Chapter 499: Two Judgments to Sever Sins

Author's Preface
Please call me "Transcendental Skyfarer Katarina, who pulled Eden and Valentine Clarisse with a 10-pull Surprise Ticket."
Well, I pulled Certificus with a gacha ticket after 30 dead pulls following that, but what is a Magna Man supposed to do with it? Guild Wars is ffuuuuun!! (Screaming mixed with vomiting blood)

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"Ah—, someone in the comments is saying 'Kei-kyun, you got the effects of the Good and Evil bullets wrong'... I'd like to object to the nickname, but for now, I'm sorry for the mistake. Also, Silver-san has returned."

"My Negotiate skill is maxed out!"

"Negotiate, huh..."

"Um, No Face-san is making some pretty crazy moves, is that something I shouldn't touch upon?"

"Hm? Ah—, what was it again... Sheriff, I think? He's mimicking (ripping off) the movements of a character from a game called Dance Guns Duel."

On the screen, bullets and guns themselves danced through the air, and an angry surge of an offensive consisting of both bullets and bare-handed strikes was pushing the TV-headed woman back.
That Amelia Sullivan—who was praised as "usually behaving like a 20th-century antique thug, but plays like a technician on par with Sylvia during a game"... or rather, Masked Hannya, was being unilaterally pushed back. It was a sight no one but one specific person had ever achieved until now.

"Dance Guns Duel? Ah... hold on, I feel like I've heard of that somewhere... Ah! I remember, it's a fighting game that came out about the year before last, right?"

"That's right, it was a pretty interesting fighting game where every character carried firearms. The shotgun character's normal attacks were way too strong, which made things a bit sketchy, but..."

As an aside, there was a certain reason why Katzo had thrown away all shame and appearances to beat the crap out of Sunraku with said shotgun character in order to maintain a 70% win rate during their hundred-match series, but that memory had been locked away in Katzo's heart with heavy padlocks.

"Ah, looks like some people in the comments know it too. That's right, he was called the Sheriff who acts more like a clown than the Gatling Clown, wasn't he... Yeah, that guy can do it. He said a perfect copy was impossible, but the fact that he can roughly replicate it is already insane."

"Hey Kei, what exactly is No Face doing right now?"

A change of topic after grasping the flow of the comment section. Since modern pro gamers could be described as a hybrid of talent and gamer, the #1 gamer in the US was naturally also top-tier as a TV talent.
She found a common topic from the text flowing by at furious speeds and, as the representative of their questions, asked the one who knew the answer. Having received the perfect pass for entertainment, Kei began his commentary by intertwining the information the viewers wanted to know with the battle unfolding before them.

"I'll keep the introduction of the Sheriff's performance brief... but well, he's the type of character who has low firepower in exchange for a high volume of attacks. In the original game, the Gatling user was the undisputed top in terms of DPS... but there's a certain advantage to doing the Sheriff's movements with Dust."

"And that advantage is?"

"It's the variation in bullets, Eito. Even if you don't have to fear the NPC's bullets, fighting while constantly triaging the incoming gunfire is something even I would struggle with... just a little bit."

The Silver Mask—who didn't say she couldn't do it—exuded the undimming brilliance of the number one star, even if she had a loss on her official record, proving her worth as the US #1.

"Even for Display, who isn't all that tough, the NPC's bullets are at a level that can be ignored, but if Dust's gunshots are mixed in, the story changes. Dust, like PSY-Borg, relies on shooting as his main damage source, and since they deal knockback, taking them poorly can lead right into a combo."

Well, but, Kei opened his mouth.

"That tactic does have a fatal weakness, though."

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"What's wrong, Dust? Where's the encore?"

"Can we take a five-minute break?"

"Like hell I'd allow that!!"

Figured.
Guh, the Sheriff tactic was certainly effective, but it had a fundamental problem.
In Dance Guns Duel, while there were openings for reload animations, ammo was practically infinite.
But Dust has to throw punches to replenish his bullets. No matter how much I go on the offensive, consumption and replenishment just don't balance out.
Furthermore, the guns I borrowed from the NPCs are disposable, and if I keep firing wildly while including suppressive fire toward the "Valkyrie," I'll run out of ammo immediately.

"Types like you and Sylvia are a pain once your engines get going... but it looks like you don't have the toughness to pull it off with Dust."

"You sure talk big for someone with forty percent health... Whoops!"

