross... The fact that you're the passive one makes it even worse."

"Shut up! What's wrong with talking about my dreams!"

"It means you should keep them hidden in your heart. Anyway, care to explain?"

It seemed this underground space was the hollowed-out inside of a tree root that had abnormally hypertrophied like a potato. On the ground of that space, illuminated by luminous moss she felt she had seen somewhere before, things that were difficult to describe were planted in neat, orderly rows.

Furthermore...

"Yeaaaaaaah..."

"Oh, thanks, Mandi-chan."

"Yeaaaaaaah..."

Watching an indescribable something—that looked as if a heavily muscled body had sprouted out of a carrot—trudge heavily across the room while letting out an unspeakable cry, Pencilgon floated a smile filled with both bewilderment and anticipation for new materials for her evil schemes...

Author's Afterword

"I'm a power-type. My hobby is photosynthesis."

Translator's Note

• [1] Prince Noctis from FFXV