As expected, this piece of junk tin can is annoying!
So the US #2 isn't just for show, huh... The current exchange of blows wasn't just a simple fistfight; a battle over how to force the "Valkyrie's" aggro onto the opponent was also unfolding in parallel.
From the results, I have to admit I'm one step behind in that regard. Consequently, my health is also just over fifty percent, and factoring in my ammo situation, I have to say I'm at a net disadvantage.

What to do? Am I the type of person to bleed for short-term gains? There's no guarantee I'll win in the end, and to begin with, too many things have gotten mixed up; even if I try to act cool about having a plot, the reality is just a shaky ad-lib.
In that state, do I have the resolve to bet on a losing gamble?

"I do."

"Ah?"

Ult, activate.

"Dust to Dust!!"

Betting on a gamble with bad odds is what you call romance; it's been my favorite thing ever since the day I first touched a game!!

Dust's Ult is categorically close to Cursed Prison's "Prison Break." It's a state-based ultimate move rather than an active one like Meteos's.
"Dust to Dust" is the name of the certain-kill, certain-death bullets bestowed upon Dust by Hellzebub, the highest authority of Hell in the Galaxia Label universe.
The bullets loaded in the guns temporarily vanish, and with one bullet loaded into each of the two guns, it's an Ult that deals massive damage on the condition that both bullets hit.

"You popped your Ult in the early game...?!"

"With that health, I can blow you away...!"

"Do it if you can!!"

The bullets generated by the Ult will vanish if not fired within twenty seconds. A twenty-second limit! Slam two shots into her!!

"Now, die fair and square...!"

I'll use you as a reference, Raid Boss-san!
If I point the muzzle at her, she has no choice but to opt for evasion. I aim for the opening created by her evasive action to close the distance and deliver a roundhouse kick, but it's shallow. As a counter, a loud noise with a damage hitbox from the speakers hanging at Crap-TV's waist strikes the right half of my body.

"Gh, oh...!!"

I fire the left gun. The grey bullet, flying straight and true, flies as if sucked into Crap-TV right after her attack, striking her right thigh.

"Damn it!!"

"That's one shot!!"

Don't panic, there's still over ten seconds. The "Valkyrie" readies her lance and charges at me. You're in the way; back off, you piece of junk!!
I throw the left gun that just fired "Dust to Dust." I'm not aiming for damage. If they're repurposing ShanFro systems... Named NPCs, I believed you would follow it with your eyes.

"The flaw of bipedalism!!"

A leg-sweep kick targeting the vulnerability of a shitty equilibrium where losing control of just one leg results in losing fifty percent of your balance!!

"Ten seconds left!!"

Crap-TV... damn it all! She's running away, just as I thought! Thanks for the perfect 100-point play! Then I have no choice but to do this!!

I ready my gun, hone my concentration... and fire.

The reverberation of the gunshot shakes the brief silence. Recognizing that there was no impact on her body, Crap-TV turns toward me───

"Yo, where were you aimin'— 'Divine Punishment'—Gah...!?"

Nobody ever said I used up all my ammo.
I threw away the NPC cop's gun after emptying the last hidden bullet in it, and she took the "Dust to Dust" fired from a Bakumatsu Quick Draw... commonly known as the "Overlapping Double-Shot Divine Punishment" stance, right in the face.

"It's the hour of judgment. Will you pray to God? Will you cling to a demon? Dust to Dust, you only have one answer... or so they say."

Condition fulfilled; the two bullets dug into Crap-TV emit light...

The swelling light rose like a pillar, giving birth to a cross of light before bursting.

Author's Afterword

• Bakumatsu Style Quick Draw
  A shooting technique created by the Restoration Faction, basically because they couldn't match the Shinsengumi side in terms of sword performance.
  It specializes in slamming bullets into the target by any means necessary, employing various methods to obscure the remaining ammo count. The "swapping technique" of instantly exchanging a held gun with a gun in the inventory to misrepresent the ammo count—used when Raid Boss-san turned Our Hero into a honeycomb—is famous.
  Other examples include the "Honeycomb Divine Punishment by luring them to a place hiding a massive amount of firearms beforehand," and the "Explosive Death Divine Punishment by planting gunpowder swiped from the fireworks shop into a dango shop to assassinate a specific player."
  By the way, the player who performed the dango shop Divine Punishment was plagued for a week by bad weather where fireworks and dango skewers rained from the sky.

Translator's Notes

• I still don't know whether to follow the furigana and call it "Dust to Dust" or have an extra word in there for rhythm: "From Dust to Dust". JP: 塵は塵に / Chiri wa Chiri ni